Turned Upside Down [Sitewide]

Stonekit's fur against hers was the push that Mistkit needed, in that moment, to keep moving. It was loud and busy, cats moving and shouting in all directions, and it would be so easy to get separated- she couldn't that happen. What would she do without her sister? She wasn't brave at all, she wouldn't be able to do anything if she was alone. "I-I'm here... I'm with you. Let's go... Which way...?" She'd heard the deputy's call too, barely able to understand it over everything else, but which way were the trees? Weren't they everywhere? She would follow, of course, but it wasn't like she knew where anything was.

---

Lightningpaw was about to say she hadn't seen Blackbear anywhere when the older she-cat appeared. She brought with her advice to pair with Birdchaser's orders, and she couldn't find any reason to question them, at least in the moment. "Climb a tree, got it. No time to waste, Creampaw- stick with me, we'll be fine!"

Without another word she moved as fast as her paws would carry her in the direction of what she was pretty sure was SkyClan territory, or at least was where the other SkyClan cats were fleeing. She wanted to look back, to make sure that Creampaw was keeping up- but she trusted that he was, and she couldn't risk stopping to check. They'd make it out of this. They had to.

Within moments, the world around him exploded into a flurry of panicking cats and apparently now Twolegs. They were supposed to be scared of them and at first he didn’t quite understand why, but as he watched wide-eyed as they snatched up cats left and right, going with them definitely didn’t seem too appealing. He’d never gotten the chance to see one up close, but as they flocked into Fourtrees, he had to admit they were kind of funny looking.

"Run to Highstones!" the plump grey apprentice heard some-cat call out in the distance. He’d never even been there, but he assumed if he followed the masses he’d eventually get there, or at least away from here. In the distance he saw his mentor scrambling about, hopefully they’d meet up soon. Right now, he had some business to attend to. Well, that was until Shadepaw ran into him.

With an audible 'oof' upon impact, he turned around to see his clanmate with a kit in her mouth. Unlike the other cats that fled around him, the dark pelted tabby stayed pressed up against his side as if to try and get him going, but he only had one thing in mind. "But food! I need a snack for the road!" he wined, turning his gaze over to one of the freshkill piles that hadn’t yet been trampled all over. If he could just grab a little something to eat… then he’d join them all, he promised! They couldn't just let all this good prey go to waste, even if Twolegs were here.

Again? What did Russetpaw mean by that? She had never left Silverwing before, and as far as she was concerned Russetpaw was the best apprentice a warrior could hope for. She'd have to look into that, but later, not while there were still twolegs stomping around. "Highstones, got it! Let's go-" Blazefang's arrival made the warrior pause. Wasn't she on her way to Highstones already? She... She had come back, Blazefang had come back for her! The joy she felt in that moment was overshadowed by the fear of twolegs around them. Actually, maybe the fear was caused by the last thing Blazefang said. What could she possibly need to talk about? The possibilities were honestly endless, especially with all the bad things that were already happening. Was Brackenwing safe? Did she get caught, could that be what Blazefang wanted to talk about? Whatever, she would just have to find out later. "Let's go, Russetpaw." Silverwing made for the edge of the clearing, keeping a pace that would allow for the apprentice to easily keep up.

__

Stoatclaw was shocked back into the world by Astershine's calls, forgetting about Blackbear, and apparently his apprentice which had already run off. With no clue as to where she might have run off, he was forced to just trust that she would be fine on her own. What a mentor, you're doing great already. "Right, we need to leave." He didn't like the idea of being split up from his clan, it would make any small groups susceptible to violence. Whether that was violence caused by twolegs, or anything else was another matter. Obeying Astershine's order, Stoatclaw ran for the forest once more.

Silverwing is attempting to flee with Russetpaw
Stoatclaw has fled as instructed

Russetpaw’s eyes grew wide as Blazefang came over- but she didn’t seem to be mad, and therefore gained a few more coolness points- wait-unless- ohhh stars, she wanted to talk to Silverwing about Russetpaw! Oh… that couldn’t be good. She- she didn’t want to get in trouble- had she done the right thing? She wasn’t quite sure what the right thing was- but this felt right- but she was supposed to listen to warriors- but if she’d just left Silverwing behind she would’ve felt terrible! What was she even supposed to do in this scenario???

