...And he's got an army [Invasion]

Hyacinth watched as Tarot skillfully downed the warrior they had been fighting against, struggling to regain her composure, and focusing for a moment on slowing her heart rate. She knew the end of the battle was near because as she looked around, all of the Forgotten Order's ranks were still standing... Yet nearly all of ShadowClan's forces had been defeated. Looking to Tarot as he spoke, she nodded, shifting her focus to the leader. "I'll fight til I can't anymore; it's my duty. You shouldn't have to fight alone." The she-cat mewed, nodding to him as he leaped forward and took the blow intended for her mate. She didn't act quickly enough to intercept the blow, but she'd hopefully be able to deflect some damage... Or do a little to the she-cat who'd attacked her leaders. With a grunt, she shoved herself forward, bowling Murkystar over and praying to what or whoever would listen that she'd make it out of this fight alive.

Hyacinth used Jumping Strike, dealing -8 Health Points and using -7 Stamina Points.

Hyacinth:
1/50 HP
12/120 SP [-7]

Tarot:
12/50 HP
56/120 SP

Murkystar:
22/30 HP [-8]
16/130 SP

The leader had the audacity to think yanking his tail would affect him in literally any way. Sure, it hurt, but do you know how many time's he's had to fight cats that aim for tails? Many, many times. Inevitably you have to get used to it or risk death.

To be fair, she tore at it pretty hard, it would probably scar, but when you survive in both a cesspit full of mad, bloodthirsty cats, and in the streets of a twolegplace, you grow your pain tolerance, or you die. Shaking his head, and hissing in insult, he twisted around, slamming his claws against the side of her face and drawing a bloody gash, the red arc soon to saturate his crimson-stained paws even more.

The exhaustion of the fight was starting to creep up on him, the wounds from the warrior that had pinned him near the battle's beginning and the new injury making his aching muscles feel far less reliable, but still, he'd continue fighting until this abomination was put down once again.

Soon enough, Hyacinth joined, ramming into the clanner. The forces growing against the leader would soon inevitably overwhelm her, the last-standing warrior was getting mobbed, and they couldn't dodge forever. She would not be winning this fight.

Another cat piled on her, and Murkystar stumbled, her briefly regained strength fading fast. She wasn't giving up yet though.

Murkystar used Snap, dealing 10 base (+2 Star Striker) damage and costing 7 SP.

Hyacinth
1 HP / 12 SP

Murkystar
14 HP / 9 SP (-7)

Tarot - KO Pending
0 HP (-12) / 44 SP

As ShadowClan warrior made the choice to fight or fall, the crowd in the camp began to thin, displaying the clan's last two standing warriors. Their leader was lying crumpled on the floor, sure to rise again but not for the time being. More help came for her, assisting in taking the tabby down. His skilful dodges were no match for strength in numbers, and as each rouge took their blow, Aoife was left with the final one of the fight.

She wouldn't kill him. She justified to herself that it just wasn't necessary; ShadowClan losing their home and a few cats was a big enough price to pay for killing Apollo. But really she didn't have the strength to do it - instead sheathed claws smashed across the tom's head, far from the fatal slash to the throat. She would do it one day. If she wanted to get anywhere, she'd have to.

Aoife used Front Paw Blow on Webshadow

Aoife
11/50 HP | 62/120 SP [-5]

Aether
19/50 HP | 33/120 SP

Tornshadow
27/50 HP | 69/120 SP

Webshadow
0/60 HP [-6] | 98/160 SP pending KO

Webshadow yelped as his initial target struck out at him again. The blow was soft, and between the ruddy haze of exhaustion and blood loss, he felt jilted that she didn't think he was good enough for claws. The tabby moved step closer to her, teeth half-bared in an attempt to lunge for the throat; he never wanted to take another cat's life, but he would, especially when those cats were doing everything in their power to destroy his home. His paw touched the frosty earth, but his heroic try at putting something of an end to this stopped short when his leg gave out under him and he buckled, the side of his face running through the slush and mud. "Get away from me," he rasped, fury lighting his foggy gaze. "Don't you dare kill me. Get away from me." Webshadow's tail beat hard against the earth. He tried to shove himself back to his feet, but the strength wouldn't come; he was breathing too hard, his head spun too fast. Am I still bleeding? It didn't feel like it. Maybe he'd just forgotten. The dark warrior turned to his leader as much as he could. She was the only one left– the rogues would pile her now, like ugly hounds. "Murkystar," Webshadow forced out desperately, angling himself toward her. He refused to let these beasts take her; somehow, he would have to keep fighting. Another try at standing proved equally useless, and it left the warrior wheezing and shaking against the bloodied snow.

Webshadow has been KO'ed.

The abomination lunged at home, her fangs glinting, and somehow, he knew in the depths of his mind, that her next blow would be far more fatal than the last one. These... creatures, they were good fighters, but he didn't want to give her the satisfaction of his life. Especially since he still hasn't finished his own little goal of striking back at Starclan, the ghostly cats who had in indignity to twist the very core of nature, life.

