Adventure on Wildcat Trail

Adventure on Wildcat Trail


Guard Duty
When Antwinus stood guard over Prairie Dog Town, he preferred the day to be a nice warm spring afternoon. On nice warm spring afternoons, Antwinus could peer over the top of his parapet and gaze down into the lush green Valley of the Wildcat Trail immediately below him. For a distance of several miles he could see fresh clear streams meandering their way toward the Valley from the snow-capped mountains to the west. Grass grew thick and lush and waved lazily back and forth with the warm northwesterly winds that blew in along the streams to the base of the high sandy outcrop where Antwinus and the prairie dog population of Wildcat Trail dug their labyrinthine of tunnels. For hundreds of yards around and beneath this raised mound of soil, the prairie dogs of Wildcat Trail spent their lives in relative comfort; each family with its own underground den and ample store rooms to keep a hoard of nuts, seeds and bedding for the cold winter months. Above ground, the prairie dog pups could scamper their young lives away with hardly a care in the world. Antwinus and his compatriots composed a semi-militaristic cohort under the command of Chief Engineer Ratnit whose job was the security of Prairie Dog Town, both above and below ground. While the cohort was less militaristic than Chief Engineer Ratnit would have liked, largely thanks to Antwinus and the rest of the cohort being rather an unruly lot, security was paramount. The cohort did a grand job of keeping things safe.
As the prairie dog pups grew their first year and romped around outdoors, Antwinus and the cohort would keep careful watch and would warn of the approach of any danger presented by hawks, coyotes, foxes and other predatory denizens of the valley. At the first sign of danger, Antwinus and others standing guard in their little round pillboxes would stamp their feet, swish their tails and emit a shrill peep before disappearing headfirst down their holes to safety. Once the danger was averted, the pups would once again cautiously come out to play and roll around in the dust and grass, exploring, discovering new things and making friends with the garter snakes, killdeer and other more docile residents of the Wildcat community. Yes, for Antwinus, standing guard over Prairie Dog Town on a warm spring afternoon was a pleasure.
What was not a pleasure was being assigned to stand guard over Prairie Dog Town on a very dark, chilly winter's eve. The moment Antwinus had been sent unexpectedly on guard this particular evening, icy winds suddenly howled down from the mountains, coursing along the long frozen streams whose sole purpose now seemed only to hasten the frigid blasts of winter air along their solid lengths and then to guide these frozen winds down Antwinus' backside. To make matters worse, there was a quarter moon which provided only the barest of illumination and on those rare occasions when any light that did manage to poke through a series of low scudding snow clouds, Antwinus was invariably to be seen receiving a deposit of heavy wet snow down his neck. As all were sleeping comfortably in their dens below ground, there were no prairie dog pups in sight and if he could have seen through the darkness and the snow, Antwinus could have confirmed all the spring grass was long dead, as was any love and charity he may have harboured for Chief Engineer Ratnit. This wouldn't have been much in any case.
There was absolutely no point in standing guard on a night like this. As far as Antwinus knew, any self-respecting predator would be fast asleep in his own home, dreaming of warmer days. It was unlikely any fox or coyote would be enthused by the idea of digging up a portion of the Town for the remote chance of a meal on such a filthy night and both predators and prairie dogs could safely take time off from trying to outwit the other. No. The only reason Antwinus was on guard, and he was the only one on guard that evening, was that he was being punished by Chief Engineer Ratnit.
Half an hour ago, Antwinus had been accompanying the Chief on one of the engineer's periodic "Support Patrols." These patrols were designed to ensure the continued strength and soundness of the tunnel walls throughout Prairie Dog Town. Ratnit would produce an Almanac, which was essentially a map of the town below ground, it's various levels, rooms, anterooms, storage chambers and so on. The Almanac would show when each tunnel or support had been built and when Ratnit had passed inspection on construction. After a period of time, each tunnel would be re-inspected for soundness and Ratnit would either once again pass inspection or condemn the area until such time as re-shoring work could be completed. This was a sensible enough proposal for any weakness in the tunnels and walls could wreak havoc should a collapse occur, especially during an attempted incursion by fox or coyote, whose claws could easily rip apart unsound earthworks. The trouble, in the view of Antwinus and others, was that Ratnit was overzealous in his inspections and would often check the soundness of a tunnel wall or support by digging deeply into it with alarming ferociousness by means of a shiny silver instrument Magpie had bartered with him a few months ago. Ratnit called this instrument a spoon, which was what Magpie had called it, though not having said why or where she had come by it. Ratnit ostentatiously displayed the spoon around his waist in a rather grubby belt of woven grass. Antwinus personally believed Ratnit wore the spoon as a sort of 'badge of office'. It wasn't that that everyone failed to recognize the Chief Engineer on sight, but that Ratnit felt himself to be a rather important person and should therefore sport some sort of emblem that reflected this importance, much like the Town Councillors did with their cloaks and chains of office during council meetings. And, as elections to Town Council were scheduled in a few weeks time, and as Ratnit had let it be known that he wished to run for the newly invented office of Chief Protector during the elections, any symbol that reflected his rank and standing now would fare him well in the final results.
