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Literature Text
Undying Friendship; A tale of Redwall
Book One; An overdue reunion
Chapter 4; Misteye the Seer
The four travelers made good time in the trek through Mossflower wood.
It wasn't even a day since they left that they had already passed the red
sandstone quarry that served as the border between Mossflower's relatively
flat terrain and the rolling foothills near the mountain range. When the
mountain first came into view, they weren't too far from it. It only took from
sunrise to midday to reach the enormous range. As they approached,
Martin, Gonff, Rose and Felldoh began searching for the stairwell that would
lead them to the creature who would help them.
Rose was the first to see the stairway that was carved out of the mountain
face. Each step was flat, wide, long, and dry as a bone. It took very little time
scaling the mountain to a large ledge that overlooked the foothills and fringes
of Mossflower. Redwall could be seen vaguely over the tops of the trees. Martin
looked toward the mountain face and saw the badger carving.
It was an incredibly accurate likeness of a badger, from the muzzle shape to
the carved patterns of the fur. While the parts of a badger's face that would be
black were the obsidian of the mountain, the travelers identified the white part
to be made of a lighter, more shiny rock, possibly micah. Looking down, Martin
noticed a peculiar crack on the floor coming from the middle of the closed
entryway. It ran outward, then turned in the direction away from the
stairs at a sharp ninety degree angle. A matching crack was visible on
the short overhang over the carving.
Just as Luke had instructed them, Martin knocked upon the brow of the
badger three times. A minute passed, and there was a click and scraping
of stone as the eyelids of the badger carving slid open. Quite real eyes
peered at Martin and Gonff(Felldoh and Rose had become wisps of smoke swirling
at their footpaws), and a male voice asked, "May I help you with something?" Martin nodded.
"Yes. We would like to see the One Who Sees the Way. We would like to
join him in an enlightenment meal." The eyelids closed, and Martin and
Gonff took a few steps back as the wall slid forward on the crack in the
floor. When it was completely out of the way of the way, Martin and Gonff
saw a young male badger, around sixteen years old, emerge from the cave.
His face was completely identical to that of the carving on the door, as
though he just made the indent by pushing his face against it. His body
was very well built, even for a badger. Slung across his back was a large
two sided battle axe, twice Martin's height, which had a scraped blade
from use.
"Do you come in peace?" the badger asked, eyeing Martin's sword.
Martin stood firm. "My friend and I are peaceful creatures, we will not
harm you." After a few moments, the badger nodded and let them
inside, closing the door behind them, unaware of the smoke that drifted
inside with them.
The cave was not what the travelers had expected. It was a well lit cavern,
with torches lining the walls every meter. Well made furniture, made from
either wood or stone and lined with moss, was placed here and there.
From another chamber to the right, smells of burning wood and roasting
fish drifted into the main room, and with them came a young squirrelmaid
of about Felldoh's age. She was hazel with sapphire blue eyes, and wore
a tan tunic with an apron wrapped around her waist. "Matthew, who are
these two? Guests?" she asked the badger, looking at the two mice.
Matthew spoke, "Daniela, they came to see Father. Apparently they
heard of his skills and came to see him." Martin and Gonff looked at
one another, wondering the same thing; is their father the one they seek?
Just then a young male otter entered, dripping wet and carrying a few fish
in his paws. "Hey. I got some more fish. Who are those two?" The two
mice introduced themselves to Daniela, Matthew, and the otter, Justin.
They then asked where their father was. "Hold on," Daniela said. "I'll call
him. Father! You have some visitors!"
From a tunnel nearby, an old fox emerged slowly. His leg was in a
makeshift splint, and he leaned on a cane made of a dark colored wood, which
had peculiar grooves and cracks on it. He was garbed in a long green robe a
and wore a pair of spectacles. Martin noticed something strange about the
fox; his left eye was completely clouded over, no color whatsoever. He did
however, see very well nonetheless. "Hello, friends," the fox said to the
mice. "I am Misteye the Seer. Who are you?" Martin spoke, "I am Martin
the Warrior. This is my good friend, Gonff. It is an honor to make your
acquaintance." Misteye paused, then asked, "The pleasure is mine, now
who are the other two?" Martin and Gonff felt confused and nervous at
the same time. "W-what other two? We're the only beasts here." Misteye sighed
and spoke again, but this time not Martin or Gonff. "I know you're there.
