Chapter 4: The Strange Site
By the time they had left the clearing, the sun was up fully. Although the rabbits did not know it, it was 7:30 in the morning. Brindle looked at the scenery that surrounded him and the rest of the company. He could not see what attracted the rabbits to live in such a fowl place. To his left a clump of brambles was strangler a weedy oak tree that was nothing more than a spindly twig. Dead, mushy leaves lay motion less on the ground, and they squelched slightly as they trod on them. As they passed a ditch, Brindle saw an empty birds nest sprawled across the ground. Heavy tacks lay here and there, decorated with black and white feathers. Brindle assumed that there had been a tussle between some large animal and bird trying to protect her young. None seemed to have survived. The last tinge of orange projected onto the trees, faded away. Brindle could not see the sky from where they were, which he felt was a shame. He knew Rian would be feeling homesick, and he couldn't blame him. Where was the laughter, the fun and beauty of Watership Down? The sound of the stream, trees bursting with fruit and all sorts of images came into his head. But no, he thought to himself, he was not going back. Not after they had come all this way to help.
He turned towards the others. Corla was in front, proud and strong. Miriple-rah followed almost limply. She seemed to have taken the loss of her son badly. Duffel was not helping. He pranced around, trying to cheer everyone up with jokes only Rian found funny. Duffel's coat seemed to shine, though there was no sun. The pale brown rabbit, patched with almost white hair, chattered happily to Rian, who seemed to have gained something. Brindle could not tell what it was, but there was something in Rians eyes that told him it was a good change. Brindle listened in on the conversation.
'Well anyway,' said Duffel, with a smile that could warm most hearts, 'I told the bee as many jokes as possible! He laughed so loud that he couldn't stop buzzing! When I told everyone what I had done, they all thought I was mental!'
'Imagine that' said Brindle to himself.
Presently, he heard Corla talking to Miriple-rah, and he moved up the line to join in. 'I'm not sure how only three rabbits are going to help us. I mean, we have a full warren, and no one can stop it-whatever it is'
'We need all the help we can get, no matter what the size,' said Miriple-rah, 'and I doubt placing one under arrest will solve anything'
'She's going to be the most useless of the lot' said Corla in return
'She has her uses' said Brindle. They turned, for they had not seen him come up. 'If she spots an enemy, just tell her she looks ugly, and one of her rants and raves would frighten anyone off' There was complete silence, something that seemed common nowadays. 'Nothing has been right since Kittle died' said Miriple-rah.
'Who?' Brindle inquired
'Elven-rahs kitten,' she replied, 'such a nice kitten. Always polite, and generous, even if her curiosity tipped the barrel bit. It was that had probably killed her, though Elven-rah blames me. One day, she injured herself slightly, and fell ill days later. We assumed it was because of infection. She got so ill; I had rabbits help look after her for me. But she died very soon after. Elven-rah and I have not spoken civilly since'
'What kind of injury was it? Where did she have the accident?' asked Brindle, with a slight tone of urgency. This could be an important start, he thought.
'I'm not sure,' she replied 'I'm to upset to think straight at the moment'
'Leave her alone. She needs rest' bustled Corla. Brindle did not want to get on the bad side of a doe that was slightly bigger and heavier than him. He fell and joined the other two once more, Duffel still chattering away, this time it was about a disobedient sheep {'I only asked to borrow some wool!'}
Presently, Blethlin and Stalwart came back into view. They had had covered some ground, though the head start was small. Anyway, they seemed to be getting along. Indeed they were quite close, until they blundered into them. They drew away quickly. 'Enjoying yourself Stalwart?' said Corla, the only one to see properly.
'I-er-I-er-was just checking her fur' he replied
'For what?'
'Er-for fleas,' he said, without thinking. Blethlin glared at him.
'I do not have fleas!'
'You only have them when you deny it' smirked Corla
'Fight! Fight! Fight! Smack her on the nose Corla! Smack her on the nose-- strange creature!'' cried Duffel, eager for one to make a move. But none did. Miriple-rah approached. 'We are nearly there. Lead the way, Stalwart' she said.
'You back here!' said Corla, glaring back at Blethlin 'No distractions!'
Brindle had never experienced a journey where Blethlin had kept quiet before. In fact, he hardly remembered her being much at all! He knew better than to disturb her when she was sulking. Last he did, he had a painful backside for a week.
Soon the whole party was silent, though Duffel was still smiling. Their paws were now drenched in mud and leaves. The bushes were thick and scratched painful at their sides and ears. Rian whimpered as a thorn caught his injured leg. Duffel noticed.
'What is that?' he asked Rian
'Oh its nothing. Don't worry about me. Just a scratch' he replied.
'I've got one too. Just a few days ago' said Duffel, and left the conversation at that because they had just come up to an especially large bush, and the others had stopped.
'We must be careful here' said Corla, looking at Miriple-rahs dejected face. 'There is something strange about this area, though we don't know what' Brindle did not like the sound of that. What was this mystery area? He should have a look as they went through.
