new stick to fight more crones wiv!"

Slowly the sun began sinking in the west. The sky was a warm peach color with dove-gray pennants of cloud showing silver underbellies. Heatwaves still shimmered in the distance.

Thrugg sat awhile, gazing sadly at the beauty of it all. "Hmm, it ain't too bad for an' old streamdog like me. I've had a good innin's an' enjoyed meself. But you two young uns, I wish you could've seen more seasons to yore string afore you 'ave to go. Still an* all, we're all good mateys, so we'll take a load of 'em with us an' go out in the good company of each other."

Dumble had found a stick. He peered over the bank, wrinkling his nose, fearless in his babyish innocence. "Why are all the crones quiet, 'Ocangus?"

The young falcon winced as he settled his fractured wing right. "Ye'd best hope those birds stay quiet, laddie. When the beasties start up their chantin' again, that's when they'll come for us."

"Can Dumble have some squashy blackb'rries an' pears, MistaThugg?"

Thrugg undid the haversack that he had used as a flail upon the bodies of many crows. The once tasty contents were squashed flat. "Bless yer 'eart, liddle un, 'course you can. 'EIp yourself." The otter sat with a sad smile on his face, watching Dumble eat.

Rocangus touched his paw with the uninjured wing. "Dinna worry, streamdog, we'll give yon birds a battle tae remember and sing aboot-those that are left alive."

The last gleam of twilight was showing on the horizon when the ma.s.sed army of crows began to chant themselves into a frenzy. It echoed dirgelike across the deserted countryside.

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22.

A half-moon hung in a sky of aquamarine. Paddles dipped noiselessly into the high-banked waters as two logboats threaded their way down a tributary far from the Great South Stream. Both craft were loaded to the gunwales with Guoss-som shrews. Mara and Pikkle traveled in the front vessel. They had been going since dawn, sailing along an intricate network of backwaters. Beside them Log-a-log and Nordo checked the barkcloth charts showing the route.

"How much farther before we're there, Nordo?" Mara murmured sleepily.

"We should get there by dawn, with any luck. Get some sleep, you two. We're running downstream-put your paddles up."

Pikkle looked around. Save for the watch shrews, all the others had settled down to catch some rest. He patted his stomach. "Bit of tucker wouldn't go amiss, wot! How's a chap supposed to sleep when the old turn starts growlin' an' keepin' him awake, that's what I'd like t' know!"

Reaching into a sack that was stowed in the bows, Log-a-log pa.s.sed two large round flat objects to the hare.' 'Try these, Pikkle. They're shrews' long-voyage hardtack biscuits. They might have been baked quite a few seasons ago but they're 182.

full of nourishment. You should enjoy them."

"Oof!" Pikkle attempted to bite into one and came away nursing his mouth. "Nearly bust all me molars. What're these things made of-stone? I'll bet even old Tubbyguts couldn't get his jaws around one of these things. I say, Mara, try bitin' one of these. Go on!"

The badger maid pushed away the proffered hardtack biscuit. "Not me. I value my teeth-save 'em to sling at the ghost badger."

Pikkle shuddered and dropped the biscuit. It landed with a clatter in the bottom of the boat. "Oh, thanks a lot, big-mouthed badger. First I can't eat these bally biscuits and now you've gone an' put me off sleepin' for the night with your talk of ghosts. Bit of a bad show all round, I'd say, robbin' a chap of appet.i.te an' sleep!"

Mara fell asleep to the sounds of Pikkle chuntering away indignantly to himself.

She woke in the early dawn light. The logboats were traveling rapidly downstream, b.u.mping and speeding over small rapids as. the Guosssom shrew steerbeasts maneuvered them skillfully along the risky waterway. The high steep banks on both sides flashed by. Now and then Nordo would call out for everybeast to duck an overhanging tree. Pikkle was wide awake and ashenfaced as he gripped the sides of the boat, pleading for a reduced speed.

"I say, chaps. Be good eggs an' tell the jolly old Cap'n to slow down a bit, will you? Whoooo! All this uppin' an' downin', speedin' an' b.u.mpin'-I feel quite queasy."

The shrews who were fending the banks off with their paddles made the most of Pikkle's discomfort by ribbing him aloud.

"Try some cold custard and cabbage for breakfast, mate. Haha!"

"Or some warm oatmeal mixed with black treacle an' carrots!"