Well, Antwinus didn't think much of the spoon or of Ratnit's chances of election to Town Council and had been idly leaning against a support next to the one Ratnit had been attacking with his spoon when Ratnit's support suddenly collapsed. Ratnit had been buried in an avalanche of dirt and stones and by the time Antwinus and other members of the Support Patrol had succeeded in digging him out, they had also found occasion to remove a rather large and juicy earthworm which had found lodging up Ratnit's nose.
The fact important members of the Town Council, along with a rather distinguished looking skunk named Mephitis who was visiting Prairie Dog Town that evening, had arrived to see what all the fuss was about and were witness to the extraction of the earthworm had not improved Ratnit's temper. Blaming Antwinus for no other reason than he had been holding the Almanac while Ratnit had been digging, Antwinus had been sent outside on guard for the duration of Ratnit's pleasure. This did not improve Antwinus' temper, especially as the collapse had been no one's fault except Ratnit's. His spoon was a menace as was the ferocity with which he wielded it, but Antwinus had no choice. On guard he went, while below Ratnit attempted to regain face by explaining that Antwinus had selected from the Almanac the wrong support for inspection. The support that had collapsed had been earmarked for re-shoring work beginning tomorrow. It was the additional inspection work that had weakened the now collapsed support. None of this was true of course, but that was the beginning of the explanation Antwinus heard as he sauntered off to his solitary, frozen duty.
A Most Unhappy Den
Meanwhile, not far away, Laetran's wife Alopex was once again giving tongue to the living arrangements she and her young pups had been provided for the winter. She was not at all happy. "This den is too small for the four of us!" she snapped at Laetrans. How do you expect two adult coyotes and two pups barely weaned from last summer to squeeze into such a small place. And it smells. I don't see why you had to choose us a winter den that was formerly owned by a skunk!"
"The den is fine," replied Laetrans morosely. "I enlarged it considerably when we first moved in, if you remember, but on cold nights like this we're better off keeping close together and staying warm. As far as the smell goes, find me a den that doesn't smell. It's not that bad anyway. When I evicted old striper, I didn't give him a chance to spray the place. I simply chased him off."
"Perhaps you did" replied Alopex, but you know that every time Mephitis passes by he gives the entrance to his old den a nice big squirt to spite us and then we drag the stench in after us. That's what smells. You really are hopeless. We need a new den and now would be a good time to go looking don't you think? Or do you think you might like finding a new den all to yourself?"
"Now!" cried Laetrans increduously. "It's nighttime! It's freezing outside! You can't possibly be serious! There couldn't be a worse possible time to go looking for a new den, not that I'm enthused by the idea of finding a new one in any case. As far as I'm concerned, this den is fine."
"It is not fine" replied Alopex in a voice that gave no doubt as to her intent to throw Laetrans out unless he left of his own accord. "I don't care how cold it is outside, go and make a head start. At least while you're gone the rest of us will have space to stretch out for a while. You can come back in an hour if you feel too cold. But make no mistake, what you are looking for is something larger, less smelly and preferably closer to sources of food and water. I'm tired of making trips to the stream over by Prairie Dog Town. As a matter of fact, a den close to Prairie Dog Town would be ideal, if they haven't all been taken already. Why don't you pop over there and see what you can find. Yes, I know it's dark and cold, but I I think you'll find it much darker and certainly much colder in here unless you leave immediately. Got it? Good!"
And with that, there were now two residents of Wildcat Trail out and about on this abysmal night. Neither were happy. Both were cold. Each wished they were underground where it was warmer.