At first, Brindle could see nothing because of the thick trees up ahead. But as his eyes became used to the darkness, shapes began to form. 'Hrududil' he said to himself. And he was nearly right. However, it was not the sort he was used to. Great yellow hrududil with great sharp metal rods of some kind {Brindle did not know} that poked out of the front of each. One had an enormous metal thing high up in the air. As we are observing, I could see perfectly well what they were. Large diggers and trucks were situated around the site. Brindle did not know this. But he wondered where the men were. Surely no hrududil were ever around without men? And what had they done to the place? Trees had been ripped out of the ground, and thrown to one side. Brindle was sure that if they had faces, they would be showing an agonising pain. A large, untidy hole was positioned bang in the middle of the work site. The ground had been ripped up and dumped. 'What is this place?' asked Blethlin in awe.
'We aren't sure really,' said Stalwart, 'Men used to come here for months with these hrududil and cause havoc. None of us stayed for long to see what they were doing. However, the strange thing was, that they suddenly stopped coming. That puzzled us. Men never leave their hrududil behind, and never come back. They have been here for months now, and no man has come to get them. I'm not surprised. It's the scariest looking place in the wood. Even we try to avoid it when we can, with the exception of tonight. It gives all of us an uneasy feeling, which we all hate. Plus, this was near the place that we believe Kittle was at before she had her accident' He paused for breath. Brindle noticed Duffels expression. He had expected a smiley face, not an almost guilty one. Perhaps he had been mistaken. Nothing seemed very clear in the dim light that managed to penetrate through the rusty coloured leaves of the trees. Suddenly a loud bang overhead made them all jump. 'RUN!' yelled Corla, taking the lead, and dashing out the opposite end of the work site. The others all followed her, clamouring to get out.
When they had run for a few minutes, they pulled themselves together. 'See what I mean?' said Stalwart. The three new comers certainly did.
'I think we had better get to the warren, fast' said Miriple-rah. The shock of the bang seemed to have woken her up a bit.
'Is it much further?' asked Rian
'For your sake, I hope it is' said Stalwart
'Why?' asked Rian, surprised.
'Because we have to tell the warren about what happened. I don't know how they will react you. They might like you or hate you' Rian looked very uneasy at his reply, and stared at Brindle helplessly. 'Don't worry,' said Duffel, getting his cheeriness back 'my doe Nutta will like you. You can meet her when we get back. It's such a nice warren. Everyone there is generally friendly. It will be fine'.
As Floxwood Warren came into view. Brindle could not help feeling that Duffels perspective of what was nice was distorted.
By the time they had left the clearing, the sun was up fully. Although the rabbits did not know it, it was 7:30 in the morning. Brindle looked at the scenery that surrounded him and the rest of the company. He could not see what attracted the rabbits to live in such a fowl place. To his left a clump of brambles was strangler a weedy oak tree that was nothing more than a spindly twig. Dead, mushy leaves lay motion less on the ground, and they squelched slightly as they trod on them. As they passed a ditch, Brindle saw an empty birds nest sprawled across the ground. Heavy tacks lay here and there, decorated with black and white feathers. Brindle assumed that there had been a tussle between some large animal and bird trying to protect her young. None seemed to have survived. The last tinge of orange projected onto the trees, faded away. Brindle could not see the sky from where they were, which he felt was a shame. He knew Rian would be feeling homesick, and he couldn't blame him. Where was the laughter, the fun and beauty of Watership Down? The sound of the stream, trees bursting with fruit and all sorts of images came into his head. But no, he thought to himself, he was not going back. Not after they had come all this way to help.
He turned towards the others. Corla was in front, proud and strong. Miriple-rah followed almost limply. She seemed to have taken the loss of her son badly. Duffel was not helping. He pranced around, trying to cheer everyone up with jokes only Rian found funny. Duffel's coat seemed to shine, though there was no sun. The pale brown rabbit, patched with almost white hair, chattered happily to Rian, who seemed to have gained something. Brindle could not tell what it was, but there was something in Rians eyes that told him it was a good change. Brindle listened in on the conversation.
'Well anyway,' said Duffel, with a smile that could warm most hearts, 'I told the bee as many jokes as possible! He laughed so loud that he couldn't stop buzzing! When I told everyone what I had done, they all thought I was mental!'
'Imagine that' said Brindle to himself.
Presently, he heard Corla talking to Miriple-rah, and he moved up the line to join in. 'I'm not sure how only three rabbits are going to help us. I mean, we have a full warren, and no one can stop it-whatever it is'
'We need all the help we can get, no matter what the size,' said Miriple-rah, 'and I doubt placing one under arrest will solve anything'
'She's going to be the most useless of the lot' said Corla in return
'She has her uses' said Brindle. They turned, for they had not seen him come up. 'If she spots an enemy, just tell her she looks ugly, and one of her rants and raves would frighten anyone off' There was complete silence, something that seemed common nowadays. 'Nothing has been right since Kittle died' said Miriple-rah.
