Deep Down Lies

DEEP DOWN LIES

...those hidden secrets will be their downfall...

by Firey and Cinder <3

~

We will send one

Who will break all ties

He will be the one

Who spreads the lies

~

Blurb

In a Clan...there is one she-cat. She is just a normal warrior, living a normal life. But then...arrives a tom. He has no memories of what has happened, but all he knows it that he's somehow connected to Nightsky. The two face challenges, and they fight for the Clan, their lives, and each other.

Prologue -- Firey

"Is he ready?"

A scarred tom eyed the young kitten scrambling for a foothold on the side, "Almost, meistras," he murmured, "they just need to perform the ceremony and he'll be ready."

The first tom curled his lip, "Was it safe to keep him away from the other kits? Surely he should practice interacting with others."

The second tom shook his head, "He mustn't speak like us, meistras, or else they will know who he originated from. We must take all precautions." But his heart ached for his kit, who lived a life of solitude, who was chosen for a very important task.

The one called meistras stared down at the little kit. "He's rather scrawny, isn't he?"

"The ones administrating this project suggested that we give him limited supplies. There's prey around him, but he doesn't seem to react to it. He waits for us to deliver the food."

"Not very intelligent, huh?"

The scarred tom blinked. He knew the tom was very intelligent, but he wanted to keep that a secret from his meistras. "I guess not," he agreed, "but that's for the better good. He'll do exactly what he says if he can't figure things out."

"A perfect pawn," the first tom mused, "Has he talked to anyone?"

"No, we have yet to hear him speak."

The meistras frowned, "There are only five days before the ceremony and the project begins, correct?" The scarred tom nodded to confirm it. "I want you or someone to interact with the tom. At least make sure he can talk."

"Yes, meistras," the scarred tom bowed his head, "May I ask a question though?"

"Yes?"

"Why is it necessary for him to be sent to the other side? Surely he won't be able to tell us much because he won't know anything."

The meistras stretched, "We will observe what he does, and we will receive information from his brain to understand how they work. Dreke did say he had to herbs to do so, correct?"

"He's certain he can do it, and he will test it on the kit later, but he says if the kit figures out what is going on, the herb will fail."

The meistras narrowed his eyes, "Then we must ensure that he is the perfect candidate. Don't we have other substistutes who have been given the same treatment?"

"Yes, but because we're certain this tom is the perfect solution, the others have been released into stage two."

"Stage two?"

The scarred tom nodded, "We must be prepared for the first subject to fail. Once he does, we must put stage two into the plan. That's what the substitutes are for.

"Alright then, I'll leave you to sort it out then."

The scarred tom stared at his son, praying for him to be alright.

Even if you mess up the plan, please stay safe...

Chapter One -- Cinder

"Great hunt, Nightsky!" Adderflame meows to me. I nod my thanks, "You too, Adderflame!" 

It was a pretty good hunt, considering the fact that everyone had caught something. I thank StarClan that there's a lot of prey going around. With leaf-bare coming, we need all that we can get of it.

I head to the fresh kill pile. It's my turn to take the meals to the elder's den. I choose a thrush and a squirrel, for Pinefoot and Brightfeather respectively. 

"Ah, thrush." Pinefoot rasps half to himself, "How long has it been since I've tasted you?" 

Brightfeather flattens her ears. "Don't pay attention to him, Nightsky. He's had thrush just yesterday." 

"Back in my time, we'd catch thrushes in the morning and the evening. Those were the good days....oh, and Nightsky, have I ever told you about the time where I caught two-"

"There's no need for your long stories, Pinefoot. Nightsky has other important things to do." Brightfeather meows, then turns to me. "I'll handle him for you, don't worry."

I purr with delight. Pinefoot and Brightfeather can be very amusing at times. I nod politely to them and head out of the den, leaving them with their meals in peace. 

After that, I choose a mouse from the fresh kill pile, and walk to my usual eating spot, in the corner of the clearing. It's almost nightfall already, and I better finish up my meal if I want to take that nice little walk I'm planning on.

As I take bites of my prey, I watch the other cats mingle with their friends while sharing their meals. For a split second, I wonder what I'm missing out on. 

I wasn't always like this. I was in fact, the exact opposite of what I am now. My biggest problem was keeping my chatterbox mouth shut long enough to breathe. But that was when I had a friend. I can't have friends anymore. Not after what happened to Scarletpaw. 

