The ideas of this story, and the characters playing their roles, were
inspired by the
unmatched writing mastership of Brian Jacques.
This is written for those who have ever wondered, . . .
* * *
Prologue: The Siege of Gounod
"Give 'em what for, lads! C'mon!" Joshua Blackspine rolled another slain rat onto its back with the hardened shaft of his long spike while beckoning to the assortment of mice, shrews, hedgehogs, moles, and otters battling through the shallows of Vagrant Cove. Beyond the small cove lay a large sand dune, upon which stood the mighty fort of Gounod, home of Grouleau the Enforcer, a malevolent bobcat who threatened the goodbeasts of Mossflower with his merciless pilfering and massacres. After attacking the peaceful creatures of Redwall Abbey while their warriors were away, Grouleau and his dark horde returned to their craggy home to wallow in their victories. They did not, however, prepare for retaliation.
The stoats and rats defending the shore did little to stop the onslaught; they were easily outnumbered many times over, and the bodies of the slain vermin bobbing in the bloodied waves continued to grow. The squirrel warrior Erika stole the life from an emaciated fox wielding a rusted ax with her double-edged scimitars, pausing briefly to catch her breath and overlook the battlefield, while her husband Ferrill wiped the blood from his eyes with the back of his dirty hand. The cries of "Fur and Freeeedoooom!", "Redwaaaaaaaall!" and "Remember Saaaaaaaambeeeeeeell!" clashed with the painful screams of the wounded and fleeing vermin. Many of the vermin began to drop their weapons, frantically clawing back up the sandy dune from which they charged. Erika sidestepped a javelin aimed at her shoulder, grabbed the sling tied to her belt, and both twirled the stone at lightning speed and fired it towards her attacker. The weasel dropped where he stood, the stone buried in his left eye. Ferrill ran up to his wife, ripping a strand of cloth from his sleeve and tying it firmly about her right arm.
"Sorry I doan have th' 'pecial herbs f' the pain, m'precious," he said, finishing the field dressing and planting a quick peck upon her head.
"Don't you worry about me, Ferrill Cedartail," Erika scolded, fetching another stone into her sling. "There's plenty more bad'uns to be slain today."
Joshua approached the pair, clearing his throat quickly as he leaned upon his spike. "Pardon, folks, but-Miz Erika, you don't need to fight anymore today. We've already scaled the walls of Gounod, and with your wound and all-"
Ferrill grimaced as the fire behind Erika's eyes exploded. "My wound? My WOUND?! I'll have you know, Joshua Blackspine, that I've had worse'n THIS when I've been out pickin' apples by the Abbey! Wound indeed! The very notion is, . . . is, . . . well, it's ludicrous, that's what it is!" She grabbed hold of the hilts of her scimitars, growling in anger.
The sudden cry of "Eulaliaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" caused the trio to jolt and quickly whirl around, weapons drawn. The badger lord Enderwhyn, dressed in full battle armor and wielding his notorious broadsword Avenger, tore up the dune in long strides, roaring his battle cry as he led several battalions of his finest hares up to the fort. Herdon Foremole and his moles had already knocked a great hole in the wall, allowing the Redwallers, the shrews, Skipper and his otters, and the army of Salamandastron easy access to the heart of Gounod. Great plumes of smoke rose from many of the buildings inside as the cries of the heroes echoed across the beach. One of the hares hopped out of his regiment, his dark gray military jacket blowing in the wind, causing the numerous brass and silver medals to clank against each other in an odd noise. He stood at attention, pounding a fist against his breast in a salute.
"Brigadier General Penton Wallaby Reswollan Damponshire Verstinathe the Third, at your presence, sah!"
Joshua returned the salute as best he could emulate. "Yes, General . . ."
"The men call me General Pent, sah!"
"Ah, of course, General Pent. Well, I must thank you and Lord Enderwhyn for your timely arrival."
"Nothin' doin', sah, if you don't mind me saying so, sah. Apologize for our tardiness; would've been on time, sah, but we had a few ruffians decide to sleep in. Had to make triple-time to get here, sah."
The trio attempted to stifle their chuckles. "Well, we're all glad you're here, General," Erika responded.
"Our pleasure, miss," Pent nodded.
The young otter Baran hopped out of the hole in the wall, shouting towards the group. "Father Joshua, come quickly! We've found something important! Come quickly, Father!"
