LOOK WELL, O WOLVES (battle with dogs) LOOK WELL

[HOWLINGSTAR]

Dusk is upon them, casting long shadows over the forest floor the ThunderClanners creep across. Howlingstar leads one of three patrols, the one heading straight for the heart of Sunningrocks. @Flycatcher leads the group somewhere to their left, hidden from view as they do well to hide in the foliage. With him, he has @FINCHCATCHER , @covecatcher , and @Rabbitnose along with any of their apprentices they brought. Somewhere to the leader's right is @Hollow Tree 's patrol, with @OWLEAR , @RACCOONSTRIPE , @Spotflare , and @Stormchaser and their apprentices if they brought them. And behind Howling Wind is @GOLDENDAWN , @Badgerstrike , and @Sunnyday , @Sloepaw and @BURNPAW ! with them and any of the others' apprentices that came. And at her side is @Silverlightning , the bait...as much as she hated the thought of using her warriors as bait. But he's fast, and he'd insisted, so all she could do was put faith in her warrior.

Above the barren trees, the sky turns dusky pink, the roaring river hinting that they will arrive soon. Howlingstar can hear her clanmates' quickened breaths, beating hearts....they're all scared. They all witnessed what the three beasts could do to a cat, what they did to Emberstar, the way they maimed Wildpaw in one swift bite. But they're prepared now. They have a plan.

Silverlightning's the fastest. He'll lure them to the top of Sunningrocks. The river is higher now, high enough to lap at the sheer drop. Once they're there, we attack from all sides to drive them off to drown.

It can work. It has to.

Finally, the stench of dog overwhelms her. She fights back the urge to gag and shares a glance with her apprentice, with her grandson, with her patrolmates. They continue to creep through the undergrowth, trained paws expertly stepping along without making a sound. They know they've arrived as soon as they spot the towering rock formation that rises above the riverbank. She can't see the dogs from this angle, but she can hear the sniffing, and the fresh scent is unmistakable. They're here.

Her face turns to look at Silverlightning, and the look in her eyes urges him to stay safe. She does not plan on losing a single warrior today. Slowly, she gives him a solemn nod. As soon as he takes off into the clearing and towards the rocks, she gives the tail signal for her patrol to follow her. She knows Flycatcher and Hollow Tree will do the same for their battle parties. With battle cries leaving their lips, ThunderClan pours out of the undergrowth and into the clearing to drive the dogs up Sunningrocks after the speedy warrior.

It takes too long for them to realize that there are only two dogs clambering up the boulders. It's enough to cause Howlingstar, and likely others, to falter as the horrifying realization crashes upon them.

Where is the third dog?

The tabby exchanges a terrified look with Flycatcher, who seemed to realize the same thing she did. "GO!" She yowls, jerking her head towards the direction of camp. His patrol needs to go back to defend their vulnerable. Now. Her and Hollow Tree's patrols can handle the two dogs here. However, the abrupt realization that they left their camp mostly undefended has undoubtedly made their plan that much more difficult to execute. They gave the dogs too much time to realize they were being surrounded.

// HEEHOO surprise!!!! For those ordered to return to camp with Flycatcher, please wait for my signal in the discord before posting in the camp thread I'm about to make. This is to account for the time needed for the patrol to run back to camp, not fast enough to beat the dog that will already be there. I tagged all warriors who signed up for the battle patrol in the plot outline; all others can be assumed to be back at camp OR are welcome to hop in here, but if you signed up you must be here.

TLDR: Three separate battle patrols arrive at Sunningrocks. The plan is for the fastest warrior, Silverlightning, to lure the dogs to the top of Sunningrocks where the rest of the cats will attack from all sides and drive them off the sheer drop, into the flooding river to be swept away. However, as they attack, they realize there are only two dogs. Howling Wind orders Flycatcher's patrol back to camp to defend. Currently, the dogs are on Sunningrocks but no longer at the very edge, realizing they were being surrounded. They cannot kill the dogs; the goal will still be for them to get them into the river somehow. Please read first paragraph to know which patrol your character is on, if they stay or go back to camp. Apprentices welcome with mentor permission!​

 

[Flycatcher]

The time is nigh - it is time to chase the dogs from their territory. No longer would the foul, slobbering beasts taint their territory with their stench and destruction. The whole clan had seen what they had done to Emberstar, and Flycatcher was certain in his bones, that all those present (and those back in camp) would want to see them dead and gone.

