Chapter 242: The Last Messenger.
"I'm sure you guys will see your friend again. Don't give up hope."
-destinycopley13, Love Is Crazy
Woundwort waited and waited: it took an annoyingly long time for the owsla to get ready, before they even started chasing the fugitives.
Meanwhile, Spartina and Campion kept running. Campion had taken over carrying Lady May, to give Spartina a temporary break. They were around halfway to their destination by the time the Darkhaveners started to catch up with them. Lady May was the first to notice, as she spotted them in the distance.
-"Uh, I don't want to offend you, but...we're being chased."
Spartina turned around, and soon saw the approaching Darkhaveners.
-"Our absence was bound to get noticed sooner or later..."
-"We must keep going," Campion insisted.
-"I didn't say we should stop. But we will have to run faster."
-"Easy for you to say...you're not the one carrying a surprisingly heavy doe."
-"Are you calling me fat?" Lady May was offended.
-"Do you want me to dump you in the dirt?" Campion asked, tired of Lady May's whining. "It's always an option."
-"Please don't dump me! I swear, I'll be silent for the rest of the trip!"
They kept running until suddenly, out of nowhere, a Darkhavener jumped out of the bushes and landed on Campion, pinning him to the ground. Lady May was once again thrown off and landed roughly on a rock; she broke her promise of being silent, and squealed loudly.
-"Go!" he shouted. "Don't wait for me, run!"
As much as it pained Spartina, she truly had no choice but to leave Campion behind, as more Darkhaveners crowded around him, and she knew that she could not defeat them all alone. She quickly scooped Lady May back up and ran.
Campion never had the chance to fight back. He could see Kurai making his way to the front of the crowd, staring directly at him; this made the captain feel highly uncomfortable. It became even worse when Kurai whispered in his ear:
-"This is for meddling with Primrose."
Primrose? What did she have to do with this? How had he meddled? Before he could fully process Kurai's words, he was hit hard in the face, knocking him unconscious.
Spartina kept running, as fast as she could, which was not nearly as fast as she could have if she wasn't carrying Lady May. The fact that Campion had been captured only made her more determined to make it to Watership Down on time. She was unsure if the Darkhaveners were still pursuing her; Lady May didn't say anything, and she didn't want to waste any time turning around to check herself. While the owsla's dealings with Campion had slowed them down, she remained worried they might catch up with her and prevent her from warning the Watershippers. If that happened, they wouldn't stand a chance...
Suddenly, she noticed a shiny object in the grass some distance away. It did not appear to be alive or dangerous, so she simply ignored it and continued running. However, she heard high-pitched squeaking, and two dark shapes obscured the full moon. Suspecting elil, she bolted into a nearby bush.
Soon afterwards, she realized that the creatures she had spotted were not elil, but harmless bats. With a sigh of relief, she hopped out of her hiding spot and continued her journey, when suddenly, one of the bats spoke to her:
-"Are you from Watership Down?"
Spartina froze in surprise: clearly, these bats knew of her destination.
-"EEK! A talking bat!" Lady May cried out.
-"Uh, forgive my friend, she's young and inexperienced," Spartina said, hoping to counteract the poor first impression Lady May had no doubt made on the flying creatures. "Yes, I am from Watership Down. How do you know about this warren?"
-"We had some dealings with them in the past," one of the bats said. "I remember how, late last summer, we helped them rescue one of theirs, Pipkin, who had been kidnapped by the evil Efrafans."
Spartina smiled: she had heard this story during her stay at the Down.
-"Are you Darkling?"
-"No, he's Darkling." The bat flew towards his companion, almost bumping into him. "I'm Nocturnal."
-"Nice to meet you both," Spartina said, as an idea formed in her mind. "I'm afraid we at Watership Down are in need of your assistance once gain. Could you deliver a message to them? It's very important."
-"Of course," Darkling replied, perched on the shiny object. "I just need to get that out of the dirt..."
-"I'll help you." Letting Lady May slide off her, Spartina hopped over to the object; with a few strategic swipes of her paw, she was able to pull it out of the ground. It was square and flat, and it had some shape in the middle, although Spartina did not know what it was.
-"Thank you!" Darkling said. "I have been trying to get it out for nights..."
-"So will you deliver the message?"
-"No," Nocturnal replied.
-"But Darkling said..."
-"We can't deliver the message if we don't know what it is."
A critical detail; one that, in her haste, Spartina had forgotten to mention.
-"Tell them that Woundwort is attacking at dawn, and he will bring everyone he has. It's vital they get this message in time."
-"Woundwort, eh?" Darkling flapped his wings violently. "I'll show him! He won't get away with it!"
-"We'll send the message," Nocturnal added.
-"Thank you both," Spartina said. "See you at the warren!"
-"Good night!"
As the bats flew away, Spartina went back to Lady May, picking her back up.
-"Why were you fraternizing with those things?" the former hutch rabbit said. "How do you know they weren't vampires in disguise? They could tried to drink your blood."
-"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."
With that, Spartina started running again. She didn't know if the bats would be able to deliver the message in time: they could not fly as fast as the rabbits' old gull friend Kehaar. But, if she herself was captured before she could reach her destination, they would be the final hope.
As Spartina kept running, she realized that there had been no sign of the Darkhaveners since Campion's capture; perhaps they had given up on pursuing her. However, this was no reason to take a break; she had to keep going.
-"Hey rabbits, why are you running?"
The high-pitched voice startled Spartina. She couldn't recognize it as coming from any Darkhavener or Watershipper she knew. She looked around her, trying to spot the creature who had spoken.
-"Up in the tree."
Spartina looked up, and spotted the squirrel on a branch near the top.
-"Aaah, the chipmunk also speaks!" Lady May said, startled.
-"I'm a squirrel," the creature in the tree said.
Spartina cringed: Lady May had once again made a poor impression.
-"Please forgive her, she doesn't know what she's saying," she said. "I'm going to Watership Down, I have an important message for the rabbits there."
-"I know these rabbits, they are very friendly," the squirrel said. This made Spartina smile: not only had this relationship been salvaged following Lady May's inappropriate comments, but the squirrel was already an ally.
-"I don't know if I will make it in time, but you can help me with this message. Could you please tell these rabbits that General Woundwort is setting out to attack at dawn?"
-"I'll go running!"
With that, the squirrel dashed off the branch and into another tree. Spartina was about to follow, when she heard Lady May speak:
-"Why do you keep making fun of me, in front of all these creatures?"
-"You're making fun of yourself with your silly comments. Do us both a favour, and do not say another word until we reach our destination. That's what you told Campion you would do earlier, but you have broken this promise. I suggest you start following it."