The Belly Of The Beast

The sun had risen by the time the cages stopped swinging. Cats who were more familiar with the surrounding territory were able to recognize the harsh, acrid scent of the Thunderpath.
Where were they taking them?

Each cage was placed on a flat, solid surface. Cats who had shifted to see out of their cage were greeted with a chilling sight. They were being placed inside a Twolegplace monster. They were being fed to a beast!
Twoleg voices sounded from all around them, unintelligible and deafening.
"C'mon, out you go..."

Suddenly, the cage doors slid open. Some cats, desperate to escape, sprinted out of their prisons before the Twolegs had the chance to stop them. Others, more reluctant to rush out, were dumped unceremoniously on the cold, rock-hard surface. Either way, every apprentice was free.
Or so they thought. As soon as they were out of their former cages a Twoleg slid it away from them. A larger, stronger door was slammed shut behind them with chilling finality.
Each cat found themselves encased in a small, cramped box. Metal sticks wove around them, making a gapped wall filled with square holes that a cat could fit their arm through, but nothing more. Already, they were in varying degrees of pain and discomfort. The metal pressed against their skin and, in some places, was sharp enough to cut their paw pads if they weren't careful.

Before they had a chance to adjust to their surroundings, the creature they were inhabiting roared to life. Several apprentices let out squeaks of fear as the very earth beneath their paws began to shiver and shake. Their cages shifted slightly as the entire monster began to move. The forest had disappeared, replaced by a cold, sharp scent that was easily recognizable. The smell of Twolegs was all around them.

At the very back of the monster, there was a small hole with wider metal sticks placed vertically across it. In the dim light that it provided, each apprentice was able to make out the forms of their companions. As fear began to set in, each cat found themselves wondering if they'd ever see their homes again.

"Hello?" Lynxpaw was the first cat to make a sound. "Is anybody there?"
Starclan, what were they going to do? The small apprentice found himself shivering despite his thick pelt. Relax. Breathe.
Leopardstar's voice was unmistakable. Nodding to himself, the small tabby tom took several deep, slow breaths. "Alright. Don't panic." He mumbled, struggling to keep his voice from trembling.
The Thunderclanner had shifted from a sickly, playful apprentice into what he used to be- a rogue determined to survive, determined to keep his family safe. Living in Thunderclan had allowed him to lower his guard, but now that he was suddenly removed from his home, he found himself once again thinking the way he used to.
First thing's first... how many of them were there? If he could find that out, then maybe they could figure out how to escape. More clan cats meant more brainpower. Maybe one of them would be able to figure out how to escape.
"Who's here? Sound off by name... and clan. I'll start. Lynxpaw, Thunderclan." Not that it matters anymore... Lynxpaw glanced around, his bobtail twitching as he took in his surroundings. Where's Batpaw...? He felt his heart begin to pound as he struggled to locate his kin in the darkness. The Twoleg scent made it nearly impossible to smell anything, and he could barely see, let alone discern one silhouette from another. But he couldn't panic, not now. If he lost his head, everyone else might too. It was easy to succumb to fear when someone else was panicking. He'd learned that firsthand.

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

---

'Effect Dice' : 6

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

---

'Effect Dice' : 6

Eaglepaw sat still, uncertain for the first time in his young life, recovering from the shock of being grabbed by the Twolegs. Most of the other cats also seemed to be apprentice-aged. Glancing around, calming himself and straightening up, he called out in a deep voice, powerful and loud enough to be heard clearly by all, ”Eaglepaw, of SkyClan.” He began exploring his trap in the dark with his paws, testing the sticks to see if they would bend. Fear-scent pressed in heavily around him, emanating from the other apprentices, but somecat had to keep a level head and think the situation through. He had been captured leaping in front of Mintwhisker, giving his medicine cat enough time to run. He was brave, quick, the apprentice of a leader! He would help get everyone through this. Suddenly pain shot up his paw as he cut the top of it on a stick end. He sighed in relief, noticing it was a small scratch on top of a toe and wouldn’t impede his escape. Calling out again after another apprentice spoke their name, his voice was heavy with warning. ”Look out trying to escape! Some of the sticks have sharp ends!”

