WHOOO!!
In days. It was just a few freaking DAYS and I already popped out another chapter! I'm so excited, like I'm about to get my old rhythm back!! Whee!!
Admittedly, this happened by accident. You see, this chapter was supposed to include the battle, a ceremony, a gathering - another monster. However, when the battle ended, I had a good chapter-length, so I said, "Whee! Let's publish it!"
And I did!
This means that you get to have a really long battle scene! I got some complaints that the last chapter was boring - heck yeah, I agree with you, that was long and droning, but everything was needed, as you will see in later chapters. But I got through it! But again with the battle scene. Personally, I don't usually like battle scenes for some reason. I don't like reading too much action, no matter how descriptive it is, so if you're like me, you might not like this chapter. But if you DO like long battle scenes, you might enjoy this! Unless I wrote a bad scene. Which is entirely possible, considering this is me we're talking about, and I don't like battle scenes myself so I can't judge them. (But sadly, in WARRIORS fanfiction it is usually smiled upon to have the warriors do WARRIOR things. And clawing each other senseless is, no matter what Firestar tells you to the contrary, a warrior thing.)
bekeyboo - I LOVE THAT MOVIE TOO!! I didn't think anyone would catch the reference for some reason! I just finished the book - by William Goldman. If you love the movie, I suggest you read the book too! It's fantastic! (To anyone confused, I'm talking about the Princess Bride. If you haven't seen that movie or read the book, do it. Right now. Seriously. )
WATERSOUL!! - You'll always be watersoul to me, sorry. Anyways, some people caught on who Tawnyleaf was as soon as she said, "Hey, my name's Tawnyleaf!!" But some people I noticed were scratching their heads going, "Who is this masked she-cat?!" Weird thing: If you read ERHT, you'll notice that she is mentioned by Shadenight a couple of times. So I was actually planning for her appearance for a long time. You probably wouldn't notice a detail like that in a fanfic, but...yeah. And...YAY MOUNTAIN DEW!
Pearla Chan - -blushes- Thank you so much!!I'm glad you keep reviewing! It rox my socks off when I see that you dropped one, since you've been going for so long!
mapleleaf - Read what I said to Pearla! xD Anyways, TECHNICALLY Rosethorn could be deputy. Sandpelt was made deputy in ThunderClan even though she was nursing. Bluestar had to give up her kits in the books because it was in Sunstar's CHARACTER that he would not choose a queen as his deputy. That's what I got from the reading, anyway... lol. And besides, Rosethorn isn't officially preggers yet. She and Thorntail are still just...trying for it. But this is just to prove that aside from the ridiculousness of making Rosethorn a deputy, technically Duststar would be in his rights to make her one. Though...um...again, that would be silly. Even for me.
Dewkit - HA!! I UPDATED QUICKLY!! I DEFEATED ALL OF YOUR DOUBTS IN ME!! HA HA HA!! (Now just wait three months for the next chapter! lol!)
Tawnyleaf - No, their names are complete coincidences. If you remember, it took me FOREVER to get Silverleaf to be named Silverleaf. He was Silverwing and Silvershadow for awhile. And before I introduced him, when I diddling with what name I should give him, he was almost named Mosspaw. oO I could never name that cat properly.
colorblind - I've never read Lolita. And thank you, that was my intention with Tawnyleaf. To make her crazyish, that is. Thanks for dropping a review!
Silverrose82 - Wow, you like long chapters? I don't like them, personally. I hate reading fanfiction with long chapters. But then I whip out monsters. Weird, huh?
The Underwater Seahorse - Heh. I understand WHOLE heartedly. The last chapter wasn't that great, but sometimes you really need to get things in. I again needed to remind everyone of Smokestar and Lightsnow, and foreshadow some things, and blah, blah blah. But to put it simply: yes, Silverleaf killed Listeningecho. And Silverleaf specifically mentioned in his thoughts in the previous chapter that he couldn't kill Rosethorn yet - at least for the mission he was on, because RiverClan wouldn't care. And not at that moment because Thorntail, Blackshadow, and Applefur were there...and...yeah. I'm sorry! Have a cookie for trudging through that! -gives cookie-
Squirrelflightlover - I'm glad you like Tawnyleaf! I was kind of worried about how people would accept this character, but apparantly she's popular, so I'm happy!
feathercloud13- There is some RosexThorn in here, so I hope you'll be happy! ...Not much though. But in the future there will be! I just need to get the DARNED plot out there!
Caged Bird in Demon Arms - Heh, thanks! I don't know where I came up with his name, but it probably was the fire/tiger prophecy... hrm...
MushroomT - -huggles again- I'm glad you liked Sapphirepaw! I kind of miss her now... I might have to have her do something later. I dunno.
Icefox19 - Thank you! Did I update fast enough for you this time?
Ziro - Don't ask me why I updated at like, 12:00. So, we're even there! lol.And yes, you are the first reviewer! For that, you get a cookie!
Now, you can begin the chapter! Again, pretty long battle scene... Uh... I hope you like it?
Enjoy,
The sun was beginning to drown beneath the horizon, and when the chilling night winds began to blow the four cats' off their paws, it was practically a unanimous decision that it would probably be best for all of them to return to their respective camps.
It was actually the levelheaded Blackshadow who had first hesitantly reminded them all of the danger of staying away too long for they might be missed, and though no cat was thrilled, they all had to admit that the ebony tomcat had had a good point.
"It's weird," Applefur admitted as the ginger queen rose to her paws. The ThunderClan female had been so happy and carefree just a few heartbeats ago, and it alarmed Rosethorn when she saw the sorrow rippling in the icy irises. "It's really over, isn't it?"
