Rain quietly stepped out of the den, her ears flicking as Ami and Breeze bolted out past her. She watched the excited, bumbling kits join a few others that were playing near the pond at the center of the cavern. It had been seven long days since she had come to the Orphanage...and she was beginning to grow restless. She had done nothing but lay around, eat and watch the kits in the room play with one another. Marcy hardly spoke to her...it was almost like she was ignoring and shunning her for being from the 'outside', as Breeze put it. She wanted to get back on the road. The Orphanage was a lovely place that seemed like it would be safe for her kits...but, for some reason, it just didn't feel right. She shook her head as she walked to the pond and got a cold drink of water.
Maybe I just need to go for a walk. This is such a safe, lovely place. My kits would probably be very happy here... She hesitated before sitting up, looking over her shoulder to see Marcy coming to the pond as well. "Marcy?" She mewed quietly to the queen. "A-...are we allowed to take walks?"
Marcy lifted her head and looked at her in confusion. "...We can...but why would you want to? There is not much to see other than the red stone of the mountain."
"I just want to stretch my legs further than the pool..." Rain stood, stretching. "So I'm going to go, okay?"
"Fine, just be back by evening meal."
"I will," Rain turned and trotted to the opening of the cavern, traveling through the dark tunnel until she came to the spiral that stretched through the whole mountain. She looked up and down, staring at the cats that walked calmly past her, this way and that. She hesitated before she began going up, looking around and peeking into the many tunnels she passed, not entering any of them until she came to one that smelled of fear. Blinking curiously, the she-cat cautiously entered the dark tunnel, glancing around cautiously as she walked.
She finally saw an opening and broke into a small run to reach it. She stopped, however, when she heard voices.
"And what do you think you were doing, going outside?" Came Basil's voice...but it sounded different. It was harsh, cold and cruel.
Rain hesitated before peeking inside.
Standing in a rather small cave was Basil, her golden fur easily identifiable against the dark gray of the cave. Trembling in front of her was a small, rail-thin gray-blue tom with wide, terrified blue eyes that were staring up at Basil in horror. Behind him was a whole line of Guards, including Ervan's apparent mate, Rosemary.
"I-I..." the tiny tom forced down a swallow. "I-I w...w-was...j-just..."
Basil didn't let him finish. She spat in rage and sliced her claws across the young cat's cheek.
Rain's fur bristled at the cry of pain that came from the young cat.
"You just WHAT?" Snarled Basil, her tail lashing, her normally soft blue eyes like freezing chips of ice. "You know you are NOT allowed to leave the Orphanage, Blu! What makes you think you'd even be wanted anywhere, hm? You're just a pathetic little piece of wolf dung that no one wants! That's why you were abandoned here! And you will stay here forever...do I make myself CLEAR?"
"Y-yes, Basil!" The cat cried weakly, closing his eyes tightly.
"Good...you lot. Punish him."
"B-but-!"
Rain tensed in fear when a tail brushed over her mouth. She whipped around to see the golden form of Ervan in the dark. His green eyes were slightly narrowed and with one jerk of his head, he turned and went away from the cave mouth. Rain hesitated to follow him, but hearing a single screech from the cat called Blu made her propel herself after him.
"I don't know what you were thinking, eavesdropping like that," Ervan huffed once they were out of the tunnel, "But don't ever do it again, got it? Basil would kill you if she knew you saw her punishing someone. You and your kits."
"W-...w-what was all of that about?" Rain demanded shakily. "T-that kit-"
"Blu. An orphan that was abandoned here by his mother several moons ago. He's constantly trying to leave the Orphanage-"
"B-but Basil said that anyone could leave whenever they wished!" Rain quickly interjected. "She assured me that whenever I feel like it, I can leave with Angel-"
"And you believed her?" Huffed Ervan. He slowly shook his head as he began to walk away from her. "You'd best prepare yourself for a long life here, Rain, because she's not ever going to let you, Angel or your kits leave."
