hopeful, hopeless ⚜ closed

Poplartooth noticed that the dog was beginning to weaken. Its attempts to dodge and block attacks were starting to become messy and they almost failed every single time. He glanced over at Sedgestrike, seeing that his companion wasn't in the greatest shape, either. While the fluffy tom wanted to kill the black dog and avenge Rippedstar, he knew that it wouldn't be the smartest choice to wear this dog down until it breathed its last breath. With a low growl, Poplartooth unsheathed the claws on his front right paw and drew them across the face of the dog. After taking the blow to the eye from Sedgestrike and the claws to the face from Poplartooth, the creature couldn't take it anymore. His growls were still threatening and low, but it spun around and darted off, abandoning its place in the shadows and heading somewhere deep into twolegplace.

⚜ poplartooth used front paw strike on dog, dealing 14 damage and costing 10 stamina. ⚜

poplartooth ⚜
75/100 HP
215/280 SP

dog (retreated) ⚜
53/150 HP
290/350 SP

sedgestrike ⚜
15/60
145/200

"Don't go chasing after it," Poplartooth warned, glaring over at Sedgestrike, the fury of battle still glowing in his green eyes, "We didn't come here to throw our lives on the line so that we can kill a dog. We came here to find Rippedstar."

Unfortunately, the only way they were going to find their beloved leader was limp and lifeless.

Poplartooth stepped into the shadowy hiding place that the dog had once been concealed in, and the smell that greeted him was enough to make him gag. It was the scent of death, nothing but death. There were the small skeletons of prey that the dog had caught, and there were a few rotting bodies of unlucky felines, but the one dead cat that stood out among the rest had a black-and-white pelt and was covered in dried blood and wounds.

The fear and horror that struck Poplartooth made his limbs begin to shake as they struggled to keep the large tom up and standing.
"S-Se..." The brown-and-white feline couldn't even manage to let out Sedgestrike's name as he stared at the body of his fallen leader. Despite the fact that he had been attacked by a dog, seeing this was the worst blow he had received all day. Seeing Rippedstar's body right in front of him confirmed everything... he was gone, dead, never to come back.

Poplartooth suddenly had the burning urge to run back to that dog and give it the worst pain it had ever felt.

The silver tom snarled, his claws raked the dog's pelt one final time as it fled. His pelt bristled with a tremendous warning yowl, though he considered just ignoring Poplartooth's command. The shadows of the twolegplace that loomed, helped him to keep his act together as he stalked over to the other tom while he stepped into the shadows. Carefully stepping behind him. His green eyes narrowed in the darkness that plunged around them as they entered.

His heart dropped to his paws the moment he saw the pile. The black-and-white mass, that had obviously bled a lot, obviously fought hard to be free. For a moment, Sedgestrike couldn't believe that was his mentor laying there. The cat he had considered his father... was... no. He lunged forward, his muzzle buried into the rotting mass that smelled of death, and very vaguely of Rippedstar. Yet he couldn't stop himself from grabbing the tom's body by the scruff and pulling him off of the pile.
"Rippedstar! We found you..." He meowed, his mind rejecting the scent of death as he lapped at the tom's shoulder. Desperation in the silver tom's body as he nudged and licked. "Come on Rippedstar... we need you back at camp." He turned and looked at Rippedstar's glazed eyes, in his hope seeing a glint of life that wasn't there. "Rippedstar, come on! I... I promise I'll be better. Please!" His desperation sank into Sedgestrike's voice, breaking it into crackling fragments as none of his efforts worked.

The body lay as still and lifeless as before... his father and mentor was dead. The worst part, was that there was nothing he could do as he curled up around the older tom's body. Still grooming, tears in his eyes as he desperately tried to wake him.
"Please... I can't lose the only cat who believed in me." He whimpered into his fur.

