The Friar Has Been Attacked!

Players involved: Lacota, a squirrel, Zork, a badger, Patchfur, a rat, Timothy, a mouse, Flicktail, a fox, and two NPCs played by me.

Redwall Abbey: Great Hall

Footsteps can be heard approaching up the steps from below. Presently, Friar Lacota comes into view. He peers around. "Hmph... Practically deserted. Seems everybeast retires to bed early anymore." The squirrel frowns, then proceeds to stare at the rat, making no attempt to hide the fact. He takes an instant distrust to the beast, but does not move to speak to him at all.

Zork growls, not so low this time as he glares at Patchfur, but he stays seated but it's clear he rather not stay seated.

Patchfur grins, he glances at the squirrel and pays attention to Zork, "Whats the matter, getting a wee bit upset? You don't like me?..Well don't matter to me, I don't plan to stay long."

Lacota steps closer slowly, crossing his arms. "I should certainly hope not, sir... If I had my way, I'd have you removed from the premises immediately... I don't know who you think you are, or what you think you're here for, but I can tell you right now that whatever ideas you're having... They aren't welcome in our Abbey... And you won't be either, after I tell the Abbot about you..."

Zork is more than a wee bit upset at this point and looks ready to help the rat go now, He mutters something under his breath.

Patchfur chuckles, he looks at the squirrel, "Oh sure it will be found out soon enough, or maybe not..who cares and I will just say..sorry and all will be well again."

Zork starts to open his mouth to speak and quickly closes it as he stands slowly, he just glares at the rat as if he said something now it would not be something too nice.

Lacota narrows his eyes. "Is that a threat, rat? I don't think you realize the full implications of your current position, *sir*. I am this close to having a guard throw you out right now." The squirrel is very serious now. "Now, you are going to cease the evasive replies, and you're going to tell me why you're here... Or I'm going to kick you out, understood?"

Patchfur smirks "Why am I here...well see thats my bussiness and I have not done anything...to harm anyone"

Lacota leans forward. "Oh really, now? Is that so? Supposing I claim you did... Who do you think the guards will believe? You, or me?" The Friar stands straight. "I don't know in Hellsgates you are, rat, but you have vermin scum written all over you... Believe me... I know your type."

Patchfur watches him and chuckles some, "I am not worried and no one will say a word about me doing anything." Yeah cause he made sure they couldn't right away anyways," SO I am not worried..squirrel."

Zork glares and speaks now "Wot ya need ta do rat is leave this room or ya gonna be in trouble! I will be de...de one ta carry ya out!" Yeah he is angry now, he walks a couple feet and stops to take a couple calming breaths, ok he has to calm down and being here is not helping that, he growls and goes to walk upstairs, stareing at the stairs so he doesnt stare at the rat.

Patchfur grins, he watches the badger very curious of him now, he smirks, "Carry me out..well seems he decided not to after all."

Lacota seethes inside, but outwardly maintains his calm demeanor. "Perhaps you should be...rat. Perhaps you should be... You'd best not try anything against Redwall, if you know what's good for you... In the meantime, I suggest you take Brother Zork's advice... Your kind aren't welcome here..."

Patchfur narrows his eyes now, "Oh..and why is that and I leave when I am ready to leave, very intresting badger seems to not be able to make up his mind..."He shrugs "Then again.....not concern about it, the matter will be cleared up soon."

Lacota slams his paw onto a nearby table forcefully. "Now you listen to me, rat. I'm losing my patience with you... I'm thinking a night locked in upstairs will do your attitude wonders, what do you think?" The squirrel moves to call for a guard, loudly. "I've had it with your insolence...Guard!" He moves toward the front door to call out. "Guard! Ugh, without Lee here, the guards are so disorganized lately..."

Patchfur stands now and looks at the squirrel "That's unwise of you, besides...room up there seems a little...messed up, door is broken or something, not that I care but I do care for your attitude, and have 1 reason, well that cant be used..2 reasons why trying to do this is a bad move, on your part."

