Chapter 97: Revenge So Sweet
The quiet babbling masked our paw steps as we snuck into their territory. The moon hung heavy in the sky illuminating the world below. We could already see the camp in the moonlight. The former Riverclan camp was silent as we got closer. We didn't risk it yet. Mapleshade had been alerted to our plan and was all too willing to play the role of scout. I stopped us a moment and signaled Mapleshade to go first. As a spiritual being bonded to me, it was impossible for her to be detected. Methodically, she peeked into every den checking for awake cats. Finally, she peeked into the leader's den before vanishing and reappearing at my side.
"No one's up. I confirmed Tigerstar is in the leader's den asleep and totally unaware. I did spot Leopardstar near the warriors den entrance, but she was also asleep. We're free to go." She mewed, knowing fully well that I was the only one who'd hear it.
Silently, Ashfur and I crept in with Mapleshade's ghost lazily walking beside us. My ears were perked, alert for even the slightest indication of someone spotting us. Finally, we reached the leader's den. Tigerstar's snoring was all the confirmation I needed to know he was here. Slowly, I untied the two bundles attached to my tail. Each was a collection of beech leaves swaddling a very special mixture, with a bit of wet moss in it to keep the mixture from drying to something akin to rubber cement. I unraveled one, ensuring the mixture never touched me and stalked towards Tigerstar, careful in my every move to ensure he wouldn't awaken. When I finally hovered over him, I quickly swiped the mixture across his eyelids.
"What the?" Tigerstar groggily mewed, reaching his paw up to wipe at his eyes.
"I wouldn't open my eyes if I were you. What I just put on you is poison." I mewed, causing him to stiffen.
"Smudgefoot." He muttered, knowing fully well that if I was here, I was about to do something truly awful to him.
"Indeed. It is I Tigerstar, and I'm here to settle our debts. Now please close your mouth or you might find out what deathberries taste like." I answered, putting a claw to his neck so he very well knew how helpless he truly was. Tigerstar growled a moment, but he got a brief look of smugness when he heard a pebble kicked outside. I smashed the second bundle across his mouth before he even got the chance to speak, silencing him.
"Tigerstar. I smelled something strange out here. I thought you ought to know." A molly's voice called in. It was Leopardstar, strangely enough. Tigerstar seemed giddy, believing I was about to be caught. That was when my partner used their unusual skill.
"You wake me in the middle of the night because you smelled something?" My partner growled in a near perfect imitation of Tigerstar. "Must I be awakened for every mewl of a kit as well? There is nothing here. Now begone from my sight lest I need to give you a reason to not come back."
The frantic scrambling of paws made it all too clear what Leopardstar chose as a response. We would not be disturbed. I could tell Tigerstar wanted to ask what just happened, but the poisonous mixture over his muzzle was preventing him from voicing it. A truly wicked smile covered my face, knowing no matter what, no one could stop me from claiming my vengeance.
"Ah. Tigerstar. What you just heard was a partner of mine, someone you directly wronged. I will not tell you their name. Instead, why don't I tell you what's about to happen. That gunk I just covered you in, well it's a very special blend of poisons. Did you know only the seeds in deathberries are poisonous. I did, and I mashed them into a fine powder. Then I mixed in a wide collection of poisonous mushrooms. One of which causes symptoms upon entering the body such as an intense burning sensation, such of which the cat died from shock from the pain. Yellowfang made it very clear during her discussions of what not to do with an open wound that I became inspired. Even now, you should feel an irritating itch from where this mixture is touching your skin. Don't worry. It won't kill you, unless you open up your eyes or mouth. You'll have to wait for it to dry to try and scrape it off. Do you see it now? You are totally helpless to me right now, and there is nothing you can do about it." I taunted, watching him begin to shake in fear. I saw him extend his claws slowly, seeming to have come up with the idea of trying to fight his way out.
I ran my claws across his neck, enough to draw blood but not enough to kill him. "I'd put that foolish idea to rest. If you try anything, I'll kill you. That may not seem like much of a threat, seeing as you have the whole nine lives thing, but I'm curious. What would happen if I were to rip your neck back open the moment I've got the slightest hint of movement. Better yet, what if I just cut and cut and cut until I cut your head clean off? How would Starclan heal you? At what point does the damage become too much? You are very much at my mercy Tigerstar. I could kill you nine times over, and no one would hear a thing." I teased in a most cruel tone, seeing Tigerstar's fur stand on end in utter terror. "Now believe me, I don't want to kill you. No, no, no. As I've said, I'm here to settle our debts. By your actions, five of my cats were crippled or killed. One by those rogues you hired harass our borders, two crippled by dogs, one killed by you, and one killed in stopping those dogs. Five lives Tigerstar. Since I gave you that deal, I'll say you owe me four. I noticed a certain structure in your camp and had someone check it out. A prisoner's den with bars and four cats in it, namely Bluestar's kin and Graystripe's kin." I mewed, letting the air still a moment.
Tigerstar wriggled, starting to get what I was hinting at. "Here's your options. You can either deny yourself a victory and give me those four, or I can kill you four times over. Four lives Tigerstar. I'll let you ponder on the choice while I tell you about a little conversation I once had with Bluestar on the nature of death. I'm not totally sure you were told this, but I've been reincarnated once before, so I know the sting of death. As such, I decided to ask Bluestar what dying as a leader really felt like. She described it as feeling death but then death reversed. I'm sure that doesn't sound bad, but as someone who has died before, I can tell you your first death is going to be quite traumatic. When I died, I bled out. There was an intense cold numbness that flooded my body as my brain frantically tried to recover what it could. It was working overtime, trying to alert the body to the ongoing failures, not getting feedback from my nerves as they were starved for blood. The most intense pain I've ever experienced hit me as my brain thought everything in my body failed. It may have been only a brief moment, but it has given me every reason to avoid death again. You, on the other paw, will feel this cold and pain, but it will not end nicely for you. Instead of falling to the unfeeling blackness of death, you will be pulled backwards through that process once again. Did you know Bluestar always went on runs after a death? She described it as the only way to finally rid herself of that intense numbness and unresponsiveness in her body. It was something painful to her, but it was better than the alternative. She needed her blood to start moving again, and running got her heart pumping. Now that my story is over, how about an answer. You can either release those four into my care publicly, or you can go through the death and revival cycle four times. Nod your head for the prisoners or shake your head for death." I commanded.
Tigerstar frantically nodded, clearly shaken at what I'd told him. "Very well, We'll be ready to receive the prisoners the day after tomorrow. Know this. If you betray me, I'll be back. You won't be so lucky. I'll kill you in a way Starclan can't possibly recover. Here's something else for you to ponder before my partner takes over. How did we get in? Did we sneak in, or were we let in? Can you really trust anyone?" I mewed darkly, moving back as Ashfur moved forward.
"One final thing, I promised I wasn't hear to kill you, but my partner made no such promise. Have fun." I mewed with vindictive glee.
Tigerstar was shaking harder than I'd ever seen a cat shake, completely cowering as Ashfur approached. Ashfur raised one paw slowly before bringing it down in a vicious slash, splitting Tigerstar's neck open and forcing the tyrant to collapse. I saw his limbs lash out in pain as he lost his first life, a trauma I knew would forever haunt him. Ashfur and I departed before he could recover, both smiling a proudly malicious smile. This was a lesson I was sure Tigerstar would not soon forget.