Life, death... they should never be meddled with, and he'd make sure that by the end of their lives, they'd at the very least see his message. Even if he had to kill scores of their descendants to make them.

Twisting in a fashion befitting of his title, the tom evaded the deathly blow with narrowed, cold eyes, and slashed at the side of her neck that was now open to him due to her lunge. Sadly, with their footing being churned, bloody slush and mud, his foot skidded, and all that came away from the attack was him slicing off a few hairs. The main point was dodging the attack anyways, nothing more, nothing less. He just had to take up her time, her stamina, he had to keep her busy and weaken her until the rest of the Forgotten Order joined the fight.

That was it, if he ended up being the only cat in their group that was defeated, that was ok. He was one of their leaders, yes, but unlike Klaus, he still needed to learn more in the ways of fighting. He still needed to hone himself into a deadly weapon.

Tarot would get to that point though, he was sure of it.

Right now though, he could feel the blood loss getting to him, if his companions didn't reach him in time, this abomination would beat him. The thought made him hiss with dissatisfaction, but that didn't make him lose focus. If he lost this fight with her today, he'd be sure to pay her a... visit... in the future.

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

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'Effect Dice' : 3

The final warrior had fallen, crawling around and clearly with no strength left to fight. Klaus turned away from him and set his eyes back on... Murkystar was her name? Thanks dark tabby. "I won't finish you, I'll allow my mate or one of my kits to do that, but this is for trying to sucker strike me earlier." Klaus threw weight and strength into both claws, sending them toward Murkystar with a terrible force. With a crack, they collided with her skull. Satisfied, Klaus stepped back, giving Hyacinth and his kits plenty of room to step in and finish the job.

Klaus used Upright Lock, dealing 12 damage and -10SP

Klaus
6HP / 80SP (-10SP)

Murkystar
2HP / 9SP (-12HP)

Tornshadow looked at Webshadow as he fell, she wasn't intending to take his life. She already took one she wouldn't take another today. She looked to the others, "Let's finish this fight." Nodding towards Murkystar. She didn't really wait for an answer before running over to the leader, claws out to slash at her side.

Torn used Front Paw Strike dealing 8 damage, -7 SP

Murkystar:
KO Pending

Torn:
27/50 HP
62/120 SP

OOC: Aoife, Aether, and Hyacinth have timed out

The tom dodged, and Murkystar hissed in annoyance. These rogues had come out of nowhere, claiming that her clan had killed one of their own, using under-pawed tactics and piling on to her warriors to the point that they were overwhelmed, having already disposed of one of their most experienced warriors and a queen. Mistyfalcon and Batglow were patrolling, and hadn't returned. Had they run into them too? The thought gripped her stomach with cold, sharp claws, making her feel sick. What of the apprentices, guarding camp with the elders and queens? Of the kits hiding in the nursery, surely terrified? Loudnose in the medicine den, and... Wait... She hadn't see Marshmallow. Her eyes narrowed, quickly scanning the battlefield as she was piled on again. Dawnhawk's voice came from her side, and she scoffed. Dodging out of the way of his claws, and trying to lash out in return, she dodged into another attack from a clearly older cat who was with him, but still shared the similarities of the kits. The fight was lost, at least here, but if they continued into the camp they would only have the three of them. Well, perhaps two of them.

Murkystar used Dodge and Fight (Klaus' attack dealt the most damage), attempting (success!) to deal 7 base (+2 Star Striker) damage and costing 7 SP.

Murkystar:
6 HP (2 + 12 - 8) / 2 SP (-7)

Klaus:
6 HP / 80 SP

Tarot:
3 HP (12 - 9) / 37 SP

Tornshadow:
27 HP / 62 SP

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

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'Effect Dice' : 5

The clanner dodged Tarot's attack, taking the moment to slash Tarot across the front of his chest. The blow was deep, and the tom stumbled back, vision swaying for a moment. No, he wasn't going to stand down yet, just because a few of their members tapped out didn't mean he had to stop too. So, with narrowed eyes and a snarl, the tom ignored the lightheaded feeling buzzing through him as red drained from his wounds, and pounced on her, jaws latching onto the side of her reck, and claws gripping into her pelt, biting down as deep as possible.

She could match the warrior he felled earlier. Glancing up at Klaus and Torn, he tore back leaving a large, gaping wound. Stumbling, he made the distance between his opponent once more. His mouth open slightly as he tried to bring more air into his lungs, teeth dripping with blood that wasn't his own, his violet hues were narrowed and forcefully made to focus on his opponent.

This battle had been tough, he gave the shadowclanners that, but if they trained up enough, perhaps it would be less costly than it was today. This had been a good experiment for him, testing the limits of his and the Order's abilities. He had watched everyone fight as best as he could. So, perhaps once they were back, he could pass on suggestions to Klaus as to who'd they promote to Overseers.

