The Echo Of Crows

~*'Chapter 1'*~

Mouse froze, her resolve faltering."Whittle... What did you do to him?" She whimpered, an ache in her chest beginning to form. The white female simply began padding around her, tail held high while she observed her reaction with what could only be described as amusement. Mouse began putting the pieces together. 

Nix suddenly disappearing when he offered to go hunting alone and Whittle following suit soon after. Her cousins words that she had been looking over the bluff. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by an intense contraction that forced her to sit and let out a long whine as her breaths began to go back to coming out in short pants. 

They were coming.

She desperately looked to Whittle, who was slowly inching her way closer. "Please, cousin. Don't do this. They'll be without their mother, you know what that does to a cat!" She begged, her voice raw as even the moon appeared to hide behind the clouds. A droplet of water fell onto her nose and slowly rolled off into the grass as a light misting of water began falling from the sky. 

Whittle snarled, her back arching. "You do not get to speak of living without a mother. Speckna cared for you as her own, I had no one. I had NOTHING." She stated coldly, her voice getting higher at the last word. Quick footsteps alerted them both to a third arrival. Mouse flicked an ear, turning towards the sound of footsteps exiting from the treeline. Hope filled her chest and she stood, weakly backing towards the ginger tom that stood their with concern etched over his features. 

"A-Alder... Whittle has gone insane. You need to help me." She whispered to him, weakly swaying on her paws from exhaustion. He didn't reply, merely looking between her and Whittle. After a few moments, he let out a deep sigh.

"Whittle, you said you'd be finished with her by now," he stated with his voice laced in spite.Mouse's heart dropped and she began to shake. So she truly was alone. She had no one.

Another contraction hit her and she closed her eyes, focused for a moment on holding back from instinctively pushing. That's when a force hit her, causing her to sprawl backwards. She let out a loud yelp, rolling across the wet ground as the rain began  getting heavier. Alder looked in the other direction with his jaw set and tail wrapped around one of his hind legs as Whittle slowly padded after her prey.

"You should have led them better, Mouse. Do you see what happens when you are selfish?" The female spat out. "Nix was meant to be mine. Alpha was meant to be mine. Everything you have was meant to be mine. But don't worry. I'm taking care of all of the problems you have caused me tonight."

Mouse attempted to stand but was forced back down by a paw roughly shoving her back into the mud. "Tsk... No upsies for you." Whittle chuckled as she grabbed the small gray female by the scruff and dragged her towards the stream. Mouse's tail dragged behind her defeatedly. Pain was coursing through her, emotional and physical. There was nothing she could do to stop this. 

She squirmed in the slightly larger female's jaws, trying to turn around and lash out while mud began coating her pelt in a thick cakey layer. Whittle dropped her beside the water, standing on her hind legs and slamming her front paws down on Mouse's belly. The gray female let out a shriek, curling into a ball. 

"Push, Mouse." Her cousin yowled, sinking her fangs into one of Mouse's forelimbs and biting down until a satisfying crunch of bone was heard. Mouse struggled to pull away, pain lacing through her as her cousin paced circles around her, occasionally biting at random spots along her legs and back. 

I'm so sorry, little ones. 

She thought to herself as she pushed, giving into the contractions and Whittle's prodding. The first warm body quickly slid out, and Whittle moved it to the side with a paw. Worry for her young filled her, but Mouse forced herself to push the second kitten out before trying to reach for her first. She briefly glanced towards where Alder was standing in the now pouring rain watching with sad eyes before turning her attention back to her kittens. 

Whittle snorted, grabbing both uncleaned kittens by the scruff and carrying them to the water.

Horror filled Mouse as she watched her only offspring get dropped into the stream. A screech filled her lungs and she darted forward with newfound energy, trying to save them. 

Whittle took this opportunity to lunge forward, sinking her fangs into Mouse's throat and biting down on her windpipe without faltering. Mouse gasped for breath, clawing at her cousin with a pain-filled expression until the light faded from her eyes and her body grew cold. Blood dripped down Whittle's white coat and she shook herself, dropping the body and sending the droplets everywhere before gazing towards the stream."Alden, let's go." She hissed, turning and padding away.

That's right, Mouse. She thought smugly. I lived, you didn't. This is a new age, and the next generation will see me as a hero.

~~~AUTHORS NOTE~~~

Yeaaaaahhhh

Not my proudest moment in writing. But this part had to be told, as it is key to the plot of the rest of the book. Nothing after this point in time would make any sense if this part was not told. 

So.. there it is. I promise it gets better after this hahahaha.