AUTHOR'S NOTE: warning, it's a very dark chapter...
Chapter 282: A Day on the Killing Fields.
"To them everything was peaceful but they didn't know that tomorrow the peace would be broken."
-Cheetah2014
After leaving Granite behind at the gate, the Darkhaveners continued their journey, following the Watershippers' scent all the way to the entrance of the maze. Once there, Vervain sniffed the air, and instantly panicked.
-"There's a dog scent here."
Woundwort sniffed; he too noticed the scent.
-"Why don't you go ahead of us and check if the dog is still there?" he ordered.
Vervain sighed, as he was once again assigned the most dangerous task: if the dog was still there, he would get mauled while everyone else fled. Slowly and with great hesitation, he entered the maze; the scent persisted, but he had no choice but to keep going. He only stopped when he reached the first junction. He looked in all the directions; while he did not see the dog anywhere, he had no idea which way to go. He was still contemplating his options when Woundwort arrived with the rest of the group.
-"What's going on?" the General asked.
-"I don't know which way the outsiders went," Vervain said foolishly.
-"Which way do the tracks lead?"
Vervain glanced at the ground; the tracks led in only one of the two possible directions. He remained silent, embarrassed at this obvious oversight, that would no doubt make Woundwort hate him even more.
-"Follow me," Woundwort ordered.
The General ran through the maze, following the other rabbits' tracks to find the right path, with the others following him. Finally, he came face-to-face with Bigwig, Spartina and Meadow.
-"You can stop running now, he warned. "There is no escape this time. We will tear you all to pieces!"
-"Please stop this war," Meadow begged. "Nobody can benefit from this."
-"Why WOULD I stop?"
-"If you don't, a dog will kill you all," Spartina warned.
Vervain made a few steps backwards, terrified. Maybe the outsiders had also noticed the scent and this was just a desperate bluff. Or maybe they really were allies with a dog. It wasn't as absurd as it would seem: they were already allies with a gull and a badger, after all.
Woundwort, however, did not take this threat seriously, and merely chuckled.
-"I have defeated many enemy warrens over the course of my life, and there was always one of the fallen rabbits who put a curse onto me. The ground would open up and swallow me. There would be a great storm and the Black Rabbit of Inlé would suck me into the other world. A tree would fall on me. A giant squirrel would set me on fire. But a dog? That's a new one. Have any of these threats materialized? Of course not. So why would I believe this one? Owsla, ATTAAAAAAAAAACK!"
As the Darkhaveners charged, Bigwig and Spartina pounced on them, hoping they would be able to hold them off long enough for Campion to arrive with the dog. Meadow was also forced to fight, when one of the Darkhaveners tried to attack her.
Hawkbit had already run from the sheepdog the previous summer; that was largely why he had volunteered to participate in this mission. However, while the sheepdog did not seem particularly aggressive, this dog was a large hound, faster and with sharper teeth. In his terror, Hawkbit almost forgot what the correct path was. He was relieved when, after a few turns, he finally spotted Campion. The former Efrafan captain was discussing something with Silverweed.
-"Are you sure it's a good idea for you to do this?" the silver rabbit asked. "Surely you should rest after what happened with you yesterday with the boulder."
-"I'll be fine. Besides, depending on where the Darkhaven owsla is when the dog arrives, I might not even have to run."
Hawkbit was left horrified by the inappropriate timing for such a conversation. This should have been discussed before Campion was chosen to assist; now, ready or not, it was too late to find a replacement.
-"YOUR TURN CAMP!" he shouted, before ducking into the hedge. Campion turned around and saw the dog, looking angrily at him.
-"This is where I leave you, Silverweed," he said. He kicked the silver rabbit into the hedge to protect him from the dog, before bolting away, the dog closely following him.
-"Wrong way!" came Silverweed's distant voice; with the warren coming into view in the distance, it dawned on Campion that the seer was right. The Darkhaveners hadn't reached the warren yet; they were likely closer to the maze's entrance instead.
Campion stopped running, realizing how he had inadvertently doomed everyone. While he could break through the hedges and escape with his life, why would he do that? The dog would not follow, and would never reach Woundwort's owsla. With this last attempt at saving the outsiders failed, Woundwort would win, and continue his conquests until he had taken over the world. Even if Campion survived, he would have to travel far away and start a new life, forever haunted by his past mistakes. Under these circumstances, death felt appealing to him. He simply lied down, playing dead. Hopefully the dog would end him quickly.
With his eyes closed, he felt the dog's breath on his legs, and its tongue against his fur. But before the teeth came, he heard the dog yelp in pain. Opening his eyes, he saw the pained look on the dog's face, and an orange shape near its tail. As he got up and focused his vision, he saw that it was Dandelion who had bitten the dog's tail. The storyteller had saved him, but at great personal risk.
-"What are you doing?" he shouted.
-"Silverweed warned this was going to happen," Dandelion said, "so I prevented it."
-"You're going to die! Bigwig said you're too slow!"
-"I still have to try," Dandelion said, before fleeing.
The dog turned around and, ignoring Campion, started chasing Dandelion. The former owsla captain ran after them, determined not to let this be the end. Dandelion was indeed slower than any of the previous runners; he may not be able to keep up.
At the next junction in the maze, Campion spotted Silverweed crawling out of the hedges, with a look of fear in his eyes.
-"Please tell me he didn't," the seer said.
-"If you're talking about Dandelion, he did."
-"Oh no..."
The two rabbits started running together, continuing to chase after Dandelion and the dog.
-"What happened?" Campion asked. "Wasn't he supposed to be staying at the warren?"
-"He found me in the hedges. He heard me tell you you were going in the wrong way, so he decided to help. We briefly touched, and I saw a possible future...it's horrible."
While Vervain was near the maze's entrance, contemplating which direction the owsla should go, Orchis slipped away from the others. He remained very weak and tired following his previous death, and Hyzenthlay's attack, and he knew that he wouldn't stand a chance in a massive fight like the others would be facing. Instead, he would try to defeat solitary rabbits in single combat; that's something he felt he would still be able to handle in his current state. He did not bother following the paths of the maze; instead, he hopped through the hedges, seeking an unsuspecting victim.
It did not take him long to a lone rabbit he could fight. When the group of Watershippers had first arrived at the warren and crossed the maze, Violet had gotten separated from the others, and never found the right path; she had fallen asleep in one of the other passageways. Before she could wake up or realize Orchis' presence, he pounced on her from behind and started clawing furiously.
-"It only gets worse for you from now on!" he shouted evilly.
Violet's first reaction was to squeal; then, she started kicking with her hind legs, but she was unable to hit any part of Orchis' body. After a while, she managed to break free from his grip, and cuff him in the face, but he soon bit her ear, so hard that it was almost ripped off her head. He then clawed her all over her body.
By the time he had finished, Violet was lying on the ground in a puddle of her own blood. She was breathing slowly and heavily, barely alive. Orchis, meanwhile, stood proudly over her.
-"I told you it would only get worse! Now prepare to meet the Black Rabbit of Inlé"
He started laughing, a pain in Violet's wounded ears. She used up her last strength to raise her front paw and bring it to Orchis' neck. She applied as much pressure as she could; her claws soon pierced his skin. His laughter turned to screaming; she slowly moved her paw across his neck, leaving a long, narrow openings across it, before lowering her paw again. Judging by the speed of the blood flow, she had likely cut open an important artery.
-"If the Black Rabbit is taking me...he's taking you too..."
Violet's vision became blurry; Orchis became nothing but a red blur. She faintly smiled, satisfied that she had likely ended the sadistic rabbit's life, before passing out from her own injuries.