WindClan Camp

A voice startled her from her slumber. Her head shot up jerkingly and her eyes landed on a blurry brown figure sat before her. It took a second or two to blink the sleepy film from her eyes before the image sharpened and Larkstar's form became visible before her. Perking her ears up attentively Lilysong sat up politely and stared at Larkstar for an awkward moment before her leader's words finally clicked in Lilysong's mind. "Hello Larkstar. I confess that it wasn't the most productive venture," Lilysong replied, a sigh easing itself out as she looked down at the scrawny hare before her, "but that by no means reflects on the performance of any singular wolf - everyone caught at least two animals each. If necessary, I'd be willing to go out again and collect some more, but I believe that Lilacsplash and Heavypaw are currently out hunting as well." She wondered where Larkstar herself had been just a few moments before; she had returned with no prey and Honeybadger seemed an unlikely companion to take on a hunting patrol (merely because with age came a decreased stamina, she was quite certain that Honeybadger could frighten off any hostile wolves with that mouth of hers) but she decided not to pry. She had every confidence that Larkstar wouldn't betray the trust of the Clan by sneaking off to do anything untoward, and Lilysong respected her need for privacy at such times. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was slightly off. She wasn't sure what exactly, but she wasn't about to demand an answer from anyone. If it was something that she needed to know about then she was sure she'd find out soon enough.

The male expected the conversation to be nothing more then some polite chitchat, ears perking forward a bit when Embershard started on the pair of wolves they had found at the border. He nodded his head in response when the fay asked him if he could keep what she was about to say a secret. He was even more astonished when she went on to say that these strange wolves claimed to be from a different clan altogether. "Skyclan?" he echoed, confusion crossing his face. This was indeed quite a story, and Wrenclaw frowned as he tried to make sense of it. "Could it really be another clan? Or could it be another bunch of rogues trying to stir up trouble?" He remembered how not very long ago a group of rogues had entered a number of the clans trying to upset and divide them. Could this be their work again? Embershard broke his thoughts, asking about the hunting patrol. "Oh.. It was fine. We caught some rabbits." He replied, not sure what else to add. In all honesty it wasn't the most successful hunt he had ever been on, but at least they had been able to gather anything.
The brute was much more interested in Embershard's experience, more eager to drive the conversation back to the loners. "Do you.. think that these loners will pose a threat to Windclan?" he asked, quite curious to her reply. He knew that Ember was more of a stickler for the warrior code then he was, but he still wondered what her opinion was.

Wrenclaw remained alert as Embershard spoke of the strange pair of wolves that apparently creeped his clanmates out. They sounded bizarre, and the male wasn't sure whether to hold them as a threat or not. "Hmm..." He sighed, brows furrowing in deep thought. The wolves the she-wolf described didn't sound anything like the rogues that had caused trouble a while back, but they still sounded suspicious. And if there really was a Skyclan, then what would be the point of sending the two loners over to meet the other clans? "If there was a Skyclan they probably would have fallen apart by now surely." He frowned deep in thought. "And if they haven't..." Wrenclaw blinked and focused back on Embershard, realizing that he had been thinking to himself for a while. "Oh sorry, I was a bit lost in thought." He apologized almost sheepishly. The brute continued, "Maybe Honeybadger will know something about it." He offered, not really sure what other solution there could be for the moment. "If there's anyone who would know about some ancient clan, it would be her." Movement caught his eye, and he turned and spotted the elder entering the clan shortly followed by Larkstar. His sister looked rather thoughtful though concerned.

Larkstar's amber gaze fell upon the she-wolf as she spoke, ears twitching in a silent reply. Lilysong admitted that they hadn't been able to catch very much during the course of the hunt, but Lark didn't press her on about it any more then needed. Some days were simply better hunting days then others, and there were still a couple more moons of prey to be had before green-leaf would change into leaf-fall. "That's well alright then. You can rest for now." She replied, not going to oblige the warrior into more work then what had already been done. Larkstar was still concerned though about the two loners that they had stumbled across earlier, and a nagging part of her mind wondered if the hunting patrol saw anything strange about while they were out. Of course, she knew that if there was anything important they would have reported it right away, but she still wanted to check. "Did you notice any strange scents while hunting? Like any rogue scents?" She asked, perking her ears forward. She trusted Lilysong enough to ask straight forward, and did not bother to keep her questions concealed.

