The Warrior and the Flower

Back in golden days of yore
In seaside caves up North
By his side a mighty sword,
A Warrior came forth.

He was honorable and strong
And was raised against vermin
Until the Tyrant came along
And took the sword from him.

For the Tyrant, the Warrior slaved
Unable to defy his power
Until, one night, his life was saved
By the Digger and the Flower.

The Flower was beauty beyond his dreams
Brave, quick-witted and bright.
Frightening vermin with her eagle-screams,
She helped him escape his plight.

But tragedy befell the two
Though a promise the Warrior gave her
By the time the final battle was through,
From the Tyrant, he couldn't save her.

Further South, he ventured on,
To mend the pain with good.
And found a place where he'd belong
The beautiful Mossflower Wood.

There, he spend the rest of his seasons
But certainly not alone.
Together, with friends, including the Thief,
They built the great home of red-stone.

But even when he was old and gray
And within his last hour,
The only thought that would ever stay
Was his one love, the Flower.

He had no one to follow him
No child to wield the blade.
Though he knew his time was running thin
This final decision, he made.

As the Dark Gates opened wide
He heard the long-dead calls
And he saw the Flower inside
But the Gates said to stay in the Abbey walls.

The Gates told him that he would stay
Until he chose when
And when the right one came the Abbey way
The Warrior would live again.

But the true Warrior wouldn't rise again
To the Gates he said
On the condition that she'd be there
The lovely Flower maid.

In a final act, words he inscribed
Behind his tapestry in the Hall
Would remind himself in his next life
His place within Redwall.

The Gates took him and seasons passed
The tapestry brought up cheer
And yet the spirit of the Warrior
Grew fainter every year.

Then to an unknown woodland couple
A child they begat,
To which the Warrior was reborn,
But his past he did forget.

The Warrior's previous life
Was no more than a blurry haze
But this was all as the Gates had planned
For these were troublesome days.

The evil Scourge, an awful threat
Flew toward the Mossflow'r way
His vermin band, with greed in mind
Swarmed all 'round like a plague.

The child's parents were lost to him
The reason was unknown
But on a very curious whim
He headed to the abbey home.

And then the orphan walked the road
Seeking food and care
And the spirit knew the time had come
For a Flower was also there.

Then the Scourge arrived at the Abbey door
With an iron fist and black heart
And vermin troops came by the score
To tear the place apart.

It wasn't long before the child
Figured it out at last
And saw that he, "I - Am that is"
Was the Warrior of the past.

And a female mouse, a pretty beast
The child's lovely Flower
Who met him at the Abbot's feast
Served as his source of power.

It wasn't long before the child
United with the fleur
And there was a celebration wild
For Redwall had won the war.

And this is how the legend goes
Each snowfall, shine and shower
Because the two that were Martin and Rose
Became Matthias and Cornflower.