AUTHOR'S NOTE: thank you Anonymous Guest for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed last week's chapter.
Also, warning: this chapter is rather dark.
Chapter 103: This Is Not Working.
"Today, we celebrate our lives, and remember the lives of those who have stopped running; the lives of those who have stopped running along the path that lead us to this day."
-Victoria Bells, We Prosper
Fiver and Vilthuril were standing on the edge of the Down, contemplating the view. They were together, and they would remain together, always. Nothing would ever separate them.
After a while, however, Fiver noticed something unusual along the horizon, something dark and possibly dangerous, slowly approaching the Down. As it reached the bottom, he finally realized what it was: water. The Big Water was spreading, covering all land, and was slowly rising, threatening to submerge the Down too.
A large patrol was racing up the Down, desperately trying to avoid the wave, but it was too fast for them. It soon caught up with them, carrying them down to a watery grave. Only Hyzenthlay and Hawkbit managed to make it to the top in time.
Only then did Fiver and Vilthuril bolt away from the edge. However, as Fiver reached the beech tree, he saw that Vilthuril was no longer with him. He turned around, and saw her get sucked into the water. He ran towards the shore to rescue her, but he was too late. Hyzenthlay pulled him out of the water, saving him from drowning too. She nuzzled him sadly, and the two ran underground.
The main run leading to the Honeycomb had become a river. The Honeycomb itself was slowly filling up; Fiver and Hyzenthlay could see several rabbits sink to the bottom, never to resurface. The only other three rabbits still alive were Hazel, Hawkbit and Blackberry. All five ran through a nearby tunnel, the only one still dry, to find another escape.
The caverns leading to Efrafa seemed intact, although the loud rumbling coming from there was not reassuring. Primrose was standing in front of it, tharn, with her kittens by her side. It soon became apparent what the cause of the rumbling was: a huge tidal wave emerged from the tunnel, landing onto the rabbits. Hazel and Hyzenthlay each grabbed one of Primrose's front paws and dragged her away before it was too late. However, Blackberry and the kittens were all carried away by the wave and brutally thrown against the burrow wall.
The last few rabbits had no choice but go back to the Honeycomb. By this point, water was pouring in from all exits, making it impossible for them to leave. There was a small air pocket at the top of the burrow, but with the water level still rising, it would soon fill up, causing all five remaining rabbits to drown.
The rabbits did their best to remain afloat, prolonging their existence for a few more minutes. However, not all were successful. Primrose nuzzled Hazel one last time as her head sank below the surface, until not even the tips of her ears were visible. Hyzenthlay desperately scratched the burrow's ceiling, attempting to find another way to exit. However, as she broke through the surface, a large torrent poured in through her hole, pushing her underwater.
As Fiver fell underwater, he saw the dead bodies of all his friends, lying at the bottom. He faintly heard the distorted voice of Hawkbit shouting something, with Hazel replying something about not giving up hope.
-"No!" Fiver shouted as he opened his eyes. He was in his burrow, and Vilthuril was by his side. There was no water. Everything had been nothing more than a dream, but a terrifyingly realistic one.
-"What's wrong, Fiver?" Vilthuril asked as she nuzzled him.
-"It's...nothing, really." Fiver got up and scratched his ears. "Just a nightmare, that's all. I hope I didn't wake you up, Vilthuril my dear..."
-"No, don't worry about it. I had woken up just before you did, and you were twitching violently. I'm sorry this happened."
-"It will be all right..." Fiver, however, remained uncertain. Was this dream a warning of an upcoming disaster? Nevertheless, he did not mention it, not wanting to worry his mate. "Shall we go to silflay?"
The two rabbits made their way above ground. It was early morning, just before sunrise, and the sky remained dark. Despite it being so early, three other rabbits were above ground, but not at silflay: they seemed to be having a discussion.
-"Morale is pretty low, I can say that for sure," Bigwig said.
-"Primrose is especially depressed." Hazel sighed. "She kept crying until she fell asleep last night."
-"What everyone needs," Hyzenthlay suggested, "is something to get their mind off things. Something that will cheer them up."
-"I remember how at Marli-rah," Vilthuril said, hopping over to the others, "we sometimes had days when nobody did any work at all. We didn't bother with owsla duties, digging burrows, or raiding gardens, we just had fun."
The three rabbits looked at the two newcomers.
-"I remember that," Hyzenthlay said. "We had some great times like this. It was a chance for everyone, regardless of age, personality, or gender, to have a good time."
-"That is a great idea," Hazel said. "We should do that today. Everyone will most likely feel better tonight."
