A round of applause for the longest chapter I have ever written! Honestly I don't know why this chapter turned out so long but it explains a few things...or it should anyway.
Hope you like it!
Read on my, duckies!
Chapter 13: Let the Game Begin!
The sunlight bathed the contestants' camp with a honey sweet light, but all the contestants saw was a reminder that today they would be cast into the wilderness to fight in a game of death for the entertainment of others. A reminder that after today you were the enemy of everyone. All the friends made could kill you without a second thought.
The smell of fear filled the camp as a few early risers exited their dens. Nightfall gave Burningmoon a curt nod before brushing past him to reach the fresh kill pile.
"Good morning," Thorntail said tersely to Screech.
Screech simply ignored the tom as he watched Berrypaw's den with interest. They were the only two cats who had grown considerably closer than anyone else. They had found love in a place filled with nightmares and death. A love that would not survive past the Games.
He jumped to his paws as Berrypaw slipped from her den, patched fur ruffled from sleep. "Morning, beautiful," he purred to her.
"Good morning, Screech," Berrypaw purred back, rubbing her muzzle along his cheek. Screech twined his tail with hers and they walked to the fresh kill pile together, ignoring the dark looks from Thorntail and Shadepaw.
Berrypaw picked up a mouse whilst Screech chose a vole and they retired to a shady place to eat their meal in peace. "Today's the day," she murmured sadly.
"We knew it would arrive eventually," Screech whispered back. He nudged Berrypaw with his nose, "You promised to stick with me throughout the Game. If we survive till the end then maybe, just maybe they might let us leave together."
Berrypaw tore off a bit of her mouse, "You don't really believe that, do you?"
"If you don't believe in it then you have no hope, and hope is the only thing that will get you through this Game, the only thing that will help you fight your way to the top. Hope…hope is liquid courage," Screech told her strongly.
The red patched she-cat sighed quietly and ate the rest of her mouse, crunching the delicate bones between her sharp teeth. "Hope is a hard thing to believe in, Screech. Especially during this time."
Before Screech could say anything in reply the bushes at the entrance to the camp shook and all six Callers for the Clans stepped out. "Contestants!" Tigerstar yowled, "The time has come for you to enter the Games! Follow us and we will take you to where the Games will begin!" The contestants rose to their paws and padded after Tigerstar, most of them keeping a distance between each other. Even those who were in the same Clan did not share a polite look as they crossed the camp. Only Screech and Berrypaw were speaking to each other, even if it was a sad conversation.
The Dark Forest seemed considerably darker as the contestants slunk through it, following the winding paths that looked like they had no end. The Callers kept on one trail, following it as if they knew it off by heart.
Hawkfrost slipped in beside Sinkingsun, their fur brushing against each other. "You'll try to win, won't you?" he asked.
"Of course!" Sinkingsun shot back. "I will not go down without a fight."
"I knew you'd say that," Hawkfrost purred, nudging Sinkingsun gently.
Ivypool turned her head to glare at them. "Hawkfrost, time for you to join us up here," she snarled, flicking her tail irritably. Hawkfrost rolled his eyes and bounded up to walk beside his father.
The dark trees began to thin out, revealing a clearing that none of the contestants had been expecting to see. Four cats sat on a flat rock in the centre of the clearing. "This is where we leave you," Brokenstar rasped. "Walk over to the High Stars and begin your Game. Good bye, contestants. We hope to see some of you again." As he spoke his eyes rested on Wildstorm and he gave a small nod. Wildstorm nodded back and stood taller, unsheathing his claws in anticipation of the blood bath he was about to walk in to.
The Callers stepped aside and watched as the contestants padded by. As soon as they were out of ear-shot they turned around and walked back into the shadows together. "So," Ivypool purred, "who do you think will win this season?"
Galesong raised her head to look at the sky that stretched above them, only to see more darkness. Stars don't grace these skies. She enjoyed the feeling of soft grass under her paws as she made her way over to the four cats. It was a feeling she would be missing for a while. "Welcome, contestants. I hope you have learnt all you can during your stay here," a familiar voice greeted them.
