Answer The Questions! (Thorns of Steel TP)

In a cell somewhere

Oz is awake and looks at the sleeping Blisa beside him. He sighs quietly and glances around the cell.

Vladmir isn't in a very good mood, it would seem. He enters the room far less dramatically than usual, and his eyes burn with frustration, his metal-soled boots clomping loudly against the stone floor.

Oz looks up as Vladmir enters and keeps an eye on him, he doesn't ask what is wrong as he mostly likely could care less how the fox is.

Vladmir mutters something to himself, and without warning, turns and punches the wall, his steel gauntlet making a resounding 'CLANG!'. He turns around slowly to face Oz.

Oz raises an eyebrow at Vladmir, he looks up as he faces him and speaks, "Having a bad day fox?"

"Not nearly as bad a day as yours is going to be, unless you give me the information I seek. This is your /final warning/," Vladmir growls. "Speak now, or face the consequences."

Oz clears his throat, "And what consequences is that?" His voice sounding a little weaker than a couple days ago, but he is still alert to face and speak with Vladmir.

Vladmir advances two slow, measured paces. "Excruciating pain, then utter despair, followed by a death so slow and agonizing that before I'm done you'll scream for a swift ending...which you will not be granted."

Oz shakes his head as Vladmir nears him, he glace at Blisa and back to Vladmir.

"Last chance...Will you speak?" As he says this, Vladmir slowly draws his jagged sword with a slow grating noise. "Or die?"

Oz glares at Vladmir, but thoughts do go through his mind as Blisa stirs and mutters something in her sleep, his glace goes over to her as it seems he temporally forgets the fox is in the room, the dibbun falls back to sleep through and curls into a little fuzzy ball to sleep better.

"Well?" Vladmir follows the badger's gaze and smirks. "Or perhaps I'll kill her first, to loosen your tongue a bit?"

Oz growls low, "Do not touch her, I will not let you harm her." He goes to pull on the shackles and sighs a little, a lot of his strength is gone now, he frowns and he looks up at Vladmir again slowly, "Please...don't hurt the dibbun."

"Give me information and I might consider it," Vladmir says smugly.

Oz frowns, he starts to say No again but the last thing he wants to see is another dibbun die, he closes his eyes letting some tears fall and remains quiet for a good while before he finally speaks again "You...want info...on what?"

"/Everything./ What are the defenses of Redwall Abbey, how many fighting beasts dwell there, what are their weaknesses, what are they armed with, what are their strategies in battle, and I warn you, play me false and the brat will scream for seasons on end before going silent forever," Vladmir says in one long breath.

Oz frowns, he shakes his head at the thought, he opens his eyes and looks at Vladmir again, "Martin the warrior, he protects the abbey and so does Flicktail, the champion of Redwalll who carries Martins sword, and before you say anything against Flicktail he is not as weak as you think he is, he is a skilled fighter or Martin would not of made him the champ, Martin makes no mistakes and Flicktail will slay you and your be the one silent forever."

"I /spoke/with Flicktail. And you know what? He was in the company of drunks and cripples, exchanging childish insults, and you're wrong. Dead beasts do make mistakes; that's why they're dead. Flicktail /is/ weak. He'd be helpless without the sword, he's bound by morals and a conscience..." Vladmir pauses, then adds as an afterthought, "And he's also my brother."

Oz looks shocked at this news, "Your...Flicktail's Brother?..How is that possible?" He growls and tries to get closer to Vladmir and stops, some blood runs down his wrists as a couple sore places open up, "The..Abbey has fighters..and guards posted all over the walls by now to defeat you...vermin scum"

"Insulting will only prolong your painful exit from existence," Vladmir warns. "And I /am/ his brother. Has he told you of his history? Of the spear in his foot that allowed his brothers to escape?"

Oz answers "He mentioned his history some, how he use to be a dibbun slaver..that someone stabbed his foot and run off and how he barely escaped death." He shakes his head, "Others are coming after you by now, so not just abbey beasts."

