A note: bold text is from the POV of the woodlander telling the story in the future. Italic text is flashbacks, unless used to emphasize text. Normal text is, of cousre, from the POV of the characters trying to live through the Dark Forest I have created for them! Also to clarify, I will only use the horizontal lines

^like that to show switches in time. I know, I love complex.

Chapter Seven: Alliances Failed

The squirrelmaid raced blindly through the woods, Tullgrew's frantic shouts ringing in her ears. Run, Cel, run! Her foot caught on a branch and Celandine hit the ground with an oof. She sat up, her panic fading. She looked around at her surroundings and realized with a jolt that she was alone.

Tullgrew had not made it out of the clearing.

A paw landed on her shoulder and she screamed.

"Bad form, old chap, you scared the gel!" Celandine found herself looking at two hares. Both were clearly seasoned warriors, though the second of the two was only a few seasons out of adulthood. The older, and taller, of the twain was clearly a high-ranking official, at least a Colonel. He had a fencing saber at his waist and a small, but growing, handlebar mustache. The second hare, the one who had accosted her, had a blue tunic and was unarmed save for a sling and stone pouch. He made an elegant bow.

"Apologies, miss. Sergeant Lawdrel E. Nightshade at your service! Known as Lawd to me friends and death to me enemies!"

"And I am Colonel Julius Jeremy Jaruliam, but you may call me Jules! Now what's a pretty squirrel miad like yerself doing wandering these dank woods?"

Celandine got to her paws, calmed by their manners and the kindness and nobility shining in their eyes.

"I am Celandine Treeflier, of the Rambling Rosehip Players." The two hares shot each other a look that clearly said they were familiar with the name but she missed it. "Please, could you help me? There are five of us in these woods, but we were attacked by vermin and we split up. I know that three of my friends got away, but I fear my friend Tullgrew is has been taken prisoner. Could you help me?"

In response, the hares nodded. Jules drew his blade and Lawd cracked his knuckles. "Lead on, madam!"

***

"We're under attack!"

Barkjon leapt from his bed, snatching his sling from its place on the night stand. "Rally!"

The Noonvalers were unaccostomed to war, but did thier best to follow the Fighter's example. A young mouse named Renin-too young to fight- was bringing water to the fighters. A grappling hook flew up and landed on the wall by him. He froze and faintly heard voicesdrifting up. "Idiot! Wait a minute!"

Renin froze as another voice spoke. "Shut up! Now or never! Fire at will!"

More grappling hooks flew up and hooked on the walls. Renin was frozen in sheer terror as the murderous face of a corsair popped over the wall.

***

The trio crouched behind a bush, concealed on the outskirts of the vermin's hideout. Lawd pointed into the gloom. "I think I see her, wot!"

Straining her eyes in the dawn light, Celandine could barely make out Tullgrew's prone form. She was tied by her paws to a overhanging bough, feet grazing the ground. She seemed to be unconsious.

Jules made a quick decision. "Lawd, provide a distraction. Celandine and I shall circle around and cut Tullgrew free."

Lawd twirled his sling expertly, a merry twinkle in his eye. "Ready when you are, old bean!" He loaded his sling and took the first shot.

Ignoring the chaos at one end of the camp, she heard a creature approaching and went limp, hoping to conceal her wakefulness. Slowly but surely, Tullgrew was loosing the bonds that held her to the branch. Something prodded her shoulder from behind and a spasm of pain raced down her arm. Her shoulder was sprained, probably due to being dragged through the underbrush. It prodded her again and something whispered her name. "Tullgrew! Are you alright?"

"I'm unharmed, but I think my shoulder's sprained. Any sign of Keyla or the others, Cel'?"

Jules sliced the ropes binding Tullgrew to the tree. Tullgrew rubbed her wrists, attempting to restore circulation, as Celandine answered her question. "None."

"No time for that now, wot? Got to go!" Jules muttered as he hustled the two away. They went several miles, stopping at a clearing filled with wildflowers. Lawd joined them after a few minutes had passed after their arrival. "So far so good. Now what, wot?"

"We find their friends, me laddiebuck!"

"But how are we to find them?" Tullgrew asked as she plastered cool mud from the recent rain onto her shoulder, hoping to ease the pain. If anything, the pain redoubled, to her frustration.

"I'll see if I can locate them from up this tree," Celandine called as she scrambled up an aspen. A moment later she rejoined the trio, panting with exertion. "There's fire smoke from the way we came, like from a bonfire, and a smaller wisp like a campfire's over that way."

"Wouldn't they have left by now?"

"I don't know, but it bears a look."

center'''***'''/center

Keyla fed the fire with a pawful of sticks and looked up to the sky moodily. Least it had stopped raining. Brome yawned and sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He saw the height of the sun and scowled at his otter friend. "Haven't you had any sleep?"

