~Sinking
She could feel it. It was slowly creeping up her body, sticking her fur down and slathering her with mud. She was sinking, not in water, but in earth. Her mother had warned her about the danger that morning, calling, "Don't go in the forest today Autumn. The rain will have made the ground so wet that it can swallow you up in one go. Stay here, in the den with me where it's safe and dry." But of course, Autumn hadn't listened. She had assumed that it was her mother's way of making up stories so that she wouldn't leave.
This was a habit that her mother had fallen into after her sister, Snow, left them. Mother had become terrified that she too would wander off again and not return, and no matter how often Autumn promised her that she would never leave again and that this was her home now, her mother still seemed to worry and fret. Autumn sighed and squirmed in the mud again, but it only seemed to suck her further in. Slowly but steadily, the earth was burying her alive.
It seemed that she would have to break her promise to her mother. There was no way to escape, and her fate was unavoidable. It wouldn't be the first promise that Autumn had broken, but a prickle of guilt still tugged at the mottled brown she cats gut. It was strange, with all the promises that she had broken, all the lives that she had ruined, that breaking a promise to the elderly she cat hurt her so. Besides, if there was any way to keep her promise then she would certainly do it, but no way existed.
Only one other broken promise had hurt her this way, and that was because it had ended in the death of one she thought she loved. Autumn had promised that she would protect him, keep him safe from the thugs that she served. She had displeased them, and failed to kill the cat that they wanted dead. Instead of killing her, they had stalked her, finding her fatal weaknesses.
Autumn and her mate, Frost, had kept moving and hiding, hoping to escape their enemies. After about two moons they were sure it had worked, and settled into a comfortable routine. Each of them would split up, heading to different sides of the small territory they had claimed. They would hunt until sundown, and then return to the alleyway they were hiding in. The entire day was needed to catch enough prey for the both of them to eat their fill, as prey in the city could be scarce and hard to find.
That didn't matter. The important thing had been that they were safe, that the bosses from the old city never found out that Autumn had fled close to the edge of the city. After failing her last mission, they would never let her or Frost live. It had been a dangerous game, but one that Autumn had been involved in since she was just five moons old. With every moon that passed she was sinking deeper and deeper into the danger.
She had only completed three successful jobs, killing each cat who dared oppose them. Sending her on her final mission had been a risky move, and the brown she cat had been aware of the consequences if she failed. She hadn't thought she would fail. But she had, and that was why she and Frost had been in hiding.
Every day she would return and find Frost waiting with his catches, but on that day he wasn't there. Autumn waited and waited, hoping that he would soon return. Even as it grew dark, and her hope grew smaller she still hoped. Maybe he had just gotten caught up, at any moment his large grey build would appear at the entrance of the alleyway, his green eyes sparkling as he gave her some reason for his absence. Any reason would have been fine with her, as long as he returned.
But the next morning the sun rose, and still Frost had not returned. With a heavy heart Autumn went hunting, still praying that he would return. When she returned that night and he still wasn't back, she decided that he had left her. He had finally gotten sick of hiding, and had gone out into the world to make a name for himself. This was the explanation that the she-cat gave herself, and though it hurt to think that he had left on his own, it was better than the alternative.
Even though Autumn tried not to think about it, she still missed Frost's calming and warm presence. Only a few days had passed, but it felt like centuries. She told herself that it was better this way, at least he was safe. Despite this however, a nagging fear still tugged at her gut, she was terrified that he had been discovered. This was before the smell came.
About five days after Frost went missing; a horrible stench had begun to foul the air around Autumn's home and her hunting grounds. She tried to ignore it, but eventually curiosity and fear had won over. Carefully, she followed the scent to the end of its trail. Autumn would forever regret that decision.
The source of the scent was Frost's mauled corpse. His green eyes clouded over with death. Dried blood was pooled around him, and numerous slashes covered his once pristine white pelt. It was impossible to tell just how much he had suffered before dying, but one thing was certain. He had been killed to send a message to Autumn. They were coming.
Horror and grief bubbled up in Autumn's throat, and without a thought she turned and ran. Fear propelled her paws forward, and all she could see was his body. She had failed, and now she might die as well if she wasn't careful. Yet again, Autumn could feel herself getting dragged deeper and deeper into her past. Sinking; but at least for this time she was swimming up, she wouldn't let herself be swallowed up yet.
It was moon high before the cat even stopped to take a break. Ducking into a cardboard box on the side of a highway she panted. It was only then that Autumn realized where she was headed. Purely on instinct, her paws had taken her towards her old home. She was headed towards the abandoned cabin in the meadow where her mother and sister lived.
At first, realizing this made Autumn want to turn around and head for the opposite direction. But then she considered her options. Maybe her old home would be the safest place for her. It was a good three day journey away, and even the most determined follower would struggle with finding cover along it. Her mother had been distraught when she left, but had assured Autumn she would always been welcome back. In fact, mother would probably be thrilled to have her home again.
It had seemed like the perfect chance, a fresh start. Somewhere that even the most determined ghosts of her pasts could not find her. Autumn would finally be able to forget about her gruesome history, of all the promises she had broken and the lives that she had taken. It was an island in the ocean that Autumn was sinking on, a safe haven.
And, true to mother's word, Autumn had been welcome back with open paws. She had done most of the hunting, and taken care of her mother after Snow left. Everything had faded away, and it seemed that she was perfectly safe.
Except now she wasn't. It appeared that her island had gone under, that the luck she had been living on had finally run out. Now, Autumn was basically buried in mud and sinking all the more. Only the tip of her nose remained out, and she was all the more aware that her time was running out. She had never thought that she would die this way.
Autumn had always been sure that her death would come at the paws of her past ruler that everything would finally catch up with her; not by the earth swallowing her whole. But, she supposed, in a way it was fitting that she would die by sinking. Her whole life really, she had been sinking deeper into fear and grief; deeper into the world of hiding, and anger.
At least she would get to see Frost again when she died, she had to tell him that she was sorry for breaking the promise. It was her fault that he died, another death on her head. With a final sucking noise, the mud completely buried Autumn. Darkness started to close in as her body fought for breath.
Sharp pains racked her body, and Autumn struggled, a last prick of fear tugging at her stomach as self-preservation kicked in. It was hopeless of course, and she could feel herself sinking into the blackness. Within minutes she was dead. It would be a few days before the smell of death spread to the surrounding forest. Just like it had that day.