Location: Thorn Valley
Sol: 57
Josh's band had set up camp inside the ancient Temple of the Great Owl, formerly the crashed wreck of the NIMH-One, as they made preparations for long-term habitation. None of them were ever going back to their old homes, that much they knew for certain. They were outcasts now, banished fugitives with a hefty bounty on their heads. Thorn Valley, posthumously left to them by Nicodemus was their new home, the birthplace of their new colony they would build in his name.
After several days of hard trekking across the desert and through the mountains, they had safely reached Thorn Valley a week ago, temporarily moving into Jonathan's old shelter. Then came the crucial task of making preparations for the upcoming winter. All plant life around the Valley was quickly withering from the intense cold, as the planet entered aphelion. Soon, the whole area would be frozen over and it would remain like that for the next several months, during which time survival out in the open would be impossible.
As part of his plan, Josh had sent out search parties to comb the Valley for the segments of the REMO, containing all of their supplies. Originally intended for the NIMH-One crew's surface operations, that ancient payload would now provide the foundations for a permanent settlement.
Luck was with them for all of the REMO's cargo had survived re-entry intact. One by one, all the segments of the resupply module were retrieved and the settlers of Thorn Valley set about their task unloading their precious contents and taking inventory of all their resources.
For days, they laboured with a vengeance, carting boxes and cases containing food rations, computer hardware, fuel cells, water and air recyclers, compressors, cables, solar panels, lab equipment, medical supplies, tools, and Hab components back to their camp. Josh had struck gold when he'd discovered the REMO's segment containing the mission's two Rovers. Using one of the vehicles as a cargo truck, they had soon moved all of their supplies into their shelter. Finally, the module's empty segments were dismantled to be used as building components for the HAB, as per their original design.
By the time they were finished, only the REMO's spent parachutes, landing balloons, thrusters and fuel tanks were left. According to mission parameters, these parts were meant to be discarded, but Josh, always the tinkering engineer, hoped to find some use for them later.
Choosing a good spot atop a small, tufty down close to the NIMH-One site with a clear view of the lake, which he knew Elisabeth would love, Josh and his companions began construction on their new dwelling. The Hab had been designed by NIMH's engineers in prefabricated sections, in order for it to be transportable, as well as easy to assemble on site. The crew of the NIMH-One had spent months training how to set it up, mostly whilst wearing heavy spacesuits. Assembling it in a breathable environment would be a cinch.
Under Josh's supervision, the group set to work. After two days of vigorous labour, including several minor mishaps, mostly due to the Rats and Mice's ignorance of human tools, they had a complete and fully functional base of operations.
The Hab, like the NIMH-One, was a technological wonder in its own ways. Consisting of a group of five transparent domes made up of hexagonal panels, placed in the shape of a cross and interconnected by Quonset-hut shaped glass passages, it housed an array of technology and supplies, enough to comfortably sustain a crew on a long-term space mission.
The interior was divided into eight major sections: the kitchen and social area, the control centre, living quarters, the greenhouse, biolab, medical bay, workshop, and finally, the garage for the Rovers. At last, the settlers of Thorn Valley were ready to move into their new home.
The Mice and Rats stood marvelling the Hab as Josh powered it up, its lights and machinery coming to life with a pleasant humming. Although it normally ran off solar panels, Josh had quickly realised they wouldn't suffice during the winter months, due to the limited sunlight. However, the problem had quickly been resolved when he'd come up with the idea of tapping into the NIMH-One's still-functioning nuclear reactor. By rigging a power line between the wreck site and the Hab, they soon had access to a virtually unlimited power source for light and heat. The children cheered and clapped excitedly.
"We're going to live like kings!" cheered Martin, as they all stared at their new home.
And so on the eve of Sol 60, the 13 colonists at last moved into the comfort of their new home. The Hab, all of its systems checked and fully operational, was stocked and ready to house its new residents. That night, following their first dinner of 2,000-year-old space rations, they retired to the Hab's bunks. For the first time in days, they slept under a proper roof and in proper beds, warm and dry.
