Blossompaw's Escape
Part Five: The Truth
The smell of fresh grass and clear water filled Blossomfang's mouth and nose. Her blue eyes opened and gazed at Starclan's hunting grounds. She was alone, Whisperheart and Icefire were in another place. She would be gaining her lives alone. That is if she would be gaining any lives at all. It seemed there were no warriors anywhere. She was about to panic when a cat stepped forward from the wall of mist clouding the beyond.
She recognized her instantly.
"Mom!" she shouted and ran forward, pressing her nose into her mothers white pelt and drinking in the familiar scents she had carried in kithood.
"Hello darling," Petalcloud murmured and groomed her daughter's fur. "Look how you've grown."
"I've missed you so much mom - when...how?" she said helplessly. Adderfang had joined Starclan too young, and now her mother too?
"We don't have time to discuss that, we must move on with the ceremony. I am here to give you your first life," Petalcloud smiled almost sadly.
"I give you a life for love. The love a mother has for her kits. When I lost you I lost my whole world. Use this love the care for and nurture your growing clan."
Blossomfang leaned forward eagerly to receive her first life. As their noses touched a crippling pain ran through the young warrior, she imagined she was on fire. Her old life was stripped away as this new one was presented. She could feel everything Petalcloud had to give course through her veins and fill her with the love a mother has for her kits, an unbreakable bond stronger than any force of nature.
All too soon Petalcloud had retreated back into the mist with only one goodbye: "Be strong Blossomfang, you are not out of the storm yet."
The next cat stepped forward. A scrawny looking tom with brown and black fur. His ears were folded backwards and curled at the tips. The most striking feature about him was his bright green eyes. But his eyes were sad, almost ashamed. He crept forward until he was face to face with Blossomfang, and he only spoke in quiet rushed whispers.
"My name is Mossear. I was not apart of a clan. I was living with Foxtooth and Fawndapple in the twoleg nest, not knowing my heritage. I left with the others that night, abandoning a mother with her kits and only their mate to feed them all. I broke my leg in a fall not long after I left, and just like I had abandoned Fawndapple and Foxtooth, my companions abandoned me. Unable to hunt in a cruel world I starved. But I realized in my dying moments that I was not angry, only sorry I hadn't gotten the chance to apologize to my former friends.
You made a deal with them when you first met. They would play clan for a moon, and if you could not convince them to become a real clan then you would leave and hunt down me and the others who had betrayed Foxtooth and Fawndapple. I'm glad that deal never saw fruition, I'm glad you've reconnected them with their warrior roots, as I have been reconnected in death.
I give you a life for compassion. Don't abandon someone because they might slow you down. Instead help someone in need. I spent the last moon of my life regretting leaving those cats behind. And I will always regret it," he said slowly before pressing his nose to Blossomfangs. She was better prepared for the pain this time and braced herself as the life moved through her bones. Mossear darted away and no sooner had his tail vanished from her sight was the next cat moving forward.
"My name is Skywatcher," the old tom said - right to business. "I am from another clan, far away from here. It was destroyed and had to be rebuilt. Interestingly enough the cat who saved my clan had a sister. And his sister had a litter of kits. Flintmask and Shiverspots were two of them. Everything is interconnected Blossomfang, from the smallest leaf to the mightiest bolder. I give you a life of devotion. Be devoted to your clan, never let go." Skywatcher ordered. She accepted this life gratefully. He was one of the only cats who could understand the impossible mission she had been given, and he understood how potent it was to succeed. But as Petalcloud had said, she was not out of the storm yet.
She pondered his comment about Flintmask and Shiverspots - they were closer to clan roots than she had thought. But the thoughts were pushed to the back of her mind as the fourth life appeared. He was a small bluish gray cat, a new warrior most likely.
"My name is Jaysong," he greeted. "I am from Cedarclan. I give you a life for friendship. In my darkest times I had one true friend - he was from Ravenclan. I made a horrible mistake but he forgave me, and although my mistake cost me my life I will always remember him as my closest ally. I give you a life fore friendship, so you may know how important this gift is. Make friends rather than enemies, because it might just save your clan."
Jaysong's life was powerful, it was like a flash of lightning had struck her as they touched noses. As they broke apart she was wheezing for air and didn't know if she had the strength to do this five more times.
