Hello on this Superbowl Sunday!
REVIEWS
"Aspen's Soul in Night's Wish"- Thank you! Even though it obviously wasn't perfect, I thought it was a pretty big climax!
"Moonshine warriors"- Doubting Thomas :P
"Indigostartherandomkitty"- One of the top rules of writing is to kill off your darlings!
Jordan- I know, I totally soured what should've been a happy moment. All well!
Dawnfeather- You know me too well ^^
Shadowhaawk540-2- That would have been horrible... But I'm glad you enjoyed the fight! I always love writing them.
Meepypolo- Wohoo... that's pretty hard to get out of! But never underestimate an author!
"muchpanada"- How much do you want to bet that you're the only one who thought of that?
"Pines of Dew"- Well, she is a pretty new character, the mystery adds to the story right now ^^ We'll get her in the spotlight, don't worry.
Hi it's someone- Thank you! And be ready for more! I always finish my stories! (unless I die, then I kind of can't)
Chapter 36: Mystic Light
Sounds rushed in and receded on tremulous waves. A constant elevation and lowering of incessant babble that flowed at inconsistent rhythms that could not possibly be pinpointed. The world rushed similarly; dark and cold to bright and warm swaying in breath-taking rushes.
No sights were seen, but they were heard. Too overpowering to bare the naked eye at, but not so bright that the ear bled. "Wake up, wake up now." The voice hummed like an inking black stain across the glorious chaos she was experiencing.
"Come on, Scorch. Wake up now." The sound of her name was the key and it all fell away.
Mumbling incoherently, Scorch tried to stand up only to find she was already standing. Wasn't I lying on the ground? Wasn't I? She shivered as she remembered. Nightwing's brown eyes, a gray sky, white snow... red snow. Did she die?
She struggled with her eyes to open and the addition of sight off balanced her and she stumbled around like a kit first trying out its legs. The colors gradually sank in and she retained her balance. Standing before her was a familiar fluffy white and ginger face.
"Sonya," she sighed, shoulders relaxing at the sight of her friend. But her tail twitched nervously. She had not forgotten what Song had told her.
"Scorch, it is good to see you again. Though I wish the circumstances were different." Sonya stepped forward and Scorch looked around. They were standing just off from the clearing where the horrific deed had been done.
Starlight illuminated it now, turning everything it touched pearly white. But the shadows retained a fierce hold on the pine forest and drenched the surroundings in utter darkness. Only one thing was not white or black. A pool of red- frozen on the snow- stained the world with the memory of the murder.
Scorch turned and looked at it. She didn't know what to think. "Am I dead?" she thought she remembered dying, but then she'd fallen into the rush of the world.
"For all intents and purposes; you are dead." Scorch turned to look at Sonya, her breath catching and tears secreting.
"Why did this happen to me?" Her breath was coming short and even though she retained a calm demeanor toward Sonya she feared that she was panicking on the inside.
"I don't know. But it did happen," Sonya admitted and Scorch lifted her face to meet Sonya's sympathetic eyes.
"Your eyes are dark green again," Scorch mewed wondrously.
"Yes, and your eyes are bright green again. We are both in spirit form," Sonya explained. "I would not be able to talk to you any other way."
Scorch looked at her paws. Was she a ghost? There were no wounds on her paws or lower forelegs. And no ache emanated from her, the deadly wound she'd suffered on her neck was nonexistent. She stared down at her paws miserably, trying to keep the tears from flying. "I really am dead."
"Yes, about as dead as I am," Sonya mewed.
Scorch jerked her head up, "You died too?" she cried out.
Sonya flicked her tail, amusement flashing upon her face. "Remember a few nights ago when we spied on Crowpelt and Nightwing?"
Scorch remembered, but she didn't understand what that had to do with this.
"I essentially did something similar to that. The difference is that because of the powerful fear you were feeling when you were on the verge of death two things are different for you," Sonya mewed seriously.
"Yes?" Scorch was still confused, but it was calming her down.
"You will be able to remain in this state indefinitely, even when I return to my body- and as long as you are also in this state I can return to it whenever I wish. And two, you will be able to traverse the sky as well as the world in this state."
Scorch frowned, "What do you mean?"