Flycatcher leads a small patrol to the left, Finchcatcher, Covecatcher, and Rabbitnose among them. All loyal and strong warriors in their way, cats that Flycatcher could count on to have his back and be able to hold their own if necessary. They keep low in the undergrowth, making good time as they approached the rocky formation. They couldn't see the dogs straight away but the stench was fresh and they could hear them sniffing up ahead. Flycatcher raised his tail and brought his patrol to a stop and waited silently for a moment. Somewhere in the bushes, he knew Howlingstar and Hollow Tree would be doing the same with their patrol.

Battle cries begin to ring out across the clearing, Flycatcher's among them, and he leads his patrol forward with a confident surge forward. They join up with the rest of their clanmates in forcing two dogs scrambling up the rocks. It seems to be going well for a moment, but Flycatcher realises with a jolt there should be three dogs. The patrols always said there was three. The confidence Flycatcher had falters for a moment as a prickle of unease runs down his spine. Where was it? Why wasn't it here? Surely it couldn't have gone to camp?

His green eyes meet Howlingstar and he realises that the leader has had the same thought as him. When she tells him to go, he goes. He sees no reason to argue, not when their camp and remaining clanmates could be at risk.

"With me!" Flycatcher says to his group as he turns. "With me!" The lead warriors voice dies off as he turns and disappears back through the bushes, leading his group in tow.

/Out!​

 

[Sunnyday]

☀ - WHILST MY HEART STILL BEATS
Today was the day, and Sunnyday would be lying if he said that he wasn't afraid. He was terrified, but he knew that they had to bring the nightmare to an end once and for all. They had a plan, they had a new leader with fresh lives; surely they would succeed. There wasn't any other choice. "You're doing this for the sake of the clan, they'll never be safe to step into the woods until those monsters are dealt with", he reminded himself as a way of keeping focused on the task.

He fell in line behind Howlingstar as he poised himself ready to run into the fray, hopefully not for the last time in his life. With bated breath he waited, then the signal came! The golden tom barrelled forth with a war cry, puffed up with teeth flashing. One... Two... Oh no! Where was the bloody third one?! A new level of fear gripped him and sent an icy chill running up the length of his spine. He longed to run back to the camp, but he reminded himself that he couldn't break rank.

Another yowl escaped him as he fed his frustration into that of his determination to bring an end to the hell they faced. The tom continued to charge forward, running alongside his clanmates and Howlingstar. He would have to have faith in Flycatcher and his patrol. "Run swift my comrades, may you all be safe!"
​

 

[Badgerstrike]

Badgerstrike prowled forth with a hunters determination. It was time to deal with these dogs once and for all... And she was anything but scared.

She was excited.

To take down prey twice your size.... To taste the blood of a predator in her mouth. Hear it howl, hear it cry out, to feel it struggle in vain. To hear it's dying gasp....

Oh yes.... Music to her ears.

When they finally arrived to their destination she was shaking with anticipation. She craved blood. But she froze, her blood running cold as Howlingstar pointed out the missing dog.

Even moreso when she sent Flycatcher and his group to run back to camp. Rabbitnose was in that group. She looked to him, and he looked back.

Her voice was quiet and laced with worry for him. "Be careful..."

Rabbitnose smiled at her and nodded. " I will be. Good luck, Badger." He replied quietly before bounding off after the lead warrior.

Frustration was added to her mix of emotions. Her lip curled and she awaited the word.....

She was here to spill blood.... To make that river run red.
​

 

[covecatcher]

Despite how much her paws are shaking, Cove knows that she'll be fine. Stormchaser is here as well as her friend Raccoonstripe, and even though she worries for Flame's safety she knows the other is safe within the confine of camps. They'll run these dogs out once and for all, the very creatures that had made a meal of Emberstar, the very creatures that had threatened her home. Cove lets this guide her paw steps, fuel her anger, no one gets to threaten her home.

