The Fall

Prologue

     Rain pounded the sidewalk as a light brown tabby climbed some old rickety stairs to the highest floor on an old abandoned hotel on the outskirts of a city. Cats bowed their heads to him as he passed them, soon arriving at the last room. The door had rotted away moons ago, leaving the frame to be grown over by moss and ivy. The tom pushed through the ivy curtain into the room. Several other cats were in there. 

     "So we will pick five kits to be trained this season?" a blue-grey tom asked the others as the light brown tabby approached.

     "Yes, we will each train them ourselves. Mia, El, Jiya, has Mother Miyiya spoken to as of late?" 

     "No m'am, Mother has not said anything since prey becoming scarce." a beautiful black and grey tabby spoke softly, her words barely heard over the rain. Worry glowed in her and her compatriots eyes.

     "Do you.. Do you think Mother Miyiya has abandoned us? She might be mad since so many kits have been born...." a fawn and white tabby tom said meekly.

     "Mother would never leave us! We are her kits!" a ginger tom hissed angrily, slamming his paws on the ground harshly. 

     "Calm yourself El, Jojo was just nervous, we all are. With prey being found in such little amounts, and with so many mouths to feed who go hungry these days, we're all a little on edge." the light brown tabby said, finally speaking up. "Besides, these kits will help change everything."

     "The kits are a last resort, you know this Pike. We aren't going to put anyone in danger if we can help it. Now let's go over the plan again, Lemur, take it away." 

     "Alright, the plan is to try and talk to those forest clans into giving up some land that we can hunt in, seeing as the prey has been so scarce lately. If that doesn't work, we offer to give them some of what our hunters catch. If that fails to please them, we let them hunt in the city. And finally, if all others options fail, we send in the kits after their training is complete." a black and white molly meowed to the others.

     "Any objections?"

     "Are you sure that using kits is a good idea? We're going to train them to half way through a normal apprentice-hood and then just send them on their way, they'll still be young and immature!" another white molly with black tipped ears, tail, muzzle, and paws said. 

     "The younger they are, the more of a chance the forest clans would take them in most likely. You know this Lune, it's only a last resort." a tortoiseshell said, stroking Lune's back with her fluffy tail. "I'm just as nervous as you are, but this is for the good of the clan." 

     "So we are all in agreement?" a chorus of 'yes' and 'affirmative' were said quickly and quietly. "Now, we all have a job to do, so let's go do it. I wish you all safe travels until we reunite at the Games." The molly, who looked like a more worn version of Lune, said sharply and then padded off through the ivy curtain.