Warriors: Mosspath's Choice (REWRITTEN)

Chapter 7

Without thinking, Mosskit dived in after her denmate, her mind blank with shock and terror for Meadowkit, who was now only a scrap being tossed by the strong currents in the foaming water.

The wind rushed towards her face, her fur being buffeted backwards as her head neared the churning water. Flickers of green rushed by as brambles and bushes scattered alongside the gorge face flitted by in the blink of an eye. Her muzzle crashed headfirst into the water, a dull and deadly impact that nearly shattered her head.

The icy coldness was the first thing she felt as water closed over her, bubbles rising up in front of her face. Mosskit squinted her eyes as water rushed over them, causing a throbbing, stinging pain in her eyes. The water was cold and electrifying, filling Mosskit with a numb terror, washing over her and freezing her fur with pure shock.

Another cat had jumped into the water.

Finally breaking her head above the surface of the water, Mosskit managed to catch a glimpse of the other cat who had jumped in the water, possibly costing their life for two mousebrained kits. Another splash followed close behind.

If Meadowkit and I die, it's all going to be my own fault, she thought dimly, remembering what she had in mind when she had decided that they sneak out of camp. It seemed seasons ago, yet it had happened only this morning. We should have never snuck out of camp...

Coughing and spluttering, Mosskit tried to look for Meadowkit, a sodden, flimsy pelt in the crashing water that was the reason she jumped down. Her claws scraped against the rocks scattered throughout the river. But as soon as she had gotten a grip, the waves smashed over her head, making Mosskit submerge underwater again.

She flailed her paws around, trying to swim across the current and get back to the bank. But her paws didn't work, swiping uselessly against the powerful waves that cascaded over the rocks.

Her paws tired of the treading she was doing, until her head sunk down, deep deep down, into the waters, towards the bottom of the waves, where the pressure compressed down upon her.

Mosskit's heart pounded in her chest as she treaded her paws uselessly against the current. Her mind was shutting down, until the only thing she was aware of was the roaring blood roaring in her ears, and the raging currents above her head. It was so peaceful under the river, below the terrible waters. Maybe she should go to sleep here.

"Wait, Mosskit! Stay awake!" A shrill voice had cut through Mosskit's muddled thoughts, jerking her back awake.

Her paws had thoughts of their own, and fought with panic against the river. With her hindpaws churning up water behind her, her head bobbed up in the river, coughing up water. Wind whipped her fur as she emerged, forcing her head back down.

"Mosskit! Get back!"

Dimly, she couldn't figure out why she needed to stay awake. It was so comforting under the water, where there was no air, no life. She could die in peace here, underneath the water, drowning all by herself.

The light was usually above her when she was underwater, but this time, a bright sheen of glistening light had come from her side. With horror, she realized that she was about to tumble off the waterfall that was further downstream. She didn't think that the water would carry her this far!

Mosskit imagined her body, broken among the rocks on the bottom of the waterfall. Her frail frame was tossed among the currents, racked with cuts and scraps from the sharp rocks that struck out without warning.

Mosskit's heart hammered violently in her chest as the descent approached. A sheer cliff was visible from under the water, bright sunlight gleaming off the moist rocks, soaking up all the mist that sprung up.