A large brown tabby tom hurries through the glittering forest, his dark pelt shining with moonlight. His amber eyes are narrowed in concern, and he walks swiftly, his great paws taking big strides.
"Sparrowclaw!" calls a soft voice. The tom spins around, trying to hide a guilty expression. A sleek red she-cat slides out of the trees, her dark green eyes challenging.
"Foxblaze," Sparrowclaw grunts acknowledging her presence. Her eyes seem to penetrate his fur, searching deep inside him.
"You are going to warn them," Foxblaze realizes, a true look of surprise crossing her face. Sparrowclaw shifts his paws uncomfortably, looking down.
"They need to know!" he insists, but immediately quails when her eyes fill with dark anger, and her ginger fur spikes up along her back.
"Do you not think we've tried? The Dark Forest has broken our connection!" Foxblaze snaps, the tips of her claws glinting through her thick fur on her paws. Noticing this, Sparrowclaw, backs away, despite his giant size, knowing he can't win this fight.
"At least let me try," he pleads, and her eyes soften. Sparrowclaw can't hide his small smile, Foxblaze has always been hard on the outside, but kind on the inside.
"What are you smirking about? Come on follow me, I'll show you that there's nothing we can do," Foxblaze barks, stalking ahead of him. Sparrowclaw hurries to catch up this her, she walks surprisingly fast.
Soon a white sparkle begins to shine through the trees, and in the full moonlight, Sparrowclaw recognizes the moon pool, StarClan's connection with the Clans. Foxblaze walks into the clearing, the moon and the waters bleaching her fur pale orange.
Sparrowclaw pads into the light after her. Foxblaze is crouched over the pool, her eyes full of sadness as she watches something that only she can see. Sparrowclaw bends down, his fur brushing hers.
"You want to make sure she's okay," It's a statement not a question. Sparrowclaw feels pain jab at his chest.
"Yes," he meows quietly. The pool ripples as a clear drop falls into it. A tear. "I'm sorry Foxblaze," he meows desperately. She finally turns to face him.
"I don't blame you, Sparrowclaw. You always loved her more. I'm sorry, but you can't talk to her," she whispered, before backing away and disappearing into the forest. She's gone so quickly Sparrowclaw isn't sure she was ever there. He turns back to the pool.
"Lightpool?" he whispers. The water ripples again, this time the source of the ripples is undetermined, and a she-cat's face appears in the water. She's small and white, with sooty gray stripes circling her tail and zig-zagging her face. Her light blue eyes seem to be staring right at her.
Excitement bubbles up in his chest. "Lightpool!" he cries, scrambling closer to the pool till his nose is inches away from the surface. He needs to warn her! But her eyes stare unseeingly right through him, focused on something else.
The image zooms out, and he sees that she's in a clearing, all alone. It's dark out, and unlike in StarClan, the forest looms, dark, forbidden, and tangled. The moon is hidden by clouds, and Lightpool looks terrified, her eyes darting from shadow to shadow.
Dread forms in the pit of Sparrowclaw's stomach. "Lightpool! Run!" he screams, not knowing why. But she doesn't. She stays, and then all he can see is blood. He's screaming, she's screaming, and her blood is splattered on the midnight green grass.
All there is is blood...everywhere... He can't make out the killer, just a dark shadow ripping into his precious Lightpool, who is still screaming. Or is he still screaming? He can't tell, just blood, blood...
...
Out of the shadows we will come. We are everywhere, in one. We are you, you are us. Beware, you can't fight back. The red ivy will choke everything in it's path...
...
Leafpaw pads sleepily out of his den, gloomily predicting more rain after a quick glance up at the stormy gray sky and the menacing clouds. He sighs, making his way over to the fresh kill pile, which is empty. He stands there, staring at it, as if a plump mouse will suddenly appear.
"Leafpaw, it's empty," meows an amused voice. He snaps out of his daze, his orange eyes zeroing in on a large orange tom with chocolate brown stripes.
"I know Fallownose," he mumbles, embarrassed. Fallownose cocks his head, amused.
"Let's go hunting," Fallownose suggests, but it's more of an order.