"We didn't need all the information you gave us, Iceshard. Most of it was just common sense," Badgerstrike growled.
Iceshard narrowed her eyes and rose to her paws, "If I remember correctly, it was you who received the most punishment during my lesson for getting the questions wrong."
"Sit down, Iceshard," Settingsun hissed. "Whether you took the information we gave you in or not was up to you. We try to teach different things each year but perhaps all of you have lived long enough to know it all."
"Most of us are grateful for the time you took to teach us new things," Nightfall said calmly.
Eternity gave the tom a small nod. "It is good to know that our lessons are remembered by some," he murmured. "But now is not the time for discussing the lessons we taught you. Now is the time to use the things we taught you and emerge victorious from the Game you are about to play."
"Have any of you noticed the raised patches of dirt surrounding this rock?" Death rasped. The contestants looked around and spotted the patches of dirt which seemed so out of place in the flat clearing. No grass grew atop the patches, leaving them the colour of the earth below them. "Each of you must go and stand on one of those." When no cat moved he let out a snort, "Now."
Burningmoon hurried over to stand on one of the patches, choosing one that was far away from Badgerstrike. The other contestants soon found their own patches and they fell silent, eyes turned back to the High Stars. Iceshard closed her eyes and scraped the claws on her left fore-paw across the rock. As she did Burningmoon heard a rustling sound from beneath him and he looked down to see a dull vine crawling across the ground towards him. By the shrieks of shock and fear around him he could tell that the others could see the same thing. "Do not move!" Settingsun screeched. "They will not hurt you. The vines are simply there to keep you still whilst you travel to the living world. When the Game begins they will let you go."
The vine tightened around Burningmoon's fore-paws making him hiss in pain. He could feel tiny barbs on the vine as they dug into his skin. Darkness began to encroach on his vision as his legs suddenly grew weak and he collapsed. A voice reached his ears through the darkness. "Liara temoura siname harteiri."
And then everything went black.
XxXxXxXxXx
Shadestar woke with a start, sweat soaking her fur. She lay in her nest for a few moments as she remembered the horror of the nightmare she had found herself in. Her mother had been chosen for the Games and so had her father. During the nightmare she got to watch her mother be slaughtered by a bear and then watch her father be pushed off a cliff, his body smashing onto the rocks below with a sickening crunch.
Tears fell from her eyes as she remembered that the nightmare hadn't been a nightmare. It had been a memory. "I'm sorry that I could do nothing to help you," she whispered. "And now I have to watch two more members of this Clan be stripped away from the ones they love."
"Shadestar?" a voice called from the entrance of the den.
"Come in, Poppylight," Shadestar answered, stepping out of her nest and shaking her fur. The medicine cat slipped into the den, her paw steps light on the sandy floor.
"Snowdash is sick and I have no herbs to cure him," Poppylight said bluntly.
Shadestar hung her head in defeat, "Isn't there any in our territory you can pick?"
"No," Poppylight answered. "It only grows during green leaf." The leader sighed and scratched at the sandy ground.
"So there is no hope for him?"
Poppylight shook her head, "The chances of him surviving long enough to get the herb are thin. You know what Frost Shiver does, Shadestar. Would it not be best to put him out of his misery now?"
"Are you asking me to kill one of my warriors?" Shadestar growled.
"No, I am asking you if you want to save one of your warriors from suffering greatly," Poppylight replied.
"We will wait and see if he gets better. If he starts to suffer as greatly as you say he will then and only then will I think about killing him," the leader conceded. "Now please leave so I can sort out the way today shall go." Poppylight narrowed her amber eyes at Shadestar but said no more and slipped out of the den as quietly as she had come in a few moments ago. Shadestar watched her medicine cat leave with a troubled expression. She has not been the greatest medicine cat for our Clan. Her ways of healing are unjust and cruel. Perhaps an apprentice for her is in order. One I can trust to be a better medicine cat after she retires...