Elizabeth woke feeling warm and content. A sleeping Josh had his arm around her, holding her against him. The bunk they shared, although only meant for one occupant, was still big enough for the both of them. Originally designed for eight people rather than thirteen, the Hab didn't have enough private bunks for all of them, forcing them to make special sleeping arrangements.
Josh had offered to share his own bunk with Elizabeth, much to the latter's joy; Justin commandeered Commander Fitzgibbon's bunk; Martin, Timothy and Fievel, Lt Stacy's; Teresa and Cynthia, Dr Boniface's; Emily Mousekewitz and Yasha, Wilson's; Mr Ages, who firmly refused to share a bed with anyone, took Strauss's; Bernard and Brutus, the largest in the group and with the loudest snoring, were allocated to Dr Stetson and Dr Schultz's bunks respectively.
Elizabeth bore into the warmth of Josh's body, resting her head on his bare shoulder. It seemed almost like a lifetime ago when they'd first met, two complete strangers from different worlds brought close together by fate. Welcoming him into her life had been her best decision ever and she had no regrets whatsoever about dragging her family into this uncertain future.
As she reached over to kiss his cheek, Josh stirred. He smiled sleepily at Elisabeth.
"Morning, beautiful," he said, reaching over to return the kiss, "Sleep well?"
"Mm," muttered Elizabeth, snuggling up to him, "I like sleeping with you." The one good thing about the Hab's bunks was that they were fitted with drapes for privacy, allowing the pair to indulge in their little fun and games at night. Josh smirked. If Commander Fitzgibbons could see us now, he'd go ape shit.
"Humans are your type then?" he asked with an amused grin. Elisabeth giggled.
"Not just any human," she said, "Only a certain handsome, brave and dashing gentleman, who knows how to treat a lady."
"Oh, looks like a have competition," said Josh with a mock hurt expression, holding her close like a teddy bear, "I wonder who that blighter is so I can punch his lights out."
"Lips are sealed," said Elizabeth cheekily, looking mighty pleased with herself. Josh raised an eyebrow. His girlfriend needed to be taught a little lesson.
Reaching down, he ran a finger along her side. Elisabeth recoiled, holding back giggles. Realising she was ticklish, Josh stepped it up.
"Stop it!" squealed Elizabeth, wriggling like mad in his grip, although Josh could tell she was really enjoying it, "Not there! Please not there!"
"Then how about here?" he asked with a playful grin, reaching down to grab her ankle and started tickling her foot. Elisabeth went ballistic. Her feet had always been her worst spot.
"So, ready to tell me now who is your handsome, brave and dashing gentleman?"
"It's you, Josh! You!" shrieked Elizabeth, barely able to speak for laughter as Josh released her. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a passionate kiss. She couldn't wait for the day when they could be called husband and wife.
One of the many luxuries of the Hab was its bathroom facilities. Besides having a proper toilet once again, the modern shower cubicle, with warm water and soap, was a welcome relief for Josh, who'd grown sick and tired of cold baths in tin tubs. More welcome still was having a toothbrush and electric razor again.
The Rats and Mice were all stunned by all this luxury, which even the richest of their kind couldn't provide, all made possible by human science. It was like gifts from the Great Owl Himself. But not without a few embarrassing mishaps. Brutus had tried borrowing Josh's razor, thinking it was some kind of fancy comb, only to freak out when he accidently shaved off a long strip of fur from his cheek.
Rummaging through the Hab's stores, Josh had found several labelled boxes containing some of his long-deceased crewmates' personal belongings, which they'd loaded onto the REMO the day before his accident, including his own stuff. They contained clothes, both regulation-issue and civilian, toiletries, data drives and other personal effects, all of which he could now share with his new companions.
After washing, shaving and changing into some clean clothes, he joined his friends in the kitchen for breakfast.
