The Foxwolf glared at the bold veteran. "My Dirge-callers, you killed them!"

Mariel spat sand from her mouth and yelled defiantly. "Aye, dig me out of here and I'll give you a run for your acorns, too, you great two-headed, slop-mouthed, ring-tailed excuse for a toad!"

Dandin joined in hurling imprecations. "Now then, scabby skin, just imagine if we had been an army? Hah! You and those other gray slime wouldn't be around to tell the story. Dig us loose, and you'll find out that we're not a couple of helpless squirrels!"

Nagru controlled his rage. "Oh, we'll dig you out all right, but after a good spell of starvation in my dungeons you'll find yourselves dangling by your footpaws as target practice for my archers. Then you'll wish you had been a couple of squirrels. Wetchops! Go and get those squirrels. Take fifty archers and finish those otters off, then bring the Queen and her brat to me. The rest of you, dig those three out and bind them tight!"

The three companions were dug out and tightly pinioned with ropes, though they continued their verbal abuse of Nagru and his horde.

' 'Hey, lily liver, tie my paws tighter, because if I get them around your filthy neck I'll throttle you!"

"Zounds! Takes six of yeh to truss me up, eh? So it should, you frog-swampin', mud-scoffin', fly wallopers!"

They were lugged down the hill and bound to carrying poles. All three lay in the sand as Nagru circled them, aiming the odd kick at their prostrate forms as he spoke.

"You'll wish you'd never crossed trails with the Urgan 107.

Nagru when I'm done with you. Two bold little mice, eh. Maybe we'll give you to the cooks after my archers have finished with your carca.s.ses. Hmm, and a big fat hare. I've never tasted hare. What d'you say, hare, will you be tasty enough to be served at a conqueror's banquet?"

Meldrum sniffed in disgust. "If it's the last flippin' thing I do, I'll stick in your rotten throat an' choke you. Blaggard!"

Wetchops came dashing back yelling, "They've gone! There's not a sight nor sound of otters or squirrels anywhere! They've vanished into thin air!"

Mariel winked cheekily at the Foxwolf. "Bit of good news, eh? How d'you feel about that, lumpbrain?"

Nagru kicked the mousemaid savagely. "Not half as bad as you're going to feel, mousemaid!"

10.

Sighing restlessly, the boundless sea broke large rollers into white cream which hissed hungrily up to the tideline. A sea breeze, with no clouds to chase around the moonlit vault of the skies, spun dry sand into dancing spirals. Midnight laid its cloak over the Mossflower coast. The four logboats, propelled on m.u.f.fled paddles by Log-a-Log's Guosim shrews, slid silently out over the remainder of the stream that stretched across the sh.o.r.e from dune to sea.

Finnbarr Galedeep and Log-a-Log sat in the prow of the leading vessel. Between them lay a mallet and a broken sword which would serve well as hammer and chisel. Hon Rosie and Joseph perched in the stern, both armed with strong throwing slings and satchels of st.u.r.dy pebbles. The female hare wriggled her ears delightedly, scarcely able to contain her excitement.

"I say, what a j.a.pe! Whoo ... Umff!"

Joseph clamped strong paws about Rosie's mouth, his voice stern and low. "Not one single giggle, d'you hear me, Rosie Woodsorrel?"

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no .

Rufe, Durry, and Foremole wielded paddles in the second boat, the mole muttering darkly to himself, * 'OS doant moinds liddle boaters an* streamwater, but those gurt shippers as sails on waves, boo hurr, no zurr!"

Rufe mispaddled and splashed himself. "Wish I was back in Red wall.*' He sighed. "I'd kiss the gra.s.s an' never have aught to do with water again, not even to wash!"

Durry Quill smiled across at the timid squirrel. "Acorns! By the end o' this voyage you'll be as big an old seadog as ever stood afore a mainmast. Keep yore tail up, Rufe, an' dip that paddle deep."

