Sophia's Vengeance: Wait 1

Sophia's Vengeance: Wait 1

**Wait 1** is an episode of *Sophia's Vengeance*.

## **Sophia's Vengeance: Wait 1 (The Oasis)**

The cats opened their eyes to find they were standing in the center of a barren desert. That was strange. They were laying down, but they didn’t even remember closing their eyes to go to sleep in the middle of a desert. Or even at all! As they pulled themselves to their paws, they realized they weren’t alone! Many other cats were around them, all looking as shocked as each other. They remembered agreeing to something . . . but they couldn’t remember what.

Just then, a cat seemed to shift and change into a massively pale cat with large, feathery wings. She seemed to slightly glow. “Greetings. I’m Sophia. And every single one of you has agreed to go through a few Tests, to see if you’re worthy of gaining powers and to help me destroy the ‘god’ who broke this world.”

The cats remembered now. They wanted powers, or to help save the world.

“It’ll be dangerous, and many of you may not make it, but in the end, everything in this life is survival of the fittest. But for now, rest, plan, prepare, meet some other cats, form allies, and decide who might be an enemy.” With that, Sophia vanished into thin air.

Looking around them, the cats could finally take in the whole of the desert. Cacti popped up from the ground in random places, and there was a single pool of water. Lizards scrambled over the occasional rocks.

Some cats seem to be trying to run away, but they just ended up turning back in defeat. It seemed that the desert would never let them leave. The Tests had begun.

Sage let out a tiny yawn as he scanned the camp. He couldn’t be bothered to meet those other cats. They all looked too suspicious. *Especially those Free Cats, those Wild Ones. . .* He didn’t want to talk to anyone anyway. It would draw too much attention to him. His matted pale gray pelt was bushed up, clearly showing fear and irritation. He had a few small feathers stuck in between his paw pad, much to his surprise. He didn’t bother plucking them out, though — it was less likely that he would lose them this way.

Flare chuckled softly to himself. He didn’t realize that these cats were already making alliances, but oh well. *I’d rather not, at least not right now,* he thought, purring softly. *I want to see what these cats are made of first.* Although he wouldn’t mind making an alliance now, he would rather wait until these cats showed their true colors — didn’t actions speak louder than words?

Spider blinked open his eyes, glancing around. *Wait, what?* That weirdo had actually done something? *Whoa.* He had thought it was just some weird joke — like a cat strapped feathers to themselves and pretended to be a god, or some crazy stuff like that. *Wow. That was unexpected.* Glancing around the cats in the desert, he shook some sand off his paws. *Yuck.* He hated the sand. It was so sticky and horrible and strange. And there was so much of it! Maybe he should just strike up a conversation with some cat — you know, make some allies, make some friends, maybe even find love. This was the sort of place that happened in cheesy romantic stories the older cats told. Finally settling on who he was going to talk to, avoiding the grumpy-looking cats who would probably rip his pelt off if he even tried to say hello to them — let alone be his usual flirty self — he walked up to a small but still mature-looking dark ginger tom. Trying to look vaguely dignified walking in the sand and failing at the same time, he swished his tail in annoyance and wrinkled up his nose before shaking himself out again. “Hey, handsome,” he mewed, hoping this tom wasn’t one of those cats who seemed to shrink in on himself when flirted with. Or if he was a cat not interested in other toms. That was always awkward.

Soren sneezed as the dust blew into his face. His fur fluffed out as he continued to sneeze, his eyes watering. “Ack! Help! Help me!”

Astyanax dragged a plump mouse that he had caught. “Anyone want to share?” he asked.

This was so cool! A massive desert stretched out before Vixen, and he flicked some sand up in the air with his tail, grinning as the wind picked it up and blew it backwards into his face. Giving a small cough to get it out of his nose, he rushed up to the closest cat he could see, a tom who was offering to share a mouse. “Ooh, yes, yes, yes, yes!” he mewed happily, swishing his tail from side to side. Sitting down next to the tom, he took a bite out of the mouse and grinned up at the cat. “My name’s Vixen!”

Astyanax felt a bit overwhelmed as the young tom bounded towards him. “Hi, Vixen,” he mewed. “I’m Astyanax. I used to be a City Cat, but now I’m Free. Where are you from?”

“I’m a Free Cat, but I don’t really care about the conflicts. But, to be honest, a little bit of conflict would have probably made my life less boring.” Annoyed, Vixen flicked some sand in the air, sending it spraying over both the cats. He shook out his fur, more sand falling onto Astyanax.

Astyanax sneezed and flinched. “Be careful,” he purred warmly.

Not really apologizing for shaking sand over him, Vixen smiled.

Astyanax smiled at Vixen.

Iseti awoke in the middle of a desert with no memory of anything before that moment. She saw cats all around her. She wanted to go up to another cat and ask what they were doing here, but was too nervous.

Swarm stretched, the scraggly tom’s jaws open wide in a yawn. He curled his tail, bits of fur clumped near the end, over his back. “Finally. . .” he murmured. “I’ve arrived.” He then proceeded to collapse on the ground and fall asleep, leaving him perfectly vulnerable for attack.

Clytemnestra narrowed her eyes at all the other cats interacting. She didn’t want to make friends or anything stupid like that. Nah, she would stay alone for her own safety. She jumped, catching a scrawny bird. She sat down and started eating.

“I don’t like this, Selene,” Helios said.

Selene said, her voice shaking, “The walls are closing in!”

Helios rubbed her paw with his. “No, Selene. They aren’t. You’re okay.”

Helios and Selene headed over to a group.

“Excuse me. Could someone explain what the Tests are?” Helios asked.

Selene wailed eerily. “Sophia is going to kill us! That’s why she brought us all here!”

Helios blushed, looking awkward. “No, Selene. She isn’t. We’re fine. I promise. I’m sorry, everyone. She’s had a rough life.”

Selene saw a tom. “He looks mean.”

“Selene! So sorry, sir. Um, she doesn’t . . . uh . . . sorry,” Helios said.

Dusk immediately began grooming off all the dust from her fur. In between licks, she explained what the desert looked like to Yarrow. “There’s a small pool of water, lizards are crawling everywhere, these weird, green, spiky things keep popping up everywhere—” She finished grooming and turned to face him. She could feel his hostility, but she ignored it. “Listen, we’ve got to stick together. If you get an ally, they’re my ally also. Same for enemies.”

Yarrow silently glared at where he knew Dusk was. “What? You don’t think I’m capable of surviving on my own?” he mewed angrily. “Just because I’m a poor, blind little kit? I’m the same age as you!” He stalked off in a huff. Why couldn’t Dusk just leave him alone once in a while? Just because he happened to be blind?

Dusk called after him.

Yarrow smelled her scent grow closer as if she was walking after him. He began to walk faster, and was so focused on getting away from Dusk, he ran into another cat. “Mouse-dung!” he muttered. Well, if this cat was going to claw him, they had another thing coming.

Helios snapped, “Watch it, mouse-brain.” He saw he was blind. “Oh . . . that changes things a bit. Just don’t hit me again.” He started to leave.

Selene said softly to Yarrow, “He doesn’t mean it. You look familiar . . . never mind.” She turned to leave, then jerked back, accidentally whacking Yarrow down. “Sorry!” She helped him up. “Are you alright?”

Yarrow rolled his eyes. “Of course I’m alright!” he snapped. He sniffed the air around the cat. “You’re a City Cat?” he accused, eyes flashing. “How could you ever stick with those mouse-brains?! And . . . how would you recognize me? Let me guess — that poor little blind kit that used to live in the City?” Before waiting for an answer, he turned and scented his sister in front of him.

“You can’t just walk away like that! What if—” Dusk said. She stopped when she saw Yarrow’s smoldering gaze.

“Leave me alone! I don”t want to talk to you! I can deal with life just fine!” Yarrow walked away again. He needed someone that would see past his blindness, past his rudeness. But who?

Dusk padded to the cat that Yarrow was talking to. “Sorry about my brother,” she mewed. “He can be such a mouse-brain sometimes. What’s your name?”

Selene sighed, sadly, her tail twitching and ears flat. She gazed after Yarrow, her eyes sad. “My name is Selene, and this is—”

Helios broke in, his tail kinked above his back. “I’m Helios. Was your father a thief? He must have been, because he clearly took the stars from the sky and placed them in your eyes.”

Selene narrowed her eyes and turned away, her eyes filled with tears. Of course Helios would flirt with every she-cat but her. She looked back as she felt Dusk gazing at her.

Silver Shard shook her head. *Mitä?* This was . . . this was nothing like she had expected. But also . . . amazing. Where was she? Africa? Asia? Certainly not Finland anymore. She shook her head again. *Unbelievable.* She shook her head and looked up. What was this . . . this place? She sighed, knowing she needed to befriend someone quickly. She knew that she needed an ally, at least one. She didn’t want one, but she knew it. Her paws took her over to the nearest cat. “So, um, I’m Silver Shard. And I guess we’re going to have to have allies, so. . .”

Granite felt hot, so he sat up and licked himself, spitting out sand. Noticing a pool of water, he waded in and sighed as water went through to his skin, making him cool down. Cats were around him and he decided to talk to someone. After he felt cold enough, he walked over to a scarred white, brown, and red tom. “Hey! I’m Granite. I’m from the City.”