Frozen But Vigilent
Antwinus shuffled about the parapet, stamping his feet and trying to stay warm. His cloak was pulled tightly around him in an effort to keep out the cold, but it didn't seem to help much. Neither did the woolen bonnet he wore on his head or the mittens he wore on his hands. His ears and fingers were slowly numbing and he was thoroughly miserable. Nevertheless, he kept watch as best he could despite the cold and the snow blowing about him. He had been outside for nearly an hour now and he had seen nothing and heard nothing except the wind whistling down Wildcat Trail. And then, almost imperceptibly, he smelt something on the wind, something that smelt faintly acrid. He sniffed in an effort to make out what the smell was and then it dawned on him. Skunk! It was the smell of skunk! Maybe it was Mephitis on his way home, though he really should have stayed overnight at Prairie Dog Town in weather like this. It didn't make much sense and in any case why would Mephitis be spraying scent unless he was in trouble?
Antwinus doubled his vigilence because of the smell and the possibility there might be trouble out on the Trail. He called down into the burrow to report, but received no reply. The wind carried away most of his words and besides, it was a long way down the parapet into the tunnel below. It was unlikely anyone would have heard him even on a nice warm afternoon, let alone in vile weather such as this.
The smell grew stronger and Antwinus became more concerned. He squinted into the darkness, but had difficulty seeing past the frost and ice that had encrusted the fur on his face. He thought he saw a dark shape slipping past him in the darkness, but he could not be sure. All the time the smell of skunk grew stronger. And because the smell had grown stronger instead of remaining constant, it meant the smell was mobile. This, Antwinus believed, was the result of some animal having been sprayed by Mephitis or another skunk and that could only mean the animal would be a predator moving about from place to place. Mephitis and his cousins used their scent only in self defence against predators like coyotes and foxes and never wasted it. Unless, of course, and here Antwinus had to stifle a laugh, it was Mephitis spraying the entrance to his old den after that stupid coyote had chased him out of it. That coyote, what was his name? Laetrans? Yes, that was it. That coyote could be scented a mile off as could the rest of his smelly family. Laetrans and his kin were easy predators to avoid because of the constant stench of skunk they carried about with them. Why didn't they switch dens and return the one they occupied back to its rightful owner, Antwinus wondered. There was no way he'd put up with a stench on his fur all day long. Even skunks themselves didn't smell that bad. In fact, skunks were usually fastidiously clean animals.
In any case, Antwinus was now rather worried. Given the circumstances of the smell growing stronger, it seemed likely that there was a predator out on the Trail this night. It might be Laetrans. It might not. In either case, Antwinus decided he had better vacate his guard post and head underground to report. There was no real danger to anyone inside Prairie Dog Town as predators could not dig through the soil fast enough to catch anyone, unless of course the soil was unstable, but the Support Patrol took care of such problems before they became a concern. The recent collapse of the support earlier was not of such magnitude, Antwinus thought, to pose any trouble either. At least not yet and he was sure the Support Patrol was already undergoing repairs. No, the trouble Antwinus foresaw was someone coming up for a breath of fresh air and falling prey to the predator, if it existed. This too was unlikely, especially on such a foul night, but Antwinus and the other members of his cohort left nothing to chance. He had better report the possibilty of a predator loose on the Trail. Besides, he had had enough of the cold. Underground was warmer and heading there reduced the possibility that he himself would end up as a surprise snack in the jaws of some snarling, drooling canine if indeed one was on the prowl.
Warm But Ignored
Meanwhile, underground, Ratnit had smoothed things over with the Town Councillors as best he could. While amused at Ratnit's self-importance and peremptory manners towards his subordinates, the Councillors had instructed him to begin re-shoring work on the collapsed support as soon as possible. Ratnit nodded his agreement vigorously, wringing his hands in supplication to their authority. As soon as the Councillors had left, with a bemused Mephitis following behind, Ratnit began barking out orders to the Support Patrol.
"And go and get Antwinus off guard duty too. He'll have had enough of the cold by now and he can help with the heaviest digging"
At that moment a frozen Antwinus appeared, already dripping water in puddles at his feet as the snow and ice began to melt in the warmth of the underground tunnels. He saluted and made his report, sniffling and snuffling while his whiskers thawed.
"And so," replied an unsympathetic Ratnit when Antwinus had finished, "based on the smell of a skunk, you believe Prairie Dog Town is in dire jeopardy? Imminent attack? Is that what you are saying? Well, let me tell you something. Mephitis is here in Prairie Dog Town still, so your theory doesn't hold much credence now does it?"