"No it isn't," Rosethorn meowed instantly; trying to pretend that she didn't get the double meaning of Applefur's words. "Just this meeting tonight. We'll probably meet up like this again, and at gatherings…" It was a subconscious action, but Rosethorn found herself glancing at the pale moon that was hanging dimly in the sky. It would be full soon.
"I guess," Applefur conceded. She tentatively continued. "But all of us… It's over. I didn't get to say goodbye to you before, so it didn't really seem like you were gone yet, but now I realize…" It was obviously hard for the spunky she-cat to continue, because her voice was strained as she went on. "You're going to go home to RiverClan, Blackshadow and I will be going to ThunderClan…We're not allies anymore, are we?"
Applefur's words hung in the air, and Rosethorn knew that she wasn't the only one who felt a shiver crawl down her spine as she looked into the eyes of the two cats that had loved her and supported her undyingly for moons now.
She knew what Applefur was saying. Rosethorn had cut her ties with ThunderClan so quickly that not even she herself had emotionally come to terms with the friends she was losing. It was weird. Rosethorn had been thinking of nothing but the horrible things in ThunderClan: the blind Clan leader, the sick medicine cat, the weakness in the politics, the painful memories of Flamesoul and her father's death.
But even now, when Rosethorn thought about it: Blackshadow and Applefur had always been there. Even when they hadn't been close friends, those two cats had always been Clanmates.
They had been kits in the nursery alongside one another. They had become apprentices in their own fields – together. Blackshadow and Applefur had been in camp the awful night Flamesoul took her, and they had sat vigil for her father.
Even before they were friends, when they had just been running towards the common goal of surviving and keeping ThunderClan strong. And from that goal, a bond had formed between them all strong enough, Rosethorn had thought, to derail anything. They had helped her survive so much. Spottedlight's accusations, Shadenight's flirtations, Graywhisker's shadow, Silverleaf's plans, Flamesoul's return, and even when Thorntail had fled it was Applefur and Blackshadow who had pushed Rosethorn forward to win him back. They had risked their rank, their Clan's trust in them, their honor, their lives, and even their right to call their kits their own just to see their friends happy.
And now, it was all over. Applefur and Blackshadow had saved the love of their friends, but Rosethorn knew that their friendship would never be the same. They had once fought against every shadow and scrap of darkness alongside one another, and it smacked Rosethorn like a splash of water: she and Thorntail were on their own now. They had to protect their love themselves, and couldn't rely on the two noble guardians to defend them anymore. They were in different Clans, they were -
"Maybe officially we're not allies," Thorntail meowed with a shrug of his shoulders. "But we're still allies. Always will be. There are some things that can't even be smashed by the warrior code. And I guarantee you: our alliance has gone through a lot worse than this. This isn't the end," Thorntail's eyes glinted. "This is just the beginning."
"Thorntail's right," Blackshadow spoke up almost as soon as the gray tom had finished. "Nothing's going to stop us now. I won't let it," he added firmly.
"None of us will," Thorntail vowed.
"No, we won't," Applefur finally agreed. She collected Blackshadow and started to pad back into her territory. "Bye, mighty RiverClan warriors: Thorntail and Rosethorn!"
Rosethorn watched her friends pad into the bramble bushes towards what used to be her home. She realized that the next time she encountered them could very well be in battle… But she knew. Their friendship and bond was more powerful than the entirety of both RiverClan and ThunderClan, and not a thousand claws could rip through it.
But, that was just one point in Rosethorn's defenses that could be breached.
When the reentered their territory, the two mates noticed that Serpentpelt was streaking towards the Northern border. At first Rosethorn dismissed her as just running around for fun as that she-cat had always seemed a little quirky, but as soon as the short-legged female noticed the two warriors she bee lined straight towards them.
"ShadowClan! Attacking! Outnumbered! Sent Wavepaw for reinforcements but…" Serpentpelt stopped, noticing the impracticality of a wordy explanation. "Thorntail, Rosethorn, follow me! We have to hold them back until we can get more reinforcements!"
There was no time to argue. The thin warrior almost instantly bolted off at a speed that was impressive considering her short stature. Rosethorn didn't remember giving her limbs any orders, but she found herself being carried towards what she expected to be her first battle as a RiverClan warrior.
Thorntail asked her something about whether or not Rosethorn thought she would be able to fight. Rosethorn didn't answer him, not wanting to know the true answer herself. Instead, her mind was racing through the peculiarities of ShadowClan preying on RiverClan. Having just been in ThunderClan she could say for fact that the dark Clan wasn't finished bullying her former home. Indeed, before Rosethorn had left Streamstar had said she was putting something in motion to end the skirmishes, but surely ShadowClan wouldn't just back off? And even if they had, why attack RiverClan? If it was territory or prey that they wanted, they could have it in abundance from either WindClan or ThunderClan. As the old she-cat's saying went: Why hunt the badger when the mouse is sleeping in your paws?
Why attack RiverClan, the only Clan in the forest who has the morale and numbers to lift a claw to defend themselves?
Rosethorn didn't have time to deliberate the matter much farther. Instead she came to the point of interest of where Serpentpelt was leading them. And as soon as she overlooked the bush-dotted field, a completely serene if only the swarm of combat patrols were absent, her mind focused completely on the debacle she was about to meet headfirst. There was no time to think of motivations or feelings, it was just one thing: there were ShadowClan cats in RiverClan territory, and it was her duty to alter that fact.
