Far Less Than A Lion [Closed]

How am I supposed to hunt in these conditions? The tiny black and white tom shivered and his little paws just barely touched the earth. His eyes darted around wildly. It terrified him that he couldn't know everything that was around him in the forest at once. He hated being out of camp. Mumblepaw just wanted to curl up under a bush and not move. If only that were an option.

His jumpy gait had prevented him from traveling too far from camp, and looking like a frightened hare in the process. The young apprentice felt so strange and unprotected out here. Ever since he had left the nursery, he had wanted to go back. Even though it wasn't proper for a cat of his age to still be living with the queens, Mumblepaw's timid nature and small stature would have helped him to blend in. It was only because of his order to do hunting he had crept through the camp entrance. A speck of bravery had pushed him to head out on his own. That desire had almost instantaneously turned into self-hated and discomfort. There should have been a warrior at his side, especially with so little training under his belt. Hawkstrike had been busy patrolling and hunting and doing other warrior stuff to pay much attention to the scrap of fur he was supposed to train. The tom assumed his mentor wanted nothing to do with him. It had been a shock that such an impressive and large warrior had been ordered to train a kit that was near his opposite. Unless Crowstar hoped to train it out of him.

A soft rustle caused Mumblepaw to leap back almost a few tail-lengths away from the source of the sound. In a panic, heart racing and ears thudding, he turned and bolted. His steps were wild as he frantically ran away from the unknown source. Tears prickled at the edge of his eyes and he squeezed them shut as if that would cause the world around him to disappear. This continued on for a few moments that seemed to stretch into an eternity. This nightmare did not seem to end. However, it was a miracle he had manage not to run head first into any tree trunks or trip over roots in that time. It wasn't until he thudded into a wall of thick fur that the apprentice stopped and buckled to the ground. An unfamiliar scent filled his nostrils. This was not cat scent.

There was a ferocious snarl and Mumblepaw thought his chest would explode with the fear that now filled every inch of his tiny body. His eyes finally snapped open wide to see the horror that stood before him. Spittle sprayed from it's fangs that seemed longer that his head. Hatred shown in the reddish-brown creature's eyes. Anger was evident in it's roar. Whatever this thing was, he had now pissed it off, and it was coming for him. The terror seized him and the miniature cat pressed himself flat against the cold, hard ground. His ears flattened in a similar fashion. Once more, he attempted to block out everything around him. In the darkness of shut eyes, Mumblepaw briefly cursed himself for being so foolish, and waited for the jagged teeth to tear apart his flesh.

Echopaw had been out with Crowstar. As someone who was nearing the end of her training, she had noticed the leader taking more time with her. Her heart soared, for soon she would be allowed a trip to the moonstone she bet, and become a true warrior. A really young one. Her brother had just been made an apprentice, and she was almost a warrior. It was a little... sad.

As they trotted through the forest, back to camp, a wall of scent hit her. It was not cat scent. Ears pricked forward, the spotted black and white cat opened her maw, letting the smell roll over her tongue. Fox. Her heart began to race. "Crowstar, there's a fox." she whispered, crouching and creeping forward. The she-cat peeked her head through the bush to see the tiny form of her brother. What in the hell was Mumblepaw doing? Frantic, Echopaw looked to Crowstar what to do, only to look back to see the fox rearing up and roaring at her brother, doing nothing but laying there. She had to do something!

Without a thought, Echopaw burst out of the bush, screeching. She sprinted across the open bit of land and swooped down and grasped Mumblepaw's scruff in her jaws, yanking him behind her and tossing him to side. She nuzzled him up and shoved him back into more bushes. "What in StarClan's name are you doing, you coward?" she screeched, raging filling her eyes.

Crowstar froze as soon as Echopaw told him there was a fox. The leader couldn't have anyone dying on him today. The black leader followed his apprentice over to where she scented the fox the scent growing stronger and stronger by the second. Once they reached Mumblepaw, Echopaw was already getting him out of the way.

The leader took it upon himself to tackle the Fox. His teeth sinking into the Fox's skin for a moment before he was tossed off. The big black cat positioned himself between the orange creature and the two apprentices. "Get back you two, let me handle this." A Fox could easily take out an apprentice, and he couldn't lose either of them Rippedsky would never forgive him then. The leader's pelt fluffed up a bit making him appear much bigger than he already was. This was going to be an interesting fight, but it's what Starclan gave him nine lives for.