"Chief Engineer", replied Antwinus wearily. "I am simply reporting what I believe to be the presence of a predator roaming about. I'm pleased to hear Mephitis is safe here with us, but the smell may have been the spray from one of his cousins. Therefore, it might be prudent to have a member of the Cohort stand guard at the bottom of each exit leading to the outside and prevent anyone from going out. I think this is a sensible precaution, at least for the next hour or two. Of course, that is only my recommendation. It is your decision."
Ratnit snorted. "I have been instructed by the Councillors to begin re-shoring work on the collapsed support immediately. I can't spare anyone to stand a fool's errand for any length of time, especially one as foolish as protecting the exits from those who might wish to go outside. You're lucky I don't send you outside to stand another spell of guard duty. And I would except you're needed to help with the re-shoring work. Predators out on a night like this! Humph! Not likely! Now, let's get to work."
Above Ground
Laetrans loped along Wildcat Trail, his coat of fur becoming covered in snow. He was cold, but not particularly so just yet as his coat kept him reasonably well insulated. It would take some time before he needed to seek shelter in a warm den again. Nevertheless, he didn't like the weather one bit and as he exhaled, his breath rose up and formed uncomfortably heavy icicles on his muzzle and whiskers. This was the silliest errand he had ever been sent on, but it was better to spend an hour or so in a fruitless effort to find a new den on a night like this than it was to stay at home and listen to the incessant nagging of his wife.
He headed toward Prairie Dog Town and climbed to the top of the soil mound where the prairie dogs kept their vigil in more clement weather. From here he would have a better view of the surrounding area and might be able to fend off the impossible and spot a likely den, despite the snow and the darkness. In his wanderings, he tripped over a couple of snow-covered parapets and found no prairie dogs on guard. That was to be expected and so he paid scant attention to the possibility of surprising a prairie dog above ground, which would have made a nice and unexpected meal. And so it was that as he passed along he missed a frozen Antwinus just about to head underground. Instead, he sat down and tried to paw the icicles off his nose and whiskers, which were becoming a nuisance. And as he sat, he thought he heard faint noises coming from below ground. He cocked his head to one side and listened more intently. He wasn't sure, but he thought he heard some scratching and scrabbling as though dirt was being moved around not too far below the surface. He listened for a few moments more and became sure of it. He heard voices too. One in particular, louder than the others, was barking out orders. A moment later and the scrabbling noises stopped and the voices grew mute. Laetrans continued to paw at his icicles and gave one a good tug, but was rewarded only by a painful feeling that nearly caused him to believe that the icicle was now permanently attached to his nose. He considered giving up and returning home to his den. Forget Alopex and her nagging. He'd been out here long enough.
Just then the scrabbling noises and the voices started again. He heard some shouting about sending someone outside on guard and this made him more attentive. Maybe he'd get a meal after all, but after a few minutes he realized no one was coming outside, at least not in the immediate vicinity. Yet the scrabbling and the voices had peaked his curiosity. They really were quite close to the surface so Laetrans snuffled along the surface and pawed away some of the snow. He cocked his ear to the ground again and listened intently. The sounds were closer now and Laetrans realized with a start that it could only be prairie dogs directly beneath him. Suddenly he felt as hungry as he had ever been and he began to drool, which didn't help with the icicle problem. The drool simply added additional encumbrance as it froze, but Laetrans didn't care. Whatever he did he wasn't going to find a new den tonight, he realized that. The weather made that a virtual impossibility, but if he were to return home to Alopex and the pups with some juicy prairie dogs, maybe the nagging would cease for a day or two. He pushed down on the earth with his front paws and found the dirt to be quite solid with cold and ice. Despite this he tried clawing at at the frozen soil and found he could shift some of it. Not a lot, but enough to give him encouragement. He drooled some more.
Ratnit's Folly
Beneath ground, the re-shoring work had begun in earnest with Ratnit once again barking out orders to his cohort. He wanted all the loose soil moved aside before the task of reshaping it back into place could begin. Ratnit needed roots, grass and any similar material to be sorted and kept aside so it could be added at judicious intervals to add strength to the structure as it was rebuilt. Earthworms he could do without as their constant burrowing, in Ratnit's opinion, caused most of the damage to tunnels and supports. Grass and roots on the other hand, helped keep the soil in place.
