Undecided Allegiance
Chapter Five: The Exiled Four
(A/N- Haven't updated this for a while. You know, I'm proud of myself. I made a "good guy" one of my main characters! That's Skipper! Pats self on back. First time I've done that in my Redwall fanfiction history! I'm looking forward to writing this chapter. Hope you find it interesting.)
"We have to talk to them," Cobain urged, concerned.
Naturi sneered. "That's easy for you to say! I have to face the consequences of dragging you in here!" she snapped fiercely.
Naturi gnawed on the back of a quill apprehensively. Would the abbey beasts understand why it had to be done? Would they even believe him? They had to, it was for their own good, they just had to...
Naturi looked over to him. "Well, what happens happens. If they don't believe me, its not my fault," she murmured.
Cobain nodded happily. His payback to Khrushchev would be great! No permanent settlement, no conquering of Redwall. He was laughing inwardly.
Naturi crawled out of bed and made her way to the door. She looked back to Cobain who was standing behind her. "Don't be surprised," she began, "If they try to kill you," she informed gravely.
Cobain nodded.
They made their way into the Great Hall, where there was an immense hubbub at the sight of Cobain and screams from the dibbuns. "It would be best," Naturi thought to herself, "to save the explanation for the abbot."
She looked back to Cobain, who looked startled by the reaction from the abbeybeasts, normally being one who was universally loved and accepted. "It'll be okay," she said comfortingly.
He just kept walking.
When they reached the mess hall (sorry for the crudeness, that's what I call it), they received looks of scorn and furious glares from the abbeybeasts.
Abbot Marken, the small mouse, was immediately shocked and angry. "Naturi!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. "What are you doing?!"
"He has to tell you something, abbot, its very important!" she shouted back, hoping to get through to him.
"There is nothing to tell! You brought vermin-"
The abbot was cut off by Skipper. "Let him talk, at least!" he bellered to the abbot.
Marken looked to Skipper with disgust. "Otter! Silence yourself! I will not tolerate vermin in my abbey!"
Naturi picked up a glass bowl filled with meadow cream and smashed it against the wall. "Fine! I hope this abbey is invaded, abbot, mark my words!" she cried.
By now, all the attention was on her. There were a few moments of silence, then the abbot spoke.
"And this one told you, eh? This one...is very trustworthy, isn't he?" the abbot inquired sarcastically.
"I trust him," Naturi said with contempt.
"Well, I don't. Leave. I knew it was a mistake all along, bringing you into this abbey. All of you ferrets...vermin! Never can be trusted!" he exclaimed with hatred. "Get out! Out!"
"So be it. I'll leave, abbot, and if you ever see me again, you'll be dying," she said menacingly, knowing that she was bluffing and would do anything to make him mad.
This triggered a few raised eyebrows. Naturi had never been known to be a violent beast, and she was mostly kind. It was as if she just...snapped.
She locked eyes with Skipper for a moment, who was just plain confused, then she turned and began walking away towards the great hall.
No one followed her to see what she did next.
She hoisted the sword of Martin from its spot and took it.
Cobain looked at her, his worry fading. "Can I have that?" he inquired.
She shook her head. "No...you can't. It's for someone else."
The two exiled ones left the abbey lacking guilt.
Joseph Khrushchev stared down at the body of a ferret, beaten beyond recognition. This was supposedly the captain, Cobain. He snickered, a snicker that transformed into obnoxious laughter.
"You two really expect me to believe this!" he exclaimed with hilarity.
Bluedusk and Kneadon looked to eachother, hearts pounding. How did he know?
He laughed and sat down next to the body. "You expect me to believe that you...overkilled one of your best friends, eh? The death would be so much cleaner...if this is who you say it is," he said, staring up at the two. "Well, what's your excuse?"
The two remained silent, fearing that if they had said anymore it would lead to more trouble.
Joseph stood, still laughing. "There is none, and I can prove it," he said as he lifted up the body's arms and showing the two captains it's claws. "None missing, guys," he said merrily. "No claw is missing," he murmured, his tone becoming more sinister.
The two captains looked at eachother, each thinking the other an idiot for not removing a claw.
Joseph put his arms around both the captains, drawing them close. "What kind of fool do you two take me for, eh? I gave you an order, and you ignored me. So...what do you expect me to do about this?" he inquired dangerously.
The two remained silent.
"So eager for explanations before, weren't you? The head was too big and bloody wasn't it?" he asked mockingly.
Still, no one spoke.
