"Hold still - can't you see we're trying to save your life?!" Poplar demanded, struggling to hold the thrashing white she-cat down. The cat yowled and desperately tried to claw her way out of the iron grip. Blizzard flattened her ears in disgust and kept a watchful eye on her two kits, with Lizard behind them.

     The mother refused to give up and violently cried out for her kits, who stirred hearing her cry. Lizard let out a warning growl, silencing them and the mother stiffened, holding back choked tears. Poplar smirked, keeping her paws steady on the she-cat, looking expectantly at Blizzard.

     One of the kits let out a fearful mew and the white cat lunged, causing Poplar's grip to slip. However, she slammed a paw on the mother's tail, making the skinny cat yowl. Blizzard's friend increased the pressure, keeping her still against her will as Lizard kept the kits in his reach, ready to strike on a single command.

     Blizzard sighed and let out a shaggy breath, becoming more aware of her surroundings all the while searching for nearby cats that might be lurking in the branches or bushes. The only scent that stood out was the blaring trail they took to chase down the mother. Luckily, she didn't pick up traces of Viper or Skull.

     It would've made things easier if she didn't protest and yowl so much, she thought. I hate to use force against you but sometimes I need to push the scales to get what I need. Blizzard felt a sneer cross her face.

     "This should be our third attempt," Lizard reported, looking at the tiny kits. "Possibly five, if they cooperate."

     "Don't you dare lay a single paw on them!" snarled the mother, wiggling underneath Poplar in vain. "If you so much as harm a whisker, I swear I'll kill you!"

     "I wouldn't be making those kinds of promises, considering your situation," Poplar jested, rolling her eyes in a mocking manner. Her claws slid out threateningly, lifting a single paw that dangled over the white she-cat's throat. "You wouldn't be the first cat I've killed, even if you have kits."

     "Let go of my kits at least," the mother begged, pleading with the cold-hearted cat. "Let them go and I won't hurt you."

     She snorted. "Ha! I've heard that so many times you wouldn't believe it! How do I know you aren't going to stab me in the back? It'd be easier to kill you and the kits, but that's not what we're after."

     "What did we do...!" protested the she-cat, eyes flicking from Poplar to Blizzard. "If anything, you're the ones who should pay!"

     "Careful," Lizard threatened, letting his voice drop. "Slaughtering your kits will be like hunting a mouse."

     And a part of me does miss the feeling of terrorizing cats to the bone. Oh, how I wish we could go back to times when the Storm Siblings would scare the living daylights out of rogues. Blizzard smiled at the thought.

     Poplar laughed. "All right! Enough with this and we'll get to the main part." Her eyes glittered with excitement. Blizzard growled, signaling her friend and the ginger she-cat placed a paw on the mother's throat.

     "We need you to be quiet because there are cats out there that will kill us if they see us do this," Blizzard explained, coming closer to crouch down to the mother's level. "We're supposed to be on a patrol looking for cats to take prisoner, but." She empathized the last word to keep the white she-cat's panic to a minimum.

     "We're sending you somewhere safe so you don't have to die at the paws of either side."

     The mother stayed silent, chest heaving with fear as she stared at Poplar with fearful eyes, trembling like her kits. Blizzard met eyes with the mother and gave her a warm look, hoping that would ease the rogue.

     "None of us mean any harm to you or your kits. We're trying to warn you," she promised.

     The she-cat hissed. "We were doing fine without your interference! And why should I believe a single word you say?!"

     "There isn't anything we can do that proves we're trustworthy except that we haven't killed you yet," Blizzard acknowledged. "But if I were to tell you there's a really powerful and strong cat that's seeking an army to fight for him, would you trust me?"

     "If you got caught by this cat," Lizard explained, raising his voice. "You'd be forced to join his cause or accept death right then and there. At least with us, we're giving you a warning."

     "There might be a possible solution," Blizzard added, flicking her tail around the clearing. "There should be a group of cats that are working for a way that the Tribe of Shining Suns and us can get along."

     "They're asking for death," sputtered the she-cat. "You can't escape this world no matter how far you run."

     "Can you..." Blizzard gritted her teeth together, digging her claws into the soil below. "Shut up and let me talk?"

