Salamandastron Part 31

He looked every inch the true warrior now, and it shone from his eyes and face, told in every movement of his giant limbs as he strode easily out in front of the a.s.sembly. The sun bounced and glimmered off snowwhite fur and glittering metal as Oxeye presented him with his own huge oaken club and Sapwood knelt and placed his head beneath Urthwyte1 s free paw.

"This is my grandson," Loambudd's voice rang out majestically. "His grandsire was Urthclaw, his father Urthound and his brother Urthstripe the Strong. He stands before you this day and for all the time until his seasons have run. Ruler of the mountain! Commander of the Long Patrols! Warrior Lord of Salamandastron! Salute Urthwyte the Mighty!"

Lances, bows, rapiers and paddles went up like a sea of weaponry.

' 'Eulaliaaaaaaaaaa!''

All creatures alike yelled the mountain war cry until the very rocks rang and the clear morning air was -filled with the swelling sound. Salamandastron had a new badger Lord.

After the ceremony there was a meal spread out upon the sh.o.r.e. It was good solid food, but quite plain. Salamandastron being a warriors' place, even the best of cooks there could never match the skills of Redwall creatures at preparing a festive board.

They sat among the rocks and sprawled on the sand, happily sharing the homely fare. Arula, Pikkle and Nordo were building a likeness of Salamandastron from the sea-damped sand. Alfoh and Ashnin perched on a low rock watching them.

The wise old shrew smiled wistfully. "Look at them playing at sandcastles like a proper bunch of young uns. Arula, what about a tunnel entrance?"

The young molemaid touched a heavy digging claw to her nose. "Thankee, zurr Alfoh. Oi'll do that straightways, hurr hurr."

Arula vanished in a spray of flying sand as Ashnin shook her head in wonderment. "They bounce right back like springy little branches. That's a good thing, Alfoh. It helps them to forget all the hards.h.i.+ps, warfare and slaying they've been through. Look at young Samkim sitting alone down there by the sea. I wonder what he's thinking of. He's been very quiet all morning."

Samkim was staring at the logboats moored above the tideline. The sword of Martin lay beside him. He made no move to join the others, staying alone and apart from everybeast.

Still clad in her new smock, Mara approached the solitary young squirrel. She sat beside him, gazing out at the sea pensively. Without looking at her, Samkim began to voice his thoughts. It soon developed into a conversation, though they both avoided each other's eyes.

"The season is dying, Mara. I feel that summer is gone and the autumn is upon us. The leaves will turn gold and brown."

"So they will, Samkim. n.o.beast can stop the turn of the seasons. I think you are lonely and far from home. What is Redwall like in the autumn?"

"Oh, it's a happy place to be at anytime. Autumn is harvest time: the fruits and crops are gathered in, October ale is made, chestnuts are candied in honey. We sit up late in Cavern Hole around a great fire, enjoying supper and listening to the stories and songs of bygone days. The mornings are quiet and misty. Leaves rustle in Mossflower Woods, and you can feel the dew on the gra.s.s between your paws, smell the bread and cakes being baked in the kitchens, lie in the orchard on a sunny afternoon and eat a russet apple or a ripe purple plum. Oh yes, Redwall is like no other place."

"You must love your home very much, Samkim."

"Aye, the Abbey is everything to me. What about you, Mara'? Salamandastron is a fine place-don't you like being here?"

The badger maid ran dry sand from the rocks through her paws. "It is all I can remember-I grew up with the mountain. This morning I feel that I have a certain fondness for it, 338.

but I can never make it my home again. There are too many unhappy memories hovering around it. Lord Urthstripe put his mark upon that mountain. The graves of creatures we knew look lonely here by the great sea, and it will take a lot of healing. Time alone can do it, though I would not be happy staying here to grow old. Even today I noticed the change in Urthwyte-he is becoming a badger Lord. The life here is not for me."

"Then what will you do, Mara? Where will you go?"

"I will follow my dream."

"Ah! The dream you dreamed last night of Martin the Warrior?"

"Samkim, how did you know .. . ?"

"Because I, too, had a dream. Martin came to me also. He told me to stay apart from the others today and I would see the Guardian of Redwall Abbey come to me. Is it you, Mara?"

The badger maid turned and looked at him. "Martin said in my dream that this was my destiny. He told me that I will be happy at Redwall, happier than ever before."

Samkim took hold of her paw. "So you will be. Come on, let us go home, Mara of Redwall!"

42.

Though the season was well advanced, Abbess Vale stoically refused to hold any Nameday feast. Each day she had posted lookouts on the ramparts, and they watched until torches were lit and lanterns shone with the onset of night. Through sunny days, cloudy days, and days when soft drizzle and mist hung low over woodlands, the vigil continued, still with no sign of Samkim or Arula returning.

Sitting in the gatehouse one windy morning, Abbess Vale and Faith Spinney took hot mint tea and nutscones with cream as they embroidered a bedquilt together.

Faith took the spectacles from the end of her nose and ma.s.saged her eye comers gently. ' "My ol' eyes get tired pretty quick these days, Vale. 'Spect it'll be with standin' out on yon wall all yesternoon."

The Abbess looked rather severely over the top of her gla.s.ses. "Faith, what have I told you? There are lots of younger ones happy to do lookout duty-you have no need to be up on the ramparts in all weathers."

The hedgehog lady poured more tea for Vale. "But I wants to be first to see 'em. 'Sides, it keeps me out of Dumble's way. That infant's become a reg'lar liddle terror."

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340.

"Indeed he has." The Abbess nodded in agreement as she picked up a st.i.tch. "Everywhere I turn he's following me, bullying away in his north country speech for a Nameday feast."

"The Hautumn of the Heagle, you mean." Faith chuckled.

Vale threw her paws up to her ears. "Honestly, if I hear that name once more I'll tan the little villain's tail!"

The little villain in question was hatching a conspiracy, together with Thrugg, MacPhearsome, Friar Bellows and several others. It had been brewing for three days. Secret meetings in the cellars with Foremole and Tudd Spinney standing guard, clandestine gatherings in the dormitory with Brother Hollyberry watching the door, and whispered conferences in the orchard were becoming the order of the day at Redwall. Dumble made the partic.i.p.ants swear deathly oaths that Abbess Vale and Mrs. Faith Spinney should not know a thing until the time was ripe.

The kitchen fires burned late, heating the ovens as extra cakes, pies, flans and pasties were baked to a golden turn. Bands of moles plundered the orchard regularly, and young ones were seen coming and going, muttering furtively to each other as they covered for others who wheeled great cheeses from the storerooms, lugged forward big barrels of October ale and strawberry cordial from the cellars and grunted beneath mysterious bulky sacks as they strove to move them in secret.

Around lunchtime the wind dropped, and so did Abbess Vale's head. She fell asleep in the armchair by the fire. Faith Spinney covered her with the quilt they had been working on and stole quietly out of the gatehouse.

The sun was breaking through scudding cloud ma.s.ses as the Wild King MacPhearsome flapped his wings and did a short run. The golden eagle nearly collided with Faith as she came out of the gatehouse. He pulled up short and stalked off huffily to the start of his intended launch. Faith followed him.

"Sorry, Your Majesty. Did I disturb your exercises?"

Salamaruiastron 341.

MacPhearsome sniffed the air, hopping from one foot to the other. "Och no, wee lady, Ah'm just off for a stretch o' the wings, ye ken. Mah fithers need a guid wind rufflin' 'em."

Swaying from side to side, he dashed forward and launched himself into the air. Faith shook her head in bewilderment as she watched the huge bird soar gracefully.

"Whatever you say, I'm sure! Dearie me, I wish I could understand one single word from that bird's beak."

Hollyberry watched from the sickbay window, explaining the scene to Foremole, who was sitting on a bed tucking into a huge wedge of yellow celery-studded cheese.

"He's about to start his second run now-hold on, he's talking to Faith Spinney. I can't hear what he's saying. There he goes, up into the air! Faith's looking up and saying something. Let's hope MacPhearsome hasn't given the game away to her."

Foremole wrinkled his nose. "Missus Spinney doant un-nerstand heagly burds. They'm can't talken propply. Doant *ee wurry, zurr Berry'olly."