Then, Joseph fell into a long speech about what it meant to be a captain. "Did you realize what honor you possessed? Hm? You two were my most important soldiers. Yes, my most important soldiers. I would have trusted you with my most prized possessions, with the most important knowledge. So what do you do? You go behind my back, disobey me, and release someone that knows everything about my plans? Someone that would just love to sabotage my leadership? You two are traitors, you played me false. What do you expect me to think when you do these things?" he inquired, whispering.
Then, they heard rustling in the bushes. Joseph released them. He gripped the hilt of his dagger as he made his way farther away from them. "You move, and its over," he warned them.
He looked around and nothing. He shifted his attention back to the two captains. "Was that your little friend? This friend that you gave up your leadership for?" he queried impendingly.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Cobain lunged from the bushes, a great sword in paw, and proceeded to attack Joseph. The two fell into a clash of steel.
"Back from the dead, captain?" he inquired as he dodged and blocked Cobain's attempts to cut him.
Cobain said nothing, but focused on getting past this barrier that Joseph had set before him.
The other two captains decided that the odds were with them now, and they drew their weapons. A three on one assault then took place.
Joseph backed out of the fight, pulling into the forest. "I'll see to it that you three are dead! You cowards, none of you would ever fight me one on one!" he shouted, knowing that the only reason Cobain took the chance to attack him was because his friends were present.
He then disappeared into the foliage.
A young female ferret then emerged from the bushes, mystified.
The three captains began laughing hysterically, giving eachother high-fives and skipping about like kits.
"Was that Khrushchev?" Naturi inquired curiously.
"Yes!" Bluedusk exclaimed happily.
Naturi narrowed her eyes. Khrushchev must be a powerful leader, why else would they be so happy as to defeat him when the odds were three on one? She sat down next to Cobain. "Well, we should leave, what if he sends someone after us?" she inquired casually.
The three looked at her, too exhilarated to even think of that option. They all murmured in agreement. "She's right," Cobain said. "We must hide."
They got up and began walking.
"So who are you? I haven't seen you before," Bluedusk inquired.
Naturi looked at him. "Oh...I'm Naturi," she replied.
"Where are you from, then?" Kneadon asked.
Naturi contemplated how exactly to answer this question. "Uh...Redwall, I guess," she replied with a shrug. "I was born in the horde of lord Maiken. I left there and went to Redwall when I was seven," she said, looking to the dull gray sky. "Looks like it'll rain."
The four exiles found a hole at the base of a tree to hide in. It was cramped, but it would do for one day. Naturi found herself squeezed in between Cobain and Bluedusk, while her and Kneadon's footpaws were gnarled together.
"Do you suggest we sleep all day?" she asked, sounding winded from being so tightly squished between the two captains.
Cobain chuckled. "Have anything else to do?"
She leaned her head against Cobain's shoulder. "No."
"I say we tell stories," Kneadon suggested dumbly. "It'll be fun."
Naturi laughed. She actually felt accepted with these three. There wasn't a question as to why she was with them. She wasn't always trying to prove herself with these three, she was accepted the way that she was. It was just all around more comfortable. Besides, there were no responsibilities or chores to take care of as there was in Redwall. They did things based upon what they had wanted and no one else. Ah, selfishness. Once in a while, she thought, selfishness was better than selflessness.
Bluedusk liked it this way, just being so laid back and care free. He wasn't even upset at himself or Kneadon for not cutting off the claw. Maybe it was just meant to be, that all three of them to be free from any type of horde. No ranking, no planning, no worries.
Cobain nudged Naturi. "I'm taking a liking to this here sword," he hinted, smiling.
Naturi shook her head. "No. I'm not giving it to you. It's mine," she said, thinking of what she truly had in mind for it.
Cobain couldn't resist a smirk. "And you're going to use it?" he inquired skeptically.
Naturi sneered. "No! You don't know what I'm going to do with it, and I'm not going to tell you," she muttered.
Naturi had grown up around kindness in Redwall, and it seemed she was too used to it. She had forgotten what "vermin," were like, otherwise she would have never talked to him that way. She could have when they were in Redwall, she was in power then.
Cobain wanted the sword, but he wanted to be diplomatic about it. He'd taken a liking to her, a friendship, and he didn't want to resort to any kind of foul ways. Not wanting to get in a confrontation that second, he dropped the subject. He knew that it would be brought up again, however.
Kneadon narrowed his eyes. "So, Naturi, what in hell's teeth are you doing here?"
"I'm an exile," she replied frankly.
Bluedusk snickered. "That makes four of us."
Kneadon still found himself curious and didn't hesitate to continue asking questions. "Why?"
"Um..." she murmured, not wanting to answer that question, in case Cobain would be one victimized.
