𓆧 In the darkness, Cricketcry's fur stands on end and his heartbeat speeds up. A hound's bark, the ensuing frenzied growls muffled by the earth surrounding himself and his counterparts. The tunnelers are urged forward, towards the mouth of this tunnel, the nearest exit possible. They're spit onto the moor and Cricketcry emits a shallow, broken growl as Pinkshine darts away, straight into the midst of trouble. The tom knows what must be done, he snaps over his shoulder urgently,
"H-Honeysucklepaw, s-stay low. Stay here and if I tell you to run, you run into these tunnels. Take the first right, I'll find you." His stutter is nonexistent as he speaks rapidly, the concern he has for his apprentice heavy in his words.
The compact tom rips away after Pinkshine. No matter what, these tunnels will protect the Windclanners from the hound-- it's large and formidable, but this will be it's downfall. It wouldn't be able to follow them into the depths of tunnels, where they've been dug out just enough for the slight of size tunnelers. Cricketcry doubts they'll be able to kill the hound, but maim... irritate it enough that the cats are no longer seen as entertainment to be thrown about? He knows they can do that.
He pauses halfway down the slight incline that leads to Orangestar, eyes darting rapidly to survey the area: burrows, converted to entrances to the tunnels, four he can be sure connects to the sprawling system... but two he's not seen in use since before the fire. Do they dead end, long been caved in by the disuse and lack of upkeep? He nods as he pinpoints the closest burrow to the hound and then streaks down towards the macabre.
Pinkshine's young, inexperienced. Some could argue the same for Cricketcry, too, but he has moons on him in comparison to Pinkshine. He won't stand for them to be threatened by the jaws of danger. Adrenaline pumps through himself as he yowls,
"Over here! C'mon!" He weaves back and forth, attempting to draw the hound's attention. A limp body is dropped by the beast-- Orangestar-- as its attention is drawn to himself.
"T-that's right! This way now... Someone get her into safety!"
A streak of white and brown, Cricketcry whips around to sprint to the nearest shelter. His hindleg slows him down. The hound is in peak condition and in a frenzy from the blood, gaining quickly on the small cat. Cricketcry grimaces, ears flatten against his skull and he pushes forward.
Pain, warmness from hot breath and blood alike, his rear has been grazed by the hound's canines as it attempts to snap hold of the tom. It happens just as Cricketcry's forepaws touch inside the the tunnels.
Safety... He hurtles himself into the tunnel, the sound of furious barks piercing his ears and reverberating in the tunnels. He's safe,
for now. Whiskers twitch as he hurriedly rounds a corner of a tunnel, slowing as he approaches another exit. He pokes his head out, glancing about wildly. The hound is still preoccupied at the entrance Cricketcry had taken, pawing in a fury and drawn to Cricketcry's spilled blood that he had tasted moments ago.
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OOC— tl;dr Cricketcry has led the hound away from Orangestar with the intention that she can be dragged away to safety (the tunnels) while incapacitated. In the process, he's sustained a shallow wound on his rear. The hound won't be distracted for long! apprentice tag: @honeysucklepaw
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CRICKETCRY —— Tunneler of Windclan 𓆧
𓆧 he/him/ 28 ☾
𓆧 petite, reclusive, & wistful
𓆧 has a slight limp
𓆧 lh chocolate tabby/fawn chimera
