She couldn't remember how long she'd been running.

It could've been seconds.

Minutes.

Hours.

Days.

Regardless, the hot breath of the shaggy furred black mutt seemed unwavering and always constant on her heels. Her lungs burned, her breathing pattern tarnishing from the excess heavy breathing as she pushed herself further than she'd ever run before. Her tiny legs could only carry her so far.

Through the flourishing woods, the reddish blur blazed like a thin stream of forest fire, setting the green leaves aflame with a fiery glow. Her pads scarcely touched the earthen floor, barely registering the feel of the soil or the pinpricks of small, harmful twigs. Her pelt burned with adrenaline, aided with the aura of the midday sun's heat wave. Amber eyes flooded with panic, wide and unobservant to her immediate surroundings.

Through the pounding of her own heart, the blood rushing to her ears, the small apprentice managed to identify the thunderous cries of a river somewhere up ahead.

If she could get to it, she could use it as a means of escape.

Water wasn't a MagmaClan cat's preferred terrain, but it would have to do.

Nearly flying over an upturned log thrown somewhere across the beaten path, the reddish feline skidded closer to the roars of nature. Fighting against the haze in her vision, she found herself available to see the toss of the current nestled in between two layers of earth in a miniature, soil based gorge.

Her muscles tensed, half from the barking behind her that grew closer - the other half crouching in preparation to make the leap.

She landed perfectly balanced on the very edge of the dirt overcropping. She sat back on her haunches to take the majority of the power strain and launched her forepaws up and over. The rest of her body followed the aerial line and looked as if she was going to make it safely to the other side.

If luck was on her side, she'd land perfectly on the opposite ledge while the clumsy dog stumbled the last few tail lengths and would end up tripping into the thrashing current.

Only, lady luck had other plans and when she went to crouch for the final leap, her hind legs buckled and threw off her balance once she sailed upwards into the hot breeze. The change, while seeming minor, played a rather drastic role in the trajectory of landing. As opposed to crashing on the other end of the large gap, the apprentice was on direct route to the water below.

She screamed.

Once the water surface broke through her paws, the rumble overpowered up the female's cries for help and she was swallowed by the water's raging path, pulled under with little to no remorse. The liquid filled her lungs in a violent slew of furious thrashing. Her throat tightened up fiercely, vision dark as her eyes squinted shut. Underwater, she flailed to gain height toward the surface but the pressure kept her below. She recoiled into a ball as the crown of her head bumped into a large boulder. Her mouth opened in a lost cry, eyes flying open as the last moments of life slipped from her possession.

My name is Flarepaw and I have failed my Clan.

I abandoned them. I had no regrets.

Now I suppose I do.

I thought my life . . . I thought my life would be more meaningful if I went off on my own.

If I made my own destiny - rather than listen to one laid out for me - I'd actually make a name for myself.

But now it seems I'll die here. Somewhere unfamiliar to even myself. I'll die alone and cold with no one's shoulder to lean upon.

I'm sorry Blackshadow, for failing you. You were my savior. You kept my head above water and guided me almost like a mother. I couldn't have asked for a better sister. But how do I repay you? By taking that river you saved me from, and drowning myself.

I'm sorry Mistpaw for all the things I've said. I hit you when you were down and defenseless. I was a coward.

I'm sorry Floodpaw for insulting you an your sister. Nothing is more profound than a sibling bond and I discouraged it. I tarnished it. My apologies.

I'm sorry Anemonepaw for all the anguish you had to put up with. I was a foolish cat without consideration for others. For all those times you patched me up after a battle. I never thanked you properly. Thank you. Not that it does any good now.

I'm sorry Wildpaw, for being unable to be the love of your life. I caught on to your desires. In another life, I almost wish it would've worked out. You weren't such a maggot-face after all.

And most of all, I'm sorry Fallenpaw. You in particular were the one I fell for. Over all the drama and our warped lives, I never got the chance to tell you . . . I never got to say that I love you. I only wish you were around now to hear it. I'm sorry to break your heart as well.

Waterlogged and buoyant, Flarepaw's corpse rose to the water's surface, wedging itself between two rocks where it fell slack and immobile, never to see the signs of life again.

Challenge for TorrentClan

- Thornkit