"As I said, you are practically dead. As far as StarClan or any ancestors in the stars are concerned, you are dead and one of them."
Scorch's heart beat fast again. "So I am dead?" she wailed.
"Not quite!" Sonya soothed. "You can return to your body, same as me, however..."
"I can?! Then lets go!" Scorch bounced on her paws, anxious relief filling her.
"Wait! I'm not done telling you what you need to know!" Sonya hissed.
Scorch ignored her and raced over the snow toward camp. She skidded to a halt at the marsh that the camp was in. Brambles and churned up snow interrupted the peaceful landscape and blood and fur lay everywhere. "What happened?" she whispered to Sonya who had caught up.
"Today, soon after you died, the Clans fought the final battle against Nightwing," Sonya explained.
"And I missed it?" Scorch was kind of disappointed, but guiltily relieved.
"You are dead, you will be missing quite a lot of things," Sonya mewed crossly. "Now listen to me-"
"Lets talk later, come on!" Scorch raced over the snow, no snow stirring in her wake. She entered the camp and was not at all surprised to see the camp sitting in silent vigil. Her spirit filled with sorrow as she looked at the three cats being sat vigil for. Shadebreeze, Silverwing, and Cedarheart were all being mourned over.
Scorch picked her way carefully across the camp of mourners. Sunstar sat with his head bowed and eyes closed as he whispered no words. His pelt was badly torn up and messy with bandages. She could see Flickertail was checking up on all the remaining warriors and readjusting poultices; weariness dripped from his every move but his eyes glowed with exhausted strength.
Scorch felt frustrated that she wasn't even there to help with the wounded. She relaxed a little when she saw Jump and Mira sitting close together and Painted and Raven siting together not far away- all their eyes glazed with sadness. But where is my body? She had supposed that it would be here, but she did not see it. Another body she did not see was Boulderpaw, was he hurt? Had Crowpelt killed him?
New fear rushed through her, she looked around with a pensive frown but couldn't spot her gray coated friend. He would be here if he were dead, right? But wait, I'm dead, shouldn't I be here? I can't go look for Boulderpaw until I find my body!
"Would you please listen to me?" Sonya's whining growl caught her attention and she turned to see her standing behind her.
"Where's my body? More importantly, where's Boulderpaw?!" she demanded.
Sonya sighed, "I honestly have no idea. But Boulderpaw is alive. Now listen to what I have to say or you will not be able to return to your body. Ever."
That was enough for Scorch to hold her tongue and sit away from the mourners to hear Sonya out. "First off, you remember that we cannot be caught in the sun?"
Scorch nodded. "If you do, your spirit will- in some sense- become irreparable. It will no longer have the freedom we are experiencing. In other words, you will be unable to return to your body and be banished to the skies forever unless you have some special permission from StarClan or something."
"Why StarClan?" Scorch frowned.
Sonya sighed, "Not that it matters, but because StarClan has believers- or those that remember them- they have a few of the special abilities we have right now, and some we don't have. For example, they can appear to the strongest believers in daylight. Anyways, just don't be caught in the sun."
"What if its cloudy?" Scorch questioned.
"Clouds are fine, and shade is fine. You can just not be in direct sunlight. Though I would avoid even cloud and shade-filtered sunlight as much as possible regardless. It will gradually wear on your spirit even if it just barely touches you and will make it harder to do this in the future," Sonya was talking faster and Scorch was aware that it was nearing midnight.
"One more thing, you will be unable to return to your body the second you find it-"
"Why?"
"I'll tell you why. Because if you return to it in the same state that it was when you left it, you will still die for real. I was able to get you out of it just before you gave your final breath so your body is still capable of life. But it would continue dying if you went back to it in the condition it was in," Sonya mewed.
"Okay, I guess I understand that. I just need to heal my body?" Scorch frowned.
"There are a few things that prevent you from doing that. The spirit is not in your body, it will not be able to self-heal itself as living beings can. And you cannot actually touch physical objects unless you activate its spirit, and since you are your body's spirit- it won't help that very much," Sonya's voice was becoming anxious.
"So there's nothing we can do?" Scorch asked.
