~~ ELITE AUDITIONS ~~

[Deleted]

Drought stifled a yawn as he emerged from his new den under a large tree in the main DeathClan clearing. He had instructed all would-be Elites to gather here so that he could assess them. The new DeathClan leader had thought of several challenges which would test their physical prowess. Even though skill in battle was important for any Elite, Drought's personal henchmen would also have to be swift and intelligent. After all, they would be trusted to carry out important missions such as spying on the Clans and leading raids.

The black-and-white tom clawed his way onto a low branch of the tree to wait for the other cats to arrive. With any luck, there would be some interest in the high positions, because he wanted at least three other Elites besides Badger.

| I'll wait another day before posting, but all cats who want to be Elite must post before then. |

[Deleted]

A youngling was hidden in her rock overhang. Her eyes barely opened and a bit of wind came into her eyes. They instantly closed. Jasmine crept out if the den and glanced around. She saw her leader's black and white pelt. She crept towards him, assuming that something important was going on. She stumbled over roots and rocks. A thorn got stuck into her paw and the desperately tried to get it out. She got at least most of it out. Jasmine stepped onto the paw and gasped in pain. She tried to ignore the pain and limp there. Jasmine finally reached him and sat down. She tried her hardest to appear perfectly fine and older than she was. Her eyes kept focus on him. Drought, the leader. And my leader., she thought. The thought of him made her realize what was happening. This was the only chance to become an Elite and possibly serve a purpose. Jasmine was determined to prove herself worthy of the position.

[Thicket]

Thicket decided to join this attempt to become an Elite. He decided it would be an excellent opportunity that may fulfill his own ambitions. He was one of the younger members of Deathclan, but had joined near the end of Viper's reign. He knew what the power of Deathclan was like, to be part of something great. He wished to do so once more. He knew Drought, his ally, now led Deathclan. Greetings Drought. the Siberian Tom said. He would try his best to impress.

[Vale]

It was only evident that Vale would proceed to want to attempt an audition. Vale had always been side by side with his non-biological brother. Despite his small trip to the Clans he had gotten bored because there had been nothing more to mess with left, so he had come back. It had been a few moons and as he did come back DeathClan had become very quiet, until now. Drought's reign proved to poke some interest in Vale. The scarred russian blue approached the small crowd. Nodding a hello to the DeathClan leader. "Hey there Drought." He greeted with a flick of his tail.

He sat near the other DeathClan felines. But his blue gaze remained on Drought.

[Dove]

Word quickly spread that the auditions to be part of the elite were today and Dove just could not wait. She did not really understand the whole "elite" concept, but it did sound like something that Viper would have done anyways, and whatever. She just wanted to be of rank once again instead of one of the lowly cats. Sighing, she padded to the clearing where prospective cats were gathered. She saw a much younger cat and rolled her eyes. There's no way that Drought would even consider that one.

Would Drought even allow her to be one of the Elite though? She did not even know of the cat until the last meeting after all, but the majority of the others did. Like the other cats, she sat down and stared with curiosity to the cat sitting on the branch. What would even happen?

[Lyricwhisper]

Lyric was skeptical about trying out to become one of Drought's elites. She hadn't really at all met Drought before this time, and he probably didn't even know that she was a child of Vale. She was probably one of the last ones to enter the area, seeing the leader in a tree. The gray and white she-cat looked up at him for a heartbeat before looking back ahead of her, sitting down beside a random cat. The young adult gave a small sigh as she waited, her ears flicking once.

[Deleted]

| Alright, time's up. No one else may join this thread. |

The tom watched as cats gathered below. He knew several of them. Thicket was one of his allies, and Vale was the cat he thought of as a brother even though they weren't related by blood. Dove and Lyric had been at his previous meeting. However, there was one cat whom he didn't know - a very small youngling who had limped up to his tree.

She can't be serious. A cat this young, trying out for the second-highest rank in DeathClan? Ridiculous. She's practically a kitten; I'd look like a fool if I let her be an Elite.

The other four cats were adults, at least. Drought nodded slowly and straightened up on his branch before speaking. "So, the five of you want to be Elites, do you? Well, like anything else in DeathClan, it's not going to be easy for you. You're all going to have to prove yourselves before I make any decisions. Your first task?" He grinned ever so slightly. "Fetch me a small stone from the river."

It was a seemingly-simple challenge, but anyone with sense would know better. It would be a violent race, complete with all sorts of backstabbing. They were DeathClanners, not kittypets - Drought fully expected the cats to be bleeding by the time they returned. This would test many of their abilities, including their knowledge of the terrain.

