The battle was going badly. Willip lay dead on the rocks. Stiffener stood over her body, a whirling sling in one paw, a sword in the other, slashing and whacking at the vermin as they hurtled themselves at him. The surviving hares and otters stood on the sand, backs against the rocks, thrusting hard with their spears. Brogalaw shouldered an otter who had been struck twice by arrows. The sea otter skipper was using his broken javelin as a club.

Ungatt Trunn had done what all careful vermin officers usually do; he had stayed out of the battle, directing it from the rear and laying about the half-hearted ones who tried to hang back. He had kept Ripfang and Doomeye with him, but Doomeye had bloodlust in his eyes now that he could see victory in sight. The searat licked his cutlass blade and danced on the spot with frustration.

"Lemme at 'em, I wanna kill a few!"

Ripfang nudged him sharply. "Nah, yew don't wanna do that, Doom. Look, they've retreated fer their last stand. There ain't many left, but they got nothin' to lose now, so they'll be real dangerous. Stay out!"

But Doomeye dashed forward, waving his blade. "I ain't scared! C'mon, Rip, let's see the color o' their guts! Yahaaarrr, char-"

Suddenly a rainbow-colored streak blasted through the air and hit Doomeye, laying him senseless. It was Commander Hurricane! Ripfang gaped at the Pegasus in surprise. "Wha… you ain't one o' them, are yer? I ain't seen you before."

Hurricane grinned. "I was born in the thunder. I'm a warrior, the child of warriors! Stand in my way an' I'll tramp right over you!" she yelled.

"Seize her!" Ungatt Trunn shouted.

The vermin turned away from the otters and hares and advanced on Hurricane, but they couldn't even touch her. When a weasel made a dive at her, she drove her front hooves into his stomach with a force so great that the weasel staggered backward onto the blade of the ferret behind him. At the same time, Hurricane's hind legs crashed into a rat's head, knocking him out cold. Every time a vermin tried to attack the Pegasus they got injured. Finally, she just swooped into the air, out of the horde's reach.

"I never seen anything like that afore, Sire," Ripfang said. "She's like a blinkin' hurricane!"

"That's what they call me!" Hurricane laughed.

Ungatt Trunn's tiny mind was cogitating how to turn the situation to his advantage. "Well, well, you're a mighty warrior, all right," he said. "You're not short on nerve, and you're even already blue. How'd you like to be a Captain in my Blue Hordes? The best of food, slaves to command as you please, I'll even give you a spear to carry if you swear loyalty to me as your master. Well, what've you got to say to that?"

But Commander Hurricane just laughed more. "Sorry, dude. I'm already part of an army. Eulalia!"

Her war cry echoed back at her like rolling thunder.

"EULALIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Lord Brocktree mounted the rocks, swinging his mighty sword. He was followed by scores of hares, earth ponies, pegasi, unicorns, and two alicorns. Ungatt Trunn and his vermin fled screaming.

Stiffener sat down upon the sand, staring at the Badger Lord, completely bewildered.

"It's like seeing Lord Stonepaw when he was young, but bigger, much bigger."

Fleetscut ambled up and sat beside his old friend. "That's the great Lord Brocktree. Big, ain't he? A regular one beast army an' no mistake, wot!"

"Fleetscut! My dear ole chap- where did you spring from? Tell me everything!"

"Later, ole friend. There's business to do first."