The five shrew logboats were on a broad open expanse of the Great South Stream. Mara sat side by side with Samkim, paddling steadily, as well as any two shrews. The badger maid could hear Arula telling Pikkle of Redwall feasts as they sat paddling in the prow of the boat opposite.

Pikkle kept interrupting with what could only be described as groans of delight at the mention of each fresh dish.

"Yurr, an' then they takes the meddyo cream an'-"

"Whoo, my growlin' tummy! Don't tell me, let me guess, they take the jolly old meadowcream an' spread it thick over the damson pudden an' chuck lots of those candied chestnuts on top, wot?"

Arula blinked earnestly, shaking her head in amazement. "Bohurr aye. But 'ow did 'ee knoaw, zurr Ffloger?"

Pikkle rubbed his stomach. "The name's Ffolger, of thing, not Ffloger-an' if it's absoballylutely anythin' to do with tucker, you can bet an acorn to a boulder that a Ffolger'll 342.

know about it. We're professional gluttons, y' see."

Mara splashed him with her paddle. "I can vouch for that, Arula!"

"Back water, s.h.i.+p paddles! Bows 'n' slings at the ready, Guosssom!"

Mara looked up to see a ma.s.sive bird of prey beating its wide wings close to the water as it sped towards the logboats. Swiftly she brandished her paddle in the air as Samkim drew his sword and stood by her.

Log-a-log roared out further orders: "Don't fire until it tries to attack-it may not be hunting!"

The great bird soared over them, brus.h.i.+ng Mara and Samkim with a wingtip as it mounted into the air and wheeled in a circle. "Ach, yer braw beasties the noo, but if ye fire one arra' Ah'm a-coming doon tae mak' ye regret it!"

Pikkle put down his paddle and scratched his ears. "What in the name of the crazy cuckoo is the chap burbling on about? Can anybeast tell me?"

Alfoh placed a paw across Pikkle's mouth. "Wait, I think he's trying to tell us something. The bird certainly doesn't mean us any harm or he'd have attacked by now. Hi! You up there! We're the Guosssom shrews. Who are you and where are you from?"

The golden eagle dived, screeching like a siren.

' 'Redwaaaaaaaalllll!"

Samkim leapt up, waving his sword as he yelled out the reply: "Redwaaaaalllllll!"

The eagle wheeled slowly then flapped off at a leisurely clip, turning off north to follow the course of another channel.

Samkim quivered with excitement as he picked up his paddle. "Did you hear that, Mara? Come on, Guardian, paddle! I'm sure he wants us to follow him. What do you say, Log-a-log?"

The shrew leader took up his paddle. "I think you're right. He's certainly traveling in the right direction-that branch stream will make a good shortcut, now I come to think about it. Right, let's follow the bird. Up paddles, Guosssom. Take Solamandastron 343.

the watercourse on the portside. We've got a new navigator to take us to Samkim's home!"

"Beating up the river, paddling down the stream, Find me a berth, lads, somewhere I can dream, Still quiet waters there, where the lilies float, Cool and green, dark and clean, there I'll moor this boat.

Oho, you old paddle, you have made me sore, Bent all my back and wearied all my paw. " Pull me into harbor, there I'll make my thanks, Lie by the river, slumber on the banks. Where the willow's leaning o'er And the waters kiss the sh.o.r.e, That's the place that I will rest, linger evermore."

"Abbess, marm, Missus Spinney, would you please get in the cart!" Thrugg stood with the harness about his shoulders, and the little green Abbey cart stood waiting on its four small wheels. Abbess Vale and Faith Spinney had been roused when it was barely dawn and hustled out of gatehouse and Abbey dormitory by Tudd and Sister Nasturtium. They stood hastily dressed on the lawn.

Thrugg looked over his shoulder at them. "Come on, ladies. Stir yore paws. Hop in the cart an' we'll go a nice ride down the path, eh?"

Faith Spinney fussed with her cloak fastener. "Mercy me. Mr. Thrugg, whatever for?''

