The Lengthening Shadow

Back at Fernwood, the place was buzzing with activity. When news of Samuel and Morgan’s departure and mission had reached the ears of some woodlanders, everybeast started to prepare for attack. Paranoid about impending corsair invasion, the response of the Fernwooders was no big surprise to Jake. He had only met with Bernie and Gharris, his nephew and heir, about a more important matter than attack. The focus of their conspiracy was the fabled Diamond Tablet, the block of stone that supposedly had directions to hidden wealth. Bernie was doing the research on where it was last seen; what was the treasure; who made it. Gharris had taken a trusted few of his Searchers to look for the item. Jake was trying to locate a message bird to spread word that the Tablet must be found and returned to Fernwood. The hedgehog cook was the only one who was partially successful; he had found the origin. Late one night, Jake and Gharris were in the chef’s bedchamber, poring over an ancient, yellowed book entitled Ra lestrer gad’x Greenbloom Gzarté (A history of Greenbloom Forest). Benjamin flipped to a chapter entitled: Fabled Artifacts of the Greenbloom Area. On page one hundred and twenty-seven, he pointed to a large paragraph with scrawling text.

“Look down there. The Diamond Tablet. ’The Tablet is a large piece of granite covered in Thazancian Runes. (Page one thousand and thirty-eight). Only one who can decipher the symbols can access the directions to the hidden wealth. It has been long suspected that the artifact has been hidden somewhere in Fernwood Castle, the newest addition to the Greenbloom colonies...” Gharris cut him off, a look of astonishment pasted on his youthful features. “Newest addition? This book must be a million seasons old!” Bernie looked sternly down his spectacles at the young Maow. “Yes, it must be. Now, where was I... Oh yes! ’The ruler of this fortress, Defteye the Bow, was rumored to have a great fortune in gold, jewels, silver, all kinds of treasure. His closest companions said that he hid it in a secret place and inscribed the directions onto a slab of stone. He ruled long and well, never once speaking of his fortune.

“He was a great leader, fearless in battle and kind to his subjects. However, after the passing of Defteye a great shadow fell on Greenbloom. A new Maow had come to take Defteye’s place. His name was Ironclaw the Conqueror, and he was not as good as his predecessor. Ironclaw’s only goal was total domination. He had all advisors and officers of The Bow slain, and reinstated his Shade Corps as the only present army. They ravaged the land for a few seasons, pillaging and destroying everything in their warpath. Then, there came a time when a cat Admiral, Firtger, overthrew Ironclaw and restored peace to Fernwood. But during Ironclaw’s reign, the Diamond Tablet vanished, presumably broken or hidden. It has never been found again.’” Bernie closed the tome with a thud. “This book contains valuable information about Greenbloom, you might want to read it sometime.” Gharris flipped it open again. All three stared at page one thousand and thirty-eight. “All right, let’s see here. Hmmmmmmm. ‘Thazancian Runes and their Origin’. ‘Many seasons ago, in the time of the Great Sorcerer Wars, the language and writing of Thazancian originated in the city of Thazanc. It was originally used to pass coded messages during the war, but soon evolved into a sophisticated form of communication. Since the Great Wars ended, Thazancian Runes have been used on treasure maps and the like, to keep the hidden gain concealed. Only few have mastered this type of writing, and even fewer can clearly translate it. Several of these few are important historical figures, such as Defteye, the first Maow ruler of Fernwood, and Zagash, a powerful Destromancer. In fact, the fabled Diamond Tablet (Page one hundred and twenty-seven), was inscribed in Thazancian.’ Yes!” The three jumped around the room in jubilation. Gharris suddenly stopped. “wait a minute,” he said, “How are we going to translate the Runes?”