"T-that can't be! She told me-"
"That you could leave, I know. But that doesn't mean you should have believed her."
"W-what do you mean? Why can't I leave? Why can't that Blu kit leave?"
"It's not just you or him. No one can leave."
"WHY?"
He paused in his tracks, looking around at her for a moment before shaking his head and turning. "You're better off not knowing."
"I may be better off not knowing, but I want to know!" Rain snapped, surprised by how angry she sounded, but not letting the smoldering feeling in her stomach die down. "I didn't leave the Tribe just to be trapped in this Orphanage! I left the Tribe to find a good home for my kits, where they could grow up around freedom and happiness!"
Ervan hesitated, staring at her. "...They can grow up with that here," he murmured, "It'd just be limited-"
"I don't want limitations on their freedom or their happiness!" Rain pursued him, trotting up to his side and glaring at him faintly. "Don't you want freedom and happiness for Breeze and Moth? O-or Marcy? Or, if you don't care for them anymore, t-then Rosemary and her kits?"
The tom stood still and silent, staring into the distance for a moment before he sighed. "...Come with me," he said quietly, walking higher up the stone spiral.
Rain was uncertain but, at a welcoming flick of the tom's tail, she nodded and hurried after him. He led her higher and higher up the spiral, past many rooms and many strange cats that gave her confused looks as she passed. She ignored them, though, her eyes locked on the back of Ervan's large head. She soon began to see light speckling the stone they walked on. More and more light began to fill the space around her, shedding the stone of its dark cover. Before she knew it, she and Ervan emerged into the sky.
She was confused until she realized they were at the top of the mountain. A large rim surrounded it that gave the guards of the Orphanage plenty of room to walk and patrol the roof. Many guards sat on the very edges of the mountain, staring off into the distance. Ervan led Rain to a curve of stone that had no guards stationed at it. He sat down, Rain hesitating before sitting quietly beside him.
Lifting her head, she was taken away by the beautiful view being at the top of the mountain blessed her with. She could see everything. The endless, gray mountains that she had grown up around stretched farther than she would have ever imagined. They were bathed in the soft mid-day light that managed to peek through the thick clouds that coated the sky. In the very, very farthest distance, she faintly saw a tinge of green, but was unsure what it was. To her right ran a long, winding river. She wondered silently if that was where Zero lived. It didn't seem too far.
"...I do care for Marcy and our kits," Ervan suddenly whispered, making Rain look at him.
She blinked slowly. "W-what?"
"I love Marcy," he said, leaning his head back some. "I've never loved another cat like I love her. I want to spend every day with her and our kits."
Blinking in confusion, Rain tilted her head. "I-If you love Marcy and the kits, then why are you mates with Rosemary now?"
He hesitated and sighed. "...I didn't want to be."
"...T-then why?"
"Basil," Ervan huffed. "...She has this law that no two cats are allowed to stay mates for very long. Once a tom has kits with a she-cat, he is to leave her, get with another she-cat and have more kits. That cycle repeats until the tom dies."
Rain stared at him in disbelief. "W...what? W-what kind of law is that? That's not fair to anyone! What does that accomplish?"
"More kits," he told her, turning his dark blue eyes onto the she-cat beside him. "The more toms there are to mate with more and more she-cats, the more kits that are born to the Orphanage."
"But...it's an Orphanage. Shouldn't the leader of such a place want less kits to be born so the other kits can find families?"
"The title of Orphanage is just a cover up," Ervan spat, malice entering his voice that made the hair on Rain's neck stand on end. "It's anything but an Orphanage. No kit here is ever going to find a home. No she-cat or tom is ever going to leave. That's just the way it is."
"Why?" Rain insisted, fear growing in her belly at these secrets she was learning about this place she had thought was so wonderful.
Ervan's face pulled an odd look, his whiskers quivering slightly as he looked down at his paws. "Be...cause..."
"Because what?" Rain pressed.
