Chapter 5
A tall, sand-furred hare sighed wearily as he looked around at the large group of Long Patrol hares, all chatting and talking away without a care. Carefully, he tried his best to count them all, but they all kept moving around that he lost count easily, and the hare soon gave up. He headed towards the Salamandastron gate, where Lord Brawnpeak the Bold was waiting patiently. The hare saluted smartly once he reached the badger lord.
"Eh, m'lud, would y'good self mind if y'just gave me a bally list of all the jolly hares comin' wid me so I can call the roll? 'Tis a tad bit hard tryin' to count all the Long Patrollers present cause they just keep moving aroun', sah."
Lord Brawnpeak nodded thoughtfully, and handed the hare a long piece of bark, with the names of hares scrawled on it. "Here you are, Lieutenant. I believe there are twenty three hares marching to Redwall with you, including you of course. Hurry up and see if everyone is here. You don't have to call roll if you wish. All long as you make sure every hare is here. And Captain Reva won't be going with you. She claims she's grown too old, so please give Abbess Sencatina her regards, Spotster."
Lieutenant Spotster saluted again, and marched off into the crowd, not watching where he was going because he was staring at the names that were written on the list. "Kinorum and Kidust, the singing and reciting duo, Tapbeat, he's a nice chap, wot. Looks like m'lud has allowed Starworthy to come with us. That's a bally surprise. The Major has always been m'lud's favorite. Ah, just who I was looking for. Sergeant Ace. Good, now there's someone to tell Tadaval to stop callin' me Spotsee. I say, why did the blighter start callin' me that in the first place? Who else is comin'…"
Spotster was busy staring at bark that he didn't see a small hare headed his way. He collided straight into her, making them both fall down onto the soft sand. The other hare immediately began helping Spotster off of the ground. She picked up the bark and handed it to the lieutenant, who accepted it gratefully. The hare threw a small salute, and her voice squeaked as she said, "Sorry, lieutenant. Won't happen again, sah!"
"Quite alright, young'un." Spotster peered at the hare curiously and raised an eyebrow. "Don't think I've seen you around before. Speak up, m'gel, please, recite your name and rank please. That shouldn't be so hard, wot!"
The hare looked quite nervous as she replied, "Er, name's Glory, sah, an' I'm the new cap'n."
Spotster looked her up and down officially and then nodded with satisfaction, breaking into a large grin. He offered his paw willingly, which Glory shook hesitantly, not sure of what to do in these situations. "Well now, a new captain. That's good, cause ole Reva won't be coming. Say's she's too old, y'know. I don't believe the old gel a bit; she's still got a lot of life in her. But I still can't change wot she thinks, though, as hard as I try, eh wot? Jolly wish she was comin', though. She always lightens things up. Well now, chin up, chest out, that's it. Try an' look like cap-"
The lieutenant suddenly stopped chatting and threw a quick salute. Glory turned around to see a sort of tall, fit, official looking hare. She also saluted smartly, causing the hare to smile kindly.
"G'mornin', Glory. Lord Brawnpeak told me we would have a new captain. Right then. I'm Major Starworthy, and I'll be leading the patrol to the Abbey." The Major turned to the lieutenant who was awaiting orders. "Lieutenant, how many hares are coming with us?"
"Twenty three, Major, includin' me'n'you an'Glory. Bullet an' Lance were goin' to come, but miss Arrow decided that-oh, er, pardon me, sah. Twenty three, Major sah, wot!"
The Major nodded and gestured towards the group of talking hares. "Since we don't have much hares, we can let them introduce themselves instead o' callin' roll."
Spotster nodded as he understood Starworthy's plan. Grinning cheerfully, he stated, "So then Glory can meet all o' the hares, wot?"
The officer nodded and turned his attention back to Glory, who hadn't moved an inch. "Is that all right with you, captain?"
Glory nodded nervously and gave a small smile. "All right with me, major. I don't know even one fourth of these hares around me. 'Twill be nice to get to know them."
The two followed the major to a large, flat rock which was laying nearby. The major hopped onto it and cleared his throat. All the hare stopped and turned to their superior. The major cleared his throat loudly again before starting his 'speech.'
"We have a new captain coming with us on our journey; her name is Glory." He waved a paw in Glory's direction, causing the hares to turn her way. Some nodded, some waved, while some just smiled. The major continued after everybeast had finished making their gestures. "Because of this, instead of calling roll, we will be introducing ourselves. When we start, I will get off this rock, and whoever wants to go next can hop on and introduce themselves. You can say whatever you want about yourself, including name and rank. Understood?"
"Yes, sah!"
The major nodded in approval. "I'll go first. I'm Major Starworthy, the head of the Long Patrol. I'll be leading you to Redwall Abbey." The hare jumped off and stood by Glory's side. Nobeast moved for a second, then a hare jumped on to the rock. He landed a bit ungracefully, then regained his posture and turned to face the group.
"My name's Kinorum, I am not described as dumb, because for those who don't know it, I am a poet."
The hares groaned and some shouted, "We all know it, Kinorum!"
Kinorum smiled. "Good. I'm glad that you know it. For I am a poet."
The hares groaned again, and someone called out, "Do you also have to use 'it' and 'poet'?"
The hare poet shrugged and recited:
"I once knew a tiny bumblebee,
He was as little as a seed.