Her thoughts were broken when a sharp cry rose from the camp outside her. She jumped to her paws and raced outside to see who had made the sound, only to find Tornpaw's mother, Sageleaf, curled up on the ground. Her cries of sadness pierced Shadestar's ears and the lead hurried over to the anguished warrior. "What happened, Sageleaf?" she asked.
"I-I-Its Tornpaw," Sageleaf choked out. "She's gone!"
"Gone?" Shadestar repeated.
Sageleaf nodded sadly, her eyes dull and tired. "Her nest hasn't been slept in all night and no one's seen her since yesterday!"
Shadestar turned to find her deputy standing beside her. "I sent out two patrols looking for her but all they came back with was her very faint scent crossing the border with RogueClan," the deputy explained.
"Thank you for your fast thinking, Cloverstream," Shadestar purred. "But the more important question is why would Tornpaw leave?"
Cloverstream shuffled her paws as she thought about the question. "Perhaps she was nervous about the Games? Thornfoot was one of her closest friends."
"I know that," Shadestar retorted. "But that wouldn't be enough to make a cat leave. There had to be something else." She raised her voice so that the gathered Clan could hear her, "Does anyone here know any reasons why Tornpaw might leave?"
No cat had an answer to Shadestar's question, making Tornpaw's disappearance even more mysterious. "Actually," one cat spoke up, "there is a reason as to why she might have left."
"What is it, Firestrike?" Shadestar meowed.
"Tornpaw told me yesterday that she had never felt a part of this Clan. Like she felt like an outsider, like a loner or rogue that had been accepted into the Clan." Firestrike stopped as she took a deep breath. "And then she said that she was going to go to a Clan where they would accept her, train her to be stronger than the average cat and love her for who she was."
Shadestar shared a concerned glance with Cloverstream as Sageleaf spoke up, "That could be one of two Clans!"
Firestrike shook her bright orange head. "No. Tornpaw would never go to RogueClan. She wanted to go to a place where they would push her to be her best."
"RisingClan," Cloverstream murmured. The Clan gasped as they realised that they had lost a valuable apprentice to a Clan filled with dark warriors and dangerous secrets.
Shadestar just shook her head and sat down in shock. Not only had RisingClan threatened the Clans existence a few moons ago but now they had stolen one of their apprentices! "We have to get her back!" Sageleaf wailed. Her mate, Hawkflight, walked over to her and lay down beside her, placing his muzzle on her flank in comfort.
"No, if Tornpaw wanted to leave then we should let her. Our daughter always thought she was an outsider in the Clan and to feel like an outside in your own Clan must be terrible. She did what she had to. And we must respect that," he told Sageleaf.
"I just want my daughter back," Sageleaf whimpered.
A small white she-cat stepped forwards, resting her tail on Sageleaf's shoulder. "You still have me, mother."
"Brightpaw. Oh my sweet Brightpaw," Sageleaf murmured, pulling Brightpaw over to her with her tail. "Don't you ever leave me, Brightpaw!"
Brightpaw smiled and nuzzled her mother, "I won't leave you. I promise!" Shadestar raised her head to stare at the sun, surprised to see it hanging directly above them. It alarmed her to realise that they would be late to the Isle of High Stars if they did not move soon.
"CedarClan!" she yowled as she bounded over to Burned Stump. "We must now depart and make our way to the Isle of High Stars! Spiderstep, can you please help Poppylight carry Snowdash. Darkfang, you will be in charge of taking care of Vixenheart. Let's go!"
The two toms slipped away to two separate corners of the camp whilst the rest of the Clan moved towards the camp exit. Shadestar watched from Burned Stump as Snowdash stumbled out of the medicine den leaning heavily on Spiderstep. Poppylight followed shortly after, a small bundle of herbs in her mouth. As Poppylight past Burned Stump Shadestar couldn't help but notice the three Death Berries that glistened among the green leaves. She gritted her teeth and looked over at the sickly tom. His fur was already beginning to fall out and his eyes were glazed over with pain. When we return from the Isle of High Stars I will think more deeply about putting him out of his misery, she decided.
