Whispers in the Wind [CLOSED]

The pair of cats left the safety of the camp early in the morning, the dew still rolling off the grass in the moor. Elmskip's first attempt at training his two apprentices didn't go exactly as planned. It turns out he wasn't the best at teaching two youngsters at one time, so he decided to alternate days. One day would be Whisperpaw, the next Foampaw. This seemed to work a lot better and was much less stressful for Elmskip. Today was Whisperpaw's turn, so he led the young cat out into WindClan's territory shortly after sunrise.

He kept quiet at first, worry seizing his chest. It was getting increasingly more and more dangerous to venture out of camp these days and Elmskip would hate to be attacked by a predator while he had such a young, untrained apprentice with him. Although he had grown into a skilled warrior, the three-legged tom wasn't entirely sure he could take a fox or badger on his own. Pushing those negative thoughts aside, he motioned for Whisperpaw to stop with a flick of his tail and spun around to face him.

"We're going to work on hunting today," he mewed, giving the young cat a soft smile. Whisperpaw was already a nervous tom, he couldn't let on that he was feeling nervous too. "Take a good sniff, what can you smell?" Elmskip knew for a fact that there were a few rabbit burrows dotted nearby, he wanted to see if his apprentice could sense the same thing. To his luck, there was even a rabbit rustling around in the grass several foxlengths away. It hadn't noticed them yet; Elmskip was keeping his voice low and made sure they had stayed upwind. "When you sense prey nearby," he continued, dropping into a hunting crouch, "you must stalk forward, very slowly and carefully..." He moves as he spoke, his lopsided form moving as smoothly as possible towards the prey. "And once you get close enough..." His muscles bunched up and he sprang at the rabbit with surprising amount of force, tail whipping around wildly to keep balance.

His claws sunk into warm flesh and he bit down hard on the rabbit's neck as it squealed, killing it. Smiling to himself, he limped back to Whisperpaw and set the warm kill down in front of him. "My technique won't be the same as the one you'll use, because I'm working with...a disability, I guess you could call it. But I will monitor and make sure you're learning correctly. See if you can go find another rabbit, okay? I'll be right here." With a fatherly gaze, he gave Whisperpaw a warm smile and brushed his shoulder with his tail in encouragement.

Elmskip attempts to catch prey, using 3 SP. He is successful.

Elmskip
40/40 HP
127/130 SP (-3)

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 2

Whisperpaw followed his mentor out of the camp.  His nerves were pretty easy to see, especially with the troubles that had come to WindClan as of late.  Leaving camp didn't seem safe, but the young apprentice needed to learn to hunt, and if needed fight.  Whisperpaw watched carefully at everything his mentor did, giving the air a sniff when instructed to do so.  

"I.. I think I smell it."

He watched as his mentor skillfully stalked and caught rabbit.  It was really quite the impressive feat considering Elmskip's obvious disadvantage.   So now it was Whisper's turn to try to find some prey.  He looked at his mentor with frightened eyes, but with the encouragement of Elmskip, Whisperpaw did his best to swallow his fear.  The apprentice got low and sniffed the air.  He thought he smelled another rabbit and slowly moved towards the scent.  Moving quietly wasn't a problem for Whisper, being quiet and unseen was his nature.  He made his way stealthily to where he believed his first prey to be.  He readied himself to pounce, could he really do it?  He pushed back his doubts and fears and sprang forth, hoping for the best.

Much to his surprise, Whisperpaw's small body landed on a rabbit, pinning it to the ground. After a moment of hesitation, the apprentice remembered what Elmskip had done and sank his teeth into the rabbit's throat. The last breath escaped the rabbit and Whisper let go. Whisperpaw excitedly bounced back to his mentor, his first kill in his mouth. He set it down in front of his mentor.

"I.. I did it! I did it! I did it!"

The apprentice's eyes shined with wonder, the usual nerves and fear were completely gone for this moment. Never would he have thought he could have help provide for the clan like this. With his large blue eyes, Whisperpaw looked up to his apprentice.

"What's next?"

Whisperpaw attempts to catch a rabbit, using 3 SP. Catch was successful.

20/20 HP
77/80 SP

The member 'Nature Boy' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 2

Elmskip sat a little ways off to observe his apprentice, muttering quiet comments as Whisperpaw stalked forward. His hunting crouch was not bad, it just needed a little adjusting. That would come with time and practice. "Move as quiet as possible, Whisperpaw. Rabbits have sharp hearing. Don't let them hear your pawsteps. Keep your head low. Don't look away from your prey."

