Burst of Fire

Chapter 12

"Fire.." Came a distant voice. It was soft and gentle, the kind that kitten-mothers often used to soothe their kittens into falling asleep. "Fire..."

Fire tried to stand, but he felt as if the life had been drained out of him.

"Open your eyes, brave one."

Fire let the sweet voice soothe him, and he followed its command. He felt his eyelids slowly opening, but even that exhausted him. Once Fire's eyes were completely open, he took in his surroundings. There were clouds everywhere, and below him was nothing but open sky.

"Where am I?" Fire asked, hoping for an answer from the soothing voice. "Am I dead? Am I in the clouds?"

"No, brave one." The voice replied. "You are paralyzed and unconscious from the poison, but you are not dead. However, you will be, if you do not wake soon, and if your poison is not cured."

A cat's silhouette materialized in front of Fire. "You-" He gasped, not believing the beauty of the cat that stood before his eyes. Her round eyes were smoky and grey, and her pelt was the color of crisp ice and streaked with white, like freshly fallen snow. Her fur was long and smooth, and it seemed to be silky and soft.

"Who... Who are you?" Fire stammered with wonder. "Why have you come to me?"

"My name is Snowstreak. Snowstreak of Frost Tribe. I am here to keep your spirits high, and to help you to not give up hope."

"Frost tribe?" Fire asked, puzzled. "I've never heard of it."

"Of course you haven't, Fire of Pine Forest. Nobody tells their kittens about Frost Tribe anymore." Snowstreak sighed with utter sadness. "Frost Tribe lived long ago, in the high mountains just beyond Pine Forest territory. We lived happily for a long time, but then a wave of sickness overcame us all. We had to either stay and suffer the sickness with our tribe members, or go to humans, so that they could take care of us. For those of us who stayed-" She sobbed with sorrow in her voice, "We eventually died out. The sickness spread even to our prey, and they stayed in their holes. Without food, we just died. I was one of the last cats living, so... By the time I died, cats were so sick that they couldn't even bury cats for themselves. Cats only make it into the clouds if they get a respectable burial, so... I'm stuck in the midway for all eternity!"

Fire felt sorrow course through him as he listened to this beautiful she-cat. Her life was so drastic, you would think that she would at least be in peace when she died. Then another thought came to him.

"Um, Snowstreak?" Fire asked timidly, "You said, 'If you do not wake soon, and if your poison isn't cured, you will die'. So, how shortly is 'soon', anyway?" Snowstreak looked over him with her soft gaze, sympathy filling her smoky grey eyes. She then told Fire with sorrow,

"Three sunrises."

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Cloud awoke before dawn to a voice at the entrance to the big-rock. "I'm ready to depart." It said sharply.

"Take care, Petal!" Cloud called back, because there was only one cat who would and could be going anywhere outside of Pine Forest grounds this early in the day. "May the clouds protect you, and may they give you strength."

"Yes, sir." Petal responded dryly.

"Now, now, Petal." Cloud scolded, "There is no need to be so solemn. I know you will survive, and protect those you care about. You are my best soldier; my Biiju."

"Your tailed beast, huh?" Petal asked, perking up. "Alright. I'll do my best, sir." Cloud was puzzled at how fast Petal had deciphered the foreign word. He called out to her in interrogation, but her pawsteps were already fading into the distance.