Hello All! The third chapter! Thank you Whisper of Song, Lord Vrel and ferretWARLORD for reviewing my previous chapter! Thank you Lord Vrel for sticking with this story and reviewing every chapter! Well, all I can say is...Enjoy! And please read and review!
Sultana of North
Chapter III
The Journey North
The sun reached it's first rays above the horizon as Sultana arose and prepared to leave the Abbey she had grown so fond of during her brief stay. The fox was in the Infirmary, scrawling an untidy note for Brother Juniper to find, on the wall, using a bit of charcoal she had taken from one of Brother Juniper's cupboards.
Sultana carefully made her way down the worn staircase and into the kitchens, hoping to find a little food to carry with her in the bag she had made from an old torn habit, thinking, surely they would not mind if she took just a little food… she shouldered the green bag and headed for the doorway.
The vixen was dressed in the pine-colored tunic and tight fitting brown pants that she had worn during her stay with the clan. They were torn and messy, but she could not wear the habit that the Redwallers had given to her. A habit would be ill suited to endless travelling.
A slight rustle made her freeze, the fur on the back of her neck prickling. How could she explain the reason she was in the clothes of the clan, taking food from the kitchen? Sultana stole a glance over her shoulder, and let out a sigh of relief. Nobeast.
As if in a dream, she had stepped out of the Abbey, and into the world of danger she was bound for. Sultana looked back on Redwall Abbey for the very last time, turned, knowing that she most likely would never lay eyes again upon this peaceful place. Maybe, if Fyre was gone forever, she might come back, back to Thyme, Brother Juniper, Prudence, Abbot Bartholomew…she shouldered her bag, silently leaving.
Visgar Fyre had awoken, but lay quietly, watching his tracker. Shlavvo was seated, leaning against a tree, deftly fixing an arrow tip to the shaft. The fire-hardened tip was ground to a razor sharp edge that glistened cruelly. It was clear that the rat treated every arrow until the point was keen and perfect.
Shlavvo plucked a blade of grass and laid it on the edge of the arrow tip. It broke cleanly in two, and the rat tested the other edge of the arrow point similarly, and the grass blade snapped in pieces like the previous one. Shlavvo carelessly tossed the arrow, and it cut through the tree leaves neatly, and landed, buried tip down, half it's length into the forest floor. Smiling grimly, he pulled it from the ground and laid it upon a stack of arrows awaiting dye.
Sultana seated herself beneath a tree to consider her situation. She could not travel through Mossflower, she had to flee from the lands surrounding the Abbey as soon as possible. She could go east, or west, or south, but the direction she settled on was the north. In the north, foxes were common, and she could disguise as a seer or fortuneteller. Though she did not like the north, it was the most safe for her there. If Fyre asked around if anybeast had seen a young vixen, there would be too many of them for him to pinpoint the one he was looking for.
Pleased with her decision, she continued her journey, back to the place she never thought she would see again.
Brother Juniper awoke as dawn's first rays shone through his window and illuminated his dormitory with pale golden light. The Brother brushed the nightcap from his head, and gazed out the window. The soft gray blue of early dawn was mingled with the sun's pale rays, and in the distance, he could see a lone traveler.
Once the Brother had risen and dressed, he made his way down to the Infirmary. He opened a cupboard chose an assortment of bottles and boxes, selecting a small glass jar, pouring a third of its contents into a bowl.
He held it up to the sunlight, which shone through the liquid. "Extract of nightshade." He said softly, then consulted an old, worn book with yellowed pages that lay open upon a table, and set to work chopping a dark green herb. After it was finely chopped to small pieces, he placed it in the bowl with the extract of nightshade.
After he had finished his concoction, he poured it into a bottle, and held it at eye level. The Infirmary Keeper smiled, saying, "There. Perfect for any sickness." He placed it in a cabinet, and left, not noticing the messy charcoal letters sprawled out on the wall behind him…
As he made his way down to the Great Hall, he could not help but notice Sultana was not present. He satisfied himself, thinking she was in the kitchens with the Friar. The fox loved it there. Juniper watched Colonel Terrin as he bobbed around the Hall, toward the kitchens, and the Brother followed him.
Sultana decided to go through the meadowlands, since she knew Fyre and the clan were in Mossflower wood. As soon as she was safe and far from Fyre, she would travel north. The young fox planned her new life once she reached her destination. She would live as a travelling fortune-teller, trading her services for food or lodging.
Sultana reached into a hidden pocket of her tunic and retrieved a gold pendant upon a blood-red silk ribbon. Holding it up, she gazed at it. The brilliant deep gold of the pendant was intensified by the dark shining crimson of the ribbon it hung upon.
