Go the Distance [SHC EVENT]

[SuspiciousMindz]

Pineclaw [open]

Pineclaw followed swiftly behind Elmshadow, the tabby tom found himself glancing around the familiar territory, though dusk was approaching quickly. The pines around them made the environment much darker than it was though. When the group came to a halt, he listened closely to Elmshadow, giving a quick nod and setting off in his own direction.

It was mole season right now. There seemed to be mole tunnels everywhere, his paw would find a tunnel and quickly sink into the soft soil several times as he trotted away from the group.

Using his tracking skills, Pineclaw found himself following one of the tunnels, the scent of prey growing stronger and stronger until he could hear the tiny creature shuffling beneath the earth. His pupils dilated, taking in as much light as they could so he could focus where this animal was located. With a quick pounce, Pineclaw sent himself through the air and back down to the ground with a thud.

The mole had no time to react and was instantly squished beneath his paws. Uncovering the small creature, Pineclaw secured the prey in his jaws and returned to Elmshadow, setting his catch on the ground at his paws and awaiting the rest of the group to return.

His eyes did rest on the outlines of the few cats that had already returned, giving them a swift dip of his head as he fell in line with them. "Nice catches," he spoke softly, not to disrupt anyone's hunt. He didn't expect a reply.

[poppy]

Brackenfire raised her eyes to fix on Elmshadow. Something with fur. Something with fur. Okay. She twisted her had around, and headed off in the direction that no one else was going, a lash of her tail the last movement she allowed herself to make freely. She ducked into the forest, and once she was away from those loud, chattering furballs, scented a vole. Sinking sinuously into a crouch, Brackenfire slid forward, like the snake Redshrike trained her to be, and fixed her eyes on the small creature, then leaped forward, claws outstretched, and grabbed it in her jaws, snapping it's neck easily and holding it as it's life quickly bled out into her jaws. Then, she turned back and stalked back to where everyone had gathered. The tabby molly approached, she noticed she was slightly later than the other cats, but if she was honest she didn't care. She had to go farther than everyone else, since they all had to yap like dog kits. Her golden eyes fixed on Elmshadow in a light glare, daring him to make her leave. Daring him to do anything but accept her pace and her presence.

[Pitou]

**Elmshadow**

From his perch, Elmshadow watched the cats slowly filtering back with prey in jaw. He noticed Centipedepaw, Hornetpaw, and Cactuspelt had joined them. It struck him as interesting that they hadn't shown up at camp but nonetheless they were here and they had completed the task given. That was more than could be said of Morningflower, Webfoot, Crowblaze, and Strikefur. He made note that the four hadn't even made it out of camp. Oakpaw kept up but didn't seem to have caught anything, disappointing. Centipedepaw and Hornetpaw had hunted together well and brought in a vole but that was one piece of prey between the two apprentices. "Hornetpaw, Centipedepaw. Your teamwork is well done but you are not one cat. If you cannot pull the weight of two separate cats then you are not carrying your own weight." He was intrigued by the duo and if they could make it work they'd become a very impressive yet easy to underestimate team.

Elmshadow hopped out of the tree, padding forward as soon as his paws touched the ground and split his way through the cats still with him. He stepped past a hole he'd dug. "Bury your freshkill here and we're moving on." He set his pace at an easy, steady trot through the trees. He wasn't trying to work them all down to uselessness.

Elmshadow slowed to a stop near the Thunderclan border. The trees were growing denser and were beginning to mix between deciduous and evergreen. He perched himself on a pine root snaking up out if the ground and looked back at the warriors and apprentices still with him. "We are a clan of the shadows. Thats where we have our largest advantage. Birds build their nests specifically to make them camouflaged and difficult to invade. I want you to find one of these nests and bring back an egg. Keep in mind, owls nests will be more difficult to find as they prefer to nest in tree trunks and underground, however owls will likely be out and away from the nests at this time. Many other birds make their nests in the branches but they will be sitting on their nests so you will have to deal with that. I dont care where you get it from or how you get it but bring it back here unbroken." He lifted his chin slightly to wait for the cats to disperse.

