24: Pax and Plans

24: Pax and Plans

Rakkety Tam McBurl was no fool. When Lin did not appear at the appointed time, the border warrior gathered his four companions together for a consultation.

"Lin an' I had an agreement that she could go scouting until sunset. That was yesterday, an' I haven't seen hide or hair of 'er. I've already decided that I'm goin' to go look fer her, but what about ye lot? Are ye goin' to stay here, or'll ye come with me?"

Doogy answered immediately. "We should find 'er! 'Tis our duty!"

Tam nodded. "I thought ye'd say that. We have a big scoutin' task ahead of us, mates. Let's do it well!"

Redbud saluted. "Aye, sah, will do, wot!"

Shorelad scratched his ear. "But wot about when we do find her, sah? She's prob'ly bein' held captive by some blinkin' foebeast, wot!"

Tam smiled. The sword across his back glittered as he tapped his hilt. "We're all warriors. I think we can take care 'o ourselves, eh?"

Nobeast answered this. The answer was all too clear.

Without further argument the two squirrels and three hares set about their duties of breaking camp. The haversacks were packed, the fire extinguished with sand. Redbud and Crosow gathered stones and shells for their slings, while the other three tended to their blades. All was done in general silence, each creature thinking their own thoughts about the future.

When everything was ready, Tam slung his pack over his shoulder. "Well, let's get movin'." He fastened the end of their thin climbing rope to his paw. "I'll call when this rope's in place. Doogy, you'll follow up as a rear guard, just in case. Ye never know who's lurkin' about in the Northlands."

It was but a moment later when the border warrior's voice echoed down to Doogy and the hares. "Ye can climb up; the rope's secure."

They scrambled up the rope, one at a time. It took some time for them all to reach the clifftop, but they made it.

Tam was waiting for them. He beckoned them forward, speaking to each in turn. "Shorelad, I want ye an' Crosow to scout ahead of the rest of us. Report back if'n ye spot anythin'. Redbud, can ye act as a backscout, just in case those two miss anythin'? Doogy an' I'll be nearby, scoutin' from the treetops."

The haremaid nodded, casually twirling her sling. "That I'll do sah, never fear, wot!"

Doogy smiled. "Right, then let's get movin'. Can't be laggin' aboot, can we?"

The group split up. Redbud roamed through the trees, staying under cover as she studied each root and clump of moss. She was an excellent tracker and scout, like most of the Long Patrol hares, and could find a story where most would see ordinary woodland. Her keen eyes darted about, looking for any trace of her squirrelmaid friend.

Hours passed. The sun was high in the sky when Redbud heard pawsteps. She crouched, gripping her sling. She had no need to worry, however. Crosow came dashing through the undergrowth, an urgent look on his face.

Tam and Doogy, having heard the din of the hare's approach, came rocketing through the branches. Doogy leaped at the young hare, grabbing him and growling in his ear, "Be quiet, ye young fool! Ye'll bother everybeast in the Northlands! I hope nae foebeast is anywhere aboot!"

Crosow was panting from his speedy run, but he answered quickly. "I don't know about any flamin' foebeast, but I saw a big black squirrel with a spear standin' by a tree, wot! I hid an' watched 'im. He started chunnerin' to 'imself about a black squirrel with a blinkin' axe that somebeast 'ad jolly well taken captive, wot! I came back t' report as flippin' fast as I could, sahs."

Tam looked sharply at him. "Talkin' about a squirrel with an axe, eh? did ye see anybeast else around?"

Crosow shook his head. "No, sah. The only other jolly thing I saw was –"

"Ahoy chaps! Get ready to move fast, wot!"

Redbud spun around at the sound of Shorelad's voice. She shouted back, "What d' you mean? Are you being followed?"

Shorelad hove into view around a large elm. "No bloomin' beast is followin' me. I saw Lin."

