My Passion Project - A nod to Redwall and my Furballs
An Ode to my Childhood
So here I give you all the beginning of my passion project:
The Adventures of Haru and Yuki: A Journey North
Prologue
The sun peaked
through wispy winter clouds as a light snowfall coated the stark and frozen
farmland with a glistening sheen. A
snaking river wound its way through the frosty landscape, broken only by a few
sparse forests of fur, oak, and maple.
To the West a large forest rose along the banks as the river continued
its trek toward the far-off ocean.
Mountains stood impassable to the far Northeast beyond a sprawling
arctic forest.
The peaceful silence was broken by the crunch of a paw on the snow. At the edge of the Great Northern Forest, a
regal black and white cat appeared through the dark tree line. Puffs of warm breath
emanated from his black nose, rising on the chilled air. A wolf-fur draped his torso, guarding against
the chilling wind. His yellow eyes gleamed like diamonds in the weak sunlight
and only his pointed ears protruded above a crown made of wolf fangs.
After a few
more lithe paces out of the shelter of the trees, he stopped at the top of a
slope which ran down from the forest towards the farms and river below. He narrowed his eyes and gazed out across the
land toward the village directly South, nestled along the river. Smoke rose
from the chimneys of homes, the blacksmith shop, and the bakery. This was a place of peace and prosperity, of
fishing and trading. All manner of
Squirrel, Fox, Rabbits, Mice, Otters, and Cats called this place home. The large fire from the blacksmith was a
bright beacon on the frigid winter palate, broken only by the grays and browns
of wood and stone. Bridges crossed the river
in the center, East, and West ends of the Village. The central bridge was a large stone
structure that connected the main road through the heart of town, wide enough
for a cart to traverse with thick wooden planks. A small bell tower sat atop the largest
building, the Council Chamber, on the Northern side. Fish nets were strewn up at various points
and markets along the waterfront, waiting for spring to return. The wheel at the mill seemed almost frozen in
place by the ice along the rivers edges where the current was slow. The falling snow was packing in on the
rooftops and coating the town with a fresh layer of white.
A slow, conniving sneer stretched across the cat’s black and white visage; his
pink lower lip, with its white chin fur, in stark contrast to the black upper
lip and nose. A fang stuck out over his
lip on the left side of his face mischievously.
A stiff gust of wind ruffled his whiskers and pulled the sneer off his
face. He tugged the fur coat tighter around him.
This moment
was ten years in the making. Ten years
of training, waiting, and planning. Back
then he was a young adolescent kitten, carefree and happy. This village was the start of he and his
father’s revenge. The beginning of his
new life.
He was
Beerus, Crown Prince of Norvalir and he had come to this Kingdom to pass
judgement on those who had wronged him, had stolen from him, and had shunned
his homeland. He would punish those who
had punished him when they killed his mother.
He turned,
swirling his fir around him, and stalked back toward the trees where his army waited. A golden bell at his neck jingled lightly on
a red string, a gift from his mother, the symbol of his strength, and a warning
to his enemies.
***
High
overhead a large red-tailed hawk cruised on the breeze towards the same snowy
little village. As he floated over the
forest and headed South, he spotted a cat disappearing into the trees. Was that a Crown on its head? A soft sound like a jingle bell rose to him through
the air.
Without a
moment’s hesitation he tucked his wings and dove, gaining speed. Haste was of the essence. This incursion needed to be reported as fast
he could fly. The Prince of Norvalir had
come to Eleria. He had to warn the King!
***
The King of Eleria,
Ferrin the IV, dispatched his two most trust-worthy commanders to defend
Yukimura Village. They arrived as
quickly as they could, but the battle had already begun. The story of our protagonists began that
fateful night. Heroes would be made, and
villains would be vilified.
***
Yukimura
Village was a quiet, peaceful fishing village on the Salmon River in the
Northwest Corner of Eleria. Surrounded
by the forests to the West and South, and with farms to the North abutting the Great
Forests; it was an essential trading post and resting point from the Coast to
Eleria’s Capital. Lumber, fish, and
grain were exported to neighboring villages and towns far and wide. For the last century it had been a thriving
community.
This night it was on fire.
Having marched tirelessly from the Southeast, Gilgamesh the red fox and
Valentin the artic fox could see the smoke billowing on the horizon as Talon
the red-tailed hawk scout reported in.