First, though, he had to make sure that the clan abomination stayed down so they wouldn't be pursued upon retreating back to base. It'd be a hard journey back with these injuries and with ensuring they left as little of a trace back to camp as possible. Hopefully, that important part of the fallout wouldn't cause issues.

It was too much. She was still recovering from her battle with the badger, and they had been totally unprepared. Their medicine cat was gone, along with a warrior, and those who were patrolling the territory. Those remaining in camp would have to finish the fight... If they continued to press on. As she staggered and began to fade into unconsciousness, she wondered if she would wake up again.

Murkystar has fallen!

Tarot's attack was too much for the white deputy, his fur now stained with red and pink. The huge, gaping gash on the back of Frostgaze's neck was pouring blood, and the last attack had brought him to his knees. He tried to snap at them, any of them, as his vision faded, and weakness took over his body. In the last of his vision, he saw Webshadow and Murkystar brought down. They wouldn't win this... he hoped the camp would still be safe. Hope wouldn't work though. There simply wasn't enough for logical thought left in the tom. Then he finally passed out, blood still oozing out of him.

Frostgaze is KOed!

Klaus watched the leader go down and despite all of the fighting and effort this entire time... it was surreal. He stared and silence ensued. He listened to his own heartbeat and the panting of both himself and his tired family and companions. After several moments of silence... with his ears ringing from the yowling and the sound of bodies hitting the snow... he finally and slowly looked at Tarot. He looked at Hyacinth... he looked at all of his children that were still standing.

All of them were still standing.

The entire Order that he brought.

"We won..." He said softly, his voice hoarse and scratchy from battle. His legs felt weak and he staggered a bit in place as the adrenaline was wearing off. Despite that... a smile spread across his maw, still panting heavily with the effort of prolonged violence.

"I can't tell you all how proud I am of you... of all of you!" He finally managed to speak, louder this time. He would give them a proper celebration later, after injuries were addressed. Klaus's eyes went to Webshadow, a warrior that was not able to fight but was still conscious. Klaus turned and walked by the dark tabby, giving him a sideways look as he did.

"I'm so glad at least one of you is still conscious for this..." He practically hissed. He spotted a fluffy white tom, Frostgaze, though he didn't know his name, and grabbed the unconscious warrior by the scruff roughly and dragged him over to where Webshadow could see them better. Klaus wasn't gentle about it either, biting hard enough into the scruff to draw more blood.

Once Frostgaze had been dragged through the snow and dropped between himself and the dark tabby, Klaus raised a single paw over him and unsheathed his claws. He locked eyes with Webshadow, cold and unblinking like a snake. After a tense heartbeat or two, the threat of skinning another warrior hanging in the air, Klaus suddenly stepped forward and his paw landed harmlessly into the snow. The Order leader then plopped his rump down onto Frostgaze's body, sitting on the deputy as if he were a cushion. A mischievous smile twitched at the corners of Klaus's mouth before it went away and his expression became very serious after that.

"I have no idea who you are and quite frankly, I don't care. You're still conscious and that's all I care about. I'm not going to take the rest of my order into your camp to slaughter whoever else is left in there, even though I will admit I am very tempted. The truth is, even if I wiped Shadowclan from the forest, no amount of deaths on your side will bring my son back to me. He is gone."

He allowed the words to hang in the air for a moment before he continued.

"However, I believe it is fair to warn you, a warning I want you to give to your leader and the rest of your clan once they're uh... awake again... that everyone who has tried to pursue me in the past has either died or someone close to them has died, and here I still stand. If Shadowclan is even mildly tempted to come after me or the Forgotten Order... us..." He nodded his head at the Order, gesturing to them all. "And we catch wind of it... We will be in your camp next time and we will slaughter everyone in sight. Kits, elders, queens, I don't care. Apollo has been avenged and I am content to go home and leave this in the past. Shadowclan should as well, and assuming I am not lucky enough to have killed the warriors responsible for my son's death, Shadowclan would be wise to instruct them to be sure the next lone cat they so foolishly kill is not a member of my family or the Forgotten Order. I won't be so generous leaving only three deaths next time, as I said."

He was loathe to leave his warm fluffy cushion that was the pale white warrior. His butt was just becoming a more comfortable temperature. With a quiet sigh, Klaus got up from his seat and looked at the rest of his forces.

"Let's go. We have proven our point and Shadowclan will not forget this day. Apollo has been avenged. We don't need to push ourselves any further." At least... not today. With Shadowclan hopefully believing the Order wouldn't be back, if a second invasion was decided upon at a later date, perhaps it would be even easier.

The plan was to take his family to the river, where they would wash as much blood from them as safely as possible, given the bitter cold, let the colder water soothe pains... and ultimately cover everyone in mud to hide their scent. Shadowclan, nor anyone else, was going to track them to their home. The Asylum training was still with both himself and Hyacinth of covering a scent trail that was passed down to the rest of the Order along with the ability to heal.

The members back at camp would be plenty healthy enough to feed and heal everyone else while they rested. Klaus's eye in particular was absolutely killing him.