User:Cherrypop09/The silver tide

The Silver Tide is an anthology of three novels written by Michael Tod; The Silver Tide, The Second Wave and The Golden Flight. The books detail the trials and lives of the Reds, red squirrels living in Dorset and (later on) Brownsea Island. The Reds are usurped by the invading forces of Greys, grey squirrels who have decided to take their territory and live in it themselves. The Reds are forced to flee their home, finding their way to Brownsea Island. Main characters within the stories (mainly Marguerite, The Bright One) journey back and forth between the island and the mainland on several occasions, each time for a different reason. The Greys return to attack the Reds on the mainland several times, forcing the Reds to eventually abandon their old homes and only return sporadically on 'Climbabout', adventures undertaken by young squirrels learning their way around the world.

The Silver Tide
The book begins with a grey squirrel, Marble, and his acolyte, Gabbro, heading out into New America, as his kinda calls it. Marble has been sent out as an 'Explorer, Missionary and Disturber of the Peace', moving into Purbeck to 'soften up' the native Reds living there. He has been ordered on this mission by the Great Lord Silver, the lead Grey.

Marble and Gabbro meet the Purbeck Reds, lead by Oak the Cautious. Marble shows them Stone Force, a powerful forcefield created by using stones and pine cones arranged like binary code to tap into some unknown energy. Oak is frozen by its power, Marble taking the oppurtunity to tell him to 'not move at all', making it seem like he has control over him. Larch the Curious is knocked unconcious by its force. Disturbed by the Stone Force, Oak tells Marble and Gabbro to leave. Marguerite the Bright One, Oak's daughter, is intrigued by the Stone Force and the way the Greys count. She follows them, and asks them if there are any numbers after 'Lots'. The Reds count according to their claws, one, two, three, Lots. Marble tells her to show him Lots, which she does. He asks her to do it again, and she obeys. Marble tells her 'So it must be', and leaves her feeling confused and upset, thinking he is laughing at her.

Over the next few days a long and bedraggled line of refugees make their way through the Purbeck Guardianships. They claim to have been attacked by Greys. Some have seen Stone Force, others were threatened with something called the Sunless Pit, a terrifying prospect to the peaceful squirrels who worship the Sun. One of the refugees, Alder, has been badly injured and Clover the Carer has to remove his tail. His daughter, Meadowsweet, catches the eye of Rowan the Bold, Oak's son. The two of them talk a lot, but the next day Meadowsweet leaves with her family, the refugees urging Oak and his community to do the same. They refuse, and Rowan decides to stay with them. That night 'love overcame duty', and he sets off to follow Meadowsweet. He is unable to follow her scent and becomes lost, finally turning back, defeated.

Later on, 4 Greys, 2 females and 2 males, move into the Purbeck area and forcibly evict Juniper and Bluebell, tagged the Scavengers for their continued scavenging from Humans for salted peanuts, from their drey. Juniper is unable to drive them off and instead they seek refuge in the Guardianship of Reds Heather Treetops and <>. They intend to get their territory back.

The next day, Juniper returns to his Guardianship and destroys the Greys drey whilst they watch. His act of defiance does not go unpunished and the Greys attack him, forcing him into the river. Squirrels are terrified of water and Juniper finds it very difficult to swim back to the bank, the Greys taunting him all the way. At a Council meeting that night, the Reds decide to leave the Humanside Guardianship to the Greys, in the hope that they will be happy with it.