Tam rushed forward. Grabbing the young hare by the shoulders, he exclaimed, "Where? Was she injured? How was –"

Shorelad held up his paws. "No time for that, wot! Lin's in the middle of a bloomin' fight with a black squirrel; haven't the foggiest idea why. Lin's holdin' her own, but she could use help, wot wot!"

Crosow, although worn out from his mad dash through the forest, set out in the direction from which Shorelad had come. "Let's get this flippin' fight over with, chaps. C'mon, Shorelad, old bean, lead the way, wot!"

The group dashed off through the trees, not even thinking of their own safety. They were determined to get their friend to safety.

Tam glanced at Doogy as they ran. "Any idea who these black squirrels are, mate?"

Doogy winked. "Aye, I've 'eard o' a tribe o' black squirrels in these parts. They're called Foeseekers, warriors who'll attack anybeast who's not one o' 'em. Sometimes they'll even pick on one o' their own. They're bloodthirsty hooligans, ye ken."

Tam gritted his teeth. "Sounds like we'll have our job cut our fer us then."

"Hush!"

Shorelad held up his paw, stopping so suddenly that Redbud almost ran into him. The hare peered about cautiously. "We're at the edge of the squirrels' camp." He pointed to a pine tree in the middle of the sea of tents. "Lin's under that tree, fightin' the other squirrel, wot!"

Tam looked grim. "Good trackin', Shorelad. Let's go help her."

Redbud's ears suddenly stiffened. "Did you hear that?"

††

"Redwaaaallllll!"

As Lin's shout died away, Slarave mocked her. "Redwall? What's that supposed to mean, may I ask?"

Another squirrel, one of the elite guard, snarled roughly, "It doesn't matter. She won't make another sound when we're done with 'er!"

Lin actually laughed. "D'you really think that?"

The squirrel looked puzzled. Slarave hissed at him, "Get her, Frildric you fool! Get her!"

The squirrel Frildric rushed at Lin, only to have his mouth filled with loam as the squirrelmaid sidestepped neatly, tripping him up with her axe handle. At almost the same instant, an answer to Lin's shout echoed around the camp.

"Redwaaaallllll!"

Rakkety Tam McBurl and Wild Doogy Plumm, backed by three Long Patrol hares, came charging into the circle of squirrels. Gasps and cries of shock and alarm echoed through the small crowd as the five warriors grouped about Lin, weapons at the ready.

Lin smiled. "I was wondering when you bunch were going to turn up. Couldn't resist a good battle, eh?"

Tam was the only one who had not drawn his weapon, knowing its tendency to shock his opponent with its simple, deadly beauty. He placed his paw on the hilt as he answered his young friend in the same wry tone. "Oh, we were enjoyin' our stroll when ye had to yell at us. why'd ye do it, eh? The enemy not worthy of yer attention?"

Lin motioned toward Slarave, her voice hardening. "This coward decided that I wasn't fit to look upon her, and got some of her fighters to attack me. It wasn't exactly a one-on-one fight, so I thought that I would call in some reinforcements of my own."

Doogy brandished his claymore, growling, "Sounds like a true vermin, lassie. Almost like yer vermin fellow, wotsisface, Groomyer!"

"Groomyer the Ruthless?!"

Lin was taken aback by the look in Slarave's eyes. Most of the Foeseeker squirrels stared at the squirrelmaid, a mixture of shock and fascination written on their faces. Lin looked back at them, equally astonished.

Slarave's voice cut through the squirrelmaid's thoughts. "Groomyer? He and his vile horde wiped out half our tribe! Where is he? We've sworn vengeance with that murderer!"

Lin found herself speaking aloud. "Then we should make peace with each other and attack our common enemy. We shouldn't be fighting each other like this."

Slarave dismissed her guard. "The maid speaks the truth. We shall arrange peace between us. come with me to the meeting tent. We shall settle terms there."

††

Lin, Tam, Doogy, and the three hares sat at one end of the semi-large meeting tent. With them was Oakfur, who had quickly become acquainted with Lin's companions. Opposite the group were Slarave and her cohorts. There was no tension in the air, contrary to Lin's expectations. In fact, everybeast seemed quite at ease.

