'I have lost the will to change
And I am not proud, cold-blooded fake
I will shut the world away.'
'I Will Not Bow' - Breaking Benjamin
¢нαρтєя ƒιƒтєєη: вєуσηd тнє ¢ℓαηѕ
They ran through the darkening forest tainted red by the strengthening crimson moon as if an entire army were chasing them. Over fallen trees, thickets of brambles, small bubbling brooks and ditches in the ground. Pounding across snow and ash covered ground, their breaths forming little clouds of air in front of them as they ran. Throwing cautious glances over their shoulders to see if they were indeed being chased. A rustling in the leaves above them was enough to increase their speed to match their thudding hearts.
But the shrill cry of defeat that rang out brought their fearful run to a sudden stop. It reverberated throughout of the entire forest, sending shivers up their spines. Wides eyes turned to each other as they all assumed the worst though only one of them was brave enough to speak it aloud.
"Was that…Tornheart?" Icepetal gasped.
Heads nodded uncertainly and unbelievably. There was no doubt in their minds that the scream had indeed come from Tornheart and the fact that it had been so abruptly cut off did nothing more than to heighten the worry that the ex-Clan cat might no longer be alive.
"We have to go back!" Icepetal cried, turning around to face the direction that had been running from. "We have to save her!"
Teeth met her scruff as Willowclaw used his bulky weight to stop her from getting away. "No. It's too dangerous. She told us that the journey was no longer hers. It'd just be a waste for you to run back and get killed trying to save someone who's probably already dad," he growled through her scruff.
"I don't care what she said! Littleflame would be dead without Tornheart and you would be the one responsible for it! She deserves more than to just be left for dead! She deserves more…"
Her eyes narrowed in potent anger and she kicked Willowclaw in the flank creating a loud snap and earning a pained grunt from the tom as he stumbled backwards, clutching his flank with a shaking paw. His breaths were short and sharp, his eyes glazed with pain. "Your ribs, whatever possessed Littleflame broke some of them," Eaglestrike assumed.
"Yep," Willowclaw grunted. "And Icepetal just broke a few more."
Angry blue eyes softened and pooled with guilt. "Sorry. But you should've just let me go; it would've been for the best."
"Best for who? You? Us? Or Crimson? That's exactly what she wants, for us to argue and fight and push each other away. She knows that when we're all together she doesn't stand a chance. If you leave then she'll kill you," Willowclaw pointed out hoarsely. He winced as he shifted into a standing position.
Rainpatch stumbled over a protruding root, "are we resting now?" he jokingly wheezed. "Good, I need a breather."
"The cats I stay with, the cats I trust enough to call friends, the ones who get close to me, they've all died. Murdered, killed in battle, succumbed to disease, all gone. The world will stand more of a chance if you travel without me. The world will stand more of a chance when I no longer walk its surface. You are better off without me!" Icepetal cried.
Willowclaw smirked slightly. "None of us are perfect –"
"Huh? What're you talking about? I'm perfect I'll have you know," Rainpatch interrupted.
The RogueClan tom rolled his eyes and pushed Rainpatch with one paw. "Shut it you. I'm trying to make an uplifting speech here."
"Just spurt out a bunch of stuff about every cat having their own destiny and being useful in their own way. Speech done. Everyone's happy and we can have a nice nap," the white-patched tom yawned.
"I was going to do that but in a less insensitive way," Willowclaw grumbled before shifting his attention back to Icepetal who was slowly shifting further and further away. "We were chosen, all of us, to make this journey and kill Crimson. Those Guardians Tornheart used to always talk about chose us because they know we can do it. And we can't do it without you. I can't do it without you," he added quietly.
A cold chuckle echoed through the darkening forest around them. Yellow eyes glinted in the shadows as the scent of death washed over the exhausted Chosen. Leaves rustled in the trees above them as sleek figures slunk through the tree-tops to surround them. From the shadows cast by tall trees stepped a grinning Crimson. Blood stained her teeth, her claws and her muzzle, spattered across her face. A crazed look lit up her crimson eyes.
"Did you hear that, Icepetal?" Crimson purred mockingly. "He can't complete this ridiculous journey without you. How sweet."
