Night lay on the forest like a thick black cover of leaves. Shadows sat still underneath trees, while the wind quietly rustled the uppermost branches. Nothing stirred, not even a mouse. The Green-Leaf heat still bored down through the night, driving prey deep into their underground burrows.

North of the Twoleg Farm, there was a clearing surrounded in pine trees. The clearing was empty of everything, except a large rock in the Eastern part of it. Suddenly, a shadow flitted between the trees behind the rock. It was unseen by anything, flying swiftly over the cracked ground. On the other side of the clearing, a much smaller shape leaped out of the shadows. It ran full-pelt across the ground and stopped a fox-length from the rock.

As the moon filtered over a patch of thin clouds, the she-cat was revealed clearly. Her black fur sploshed with red gave her tortoiseshell pelt an illusion of being covered in blood. The she-cat's orange eyes were glazed with exhaustion and fear.

"Phew..." the she-cat gasped quietly, trembling on tired legs, "Thank StarClan I got out of there...!"

As the tortoiseshell tried to catch her breath, the first shadowy figure leaped onto the rock. In one bound, they mounted the grey lump and snarled down at the she-cat.

"An eavesdropper?!" they asked, grinning maliciously.

Eyes narrowed to slits; the tortoiseshell looked up. The moon sparkled another ray of silver light into the clearing. Ginger, cream, and white patches dappled the brown pelt of the new arrival. Her tortoiseshell fur looked more like autumn leaves than the dark pelt of the first she-cat. Blue eyes shone coldly in the white light.

"Well, that's rude!" the second cat mewed sinisterly, with mock innocence, "Never mind, so what can I call you?"

After a short pause, the brown she-cat replied to her own question, "Oh! What about... dead apprentice...?"

Trying to look fierce, but failing, the red she-cat growled in terror, "No, please, I won't tell anyone!"

She stared imploringly up at the other cat, claws scraping the hard earth.

With a twitch of amused whiskers, the brown she-cat replied, "Oh, really?"

Backing away slowly, the red she-cat nodded fervently, "Yes, I- who could I tell?"

The brown she-cat stared up at the moon, apparently lost in thought.
"I would consider letting you live..."

Sighing, the red cat closed her eyes in thanks, "Thank yo-"

"But..." the sing-song voice jerked the red cat back to reality, "I seem to like the taste of prey too much... and no-one, NO-ONE, is to know about the plan."

Shaking more violently than before, the red cat shouted at the second cat, "No, please! I beg you! Don't!"

"SILENCE!" the harsh, loud mew did just that - the red she-cat fell silent, except for her hoarse panting, "Say your prayers to those little ancestors of yours."

The red she-cat didn't try to hide her fear now. She turned sharply from where she crouched, and whipped round to run away, "PLEASE! NO!"

Before she had moved a kit-step, the ginger cat launched herself off the rock. Muscles bulging, claws unsheathed, a lump of brown tortoiseshell fur flattened the red cat. Screeching, the red she-cat's throat was pierced with four long, deep claw-marks. Keeping her left paw firmly of the red cat's neck, the ginger cat grinned with spite.

"Any last words - what was it - Marigoldpaw?"

Marigoldpaw spluttered, foam forming at the corners at her mouth. Already thinking that victory was hers, the other she-cat loosened her grip. That was a mistake.

Seizing any strand of hope, Marigoldpaw lashed out. She hit the other she-cat in the jaw, sending it upwards. The brown she-cat lurched back, blood seeping from her mouth. She stumbled a rabbit-hop away, grunting in pain. Marigoldpaw struggled to her paws. She crouched down defensively, facing the brown she-cat bravely. Now that there wasn't the other cat's paw blocking it's flow, blood oozed more thickly through Marigoldpaw's wounds. It soaked the fur all around her throat and splattered the dusty ground.

However, Marigoldpaw still managed to croak out some courageous words.
"They'll... find... out..." red foamed bubbled at the base of her mouth.

Recovering from the blow, the she-cat swiped her jaw with her paw, the same one covered in Marigoldpaw's blood. She stood up straight and shook her head. "Maybe one-day. Yes, definitely one-day." She confirmed without hesitating.

Pain lashed through Marigoldpaw, like a horde of adders, all sinking their fangs into her. She closed her eyes with anguish. Opening one, she rasped, "They'll... Rrgh... Know... StarClan... Will tell... Them... That you-"

She never finished the sentence.

Before Marigoldpaw could, the brown she-cat flung out a paw, claws pulled out. The force of the blow flung Marigoldpaw at the rock. In a heartbeat, the brown cat vaulted onto Marigoldpaw, holding her head to the stone wall by a blood-soaked, sheathed paw. Yowling in agony, the breath was knocked out of Marigoldpaw, who now had four, long claw marks across her face. The other cat was pressing her paw more strongly to Marigoldpaw's throat by the second, cutting off the passage of air. Lips turning blue and blood trickling into her eyes, Marigoldpaw started struggling. She clawed at every part of the brown cat's leg she could reach, tearing the fur out in clumps and ripping at the flesh.