Silverlightning is off and cats pour from the underbrush to drive these heathens up the rocks and off of them. Cove surges forth with the rest of her clanmates as adrenaline floods her veins, heart thumps too loudly in her chest and she swears that the dogs can hear it. With bristling fur and snarls, her head whips around as Howling seems to realize something. Go, she screeches and Fly takes off... What was going on?!

Eyes return to the dogs. Two of them, shouildn't there be three? Missing dog. Missing... dog... OH! Oh, Stars, nono, Cloudy and Flame were back in camp, and Flames kittens were there too! Without so much as a glance towards her friends, Cove takes off after Fly, pushing herself to go the fastest she has gone. She hopes the others can successfully complete their mission.​

✦ ★ ✦​

 

[Hollow Tree]

As dusk came, the warrior took time to send battle prayers before joining the large group. Today was the day they drive the dogs away. Today was the day they could start to live in peace again. Splitting into different groups, Hollow Tree led the one to the right of the new leader. Her yellow eyes are on alert as she continuously tastes the air. Not wanting to be snuck up on. Pausing as she readies to give her patrol the signal. The pause feels like a lifetime.

Now. She gives the signal with her tail. Sprinting forward as she focuses on the dogs. A sense of dread comes over her as she realizes there’s only two. Starclan, where was the other one. As they realize this, she notices Flycatcher’s group turning back and the two beasts have noticed them. Hollow Tree shakes off her fear, not allowing her paws to shake her course.

“Do not falter, Thunderclan!” she yowls out, trusting her clanmates to stick with the plan. Hollow Tree didn’t hear Howlingstar call them back, so she would continue on. Blood rushed in her ears. They can do this, they have to do this!​

[ you fall through the trees . tags ]​

 

[Stormchaser]

"WELL, I'VE GOT THICK SKIN AND AN ELASTIC HEART"​

Dusk settled upon the oak forest, drenching everything in it's wake a blood orange sheen. How ironic it was, such a color on this day when the dogs would finally be put to ease. It was do or die, now. ThunderClan would not falter in this. They would prevail, they had no other choice. Three patrols they split into, each taking a position surrounding the lurking behemoths by Sunningrocks. He kept his moonlit eyes forward, his tongue clicking over and over behind his teeth with anticipation. Silverlightning's plan was risky, but what other choice did they have? Fight them back onto the rocks, strike fear in their hearts from their sheer numbers. They'd have no choice but to fall into the flooding river below, lost against the murky water. RiverClan made it very clear they'd provide no support, even though this was technically their territory. That in itself made no sense to him, but a problem for another day. These dogs were massive, easily five times the size of an adult feline. There was no way to just fight them off. One was trouble enough, but three? It was a whole other ballgame. Luckily, hounds weren't as intelligent as they were. They'd never see this coming.

Or so they'd thought.

Stormchaser prowls behind Hollow Tree, his shoulders taut and poised to lunge forth. A silver flash of ticked fur whizzes by them, long strides thundering along the floor as if StarClan themselves guided the warrior's paws. His jaw clenched tightly, elongated ears flicking to and for at the sound of baying and snarls pierce the air. C'mon, Silver. You got this. He continues to wait. Then the tail signal appears. He's storming after Hollow Tree with bristling fur, long legs strode forth as he fans out by the tabby molly. He's ready to shoot for the hounds, but something isn't right. Where's the other? Didn't they see three dogs? Why was there only two? The warrior wasn't the only one to notice, and a sickening dread over comes him as Howlingstar yowls for Flycatcher back to camp. One of the dogs is going to their camp. Apart of Stormchaser wanted to tear off after the patrol, to ensure his clan mates were safe. But he had a job to finish here. Flycatcher and his patrol were more than capable of handling one mutt. His task was to surround the dogs with the others, to drive them into the churning waters below.
Howls and snarls pierced his ears, their decibels near driving them to pin along his cranium in order to block out the noise. A snarl tears from his throat, malicious and vile as his outstretched claws lash out upon the legs of one of the dogs. They yelp in surprise but return with snapping jaws. The warrior doubles back, avoiding gnashing teeth by a hair. "Mangy mongrels! Crawl back into the deepest pit from which you came!" He yowls, moving to slash at another paw to drive the hound back another step.