Breakfast was a pretty hectic affair. Elisabeth and Emily, always the dedicated housewives, had volunteered to cook for their families, but quickly gave up after seeing the Hab's completely unfamiliar, hi-tech kitchen. Cooking was too time-consuming for space missions, so NIMH had designed the Hab's kitchen with the same rehydration system used to process powdered rations back into edible foodstuffs, plus a simple microwave and instant-coffee machine for convenience.
After Josh had given them all a crash course on how to use the equipment (Brutus nearly punched his fist through the microwave door in frustration when he couldn't make it start), the colonists settled down to eat and plan their next step.
The Rats and Mice were curiously picking at their food, not sure what to make of these strange human foods. Nearby, Emily Mousekewitz was feeding Yasha using a sample bottle with a makeshift teat made from rubber tubing that Josh had scavenged from the lab. For milk, they used a homemade cocktail of powdered coffee cream and sugar mixed with glucose and vitamins as a substitute for baby food, which they didn't have. Teresa looked sick at the sight of her freeze-dried, fruit-flavoured bran, which was a couple thousand years out of date besides.
"Go on, try it, it's lovely," Fievel urged her, tucking into a bowl of cheese-flavoured porridge. Across the table, Martin, who'd eat anything whenever he was hungry, had already finished his bacon and eggs and was eager for a second helping. Astronaut rations were relatively small and not meant to satisfy the appetite of the pigging-out sort like him.
"If you don't want it, then I might as well have your portion too," he said greedily, reaching out to grab Teresa's plate but stopped himself under his mother's warning gaze.
"We can't afford second helpings right now, Tiger," said Josh good-naturedly, as helped himself to coffee – something he'd missed dearly over the past two months. "As it is, we don't have enough supplies to last us through the winter."
Although the shelter and power problems had been taken care of nicely, there was still the question of food. The REMO's cargo contained enough supplies to stock the Hab for eight people for six months, or 180 Earthly days. The winters on Nimh-Beta were longer than on Earth due to the planet's longer year, requiring a long-term food supply. If there had been only eight of them, they might have been able to make it last long enough. But with thirteen mouths to feed, even if they rationed, Josh calculated they'd run out of food within 120 days.
The Hab, like the ship, included areas for indoor hydroponics, housed inside the glass tunnels that interconnected the main domes of the base, but unfortunately, they had no seeds of any kind to plant. The REMO's cargo included no living bio matter of any kind, except the foodstuffs, to reduce the risk of contamination. All of the mission's seed and embryo banks were in sealed biohazard containers of liquid nitrogen onboard the NIMH-One.
He'd thought about foraging around the Valley, but they couldn't expect to find any viable food source in the surrounding area during the freeze. Already, most of the Valley's vegetation was wilted and dying from the cold. Scratch any possibility of living off berries and shrubs. That just left them with only one alternative.
Having finished their breakfast, Josh asked his companions to join him in the control room next door. This room housed rows of computer stations and consoles, similar to a Mission Control centre, only much smaller. This was the Hab's command centre, where the crew would normally supervise EVAs, take weather and astronomical readings, communicate with the mothership, as well as monitor all of the Hab's systems.
"My friends, I'm proud to say you've all done a great job," he said, "We now have a new home and land of our own. I'd have gladly given you the day off to celebrate, but I'm afraid our work isn't finished yet. As you already know, we haven't got enough food to last us through the winter, much less long term. We need to make some decisions. How do we get more food?"
"Can't you...manufacture something?" asked Justin, looking around the Hab, "Isn't there something in here we can use to produce food from dirt or something?" Josh shook his head. Even human science didn't go that far. Quite ironic really, come to think about it. Mankind had managed to reach the stars, yet now they, the owners of the most advanced technology on this planet, couldn't provide simple nourishment for themselves.
"Then we have to ration," said Brutus, who, as a soldier, had been forced to make difficult decisions like this in the past, during his long career as a soldier, "We can cut our meals in half, save every last morsel, whatever it takes." The children, Martin in particular, looked horrified at the prospect of such a strict diet. They barely had enough to satisfy their hunger as it was.
