Edited ✔️ by JackMccannon

The sky was dark, crowded with endless black clouds against the dark blue scenery. A cold breeze rushed past, sending up a chill on Icekit's spine. A faint hiss could be heard in the black distance, and all the kit could think to do was whimper and back up. He knew something was near. In this darkness, all he could see was the faint gray outlines of the trees, and nothing more. Whatever was out there was well-hidden.

Why am I here? thought Icekit. What's going to happen to me?

He looked around, and his head was becoming dizzy from the feeling of blindness. In enough time, a shape slithered closer to him, and Icekit could feel it. An unwelcoming scent filled up in his nose, and he backed up until his haunches met the bark of a tree, making him jump with surprise. What was even more surprising was the silhouette of the cat, emerging behind the blend of dark bushes.

Icekit's heart started to beat twice as fast as before.

The cat came closer, his amber eyes glowing in the darkness. Now, it felt like the only thing Icekit could see were those savage-filled, blood-thirsty eyes. They bore into Icekit, making him shriek with terror. As the cat lunged himself forward, Icekit turned leaped out of the way and began running as fast as his little legs could take him.

"No!" Icekit let out a wail of anguish and fear. His voice echoed all around the area. He looked back to see if the cat was still following him, and as soon as he turned, the cat's amber eyes blazed and it was as if he yowled with pleasure as he got closer and closer.

Icekit's heartbeat quickened. He was fear-stricken and didn't know what to do. He ran as fast as he could take himself, before tumbling over the risen roots of a rotting tree. The moment his head hit the ground, he knew that there was no place he could run, for his pursuer had reached him.

I am going to die!

With great effort, the young kit attempted to stand up on his feet, but it wouldn't work. The darkness could not let him see where he was going.

Suddenly, a flicker of light cast out as a small tip of the moon peeked out of the trees. Icekit took shallow breaths and swiftly caught glimpses of his setting. Surprisingly, the area looked like any other forest, but darker. A sudden yowl snapped Icekit out of it, and then the cat with amber eyes leaped onto him, baring his razor-sharp fangs.

Icekit shrieked in complete terror. Perhaps this was his last day of life; death would envelop him after all.

The tom snorted. "You should listen to yourself," he sneered, his eyes shining with delight. "What a kit, yowling so unpleasantly! A warrior yowls when they die, not before they die!"

Icekit managed to stare up at the one who had chased and pinned him, revealing a dark-furred tom, with slightly matted fur and amber eyes. A warrior, thought Icekit, his pelt bristling. He then mustered up the courage to growl. "Let—let go of me!" he managed to finally say. He used his tiny back claws and raked them against his attacker's thick belly fur, but it was no use. His attacker purred so loudly, it was as if he was growling, and it made Icekit's throat ache.

However, from right behind his attacker, a half moon began to rise, casting out a bright, pale light in the dark area. The cat and Icekit both were surprised, and looked around as everything came into view. Bushes could finally be made out, most of them leafless and covered in thorns and twigs; marshy grounds took over the underpaws of the forest; scarce pine trees and ash trees alike surrounded swamps which were overlapped by hanging vines. They were in a forest, like Icekit had suspected. Yet this forest was unlike any he'd ever imagined in his entire short kit-life.

"What's going on?" Icekit's attacker scowled, still having him pinned down. "It isn't suppose to be bright!" His eyes squinted as he looked up to the moon.

Then, there was silence. For a few heartbeats, the attacker stood over Icekit, waiting and looking around. Icekit remained silent and still, hoping that something good would happen. He saw something twitch in a bush, and out came a light gray she-cat. It looked as if the stars themselves were in her pelt, shining under the brilliant moonlight.

Her eyes shone a delicate blue, and her fur silently rippled in the wind. Finally, she broke the silence. "Twilight Warrior," she meowed, and blinked at Icekit's attacker. "What are you doing to this poor kit?"

Icekit's fur bristled. Her presence made him feel unthinkable things. His ears tingled and his nose twitched, however he did not move in fear of being shredded.

The tom cat stared at the she-cat blankly. "I-I . . ." he stuttered, slowly getting off of Icekit. "But he entered our forest! I didn't have any other choice---"

"We StarClan cats have to come here so much because of broken rules," she snarled. "You know what happens when the rules break."

He snarled back. Icekit watched their expressions. "What else could I have done? Let him wander around?" hissed the warrior.

"You've even taunted the poor kit," the she-cat said, her voice soothing to the extent that it made Icekit's bristled pelt soften. However, what she said was true—he'd been taunted terribly.

She took a few steps forward, and then the Twilight Warrior sprang, outstretching his claws. He then pinned down the she-cat.

She yowled and shoved him off. "I knew I couldn't trust you!" she hissed, swiping her claws at him. The tom growled back at her, and gave her a blow to her ear while she gave him a small, clumsy scratch on his nose.

Now, as the moon shone brightly, the two cat's claws glinted in the light. Each time their eyes came out of view, it shone a ghastly amber or blue, making Icekit squeak as a new fear came through him. What if both he and his savior died?

The gray she-cat shot up on her paws and struggled to pin down the warrior, in which she finally succeeded after much wrestling. He smirked in return, kicking her over and letting his long hindpaws rake her belly. The she-cat screeched as she flipped over, and blood trickled out of her mouth. The moment she collapsed, her body became limp.

The Twilight Warrior leaped away from the gray she-cat, and he slowly turned to Icekit. The kit's fur bristled once more, and his heart pounded faster than before. I am going to die! he thought, squeezing his eyes shut. He knew it was a useless effort to try and run away.

Yet, right before the tom leaped and gave Icekit a final blow, a grunt of pain sounded from the body of the limp gray she-cat. "I-it's not that easy to kill me . . ."

Icekit's eyes opened once more, and the first thing he saw was the gray she-cat again, back on her paws. He gasped. So she hadn't died! The she-cat lunged herself at the Twilight Warrior, catching him from surprise. Her claws met his throat and her body pinned down the tom, so that he wouldn't move.

"Please! Please!" the tom begged as the gray she-cat's claws went deeper in his throat. "Please give mercy! I won't harm the him again. I won't taunt kits, but please give me another chance!" His eyes were filled with the fear Icekit might have had.

The gray she-cat released him. "Fine," she growled. "But know that this is a warning." And at that, she disappeared into the bush she first came from. Icekit's eyes widened as he realized he was left alone with the Twilight Warrior once more.

He swiftly looked over to the tom, who was fighting the urge to kill. He slowly backed away from Icekit. "Y-you were lucky, kit! It seems you'll have a lot on your paws since this was the outcome. What a burden," he growled as he disappeared into the shadows. Icekit stared after him, trembling and confused. What did the Twilight Warrior mean by that? The moon vanished behind thick dark blue clouds.

It was dark once more, and Icekit knew he was truly alone once again. The only sound to be heard was the whispers in the trees, and the rustle of the bushes in the wind.

But then, another sound filled in his ears, and it was the most silent of all. Icekit slowly stood up, aware that he was still trembling. The sound wasn't of a cat, or any creature that could possibly be lurking in a dark forest, but he knew that it was the sound of death. The scent of death. And then, a vision came into his mind, and horror struck through him.

Death. . . . The word whispered into Icekit's ears, making him freeze. It felt as if blood was rising up from the moist, marshy grounds, and the winds grew stronger, making the bushes rattle and shake harder. The word whispered several times in Icekit's ears, and the last thing he did was dive into the thick and sticky blood, escaping from the scary noise.