Part Three - Hunter
"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matthew 5:4, NIV
General Hrairah was more than pleased to hear of Oaktrunk's wish to have Flax succeed him as Captain of the Owsla. He called a general meeting outside in the warm summer evening to complete the formalities. Finch and Burdock, as well as Flax' siblings and marli, were at the front of the crowd, offering their encouragement.
"I see absolutely no reason to disagree with your decision, Oaktrunk," General Hrairah said, "in fact, I probably would have suggested Flax myself if you hadn't been first. I hereby second and confirm your choice of your successor." Then he turned to the beaming Flax and asked, "Do you agree to our decision?"
Flax replied with gusto, "Yes, sir! I agree!"
General Hrairah replied, "I hereby appoint you, Flax, as the Owsla Captain- In-Waiting. Upon the retirement of Oaktrunk next spring, you will resume full duties as Captain of the Owsla. Congratulations! Oh, and by the way, consider your Owsla training complete. You are now also an Owsla Junior Officer."
A cheer went up from the crowd, and Flax was tackled playfully by his brother. "Tobacco!" scolded Pearl in an embarrassed whisper, "Stop that!"
Flax easily pushed Tobacco off and pinned him, laughing, "See? I'm the wrestling king of all time!"
"You wish, brother," replied Tobacco, also in laughter, "I just need to practise more."
Pearl hid her face with her paws in embarrassment. Such a way to behave at a formal ceremony, she thought.
***
It was late summer, and Flax was leading a scouting expedition consisting of Dewberry, Twayblade, Buckler, and himself, to another nearby farm. The four had become close friends after the pfeffa incident, and would often go scouting together. On this occasion, Flax was hoping to ascertain the quality of the gardens in the area's farms as harvest time drew near. The farm that was their current objective was on the edge of a wood about half a mile from Cloudtree Warren. The weather was unusually warm and quite humid, with no trace of wind.
They made their way along a row of cabbages, taking care that one of them was on the lookout at all times. Within a few minutes, there were noticeable bite marks out of the best leaves on each plant. The farmer would not be pleased when he noticed this the following morning. With full stomachs, the rabbits decided to return home.
When they were crossing the meadow back to Cloudtree, they came across a foul stench that had not been there earlier that day - something unlike anything else that they had ever smelled before. A skunk, a rarity to say the least in England, had used its primary defence in the area and the smell made the rabbits' eyes water. Thus, they had a hard time seeing, as the world was blurry. However, their main disadvantage was that they were now also scent-blind with such a strong scent overpowering all other smells. They couldn't sense out any elil that normally would be easily detected. And that was exactly what the concealed homba had in his mind.
The fox had come up with its clever trick some weeks ago, after he found the skunk, which had escaped from a nearby private exotic animal collector. He had curiously sniffed at the seemingly harmless alien intruder, and immediately received quite a shock. It took days of rolling in water, mud, and grass to lessen the smell to a bearable level. But then, he noticed how easy it was to sneak up on prey normally tipped off long in advance of its presence, due to the strong scent typical of foxes. The intended prey had no idea what to make of the skunk stench, but were unconcerned, as they couldn't smell the fox. All too often, they wouldn't know the fox was there until it was too late.
The fox knew that eventually the animals would associate the skunk's scent with danger, so he decided to take advantage while he could. When the smell had weakened to the point that the fox's natural scent was detectable again, he managed to find the skunk one more time and harass it into spraying again. He could live with the stench as long as it was easy to catch the next meal - though he was careful not to get sprayed in the face..
The homba was now watching the rabbits proceed across the meadow with hungry eyes. He could see that the rabbits had no idea of his presence, even as he quietly crept along and made his way to within pouncing distance. His target, Buckler, who was trailing his friends, didn't even see him coming.
The other three rabbits snapped their heads around when the heard Buckler's agonized squealing. Again, Flax' instinct took over. "Buckler!" he screamed, "play dead!"
Buckler obeyed, despite his state of being tharn. He was extremely lucky. The homba was quite young, and did not yet know Lapine well enough to understand what Flax had said. He let Buckler go when his prey stopped struggling, and then inspected his assumed kill. "Now! Go!" yelled Flax.
