Sunrunner lurched forward. Claws entered his skin, pulling him backward with immense pain. The ginger tom pushed himself upward and clawed at his attacker. More claws ripped through his fur and that, along with the increasing pressure, forced him to the ground.
He thought of himself on fire. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw his orange pelt flickering parallel to his attackers' movements.
"Sir—now would be a good time!"
Sunrunner—
The flames disappeared. Sunrunner screamed. He couldn't breathe. His blood boiled. His heart was pumping rapidly, as if trying to push away the agonizing disease creeping through his veins.
The heart-beats passed by like days, and the throbbing pain didn't allow time to go faster. He slowly found his vision blurring and his muscles relaxing, no longer having the energy to do those things.
When the pain finally subsided and turned into a nauseating ache in his stomach, Sunrunner heard someone next to him say, "Shadow, his power is gone."
"Is he dead?" the familiar black tom questioned.
"Far from it, but he still doesn't look too good."
Sunrunner narrowed his eyes. That was Petalfur.
"Sir, what do we do with Dark?" asked a rogue far away from Sunrunner.
"You and Cliff will be taking him to where we found him in the first place," Shadow spoke. "But first, blind him. That will ensure he won't ever return to play the hero."
"Yes, sir."
Sunrunner was expecting more screaming from the dark warrior, but the sound never came. In fact, no signs of struggle game to the ginger tom's ears. Was Darkblaze already dead?
"What of the clan cats?" asked another rogue.
"They have been quite a help this evening," Shadow responded. "We shall reward them with kindness."
"And the Elemental Mortal?"
"Do whatever you must to get him presentable," the black Commander replied. "We move out at moonhigh."
Sunrunner felt teeth enter his neck.
"Move it!"
What do you think I am—immortal?
Sunrunner nevertheless hurried his limp. Blood dripped into his eyes and down his right cheek. His shoulder throbbed and swelled, and the gashes on his stomach couldn't even be seen through matted fur and blood.
His paws sank into marsh as they headed toward the camp that was within their sights. Around him were seven rogues, all with firm muscles and pristine coats. Sunrunner looked like the pity-pool compared to the proudly postured toms.
"Which Elemental Mortal is here?" asked a silvery rogue named Scales.
"I don't know," the ginger tom muttered.
With the speed of Lightning, the rogue turned around and raked his claws over Sunrunner's face.
"Don't lie to me, mouse-heart!" Scales bellowed. "Which Elemental Mortal is here?"
Sunrunner stood up with as much strength as he could muster. "I. Don't. Know."
The silver tom shoved him back down onto his bad shoulder. Flame's Mortal winced, but bit his tongue. Once again, he stood up. The attempt was met with another forceful push into the ground before he felt teeth sink into his throat.
"Answer me!" Scales hissed.
Sunrunner laughed.
"Do you honestly think death scares me right now?" the ginger tom asked. "We lost! What else do I have look forward to? Not a fresh meal, that's for sure."
Scales ripped his teeth out Sunrunner's skin, and he grimaced.
"Get up," the silver tom snapped.
The ginger tom clenched his muscles and pulled himself up onto his shaky legs.
"Walk," Scales ordered further.
Sunrunner took one step forward. Then he took another step forward. Finally, he continued limping at the same pace before toward WindClan's camp.
It took Sunrunner a lot longer to get to WindClan camp than it should have. When he finally stumbled through the entrance, the stench of blood made him cough. The ginger tom glanced around him and saw injured cats everywhere.
"Sunrunner!"
Flame's Elemental Mortal eyes shot over to Nyka, who had stood up and started toward him. He lurched forward, but was caught by the rogues behind him just as Nyka was forced to the ground by a strong looking warrior.
"When will you ever learn?" Scales sighed.
His shoulder flared with pain, but he didn't flinch at all this time. His green eyes stared straight at the white she-cat struggling with all of her might to get out of the rogues' grasp. Sunrunner noticed her pelt was a light pink color, and along with the gashes and scratches all over her body, her ear front leg was twisted in an odd way.
"Have you got her under control, Moon?" Scales asked.
The gray tom nodded.
"Then let's get started!" the silver tom turned and faced Sunrunner. "Tell everyone, O great and powerless Elemental Mortal, what you saw today when Darkblaze met Shadow?"
Sunrunner glared at Scales and hissed loudly.
"Oh, not this again," Scales groaned. Turning, he faced Moon, Nyka, and the other rogues. "Kill her."
"He's gone!" Sunrunner spat, lashing his tail. "Darkblaze is gone!"