Poplartooth continued to stare down at his shaking paws as Sedgestrike lunged forward and dragged Rippedstar's distinct figure off of the rotting pile of dead bodies. The scent of blood seemed to grow stronger and stronger every single time he breathed. The tom inhaled the scent of death, and exhaled every single bit of hope he had felt. The smallest, desperate pinch of hope he had felt seemed to leave his maw in one breath and disappear into the air that was thick with sadness and tension. Sedgestrike seemed more desperate than he was, lapping at Rippedstar's fur and attempting to speak to the deceased leader. If Poplartooth wasn't so shaken up by the encounter, he probably would've done the same.

He managed to take a small, weak step forward so that he was beside Sedgestrike and Rippedstar's limp corpse. It wasn't fair. A cat like Rippedstar deserved to die courageously. Cats in the next generation were supposed to look back on Rippedstar's death and see the black-and-white tom with respect and honor. However, all they would be able to see was a tom who had fallen to a predator too quickly.

StarClan... why?!

"WHY?!" He suddenly shouted, sinking his hooked claws into the ground, "IT WASN'T HIS TIME! WHY IS HE DEAD? I-I... I'm not ready..."
Anger. Fear. Sadness. Loss. Denial. It was all he could feel, and he hated feeling it. Was StarClan trying to attack SkyClan? Poplartooth refused to believe that this could've been a mere incident that StarClan hadn't been involved with.

However, there was no time to waste. Rippedstar deserved a proper burial, and his Clanmates deserved to see him one last time. They had to bring the body back to camp - it was the right thing to do. Despite the fact that his limbs were still violently shaking, tail was viciously lashing, eyes were dull and drained, and tears were pouring down his cheeks, Poplartooth glanced down at Sedgestrike and managed to get more words out without screaming or whispering.

"C-C'mon, we need to bring his body back. The Cl-Clan needs to kn-know."

He couldn't make himself stand here any longer. Turning around, Poplartooth stepped out of the shadows, leaving behind the bodies of the prey and the cats that had fallen to the dog, and started to lead the way back to SkyClan's camp.

Sedgestrike stayed curled around Rippedstar's body. His ears flattened as sobs were drowned out into Rippedstar's black and white pelt. He couldn't hear Poplartooth's command, didn't hear the other tom leave. He only heard the sound of his own voice, and the distant memories of Rippedstar's voice. The soft mentor tone that he used when being particularly patient. The firm but soft way he spoke when they looked out at the forest together. 'What do you see, Sedgepaw?' The memory of being up in the boughs of a tree looking down at a vast sea of tree tops and the morning light in his mind. A broken yowl passed his muzzle as he cried into Rippedstar's pelt. "I don't see anything! I can't without you."

Rippedstar had been a guiding light for him. Certainly the tom had not displayed it well. He had been wreckless, stubborn, and strong-willed.. but for the moment, all he could be, was a lost warrior. His beacon was gone now, snuffed out unfairly.

... and it was all Poplartooth's fault.

The silver tom breathed deeply. His green eyes opened, the stench of rot in his mouth and nose. A snarl on his lips as he recalled that Poplartooth had left Rippedstar here. Vulnerable and alone. It was his fault. This was HIS fault. Without thinking, the silver tom stood, then charged after Poplartooth. For a moment, he thought he smelled and felt the marshy waters of his dream, but it didn't matter as he caught up to the tom and leapt. His claws slashing down Poplartooth's back.

"THIS IS YOUR FAULT!" He yowled through his tears. His eyes wide and dangerous as his pelt bristled in anger. "YOU LEFT HIM TO DIE!"

Sedgestrike used Leap and Hold on Poplartooth! He is pinned for 1 turn!