“Sirs, the Village is under attack already! Crown Prince Beerus is leading an
army of about 100. The people are
fleeing but were caught unawares. We must hurry, Sir!” Talon squawked out the
last sentence, out of breath, and knelt over with his wings on his knees.
Gilgamesh
grabbed him by the shoulder, “Right! I
need you back in the air Talon, be wary of archers and crows. Norvalir may still have an alliance with the Raven
Clan. Report any new developments as
quickly as you can”. He squeezed his
shoulder hard and stared in Talon’s telescopic eyes, “Help direct any civilians
you can to escape to this side of the river. And please be careful my feathered
friend, I won’t lose you today”.
“Yes Sir!”
Talon stood tall, cocked his knees, and with a strong flap of his wings thrusts
himself back into the night sky.
Gilgamesh watched him soar toward Yukimura and disappear into the smoky
haze. He turned back to his best friend
Valentin with a determined look on his face, ears bristling in anticipation,
“Valentin, take Chief and half our men to secure the bridges on the West and East
side of the village. If they have yet to
be crossed or taken, hold them until Talon can give us an all clear for
evacuation of the people on the North side of the town. After that, destroy the bridges and hit any
boats with fire arrows. We will funnel
the enemy to the central bridge in town.
I will take the rest of us and hold there while evacuating this side of
the river. Once we have destroyed the
bridges, guard the villagers back to camp.
I’ll meet up with you as soon as I can”.
“Will do Sir! And Sir...?” Valentin
asked hesitantly with a worried expression on his face, whiskers twitching
nervously. His white fox fur always glistened
pristinely.
Gilgamesh grabbed his friend… nay, his brother by the forearm in a salute. They may never be blood, but they would
always be brothers.
“Good luck and Godspeed brother. This is
our town, our home, we will protect the people at all costs”. Valentin stood up straight, clutched his
forearm tight and nodded. His fur
rippled in pride. Gilgamesh could still
see the hints of fear in his amber eyes.
Only 18 of them versus 100 Norvalir soldiers. Worse yet, only 8 of his men had ever seen
any combat action against bandits in the East.
He had Chief and Valentin to lead them and had to keep faith in their
experience. They would have to make do. They were the best in Eleria and would protect
their hometown to the last man if they must.
This was close to home for Chief too.
They all spent a lot of time here as children.
He turned to
his men; two freshly trained twin squirrel archers Fig and Olive, a veteran
spear-wielding river-otter Ziggy, and his best swordsmen, a Rabbit named
Keize. He had to cast worry aside for
Fig and Olive, he had trained them himself, they would know what to do when the
time came. Keize and Ziggy were a great
team and had been with him for years.
Gilgamesh flicked his tail back and forth quickly, plucked his longsword from
its sheath and turned toward the village.
He steeled his voice and sneered his snout, “Let’s go save these people
and show that mangey Prince what-for.
You attack our home, and you deal with the Elerian Rangers.”
With that he stuck his sword in his mouth, dropped to all fours, and sprinted
off toward the Village at full speed.
His four men in tow, bells jingling with every stride. The cold winter wind whipped at his thick red
fur even as the heat from the fire reached them. It spurred him on even faster. He would save
these people.
***
As they
approached, he flashed past all manner of Loggers, Bakers, and Townspeople
running down the road Southeast out of the Village. There was no time to waste, there had to
still be plenty of folks still in town.
The village housed hundreds of squirrels, rabbits, otters, cats, and
more. He saw faces that he recognized
but did not dare slow down. Getting to
the bridge first was everything.
They
sprinted up the road towards the Town Hall with its cedar roof taller than the
other buildings was easy to make out on this side of the river. The steeple on top of it ringed in an orange
glow as the buildings on the North side burned.
It looks like they might make it to the bridge in time.
They plunged through the slightly damp and snowy streets, paws thumping hard
into the frosty ground. Gilgamesh cut
right past the Metalworks shop and hit the main thoroughfare towards the stone
bridge. Yukimura had some stone
buildings but few, the mill, the blacksmith, Council Chamber to the North side,
and this bridge were the main stone structures.
Though the bridge was stone, the slats that ran across were still
wood. The bridges on the East and West
were just wood and could be cut down. That was why he sent Valentin and Chief
to those two. He had the harder task;
the wood was wet and would not burn easily.
He also could not hack the supports and collapse it. He ducked behind
the wall on this side of the river and turned back toward his four soldiers as
they ran up behind him.