Vixenheart appeared from the nursery her belly swollen with kits. Darkfang appeared soon after and rested his tail across his mate's shoulders, escorting her across the camp to join the others. "We are ready," he rumbled.
Shadestar blinked at him before stepping out of the camp and into the CedarClan forest. Birds chirped happily in the trees above them, oblivious to the heartache the cats were going through. A butterfly fluttered past the Clan, its wings a dazzling shade of blue. It made the day seem considerably brighter.
The scent of another Clan blew past Shadestar's nose and she twitched her tail as a sign to stop. The smell grew stronger and stronger until a fluffy, grey she-cat appeared. "Greetings, Flurrystar," Shadestar said politely.
"Hello, Shadestar," Flurrystar returned. Her Clan stood patiently behind her, looking at the CedarClan cats with calm eyes.
"Shall we head on?" Shadestar asked. "We still have to travel through RogueClan territory."
Flurrystar nodded and stepped up to stand beside Shadestar. "Tell me, Shadestar. What do you think of the clouds that have been gathering over the mountains?"
"I have only seen this clouds a few times but I suspect they are a sign of a tough leaf bare," Shadestar answered.
The two leaders spoke to each other about the leaf bare ahead of them for the majority of the journey, only stopping when their deputies or medicine cats came to speak to them. The journey through RogueClan territory was a difficult one with the apprentices having to be saved from deep mud many times. A foul stench of death and decay haunted the area.
Finally the trees thinned out and the two Clans found themselves on the edge of the river, a trail of stepping stones leading them to the island in the middle of the river. "Would SnowClan like to go first?" Shadestar offered.
"I believe its common courtesy to let the Clan that owns the territory you are standing on go first," a voice growled. Scar strode through the trees, his Clan thinning out behind him. Iana followed him, fur brushing with his as an open display of affection.
Flurrystar gave a small nod, "And it would be rude not to. Please, go first."
Scar flicked his tail tip and proceeded to leap across the stepping stones, his powerful bounds allowing him to skip a few rocks. The rest of his Clan followed him before slipping away into the centre of the island. Flurrystar took her Clan over next and Shadestar followed with hers.
As they padded through the trees that ringed the edge of the island Shadestar couldn't help but wonder if Badgerstrike or Thornfoot would win. It would be wonderful to see one of their warriors return home but it was a thought she didn't dwell on.
The trees turned to grass and CedarClan stepped into the huge clearing, eyeing the other Clans with gentle curiosity. Shadestar could see Sageleaf scanning the crowd of cats for Tornpaw, letting out a small sigh when she realised that RisingClan had yet to arrive. The leader gathered her Clan and they trailed after SnowClan, finding the place where their Clan would be staying. Two small dens had been constructed out of gorse and they sat waiting for Vixenheart and Snowdash to occupy them. It wasn't long before the queen and the sickly tom were lying in the dens, both exhausted from the long journey.
Shadestar pricked her ears as RisingClan slid from the trees on the far side and set about finding their place to camp. However Fallenshadow broke off from his Clan and padded over to Shadestar. "I have something to discuss with you," the tom rumbled.
"What is it?" Shadestar asked although she already knew what it was.
"One of your apprentices appeared on our territory early this morning. She asked us if we would take her in and train her to be the best we could." A small smile spread across Fallenshadow's face. "We couldn't turn such a pleading face away."
Sageleaf heard the conversation and let out a cry of relief before turning to face Fallenshadow with a hiss. "I hope you look after my daughter as if she was your own."
Fallenshadow faltered slightly. "You do not want your daughter to return?"
"Tornpaw knew what she was doing when she left. If she wishes to come home then I will welcome her, but I will respect her decision if she chooses to stay with you. But please," Sageleaf pleaded. "Please look after her!"
"Of course. She is a part of RisingClan now," Fallenshadow replied. A dark smile spread across his face. "Tornpaw will make a wonderful mate for Leapingspider." He pointed to a huge faded, brown tabby tom who as growling at a smaller she-cat.
Shadestar glanced at Fallenshadow with wide eyes. "Is Leapingspider an apprentice?" she asked carefully.