Joshua, Erika, Ferrill, and General Pent sprinted towards the youth without hesitation. "Wha' is it, Master Bar'n?" Ferrill asked hurriedly.
"We found this over by some old medicines," Baran continued, leading the group through the gaping breech and into the courtyard of Gounod. The same carnage from the beachhead greeted the group as they walked through the sparse ruins of a great fort. Vermin and woodlanders alike lay slain across the landscape, their corpses lit by the great fires burning the remaining structures. The body of the former Grouleau lay heaped upon a pile of dead vermin, his corpse erupting with spears, staves, arrows, and other weapons. Near a great pile of dried herbs and grasses, several creatures were bent over a small object. As they grew closer, Lord Enderwhyn rose from his crouched position to face the group. His armor was decorated with sprays of blood, but he appeared healthy. He held out a collection of bound, brown-paged parchments to Joshua. Pent stood at attention, saluting to his lord.
"Perimeter checked, sah-report of vermin, negative. Seems we slayed 'em all, sah."
The badger lord smiled. "Well done, General Pent. At ease."
"Very good, sah," Pent saluted again.
Enderwhyn turned his attention to Joshua. "I'm afraid I cannot read this language-it's not similar to anything I've read before, or ever seen."
The book was light in weight, bound with four thick, black chords of a strange cloth, and carried with it a strange aroma that reminded Joshua of sweet flowers and the scent of death. He peeled back the cover, staring at the strange characters covering the page for what seemed like ages. The goodbeasts surrounding the hedgehog nervously twisted their fingers and tapped their foot paws until he inhaled deeply.
"I recognize this writing now. I've seen it once before, far from the shores of Mossflower. The language and script are that of Canis Lupis."
"W-what's that, Father Joshua?" piped Baran nervously.
"It's the writings of wolves," Joshua said gravely. Ferrill put an arm around his wife's shoulder as she flexed her right paw in agitation. Joshua turned back to the ancient, stained parchment, reading aloud the first page lit by the ravenous fires eating away the evil fort.
"Behold the writings of Ahira, the princess of Kir Hareseth, ruler of the isle of Undegro, and the happenings of Citius Gadare and the crew of the Agony during the seasons of desolation, . . ."
This is written for those who have ever wondered, . . .
* * *
Prologue: The Siege of Gounod
"Give 'em what for, lads! C'mon!" Joshua Blackspine rolled another slain rat onto its back with the hardened shaft of his long spike while beckoning to the assortment of mice, shrews, hedgehogs, moles, and otters battling through the shallows of Vagrant Cove. Beyond the small cove lay a large sand dune, upon which stood the mighty fort of Gounod, home of Grouleau the Enforcer, a malevolent bobcat who threatened the goodbeasts of Mossflower with his merciless pilfering and massacres. After attacking the peaceful creatures of Redwall Abbey while their warriors were away, Grouleau and his dark horde returned to their craggy home to wallow in their victories. They did not, however, prepare for retaliation.
The stoats and rats defending the shore did little to stop the onslaught; they were easily outnumbered many times over, and the bodies of the slain vermin bobbing in the bloodied waves continued to grow. The squirrel warrior Erika stole the life from an emaciated fox wielding a rusted ax with her double-edged scimitars, pausing briefly to catch her breath and overlook the battlefield, while her husband Ferrill wiped the blood from his eyes with the back of his dirty hand. The cries of "Fur and Freeeedoooom!", "Redwaaaaaaaall!" and "Remember Saaaaaaaambeeeeeeell!" clashed with the painful screams of the wounded and fleeing vermin. Many of the vermin began to drop their weapons, frantically clawing back up the sandy dune from which they charged. Erika sidestepped a javelin aimed at her shoulder, grabbed the sling tied to her belt, and both twirled the stone at lightning speed and fired it towards her attacker. The weasel dropped where he stood, the stone buried in his left eye. Ferrill ran up to his wife, ripping a strand of cloth from his sleeve and tying it firmly about her right arm.
"Sorry I doan have th' 'pecial herbs f' the pain, m'precious," he said, finishing the field dressing and planting a quick peck upon her head.
"Don't you worry about me, Ferrill Cedartail," Erika scolded, fetching another stone into her sling. "There's plenty more bad'uns to be slain today."
