CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SEVEN

Vanessa stood before the Tapestry, a picture of self-possessed calm as she regarded the ancient weaving. Clewiston and Traveller, by contrast, stared in boggle-eyed amazement, not at the Abbess or the needlework but at Great Hall around them. Even Winokur and Maura, bringing up the rear from Cavern Hole, joined the two hares in showing surprise at the tableau presented to them now.

Beasts filled Great Hall, many having gathered to eagerly await any word from the council being held downstairs. Every one of those creatures now stood or sat with head nodded and eyes closed, exactly the same as the Abbey leaders and Long Patrol in Cavern Hole. If a single one of them was aware of the five beasts gathered before the Tapestry, they did not show it.

"Have you put the entire blinkin' Abbey to sleep?" Clewiston asked, in a voice much smaller than the bluster he'd brandished at the council.

"Every bird and beast within these walls, except for the five of us. I wanted to be able to speak freely, and there are still some things I'm not ready for most here to know. And I'll have you know, speaking of knowing, that the only reason I'm taking the two of you into my confidence now is that you've rather forced the issue." Glancing at the Badger Mother and otter Recorder, she added, "Although I suspect Wink and Maura were growing rather weary of being the only two Redwallers to share my secret. Then again, the more who know a secret, the less likely it is to remain a secret. Thus, I am entreating you to respect my wishes in this, and share what you are about to hear with no other."

"And if we refuse?" Clewiston challenged, although his tone suggested he was not seriously entertaining such a notion. "Do you snap your paws and make us forget everything?"

"That remains a possibility, yes."

The two hares practically blanched at this thinly-veiled threat.

"However," Vanessa went on, "that would pose certain complications I'd just as soon avoid. Hence, I'd rather you didn't force me to such measures. But I place great stock in the honor of the Long Patrol, and trust in you to do the right thing, once you've heard me out."

"Speakin' of honor's all well an' good, marm, long as both sides possess it. I still have my doubts about you. An' I'll not be held to any pledge extracted through deceit, or under duress."

Vanessa looked to the other hare. "And what of you, Traveller? You've not had much to say during these proceedings. Where do you stand?"

"Right where I jolly well am, I reckon. But I'd like to know exactly who it is I'm dealin' with, don'tcha know. I mean, wot kind of benevolent beast does somethin' like this ... " Traveller swept his arm to indicate the supernaturally-slumbering Great Hall.

"Who do you think would be capable of wielding such power within Redwall? The list of likely suspects is quite small."

"Wager His Bloodiness could," Clewiston cut in, "an' I really can't think of anybeast else alive who fits the bally bill. So if you're trying to convince us otherwise, you're not doing your case any jolly favors."

"I'm not Urthblood."

"Then p'raps it's time for you to stop playin' games," said Traveller, "an' come right out an' tell us."

"The time for games is well past. But you were there last spring at Foxguard. You saw the stone to the head - " Vanessa pointed at her temple, " - and you saw this body crumple. You must have known there would be no getting back up again after that."

Traveller seemed momentarily confused. "But, you did get up again ... "

"Yes, I did." The mouse met the hare's gaze with a wistful look. "Sadly, Vanessa did not."

The two Long Patrol stood regarding her for some moments. At length Traveller spoke. "So, you're sayin' ... "

Vanessa turned her gaze upon the Tapestry. "I never found this a particularly good likeness. I think the carving on my tomb down below Cavern Hole does me far better justice."

Clewiston and Traveller lapsed into silence again, this time longer than before. Around them, the stillness of slumber-struck Great Hall seemed like a pause in history, a deeply-held breath in the flow of the world. The five of them might as well have been the only waking souls in all of creation.

"That's ... that's a lot you're asking us to swallow," Clewiston said at last. "Right bloomin' fantastic, it is."

"I know. But Vanessa is gone, and has been since last spring. I'm either who I say I am, or I'm Urthblood; those are your only two choices. And frankly, the idea of anybeast imagining I'm Urthblood's unthinking puppet rankles me more than I can adequately express."

Clewiston looked to Maura and Winokur. "You two have known about this, all along?"

The badger nodded. "Since the evening of the day Latura was abducted."

"An' you believe her?"

"We do. Her revelation to us was ... most persuasive."

"And now that I've poked sufficient holes in Captain Saugus's story," Vanessa said, "I hope I'll be able to similarly persuade you as well. If I can't, I might as well just pack it in and return to Dark Forest right now."