"No. He is a warrior and he has been for ten moons. But he has had his eye on Tornpaw ever since she turned up at our camp," Fallenshadow snarled. "I am certain she will give him many litters of fine kits."
Sageleaf hissed at Fallenshadow, "It is not your place to be choosing mates for my daughter! Especially mates that are older than her by far!"
"She is a part of my Clan and I will decided who she fathers kits for," Fallenshadow growled. "Now if you don't mind I have a Clan to return to. And a renaming ceremony to attend to."
And with that the dark leader turned and walked away, leaving the two she-cats staring after him with angry looks. Shadestar shook her head and watched Sageleaf collapsed on the ground with more wails of sadness.
Before Shadestar could say anything there was a loud yowl and all six Clans fell silent. Six shapes appeared atop the four thrones and darkness fell across the island. "Welcome," Tigerstar boomed, "to the Game of Blood! You will get to watch your Clan mates fight each other from the safety of this island and you will get to watch one emerge victorious."
As he spoke a dark shape had appeared above him and begun to slowly spread itself until it filled the space between the thrones. The Clans stared at it, waiting for the vision of twelve cats to be spread upon it. Shadestar stared at the shadow with curiosity. It's like looking through a portal and being able to see whoever you want, she mused. A picture began to flicker across it and before long all the cats could see the twelve contestants who would be fighting in this seasons Game.
"Let the Game begin!" Tigerstar yowled.
XxXxXxXxXx
Badgerstrike felt his eyesight coming back and waited with baited breath to see what place the High Stars had placed him and the others in. It wasn't long before he could make out the fuzzy outlines of tall pine trees. A loud screech sounded beside him followed by the flurry of wings as a bird of some sort passed over them.
Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, Badgerstrike could see clearly. His paws were still tied to the ground by the vines and he could see that the others were stuck in similar situations. He spotted Burningmoon struggling against his vines and a small smile stretched at his muzzle. You will be my first kill.
Sunlight appeared over the tops of the pine trees, spreading its glow around the small clearing. As its light touched the vines Badgerstrike felt them loosen before snapping off entirely. With a roar of anger he leapt off the mound of dirt and barrelled across the clearing towards Burningmoon. An image of the ginger tom hanging from his mouth, blood pouring from his throat had burned itself into Badgerstrike's mind and he couldn't wait to make it come true. The tom wasn't expecting to be thrown to the ground, nor was he expecting sharp claws to dig into his pelt.
He looked up and into the dark amber eyes of Tinder. "What are you doing!?" Badgerstrike screeched, writhing under Tinder's firm hold. He could see Burningmoon tearing into Wildstorm.
"Trying to win," Tinder hissed. The blue tom sunk his teeth into Badgerstrike's shoulder, sending the black tom into a rage. He pushed Tinder off with his hind legs and leapt to his paws, slashing at Tinder with well aimed strikes. Blood sprayed onto Badgerstrike's pelt as his claws dug out chunks of Tinder's fur. Tinder shrieked and dove under Badgerstrike, slicing the tom's belly with his claws. Before he could slip out from under the tom, Badgerstrike collapsed, crushing Tinder with his weight. Not even a second has passed before Badgerstrike raked his claws along Tinder's head, relishing in the blue warriors shrieks of pain.
"This is what happens when you try to beat me at my own game," Badgerstrike taunted, his teeth hovering inches above Tinder's throat.
Tinder glared up at Badgerstrike with flaming eyes, "I hope you die a painful death."
Galesong watched from under a thorn bush as Badgerstrike grabbed Tinder by the throat and shook him like a piece of crow food. She watched as the huge tom flung Tinder to the ground and took off in the same direction as Burningmoon.
A single tear glistened on her cheek as she realised that there was no hope for her in the Game. She didn't see the hooked claws until it was too late.
Cliff-hanger!
Don't kill me for it ;) You'll find out whether Tinder died in the next chapter as well as who Galesong's attacker was and if she'll survive.
Ask me questions if you want!
Hunter Out~