Come on, let us all see you." Much to Martin's dismay, Rose and Felldoh
materialized before the ancient fox, who wasn't phased a bit, surprisingly.
Martin looked at Misteye curiously, saying, "Misteye, forgive me for saying,
but you seem a little calm for someone looking at two ghosts." Misteye responded
by saying, "I've seen many strange things in my time, trust me. This is
nothing new to me."
Martin thought it best not to push Misteye for the solution to resurrect
his two friends, at least until later. He told his friends this as they all sat
down for their meal. It was a simple meal of trout drizzled with vinegar
and lemon juice, with a side of corn bread and seasoned potatoes.
Everyone was given tea as a beverage, and when Martin and Gonff had
finished theirs, Misteye asked to take them and read them. While reading
Martin's, he said, "Keep your friends close, don't eat anything that is
charcoal colored, and study for the future. You and many others will need
your guidance." Then it was Gonff's turn. Misteye looked disgusted, and
Gonff became nervous. "What's wrong? Is it bad?" Misteye replied, "Be
more hygienic." Gonff was then curious. "Why?" To answer the question,
Misteye plucked a rotten tooth from the massed tea leaves. As the other
creatures shuddered and said, "Gross," Gonff began asking where he
could find a toothbrush.
After everyone- minus the ghosts- had finished their meal, Martin thought now
was the best time to see if Misteye knew about bringing his friends back to
life. He looked to Misteye and asked him. "Misteye, sir, I was wondering
something. Is it possible to bring the dead back to life?" Misteye had been
whittling away at a piece of wood, and paused after Martin's question.
He looked at the warrior mouse. "Martin, even if you could, there would
be many complications. For one, you couldn't just put a soul into just
any body. Otherwise, the soul could be rejected. Also, even if you had
the original bodies, you would have to heal any injuries, which can be
hard. And, if the bodies are decayed, well let's just say they won't be
much fun to look at. But like I said, IF you could." Martin sighed. Maybe
Luke made a mistake. Maybe this was the wrong seer. But Martin then
thought that Misteye knew more than he was telling.
Martin and Gonff were asked to help Matthew chop firewood that
was stored in another section of the cave. Martin began to discuss
in a whispered tone his thoughts to the mousethief. "I don't
understand. My father said that this creature knew what to do."
Gonff nodded ad Martin cleaved a small log in half with his sword.
"Aye, matey. There's something a little fishy about that fox. Let me
chop some for a while, you look a little tired." Rose and Felldoh
drifted into the room as Martin gave his sword to Gonff. He lifted
the blade over his head but didn't have time to swing it. Matthew
had seen the sword and tackled Gonff to the ground and began to
punch him repeatedly as the mouse shouted, "Ouch! What's going-ow!
Hey! Not the face! Not the face!" Felldoh began chuckling, "Wow,
Gonff. Matt either really hates Martin' sword, or really hates you!"
Matthew suddenly stopped attacking Gonff, who got up and scurried
behind Martin, and looked at Martin, saying, "This sword... is yours?"
Martin replied saying, "Yes it is. Please don't kill me." Misteye
stormed into the room as fast and hard as his injurled leg would
allow. He glared at the badger and snarled, "Matthew, what is the
meaning of this? Why are you attacking our guest?" Matthew
stood his ground and said, "Father, the pummel stone on the
sword-" Misteye interrupted him. "What about it?"
Matthew whispered into Misteye's ear. "Father, it's THE stone."
Misteye stared at Matthew. "You're sure?" The badger nodded.
The fox picked the sword up, examined the hilt, and gasped.
He turned and said to them all, "Come with me." The mice and
ghosts exchanged glances, and followed the fox down the
tunnels, wondering what was going on.
Book One; An overdue reunion
Chapter 4; Misteye the Seer
The four travelers made good time in the trek through Mossflower wood.
It wasn't even a day since they left that they had already passed the red
sandstone quarry that served as the border between Mossflower's relatively
flat terrain and the rolling foothills near the mountain range. When the
mountain first came into view, they weren't too far from it. It only took from
sunrise to midday to reach the enormous range. As they approached,
Martin, Gonff, Rose and Felldoh began searching for the stairwell that would
lead them to the creature who would help them.