The otter snorted impatiently. "For some o' those violets an' saxifrage wot grows in the churchyard of old Saint Ni-nian's, of course! I've told ye, Brother 'Ollyberry needs 'em fer a new batch o' physick. Now come on, Marms. We can't be lettin' 'im down, can we?"

Reluctantly the two friends climbed into the cart, plumping themselves on the cus.h.i.+ons that had been placed on the seats specially for them.

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"But why must we go now-it's barely dawn?" Abbess Vale shook her head.

Tudd Spinney opened the main gate and waved the cart out onto the path. "That's the best time for violets V saxifrage, so I'm told. Off you goes now, gels. 'Ave a nice time!"

Faith wagged a severe paw at her husband. "Tudd Spinney, you ol1 fibber. What's got into you, sendin' us off like this? I'm sure there's lots of spry young uns who could pick plants better'n us two old creatures."

Thrugg jogged off south down the path through the mists of the rising dawn. "Aha, that's where yore wrong, marm. 'Ollyberry says them young uns don't know lupins from lilacs. He says that you an' the Abbess 'ave the beauty of experience."

Mightily flattered. Abbess Vale arched her neck and fluttered her eyelids. "Hollyberry isn't given to untruths, Faith. He could be right!"

Behind them, Tudd Spinney slammed the door and hobbled across the lawn, waving his stick. "Stir yore stumps now, good Redwallers. They've gone. Let's get busy!"

The sun heralded the day, palely at first but gradually bursting through into a heavy golden autumn radiance. Faith Spinney looked up at the dark evergreens and golden brown leaves turning crisp on the boughs, the dappling patterns of light and shade through the foliage making her blink as they trundled along.

"Oh well, we've got a fair 'n' pretty day for whatever it is we're supposed to be a-doin' of, Vale."

The Abbess folded her paws into the wide habit sleeves. "Violets and saxifrage, my paw! There's something going on back at Red wall, or I'm a frog. Isn't that right, Thrugg?"

"Don't croak too loud, marm. Saint Ninian's is a fair ol' way yet. Why don't you two ladies 'ave a nap and catch up on yore sleep. I'll tip ye the word when we gets there."

The logboats had been pulled ash.o.r.e at the nearest point MacPhearsome could manage; now the rest of the journey was mainly a good stout march through woodland. They ate sup- Salamandas iron 345.

per and slept through the early evening on the banks of the stream.

Two hours after midnight, Log-a-log had disguised the five boats with branches and fern for safekeeping. He roused them and they broke camp. Lighting lanterns, they struck off into the depths of Mossflower. Samkim and Arula led, watching the dark shape of MacPhearsome whenever it could be seen above the treetops.

Arula drew in a deep breath. "Booharr, smell 'at, Sanken. 'Tis loiken the smell of 'ome!"

Samkim sniffed gratefully. "I know what you mean, Arula."

Mara plucked a sycamore leaf, peering hard into the woodland. "Trees, Pikkle-I've never seen so many trees. It's so silent and peaceful, too, not hot and bare and sandy like the sh.o.r.e by Salamandastron. I could grow to like these woods."

"I could grow t' like any place where there's a sc.r.a.p of tucker about, old gel. It's bally ages since we had supper, I'm starvin'."

In the same hour of dawn that the cart left Redwall, the travelers emerged from the woods onto the path. Though the going was easier, there were many who were weary from marching all night. The irrepressible Pikkle kept everybeast going by improvising a silly ditty.

"I'd give my left ear an' raise a cheer For a plate of woodland pie, And as for a pudden, if it was a good un. I'd give my best right eye. I'd give a paw to get my jaw Around a fat fruitcake. For a dumplin' stew, my tail could go too. I mean, for goodness sake, If I saw a pastie, I wouldn't get nasty I'd trade it for my nose. And if I couldn't smell, I'd just say 'Well, I'd rather have one of those.'

346 So take my heart and leave me that tart, But my mouth I won't take off, Because, I plead, it's a mouth I'll need To eat all that bally scoff!"

The burgeoning sunlight lifting flagging spirits, they stepped out with a will, the golden eagle flying low in front of them as they chanted aloud.

"Redwall! Log-a-log! RedwaH! Guosssom! Redwall! Log-a-log! Redwall! Guosssom!"