During the course of the work Ratnit was busy scraping with his spoon and moving twice as much soil as anyone else, a fact which he constantly reminded everyone of. No one dared point out that if they had a spoon they could move just as much dirt as Ratnit, if not more. Eventually a clearing was made and Ratnit stood in it, gazing up at a large whiskery root that stuck out from the ceiling. Ratnit voiced his professional opinion that the root and its numerous offshoots would aid in strengthening the support once the dirt was replaced. They needed to get the root down and pulled apart.
Against better judgement, Antwinus spoke up to say he believed the root was already performing a task of structural integrity in that it was even now helping to keep the roof from falling in on them. If, in Antwinus' opinion the root were removed, there might be another collapse, this one exposing the tunnel to the outside world. Given the current state of the weather and the possibility of a predator outside, Antwinus asked whether it might be more prudent to simply leave the root in place.
A number of the cohort murmered their agreement with Antwinus' opinion, but Ratnit would have none of it.
"Nonsense!" he shouted. "I'm the Chief Engineer here and I know what needs to be done. That root needs to come down. Several feet of earth remain between that root and the outside, That's plenty to keep the roof up and I don't want to hear any more about predators. There simply aren't any out there and we have work to do." With that, in order to reach the root overhead he ordered a number of prairie dogs to form a pyramid by standing on top of one another. Climbing to the top of the prairie dog pyramid, Ratnit brought forth his spoon once again. With a vengeance he began loosening the dirt around the root. Antwinus shook his head and moved into the near distance. He didn't want to be anywhere close in case the roof fell in, which he felt it would.
After ten minutes of hard scrabbling with the spoon, Ratnit felt the root move. More than that, he could see the earth above him moving as well as though someone else was above helping to remove the root from its encumbrance. But that was impossible. There was no one outside. The only other explanation Ratnit could think of was that perhaps Antwinus had been right: the root was a structural support, he had dug too far and now the roof was indeed going to collapse.
Well, suddenly the roof did collapse! The root and mounds of dirt and stones fell on top of Ratnit and the pyramid of prairie dogs, knocking them to the ground. As he lost his balance, Ratnit also lost his grip on his spoon, which flew off into a corner of the tunnel and came to rest against a stone with a clank. An acrid stench filled the tunnel as frigid air flowed in from outside and the last thing Ratnit saw as he tumbled backwards was an enormous set of canines flanked by two ridiculous looking icicles snapping at him in earnest. Ratnit believed he was about to perish in a surreal world of disbelief and horror where half frozen drool dripped down on him like some nightmare rainfall.
Laetrans' Folly
Laetrans continued digging in earnest. He scratched and clawed at the frozen soil and began to make some progress in creating a reasonable hole in the earth. The clumps of soil he dug up were discarded behind him as the hole grew bigger. Just as he reached the point where the soil was slightly less frozen and easier to shift he found the top of a large root from some long dead plant, possibly a small tree. The root slowed his digging, but he pawed around it in an attempt to move it out of the way. Suddenly Laetrans felt the root move. More than that, he could see the earth below him moving as well as though someone else was below helping to remove the root from its encumbrance.
Then the earth under him collapsed and Laetrans fell face forward into the hole. After a few moments recovering from the shock, he saw a sight that caused him to fly into a frenzy. Directly beneath him were a dozen plump, juicy prairie dogs collapsed all over the floor. Most were dazed, covered in soil and stones and all nearly within reach of his jaws. Never before had Laetrans been so close to so many prairie dogs at one time and certainly never so many in a position so ripe for the taking. Unfortunately he discovered that the hole was only big enough to permit his front legs and head inside as his shoulders and body were too wide to permit a total entry into the tunnel below.
Unable to control his excitement, Laetrans lunged forward to gain better entry but succeeded only in wedging his shoulders more tightly into the hole. Laetrans wriggled and squirmed, but found he was well and truly stuck. He could go no further.
The prairie dogs that had formed the pyramid now began to dig themselves out from the dirt and scatter, cheeping loudly in alarm and panic. Only an older and greyer one remained where he was, just out of reach and paralysed with fear. Laetrans snapped at him anyway, but succeeded only in spattering the prairie dog with drool and saliva. There was nothing doing. The hole simply needed to be larger. Only then could Laetrans free himself and have a chance of chasing down the prairie dogs. Unfortunately for him, his front legs dangled uselessly in thin air and he could not use them to dig away any more dirt. His hind legs, likewise, were useless as they were outside on solid ground. Laetrans had never felt so frustrated! He howled loudly as though this would help extricate him from his predicament, but the only effect it had was to make the paralysed prairie dog below him quiver with fear even more.