"No, there is nothing you can do. But don't worry, I have already sent Boulderpaw with instructions to heal your body. He will not fail and I imagine that by tomorrow you will be able to return to it." But Sonya didn't look as confident as she sounded.
"You seem worried, should I be?" Scorch mumbled.
"I just didn't foresee your body being taken- I'm sure you noticed its not here. I don't know who or what took it or where it is. It could pose a deadly problem," Sonya murmured.
"What do you mean?" Scorch worried.
"Well, it if were a fox and it ate your body, there's no healing that. Or if it was one of Nightwing's cats and they buried your body somewhere secret or threw it in some water, Boulderpaw wouldn't be able to get to it. Just know that you're not out of the woods yet. You are still dead." Sonya watched her for a nod of agreement and
Scorch gave it.
She wondered how she should feel. But she didn't feel anything. She was too worried and anxious about too many different things. She didn't know whether to give up or have faith. Right now it felt like she was doing both.
"Scorch?" Sonya placed her tail on her shoulder hesitantly. "I don't think you should have to deal with the waiting. I can take you to a safe place while we wait for your body to be healed. I will go back to my body and find Boulderpaw and when we're done I will come get you to return. Will that be alright?"
Scorch looked up at her friend and nodded slowly. "I'd really like that."
"Excellent," Sonya purred, pulling her to her paws, they both headed out of the camp and into the woods.
Soon the scenery began to change. The snowy night forest blurred around them and wavered, as if they were looking at it from under water. Sonya ignored it and walked on steadily, her eyes focusing on nothing.
Scorch watched it was silent awe, stretching her head around to see above and behind them. It continued to change, glowing lighter as if it were being swallowed whole. And then the shapes hardened, no more wavering. Warm colors and soft lights decorated the scenery around them.
Scorch jumped as she realized that she was standing in sunlight. She looked with wide eyes at Sonya, but the she-kit just laughed- stepping into the sunlight herself. "This is a safe place. Its not the real world. Nothing can hurt you here," Sonya assured her.
Scorch nodded slowly and drew in the sights and sounds. "Where is this?" she asked in wonder.
"Hmm, good question. We're not in the real world, but not in the skies. I don't know exactly where, perhaps in between?" Sonya mused while Scorch started wandering around. The sparse forest they were in was in full leaf, unlike anything Scorch had ever seen. The grass was greener than green and the soft, lush leaves above her head were dimpled ivory gold.
She reached up to touch it, just to see if it were real. The leaf was velvety soft beneath her paw and it tingled coursing energy that filled and overflowed her with warmth. "It's incredible," she whispered, lowering her nose to the grass and fixating her eyes on a slow-moving ladybug.
"It really is, I think you'll enjoy your stay here more than you would back in the forest. You don't have to worry about your body here, but watch yourself carefully and try not to stray too far from here," Sonya warned.
"Alright, you want me to stay just in this little area?" Scorch asked, looking up from the bug she'd been patronizing.
"No," Sonya giggled, smiling broadly as she usually did. "Just stay around here," and she lifted a trailing bough that had blocked a small arch. Scorch gasped and bounded over to the arch and stood staring out.
A brilliantly blue lake laid like a rippling sky just down a small hill that she stood upon. She could see near her beside the lake, a small waterfall cascading veils of rain down a pile of rocks into the water with a melodious tune. The beach near the lake was covered with glittering, gold sand and the small waves crashed with transparent beauty with white tips licking up the sand.
The other side of the lake was lost to the horizon and a small island jutted out half-way around to her left. With the breeze carrying half-recognizable scents along as it chased her tail around and breathed into her the spirit of recklessness.
"Stay by the lake and don't wander too far into the woods. It'll make it easier for me to find you if you stay here. Don't try to do anything, just have fun and don't worry! I'll take care of everything else," Sonya promised, laying her tail over her shoulders.
Scorch nodded, eyes drawn to the marvelous sight that fed her eyes as a feast. She barely realized when Sonya had left and she stood there staring, thinking she could watch it for forever.
…...
However, Scorch was still just a kit. And forever lasted only half the afternoon. By the time the sun was sinking down to her right, she was down on the beach- drawing figures in the sand with her claws.
