Kellist, Twyla, Lilla, and Whitetip packed four haversacks of provisions and said goodbye to the Father Abbot and Badger Mother.
"Bye!!! See you again someday!!"
"I'll be back with the Sword of Martin, you can count on that!!!"
"Byeeee!!! Don't forget to write!!!!"
"I won't!!! After all, I am the recorder."
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After the four adventurers had left, Mother Amber began to pack the dibbuns in for bed. She counted heads, "Hmmm, someone's missing, one, two, three, Audrey!" Realization dawned on her, the youngest of the dibbuns was gone. She grabbed Graitin as he was passing, "FIND AUDREY!! NOW!!!"
Graitin swallowed and shook, "I...I...I...I just saw her leaving Otteral, following Kellist. I figured it wouldn't be bad because they would be protected by Kellist."
"ROARRRRRRR!!!!!!!" Mother Amber rushed up the access tunnel next to the one Audrey had used.
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The four adventurers were walking along the path, Kellist nudged Whitetip. "Sing us a song, you're a bard aren't you??"
Whitetip smiled, "Been a long time since I used the flute." Whitetip unpacked a very old, very beautiful flute, he trilled a few notes.
"Perfect, what song would you like to hear??"
Audrey's voice trailed them, "How about the Awtter's Day Pawade??"
"Aye, aye, Otter's Day Parade, hmm, oh yes." Whitetip took a deep breath and turned around,
"Audrey!!"
"Audrey??" Kellist spun around, "What are you doing here??"
"Fowwowing you." Audrey, very truthfully said.
Lilla laughed, "Can't argue with that, can you."
Kellist put his paws on his hips, "Go home!!"
"But, but, I wanna come wif you!!! Asides, I know somefing you don't know!!!"
Kellist was ready to drag Audrey home, but Whitetip stopped him, "Hold on, maybe she's got something important to say!"
Audrey put her nose in the air, "I'm nowt gonna teww you now!"
"Alright then, we'll bring you home."
Audrey started smiling again, "Awight, the Gweat Souf Lands is divided by water fwom Mossflower. So to get down thewe, we need a boat!!"
The four travelers stammered at the perception of the young squirrel, she continued smiling.
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Dimitri and the rest of the Long Patrol walked back to Salamandastron when a voice called them from behind, "Don't move, take not a step more!!"
Dimitri whirled around and twirled his morning star and saw a really short rabbit flanked by a large bulky rabbit and a rabbit in a long cloak, the trio were all black. "Who're you??"
The oldest rabbit, the bulky one talked, "I am Bulk, the one in the cloak is Freehorn, and the young one is Tempes. We are the Plaxos Committee, financiers, messengers."
Freehorn smiled, "Undertakers."
Tempes talked, "We clear the earth of left over dead, anything killed without a cause and left alone is buried."
Bulk went back to talking, "We also run a marvelous gift shop."
Freehorn produced a small cup engraved with words, "Hi, from the Plaxos Committee, burying your dead, financing your journey, delivering your messages."
Tempes smiled, "Oh yes, message." Tempes pulled a sealed letter from his pouch, it was engraved with the emblem of Redwall Abbey. Tempes cleared his throat, "Broadstripe, your presence is needed promptly at Redwall, from Graitin Longclaw."
Dimitri laughed at the antics of the three rabbits to correct their mistake.
"I told you he wasn't Broadstripe."
"No you didn't I did!!!"
"Owwww!! Your biting my ear!!!"
"OWWW!! I'm biting my ear!!!"
"If you're biting his ear, you're biting your ear, and I'm talking, who's biting my ear!!!"
"Your fleas!!!"
"Ewww!! I hate fleas!!!"
Dimitri grabbed Tempes and Freehorn and ripped them from the fray. Bulk was left on the floor biting his ear.
"We're sort of in the middle of something here, why don't you fight over there?"
The three black rabbits walked away.
"Hmmph, didn't even buy something."
"Quiet."
"OW!! Don't hit me again!!"
"Ow!! Then don't hit me!!"
"You wanna take it to the street??"
"Why don't we just take it here??"
"RAAAAAH!!!"
"HEY!! WAIT FOR ME!!!!"
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The Long Patrol arrived at the mountain in quick time. The vermin army was busy preparing so the hares, Shawnie, and Dimitri could sneak in.
Broadstripe met the group at the door.
"I saw you talking to the Plaxos Committee, did they say anything??"
"Yeah, Graitin Longclaw needs your help at Redwall."
"Thought so."
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The two badgers met at the front door with Raya and her General, a ferret called Oublier. Dimitri shouldered his morning star.
Broadstripe was dressed in his badger's armour and shouldered his broadsword.
"Alright badgers, listen hard, we'll leave if you give your mountain to us, we'll let you leave peacefully."
Dimitri smashed a nearby stone. "Not if our lives depended on it."
Broadstripe swung his sword, "NO!!"
Raya unsheathed a lovely curved blade, "Then die!! Archers, ready."
Dimitri and Broadstripe yelled aloud their warcry, "EULAILIA!!!!" Then the hares of Salamandastron jumped to the windows and began shooting arrows and slinging stones. The archers on Raya's team were either knocked senseless or killed.
"Pikehares, CHAAAARGE!!!"