     "Stay quiet, dummy!" Poplar snapped. "We both know what living in fear's like, so if someone even offers you a chance at escape, I'd take it! It at least gives you some time to think of an awesome escape."

     Like the time when you and I fought and you bested me somehow? You hardly escaped with your life after Firestorm showed up. Blizzard considered, hiding her quiet smile from her friend. The mother curled her lips back and quivered, facing the two she-cats with a brave face.

     "I'm one of that cat's daughters," Blizzard explained. "I've seen so many cats fall under his command. While I can't openly defy him, I can work behind the scenes and try to save as many cats as I can. We recently warned two other cats about this."

     The mother peered at them suspiciously, keeping a firm eye on her two kits as well. "What is your name?" she asked, fighting to keep her voice calm.

     "Blizzard," she introduced. "The one on you with a bad attitude is Poplar and the tom holding your kits down is a paw-kisser named Lizard. None of them will kill you or your kits if I don't give them the command. What about you?"

     "Crescent. That's Gorse and Minnow." Blizzard waved her tail toward them and the dark-brown tom scowled while the white she-cat shyly blinked at her. Turning to her friend, she nodded and Crescent slipped out of her cage.

     Lizard lifted his paw and the two kits immediately scrambled back to their mother, jumping into her embrace. Fiercely, Crescent pulled them close and wrapped her tail around them, curling the small family into a protective circle as a sea of blood circled them like vultures.

     And what she was going to say blinked out of existence at the sight of the family. The relationship she and her siblings should've had.

     Blizzard approached Crescent, standing a few paces away and hid her jealousy. "Can we talk now?"

     "Make it quick," she stated, untrusting. "I have no intentions in believing a word you say."

     "Then listen." Blizzard took a breath and explained her father's goals and the torments. Crescent never interrupted and listened with an unchanging demeanor. Minnow burst into tears and Gorse curled his lips in a threatening way, dark fur rippling down his spine.

     The rogue went silent after she finished, staring at her two kits, conflict running through her gaze. Gorse let out an angered noise and turned his back, refusing to meet Blizzard and Minnow stared at her mother with worried eyes, looking like she was about to say something. Then Crescent shook her head, grumbling.

     "As I said, I don't know if you would've been able to avoid capture. I just want to warn you. Please tell other rogues you might meet," begged Blizzard.

     Crescent huffed. "I'll try to keep it in mind, but I doubt there are going to be rogues that actually believe your story."

     "The last two rogues we told, Nova and Sterling, said they trusted us," Lizard added. "Not sure if you know them, but they're proof that some cats will listen to us."

     "Nova and Sterling...?" she mused, eyes going wide.

     Minnow looked up and a firefly lit above her head. "Sterling met these cats?! Really?!"

     "Hush," Crescent scolded, placing a paw over her daughter's ears. "How long have you been doing this?"

     "I started today after I visited a grave," she answered. "I'm sick of waiting for change to greet me with the morning sun."

     The rogue let out a long sigh, sinking to the ground like a fallen leaf. Gorse came to her side and touched her forehead with his paw, nudging her to get back up. The family looked at each other and Crescent flattened her ears, to express her frustration.

     "I still don't trust you," Crescent replied. "You show up and chase us down like some kind of prey and tell us that there's a group of bad cats that wants war. But I believe you when you say something will happen."

     The Storm Sibling and Poplar shared a hopeful look and nearly lunged out of their fur at the rogue's words. Lizard gave the two a warm smile and grinned, only for his ears to suddenly drop and his face to morph into instant fear.

     That crushed Blizzard and Crescent or her kits didn't hear the incoming cat.

     "All we have to do is run, you say? Run and find three cats... Hurricane, Lightning, and a Wildfire that live somewhere on the left side of territory?" Crescent clarified, tilting her head.

     "So that's where they went."

     Blizzard cried out just as Poplar let out a screech and flung herself in the air, aimed for the incomer. Out came Viper, eyes glowing at the rogue family. The ginger she-cat reached her paws out but the tom bashed her aside. Lizard sprang to his paws and protectively shielded Crescent, growling. However, she peered over his shoulder, locking eyes with the massive tom.

