Darkpaw was feeling increasingly claustrophobic inside of the crate. He could not see anything accept what was directly ahead of him, and that was Ginger's crate. Her anxious behavior was transferring to him even from this distance. He forced himself to remain calm but seeing the little she-cat's desperation was making it difficult on him. Every sound was amplified as his vision blurred. He didn't know what to call this except torture. There was his freedom, right in front of him, but he could not get it. And so, he waited at the back of the crate, watching. They would open it, he knew, and then there would be hell to pay. His breathing became louder and he could feel his heart pounding against his ribcage like it was as desperate to escape its prison as he was to escape his.
Lynn left the ring. This must be it. He would be freed. And sure enough, with a clang, the crate door was unlatched and yanked open. He dashed out, his happiness at being free quickly getting replaced with anger. Anger that he had been made to suffer like that. But he did not have time to target the specific ones who were responsible for this, so he went for the next option. Directly in front of him, flying at him with blinding speed and fury, was a small calico streak. She shrieked like a demon as she ran but everything seemed to be in slow-motion for the tabby.
Ginger swiped at her target, but he was gone. In her rabid, crazed state, she spun around looking for him. He was waiting for her. Directly behind her, the little tabby sat grinning in a way that made her blood run cold. How he had gotten there, she did not know, but she shook off her confusion and prepared to strike him down, but he was ready. Four claws raked her face before she could deliver her blow and she spun back. Pain, blood, anger. Ginger snapped her head back around to look at the tabby. He would pay now. He might even die. It all depended on how far Lynn and Shadow would let her go.
Darkpaw grinned at the she-cat. She was not part of his clan. No one knew what was happening. He could hurt her. He could show that he was powerful. He could show that no one could beat him down. He was the best and they would see his skills for what they were: strength. Already, she had spilled blood. Darkpaw had never spilled blood in a fight. He couldn't remember ever bleeding. This she-cat could not say the same.
Darkpaw stopped her next attack with his front paw's and used his sleek body and speed to his advantage and twisted under her body. His sharp fangs contacted with her soft stomach and this time he did not stop himself from snapping them shut. She shrieked and Darkpaw could taste blood, her blood. It ran over his fangs and into his mouth, coating his rough tongue with her taste. It was much different from prey's blood. The flavor was not as appealing and he released her shortly after causing the wound.
Ginger hissed and staggered back. This tabby hurt. He was hurting her a lot. And it was his time to pay! Calling on as much sanity as she had left, Ginger rushed to the side of the ring.
This threw Darkpaw off. Why was she going that way? He was over here. He turned to watch her but she swerved back around suddenly and almost caught a blow on his face. Had he not pulled back suddenly it would have taken out his eye. Darkpaw hissed and smashed his paw against the side of her face again irritating the marks he had already left and tearing them wider. It also forced Ginger's body to turn to the side and Darkpaw instantly took over this opportunity. He wrapped his front legs around her neck and prepared to bite down, but she was not done yet. Ginger flipped over with a hiss, driving the tabby head first into the hard packed earth. Darkpaw grunted as his body was pressed between his opponent and the ground. The calico growled in frustration to find that it was not enough to get the tabby to release his grip and struggled to stand back up as he tried to keep her down. Darkpaw tried to get a grip on her scruff, but she twisted in his grip so they were face to face. Not wanting to release his grip on his victim, Darkpaw held fast to the calico's neck and tried for her throat, but she would not have this. Ducking and swerving her head with jaws open and ready, Ginger blocked all of his attacks. Both kits were starting to realize that neither of them was gaining the upper paw in this tussle. There had to be a change. Ginger wanted this tom off of her and began clawing with all her might at his chest, but Darkpaw moved his hind legs backward to avoid her. This change in angle threw off the balance that was holding the two on their hind paws and Ginger managed to slip thru the tabby's weakened grip. She leaned over him and this time wrapped her front legs around his small waist, trying to rake his head with her hind claws while nipping his back. Darkpaw hissed in frustration and rolled over. As his writhing body landed on top of Ginger's, her grip loosened enough for him to twist onto his paws and rake at her head while digging his fangs once again into the flesh of her stomach. She hissed and batted his ears and head with her hind claws, trying to rip them up, but she could not reach to grip his too small, tight stomach flesh in her jaws. Sick of this, Darkpaw used all the strength he had to roll the she-cat onto her stomach. She immediately tried to slip out of his grip, but he dug his claws into her shoulders, stopping her movement. She hissed and tried to buck up against him, but there was nothing she could do. Darkpaw managed to get his jaws to the back of her neck and he prepared to snap them shut and end the she-cat's life.