The Chamber
Antwinus had watched the entire proceedings in shock. Everything had happened so quickly he could scarcely believe his eyes. In an instant the roof had fallen in and the hole above filled with the snarling countenance of a very nasty and very smelly predator intent on gobbling every prairie dog in sight. Fortunately the coyote had gotten stuck, which was an absolute miracle, especially for those who had formed the pyramid. They had been closest to the disaster and had the coyote been able to get inside, very probably they would have fallen prey to the fetid, ice covered jaws that even now snapped at an immobile Ratnit.
Recovering his senses, Antwinus rushed forward and grabbed Ratnit, pulling him away from the coyote and shoving him none too gently onto a pile of soil that had earlier been cleared away from the general work area. Here Ratnit curled up in the fetal position, his teeth chattering with fear.
Antwinus also managed to rally those of the cohort who had not vanished too far down the tunnels and set them to work making blockades of soil across the tunnel on either side of the hole, making sure everyone remained out of reach of the coyote above. Until the coyote was removed from the hole, either by his own efforts or by other means, this particular section of tunnel had to be sealed off. In essence, they were building a chamber with no exit, but the one above, which Laetrans now occupied. If the coyote did manage to get inside, he'd find himself enclosed in a very small space with nowhere to go but up and out again. The work would have to be completed very quickly and the soil had to be very thick and very well fortified with as many rocks, stones and other impediments as possible or the coyote would simply dig through the blockade with his claws. Antwinus also sent one of the cohort to inform the Town Councillors of what had happened and what he intended to do, also informing them that Chief Engineer Ratnit was currently incapable of rendering any help or advice for the moment.
The work of building the blockades proceeded quickly, but it soon became apparent to Antwinus that there were not nearly enough rocks and stones to prevent the coyote from digging through if Laetrans did manage to get loose. It looked like the blockades were going to be temporary measures at best. An alternate solution would have to be found. Extricating the coyote by pulling on it's tail from outside was one option, though a dangerous one that would surely result in the loss of one or more of the cohort once Laetrans got turned around. Even then, it woudn't prevent the coyote from returning and enlarging the hole so he could get inside. No. What was needed was some plan that would remove the coyote long enough to complete repairs to both the collapsed support as well as the roof itself. And then, just as the Town Councillors arrived, their cloaks flapping around them worriedly, Antwinus had a brain wave. He was very happy to see Mephitis accompanying the Councillors as Mephitis was central to the new plan he had devised.
The Town Councillors crowded into the clearing and gazed up in astonishment at the head and forelimbs of Laetrans hanging in space above them. Laetrans front legs flailed wildly but could find nothing to get a grip on. His yellow eyes gleamed at the sight of so many prairie dogs and perodically he would let out a bark or a howl as he continued to try and free himself from the hole. Laetrans was still in a frenzy, but this was now more directed at getting free than it was trying to snap up prairie dogs, though the thought of catching so many still remained as a primary concern. Alopex would be pleased and maybe Laetrans would be freed from being nagged for a while.
Below Laetrans, the prairie dogs continued to work, building up the blockades Antwinus had directed. Mephisti and the Town Councillors continued to take in the situation and shook their heads in puzzlement as to how this disaster had happened in the first place. Ratnit, slowly returning to reality, pointed a finger directly at Antwinus and began to croak that the blame lied entirely with him and with no one else. Because he was still in a state of shock, he was unable to put forward a very good argument why this was so. Antwinus looked irritated at this interruption and gathered Mephisti and the Councillors in a circle, essentially excluding Ratnit from any contribution to the solution he was about to outline. After a few moments the Councillors began to smile, as did Mephisti. Some of the Councillors clapped Mephisti on the back and others Antwinus. Antwinus' plan had met with approval.
Ratnit tried to speak, probably to say that any plan of Antwinus' was doomed to failure. No one ever knew what he intended to say for two reasons. Just then Laetrans let out a howl that drowned out Ratnit's words. Also, Antwinus had had enough of Ratnit and had picked up his spoon which had flown off into a corner of the tunnel when the roof collapsed. Antwinus gave Ratnit a sharp rap on the noggin with the spoon and told him to be quiet. He told Ratnit he was in no shape to assist in anything at the moment and that even under normal circumstances he wasn't much good. Ratnit slumped backwards on the pile of soil on which he had been lying and Antwinus directed two members of the cohort to take him outside the immediate area into a safe tunnel beyond.
