The Starcave

[pomegranate]

@Charmer @king kaleb! @Cosmo @Mauve @Lonestar23 @blue jellie
(Sorry for the late reply!)

As her ceremony finished, Ringpaw straightened her back confidently.
She was now a medicine cat.
Well, not a full-fledged Medicine Cat, just training to be one. But now she had survived the craziest thing she had done.
Well, not crazy. Just new.
Smiling, she looked up at Shinefang. He looked so solemn, so confident but strange. A mix of emotions. Ringpaw had never been good at reading emotions, only when someone was annoyed with her. The creases in their brow, the narrowed eyes and traces of slight disgust, that was exactly what she looked for when asking questions. Time to back off, it said.
But Shinefang was unreadable. Maybe a tinge of worry, that was it. Why worry?
Then Ringpaw mentally slapped herself.
Shinefang hadn’t been exactly open to Starclan as far as she knew. What if she had insulted him? I’m sure I didn’t.
Besides, did Ringpaw even really believe? Snowbranch had. Ringpaw missed Snowbranch. Maybe she should try to talk with her later on.
“Okay, I can do that.” She whispered quietly back to Shinefang as he bent down to touch his muzzle to the pool.
She watched him as his muscles relaxed, and the yellow tom closed his eyes.
Ringpaw looked around the cave, where all of the other cat’s were also drifting off.
Heatherfur and Daydream were already asleep, and Ringpaw glanced around with her green eyes for a little bit longer before crouching down.
She let her calico fur brush Shinefang’s side, before touching her pink nose to the icy water.
At first, she breathed in with her nose under water, and jerked back to snort it out. But just as she was about to rid herself of the clear liquid, she felt something tugging at the edge of her mind.
Tired, she began to slip from consciousness and her muzzle dipped back to the pool.
Suddenly, her eyes grew weary and she felt herself fall into a sleep.

[fresh]

[ @king kaleb! @Cosmo @Charmer @Lonestar23 @Mauve @Silver Fishie ]

The she-cat was relieved that she wouldn't have to do anything in front of all the medicine cats. At her mentor's words, she simply nodded, her eyes determined but a little shy. When the enby laid their tail across her back,
she took it as a signal and leaned down to touch her nose to the water alongside them. At the feel of the cold water she flinched and was tempted to draw away, but she closed her eyes tightly and sank lower to the ground, sleep washing her consciousness away to a place filled with a beautiful starry sunset. Not that she knew it. Flashpaw kept her eyes closed until she felt the freezing enviornment vanish, and even then she waited a few more moments before opening her eyes. It was truly a beautiful sight. The smoky she-cat gazed at the colorful constellations and exhaled slowly, drawing her tail in around her flank. Glancing at Daydream, she could tell they didn't feel the same. They looked ready to jump out at anything that moved. She tentatively touched her tail to their shoulder in a bit of a comforting way, her eyes worried. The other medicine cats were fading into view as well, and she saw them out of her peripheral vision as she watched her mentor carefully.

[graves]

[ @blue jellie @Cosmo @Charmer @Lonestar23 @Mauve @Silver Fishie ]

im doing a MAJOR timeskip so we can try and finish this roleplay by today.

as daydream began to sense the other cats presences, it didnt seem to help their nerves at all, but it was better than being alone. they took a glance at flashpaw when she rested her tail on their shoulder, giving them a grateful nod. the air seemed nice and peaceful, the trees a pretty green and the grass soft. they could hear the subtle sound of water splashing, a river near them. it seemed.. nice, which was funny to say considering they usually hated every moment of this. maybe it was because flashpaw was here, it calmed them a bit. the calmness didnt last for long, the leaves on the trees drying out and turning a mud brown, the grass growing stiff and losing its color. the sky turned from a pretty blue to a dark grey, as if a storm was coming over head, but no rain came. instead, the river near them all dried, the level growing lower and lower, drying out the rest of the forest. they were frigtened, but they didnt show that on the look on their face, it being bland and a bit expressionless as usual. but they did stick closer to flashpaws side out of protection purposes, looking at the other medicine cats to make sure they werent the only ones seeing this.

[Cosmo]