“I’m right behind you, Silverwing!” she mewed, following her mentor with a pounding heart. What with all the terror of Twolegs, and of maybe getting in trouble later, adrenaline flooded through her- she could run until she reached the southern lake of the old stories- or even fly! Paws thrumming against the ground, she sprinted behind her mentor, making sure to wave her tail at Sleepypaw if she saw her, in a ‘I’m alright let’s go!’ manner.


Frondkit didn’t know exactly what to do- some unfamiliar cat had grabbed his scruff, but she wasn’t his mother! She didn’t even smell remotely like her! What was happening? There was some fluffy grey cat who was whining about something? What? Then- over there- so close- his mother, tabby pelt flashing in the sunlight! Frondkit took advantage of the cat who was carrying him talking about something (Highstones? Huh?) and wriggled out of her grasp, pelting towards his mother as fast as his short legs could carry him, more scared of the cat who had definitely attempted to kitnap him than of the Twolegs.

Once he reached her side, the two tabby cats fled into the forest, following their Clanmates.

Dawnfeather and Hartstep have been taken.
Russetpaw is fleeing with Silverwing and the rest of WindClan.
Frondkit has managed to escape Shadepaw, reach his mother, and is fleeing.

Batsong was with Brackenwing at the time when the 2legs came marching in. She was trying to get her cast more comfortable when the voices rang out loud all around them. Her fur went straight up as they makeshift camp was quickly overrun by all the massive creatures running and chasing cats all over the place. Her heart stood still as she panicked.

She saw out of the corner of her eye Whisperear getting yanked up by their scruff.

"NOO! she yelped as they were stuffed into a metal cage. Batsong shook with fear and anger watching them get carted away. She wanted to give chase and stop them but what could she do??? She could do nothing to free Whisperear she had to watch helplessly as the one she had tried to raise since kithood was carted off and she couldnt raise a paw against it.

She saw Whisperear one last time before they were gone. "Whisper... she trembled.

Snapping out of it she had to focus on her wounded. Her sister Brackenwing was limping away best she could. Running to her side she supported her on the side with the bad leg.

"Alright w-w.w0---we can d-dd.ddd-ddo this she trempled stuttering like crazy. She didnt look back as she ran supporting Bracken best she could as they got out of their as fast as they could.


Batsong is helping Bracken escape



Swiftheart was busy playing with Cinderkit when a strange sound started moving in on them. She sat there dazed and confused as giant twolegs started chasing cats all over.

Her mate Duskflights call shook her back to reality. She pulled Cinderkit close to her with her tail "Stay close my kit we are getting out of here she hissed.

Turning she froze in terror as she saw her brother Nightstar being carted off grabbed by a twoleg.

"Night!!!" she wailed fearfully. No! she wasnt gonna lose him too!

More emotionally driven than Batsong, she took off after the twoleg not really thinking much at all. She tried to swipe at the one carrying her brother but they had long pants on and she did basically nothing. The twoleg was suprised and kicked at her a bit missing but she got the point... there was nothing she could do against this thing. It reached down grabbing at her scruff. She pulled away just in time but it yanked her tail pretty hard. Pulling herself free just barely she ran back to where she had last seen her family. Cloudspirit was calling for her she could hear and she searched quickly to try and find her. She ran to her daughters side.

"Im here, Im here, You and Cinderkit get out of here. Dusk and I are gonna be right behind you! she mewed quickly going to her mates side next

"come on dusk we gotta go they are everywhere she mewed urgently

Swiftheart failed to save her brother and is regrouping with her family to run away



Sprucebark was so tired. He had slept most of the time here from being washed out by the river and his long journey back with Hawkshreik.

His eyes blinked open as he yawned... there was a loud noice outside. Pushing himself to his still aching legs he watched stunned and confused... his brother Rowanpaw was busy getting himself stuffed into a twoleg trap.

That got the adreniline going!
Rowan!!! he screamed. He stood there stunned and not able to do anything as his brother was carted away.

Sprucebark is stunned and is just standing there frozen. He is too tired to run and is too stunned to be scared off. (He is gonna be grabbed next wave so yea he is super easy target for twolegs rn.
Clanmates feel free to yell at him but hes gonna be frozen in fear the whole time)



Daisybreeze was startled awake as well. She looked around at the scene and was shocked to see what more bad luck the clans were now having. UGHH twolegs now!!

She saw Whisperear getting trapped and she let out a low growl. This twoleg wouldnt get away with that! She saw batsong helping Brackenwing escape... no one was around to try and rescue Whisperear.

She would do it! She was sorry for what she had done to them and she would try and save them now no matter how stacked the odds were against her.