“Fig, Olive,
you two take stations behind cover and watch the other side of the river. If you see a ferret, weasel, or rat shoot it.
Zig, I need you to go get some oil from the blacksmith shop, we need to get
this bridge burning once we know everyone is across. Keize, you’re with me, we’re going to take a
trip across the bridge and see how far they’ve come into town and make sure
everyone is across.”
They set to their tasks, Fig ducked behind a large lantern post to the East of
the bridge, and his sister Olive did the same to the West. They looked scared, their tawny tails stiff
and quivering. He could not worry about
them, he had to get across and trust their skill. Ziggy bounded off to the East toward the
stone smokestack that marked the blacksmith shop. Gilgamesh would not be surprised it the old
badger blacksmith was out defending the town with his hammer.
With a quick nod to Keize, they ducked down and scuttled across the bridge, as
low to the ground as they could go. As
they came across the small rise in the middle their vision cleared to the North
side of the village.
The Fish Market to the East was still intact, the nets and fishing equipment
still blowing in the wind as fiery ash from the Northwest fell. Farther down to the West they could barely
make out the Western bridge and the Mill looked to be on fire, though the Stone
was seemingly backlit by the flames as it still stood. They could make out at least one boat on fire
floating down the river towards them.
Valentin was doing his job.
Keize whispered in his ear, “It looks like ther East Bridge is down already,
and I can’t seer any boats in thater direction”. As he finished his sentence, Talon whooshed
by overhead ducking an Arrow from the North as he headed West toward Valentin’s
position.
Another arrow smacked into the wet wood three feet in front of Keize. The
shooter was a Rat wearing the black and gold colors of Norvalir. Keize plucked his hoplon off his back, stood
up and sprinted off ahead sliding his sword out from behind his shield as he
ran behind it. Gilgamesh snarled and
sprang up running directly behind Keize to utilize his shield. As he pounded down the North slope of the
bridge, a second Norvalir solider, a black and white ferret, appeared from a
side street next to the rat. Gilgamesh tucked
behind Keize, tightened up his back-leg muscles and using his rabbit friend for
cover, leapt over him and angled down hard toward the rat.
They were
too fast for the rat to re-knock his bow.
Gilgamesh planted his front paws into the Rat’s eyes and drove his head
into the ground, knocking him out. At
the same moment he leapt over Keize, the agile rabbit cut left and slashed
toward the newly arrived Ferret. His
eyes opened wide in shock and his mouth opened to shout just as Keize’s sword
cut a swath across the Ferret’s chest, leaving him in a heap on the street next
to the unconscious Rat.
They regained their bearings, battle focus in full force, heart thumping and
checked around them. While the fires
raged, it was hard to hear anything so he doubted anyone would have noticed
their skirmish. There were not any other
enemies in their immediate viscinity.
Gilgamesh stood up from his crouch and tucked behind the fish market
building to stare down a side-street while Keize took up position on the
opposite side of the street. No enemies
appeared in either of their side-streets.
The city was lit like daylight. It
would be hard to hide and sneak up on anyone without diving into smoke filled
areas and not being able to breathe. He
flicked a finger forward with a sweeping arm motion, signaling to Keize he was
going to sneak up to the next building.
It was be the Pelican’s Bowl restaurant.
As he
crouched down and snuck forward, tail down, ears up, he listened for any noise
above the roaring thrum of the fire.
Halfway across the face of the fish Market, he heard a rustle of armor
ahead and a pair of weasels trotted down the street toward the rat and
ferret.
“Oy
Jabbey! Look! Someone attacked Snags and Buggers!” one of
them shouted to their comrade.
Gilgamesh hit
the ground and froze, hoping they wouldn’t see him. Too late.
As he hit the ground, one of the Weasels raised a paw to point in his
direction.
“A fox! I
sees a fox by the market mate!” he exclaimed. They drew their short-swords and
charged at him.
Gilgamesh
jumped up and crossed his arms to his forearm sheaths to grab and throw two
knives. As his fingers closed on the
hilts of the throwing knives, he heard a whistle come from his left and the two
Weasels dropped to the ground. Arrows
protruded from their chest right in the middle of the Norvalir crest on their
tabards.
He whistled
quietly in admiration. Olive and Fig were definitely going to be good to have
on his team. He turned back to Keize who
shrugged and snuck forward on his side of the street. As they approached a small bend in the street
ahead where the weasels had come from the buildings were now raging with
fire. The enemy soldiers had set the
trade depot on fire and it was blowing over to the houses nearby and on
neighboring streets. Keize had grown up
in this part of town. Gilgamesh took a
glance over to his comrade who looked visibly shaken; a tear forming in the
corner of his eye. Keize’s long ears had
drooped to the side of his head.