Suddenly, all the weight was lifted from Ginger's form. Yes, she would not die today. Not this fight. She looked up and saw T.J. and J.T. restraining the tabby. It happened every time in apprentice battles and occasionally it true battles that there would not be a death. The winning cat would be yanked off or would leave the loser unconscious. Ginger had guessed that this match might not end in her death. Normally a death fight was in front of many cats, not just the leaders. But, while she would live to fight for at least for a few more hours, until the sun went down and the real fights started, she had lost and punishment for that would come at some time. She looked at the calming tabby and saw that, while she had struck him, no blood was produced from his body. She wasn't even sure if she had broken his skin significantly. What shocked her then was how quickly he had calmed down. Most victorious apprentices took forever to calm down, she still had difficulty with it and it was only her confusion that held her back from attacking him again even now.
Darkpaw sat quietly between T.J. and J.T. It had not taken long for the brothers to feel secure releasing him, but they continued to keep an eye on him and Ginger even as Lynn and Shadow approached. He would pose no more threat to the she-cat, for now, but his glare sent shivers of fear thru her body. His eyes were colder than ice as they sent her his dark message. "I could have killed you. I would have killed you, but that will not be done, not yet. But it would have happened. You should be dead now, but you are not because you were saved. You just kissed death and if you face me again, you might do more."
"Did he do well, Mother?" T.J. asked.
"Yes, he was quite fascinating to watch. I believe he does have the potential to dominate this ring if he so chooses," Lynn responded with an approving look down at Darkpaw. He was still glaring his murderous message to Ginger and if anything this made the white she-cat approve even more.
"What is this you told us of his ability to see without his eyes?" Shadow asked his sons.
This brought Darkpaw back to reality. He looked up at the older cats. Then the memory of his fight with the brothers came back to him. He would show them this skill too if the occasion so called for it.
"It is true, Father, this kit does not need his eyes to see. And without his eyes, he sees everything around him not just in front of him," J.T. said.
"Is that so? Well we shall need to see this skill in action. Would you agree to that, Darkpaw?" the large black tom asked, though it didn't really sound like a question, more like a test.
"Yes," Darkpaw said simply. He glanced back at Ginger. Despite nearly being killed, the calico hissed angrily at him.
Lynn smirked at the two kits. "Ginger, go back to your mother and father. I will tell them of this later," she said. Ginger stifled another shiver and took off into the trees with a nod.
"What will happen to her?" Darkpaw inquired. He didn't really care about his former opponent, but he was curious.
"She will most likely not discuss what happened here on her own, so technically nothing until I tell her parents. When that happens, she will be punished. A simple exercise to increase her strength. We will show you later if you wish, but now, show us this gift of yours," the white she-cat ordered. She flicked her tail and T.J. and J.T. nodded before making their way to the crate Ginger had previously inhabited.
Darkpaw knew where this was going. He turned and walked back to his crate. He stepped in and this time it was Shadow who locked him in. Darkpaw saw that both the juvenile toms were crammed in the same crate. He knew how much this enclosed space drove him mad, he could imagine the torment that must come from having even less space and another body with him and they were both bigger than he was.
Sure enough, the brothers were starting to turn on each other. T.J. was on his belly hissing and swiping at J.T. while the white tom swiped at his brother. The two finally got their wits back as their mother unlatched their crate in synchrony with Shadow opening Darkpaw's. J.T. was the first one to burst thru the door with his darker brother right behind him.
Darkpaw lept out of his small container and back out into the open area. He had a feeling that this fight was not to end in death either, but he could act like it would. The brothers rushed him first and he stood ready, closing his eyes and waiting. The orange forms did not go straight for him, but instead rushed to the sides. Cleaver, he could not go for both of them at the same time as they rushed in to hit him from the sides. He spun around so he was facing J.T.'s attack. J.T. kept low while Darkpaw sensed T.J. jumping, planning to stop his escape if he chose to try to jump over the white tom. But that was not the tabby's plan. He ducked low and met J.T.'s attack head-on. With a quick jerk, J.T. was placed right where his brother was landing.
"Watch it!" J.T. hissed as his brother's claws dug into his back.
"Sorry," T.J. apologized jumping off his twin.
J.T. struggled to get his shoulders out of the kit's grip, but every move he made caused the claws to dig deeper into his flesh. T.J. took this chance to go for Darkpaw's exposed neck, but the kit was still watching him. Darkpaw rolled onto his back, ripping his claws out of J.T.'s skin, and swiped at T.J.'s face, forcing the black tom back. J.T. took his turn to try and take out the little tabby, but Darkpaw flipped back onto his paws and smacked his paw to the tom's face, causing him to turn his head and expose his neck. Darkpaw lept forward and threatened the neck with his fangs. J.T. knew he had been beaten and dropped to the ground. Darkpaw allowed the tom to fall without causing real damage to him. T.J. made his presence known, jumping at Darkpaw over his brother. The ShadowClan apprentice quickly rolled onto his back and allowed the black tom to land on top of him, but before he could blink, the tabby's fangs were pricking his throat. Darkpaw had pulled the same move he had used on Windpaw, and he had to admit he liked it. Darkpaw finally opened his eyes to see Shadow and Lynn approaching. He released their son and crawled out from under him to stand before the adults.