She hummed as she created pictures that vaguely resembled cats. Her mind wandered with her gaze out to the lush water. Pushing herself to her paws, she went down to the waterline for the tenth time and looked out over the unreachable lake- eyes narrowing against the glare of the sun.
There's something strange here, but I don't know what it is. Thinking carefully, she couldn't decide. This place felt real, she could feel the grains of sand beneath her paws and the wind in her ears and the sun on her back. It smelled real, rich scents came from the forest behind her and a cool, fishy taste came off the water. The water was cold and good and the prey she had caught was soft and warm. It certainly looked real, and the sounds of the waves and the calls of birds and the tiny rustlings in the forest were pure magic to her who had known only the cold silence of snow for so many days.
But something was off, something she just couldn't place in the beautiful world. It was pure paradise it seemed, she couldn't have wished for a more relaxing place to stay and play. But it was too perfect for her to be on her own.
Loneliness sank down on her heavily and she realized that she'd never actually been alone before. There had always been somewhere to go or someone to see. Now there was no where to go and no one to talk to but herself and the breeze.
Boredom is the prime suspect for breaking rules and Scorch didn't see anything wrong with exploring a little. As the sun sank like a fireball in the sky and the moon came out, a small halo of the sun in the purple-dusk sky, she started out into the forest.
The undergrowth was thick and few trails gave easy travel. It was a lot of backtracking and crisscrossing of trails to move forward. She yelped as- with the twilight darkness upon her- she stepped on a trailing thorn tendril. She hopped backwards and sat on the grass and leaves, licking the paw anxiously as her thoughts turned to wishing the future would come faster so that she could return to her body.
But there was no taste of blood and the pain soon faded. Scorch looked around quickly, suddenly chilled by the abrupt silence. Before she had gotten to her paws the scenery and light started to change rapidly. The trees shed their leaves and the sky rushed by with day and night mingling, slowing to become clouds. Snow had fallen unseen up to her belly and she shivered at the sudden cold.
She vaguely wondered if she had returned to her world by wandering away from the lake but she didn't recognize this place and no Clan scents hung in the forest. Looking around, she watched her breath puff out and decided to return to the lake so that she could wait for Sonya. Exploring no longer seemed to be a good idea.
Starting out, she stumbled on things that hadn't been there before and fumbled in the snow. It was as if the very landscape had been altered slightly and she wondered again if she was back in her own world. The lake appeared before her, gleaming in icy glory. She shivered in the open wind as she stepped down to the frozen shore and looked around with new eyes. Back in the familiar cold snow season, things looked a little more familiar. But not quite how she remembered them.
The lake was a mirror of the one back with the Clans, but the shorelines and the distant territories still looked different to her untrained eyes. But I'm still alone. Not even a day of being completely isolated was wearing on her and she looked around bleakly. With the cold snow reflecting her feelings, this paradise no longer seemed like paradise.
Since sitting here miserably was not very appealing and she was afraid of going back into the forest out of guilt for betraying Sonya's orders and worry about messing things up more, she turned down the shore and stared walking along it to see if she could find some shelter nearby.
Her ears twitched as she stopped suddenly. Her eyes scanned the area opposite of the lake shore. The forest laid behind her and an open expanse of moors opened familiarly bare. "Strange, I thought I heard something," she told no cat.
She paused and listened. "Now I know I heard something," she announced to herself. Veering off the shoreline, she turned into the abandoned hills. Her naive curiosity overcoming the cold as she stalked with lifted tail and pricked ears.
They twitched as the sound reached her again; a small kittenish squeak. Looking around, not a think disturbed the blinding white landscape of higher and lower lumps like large, round heads covered in snow. But the sound came again, carrying an element of pleasure in its inaudible tone.
A shiver swept through Scorch's belly, making its way along her spine and pricking up her furs. The sound was also familiar, while at the same time alien. Picking her way over the snow that held her weight and left no sign of her passing, she gasped as nothing caught her step.
Tripping and subsequently falling, she slid on her stomach down the steep hill that snow had drifted against. Blinking bleary white snow out of her eyes, Scorch lifted her head and jumped in shock.
A pair of bright amber eyes stared down at her and a silly black face smiled at her. "Who are you?" the creature asked as Scorch scrambled and slipped on the snow.
