in a strange place.

A black and brown tabby trudged through the forest, having given up on trying to find anyone else a long time ago - was it a long time ago? How long had she been walking through here? A sun? A half-moon? A few moons? She took a moment to once again glance up at the sky. Through the dead tree branches she saw nothing but blackness. There was no stars in the sky, no light to guide her paws. Just a strange illumination that dimly lit the lifeless fogs. There was no scent of prey, nor the scent of any danger. It was just her, in this horrible, utterly lonely wasteland.

She shook her head. No, this didn't make any sense. Where were the shining fields of StarClan? Where was the endless prey and the bright light of the moon? Where were her clanmates, who would surely be thanking her for a job well done, and her sisters who might have been forgiven for their lives? She expected a glorious welcoming, but there was none, only this hell. Where was she? Where was her paradise?

Sparrowflight shut her eyes and sat down, "StarClan, where are you? Help me, please..." she called out pitifully, "I don't understand. Help me."

A voice echoed out from the darkness, the mist swirling about the dark trees. "Oh Sparrowflight... Silly little Sparrowflight... You still don't get it do you? So much time to think... Reflect. You still haven't realized. Even with all your work... All of your dedication. They still turned your back on you, just because of your blood. I don't think you deserve that..." a voice purred. "StarClan believes half-bloods an abomination, and treats them as such. All of them are sent here... This place where the moon doesn't shine. Many of us were sent here for the wrong reasons... For no crimes at all! StarClan condemns innocent cats, for things out of our control... " The cat speaking growled, stepping out of the darkness. Even in the dull, murky light filtering down, her silky orange-striped pelt shone. Red eyes glowed defiantly from the darkness, filled with rage and hate, but dulled with the power of deception. Her voice was calming... Controlling... Comforting in this strange dark world... Who wouldn't want to believe her? Buy into her stories?

The she-cat instantly turned around at the sound of the newcomer. Another voice was the last thing she had expected, at least, one such as this. Her ice, blue eyes narrowed at the orange tabby she thought carefully. "StarClan is forgiving. They told me they wanted this, but... My parents, my sisters, my kin... They are here too?" Her fluffy tail lashed itself several times. "What is this place? Who are you?" She hissed, not feeling very threatened, in fact she was delighted to see another cat, but still very defensive.

"You believed them? That is what they do... They deceive. They lie!" she spat, her tail lashing. "This is where they send those who they distain... Those they've betrayed, and those who they've lied to. StarClan is cruel. They lie, promise prey, and light for the rest of your existance. But they manipulate the living for their own ends... Yes, your kin is here... I can feel them. I can teach you to walk these forests... Learn them like your own territory... Would you like that? Would you like to learn your prison?" the she-cat avoided the question about her identity... At least until she had this kit in her claws.

The former RiverClan warrior felt her pelt bristle slightly. This cat was feeding her things that went against what she had believed her entire life, and while a few things were starting to make sense, this she-cat was starting to annoy her. She kept her voice low, not daring to raise it; her words were laced with ice. "They made the clans! The code! How could I not?" she hissed, her eyes burning with a cold fire. "Where am I?" she repeated, clearly wanting answers.

The cat growled quietly. This kit was starting to annoy her, with her dedication. "I learned the hard way. I was like you... I was just listening to my ancestors... They told me to get rid of those who would ignore their words... I was their warrior!" she hissed with conviction. "And they sent me here for my service! This is our prison. The Dark Forest. The Place of No Stars," she spat.

Finally having received one of her answers, her pelt began to relax a bit. "The Place of No Stars?" she repeated softly, never having heard of such a place before. Many things were rushing through her head at once. That was what this place was? And - StarClan left her here, in this horrible place? No, they couldn't be so cruel. There had to be some mistake! But then again, how would a mistake like that be possible? "No, no! This doesn't make any sense!" she hissed under her breath, shaking her head in disbelief.

