Once they got up in the air, Tammo ordered the ship to go into invisible mode. Then, he and Pasque flew over Mossflower, looking for the Rapscallions as they peered through the ship's transparent walls.
Finally, they spotted the enemy. It was Pasque who first spied them. "Look down there!" she said.
Tammo's gaze followed the direction Pasque's finger was pointing. Sure enough, there they were: a thousand Mossflower vermin and what looked like about fifty Gem-rat hybrids, all marching in the direction of Redwall, with Damug at their head.
He squinted. "Wish I could see them a bit closer."
"Okay," said F.A.I.T.H., and suddenly, the view on the ship's wall zoomed in on the army. Now Tammo could see the hybrid soldiers more clearly. He shook his head in disbelief. "By the fur 'n' fang. He did it. He actually did it! He succeeded in making a creature that's half Gem, half rat. And there's a whole bunch of 'em."
"How are we possibly going to fight all those?" Pasque wondered. "If they're as tough as you and the other Gems, they're going to be hard to beat."
"I don't know, but we need to get back to the Abbey posthaste so we can inform them of our findings," said Tammo. "F.A.I.T.H., set a course back to Redwall!"
"Charting course to Redwall," said the voice over the speaker.
As the ship wheeled around in midair, Tammo sat down and sighed. "What makes Damug Warfang act like this, Pasque? Why can't he just be like an ordinary peace-lovin' creature an' leave us alone?"
Pasque shrugged. "Hard to say, really, Tamm. There'll always be vermin of that kind, with no respect for any creature, takin' what they please an' never carin' who they have to slay, as long as they get what they want. Peaceful creatures to them are weak fools. But every once in a while, they come up against beasts like us, peace lovin' an' easy goin' until we're threatened. Win or lose then, we won't be killed, enslaved, or walked on just for their cruel satisfaction. No, we'll band together an' fight for what is ours!"
"Let's hope we're both alive to tell the tale when this is all over," Tammo said.
"We'll get through this. I know we will," said Pasque, sitting down beside Tammo. "You're the bravest hare I've ever met, Tamm."
"And you're one of the most courageous hares I've ever known as well, Pasque." Tammo looked into Pasque's eyes. Gosh, she was pretty.
She leaned forward and touched her lips to his. They wrapped their arms around each other, not wanting to let go.
After only a few seconds, they fused together into Tasque again! And all at once, they decided that they wanted to stay fused during the battle. That way, they'd each be sure that the other was safe.