Chapter VI
As he finished tying the last mooring line to the sharp rocks all along the beach, Guilin Curlclaw wiped sweat from his brow and squinted toward the rat Captain that was busy harassing his fellow moles.
"Vurmint! Why don't ye peeks a foght wit a beastie ye own size!" Guilin snarled out worried that the elderly moles might collapse soon out of exhaustion.
Reveret looked toward the younger mole as he finishing lashing at another and snapped back, "Shut yer snout stupid mole. I kin take ya on any ole day!"
"Koindly remove moi bonds and oi will show Ye a fight in' moler iffn er ever wus one," Guilin called back to the vermin even as his grandfather tugged at his arm.
"Guilin! Tis enuf! We bees all drown's in dat gulf iffn Ye Keep a yappin' like a fool," Muskee ordered gruffly.
Reveret sneered at the both of them preparing to give them both a severe lashing when one of the other vermin captains appeared from the nearby hill.
"Reveret! That's enough for now. Them stupid moles need to get their rest. We got more work fer em in the morning," the other rat told him. The younger one glared at Guilin, but listened to his superior and left toward the nearby vermin camp where his comrades were feasting.
The mole rubbed his belly as it aches wishing to go and steal a morsel from the camp but Guilin wasn't that big of a fool.
Turning his attention to his grandfather and the other moles who were chained to the mooring line alongside him and he lowered his snout apologetically.
"Surry grundpapi,sumtimes oi juz kan't keentrol moi spake," Guilin admitted as the other moles gathered around and all of them tried not to cry considering the predicament they were in.
It had been almost springtime when they had been in the southwest lands, and nearly all summer since they had even stepped foot on land. It was enough to make them all weary and depressed, especially when their numbers once were nearly sixty and as Guilin looked around he realized it had dropped to nearly half that size.
"Vurmints they will keel us all iffn they have their way," Muskee muttered as he patted his grandmole's shoulder gently, reassuring him that they all understood his frustration.
Guilin could hardly even remember the peaceful seasons before the raiders had attacked, he had been just past a dibbun when the marauding vermin came to the southwest shore. Now, having spent seasons as a slave he was beginning to wonder if he would ever see freedom again.
"Nowday tellin' about Murr werk? And ders murr vurmin than ever," Syltee, a young female mole worried.
"We gots to do sumtin' grundpapi, But wot ken we do?" Guilin asked as the small group of moles huddled together, trying to hold onto what little hope they had left.
"We gots to lookin' at de pussiteve. We backs on dry lernd and dat is sumtin oi nose oi thankee fer," Muskee commented as he smelled the fresh autumn air.
"An' iffn them villyans er takin' uss'n further from dis ship, merbe we moight herve a chance at erscap," Syltee realized and a few of the other moles nodded in excitement.
"We gunna herve tabee kurfel, iffn we mess'r up them vurmin..." Muskee began worriedly as he tried not to think of his dear departed wife.
"Dunnit woree grundpapi, we molers are smurtee then them givin' uss'n credit fer," Guilin told his family member as they hugged for a brief moment.
Night had fallen over the dunes as they all warmed themselves near a small bonfire that Guilin had made with a few stray pieces of driftwood, and he smelled the salty air of the ocean one last time certain that tomorrow he would able to find a way out of this mess.
XXXXXXX
When the new day did come, Behaziel was the one to rouse them from their sleep; yanking Guilin up by his shirt collar he announced, "Look alive mole! We're movin' out to the south dunes!"
Curlclaw gently rubbed his sore muscles as he watched the other vermin raiders unhook the chain they were strapped to from the Foxwolf and then pass the main buckle to Captain Nazier who was busy picking the last bit of trout from his sharp teeth.
The sight of food alone gave the mole a reason to press onward in the murky sands, following their vermin captors toward a narrow stretch of dunes that seemed to be the southern edge of this beach.
As Guilin occasionally glanced toward the foothills in the northeast he realized the procession was being watched by Selah herself along with a large group of uncivilized vermin. Then gain I don't know if I have ever met a civil vermin, the mole thought with a soft smile.
Whatever task they have us doing must be for their new allies, Guilin reasoned. Which means if things go bad maybe the vermin will also turn on each other. It was a thrilling prospect to be sure, but for now they all marched obediently over the dunes.
As he expected the sands ended and transformed into a marshy stretch of mud and tall grass filled with all shorts of slopes and decaying trees. Behaziel paused at the edge of the dunes and muttered, "All right, you moles say you do best in these filthy holes so let's see if what ye be talkin' bout is true. They've got jewels buried all about this mess, so get your claws to diggin'."