Keyla momentarily considered fibbing but decided against it. "No."

"You should have woken me!"

"Not a chance. You needed rest."

"What about Grumm?"

"Same reason."

"Keyla, get some sleep!"

"Not till you get some food in you." He removed a pot of soup. Inwardly, Brome cringed. He hated spicy food. However, his reaction wasn't missed by the other. "I've known you for eight seasons. I think I've learned by now how ''not'' to cook something you like." Chagrined, the young mouse decided to shut his trap and eat the soup.

When he finished and the young otter made no sign of holding up his end of the agreement, he cleared his throat. "Our bargain?"

"What bargain?" Keyla asked innocently.

"Fibber."

"Me? A fibber? Oh, the horror!"

The mouse got a mischevious look on his face. "I'll scream."

"No you won't. You'll wake up Grumm."

The mouse promptly burst into ear-bursting squeals, screams, and shrieks. Keyla threw himself down on the sand, defeated for the moment and wondering how in the world the mole could sleep through such racket. "All right, all right, though you should know- you sound like a girl!" he shouted over the din.

Brome stopped in his tracks. "I do not!"

"Do too," the otter insisted cheekily.

"Do not!"

"Do too."

"Says who?"

"Me."

Brome opened his mouth and closed it. "Do not," he finished lamely. Keyla snorted. "Ask Grumm."

"I will. And Tullgrew and Celandine. If we find them. Or they find us."

"We- they will!" The otter sighed and put his head in his paws and his posture revealed just how exhausted he was.

"So, about that nap?" Brome piped up.

Keyla groaned. "I liked you better when you were asleep," he grumbled.

"So did I."

Keyla raised his head to look at Brome and froze, his eyes locked on something beyond the mouse's head. Then all exhaustion fell from him and he leapt forward with a joyful whoop. Brome followed his gaze and recognised with a leap of his heart Tullgrew, Celandine, and two hares. He moved to wake the slumbering mole.

The quartet stepped out of the woods and immediatly saw the trio huddled around the campfire sighted by Celandine. An instant later one of them, presumably Keyla, broke away from the other two with a shout of excitement. Tullgrew's face lit up and she sped ahead. Celandine wasn't far behind. Lawd and Jules, not to be left out of the fun, joined in the race. Keyla and Tullgrew skidded to a stop in front of each other, panting. "You're . . . alright!"

"So are . . . you. But what was the . . . screaming? Did you meet a mousemaid or something?" Tullgrew was puzzled when the young otter burst into a laugh. "What did I say?"

The otter wiped tears of merriment from his eyes. "Tell ye later."

Brome hit his face with his paw. "I'm never going to hear the end of this," he moaned.

***

Renin backed away from the corsairs, eyes fearful. The glass jug of water in Renin's paws slipped and shattered on the hardwood. The rat snickered and vaulted onto the hardwood floor. He immediately howled in pain as the broken glass dug deeply into his bare paws.

Not the smartest move for a corsair.

Renin, acting on sheer instinct, shoved the corsair over the wall. He fell with a scream, impaling himself onto a tree branch. Renin backed away from the sight of the corpse he had killed, nearly tripping over his sandals. "No! I'm sorry! No no nonooo-"

Barkjon, having heard the commotion, raced over. He took the situation at a glance, drew his dagger and began to sever the grapnels. "Help me, Renin!"

The young mouse got over his battle daze and picked up the largest shard of glass, helping Barkjon mechanically.

When the last rope was severed, Renin began to sob. "What have I done?"

"What you had to, young one. You did well," Barkjon soothed.

Pallum joined the pair. "The attack's broken off."

"Our battling is done. Now we rebuild," Barkjon said softly.

***

Zounzdican paced the room, snarling angrily to her companion. "You and your ship-rats! Easily beaten by a mouse barely out of catchcloths and an old, half-senile squirrel!"

"I didn't see you trying to scale the walls, nitwit!"

"My job was to provide a distraction! You were supposed to follow the plan! That's the whole reason that the stupid otter had to be t-"

"I don't take orders from you," he shouted, stung by the mention of the one creature he hated and feared, "In fact, me and mine are leaving, right now!"

He stormed out of the room in a black cloak of wrath. Zounzdican leaned against the wall. And she laughed. "Stage Two complete!" she snickered to herself.

***

That night around the campfire, the seven woodlanders talked of many things- the reason for questing, the history of Noonvale, and the ancient mountain of Salamandastron. "You should swing by, wot! It'll save you a step, not to mention that Lord Sunflash'll welcome you. It isn't often we get visitors."

"Sounds fine to me. What do you say?" Brome responded, his gaze sweeping the questers. All four sounded their asset.

It was decided. Tomorrow, they would leave for Salamandastron, the Fire Mountain.