"What have you done to Tornheart!?" Icepetal shrieked.
There was no missing the slight surprised that flitted across Crimson's face. "So you cared for that lying vixen did you? Clan cats, how pathetic. They can never seem to cut all ties with the Clans they left behind. Why do you always have to meddle in things that aren't any of your concern?"
"What did you do to her!?"
"I killed her! Tore her to pieces! Watched her bleed to death on the ground!" Crimson laughed.
Icepetal's eyes widened before she let out a roaring battle cry and pounced forwards, claws outstretched towards Crimson. A soldier leapt forwards cutting off Icepetal's advance towards its leader. But there was no stopping an enraged Icepetal when the one she hated was standing mere paw-steps away. The soldier didn't stand a chance, its throat torn open before it so much as laid a claw on Icepetal. Its blood sprayed against her fur, staining it scarlet.
"I'll kill you," the SnowClan she-cat snarled as she prowled forwards licking the blood from her muzzle. "I'll kill you for what you've done. I'll rip your face to shreds, tear your heart out through your chest and watch as you scream in pain."
Crimson stepped away from her soldiers with a cruel grin. The two she-cats circled each other, hissing and snarling and spitting. "You'll regret the day you went up against me," Crimson growled.
"You'll regret the day you decided to go up against the Clans," Icepetal retorted darkly.
"Don't make me laugh, scum. There isn't a thing you can ever do that will make me regret trifling with your Clans. They have been so much fun."
"I'll show you fun!" Icepetal cried, launching herself at Crimson with a screech. Crimson reared up and brought her paws crashing down Icepetal's head, though the SnowClan warrior twisted her body so that the strong paws hit the ground whiskers from her muzzle. She snarled and dug her claws into Crimson's stomach, tearing through the flesh and creating streams of red blood that poured from the deep wounds. Crimson gritted her teeth, striking out and sinking her teeth into Icepetal's ear. A strong tug ripped flesh from flesh, chasing a howl of pain from Icepetal. Blood ran down the side of the white she-cat's face, fuelling her burning rage. A powerful kick sent Crimson tumbling backwards into the trunk of a tree. Bone cracked as her shoulder collided heavily with the tree.
She struggled to sit up, her body shaking as pain racked her stomach in crushing blows. Leaning against the tree she stared up at the blood-soaked Clan warrior stalking towards her, murder shining in her narrowed blue eyes. "Allow me to send you back to the darkness that you came from."
"I'd like to see you try," Crimson spat as she used the tree to push herself to her paws. "My soldiers, attack!"
As the small army surged towards the watching Chosen Icepetal slammed her claws into Crimson's injured shoulder and threw the black pelted she-cat into one of her soldiers. Cries of battle sounded around them but Icepetal's attention was focused solely on the murderous she-cat that had ruined her life. "The world will rejoice when they hear that you've been killed."
"The world will have to wait a lot longer to hear that news." Claws met flesh as the two she-cats clashed together in a bloody mess. Crimson, after realising that in her wounded state she didn't stand much of a chance against the raging SnowClan warrior, began to reach deep within herself in search of the power she kept hidden away. She'd been letting all her power pool together for moons now, refusing to use it unless it was entirely necessary. The amount that was stored away would turn Icepetal to ash in a heartbeat. As she sunk her teeth into Icepetal's hind-leg and yanked the warrior onto the ground, wincing as claws ripped down her spine, she reached further and further until she felt the tiniest tweak of power.
But that's all there was; just a tiny tweak. There was no great pool of her strong power, no deep chasm filled to the brim with strength that could raise a mountain. It was all gone. None of it remained. Red eyes widened with shock. Where had it all gone? She hadn't used it up. In fact she hadn't used any of it for moons.
Her thoughts were lost to the back of her mind when Icepetal surged up from underneath her, snapping her jaw shut on bloodied skin. An angry screech tore itself from Crimson's throat as she rolled over, crushing Icepetal beneath her heavier body. "Getting a little large aren't we?" Icepetal grunted. She dug her paws firmly into the ground and drove her shoulders into Crimson's large stomach.