He would always fly around me,
For he thought I was a flower, and I provided what he need.
He buzzed and he buzzed,
And it got quieted annoying.
And I told him, "You must stop, you must!"
And he did, the next day, the next morning.
But it was strange, it was,
I missed the little bee.
How he would buzz and buzz,
And how he would fly all around and around me.
So the moral for my story,
Is don't take something for granted.
For if it's gone, you just might be sorry.
Like I was when I lost that little bee; I wept and ranted."
For a while, everyone was silent, then some hare started clapped softly. Kinorum turned and faced Glory. He bowed formally and grinned cheerily. "At least somebeast here enjoys good poetry." He jumped off the rock, but before he disappeared into the crowd, he turned around and winked. "I am a poet, so don't you forget it!"
The group of hares came back to life again, and there was another wave of groans. Amid all the moans, a pretty, female hare jumped onto the stone next and gave a huge beam.
"I'm Kidust, and I'm Kinorum's twin sister. I'm a singer, and I sometimes sing with Kinorum. I won't sing a song this time, cause that will take too long." She jumped off and stood by her brother, awaiting the next hare.
A tall, sand furred hare was up next. He waved cheerfully –some hares wove back– and grinned. "I'm Swiftspeed. Galloper, fastest hare of Salamandastron, what ever you want to call me, I'm fast as the wind and fleet on paw. The good major said so himself, so it must be true." In a blink of an eye, he was in front of Glory. He winked roguishly as he pulled a small periwinkle flower from her ear. He winked again and handed the flower to the startled captain. "Did I mention I was a magician?"
Glory felt a slight blush creep up her cheeks. She accepted the flower, murmured a small 'thank you', and turned to the hare that were already on the rock. The hare glared at Swiftspeed angrily while she spoke.
"I'm Lerarel. My name is pronounced the same backwards and forwards. Nice isn't it? That way, you won't forget how to spell my name. Swiftspeed, you stole that flower from my garden!"
Swiftspeed chuckled, and at the next moment, he was at Lerarel's side. "Try an' catch me, then, Lera!"
Lerarel sighed and hopped off the rock dejectedly. She knew she couldn't catch the fastest hare of Salamandastron. Two other hares got on right after.
"My name's Merry," One of them started. "and I'm extremely cheerful." To prove her point, she grinned optimistically and waved.
"I'm Jansorio, and I'm a boxing hare." Jansorio threw a few swift punches in the air and then jumped off of the rock, followed by Merry.
The next hare was tall and burly. He carried a longbow and shouldered a bag full of arrows. He leaned on his bow nonchalantly as he stated, "Beynin Longarch. Skilled archer; the best of Salamandastron actually."
There was a slight snicker from a hare in the crowd.
"Well, somebeast here thinks highly of himself."
Beynin glared at the hare who had spoken and jumped off the rock. "I'm higher than you, frogface."
"Nutnose," the hare retorted.
"Lankypaws."
"Addlebrain."
"Bigmouth."
"Cabbagehead."
"Carrotears."
Major Starworthy was at the scene in a flash. "Stop!" he roared. "I will not have any mutiny in my patrol about a single remark, as rude as it may have been." Starworthy glared at the hare who had made the comment. "And Finicky, you will have to stop treating your comrades with such disrespect."
Beynin took one last glare at Finicky, then stomped off angrily. Starworthy nodded and returned to his spot. He smiled at Glory comfortingly. "Don't worry, captain, they always argue."
Finicky hopped onto the rock. In a flat voice and with a frown on her face, she announced, "I'm Finicky." With that she hopped back off and disappeared into the group.
The next hare was Spotster. He stared at the group for a while, as if searching for someone. Not being able to find him or her, he then started. "I'm Lieutenant Spotster. Spotster. Note, sah, it's not Spotsee. It's Spotster. Repeat after me, Colonel. Spotster." He glared out into the group at no one in particular. Some hares giggled, and someone from the 'audience' called out, "Aye, Spotsee!" Spotster sighed and threw his paws up into the air in frustration, calling out with irritation and aggravation, "I give up, Tadaval! I give up!"
"I'm Oleander Rose," the next hare proclaimed slowly. "I…I'm a hare," He grinned shyly. "and I like…flowers. I help Lerarel with her garden." He got off quickly and disappeared.
A stiff, stern looking hare was up on the rock. He nodded first before speaking. "I'm Sergeant Ace Mendbush, but usually called Ace." With nothing else to say, he leapt off the 'stage.'
Fernmint Mendbush was up next. She smiled warmly at all the hares and started. "My name's Fernmint Mendbush, but Fernmint or Fern will suit me fine. I'm Ace's younger sister, and I'm a healer. I guess that's why my last name's Mendbush, because I mend. Don't know where the 'bush' came from, though."
Sergeant Ace twirled his whiskers thoughtfully. "Hmm…probably because I used to like running through shrubs, and I always came home covered with twigs and leaves. Mater probably though 'Mendbush' sounded better than 'Mendshrub.'"
Fernmint giggled and settled in her place off the rock. She gave a small hare a slight push, making her go forward towards the rock. The small hare stepped on carefully and turned to face the crowd. Like Glory, her voice was small. "I'm Windbright."
There were a few shouts from the crowd.
"An' she can live on a bally crust of bread and a jolly small bowl of water!"