Bernie scratched his furry chin thoughtfully. “You’re right, young ’un. We know how to understand ’em about as much as a fish knows how to fly. Jake, any input?” The Maow king flipped through the tome slowly, eyes scanning each page. “Mayhaps they have a guide in here somewhere. Let’s see the table of contents. Thazancian Runes and their Origin, A History of Thazanc, Ra’vok and the Destromancers, Thazancian Rune Deciphering Chart... There! Page three hundred and ninety-eight. ‘How to decipher Thazancian Runes.’ Hang on a second. Let me write that down. Page-three-hundred-and-ninety-eight, got it! Now all we have to do is find...the...tablet. Any ideas?” Neither Jake nor Gharris answered. Then the Maow ruler hit upon a good suggestion.

“How about we search?”

All of them agreed and went to bed. The next day, the trio started their quest for the artifact.

The kitchens were scoured.

Every cupboard was gone through.

The grounds were thoroughly checked.

No cranny of the cellars escaped notice.

All of the bedchambers were combed.

Throughout the investigation, nobeast had bothered to look at the furniture. And in that same furniture, the Tablet was hidden. Gharris was responsible for its discovery, by the fact that he shouted. “Why don’t we check the places that are most associated with Defteye?” Bernie and Jake ran to the throne room, hoping that the king’s nephew was right. Bernie came skidding across the marble floor, losing his balance as he did. He slammed into the throne, and a large chunk of granite came loose. Jake was steaming mad at the cook until he saw what the stone was.

“The Diamond Tablet!”

The Maows and hedgehog stared at it in awestruck silence. Then the voice of Glandder, a Fernwood Knight, broke the spell. “Wot in the name of fur’n’fangs is goin’ on here?”

Jake did not answer, but just showed him the Tablet. The sword clattered from Glandder’s paws. “Is that...that can’t be...is it really...” he stuttered. Gharris nodded solemnly. “Yep, it’s the Tablet alright.” Bernie rushed off to find Ra lestrer gad’x Greenbloom Gzarté. He returned a moment later, hastily flipping to page three hundred and ninety-eight. “Got it! Now, what’s the first rune?” Gharris stared at the stone intently. “All right, it looks like a white wall with a circle in the middle.” “That means inside.” Jake wrote the translation down. “Good, the treasure’s inside. Next?” Gharris gave the next symbol. “It seems like an arrow pointing to a tree and lightning bolt.” Bernie defined the rune. “It means that the hiding place is deadly, or to be exact, death lies ahead.” Jake scrawled the next coordinates. “Inside in a deadly place. Go on.” The deciphering went on in this manner until Gharris called “No more runes!” Jake read out the full translation to the audience, for all of Fernwood had gathered to hear the directions. “The first set of runes is normal coordinates, but the rest is in a different format. It’s more informative, though. It says the directions in the form of a poem:

“Turn to the jumbled thorn,

Death and wealth await you there.

Beware of the clicking;

The poison lair.

If you are here

Reading this today,

Look for the gray ship

Its Seer shows the way.

That’s all there is.” Jake had a question for the translation. “Where do we find a Seer? More importantly, what’s a Seer?” Bernie explained. “A Seer is a beast who can predict the future, though I’ve never put much stock in their ‘prophecies’ myself. They can also read minds and find destinations, and tell wonderful stories. I knew a Seer once, old batty vixen she was, right after she finished foretelling her own death, she died. Strange, ancient creature she was, but she was always right with her prophecies. I don’t know of any more Seers in Greenbloom.” Gharris looked thoughtfully at a large stained-glass window. “Maybe it doesn’t refer to a Seer native to our Forest. Maybe the Seer is from somewhere else.” Jake brightened up at this idea. “Say, maybe you’re right. It didn’t say that the Seer lived here.” Bernie broke in. “Maybe we should start at the beginning. Turn to a jumbled thorn. What’s a jumbled thorn?” Gharris leapt up, providing a plausible answer. “Thorn is an anagram. An anagram is a word that’s been jumbled to form another word. For example, an anagram of south would be shout. That’s a common one. Thorn would be, hmmm, north!” Jake continued to write the information down. “All right, the treasure’s somewhere up north. Next?” Gharris looked at the translated instructions. “Death and wealth await you there. We know the wealth is the treasure, and now we can guess that it’s in someplace deadly. Jake, you got that?” Jake nodded and turned back to his parchment. Gharris continued to figure out the rhyme. “Beware of the clicking; the poison lair. Clicking, poison, sounds like some sort of guardian creature.” Jake’s quill scratched against the paper. “Guardian creature, clicking, poison. Done!”