The demonic she-cat gasped, inhaling sharply as terrible pain tore through her stomach setting fire to everything inside. She let go of Icepetal and slumped to the ground. The world beneath her paws spun violently before it came crashing down around her as clawed paws knocked her to the bloody ground. Everything around her blurred together and only the dangerously icy voice that hissed in her ear made any sense. "So the mighty Crimson falls in the first battle with her real enemies. How pathetic. How undignifying. Oh how I am going to enjoy tearing you apart limb by limb."
Heavy footfalls thudded nearby. A strangled shout followed them and then the weight keeping her pressed against the ground vanished. "You will not be taking the life of your Queen this evening," a deep voice thundered. Frozengaze, Crimson heaved a quiet sigh of relief. He had come to her aid at the final moment.
Eyelids fluttered open to see a calm Frozengaze towering over a bristling Icepetal. The battle seemed to have taken its toll on the SnowClan warrior. Her pelt was ripped and covered in blood that was a mix of both her own and Crimson's. An ear had been half-ripped off, and she held one fore-leg off of the ground.
The fighting had ceased around them, the Chosen having managed to survive the onslaught of Crimson's elite soldiers, though they sported countless injuries. Littleflame was still unconscious, hidden away between the cradling roots of a tree. Rainpatch crouched close to the ground panting heavily. Willowclaw and Eaglestrike remained standing tall hissing and spitting at the remaining soldiers despite their heaving flanks and angry wounds.
"She is not my Queen!" Icepetal roared back.
Frozengaze advanced on the bristling warrior, "if you will not bow to her then you're existence is worthless. You shall be put to death."
The smirk that pulled at Icepetal's muzzle was colder than ice and darker than the night sky. "Put to death? I'd very much like to see you try."
"Why waste your precious life acting against an empire that will surely crush you under its enormous weight?" the huge tom purred as he wound himself around Icepetal. His tail curled under her chin and lifted up so that she glared up into his eyes. "Why not join us? Join the winning side and become twice the cat you are today. You could be the leader of your own group of soldiers. You might even someday rise through the ranks to become one of Crimson's closest soldiers. Imagine it, Icepetal, you standing above every other Clan cat. Ruling over every other Clan cat." His voice became dangerously low, "I command it."
A blank expression had slowly sidled its way across Icepetal's face replacing the enraged look with one of complete content and obedience. Her eyes lost their fire and her body let go of all of its tension. Frozengraze grinned darkly as he brushed his tail tip across her blank face.
"Don't you touch her!" Willowclaw yowled taking a step towards the mysterious tom.
"Look at that," Frozengaze drawled. "The mean RogueClan tom standing up for the icy SnowClan she-cat. How…surprising. Say," he met Icepetal's obedient gaze, "would you mind tilting your head up so I can see your pretty throat?"
The Chosen watched with baited breath as Icepetal raised her chin giving Frozengaze access to her throat. He chuckled as he ran a single claw across it, digging deep enough to cut the skin and allow blood to dribble down the she-cat's white fur.
"Icepetal!" Willowclaw cried. "Don't just stand there! Fight back! Claw out his throat! Do something!"
Frozengaze chuckled even louder. "There isn't a cat in this world that can resist doing what I command them to do, Willowclaw. Your little she-cat doesn't stand a chance. Now be a good warrior and stay there whilst I claw the life from this worthless Clan cat."
The next few heartbeats seemed to pass in slow motion as Frozengaze descended on Icepetal's throat with his fangs ready to tear through it. She just stood there like some obedient little kit, waiting for her death to be served. But as Willowclaw's cry tore through the eerie silence that had descended upon the forest Icepetal moved.
"No, Icepetal! I need you!"
She snapped her neck away at the last second, feeling Frozengaze's teeth as they grazed past her the skin on her cheek. In one smooth movement she snagged the tom's paws out from under him, twisted her body so that he didn't fall on her and slammed his head hard against the ground.
"Stay out of my head," she growled into his ear before stumbling over to Willowclaw. The RogueClan tom caught her as she fell, gently placing her on the ground and stepping over her in a protective manner.
"I'd say this battle is a draw," Frozengaze spat, helping Crimson to her paws with sharp nudges with his nose. "We will no doubt meet again in the near future."