Two cats had padded up to Nyx, and he rolled his eyes. Really? Why him? “Allies. Sure, I’m going to obviously want to be allies with random cats I’ve never met and don’t even know,” he growled at the she-cat, turning his head to the other tom. “Finally, a cat who actually knows right and wrong. Same here. I’m Nyx.”

“What are we actually doing here?” Shard said, showing her tough side. “And City Cats are always snobs. Up in the mountains, you learn everything you need to when you’re a kit.” She sat down. “I’m not saying I don’t like City Cats, though. I’m Silver Shard. Valitsin väärän kissan.”

Nyx’s muzzle drew back in a snarl, and he took a few steps closer to Silver Shard, unsheathing his claws. “City Cats are snobs, are they? We learned how to fight cats like you from the moment we could walk, and we loved it. But I’m sure you don’t believe me, so why don’t you test out that theory of yours?” He threw himself at Silver Shard, trying to barrel her over and hopefully hurt her in any way he could.

Shard ducked. “I was kidding.” She smiled. She decided not to provoke a fight, so she stood still.

Granite smiled. “Yeah. I used to live as an Independent with my dad. Turns out he was the leader of a group, so I went to the City. It’s much better there than in that forest.”

“Huh. Forest cat blood — but I suppose you’re not all bad. Those Wild Ones are all bad. They killed my mate Oak, and he was a good cat. I’ll never forgive them.” Even as Nyx was talking to Granite, he was scanning around for any cats that might be from the Plains.

“I’m sorry.” Granite said. “Those cats were bad, but that doesn’t mean everybody is.” Making sure to stay on Nyx’s good side, he added, “But rather be safe than sorry, I guess.”

Cutting Granite a sharp glare, Nyx hissed, “I’m not going to change my mind, especially if you’ve seen the number of deaths I have. Wild Ones don’t know what the word mercy means.” Preparing for whatever the tom would say next, he unsheathed his claws.

Granite looked after Nyx and shrugged. “Never said they were all good. Which is true. Plenty of cats, especially Wild Ones, are mean. I’ve just met some before, and a few were nice,” he called after him as he left to talk to someone else. He looked around for another cat to talk to after his horrible conversation with Nyx.

Astyanax watched the two cats talk and decided to join. “I’m Astyanax,” he said. “I used to live in the City. . .”

Turning to Astyanax, Granite meowed, “I’m Granite.”

Cloud Chaser surveyed the large group of cats. She didn’t see anyone she recognized, which wasn’t too surprising. She didn’t know many cats — or rather, any cats. But she did know that all of the cats here had also accepted the goddess Sophia’s offer, and were here to test and see if they were strong enough to take on Harnor, the god who had destroyed their world. Maybe she should try and make some friends? She wasn’t the best at throwing herself into the crowd. Maybe she should just wait and see if someone approached her. She sat down on the dusty ground and waited, trying not to look standoff-ish. She saw a she-cat sitting by herself and decided to talk to her. “Hello,” she meowed. “My name is Cloud Chaser. What’s yours?”

“Hi,” Shard replied in a cold voice. “I’m Silver Shard. This place is. . .”

“Intense? Weird? Crazy?” Cloud supplied.

“Perfect summary,” Shard said.

Helios padded over and licked his paw. “Hello.”

Selene bounced along beside him and stopped, flashing a look at the she-cat.

Helios meowed, “What’s your name?”

Selene saw the fluffy white cat before Helios. She tried to steer him away.

Helios swished his tail and padded to the waiting she-cat.

Selene huffed and followed.

Yeong’s fur felt hot. *Maybe I shouldn’t have agreed to this. None of these cats really seem to look like Fuzz,* he thought to himself, shifting his paws. *And none of them look friendly.* Then again, Sophia had told them to make allies and decide who would be enemies. He didn’t want to make allies; what if they betrayed him? *Then don’t get close to anyone, idiot.* But what if he *did*? Pushing the thoughts away, he let out a small sigh. Coming here was probably a mistake; but then again, he didn’t want to — and couldn’t — back down now. His gaze scanned the barren desert, his vision slightly blurry. The cats around him were either mingling or keeping to themselves, from what he could tell. *I should try making some allies,* he decided, although he was unsure. *But I’ll wait. Whoever wants to be my ally can come to me themselves. I just need to think.* Sitting back on his haunches, he shut his eyes and let out a tiny groan. *I miss Fuzz.*

Bluebell’s fur raised in alarm before padding over to a scarred tom. She let out a small gasp at the state of him. “What happened to you?” She quickly shut her mouth, blushing bright red. “S-sorry! Um . . . my name is Bluebell. What’s yours?” *You’re so dumb, Bluebell.*

Yeong felt his paws go numb. *I didn’t think anyone would actually come and talk to me!* Trying to keep his calm composure intact, he let out a tiny sigh. “It’s alright. It’s common to see cats with scars such as these during these times. At least for me, it’s been,” he mumbled. His shoulders sagged. “I’m Yeong. Nice to meet you, Bluebell.”

Dawnstrike pulled her sparrow over to where a group of cats were sitting. “Hi,” she said. She had heard that the first Test was starting soon. She hoped she would have a friend by then.

Bluebell torted over as well, hoping another introduction would work. At least it was two cats this time! “Hi! I’m Bluebell! Dawnstrike — okay. That’s kind of a weird name. Are you a Free Cat?”

“Yes,” Dawnstrike replied. “And Dawn was my mother’s name and Strike was my father’s, so . . . I’m Dawnstrike.”

“Oh.” Bluebell’s tail wrapped around her paws as she smiled. “Then I guess my name would be . . . Moonrobin . . . that’s pretty cool!”

Dawnstrike smiled. “A robin flying over the moon . . . that’s pretty.”

Cloud ate a squirrel.

Dawnstrike came over. “Hi,” she said. “I’m Dawnstrike. What’s your name?”

Cloud interrupted the conversation. “Hello, my name is Cloud Chaser.”

Oliver stared at the cats, feeling angry and somewhat alone as he longed to feel the fur of his friends’ on his again. The Virginian snarled and began pacing around angrily. He then saw a tom and wondered whether he could talk to him. He shrugged. *And what do I have to lose?* As he padded over to him, he sat down next to him. “You alrigh’?” the Virginian mewed, his mew full of suspicion.

“I’m fine. Thank you for asking,” Yeong murmured, his voice soft. He didn’t want to be here anymore. He just wanted to go home, back with Fuzz. *I made such a mistake.*

Oliver sighed. “Anyone who wants to make an allegiance with a Virginian cat, come here!” he yowled loudly, his accent full of resignation. “It ain’t gon’ hurt.”

Helios came over, looking relieved. “Hello. What’s your name? I’m Helios. This is my . . . uh . . . friend . . . Selene.”

Selene smiled warmly at him. “Hello, sir. Your accent is funny. I like it! Can we be friends?”

“Hmm. Okay,” Oliver mewed, staring at Selene and Helios. “We can be friends if you like.” His southern Virginian accent was strong. “But betray me—” he laughed like a psychopath “—and ah’ll have yer pelt on mah wall.” He then thought of Flame and regret pulled at his stomach, and tears slowly dripped down his face. He rubbed his eyes with his tail.

Helios touched his shoulder. “Are you okay?”

Selene whimpered and touched her nose to Oliver’s shoulder. She whispered, “I know how much losing someone hurts. I’m sorry.”

Helios had wandered, attempting to communicate with Oliver again. He stood, his tail swishing over the ground, his eyes narrowed. “Maybe Selene is right . . . Sophia could be trying to hurt us,” he muttered. He looked around, searching for a possible ally. He found none. Suddenly, he felt so alone. He looked down, blinking back tears. *Mom,* he thought, *come back.* He looked around, then sprinted away into the woods and lifted his muzzle to the sky. He yowled a lonely sound, letting all of his sorrow wash out.

Selene yelped, her fur prickling. She turned around and wailed, “Helios? Where are you?” There was no reply, and she collapsed, trembling.

Dusk heard a wail and saw that the she-cat she had talked to earlier — Selene? — was wailing. She padded over to her. She stopped and sat next to her. “Are you alright?” she mewed, a bit concerned.

Selene looked at Dusk. “H-Helios is g-gone! I can’t f-find him! Sophia will kill me! And Helios can’t protect me!” She buried her muzzle into her paws with another wail, then started shaking.

Helios fell to the ground with a groan. He stood shakily and turned his muzzle to the sky. Was a star glowing brighter? He stepped forward, and — tripped. Of course. He grunted and tugged his paw from out from under the root, and gritted his teeth. He heard someone’s wail. It was feathery and light. He looked up so sharply his neck hurt. He raced back to the clearing. *“Selene!”* He burst into the clearing. *“Selene!”* He saw Selene shivering by a she-cat — Dusk? — and barreled into her. “Stay away from Selene,” he growled, lashing his tail.

Selene pulled herself to her paws and placed her paws on his shoulder. “Helios, stop it! Du-Dusk was seeing if I was alright.”