"Why keep this from us at all?" asked Traveller. "We, of all beasts, who stand as this Abbey's most ardent defenders ... "

"When you're not out chasing after kidnapped rats, against my express wishes. But you answered your own question: It wasn't necessary to tell you. The Long Patrol already stand wholly and foursquare in their dedication to defending Redwall - one might say fanatically so. And you rightly believe Urthblood to be the enemy of this Abbey, and of all the lands, and all decent, honest creatures. In other words, I didn't have to confide in you, because you were already exactly what I needed, and the revelation that Redwall's founding Warrior had returned wouldn't have done anything to heighten your already unswerving loyalty. It's the same reason I would not have revealed myself to Alexander either, had he been here; he too has become convinced Urthblood is our enemy, and he has always placed the needs and security of Redwall above all else, his marriage to Mina notwithstanding. There would be nothing further to gain from sharing this secret with him, so I wouldn't. Montybank and Foremole may eventually have to be brought in on our little conspiracy, but for now they're away at the quarry, so that can wait. For the time being, I'd still like to keep this as close to the vest as possible, and include as few Abbeybeasts as I can."

"Still not sure why, ma'am," Traveller said, then frowned. "Uh, do we even still call you that? Or Abbess, for that matter?"

"Of course. Once the rest of the Abbey wakes up in a little while, I'll be back to being just Vanessa, as far as you and everybeast else is concerned. And I'll be counting on you not to make any slips of the tongue which might give me away."

"But, why keep it a secret at all?" Traveller argued. "Times as dark an' dire as these, mebbe your return is just wot everybeast needs t' hear. Wot better way to renew hope an' bolster confidence to those who could use it most?"

"Travs is right," Clewiston seconded. "This is somethin' Redwall jolly well needs t' know. An' if you had been open with us about this, then this feint by Urthblood with his false message to Mina wouldn't have caught traction, an' his ploy would've failed before it even started. Your own secrecy worked against you, an' nearly got you booted out of the Abbess's chair - an' mebbe out of Redwall alt'gether."

"I have my reasons - although I'll admit those reasons are far less compelling, now that Urthblood knows I've returned."

"But, does he?" Traveller wondered. "Can we be sure of that?"

"We can be sure. The message he sent with Captain Saugus leaves no doubt: an attack not on Redwall as a whole but, as Arlyn just observed downstairs, on me personally, to undermine my authority as Abbess and sully my reputation with suspicions I would never be able to fully dispel. Indeed, this proves he not only knows of my return, but my identity as well, and which body I inhabit. And this complicates matters considerably."

"Well, who the fur told 'im?" Clewiston burst out, indignation over Urthblood's latest duplicity at last overtaking his lingering doubts as to Vanessa's self-professed true identity.

The mouse shrugged. "It must have been somebeast. It really doesn't matter now. We can only go forward from where we are now, and deal with the situation as best we may."

"An' wot exactly does that mean?" asked Traveller. "Wot is the situation? Wot can we expect from Urthblood now?"

"I cannot see the future - not the way Latura can. As I have already explained to Winokur and Maura, I can only sense Urthblood's general mood, and perhaps the barest shadow of his intent. But that's the funny thing: I'd sensed an attack coming from him before today. And now ... " She rustled the parchment in her paw. "That sense is gone. Dissipated. This was the attack. And now his immediate attention has turned elsewhere. It's as if now that he has assailed my character and standing, he is satisfied - at least now the moment - and no longer considers Redwall worth his time or energy."

"Well, that's a relief," said Maura. "When you shared these concerns with us last night, we feared a full military assault. At least this is something we can handle."

"How sure about this are you?" Clewiston asked Vanessa.

"As sure as I can be about anything, where Urthblood is concerned. And I'm afraid I cannot entirely share Maura's optimism about his shift of focus. Just because his immediate attention no longer fixes upon us, that does not make it a good thing."

"Why not?" asked Traveller.

"Because Urthfist was right. Urthblood's own prophecy surely names him as the bringer of the very crisis it foretells. Or if it doesn't, it may as well, since I have seen inside Urthblood, down to his very nature, when I dwelt purely in the spirit realm. Which means that no matter what he strives to achieve, whether in our nearer woods or far from Mossflower, it's all the same, and will ultimately result in disaster for us all, no matter what. And right now, I see him looking to the south."