"Hello," a familiar voice greeted. Blossomfang looked up, Jaysong was gone and in his place was an older she cat. She was a silver tabby with a motherly complexion. It took Blossomfang a few seconds to place her.
"Missy!" she exclaimed. Missy was from the testing facility. But she had escaped and had been living with the pack, what was she doing in Starclan?
"I'm afraid I wasn't strong enough to fight the side effects of whatever the twolegs had done to me. But your stories, they gave me something to believe in. When I died I found my way here. I give you a life for hope. You gave me hope to escape, to survive, and to believe in something good. You've given Ashclan hope. Now I give you hope, because you need it now more than ever."
Six down, three to go. Blossomfang thought as a shiver ran through her body. She was drained from receiving the lives. It was more than just physical pain, each life had a meaning behind it that each cat had experienced and suffered from. The mental pain was almost unbearable.
"Greetings and Salutations my friend!" a cat exclaimed and practically ran forward to meet Blossomfang. He looked like a warrior on the brink of retiring to the elders den, gray hair decorated his muzzle but muscle still rippled beneath his pelt. He was grinning, exposing sharp teeth. "My name is Gorseclaw, I was from the ancient Ashclan."
Blossomfang blinked. The only cat she'd ever met that was from the ancient Ashclan was Ashstar himself. It was almost surreal to meet one of the warriors who had lived in the clan she had now rebuilt.
"Thank you for not letting Ashclan be lost to Starclan, thank you. I give you a life for courage. Never back down in the face of a challenge, rise up to meet each dawn of a new day! Be courageous when fighting a foe, be courageous when teaching your clan, don't let fear ever cloud your judgment," Gorgeclaw declared and pressed his nose to her. The exhilarating pain flashed within her again, but only for a moment. In that moment she saw each battle and hungry period Gorseclaw faced. She saw him in his final moments as the fiery mountain erupted. She saw him try to escape to the ocean where it was safe. She saw him not make it. But in his final moments he saw some of his clanmates reach safety. His courage was not being afraid of death because he knew Ashclan would live on.
Gorseclaw vanished, and in his place came the seventh life. She was a brown tabby, fairly plump with a short tail. The unfamiliar she cat nodded in greeting and placed herself in front of Blossomfang. She seemed bubbly.
"My name is Turtle Tail," she said at last, bursting the tension. It wasn't a warrior name, nor a regular rogue name. Who was this cat?
"I come from far away, from long ago. My presence among warriors came even before the ancient Ashclan. I saw the founding of the very clans. Normally I don't give lives to warriors, the existence of the ancient clans is a little secretive. But in this case an exception was made. Because you and I are so similar Blossomfang. I give you a life for awareness. Ashclan and Starclan aren't the only things that are important in this world. Being aware of what goes on beyond clan borders, everything is connected."
They touched noses and a shredding pain ripped through Blossomfang's shoulder. It worked its way down along her spine and through her stomach. She saw a flash of a monster on the thunderpath, perhaps how Turtle Tail had died, and then her vision was clearing and Turtle Tail was passing away. She valued the ancient she cat's life greatly - there was so much she did not understand yet, about the workings of other cats.
Adderfang was her eighth life. She had spoken with him so often in her dreams there was nothing to catch up on. They just got straight to the point.
"Blossomfang, my daughter, I could not be more proud of who you've become. I give you a life for training your young cats wisely. If you'll recall back to your days in Ravenclan, I was something of a hard head. I mentored Larkpaw, and I wasn't the right cat for the position. You need to read your clan mates carefully, see who needs a firm paw and who needs only support and encouragement."
Although the life brought pain, it was a good kind of hurt. It was almost more painful to say good bye to her father and not know when she'd see him again. One thing was for certain, Ashstar and Adderfang were trying to make Ashclan more independent. She'd relied heavily on them to simply get the idea of Ashclan into motion. They had trained her like she had trained the clan.
It was no surprise who her last life was. Ashstar padded forward with confidence in his lengthy stride. His sleek gray fur shone in the starlight as he approached the young warrior.
"When I give you this last life you will no longer be Blossomang, you will be Blossomstar, prepared to lay down all nine of your lives if need be for the good of your clan."