"It was because of me," Cobain announced. "I was telling her about the invasion lord Khrushchev was planning, and when we went to tell the Redwallers, they made us leave," he explained casually.
"You told them?!" Bluedusk asked surprised. "You're just a lucky beast that we aren't in that horde anymore, we were very generous towards you, yet you went against us!"
"Can it, Blue, you're acting like Joseph!" Kneadon demanded irritably. "You keep it up and its not gonna be pretty..."
Cobain could feel Naturi becoming tense at the possibility of a fight. "That's how they always are," he stated with a slight chuckle.
"Yeah, and that's how you always are...around a female!" Bluedusk exclaimed, laughing.
Kneadon joined in on the hilarity with another comment. "Yeah, Mr. Diplomatic, aren't we?"
"Yeah, he can never resist a good time!"
"Even if it costs him his job!"
An awkward silence followed this last remark made by Kneadon. It was tense, everyone thought for sure that Cobain was going to blow up about it.
"Cost me my claw too!" he added lightly.
There was a moment's silence, then a burst of laughter from the three relieved exiles. Naturi even forgot how uncomfortable she was beginning to get after those last few comments.
The rest of the night went along with more comments the four found hilarious and stories of their pasts. It was all around light and comfortable.
Skipper found himself upset with the abbot. He was being irrational, not even giving Naturi nor that ferret a chance to say what they had wanted! Had her intentions been sinister, she surely would have hid him. How would two ferrets fair against a whole abbey of beasts? She wasn't so daft as to present him in plain view, both unarmed.
Another thing that upset him was the fact that the two were more dangerous out of the abbey! If some horde were to invade, who knew everything about the abbey? Who knew how long they could last, who knew how many warriors there were? Naturi did. She also knew that the sentries slept on the job, and the layout of the abbey. She could surely help any enemy horde that was planning to invade, and now she certainly had the incentive! The abbot had handed her a reason to hate Redwall on a silver platter! Skipper was furious.
Another thing he noticed, the sword of Martin was gone. She had taken it out of spite. Perhaps she would give it to the one who was with her, or perhaps an offering to that warlord. Merely out of malevolence she would give their opposer this prized possession.
He had decided to look for her, apologize, ask her not to be mad, ask her to come back, and tell them what she had wanted to tell them. She was trustable, she was...
Skipper set out of the abbey before meal time, unnoticed. Where to start?
Chapter Five: The Exiled Four
(A/N- Haven't updated this for a while. You know, I'm proud of myself. I made a "good guy" one of my main characters! That's Skipper! Pats self on back. First time I've done that in my Redwall fanfiction history! I'm looking forward to writing this chapter. Hope you find it interesting.)
"We have to talk to them," Cobain urged, concerned.
Naturi sneered. "That's easy for you to say! I have to face the consequences of dragging you in here!" she snapped fiercely.
Naturi gnawed on the back of a quill apprehensively. Would the abbey beasts understand why it had to be done? Would they even believe him? They had to, it was for their own good, they just had to...
Naturi looked over to him. "Well, what happens happens. If they don't believe me, its not my fault," she murmured.
Cobain nodded happily. His payback to Khrushchev would be great! No permanent settlement, no conquering of Redwall. He was laughing inwardly.
Naturi crawled out of bed and made her way to the door. She looked back to Cobain who was standing behind her. "Don't be surprised," she began, "If they try to kill you," she informed gravely.
Cobain nodded.
They made their way into the Great Hall, where there was an immense hubbub at the sight of Cobain and screams from the dibbuns. "It would be best," Naturi thought to herself, "to save the explanation for the abbot."
She looked back to Cobain, who looked startled by the reaction from the abbeybeasts, normally being one who was universally loved and accepted. "It'll be okay," she said comfortingly.
He just kept walking.
When they reached the mess hall (sorry for the crudeness, that's what I call it), they received looks of scorn and furious glares from the abbeybeasts.
Abbot Marken, the small mouse, was immediately shocked and angry. "Naturi!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. "What are you doing?!"
"He has to tell you something, abbot, its very important!" she shouted back, hoping to get through to him.
"There is nothing to tell! You brought vermin-"
The abbot was cut off by Skipper. "Let him talk, at least!" he bellered to the abbot.
Marken looked to Skipper with disgust. "Otter! Silence yourself! I will not tolerate vermin in my abbey!"
Naturi picked up a glass bowl filled with meadow cream and smashed it against the wall. "Fine! I hope this abbey is invaded, abbot, mark my words!" she cried.
By now, all the attention was on her. There were a few moments of silence, then the abbot spoke.
"And this one told you, eh? This one...is very trustworthy, isn't he?" the abbot inquired sarcastically.
