A stunning gold and pink sunset was disappearing over the trees as a group of half-grown, laughing cats trotted across the reeds.
"Shut up, Spikepaw!" giggled a ginger tabby. "You totally didn't swim to the island! I was with you that day. You were trying to catch a carp and fell into the river. That's why he was wet," she added to her smirking companion.
A black tom with long, puffed-up fur, rolled his eyes. "I would never fall into the river, Flickerpaw. You didn't see nothing."
Flickerpaw's friend suddenly darted forward, slamming into Spikepaw's flank. The tom fell back with a squawk, landing in a shallow stream that had been hidden by reeds. He yowled, thrashing wildly as the gentle current weaved past him. A white head poked from behind a red alder tree. "Why's Spikepaw in the stream?" mewed the head.
Flickerpaw jumped at the voice. "Oh, hi, Frozenpaw. Nutmegpaw pushed him."
Spikepaw sat up, spluttering. "You- what- I- seriously?"
Nutmegpaw smirked. "If you think you're gonna drown in a lousy creek, then you definitely couldn't have swam to the island."
Frozenpaw glanced at the darkening sky. "Hey, I have an idea," he meowed. "Let's stay out late to tell spooky stories!"
Spikepaw, his black pelt sodden with river water, bounced to his paws. "Great! Who's gonna start?"
Flickerpaw boldly lifted her chin. "Sit your sorry tails down, 'cuz you're going to be crying for your mommy."
Frozenpaw shared a bemused glance with Nutmegpaw. "That... didn't make sense."
The ginger tabby rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just listen, okay? My dad told me this when I was a kit. Couldn't sleep for three days." After clearing her throat, she began.
"Once there was a tom named Braveclaw. He was incredibly handsome, strong, and intimidating. All the she-cats in his Clan wanted him to be their mate, but there was one cat he was interested in- Dewflower. She was easily the prettiest cat throughout AirClan, QuietClan, HiddenClan, and WaterClan, and that was saying something. HiddenClan's leader had been the most beautiful she-cat- wait, this has nothing to with the story.
"So anyway, Braveclaw really wanted Dewflower to be his mate. But she was only interested in his... plot twist... brother! His name was Quickfoot, and he was the fastest cat in AirClan. There was a rumor that he was descended from Mercury herself, and he had a much kinder personality than Braveclaw. This was why Dewflower loved him."
"Wait a minute," Nutmegpaw broke in. "They though he was a descendant of Mercury? That's impossible, everyone knows that the gods can't have children. If they did, the kits would cause a massive explosion, therefore destroying all feline life."
Flickerpaw snapped at her to shut up, then kept speaking.
"So Braveclaw tried to win Dewflower over with his muscles and bravery. But Dewflower wasn't interested, so his attempts were useless."
After four moons, Braveclaw was ready to give up, which he had never done. But there was talk of a sorcerer, a messenger of Uranus, who had settled near the Star Tree. So Braveclaw set off in the middle of the night and found the cat sorting some sort of blue stones under the Star Tree.
"'Hello,' he said. The cat uttered not a single mew. It just continued sorting the stones, waving silver paws over the blue shapes. Braveclaw was ready to poke the cat when it unsheathed its claws and ran them across the largest stone. A beam of moonlight lit the stone, which had somehow turned blood red.
"Braveclaw was nervous now. The cat turned to meet his gaze. It had pale gray eyes, and the tabby tom could see that its pelt was not just silver, but had tinges of mint and aquamarine. It croaked, 'So we finally meet, Braveclaw. Uranus sent me to you, saying that you needed my assistance. You are Braveclaw, aren't you?'"
Frozenpaw shivered violently. "This cat sounds like a creep. Mint- and aqua-tinged fur? Outrageous!"
"Braveclaw replied that he was indeed himself, and the cat smirked, showing blunt, yellow teeth. 'I hear that you need some love magic,' it purred. 'Come closer, boy, and listen.'
"Braveclaw sat beside the cat. After a quiet moment, it began to stroke the red gem, still illuminated by the moon. 'This gem is the source of all love,' it meowed quietly. 'However, whoever uses it must pay the price in the end.'"
Spikepaw, his fur almost dry, stared into the dark trees as if he could see the shining red stone. "That sounds so cool," he murmured. Snapping out of his trance, he asked, "But what's the price?"
"Once Braveclaw heard that the stone produced love, he didn't pay attention to the cat's final words. His mind was clouded with hunger, need to have Dewflower love him more than that wretched Quickfoot. The cat dipped its head and faded into mist, taking all but the shimmering red stone. I'll tell you his final whispers- 'The consequence of using the stone is immortality. You will only have the one you desire for a short time, and then everyone you know will die until you are destroyed by the collapse of the universe. Goodbye.'"
"Braveclaw got back at dawn. He had no idea how he was going to use the stone to make Dewflower love him, but he had to do it soon. It looked like Quickfoot was becoming more an more affectionate by the day. So he crept into the warriors' den and settled beside Dewflower. He then set the stone between their almost-touching flanks and waited.
"Dewflower blinked open her eyes at the sudden coldness on her side. Braveclaw waited expectantly. After a moment, Dewflower purred and gave Braveclaw a loving, sloppy lick on the cheek."
"Gross!" yelped Nutmegpaw. "Ew!"
"The Clan was astonished at Dewflower's change on heart. Nobody would expect the sweet, kind she-cat to fall for the most arrogant, yet admittedly handsome, tom in AirClan. Mercury got mad at Uranus for playing such a trick and the she-cats wouldn't speak to each other for quite a while.
"Time passed. Dewflower had many litters of kits, each more beautiful than the last. Braveclaw never seemed to age, but eventually, after many moons, Dewflower died. Braveclaw was devastated, and he spent as much time with his kits as he could, knowing that his time must be near as well.
