Sergeant Pinecone raced down the hill. Blackberry was in
trouble! Two heavy looking Efrafa rabbits had apprehended him
and taken him to a huge black rabbit - most definitely
Colonel Thornfoot. They were forcing him to lead them to
Watership Down, but he was leading them in the wrong
direction. If they found out that he was leading them astray,
they would certainly kill him.
There was no alternative. He had to tell Captain Broom, and he would tell Captain Holly and Bigwig, and they would form their plans from there.
He came down into the plain, and ran through the pathway they had created. He was in such a hurry that he crashed straight into Captain Broom on his way through.
"Careful!" said Broom. "Where is Blackberry? You were to look for him."
Sergeant Pinecone explained to him what had happened to Blackberry, that he saw. He also told them Blackberry's plan, which they had to play an invaluable part in.
"Quickly!" said Captain Broom, in a panic. "We have to go back to the warren, and inform Captain Holly-rah. Perhaps we can form some sort of ambush to recapture Blackberry."
They set out immediately, taking a shortcut they knew now was safe to go through. They had not taken it before; the Efrafins may have taken that route. Thanks to it, they got to Watership Down by dusk. Captain Broom bolted down the tunnel, leaving Fiver, Pinecone, Scout Chestnut, and Willow behind. He reached the chamber very quickly in his hurry, where Bigwig and Captain Holly were trading battle plans.
Captain Broom cleared his throat. Holly and Bigwig turned.
"Captain Broom," said Holly. "What news of Efrafa? I see by the good shape you are in, that they accepted our proposal?"
"Not really sir," said Broom.
"What?" said Holly.
Broom told Holly of the events which the Sergeant had described.
"We must act quickly," said Holly. "What do you propose, Broom?"
"I thought that we could ambush them," said Broom. "Perhaps we could catch them if Blackberry leads them far enough astray."
"You're absolutely right," said Holly. "Captain Broom, take your soldiers and attack the Efrafins on their way through. Did Sergeant Pinecone say which direction Blackberry was leading the Efrafins in?"
"Yes sir," said Broom. "He said that Blackberry was taking the Efrafins toward Crystal Brook. They were going at a fairly slow pace"
"Good, that's not too far. Leave at noon tomorrow. That will allow you to reach Crystal Brook before they do."
* * *
"How much further do we have to go?" grunted a surly Efrafin.
"Why can't we stop for a while?" whined another. "We've been moving non-stop since yesterday!"
It was dawn. Blackberry was still leading the Efrafins - in the wrong direction that was. His plan was to take them to Crystal Brook. Hopefully Sergeant Pinecone would realize his plan and have something done to intersect them.
"Pinecone's clever," Blackberry thought to himself. "He'll know what to do." Though in his heart, he was not entirely sure.
"How long will it be?" growled Thornfoot.
"About." Blackberry trailed off. He thought. Two days should give Broom and Holly a chance to put a plan into action. "Two days."
"Two days?" squeaked the whiny rabbit. "I miss the taste of blood!"
"Lead the way," Thornfoot said.
They walked for a few more hours. Blackberry lead them through a patch of woods to buy time, but told them it was a "Trail our Owsla use when on missions."
"I'm 'ungry!" moaned a rabbit from the detachment. It was Campion, or someone who sounded like him.
"Keep your gob shut, Campion!" snarled Thornfoot. "We're not stopping until we can see the down."
"Let's eat Blackberry!" Campion suggested, tersely. "It doesn't look like the worm's leading us in the right direction, anyway."
There were murmurs of agreement from the crowd.
"Shut up, all of you!" Thornfoot roared.
"You know what, Colonel," said Campion, stepping up in front of him, "I think you're being one hell of a fool, trusting this rabbit!"
"And I think you're overstepping your authority, Campion," barked Thornfoot. "Step down."
"Don't say anything, Campion," Blackberry thought to himself. He still liked Campion.
Nevertheless, Campion spoke up again. For the last time.
"I don't think I will step down," hissed Campion, "until you have this rabbit killed, you short-sighted weasel!"
He had done it. Thornfoot, with a roar, leapt forward. Campion lowered his ears and cowered, but he knew it was over. Thornfoot landed on Campion and sunk his teeth into the poor rabbit's throat. Then, with a horrible rip, he pulled his head back sharply and faced his army, with bloody gore hanging from his mouth. He spat it out.
"Anyone else feel like talking back to me?" Thornfoot shroared at them.
No one said anything. Clearly they got his message.