“If we are here, reading this today, that’s the next line. We are. Look for the gray ship, it’s Seer shows the way. Does anybeast know of a gray ship?” Jake strode forward, commanding attention. “Yes. I believe that the gray ship in question is the Ragsail. How it would be involved in this, or how Defteye knew of it, I have no idea. However, I think it’s our best lead. Its Seer shows the way. That ship has a Seer?” A middle-aged squirrel called Glid Swiftbrush stepped out of the crowd. “I know of a Seer on that accursed vessel. In fact, I know a lot about it. I was once an oarslave on it. That vermin who has the nerve to call himself an honest Seer is a cruel, sly ferret named Havaraa. He’s also a dagger fighter and storyteller. I think one of his stories may contain the true location of Defteye’s treasure.” Jake clapped mildly. “Good job, Glid. Now that’s something we can work on! Do I have any experienced shipbuilders here?” Twelve hedgehogs, ten squirrels, thirty-eight voles, and twoscore mice walked away from the crowd and up to Jake, one hundred strong.

“Yah, here we are, Your Majesty. Whadda you want us for?”

Jake outlined his plan for finding Havaraa. “You are shipbuilders, correct? Well, can you make a sailing ship? It needs to be strong enough to brave the open seas, and it has to be large enough to fit at least a score of creatures, along with weapons, food, and supplies. One to three masted, no oars. You think you can do that?” There was a concerted roar from the builders. “YES!” Jake grinned from ear to ear. “Good! Work starts tomorrow. Allbeasts back to bed, except Benjamin and Gharris. Good night!” The mass of Fernwooders dispersed back to their separate duties, the shipbuilders going out into the courtyard to start building the ship. Jake and his two companions went back to work on possible locations of the fabled treasure of Defteye.

The battle against Karakssass had taken a fatal turn. After the death of Frillgan, the ambitious eel Grullgill had taken command of the troops. His attacks were both sudden and cunning. The strikes had taken their toll on the morale of Samuel’s force, who lay at a temporary hospital on the streambank. The lizards and snakes slumped and rested, while the commanders of the army made plans to defeat Grullgill’s main force. Morgan remained with the soldiers, trying to boost their spirits. He was doing so by means of a small ditty he learned when he was an otterkit. It was nonsense, but it brightened up anybody who heard it.

“I saw an old hedgehog

As I sat by the river one day

She was a weary wife

These words here she did say

Doodle doodle doodle day

I’m whilin’ my time away

Doodle doodle doodle day

Clack clack clack clack clack clack hey!

She dipped her paws in the stream

They suddenly were eaten by a pike

She looked up toward the sky

Her eyes were plucked out by a shrike

Doodle doodle doodle day

I’m whilin’ my time away

Doodle doodle doodle day

Clack clack clack clack clack clack hey!”

The lizards cheered and the snakes hissed while whacking their tails on the bank, a sign of high appreciation among snakes. Morgan bowed, then went back to tending a sand lizard with its tail chopped off. “Good lad, don’t cry. It’ll be alright. Who was the bloke that did this to ye, eh?” The lizard’s pale, drawn face clenched with anger. “I’m Lieutenant Jorteng, and the villain who did thiz waz a big ,how-you-say, ‘Gila’ by the name of Glafang. I won’t forget him, and I will zlay him zomeday.” Morgan stepped back at the look in Jorteng’s eyes. “I’m sure you will old lad. Give ’im a few whacks fer me, eh?” The medics were dashing back and forth, tending to the wounded and administering poultices and medicine where needed. Samuel and Swoop were nowhere to be seen, which was logical because they were leading another charge. Morgan sighed and went back to his work as an army doctor.

