Dark Destinies {Book 1}

Chapter 36

Chapter 36 

(Hollyheart's P.O.V) 

I woke to someone prodding my side with their paw; it was Minnowpaw. The sky was darkening and the moon could be seen as the stars began to reappear again. I stood and stretched with a yawn and noticed just how different the wheat field looked in the dark. 

The wheat stocks looked giant and behind them was empty darkness that gave me an uneasy feeling about entering them. Shalelight's horror story kept popping up in my mind as I gazed at the stocks and wondered if anything was learking in their darkness.

"Come on, we gotta get going" Echobreeze meowed before pushing into the wheat field's dark depths. 

With a glup I followed Minnowpaw and Shalelight into the wheat with Pounceclaw protecting our rear. 

The wheat made the walk confusing; they grew almost high enough that we couldn't see our guiding star and since every stock looked the same it made it easy to get lost. An uneasy feeling was entering my heart and settling around me causing my fur to begin to prick. 

"Are you OK?" Pounceclaw whispered as he noticed my startled appearance. 

"No, I'd wish we could walk quicker" I meowed with an anxious flick of my tail. 

"Are you scared of the killer, cat eating rats?" Pounceclaw joked; I only sighed as a reply, though I was a bit afraid of that I didn't want Pounceclaw to know and joke about it all day so I remained silent as the night around me. 

A distant scuttling perked my ears; what was that? I thought panicked, no one else seemed to take mind or care so I tried to relax but the growing dread in my heart was getting bigger, something bad was going to happen I could feel it. 

"Anyone else feel like we're being watched?" Shalelight meowed apprehensively. 

"Yes" I replied quickly "I thought I was the only one" 

"Your not; I feel it too" Echobreeze whispered whilst whipping his head around, desperately searching the dark field. 

Our small patrol stopped as the scuttling noises intensified and hissing noises began to slither from the darkness, dark eyes and teeth glinted in the pale moonlight and my heart began to hammer quickly. Pounceclaw hissed at a figure and bared his fangs, Shalelight bared her claws and prepared to swat at one but I still had no idea who the menacing attackers were. 

Out from behind a stalk of wheat appeared a large, black rat with black beady eyes that seemed to swallow all light around him. My heart dropped and I stared at the beast horror-struck. With a bone chilling, sinsiter hiss thousands of rats rushed out from the darkness of the wheat; like a wave of shadow beasts. 

Minnowpaw was overthrown easily due to her smaller size and her white pelt disappeared behind  a black wave of hissing rats. I had no time to try to help her because rats were instantly on me as well. 

I tried desperatly to shake them off my pelt but they simply dug their pointy teeth and claws deeper into my skin. They bit and clawed angrily at me and all I could manage was painful yowls. I staggered backwards and thought quickly; I dropped onto my back crushing and killing at least six black rats. 

My body was free of the rats but they were still relentlessly attacking. I swatted at them fiercely but it seemed as soon as one died one replaced it; horror was seeping into my bones, this was nearly impossible. 

I desperatly searched for help from my companions but Pounceclaw was struggling against his own rats, Echobreeze had rats clinging onto his pelt, Shalelight was yowling whilst helping Minnowpaw. Everyone was occupied.