"In a heartbeat," she promised. Ashstar smiled.
"This wasn't the clan you were born to, but this is your clan. I give you a life for trusting your instincts. You tend to second guess yourself, or read too deeply into a situation. Sometimes you rely too heavily on Starclan for an answer when we are still just your clan mates. You need to have faith in yourself and your abilities, for I have faith in you."
She was surprised by his life, for some reason she hadn't been expecting it. She received her final life quickly, the pain fading in a heartbeat. She closed her eyes trying to ward of the feeling of dizziness. When she opened them she was surrounded by cats of Starclan. Adderfang and Petalcloud were closest to her. Her father lifted his head back and started the chant.
"Blossomstar!" his voice rang out all across the sky's vast expanse. Chants of her name danced in her ears. I am a true leader, she thought blissfully. Suddenly Ashstar let out a hiss.
"It is time to wake up Blossomstar, the shadows are upon you!"
She felt herself almost flung from the dream, as she came too the omen she had been sent drifted through her mind. You can't run from the shadows. And now Ashstar had said the shadows are upon you? This could not be good.
Whisperheart was slowly waking up as well. She nudged him to his paws, the cave walls suddenly felt claustrophobic.
"Where's Flintmask and Icefire?" she said urgently, suddenly realizing the two cats were nowhere to be seen.
"Looking for something?" a sickeningly sweet voice cooed from the shadows of the cave. Blossomstars's eyes adjusted so she could make out the two golden eyes of Echo. The unconscious figure of Icefire was lying at her paws. She had one claw pressed against the medicine cats throat. Wherever Flintmask was he couldn't attack, otherwise Echo would kill Icefire.
Blossomstar needed a distraction...anything! But her mind came up empty. Luckily Whisperheart had plans of his own.
"What is this about, Echo? Is this about Sol, or me?" he demanded. Once again he was spewing off nonsense Blossomstar had no knowledge of. Whisperheart was a very confusing cat. Confusing enough to make Echo's concentration slip, only for a second. Flintmask appeared from practically thin air and knocked her away from Icefire.
"Run!" all three cats ordered at the same time. Flintmask hoisted Icefire onto his back and struggled to maneuver with her limp body. Blossomstar was trying to nudge Whisperheart along faster. Once they were safely back to camp she was going to interrogate him about everything he knew, she was going to get some answers whether he wanted to give them or not.
Echo shouted from further back in the cave, "Attack!"
She wasn't alone? No...she had Shane on her side. Ten or so city cats came forth from the stream. They had been hiding in the water to mask their scent. The group was running for their life through the tunnels. Who knows how long Shane's cats had been hunkered down here, just waiting for Blossomsatr to try and claim her nine lives. But they weren't able to stop her in time, she had her lives.
One second Blossomstar was running with all of Lionclan pushing her on. And then she was sprawled across the cavern floor, having tripped on a loose rock.
"Flintmaks!" she shrieked as the first of Shane's cats' teeth tore into her shoulder. The warrior skid to a stop and looked back in terror. Whisperheart took Icefire's weight on his shoulders and kept moving forward as Flintmask ran back for Blossomstar. Quicker than the blink of an eye he had thrown her attacker away. But there was another to take the firsts place. Blossomstar scrambled to her paws and ignored the throbbing of her shoulder. She began running again, certain Flintmask was beside her.
"Flintmask," she said again. Softer this time. He looked up at her and they made eye contact. What came next seemed to happen in slow motion. She could hear Whisperheart shouting for her to keep running, but her paws were rooted to the ground. A wave of cats descended on Flintmask, his green eyes flashed with pain.
"Run Flowerfeet!" he howled. His nickname was a prick to her heart, but it was enough to wake her from her stupor. She turned to run again, tears blurring her vision, Whisperheart shouting her on. But not before she saw a glint of Echo's golden eyes, and Flintmask fall.
So...a lot happened in this chapter. Tell me:
A. What life is most important do you think?
B. Flintmask's Fate?
C. What's going to happened to our leading lady?
It'd be really helpful if you guys would leave comment letting me know what you think. What do you want more of? Less of? Are you too horrified about our presidential election to care about fancition?
