“Did you just say ‘romp’?” She switched back to her native accent. “What kind of . . . Oh tahg, that was perfection. I mean, the impersonation was terrible, and I didn’t know whatever stereotype that was even existed, but, well, the Western accent is boring and I can say with certainty that your version of it was not.”
“Yeah, hearing you now, I can see that I might have gotten a few things wrong, but oh well.” She got to her paws. “Let’s get a move on, then.”
Ember chuckled and shook her head. They made their way down the valley together, walking side by side through the half-melted snow. When they re-entered the forest, the ground became filled with pleasant, shadowy blue stripes. Ember imagined them to be little creeks, which she jumped and stepped over for fun wherever she could. Wind continued to nip at their sides, and despite the slight warmth of her heating grid, her legs felt colder than usual.
When they reached the Rift, the usual glow of sunlight against stone greeted them. Falcon greeted them as well.
“Good evening,” he said. “Ember, Jade would like to speak with you. Alone this time.” His eyes narrowed. “Come with me.”
Silver. ‘I’ve just decided I don’t like you. Why is that? Why are you so creepy all of a sudden?’ Ember flattened her ears and turned to Boreal. “I guess I’ll see you in a little while?”
“Assuming Father doesn’t eat you,” Boreal replied. “Don’t show any fear, and they might just let you out alive.”
“That’s not reassuring, you know.”
“Oh, I know.” Boreal chuffed and padded off toward the nearest fire pit.
“Come find me if you survive. I’ll show you our clawmark tablets like I said I would yesterday,” she called over her shoulder.
Ember swallowed the bile building up in her throat. Even the thought of studying Eastern history couldn’t shake the nervousness mounting in her chest. She flattened her ears and followed Falcon toward Jade’s den. To reach it, he led her through a thin-but-tall crack inside a cluster of gigantic rocks at the back of the Rift. Every other time she’d walked through the passage, she hadn’t minded the closeness of it. This time, however, with Falcon walking like a cat prepared for a war, the tight passageway made her feel claustrophobic—and itchy, for some reason.
The cramped breach gave way to a bowl-shaped cavity in the stone. A tiny semi-cave rested in the rocks to the right, which Jade sat in on a bed of dried grass. She watched them enter, motionless and eyes unblinking, almost a rock herself. Ember lowered her head. “Y-you wanted me, ma’am?”
Jade got to her paws, then padded into the rock bowl to greet them. She nodded once to Falcon, who jumped on top of the stones lining the hollow.
“You’ve done your job well enough for the past several days. I would like to promote you for your efforts.”
As she spoke, Falcon paced along the edges of the border. Every now and then, sunlight caught in his eyes, making them appear to glow a menacing green. Fear green.
“Look at me, please. I would like to know you’re listening,” Jade said.
Ember forced herself to study the stripes on Jade’s neck. “I am, ma’am. Falcon is just . . . acting kind of strange, isn’t he?”
“He’s just being protective. Don’t worry about him. Now, as I was saying, I believe it’s time to give you a promotion. Tomorrow you will be transferred from patrolling the peak to your choice of either the northern or southern border.”
Indigo and yellow appeared. She could feel, more than see, the cyan starting to form as her chest constricted. “Transfer?” she asked. “But why? I like patrolling the peak. I don’t want to be transferred.”
“Because you’ve been here long enough and served me well enough to get a better-respected position. The peak is for those who have no other use. Now, is there anyone you would like to partner up with, or any place you’d like to try patrolling?” Jade asked.
Ember’s tail twitched as her stomach created a fluttering pit inside of her. “With Boreal along the peak. I don’t know almost anyone else, and I don’t know any other routes. I-it’ll be easier for everyone if I just stay where I am.”
“You mean to tell me Boreal is the only friend you’ve made among your comrades?”
“I didn’t come here to make friends.” Her mind wandered back to the West. Home, her real home, was still all the way across the valley—an entire miniature world away. She closed her eyes to gather her thoughts. Her jaw trembled. Her Eastern accent slipped. “I came here to save my family. Everything else is just a distraction. It’ll make everything easier if I just keep to myself and those I already know. I don’t want to know anyone I don’t know.”
