~Kink's P.O.V.~

By now, the sun was coming up. I saw that Blood, Ivy, Stomp and Falcon were lying dead on the rock flooring. But something small and delicate caught my eye. Beside Blood's battered body was a small bundle of fur. It was white but a small brown stripe went down his back; I realized it was Blood's son, Whip.

Checking to see if any cat was in danger and needed help, I hurried over and stood over the dead tom and the small apprentice. Carefully picking the young tom up, I passed Scar and entered the nursery. Seeing that everyone was sleeping but Shell I slowly lowered Whip's body in beside Slash's.

Dipping my head to Shell I exited to nursery in search of any cat in need of me. I saw Fawn dealing with an apprentice, she seemed to look like she needed "saving". But before I could have gotten to her, Snake attacked the apprentice. 'Isn't he supposed to be protecting the prisoners?' I stalked to the den where they should be and I peeked in. Dovewing and Tigerheart were digging out. I decided not to alarm them and crept in.  

I slashed Tigerheart's flank and he spun around to see me. They gasped. "I told you this was a bad idea!" Dovewing muttered to her companion. I flicked one of my floppy ears. "I can still hear you two, you know!" I spat. Tigerheart hissed in annoyance and sat down. "Are you ever going to let us free?" He murmured. I shrugged, "For all I know," I took in a deep breathe and looked up with a smile on my face and meowed, "no." They groaned, all hope from their faces drained to blank.

"Sorry for your luck, but if you weren't 'mating' out in a clearing, maybe you wouldn't have been caught," I teased. They were only talking, from what we saw anyway. Dovewing gasped and Tigerheart growled in anger. "We were only talking!" He protested, baring his teeth. "Whatever you say, matey." I sneered.  

Padding out and standing in front of the den, I watched closely for any cats stalking towards me. I turned around and poked my head in, seeing that they were digging again. "And you guys are only going to dig down to either rock or a plunge to your death." I notified them.  

Turning back to the fighting cats and watched a Fawn and Snake work together to kill the apprentice. Before I could even watch a heartbeat or two of it, I was knocked over. My head slammed into the rock and I touched my head delicately. A warm liquid had begun to well up out of the gash and I shook my head. Standing back up, I was knocked over again and again I hit my head on the ground. The world went into a swirl of blurry images and I was sent to a black world.

* * * * *  

~Venom's P.O.V.~

Just as we got to the trail, cats came pelting down. Some even with the injured and dead. I watched them run until I heard a cat skid to a stop, making me turn, and Claw puffed, "Hurry up, they got the prisoners!" I rolled my eyes, 'I just spent my day fighting, saving Beetle, learning how to swim the hard way and running back here. I have no energy to do anything,' I grunted. Nodding to Claw I dashed into the group of cats, nearly tripping myself over my paws as I picked up my pace.  

As I pushed on, I felt my muscles burn and the bushes in WindClan's territory whizzed by. I lowered my head and ran on. I growled as I saw Dovewing turn her head. 'Dovewing? She escaped?' Her eyes grew as wide as an owls and turned her head back to the front and ran faster.

I dashed for her and once I got close enough to attack, I unsheathed my claws. I bashed her back leg and pushed her flank the opposite way of the cats that were running in a group. More like a herd, actually. Just like the sheep that shared her territory.

Stopping to take a breather, I looked up and saw Dovewing laying in front of a boulder. 'Is she dead?' I wondered. Finally, I caught my breath and I padded up to her body. Her flank was still rising and falling but she seemed to be out; out cold. I prodded her with a paw. She didn't reply by anything to tell me she was awake. I picked her up by her scruff and dragged her through the bushes. I peeked a glance back at the group and I saw a few of them had halted.

Tigerheart was sniffing around followed by what looked to be the leaders. I hurried away. Whipped by brambles and stems as I ran as fast as I could with this excuse of a cat in my jaws. I couldn't quite run from the weight of Dovewing's limp body clamped in between my teeth. Turning to look back at them, I got a glimpse of them following my scent trail.  

I growled and pushed on. I stalked around the boulders and finally got to the trail that lead up to the camp. 'No. It will only cause trouble.' Turning towards the back of the cliff and down past the training centre, I heard them screeching and paws thumping closer to me. 'They're getting closer!' 