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

---

'Effect Dice' : 4

Aspenpaw had been scooped up in a tough cobweb before he could even consider dashing home. He yowled in terror, true terror, as he was crammed into the confines of a monster. Suddenly, he felt wobbly on his legs, far too young a cat, and far too scared. It had only been weeks since his ceremony! He wanted Spiderfur. He wanted Finchbreeze. He didn't know any of these cats! He heard introductions and had to laugh a crazed cackle at the foolishness of it all.

"Foxdung! Will somebody tell me what's happening? You're all sitting around like ducks, talking about names and clans, as if we're not about to get stuffed in kittypet homes! Your names won't be Lynxpaw and Silentpaw and Eaglepaw for long. That's what happens to cats who get caught by twolegs, you mousebrains!"

The poor apprentice was pounding his paws against the walls of his container, desperately trying to escape. He felt the metal sting his paws and his tail lashed.

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

---

'Effect Dice' : 4

The strange cobweb-like material caught her before she could escape. Batpaw didn't scream, instead falling completely silent and freezing, even as they moved her from the net to the box. She wasn't sure why, but even once Lynxpaw had spoken (reasonably, at that: they ought to know who they all were), she struggled to find her voice. "Ba... Batpaw of ThunderClan," the ThunderClan apprentice answered after a few moments, struggling to speak at all. She was absolutely terrified at the moment, shaking under her fluffy fur. "Would you shut up?" she asked, looking at the apprentice who had challenged Lynxpaw. "We've got to work together if we want to get out of here, mouse-brain! Unless you want to stay here?" She certainly didn't. ThunderClan had only just become her home, really, and she didn't want to leave it behind. Besides, the rest of her family was there, too.

~

Mothpaw shouted out for her sister as she vanished, but before any answer came she was caught, too. She struggled to escape, but even if she could have, her fur caught against the walls of each new prison and any struggle tore off a small part of it. "Mothpaw," she called out to the ThunderClanner who had declared himself the leader. Whatever, leadership didn't matter right now. They had to get out of this Twoleg thing, and they had to get home. "ShadowClan." She had heard Silentpaw's voice, and with the reassurance that her sister was alright, her attention turned to home at the other, unfamiliar cat who refused to introduce himself. Would she ever go home again? She didn't want to be a kittypet! "I don't want to do this anymore," she whispered. "I want to go home..."

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

---

'Effect Dice' : 5, 4

No one even got the chance to reply to his question. A sudden wind change, and the clearing was filled with foreign scents that were acrid to the tongue. Before he even realized what was going on, Minkpaw was already madly dashing for cover, for some place away from there. His paws skidded on the thinner snow as he flew towards the edge of the clearing, desperately trying to get away. Yowls filled the clearing - chaos, noise, and bright colours bleeding into a painting of absolute madness. I have to get away! The thought filled his head until there was nothing left, and he lunged around strange branch-like legs as the scrawny bushes - safety - came closer.
Then his paws slipped.
They only slid out from underneath him for a moment, but that moment stretched out into terrifying moons as something was suddenly thrown over him. A screech ripped out of his throat as he tore himself forwards, claws flailing at anything and everything - thin tendrils ripping into his fur as he reached for the bushes. So close! But too far away. A strange fury mixed with confused panic was all that filled his head as the thing over him was yanked into the air. Eyes wide, teeth bared till they showed pink gums, he snapped at the thing lifting him into the air, his jaws closing around something tough and clamping down as hard as they could. The thing that something was attached to growled, and he was dropped briefly with a thud back to the ground. But only for a moment, as he was almost immediately picked up again, hissing and spitting with all the fury raging through his system. This time, it was clutched in a place he couldn't get to, and he was left to work himself into a frenzy.
The next few moments were a hazy blur as he was untangled and dumped into something he could barely move in. He lunged at the entance, but before he could get out - or die trying - another wall was slammed down straight into his snarling face. Heart pumping so hard he almost felt the cage vibrating to it, he was forced to simply watch the outside world as he was carried away from everything he'd ever known.


