Wordsmoker

Most humans think of dust bunnies as harmless little bits of fluff that lurk under the couches and beds of their homes.  They seldom think about these seemingly harmless little creatures, but dust bunnies have been around for centuries and are so integral to the lives of the humans they share a home with that without them most homes would be destroyed.

Dregs crouched in the shadow of the discarded Wii remote, thanking the small human for leaving him such a perfect lookout for this attack.  A few inches away, the offending BUG was carelessly investigating a napkin, half hidden behind the curio.  Dregs silently pulled his sword from his belt and crouched, waiting for his adversary to turn its back and offer a target.  In a flash he flew from his hideout and plunged his sword through his opponent, killing the BUG before it had a chance to look up from the cookie crumb it was eating.  He wiped his blade off, carefully making sure to clean it up to the hilt.  His father had taught him the importance of caring for his weapon before he had allowed him to carry one.

“A rusty sword is the quickest way to the rubbish bin, my son.”

Dregs had seen too many of the bunnies he had grown up with make that trip, and he wasn’t eager to follow them.  Dregs knelt next to his victim and placed a paw gently on its back.

“Go in peace, my worthy foe.”

He inhaled deeply as he stood and surveyed the dining room around him.  The napkin would need to be carefully watched until the humans removed it.  Such a tempting article was sure to lure every vermin in the neighborhood here.  He made a mental note to assign shifts to guard it.

“Sir, we are seeing some action in the breakfast nook, sir.”

Slag, the solider assigned to the dining table watch-post, was hanging over the edge with his helmet askew.

“Should we see if they need our assistance, sir?”

“No, Slag,” Dregs replied as he grabbed his helmet from behind the Wii remote, “You should stay and keep watch like you’ve been assigned.  I will go and see what the problem is.  Keep a watchful eye on that napkin until a guard arrives, and for Pete’s sake, Slag, stay at your post.”

Dregs set off for the breakfast nook knowing that it wouldn’t take long for Slag to get overly excited and come rushing to help.  Slag was Dregs’ newest solider.  He would be good one some day, if Dregs could keep him out of trouble long enough for Slag to learn some sense.  He was eager to jump into battle but lacked the patience and grace that kept a solider alive.  He had good instincts, though, and if he thought whatever was happening in the nook looked like trouble, he was probably right.

As soon as Dregs rounded the corner, he could tell something had gone very wrong.  Bunnies were scattered everywhere, running in what seemed like sheer chaos.  Where was his father?  What could be so wrong that his father’s troops were running around like a bunch of lint trap bunnies fresh from the spin cycle?

“Dregs, this way.  The meeting will be starting any second.”

Lees – Dregs’ cousin and best friend – waved him down and hurried him toward the center of the chaos, where a tent of brightly colored holiday napkins had been set up as a command station.

“What is happening here, Lees?  And where is my father?”

“I thought you knew! Oh man, it’s bad.  The scouts were making their passes through the cupboards when they found it.  It’s huge and completely finished too.  I don’t know how they managed it.  I don’t even want to think about the type of opponent…”

Lees was cut short by the shouts of the other generals in the tent.

“Gentlebunnies! Quiet please”, Detritus bellowed from behind his desk.  Lees and Dregs hurried to find seats as the other generals hushed and took theirs.

“As you all well know, two of our scouts have found a very imposing mouse hole in the cupboard of color bowls.  This is not the first time we have faced the threat of mice…”

“But this hole came from nowhere, Detritus!” Dregs leaned to the right to see which bunny had interrupted, but with no success.  “These mice are something we have never seen the likes of before.  We have always had warnings of…”

“Yes, these mice seem to be working faster then those we have dealt with in the past,” Detritus continued, “but we can’t let that frighten us into inaction.  We will work tonight to board up the hole and set guards to watch it during the day.  Do not fear, gentlebunnies, we have a strong and well trained army and there is no mouse in all Rolling Meadows that can defeat us!”

The generals jumped to their feet with applause.  They crowded around Detritus shaking his paw and promising that the bravery and strength of their battalions would win this battle.  Dregs hung back against the wall of the tent and waited until all but his cousin had left.

“Thank you, Lees.  You should take your bunnies home and get a good day’s rest.  Tomorrow will prove quite trying for all of us, I am sure.”

Lees saluted and turned to leave.  He gave Dregs a punch in the arm as he walked by.  He started shouting orders to his bunnies to pack up and form ranks to head home before the flaps of the tent had closed behind him.

Detritus sank into the over-sized Lego arm chair positioned behind the large strategy stable.  ”Out with it then, son.  You haven’t been standing around just to watch your old man stare at maps.”

Dregs pulled a shampoo cap chair up to the table and sat down opposite his father.

“It’s these mice.  They frighten you, don’t they?” he asked.

“Mice are not a new enemy, Dregs, but something is different about these.  How did they manage to create such a large and finished hole in one day?  Our army is strong and brave, but they are also young.  These bunnies have never fought a full out war with the mice before.  Even you, my son, have never seen a battle of that kind.”

“Do not worry, father.  What we lack in experience we make up for three fold in eagerness.  We are ready.  I won’t let you down, father.”

“You never could.  But it is growing early and we need to get home before the humans begin to rise.  Take your bunny there and go home.  I will be along in a few moments.”

“What bunny?  I came from a solo mission.”

“The one that has been unsuccessfully hiding while spying under the tent there.” Detritus waved his hand to the far left corner where Slag was clumsily trying to smooth the carpet out he had been lying on.

Dregs sighed and rose.  “Good day, father.  Please don’t stay too long.  You know it worries mother.”

“Mmmm,” Detritus replied, already lost in the maps and plans laid out along the big NyQuil box table.

“Come on, Slag, let’s get to our beds then,” Dregs said as he turned and walked from the tent.