Invading Horde

        Riala Goldentail walked down the north path.  She had decided to visit Redwall and taste its renowned food once again.  The golden- tailed squirrel grinned.  She wasn't much of a cook, and besides, she hated cooking.  Yes, Redwall fare would be a good change.
        Riala knocked on the gates of Redwall.  She was answered by a gruff
voice.
        "Who goes there?"
        Riala laughed. "Oh, open up, Tem Prell!  It's Riala Goldentail of the Wanderers!" she called.  The fat old bank vole gatekeeper opened the doors, grumbling.
        "Well how was I s'posed to know?  You could have been an attackin' horde fer all I knew," the vole muttered.  Riala hid a smile and made her way to Cavern Hole.  Maybe she was in time for lunch.
        She was late for lunch, the squirrel found, but there were refreshments on the table for the creatures surrounding it.  A squirrel about the same age as Riala motioned to her.  Riala grinned and slid into the seat between the squirrel and a fox.
        "Hi Kat," she said to the squirrel.  Kathryn Woodfurrow, Kat for short, was a Wanderer, like Riala.
        "Why weren't you here earlier?" Kat asked.  Riala Goldentail shrugged.
        "Didn't know there was a meeting," she explained to her friend. "I didn't see it on the bark parchment."  Kat stared at Riala in disbelief.
        "Didn't see it!  Riala, it's only been up there for the past week!" she exclaimed.  Riala grinned sheepishly.
        "Er, well… guess I haven't checked it lately."  Kat laughed and shook her head.
        "Crazy squirrel," she chuckled. "You're supposed to check the notices every time you're at the headquarters."  Riala was about to reply to that when Tamlin, at the head of the table, banged his fist on the wood for attention.  Everybeast stopped their conversation and looked at the co-and acting leader of the Wanderers, presiding over the meeting while Brook was away.  Tamlin started the meeting.
        "Let's see… no new members lately.  There's been a few missions completed…"
        The meeting went on for a while as Tamlin told of finished missions, promotions, and other things of business for the Mossflower Wanderers. Halfway through the meeting Abbess Rosemary, an albino mouse, entered the room and whispered something to Tamlin.  The squirrel's eyes widened and he stood up in alarm.
        "Abbess Rosemary has told me that there's a vermin horde in Mossflower!" he said.  The Wanderers murmured in surprise.
        "Have they done any harm?" a hedgehog asked.
        "I'm afraid so," Tamlin answered. "They've captured a fieldmouse family. I think we'll have to fight.  Who will come?"
        Most of the Wanderers stepped forward.  Riala recognized some of them, other than Kat and herself.  Kaylen Moonpaw, an otter, Skylet, another otter, Kemra Arrowshade, the Abbey Warrior, Twi the rat, and others. Kemra liked to come to such meetings, even though she wasn't a Wanderer. After all, some of the things that went on in these meetings concerned her and Redwall.
        Four Dibbuns stepped forward, standing on tip-paw and trying to look like warriors.  Tamlin managed to keep a straight face as he scrutinized the Dibbuns.  The squirrel circled them a couple times, then stopped in front of a mouse.
        "Well, well, well.  If it isn't the brave Zash," he said.  Zash stood up straight and saluted.
        "'Portin' fer dooty, mister Tammin," he said.  Tamlin had a hard time hiding a smile as he returned the salute. He went to the next Dibbun, a hare.
        "And who is this warrior?" Tamlin asked.
        "Th' name's Tulip, Tammin sir!" she replied.  Tamlin turned to the next Dibbun.
        "Now you're a fright!" he said to the mouse. "What do they call you?"
        "I be Talley, an' I wanna be a worrior!" she answered boldly.  Riala tried to hold back a laugh, and it came out strangled.  She quickly coughed to cover it up.  Tamlin shot a warning glance her way, and Riala grinned sheepishly.
        "A warrior, hm?  We'll see about that," Tamlin said, before moving to the next Dibbun, who was a red squirrel.
        "You look like a strong creature.  What's your name?"
        "Maple, sir Tammin, an' I be a warrior too!" the squirrel Dibbun answered proudly.  Tamlin nodded and moved to stand in front of the Dibbuns.
        "We need four good warriors to guard the dormitories for a while.  But a warrior- sentry must be able to do a few things," the Wanderer's leader told them.
        "What's dat?" Zash asked.
        "You must be able to obey the Sisters and Brothers of Redwall, go to bed when asked, and stay there until an adult wakens you.  Also you must, of course, defend the dormitories against all vermin and protect the goodbeasts of Redwall Abbey," Tamlin answered.  The four would- be
warriors saluted smartly and marched off toward the dormitories.
        Tamlin turned back to Rosemary once the Dibbuns were gone.
        "Where was this horde?" he asked.
        "The Sparra said up the path a long ways, past the otter and his wife," Rosemary answered.  Tamlin nodded.
        "Good." He turned to the Wanderers. "I need somebeast to ask for Lord Bladeleaf's help.  I'll need two others to go for Log a Log and Skipper.  Messengers would be preferably hares."
        Two hares that Riala didn't know right off and Tariss Longleap stepped forward.
        "All right," Tamlin said. "Dewfall, could you go to Bladeleaf, Windear to Log a Log, and Tariss to Skipper?  Tell them to meet a bit south of the otter and his wife."  The three hares loped off at a ground- eating pace.  The leader of the Wanderers turned and unfolded his plan.

