Chapter Thirty-Six: Vervain's One Bright Idea
After Azalea had been introduced to everyone, Bigwig had decided to take her on a tour of the territory. Hawkbit had volunteered to accompany them, but Bigwig had quickly insisted that it was to be a private patrol consisting only of himself and Azalea, so Hawkbit had reluctantly let it go.
As the siblings raced through the meadow, Azalea questioned Bigwig.
"So, this General Woundwort, he's the enemy of your warren?"
"He's not just an enemy, Azalea, he's a curse! One day, maybe you'll see."
"Why don't you try talking to him?"
"Don't think we haven't tried. You can't talk to him, he'll tear you to bits."
"So I will."
Bigwig groaned.
"Speak of the Black Rabbit, and the Black Rabbit you shall get. If you don't mind, Woundwort, we were just enjoying a nice stroll, so we'll be off now."
The General whacked Bigwig, sending the smaller rabbit sprawling.
"Hey!" Azalea growled, "Nobody does that to my little brother!"
"Your what?" Woundwort asked.
"You really should not have told him that," Bigwig muttered.
Woundwort looked from one to the other.
"Oh, your brother, is it? How convenient."
He turned to his Owsla.
"Knock them out, tear their eyes out, I don't care, but I want them alive."
Vervain, predictably, immediately turned tail and slipped away.
The small black rabbit soon discovered something he had never before seen: the remains of a small fire. In the midst of the ashes was a long piece of metal.
Vervain prodded it with one of his front paws.
"Ow!" he squealed, jumping back. Curiosity, however, provoked him to poke it again. He looked down ruefully at his smarting paw.
"That really hurt. Wait a minute..."
Vervain began laughing hysterically.
"If it hurts me, it will hurt Bigwig!"
"What is it?"
Vervain yelped and whirled around, coming face to face with Vine.
"This," he said, gesturing at the metal, "Go ahead, try touching it."
Vine complied, then winced.
"And your point is?"
"If it hurts us two, it should hurt those two Outsiders."
Vine smiled wickedly.
"Oh, I wish Phlox was here right now."
"I wish Campion was here," Vervain chuckled, "Still, I imagine he's feeling rather badly right now, what with his poor little best friend dead and all."
Vine shrugged.
"Yeah, probably. Come on, let's go show the General."
At that moment, Woundwort himself appeared.
"What is that?"
"Touch it, General," Vine said, "You'll see what it does."
The black rabbit poked the object. A cruel smile spread over his face.
"Perfect! There is, of course, the question of getting it over there without carrying it."
Vine pushed it with his paw.
"No problem, sir!"
"Excellent! Come on."
As they approached, Vervain and Vine saw that Bigwig and Azalea were being pinned down by several other Efrafans. Woundwort motioned to the ones holding Azalea.
"Bring her over here."
The guards dragged Azalea over and awaited orders.
"Hold her still!" Woundwort ordered.
He turned to Vine.
"Do you care to do the honors, Captain Vine?"
The brown rabbit smiled.
"Your wish is my command, General Woundwort."
Vine pushed the metal onto Azalea's back, then pressed down hard, wincing as he did so.
Azalea gasped, then gritted her teeth in pain.
"What is that thing?" Bigwig growled, "What are you doing to her?"
"Don't you say a word!" Azalea muttered, "No matter what they tell you."
"But I can't just let them burn your back clear off!" Bigwig protested.
"Say anything, and I swear, I will kill you," Azalea said calmly, "Look away, Bigwig."
Bigwig stared pleadingly at her for a moment, then covered his eyes as ordered.
"This isn't working," Woundwort snarled, "We'll try it the other way around! Get Bigwig over here!"
Vine happily released his hold on the hot metal, and Vervain reluctantly stepped forward for his turn.
Unlike Azalea, the pain of the burning seemed to trigger a panic reaction in Bigwig. The grey rabbit screamed. And then he screamed again. And again.
Woundwort smiled cruelly, relishing the rare sight of his enemy in such evident pain.
"Where's your bravery now, Bigwig?" he laughed.
Bigwig could hardly speak for screaming, but he managed to lock eyes with Azalea.
"Don't you say a word," he gasped. And then the screaming resumed.
"Harder!" Woundwort commanded, "I'll kill him if that's what it takes!"
Campion had somewhat recovered the use of his legs, and had wandered off from the Down. Unknowingly, he ended up very nearly on the same route Azalea and Bigwig had taken. Hearing the screams, he broke into a painful half-run, and as the sounds continued, he pushed himself to his limits.
Racing into the middle of the group of Efrafans, Campion skidded to a halt, eyes wide with surprise and horror at the revelation that it was Bigwig and not Azalea screaming.
"Oh, Campion, come join us, won't you?" Vervain laughed.
"Now if only Phlox would show up..." Vine started, but he stopped when he heard a familiar voice.
"Wish granted!"
It was Phlox. The big white rabbit stood at the edge of the woods, ice blue eyes wide with worry.
"There's a whole army of Watershippers right behind me, so I'd run away if I were you!"
Woundwort looked around. Apart from Vervain and Vine, he had only three other rabbits with him, barely a fighting force. He decided that this was not the time to see whether Phlox was bluffing or not.
"Retreat!" he growled, "To Efrafa, my warriors!"
The Efrafans quickly made themselves scarce, and almost immediately, Campion and Phlox were at Bigwig's side.
"Bigwig, are you all right?"
The grey rabbit had curled into a ball, and with his eyes closed, and his ears drooping to the side, he looked small and vulnerable. The only sign of life was his slow, hoarse breathing.
Azalea nuzzled her brother.
"We've got to get him back home. Phlox, it's Phlox, isn't it? Can you carry him?"
"Sure, but what about you?"
The doe gritted her teeth.
"I can walk by myself. Now let's go home."
You know what I just realized? I'm out of school for the summer! That sounded stupid, I know, but when you're a homeschooler it can be hard to tell. So these daily updates may become pretty normal for a couple of months. :D