Chapter 36: Tall Pine
Tall Pine stumbled dazedly across the cave floor, heading for his nest. The last rays of the sun were fading from the sky, signaling the end of another day in his prison. He barely noticed the cool breeze wafting in through the cave entrance or the damp moss of his nest, still wet from the rain that had fallen a few days before. His entire body ached—everything hurt him these days—and he felt frail and tired as he settled down on the moss.
I hope Sharp will come soon, Tall Pine thought drowsily, his empty belly aching from hunger. I don't know how long it has been since he last came. Since that two-faced foxheart went back on his promise, he should at least have the decency to bring me food on time. I only have a few scraps left.
The young tom raised his head and yawned as he glanced up at the vacant ledge. But he probably won't come tonight since he hasn't already. I might as well go to sleep. There's nothing else I can do anyway, stuck in here.
Tall Pine lowered his head and curled up, tucking his nose under his tail. A range of emotions swirled through him from sorrow to despair to longing, but he pushed the feelings away, locking them up tight, too tired to have them overwhelm him again. He stayed there, in bleak emptiness, lying half-awake for a while before exhaustion consumed him and he slipped into a dark, restless sleep.
Tall Pine opened his eyes, blinking in confusion. It seemed that he had just fallen asleep, but now he felt wide-awake, more alert than he had been in a long while. He was still in the cave, the rough gray walls on all sides of him. But something felt different. He didn't feel so alone anymore. There was also something strange about his vision. The cave around him was slightly blurred as if he was looking at it through a rippling pool of water.
Am I asleep? He wondered. Or am I awake? Or is this another twisted dream?
"Tall Pine." A deep, solemn mew came from behind him, one that he'd heard before. He turned, his breath catching in his throat as he saw a familiar pale brown tabby tom sitting a couple of tail-lengths away, his deep amber eyes shining with empathy. Tall Pine sprinted to the tom's side, burying his face in the other cat's star-speckled chest fur.
"Hawk's Cry," Tall Pine choked out, his sorrow spilling over at the sight of his Spirit Guardian. Tears began to fall from his eyes as a gentle tail wrapped around his shoulders, holding him close in a tender embrace.
When Tall Pine's sobs began to subside, Hawk's Cry stepped back, unwrapping his tail. "Tall Pine," he meowed once more, gazing down at the black and white tom. "I am so proud of you. You have undergone so much for someone your age, but you have remained brave and strong and resilient through it all. I know all of these hardships and trials are wearing you down, but you need to hang out for a little while longer."
"I've been doing my best, but I don't know how much longer I can go on. But if you're here, Hawk's Cry," Tall Pine asked anxiously, "does that mean that I'm d-dead? Have you come to bring my spirit to the C-Clan of the Bright Stars?"
Hawk's Cry chuckled a little, but his eyes remained solemn. "No, Tall Pine now is not the time for you to join us. Do not worry; you will live to see many more seasons pass. I am here because I am your Spirit Guardian and you seem to be in need of aid and advice."
"I know." The young tom nodded seriously. "I am. The rogues have kept me prisoner in this cave for many days now. Sharp has brought me prey, and I've got gathered details about their plan from him, but I'm not sure what good it'll do. So much time has passed I don't know if I'll ever be rescued. I will probably die in this forsaken prison."
"Don't lose faith, Tall Pine. You've held out this long; you can hold on for a little while more. Help will be here sooner than you think. But you must stay strong. Your family and your Clan need you," Hawk's Cry gently admonished him. "When you are rescued, go back to your Clan. Tell them of the rogues' plan and stop the rogues before they do more damage and cause more chaos. Too many Clan cats have died. You need to do what's right."
"But how?" Tall Pine cried. "How will my Clanmates find me? Will they even find me in time?"
"Everything will work out," Hawk's Cry promised. "I believe that you can do it. You need to believe it yourself."
The Clan of the Bright Stars cat's last few words echoed in Tall Pine's ears as if from far away as the dream began to fade around him. "Wait, Hawk's Cry! What do you-" He called as his Spirit Guardian turned into a blurry swirl of colors and then vanished into blackness.