"How about a stale vegetable pastie with sour cream over Jl!"

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Pikkle lay in the bottom of the boat, clasping his stomach. "Mercy, chaps! Shut up, you shameful shrews. Take pity on a feller, please! Cold custard 'n' cabbage.. . . Bloouurrpp!"

"Hold tight, all paws! It's the lake!"

Mara clasped the sides tightly as the stream took a sharp downward curve. The boats shot forward on a wild helter-skelter ride. Bows forward, they plunged down. Suddenly an immense splash and a great bow wave drenched everybeast, then the two longboats rocked gently on the broad surface of a great lake.

"Never again!" Pikkle wailed piteously. "All this for a bletherin' Blackstone. You chaps must be off your bally rockers. Blackstone, my aunt's whiskers! Once this hare gets his paws on dry ground he's finished boatin' for good!"

Mara stared about her in amazement. They were on the edges of a fantastic body of water-it was a veritable inland sea. The fresh morning sunlight beamed down upon tideless waters whose only movement was the outgoing ripples set up by the logboats' entry into them. As far as any eye could see, there was water, leagues of it, with no sign of island or sh.o.r.e on the distant horizon. To the left and right of them the broad expanse was sheltered by fringed forest with trees, bushes, shrubs and plants dipping their foliage into the water. It was vast and beautiful in its silent serenity; stillness reigned everywhere.

Log-a-log smiled at the badger maid's wide-eyed expression. "How's that for a sight on a lovely summer morning, miss?"

Mara could only shake her head in silent admiration of the scene.

"I say, you chaps, this is a bit more like it, wot? I'm feelin' much better now. Break out the brekkers, send in the scoff!"

They breakfasted on the open lake, though this time not on emergency rations. There was plumcake, honeyoat scones, mushroom salad and sparkling new cider.

Pikkle ate his using a hardtack biscuit as a plate. As he munched he stared about. "Well, give us a clue, boys.

Where's the jolly old island hidin'?"

Log-a-log pointed straight out. "Two days rowing that way."

After breakfast they took up their paddles and began the long voyage to the island. At first Mara's paws felt stiff and awkward, but she was soon rowing as well as anyone and joining in the l.u.s.ty shrew boatsongs that helped keep the rhythm of the paddles steady. Pikkle stoutly denied he had ever felt sick and sang as loudly as the rest.

"I'll sing you a song of the river-o, Where the water's clean and clear, And the long fast Guosssom logboats go. We're the shrews that know no fear, So bend your back and use those paws. From gravel bank to sandy sh.o.r.es, Your cares and woes will disappear, Just sitting paddling here. Guossssssssom.... Guossssssssom! I'll sing you a song of the river-o. It belongs to me and you. O'er deeps and shallows we'll both go, With the finest Guosssom crew, When other creatures bound to land Will not feel half so free or grand, Or know the water shrews' great skill. So paddle with goodwill. Guosssssssssom.. .. Guossssssssssom!"

In the early noontide the two logboats were still out on the lake. Nothing could be seen on all sides save water; sky and lake met on all horizons. The paddles dipped steadily in and out of the water with short powerful strokes.

Nordo noted the sun's position and called a refreshment period. Lots of shrews dipped cupped paws into the lake and drank with relish. Mara followed suit gingerly, but found to 186.

187.

her surprise that it was cold and sweet. Pikkle dabbled his paws in the water.

"I say, old Log-a-thing, how deep is this bally lake?" Log-a-log smiled mischievously. "Hmm, let me see. It comes two-thirds of the way up a boat or halfway up a duck.'' "Oh, I see." Pikkle nodded understandingly. "Now hang on a baity moment, old shrew. Who are you tryin' to fool?" Nordo laughed. "Watershrews always say that to landlubbers. Actually n.o.beast knows how deep this lake is, though my grandfather tried to plumb it when he was Log-a-log, and he said it was bottomless."

Pikkle turned faintly pale around the gills. "D'you hear that, Mara? Bottomless! That means there's nothin' beneath this boat for goodness knows how deep but water. Oh corks, I knew I shouldn't have come!"

Mara smiled. "Have a nap Pikkle, you'll feel better." "Hah, listen to the creature! Better, she says. I've never felt so absobloominlutely awful in me li-What was that?" Log-a-log came alert. "What was what?" "Over there, sort of a big splash!" Pikkle pointed. Nordo was about to say something when Log-a-log shot him a warning glance and shook his head. * 'Oh, that. It was probably a fish jumping. They do that a lot."