"Well done, kit. You would be a fine apprentice," Lynn praised, glancing at her sons as they stood up and walked over.
"I told you, Mother," T.J. said proudly but received a harsh blow from said she-cat. J.T. stood still as he received the same treatment.
"Yes you were right," Lynn said. She looked down and saw Darkpaw's confused and suprised look. "They are not apprentices anymore, hence they will not be punished in the way Ginger will be, but I am still their mother and may do as I wish," she hissed looking back at her sons who hung their heads.
"You see, kit, loosing is frowned upon here. It normally ends in death. Should you choose to become an apprentice, you will need to come to terms with that," Shadow said.
Darkpaw nodded. "But what would being an apprentice here mean?" Darkpaw asked. He knew what being a ShadowClan apprentice meant, but he had a feeling these cats worked with a different system.
"It's simple really. You will come every night to battle with other cats. True ringfighters. But you will not be required to take their life, simply knock them out or go in for a kill-shot and don't carry it out like you did with my sons. In the event you lose and the other cat gets the upper paw on you, you will be allowed to die. If you can survive your fights and you feel you are ready, come to Shadow or I and tell us that you wish to attempt to take a life and your next fight will be to the death on both fronts. You may practice against other apprentices and that will not end in a death either way but other than that, anything is allowed. It is dangerous and sometimes lethal, but if you survive and become a true ringfighter, you will be known as one of the most powerful and skilled fighters ever known," Lynn finished explaining and watched the sharp glint in the tabby's eyes.
The most powerful fighter ever known. Even stronger than a ShadowClan warrior. Yes, he wanted this. He wanted to show he was the best and what better way than by force. They all would see he was truly the most powerful. He demanded respect. Whether they gave it willingly or he took it by force was their choice.
"Before you make your decision, young one, come to see our battle tonight. See just how dangerous your life will become, but also see just how great. No one is forcing you into this world, but the door is open. The cats you will see are like Ginger only more vicious. Since the day they came or were brought to us, they have thought of nothing but to fight and kill. Not their families, not their friends, not even about pain. They come here to fight to end the internal pain, the pain they cannot see or understand. They make the pain come out, turn it into something they can see and understand, and it leaves them until the next time they choose to come. Do you understand?" Lynn asked.
Darkpaw nodded. Yes he understood. He understood the strange pain. The pain he never saw, but he always felt. He made it go away with his treasure. He had always imagined he had made his pain flow into it and the pain would then radiate off of it and caused him to realize the agony that would then reenter him and become the agony in his leg muscles, an agony he could understand. What these cats were doing was no different, but they were transferring their pain to other beings with tooth and claw. Their opponent would not only be forced to feel their attacker's pain, but also their own. Darkpaw's claws extended at the thought and his fur tingled. He would come tonight, and he would see this vicious dance of pain and blood and he would join this world and revile his pain and agony to it and he would see just how strong this world was and if it could handle him, all of him. Unlike his clan, these cats were strong and bathed in pain, they could handle it for they fed off of it from themselves and each other and then they mastered it. Yes, he would master it and conquer the weaker beings.
"When?" he asked raising his blazing eyes to the she-cat's mismatched ones.
Lynn smirked down at the tabby. "Moon high tonight, you will meet J.T. and T.J. in the same place you met them earlier. They have told me you live with the forest cats. Will you be able to get away from your clan?"
"I'll do it," he said firmly.
"Good, go now and we will see you if you come tonight," she said.
"Goodbye," Darkpaw said, dipping his head to the older cats. They nodded in return and he ran back the way he had come.
Once again, he ran the entire way back to camp, pausing to hunt occasionally to make it look like he had been doing something other than wander around the territory. He stopped and rolled in several fragrant plants to cover the odor of his new acquaintances knowing there would be hell to pay if he was caught with their scent. He walked back into camp as the sun set, leaving only pink streaks across the sky.
"There you are, jeez where have you been, kit?!" Mudriver yowled as Darkpaw walked away from the fresh kill pile with his selected piece for Runningnose.
"Just got caught up in the forest. It's nice out there, quiet…solitary. You should try it," Darkpaw said thru gritted teeth with a shrug and continued on his way to the elders' den.
"Well I was just worried. I haven't seen Tigerpaw around and I thought he might have gone after you," Mudriver explained walking next to his apprentice.
"If he did, he sucks at tracking," Darkpaw snorted as he entered the den. "Sorry I'm a little late today," Darkpaw apologized to the lone elder.
"It's fine. I won't be needing anything else tonight," Runningnose said.
