Mariel Of Redwall

by Brian Jacques

  24

  AFTER THEIR MEAL and a short rest, the four travellers struck off westward once more, into the gloomy dark swampland.

  Mariel took the lead. Peering into the deceptive half-light, she chose a relatively straight path. The other three followed her in single file along the raised trail, avoiding smooth slippery rocks and testing each fraction of the way with hesitant paws. To both sides of them the overhanging trees grew out of stagnant-smelling smoothness, which occasionally threw up a liquid bubble, betraying the treacherous nature of its surface.

  Durry sounded apprehensive. ‘Oh, nuncle, it wouldn’t do a poor lad much good to fall in there.’

  Dandin brought up the rear of the file, his paw on Durry’s shoulder. ‘Aye, be careful and take your time. I just wish it were a bit lighter in here – it’s like trying to plough your way through pea soup, all muggy and dark green. What is it we have to beware in here? The wart-skinned toad?’

  Second in line, Tarquin turned his head slightly as he spoke.

  ‘Not a sign of the old wart-skinned blighter, I hope we’re goin’ the right way, trail leader old gel.’

  Mariel kept her eyes straight ahead. ‘As far as I can see, we are. I chose the longest and straightest of the paths. Aha! What’s that up ahead? Stop a minute, please.’

  They halted. Directly ahead of them a light was shining in the gloom, a small flickering golden glow. It stopped, hovering further up the path. When Mariel moved forward again, it moved also. Dandin recalled the rhyme.

  ‘Beware the light that shows the way!’

  ‘Right you are, Dandin old lad, wot? There’s the very light we’ve jolly well got to watch out for.’

  Mariel halted once more. ‘Lie down and be still, you three.’

  They dropped down and lay perfectly still. Mariel flattened herself against the path and began inching forward. This time the light remained still, glowing a short way above the trail.

  Durry lifted his head for a quick peep. ‘Where’s she a-goin’ to?’

  Dandin stifled the hedgehog’s mouth with his paw. ‘Ssshhh! Keep quiet and be still, Durry.’

  Mariel’s crawling figure had now disappeared into the murky gloom. Ahead of them the light still glowed steadily. They waited with bated breath, pressing themselves flat to the earth. Suddenly from along the path a dismayed croak sounded, followed by a whoop from Mariel and the familiar thwack of Gullwhacker. Springing up, the three travellers made their way along the path as speedily as circumstances would allow.

  The mousemaid stood over a stunned toad. It was an indescribably ugly specimen, completely covered in large wart-like growths. In one paw Mariel twirled her Gullwhacker, while in the other she held a curious contrivance. It was a lantern on a small carrying frame, wonderfully made from thin-cut rock crystal. Inside the lantern half a dozen fat fireflies buzzed, giving off a pale golden light.

  Mariel prodded the toad lightly. ‘Two puzzles solved with one Gullwhacker: the wart-skinned toad and the light that shows the way. Three, in fact – take a look ahead.’

  By the light of the lantern, they saw that the path ended sharply a short distance from where they stood.

  Durry shivered. ‘If we’d follered that ’orrible beast with his light we would’ve gone ploppo! Right into that swamp!’

  Dandin prised a rock from the trail. ‘Aye, ploppo is the right word!’ He threw the rock into the swamp. It disappeared, making a small hole which swiftly filled in, leaving the surface undisturbed.

  The wart-skinned toad was beginning to recover, groaning pitifully and rubbing his head with slimy webbed paws. Mariel thumped the Gullwhacker down close to the repulsive creature.

  ‘Want some more?’ she enquired.

  The toad recoiled in fear. ‘Muurraakk! No more. Rrrreb!’

  Dandin unsheathed his sword and tickled the creature’s nose. ‘Listen, I don’t know what your game is but we want to get out of this place and you’re going to lead us. Understood?’

  Still rubbing its head, it nodded unhappily.

  Dandin turned to Mariel. ‘Right, let’s get going. Keep this creature in the lead.’

  ‘Kwirraawwwk!’

  The wart-skinned toad took off with a sidewards leap at the swamp. Dandin reacted swiftly, but not fast enough. He barely grabbed the toad’s back leg as it sailed through the air. The toad flopped into the swamp, pulling Dandin off balance. With a squeak of dismay he toppled from the raised path, slithering on its sloping side for an instant before plunging bodily into the treacherous ooze. Spreading its bulk flat and extending its webs the wart-skinned toad slithered off across the swamp surface, leaving behind Dandin, who was rapidly disappearing into the bottomless waste.

