Some creatures are in their element as a second-in-command. They are dutiful, loyal, and determined, but only if there is someone a level above them in the chain of command. Remove that top link, however, and these individuals lose all sense of anything, able to think somewhat on their own, but unable to act without higher approval.
Kaliban was one such beast. All confidence and fearsomeness had departed from the rat's being as Nadal and Thadius had departed for the caves with a small guard in tow. Now, the military commander had confined himself to ob Insame's South Tower top floor sanctuary, with a full complement of guards inside and outside the door.
A full complement of guards. Meaning everybeast in the complex that was trained to hold such a post.
*****
Drayno and Ajaks were at their posts at the base of the North Tower. They were most definitively physically at their posts, and they showed no intent of abandoning. The two ferrets were like rocks in their positions—both in terms of immobility and consciousness.
Drayno and Ajaks did not even dislodge from their stations as the stream of armed woodlanders filed into the tower. They were truly defiant in their snores, their expressions unchanging. The very most dedicated of guards indeed.
*****
The Redwallian aggressors progressed smoothly up the North Tower, with members deploying at each level to take care of its occupants. Many vermin were axed off completely in the dark—ruthless and out-of-character.
The goings on toward the bottom were particularly tidy, as dozing or drowsy creatures can hardly make sense of a dagger to the throat, certainly not in enough time to counter with a similar move. It was not war but rather murder, and it was the quickest way of doing things in this case. It was not until the entire invading force was in the upper third of the tower that the odor of blood from below stirred the vermin at the top into action.
*****
The bowbeasts were separate from the guards. In preparation to demolish the rest of Redwall, a huge bow and its complement of giant fire arrows had been fitted to the top of both towers. The bowbeasts had not been told when their attack would be launched, but were to be on guard for whenever the opportune moment was announced.
The group stationed atop the North Tower was a bit more instinctive than that. As the interior battle clattered upward inside, the very roof on which they were stationed vibrated uneasily. They had no thoughts of anything such as a collapse; rather, the team commander conjectured that a similar attack was most likely progressing up the other tower as well. He knew it was Nadal's tower, but he didn't know what else was there. He knew that Nadal had means of evacuating, and any other beasts that might have shared that tower with the commander were of no consequence.
There were volunteers to ride the arrows. They had not been informed of the suicidal nature of such a ride, which would explain why they had volunteered. One marten stepped forward in this case and positioned himself to control the wing mechanisms. The rest of the crew put the arrow to the giant bow and lit the fires, then pulled the string as taut as possible. The captain aimed, the marten flexed the artificial wings, the crew let go, and suddenly they all understood the nature of the contraption as the giant winged fire arrow plunged directly into the South Tower.
*****
The fireball started small—an orange puncture into the smooth face of glass, metal, and wood. Yet with the mixing of inside and outside air through the new hole, the cloud billowed outward, grey-black edged with luminous orange, spewing ashes and structural fragments downward.
The wind was blowing south to north, and thus the smoke carried, enveloping the top of both towers like a horrid streaming banner. All the while, the semi-severed top of the South Tower twitched and quivered on reduced supports, those still standing enduring the pressure of the fire arrow's explosive heat.
*****
In addition to being entirely insecure of his command, Kaliban was also becoming notably paranoid. Every motion from the guards made him twitch, every flick of a shadow had him worrying. Despite his overly sufficient guard force, he wished he could personally monitor all of the outward-facing windows in the chamber. At one point, he could have sworn that he saw two winged silhouettes, one large and one small, flying up to the top of the tower.
He tried to calm himself. He knew he was panicking and he disliked it, but he wanted to be safe and hiding in the caves and he definitely still worried. He could not, however, deny the monstrous shudder that the tower suddenly gave, nor the dark and roiling curtain that obscured the window.
Terrified beyond all comprehension, Kaliban burst out onto the roof, then nearly stumbled back in at the sight of bat, mouse, and hawk figures in the smoke.