Light slowly filtered into Edward's eyes and with a groan he slid them open slowly.
He was lying on the floor of a forest, big oaks reaching taller than buildings. The whole scene seemed…brighter than normal. All around him he heard the sounds of small warm-blooded creatures scurrying through the grass. He could smell them too Wait. Smell them? Quickly he got to his feet. No, paws! What was going on!? Spotting a nearby puddle he raced over to it and gasped.
A cat with golden eyes and russet-tipped ears stared back at him in shock. Russet stripes lead down his back to his half –white, half-russet tail. He also noticed the cat happened to have two automail limbs.
Edward dug his claws into the ground. What did Envy do to me, he thought.
Then he noticed the bleeding hole in his chest.
It began to sting and burn, blood dripping. He must have been shot in the fight and not have felt it. He shook himself as the world began to spin. He needed to find help. Walking like a drunken sailor, he began to stagger through the forest.
After an hour, he was about to run out of strength when he noticed something. The birds and creatures had gone quite. Nothing was heard. Edward looked around wearily.
Suddenly a dark tabby leapt from the undergrowth, knocking Ed off of his feet and landing on top of him.
" What are you doing in our territory you scum," growled the tabby. Edward growled back.
" Get.. off..me." Quickly he used his back metal leg to push off the tabby and he slowly regained his feet. Blood still dripped from his wound and he felt a bump forming on his head. He might not survive this fight.
" Brambleclaw, stop!"
Two cats, a white tom and a sand-colored female raced toward the tabby and stepped between them.
"Can't you see this cat is injured?" The female asked. As if a trigger had been pulled, Edward felt his legs give out and he fell to the ground.
Immediately the cats rushed toward him and sniffed at his wounds.
" It's okay," the white tom said. " I'm Cloudtail. We'll get you some help, just hand on. Sandstorm, run to get Cinderpelt, hurry! Brambleclaw, grab him by the scruff…gently please. Come on, he's already lost too much blood." As if in a dream he felt the tabby named Brambleclaw grab him gently by his scruff and began pulling him after Cloudtail.
Edward didn't remember much of the journey, just passing through a thick gorse tunnel into a clearing full of cats. The sight and smell overwhelmed him and he closed his eyes.
"Let me through, please. Give him some air!" A white female with cinder patches and a ruined hind leg hobbled toward him, her mouth full of herbs. She set down the herbs and sniffed the still bleeding wound. She sat back with disgust. " It smells of twolegs." She looked at him with pity as murmurs rippled through the surrounding crowd. Going through the pile of herbs she pulled out a pile of little brown seeds and set some by his nose. "These are poppy seeds. They will dull the pain and help you sleep," she explained. Slowly he flicked out his tongue and after swallowing some he felt the pain ease and sleep descend.
" He's waking up! Brambleclaw, get off my tail!"
Edward groaned, shifting his weight on the floor. Using as much energy as he could hold, he popped one of his eyes open.
The cinder-pelt, Brambleclaw and a cat the color of fire sat around him in a spacious den. The smell of herbs helped his concentration, and he opened the other eye. Carefully he tried to get on his feet but a wave of nausea forced him back down.
"Don't move yet! You aren't fully healed. Just slowly stretch your muscles," the cinder-pelt said.
After doing as he was told, the cat cleared her throat. "I don't believe we have been introduced. I'm Cinderpelt. This is Brambleclaw," she nodded at the tabby. " And this is Firestar," she flicked her tail at the orange tom who nodded in acnologment.
" I am the leader of Thunderclan. What is your name?"
Edward responded, confused," Ed..Edward. And what are clans?"
Firestar leaned forward and gave Edward a sniff.
" You smell like metal. Not a clan cat. A kittypet, then?" Firestar cocked his head.
"I don't know what any of that means. What clans?"
"This forest is home to four groups of cats. You are currently in Thunderclan. The other clans are Shadowclan, Windclan and Riverclan. To further clarify, a kittypet is a cat that lives with twolegs. Judging by your strange looking legs, you have been with them a while."
Brambleclaw leaned forward, green eyes intense. " How did you get that wound?"
"I…" Edward started but another wave of nausea forced his head down, breathing hard.
"All right, enough," Cinderpelt said. "Leave my patient in peace. You can bug him later." With reluctant glances Brambleclaw and Firestar left as Cinderpelt gave him more poppy seeds and he again fell into sleep.