Helios flattened his ears. “Sorry, Dusk! I thought you were doing something to her. Are you alright?” He helped Dusk up.

Dusk smirked. “Don’t worry. I’ve survived worse. You should see my brother.” She rolled her eyes. Her gaze softened a little thinking of Yarrow. “I don’t know where he is. I’m worried about him. He’s been blind since birth and has an awful temper. You’ve seen that already.” She hesitated. “I can be overprotective sometimes, but I just want what’s best for him. What should I do?”

Helios flicked his tail over the ground, gazing at Dusk. “Don’t treat him like a kit, for one. He’s as old as you, I’m sure. Treat him like that; only baby him if it’s necessary. Which it almost never will be. I hope that works, but I never had any littermates.”

Selene looked around. There was something . . . off . . . about this place. She felt like she should know one of the cats she had seen. A handsome golden-brown tom. . . She looked at Dusk. “Dusk . . . do you know a tom named Berry? His mate’s name is River. He’s golden-brown and . . . well, as much as I hate to admit it, handsome.”

Helios twitched. She had a crush?! His thoughts whirled. He closed his eyes and meowed to Selene, “Was he friends with a tom named Brick?”

Selene nodded.

Helios’s blood turned to acid and he leaped at her. “You were so close to a cat who was friends with the tom who almost broke my mind, Selene! How could you?! How could you keep that from me. . .?”

Selene looked guilty, but she still wailed in fear.

Helios’s blood turned to ice. “You mouse-hearted coward,” he spat. He turned and shoved past Dusk, leaving Selene and Dusk alone.

Aeroki tilted their head in confusion. Where was she? *It doesn’t feel like home . . . it doesn’t smell like home. . .* Looking down at her paws, they noticed that there was a strange substance underneath her paws. *Whoa . . . that’s . . . not grass. . .* It felt nice in between the cracks in her paws, and they liked the soft feel it had to it; this was nothing like the grass that the Free Cats roamed on. Feeling her stomach rumble, she bent down, put her muzzle to the soft stuff, and gazed at it. Their gaze briefly flickering up to the cats around her, she guessed that maybe some cat would know what this was. “Is the soft stuff edible?” she asked, although not loud enough to create a scene.

A cat next to Rapid turned and mewed, “Is the soft stuff edible?” Swinging her head around, she glared at the cat. “Of course it is! Have you never tried eating it before? It tastes really good. Go on — try some.” She turned away and rolled her eyes at the ridiculous she-cat. Sand? Edible. This was going to be hilarious. “Come on. Eat up, you idiot,” she mumbled under her breath, too quietly for the cat to hear.

Aeroki lapped up the soft stuff, her stomach still churning. Spitting out the sand, the black she-cat with white flecks let out a soft groan of displeasure that it was rough and rocky on her tongue. “That tastes like grass, but it’s rocky,” she commented.

Letting out a laugh, Rapid rolled her eyes at the ridiculous cat. Was she serious? She hadn’t thought she would actually eat the sand. This was better than she had thought! “You idiot. Of course it’s not edible. It’s sand. Do you have bees in your brain? Oh, wait. What’s a brain? You wouldn’t know — that’s for sure.” Lifting her head up high, she strutted off. “What a loser,” she said, just loud enough for the other cat to hear.

Aeroki followed the she-cat, slightly intrigued by her demeanor. *What’s a “loser?”* they mused inside their head, padding after the black she-cat. This cat bothered to talk to her, so why couldn’t they at least try to make conversation? “What’s a loser?” they asked, tilting her head.

Was this cat serious? *Uhh.* She was honestly ridiculous, and was following Rapid. Why was she even following her? She could go and claw her ears off right now! Or . . . maybe it would be more fun to ruin the little cat’s hopes of friendship. “A loser is a stupid, annoying cat who follows other cats who don’t give two fox-dungs about them or their little foolish fantasies of friendship,” she growled at the other cat.

Gazing at the black she-cat, Aeroki felt a rush of excitement course through her veins. *She’s funny!* she thought — although her posture didn’t give away her excitement. However, she was at least a little bamboozled by the word “fantasies.” What are those? “Uh . . . what’s a fantasy? Can you eat it?”

*“Ugh,”* Rapid cried, sinking her claws into the sand, her tail swishing violently from side to side. Had there been a rock, she would have probably bashed her head against it in frustration. She couldn’t even be mean to this cat! “I’m not translating every single word I speak just because a stupid cat doesn’t know anything!”

Aeroki tilted her head — was the cat getting annoyed with her? Pushing away the thought, she didn’t want to seem like she cared too much about what this she-cat thought of them. “What does translate mean?” she thought aloud, although she didn’t mean to say that. *Mouse-dung!*

“Argh.” Rapid lashed out a claw at Aeroki, but missed massively. Storming off, she decided she was done with this mouse-brained cat.

Although the she-cat clearly wanted to be left alone, Aeroki couldn’t help but wonder why this cat was so aggressive, even for a split second. *Did . . . did something happen to you that made you so angry like this?* they wanted to ask, although prying might upset the cat even more. Despite her inner instinct telling her not to, she padded up to the she-cat — although she got the hint that she wanted to be left alone. “Why are you always so mad?” she asked in a hushed whisper.

Why was this cat following Rapid again? Seriously, were social cues not a thing she understood? Well, she wasn’t going to say that out loud. She would probably be asked what it meant! “I’m so mean, as you say, because cats deserve it. The only way to become truly great is to leave everyone else in the dust while you keep on going.”

“But is being truly great really worth it in the end without the other parts of life? It sounds . . . like a hole. Or a pit. Or something that’s empty,” Aeroki mewed, her voice quiet. She didn’t want to anger the she-cat any more, but she felt like she needed to say something. *Before she tells me to be quiet or shut up or something like that. Again.* “By your meaning of being truly great, it sounds like cats wouldn’t like you too much. You would probably be remembered in a really, really bad way if you just did . . . what you described just then. It’s . . . not a good feeling.” She didn’t want to elaborate for now, simply just staying quiet after speaking.

Helios padded to a she-cat. “Are you okay?” he asked, tilting his head to look curiously at the other cat. His blood was still boiling. Why should he have ever trusted Selene? He waited for her to answer, gazing curiously at her. *She’s . . . beautiful,* he thought. He then mentally smacked himself. The last she-cat he had thought to be beautiful was Selene. That dirty traitor.

*Great. Now yet another cat is approaching me. At least he’s a vaguely less annoying mouse-brain — so far, anyway.* And he was looking at her funny. Weird guy. Rapid would have to try and work out what he was staring at her for. Was he trying to work out her weakness to take her down? “Just being aggravated by a stupid loser who doesn’t know anything and won’t leave me alone,” she stated bluntly, swishing her tail, still annoyed. Ignoring the tom for a second, she tilted her head to hear the other cat’s words. For once, she was actually not speaking complete and utter nonsense or sounding like an idiot. What an achievement for her. *Yay.* “Other cat’s opinions are just a casualty in the search for being truly great. Once you know you’re the best, what other cats think of you is so insignificant it doesn’t even warrant considering.” Smirking down at the other she-cat, she raised her eyebrows. “I bet you didn’t understand half of what I just said, did you? And if you’re going to keep tagging along like that, you might as well know that my name is Rapid. That way, you can tell other cats who I am after my patience inevitably runs dry and I leave you with a few wounds to remember me by.” Glancing around the other cats, her eyes caught on a certain pelt. That cat seemed familiar. But it couldn’t be. Pixie was too much of a wimp to be here.

Helios *mrrowed* with laughter and glanced back to where Selene was talking to Dusk. “Trust me — I think I know how that feels. When Selene and I first met, she wouldn’t leave me alone. But I got used to it.” He flicked his ears and turned to the other cat. “Why don’t you leave her alone?” he asked, tilting his head. “Actually, I think you’re right,” he said to the other cat. “Why bother with another cat’s opinions? They don’t matter overall. The only thing that matters is being great. Being powerful,” he added as he sank his claws into the sand, narrowing his eyes. “And besides, trusting cats is dangerous,” he said, bitterness about Selene seeping into his voice. He thought he felt a feather-soft pelt brush his. He flinched and closed his eyes, then turned to Rapid. “Are you making allies?” he asked, sweeping his tail over the ground.

“None of your business,” Aeroki snapped. Surprisingly, a flicker of annoyance fluttered in her chest. *Did I just snap at someone? I mean . . . I’m not usually angry.* “Sorry if I sound grumpy. The soft stuff is still on my tongue, and it’s still bothering me. . .” They shrugged their shoulders, still facing the she-cat. “That’s fair enough.” Then she turned over towards the tom, completely bamboozled. She tilted her head. Wasn’t this cat just spouting out about not trusting cats? “Judging by the way you’re mooning over her, I would guess you’re thinking of making allies with her.” After thinking it over for a bit, she added, “Isn’t that just a tiny bit hypocritical? And I may be stupid, but I’m not that stupid.”

Rapid rolled her eyes at the tom. He was obviously madly in love with this cat Selene, but hated to admit it. And now he was trying to turn to her. *Great. Really great.* Wasn’t this whole place just so much fun? Part of her kind of wanted to defend the other she-cat. Okay, she was being annoying, but it was none of this tom’s business. He was being a hypocrite anyway, hanging around with her when she didn’t want him here, just like the other she-cat did. At least she didn’t look like she was mooning over her. “Hypocrite,” she hissed under her breath, just loud enough for him to hear.