Rose was the first to see the stairway that was carved out of the mountain
face. Each step was flat, wide, long, and dry as a bone. It took very little time
scaling the mountain to a large ledge that overlooked the foothills and fringes
of Mossflower. Redwall could be seen vaguely over the tops of the trees. Martin
looked toward the mountain face and saw the badger carving.
It was an incredibly accurate likeness of a badger, from the muzzle shape to
the carved patterns of the fur. While the parts of a badger's face that would be
black were the obsidian of the mountain, the travelers identified the white part
to be made of a lighter, more shiny rock, possibly micah. Looking down, Martin
noticed a peculiar crack on the floor coming from the middle of the closed
entryway. It ran outward, then turned in the direction away from the
stairs at a sharp ninety degree angle. A matching crack was visible on
the short overhang over the carving.
Just as Luke had instructed them, Martin knocked upon the brow of the
badger three times. A minute passed, and there was a click and scraping
of stone as the eyelids of the badger carving slid open. Quite real eyes
peered at Martin and Gonff(Felldoh and Rose had become wisps of smoke swirling
at their footpaws), and a male voice asked, "May I help you with something?" Martin nodded.
"Yes. We would like to see the One Who Sees the Way. We would like to
join him in an enlightenment meal." The eyelids closed, and Martin and
Gonff took a few steps back as the wall slid forward on the crack in the
floor. When it was completely out of the way of the way, Martin and Gonff
saw a young male badger, around sixteen years old, emerge from the cave.
His face was completely identical to that of the carving on the door, as
though he just made the indent by pushing his face against it. His body
was very well built, even for a badger. Slung across his back was a large
two sided battle axe, twice Martin's height, which had a scraped blade
from use.
"Do you come in peace?" the badger asked, eyeing Martin's sword.
Martin stood firm. "My friend and I are peaceful creatures, we will not
harm you." After a few moments, the badger nodded and let them
inside, closing the door behind them, unaware of the smoke that drifted
inside with them.
The cave was not what the travelers had expected. It was a well lit cavern,
with torches lining the walls every meter. Well made furniture, made from
either wood or stone and lined with moss, was placed here and there.
From another chamber to the right, smells of burning wood and roasting
fish drifted into the main room, and with them came a young squirrelmaid
of about Felldoh's age. She was hazel with sapphire blue eyes, and wore
a tan tunic with an apron wrapped around her waist. "Matthew, who are
these two? Guests?" she asked the badger, looking at the two mice.
Matthew spoke, "Daniela, they came to see Father. Apparently they
heard of his skills and came to see him." Martin and Gonff looked at
one another, wondering the same thing; is their father the one they seek?
Just then a young male otter entered, dripping wet and carrying a few fish
in his paws. "Hey. I got some more fish. Who are those two?" The two
mice introduced themselves to Daniela, Matthew, and the otter, Justin.
They then asked where their father was. "Hold on," Daniela said. "I'll call
him. Father! You have some visitors!"
From a tunnel nearby, an old fox emerged slowly. His leg was in a
makeshift splint, and he leaned on a cane made of a dark colored wood, which
had peculiar grooves and cracks on it. He was garbed in a long green robe a
and wore a pair of spectacles. Martin noticed something strange about the
fox; his left eye was completely clouded over, no color whatsoever. He did
however, see very well nonetheless. "Hello, friends," the fox said to the
mice. "I am Misteye the Seer. Who are you?" Martin spoke, "I am Martin
the Warrior. This is my good friend, Gonff. It is an honor to make your
acquaintance." Misteye paused, then asked, "The pleasure is mine, now
who are the other two?" Martin and Gonff felt confused and nervous at
the same time. "W-what other two? We're the only beasts here." Misteye sighed
and spoke again, but this time not Martin or Gonff. "I know you're there.
Come on, let us all see you." Much to Martin's dismay, Rose and Felldoh
materialized before the ancient fox, who wasn't phased a bit, surprisingly.
Martin looked at Misteye curiously, saying, "Misteye, forgive me for saying,
but you seem a little calm for someone looking at two ghosts." Misteye responded
by saying, "I've seen many strange things in my time, trust me. This is
nothing new to me."
