Nameless Barker let out another moan of anger and loss, tipping her dark head back to the sky. Leader's shaggy corpse lay at her paws. The dark female gave voice to a howl of sorrow. Blood Fang joined her eagerly, more eagerly than he should have. He kept his wild eyes squeezed shut tightly to hide the joy that danced within them.
"Leader brave," Follower grunted sadly, nudging Leader's body with his long muzzle. "Leader fight many battles, kill many enemies. Miss Leader."
"Miss Leader, too," No Tail barked. The old wolf slumped down in the snow, shaking his head slowly. Follower sighed a wolf sigh.
"Leader dead," he said. "Follower is new Leader."
Blood Fang took a hesitant step backwards, mouth open. What? WHAT? Follower couldn't lead the Pack. No, no, no, no! That job should instantly fall to Blood Fang! Blood Fang should be the new leader! The white wolf gave a bark of protest. "Blood Fang Leader's son! Blood Fang be Leader!"
"When leader dies, Beta becomes Alpha," No Tail clarified. "Follower Beta. Follower Leader now."
Blood Fang shook his shaggy head furiously. "Leader tell Blood Fang 'Pup be leader after me' when Blood Fang was pup!" he lied angrily. "Follower disobey words of Leader? Leader watch from Starsire's cave. What Leader say when Follower disobey?"
Follower's eyes were set like cold flint. He strode over to Blood Fang and took the young wolf's muzzle in his own. The silver brute bit down, a little harder than normal. Blood Fang's tail flew between his legs as he crouched in submission. "Follower is new Alpha!" Follower roared.
"Follower!" the Pack howled together. "Follow-oh-oh-oh-er! Follow-oh-oh-oh-er!"
Follower snarled in Blood Fang's face. "Smell a rat," he growled. "Leader die at paws of own pup. Watching you, runt." Blood Fang assumed his best innocent look. Follower grunted and turned his back.
Blood Fang felt rage course through his veins. How dare he? How dare he? How dare he? How dare he? Leading position always went to the leader's pups. Or did it? No Tail may have had a point. Oh well. Bone Claw still had those berries. Follower wouldn't last too long.
.-''-.-''-.-''-.
"What Ocarina-Smallfur want with Blood Fang?" the white hound snarled. The tawny queen took a step away from his flashing fangs.
"Blood Fang smart," Ocarina praised. "Smart to kill Leader-Father. Leader-father stupid and old. Blood Fang should be leader now. Ocarina and Alliance-Smallfurs help Blood Fang become Leader."
Ocarina prided herself in having discovered the hounds' language. No pronouns except 'we' and 'us.' Use the hound's name instead of he or she. Verbs to a minimum. It wasn't too hard to grasp, really. Blood Fang grinned.
"What plan?" he asked hungrily. Ocarina purred. This would be easy. Just like ascending the ranks to take her mother's place. Flattery, ingenuity, and when that failed, threatening and blackmail.
"Follower not trust Blood Fang. Follower knows Blood Fang kill Leader. Follower trust Smallfurs." Ocarina leaned close, whispering the rest of her plan into the hound's ear. "Blood Fang and friends prepare killing berries. Alliance hunt prey, put Alliance-scent over prey, stuff with berries. Give it to Follower as gift. Follower dead soon."
"Blood Fang be leader!"
"Soon," Ocarina whispered. "Soon."
.-''-.-''-.-''-.
"You're not really going to go through with this, are you, Ocarina?" Tempus asked as he licked a hind leg. Ocarina allowed herself a smug purr. The albino tomcat bit his tongue to keep in a hopeless sigh.
"Of course, Tempus," Ocarina mewed sweetly. She padded over to Thief and placed a paw on the she-cat's neck. "And when Follower falls, the Pack will turn against Blood Fang. And when that happens," she unleashed her claws; Thief shuddered, "we'll defend him. We'll convince these idiots that Follower poisoned himself."
She dug her claws into Thief's neck. Scarlet blood trickled down the scruffy, ebony pelt. "We'll let Blood Fang ascend to his rank, destroy PromiseClan, and then we'll reveal the truth: Blood Fang killed Follower in cold blood, and we were threatened into taking the fall. With that, the Pack will become a whirl of chaos and just like that, we'll be rid of them all." Ocarina removed her claws from Thief's neck and started to pad away.
Thief heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Ocarina," she panted. "I though for a moment you were going to kill me." Ocarina stopped, turning back to the injured she-cat. An evil glint flickered through her dark eyes.
"Oh, believe me, dearie, I was," she meowed plainly. She tackled Thief, knocking the black she-cat onto her back, throat exposed. "And I still am. Your blood may attract unwanted attention from the Pack." She sunk her fangs deep into Thief's throat, ending her life instantly. Looking up at the remaining two toms, she stated, "You see? My plan is foolproof. It ends lives even before it takes place!"