-"I don't know, Hazel," Bigwig said. "What if Woundwort and his Darkhaven owsla decide to attack again today? We would be totally unprepared, we wouldn't stand a chance."
-"They're not going to attack today," Silverweed said, as he joined the others above ground. "I can feel it."
-"That's just a feeling!"
-"His feelings have never been wrong before," Fiver interjected. "We won't get attacked today, so we might as well take advantage of this opportunity to have fun without worrying."
-"It's settled then," Hazel decided. "That's what we're doing today."
-"Let's all go back underground, before anyone notices our absence," Vilthuril suggested. "This way, it will be a surprise for everyone else."
Officer J Dusty was sitting in the passenger seat of the police car. The woman he had arrested a few days earlier was due in court in Basingstoke in the afternoon, and it was his job to make sure she was there on time. After a few minutes, his partner arrived, and guided the prisoner into the back of the car, before sitting in the driver's seat.
-"Shrimp?" the driver offered, shoving a big bowl of it under officer Dusty's nose.
-"No thanks." Officer Dusty grimaced in disgust. "We need to go."
The other officer started the engine, and they were soon on their way.
The trip appeared uneventful, until they reached a roundabout. The road was covered with pieces of metal and glass, remains of the accident a few days before.
-"Seriously?" Officer Dusty shouted. "They STILL haven't cleaned it up? I know the budget for road maintenance has been cut recently, but this is ridiculous!"
The other officer remained silent, stopping the vehicle. Suddenly, he opened the door on the passenger's side and, with a powerful kick of his leg, pushed officer Dusty out of the vehicle, before driving off. The prisoner was horrified.
-"Dude, what the..."
-"I told you I was going to help you beat this rap!" the officer said, laughing.
-"You didn't say this would involve going on the run!"
-"Trust me, this plan is foolproof."
-"I would rather take my chances at the trial."
-"Chill. Have some shrimp."
The officer threw his bowl of shrimp at the prisoner; in her handcuffs, she was unable to catch it, causing the shrimp to spill all over her clothes and the seat.
J Dusty remained lying on the ground, thoroughly confused by what had just happened. His leg had been hurt when he was pushed, and he didn't fancy walking back to town in such a state. After a few minutes, another vehicle arrived; the driver got out and walked over to him. It was Hazel C, who had inspected Gryphon Junkyards a few days before, and was also a good friend of Officer Dusty.
-"J," she said.
-"C."
-"What are you doing?"
-"My partner kidnapped the prisoner on the way to court."
-"...why?"
-"I've heard of officers doing horrible things, but him? I have no idea what he was thinking."
-"Do you need any help?"
-"As a matter of fact...can you drive me back to the station, please?"
The other officer did not return to Whitchurch; instead, he took a series of dirt and gravel roads until they reached a farm.
-"Here we are!" the officer said proudly. "Now, for the next step of the plan."
-"Before we move on to that next step...can you release me from these?" the woman said, referring to her handcuffs.
-"Sure!" The officer reached into his pocket, and frowned. "Oops."
-"Let me guess. That fool Dusty had the key?"
-"Yep. Oh well, you'll just have to find a needle to pick the lock once we're inside."
The officer got out of the vehicle, and pulled the prisoner out too. As they reached the front door of the farmhouse, the woman spoke.
-"You still haven't told me your name."
-"Yes I have, it's..."
However, at that moment, he rang the doorbell; the loud noise prevented her from hearing what he said. After a few moments, the farmer opened the door, and the officer pointed his gun at the farmer's face.
-"Please don't shoot me..." the farmer said, raising his hands above his head.
-"Relax, I don't want to kill you." The officer shoved the farmer aside and entered the building, pulling the woman along. "Anyone else here?"
-"My daughter Lucy...nobody else, my wife's gone to the market..."
-"We won't kill your daughter either, if you do as I ask," the officer said, sitting down on the couch. "You're friends with a judge, aren't you?"
-"...no, not exactly..."
-"I know you've been in court a lot over trespassers lately."
-"I have. Something about a show on Netflix keeps attracting people here. But I'm not friends with the judge. In fact, it's not even the same judge each time."
-"Well, regardless, I ask that you call one of them and ask them for a favour."
-"Look, I would love to do that, but...I can't."
-"Why not?"
-"I don't know the phone number."
-"THAT'S your excuse? How lame. Anyway, I'm going out for a smoke." He handed his gun to the prisoner. "Don't let him try anything."
-"How am I supposed to aim in these handcuffs?" she asked.
-"You'll think of something," the officer said, as he walked out of the building and closed the door behind him.