"Get moving, Blackberry!" he spat at him.
Blackberry, without hesitation or question began leading the way.
* * *
At noon the next day, Captain Broom took his soldiers, including Sergeant Pinecone and Lieutenant Willow, off into the wilderness. Fiver went along too. Sad to say, some would not return.
"We must hurry," said Broom. "We should reach Crystal Brook by dusk. Then we can prepare to fight."
"Sir, shouldn't we plan more?" said Lieutenant Willow. "I don't want any of these fine rabbits to die, and we don't have much of a strategy, so to speak."
"There is no time left to plan," said Captain Broom. "Blackberry could be killed if we leave it any longer."
Finally, after hours of trudging through the wilderness, they reached the beautiful brook and stopped. All the flowers had closed up, and crickets chirped. An owl hooted somewhere above them.
"Under the tree," ordered Broom. "We rest here, until the Efrafins reach us."
The next morning, they awoke. All flowers had bloomed, and the chirping of crickets was replaced by the buzzing of bees.
They waited for about three hours, building up their strength by eating Dandylions and drinking from the almost magically refreshing stream. After three hours had passed, they saw Blackberry reach the top of the hill which blocked the brook from view.
"Stay there," they heard him say to the Efrafins. He bounded down the hill to meet them.
"Blackberry!" Fiver whispered. "It's good to see you not dead!"
"Same to you, Fiver," Blackberry whispered back. "It's a good thing Sergeant Pinecone was there, and you recognized my idea. But there's no time for that now. Get into your hiding places."
"Blackberry!" roared a horrid voice which made the hair on the back of Fiver's neck stand up. "What are you doing down there?"
"Get into your hiding spots," Blackberry whispered. Then at full volume, "It's safe! You may come!" He quickly dashed into a gooseberry bush, where Fiver and Captain Broom were hiding.
"Where are Sergeant Pinecone and Lieutenant Willow?" he said.
"Pinecone's in the berry patch across from us with a bunch of rabbits," replied Broom, "and Willow and some more rabbits are in the hedge to the left. Get down!"
A rabbit who was invariably Thornfoot came down the hill, accompanied by a hideous selection of vicious-looking rabbits.
"Blackberry?" Thornfoot called menacingly.
Nothing stirred.
"Blackberry?" he repeated.
"He was tricking us!" protested a rabbit from the crowd. "Campion was right!"
There was an uproar of agreement.
"This way!" Thornfoot roared. He bustled down next to the brook. No one followed. He turned around.
"Get down here, now!" he snarled.
"But sir," whined another Efrafin. "Look where we are!"
Thornfoot stared into the water. "This is Crystal Brook," he whispered hoarsely. Then he let out a terrifying roar.
"Curse you Blackberry! May all the dogs and snakes and weasels in the world come down on you! Quickly, we may yet catch him. This way!"
He jumped over the brook and began running. His rabbits tore down the hill to meet him.
"Attack!" Captain Broom roared. He, Fiver, and Blackberry leapt from their bush. Broom landed right on top of Thornfoot and knocked him over. Fiver and Blackberry landed beside them.
The other Efrafins leaped over the stream and came to attack them.
"It's Blackberry!" they yelled. "Kill him!"
Sergeant Pinecone, Lieutenant Willow, and all their men, flew from their posts and collided with the Efrafins, taking them completely by surprise. Four of their number were dead before they knew what was happening.
Thornfoot kicked Broom from atop him, and got to his feet. Captain Broom got up too, and they prepared to fight. They charged for each other. At the same time, one of Broom's soldiers crashed into Thornfoot and an Efrafin crashed into Captain Broom.
The captain flung the Efrafin into the stream, sending him downriver to never be seen again. Thornfoot was nowhere in sight. He quickly busied himself with another Efrafin.
Meanwhile, Fiver was having his own troubles. Two Efrafins, although thin, were backing him into the hedge. However, Fiver had practiced with Pipkin, and so managed to tackle one and break his back. The other landed Fiver a kick in the side of the head, which sent him flying into a tree. The rabbit advanced on him slowly. Drool hung from his mouth. He opened his jaws and.
He was knocked over by Lieutenant Willow, went rolling, and fell on a sharp stone.
"Lieutenant Willow!" Fiver gasped. "You saved my - look out!"
"What?" Willow said. He turned, just in time to see Colonel Thornfoot crash into him and bring him to the ground. Despite Willows cries for mercy, the colonel sunk his teeth into the lieutenant's side, and shook him violently until he was silenced.
