Sabre: The Grasslands Book 1

Chapter 9

Kypress and Carp went to a place Kypress had never seen. It was a huge, sunny rock near a waterfall. Other Sabertooth cats were sunning themselves on the hot rock. Kypress and Carp sat next to each other. "So, why do they hate each other?" Kypress asked. "It all started when I was a cub. SwiftTribe was already formed. Lunea had been expecting a litter of Cubs. She gave birth to them and one died. She only had one left. It was a female cub, she named it Lara. One day, Lara was playing, she was actually playing with Kife. Me, Lara, and Kife grew up together. Lara always liked to play rough. She wanted to grow up and be a protector. But, one day, Kife accidentally clawed her while they were play fighting. Lara got angry and almost killed Kife. GrassLily came and couldn't get Lara off Kife. So, she had no choice but to kill Lara. Half a year ago, Lunea gave birth to Renn. That's why they hate each other. Today is the day, 1 and a half years ago that Lara was killed by GrassLily." Carp finished. "Wow, so, Lunea hates GrassLily and Her children." Kypress said. Carp nodded. "Hey, Dagzer wants us to redo bed cushioning." Carp said as he walked into the forest to camp. Kypress followed. She walked into Killira's den. The leaves and grasses were spattered with blood and fur. Kypress recoiled. She grasped the blood soaked grasses in her powerful jaws and dropped them into the river. She watched as they floated away. Kypress gathered the fallen colored leaves and grasses from the plains. She hurried back and smothered the den with fresh bedding and threw in some sweet smelling flowers to make it smell less like blood and sickness. Being the herbalist in the tribe was a hard job. As Kypress walked out she found Lunea and GrassLily snarling at each other. GrassLily showed her fangs, while Lunea looked fiercer than Kypress had ever seen her. That's when she realized how much Renn did look like Lunea. Lunea bit GrassLily's shoulder and GrassLily tore into her ear. Renn stood on the side, a horrified expression on her face. Kypress dove in between the two tigresses. "Stop! It's over now! We have more important things to be doing! Tara is missing! The wolves are coming back! We should be building defenses!" Growled Kypress. The females were taller than Kypress, Kypress wasn't even an adult yet. She still had won the tribe's respect. Lunea still had an angry expression on her face, but then calmed. The females walked away. Each going in different directions. Dagzer snarled. He stood on the high rock. His eyes looking down at the tribe. Renn looked annoyed as she stepped forward to listen to what the leader had to say. GrassLily sat down and licked her wounds. GrassLily looked worn out. She had multiple scars from where the wolves had attacked her, now, she had a gash on her shoulder from Lunea. Acre dove out of the forest. He panted heavily and sat, listening to what his father had to say. 'Where was he? I haven't seen him in days!' Kypress wondered. "I have been thinking all day, and, I have come up with a plan. We will attack the camp. I am sending Kife, Acre, Carp, Saria, and Kypress. Tonight all of you will travel to the human camp and find Tara. That is all." Dagzer said as he ran into the forest. 'Saria? Who's Saria?' Kypress thought. "Hello. I'm Kypress, I don't think I've seen you before." Kypress told Saria. Saria was very pretty. She had gold eyes and white, polished fangs. Her fur was slick and she had long, sharp claws. "I'm Saria. I was sunning at the rocks when you came to camp. It's nice to meet you." Saria said. "Yeah, so, is Tara related to you?" Kypress asked. "Yes, she is my cousin. Her mom is my mom's sister. They were litter mates. I want to rescue Tara, she is a special cub. She wasn't expected to survive. She was born right before winter." Saria told her. "Yes, everyone seems to really love Tara. I grew up in the grasslands with my mother and two brothers." "Wow, really? That must have been a great way to grow up." Kypress didn't tell Saria about living a year of her life alone. Saria and Kypress talked for the rest of the afternoon. Soon, it was nighttime. It was the time of night where the sky is deep blue and the stars shine and the grasses are still visible. It was time. Time to rescue Tara.