Book III: The Legacy of Simon and The Plague

[Captain Tammo]

Chapter 10 (or 42)

Leonardo could easily spot that Damien's mental state was on the decline. Even despite Damien still being at the head of The Plague, it would only be a matter of time before things began falling down around the greatrat. For example, he noticed that Damien's posture was a bit off from what he had first seen when he arrived; now he kept his back with a bigger hunch. He found that Damien was also losing a considerable amount of sleep by the heavy bags under his dark eyes and their sluggish movement. He appeared to have much less of an appetite than before and as the first full moon of winter approached, he began having beasts taste his food and drink before he himself deemed it safe for consumption. In addition, he was consulting Leonardo a great deal more for even the most ridiculous things such as when he should sleep and if he should groom himself. Things were all going according to the plan, and Leonardo knew that that could very easily change if he was not careful.

"Tell me, Lee," Damien said at the start of a telling session, "what must I fear in the coming days as the full moon approaches?"

Leonardo thought up a way to implicate his desire to assert his power to Kovur whilst still toying with Damien's mind. He closed his eyes and thought hard, "Yes, my lord. Oh, I see... yes, my eyes see everything! Spirits, what must I tell this ruler of his fortune?" He opened them and looked into the colorless void of the rat's eyes. "You must beware that which is around you. For the things that appear to be of no threat to you are not what they say they are... That is all the spirits will allow me to say now."

"What does it mean?"

Leonardo got up and began to leave the room. "That, my lord, is for you to decide. The spirits are always clear of what they say, but they think at a higher level than even powerful creatures and their messages must be interpreted by you. Sleep on what they have told you and I am sure that the message will become clear. What kind of creature or creatures seem to be of no threat to you at the moment? That is where I would start."

"Is it the prairie creatures? Yes, certainly! They couldn't hurt me at all... right?"
Leonardo shook his head. "I believe that it is not them that the spirits are speaking of, for though they are weak, they pose a threat to your horde and you. That is not to say that they will succeed in their efforts, however... I am certain that your wisdom will show you the answer." With this, Leonardo left Damien alone with his own thoughts to grow.

Later that same day, a clearly frightened vole was brought into the cathedral in shackles by a weasel and a pine marten for trial. They forced him down onto his knees in front of the high altar and waited for Damien to acknowledge them. Leonardo was standing upright directly adjacent to the throne. His paws waited behind his back and his hooded eyes aimed slightly down at the vole. Leonardo had seen multiple creatures come in and out of the cathedral, but could not save them all.

"Alright, what'd this damned runt do, eh?" Said the rat king.

"We found 'im wanderin' around the outside o' the cathedral lookin' fer food."

"Did he find any?" said Damien.

"He would've had we not found 'im. Ain't that right, little getan*!"

The vole clasped his paws together and looked at Damien, "Please, your highness. I din't mean ye no harm by doin' this. I've got a family t' feed an' some of us can't find so much as a morsel o' food since you took it all. Half the town is sufferin' o' starvation an' there are little uns to be fed..."

Damien silenced him with a wave of his paw. He thought for a moment and then his eyes brightened up with an idea. He leaned heavily forward. "Okay, little weed, if you do as I say I'll see to it that you and your whole family won't go hungry again. Does that sound good to you?"

The vole nodded his head, "Oh, yes your majesty, I'll do anythin'!"

The red rat gave a wicked grin and sat back on his throne and threw his legs over the armrest, "Good. I've noticed that a considerable amount of my patrols are going missing and rumor has it that there's a rebellion that's behind it." The hair on the back of Leonardo's neck began to stand up as he saw where Damien was going. "You are going to find them and enter their ranks as my spy. Infiltrate the whole thing and learn who the leaders are, anything confidential should be exposed to us. At the end of the week, you are to bring me a list of names and I will take it from there. Understood?

The vole looked crestfallen, but he was determined to see his family fed. "How do I convince them?"
Damien massaged the corners of his eyes, "Ugh, I'm surrounded by idiots. Act, you stupid oaf! Put on a show for 'em an' then report back here to me."

The vole nodded, "Yes, my lord. I'll have the list to you by the end of the week."

"Excellent." Said Damien and he swung his legs forward again and leaned towards the vole. "And don't think that you won't be watched, so if I find out that you've decided to work against me, I'll see to it that you live out the remainder of your days in the North tower with the ravens picking your bones dry!"

As the vole was relieved of his shackles and escorted away, Leonardo decided that it was a good time for him to leave as well; he had to warn the C.O.R.I.A of this! But as fate had it, he would be delayed by Damien, "Lee, come with me and tell me my fortune. I have much to discuss with you."
Leonardo cursed under his breath but kept up his own act, "Yes, my lord."

+++++

As Leonardo had his paws full overseeing the corruption of Damien's mind over the next couple of days, the C.O.R.I.A was quickly gaining momentum in the town. They were already up to fifty creatures and were now regularly hitting larger targets. Up until this point, Mazzie had been holding off on targets that were too big to risk, such as tax collectors. She wanted to wait until the rebellion was too big to squish easily. Word had already been circulating around the town that there was a new revolutionary group on the rise and had already taken down a few patrols here and there. Yet to Mazzie's dismay, it seemed to frighten the townsfolk more than it did The Plague. Mazzie pressed the C.O.R.I.A harder, organizing multiple patrol hits at once and taking extra care when considering a new member. A collaborator to rat them all out would be the last thing they'd need at this point.

Organizing the rebellion was no easy task, yet little Mazzie Mosey was far too involved now to give up, so she gave it her all and also received much help from Ander and Lakkle as information sources and advisers.

The Plague was beginning to press down on the town as a whole and though she had her small group of extremists, the far majority of the town seemed to be undecided as to whether the unnamed revolutionary group was a blessing or a curse. Despite that, there were still new members of all ages arriving every day to offer their support to the cause. There was now a stocked arsenal of weapons at their disposal made up of sharpened sticks, iron farming tools, and the occasional knife or scythe. They began meeting more often at Ander's home, now nearly every night. Those who were truly dedicated were easily noticed as attendees at each meeting. Others who were not as committed came every few nights when they could find the time.

Henry and Fee were giving interviews to new recruits in the torch lit basement of a former brewery at the far south edge of town. They sat on one side of a table and brought in creatures one at a time. So far, nobeast had actually been turned away and Henry and Fee were a bit confused as to how they could turn a beast away if they were not suitable for the position or appeared to be a collaborator. It was largely assumed that any creature who went through the trouble to find the C.O.R.I.A was probably dedicated enough for the cause. It seemed to give some beasts around town the feeling that joining the C.O.R.I.A was like joining a destructive gang.

Henry handed a middle-aged mole a yellowed slip of paper from a book that had some writing on the back of it. "This 'll tell you ev'rythin' you need t' know. Welcome aboard, mate... Bring in the next 'un!" Ollen ushered in a rather timid looking vole of middle age with a rust-colored tunic and moccasin shoes. He gave an awkward nod to Fee and Henry and sat down on the bench across from them.

"Alright, lad. Who are ye?" said Henry.

"Roon Golunt."

Fee replied, "What do you do, Roon?"

"I, ah, make boots an' shoes in my shop."

"How long have you lived in Agrinaut for?"

"All my life."

Henry gave Roon a narrowed glance, "You alright, lad? You seem awful on edge. Is there somethin' you're not tellin' us?"

Roon's face reddened. "Ugh, sorry. Jus' uh... ne'er really done anything so secretive before... Kind o' nervous."

Fee nodded "Mhmm. Well listen, Roon, there's a lot to be afraid of and if you've gone through the trouble of finding this place, you're halfway there. Now we just have a few more questions for you before we can pass you through, alright?"

"Alright."

"You said that you're a shoemaker, but it looks like your shoes are in pretty bad shape. Why is that?"

"You've heard the phrase 'everybeast has shoes except the shoemaker's family', right? Well, it's true. Shoemakers don't make much an' so it's hard to use what valuable time I have to make my own good pair."

"Does your family know that you're joining the rebellion?"

"No. I couldn't bring myself to tell 'em. It'd only put more strain on an already, er, delicate situation."

"Ok, last question: What can you bring to the rebellion that we don't already have?"

This made Roon pause and think for a moment, then he timidly raised his arms and said, "An extra set o' paws that can do whatever you need to be done."

Fee and Henry exchanged a brief look with each other and Henry pulled out another page from an old book with the same message on the back. "This'll tell you everything you need to know. Welcome aboard, mate... Bring in the next one!"

A white otter was brought in, this one appeared to be the very opposite of Roon. He was of a younger age, probably around sixteen or so seasons, but wore a nice, shiny black pair of boots and a long green cloak around his shoulders. Confidence emanated from his long stride.

"Tell us who you are."

"My name is Jupiter Emmanuel Moonset McCinnly. I am a traveling actor and acrobat who got stuck here when Damien took over. I lost everything in the first fire: the wagon with all of our performing equipment, as well as the rest of the troupe. They were my family, and it was such an awful way to go... So I have been looking for a way to get back at that damned spawn of the devil, Damien, ever since then. Ugh, even the name leaves a bad taste in my mouth! I was part of the first rebellion to march on Agrinaut's cathedral and managed to take down a fair number before we lost. Yet even still, I would say that a fair number of dead vermin is not enough for the score to be even." The voice that this otter spoke in sounded relatively proper and almost complex when compared to the humble creatures of the prairie that were native.

Fee perked up. This creature seemed to mean business and she instantly to a liking to his courageous spirit. "Well said, Jupiter. Tell us, what has kept you from moving on and out of this place?"

The otter held up his paw, "Please, call me Moonset. The reason that I have stayed is not by choice, but it is cause to simply not being able to leave. There is hardly enough food for a single soul to make it too far away. It appears that much of our knowledge was lost in the fire and now nobeast truly has a clue which way is the right way to go anymore. Damien has the coast too heavily blocked for an escape by sea and he knows that one may as well be wandering into a desert when departing by land. If it was easy to leave, you could count on the fact that nobeast would be left here to be ruled by this devil's iron paw."

"Ok, Moonset, what can you bring to the rebellion that we don't already have available to us?"

Moonset's answer was clear and ready. "I do not have much experience in the ways of leading, per se, but as an actor, I can give a good speech when it is needed. So I shall leave it up to you. What job can you offer me?"

Henry and Fee exchanged a look of approval and Henry took out another yellowed paper. "This will tell you everything you need to know." Moonset reached for the paper, but Henry stopped him and took out a quill to write at the bottom of the page. "When you get there, ask for Mazzie an' hand them this paper. When you meet her, tell her that Henry an' Fee cleared you for an upper-level position and we'll get you in the field in no time... Welcome to the C.O.R.I.A, mate."



*Getan: a fictitious, derogatory name used in the world of Redwall (trying to keep things clean, here)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wow, we're already ten chapters into this? That went by pretty quickly! I hope that you all are enjoying the story so far. Feel free to leave a comment, question, or any constructive criticism if you have any!

[Captain Tammo]

This chapter is a bit longer than the usual. But don't worry, this is about as long as it gets! This chapter will contain a flashback to Part I (you'll know it when you read it). It is simply used to connect two moments along the timeline in Simon's life, which should hint at what's to come if you think about it critically. I hope you enjoy it

Chapter 11 (or 43)

Nothing was working! No matter what Leonardo did to shrug out of the cathedral, he was constantly called back to Damien for advice, even consistently during the nights. Though it had its benefits, Damien was clearly becoming so reliant on his 'seer' that he could hardly make a single decision on his own now. The Plague was beginning to notice it, too. Leonardo was certain that Kovur the fox would be planning a sort of rebellion of his own now that Damien's leadership was questionable. Now was Leonardo's turn to show Kovur that who was really the one in charge. It happened that morning. Damien, certain that he had deciphered the spirits' message, stood upon his altar and put Leonardo next to him. He called out to the horde.

"Listen up, you mob o' bubblin' filth, there's somethin' important that needs to be addressed... There's a creature among us that is not who they say they are."

Leonardo hinted a smile at the corners of his mouth but concealed it with a shadow from the hood over his face. The horde looked around amongst themselves with a few mumbles floating from the transept to the nave and back again. Many of them turned their eyes on Leonardo.

"You heard it right, there's a traitor among us!"

Angry shouts supported the rat king's claim as he waved his paws for silence. Leonardo could hear "Lee" being shouted by a few of those who did not favor him, naturally, but the old wanderer kept his composure and listened. Once the horde had been silenced, Damien turned his paw towards Leonardo. For a brief second, his stomach twisted and he could feel his face begin to flush. Did Damien just figure out that he was faking the whole seer act? "You, seer," Leonardo tensed his muscles and prepared to run for the nearest portal. "tell me who the traitor is so that everybeast here can feel my wrath!"

Leonardo breathed a silent sigh of relief and relaxed himself. This was it. He approached the center of the high altar and Damien backed away to give him space. Leonardo looked around the length of the cathedral. He stepped off of the altar and began aimlessly wandering around the nave and transept. Every time he looked one way, dozens of eyes would follow until they locked on one creature. Meanwhile, Damien stood on his altar with a fiery gaze and a heaving chest.

Leonardo took his time walking around for several minutes, working his way to the great Western portal where he knew he'd find him. Creatures cleared a path for Leonardo wherever he walked and gave him a fair amount of room. He used his appearance and reputation to his advantage. Looking left and right, he watched as many cowered and backed away under his gaze...

+++++

He took a step forward, the corsairs took a step back. He took another forward and they stepped back again. 'Hiss at them! You're a disgusting madbeast, use it to your advantage.' Ordered Simon. The mouse hissed and feigned an attack; this worked with the desired effect. Slowly the line thinned and he made his way forward.

+++++

...Finally, Leonardo found his target among the crowd, sitting on a broken pew in front of a small fire that was cooking a seagull's wing hid Kovur under the shade of his cloak. The fox raised his eyes and met Leonardo's. Kovur gave Leonardo a hard stare at first, but then Leonardo began to raise his paw as if he was going to point at him and Kovur's angry glare melted to one of evident fear. Just as creatures thought that the seer was going to claim that he had found the traitor, he dropped his paw and turned towards the altar and called out, "There is no traitor amongst your horde, Lord Damien. All of us are faithfully pledged to you. You have miscalculated."

Leonardo then made his way back to the Eastern side of the cathedral, feeling accomplished now that he had managed to assert his power over both Damien and Kovur in front of everybeast. Damien could hardly believe what had just happened. He pointed a paw at Leonardo and yelled, "That's impossible, you told me that there was a traitor among us!"

But the 'seer' shook his head, "No, my lord, the spirits said that you must beware that which is around you. For the things that appear to be of no threat to you are not what they say they are. They did not say that there was a traitor among The Plague. I suggest that you dwell more on your thoughts and think hard of another solution. Come to me when you think that you have one and I will check if you are correct."

More mumbles came up from the horde and Damien knew that a major weakness had just been shown in front of the entire horde. He stomped his feet and waved his paws in anger, "No, I am right and you know I am!" He turned to his great golden throne and grabbed it by the armrests with his arm and strong tail. With a mighty heave, he pulled the heavy object off of the ground and threw it off of the altar, crushing an unfortunate stoat who happened to be standing in its path. The horde looked on in a stunned silence as their king stormed towards the center of the transept and then stopped dead in his tracks. "Who doesn't stand a threat to me is not who they seem... Who is it?! Stop playing games with me, seer, and tell me who this creature is or else I'll slay you here and now!"

Leonardo raised his head so quickly that his hood came off of his head and he pointed a sharp claw back at Damien, "You dare threaten a seer, the bridge between this world and the spirit world? Go ahead then, kill me now and seal your fate. For it will be my spirit that comes back to haunt you for the rest of time!"