Listening to the she-wolf agree with him, Wrenclaw turned his attention to where the old elder lay contentedly in the sun. She didn't appear very worried, although one glance at Lark and he could tell that his sister was anxious about the whole ordeal. Granted she didn't show her fear outwards very much, but just from growing up with her and being around her so much he could easily read her feelings. He then turned back to Embershard as she asked her question, clear unhappiness in her gaze.  Sympathy tugged at him as he met her eyes, and it was clear that she felt much sorrow for the disappearance of her friend. "I haven't seen him in moons, did he just wander off?" Either that or he died, but these were not suggestions Wrenclaw was going to give her. Instead he just simply shook his head. "No, I haven't." He hesitated before adding, "I'm sorry." The male was not one well equipped for emotional situations, but he still felt much pity on the she-wolf's behalf. He knew well what it was like to lose a friend after all.

Lilysong dipped her head in thanks to Larkstar when her leader granted her the mercy of not having to join another hunting patrol. She had grown weary as she sat, basking lazily in the golden sunlight and sleep tugged at the corners of her consciousness, clawing selfishly at her senses. But Lilysong had never been anything but polite, and the next question that Larkstar posed certainly raised her intrigue. Her green eyes narrowed softly as she contemplated the implications of such a question before casting her mind back to the patrol, combing her memory for any unusual details but coming up empty handed. "I'm afraid I myself noticed no such discrepancies, and I'm sure Silverfern and Wrenclaw would have mentioned anything suspicious if they had either." A shard of worry for the safety of Heavypaw and Lilacsplash suddenly worked its way into her heart. The two had each other but that only offered so much comfort when you realised that Heavypaw was only partially trained and Lilysong suspected that there was something askew with Lilacsplash's health. Lilysong's ears flattened a little at the thought, but she quickly reminded herself that the two were still well within WindClan territory, and for a rouge to penetrate WindClan's land so deeply would be an extremely unlikely occurrence. Still, that was all still assuming that they still remained out on the prairie. Lilysong tiled her head quizzically as she gazed back at Larkstar, the silent worry for her Clanmates' safety just visible in the glint of her eyes,"Is there anything in particular that you'd like us to be alert of in the future? Any specific scents or borders that you'd like more regularly reported back on?" She didn't voice her concern directly for she knew that she had informed Larkstar of their Clanmates' presence on the moor, and knew that if she deemed them to be vulnerable to whatever rouge she suspected was out there, she would take action to rectify that. The low grumbling of Lilysong's stomach stopped her mind from probing the thought any deeper and she turned her attention to more internal needs, relocating the hare that she had left at her feet earlier. She began to eat the morsel eagerly as she waited for Larkstar's reply, hoping that she didn't find such a gesture during a conversation rude. It was by no means a show of disinterest - she was merely hungry.

It had been nice dozing in the sun, so when the cold change came through, the grumpy wolf shivered, grumbling as he woke up. Giving a brief glance up at the sun, he sighed, already guessing that he'd have idiots coming in and out of his den. Nudging Honeybadger beside him, he  got to his feet with a bad-tempered grumble, stretching out his joints. He could hear the wind howling, almost like a wolf being tortured, and he twitched his ears. It didn't bode well, and he wasn't sure if Starclan had anything to do with the sudden change. Giving a quick glance around the camp, he wondered where Larkstar had gone to. Yawning, he sat and looked at his fellow old wolf. “You're the wise one around here,” he said quietly. “Any ideas on the sudden change?” He might have to make a quick trip to the moon cave, which he internally grumbled about. That was such a long trek, and he had the feeling that he was going to be needed quite a bit in the camp, what with idiots looking at the sun and burning their eyes. From his short glance at the sun, he could already guess that there was going to be more than a few eye injuries he was going to have to take care of.