The prows of all four boats bucked as they struck the first waves from the sea. Finnbarr turned to the crew sitting abaft of him, his single eye shining wildly, and shouted, "Now dig those paddles strong 'n' deep, cullies-we're on blue water!"

Cap'n Slipp of the Pearl Queen sat alone on the sh.o.r.e beyond the headland toasting whelks over an open fire. He had been arguing with his brother, Cap'n Strapp, again. Though Slipp was the larger and stronger of the two searats, he did not possess Strapp's eloquent tongue. Tonight they had argued over whether to sail north or south. Slipp wanted to sail north, but Strapp painted such a glowing picture of southern sun and easy pickings that both crews sided with him. They had all gone aboard his ship, the Shatloo, to celebrate, leaving Slipp alone to sulk over a small fire on the sh.o.r.e. Slipp was not worried; tomorrow he would continue the argument, escalating it into a fight, and he could always beat his brother hollow in a hard sc.r.a.p. Then he would humiliate Strapp and re- in gain command. Perhaps he might even imprison him aboard the Pearl Queen and have Rappsnout, his first mate, take over as Captain of the Shalloo. Slipp smiled to himself. Yes, that would teach Strapp to keep his high-flown opinions to himself.

Log-a-Log looked worried. He knew something was wrong with the plan as soon as he spotted the tiny fire on the sh.o.r.e, then his view was obscured as the hulks of the two ships loomed large in the dark.

"Finnbarr, did you see? There's hardly anybeast on sh.o.r.e."

The sea otter thumped the prow with his paw. "Barnacles 'n' bilgewater! I shoulda knowed t'wouldn't be all plain sailin'. Hark though, mate, they must be all aboard the Shalloo. See the lights shinin' from 'er ports an' lissen to that racket. They're 'avin' some sort o' feast below decks. All the better for us, they won't 'ear the mallet."

Log-a-Log stared at him incredulously. "You're not still thinking of scuttling the Shattool"

Finnbarr was already slipping over the side into the inky seawater. "Course I am, messmate! I ain't leavin' no searat ship afloat to come chasin' after us. Pa.s.s me those tools," he said as he stretched out a paw. , With a grunt of resignation, Log-a-Log grabbed the implements and dived over the side into the sea. He bobbed up beside Finnbarr and pa.s.sed him the heavy mallet. /'You're right, of course. Let's get it done!"

As they swam off, the four boats hoved to on the seaward side of the Pearl Queen. Joseph seized hold of a rope that trailed down from the deck high above. "Come on, let's steal ourselves a ship!"

112.

Blaggut, boatswain of the Pearl Queen, was lying half asleep beside the mainmast, consoling himself with a flagon of seaweed grog. There were only himself and six crew left aboard while the others feasted and roistered aboard the Shalloo. Still, a ship had to have a watch, and at least the bad-tempered Cap'n Slipp was ash.o.r.e. He took a pull at the flagon. Wiping a grubby paw across his lips, he blinked twice-was that a mouse and a big rabbit just come aboard? Blaggut staggered upright. "Ahoy, you two, what'n the name of fishes are ye do ..."

Thunk Rosie's slingstone collided with his jaw, sending him staggering backward. Tripping over the coaming, he fell into the hold with a loud bang. As the rest of the watch came pouring out onto the deck, disturbed by the shouting and the noise, Joseph shrugged. "Good shot, Rosie. Pity you never dropped him where he sat."

Hon Rosie fitted another stone to her sling. "Sat? The blighter was standing. Look out!"

Joseph swung his loaded sling without letting its stone go and caught a second rat neatly across the skull, dropping him like a log. Then the shrews swarmed aboard, rapiers clenched in their teeth, followed by Durry, Rufe, and Foremole, Durry went down with a piercing yell as the flat of a searat cutla.s.s smacked him across the back of his head. The rat stood over him, raising his weapon, about to strike when Rufe Brush came whistling through the air on a sail rope and booted him overboard. Rufe swung back and forth doing what the sea otter had told him to do-growl.

