At first, the Longtails seemed to be winning the battle. They shot at Matthias' force with arrows, who were on a raft in the middle of a river, and managed to pick off a large number of shrews. Then, the Longtails tried to follow Matthias' force in a raft of their own, but it was still tied to the bank.
The Longtail Horde caught up on land, though, and a heated battle ensued. Matthias' army fought valiantly, but they were badly outnumbered and began to flag. The day was saved by Sparra Queen Warbeak and her sparrow army, who arrived just in the nick of time. Seeing themselves outnumbered, the rats began to retreat. When Log-a-Log spotted Stonefleck trying to escape in the confusion, he flung his sword like a spear and killed the rat. The remaining Longtails, seeing their leader dead, fled. Warbeak was among those who were killed in the battle.