He had not noticed anything strange until he heard Embershard's hushed and worried comment. Gazing at her in confusion, it took a moment of bewilderment until her words set in. "What...?" Frowning, he turned a glance upward, eyes squinting against the harsh glare. The look was only for a second, but it showed him all he needed. On the right portion of the sun, a strange shadow had started to move over it. It was much more dense than a cloud, and it almost appeared that someone had taken a bite out of the ball of light. "What in Starclan's name?" He quickly turned away, his eyes hurting because of the blinding light.
Around him the stirrings of the camp quickly became quiet, and the sounds of the meadow birds grew ominously silent. The whole moor seemed to stand still as the shadow covered up the sun's rays more and more. The air was growing colder, as if night was falling even though it was midday.
Wrenclaw turned his head around the camp, noticing his clanmates becoming uneasy and on edge. His own fur began to bristle on instinct, and he flattened his ears against the howling wind. Looking back at Embershard, the she-wolf appeared thoroughly concerned, so the male straightened up and tried to flatten his fur. "I'm sure it's nothing too bad. It will probably last only a few moments." He replied, his mouth feeling dry. Anxiety made his pelt crawl as the seconds ticked away and he realized that perhaps this event would take longer than he thought. "But I've heard of this event before, what was it called again?" The old tales from a nursery story tugged at the back of his mind, and he struggled to remember the name. Aware of his rising fear, he licked his nose and let out a half-hearted smile to Embershard. "At least we get a break from the heat." He woofed, his pelt being blown by the strong breeze.

Larkstar nodded, pleased at Liliysong's assured reply. At her question, the leader decided to divulge the loners they had spotted earlier that day. "When we were at the Sunclan border, our patrol came across two loners. They looked like they had crossed through Sunclan, but I just wanted to be sure." She replied, feeling a bit more at ease that the two apparently hadn't crossed through Windclan territory. Riverstar could deal with them however he wanted, but Lark personally wanted nothing to do with them. At least not after what Honeybadger had told her.
She felt the change before she saw it. It was strange, the change in light that began gradually, slowly dimming out the rays of sun. It wasn't completely noticeable to see, but Larkstar could feel the sunlight on her pelt grow thinner. A feeling of dread crept on the she-wolf, and without saying anything, she turned her head up. Flattening her ears, her brief glace skyward was all she needed to confirm her fears- the sun was being swallowed up. Slowly yet surely, the light began to fade, making the usually lively prairie fall silent around them. The leader glanced away, fear making the hair on her spine stand on edge. "What does this mean? Is Starclan abandoning us?" She turned her gaze to where Honeybadger and Ashfrost were, the worry on both of their faces not doing anything to ease her mind. A part of her wanted someone to tell her that everything was going to be ok, that it was going to pass, but she knew such words would not reach her. She was a clan leader, after all, and was her duty to keep things running smoothly regardless of what bad happened.
"Kaispirit." She barked to the warrior, rising to her paws. "Go and bring Lilacsplash and Heavypaw back to camp." She tried her best to sound calm and collected, but she couldn't be sure of how good at pretending she was.

Nothing could chill Thornfur to the core quite like the unknown. The unknown was what pain and fear stemmed from, after all. You could not have one without the other lurking somewhere underneath, never quite at the forefront of your thought but lingering there nonetheless, corrosive and hungry and destructive to one's sanity.
Thornfur couldn't say that he'd ever experienced real fear before. As a young wolf he may have experienced something close - a moment of panic as he slipped on the loose rocks on the cliff top edge, the jolt in his chest when he first watched his sister disappear into the tall grasses of the moorland - but none of these feelings came close to the icy grip that crawled through his veins as the eery howling of the moor pierced his ears and he cast his gaze to the shrinking sun, careful to guard his eyes as he watched the fiery circle flee from the advancing shadow. "What in StarClan's name..." he muttered hollowly, his ears flattening against his skull in an attempt to muffle the screaming wind on the moor. The chill in his bones only grew more physical as the sky darkened, the black shadow hovering over the sun and remaining maddeningly un-observable for any length of time, lest he risk damaging his eyes. StarClan had to be behind this somehow, he was sure of it. Such a grand gesture could hardly have been the work of nature, especially in conjunction with the arrival of the SkyClan wolves who seemed so desperate for vengeance for their lost Clan. Was it possible that they were somehow connected to this? Thornfur was sceptical, discarding the thought before it even had time to fully form, but it still worked silently in the back of his mind. Two wolves could not do such a thing... not by themselves at least.
He started as Larkstar's voice reached him from across the camp, nodding in agreement as her words settled in his ears; bringing Lilacsplash and Heavypaw back in was a good idea. Despite the fact that there appeared to be no immediate danger, there was no telling whether that would last, and sticking together seemed by far the most sensible thing to do right now. Being split up meant being more vulnerable, and in a moment where nothing made sense, being vulnerable was the last thing they could afford to be.

