Defenders of the Farm -- Nox Invictus -- DNP

[Kazin]

Link to Nox storage

This is a collection of writing for my Create a Clan group, Nox Invictus.

A quick summary:
--"We are watchers of the night, protectors to all. Shadows will fight, and I will fight back - we are Nox Invictus, the unconquerable night, the shining lights in the darkness."

It is in the dark that many threats loom in the distance, unseen to the eye, lurking just out of sight. Vision is limited, and no one is perfect. For some, the thought of the unknown darkness may be too much to bare, and they may hide away. For others, they are the guardians of the night, the protectors from the shadows. After all, not everything in the night has to be a bad thing. There are always those that keep the shadows and nightmares away. The cats of Nox Invictus are those such cats, and they pride themselves on being the secret protectors of the farm they call home. Out of sight from the humans, at least for the most part, Nox Invictus cats prefer to do their work silently and swiftly. While most of the threats to the animals of the farm are visible and well-known to the Twolegs that inhabit the farm - the normal canines that might like to try to get a quick meal with a chicken or a duck, or even the deer that threaten the vegetable gardens - the cats of Nox Invictus know that there is more to the world than meets the eyes. Unseen threats line the darkness,

While they don't have to blend into the shadows, the cats take a vow to travel only at night. The cats have been known to chase of many threats from the farm, even canines such as stray dogs or wild coyotes when they put their mind to it. For the most part, self-preservation is not a trait well-known among the Nox cats, and they can often be injured or even killed in their endeavors for protecting the farm.

[Kazin]

(link to post)

They were always waiting for her, and she alone could sense them. Not that the others couldn't, if they put their minds to it - they were just too happy to live in ignorance that anything could be going wrong around the farm. The Twolegs, unsurprisingly, were the most oblivious to the dangers that lurked in the darkness, the threats that were waiting for them to truly let their guards down. She took it upon herself to protect all of the life that called this farm their home - the humans, the other cats who turned their backs on her, even the animals who's language she did not understand -- the cows and their deep, almost mournful calls, to the chickens with their high pitched squabbles. Fluffy was the protector of them all, and it was a job she would take very seriously.

It had just been her for a while, chasing out the threats that she could. At this point, she considered herself more useful than the actual guard dogs the Twolegs seemed to think would do something against the wild coyotes or bobcats that threatened their livestock. No, instead the dogs were now lapdogs, chasing after any extra treat the humans would give out, paying no attention to the protection of the farm. It wasn't as if Fluffy hadn't tried to get them to understand, quite the contrary - she often struck up conversations with the stinking mutts, but was never really given the time of day. No dog seemed to care that there might be something out there endangering the farm, because they couldn't see it.

The leader almost rolled her eyes just thinking about the ignorance of the world, but she resisted. She was on a mission tonight, and couldn't let her mind wander too much. Tonight, she was out to enlist more cats' help for the farm, and she was almost there.

The cats' pelts stuck out in the glow of the moonlight, the clouds retreating for the night. The whole territory was bathed in a gentle silvery light, and it especially illuminated the white markings on each cat's pelt. It was strange to her that they all shared this similarity, their white markings almost shining like a beacon for her to find them. She had been meeting with these five cats over the course of the last moon, gathering intel on what their own clan was like. Peaceful and prosperous was her answer, while she knew her own home was not going to be the same.

"I'm glad you came," she said quietly, slipping into the middle of the group of cats. "I didn't think this many of you would show."

The eldest among them, though not by much, gave a curt nod. "I don't think any of us are ones to idle around while we could be useful. I can't speak for the others, but honestly I was quite bored in the valley. Too isolated." A couple of the others nodded at his words, alert to their surroundings as their ears twitched.

"Nox Invictus will gladly take your help, though I need you to hear me before I show you to the camp I've been working on." Five pairs of eyes stared back at Fluffy, looking each in the eyes, noting their confidence. "The shadows are growing stronger with each passing day, and protection of this farm will not be easy. I cannot guarantee safety, but I can guarantee comradery and friendship. If any of you are caught betraying the other, it is going to be an immediate banishment for any party involved. Understood?" Five nods. Five hardened gazes. They were ready to take on the job. "Then repeat after me - We are watchers of the night, protectors to all. Shadows will fight, and I will fight back - we are Nox Invictus, the unconquerable night, the shining lights in the darkness."