Tall Pine's eyes fluttered open. He blinked several times, trying to get his bearings. The sounds of fighting cats came from the opening above him. What was going on? A sickening crack sounded and then a thump of something solid. Turning his head, the young tom caught sight of another cat lying in a limp heap on the cave floor. The cat's scent wafted to his nose. It was quite similar to Sharp's, so he knew the cat—a queen—was another rogue. Blood trickled from the she-cat's various wounds, forming a puddle of blood on the floor, but her gaze was empty, and her neck twisted at an odd angle. She was dead.
Repulsed, Tall Pine shrunk away, curling up again with his back pressed against the cave wall. Alarmed questions shot through his groggy mind. Who is that? Why is she here? Who killed her?
"Tall Pine," a voice whispered distantly, so quiet, at first he wasn't sure it was real. "Tall Pine. Tall Pine, is it you? Can you me?" The voice became more insistent, taking on a familiar tone. "Tall Pine!"
Tall Pine jerked his head up, looking around himself before his gaze landed on the ledge. The formerly vacant ledge which now held two young cats, the smaller brown-and-golden one peering over the bigger black-and-white one's shoulder. Two very, very familiar cats were gazing down at him, their eyes a collage of emotions. His sisters, Spotted Owl and Blossom Dust, had found him! At last.
Surprise, confusion, and wonder surged through Tall Pine as he sprang to his paws, darting over to stand just below the ledge. His emotions were mirrored in his sisters' expressions, but the most predominant in all of them was pure joy.
"Spotted Owl! Blossom Dust! You're here! I can't believe you're here! How did you-" Tall Pine began in a rush, as both of his sisters also started talking at the same time.
"You first." Spotted Owl nodded to him after the three of them had stopped talking, realizing they were talking on top of each other.
"You don't know how happy I am that you both are here," Tall Pine purred. "But how did you find me? And where is the rest of your patrol? It's been so long that I thought everyone must have stopped looking for me. But here you are!"
The she-cats exchanged glances. "We're so happy to see you too, Tall Pine," Blossom Dust meowed, a huge grin on her face.
"There isn't anyone else with us because we weren't looking for you," Spotted Owl confessed. "We both now realize that you were right and the rogues are evil. I didn't want to, but earlier tonight Blossom Dust convinced me to follow the rogues when she saw them sneaking out of our camp. We followed Sharp here, heard him and Brisk fight, and then found you once Sharp left."
"So this rogue is named Brisk?" Tall Pine asked, flicking his tail to the lifeless body.
Spotted Owl nodded.
"Then why were Sharp and her fighting?"
"It's because Brisk discovered that Sharp was hiding you," the black and white dappled she-cat told him. "I think Sharp was supposed to kill you as a way to show his worth to the rest of the rogues, but he didn't and hid you away instead. Brisk discovered what Sharp was doing, and was going to kill you and inform the other rogues of what Sharp had done, so he killed Brisk."
Aha! I knew there was something not quite right about Sharp keeping me prisoner. But I'll have to think about this later, Tall Pine decided. "So how are Drifting Leaf and our Clanmates and the other Clans?" He asked aloud, wanting more than anything to hear the news. "Sharp wouldn't tell me much of what is happening, and I don't know if he was lying or not."
His sisters exchanged another glance. "Drifting Leaf is fine," Blossom Dust mewed, "but our Clan isn't doing so well, and relations between our Clan and the others are horrible right now."
"Why? What's going on? Is it because of the rogues? Please tell me!"
Spotted Owl looked at Blossom Dust before she said, "I know now that what you said is true and the rogues have been killing cats. All of the Clans have lost valued members. The rogues have used this to make the Clan of the High Peaks think that we killed two of their Clanmates, but our Clan thinks they are at fault for our loses. The same is true for the Clan of the Flowing Waters and the Clan of the Dark Caves. There have been several skirmishes, and even a few large-scale battles like when the other the Clan of the Flowing Waters was attacked, and when the Clan of the High Peaks attacked our camp-"
"Wait," Tall Pine interrupted. "The Clan of the High Peaks attacked our camp? Is everyone okay?"
