Post by williams on Sept 21, 2017 2:00:08 GMT -5
SORRELPAW
STONECLAN
"Hello?" She called into the blackness. The sound bounced around once or twice, hello? hello? then was abruptly swallowed up. The land was entirely unfamiliar, not exactly threatening her with this newness but suggesting harm if she chose a wrong action. She could faintly make out the shapes of trees if she squinted hard enough. They were all different shapes, types and sizes as if a fire swept through with no remorse, forcing the winds and prey to provide the new life. Ferns and bushes covered their bases like ants or bees furious at their home being discovered or carrion birds fighting for prey. And the tops were so intertwined no star's light could push through. Familiar paths of prey or even other predators were few, and far between. It was darker than night, with the brush of static at the edges of her vision, the same static that brought her here. It appeared as if the land just fell away in the corners of her eyes, but turning her head to face the empty land proved fruitless. It would just return itself to normal, recognizable nature, when her gaze landed on the patch of earth.
With a quick test, Sorrel found her paws able to move. The void suggested she was frozen, stuck to wonder where she was for all of her hours. Surprise welled up in her chest and burst out in a streak of light. The emotion sat heavy in the grass beneath her paws, then melted away like the first rain drops of a storm. The apprentice watched as it melted away, alarm making the bile rise in her throat. "Hello?" She called again, raising her voice out of panic and confusion. Where was she?
Suddenly, a shape burst out of the undergrowth, bounding towards her with its own blinding light. Her eyes screwed up small at how quickly the land shifted to accommodate this change. She never made out what the creature was, only felt the air rush past as it flew by. She turned towards the bush the creature fled into, curiosity pulling her paws into action. Before she could examine the bush itself, another creature exploded from the bushes to her left, taking a large leap over the apprentice before soaring away. It too was a solid being of light, the forest responding in kind by sharing colors with her. The forest was not normal colors. The ferns were a golden, dripping their hues onto the grass below. The bushes looked to be purple and red with flecks of green hues, like the berries and the leaves had reversed. The bark of the trees were various shades of brown still, but pulsed quickly in tandem with the retreating pawsteps. Then the blackness swallowed everything, making spots appear in Sorrelpaw's vision by how quickly the void returned.
Sorrelpaw backed away from the bushes in a rush, her back legs stumbling to find purchase. They tangled with the tree behind her, where did that come from? and she collapsed over the roots. Her breath left her chest with a loud whoosh, making her head spin. The forest responded, a low hum gathering as if it too was returning air to unseen lungs. Cats of all shapes and sizes slunk out of the woods in front of her, claws out and larger than life. Their fur spiked up like extra teeth along their spines, mouths dripping in anticipation. The forest slowly took the red from the new shapes, drawing it in and in until the whole world in front of her was the color of blood.
Then they leaped.
The cats tangled with one another, each slash and bite and motion sparking like lightning. It was mesmerizing to watch. Each move was perfectly calculated, each cat a perfect match for each other. The fought without pause, no hesitation in their movements, no fatigue to plague their muscles. Sorrelpaw stood, heart beating frantically in her ears. She wanted to cry out, ask who these cats were, why they felt the need to fight. No clan scent reached her senses, they were simple shapes. She bounded over to one fighting pair, rearing back so she could intercept a move and get in-between.
Her paws found air as it hit one of the cats squarely across the shoulders. At her touch, the fiery red pelt turned into mist, its battle partner left standing stock-still, not even a breath disturbing its whiskers. "Why are you fighting?" The apprentice asked the solo cat. An answer came in form of a growl, low and deeper than any recognizable sound. It wasn't a forest sound, no it sounded foreign, like a distorted thunder clap, reflecting off of sharp shapes rather than the organic rolling caused by plant-life. Paws turned towards her, stalking and shifting into a fighting stance. It growled again. Fear spiked up Sorrel's paws, straight to her stomach turning it into a bottomless drop for her to fall into.
She turned.
She ran.