She would have been lying to herself if she tried to say that she wasn't afraid at the scene unfolding before her. Though she was slightly more competent in the basics of fighting than she had been just a moon ago, due to training from both Applefur and Thorntail, she wasn't confidant that her skills could pin an experienced ShadowClan warrior.
Especially these ShadowClan warriors. The invaders outnumbered the tiny RiverClan patrol like the mighty river that rolled alongside the territory dwarfed a puddle. And each and every one of these enemy warriors had a murderous glint in their burning eyes as they slashed and sliced. These cats were bloodthirsty, enraged, and most of all, far more experienced and skilled than Rosethorn was.
The RiverClan cats, a pitiful few – just Owlpelt, Tawnyleaf, and Tigerflame, were standing shoulder by shoulder, a ferocious wall of fangs and teeth which stabbed and jabbed at the wave of warriors launching themselves towards them. They were the only blockade from the camp, which would be filled with mewling kits and crippled elders, unable to defend themselves.
Serpentpelt wasted no time in positioning herself on Tigerflame's flank. Thorntail followed suit on Tawnyleaf's side, strengthening the force by that much more.
The ShadowClan cats first tried to simply walk around the shield, but each time they did so an angry pair of RiverClan jaws grabbed a leg and tossed them back. So instead they opted to topple the defense head-on.
Rosethorn stood there, for a moment uncertain of the action she should take. She had always been the medicine cat; one of the creatures the Clan was trying to defend. Now she was a defender, and she knew that she had a duty to make sure that none of the bloodthirsty ShadowClan cats broke through their defense and got to camp. At the very least, they had to hold them until the reinforcements arrived.
Rosethorn hadn't slept much the night before. She had just climbed from a river and was wet and shivering from the breeze. But when her muscles bunched together and she flew to Thorntail's side, adding another set of teeth onto the shield… she felt invincible.
It was the strangest feeling she had ever felt.She was risking her life for her Clan, and the threat of death was hanging over her head like a boulder about to drop, yet, somehow, it was at this moment that she felt immortal, like no claw would penetrate her shield and crack bones. Though she had felt fear before diving in, there was now no drop of that wretched emotion anywhere in her body.
She had once heard Thorntail describe it to her as a battle calm. Her nerves had released, her terror had dissipated, and she even felt her senses pique: every sight, sound, and smell was clear as crystal, everyone's movements seemed to be locked in at snail-pace, and she felt as if no enemy's blows would strike her because they were moving far too slow.
She swept herself to the left as she dodged a blow from a mousy black-and-tan female's powerful forepaw. When the she-cat moved to withdraw her limb back to the safety beneath her body, Rosethorn gave into the flow of the battle and dug her fangs as hard as she could onto the paw. The ShadowClan cat screeched, and instinctively tried to pull her injury back towards her. She succeeded, but dragged the light, unmuscular former medicine cat that had not relaxed her jaws along with her. It was simple to keep hold on one of the cat's key tools of fighting in defense, yet at the same time shifting her weight onto her back legs, rearing up, and slamming her front claws into the nemesis' revealed chest. Rosethorn felt the impact run up her front legs as she punctured the other cat's skin, and was already twisting her claws through to get the maximum amount of damage done, sawing her claws down into fur, skin, and some other squishy things that were a mystery to Rosethorn, ripping up and around, the blood warm on her chilling paws, not releasing the enemy until frog-breath entered her fine-tuned senses from the ShadowClan cat's scream.
The female didn't retreat from the battlefield, however, as is usually traditional. Instead, the pale-brown and ebony warrior flung herself at Thorntail, who she had mistaken for easier prey.
It didn't end well.
Rosethorn was already engaged in defending herself from another opponent, but she did hear Thorntail's enraged shout: "Oh, no!! You didn't…you did not just get some of your icky chest blood on me!! You know how long it's going to take me to get this out my fur, you insensitive weasel-dropping!?" This battle cry was followed by another yowl of pain from Rosethorn's previous adversary, and out of the corner of her eye she saw the cat retreat several tail-lengths to begin nursing her wounds.
Rosethorn knew that she and every other cat in her line wanted to charge over and make that she-cat begin a permanent retreat from RiverClan land before she could contribute to the battle once more, but it would be nearly impossible to swim through the chaotic ocean of hissing ShadowClan cats, and if even one RiverClan cat moved, the wall would be broken and the enemy would delve deeper into the territory.
The ShadowClan cats were fueled by their rage, pounding against the defensive line of RiverClan cats in such strength and anger that it was practically insane. This was their undoing, as it was clear even to someone as inexperienced as Rosethorn that they had no true strategy, intent only on winning for no obvious reason other than the fact that they were ShadowClan and there were RiverClan standing in their way of their goal. Whatever that goal may be.
But even though they had the advantage in numbers and blind slashing, Rosethorn felt her Clanmates beside her holding their own with firm confidence and strength. Thorntail's skill, Tigerflame's heart, Tawnyleaf's cleverness, and Owlpelt's speed were proving far too much for their rampaging enemies. But Rosethorn, even though she had managed to hold her own against that one tan-and-black warrior, it was obvious to her that she was the weakest link in the fence. And it became apparent to the ShadowClan cats as well.
There was some reminiscence of a plan as two large tomcats doubled up against Thorntail, the cat at Rosethorn's flank, preventing him from defending her, as he was far too preoccupied. And, once Thorntail was amply distracted, it almost seemed as if the entire ShadowClan patrol started to loom towards her, preparing to strike as one, knocking Rosethorn away as if she were nothing.
As she saw the growing number of cats forming before her, Rosethorn felt a twinge of fear finally spark in her stomach. Thorntail clearly felt something else, because she heard him let out a hiss of frustration, obviously noticing the plight his mate was in.
