Against My Own

This is my One-shot for Nighty's contest.

Prologue
Her back felt like fire as she dragged herself across the grounds. She was dragging along her kits who swung violently from her jaws. Fear drenched her scent as she desperately tried to scramble away, dizziness began to alter her once perfect vision. She used to have a beautiful pale orange tabby coat, now torn to rags and matted worse than the dirtiest rat.

The kits gave squeals of protest, they had yet to open their eyes since being only two days of age. The mother slumped down behind a tree, heaving in extreme pain as she winced.

"Please Ravenfire..." She mewed weakly, her voice practically begging to the high heavens. "Please..."

She lay the kits near her belly, the milk had stopped coming. The medicine cat had said it was from stress, it was true. The small bundles that were to be the future of the Clan cried in hunger. The she-cat slowly lay her head on the ground, the world around her beginning to move in a dizzying motion.

ShadowClan had broken out into another civil war, where their own cats would chose their sides and practically fight to the death with the ones they once loved. Brother against brother, mother against father. She had even forgot the reason they were fighting in the first place. The intense fire in her back had faded her memory, replacing everything she thought about with a severe aching.

What she hadn't forgot is her mate battling a tom of equal size, and she herself racing off with the kits in the midst of battle. The next she knew a warrior hiding in the trees leaped and landing straight up her spine, breaking not only her spine, but her hope of ever escaping. The kits had tumbled from her mouth, squirming and crying. She dragged herself away after a lethal swipe at the warrior that sent him stumbling off making sure to make a mad grab at the kits before taking off.

Every breath she took was agony to the chest. Her eyes settled on the kits that had given up on even eating, just squeaking as they both tried to find the softest and warmest part of their mother's belly.

"Are you gone my love...?" She whispered to herself, voice growing more blank and emotionless. "Were you the first to leave me without even I to know...?"

Her vision had grown even more blurry and it seemed as if she was already swaying off into StarClan.

"Protect them, anyone. Just make sure my kits survive..." Her sweet voice trailed off, the pain in her back beginning to fade as she gave a small smile. Her eyes froze, looking off into a never-ending distance as her heart stopped beating, lungs stopped breathing, and mind going forever blank.

''The civil war is over my darling. The kits are safe.''