[Elmshadow's next post will be by the end of the day on March 26]

 

@LeoDaLeaf @Hopeless @NinjaBloss @poppy. @GoldenDays @SuspiciousMindz @xath @Rippleshade

[IcarusUntamed]

Comepletely forgot about this haha, hope Oak’Paw gets a pass for that last one for not knowing how to hunt yet ^^)

~Oak’paw~

They were done with that already? Oak’Paw seemed disappointed , he’d hardly had enough time to sniff the place out. Well this challenge should be easier, just climb right? Go into a tree and you’ll find a nest in no time!
He padded over to the nearest apprentice, deciding since this task should be easy enough that he should ask another apprentice to go with him, it was far to easy for him to get lost seeing as he hadn’t exactly been in the territory before
“Hi! Sunset’paw [@Ravensong] right?” he mewed “you wanna help me find the thickest tree? My theory is that thicker trees will have more leaves for the birds to hide in so there will be more nests!” he hoped his attempt at inviting the other apprentice to hang out was confident enough, Shadowclan sure loved their confidence. Maybe Sunset’paw could be his first real friend!

[Orion]

|| Centipedepaw & Hornetpaw | @LeoDaLeaf , open||

Centipede paw had the chosen vole swinging dead from his jaws when Whiterose joined the brothers. Funnily enough, it’d been the Deaf apprentice to notice the warrior’s approach first; Centipede could sense the older cat’s firm and deliberate pawsteps as they stalked closer, minute vibrations in the earth that would go unnoticed by cats less attuned to their sense of touch. With his maw full, the most that Centipedepaw could do was nod respectfully… a motion not mirrored by his irritated brother, who pressed up against his side to glare.

“Were you worried that we’d fail?” Hornetpaw hissed, keeping his voice low so as not to ruin the hunts of anyone else nearby. “Is that why you followed us?” His russet hackles began to spike, a show of his rotten temper, but Centipede rolled his eyes and bumped his shoulder—hard—against his sibling to shut him up. When Hornet snapped his frustrated stare toward him, the ashen brother raised his eyebrows and motioned one of his paws in a firm gesture: “Cool it.”

A second passed in which Hornet appeared to choke on his words. Then he, too, offered a grudging nod toward Whiterose and followed the experienced fighter back to where Elmshadow waited.

Most of the patrol had returned with prey. The brothers swept their attention at all the offerings—noting which cats brought what—and then glanced at each other. Thank the stars… what they’d hunted seemed to measure up to everybody else—

Elmshadow’s words sent a hot bolt of anger coursing through Hornetpaw’s already frayed veins. Turquoise pools narrowed at the dark warrior, his young body trembling slightly as he held his tongue. Beside him, Centipedepaw bit the inside of his jowls hard enough to bleed… a mixture of shame and determination mixed within him, warm under his fur. The boys had no choice but to acknowledge Elmshadow’s words. What the warrior said was hard to hear, but it was true: few would take the siblings seriously if they were constantly attached at the hip. Hadn’t they fought for moons just to show that Centipedepaw could handle warrior training? That Hornetpaw was clever enough to balance the responsibility of family with that of his clan?

Bit by bit their tousled pelts relaxed, their furious pulses slowing until they could focus on more of Elmshadow’s speech past the pounding of their heartbeats. After burying their kills in the soil, the apprentices jogged after their exercise leader. Their limbs burned with each stride, but they dare not fall behind; better not give Elm a reason to chastise them a second time. They’d take whatever challenge he threw at them. They’d show what they were made of.

“Egg hunt? We can do an egg hunt.” Hornetpaw’s tail lashed. “You and I can find our own eggs, no problem—”

“Wait.” Centipedepaw cast a glance at the cats around them, many peeling off on their separate missions. “We have to get our own eggs, but we should still have someone nearby. In case there’s danger.” He signed a swooping owl and then a snapping fox to emphasize his point, earning a roll of the eyes from Hornet. Unfortunately, before the ginger tom could say anything, Centipedepaw was gesturing for Whiterose’s attention.

At first, Hornetpaw refused to translate… but when Centipedepaw swatted him hard across the ear, he relented. “Ugh… excuse me, Whiterose? Would you… want to… go in our direction for the egg hunt?”