And then she heard him…purr?
"My, my, my…" he chuckled, his glee throwing off one of his attackers for a moment. "Aren't your Clanmates bold?"
While one of them kept thrusting blows at Thorntail, the other half of the pair of ShadowClan cats had a tone as if he was talking to a madcat. "What do you mean?"
"They're going to be massacred. Rosethorn's one of the greatest fighters that ever lived," this statement was made even more complimentary when Thorntail made the still-hostile adversary howl in pain. "Whoever strikes her first will probably lose a limb."
…Had Thorntail finally gone completely insane?! Rosethorn had sent that ShadowClan she-cat away with a few bruises, but probably nothing more worrisome than that. She could defend herself, but a cat would have to be a blubbering idiot to bear any permanent scars from crossing her.
But then she saw what Thorntail was getting at. If a big, strong, powerful tomcat referenced a miniature creature as a tough opponent, one couldn't help but be intimidated. And it worked: the horde of ShadowClan cats did look a little more apprehensive.
Adding fuel to the fire, Rosethorn allowed herself to flex her claws and let out a purr.
This only held off the impending wave for a moment though. Soon, the ShadowClan cats got over any initial fear and obviously decided that they'd win against her by sheer numbers alone, no matter how legendary or skilled she was.
But by the time they charged forward, the other RiverClana cats had already been alerted by Thorntail's clever remark that Rosethorn was in danger. Knowing as well as Rosethorn did that she was no match for brutish of ShadowClan, the allies allowed Tawnyleaf and Tigerflame to reposition themselves at Rosethorn's side, and then quickly filled in the gap the duo had left.
When the brunt of ShadowClan cats hit, Rosethorn was far from alone. A tiny white she-cat, probably an apprentice was merely batted away from the titanic Tigerflame, before the mighty warrior shifted himself and gave a green-eyed tom a brutally-hard kick, spinning the warrior back several tail-lengths.
Tawnyleaf had her paws full with a pretty little silver she-cat. The lion-colored RiverClan warrior's leafy eyes narrowed into slits as she eyed her enemy curiously. "You're name Stormpool?" she asked finally.
The silver cat had been in the middle of what was probably intended to be a swipe across Tawnyleaf's pretty face, but she stopped, her paw still in the air, baffled. "Yes, why?" Her tone was calm and casual, as if discussing the weather at a gathering and not in the midst of a bloodstained battlefield.
Tawnyleaf's eyes glowed with humor, as if she was telling a hilarious joke. Her tone carried the same cheer as she meowed, "You murdered our deputy, right before my apprentice's eyes. For such an atrocious crime, you must be flung before StarClan's mercy. Permanently."
Rosethorn didn't have time to comprehend what that statement was supposed to mean, or wonder about Listeningecho's true whereabouts as she ducked away from a curiously timed head butt a ShadowClan cat was presenting her with.
Stormpool snorted. "Just like a river-rat to fling baseless lies around. Of all cats to call me a murderer, it's the mother of all!" Stormpool's voice dripped with venom. "I've never killed a cat, but there's a first time for everything! And I'm positive StarClan will honor me for ridding slime like you from their forest!"
"Murderer!"
"Filth!"
And then two she-cats, one silver, one gold, locked claws and fell fangs first into a frantic battle.
Thorntail must have been successful in his fight between the two ShadowClan cats, because Rosethorn felt his long, gray fur rub against hers as he tensed up at the sight of another howling warrior charging towards him.
That was the last coherent thing Rosethorn was able to see before all semblance of organization was lost. In front of her there was nothing but a moving, howling, frantic forest of cats leaping and dancing around her, doing nothing but blindly clawing, biting, and thrusting, no true goal other than to force the RiverClan cats back, by any means necessary: even if it meant death.
She wasn't taking too many blows, as her enemy was just striking randomly with hardly any aim in mind, and it was fairly simple to dodge most every slash. She felt that her Clanmates were succeeding in it as well, because though she was in the site of a ferocious fight, there was hardly any scent of blood in the air.
And that's when it became clear. The ShadowClan cats weren't trying to draw blood. They were just trying to exhaust their adversaries so that going through them would be as easy as walking through a kittypet door!
Right when the frenzy began to seem overwhelming, with the low morale of the RiverClan warriors leaving a tangy scent on the wind and the ShadowClan cats' plan about to pull through…
Serpentpelt's apprentice, Wavepaw arrived.
Rosethorn didn't see him right away. She had been focused trying to dodge one of her many opponent's scores, and wouldn't have noticed if a badger came and sat on her. She would, however, have noticed if a badger sat on the cat currently trying to claw her eyes out. Or, in this case, if an apprentice flung himself at the cat trying to claw her eyes out.
It was Wavepaw! The older, slightly prickly apprentice had returned. And that meant…
She heard a loud, whooping battle cry behind her. The cry was unfamiliar, but the voice emitting the sound was clear as day: Duststar had arrived! And from the thundering paw steps ringing through the air, he hadn't come alone.
Her fellow RiverClan cats flew over her, pouncing directly onto the ShadowClan cats. The tables of the battle had turned: in such a dramatic way.
Not only did Rosethorn find herself able to breath, but also the ShadowClan cats wriggled free from their opponents and retreated several tail-lengths.
"Defensive wall!" She heard the cry from the one of the invading warriors as they mimicked the action the RiverClan cats had used instinctively. But instead of remaining in one place to defend its position, it started to march forward, moving as one body.
