Disclaimer: I don't own the original idea of Redwall and its contents
Author note: Are you ready to rumble?
Stick with it, this may get more interesting :) this time im shooting for better bad guys and plot tell me what you think. (This only applies to people who read it.) :)
Sparkers
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Chapter 1- Mission Burn
"Reverse turn! Left . . . left, careful . . . wait for it Tali, watch his bally foot paw- Perigord defense! Upper reverse! No Tali, upper!. . .left parry, your blinkin' left I say! What in seasons?. . . Stop! In Martin's name, stop this instant! All right crew, that's it for tonight. Captain Taliaria, Report to me. The rest of you chaps and chapesses, get down to the mess hall!"
Taliaria sheathed her saber moodily, and approached the small officers platform. She stood at ease, panting after her spar, as Colonel Arrowall spoke in a disapproving undertone to Major Calibrace. Taliaria only caught the strong forceful words of the Major, but it was enough to know she was in trouble again.
"Im terribly sorry sah . . . no sah . . . ill see that it doesn't happen again, yes sah she does tend to get out of hand."
Taliaria scuffed the sand of the sparring grounds with a feeling of annoyance.The officers were always on her case. When the Colonel had left, the Major turned his attention on the rebellious captain. A grave expression was set of the features of the tall sand-colored hare, and his tone was quiet and questioning.
"Well, Tali, what was that all about eh m'gel?"
Taliaria looked at her foot paws and mumbled out an answer to the churned up dust.
"Sorry sah, wont do it again."
The Major raised his eyebrow at the young officer in front of him. She was young, maybe too young to be a captain, but what the Bagerlady wanted was law, and well, being an officer, Calibrace had to obey orders. His piercing, well-trained eyes bored into her, and she could not escape.
"I should bally well hope not, you nearly beheaded poor old Brand. You can't let yourself get carried away and start attackin' your sparring partner as if he was a vermin. Save that for the battle field young 'un, you must learn that not everyone with a weapon deserves to be smacked about."
"'m Very sorry sah, wont ever let it happen again."
Calibrace wasn't impressed. Taliaria was stubborn, hot headed, young, reckless and, did he mention stubborn? That hare could out-stand a rock if she didn't get her way. No experience, yet too much, that was her problem.She was over her head. The major always had a soft spot for the younger recruits, and he smiled slightly at the young captain scuffing the ground like a naughty child.
"Alright Captain, off you get to the mess hall. If I hold you back any longer there wont be anything left. Just remember what I said. Dismissed!"
Taliaria scampered off quickly, happy to be free from the piercing eyes of the Major.
* * *
The ocean pounded relentlessly on the shore beside the great fire mountain, and the silver moon reflected off the surface of the crashing waters. It was a cool summer night, with not a single breeze to stir the air that was heavy with the smell of the sea. The scene was peaceful to any observer on the shore, but for Sabertace, things were different.
A continuous barrage of pounding waves broke onto him as he swam desperately for the shore, his body numb with cold. Muscles aching from two days of swimming, the hare struggled against the onslaught of the waves. His mind and body reverberated with pain as each wave bucked and buffeted him. His breath ragged, his eyes blinded with salt he pressed desperately for the tide line. A piece of drift wood caught him full in the side, breaking a rib and sending shattering pain down his spine. Blinded by the terrible agony, he was unable to cry out and submerged beneath the surface. With a last desperate stroke of his arms and a kick of his legs, he caught a shore bound wave. His body rode the breaking crest and then was thrown to the bottom of its great bulk and smashed against the unyielding sandy bottom furthering his injuries. Finally, he was washed up to the tide line by the smooth, flat water that stretched up the shore, looking as if it never went as far up the sand as it wanted. Slowly, painfully, Sabertace opened one eye and gazed up at Salamandastron, his home. He had made it.
* * *
The moon filtered through the small rock window of Taliaria's dorm. She lay, staring at the low ceiling of her room, pondering about what Major Calibrace had said.
Im tired of being ordered around in my spars. I can't stand the officers anymore. I mean, did I really get out of hand?