“I asked if they wanted to JOIN us,” Centipede pouted, emphasizing the sign with an exaggerated movement of his forelimbs. “They would be a great asset!”

Hornetpaw ignored him. “We’ll both get our own prizes this time. If you… have any tips, I guess that’d be appreciated.”

Flustered, the apprentice stalked off into the undergrowth. Centipedepaw huffed, shot Whiterose a look of apology, and followed in his brother’s general direction—opening his senses to the scents of birds and their nests.

[Glitch_Candle]

Cactuspelt followed elmshadow's orders. She quickly smelled the scent of bird. A hummingbird's nest! It was so tiny, as if she could crush the eggs between her paws. She made quick the adult hummingbird and dragged the nest, whole with the dead mother and 4 almond-sized eggs to Elmshadow. "I did it. They're tiny, but I did it," She exclaimed with a slightly tired tone, as if this was all wearing her out. Surely not. @Ravensong

[Hopeless]

~ Owlfeather ~
[I will post in Nettlepaw's POV separetly]

She dropped the rabbit in the place Elmshadow had picked, while listening to him explain the following task. Hunting was a good choice, Shadowclan would have use to the prey and it made partly up some of the slacking hunters on the patrols, but she was a little disappointed to hear the second. Egg-hunting. They could be eaten, partly, and if the clan was truly starving they might save a few cats here and there, but hunting eggs for sport was something she could not agree with. She wasn't going to refuse the task, but it would be better not to kill birds before they actually made a meal, Shadowclan wasn't in such a desperate need of food as to do that.

But she could at least be smart about it, do it in a better way. Since many were already pairing up, she flicked with her tail towards her little shadow. "Nettlepaw, you're with me." That would already be cutting down at the damage this would do for the future, but there was one more thing she could do; namely, turn what could have been damage into an advantage for Shadowclan. Padding through the marsh her sharp gaze every now and then flickered up towards the dark trees, searching until they landed on what she was looking for. An owl's nest with only one parent currently guarding the eggs. Not all birds would yet have started having eggs, but she had luck here.

She turned to Nettlepaw and nodded towards the round opening in the tree. "There is our prey. You have learned how to climb trees, well, time to out that still to good use. Firstly I will get up there and drag out the owl guarding, then you will have to be quick and grab one of the eggs, just one, and carefully enough as not to crack it, and get down. Signal to me and I'll also come down. Now only one of the owls in there from what I can see, but if the other one comes you have to flee, we can get something else but not if you are thorn to sheards." and Nettlepaw wasn't old enough to fight of a fully grown owl. "All understood?" After getting the confirmation from her nice Owlfeather headed out, climbing up in a tree near the one with the nest.

She perched herself at one of the branches, picked out a good defense-place, and measured the way to the nest before quickly jumping from branch to branch, turning when she was a fox-length away from the den and in a flash getting back to her place. But the owl didn't bite, and stayed in the nest. Once more Owlfeather prepared herself and repeated the trick, but this time she came even closer to the nest, before quick as a lightning bolt heading back. And this time the owl took the bait and chased after the warrior as she got into the place she had chosen. She knew how owls attacked, and when the talon strike came towards her she quickly avoided it and shot a paw towards the owl's side, before moving out of the way again, continuing with the distraction while hoping Nettlepaw was doing as told, and succeeding.

She kept going with her dance in the trees, constantly keeping herself out of reach from the owl's talon while every now and then bothering it with a ghost attack that was never actually meant to make contact. Kept going until she finally caught a glimpse of Nettlepaw back on the ground, safely and hopefully with an egg. Owlfeather now began to instead of moving around just to keep the owl on her tail, she turned and headed for the opposite direction of the nest, looking like she was fleeing as she tried to lose her pursuer until she could no longer see it when she looked over her shoulder. She continued a bit more to be sure before turning again and circuling back towards her niece.