It was intimidating. Just a fray of dripping teeth and pointy claws surging forward, owned by glowing eyes filled with hatred. Hardly any of them bore any marks of the recent battle, and their muscles bulged beneath their dark pelts. None of them showed a hint of exhaustion, just firm determination and a powerful desire.
"They're coming to die!" Thorntail yowled, briefly rearing up on his hind legs before thundering back onto the earth. "They're coming to bleed! They're coming to our claws!"
And Thorntail was right. At least to the ShadowClan cats approaching, the dark warriors not even batting an eyelash at the tomcat's gibe or at the new, angry RiverClan cats that had arrived onto the field.
The forest was dark now, the sun having officially given up its position to the pearly moon, but even so Rosethorn recognized the reinforcements Duststar had brought with him. The sleek Fishclaw, the light-footed Rinoa, the lucky Cinnamonfur, the experienced Puddlespots, the powerful Darkstorm… Duststar had brought a force to be feared! Thorntail, Tawnyleaf, Owlpelt, Tigerflame, Serpentpelt, and Rosethorn herself were now all ragged and exhausted from going toe-to-toe with such outrageous numbers, but these new warriors were fresh, skilled, and most of all: vengeful and determined to protect their home against a common enemy.
And at Thorntail's courageous hiss, the RiverClan cats cheered, their confidance inflating like a pregnant she-cat's stomach. Rosethorn's did as well. She felt her spirit soar through the air once more as the fiery flames of battle singed her whiskers. Fighting, side by side with her mate and loved ones against the creatures that threatened their safety… There were few things more beautiful.
Before the skirmish of ShadowClan warriors could release their strike, the RiverClan cats, though given no order, attacked as one and flew towards the intruders. Rosethorn tumbled onto a dark tabby tomcat with jagged black tabby stripes. His legs held strong, and Rosethorn found her fierce force that she had exhibited to pounce onto him bounced her right off. She stumbled to the ground, her body blowing a cloud of dust into the air.
The cat had a clear advantage. He was probably about twice Rosethorn's height and weight – at least it looked that way from Rosethorn's uncomfortable seat on her tummy – and from the looks of his deep battle scars, it looked as if not only did he fight for ShadowClan, he also got into scraps with his own Clanmates on a daily basis.
By now, the ShadowClan cats' line-formation had broken. They were too eager to go on the offensive, and now the chaos of battle was unleashed. If one couldn't identify the cats by their scents, it would've looked to an onlooker like a free-for-all, just a large group of cats scrapping against one another for no apparent reason. Howls of victory and screams of pain boomed in the air like thunder, and the presence of blood zigzagged through everyone's senses like lightning.
Rosethorn was still staring up at the ShadowClan cat she had unsuccessfully pounced on, uncertain on how she should go about her next action. If she tried to get up, no doubt the tom would knock her over again, but she couldn't just lie there because she was at a serious disadvantage lying the way she was and…
These thoughts raced through her mind at a mile a minute, and she had truly just been lying on the earth for a split heartbeat when another scathing tom's voice rang from a tail-length away.
"Hey, Deadgrass!"
From the way the dark tabby's whiskers twitched, that was the name he carried.
He was briefly distracted by his friend's call, and Rosethorn used the momentary lapse in attention to fly to her paws. She eyed him carefully, formulating a plan of action in her mind. He was bigger, stronger, and more experienced than her and she was at a serious disadvantage… Thorntail had told her in situations like this to go for the weak points, like an unguarded leg or eye. She darted a paw forward, but Deadgrass expected it like it was a move that cats always tried to use on him. It probably was.
While Rosethorn had been trying to draw blood on Deadgrass, another cat seemed to have manifested his claws in her flank. She let out a cry, and tossed an indignant glance at the tom that had performed such a shameful action.
She recognized him instantly. His shiny pelt, his 'sensitive' eyes, his pearly teeth… He was the cat that had taken Ebonypool's heart! Marshclaw!
"Wow!" The night-colored tomcat purred, not removing his claws from her side but exerting the effort to shift so he could run his tail around her neck. "What's a pretty little thing like you doing in a battlefield like this? And this just defies the laws of nature…" Viridian eyes flickered towards Deadgrass. "How'd a cat like that catch you?"
"Let…me…go!" Rosethorn hissed, twirling herself around in an attempt to get Marshclaw to release his grip.
"Gnaw, can't do that…" Marshclaw shook his head. "I have a duty, as a warrior, to inspect each and every she-cat in the forest… Make sure they have warrior blood. Do you have warrior blood?" His tongue strolled down her spine. "I've never seen you before. Another part of Duststar's collection? What's your name?"
Deadgrass padded to his friends side, and cocked his head. "She looks familiar to me… Blue eyes, red fur… Hey, is that Rosethorn?"
"Rosethorn?"
"Yeah, isn't she ThunderClan's medicine cat?"
"This is RiverClan, you mouse-brain."
"Yeah, but - " Deadgrass never got to finish his sentence. Rosethorn had taken advantage of Marshclaw's distraction, and thrust all of her weight towards her captor. They both fell into a tangled heap, with Rosethorn the cherry on top. She leapt off of him, and prepared herself to go into combat alone against the two gargantuan ShadowClan cats.
"How dare you!" Deadgrass hissed, assisting Marshclaw back onto his paws. "You crazy piece of fox-dung!"
He started to charge towards her, his throat unleashing a gargling cry with Deadgrass in toe. Rosethorn tensed and got ready to become kit bedding for Ebonypool's children.