He sat in silence the closer the young cat got to the rabbit, keeping his eyes locked on him. Finally the apprentice sprang, landing squarely on the prey. Elmskip couldn't help but grin with pride when Whisperpaw killed the rabbit with a swift bite to the neck, just as he had shown him. "Excellent work, Whisperpaw!" he exclaimed, limping over to touch noses with his apprentice. "Rabbits are tricky to catch sometimes, you did great for your first time. I'm proud of you." He brushed the young tom's flank with his tail, then went over to stand next to his own rabbit. "Let's bury these here, we'll come back to them later. Next, we'll see if we can catch any birds." With experienced paws, the warrior dug a hole for the two rabbits and covered it back up with dirt.

He led Whisperpaw to another area of the moors, looking out for any quails. While he hated to catch quail after Quailpaw's recent death, they were the only birds available on the moors at the moment and he needed to teach Whisperpaw about them. Just his luck, a small flock of quails scuttled out from beneath the underbrush. Elmskip stopped and motioned for his apprentice to stop as well. "Watch carefully," he hissed, then stalked forward, muscles tensing. The quails noticed him approaching and took off. At that moment the warrior leaped, attempting to catch one in midair before it got too high. The quail flew just out of his reach and he landed on the ground with a huff, shaking out his fur. He resisted the urge to curse, turning back to Whisperpaw sheepishly. "Birds are the hardest for me to catch, I admit. That's okay, I'll get it next time." The birds landed several foxlengths away, thinking they were safe now. He motioned towards them with his tail. "Do you want to try?"

Elmskip attempts to catch prey, using 3 SP. He was unsuccessful.

Elmskip
40/40 HP
124/130 SP (-3)

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 7

The cats before them didn't seem to be the best hunters; perhaps it was the pale morning light that dulled their sense. The fox heard them from the darkness of the tunnels a short time ago and had followed them from under the surface, listening carefully to their movements. Now they had drawn close to a tunnel entrance. They were unprepared and exposed. With a low growl, the fox quickened its pace. Any moment now their paths would intersect, and the foxes could ambush them from the unseen tunnel entrance. Behind it, the fox could hear its companion following swiftly. These fumbling felines wouldn't stand a chance.

The pale fox burst from the earth, and the bird which the two cats had been fighting suddenly launched into the air, squawking an echoing cry of alarm. With a snarl the pale-furred creature threw itself at the smaller of the two cats. The poor little thing had been nervous earlier; imagine the terror it would feel now. Heavy paws slammed the apprentice away mercilessly while fiendish yips escaped the fox's twisted maw.

Fox used ??? on Whisperpaw, using 20 SP and dealing 15 HP. Whisperpaw is stunned for one turn.

Fox:
75/75 HP
180/200 SP

Whisperpaw:
5/20 HP
80/80 SP

A snarl of amusement escaped the second fox's maw as it crouched low, stalking just behind of its pale hunting partner as they hurried through the tunnels that snaked beneath the moor's surface. Its tail lashed as its ears perked, the sound of voices muffled but growing clearer as they found the exit to the open sky. And then they were out. Paws pushed off of the ground as the fox leaped from the tunnel, landing quickly as it threw itself at the older cat. Teeth bared, the fox knocked him to the ground and slashed in a fury of claws in an effort to keep him down - to throw off his balance. The fox's eyes glimmered at the sound of combat, their companion no doubt trashing the smaller cat.

Fox 2 used ??? on Elmskip, using 20 SP and dealing 15 HP. Elmskip is stunned for 1 turn.

Fox 2:
75/75 HP
180/200 SP

Elmskip:
25/40 HP
124/130 SP

Whisperpaw happily sat by his kill as his mentor approached him. He let our a small purr in reaction to Elmskip's praise. He watched as the two rabbits were buried and followed his mentor wherever he led the young cat. So much learning was to be done, he hoped he would be able to do as well with catching a bird like he had with the rabbit. Whisperpaw crouched silently as his mentor began to stalk his prey and make his move. Unfortunately the birds flew away, but luckily not far. The apprentice quietly bounced over to his mentor and whispered.

"Of course I would!"

Whisperpaw got low and began to stalk up to the flock of birds. As he was ready to pounce on one that hadn't noticed him, the birds suddenly burst into the sky. Before Whisperpaw could even react to his believed failure, the apprentice felt a thud against him and was quickly on the ground. Once he began to feel a set of paws pounding on him, Whisperpaw realized what was going on. He was under attack! A fox of all things too! Whisperpaw cried out in pain, feeling the brunt force of each paw strike landing on his small body.

"ELMSKIP! HELP!"

The apprentice screamed in terror, looking for his mentor with his tear filled eyes. That was when Whisperpaw froze in fear, even under the merciless assault of the fox. Elmskip too was being attacked. Another paw swiped across Whisperpaw's face, snapping him back to the predator on top of him. The pain cause him to let out a loud wail. Between the shock of the attack and fear of the situation, Whisperpaw was trapped, hoping for some chance to escape the fox's grasp.