"To the south?" Clewiston repeated. "Do you think he means to take on Sodexo, once our Badger Lord ally leaves Redwall an' returns to the Southern Glades?"

"There's no doubt our friend Sodexo has proven a thorn in Urthblood's side that he would dearly love to pluck, but if so, that lies beyond any future I can sense. I see his gaze turned even farther south than Sodexo's domain."

"Then it's no concern of ours," deemed Clewiston. "Nothing that far away can pose any threat to us."

"Don't be too sure about that, Colonel. Everything Urthblood does fits into his larger plan somehow. He already controls the Northlands almost absolutely, except Noonvale and perhaps the otter holts. He already controls the coastlands almost absolutely as well, his Accord with Tratton holding the searats at bay and his gulls enforcing his will over shore and coastal waters both. And now he looks toward Southsward - and, I suspect, an alliance with Floret. If he succeeds in that, he will wield unparalleled influence in all the lands north, west and south of Mossflower. Throw in Foxguard and Gawdrey, and he won't even have to concern himself with conquering Redwall; he'll have effectively conquered all the territory surrounding us, leaving this Abbey as cut off and isolated as Noonvale ever was. And, if it should turn out he harbors ultimate designs on Redwall, an alliance with Southsward could well win him additional fighting reserves to counter any allies Sodexo might be able to drum up for us from southern Mossflower. Imagine an assault launched against Redwall with not only the full force of his Gawtrybe and vermin fighters, but also scores or hundreds of additional troops supplied by Southsward."

The others stood appalled by this mental picture. "Is there any way we can stop him?" Winokur said. "Maybe get some kind of envoy of our own to Southsward ahead of him, with word of what he's been doing in Mossflower and warning them not to trust him?"

"I don't see how. I feel this has been on his mind for some time now; perhaps he was waiting to see how things turned out with Latura first. But now that he is ready to move, he'll move fast. I fear there will be no pre-empting him in this endeavor."

"Just why did you give 'im Lattie in the first place?" Clewiston asked. "That's the one point in this whole rigamarole that's bothered me more'n anything."

"Aside from the reasons I've already articulated publicly - that she was too chaotic a force to be allowed to remain at Redwall, and that Urthblood would indeed have flattened our Abbey to get at her, all of which was entirely true - I meant for Latura to be his undoing, just as I believe fate intended as well. Traveller and I already had this conversation the day she was stolen away, although at the time he did not guess who he was truly speaking with, and I impressed upon him how Latura coming to stand before Urthblood represented the best chance we would ever have of bringing about his downfall. It's what Urthblood himself wanted, and it may have been her very destiny; I merely nudged things along a bit."

"And how did that turn out?" Clewiston broached with rhetorical wryness.

"It rather went spectacularly wrong, as you've no doubt surmised already. Latura still lives; she has passed under Urthblood's scrutiny and through Salamandastron, and now he has given her over to the searats. Somehow, he sensed the trap fate had wrought for him, knew that slaying Latura would destroy him - that slaying her by his own paw was the only way she posed a threat to him - and allowed her to move on unscathed. And more than that, he divined my own part in making sure she reached him." Again, she flapped the parchment in her grasp. "This treacherous communique stands as proof enough of that."

"It's Tratton and his rats that worry me most," opined Clewiston. "If Urthblood really is allied with the Searat King, as Lord Urthfist long predicted - an' you just said yourself our old Lord was right about Urthblood's prophecy - those seavermin can throw numbers at us that would make anything from Southsward look like a bunch of leverets with pea shooters. Barbarians who are also trained fighters, hittin' us in wave after wave, with Urthblood 'n' Tratton jointly commandin' 'em - that'd be a blinkin' nightmare out of any goodbeast's troubled sleep."

"Tratton doesn't concern me," Vanessa replied. "His domain is the sea, and his forces are not accustomed to land battles. More to the point, he's still adjusting to this Accord - as are his captains and officers. Keeping his naval power intact - and himself on the throne overseeing that power - must be his primary concern, and I suspect that will keep him too busy to - "

At that moment a sound intruded upon their gathering, a sound which could not possibly be. All five heads turned as one toward the door leading out onto the grounds, its heavy creaking clearly announcing that somebeast had just opened it. Across the dim threshold to their astonished eyes crept Mona, her own eyes wide with frightened confusion. At first she didn't seem to notice them, her gaze taking in all the entranced creatures around Great Hall. But then her sights shifted to the Tapestry, and to the quintet standing before it, and she realized they stood not with heads bowed and eyes closed as everybeast else, but were awake and alert and staring right back at her.

