Chapter 25
Wraythan cradled his dead father, weeping. Soon his sobs of sadness became snarls of anger. The Warlord look to the searat Captain.
"You! Kill those otter and I will triple your reward! Kill them AAAAALLL!" he screamed. Gaurano gave Wraythan a smart salute.
"Harrgh, I've been a-itchin' ta put ye outta yer misery, riverdog!" Guarano laughed, equipping both cutlass and sabre out. Wraythan looked to his late father's guards.
"As for you lot, kill the squirrel, kill the mouse, kill the hedgehog, kill the fox, kill the hare, kill the shrew! Kill! Kill!"
Wraythan slunk off carrying his father's corpse. Brandishing his sword, Martin looked around, his five warriors were outmatched by almost two dozen vermin. Rats, weasels, ferrets, and stoats were all dressed in the finest silver armor from head to footpaw. They all encircled the seven woodlanders.
"Well, here we go, let's show these heathens what a true warrior looks like!" Martin exclaimed.
"REDWALLL!"
"EULALIAAAA!"
OOOTTTEEERHOOOLTRAAA!"
"LOGALOGALOGALOG!"
Martin jumped forward, swinging his broadsword at an armored weasel. The weasel easily blocked the attack, and punted the Warriormouse hard, staggering him for a brief moment. The weasel went in for the kill, but Martin quickly regained himself and he sidestepped from the weasel's spear thrust. He backpawed at the vermin's back, his backpaw was so powerful it caused the vermin to sprawl. Guarano yelled and swung both swords at the dagger wielding Amalgan. However, Amalgan had the upperpaw. The two swords Gaurano carried made him slow and heavy, whereas Amalgan could easily sidestep his way around his enemy. The otter slide underneath the searat Captain and dealt the corsair a hefty uppercut. Guarano stepped back, blood dripped from both nostrils, he dropped his sabre. Amalgan quickly picked it up and pointed the it at Guarano's neck.
"Surrender ya mangy seabeast!" Amalgan shouted.
"Never!" Guarano shouted back, showing his yellow and dingy teeth. Now it was a proper sword fight, Gaurano batted away the sabre that was inches away from his neck. The searat captain sidestepped and tried to slice through Amalgan's jugular, but the son of Cheek and Sandra saw this coming, and he blocked the corsair's attack. Zyantu took on two armored guards, a stoat and a rat. Twirling his sabre, the fox smiled, he threw off his cloak and unkinked his neck.
"So much better, that thing was getting itchy!"
The stoat and rat rushed the fox, but being a fox meant he was a few steps ahead. Zyantu jumped back and sidestepped the stoat, he leaned his footpaw, and tripped the vermin. They landed with a loud clang, but quickly got up. The stoat charged at Zyantu thrusting his spear hither an thither, but the odds were in the heroic fox's favor. He stepped back dodged the blows from the spear, ran up to the stoat, and dealt him a hard uppercut with his swordpaw. The stoat's helmet came flying off, and it bonked the rat, dazing him. Zyantu smiled.
"I got a weakspot!" Zyantu laughed
"So you think!" the stoat laughed back. The stoat came in like a thunderbolt, this time the odds were no longer in Zyantu's favor, the stoat tackled the fox, causing him to drop his sabre. The stoat tried to drive the spear into his opponent's neck, but Zyantu was not ready to die. Using his strength, Zyantu gritted his fangs and threw the stoat off of him. The stoat rushed at Zyantu again, that was the armored vermin's fatal mistake! Zyantu drove the sabre into the stoat's exposed neck, killing the beast instantly. Elkor and Martin stood back to back, sword and double edged pike staff, against half a dozen vermin. Elkor smiled and twirled his staff, whereas Martin held his sword tightly with both paws. A ferret and a rat stepped in and attempted to impale the duo, but they were already prepared. Elkor sprang high up in the air and impaled a weasel through his helmet! Large globs of blood seeped out of the vermin's helmet. Elkor wiped the fresh blood from his staff.
"Hahaha, izzat the best ya can do? C'mon!" the squirrel taunted. About five armored vermin rushed him, Elkor jumped back and thrusted the pike staff into the neck of a stoat, then sidestepped and thrusted his weapon into the back of a weasel. He continued this process until all of his foes were all slain. Martin was still locked in combat with two of his vermin. Martin nimbly dodged the spear thrust and swung the mighty sword! It cleaved through the ferret's neck! The vermin dropped to his knees, his head roll off of his shoulders. Martin saw his other opponent, the rat had dropped his guard, it was the perfect chance to give him the final blow. Martin sprinted towards the rat, before the armored rat had anytime to react, Martin drove the his superior blade right into the heart of his adversary's chest. The rat died before he even hit the floor. Hamlus and Raygo found themselves surrounded by rats, and ferrets, beasts that towered over them. Raygo glupped his paws shaking like a branch in the summer wind.
