by Cradily » Mon Feb 03, 2014 6:37 am
That evening, Duskcloud dreamed of many different things. At first, his dream started out quite nicely, with a cool breeze ruffling his fur as he chased a squirrel through the undergrowth of the forest. He was gaining on the small creature and was just about to sink his claws into its flesh when it suddenly stopped, turned around, and began growling furiously. Duskcloud halted and stared in disbelief. Prey confronting the hunter? That didn't happen too frequently. But it was still a squirrel and Duskcloud was going to catch it, no matter how brave it might be feeling. Waggling his hindquarters, the dark tom prepared to pounce, but he froze when the squirrel let out a raucous cry of rage. He could barely believe his eyes as he watched the small, seemingly-harmless rodent transform into a terrifying, canine-like creature with a pointed snout, a bushy tail, and red fur.
Fox!
The fox howled once more, and now Duskcloud could see that its dark ginger fur was ragged and scarred. But it wasn't just scarred— it was scarred in the exact places where he, Pepperclaw, and Razorclaw had struck the fox that they had fought earlier that day. It was the same fox! And it was back for more. All alone, with no Clanmates to help him, Duskcloud had no choice but to run, and so he did. He ran as fast as his legs would carry him while the drooling, snarling fox chased after him just as fast. He could feel the creature's hot, horrid-smelling breath on his tail and forced himself to run even faster. Not far off in the distance, a fast-flowing river swirled by, and poking out of that river were a few small stepping stones, so small that a cat would barely be able to use them. That is, barely. Duskcloud knew it was risky, but he didn't have the strength to keep running and he couldn't suddenly turn and climb up a tree. That would take too much time and the fox would easily be able to catch him by the tail and pull him down. Bracing himself, Duskcloud approached the river and quickly but cautiously made his way across the stepping stones. There was only one left, and then he would be safe. The fox would fall in the river and that would give him enough time to climb up a tree to safety. He placed his paw on the last stone, and then...he slipped.
Duskcloud plunged into the river with a huge splash, and though he scrabbled frantically for a grip on one of the stepping stones, his attempts were futile. The fox fell in only a few seconds later, and though it must have felt horrible to open your mouth underwater, that is just what the beast did. It opened its jaws wide and clamped down on Duskcloud's back, sending a searing shock of pain through his body.
Duskcloud woke up all of a sudden, panting. He looked around frantically as if searching for the river and the fox that had mysteriously disappeared, and finally realized that it had been nothing more than a dream. He let out a breath of relief and lay his head back down in an attempt to fall back asleep, but much to his dismay, he was wide awake now. Careful not to step on any of his Clanmates, he padded quietly out of the Warriors' den and into the cool night air.