"I was the one who stabbed him," Vladmir says with more than a little satisfaction in his voice. "And I fear /nobeast./ Countless creatures have pursued me, seeking vengeance...All have fallen."

Oz shakes his head, " One day someone will make you fall..." He decides to be a bit brave and insult him more, "You should leave and maybe do something bout your breath, then maybe we can chat Vladmir." He waits on a response from the fox.

Before Oz has finished speaking, Vladmir is suddenly directly in front of him, crouching slightly and holding the edge of his blade at the badger's throat. "How about I stop yours?" he hisses.

Oz holds very still as the blade is by his throat, he has some fear in his eyes but tries to not show it much, he goes silent as many thoughts go through his head now, his eyes glaze at Blisa again as his eyes close he seems to debate on giving up as he answers slowly, a simple response, "N..no"

"Then I'd recommend changing your attitude toward superior creatures." Vladmir returns to his previous position and stance. "Now answer my other questions. I /know/ they have guards; I saw them. But how /many?/ And what are their weapons?"

Oz keeps an eye on the sword and frowns as he gets tears in his eyes, he shakes his head no and then gives a defeated sigh, "Guards have....n...normal weapons, swords,daggers, archers.." He stops as if he rather not go further.

"Good. I might kill you a bit quicker." Vladmir nods. "And how many?"

Oz lets out a small sort of sob, he is close to -- -breaking now-.."Enough to...beat you and friends to..to help."

Vladmir shrugs and considers for a moment. "What is their defensive strategy?"

Oz frowns, "I..I don't know, different any time been threatened."

"Then what is it /usually?/" Vladmir hisses.

Oz tenses up some at the hiss, "N...no" He seems to beg for Vladmir to leave.

"Excuse me, did I just hear the word 'no'?" Vladmir asks in mock confusion. "I hope not. Because if I did, it would most likely be the second-to-last word you ever spoke, followed by screams for mercy."

Oz frowns, he glances at Blisa..he can't die as she be helpless, he frowns as tears go down his face, “I’ll...talk then"

"Then how do they /usually/ go about defending themselves?" Vladmir snarls.

Oz frowns, "Seal up the gates, no one goes in or out of the abbey. Archers on the walls all around and fighters at the gates, you’re not gonna take it down easily Vladmir, they know you’re coming now..."

"Well, I know /that,/" the fox snorts. "And I have a plan...as always," he adds smugly.

Oz shakes his head, "Then what else..is there to know?" His voice weaker now and he is more quiet not looking directly at Vladmir now.

"Do they have any other allies from outside? /Armies,/ not individual warriors?" Vladmir asks, smirking at Oz's gradual loss of hope.

Oz answers after a short pause , "They have a lot of allies...Ferravale.." He stops but goes on, "Sparrows...too, don’t know who else th..that’s close." He seems to be stressed as he speaks, but he starting to lose hope, "Please..don't harm the dibbun, just leave her alone."

"You idiot, I do as I please and none will stop me," Vladmir snaps, stepping forward again and whacking Oz across the face with a gauntleted paw.

Oz tenses up in pain as the gauntlet hit him, he turns slightly so it avoids his face mostly, one of the claws on top makes a slice right across his face missing his right eye by a couple inches but the second claw cuts through his right ear and leaves only half the ear behind as blood goes down his face and the side of him head, he growls low as it has caused a lot of pain but he doesn’t yell out he holds it in and then coughs a couple times and takes a deep breath and looks at Vladmir again.

"I will return soon with more questions.../and you had better answer./" After giving Oz a parting kick, the fox departs.

Oz groans as he is kicked in the side by the steel toed boot and coughs up a little blood, only a small amount as the kick most likely bruised a lung some, he can still breathe but he is in a lot of pain now, a weak whimper escapes him as Vladmir leaves the cell.