'Who?' Brindle inquired
'Elven-rahs kitten,' she replied, 'such a nice kitten. Always polite, and generous, even if her curiosity tipped the barrel bit. It was that had probably killed her, though Elven-rah blames me. One day, she injured herself slightly, and fell ill days later. We assumed it was because of infection. She got so ill; I had rabbits help look after her for me. But she died very soon after. Elven-rah and I have not spoken civilly since'
'What kind of injury was it? Where did she have the accident?' asked Brindle, with a slight tone of urgency. This could be an important start, he thought.
'I'm not sure,' she replied 'I'm to upset to think straight at the moment'
'Leave her alone. She needs rest' bustled Corla. Brindle did not want to get on the bad side of a doe that was slightly bigger and heavier than him. He fell and joined the other two once more, Duffel still chattering away, this time it was about a disobedient sheep {'I only asked to borrow some wool!'}
Presently, Blethlin and Stalwart came back into view. They had had covered some ground, though the head start was small. Anyway, they seemed to be getting along. Indeed they were quite close, until they blundered into them. They drew away quickly. 'Enjoying yourself Stalwart?' said Corla, the only one to see properly.
'I-er-I-er-was just checking her fur' he replied
'For what?'
'Er-for fleas,' he said, without thinking. Blethlin glared at him.
'I do not have fleas!'
'You only have them when you deny it' smirked Corla
'Fight! Fight! Fight! Smack her on the nose Corla! Smack her on the nose-- strange creature!'' cried Duffel, eager for one to make a move. But none did. Miriple-rah approached. 'We are nearly there. Lead the way, Stalwart' she said.
'You back here!' said Corla, glaring back at Blethlin 'No distractions!'
Brindle had never experienced a journey where Blethlin had kept quiet before. In fact, he hardly remembered her being much at all! He knew better than to disturb her when she was sulking. Last he did, he had a painful backside for a week.
Soon the whole party was silent, though Duffel was still smiling. Their paws were now drenched in mud and leaves. The bushes were thick and scratched painful at their sides and ears. Rian whimpered as a thorn caught his injured leg. Duffel noticed.
'What is that?' he asked Rian
'Oh its nothing. Don't worry about me. Just a scratch' he replied.
'I've got one too. Just a few days ago' said Duffel, and left the conversation at that because they had just come up to an especially large bush, and the others had stopped.
'We must be careful here' said Corla, looking at Miriple-rahs dejected face. 'There is something strange about this area, though we don't know what' Brindle did not like the sound of that. What was this mystery area? He should have a look as they went through.
At first, Brindle could see nothing because of the thick trees up ahead. But as his eyes became used to the darkness, shapes began to form. 'Hrududil' he said to himself. And he was nearly right. However, it was not the sort he was used to. Great yellow hrududil with great sharp metal rods of some kind {Brindle did not know} that poked out of the front of each. One had an enormous metal thing high up in the air. As we are observing, I could see perfectly well what they were. Large diggers and trucks were situated around the site. Brindle did not know this. But he wondered where the men were. Surely no hrududil were ever around without men? And what had they done to the place? Trees had been ripped out of the ground, and thrown to one side. Brindle was sure that if they had faces, they would be showing an agonising pain. A large, untidy hole was positioned bang in the middle of the work site. The ground had been ripped up and dumped. 'What is this place?' asked Blethlin in awe.
'We aren't sure really,' said Stalwart, 'Men used to come here for months with these hrududil and cause havoc. None of us stayed for long to see what they were doing. However, the strange thing was, that they suddenly stopped coming. That puzzled us. Men never leave their hrududil behind, and never come back. They have been here for months now, and no man has come to get them. I'm not surprised. It's the scariest looking place in the wood. Even we try to avoid it when we can, with the exception of tonight. It gives all of us an uneasy feeling, which we all hate. Plus, this was near the place that we believe Kittle was at before she had her accident' He paused for breath. Brindle noticed Duffels expression. He had expected a smiley face, not an almost guilty one. Perhaps he had been mistaken. Nothing seemed very clear in the dim light that managed to penetrate through the rusty coloured leaves of the trees. Suddenly a loud bang overhead made them all jump. 'RUN!' yelled Corla, taking the lead, and dashing out the opposite end of the work site. The others all followed her, clamouring to get out.
When they had run for a few minutes, they pulled themselves together. 'See what I mean?' said Stalwart. The three new comers certainly did.
'I think we had better get to the warren, fast' said Miriple-rah. The shock of the bang seemed to have woken her up a bit.
'Is it much further?' asked Rian
'For your sake, I hope it is' said Stalwart
'Why?' asked Rian, surprised.
'Because we have to tell the warren about what happened. I don't know how they will react you. They might like you or hate you' Rian looked very uneasy at his reply, and stared at Brindle helplessly. 'Don't worry,' said Duffel, getting his cheeriness back 'my doe Nutta will like you. You can meet her when we get back. It's such a nice warren. Everyone there is generally friendly. It will be fine'.
As Floxwood Warren came into view. Brindle could not help feeling that Duffels perspective of what was nice was distorted.