The enforced passivity of their defence, the interminable waiting, becameinsupportable. Day and night they heard the muffled thud of the picks above anddreamt of the collapse of the grotto and of every ghastly eventuality. They weresubject to "castle-mentality" in its most extreme form.
Robin Fedden, Crusader Castles"They've stopped digging, Hazel-rah," said Speedwell. "As far as I can tell,there's no one in the hole."In the close darkness of the Honeycomb, Hazel pushed past three or four of hisrabbits crouching among the tree roots and reached the higher shelf whereSpeedwell lay listening for sounds from above. The Efrafans had reached thehanger at early twilight and at once begun a search along the banks and amongthe trees to find out how big the warren was and where its holes were. They hadbeen surprised to find so many holes in such a small area, for not many of themhad had experience of any warren but Efrafa, where very few holes served theneeds of many rabbits. At first they had supposed that there must be a largenumber of rabbits underground. The silence and emptiness of the openbeechwood made them suspicious, and most kept outside, nervous of an ambush.
Woundwort had to reassure them. Their enemies, he explained, were fools whomade more runs than any properly organized warren needed. They would soondiscover their mistake, for every one would be opened, until the place becameimpossible to defend. As for the droppings of the white bird, scattered in thewood, it was plain that they were old. There were no signs whatever that the birdwas anywhere near. Nevertheless, many of the rank and file continued to lookcautiously about them. At the sudden cry of a peewit on the down, one or twobolted and had to be brought back by their officers. The story of the bird whichhad fought for Thlayli in the storm had lost nothing in the telling up and downthe burrows of Efrafa.
Woundwort told Campion to post sentries and keep a patrol round about,while Vervain and Groundsel tackled the blocked holes. Groundsel set to workalong the bank, while Vervain went into the wood, where the mouths of the holeslay between the tree roots. He came at once upon the open run. He listened, butall was quiet. Vervain (who was more used to dealing with prisoners than withenemies) ordered two of his rabbits to make their way down it. The discovery ofthe silent, open run gave him the hope that he might be able to seize the warrenby a sudden dash to the very center. The wretched rabbits, obeying his orders,were met by Silver and Buckthorn at a point where the run opened out. They werecuffed and mauled and barely got out with their lives. The sight of them didnothing to encourage Vervain's party, who were reluctant to dig and made littleheadway during the darkness before moonrise.
Groundsel, who felt that he ought to set an example, himself dug his way intothe loose, fallen soil of one of the bank runs. Plowing over the soft earth like a flyon summer butter and holding his head clear, he suddenly found himself face toface with Blackavar, who sank his front teeth into his throat. Groundsel, with nofreedom to use his weight, screamed and kicked out as best he could. Blackavarhung on and Groundsel -- a heavy rabbit, like all the Efrafan officers -- draggedhim forward a short distance before he could rid himself of his grip. Blackavarspat out a mouthful of fur and jumped clear, clawing with his front paws. ButGroundsel had already gone. He was lucky not to have been more severelywounded.
It became clear to Woundwort that it was going to be extremely difficult, if notimpossible, to take the warren by attack down the defended runs. There would bea good chance of success if several runs could be opened and then tackled at thesame time, but he doubted whether his rabbits would attempt it, after what theyhad seen. He realized that he had not given enough thought, earlier on, to whathe would have to do if he lost surprise and had to force an entry: he had bettergive it some thought now. As the moon rose, he called Campion in and talked itover with him.
Campion's suggestion was that they should simply starve the warren out. Theweather was warm and dry and they could easily stay two or three days. ThisWoundwort rejected impatiently. In his own mind, he was not altogether certainthat daylight might not bring the white bird down upon them. They ought to beunderground by dawn. But, apart from this secret anxiety, he felt that hisreputation depended on a fighting victory. He had brought his Owsla to get atthese rabbits, knock them down and beat them. A siege would be a miserableanti-climax. Also, he wanted to get back to Efrafa as soon as he could. Like mostwarlords, he was never very confident about what was going on behind his back.
"If I remember rightly," he said, "after the main part of the warren at NutleyCopse was taken and the fighting was as good as over, there were a few rabbitswho shut themselves into a smaller burrow where it was difficult to get at them. Isaid they were to be dealt with and then I went back to Efrafa with the prisoners.
How were they dealt with and who did it, do you know?""Captain Mallow did it," said Campion. "He's dead, of course; but I expectthere's someone here who was with him. I'll go and find out."He returned with a heavy, stolid Owsla sentry named Ragwort, who at first hadsome difficulty in understanding what it was that the General wanted to know. Atlast, however, he said that when he had been with Captain Mallow, more than ayear ago, the Captain had told them to dig a hole straight down into the ground.
In the end the earth had given way under them and they had fallen down amongsome rabbits, whom they had fought and beaten.
"Well, that's about the only way it can be done," said Woundwort to Campion.
"And if we get them all onto it, relieving each other in shifts, we should have away into the place before dawn. You'd better get your sentries out again -- notmore than two or three -- and we'll make a start at once."Soon after, Hazel and his rabbits, below in the Honeycomb, heard the firstsounds of scratching above. It was not long before they realized that the diggingwas going on at two points. One was at the north end of the Honeycomb, abovethe place where the tree roots formed a kind of cloister in the burrow. Here theroof, latticed through and through with fine roots, was very strong. The otherseemed to be more or less above the open center of the Honeycomb, but rathernearer to the south end, where the hall broke up into bays and runs with columnsof earth between. Beyond these runs lay several of the warren's burrows. One,lined with fur torn from her own belly, contained Clover and the pile of grass andleaves, covered over with earth, in which her newborn litter were sleeping.
"Well, we seem to be putting them to a great deal of trouble," said Hazel.
"That's all to the good. It'll blunt their claws and I should think they'll be tired outbefore they've done. What do you make of it, Blackberry?""I'm afraid it's a bad lookout, Hazel-rah," replied Blackberry. "It's true they'rein trouble up at the top end. There's a lot of ground above us there and the rootswill hold them up for a long time. But down this end it's easier for them. They'rebound to dig through fairly soon. Then the roof will come in; and I can't see thatwe can do anything to stop them."Hazel could feel him trembling as he spoke. As the sounds of diggingcontinued, he sensed fear spreading all through the burrow. "They'll take us backto Efrafa," whispered Vilthuril to Thethuthinnang. "The warren police--""Be quiet," said Hyzenthlay. "The bucks aren't talking like that and why shouldwe? I'd rather be here now, as we are, than never have left Efrafa."It was bravely said, but Hazel was not the only one who could tell her thoughts.
Bigwig remembered the night in Efrafa when he had calmed her by talking of thehigh downs and the certainty of their escape. In the dark, he nuzzled Hazel'sshoul............