Chapter 14
FearClan/Lion
A cold chill ran through the strange passage between Twoleg dens. It pierced through Lion's leafbare-thick fur, making her shudder. The only company she had was Berry, the cream tabby she-cat was sticking close to her with wide pale yellow eyes glancing to and fro. Danger lurked anywhere, yet, Lion was not bothered by it. Perhaps it would end her suffering after countless moons she endured back in FearClan.
The black-stone gently dipped as she lead the way, her tail flicking irritably at the separation that was caused. Memories, fresh and bitter, filled her mind. Moth had been ready to show his belly to a Fragment without their support. All of which was enough for the true advisor decide to not help them. Thus, leaving them broken apart like snowflakes falling from the same sky.
"There could be dogs around, so we better be careful." Berry murmured worriedly.
Lion ignored her as she loped along, her amber eyes focused on the path ahead of her, stomach yowling in hunger. Swiftly, she padded searching for prey or any food-smells. Her senses were trained and focused on the funneled winds. Her nostrils flaring as she struggled to find food. There was faint traces of dogs and some other meaty-scented creatures. She licked her jaws in anticipation as a strange prey-scent crossed her nose and scent glands.
"Berry, do you smell what I smell?" she asked, feeling eager to sink her teeth into real prey.
The cream tabby tasted the air, before alarm sparked in her pale yellow eyes. "Rats! Those can be dangerous!"
"And they can be delicious." Lion commented, flicking her tail tip with excitement. "Come on, we can hunt at least one of them."
"It would be dangerous." Berry warned again, fear edging her mew.
Twitching her ears dismissively, Lion crept further into the alley, focusing on potential prey to fill their bellies. Stalking carefully, she peered around, trying to find the large rodent. Her amber eyes searching as a shadow flitted among the rubbish. Flicking her ears, she raised her head to peer above strange crumpled bits to the rustling rat.
It's dark fur slicked back with glinting dark eyes that made her skin crawl. She had never seen a rat by the river, but she was sure it was like a big mouse. Narrowing her eyes, she honed in on it as she crept closer and closer. It rustled noisily among the crow-food smelling rubbish, oblivious to her presence as it scavenged. Once she felt she was close enough she pounced, landing squarely on the slippery rodent.
It squealed in shock, it's muscles rolling under her claws as it whipped it's head around with a sharp snap of it's yellowed fangs. The sharp teeth were a whisker away from her nose when she tried to dispatch it. With a hiss, she lunged again, snapping her teeth into it's spine with a crunch. Flicking her tail, she was satisfied with her kill. She lifted the limp body and padded over to Berry confidentially.
"I never thought you would catch it." Berry mewed, her pale yellow eyes bright in awe.
"Never underestimate a River-Cat." Lion replied, her mew muffled by the greasy fur of the rat.
Berry nodded, her ears twitching as she nervously turned her head. Something was rustling in the rubbish as Lion started to tuck into the rat. She ate around half of it when the rustling suddenly stopped. The air was still as the reddish-brown she-cat lifted her head, licking the last traces of rat as she tried to find the source.
Her whiskers quivered as the ground began to tremble beneath her paws. A loud bellow sounded behind her. Just as she turned her head, cream tabby fur flashed past her with a roaring battle cry. Her amber eyes wide as the she-cat flung herself onto a ragged looking dog. It was big, at least twice the height of a cat on their paws and perhaps two cat-lengths and a half long. It's fur a dark russet color with dark brown eyes that glittered with malice and hunger. Drool had been dripping from it's jaws as Berry's leap of faith made contact.
Her fur bushed out as she let out a strangled hiss of shock, Berry had clung to it's face, screaming in agony as she dug her claws into the back of it's skull. It's jaws clamped onto one back leg that was bleeding profusely. The drool starting to run red and sticky as it held on fast with a snarling growl. Lion was about to launch herself into the fray, when more cats flashed past her. A small dark brown tom went for one of the dog's thin legs, snarling as he bit into it.
The dog let Berry go with a howl of rage, shaking her off it's head and flinging her into the silver shiny rubbish bins. Berry crashed into the silver rubbish bins noisily, denting the walls of the crow-food holders and knocking them over with ear shattering clangs. The small tom let out a wild hiss, arching his back as the dog lunged again, it's jaws opened wide and pink froth at the corners of it's bloody jaws. Lion launched herself without a second thought, slashing at it's soft, fleshy black nose.