Maju cast Tempus a incredulous glance, mouth slightly agape. His ripped ears gave a twitch of pure confusion. His whole body language stated, in bold, capital letters "HUH?" Tempus shook his head disapprovingly. Ocarina gave her bloodied paw a lick calmly as if to say "What? Kill my friend? Who says I've done that?"
"Well...I see your plan is, ehem, most effective," Maju ventured nervously, his green gaze not leaving Tempus for an instant. Ocarina purred and rolled in the bloody snow. She paused, sprawled out.
"I believe so," she replied. "Why? Do you not like it?"
"Love it!" Maju blustered frantically. "It's genius! Incredible! The work of a mastermind!" Ocarina nodded and continued to coat herself in Thief's blood. Maju looked back to Tempus. "Er...may I have a word with you? In...private?" he asked the white cat. Tempus shrugged and padded off into the bushes.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, Ocarina has gone completely sociopathic. That's why she's rolling around in her friend's blood. She is really insane. Someone put this cat in a frickin' straightjacket!
.-''-.-''-.-''-.
Tempus staggered into the clearing where the Pack lounged after their meal. His red eyes were wild as he swayed on his paws. "A sign!" he yowled in a clear, high voice. "A sign from Starsire!" The Pack gathered close around him. Tempus was well-respected, and believed by most of the Pack to be sent from their ancestors.
"What Starsire say?" Follower demanded. Tempus stopped in front of the silver wolf. He rocked gently back and forth.
"Beware Blood Fang!" Tempus howled in the same unearthly pitch. "Beware pup of Leader! Trust only in Smallfurs!" He gave a wild scream and fell back in a fake swoon.
The next day, Ocarina presented Follower with a rabbit. "Gift from the Smallfurs," she meowed. "Follower is now true leader. Young, juicy prey good for cold weather." Follower nodded his gratitude. Ocarina gave a respectful nod and padded away. Once concealed in the brush, she gave her paw a lick, as if trying to taste Thief's blood.
.-''-.-''-.-''-.
"Maju, have you gone completely mad?" Tempus spat. "What you are suggesting is completely irrational!"
"If it keeps me safe from Ocarina, then I'll do it," Maju retorted. "That crazy she-cat's got bees in her brain! She's completely mad! You saw how she killed Thief without remorse. She and Thief were raised together! They were closer than littermates! Ocarina is insane!"
"But to join the Clan...In the name of Bone Marrow, you're madder than she is!"
Maju's shoulders stiffened. "I may be. But if that's what it takes to survive, then I'll do it. I'm not exactly Ocarina's favorite cat. It's only a matter of time before she gets me."
Tempus's tail sketched a silent figure in the air behind him as he thought. Ocarina trusted him, yes, but for how much longer? He couldn't deny the fact that his leader had been getting steadily madder. In a few days, that old trust may mean nothing. Becoming a Clan cat may very well be the only solution to survival. The albino tom sighed. "You're right, Maju. And though it pains me to say this, it's the only way."
"I knew you'd see things my way," Maju meowed, nodding. "We'll leave tonight."
.-''-.-''-.-''-.
Ocarina scattered deathberries around Follower's body, purring to herself as she went about her gruesome task. She stepped back to admire her work. "Ah, Mother...I know you watch me from infinity. I hope you see the genius in my plan...your vengeance has come...soon you will be avenged."
.-''-.-''-.-''-.
Riverstar pushed her hackles straight into the air. "Maju," she mewed. "What brings you here?" Beside her, Sunface unsheathed his claws. The gray she-cat didn't stop him. She recalled how Sunface had battled with Maju when he was just an apprentice. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"
"Riv...Riverstar," Maju wheezed. "Please, I need to warn you...Ocarina has gone mad! She's assembled a Pack of hounds to destroy this Clan. To av-avenge...Bo-Bo-Bo..."
"Bone Marrow," Riverstar finished. "I knew she was unstable, but I had no idea...Is this what StarClan warned me of?" She shook her head firmly. "Very well. What do you want in return? You must want something from our Clan."
"Shelter," Maju pleaded. "Oc...Ocarina will kill both of us if she discovers, and even if we hadn't come here, she would still murder us. She killed one of her own: a she-cat, Thief."
Riverstar's whiskers gave a disgusted twitch. The PromiseClan leader bent down by Maju's sleek head. "Follow Sunface to a safe den." To Sunface, she meowed, "Hide these two in the elders den. I have a few words for our Clan."
"How can you be so calm?" Sunface asked as he supported Maju and Tempus with his broad shoulders. At first, Riverstar didn't answer him. The blue-gray queen gazed at thin air, her tail lashing behind her. Finally, she spoke.
"I must. Otherwise the Clan will be in an uproar, and cats will be hurt by their own denmates. Hurry, Sunface." She raced to the Tallrock and cleared the top in a single, fluid bound. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Tallrock for a Clan meeting!"