Helios flattened his ears and ignored her. She had no right to call him a hypocrite. He turned to the other cat. “Do you mean the sand? Why would you eat it? Haven’t you seen it before?” He realized that was a stupid question, so he added, “What’s your name?”

As Helios asked Aeroki about the sand, Rapid sniggered, putting a paw over her mouth to stop herself from bursting into a fit of uncontrollable laughter. Looking at Aeroki, she smiled quickly. “You know that when two cats call you a hypocrite in one day, it’s probably true, right?” She laughed, especially as Aeroki had just called Helios out for mooning over her. Perhaps she wasn’t so bad after all. “For someone who’s trying to be nice, that wasn’t a bad mean comment. Congratulations.”

“Having an ally doesn’t always mean trust. It means not picking a fight with them. And . . . that was actually kind of hypocritical, I suppose.” Helios turned and padded away, his eyes on the sky. Then he halted and turned back to Rapid and Aeroki. He studied them for a few seconds. When he had what he *hoped* was a good sense of their weaknesses, he turned and left. Then he stopped again and called back to Aeroki, “I don’t moon over cats. I fight them.” And he left again.

Looking at Rapid, Aeroki smiled a little bit. “Well, um . . . thanks, I guess?” They turned their head to face Helios. She tilted her black-and-white flecked head in confusion. She called, “Yeah, and hedgehogs fly!”

Rapid grinned at Aeroki. This cat was cooler than she had first thought! Helios seemed to be looking more out-of-place by the second. “So do we all agree that this cat is the biggest hypocrite here?”

Selene stared up at the sky where Helios’s snarling face had just been. She turned her head to Dusk. “Dusk? Take this off,” she said, flicking her tail at the bandanna.

Dusk used her teeth to try and take off Selene’s bandanna. “Honestly, why do you stick with Helios? If he’s not your littermate, then why would you put up with that fox-heart? He’s worse than Yarrow, and that’s saying something!”

Selene felt Dusk tug at the bandana. “Stop it, Dusk. It won’t come off,” she meowed. She looked around. “Well,” she meowed, looking back up at Dusk. Her heart stopped for a moment when Dusk met her gaze. “I was originally just scared. Then . . . I . . . I fell in love with him.” She closed her eyes and whispered, “Look what I got for trusting a cat.” She looked at Dusk, her eyes wide. “Dusk . . . could I stick with you? I don’t want to be around Helios . . . and you’re the only other cat I know.” She gazed at Dusk and felt something break. Her gaze slipped past Helios.

Helios was gazing at a she-cat in total adoration.

Selene’s eyes widened and she stood. She started to pad over to Helios. To beg him for forgiveness. She looked at Dusk and stepped away. She glared at Helios. She spat, “Stupid furball!” just loud enough for Dusk to hear. She turned to Dusk. “Why don’t we go hunt? I’m starving.”

Helios sat down and licked his paw. His paws itched to carry him back to Selene. *Never,* he thought. He heard pawsteps and looked up. A few cats walked by, chatting. His heart ached. He looked down, his ear flat against his head. He swallowed and whispered, “I’ll never go back.” But he stood and shakily padded to Selene. “S-Selene?”

Selene turned, her eyes wide. “Helios,” she spat, narrowing her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Helios meowed, stopping a few tail-lengths away. “I just . . . I guess I couldn’t believe that you—”

Selene tackled him and licked his face. “I’m so sorry, Helios!” she purred. She moved away.

Helios stood, his tail lifting.

Selene meowed, “I didn’t know that he was Brick’s friend. I promise.”

Helios purred and meowed, “I know.” He was feeling happy to be with his friend again. He turned to Dusk and said, “I’m sorry you had to see me like that, Dusk.” He felt embarrassment burn through his pelt.

Selene looked between them, her eyes sharp.

“When I was a kit, my mother got murdered by a tom named Brick. I was left on my own. I lived alone until I found Selene. . .” Helios sat down and twisted to lick his tail, then turned back to Dusk and Selene. “I guess I was being a flea-brain,” he meowed.

Selene nodded sheepishly, her eyes glittering. She felt a tug on her heart. Helios was back! She looked at Dusk, her eyes shining. She tried to contain her pleasure. . . “So are we hunting, or. . .?” She flicked her tail.

Hobbling on her bad paw, Chi sighed. Why did she agree to this? Sure, she didn’t want to live in the outskirts of the City being poor, but a desert? This was like, a million times worse. *Mamma and Papa would have never wanted this for me,* she thought. *They would have gotten me out of this.* As she walked up to a group of cats, she held her head high as usual. Just because her paw was hurt didn’t take away from her obvious beauty. “Hello! I’m Chi. What are your names?” Shamelessly, she winked at the handsome golden tom.

Helios ignored the she-cat, meaningfully pressing his side against Selene.

Selene smiled at the she-cat, slipping her tail intertwined with Helios’s. “I’m Selene, and this is Helios.”

Helios suddenly realized he was acting a bit strange. He nudged Selene and padded to Chi’s side, smiling. “Hello, beautiful,” he purred.

As Helios called her beautiful, Chi gave a slightly shy smile, glancing back at Helios. “Oh, I’m not that beautiful. At least not with this paw.” She lifted up her twisted paw above the sand and quickly put it back down with a grimace. *Ouch. That hurt.* Toms never liked a she-cat who was too arrogant, so you couldn’t admit that you knew how beautiful you were when talking to them. “You, on the other hand, are incredibly handsome.” She gave him a small smile, looking right into his eyes with a soft, kind gaze. “So, handsome, what’s your name? Or should I just keep calling you gorgeous?”

Selene padded over with Dusk, then stuttered slightly when she realized that this could be another kind of Helios. She narrowed her eyes briefly. Curse her brain. She wished she was like Helios. Able to be calm and confident, good-looking and funny. Dusk was like that too. She couldn’t stop herself from glancing at the pretty she-cat. Then she said, “What’s your name? I’m Selene.”

“I’m Granite,” replied Granite to Selene. “I’m from the City.”

“Nice to meet you,” Selene meowed. She had wandered away when Helios had started talking to Chi and went back to Granite. “I’m a City Cat too.”

Clytemnestra joined, seeing cats break into groups. She saw a tom she recognized from her youth in the City and scooted farther away. *Never again.* Those City Cats were too ambitious and reckless and concerned only for themselves.

*A desert?* Well, Cherry was going to go get some water. This sun was killing her. She trotted briskly to the pool and started lapping up the water.

Racing up to the other cat, Hazelglow grinned happily. “Heya! This looks so cool, doesn’t it? I’ve seen deserts, but never this big! It’s so cool.” She sat down next to the other cat, fiddling with a rock, which then splashed into the pool, splashing water in the other cat’s face. She desperately tried to stop herself from laughing.

“Pfft.” Cherry squeezed her eyes shut and shook herself, hopefully spraying the other cat. Who *was* she? “I’m not quite fond of deserts. It’s too sunny. Who are you?”

Getting sprayed in the face with water or sand — Hazelglow wasn’t sure which — she didn’t budge away. The sand was quite nice and warm, actually. “Oh, I’m Hazelglow! My name is a little weird.”

“Alright. Hi, Hazelglow. I’m Cherry.” Thinking of Hazelglow’s weird name, Cherry added, “Just Cherry. Nothing else.”

Hazelglow giggled as Cherry quickly added in that there was nothing else after her name. “You’re funny! What do you think of this place?”

“It’s way too hot. It’s kind of pretty, though, I guess. Do you like it here?” Cherry asked. “So, Hazelglow? I’m feeling kind of bored. Maybe it’s the endless sand everywhere. Do you want to go meet some more cats? Bump into them; maybe start some fights?”

“Ooh. Yes, yes, yes! Let’s go and talk to some other cats. I don’t want any fights, though. Fighting is horrible!” Hazelglow was nearly bouncing up and down with excitement now, but quickly stopped as she had a little coughing fit. Great. She had thought maybe being transported by a god would stop her breathing problems, but apparently not.

Cherry quickly ran to Hazelglow’s side. Was she sick? *Choking?* “Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

As Cherry went to comfort her, Hazelglow stretched out a paw, taking in deep breaths slowly. When she was finally able to breathe normally again, she lifted her head and smiled at Cherry. “Don’t worry. I’m fine. I just have breathing problems, that’s all. It doesn’t bother me too much.”

“Oh, well, if you won’t die, I guess you’re fine? Does it hurt?” Cherry asked.

It was rare cats actually cared whether Hazelglow’s breathing problems hurt her. They usually just accepted she had a problem and moved on with their lives. “I guess it sort of does? Not much, though; kind of more of a tingly scratching at the back of my throat and in my chest sometimes. It does mean I get unwell more easily, though, and that when I do get sick, it’s a whole lot worse.”

