The Sunlapse (A Light in the Mist AU/rewrite)

XX

The events of the night before hadn't left them. Now they'd waited the whole day, and yet nothing like it had happened yet. No visions, no shadows, no ghosts, nothing. It wasn't until the skies darkened, and the moon came to rule, did the events start to return.

Bristlefrost laid, trying to relax her muscles on the cold ground as she rested between the trees. Rain poured from the smoky black veiling the stars, with freezing drops of water falling upon the black and blue pines that patched her view, and the crisp, cerulean blanket of snow she laid in. It was calm, but the song of the falling rain and the quiet whistle of the winds would not let her call it silent.

She silently wondered how Spotfur and Mothwing were, how they'd progressed on their journey. What were they doing right now? Getting chased by lions? Falling down a hole? Laying in the snow like her? Stealing twoleg food?

A rustle snatched her from her thoughts and she whipped her head around, wondering if it was Squirrelflight or something else. There was a black tail snaking across the ground, disappearing into a snow-covered bush. Bristlefrost stepped out to stare at the bush, hoping Squirrelflight was close by.

"Squirrelflight!" she called, and waited for a reply.

"Yeah?" A flood of relief lit her heart when the molly's reply drifted on the air. It sounded close, too. She walked out from behind one of the pines, looking almost purple in the shade of the night. Squirrelflight rushed over to Bristlefrost and left dark prints in the snow as she came over.

"Remember the shadow cat last night? I think I saw it again," she replied. She pointed at where she'd seen it with her tail, and she and Squirrelflight padded over to see a vague silhouette of it walking through the trees.

"Should we follow it?" Squirrelflight whispered.

"Yeah, let's go after it," Bristlefrost whispered back as she crept after the shadow, trying to sneak as silently. The silhouette pricked its ears like a sound had just hit them, and they both immediately rushed behind one of the pines, staring from behind and waiting until it turned away and continued walking. They followed it, becoming two shadows made of light following a source of only darkness. 

"Who do you think it is? Do you know any amber eyed Dark Forest cats?" Squirrelflight whispered into her ear as they followed it, and Bristlefrost forcibly shoved herself into her memories for a tedious, painful hunt for any Dark Forest cats.

"Uhhh...my mom told me some names of some cats from the Dark Forest because she used to train there," Bristlefrost said. "There was Mapleshade I think, but I don't think I saw her following Ashfur when I...yeah. So I don't see why she would want to kill Bramblestar. Tigerstar is one, but he died in the Great Battle."

Bristlefrost had no idea.

The shadow lead them out of the folding trees, and into a vast field. Snow blanketed it, turning the field a rough white that looked blue, almost purple in the painting of the night as well as the moonlight glimmering from the small gap in the clouds. The ground sloped beneath her paws, and they wandered down after it as cold rainwater flooded her pelt.

The shadow eventually lead them to an abandoned twoleg nest. It had been enslaved by time, rock walls laying decrepit from the dusty centuries as ivy strangled the stones and winter stained the falling remains white. It laid, old and dead on the lonely hill caressed by moonlight, and they simply followed as the silhouette stepped inside.

Bristlefrost didn't get it. Why did this cat want to go into an abandoned twoleg nest? Why were they simply wandering around the woods and not doing anything? Maybe it wasn't a Clan cat at all, but some kind of wondering rogue spirit trying to kill anyone who entered it's forest, like something out of a scary elders' tale. Or it was the ghost of a kittypet, and this had been its owner's house. No, that didn't make sense. Confusion strangled her mind.

Once they stepped inside the vacant place, the atmosphere was almost suffocating. Dust and rocks littered it, and moonlight spilled it's pale disease into the darkness. It was so choking, yet so empty and lonely.

"We better get out of here, Briss," Squirrelflight hissed. But the curiosity was dehydrating her, leeching her dry. Only following this thing would make her feel better. She had to know what it was. She followed the cat through the moonlit shadows that glided through the halls, with Squirrelflight following her. Then suddenly, the darkness shattered and all that she saw was a blinding flash of white light, with a blast of noise that struck her skull with its explosion of sound.

The light lasted a split second, then it faded, leaving everything back to the calmness of what it once was. When she rushed over, she realized that something must've fallen down and blocked the entrance, struck down by the lightning.

"Shit!" Squirrelflight hissed. "Bristlefrost! go look for any other exits!"

She nodded, and searched around the twoleg nest. However, there were no other ways out, and the windows were either too small or too high up for her to reach. A wave of panic swept over her as she began to realize the reality of this situation. They were trapped. The only way out had been blocked off, and now there was no escape. Her heart began to pound, and the thoughts of their new peril were flooding her. If they didn't find some way to make it out, they would either die eventually of dehydration and starvation, or the shadow would quickly kill them.

"Stars-dammit, Briss!" Squirrelflight spat. "I told ya we shoudn' have followed that cat!"

"I'm sorry!" She wailed, looking up and seeing that cat staring down at them against the light of the moon. There was a malicious delight in their amber eyes, like it'd caused all of this. Of course it had. It knew they were following them, and so it lead them here, and then they struck down that tree and they got stuck here. Now it was going to kill them.