Like two sides of a coin, like two sides of a bridge, a sacrifice on one end means a sacrifice on the other. To fix a problem, there was always a price to pay. In the realm of the dead, Brokenstar had paid that price, leaving the Wardens adrift, with no leader to turn to. As for the land of the living. . .
It starts with a small, innocent rumble, imperceptible to most, a whisper of power leaking out of a splinter in the starstone. A prelude to something far more disastrous. A suspicious quiet, before all hell breaks loose. The earth begins to shake beneath Starcave, seeking vengeance for the wrong that'd gone on too long in the skies. Too late, it had been fixed. Repercussions were in order. Pebbles on the ground tremble in fear of what is to come, pieces of rock dislodging from the ceiling to crash to the ground in great, booming thuds as the inner sanctum caves, dust flying in its wake. A shower of rocks hot on the heels of RiverClan's high ranks as they only just make it out, deadly and unforgiving to anything unlucky enough to be caught beneath them.
And just as Brokenstar had been reduced to fragments, part of the crystal explodes outward, pieces of glass scattering through the air. Shards clinking and clattering against stone as they slide to a halt. All that follows is a foreboding silence, as the dust clears once more.
The Starcave has been sealed off, its entrance inaccessible. What does this mean for the Clans?
Lostspark... did that name sound familiar? RiverClan's medicine cat wasn't sure, but she shook it off for now. The entire interaction had been strange enough, and Berry's mind was foggy enough with all that was going on. She simply took the news as it was, deciding to ponder if she'd ever seen or heard of the former Clan cat who now lived in the mystical cave below.
Berryshine had nodded gratefully to the news from both the newly-named Owlstar and... Cobwebstorm! At once Berry's eyes softened, recognizing the weight of her friend's new name. For honor, for her own force... the medicine cat knew it felt right. It was a bit unnerving to hear that StarClan had been disappointed enough not to give Owlstar a proper life, at least one, but... she was still granted her new name. It was gonna be alright.
She touched her nose to Cobwebstorm's ear and flicked Owlstar's shoulder with her tail, eyes gleaming with relief and pride. "Stars... I-I'm happy for both of you. We're... w-we're gonna be alright. Let's get home, before—"
But the jumpy she-cat froze, her wary senses catching that slight little tremble. At first, she'd thought she'd imagined it — yet it had still been enough for her words to falter off, eyes narrowed in confusion as she glanced back deeper into the cave. "Uh... sorry," she muttered, shaking her head. "T-Thought I heard something. But, a-anyway, we—"
This time, no, she knew she wasn't imagining it. Berryshine froze, eyes going wide as she felt the ground rumble beneath her paws. What in StarClan's name...? Before the she-cat could ask if her fellow high ranks had felt that, there was the sound of pebbles falling... then chunks of rock, one landing dangerously close to her paws. Berryshine jumped back in alarm, a squeak of surprise escaping her, heart skipping a beat. Oh no.
She had never experienced something like this before, the literal ground quaking beneath her paws. But that didn't mean her instincts didn't immediately scream at her: run.
And run, she did.
"W-What the-... w-we gotta get outta here! Run!" She sputtered to her Clanmates, practically scrambling into both of them as her small frame lurched, trying to propel her friends forward as well. The medicine cat ran as fast as she ever had as the rocks tumbled around them, hissing in pain as a few pebbles and smaller rocks struck her side. Thankfully, nothing fatal or too injurious, but enough to try and falter her steps. But she wouldn't let it; panic fueled her paws into a blur, the nimble she-cat racing faster than the erratic beat of her heart. The roar of tumbling rocks and the shaking ground overwhelmed her senses, filling her veins with fiery adrenaline.
It wasn't until she nearly stumbled to the ground, her lungs screaming for air when Berryshine finally stopped, whirling around. Gasping for breath, the medicine cat stared wide-eyed, making sure her companions were with her. To her shock and horror, the entrance to the Starcave—the place they'd all been standing just moments before—was now covered in piles of stones, not an inch of space spared.
The entrance had been sealed.
And had they'd been just a few steps short, a whisker too late — they would've met the darkness beneath the stones as well.
"Great StarClan..." Trembling like a leaf, Berryshine could only stare, stunned, for several moments. Then dread began to pool with an icy trickle into her belly. Maybe a sixth sense, maybe her own spiritual beliefs and connection to the stars via her position... whatever it was, something felt restless in the medicine cat. Unnerved, shifted, wrong...
