Warriors: Silverjaw's Sorrow

Chapter Three

Rain poured down from the sky in relentless sheets. The silhouettes of far-stretching branches lashed their arms against the lightning-streaked sky, leaves fluttering away in a violent gale.

Silverpaw stumbled numbly through the woods. Her face, her pelt, and her heart seared in pain. A fresh scar ripped across the flesh over her tightly shut eye, stretching all the way down to her jaw. It dripped a thick crimson, and the many other injuries battering her fur matched the scarlet ooze.

The night had dragged on agonizingly once Owlpaw had been murdered. Every will Silverpaw had to fight vanished alongside the light in his eyes, and she simply sat, as limp as fresh-kill as the rogues beat and battered her. The brown tom, the one whose claws were stained with Owlpaw's blood, took great pleasure in ripping his claws through her face, until at last he commanded his lackeys to let her run free. Of course, his underlings chased her back to RiverClan land. Where else would they send her?

Silverpaw could recognize the area around her, yet at the same time, she could not. Her suffering and the never-ending downpour of rain fogged her mind, and though the landmarks were familiar, she couldn't quite place where she was.

She tipped her head weakly to the sky. For the hundredth time, she asked StarClan the question that deafeningly raced through her mind: Why? Why did you let Owlpaw die, and not me?

Though her ancestors offered no answer, she still pushed on. Every step she took sent agony lancing through her bones, and she struggled to keep off her right paw while her scratches burned from the harsh assault of rain. Behind her, a crimson trail blazed her path through the forest. No matter how badly she simply wanted to stop and give up, she knew that Owlpaw would want her to keep pushing. If she weren't to survive the night, his fight to save her would've been pointless. At the very least, I need to warn the Clan.

A sudden flash of lightning zigzagged through the sky, lighting up the forest in a blinding white. It was followed immediately by a deafening roar. In her blindness, Silverpaw stumbled over a root. Her body flipped, and with a loud splash, she completely submerged in a puddle of mud. Sopping dirt filled her nose, sweeping over her body and piercing her injuries. She flailed around, struggling to discover which way was up.

Her head broke the surface and she gasped in the wet air. She pulled in heavy breaths, her body trembling as she desperately tried to rise to her paws. Her legs completely gave way, and she collapsed with a sucking splash.

The puddle of mud wasn't terribly deep, and her paws touched the bottom as once again she tried to rise to her trembling paws. Her heart scampered with panic and fear, but she forced herself to try once more to escape.

Her paws scrabbled against the muddy levee, yet she couldn't find any solid footing on the slippery incline. Tears sprang from her eyes as she realized that she was stuck. The only noise to comfort her was the rush of rainwater slamming the earth, and hopelessly, she rested her muzzle against the muddy bank.

Her eyelids fluttered. Exhaustion weighed heavily upon her weakened body, and though she tried desperately to stay conscious, the pull of sleep overwhelmed her. The panic, fear, and desolation of that horrendous night plagued her thoughts as darkness crept in around her, dragging her away from reality.

❀

"I smell blood!"

A voice broke through the air. Silverpaw stirred, her movements weighted by the heavy, sticky mud. The sludge oozed beneath her fur and deep into her injuries, which throbbed agonizingly. She groaned.

Grasping her claws around a string of willpower, she squeezed open her unwounded eye. The sky above her was still dark and stormy, giving her no hint to the passage of time. Rain drizzled against her eyelashes, and she flinched at the gentle impact. Then, a flash of red fur darted along the corners of her vision.