Morbin Blackhawk

Morbin Blackhawk in his lair, as illustrated by Zach Franzen in Ember Falls.

**M****orbin Blackhawk**, remembered as **Morbin Lastfoe**, was the king and leader of the Lords of Prey. Having terrorized the rabbits of Natalia for years, he was finally slain by Smalden Joveson during the War for All Natalia.

## Biography

### Early life

Morbin became first among the Six, the kings of the Lords of Prey who were revered on a level approaching godhood by their subjects, many years before the War for All Natalia. He led his fellow raptors in war against the rabbits of Natalia, and was so great a terror that he was believed to be invincible. Despite this, Morbin's forces were driven back into the High Bleaks by the forces of the Thirty Warrens under Jupiter Goodson, a particularly renowned rabbit king. Infuriated by this opposition to his rule, Morbin entered into an alliance with the wolves of Natalia under King Farlock.

Morbin was later approached by Garten Longtreader, leader of Jupiter's Council of Seven Ambassadors, with a scheme to betray and capture Jupiter so that Morbin could do with him as he pleased. This plot proved successful, and Morbin gleefully mocked Jupiter, only for his adversary to express hope that rabbitkind would recover from his death and rise to even greater heights than he had imagined. When his promises of violence against both Jupiter and his subjects failed to silence the noble king, Morbin struck Jupiter a fatal blow. He then unleashed his raptor subjects and wolf allies upon the Great Wood and First Warren, initiating a campaign of destruction that became known as the afterterrors.

In the years following Jupiter's death, Morbin claimed kingship of all Natalia and made efforts to secure his rule over all the land's inhabitants. These included employing Garten Longtreader as his own ambassador, with the traitor rabbit working to break down the alliances and destroy the peace he had built while still in service to Jupiter. Morbin also allowed Winslow Joveson, Jupiter's eldest son, to act as puppet governor over the occupied city of First Warren, though in reality Morbin's lieutenant Falcowit and his raptor sentinels were the true ruling power in the city. Morbin also sought to secure the Green Ember, a symbol entrusted to Jupiter's chosen heir, to insure that all hopes of a future rabbit uprising would be utterly dashed.

### *The Green Ember*

Lady Glen, Jupiter's widow, mentioned Morbin during her discussions with Whittle and Sween Longtreader in their home in Nick Hollow. She noted that Morbin was searching for the Green Ember, and that she may well have been followed by wolves in his employ. Heather and Picket also observed that Redeye Garlackson's wolves bore a brand of their allegiance to Morbin, a letter M with stars decorating the base. Wilfred Longtreader later compared Redeye to Morbin, before noting that the two were in league. Morbin was later mentioned by Kyle as the murderer of King Jupiter, with Kyle further noting Winslow's allegiance to his father's killer.

Wilfred and Rake later went into greater detail during Heather and Picket's Initiation, noting Garten's role in aiding Morbin. They also stated the belief that Morbin's original intent was not to kill Jupiter, but that Jupiter's brave defiance enraged Morbin. When Picket arrived at Jupiter's Crossing to find Prince Smalden Joveson at Garlackson's mercy, Garten appeared and noted that Morbin wished to add Smalls to a group of prisoners already heading to Akolan. However, Garten also commented that Morbin expressed little interest as to whether Smalls lived or died. After Smalls' rescue, Wilfred surmises that Cloud Mountain's location had become known to Morbin, and asserted this viewpoint upon learning of his brother's involvement.

### *The Last Archer*/*The First Fowler*

Jo Shanks, heading to muster, imagined that "Captain Frye would have him shipped to Morbin in a bag" were he to show up at muster without weapons. Lund later mentioned Morbin as he and Jo discussed the Cloud Mountain Citadel Congress and the divided feelings regarding the Longtreader family. Wilfred, confronted with Frye's suspicions, pleaded with him to turn his aggression towards the real enemy: Morbin and his allies.

Jo mistook Solus for Morbin upon first seeing him from a distance, but was soon corrected by Helmer.

