Warriors: Beyond the River (SOB prequel) (COMPLETE)

Chapter 29

Iceslide sat alone in the darkness of the camp, his eyes fixed ahead of him. The dark indigo sky was gradually fading into a bright orange light that peered over the horizon of the snowy forest. The stars of silverpelt were beginning to fade into the light of dawn.

It's almost time. Iceslide drew in a deep breath of cold air, then exhaled. When the sun rises, I go to fight Bone Shred. I fight for my clan, and the fate of the forest. He couldn't deny that he was afraid. But not because of the chance that Bone Shred would kill him. Because the lives of every cat in the forest depended on this fight. If he died, the clans would die with him.

He had been awake for a while now. Otterpelt had urged him to get as much sleep as he could to prepare for the fight, but once he'd woken up, he'd been unable to fall back asleep again. He was too nervous. Despite waking up early, he didn't feel tired. In fact, he felt more awake than ever, both physically and mentally.

The soft crunching of snow caught his attention, and he flicked an ear back as he glanced over his shoulder. Shimmerstar was padding over to him. He turned his gaze back to the sky as she quietly sat down beside him. It was silent for a long moment as they watched the dawn sky together.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked quietly. 

He gave a subtle nod. 

After a few moments, Shimmerstar looked at him. "Are you afraid?" She murmured.

Iceslide hesitated. "Yes," He admitted quietly. "I'm afraid of losing. Everything depends on this battle."

"The fate of the clans is on your shoulders," She responded. "That's a lot of pressure for one cat. The kind that a leader faces every day."

For the first time in his life, Iceslide felt a great wave of respect for his leader. He'd always been selfish and annoyed by the clan rules that she reinforced. He'd never thought about how much pressure she had always been under, protecting her clan and knowing that any decision she made could effect the other clans as well. "I'm honored to be one of your warriors," He meowed quietly. "Even if I've never acted like one."

They sat together in silence for a long moment. "You know, Lilynose talked about you often," She told him quietly. "She believed in you. She would tell me that you were a great warrior, you were just different." She paused. "I disagreed. I still do."

Iceslide glanced at her in surprise. That's a nice thing to say to someone who's about to risk their life on your behalf.

"You're not a great warrior, Iceslide, but you're a great cat." Shimmerstar turned her head to him, her eyes filled with respect. "And I think that says more about you."

Somehow, her words comforted him. He wasn't sure that he agreed with her. But knowing that she meant it gave him a sense of purpose and reassurance. "Thank you," He murmured. It was quiet again as they watched the sun begin to rise over the forest.

Time seemed to fly by. The sky was a pale navy color, streaked with clouds. It was nearly time to go. Some cats were waking up and padding out of their dens to get fresh kill and groom themselves. Most were watching Iceslide.

"He has to win this," Dipfoot murmured. "We're all depending on him."

Ravenfeather arched his back as he stretched. "Not exactly the cat I'd like to depend on in this situation," He muttered. Not far from him, Risingmoon shot him a glare.

"I think he can do it," Warmmoss meowed. "He has to."

Hearing his clanmates talk made him more nervous, and he tried to ignore them. He was relieved when he saw Winterlight padding over to him, carrying a plump mouse. With a dip of his head to Shimmerstar, Iceslide turned and stepped forward to meet his sister.