@blue jellie @king kaleb! @Charmer @Lonestar23 @Mauve @Silver Fishie

Oriolepaw reached down and touched her nose to the water, the same way that she had done before, soon she was asleep.

~~~

Oriolepaw's eyes opened to see the other medicine cats around her. Everything was dry around her. The molly backed up, her ears pinned back against her head. Fear shown clearly on the she-cat's face as she looked up at the dark gray sky. It used to be a beautiful periwinkle blue, but now it was gray and dark as though a storm was coming. The river was drying up and Oriolepaw turned her gaze over to Heatherfur, seeking comfort in the older molly. Her frightened gaze studied the other medicine cats to see if they too were as scared as she was.

[Charmer]

@Lonestar23 , @blue jellie , @Mauve , @Cosmo , @king kaleb! , @Silver Fishie

Shinefang, glanced around. It seemed that all the medicine cats had found themselves in the forest. He smelled the clean scent of the river before he saw it. The old tom turned to Ringpaw, his apprentice coming into focus as she found herself on Starclan’s plains. But suddenly, a rumbling in the distance caught his attention and he looked up. Storm clouds had coated the sky instantly. A cold wind whipped through his fur, making him brace himself against the cold. When he looked up again, he saw the river before him, and to his shock, the water level was dropping fast. “What the...” The old tom stepped closer as the water continued to drain, growing more and more shallow. He could see the writhing outlines of shadows just below the surface, then the glint of scales as fish in the remaining water began to thrash in the remains of the river.

[pomegranate]

@king kaleb! @Charmer @Cosmo @Heatherfur @Lonestar23 @blue jellie

When Ringpaw’s eyes snapped open she was standing in a clear meadow, a crisp breeze floating pleasantly around her.
Long blades of grass nearly up to her chest tickled her legs, and carried with them the scent of lush greenery and the strong smell of prey.
The smell of water hit her nose, the crisp and flowing sound snapping in her ear fur as she turned to look a ways over.
There, a fast flowing brook-like stream was sitting, with shining gray stones and long reeds around the edges.
After she noticed the river, she saw that all of the other medicine cats were in front of here. She seemed to be behind them, so as she stepped forth she inched closer to Shinefang, her pelt nearly brushing his.
Being near him made her feel more comfortable, but she didn’t need comfort anyway. This place was... absoloutely stunning!
“It’s beautiful! Is this what Starclan looks like?” She asked her mentor, her green gaze still locked on the trickling brook ahead.
Just as the words left her mouth, a chilling wind came up her spine and whipped what she said away.
She watched as the sky grew darker and grayer, the clouds turning from airy and fluffy to large and booming in seconds. The wind grew stronger, before the grass turned brittle and browned beneath her paws.
“What?..” She said aloud, but was sure no one could hear her. She looked towards Oriolepaw, who was staring desperately at Heatherfur.
Is something... wrong?
Her eyes locked on to Shinefang’s back as he stepped closer to the stream, and he left her side.
The river was gone.
The stones became dusty and dull, the water drying up leaving only silver minnows and fish flopping around as they gasped for hydration.
Ringpaw shivered.

[Charmer]

@Lonestar23 , @blue jellie , @Mauve , @Cosmo , @king kaleb! , @Silver Fishie

The old tom stared, dumbfounded as the water continued to sink into the earth. He was no longer even aware of Ringpaw at his tail trying to speak to him. When the water finally vanished, all that was left was earth, parched and cracked, and the fish of the river. Violently they thrashed and flopped around, their gills heaving and their mouths opening and closing in wordless screams of terror and pain. Then, out of the writhing mass of fins and scales, a single fish flipped halfhazardly from the rest, landing practically at Shinefang’s paws. Startled, he stepped back and stared down at the fish. It was black a raven’s wing, and like the rest, it’s gills and mouth worked furious as they strained for water that wasn’t there. But it was its eyes that made Shinefang forget to breath. They were an eerie, deep blue with vertical slits... like that of a cat. A cat he knew. Finally, out of its mouth, between labored, painful gasps, to the old toms horror, it spoke.

”Help...me...”

Shinefang stumbled back, his senses reeling from the terrifying, unnatural sight. “What... what is happening?” He demanded, eye darting around are the other medicine cats, at Ringpaw... then finally at Daydream. Glaring, over the roaring wind he called, “What does this mean?!”

[graves]

[ @blue jellie @Cosmo @Charmer @Lonestar23 @Mauve @Silver Fishie ]


daydream eyed the sky quietly. then towards the river. they watched it run dry and the levels grow lower and lower, until eventually, it was dry. countless fish were flopping around, until one flopped towards shinefang specifically. they made their way over to him. even if they werent on good terms, this wasnt exactly the time to keep up with past arguments. they eyed the fish while it flopped, hearing its words as they stood next to shinefang, inspecting the poor creature. they almost wanted to put it out of its misery, but it looked too familiar for them to do that. they made eye contact with the fish for a split second, and thats all they needed for a jolt of electricity to run down their spine as they saw a flash of memories, assuming from this weird looking fish. they saw war. they saw blood. they saw cats running away from the clans. they saw kits. they heard yowling and screaming and god they just wanted it to stop. and it did.

"without the rivers the forest will run dry..." they spoke, at exactly at the same time as the fish on the ground, before it finally laid dead on the ground, eyes fading into an icy blue. they didnt know why they knew what the fish was going to say, or why, but they knew it meant something. it had to be something with riverclan for sure, after all the damn fish looked like fallenstar himself. the memories still made chills run down their spine, and they dont know why they were shown that, or how, but they werent going to question it now.