"...Something's very, very wrong," she whispered hoarsely, ears flattening as the shock began to mix with her fear. StarClan... were they angry? Or had something terrible just happened? And... was this because of the RiverClan cats' visit, and their tumultuous past? More disapproval from their starry ancestors — and a final, unprecedented movement to cut them off?
Regardless, one thing was for sure, spoken in a horrified murmur of realization:
Where was the worst place to be when an earthquake caused a cave-in? Inside the damn cave that was caving in. Lark had barely made it through the narrow passage back to her excuse of a den when the ground started rumbling, raging, and then roaring. Her pupils narrow to vertical slits, paws turning on stone as Lark whirls around, head snapping to the ceiling as the first of the pieces of deadly rocks dislodges. A shower of dead.
"Bleeding. Burning. SKIES!" Terror draws the yell from her maw as Lark throws herself sideways, eyes on the ceiling. The ceiling, that was dislodging, that was collapsing. There was no mercy to be found here. She was going to be encased in rock. This was her grave, her tomb. A rock crashes to the floor, sending Lark sprawling, crashing into the opposite wall with a sickening thud as chips of stone embedded into her fur. A hiss of pain escapes past gritted teeth as blood wells, claws chipping as they scrabble on stone for a hold.
Her strength was draining far faster than she'd like for it to. Her heart hammered against her chest as her fight or flight activated. This wasn't something she could fight. Not at all. The only way to survive this - Lark rears back as another rock in the inner sanctum crashing to the ground almost threw her off balance - was to run. To find a safe spot and hide. She knew how to survive, and right now, an inflated ego would do no one any good.
Skidding across the floor, deciding it too reckless to lift her paws too high, Lark spared a few precious heartbeats to pick up the three yarrow and the half-eaten hare in her storage, wincing as a smaller rock pelted her side. Bruises were going to bloom on her body soon enough, and Lark was currently ignoring the blood dripping down her flank, shoulders, and face.
And then she was getting out of there. The exit to the Starcave was too far for Lark to consider, but the narrow passageway that connected her once-home to the rest of the cave? Lark could make it that far, and then swear to the skies that if this collapse killed her after everything she'd gone through, she was going to hunt down the cause of it and terrorize them for eternity. Safety from falling death only lasted so long, for the dust that rose was worse, and hacking coughs shook Lark's body as she curled up in a corner, muzzle tucked into her own fur, blocking out the chaos with the rest of her body.
The only game left to play now was the waiting game.
There was a starsdamned ghost in her cave. No, literally. He was both dead, and damned by the stars. If she ignored him, he'd go away, yes? He would disappear soon enough, right? Eyes closing, chin resting against her paws, Lark remained unmoved. She needed to retain her heat, and she would eat the hare later, when she was starving for it. Her plan to ignore the unwanted guest apparition flew out the window as he mentioned her daughter's name. One of them - the eldest, to be exact. Foggy amber eyes fly open, narrowing with instantaneous distrust at the name, attention catching only when her kin was brought up. Sleepysunrise? Had she been hurt? But no, Sleepysunrise was just seemingly... training. Something to tuck away for later.
Her lips pursed, and Lark averts her gaze to hide the flash of sorrow in her eyes that she'd not been there for Birdpaw's ceremony, though anger simmers under the surface over the fact that this lowly ghost had called her darling an idiot. Her sweet daughter, Birdpaw... what had her name become? Something wondrous, Lark knew, to fit the lovely, brave little cat who'd been named. Not so little now, Lark assumed, and her heart panged at the thought. Distress, was it? She was lonely, she missed her family, but... what could she do other than live in exile? Lark wished not to re-open closed wounds. Above all, she wished not to continue being a disappointment to the cats she loved so much. So she'd help them from afar, keep her distance.
The lithe grey she-cat rises to her paws, silent as the wraith in front of her as she slinks after him back into the main cave, forsaking her resting place. "My kits are no idiots." She stops at the maw of the central StarCave. "If nothing else, remember that."
Nightwalker
Dark Forest
he/him | Former WindClan Warrior
[Surly, heavily scarred dark grey tabby with sky blue eye] Purrks: Spiritual Encounter [ACTIVE]
⋆˖⁺‧₊☽ The Devil ☾₊‧⁺˖⋆
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[Lark - @Rose ]
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Delight ran through Nightwalker at the distress evident in Lark's face at the mention of her younger daughter. Well, luckily for her, Birdecho had been doing just fine since her warrior ceremony. A little... unhinged, but stable enough to count. At least for now.
