The Daughter of Scourge (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter 28

  “Ready for training?” Death asked River. “So, is this our first meeting at night?” River said. Death nodded. River sighed and reluctantly followed Death as she showed a River her way around. “Tonight we will start with basic skills, like swimming and climbing” Death said as they stopped by a stream. “You expect me to SWIM!!!!” River yowled in shock. Death said nothing, but nodded her head. “It's like running, but in water” Death explained. “If I drown will I die in the living world?” River asked, concerned. “No, what you see is an illusion of water. It will feel like water but you can't drown” Death explained. River nodded slowly. “Just so you know, I have that weird condition…” River started.

    “...That makes your body freeze in water, I know” Death finished. “H-how?” River stammered. “I’ve been watching you since you were born. I always knew this would happen” Death said, making it sound like it was the most obvious thing in the world. River stared at her in silence. “Enough of this! Show me what you know about swimming!” Death commanded. River blinked, snapping out of her thoughts. She nodded and walked slowly over the water. “So, it’s like running you say” River murmured, as she plunged into the water. She started to slowly move her feet. “The current is too strong!” River exclaimed as she jumped out of the illusion. “Weakling!” Death hissed, mocking River. River growled and tried again. This time she managed to swim for a while, but it exhausted her fastly. “How… does Riverclan… do it?” River muttered, resting from the training session.

    “Ready for the next part of our training session?” Death asked after a small rest. “N-no” River stammered.”You’re good at this though. We are going to practice climbing, which will turn into aerial attacks one day” Death explained, slightly annoyed. River sighed and nodded. “How much longer do I have with you?’ She asked Death, hoping their session was almost over. “Nice try, you have until you awaken in the real world” Death laughed. River sighed and followed Death to the training ground. “Show me what you got!” Death ordered. River nodded and leapt into the tree in front of them. She easily climbed to a branch that hid her from sight. “Good! But you need to be careful! I can see the branch shaking under your weight!” Death called out. “Well, there would be wind that would blend it in!” River protested. Death sighed and climbed up after River. “Now, what happens if I were to attack you up here?” Death asked, coming to sit next to her. River shrugged.

    Death swiftly swiped a paw at River, claws out. River let out a startled cry and fell of the branch. She managed to catch herself on the branch below the original one. Death leapt down to that branch and, once again, tried to attack River. River dodged and tried to retaliate. She lost her footing and fell out of the tree. This time, she hit the ground. “Ugh…” River coughed in pain. Death appeared before her. “You can climb, but you can’t fight in a tree” Death laughed. River mumbled something. “We’ll talk next time you sleep” Death said. River felt herself waking up. The vision of Death disappeared and was replaced with the image of her den. River tried to sit up, only to gasp in pain. “What’s wrong?” A startled voice asked. River looked up at her sister. “N-nothing, I think I just slept badly on my leg” RIver explained. Snow nodded, but flashed a concerned look at River. She stood still for a moment, before walking out of the den. ‘Why does it hurt, that happened in a dream?’ River thought to herself. ‘Your wounds will carry over to this world” Death cut into River thoughts. ‘Leave me alone, Death!’ River growled silently. Death didn’t respond. River slowly sat up, despite the pain. “River? Snow asked me to take a look at you” A voice called from outside of the den.

      “You can come in, Moor!” River called back. Moor entered the den and walked over to River. “Snow told me your leg hurts” Moor explained. River sighed and lie on her bed. “Tell me if I hurt you” Moor said and started her examination on River. River gritted her teeth as Moor put pressure on her injured leg. “It looks like you dislocated it” Moor murmured. She left the den for a few minutes. When she came back, Snow was with her and she had herbs. “I’m gonna have to push it back into position. This is going to hurt a lot. Bite down on this stick if the pain gets too bad” Moor told River as she pulled out the supplies from a leaf bundle. “Snow, I need you to hold her steady, this will make her jolt in pain” Moor ordered. Snow nodded and put her paws on River’s back. “You will have to be a little harsh with your grip” Moor warned Snow. Snow said nothing, as usual, and pushed down a bit harder. Moor gripped River’s leg and pushed and pulled it until she heard a click. The moment that click sounded, River whimpered in pain. “There! It's back in place!” Moor said.

    “Try not to stand on it too much, I don't think you want it to dislocate again” Moor said before leaving the den. River sighed and stood up, careful not to put much pressure on her paw. “How do you feel?” Snow asked. “There's a little pain, but I can deal with it” River said as she tested out how well she could walk. “What could you have done to dislocate your leg, though?” Snow said. “I don't know…” River whispered. She wanted so badly to tell Snow, but didn't know how she would deal with it. “You wanna go and try hunting?” Snow said, trying to break the silence that had crept up. River nodded. Snow smiled and led the way to a good hunting spot. “It's hard to believe soon Leaf-bare will be here” River whispered, gazing absentmindedly at the falling leaves around them. “Yeah… that's why we have to start stocking up on prey” Snow replied. River nodded and sniffed the air for prey. Snow dropped into a hunter’s crouch and crept toward a half-dead bush. She pounced and snagged a mouse from the roots. River sighed, jealous of how good her sister was at hunting. River sniffed the air and looked around for prey.

     As sun-high came and gone, River and Snow managed to gather a bit of prey. The clan also managed to completely clean out another cave. It was late in the afternoon now. River and Snow, along with Buzzard and Davender, were bathing in the last lights of the day. “So, tomorrow is the gathering” River said. “Is there one?” Buzzard asked. River shrugged. “I can go investigate!” A voice said, startling the resting cats. “Hope! Are you sure?” River asked. Hope nodded. “I’m going now. If I’m not back by dawn tomorrow then you should worry about me” Hope said and walked out of the camp. “Who wants to keep watch tonight?” River asked. “I’ll do it!” Ginger called. River nodded and stretched. “I’m going to go and take a quick glance at the territory” River said and left. ‘You just don't want to meet me, right?’ Death said. River flattened her ears and kept walking. ‘You can't hide from me!’ Death laughed. River sighed and took a long walked around the land. She returned just after moon-high. She lay in her nest and closed her eyes, willing sleep not to come.