​

✦ ★ ✦​

 

[Silverlightning]

War weighin' on my heart but I can't fall

Lithe limbs work double time as the patrol moves forward to handle the invasion of dogs. The scent of dog washes over him as soon as they approach snake rocks, their time was near. Silver's gunmetal gaze falls upon Howlingstar, nodding back as she nods to him. He sucks in a steady breath, readying himself. Lean muscle coils and tightens as the world seems to fall into silence. Nothing but the sound of the rushing river and his own heart hammering within his ears. Their resolve could not falter, the plan had to be brought into fulfilment. He digs in before launching himself forward, each stride propelling him towards the slobbering hounds. He watches as they flounder to their feet, rising from their lounging positions as he zips around the doberman's hind leg. It was a dangerous move he knew, hearing the sharp clack of teeth snapping and seeking purchase upon his tail. But he was confident in his speed and maneuverability.

The opposing hound catches up quick, jaws wide to land a bite by whatever means necessary, but he dips beneath the low hanging portion of sunning rocks for coverage. Relief swells within his lungs as he pushes on, corralling his pursuers towards the top of the ledge. Swiftly he bounds atop stone, bringing them near the edge, whilst hearing the sound of large paws scrambling close behind. He's trapped now, having done all he can do to bring the dogs to this point. But as he whips around to face the beasts he's acutely aware of a missing hound just as Howlingstar gives the signal. "A miscalculation?! These mongrles are smarter than I gave them credit for." Thunderclan's newest leader must have realized this fact just as quickly as he overhears her calling out for Flycatcher to return to camp.

He held no doubt that the lead warrior could handle the single escapee, he was a smart and capable tom. Flycatcher would guide them into battle well. Focusing on the present moment happening before him he watches his fellow comrades back the dogs up, bringing them ever closer to the raging waters. Grey paws shoot forward, claws outstretched to rend the flesh of the closest dog to him. "Just a little more, they're nearly over the ledge!" He calls out to the other warriors.​

Seekin' shelter from the storm on this blank road​

​

​

 

[GOLDENDAWN]

Apprehension prickled like electric static between the prowling patrols, as if the patrols were in the midst of a thunderstorm's ire, swept into the heart of darkened clouds and darker hearts. She had felt this feeling before - it was of unease, of undercurrents of oily gloom, and yet nothing of this magnitude. She had never swum, but she assumed this was what it must be like to traverse a weighted world. Goldendawn's whiskers twitched as they caught on the tension, thin reeds whisking against the jagged atmosphere, as though the winter grew sharp enough to cut at her own fur. Breathing in, breathing out, but it never seemed to ease a beating heart. Satin veils of dusk draped gingerly across an Abyssinian coat, as she slithered alongside the shadows of impending night like she had allowed it to swallow her whole and regurgitate nothing of excess. She, of gaunt stature and bird-boned body, fit well in the sable.

Then, she stopped. In that split second, the cord of strained cordiality had been snapped, a mere crack to upset the harmony of silence. In that moment, she knew there would be a wave of peace like no other, then it would devolve into madness. That was how the Golden Dawn was prophecied to happen, and in life there were but microcosms of ineluctable destiny. For every build-up, there was surely the downfall - but, before that, the moment when one looks down upon the earth that had fallen away from their grasp. Before panic flushed through, before adrenaline frayed the nerves... There was serenity. In an instant, glints of talons and teeth peeked through the setting sun, like little pinpricks of stars upon the tangerine. She found her own body springing forth into the storm of action, and though she had not consciously willed it, she allowed the heat of battle to turn flint into flame.

Owlish olive gaze caught upon the stark-black eyes of the hound, of which reflected not even the molten sun before it, as though a yawning chasm of all that befell it. It was empty, but she had expected that of their ilk. Such vile bile-kin had no intelligence behind slobbering fangs and clacking claws, and they only bore the desire to destroy anything that had the misfortune of being in their way. A ravenous machine, an unfeeling instrument of war. How despicably destitute. (She wondered, for a moment, why Fortuna blessed the blood-kin with a conscience if they were damned to the same fate as the bile-kin.) Golden had never mustered the courage to face one so closely, nor had she any reason to before now. The battle called, and she must answer.