Clewiston turned to Vanessa. "You invited her?"

The mouse's lips curled downward. "No. As a matter of fact, no I didn't."

Raising his eyebrows in surprise, the Colonel returned his gaze to the vixen. Now Mona's mere fright seemed to be intensifying to something more resembling terror, the color draining from her ears as her face, at first just ghostly, turned a whiter shade of pale, eyes widened further as jaw dropped and hackles rose. Reaching behind her to grasp at the empty air, she retreated, step by slow step, until she'd withdrawn to the twilit outdoors once more.

"Poor dear. I'm afraid we've gone and given her a start."

"Wot th' bally backflippin' blazes was that all about?" Clewiston demanded.

"It seems my sleep spell, for want of a better word, didn't entirely take with her. That must have been quite unnerving for her, finding herself the only waking beast in Redwall, to all appearances, and then stumbling in here to find us conferring in occult secrecy and staring at her like an intruder from another reality. One can only imagine what it must have looked like from her point of view."

"Yes, but - why didn't she succumb to your will, along with everyballybeast else?" the Colonel pressed.

"Mona has always been a special case - perhaps more special than even she realizes. She has one paw in the other world, just as Latura and Urthblood do. Not as strongly, of course, and of a somewhat different nature, but it's still there nonetheless. I received a potent reminder of that earlier today, when she was able to sense some of my own abilities. And apparently, her gifts are strong enough in her that she successfully resisted my will on this occasion."

"Should one of us go out and get her?" Traveller asked.

Vanessa shook her head. "She'll not be able to awaken anybeast else until I allow it. And something tells me she'll not be quick to share what she experienced here with anybeast else, once they do wake up. She'll not want to appear unhinged, delusional, or a raving lunatic once we deny it - which we will. Still, I suppose we'd best resume our seats downstairs, before too much time elapses. Right now, this interlude will only strike our visitors and fellow Abbeydwellers as a minor hiccup in their awareness, but the more time passes, the more likely they'll be to notice some discrepancy in their perceptions."

"Before we do," said Maura, "I think you should tell them about Tolar, and Foxguard."

This piqued the two hares' interest. Regarding Vanessa with a gaze not to be denied, Clewiston said, "Wot about that place, ma'am?"

Vanessa sighed, as if having been forced into this revelation by Maura. "It may be a bit premature to speak much about this, but suffice it to say that the arrival of the swordfoxes may have proven most fortuitous. In view of Latura's failure to dethrone Urthblood, other avenues must be explored, and Tolar represents one of those, and perhaps the most promising one. Thus, I have been quietly, subtly working on him."

"Workin' him?" Clewiston repeated.

Vanessa pointed at her temple. "This way. Mind to mind, without him being aware of it - although I suspect Mona may now have a glimmering of what I can do in this regard. But Tolar is dissatisfied with the current state of affairs on any number of levels, and still holds relations with Redwall as paramount, perhaps because Foxguard lies so close to us. It is this angle of his psyche I hope to influence, with a few pushes and prods in just the right places. Building on his already existing frustrations, maybe - just maybe - Urthblood will discover to his chagrin and dismay that the fox fortress he poured so much of himself into erecting will refuse to take part in any assault on Redwall he might order in the future."

Now both hares raised their eyebrows, Traveller joining the Colonel in the gesture Clewiston had practically appropriated as his own hallmark gesture of surprise. "That'd be a corker in His Bloodiness's face. Any chance you might be able t' swing those brushtails all the jolly way around, so that they'd fight on our side 'gainst Urthblood?"

"Let's not overreach, Colonel. Winning Foxguard's neutrality will tax my powers of influence to their limit; Tolar will not lightly disregard a direct order from his badger master, and that might be all we can hope for. Getting him to actually take up arms against Urthblood? I'm good, but I'm not that good."

"Will the Gawtrybe allow him to remain neutral?" Traveller wondered. "Even after they've got Gawdrey fully established, they may still use Foxguard as a staging area for this Purge of theirs. Tolar will still have 'em underpaw - an' if he's not careful, more likely he'll find 'imself under their heel, an' not as free to move on his own as either he or we might like."