"Garrroooaaarrreeeaaarrrrgghh!''

As he careered to and fro, Rufe's bottom accidentally 113 b.u.mped another searat, who was perched on the ship's rail, ready to dive on Foremole. The rat was knocked overboard into the sea. Still growling in his most ferocious manner, Rufe slipped from the rope, rendering another rat senseless as he landed with a b.u.mp on the unfortunate creature's head. Throwing valor to the winds, the remaining two searats took one glance at the invaders and hurled themselves overboard.

Joseph sprang to the foredeck, gazing anxiously across the dark waters at the vessel Shalloo. Hon Rosie joined him.

"Hi ho and away we go on our very own stolen ship! Come on, Joseph, you old stick-in-the-mud, what's up?"

nodded toward the Shalloo. "Look, our noise must have roused the searats. The ship's swarming with 'em. Finnbarr and Log-a-Log are in trouble!"

Through the darkness the two creatures could barely be seen, swimming toward the Pearl Queen as searats hurled spears, arrows, and slingstones at them. Joseph began shouting orders.

"Get some ropes. Throw them out to Finnbarr and Log-a-Log as soon as they get close enough! Archers, slingers, give those searats something to think about. Keep their heads down so they can't get our friends in the water! The rest of you, make ready to sail, stand by to slip anchor, get up in the rigging, and loose the sails. Hurry!"

As the arrows and stones whined out over the sea, Rufe found himself scrambling up the rigging alongside Durry. They slashed at the ties holding the sails furled, both roaring. "Groooaaarrgharrr!"

A slingstone bounced off Log-a-Log's head, stunning .

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him. He was going down, his mouth and nostrils filling with seawater. Finnbau dived and came up under him and, with the shrew lying across his back, the big sea otter struck out valiantly for the Pearl Queen.

"I say, Finn old lad, catch this!" Hon Rosie was her usual accurate self. She slung the rope, landing it neatly a pawsbreadth from Finnbarr. The otter latched on to it with powerful jaws. Next moment he was streaking through the waters like a great minnow, as Rosie and several others heaved the line in paw over paw.

"Whoohahahahoo! Up you come, you two. Great seasons, look at the b.u.mp on old Log-a-thing's bonce. Righto, I've got him!" The sails were billowing, blown out taut by the wind. Pearl Queen strained against the anchor rope like a wild animal waiting to be unleashed. Joseph, aided by Finnbarr Galedeep, heaved against the tiller, forcing the rudder around until Pearl Queen was bowsprit out, facing the horizon. The tide swell was lifting at its peak when the sea otter bellowed, ' 'Cut loose your anchor cable!"

Foremole had found a ship's axe, perfectly suited to the job. He struck the rope twice where it came through the for'ard port. Whack! Thwack!

Pearl Queen ran free, veering southwest into the heaving seas.

Cap'n Slipp was waist deep in the water, about to take the plunge and swim toward his ship, when he saw it buck from the anchor cable and begin heading out to sea. With a howl of dismay he hurtled forward into the waves and struck out for his brother's ship. Dizzy from roistering in the close confines of a hot and well-lit cabin, Cap'n Strapp shivered on deck, rubbed his eyes, and peered into the darkness, demanding, "What'n the name o' burstin' bilges is goin' on?"

Rappsnout, mate of the Pearl Queen, explained as best be could. "That bangin* amidships, Cap'n, it was two h'animals, otter an' a shrew I fink. They musta been tryin' : to bore an* 'ole in yer vessel, I reckon."

Strapp peered anxiously over the side. "An' did they?" be asked.

"Bless yer c.o.c.kles, no, Cap'n. We chased 'em off," Rappsnout said brandishing his cutla.s.s. "But they swim-med o'er to yer brother's craft; looks like them'n their v mates 'ave took off with it."

