PROLOGUE
There was once a time when the land was barren. The ground was hard and gray, baked by the burning sun and devoid of all the richness that plants yearned for. And yearn they did, as even the smallest and hardiest of weeds struggled to push their newborn stems from beneath the parched soil, and struggled even more to grow in a place with too much sun and too little rain. The only animals that dared venture into that land were feral, vicious beasts with massive claws and teeth that took from the earth what it could not give. Life there was short, violent, and miserable.
Then Stellar arrived.
No one knows from where she came, though it is thought that only the Stars themselves could have birthed her. Her eyes shimmered like sunlight on water. Her pelt was softer than gosling down. And with each delicate step she took into the land, lush grass sprouted in the place of pawprints. Flowers bloomed in miraculous glory. Trees erected and cast refreshing shade onto the ground. Water burst forth and formed cool streams and rushing rivers. Mice, squirrels, and birds hurried to flourish in their new surroundings. In a mere instant, the once-foresaken land was decorated in pure, beautiful life. And Stellar had created it for one purpose.
The very next day, Stellar laid down onto the cool grass. Her belly was round and full with a different kind of life. With a gentle push, a single kit was born and his name was Slough. As he began to suckle from her ample teats, Stellar pressed her nose to his head.
"For you, my firstborn, I give you the mind of an owl. May you be one with your surroundings and know of danger before it hits," she blessed him.
The day after Slough's birth, a second kit was born. He was smaller than his brother but he fought him for the right to feed and claimed a nipple with surprising ferocity. He was Grove, and he was gifted with the heart of a lion. Never would he falter and he would always be victorious. Then came Brisk, and he was given the bounty of fish, able to live beneath the water like any trout or pike, and reap the riches that no other could touch. Finally there was Heath, presented with the wits of a fox. Speed to be upon prey before they knew it, and the cleverness to outwit all- prey and enemies alike.
These blessed sons were showered with all of Stellar's love and care. The land that had been made for them was safe from all predators, lush with prey, and never saw the cruelty of winter. Stellar had made sure of it with her own plentiful abilities. In less than a moon, the kits had all miraculously grown into adults. And true to their mother's word, they carried powers of victory, intuition, wealth, and brilliance that drew cats to follow them. The Clans were born and they thrived.
There was only one condition that the four leaders and their Clans had to follow: Remember that all they had was thanks to Stellar, and so they must never forget her and honor her always. After all, the land they called home was of her making. It was a simple rule, and one that the Clans were happy to follow. The leaders loved their mother dearly and were grateful to her. What else could they do?
While the Clans prospered throughout most of the land, Stellar had taken only a small piece for herself. A small cave of solitude where she could rest and convene with the Stars. Inside was a small stream that fed into a pool of water that sparkled due to the many crystals that lay at the bottom of its depths, matching the ones that coated the cave's walls. The water was dubbed the Reflecting Pool. Stellar would spend days gazing into its cold beauty.
But as she had busied herself with the Stars, Stellar's children had encountered a newcomer to the forest. She was a black cat with a pelt as dark as the night of the new moon. Her eyes were deep pools of mystery and her tongue was pure silver. Her name was Nyx, and she drew the intrigue of all the leaders. Little by little, she planted seeds in their minds and twisted the vines that sprouted. She whispered to them. Day and night, she spoke sweet nothings that made them question all that they knew.
Why did they only have one power each, while their mother hoarded many to herself. Why could they not shape the earth as they pleased to suit their Clans like she could? Why were they mere leaders of Clans when they could be rulers of the forest? Surely, together they could take what they deserved.
And so the four leaders made a plan to usurp their mother. They would go to the Reflecting Pool and drown her in it.
Unbeknownst to them, Stellar had seen and heard everything through her waters. But even as she watched them unite and travel closer and closer to her home, she did not flee. She decided that this would be a test. Her children would have the chance to reconsider their choice. That was her mercy. When they arrived, Stellar sat calmly before them and told them what she knew.
"You are my kits and I love you," she mewed, "So I will forgive you. But only if you stand down and apologize right now."
The leaders did not apologize.
They attacked her with all they had. Brisk came first, attempting to grab his mother and drag her into the Reflection Pool. But the instant they both went under, he came sputtering back out. Never before had Brisk ever had to take a breath before diving beneath water, for his mother's gift allowed him to freely travel rivers and creeks without needing for air. But now he coughed and gasped from the water that flooded his airway.
Stellar was much calmer and stepped out of the water. She gazed at him and said, "Apologize."
Next came Heath and Slough. They darted forward, hoping to grasp their mother while she still stared at their brother. But in a flash, Stellar whirled and slashed at Slough's face, stunning him for the first time in his life. Blood oozed from his forehead and into his eyes and he was blinded. Heath, meanwhile, gasped as he realized his mother had leapt out of the way unlike any hare or shrew. Nothing had ever avoided him before. So startled was he that he could not stop himself from running into the pool itself, and he came up coughing just like his brother.
Stellar, who had nimbly dashed from the claws of her children, turned to them and ordered, "Apologize."
Grove let out a furious yowl and charged at her. He could taste victory on his tongue like always. He would not fail. He longed for his mother's blood to soak his claws.
But just like his siblings, he was shocked to find he was incorrect. The moment his claws met Stellar's flank, the starry cat twisted and his world blurred until, suddenly, he was on the ground and the firm paws of Stellar pressed into his chest, pinning him to the stony floor of the cave. Winded, he could only gape at her.
"Apologize!" Stellar demanded.