### *Ember Falls*

Sween Longtreader had a close encounter with the evil king while working as a slave in Morbin's lair. As Morbin settled on his throne, which she had just been cleaning, Sween made a quick and subdued retreat. She was later present when General Flox and Blenk arrived in answer to Morbin's summons. Blenk expressed fears that Morbin would turn against the wolves following Redeye's demise, but Flox assured him that the Lords of Prey require their services as ground forces.

During a meeting of Morbin's council, which included the remainder of the Six, the two wolves, and Gartren Longtreader and his fellows, Morbin checked with Garten regarding their negotiations with Terralain. Blenk questioned why they did not simply obliterate the rabbits, with Morbin responding that the Lords of Prey enjoyed having the smaller creatures as slaves. When Melody dared to cry defiance of Morbin in his council, the villain struck her down personally. It is subsequently revealed that he had agreed to a peace with Bleston in exchange for Emma, the newly revealed heir to his old enemy Jupiter.

When Heather took Emma's place in being carried to the High Bleaks, Morbin questioned her identity and had Garten brought to identify her. When Garten revealed who she truly was, Morbin suggested that they might throw her into the Tomb of Lander's Dragons along with Smalls. Furious at his will being defied, he ordered the assembly of his war council, intending to bring his wrath down upon the Cause.

### *Ember Rising*/*The Archer's Cup*

After arriving at Longtreader Command, Heather discovered that the rabbits in service to Morbin had adopted a flag depicting him atop a mound of rabbit skulls. Helmer, in explaining the Six to Picket, noted that Morbin has long served as their ruler. Sween later reported to Heather Morbin's fury and intent to destroy Cloud Mountain, though Heather gratefully noted that it had doubtless been evacuated. Heather later learned from her father that students of the Akolan academy were fattened up to be served at ritual meals held by Morbin and the Six. In negotiations at Blackstone Citadel, Emma asserted her determination to unite rabbitkind against Morbin.

On Morbin's orders, plans for the Preylords' Victory Day included taking all the rabbit younglings in First Warren, Akolan, and various other slave settlements ruled over by his regime. Morbin planned this as a show of force, intending to cow the rabbits and ensure that they did not continue to resist his rule. However, the Cause chose Victory Day to initiate the Battle for First Warren, which started with them using blastpowder to remove a statue of Morbin himself from one of the city's Seven Standing Stones. After a similar uprising in Akolan, Garten warned Heather that Morbin would react with fury, and that no rabbits were likely to survive the ensuing slaughter.

### *Ember's End*

Morbin massed the birds of prey in Grey Grove in preparation for the Siege of First Warren, having determined to wipe out rabbitkind once and for all. By his orders and arrangements with Tameth Seer, the Terralain army was to attack First Warren first, before armies of wolves-including one led by King Farlock-joined in the assault. The members of the Six were then to lead their fellows in wave after wave, overwhelming the defenders with sheer numbers and power. However, the Cause proved surprisingly resilient, with the Terralains joining forces with them and both Tameth Seer and Farlock being killed early in the battle.

The Blackhawk Option, a strategy aimed at killing Morbin himself using one of their bowstrikers, was used earlier than planned to eliminate Falcowitson, the first of the Six to attack the city. Whitbie Joveson noted that Falcowitson was doubtless elevated to the Six in his father Falcowit's stead because Morbin deemed his desire for vengeance an asset. After Falcowitson, the next four members of the Six were sent to attack the city in pairs. The first two were slain by Jo using an arrow provided by the Pilgrim, while the second-and many other raptors and wolves besides-were killed when Helmer triggers an explosion that destroys First Warren's dam.

Morbin led the final, massive wave of the assault himself, and proved to be a horrific, unstoppable foe to the rabbits. After slaughtering many, including members of the Royal Fowlers Auxiliary, he moved into position near the seventh standing stone. Much to his surprise, Smalls appeared and began crossing the stones to confront him, vowing to bring an end to Morbin's rule. Pleased to see his weaker enemy but enraged as well by his defiance, Morbin resolved to crush him.