  ‘Help, do something, I’m being sucked under!’

  Holding Tarquin’s paw, Mariel stretched out, flicking her Gullwhacker towards Dandin. ‘Here, catch on to this!’

  Dandin struggled to reach the rope, without avail. The swamp had pulled him in up to his neck now. Tarquin threw his harolina to Dandin. ‘Here, old lad, put both y’ paws on top of this. It might help to keep you up!’

  Dandin did as he was told, but he could feel the tug of the swamp, and panic filled him completely.

  ‘Help! Oh, help me, someone!’

  An urgent voice was whispering to Mariel, ‘The tree! The tree!’

  She looked up at the tree hanging low overhead and immediately understood. Clambering up into the tree, she edged out along a thick dipping bough. Below her she could see Dandin, ashen-faced as he hung on to the harolina, the swamp oozing around his chin and lips.

  ‘Hold on, Dandin. Hold on!’

  Knotting Gullwhacker tight to the end of the bough, she called out, ‘Tarquin, Durry, get up here and lean on this branch, belly down!’

  Without questioning Mariel, they dambered up into the tree, scrambling out along the branch until they were close to her. Both Tarquin and Durry followed Mariel’s example, straddling the bough stomachs down, jerking to exert more pressure on the limb.

  The swamp had closed over Dandin’s mouth. He took a final breath as it started to flood into his nostrils, fighting back the welling panic as it oozed around his eyes.

  Mariel felt the branch bend lower. Grabbing Dandin’s outstretched paws, she noosed the Gullwhacker tight around them, calling to her companions, ‘Back off now. Back along the branch. Quick!’

  Following them with all speed, she managed to cry out as they hung over the path.

  ‘Jump!’

  The swamp had sucked Dandin under, his head disappeared from view.

  Mariel, Durry and Tarquin jumped heavily from the tree to the path, falling in an awkward heap atop each other.

  The bough straightened with a tremendous rush. Dandin was hauled clear of the swamp with a huge squelching plop!

  He hung there, dangling above the swamp at the rope’s end by both paws, covered from ears to tail in thick foul mud. Pulling the sword from where it stood quivering on the trailside where Dandin had dropped it, Tarquin leaned out, supported by Mariel and Durry. Holding the sword by its blade, he hooked the crosstree hilt into Dandin’s belt and pulled him in. Mariel and Durry grabbed Dandin’s limp body. Tarquin swung the sword upwards with a mighty slash, severing the end of the bough that the Gullwhacker was tied to. All four fell back in a heap on the pathside.

  While Tarquin undid the knots to free Dandin’s paws, Mariel poured water from their flasks over his face, washing away the ooze that caked it. Durry forced his mouth open whilst Mariel poured water into it. Dandin struggled feebly and coughed. Mariel sighed her relief. Her voice choking with emotion for her friend, she tried to sound busy and practical.

  ‘Thank goodness for that. I thought he was gone for a moment there.’

  Tears were flowing down Durry Quill’s homely face as he joked. ‘Our Dandin a goner? Naw, he’ll be a’right, I ‘member Father Abbot sayin’ he use to eat mudpies when he were a Dibbun. Hahahaboohoo!’

  Laughing and crying at the same time, Durry h
ugged Dandin’s paw.

  A fire was lit, though only a small one with the limited supply of fuel in the swamp. Tarquin took a turn at making some mushroom and turnip broth while Mariel tended to Dandin. The young mouse had recovered sufficiently to sit up. He looked away from the darklands swamp and shuddered.

  ‘Uuuuuuhhhhh! It filled my nose and eyes and sucked me under. Right under! It was horrible. I’ll never forget it as long as I live!’

  Mariel patted his back gently. ‘There, there, it’s all right, you’re safe now. Good job you thought of the tree, Durry.’

  The hedgehog looked at her oddly. ‘I didn’t mention no tree, missy.’

  ‘Oh, it must have been Tarquin then. Thank you, Tarquin.’

  ‘Don’t mention it, old thing, but y’don’t mind me sayin’, what tree?’

  ‘You mean it wasn’t you who said, “the tree, the tree”?’

  ‘Nope, sorry, must’ve bin some other beastie.’

  Dandin and Mariel looked at each other. Dandin smiled.

  ‘Aye, the same one who told me to hold my paws up straight after I went under. Good old Martin the Warrior.’