Joshua approached the pair, clearing his throat quickly as he leaned upon his spike. "Pardon, folks, but-Miz Erika, you don't need to fight anymore today. We've already scaled the walls of Gounod, and with your wound and all-"
Ferrill grimaced as the fire behind Erika's eyes exploded. "My wound? My WOUND?! I'll have you know, Joshua Blackspine, that I've had worse'n THIS when I've been out pickin' apples by the Abbey! Wound indeed! The very notion is, . . . is, . . . well, it's ludicrous, that's what it is!" She grabbed hold of the hilts of her scimitars, growling in anger.
The sudden cry of "Eulaliaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" caused the trio to jolt and quickly whirl around, weapons drawn. The badger lord Enderwhyn, dressed in full battle armor and wielding his notorious broadsword Avenger, tore up the dune in long strides, roaring his battle cry as he led several battalions of his finest hares up to the fort. Herdon Foremole and his moles had already knocked a great hole in the wall, allowing the Redwallers, the shrews, Skipper and his otters, and the army of Salamandastron easy access to the heart of Gounod. Great plumes of smoke rose from many of the buildings inside as the cries of the heroes echoed across the beach. One of the hares hopped out of his regiment, his dark gray military jacket blowing in the wind, causing the numerous brass and silver medals to clank against each other in an odd noise. He stood at attention, pounding a fist against his breast in a salute.
"Brigadier General Penton Wallaby Reswollan Damponshire Verstinathe the Third, at your presence, sah!"
Joshua returned the salute as best he could emulate. "Yes, General . . ."
"The men call me General Pent, sah!"
"Ah, of course, General Pent. Well, I must thank you and Lord Enderwhyn for your timely arrival."
"Nothin' doin', sah, if you don't mind me saying so, sah. Apologize for our tardiness; would've been on time, sah, but we had a few ruffians decide to sleep in. Had to make triple-time to get here, sah."
The trio attempted to stifle their chuckles. "Well, we're all glad you're here, General," Erika responded.
"Our pleasure, miss," Pent nodded.
The young otter Baran hopped out of the hole in the wall, shouting towards the group. "Father Joshua, come quickly! We've found something important! Come quickly, Father!"
Joshua, Erika, Ferrill, and General Pent sprinted towards the youth without hesitation. "Wha' is it, Master Bar'n?" Ferrill asked hurriedly.
"We found this over by some old medicines," Baran continued, leading the group through the gaping breech and into the courtyard of Gounod. The same carnage from the beachhead greeted the group as they walked through the sparse ruins of a great fort. Vermin and woodlanders alike lay slain across the landscape, their corpses lit by the great fires burning the remaining structures. The body of the former Grouleau lay heaped upon a pile of dead vermin, his corpse erupting with spears, staves, arrows, and other weapons. Near a great pile of dried herbs and grasses, several creatures were bent over a small object. As they grew closer, Lord Enderwhyn rose from his crouched position to face the group. His armor was decorated with sprays of blood, but he appeared healthy. He held out a collection of bound, brown-paged parchments to Joshua. Pent stood at attention, saluting to his lord.
"Perimeter checked, sah-report of vermin, negative. Seems we slayed 'em all, sah."
The badger lord smiled. "Well done, General Pent. At ease."
"Very good, sah," Pent saluted again.
Enderwhyn turned his attention to Joshua. "I'm afraid I cannot read this language-it's not similar to anything I've read before, or ever seen."
The book was light in weight, bound with four thick, black chords of a strange cloth, and carried with it a strange aroma that reminded Joshua of sweet flowers and the scent of death. He peeled back the cover, staring at the strange characters covering the page for what seemed like ages. The goodbeasts surrounding the hedgehog nervously twisted their fingers and tapped their foot paws until he inhaled deeply.
"I recognize this writing now. I've seen it once before, far from the shores of Mossflower. The language and script are that of Canis Lupis."
"W-what's that, Father Joshua?" piped Baran nervously.
"It's the writings of wolves," Joshua said gravely. Ferrill put an arm around his wife's shoulder as she flexed her right paw in agitation. Joshua turned back to the ancient, stained parchment, reading aloud the first page lit by the ravenous fires eating away the evil fort.
"Behold the writings of Ahira, the princess of Kir Hareseth, ruler of the isle of Undegro, and the happenings of Citius Gadare and the crew of the Agony during the seasons of desolation, . . ."