She placed it over her head and let it dangle loosely from her neck. The necklace reflected the light brightly, and Sultana tucked the pendent under the neck of her tunic, and hid its brilliancy so it would not attract Fyre's , making her an easy find. The clan chief knew nothing of the necklace, and neither did any of the clan. It was her own secret. The vixen had found it lying in a created by the entwined roots of an elm - the tree was the place of her temporary stay, and attached to the necklace was a note that read:
This is a gift from one you know not of. You must never lose it, sell it, or show it to anybeast. You shall find it important one day. From not only a well-wisher, but a fleeing one. Do well, and may the seasons look favorably upon you.
The message had occupied her thoughts for a long time, and it puzzled her. To her it was an especially pretty trinket, and nothing else. Why must she take such painstaking care of it? And never show it to another? How could a shining encircled arrow on a red ribbon be important to her? Why had the giver of the gift felt the need to write her a note and leave her a necklace? It was as if the arrow and ribbon was more than what it appeared. And maybe it was.
But soon the Sultana had forgotten about the mysterious golden arrow hung upon a blood-colored ribbon. Fyre was carefully planning a raid, charting every last part of the plan onto scraps of parchment. This was the first raid the young vixen was to take part in, and the necklace was hastily pushed to the back of her mind. Several weeks previously, she had sewn an extra secret pocket into her tunic for it, and stored it inside.
Now, she could wear it. Perhaps. Yet had not the note said not to show it to another? She chose to obey the unknown creature's wishes, and tucked the necklace into her pocket.
Friar Thyme was slightly puzzled. Brother Juniper had not seen Sultana this morning, and neither had he. The Friar had believed her to be with Juniper, yet she was not. Perhaps she was merely sleeping late. The Abbot was still abed, and that aided Thyme in his beliefs. The Friar glanced warily at the door, hoping the Colonel's long floppy ears would not appear through the doorway again.
Withdrawing his eyes, he pushed a tray of strawberry scones into an oven. The fox had seemed an early riser, and yet, it was nearly breakfast time. Redvale, a young red squirrel who tended the oven, commented, "Where is Sultana? She likes helping in the kitchens. She would be good to have here as we are short one kitchen assistant." Seeing the Friar's puzzled look, she explained. "Mirel is ill." The Friar sighed. Mirel was a tall, hardworking otter who frequently helped him. Now he was sick. The Friar answered Redvale's question. "I do not know. We have not seen Sultana."
Brother Juniper uncorked the bottle of medicine he had made early that morning, and, glancing at the otter, poured a generous spoonful.
Mirel was taken ill that morning. The otter was pale beneath his brown facefur, and weak. He accepted the Brother's concoction wordlessly, and after he swallowed the medicine, he murmured, "I know, " He began. Juniper asked, "What, Mirel?" The otter continued, "I know about…about…Sultana. Where she…is." Juniper leaned closer to hear Mirel's quiet voice. "Where is she?"
"Gone…" The otter whispered, falling unconscious.
It could not be. The Mirel was delirious, not thinking about what he was saying, but what if…
He turned, and thin untidy writing caught his eye.
Visgar Fyre kept his watched the dark rat as he halted, his expressionless face betraying nothing. Shlavvo turned to his chief, and said, "Look, massster." He flicked his arrow to a space between two entwined vines. The fox squinted in the indicated direction.
There, Fyre knew it was Redwall Abbey.
"What happens now, Shlavvo?"
"I am led to believe ssshe isss there, sssir. Ssshe hasss collapsssed here, sssir," He pointed to a place ahead of them where the undergrowth was flattened slightly. "Then ssshe could have arousssed herssself and made her way there, but no, a few beassstsss from the Abbey brought her."
Fyre did not question the natural skill of his tracker. At one time, Sultana had been brought to Redwall.
They crept onward, and soon they arrived at the edge of Mossflower.
Sultana glanced over her shoulder. Would Fyre spot her? She could not tell. The young fox sat beneath a spreading oak, opened her bag, and reached inside. The first thing she withdrew was a biscuit, which she bit into eagerly. How she would miss Friar Thyme's cooking, when she had eaten all the food she had taken. Sultana made a small breakfast for herself with some of the food she had.
When she finished and packed up, she headed onwards.
Shlavvo trusted only himself with investigating the path on the Abbey grounds. Blending into the shadows, he inspected the tracks of four animals, and he came across something that made him stop and stare. Swiftly and silently, he slunk back to Fyre to inform him about this unexpected change of events.
"Milord, I may tell you sssomething?"
Fyre nodded, attempting to read the dark rat's thoughts. But the tracker's face was an expressionless mask, and revealed nothing.
"The vixen left the Abbey."
"She did? Which direction did she take?"
Wordlessly, the rat pointed to the green, undulating meadowlands.
A small and reddish lone traveler steadily plodded onwards.
Sultana.
Chapter IV
As Fast As You Can
Coming May 6th, 2012!
Author's Note: Thank you for reading! Did you like it? What did you think of the necklace? Please review and tell me all you think of this fanfic! I really, really, really, REALLY appreciate it! I really like any sort of feedback!
-FresianRoses