Mossflower Woods

Dedmark Valldun gave a sigh of relief. Once Firak charged he knew he didn't have a chance. Stalking through the woods, he gave a yell of shock when he heard, "I've been waiting."

A gray squirrel leaped from the trees, fury in his yellow eyes. He took a rope and threw it around the ferret, who was trying to retreat. It looped around his neck and Dedmark yanked the gurgling ferret closer. "Ye'll pay fer killin' my daughter!" shouted the squirrel.

ooooooooooooo

"C'mon, Firak, everybeast knows water, 'specially riverwater, is bad fer ye," said Rugfur.

The stoat rolled his eyes. "Bah! Rubbish!"

Firak leaped into the water and swam a meter to the logboat, then clambered back on. His heavy fur soaked, he looked more like an otter than a stoat.

Badtung stupidly called out, "See! Now ye've changed species!"

Firak sighed and paddled with his paw so the boat was right next to the shore. The vermin got on, clearly afraid as Firak pulled up the anchor.

"Wot 'appens if we fall!"

"I've 'eard o' pikefishes, and those burbot things too! Rip ye to bits."

"Oh, don' put that in my mind! Now I'm thinkin' about wot 'appened to ole Ragclaw!"

Firak shook his head. "All of you, grab a paddle and divide, each to a side. There's only one pike around here, and one, no matter how big, can't take out a logboat. As long as you don't act as the idiots you usually are, we'll be fine."

The vermin caught on, though slowly. Leaving the other logboats, they paddled uncertainly, and Warthide accidentally fell off, so Firak had to pull the screaming vermin back on. Slowly, they began to get the hang of it, paddling in unison, helped by the gentle flow of the river.

Firak laughed. "See, it's not so hard! Soon we'll be free!"

The vermin chuckled, nervously at first, but then it became blissful laughing.

ooooooooooooo

"He killed our chief!"

"He killed by daughter!"

Guggle had Dedmark with his rope, strangling the ferret. The shrews heard the noise and came, and demanded that they were to kill the bowbeast, while Guggle claimed he had the right.

"I caught him! Back off!"

Pingo scowled. "Ye kill him an' we'll 'ave to kill ye, law o' the Guosim, who kills the killer becomes chieftain, an' who kills the killer's killer becomes chief!"

"Bah! Ye Guosim are ridiculous. He's nearly gone now."

Dedmark was in shock. He was had no chance of surviving this.

Pingo scowled. "Yer daughter was a spoiled brat! Our chieftain was great!"

This did it. Guggle let go and leaped at Pingo, his paws scrambling at the throat of the shrew. "Take that back!"

Pingo scowled. "Never! 'Twas true!"

"Bah! Maybe a bit prissy, but at least she was educated! Your chieftain didn't even have proper grammar, just like all o' you shrews!"

Pingo gasped, though it was hard to tell for his lack of air or if he was offended. Behind them, Dedmark was slowly getting up, massaging his throat.

Pingo kicked with his legs, hitting Guggle hard in the stomach, sending the squirrel flying back, his foot paws whacking Dedmark in the face, smashing against the ferret's throat. The ferret gave a gurgle and slumped down, barely breathing.

Guggle dazed, Pingo grabbed the ferret by the neck, lifting him up. Pingo shouted, drawing his rapier, "Ye'll pay fer killin' our chieftain!"

"Yah!" Guggle leaped at the back of the ferret, pulling him away from Pingo, the shrews claws ripping the skin of his neck.

"I'll kill ye, no' the shrew!" Take that! An that!"

He had grabbed a hefty stick and was whacking the ferret's head with it. Dazed, Dedmark felt consciousness ebbing away.

"No!" shouted Pingo, his rapier drawn. He slashed it downwards, but Guggle determined to kill the ferret himself, yanked Dedmark to the side, and the rapier just slashed his arm, going most of the way through. The arm limply hanging, blood gushed out onto the grass below.

"Hah!" called Guggle, and rose the stick once more for a final blow when the ferret's head lolled over.

