Dog Duel [Mini-Plot]

[Deleted]

DROUGHT OF DEATHCLAN

Everything had been quiet in DeathClan recently. Granted, that was mostly due to the fact that nobody had been around, but there hadn't really been any major problems either. No rogues crossing the border, no poison in the river. It was vaguely nice, not needing to deal with issues on a daily basis.

But of course that wasn't meant to last. Drought had been out on a walk near the swamp when he heard distant baying from the direction of Twolegplace. No less than a minute later, a pair of hounds twice his size burst through the trees and made a beeline for him.

The leader bristled, immediately climbing to the safety of a nearby pine branch. But the dogs below were tenacious and they howled as they scratched at the trunk. He was, essentially, stuck.

WORDS: 136 || WRITTEN FOR: DeathClan

NOTES - This is open for three others. Please try to keep a posting order and reply regularly if you're joining in!

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[Deleted]

BrBreeze padded through deathclan territory, trying to remember everything around her. She soon spotted her leader in a nearby tree along with two large dogs. I gotta help him, he's my leader!  She thought as she run over to them. "Come at me, you dumb mutts!" She yowled at the dogs even though they couldn't hear her.

[Artemis]

Hunting had been improving for Artemis. She had never been more glad for the warmer weather--the leafbare previously had seemed to go on for far longer than only one season. But the prey today appeared to be in short supply. She was prowling along the length of a river, following a mouse's scent that was fresh enough not to be stale but too old to be fresh. Still, she wasn't picky about it unless Twolegs had touched it.

But with another few steps, she paused. Something was wrong. The scent was growing gradually off, almost cold, in the wake of another. Another that sent a horribly familiar chill up her spine, one that brought back an unwanted memory.

Dogs.

She ran, not knowing where she was going, hurling herself over the ground in any effort to escape. But in her rush, the scent of the dogs was only increasing--too late in her panic did she realize she was going in the direction of them, not away from them. Cursing herself for her stupidity, she skidded across the ground and whirled to run back--

--only to be greeted with the sight of the dogs themselves, huge ones, clawing and howling at the base of a tree. To her horror, she saw the cat at the top of the tree. Drought.

Artemis could only gape for a brief second, too stunned to move, but the sight of another cat and a shout brought her back to reality. A youngling was screeching something at the dogs. An idiot. Cats that young couldn't hope to survive against brutes like those Twolegplace dogs.

"Get out of the way!" she ordered sharply, moving to shove the youngling aside. "Run! Just run!"

Heart pounding in her ears, she began to bolt towards the dogs. She lunged, biting at the nearest one's tail. The best hope she had was to goad the dogs into chasing her instead and luring them away, then getting into a stream to throw them off her scent. Hopefully, Drought would catch on to what she was doing quickly.

[Deleted]

DROUGHT OF DEATHCLAN

There was a fine line between bravery and idiocy. Drought wasn't sure, but he had a feeling that Breeze might have just ripped it up and rolled around in the pieces.

"You're going to get yourself killed!" he spat, always one to cover his worry with anger. Not that his words mattered at this point - things were already in motion. The dogs, sensing an easier meal, had turned on Breeze… but before they could murder the youngling, Artemis arrived.

Drought should've known that she would try to pull some heroics, too. The leader cursed under his breath before dropping from the branch and landing on the broad back of the dog that his longtime ally hadn't gone after. It writhed, howling, and he dug in his claws further.

He could only hope that Breeze had gone to help Artemis. Drought couldn't risk a glance over while he struggled to hang on, getting jostled too much to use his teeth properly. It probably looked like a strange and particularly bloody rodeo to any onlookers as the leader barely hung on to the thrashing hound, pelt bristling.

WORDS: 185 || WRITTEN FOR: Breeze & Artemis

NOTES - I guess I'll post. The last slot is still open if anyone wishes to join later.

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[Deleted]

Breeze fell to the ground as Artemis shoved her. She got up to she drought having some sort of rodeo with one one of the dogs and Artemis fighting the other. I should help that cat, that way we could both deal with the dog with drought. She raced toward the dog Artemis was fighting, she hooked her claws onto the dogs hind leg and hung for dear life. Why am I helping this cat anyway? Should I have helped Drought instead? No, this cat could help me, the more the merrier.

[Bear]

Bear lay in the shade of some trees, enjoying the warm weather. The past leafbare had been harsh and cold, especially for Bear, who mainly enjoyed fish. But the river, because of the constantly flowing water, didn't completely freeze, so she could get few fish, here and there.

All new scents wreathed in the summer air. Warm and refreshing. My, how long it's been since I've smelled this before. Summer! Heat! Fresh water! Then something else, that was much too familiar. Dogs.

Bear was immediantly upon her feet and keeping her head low with her steps soft and silent. She snaked through the forest, keeping her eyes and ears alert for sounds and dogs.

When Bear had been just a kit, her mother had been viciously attacked by dogs, and mauled to death. But when her father came along, he fought off 3 dogs, killing 2 and leaving the other one to run. He had been an ally cat, constantly fighting to keep territory. Especially against dogs. So he had tought Bear all he knew.

