“Ferdy and Coggs are lost for sure. We’ve scoured high and low, all of us. It’s as if the forest has swallowed them up.”

Bella scratched her stripes reflectively. “Have you seen Chibb?”

“Yes. He’s been around Kotir. Nothing to report, really. I sent him on a wide patrol of the woods. Maybe he’ll bring news before nightfall.”

* * *

The searchers returned at noon. Goody had busied herself setting out a salad luncheon on the sward outside Brockhall. Woodlanders ate in silence, avoiding any mention of the lost young ones while Goody was about. Shortly they set off again to resume searching. It was not a happy day in Mossflower. Martin was torn with a desire to help the searchers and curious to find out more about the mysterious place called Salamandastron. The former won; by early noon he was out searching with the others, knowing that Bella would tell him more that night.

* * *

Tsarmina stood at her high chamber window, watching the perimeter of the woodland where the trees thinned out into shrubs and bushes. There they were, at last!

The ragged columns tramped out of the woodlands with Cludd bawling orders at them.

“Come on, you sloppy mob, smarten yourselves up into proper ranks. Right markers, lead off. Tidy that pace up there. I’ll not have you lolloping into the garrison like a load of hedgehogs on daisychain day. You there! Yes, you! Liven your ideas up, me laddo, or I’ll liven them up for you with my spear.”

The Captain’s voice drifted up to Tsarmina. She could see plainly that there had been no losses among her troops. Neither had there been any mass of captives taken. In a sudden outburst of vicious temper, she slashed a wall curtain from top to bottom with her wicked claws, before storming out down the stairs to the parade ground.

* * *

The three platoons staggered to an untidy halt in the courtyard. Wearily they bumbled their way into formation, shouldering weapons and showing Thousand Eye shields front and center. Tsarmina checked her rush in the doorway and strode gracefully out with sinuously waving tail and baleful eye. A tremor rippled the ranks as they stood stiffly to attention, all eyes front, They saluted jointly.

“Hail, Tsarmina, Wildcat Queen of the Thousand Eyes, Ruler of all Mossfl—”

“Save your breath, fools. You’ll get your chance to speak when I say and not before.” Tsarmina prowled between the ranks, missing nothing, not even the two pitiful forms that lay bound on the gravel.

Fortunata stood rooted to the spot, feeling the Queen’s feral breath raising the hairs on the nape of her neck.

“Well, fox, it seems that you all had a cheery spring outing in the woods. I notice that half the patrols are injured in one way or another. Tell me, did those two small woodlanders put up such a ferocious battle?”

Tsarmina continued circling Fortunata, her voice at a level of dangerous calm. “No need to worry now, eh, fox? We’ve caught their two champion warriors this time. What, if I may ask, was your heroic part in all this?”