Pain was the first word that came to Fawnpaw's mind.
Her lungs screamed and ached for fresh air. The Clan had wearily gathered by the river at the RainClan border. Rain was starting to pour down. Fawnpaw gasped heavily, still trying to catch her breath. Leafpaw was rubbing Splashpaw's chest. The kit's breath was ragged and her eyes were shut.
"I'm not letting her go," Fawnpaw heard Leafpaw hiss through her teeth.
Fawnpaw suddenly felt a ghostly presence against her.
"Swiftwind," Fawnpaw whispered aloud.
"We are stronger together than apart," a voice whispered in her ears. Fawnpaw froze. This was not Swiftwind.
"Relax. Relax, and let the wind wash away your worries."
Fawnpaw suddenly felt dizzy.
"Fawnpaw? Are you alright? You look awfully-"
Fawnpaw collapsed and her eyes shut.
"No pain anymore. Only dreams," the voice murmured.
~ transition (AC: I know the transitions have been really discreet and hard to spot, I'm making them easier to see now) ~
"Fawnpaw?"
Fawnpaw opened her eyes and quietly got up. The smell of slime and rot instantly hit her. She looked around her. It was a huge forest with mist enveloping the landscape.
"Fawnpaw."
Fawnpaw whirled around and saw a giant black cat.
"W-who're you?" Fawnpaw squeaked, her voice trembling.
"Most would call me Spiderclaw, but I have picked a newer, better name for me."
Fawnpaw paused, waiting for him to say his new name, but he did not.
"You're the one who was talking to me earlier," Fawnpaw said after a moment.
"I was." He replied evenly.
"Where am I?" Fawnpaw asked.
"The Dark Forest. It's like…StarClan, but with far more powerful and noble cats."
Fawnpaw noticed how he spat out the word StarClan.
"More powerful and noble?" Fawnpaw asked, her eyes big.
"Much." He turned and leapt up a pine tree and onto a branch.
"Call me Cypher," he meowed cooly.
"Cypher," Fawnpaw echoed. The name had an odd ring to it.
"You have a destiny greater than any other cat in the forest," he growled. "But you are veering in different directions. Stay with your Clan, and never sway from your loyalties." his body wavered, then vanished.
~transition~
"Is she alright?"
"She inhaled too much smoke."
Fawnpaw coughed and shuddered violently.
"F-fawnpaw?" a tentative yet familiar voice said.
Fawnpaw's eyes flickered open.
"Leafpaw." she whispered, her voice raspy. She coughed.
"Oh! You're alright! I was so nervous," Leafpaw meowed anxiously.
"You inhaled lots of smoke," Orangespots said, materializing beside Leafpaw.
"So..did..Leafpaw," Fawnpaw puffed.
"Yes, but she did not suffer the same affects as you."
"The kits?" Fawnpaw asked, struggling to her feet.
Orangespots hesitated.
"Daisykit and Berrykit are fine, but Splashkit is unconscious," Leafpaw murmured.
"I hope he'll be alright," Fawnpaw murmured.
Suddenly Leafpaw burst into sobs.
"What's wrong?!" Fawnpaw gasped.
"Flowerfur didn't make it," she whimpered. Fawnpaw felt horror strike her heart as she remembered how kind Flowerfur had treated her. And then she remembered what Featherfall had told her.
She stole kits, Fawnpaw thought. Perhaps she deserved it.