Silent Whispers
Full Summary
Long after the four Clans have gone, new ones have arisen, bringing along with them this legend. It is a legend of a mystical place as what they call the Forbidden Forest, for none are allowed to roam too close.
This forest is a dreary and dead location, held in another realm we cannot begin to fathom as it holds neither scent nor sound. The Forbidden Forest was meant to be an imprisonment to an evil looming over the mountain in which creatures lived, but cats who accidentally stumble into it are sadly never to be seen again. The warning is not to be held lightly, for even if you avert the danger of being consumed by captivity there is still a darkness lurking through the very forests innocent animals walk.
Over many moons, a young she-cat and her friend accidentally stumble into what they should not have. Or was it really just an accident?
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We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.
Robert Louis Stevenson
Prologue - Temptation
Ancient lore originating from the Clans teach of starry creatures, whose pelts glow with the strange light of dawn and paws glimmer with the twinkling dust of Silverpelt. They whisper secrets of things not yet revealed by the living, held only by the mystery itself. As ancestors of the cats now inhabiting the forest, they guide the paw steps of the lost, ones who are in troubling times as they themselves were once. From above, they provide a path to follow, becoming comfort for those in distress or need and looking after the Clans they once knew.
After each individual had died and left behind those they influenced throughout their life, their spirits went to another world, StarClan - where they endure now. Though the beginning of these cats are unknown, the story of when they first appeared still remains on the tongue of the oldest elder. For that was when the original Clans had formed; however, its detail has slowly dimmed within the seasons, as the tale has lingered on through new generations.
Being passed down from different perspectives, the meanings of these tales grow unclear, and the legends grow uncertain. Each of those who are willing to speak of a story they heard of or went through started with intricate meanings and descriptions, but over time things can be misunderstood or rearranged. Though, the heart of the cats that express their own story, through the ones telling them, are explicit. They share the lessons to the ones there were once like, roaming the same territories and fighting for the same principles.
Some cats' actions and names of the moons before may be lost in the everlasting mist where none can retrieve, but they played a part in life. Even the well-known become but familiar faces, until they eventually are nothing more than faded pictures of themselves to some. But sometimes, hearing their faint whispers, to others they will always be remembered - no matter what. Even if they are not notorious, they still are remembered to all through lessons taught.
When the day comes for someone's time to end, just as each cat will have to face one day, others have comfort in knowing that a new star will shine in the sky.
As each cat leaves the place they have known, they end up somewhere. Whether they found peace or suffering at the end, whether it was doing something noble or cowardly, whether they took the wrong path but made a right turn in the end - or even didn't at all, they each have their own story to tell. Nonetheless, they all were seeking something in their individual journeys, even if it was short or long-lived, special or seemingly ordinary.
Many may regret decisions they had made, counting the ways they could have prevented their final moments by dealing with things differently, wishing it didn't happen as if it were enough, but everything happens for a reason, unpleasant or happy. Even if they didn't find what they were secretly searching for, they ended up somewhere.
It matters who you put your faith in, for that will determine if you end up in the right place or the wrong one, The Place of Stars or the Dark Forest.
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As legends may have it, one area is spoken of.. It is placed between the living and the dead, no one surely knows for what it is. Almost none dare to venture into this forest - known as forbidden. Elders speak of the legend to kits, young warriors to apprentices; few truly believe the tall tale, because it is usually used to scare one's fellow Clanmate. Yet, ones who do take this warning seriously, sometimes end up tempted to search for this other realm, even if they were instructed otherwise. They are either brave or foolish; no matter the case, it always ends the same. It ends the same no matter if they decided to believe it or not.
Some even try to prevent from accidentally stumbling into it, but without someone to guide them in the right direction or to save them from the darkness, they will be lost forever.
Finding the right path may be hard or it may come easily. But deciding to take it, well, that's up to you.
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A Step in the Right Direction or the Wrong One?
Creeping figures slithered under the speckled night sky, not a single fragment outshining the moon at its fullest. Luminescence of the orb created a safe, guiding light for the wandering, yet it exposed them to the other creatures looming in the crevices of the forest.
The two small, sleek bodies weaved through the trees that surrounded them no matter where they turned. As the rustling of leaves sounded from a distance, tall forms towered over everything under their desolation. Trying to stay hidden in the shadows of the great oaks, the beings traveled by wrapping around their wide stems.
Wind howled furiously, making the trees creak and sway. It was an intimidating sound, giving an illusion that the structures would break and fall at any moment.
A gust of chilling air blew through their fur, reminding them it was leaf-fall - when all of the leaves changed color and fell to the ground, leaving twisted, gnarled branches to observe. Though at these small hours, the varied shapes of foliage appeared to be shades of gray, tiny frost crystals beginning to form on them. It promised harsh days of the winter still to come, threatening to leave their Clans ravenous and vulnerable.
Suddenly, a shrill sound rang in the air, making the two cats' fur prickle with slight agitation. Every little noise seemed to cause at least one of them turn around, in order to assure themselves they weren't being stalked - possibly by the forest itself. The forest seemed to be an ominous creature which disguised itself and waited for the cats to let their guard settle.
Paranoia seemed like the only conclusion to keep them aware of their surroundings; it was better to be scared and prepared for something to attack, then not to be.
"Are you sure you know where we're going?" One tom asked, no sign of fear in his voice, simply a concerned tone. As he entwined himself around the trunk of a tree, his bright blue eyes pierced through the forest, their glowing light frightening anything with a dark nature away. The white apprentice's pelt glistened under the moon, making his gray tabby accents distinct.
Leading the two of them, another young tom spoke. He turned his head around while walking to look into his friend's eyes, answering with a question, "Not backing out are you?" The dark silver cat's challenging stare seemed to only make the other more determined. This cat quickly turned his head back forward and continued to walk through the woodland.