She aimed to draw blood from its sinewy prison, to drag out yelps of pure pain from a gravelly throat, so unlike the great beast it was before. To exhibit fear was, perhaps, unbeknownst to the bile-kin. However, she figured they could get pretty close to it. The lithe molly circled towards one of their flanks and slashed against the temptation of sweet, rich flesh. Perhaps she had lost the mission in her bloodlust - she didn't aim to drive them away. She wanted to see the scarlet that lie underneath them.​

 

[FINCHCATCHER]

Three.

Three dogs are the target of their patrol. From the glimpse of what he can see of them, they loom menacingly over the rest of the patrol - taller than any four-legged creature Finchcatcher has seen before.

These are what killed Emberstar.

It's a horrific truth that hits him as he shelters beneath undergrowth, somewhere between Flycatcher and Covecatcher, somewhere beside Rabbitnose. They wait for their cue - wait for their moment to strike these beasts and destroy them, send them into rapid waters. A demise deserved for what they'd done to Emberstar.

But, the plan shifts quicker than Finchcatcher can realize it, for what lies ahead is not what was expected.

Two.

Two dogs stand before the patrol. The third is nowhere to be seen.

A wide-eyed Finchcatcher turns to look at Flycatcher, panic rising. An order to go is given, and the scarred warrior follows suit, flame-laden paws bounding after the lead warrior, leaving the rest of the patrol to finish the mission left behind.
​

 

[BURNSTORM]

Burnpaw slinks along, large body low to the ground and ear pressed flat against his skull. He is afraid, having seen the dogs firsthand, having seen what those powerful jaws were capable of, it was understandable. But he was determined to keep his family safe. He thinks of his unborn siblings, his mother, his friends, all back at camp and he steels himself. The thought of them strengthens his resolve and gives him the courage he needs to face these monsters once more. He looks to his grandmother, studying her face as they move through the trees. If she is afraid she does not show it. He turns his head straight and tries to imitate her stoic expression. He wanted to be brave, just like her.

When the time finally comes, when the beats are only a few badger-lengths away, that's when he almost falters. He imagines those snapping jaws ripping into him just as effectively as they had ripped into Wildpaw's tail. They were savages and would stop at nothing until they were all dead, but Burnpaw would not let that happen. Not to him and not to anyone else. Not if he could help it.

He notices something is off almost at the same time as everyone else. Wait... weren't there three? His grandmother's call for Flycatcher to go back to the camp confirms it. His mother is in danger... He is almost tempted to race after the gray tabby and his patrol but he forces himself to stay, to see their plan through.

With his clanmates around him, driving the dogs back, he feels empowered. The black tom darts forward, bites at an ankle, scratches at a flank then darts back. Adrenaline fuels him forward and the dogs backward. 'Star Clan protect us' he says a silent prayer to the sky.
​

 

[sloestride]

THIS WEIGHT ON MY NECK MAKES IT HARD TO CONNECT​

His shoulders shook ever so slightly. He couldn't get over the dogs' size, that type that twolegs had to grasp with two paws to keep at bay. And they were out, leashless, in their forest. Yet again, Sloepaw mourned that he was not taller - if only to force the beasts to snap him up in two bites, instead of one. Dead either way.

The tom flattened his wishful thinking with a sharp breath. Weathered boughs grew sparse as they neared the river, the open space stoking his nerves. Howlingstar's gaze coaxed a shug from him, wordless. He never knew what to say, to think, in moments like these. The scent of dog cored out his lungs, made worst by the growing urgency of each breath taken. Silverlightning soon drew his attention, the storm-eyed feline's task not enviable. The way the warrior lanced across the rocks stole his breath further.

Then they were plunging from the forest behind him, a twisted mat of pelts roiling in his wake. Sloepaw tried desperately to keep his pace even as his legs shuddered across the uneven ground, the furrows and cracks threatening to swallow up his paws. Panic cracked between their patrols to his flank, the silhouetted pair ahead of them carving out his confusion beats later. A dog in camp! He rammed his legs into the stone even harder, determined to finish this quickly.