"I trust him," Naturi said with contempt.
"Well, I don't. Leave. I knew it was a mistake all along, bringing you into this abbey. All of you ferrets...vermin! Never can be trusted!" he exclaimed with hatred. "Get out! Out!"
"So be it. I'll leave, abbot, and if you ever see me again, you'll be dying," she said menacingly, knowing that she was bluffing and would do anything to make him mad.
This triggered a few raised eyebrows. Naturi had never been known to be a violent beast, and she was mostly kind. It was as if she just...snapped.
She locked eyes with Skipper for a moment, who was just plain confused, then she turned and began walking away towards the great hall.
No one followed her to see what she did next.
She hoisted the sword of Martin from its spot and took it.
Cobain looked at her, his worry fading. "Can I have that?" he inquired.
She shook her head. "No...you can't. It's for someone else."
The two exiled ones left the abbey lacking guilt.
Joseph Khrushchev stared down at the body of a ferret, beaten beyond recognition. This was supposedly the captain, Cobain. He snickered, a snicker that transformed into obnoxious laughter.
"You two really expect me to believe this!" he exclaimed with hilarity.
Bluedusk and Kneadon looked to eachother, hearts pounding. How did he know?
He laughed and sat down next to the body. "You expect me to believe that you...overkilled one of your best friends, eh? The death would be so much cleaner...if this is who you say it is," he said, staring up at the two. "Well, what's your excuse?"
The two remained silent, fearing that if they had said anymore it would lead to more trouble.
Joseph stood, still laughing. "There is none, and I can prove it," he said as he lifted up the body's arms and showing the two captains it's claws. "None missing, guys," he said merrily. "No claw is missing," he murmured, his tone becoming more sinister.
The two captains looked at eachother, each thinking the other an idiot for not removing a claw.
Joseph put his arms around both the captains, drawing them close. "What kind of fool do you two take me for, eh? I gave you an order, and you ignored me. So...what do you expect me to do about this?" he inquired dangerously.
The two remained silent.
"So eager for explanations before, weren't you? The head was too big and bloody wasn't it?" he asked mockingly.
Still, no one spoke.
Then, Joseph fell into a long speech about what it meant to be a captain. "Did you realize what honor you possessed? Hm? You two were my most important soldiers. Yes, my most important soldiers. I would have trusted you with my most prized possessions, with the most important knowledge. So what do you do? You go behind my back, disobey me, and release someone that knows everything about my plans? Someone that would just love to sabotage my leadership? You two are traitors, you played me false. What do you expect me to think when you do these things?" he inquired, whispering.
Then, they heard rustling in the bushes. Joseph released them. He gripped the hilt of his dagger as he made his way farther away from them. "You move, and its over," he warned them.
He looked around and nothing. He shifted his attention back to the two captains. "Was that your little friend? This friend that you gave up your leadership for?" he queried impendingly.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Cobain lunged from the bushes, a great sword in paw, and proceeded to attack Joseph. The two fell into a clash of steel.
"Back from the dead, captain?" he inquired as he dodged and blocked Cobain's attempts to cut him.
Cobain said nothing, but focused on getting past this barrier that Joseph had set before him.
The other two captains decided that the odds were with them now, and they drew their weapons. A three on one assault then took place.
Joseph backed out of the fight, pulling into the forest. "I'll see to it that you three are dead! You cowards, none of you would ever fight me one on one!" he shouted, knowing that the only reason Cobain took the chance to attack him was because his friends were present.
He then disappeared into the foliage.
A young female ferret then emerged from the bushes, mystified.
The three captains began laughing hysterically, giving eachother high-fives and skipping about like kits.
"Was that Khrushchev?" Naturi inquired curiously.
"Yes!" Bluedusk exclaimed happily.
Naturi narrowed her eyes. Khrushchev must be a powerful leader, why else would they be so happy as to defeat him when the odds were three on one? She sat down next to Cobain. "Well, we should leave, what if he sends someone after us?" she inquired casually.
The three looked at her, too exhilarated to even think of that option. They all murmured in agreement. "She's right," Cobain said. "We must hide."
They got up and began walking.
"So who are you? I haven't seen you before," Bluedusk inquired.
Naturi looked at him. "Oh...I'm Naturi," she replied.
"Where are you from, then?" Kneadon asked.
Naturi contemplated how exactly to answer this question. "Uh...Redwall, I guess," she replied with a shrug. "I was born in the horde of lord Maiken. I left there and went to Redwall when I was seven," she said, looking to the dull gray sky. "Looks like it'll rain."