He was prepared for death. As his trembling frame sunk closer and closer to the earth, Mumblepaw waited to feel the jaws of death embedding themselves into his frame and easily breaking every bone in one quick 'snap'. But, the teeth that met his soft skin were far less harsh than anticipated. He felt himself being dragged away as Skyclan scent filled his nostrils. After Echopaw tossed him to the side, and the yowl tore from her throat, he could finally just barely pick out her specific smell. It took a moment for him to even pry his eyes open. The terror still seized his muscles and made it hard to move. Once he did, the little black and white tom just stared up at her with widened eyes. Despite the two being the same age, he seemed like a kit, and she a warrior. As much as he longed to respond, no words built on his tongue, and his jaw seemed frozen shut. It was pathetic, but the apprentice did not move as he watched in horror at the scene unfolding.

Not far off, the russet-colored fox let out a yelp. Crowstar had managed to get in a good lunge before being thrown away. Once it regained its footing, the creature stared him down with blazing eyes. There was no fear there, only a wild hatred for the opponent that had tore its pelt. As most other animals did, the fox did not plan its next move and merely lunged forwards. Teeth snapped at the black leader's shoulder. Even if Crowstar managed to move away, there was no doubt the fangs would at least catch the first layer of skin, and most likely tear away a patch of long, dark fur. There was one goal here: to kill all of these cats. And the black one would be the first to go.

Echopaw's ears twitched to what Crowstar said, then back at her brother. She was so pissed how weak and pathetic he was. It bugged her so bad that he was so behind. He was almost warrior age and he was cowering like a kit. "Mumblepaw listen to me!" she whacked her paw with claws sheathed across his face. "You laid down in the face of danger. You didn't even run!" She hissed, looming over him with her fur bristling as tense as she could.

When the fox screeched, Echopaw spun around. With horror, she watched the fox snatch at his shoulder. Her body struggled with the morality. Fight or listen? Her claws dug into the ground, her heart racing. She'd help if he looked to be struggling...

Crowstar let out a small roar as the Fox tore into his shoulder. The tom stepped back away from the range of the Fox for a moment so he could at least size up the situation. He needed to drive this fox away. He knew this Fox was going to be stubborn, and he needed these apprentice's to get away. He couldn't fight to his best if they were in danger. "Please you two! Get back or get into a tree or something! It is not safe on the forest floor!" The leader growled.

The tom lunged at the fox, his front paws out stretched. The claws sinking into the orange creature. His sharp teeth trying to sink in anywhere he could find on the Fox. He needed to deal as much damage as he could. He knew that he would protect these two, even if that meant losing a life for them.

"I-I can't..." He squeaked pathetically, as his eyes focused on the battle happening behind his sister. It horrified him, but he could not bear to turn away. It felt like the moment his eyes fixated on anything else that Crowstar would be crushed in the jaws of the fox, and that thought alone was petrifying. The clan leader's words did not hit him. However, Mumblepaw finally crawled back and few pawsteps into the sparse protection of a deadened bush. The whole time he did not tear his gaze away from the fight as cat and fox lashed out at each other.

There was another yelp of pain from the fox as Crowstar struck once more. If the creature had a little more sense, it would have turned tail and run. However, this was not the case. This fox was out for the kill. It had been sometime since he had tasted the blood of cat. Without hesitation, it snapped forwards, teeth clanging with a sickening sound right near the clan leader. The first strike was clearly wild and passion driven. But, the frustration did not stop its thirst for blood, or slow it down. Within seconds, the fox shot out, barreling into Crowstar, and loomed over him, ready to attack once more.

Echopaw paused for a few seconds more, and then decided to do as she was told. Maybe she could jump on the fox from above. Spinning around, she saw Mumblepaw only backing up a few pawsteps. "You coward!" she screeched again, running toward him and grasped her brother's scruff in her teeth and shoving him closer to the tree. "Climb, now!" She growled in his ear, tearing at the snow with her claws. She glanced back at Crowstar then flipped back to Mumblepaw, hissing with inpatience.

ooc: I'm taking over the Fox for this post.

Crowstar let out a growl as the Fox tackled him to the ground. The leader thought he could easily escape the Fox's grasp, but something happened. The stones from the ragged ground dug into the leader's back.  The leader let out a hiss, trying to go limp and let the Fox think he was done for, so he could make the Fox back off. But what he wasn't expecting was for the Fox being so hell bent on killing him.

The fox felt the cat go limp under it, that was it's chance. The Fox wanted to make sure this thing was done for. This black cat would be dead, and it could take out the others. Yellow teeth glinted for a moment as it opened it's mouth before chomping down on the leader's neck.