"What are you all waiting for? No questions - move your tails!"

| Oh also, please don't complete the task in one post. The cats are supposed to have a chance to fight amongst themselves as they race to complete the mission. |

[Thicket]

Oh lovely he had to go fetch a rock. Well I fail to see why i rock is of importance. He took off. Being the largest cat here, he should be able to run over anyone in his way as well as cover ground faster, hopefully. He charged with a hiss towards the river. He knew where it is because his den was near there. This should be an easy task.

[Lyricwhisper]

Lyric flicked her ear as Drought announced the announcement. She narrowed her gaze before being told to go. The gray and white she-cat noticed Thicket running off, his massive figure clambering outside. The smaller she-cat followed after him, running behind the tom while trying to keep quiet.

[Dove]

A small stone from the river. Dove flicked her tail with excitement, wanting to prove herself to her new leader. Viper did tell her to follow whoever leads the Deathclanners anyways. As the tom declared the start of the race, the tabby known as Thicket already lumbered off, followed by another cat that she saw at the previous meeting. Without waiting for the other two to even make a move, she ran off, straying away from the direction of the others. If Drought wanted a stone, he would have one.

She remembered how her den flooded from the last storm, and decided to stray from the common path, headed for the thicker parts of the forest. Though the stream there would be a further distance from where Thicket was going, the banks were shallower.

I hope that using another path is okay. Just that I didn't want everyone to play follow the leader.

[Vale]

A little late due to essay + school work.

The russian blue had lived here for the sum of his life. He knew the area by heart at this point. Finding the river was simple. Vale quickly trotted off as the others did so, not wanting to lose time, nor to lose in speed on these felines. He knew a stone didn't seem to hold much importance but the premise he did not question for it was an order. Around this place an order was an order no inquiries.

Vale was determined to prove himself here and now. Even if it was a simple stone he was a DeathClanner, he would do what was needed no matter what method he needed to proceed to use.

[Deleted]

Jasmine looked at her leader's face and felt that he saw her as a weakling. I'll prove him wrong. She nodded swiftly and glanced at the river. She followed the older cats and kept quiet. Jasmine without a question stuck her head in the icy water. She found a rock that looked pretty big. She bit it and locked it in her teeth. Jasmine tried her hardest to lift it. It took a few tries, but she eventually got it out. She wobbled to her leader and spat it on the ground. The she-cat sat down.

|Sorry about late post. I had a school project.|

[Deleted]

The leader could tell that many of the cats underestimated the reason behind their first task. Drought was not merely some mad cat with a passion for geology. No, he wanted to see what the ambition of these cats would drive them to do.

It didn't take long for the five felines to scatter, each disappearing into the undergrowth as they ran for the river. The spotted cat briefly wondered whether some might fail to return at all. He'd be impressed if one of these DeathClanners went to such lengths as to disable another would-be Elite. That was the way things were done around here. If one cat wanted something and other cats wanted it as well, the wisest would find a way to take their competitors out of the picture.

Shifting on his branch, DeathClan's dictator made himself more comfortable as he awaited his underlings' returns.

| Jasmine, please edit your post. I specifically stated in my last reply that I didn't want the cats to finish the task right away. The river isn't within sight; it is quite some distance away within DeathClan's territory. Anyway, you guys can keep posting until everyone's back with their stones; I might not post again before that's accomplished. Please go ahead and claw at each other a little bit; it makes things more entertaining. |

[Dove]

Okay this is not too bad yet. Or at least no cat is killing me yet!  The tabby kept her pace, determined to either reach the stream first and escape before the others arrived, or hopefully end up being the last one at the stream. He did just say to bring a pebble back after all. Why not try to accomplish the task without any blood spilling?

On the way, she heard the sounds of the others ahead, glad that she was left behind per say. The stream should be somewhere forward, and she took a flight over a broken log, thankful that her stamina was rather decent.

Logically, since Dove chose the longer path to the stream, she will arrive in my net post.

[Vale]

The only way to assure victory in a battle was to diminish the competition. This case was no different to Vale. A DeathClanner had to be merciless. Vale was a competitive feline and pondered strategy for a minor second. Right now he had lost sight of one of the competitors but Thicket and Lyric were near in sight. The russian blue without hesitance unsheathed his claws.

His blue eyes locked onto Thicket and soon the large DeathClan tom picked up his speed and attempted to lunge for the other competitor, claws out and teeth bared. His intention was to rake Thicket's shoulder. He would attempt to injure this cat then move onto the next. If he could slow down the competition it would make the task much easier and maybe score him a little bonus.