↱Ｆａｌｌｃｌａｎ⁻ᴴᴵᴳᴴ⁻ᴸᴵᵀᴱᴿᴬᵀᴱ⁻ full↲

[lumos.]

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It started out with just complete darkness like it always did. In the blink of an eye, the scene changed. A dark grey she-cat woke in a familiar nest in a home that had long since been abandoned. The muscular feline stretched from her nest, back arching and claws unsheathing into the feather-lined moss nest. Her yellow eyes flickered around the empty warrior's den. 'Strange' she thought. Just when she was about to leave her nest was when the yowl was heard outside in the clearing of camp - full of pain and utter fear - and very familiar. Sootclaw's heart dropped, so with her adrenal spiking, she immediately raced across to the exit of the den, scrambling past the branches that tugged at her pelt and into camp.

The first thing she noticed was her many clan-mates forming a semi-circle around something that Sootclaw could not see in the middle. They all seemed to be in shock at what was going on none taking notice of her appearance. Her ears were able to catch a few words, but at the sound of another pained yowl, she began shoving her way through fellow warriors - young and old - a few had tried to stop her, but Sootclaw took no notice of them. When she finally made it to the center, she stopped in her tracks; yellow eyes wide in shock and her heart dropping to her stomach.

Before her was a very familiar small light grey tabby feline, blood was pooling and staining the once beautiful fur of Sootclaw's younger sister Sagepaw. From where she stood she could look right into the honey-colored orbs that were once so full of life; now they only showed utter terror and pain. The once perfect face was frozen open in a sorrowful yowl that had been unable to escape as it had become harder to breathe. Sootclaw barley took notice of the several warriors that were fighting off the perpetrator just a few tail-lengths away. When her limbs finally began to move, she rushed towards her sister's fallen form. "S-sagepaw... Sagepaw!" Falling beside the younger she-cat, Sootclaw pressed up against her. She cared not about staining her fur with the blood that pooled around them now. She could hear the slight stutter of her name leave her sister's mouth but just barely as she struggled to breathe. "Shh... It's going to be okay. You'll be okay." Sootclaw had whispered, pressing her muzzle against Sagepaw's ear.

Sootclaw watched with sorrow as the last breath left the small she-cat. A painful yowl left the young warrior as she tightly closed her eyes and buried her face into a part of the grey tabby fur that wasn't ruined - she could just barely pick up a faint trace of Sagepaw's scent underneath the stench of death. Another yowl left her throat, but as she opened her eyes, she realized that she had been having a nightmare again. A shudder raked down the she-cat's spine as she came too; 'That's right, Sagepaw has been gone for several days now.' She thought, slowly sitting herself up in her new nest - the moss ruined from the fretful sleep she had gotten. But Sootclaw had no care about that now, the young warrior had been barely getting sleep since that night, and whenever she was able to snag a few hours, there was nothing peaceful about it.

A quiet sigh escaped her as she finally dragged herself away from her sleeping spot. As she walked into the center of the cave, she was able to pick up two voices, over the sound of the waterfall, coming from Songbird's claimed den. She recognized one as the medicine cat herself and the other deep tone as Pikejaw. Sootclaw didn't bother sticking around to see what they were talking about or to even try and insert herself into the conversation and instead began trekking her way towards the opening of the cave. 'I need to get out of here for a bit. It's stifling.' She thought, hoping to sneak away for a little while into the dark - maybe for a bit of a hunt. She had no want to stay here and wait for something to happen be it good or bad.

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rank. the vengeful warrior x tagged. open x loc. waterfall camp x crush. ... x w.c. 705

[xayah]

ＮＩＧＨＴＳＰＲＩＮＧ the hopeful warrior
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tags; Songbird, Pikejaw // mentions; Sootclaw, Littlesplash // feeling; tired, wary
Silence. That's all that was left. And yet why was it so deafening? Nightspring had left the sanctuary behind the falls earlier that day, just before the sun dipped below the trees. He couldn't bare to sit still all day, hiding away in those desolate caves with nothing to do but listen to the thundering of water as it crashed down. As it stands he was of more use out here than back there. Here he could let his mind wander, let his thoughts finally run free, and maybe even catch something to bring back for the others to eat. They would need their strength, after all, especially Littlesplash who had fared far worse than the others.