Buckler immediately got up and sped away, fortunately wounded only superficially. Twayblade and Dewberry had resisted the urge to flee in order to try to help as well, and now Flax urged them all on, "Go! Go! Get away!" he commanded as he also started at a full run.
The homba, however, was not ready to give up his meal. His attention focused now on Flax, and he gave chase. Flax had been widening the gap, but then made the panicked error of beginning to zig-zag, believing the homba to be right on his tail, and this cost him distance. Then, his left back foot slipped out from under him as it hit a depression in the ground. Flax tumbled nearly end over end, and in no time, the homba was upon him. Flax gave a strangled squeal as the homba's jaws closed around his neck, then fell silent as he was flayed about and his neck was broken.
The other rabbits could only watch helplessly from a distance as their friend died. They stood there in shock for a minute, but couldn't bear to watch as the homba began to feed. Silently, they made their way back to Cloudtree Warren, with tears in their eyes.
Oaktrunk was there to greet them, and knew immediately that something terrible had happened. He saw the agony on the three rabbits' faces, and noticed Flax' absence. He knew that those four were always scouting together, so where was... NO! Not again! I can't lose another friend, not NOW! Not EVER AGAIN! thought Oaktrunk desperately. Fighting back his fears, he asked gruffly, "Where is he? What happened?"
Dewberry only shook his head in response and burst into tears anew, along with Buckler and Twayblade. Then, Oaktrunk knew.
Oaktrunk broke the news first to Finch and Burdock, then to Pearl, Sapphire, and Tobacco. Their devastation left them in near silence, unable even to cry.
That evening, Oaktrunk, led by Dewberry and accompanied by Flax' next-of- kin, returned to the scene of the tragedy. The homba was nowhere to be found, but there was blood and bits of fur still on the ground. The blood was unmistakably Flax' by scent. Now, there was no doubt. Oaktrunk looked down, the bloodstained grass blurred by tears. He could offer only, "Good- bye, my friend. You will be remembered always."
***
A dark mood hung over Cloudtree Warren over the next days. Rabbits would burst into tears without any direct provocation, and would then be comforted by anyone who was nearby, although the comforter would often be crying, as well. The fact that the future Owsla Captain was dead was slow in sinking in. No one considered who might be the replacement yet, because that didn't matter at the time. A good and loyal friend was lost.
The warren's designated storyteller, Swather, decided to try to help in his own way by recounting a tale that he hoped would be most appropriate for this dreary occasion. He silently went around the warren, inviting everyone to the main burrow to hear his story. Most of the warren showed up, in need of anything to take their mind of their grief.
***
Swather had often been teased by the other kittens in his youth, mostly due to his unusual name. He was the only buck in the warren not named after flora of some sort. He was often nicknamed "hrududu", as he was actually named after one of the big machines in the fields. Of course, any human vehicle is a "hrududu" to a rabbit, but Swather's parents decided to come up with a more specific name.
While still young, Swather developed a seemingly innate ability to tell stories. He had vigorously learned all of the stories told by his father, the ones handed down over the generations, especially the ones that related to the history of Watership Down. In fact, it was often said that he must be a distant descendant of Dandelion, the famous Watership storyteller. Whether he was or not, nobody could tell. But, it would explain how the Watership Down stories made it to Cloudtree Warren intact, if the stories had been handed down starting with Dandelion himself.
Nowadays, Swather could always attract a crowd with his stories, much like Dandelion did in his heyday. Story time was a much-anticipated event - kittens would beg their marlis to let them stay up to hear the stories, and then would pester Swather to tell more stories even when it was very late and Swather could barely hold his eyes open. And of course, the adult rabbits wouldn't want to miss the stories, either. It had always been a happy time - except on this tearful night.
***
The rabbits waited in the main burrow, anticipating Swather's story.
"I know we are all grieving now," said Swather quietly, "so I've decided to tell a story that I hope will bring some comfort. This story was around even before Hazel-rah, Dandelion, and Watership Down, though I must say it's rarely told. It's the story of El-ahrairah and The Promised Friend."
************
"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matthew 5:4, NIV
General Hrairah was more than pleased to hear of Oaktrunk's wish to have Flax succeed him as Captain of the Owsla. He called a general meeting outside in the warm summer evening to complete the formalities. Finch and Burdock, as well as Flax' siblings and marli, were at the front of the crowd, offering their encouragement.
"I see absolutely no reason to disagree with your decision, Oaktrunk," General Hrairah said, "in fact, I probably would have suggested Flax myself if you hadn't been first. I hereby second and confirm your choice of your successor." Then he turned to the beaming Flax and asked, "Do you agree to our decision?"
Flax replied with gusto, "Yes, sir! I agree!"
General Hrairah replied, "I hereby appoint you, Flax, as the Owsla Captain- In-Waiting. Upon the retirement of Oaktrunk next spring, you will resume full duties as Captain of the Owsla. Congratulations! Oh, and by the way, consider your Owsla training complete. You are now also an Owsla Junior Officer."
A cheer went up from the crowd, and Flax was tackled playfully by his brother. "Tobacco!" scolded Pearl in an embarrassed whisper, "Stop that!"
Flax easily pushed Tobacco off and pinned him, laughing, "See? I'm the wrestling king of all time!"
"You wish, brother," replied Tobacco, also in laughter, "I just need to practise more."
Pearl hid her face with her paws in embarrassment. Such a way to behave at a formal ceremony, she thought.
***
It was late summer, and Flax was leading a scouting expedition consisting of Dewberry, Twayblade, Buckler, and himself, to another nearby farm. The four had become close friends after the pfeffa incident, and would often go scouting together. On this occasion, Flax was hoping to ascertain the quality of the gardens in the area's farms as harvest time drew near. The farm that was their current objective was on the edge of a wood about half a mile from Cloudtree Warren. The weather was unusually warm and quite humid, with no trace of wind.
They made their way along a row of cabbages, taking care that one of them was on the lookout at all times. Within a few minutes, there were noticeable bite marks out of the best leaves on each plant. The farmer would not be pleased when he noticed this the following morning. With full stomachs, the rabbits decided to return home.
When they were crossing the meadow back to Cloudtree, they came across a foul stench that had not been there earlier that day - something unlike anything else that they had ever smelled before. A skunk, a rarity to say the least in England, had used its primary defence in the area and the smell made the rabbits' eyes water. Thus, they had a hard time seeing, as the world was blurry. However, their main disadvantage was that they were now also scent-blind with such a strong scent overpowering all other smells. They couldn't sense out any elil that normally would be easily detected. And that was exactly what the concealed homba had in his mind.
The fox had come up with its clever trick some weeks ago, after he found the skunk, which had escaped from a nearby private exotic animal collector. He had curiously sniffed at the seemingly harmless alien intruder, and immediately received quite a shock. It took days of rolling in water, mud, and grass to lessen the smell to a bearable level. But then, he noticed how easy it was to sneak up on prey normally tipped off long in advance of its presence, due to the strong scent typical of foxes. The intended prey had no idea what to make of the skunk stench, but were unconcerned, as they couldn't smell the fox. All too often, they wouldn't know the fox was there until it was too late.
The fox knew that eventually the animals would associate the skunk's scent with danger, so he decided to take advantage while he could. When the smell had weakened to the point that the fox's natural scent was detectable again, he managed to find the skunk one more time and harass it into spraying again. He could live with the stench as long as it was easy to catch the next meal - though he was careful not to get sprayed in the face..
The homba was now watching the rabbits proceed across the meadow with hungry eyes. He could see that the rabbits had no idea of his presence, even as he quietly crept along and made his way to within pouncing distance. His target, Buckler, who was trailing his friends, didn't even see him coming.
The other three rabbits snapped their heads around when the heard Buckler's agonized squealing. Again, Flax' instinct took over. "Buckler!" he screamed, "play dead!"
Buckler obeyed, despite his state of being tharn. He was extremely lucky. The homba was quite young, and did not yet know Lapine well enough to understand what Flax had said. He let Buckler go when his prey stopped struggling, and then inspected his assumed kill. "Now! Go!" yelled Flax.
Buckler immediately got up and sped away, fortunately wounded only superficially. Twayblade and Dewberry had resisted the urge to flee in order to try to help as well, and now Flax urged them all on, "Go! Go! Get away!" he commanded as he also started at a full run.
The homba, however, was not ready to give up his meal. His attention focused now on Flax, and he gave chase. Flax had been widening the gap, but then made the panicked error of beginning to zig-zag, believing the homba to be right on his tail, and this cost him distance. Then, his left back foot slipped out from under him as it hit a depression in the ground. Flax tumbled nearly end over end, and in no time, the homba was upon him. Flax gave a strangled squeal as the homba's jaws closed around his neck, then fell silent as he was flayed about and his neck was broken.
The other rabbits could only watch helplessly from a distance as their friend died. They stood there in shock for a minute, but couldn't bear to watch as the homba began to feed. Silently, they made their way back to Cloudtree Warren, with tears in their eyes.
Oaktrunk was there to greet them, and knew immediately that something terrible had happened. He saw the agony on the three rabbits' faces, and noticed Flax' absence. He knew that those four were always scouting together, so where was... NO! Not again! I can't lose another friend, not NOW! Not EVER AGAIN! thought Oaktrunk desperately. Fighting back his fears, he asked gruffly, "Where is he? What happened?"
Dewberry only shook his head in response and burst into tears anew, along with Buckler and Twayblade. Then, Oaktrunk knew.
Oaktrunk broke the news first to Finch and Burdock, then to Pearl, Sapphire, and Tobacco. Their devastation left them in near silence, unable even to cry.
That evening, Oaktrunk, led by Dewberry and accompanied by Flax' next-of- kin, returned to the scene of the tragedy. The homba was nowhere to be found, but there was blood and bits of fur still on the ground. The blood was unmistakably Flax' by scent. Now, there was no doubt. Oaktrunk looked down, the bloodstained grass blurred by tears. He could offer only, "Good- bye, my friend. You will be remembered always."
***
A dark mood hung over Cloudtree Warren over the next days. Rabbits would burst into tears without any direct provocation, and would then be comforted by anyone who was nearby, although the comforter would often be crying, as well. The fact that the future Owsla Captain was dead was slow in sinking in. No one considered who might be the replacement yet, because that didn't matter at the time. A good and loyal friend was lost.
The warren's designated storyteller, Swather, decided to try to help in his own way by recounting a tale that he hoped would be most appropriate for this dreary occasion. He silently went around the warren, inviting everyone to the main burrow to hear his story. Most of the warren showed up, in need of anything to take their mind of their grief.
***
Swather had often been teased by the other kittens in his youth, mostly due to his unusual name. He was the only buck in the warren not named after flora of some sort. He was often nicknamed "hrududu", as he was actually named after one of the big machines in the fields. Of course, any human vehicle is a "hrududu" to a rabbit, but Swather's parents decided to come up with a more specific name.
While still young, Swather developed a seemingly innate ability to tell stories. He had vigorously learned all of the stories told by his father, the ones handed down over the generations, especially the ones that related to the history of Watership Down. In fact, it was often said that he must be a distant descendant of Dandelion, the famous Watership storyteller. Whether he was or not, nobody could tell. But, it would explain how the Watership Down stories made it to Cloudtree Warren intact, if the stories had been handed down starting with Dandelion himself.
Nowadays, Swather could always attract a crowd with his stories, much like Dandelion did in his heyday. Story time was a much-anticipated event - kittens would beg their marlis to let them stay up to hear the stories, and then would pester Swather to tell more stories even when it was very late and Swather could barely hold his eyes open. And of course, the adult rabbits wouldn't want to miss the stories, either. It had always been a happy time - except on this tearful night.
***
The rabbits waited in the main burrow, anticipating Swather's story.
"I know we are all grieving now," said Swather quietly, "so I've decided to tell a story that I hope will bring some comfort. This story was around even before Hazel-rah, Dandelion, and Watership Down, though I must say it's rarely told. It's the story of El-ahrairah and The Promised Friend."
************
