Warriors: Shadows Triumph ~Book 1, Series 3~

Chapter 25

Darkpaw's POV:

"Swipe faster!" Flare snapped, lashing her tail as Darkpaw failed to land a successful hit on the golden she cat. "Honestly, you're as slow as a snail!"

Darkpaw dipped her head in shame. No matter what she did, Flare always saw the worst in her. At least she was being trained by one of the best fighters in the Dark Forest, maybe all the harshness would pay off in the end.

"Again." Flare ordered, spreading her legs and crouching in a defensive stance.

Darkpaw drew in a deep breath and lashed out with a paw as quickly as she could. But just like the many other times she had tried, Flare blocked her blow with ease. "Why are you so slow?" She muttered. "Is it really that hard to move your foreleg quickly?" The winged she cat sighed despairingly. "At this rate, you'd be better off with the medicine cats."

"No, please!" Darkpaw gasped. "I can do it! Just let me try again! Please!" She begged, ears flattened.

"You get one more try." Flare sighed. "And if you fail, you're on nest duty with the rest of the Privileged Prisoners."

Darkpaw's eyes widened. Nest duty?! I don't want to be replacing stinky old nests all afternoon! A new wave of determination swarmed her thoughts, her stomach churning as she paced closer to her mentor again to prepare for the front-paw-strike.

"Wait a second." A tom's voice tugged Darkpaw from her thoughts and she looked across to see the new apprentice approaching. "You're standing wrong." He meowed, reaching her side.

"What? I am?" Darkpaw queried, blinking in surprise as Blazepaw leaned close to her, nosing her forelegs.

"You're completely tilted to one side." He sighed. "Flare must be too affected by her wonky wings to notice."

"Hey!" Flare hissed. "Don't talk like that around me!"

Blazepaw snorted. "It's only the truth."

After Blazepaw finished nosing Darkpaw into the right stance, he stood back and smiled. "Now try the move again."

Darkpaw nodded, already feeling a whole lot better. Everything felt so much more natural for her, and she swung her paw with a surprising amount of new speed, hitting Flare square on her chest.

The golden she cat stumbled back with a gasp. "Oh! Er, well done Darkpaw." She meowed, uncertainly glancing at Blazepaw who only smiled sweetly back at her.

Darkpaw felt everything within her grow warm and cosy from the praise. Finally Flare actually liked something she had done. Glancing at Blazepaw, she purred. "Thanks!"

"Always glad to help." The ginger tom responded, grinning softly at her.

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Stormpaw's POV:

"Harder!" Strike yowled. "Push harder!"

Tyler sighed from beside his brother. "Keep your claws sheathed Bluepaw."

"No keep them unsheathed! That way it's more realistic!" Strike grinned, his paws kneading the ground anxiously as he watched the two apprentices wrestle.

Stormpaw gritted his teeth and pushed harder against Bluepaw, quickly pushing his sister onto the ground. He grinned as he pinned her down. "Haha!"

Strike threw his paws in the air. "Well done Stormpaw!"

Bluepaw huffed in anger. "But you're stronger than me, that's not fair!"

Tyler nosed Stormpaw off his apprentice and helped the blue she cat up. "You don't have to be big and strong to win a fight." He meowed. "If you're skilled enough, you will win every battle, no matter your size."

"Like NoName! That's why she's leader!" Bluepaw nodded up at her mentor, her eyes shining brightly in the midday sunlight.

The two winged brothers exchanged snickers and Strike snorted. "NoName is an example of an unsuccessful fighter."

"Huh?" Stormpaw tilted his head to the side. "But how come she's leader?"

"She uses her shadows." Tyler replied. "Without them, she's as good as dead in any fight."

Strike leaned closer to the two apprentices. "Don't tell anyone though. You need to keep this a secret, got that?"

"Otherwise the warriors will revolt against her and we'll be thrown into chaos." Tyler added, sighing.

Stormpaw and Bluepaw nodded obediently, grinning at the new knowledge they held.

"Shall we head back to camp now?" Tyler asked, stretching his wings above him with a slight yawn.

"Not yet, these two still need to learn more." Strike replied. "By the end of these three moons, they'll be as fit and skillful as any other warrior of the Dark Forest."

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