Poolstar's Destiny

Chapter 14

~Chapter theme song~
~I'd recommend listening to it before reading this chapter~

IceClan surged forward.

Icefrost hissed to Poolpaw. "Keep close to me! And don't take on any cat bigger than you!"
Poolpaw stared up at the DawnClan cats bristling atop the rock as rain patted the cats below.

Blood pulsed in her ears as Icefrost charged up Icerocks, shrieking like a fox. She hurtled after her, ears flat and eyes round; a screech tore from her throat that was driven by terror than rage. Had DawnClan brought its whole camp?

Let Bluefeather come soon!

Emberstar howled as Silverstar crashed into him, knocking him to the ground.
Icefrost sent a white tom rolling across the slab of stone with a vicious swipe, then leaped on top of him, sending fur flying as she shredded the tom with her flailing forepaws.

A DawnClan she-cat with a mottled pelt raced alongside Poolpaw.
Thinking fast, Poolpaw ducked and nipped the she-cat on the hind leg as she flew past.
The DawnClan warrior shrieked and wheeled around. Shock pulsed through Poolpaw as the warrior's eyes fixed on her. They were blazing, lit by fury.
She was going to attack! Poolpaw crouched and braced herself. As the mottled warrior leaped, Poolpaw darted forward, slipping under the warrior's front claws and shouldering her way beneath her belly. The she-cat's claws scraped stone instead of pelt as Poolpaw pushed up with all her might, unbalancing her enemy. She spun to see the she-cat tumble sideways and felt a surge of triumph.

Yowling with rage, the warrior scrambled back to her paws and turned to attack.
Poolpaw prepared to lunge, aiming again for the belly, but the DawnClan cat was ready.

She came in low, knocking Poolpaw's front black paws from under her and sending her spinning and rolling along the rock. Grasping at the stone, Poolpaw's claws frayed without getting a grip, and she found herself tumbling and sliding over the side and plummeting into the snow piled below.

Struggling free from the drift, Poolpaw sneezed the freezing snow from her mouth and nose.
She paused to catch her breath, then began to creep along the base of the rock with her mouth open and her ears prickled, testing the air for any sign of DawnClan warriors.

The frozen river bubbled a tail-length away, swirling into blackness under the cloudy white ice. Steep rocks trapped her on the narrow riverbank. She could recognize the howls and shrieks of her Clanmates battling above.
From the stench coating the snow she guessed DawnClan had swarmed from there up the rock.
She went back into the battlefield.

She was still taken aback by how many cats there were.

She swirled around to see if any cat was coming behind her and as Duskwing passed by, she saw her.
Sunpaw.

Flashes of memories flashed through her...

Wind howling...

The rush of wind against her pelt as she ran to find her parents...

Horror of seeing her friend slaughter her parents..

"Do you feel nothing? You disgusting piece of roadkill?"

And she remembered clearly... her despair.

Anger started rising in her.
Rain swept over the cats, but Poolpaw felt nothing but wanting to hurt her. No... kill her.
Her fur started bristling and she unsheathed her sharp claws.

"MURDERER!" She yowled in rage as she flung herself at Sunpaw.

Sunpaw moved away quickly, Poolpaw yowled in triumph as she was able to dig her claws into Sunpaw's ear.
Sunpaw stiffened momentarily before shaking her head, blood droplets flying everywhere.
Poolpaw landed on the ground with a hard thud, and she swung around with pure hatred in her deep blue eyes.