"Ulp, I-I guess t-this it?" Raygo stammered. His partner however was the optimistic one. Hamlus held his sword in both paws and shouted with determination.
"No, we will live to see tomorrow, Raygo! You have my word!"
"That's the spirit, Hamlus, now let's show these scum we mean business!" shouted Chester. Chester Sarrlpaw took the lead, he snatched the spear from an armored ferret and snapped in half on the vermin's amored head. The armored ferret staggered then collapsed on the cobblestone floor. Chester raised his paws.
"C'mon, any of you spineless cowards want to face a real warrior?" He taunted. The armored vermin looked at each other then back to the hare, hedgehog, and shrew. They all simultaneously charged in, holding their spears up high, and getting ready to swing them. Chester quickly jumped to the side, commandeered a spear, and jabbed it into a rat's sides. Hamlus dodged a spear thrust by rolling himself into a ball and tumbling away. Like a little imp, Raygo flung himself onto a tall stoat. The stoat had a hard time trying to get the shrew off of him. Raygo pulled off the stoat's helmet, then he jumped off of his foe. Chester threw down the spear and rushed towards the stoat's exposed face. The foebeast tried to slash at the hare, but, Chester quickly dodged it, roundhouse kicked the spear out of the stoat's paws, and began dealing punches to his foe's face.
Pow! Pow! Pow!
Left, right, jab, uppercut! The stoat tried to counter attack, but his efforts were in vain. Chester laid the final blow, knocking the vermin out. Chester continued to taunt the vermin.
"C'mon, c'mon, are you lot gonna stand with your jaws a-gapping, or are you gonna try and fight me?"
The vermin charged in at Chester. Chester put on the metal gauntlets he took from his unconscious opponent, and started ounching his way through the horde, he lived up to his title, Hamlus and Raygo were dumbstruck at how fast and agile their friend was.
Meanwhile in the dark hallways of Fortress Blakkhart, Shavana huffed and puffed, her narrow chest heaving in and out. She then ran into two weasel guards.
"Madame, what is the problem?" The asked.
"Enemies... in throne room... go quickly!" she panted. The two saluted her and they ran in the other direction.
Back in the throne room, Amalgan was getting winded by his adversary's attacks. Amalgan threw himself at the searat Captain, however, Gaurano sidestepped and kicked the otter in the back, Amalgan fell and dropped his sabre. Guarano smile and let out an evil pirate's laugh.
"HARRHARRHARR! Nobeast issa match fer me, especially a simple otter who was never born to swim in the seas!"
Guarano lifted the ottter up, he was about to slit Amalgan's throat, that was until, Celesta jabbed the searat right in the back. Guarano holwed in pain, dropping both the cutlass and sabre. Before he had anytime to react, Amalgan thrusted the cutlass into Gaurano's chest, then the sabre into his neck. The fight lasted for awhile, but the heroes of Mossflower had won. Zyantu ran to the door Shavana left through.
"You guys go, I've got a cat to catch," he said. Chester ran up to the large double doors leading to the outside. He swung them open. But as soon as the afternoon light hit the hare's face, an arrow flew and struck Chester's leg. Chester winced in pain, and saw the ramparts had plenty of bowbeasts with Wraythan in the center. Chester smiled at his comrades then he gave a smirk to the wildcat and his horde.
"Is that the best you can so, I've wounded my measly toothpicks than those twigs, ha! Betcha you cannot aim straight!" he shouted.
"I will not stand for this, kill him!" hissed Wraythan. Soon the vermin began firing a volley of arrows at the hare. Chester was getting skewered with the shafts! They stuck into his stomach, chest, legs, and thigh. Soon after, Chester was a pin cushion. He was dead before he even hit the floor. Martin fell to his knees.
"I cannot belive he did that?" he said weeping. Then everybeast heard the sounds of timbers cracking. The back gate was breached and out poured Rango the Brawler, Skipper and his otters, and even Amalgan's crew. Wraythan ordered his beasts to fire upon the new intruders. Rango saw the dead carcass of Chester and his jaw dropped. Tears welled up in his eyes, then he turned to the wildcat Warlord.
"You! I'm gonna kill you, cat! EULALIAAAAA!"
"Don't stop firing, keep at it, I want those beasts dead, they all must die!" Wraythan yowled. In the corner of the wildcat's eye, he saw Martin and the rest dash out of the throne room.