The pikehares rushed into Raya's front lines. Pike clashed upon sword, spear, and mace. The hares were fighting against overwhelming odds, but the vermin were alot less skilled. The hares had the advantage. Soon vermin were knocked down and killed.
Soon more vermin filled in the spot of their lost brethren. Then the unexpected happened, Esellis slipped around back of the hares and the badgers with his army and began attacking the back side. Dimitri fought his way to Broadstripe, "There's too many of them!! We'll be crushed!!!" Broadstripe had already been wounded in a dozen places and was busy fighting off a fox. "Heh!! You haven't seen my plan yet! Hares!!!! PULLL!!!!"
Sharpear, Swiftsword, Rosebell and two other hares rushed out of the mountain and pulled ropes that were hiding in the sand. Large rocks were dragged out of the sand and pulled to the hares, a large ditch opened up in the middle of the vermin. The hares and the badgers were safely in the center of the ditch on a raised piece of land. The vermin ventured out to the raised platform but sunken deep in the sand were sharpened stakes. Raya began jumping up and down, "Get them, get them!!! Kill them, kill them hard and dead!!!" Raya landed in the ditch, right next to a stake. She looked at the ground and saw a path leading to the raised piece of land with the hares and badgers. "GET THEM!! Follow the path!!"
"PIKEHARES!! SECONDARY ATTACK!!!"
POW!! CLUMP!! "Ow!! That really hurt!!! Someone's stepping on the lid!!"
Raya turned her sword inward and began stabbing the ground where she stood. "WHOA!! Watch it you idiot!!" Raya continued stabbing downward.
"Vermin, get those hares, and those two badgers, make them die painfully!!"
The army began rushing at the hares but forgot about the stakes and ran into them. "Miss Raya, you're gonna have to move." Raya stepped aside and some pikehares burst out of the secret hole. They stabbed into the vermin army. More Pikehares rushed from the back, soon the army was surrounded. The hares and the badgers on the small raised piece of land went into a small tunnel. They emerged behind the vermin army. Dimitri waited under the tunnel next to a contraption that raised the stakes in the ditch. He waited until he heard vermin pounding overhead and pushed the contraption up.
Dimitri emerged and saw that several vermin were being pushed into the stakes. Raya was standing on the piece of land where the badgers and hares were standing. The vermin numbers were drastically reduced before a fluke accident happened, in the form of rain.
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Caitin Shortclaw was manning the tiller. His daughter was in a cabin. Adalak was near the lord manning the front lookout post. Talon and Steelpeak were in the crow's nest. Goldpaw was at the helm. Martin XIX and Sleekfur were taking the sails.
Adalak was explaining about the boat, "This boat once belonged to corsairs. But now it is my ship, I still have some corsair supplies, the seaweed grog is an excellent bug repellent. The mosquitos on the sea at night are like eagles."
Steelpeak called out from the crow's nest, "Corsair fleet in the north sire."
Adalak smiled, "This is why the corsair equipment comes in handy."
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Several minutes later, the Jolly Roger was run up and the crew of the boat were dressed in corsair garb. Caitin was wearing some clothes that had once belong to a wolf. The fleet spotted the boat and the first boat, named Spurjaw, ran up alongside Adalak's boat.
"Hey!! Where've ye come from?" the lookout called.
Caitin had the loudest voice so he was voted as spokesbeast, "Arr, we've come from the south!! The realm of no return, matey!! Arr, the beasts over there are fer no good. They've act'lly killed most of me crew!! I'd turn back around, me bucko!"
The lookout from the Spurjaw was confused, "YOU'RE A BADGER!!! HOW COULD YOU BE A CORSAIR!!"
Caitin yelled, "Acause, me matey over 'ere Cap'n Grimeye took me in as a little shrimp and raised me te be an 'eartless corsair!! The best o' the best matey!!"
Adalak turned towards the Spurjaw dressed in an elaborate costume for a corsair. Sleekfur stood next to Caitin, "Aye matey, I be an otte' but I'm still a corsair!"
Talon was sitting on the railing and the lookout finally noticed the falcon, "What be with thet falcon oer there?? Be he one o' yourn??"
Caitin patted Talon's head, "Aye, he be the best lookout we ave, is eyes see beyond the limit thet we c'n see. 'E could see the very color o' the sails on the boat right b'ind ye!"
"Boat?? I don't see no boat??"
"'zactly."
The Spurjaw sailed away with the lookout yelling to the rest of the fleet, "Let th' boat with th' badger past mateys. 'E be a fine beast!! Let's turn this armada around messmates, th' lands beyond are no good te us."
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When Adalak landed a few miles from Salamandastron. A hare was rushing towards the group, they were still in the corsair outfits, "Caitin Shortclaw."
"Yeah."
Quickleap was panting, "Lord Broadstripe needs your help. Nice outfits."
"Thanks Quickleap, now go tell your lord we'll be there. Tell him not to attack the corsairs who don't look quite in place. I'm assuming this army is mainly mainland rats and vermin."
"Yes m'lord."
"Any piratic guys?"
"Just a ferret and a stoat, sire."
Steelpeak took over, "Are they Esellis and Bloodclaw??"
Quickleap stammered when he viewed the hideous beast before him, "Ye...ye...ye...ye...yes."
Steelpeak twirled his warhammer, "The stoat's mine."
Sleekfur held his paw down, "Revenge isn't a pretty thing, it can go to your head."
"Don't worry otter, I've got it handled."