Elmpaw's Moonstone Journey

It was early in the afternoon and Swiftstep was yet again getting ready to take an apprentice to the Moonstone. Today, Elmpaw would be taking this life-changing journey. It was the deputy's 3rd trip after Starclan was able to contact the clans. The deputy had gotten two herb bundles for the trip. He had already consumed his but Elmpaw's lay by his paws as he sat waiting for the apprentice. He had called the tom a few moments ago so he should be heading his way now.

Roused awake, Elmpaw stayed in his nest for a moment, blinking away sleep from his eyes. Today was his Moonstone journey, his final step in his path to become a warrior. Finally. He gave his fur a quick lick to smooth it out and got to his paws, sighing. He had a lot of questions to ask StarClan. The dark tom stretched and stepped out of the den, meeting Swiftstep outside.

"Morning," he mewed quietly, eyeing the bundle at the deputy's feet. "I have to eat that, right?"

"Good morning to you too Elmpaw! Yes you do have to eat them. They're traveling herbs. They help with keeping your strength up and your hunger in check. I must warn you though, they are quite bitter." explained the brown tom. The deputy then pushed the bundle to the apprentice. He then began to wait for him to finish.

He nodded in resigned understanding and leaned down to take the herbs into his mouth. The bitter taste immediately filled his senses and he almost gagged but forced himself to swallow them with a gulp. Eyes watering, he blinked them away and lashed his tail with a soft shudder. "You weren't kidding..." he muttered, running his tongue along his teeth to try and get rid of the horrible taste. "Are we ready to go now?" The tom was eager to see Highstones and meet StarClan.

Swiftstep chuckled and nodded. The tom then signaled to the apprentice to follow him out of the camp. The pair were now heading off to the Moonstone!
~Time Skip~

The deputy and apprentice had made it to their destination as Silverpelt was blanketing the ebony sky. Swiftstep, as they were traveling, pointed out cool facts about each of the key places as they passed them. The deputy hoped Elmpaw was liking the "tour". The quick sprint across the Thunderpath gave them both a lot of energy so they could continued walking up to Mothermouth.

Swiftstep nodded and began to step into the dark tunnel entrance. "Stay close to me Elmpaw. I don't want you tripping and getting hurt in the dark." he instructed the tom as they began to enter. Soon the pair reached a cavern where the glowing Moonstone was located, glowing as bright as the serene moon. That's why it probably got the name "Moonstone." "Touch your nose to the Moonstone and a Starclan cat will speak with you." the tom said as he made himself comfortable by the cavern exit.

Elmpaw was quiet for most of the journey, lost in thought about what he wanted to ask StarClan. The little facts Swiftstep occasionally pointed out to him were interesting and the apprentice offered small grunts of approval to show he was listening. Finally they made it to Mothermouth. He paused in the entrance for a moment, gazing into the inky blackness, before he limped after the deputy, sticking close to him so he wouldn't get lost. The light at the end of the tunnel grew larger and larger until they entered the cavern and the sheer beauty of the Moonstone took the tom's breath away. Gathering his composure again, he nodded in response to Swiftstep's instructions and crept forward, ignoring the dull ache in his paws from traveling so far. He crouched down in front of the Moonstone and touched his nose to it, sleep immediately taking him. He felt as if he had fallen into a deep hole, only to wake up again in a shining clearing filled with luscious grass. StarClan. Nervousness filled his body as he sat down, waiting for a StarClan cat to come and speak to him. He had so many questions.

Most cats described StarClan as a utopia sort of realm, in which Icestorm agreed with entirely. The land in which he "lived" in now was a mystical place, and a pretty decent one at that. The grey tabby's life had unfortunately ended too soon and now, he lived with his beloved mate, Ashstar, in the starry fields, wishing nothing more than to see his brother and the rest of his family again.

Per usual, he'd been enjoying a peaceful day on the empty, cloud covered moorlands, concentrating on nothing in particular. Noticing a shape begin to appear not far away from where he sat, the tom lifted up his head from where it'd rested on his white paws and focused his gaze on what seemed to be an apprentice. The young tom's pelt didn't shimmer with sparkling stars like those of deceased cats, which meant he was probably just visiting, which was of course good. Standing up, he gave his grey shimmering pelt a shake, sending specks of stardust falling back onto the misty ground. With him being what looked to be the only cat around, he knew what needed to be done.

"Here for your Moonstone journey?" Icestorm asked softly as he approached Elmpaw, though he assumed that was what the younger cat was there for.

(OOC: oof, sorry this is so short ;;; )

Elmpaw stood as Icestorm approached, taking in his shimmering, star-studded pelt with awe. He took in a deep breath and pulled his tail away from his stump, revealing his disability. "I am, yeah. My name's Elmpaw. Who are you?" The apprentice stood tall, his gaze hard. He had important questions to ask this tom.

Noticing the apprentice was without a hind leg, he decided not to dwell on that and met Elmpaw's gaze once more. His grandson, Ryecloud, had been born with one or more... unfortunate burdens and the older tom wondered if the two of them were friends, though he didn't take the time to ask.

"I'm Icestorm, Warrior of WindClan and mate to Ashstar," he mewed with a nod. "Well, before time gets away from us, I suppose we should get started," the starry pelted warrior added as he turned away from Elmpaw and began making his way towards their destination. While StarClan was admittedly a beautiful place, like everything, the twinkling starlit field didn't last forever. In the distance, as if almost perfectly split down the middle, the dimly lit plains faded into a misty darkness. If some-cat were to go close enough to the darkness, the glinting eyes of the exiled could be seen through the grey, hazy, fog, and their taunting, whispering voices, could be heard. Luckily for them, they weren't going to go anywhere near there.

Flicking his tail back and forth as he halted to a stop on a small hill, Icestorm pointed his muzzle towards the ominous darkness that sat over yonder. "Do you know what that is?" he asked as he turned to look at the apprentice.

"Nice to meet you, Icestorm." he said quietly, offering a polite nod back to the older warrior. Icestorm turned and began walking away and Elmpaw suddenly realized that he was meant to follow. He limped after him, trotting a bit in his strange gait to catch up. Once he was back at the warrior's side, he cast a curious gaze around at his surroundings. It truly was beautiful in StarClan, lush grass tugging gently at the tortoiseshell tom's flank and legs. He lashed his tail through the grass, now glancing over at Icestorm. His presence was calming his nerves; the older warrior seemed kind and honorable. Neither of them spoke as they walked but it wasn't awkward, more like two old friends enjoying each other's company. The younger tom did still have many things to get off his chest during his time with Icestorm, however.

Elmpaw sat down next to him and tucked his tail neatly around his paws, then looked off into the distance at what Icestorm had motioned at. He leaned in, squinting for a moment before his ears pinned back. "The Dark Forest..." he breathed, turning to the warrior with wide eyes. Just looking at it sent a shiver down his pelt.

Nodding his head as the apprentice spoke, Icestorm turned to look back on the ominous darkness that loomed across the moorlands. "That's right," they light grey tabby mewed. "That's where cats who fall away from StarClan go and trust me when I say it's nothing to brag about," he continued. "Cats who lose sight of who they are in themselves and their clans end up there. So never lose sight of your loyalties in your family and clan," Icestorm finished and turned his head to look down at Elmpaw.