This seemed to do the trick. Damien lowered his voice and his head. "Forgive me, spirits, for it is not my intention to harm you... I must rest and think more on your message... I bid you good day." With this, Damien retired to the chapel in the far east end of the cathedral and did not come out. For a few seconds after Damien left the altar, nobeast said anything, not one of the nearly five-hundred vermin.

Leonardo lowered his paw and kept up his act. Sweeping to his side, he ordered two stoats. "You there, grab your weapons. You are to accompany me into the town. The rest of you go about your own business."

+++++

While things were unraveling at the cathedral, that same morning would be the C.O.R.I.A's biggest operation yet. Mazzie was up long before dawn getting things ready. It was tax day, and her full force of creatures under her command would be aiming to send the entire party of vermin that would be coming into town that day, a score in all, high-tailing it back to the cathedral. Mazzie had planned this moment for a week in advance. Previously, the C.O.R.I.A had slain a little bit more than a score of vermin since the birth of the rebellion three weeks prior. Now there was potential to double that number in a single day with the biggest attack yet. Finally, they would be stepping into the light not as an unnamed group of rebels, but as the Community Of Revolutionaries In Agrinaut. It was imperative that everything went smoothly.

But before she could begin, there was a couple of esthetics that needed to be taken care of first. Moonset, Lakkle, Henry, Ollen, Fee, Marco and Ander all met at the table on the lower level of Ander's home about an hour before sunrise. "Alright, before we can move forward with today, we first need to prepare some propaganda that we can put up afterward. Here I have a bunch of reed parchments that we can use and Ollen was kind enough to donate his art supplies for us to use as well. What we need is enough flyers to be on each street and corner, so let's get to work!"

Lakkle put a paw to his stomach, "Er, Maz? Ye think we c'n get a little bit o' grub while we work? We ran outta food at my house yesterday morn."

"Sure, I'll see what I can scrape t'gether here. Won't be much, though. You lot get to work on the posters, for now." The group set to work on making their propaganda and Mazzie began heating up some snow over the fireplace.

About a half-hour in, Ollen looked at what everybeast else was up to. "Erm, Moonset, what're you doing? We're supposed t' be drawing propaganda, not, erm, whatever that is." He said.
Moonset looked surprised, "What ever are you talking about? It looks fine!"

Fee grabbed Moonset's paper and looked at it with a furled brow. "Why did you draw a pirate ship?"

"That's not a pirate ship, it's an abstract of the C.O.R.I.A fighting The Plague!"

"Are you sure? It really does look like a pirate ship, not a good one, but certainly not a couple o' beasts fighting each other." Fee replied.

Moonset's jaw dropped and he traced the figures with his paw, "See here! Here we see the mouse's head, his torso, sword, tail, legs, and arms... and here is my satirical representation of Damien, right there, plain as day!"

"Are you sure about that, mate?" I still don't see it." Said Henry, and he cupped a paw to his mouth to stifle a laugh.

Moonset reached across the table, "Surely you are mistaken! See here, at least it is better than Lakkle's mess of squiggles..."

Lakkle tried to stop Moonset, but was not quick enough. "No-no-no-no don't, th' paper's still... wet... nice one, bozo." The others all around the pair burst out laughing and Moonset wiped a black smudged paw on a clean sheet of paper.

"Whoa, whoa, what do y' think yer doin' there, mate? Those are clean sheets! Here, use the scrap pile." Said Ollen and he passed Moonset his own flyers.

"Oh, ha, ha, very witty you little river-poodle. I do not have to stand for this, I am an artiste!"

"Well, would you mind 'artiste-ing' your way off the table and back into a seat? We have some ground to make up now that we have twenty duds." Said Ander.

The white otter gathered his flyers, and what dignity he had left, in a bundle and hugged them close. "Well fine! I shall then make myself useful in another fashion. Perhaps I will see if Mazzie needs any help in the kitchen."

Ander elbowed Lakkle in the ribs gently, "Heh, let's hope that he can cook better than he can draw!"

+++++

Everybeast was at Ander's house by dawn. They all lined up in front of a table as Roon Golunt had them write their name on a paper to sign in—they couldn't have anybeast that wasn't already in the rebellion showing up, so this was their way of making sure of it. When everybeast was in and accounted for, Mazzie stood on the lower level table so that all who were present could see her. Creatures were tightly packed in Ander's little home. They stood shoulder to shoulder on the lower floor and made the floor of the loft upstairs bow downward with their weight. Mazzie silenced the group by raising her paws.

"Alright, this is our biggest offensive against The Plague to date." She quickly silenced the cheers that followed, "Please, we can't be too loud here, we'll have our opportunity to do that within just a few hours... Now, I'm not going to waste too much time with an unnecessary speech because it'd be nothing that you haven't already heard from me. I just want to tell you all how proud of yourselves you should be, puttin' yourself out there an' risking it all for the sake of Agrinaut. After our victory, today, we'll no longer be a secret organization, but a public guardian protecting the town. Seeing so many courageous creatures stand up for what is right will certainly bring a whole new chunk of the town onto our side. Today, we'll take down the taxers, by the end of the week, we'll liberate the jail, by the end of next week, we are going to march on Agrinaut with a full force reequipped and reborn. We'll be ready to take back our homeland and cure it of this disease!" There would be no stopping the wild cheers that followed, so little Mazzie the mouse yelled above them, "Alright my friends, we've got work to do, grab your weapons and let's git going to the square!"

As the C.O.R.I.A burst out of Ander's house with spirits at an all-time high, one lone creature managed to stay behind and sneak a list of names into his pocket before heading off in the opposite direction.

A voice called from the opposite direction. "Hey, where do ye think you're goin', Roon? We're goin' this way, hurry up or you'll be left behind!"

Cursing under his breath, Roon nodded and ran after the rest of the rebels.

+++++

The C.O.R.I.A emerged into the square while the morning was still quiet. A few early risers who were out and about were shocked out of their skin to see a revolution happening right there in the streets. Some applauded the large force, others groaned and scolded them. The C.O.R.I.A in turn gave the same response to everybeast: get to safety or get a pitchfork.

Soon they arrived at the square and cleared it out of any creatures who would not be joining the effort. Though there was some trouble with a couple of middle-aged beasts who protested the entire operation to the point where their presence would give away any surprise attack. However, a quick glare from a few younger recruits with fire in their blood convinced them to 'let the oafs figure it out for themselves'.

Some of the force hid behind various areas such as empty barrels and crates, old signs, porch staircases and the run down kiosks around the edges. The remainder of the group pretended to be the regular morning crowd going about their business in the square.

"C'mon mate, act natural! Yer makin' a fool o' yourself."

"Ah'm sorreh! Actin' ain't mah strongsuit 'ight? How can a beast try tae act normal when there's a bloody brawl aboot tae come this way down th' road?"

"Psst! would the two of you kindly zip your lips with all of this rubbish! We are not putting on a performance, merely doing our morning duties as one would. Pretend that this is any other day, the battle shall come soon enough."

"Bah, that's easy fer yoo t' say, Moonset, yer an actor!"

"Just do as I say and keep your mouth shut lest you want to spoil the surprise!" Moonset stormed away, but even still put on a convincing act.

"'Pretend that this is any other day', huh, I'd still be in bed if that was true."

"Quit et, 'ere they come. Wait for Lakkle's signal."

The taxers walked into town, a score in all and most half-drunken from the endless amounts of fermented drinks which Agrinaut's wheat harvest provided (a discovery much later found that vermin brew was nothing like the native local brewer's. Vermin brew seemed to only make a beast groggy and irritated). The whole crew walked into the square with the rat captain, who always seemed to exaggerate his power in front of the prairie beasts, leading the way, empty sack over his shoulder. The first beast he approached was the first one who cut him off: Lakkle.

"Alright, you, don't try an' ignore us. Give us yer tax and you can be on your way."

Lakkle shrugged the rat's paw off of his shoulder, "Buzz off, you know we don't got no more money left. Why don't you go back to the cathedral..."

"Excuse me?!" The rat grabbed the squirrel and pulled him close by the collar of his shirt. "Little getan, I'll cut yer tongue out fer talkin' back t' me, c'mere!"

"This is your last chance, rat. Leave Agrinaut or be killed. You've overstayed your welcome here four seasons too long!" The rat grunted and reached for the knife at his belt only to find it missing. "Oh, is this yours?" Lakkle held the knife in front of the rat's face and feigned a strike. He let Lakkle go and flinched in response, which gave the nimble squirrel ample time to get a few paces out of the rat's reach.

The rat captain, now backed by his band of a score of Plaguers all armed to the teeth, yelled out, "That's it! Cuttin' yer slimy li'l tongue out 'd be far too generous a punishment for a runt like you. I'll see to it that you rot in the jail for the rest o' yer days! Ole Damien won't see ye fer a sentincin' o' death if'n he doesn't know yer in there! Now come peacefully, runt. It's twenty of us versus only one of you." And a sinister grin spread across his patchy face.

Lakkle also cracked a grin. "Oh, I think it's much more 'n jus' one of me." The rebels of the square all stopped their business and turned to face the vermin party, pitchforks, spades, hoes, and staves in paw. "Captain, I'd like you to meet the Community Of Revolutionaries In Agrinaut."

The grin on the Plague Captain's face melted away and he looked on in disbelief. Just like that, the tables were flipped to nearly three-to-one in the opponent's favor. An officer from behind him stepped forward, "Return to your homes an' we'll spare ye this once. This is your last warnin'!" The rebels did not budge.

Now faced with an unfavorable situation and deprived of their weapon of intimidation, the captain tried to think of something. "You're all bluffing. You don't have the gall!"

"Go ahead, captain, try your luck and see what happens." Replied Lakkle. "Or, there's always the option of running away."

The rat captain gave a grunt and turned away towards the cathedral. "We'll be back, you scum. We'll squish you like the bugs you are!"

However, the vermin did not make it much farther than a couple of paces when they realized that they were surrounded. A little-hooded mousemaid with an iron hoe stood at the center. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "There's been a change of plans, rat. You've pushed this town around for far too long to get a second chance! C.O.R.I.A, attack!"

Just like that, the first battle of Agrinaut's second revolution movement began, and it didn't last too long, either.

+++++

"What the devil's goin' on here?!"

Two stoats each armed with long pole-spears had arrived on the square with what appeared to be a hooded rat between them. The three were in complete shock of what they had stumbled across and stood with dropped jaws: twenty vermin and a few prairie creatures lay slain in the square. All around, native beasts were being treated for wounds or just stumbling onto the scene for the first time, themselves. A great number of them armed with swords, daggers, axes, and farming supplies.

Quickly recomposing himself, one of the stoats shook a closed fist at the armed rebels, "Lord Damien 'll hear about this, you'll all burn for what you've done!" He and the other stoat turned and ran full speed back to the cathedral, leaving the third beast behind to die.

"Hurry, take the rascals down before they make a getaway!" Moonset's voice called. Several creatures ran after the two vermin with pitchforks held high. The rat appeared unfazed and didn't move from his spot. Before the rebels had a chance to reach him, the 'rat' removed his hood to show that he was actually a mouse and he stepped to the side as they all ran by. With a smile, Leonardo hopped into step towards the center of the square but was met with a spear at his nose.

"Hold it right there! Surely you did not think that I would let a mouse get away simply for being a mouse! Nice try, villain, but collaborators are no better than vermin!"

"Moonset, stop!" Mazzie's voice called from behind. Moonset appeared puzzled.

"Mazzie, what are you doing? He is clearly a collaborator, not one of us!" Leonardo gently pushed the pointed spear to the side and got a hug from Mazzie.

Moonset was completely caught off guard, "Would somebeast like to explain to me what exactly is going on, here?"

Mazzie took a step back, "Moonset, I want you to meet Leonardo. He's the one who made all of this possible!"

Even despite Mazzie's claim, the otter was still suspicious. "I have never seen him before. What was he doing with those vermin?"

"Leonardo's been our spy on the inside of the cathedral. He's acting as a seer for Damien and trying to take the whole Plague down from the inside."

The actor was shocked, "Goodness, that is quite the assignment. May I ask, who else knew of this?"

"Most everybeast knows him around here as Leonardo and that he's on our side, but why he's always accompanied by vermin into town has stayed a mystery to most of them. Nothing to worry about, though."

Leonardo extended his paw, "Nice to meet you, Moonset, but there's no time for chit-chat. Mazzie, I need to speak with you immediately. You're all in great danger!"

Mazzie looked puzzled, "Why, what's going on?"

Leonardo dismissed Moonset with a wave and brought Mazzie to the side. He leaned heavily on a nearby barrel and said, "There's a collaborator in town. I don't know his name, but I do know that he's probably infiltrated the C.O.R.I.A by now and you need to find out who it is. He's a vole about this tall... middle aged, dark brown fur, green eyes, and was wearing this weird lookin' pair o' pauper's shoes. Do ye know who he is?"

Mazzie thought hard but shook her head. "I-I can't think of anybeast off the top o' my head."

"Guh, alright, c'mon and gather your troops an' we'll line 'em up if we have to!"

As Mazzie and Leonardo started getting everything sorted out, a single eye peeked out of a cork hole in the barrel which Leonardo leaned on. That was no seer, it was a rebel spy! Damien would undoubtedly pay a hefty sum for such information, enough for him to save his family and get them out of here!

+++++

All able rebels lined up side by side right there in the battle-scared square and waited for inspection patiently. It wasn't quite clear what was going on to most of the group, but there was something about the way that the old mouse carried himself among them that showed the matter was serious. He paced back and forth, stopping at some creatures to look them up and down.

"I apologize for my escort causing such a hassle. Did you catch them?" He said rather coldly. It was not that the creatures feared Leonardo, they knew he was at the front of the fight for Agrinaut's liberation, but wherever he walked seemed to bring about an atmosphere of a respectful terror. They wanted to know more about him but could not bring themselves to talk to him like they did to Mazzie or their other friends. This beast was different, like a seasonsed general.

"Aye, captain, we caught them, sir."

"Good to hear it. That just bought you lot a few extra hours before Damien hears about all of this and makes a move. He should know that he can only punish the town so hard before he begins to kill off too many of his subjects, but with his current mental state, not even that is certain. I should be able to sway his actions so that nothing truly bad comes upon you all. However, there are bigger things to worry about at the moment. You see, Damien has sent out a spy to gather your information and report back to him so that he can deal with the social unrest critically. What we don't know is if they have already infiltrated the C.O.R.I.A or not, which puts us in a bit of a pinch when it comes to the next steps for the revolution. I've seen him, yes, him, and I know what he looks like." Leonardo repeated the same description he had given to Mazzie, and two creatures were sent forward by their peers who matched the appearance.

"Was it one of these two?" Mazzie asked.

Leonardo looked them up and down, "No. Neither one of 'em. I guess you lot are lucky. Who knows what could've happened if the spy was successful? Ok, Mazzie, if you don't mind me taking over fer jus' a bit, I'll start these lads on the cleanup." Mazzie gave a shy nod and smiled. Ander put a warming paw on her shoulder and Leonardo addressed the large crowd and the rebels in the square. "Listen up, mates, I'm only gonna say this once: We don't have a whole lot o' time to clean everythin' up an' we could use all the spare paws we could get. Let's ship the wounded to the other edge o' town and tend to 'em there where they'll be safest. From then on, we'll clean up our dead an' you can throw the taxers in a ditch wherever you'd like. Split up into groups to cover more ground quicker." He turned to Mazzie. "Does that about sum it up?"

