[@Hckygirl8414]
It was a calm, peaceful night for ShadeClan. Most of the Clan were asleep and happily curled in their mossy nests, except for the two cats who sat by the entrance, guarding the camp. The stars were twinkling in the vast dark blue of the night sky and the moon was nearly full, blessing ShadeClan camp with its gentle rays and turning everything silver.
Sharpfang's pure white pelt, which seemed very out of place in a shadowy forest like that of his Clan's, almost seemed to glow in the moonlight. He was still baffled that Frogbounce assigned him to be a guard; most of his adopted Clan did not trust him due to originally being a Twolegplace cat.
"It's too bad we can't always have nice nights like this one," he remarked, turning to the she-cat known as Redheart.
The tortoiseshell nodded in agreement. "Let's just be grateful that things are well tonight."
Moons of tension have made the Clan of stealth and night hunting tired. StormClan, one of the three rival Clans and the most troublesome, have been getting more and more aggressive. Just the other day, Sharpfang caught a StormClan apprentice stealing ShadeClan prey! He almost got his ears shredded by none other than Blizzardstar when he tried to take it back.
Had it not been for Shadowstep, the sleek-furred tom would have been crowfood. He shivered at the though of the massive StormClan leader; Blizzardstar was much worse than the group of Twolegplace cats he used to be with.
"I hope we can solve our quarrels with StormClan soon," Redheart murmured. Her blue gaze was fixed at the darkness of the forest, as if waiting for an enemy cat to come barreling towards camp at any moment.
"Me too," the tom sighed, letting his shoulders sag. "I hate feeling like the prey."
As his Clanmate was going to reply, a terrible stench bathed his tongue. It made the short white fur along his spine bristle. Redheart seemed to have scented it too. A snarl and then an excited yip came from the shadows, and four foxes emerged.
Sharpfang gasped with shock, his amber eyes widened. His first instinct was to run far away, but he knew that his Clan was depending on him. So, the warrior rose to his paws and bounded into camp. He climbed onto the Meeting Log, digging his claws into the ancient bark.
"Foxes!" yowled the ShadeClan cat at the top of his lungs. "Four of them!"
Soon, his Clanmates were rushing into the clearing, horror and dismay clearly written on their tired faces. Redheart's screech could be heard outside camp as she stumbled into camp, the foxes on her tail. The ShadeClan cats gasped, scattering.
Without any moment of hesitation, Sharpfang leapt onto the nearest fox, scoring his claws across its face before climbing onto its back. It snarled, trying to shake the cat off.
He could see the ShadeClan cats fighting. Racoontail and Owleyes were fighting off a fox while guarding the nursery; the apprentices attacked another, their small claws swiping at its dark red fur; warriors worked together to help the others.
"Gyah!" The white tom lost his balance, and the fox was on him in a heartbeat. His eyes widened with terror. Was this it for him? He wondered as it bared it's sharp, drooling fangs.
StarClan must've sent a miracle to save him. A silver tabby she-cat pounced onto the fox, hissing as she shredded its ears. The vile creature yowled, shaking her off. She let out an angry snarl and attacked again.
Sharpfang realized that it was not a cat from StarClan, but instead it was Silverflower, one of the queens. He hoped she'd survive the battle; the silver tabby was mother to two kits and his great friend, after all.
Taking the opportunity to run, the tom sprang to his paws and got out of the way. He spotted Redheart's tortoiseshell pelt behind a fox. It had her cornered! Her fangs were bared and she snarled ferociously.
He bolted in her direction, careful to not run into his Clanmates. Sharpfang swiped a blow at the fox's leg. It barked out of surprise and turned to face him, anger in its eyes. The white warrior hissed, clawing at its eyes. Blood poured from the wounds and his enemy cried out, turning tail and running out of camp.
"Good job! And thanks!" Redheart meowed, panting. She had scratches all over her once clean pelt, and a bite mark had blood gushing out of it on her shoulder.
The tom nodded, about to say something when he felt himself get pulled off the ground. A fox had grabbed him. It threw Sharpfang to the ground, yipping happily. He groaned; his head was spinning.
As the fox was going to attack him, Rosefall pulled her Clanmate out of the way and fearlessly fought it off. He thanked her, shaking his head. Sharpfang rose to his paws, fighting the enemy by her side until it fled.
He was relieved that they were winning the battle. Aside from some bad wounds on many of the cats, they would be okay. But to the tom's dismay, an ear-splitting screech was heard. The warrior turned to see Silverflower, her throat in the bloody jaws of a fox.
It tore him to see it. She was one of the only cats who didn't question his loyalty. Silverflower was always there for him when he needed her most. But now... she was gone.
Frogbounce wailed with agony as his mate's lifeless body was thrown aside. A huge wound blemished her neck, though her blue eyes were wide open. Sharpfang shivered at the cold, dead look in them.
The tom wondered who would take care of Spiderkit and Dewkit. Dismay and fear welled up inside him. What if the foxes killed them? He yowled angrily, running towards the silver queen's murderer.
"Nobody kills my Clanmates and gets away with it!" Sharpfang roared.
He halted in his tracks as the deputy's body was flung against hard stone. Blood pooled on the ground around the grey tom. How many more cats would die? But to his relief, the last fox was chased off with the help of Duskpaw and Shadowstep.
Sharpfang looked around at the blood bathed camp. ShadeClan's medicine cat and her apprentice were already beginning to treat his Clanmates' wounds. He saw Hollypaw drag her littermate, Darkpaw, into her and Mintpool's den. His leg and shoulder were terribly wounded. The flesh was exposed, bleeding heavily. Sharpfang worried that the young tom would not survive, or, if he did, retire to the elders' den early.
It tore him apart to see the lifeless bodies of Silverleaf, Frogbounce, and Whitepaw. All three of those cats gave their lives for the Clan. But now, two kits were motherless. Some Clanmates had fatal wounds, but others, like him, were better off.
Sighing, the white tom laid down in defeat. His mind was whirling with dizziness and confusion. The once peaceful night became devastating. He prayed to StarClan for his Clan's pain to end soon.
When will our suffering finally be done?
