War

A full-moon glowed on smooth boulders, turning them silver. The silence was broken only by the ripple of water from the swift black river and the whisper of trees in the forest beyond.

There was a stirring in the shadows, and from all around lithe dark shapes crept stealthily over the rocks. Earth-shattering roars echoed through the night. Wary eyes flashed like amber. And then, as if on a silent signal, the creatures leaped at each other, and suddenly the rocks were alive with barys and raptors.

At the centre of the frenzy, a massive dark raptor pinned a bracken colored bary to the ground. “Riverstalker!” the raptor growled. “How dare you hunt in our territory? The Sarcorocks belong to RaptorClan!”

“After tonight, Brainbasher, this will just be another BaryClan hunting ground!” The bracken colored bary spat back.

A warning roar came from the shore. “Look out! More BaryClan warriors are coming!” Brainbasher turned to see barys sliding out of the water below the rocks. The drenched BaryClan warriors bounded silently up the shore and hurled themselves into battle.

The dark raptor glared down at Riverstalker. “You may swim like kapros, but you and your warriors do not belong in this forest!” He drew back his lips and showed his teeth as the bary struggled beneath him.

The desperate scream of a RaptorClan raptor rose above the clamor. A wiry BaryClan bary had pinned the flat on her belly. Now he lunged towards her neck.

Brainbasher heard the cry and let go of Riverstalker. With a mighty leap, he knocked the enemy warrior away from the raptor. “Quick, Jerboafur, run!” he ordered, before turning on the BaryClan bary who had threatened her. Jerboafur scrambled to her feet, wincing from a deep gash on her shoulder, and raced away.

Behind her, Brainbasher spat with rage as the BaryClan bary attempted to break his neck but clawed his back. Blood blinded him for an instant, but he lunged forward regardless and sank his teeth into the leg of his enemy. The BaryClan bary roared and struggled free.

“Brainbasher!” The screech came from a warrior with a tail as red as blood. “This is useless! There are too many BaryClan warriors!”

“No, Bloodtail. RaptorClan will never be beaten!” Brainbasher screeched back, leaping to Bloodtail’s side. “This is our territory!” Blood was welling around his broad black back, and he shook his back impatiently, scattering scarlet drops onto the rocks.

RaptorClan will honor your courage, Brainbasher, but we cannot afford to lose anymore of our warriors,” Bloodtail urged.”Manastar would never expect her warriors to fight against these impossible odds. We will have another chance to avenge this defeat.” He met Brainbasher’s amber-eyed gaze steadily, then reared away and sprang on to a boulder at the edge of the trees.

“Retreat, RaptorClan! Retreat!” he screeched. At once his warriors squirmed and struggled away from their opponents. Spitting and snarling, they backed towards Bloodtail. For a heartbeat, the BaryClan barys looked confused. Was this battle so easily won? Then Riverstalker roared a jubilant cry. As soon as they heard him, the BaryClan warriors raised their voices and roared.

Bloodtail looked down at his warriors. With a flick of his tail, he gave the signal and the RaptorClan raptors dived down the far side of the Sarcorocks, then disappeared into the trees.

Brainbasher followed last. He hesitated at the edge of the forest and glanced back at the bloodstained battlefield. His face was grim, his eyes furious slits. Then he leaped after his clan into the silent forest.

As Bloodtail prepared to go to sleep he felt something grabbing his neck. He turned his head to look and said “Well played Riverstalker.” And then he felt a crack and it all went black.

-Fenrir