A dark ginger she-cat watched the cats move about around her with her green eyes. Two cats, the youngest soldiers, Frost and Willow, were tussling around with each other, spitting and hissing in the other's face as they shoved each other around. A few other soldiers surrounded the two, cheering them on, laughing hysterically at them, or merely watching, possibly learning. Of course, the two were fighting with both tooth and claw, so that meant that every now and then blood would splatter onto the concrete, painting the gray ground scarlet.

The she-cat exhaled a deep sigh as she let her green gaze travel down to her round stomach. She lowered her nose to rest her muzzle on the soft skin and whispered very quietly. "I will keep you safe my kittens, I promise you that."

That is when she felt a very sharp pain embrace her belly and she felt the kits begin to move around within her, as if awoken by the sound of her voice. The dark she-cat emitted a low, pained groan as she hauled herself steadily to her paws, feeling her weight immediately bear down on her and shake her around, making her very wobbly on her paws. The tremors of pain continued and the she-cat suddenly realized what this meant and it was time.

I hope that no cat follows me. The she-cat thought and she sent worried glances around her. Most of the cats of the Base were now watching Willow and Frost fight (which had gotten even more fierce than it already was) or were out with the Base leader, Shard.

The dark tabby turned and began to wobble towards the one thing that would lead her into the forest. Crushed up against the stone wall towered a large oak tree, its branches thick and low, easy for her to reach without wasting too much energy.

Once she reached the large wood structure she sent one last, swift look around at her surroundings before hauling herself up onto the first branch, grunting in pain as she did so. She was already panting as she managed her weight on the branch and a thought crossed her mind. Will I be able to make it before the kits arrive? She shook her head at the thought, not wanting to let those kind of words control her mind. She promised herself that she would be perfectly capable of making it to her secret place.

The she-cat surprisingly managed to crawl her way up to the mid-point of the oak, silently thanking her ancestors that the branches were built so close together. She could barely breathe otherwise though, but she was still thankful as she scrambled up onto the stone wall, her claws curling furiously at the springy, thick vines that snaked their way along the stone. She braced her muscles as she pulled herself upwards, feeling her weight immensely bring her down. I probably should have planned this out more sufficiently. The she-cat mentally smacked herself as the thought whispered itself in her ears.

She successfully heaved herself on the top of the stone wall and stood there momentarily, breathing very heavily and sucking in as much air as her lungs begged for. For a brief moment she let her green gaze flicker towards the Base and from this distance she could see the white pelt of Frost and the light-colored pelt of Willow. The two were still fighting and it seemed as if more cats had surrounded themselves around the two. Good, they are not paying any attention to me.

Once the dark ginger she-cat caught her breath she immediately set forward once again, dragging her weight along with her. She could feel the contractions becoming more frequent more agonizing. She felt her teeth grit together as she tried to contain the pain and continuing forward; in which now she was simply wobbling once again. She could feel her round belly swinging below her and sometimes even managing to scrape along the ground. Yes, I am ready. They are ready.

As the she-cat advanced deeper into the wood she knew that she needed to make her journey quick, knowing of a group of cats who would not be pleased of her presence. She assumed it was a bunch of crazed wild cats who had nothing better to do than sit around and yell at cats who dared to cross into their territory. She had experienced that once and she could remember it clearly; yet she did not want to replay it. All she needed to do was to hurry up.

That is what she did. She sped her pace up as soon as she noticed the dark gray outline of the cave she was aiming for. The cave was fortunately out of the wild cats' territory, which was the first thing she thought about it when she first discovered the cave. At least she was smart enough to think about it like that; maybe those stupid wild cats' did not think she was but at least she knew she was.

The she-cat breathed out a low, happy sigh of relief as she arrived closer to the cave. She inhaled deeply through her nose, breathing in the scents that surrounded her. Nothing particularly bad flowed up into her nostrils, merely the disgusting stench of the wild cats scent markings. Her nose wrinkled at the stench as she scurried as fast as she could to the den, not wanting the scent to tickle her nostrils no longer and desperate to get in the den to give birth to her kits.

As soon as the she-cat entered the den she collapsed into the soft, moss nest that she had made so many moons ago and sprawled out on her side, beginning to heave and fight for her breath. Ripples were now flowing over her large belly like mini waves rolling over the ocean. Her claws dug into the old nest, trying her best to fight the pain. Her teeth gritted together and her body constantly tensed with each new contraction.

Oh my dear ancestors, please help me! The she-cat cried helplessly in her mind and she lowered her head to bury it into the side of her nest, feeling the contractions grow stronger by each passing second.