"She's very nice an' friendly, wot!"
"But the gel gets scared often!"
"She's really shy, so don't expect her to talk much, cap'n marm!"
Windbright gave a small smile and stepped off the rock, as carefully as she had stepped on. She ran back into the crowd next to Fernmint.
The next hare was a bit smaller than the others. She smiled at the captain and giggled. "I'm Reene…" Reene giggled again. "and I love to laugh." She jumped off the rock and burst out laughing for no reason in particular. Glory raised her eyebrow in confusion, but the others seemed to be used to it, for they just smiled at her as if nothing had happened.
The next hare was on. He smiled foolishly and started prancing around on the rock, never once loosing his balance. He stopped as suddenly as she had started, and turned to the Glory. He tipped his 'invisible hat' and winked. "Plucky is m'name. I'm always here if you need a good laugh, wot!" He jumped of the rock and started prancing around again in a silly manner, a goofy sort of grin pasted in his face.
Glory giggled at the hare's antics and turned back to the rock. A completely black hare was sitting on the rock. When he saw the captain looking at him he stood up. "Corporal Nightshift, at yah service. I'm also the Long Patrol spy, and I'm also usually sent as a night scout."
Glory nodded and smiled. "Yes, and you must be very good at the scouting."
The black hare nodded back and jumped off, while another hare took his place. This hare carried two javelins, and a drum was strung around his neck. "I'm Tapbeat, and I'm a drummer. I know we're only going to Redwall Abbey, but who knows what happens? M'lud Brawnpeak used to tell me, 'Tapbeat, you should always expect the unexpected. Bring your drum, you never know what will happen.' Brawnpeak's very wise, y'know." He bounced off, but before he went off into the pack, he turned and winked at Glory. "I know what you're thinkin', marm. Why do I have javelins? Simple. I can beat the drum an' I can also fight. Clever idea, ain't it? I thought of it meself. But o'course I was inspired to think of it by m'lud Brawnpeak, y'know."
Glory shook her head in wonder. What a strange way to beat a drum. But the thing that she saw next was even stranger. A green hare was on the rock. At least, he seemed to be green.
"Jaruvan Anfande Delorin Eraflag, at yah service, captain marm. The first letters of my name make Jade, so that's wot creatures call me. Clever, ain't it?" He bounced off, and for a moment, Glory couldn't see him. Then, he was right beside her. He winked and smiled. "I'm a camouflage expert, too. That's probably why I seem to be the color jade."
When the next hare went up, Spotster groaned and threw his paws into the air again like he had done when was on the rock. Glory turned to the lieutenant quizzically. "What's wrong, Spotster?"
Spotster didn't say anything; he just pointed at the hare who was on the rock, beginning to speak.
"My name's Colonel Tadaval Kathudler, but you ken call me Tadaval or Tad if ye like. Actually, you have to call me Tadaval or Tad." The hare stopped to wave at Spotster. "Hi, Spotsee!"
Spotster groaned, but he was the only one. Some of the hares smiled, and some giggled. The Colonel jumped off the rock, allowing the next to go. The next hare jumped up onto the rock casually. He gave his dirk an experimental twirl and smiled. "I'm Acanthus, captain, weapon extraordinaire." He stepped off, and another hare stepped on. Glory could tell the next hare was younger than the others because of her size. She was much shorter compared to the others.
"I'm Tweetleg Sprinter, but you have my permission the call me Tweety or something like that, wot!" Tweetleg gave a small shrug as she continued. "There's not much to know about me, 'cept that I'm a green one, an' that means I'm a young Long Patroller an' I'm not as experienced as all the other bally chaps here, and that I'm a Sprinter, sorta like good old Swiftspeed, but that's also obvious because of my last name, wot? Ye know, Sprinter tells ye that I'm a Sprinter, and that I run, right?" Then Tweetleg Sprinter hopped off the rock and stepped up to the Captain. She threw a small salute. "That's all of us, Glory!"
"Not quite, Tweet." The captain jumped onto the rock like she had seen the others do. She smiled warmly as she said, "My name's Captain Glory, call me Glory, and I am very pleased to meet all of you."
"Wot is a Salamandastron hare, oh my!
You don't know wot they are?
Well, I am one, and one is I,
An' we come from near an' far.
Wot describes a Salamandastron hare?
Valiant, stout, jus' to name a few.
Perilous, witty, we're kind an' we care,
We're loyal, friendly, pleasant an' true.
Wot does a Salamandastron hare look like?
We cut fine figures, we do.
We're brawny, muscular, we use weapons pikes,
But lances or spears and javelins will do.
Wot are these Salamandastron hares like?
We're good musicians, we're very bright.
We are almost always right,
An' we'll eat from day to night.
Wot are these Salamandastron hares, ask some.
We're from a fiery peak, brave an' bold.
Vermin, watch out, here we come,
Led by Brawnpeak the Bold, Badger Lord."
Kinorum and his twin sister, Kidust, bowed politely amid the applause. The Long Patrol had asked for a marching chant to keep them going, and the two were more than happy to recite one that they had made up by themselves.
Glory smiled as she marched to the beat, but she slowed down as she felt somebeast's eyes on hers, and whirled around to see Swiftspeed, who was nodding and smiled at her. He took a great leap and landed right beside the captain. The two kept on marching, chatting amiably as they went.