The gray tom knew very well to steer clear of the path they'd taken to get to the falls and even more so their old camp within the forest. There was no way he'd risk running into one of their diseased clanmates. If there even are any left. He scoffed as he entertained the thought. The image of his mate Hollygaze sacrificing herself to fend off his sister who'd succumbed to the madness still burned fresh in his mind. Nightspring shook his head, willing the thoughts away, and gazed up at the darkening sky. One star in particular caught his eye. Barely visible in the dwindling light but nonetheless shining brighter than the others. A sudden sharpness pierced his heart, causing him to hiss and fumble his steps. The last moments of his father's life flashed quickly before his eyes. Their leader had used himself to save them, to ensure they made it as far away as they could, and was struck down by their very own Pikejaw before he lost his mind completely. Of course Nightspring knew Pinestar would not make it and yet his heart still ached at the loss of his loved ones.

Mourning the dead would do him no good now. They were gone and that was it. A barely audible rustling in the distance caught his ears. Nightspring strained his ears forward, picking up on the scuffling in the undergrowth nearby. He fell into a hunting crouch with practiced ease, his muscles would not fail him where his mind did. He stalked forward on silent paws until he was only a tail-length away. The poor mouse was none the wiser as he pounced, landing squarely on top of the creature and delivering the killing bite. As he examined his kill he was disappointed to see just how scrawny the thing was. No doubt the prey in the forest was suffering from the recent turmoil as well. Nevertheless, Nightspring checked the mouse for any signs or hints of sickness before deeming it safe to eat and carried it back to the falls.

By the time Nightspring had made it safely to their hiding place the sky had darkened and the moon rose well over the trees. He stopped to admire the sight. Feeling a pull in his chest to be sleeping under the trees again, to be surrounded by the cool night air. He closed his eyes, steeling himself before slipping behind the watery veil. He caught site of Sootclaw as she headed in the direction he had just come from. He dipped his head to the dark she-cat, offering a silent "hello" as he carried on. As his long legs carried him quickly through the caves he was surprised at how familiar the ground already felt. It was cool and slightly damp, nothing like the hard, rough earth he had spent so long treading. The pounding of the falls at the cave entrance was merely a soft thrumming to his ears now compared to the silence that had felt so loud before. He let his paws lead him towards the cave Songbird had claimed as her own.

As he neared the medicine cats den he overheard the distinct low voice that belonged to Pikejaw. The tom bristled slightly upon seeing the older warrior conversing with Songbird. Nightspring quickened his pace, deliberately placing himself between Pikejaw and the small she-cat. He finally dropped the prey from his mouth to allow himself to speak. "For you, Songbird. I haven't seen you eat all day. You won't be of much use if you haven't enough strength to speak to Starclan!" he mewed jokingly, a small smile on his lips. His pale eyes wondered towards the frail, sleeping form of a cat close by. His smile was quickly replaced with a frown. He tossed a quick, uncertain glance in Pikejaw's direction, the toms presence a bit unsettling. "Will he be alright?" he spoke in a hushed tone, afraid of waking the sleeping warrior.

[jaculus]

mmP A L E R I V E R
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paws tumbling one after the other, paleriver stormed into the waterfall entrance, her haggard appearance and wildly unkempt fur a far cry from the pristine image she most regularly presented. every moment the she-cat lived now felt akin to snapshots in time. in between the moments she was able to recall, there only was the faintest buzz of motions in turn, the one indication that life continued around her despite a lack of acknowledgment. it was a hornet, a hushed humming as it was ensnared within her very skull. and to say the least, hornets were not at all complacent for the constant noise only stopped when paleriver was jolted from her inner reality. better yet, the wasp quieted whenever she remained nestled in the rudiments she called a nest.