  After a few hours they were able to resume their journey, backtracking until they found another path which looked fairly straight and safe. Mariel walked in front, holding the wart-skinned toad’s lantern; it made the visibility slightly better. Tarquin followed at the rear, cleaning mud from his harolina.

  ‘Supreme sacrifice, wot? Chap keepin’ another chap afloat in a bally swamp with his harolina. Not many’d do that y’know. Bet Hon Rosie’d think it was a jolly noble effort on my part – fact I’m sure she would!’ He turned to the big frilled lizard that was following him. ‘I mean to say, a chap’s harolina is a very personal possession, wot? Omigosh! Eulaliaaa!’

  Tarquin suddenly brained the lizard with the harolina, knocking it flying into the swamp. Other lizards sinuously scaled up from the sloping pathsides where they had been following the travellers. There were at least twenty or thirty, an assortment of newts and frilled lizards, their reptilian tongues flickering in and out as they watched the four travellers through cold basilisk eyes.

  Durry threw up his paws in despair. ‘Lackaday, what now? We’ve ’ad sticklegs, pikes, adders, Flitchaye, mad owls, a warty toad, an’ now this, dragons! My nuncle Gabe wouldn’t believe a word iffen I told him. More like he’d say that I ’ad been a-drinkin’ of his strong blackberry wine. Mariel, tell a poor lad who’s far from home, what do we do now?’

  It was a strange scene. They stood on the trail, holding a hasty conference, watched by the silent unblinking lizards.

  ‘We have two choices, Durry: stand and fight, or make a run for it.’

  Dandin drew his sword. ‘I’m with you, Mariel. Just say the word!’

  ‘Now steady in the ranks there, chaps,’ Tarquin interrupted. ‘I’ve already cracked a valuable harolina on one blinkin’ reptile’s bonce. Hold fast a moment, will you. I could be mistaken, but just a moment ago I swear I felt a bit of a light zephyr.’

  Durry wrinkled his snout. ‘A what?’

  ‘A light zephyr, me old scout. A vagrant breeze, a fortunate breath, a bally puff of wind, in fact. Just give me a moment, will you . . .’

  Tarquin walked back down the trail to a tree, brushing aside a newt. ‘Beg pardon, old lizard, ’scuse me.’

  With an agility which belied his awkward figure, the hare climbed the tree. He stood on a high branch, paw to forehead, gazing out, nodded with apparent satisfaction, then descended the trunk swiftly, pushing through the lizards.

  ‘D’you fellows mind not hoggin’ the trail? Bad form, y’know, idlin’ about an’ stickin’ your flippin’ tongues in an’ out like that.’

  Returning through the dumbfounded lizards to his companions, Tarquin murmured under his breath to Mariel, ‘Tarquin L. Woodsorrel reportin’ back, marm. Don’t show too much excitement, but I could see the sea from up in that tree, about a couple of hours’ good hike from where we are. Does that alter the situation? Just thought you ought t’ know, bein’ expedition leader an’ all that.’

  Dandin gave a wriggle of suppressed joy. ‘The sea! Well, that does change things, but we’ve still got these lizards to contend with. Look, there’s more coming out of the swamp.’

  The lizards from the mud joined their fellows upon the trail, waving long, prehensile tails and strutting about slowly with sinuous reptilian grace.

  Mariel weighed the situation carefully. ‘Hmm, they haven’t made any move to attack us yet. Maybe it’s just a display of strength in numbers, though if we made a run for it they could easily stop us. This is their territory, they know it better than we do and we’re outnumbered at least ten to one. Right, one thing’s clear – we can’t stand here much longer or something’s bound to happen. I’ve got an idea that might work. Hold my Gullwhacker and give me that sword, Dandin. Don’t ask questions, just trust me.’

  Wordlessly Dandin gave her the sword. Turning from her companions, the mousemaid faced the gathering of reptiles crowding the path. ‘Which one of you is the leader?’

  There was no reply. The lizards merely stood staring at her.

  ‘Don’t you have a chief, some creature in command?’

  Further silence. Mariel brandished the sword of Martin. She gave a great leap and yelled, ‘Redwaaaalll! I am Mariel the Warrior. I’ll fight you all together or one at a time! Come on, send your best killer out here and I’ll meet him in combat! Lizards don’t bother me, buckoes. I’ve ate lizard stew before today.’

  Behind her she could hear Durry and the others snorting to suppress a fit of laughing giggles.

  Sounds like Mariel Stonehead to me!’