"I'm tired," whines Leafpaw.
"So what?" retorts his mentor, starting for the entrance to camp. Leafpaw follows mournfully, dragging his paws in the light layer of fall leaves on the ground. Fallownose doesn't wait, and bounds away. Leafpaw narrows his eyes and hurries up, forcing his short legs to stretch forward.
He finds Fallownose waiting in the mouse clearing, and small clearing covered in thick bushes to hide in and fat hazelnuts to attract mice. Leafpaw stalks forward, pin pointing a mouse that has no chance. With a quick flash of steel colored claws the mouse is dead, and Leafpaw scoops it up, pleased.
He trots back to Fallownose, who is distracting sniffing the air. Leafpaw waits for his mentor to notice him, but Fallownose seems oblivious, intent on finding something.
"Fallownose," he finally snaps, his patience weary.
"Oh, Leafpaw! I didn't see you," Fallownose meows, sounding surprised.
"Obviously," Leafpaw meows, rolling his eyes. Fallownose doesn't pick up the venom in his apprentice's voice, and with a furrowed brow continues to sniff.
"I smell something odd," Fallownose meows, striding forward. Leafpaw inhales deeply and recoils when a sweet scent fills his scent glands. Blood.
"Blood," he voices his thoughts. Fallownose nods, following the scent through the trees. Apprehensively Leafpaw pads after him, trying to block out the sickly sweet scent of blood.
Fallownose bounds ahead, and Leafpaw walks slowly, some how knowing whatever they were going to find wasn't going to be good.
"Hold fox dung!" cries out Fallownose's voice. There is a surprised pause, and Leafpaw stops, cocking his head. Then short sobs burst shrilly through the quiet forest. Horrified, Leafpaw shoots to his paws, crashing through the bracken to his mentor.
He finds Fallownose crouching in a clearing, hunched over a strange pile of something. Leafpaw stops in his tracks. It's a pile of a cat!
...
As twilight falls, Lightpool's family and friends crouch over her mutilated body. The shreds of a cat that Leafpaw and Fallownose found are quickly determined as Lightpool's left overs, the she-cat had gone missing last night.
Leafpaw pokes wearily at a shrew, not feeling hungry. But Fallownose says he should eat. Looking up slyly, Leafpaw scans the camp for his mentor. No Fallownose. Leafpaw grabs the shrew and throws it back in the fresh kill pile.
"Don't feel like eating?" meows a sympathetic voice. Leafpaw spins around, surprised, and finds Shadowstar looking at him, "No one does," Shadowstar goes on to say, sadly scanning the mourners around the remains of Lightpool.
"Not really," Leafpaw mumbles, wishing Fallownose was here. He'd know what Lafpaw should, or say to FadedClan's great leader. After all, he is deputy. Leafpaw finds him self looking uneasily around. Where is Fallownose?
"Just stay in camp. I don't want anyone going out alone until Lightpool's killer is found," Shadowstar meows, padding off. By now Leafpaw is panicking. Where is Fallownose?
Quickly making sure no one is watching, Leafpaw darts out of camp into the forest. He heads off to the swamp FadedClan is known for, he thinks best here. That's when he hears the scream. Like a dying animal. It is a dying animal. A cat!
Leafpaw takes of running toward the sound, his dark brown legs running as fast as he can make them go through the swampy terrain.
Leafpaw bursts into water and he flounders for a second before digging his claws into the muddy banks, and pulling him self up. When he looks up, he screams. Fallownose is lying on the ground, blood bubbling from his neck, his dying eyes locking with Leafpaw's.
"Run," his mentor whispers. Slowly Leafpaw lifts his eyes and a dark shadow looming over his mentor stares at him with gleaming red eyes. It starts to step out of the shade, but Leafpaw doesn't wait to see who it is. He just runs.
As fast as he can.
...
Out of the shadows we will come. We are everywhere, in one. We are you, you are us. Beware, you can't fight back. The red ivy will choke everything in it's path...
...
As Leafpaw bursts into camp, he finds the entire camp crowded around one cat, Ivyflame. She is talking breathlessly, and horror is shining in his Clanmate's eyes.