"I thought about it, but unfortunately that won't work either," said Josh, "Within weeks, we'd be too weak to handle any kind of physical labour. Don't forget, it's not just a question of waiting out the winter. We'll also need to plant and grow crops, which could take several more months. We'd be overcome by scurvy and malnutrition long before the first harvest. The colonists of Thorn Valley began to lose hope. It seemed they were inevitably headed for famine. But then, Elizabeth spoke up.
"Then how about we use the harvest from my farm?" she suggested. While they'd been debating on how to survive the winter without food, it had never crossed their minds that there was in fact an entire winter's supply of freshly harvested corn just waiting out there.
Josh walked over to Elizabeth and picked her up for a hug and a kiss.
"Whatever would I do without you?" he said, kissing her deeply, "You're a true angel, Biff!" Elizabeth giggled.
"Eh, Josh, could you put me down please?" she said, starting to feel a bit embarrassed at being cuddled like a child in front of their friends. Josh complied and they turned back to the task at hand. Although they had a plan, it wasn't going to be easy.
"That means we have to venture back into Rat-controlled territory," said Justin, "We're fugitives now, Josh. If we cross back into the borders, we'll be fair game for the army or any of Jenner's mercenaries."
"That farm could well be under surveillance," put in Brutus, who, like Justin, knew all the tactics heir former comrades might be using to track them down. "We could walk straight into an ambush."
"We have no choice," said Josh. He didn't like the idea anymore than his friends did, but unless they made this dangerous errand, they would starve. "We'll have to formulate some kind of a plan."
Josh's plan to infiltrate Elisabeth's farm and raid it for its corn was simple, yet ballsy. They would use one of the Hab's Rovers to travel back to the Lee of the Stone by night, without any lights and using radar and infrared to navigate. Under the cover of darkness, they would clear out the plantation and make their way back to Thorn Valley unnoticed. It was crucial that they avoided any confrontation with soldiers or Jenner would be back on their trail in no time.
Josh picked Rover 2 for the raid. Fitting it with a mesh trailer, normally intended for transporting soil and rock samples, and which they would now use to transport the corn on, he did a thorough check of all the systems.
The Rovers, like the NIMH mothership, her pods, and the Hab, were beauties of technological marvel. Consisting of a glass bubble where the driver sat, with a tube-shaped rear cabin for up to three passengers and mounted on a six-wheeled chassis, each of these tanks could brave even the ruggiest of alien terrains. Powered by hydrogen fuel cells, they were completely non-pollutant, and could do up to 10,000 miles without refuelling. Like all space vehicles, they had their own portable life-support systems, as well as onboard state-of-the-art instrumentation for communication, weather and navigational readings.
His friends watched in fascination while Josh, sitting inside the driver's bubble powered up the Rover's computer, doing a diagnostics check. Power-train, electric motors, cabin integrity, instruments, everything checked out okay. They were good to go.
Justin and Brutus had volunteered for this mission without hesitation, as had Mr Ages, who wanted to retrieve his precious research from his home, least it fall into the wrong hands. Josh and the others hated the idea of letting Ages take that kind of risk over some papers, but the old mouse who one stubborn mule, who wouldn't take no for an answer. At least it was a start in getting them back in the race for the Stone. It only got worse when Elisabeth begged to come along too.
"I need to retrieve my family's personal belongings," she begged Josh, "It's all we have – all I have left of Jonathan. Please, Josh? I promise I won't be a burden." Although Josh was totally against the idea of letting Elizabeth tag along, and maybe put herself in danger, the mention of Jonathan, whose unforeseen survival and ultimate death she still knew nothing about and which weighed heavily on his conscience, ultimately won out.
Leaving the Mousekewitzes and the Brisby children behind to mind the Hab, the five expeditionaries set off. Following his satellite map on the Rover's computer, Josh navigated them out of Thorn Valley, following a traitorous trail through the mountains, along a narrow ravine and finally across the vast desert.