Mazzie gave a nod and said "Just about, but there's one thing missing..." Mazzie then grabbed a rolled up cloth and a spear on the ground near the edge of the square. Walking to the center of the square and unraveling the cloth, Mazzie jabbed it onto the end of the spearhead and stuck the butt between two pieces of cobblestone on the ground. The result was a banner that hung vertically and moved in the chilled wind. It read:

Down With The Plague!
The C.O.R.I.A is
Taking Back Agrinaut!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you're reading this, thanks for sticking around this long! This chapter took a surprisingly small amount of time to write. I had a general plan of what I wanted to happen at this point and everything wound up flowing out of my head pretty easily.

One question that popped up in a peer-review was why Mazzie should be nervous about the list of names getting to Damien if the C.O.R.I.A is stepping out from the shadows as a definite group. I replied that the list is a problem for a two main reasons:

1.) The revolutionaries did not know who the collaborator was at the time (or if they had already been infiltrated or not). This means that even more valuable information could leak out if they did not find the spy in time.

2.) Having a definite list of names would give Damien some leverage over the Rebellion. He would be able to use other beasts (i.e prisoners, other townsfolk, wanted posters) as a sort of leverage to weed out specific beasts behind the revolution. For example, what if Damien posted a wanted poster with Mazzie's name on it and a reward being enough food to last the winter?

So I hope that this helped explain that for you guys. If you have any other questions, comments, or constructive criticism, feel free to leave a post!

The next chapter will be out in three days, so stay tuned!

[Captain Tammo]

Chapter 12 (or 44)

Unfortunately for the rat king, Damien, the C.O.R.I.A was not the only rebellion developing under his nose. Kovur was amassing quite a few creatures under his command as Damien was occupied with the nearing full moon. Ever since Leonardo had leaked that Damien's fate was known to him (after which, just as Leonardo expected, he woke up to the knifepoint of one of Kovur's followers and was forced to tell the alleged death-date), Kovur felt a spark of hope and he immediately began devising a plan of attack. The number of creatures was never something that was officially taken down, but it is believed that Kovur's secret rebellion had nearly a quarter of Damien's remaining force behind him (somewhere around five and a half score beasts). It took relatively little convincing to sway those who were beginning to doubt Damien's rule into joining Kovur. For vermin who were still on the fence with which side to take, it was a difficult choice with outcomes that were equally blurred. If they joined Kovur and the rebellion was crushed, they would be viewed as traitors and killed. If they stayed with Damien, they would be loyal beasts, but would be serving a king who had both his power and his sanity clearly on the decline, which would give Kovur the leadership advantage. However, the experience and number advantage was still Damien's. For many, it appeared to be a 50-50 chance of death. Though this was without factoring in the revolution that had just sparked in the square, and had yet to reach the ears of those inside the cathedral.

A weasel named Bozir sat just across from the hooded Kovur towards the royal portal and discussed their next moves among Plague beasts who were only half-loyal. "What's the plan, boss, I'm itchin' fer a change in power t' happen already. The ole oaf's slidin' down the slope faster 'n he can pull himself up."

The fox poked at a kindling fire with a narrow stick, "Patience, Bozir, we will have our chance."
However, the weasel was not entirely convinced. "Alright boss, but I'd hurry if I was you. I dunno what yer doin' to manage keepin' all these beasts quiet 'bout the plan, but no matter how good ye contain it, somebeast is gonna squeal somewhere. If yer not careful, we cudd all end up with our heads on spear ends!"

Kovur shook his head, "You've nothing to worry about, Bozir, it won't be our heads that are on the spear. It'll be his." He pointed to the throne that a small crew of vermin were setting back on the high altar for when Damien returned from the east chapel. "And don't worry about yourself. I trust you more 'n anybeast else, an' you'll earn a spot as my right arm when we take over. You'll be rich as a king!"

Bozir gave a grin but did not bow as he did not want to draw attention to himself. "You'll make history, boss, like one o' those beasts they write songs 'bout." As the weasel got up and left for another part of the cathedral, Kovur watched Damien return to the throne. He was still that same image of fear that he instilled in creatures, but now there was something else that was off with his appearance. Most vermin would probably become even more fearful of the king and his new look, but Kovur saw straight through it and found that it was only a weakness that was waiting to be exploited.

Damien sat on his throne, now calmed and fully recovered from the incident that happened earlier that day. No sooner had Damien sat had Roon the vole been escorted through the Southern portal to the base of the high altar. The confident look on his puppet's face reassured him that there was some much-needed good news to be heard. The red greatrat gave a grin when he talked to the kneeling vole, "Tell me what word you bring with you of the rebellion."

Roon, though he was confident, was by no means comfortable with where he was. A cold drop of sweat rolled down his brow as he felt the point of a spearhead against the back of his neck. "I have the information you want. Now will you see to it that my family is not harmed and has food for the winter?"

Damien stretched sideways across his throne and picked between his teeth with a grimy claw. "Gimme the list o' names an' we'll talk about it." Roon carefully reached a quivering paw into his coat pocket and brought out a yellow page filled with the names of various creatures. A red fox snatched it away from him and brought it up to the altar with his eyes facing downward. Damien looked at Roon and then read the list through. "You've done well. I'll send word into town for my taxers to find them and collect them.

"You won't find them, they've all been killed by the rebels." The words escaped Roon's mouth before he thought about what he was even saying. Even though his field of view consisted of only the stone floor of the cathedral, he could have described the sudden change in expression on Damien's face with perfect precision. The rat king's smile was instantly wiped away and replaced with a scowl. He turned his eyes from the paper to Roon and spun himself about in his chair so that he was sitting properly again.

"...What did you just say?" He asked him.

Roon was now in a bit of a panic. He tried to steady his breathing and winced as the spearhead pressed against his neck harder. "I said that your taxers are all dead. The rebels launched an attack this morning and took them all by surprise. I tried to sneak away and tell you sooner— I really did! But I... Oof!"

Damien launched himself from the top of the altar and delivered a heavy blow with the back of his limp arm and tail. Roon skidded across the floor and came to a halt several paces away. The vole picked himself up on all four paws and put his paw to a bleeding lip. Damien's tail wrapped around his neck and lifted him up high into the air. "Why did you not come to me sooner? Do you realize that I have just lost a full score o' beasts because of your carelessness?! Do you have any idea who you're messing with, runt?" He began to squeeze his tail hard and cut off Roon's air supply. He struggled and kicked at Damien, but Roon's short legs fell just out of reach. "I should squish you like the bug you are, but perhaps you may be of some use still. I'll keep you around until the rebellion is entirely gone, and should anything go wrong, it'll cost the nice little vole family a member or two.

Roon was dropped to the ground and he rubbed his neck with his paw with a gasp of air. "But you promised..."

"Our deal was made to prevent more of my beasts from being killed. Yet your laziness has brought an end to a score of them, so I think I'll be holding off on my end of the deal until you can prove to be a worthy investment. Take 'im away an' send him back into town."

Roon was grabbed by two vermin and dragged on his heels backward down to the transept and towards the southern portal. "No, stop! I did my part, you cheated! Ugh... Ugh... I can show you who their leader is!"

Damien was not convinced. He flicked at the paper with his paw, "Well if this paper is of any representation, it's a beast named Mazzie Mosey."

"No, she's only their second in command. The real power belongs to a beast not on that list! Had I not stayed a second longer, I would've missed 'im." The guards stopped at a wave of the king's paw and the vole fell on his rear.

The greatrat left the high altar and approached Roon. He marched down the South wing of the cathedral, his long black cape flowing behind him like the dark of night. The chains of his tunic clinked together with a haunting rhythm that sent a chilling wind through the air. Lowering himself to meet the vole's eye level, Damien lifted Roon's chin up with his worm-like tail and looked into his eyes. "Alright then, puppet, you say that you can show me where their leader is, so let's take a stroll into town. You're working for me now so you don't have to worry about carrying the wrong image on your shoulders, heh, heh, heh!" With a large wave of his paw, King Damien gave his orders, "I want five score out front in sixty seconds!"

Lakkle stood in the square finishing up the last of the cleanup from the day's battle. He looked at the cobbled ground, now scrubbed clean of the foul smelling blood and corpses. "Alright, team, I'd say we did a good job! It's like nothing even happened." There were only a couple of volunteers left who were tidying things up for the town. One of them, a middle-aged mousemaid who was straightening up an old, empty trading kiosk felt compelled to ask Lakkle what must have been on many beasts' minds.

"Why exactly are we cleaning ev'rythin' in this square up, anyways? We all know it wasn't this clean to start with an' as soon as The Plague finds out 'bout all o' this it'll certainly get messed up again."

Lakkle stretched backwards along his back after relieving himself of a pair of heavy water buckets. He responded with a crack in his back and a weary reply, "We know it'll pro'ly git ruined by all them vermin, but what we're doin' is makin' a statement. We're showin' the town how much nicer it's gotten now that a little bit o' The Plague's been washed out of our systems. It's s'posed t' make creatures see the good that comes from fightin' fer our liberation an' that t'gether we can rebuild Agrinaut."

The mousemaid nodded her head and rested her chin on her broomstick. "Huh, I don't think I ever really thought of it that way... Say, how long have you all been at this revolution stuff, agin? Seems like it's been goin' on fer some time."

Lakkle pushed his straw hat up so he could look her in the eyes when he said, "The battle's been goin' on ever since the day those Plague Doctors came into town. Ugh, those uns always gimme the creeps. Can't wait 'til they're all gone... Say, what's the matter, Terra... huh?" Terra put a paw to her mouth and nearly burst into fearful tears and she pointed a paw behind Lakkle. The squirrel turned around and saw none other than the Plague Doctors walking into town, carrying with them a silence that echoed off of the houses and chilled the air a bit more. Lakkle's face went pale with alarm, "I think they've found out about the taxers. C'mon, Terra, we gotta go warn the others before it's too late!" Lakkle pressed one paw to his hat and the other in the mousemaid's paw as they ran away down the streets shouting,

"Everybeast lock down, The Plague Doctors are here!"

While Lakkle and Terra were trying to warn the town about the coming of the doctors, and something horrible that would surely follow closely behind, Leonardo was with Mazzie and Ander in Ander's home on the opposite side of town. The three were having an early dinner to celebrate the day's events. While Mazzie set the table and Ander stirred up the soup over the fire (which, due to the lack of food, was more like a flavored water with a carrot or two thrown in with a few dull spices), Leonardo was looking at an old ship model sitting above the mantel. It was a caravel, much like the one that he had captained many seasons ago. He touched the hull of it and the necklace he wore around his neck with a nostalgic sigh. "Where are we now, eh?" he said to himself quietly.

Ander appeared to notice Leonardo's curiosity, "Ah, yes, I see you've discovered my model of the Windwalker. It was a famous exploration vessel that the founders of Agrinaut used to find a new spot to settle. They had sailed from the other end of the Great Eastern Sea all the way over here to find a trade route to a far away land. The captain, Reagan Malkitty, claimed that if he sailed far enough in one direction, he would wind up going around the world and end in the same spot. He said that the other end of the sea to their west was the land to their east. Huh, the beast was a total loon, I think. But hey, he discovered a great place!"

Leonardo pondered the idea for a minute, "Go 'round the world to the same spot, eh. Can't say I've ever really thought about things that way before, but if things like turtles can exist, being part stone an' part beast, I suppose that a round world isn't too far-fetched, either. It'd be quite an interesting idea to try out for yourself, though. Perhaps I'm a bit too old for those adventures now..."

Ander tested the soup with a ladle and dumped the rest of the dusty spices in. "Oh, don't tell me that you believe that nonsense too, now! C'mon, mate, if the world was round, we'd all jus' fall off the edge like a bunch o' fruit rolling off the table. Heh, now if you've managed to do as much to Damien's head as you say you have, I wonder if you could git 'im to believe it, too! Ha, ha-ha!"

"Speaking of Damien, when exactly do you need to be back at the cathedral, Leonardo? Won't you get in trouble fer stayin' away for this long?"

Leonardo dismissed the idea with a wave of his paw, "Naw, I jus' have t' tell the ole nutjob that his guards ditched me durin' the fight an' left me t' die. He'll buy it, no doubt."

"Soup's ready to eat. Go on lad, sit down an' we'll all have a nice meal. It ain't much, but it's the best that we could throw t'gether fer a special occasion." Said Ander.

They all sat around the table and appreciated the meager meal that they ate. Mazzie rested her chin on her paw and slipped into a daydream while Ander and Leonardo conversed.

"So, tell me, are they feedin' you much better in the cathedral?" he said.

The old wanderer could see the anger in the sturdy hedgehog's eyes and thought about it. "For the most part, yes, but the vermin don't know how to store food and grain properly, so most of the harvests have been kept fresh by the cold alone. Though most of 'em will scrape together some fish or bird eggs anyway. Anythin' but the food that isn't meat to them, which I suppose just leaves more frozen bread for me. I'll bring a loaf next time I visit town."

Ander took a sip of the soup and savored it before swallowing. "Where do they get the eggs from if there's none here in the winter?"

Leonardo shrugged, "A lot of them are gull eggs, but some are raven eggs from The Plague itself. This lot can be terrible when it comes to food. It makes suppers like this one much more enjoyable."

Ander was stunned to hear this. He gasped, "Y' mean to tell me that they're eating their own young over there? Great seasons, somebeast do us all a favor an' lock 'em all in the labyrinth!"

"You know, this is my first meal at a proper table with proper food in weeks. I was beginning to forget what it was like."

The homely hedgehog gave a warm smile, "Well, you're always welcome to stop by anytime you're around, mate, an' we'll give ye a nice, family sit down supper for ye."

The old wanderer smiled softly, "Thank you very much, Ander, it means quite a lot."

Mazzie snapped back out of her daydream and interjected the conversation with an unrelated topic. "Hey Leonardo, in all your travels, what was the scariest moment that occurred to you?" The pair looked at Mazzie with rather bewildered expressions.

Leonardo raised one eyebrow. "The scariest moment of my life? Oh, my, there's been quite a few, you see. Enough to turn my hair gray by the time that I was still young. But this story is nothing that will help the situation occurring in Agrinaut right now. All you need to know is that courage does not mean that you aren't afraid of anythin'. Courage means that even if you're scared outta your wits, you keep moving."

Mazzie crossed her arms and lowered her brow a little bit, clearly irritated by the response she got. "But what beast in their right mind would..."

"Wait a minute." Leonardo raised a paw claw to his lips to signal Ander and Mazzie to be quiet. "Did you hear that? I think somebeast is outside the—"

Suddenly the door of the house was violently thrown open. There in the doorway stood Roon the vole accompanied by none other than Damien the Damned himself. The vole pointed an accusing paw directly at Leonardo, "There he is, there's the traitor!"

The red rat's brow lowered and he shoved Roon aside with his good arm and marched straight inside. His powerful tail hit like a bolt of lightning and wrapped itself around Leonardo and lifted him over the table and into the air. "When you told me that there was a traitor among my ranks, I had a feeling, but I never would've accused you of being the one for fear of angering the spirits. I now see that it was all a ruse to knock me off of my throne. Well, I have this to tell you, you little cockroach: I have a new plan for you, and it involves begging for death and never receiving it. You're gonna rot in the jail until I find a punishment suitable for one as low as you! And don't think any of your little rebel friends 'll be comin' to help you out, I'll see to it that security remains top-notch around that joint. Heh, heh, heh, you're their hero, aren't you?" He turned to little Mazzie, who was struck still by fear as if she was looking at the devil himself. "Well, you've given me your hero, let me give you a tragedy... Oof!"