Picket Longtreader then flew in using a glider pack, and was able to blind one of Morbin's eyes by feigning an attack at Morbin's chest. However, upon his second attack, Morbin evaded him and sliced off Picket's right arm. Despite the injury, Picket attacked again, and was struck by Morbin's talons. Distracted and only able to see out of one eye, Morbin is unable to stop Smalls from driving the Stone Sword of Flint into his heart.

The Stone Sword broke after killing Morbin, indicating that he was the final enemy of rabbitkind to fall in the battle. His body plummeted into the flood still raging in First Warren, and was swallowed by the Brute's Gorge. Morbin was afterwards remembered as Morbin Lastfoe, with Smalls-now reigning as king of Natalia-discussing his end with Whittle Longtreader.

## Physical appearance

Morbin was large, wide-winged and angular of features. His inky black feathers gave way to a golden yellow around his face. His beak was long and sharp and awful. His seemingly impenetrable breastplate bore his sign: a sharp "M" with golden stars at its base. His weapon was a long black sickle rimmed in crimson.

## Personality and traits

Morbin spoke in a harsh rasp, which became a shriek in times of great anger. He enjoyed taunting his enemies, particularly when they were his captives or slaves, but could quickly be driven to rage by defiance. Like other predators Morbin seems to have had no regard for rabbits as thinking beings, seeing them only as sources of labor, food, or potential entertainment. His regime over Natalia was deliberately cruel, punishing many for the actions of few and targeting the weak to punish the strong.

For some time, Morbin preferred to keep rabbits as slaves and a food supply, condoning only so much slaughter among them as he felt was necessary to keep them in line. After the Battle for First Warren, however, Morbin became determined that all rabbits must be killed as punishment for their continued resistance to his authority. In this endeavor, he was perfectly content to allow the various divisions among rabbitkind to play out, all the while planning to swoop down upon them and deliver the final blows himself. Prideful and cruel, he persisted in his war even as countless members of his own kind and their allies were killed in attempting to stomp out their rabbit enemies, not even fleeing after being blinded in one eye. This pride would prove his undoing, as in acting to strike an already virtually helpless Picket Longtreader, he left himself wide open to the blow that killed him.

## Skills and abilities

In battle, Morbin had no known equals, with citadel lords Booker and Victor Blackstar believing him impossible to defeat in combat.

## Relationships

### Jupiter Goodson

Morbin Blackhawk actually regarded Jupiter the Great as a rival, no doubt due to the rabbit king's success against the Lords of Prey and wolves and his efforts to secure a peaceful future for the rabbits of Natalia. So great was Morbin's hatred for Jupiter that he took great pleasure in selecting, as the site of Jupiter's capture, a forest crossing that had at one point been too dangerous for rabbits to use until Jupiter's efforts made it safe and secure. Initially, it was thought that Morbin intended to keep Jupiter alive for his own wicked purposes, but he was so enraged by Jupiter's hopeful rebuttals that he struck his adversary down.

Even after killing Jupiter and shattering much of what the rabbit king sought to build, Morbin continued to burn with hatred for his fallen foe. Any opportunity to spoil the memory or works of Jupiter was relished by the raptor king, though any reference to Jupiter's prophecy of the Mended Wood was enough to provoke him to murderous rage.

### Smalden Joveson

As the appointed heir of King Jupiter, Smalls bore the brunt of Morbin's continued hatred for his father, despite the fact that Morbin is only known to have encountered him in person once. When Smalls was captured by Redeye Garlackson, Garten Longtreader commented that Morbin was ambivalent about the prince's fate, seeming equally content with his death or his enslavement. Morbin relished Smalls' apparent demise on a later occasion, and also toyed with the idea of killing Heather Longtreader and throwing her body into the dragon tomb to join that of Smalls. When Smalls later proved to have survived and came to confront Morbin in the final battle, any surprise Morbin may have felt was overshadowed by his evident delight at the prospect of being able to kill Jupiter's heir himself.

## Trivia

* S. D. Smith stated that he "feels strong anger" towards Morbin Blackhawk.

## References

1. ↑ [1]

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