The clan cats gasped and moaned, all of them carrying wide eyes and dropped jaws. Their bodies shook as they stared at Sunrunner, and he saw their spirits break.
Scales faced him with a grin on his face. "Finally, you've become something useful! Well, that's all for now, mouse-hearts—"
A rogue started pulling him away.
"No!" Sunrunner shouted.
"Sunrunner!" Nyka screeched, surging toward him. She stepped on her foreleg and collapsed, clenching her muscles tightly.
"—see you around, if you all survive the moon!"
The rogues continued to pull him back out the entrance. He growled, spat, hissed, and clawed forward. The pain in his shoulder throbbed, and his tail grew stiff with the blood and dirt now drying on it.
He had been taken back a fox-length. Then another. Finally, he saw Nyka's gaze soften, and although his eyes never left hers, his muscles relaxed. The rogues drug his body away from the camp. It walked, but the fire was gone.
At sunrise, he was wobbling next to a heavy stream and through a forest of leafy trees. RiverClan camp was in his sights.
Sunrunner exhaled.
The ginger tom was looking at the ground. In his mind was the fighting movements, the ones Darkblaze had taught him. Also, the ones Nyka had forced him to learn before that, and, even earlier in his life, the ones he had picked up from Flame.
Scales turned toward him.
"Hey, I asked you—"
Sunrunner dashed forward, unsheathed his claws, and slashed through the silver tom's face. A brown rogue next to him lunged, but he evaded the attack and kicked the cat behind him. Teeth grabbed onto his tail, which he proceeded to rip away from the rogue.
"Dog, get back up!"
Sunrunner leaped upward and bit through the rogue's throat.
One down, too many more to go, he thought.
The ginger tom ducked as a rogue flew over him and tripped an on coming attacker. Sunrunner sprinted forward a fox-length. He found himself in front of a large brown tabby which reared up on his hind legs. Flame's mortal lunged into him and sent them rolling down a slight incline.
"After them!"
The rogue managed to rip open his stomach. Sunrunner ripped open his throat while slashing open his belly. Another rogue crashed into him, but he rolled out of the way. The ginger tom sliced through an oncoming rogue's flank.
Sunrunner knew the fight was over as soon as he saw more rogues running, but he continued. He clawed and bit and crashed and slashed. In just a few heart-beats, rogues had surrounded him. Moments later, claws hooked into his skin drug him toward the camp.
"Hurry—!" hissed a gray and white tom.
The ginger tom surged forward.
"Get a den ready—empty!" snapped Scales shouted as more claws wounded Sunrunner.
Flame's mortal kicked and bucked against the pressure. The pain increased, and he fought harder. They went toward camp, but Sunrunner fought against them every mouse-tail of the way.
Finally, they headed toward the Warriors' den. The rogues had forced the clan cats aside, allowing those keeping Sunrunner down a clear way.
Sunrunner was shoved in before being forced down. Claws once again entered his throat before being ripped out. Blood flowed freely from the wound as the rogues continued to keep him on the ground.
After a long while, the rogues left, and guards barred the entrance of the den. Sunrunner breathed short, heavy breaths, knowing full well he didn't have the energy to fight, let alone the ability to with his damaged body.
"Thank the skystars Streamstar was moved before he got here," came the voice of Scales. "We may have had a full scale rebellion on our hands."
"He will be troublesome," came a deep voice.
"Lion, do you know how this happened?" Scales asked. "Shadow has already told me of how his power works—this tom should be downright depressed right now."
"I was told of a tom who could fight the influence of Natas," came the other voice, Lion. "We will have to keep a close watch on this one."
"Well, do you have any ideas on how to keep him from getting strong enough to fight back?" Scales asked.
There was a small pause.
"Keep his prey and water intake to minimum," Lion answered. "Without energy, he will truly be powerless."
"And if he dies?" Scales inquired.
"I doubt Shadow will be too displeased."
Sunrunner laughed with blood dripping down his mouth. The movement forced his brain to become fuzzier and his heart to pound louder in his ears, but it made him smile.
I won't stop fighting. No matter what you do to me, I will fight. I will avenge Darkblaze and everyone in these territories until I die!
Lightning sprinted through the abyss, scenting as far as he could. His short breaths were filled with gasps and hiccups as tears streamed from his wide eyes down to his chin.
Finally, he saw the endless water around him, along with the cool rain. He also saw the red cage in the distance with the blue-gray feline within.
