Escape from BoneClan

Chapter 5

"Hey, Silverpaw!" Silverpaw ducked through the thorn barrier, a sparrow dangling from her jaws. Her ears pricked.
"Over here!" The voice called again. Silverpaw spotted her sisters white coat among a couple of other cats that looked about her age. Silverpaw dropped her fresh-kill near the entrance and scampered over.
"I've told these apprentices the plan!" Fallingpaw explained excitedly. "But we have to go somewhere to discuss it away from BoneClan ears. Come on!"
Silverpaw followed the apprentices and Fallingpaw through a tiny hole in the back corner. They emerged in bright sunshine, dappling the ground like a tortoiseshell pelt. A bramble bush was looming over them.
"Hi, I'm Spottedpaw." A small, pretty tortoiseshell she-cat said. She had white paws and undercoat, with wide green eyes.
"I'm Blossompaw, her sister!" A larger calico she-cat added. She had white paws and aqua blue eyes.
"My name's Snowpaw. I'm Spottedpaw and Blossompaw's brother." Snowpaw was a muscular white tom with pale blue eyes. His pelt rippled in the sunshine like moonlit water.
"I'm Brightpaw, and this is my brother Harepaw." A creamy pale white she-cat with yellow eyes introduced herself, pointing at a little light brown tabby tom with green eyes next to her.
"And I'm Bluepaw, this is Sunpaw, that's his sister Leafpaw, and that's my sister Pinepaw." Bluepaw was a thick-furred blue-grey she-cat with blue eyes. Sunpaw was a small yellow tom with amber eyes, and Silverpaw guessed the little grey tabby with green eyes next to him was his sister, Leafpaw. Bluepaw's littermate, Pinepaw, was a brown tabby with piney green eyes.
"And Mousetail's litter is here, too." Fallingpaw concluded, pointing with her tail. Silverpaw nodded at Shatteredpaw, Dovepaw, Whitepaw, Amberpaw and Longpaw.
"You, me, Bramblepaw and Hailpaw will escape tonight. The rest of the apprentices know where the river with the branch bridge is, and they'll escape in groups each night. Got it?" Fallingpaw explained.
Silverpaw and the others nodded.

For the rest of the evening, Silverpaw's fur tingled with excitement. Fallingpaw told her they'd escape at moon-high, and that she'd already informed Hailpaw and Bramblepaw about the plan. Of course, they agreed eagerly.
Silverpaw was glad that Brightfire was busy the whole day. That way, she could hunt undisturbed until it was time for their escape plan. She glanced up. Darkness was creeping over the trees, enveloping the unfamiliar forest in blackness. A bright, white half moon hung in the air just above the treetops. Silverpelt was beginning to show, too. It wasn't long until Silverpaw and her littermates would see ThunderClan again! Wait, no. It'll take a few nights because we have to wait for all the apprentices on the other side of the river. But that's ok, we'll get home sooner or later.
Boy, was she wrong.

"Pssst! Silverpaw!" A paw prodded Silverpaw's flank. "Wake up!" Drowsily, she groaned and looked up. She blinked until the pitch-black darkness slowly dissolved into an eerie grey light.
"It's time to escape!" Hailpaw whispered urgently. Silverpaw was awake with a jolt. If course! The escape plan! Her heart thudded in her chest, threatening to break through its ribcage. She looked around. Fallingpaw and Bramblepaw were also already up. Why am I always the last to wake up? She thought angrily, but she pushed the thought away. It's time to go!
Silverpaw heaved herself to her paws. She crouched down, letting her belly brush the cold stone. Slowly, she crept forward, almost soundlessly. Cherrypelt, Fernwhisker's friend, had taught her how to creep around silently. Her littermates copied her.
Silverpaw breathed a sigh of relief as they finally pushed past the trees.
Hailpaw gasped beside her. They were standing at the edge of a huge river!
White foam caps churned in the murky darkness, and it thundered past louder than the howling wind. The waves tumbled over one another, sending cold spray flying into the air and into their faces.
"Come!" Fallingpaw yelled over the roaring water. "The branch is this way!"
Silverpelt lowered her head and struggled after her. The wind was now blowing her into the direction of the river. If I fall in, I'm as dead as a drowned rat! Silverpaw thought, shuddering. She dug her claws into the damp soils to keep herself from being flung into the icy fingers of the raging river. Not only was the wind raking her fur, a soft misty drizzle of rain was starting to fall. The wind stung in Silverpaw's eyes and the light, feathery droplets of rain whipped into her face.
"There it is!" Bramblepaw yowled loudly. Silverpaw forced herself to look up. Through the thick drizzling rain, she could make out a dark brown shape looming over the river a bit further ahead.
"It's not much longer!" Fallingpaw shouted. All their pelts were soaked. Silverpaw was freezing; she felt as if the iciness of the storm had gotten to her bones. Her teeth chattered. After what seemed like moons, they reached the branch.
Silverpaw stared in horror. The branch was mossy and skinny. It swayed dangerously in the wind, looking as if the wind was seconds away from pushing it into the raging water below.
"Will this hold?" Silverpaw yowled.
"I think so," Fallingpaw yowled back. "We'll have to be careful to stay balanced!"
Fear squeezed Silverpaw's stomach, and she gulped down a lump in her throat. She felt sick with fright.
Bramblepaw shouldered past her and Fallingpaw and stepped onto the branch. Surprisingly, it didn't budge. He placed another paw. And another, until he was standing on all fours.
"It feels stable!" He yowled. His brown tabby pelt seemed to be tugging him off the branch. "Come on!" He took another shaky step. It held. Fallingpaw was the second to step onto the branch. It swayed a little under both the cats' weights, but it showed no signs of giving way. Fallingpaw flicked her soaked tail. "Come on!" She repeated Bramblepaw's words. Silverpaw gulped again, her heart pounding heavily. She took a deep breath and laid a paw on the damp branch. It creaked, but did nothing more. Before she knew it, she was on the middle if the branch. She peered down carefully.
"Don't look down!" Hailpaw called behind her. He was also fully on the branch now. Too late. Mountains of water lunged up at Silverpaw, thundering, as if calling her. A quiet wail rose in her throat. She felt sick. The branch swayed.
"Stop!" Bramblepaw screeched. He had reached the other side! "Stay still and wait for it to stop swaying!"
Shivering, Silverpaw obeyed. She tried to block out the roaring river and the howling wind, but couldn't.
"Now slowly set one paw in front if the other!" Bramblepaw called from the other side. Silverpaw obeyed again, wishing she were anywhere else except on this branch. I'd rather be in BoneClan than here! But she couldn't go back now. She had to reach the other end; Hailpaw was close behind her. Slowly, Silverpaw kept moving, focusing on Fallingpaw's quivering tail. Her sister had almost made it to the end. If they can do it, so can I!
Silverpaw struggled on through the blistering winds and the harsh rain. I'm almost there! She dug her claws deeper into the soggy, slippery wood. Suddenly, a frighteningly familiar scent crept into her nose. But before she could identify what it was, Fallingpaw let out acry of triumph.
She was about to step onto solid ground! To her horror, her sisters back paw skidded out from underneath her!
"No!" Silverpaw screeched. Fallingpaw was dangling from her front paws, clinging to the branch!
"Help me!" She wailed. Silverpaw darting forward. Big mistake. With a sickening, horrifying crack, she felt the branch give way below her. Hailpaw screeched as the branch snapped and they all plunged into the river.