On the front lines of the battle between Karakssass and Samuel, the field was once again littered with broken weapons and dead bodies. Swoop and a few lizards had flown over the defensive lines and mounted an ambush from the rear. Samuel, Stritter, and Gaitert were fighting off the oncoming reptiles, sending troops to break through, then sending soldiers to widen the gap. This tactic had been successful so far, and Karakssass’s troops had been depleted to around half their number. Croglaw and the aquatic snakes had taken out most of the eels, groupers, and piranhas. All in all, the battle was going quite well for the heroes.

That was when Karakssass joined the battle.

The adder king slammed into the ranks with the force of a hurricane, whipping out with his spear and fangs. It did not take him long to realize the advantage of surprise that he had, and he pressed it unmercifully. The long copper blade slashed and whirled, slaying everybeast within range. Samuel called a retreat and, as he ran, though about what he was going to do next. War certainly was a difficult business.

Over to the northwest sea, it was a stormy day. Despite the inclement weather, the ship Ragsail pressed on through the waves, bound for Greenbloom forest. Alrack had several of the sailsbeasts up on the rigging, making sure that the sails took full advantage of the fast, strong winds. The gray vessel bucked and pitched as the rollers buffeted it this way and that, and lightning crashed dangerously close to the ship. The weasel gave out swift orders to ensure that the Ragsail did not sink beneath the gray seas.

“Goldtail! Git some o’ your climbers to the mainmast, the sail’s slippin’ off the main jib boom! Ringtooth! Grunge! Murnga! Cut the mizzenmast ropes loose! We don’t need stabilization up there! Brownfleck! Vance! We’re runnin’ low on food, shoot any passin’ seabirds fer cookin’; tell Blackpan’n’Greasear wot yer doin’!” A bustle of activity commenced as the vermin went about their various tasks. Alrack descended to the lower oardeck to see how his secret ‘extra propulsion’ was working.

Flayer was a nasty and bad-tempered weasel, and the head jailer of the ship. His prisoners were misbehaved oarslaves who were locked in cells on the lower deck. He shared the job with two ferret partners, Skullworm and Rawhide. Contrary to Jake’s earlier remark, the galley was packed with slaves who were forced to row under the cruel lash of Bladewhipp the slavemaster. Any rebellious or naughty beasts were sent to Flayer, who was not named that for nothing. He wore a black silk kilt and sash, a tunic of overlapping leather flaps which served as armor, and he always carried a large, slim willow cane. The cane flayed the backs of the miscreants, earning the jailer his nom de guerre. Skullworm and Rawhide both held heavy leather whips with iron hooks at the ends. All had swords or spears to take down any violence. That day, the fateful events concerning him and his comrades started routinely, with the trio going to beat up on the oarslaves as usual.

“Oi! Get those oars a-movin’, ya lazy swabs!”

The silence of the morning was broken by Skullworm’s loud, raucous yell, punctuated by the crack of a whip. The lash brought the poor woodlanders out of their slumber, all drowsiness forgotten as the grabbed the oars and prepared for another day of hard beatings. Flayer and Rawhide were down in the hidden fifth deck, nicknamed ‘The Hole’ for a good reason. The jail cells were located down there, as were the sleeping quarters of the jailers. The entrance was hidden by a trapdoor, leading to a flight of stairs. The whole thing was a large, deep coracle nailed onto the initial bottom of the craft. Rawhide was leading the prisoners out for their daily punishment. They were lined up in ranks, led by an ‘officer’. The first rank’s leader was a tall, lithe squirrelmaid called Maria, the youngest offspring of King Sedi. She was dressed in rags, but a fierce, rebellious light shone in her green eyes. As the ferret came around, she stood high and proud, and looked him straight in the single eye. “No.”