Lin opened the discussion. "Slarave, tell me exactly what Groomyer did to your tribe."

Slarave gritted her teeth, a distant look appearing in her eyes. "It was like this. Our tribe was huge, numbering at about twelve hundred. We were split into three groups because of our numbers. There were roughly four hundred in each group, which was called a clan, and we spread out through the Northlands to balance out the number of creatures and the food sources.

"Well, six seasons ago, Groomyer and his horde landed on the northern shores to re-supply their food stores. One of the Foeseeker clans was camped there, and they opposed Groomyer. That murderous fox attacked them with his huge horde, wiping out almost three hundred of our creatures.

"Then he did something that is almost unheard of, even among warlords. There were two or three ill creatures aboard his ships. Apparently his healers said that it was a highly contagious disease, and that the ill ones should be killed or abandoned. Groomyer decided to use that to his advantage. He captured about a score of Foeseeker squirrels and chained them in the same cabin as the ill beasts. As soon as all the squirrels were showing signs of the disease, he released them. The poor squirrels arrived back in camp carrying the unknown disease. The entire clan was quickly infected, and every one of them became sick. A few recovered, but most did not.

"By then one of the other clans had gotten wind of what had happened, and they sent their warriors to attack Groomyer. The fox retaliated violently, killing many of our warriors through trickery. Then the Foeseeker warriors came upon their ill clanbeasts. As had happened before they were all infected, most dying. About a score of them recovered and returned to tell the tale, but our tribe had lost one entire clan and half of another, reducing our numbers to below six hundred. We were forced to join up into one huge clan, the one you see today."

There was silence as Slarave finished her tale. The Foeseekers were thinking back to that time when they lost so many friends and family members. Lin, Tam, Doogy, and the hares were thinking about how they would feel if half of their tribe was wiped out in a single season.

It was Slarave who broke the silence. "Now, tell me how you have come to know of Groomyer, Lin."

The squirrelmaid related the tale, leaving out nothing. When she finished, Slarave sat for several moments, thinking through the facts. Finally she spoke. "I think that we have been led together for a reason, Lindenton Tarenta. We Foeseekers have ships. They were given to us by a tribe of otters who captured them from various groups of corsairs. The illness that wiped out half of us also struck the otters, of who about a hundred survived. They decided to take one ship and sail south, as they didn't like the hostile climate of the Northlands. They gave the remaining five ships to us, saying that we would someday need them."

Lin was counting on her paws. She looked up at Slarave. "How many Foeseekers are still alive?"

Slarave whispered with her cohorts for a moment before she replied. "About thirty-two and a half score. Why?"

Lin did not answer this question immediately. "How many creatures can fit on the five ships?"

Again Slarave held a brief whispered conference with her group. Then she gave her answer. "Total, all five ships can carry thirty-seven score, give or take a few."

Lin's eyes sparkled with excitement. "So, that would mean plenty of extra room on the ships. Perfect!" She seemed about to continue with her statement, but abruptly turned back to Slarave. "Can your tribe sail the ships?"

Slarave seemed indignant. "Of course we can! The otters taught us how when they gave us the ships. In fact, we have an entire crew for each. Each crew has taken their ship out at least twice for fishing and scouting."

Lin nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Could you send the crews to bring the ships down to the caves on the beach? That would make an excellent place to prepare to sail."

Slarave nodded. "Aye, that I will do." She held out her paw. "Then it is peace, friend?"

Lin nodded. The two warriors shook paws as the squirelmaid declared, "It is peace!"

The Foeseeker history is interesting and sad, no? I mentioned that the attack and resulting illness occurred "six seasons ago." That means about a season before Tarenta was taken over. Groomyer and his horde sailed from the Northlands almost directly down to Tarenta. They might have made o few short stops along the way, but they had just over a half season between the Northlands and Tarenta, so they had to hurry (somewhat). ;-)

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Foeseeker