She ran right at the twoleg that held her clanmate. "Thats my clanmate!!" she growled as she jumped up swiping at the twoleg. Again this had little to no effect on the twoleg.

She tried again and again swiping at them not giving up at all.

"Put em down!" she hissed. Attempting to bite at the twolegs leg... they had super thick pelts (Jeans) and she couldnt get through em.

The stubbern warrior never gave up though.

Daisybreeze is trying to fight the twoleg who grabbed Whisperear... its not going well at all. (She is supposed to be grabbed next wave so Im trying to put her in a position where that will happen and this goes with her stubborn character)

Shadepaw felt the sky squeeze in close, everything was wrong. Horror raced down her spine when the kit wiggled away. He’d surely be crushed by the chaotic trodding of the two-legs, but relief dripped all the way down to her paws when he disappeared with an older cat. One less thing to worry about. Clanmate, highstones. Easy. She could do that.

Her pale eyes flickered like the first flashes of lightning before a brewing storm, pupils blown wide in fear. A growl bubbled in her throat. It made the cold claws that clenched in her belly ease their grip a bit. Food? Now? Could he not see that everything was crumbling around them like an unbraced tunnel? The tabby drew herself up, pulling her shoulders back in an attempt to look more threatening than her lanky frame normally allowed. Her bristled fur helped. Her claws snagged into the loose soil as she unsheathed them and peeled her lips back to snarl at the older apprentice. “Move your paws before I move your spine to the outside of your body.” Her tail lashed, and it was nerve-wracking to stand still in the middle of flashing pelts as the clans ran. Every muscle strained to run with them, be anywhere but here.

She narrowed her eyes and shoved Fuzzpaw with a brutal knock of her shoulder. He was built like a boulder, so she doubted he’d move much, but any motion forward was a victory. “If we die here, you’ll never get to taste another piece of freshkill again.” She snapped, fangs flashing cruel and white from her dark face. The forest groaned with unnatural noise, and Shadepaw fought every instinct to flatten herself against the earth. She was fierce and strong and would rather fight the whole of the dark forest than get snatched by the unnatural creatures with their fleshy, reaching limbs. She was not afraid and would shred Fuzzpaw's ears if he did not get moving.

Shadepaw is attempting to convince Fuzzpaw to flee

OOC post because I have no braincells.

Snowpaw, Blazefang, and Lighttail have all fled. Sunkit is with Marshmallow.

Smallbean was beside her, and Brackenwing noted just how terrified her former mentor looked. Not that she could blame him, of course. The situation at paw was equal parts horrifying and completely unknown to Brackenwing, and her bum leg didn't exactly help the way her heart pounded against her ribcage. She was grateful for the deputy's presence, though she had to fight a sense of reluctance to lean on his shoulder. It was for her own good and would get her out of there faster, Brackenwing knew, but part of her simply didn't want to accept help. If her mother were alive, she was sure Swiftspirit would've simply bapped her on the nose for it and told her off for her stubbornness... And her mother would've been right. That, and the desire to not leave Lynxpaw and Owlshade with even less family, made it a bit easier to accept. As quickly as Smallbean had appeared, so too did Batsong, stuttering just as much. "Thanks," Brackenwing managed, speaking to both of them. With the pair flanking her, she allowed them to guide her out of fourtrees and to highstones.

---

Harechaser was glad the kits had followed after her. "It'll be okay." She tried to reassure them, "We'll make it out of here, I promise." Except, that wasn't a promise she could guarantee, and she knew it. The familiar voice of her niece called to her, and Harechaser allowed herself a little relief that Crowspirit hadn't been taken. Yet. With luck, none of them would be. "Crowspirit!" Harechaser called, "This way! I have Lousekit and Beetlekit too. Go!" She added. Her niece would hear her. They just... Had to make it out of here.

---

Stonekit considered Mistkit's words and frowned. "I d-d-don't know..." She hated to admit that, but the two were simply too young to recall how SKyclan had gotten to fourtrees in the first place. Inwardly, Stonekit winced at the way her voice wavered. She was supposed to be the one getting them out of here, not stuttering over her words like she was scared! She wasn't scared! "W- We c-can f-f-follow one of the others, at least." ...If they could keep up, that was, but that thought had yet to cross Stonekit's mind as she tried desperately to keep her paws from trembling too much. "There's a couple of our clan's warriors-" She pointed out the larger shapes of adult cats not far off, their pelts recognizable, if not their names. "Let's go!"