Rawhide was taken aback by this remark. “I don’t care. Git in line, like the rest of ’em. Now, or I’ll strip yer back bare!” She did not back down. “My father is a king, which makes me a princess. So technically I should be giving you orders!” The jailer cracked his whip menacingly and advanced on her. “No. Yer not royalty aboard this ‘ere ship. Cap’n’s in command, but still, I outrank yer, ya filthy treejumper.” Maria’s response was to punch him in the face. He staggered backwards, clutching his nose. “Flayer! Flayer! Commere an’ see wot she did ter me!” The weasel stalked up, armor jangling. “Uppity, are yer? Now, ye dirty slave, try’n sock my nose!” He walked until he was snout to snout with the squirrel. The next sequence of events happened in the course of a few seconds. She grabbed his sword, ran him through with it, took the keys, stabbed Rawhide, and dashed up to the slave decks. Rawhide scrambled up. He was wounded, but not killed. That fact ceased to be true as he disappeared under the mob of prisoners. After seeing the end of Flayer, they were given new strength and spirit, and slew the ferret without mercy, swinging broken chains that had once held them.

As the squirrelmaid was entering the slave decks, she ran slap bang into Skullworm. The final jailer drew his cutlass and swung it at her. She parried with Flayer’s blade, and the two danced through the aisles, blocking and striking. He was being backed up by a flurry of slashes from Maria when a slave, an emaciated fieldmouse, stuck out a footpaw. The ferret tripped and fell, but quickly got back up again and dashed for the upper decks shouting “Escape! Escape! Rebellion! Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelp!”

Two stoats; Fretch and Limper, and a fox; Dimtide, came rushing to answer the escape call, struggling to draw weapons. Maria slashed fiercely at the fox, but the blade glanced harmlessly off his armor. She cursed inwardly while dodging a swipe from his longsword. She cleaved Fretch’s blade into two pieces, then turned to Limper while keeping her eye on Dimtide. The other stoat drew his cutlass so fast that it severed his belt. It fell down between his legs and he tripped over it. The squirrelmaid stabbed him in the throat before anybeast could blink. Fretch and Dimtide followed Skullworm up the galley stairs, screaming like a forest fire was pursuing them.

Alrack was sitting in his cabin, contemplating a new map that Hatchetback had given him, when three crewbeasts came running and yelling up the stairs. He drew a dagger. “Wot in the name o’ blood’n’fangs is goin’ on down there?” Skullworm answered, sobbing and panting. “It’s that squirrelmaid, Cap’n! She slew Flayer, Rawhide, an’ Limper! All o’ the prisoners are free, an’ probably the slaves, too!” Alrack’s contemptuous sneer vanished. “Escape?” he cried incredulously, “Escape? Alright, somethin’s gotta be done about that. Waveclaw! Rouse the crew! It’s an escaaaaaaaaaaaaape!”

The great ship of Fernwood was finally complete. Jake presided over the other Fernwooders out on the lawn in a naming ceremony. What should the ship be called? The Maow climbed up the rigging and looked hard at the flag. It was green, emblazoned with a tree branch. “I hereby name this craft the Oak Limb. How does that sound to you?” The watchers cheered and Glandder said “Perfect. Sounds perfect.” Jake nodded and ran a paw over the sanded and varnished wood. The craft was a flat-bottomed sloop with a single mast and two decks, all painted a dark brown and polished. Jake had decided on the crew who would sail out to locate Havaraa. Gharris was captain; Bernie the first mate, Glandder the second mate; Glid Swiftbrush as helmsbeast; and a good many others as crew. Before sending the ship off, in secret, Jake called a meeting with Glid, an avid Fatebane. (A Fatebane is a type of fortune teller.) “Glid, what will be the end of this mission and the coming battles?” The squirrel’s eyes turned a deep black as he entered a trance-like state.

“Betrayal shall come at the place of cliffs

The treacherous beast shall meet the sea.

An ancient one will give his life

To let the king go free.

The fabled Company of Light

Shall enter the enchanted creed.

