Sixclaw
Chapter 42
THE HELLSCAPE
The Seahammer was ready. Evacuated, save for 5 particularly brave/stupid creatures.
Bootbrain was at the helm of his faithful ship, preparing for their one last journey together.
Blackpaw was in the nav room, as backup steering. The Seahammer's wheel was on deck, so if it got blown off, the ship would still be able to complete its last voyage.
Deyna and Nimbalo were in the airbay, with the single remaining dropship for when something inevitably went wrong and evacuation was needed.
Sixclaw was in the most dangerous position: the crows nest. The cat was stationed on the lookout area on top of the ship's mast. She was armed with a large rifle, and she would be the one to kill the proverbial head of the snake.
Of course, the plan went haywire the second the first shell hit. The 88mm projectile hit the Seahammer with massive force, and blew a hole in the bow of the ship. A devastating volley of shells, missiles, and machine gun fire rained down upon the vessel
Sixclaw's scope was on the Dragon Queen's head. She squeezed the trigger, but a second volley of shells hit the boat, causing her to miss her shot. The small cat swore at the top of her lungs, then began to climb down the rigging.
Bullets and arrows narrowly missed Sixclaw's head as the cat landed on the landship's deck. Bootbrain ran by, and Sixclaw grabbed him by the shoulder. "What's going on?!" yelled Sixclaw.
"Change of plans, they blew out the engine. Longtail is picking us up about a quarter mile from here. We'll take the dropship to him." said Bootbrain.
"Where's One-Eye?" asked Sixclaw. "Him and longtail were supposed to be here by now."
"Delayed, both of them." said Bootbrain, as they ran down towards the drop bay. "The force got separated, and only about a tenth of them got through the artillery lines. The rest are fighting in the forests and trying to keep them away from Fort Skull."
Sixclaw swore repeatedly, and turned the corner, where a massive hole in the airbay revealed the three Redwallers in the dropship, attempting to fly it.
"Wait up!" yelled Sixclaw. The dropship powered down, then back up. Sixclaw looked at Bootbrain, who shrugged, and wordlessly continued running.
As it turned out, Blackpaw was attempting to fly the dropship, and was failing miserably. Deyna and Nimbalo had been sitting in the craft for the last five minutes watching Blackpaw click the same power switch over and over.
Bootbrain was trying extremely hard not to laugh, despite the fact that he was failing miserably, and Deyna was giving him a death glare. Sixclaw sighed, and got in the pilot's seat, and powered up the engine, and flew the small craft out of the airbay.
The dropship flew like it had been sitting untouched in the airbay for at least 15 seasons, which it had been. And it had not been refueled. And it predictably ran out of fuel as the small ship attempted to complete the reckless escape plan.
Sixclaw realized something was wrong, as the power going to the thrusters slowly lessened, as the craft came to a graceful; stop right in front of Supreme General Sunfur's command tent.
A/N
I'm going to add more to this.
R&R!