The four exiles found a hole at the base of a tree to hide in. It was cramped, but it would do for one day. Naturi found herself squeezed in between Cobain and Bluedusk, while her and Kneadon's footpaws were gnarled together.
"Do you suggest we sleep all day?" she asked, sounding winded from being so tightly squished between the two captains.
Cobain chuckled. "Have anything else to do?"
She leaned her head against Cobain's shoulder. "No."
"I say we tell stories," Kneadon suggested dumbly. "It'll be fun."
Naturi laughed. She actually felt accepted with these three. There wasn't a question as to why she was with them. She wasn't always trying to prove herself with these three, she was accepted the way that she was. It was just all around more comfortable. Besides, there were no responsibilities or chores to take care of as there was in Redwall. They did things based upon what they had wanted and no one else. Ah, selfishness. Once in a while, she thought, selfishness was better than selflessness.
Bluedusk liked it this way, just being so laid back and care free. He wasn't even upset at himself or Kneadon for not cutting off the claw. Maybe it was just meant to be, that all three of them to be free from any type of horde. No ranking, no planning, no worries.
Cobain nudged Naturi. "I'm taking a liking to this here sword," he hinted, smiling.
Naturi shook her head. "No. I'm not giving it to you. It's mine," she said, thinking of what she truly had in mind for it.
Cobain couldn't resist a smirk. "And you're going to use it?" he inquired skeptically.
Naturi sneered. "No! You don't know what I'm going to do with it, and I'm not going to tell you," she muttered.
Naturi had grown up around kindness in Redwall, and it seemed she was too used to it. She had forgotten what "vermin," were like, otherwise she would have never talked to him that way. She could have when they were in Redwall, she was in power then.
Cobain wanted the sword, but he wanted to be diplomatic about it. He'd taken a liking to her, a friendship, and he didn't want to resort to any kind of foul ways. Not wanting to get in a confrontation that second, he dropped the subject. He knew that it would be brought up again, however.
Kneadon narrowed his eyes. "So, Naturi, what in hell's teeth are you doing here?"
"I'm an exile," she replied frankly.
Bluedusk snickered. "That makes four of us."
Kneadon still found himself curious and didn't hesitate to continue asking questions. "Why?"
"Um..." she murmured, not wanting to answer that question, in case Cobain would be one victimized.
"It was because of me," Cobain announced. "I was telling her about the invasion lord Khrushchev was planning, and when we went to tell the Redwallers, they made us leave," he explained casually.
"You told them?!" Bluedusk asked surprised. "You're just a lucky beast that we aren't in that horde anymore, we were very generous towards you, yet you went against us!"
"Can it, Blue, you're acting like Joseph!" Kneadon demanded irritably. "You keep it up and its not gonna be pretty..."
Cobain could feel Naturi becoming tense at the possibility of a fight. "That's how they always are," he stated with a slight chuckle.
"Yeah, and that's how you always are...around a female!" Bluedusk exclaimed, laughing.
Kneadon joined in on the hilarity with another comment. "Yeah, Mr. Diplomatic, aren't we?"
"Yeah, he can never resist a good time!"
"Even if it costs him his job!"
An awkward silence followed this last remark made by Kneadon. It was tense, everyone thought for sure that Cobain was going to blow up about it.
"Cost me my claw too!" he added lightly.
There was a moment's silence, then a burst of laughter from the three relieved exiles. Naturi even forgot how uncomfortable she was beginning to get after those last few comments.
The rest of the night went along with more comments the four found hilarious and stories of their pasts. It was all around light and comfortable.
Skipper found himself upset with the abbot. He was being irrational, not even giving Naturi nor that ferret a chance to say what they had wanted! Had her intentions been sinister, she surely would have hid him. How would two ferrets fair against a whole abbey of beasts? She wasn't so daft as to present him in plain view, both unarmed.
Another thing that upset him was the fact that the two were more dangerous out of the abbey! If some horde were to invade, who knew everything about the abbey? Who knew how long they could last, who knew how many warriors there were? Naturi did. She also knew that the sentries slept on the job, and the layout of the abbey. She could surely help any enemy horde that was planning to invade, and now she certainly had the incentive! The abbot had handed her a reason to hate Redwall on a silver platter! Skipper was furious.
Another thing he noticed, the sword of Martin was gone. She had taken it out of spite. Perhaps she would give it to the one who was with her, or perhaps an offering to that warlord. Merely out of malevolence she would give their opposer this prized possession.
He had decided to look for her, apologize, ask her not to be mad, ask her to come back, and tell them what she had wanted to tell them. She was trustable, she was...
Skipper set out of the abbey before meal time, unnoticed. Where to start?