Heavypaw retreated to the safety of the camp, panting, trembling, and shaken up. His eyes were wide and his ears rang with the haunting scream... the scream he had caused... "Leave me alone!" he screeched and clawed at his ears. "I'm sorry! You wanted me to do it! Please... stop..." Tears began spilling down his cheeks as he raised his maw up to the sky, begging StarClan, begging his mother, to forgive him. But the sky was pitch black. Nothing but silence met his cries.

The leader snapped her head in the direction of the camp entrance as Heavypaw entered the clearing. Alarm made the she-wolf's fur bristle more as she gazed at her apprentice. He seemed completely out of it, whining and howling apologies as if someone were attacking him. Larkstar quickly trotted over to where he was, checking his fur to make sure he hadn't gotten injured. His pelt looked unscathed and he smelled of the prairie, yet his wide eyes and trembling self put her on edge. "Heavypaw, what's wrong? What did you see?" She asked, swallowing back her fear. Lilacsplash was close behind him, and the she-wolf felt a little relief that no more of her warriors were out of camp.
The howling wind grew stronger, almost as if the weather were screaming and taking its wrath out on them. Lark flattened her ears against the gale, eyes narrowing. Dust and bracken were being picked up by the storm that seemed to grow worse at every moment. "What in Starclan's name is going on?" The weather and lack of light were so sudden and so torrential that this could only be the work of Starclan right? But if it wasn't Starclan, then who else could it be? "Is this...what Honeybadger said would be the wrath of Skyclan?" The dread inside her grew, but Larkstar remained her composure.

"She... she hates me! They- they all hate me!" Heavypaw shuddered as the howling wind battered at his frame. I loved you, Heavypaw- Why'd you do it, Heavypaw?- We trusted you, Heavypaw, the voices hissed and echoed in his ears as a silhouette of his mother wavered before him. "I'm so sorry!" he flung himself to her paws. "Please, please! I didn't mean it- you told me it was okay-" he sobbed. Why had she come back? Surely it was to punish him?

Larkstar watched with a mix of freight and sorrow as her apprentice began to lose himself, exclaiming that someone was hurting him when no one was there. "Heavypaw it's alright. No one is going to hurt you." She told him, her voice calm but strained. It seemed that all at once the world around them was collapsing, and here Lark was smack down in the middle of all this mess. The wind continued to howl and the sun remained dark, and as minutes pressed on, Larkstar could only wonder how long this drastic event was going to last. A part of her wished that Sunstar was still around, as surely he would know more on what to do and how to keep the clan calm. "One thing at a time," she thought, trying to relieve her stress. "I can't control what's happening, but I can help my clanmates through it."

Turning her head, the she-wolf quickly spotted Ashfrost and padded over to him. "Ashfrost, Heavypaw seems to be ill. He's imagining things that aren't there." She told him briskly, knowing that there were certain herbs available to calm a wolf in shock. "Please check up on him, if you will." With that she turned away and padded up to the high-rock, which was the top of the leader's den. Quickly climbing up, she let out a howl, beckoning her clanmates to come near. "All wolves old enough to catch their own prey, join here for a clan meeting." She called, waiting a moment for her clanmates to come near.
"As you've all noticed, something seems to be covering the sun and bringing up a strong wind from the moors." She began, squinting her eyes against the dust that was being swept through the camp. "We don't know what's causing it, but it will hopefully pass soon enough. Until then, no apprentice should leave camp without a warrior. Also, warriors must stay together in at least a group of two when outside the camp. That is all." With that, Larkstar leaped down. She didn't think it would do good to warn the clan about Skyclan, as that could start up even more of a panic.

Kaispirit had been just quietly waiting for Lilacsplash and Heavypaw to come back when he started feeling like something bad was gonna happen. He was just starting to think that maybe he was being a little paranoid. But when the sky turned completely black he knew instantly that something was very wrong. Thats when Kaispirit heard Larkstar order him to go find his mate and the entergetic apprentice. He got up but for some reason felt like all the life seemed to have drained from the lands. Just as he was about to leave Lilacsplash and Heavypaw came running into camp with Heavypaw yelling and screaming as if he was getting attacked. He listened to the elders words when she explained what was going on. He just didnt understand how this could happen. He thought only starclan could do something like this. Nonetheless he made his way to Heavypaw and joined his mate in trying to comfort the scared apprentice. "Heavypaw your okay, you are among those that care for you and wont let anything happen to you. This clan will fight tooth and claw before they let somebody hurt you." He said while running his tongue over Heavypaw's shoulders.