Instead, Grove growled and surged upward just as his siblings charged as well. They attacked as one and Stellar fell beneath them, unable to fight them all at once. Claws ripped, teeth tore, and jaws crushed a delicate throat. Blood coated them all and they welcomed it. Finally, they stood around the crumbled, brutalized remains and they cheered. The forest. The powers. It was all theirs.
But a sound made them stop. A gasp? A gargle of blood? No. A growl.
"How...Dare...You…"
The leaders watched in horror as the broken corpse before them pulled itself together. Bones moved back in place. Patches covered with silky fur. Glazed, clouded eyes became clear.
Stellar stood once more. And she was furious.
"How DARE you?! Is this how you thank me? I birthed you. I gave you powers and a life without fear or pain. I let you build Clans and take most of the forest. And this is how you repay me?"
Her eyes glittered with fury, her glare and rage crushing. Instantly, the leaders fell, dipping their heads and groveling. Apologies and pleas for mercy spewed and sputtered from their mouths, rotten and useless as guck.
"Quit your blithering!" Stellar spat. Then her voice grew cold, "The time for apologies has passed. You've all made your choice clear. If it is darkness you wish to follow, then it is darkness you shall have. From this day forth, I will leave you just like you want. But I will take my gifts with me. Your Clans will now feel all the miseries I've spared you from."
"N-no! Mother, don't!" Heath wailed. Fear shook in his voice. Beside him, Brisk muttered pleading prayers to the ground, eyes shut tight in refusal to face his mother's fury. Grove could only gape in horror. It was only Slough who jumped to his paws.
"Please!" he begged, "This wasn't our fault! We were tricked!"
"Tricked, you say?" Stellar seemed to consider him. In an instant, the others piped up, desperate to confirm their brother's words if it meant undoing Stellar's anger.
"Yes! It was Nyx! She did this!"
"She convinced us to fight you!"
"She said that we were the true rulers of the forest!"
"She fooled us, Mother! She made us hate you!"
"She's evil! She came to ruin all of us!"
"SILENCE!"
The leaders fell quiet. Tense. Afraid. Angry. Hopeful. They stared at their mother with wide eyes and prayed that she would believe them. That she would see that they were victims of an evil cat who'd wanted to corrupt them. But those prayers were ignored. Stellar had seen everything. She knew the truth of what happened.
Stellar glared at her children, "I know the temptations that cat laid out for you all. I know about her lies and her tricks. But I also know that you all listened to her. You let yourselves be fooled by her, and now look at what you've done! You're fools! All of you!"
All around the cats, wind howled into the cave and turned into roars as it echoed off the crystalline walls. The water shook and rippled. The very moon itself seemed to glow with intense anger. Stellar watched as her kits cowered before her, sinking once again to the stony floor and staring at her with pleading, terror-filled eyes. Those eyes all managed to widen even further as Stellar began to glimmer far more than normal. Her pelt shined and sparkled brighter than stars- so bright that they could no longer bear to look at her, their eyes shutting or turning away in shock.
"Nyx brought a curse unto this land, and you welcomed it. Now her dark blood will be born into every Clan. It will infect every last cat. I will not stay to watch everything I built be destroyed by your foolishness."
The bright light began to slowly fade, and Stellar's voice was growing distant with it.
"Please!" Grove let out a strangled cry, "Don't leave us! We're sorry, Mother! We're so sorry!"
"So you say…But no words...will be enough..." the voice sounded far away. There was silence. Then, "Show me your...remorse...and perhaps...one day...I will...return…"
Stellar was never seen again after that fateful night. The leaders, distraught and disheartened, returned to their respective camps. Any hope that they had for their mother's words being false were dashed in the many seasons that followed. Hunting became troublesome. Illnesses began to spread. Storms brought floods. Winter came and coated the land in snow and starvation. Foxes, dogs, badgers, snakes, and hawks descended upon the cats. Furthermore, just as Stellar had said, each Clan had lost the powers that they'd relished.
Life became a constant battle for survival, so different from the fruitful existence the Clans once enjoyed. And it all started the very moment Nyx gave birth to four kittens, all with fur as black as the darkest shadows. Each was fathered by a different leader. They were living symbols of their sires' mistakes, and harbingers of suffering and death. Just like their mother, they spoke nothing but lies and brought with them nothing but pain. They were cursed.
Rather than let these kits torture the Clans as their mother had, the leaders would stop them from spreading their corruption. The four black cats were captured and kept under constant watch. They were made to work all day and never had time to plot or trick others. They were servants who could do no evil and could not infect those around them.
But what was only meant to be a punishment unto these cats proved to be much more. Winter gave way to spring at last. Prey could be found once more. Cats discovered herbs that could heal the ill and injured. The animals that once hunted the Clans retreated into their burrows as the warriors got stronger. Life was not perfect, for all these dangers still existed and would come back time and time again. Still, at long last, it was tolerable. Livable.
It was a sign. The Clans had done something right. They had halted corruption in its tracks and punished those responsible, and so they were rewarded. But Stellar herself did not return. Black cats continued to be born. The curse was not lifted. Absolution was not that easy to obtain. So until the day comes that Stellar finally forgives the Clans, they must continue to appease her and fend off the evil that threatens them every day.
"We black cats are Cursed," Blight finished, "And that's why we're peons."
A/N: Thank you all so much for stopping by to take a look at Cursed! And thanks to everyone who was kind enough to submit an OC to make this story possible!
Please review! It means so much to me and lets me know what I'm doing right or wrong!
~ Damesel