Brackenwing is getting out with Smallbean and Batsong's assistance.
Harechaser has responded to Crowspirit and is leading Lousekit and Beetlekit out.
Stonekit has pointed out (random, Wolf if nobody wants to take pity on them lol) Skyclan warriors to follow to Mistkit, and is very much scared.

Creampaw's ears perked at the sound of pounding pawsteps approaching, turning his head to see the lumbering shape of Blackbear approaching the two. "Mo-Blackbear!" he cried in relief, catching himself from saying the dreaded 'M' word in front of her. Any of his lingering fear melted away as she reached them - slowing down to throw himself into the large collar of fur that she had but he was stopped as she pushed him forward, forcing him to keep his paws moving. Cl-Climb? ...Right, she knew what she was doing. He gave a nod, glancing as a few other cats raced towards them. Stoatclaw, Lightningpaw's mentor and Wolfblossom. "Right! St-Stay safe, all of you. Please," he breathed before he spun - following Lightningpaw as she darted off - out of the chaos and towards the safety of the trees that SkyClan called home.

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It wasn't easy, trying to support Comfreyheart as they both fled for their lives but there was no way that Acornpaw was abandoning her - thus there was rapid relief when Fawnshine appeared to help guide the injured she-cat to safety. "We'll get him back," she muttered, hope burning in her chest that the words were true - that she would see Echopaw again but she wasn't sure if she believed it. ...But any hope was better than none. Her ears twitched as the medicine cat called out for other higher ranks of ThunderClan, sparing a glance around. Hopefully Sunstrike was okay, she hadn't seen her mentor in all of this chaos...

Harrierpaw had made her peace with Nightstar, leaving room for her to be the young cat that she still is. Nothing weighed on her mind in this moment of peace as she munched on a mouse from ShadowClan's fresh-kill pile. She met so many new cats, every single one of them pleasant and leaving a lasting impression on her. If only there were sunning spots to take advantage of... it would be perfect! Well... Besides the ever-looming reminder that ShadowClan territory, her home, was a complete mess. She supposed they'd get to it when the time came.

Suddenly, something tightened around her neck like a noose. It wasn't choking her, but it sure felt like it would. Harrierpaw howled and flailed, her overgrown claws digging wildly into the earth around her and snagging anything they could get a hold of. What on earth is going on?! A shiny, hard gray cage of vines fell over her. As hard as she squirmed and slammed around, it was clear there was no escape; She was trapped. 

Nightstar's howl for everyone to get out solidified a separate horror: Nightstar had been captured too. But... What about Leopardsun? She feared calling out to her in case Leopardsun dared to try and save her and end up with the same fate. There! Harrierpaw could spot Leopardsun miles away if needed, and seeing the she-cat escaping with the rest of ShadowClan she hoped Sablestrike was among them. She hadn't seen him since they were on their way to to Fourtrees... 

Leopardsun was the last thing Harrierpaw saw before the Two-Legs dragged her to those smelly monsters that took her mothers life and put her inside. 

Harrierpaw has been captured by Two-legs.

Plumleaf had just begun to settle into a shaky acceptance of their temporary residence in fourtrees when things took yet another turn for the worst. She was jerked from her sleep by the sound of heavy, plodding pawsteps, followed shortly by the terrified, enraged yowls of her clanmates. Jumping out of her nest, her eyes widened in horror as she watched the twolegs snatch every cat they could get their weird, hairless paws on. Her gaze darkened in worry at the sight of Birdchaser making herself such an easy target for the odd creatures, but she focused instead on her sister's instructions. Several Skyclan cats had been captured already, and though it pained Plumleaf to leave them behind, she had to focus on helping everyone else get to safety. She headed in the direction Wolfblossom had gone, stopping short as she noticed the two kits gazing fearfully around them.

"Come on, little ones." She said urgently as she reached them, gently nudging them towards the rest of the clan. "Everything will be okay, but we have to get out of here as quickly as we can." She was stressed and afraid, but she tried her best to comfort the kits. She picked Stonekit up by her scruff, grabbing Mistkit and hoisting the kitten onto her back. "Hold on." She muttered, her voice muffled by the delicate fur of the kit she was carrying. Charging into the forest with her two precious charges, Plumleaf prayed they would find the rest of their clan safe and well.

