The Rogue Traitor #1 - Beginning of the Curse

Chapter Four

For the rest of the afternoon, Birdpaw slept with the cool breeze blowing through her fur and sunlight gently shining down on top of her. It was late afternoon when the apprentice was woken up by a sharp paw poking her and she groggily opened her eyes. She blinked a couple of times, trying to clear her blurred vision, and slowly made out the shape of the grey tabby deputy, Whiskerheart.

"Oh, hi Whiskerheart," yawned Birdpaw sleepily, standing up and shaking dust out of her fur before looking up at the tom.

"Hi Birdpaw," he replied, "Sorry to disrupt you sleep, but I have a favour to ask from you," The apprentice cocked her head to the side and looked at him with puzzlement in her eyes.

"What is it?" she asked, drawing a paw over her ear to wipe away some dust that was still lingering.

"I need you to go find Maplestar and try to get him to come back. I know you are only his new apprentice, but..." the grey tabby tom paused and looked over his shoulder at the camp exit, "but he will listen to you." Birdpaw felt uncertainty grow in her belly, she doubted that the leader would listen to a meek apprentice, but she nodded, not wanting to disappoint her Clanmate and deputy.

"Thank you," meowed the deputy, turning to the Highrock, "just stay safe." The apprentice nodded, watching the deputy bound away to a group of warriors before saying a quick goodbye to a sleepy Dewpaw. She took a deep breath and bounding out of the camp and into the forest.

She could hear birds chirping up high in the trees and mice scuttling among the fallen leaves. It was really tempting to hunt but she knew now was not the time, plus she didn't know any techniques. She needed to find her mentor; he could be in a lot of trouble for all she knew, though she wouldn't really be able to defend him or herself.

Birdpaw skidded to a halt and sniffed the air, trying to see if she could detect any scent of the dark ginger leader or possible dangers. She weaved around the trees, following the faint scent of the leader, and found herself in a clearing, surrounded by dark green shrubs. Tall trees towered over it and created multiple dappled patterns on the dusty floor. Birdpaw turned around but she could not see her mentor anywhere. He had to be here somewhere because this was where his scent had ended.

"Maplestar?" she called out, but the only reply was a robin chirping. A chill went down her spine and her fur started to prick up. It felt like someone was watching her but when she spun around, the sensation disappeared.

"Hello?" the apprentice called again, heart beginning to race "is anyone there?"

This time there was a faint meow from one of the bushes and a lot of rustling. The apprentice spun around to the strange noises and saw a skinny black cat with yellow eyes creep out of the bushes. Then more and more cats poured out of the bushes, all skinny and with sharp, deadly claws. Thy began to surrounding the apprentice and Birdpaw shrunk away as the rouges slid out their claws, hissing at her with sharp teeth.

"Leave her," called out a voice, a very familiar voice. Some cats moved to the side and a dark ginger cat walked out of the shadows with his head held high.

"Maplestar!" she meowed, thankful for the appearance of her new mentor. He could defiantly beat the rogues, no doubt about it. He was way bigger than them for a start, plus these rogue cats were weak and wouldn't last long in a battle.

But as the apprentice looked closer, there was something not right about the dark ginger tom. His eyes were cold, fixed on his new apprentice and he was standing tall, with his tail flicking fiercely.

"Hello Birdpaw," growled the dark ginger tom, his voice like ice, "I see you fell for my trap."

"Your trap?" she repeated, taking a step backwards as a shiver ran down her spine. This was not the Maplestar she knew, or at least the Maplestar who had been just become her mentor.

"Yes," hissed the tom, stepping towards her, "and now I will be able to get the truth out of you. The truth about your power. There are not petty medicine cats around here to help you now!"

"What do you want to know?" asked the apprentice, trembling with fear as she took another step back, coming dangerously close to the ring of rogues around her.

"I know you lied to me in the den before, I could tell." he growled, still coming towards her, "You are the chosen cat, StarClan has told me. There is no way to escape your destiny."

"But I told you the truth before," Birdpaw cried, swinging her head around to try and find a way out, "I am not special! What else do you want to hear?" The ginger tom stalked forward and flicked his tail, the rouges disappearing back into the bushes. He towered over her and pinned his ears against his head, baring his teeth.

"I want to hear the truth," he hissed.

"But I am telling you the truth!" protested the apprentice. Maplestar hissed again and swiped his claws over her nose, splattering the she-cat's blood on the dusty floor.

"No, you are not," he growled, "it is for your own good if I know. It is your destiny, and you have to face it."

"But I am telling you all I know! Why won't you believe me?" Maplestar didn't reply and just raked his claws down her flank. Birdpaw spun around in surprise, she had never fought anyone before! She had no idea what to do. As Maplestar made another move towards her, the apprentice slashed her claws out and grazed his nose.

"You fight like a kittypet," hissed the tom, slashing his claws and drawing blood on her face. Birdpaw shrunk away from him and tried to run, but he rammed into her, and the apprentice fell to the ground with a thump, all the breath knocked out of her. Maplestar picked her up by the scruff and tossed her across the clearing, acting like she was a bundle of feathers. Birdpaw hit on of the trees and she felt one of the bones in her leg snap.

The apprentice hissed in pain and curled herself into a tight ball, pain pulsing through her. The dark ginger tom stalked over to her and blocked the sunlight around her, teeth drawn as he put his face close to hers. But before the tom could do anything else, a grey shape came bursting out of the bushes and jumped onto Maplestar, dragging him away from the apprentice.

"Whiskerheart!" she whispered as stars began to dance in front of her eyes. All the breath had been driven out of her and she knew she was in no position to help the deputy. She tried to stand up, but her head hurt too much, and she flopped back to the ground, darkness washing over her as the sounds of the two fighting toms slowly faded away.

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Edited: Thursday 11th of November 2021