Yowls harried his ears, the fear, bloodlust and desperation of clanmates. It took a few seconds to realise he was matching them, hiss soaking his throat. The warmth of his old green blanket, leagues away, blinked into his vision before blood overtook it. A well-placed strike from a warrior beside him- was that Stormchaser, or Goldendawn? In the clamour, everything bled into everything else. Sloepaw managed a careful hit, claws peeling at the beast's jowls. Behind it, the river heaved almost mundanely, the deadly force unaware of its role to play. Just a bit further.​

 

[Silverlightning]

War weighin' on my heart but I can't fall

He fights valiantly claws sweeping and slashing at any flesh he can catch. As one of the dogs turns about he ducks low beneath snapping jaws, feeling the heat of their breath upon the back of his neck. However, he cannot dodge the large paw that swings down and batters his lithe frame. Air rushes from his lungs due to the weight of the blow, causing him to crumple at the dog's feet. Blunt claws cutting jagged lines through his pelt, burning and stinging in its wake. The jaws part wide again as he moves, scrambling to his paws to avoid a lethal bite when he feels the heels of the other canine bumping roughly against him as they're pushed back by his clanmates. Gritting his teeth to hold on Silverlightning's footing slips as he is knocked from the ledge, normally placid expression shifting to that of visible terror.

Down he plummets, body twisting and writhing until he collides with the frigid rapids below. A panicked yowl tears from the warriors maw, heart racing impossibly faster as he fights the current. He did not know how to swim and this frightened him all the more as his body is jostled recklessly to and fro. Gunmetal paws slap and churn at the waters surface until he is eventually knocked against a rock jutting out from the frothing rapids. His vision grows blurry, the world rotating and spinning faster than it already was. He was slipping from consciousness and the waters were sweeping him away.​

Seekin' shelter from the storm on this blank road​

​

​

 

[Spotflare [in.]]

---

Following swiftly in Hollow Tree's footsteps, Spotflare assumes his position alongside the rest of his patrol, the familiar sight of Sunningrocks looming ahead of them as he bounds towards the rocks with a sharp cry of war. It was only then the realization sinks into the battle patrols like a storm that had caught them off their guard--there were only two dogs perched up on top of the rocks. He falters in his movement, whirling to see as Flycatcher and the rest of his patrol sprints off back into the forest like hares, pelts disappearing into the undergrowth--and with his daughter dashing after their heels.
There was a moment in which his mind, full of anxieties and unpleasant ideas as to what could happen to his poor daughter, screamed at him to give chase, to keep her and her brother safe--Cherry would be at camp as well! But as his mind screamed louder to move, to run, to attack, to do anything to keep them safe, Spotflare can see in the corner of his eye the other warriors already clambering after the dogs, Howlingstar included.

Terror flitted past in his amber irises; both of his kits would be at camp when the third dog came to hunt and kill them all, it would end them, maul them apart just the same as they had done to Emberstar--Patches was barely able to handle her own against another cat, and neither of them could handle a hungered feral beast--

They will be okay. They are growing up, a voice speaks quietly in his mind, barely a whisper, let them manage themselves. They will not be alone, and Howlingstar needs you now.
The dreadful claws gripping his heart ease their pained grasp, as if the voice had brought some comfort to his worried mind, and resolution sets in his eyes. You can't abandon them.

Turning on a heel, Spotflare bounds up the rock with surprising agility and renewed strength, going to slash his claws across one of the dog's front legs. "Get back, you mangy oversized flea-bitten rats!" He yowls, snapping his jaws at their feet and darting away like a fish to avoid getting bitten only to shout in pain when the dog's teeth catches his ear, ripping it in two--and in turn, his claws tear across its wet nose, drawing blood to drip from its muzzle.
Even with the newly-added pain and struggle of keeping blood out of his eyes, Spotflare doesn't relent his barrage of attacks, trying to use the pain to drive the dogs further back and closer to the edge. Silverlightning's pelt can be seen moving about behind the dogs--only until it isn't there any longer as his pelt disappears, and dread begins to seep back in.
"Silverlightning--!" He shouts, an alarm to the others, "He's fallen into the river!"​

---

A CANDLE IN THE NIGHT IS MY ONLY WAY OUT​

 

[Sunnyday]

☀ - WHILST MY HEART STILL BEATS
Sunnyday had been so focused on slashing at the hounds with his claws that he had failed to truly take notice of what had happened to Silverlightning, that is until Spotflare gave rise to the alarm. Panic gripped the older tom as he began to fear the worst for their brave clanmate. "I'll get him!" He called out as he moved to barrel past the dogs so he could lunge over the cliff edge. He plummeted down with his forelegs stretched forward and his head nestled between them.