(daydream has the power to see into anyones memories, whether its past or future ! i thought this would be a cool way to introduce it.)

[Mauve]

@blue jellie @Charmer @Cosmo @Lonestar23 @king kaleb! @Silver Fishie

As Heatherfur opened her eyes to the beautiful forever greenleaf that was StarClan's homeland, a smile came upon her face. She had always found peace whenever she was close with her warrior ancestors. The only other time she had been here was when her father, Cobraspirit, had visited her once in a dream many many moons ago. It still seemed as beautiful as ever, with the sky a brilliant shade of pale blue and the lush trees swaying gently in the soft afternoon breeze. Bird chirping caught her attention as the molly turned to glance towards the river, the babbling sounds turning into music in her ears. Her time with RiverClan had made her appreciate the beauty of water, and reminded her of the day Rowanflower had taught her to swim. As much as she was WindClan, the medicine cat knew that the warmth she felt with all the things that came with RiverClan was a gift from StarClan herself, perhaps to show her that she was finally on the right path, and that this was her new destiny. Had they known what they were doing all along? Was moving her to RiverClan as theirnew medicine cat StarClan's way of showing the Clans that all this fighting was pointless? She didn't really believe that she played that much of an important role in bringing about an era of peace and tranquility, but if it was what StarClan wished, she would do her best to carry it out.

Suddenly, the ground began to tremble under paw and Heatherfur felt a harsh breeze whip at her fur. She was used to the strong winds on the open moorland, but this felt different. Overhead, the once beautiful opaque sky turned violent, dark gray storm clouds swirling in and blotting out the light from the sun. Shadows grew from the trees, coating the river that was... was the river disappearing?. With her eyes wide and ears flattened in terror, Heatherfur watched as the water began to drain back into an unknown source, leaving several fish flopping around drastically, each with wide eyes themselves, full of terror and pain. Instinctively, she moved closer to Oriolepaw, pressing her flank against the younger she-cats as if to protect her from the storm. "What is going on?" the molly breathed, trying to make sense of the scene in front of her. More confusion shot through her veins as she watched a single fish flop forward towards Shinefang. Though she wasn't right next to the SkyClan medicine cat, her ears caught Daydream's words loud and clear as to what the fish had said to Shinefang.

"Without the river, the forest will run dry..."

Horrified, Heatherfur moved forward, keeping her tail laced across Oriolepaw's back as if to lead her with each step. She opened her mouth to speak, turning her attention towards Daydream. After all, they had been a medicine cat longer than anyone else here, now with Surgestorm gone. There was something about the expression on their face told Heatherfur that something had happened, and for a brief moment she wanted to ask them what it was. But there were more important matters at paw, and Heatherfur had to swallow back the bile that rose in her throat as the fish finally gave up its struggle, the life fading from it's eerie blue eyes. "I don't... what does this mean?" she asked, looking around at all the other medicine cats. In her heart, she knew it had something to do with RiverClan. Oh, why had StarClan given this responsibility to her? She felt practically paralyzed, and the only thought that ran through her veins was to wake up and return to RiverClan to warn Fallenstar. As much as she disagreed with the tom's handle on the whole situation, they needed to work together to make sure RiverClan saw through whatever was in store for them.

[fresh]

[ @Mauve @Charmer @king kaleb! @Lonestar23 @Silver Fishie @Cosmo ]

As the smoky black feline gazed at the countless twinkling stars against the pastel red and violet sky, something happened. The sky dulled, storm clouds that she hadn't noticed before covering up the stars. She looked down and at Daydream with concern, about to ask what was happening, when out if the corner of her eye she saw the river disappear from view. Flashpaw snapped her head in that direction, her eyes widening as the river shrunk lower and lower. Tons of fish flopped around, their gills convulsing as much as their bodies as they strained for air. One by one they died, choking to death, and all the ShadowClan medicine cat apprentice could so was watch in horror. Just then her mentor turned and went over to Shinefang, where a familiar looking fish had flooped at its feet. It said a few words, ones that would haunt her forever. "Help... me..." The she-cat was frantic now. She thought StarClan was supposed to be a beautiful, peaceful, and blissful place, with endless blue skies and newleaf all year-round. No one had told her that it was like being taken to a massacre. They might've been fish, but they all looked familiar. Were they resembling... RiverClan cats? She hadn't seen many before, but she definitely recognized some. Like Fallenstar. Black fish with blue eyes were everywhere. And they weren't normal eyes. They were cat eyes. Flashpaw didn't know she wasn't breathing until her vision faltered and se gasped for breath, her lungs heaving and clogged as she fought back another asthma attack. Could a cat pass out in StarClan? She didn't know. She didn't know much of anything. The world was a blur in front of her, so much so that she didn't hear Daydream speak. Something snapped her out of it. Maybe a cat couldn't pass out in StarClan. The she-cat fought to control her breathing, her heart slowing as she shook her head and opened her eyes fully, not realizing they'd been half-closed. Her face was red hot, as she realized how often she had the attacks. Some medicine cat you are, her mind taunted, making her pulse lower even more, as though her heart was physically sinking. You can't even fix your own asthma. It took a lot of reminding herself that asthma wasn't fixable until she came back to reality. Flashpaw heard Heatherfur's question but was had no idea how to answer. The feline was too busy shaking, the question bouncing around her head. What does this mean?