Darkpaw nodded and stepped back out. The grey form of his mentor was getting harder to see in the darkness. He looked around and saw only a few cats had yet to go to sleep. Excellent, the more of them that were asleep, the easier it would be to sneak out. His coloring already gave him a good chance, couple that with the few drowsy cats that might still be awake at that hour and his silence and his escape would be almost too easy.
Darkpaw's fur tingled as he felt like someone was glaring at him. He turned in the direction of the apprentices' den and saw the glowing eyes that belonged to the other tabby apprentice. He said goodnight to Mudriver and made his way over, holding his head and tail up in a clear show of confidence and dominance.
"Like what you see?" he growled at the larger tabby.
"I'd prefer seeing an old rat than a rouge," Tigerpaw growled back raising his body from its previous crouching position to glare down at the silver and black tom.
"How'd you like to see your pansy ass ancestors," Darkpaw snarled extending his claws.
"Watch your tongue, bastard, or I'll rip it out of your thick skull," Tigerpaw warned his fur standing on end, making his already massive body grow even larger.
Darkpaw knew he would have a disadvantage in a fight right now. He had been fighting and running all day while only eating a single squirrel. Sheathing his claws, he spat at Tigerpaw and pushed past him to curl up in his nest, but the orange tabby wasn't done. He walked over and bent down until he was almost nose to nose with his rival apprentice.
"The den reeked of rouge today, you wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" the older tom hissed.
"I don't know, maybe you should wash yourself more often," Darkpaw retorted.
"Why you little…" Tigerpaw swung at Darkpaw's head with the full intention of knocking him out, but he was startled to find that Darkpaw not only blocked the blow, but also landed a scratch right across the orange cat's face. Tigerpaw hissed and staggered back from the now standing, growling kit. Tigerpaw felt his face and realized Darkpaw had drawn the smallest amount of blood with his thorn-like claws. "You better watch your worthless back, Darkstripe," he warned before retreating back into the apprentices' den.
"I always do," Darkpaw growled so softly Tigerpaw did not hear him. He lay back down in his nest and curled up but kept his frozen eyes wide open.
The rest of the camp slowly retreated back into the warriors' den save a couple cats guarding the entrance. Darkpaw stayed where he was, knowing no one could see him thanks to the placement of his nest, but he could see them. They never once looked in his direction as he waited for the right moment to dash out. Just before moon-high, Darkpaw cautiously rose from his nest, double checking to make sure everyone save the guards were asleep. Once satisfied, he fixed his gaze on a point in the brush where there was a small hole that his small body could just fit thru. He crouched down, preparing his spring-loaded legs for the jump. At the right time, he released the pin that held his muscles ready and his legs launched him thru the brush and into the forest with almost no noise. Darkpaw paused to make sure no one had noticed or come to investigate. One of the guards' ears twitched but he didn't seem bothered so Darkpaw made his noiseless way back to the edge of the territory.
"You always have pinpoint accurate timing, dark one," T.J. said as Darkpaw approached confidently.
At first the address had confused the kit, but he shrugged it off. "I know," he said with a smirk.
"Your confidence knows no bounds," J.T. commented.
"Yes yes I know, now show me this battle your mother was talking about," Darkpaw ordered.
"First, she has told us to show you what has become of Ginger," T.J. said.
"Yes follow us," J.T. said and the two turned in unison and led Darkpaw in a slightly off direction from the ring.
Darkpaw could not see the ring, but he could hear the sounds of fighting and many cats talking and shouting. There was light coming from that direction. This confused Darkpaw, but he would see that soon enough. T.J. and J.T. led him thru the trees until they reached a tall pine. The trunk and low branches of the tree was covered in scratches. T.J. and J.T. began climbing effortlessly into the branches.
"Come on," T.J. urged and Darkpaw quickly followed.
They continued climbing higher and higher. Darkpaw glanced down and realized he had never been this high in a tree before and they were still climbing! When Darkpaw began to think they would not stop until they reached the very top, the twins climbed out onto one of the branches. They stood on either side of a pair of calico paws clinging desperately to the tree. Darkpaw looked down and saw Ginger hanging there with a mixture of anger and pain on her face and she dug her claws into the branch to hold on tighter. He was shocked and fascinated by this strange and barbaric punishment.
"You see, in the event you challenge another apprentice and you loose, you will be sent here to the tree of strength and pain. While the pain will punish you, this strain will strengthen your legs and help you so you might not loose again," J.T. explained.
T.J. leaned down and grabbed Ginger by the scruff of her neck and helped her pull herself back onto the branch to join them. "Come on, young ones, we should get back to the battle," he said and led the way back down the tree.
Once they had all dropped to the ground they made their way towards the noise and light. Darkpaw looked down into the small valley that occupied the ring and was shocked by what he saw…