Crowstar's eyes went wide, as he felt the teeth sink into his neck. He couldn't let out any noise except for a strangled gurgle as he tried to gasp out for help. Panic began to set in. Not because of the Fox taking another life, maybe two, but for the two apprentices sitting just over there. Just barely out of the safety of the tree. His fading vision looked over to them, and he prayed to his ancestors for their safety. He needed to come back quick.. Oh man he had to save them.. Please Starclan let him come back quick.

The leader went limp on the ground, blood pooling out from the leader's neck. He was still for the moment as the Fox stepped off his body, and turned it's attention to the apprentices. A strangled gurgle was heard from the leader once again as he tried to revive, but once again fell still as the wound couldn't close full from one life's healing. It would take a little longer, and another life. Two lives would be lost today.. He needed to come back. He needed to save them..

He wanted to climb, like Echopaw said, he really did, but Mumblepaw still found it impossible to move. Not even the prickle of his sister's teeth in his scruff could break him from the spell. Helplessly, the apprentice watched as the struggle continued on. Crowstar looked like the most impressively terrifying force he had ever seen in his short life, just under the fox. If he weren't so scare, the little tom might have been genuinely impressed. But, the thought never crossed his mind. As soon as the moment had come, it was gone. He continued to watch on helplessly as sharpened fangs sank into Crowstar's neck. The leader went limp. It was over. The snarling fox turned towards them.

A low whimper left Mumblepaw as he continued to stare. There didn't seem to be a way to get out of this. The cat who was supposed to be invincible, the Goliath that was Crowstar, was now dead. The terrified, soft cries continued to fall from his maw as the trembling cause his whole body to quake with a whole new level of fear, "No... no... no..." He was going to die. Echopaw would most likely be able to scramble up the tree, but not while dragging him in his practically comatose state. Soon, they would meet the same fate of the Skyclan leader.

The world seemed to move in slow motion as the russet fox turned towards them, a special blood-lust in its eyes. The beast was hungry for apprentices, and it was about to get its fix.

Echopaw hissed once more before scrambling halfway up the trunk. A large growl from the fox made her stop and turn her head. What she saw almost killed her. Time slowed. The fox was standing over Crowstar, about to bite. And then it did. It tore into his throat and left a gaping hole, blood pouring out. She screeched, but she couldn't hear herself. Crowstar didn't wake up. Was he out of lives? She scrambled the rest of the way up the tree and crawled onto the branch. He didn't wake up. He didn't wake up. She cried out, in shock. Fear. Pure emotion. The fox was heading towards Mumblepaw as the coward trembled in place. Echopaw unsheathed her claws, digging it into the branch. She could feel her heartbeat in her chest, and she got tunnel vision. As it got closer to her brother, she knew she had to act.

She waited until the fox was right under her. And with a deep breath, she leapt, onto the fox. She was a black and white ball of screaming fury, a meteoroid heading to earth. Her breath almost got knocked out of her chest as she collided with the red fur, claws outstretched. She tore into the fox, her large teeth taring into it's flesh. She clung on to the back of the fox for dear life. She couldn't end up like Crowstar.

A sharp gasp escaped the leader as he woke up from his short meeting with Starclan. He was alive. He was able to save them. Without thinking of his bleeding neck wound that was still hurting but it wasn't lift threatening anymore.

The black leader let out a roar and launched himself at the Fox. Using Echopaw's distraction to grab the Fox by the throat and tear into it like the blood thirsty dark forest warrior he used to be. He could feel the blood welling up from the fox's throat as it struggled but this thing deserved to die. It took his lives and it would have taken their's too. The leader held on until the fox went completely still.

Crowstar quickly tossed aside the limp fox body. His chest heaving from overworking himself. "Are you two alright?" The leader asked the two apprentices. They would both need to get treated for Shock that's for sure.

The tiny black and white tom was too focused on the sharpened teeth that threatened to tear into his flesh to notice that Crowstar had risen back onto his paws. He only watched in terror as the monster came for him. Soon, his pathetic life would be over. Mumblepaw wasn't ready, but he still couldn't do anything. His eyes could not look away from that terror. Suddenly, his sister was on top of the fox. It writhed around, trying to shake the cat from its fur. But, another set of teeth appeared, lunging for its throat. Within a few unbelievable moments, the struggle had ended.

Mumblepaw's ears rang and he could barely make out the leader's sentence, but he nodded slowly, staring unblinking at the still fox on the ground, as if it would re-awaken at any moment.

Echopaw jumped away from the fox's body and broke out into tears. [color:1ca8=cc6600]"Crowstar!" she cried, racing over and burrying her head into his shoulder fur. "You died. You died and you were gone so long, Crowstar." She began to cry softly, the shock and fear settling onto her young brain. The fact she watched her mentor die and come back was... Terrifying.