Lacota merely glances back at the rat dismissively. "Just you try and stop me, insolent idiot." He peers out again. "GUARD!!! Where in the world are they? On a picnic?" He peers at Patchfur again. "The door is broken? You don't say? It certainly is fortunate we have more than one room up there... Though the cellar is always a possibility, too. So, you have two choices... Leave the Abbey, or I go outside right now and actually *find* a guard... or even Flicktail... Your choice..."

Patchfur narrows his eyes, now its his turn to be mad, "Do not threateen me or else abbey beasts will be hurt not just..." He stops here and smirks "And dont think the stripdog will stop me either, I have plans for him" And sometimes slip ups happen as he cusses under his breath and backs up slowly, he then grins at a plan, "You call the guards on me and your have a couple hurting friends, least guessing they are friends, tried to get in my way...one is lucky I used the wrong dart"

Lacota frowns in anger. "You're walking on thin ice, rat... Attacking abbeybeasts... My, you *have* been busy, haven't you?" The squirrel backs up against the door, and slowly pushes it open, ready to dash out at a moment's notice. He realizes by now the rat is dangerous, and doesn't take his eyes off the beast. "You've made a grave mistake, rat... GUARD! COME NOW! DANGER!" He yells out the door at the top of his lungs. He'll surely wake somebeast soon...

Patchfur goes to dig in his sleeve and frowns, where is it..darn he dropped it, he glares towards the squirrel and looks ready to bolt another direction since his only weapon, even if was a poison dart, is lost somewhere..he is a bit of trouble now.

Lacota glances back at the rat, frowning. He yells again, but is unsure whether a guard has actually heard him or not. "You're trapped, rat... The main gates are always locked at this hour... Good luck finding the gatekeeper before the guards get you..." He yells out the door one more time, then decides to take matters into his own paws. The Friar makes a reckless dash toward Patchfur, in the hopes of tackling the rat to the floor.

Patchfur was not expecting an abbey beast to go and tackle him all of a sudden as he goes to sidestep and falls flat on his face, he goes to try and punch the Friar as he tries to get loose,"If I had not...lost something you be a dead beast right now!"

Unknown to Lacota, a guard had heard his yelling, but not what he had said. The guard approached the front door slowly from outside, unaware of the struggle inside. Meanwhile, the Friar is punched solidly in the face, and he sees stars. He vainly tries to remain conscious, replying to Patchfur, "I'm so lucky...Aren't... I..." The squirrel tries to hit the rat in return, but misses, his vision going black rapidly.

Patchfur smirks as he looks down at the Friar and stands up, "That was fun, been more fun to kill you but" He shrugs, "You need a nap and I need to find a couple things to take care of a stripedog..Morgan's orders not mine."

Lacota collapses to the floor, and the last thing he sees before passing out is Patchfur smirking. The guard would enter just moments later, none the wiser of Patchfur's true plan. Lacota remains sprawled on the floor.

Patchfur glares at any possible guard, still trapped in the great hall and his only escape is the stairs

The guard glares at Patchfur distrustfully, then looks down at the unconscious Friar. "Sir," he says to Patchfur, "I heard somebeast yelling... do ya know what that was about? And I might also ask why the Friar is passed out on the floor?" He taps his foot.

And that escape is gone as well, the tall mouse known as Timothy stepping out of the entry to the stairs, the ever present shield of his order slung across his back. Though his vision is soon taken up by Patchfur standing over Lacota and a guard adressing him; leaving the mouse to stay next to the door so he doesn't intrude on the question... just yet anyways.

Patchfur Makes a couple fists as he backs up from the squirrel and goes to head upstairs,"That squirrel made a bad mistake"He turns to see Timothy "And who are you a guard? I could care less ..."

The guard hmms suspiciously, then kneels to check Lacota. His face is swollen, and he'll probably develop a nice black eye in the morning. "The Friar was punched, sir... You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Timothy squints at Patchfur, he doesn't like the look of this Rat and walks over to stand nearby next to the gathering; his eyes watching Patchfur warily for any treachery. "I am not a gaurd, no. But the well being of any good beast concerns me." He looks down at how Lacota is positioned and then looks to where Patchfur stands, certainly it is possible Pathcfur knocked out Lacota... but then there needs to be proof. "I'm gathering from the way the squirrel lies that this rat is to blame. Of course I cannot prove it without evidence... although if the squirrel was punched hard enough to be knocked out surely that will have left some mark upon the assailant."