Jade glared at her, cold and silent. Ember bit her tongue. ‘Maybe I should try to copy her expression. It may give me an idea of how she might respond.’ As she thought, she mentally strolled through a patch of woods outside the Glade. She looked away from the image to concentrate on Jade’s face. ‘Wait, she doesn’t actually have an expression. Or maybe that is the expression? I don’t know. Is that what I look like all the time? I don’t think I’m doing anything with my face right now either. Oh, Ember, she’s talking to you. You’d better listen—you’ll get in trouble.’
“And that is why it’s important to keep striving for improvement,” Jade said
Ember blinked. “Er . . . Sorry, I was supposed to hear all of that, right? Because I only got . . . the, uhm, last part of it.”
Jade snorted. “It’s time you learn to stop being so absent-minded. Pay attention whenever I am speaking to you.”
“I’m sorry, sometimes I can’t help it. When I get—” Her eyes widened. She scanned the rim of the rock bowl for Falcon. He was nowhere to be seen. “Uhm, w-when I get lost in thought, everything else . . .” She spun around, trying to spot his dark, tabby-striped fur. “Er, kind of turns off and I literally cannot hear you.”
“Then stop getting lost in thought. Ember, sit still! Learn some focus and self-discipline. If you don’t, you’ll find yourself getting burnt onto a memorial stone well before your time. Or maybe even just burnt without the memorial stone.”
Ember crouched down and kept looking around. The silvers of uneasiness became all she could feel, killing her concentration. “Sorry, I was just wondering; where’s Falcon?”
“That is not important, Ember. I am speaking to you. He’s probably gone off to the fire pits to warm himself. Now sit still and pay attention.”
A grey blur caught the edges of her vision. Her heart lurched. Without thinking, she shoved her paws against Jade’s chest, sending her tumbling into her den. Something powerful and heavy slammed into her ribs. Ember’s side hit a wall. Air left her lungs in a painful huff. Sky blue flared in her head. She tried to breathe in but found she couldn’t. The shadows framing her vision grew more and more powerful. A shock of adrenaline hit her system, waking her body back up. She drew a pain-ridden breath. Her vision cleared. Ember broke into a fit of coughing.
“Falcon, what are you doing? You could have killed her!” Jade hissed.
“The well-being of that Westerner is the least of your concerns right now, Love,” Falcon replied.
“What are you talking about?”
Falcon lifted himself off of Ember. He pinned Jade against the wall of her own den and sank his fangs into the back of her neck. Jade opened her mouth, as if to scream for help, but nothing came out.
Ember staggered to her paws, heart racing. “Leave her alone.” The words came out much weaker and squeakier than she’d intended. Grey fog filled her head, clogging up her thoughts yet again. “P-please stop.”
“Ember . . . help me,” Jade whispered.
The silver in her mind refused to go away, not even amid the swarm of other colors attacking and distracting her. Everything was breaking all over again. Even their voices sounded wrong. She turned around and pressed her face against the wall. ‘Never turn your back on a threat,’ Cloud’s voice chided in her head. She ignored it. “Why is this happening? Why is this
happening? Why is this happening? Why is this happening?” she mewed.
Something thudded against the ground. Ember spun around at the noise to find Jade lying limp on the rock, eyes half closed and neck covered in blood. “Ember, stop. This is happening because the colony has been led by an unfit commander for far too many winters. Your colony has it right. A molly should not be allowed into a position of power. It’s her fault we’re at war, you know.”
‘Aspen? Lupine? Jade? Aspen? Lupine killed Aspen? Jade killed Aspen? Why does this keep happening to me? Why involve me? Why can’t they kill each other somewhere else? Kill each other? Kill each other? Why do we kill each other? Why do we kill? I can’t . . . I can’t kill.’
“Let me make you a deal, young molly. You let me finish my work, and I’ll guarantee the safety of your family. Interfere, however, and I will kill both you and Hyrees.”
She backed away. Jade coughed once. “Ember . . . don’t leave me,” she whispered. “Don’t . . . don’t let me die.”