"Um... uh..." Scorch tried to recover her pounding heart and scattered mind to accurately designate her position. A black kit was staring at her with head half-tilted and was about her size, but had fluffier looking fur and brighter eyes which made her look younger. The black kit was about as hidden in the snow as a tree on a bare hillside.
But Scorch brought herself back to look at those amber eyes. Bright and brilliant and untainted by any of the things Scorch had seen in her own short life. "My name is Wing," she told the other kit. Somehow she didn't feel it right to speak her name here, and Wing was the last cat she'd talked to besides Sonya and Nightwing.
"That's a nice name," the kit purred, bouncing closer. She reminded Scorch of Sonya, but it felt wrong on this kit- as if she should behave differently.
The kit was right in front of her now and Scorch leaned away from her, looking awkwardly at those twin amber eyes. "Do you live here?" the kit asked as Scorch didn't speak.
"No..." Scorch felt confused though she didn't know why. Something in her didn't understand this reality now. Probably because she hadn't thought this was a reality.
I thought this was a place like how the Clan cats made StarClan sound. But I don't see stars in her fur, so I don't think she's dead. So, where am I exactly? She wished Sonya were here to help explain things to her.
"So you're passing through? Why don't you come meet my family! We've always lived here with a bunch of other cats, come on. They won't mind," the kit purred, putting her tail around Scorch's shoulders and pulling her along.
Other cats? Scorch wondered but didn't stop the kit from dragging her over the snowy moors. After all, where there were cats there was shelter. And she'd go back to the shore before long. She'd be there by the time Sonya came back.
Scorch looked around the white moor that was void of objects. "Is there anything out here?" she wondered out loud.
"Of course!" the kit looked back at her, snorting to herself. "There are lots of bushes and rocks, but with the cloudy skies its hard to see the shadows so its not as noticeable."
Scorch nodded and looked harder but only saw flat white that rose and fell in lazy, sloping fashion like immoveable waves. But a cat appeared in front of them out of nowhere and Scorch jumped, heart racing. The kit didn't blink though, releasing her grip on Scorch and bouncing over to the appeared cat who was a young orange tom with amber eyes that matched the kit's. In fact, on him, they looked more familiar. More steady and tranquil.
"Who are you?" he asked in a rough voice, not quite a growl but not friendly.
"Wing," she answered with her fake name as her guide bounced over to the tom.
"I found her wandering by the lake, Fish, and offered her to come visit us. She was all alone and-"
"That's enough," the tom cut her off sharply. "It was not your place to offer that to her. We cannot afford to feed another mouth right now, she should go."
Scorch opened her mouth to apologize. "You're quite right, she cannot stay with you. Come along now, Wing," she turned in surprise to see Sonya standing right behind her.
A greeting was on Scorch's lips but it died away quickly. She had never seen a cat look as flustered and embarrassed and angry as Sonya did now. "Son-"
"Don't speak my name," her friend cut her off. "Now come here, quickly!" to the others, "I'm sorry to have disturbed you," she bowed her head.
Scorch turned to follow Sonya, she didn't know what was wrong but she didn't want to make it worse by fighting. But just before they disappeared from view, she turned back and looked at the two cats. They stood small and lonely in the snow. Her eyes met the tom's amber eyes for a moment. Confusion and questions were transmitted between them and were left unanswered as Sonya pulled her along.
"You shouldn't have done that!" Sonya hissed as she rushed along the empty land.
"What? What did I do?" Scorch asked, frowning slightly.
"Talk to another cat! Or leave the lake shore to start with," Sonya frowned deeply and the lines they created showed reproach rather than anger. "I told you not to leave the lake shore, why couldn't you do it?" Sonya paused to look at her.
Scorch looked at her paws, "Well, I was all alone and bored so I just went for a little walk and than it turned to winter so I looked for some shelter and..."
"And met those cats?"
"No, only the kit. The other cat came just before you did," Scorch corrected.
"Did you tell the kit anything?" Sonya pressed.
"Nothing... just that my name is Wing and that I don't live here."
Sonya sighed in relief, "Well, at least it was no worse. I didn't think you would meet any cat here since you were supposed to stay on the lake shore at that time but I guess I should have told you," the kit murmured.