I shut my eyes. I don't want to remember that horrifying memory. Long story short: I was a big coward. If I had been a little more courageous, nothing like that would have ever happened. But it doesn't matter anymore. It's too late, and I won't have any friends again. Period. 

I finish the last of my prey and clean my whiskers. I'm going to go take that little walk around camp before sleeping.

The night is beautiful. Moonlight sparkles on our teritorry as a gentle breeze carresses the grass. This weather is perfect, not too hot and not too cold. I close my eyes and feel the wind ruffling my whiskers softly. It's really peaceful to walk in StormClan territory, especially at this hour. I feel comfortable here. I feel at home.

After a few more minutes of walking, I stop by the Twilight Lake, a shallow creek filled with fresh water. I could use a little bit of hydration. Stepping forward, I reach out and take a sip. I can't even begin to describe the sweet taste of it. 

It's getting a bit more chilly now. Leaf-bare is on it's way, and the nights are getting colder. I turn to leave. I've signed up for dawn patrol with Rippledusk, the Clan deputy. I know I won't make it on time if I haven't had enough sleep. 

Suddenly, I hear pawsteps shuffling. I turn around and find myself face to face with a cat I have never seen before in my life. 

He's a pure black tom with a white chest, paws, and tail-tip, and pale, yellow-green eyes. I'd guess that he's a moon or two older than me. This cat is definitely not Clan. He has a rank, rogue like scent. And I can't read the expression on his face. 

"Who are you?" I growl, "And just what are you doing on StormClan territory?"

Chapter Two -- Firey

I start at the sound of a she-cat. I jerk my head up and I realize she's glaring at me. Her scent is Clan scent, and I flatten my ears slightly. She has stunning green eyes and a midnight black pelt. "Who are you?" I blurt out, blinking.

She stares back at me, her leaf green eyes tracking my every move. She crouches with grace and I find myself slightly mesmerized by her.

"My name is no concern of yours," she snarls, but I can tell she's tense and nervous about the situation, "and you're on StormClan territory."

"Territory?" I tip my head, "Why do you Clan cats hog up all this land? Surely there's enough for everyone to have prey."

I can't exactly remember why I ventured here to the Clan in the first place. I don't really know where I come from either. The only thing I know is that I want to fit in the Clan and know how they act. Perhaps this beautiful she-cat is the first step.

The she-cat doesn't change her stance. "If you rogues want to join the Clan, you're welcome to do so. If not, stay off the territory."

Strong beliefs, doesn't want others trying to steal their prey. I suppose I must prove my loyalty to them before I can really settle in.

"Can I join the Clan then?"

The she-cat narrows her eyes. "I don't make the decisions here. I'll take you to Heatherstar so she can decide instead. Come with me."

That was rather easy... She didn't even object or question my motives. As long as I act innocent, they won't suspect a thing. I think, and then I frown, What in the world am I thinking? Why do I need them to suspect something?

But the she-cat is looking back at me and my thoughts are cut off by her mew. "Don't look so worried, StormClan will be like home to you in no time." She still looks wary of me, but there's some kind of mystified look in her eyes.

I nod, trying to pretend that's the reason I was frowning. "Thank you," I mew smoothly, "You're very kind." Be more convincing, she doesn't trust you completely yet. "I've been searching for a home for so long-" that wasn't entirely false, I didn't know if I ever had a home. "-I've been hoping someone could take me in and help me."

Curiousity glistens in her eyes, "What happened in your last home?"

I don't miss a beat, "Burned down by a fire," I say the first thing that comes to my mind, "All of my family members died and I didn't have anywhere to go. Since then, I've been wandering around, trying to find a suitable home. I'm lucky that I stumbled upon StormClan."

"Heatherstar will probably accept you," the she-cat confesses, "You don't seem like one of them."

"Them?" I frown, something is triggered in my mind, as if I know who these other cats are. (Or creatures, I don't know what these "them" are.)

The she-cat closes off this time and I silently berate myself for being so quick. "I can't say," she mews quietly, walking briskly away from me.

I watch her go.

~

"Alright," Heatherstar sighs in defeat, "I suppose you can stay." She turns to her deputy and I can just barely catch her whisper, "He doesn't seem like any of them."

"He doesn't talk like them," the deputy agrees.

The she-cat takes me outside. There's a glimmer in her eyes and she says, "Congrats, Heatherstar accepted you. You're a warrior now I suppose, are you getting a new name?"

"No," I shake my head, "I'm keeping mine. I'm Skye."

"I'm Nightsky."