"Yes. That was when I first dared to think that you were right," Spotted Owl confirmed. "Though I didn't fully believe it until I witnessed the rogues savagely murder Scattered Leaves with my own eyes. That was when I also first talked to Fern Dapple-"
"The rogues killed Scattered Leaves? You saw them do it?" Tall Pine echoed, not entirely believing his ears. Memories of training with Quick Clouds, Fern Dapple, and Scattered Leaves flashed through his mind. He could not believe that the young, kind but firm hunter was dead, and it just added fuel to the fire of hatred inside him for the rogues.
"Yes," Spotted Owl murmured, her eyes downcast. Then as if pushing the sorrow away, she looked up and twitched her tail irritably. "I will finish telling you everything that has happened since then, but only if you stop interrupting."
In an answer, the young tom took a seat, wrapping his tail neatly around his paws. He looked up expectantly at Spotted Owl, prompting her to continue.
"Scattered Leaves was hunting with Fern Dapple when he was captured by and killed by the rogues," Spotted Owl continued, "I found her looking for him in the woods and had to explain what was happening. I realized that she already knew some details about the rogues because you had already told her. We decided to inform Mossy Moon right away, but our chieftain is convinced the Clan of the High Peaks is to blame, so she refused to listen to us. I didn't know what to do. Fern Dapple told Blossom Dust, and the three of us tried to come up with a plan of action, but I-I had already given up. That was when everything began to fall apart; the Clan of the Flowing Waters was attacked by the two other Clans and would have destroyed them had we not come to their aid. The battle ended in a draw, but we all suffered losses. The chieftains agreed to have a quarter moon truce until the next Gathering when they will try to resolve the grievances, but if not…"
Spotted Owl trailed off, turning away, unable to finish her sentence. Blossom Dust shifted closer to her sister and wrapped her tail comfortingly around her shoulders.
"That is everything that has happened while you have been missing," Blossom Dust mewed, looking back at Tall Pine. "Everyone else thought you were dead, murdered by the Clan of the High Peaks; but I never gave up hope. I had a feeling that you were alive and that if we followed the rogues tonight, we would find you. Here you are."
Tall Pine's heart warmed at his sister's words despite the heaviness weighing down on him at the grave news they had brought him.
"We shouldn't linger here much longer," Spotted Owl announced abruptly, turning back to her siblings. "We need to find a way to get Tall Pine out of there."
"I've tried everything I can think of," Tall Pine replied with a discouraged sigh. "From leaping and trying to grab the ledge, to climbing the wall, to making a pile out of that rumble, but nothing has worked."
"Why don't you try jumping again?" Blossom Dust suggested. "Spotted Owl and I could catch you and pull you up."
"Okay," Tall Pine agreed, willing to give it another shot. He backed up as far as he could go and then took off running to build momentum. At the foot of the ledge, he bunched his muscles to leap, but his left hind foot gave out, and he crashed head over heels into the wall.
"Are you okay?" Blossom Dust asked anxiously. She peered down at him over the side of the ledge.
Tall Pine got to his paws, wincing with pain as he tried to put weight on his back foot. "I think I sprained my foot. Jumping won't work now."
Spotted Owl grunted in frustration, but Blossom Dust was undeterred. "We could try to move the rocks and make a pile."
Tall Pine shook his head. "Most of them were heavy for me to shift when I was at full strength, so I certainly won't be able to now."
"Then one of us should help you," Blossom Dust decided, getting to her paws. She appeared as though she was ready to leap down into the cave with him.
"No, don't come down here!" Tall Pine objected. "You could injure yourself, and then we would both be stuck."
"Besides," Spotted Owl added, "I'm stronger than you, so it would be easier for me to shift the rocks."
