The next morning, the party of berrypickers sat at the gate. They looked nervous as Justyn and Triss, Jarren and Thyre, all armed, walked around them. Jarren and Thyre would repeatedly come together to converse in hushed tones. Finally, Triss spoke loud enough for them all to hear. "Listen to me! We are going into the woods today, but you must follow our instructions. One of us will be in front. Another in the back, and one on either side. The young ones will be in the center, with the older on the outside. If we say run, you will run. This is for your own protection."

Crikulus and other Redwallers that were not in the party opened the gate. The party walked out, uncharacteristically quiet. None of the escort's eyes were still. They darted everywhere, taking in everything. The picking went on unmolested all morning. As the party sat and ate lunch, Thyre walked up to Triss and spoke to her. "I'm going to have a look around," he said. "Just because we haven't been attacked yet is no cause to celebrate. We can still be attacked, and we need to be watchful."

Triss nodded and Thyre ran out of the campsite. As the squirrel looked around, climbing up rocks, trees, and other high points, he always kept one ear turned back towards the Redwallers. He came to a small cluster of red sandstone rocks. Climbing the tallest one, he looked around. Then a voice sounded out.

"Thyre!"

Thyre spun, whipping out his sword and pointing it in the direction of the call. Triss stood there, her own sword drawn. She looked around the clearing. "Have you found any sign of them?"

Thyre shook his head. "Not yet. But still, that doesn't give them cause to…" He stopped suddenly, looking away from them. He turned back to Triss. "Get out of here. Get back to the others and tell them to get to Redwall as fast as they can. Don't come back for me."

Triss looked in the direction he was facing. "Is it them?"

"Just go, Triss. Run! Run!"

Triss ran. Thyre turned and descended the rock, sword drawn as he faced down the group of vermin that crashed into the clearing. They stood there for a moment, surprised to see him. Then, one charged. Thyre raised his sword, and, as the ferret swung his own blade, dodged. His sword flashed and stabbed into the ferret's back. Thyre pulled the sword out just in time to slice a weasel across the stomach. He fell to the ground, screaming as Thyre slashed a fox from right shoulder to left hip across his front. Spinning, Thyre ducked under the blow of a ferret and then beheaded a rat. Blocking a pair of blows from another attacker, he spun low and slashed the ferret's legs out from under him before stabbing downwards. More vermin came, driving him up the sandstone. Thyre brained one sending him tumbling into his fellows as he turned aside a strike, bringing his footpaw up into the rat's stomach and then bringing his sword down on its skull.

He looked up as a voice shouted above the clamor. "Bring me prisoners! Kill any that resist!"

More vermin began to run past. Thyre turned and leapt from the rock, landing on two vermin. Rolling over, he thrust his sword into the stomach of a fox wielding a spear. The fox's body fell on him, pinning him for a moment. He saw two vermin rush past him, only to be downed by a javelin and a flying stone.

Justyn and Jarren ran into the clearing, slashing with their weapons. Thyre heaved the fox's body off of him and turned, slicing his sword upwards and cleaving a weasel from stomach to throat. Justyn stabbed a rat in the chest before turning to him and shouting. "Thyre, go! Get back to Triss and the others!"

Thyre ran as the other two fled in another direction, drawing some of the vermin off. He flew through the branches, now following a single repeating cry of "Redwaaaaalll!" Thyre jumped from the branches into a clearing. Triss was standing in the center, surrounded by vermin bodies. As she slew another attacker, Thyre landed, stabbing his sword into the throat of a stoat sneaking up behind her. Pulling his sword out, he turned and began fighting back to back with her. They stood their ground, slashing and stabbing at the mob of vermin that was now pouring from the trees. During a lull in the assault, Triss whispered to him. "Where are Justyn and Jarren?"

"They drew some of them off," Thyre whispered back. "I don't know where they are now."

The vermin charged again. Blood flowed. Swords flashed. Screams and battle cries filled the air. As they fought, Thyre thought of something. "Speaking of Justyn and Jarren, where are the others?"

"I sent them back to Redwall after I heard you fighting. They know the way."

After a particularly ferocious assault the vermin fell back. The resulting quiet allowed Triss and Thyre to hear a distant call. "Redwaaaall! Redwaaaaaaalll!"

Triss's eyes filled with worry. "That's our battle cry."

Thyre ran past her. "We need to help them." They both ran from the clearing, fighting as they went.

In another clearing, Justyn and Jarren were protecting the party of Redwallers, which, in a panic, had lost their way and had been discovered by the vermin. Jarren fought attackers off, whirling his javelin with long-honed skill, taking down one foe after another. Justyn shouted again. "Redwaaaaaalll!" In response, more vermin came through the trees. Jarren turned to the others. "Run!" he shouted. "Run!"

