Skipper, Martin, and Bugs emerged out of a hole. They were standing by the riverbank.
"So if there are tunnels that lead to Camp Willow, why didn't you just take us through one of those instead of throwing us into the river?" Martin asked.
Skipper shrugged. "Going by water was quicker. Anyhow, you two start thumpin' that there log to call him, and I'll raise the sluicegate. Stay clear of the water's edge, though." He handed them each a cudgel.
There was a gate running across the riverbed, with small holes in it to let the water flow through. Skipper now raised this gate clear of the water as Martin and Bugs began banging a hollow log nearby.
A smooth wave rose. A long shape, like a section of tree trunk, smooth, with a many-spiked dorsal fin emerged. It was a pike.
"Look at the teeth on that fish. A regular dentist's nightmare," Bugs said. "So this is Stormfin, huh?"
"Aye, this is Stormfin, matey. Me and my brother Mask trapped him long ago." Skipper leaned forward and patted the giant fish's fin, causing it to lash its tail. The water boiled into a white foam as the otter leaped back laughing.
"I wouldn't like to cross that guy's path if I was out swimmin', would you Doc?" Bugs asked Martin.
"Pity there ain't more'n one Tasmanian Devil," Skipper said. "That pike has a terrible appetite."
They heard growling and whirring sounds in the distance.
"Ya know what they say, Doc. Speak of the Devil an' he appears."
Skipper patted Stormfin again. "Right then, ye old buccaneer. Don't eat him too quick, now; you'll make yourself sick."
Now Taz appeared in view. As he spun around madly, he chewed or bored through anything he came into contact with, whether trees, boulders, or shrubbery. His entire body was a weapon.
"Great seasons!" cried Martin. "I've never seen anything like that in all my life!"
Bugs pointed. "Say, isn't that Fortunata the fox tied to him?"
Skipper chuckled. "Not anymore. She just wiped out on a boulder and the rope snapped."
Taz suddenly stopped. He looked across the river and saw Martin. He recognized the mouse's scent. "Taz eat mouse now!" He dived right into the water.
Now Tsarmina and her soldiers were coming up. They ran alongside the bank, following Taz's progress and shouting excitedly.
"Look, he's after something. Hey Taz, eat an otter for me!"
"Don't eat 'em, kill 'em all, Taz! Rip them to bits!"
A ferret who had run ahead of the rest called back to his comrades, "Something's coming! I think it's the otters. No, wait, it's a big fish of some sort."
Swift chevrons of water rippled out to both sides of the bank as Stormfin sped downstream like a great arrow.
Taz thrashed the water as he swam upstream, feeling his prey getting near.
Closer and closer the monsters came towards each other. Taz lifted his snout clear of the water, sucking in a huge gasp of air. He saw the big fish approaching. "Taz like seafood!" he roared, and sailed into Stormfin like a tornado.
Taz and Stormfin started fighting each other in the water and it was hard to see what was happening. The surface boiled in a welter of cascading water, shimmering scales and ragged fur, the whole scene streaked with blood.
Soon they both sank beneath the surface. There was a long moment of silence.
Then Taz emerged and leaped onto Martin's side of the river. He had a gaping wound in his stomach, but this didn't faze him at all. "Taz eat mouse now!"
Before Martin could react, Stormfin came back to the attack! Driving low, hard, and fast, the pike shot out of the water and clamped his teeth on the Tasmanian Devil's hindquarters. Taz was dragged backward into the river. He grasped at thin air with his claws before sinking again, and this time he didn't come back up.
A loud burp came from under the water. The destroyer from Kotir was beaten. Stormfin had finally won!
"Guess he shoulda looked before he lunched!" Bugs laughed.
"This isn't over. We'll meet again!" Tsarmina yelled at Martin.
Martin fingered the sword hilt around his neck. "I'm looking forward to it."
Tsarmina raised a fist in the air. "I am Tsarmina, Queen of the Thousand Eyes. Before I am finished with Mossflower, every creature who defies me will wish that its mother had never given birth to it. The crying and the dying will be loud and long!"
Fortunata leaped forward. The vixen was thinking of ingratiating herself with her queen by adding a few words to the speech. "Thus speaks the mighty Tsarmina, ruler of all Mossfl…"
As Tsarmina turned from the river's edge she collided with the leaping fox. Their heads clashed painfully and they landed ungraciously in the mud of the shallows.
Skipper turned to Martin. "Come on. Let's get you back to Brockhall now."