Unfortunately for the unborn kits, before any cats' snapping jaws could tear into her flesh, two gray blurbs rocketed into the two ShadowClan cats, knocking both of them over. Once the speed-haze had faded away, Rosethorn could clearly see that Thorntail had tackled Deadgrass onto his back, and was currently using his forepaws to hold the warrior down while simultaneously raking his back legs across his exposed stomach.
"Don't you ever insult the integrity of another tom's mate!" Thorntail spat, briefly lifting one of his forepaws to cuff the other cat across the ear. "You're going to apologize to Rosethorn now!"
Deadgrass wasn't going to give into that. Right away, anyway. The cat fiercely attempted to knock Thorntail off of him. However, Deadgrass being a large ShadowClan cat himself was clearly unused to locking claws with other large cats, and Thorntail nearly matched his bear-like height. His struggles were completely in vein, and Thorntail didn't budge nor let up on his swipes at the weak belly.
"I'm…I'm sorry!"
"Not to me, you didn't do anything to me. To Rosethorn!"
"Sorry Rosethorn!"
"Right, very well then." Thorntail leapt off of Deadgrass and landed neatly on h is paws. He nodded curtly at Deadgrass. "You may go."
The tom, very eagerly, did so.
Thorntail padded over to Rosethorn, and gave her a quick lick on the ear. "Look at how fast he went."
Rosethorn returned his favor. While doing so, she noticed that it had been Duststar who had knocked Marshclaw over. And the RiverClan leader, aged, as he was, was having little difficulty against the young warrior.
As she gazed across the battlefield, she noticed that Tawnyleaf was again at odds with the silver cat she had been contending with earlier. Stormpool was obviously fighting to the best of her ability, but her swipes were now lacking much power and aim, and Rosethorn knew that she was losing stamina. And Tawnyleaf, her eyes were glinting the way Thorntail's does when he had his mouse trapped and the only question left was how to properly rip out the future-fresh-kill's jugular.
Owlpelt and Wavepaw, being the smallest participating, were the only two cats still fighting shoulder rubbing against shoulder, moving step for step as they overpowered their enemy – the same tan and brown female Rosethorn had been clawing earlier.
Rosethorn finally got to see the true reason Serpentpelt had her name. Yes, the she-cat was long and short like a snake, but that wasn't where the similarities ended. The way she weaved around her enemies, struck and recoiled, were reminiscent of a cobra or a rattlesnake, particularly since Serpentpelt also shook her tail in the air for no practical reason while hissing obscenities. She was undoing a duo of ShadowClan cats, which were stumbling over her, probably having never seen the curious fighting style before as she outwitted them before finally sending them home to their mothers.
Rosethorn rejoined the storm of battle, her heart pounding in her chest. She zipped her claws through the air, and shot her neck out to rip the pelt out of her enemy. Thorntail was behind her, facing the other way as they fought back to back, with their own strength but with the constant support of their mate, right behind them in everything they did, as they conquered each and every enemy they faced.
But Rosethorn, as inexperienced as she was, had never seen enemies so determined. Usually invaders retreated at a fairly quick pace, as they didn't have the desire to stay and get their fur clawed out for territory that wasn't theirs, and their morale was as fragile as a kit's bone. But these ShadowClan cats kept fighting as they had when they first arrived, with strength and heart, and once again Rosethorn was forced to wonder why they were so intent on defeating the RiverClan cats.
But their heart was destined to be broken.
She saw Tawnyleaf streak across her vision, the warrior's golden pelt almost as scarlet as Rosethorn's. Her emerald eyes were glowing like stars and she shouted, "Stormpool is dead! Listeningecho has been avenged!" As soon as these words escaped her lips though, several ShadowClan cats jumped away from their earlier intended victims and flew towards her, the wish for vengeance drooling off their bared fangs.
A thorn of sorrow pierced Rosethorn's soul. She had heard that Listeningecho had been killed before, but she had been so caught up in battle that she hadn't noticed. But…Listeningecho was dead? Rosethorn hadn't known her very well, but she had respected the Listeningecho for the way she had glowed with authority and will, and the way her levelheaded common sense made up for the withering Duststar.
The fact that they had killed Listeningecho seemed to sharpen Rosethorn's claws as she swung them towards her opponents. The ShadowClan cats were even more enraged now than before from hearing of their Clanmate's death, but it was clear from the fear scent speckling the air that they weren't so keen on carrying on this battle.
But they were still far from surrendering. Rosethorn's ears pricked and nearly fluttered off of her head when a hysterical caterwaul rang through the air as a big, dirt-brown tabby tomcat rushed towards her, crawling so close to the ground that his curiously-colored white belly scoured the earth beneath him.
His approach was sudden, and Rosethorn hadn't had time to prepare for his brutal claws that scored across her face. It knocked Rosethorn backwards, but instead of falling onto earth she found her back leaning against Thorntail's as he snapped his neck out at whomever he was battling. She was merely standing awkwardly on her hind legs. The other warrior obviously hadn't expected this safety net, and he was still fumbling in confusion when she let herself fall forward, slamming her forepaws onto his forehead. The force of her blow made him buckle his knees together before finally tumbling downward.
He was back up in a heartbeat. But a stream of blood was trickling down his face, and from the look in his eyes he wasn't willing to take the fight much farther. Quite the opposite, the tom finally gave in and fled back to his territory, following almost the same path Deadgrass had taken before him.
It was then out of the corner of Rosethorn's eye that she saw that Marshclaw had acquired a confederate in his battle against Duststar. Her heart twisted when she saw the elderly RiverClan leader, fighting for all that he was worth against two young, vigorous ShadowClan warriors who were at the high point of their fitness.