Ander bowled straight into the red greatrat and knocked him to the ground and Leonardo loose from Damien's grip. "You'll have t' go through me an' all of Agrinaut first, punk! Run, Mazzie, go out th' back, I'll hold 'im off!"

Damien's eyes went wide with realization, "Mazzie," he said quietly to himself. Then, putting two and two together, he gave a roar. "Stop the mousemaid, she's one o' them!"

Mazzie could hardly move. Leonardo grabbed her and pulled her up the stairs to a back window, he put his paws on her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"I can't, Leo, I can't, I just can't..."

"Listen t' me, Mazzie—"

"I can't, I can't, we gotta help 'im!"

"Shut up an' listen t' me, this is no time to lock up on us. Remember what I just said about courage? Well, I need ye t' do that an' I'll go back to help Ander. You're the creature Agrinaut needs t' liberate it an' we can't have you goin' an' gittin' yerself killed. Just stick with the plan an' I promise it'll be jus' fine, Mazz! C'n you do that fer me?"

Mazzie nodded her head and climbed up on the windowsill. Meanwhile, Leonardo leaped downstairs, but a few seconds too late. There on the ground was Ander, his body crumpled and disfigured, and with Damien standing above him. "Come to me now, filthy worm, and I promise to consider mercy on your wretched soul!"

"I don't think so, vermin scum, time ain't on your side anymore. All I have t' do is hold out here an' the C.O.R.I.A 'll have ye surrounded an' outnumbered."

The red rat gave a wicked laugh, "Well played, mouse, but how about we raise the stakes a little bit. If you come to me now, I'll spare this oaf's life!" He said and he placed the heel of his boot gently on top of Ander's groaning head. Leonardo seemed to give it a thought for a minute, either thinking that he was going to save Ander or buying Mazzie a little more time to get away.

Finally, he said, "Alright, rat, you've got your deal."

As Leonardo was escorted out of Ander's home, paws tied behind his back, he managed to give a glare at Roon. "Was it worth it, pal? You've just sold a whole lot more lives than just mine to get what you want, so I sure hope it was."

Damien gave a nod to one of his captains and Leonardo was given a hard hit atop his head, knocking him senseless and sending the copper coin from Leonardo's head flying through the air. A second nod tied up Roon to be brought along, and a third torched the house. By the time that any sleeping creatures could wake and form a bucket brigade at Ander's house, the Plague had already left its mark.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We're starting to near the end of the story and, with that, the entire Simon series (but don't worry, you can bet that there'll be a battle worthy of ending the whole thing off properly)! The next chapter will be out in three days, so stay tuned!

[Captain Tammo]

Chapter 13 (or 45)

Leonardo woke up in Agrinaut's jail with a familiar coldness about him. It wasn't just on his fur, but he felt it in his head. Something was wrong and he knew it, but what?

"Psst. Lee, over here!"

Leonardo turned to see Roon standing in the cell opposite of his own, clutching the bars desperately. "What are you doing in here?"

Roon looked down shamefully. "I thought that I'd get my family what they needed to survive the winter by doin' this, but I guess that Damien had other plans fer me."

The wanderer sat up and crossed his legs in front of him. "Though I can understand why a beast would want to put their family first, you were willing to put the whole rebellion on the chopping block, and those two are not the same. You an' yer family would've suffered through winter, but so would the rest of us. O' course your family will get enough food now. There's gonna be plenty to go 'round once half the town gets killed off!"

Roon did not give a reply. What could he even say back to that? Leonardo was right. So for a long time, Roon did not say anything. With the idea of conversation now gone and Roon now stuck with the thoughts of his consequences, the two of them slept on and off and tried to conserve their energy for whatever punishments would be coming.

Leonardo squirmed around on his straw mat; he was dreaming that he was sailing on the Seapark once more. There he was, looking over the guard rail of the ship and watching as moonlit waves lapped against the hull of the ship with the same beat as his heart. He was the only one on deck, all of his friends were below on the lower levels sleeping. He tied the wheel in place with two lengths of rope and made his way across the length of the ship to the ship's spar.

Leonardo stepped up on to the rail and tested his footing on the spar. Taking a deep breath of the cool air, he let go and carefully walked down the beam like a trapeze artist and leaned over the tip, holding on to only the rigging for balance. The salty wind combed through his fur, relaxed his muscles, and filled his lungs. There never was anything quite like a walk on the deck during a night like this. It was a time where all worries could just melt away. The moon was full and larger than he had ever seen, as were the stars, like little milk drops on a black sheet. No clouds covered his view, it was too nice of a night to have those lingering about. He had never before been at such peace in his life as that moment.

Unfortunately, it was short-lived.

There came a cackling noise from behind him. Leonardo turned around to see a grotesque and demented figure standing behind the wheel of the ship. It looked like a stuffed rat that had been ripped apart and sewn back together again with the limbs of different creatures. Leonardo jumped back onto the deck and reached for his sword, but found that it was not there.

"Who are you?"

The monster cackled again, "Oh, I should be offended that you don't know me by now! After all, we've spent so much time together over the seasons."

The voice itself made Leonardo shiver. He barred his teeth and snarled. "Simon!"

"Right you are, matey!" He spun the wheel wildly and the ship lurched. Leonardo was thrown down and nearly sent overboard. When he finally stood, he found himself in a completely new location. The water around the ship had turned to fire and purple smoke. The cries for help from long distant friends polluted the air above them. Leonardo made a lunge towards the upper deck where Simon stood, but became rooted in place by chains. "Ah, ah, ah. I wouldn't make it that easy fer ye."

"What do you want, Simon?"

Simon leaped over the wheel and landed just out of Leonardo's reach. He smiled wickedly; insects crawled through his hair and the stitches that held him together. He muttered one word that made his eyes grow wide, "Control! You have held me back for far too long, Leo. It's time that I had control of us for a while." He made his way back up to the ship's wheel.

"But this is impossible, Martin killed, how are you here right now?!" Leonardo cried.

Simon shrugged, "Simple, you let me back in. I came back to you and found the door left wide open. I tried breaking in a few times, like when you saw the witch, the seer, the medium, all them. But who would've thunk that it would be you who opened the door for me? Heh, ain't that the greatest! Now we can be together forever, yeeheeheehee!"

"No... No, no, no you can't do this Simon! This is my head, my body! You scummy monster, let me go!"

Simon looked down on his hapless prisoner and gave a toothy grin. "Make me you mad fool!"

Simon's cackles were still echoing in Leonardo's ears when he woke up. He laid his head back and thought carefully for a moment. This had never happened before and he did not know what to make of it. Was it a dream and simply that, or was this actually Simon coming forth with a physical form for the first time? The thought itself seemed maddening to Leonardo and he shrugged his shoulders uncomfortably.

A few days passed in silence. Roon passed them sleeping and pacing around in his cell, but never saying anything to the wanderer. Leonardo spent much of his time meditating and trying to clear his thoughts of the horrors that were now beginning to lay siege to his consciousness.

+++++

There, high up in the land behind the mountain, Leonardo sat next to Sensui Kai, a monk who was an expert in what he called 'Kee' and meditation. Together they sat in silence, learning about the ways of nature dressed in long yellow and red togas.

"Meditation is much like watching the clouds on an autumn day. You allow the clouds to float across the sky without focusing on a single one or group for an extended period. By letting the clouds come and go as they please, it often feels like emptying your mind of all of the strain you put it under so often. Deep breaths. Deep breaths and relaxation are the key." Said Sensui Kai. "Focus on your Kee, feel it flow through you. Only then will you be able to let go and be free. There is no other way to escape suffering."

+++++

Leonardo did not dwell on the thoughts that tempted to pierce his mental defense. Not the continuous dripping of the groundwater onto the same mounted torch each minute, nor did he think about the freezing cold temperatures of his cell and body. The shuffling of Roon's feet as he paced around his adjacent cell and the squelching sound of the black goop under Roon's paws did not shake Leonardo's concentration. The ratguards drinking and conversing loudly at their posts down the hall at the front of the jail did not make him sway, nor the shaking of the jail's front and only door in the winter wind could make him come out of his trance. Of all of the thoughts that tried to jab at his mind: what horrible consequences the town must have been going through; if the rebellion was on the offense or was terminated; if Kovur the red fox was going to make his move; if this was truly the end for him; none were successful at breaking Leonardo out of his meditation shell. For three days this continued, only breaking to drink the water that trickled down through the crumbling ceiling. He focused on no single idea for more than a second.

Yet one thing did manage to get into Leonardo's head and seem to hover around. And this was no ordinary thought like he had hoped...

"Martin, help me! Gargh, please, I'm callin' on ye. Y' hear me? I'm callin' on ye, do something!" Roon was woken by the yelling coming from the wanderer's cell.

"What's goin' on, what's hapening?!" Roon cried fearfully. Leonardo continued yelling and the ratguards ran down the hall to his cell. "What's he doin'? You, hey, what's happened to 'im?"

The ratguard relaxed and shook her head at the beast behind the bars. "Hah, he's gone an' lost 'is marbles. I tell ya, it took 'im long enough fer that t' happen. Usually, these folks only last a couple o' days afore they start goin' crazy. This 'uns been in here twice an' I was startin' t' think that 'e was made o' somethin' else... D'ah well, stinks fer 'im. Say... you ain't lookin' crazy yet, either. Don't ya know you've got an execution comin' up fer ya?"

Roon's eyes nearly popped out of his head with fright. "W-w-w-whaaaaat?!"

The ratguard cupped her mouth in mock shock, "Whoopsies! Looks like ye weren't supposed to know that bit. D'ah well!" With this, she walked back to the front of the jail.

Roon, now more desperate than ever to find a solution, tried to get ahold of the strange mouse, who was still yelling and now scratching at his ears and head. "Lee, great seasons, Lee, I'm sorry okay? I'm sorry fer what I'd done did back there to ev'rybeast, but we're in serious trouble right now!"

There came no direct response, so Roon repeated himself and added, "They're gonna kill us both, Lee. C'mon mate ye gotta think o' something! If you could make the ratking go mad, surely you can get a couple o' beasts out of a slimy jail!"

Still no answer, but now the old wanderer's cries subsided and he was quiet, looking himself over as if he were in an entirely new body.

"Lee, please! We need to find a way outta here or else were both done for!"

"My name is not Lee." Was his reply.

"Er, what?" Said Roon, thrilled to finally get a reply after so long, but immediately regretting his response. The wanderer said nothing for a few seconds and Roon cursed under his breath. Had he just lost his chance at getting him to talk?

The old wanderer was crouched over a puddle in his cell. He turned to Roon and gave a glare that scared the vole stiff, "My name. Is. Siiiimoooon!"

Before Roon could reply, the ratguard was back with a large keyring, "Alright, mousey, time for yer trial. Oh, ugh!" She pulled back in disgust. "You really don't go mad as nice as the others do. 'ey, Rovanskowez, git off yer rotten tail an' bring me the catchpole fer mister bright-eyes over here... Yeesh!"

+++++

Leonardo was marched from the jail to the cathedral with an escort nearly five-score beasts strong. Clearly it was of great importance to Damien that his package made it to the cathedral on time. He was brought along the trail of beaten down snow, which covered the land's grass and enough of the ground to nearly reach above the average creature's footpaws. The sky was clear and the air was very crisp, but not cold enough to sting while so low to the ground. The constant wind managed to keep the snow looking like an untouched canvas. The cathedral loomed closer. For so long it had stood as a symbol of peace and hope, a bright stone-grey with windows that sparkled like beacons. Now blackened and deformed, it might as well have sat atop a lake of fire.

The thousands of gargoyles appeared blackened and were indistinguishable from the ravens and crows that were perched around them. The majority of the windows were now replaced with wooden planks and tattered canvas to keep out the cold. Above, on the belfries' bridge, weasels and stoats looked down from their guard and spat as Leonardo was passed through the royal portal into The Court of The Damned.

The royal court of Damien had changed over the past few days. Vermin of the horde lined both the left and right sides of the nave, booing, hissing, spitting and throwing garbage at the old wanderer, who in turn kept his head down and eyes locked forward, but not without the occasional twitch of his head as he struggled to regain control of himself. The aisle had been cleared and now there was a long, tattered, scarlet carpet that stretched the entire length of the nave and transept, all the way to the end of Lord Damien's altar-throne.

Up there, far ahead, Leonardo could see the red rat king looking more terrifying than ever. He lounged drunkenly on the throne, a wine goblet in one paw, a sword held by his tail, and his limp arm concealed under his long, midnight cape. His chain mail tunic rested heavily on his shoulders, but he kept them up with a high sense of mock royalty. His crown sat atop his head at an angle that was tipped forward, almost covering his eyes, which remained as colorless as ever. His lower half was dressed in a pair of silken white trousers that were now torn up to his knees. He wore a tall pair of boots, now worn down and one of them torn up in the front, revealing a pair of long pawclaws. On each side of the greatrat stood six Plague Doctors, motionless and silent as still shadows. It was like Damien was trying to make a satirical representation of a true monarch. A terrifying, nightmarish representation.

But there was something else, as the ever-struggling Leonardo neared the king, he could see in his eyes a familiar look that showed the seeds of madness had grown far too large to stop by the time that Damien discovered the plot against him. Even if Leonardo died, he knew that Damien's rule would be over by the end of the winter. If experience taught Leonardo anything at all, it was that fear can rule a body of creatures for only so long before the rule began to crumble.

The long walk seemed to go on forever. After constant scorning and now covered in filth, Leonardo finally arrived before the high altar. The cathedral silenced itself and Damien let out a wild laugh. When he finally seemed to regain his composure, it would be cut off by another burst of laughter. This went on for over a minute, but in the silence it felt like hours.

Another creature standing close to the altar, a weasel whose name was not known, began to laugh along, but the rat king was not amused. With his great tail, Damien speedily chucked his sword like a javelin at the unfortunate beast and silenced him for good. "Shut-up!" the king screamed, "What, you think this stuff's funny, eh... stupid oaf." Not a single beast moved except those standing around the weasel who flinched. Damien then turned to Leonardo, who appeared to be shaking his head around. "Alright, mousey, ya think y' can jus' waltz on in he'uh an' start bossin' me aroun'?! Me?! Well..." He belched "... Ah got sum news fer ya, little getan. It took me a while t' come up with a punishment, but I think ah found one suitable fer a beast that's caused this much trouble..." Damien leaped from the throne and landed right in front of Leonardo. With a windup and a kick, he sent the mouse flat onto his back with a busted lip. The greatrat then grabbed him with his tail and set Leonardo back on his knees, only to do it again. Placing a heavy foot on the mouse's chest, Damien leaned into Leonardo's eyes, "You're gonna wish you were dead fer a loooong time. I'm gonna see to it that the rest of that miserable town is burned to the ground, and you'll have prime seating for the event, hahahaha!" Stepping off of him and returning to his throne, Damien gave Leonardo's sentence. "Throw 'im in the North Belfry! We'll let th' scavengers pick 'im dry!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wow so Simon's still around, and we finally get to see what he looks like! It appears that he's taken on a sort of rag-doll appearance with a bunch of different pieces to him, like Frankenstein. As we start getting towards the end of this trilogy, you may be saying to yourself "okay, we know Simon is Leonardo's madness, but I still don't really get what he is." and that's fine! I assure you that everything will be explained in these next few coming chapters and will bring the story to a close nicely  

The next chapter will be out in three days, so stay tuned! In the meantime, here's some artwork of what "The Court of the Damned" looked like for Leonardo as he was lead into the cathedral towards the high altar, created by the wonderful Mr. Skarzs!!!