Pikkle held on to the boat's side. "Well, I wish they'd bally well stop. It makes a chap nervous, wot!"

"There it goes again. That's no fish jumping!" A shrew paddler stood up behind them, his normally ba.s.s voice shrill and frightened.

The crews of both boats shuffled their paws restlessly and began murmuring among themselves. Log-a-log banged a paddle noisily on the prow of his logboat.

"Silence, back there. It was a fish, I saw it myself. Now stop that old mousewives* scuttleb.u.t.t and get your lunches eaten!"

Mara looked to her left. A rippling wave was building up some distance away, but it was coming toward the boats. She pointed. "That looks a bit big for one fish; it must be a shoal of them."

One of the shrews stared accusingly at Log-a-log. "You shouldn't have banged your paddle on the boat like that. It's heard you and it's coming for us. It's coming, I tell you!"

From the other boat Tubgutt could be heard yelling accusations: "It's those two, the badger and the hare. They've brought bad luck down on us all!"

Others started shouting as panic set in with the advance of the rippling wave toward the two boats.

"Back the way we came, shrews. Paddle for land!"

"It's the Deepcoiler, mates!"

"Turn back, let us off these boats!"

"If it's the Deepcoiler we're all deadbeasts!"

Log-a-log drew his rapier, rapping out commands over the hubbub. "Silence and sit down, fools, or you'll turn these boats over! If you want to save yourselves sit tight and shut up!"

The rippling hump of water had been building up as it approached the boats. Subdued by Log-a-log's authority, every creature in the boats sat silent and still. Paws gripped paddles tightly, mouths shut tight as vices, fur stood stiff on every back. With little warning the sunlit noontide surface of the immense lake had become a place of horror and dread. Every eye was fixed on the noiseless traveling swell. It was scarce more than three boat-lengths from them when there was a whoosh of water, and something long and scaly slapped the top of the lake. Both craft rose on the swell as the logboats rode the wave.

Mara moved then. Craning over the side, she looked down Bito the translucent blue-green depths and saw the thing as it pa.s.sed underneath both vessels. It was enormous!

She had missed seeing the creature's head, but she watched in fascinated terror as the length of its body slipped harmlessly by, a mere paw's-length beneath the surface, round and thick as the trunk of a tree, dark green with slate-gray blotches. Trailing waterweeds clung to the heavily scaled ma.s.s of the leviathan; rippling sidefins powered it through the water as its rfength kept on pa.s.sing... and pa.s.sing. The pointed tailtip 188.

Scdamandastran 189.

sc.r.a.ped the boat's underside and then it was gone, far down into the fathomless depths of the silent lake.

The badger maid breathed a long sigh of relief and mopped the beads of sweat that stood out on her nose. "By the rocks of Salamandastron! What was that?"

Nordo unclenched his paws from the paddle with a visible effort. "What you just saw was a monster-Guosssom shrews call it the Deepcoiler, though n.o.beast has ever set eyes on it until now."

Pikkle sat with his eyes wide as saucers and his ears rigid. "Well, let's hope we jolly well live to tell about it. Oh, corks an' catkins! I knew I should never have gone sailin'. At least when you're on bally old dry land you can run away, but stuck out here on a floatin' log, it's a bit much, you chaps!"

"Deepcoiler was an old shrew tale," Log-a-log explained to Mara and Pikkle somewhat apologetically, "a story to frighten naughty little ones who wanted to go paddling alone; though in the time of my forefathers there were stories of logboats and whole crews lost in mysterious circ.u.mstances out on this great lake. As for myself, I never believed in the thing, but now I have seen it with my own eyes, how can I doubt it? 1 am sorry that this peril has been brought upon you by me and my son."

The boats were floating side by side. Tubgutt snarled across, "D'you hear that, shrews? He's sorry. We might all be dead meat by tonight, but Log-a-log's sorry! Log-a-log? He's not a proper Log-a-log. Where's the Blackstone mat should be hanging round his neck? We don't have to take orders from him! I say we make for the sh.o.r.e!"

Mutinous murmurs started arising from both crews, "Tubgutt's right, without the Blackstone he's just an impostor!"

"I say we elect another leader!"