"Fallownose is dead!" he hears her call out. Then she slumps over. Leafpaw stops, suspicion curling up in him. She couldn't be the killer, she was already back at camp. But he hadn't seen her at the killing. And if she was there, why didn't she help Fallownose? He had been still alive when Leafpaw had gotten there.
Still alive... Leafpaw's stomach rocks, and he feels like vomiting. He left Fallownose there... He's slightly a where of Shadowstar sending out search parties for Fallownose, but he just crawls to his nest and curls up. Fallownose is dead...
...
The next morning Leafpaw crawls out of his nest, an ache in his chest. Fallownose is dead. He's never coming back. Shadowstar calls a meeting, and names Sweetbriar his new mentor. Leafpaw couldn't care less. He ignores his new mentor, and stalks over to the Medicine Cat den, where Ivyflame is sprawled out in a patch of sunlight, looking fine.
She looks up when he comes, and he can't detect anything in her red eyes. They are kind, and slanted, peering curiously at Leafpaw, as if wondering why he is here. The killer had red eyes.
The thought strikes Leafpaw hard, and he steels his gaze, making sure Swiftclaw, the medicine cat, isn't around.
"Did you kill Fallownose?" he blurts out, and she looks surprised, then a little angry.
"No! What are you talking about? I saw him die!" she hissed, climbing to her paws. Leafpaw draws back, afraid. Her eyes flash with secrets and anger.
"So did I. And no one else was there except the killer," Leafpaw meows in a quavering voice. Ivyflame smirks slowly, her red eyes not welcoming anymore.
"I think you killed him. You got back after me anyways," she says, enjoying Leafpaw's reaction. Leafpaw runs away, horrified, her high pitched laughter echoing behind him. He bursts out of camp, and scales a tree. He's always felt calm in the trees. Fallownose taught him how to climb them...
Shaking, Leafpaw realizes what will happen. He ran when Ivyflame accused him, and now he will seem guilty. She will tell the Clan her evidence, and FadedClan will proclaim him a murderer, to be killed on sight.
Now he is trembling so hard he's sure he will fall out of his tree. Leafpaw climbs higher, using his small size to his advantage.
Patrols pass him all day, shouting cats out for his blood. Leafpaw realizes what a ruin of he's life he has made. He will never be able to go home...
...
As night falls, Leafpaw is still crouched in the tree. Now he has a plan. He will wait for the killer to come out, they seem to make a kill every night. Then he will be accepted back into FadedClan as a hero, and Ivyflame as a liar.
As the night wanes, nothing comes out. Discouraged, Leafpaw climbs to the forest floor, looking around. Everything is dark, and the forest looks forbidding. Soon he realizes his heart is pounding. Every shadow makes him jump.
He pads farther into the forest, eyes scanning the shadows. Nothing. There is no monster, no demon. Maybe Ivyflame was right, maybe he is-
A shadowed shape hurtles toward him, and knife sharp claws sever his pelt. So much for finding the killer. It has found him. He is the kill. He screams, a bloodcurdling scream. But no one hears. He is all alone...
Gleaming red eyes connect with his, and the figure leans down, it's claws closing around his throat. He screams again, the pain is to much to bear, he wriggles and thrashes, struggling to break free. He is drowning in pain, and the steel jaws won't let go.
Now the demon is lapping at the blood pouring from his throat, and he is in shreds. As the world darkens, pain clamps down on him again, he realizes with a pang of horror that the demon is pulling his head. Pulling it off!
There's a sickening snap as his joints part, and blood seeps out. Then the demon laughs, but it's not the laugh he would expect, not deep, cold, and calculating.
It's crazy, like someone gone mad. Most of all it's high pitched, and shrill. A she-cat. Ivyflame...
...
Out of the shadows we will come. We are everywhere, in one. We are you, you are us. Beware, you can't fight back. The red ivy will choke everything in it's path...
...
Well, that was a story for the warriors challenge forum, for the horror challenge. I'm not good at writing horror so I hope it was okay!
-Madi