On The Edge

[Venom]

Echopaw sat on the edge of the crater, looking down inside of it. It was foreign to him and he wondered how something like it had come to be. His sister Redpaw had come along with him, and she looked just as impressed with the hole in the ground.

"There's water down there," she meowed, pointing with her paw. "Do you want to try and go down to take a look, or are you too scared?"

Echopaw looked offended. "I'm not scared. I'll take a look. I'll go first, even."

He looked around for a ledge to use to get down. He spotted one and jumped to it. He wobbled for a moment before catching his balancing and his breath.

"Be careful!" Redpaw called.

Echopaw growled. "I am careful!" Not a moment later he found himself slipping and falling into the water below.

Redpaw cried out in anger. "You mousebrain!" But soon she realized that something was wrong, and Echopaw wasn't returning to the surface.

[ℳoon 浤]

Juniperpaw had trailed Echopaw and Redpaw all the way from the camp. She was proud that they hadn't managed to notice her the entire time. She had brought Eater along with her, but she set him down in a safe place to make sure that he wouldn't be injured during her adventure.

She crawled up towards the edge of the crater and saw Redpaw and Echopaw trying to get down it. She knew that this was very dangerous, and that the warriors of the Clan would absolutely forbid any apprentices from doing it. "Uh oh," she meowed when she saw Echopaw slip to the bottom.

She looked over at Redpaw, who looked upset, and she wondered if she should do something to help... or if she even could do anything to help.

[Venom]

Redpaw looked up and saw Juniperpaw standing there like a lump. This infuriated her. Juniperpaw was one of the apprentices that Redpaw picked on, but in this emergency she was outraged that Juniperpaw could just stand there like that. Then again, Juniperpaw was known for being a little slow and a little crazy, so maybe she couldn't expect much.

Echopaw was splashing and sputtering, with the amount of water from previous rains too much for him to handle. He couldn't swim, and he just choked and inhaled. "Help!" he cried. He couldn't reach any of the side ledges.

"Juniperpaw! Run and get help!" yowled Redpaw. The tone of her voice was so serious and loud that she hoped she would scare Juniperpaw into quick action. She didn't want her brother to drown.

I've got to save him, she thought. Juniperpaw would come back with a warrior who would help if Redpaw got in trouble too. The least she could do was try to drag Echopaw to the side.

Echopaw was starting to stop struggling, and began to sink towards the bottom with water filling his lungs. Redpaw jumped down to him and slipped into the water as well. She was hit with the cold, and she shrieked, her lungs filling with water too.

Realizing her attempt was futile, and she was only placing herself at a great risk, she jumped up onto one of the ledges and watched with panic as her brother struggled.

[ℳoon 浤]

Horror flashed in Juniperpaw's eyes when she realized what was going on. Redpaw yelled at her to get help, and she looked around quickly for Eater. She grabbed her clam shell friend, and began to run as quickly as she could back to camp. She couldn't believe that something like this was happening!

She knew it was going to be a long way before she got there, but she would have to try for Echopaw's sake. She hoped that Redpaw wasn't going to try anything daring. She may not be friends with either of the apprentices, but she wasn't about to let them drown.

[Venom]

Echopaw was beginning to lose hope. He went limp and began to sink to the bottom of the pool. He felt his lungs filling up with water and he could hear his older sister yelling.

StarClan save me. He thought.

Redpaw hoped that Juniperpaw would get back to them soon. She didn't want her brother to die. He would be a noble warrior, not just some apprentice that drowned because he couldn't swim.

But it was beginning to become too late. Echopaw's eyes were closing, and he could feel his spirit slipping away slowly.

[bayonette]

Dreamclaw heard Juniperpaw's calls and rushed down to the crater as fast as her legs could carry her. "Hang on, apprentices!" she meowed. When she saw Echopaw's limp form in the water she feared she was too late. StarClan save them... She jumped into the crater and grabbed Echopaw by the scruff of the neck. Redpaw seemed safe enough, so she used all her strength to climb up the ledges.

She set Echopaw down and turned to Redpaw. "Go get the medicine cat!"

[Venom]

Redpaw watched. She was relieved when Dreamclaw came to help. Now her brother would have a chance. When Dreamclaw addressed her, she nodded. She wasn't about to get mad at someone for trying to order her around this time, this was a life or death situation.

"Right away!" she meowed. She took off running towards the camp.

Echopaw wasn't responding. It didn't even seem like he was breathing. He would need a medicine cat immediately if he was going to survive, with all the water in his lungs. His eyes were shut, but everything was starting to echo and fade away.

[ℳoon 浤]

Juniperpaw rushed back with Dreamclaw to see what was happening. If Echopaw had died while she was getting help, she would never forgive herself. She sat Eater down next to her, watching in horror as the scene unfolded. Echopaw looked limp and cold as he was pulled from the water.

Is he dead? she thought with terror. She'd never seen another cat die before. Bile was rising in her throat, and she thought she was going to be ill. Dreamclaw sent Redpaw off to get the medicine cat. What if it's too late? She pulled Eater closer to her, using the shell for a sense of security.

[bayonette]

Dreamclaw tried desperately to revive Echopaw. He didn't seem to be moving or breathing. She held her breath. She couldn't let this apprentice die. She pressed on his chest but he was limp. She closed her eyes. StarClan, don't let Echopaw die. He doesn't deserve to die right now.

She hoped Redpaw would return with the medicine cat soon, otherwise she didn't think that Echopaw was going to make it. Even if the medicine cat did come back, maybe it was still too late. If he does die, please take him to StarClan with you.

[Venom]

Echopaw's eyes shot open, but not in his body. He found himself looking at his own form as Dreamclaw tried to revive him. He had died. He felt a terrible chill go down his spine. There were no warrior ancestors there to comfort him.

He looked around, panic rising inside of him. His translucent form passed through the other cats, not stopped by them. He choked and let out a cry of horror.

"Help!" he screeched.

There was no one there to guide him to StarClan. StarClan was silent.

StarClan was gone.

Redpaw arrived back, but it was already too late. She hadn't been able to get the medicine cat because of impending battle. She stared at her brother's limp form and let out a mournful cry.

[ℳoon 浤]

Juniperpaw looked shock. She had just witnessed a cat die right in front of her. She shook her head back and forth so many times. She nearly choked on her own tongue, but she didn't say anything. This was the first time she had ever seen someone die, and they had died so young. Echopaw was only an apprentice. "StarClan no... why?" she meowed. She curled her tail around her clam shell and looked down at Echopaw's body. "Please take good care of him." She wondered what Redpaw was thinking. It had to be so hard to lose someone who was a part of her family.