Iris blinked her eyes, confused. The small golden she-cat couldn’t remember having ever been in a place as sandy or empty as this. *Where am I?* she thought. *Where’s my family?* All around, there was sand, sand, nothing but sand . . . and cats. Cats she had never seen before. Some cats were huddled together in small groups of one or two. Others were talking. And two were fighting violently, trying to tear out each others’ throats. She gulped and tried to shy away, but she had been asked to make alliances. And it definitely didn’t hurt to talk to strange cats. Two she-cats were talking, and they looked nice. *Now or never,* she thought, and boldly walked up to the pair. “Hey!” she chirped with a smile. “I’m Iris! This sand is weird, huh? Does anyone know what the heck is going on?” She shifted her paws. The two she-cats seemed nice, but then again, not everybody was getting along nicely at the moment. What if the cats didn’t like her because she was Free?

Cherry and Hazelglow exchanged a glance.

Iris blurted apologetically, “. . . I — I mean, if you don’t mind me asking you. If not, I can find someone else.” She began to turn away.

Yarrow sat at the edge of the small desert-place. He silently glared at all the cats, even though he could see none of them. He hoped that none of them would approach him.

Hazelglow padded over to a yellow tom. “Hi!” she chirped cheerfully. “What’s your name? I’m Hazelglow!” She smiled, not noticing how hostile he looked or that he was blind.

Yarrow eyed the she-cat, a bit wary. “Hello,” he mewed, wondering when she would notice his blindness. That’s what they all see. *The poor, blind kitty who needs help,* he thought in disgust.

Dawna excitedly swished her tail once she realized that she was really there. *But now what?* she wanted to ask. Looking around the other cats in the clearing, she felt the urge to talk to someone, except for the fact that they all seemed tense, angry, or nervous. M*aybe I shouldn’t, then . . . I don’t want to start a fight on my first day!* She mulled it over for a second and added, *Even if I’m a City Cat.*

Walking up to another cat at random, Pixie smiled at her. She looked friendly enough. “This is crazy, isn’t it? Cats are willing to fight and risk themselves for selfish, stupid reasons.” Realizing she sounded very hypocritical, she shuffled her paws nervously. “Oh, I’m not here for the power. I just want to make sure cats don’t die. I guess you can take me as the group’s medic.”

Dawna smiled back at the cat. This cat seemed nice enough, and hopefully she could be trusted. “I don’t want to see cats get hurt either,” the she-cat mewed softly, nodding in agreement. “My name is Dawna. Yours?”

“I’m Pixie. Dawna is a really pretty name; I like it. It kind of reminds me of watching the sun rise over the horizon back at home. Before everything went downhill, that is.” Sweeping her tail around her paws, Pixie began to groom herself nervously. Between the crowds of cats, she had seen Rapid . . . and another cat she had wished to never spot again. “This whole thing scares me. I’m not sure what to think of Sophia. She seems to have a good reason to move cats here, but something seems wrong.”

“Thanks. Your name is pretty too.” Dawna nodded. “It’s really weird. I don’t know why Sophia would ask so many cats, let alone them all agreeing! But then again, I guess I did too. . .” She glanced around their surroundings, seeing other cats making allegiances. Turning back to Pixie, she meowed, “I also have a bad feeling about this.”

Shaking the tickly sand out of her fur, Pixie nodded slowly at Dawna. “I get what you mean; there’s just something off about this all. Why does she care so much? The world is already broken, and revenge is just a stupid idea.” As she scanned through the crowds, she caught sight of a pelt that she knew she would see among the cats. Her sister, Wild Rush of Rapids. Exactly as she had thought, Rapid had come here to get all the power for herself. And probably kill a few cats along the way. Nudging Dawna gently, she cast a nervous gaze over at Rapid. “A word of advice — avoid that black cat over there. She’s mean; really mean. I’ve had a few run-ins with her before, and none of them were good.” She decided that leaving out the bit about this awful cat being her sister was probably for the best.

Surrounded by non-City Cats and half-City Cats who seemed less loyal to the City than the rats that sometimes infested it, Nyx decided to talk to a cat who actually looked like he was a City Cat. Lots of scars, the beautiful accessories that you could find under the rubble of a fallen City; this cat was from there. Undecided whether this cat looked like one he would be able to flirt with, he rolled his eyes. Of course he would flirt with him. “Heya. Beautiful necklace, just like your eyes. I’m Nyx from the City, like I assume you are. What’s your name?”

Yeong stifled a purr, his pelt growing even hotter. “Yeong. Also from the City. Didn’t realize that other City Cats were here.”

Smiling at Yeong, Nyx purred. “Yep. Though there seem to be very few who seem to actually be loyal City Cats! I heard one earlier say he didn’t mind Wild Ones or Deserters! So why are you here? I just want to be able to help the City. My mate died fighting a group of Wild Ones, and I want to avenge him. The cat who killed him didn’t even seem like she was trying.” He shook his head, looking away to try and stop the tears from rolling. He did miss Oak every day. The tom had used to bring him odd things he found in the City, as he knew he loved them.

Yeong sighed. He didn’t want to reveal too much to Nyx, even though the tom seemed alright. *Don’t want to make enemies — but I don’t want to be stabbed in the back so easily.* “I’m here because my brother Fuzz, well . . . the Free Cats got to him, as well as my mother. Although they just crippled Fuzz. Kinda just here to right some wrongs against the City Cats,” he mewed.

Nyx nodded at Yeong, resting his paw on the other cat’s shoulders. Thinking about it, at least Oak had gone the way he would have wanted. The bouncy tom would have hated being unable to help fight, and it would have broken him. But at least then he could have been there to help him through it. “I’m sorry. The Wild Ones have done us all wrong, and I hate that they act like we’re the brutal ones. Do you want to stick together?” He knew it was foolish trusting a cat he had just met, but Yeong seemed like him; a cat who had lost so much and been pushed into this whole mess because of it.

Yeong nodded. “Yes. It would be wise to stick together.” *Did I make the right choice?* he asked himself in his head. Although this Nyx was a good cat from what he knew so far, he couldn’t trust this cat right away. But then again, as far as he knew, every other cat in here was a stranger, and soon the Tests would begin. *And an ally would be nice.*

As Yeong seemed slightly hesitant to answer, Nyx was sure he had made the right choice. If a cat wasn’t sure about being your ally, that meant they were trustworthy. “It’s a mess, isn’t it? I heard rumors of powers, and now we’re apparently going to die. I don’t even know how this will help anything.”

Snowflake looked around at all the other cats randomly scattered on the desert floor. She sat up and decided to wash herself, because she was bored and she was covered in dust and a whole bunch of other stuff. She was used to being dirty, but she didn’t know what was in this sand. Radioactive stuff? Hopefully not.

Looking around, Aina realized she had never in her life been surrounded by so many cats. So many strangers. She stepped back a bit before taking in a deep breath. *It’s okay. Don’t worry so much.* The voice in her head sounded like her carefree, stupid sister. She looked around. None of the cats really emanated happiness or a general welcoming aura. She decided to sit and wait for someone to speak with her.

Iden decided to take Sophia’s advice and get to know some of the cats. She walked closer to the pool to get a better view of her surroundings. She quickly found a she-cat who looked like she was waiting for something to happen, and she padded toward them, only pausing to shake the sand out of her blood-red paws. “Hi,” she meowed, sitting down. “I’m Iden. What’s your name?”

Aina smiled softly. “Hello,” she murmured mellowly. “I’m Aina.” She took in the newcomer, staring a bit too long at her suspiciously blood-red paws.

“That’s a good name,” Iden purred as she curled her tail around her paws. She realized that Aina looked up when she did this, but she was used to that. “Don’t worry. It isn’t blood,” she meowed reassuringly. “That would leave paw prints.” She moved her tail and lifted her paw, showing that there was no red on the sand.

Aina tilted her head slightly. “Thanks. And cool.” She had a question on the tip of her tongue, but was afraid of ruining her newfound acquaintance.

Iden placed her paw back on the ground, relieved Aina didn’t think it was wrong that she was different. “Thanks,” she purred. “I’m not complemented very often”. She was starting to respect the black-furred she-cat for her kindness. As she curled her tail around her paws, she noticed Aina looked like she wanted to say something, but was holding herself back. “Hey. . .” she meowed, worried something was wrong. “Is everything okay?”

Aina shuffled her paws. “Nothing’s wrong, exactly . . . it’s just that . . . are you a City Cat?” She hoped that Iden would respond no. . .

Iden hesitated, taking a moment to think about the odd question. She didn’t feel like she needed to answer correctly, but she didn’t want to hurt Aina. “I am,” she meowed carefully. “And I don’t care if that’s not what you wanted me to say. . .” She trailed off, unsure if she was making the right choice. “Just. . .” She dipped her head in resignation. “Please don’t judge me for the place I lived.”

Snowflake saw everyone start to group together, so she decided to go find some cats to talk to. She saw two cats together and decided to talk to them. “Hi. I’m Snowflake. Who are you, if you don’t mind me asking?” she asked.

Aina took a deep breath. “I’m . . . not judging you. It’s just . . . I . . . think that my family was killed by your kind.” The words came spilling out unusually fast for her slow-talking demeanor. “And I traveled alone with the only sister I had left, but she ran off too. I don’t know, maybe my judgement was clouded by my anger; but I made a vow under the moon to never, ever help a City Cat.” Her voice suddenly took on a Japanese-like accent. “I keep my vows. Always.” She looked sadly at Iden before turning around and jogging off. She decided that although she and Iden would be okay, she would hold fast to her vow and never help her.

