Warriors: A New Hope

Chapter Eight

“W-who are you…and where am I?” Her heart pounded so loud she thought it was going to burst through her chest. The blood roared in her ears, her legs shaking. Her senses were toppled by fear and the ferocity of the tom in front of her. She tried to move backwards, hoping to be able to turn tail and run. But with one step back the tom growled at her, warning her not to move another step. The shadow-covered tom’s amber-yellow eyes glared at her, watching her small body like a hawk, anger and rage exposing his sharp teeth. Then the thought dawned upon her, a feeling of numbness taking over her whole body. Her belly lurched and she bit back a scream. The scent was ShadowClan’s! No wonder the forest was different! She fought back the urge to slam herself against a tree in hopes of ridding her mind of how foolish and dumb she had been. She stared into the tom’s eyes, his deep amber-yellow eyes. A sudden memory flashed in her mind. She was staring at the tom that had almost killed her!

A deep growl rose from his throat as he eventually spoke. “You are on ShadowClan territory…” Despite a growl rising, his voice was unexplainably soft. Without another word, he grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and flung her into the surrounding bushes and past the entrance. He leaped after the small apprentice, yowling in fury, “I’ve had about enough of ThunderClan!” He sliced his claws over her right shoulder before she could move. She shrunk back as he reared up on his hind legs, unsheathing his long black claws. His white fur glowed in the pale moonlight, his mouth opening to bare fangs of hatred. Cats began surrounding them, their eyes glowing with fury. He slammed his paws down, only to realize that Shadowpaw had dodged away and was heading for the exit.

Ratscar and Owlclaw blocked the entrance, their tails lashing. “Don’t think you can run away now, runt!” Spat Owlclaw, unsheathing his claws alongside Ratscar. The knocked her backwards, causing her to fall over.

“You little spy!” hissed Blackstar before leaping at her once again, his lip drawn back in a snarl. A heartbeat later, she got up and slipped under him, doing as Bramblestar had shown her. Kicking up her hind legs, she began to tremble uncontrollably. It managed to unbalance him for a split second, and she took the advantage to barrel into his side. She then realized that the ferocious ShadowClan leader was at least twice her size, more than less his powerful muscles.  She aimed for his muzzle in hopes of startling him, but instead planted her face in his side as he dodged. She bit down, only to be yanked off like a mere tick. He flung her into a nearby tree, sending leaves covering her body in a shower of dappled rays of moonlight. She winced as she tried to get up, her side aching. He leapt at her, his whiskers plastered down. Using her small size, she pelted underneath him and grabbed his tail as he slammed into the tree trunk. She bounded on top of him, growling before raking her small claws over his ears.

Oh, StarClan help me… she thought as he rolled over, crushing her to the ground. He got up instantly, grabbing her by the scruff of the neck once more and slamming her into the tree. She couldn’t keep this up much longer. She was beginning to tire, her muscles screaming in agony. She felt utterly defeated.

“Blackstar, stop!” A voice called from the other side of the clearing, his mew silencing everyone. “Give her a chance to explain why she has come here.” He padded to the center of the surrounding cats, a strong scent of herbs coming off of his brown pelt.

“Why should I listen to you, Littlecloud? She had invaded our territory!” He hissed loudly, causing Shadowpaw to flinch.

“She is only an apprentice! What harm could she do?” the medicine cat bounded over to them, only to have Blackstar slam into his side.

“I don’t care about what she is! She has gone past our border marks, which will be tolerated by us no longer!” yowls of agreement rose from every surrounding cat accept for Littlecloud. He stepped back, his eyes filled with shame and grief.