Light Guardian

Chapter 2

No matter how much time has passed, the darkness still follows me, haunts my every movement. I've started seeing shadows in everything, looking at me with their shrewd red eyes. I felt like I was going insane, no one else saw what I saw. No one else seemed to notice the darkness that seemed to follow every single one of them. They were stained just like I was but by shadows instead of patterns. In a way, they too were haunted by the shadows that haunt me. It made me feel a bit better, knowing that I did not have the darkness clinging to my body, but the thought that I could unnerved me even more.

    My skills are still lacking compared to the other cats around me. It is painfully evident whenever I look at Dove. Whenever she returns with prey dangling from her mouth, she looks at me. She taunts me with her ability, almost daring me. Willow doesn't help this at all when she instantly praises her golden child. Affection coating her voice and endearment shining in her eyes. Although I still have not learned how to hunt, I occasionally will catch the sick or elderly animals, but no one appreciates them. Anything that I catch is avoided by all the other cats. In the end, I am always stuck eating what I have caught, even if it was infested with sickness. I had to.

    I've gotten sick once. The experience terrified me as much as the shadows do. I thought I was on my deathbed, awaiting the inevitable darkness that would eventually consume my being. No one knew what I had caught, at least that is what I was told. The cats that were skilled in healing avoided me. They didn't even try to heal me. The knowledge that the cats in our group would've left me to die hurt as much as the sickness did. But somehow I still lived. The best healer, Whisper, told me upfront that I should have died.

    When I was sick, red liquid leaked from my mouth, and that is when I learned the color of blood. I was plagued by coughing fits, and breathlessness. It lasted for such a long time, longer than any other sickness that has been in the camp. But maybe that was because I had no treatment. I had no one to care for me in my weakened state.

    Somehow, I had pulled through. Everyone had been surprised, and Dove and Willow had even expressed their disappointment to me directly, shortly after Whisper had told them I was still alive. It sickened me, that others actually worshipped my mother. She was corrupt. And I was able to see that she had the most shadows clinging onto her pelt. She was pulled the farthest into the darkness.

    Recently, there has been a wolf that had started appearing to me, a glowing gem hanging around its neck. I don't know its name, nor do I know why it is following me. I'm afraid of the wolf, even though it hasn't shown any intention of harming me yet. For all I know, I could be going insane. I could be insane already. The wolf may just be a figment of my imagination. No, it was a figment of my imagination. It had to be.

    Light shines through the den entrance, and I hesitantly leave, hoping to not wake Willow, Dove, or Dusk. I know that if I did, I would not be allowed to eat today. As I left the den, the light illuminated my eyes. I padded over to my tree and sat once more. It feels so routine by now. Waking up, waiting out the darkness, sitting under my tree, eating what I can, practicing my hunting, and sleeping. Almost every single day, no matter what happens. Although some nights I do have to be on night watch since I am now of age to guard the camp.

    Night watch is when a cat is designated to guard the camp. They sit on a rock near the camp entrance and are forced to stay up all night. I hate it with a burning passion. It forces me to be out in the open, while the shadows and the darkness roam in their prime.

    My paws curl under my chest and my tail wraps gently around my body, as I enjoy the slight breeze in my fur. It felt so peaceful when no one else was awake. I let my gaze wander over the empty camp, letting it stop where the food was. My stomach growled, but I knew I had to wait. I could not eat until the others had eaten, and I could only eat once a day. I diverted my eyes towards a den, as a cat padded out. Pine was always the first to wake up, besides me. Every day I observe him, watching as he sits near the den entrance and awaits his friends. During that time he always grooms himself and gets lost in thought. Something about watching how others go about their lives intrigues me. Soon more and more made their way into the open. Some grabbed some prey right away, others just sat and talked.