The Deputies ⋙ { warrior cats fan-fic }

» twenty

The path was well traveled. The yellow, straw-like grass of BreezeClan territory was matted into the earthy soil beneath, smashed down by the paws of previous journeys. The sky was beginning to darken, and heavy charcoal clouds full of thunder rolled in from up ahead. A frightening boom sounded, echoing across the plains as a gust of harsh wind blew Ravensplash's fur back. She squinted into the current, her eyes beginning to water.

          "Maybe we should turn back!" Duskowl yowled over the howling blast.

          Ravensplash turned to glance behind her, her paws planted firmly on the ground to hold her body steady. "No!" she shouted in return, "We've come this far!"

          The slate gray deputy turned again and continued forward, focusing hard on every pawstep. Another gale of wind blew her backwards, and Ravensplash cried out in surprise.

          "Ravensplash," Duskowl sounded desperate, "There's a storm coming in. If we don't go back now, we're going to die out here!"

          "Don't be ridiculous!" Ravensplash snapped, whirling on the tabby tom. "We're not turning back, Duskowl. We're halfway there."

          The broad-shouldered deputy huffed reluctantly, then sprinted to catch up to her. "Fine," he growled, "But you sure chose the wrong day to make this journey."

          "I could still kill you, you know." Ravensplash warned, only a very small edge of humor in her tone.

          Duskowl gave a tiny snort of unamused laughter, but fell quiet anyway.

          Disaster loomed on the ridge of the clouds. There was no stop to them. They continued to move in, one after another, all joining to form a huge, swirling mass of darkness. Another clap of thunder pounded across the meadow, vibrating every bone in Ravensplash's body. Beside her, Duskowl tensed.

          Together, they endured one awful moment of silence before a wave of rain came sweeping in, washing right through Ravensplash and Duskowl's fur, straight to their skin. Ravensplash shivered, already chilled. Within seconds, the entire sky before them was dark with thunderclouds and jagged bolts of lightning came down from above. Blinded by the purple flashes, Ravensplash cried out in sudden fear.

          "Go!" Duskowl roared, charging ahead.

          Ravensplash scampered after him, her paws scrabbling to grip the now soggy earth. She could feel her lungs screaming with protest as she hastened her pace and went flying across BreezeClan territory. The ground shook with thunder, and Duskowl's image was beginning to fade into the sheet of murky rain. "Duskowl!" she screamed, petrified of losing him to the rain and being all alone to face it. "Duskowl, don't leave me here!"

          His shape reappeared as she caught up, only to then find that he had slipped into a muddy puddle that had gathered at the bottom of a soaked ditch. Bits of grass floated in the water. Ravensplash clambered into the hole to retrieve Duskowl, holding him by the scruff of his neck and helping to heave his enormous weight out of the trench. He grunted, then flopped onto the ground above, his heaving sides plastered with mud.

          "Come on! Get up!" Ravensplash ordered, gathering his head under her shoulder and pushing him upwards.

          Duskowl growled with discontent as he recovered, now standing on all four legs. His eyes were narrowed, and his fur had collected twigs and clumps of dead grass. He looked as if he had given up when it was only the beginning.

          The rain continued to hammer them relentlessly as they stood there, only growing more intense as another echo of thunder revereberated across the fields. By now, every direction looked the same. There was no way to see through the rain; it had swallowed the world.