"Rain!" he shouted, running faster. When he came to the cage, he tried what Darkblaze had down. The purple horse of lighting galloped straight into it, but as the heart-beats passed, nothing happened.
"Come on!" he cried. "Rain, please!"
The she-cat remained completely frozen in her place. Lightning let the horse disappear as he watched her with wide eyes.
"You have to help me!" he said.
Nothing.
The black tom turned and sprinted away, back into the abyss. He picked up a scent immediately and turned toward that direction.
I need help, I need help, I need help.
Images racked up in his head, screams came to his ears. Lightning shook them away and ran through the burning element, trying hard to push through the heat.
As soon as the black tom saw the red cage, he turned on his heel and darted over. Flame, too, was staring into a blank space, completely frozen.
"No, no, no!" he moaned. The electric horse appeared, but once again, heart-beat by heart-beat, it didn't work. "Please! Flame! I need you! I can't—!"
He stopped himself as his logic recovered. Quickly, he turned away, this time relaxing within the darkness.
Snow covered him not long after. He raced over the frozen lake, ignoring the suffocating pressure his rapidly beating heart was being put through as fear gripped it. Lightning sprinted all of the way to the red cage.
The elemental horse appeared a third time and crashed into the red cage which held a stagnant white she-cat with piercing blue eyes.
"Snow, I need you, I need you to help me. I know you hate Darkblaze, but he needs you, he's going to die, and so is Nyka and Sunrunner and Leopardleap and Hawkpaw and they need you, they're in danger, horrible pain will come to them if you don't—"
The lightning horse disappeared.
"No!" Lightning bellowed.
Again, he left, this time with more tears and shakier legs. He went to Air's element, but it was the same. Nothing helped. He was just acting like a fool. An illogical, hysterical, over-protective fool.
Finally, he tried Mountain's element. He found the scent and surged toward it, only to hit an invisible wall at a crushing speed. It rippled red as Lightning stood up, and his surrounding's changed.
He was at the edge of the dark forest.
"Don't hurt yourself over that, little tom, nothing you can do will break that wall."
Natas, Lightning thought. But he didn't think about it for long. He saw StarClan's territory, and with a powerful lunge, he was leaping through the tall undergrowth of thorns toward the starry landscape.
Once he was there, he saw thousands of StarClan cats a few fox-lengths away from the border, staring at the dark forest. Lightning stopped next to them, hearing the same jarring screams that they were hearing.
"Lightning," commented a transparent light brown tom.
"Duskstar?" Lightning spoke.
"They killed me just before they took Sunrunner to WindClan," Pinefur's father said. "Fogstar and the ShadowClan cat acting as leader are here as well. Streamstar, for whatever reason, was spared."
A horrible scream forced him to grimace.
"What is that coming from?" he questioned.
"The clan cats," the ThunderClan leader said, distantly looking in that direction once again. "They are hurting."
"Then do something!" Lightning shouted.
The large tom looked back to him.
"We can't. Natas's power is too great."
Lightning's eyes widened. "But there are good cats down there getting tortured!"
"Only the Almighty has the power to stop this," said Duskstar.
"Then call him here!" Lightning urged.
"We have tried, but. . .but he is no where to be found."
Lightning's shoulders dropped. He's gone? Did Natas. . .? Is he. . .? Does that mean Darkblaze is. . .?
He was running again.
Somehow, he was in his element, looking into the dark hole which he had always watched Darkblaze in. There was nothing. Darkblaze was gone.
He knew, with his sadness and his loneliness, his element was reacting. And he knew the thunderstorms were raging within the clan territories. He also knew they wouldn't stop, not for many moons, not until his immortal soul once again became accustomed to being alone.
Darkblaze was gone.
A/n :: I do not own Warriors.
This chapter is only 2,300 words long. O.O Sorry! I just don't think I could have added anything else to this without drawing it out. Sorry.
Anyway, I really liked this chapter. It reveals a lot (the rogues killing the leaders, Streamstar being saved, the Elementals being trapped), and it sets the tone as to what these clan cats are expecting. Oh, yeah! Mudroot is with the evacuees. I know I had a question about that, and I'm sorry I missed that part. That's why Lightning couldn't get through to Mountain.
Speaking of which, I REALLY feel sorry for Lightning. As it looks right now, he's alone for eternity, the only Elemental still in rotation. Add that with the fact Darkblaze is gone, and you've got a bunch of Thunderstorms for a LONG time.
Well, anyway, enjoy! =)
{o} The Assassins Anthem, may darkness be with you.