Sedgestrike
15/60
135/200

Poplartooth
64/100
215/280

The member 'Cays' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Effect Dice' : 2

Poplartooth hadn't even been expecting it. All he had done was start to walk without looking back at Sedgestrike or Rippedstar's body, but the next moment he felt a weight land directly on top of him. At first, he thought it had been the dog, and his claws slipped out to attack, but once he was able to see clearly, Sedgestrike loomed above him. Pain surged through the large tom as he was pinned down by his Clanmate, but anger surged through him as well. Would Rippedstar be proud of what Sedgestrike was doing? He believed that loyalty to Clanmates was the most important thing, and if the black-and-white leader had been alive to see this, he certainly would've been somewhat disappointed. Would he really have to fight his own Clanmate? Well, it would be self-defense. He couldn't just lay there like a dead piece of prey and let Sedgestrike continuously claw him.

The tom struggled to push the silver feline off, and all he could do successfully was glare.
"What is wrong with you?" Poplartooth growled, "I already told you why I left him! I told him I didn't want to leave him, I protested endlessly, but he wouldn't give up until I came back to be with SkyClan. If I had the choice, I would've stayed with him. Rippedstar would be so disappointed in you, attacking a Clanmate, attacking the deputy. This is no one's fault. Now get your head out of that stupid cloud of pride that surrounds you and GET OFF OF ME!"

Just when he had thought the resentment between him and Sedgestrike were beginning to fade, this had happened...

⚜ poplartooth is no longer pinned. ⚜

Poplartooth's words fell on deaf ears. The silver and black spotted tom's claws dug deep into Poplartooth's fur as he physically trembled from rage.
"You should have stayed anyways! The clan was FINE with me in charge..." He growled, his tail lashed as a sinister thought entered his mind... the clan would be fine with him in charge again. Poplartooth was still just a lowly deputy. He was no leader, not yet. His green eyes hardened even as Poplartooth managed to squirm his way out of his claws. White fur still stayed between them as he stalked dangerously forward. Lean muscle rippling in a dangerous sense.

"Don't you tell me what Rippedstar would be." He snarled slowly. "I know a traitor when I see one. You just wanted to be leader. Well, how much of a leader can you be in the Dark Forest hm? The blood of Rippedstar is on your paws, and now, I'm going to claim revenge for him." he lunged forward suddenly. His back hit the ground for a moment as he plunged himself for a low attack that Poplartooth probably wouldn't have expected. Claws raking at the tom's soft belly as he passed, eyes blazing with fire and madness.

Sedgestrike used Half-turn belly rake

Sedgestrike
15/60
115/200 (-20)

Poplartooth
51/100 (-13)
215/280

It was as if Sedgestrike had gone completely mad. Nothing that he was saying was true. He was making Poplartooth out to be a traitor and a liar, which were two things that he wasn't. There was no way that the fluffy tom wanted to attack his own Clanmate, but so be it. He was done trying to reason with the silver tom. He had already tried countless times before. He had expected many things from Sedgestrike, not exactly things that were good, but he had never expected this. The brown-and-white tom unsheathed his hooked claws before staring at Sedgestrike with flames in his green eyes.
"You know nothing about me," Poplartooth hissed, getting closer to his opponent, "You know nothing about what happened, and you never will, because no matter how hard I try to explain, you just can't wrap your head around the fact that what I did was right."

He didn't want to leave anymore scratches on the tom, but he did need to make sure that Sedgestrike was knocked out or kept down. Apparently, reasoning and words weren't going to stop the silver warrior from attacking him, so, violence would have to do. Poplartooth sheathed his claws once again before lifting up a bit on his back legs, getting a height advantage on Sedgestrike, and lowering his paws down on the tom's head, forcefully.

⚜ poplartooth used upright lock on sedgestrike, dealing 17 damage and costing 25 stamina. ⚜

poplartooth ⚜
51/100 HP
190/280 SP

sedgestrike ⚜
-2/60 HP (KO)
115/200 SP

⚜ sedgestrike has been knocked out. ⚜

"LIAR!" Sedgestrike yowled in response as he watched Poplartooth rise onto his hind legs too late to stop the incoming blow. His head crashed down onto the asphalt of the ground. He felt oddly numb at the impact, the sensation of dragging and mud slowly creeping into his pelt.