Although nowhere near as fast as flying, with the Rover's top speed of 50 kilometres an hour, they made good time and, six hours later, they had crossed the border back into Rat territory. Finding a secluded spot in a narrow canyon between two rocks, they made camp, to wait for sundown when it would be safe to go in.
Justin, Brutus and Josh took turns keeping watch for Rat patrols from atop the rock with binoculars. Although they didn't spot anyone, they did find several fresh chariot trails nearby. As Justin had suspected, border security had been drastically tightened, no doubt in an attempt to locate them, as well as to prevent immigrants from leaving the country to escape Jenner's regime.
Once night had fallen, and with the Rover's headlights switched off to retain their cover, Josh slowly drove them toward the Lee of the Stone in the distance. Outside the glass bubble, an impenetrable darkness, save for the starry sky, filled the desert. Yet, the feedback from the Rover's infrared camera allowed a clear picture of the terrain ahead in false colour, keeping them from driving blind. Likewise, the proximity radar showed no movement within a ten-mile radius. No unpleasant reception waiting for them, or so it seemed.
Following a path that led down into the jungle-filled crater, they made their way through the trees towards the Brisby farm. It seemed like a lifetime ago to Josh when he'd first come to this place, lost and alone. At least this time, he wasn't alone. How
The farm was completely deserted, everything looking just as they had left them a few weeks ago. No sign of any soldiers or guards anywhere. With the Rover well concealed behind some trees on the edge of the farm, the raiding party disembarked.
"We've got to do this quick," said Josh, "Remember, stay alert at all times, keep all noises to a minimum, and no lights. We collect as much food as we can carry and then we get the hell out of here. All right, let's move!"
The group split up into three parties: Ages and Brutus headed for the former's home nearby, to retrieve all of the inventor's books and papers on the Stone. Elizabeth ran to her home to retrieve her family's belongings, while Justin and Josh headed for the shed where the winter harvest was stashed, luckily finding it all undisturbed.
Using night goggles to see in the dark without the need for flashlights or torches, which could attract unwanted attention, the two friends feverishly carried armloads of ears of corn and loaded them onto the Rover's trailer. Josh kept casting nervous glances at the farmhouse. He would rather be in there, watching Elisabeth's back, but Justin needed him here or else they'd never get the job done.
Several frantic hours later, they had loaded the entire supply of corn onto the Rover. An irate Brutus had returned with Ages, both of them laden down with bundles of scrolls and notebooks, which were also loaded onto the Rover.
Working as fast as she could, Elizabeth gathered up all of her belongings, as well as those of her children and even her husband's. Clothes, hand-woven blankets, her knitting kit, kitchenware, Jonathan's papers, the children's toys and all of the family's precious few heirlooms were wrapped up in bundles from bed sheets for transport. The baggage never seemed to end, causing them a great delay.
"Come on, Biff, we have to go!" Josh urged her, "It's going to be sunup in an hour!"
"Just a few more things, Josh," she said, hurriedly packing Jonathan's books into another bundle and passing it to Josh, who stashed it onto the trailer.
"For Jupiter's sakes, woman! You've taken enough things to open a hardware store!" barked Ages, losing patience, "Leave the rest of that junk and let's go!"
Finally satisfied that she'd left nothing behind but bare furniture, Elisabeth followed them out. They climbed back into the Rover, which was now terribly cramped because of all the extra stuff they were bringing back with them. Elizabeth was just about to climb in as well, when she remembered.
"Wait! The family portrait!" she cried, remembering the portrait of her husband and children that hung above the mantelpiece, which she'd forgotten. "I can't leave it behind!"
Before Josh could stop her, she'd torn back towards her house. Josh muttered a curse in frustration. Damn it! He called after her.
"Biff, no, come back!" But she was already out of earshot.
Leaving Justin and the others with the Rover, he dashed after Elizabeth. Enough was enough. If need be, they could come back for whatever else she had forgotten later. He had almost caught up with her, when he was suddenly overcome a familiar uneasy feeling that they weren't completely alone. Without warning, an arrow come flying over his left ear, burying itself on a nearby tree.
