Blacktail the Overlord was in a rage. Not only had his prey slipped from between his paws, and the resistance with it, the Pikeshaft was also damaged, prolonging the pause in the offensive while the ships that had been damaged were repaired. Solan was dead, the remaining troops that had gone ashore with him had seen that themselves, and they also said that the squirrel had slain him. The stoat snarled to himself, watching the Pikeshaft's crew work to cut down a tree large enough to replace the mast, and to repair the two giant holes in the ship. Other ships were also working, as the armada surrounded a large island in the far southern sea. Trees covered it, but were being rapidly cut down to aid the devices of the Sea Hordes. In hours, the island would be stripped completely of trees, until new ones could grow by some miracle. Blacktail snarled. Bunglers, idiots, the lot of them! He had the squirrel and his allies in his grasp, and they had let him escape! Blacktail turned to a rat by the name of Fleapaw, who was now the master of the Raven's Beak, Solan's former ship. "How far are we from being ready?"

"At least three more days, Overlord. So many ships were damaged-." Fleapaw gave a horrible shriek. Blacktail pulled his sword from the rat's footpaw. He had pierced muscle. The paw would never work correctly again. Fleapaw dropped to his knees, still shrieking as Blacktail whipped him with the flat of the blade, venting his spleen on the rat.

"Idiot! Slacker! Bungler! You all will work faster or I will hang your heads from every ship in the armada! Do I make myself clear? Do I? Do I?"

"Aiiiiiiii! Yes, Overlord! Aiiiiiieee!"

Blacktail struck a final blow, and Fleapaw fell to the ground sobbing, in shock from the beating he had received. Blacktail looked back at the crews. They were working three times as fast as they had before he had lost his temper. The stoat smirked. Anger could be useful in the right situations. The sun was setting. Fires were lit so that the crews could keep working. For fear of Blacktail fulfilling his threat.

The Javelin, followed by the Sparrow's Wing, the Sabre, the Hickory, and the two new ships, the Tide and the River, moved east. They were in an arrowhead formation, the Javelin at the point. Ryon stood at the prow, once again willing his ship to move swifter. The squirrel consulted a map. The outpost was at least another night's journey away. Once there, the navy would attack it and the ships guarding it, leaving no survivors to tell of their doing. Ryon mentally thanked Martin the Warrior for his knowledge. Martin and a mousemaid that had not introduced herself had told him of it. The two looked happy together. Ryon did not know who she was, but it had been Laterose of Noonvale, Martin's former love. Ryon knew that what he had initiated, he would finish. On his father's sword, he swore it.

Sharpear and Blackreed, the two in charge of the defense of Vale Island when Ryon was away, had just finished an inspection of the fortress, and were now reading reports brought in from scout ships. Every soldier that the island had was on full alert, ready to defend the island in case the Sea Hordes attacked. The passage that led into the harbor was the only place that the island could be entered from. The edges of the rock, which was really an extinct volcano, were smooth, but had plenty of alcoves. Small units of troops were stationed in these alcoves, which were accessible through hidden passages in the rear wall. This made Vale Island more than acceptably defended. The two warriors continued their reading, anxiously preparing for Ryon's return.

Dawn rose over the Eastern coast. The four Sea Horde ships that were in Fort Hordebeach's cove, among which were the Adderfang and the Shadow, were still silent, their crews asleep but for a few sentries on each deck. The same was inside Hordebeach itself. They were completely unprepared for the attack.

Ryon watched the Sea Horde ships through a spyglass, then lowered it and narrowed his eyes. He ordered a signal to be given, and the attack began.

The Tide, River, Sparrow's Wing, and the Hickory delivered broadsides with the ballistae that they had on their second deck. The first two Sea Horde ships were severely damaged. The Adderfang and the Shadow moved off immediately, and the Sabre and Javelin moved forward to engage them. The Sea Hordes, who had faced the Vale Islanders before, had added ballistae to their ships as well. Ryon however, knew that a prolonged battle would be waged if the ships were allowed to get in range. He gestured with a paw to the archers lined up in the bows of the ship. They dipped arrows, rapped in pitch and oiled cloth, into lanterns. The shafts caught fire instantly, and the archers drew back, and fired. A score of flaming shafts flew into the sky. They cut through the sails, setting them alight. After going through the sails, they sank into the woodwork. The fire spread rapidly, and the Javelin was free to move up alongside the flame-wreathed Adderfang. Ryon shouted to the creatures below decks. "Now! Fire now!"