“Your kind?” Iden whispered sadly. “We just live in different places. . .” She trailed off as she remembered the black she-cat from a few moments earlier. “Sorry,” she meowed apologetically. “Your name is Snowflake, right?”

A she-cat crashed into Nyx and he swung his head around, only to see a cat who looked like she was either a Wild One or Deserter. Great. “Watch it! I’ve been around your kind before, you murderers!” he spat at her, swishing his tail from side to side.

Before Iden could start a conversation, she saw Aina run into an angry-looking tom who didn’t look happy to see her. “Always on the move. . .” she sighed. “Come on!” she meowed to Snowflake urgently as she sprinted to help Aina.

Snowflake followed the cat as they ran towards two other cats. She was curious as to why they suddenly ran away; plus, she just wanted to talk to some cat or make some friends.

“Wait — what—” It took a moment to realize what the tom had meant. As Aina took him in, they realized he looked a lot like a filthy City Cat. Her untouched rage rushed through her veins as she flexed her claws. *“My kind* aren’t the murderers here, you fox-dung! We just wanted to live in peace, but your kind came, and—” She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter! You act like you’re so high and mighty, but really, your kind are just sicko killers! I should know!” She prepared to lunge at the tom, no time to think rationally. Pure fury was powering her now.

As the she-cat leapt at Nyx, he dodged out of the way of her blow, swishing his tail from side to side angrily. “We’re murderers?! Your kind killed my mate! We only want the best for everyone. You ridiculous cats think we can stick to the old-fashioned, outdated way of life when the whole world is changing around us!” With that, he jumped at the cat, his claws unsheathed, rage burning in his gaze.

Aina felt her shoulder flash hot, signifying a hit as she barely got away. She started circling him. “We were just living alone, me and my family! Until some stupid City Cats came! Wanting the best for everyone, huh? I had to leave my father and mother because of ¡tu y tu clase! ¡Ni siquiera nos importaban esos estúpidos conflictos!” She realized she was speaking in Spanish. “We just wanted peace!” She lunged again, aiming for the tom’s feet and belly, adrenaline running through her.

Nyx growled as the other cat’s claws caught his belly, leaving a shallow scratch across his fur. That stupid piece of fox-hearted, wild badger-dung! “We made you leave? Well, good! Have you seen the number of outer colonies Wild Cats have destroyed? They live in simple wooden huts if they can’t find stone, and they’re defenseless! Yet your kind still comes to kill them. So what, you had to leave? Cats die at the paws of Wild Ones daily. My mate died, and he was the nicest cat you would ever meet!” Realizing his eyes were watering at the thought of Oak, he shook the thoughts from his head and aimed a paw-blow at the other cat’s neck.

*Was he just . . . were those . . . tears?* Aina once again barely dodged the blow, which was fortunate, because she could tell that the tom was powerful. What have I gotten myself into? “Look, I don’t know about wherever the heck you come from. But where I lived, City Cats were vicious, vile creatures that grouped up simply to gang up on cats like us! And yeah, it doesn’t matter to a cruel fighter like you, obviously, but to me? I loved my parents, my sister, more than anything in the world. And now she’s gone, just like your mate.” She paused for a moment, swiping dodgily at the tom in case he attacked. “I’m sick and tired of all this fighting! Hatred and war! This is why I became an Independent — because idiotas como ustedes don’t know how to act!” She lunged again, putting more speed than power into her attack, aiming to pin down but not hurt the cat, as her anger started to settle and her rational thoughts came back to her.

What on earth was this cat going on about? Nothing she was saying matched up! “We group together for a better life! And then you come and attack us and we have no choice but to fight back more fiercely than you!” As the she-cat barrelled into Nyx, shoving him over, he tensed his muscles and was only just able to keep standing. Trying to leap onto her back, he realized it was a bad idea last minute and twisted out of the way, trying to claw at her sides as he swung his body around. As the other cat spoke about her sister, he felt a stab of sympathy, which he shook away immediately. She was a Deserter! A former Plainsdewller! She didn’t deserve his pity. Inside, he apologized to her, but outside, his face was still held in a snarl. “I’m not cruel. No one in the City was. All you cats see is our fighters! We’re trained to look death and battle in the eyes without a care in the world. If you knew what was going on inside Cities, you wouldn’t be so quick to label us as mean! You call us cruel and then say you’re done with hatred!” The words spilled out before he could even stop himself. “I’m sorry about your sister, but you have to understand that the world isn’t just your little bubble! City Cats are trying to help the world survive. We’re trying to help cats thrive, and your kind are holding us back!” Trying to slash at any of her pelt, he narrowed his eyes. Although this cat wasn’t as good as City Cat fighters, she was better at dodging than almost all of them. Interesting. Perhaps it was because she was a Deserting coward.

Sand sprayed into the air as Iden came to a halt several tail-lengths away from the fight. Snowflake was close behind her, and she knew the two of them could easily defeat the tom . . . but she didn’t think that was the best course of action. He was a City Cat, after all, and Aina might not appreciate her interfering. “I can’t do anything here,” she growled, her tail lashing angrily. She turned her head to Snowflake thoughtfully. “But you can. . .”

Snowflake stopped next to Iden. She was trying to process what Iden wanted her to do. She didn’t want to fight; she lived in a calm group most of the time. She decided she would try to calm them down by getting in between them, but not fighting either of them. She walked up to Nyx and Aina. “Guys, could you just stop it? You guys have known each other for less than a day, and all you’ve been doing is fighting. Get to know each other or talk it out — I’m not sure. Listen to each other’s stories, and maybe you’ll understand why you don’t like each other or something like that.” She tried her best, but wasn’t sure if that was enough, or if they had even heard her.

Aina felt the other cat’s claws slash her sides, blood trickling down to the ground. She gritted her teeth. “Well, I’m sorry about your mate, but you have to understand that sometimes it isn’t about you either! We both have suffered loss because of ‘the other cats’ . . . I can only speak for myself, but my judgement was clouded by bias! And — I don’t know. I think we’re all just cats trying to survive in different ways. . .” She paused, catching her breath. Talking while dodging was exhausting for her, and she was losing stamina quickly. “That’s what I always thought and always will think.” *But experience creates bias, which clouded my judgement, obviously,* she thought to herself. *Well, obviously that was a stupid way to think.* Her tail flicked as she pondered her next move. “I’ve been sheltered my whole life. I can’t deny it. I’ve got a lot to think about — about everything.”

Nyx’s breath was fast. He had forgotten to pace himself in this fight. It was completely ridiculous. Without Oak to remind him and teasing him for always forgetting not to put all his strength in at the start of a battle, he was beginning to tire a little. “You’ve been so sheltered, you know nothing about the way other cats live. And before you even say anything to me, my group of warriors had to go undercover in a Plains Cats group, and it was ridiculous. They spent all their lives building shelters even though the Cities weren’t that far away. They had turned away groups of cats because it would make their group too big.” Narrowing his eyes at the she-cat, he swished his tail angrily from side to side. This cat was ridiculous. She had signed up for a contest to the death, and she didn’t know a thing about life. Her only chance would be if she could dodge her way out of every situation. “Your kind are foolish, self-centred cats who are so stubborn about their opinions it will eventually kill them.”

“And yet you seem awfully attached to your idea of City Cats, whereas I’m already recognizing that I might’ve misjudged you. Just an observation.” Aina’s tail lashed. “I’m done talking to you. Because it’s obviously a one-sided fight. I try to talk with a stubborn City Cat who thinks his kind are the best. Well, you do you and all. I’m going to get a drink of water.” She padded away, her voice desperate for water.

“I’m not shifting on my opinions, because whatever you say, you just seem like a bratty Free Cat with no experience of anything else, whereas I’ve seen it all.” Everything inside Nyx wanted to just walk off and leave the stupid she-cat to her stupid opinions, but something about the way she had admitted that she might not have been right that gave him that little hope that she might, just might be different. Perhaps even a City Cat in the making. Going against his every instinct, he padded after the she-cat, running to catch up. What in Harnor’s name was he doing? “I’m not saying I agree with you, or that I ever will, but it might be good to share some stories. For the first Plains Cat who’s honestly seemed sorry for the loss of Oak, something tells me you aren’t like the others. The name’s Nyx.”

Aina’s ear twitched irritably. *You can’t really let stuff go, huh, City Cat? Your attitude is as sour as a lemon.* She lowered her muzzle into the impossibly cool water, lapping it up gratefully. Once she was done, she lifted her head, eyeing Nyx with a cool expression. “Very well. I’m Kisu Aina. And I’m pretty sure you can put together the pieces of what happened to me just by what I said back there.” She took a seemingly relaxed stance — though in reality, she was watching Nyx closely in case he tried anything. “And of course I would feel somber after hearing someone’s mate died.” Her voice sounded more melancholy than she’d wanted. “I happen to have a heart, unlike whoever you’ve encountered.” She briefly wondered what Iden was doing, but shook the thought away. She needed to be alert, especially near a good fighter like Nyx. He seemed like the tricky type.