Whirling round in alarm, he saw they had company. Several Rat soldiers in armour, probably a passing patrol, bearing flaming torches and armed to the teeth, had emerged from the forest, approaching the Brisby farm in attack. They were surrounded! Elizabeth gasped.
"Hold it right there, human, or we shoot!"
Grabbing Elizabeth, they ran for cover. Dodging more arrows, they ran into the farmhouse and slammed the door behind them. Josh wedged a chair against it, barricading them inside. The chipping sound of arrows striking the wood was heard on the other side. Then came the loud pounding of the Rats trying to force their way in. The door held.
"Open up, in the name of the great King Jenner!" called a familiar voice. Glancing out a window, Josh recognised Sullivan, who was leading the patrol. Luckily, there was no sign of Jenner, otherwise they'd be dead already. "You're surrounded!"
"King Jenner?" Josh called back tauntingly, "I would have expected that sleek, backstabbing traitor to have forfeited his rights to the throne after murdering his own Uncle!" There was a buzz of furious muttering amongst the soldiers as Josh named Jenner as the murderer of Nicodemus.
"What's that human talking about?" someone asked, "What's all his madness?"
"Nothing, he's lying! Don't listen to him!" said Sullivan sharply, although Josh could detect a slight nervousness in his voice, which pretty much confirmed everything Tanya had said.
"Surrender now, Anderson, and maybe we will spare the Brisby woman," continued Sullivan, "Come out with your hands up now and she can go! Be sensible, Anderson!"
"Then tell your monkeys to put down their weapons and, as Royal Commissioner to Nicodemus, I'll see to it you get a fair trial for accessory to treason!" called Josh, completely unfazed by Sullivan's threat. The Rats thought the human was completely insane.
"Final warning!" barked Sullivan, losing patience, "Come out or you both die!"
"I don't trust you," retorted Josh coldly, "If you want us, you'll have to come and get us!"
The time for talking was over. The Rats attacked the door again with a vengeance, trying to break it down. Josh and Elizabeth frantically rushed to and fro, bringing more furniture to barricade the door, but it wouldn't hold them back forever. Where were Justin and the others? And the party had only just started.
"Oh, Josh, look!"
Looking out the window, Josh saw the archers were tying flaming buds to their arrows. They were going to try and burn them out! The first archer strung his bow, aiming for the window.
"Get down!"
The flaming arrow came flying in and landing on the carpet, which burst in flame. Josh rushed forward and quickly smothered the flames with his shoe. He'd barely gotten the fire out before a second arrow came flying in, hitting the curtain that obscured the entrance to the children's bedroom and setting it ablaze.
Elizabeth and Josh hurried over, tearing down the curtain from its rings and frantically pattering it to smother the flames. But they were fighting a losing battle. Sullivan's soldiers circled the house, shooting more arrows through every window. Soon, the parlour was thick with smoke from numerous fires.
Unable to continue fighting the fire, Josh backed up against the wall, a terrified Elizabeth clinging to him. They could still make it to the door, but they knew the soldiers were waiting outside. They couldn't expect much mercy from them if they caught them. Looking, Josh saw a wall of flames closing in on them. The overhead beams which held up the ceiling started creaking as the flames licked them. In another minute, the ceiling would collapse and the entire house would be consumed by the flames.
Resigning himself to capture rather than sit here and burn to death, Josh turned to the window to yell his surrender. If they'd at least let Elizabeth go, he'd go along quietly. But no, alas, all the Rats knew how much she meant to him. Most likely Jenner would use her as leverage, to coax him into giving up the rest of his friends, the secrets of the Stone, everything. Everything they'd done would be for naught.
At that moment, a familiar sound was heard outside; the sound of a roaring engine. The Rover! Sure enough, it came out of nowhere, ploughing straight into the Rat soldiers and sending them flying like animated tin-cans or else crushing them into jam under its massive wheels.