Hehe yes, actually, you did. You should have seen yourself
Who are you and what are you doing in my thoughts?
Im your conscience silly. Im here to convince you of what is right.
Go away, you annoy me.
In your dreams. Heh, get it? 'In your dreams . . .'
This is ridiculous, I can't even stand my own conscience.
Taliaria jumped out of bed and pulled on a tunic. She was restless and her conscience was bothering her, so she decided to go for a walk.
Salamandastron code clearly states: No personnel except for designated guards and executive officers are allowed out of their bunks past torches out. But Taliaria dismissed the thought and quietly crept out of her room, thinking about taking a walk round the perimeter and visiting her two friends who were currently on guard duty. The moon cast ghostly shadows on the walls through the arrow slits along the projectile defense corridor and she hurried along, hoping she wouldn't get caught. It was cool in the carved stone passage ways, and no matter how softly she stepped, the emptiness of the place seemed to magnify the sound of her foot paws touching cold, stone floor. Turning the corner into the abandoned meeting hall, she slid past the spectral shadows of the empty chairs, hardly daring to breath, and went out the side of the mountain to a small outlook.Usually it was occupied by a talented archer, but there hadn't been a war threat for seasons. Outside it was considerably warmer, and Taliaria paused and took a breath before quickly scrambling down the concealed stairway that lead to the base of the great monolithic volcano.
*
Rathmall chuckled with glee as he and Sunster sat down upon the cool sand, laying their guard spears alongside of themselves. Sunster began unpacking various scones and muffins onto a small napkin, all of which he had pilfered from the kitchen. They were on guard Duty till dawn, but that never bothered them, as they always found some way to amuse themselves.
"Wonderful work Sunny me lad. Good thing 'ol Cooky didn't see you, would have lost yer blinken' paws."
Sunster smiled nonchalantly as he produced a bottle of cider.
"Not but the work of a moment sah. Nothin' can stop 'ol Sun n' Rath when it comes to an early brekkers."
Rathmall munched happily on a scone, he was a tall and lanky hare, with reddish fur and brilliant purple eyes. He enjoyed the more poetic forms of life, and wrote plenty of poems and prose. His mastery of words often got the two out of the trouble they continuously got themselves into.
His companion Sunster on the other hand was almost quite the opposite. Chocolate brown furred and much shorter that the average hare, Sunster was roguish and less eloquent then his tall friend, and he enjoyed life though other artful aspects.
The two companions were known throughout the mountain as 'the Terrible Duo'. The two hares were inseparable, and enjoyed making maps. They had been everywhere it seemed. And had maps to prove it. Some less accurate than others, but Rathmall's explanation for that was that they were "Scared to their absoballylute wit's end" while mapping that area.
Thanks to the two 'fearless adventurers', Salamandastron had quite an extensive cartography of the surrounding countryside and beyond.
Sunster leaned back against the solid rock of salamandastron and closed his eyes, it had been a long five minuets of patrolling. Rathmall was finishing off the scones, when the light patter of paws caught the tall hares' ears. Jumping up he stuffed the remaining scones in his mouth and pockets, pulling Sunster up.Grabbing their spears, they stood to attention and looked out across the shore line. Rathmall signaled for Sunster to look around the corner and see who was coming. Slowly on tip paws, the short hare peered around the corner and shot back to Rathmall. "It's the captain sah! Hurry up and finish that bally scone or were done for!." Rathmall began to chew furiously just as Taliaria rounded the corner.
"There you two are!"
Rathmall stopped chewing, his mouth still full of the scone, and Sunster stood to attention, his spear upside down. They both saluted.
"Marm!"
Rathmall simply nodded.
Taliaria was somewhat surprised. She did not expect such formalities from her friends, even though she was their officer.
"At ease. Something up? Why are you acting so formal?"
Sunster Glanced uneasily at Rathmall who was desperately chewing each time Taliaria turned her head away. Without his friends power over words, Sunster had a difficult time.
"Well er marm, er captain marm, um we were guarding and we, I er marm, um so we."
