User blog:Shigura/Taken for Death Preview

I'm getting way too excited over this fanfic, I know. XD  But Anyways, here's the Prologue for the first book in the ShadeClan trilogy! Kind of like those sneak peaks that Erin Hunter gives everyone when the book is about to come out. XD

Prologue - A Clan of Horrors
I was running.  Running, as fast as my paws would take me. Running, as fast as I could. Away from ShadeClan. Away from Syl. Away from all of the torture pits and corpse piles. To somewhere else... somewhere where there was peace. And no evil.  But then I woke up. I let out a sigh, and rolled onto my backside. Who am I? Wild- prisoner of ShadeClan.  And what is ShadeClan? Death.  I glanced over at Breeze, a huge white tom that was also a Prisoner. My gaze shifted from Breeze, to Leaf, to Melody, then to all the others who were sleeping close together to conserve warmth. It was pretty cold, I'd have to admit, but the Guards disliked it when the cats slept in a group. It made them think they were plotting against them, even if they were indestructable.  "Wild?" Breeze whispered.  I looked over at my friend, and purred. Breeze, Leaf and I were a group. A team, if you'd will. "Yes?" I replied, stretching.  Breeze let out a soft sigh. "Who do you think Syl will take next?"  I shrugged, and looked around the den. I focused on Mouse, who was one of the smartest and quickest cats in the den. I pointed a paw at her.  "Syl normally takes the smart, pretty or strong cats." I pointed out, before settling in a comfortable position.  "Shut up." one of the guards by the entrance, Felix snarled.  I chuckled, and closed my eyes. I couldn't get any sleep, though. Not while Felix and Nightmare were watching. They were two of the many cats in ShadeClan I was intimidated of. I opened my eyes, after a while, giving up on sleep. I stretched again, flinching as I realized I had been awake all night. The sun was shining into the den, which was very rare unless the guards were in a good mood. I purred, noticing that Arie and Streak were guarding the den. Although Arie hated us prisoners, Streak was my dad. And he was one of the few cats that Syl accepted as a Warrior. His head was tilted slightly, allowing the sunlight to enter the den. Suddenly, a warm, juicy scent filled the air. It was feeding time.  Venom, Syl's most trusted Warrior, threw a bunch of skinny mice into the den. Hardly enough to feed even half of us. But luckily, the other prisoners were willing to share their prey. I padded over to Breeze and Leaf, who both had a mouse between their paws.  "Would you two split with me?" I meowed, sighing with relief as they nodded. I ate half of Breeze's mouse, unable to finish the rest. I watched in silence as my friends enhaled their mice, before padding over to an empty corner of the den. It was where we "Hung Out".  Of course, we never could carry out a conversation. All of us lost the will to, as a howl of agony pierced the air. The daily Dawn-Killed. <BR> One of ShadeClan's most horrible, gruesome practices was to kill a cat every night and every day. We were a massive Clan, and no one would miss the extra mouth to feed. Besides the prisoners. <BR> Six cats were killed every day. Two from each section of ShadeClan. The ones killed in the morning were known as 'Dawn-Killed', and the ones at night? 'Dusk-Killed'. I shuddered just thinking about it. So many of my friends- Opal, Smoke, Rose, and many more, had been killed in this manner. <BR> As Breeze, Leaf and I sat in silence, I remembered what my mother had told me one time, when I was too young to be classified as a prisoner. She told me about the time when there were Four Clans... but then they became corrupt and full of evil, forming ShadeClan. I cursed the corrupt cats under my breath. If they hadn't been so foolish, I would still be a Warrior of whatever these Clans were named... not a prisoner. <BR> <BR> "You alright, Wild?" Breeze asked curiously, "You're getting rather wet around the face." <BR> I purred. Atleast I had friends that cared about me. That was one thing that kept me going. I suddenly wondered how long they would last. Whenever Syl noticed certain cats getting close, she'd either order them to mate or kill one. Syl was the bloodthirsty tyrant that ruled this part of ShadeClan. There were four leaders of ShadeClan; Syl, Edge and Phoenix... then there was the Leader. No one, not even the other three leaders, knew the great Leader's name. But they most certainly knew what he looked like. <BR> I snapped out of my dream world, noticing all the cats forming a line. I sighed, and stepped behind Melody. She purred briefly, before Venom began prodding the line along. I had completely forgotten that today was Syl's turn to chose a prisoner for the Leader- no one knew what happened to this cat, but we all knew it was something horrifying. The cats all stopped in a line, and I was between Melody and Stripe. Venom padded past us, scanning the line for the perfect cat to give to the Leader. I gasped as Venom stopped by Ember, and the two padded off. The rest of us were forced back into the den. <BR> "Couldn't Venom choose the cat from in here?" Breeze snarled, pawing at the den floor, "I hate being a prisoner." <BR> I nodded, before laying down between Leaf and Bird. I managed to get about an hour of sleep- which was a real accomplishment. Hardly anyone got any sleep. But then I realized why I had woken up. Between the two guards was a shadow. And I knew from the chain that trailed behind her that this was no ordinary cat. <BR> This was Syl. <BR> She wordlessly made her way past the cats, and past me. I couldn't see anything but her silhouette, and watched as she sat down in front of Breeze. I held in my breath; not wanting to make a sound. She lifted her paw, sunlight washing into the den as she slowly lifted it up, and brought it down. <BR> There was a yowl of alarm. Then a rip.