"Told me what?" Scorch questioned anxiously, looking at Sonya with big, bright eyes.
"It doesn't matter anymore, your body is ready. Are you?" Sonya smiled and purred at her.
Scorch jumped and nodded excitedly. The tom and kit being pushed out of her mind by the thought of her friends and the Clans. "Right, follow me!" Sonya jumped into the air and Scorch followed her, the world transforming once again into a shivering bubble around them. It transformed much faster this time and by the time they landed- granted they seemed to be suspended in air for a moment- it was solid.
Familiar pines hung around them and the snow was dim and gray. But bright sunlight broke through some of the pine branches and illuminated the snow into brilliant, blinding whiteness. "What? Its daytime? It was night when I went for you..." Sonya murmured, frowning intensely with a confused look in her eyes.
"Okay," the kit turned to Scorch. "I'm going back to my body, but you follow in your spirit. Do not dare touch the sunlight, its reflecting off the snow and is stronger than usual; just touching it a little will mean its all over for you. I'll lead you to your body, but we should hurry or it will start decomposing," Sonya mewed, hurrying over to a snow-covered bush at the base of a pine tree.
"Decomposing?" Scorch padded after her.
"When a body is no longer living, it naturally begins to break down and become part of the soil. If you're gone too long it won't work properly anymore. But we're not at that point yet, especially since its been so cold, so don't worry. We just shouldn't delay any longer than we have to," Sonya mewed.
Scorch nodded and watched as Sonya's spirit reconnected with her body that was hidden in the bush. There was a slight flash as the two merged and then the eyes opened and they were bright green again. Sonya blinked, but her eyes didn't focus on Scorch and she knew she was invisible to her.
Sonya started moving forward along a trail of shadow that Scorch copied- dodging sun rays and sticking to the depths of darkness. She didn't recognize where they were before long though, outside of familiar ShadowClan or rogue territory.
Sonya stopped abruptly ahead of her and Scorch sat back on her haunches to avoid bumping into her. Sonya stood with her ears pricked and her nose to the wind, her eyes growing with apprehension.
What? Before Scorch had time to test the air herself Sonya was on the run and dashing dangerously close to the sunlight. Scorch followed best she could and before long Sonya had turned into a snowy clearing where sunlight pooled and dashed across toward a small tangle of tree roots and brier bushes.
Splatters of scarlet rain ran like fire over the pure white snow, staining it with the crimson horror. This was what Sonya had, inevitably, smelled and it gave Scorch a tight chest and a light head. Paws shacking, she stood still as Sonya raced into the tangled shelter.
Was Boulderpaw all right? The thought occupied her mind and she shifted her paws, starting to nervously edge forward in the shadows around the clearing. It was silent, not a breath pressured the air. But signs of a fierce fight were increasingly evident, broken branches, turned-up snow and frozen earth, and of course the bloody remains mixed with clumps of fur.
Scorch's ears pricked at Sonya's agonized howl. That's it! I need to know what's happening! Dashing around the clearing she skimped the shadows until she stood in front of the tangled den. The stench of blood penetrated her spirit nose and she went into the den.
Surprisingly it was longer than she had thought and patches of sunlight spied dangerously through the drafty cover. Sonya stood at the end in front of a collapsed gray bundle with her body in front of her. First, I've got to get to my body.
Expelling all other thoughts, she carefully tiptoed toward her body, breathing a sigh of relief as she passed the largest patches. Blinding light flashed upon her and she felt herself stiffen. Eyes searching, they widened in horror as she saw bright sunlight shining down on her as a cat's ears were silhouetted above her. Oh no!
She turned to look at Sonya and she saw Sonya staring at her. She could be seen. No! Pushing through the stiffness she made a final leap for her body as it began to darken and she sank into a dizzying blackness.
Scorch never felt herself land.
...
So, I can't give up without a fight, right? Feel free to keep wondering if Scorch lives or not, I'm not telling :P
It's superbowl time again! Of course, if you're not American you probably don't care. I was just thinking abotu what I was doing this time last year. I was in a totally different life situation ^^ But I forced myself to agree with myself that the changes haven't been bad. It'd been so exhausting to keep wishing to go back.
Please Review!