Glory smiled at Swiftspeed and fiddled with her flower as she spoke. "Thank you for the flower. I hope Lerarel isn't too mad about you stealing from her garden. An' y'know what, Speed? This is nothing like the Long Patrol I expected it to be. Y'know, I've heard a lot of stories, rumors y'could call it, that now prove to be untrue. I once heard that Merry used to be crazy and killed her family, that Nightshift is a completely black adder, that Bernice was a March hare, that Ace cut the ears off anybeast that disobeyed him, that Colonel Tadaval is a ghost and that's why Spotster's afraid o' him, that Tapbeat was a savage cannibal who is now being forced to eat vegetables and fruits, and that Windbright is a mouse with long ears, and that Oleander used to be blind, until Reene healed him with magical her laugh. Well, I have to say, she does laugh and giggle a lot, doesn't she. Oh, and they also told me that Jade was born in an apple tree and he was actually green, and that's why people call him Jade."
Swiftspeed stared at Glory strangely once she finished. "Merry's crazy and killed her family? Bernice is a March hare? Windbright's a mouse? Tadaval's a ghost? Nightshift's a snake? Tapbeat was a cannibal? Oleander was blind and Reene has a magical laugh? Jade was born in an apple tree? What these hares think of these days! Crazy things, y'know. None of the nonsense is true. Bet the next thing y'know, they'll be tellin' you that me mother and father were land birds, an' that I can soar through the air, except I don't fly in front o' regular hares because I don't want them figurin' out me secret."
Glory's face was of pure innocence. "They did."
"Corporal sah, you might wanna come see this, but then again, you might not want to..." Tapbeat stood in front of Nightshift, his face a picture of puzzlement, disgust and worriment, all in one. He, Windbright and the archer Beynin had been scouting ahead, looking for signs of trouble. By the looks of Tapbeat's face, the Corporal knew that they had found something. He stopped the marching hares, and raised his eyebrow in surprise.
"Really? Well, what was it? It couldn't have been that bad, could it?"
Beynin marched up the officer in true military fashion, supported a pale Windbright, who looked like she was about to tumble down into a dead faint. He steadied her so she wouldn't topple over and hit the ground and hurt herself, then saluted smartly and rapped out his report quickly.
"Corpoal sah, we found a small group of slain vermin. Two of 'em were tied to a high branch on an ash tree, hangin' by their tails. Very uncomfortably, I might add. The ones on the tree were already dead when we got there, and we got a clear glimpse of one o' 'em, but the other one was a bit hard to see. One was a rat, the other was a weasel. They must have been hanging there for at least a day or two, an' the rat had already fell off. Windbright here got a little dizzy from the sight of a rat with a broken body, so we came back here as quick as we could to let her rest, an' to report back to you, sah."
Windbright nodded her head weakly as she quickly covered her mouth with a paw. She looked as if she was about to vomit very soon, so she turned around, not facing the officer.
Corporal Nightshift nodded slowly, then pointed at Windbright with his right paw. "Well, put her down on the ground and let her rest then. We'll wait a bit for her to recover. Leave the vermin be; the insects will take care o' the rat, and sooner or later, the weasel will fall too and get eaten by the insects by the same way. We'll take a shortcut around them. We have a green one, Tweetleg, with us, an' I don't want her seein' a sight like that. Somebeast must have come this way and given them a good hard lesson. Must have been a bird or something. No other beast could've strung them onto a high branch. Go ahead an' take a break, you three."
As Beynin and Tapbeat left to bring Windbright away from the Corporal so she could get some rest, Major Starworthy bounded over, a worried expression over his stern features.
"Well Corporal, wot did they find? Windbright was paler than usual, though that might be possible, an' Beynin Longarch and Tapbeat looked pretty worried and such. Answer me question, sah. Tell me, wot happ'ned?"
Nightshift pulled a wry face as he answered the higher officer. "Group o' vermin are up there in our path, sah, all dead. Beynin, the archer, says that two were tied onto a high branch on an ash tree, though one, a rat, fell off. We're going around that spot so Tweetleg, since she hasn't seen something of that sort, won't have to see it. Windbright almost fainted at the sight, so it must have been horrible, even though she is easily disgusted or fright'ned. Major sah? Wot's wrong?"
Starworthy frowned and nodded slowly, just as the corporal had done. "It must be true."
Nightshift raised an eyebrow once again. "True, sah? Wot's true?"
Starworthy shrugged nonchalantly and leaned casually on his tall lance that he always carried around. "Rumor around the mountain is that Vermeng, the weasel corsair, just lost two captives a day or two ago. 'Twas a hare like ourselves, an' an eagle. They say the hare's rode on the eagle's back an' that's how she escaped, and she landed near Salamandastron. Spotsee…er, Spotster said that he saw something like an eagle land somewhere around here. They must've passed this way and met up with them. We'll go around them, as you said, and them we'll move back to our original path, so we won't have to take the chance of getting lost. Dismissed, Corporal. Thank you."
As Nightshift went off to tell the hares of the break, the major sighed. He had not told the corporal two important things that concerned the hare and eagle; that he had heard that Vermeng had swore to track the two creatures down and kill them. He had also not told Corporal Nightshift that the hare and the eagle were traveling south, straight into Redwall Abbey.