The water was colder than what he had expected but he trained his mind on the sole task at hand; saving Silverlightning. He waded through with all the strength he could muster, keeping his body position spread to improve his buoyancy upon the wild waters as he tried to swim towards where he believed his clanmate to be. But it was hard to see, and the chaotic rapids all around left his mind reeling as he fought to keep his own head above the swell. He honestly felt blind!

"Don't stop! Don't stop!" He told himself as he continued the difficult search. As the seconds ticked by he grew desperate, that is until he swore he saw some familiar wet fur. He wasn't about to let the chance escape him as he fought through the foaming rapids before making an attempt to seize hold of Silverlightning's scruff.

//Attempting to grab @Silverlightning
​

 

[Badgerstrike]

These dogs have gotten on her nerves for the last time. It was time for them to die. With claws extended and a gutteral yowl, she rushed forward with her clanmates to rip her claws through flesh.

She was big, her claws and teeth were sharp, and she was the definition of a bloodthirsty brute. Her enemies feared her, and these dogs would learn to do so as well.

"YOU CAME TO THE WRONG FOREST, FLEABAGS!! I'LL TAKE YOUR TAILS AS TROPHIES!!!" She yowled furiously, advancing on them with each swipe she made.

She would see them sent to hell.

She saw Silverlightning fall into the river and Sunnyday go in after him. Her eyes widened, unsure of what to do.

And when she didn't know what to do, she got angry. She let out a vicious yowl, a sound a cat probably shouldn't make.

But badgerstrike wasn't just a cat. She was Badgerstrike.
​

 

[HOWLINGSTAR]

Howlingstar gives one last look over her shoulder to see Flycatcher's patrol disappear into the brush. StarClan light your path! She prays desperately before turning her attention back to the two beasts on the rocks, snarling down at the approaching cats. "ThunderClan, attack!" She yowls as she rushes forward. Stormchaser and Goldendawn begin to attack one of the dogs, the one with only one eye. Burnpaw, Sloepaw, and Spotflare work together on the other, but not before Silverlightning leaps in to deal more blows. But he's on the wrong side, at the edge of the stones that lead off into stormy waters. As Howlingstar joins Badgerstrike in dealing blows to Stormchaser and Goldendawn's hound, she hears his yowl and whips her head around to see his form be flung off the boulders and into the crashing currents. "Silverlightning!" She shrieks in horror, but in her distracted state the dog is able to fasten its teeth into her scruff and fling her away.

With a screech, she is thrown down to the base of the rock formation and hits the ground with a harsh grunt, blood seeping down her shoulders. It's not an awful wound, but it's enough to cause her to hiss in pain as she hauls herself to her paws once more. Through eyes squinted in pain, she looks up to see Sunnyday paddling after the warrior being carried downstream, and watches in vain as the silver-furred pelt is pulled away from Sunnyday's grip. He's lost to the current...perhaps a strong swimmer like a RiverClanner could have saved him, but ThunderClan is not equipped to retrieve a cat from such waters. For a moment, she knows she must decide. Does she peel away to chase him down along the shore? Or does she stay to fight the beasts that may kill more cats, more clanmates. It's a heartbreaking decision, but she must choose. Panting, she turns away from the river with grief etched onto her face. "Don't stop! Drive them over the edge!" She yowls, wincing as she bounds back up to join in the fray. Hissing, biting, spitting, clawing, she dances with her clanmates around the paws as they drive them closer and closer to the ledge. "Almost there!"