Advancing with their journey, the toms' paws cautiously tread on the crisp autumn leaves, but the leaves only crumbled underneath their steps. As both their pelts stood on an end, the tension began to slowly fade while they continued deeper and deeper into the unknown whereabouts.
"No, I just sense a bit of fear." The white tom's reply was sincere, yet a troubled tone rang in his voice.
"I'm not afraid!" He immediately snapped back, whipping his head behind him. Though, as soon as his flare had lit, his eyes softened as he realized he had directed his sudden anger towards the other cat, once again. The silver tom was kind at heart, but sometimes he let his temper get in the way, especially when admitting to fear.
He froze in his own paw steps to turn around and face his Clanmate, "I'm sorry." An apologetic look shone in the cat's eyes as he searched for forgiveness in his friend's.
Asking for forgiveness may be a difficult thing to do, more so for the gray apprentice, but he needed to show his friend that he was sorry. Nothing but silence was what he got in return. Gently placing his white tipped tail around his paws, he tried to find the right words to say. The right words could be vital at certain moments, and he was well aware of the other apprentice's sensitivity. Their friendship meant everything.
Proceeding, he said, "I know I cannot hide things from you, I just-" He hesitated in case he let something he didn't intend to say slip out, giving the chance for the white tom to interrupt.
"-Forgot?" Cutting the other off, the white tom now spoke. He knew his friend cared for him, but his thinking was always somewhat out of line, terribly shifted from his. The white tom sighed; then resting his tail on the silver apprentice's shoulder, he showed him there was no need to compensate. He even found himself forgetting at moments.
The other cat, his friend, had dragged him out here in the middle of the bone-chilling night, hoping to explore some mythical place he had heard a loner speak of. Another one of his crazy, adventurous ideas, as always.
Sometimes, the white tom just didn't have a backbone to argue, he was normally the follower. But most of the time he followed because he wanted to look after his friend, for the silver cat was the only thing he had. Feeling as if he should be there if anything happened, he went along with his friend; it would be far worse for the apprentice to be out here on his own. Though it was wrong to sneak out of camp, just the both of them; this apprentice felt he was responsible for protecting his friend, since he was the sensible one. It was the only other thing to do, there was no way he - himself - could talk his friend out of his theories.
As the noise of a twig crackling broke this silence, the toms' heads simultaneously snapped to where the sound had arisen.
The silver tom's ears perked up, questioning the other, "What's that?"
"Someone's coming!" The fear etched into the white apprentice's face revealed that this was something serious.
He started to run in the opposite direction of the noise, hoping he could lead his friend out of harm's way. Out of instinct he left the exposed spot before he made sure his friend was following. Glancing behind him, the tom saw the gray apprentice keeping a quick pace.
...
The white tom felt his heart beating twice as fast, to the same rhythm as his thudding paws. The vibration of their steps would surely scare any living thing to cower in the safe haven of it's hole.
Panting, he tried desperately to catch hold of his breath but couldn't find the strength. He knew that whatever was chasing them would eventually catch up. Mindlessly racing, he didn't pay any attention to where he was heading. As he ran with the rest of the energy left in him, he could not move his limbs anymore, barely able to sense that they were still there.
Mist began to thicken around the creamy being, making it almost impossible to see anything. It surrounded him, until it completely devoured the world around.
He could no longer see the sky to light his trail.
Stopping in his tracks, he could no longer hear repeating motions trailing him.
Uncontrollably looking for the gray apprentice, he saw that no longer was anything visible.
Soon, he heard an ear piercing screech that made his blood completely freeze, and his heart felt as if it had dropped and stopped beating. It seemed his paws were attached to the ground, because he found himself not being able to move a single muscle in his entire body.
The horror of things that might have happened to the apprentice overwhelmed him. But how was he to dwell on something that probably hasn't even happened yet? Perhaps he could prevent that? Yet he was not able to move.
His head whirled around and around, thinking that this couldn't possibly be reality. He gritted his teeth so tightly that his jaw ached, but it seemed to snap him out of his paralyzed state.
After his world seemed to crumble around him, all he could do was let out an exasperated wail, "Silverpaw!"
Please don't let it be true. He had failed.
Whispers seemed to consume him, speaking things that were taunting his mind. It was coming from the forest; though it was like his own mind was thinking out loud. The echo of his grief was expressed through the trees while he was confused all the same.
What do I do?
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The forest spoken in the legend, is said that it seems to whisper things, silently, attempting to lure anyone close enough with its haunting thoughts. For it takes advantage of the weak, the lost, the faithless.
Matthew 6:13
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
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Never deliberate what is clearly wrong, and try to persuade yourself that it is not.
Frederick Temple
A/N: I hope whoever is reading this, enjoyed the little piece of story I wrote.
Now, I know this may get off to a confusing start, but later in the story this chapter will be an important part.
Silent Whispers is a story that takes place in the perspective of many cats who go through trials and troubles along the way. Every other chapter will show an ordinary cat that experiences a point in the past that changed their life dramatically, but between those, the story is told from the perspective of Maskheart and her friend Ravenfeather in the present, tying every individual together.
I strive for this story, in little ways, to reflect our real lives. If you listen close enough, you may see what I mean. Further through the story, things will explain itself and more about the Forbidden Forest will be revealed.
Lesson:
I would like to explain something. The reason behind this is, the gray apprentice, Silverpaw, was tempted to search for a forest that the Clans call forbidden. He knew it was wrong to sneak out of camp and go on his little expedition, but he did it anyway. Not only that, but he dragged his friend along with him, knowing they would get in trouble. And it did end up turning out not so great - just not the way he thought.
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Characters and Plot © myself