Thinking quick, I saw the rock ledge leading upwards to the Tribe of Jagged Rocks. Throwing Dovewing's body onto the first step, I climbed up. I threw her body again up onto the next one and climbed up beside her and did it again. Pricking my ears to ear if they were close or not, I heard their paws scratching across rocks.  

A low moaning sound alarmed me. She was waking up! "Not a good time, not a good time!" I muttered to myself. I grabbed her head with my paws and hit her head on the rock once. "Hey!" I heard a call from below. I looked down and saw Tigerheart, the white cat with black paws I had almost killed, a flaming orange pelted cat, bluish gray cat and Lionblaze.

I hissed and turned to the branch again. Climbing to the step closest to it I leaned over to grab it, but it was too far away to get. So I turned back and hopped back to Dovewing. She was looking around, her eyes looking dazed.  

I growled and threw her onto the next ledge. "Hey!" I heard Tigerheart yell. "What?" I sneered, our voices echoing. "Stop treating her like dirt! Let her go!" He yowled. I climbed up again, totally ignoring his statement, and looked up. The next ledge to go up was to far up. Hissing in frustration, I looked back down at the five cats. Tigerheart was clawing his way up.  

We weren't to far away, I had only gotten a few ledges up so far. I searched for a way up.

A thought popped in my head as I saw a way up. It wouldn't be easy but it would have to work. Grasping Dovewing's scruff in my teeth, I went with the plan. I heard claws scratching on the rock as Tigerheart made his way up. I climbed up by putting my paws on small rocks poking out of the cliff wall.  

I eventually got up to the next ledge. With the weight of Dovewing slowing me down, Tigerheart was almost close enough to take her back. My back paw slipped, sending a few rocks showering down towards the others, and I noticed that the ledge was way to small. Quickly scrambling up to the next, I saw that there was no where else to go. No way up any further. I laid Dovewing down and she looked at me. "Birchfall? Is that you? Could we play moss-ball again?" She whispered, batting softly at my chest.

I hissed in her face and smacked her head over and over until she was finally passed out again. Checking over the ledge's edge I noticed that he was dangerously close. "Go away!" I yowled. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I hissed to myself, mentally hitting myself. He scoffed, climbing further. "Don't make me make you fall!" I warned. "Ha! How are you going to hurt me? Your mind powers?" He retorted.  

I scrapped the rocks from the ledge I was on down to him and peeked down at him again. "Pebbles? Wow. So dangerous." He teased. I hissed, pulling out rocks from the wall and pushing them over the ledge. I pushed Dovewing against the wall and broke the edge, rocks tumbling down to Tigerheart.  

I broke the edge so much that I could barely stand on it; let alone with another cat beside me. But none of the rocks worked. He was still making his way up, slipping on a few rocks. I cracked the side of the ledge we were on and pushed down on it, making a huge rock fall down toward him. "Tigerheart, come back down. He is going to kill you!" The white tom exclaimed and I snickered, "You better listen to your leader before I kill you and your precious mate." The white cat growled and Tigerheart did too.

I looked to the side and saw another ledge. How in StarClan's name am I supposed to get there? It seemed jumpable. . . I'm going crazy over this cat! I should just kill her and drop her down to them, then jump. Good plan. Quickly I slipped her off of the ledge and down to the leaders. Checking to see if she had made it, I saw her body was still falling. 

Hitting ledges and boulders on the way. Her lifeless body finally landed on the orange cat. Tigerheart called to them, "Is she alright?" I heard them call back a reply but it was to far down for me to hear. But I knew it was bad because Tigerheart yowled in rage and claws up, his claws on my edge.

Turning to the next ledge, I swung my haunches back and forth until I felt power surge through my legs. Leaping one huge leap, I felt the wind tug at my black and silver fur. I stretched my legs out farther, until I could no longer stretch them. The ledge was only a tail-length or two away and I felt the air beginning to push up and my fur was going upwards.  

'No!' I then felt my legs grab onto the ledge. I gasped in relief. I scratched desperately at the wall but as desperately I tried, I couldn't lift my body up onto it. I felt my body weight beginning to drag me down. I desprietly tried to pull myself up but the ledge was too smoothe and there were no cracks in it.

I started to breathe quick and unsteady. I glanced down and saw the ground was way to far down for me to go unharmed. My heart was pounding in my chest, ready to burst in fright. I knew there was only one way out of this.

To let go.