She wanted to rush over and help him, the kind, slightly senile tom who had taken her in during a horrible period of hopelessness from her self-imposed exile. But she was inhibited from going over or even looking any longer, because the same brown-and-black female that Rosethorn had done battle with at the very beginning of the fight was thrashing at the side of her cheek with bleeding, nearly-broken claws. Since the claws were now next-to-nothing, it was more irritating then it was painful, and Rosethorn ducked herself down, spoiling the female's stroke, before swiping her fangs at the cat's face. She grated on bone, drew blood, and hammered her with her free claws.
The enemy warrior fell backwards, but was pushed forward from a fight that Serpentpelt and Tawnyleaf were orchestrating against a couple of still-thirsty-for-revenge ShadowClan cats. Rosethorn played one round of ping-pong by knocking the she-cat back into the fray. Serpentpelt noticed another cat staggering towards her, and, assuming the worst, wasted no time in chasing her off.
Finally, the tan-and-black ShadowClan warrior exited the combat-zone. Though, Rosethorn had to admire her courage to keep on fighting for so long.
But when she ran off, another warrior materialized in front of Rosethorn, and the former ThunderClan she-cat was thrust into combat yet again. This time, however, Thorntail no longer had an opponent of his own to occupy him, so this newcomer hardly gave Rosethorn any time to even register his appearance before he was sent spiraling away.
"How are you doing?" Thorntail panted, his eyes burning with passion from the flaming battle around him.
"Well, I haven't retreated yet," she answered as together, without exchanging a glance, they launched themselves to assist Serpentpelt and Tawnyleaf against the enormous amount of ShadowClan cats who were thirsting for their blood.
It was curious. No matter how many cats Thorntail sent squealing away or how many cats Rosethorn defended herself from, even with Stormpool's fatality, there still seemed to be an infinite number of ShadowClan cats swarming the territory.
Rosethorn had been knocked out of the huddle of cats defending Tawnyleaf by one warrior's powerful hind legs. She landed in the dust, but no ShadowClan cat chased after her. They were now trying to avenge the blood of Stormpool that Tawnyleaf had spilt with the warrior's own.
She took this time where she was spared from the suffocation of battle to scan the battlefield once more. Wavepaw was wrestling with a warrior who, miraculously, was about his size. The apprentice was clearly able to take care of himself quite easily, and from the glint in his yellow eyes, he wouldn't appreciate any help from Rosethorn. Fishclaw and Puddlespots were smashing one poor ShadowClan warrior between them, hissing and slashing at her from all sides, leaving no room for escape. Rinoa, a cat whose personality was more or less a mystery to Rosethorn, had just fled into the swarm of cats after Tawnyleaf, no doubt going to go defend her surrogate mother. Duststar was…
Duststar!
She had been so caught up in the rush of the fight that she had completely forgotten about the old tomcat! Last time she had checked on him he had been having difficulties against a threatening duo of ShadowClan cats a quarter his age and twice his current skill, and…
Duststar had chased one of them away, it seemed. However, Marshclaw was still fighting strong, and it was clear that Duststar was going to give way at any moment.
He did.
The RiverClan leader stumbled backwards, dodging one of Marshclaw's blows, but fell onto his side, possibly tripping over his own age. Marshclaw allowed a howl of victory to escape him, and stared coolly down at the old tom. Marshclaw snapped his neck forward, and Rosethorn knew from the way his strike was aimed, and how Duststar's neck was lying in the open, and where key veins were that… Marshclaw was trying to kill Duststar!
She started to rush forward, not knowing what she would do. After all, she had just done battle with Marshclaw and hadn't even been able to shake him loose from her flank. But she had realized before that in battle, one didn't think. They gave in and allowed the entirety of their instinct to overwhelm them, and she knew that her instincts wouldn't fail her now.
The thing that would fail her would be her legs. It seemed like everything had stopped going in slow motion, and Marshclaw had switched gears to a hare's sprint as he moved to rip open the vein. But her legs, they still seemed to hear to be like those of a turtle, and she knew that unless she changed into one of the monsters that ran on the Thunderpath at breakneck speeds, she would never make it in time.
Luckily for everyone involved except for maybe Marshclaw, she didn't have to.
The noble, ginger-furred warrior, Tigerflame seemed to fall from the sky, striking Marshclaw suddenly and powerfully, like an eagle would its prey. Tigerflame's mighty jaws wrapped skillfully around Marshclaw's neck, stopping the tom's jaws carrying the deathblow in midair. Not done, Tigerflame tossed his head to the side, simultaneously tossing Marshclaw tail-lengths away from Duststar.
And then, the RiverClan tomcat stood protectively in front of his leader, obviously waiting for Marshclaw to jump back up. Rosethorn, anticipating the same thing, continued her stride and halted at his side.
Behind them, Duststar grunted as he came back up. Rosethorn could sense him tense, as he too expected Marshclaw to return.
Marshclaw was lying neatly on his stomach with his paws beneath his chin, in the shadow of a nearby lilac bush. With all the hissing and spitting from the battle raging on, it truly seemed as if he would get up at any second.
Rosethorn could have cut the tension with her claw.
Tigerflame exchanged a worried glance with her before hesitantly padding over towards the ShadowClan warrior. Rosethorn flexed her claws, preparing herself for Marshclaw to jump up and take her Clanmate by surprise.
He didn't. And from the amber eyes of Tigerflame, which were clouded, it looked like he never would.
Even before Tigerflame said it out loud, Rosethorn knew. She hadn't been the best medicine cat the forest had ever seen, and she hadn't truly ever finished her training, but she could tell. From the panic Tigerflame was releasing into the air, and from the eerie stillness of Marshclaw's body, it was obvious.