A tall, sand-furred hare sighed wearily as he looked around at the large group of Long Patrol hares, all chatting and talking away without a care. Carefully, he tried his best to count them all, but they all kept moving around that he lost count easily, and the hare soon gave up. He headed towards the Salamandastron gate, where Lord Brawnpeak the Bold was waiting patiently. The hare saluted smartly once he reached the badger lord.
"Eh, m'lud, would y'good self mind if y'just gave me a bally list of all the jolly hares comin' wid me so I can call the roll? 'Tis a tad bit hard tryin' to count all the Long Patrollers present cause they just keep moving aroun', sah."
Lord Brawnpeak nodded thoughtfully, and handed the hare a long piece of bark, with the names of hares scrawled on it. "Here you are, Lieutenant. I believe there are twenty three hares marching to Redwall with you, including you of course. Hurry up and see if everyone is here. You don't have to call roll if you wish. All long as you make sure every hare is here. And Captain Reva won't be going with you. She claims she's grown too old, so please give Abbess Sencatina her regards, Spotster."
Lieutenant Spotster saluted again, and marched off into the crowd, not watching where he was going because he was staring at the names that were written on the list. "Kinorum and Kidust, the singing and reciting duo, Tapbeat, he's a nice chap, wot. Looks like m'lud has allowed Starworthy to come with us. That's a bally surprise. The Major has always been m'lud's favorite. Ah, just who I was looking for. Sergeant Ace. Good, now there's someone to tell Tadaval to stop callin' me Spotsee. I say, why did the blighter start callin' me that in the first place? Who else is comin'…"
Spotster was busy staring at bark that he didn't see a small hare headed his way. He collided straight into her, making them both fall down onto the soft sand. The other hare immediately began helping Spotster off of the ground. She picked up the bark and handed it to the lieutenant, who accepted it gratefully. The hare threw a small salute, and her voice squeaked as she said, "Sorry, lieutenant. Won't happen again, sah!"
"Quite alright, young'un." Spotster peered at the hare curiously and raised an eyebrow. "Don't think I've seen you around before. Speak up, m'gel, please, recite your name and rank please. That shouldn't be so hard, wot!"
The hare looked quite nervous as she replied, "Er, name's Glory, sah, an' I'm the new cap'n."
Spotster looked her up and down officially and then nodded with satisfaction, breaking into a large grin. He offered his paw willingly, which Glory shook hesitantly, not sure of what to do in these situations. "Well now, a new captain. That's good, cause ole Reva won't be coming. Say's she's too old, y'know. I don't believe the old gel a bit; she's still got a lot of life in her. But I still can't change wot she thinks, though, as hard as I try, eh wot? Jolly wish she was comin', though. She always lightens things up. Well now, chin up, chest out, that's it. Try an' look like cap-"
The lieutenant suddenly stopped chatting and threw a quick salute. Glory turned around to see a sort of tall, fit, official looking hare. She also saluted smartly, causing the hare to smile kindly.
"G'mornin', Glory. Lord Brawnpeak told me we would have a new captain. Right then. I'm Major Starworthy, and I'll be leading the patrol to the Abbey." The Major turned to the lieutenant who was awaiting orders. "Lieutenant, how many hares are coming with us?"
"Twenty three, Major, includin' me'n'you an'Glory. Bullet an' Lance were goin' to come, but miss Arrow decided that-oh, er, pardon me, sah. Twenty three, Major sah, wot!"
The Major nodded and gestured towards the group of talking hares. "Since we don't have much hares, we can let them introduce themselves instead o' callin' roll."
Spotster nodded as he understood Starworthy's plan. Grinning cheerfully, he stated, "So then Glory can meet all o' the hares, wot?"
The officer nodded and turned his attention back to Glory, who hadn't moved an inch. "Is that all right with you, captain?"
Glory nodded nervously and gave a small smile. "All right with me, major. I don't know even one fourth of these hares around me. 'Twill be nice to get to know them."
The two followed the major to a large, flat rock which was laying nearby. The major hopped onto it and cleared his throat. All the hare stopped and turned to their superior. The major cleared his throat loudly again before starting his 'speech.'
"We have a new captain coming with us on our journey; her name is Glory." He waved a paw in Glory's direction, causing the hares to turn her way. Some nodded, some waved, while some just smiled. The major continued after everybeast had finished making their gestures. "Because of this, instead of calling roll, we will be introducing ourselves. When we start, I will get off this rock, and whoever wants to go next can hop on and introduce themselves. You can say whatever you want about yourself, including name and rank. Understood?"
"Yes, sah!"
The major nodded in approval. "I'll go first. I'm Major Starworthy, the head of the Long Patrol. I'll be leading you to Redwall Abbey." The hare jumped off and stood by Glory's side. Nobeast moved for a second, then a hare jumped on to the rock. He landed a bit ungracefully, then regained his posture and turned to face the group.
"My name's Kinorum, I am not described as dumb, because for those who don't know it, I am a poet."
The hares groaned and some shouted, "We all know it, Kinorum!"
Kinorum smiled. "Good. I'm glad that you know it. For I am a poet."
The hares groaned again, and someone called out, "Do you also have to use 'it' and 'poet'?"
The hare poet shrugged and recited:
"I once knew a tiny bumblebee,
He was as little as a seed.