"...I-I'm sorry," Ervan suddenly shook his head, standing and backing away from the edge a bit. "I'm sorry, Rain. I can't tell you."
"Why can't you tell me?" Rain stood as well, looking at him. "I think I deserve to know! All I want is to find a good home for my kits to grow up in!" Her voice grew snappy the more upset she became, her legs quivering and her eyes stinging against the high altitude wind. "If something strange is happening here, I should know about it so I can escape if I need t-"
"You can't escape!" Ervan snapped, looking at her with narrowed eyes. "No one can escape and no one ever will, especially not a cat like you! Rain, you're just a single she-cat who's pregnant and has been denied the knowledge of the mountain's secrets. You'll never escape, so don't be stupid! Just live here and-"
"It's that rogue!"
Rain looked up in surprise as Ervan suddenly fell silent and turned to look at the guards on the other side of the mountain, who were all clearly on high alert. Ervan bounded over to them, Rain taking a shaky breath before following him. She stopped beside the golden tom and peered over the edge only to gasp in shock.
"ZERO!" She cried, recognizing the dark ginger fur marred by an endless number of scars.
The eyes of the guards all flew to her and Rain felt a cold chill run down her spine at the looks she was given. She was worried for a moment that they were going to attack her. Their eyes were only pulled from her when the smell of Basil washed over all of them. Rain looked up in time to see Basil leaping out of the hole that led to the inside of the mountain, her icy blue eyes narrowed with rage.
"He's back?" She snarled, pushing Rain out of the way and looking over the edge of the mountain. She growled at spotting the figure so close to entering her territory. "Guards!" She screeched, her face the definition of malice. "Guards, get down there and kill that nosy piece of-!"
"W-wait!" Rain ran to Basil's side, staring at her pleadingly. "P-please don't hurt him! T-that's Zero! He-"
She was silenced by Basil whipping around with a furious screech. Before she knew it, Rain was on the stone below her paws, precariously close to the edge of the mountain. She felt blood dripping into her eyes from a large cut now above her eye.
Ervan raced over and grabbed her scruff, hauling her away from the mountain edge.
"You know that disgusting rogue?" Basil hissed to Rain as she struggled to her feet. Her blue eyes looked like cold fire as she glared at the younger she-cat. "That piece of wolf-dung has tried to break into my Orphanage multiple times! He has tried to steal kits and kill Queens!"
"Z-Zero wouldn't do that!" Rain quickly objected, her ears flat against her skull, her entire body trembling. "H-he helped me! He helped me and Angel-"
"So you're in league with him?" Basil screamed, Rain quickly flattening herself to the ground, her green eyes round with terror. "Is that why you came into my territory?" Basil snarled, her fur bristling, her face the definition of rage, "To help that damned rogue steal my kits and kill my Queens?"
"N...n-no!" Rain shook her head, terrified. "No, no, no! I-I w-wanted t-...to find a place f-for my kits-"
"SILENCE!" Basil roared, Rain instantly stiffening and falling silent.
"I can easily see through your petty lies!" Basil spat, extending her claws and growling at Rain, who felt the terrifying sound coarse through her body like a bolt of electricity. "You're in league with that rogue...you didn't come here for your kits! You used that and that kit, Angel, as an excuse to get into my precious Orphanage and steal everything I have worked so hard for!"
"No!" Rain cried, standing and facing the furious she-cat. "Basil, I would NEVER do something like that! I-"
"Enough! Ervan!" The tom frowned as Basil turned her piercing gaze to him. "Throw this disgusting excuse for a cat in the containment chamber!"
"No! No, Basil, please listen! I-"
"Do not speak to me, you piece of SLIME!" Screamed Basil, rounding on Rain, her eyes glowing with furious blue fire. "You will be locked in that chamber for all eternity...you will ROT IN THERE LIKE YOU DESERVE!"
"NO!" Rain snarled, her fur bristling, her eyes narrowing as Ervan and even Basil stared at her in surprise. "You're not locking me up ANYWHERE! I'm leaving! I'm taking Angel and leav-"
A dark red figure burst out of the mountain below and slammed into Rain, scrambling with the blue she-cat for a moment before pinning her roughly to the ground by her shoulders.
"Rosemary!" Ervan quickly rushed over to his mate. "Rosemary, stop! Let her go!"
"Ervan!" Hissed Basil, making him freeze. "What are you doing? Do you want me to go back on the promise I made to you?"
Rain glanced over at the tom to see a look of terror cross his eyes. He hesitated before lowering his head and backing away. Hopelessness filled Rain's heart as Rosemary grabbed her scruff and roughly yanked her to her paws. "Take her to the containment chamber," Basil told Rosemary calmly. The red she-cat nodded and began to drag off Rain, who fought against her, but was pathetic in comparison to the large, muscular queen.
"R-Rosemary, please..." Rain begged as she was dragged down the twisting stones of the mountain. "P-please, let me go! I-I just want to find a good home for my kits!"
Not to her surprise, she was ignored.
Rosemary continued to drag her down the spiral until they arrived to an out of the way cave that was pitch black and covered in dust and cobwebs. Rain winced as she was pulled into the unlit cavern. She could faintly see several openings within the caves, round stones beside each of them. She gave a small cry of pain as Rosemary tossed her inside.
Rain sat up, looking at the entrance. Her eyes widened when she saw Rosemary rolling the round stone to the front of the entrance. "R-Rosemary, NO!" Rain cried, leaping to her paws. "Rosemary, PLEASE! I-" But she was cut off when the stone clicked into place, leaving her trapped in complete and utter darkness.
Ervan quietly trekked along his normal patrol route at the side of the mountain, his dark blue eyes narrowed against the light of the setting sun. That stupid she-cat... He thought, grimacing. Standing up to Basil like that and mentioning she knows that rogue...now she and those poor unborn kits are going to die... He turned a corner and stopped, staring down at his paws sadly. I wish I could have told her...no...no, I wish she would have just never asked! If Basil finds out what I did tell her, she'll...
He shivered, shaking his head. No...don't think about that. They'll be safe. They'll be...perfectly safe. Maybe it's better that Rain dies...i-if she dies, what I said to her will die with her. Then Basil will never know. Then she won't hurt them.
The tom sighed and sat down, looking up at the dark violet sky as it slowly began to awaken with starlight. "Rain...I hope you can forgive me," he breathed. "I'd help you... I'd help you escape this place without a second thought...if it wasn't for-"
He was cut off before he could get another word out.
A large, muscular body slammed into him, knocking him onto the hard red stone beneath him. He opened his mouth to let out a yowl of terror, but a large paw covered it before he could, claws digging into his jaws as a furious growl rumbled above him.
"You know Rain?" A deep voice hissed through the dark. "Are you a part of this orphanage?"
Ervan stared up with terror at the obscured figure above him for a moment before forcing out a quick nod.
"What did you do with her?" Snarled the deep voice that sent chills up Ervan's spine. "I heard her...I heard her on top of your stupid mountain! What did you do with her and the kit she was with? Angel!"
This tom knows Rain and that kit? Ervan narrowed his eyes a little, struggling beneath the massive body holding him down.
"I'm going to lift up my paw," the tom growled quietly. "When I do, you tell me where she is or else I'll kill you. Got it?"
Ervan gave a small nod and the tom cautiously lifted his paw. The moment be did, Ervan propelled himself up, knocking into the much larger body and tossing him off of his own. He heard a furious hiss from the other tom and relied on the sound of his heavy paws slamming onto the stone. He managed to leap to the side just in time, skirting behind the tom...only for said cat to suddenly transfer all of his weight to his front paws and kick out with his back.
Ervan grunted in pain as he was thrown backwards and slammed into the wall of the mountain. He managed to leap aside just in time to avoid another attack, but he knew he couldn't win this on just dodging. This tom was strong and clearly knew how to use his energy without wearing himself out.
