Cluny seizes the family of a dormouse and threatens to kill them unless their father, Plumpen, betrays Redwall and opens the gate to the now huge army of rats. The plan works and Redwall is finally captured. But Matthias challenges Cluny and in a final confrontation, he kills him. Cornflower and Matthias are at last married and Redwall returns to its idyllic lifestyle. Matthias has become like a hero he admired in his childhood.