He would always fly around me,
For he thought I was a flower, and I provided what he need.
He buzzed and he buzzed,
And it got quieted annoying.
And I told him, "You must stop, you must!"
And he did, the next day, the next morning.
But it was strange, it was,
I missed the little bee.
How he would buzz and buzz,
And how he would fly all around and around me.
So the moral for my story,
Is don't take something for granted.
For if it's gone, you just might be sorry.
Like I was when I lost that little bee; I wept and ranted."
For a while, everyone was silent, then some hare started clapped softly. Kinorum turned and faced Glory. He bowed formally and grinned cheerily. "At least somebeast here enjoys good poetry." He jumped off the rock, but before he disappeared into the crowd, he turned around and winked. "I am a poet, so don't you forget it!"
The group of hares came back to life again, and there was another wave of groans. Amid all the moans, a pretty, female hare jumped onto the stone next and gave a huge beam.
"I'm Kidust, and I'm Kinorum's twin sister. I'm a singer, and I sometimes sing with Kinorum. I won't sing a song this time, cause that will take too long." She jumped off and stood by her brother, awaiting the next hare.
A tall, sand furred hare was up next. He waved cheerfully –some hares wove back– and grinned. "I'm Swiftspeed. Galloper, fastest hare of Salamandastron, what ever you want to call me, I'm fast as the wind and fleet on paw. The good major said so himself, so it must be true." In a blink of an eye, he was in front of Glory. He winked roguishly as he pulled a small periwinkle flower from her ear. He winked again and handed the flower to the startled captain. "Did I mention I was a magician?"
Glory felt a slight blush creep up her cheeks. She accepted the flower, murmured a small 'thank you', and turned to the hare that were already on the rock. The hare glared at Swiftspeed angrily while she spoke.
"I'm Lerarel. My name is pronounced the same backwards and forwards. Nice isn't it? That way, you won't forget how to spell my name. Swiftspeed, you stole that flower from my garden!"
Swiftspeed chuckled, and at the next moment, he was at Lerarel's side. "Try an' catch me, then, Lera!"
Lerarel sighed and hopped off the rock dejectedly. She knew she couldn't catch the fastest hare of Salamandastron. Two other hares got on right after.
"My name's Merry," One of them started. "and I'm extremely cheerful." To prove her point, she grinned optimistically and waved.
"I'm Jansorio, and I'm a boxing hare." Jansorio threw a few swift punches in the air and then jumped off of the rock, followed by Merry.
The next hare was tall and burly. He carried a longbow and shouldered a bag full of arrows. He leaned on his bow nonchalantly as he stated, "Beynin Longarch. Skilled archer; the best of Salamandastron actually."
There was a slight snicker from a hare in the crowd.
"Well, somebeast here thinks highly of himself."
Beynin glared at the hare who had spoken and jumped off the rock. "I'm higher than you, frogface."
"Nutnose," the hare retorted.
"Lankypaws."
"Addlebrain."
"Bigmouth."
"Cabbagehead."
"Carrotears."
Major Starworthy was at the scene in a flash. "Stop!" he roared. "I will not have any mutiny in my patrol about a single remark, as rude as it may have been." Starworthy glared at the hare who had made the comment. "And Finicky, you will have to stop treating your comrades with such disrespect."
Beynin took one last glare at Finicky, then stomped off angrily. Starworthy nodded and returned to his spot. He smiled at Glory comfortingly. "Don't worry, captain, they always argue."
Finicky hopped onto the rock. In a flat voice and with a frown on her face, she announced, "I'm Finicky." With that she hopped back off and disappeared into the group.
The next hare was Spotster. He stared at the group for a while, as if searching for someone. Not being able to find him or her, he then started. "I'm Lieutenant Spotster. Spotster. Note, sah, it's not Spotsee. It's Spotster. Repeat after me, Colonel. Spotster." He glared out into the group at no one in particular. Some hares giggled, and someone from the 'audience' called out, "Aye, Spotsee!" Spotster sighed and threw his paws up into the air in frustration, calling out with irritation and aggravation, "I give up, Tadaval! I give up!"
"I'm Oleander Rose," the next hare proclaimed slowly. "I…I'm a hare," He grinned shyly. "and I like…flowers. I help Lerarel with her garden." He got off quickly and disappeared.
A stiff, stern looking hare was up on the rock. He nodded first before speaking. "I'm Sergeant Ace Mendbush, but usually called Ace." With nothing else to say, he leapt off the 'stage.'
Fernmint Mendbush was up next. She smiled warmly at all the hares and started. "My name's Fernmint Mendbush, but Fernmint or Fern will suit me fine. I'm Ace's younger sister, and I'm a healer. I guess that's why my last name's Mendbush, because I mend. Don't know where the 'bush' came from, though."
Sergeant Ace twirled his whiskers thoughtfully. "Hmm…probably because I used to like running through shrubs, and I always came home covered with twigs and leaves. Mater probably though 'Mendbush' sounded better than 'Mendshrub.'"
Fernmint giggled and settled in her place off the rock. She gave a small hare a slight push, making her go forward towards the rock. The small hare stepped on carefully and turned to face the crowd. Like Glory, her voice was small. "I'm Windbright."
There were a few shouts from the crowd.
"An' she can live on a bally crust of bread and a jolly small bowl of water!"
