Another excerpt from Catlition for you, this time featuring part of a battle scene. Warning for peril, scary images and blood (it’s not graphic, my books are rated PG, but have a warning anyway. Mostly I just wanted to use ‘scary images’)
Finally, night fell, and the fortress grew still. Ribbony, his siblings, and Kit, waited on the wall, watching the woods for any sign of the wolf army. All around the fortress Rendalawo’s army stood, waiting, a ring protecting those inside. Then, movement. There, in the shadows along the edge of the woods, Ribbony could see shapes slinking. They flowed, smooth as a river, across the fields before Rendalawo and formed a long line to the door of the fortress. It was too dark to properly count them, but Ribbony saw the line stretch from a few tail lengths in front of Rendalawo’s gate all the way back to the edge of the Forest. His heart pounded so hard that it throbbed down into his paws and rose up into his throat as a low growl. He was afraid, and itching for a fight. He hated this. Hated the waiting. He wanted to use his nervous energy for something useful- and killing wolves would certainly be useful. Then, as one he saw the wolves lift their heads towards the starless sky. They let out one, long howl; an eerie, chilling sound, amplified by the hundreds. Ribbony heard creatures start to mutter and whimper around him. Anger rose up inside him, drowning out his own fear. The wolves were trying to scare them, demoralize them before the attack even started. Well, he wasn’t going to let them. Even as he thought this one of the wolves stepped forward. He was bigger than the others, and even blacker than the night around him. “Rendalawo,” called the wolf, his voice cutting through the silence like a knife. “I am Cogg, the Wolfking, and I have come to make you mine. Surrender now and I will spare your creatures from a bloody end.” “We will never surrender to you,” Koja’s voice rang out loud and clear. “The wolves will never be the masters of Rendalawo, or the Forest. Go back to your mountains where you belong.” Koja’s words seemed to give the creatures around him courage. A muffled cheer rang out that Ribbony and his Catlition quickly took up. Soon the whole fortress seemed to be roaring its defiance of the Wolfking’s demand. The cheer faded, and in its place came a coarse, mocking laughter. The Wolfking had thrown back his head, howling in amusement. His army followed suit, and Ribbony suppressed a shudder at the terrible sound. “Your arrogance will be your undoing,” said Cogg. “If this is your choice then you will all die, slaughtered in defense of your foolish hopes.” “Our arrogance,” hissed Dora. “He’s one to talk.” Ribbony muttered his agreement but didn’t take his eyes off the Wolfking. Cogg turned and walked back into the sea of his army, until Ribbony couldn’t see him in the dark anymore. The wolves began to howl and chant, the cacophony of noise reawakening Ribbony’s anger. Suddenly, torches sprang to life in the army below them, and Rendalawo could see its foes. There were hundreds of them, stretching out like a blight in all directions. In their midst Ribbony saw war machines rumbling along. Worried whispers and whimpers increased around him and Ribbony could take it no longer. “Catlition song on three,” he said. He looked at the others and they nodded, eyes wide. “One, two…”
“OH WE ARE THE BRAVE!
OH WE ARE THE FEARLESS!
WE STAND TRUE
FOR ALL THAT IS GOOD!
WE FEAR NONE
FOR NONE EVER CHALLENGE US!
ONCE THEY SEE OUR BRAVERY
THEY ALL FLEE IN FEAR
CATLITION! CATLITION!
WHAT A WONDERFUL CALL!
CATLITION! CATLITION!
IT IS OUR BATTLE CRYYYYYYY!”
When the song ended they sang it again, and this time the creatures around them joined in. By the fourth time the song was being shouted from all the walls of Rendalawo. Their song drowned out the wolves’ howls and chants, and Ribbony even saw a few of the ones nearby looking confused. ‘Did they think we would just give up?’ he wondered. And then- Fire flew over Ribbony’s head. He ducked, yowling on instinct. Whipping around he saw a fireball land on the midst of the defenders on the lawn. There were shouts, and within moments the fire was out. Before they had time to congratulate themselves half a dozen more of the flaming balls were launched over the walls. The fire-fighters rushed to put them out and- “Ribbony!” Ribbony was shoved to the side as a grappling hook landed where he had been standing a second before. Dora stood half on top of him, fur fluffed up and eyes wide. “Pay attention you idiot!” she said, and he heard the panic in her voice. “Sorry!” Ribbony scrambled to his paws and looked over the wall. Several wolves scrambled up the rope attached to the grappling hook. Ribbony glanced at Dora and grinned, then pulled the hook off the wall and tossed it over. He was rewarded with the sound of furious howling from below. He turned and looked along the wall, seeing several more hooks lodged at the base of the crenelations. Explorer and Creamy were dislodging them almost as soon as they appeared. Kit had vanished, but when Ribbony risked another look down at the lawn he saw his friend’s white fur dashing around with the fire brigades. Ribbony turned back just in time to see the first wolf come over the wall. It was massive- bigger than Bee had been- and black, like their leader, but with gray paws. It oozed over the wall like a shadow and stood, fur fluffed up, yellow eyes glowing like a creature from a nightmare. Ribbony drew his sword. The wolf turned its glimmering gaze on him and grinned, teeth glinting in the torchlight. It drew no sword, but simply charged him head on, jaws aiming for his throat. Ribbony stepped out of the way at the last second, swinging his sword at the wolf’s throat. Its last howl turned into a gurgle, and it collapsed to the ground, blood pooling beneath it. Ribbony didn’t waste time thinking about what he had done. He had grown beyond that in the past year, out of necessity. Some creatures were simply cruel, and some had embraced the darkness slowly and unwillingly, but all those he had killed had chosen their paths, and they would have killed him and those he loved if he did not kill them. The only remorse he had for his actions was that he wished there was no need for them at all; that no creatures ever fell into darkness. Wolves lay dead by Explorer and Creamy as well. Not far from him, Dora stood, breathing hard and staring at a dead wolf with one of her knives buried in its chest. More inky black shadows slipped over the walls and attacked, and as Ribbony swung his sword at another wolf he knew they were in for a long night of fighting.
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