Blood and Glory (CLOSED)

It had been a while since Salamander left camp. The terrible bout of Greencough he suffered from had left him in the medicine cat's den for an entire moon. The days in there seemed to bleed into one- sleep, eat, sleep some more. He may see Shade or Silent Snows, or stretch his legs a bit, but sooner or later a coughing bout would start up and he'd have to be herded back in the den like a kit.

He hated it. The son of Burnt wasn't supposed to be some sick thing in a nest; he was supposed to be a brave adventurer! How would he possibly prove his worth by sleeping? Every time the calico was given more of those disgusting herbs, he wished he could have been adventuring with Shade. They had already lost Burnt, Night, and Copper, and Salamander didn't want to become the next casualty of his cursed lineage from something as dumb as a cough.

It was only natural that on his first day out of camp again he broke the Warrior Code.

The moment he was allowed to leave camp, he was running. Sally didn't even care about how going without a warrior was considered idiotic- he just wanted to get out of that stuffy old den. The feeling of mud underneath the tom's paws was exciting and refreshing, the smell of the pines uplifting. The air had gotten considerably colder since the last time he went out, but with his elated state he barely noticed. He even forgot his family's slaughter for a few minutes.

Soon enough Salamander was at the border. On his side, sweet-smelling mud and pines. On the other, dry grass and funny-looking plants. Separated by a long strip of dangerous rock. Even the dumbest kit knew this was a death zone. Monsters would likely hit you if you tried to cross, and even if you did, you were now on enemy territory and would be attacked. It was common sense to never go across alone, unless you wanted free access to Starclan.

But Salamander didn't care about common sense. He just wanted to have some fun while he could.

He closed his dull green eyes and bolted as fast as he could, and a few seconds later he was on the other side. Pride swelled up in his throat. 'See? I crossed it easily. I bet no other cat in Shadowclan is as brave as I!' he thought to himself. The apprentice took a moment to appreciate his surroundings. It certainly was far different from the marsh. Instead of soft reeds, brittle heather scratched his knees. The ground was hard, cold, and somewhat sandy. A few marsh-like patches huddled close to the Thunderpath, but other than that it was completely alien. Salamander noticed something hopping through the weeds. 'A rabbit!' he rarely saw one before, and even then it was just a miserable thing that got stuck in tar and died. But this one was alive and healthy, and plump! The reverie of Thornstar's and Silent Snows' pleasant surprise if he brought that back to camp stuck in his mind. Maybe they'll be even more impressed when he tells them how he crossed the Thunderpath effortlessly! Any worries about his blatant breaking of the Warrior Code fled his mind; after all, a chance to finally prove himself was right in front of him, nibbling on roots. Without a second thought, he slouched into the hunting position and began to stalk the lagomorph.

Little did he know something was stalking him too.

Crowpaw slid, one paw at a time, through the grass, before stopping, watching the ShadowClan cat stalking a rabbit. One of his Clan’s rabbits. He had slipped away from his hunting patrol to see if he could find anything better stalking alone. He had found prey, yes, but also an enemy cat. Tales of glory when he would tell the tale to his Clanmates filled his head, as he leapt up, charging towards the intruder and pouncing upon him, claws out, tackling him to the ground, before springing out of the way, deft, ready. This kitten wouldn’t set paw upon his land without a fight!

Crowpaw used Run-And-Tackle, dealing 9 damage and costing 10 Stamina.

Crowpaw:
20/20 HP
70/80 SP

Salamanderpaw:
11/20 HP
80/80 SP

The rabbit was right in front of him. Big, juicy, and just begging to be killed. Salamander could almost taste it. Granted, he didn't know what rabbits tasted like, but he figured it must be something like frog. They both hop and make weird noises, so they must be related, right?

He had barely moved a paw when the rabbit suddenly perked up and fled. In a panic, the Shadowclan cat desperately scrambled up and chased after it. He'd only gotten a short distance when it suddenly dove into the ground and disappeared. The calico desperately tried to go after it, but the hole it had jumped into was too small for him to fit. His hopes fell. How could his prey escape so easily? He was the glorious Dark Salamander! He sat back up and closed his eyes, taking a moment to contemplate this failure.

