Owlfeather's Flight

Prologue
Emptiness.
Emptiness was all Owlfeather could feel. It ran through his veins, through his brain, through his eyes, through his mouth. He could recall every moment when that ice cracked. He was broken. No, shattered. Something that couldn't be fixed. Cold water soaked through his pelt to his very bones. Shards of cracked ice hovered in the dark, frozen lake. The sorrowful cry of a Tom shrieked above the ice, his paws clinging over the edge of a bank blanketed in white snow. Owlfeather's pale, olive green eyes clouded with sadness as the tom's painful yowl appeared fuzzy in his feathered ears. What could he do? All Owlfeather saw was darkness, darkness, and more darkness beside the bubbles of air escaping his lungs. Large, then small, then smaller until the smallest. My life is worthless. Thought Owlfeather. The scene played over and over again. The heroic action masking raw guilt, aggression, and sadness.
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It was a cold day, and Owlfeather trotted along the flat terrain of a snow blanketed tundra with the Apprentice he had mentored for quite some time now. The dark brown Loner halted at the bank of a frozen lake,"It's best we do this later." he mumbled,"Why? It's just a bit of ice." the Apprentice snorted courageously. Owlfeather watched his actions and choice of tone, deciding to keep calm. The thick-furred tom turned and began trotting away from the lake the Apprentice following. The Apprentice gave his mentor a confused glance before following Owlfeather. He led the Apprentice through a small forest of spruce and pine trees. The pine trees would occasionally fall off their branches next to their paws.
All of a sudden, all Owlfeather could comprehend from behind him was a faint thud and a loud," Oof!" Owlfeather turned around skeptically, his tail sweeping over the thick layer of snow. He was met with the Bengal Apprentice he trained, buried in the snow due to his paws unable to hold him above the white, cold substance. Owlfeather chuckled aloud," Hugi! What are you doing in that snow? Your paws trembling too much?" Owlfeather continued to tease, lifting his front paw as if hesitant take a step forward. He knew about Hugi's behavior. The golden tom grumbled, glaring at his mentor with his piercing amber eyes. Hugi flattened his ears, growling in defense," It's not my fault I don't have thick fur." Owlfeather smirked teasingly," -And large paws." Hugi exhaled loudly, annoyed at Owlfeather's teasing. The Bengal tom tried to free himself, but failed at his first attempt," Alright, Hugi, time to get you out of here." purred Owlfeather, grabbing the Apprentice by his scruff and dragging him out of the pit of snow that nearly led to the ground. It was visible that the tips of grass blades poked through the surface. Hugi shook his fur vigorously, releasing snow that stuck to his rosette-spotted fur.  
"Today you're going to have your final hunting assessment." meowed Owlfeather as he gazed off into the near distance with is pale, olive green eyes. Hugi's golden eyes appeared to glow with excitement. He was excited to start his final hunting assessment. Has he really gone this far into this much training? Memories of his training appeared in his intelligent mind, purring softly at the thought. " What will I do?" Hugi meowed," You'll hunt five pieces of prey today. It has to be before sundown or else you'll fail. I set a path so you could use as many advantages as possible for your task." Owlfeather responded quickly. The dark brown tom faced away from the golden Apprentice,"You will take a trail I had marked for you, use your nose to lead you to it. Remember your basic training, Hugi." Hugi nodded, determination swelling in his chest, prepared to launch himself into the thick forest and complete his quest and move on. The golden Apprentice took a step forward, exchanging a nod with his mentor before darting through a thick bush.
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Owlfeather patiently waited, his tail elegantly wrapped around his large paws. The dark brown tabby mix flinched as rustling could be heard from the near distance. His feathered ears pricked, slightly leaning forward, ready to attack if an opponent appeared through the bush. The tom's hostile gaze flickered calm once Hugi leaped through the sharp bush of frosted heather. He held a mouse, which hung limply in his square jaws. Owlfeather purred gleefully," Wow, Hugi, how were you able to find such a plump mouse in this climate?" his jaws gaped open in disbelief," I know right? This is my best catch since New Leaf!" Hugi purred, " I got the rest of the prey. They're a little more scrawny than this mouse, but I accomplished my final hunting assessment! I did, didn't I?" Hugi's facial expression dropped, tilting his head slightly to the side curiously. Owlfeather nodded. The Bengal tom gasped happily as he dropped his mouse to retrieve the rest of his prey.
Soon the two cats finished nearly all of the prey, preserving the rest for future meals. Owlfeather arose to his large paws, standing still atop the snow. His facial expression appeared puzzled, confused, suspicious. Hugi picked up the remaining prey in his mouth. The Apprentice gazed at Owlfeather, slightly tilting his head before speaking," Owlfeather? Is there something wrong?" Owlfeather blinked multiple times, refocusing. He still appeared confused, giving Hugi a quick glance and gazing back to the vast forest. Did he see something? The Apprentice gave Owlfeather a nudge, ushering him back to their den. The two toms padded swiftly back to "camp", which appeared as a small gave that lead to the ground. They had warm bedding, fresh water, and plenty prey located there. Sometimes they'd have to defend the entrance from trespassing dogs, large birds, and other cats.