Guilin looked toward the thick mud, an idea forming in his head as he said, "Beggin' yer purdon Cap'n, But des hurr chains be offul hard te dig in. Ken we moorbe get a liddle slack? Wud make de diggin' a houl lot ferster."
Behaziel stared at the mole for a long moment as though he were insane and snarled, "Ye take me for a fool? I know you would try to escape!"
Guilin thought quickly and replied, "Onest Cap'n, we be fine diggurs but de mud be slowerin' us dewn. Ye could watch as we dug, maken sur we didn't runoff or ernethin."
The rat Captain seemed to consider it for a moment, looking back to where Selah and the others were now busy quarreling over something else and nodded reluctantly.
"Ye best be tellin' the truth mole. I won't hesitate to cut Ye te ribbons!" Behaziel said as he began to undo the chains.
His fellow moles looked to see what Guilin might do for now but all the young mole did was salute smartly to the Captain and trudge toward the marshlands.
He knew that if they really wanted to make it away from this alive he would need to get a lay of the land first, which meant pretending to do the hard labor while searching every corner of the marsh for an exit strategy.
The other moles followed him toward the grimy mud and watched as he began to dig causing Syltee to whisper, "Wut be de plan, Guilin?"
He scooted close to her and whispered back, "Werkn a few howurs and when de vurmin guard is down, we'izzn erscapin!"
She nodded before the rat Captain had saw them talking and began to dig about in the mud, pretending to search for the treasure the vermin sought and listening to the strange sounds of the marsh.
Syltee was not dumb, she knew the real reason the vermin had sent them to the pit was to avoid the risk of running into roads who were notorious for living amongst the muck. But one thing she didn't think the vermin realized was most toadies slept during the day, meaning the chances of their escape could be even higher. Softly humming to herself the female mole followed the others thru the wetlands, certain their freedom was just over the next bend.
XXXXXX
As the midday sun caused all of the moles to break a sweat in the swampy grass, Guilin had spotted at least seven sleeping toads that were watching them from the edge of the mud, too exhausted from their nocturnal activities to Bother the moles, Guilin also made certain to keep the mole team digging in the central swamp.
Although he was sure the treasure that the vermin wanted was likely sitting right underneath the toadies, he really didn't have any concern for it. Over the past hour his eyes had been fixed on a sloping group of cliffs that ended the swamp in the northeast. If we have a chance to run, that will be the spot, he realized.
But after they had finished lunch, and making certain to double the raiders that watched them dig, Guilin was certain the chance was coming soon as the vermin tended to get a bit sleepy during the afternoon hours.
Just as the toadies started to stir and move about the mud, Perhaps considering the moles to now be a threat Guilin decided it was now or never.
"Cummon molers!" He shouted as he raised up a rock that was in a nearby pile of mud and hurled it straight toward the toad. Luckily the creature had no clue where the object had come from and instead had thought one of the vermin watchers was the thrower.
As the vermin heard him making a ruckus they took out their weapons and were about to enter the muddy grass themselves when more toads crept out from the swamp, all angrily bloating their faces as they protected their homeland.
The moles wasted no time taking advantage of the distraction and followed Guilin toward the cliff.
From what he had observed the cliff was made of soft red dirt, perfect for mole claws and as he dug into it he found that he was correct.
His grundpapi stood alongside him constantly looking back toward the vermin who nervously were shooing the toadies away.
As the dirt fell away and provided them an exit, Guilin began to feel his spirits lift. And then a cry of pain came from Maskee and he turned to see an arrow had run thru his leg.
"Dunnit stop diggin Guilin! Get yur fat butt outter here afore they commin!" his grundpapi shouted as the young mole realized he had to make an impossible choice.
Quickly he pushed forward in the tunnel and then turned to his grundpapi to say goodbye. The two shed tears as Guilin collapsed the front of the tunnel, encasing the other moles inside the dank cave.
There was no time for sorrow he knew as he rushed toward the frontline and kept digging even as he heard angry vermin trying to get thru the collapse.
He didn't remember how long he dug, and he didn't remember how far they went. But finally they found more soft topsoil and the moles turned their claws upward to work on getting to fresh air again.
Guilin led the way into a grassy pasture, at least several hours away from the vermin and for the first time he smelt freedom.
For a long moment Guilin closed his eyes and remembered his grundpapi, the memory of all the other moles who had longed for this moment and he made a promise.
For as long as I am free I will treasure their dream, and stop the vermin from taking that same freedom away from any beast.