[Orion]

|| Hornetpaw ||

The dark ginger tom's bones ached as he stalked through the underbrush, keeping his belly low to the dirt and ears swiveling in all directions, maw slightly parted to drink in the scents of the night. He could hear Centipedepaw peel from his path and meander in a different direction, clearly hoping to bring back an egg himself... and although a twinge of anxiety wormed in Hornet's guts, he knew that he had to allow his brother to make his own way. Seeking eggs was different from targeting "live" prey; eggs were inert, could not fight back, did not need to be heard to be discovered—it would be okay.

It took several minutes for the hotheaded apprentice to travel far enough away from the other cats to have some space for himself. He padded until he could no longer smell the signatures of his clanmates. Ahead, his superior senses directed him toward... a lark's nest?

A scattering of twigs and pebbles gathered into an indent on the ground cupped a precious clutch of eggs. Each speckled orb was small enough that Hornetpaw could take one in his mouth and cradle it, gently, his breath warming the cool shell. His tail shot proudly into the air while marching back to where Elmshadow waited with a few other successful hunters; with a graceful dip of his head, Hornet deposited the tiny round lark egg between his forepaws and stared up at the venerated warrior leading this group exercise. "That was fun," he muttered—a small smirk tugging one corner of his mouth.

---------

|| Centipedepaw ||

The soot-colored apprentice trailed after his brother for a moment or so, mostly out of habit. He knew what Elmshadow desired: for each sibling to showcase his strength—separately—to prove that they could stand as warriors in their own individual right. An understandable standard... but also one that felt so very far away from the young cat. He had never been able to hear, so he didn't know what he was missing (or why it seemed to matter so much) yet every so often, a specific challenge would test his patience. He'd be left confused, wondering what he could have possibly done differently when some obstacles required tools he did not possess. Pressure shackled him like stones stacked on his back.

But Centipedepaw could do this. He knew how to hold his body so that his paws fell feather-soft on the earth, how to maneuver himself so as to hardly bend the grass he walked past, how to keep his vision sharp for tiny movements and how to taste scent the faintest molecules.

A tall bush loomed overhead, near the border. Centipede instinctively deepened his crouch. Careful inspection revealed a sparrow's nest, tucked into a cluster of glossy leaves and criss-crossing twigs.

The bird parents erupted into distress at the intrusion of the apprentice's paw. Centipedepaw ducked his skull, ears flattened against the onslaught of pecking beaks and scraping claws; he reached far into the nest, feeling around for the smooth shell of an egg... there. His toes closed around the egg and he scooped it, swiftly, before hopping back to the ground.

The sparrows had to make a choice: continue attacking him, or wheel back into their nest to defend the rest of their clutch. Centipedepaw slunk off with the delicate egg cradled between his teeth—pulse pounding, face stinging from many tiny wounds, smiling from his success.

He brushed against his brother when he returned to the group, beaming smugly up at Elmshadow with the sparrow egg still held in his jaws.

[Hopeless]

~ Nettlepaw ~
[Just Nettlepaw's POV from my previous post with Owlfeather]

It seemed egg-hunting was the nest objective. Ok, yeah, she could do that, she just had to plan out things and find a good nest and all. The dust brown apprentice licked her jaws to think and turned towards the forest, but stopped when her name was called. Her attention snapped towards the voice to find her aunt calling her to her. Go together? Right, that was an option, she hadn't even thought about the possibility of teamwork, while some others had, she had to always remember all her options. Quickly she trotted up to Owlfeather and followed as the warrior lead her into the forest.

After what felt like a rather long bit of traveling Owlfeaher finally stopped, and Nettlepaw followed her aunt's gaze up towards one of the trees. Owl eggs? Oh, she remembered Elmshadow mentioning that they could be difficult, but at least both parents weren't home, just one. Yet, she was a little worried for Owlfeather. The large tabby had fought in many battles, and even taken down things like a fox, but that had been with help, on the ground, this would be up in the trees, alone. She took a deep breath and made herself ready, nodding to Owlfeather as a sigh of it. The quicker she was, the shorter of a time Owlfeather would have to deal with the bird.