Hugi slipped through the cave's entrance, quickly disappearing into the darkness. Owlfeather swept his gaze over the landscape, he was skeptical over something. It was like he knew something was following him, but too cowardly to attack. He narrowed his pale, olive green eyes before he too disappeared through the den's entrance, Hugi waiting patiently for him. He padded efficiently to his warm nest, curling into a tight ball. His feathered ears stayed pricked, covering his muzzle with his fluffy tail, it was barely clear he mouthed words. Hugi exchanged a concerned glance with Owlfeather, the tom returned with a heavy sigh," I'm sorry, Hugi, I just... feel worried for you."
" Why? I'm perfectly fine!"
" But what if you aren't? I don't know what'd I would possibly do if I lost you."
" What do you mean?"
" It's hard to explain." Owlfeather meowed sternly," Now get some rest, tomorrow's sunrise will bring more training" Owlfeather flicked his tail. Hugi nodded silently, turning away from his mentor to drift quickly off to sleep. He watched the Bengal apprentice sympathetically before curling back into a tight ball, forcing himself to sleep.
He quickly awoke, his eyes slowly fluttering open. Owlfeather uncurled from his nest. He was surrounded by mist. He gazed at the terrain in front of him. Dark, crooked trees formed a woodland. The dark hazel Loner arose to his large paws, stepping out of his nest cautiously. He instantly jerked his paw back into the nest. There was a wet substance soaking the grass below his trembling body. The tom's gaze widened as he stared at a trail of blood, leading to the mysterious forest. Soon his curious intentions overwhelmed his mind. He stepped out of the nest, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling of blood creeping through the cracks in his paw pads. He soon continued, trotting faster and farther to the forest, soon located directly in the middle of the forest. Owlfeather panicked, he paced back and forth. His breathing rate increased, panicking.
Soon, a figure appeared through the shadows of the trees' thick branches. His fur was matted, patches of fur even appeared missing. Blood covered most of his fur. It ran across his face, dripping from the forearm to claw, sharp fangs stained a dark shade of crimson. Deep gashes and scratches scattered across his body as well, it was easy to predict that they've recently been in battle. The figure spoke wth a rasping tone," Hello, there. Are you lost? Or are you just confused about where you are?" Owlfeather replied shakily," Yes. Well, not really "yes". I mean b- b- both!" The figure's golden eyes flickered suspiciously. It leaped from the branch, landing squarely on its paws, revealing itself. It spoke with what Owlfeather guessed was a feminine voice speaking to him," Well, well, then. I guess you don't know where you are, nor who I am. That information is not important, though. What I do in fact know is who you are, and what you've done." the creature circled the tom. What Owlfeather didn't expect was what was about to happen next. The figure leaped onto Owlfeather, pinning him to the ground. She kept her paws firmly placed on his shoulders, thorn-sharp claws piercing his skin. The dark hazel tom yelped at the sudden movement. He soon came to his senses, kicking furiously at the opponent's stomach, flinging her off of him. Owlfeather scrambled to his large paws, immediately facing a blow to the face. It left a deep gash on his left cheek. Pain stung through his face, quickly spreading. Owlfeather panicked, immediately darting away from the creature, which he guessed was indeed a she-cat. The mysterious assassinator yowled aloud furiously," You worthless mongrel! You dare run away from me! I swear you're worst fears will come true!" Owlfeather didn't listen, all he had to do was run away from that cat, stay safe. Stay alive.
Owlfeather's eyes flew open. He panted, the dream startling him so too much that it woke him. He groaned quietly as a sharp pain burned at his left cheek. Blood seeped from his wound, the gash was torn deep into his face. Owlfeather immediately covered his wound with his paw, wiping all the blood that he could off of his face. The dark hazel tom uncurled from his nest and decided to go wash up the wound since he had nearly no knowledge of treating physical harm. He rose silently to his paws, crawling out of the nest and exiting the small den. Owlfeather padded along the surface of the snow, his large paws were able to hold his weight, keeping him from falling through the soft substance.  Thoughts passed Owlfeather's mind. They were mainly thoughts about his nightmare that he witnessed the night before. The assassination replayed over and over again. It felt as if the wound was cutting deeper, causing more agonizing pain. The tom shook his head vigorously, trying to set his mind off his rapid thoughts. Owlfeather inhaled deeply, his once tensely shut eyes fluttering open as he focused. His paws lightly tapped against the snow, through the everlasting forest that stretched farther than any eye could see.
The dark hazel tom paused as a large pond came into view. Owlfeather narrowed his pale eyes, resuming his deep thought as he padded aimlessly toward the iced over pond. He sat at its bank, staring blankly at the ice with pale, olive green eyes," I guess it's harder to stare at yourself when there's no water" the tom chuckled under his breath. He got to his paws, placing a one over the ice, applying a large amount of pressure to its surface to break through the sheet of the solid to get to fresh, untouched water. He inhaled, dipping his large, tan paw into the freezing cold water. The tom flinched, the water seeped through the paw's fur, stinging his skin. Owlfeather jerked his paw out of the water. He quickly wiped it over his wound, the blood now dry. It made it easier for him to clean the wound, but it still couldn't be treated. 
(WIP. Too lazy to finish this ATM.)
Category:Stories
Category:Cats