Commissioned from  FortunataFox

After surviving the battle, the mood of the Salamandastron army continue to falter as blame is shared and drama stirs.
----
Barfoof had sustained an injury or two, one in the arm and another on his hind leg. Dacks was helping him bandage himself up, the squirrel knew how to help him. Biggum and Adam were perhaps the only non-injured Hares on the ship, with Doufy and Cemar looking a lot less worse. Yet the pain Barfoof had felt paled to his anger and frustration, standing up and looking out over the ocean, looking into the distance and hoping to see Black Beach. It was not there, and Barfoof began to mumble to himself in anger. He turned to the crowd of injured Long Patrol, looking a bit defeated despite their tactical victory.

Galgor sat stoically, as Salgor began to help apply a salve to his father. He may have been an overgrown secretary, but Galgor began to make mention of Salgor’s performance in battle.

“You did well today, Salgor. A lot better than I suspected.” Salgor kept his mouth shut, stewing over something that his father did not understand. His brother came over, wiping blood from his battle axe, almost impressed. “Well indeed, you fought like I had when I first began my adventures in the north.”

Salgor broke the mood of the two, with a harsh speech. “None of this was necessary, and we still have a problem which we cannot even comprehend. That wasn’t a full force we fought, it was a raiding party, a raiding party which got reinforcements from the western sea. Had we been more well prepared, we would have dealt them a critical blow AND saved those otters. Now we are stuck out here, with all the glory we will ever need and no means to fight this foe. Our navy should feel ashamed for what has happened here today.”

Dagor shot daggers into his brothers eyes, shocked and dismayed that despite surviving a difficult situation, he still would say such cruel and heartless things. Galgor had to think a bit more on what his son said.

“Salgor, now is not the time for such talk! We must plan, and move swiftly against this enemy. We can do little with the state of our ships so far, but now we have at least a name to our enemy.” Dagor shot back.

“Dagor, you don’t understand. We would have been more swift if Adam had given us the information we needed from the start! This atrocity should have never happened to start with.” Salgor looked around the deck sadly, watching as Hares dragged former comrades, covered in bloodied sheets, down below deck. At least some would get a proper funeral.

“Dagor is right, my son. Now is not the time for such talk.”

“When will it ever be time, badger lord?” Salgor angrily ripped himself away from the two “Had we been even a fraction more prepared, we wouldn’t be running from this enemy! We should have not been in a battle to start with, and you know it! This fault lays at the feet of our admiral, and our admiral alone.”

Adam remained silent, with Biggum coming to his defense “Salgor, my chap, Adam Waterblow IV just saved you and the rest of us, if anything I’d give him a metal if we had them. This defeat was tragic, yes, but we cannot stew on lost issues now.”

“I will hear no more of this, Biggum, and defending that incompetent should have seen you demoted as well!”

Biggum felt insulted, and was about to speak. However, Galgor spoke up angrily “Salgor, enough! You may be a leading member in this family, but only I have the right to promote and demote, as are our traditions! You will not speak poorly of my officers again, or I will beat you here and now.”

Salgor grunted and relented, he knew his father all too well. Galgor had beaten him before for such misbehavior, and in front of the Long Patrol no less, Galgor folded his paws angrily, looking down at his son as he accepted defeat. He silently pushed them both aside and went down to the brig to stew, all while the rest of the crew watched. Adam gave an agreeable glance to his commanding officer who tipped his hat at him. Barfoof however soon broke out in a yelp.

“You ignorant pups and children! I have had enough of this.” Barfoof took his sword and began going over towards a small sailboat, and began to unlatch it. Adam called out to him. “Barfoof, stop that this instant. We aren’t retreating from the Mountain of the Sea just yet.”

“I am not retreating, you damned fool, you lot are! Cemar, help me! We are going back, and we are going to help those otters before it is too late!”

Biggum spoke up harshly to Barfoof, watching as Cemar went over to help his superior officer. Several hares followed. “Get back here, Barfoof. There is nothing we can do for them now. I order you to return to your compartment.”

“No. I will not, Biggum Bigtail.” Dacks slowly joined over to Barfoof’s side, the hare looking onwards at his general. Galgor had not seen this side of his hares before, as Doufy and other hares looked on. Barfoof began a speech, on which the badgers listened on with worried intent.

“We abandoned them, we abandoned all those poor beasts in the north to a fate worse than death, and now we are doing so again. Many of you fought in Kasg the Craven’s war, you saw as his black clad tide of vermin stomped into Mossflower! I’ve led campaigns against them, for vengeance for my dear boy and son, left to die at a beach head, to distract that vile foe! I ask you now, to join me and help those creatures. We will go into the night, and--”

Biggum interrupted “And you will all die, fighting that endless tide alone, and doom them anyway. We cannot help them now, but we can help them later, when we have a better position and a plan.”

“You aren’t doing anything now! We need to go and help them, each moment wastes our time and--”

Biggum angrily strode forward, his paws clasped behind his back “And you will die, Barfoof. You can kill yourself if you wish, but you will not take my Hares with you.”

Cemar shot back, angry “You are damning them, general. They will be abused, tortured, and broken down into cogs in whatever isle they end up in. You may not wish to know it, but we never recovered all the slaves from even Kasg’s black horde. If we do nothing now, you are sentencing them to death. Nay, worse than death, in my bloody opinion.”

Doufy shouted up “You lot are going to get yourselves not only killed, but captured, and what then mates? You’ll be giving the same speech to the other imprisoned beasts? Come on Cemar, you know full well that this suicide mission ain’t worth it.”

The bickering arose, as Galgor looked on with silent abandon. The hares and others around him began to act like bickering vermin, or worse, acting like his bickering sons. Both sides were accusing each others and Galgor shouted loudly to the whole group “Enough!”

The crowd went silent as Galgor came over to Doufy and slammed his weapon into the lifeboat, it clattered and shattered, falling into the sea. Barfoof’s group looked downward and back up at the badger lord who sickeningly began to speak to the group “Enough, I will not have any of you bickering at a time like this. I will not send you lot to die at the hands of vermin, but we are not giving up the chase so quickly, not until we deal this enemy a critical blow. Adam, turn this ship around, we are going to Green Isle and we are going to meet up with the otters. We’ll repair our ships and get help from their high king. Barfoof, Biggum. You two are going to speak to me on this stupid, petty foolishness.” Both followed into the badger’s cabin as the Hares went about their business and obeyed.

Cemar came over to Doufy, a bit ashamed, and apologized for the tense situation. However, Doufy gave him a crooked smile.

“I understand mate, I do. No reason we cannot be good friends with different opinions. We do have no time to waste.”

“I fear for those otters, Doufy. I do.”

Doufy sighed “I know. I do as well, but Biggum is right. We can do nothing for them now. Seasons willing the vermin just execute them.”

Cemar looked shocked “Execute them, mate? That is the best you can hope for them.”

Dacks interrupted them both, a sadness in his voice “Aye. What the vermin will do to them could make even The Stone shiver.”