The combined attacks: Strangled by a rope, kicked by a squirrel, strangled and ripped by shrew claws, whacked with a hefty stick, and lost blood, the use of his arm, all the shock and pain blasted into him, killing the ferret. The shrews and squirrel stared at him, gaping.

They sighed, not sure what to say, when Durglo the dormouse came bursting in through the foliage. "Going... west... wolverine dead... own fighters... but they're not so bad... actually nice to me, let me go...free." The dormouse collapsed before he could tell them any more.

After a second, Pingo called, "You two, get a tracker from the abbey! We'll git these vermin!

oooooooooooo

The two shrews, brother and sister, Fillo and Tembri ran into the abbey gasping. Tench the otter and Abbess Fern came to greet them. "Shrews! Have you caught the wolverine and the one that killed Log a Log?"

Fillo answered, "The one that killed our chieftain, yes. And the Friar said that the wolverine is dead, killed by his own fighters. We need a tracker, us shrews don't have one at the moment."

Tench smiled. "Look no further! Are Abbess here is a champion tracker, learned from finding Dibbuns that got lost."

Fern blushed. "Hmm... well, let's go, but I'd be no use if it comes to fighting.

Tembri smiled brightly. "No matter! Come!"

oooooooooooo

The shrews and mouse, along with Tench who had decided to come with them, caught up to the shrews as they observed the body of Griv. Pingo decisively pointed his finger east. "They went this way!"

The Abbess sighed as she point at several pawprints, weapon drags, and the place where Firak swung his axe to the ground and freed Durglo. "That's east. They wen north. C'mon, follow me.

The shrews obediently followed the Abbess, who was hunched over slightly to see the tracks better.

Brushing away some leaves, she let out an, "Ouch!"

"Wot was it, mother?" asked Tench.

Fern shook her head and pulled out a string with fangs lined on it. "One of the vermin dropped this. I cut my paw on it. Ah well, least it shows we're on the right path." She tossed it aside. "Let's go!"

She took a few steps, the collapsed with a gasp, caught by Tench.

"Mother Abbess?" asked the otter. "Wot's wrong."

The mousemaid gave a shudder then went limp. Tench gasped, and shook her. "Wake up, mother! Come on!"

Tembri walked up and felt her forehead. "She's gone. Poison, I think from those fangs we found."

Tench growled. "We'll get those vermin! Let's keep heading north, they're probably following the river! We'll make them pay!"

The shrews nodded grimly.

oooooooooooo

They came to the river. Fillo was the first to point out, "A logboat's missing! They must've traveled by water!"

Tench growled. "We'll beat 'em in a water race, we know the waterways better than them! C'mon!"

Inspired by Tench's ferocity, the shrews clambered into their logboats and pulled up anchor. Pingo shouted. "Onward!"

Only three stayed back, Fillo, Tembri, and their father, a gray shrew that had once resided in Redwall, Alfio.

Alfio smiled. "You go on. We'll bring... the Abbess back. Tell the abbey where you've gone.

Tench nodded, his face sad. "Good luck and thank you. We'll take our revenge soon enough!"

East Mossflower

The other vermin welcomed Firak and his soldiers happily, and did not hesitate to nominate Firak leader, especially after he slew Griv.

Firak smiled. But he smiled even more when they brought him to an old ruin.

It was clearly ancient, old, and crumbled, but they could make use of it.

"And I saw a quarry when we went sailin'! We could git stone there!" called Scorpaw.

The more Firak observed it the more he enjoyed his ideas. He saw that it seemed less like a castle in fact, and more like it had been a university or abbey. His thoughts were confirmed when he toured it, and found an ancient chest in what he supposed was a gatehouse. Inside he found a parchment that said, A History of Mossflower University.

It went over how it was founded by Temveer the Bright, then Temveer used it as a fortress, then he lost a war and it was forgotten. Firak smiled. Ever since he saw the difference between Silvertung's rule and Griv's rule, he would have loved to build a place where vermin could be educated. Maybe even goodbeasts, if they came. Firak liked the idea of living peacefully after battling the Redwallers.

He smiled. He had some big plans for this place.