How Dare You Interrupt Me, Grimalkin!

[Rath the Whirlwind]

Rath stared at the beasts who scuttled out of the dark like insects to a fresh body.  The ferret narrowed his good eye; he hadn?t expected them to be back this soon. At least they had the decency to bring them back. Rath wouldn't have put it past the nasties to eat them.

Muscles tensing, he took careful measure of each madbeast, from ears to twitching tail-tip.  And mad they most certainly were; a ragged fox whispered into the ear of a hare and the two eyeless creatures erupted into broken giggles.  

His fur stood on end.  He wanted nothing to do with these creatures.

Matukhana stepped forward, doing his best to hide his injuries, just as a wildcat in tattered robes met him.  Unlike the rest of the group, it was hard to tell whether or not he was actually blind, as a faded cloth was wrapped over his eyes.  He smiled, fangs gleaming in the bare torchlight.  

?Welcome.?  The word seemed to slither over the cat?s teeth.  ?We bring back your beasts, wish to speak with Vik?hrr Chivkis.?

The fox captain blinked.  

?I think,? Venril piped up, ?it?s safe to say that means leader.?

Matukhana snorted.  ?I knew that.?  He turned his attention back to the blindfolded wildcat and jabbed a claw at his chest.  ?Well, ?ere I am.  You and your scruffy lot have got some explaining to do.  First of all, who??

The fox froze mid-sentence as his face was enveloped in grasping, striped paws.  With a rather uncaptain-like yelp, he jerked backward.  ?Hellsteeth!  What in jib booms do you think you?re doing, cat?!?

An ugly frown split the wildcat?s face.  ?No good.  You only common Chafa.?

Matukhana choked on an objection.  The cat, however, had already moved on, padding past the speechless captain.

?No waste time. Come, Chivkis.?

There was an uncomfortable amount of silence, broken once again by Venril.  ?Oh, well? maybe it?s me, then.  I?m a Captain!?

And a right good captain, too. Rath felt the headache from earlier return.  

The cave dweller didn?t even need to feel the stoat?s face as he stepped past.  He curled his lip.  ?Hsschah!  Vikvi too small 'n runty for Chivkis.?

"Then try me on fer size, laddie!"  The loud squirrel from earlier swaggered forward, offering the wildcat a perilous grin.  Rath snorted; it wasn?t as if the cat could even see it.  The old beast's movements, particularly a fondness for moving his ears instead of his whole head, marked him as being just as blind as his followers.

"I dinnae ken wha' this Chivkis bollocks yer goin' on about is, but a cap'n o' Mar'in's Shadow's ten times the beast o' any braw vermin."

The cat sniffed, his mouth frozen in an odd grimace as he neared the squirrel.  He then bristled.  ?Nonononono no!  Not right."

?Hskyik!? An eyeless, loincloth-clad mouse bared chipped incisors.  ?You wastetime!?

Rath frowned.  If it came down to battle, it would be a one-sided massacre.  This, above all else, had to be avoided.  Their blood was probably rotten inside their veins, for one thing.  It would rust his axe.  And he could only see millions more of them pouring out into the tunnel, like a swarm of sickly spiders.  

The ferret wracked his brain for an alternative.  Chivkis. He?d heard it before. He was busy mulling over the word when he noticed Damask flutter into the room, looking distinctly put out.

?They could be looking for the bird,? he offered.  The robin sent a positively venomous glare in his direction.  

The cat, too, turned to face him, and the warrior felt, for the first time in seasons, the overwhelming urge to retreat as the bandy-legged cat slithered through the throng of beasts with an uncanny agility.  The feline had barely placed a claw to his useless eye when Rath bared his teeth and pushed aside the paw with his axe haft.  ?Get away from me, old one.?  

The cat only smiled.  ?Ah, strong is Vik?hrr Chivkis.  Why not you speak up sooner??  The smile faded, and he twitched his whiskers.  ?I am Yirika Chivkis Chopufi of noble Fritterik.  Vik?hrr tribe come to Bigfeast in Chivkisik honor, yes??

Rath froze.  This was not his decision to make.  The cave beasts pressed around him and something inside shivered.  These beasts were so much like Them.  But something was different.  The shiver bundled up in his stomach unfurled and radiated with warmth, so much like the blood after a first kill.  

?Err... okay.?  

?Good!?  The cat beamed, and Rath could nearly see eyes crinkling with pleasure behind the blindfold.  ?We leave at once!?  

--

?Well, doesn?t this just take the biscuit??

Rath twitched an ear as Matukhana fell into step beside him.  Damask, looking just as miserable as ever, hopped along a few paces in front.  

Glancing sidelong at the warrior, the fox continued. ?By the by, you still haven?t told me what exactly happened in the caves.?  His gaze hardened.  ?These scruffy savages might have taken a fancy to you, but don?t forget that you?re a member of my crew, ferret.?  

Rath shrugged.  ?Fair enough.  I think I might have an idea what this ?Chivkis? nonsense is all about.?

?Do tell,? Matukhana drawled.  ?It looks like we?ve got a ways ahead of us.?

--

Rath, his axe hefted over one shoulder, loped toward Greenfang.  ?We?re moving on, then??

The weasel nodded.  ?Aye, sure ?nough.? He cracked a smile, showing off a fine display of rotted teeth.  ?Next time Crinky gets lost, we?re jus? goin? on widdout her.?