Inside the driver's bubble, Justin, realising his friends were in trouble, had taken control of the Rover Josh had left powered up and stirred it straight into the mob. But, unfamiliar with motor vehicles, he didn't know where the brake was. The Rover went speeding over a pile of firewood on the edge of the yard and toppled over onto its side.
Seizing the opportunity, Josh pulled the door open and they evacuated the burning house. Not a moment too soon, the roof disintegrated from the heat and caved in. The Brisby home was gone, destroyed. Elizabeth turned to look at the pile of flaming rubble that had once been her home, the home Jonathan had build for her and their children. She burst into tears.
"My husband toiled so hard to build us this farm," she wept, "Now there's nothing left of him. Not even his portrait..." But Josh was always full of surprises. Reaching behind him, he presented Elizabeth with the family portrait he'd managed to rescue from the flames at the last minute. Elizabeth was ecstatic.
"Oh, Josh, thank you! Thank you!" she cried, jumping into his arms to kiss him. "You don't know what this means to me!" But the groans of their friends, still trapped inside the toppled Rover, quickly snapped them back to reality. Quickly, they hurried over to help.
The crash site resembled a scene out of a freak motorway accident. Crushed and broken Rat soldier bodies lay strewn everywhere, their blood splattered all over the Rover's front. Josh manually unlatched the airlock hatch and helped Justin, Brutus and Ages out. All three were battered and bruised from the tumble, but luckily not badly hurt.
"Nice driving, mate," he commented dryly to Justin, "You saved our bacon back there, you did." Justin nodded shakily, making a mental note never to drive another human vehicle again. He'd rather stick to his rabbit and chariot. At that moment, they realised they weren't alone.
"Help! Get me out of here!"
Looking, they saw Sullivan, who had survived the impact and now lay trapped beneath the overturned Rover. Although miraculously it hadn't crushed him like an eggshell, as it had done the other Rats, he was pinned tightly, unable to move. They crowded around him.
"How the mighty have fallen," remarked Justin coldly, "How does it feel, having the tables turned on you, Sullivan?"
"Please, help me!" begged the chubby Rat, struggling in vain to free himself, "Don't leave me to die here!"
Using a power winch and logs as levels, they managed to get the Rover upright again. The vehicle was battered up pretty badly, but luckily there was no major damage and the cargo was untouched. They could still make it back to Thorn Valley without a hitch. But first, they had some a stiff word to say to Sullivan.
Brutus grabbed Sullivan by the scruff of his neck and slammed him against a tree, and Justin tied him up. The two Rats, Mr Ages and Josh glared at him. Elizabeth stood aside, preferring not to be a part of this.
"We have no use for him," said Brutus, "Let's just kill him now." Sullivan's eyes went wide.
"No! Please, have mercy...!"
"Traitors don't deserve mercy!" growled Brutus furiously, "And don't you dare play the innocent! We know you and Jenner set us up! The Mous-..."
"Shut up!" hissed Josh to Brutus. If Sullivan found out Tanya had been the one who warned them off, they'd have no choice but to kill him to protect her – that is if they didn't kill him anyway. He turned back to Sullivan.
"We can do this the easy or the hard way," he said, "We're in a hurry and I'm not in the mood for idle chitchat. So I would strongly advise you to cooperate, or I'll throw you on the fire!" He gestured at Elizabeth's still burning home. Sullivan gulped.
"What really happened to Nicodemus?" demanded Justin, "Who killed him? Was it you, Sullivan? Well?"
"I was only following orders! I'd never..." mumbled Sullivan, but his voice stuck in his throat as Brutus, growing tired of his lies, grabbed him by the throat. He drew his dagger.
"Shall I cut his heart out?"
"Cowards don't have hearts," said Josh coolly, "The liver would be more appropriate. One slash and he'll bleed for hours before he succumbs. Better than what this little slimeball deserves! Or perhaps the spleen or the lower intestines..." Sullivan wet himself in fear. This was surely the end. He was going to endure a slow, agonising death for his treachery.
