Note: I own no part of this chapter! It is all property of Brian Jacques.


Nimbalo finally convinced Deyna to let him take a turn while he took a well deserved sleep. His gaze swept over the flatlands and back to the path which ran alongside the west wall.

There standing in front of the main gate was Ruggan Bor at the head of three hundred armed Juska vermin. They stood immobile and silent, barbaric tattooed faces tight-lipped, awaiting their Chieftain's command. Not a spear or a blade clanked against a shield. Ruggan Bor, the golden fox, leaned on his sabre hilt, his inscrutable gaze assessing the walls.

Nimbalo dropped flat below the battlements and scrambled away towards the north steps as fast as his paws would take him.

'Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!'

Ruggan had expected to wait for a gatekeeper to peer over the battlements to see who was calling; instead he was greeted by two score otters from the main gate and an array of squirrels, mice, moles and hedgehogs peering over the battlements armed with an assortment of throwing implements, they were even led by a hare carrying a long hooked window pole.

An otter stood forward from the rest, he took an unimpressed look at the horde then his eyes rested on Ruggan, he could see the beautiful sword the otter carried and he had no doubts that he could use it.

"What do you want here vermin?"

Ruggan stepped forward until there was only short step between him and the warrior otter.

"I am Ruggan Bor, Lord of the Southern Coasts and Chieftain of the Juskabor clan!"

The otter stepped forward until he was a mere whisker from Ruggan's face.

"And I am Deyna, Warrior of Redwall. I asked you what you want here?"

Ruggan took a pace back.

"I want information. Do you have an otter here with his face tattooed in this manner?"

Six guards heaved Gruven from the ditch. The stoat starred at Deyna, the voice was the same but there were no tattoos.

Deyna gave Gruven a dismissive glance, and then turned back to Ruggan.

"There is no otter inside these walls with vermin tattoos on his face. Why do you ask?"

Ruggan did not like how this supposed interrogation was going, the otter was too confident. Ruggan decided to turn the tables. He pointed his sabre in Deyna's face.

"Do not lie to me. I have three hundred at my back. We could over whelm you and search your Abbey!"

Deyna moved like lightning, backwards, sideways and forward. Ruggan stood with his sabre pointing at nothing, the otter's blade across this throat. Deyna was alongside him, a paw hard on the nape of his neck, so he could move neither forwards pr back.

"Nobeast sets paw into Redwall Abbey without my permission. Now take your vermin and begone, or stay here and die!"

Ruggan's expression did not change.

"I can only go if I have the information I came for. This otter was called the Taggerung. Was he here? Tell me Deyna of Redwall."

Deyna nodded.

"He was here once, but he is gone now. The Taggerung no longer exists. As far as I'm concerned he is dead."

"I told you he was dead. I slew him right there in that ditch! I am Taggerung now. Gruven Zann Taggerung!"

Nimbalo climbed up on the battlement, pointing at Gruven and yelling aloud.

"Aye, that's the one. I saw 'im slay the big painted vermin!"

"Hahahahaha! Ruggan Bor, did you hear that? Now who do you believe crazy Rawback or me? I have a witness, you heard him. I slew the Taggerung."

Ruggan placed his paw to the blade at his throat.

"Put up your sword, otter. We are leaving!"

Ruggan led his Juska across the ditch to the flatlands. Deyna stood watching them his sword still at the ready. Gruven was jubilant. He snatched his sword from the vixen who had taken it and sawed through the rope around his waist.

Ruggan held a quick whispered conversation with Ermath. Gruven swung his sword around like a dibbun with a new toy; he turned upon the six guards.

"Now, you scum, I'll show you what happens to anybeast who treats a Taggerung the way you treated me. Hahahahaha! Kneel, all of you, kneel and bow your heads before me. Hahahahaha!"

"Zann Juska Taggerung! He who slays a Taggerung becomes Taggerung himself!"

Gruven half turned as Ruggan Bor swung his sabre. And Ruggan Bor kicked Gruven's headless corpse into the ditch.

Ermath the old vixen Seer spread her paws wide to the waiting vermin and called in a reedy trembling voice.

"Lord of the Southern Coasts! Chieftain of the Juskabor! Ruggan Zann Taggerung!"

A mighty roar erupted from the three hundred clanbeasts.

"Ruggan Zann Taggerung! Taggerung! Taggerung! Juskaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

The something happened that nobeast had ever seen before: Ruggan Bor smiled. He grinned from ear to ear and threw back his head, laughing over the spears clattering on shields, over the waving swords and blades of all kinds, over the lances thrust up at the sky as his laughter mingled with the roar of the Juskabor clan.

Abbess Mhera came to the open gate and wriggled between the ottercrew to her brother's side.

"What is it Deyna? What's going on here?"

Deyna ushered his sister gently into Skipper's waiting paws.

"Go back inside quickly, Mhera. Those vermin are working themselves into a frenzy."

Deyna was right. Ruggan Bor turned to face him, standing at the ditch edge and whirling his sabre. The Juskabor vermin learned eagerly forward, pointing their spears and blades. Deyna knew that three hundred Juska could not resist the temptation of an Abbey defended by less than a third of their number. He signalled Skipper.

"Get everybeast inside and bar the gates, Skip. I think there's going to be trouble!"

Mhera had made her way up to where Boorab was standing on the walltop, balancing between two battlements.

"Are the vermin going to attack the Abbey? Is Deyna inside?"

Boorab did not answer. Shading his eyes, he peered down to the southern bend of the path at the dustcloud arising betwixt woodland and flatland. He turned to Mhera with an odd smile n his face.

"Beg pardon, Abbess Marm, but best cover your ears. I'm goin' to shout."

The hare's narrow chest puffed out to its fullest extent as he sucked in air. Placing both paws around his mouth he bellowed mightily.

"Eulaliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

Nimbalo wriggled a paw in his ear.

"Wot's all the yellin' for, matey?"

Boorab pointed to the dustcloud, grinning like a madbeast.

"C'mon, laddie buck, and you, Abbess. Filorn, marm, would you be so kind as to oblige me? You too, Horag, Drogg, Hoben. In fact everybeast, all shout together, as loud as y'can. Eulalia's the word pronounced yoo lay lee ahh, long on the ah. One, two, shout!"

"Eulaliiiiiiiiiaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

Boorab had them shout five more times. Then he held up his paw.

Down at the main gate the Juska were about to charge at the still half-open doors, the gap packed with otters prepared to take down as many vermin as they could before the gates closed. The whole scene suddenly became a frozen tableau. A colossal roar, like a tidal wave breaking against a cliff, came up from the south.

"Eulaliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"


Note: I know im probably gonna get flamed for this but I need this part in for it to make an sense at all, I hope you can all forgive me, all will become clear soon I hope.

If it breaks any of the rules in anyway i will take it off and change it.