Rath nodded, and he and Greenfang went to rejoin the group.  As they neared the picture wall, however, the ferret narrowed his good eye.  ?Hold on.?  He pointed to the side, where Damask stood.  ?Did you see something move over there??

?Wozzat?  Y?mean besides da bird?? Greenfang squinted and peered into the darkness.  After a moment, the old weasel gave up.  ?Aw, yer seein? things, Lefty.? With that, he continued toward the picture wall, leaving Rath staring into the darkness.

The warrior scowled.  He didn?t like a problem, be it a living beast or otherwise, that he couldn?t cleave.  Even more annoying was that the weasel was probably right; the shifting shadows lurking in the darkness had most likely been just that.  

He had only begun to follow Greenfang when a chirp of surprise caught the mustelid off guard, and he whirled around.  

?Good day, gents!  And what would two fine rodents be doing in such a lovely cavern??

Rath snorted.  Even when confronted by two rats, the robin acted as nonchalant as ever, his words as sweet as coconut milk.  

The ferret supposed he should do something about the situation, but he felt an odd sort of fatigue, like the sapping ache after a long bout.  He really didn?t care what happened to the bird, and it was much more amusing to watch.  

So he did.

One of the rats snickered.  ?Lookiss!  Funny shrip!?  The rat was an odd specimen.  Thoroughly undersized, he spoke in a halting manner in a way that was more hiss than strictly necessary.  

His companion, who was a little fuller bodied, hefted a stone club.  ?Shrip Chavers!?

Realizing that the situation was going south quickly, Damask changed tactics in an eye?s blink.  ?Hold!?  He spread his wings wide, and the two rats complied, gazing curious at their prey.  ?Ruffians!  Take but one step closer?just one!?and on my word, you will regret it!?

?Chavers talkfunny.? The skinny rat said, gnawing at a hang-claw.  

His companion seemed the more aggressive of the two.  He sneered.  ?Yah!  Whylisten Chavers??

?I don?t think you quite understand the consequences of thwarting me.? The robin puffed out his chest.  ?Come forth at your peril, knaves.?  He emphasized this warning with a darting hop and a snap of his beak, and the vermin started.  ?For if you do, Damask, the great and powerful sorcerer from the land above, shall afflict you with a curse most foul!?

?Inflict.?

Rath raised an eyewhisker, a bit put out at having been interrupted.  ?What??

?You do not afflict somebeast,? Damask chirped crossly as he hop-skipped along.  ?If you?re going to tell a story, sirrah, take care not to do the players injustice.?

The ferret, who didn?t even know what either of those words meant, shrugged.  ?Fine.  Anyway??

The rats seemed quite taken aback by this.  

?Curse?? The skinny one took a step back.

Damask, meanwhile, looked rather smug.  ?Why yes, my unkempt friend.  Since I am as just as I am powerful, however, I will pretend this never happened if you leave immediately.?

The heftier rodent snarled.  ?I tired of noisy chavers.  No curse if eatupquick!?

"Stop right there!"

Rath wrinkled his nose; that stupid mouse.  Probably thought she was being such a heroine. He watched as she drew out that pathetic toy sword she was always waving about.  

"Come any closer, vermin, and I'll slice you to ribbons."

The smaller rat froze in place, but the larger one snarled and drove in.  Bellona dodged nimbly, and retaliated, carving a painful gash into the rat's arm.  

Rath let his axe drop into his paws.  At this rate, it would take ages.  

"Hold there."

Both vermin halted in their tracks and turned to face the scarred ferret who loped toward them.  He swung his axe in a fighter?s stance.  ?That?s my dinner,? he said with a smirk.  

"Over my dead body, scum!" the mouse shot back at him.

The rats, however, seemed to be frozen in place, staring up at the one-eyed warrior.

?And that?s when they said something about a Vik?hrr Chivkis,? Rath murmured.  ?Something about their language changed, there was a lot more hissing and chirping.  But I remember hearing that somewhere in there.?  He frowned.  Whatever it is, I?m not sure I like being one.

?Anyway,? the ferret continued, ?after that, they just ran away.?

?Cowards,? Damask trilled.  ?Like all vermin are.?  He leveled a virulent glare in Rath?s direction.  That was unchanged as well.

Rath snorted.  Weakling bullies like them who couldn?t even fight were only in the way.  

And yet, as the ferret watched them scurry back into the shadows, he felt an odd kind of warmth and stood up just a little taller.  He turned, head held high.

?Ow!?

Rath grunted as he rubbed at the tender spot on his paw.  ?What was that for, bird?  I just saved your life.?

Damask snapped his beak.  ?I didn?t need your help, you great big lummox!  I?ve gotten out of bigger troubles than that before.?  The robin launched himself into the air and hovered in front of the ferret so that they were eye-to-eye.

?You tried to kill Bellona.?  Damask?s voice dripped with hatred.  ?As long as you live, we're enemies.?


Rath could have easily fought back.  Coward?  Tell that to your mouse friend, who couldn?t even finish a proper duel without cheating.

But there was no need to bandy threats with a bird.  There was nothing the little tidbit could do to him, anyway.  

He stopped beside Matukhana, offering the fox a none-too gentle slap on the back.  "Well, have fun guarding the slaves, Captain.  I'm going up ahead."

And the ferret strode onward, the look on the fox captain's face putting an extra spring in his step.