Warriors An Awaiting Dawn: The First Trial

Chapter 6

"Crow-food was left here." Leaping Breeze mewed to the patrol. Thistle Tail's pelt fluffed up twice it's size. "Thieves! It's obvious!" He growled. They all looked at the eaten prey of two mice a shrew.
"Yuck!" Sage Pelt meowed.
"It looks fresh." Ginger Foot commented. Wolf Fur took a sniff beside the prey. "Smells like a stray was here. Maybe a loner." He meowed. "Stray. Loner. We're all cats." Drawled a voice. The cats all looked around. A cat stood on a tree branch from above. "Aren't we?"
"We don't want trouble." Little Ear mewed, raising his tail.
"Does it look like I care forest dweller?" The brown and white cat snarled.
"Tcha! There's plenty of us and only one of you.." Wolf Fur snarled. The brown and white cat slithered down the tree almost like a snake. Cats flanked him on both sides, in what seemed to be countless lines. Little Ear's ears were pinned to the side of his head, but his gaze did not waver nor break.
"One of my me hm?" The tom's voice was exultant, almost satisfied by the wide eyed cats. Wolf Fur growled. Viper Strike narrowed her eyes at her brother. The black and white tom looked around fiercely, but Viper Strike could tell he was very nervous.
"Battle stances!" The tom commanded. Wolf Fur bristled. Little Ear wordlessly raised his tail and his campmates did the same.
"Attack!" The tom yowled. The cats all dashed forward for them. Little Ear went for the brown and white leader.
"My name is Pinecone." The tom told him. "You are saying this why?" The ticked tabby tom snapped.
"Just figured you would like to know before you die!" Pinecone shrieked and tackled him to the ground. Viper Strike yowled and jumped onto the tom's back, bitting into his shoulder with her hooked fangs.
"Argh!" Pinecone wailed.
"Get off of him!!" She dug her claws and fangs deeper into his flesh. The tom refused however, his claws starting to find his neck. Viper Strike's green eyes gleamed and she raised a front paw and brough it down onto the side of his chest digging her claws deep and raking up. Pinecone stumbled back and yowled out in pain. "Fierce one.." he suddenly growled, his eyes glittering. Viper Strike leaped off facing him her fur bristling as blood stained her claws. "You wanna fight someone? Fight me." She growled.
"Fight you? I don't think so." Pinecone drawled, his rage having gone. The ginger tabby she-cat curled her lip. "Why not? Because you know you're not even half as good as a she-cat?" Her mew was challenging. Wolf Fur let go of a white tom's neck and watched the sight. Bristling, he stalked over towards him. But Pinecone was just as big as Thistle Tail. Thinking quickly he looked at at a pine tree, then another.
Viper Strike growled at him. "You're a pathetic excuse of a fighter!"
"But if we joined forces, we could be unbeatable.." he purred, his breath on her face. Viper Strike flattened her ears, her nose wrinkling in disgust.
"What do you say, my dear?" Pinecone purred. The sounds of battle seemed to grow more and more distant. She stood there for a moment before growling, "You disgust me more than rotting crowfood!!" She slashed his nose. Pinecone yowled in pain and took a step back. Viper Strike lunged for him. The brown and white tom cried out as he landed in the snow. The ginger tabby she-cat growled above him. Pinecone's eyes grew into furious slits. "I offered you strength you useless cat!" He growled.
"Useless?!" She put her paw on his chest, digging her thorn-sharp claws in. Violet Leaf was jumping about, scrapping with a pathetic gray she-cat. Just then, a black kittypet tackled her. Violet Leaf! Wolf Fur climbed up a tree then leaped off. Tucking in his back legs, he pushed off the second pine, claws unsheathed and collided into the kittypet, clawing her flank, watching blood suddenly come. The kittypet roared almost like a fighter, then clawed his eye. Wolf Fur rose on his back legs and clawed her down the face, ignoring the pain in his eye. The female kittypet went fleeing.
"Run away!"
"Aah!"
"Retreat!" The strays went scampering away. Viper Strike growled. "You get to live. Next time you won't be able to have kits when I'm done with you." Her hiss was low and filled with rage. Pinecone ran off, leaving blood behind him. Viper Strike growled muttering. The forest cats yowled in triumph. Wolf Fur raced over to Violet Leaf. "Violet Leaf! Are you okay? Wounded?" He looked all over her fur. Sage Pelt sat still. Hawthorn drew over to her. "Sage Pelt?" She asked.
"He's dead.. Thistle Tail's dead." She mewed.