"Avast the Shalloo. Throw me a line!" Strapp's eyes were now accustomed to the night. He ; saw his brother swimming toward the Shalloo, and shouted, "Rappsnout, throw Cap'n Slipp a line." >;, The dutiful mate grabbed a heaving line and hurled one v end of it out to the figure in the water. Strapp chuckled wickedly. "Now throw him the other end of it!" ; Rappsnout blinked and scratched his head in bewilder-; roent. "Frow 'im the other end, Cap'n. Are you sure?" Strapp was already shouting orders to the two crews he ' jhad aboard. "Hoist yer anchor! Bring 'er about souwest. ^**Unfurl all sail smart like! Nip to it!" fk- He turned to Rappsnout. "Sure? 'Course I'm sure, 'V jnate. That's if yer want to be Cap'n of the Shalloo. When ?5*re've captured the Pearl Queen, I'll be master of 'er.

%j$tve alhis wanted that vessel for meself. Now's the '^k penance!"

A slow smile spread over Rappsnout's dull features.

n6 .

117.

"Ho, I see! Yer a sly un, Cap'n. But wot about yore brother?"

Strapp felt the ship shudder as the anchor was hauled free of the water; he watched the sails billow out into the wind. "My brother, that stinkin' bully! Cap'n of the seash.o.r.e, that's wot 'e can be if'n *e makes it back to land. Throw 'im the other end of the line, Cap'n Rappsnout!"

Proud of his new appointment, the former mate tossed the line to Slipp, sticking his snout in the air, and ignoring the swimmer's cries, in a dignified manner as befits a Captain. Slipp floundered in the creamy wake of the Shal-loo, swallowing seawater as he watched the stern recede southwest.

"Strapp, ye double-dyed villain, come back! Rappsnout, stop 'im, matey! I'll 'ave yore liver *n' lights fer this, d'you 'ear me! I'll saw off yer tail an 'ang yer by it, you sc.u.m!" Treading water and still grasping both ends of the useless line, the infuriated pirate shouted threats and insults until the Shalloo grew small in the distance.

Foremole thumped Log-a-Log's back as he spat out sea-water, holding a wet cloth to the swollen lump between his ears.

"Thurr, you'm taken et easy naow, zurr Log. We'm all safe!"

Finnbarr had relinquished the tiller to Durry and Rufe, while Joseph went below to check the ship's supplies and weaponry. The sea otter nicked Log-a-Log in a blanket. "There now, shipmate. Pity we never 'ad a chance to sink the Shalloo, but never mind. We got us the Pearl Queen. Our lads did a good job takin* over. I 'ear young Rufe accounted fer four searats single-pawed. Haharr, we got us a prime crew, no mistake!"

Rufe and Durry clung bravely to the tiller, holding the ship on course until further orders. They grinned fear-somely at one another and growled like old seadogs.

' 'Gooarrarrarrurrgggg!''

Rosie found an unopened flagon at the foot of the mast, uncorked it, and took a long pull.

"Pthoowah!"

It sprayed out over several shrews. Rosie held the flagon at paw's length, her face crinkled in disgust. "Whoa, corks, I say, is this the stuff they call bilgewa-ter?"

Joseph was pa.s.sing by. He took the flagon and sniffed it. "No, marm, this is the famous seaweed grog. It'll come in very useful for lighting the galley fires. Now I can get a decent supper cooked."

Wiping her mouth on a kerchief, Hon Rosie muttered, "That's about all the blinkin' stuff is any good for!"

The ship was well stocked and in excellent repair. Joseph discovered a good cache of cutla.s.ses, knives, spears, and archery equipment in her arms locker. A hot meal of biscuits and shrimp soup was dished out to the crew; they relieved each other in turns so they could all eat. Finnbarr Sat under a stern awning with Joseph and Log-a-Log. The shrew was curious to know what course they were taking. Finnbarr licked a paw and tested the wind saying, "We're runnin' southwest as I ordered, mate."

Joseph watched the first streaks of dawn over to the cast. "Southwest? I thought we were supposed to be "heading south." ' The sea otter drank soup from the bowl, smacking his n8 .