Flicktail walks down the stairs yawning widely.

Patchfur glares at the mouse and keeps his paws behind his back "He is accident prone, sliped on some water." No water on the floor, "Now I am very tried and require rest, so do excuse me..sir" He says and remains calm.

Flicktail blink blinks "here here, Patchfur is me friend, lets not talk of such things lets FIRST get Lacota some ELP..i am SURE When he wakes up...."

The guard frowns, then nods to Tim. "Indeed, sir... Perhaps we should detain our guest until further notice... How does a night alone upstairs sound to you, rat?"

Flicktail says, "I will NOT have him treated that way wi' out proof....He can stay in my cottage wi' me."

Patchfur smirks, "Yes do help teh dear..Friar, he neeeds help the poor beast" He frowns at Flicktail " Oh no not needed dear Flicktail, I will stay in the infirm, nice and quiet there...excuse me" Yes he will stay in the infirm, least a little while.

Timothy looks around, the rat just lied... an indication of guilt. "There is no water around..." Flicktail calls out the Rat's name. "you just lied Patchfur." turning to Flicktail he frowns. "There isn't anyway that this squirrel slipped on water. Who ever heard of an unbalanced squirrel? Add to that there isn't any water around and.. Lacota was it? Has a bruise on his face on a side not facing the ground I'd say he is a suspect."

The guard nods again. "Tim is correct, sir... I do not believe Friar Lacota had an accident on his own... I believe he had help, sir." Lacota moans then, but remains otherwise unresponsive.

Flicktail nod nods and Frowns "You're right there Timothy...The Guards will stay with patchfur...this does look suspicious."

Flicktail says, "and fer Martin's sake elp me get the Friar to the Infirmary till 'e can tell us wot 'appened"

Timothy nods and shifts on his feet to kneel down by Lacota, carefully studying the squirrel before he starts to help carry Lacota beneath the arms. "you know, it is quite possible for Lacota to have gotten a concussion from that. A blow to the head and hitting the ground does not do any beast any good. And perhaps we should take him to his room instead. Patchfur said he'd be in the Infirmary."

Flicktail asks, "His room? I wonts a Healer beast to look at im and make sure e be ok...But...We can take im to is room and ave the healer beasts come a runnin'."

The guard kneels as well, then starts to lift his feet. "I think that is sound judgement. We can send for one of the novice healers to check him in his own room... And get guards to watch his room, too, sir, is my suggestion... No telling what the beast that harmed Lacota has planned next."

Timothy nods at that, his tail flicking as he assists in taking the friar up to his room. "My thoughts exactly Flicktail and Sir Guard. Flicktail, would you mind going to fetch those healers?"

Flicktail nod nods and hurries to summon them "He HAS to be ok..we need dinner tomorrow."

Lacota moans as he is carried up the stairs. The guard directs Timothy to Lacota's room. "In here, sir." A novice healer shows up not long after. "Flick said I was needed?" The younger hedgehog hmms, and grabs Lacota's wrist, checking his pulse.

Flicktail heads off to make sure patchfur stays put AND safe.

Timothy rubs his temples after setting Lacota on his bed and waving Flicktail off. "I'm am worried that Lacota here may have a concussion from a suspected altercation between him and another beast. Prime suspect being Patchfur. Regardless he will need attention at the very least." The mouse sits down and steeples his fingers.

The hedgehog nods. "Well... his pulse is good." He lays a paw on Lacota's forehead. "No fever, not that I expected any..." He takes a lit candle, then opens the Friar's left eye, then his right one, and waves the candle a little. "Pupils dilate, sluggishly though..." The healer frowns. "I think your assessment is correct, though... He most certainly has a mild to moderate concussion... Being unconscious is serious, though... He could very well slip into a coma..."

Timothy strokes his chin, sighing. "The best way to prevent that coma is to wake him up... do you have any smelling salts? Or something so foul smelling that it would wake up the dead? Anything?"