"Love…?" The she-cat lifted up her very slightly upon hearing the soft, familiar voice ring in her ears and she felt a weak smile tug at her lips, too tired to be surprised that he actually had somehow followed her. Though, she felt her head involuntarily crash back down onto the edge of her nest, feeling pain beginning to overpower her body.

"S-Shard, they are coming," the dark tabby whispered feebly and she felt the tom settle himself down beside her, wrapping his tail around her and she felt his tongue begin to drape over her ears in the gentlest strokes that she has ever felt and she felt relieved for a split second before another contraction rattled her body and she stiffened and tensed up once again.

"It is alright, Scarlet. Just breath and everything will be alright," her mate whispered soothingly in her ear and she steadily began to try and breath as calmly as she could, pushing the air through the pain.

A ripple rolled over the ginger she-cat's body and she felt and agonized cry slip through her lips as the first kit slid out onto the nest. Immediately Shard leaned forward and grabbed the kit, vigorously licking the small cat before setting it at the she-cat's belly. She took a quick glimpse at her first kit and realized that it was a tom and was a precise copy of her brother; Silver; a compacted silver tabby.

The next ripple came very quickly and she bit her lip to hold back the yowl that tickled her throat, telling her to let it out. She buried her claws in the nest as the kit made its way out and onto the nest. Shard once again reached his neck out and began to lap at the kit's fur before placing it at her belly. She could not bring herself to look up though, feeling very weak and weary.

"You did it, love," her mate pressed himself close against her and pressed his nose against her neck and she could feel his warmth trickle down to her skin. She also felt her two kits wriggle around at her belly but her mate's sweet, gentle words did not encourage her. Her eyes felt very heavy and her body felt like a giant rock.

Suddenly, another contraction shook her body and she felt that yowl scratching at her throat rip through her mouth from the surprise attack at her body. She pushed herself against Shard's dark tabby body and felt her eyes shut very tightly, feeling the pain take over her body once again. She heard her two kits whine as she shifted away from them and they tried to find their way back to her belly, desperate for the milk she carried.

She felt her body converse as the surprise kit slid out onto the nest. The dark tabby was completely stripped of her energy and breath and lay heaving, gasping and desperate to get air into her system. She could feel herself slipping into unconsciousness as she felt Shard place her third cat at her belly and she could hardly feel her three kits as they snuggled back up against her.

"Love, would you care to name them? Or would you like to rest first?" Her mate's voice seemed very distant and far away as he spoke those words in her ears. She wearily lifted up her head and intertwined her green gaze with her mate's icy blue gaze. She had begun to see black dots popping up on the edges of her vision and she knew that soon enough that she would simply pass out.

"S-Sure," she muttered feebly, not really knowing if the dark tabby had heard her. She shifted to where she was slightly sitting up, supported by Shard's thick frame. The dark ginger gazed tiredly down at her kits, each of them were peacefully sleeping, each of them snoring ever so softly.

"The silver tabby should be named Ash," Shard's tail snaked around the ginger she-cat's body to lightly tap the compacted tom, who twitched ever so slightly at his father's touch. The she-cat could not help put press a weak purr at the sight, feeling warmth embrace her heart.

"The other tom should be called Ember," the she-cat let her tail slip slowly upwards and just as Shard did, gently tapped the ginger tabby on the flank. The small tom whimpered and cuddled closer to her belly, as if frightened by her touch. It actually amused the she-cat a twinge.

"The she-kit should be called…" Shard's meow was quizzical as his intense blue eyes stared down at the small black she-kit. She seemed much smaller than her brothers' and did not seem as strong. She looked much weaker and the dark she-cat could feel her kit tremble about every few seconds. It broke the mother's heart upon seeing her kit in this condition, causing almost all warmth to seep from her bones. Though, she decided on a name for her daughter, the perfect name for the little jet-black fur-ball.

"Raven, she is going to be known as Raven," the she-cat lowered her muzzle down to delicately place her nose on the little black she-kit's head. Unlike her brothers', her daughter merely shoved her little head closer against her mother's nose. Of course, this caused all the warmth to begin to wrap itself around the dark she-cat's heart once again.

Maybe she will be alright, maybe she will be stronger and more courageous than her brothers'. The she-cat thought confidently as she pulled away from her daughter and proceeded onto resting her head back against the edge of the moss nest. She felt Shard's head settle down on her neck and she breathed out a long, heavy sigh feeling her eyelids flutter downwards, felling weariness overpower her.

She felt her tail curl tightly around the three bundles at her belly and pressed them closer to her. Goodnight my darlings, I promise that you will always be safe with me. I will not let anything ever hurt you. She processed the thought before she felt sleep wrap its arms around her and drag her into its embrace, causing her to fall into darkness.