Mariel Gullwhacker

Mariel Gullwhacker, also known as Storm Gullwhacker, was a wandering female mouse warrior. She was the daughter of Joseph the Bellmaker.

While on a sea voyage with her father to Salamandastron to deliver a bell to Lord Rawnblade Widestripe, her ship, the Periwinkle, was captured by corsairs. She was held captive by the sea rat Gabool the Wild until he tossed her into the ocean during a violent storm.

Having barely survived, Mariel awakened on the shore, experiencing a great memory loss. With only the knowledge that she arrived via the storm, she identified with the name "Storm." After experiencing harassment on the beach from seagulls, she beat them with the thick knotted rope that had been tied to her, calling it a "gullwhacker". Taking the name of her new weapon as her surname, "Storm Gullwhacker" continued onward.

Later, she was attacked by toads, and three hares of the Long Patrol, Colonel Clary, Brigadier Thyme, and Hon Rosie, rescued her. Mariel traveled to Redwall Abbey with Tarquin Longleap Woodsorrel, where she regained knowledge of her original identity and life with the help of Brother Simeon. While there, she befriended Dandin and Saxtus.

Mariel, Dandin, Tarquin, and Durry Quill departed Redwall to engage Gabool in battle on Terramort Isle. On the journey, they encountered Lord Rawnblade, and Martin the Warrior visited Mariel in a dream, urging her to wake up to defend her friends from vermin.

When the group arrived at Terramort, Mariel reconnected with her father, who had mustered many of the good creatures who hated Gabool into a group, and together they stormed Fort Bladegirt. Mariel, Joseph, and Rawnblade attempted to kill Gabool, however all were denied revenge as Gabool was ultimately slain by his pet scorpion, Skrabblag.

Soon after, Dandin and Mariel left Redwall to seek further adventures. Together, they traveled south and assisted the denizens of Castle Floret against the tyrant Urgan Nagru. The pair appeared in a dream to Joseph with Martin as astral projections.

After another triumph of good over evil, Dandin, Mariel, and their new friend Bowly Pintips set sail in the Pearl Queen. Her fate was unknown.

Post-Death

Seasons after her death, Mariel visited young Russano the Wise in a dream, along with other heroes of Redwall and Salamandastron.

Character

While Mariel is often described as a brave, fearless warrior, she frequently displays many dangerous personality flaws. She often attacked first and asked questions later, and ended up hurting creatures on her own side, such as when she first encountered Bowly Pintips and almost attacked Hon Rosie. She talked to non-mouse creatures she met in pompous, superior tones and threatened them. She also didn't always treat authority figures with the respect. She did however show regret when another creature confronted her on her behavior, like when Mother Mellus rebuked her. However, after she reaches maturation, Mariel seems to have learned to control these traits better.

Trivia

• Mariel is inspired by Brian Jacques' granddaughter, Jade.
• When asked about the meaning of Mariel's name, Brian Jacques replied "I chose it because it sounds like a bell." (Redwall.org's Ask Brian, Vol. 4)
• While her titular novel is "Mariel of Redwall", she only spends a few days at the Abbey and never resides there.
• Mariel is the first known female character to wield the Sword of Martin.