The healer frowns. "I... do have some smelling salts... but..." he frowns, "Sir, this situation must be handled with extreme care... Attempting to simply waken him can be... dangerous. I cannot tell you what injuries if any his skull or brain may have suffered. Believe me, I wish it was simple, but Friar Lacota is in a very delicate position at the moment."

Timothy frowns and leans back, sighing. "Your right... your right... I'm not a healer so forgive me." The Mouse runs his paw over the top of his mose and quiets down, tail flicking.

The hedgehog nods, then leans closer to Lacota's face. "His breathing is very shallow... I don't like this one bit... We need Leon, really, but he's likely in bed by now..." He sighs. "Abbot Lorimis should be informed as well... At this point, Lacota will either wake up, slip into a coma... Or he could even die, if he has any swelling in his brain..." The hedgehog shakes his head, then pours some water into a cup from a pitcher, then mixes some type of herb into the cup. He carefully holds the cup to Lacota's lips, and opens the Friar's mouth carefully, in an effort to get him to drink. "This is all I can do presently... Something that will hopefully lessen any pain he may have."

Timothy nods and remains where he is. "I will keep watch here if you wish to go back to bed. There is, as you said, little else for you to do for him. I bid you good night good beast."

The healer nods, and makes sure the Friar has enough pillows under his head. He then places one of Lacota's lightweight blankets over the squirrel, and makes him as comfortable as possible. "You send for me *immediately* if his condition changes, alright? This is largely touch and go..." He sighs softly, then exits. Lacota is utterly still, and quiet, and even looks more pale than usual. His breathing remains shallow... But it remains to be seen if he will slip into a comatose state or not.

Timothy nods an affirmative and leans back to begin his vigil... who knows how long this will take.

Lacota is dead still. His mind, though, has remained quite active. The squirrel has been having extremely bizarre dreams and visions since he passed out, and at times, he's even seen Martin, or heard snippits of conversation around him, especially Tim and the healer. During one particularly vivid vision, he can see himself in bed, and Tim sitting nearby, with Martin standing at the foot of his bed... Almost imperceptibly, he murmurs, "Martin," though he is still out cold.

Timothy hummms as Lacota makes a noise, looking up at the squirrel and tilting his head a bit to stare at him with one eye. Certainly that uttering meant that Lacota was still alive. "Good... still alive. Keep fighting it Lacota, ne beast needs you to fall into a coma or worse... who'd cook the food?" The mouse obviously trying to make light of the situation for his own sake.

Lacota doesn't show any outward sign of hearing the mouse, but in his vision, he hears him quite fine. He peers at Martin, though, and asks, "Am I dead?" Martin chuckles, and shakes his head. "My dear Friar, you are very much alive..." he grows serious, "But I'm afraid you are injured, and you very well *could* die... You must fight it, Lacota... This is not your time..." The squirrel continues to murmur, mostly illegibly, but if Tim listens closely, he would hear him say "Martin" and other disjointed words.

Timothy can definately hear Lacota, those ears listening quite attentiely as he quiets up. The mouse doesn't move for fear of disturbing thepeace or perhaps even the vision... if that is what Lacota is going through indeed. After all, to him all seems... well, normal. No figure of Martin or his voice out in the world of the living.

The Friar's body tenses suddenly, and his paws curl into fists. His reactions would likely worry any healer if they were to observe. In his mind, though, he looks at himself, frowning. "Die? Seriously?" Martin nods. "Listen, Lacota, this is important... You must live... And you need to warn the Abbey... Patchfur is dangerous..." Martin begins to fade slowly. "You will not wake for several days, though..." He fades away, and Lacota calls for him to return, but he does not. The Friar tenses up more, then relaxes suddenly. He goes quiet again, but his breathing is much deeper than it had been previously.

Timothy is not a healer, but that is a very worrying sign and in the short time of conversation he is already getting up to go get the healer when Lacota stills, a much more confidance inducing breathing coming from him.

Lacota has steady breathing, and generally seems to be in better shape than he had previously. He continues to dream, but Martin no longer appears. The Friar will be missing meals for several days, however...

Thanks for reading!

Groups:

• Order of Redwall