"The same way I felt when I first arrived," she mewed, her face seeming to fall slightly. "It was so confusing... Disorienting... And this is no mistake... They do this on purpose... To get rid of those who would try and join them..." she sighed, seeming to regain her composure. "Come with me, I'll show you around." she smiled, showing her long fangs.

Sparrowflight's chilled eyes gazed at the stranger uncertainly, not completely sure if she could trust the cat; but it seemed as if she had been here a long time. The brown and black tabby saw no other choice but to use this opportunity to learn as much as this new place as possible. The thought had also occurred to her, all places had an end, did they not? Perhaps this cat could tell her where StarClan truly was and perhaps she could receive some real answers. "Very well..." her voice was reluctant, not believing her words, but after so long wondering alone she couldn't feel compelled to rule them out either. Silently, she stalked up closer to here, curious as to what she could show her.

The she-cat's grin grew even larger as Sparrowflight stepped closer. "Right this way..." she purred. She led her to the Dead Pools. "And here, is what StarClan has oh so generously given us to quench our insatiable thirst." The orange she-cat grimaced. "You've noticed that there's no prey? And a hollow feeling? That hunger... Endless hunger..." her teeth clenched. "Drink your fill. It will make no difference... This is our fate. To wander endlessly in this dark forest, because StarClan turned their backs on us..."

What was this? Sparrowflight could hardly see a rabbit-length past her nose, let alone see the water. When she peered into the edge of the pool, it was muddy and tainted. Not even like the dirty marsh waters in ShadowClan, but it just seemed -- completely lifeless. The she-cat first poked her nose with it, watching the surface make a dull ripple, then slowly tasted it for herself. She didn't expect it to be all sweet with the tang of fish, like most of the water had been in RiverClan land, but this was completely different, unearthly. "It's awful!" The she-cat spat and stepped back, trying to get the taste out of her mouth. She stayed quiet for a few moments before eying the stranger once again. "Why do you bother with me? What did you try to do for StarClan?" she asked slowly.

"I did the exact same thing as you. I tried to cleanse the clans of the taint of non-purebloods. And look where it got me..." She trailed off. She locked eyes with Sparrowflight. "And I bother with you, because you remind me of myself. I listened to StarClan, obeyed their 'wisdom'. I did as they asked. And... Well, you've heard it before." She glanced down at the water. "Here. Come with me. I will help you get the answers you're looking for." she turned away from the water, heading deeper into the forest. "And don't wander. If you do, you may not find your way back..."

The tabby flicked her gaze away from the stranger's. Then why had she run into this one and not into anyone else in her family? It still didn't seem to make any sense to her! Her ears did perk, however, at the she-cat's promise of answers. Sparrowflight couldn't help but slit her eyes in a strange cross of suspicion and curiosity. Silently, she nodded curtly and followed the stranger at her flank, careful not to get lost in the thick fog that surrounded the pools.

The striped cat padded lightly through the fog, carefully stepping over knobs and roots that were hidden by the mist, that more inexperienced cats would trip over. "Watch your step," she would occasionally call, but many a time, she just waited while Sparrow stumbled and righted herself. Eventually, a lighter fog came into view. It was a much lighter gray, and it gave off much more light than anywhere else in the forest, causing the two to need to blink a few times until their eyes adjusted. She motioned with her nose for her to go through the mist. "You will find your answers there... But, be warned. Don't believe what they say... They lie as easily as we kill..."

The she-cat was having just about as easy as a time moving here and any other unfamiliar place in the Dark Forest. Sparrowflight shot the stranger a sharp look, what? Did she think that taking another's life was easy? She did what she did because she had no choice, not some flimsy whim. And when all was finished she had planned on killing herself, successfully ending the line.
She felt her pelt bristle uneasily, but continued to look up again. She had flinched from the new light for a few moments, yet felt her heart flutter. This brightness, where was it coming from? She wanted to sprint into the mist, to find the answer at once, but she painfully held back. "Who's there?"

ooc;; should we make a topic in le mist or ? |3