If it were possible, the moon's glow seemed to shine brighter on the small gathering of guardians. The protectors of the farm, Nox Invictus.

[Kazin]

(link to post)

I hate this place. It was a thought that crossed the young cat's mind often, the daily chores never-ending and never changing. The activities she could do had gone stale, the food losing it's crunch, the other cats losing their interest. She was no longer the new cat on the block, no longer interesting. Minnow hated it. She hated being pampered, being treated like she was unable to do anything for herself. Even when she would scratch the Twolegs, they seemed to have a never ending supply of soft pets and quiet voices soothing her, thinking that they had done something to upset her. She hated being a Twoleg pet, and longed for the feeling of the grass under her paws. She could vaguely remember exploring as a very young kit, supervised by her Twolegs of course, but ever since that day... she had been dreaming of feeling the soft grass under her paws, of the wind through her pelt more than just through a window. She longed to be her own cat, to be independent of these Twolegs... and most of all, she yearned to learn.

Minnow had always known she had a thirst for knowledge that would never be tamed by being a simple house cat. She wanted to know how to hunt, how to protect herself and others, how to track her enemies with her nose. Minnow wanted to be a warrior, like the cats she had grown up hearing stories about from her older siblings. One cat she had met briefly even mentioned that he himself was a warrior of the forest before he lost an eye and decided he wanted to retire. She couldn't fault him for that, but she wanted to understand why he loved the forest for so long.

It was a random bit of luck that allowed Minnow to finally enact her plan of freedom, to escape. The Twolegs were rushing, and they forgot to latch the door. Out she went, never to look back. Freedom.

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No one had told her it would be this cold. Not a single cat mentioned that the seasons would change so rapidly, that even though the snow had yet to fall there was going to be a bitter wind chill. No, instead she had gotten stories of triumph, but all she had seen in the day she had been out was failure. The thought of failure filled the young cat with dread... no. She would never give up. She would keep moving forward, until she was able to find the warriors of the forest.

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"Good morning." Fluffy blinked at the sound of another cat, still unused to waking up to the sounds of others. "Or, well, good night, I suppose." Skip grimaced in what was meant to be a smile, a gesture that Fluffy returned with a smile of her own. She had gotten used to the strange display of emotion that Skip would often give, and mumbled her own greeting through a yawn and a stretch. The moon's glow was once again filling the camp with it's soft light, and filled Fluffy with a sense of peace.

"Ready to hunt today?" She asked, beckoning for Skip to follow her through the camp to wait at the entrance. He was the one she decided she could trust the most for now, the eldest among his companions. He would lead a hunting trip, while she would lead her own border patrol.

Skip merely nodded, seemingly distracted. "Yeah..." He trailed off, his head tilting slightly to the side. "Do you hear that?" He asked, just as an odd twig snap had Fluffy's own ears twitching. She nodded silently, beckoning for Skip to follow her into the night. Leading the patrols would have to wait for a few moments.

Silently, the pair of cats crept through the grass, the blades cold against Fluffy's paw pads. An unfamiliar scent drifted over her nose, though it was definitely cat... it smelled of human, and stale air. And was very nervous, judging by the harsh breathing.

Sharing another look with Skip, Fluffy sat up from her crouch, sensing no danger from this newcomer. "I don't want to scare you," she spoke softly into the moon's glow, "but please, come over here. I think we can help you."

Minnow would never take the sound of another cat's meow for granted ever again.

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It wasn't often that Fluffy traveled during the day, but she had a task to do. To find a healer for her clan, someone that she could rely on. While there weren't a lot of options, even if she had an arsenal of cats to choose from, Fluffy knew exactly who would be suited for the job.

Honeycrisp.

It was a name often spoken with scorn and disdain, the others not really understanding the enigmatic she-cat. But Fluffy knew there was more than what met the eye, and Honeycrisp would be a great asset to Nox Invictus. A healer, a medicine cat - Honeycrisp would be the perfect addition.

It was an easy conversation for both cats, and the answer was a resounding yes from Honeycrisp, already gathering a few of her favorite plants to take with her for her new life in Nox Invictus.