Coal sat by a foul smelling trash can, which was on its side, and looked around the alleyway with his head low. There were mismatched cats all around the clearing, with torn ears, spiked collars, and old scars. Shadows loomed over the cats, the sun slightly setting behind a building making it hard for Coal to see anything.
Out of the corner of his wide eyes, he saw a gray cat enter the alleyway, "Ace." He breathed in fear. Coal shrunk further into the shadows, trying to stay hidden so his leader wouldn't see him.
The psychotic cat seemed to spot Coal, his eyes narrowing as if his eyesight had gone bad. Ace started to pad over to Coal's hiding spot, his face looking like a mixture of annoyance and success. Coal braced himself, ready to come out of the dark shadows.
"Ah, Ghost. Just the cat I want to see!" Ace's voice echoed around the alleyway. At Ace's exclamation, the messenger gulped down his fear enough to notice Ghost's presence from around the trash can. Coal shifted in surprise, He wasn't coming to see me!
"Ace." Ghost greeted him. Coal imagined the pale cat dipping his head at his leader, "What do you need me for?"
"I just wanted to discuss Absurd and Hedge's mission." Ace meowed, sitting almost out of view, but within earshot of Coal.
"Well, what happened?" The little messenger saw Ace lean forward a little, so he perked up his ears to hear his leader's quieted voice, who told the deputy what he had seen. Ace leaned back and Ghost murmured, "I see. So, Hedge found Lick?"
"Yes, and she did an excellent job convincing him she was exiled from Crimsonclan. Too bad she's a spy, or else she would have killed him on the spot."
"Absurd might as well train her in fighting." Ghost meowed. Coal shifted his position, trying to stay as silent as he could. Ace and Ghost went quiet. Coal pelt prickled tensely as the two listened suspiciously.
After a couple heartbeats, Ghost broke the silence, "So why didn't you kill him yourself, Ace?" Coal let out a breath of relief as Ghost changed the subject. Then he widened his eyes in shock, He questioned the leader!
Ace paused menacingly, but answered slowly, "I want to see if their loyalties still lie with me. The last time Hedge and Absurd went on a mission together, they nearly failed."
"What if…" Ghost hesitated in disbelief, "What if they're traitors?"
Ace let out a deep, menacing growl, then lowered his voice, "I'll have them ripped to pieces if I must."
Coal let out a small gasp, backing up to try to run. I have to warn them! He bumped into a small tin can behind him. Coal tensed up and turned around just in time to see it clatter onto its side, echoing around the now silent clearing. He gulped, his heart beating faster, as more shadows loomed over him. He turned around slowly, trembling in fear.
There stood Ace and Ghost. Their looks on their faces were full of anger and shock, "You dirty little rat!" Ace spat in outrage, "You were eavesdropping on us!"
"N-No! I-I-I was- I-It was an accident!" He stuttered, his tail between his legs.
"An accident, he says!" Ghost sneered. Ace took a step forward, exposing a clear spot to slip past. Now's my chance. I have to run! Coal bolted forward, roughly pushing the two cats aside. He sped towards the exit of the alleyway, running as fast as he can.
"Get that spying coward!" He heard Ace yowl, his voice echoing around them. The alleyway suddenly filled with chatter and thundering paw-steps. He glanced behind him and saw Bane, a she-cat guard, hot on his heels. In fear for his life, Coal put on an extra burst of speed. His fur was spiked up in fear. Every bone in his body urged him to turn himself in, but he kept running.
Coal burst out of the alleyway and kept running, the two-leg buildings flashing shadows across his face. He didn't stop nor look back.
His paws were sore and aching from pounding across the hard asphalt, but he didn't slow down until he reached the forest. Once Coal made sure no other cat was following him, he collapsed onto the mossy ground and lay there. His tongue lolled like a dogs' and he let his exhaustion lead his consciousness to darkness.
Notes:
Poor Coal, what did he ever do wrong...
If any of you noticed… No, I did not use the title that it said last time, but I'll probably use "Crowfood" for the next one. No promises, though :)
Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for the next chapter(s)!