"Aye, Tubgutt for leader. He'll get us out of this!"

The fat shrew stood up with a triumphant sneer and faced the shrew leader. "Find yourself another name, shrew. You're Log-a-log no more. I'm the new Guosssom leader now. Right?"

All the shrews were frightened at the thought of being out on the lake where Deepcoiler lurked. Tubgutt's plan to strike for land caught on immediately. Rather shamefacedly they murmured agreement with Tubgutt, though they kept their eyes averted from Log-a-log, who had always been a good and fair leader.

Log-a-log touched his rapier hilt as he gazed coolly across at Tubgutt. "We'll settle this once and for all. You name the time and the place, shrew."

Tubgutt quailed under Log-a-log's stare, but he put on a brave front and began bl.u.s.tering. "There'll be no fighting to the death around here or on land. I'm the newly elected leader now. The moment we get to sh.o.r.e you're banished from the Guosssom-you and your son!"

Fussing busily about, Tubgutt sat down and picked up his paddle. "Hear me now. As your newly elected leader, I say we put about and paddle for land."

"Make one move and you're fishbait, shrew!" Mara had been moving gradually along the boat until she was level with Tubgutt in the other boat. She stood within easy reach of him, brandishing a paddle close to his head.

"Did you hear that?" The fat shrew appealed to his new followers. ' "This stranger is going to kill your new leader. Get her, shrews. Put the stripedog over the side. She and the hare me the cause of all this trouble. Seize them!"

With lightning agility Log-a-log leapt into the other logboat * and was on Tubgutt, his rapier point tickling the fat shrew's throat. "Mutiny and incitement to murder, eh, Tubgutt? You'll face a full council of our Guosssom comrades when we return home. Mara and Pikkle helped our shrews and my son to escape the toads' prison pit; they are honored guests. I've allowed you enough leeway, Tubgutt. Myself I don't care for, but when you threaten the life of Guosssom friends, that's mutiny on the open waters. You there, and you Rivak-get some line and bind this rascal tight and sit him in the stern. ;T11 deal with him when the time is right."

Log-a-log's speedy victory over Tugb.u.t.t, combined with IBS tough, authoritative air, turned the tide in his favor. The 190.

two shrews grabbed the struggling Tubgutt and tied him up.

Log-a-log sheathed his weapon and turned to both crews. "I'm still Log-a-log here, Blackstone or not. Anybeast who thinks he's shrew enough to challenge me, let him do it now!"

There was a momentary silence, then a big tough-looking shrew stood up and made his way along to stand by the leader. "Anyone who challenges Log-a-log challenges me too. He's always been fair and just to all of us!"

Nordo stood up with Mara and Pikkle. He spoke for all three: "We stand with Log-a-log!"

An old shrew with long whiskers waved his paddle. "Good old Log-a-log! Old! What'm I talkin' about, he's only a young snip compared t' me, heeheehee!"

Other voices now made themselves heard .. .

"Aye, Log-a-log's always been a good un. I like him!"

"Me too. He's always played square with young an' old. What d'you say, shrews?"

The crews of both logboats raised a mighty cheer for Log-a-log as he vaulted back into the boat with Nordo.

"Hooray for Log-a-log, leader of the Guosssom. Hooray!"

"I say, chaps, d'you mind sittin' down or we'll all end up in the flippin' drink. Wot, wot!"

The rest of the day pa.s.sed by uneventfully. The sun set over the west lakeside horizon in crimson glory as the hot summer day came to an end. The shrews shipped paddles, ate supper and settled down as best they could for the night. Lying awake in the bows of the lead craft, Log-a-log pa.s.sed Mara a jug of sweetmaple cordial.

"Mara, I want to thank you and Pikkle for backing me- you especially. The way you crept up on Tubgutt was very brave. He had a lot of the others ready to follow him. I know he lost a lot of face in the contest with Pikkle, but out here on the water with everybeast terrified by Deepcoiler they were ready to follow Tubgutt because he was all for turning back. Fear is a great motivator; it was touch and go there for a while. You could have quite easily got a rapier between your 191.

ribs back there. You are a true friend, Mara. I will never forget what you did for me."

The badger maid pretended to yawn and snuggle down, embarra.s.sed by Log-a-log's praise for her. "Oh, that's what pals are for. Now go to sleep, you old waterwalloper."