Snowflake looked and saw that both the other cats had left. She wasn’t sure if it was because of what she said or just because they stopped arguing. “Iden, let's go with them. I want to meet them too,” she said while walking towards the other two.

Iden almost laughed at the concept of a Plainsdweller befriending a Free Cat and a City Cat, but she followed anyway. “It looks like they’re in the middle of something. . .” she observed as they drew closer to the pond. “We should wait to talk to them.” She casually padded to the water’s edge, carefully positioned a few tail-lengths away from Aina and the City Cat, and crouched down to take a drink.

Snowflake also decided to get a drink and bent down to lap at the water. “It does look like they’re in a conversation — and either they’re ignoring us or don’t know we’re here. We can wait, though, and have our own conversation, if you like,” she offered, but wasn’t sure what to ask, since she had just witnessed a fight because of where cats came from. She just didn’t want to upset the only cat she knew by accidently asking a question that hit too close to home.

Iden sat down and curled her tail over her red front paws, thinking. She had guessed earlier that Snowflake was a Plains Cat, and although that didn’t matter, it still felt a little odd. She had fought them her entire life! They had taken everything from her! But even after all of that, here she was, having a leisurely conversation with one. After a moment, she thought of a question that was safe to ask. “What’s your favorite color?” she inquired.

Snowflake sat up, and as she wrapped her tail around her front paws, her tail gently touched the pink flowers with thorns on her front left paw. “Hmm. I think dark blue, maybe. What about yours?” she asked. “Do you have a favorite game or thing to do?” She licked her paw and drew it over her ear.

“Yellow is the color of the sun,” Iden responded. “And no matter how dark it may be, the sun will always rise.” She smiled, amused. “But that’s just symbolic. I like dark green.” However, Snowflake’s second question wasn’t as easy to answer. She tilted her head, thinking for a moment. She had never thought about it before. It seemed so . . . unnecessary. “I like to analyze,” she meowed finally. “There’s so much you can learn by observing your surroundings. It’s also surprisingly fun,” she finished.

Iden glanced quickly at Aina and the other cat, then turned her attention back to Snowflake. “What do you like to do?”

Snowflake thought observing was fun too. “I played a game with my other friends, where we had a small moss-ball that we would carry and tag another cat with the moss. They would have to take the moss and tag someone else with it. It's very fun, and it tires the kits out before bed,” she explained. “Do you want to try? It doesn’t really work with two cats, but maybe we can ask them if they want to play,” she suggested while flicking her ears towards Aina and Nyx.

Iden thought it sounded fun, but there was a problem. “That’s a great idea, but how are we going to find moss in the desert?”

“I didn’t think about that,” Snowflake said, a little sad. “We could do something else,” she suggested. She thought for a little while. “I just don’t know what.” She nervously started to lick her paw without the flowers.

Noticing that Nyx and the Free Cat had just finished fighting, Yeong felt the strong urge to see what it was about. *I might as well learn about these cats if I’m stuck with them.* Padding up to the two cats, he kept his mouth shut, not wanting to say anything. *But why would Nyx even talk to a Free Cat? I thought they killed his mate. . .?*

 Still, as Nyx walked with Aina, he swished his tail angrily and his claws stayed unsheathed, sinking into the soft sand. Seeing Yeong, he let out a sigh of relief. At least a cat he could trust was there. Knowing that Yeong felt the same way about Plains Cats as he did, he whispered in the other cat’s ear, “Don’t worry. I don’t trust her, but I was fighting badly and tiring. I didn’t really have much choice but to attempt to make peace. Also, if she thinks that we like her, that’s one less cat who threatens us.” So her name was Kisu Aina. That was a strange name. “Well, perhaps your kind of Plains Cats just weren’t so stupid to live near a City.”

And now there was a new cat Aina didn’t know who Nyx was whispering to suspiciously. Great. She looked around, taking in the sights while pretending not to hear what was right in front of her. *Let the stupid tom think what he wants. It’s not like I stopped the fight by stepping away, and it’s not like I could take both of them on anyway.* She turned back when Nyx addressed her. Letting out a small sigh, she said, “Sure. That makes sense.” She narrowed her eyes at the other tom. “Hey. Who’s your friend? I’m Aina.” Her eyebrow raised slightly.

“This is Yeong. He’s another City Cat who’s been wronged by Plains Cats,” Nyx stated bluntly, giving Aina a bit of a harsh stare. “So you see, it’s not just me.”

“Interesting.” Aina stared right back at Nyx defiantly, tail twitching. She waited for either tom to say something. *Is it just me, or are those two a bit close?* She shook away the random thought.

Iden searched desperately for something to take Snowflake’s mind off of the game. She impulsively turned her head to Aina and the two City Cats, and upon doing so, noticed something different. They were a bit more . . . tense. It was a subtle change that could disappear at any moment, but she wasn’t going to take any chances. “Let’s move a little closer,” she whispered, taking a slow step towards the three cats.

Snowflake thought that would be interesting, so she went with Iden over towards Nyx and Aina. “How close should we get to them? Like, close enough to talk to them or closer, or far away to just hear them?” She wasn’t great with new cats sometimes.

Despite the fact that the tension was seemingly thick between the two cats and that Yeong would rather not say anything, he would rather speak instead of Nyx at this moment, seeing how they seemed to be giving each other harsh stares now. *Or I think.* He didn’t really care much for the fact that Aina was a Free Cat, or from what he had heard, a former Free Cat that was now an Independent Cat. In fact, the only cats he truly hated were the ones who had attacked Fuzz and himself — no one else, or simply no one else that he could think of on the spot. Although he didn’t know what to say, he didn’t want the tension to continue piling up. *They can go at each others’ throats when the Tests officially begin. I doubt Sophia would mind that,* he thought, slightly disgruntled at the idea. *I bet Sophia would enjoy it anyway. All of the chaos, tension, fights . . . eurgh.* He didn’t like what that implied for the rest of the cats here — including himself — but he tried not to let it shine through. *Just don’t think about it,* he ordered himself, *for now.* He sighed and shrugged his shoulders. Noticing the small pool of water in the corner of his eye, an idea popped into his head. *One that will hopefully distract these two from lashing out at each other again,* he mused. *Yeah, right.* “Water your options when it comes to conflict between all three sides, eh?” he meowed, attempting to crack a joke, a small grin on his face. His smile quickly ebbed away from his face, though, once a few seconds passed. “That sounded a lot better in my head — not gonna lie.”

*Even if he’s a City Cat, this guy obviously doesn’t suffer from big-headedness, unlike a certain someone. And he, er, tried to crack a joke. I like this guy.* Aina’s face stretched into . . . something that resembled a smile, actually. It was the first time in a while, and it felt nice. Her muscles de-tensed a little and she felt a little tension ebb away from the overall atmosphere. “It wasn’t that bad of a joke,” she meowed, trying to be nice to a City Cat for once.

Nyx let out a laugh and nudged Yeong. “Don’t worry. It sounded great. My jokes are usually things like — why do trees have so many friends? They branch out. I’m pretty sure Oak groaned every time I told a joke after that one.”  Realizing that he was now smiling, he shuffled his paws kind of awkwardly. It was weird being so close to a Free Cat and not having to fight them. To be honest, it was quite nice not to be risking his life right now. Even if he would have to later.

Iden let out a sigh of relief when the three cats started laughing. She had been worried that they would start fighting, but the tension between them had evaporated for now. “Just close enough to hear,” she whispered to Snowflake, “in case anything goes wrong.” She came to a stop three fox-lengths away from Aina and waited.

Yeong purred softly, relieved that he managed to help the tension die down — albeit just a bit — between Nyx and Aina. He nodded towards Aina. “Thanks, although it was still pretty bad.” He laughed awkwardly. Glancing at Nyx, he meowed, “I can imagine. My brother Fuzz hated it whenever I told him jokes like that. One of the ones he hated the most was, ‘If a tree had a mouth, wood it bark? I was really rooting to tell you that one.’”

Aina let out a mrrow of laughter. “That was . . . sorry — really, really bad.” It felt a bit wrong on her tongue saying normal things. Like this was a normal conversation; like they were in a normal situation. Meanwhile, her thoughts were spinning at twenty-four miles an hour. *Gosh, that felt really good. But bad too, because Nyx is around. Does he think I trust him now? No, I don’t. No, no, no, no, no, no. If I did, it would be all this stupid tom. Yeah, that’s it.*

Laughing at Yeong’s joke, Nyx smiled. It reminded him of the jokes he used to tell. “I’ve heard worse, but that wasn’t good. But not bad at the same time.” Adjusting his collar as it got into a little bit of a tight spot around his neck, he glanced at Aina, wondering whether she trusted him. He definitely didn’t trust her, but she wasn’t as bad as some City Cats. Trying to change the topic to something good about the City, something on Yeong caught his eye. “Ooh, Yeong, I just noticed your necklace! It’s beautiful. I used to love collecting stuff like that in the City. It’s a shame I couldn’t have brought more with me — I was only wearing three accessories when I left. Well, my earring doesn’t really count. It’s always in.”

