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I would like to give a special thanks to Maid of Light, Star707, and Gingersplash12, , and Cobrastar for favoriting/following this story!
Now, onto the chapter!
"HELP!" The voice of a she-cat cried, "We're in here! Help us!" However, her cry was met with silence. A flame-point she-cat paced back and forth, her eyes wide and afraid as she surveyed the wreckage before her. The entrance of the apprentice den had collapsed inward, leaving her with little space to move, limited air, and no exit above ground.
"Silence," A quiet voice meowed worriedly from behind the she-cat, and she turned to face her pale golden sister. "It's all too silent."
"What do we do, Lightpaw?" The flame-point she-cat demanded, her bright blue eyes glistening with tears. "I don't want to die, never able to see the stars again. I want to be able to run, to feel the breeze rushing through my fur! Why is this happening?"
The golden she-cat, Lightpaw shook her head slowly, stepping forward to examine the crumbled ground blocking their exit. "I-I don't know, Sunpaw, but standing there and screaming won't help anyone. I think we have to dig."
"No, I can't dig!" Sunpaw exclaimed, clearly too distraught to think clearly, "I'll break my claws! I- I'll just ask for help again. You see, maybe they were all just sleeping, so they couldn't hear me the first time!" She stopped abruptly; breathing so quickly that Lightpaw thought she would hyperventilate.
"Fine, don't help me." Lightpaw sighed, inhaling sharply. Her sister was testing her patience. "However, I'm not just going to stand back and wait to suffocate or starve to death." With that, she unsheathed her claws to begin digging.
"Wait, Lightpaw! Be quiet, I hear something!" Sunpaw exclaimed, her eyes lighting up in hope. Lightpaw hesitated, straining to hear a noise, any sound that proved to her that her clanmates were alive. She did hear something, but it wasn't the usual chatter that spread through the clearing early in the morning. Instead, it was the sound of a tom crying out in despair.
"Is that-" Lightpaw began, turning to face Sunpaw.
"Flamestripe!" Sunpaw interrupted, her eyes shining with joy, "Flamestripe, we're in here!"
Lightpaw took a step back, not able to be as relieved as Sunpaw. Something terrible had happened, that she could tell from Flamestripe's cry.
"Sunpaw, Lightpaw, is that you?" Flamestripe's voice could be heard from the other side of the rubble.
Sunpaw bounced forward, pressing against the rock. "Yes, it's us! We're a bit scratched up, but neither of us have any serious injuries. Is everyone alright out there?"
"I-," Flamestripe's voice faltered, causing Lightpaw's heart to sink. Something was definitely wrong. "I'll explain that to you after I get you out."
Lightpaw could see Sunpaw smile, and shook her head slowly. Of course, she's oblivious as always.
Suddenly a small beam of light poked through the dirt wall that had been blocking their exit, followed by a larger gap. Through the hole, Lightpaw could make out a pale ginger face and a pair of worried amber eyes. Soon enough there was a large enough gap to squeeze through and Sunpaw went first, enthusiastic as usual. However, once she stepped into the clearing, Lightpaw heard her sister cry out in shock.
"What?" Lightpaw asked, her voice wavering nervously, "What happened?" However, she heard no reply before she squeezed through the hole and came face to face with a situation that appeared to be straight out of one of her nightmares. She looked over the clearing, strewn with limp forms of her beloved clanmates along with torn up ground, singed grass, and chucks of rocks that hadn't been there before.
Beside her, Lightpaw heard Sunpaw sobbing, but she didn't turn her head, knowing that to see her sister cry would cause her to do the same. Instead she looked up into Flamestripe's troubled amber eyes and choked out, "Did you find Briarstem? Is she alright?"
"I don't know," Flamestripe responded, his voice wavering, "I didn't have much time to look through the bodies before I heard you."
Lightpaw heard her sister's voice, thick with emotion, say something about Briarstem escaping and being okay. Yet her heart sunk even lower in her chest when her eyes locked on a familiar golden pelt. She knew she couldn't hide her despair anymore as she rushed toward the she-cat, burring her muzzle into her fur. She closed her eyes and breathed in her mother's scent, trying to convince herself that she was alive and well, but there was no mistaking the slight smell of death.
Pulling back, she looked over at Sunpaw and Flamestripe, who had hurried over beside her. Flamestripe, grief stricken, murmured, "No, StarClan, no. You've taken enough of my friends. Was it really necessary to take my daughter too?"
Sunpaw leaned into Flamestripe for comfort, while Lightpaw turned back to her mother's limp body, and looked down in her eyes. The eyes were not what she remembered them to be. The last time they had spoken there was a loving light within the green depths of Briarstem's eyes, now they just looked scared. The last time we spoke⦠If she went back to moments before her world turned upside down maybe she could stay there for a bit, convince herself that those were the reality, not what was currently happening.
"I'm worried about Sunpaw," Lightpaw confessed, looking into her mother's golden face, noticing how her fur was groomed to perfection.
"Is there something wrong?" Briarstem asked carefully.
Lightpaw shook her head, explaining, "It's just that she always acts off of emotions before using her head. I'm worried that that will get her into trouble someday."
"Lightpaw," Briarstem sighed, "Everyone has there own personality, that's what makes them special. Sunpaw has the biggest heart out of any cat I know, which though it gets her into trouble once and awhile, she has her way of making herself a place in someone's heart. You, on the other hand, are my little thinker, and you're always there to help Sunpaw out. I'm not worried about Sunpaw because I know you will always be by her side protecting her."
Sunpaw nudging her roughly dragged Lightpaw back to the present. "Did you hear what Flamestripe said? We're going to ThunderClan. Though unbearable they've always been willing to lend a helping paw."
Lightpaw nodded her pale golden head slowly, still thinking back on memories as they made their way out of the camp. There is truth to what my mother had said. I will always protect Sunpaw, no matter the cost.
And that's the 4th chapter! I'm sorry about the wait, I've been busy lately. I get out of school in one more week, so I'll be on much more frequently after that.
