My story

My name is Jadetail Keena Rudderwake. I was born to Tritail the Mighty and Keena the Lovely of the Holt Drend otter tribe. Our leader, Drend Waveblade, was a strong, feirce fighter, so our tribe was well respected by many. My father was Drend's best warrior. I remember when he would take me to watch the warriors of the village fight with each other. My father told me that they weren't really fighting, but training in case of a searat invasion. I had heard scary stories about searats, but, small as I was, I wasn't scared. I knew that my father, Drend, and the other otters could easily fight searats. As I grew older, I began to practice the fighting skills my father used. I would imagine that searats were attacking our village, and I had to kill them. When I turned 6, my father gave me my first real weapon. A bow and arrow! I was so excited that I ran right outside and began to practice. My father followed me and showed me how to use the bow properly, so I wouldn't shoot someone. As the days passed, I became very good at shhoting. When our tribe would hold festivals with other tribes, I would enter the shooting matches. Some otters were upset because I was the only girl who entered, but Drend would silence them and allow me to shoot. In my first match, I got 5th place. I was a little disappointed, but my father encoraged me to practice even more. At the next carnival, I got 2nd place! I was very happy, but I still wanted first. I kept practicing every day, until finally I was able to shoot anything I wanted to. I was nervous at the next carnival, but my father told me that I could win. And he was right! I won! Everyone was celebrating! Drend told me that he was proud of me. And when everyone quieted down, he presented me with the title "the Warrioress". That was the best day of my life; but the next day was another story. After the carnival, Drend received word that searats were nearing some other villages. Drend immediatly called his warriors together, and they left to vanquish their enimies. While thay were gone, a band of searats, lead by Ripfang the Cruel, attacked our village! With our fighters gone, there was no one to defend us. I fought as bravely as I could, but sometime during the battle, I was knocked unconcious. I lay that way for seversl days. When I awoke, there was nothing left of our village. All our houses had been burned down, and everyone was gone, except for some who had been killed. In a daze, I stumbled into Mossflower Woods and wondered around until I found a large abbey. The animals inside cared for me until I was well. They told me that the abbey was named Redwall. Later, I moved to my little house outside of Redwall. I am happy here, although my soul is restless. I know that it is my responsibility to slay Ripfang and all his kind. And to keep Holt Drend alive forever.

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Email: jadetail@juno.com