Aina looked over at Yeong’s neck. “Interesting. It’s really pretty. We don’t have anything like it where I came from,” she noted, careful not to say anything triggering. “I remember when I had this flower stuck in my ear. I was a stupid kit back then.” She laughed awkwardly at the memory.

Snowflake sat down next to Iden. “Hey — now we’re doing one of your favorite activities. Observing.” She thought that was pretty cool. Even though they couldn’t do her favorite game, they could do Iden’s.

Iden smiled, glad they had found something they both liked to do. “Let’s see what we can find!” she purred excitedly. Looking closely, she could see that the tom who had told the joke looked relieved, probably because he had stopped the other two from fighting. She couldn’t tell what Aina was thinking, and the tom who had fought her earlier seemed to be trying to convince her about something. She nudged Snowflake and pointed with her tail. “I’ve got a feeling something bad is about to happen. . .”

Snowflake nodded cautiously. “Okay.” She thought about what Iden had said. “I’ll be ready for if something does go wrong — or bad — in a way. It looks like everything is going fine right now.” She looked at all the cats who were just conversing for now.

Despite Iden’s best efforts, she found herself going back to the time when all of her friends were alive. Before she had gazed into Del’s lifeless eyes or watched Meeko disappear under a falling tree. They had been happy then, but the four of them couldn’t stand by and watch their home crumble around them. It was the greatest mistake of her life. She forced herself back into the present and she felt her blood-red paws shaking with sorrow. She took a few deep breaths to try and calm herself, but it didn’t work. She felt tears streaming down her face, so she lay down and closed her eyes, trying to forget about the world around her.

Snowflake crouched down next to Iden with her paws tucked under herself, and licked Iden’s shoulder. “You alright? Do you want me to leave you alone?” she asked, and waited patiently for Iden to respond.

Iden tried to blink away her tears to compose herself, but to no avail. She felt something gently touch her back. She heard Snowflake’s soft voice and she realized that it didn’t matter to her that they had met just a few moments ago. She cared about her. “I — I think I’ll be okay,” she meowed quietly, her voice shaking. “I just . . . just need a moment.” She shifted her head to look up at her companion. “Please . . . don’t leave. . .” she meowed desperately. “Not yet. . .”

Rosemary’s paws pricked with anxiety as she noticed two cats already seeming to be getting into it. *Already, we have to fight? Why can’t these cats just realize that they’re all just cats and—* She stopped herself once she realized she was going on a rant. *Don’t. They’re all too arrogant to listen to a slimy Independent cat. A Deserter! A Sideswitcher! A Loner! It’ll be a wonder to see if these cats will manage to make it through this without killing one another, without their dumb and obnoxious ideals.*

Uleia’s eyes widened for a brief moment, taking in the vast expanse of the rolling hills of sand. Cats were all around her. She had never seen so many. They all seemed a bit on edge, as if a cat could come up and attack them at any moment. She supposed that was possible. She drew back, hoping no one would notice her. The last thing she needed was someone trying to sweet-talk her into becoming their ally. As much as this was about getting revenge for their broken world, she also knew that not everyone would come out of this alive. And all these cats weren’t here to be friends. When it came down to it, they were against each other. They were all enemies.

Beatrix looked around in shock. *It’s so . . . barren. Nothing like I thought it would be. Oh well. I might as well not dwell on it and make friends!* She turned around to the first cat she saw. “Hi!” she said a bit too loud, all while bouncing on her toes. “How are you?!” She smiled sheepishly.

Narrowing her eyes, Uleia slightly cocked her head. “Fine. You look happy to be here . . . what’s your name?” *I should have known someone would come up to talk to me, but I didn’t even have enough time to get my bearings. I shouldn’t reveal too much to this cat, no matter how friendly she looks.* She sighed, drawing a paw over her ear. She waited for Beatrix’s reply, wondering whether any of the cats in this place were right in the head. They seemed to be breaking into groups now, chattering with each other excitedly, though most had a touch of weariness about them. She had always been good at guessing at cats’ emotions and intentions, but she honestly couldn’t say why half of them were even here. Most of them didn’t seem as bloodthirsty as it seemed Sophia’s mission required, and she could tell by their stiff stances that they were more anxious than excited for the Tests to come. “Never mind. They’re all idiots,” she hissed under her breath, noticing a fight already breaking out. This was just like when she had lived with the Free Cats. All these mouse-brains cared about was their silly little drama, not even noticing that if they let it go, their families would still be alive. *It’s your own fault.*

*Wow.* Rowan’s heart leaped as he took in his surroundings. *L-Laurel . . . Ebony . . . Heidi! Wha - oh.* He felt his body lurch as he realized what was going on. Shaking of the old memories, he walked over to someone. “Hi!” he mewed, like everything was perfect. “I’m Rowan, and I’m from the City! Who are you?”

Opening his eye wearly into a totally new place, Hemlock tried to remember everything that happened to him. He stood up after a long stretch and accidently bumped into the cat next to him. Biting his tongue before anything bad slipped out of his mouth, he turned around. “Hello and sorry,” he grunted.

“Uh—” Uleia stuttered, about to reply to Rowan when a white tom bumped into her, grunting a short greeting and apology. “It’s fine,” she meowed coldly to the tom. “Watch where you’re going next time.” She pressed her white-tipped ears to the back of her head, her stomach already starting to churn with unwanted conversation. “I’m Uleia,” she stated flatly to Rowan. “I suppose you want to find the other City Cats to team up with?” She gestured with her tail to a tom who was deep in combat with a she-cat who she assumed was from the wild. “There’s one right over there. Maybe you can keep him from getting himself killed.”

“Oh! No, no,” Rowan chirped. “I don’t really mind who I team up with.” He gave it a little thought. “Unless they’re a bad cat.”

Hemlock let out a small growl as he heard the coldness in the she-cat’s voice. He stopped and listened to the conversation. He remembered Mnumzane and felt a weird longing for his friend. He shook his head, then turned around. *I’ll need allies if I want to survive,* he thought, and with a grunt, turned back. “I’m Hemlock, by the way. What’s your name?” he asked, considering each word before he said anything.

“U-lei-a,” Uleia repeated, sounding out each syllable clearly. “And isn’t hemlock poisonous? I wouldn’t trust a cat with that name.” She shrugged, knowing she was being unreasonable. But she wasn’t going to tolerate keeping airheads in her company. If she was going to surround herself with cats at all, they had to have a brain. Smart cats could make dangerous enemies, but powerful allies. As for Rowan, at least his head wasn’t filled with meaningless prejudices. “How do you know whether a cat is bad or good before you team up with them?” she asked Rowan.

Keeping back a growl, Hemlock straightened up. “Hemlock is poisonous, and that’s the reason why you should consider being my ally. But if you don’t trust me, it’s your fault. You’ll be the one cursing yourself in the future. Not me,” he said, and turned away, feeling lonelier than ever. He pushed the thought out of his mind and padded towards the fighting cats, and sat down to watch it from a safe distance.

“Um. . .” Rowan thought for a bit, his head looking up to the air. “I guess I don’t — I mean, I speak to them and I can usually tell from one conversation if they are or not, I guess.”

“Keep a tight leash on that temper!” Uleia called after him. “It could end up being *your* downfall.” The black she-cat cocked her head, her blue eyes sliding slyly over to Rowan. “And what about me?” she asked the tom. “Am I bad?”

Rowan shook his head furiously. “No, no, no!” he mewed confidently. “Quite the opposite.”

“So you’ve decided from one exchange that I’m a good cat,” Uleia meowed to Rowan in a clipped voice. “That’s either very stupid or very kind of you. Probably stupid.” She drew a black paw over her ear. “What are you doing here? Trying to save the world, I presume?”

“Hmm. Not really,” Rowan admitted. “I don’t think it’s stupid. I used to be a herbal healer. I got visions. I think that’s enough to make you realize I see things deeper than most.” Looking down at the ground, he took in her question in fully and tried to think of an answer. “Well, no. I left because my friends all died. And they were the only cats in the world I knew.” He blinked away tears. *Heidi, Laurel, Ebony . . . please . . . come back. . .* “The only cats that mattered, anyway.”

Not sensing Rowan’s emotional state, Uleia shrugged. “I’ve never had any friends. They seem pretty useless from what I’ve gathered.” *And did this cat just say he got visions? He’s probably not very mentally stable.*

“No. They weren’t.” Rowan gave her a look out of the corner of his eyes.

“How so?” Uleia pressed, her ears pricked in interest. She had to admit that she loved hearing about how other cats perceived the world. Personally, she thought their opinions were insignificant, but they were interesting nonetheless.

Bluebell flicked her tail, anxiously watching the groups of cats. *Great. Everyone already has allies.* The gray-blue she-cat prayed someone would come up to her.

After Hemlock’s last try at making friends had gone wrong, he walked over to the only cat who seemed alone. “Hello,” he muttered, and dipped his head slightly.

Bluebell smiled brightly. “Hey! I’m Bluebell! What’s your name?”

“Hemlock. How was your life before this whole mess?” Hemlock asked, wondering whether the question was weird or not. “Do you have a plan on how to continue?” he asked, trying to cover up his could-be mistake.