Before long, Bear had picked up on the scent again and was on the edge of a small clearing. There were the dogs, lean and muscular. 2 of them. Drought wa- Wait, Drought?! The massive tom had his claws dug deeply in the shoulder of the broadest backed dog. Befor leaping into death, Bear arranged her attack plan in her mind.

"Drought!" She yowled at the top of her lungs. "Go for the throat!" She yowled, then swung low into the grass. She slid forward, towards the dog, then suddenly took a giant leap. The biggest she could manage. Bear stretched out 1 of her 6-toed paws and, with claws unsheathed, shot straight at the dogs side. Then, before completely ramming into the dog, she, in a flash, raked her claws down the dogs side, and while still going through the air, zapped her paw back and then her shouder was rammed into the dog.

The dog screeched in a fury of pain and surprise at the cat that had just attached him. The dog had been bowled over, and hopefully Drought was smart enough to jump off at the right chance. Bear snarled and flashed a paw out at the dog, scratching her claws across its broad muzzle.

Bear then snapped out her neck to bite down hard on its nose before pulling away.

"GUYS, INFLICT AS MUCH INJURY AS YOU CAN TO THE NOSE!!!" She howled, then added: "The nose contains all the nerves!!!"

@drought
Not my turn to reply. Please be patient.

[Artemis]

Artemis grunted, still hanging on to the dog's tail. But it was slipping and the dog was thrashing, clawing at her and snapping its jaws. She let go just in time to see Drought coming down, joining the fight, and Breeze, the idiot she'd just tried to save, biting the dog's leg. Nononono--

She had to adapt, and quickly. She dodged the dog's jaws and leaped, slashing downwards at its nose. It howled, stumbling back and shaking all over.

"Let go!" she shouted at Breeze. Watching the dog, she pressed her advantage and lunged to bite into its shoulder. But the dog only twisted its head to bite at her, writhing in an attempt to get her off of him. The coppery taste of blood filled her mouth as she dug her teeth in further, trying to keep a firm grip, but with another attempt to shake her off, she fell, hitting the ground side-first.

Yet another cat had joined in. Who did that cat think she was kidding? None of them were big enough to drive the dogs off through sheer force.

But...

Artemis had a plan, a better one now than her previous. Dogs this big, surely, couldn't make it in rivers with strong currents--their weight would pull them down and break any branches crossing over it.

"Hey! You!" she screeched at the dog she'd just fought. She snapped forward at the other dog as well, trying to get his attention. "Both of you, you hideous pieces of dung! Follow me!"

Some more snapping, more weaving in and out to distract them. The dogs were now snarling more than ever--it was as if the previous fighting had only been play for them.

She started to run, chest heaving and burning with a pounding in her head. Hopefully, the others would catch on. "I'm taking you somewhere nice!" she shouted, although she knew they wouldn't understand her. "It's called a river! Ever heard of it?"

[Deleted]

DROUGHT OF DEATHCLAN

The patched tom snarled as he tried to keep his grip on the dog. He was making a mess of its back - deep wounds were gouged by his claws, but he couldn't quite keep a good grip on the hound. The blood made its short fur too slick.

And all of a sudden, someone else had arrived on the scene and was yowling at him. Drought, who had already been snapping at the back of the dog's neck, glared at Bear for lack of being able to speak. He didn't have the right angle to do any serious damage; the dogs were just too large and tough.

He was so occupied with his own attempts at doing damage that he wasn't really paying attention to Bear, who apparently had a death wish. She managed to unbalance it somehow. Before the leader could let go, he was being half-crushed by the dog as it toppled over onto him. A furious muffled noise of protest was the only indication that Drought was mostly fine, despite being smothered by what felt like a half-ton of fur and flesh.

The weight eventually removed itself when the dog he'd been fighting started chasing after Artemis. Coughing, Drought stood and took off after the royal. He trusted her to carry out whatever plan she apparently had in mind… but if it went wrong, he needed to be close enough to help. Hopefully the other cats had enough sense to follow at a distance as he was doing.

WORDS: 251 || WRITTEN FOR: Breeze & Artemis & Bear

NOTES - Breeze has technically left DeathClan, but they are still welcome to post in this thread for now. Otherwise, they can be skipped.
Artemis

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[Bear]

Bear bit her lip when she saw Drought go under.

Bear tossed a glance over at the other cat, fighting the other dog. The she-cat yowled something about a river. Bear immediantly knew the plan. Bear once more, slashed her claws across the dogs nose, gouging deep wounds.

Then, Bear slid back. As the dog jumped up in indignation, trying to reach Bear, the she-cat turned and pelted after Drought and the other cat.

The dog was close behind. It's hot breath was searing her hind legs. Bear, she wasn't the fastest cat. Her large frame was the cause. She knew this, but kept charging wildly. Soon, Bear was coming up against the other dog. She snarled as it began to step out of line, and to keep it straight, Bear hissed madly and flashed her claws across its face. Not inflicting any wound as to keep it charging after Artemis.

(I do post now, right? Because Breeze isn't in Deathclan?