Something hit him.

Within a heartbeat he was on the ground. Panicked thoughts when into overdrive. 'What's happening? Am I being attacked? Is the rabbit attacking me? Do rabbits attack cats? How do you fight a rabbit?' He opened his eyes just long enough to see a flash of claws and a feline form jumping back. A cat then. Not much better than being attacked by a rabbit, still. With a hiss, Salamander leaped back up and faced his opponent. He was a dark gray cat with weird white patches and multicolored eyes. His lithe, long-limbed form seemed to scream Windclanner. Between his claws were tufts of Sally's own calico fur. "Hey! Stay back, you filthy grass-dweller!" he caterwauled, drawing his body up into an arch. With barely a moment of thought, he charged straight at his enemy and thrust him to the ground with his forepaws. With the gray tom's underbelly exposed, Salamander brutally slashed at the delicate flesh with his hindlegs. He wasn't going to surrender to a Windclanner, no matter what!

Salamanderpaw did Belly Rake for 10 SP, dealing 7 HP!

Salamanderpaw:
11/20 HP
70/80 SP

Crowpaw:
13/20 HP
70/80 SP

The dark tom yowled in pain, tossing the other apprentice off him before yanking the calico’s tail with lightning speed. Crowpaw growled, tail flicking. He and his opponent seemed to be close in age and evenly matched, the other tom’s strength against his swiftness. ”I could say the same for you, rat. You’re on my Clan’s land, and I’ll guarantee you you won’t forget my little message to not mess with WindClan.”

Crowpaw used Tail Yank on Salamanderpaw, dealing 2 damage and costing 10 Stamina. Salamanderpaw is Stunned for one turn.

Crowpaw
13/20 HP
60/80 SP
Salamanderpaw
9/20 HP
70/80 SP

OOC: really short and lazy aaaa

Salamander felt a jolt go down his spine as his attacker pulled on his tail. He could sense the other tom getting ready to attack again, but was too stunned by the pain to move.

Salamanderpaw is stunned!

Crowpaw leaped back forward, scoring his claws across the other tom’s cheek before leaping away again, bouncing back and forth. This was easy. This was fun! Sure, it involved pain, but the pride of defending his Clan’s land and prey pushed that aside, for now.

Crowpaw used Front Paw Strike on Salamanderpaw, dealing 6 Damage and costing 10 Stamina.

Crowpaw:
13/20 HP
50/80 SP

Salamanderpaw:
3/20 HP
70/80 SP

(Oof I’m sorry Salamander’s such a good boy and he just keeps getting beat up)

OOC: It's okay lol :)

As soon as Salamander got back to his senses, another swipe of claws scored his cheek. He felt his knees tremble as the blood dripped down, and a sore lump rise in his throat. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. He was supposed to be brave. Brave for his family. How could he be that if he loses to a Windclan cat?

With a hiss, he paced back away from his opponent, looking for a moment that he might surrender. But suddenly, he sprung back around violently, barreling into the black-and-white apprentice and knocking him over.

Salamanderpaw did Run-and-Tackle for 10 SP and dealing 6 HP

Salamanderpaw:
3/20 HP
60/70 SP

Crowpaw:
7/20 HP
50/80 SP

Crowpaw’s breath was knocked out of him, as the apprentice he thought might have been retreating barreled into his side. He loosened his muscles, though, and kept rolling, right back onto his paws, not giving himself time to ache as he leapt straight back at his enemy, clapping a sheathed paw firmly around his head, before backing up, trying to keep his adrenaline going, finish the fight before having time for pain. “Had enough yet, ShadowClan rat?”

Crowpaw used Front Paw Blow on Salamanderpaw, dealing 4 Damage and costing 5 Stamina

Crowpaw:
7/20
45/80

Salamanderpaw:
0/20
60/80

With that final blow Salamander knew he was done for. Despite it being just a hit, he could feel his strength leaving him. With nothing more than a hiss, the calico bolted, fleeing to the other side of the Thunderpath.

Salamanderpaw surrenders. Crowpaw wins!