Crimson raised her head weakly to fix the Chosen with a sharp glare. Using the last tiny dribble of her remaining power she watched as the forest around her rippled in shape and faded. Her eyelids slid shut as the strange yet familiar feeling of teleportation washed over her. Soft ground changed to cold rock beneath her paws. The air in the forest became sharp and cold.
Rushing wind pulled roughly at her fur the sign Crimson always used to tell her when it was safe to open her eyes.
She felt extremely weak as she opened her eyes. Bleak gray stone greeted her, the entrance to her mountain kingdom stood before her shimmering as her presence opened the stone wall to reveal a dark tunnel. Without saying a single word to Frozengaze she hurried inside, indicating for a well-trusted rogue she-cat soldier to follow her inside. The silver tabby obeyed immediately and followed Crimson deep into the bowels of her mountain kingdom.
They travelled deep, deeper than most cats every dared to go. No one knew where all the tunnels lead to and no one was keen to find out. But Crimson had memorised the path she was to take when the time arose. She figured that time was now as the pains in her stomach had not decreased and had instead worsened. The rogue soldier had promised her silence and Crimson had had to trust the rogue which had taken a very long time. But there was no way she could do this alone.
A small hole appeared in the tunnel wall big enough for a cat to get through but small enough so that it remained relatively well hidden. "Is it time, milady?" the rogue asked quietly.
"I believe so, Neena."
"You are injured. Why did you get involved in fighting so close to your due date? I've warned you countless times what fighting whilst pregnant might do to your heirs," Neena reprimanded softly.
Crimson nodded in silent agreement, collapsing in the single nest that dwelled in the small cave with a groan. "Just do your job, Neena. I don't need anybody to tell me what to do."
"Of course, milady. But…if you don't mind me saying, having somebody to tell you what to do can save you from all sorts of dangerous scenarios." A strangled cry of pain snaked out from between Crimson's lips as she scrunched her eyes closed and took in a deep breath. "Concentrate on your breathing, milady, nothing else. Just your breathing. Take your mind off the pain and do exactly what I tell you when I tell you and you'll get through this."
Soldier and leader worked together long into the night and when the first rays of dawn touched the mountainside Crimson found herself sitting restlessly in the nest; tiny bundles of warm fur sleeping soundlessly by her paws and a silver tabby body bleeding out onto the cave floor. In the silence of the cavern that was only occasionally broken by quiet snuffles emanating from the tiny bodies by her paws Crimson began to slowly relax. She was alone. She was moderately safe. And she had her heirs.
So when a shadowy shape moved away from the darkest corner of the cave she was most surprised at having not noticed it earlier. It detached itself from the cave wall in complete silence, paws not making a single sound as they seemed to almost glide across the floor. Its shape was not entirely solid, shifting and wavering like it was made of mist. No eyes blinked at Crimson as the strange silhouette drifted closer. She curled her tail protectively around her sleeping heirs.
"A new generation sleeps peacefully. How innocent they look when compared to you, demon. So much blood stains your paws, are you planning on soaking their paws scarlet as well? Of course you will. You do not think of them as kits of yours. They are nothing more than soldiers for you to use to your own advantage."
"Who are you and what do you want," Crimson growled uneasily.
The shadow took a gliding step forwards, "no one of consequence, merely a messenger bringing a dark message to the one it concerns the most. The ones it concerns the most." An icy cold feeling seeped into the cave. "Your existence has put only a small dent in our larger plans. But in the end light will always prevail over dark. You and your evil-doers will face the ultimate judgement in moons to come."
She stepped cautiously out of the nest, leaning closer to the shadowy figure that was threatening everything she'd worked so hard to create. "What makes you think anyone can beat me? I am the strongest cat alive."
"The four will return and there is nothing you can do to stop it."
A rumble of thunder roared so loud it reached the depths of the mountain where Crimson cowered, bristling fearfully as she watched the shadow figure melt back into the shadows and disappear entirely.
"The four will return."
AN: We have reached the end of part one! Finally. Another three to go and Chasing the Sun will be finished. Also, 77 reviews!? With only fifteen chapters!? That's amazing guys, seriously, I love you all. I have decided that a one-shot I did for Swyfte (titled That Somebody if anyone is interested) did indeed take place in between chapters thirteen and fourteen.
-нυηтєя