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Applekit had only been a few days old when the earthquake happened, his memory of that day was nothing more than a vague, fear-filled memory. He'd spent most of his life in fourtrees, so he'd come to view the place as home. Imagine his shock and terror when he looks up from his game of 'How Many Bugs Can I Squish Before I Get Bored'  to find giant, odd-smelling creatures bursting into the clearing and beginning to shove cats into spindly, silver-mesh... things... The young kit stared in horror, his game completely forgotten as he watched his clanmates succumb one by one to the strange beings. He whimpered, desperately searching for his family. Where was his mama?! And Sunkit, and Fangkit, and- He darted forward as he spotted a familiar face, slipping in between the legs of the creatures and skirting their fleshy paws. He all but barreled into his brother, the force of the impact knocking both kits onto the ground.

"Sunkit, what's goin' on? What're those things? What're they doin' to Nightstar?" He whimpered.

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Not too long ago, Beetleshade thought the worst thing to happen to her was having to temporarily share a camp with Shadowclan. Now,   thanks to her rotten luck, she was forced to live with all five clans for the forseeable future. Great. The only upside to the situation was being able to see Trufflesnap more often; the Skyclanner was quickly becoming Beetleshade's favorite cat. Considering the fact that she could barely tolerate most cats, this was quite a shock to her. She was returning from yet another risky hunting excursion into territory that no longer felt familiar when the twolegs came noisily tramping into the clearing, clumsily scooping cats up and restraining them. Ugh. With a curl of her lip, Beetleshade clawed fiercely at a twoleg that attempted to reach for her, darting around it and scrambling up the nearest tree. With any luck, the fumbling creatures would have scared away any prey left-over from the aftermath of the earthquake. And just what did they think they were going to accomplish by shoving cats into those weird spiky boxes? Idiots. All of them.
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Plumleaf has picked up Mistkit and Stonekit and is carrying them to safety
Applekit has found Sunkit
Beetleshade is utterly disgusted has climbed a tree to avoid the twolegs

Ears pinned flat against his head as Shadepaw threatened him and attempted to push him he planted himself even more firmly and opened his jaw to protest once more, but before he could do so his life flashed before his very eyes.

In front of him, as if the world was moving in slow motion, a Twoleg's large, oddly covered up paw stomped through the freshkill pile he'd been eyeing. Pieces of prey squished out from under its foot in a grotesque manner, and it even managed to kick some of the food around. So wasteful!

With his jaw dropped, the plump apprentice watched as the perfectly good prey went to waste left and right, and as he was in this little trance, he failed to notice the vole hauling its way across the clearing straight towards his face.

With a 'smack,' Fuzzpaw went down onto his back, unlike when Shadepaw had tried to get him to move. The tangy taste of blood filled his mouth as his nose began to bleed, and for a moment he'd thought he'd been kicked by one of the Twoleg's giant feet. What in the world had hit him so hard? Pushing himself up and licking the blood that poured out of his nose, another scent filled the air, a most familiar one. Was... was this an answer to his prayers?

Looking down, a gleeful grin grew on his maw as he stared at the vole that had hit him, resting perfectly in front of him. It was a dream come true! "Thank the stars!" he yowled with joy. Now, he could get out of this chaotic place. Grabbing the prey, Fuzzpaw jumped up, his heart filled with happiness at what he'd just been blessed with. It was clearly no accident, his ancestors must've known he'd wanted a meal!

Satisfied, he gave a nod to Shadepaw and began lumbered off as fast as his blubbery body could go, away from the Twolegs and to who-knew where. Hopefully, it was somewhere that he could eat this vole.


OOC: fuzz...lol

Perchstar had been running herself ragged the past moon, and it was beginning to show. She normally took care of her pelt, but it was beginning to look as tired and bedraggled as it had when the Dark Forest had taken over camp. There was a noticeable sunken look to her eyes as she wandered around Fourtrees, looking almost like a ghost, trying to make sure all her Clanmates were healthy and well-fed. The loss of Dovesight had been devastating. Sandypaw had been trying her best to keep up, but with Hickorypaw so badly injured, so far away from their herb stores.... At any moment, the leader might collapse. She hadn't slept soundly since the earthquake. As much as she tried to stay awake, the exhaustion started to get to her, and she began drifting off into an uneasy sleep....

Screaming filled her ears moments later.

She whipped her head up, the familiar rush of adrenaline giving her the power to jump to her feet and narrowly miss two large paws that came swiping down to grab her out of nowhere. What? Twolegs, here, now?! They've found us! Once again, she had no time to think of the correct course of action. All around the clearing, Twolegs stumbled clumsily around, grabbing any cat they could and taking them away with superior strength. These were not opponents that could be fought. In the few seconds it took her to gather her frazzled thoughts, she saw Rowanpaw already scooped up by a giant, monstrous form, kicking and sobbing. She felt something crack inside of her.