King Damien Lounging on his Golden Throne

[Captain Tammo]

This is it! We're in the home stretch now. There is this chapter, two for the battle of Agrinaut, and one final epilogue to end it all. I sincerely hope that you enjoy reading it.

This next chapter is my favorite one in the whole trilogy. This is Leonardo's final battle against Simon, but the question remains: who will ultimately be victorious? After all, let's not forget who the story is named after...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 14 (or 46)

The stairs leading up the North Belfry were nearly vertical in their design. Vermin marched both in front of and behind Leonardo, taking care to spread out so if one creature fell, it would not knock the rest of them down. The ascension itself took nearly ten minutes, tying Leonardo up took only two and would have been difficult had the vermin decided to keep him conscious for it. They knocked the old mouse unconscious as soon as they reached the top and hastily strung him up by his paws like a bell, then wasted no time with exiting. The scavengers never did care who it was that they ate, as long as it was somebeast who would not fight back with the entire horde.

So high up, he could have been called a bird suspended in flight, Leonardo slowly swung to and fro in the violent winter wind. He could feel himself coming to and managed to open his eyes. Blurred streaks of light shimmered across the noonday sky and temporarily left Leonardo blinded. The frigid air cut through his fur like serrated blades and stung his cheeks like bees. He made an effort to tug at his bonds on either side of him, but quickly reconsidered. He was hanging by his paws at least ten paces upwards above a series of wooden beams and rafters in the center of the belfry. Supposing that he could loosen himself enough to escape the bonds, there would be an entirely new dilemma that would be getting down safely without falling and breaking himself over the thick wooden beams.

The feeling of touch was already absent in most of his body, but perhaps that was still due to not being fully recovered from his hit on the head earlier. The world, though of a lesser brightness now, continued to orbit around his vision like celestial bodies. Unfortunately, hanging in the same place was not going to get anything done, and if the birds did not come to kill him soon, then the coming night's cold certainly would. He strained his muscles and tugged some more at his bonds, pulling himself back and forth and swinging his legs around like twin bells. Gritting his teeth and twisting at the bonds, he could hardly feel if his paws were actually moving or if it was simply the wind making them more numb in some places than others. It was not long before he felt his strength draining away.

"'What happened to him?' They bantered Old Lo. 'He's strung in heaven's high, hitting an all time low!'... It kinda has a twisted bit of irony to it now, doesn't it?" Leonardo whipped his head up at the sound of the familiar voice and saw the same ragdoll of a rat, Simon, walk out from behind an outer stone support. The nightmare was dressed in Leonardo's finest red military coatee and neatly shined and buckled boots, medallions strung across his chest like platters at a feast. "The tune always had a nice tune to it, though." He whistled the chorus again. Leonardo said nothing and Simon stopped and shrugged, "Aw, c'mon mate, you can't be mad at me forever. What is it you want? Riches, fame, power?" There still came no answer, the weakened mouse could only hang there at this point and heavily breathe in the stinging wind, defeat practically resting on his shoulders piggy-back style. "... None o' that, eh? Oh, I've got an idea!" Simon snapped his paw and a cloud of black smoke poofed into existence, quickly being ushered away by the wind to reveal Bellus as she was just before Simon first appeared. Leonardo raised his head and sluggishly turned his eyes towards her. He knew that it could not be real; not even Simon's trickery could bring the real Bellus back. So Leonardo kept his silence and lowered his head again. Simon was not amused. With a wave of his paw, Bellus faded away as smoke and Simon leapt forward and placed his footpaws on Leonardo's chest and used his ghostly paws to pull himself in so that he was eye to eye with Leonardo. "Listen, I like bein' in control o' you, it's been fun for the past while— really I mean that sincerely... But I could do without the constant opposition. Let's face it, Leo, there's only one way you can get rid o' me an' Martin won't help you anymore. He's abandoned you, Leo, so do what you have to do and kill me for good!" There came the sound of one of the ropes being strained, much like that of creaking timbers. Simon shifted his orange eyes to Leonardo's paw and saw that it was finally beginning to slip out of the bonds. The ragdoll gave a short, excited gasp and switched his stare back and forth from Leonardo's eyes and his paw. "Good," he whispered into his ear, "Once you get that one you're halfway there! Then you can be rid of me forever, Leo, forever! All you have to do is let go and let falling do the rest." Leonardo shook his head and blinked several times. Simon was back between the supports, and looked at Leonardo, waiting for him to free himself. Yet Leonardo could find little strength to pull himself out and he rested again, right paw still hallway out of its bond. "What are you waiting for, Leo? Don't you wanna rid yourself of a menace?"

"Menace." Leonardo repeated, and he looked around at his surroundings with a renewed clarity, slightly more conscious of his surroundings in this dream-like trance. "That's where all of this started. But I killed The Menace a long time ago... you're just the weight I've been carryin' with me... I think it's about time that I got rid of it." For the first time, Leonardo saw a hint of fear slither across Simon's ugly face and he blinked in surprise at the sudden change in Leonardo's traditional word choice. "That's all you are— a bunch of bad memories sewn into a creature of paranoia, anxiety, and regret. But I don't have to deal with you anymore; my friends have all forgiven me and Martin's killed you."

Simon was visibly shaken by the sudden epiphany and he almost took a step back. Simon's stitched brow lowered and he heaved his chest outward. Beetles and cockroaches crawled in and out of the buttons on his jacket and he glared at his enemy. "So that's what you think, huh Perhaps I should remind you of a few things to freshen your memory and show you who's really in charge around here, Leo!" Simon snapped his paw and another flash of smoke came into existence. Through it, Leonardo could plainly see the dead body of a hare in uniform. "Long Patrol Lieutenant Salem Carrol: brutally murdered by none other than you. Why? Because you 'mistook her for a Pine Marten'!"

Leonardo strained his neck and he leaned forward. "When I returned after twenty seasons, they welcomed me as a hero, her own family among them. It's done, I worked my shame off by killing the villain that was the source of it all!"

Simon snapped his paw again. This time he saw his old crew sitting around a fire on an oceanic isle:

"I'm not sure mate, but I hope we can get 'im to agree. If he won't come peacefully, I feel we'll have to put 'im outta his misery and just end it all for him. It's an awful thing to do... But how long can we keep up with this? We've done what we could and tried tellin' him we're worn. Where has that gotten us? Now, a great deal o' my life has been lost on some wild goose chase. Enough is enough..."

"They were doing what was necessary! Though I didn't realize it at the time, they were trying to help me. Just because they said they'd kill me if they had to doesn't mean that they wanted to. They wanted more than anything for it to be peaceful."

Simon cracked a smile, "And it would have been, had you not killed a certain somebeast..." with another snap of his paws, Simon brought forth an image of his shipmate, Runty, lying dead on the deck of the Seaspark. "How could I leave out your crowning achievement? Runty Simon L'amour: a nice name, isn't it?"

Sweat dripped down his forehead as Leonardo fought off Simon's onslaught, "That was a mistake! The Saberfin knocked the boat and pushed him into my blade. I would never slay Runty on purpose and he would've agreed!" Leonardo lowered his head and tears welled up in his grey eyes. "For so long, this was the memory that haunted me the most. If I had just kept my blade down, everything could've been fine. But it wasn't my fault, the blame is on you and the Saberfin! They've forgiven me and I know if I could talk to Runty and tell him just how sorry I was for what I did... he'd have forgiven me, too." Leonardo raised his head again. His hair may have been wrangled and covering his eyes, his ears bled, his lips were chipped and cracked, his face may have been scarred, but at that moment, Leonardo's eyes shone brighter than ever.

"Losing the Seaspark in the storm!" Said Simon with another snap. "You had to get away from your shame, but it only made me stronger."

"It saved Maximus and Xoer from seasons on Hsif-Drows building the airship. Had they not had the extra paws to help with building the Nol and Runty, Xoer never would've been able to make it back to Redwall in time to see Nol living. It worked out for the better for everybeast, including me."

Simon grunted in frustration. "That's not true, they would have found Deamal without you."

"No, they wouldn't have. It was only a stop for colza oil. Xoer said that they would have lifted off the next morning had I not been found. What started out as something horrible is what led me to a critical moment in finishing my crew's quest."

Leonardo's foe raised his voice to a yell and flashed scene after scene before Leonardo, trying to pull up his fear and expose it by the roots. "The death of Bellus could have been prevented had you gotten up just a bit sooner that night. She never saw you again."

"No, but she will someday, and for that reason, I have peace with it."

"You almost killed Maximus just to see if Martin was real!"

"And he forgave me that same day!"

"Being shunned by all of Redwall—"

"Only to be praised as a hero after it was all over!"

"You were never valued by Jul as a friend. You were only her experiment!"

"That was her pride getting in the way. She was confused and apologized."

"She never meant it."

"I forgave her anyway."

"You turned your back on all of Redwall to watch it crumble!"

"Only to have Martin turn what I intended for bad into something that saved everyone! I have no reason to carry around this weight anymore. You're dead, Simon, Martin killed you."

Leonardo watched as Simon's stitches began peeling apart. He gave an angry grunt and tried it all again, but to no avail. Simon collapsed on his knees and struggled to hold himself together as a multitude of other insects poured out of his stitched body, leaving him more and more deflated. "No, you can't do this to me! I'm in control, do you hear me?! I'm... I'm... Yrrraaagh!" Simon grabbed his head and scrambled to keep himself upright and together. Leonardo closed his eyes and listened as his lifelong foe's scream faded to nothing in his head. When Leonardo opened his eyes again, Simon was gone. In his place, he could have sworn that he saw the faint outline of Martin the Warrior.

But perhaps it was only the tears in his eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stay tuned for the next chapter, it will be coming out in three days!

[Captain Tammo]

DOUBLE CHAPTER POST

Chapter 15 (or 47)
(The Battle for Agrinaut: Part I)

The Plague, in nearly all of its numbers, waited out front of the cathedral. Only a very small number of groups that Damien personally picked were left to guard the dark fortress whilst he took care of the town. Sentries patrolled each portal and façade, armed to the teeth with swords, axes and bows and arrows to keep any enemies at bay. Though with so few numbers left behind, breaking into the cathedral would be a fairly simple task with enough numbers. The horde waited impatiently for some time while the rat king prepared himself inside the cathedral.

Nobeast knows for certain what went on in there during those moments, but it is said that by this time, Damien had gone completely mad. The thought of dying on the coming full moon, an event that would fall the following night, was enough to make any beast paranoid beyond measure. He paced back and forth in the empty transept, contemplating last-minute if he should follow through with the razing of the rest of the village and surrounding area, or if he should lock himself up where nobeast would be able to kill him and wait out the full moon. His dark cape swept just above the ground as he walked the path of the labyrinth on the floor solely to keep himself occupied. The few creatures by the portals watched on in confused silence and listened to the greatrat muttering inaudible gibberish to himself. He appeared to have made a decision and crossed the nave about halfway, stopped, and turned back around having changed his mind. Then again he turned and again, and again, and again. For a few moments, Damien seemed to completely have his mind made up, only to change it again at the last second. Finally, he made one and settled on it and ordered the guards at the royal portal to open the door.

Damien stepped out into the cold noon-day light. The sun hid behind the long, shapeless clouds that day, encompassing the rest of the land in a white light that was nearly blinding to look at when walking outside. The rat king's fur appeared to be redder than ever in the winter light, the same color as the dark red wine that he would always drink by the bottle. With his long, worm-like tail, Damien raised his flamberge sword into the air and spoke for all to hear,

"Today, we will burn that wretched village to ashes for daring to stand in my way. I thought that my generous rule would have them grateful for my presence, and yet, they retaliate with what they call a revolution! I rid the world of more than a few of those unfaithful worms, but here they are again with a renewed strength. They think that this is their land, but today we'll show them that the world belongs to the strong. We'll wipe 'em out like a plague!"

"I won't let you do that, you filthy, traitorous slime!" Heads turned to the cloaked speaker with a gasp.

Damien yelled and pointed his sword at the figure. "Who dares speak against my command?!"

With one fluid motion, the creature removed his cloak to reveal himself to everybeast. A feeling of utter shock and alarm swept through the horde like a wave as creatures realized who it was.
It was Kovur the red fox.

Kovur made his way through the ranks of the horde with his paws outstretched so that eveybeast present could verify that it was him in the flesh. He wore a leather padded chest and a single iron gantlet around his right arm. Scars covered his face, arms and legs where they were visible— clear consequences of spending time in the North belfry— and a long, straight blade hung from a belt at his side. Kovur stopped just at the bottom of the steps and looked into the stunned colorless eyes of Damien the Damned. "What's wrong mate, y' look like you've seen a ghost."

"B-b-but... how?!" Damien replied with wide eyes.

"Simple," Kovur said, and he pointed directly at Damien and then himself, "You underestimated something that is much stronger than you... me! Now I'm back, and I'm not alone this time." Kovur motioned to the creatures behind him. Nearly a third of the group stepped away from the rest of the horde. "You think that burning down the rest of the village and killing off those things'll make ye live longer? Hah, you fool, th' only thing you'd be destroyin' is yourself, not that you've already managed to do that a fair amount already! We need those runts to get by an' you've already killed off more 'n half of 'em o'er the past four seasons! Where the devil will we git our food from if you go an' burn the land an' kill all the free labor?"

Voices began to pop up throughout the ranks and splash Damien with insults and talk of a new dynasty. Damien searched for the right words to say but found no answer in time.

Kovur gave a smile "Exactly, nowhere. You're not fit t' rule anymore, Damien, but I am! I'll give you the option t' step down now, or I can force you down. And I wouldn't think about callin' any of your guards over t' help you this time. I think I've just managed to sway a good few more." Kovur drew his sword.

Damien grabbed the long red flamberge sword in his right arm and flexed his muscles. "Fool, you may be able to talk, but I'll cut out that tongue of yours and feed it to you before I so much as let you take a step towards my throne! One shall take the title of king,"

Kovur finished the sentence for him, "And one shall fall to my blade. Yrrragh!"

The two villains charged at one another, but just before they leaped at each other, a great horn sounded from the South. Everybeasts' eyes turned to see a large group, numbering what looked to be almost the entire town's population, marching straight for Agrinaut Cathedral with all manner of makeshift weapons and banners raised high in the air.

Damien saw Kovur turn to the blaring noise, an unfortunate side-effect of animal instinct, and with one swift motion the red rat took his shot. Shifting his weapon from his paw to tail, Damien closed the gap between himself and his foe. All it took was a single swing and Kovur fell without another sound, his chance at redeeming himself shattered by the horn of Agrinaut's revolutionaries.

Damien let out a wild laugh and raised Kovur's head like a trophy. He pointed to the nearing militia and yelled, "Look upon the face of those who dare stand against me! I am Damien the Damned, high king of this land, and if I want to wipe that scum off the earth, then you do it! Before they get here, what other beasts dare challenge me...? Nobody? Good, now get the bloody hell back in your ranks and charge those worms afore I lob each one of your heads off an' use 'em as soup bowls!"

That seemed good enough a reason for anybeast to reconsider a revolt, and so with clever strategy thrown to the wind with Damien's mind, The Plague charged the creatures of Agrinaut, yelling their wild battle cries and Plague Doctors leading the pack, as always. None of them saw Damien slip back into the cathedral before closing the door behind him.

The battle for all of Agrinaut had begun! Almost three hundred and fifty beasts, brave and bold, charged through the ice and snow, ignoring the blasts of wind from the east and the horrors that they held in their sights to the north. It was clear that this time, Agrinaut would fight to the very last beast. They no longer feared for their own lives, but for the lives of generations to come, and so they charged forward, shouting the name of their land in unison.