Gilgamesh
may have grown up here, but his family had lived in the woods to the
Southwest. The foxes were not city folk,
they preferred their space. Though his
Father had been a council member of the town at times, they managed their small
household and helped represent other families outside of village limits. Valentin’s family was also from that area
upstream.
He turned
back up the road and saw a family of mice run quickly from a side alley down
the main street toward the bridge behind them.
He knew that family, it was Bakery shop owner Adalbert with his wife and
children. His oldest daughter carried
their grandchild in a basket. As they
approached Keizer’s position, he motioned for them to duck into the alleyway he
guarded. A spear thrown from up ahead
landed on the ground near the mice and caused one of them to stumble and
trip. Keize sprung up and planted his
shield into the ground in front of the mouse which blocked the next spear that
rattled off it. Gilgamesh looked back
North and spotted a black and white Cat flanked by two Lynx, their white fur
spotted with black, tainted orange by the flames of the Trade Depot behind
them.
“Beerus”,
Gilgamesh snarled to himself. He never
did like that conniving, arrogant little brat.
With a flick of his wrist Beerus ordered the two Lynx forward. They wore black breastplates bearing the crest
of Norvalir, a gold clawed-paw with a three-pronged crown. Gilgamesh sprang out into the street and
skidded on some melted ice next to Keize.
The mouse had risen and ducked around the building to hide with his
family. The fires up ahead were a
building away now on both sides of the street.
The lynx were menacing hulking shadows wreathed in flame as they
approached. They pulled long hooked
pikes off their back as they strode forward.
Gilgamesh
took a quick glance behind him, but they were too far around the corner for Fig
and Olive to be any support. Behind the
Lynx, Beerus watched, ears forward, head tilted down, a satisfied smirk on his
face. They had met many times during
training and trade meetings, before Norvalir and Eleria had ceased their
alliance. He had always thought of
Beerus as spoiled and unfit to lead, but this looked like a different cat
altogether. He seemed determined, calm,
and evil. Tragic events had caused a
great rift between the nations and driven his Beerus’ Father to isolation and
madness. Now his son seemed to be
turning to evil deeds to make a name for himself.
The Lynx
were almost upon them. They leaned
forward into a run with pikes outstretched and closed the gap to Keize and
Gilgamesh quickly. Gilgamesh ducked
right as the larger Lynx thrust at him, grazing his tunic, and clipping the light
chainmail underneath. To his left Keize
had parried the thrust of his opponent with his shield but left himself open to
the butt of the pike. The Lynx brought the
pole up and around and smacked him on the left shoulder. Keize yelped but rolled with the blow and
somersaulted over his shield. He flipped
the shield back up just in time to counter a overhead blow as the Lynx swung
the pike straight down toward his head.
Gilgamesh
parried another thrust with his sword. He
back-pedaled a step to give him a chance to avoid the same attack that staggered
Keize.
An
ear-piercing shriek hit his ears and a flurry of feathers eclipsed his view as
Talon dove from the sky claws first. He smacked into Lynx, who was sent
tumbling across the street. The Lynx smacked
into the side of the bakery and collapsed into a heap against the wall.
Behind him
the other Lynx hammered quick hard blows on Keize’s shield. His left arm still held his sword but was
still too weak from the first blow to strike back. Gilgamesh sprung left and swept his leg
around to take out the Lynx’s legs. The
Lynx barely even flinched when his leg connected. He did, however, turn back towards
Gilgamesh. Keize planted his shield into
the ground, threw his body into a hundred-eighty-degree turn, and thrust his
powerful rabbit legs into the chest plate of the Lynx. The big muscular cat stumbled back down the
street a good ten feet before he tripped on his pike haft and hit his face hard
on the ground.
Up ahead
Beerus knocked an arrow to his bow and had aimed it at Talon, who had just
gotten up from his tumble with Gilgamesh’s opponent. The burly Lynx still leaned against the
Bakery was trying to pull himself up. Blood
streaked his nose and cheek where Talon’s claws had gouged him deep. Talon turned toward Gilgamesh and Beerus
loosed his arrow.
“Talon!”