"Then who would be left to pull us up?" Blossom Dust pointed out. "Yes, you're stronger than me, so you should be up here to pull us up if we need you to. I will be fine. I can do this. You don't have to be so overprotective of me anymore." With that, the small she-cat crouched and leaped, soaring gracefully downward and landing with a little thump on all four feet.
Tall Pine blinked in surprise. Blossom Dust has sure changed a lot. The cat I knew before I was captured wouldn't have had the courage to stand up for herself like that or do something like this. She's grown a lot and become surer of herself.
Blossom Dust glanced over her shoulder at him, her eyes sparkling playfully. "Are we going to start?"
The rocks in the heap of rubble were hard to shift, but working together, the two young cats slowly rolled them across the cave floor, creating a pile against the wall below the ledge while Spotted Owl observed from above. Soon, they had a high heap of rocks rising over halfway up the wall. With support from Blossom Dust, Tall Pine carefully picked his way up the pile. At the top, he reared up onto his hind legs, placing his forepaws on the wall. Blossom Dust leaned her body against his hind legs, bracing him in case he lost his balance. Spotted Owl leaned down from the ledge, paws outstretched.
"I can't quite reach," Tall Pine grunted, gritting his teeth in pain from his injured foot.
"We need to be a little higher. Climb onto my back," Blossom Dust ordered.
"Okay," Tall Pine agreed dubiously. Blossom Dust stepped closer to him, and he cautiously climbed on to her back, swaying a little, but the small she-cat remained firm. Stretching up again, Tall Pine reached as far as he could go. Spotted Owl was just above him, reaching to sink her teeth into his scruff. They both stretched as far as they could, then Tall Pine felt his sister's jaws close on his neck fur and slowly haul him upward. Spotted Owl grunted, almost losing her grip once, but she managed to drag him onto the ledge. The two cats collapsed on the ground, their sides heaving.
After a moment, Spotted Owl got to her paws. She nosed Tall Pine over, then looked down at Blossom Dust. "We got you up here, but Blossom Dust is still down there. How are we going to get her up?"
"I've got a plan. Just be prepared to catch me." Came Blossom Dust's confident voice. There was the sound of running pawsteps then a whoosh as the brown and golden she-cat did a running leap, pushing off of the heap of rocks. She soared upward, right into the reach of Spotted Owl who was ready and caught her. Spotted Owl's claws scraped the ledge as she tried to haul her sister up, but Blossom Dust's weight was too heavy her and dragged her slowly back to the edge. Both she-cats would've tumbled back to the cave floor had Tall Pine not sprang up and caught Spotted Owl's tail in his jaws, sharply yanking them onto the ledge.
Spotted Owl and Blossom Dust crashed into Tall Pine, sending all three of them sprawling. They lay there, stunned, all panting hard. Tall Pine's foot throbbed painfully and he was exhausted, but relieved. He was rescued and out of that horrible stone prison!
"I'm so tired," Blossom Dust said finally. "Let's find someplace safe to rest, at least for a little while."
"Agreed," Spotted Owl and Tall Pine said in unison.
Wow, already on Chapter 36! Just four more chapters left. This was chapter was longer than expected, but I'm glad of the way it has turned out. We get the joyful reunion between the brother and sisters, but also the weight of Tall Pine finally being told what is happening and what to do next.
Reviews:
The Unnamed Guest - Thank you! Maybe it will, we'll have to wait and see. Sharp is a good liar. As for who Thunderclap is, you'll have to wait until the next book, but you have the right idea. Look back at the context of what Brisk says, there is hint there. (*huge hint for the next book dropped also dropped here.*) As for Sharp, he is a very complex characters, so we'll have to wait and see.
Somerandomperson (Guest) - Yes, that is what he was supposed to do. Close. It is more of a personal matter to him. You'll find out why soon. Yes, that would be the smart thing do, but I can't confirm it or it will spoil the next few chapters!
QOTD: Who is your favorite character is this book and what do you like about them? Any suggestions for improvements? (I'm always open to those).
- A Warrior At Heart