Nightwalker grunted as Lark pushed herself to her paws to follow him to the main cave, the dead tom looking up at the large crystal with vague interest. "Idiot or not, I imagine if she found out you were alive, the delicate balance of her personality would, well..." Nightwalker tapped on the crystal with a claw, but only he could hear the faint ringing that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once. "How long do you plan on staying here, anyway?"
Nightwalker glanced over his shoulder at Lark, his sky-blue gaze harsh and wicked. "Running away from your problems should be beyond a molly like you."
Nightwalker could feel his time coming to an end, his smoky form becoming less solid the longer he stood in front of the disgraced feline. "Well, look at that. Time is up." Nightwalker strode towards Lark, leaning down to bring his face level with hers. "I am in the business of helping cats with potential. If you are ever desperate enough to make a deal with a devil..." Nightwalker stepped back, giving her a wink before disippating like morning mist.
@Moonraven @Mica @Alchemist Kitsune @Estelle
A silent yawn left the massive she-cat's maw as she silently strolled behind the ancient WindClan leader leading the way. Bright golden orbs turned to look over her shoulder; she knew Sleepysunrise was right at her side but seeing calmed her inner anxiety that was building up. It's been a long, long, time since Dawnstar has walked this path.
Her leadership ceremony had been less than thrilling and a harsh reminder of her mother's disinterest in her. Worrying more about a traitor of a medicine cat than her flesh and blood. The only thing they could both agree on was their dedication to the clan, but even then... Dawnstar lashed her tail and pushed the memory away far in the back of their mind.
As they reached the mouth of the cave, sure enough, it was off by boulders and stones of all different sizes. The cluster of rocks blocked the entrance securely, she didn't see any holes or ways to squeeze in even with tiny cats like Lightningstorm. Dawnstar left Sleepysunrise's side and padded over to the mound of stones, ignoring the way smaller stones shifted beneath her paws, she walked up and placed her forepaws on one giant boulder with a crack in its side at the bottom of the pile.
"I don't know about you, but I don't see us getting into the cave. Even if we worked together on this, I imagine we'd lose more cats trying to remove all the rocks and dirt than we would if we started warring again." Dawnstar commented, turning her head to look at the WindClan high ranks and their warrior.
"I'm not risking my clanmates' lives on a bunch of dead cats who've barely remembered us, let alone guide us." Dawnstar dropped her forepaws back to the ground and walked back over to Sleepysunrise.
"Why exactly did you want to come here?" She asked the medicine cat, finding this a huge waste of time. Sleepysunrise had never come across as someone devoted to StarClan, so there had to be something else that drew her here.
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siggy art by redshiftreign
Dawnstar is the leader of ShadowClan. She has a semi-closed den policy as in do not enter without asking permission first or her fangs'll greet you. ShadowClan Resources ||| Dawnstar ||| ||| Kit Curriculum Finder
Sleepysunrise
[ 14 moons | She / Her | Shc Medicine Cat | Shadow Fiend ]
Her eyes trailed along the path they were traversing, paws feeling the rough ground underneath and whiskers helping her navigate the darkness. It was a path different from what she had travelled before, Sleepysunrise did not recognise the territory they were walking upon and she couldn’t tell whether the knot of anxiety in her stomach was a fear of the unknown grounds or the memory of her mother. Every step she took forth felt heavier than the last, the only grounding element was her grandmother next to whom she stood. Occasionally Sleepysunrise would glance towards the bigger feline.
What would they find there? Would it be the phantoms that wandered her mind? Sleepysunrise did not fool herself. Some living cat apparently walked in the dreams of another, yet she still believed it was a skill reserved for the dead. If they weren’t just hallucinations in the first place. It supported her mother’s claim of being alive, but she was unsure if she wanted to find the cat alive in the first place. She felt like just another a ghost that haunted her every step – appearing in her gaze at will, always faceless, always relentless – whispers of her death and doom filling her mind, whispers that chocked the small cat until she could no longer breathe – yet she claimed to be alive. The ghost, the dead, the drowned claimed to be alive. And she was traitor if it was so.
So would she kill her? Would Miss Grandmama give the order of death, or would she do it out of her own volition? She gaze glanced to her grandmother’s side again. Does Miss Grandmama want her dead? It was a haunting thought. She looked down and at her paws all she could see was blood staining her limbs, flashes of a faceless grins and whispers telling her it must be so. Death is the only option. Then why did her stomach twist and knot?
The group seemed to slow, her gaze trailed along the stone-filled path to giant boulders and rocks fallen in on one another. She watched from a distance, still and unmoving, gaze following her grandmother as she went to take a closer look. After a few heartbeats, so did the young medic, tiny pebbles kicked aside and pale beans getting dust covered as she lay a paw on the cracked boulder. So this was it? This was the fabled StarCave? “Maybe there is another way in?”
She pondered out loud after Dawnstar’s words, but she was certain he grandmother wouldn’t care.
The tiny cat took a few steps back to regard the caved in cave at large, brightly coloured eye lit up by the dim light of the moon. These boulders were big, Miss Grandmama was surely right. She couldn’t help but turn her head in Dawnstar’s direction at the latter comment. They barely remembered them, did they? She pondered the words. Face after face appeared in her mind claiming to be a fallen hero of the past who shall give her knowledge beyond comprehension. And face after face faded before their promises were upheld. They were all traitors, liars. Sleepysunrise hated liars. What was the point of haunting her mind if they would never uphold their promises? Or were they just that, non-existent phantoms, empty promises personified? They weren’t real. They couldn’t be real. But they felt real.
Mama wasn’t real.
The cave was gone, she could not live here if she wanted to. She drowned in the bog that day, or lay crushed beneath these stones. Either way, she was dead. She was gone. She wouldn’t ever see her again beyond what poked and prodded at her mind. Those voices had been right, she clenched her jaw. It was like she could hear her laughter. Why did she keep seeing her?
The tense feeling dropped, her eyes snapped to the hulking leader, hearing her gravely voice next to her once more. Why? She regarded her grandmother with dull eyes for several long moments, the gears in her mind turning to find why. Then she looked past her grandmother, eyes settling on the WindClan leader, medic and their attaché. She felt the pressure to give a reply, but unwilling to speak in front of the WindClan bunnies. “..I was curious.”
She spoke softly, paused, then her voice sounded again. “I wanted.. to speak with you. After this.”
She held her grandmother’s gaze for several instances, hoping to silently convey that she did not want to discuss in front of the rabbits. It was futile information to them, but all the same.
Twilightstar paused as they reached the Starcave and saw how bad the collapse was. Her whiskers quivered with discomfort as Dawnstar walked closer to the pile of rocks, commenting on what Twilightstar was thinking. The WindClan leader wasn't one for negativity but she could see some truth in the Shadow brute's words. Twilightstar moved closer as Dawnstar returned to her medic's side. She circled the circumference of the pile-up, walking to the sides, disappearing behind large boulders, and looking around yet saw no way to squeeze into the cave, no gaps large enough to fit even the smallest of cats without risk.
StarClan must have not wanted them to enter this cave again. She couldn't tell if it was out of spite or to harm the clans for their lack of belief in them. She didn't think the clans be blamed for that when the stars acted as they did. Maybe it was a punishment or something went wrong in StarClan. Who knows, all that mattered to her was ensuring they found a way to get Crowtooth his lives when the time came.
"How troublesome." She grumbled, reappearing from behind the rocks and walking towards Hawkfur and Lightningstorm. Her ears turned toward Sleepysunrise as she mentioned finding another way in. She wasn't aware of any other entrances to the cave, but she'd only been here once for her leadership ceremony. StarClan hasn't interacted with her much beyond that day.
"Regardless, I don't see us getting in through that." She gestures toward the entrance. "You've been to the StarCave the most frequently out of everyone here, Lightingstorm, do you recall any other ways in?" Twilightstar asked the medicine cat. She wasn't expecting a positive answer and turned back to look at the cave. The leader thought the tunnelers might be able to dig under the cave, but Twilightstar wasn't sure if it was just the entrance that had collapsed or if the whole cave was buried. She wasn't comfortable risking their lives to find out.
It seemed that she was going to have to safeguard her final life as best she could until this was figured out. The idea of dying before they could get speak to StarClan again made her fur bristle with distress. Twilightstar's been around as long as she has to ensure that WindClan's future is as stable as possible. If WindClan started losing leaders as fast as RiverClan and ThunderClan had, all her hard work would go to waste, and who knows what her clanmates' future would look like. How bothersome, she'll add this to her list of headaches alongside the twolegs invading WindClan's territory.
@Undertaker @Mica @Alchemist Kitsune @Estelle
| Lightningstorm | 26 Moons - WindClan Medicine Cat Flock Together [Tier 3] - Active | Mind Reader - Active | Dreamwalker - Inactive | Katty Krueger - Inactive
Jesting words dying out the closer to the Starcave the group became, the WindClan medicine cat's ear twitched at the sight, keeping her surprise at the sight of the devastation in check. It was always one thing to hear about destruction, but it was a whole other monster when it stared you in the face. In earnest, the lithe calico had next to no fond memories of the place. Cowtuft had been eager to hold half moon meetings once upon a time, his faith in StarClan unwavering until the end. A crap load of good it did for him, not even his soul finding comfort in death. Aside of him, however, no good had ever come from this cave. Not for her. It was hard, as such, to feel anything other than shock at the sight, a sense of mourning or despair never even occurring to her.
The ShadowClan leader's voice deep in the dead silence that had encompassed the group, Lightningstorm frowned in thought as she listened, finding she agreed with the colossal tabby. The cave was obviously gone. They had only ever gone inside for contact with StarClan, but outside granting the leaders lives, said contact had been meaningless for the most part. Even the lives granted could be argued to be... pointless. They had certainly done nothing for any of the RiverClan leaders in her far too long feeling life. That fact almost reinforced the idea that this had something to do with RiverClan's change in leadership once more, but that was little more than an assumption. Guesswork with as much value as idle gossip, so she would put no stock in it for now.
"Not to my recollection. As far as I am aware, the only way in would be to dig out the debris from up front, but Dawnstar's got a right point, don't she? This rubble is about as safe as a just kitted fox. The slightest of movements and we might just bring down more of them rocks atop us. There could be more cats joining StarClan in a day than they've saved in a full season's cycle. All it takes is one accident and we could be looking at major losses. And considering it's leaf-bare, I can't help think the risk of so many injuries when herbs aren't exactly jumpin' around waiting to be picked might not be worth it," she mewed, keeping her distance even as she assessed the cave's entrance, her wiry frame tense as the cold wind was forgotten, attention strictly on the rubble before them.
@Moonraven [Twilightstar] | @Undertaker [Dawnstar] | @Estelle [Sleepysunrise] | @Mica [Hawkfur]
| Please excuse me for the delay... I completely forgot this roleplay existed until today. |
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Lightningstorm is WindClan's current medicine cat.
She has a semi-closed den policy.
Hawkfur
WindClan Fury
he/him | 59 moons
[Russet tabby with tuxedo markings and sky-blue eyes] Purrks: Flock Together T3, Killer Aptitude T1
⋆˖⁺‧₊☽ The Hanged Man ☾₊‧⁺˖⋆
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[Lightningstorm - @Alchemist Kitsune ] [Twilightstar - @Moonraven ] [Sleepysunrise - @Estelle ] [Dawnstar - @Undertaker ]
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Hawkfur frowned as the group approached the Starcave, the familiar presence of anxiety prickling at his pelt. It was so bizzare that the first time he had ever approached the sacred cave was when it was completely--and permanently, if the dour attitude amongst the high ranks was any indication--sealed off. The Fury approached the boulders after Dawnstar inspected them, standing on his hind legs to get a better view of the top. His anxiety worsened. The others were right, there was no getting past this. Not without a miracle, and now that their physical link to StarClan was weakened if not destroyed, miracles were sure to be in short supply.
As Lightningstorm and Twilightstar conversed with the ShadowClan cats, Hawkfur continued to inspect the entrance. He peered at cracks, nosed gaps, and scraped at the ground around the outside of the cave. His mind worked a million pawsteps a minute, dark brows furrowed over eyes sharpened with worry. No matter where he looked, there was no way even a small apprentice could get in there. His anxiety worsened.
The Fury glanced back at the four other cats, returning to Lightningstorm's side with a thundercloud of fear hanging over him. Dawnstar seemed unbothered by the whole situation, but Hawkfur wasn't sure what he had expected from a cat who personified the Dark Forest itself. He wouldn't be surprised if she was actively working against StarClan! Paranoia sparked in the tom's eyes, and his tail lashed behind him. He could feel himself slipping back into the tom he was before he turned his life around.
His anxiety worsened.
Even Lightningstorm and Twilightstar were hesitant to do anything, and while Hawkfur understood that there wasn't anything they could do, indignation flared in his chest. "We have to do something." He muttered, mostly to Lightningstorm. "I can't just--we can't just--" The tom looked stricken, and he turned away from the others. "Have you had any dreams with StarClan recently?" He wasn't stupid enough to ask Sleepysunrise, lest Dawnstar relieve his from shoulders the weight of his head.
The Starcave
Re: The Starcave
Berryshine is RiverClan's medicine cat! 
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