Paws hit the dirt with loud thuds, tail streaming out straight and large with fear.
The forest melted and twisted, her steps too fast for it to choose one color.
Reds, purples, blues, yellows, oranges flashed by. They melted and swirled, threatening to overwhelm as the void became bright with life. Noises thundered in her ears. Was that a bird? No, it was a kit, a small noise made when playing with an older cat. Playful. Good sound. Familiar. But there was a bird, suddenly--no, it was three. four. five, seven. twelve birds yelling and shrieking. They drowned out the sounds of fighting behind her. What were they saying? Sorrel weaved, clambering over stones, leaping over roots, ducking under fern fronds. Her breath billowed out in sharp spikes, falling onto her neck and dripping down the front of her legs. Then.
Pain.
Teeth- no claws. Long as tails, sharp as the coldest frost, dug into her back leg. Momentum was lost, launching into a haphazard tumble. The pair fell as one awkward mass, the ferns turning into thistles and thorns to grab onto her pelt. Each little thorn felt like a paw refusing to let go, tearing little chunks of fur as they crashed along. They rolled once more then hit a tree with a thud that rattled her teeth. They sunk into the soft earth beneath the roots, a weight pressing her further. The smell of dirt filled her nose, falling into her open jaws, choking out all other senses. The forest was still bright, pulsing with her heartbeat, her ragged breathing.
A wail rose up, a deep mournful sound, fully stealing Sorrel's heart from her chest. Emptiness crept into her limbs from the resulting hole. Loss. Loss. Loss was felt. Something was taken that should have been spared. Should have been protected better. Should have.
The noise was picked up again by another, echoing through the trees with its trail fading quietly into a mournful blue that now overcast everything. Sorrel lifted her head, pressure still above her, and mimicked as accurately as she could. Her voice did not echo, did not reach the far away creatures who felt sadness so deeply. It pooled out in the tangle of roots she lay in, pressed above by the creature that turned on her. The ground accepted her response, melting away the blackness and depressing blues into a soft familiar green.
Her head flopped back, heavy with effort spent. The weight above her lifted, her ribs able to fully expand and allow a large sighing exhale to release. A gentleness washed over her. It wasn’t familiar but it was comforting. Starting at her shoulders, moving along her back with rhythmic movements, the feeling lapped over her as a mother’s comforting spirit would to a kit afraid of the dark. She was safe, it said. There’s nothing here. You are safe.
“You are safe.” She replied, voice now aching raw. “Safe.”
With a quick test, Sorrel found her paws able to move. The void suggested she was frozen, stuck to wonder where she was for all of her hours. Surprise welled up in her chest and burst out in a streak of light. The emotion sat heavy in the grass beneath her paws, then melted away like the first rain drops of a storm. The apprentice watched as it melted away, alarm making the bile rise in her throat. "Hello?" She called again, raising her voice out of panic and confusion. Where was she?
Suddenly, a shape burst out of the undergrowth, bounding towards her with its own blinding light. Her eyes screwed up small at how quickly the land shifted to accommodate this change. She never made out what the creature was, only felt the air rush past as it flew by. She turned towards the bush the creature fled into, curiosity pulling her paws into action. Before she could examine the bush itself, another creature exploded from the bushes to her left, taking a large leap over the apprentice before soaring away. It too was a solid being of light, the forest responding in kind by sharing colors with her. The forest was not normal colors. The ferns were a golden, dripping their hues onto the grass below. The bushes looked to be purple and red with flecks of green hues, like the berries and the leaves had reversed. The bark of the trees were various shades of brown still, but pulsed quickly in tandem with the retreating pawsteps. Then the blackness swallowed everything, making spots appear in Sorrelpaw's vision by how quickly the void returned.