"However, it never was. Every one of the kits he had died from either accident or battle wounds before he even felt his age. Everyone he knew fell victim to the gods- Quickfoot, his mind shattered from heartbreak; Silverdrop, one of his earliest lovers; and his youngest son, Stoatpaw, after whispering, 'I love you, Daddy,' in his ear before dying from a snakebite. All of them, gone.
"They say that Braveclaw went insane after everyone he loved died. He roams the Clan territory, living off wandering apprentices. He may be watching us now." Flickerpaw shot a narrowed-eyed look at Spikepaw, who was slouched against a tree, a bored look in his yellow eyes.
"That wasn't scary at all," he groaned. "It's moonhigh, if you haven't noticed, so I'm going to bed."
"Not scary, eh?"
The voice came from the dark trees. Nutmegpaw was instantly on her paws, hazel eyes wide and scared. "Who are you? Come out!"
A mangled, deformed tabby shape slunk into the clearing. It must have once been handsome, but now was emaciated and twisted. Its eyes were so pale, they seemed white, and a ring of reddish-black surrounded them. Saliva dripped from black teeth.
"I see my tale has lived on," it hissed, tongue flicking like a snake. "That stupid imbecile of a messenger tricked me. He should have warned me of the consequences."
Frozenpaw lifted his chin. "He did. He said, 'The consequence of using the stone is immortality. You will only have the one you desire for a short time, and then everyone you know will die until you are destroyed by the collapse of the universe.'"
The thing hissed, lashing out at the white tom. "I heard. Now, for ridiculing my sad tale, I will kill this foolish tom. Spikepaw, was the name? Never mock me."
Spikepaw began to roll his eyes, then stopped. He glanced down at his neck, where the gleam of bone showed through amid torn flesh and sprays of blood . Without a sound, he crumpled to the ground.
Nutmegpaw turned on the creature. "You monster!" It was licking the blood from its yellow, cracked claws, pausing when Nutmegpaw yowled. "A monster, huh?" he rasped. "My brother was a monster. He knew that Dewflower was mine, and mine alone. So I'll kill you for accusing of being something I'm not."
Nutmegpaw leapt back to avoid the almost-invisible flash of claws. But she then fell with a gurgle, her insides flopping out of her stomach and staining the moonlit grass red. Frozenpaw wailed, crouched on the ground. The creature gave him a pitying glance. "Go back to your Clan, child," he murmured. "Don't trust anybody who offers something impossible." Frozenpaw didn't hesitate. He bolted into the forest, yowling, "Help! Help!"
The thing sighed. "Better finish the job before those blasted cats arrive." Flickerpaw noticed him staring at his claws and ran.
She almost made it out of the clearing. By now, she could hear the cries of her Clanmates. The creature's stinking breath was blowing in her face. "Tried to run, eh? Nobody escapes from Braveclaw. Nobody."
Before his claws ripped open her throat, Flickerpaw sliced her paw through the air. The thing yanked her windpipe out, before he coughed, blood spurting onto the grass. "No!" he gurgled. "I was supposed to live forever!"
The same cat who had given him the Lovestone appeared before him. "For your crimes, you shall suffer eternal damnation in the Sea of Silence. Uranus has recognized her wrongdoing and felt that this is the appropriate punishment."
Braveclaw hacked out a clump of blood. "No!" He tried to slice open the cat's throat, but it merely stepped back. "Flickerpaw, Nutmegpaw, and Spikepaw will be honored like the high messengers when the reach the stars. You never should have accepted my offer, Braveclaw. Sadly, it's too late to change the past."
The cats of AirClan, led by a frantic Frozenpaw, found four bodies in the clearing that morning. Three they knew and one they didn't. The elders got the Clan gossiping that it was a messenger from the sky, telling them to move from the forest and onto the beach. The leader took heed of this, and moved his Clan down onto the sand. This is why we live on the beach.
"Satisfied?" grumbled a yellow tom. The brothers in front of him shared an excited glance. "I wanna go find the apprentices' graves!" meowed the brown tabby. His sibling nodded enthusiastically. "Thanks, Quillflame!" they cried as they left the den.
Quillflame smiled after them, then turned to the nest beside him. A silver tom with mint- and aqua-tinged fur took a deep breath, then clambered to his paws. Ribs showed through his pelt. "Come on, Gyjukol," he grumbled. "I want to go take a nap. I'm getting too old to be a messenger."
Gyjukol laughed as he followed his mentor into shadows of the elder's den, leaving a sleeping Quillflame behind. "You know the new generations need to hear the stories of our bravest messengers, Hequrav," he teased. "Or else they would be shunted into mere Starland."
Hugurav set his gray eyes on the light beginning to appear on the horizon. "Starland is a fine place," he growled. "But there is a problem coming on the wind. It's going to strike when we're as unprepared as we can get." Turning to his apprentice, he meowed, "Braveclaw's legacy is far from over."
You might be thinking, Yay, it's the promised long chapter! I'm sorry. It's not :(
QOTD: Have you read Watership Down? If you have, did you like it?
AOTD: Yes, and I absolutely loved it. The end made me think about my first rabbit, and I had a breakdown and couldn't talk sensibly. Haha
And yes, this happens in the world of Find Us (go to chapter 48 I think). They have a bunch of different beliefs than the original five. And if you think I've been sort of annoyed/grumpy these past few chapters, sorry. I've had a bad cold and I've been sort of tired. Since I haven't updated Discrimination in (I think) two weeks, this whole weekend with (hopefully) be dedicated to that.
Hope you enjoyed! Bai!
-Cherrystone