today had been different, as exemplified by the she-cat’s bumbling stride colliding against sootclaw’s side as she entered the cave, unceremoniously elbowing the vengeful warrior. a whirlwind of stray white and silver fur followed suit, claiming any surface they could. as an unfortunate odor joined in on the upheaval, a flat, dull command of “move” fell from paleriver’s maw on instinct, lacking any real bite.

despite the fur, it was not hers. it was snowfeather’s. and it was, so long as she told herself that fact. the moment she woke today did not spell the usual for her. rather than pleasing the hive in her mind, she had embarked on a quest to retrieve snowfeather, his death altogether forgotten in that moment. a snapshot had taken her to fallclan’s old camp, and over and over she had scoured the desolate area, the humming of the swarms of flies over carrion absolutely drowning out her internal one. body after body, paleriver had hurriedly glanced at them. snowfeather was to be found and the other bodies were of no importance. there was only one pelt she was seeking. it was a swirling marble of silver and gray, the four paws bathed in a pure white. at times, paleriver would find animals within the mass of her brother's pelt, thrice a lizard and once an eagle, much to her amusement.

at long last, the she-cat had came across one very telltale splotch of a lizard. the body it belonged to laid sprawled face first, limbs bent at unsightly angles. snowfeather, her one brother and friend and in that instant, she had felt her wilted core of a heart grow tenfold, the impending mist that followed in her peripherals lifting. with a tender nudge, paleriver had set her pale golden eyes on her brother’s face, uncovering his lively eyes of deep ambe— no, no, no.

seething hatred had hammered into her bones, catching sight of rolled back blue eyes. her joyous delusion was abruptly shattered, leaving behind only poor cloudypaw. there was no lizard, only detestable and indistinguishable blots of silver on that pelt. that dolt of an apprentice. ”it’s snowfeather. it’s snowfeather. it’s snowfeather,” paleriver had seethed, angrily dropping cloudypaw’s limp head as it lolled back into its former position. ”it’s snowfeather. it’s snowfeather,” she continued, the familiar hornet returning and her paws churning to take her back. she should have stayed in her nest today.


▸ role the broken warrior ▸ location the falls ▸ tags sootclaw

[lumos.]

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Sootclaw was just about to leave the clan's survivors makeshift camp when two forms walked in through the entrance. First was Nightspring, the smokey grey tabby warrior was carrying a mouse, 'I hope that thing is safe.' Sootclaw thought, but didn't comment on it knowing the warrior was well enough in his head to have made sure. She returned his dipped head with a flick of her tail and watched with her cold gold eyes as he walked in the direction of Songbird's den.

As she turned around to leave once more, the second cat being Paleriver entered the cave, she was unusually unkempt and seemed frazzled. The dark grey warrior watched the other she-cat stride unceremoniously through the entrance, a flurry of grey and white bumped into her side. Sootclaw made sure to hold her footing on the cave floor so she wouldn't fall over by the blow. Though a grunt of annoyance left her, her ears flickered at the sound of Paleriver's voice telling her to move. "Why don't you watch where you're going." She snapped in return, she was in no mood to deal with the other feisty she-cat after having just woken from her nightmare of this she-cat's own brother murdering her young sister in cold blood.

Not wanting to stick around, Sootclaw left everyone behind as she slipped out the way the other two just came in. She let out a sigh she had been holding in and breathed in deep. No longer feeling as claustrophobic as she had been, she was better outside the cave then she was in. The muscular she-cat peeked up at the dark sky before trotting over towards the river that the waterfall poured into. She wasn't the best fisher, she honestly hated the water not ever enjoying the feeling of her pelt being wet, but they need to survive off of something and the fish were the best they had currently.

So she plopped down beside the flowing water, her gold eyes glistening under the moonlight as she watched for any sign of movement in the river. She knew at night the fish were less likely to be active but she was going to use any excuse to get out of that cave. As her eyes watched, her ears flickered in every direction - making sure nothing snuck up on her and kept her jaws open to scent the breeze that blew by; all seemed quiet.

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rank. the vengeful warrior x tagged. nightspring, paleriver x loc. waterfall camp x crush. ... x w.c. idk,
sorry it's short though and not the best. done on mobile