"Why do you want Rain?" Spat Ervan, his tail lashing as he heard the tom preparing to attack again.
"I know what kind of sick things go on at this place," the strange cat growled. "I don't want Rain, her kits or Angel involved in any of it!"
Ervan tensed and hissed. "Who are you to know what happens here?"
He flinched back a little when the tom padded forward, slowly growing closer until he eventually stepped into the dim light cast down on them by the moon. Ervan's eyes widened and he was instantly back on his guard, his fur bristling, his teeth bared as he was faced with the scar covered rogue that had been plaguing Basil and the Orphanage for ages now. "Where is Rain?" The rogue growled, his golden eyes narrowing threateningly.
"Leave this place!" Ervan snarled, his tail lashing furiously from side to side.
"Where is Rain?" The rogue repeated, advancing on him. "Tell me. I didn't even fathom that when she left my cave, she'd end up with you freaks!...I won't let you do to her what you do to the other she-cat's-"
"What do you know?" Ervan spat furiously. "You have no idea why we-"
"I don't care why you do it! But you are NOT doing it to Rain!" Screeched the tom. "I'm getting her out of here! Letting her go off on her own was a big mistake! She's trying to find a good home for her kits and this is NOT where she'll find such a thing!"
"YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW THAT?" Cried Ervan, trembling as he stared the tom down. "The she-cat I love is...what happens to the others is going to happen to her, too! You don't think I know this is the worst possible place to raise a family?"
"Then tell me where Rain is!"
"No! As much as I want Rain out of here, I can't! I can't betray Basil, for the sake of my kits!"
"Then I'll just get rid of you and find her myself," growled the scarred tom, lowering his head and slowly approaching Ervan, his eyes narrowed. "I'll rip your throat open and leave you to the wolves! I'll flay all of your little friends, too! Then I'll get Rain and help her find a place where she can REALLY be happy and give her kits a good life!"
Ervan flattened his ears, backing away slowly. "W-wait...I-I-"
"What, scared of dying?" Growled the tom, getting ever close to him. "Scared of having your guts devoured by the wolves?"
"N-...n-no! I-I..."
"Then hold STILL!" The tom lunged at him and in that split second, Ervan sprung out of his way, his fur fluffed up in terror, his ears flat against his skull. He heard the large tom racing after him as he ran, trying to race to the top of the mountain, where there would be back up. As he ran, however...a thought came to him. This cast, as terrifying as he was...was here to save Rain. He knew what Basil was doing and was here to save Rain before it happened to her. Maybe...maybe he...can save her too...!? He thought and, with that, skidded to a halt.
The scarred tom gave a yowl of shock as he slammed right into Ervan, knocking them both over.
"What in the Stars name is your problem!?" The tom demanded, sitting up and glaring at him. "One minute you run like a coward, the next you-"
"If I help you save Rain-" Ervan turned to him, his blue eyes wide and desperate, "Will you save someone for me as well?"
He blinked, looking confused. "W-what?"
"My...previous mate and my kits," Ervan said shakily, "T-they're in trouble...especially her. M-my previous mate, that is...if I help you save Rain, will you help her and my kits, too?"
The tom stared at him for a moment, frowning. "Why should I?"
"Please, I'm begging you! I'll help you get Rain out if you just-"
"Fine," huffed the tom, looking away. "...I can't refuse to help kits that are in danger," he mumbled. "...But I'll only do it if you help me get Rain...and Angel, out of here."
"I promise," Ervan said, nodding. "I'll help you."
Phew, finally! Sorry for the delay! I started at Indiana Connections Academy this year...started a few days behind schedule, so I had a lot of make up work...still do...*cry* And my beta was supposed to beta this chapter, but she never did...But, here's a nice update for you! Lots of happy happy drama~! Or...n-not so happy...really...View "Dreams of Rain" art at my deviantart, Lightpaw45! See you next chapter!