Rocks fired from the ballistae and tore through the decks, slaying the operators of the Adderfang's ballistae instantly. The ship began to sink. Nearby, the Shadow was suffering the same fate. Unless the crews worked quickly, the ship would sink to the bottom. Ryon turned and bellowed out to the six Vale Island ships. "Load into the longboats! Captain Rocktail, stay offshore and bombard the walls!"

The ships jumped into action. Captain Rocktail, an otter who was master of the Sparrow's Wing, turned starboard, extending the ballistae. He began to bombard the walls of Fort Hordebeach as the longboats of Vale Island moved towards the shore. In one of the lead boats were Ryon, Lucar, Silver, and Birchleaf. As the Vale Islanders landed, Ryon readied and strung a bow that he had carried with him. He fired off an arrow, seeing a sentry fall with the shaft in his throat. The squirrel captain grinned, and headed the charge towards the fortress. The fortress's woodwork shattered as a rock from the Sparrow's Wing smashed into it. Most of the enemy would concentrate there. The Vale Islanders hurled grappling hooks towards the walls, archers in the rear taking down any vermin that attempted to cut them. Ryon was first up the rope, and as he got to the wall he fired an arrow into the courtyard. A stoat fell with it between his shoulder blades, and Ryon drew his saber as the vermin on the east wall turned and began to charge at the crews from both sides. Ryon barked out orders as the vermin charged forward. "Spears, get to either side of the ropes! Archers, get behind them! The rest of you, down into the courtyard! When the last one of us is down, follow us!"

The vermin were still drowsy from the attack of dawn and were disorganized. They ran onto the spears as the Vale Islanders jumped into action. Silver fired off a rock from his sling. It hit a rat between the eyes, and the creature fell slain into the courtyard. Ryon reached the bottom of the ladder that led down into the courtyard. He grouped a squad of slingers around him, and they peppered the vermin with stones and arrows as the spearbeasts and archers began to back down onto the ground. The sea vermin were now swarming into the courtyard. Ryon whirled his saber, roaring. "Break off! Charge!"

The two sides met, and the ring of clashing steel rang out through the morning air. Lucar and Birchleaf were fighting back to back, as were Ryon and Silver. Eventually, the four backed into one another and fought in a square, slaying all comers. As Ryon parried a blow from a ferret, Silver took a spear to the side. Lucar slew the rat that did it and Ryon slew his opponent, breaking from the battle to drag Silver out of the fray.

The two nestled behind the longhouse. Silver looked up at Ryon. "Thanks, mate."

Ryon smiled. "It was nothing. Stay still and I'll bind your wound."

Silver shook his head. "No. You can't help me, Ryon. That spear went deep."

Ryon began talking quickly. "No. Don't talk like that, Silver. You'll be alright. We'll get you back to the island."

Silver shook his head again. "It's too late. It's too…" The mouse's head lolled into Ryon's arms. The squirrel captain shook his head. "No. Come on, Silver. Come on!"

Silver picked his head up, and breathed deeply. The silver mouse smiled. "It'll be good to see your father again. He was a good fellow." Ryon was staring at him now, his eyes wide with disbelief.

The squirrel shook his head. "No. No, no!" He grasped Silver's paw. "You can't die. You can't!"

Silver looked at him with all the seriousness of a dying creature. "You know as well as I do that I'm fading, Ryon." His head lolled to one side again. "It's over for me. I'm sorry, but…there's nothing…you can…do." He winced visibly. He then turned his head to Ryon. "Dying hurts."

Ryon attempted a smile. "I'm sure it does."

Silver reached out for Ryon's paw. The squirrel took it, and he began a Vale Island blessing. "May the waves guide you."

Silver completed it. "And may the winds speed my way."

Ryon noticed that it had gone quiet in the courtyard. Silver had noticed it as well. "I guess we won."

Ryon nodded. "Aye. It would seem so."

Silver's eyelids began to flutter. "You're a good captain, Ryon."

Ryon smiled gently. "You are a good captain as well. But a better friend, there is no other."

Silver smiled. His eyes shut, and his head lolled into Ryon's arms again. The squirrel captain felt his friend's breathing quiet. His eyes brimmed with tears. Gathering Silver in his arms, Ryon carried him out from behind the longhouse.

Vermin bodies littered the ground. Not one vermin warrior had been left alive. Vale Islanders dotted the ground as well, but were well outnumbered by the vermin. The Vale Islanders gasped and hung their heads as Ryon walked past them, the limp form of Silver draped in his arms. A brave warrior perished that day.

Aw. R and R!