// Silverlightning is swept downstream despite Sunny's best attempts :(

For those still on the rocks, feel free to powerplay if the dogs fall!​

 

[GOLDENDAWN]

The chaos of barking and snarling and hissing drowned out Howlingstar's own cry, as the leader's tone wrested with the perdition that bloomed before them, as though a whisper within the white-tipped waves of the tumultuous sea. Just as the ocean did not falter, neither did the bedlam. Still, Golden did not need the spoken word of a leader nor the unspoken word of the law to do what she had to. She deftly rolled just out of the ravenous grasp of the one-eyed dog, flashes of polished ivory just above the linen-soft throat, brandished blades maddened and missing their mark. She had learned, from experience, that luck rarely came twice. If the dagger did not draw blood then, it would surely remember to do so next time. The hot breath of the beast grabbed just at nimble whiskers, a fetid stench that reminded her of a broiling corpse underneath the sun's glory, something that reeked of frenzy and fury and death. Goldendawn was not going to become the corpse, not today.

She pulled back on the defensive as she saw Howlingstar, Badgerstrike, and Stormchaser attack the hound. Yips and howls crossed acute ears, and each moment not spent in the heat of battle was a moment wasted. She had to plan, and do so correctly. Ichor coursed through her veins that were bound to burst, like they would rupture into spillways if she were to remain stationary, as the pandemonium did not wait. It never did. The Golden Dawn would wait for her, but this was no great rapturing. She had been warned that the Great Night would bring such terrible suffering, and how it was her duty to cease all of it. For her blood-kin, she knew what she must do in the split second.

She lunged for the one-eyed dog once more, putting everything into the harelike springs that she took, more reminiscent of one who sailed the moors than one who slithered among the shadows. She tended to be smaller than the average Thunderclanner, but she could use that to her advantage. Needle-sharp claws collided straight with the sinew that practically begged to be ripped open, to be freed from their cages of bone and muscle, though the blood of a bile-kin was no better than their spit or their tears. And yet, they still had the audacity to bleed, to exhibit that they lived. She cared naught of the wounds her mortal body would sustain, only what outcome it would bring. ​

 

[Sunnyday]

☀ - WHILST MY HEART STILL BEATS
Close... so close, but still out of reach.
His teeth failed to reach as he found himself jostled violently by the currents until he was being wrenched further and further away from Silverlightning. Sunnyday tried desperately to paddle after his clanmate but his strength was beginning to fail him and he was made to watch as the other tom was carried away out of sight. Failure brought with it a bitter taste, but now he had to contend with the new terror of keeping himself float. The water threatened to pull him down, and a few times it even succeeded as the older tom slipped under the surface with his paws flailing.

It became a vicious fight as he struggled to paddle his way back to the shore, but eventually he found his claws hooking into the solid bank and he was able to haul himself back onto the solid ground. The warrior weakly collapsed down onto his side with laboured breaths and an expression that carried with it anguish over his failed attempt to save Silverlightning. Now he didn't have the strength to go back to help his other clanmates with the dogs! "Useless... a useless old tom, that's what you are!"
​

 

[RACCOONSTRIPE]

The silence surrounding Sunningrocks as ThunderClan edges the beasts lounging on their stones explodes into yowls. Raccoonstripe waits for his eldest sister's signal, and once her tail moves, he moves, swift as the churning waters behind the dogs. Warriors entangle themselves with beasts -- from the youngest apprentice, to his mother, newly-anointed by StarClan, shed blood as their own is spilled.

He recognizes the mauled face of the dog being battered back by Spotflare, Burnpaw, and Sloepaw. His dark eyes blaze like gasoline-doused charcoal as he advances on the hound's backside. "You got a taste for tail at our last meeting, didn't you," he snarls. His fool of an apprentice had risked his own body parts by disobeying him and trying to play hero, but nevertheless, his rage ignites, an inferno behind peeled lips and shining teeth. "Maybe I should take yours to him as a replacement."

Raccoonstripe flies toward the tail-end half of the monster's flank. His claws rend the creature's thin pelt, and muscle and flesh give way to a spray of blood that paints his face and chest. Spotflare and the apprentices have driven the beast near-mad, it seems -- it does not even notice him coming, and it searches with blind, snapping jaws for the cats after his blow.

The waters are close. Raccoonstripe gives a snakelike hiss. "You monsters deserve to drown, not Silverlightning." He uses all of the power in his hind legs and chest to ram into the dog -- he aims to knock it into the swift-running river.

He can't bring back those they've lost -- none of them can -- but they can avenge them.​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

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