"Agrinaaaauuuut!"

The two armies crashed together like a pair of cymbals. The land itself appeared to rise to a boil as the creatures were consumed by the melee. At the front of the C.O.R.I.A, Mazzie Mosey wore no armor but did not allow for any foe to come near for such a factor to matter. She wielded an iron hoe with expert precision, especially for one of her age. Mazzie had learned much since the last revolt two months prior, and now she was ready to show her newfound skills to their full extent. She was not the only one who lashed out with such a long weapon. In fact, it became clear very quickly that with their long-poled farming supplies, the prairie creatures were able to keep The Plague at bay in many cases.

Lakkle was using two different swords he had picked up from some fallen vermin in the square as his weapons of choice. The squirrel fought with great balance and passion in an entirely improvised fighting style that he made up as he went along. The whole while that he moved forward, it always seemed that his eyes were only just visible from underneath his long straw hat and corn-cob pipe. He was a great force that was not one that would be easy for any old vermin to defeat.

The white otter, Jupiter Emmanuel Moonset McCinnly, took down a ferret with a hard whack to the head with a hardened stave. The acrobat wielded it like a whirlwind, fighting with exceptional skill and leaping and flipping everywhere at once with a devastating effect. Just as soon as his foe thought he was in one place, Moonset would disappear from view and pop up where they least expected him to be. By the time that his foe could relocate him again, they were already beaten.

Fee, Ollen, Henry, and Marco all battle side by side and fought using a pitchforks, mallet, and spade respectively. Together, they fought right in the center of the battle back-to-back and came across the idea that if they managed to slowly rotate themselves like a clock, it would often prevent any one of them from being overwhelmed. This seemed to work with a satisfying effect.

Though the prairie creatures were clearly fighting with great efficiency, The Plague was by no means helpless. They battled with a great ferocity and barbaric style that was reckless, but dangerous and a force to be reckoned with. The Plague Doctors in particular were, surprisingly, causing a great deal of damage all around. Silent as always, the Plague Doctors had a device shaped like a round stone and a fuse attached to it such that the shape resembled a cherry. They threw them from far back in the horde's ranks in grand arching paths which landed in the rebel ranks. Most dismissed the missiles simply as stones, but very quickly the rebels caught on when the rocks began to burst and throw sharp pieces of rock and metal everywhere. Many holes were made in the rebel force as a result of the bombs but still they pressed hard against The Plague.

"Gah, Mazzie, we gotta do somethin' 'bout dem burstin' rocks they throwin' 'round!" Cried Lakkle. Mazzie paused briefly and turned to reply,

"I know, but every time we push forward, they move back. There's no getting to 'em!" Just then, a bomb with the fuse almost entirely burnt out landed right at Mazzie's feet. "Yipe!" She let out a squeak of alarm. For a split second, Mazzie did nothing but stare at the weapon and contemplate what she should do next. Then, as if by instinct, she brought her hoe up and over her shoulder and swung it downward in a sideways swiping motion. The bomb sailed through the air over the heads of the vermin and landed far in their back ranks.

Krakaboom!

There was a very large explosion, followed by several others that moved all the way down the back of the vermin line. Mazzie watched, wide-eyed and jaw dropped, from a small ways back in the rebel ranks with Lakkle beside her. Both gawked at the enormous effect of that single swipe. "Erm... I think ye hit their stashes, Mazz." Said Lakkle and he placed a paw on his hat to keep it from flying off from the force of the combined explosions.

Mazzie simply nodded her head dumbly and watched the billowing smoke move up into the sky. "Ah... right. Well, I don't think we'll have t' worry 'bout those Doctors no more!"

"No ma'am we do not." He whistled, "Heh, I think we don't 'ave t' worry 'bout nearly a third o' those scum anymore. Good shot!" Replied Lakkle.

"Fall back," A Plague rat's voice echoed above the fray, "fall back to the fortress!"

Moonset McCinnly's voice cut through the rebel ranks, "Right then, lads, we have the villains caught against the ropes! Agrinaaauuuuut!"

Together the prairie creatures chased the vermin back to the cathedral. The first of the vermin, a little weasel hoping to weasel himself out of a bit of trouble, tumbled up the steps with the rest of the force behind him. He pulled at the great oaken door, but it was evident that the bolt had been slid into place; they were locked out!

"Help, heeeelp! Open up th' cruddy door an' let us in..." He kept at it while the remaining horde, still a few hundred strong, formed a rather tight semicircle around the steps of Agrinaut Cathedral. Whenever one beast would fall, they would immediately be replaced by the beast behind them so that their line would never break. The prairie creatures suddenly found themselves at the disadvantage. While their numbers were slightly greater than that of The Plague, they too formed a semicircle around the vermin and were stretched thinner as a result. The brave rebels managed to partially compensate for their losses with their longer weapons and sealed off any gaps that popped up.

Suddenly, as if from a supernatural force's intervention, nearly a half-score of rebels fell simultaneously, opening the rebel line up in multiple areas for vermin to expand through. Shortly after the first many fell, another wave came, damaging the rebel ranks equally as hard.

"What's going on?!" Henry said. "They're droppin' like flies!"

Fee searched around for an answer while fending off two rats. "Henry, look, those are arrows! They're shootin' at us from the top o' the façade!" Sure enough, all the way up on the bridge, a pawful of vermin could be seen notching their arrows onto their bows for another volley.

"They'll tear us to shreds if somebeast doesn't do something!"

"I'll get 'em!" Said Lakkle and he leaped over the vermin line, stepping on their heads until he reached the façade. Stuffing his two blades into his belt, the squirrel gave a great leap, launched himself up onto the structure and began the long ascent up to the bridge.

Whilst events were unfolding outside, Damien the Damned sat on his throne on the high altar, nervously rubbing the pommel of Kovur's sword. He listened to the thunderous brawl taking place just behind the opposite end of the nave and took deep breaths.

"My lord, they've been knocking for several minutes now and nothing has been done. We have to act now or there'll be none of our own t' save when all o' this is over..."

Damien shushed his captain by resting the end of his tail on the rat's shoulder, hinting at it to curl it about his neck. He turned his head only slightly to the side so that he could see his officer's outline in the corner of his colorless eyes. "Take five from the bridge and go down to the crypt and bring up Doom. He'll boost their morale a bit." Then Damien shifted his eyes upwards to the littered chandeliers, "Once those crows and ravens finish off that beast in the tower, maybe they'll finaly help our cause a bit as well."

The captain shook in his boots but threw a stiff salute. "A-a-a-a-aye, your majest-t-ty. We'll git Doom fer ya..."

Damien turned his attention back to the West portal all the way at the end of the cathedral. "Excellent. I'm curious to see what they'll think of him, hehehehe."

+++++

Prior to the battle's arrival at the cathedral, Leonardo was still hanging by his paws in the bell tower. He tugged at his bonds with a rejuvenated strength, ignoring the cold and injuries that he had sustained from Simon and Damien. It was tedious effort and slow moving, but after much struggling, Leonardo felt his paw slip a little bit. His right arm was burning from holding on to the rope for so long while he worked on his second bond.

Suddenly there came a loud boom and the sounds of battle began to grow louder for him and he paused in his work to look out at the South. Though some of Leonardo's view was blocked by the southwest tower, he was still able to see The Plague getting chased back to the cathedral by the C.O.R.I.A. The old mouse gave a triumphant laugh and cheered his allies on from his perch. Leonardo continued to work on his bonds, now more eager than ever to get down and help his friends out from the inside. He struggled to keep his eyes on his tied paws, as they kept straying back down to what he could just make out of the battle below.

It appeared that the rebels held the upper paw of the battle, but then something shiny caught Leonardo's eyes coming from the South, by the second belfry. He looked over just in time to see a series of archers loose their arrows onto the crowd below, cutting through rebels like they were sticking needles in baked potatoes. They'll all be dead in minutes if somebeast doesn't do something quick! Leonardo thought to himself. His once excited enthusiasm quickly turned back into a frantic scramble to free himself from the tower.

Finally, he slipped halfway out of his second bond and steadied his swinging on the ropes before he gave a final tug. "C'mon you stubborn gataan, almost there!" He said aloud and put his head down in concentration. "Huh, thank the seasons th' crows an' ravens haven't show—"

Caw, caw.

"—Aaagh, I just can't get a break 'round here, can I! Gonna have a long chat with fate when all this is over, show 'em a piece o' my mind..." He mumbled to himself in frustration. The bird was at Leonardo's right. It was a crow that dwarfed him in size, like a late afternoon shadow. It cocked its head and hopped to the side a half step, eyeing Leonardo like a hanging piece of free meat. The old mouse looked the bird up and down, "What are you looking at, feather-brain?"

There came a whooshing sound and suddenly Leonardo found himself surrounded by a great number of other birds, mostly ravens, others were crows, and a few blackbirds here and there. Leonardo could feel the multitude of eyes on him like a blanket of snow and he tried to shrink himself down to as small a size as possible. He let out a nervous laugh, "Erm... nice... birdies... whoa!"

All it took was a single one to launch itself at Leonardo and the rest followed. By sheer chance or by fate's will Leonardo did not know, but before the first bird could reach him, Leonardo loosened himself from the last of his bonds and only just avoided a razor beak to his center. However, he did not miss the whole bird and he was struck in the air, tumbling over the wooden beams and landing on the outer platform with an unconscious bird on top of him. Immediately the savage birds began devouring the bird above Leonardo. He had to think quickly; if he did not, he would soon be as good as dead. At that moment, Leonardo was still trapped underneath the big raven, but in the cavity under the dead bird's wing. If these birds are hungry enough to be eating each other, it's doubtful that they'll give up a free meal just because it tries to get away on them. I don't think fate's finished with me just yet!

Leonardo managed to shift himself such that he was sitting on his heels. He spit on his paws and rubbed them together quickly. Then, he took a few deep breaths and tested his grip on the bird that was acting as his shield. This will either end really well or really poorly, he thought. With a giant heave and a strained grunt, Leonardo lifted the dead bird up and merely by shifting its weight in his paws, dumped it over the railing of the tower. The birds were startled by the sudden movement, but then gave chase after their food, ignoring the mouse crouched by the edge.

Leonardo looked across the belfry and spotted his means of getting out, the old bell ropes! They were still tied around the far pillar and draped down to the bridge from when Kovur made his escape.

The gust of wind that the birds produced was enough to make Leonardo think that he would be blown over the edge. A raven who was flying at the back of the bunch made this thought a reality. As soon as the old mouse stood up to dash for the bell rope, the unnamed raven flew right into him and knocked Leonardo off the edge of Agrinaut Cathedral and into space.
?

Chapter 16 (or 48)
(The Battle for Agrinaut: Part II)

Despite the danger that the archers above the façade posed on the rebel force, Mazzie held back on calling a retreat. She knew that there was the option of moving to the North or South ends, but if they turned and ran there, The Plague would undoubtedly pursue. If this happened, the rebels could quickly find themselves trapped with The Plague on one side and a locked door on the other where more vermin could come out and attack from their rear. A full retreat was also an option, but that would only bring the battle into the town, which they were only trying to preserve at this point. They could not allow the enemy a chance to regroup, so Mazzie urged her forces onward with a relatively new sense of courage. She looked up the façade whenever she had the chance to and tried to spot Lakkle, but she eventually lost sight of him. This did not worry her, however because if he had died, then Mazzie surely would have seen him fall. Lakkle was still very much alive; it was only a matter of how long it would take him to reach the bridge. Agrinaut Cathedral was by no means a small structure, especially up close. The great gothic arches and carvings made every creature— no matter how big they may have been or how big of a place they came from— no more than a dust mote by comparison.

Despite the losses that they were facing, the rebels fought on with vigor fueled by their pride. They cut through The Plague's ranks as much as they were able to. The battle was clearly on the side of the vermin, but that did not mean that any one of those weasels, stoats, rats, and ferrets did not have to worry about saving their own hides. The single weasel that was pounding on the west portal had been persistent this entire time. It appeared that any vermin inside were not intending on opening up the doors to let anybeast in.

Then, without warning, there came a boom that echoed across the prairie and Doom, Damien's horrifying champion, sent the great oaken door zooming outwards off of its hinges, flattening the weasel that had been standing in front of it like a pancake. The great oaken door fell largely in one piece and landed with several pointed splinters and pieces of iron supports jutting out every whichway like spear shafts.

Mazzie nearly leaped out of her skin at the sight of the monster, "Great seasons! They weren't trying to keep their own beasts out. They were trying to keep that thing in!"

The monster, Doom, was unlike any creature who had ever lived before. A freak of nature in every sense of the phrase, Doom was a slave dragged from evil's breeding grounds in the farthest corner of the world, where it was said that the world never finished forming. It was never spoken of, yet there was not a single creature in The Plague who did not cower at the name, for the sound alone was taboo. It was a sort of legend, always kept either far away or locked up someplace deep where its slavers could watch over it. The enormous figure had no clear species to it. It was a mismatch of creatures and a series of horrid birth defects. Its two rat-like heads operated independently from one another and sat atop of a knotted, grotesquely muscular body with no fur. On its hunched back, one could see the clear outline of its crooked spine, along with old arrow shafts sticking out from various places like iron spikes. Its arms and legs were not proportional with the body. Instead, Doom had terrifyingly long arms and legs that seemed to make it impossible to stay out of reach. Its long, slimy tail followed behind it like a serpent and dragged limply on the floor. The left head had a single eye that could open. The other was existent, but a swollen brow and a thin layer of skin covered it. If viewed from the right angle in the right light, it was possible to see it staring back blindly. The other head was no less terrifying. It was completely bare with loose skin hanging from its filmy red eyes and cheeks. Two long front teeth hung down from its over-bitten mouth. It had no snout, only two long slits just below the center of its face that pulsed with heavy breathing. It could not talk and it was assumed that it was deaf as well. But it could roar like a monster and hunt like a wolf. The wretched creature burst out of the cathedral like a bat escaping hell. Its slavers struggled to hold on to the taught chains that were all clipped around Doom's necks.

The slavers were swung around like children's toys until they finally let go. Doom swatted any creatures that were in its path with disregard to which side of the battle that they were on. At first, the monster appeared to only do damage on the side of its captors and with great effect. There was no secret among the vermin ranks that they too feared Doom, so they quickly made a gap in their line for the beast to go through. A few of the rebels appeared to do the same, but Mazzie ordered them to stand their ground.

"Mazzie, are you insane?! D' you see the size o' that hellish thing? It'll rip us t' bits!" Marco exclaimed.

"Fee, hand me your sling and a few rocks." Mazzie's response was surprisingly calm in tone but made the others put some more confidence in her. Fee did so but hesitated.

"What are you doing, honey, you think a little rock 'll bring that thing down? He's too big to hit!" Fee said.

Mazzie loaded the sling carefully as the fighting around them continued on uninterrupted. She began to swing the sling until it gave off a feint hum and said, "No, Fee, he'll be too big to miss!" With this, Mazzie launched her missile at the rampaging behemoth. She was rewarded with a cry of agony from her target and Doom's left head slumped over slain. Mazzie gave half a smile, but it quickly abandoned her as she found that Doom was largely unaffected and he turned his second head to face the little mouse, Mazzie.