"No!!!" Fiver cried, and rushed forward. He bit into Colonel Thornfoot's hindquarters. Thornfoot let out a bloodcurdling roar and turned, ripping a chunk of his own flesh out. Fiver spat it out. His blood tasted horrible!
"Blackberry! Captain Broom!" Fiver called. "Help!"
The two rabbits came charging up and jumped onto the Colonel, making him flail madly. Fiver did so too - he was very angry. They bit into Thornfoot over and over again, before he came to a sudden halt, flinging Broom and Fiver off. Blackberry stayed on, however. He bit the top of Colonel Thornfoot's ear off, causing blood to spill out into the Efrafin's eyes.
With a roar of pain, he began charging blindly forward. He couldn't see.blood was clouding his eyes.
"Jump off, Blackberry!" yelled Captain Broom.
"My claw is stuck!" Blackberry yelled back. He was desperately trying to pull his paw free of Thornfoot's mane. He was headed straight for the river!
He finally pulled it out, taking a lock of Thornfoot's hair with it. Suddenly, the Colonel stumbled and fell forward, throwing himself and Blackberry into the river. Blackberry threw himself up to the top, spluttering and thrashing. He tried to swim, but the current was too strong and he and the colonel were pushed downstream.
Fiver and Broom hurried over the chunk of rock which was sat on the left side of the river and looked down it. Blackberry was nowhere to be seen - and the fast brook he had fallen into led to a gushing, gurgling river of white rapids.
"Run! Run!" the Efrafins were yelling. Captain Broom looked back, and saw what was left of the Efrafins bounding over top of the hill.
"Let's go," Captain Broom said to Fiver. They made their way back to the brook. "Everyone!" he cried out to the rest of his company. They all either came to him, or finished killing who they were dealing with and then came to him. Fiver picked the finest lily by the brook and held it in his mouth.
"This is for you, Blackberry," said Captain Broom. Fiver dropped the flower into the river. They watched it as it floated downstream, and into the rapids as he had. "Sleep well."
He and Sergeant Pinecone took them up the slope, and stopped at the top. The Efrafins were fleeing across the field.
"Move out," Captain Broom said. "We return to the Down."
TO BE CONTINUED.
Sorry about the sad ending there *sniff* :( Don't worry, it gets happier.
Please review!
By the way, I realize 'shroared' isn't a word. I made it up. It's a cross between a shriek, and a roar.
There was no alternative. He had to tell Captain Broom, and he would tell Captain Holly and Bigwig, and they would form their plans from there.
He came down into the plain, and ran through the pathway they had created. He was in such a hurry that he crashed straight into Captain Broom on his way through.
"Careful!" said Broom. "Where is Blackberry? You were to look for him."
Sergeant Pinecone explained to him what had happened to Blackberry, that he saw. He also told them Blackberry's plan, which they had to play an invaluable part in.
"Quickly!" said Captain Broom, in a panic. "We have to go back to the warren, and inform Captain Holly-rah. Perhaps we can form some sort of ambush to recapture Blackberry."
They set out immediately, taking a shortcut they knew now was safe to go through. They had not taken it before; the Efrafins may have taken that route. Thanks to it, they got to Watership Down by dusk. Captain Broom bolted down the tunnel, leaving Fiver, Pinecone, Scout Chestnut, and Willow behind. He reached the chamber very quickly in his hurry, where Bigwig and Captain Holly were trading battle plans.
Captain Broom cleared his throat. Holly and Bigwig turned.
"Captain Broom," said Holly. "What news of Efrafa? I see by the good shape you are in, that they accepted our proposal?"
"Not really sir," said Broom.
"What?" said Holly.
Broom told Holly of the events which the Sergeant had described.
"We must act quickly," said Holly. "What do you propose, Broom?"
"I thought that we could ambush them," said Broom. "Perhaps we could catch them if Blackberry leads them far enough astray."
"You're absolutely right," said Holly. "Captain Broom, take your soldiers and attack the Efrafins on their way through. Did Sergeant Pinecone say which direction Blackberry was leading the Efrafins in?"
"Yes sir," said Broom. "He said that Blackberry was taking the Efrafins toward Crystal Brook. They were going at a fairly slow pace"
"Good, that's not too far. Leave at noon tomorrow. That will allow you to reach Crystal Brook before they do."
* * *
"How much further do we have to go?" grunted a surly Efrafin.
"Why can't we stop for a while?" whined another. "We've been moving non-stop since yesterday!"