Martin thought it best not to push Misteye for the solution to resurrect
his two friends, at least until later. He told his friends this as they all sat
down for their meal. It was a simple meal of trout drizzled with vinegar
and lemon juice, with a side of corn bread and seasoned potatoes.
Everyone was given tea as a beverage, and when Martin and Gonff had
finished theirs, Misteye asked to take them and read them. While reading
Martin's, he said, "Keep your friends close, don't eat anything that is
charcoal colored, and study for the future. You and many others will need
your guidance." Then it was Gonff's turn. Misteye looked disgusted, and
Gonff became nervous. "What's wrong? Is it bad?" Misteye replied, "Be
more hygienic." Gonff was then curious. "Why?" To answer the question,
Misteye plucked a rotten tooth from the massed tea leaves. As the other
creatures shuddered and said, "Gross," Gonff began asking where he
could find a toothbrush.
After everyone- minus the ghosts- had finished their meal, Martin thought now
was the best time to see if Misteye knew about bringing his friends back to
life. He looked to Misteye and asked him. "Misteye, sir, I was wondering
something. Is it possible to bring the dead back to life?" Misteye had been
whittling away at a piece of wood, and paused after Martin's question.
He looked at the warrior mouse. "Martin, even if you could, there would
be many complications. For one, you couldn't just put a soul into just
any body. Otherwise, the soul could be rejected. Also, even if you had
the original bodies, you would have to heal any injuries, which can be
hard. And, if the bodies are decayed, well let's just say they won't be
much fun to look at. But like I said, IF you could." Martin sighed. Maybe
Luke made a mistake. Maybe this was the wrong seer. But Martin then
thought that Misteye knew more than he was telling.
Martin and Gonff were asked to help Matthew chop firewood that
was stored in another section of the cave. Martin began to discuss
in a whispered tone his thoughts to the mousethief. "I don't
understand. My father said that this creature knew what to do."
Gonff nodded ad Martin cleaved a small log in half with his sword.
"Aye, matey. There's something a little fishy about that fox. Let me
chop some for a while, you look a little tired." Rose and Felldoh
drifted into the room as Martin gave his sword to Gonff. He lifted
the blade over his head but didn't have time to swing it. Matthew
had seen the sword and tackled Gonff to the ground and began to
punch him repeatedly as the mouse shouted, "Ouch! What's going-ow!
Hey! Not the face! Not the face!" Felldoh began chuckling, "Wow,
Gonff. Matt either really hates Martin' sword, or really hates you!"
Matthew suddenly stopped attacking Gonff, who got up and scurried
behind Martin, and looked at Martin, saying, "This sword... is yours?"
Martin replied saying, "Yes it is. Please don't kill me." Misteye
stormed into the room as fast and hard as his injurled leg would
allow. He glared at the badger and snarled, "Matthew, what is the
meaning of this? Why are you attacking our guest?" Matthew
stood his ground and said, "Father, the pummel stone on the
sword-" Misteye interrupted him. "What about it?"
Matthew whispered into Misteye's ear. "Father, it's THE stone."
Misteye stared at Matthew. "You're sure?" The badger nodded.
The fox picked the sword up, examined the hilt, and gasped.
He turned and said to them all, "Come with me." The mice and
ghosts exchanged glances, and followed the fox down the
tunnels, wondering what was going on.
Chapter 4, ladies and gentlemen!
Chapter 5 preview; Misteye reveals the origin of his family as he tells our heroes of an ancient land and a prophecy they must fullfil.
I'll try to add an ATU chapter soon, 'cuz that story's collecting a lot of dust. At least I have most of this week off, unless I have swimming. R&R, tell me how you like it!
Chapter 5 preview; Misteye reveals the origin of his family as he tells our heroes of an ancient land and a prophecy they must fullfil.
I'll try to add an ATU chapter soon, 'cuz that story's collecting a lot of dust. At least I have most of this week off, unless I have swimming. R&R, tell me how you like it!
© 2009 - 2024 Gardboyz-Productions
Comments8
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Ah, you mean the pommel stone! (Pommel = Old French for "little apple"; compare the modern French "pomme", a normal "apple". It keeps the sword from slipping from the user's grasp)