Rathmall quickly swallowed.
"I believe he was saying that we were surprised to see you, seeing as only executive officers are allowed out and about, we thought you must have been promoted!"
Taliaria looked doubtfully at the pair.
"Somehow, I don't believe a word of it, lieutenant major Rathmall."
"Well somehow I don't believe you were promoted, Capt'n Taliaria, you're defiantly not in what i'd call, formal wear wot!"
Taliaria looked down at herself, clad in her sleeping tunic, and Looked back up at the smirking Rathmall. She grinned.
"Ok. So were even. I won't say a word about this, and neither will you."
"Agreed marm. Uh, care for a scone?"
Rathmall swept his cloak off and laid it on the ground for his captain to sit on, and placed the now slightly squashed scones back onto their respective napkin. Sunster leaned on his still upside down spear and looked out across the softly shimmering water.
"So, what brings you out here at this time of night marm?"
"Oh nothing really I suppose, just my conscience bothering me."
Sunster shrugged. He really didn't know much about the conscience and all that rubbish. He contented himself to staring down the shoreline as Rathmall continued the conversation.
"Really? What was it saying? My bally conscience bothers me all the time doncha know."
"Im not sure, I guess it was arguing with me but-
Sunster cut them off, he was staring hard across the shoreline.
"I say! Look over there!"
Rathmall rolled his eyes, and muttered something about 'just tryin' to trick us'. He continued speaking to Taliaria as if nothing had happened.
"So anyway, it was arguing with you? How intriguing, never come across that in all me days. . ."
"There's somebeast on the shore line!"
"Really Rath? I thought lots of people argued with their mind.
"No no, its very uncommo-"
"He looks as if he is dead!"
"Oh bother, what is it Sunny?"
"Somebeast dead on the tide line sah!"
Taliaria looked out across the shore and could faintly make out the still form. There defiantly was a creature out there, but not necessarily dead. Quickly she snapped out orders to the two guards.
"Right. Rathmall, you head back to the infirmary and wake up Deligus. Sunster, come with me."
With that she dashed off down the tide line towards the un-moving figure. Sunster and Rathmall glanced at each other and shrugged simultaneously.
"Might as well do as the captain says sah."
* * *
One hour later, Captain Taliaria, Colonel Arrowall, Major Calibrace, Sunster, Rathmall, and the medic Deligus, had assembled in the forge room, along with Sabertace. They waited silently for their Badger lady to arrive. Taliaria glanced out the window at the sun that was just beginning to peak up over the sand dunes in the east. So far she hadn't received any reprimands from the Major about being up after hours, but she was fully aware that once all this was cleared up she would get a nice talking to. Her thoughts were interrupted for the moment as Lady Celarianth entered. The Badger towered over her Officers as she glared forcefully at Colonel Arrowall. She was not pleased with having to wake so early.
"Report!"
The colonel saluted smartly and replied in his usual soft voice.
"Major Sabertace has returned from the mission marm. But in poor condition, Luckily these three found him on the shore, or the gulls would have finished him off."
Deligus stepped forward and made the medical report.
"Dehydration, minor concision, blood loss, over-exposer and Broken bottom left rib marm. Thankfully no internal bleeding. I don't know how long he will stay conscious marm."
Celarianth spotted Sabertace and rushed over to him, kneeling down in front of his chair.
"Report Major! Was your mission accomplished?"
Sabertace nodded weakly.
"Losses?"
"He . . . the shadow . . . is coming. ."
"What was that Sabertace?"
The Bedraggled major shut his eyes and bowed his head. Not speaking. Celarianth moved closer to his face speaking louder this time.
"What did you say Major!?"
She waited but it looked as if the Major had fallen unconscious again. Standing slowly she sighed heavily.
"Its no use. He can't manage such an interrogation in that state. Put him in the sick bay, and have him report when he wakes. Dismissed."
When Taliaria returned to her room, she lay on her bunk thinking about the eerie words the major and said. She shivered slightly, wondering what on earth he meant. The shadow was coming. What did he mean by that?
The Shadow was coming.