‘Which one? Which one? Why do I have to choose? Why do I have to, why do I choose, have to, why? Why doesn’t he kill her? Why won’t he kill her while I hesitate? This isn’t why I’m here. Why am I here? Why didn’t he wait until I wasn’t? Why can’t I smell the blood? Her fur. Her fur! Why is it . . . Confused. Purple—purple, why is there so much purple?’
“Someone help! Jade needs help! What is going on?” Ember yowled.
“Wrong choice,” Falcon growled. He lunged at her. She jumped back but not far enough. As she landed, he swiped her feet out from beneath her. She tumbled onto the rock and tried to lift her legs in defense but found herself paralyzed. The world swam around her, bouncing in and out of focus. Falcon stood like a green-eyed rattlesnake, poised and ready to strike. Another burst of adrenaline fired off in her body, snapping her out of her daze. She sucked in a deep breath and shoved her paws in front of her, claws extended. ‘Why did I do that? Why did I do that? Oh, this is bad. That was a terrible idea.’
“Help! Please! Come on, someone!” she called.
Falcon pounced again. Ember closed her eyes and kicked for all she was worth. Her paws hit air. Her eyes snapped opened. Falcon stood over Jade, bearing his fangs and snarling. He lunged for her throat. Without thinking, Ember rolled to her paws and pinned him against the stone.
“Leave her alone!” Ember snapped.
Falcon chuckled. His face flickered between his own and Whitehaze’s beneath her claws. Ember shook her head and released him. Breathing—she couldn’t breathe; she needed to breathe, but no matter how fast or hard she sucked in air, she was suffocating.
“No,” she whispered. “No, no, I’m not . . . you’re . . . w-w-what is this?”
Falcon got to his feet and straightened himself up. “Surprising,” he said. “Not very graceful, but at least you’ve got some willpower.”
Ember flattened her ears and shook her head. Tiny nonsense mews escaped her throat. The storm of colors, except for the pulsing blue of pain, became a muddle of thundering grey and purple.
Jade lifted her head, smiling. “And loyalty.”
She shuddered and sucked in rapid, shallow breaths through her mouth. “What—what is going on? You didn’t just . . . Oh.” The last part came out as a breath. “Oh. Ohhh, no.” She pressed her paws against her forehead. “W-was this n-n-necessary?”
Jade got up and shook herself off. A droplet of fake blood spattered on Ember’s paw. She sniffed it. The sickly sweet scent of winter berries filled her nose. Light green—it was tightening her throat. She wanted to throw up.
“It was entirely necessary,” Jade said. “I needed to make sure you are truly loyal to me and my colony before I put you in any kind of position of power. Didn’t you notice that so far I’ve only asked you simple questions and for ultimately unimportant advice?”
Her lower jaw trembled. Tears blurred her vision. Her heart continued to thump in her ears. Bile coated her mouth as pine greens of relief and sickly greens of nausea fought for control of her body. “Well, I, uh, I mean, I did, but none of it was-was much different than the kinds of things . . . everyone else has asked me, so I-I didn’t think much of it.”
She walked closer to Ember. “Are you okay? Goodness, molly, you’re shaking all over.”
Ember sunk to her stomach and wrapped her tail against her side. She closed her eyes. The darkness made her shiver even more. “It’s normal.” She coughed a few times. “I-I don’t take very well to surprises.”
The eerie blankness of her own voice didn’t line up with anything inside her, much less the cyans threatening to steal away her self-control. ‘No, don’t panic. Not now. Please stop. I need to get out of here. This has to stop.’
“Life is full of surprises. You’d better get used to them, young advisor,” Falcon said.
She slid herself a few pawsteps backward. “I should probably—” Her eyes snapped open. She looked up at them, still shaking. “Y-young advisor?”
He smiled. “Yes, you heard me correctly.”
Jade chuffed. “You can answer questions no one even thinks to ask, you know the ways of both the East and the West, and now you’ve proven yourself loyal to me. Loyal enough, at least. You’re an odd young cat and no doubt need some fixing up, but you are also our most valuable resource. I’m putting you on the council.”