WHISPERPAW IS STUNNED AND CANNOT ACT

It all happened so fast. First the birds, then a wail of alarm, then a heavy body slammed into his and pinned him to the ground. He felt the air get knocked out of him and he wheezed, struggling under the fox's weight. Great StarClan, his first apprentice and he absolutely ruined it. He should have paid more attention. He should have done better. He should have known, told Whisperpaw to be more careful. Especially so soon after the battle in the tunnels. His wounds were still healing. Stupid, stupid...now he's going to die. The thought sent a jolt through his lean frame. His precious apprentice, dead from a fox attack at the start of his training. Mousebrain. You fool. You deserve to die instead of him. Elmskip coughed and tried to breathe, thrashing around as best he could. He couldn't let Whisperpaw die. Not so soon.

"Wh-Whisperpaw...! Don't--...Run, please, g-get away...!" he howled, his voice hoarse and cracking. WindClan needed Whisperpaw. They could do without Elmskip. And yet, he was still fighting. He recalled his conversation with Barleytuft several sunhighs earlier. The dark cloud in his brain told him one thing, his heart told him another. "...I can't give up now, you know? I have responsibilites and friends and cats that care about me..." His mind wandered to the strange loner that had appeared in WindClan. Elmskip gritted his teeth and did his best to hold the fox at bay as it held him down, his tail lashing. Not. Today.

Elmskip is stunned for 1 turn.

The little creature stood no chance, and the fox reveled in the squeal of pain that it let out as it was battered. The small cat cried out for help, not fighting but simply cowering. The fox howled with delight and continued slashing and battering, darting in and nipping where possible. Just one good bite and the fox could grab the young tom and snap it in half with a mighty shake; however, that was not how this fox worked. A real battle was what counted, and as one more pale paw smashed against the young cat's shoulders again the fox realized this opponent was barely a cub - not a real battle at all.

Fox used Front Paw Strike on Whisperpaw, using 10 stamina and dealing 13 damage. Whisperpaw can no longer fight.

Fox:
75/75 HP
170/200 SP

Whisperpaw:
0/20 HP
80/80 SP

The fox snarled as it snapped its jaws at the tom, only to be forced back every time by the tom's front legs pressing into its throat as he struggled to keep it away. Finally, the fox realized that this wasn't working as it threw its weight backwards, releasing the three-legged warrior as it took a couple steps away before slinking to the side. Its eyes searched for an opening, almost feeling disappointed that they hadn't stumbled across a real fight, a small kit and a damaged cat. Ah well, fun could still be had. The fox threw itself into motion, quickly circling around the tom - certain he wouldn't be able to keep up with his three legs - before leaping at the tom with bared teeth and outstretched paws, raking its claws down his side and letting the blood flow free.

Fox 2 used Upright front paws on Elmskip, dealing 15 damage and costing 20 stamina.

Fox 2:
75/75 HP
160/200 SP

Elmskip:
10/40 HP
124/130 SP

Sharp claws raked down his side and he snarled, finally wiggling out of the fox's grip. He sprang back up to his paws as fast as he could, hissing and spitting. The two foxes were making quick work of them; Elmskip already felt exhausted, still recovering from the previous battle. Ignoring the throbbing wounds, he reared up on his single back leg and brought his claws down on the beast's head, striking again and again. If he couldn't win this battle, at least he could make this fox remember him for next time.

Elmskip used Swift Strike on Fox #2, dealing 4 damage and costing 10 SP. Elmskip used Rear-Up to Slash on Fox #2, dealing 11 damage and costing 15 SP.

Elmskip
10/40 HP
99/130 SP (-25)

Fox #2
60/75 HP (-15)
160/200 SP

The fox snarled as it was forced back, shaking its head...No blood arcing in the air from the movement - in fact no crimson left dripping from the wounds as it slowly raised its head to stare at the tom. It grinned, quickly recovering as it threw itself forward once again, ramming into him with all of its force and pinned him. It lowered its muzzle toward his face, claws digging into his side as a growl escape its throat - seeming to form a single, simple word. "Flee." And then it let go, taking a few steps backwards as it gave it an opening. The tom wasn't worth the effort to finish off - pitiful and already injured...The game - the fun - was over. And it turned its head to glance at its companion, swishing its tail as it gave Elmskip a chance to flee with his life.

Fox 2 used Jumping Strike on Elmskip, dealing 14 damage and costing 20 stamina.

Fox 2:
60/75 HP
140/200 SP

Elmskip:
0/40 HP
124/130 SP