After the warrior took off, Nettlepaw crouched down and began to stalk towards the trees while doing her best to keep an eye on the large cats climbing up to trunk a bit away, it was rather difficult to see since Owlfeather was a dark-furred cat, and one who had been trained to move unseen in the night and shadows, but Nettlepaw could catch the glimpse f movement here and there to tell her where the warrior was. Then she was at the tree, but stopped to wait, hidden down in the undergrowth, narrowing her eyes and focusing on the nest. Two times she saw Owlfeather's shape sweep close to the nest, and the second time she didn't leave alone. A soundless gasp escaped Nettlepaw as she saw the size of the owl, but time was of the essence, and as soon as the owl was far enough from the eggs, she started climbing.

She could do this, she had practiced climbing before, and had been good enough then, this was just with a little more pressure, the pressure that both she and her aunt might be dead at the end of the night if she messed up too badly. But she kept going, up and up and up, not daring to look towards the owl, while also knowing that she would not be able to hear it if it headed for her, she just kept on keeping on, until she finally reached the nest. Peeking inside she could make out three eggs, buried down among feathers, moss, and other things the nest has been built of. She quickly allowed herself to glance over her shoulder. The owl was still there, with her aunt. She swallowed and reached into the nest, carefully picking up one of them, but could feel one of her fangs puncture the shell, and some kind of odd liquid rang down her chin. Damm it! Ok ok, just be more careful this time. She want for the other eggs next, and this time she used her tongue to cover some of her sharper teeth, while carefully picking up the egg. And it remained whole. She slowly began to move down the tree, managing to keep the egg intact until she finally felt the ground under her paws.

She placed down the egg on a softer part of the ground and kept low while trying to spot Owlfeather, and let the warrior know she had the egg. A few a bit she managed to see the owl, but it was flying away from the nest, quickly leaving her line of sight once more. She swallowed a little but did not dare move from her hiding spot. Then the owl returned, but at least it wasn't carrying Owlfeather's body in its talons. She followed the large birds with her gaze as it returned to the nest, and she flinched at the angry cry that ripped through the marsh as it noticed that one of the eggs was gone, and one more destroyed. A few times it circled around, searching for whoever had done it, but Nettlepaw was well hidden under a bush by then, and the bird of prey swished past without noticing.

Then, at last, she could sense the familiar scent of her aunt. Once more she picked up her egg, and slipped out of her hiding place and towards where Elmshadow probably was waiting. When the two were well out of earshot from the owl she allowed herself to relax a little more and start walking normally again, admittedly begging to feel a little tired after all that happened already this night. But then the two returned and she could finally place down the egg. "One, whole, owl egg." She sighed, actually rather proud of herself and Owlfeather for it.

[Ian]

Badgerscar allowed a frown to cross his face as he listened to Elmshadow explain the next task. He wasn't known for being gentle, so this would be a trial to see if he could get the egg back in one piece. As soon as Elmshadow finished the instructions the large tabby turned and stalked off into the undergrowth.

He pricked his ears as he walked, knowing that scent would not help him now. It surprisingly didn't take Badgerscar that long to hear the chirps of a bird up in a tree. When he looked up he spotted it sitting in a nest and wasted no time in clawing his way up towards it.

The bird let out an alarm call as his large form caused the tree to tremble. It took of from where it had been sitting on the eggs before swooping back down and harassing him in an attempt to make the warrior give up his attempt at raiding the nest. It didn't work.

The bird made the mistake of flying to close to his jaws when it went to peck at his eyes and in one fatal snap it's life was over. He opened his mouth and allowed it to drop gracelessly to the ground for it wasn't his prey. Scrambling up the last tail-length Badgerscar came face to face with the eggs.

Now came the part he really hated. The tabby leaned forward and gingerly picked up an egg in his mouth, face scrunching up at the taste. Disgusting! Why does this have to be the task? he thought as he began to carefully make his way back down the tree.

The second his paws were on the ground the ShadowClan warrior set off at an easy lope, making sure the egg wasn't getting jostled too much in his mouth. The last thing he wanted was for it to break and fill his mouth with its disgusting innards.

When he finally arrived back where they were supposed to meet he found that there were some cats already there, although not all. It didn't really matter to him whether he was first, he just wanted the damn egg out of his mouth!

Padding forward, he set it down near the other eggs before backing off and licking his muzzle in an attempt to get the disgusting taste out of his mouth. Badgerscar found a new hatred, and that was eggs.