‘The council? She’s putting me on the council? Wait, what? What?’ She swallowed bile and backed up farther. ‘I didn’t even . . .’ Her mind went numb. “Uh, hum, well. Could I maybe get some time to process this? Ah—it’s a little overwhelming. Way too much . . . turquoise and purple. A-and blue and green.”
“I’m not sure I understand what you’re trying to say,” Jade said.
‘What is that even supposed to mean? Wait. You didn’t come for this. But maybe you can use this to rebuild the . . . everything. Maybe meetings can happen again and I’ll be able to see Dad again. Maybe. He’s not on the council anymore though, is he? So probably not. I could do like Bracken said. Get a grasp on yourself. Everything is okay. She’s only giving me power. More power than I had before. This is good. This is . . . good?’
She yawned nervously and forced herself to stop shaking. Her jaw continued without her permission. “W-what do you want me to do? Is there, uhm, is there anything I need to do now?”
“Ember, you know the West better than anyone else here,” Falcon said. “We’d like to know what you think we should do to prevent further conflicts with them. Should we try to reconcile, or leave them be?”
“Falcon, I’m not sure this is the best time,” Jade said. “We’ve scared her half to death. Perhaps we should wait until tomorrow to get her thoughts on the subject. I doubt her judgment is at its sharpest right now.”
Ember’s eyes widened. “No, I can, uhm, well, maybe you could try sending an ambassador and a few guards with gifts and things.” She closed her eyes to concentrate on thinking. “Though, oh, if the fight and all really was Lupine’s fault, going there might make things worse. So I don’t know. You’re right; I need time to—”
“I say we do it,” Falcon said, cutting her off. “It’s a brilliant idea, and I’d be willing to go.”
She opened her eyes and examined him. More purple. ‘That was too easy. Did he have that idea too?’
“I will call a council meeting,” Jade said.
“That shouldn’t be necessary, Love,” he replied.
“We can’t decide on something this important based on the suggestions of two cats.”
Falcon snorted. “Very well. You want a meeting, a meeting we will have. Will you be coming, Ember?”
She breathed out slowly through her mouth, then switched back to her Eastern accent. “I-if it’s not required, I’d r-r-rather not. I, uh, look, this has been a long day. I’d like to get some rest.”
“Very well,” Jade said. “I’ll brief you and the rest of the colony on our decision tomorrow. Go get your rest.”
Ember lowered her head. “Thanks.”
>
Without pausing for a response, she left the rock bowl. Boreal sat on the other side, waiting for her. Ember kept walking.
Boreal loped to catch up with Ember’s fast pace. “Go on, what’s wrong?”
“Your dad pretended to attack Jade to test how loyal I am to her and now they want my ETAg on the council.” Muffling grey and sleepy blue-green deadened the storm taking place in her head. “I’m still trying to process everything that happened last week. I’m not sure I’m ready for this. I don’t know what I’m doing.”
Boreal’s gaze drifted beyond the Rift, out across Dark’s Valley. The vibrant reds, oranges and yellows of the western sky seemed to glow just for them, trying to reassure them both. “Maybe not, but you’ve never done any of this before. You don’t know how much you’re capable of until you push yourself beyond what you’re comfortable doing. My mother used to tell me that back before she left. Back when we were, you know, a family.”
“She . . . sounds nice,” Ember said.
Boreal sighed quietly. “She was. The only things Father ever says to me are either direct orders or passing remarks. Or insults when I’m not perfect for him. No advice or anything useful. I’m almost surprised you added in the word ‘pretended.’ He would just as soon attack someone for real. Though with Jade that is more believable. He actually does care for her.” She swatted a pebble into the snow. Ember winced as it landed with a soft crunch. The noise made her feel sick again.
“At least you have parents who love you,” Boreal continued, “even if you can’t see them. I guess in that sense you haven’t lost them at all.”
“I guess so,” Ember said, “but I still don’t know what to do. I just want to go to sleep, dream something nice, and stay in that dream forever. Or at least for a while. You know, I’m actually really lazy, but I’m also good at hiding it.”
“I’ve gotten good at hiding things too,” Boreal replied.
Her ears perked up. ‘What’s that supposed to mean? What are you hiding?’
“But that’s not important. I need to go do something. See you tonight?”
Wildcat Page 46