When the time of the tigers’ death arrives

Mouse’s wand shall do the deed.”

Jake looked totally puzzled by the cryptic words. As he snapped out of the trance, Glid noticed and patted him on the back. “Don’t worry about not understanding it. I was just as baffled when I first met a Fatebane. We’re called that because we destroy the purpose of fate. You could say we’re the bane of fate. Fatebane, see?” Jake wiped a paw across his brow. “Thanks, I really don’t have any ideas about that prophecy. Enchanted creed, what could that be?” Glid was also baffled by his own words. “Dunno. I received this in the ancient language of wizards. It’s really hard to understand, and even harder to speak fluently. I think I know one part though: the tiger. Hmmm, tigers in Greenbloom. The only connection I can make is related to you, Jake. The usurper, Ironclaw the Conqueror, was rumored to be a tiger, or at least have tiger ancestry.” “Wait, Ironclaw was a usurper?”

“Yes. History shows that the death of The Bow, as Defteye was known, was an ambush near the end of the Corsair Scouring, a time period when many large crews of pirates banded together and mounted a full-scale invasion on Greenbloom. Defteye had taken Ironclaw and a few others to scout out a fort area when vermin attacked. In the midst of battle, it was documented by some squirrels who were watching that Defteye fell not to vermin blades, but to the sword of Ironclaw. The rest were slain except for him, which indicates that he had some sort of deal with the corsairs. After his companions were killed, he turned on the vermin and slaughtered them, leaving nobeast alive to tell the tale of his evil and treachery.

“Then, he took over Fernwood and started a reign of torture and brutality. The arrival of Admiral Firtger stopped it, but Ironclaw was not slain. He escaped somewhere, and might still be there right now. There have been no reports of tigers ever since, so Ironclaw’s line has most likely died out by now. Still, he must be alive if his death was foretold in the future. So then, Jake, you’ve gotten a good clue on two lines of the prophecy, and you’ve learned a lot about important Maow history. Another note is that the Scouring ended abruptly after this incident, clinching proof that it was a ploy to bring Ironclaw to power. I cannot think of something more horrendous, killing your own beloved king and causing countless unnecessary deaths to take his place. The lesson to be learned from this story of black-heartedness and the depths of betrayal is that a noble line can become tainted by ambition, and that if you disappear and and are never seen since does not say that you are truly dead. Ironclaw was the worst of the worst, and I hope you never grow to be like him, Jacober.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t.” Jake assured him. Then he strode out through the gates into the courtyard in the early morning sun to attend to something important: the matter of moving the boat out to the sea to search for Havaraa. Some woodvoles had constructed a strange-looking pulley system that would move the ship to various checkpoints until it reached the ocean. Jake had agreed to try it out and was now presiding over the first pull. A newt woodlander called Dercray had spent a few days constructing a track so that the ship would slide smoothly along on its course. Two voles were at a hastily constructed treehouse at the first rope’s lever, ready to pull and send the ship on its way. Jake threw a purple handkerchief in the air, signaling the pull to begin. The pair of voles heaved and tugged on a lever which operated a block-and-tackle system until the ship finally slid out of the courtyard, through the gates, and onto the slanted track. It skated down until it hit the checkpoint and stopped at a barricade.

Jake allowed himself a hidden smile. The plan was working! In the course of a few hours, the ship was one checkpoint away from the ocean, and all the crew were boarded. He signaled to a mouse who lifted the gate. The ship slid along into the ocean, out on its long voyage. Glid waved his tail in farewell to Fernwood, not knowing if he or any of the crew would return. And nobeast knew if the Tablet and its fabled treasure, the hoard of Defteye, would ever be found, or if it ever existed in the first place. Jake knew that among the jewels and coins, the special inheritance of the Maows lay hidden; the legendary Ring of Rhonâe. The ring granted rule over all woodlanders, and Jake did not know if he could resist it, or the urge to take the treasure in the name of Maows.