  ‘Lizard stew? Oh I say, that’s goin’ it a bit!’

  ‘D’you reckon they can understand her? Teeheehee!’

  Mariel ignored them. She approached a large arested lizard who stood half a head above the rest.

  ‘What about you, sliptongue? You’re big and lazy enough to be a chief. Do you fancy your chance against Mariel the Warrior?’

  The lizard blinked, turned slowly and walked majestically away, with Mariel shaking the sword at it.

  ‘So, you’re not only dumb, but cowardly with it! Well, let me tell you, slimenose, if any of your tribe try attacking my friends, you’re the first one I’m coming after. I’ll chop off your tail and stuff it up your nose! We’re leaving now. I hope you’ll heed my warning!’

  Swaggering outrageously, the mousemaid joined her companions, telling them from the side of her mouth, ‘Right. Get moving. I’ll stay at the back. Don’t run, keep it to a brisk walk. Off we go!’

  Tarquin led the way, almost helpless with laughter. ‘Good egg, Dandin. Did y’see that swagger? Hohoho, I thought she was going to wriggle dear out of her skin. Never seen anythin’ so funny in all me life, young mouse.’

  ‘Haha, and did you see the way that big lizard looked at her when she called him slimenose? Cawhaw! His face was a picture.’

  ‘Chop off his tail ’n’ stuff it up his nose!’

  Mariel stifled a chuckle, picturing herself as the others saw her. ‘Don’t laugh too much, pals – they’re still following us.’

  And sure enough they were. Still silent, tongues flickering, eyes fixed staringly on the travellers’ backs, the pack of lizards followed at an even pace.

  ‘Not to worry, chums,’ Tarquin called back. ‘I can feel that breeze quite clearly now. Hey, d’you suppose the big chappie’d give me a ride on his back if I asked him nicely? After all, we are going the same way, aren’t we!’

  Two hours later the swamp thinned out, overhanging trees became few and far between, and the path petered off, giving way to firm ground and fragrant gorsebushes. But the greatest joy to the four travellers was the clear blue summer sky overhead. After days of dark forest and swamp, the fresh air tasted like springwater to them. They halted and looked back to the darkland swamp. The lizards were gathered on its fringes, still silent, flickering-tongued and beady-eyed, thou
gh some of them were preening and stretching in the sudden warmth of the sun, settling themselves down languorously to bask.

  Free now of the reptilian threat, Mariel and her friends could not resist shouting their humorous goodbyes.

  ‘Cheerio, you baggy-skinned blighters. Don’t get your noses too muddy in the jolly old swamp, wot wot!’

  ‘Bye-bye, tonguepullers. Give our regards to the old warty-skinned toad!’

  ‘Yes, goodbye, you great bunch of dumbos. By the way, I’ve never tasted lizard stew before – it’d prob’ly make me sick. Bye now!’

  ‘Ta-ta, vermints. D’you think you could make your way to our Abbey someday, just in case my nuncle Gabe don’t believe me when I tell ’m about ’ee?’

  Across the gorsefields they trekked, towards a range of high hills which fronted the westerly edge. Seabirds wheeled in the sky above while the irrepressible Tarquin strummed away on his cracked harolina.

  ‘O, I wouldn’t go through the swamps no more,

  Not for an Abbot’s feast.

  Not even for a kiss from Rosie dear,

  Though she’s a lovely beast.

  Give me the summer sunshine,

  Don’t mind a cloud or two,

  Rather than that bally bog

  And a pot of lizard stew!’

  25

  GREYPATCH AND HIS searats were back sooner than any creature at Redwall Abbey expected. Smarting from the ignominious defeat and with the crew beginning to mutter behind his back again, the searat Captain decided to turn the tide in his favour with a shock attack.

  He camped his crew further up the path for the remainder of the night, waking them at dawn light to explain his scheme.

  ‘Fire-swingers! That’s the thing, buckoes – the old fire-swingers!’

  Bigfang was feeling a bit cocky now Greypatch’s first attack had failed. ‘Fire-swingers me tail! I already tried fire, an’ it didn’t work. What’s so good about your plan?’

  Greypatch ridiculed Bigfang. ‘I’ll tell you, matey. My plan’ll work because I’ve got a brain an’ you haven’t. Rush the gate an’ set fire to it – huh, I could think of a better plan than that in a storm at sea with both claws tied behind me back. So you either shut up an’ listen, or I’ll cut you loose in this country to fend for yerself, unnerstand?’