+++++

Whilst the battle was unfolding below, very few seemed to notice the murder of crows, ravens and blackbirds that torpedoed out of the northern belfry, nor the single mouse that was falling with them. Leonardo was in the air for what felt like an eternity. He somersaulted uncontrollably and watched as gargoyles passed him at a faster rate with every second. The same raven who had swept Leonardo off of the belfry also appeared to be slightly off balance. Leonardo stretched his paws out and grabbed hold of the savage bird's legs and the bird tried to pull up in response. The added weight prevented the raven from being able to fly up to safety, and so it sunk downward in a gradual glide. Below the wanderer's feet, the ground could be seen at a still dizzying height and Leonardo gripped the bird even tighter. The raven seemed to tilt to the left in response; this gave Leonardo an idea. He loosened his grip on the raven's left leg and tugged hard on its right and sure enough, he managed to alter the raven's course back to the South.

The brave mouse alternated tugging at the bird's right and left legs, keeping it on a path that he chose. Together, they swung around the bell tower to the front of the West façade where the archers on the bridge came into view below them, completely unaware of their presence. When he tugged hard on both legs at once, the raven entered a shallow dive aimed straight for the archers on the bridge. Valiant Leonardo knew that he only had one shot at his target and any faltering in his course now would make both him and the bird meet the façade head-on. A triumphant yell escaped from Leonardo's chest; they made it! Leonardo swung his legs up and blindsided the first of many archers with a fierce double-kick that sent the vermin over the façade and the raven into a crash landing which knocked one more over the edge and many others to the ground.

The wanderer landed with a rough roll, but found himself unharmed when he stood up. Leonardo wasted little time on recovering. He looked at his paws, as if to double-check that he was still alive, and gave a grin. Adrenaline coursed through his veins; he had just survived the North bell tower, Simon, and flown a bird. Now he charged at the archers, still convinced that fate had more for him to do before being finished off. He called out in a thunderous voice Salamandastron's time honored battle cry and hit the stunned ranks like a typhoon. "Eulaliaaaaa!"

Leonardo kicked and punched at the vermin with nothing but his own two paws as weapons. Vermin toppled over like bowling pins at the might of Leonardo. Madness had honed his fighting skills in the past, but now his freed mind was operating at a power that would never have been able to be matched. Seasons of battle experience may have made the mouse's strength weaker in time, but his dexterity and skill were like that of a samurai skilled in the art of improvised fighting.

Even still, not many creatures have lived who are able to move quicker than an arrow. The archers fell back towards the South belfry with their bows drawn tightly. Leonardo was occupied at the opposite end with two other vermin between himself and the archers. Suddenly the two vermin in front of Leonardo fell slain with arrows in their backs and Leonardo was left with ten attaching another volley to their bows. Before they had a chance to shoot, Lakkle the squirrel hopped over the ledge only just next to the vermin and starting swinging his dual swords without hesitation. Immediately, four fell slain: two from Lakkle's blades and two from careless bows turned towards the new threat. Leonardo took this as an opportunity to close the gap between himself and his opponents. He charged forward with surprising speed for one of his age and reached the fight in no time.

"Lakkle, sword!" He said and the squirrel tossed him a weapon to use. Now without any space between foes, the archers stood little chance and were quickly slain. Once it was finished, Leonardo took a quick moment to catch his breath.

"We all thought you were dead." Said Lakkle, "We liberated the jail, but the only creatures in there were two guards and Roon, who said you'd already been taken to the cathedral for sentencing."

Leonardo pushed his hair out of his face and gave a weary laugh, "I thought I was dead more than once back there, but somehow made it through just fine. Gettin' a little old fer all o' this stuff, though."

Lakkle pushed his hat up and patted the mouse on the back, "Leo, a beast like you 's pro'ly got 'nother sixty seasons at least."

Leonardo laughed again and got up and leaned over the edge of the bridge just in time to see the door fly open and Doom join the battle. "Whoa! Bloody hell, what is that thing?!" He said.

Lakkle took a look for himself and had a similar reaction. "I dunno, Leo, but we best be gettin' down there t' help 'em. Before we do that, we should block th' doors leading t' the bridge up here so that no other vermin c'n git back up 'ere. It'll be like the first spot won in the war!"

Leonardo agreed, "I'll take the stairs down to the inside and slip out to attack 'em from behind. We'll need you t' stay up here an' start raining hellfire on th' Plague below. See if you can get a hit on the big guy." Lakkle nodded and slid a couple of unstrung bows through the door handles on either side and behind Leonardo, then the brave squirrel took to his post and began to unload his arsenal on the vermin below.

Leonardo descended the Southern belfry as quickly as his paws would allow him to. Surprisingly, he came across no vermin on his way down and entered the corner of the nave within just a couple of minutes. Whilst he was busy descending, the chaotic battle continued uninterrupted outside the west façade.

Moonset McCinnly was a valiant fighter through and through. His acrobatic ability continued to aid his combat and he fought like a whirlwind of steel. He quickly made his way to Mazzie's side and fought with her as the monster, Doom, made his way towards her, using, of all things, a dead rat as a club.

The beast swung at Mazzie and Moonset, who quickly ducked and somersaulted over the blow respectively. "Keep the villain occupied, I will attack it from behind!" Moonset told Mazzie and he ran forward and slid through Doom's legs. Doom's reach was long, but Mazzie's long weapon helped to keep a gap between them, but not without great risk. Doom brought his club down vertically and nearly smashed Mazzie right then and there, but she managed to get a good whack in on the creature's torso before backing away again and preparing for the next offensive.

Upon sliding through Doom's legs, Moonset used his sword to cut off the monster's tail in an effort to ruin its sense of balance. Sadly, this did not have the effect that Moonset was hoping for. In fact, Doom did not seem to even notice that his tail was missing, but he did turn around to face the white otter and swung his club around wildly with a great roar. Despite Doom's efforts, the young otter was much too nimble for it and he narrowly escaped every blow. Whilst this happened, Mazzie unloaded a series of strikes with her hoe on Doom's back and he turned to face her again. This switching of offense and defense seemed to work for some time, but then the creature caught on and backed away a bit to keep both opponents in front of him.

On Moonset's command, a series of pitchforks flew through the air and found their mark on Doom, only to be shrugged off like bee stings. The monster roared and slammed his club around more. Moonset made another go at the monster, but finally the beast met his target in the air and sent the otter flying. Moonset hit the ground hard all the way back where he started and got up slowly, clearly injured.

"Fall back, I'll take care o' this un."

"I can not let you do that. You are my friend and will need all the help you can pull together!" the otter replied.

"It's alright," replied Mazzie, "I think I know just how to beat it. This thing may be massive, but we mice have faced bigger..."

Mazzie was shaking in her boots, but took a slow step forward towards the monster. The battle around her formed a sort of ring, for nobeast wanted to be within reach of Doom's terrifying form. Mazzie's heart pounded and she could see time move around her in at a sluggish and blurred tempo. A bead of sweat fell down her brow and she unbuckled her cloak, but kept her paw on it until just the right moment. It took a bit of patience to align herself properly, especially with how easy it would have been to turn and high-tail it out of there, but Mazzie was not about to give up. When she was satisfied with the conditions, or at least as satisfied as she could be with the given situation, she made her move. Ripping her cloak off and twirling it in the air with one paw, raising her iron hoe up with the other, and running at Doom with a courageous yell, a mere squeak in comparison to the monster, she showed Doom that she meant business. Much to everybeasts' surprise who happened to see the event take place, Doom took a step backward! The hulking figure was set off by Mazzie's forward motion and took it for something like a whip or slaver coming to punish it and cowered away slightly. Stretching up to its full height, Doom slammed the rat-club down hard, but Mazzie stood her ground. Again, the beast tried to drive Mazzie back but was unsuccessful at it and was again forced back a pace, and again, and again, until finally, Mazzie gave one last yell and ran forward, this time not stopping but pushing the iron hoe against Doom's chest and making it take another step back. The beast's heel met the first step of the cathedral and it lost its balance. With a yell, Mazzie stabbed with the blunt hoe overhead and down onto Doom's chest again, sending the creature toppling backward and directly on to the cathedral's door that it had knocked out. The many thick wooden splinters and the monster's weight took care of the rest. At last, Doom had been slain.

With their champion defeated and no more archers to aid their backs, The Plague soon found itself fighting on the defensive and made an effort to retreat back into the cathedral. However, the prairie beasts took advantage of the gaping hole that was now in their enemy's line and cut them off before many of them could make it inside. The remainder of Damien's horde, who had been guarding the other entries at the time, relocated to create a bottle-neck at the royal portal with their bows and arrows. But in the mixed crowd, it seemed that almost just as much damage was done to The Plague as was to the rebel ranks by their shooting. In addition, they soon found themselves struggling to stay alive as a force from behind them began to rip their ranks apart: Leonardo!

It was not much longer before the clear victors of the fight emerged. The Community Of Revolutionaries In Agrinaut had prevailed and it was official: the land was now theirs once more. The last of the remaining vermin dropped their arms when there were only about a score or so left and were greatly outnumbered by the prairie creatures. A heartwarming cheer was let out by the citizens of Agrinaut and many hugs and pats on the back were exchanged. They had done it, they had beaten The Plague once and for all!

Mazzie was surprised to see that Leonardo was still alive and out of the north tower, but he held off on explaining when she asked him about it. Instead, he told her, "There's one more thing that needs to be taken care of, first." With this, the old wanderer walked through the nave towards the high altar.

Lord Damien the Damned, Red King of Rats and Ruler of The Plague sat inside the apsidal chapel of the cathedral, the remaining pieces of furniture were stacked up against the doors and locked him in. He paced to and fro, cursing everything that he could think of and shaking his fists, giving anguished screams and the full spectrum of words not suitable for any decent creature. There came a gentle knock at the door and Leonardo's voice called in,

"How does it feel t' lose everythin' you worked for, rat? Now multiply that by about a thousand an' that's the same thing you've done to Agrinaut. You tried everything you could to stop 'em, but they had a will, and tried as you did, you could never crush their spirits. You messed with the wrong crowd, Damien, and now you'll pay for it!"

Damien gave a mad cackle and coughed several times, "What can a single beast such as you do t' me? How's 'bout you an' I have a duel, winner takes all!"

Leonardo leaned on the door and looked behind him at the crowd of rebels, all still brandishing their mismatched weapons and tightening their grip on them as they watched the door. "Oh, I think I'll pass on the duel, but there's about a hundred others here with me who I'm sure would love to give it a shot!"

+++++

The months that followed were a struggle with the lack of food and housing, but at least there was no more starvation with The Plague now vanquished. The corpses from the first revolution were all moved out of the cathedral's crypt and given proper burials, as well as those who had died over the course of The Plague's rule. The remaining vermin were forced to rebuild the docks and repair as much of the ships as could be salvaged, and were kept under the close eye of many creatures of the Agrinaut militia. It took a good while for trade to begin flowing back into the area, but it finally returned when the first harvest of the new era was reaped. There was very little surplus at the first harvest due to the razing of the land by The Plague much earlier, but by the time the second harvest of the new era rolled around, the surplus was back to its traditional levels and much of the town had been rebuilt, all the way back to the cathedral. Ships began coming and going on a regular basis and the economy made a full recovery, much to everybeasts' relief.

Yet, despite all of the progress made, there were still many consequences of surviving. More than half of Agrinaut's population had been killed off by the time that The Plague was finally vanquished and it would take many seasons for the population to finally reach its original numbers. Every year, more and more creatures began to pour in from the sea's trade routes and brought many applicable skills with them, the most demanded being stone masons and carpenters for repairing the cathedral. Sure enough, Agrinaut was free, and though the recovery would take a long while, the bells would eventually be replaced and toll out their wondrous sound, letting all the land know, for several leagues in each direction, that Agrinaut had survived.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stay tuned for the series epilogue, it will be posted in three days. I'll leave my final comments for then. Thank you for all of the support!

[Captain Tammo]

Chapter 16 (or 49)
(Series Epilogue)

Alphonse put the book down slowly and kept his head down.

The old hare was blown away, “I don’t believe it… He was here and he saved you all.”

“Aye.” Said Alphonse.

Dassiter scratched his head lightly and asked, “But you don’t know where he’s gone?”

Alphonse looked at Em without raising his head and then back at the book. He gave a large sigh and then said, “Well, I think this ole tale managed to jog my memory around a little. I think I know where he his.”

The old military hare was overjoyed, “Where, tell me!”

Dassiter watched as the ancient mouse tapped the book with his pawclaw, “You know, when Leonardo fought The Plague between the two belfries, the authors left out that he was saying something all the while.”

“What was it?” said Dassiter. He then watched as the old mouse raised his head and looked across the wooden table at him with a set of familiar, ocean colored eyes.

“Strike hard, strike true.”

The old military hare could not believe what he was seeing. He opened his mouth and managed to push a stunned whisper across his lips. “Great seasons, Leo!”

Leonardo shrugged his shoulders, “Aye, mate, welcome to Agrinaut.”

Dassiter then looked at the little mouse next to him, “But then, who are you? Leonardo never had a… right?”

Em giggled, “My name’s Em, as in the letter ‘M’, not in ‘Emily’.”

“’M’ for Mazzie.” Said Dassiter and the little mouse nodded.

Leonardo smiled. “After everything settled back down, Mazzie had become an orphan again since Ander had died. So I took her in as my own. I sure wish that ole lad could see everything now; he had so much time left in his life… Anyway, perhaps we should pick this up in the morning. It’s getting late and I’m sure that you’re tired from your journey.” Said Leonardo.

“No. I’ve traveled all this way to find you, now I have a few questions that I want answered.”

Leonardo gave a smile and lit a new candle. “Alright, mate, ask away. Mazzie, would you go prepare the guest room?”

Mazzie nodded and left the table, but her curiosity kept her still at the top of the stairs listening.

“I gotta ask, Leo, what have you been doing all this time? How long have you been here in Agrinaut?”

Leonardo raised his eyebrows and gave a smile. “Oh, mate, there are more than a thousand stories that I could tell you about. What I’ve done and where I’ve been... I assume that you’ve journeyed through at least some of the same areas, seeing as you managed to track me down. When I left Salamandastron, I initially was going to go west, far across the sea, but that didn’t seem like it’d be quite a good adventure, considering I’ve already seen most all of it. So I decided that the east would be my direction of choice, right into where the sun rises each morning. I didn’t bother stopping at Redwall. Saying goodbye to all those beasts again would’ve been far too much for me to do, it’s the same reason that I didn’t say anything before I left Salamandastron…”

“Huh, not your best idea if I say so myself.”

“In hindsight, it wasn’t, but at the time it seemed right for reasons that I don’t know anymore. As I traveled to the Far East, I began to feel frightened that Simon would make a return, so I tried different remedies along the way to keep him from growing again.”

“Right, I recall stumbling through the witch’s camp and learning that you had stopped by for a trepanning, and when I found the settlement of rice farmers at the end of the Valley of Elov, where you only ate leeches for a week to suck him out.”

Leonardo’s face turned a bit red at this and he rubbed the back of his neck with embarrassment. “Oh, don’t mention that one. Ugh, disgusting practice if you ask me. I think it was nothing more than fear that drove me to do half those things. Some of the treatments I tried were rather nice, though. Acupuncture helped release the Kee blocked up in my veins. I learned that one from a nomadic swallow. Then there was a temple I stopped at in the Hamtu Mountains that taught me meditation. I lived there for about a full season studying the art of energy flow. I don’t believe a word of it, but it makes for some wonderful relaxation and focusing.”

“I never came across the temple, I traveled through the mountain pass with the same rice farmers I had met at the far end of the Valley of Elov.”

“You know I was a merchant for four seasons? It was at the town just beyond the pass where they were going, Brick-La-Coo, if I’m not mistaken.”