A short time later the rest of the cohort had finished building the blockades so Laetrans head was now stuck in a clearing bordered by walls of dirt. The Councillors filed out of a small exit that remained in one of the blockades so that the only Antwinus and Mephisti remained inside with Laetrans in what was essentially a small room. Laetrans looked worried. Antwinus brandished the spoon and took a swing at the icicle still hanging from Laetrans nose. He managed to connect with the bottom of the icicle and broke off a substantial piece. Laetrans howled with pain, but rubbed the remaining piece of icicle with his paw. The icicle by this time had melted enough that it too broke loose and Laetrans nose was free once again. He could smell without obstruction. Antwinus took another swing with the spoon, aiming at the other icicle, dangling from Laetran's whiskers, but missed. He did manage to catch Laetrans on the chin though, which caused another howl of pain. At this point Mephisti stepped forward and asked Antwinus to stand over by the exit, outside which a number of the cohort stood ready with a pile of soil to seal the chamber when directed. Antwinus did as directed while Mephisti turned around and stood on his front paws, his backside facing upward toward a horrified Laetrans.
Laetrans, realizing what was about to happen let out the loudest howl of his life and covered his eyes with his paws. He wished now the icicle that Antwinus had broken off was still attached to his nose, obstructing his sense of smell. Too late, he realized one can't have everything in life. At that moment Mephisti let loose an enormous spray of the smelliest musk ever produced by a skunk on Wildcat Trail. It caught Laetrans directly in the face. His nose filled with the musk as did his mouth. Despite covering his eyes with his paws, the musk filtered in to cause annoyance there as well. His entire coat was covered, from legs to head and what was exposed of his shoulders inside the tunnel. Without question, Laetrans was the smelliest coyote in existence. He shuddered and groaned and whipped from side to side in an effort to escape the torturous stench that enveloped him. This action, which exceeded the frenzy he had been in when he first fell into the hole, dislodged some of the soil that kept him captive and after a few moments he was free. In the meantime both Mephisti and Antwinus had left the chamber and the cohort had closed off the exit. What was left was a chamber filled with skunk musk. Laetrans had no intention of entering the chamber and managed to scramble outside whereupon he rolled about in the snow trying to remove as much of the musk as he could. His howls of anguish could be heard for miles. He would smell horribly for days.
Alopex, who could easily recognize her husband's howls, awoke to the noise and smiled to herself in the knowledge that her husband had managed to screw things up once again. She rolled over and went back to sleep. She wouldn't have been so complacent had she known what she would be sharing a den with over the next little while. It would not be prudent to include her comments here once she discovered what had happened.
Awards and Afterwards
Antwinus and Mephisti left the chamber and the cohort sealed the exit in case Laetrans fell into the hole instead of exiting from the top. The blockade wouldn't hold an infuriated coyote for very long, but Antwinus had been counting on Laetrans wishing to find the quickest exit possible to distance himself from the stench and to try and remove the musk Mephisti had sprayed him with. In this he had been correct and Laetrans had pulled himself upwards and outwards instead of descending into the smelliest room anywhere. Antwinus too had been fortunate in his guess that the blast of musk would stir Laetrans into such distress that he'd be able to free himself from the hole. Now that Laetrans would be busy for the next while attempting to remove the smell from hs body, the cohort would allow the chamber to breathe out the remaining fumes before tunnelling back in and closing the area for good, including the roof. A different tunnel with new supports would be built in an ajacent area in case Laetrans returned in the future to try his luck once again.
The Town Councillors had been so impressed with Antwinus' plan and the way he had carried it out, not to mention the success it enjoyed that they decided to award him on the spot with the Pawprint Medal for intelligence and bravery. In addition, they decided not to hold the position of Chief Protector up for election. They had seen the possibilities that could occur if the wrong person were to be elected to such a responsible job. It would be better if someone who had shown their abilities be appointed to the position and so it was Antwinus also received the nomination and confirmation along with the Pawprint Medal. As a Badge of Office he was given the spoon Ratnit had earlier possessed. As for Ratnit, he was most unhappy having to report to Antwinus, who was now in charge of security in and around Prairie Dog Town. While Ratnit remained Chief Engineer, he was subject to the directives and commands coming from Antwinus' office. On the bright side, Ratnit was never posted to stand guard on a frozen winter's eve.