* * *

        Riala Goldentail sat beside Kat in a tree, waiting for the advancing horde.  Hidden near the north path on either side were Guosim shrews, Wanderers, the odd Redwallers, Lord Bladeleaf, Salamandastron hares, Sparras, and Camp Willow otters.  Riala leaned over and whispered to Kat.
        "Sure hope the horde didn't make camp or something.  My muscles are getting stiff," she said.  Kat nodded.
        "Mine too," she agreed.
        Suddenly a shrill bird call split the air.  The warning.  Each woodlander strained their ears and eyes to catch some sign of the approaching horde.
        It was a vast horde of all manner of vermin, that outnumbered even the combined forces of hares, otters, shrews, Sparras, Redwallers, and Wanderers!  In the middle of the horde was the mouse family, bound, weak, and thin from starvation.  Riala, Kat, and the other squirrels in the
trees grasped waiting ropes.  They waited for the right moment.  It came.
        The squirrels swung over the horde and mice, each picking up a mouse in passing.  Then the woodlanders struck before the surprised horde- some of which didn't even know the mice were gone- could react.  The woodlanders attacked from their hiding spots surrounding the vermin, each yelling their batttlecry.
        "Wandereeerrrrs!"
        "Eulaliaaaa!"
        "Arrrowshaaaade!"
        "Logalogalogalog!"
        "Redwaaaaaalllll!"
        "Camp Willloooowwww!"
        The squirrels deposited the mice in the safe hands of brawny otters, who hurried back to the abbey.  Then the squirrels joined in the battle.
        "Riiilllaaarrrrr!" That was Riala's warcry.
        "Wandereeeerrrrs!"
        The two squirrels fought their way to Kaylen and formed a ring, fighting outwards.  Many other creatures were doing the same thing.
        Riala grimaced when a spear from a ferret went through her side.  She threw her roce- a short, thick, slightly curved, hardwood stick with a cord attached to it- at the ferret.  It tumbled end-over-end, then struck his head, killing him.  Before anybeast could step on her weapon, the
squirrel had pulled in the cord and picked the stick up.  Riala tore a strip from her tunic and tied it to the wound, then resumed fighting.
        Kat had taken an arrow through her paw and a sword- slice to her side, but she fought like a madbeast anyway.  Kaylen had been sliced in numerous places, but as she often was in battle when she was at this point, she was on the verge of bloodwrath.  Although most of the woodlanders were wounded badly, some strong force- whether it was will, anger, or bloodwrath- kept the woodlanders up and fighting.
        It was a close battle.  There were more of the vermin, but the woodlanders were better fighters.  Each side was falling to the other's blows.  First the woodlanders were winning, then the vermin, then the woodlanders again.  At a lull in the fighting, Redwallers came and helped to bind and poultice goodbeasts' wounds.  Each side rested, taking a bite to eat and a sip of water.  An arrow landed next to Kaylen's paw, and she leapt up despite her wounds.
        "They're firin' at us, mates!  Chaaarrrge!"
        The battle began again with renewed force.

        For a long while the vermin had the upper hand in the fight.  Then suddenly, everybeast heard a strange, beautiful, spine chilling sound.
        "Arrrowwwrrrrrr!"
        The howl of a wolf.
        A cheer rose from the vermin, who were positive that another predator would help them.  The woodlanders were nervous.
        "Looks like bad news for us, huh, Kat?" Riala called.  The other squirrel nodded.
        "Not much of a chance he'll be on our side!" Kat replied, stabbing a weasel with her dagger.
        A young brown wolf, about two years old, with a strange gray stripe running down his back, barreled into the fight with a heavy broadsword.
        "Streeeaaak paaack!" he roared.  Riala was startled.
        "Streak pack?" she exclaimed. "That's a good wolf!  He must be part of Nytestreak's pack*!"
        The brown wolf sliced and hacked and killed vermin right and left!  A moan of despair went up from the vermin horde as the tide began to turn in favor of the woodlanders.
        The battle was over quickly after that.  Most of the horde was killed, and those that lived fled.  Riala went up to the wolf.
        "What's your name?" she asked.  The wolf grinned.
        "Graystreak," he answered.
        "I'm Riala Goldentail," the squirrel introduced herself. "Are you one of Nytestreak's pack?" she queried.  Graystreak nodded.
        "He's my father."  Then the wolf laughed. "Think I could develop a taste for woodlander food?" he asked.  Riala was surprised.
        "You wish to be a Wanderer?" she questioned.
        "Yep.  Nytestreak wants a connection to you woodlanders, and I wanted to see what you were like!"  He laughed again. "I've got a respect for you creatures.  You're great fighters, and I'd proud to be a Wanderer!" Riala smiled.
        "See that squirrel over there?" she asked. "Well, that's Tamlin, our leader.  But right now I think you should wait- everybeast's pretty wounded.  I think I'd better get healed up."  Riala looked Graystreak over. "You don't look in perfect shape yourself."
        Graystreak shrugged, then grimaced as his cut shoulder moved. "Well… perhaps you're right.  Let's go."