Sorrelpaw backed away from the bushes in a rush, her back legs stumbling to find purchase. They tangled with the tree behind her, where did that come from? and she collapsed over the roots. Her breath left her chest with a loud whoosh, making her head spin. The forest responded, a low hum gathering as if it too was returning air to unseen lungs. Cats of all shapes and sizes slunk out of the woods in front of her, claws out and larger than life. Their fur spiked up like extra teeth along their spines, mouths dripping in anticipation. The forest slowly took the red from the new shapes, drawing it in and in until the whole world in front of her was the color of blood.
Then they leaped.
The cats tangled with one another, each slash and bite and motion sparking like lightning. It was mesmerizing to watch. Each move was perfectly calculated, each cat a perfect match for each other. The fought without pause, no hesitation in their movements, no fatigue to plague their muscles. Sorrelpaw stood, heart beating frantically in her ears. She wanted to cry out, ask who these cats were, why they felt the need to fight. No clan scent reached her senses, they were simple shapes. She bounded over to one fighting pair, rearing back so she could intercept a move and get in-between.
Her paws found air as it hit one of the cats squarely across the shoulders. At her touch, the fiery red pelt turned into mist, its battle partner left standing stock-still, not even a breath disturbing its whiskers. "Why are you fighting?" The apprentice asked the solo cat. An answer came in form of a growl, low and deeper than any recognizable sound. It wasn't a forest sound, no it sounded foreign, like a distorted thunder clap, reflecting off of sharp shapes rather than the organic rolling caused by plant-life. Paws turned towards her, stalking and shifting into a fighting stance. It growled again. Fear spiked up Sorrel's paws, straight to her stomach turning it into a bottomless drop for her to fall into.
She turned.
She ran.
Paws hit the dirt with loud thuds, tail streaming out straight and large with fear.
The forest melted and twisted, her steps too fast for it to choose one color.
Reds, purples, blues, yellows, oranges flashed by. They melted and swirled, threatening to overwhelm as the void became bright with life. Noises thundered in her ears. Was that a bird? No, it was a kit, a small noise made when playing with an older cat. Playful. Good sound. Familiar. But there was a bird, suddenly--no, it was three. four. five, seven. twelve birds yelling and shrieking. They drowned out the sounds of fighting behind her. What were they saying? Sorrel weaved, clambering over stones, leaping over roots, ducking under fern fronds. Her breath billowed out in sharp spikes, falling onto her neck and dripping down the front of her legs. Then.
Pain.
Teeth- no claws. Long as tails, sharp as the coldest frost, dug into her back leg. Momentum was lost, launching into a haphazard tumble. The pair fell as one awkward mass, the ferns turning into thistles and thorns to grab onto her pelt. Each little thorn felt like a paw refusing to let go, tearing little chunks of fur as they crashed along. They rolled once more then hit a tree with a thud that rattled her teeth. They sunk into the soft earth beneath the roots, a weight pressing her further. The smell of dirt filled her nose, falling into her open jaws, choking out all other senses. The forest was still bright, pulsing with her heartbeat, her ragged breathing.
A wail rose up, a deep mournful sound, fully stealing Sorrel's heart from her chest. Emptiness crept into her limbs from the resulting hole. Loss. Loss. Loss was felt. Something was taken that should have been spared. Should have been protected better. Should have.
The noise was picked up again by another, echoing through the trees with its trail fading quietly into a mournful blue that now overcast everything. Sorrel lifted her head, pressure still above her, and mimicked as accurately as she could. Her voice did not echo, did not reach the far away creatures who felt sadness so deeply. It pooled out in the tangle of roots she lay in, pressed above by the creature that turned on her. The ground accepted her response, melting away the blackness and depressing blues into a soft familiar green.
Her head flopped back, heavy with effort spent. The weight above her lifted, her ribs able to fully expand and allow a large sighing exhale to release. A gentleness washed over her. It wasn’t familiar but it was comforting. Starting at her shoulders, moving along her back with rhythmic movements, the feeling lapped over her as a mother’s comforting spirit would to a kit afraid of the dark. She was safe, it said. There’s nothing here. You are safe.
“You are safe.” She replied, voice now aching raw. “Safe.”
1,321 | n/a | takes place while sorrel heals