The place was darker than it had been the last time Sedgestrike had dreamed of it. The scent of rot and stagnant water cloying in his nose as he hissed in aggravation, tail lashing behind him as he heard the unmistakable sound of laughter. Distorted, strange and gargling as the form of himself only seen in dreams looked down on him. Safe on the dry ground Sedgestrike once had under his paws.

"Oh, how the mighty falls. You didn't really think you could get away with that, did you? " The voice mocked, watched as Sedgestrike fought in the mud as he felt it weigh down his chest. It clenched painfully as he thought about Rippedstar, about getting revenge for him.

Strangely, the other silver tom seemed to sober. He sat on the edge of the mud, some of it creeping towards him. The good side, the part of him that was still redeemable.
"Sedgestrike. You know Poplartooth... Poplarstar, would never do that. He would never have let Rippedstar die. " He blinked slowly, the mud on his paws now. "What good would that have done?"

What good would it have done? Sedgestrike thought over it for a long moment. Poplartooth, back when they were apprentices had been arrogant, like him... but then strangely, he'd fallen for that weak tiny Mumblefoot. He'd become ... better, loathe as he was to admit it. So why kill Rippedstar? If he hadn't done it, then who's fault was it.

[i]"Who said it had to be any cat's fault?" the other suggested, bringing Sedgestrike's head out of his thoughts. He blinked and stared for a moment. It had to be some cat's fault. That was the way of death, it was always because of something some cat had done, inadvertently or on purpose... but if that was true, wouldn't he be responsible for Crowstar's death? Did he not lead a hunting patrol that day?

He felt the mud receeding as he thought it over carefully. One moment in that dream, the next, the stench of twolegplace hit his nose. Poplartooth was nearby, he'd been unconscious for only a few moments.

He stood up slowly, grief overflowing once more as he caught sight of the mangeled body of his former mentor, but he grabbed it, carefully pulled it over himself to help carry it towards camp.

"Let's go." he meowed shortly. It wasn't an apology, but he made no hostile moves towards Poplartooth.

Poplartooth's stomach seemed to clench as he watched Sedgestrike fall to the ground, unconscious. He hadn't had a choice. The silver tom's accusing scream of 'liar' seemed to echo in his head as he stared down at his knocked out- wait, what was he supposed to call Sedgestrike? He wasn't a friend, but he was more than an acquaintance. Would it be appropriate to consider the tom an official enemy? Even though the tom hadn't been knocked unconscious for that long, it still seemed like moons to the fluffy, brown-and-white feline. He still felt guilty about the fact that he had attacked a Clanmate. It was all in self-defense, but wasn't loyalty to the members of your Clan one of the most important qualities of being a warrior?

"That son of a bullfrog attacked you first," The same young, apprentice-like voice from the deputy ceremony said in his head, "You were right to knock him out. You showed him what happens when you miss with the leader of SkyClan. Nice one, Poplartooth. Or should I say... Poplarstar?"

No, you shouldn't say Poplarstar. Not yet. I shouldn't even be Poplarstar. Rippedstar should still be alive and leading this Clan... not me. The tom thought, glaring at his paws and shaking his head, angrily.

When Sedgestrike woke up, the tom simply stared down at him, saying nothing. There was nothing that needed to be said, anyways, and Poplartooth didn't feel like creating any more unnecessary tension. When the silver cat picked up Rippedstar's limp body, the large feline let out a huff at the two simple words that Sedgestrike said. No apologies, no worry, no remorse, nothing. It made Poplartooth feel sick. Then again, what did he expect from the infamously arrogant Sedgestrike? He was officially done. Not even bothering to slow down to match Sedgestrike's pace, the fluffy cat padded ahead and kept his eyes focused directly in front of him. There would be no more obstacles on the way back to camp. He had somewhere to be, soon: Highstones, and he wasn't exactly excited about that.

But it had to be done...