“You, a merchant?”

“Aye, and turns out I’m not that bad at trade! I needed some currency and found a job guarding caravans against robbers. Within four seasons, I climbed my way up the ladder until I was the right paw of the richest creature in the region, Togi, a dwarfed hog.”

“In four seasons?”

“Eh, four and a half, but I got the role! Well, Togi ended up falling horribly ill and died. On his deathbed, as having no heir or family, he bestowed his fortune unto me!”

“So what happened?”

“Well, to put a very long story short, I enjoyed my spoils for a small bit of time, but it was no fun having it all to myself and nobeast to share it with. Then I saw the poverty of the entire settlement. You were either the super-rich or the horribly poor in this area. So as the wealthy noble I was, I made a donation and redistributed my wealth among the creatures of the area. Then I continued my practice and got even more wealth, but it was all boring. Nothing new, just money. In the end, I up and left, leaving my fortune to rebuild the mountain pass and make it safer for others behind me.”

“What did you do then?”

“I kept on heading east. Through the Valley of Elov to the end where the Monument of Joy is. It’s a breathtaking work, thousands of seasons old and such a remarkable thing!”

“I remember passing it, myself! Heh, rather ugly creature they used for their depiction of joy, though.”

“Ugly is saying it nicely, but still, they made it look beautiful! Anyway, after leaving the Valley of Elov, I came across a heavily wooded area. For some time, I wandered through these woods. They reminded me a lot of Mossflower. There was even a castle that I discovered called Fort Ferguson, ruled by a vole named Toad. I know, such an odd name! Toad was not too good of a ruler, and it was probably why I found his castle in complete and utter ruin. As I ventured inside, I found that there were no subjects left, either! Heh, ole Toad the vole, ruling over a crumbled castle and no subjects. He was so overjoyed to see me I thought he’d have burst! Hahaha, ahh, funny lad, though. Did you ever meet him?”

Dassiter scratched his chin in thought. “I found the castle, but the vole who ruled from it was not old, but considerably young… Maybe it was an heir to the throne?”

“I suppose… For a fair amount of time, I journeyed around the woods before arriving at a river. It took me a bit of a distance south, but my paws were tired and it was nice to drift down it on a raft. I would have followed it to the sea, but I came across a bunch of rapids and a shack built next to them. The creatures in the shack told me that the rapids kept on all the way down to the ocean, stretching miles and miles down a winding path. They said that they were the last stop before the town of Tawanada, but apparently that town ‘caught the plague and died off’.”

“The plague, or Damien?”

“I thought it was dryditch fever or something, but then I ended up finding a town of ashes and soot on my way east; no survivors that I could find. So then the nearest stop was Agrinaut, a whole week’s march away. They loaded me up with a haversack of food and sent me on my way by the next mornin’. I finally stumbled into town very weary. Out of money and only a little bit o’ food left, I had to sleep in the street. Woke up the next morning in the square only to realize that I’d been robbed o’ my haversack while I was asleep. Shortly after, Mazzie and Lakkle approached me and you know the rest.”

Dassiter said nothing for a moment and let it all sink in. It was clear something was bothering Dassiter, but Leonardo could not tell what exactly it was. Leonardo waited in silence until he initiated the next part of the conversation. “Why didn’t you write to any of us, say where you are or that you’re doin’ alright?”

Leonardo seemed confused by this question. “What d’ ye mean? I sent a letter to Salamandastron each Spring… You mean to tell me that you never got any of them?”

Dassiter shook his head. “It’s the reason I came out to find you. Neither I nor Redwall received any word from you since you left.”

Leonardo was crestfallen. “Why is that? Each time I sent one, I was in a different place and used somebeast different.”

The hare folded his arms and rested them on the table. “A con jus’ lookin’ to make some coin; a stoat that turned his bow skyward at a passing robin with a paper around its leg; a beast that lost their letter or never found themselves on the west coast… I suppose there are a lot of things that could have gone wrong.” His friend nodded his head.

“I’m sorry. Had I known, I would’ve done something about it. I’ve still sent many letters since I’ve been here, maybe they have reached Salamandastron and Redwall?”

“Perhaps a few of them.” Said Dassiter.

Again the two sat in silence for a bit, still not entirely sure of what to say to one another. “How long ago did you set out?”

The old hare gave a weary sigh, “It’s been quite a while; about ten seasons.”

“I’m sorry for making you do that again.”

“It’s alright mate, remember what I told you when we first set out from Salamandastron when we were jus’ fifteen seasons? I said ‘I’m with ye to the end.’”

Leonardo nodded his head again. “How was everybeast at Redwall when you left?”

“All in good health and doing well! Maximus became skipper, Gorm was happy as ever in his cellars, Osu was working on a grand sculpture to be shipped by the Gousim down the river to Salamandastron, Elyvinn was the head infirmary keeper and married Marius and now they have young kits of their own. Well, probably not so young by now…”

“Wait a minute, Marius died in an avalanche, how’s that possible?”

Dassiter rubbed his chin, “Oh that’s right, you were never around for that one. You wouldn’t believe the looks on our faces when on a trip up to Redwall, my patrol and I stumbled across him! Haha, I tell ya, nothing is ever gonna bring that giant down! Y’know, he wrestled Barbourn in a contest an’ nearly won?! Hahaha, what a rock that ‘un is… Oh, er, yes, sorry. He had survived the avalanche and started wandering! He found a group of sea otters and became their leader. They had gone up the river to visit a river-holt for an annual feast. When I found him, he had no recollection of who I was, nor anybeast that I named for him, so I explained the story to him that night in full and convinced him to come to Redwall with me an’ the patrol. I tell ye, when he saw Elyvinn fer what he thought was the first time, you’d think that the lad had gone an’ forgotten how t’ speak!”

“That’s amazing! I’m so happy t’ see that lad was alright the whole time. What about the rest, Jul, Kiril, Ronar?”

“Jul is was elected abbess of Redwall when Abbess Hannah passed away, and Kiril and Ronar founded a successful traveling troupe and perform at Redwall every few seasons. They’ve been roaming Mossflower an’ performin’ for jus’ about anybeast willing t’ watch. They’ve had some pretty interesting stories to tell as well!”

“Wow, how far we’ve all come, eh?”

“Yeah… You ever miss the old days at sea?”

“All the time.” Leonardo replied, and he held his necklace, “But chin up, we’ll all see each other again, I’m sure of it.”

“We never know for sure, though.”

“True, but believin’ fer the best never hurt anybeast, did it?”

+++++

That night, Leonardo thought to himself while he sat in a large, cushiony chair by the small wood stove. He reflected on that day’s events, how it started out as any other but ended in such an extraordinary way. There was so much that he wanted to show Dassiter. He would show him the new town, where he would meet many of the creatures that took part in the revolution: Henry, Moonset, Ollen, Lakkle, Fee, Marco, and the rest. Together they would wander through the ancient cobbled streets, walk down to the port and around the many different farm properties in the area. He would show Dassiter his wheat farm and all of the other croplands, tell him about farming and how to test the soil. They would not wear coatees and tricorn caps and boots, but more humble clothes suitable for a farmer. He would take him by the cathedral in the middle of its restoration efforts and describe how far it had come and when it would be finished again. He would take him to the brewery for some fine beer and imported wine, then bring him to the Agrinaut freedom memorial, the new bakery, and dozens of other places. In turn, he was sure that Dassiter would have a great deal to talk about as well, and would talk all about the adventures he had been on since Leonardo’s departure.

Leonardo had been happy for a long time, but now he was at peace. He passed the entire night this way, reflecting on any moment in time that popped into his head. He watched as the fire in the stove turned to the soft glow of white ashes and pulled the heat back out of his fur. It was nearly daybreak when he finally fell asleep.

It was not clear how much time had passed between then and the moment Mazzie burst into the kitchen and woke him up. “Pa,” she said with a worried look on her face, “It’s Dassiter.”

+++++

Leonardo sat by his friend’s bedside and Mazzie stood ready in the doorway. Dassiter was ill, and if Mazzie’s panic had been an indication of anything, it was that youth was not on the old hare’s side to aid his recovery. She silently watched the scene unfold in front of her…

“Dassiter, mate, can ye hear me?”

The old hare was breathing slowly and he shifted his eyes to Leonardo. “Oh, don’t worry ‘bout me, pal, I’m alright.”

“Why didn’t you tell us that you were ill?”

“You ever feel so happy you could die?”
Leonardo squeezed his friend’s paw and gave no effort to hide the tears that began to swell in his eyes. “C’mon, mate, don’t say that.”

“It’s alright, Leo, I’m happy now. I’m ready t’ go see th’ rest of the crew… I’ll tell all ‘em you said hey.”

“Dassiter, mate, please, you only just got here. I’ll fetch the doctor an’ you’ll be right as rain in no time!”

“Sorry, Leo, I’m afraid that ain’t gonna do it... Don’t worry, I’ll be jus’ fine. My mission’s complete: ‘gave Barbourn my word I’d make sure nothin’d happen to my pal…

Tears openly flowed down Leonardo’s cheeks. “All this time, you’ve been there for me, yet I have done so little for you.”

Clouds began drifting into Dassiter’s eyes. He said, “Nonsense. I can say I did it, an’ it brought me on some o’ the greatest adventures anybeast could dream up. You’ve done a lot more fer me than anybeast else could… Do you remember that day we left Salamandastron?”
Leonardo kept holding Dassiter’s paw and squeezed tighter. “Aye mate, I do…”

+++++

The morning sun promised for a bright and beautiful day. Barbourn had personally equipped Leonardo for his departure and gave him a full haversack to last him a few days. The sand was already warm by the time Leonardo stepped onto it, leaving the shadow of the behemoth mountain fortress to start his own journey and hunt down the corsair that caused all of this. Leonardo was only fifteen seasons old at the time, and though he had gone out across the countryside before, this was his first time setting out from the mountain alone. What mysteries lay ahead, he did not know, but he would find out and one day he would be able to return to the mountain as a hero. Leonardo walked south along the shoreline, aiming for no place in particular other than to get away from the mountain.

“Hold on, there, chap!”

Leonardo stopped and turned around to see Dassiter running towards him at full speed with a bulging haversack slung across his shoulder, nearly tilting him sideways with its weight.

“Dassiter, what’re you doing? You’re allowed to stay at the mountain.”

“Och, well listen here, wot. Donchya go on thinkin’ I was gonna let mah pal go off alone, wot! No sah, I’m with ye to the end!”

Leonardo gave a smile, “Aye, an’ I’m with you to the end, too!”

Together the two young ones ventured off into the world, arms over each other’s shoulders an’ spirits held at a high like a banner. So marked the start of their very long journey together.

+++++

“When I told you that I was with you t’ the end, I wasn’t playin’ around. We got separated a bit in there, but I’m glad it’s all ended well… Thanks fer the journey, cap’n, glad we could end it t’gether.” As the last of the clouds filled Dassiter’s eyes, Leonardo kissed his friend’s paw,

“Aye mate, I’m with ya to the end.”

+++++

Far, far away, in a place that cannot be reached by ship, nor caravan, nor wing, nor dream, the great seas of gold lay open for those of pure hearts to sail.

“Hey, I think he’s coming ‘round!”

“W…What? Where am I?”

His friends stood around him in a circle, looking at him lying on the deck.

“Welcome, mate. It’s really great t’ see you again! C’mon, I wanna introduce you to a few folks!”

The End.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, there you have it. This is brings our trilogy to an end and, with it, marks the end of a very long journey for myself as well. Thank you so much for staying with it this far! This is a pretty long fanfiction so I really appreciate it! I will continue posting different things in this topic in the future such as artwork, character charts and a small extra passage I wrote which describes why I started writing this in the first place. But as for the story, I think this is my last fanfiction so I sincerely hope that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Thanks for the adventure, guys!

[Captain Tammo]

Character Chart (Organized by Order of Appearance):

Em (mouse)- Alphonse's daughter.

Alphonse (mouse)- An old farmer living in the land of Agrinaut.

Dassiter de Fformelo Tussock (hare)- An ancient traveler who arrives in the land of Agrinaut seeking a mouse named Leonardo Velox Williams, an old friend since birth that had gone insane and disappeared.

Damien the Damned (rat)- Warlord and leader of 'The Plague', a horde of five-hundred vermin. Main antagonist of part III.

Mazzie Mosey (mouse)- Citizen of Agrinaut and revolutionary leader against The Plague. One of the main protagonists of the story.

Sam Mosey (mouse)- Mazzie's elder brother and ringleader of the first attempted coup d'etat in Aginaut. Killed by Damien.

Wayz (red fox)- An advisor to Damien. Longtime captain in The Plague.

Lyle (field mouse)- Farmer in Agrinaut. Is slain by The Plague.

Ander (hedgehog)- longtime resident and farmer of Agrinaut. Took in Mazzie and Sam.

Lakkle (squirrel)- Farmer in Agrinaut. Good friend of Mazzie and Sam.

Nubby and Carl (mole twins)- Lakkle's proteges.

Raggle (rat)- A taxer that is killed by Leonardo.

Mrs. Knox (field mouse)- A friend of Mazzie and Sam who is taken prisoner by The Plague.

Cory Knox (field mouse)- Mrs. Knox's dibbun.

Himelick Musk (hedgehog)- Former baker in Agrinaut. Taken prisoner by The Plague.

Leonardo Velox Williams (mouse)- One of the main proagonists of the story. Helps lead the resistance against The Plague.

Lira (fox)- A witch who treats Leonardo.

Ollen (otter)- Resident of Agrinaut and a founding member of the C.O.R.I.A.

Henry Felix (hedgehog)- Resident of Agrinaut and a founding member of the C.O.R.I.A.

Fee (squirrel)- Resident of Agrinaut and a founding member of the C.O.R.I.A.

Marco (mouse)- Colza farmer in Agrinaut and a founding member of the C.O.R.I.A.

Kovur (red fox)- Former second-in-command of The Plague who is thought to be killed by Damien.

Sgin, Binc and Rokkdrop (rats)- Pearl divers that Leonardo hires to loot a shipwreck.

Dividad (mouse)- Protagonist in The Legend of Dividad and the Golithar.

Gilo the Great (mouse)- A character in The Legend of Dividad and the Golithar.

Golithar (Elephant?!)- Antagonist in The Legend of Dividad and the Golithar.

Roon Golunt (vole)- Shoemaker in Agrinaut and former prisoner of Damien.

Jupiter Emmanuel Moonset McCinnly (otter)- A former acrobat and actor. Helps lead the C.O.R.I.A.

Bozir (weasel)- Friend of Kovur who helps plan an uprising.

Terra (mouse)- Resident of Agrinaut who helps Lakkle clean the square.

Sensui Kai (N/A)- A monk in 'The Temple Behind the Mountain' who teaches Leonardo how to meditate.

Rovanskowez (N/A)- A guard at Agrinaut's jail.

[Mhera]

Hey Cap'n, congratulations on the Award!

My favorite stories are the ones that suck me in and make me forget I'm reading. The Plague accomplished that. Well done, Tammo, you nailed it here. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of Simon's Trilogy

[Captain Tammo]

Wow, talk about a late reply on my end! I thought I answered this back in August!

Thanks a ton, Mhera, it's really appreciated! I am absolutely thrilled to hear that you enjoyed this story so much. Let me know what you think of the others when you get around to them

Also: Woo! A thousand views! I know most people may not pay much attention to the viewcount or give it any value. But as a writer, seeing that 1,000 times people took the time out of their day to look at this story means a great deal, whether they read it to the end or not. So thank you for the support, everyone!