The Belhmaker 119.

lips. "So we will, Bellmaker. Take my affydavit for it, mate, we'll be runnin' due south the moment we strike Roaringburn."

Joseph and Log-a-Log repeated the name simultaneously. "Roaringburn?"

"Aye, Roaringburn." Finnbarr chuckled as he stretched out to take a nap. "It's a current-narrow, deep an' very swift, only ever runs one way, south. Mind, it'll take some findin', but the moment we hit it, we'll shift like the wind!"

The shrew Bandle poked his head around the awning. "Then we'd best find it quick; the Shalloo's hard on our paws an' bearin' down on us fast!"

They dashed out from under the cover and, sure enough, there was the Shalloo with every sc.r.a.p of canvas piled on, double crewed and coming after them like a hungry, windblown hawk.

Dawn also found Cap'n SHpp wandering the sh.o.r.eline in a daze, completely unsure of how he had ever gotten back to land. Stumbling back to his position of the previous night, he found the ashes of his fire. He crouched in the wind-tossed sand and blew on a glowing ember, adding sticks and dry gra.s.s to it until a small fire flickered. Miserably he perched by it, drying off and waiting for the sun to get up. Cursing and muttering the most dreadful oaths to himself, he scanned the stretch of beach left by the ebbing waves of the outgoing tide. The corpses of six drowned crewrats who had been his ship's watch lay still, washed up with the jetsam of the previous night's encounter.

Shivering and damp, Slipp stood up, turning his back to warm it by the fire. Then he saw it.

Blaggut, boatswain of the Pearl Queen, was seated in a shrewboat paddling into sh.o.r.e. Slipp leaped up and down, waving to attract the other's attention.

"Ahoy there, Blaggut! Matey, it's me, yer good ole Cap'n!"

Blaggut heard and acknowledged with a wave of his paddle. Leaping out into the shallows, he dragged the boat ash.o.r.e and beached it, smiling and waving joyfully. "Cap'n, Cap'n Slipp, matey,'tis yerself!"

Laughing happily he ran toward Slipp, paws outstretched. "Ho, Cap'n, y'don't know 'ow G.o.d it does me 'eart t'see yore face, an' a fire too! There's a stroke o' luck. I'm froze to the marrow an' starvin'."

When they met, instead of embracing his boatswain, Slipp leapt upon him and began punching and kicking him. "Boatswain, eh? 'Had of the watch? Keepin' me vessel safe from invaders, was you! You ... you ... useless, gutless, brainless, spineless jellyfish!"

Blaggut pranced about on the sand trying to avoid Slipp, who punctuated each word with a hard kick to the boatswain's rear.

"Leave a ship with you, lardbottom! I wouldn't leave you in charge of a tadpole's tail! I'll wager you was full o* grog an' snorin' when those ship robbers came aboard! Brainless, b.u.mblin', bulb-nosed buffoon!" Slipp had Blaggut tight by the ear and his seaboot squelched every time he booted the boatswain's bottom. Blaggut howled.

"Owowowow, Cap'n! Mercy, spare me! There was 'undreds of em. I was wide awake an' at me post, I swear H. Ouchooch! They ganged up on me! Ow, stoppit please! I fought like a madbeast! Aagh that 'urts! But they over- 120.

whelmed me. Honest, ouch! I remembers shoutin', "Elp, I'm bein' whelmed over!' "

Slipp flung the blubbering boatswain facedown in the sand. "What's that thing yore paddlin' about in, dogs-bottom?"

Blaggut kept alternately covering his head and his rear with both paws, in case the Captain felt like kicking again. "It's a sorta liddle boat, Cap'n. I was paddlin' up an' down searchin' for you-cross me 'eart I was. I found a big stream back yonder with fresh drinkin' water, nice'n'sweet 'tis. D'you want me to show it ye? You can drink yore fill!"

Slipp drew his cutla.s.s and whacked the boatswain's back, hard. "Up on yore paws, bubblebrains. Take me to it."