His mind had almost cleared by the time they reached an acrid smell he didn't really recognize. Judging from the sound of massive things travelling at incredibly fast speeds though, he could guess that it was probably the Thunderpath.
When the twoleg holding whatever he was being carried in opened the door, he immediately leaped out, twisting around with a snarl and making a desperate lunge for the outside. Almost as soon as his paws touched this new ground, though, a large wall was slammed down, shutting out the light. A sharp pain stabbed into his nose as he slammed muzzle-first into this new wall, and he winced. "Toad-brained foxdung covered-" He cut himself off, letting his growl trail off as he took several deep breaths.
His rasping pants slowed down gradually as he stood, staring at the single vestige of light they had left. What just happened? His mind felt frozen as he tried to comprehend what was going on. We've been kidnapped by twolegs? As far as he knew, that wasn't supposed to happen. But it did, and now you're stuck with a bunch of other cats in a tiny little space, being carried to your new kittypet homes. A sudden voice rang out, and his head jerked around as his thoughts were shaken out of his head. Other cats replied to it, and he debated with himself for a moment as another cat echoed the thoughts he'd just had. He opened his mouth to speak- and was cut off as another replied to the angry-sounding tom.
"Hey, we're going to get out of here. Even if they take us to twoleg dens we can still get away," He turned in the general direction of the first voice. "I'm Str-" He shook his head, the last vestiges of his panic fading away. "Minkpaw. RiverClan."

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

---

'Effect Dice' : 4

Eaglepaw paused, standing still and listening to the other cats for a moment. ”Pipe down, whoever you are. Knowing who’s voice belongs to who will let us communicate more easily and come up with a plan. You can’t charge into things blindly. Don’t worry, Mothpaw, we will find a way out. Has everyone been accounted for? Including me, there are six cats here, all apprentices? Perhaps we should try to figure out a way to get everyone out of the cages and safe, then find a way out of here.” His tail flicked, as he continued to test the cage, attempting to figure out weak points.

"Listen; I don't know what-" Lynxpaw retorted, but before he had a chance, a familiar voice caught his attention. Batpaw! The tom nearly sighed in relief.
He was quickly brought back to reality when several voices piped up offering encouragement and arguments. The small tom shook his head, pawing at his ears.
"Stop! Everyone stop for a minute. Let me think about this." Lynxpaw flicked his tail-stump. They weren't going to get anywhere with all this arguing. He turned around as best he could, studying the walls of his cage.
"There's something here on my cage... maybe I can chew through it. Hold on, okay...?" It was something shiny and silver, wrapped around one of the metal sticks on his cage. He didn't know if it was stronger or weaker than the rest of his cage, but he knew that it was at least worth a shot. He lifted his lip, sinking his teeth into the strange substance. After several minutes of chewing and tearing, he managed to pull it off of the stick. "Okay- I got it off. Do you have anything like this on your... grey sticks?"

Suddenly the monster jumped, making the cages rattle. Lynxpaw's ears perked. "It moved! The stick moved! Hold on..." He leaned against the wall, pressing his paws against the sticks. They didn't budge. He tested every stick patiently, putting his full weight against it, until he came back to the one that had the silver... thing on it. "Here! Okay, hold on..."
He pressed harder, putting both his paws on it and bracing his back legs against the opposite wall. "Nearly... there..."

The stick snapped, and Lynxpaw let out a squeak of excitement. "Yes! Now..." He began to push himself through the hole that the stick had left behind, pushing his head, then his shoulders...
"Aargh!" He yelped as the jagged tip of the metal stick gouged into his shoulder. The sharp scent of blood rent the air . Lynxpaw gave a little push and forced himself out of the cage, wincing as his shoulder stretched. "I... I made it out." He mewed roughly, giving his legs a shake as he finally drew himself to his full height. Adrenaline was pumping through his veins, already dulling the pain in his shoulder.
"Alright. Try to get out of your cages. I'll help..."