It was dawn. Blackberry was still leading the Efrafins - in the wrong direction that was. His plan was to take them to Crystal Brook. Hopefully Sergeant Pinecone would realize his plan and have something done to intersect them.
"Pinecone's clever," Blackberry thought to himself. "He'll know what to do." Though in his heart, he was not entirely sure.
"How long will it be?" growled Thornfoot.
"About." Blackberry trailed off. He thought. Two days should give Broom and Holly a chance to put a plan into action. "Two days."
"Two days?" squeaked the whiny rabbit. "I miss the taste of blood!"
"Lead the way," Thornfoot said.
They walked for a few more hours. Blackberry lead them through a patch of woods to buy time, but told them it was a "Trail our Owsla use when on missions."
"I'm 'ungry!" moaned a rabbit from the detachment. It was Campion, or someone who sounded like him.
"Keep your gob shut, Campion!" snarled Thornfoot. "We're not stopping until we can see the down."
"Let's eat Blackberry!" Campion suggested, tersely. "It doesn't look like the worm's leading us in the right direction, anyway."
There were murmurs of agreement from the crowd.
"Shut up, all of you!" Thornfoot roared.
"You know what, Colonel," said Campion, stepping up in front of him, "I think you're being one hell of a fool, trusting this rabbit!"
"And I think you're overstepping your authority, Campion," barked Thornfoot. "Step down."
"Don't say anything, Campion," Blackberry thought to himself. He still liked Campion.
Nevertheless, Campion spoke up again. For the last time.
"I don't think I will step down," hissed Campion, "until you have this rabbit killed, you short-sighted weasel!"
He had done it. Thornfoot, with a roar, leapt forward. Campion lowered his ears and cowered, but he knew it was over. Thornfoot landed on Campion and sunk his teeth into the poor rabbit's throat. Then, with a horrible rip, he pulled his head back sharply and faced his army, with bloody gore hanging from his mouth. He spat it out.
"Anyone else feel like talking back to me?" Thornfoot shroared at them.
No one said anything. Clearly they got his message.
"Get moving, Blackberry!" he spat at him.
Blackberry, without hesitation or question began leading the way.
* * *
At noon the next day, Captain Broom took his soldiers, including Sergeant Pinecone and Lieutenant Willow, off into the wilderness. Fiver went along too. Sad to say, some would not return.
"We must hurry," said Broom. "We should reach Crystal Brook by dusk. Then we can prepare to fight."
"Sir, shouldn't we plan more?" said Lieutenant Willow. "I don't want any of these fine rabbits to die, and we don't have much of a strategy, so to speak."
"There is no time left to plan," said Captain Broom. "Blackberry could be killed if we leave it any longer."
Finally, after hours of trudging through the wilderness, they reached the beautiful brook and stopped. All the flowers had closed up, and crickets chirped. An owl hooted somewhere above them.
"Under the tree," ordered Broom. "We rest here, until the Efrafins reach us."
The next morning, they awoke. All flowers had bloomed, and the chirping of crickets was replaced by the buzzing of bees.
They waited for about three hours, building up their strength by eating Dandylions and drinking from the almost magically refreshing stream. After three hours had passed, they saw Blackberry reach the top of the hill which blocked the brook from view.
"Stay there," they heard him say to the Efrafins. He bounded down the hill to meet them.
"Blackberry!" Fiver whispered. "It's good to see you not dead!"
"Same to you, Fiver," Blackberry whispered back. "It's a good thing Sergeant Pinecone was there, and you recognized my idea. But there's no time for that now. Get into your hiding places."
"Blackberry!" roared a horrid voice which made the hair on the back of Fiver's neck stand up. "What are you doing down there?"
"Get into your hiding spots," Blackberry whispered. Then at full volume, "It's safe! You may come!" He quickly dashed into a gooseberry bush, where Fiver and Captain Broom were hiding.
"Where are Sergeant Pinecone and Lieutenant Willow?" he said.
"Pinecone's in the berry patch across from us with a bunch of rabbits," replied Broom, "and Willow and some more rabbits are in the hedge to the left. Get down!"
A rabbit who was invariably Thornfoot came down the hill, accompanied by a hideous selection of vicious-looking rabbits.
"Blackberry?" Thornfoot called menacingly.
Nothing stirred.
"Blackberry?" he repeated.
"He was tricking us!" protested a rabbit from the crowd. "Campion was right!"
There was an uproar of agreement.