Justyn took the Redwallers, and, calling for them to stay together, led them away from the fight. Jarren continued fighting, his weapon whirling and stabbing and striking. He drew his dirk and began fighting with one in each paw. None got past him. Then, he heard a whistling, followed by a blinding pain and an impact that knocked him back a few steps. He looked at his shoulder. A long, black-feathered arrow had struck him and blood was flowing from the wound. He looked up.

Valcyn stood on top of a low rise, a bow in one paw and a quiver of arrows on his back. Jarren took all of this in within a very short time, getting back to the fight as more vermin reached him.

Valcyn scowled. As his vermin charged past him, he took another arrow and readied it, sighting down the shaft. Below, Jarren slashed two other vermin across their chests. They dropped and Jarren stabbed a third with his dirk. Valcyn let fly. This one hit Jarren in his middle. The otter stumbled backwards again.

Jarren grunted as Valcyn's second arrow struck him. He didn't stay still for long, however, stabbing a ferret in the throat and a weasel in the chest with his dirk and javelin. Pulling his weapons out, he spun, keeping the vermin away from him. He fought until they had him backed up to a tree. Blocking one attack with his javelin's haft, he stabbed the foe in the chest and then with his dirk stabbed downward into a ferret's eye. The vermin fell to the ground screaming as Jarren brought his javelin up to ward off another blow. His eyes widened in shock as the shaft broke, showing splinters that hit his face. He threw the dirk and hit a stoat in the chest before a third arrow from Valcyn struck him in the heart. As he collapsed against the tree the vermin moved in to finish him, but Valcyn stopped them.

"Who knows how many others they could have? We will return to the fortress and come back later. Now! Come!"

The vermin followed their leader as he ran from the field. Jarren, breathing heavily, looked around. He spotted Thyre bursting from the trees with Triss almost on top of him, and smiled, closing his eyes as his friend spotted him.

Thyre and Triss burst into the clearing, Thyre gaping at what he saw.

Vermin corpses carpeted the ground. Dropped weapons lay everywhere, and at the edge of it all, lying against a tree, was…

"Jarren!" Thyre ran towards his fallen friend, trampling vermin bodies as he reached the tree where the otter lay dying. Jarren was breathing heavily with three arrows in his torso. One in his shoulder, one in his middle, and another in his heart. His javelin lay close by, cloven in two pieces. His dirk stuck out of the chest of a stoat a short distance away.

The otter opened his eyes a fraction. "Thyre…" he whispered. "…I…I'm so sorry…"

Thyre shook his head. "Don't say that, Jarren. You're not dead yet. Triss, help me lift him. We'll take him back to Redwall and…and…"

Jarren was shaking his head. "No." he whispered. "It's…too much, Thyre. I can't…I can't live through this. Valcyn was a good shot."

Thyre's paws clenched. "Valcyn."

Jarren's breath became more and more labored. "The others…got away…Justyn took them back…Thyre, please…help the others…don't let their lives…be in vain."

Thyre clasped one of Jarren's paws in his own. "I will, Jarren. You have my word. And Valcyn will pay as well."

Jarren's breath was now coming in short gasps, few and far between. "Thyre…don't…don't leave me…Thyre, come back…"

Thyre embraced his friend awkwardly, his slim body filling the gaps between the arrows. "I'm not going anywhere, Jarren. I'm right here."

"Don't…don't leave me…Thyre! Please…don't…"

Jarren's head fell back. His chest grew still. His eyes closed. Thyre hugged him even tighter, tears flowing unrestrained down his face. "No…Jarren, no…not you…of all creatures…no…"

Triss reached out and put a paw on his shoulder. Thyre didn't react. He sobbed into his friend's fur, tears mixing with the flowing blood. "Jarren…please…come back."

They sat there for hours, until the sun was setting. Thyre never stopped crying all that time. Finally, red eyed and grave, he straightened, hesitantly letting go of Jarren as if he was afraid that if he let go, Jarren's body would disappear. "Help me carry him. We're taking him back to Redwall."

Triss nodded and lifted Jarren's legs. The squirrels carried the otter's body back to Redwall. Triss had to let go to knock on the gate, and Thyre collapsed under the weight of Jarren's body. As Crikulus opened the gate, he turned first to Triss. "Justyn said that you were attacked and…" he paused at Triss's rapidly shaking head. She silently pointed to Thyre, who had his face buried in Jarren's fur.

Crikulus made to help them with the burden, but Thyre shook his head. "I'll bury him myself."

Triss hesitantly walked away, followed by Crikulus.

Thyre knelt in the open gate, still holding Jarren's body as the moon began to rise.

Aw... Anyways, I'll still post more than two chapters, even though this one was long. It was originally supposed to be two chapters, but I decided that the death chapter was a bit short. R and R! Bemoan your feelings!