"She's very nice an' friendly, wot!"
"But the gel gets scared often!"
"She's really shy, so don't expect her to talk much, cap'n marm!"
Windbright gave a small smile and stepped off the rock, as carefully as she had stepped on. She ran back into the crowd next to Fernmint.
The next hare was a bit smaller than the others. She smiled at the captain and giggled. "I'm Reene…" Reene giggled again. "and I love to laugh." She jumped off the rock and burst out laughing for no reason in particular. Glory raised her eyebrow in confusion, but the others seemed to be used to it, for they just smiled at her as if nothing had happened.
The next hare was on. He smiled foolishly and started prancing around on the rock, never once loosing his balance. He stopped as suddenly as she had started, and turned to the Glory. He tipped his 'invisible hat' and winked. "Plucky is m'name. I'm always here if you need a good laugh, wot!" He jumped of the rock and started prancing around again in a silly manner, a goofy sort of grin pasted in his face.
Glory giggled at the hare's antics and turned back to the rock. A completely black hare was sitting on the rock. When he saw the captain looking at him he stood up. "Corporal Nightshift, at yah service. I'm also the Long Patrol spy, and I'm also usually sent as a night scout."
Glory nodded and smiled. "Yes, and you must be very good at the scouting."
The black hare nodded back and jumped off, while another hare took his place. This hare carried two javelins, and a drum was strung around his neck. "I'm Tapbeat, and I'm a drummer. I know we're only going to Redwall Abbey, but who knows what happens? M'lud Brawnpeak used to tell me, 'Tapbeat, you should always expect the unexpected. Bring your drum, you never know what will happen.' Brawnpeak's very wise, y'know." He bounced off, but before he went off into the pack, he turned and winked at Glory. "I know what you're thinkin', marm. Why do I have javelins? Simple. I can beat the drum an' I can also fight. Clever idea, ain't it? I thought of it meself. But o'course I was inspired to think of it by m'lud Brawnpeak, y'know."
Glory shook her head in wonder. What a strange way to beat a drum. But the thing that she saw next was even stranger. A green hare was on the rock. At least, he seemed to be green.
"Jaruvan Anfande Delorin Eraflag, at yah service, captain marm. The first letters of my name make Jade, so that's wot creatures call me. Clever, ain't it?" He bounced off, and for a moment, Glory couldn't see him. Then, he was right beside her. He winked and smiled. "I'm a camouflage expert, too. That's probably why I seem to be the color jade."
When the next hare went up, Spotster groaned and threw his paws into the air again like he had done when was on the rock. Glory turned to the lieutenant quizzically. "What's wrong, Spotster?"
Spotster didn't say anything; he just pointed at the hare who was on the rock, beginning to speak.
"My name's Colonel Tadaval Kathudler, but you ken call me Tadaval or Tad if ye like. Actually, you have to call me Tadaval or Tad." The hare stopped to wave at Spotster. "Hi, Spotsee!"
Spotster groaned, but he was the only one. Some of the hares smiled, and some giggled. The Colonel jumped off the rock, allowing the next to go. The next hare jumped up onto the rock casually. He gave his dirk an experimental twirl and smiled. "I'm Acanthus, captain, weapon extraordinaire." He stepped off, and another hare stepped on. Glory could tell the next hare was younger than the others because of her size. She was much shorter compared to the others.
"I'm Tweetleg Sprinter, but you have my permission the call me Tweety or something like that, wot!" Tweetleg gave a small shrug as she continued. "There's not much to know about me, 'cept that I'm a green one, an' that means I'm a young Long Patroller an' I'm not as experienced as all the other bally chaps here, and that I'm a Sprinter, sorta like good old Swiftspeed, but that's also obvious because of my last name, wot? Ye know, Sprinter tells ye that I'm a Sprinter, and that I run, right?" Then Tweetleg Sprinter hopped off the rock and stepped up to the Captain. She threw a small salute. "That's all of us, Glory!"
"Not quite, Tweet." The captain jumped onto the rock like she had seen the others do. She smiled warmly as she said, "My name's Captain Glory, call me Glory, and I am very pleased to meet all of you."
"Wot is a Salamandastron hare, oh my!
You don't know wot they are?
Well, I am one, and one is I,
An' we come from near an' far.
Wot describes a Salamandastron hare?
Valiant, stout, jus' to name a few.
Perilous, witty, we're kind an' we care,
We're loyal, friendly, pleasant an' true.
Wot does a Salamandastron hare look like?
We cut fine figures, we do.
We're brawny, muscular, we use weapons pikes,
But lances or spears and javelins will do.
Wot are these Salamandastron hares like?
We're good musicians, we're very bright.
We are almost always right,
An' we'll eat from day to night.
Wot are these Salamandastron hares, ask some.
We're from a fiery peak, brave an' bold.
Vermin, watch out, here we come,
Led by Brawnpeak the Bold, Badger Lord."
Kinorum and his twin sister, Kidust, bowed politely amid the applause. The Long Patrol had asked for a marching chant to keep them going, and the two were more than happy to recite one that they had made up by themselves.
Glory smiled as she marched to the beat, but she slowed down as she felt somebeast's eyes on hers, and whirled around to see Swiftspeed, who was nodding and smiled at her. He took a great leap and landed right beside the captain. The two kept on marching, chatting amiably as they went.