"RiverClan, to camp! Run! I'll meet you there!" Her words were sharp and loud, hopefully cutting above the clamor with their clarity. The amount of adrenaline that had kept her running the past moon was fraying at her nerves. Any more and she'd probably explode. As another Twoleg reached for her, Perchstar was forced to run through the chaotic mass of cats, barely able to recognize Clanmate from cat. Where was anyone? Where were her apprentices--Rushingpaw, Hickorypaw? He couldn't run. Where was Poppyshine?! Stars, she could not lose her friend. Not like this. Not after everything.

She nearly ran into a hysterical Stormdance, who was frozen in place. Even his calm demeanor had been shattered by the sight of Rowanpaw's desperation. Woolywing was fluttering uselessly around him. Neither were going anywhere. The pain in their eyes stabbed at her heart, but she had no choice but to grab Stormdance by the scruff and yank him backward with sharp teeth. If he hated her after this, at least he would still be alive. "Go, get out of here!" she snapped. "There's nothing we can do! I'll meet you back in camp, okay? Take Woolywing with you." She stared at him for a moment, hoping that she had gotten through his panic, but there was no time for her to stand around. She had to dash off through the crowd again as lumbering footsteps grew even nearer. If her heart pounded any faster, it would cease to move. She felt her movements growing slower, clumsier, despite the fear that forced her forward. Her limited energy was dragging her down. Still, she kept running, calling out almost desperately for her Clanmates. "Everyone, back to camp!" Her voice cracked. "Rushingpaw? Sprucebark? Sandypaw? Brookstone? Poppyshine?!" Where was everyone?!

Perchstar has called for RiverClan to flee back to camp. She is searching for her Clanmates and will not leave until she has warned everyone she can.

--

Flutterpetal should have known that the shaking earth wouldn't be the end of their troubles. Though the clearing hadn't been the best place for five Clans to stay for a moon, it had been beginning to grow on him. It was a bit messily organized, but it would do until they returned to camp. He was sitting in a corner, looking pensively at the flowers he'd attempted to arrange into a crown as Honeylight taught, when yet another rumbling sound interrupted him. Along with the sound of voices... voices that belonged to no cat. He looked up, light green eyes wide with fear, as enormous Twolegs stormed into the clearing, accompanied by growling monsters who'd found a way off of the Thunderpath.

He glanced frantically around the clearing, his tail bushing up as all his hair stood on end. Where was everyone? Where were Whisperear and Brackenwing and everyone else? Where was Adder? It only took a few moments for one of his questions to be answered. The lanky white cat was easy to spot amidst the crowd--not only because of their characteristic stature, but because they were being lifted high up by a pair of massive Twoleg paws. Scrambling and scratching was to no avail as Flutterpetal's friend was shoved into a monster's belly and out of sight.

Flutterpetal didn't realize he was screaming until he noticed how loud the high-pitched sound was. "Whisper! Whisper, no!" His mentor was in trouble, his friend was in trouble, he had to help. He had to run forward, attack, go, do something. But his paws wouldn't move. His speed, one of the only things he had ever been able to truly rely on, had failed him. All he could do was stand helplessly as one of his oldest friends vanished from his view.

His vision was beginning to go cloudy from the tears of shock that sprang to his eyes. He could no longer make out any familiar faces. Distantly, the voice of Shrikestar shouted something about Highstones. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. What was going to happen to them? Were they all doomed to be eaten by monsters? What would happen to Whisperear? What would happen to him? He wouldn't have been able to do anything if his scent, confused as it was, hadn't led him to the most familiar cat he knew, stumbling around only fox-lengths away from him.

Flutterpetal narrowly missed being snatched by one of the lumbering beasts as he darted forward. While he was fast, his paws were unsteady, and he nearly bowled over the only cat he could see. He managed not to shove the tom over, but his face became buried in his brother's fur. What was happening? What was happening? He couldn't understand. "Adder," he sobbed quietly, his broken voice muffled by his brother's dark fur. "Adder, I'm scared. What's gonna happen?" Even his best friend's presence afforded him no comfort. The world seemed twisted, scary, unlike anything he'd ever known. Nothing seemed real.

Flutterpetal is crying on Adderdawn's shoulder, too shocked to run anywhere.