Blood sprayed out, causing the dog to yelp, fury glittering in it's dark eyes as the tom bolted swiftly around the dog, slashing their paws expertly. A white tom had leaped onto the dogs back, biting into the back of it's neck with sharp fangs. Snarling and growling, the dog bucked and kicked, ragged claws lashing the air all the while Lion backed away; looking briefly where Berry had landed, only seeing her tail sticking out of the rubbish. Berry wasn't moving, but Lion hoped she was just stunned as her stomach lurched at the thought the cream tabby might actually be dead somehow.
The dog managed to kick a hind paw into the small tom, knocking him flying from the way the dog had came with a yelp. With a rough shake, the white tom fell off as the dog began to bolt. It's eyes suddenly sparkling with fear as Lion lashed out at it and gave chase. The dog was faster on it's long legs, pelting through the alley, kicking up loose black stones of the thunderpath. It's ears were pinned back, it's tail tucked in as it fled. It's thundering paws echoing in the alley as rocks and pebbles clattered noisily with the scrape of it's jagged claws.
The advisors meeting area exploded, startling the dog into a yelping howl. Moth and Breeze were giving it more wounds to remind them by. Sharp claws flashing and ripping the russet fur of the dog. The advisors also came in to give support in numbers, scaring off the dog who ran even faster, limping slightly as it raced away. Before she knew it, the dog had vanished around a corner with it's yelps and whines echoing through the alley; fading as it went farther and farther away.
Lion watched as the cats came to them, their eyes sparking with worry and shock. She turned and went to Berry, finding that Moth had made a beeline for the cream tabby. His emerald green eyes wide in horror as Lion slowly approached. The other cats slowly gathered, blood and crow-food reeked in the air as she tried to see. Her ears flicking forward in horror as she saw the blood oozing from the dog bite.
Berry wasn't moving, her eyes wide and glazed over. Her neck bent at an awkward angle. Moth crouched above her, listening carefully before shaking his head. The cream and white tom padded over, his frosty blue eyes dark with sorrow. Shaking his head, he looked to the bright ginger tom expectantly. "So, what will you do now?" he inquired.
"I don't know. All I know is that I am so sorry." Moth breathed, looking to Lion, who only stared back with anger coiling inside her.
"Who are you more sorry to? Me or Berry?" she snapped, "She saved me. If you were with us you would have saved her too!"
"And if you stayed you would both be safe!" Moth retorted, the fur lifting along his shoulders.
Jasmine took a step forward. "Dog Chaser, fetch Quail. I wish to speak with him now. Hail, Breeze, keep a lookout. The dog may have pack mates to come back here to finish the job."
"Right." the white tom nodded, taking position to keep watch with the older she-cat.
Lion looked over to Jasmine, lashing her tail. "And what are you going to do now?"
Jasmine sighed softly. "I had time to think. You and Moth are to join the fragment to help rid of the coyotes that come into the Twoleg Place. After that, Quail will escort everyone to where you live while some of us go to help another cat. I just need his permission so we can get the foxes dealt with before they do anymore damage."
"Very well, I don't know what we can do, but we will try whatever it takes." Lion promised, starting to relax. "We owe you that much since the toms saved me after Berry attacked."
Jasmine nodded, starting to lead the group back to the meeting spot. The white tom, Hail, bringing up the rear while Breeze stood tall facing away from them. Her ears pricked as she watched the alley for any sign of the dog coming back. Her tail tip twitched in irritation as she stayed ahead of them. Moth brushed against Lion gently, causing her to shoot him a glance. His head was low with shame that he hadn't been able to do anything to help.
"Don't feel sorry for yourself." Lion told him, "Was she your mate?"
"No." he answered her, his mew thick with grief. "But we could have been if it meant to live peacefully away from FearClan."
"Then she didn't put any unborn kits in danger, that's all that matters." Lion told him, looking ahead again. "She did what she believed was right and she saved my life. I didn't deserve it, but at least one of you did. If anyone should feel sorry, it's me."
