Chapter 5: Branches and Guards
Raindrop stared, frozen in terror as her tree began to tip slowly towards the forest floor below. The piranha's grinding shriek tore at her ears as it chewed through the sapling that she was sitting in. Suddenly, she jerked back to reality with a yelp, as a branch from a tree above her fell, narrowly missing her head. With her heart pounding so hard it hurt, Raindrop bounded up through the branches of the sapling towards the larger trees as they fell away beneath her.
Every to-be knew that if a tree began to fall, for whatever reason, the best thing to do was to climb higher. Logically, that made sense: the top branches wouldn't be getting to the ground as fast as the rest of the tree, and the higher up you were, the easier it would be to reach another tree. Of course, no to-be had ever expected to be running from nutty fish-carrying monkeys that were eating the tree's trunk, but it was a good idea.
Raindrop leapt frantically through the branches of the falling sapling, twigs whipping back and clawing at her fur, half-drowning in the sea of leaves, her heat thumping in her throat. But she wasn't getting any higher: the tree fell away from beneath her faster than she could jump, and as it fell, it was taking her with it.
With a gasp, Raindrop broke through the last few leaves and leapt across the gap towards the trunk of the towering oak, the sapling crashing to the ground behind her. Raindrop soared through the air and landed hard against the oak tree's trunk, sinking her claws into the thick bark. Vines that snaked up the trunk strained and broke beneath her paws, and she began to slip down the damp bark. With a squeak of terror, Raindrop propelled herself forward and clawed up the tree, and, slipping and shaking, she grabbed the lowest branch and heaved herself onto it.
Trembling violently, Raindrop lay there for several long minutes as the sun set and the piranha yowled. The screeching whine finally stopped, and Raindrop stared as the furless monkeys strode out across the field and faded into the gathering darkness.
"Raindrop! How are you? I'm doing good, thanks, yeah, guess what I caught today? I caught an eagle!" Pounce bounded straight up to Raindrop as she slunk into camp, soaked from the evening's storm, covered in dirt and leaves. "Isn't that awesome? Right? You wanna know you I did it? Raindrop? You okay? Jeez! What the heck happened to you? Did you get attacked? Is there another panther around? Huh? Raindrop? Are you okay?" Raindrop looked her friend straight in the eye.
"No," she croaked.
"Well, jeez, Raindrop," mewed Pounce, looking perplexed, "spit it out! What happened to you?"
"...we must watch these monkeys closely, to see what they are planning." Leafteller looked around at the gathered tribe, who were all looking shocked at Raindrop's news. "A job as spy, shifts of two cats on duty watching the tree-killers, has been suggested, and permanent guards could be posted around the camp, or we could—"
"Do nothing and hope they go away?" someone called from the crowd.
"No," Leafteller mewed. "Wishing won't do anything. We have to act..."
"Personally," Pounce whispered, "I'm with the second guy. Why bother? What could we do?"
"We can't just give up," pointed out Eddy, leaning around Windteller, who nodded in agreement. "We should at least try; go down fighting, you know?"
"Who said anything about 'going down'?" said Pounce, looking alarmed.
"Oh, you get the idea," Raindrop muttered, rolling her eyes.
The tribe murmured fearfully around them, their worried whispers like a light wind. The sun was beginning to rise in the east, filling the Jungle with a pink glow. Raindrop's eyelids were getting heavy, and she could feel herself drifting off, after a long, long, tiresome day. She yawned widely.
"Raindrop," said Leap's voice from behind her, "you should get some sleep." The to-be nodded blearily.
"M'kay," she mumbled, getting up. "See you guys," Raindrop added to her friends.
As the sun cleared the gray mountains in the distance, Raindrop trudging behind her trainer, the piranha's screech rose and echoed around the forest.
Raindrop... Raindrop... Follow the whispers... Raindrop struggled to hear, climb out of the abyss, towards the voices that echoed in the distance.
Raindrop, look out!
A pair of eyes appeared ahead of her, fire burning inside them. Raindrop started back, and she was falling, falling, falling...
"Raindrop! Wake—up—come on! R—Raindrop! Come on, w—wa— wake—up!" A paw was prodding her hard in the side: Pounce. "Wake—up—already! Raindrop-p!" Coughing and choking, the prey-hunter to-be collapsed on her side next to her friend. "Come on—Raindrop... W—wake—wake—wake up... c'mon..."
Raindrop pulled herself by her claws out of the dream, and while she could hear and smell everything, it was still really dark... Raindrop took a deep breath...
And choked it back out. The darkness was smoke. Thick, black smoke.
The Jungle was on fire.