Gilgamesh yelled too late. Talon took the
arrow on his left wing. The tip sank
into his feathered skin. Talon squawked
in pain and dropped to the ground clutching his wing.
He had to
get Talon out of here. Gilgamesh ran
toward Talon, grabbed his right wing, and looped it over his shoulders. He
helped him to his feet, and they headed back down the street. The mouse family
was headed for the bridge ahead. Keize hopped
backwards down the street behind them, shield up. As they approached the bridge Ziggy came ran
across and grabbed Talon from Gilgamesh.
“Sir, the
bridge is coated in oil on the South Side, it’s ready to ignite once we’re
across”
“Great work
Zig, help Talon and get him to safety. Keize and I will hold the rear”. Gilgamesh turned back around to gain his
bearings on Beerus and the two Lynx.
They hadn’t come around the corner behind them yet. Beerus may look determined, but he was still
a coward at heart. He wouldn’t push
forward without support. The Bakery was
now on fire and the fish market roof began to burn. The whole North Side would be destroyed
soon.
His Black
fox ears twitched in all directions as he listened for sounds of survivors or
enemies. He twisted to the right as he
thought he heard whimpering and mewing.
The fish market storage barrels along the water caught his attention as
they would be empty this time of year. It
is possible someone would try to hide in them.
He motioned to Keize to keep rear guard on Talon and Ziggy who hobbled over
the bridge.
A Brown
Ferret came at them with a sword from along the riverfront. Two arrows from across the river immediately took
him down, one in the shoulder. Olive and Fig had eyes on them again.
He crouched
down along the market fence and made his way toward the fish barrels. Gilgamesh popped open the lid on the first barrel,
but it was empty. The second barrel he
checked had a hole in the top but was full of half frozen fish. Keize made a frantic gesture from the bridge
for Gilgamesh to come back. The Lynx
must have come around the corner. The
mewing had stopped, Gilgamesh feared the worst when he opened the third
barrel.
Inside was a
young Calico maybe 5 or 6 years old, huddled next to a gray and black striped
tabby that was likely a bit younger.
They held each other tight and looked up at him with terror in their
eyes and tears streamed down their faces.
They shook with fear. He grabbed
them both by the scruff and hauled them out of the barrel, tucking one of them
under each arm and turned back toward Keize.
The Rabbit
had his word out and shield ready. The
Lynx were charging down the street toward his brave friend. Ears back, tail shaking in anticipation,
Gilgamesh knew Keize wouldn’t stand a chance against both of them. Further up the street Beerus stalked slowly with
arrow drawn. Two rats flanked him on either side with shields and staves.
Gilgamesh
launched himself with every ounce of strength in his legs towards the bridge,
making it there a few seconds before the Lynx reached Keize. An arrow from the South side of the bridge
glanced off a rat’s shield by Beerus. He flinched reflexively, which forced him
to flinch and drop his bow before he could fire. Another arrow glanced off the breastplate of
the Lynx Keize had kicked before. The
second Lynx aimed a sweeping blow under Keize’s shield to catch his legs, but
Keize managed to leap up and over it.
Another arrow zoomed from the South and bounced off his opponent’s
breastplate. It staggered him enough to
give them the opening they needed.
Gilgamesh
and Keize bounded across the bridge, paws and feet pounding the wood. They slipped on the oil Ziggy had spread on
the planks and slid their way down to the South side. Olive had a burning arrow notched and ready
and fired it into the middle of the bridge.
The Lynx and one of the rats approached the middle of the bridge span as
it ignited like kindling, engulfing the rat, and setting one of the Lynx’s fur
on fire. They jumped back and howled in
pain.
Gilgamesh
had the scared kittens under each arm, Ziggy carried the wounded Talon, and the
mouse family all set off down the road out of town towards their camp. Olive and Fig watched the rear while Keize
ran point and checked side streets ahead for other villagers.
The two
kittens in his arms were ashen, smelled fishy, and still had tears dripping
down their cheeks. Gilgamesh had not
noticed earlier, but he knew them… and he knew their parents.
“Haru…?
Yuki…? You two can stop crying now, I’ll
keep you safe. “, they looked up at him, recognition dawned on their faces, but
the sad eyes didn’t abate. Gilgamesh
knew then he couldn’t save everyone and hadn’t saved everyone. These two had lost their parents and they
probably weren’t the only ones to die this night, but he would honor those
losses by taking care of these two. It
was the least he could do for the town he loved that was burning behind
him.
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