"The Purge may just prove our saving grace where the Gawtrybe are concerned. They're fanatics, and totally dedicated to Urthblood, and I would stand zero chance of exerting any meaningful influence over them. But this campaign of theirs against the rats may keep them too busy to directly harass us further - or to pay too much attention to Tolar's nagging and deepening doubts. Only time will tell how much more trouble will come our way as a result of these developments. The situation is hardly ideal, so we shall just have to make the best of it that we can."

"And you'll have our full support," Maura pledged. "Now that the Colonel and the Field Marshal have heard you out and appreciate what's at stake, I'm sure they see the importance of not undercutting your authority as Abbess - even if you are, in truth, much more than that."

Vanessa gave the Badger Mother a wan smile. "I'm afraid I've already been undercut more than my authority can stand, Urthblood has seen to that. Once we're back in our places downstairs, I will announce that I am stepping down as Abbess, and ceding the head chair to Geoff once more - which boosts you back to full and sole historian and Recorder, Wink. After this public airing of Urthblood's false accusations, even after I have reasonably defended myself and refuted these charges, too many beasts will harbor too many lingering, secret doubts for me to remain an effective Abbess. Geoff may be part of the 'hardly ideal' situation I was referring to, but at least nobeast will question who he is."

"All due respect," said Clewiston, "but I'd say making Geoff Abbot again brings a whole slew of different doubts. Fine fellow, that one, an' a good egg who means well, but ... is he really the best mouse for th' job right now? Almost think I'd rather have Abbeybeasts doubting who you are than doubting whether our dear Geoffrey's up to snuff, wot?"

"He's right," Traveller added. "We need a beast with a good strong backbone more'n anything ... "

"And you'll still have it," Vanessa assured them, "just not from the Abbot's chair. I'm not going anywhere - and if the storm breaks upon our walls this season or next, I'll not stand by and let my Abbey falter. I will do whatever I must to defend Redwall."

"But ... couldn't you go downstairs an' ... make 'em all forget?" the old hare pressed. "Make it so they never heard you read that message, or never saw us arrest you?"

"You mean Geoff, and Arlyn, and Elmwood, and Lady Mina, and all your hares as well? Not easily. But even if I could, I wouldn't. Messing about with other beasts' minds and memories is not something I take lightly, and will turn to only as a last resort, if I am absolutely forced to it. I've already done more of that this season than I am comfortable with, and while I may pursue such tactics with Tolar, it is only in the defense of Redwall that I do so. My fellow Abbeybeasts? The creatures I am sworn to defend to the last shred of my being? How would you like having your memory of our entire conversation here wiped away as if it had never happened?"

"Um ... not very much," Traveller stammered, "now you put it like that. Uh ... could you do that?"

"Again, not easily. With you two, I've shared too much, and took a calculated risk in doing so. As to those down in Cavern Hole, I would much prefer they keep all their memories along with their suspicions of me, warranted or not, rather than subject them to an unnatural reordering of their recollections. And if you were in my position, I'd like to think you'd see it the same way."

Clewiston snorted. "Not jolly likely to find ourselves in your position, are we?"

Vanessa smirked. "No, I suppose not."

"So what will you do?" Winokur asked. "If you're not going to be Abbess anymore?"

"We need a strong paw in the Infirmary - and since I remember everything Vanessa did, I'm sure Arlyn and Metellus will welcome being relieved by a more skilled and experienced healer. And now that it appears our young badger apprentice may no longer be receiving any further lessons from Mona, I can take it upon myself to advance his education under my own tutelage. I'll have a lot to offer in that position - even if our rat guests might still prefer to be treated by any paws but mine. But I'll be perfectly capable of watching over things from there, and stepping in if circumstances dictate." She gestured toward the stairs to Cavern Hole. "Now, shall we?"

As they filed toward the lower level, Clewiston cast one last awestruck glance at the slumbering occupants of Great Hall ... and his gaze settled on Grayfoot, seated at table with his wife and son, the three of them still and silent with heads nodded over their supper porridge.

"If I might make a suggestion, marm," the Colonel proposed, "while you're pushin' about in the minds of our fox friends to drive a wedge 'tween them and Urthblood, there's a certain ferret I wager might stand to benefit from similar attentions ... if you're so inclined, that is."