Glory smiled at Swiftspeed and fiddled with her flower as she spoke. "Thank you for the flower. I hope Lerarel isn't too mad about you stealing from her garden. An' y'know what, Speed? This is nothing like the Long Patrol I expected it to be. Y'know, I've heard a lot of stories, rumors y'could call it, that now prove to be untrue. I once heard that Merry used to be crazy and killed her family, that Nightshift is a completely black adder, that Bernice was a March hare, that Ace cut the ears off anybeast that disobeyed him, that Colonel Tadaval is a ghost and that's why Spotster's afraid o' him, that Tapbeat was a savage cannibal who is now being forced to eat vegetables and fruits, and that Windbright is a mouse with long ears, and that Oleander used to be blind, until Reene healed him with magical her laugh. Well, I have to say, she does laugh and giggle a lot, doesn't she. Oh, and they also told me that Jade was born in an apple tree and he was actually green, and that's why people call him Jade."
Swiftspeed stared at Glory strangely once she finished. "Merry's crazy and killed her family? Bernice is a March hare? Windbright's a mouse? Tadaval's a ghost? Nightshift's a snake? Tapbeat was a cannibal? Oleander was blind and Reene has a magical laugh? Jade was born in an apple tree? What these hares think of these days! Crazy things, y'know. None of the nonsense is true. Bet the next thing y'know, they'll be tellin' you that me mother and father were land birds, an' that I can soar through the air, except I don't fly in front o' regular hares because I don't want them figurin' out me secret."
Glory's face was of pure innocence. "They did."
"Corporal sah, you might wanna come see this, but then again, you might not want to..." Tapbeat stood in front of Nightshift, his face a picture of puzzlement, disgust and worriment, all in one. He, Windbright and the archer Beynin had been scouting ahead, looking for signs of trouble. By the looks of Tapbeat's face, the Corporal knew that they had found something. He stopped the marching hares, and raised his eyebrow in surprise.
"Really? Well, what was it? It couldn't have been that bad, could it?"
Beynin marched up the officer in true military fashion, supported a pale Windbright, who looked like she was about to tumble down into a dead faint. He steadied her so she wouldn't topple over and hit the ground and hurt herself, then saluted smartly and rapped out his report quickly.
"Corpoal sah, we found a small group of slain vermin. Two of 'em were tied to a high branch on an ash tree, hangin' by their tails. Very uncomfortably, I might add. The ones on the tree were already dead when we got there, and we got a clear glimpse of one o' 'em, but the other one was a bit hard to see. One was a rat, the other was a weasel. They must have been hanging there for at least a day or two, an' the rat had already fell off. Windbright here got a little dizzy from the sight of a rat with a broken body, so we came back here as quick as we could to let her rest, an' to report back to you, sah."
Windbright nodded her head weakly as she quickly covered her mouth with a paw. She looked as if she was about to vomit very soon, so she turned around, not facing the officer.
Corporal Nightshift nodded slowly, then pointed at Windbright with his right paw. "Well, put her down on the ground and let her rest then. We'll wait a bit for her to recover. Leave the vermin be; the insects will take care o' the rat, and sooner or later, the weasel will fall too and get eaten by the insects by the same way. We'll take a shortcut around them. We have a green one, Tweetleg, with us, an' I don't want her seein' a sight like that. Somebeast must have come this way and given them a good hard lesson. Must have been a bird or something. No other beast could've strung them onto a high branch. Go ahead an' take a break, you three."
As Beynin and Tapbeat left to bring Windbright away from the Corporal so she could get some rest, Major Starworthy bounded over, a worried expression over his stern features.
"Well Corporal, wot did they find? Windbright was paler than usual, though that might be possible, an' Beynin Longarch and Tapbeat looked pretty worried and such. Answer me question, sah. Tell me, wot happ'ned?"
Nightshift pulled a wry face as he answered the higher officer. "Group o' vermin are up there in our path, sah, all dead. Beynin, the archer, says that two were tied onto a high branch on an ash tree, though one, a rat, fell off. We're going around that spot so Tweetleg, since she hasn't seen something of that sort, won't have to see it. Windbright almost fainted at the sight, so it must have been horrible, even though she is easily disgusted or fright'ned. Major sah? Wot's wrong?"
Starworthy frowned and nodded slowly, just as the corporal had done. "It must be true."
Nightshift raised an eyebrow once again. "True, sah? Wot's true?"
Starworthy shrugged nonchalantly and leaned casually on his tall lance that he always carried around. "Rumor around the mountain is that Vermeng, the weasel corsair, just lost two captives a day or two ago. 'Twas a hare like ourselves, an' an eagle. They say the hare's rode on the eagle's back an' that's how she escaped, and she landed near Salamandastron. Spotsee…er, Spotster said that he saw something like an eagle land somewhere around here. They must've passed this way and met up with them. We'll go around them, as you said, and them we'll move back to our original path, so we won't have to take the chance of getting lost. Dismissed, Corporal. Thank you."
As Nightshift went off to tell the hares of the break, the major sighed. He had not told the corporal two important things that concerned the hare and eagle; that he had heard that Vermeng had swore to track the two creatures down and kill them. He had also not told Corporal Nightshift that the hare and the eagle were traveling south, straight into Redwall Abbey.