"This way!" Thornfoot roared. He bustled down next to the brook. No one followed. He turned around.
"Get down here, now!" he snarled.
"But sir," whined another Efrafin. "Look where we are!"
Thornfoot stared into the water. "This is Crystal Brook," he whispered hoarsely. Then he let out a terrifying roar.
"Curse you Blackberry! May all the dogs and snakes and weasels in the world come down on you! Quickly, we may yet catch him. This way!"
He jumped over the brook and began running. His rabbits tore down the hill to meet him.
"Attack!" Captain Broom roared. He, Fiver, and Blackberry leapt from their bush. Broom landed right on top of Thornfoot and knocked him over. Fiver and Blackberry landed beside them.
The other Efrafins leaped over the stream and came to attack them.
"It's Blackberry!" they yelled. "Kill him!"
Sergeant Pinecone, Lieutenant Willow, and all their men, flew from their posts and collided with the Efrafins, taking them completely by surprise. Four of their number were dead before they knew what was happening.
Thornfoot kicked Broom from atop him, and got to his feet. Captain Broom got up too, and they prepared to fight. They charged for each other. At the same time, one of Broom's soldiers crashed into Thornfoot and an Efrafin crashed into Captain Broom.
The captain flung the Efrafin into the stream, sending him downriver to never be seen again. Thornfoot was nowhere in sight. He quickly busied himself with another Efrafin.
Meanwhile, Fiver was having his own troubles. Two Efrafins, although thin, were backing him into the hedge. However, Fiver had practiced with Pipkin, and so managed to tackle one and break his back. The other landed Fiver a kick in the side of the head, which sent him flying into a tree. The rabbit advanced on him slowly. Drool hung from his mouth. He opened his jaws and.
He was knocked over by Lieutenant Willow, went rolling, and fell on a sharp stone.
"Lieutenant Willow!" Fiver gasped. "You saved my - look out!"
"What?" Willow said. He turned, just in time to see Colonel Thornfoot crash into him and bring him to the ground. Despite Willows cries for mercy, the colonel sunk his teeth into the lieutenant's side, and shook him violently until he was silenced.
"No!!!" Fiver cried, and rushed forward. He bit into Colonel Thornfoot's hindquarters. Thornfoot let out a bloodcurdling roar and turned, ripping a chunk of his own flesh out. Fiver spat it out. His blood tasted horrible!
"Blackberry! Captain Broom!" Fiver called. "Help!"
The two rabbits came charging up and jumped onto the Colonel, making him flail madly. Fiver did so too - he was very angry. They bit into Thornfoot over and over again, before he came to a sudden halt, flinging Broom and Fiver off. Blackberry stayed on, however. He bit the top of Colonel Thornfoot's ear off, causing blood to spill out into the Efrafin's eyes.
With a roar of pain, he began charging blindly forward. He couldn't see.blood was clouding his eyes.
"Jump off, Blackberry!" yelled Captain Broom.
"My claw is stuck!" Blackberry yelled back. He was desperately trying to pull his paw free of Thornfoot's mane. He was headed straight for the river!
He finally pulled it out, taking a lock of Thornfoot's hair with it. Suddenly, the Colonel stumbled and fell forward, throwing himself and Blackberry into the river. Blackberry threw himself up to the top, spluttering and thrashing. He tried to swim, but the current was too strong and he and the colonel were pushed downstream.
Fiver and Broom hurried over the chunk of rock which was sat on the left side of the river and looked down it. Blackberry was nowhere to be seen - and the fast brook he had fallen into led to a gushing, gurgling river of white rapids.
"Run! Run!" the Efrafins were yelling. Captain Broom looked back, and saw what was left of the Efrafins bounding over top of the hill.
"Let's go," Captain Broom said to Fiver. They made their way back to the brook. "Everyone!" he cried out to the rest of his company. They all either came to him, or finished killing who they were dealing with and then came to him. Fiver picked the finest lily by the brook and held it in his mouth.
"This is for you, Blackberry," said Captain Broom. Fiver dropped the flower into the river. They watched it as it floated downstream, and into the rapids as he had. "Sleep well."
He and Sergeant Pinecone took them up the slope, and stopped at the top. The Efrafins were fleeing across the field.
"Move out," Captain Broom said. "We return to the Down."
TO BE CONTINUED.
Sorry about the sad ending there *sniff* :( Don't worry, it gets happier.
Please review!
By the way, I realize 'shroared' isn't a word. I made it up. It's a cross between a shriek, and a roar.