"It wasn't me, it wasn't!" he cried, "It was Jenner! Jenner killed Nicodemus to steal the throne and used you as a scapegoat, Anderson! All right, I confess, it was I who framed you on Jenner's orders, but I never wanted Nicodemus to die! I swear! I'm not a murderer!" To his utmost relief, his captors lowered their weapons, for the moment anyway. They all gave him expressions of utmost disgust.
"You knew Nicodemus was a target all along and you didn't tell anyone?" growled Justin furiously, "You just stood aside and let him die! I've always known you were a greedy boy, Sullivan, but you'd actually sink this low? You coward!"
"I regret it every day!" sobbed Sullivan, feeling terribly ashamed, "There's nothing I could have done! Jenner's become more powerful than you can possibly imagine! What would you have done, if you were facing torture and death just for talking back to that insane maniac?"
"What would I have done?" retorted Josh, "I would have spat in his face and told him his mother is a prostitute! Or better still, I would have put a bullet in his skull! I would never betray my King like some snivelling coward, never!" Although he felt some sympathy for Sullivan, realising he served Jenner out of fear rather than loyalty, they had no sympathy for him not warning Nicodemus of his peril until it was too late.
"What about the Stone?" asked Ages, getting them back on track, "Does he have the two pieces of the Stone?" Much to everyone's surprise, Sullivan shook his head.
"The Stone's gone missing," he explained, "Jenner's turned the palace inside out looking for it. Nothing." The group looked at each other. This sure was an unexpected bit of news. Could someone else have taken the Stone right from under their noses? But that would have to wait for later.
"And Isabella?" asked Justin. With Nicodemus dead, as Captain of the Guards, he felt it was his duty to ensure the remaining royal heir's safety now. The expression on Sullivan's face told him the news wasn't good at all.
"She's been forced into an arranged marriage to Jenner. He says if she still refuses him, he'll strip her of her royal titles and make her his concubine..." Justin angrily grabbed Sullivan by the throat.
"What did you say?!"
"He wants a male heir," explained Sullivan, "If Her Highness refuses to be his Queen, he'll just use her to procure one and then dispose of her..."
The group had heard enough. They needed to act and they had to do it now. That just left them with the question of what to do with Sullivan.
"We can't just let him go free," said Brutus gruffly, "He'll tell Jenner we know his plans. And we can't take with us either, or our safe haven will be compromised. I say we slit his throat." His raised his dagger again. But Josh, who had had his fair share of killings for one night, stopped him. He spoke to Sullivan.
"You tell Jenner that we let you live, so that you can deliver him this message: We will continue to fight in Nicodemus' name to the end and we're prepared to go to any lengths to complete his work. If your boss has any honour, which everyone knows he doesn't, then I urge him to publicly admit his treachery and step down from the throne which doesn't belong to him. Oh, and also tell him, he's a pathetic sissy." Justin and the others couldn't hold back a laugh. Although Josh was sure Sullivan would never dare pass that last bit on to Jenner, or else he'd be a dead Rat.
Leaving Sullivan tied to the tree, knowing he'd be found by morning, Josh and his friends departed for Thorn Valley, taking with them an ample supply of corn for their winter stores.
For hours, Sullivan sat reflecting. Those fools didn't know what they were doing. He knew when Jenner heard of this fiasco, his revenge for the deaths of his soldiers would be terrible. But, on the other hand, he hated himself for his role in Nicodemus' death. Justin was right. He was a coward, who'd sold out his King to save his own neck. Unlike that human Anderson, whom his former comrades had willingly joined forces with, and who boldly continued to fight against all odds for Nicodemus' cause, his loyalty to the late King never wavering. He'd even spared his life tonight, when he and his friends had every reason to cut him into little pieces. He wanted so badly out of this wretched life! But what could he possibly do to redeem himself?
Author's note: I barely managed to complete this chapter before year's end. I hope to have the next one up by early spring. Enjoy and please review!