"Feeling sorry won't change anything." Moth reminded her.
Lion looked to Moth. "I know, the funny thing is, I thought I would feel numb when Finch died. I never thought I would feel something for any of you after that."
Moth blinked at her warmly. "It's alright. We can still grieve for her. No matter the history, she is still someone you grew up knowing."
Slowly, she nodded, feeling her heart become lighter in moons. Even lighter than when she befriended Hawk. Looking ahead, she felt her spirits lifted now. Even if it was impossible, there was still time to make everything right. Even though, Lion truly had no idea how any of them can stop a coyote, whatever it may be.
"We will wait in the Advising Clearing." Jasmine meowed gently, "It will be safest there for all of us."
Moth nodded, "Alright." He hesitated before asking, "What do we do if Quail doesn't want to help?"
"There is no way he can refuse when your she-cat companion had sacrificed herself bravely and the other had fought valiantly beside Hail and Dog Chaser." the advisor told him.
Lion blinked, twitching her hears. "How did Dog Chaser get his name? Was he born with it or named after his skills?"
"He is swift and is often bait to lead dogs away from camps." Jasmine answered her. "His name was Chase but was changed by Quail to commend his skills."
"Interesting." Lion mewed. "I thought only Clan-cats could do that."
"Well any cat can change their name if they want to." the advisor replied.
"Strange." Moth rumbled. "Perhaps we aren't all that different after all."
"Beneath skills, hunting preferences, and prey choices, as well as family ties, all cats are cats." Jasmine informed the two. "What makes Clan-cats different is their beliefs. As for what makes BloodClan what it is, is the blood that ties us together. We are all related in some way or another, we are family and must protect each other as such. Some may think we are meant to spill it, but we of the Giant Garden Fragment believe that we are all kin and must look after one another."
"Since we were one of the fragments, you will help us anyway." Moth perked up, his tail raising slightly.
"In truth, that would be the reason we would think about helping and if we can afford to. Any cat who fights alongside a Fragment-cat is one we will be happier to lend a helping paw for." Hail added in. "All fragments were from the Giant Garden in the heart of the Twoleg Place. At least until those Twolegs came to tear us apart with those small dens with a shiny web on it."
"Despite that, we are all living in smaller groups and not all advisors meet up as not all groups have one." Jasmine explained. "All you have to worry about, is helping the ones who are in danger of the coyotes. They come into the Twoleg Place every leafbare so we have to show them that they do not belong here and it's not their territory."
"Which is through fighting?" Lion finished, padding to a stop in the clearing. "Just how big are these coyotes anyway?"
"Big enough to eat cats and small yappy dogs." Hail growled, lashing his tail. "They have to be stopped or else the fragments will just become a new source of prey for them and it won't be pretty."
"How did you deal with them before?" Moth inquired.
Jasmine looked to them, darkness in his eyes. "We fought and fought, but they keep coming back because many will continue to die. We don't know where they came from, but they keep coming."
"Then what can we do?" Lion narrowed her eyes.
Moth nodded, "It sounds like a problem we can't fix."
"We just have to fight them when they are scavenging to make them leave. If we fight their leader we might have a better chance." Jasmine meowed.
Lion nodded slowly, trying to wrap her mind around it. They sounded like big creatures, so it would be dangerous for any of them. Still, she knew what had to be done. They had to separate the leader and fight them to make them leave. Twitching her whiskers, she had to hope it would be okay. After all, if they died then at least Heather won't have to worry about them anymore and just has to focus on completing the late Cedar's mission.
Finch give us strength to make it through this. Lion thought, feeling her heart pounding in fear inside her chest. Somehow, some way they had to survive this before it was too late for any cat.
Author Note:
After so long of trying to figure this out, we finally have a chapter out!
I was watching an Ultimate Pokemon Sleeplocke through Generations 1-8 and two bonus games (Omega Ruby and HeartGold) and saw the exciting conclusion of it after discovering it.
After that it took a long time to get this chapter out because I had a little bit of writers block, but planning a new story helped fix it. You will see them later on since I'm still working on them as well. I just don't think they are ready to be announced in my bio just yet.
So until the next chapter is finished, thank you for reading! - NightSky