"That's enough, dear Marigold." The orange she-cat whispered menacingly, "Now..."

Blood dribbling from the brown cat's mouth, she mewed quietly, "DIE."

"PLE-" Marigoldpaw's desperate cry was cut off by a flash of yellowing claws.

"Hrgh! Ugh..."

Her bright orange eyes glazed, and turned to two blank, staring pieces of amber, glistening in the moonlight. The brown she-cat lifted her paw from her victim's throat, and she stood to the side. Marigoldpaw's body slid down the rock-face and lay. A shining patch of blood coated the rock, where it had hit Marigoldpaw's head. Small but gushing strongly, a pool of crimson liquid slithered around Marigoldpaw's head, from her throat, her mouth, the back of her head.

Taciturnly, the brown she-cat stared at the motionless tortoiseshell heap. A twig snapping brought the she-cat's attention. Another cat was creeping through the empty, baked forest. Its shadowy form appeared between two large pine trunks, exactly where Marigoldpaw had shown up.

"Hey, Dark, did you get her?" a large, muscular grey tabby tom mewed, stepping into the light.

His pelt was splashed with more colour than any other tabby. Its base was grey with darker lines, but on top of that, was a layer of ginger stripes and swirls. A sheet of fur roughly covered that, in brown patches and streaks. He had smouldering hazel-coloured eyes, which gleamed like dew on leaves at dawn. His paws were a pale brown, and his nose was rimmed with dark copper.

At his sight, Dark's whole demeanour changed. The threatening, blood-thirsty monster, turned into an adoring, gentle she-cat, who would do anything to please this new entry.

"Drip?" Dark smiled widely, and added distractedly, "Oh, I got her."

Not noticing Dark's immediate change of attitude, Drip answered, "Great!"

His green-brown gaze fell on the unstirring, black body a few tail-lengths from him. A genuinely happy smile danced across his face.

"Hurry up, then. 'Whitey' says those AirClan cats will be waking up anytime now..." Drip nodded in the general direction of the mountains, many, many tree-lengths from the clearing. "...And Crow's had a marvellous idea."

Dark seemed not to have heard his words, but she mewed cheerily, "Alright, I'm coming." She limped towards Drip, her left leg stiff from all the scratches and her jaw aching, still dripping blood. Drip looked her up and down, eyeing her carmine-soaked fur.

"Looks like she fought pretty hard. You'll need some time to clean those wounds." Drip commented slyly.

Dark stopped listening after the word 'pretty', Pretty! Me? Oh, Drip! she thought, relishing the 'idea' that Drip thought she looked nice.

"Here, I'll help."

"Huh-"

Drip moved slowly towards Dark. When they were no more than a mouse-tail apart, he licked her cheek, cleaning off some of the blood. Dark felt herself grow hot, her ears burned, and her pads grew damp.

"Th-thanks..." she murmured, not looking at Drip.

"That's OK." Drip licked his paw and drew it over his ear. He didn't seem to realise how much of Dark's hidden spirit he had awoken. He added blandly, "Come on then, we haven't got all night."

The colourful tom padded off around the rock. He flung Marigoldpaw's body and few mouse-lengths with his paw, and, sneering, headed into the trees. Drip looked back, gesturing with his tail to Dark. She raced after him, looking at her paws. As she passed Marigoldpaw's battered body, laying belly down on the ground, Dark's old self came back to life. She straightened her back, licked the oozing blood from her leg and smiled nastily. Paws thumping on the hard-packed earth, Dark and Drip flung themselves into the darkness of the pines.

Shining very brightly for a single heartbeat, the stars strewn across the inky black sky glittered welcomingly. The forest went quiet again. A solitary, thick cloud covered the half-moon for a few moments. In that period of time, shadows erupted from every corner. Now looking quite small, the clearing was turned a dark grey. The only light came from the pearly stars and a translucent figure standing over Marigoldpaw's body. The figure gave off a faint silvery light and her dark tortoiseshell fur was now pale.

Marigoldpaw's spirit stared sadly at, what once was, her body. It was quite unharmed, except for her head. Her dead face was empty of feeling, scarred with four long marks, and the back of her head was soaked with scarlet blood. Her mouth lolled open, red-tinged foam still bubbling gently inside. And her throat was shredded. Fur hung from thin strands, while blood streamed slowly from the deep cuts. Bare flesh covered most of the area that wasn't flooded with shining liquid. Marigoldpaw's sprit sighed heavily and turned.

Two small cats, the size of kits, were sitting side-by-side, a fox-length behind Marigoldpaw. They were both toms. One was light brown with darker paws, ears, tail, and face, with beautiful blue eyes. The other tom was a bit smaller, but his extremely fluffy fur made him as big as his companion. He had brown tabby fur, the stripes were almost invisible against it; his chin, chest and belly were a snowy white, while his eyes shone a deep amber. Both of their pelts were glittering with stars and a golden glow shimmered their bodies. Marigoldpaw trotted up to them their eyes brimming with sadness. The light brown kit waved his tail. The two toms rose to their paws and padded of towards the darkness, Marigoldpaw's spirit following.

Word Count: 1844