CHAPTER TWO
Mara had awoken early in the morning, her fur crisp to the touch, frosted to the core. The frost had also taken affect on the bracken that covered her head, creating the den her, Zinnia, and Blue all shared. Mara's gaze soon led to the ban of cats near the clearing of the camp, her jaw slid open, tasting the air, but catching the sent of clan cats. Then she realized that those cats weren't anyone familiar to her. Niclon's head rose as soon as Mara nudged him gentle, pointing her nose towards the clan cats. Niclon glared at them, "stay here" he whispered to Mara carefully as she nodded.
Niclon slipped out of the nursery and to the clan cats carefully, for he didn't want to be seen just yet. Although he ceased to notice that he was being followed by more hidden clan cats. "You there!" a black tabby tom hissed as he pounced on Niclon's back, knocking him to the ground.
Niclon yowled "AHH!" he didn't mean to sound weak, but he was truly shocked at the sudden attack. Niclon slashed his claws through the air, hitting nothing, but the black tabby did the same swing, with one paw, he scratched a deep slice down Niclon's spine. Niclon yowled for help, and with that Vimmy, Austin, Beveian, Steven, Hige, and Wally all rushed to Niclon's aid.
Vimmy latched onto the black tabby with extreme force, shoving the black tabby off Niclon's back. The other clan cats attacked Niclon and the rest of the rouges, who stood in the center of the battle field. Wally, a pale wight tom with green eyes and green-painted markings, charged at a she-cat with gray splotches on her. Steven, a pale gray tabby tom with blue eyes and blue-painted markings lunged at a brown tabby with wight stripes. Austin, a blond tabby leaped onto a very muscular tom with dark black stripes and brown pelt. Hige and Beveian went after a she-cat with a plane yellow pelt.
Niclon pinned the leader of the clan cat's patrol, a light gray she-cat, under his long, thick, claws and wanted answers. "Why are you attacking us?!" Niclon shouted.
"You and your ban of rouges are in my clan's territory! Get out of it!" the leader yowled. Niclon glared and viciously ripped the ear off of the gray patrol leader. The gray leader yelped and called a retreat. Niclon released the leader from under his claws and watched her run back into the trees, followed by the rest of her patrol. Niclon turned his gaze to his "clan" worried for their health. Thankfully he didn't need to be, his ban was well. Wally had a few scratches but he was smaller and weaker than the average cat, but he was loved amongst his family (the rouges).
Niclon's gaze led over to Mara, who was running at full speed towards him."Mara! Go back to the den, its too cold out here for you!" Niclon yowled to her, but she just kept running.
"I don't care about the cold Niclon! I care about you!" Mara yowled as she nuzzled herself close to Niclon . Mara's tears felt like lava as they dripped onto Niclon's pelt. Niclon could only stand the pain for a matter of seconds, of both Mara's tears and the deep cut that trailed down his spine. Before he could graze his tongue of Mara's ear to comfort her, he had fainted onto the frosty, blood-covered, ground.