Marshclaw was dead.
And against the chaos around him, the furious, battling Clan cats fighting for revenge, honor, and for what they firmly believed to be right, the thunder of the battle, the scent of excitement, the feeling of adrenaline pumping through one's veins… Rosethorn wasn't sure if she had ever seen someone look deader.
Listeningecho.
Stormpool.
Marshclaw.
Three cats had already died, in this single skirmish.
Rosethorn's mouth dropped into a gape. It was against the Warrior Code to kill in a fight. Very rarely was there even one casualty on either side. When a cat was exhausted or too hurt, they retreated. And no cat would attack the one who retreated; it was dishonorable to do so.
Rosethorn didn't know how it happened. But the ShadowClan cats must've noticed that Marshclaw was dead. She had expected them all to surge towards Tigerflame, and take their revenge against him like they had tried Tawnyleaf, but for the second time on that battlefield Rosethorn was anticipating something that wasn't going to happen.
The ShadowClan cats dissipated. They had been losing even before Marshclaw's death, and their numbers had decreased from all their retreating. They hadn't a chance to win anymore. And it was quite clear that none of them wanted to share in Marshclaw's fate.
One by one they turned tail and ran.
A big, black, ShadowClan tomcat, who Rosethorn recognized from gatherings as Onyxpelt, staggered backwards, glaring badger's teeth at each of the RiverClan cats. He looked pitifully at the corpses of Stormpool and Marshclaw briefly, before he hissed, "Murderers! You are all an insult to the Warrior Code! StarClan should descend just to rid us all of your treacherous ways!"
It was a jeer, something that warriors allowed to bounce off of them. It was nothing, really. But Rosethorn saw Tigerflame stiffen uncomfortably with the statement. Tawnyleaf, the self-confessed killer of Stormpool, however, just levelly met Onyxpelt's eyes. "You murdered our deputy."
That was all that needed to be said, and the RiverClan cats howled with rage, instantly supporting Tawnyleaf's decision to kill Stormpool.
Onyxpelt looked surprised, but happily so. "Then RiverClan will bear wounds! Wounds that we will pick at the tear open next battle! Because this is not over! You will all pay for what you did to Amberpaw! We will be back to avenge her…" He flexed his bloodstained claws.
Thorntail padded to Rosethorn's side and shrugged his shoulders. "Ah. So you must want RiverClan to solve an overpopulation problem that ShadowClan has?"
Onyxpelt didn't reply to this. Instead, he just spat at the RiverClan territory beneath his paws, before he too, finally fled.
The last ShadowClan cat having left their sight, Puddlespots and Thorntail streaked after them to ensure that they had exited the territory.
Now that the chaos had faded, Rosethorn became aware of all the injuries she had collected. Her left shoulder was bleeding intensely, and she felt some pain worrying her right forepaw. Why she hadn't noticed before, Rosethorn could only contribute to the 'battle calm'.
Her senses returned to normal, and to Rosethorn, it felt like she was suddenly seeing the world in gray after seeing everything in vigorous color. Everything seemed so faded, dull, now that it was over. But she couldn't deny the joy in her belly that she had come through her first battle alive.
Duststar had dug his muzzle into Listeningecho's fur. Rosethorn could hardly hear him, but she knew that she heard something along the lines of: "I'm sorry, Listeningecho. You were strong and courageous, and so, so wise… StarClan will honor you." He backed away from her, and nodded at Tawnyleaf and Tigerflame. "Take her back to camp."
Tawnyleaf nodded and approached the body with an eerily calm demeanor. Tigerflame, however, was staring down at Marshclaw's body with shock. It seemed as if he hadn't heard Duststar's order at first, but finally he was able to pull himself away from the cat he had slain, and carried out the request.
Duststar watched them go and for the first time Rosethorn had known him he had an aura of authority and seriousness, something that demanded respect. His eyes had hardened, and not only his. All of the RiverClan cats had stone cold eyes. Not a trace of the fun loving Clan was in the air. ShadowClan had slaughtered them.
They had the eyes of cats going to war.
The deputy whom Rosethorn respected had taken a path to StarClan. Her death was avenged by Tawnyleaf, spilling the blood that, apparently, had belonged to her killer. Following Stormpool, was her former apprentice's mate, the cat she had sacrificed everything for.
Yet, Rosethorn felt exhilarated and happy. The adrenaline was gone, and now that she adapted to her new normal senses, she was just…joyful. Exhilaratingly happy.
When they started to return to camp, and Thorntail had come back from chasing Onyxpelt to the border, he noticed.
"Why are you so giddy?" he asked.
"Well…" Rosethorn thought for a few heartbeats, trying to place a reason and logic for her baseless happiness. "I guess it's because I fought my first battle as a RiverClan warrior."
Thorntail looked completely confused, so she elaborated.
"I'm not ThunderClan's medicine cat anymore. I'm RiverClan's warrior," she emphasized. She looked down at her paws, embarrassed. "I know it's really just a change of rank…but I feel like someone brand new! Like…like I'm starting over."
Rushed endings rock my socks. Not really, but I couldn't think of anyway to end it neatly. Except the obvious one liner above, but that didn't satisfy me. So, I hoped you liked it! And I hope the battle scene didn't confuse you too, too much. If it did, I'll give a synopsis of the important bits at the beginning of next chapter. Obviously if you got confused it isn't your fault, it's mine, and I apologize. I don't like battle scenes. lol.
Review and you'll get a Onyxpelt plushie. Yay, Onyxpelt!