[Archaeopteryx.]

Username: Archaeopteryx.
Cat Name: Of Distant Storm Clouds
Gender: Rr'je (he/him)
Rank: Hunter
Clan: AtE — They of the Fire
Age: 4 years
Prompt:

The storm clouds rested low on the horizon line and Of Distant Storm Clouds breathed in deeply, claws digging into the harsh rock of his home.

The other cats of the tribe didn't like the summer thunderstorms—many of them choosing to hide away in the Painted Halls during the worst of the storms, resting by the fire that gave their home its life. But Of Distant Storm Clouds was never content with the safety of his home. He wanted to feel the wind whipping through his fur, to feel fear and terror as the elements strove to strike him down.

Losing oneself to the terror of the storm;

What was better than that?

[eldritch hound]

Username: angel bugs
Cat Name: dewfang
Gender: afab non-binary (they/xem)
Rank: tbd
Clan: clan of the deep
Age: 19 moons
Prompt:

Have you ever seen a thunderstorm from beneath?

How the lightning skates across the surface?

How it lights up the water, even from all the way down here?

The patterns it makes on the sand in the morning.

The sound of the rain pattering against the surface of the ocean, and the whip of the wind if you stray too close to breaching.

It’s got a dangerous beauty to it all, really, doesn’t it?

A gorgeous dance of death and seduction between you and the electricity.

That’s what dewfang loves about thunderstorms.

The constant smell of ozone and risk of being struck further drives the beauty of this phenomenon for dewfang. The way the sparks in the air cause your fur to stand on end, the blinding flash of the lightning and the following scream of thunder, like some sinister secret that only they know.

The Nevermore.

That’s what they call it.

The cats of the past and those that have fallen since. The Virtuous and The Wrathful. Entwined.

Yes, it’s pretty and the patterns from beneath the waves is nothing short of whimsical, but it’s the danger than convinces most that these menacing sisters pose that cause many to call it a divinity. That’s where you go… when it’s over… you join the screeching thunder of madness and the flashing lightning of the lost.

Yes, all of that is gorgeous, dewfang loves it, but it’s that underlying fear of disapproval and death that sours the experience for xem. They will sit and watch from beneath the waves, entombed in their glass coffin, not daring to step foot on the shore of the sandy beaches until long after the anger of the heavens recedes once more into the blue calmness of an ocean sated once more.

No matter how calm the ocean seems, it can always turn into a screaming, writhing mass of danger and violence.

In a matter of summing this up, dewfang loves thunderstorms, as long as it's from the safety of their class cocoon under the waves, try and make xem rise from the ocean during such times that even the sky in crying in fear, then may wrath full upon thee, for it is far too bone-chillingly terrifying a sight to be throwing ones life into the hands of the dead.

[ 387 words ]

[LittleMaple]

Username: LittleMaple
Cat Name: Snow That Falls Gently/Snowfall
Gender: they are eternal, and have no gender
Rank: healer
Clan: Aetherclan
Age: 1 year when corporeal, ??? years before revival
Prompt: Snowfall looks up at you, its eyes piercings through your very soul. “Storms,” they muse, “What powerful and destructive things.” They ponder for a moment, and you swear you see their pelt fade into stars for a split second. They look at you again, they gaze having softened.

“Have you ever seen storms from above the clouds where they come from? Have you let yourself float through them, weaving around the lightning as it strikes its power into the ground below? No? That’s what I thought,” they say, before stalking away, motioning you to follow them. It leads you into a cave with small pools of water inside. They dip their nose into the water, and you do the same, shocked at how warm it is. When you open your eyes, you see Snowfall in front of you.

But… something’s different. You stare for a moment, and realize that their pelt is now made of stars. “Shocked, yes? Well, I’ll tell you the truth after I show you something,” it says, before motioning you to follow it. You do, and all of a sudden you feel your paws become lighter, your pelt become sleeker, and your mind become calmer. He looks back at you and smiles gently before jumping up into the clouds above. For a moment, you’re frozen in shock, but you snap out of it and follow him up.

“Well kid, here we are. This is where you can see the storms like no-one else. Soar through lightning. It’s pretty amazing! Oh and, don’t worry, neither of us are dead. I just allowed you to become a spirit for a moment,” they say. You’re about to ask what that makes them, but all too soon they’re gone. You sigh, annoyed that they keep running off before you can ask anything. When you find them again, they’re watching a storm. It seems they were waiting for you, but once they see you they’re off again!

You groan and follow, flinching at the thunder you’re floating through, and letting out a yelp when you see lightning. Finally the two of you land on solid ground, and they turn towards you.

“Fun, right?” They chuckle before becoming serious. “Well, I guess I better tell you what I am. I used to be a spirit, but life was too boring for me! I begged Starclan to make me corporeal, and they agreed!”
[400 words]

[wildsight]

Username: wildsight
Cat Name: finnick
Gender: male
Rank: tbd
Clan: kingdom of khafra
Age: 36 moons
Prompt:

You told me it would be okay. That everything would be okay. That everything despite the rain, would be okay. Even though thunder shook the earth, and lightning tore apart the skies, everything was gonna be alright. Everything was supposed to be alright.

But nothing turned out alright. That storm wasn't alright. And everything wasn't alright. The very earth shook and was shattered. Torn apart by wind and rain. And all I could hear was thunder, screams, and shouts. As the weather took everything I knew and loved. It tore apart my world from top to bottom. It destroyed eveything I adored and cherished.

But most of all it stole the one I loved.

So please...keep away from the storm.

[ԏєѧѻӆғוѓԑ]

this guy's closed for judging - i'll announce a winner soon ! :>

[prettypinkstar]

Username: paranormalpar
Cat Name: Skylight
Gender: "zeogender: when your gender fluctuates massively during a storm" (sourced from a tumblr xenogender list)
Rank: Outrank (make up their own rank) -- Fog-a rank that, to Skylight, is a mix of forestkeeper, moonfall, and moondust (read info in clan link)
Clan: Moonclan
Age: three years
Prompt:

I sit outside, gazing at the sky in awe.
The storm fills me with energy, with power.
Inside myself, gender fluctuates by the millisecond.
But I don't mind.
This is how it is supposed to be.
I silently wish the sky would stay cloudy forever,
The low sound of rolling thunder lingering,
Blinding white and purple ribbons shooting across the black landscape above.
But it won't.
The dark comfort of the storm will clear, and the other cats will come out of their dens.
Inside their dens, they whisper.
I can't hear them, but I know they are.
They whisper about me, and about the odd comfort I take with the storm,
Sitting outside for hours on end,
Not stopping to think of getting struck by a bolt of lighting,
My sensitive ears exposed to the loud crackle of angry skies.
But I don't mind their whispers, not at all.
Because they don't understand.
They don't feel what I feel when the sky becomes dark, when water is dumped from the clouds.
They don't know what the thunder itself whispers about them.
They will never know.
But I will.
And I do.

[ԏєѧѻӆғוѓԑ]

thank you all for entering - i had a tough time deciding between your pieces ;v;

ethium, your entry had so much character and emotion, along with imagery that felt really vivid - and the drawing captured it all so well ! take good care of this kitty, i hope sheepcurl will have peaceful days ahead (if that's what you'd like to give him of course) !

i'd also like to award two RUs !
Osskiar, your scene had good humor and the personalities of the cats made me smile :> i also loved the idea of the storm being seen as a predator, rather than a phenomenon.
angel bugs, the way you described everything in your writing was really pretty and the lore intrigued me a lot !

[coffee.berry]

Congrats! You all did great C: