Warriors: Clockwise

<------ Chapter Twenty-Five --->

A screech tore Hero's gaze away from the wreckage, the whirling dust a flurry of movement at the edges of his vision. Sharp bits of stone peppered the ground where he had planted his paws, the powder clotting his throat and nose, but he refused to squeeze his eyes shut to block out the debris. He couldn't see where the sound had come from, but his gaze frantically flickered across the landscape, wavering on each flash of shadow until they disintegrated into the surroundings.

"Swiftstorm!"

Snowfeather's shrill cry jolted him awake. Hero pinned his ears to his skull, gagging as he became increasingly aware of the scratching in his throat. Struggling to breathe, he trotted towards the sound, the world spinning before him and erupting in splashes of bright color that didn't seem to fit the dull tones of the world around him.

"Over here!"

That voice was Estelle's, and it was answered by a spluttering gasp so abrupt that it made Hero wince. He identified the form of a large pile of rubble only a few feet away, and seeing as the ground to either side was patterned with shattered glass, he hastily begun to scale the mound of cement and iron. 

The dust had begun to settle, and as Hero reached the peak of the obstacle, he could make out the forms of three cats. Snowfeather's coat was so heavy with soot that he appeared to be the same color as Smokewhisker, who stood a pace ahead of him, and then Estelle a few steps ahead of that.

"Wha-t -" Hero stuttered, his throat dry and sore, continuing towards them cautiously to avoid slipping on the uneven terrain as the wind began to pick up.

Then he came to a very sudden halt.

Whipped away by the breeze, the air had become terrifyingly clear, and as the sight dawned upon him he wished for the dust to rise again. Snowfeather screamed.

Pinned to the wall like a sick depiction of a trophy kill, Swiftstorm teetered on the edge of a narrow ledge, one of her hind paws gripping the surface as the sunlight glared off the iron bar that had been shoved into her skull. A gurgling cry escaped her throat.

"Get her down!" Estelle snapped so venomously that Hero flinched, and he realized that both Snowfeather and Smokewhisker were too shocked to move. At her exclamation, Snowfeather shook himself free of his fear and panic, a deftly began climbing the piled of stone and glass to reach the she-cat. "Hero, Snowfeather, find something soft she can land on. She'll live so long as she's got the ledge under her paws. We're getting her off that spike. Now."

Hero, glad to have a directive, dashed off without a moment's hesitation towards a mangled seat cushion he spotted peaking out from beneath the stone. Smokewhisker seemed to have forgotten Jayflight's disappearance temporarily as he too scrambled towards a large slab of foam.

"It's going to be alright," Snowfeather cooed, though his eyes had gone wild with determination, and he slowly inched along the wall towards her. She tried to nod, but only emitted a strangled squeak, and made no effort to try it again as Snowfeather continued to murmur encouragement. 

Snowfeather was past the point of terror. He had gone completely numb, and an unsettling calm had descended on him.

Hero's paws shook as he grabbed a hold of the cushion, pulling it free with strength he didn't know he possessed, and dragged it to the base of the wall where Swiftstorm was pinned. Smokewhisker added the rectangle of foam, Estelle quickly placed a plush material on the pile.

"I'm almost there," Snowfeather swallowed, picking up his pace slightly as a landing pad was put in place. Swiftstorm's blood stained the fabric.

With bated breath, the three cats watched Snowfeather sink into a crouch, his paws finding a hold on the surface though his eyes remained trained on the tortoiseshell she-cat. A few more steps to go. Snowfeather moved forward ever so gingerly, setting his paws on the most stable surface he could grasp, until only a foot of space remained between the two cats.