     Wasting no time, Blizzard lashed out, skidding to a halt beside Poplar, who pushed herself up with her front paws. Then another tom slithered out and her blood went cold at the sight of Skull and the hungry look in his green eye. Crescent noticed his stare and whirled around, practically squashing her kits under her stomach.

     Poplar prepared another jump, one that Blizzard didn't stop in time. Like before, the she-cat was batted out of the sky, but this time, Viper effectively pinned her on her stomach, one paw holding down her back while the other rested comfortably on her neck.

     Before Blizzard would call out an order, Skull leapt and slammed Lizard's already injured head down, knocking him out. Then he went for Crescent, catching her off-guard.

     With her scrawny frame, the white she-cat stood no chance as Skull snatched Minnow, who shrieked with an ear-wrenching pitch. Blizzard covered her ears and Crescent's eyes flashed, getting up to take her kit back despite the risk.

     Poplar hissed and thrashed under Viper, snarling curses as Blizzard shifted her attention to him, eyes landing on the body of her friend who trembled with rage. Cursing, the silver she-cat turned around and stepped in front of Skull, keeping her back to Crescent.

     "Why did you follow me?" she demanded, fur bristling.

     "You see, a part of me didn't want to follow you," Viper explained with a cocky voice. "But after watching you and Firestorm talk made me think something was up so I decided to follow and satisfy my curiosity. Following you resulted in so many rewards."

     "Are you serious?! I should've ripped your eyeballs out when I attacked you befor---" Poplar choked with a single clench of Viper's paw.

     "What do you mean by that?" Blizzard inquired, her mind weaving the answer before Viper could answer.

     "Two rogues that I heard you explain your motives behind Python's back," he hissed coldly, enjoying Poplar's struggle and Blizzard's disgust. "They were so happy to see that there was hope. It was enjoyable watching their life fade away."

     "No!" she hissed, paws trembling and ready to attack. "Why would you do that?! We have no idea if they were allied with other rogues! They could storm and take us out!"

     "Would they?" challenged Skull, applying pressure on Minnow's neck, making Crescent shout.

     "Let her go right now! Do that and I'll consider making your death less painful!" The mother snapped.

     Skull ignored her pleas. "If they try to attack us, we can kill them and that saves a lot of trouble for us trying to find them."

     What're the chances I can kill Skull and Viper? One move and Viper won't hesitate to kill Poplar and Lizard. If they die, my death follows and I wouldn't have made a single change. Then her heart twisted into a knot and secretly narrowed her eyes behind her.

     But I can make up an excuse.

     She swallowed down her doubt and lowered her head, snickering loudly. Her shoulders shook as she entered a crazed state, heaving with exhilaration as her claws slid out of place, sinking into the soil. Blizzard eventually lifted her head, a deranged look plastered on her face and marched up to Viper.

     Poplar stopped struggling and stared at her friend. "Blizzard...?"

     Chuckling, Blizzard leaned forward and raised a paw, resting it on Viper's shoulder as if he were a frightened kit. Sneering, she hissed out, "Do you really think poorly of me?"

     "Blizzard, stop..." Poplar begged.

     "Do you think that I, first daughter of Python, would fail to realize I was being watched? Don't you remember how much I love crushing hopes and killing just for the praise of others? That does include you, Viper," she taunted, her voice coming out as ice. Seductively, she paced around him, waving her tail teasingly in front of him, turning affectionate love to murderous desire.

     Crescent looked up, already figuring out her fate just by words. Her face scrunched up and she pinned her ears back. The hateful looks did nothing to Blizzard as she paced around Viper, licking her jaws. Slowly, her attention landed on the rogue.

     Crescent leaned away, disgusted. "And here I thought you spoke some truth."

     Blizzard grinned, eyes glimmering. "Where's the fun in killing once a cat gets an idea of escape? That's what I live for. Tricking blind cats is only the start of my fun."

     "You're a sick cat, you know?" spat Crescent. "Whatever does come for you, I hope you get the death you deserve."

     The Storm Sibling lunged, tackling the white rogue on the ground effortlessly. With one paw, she easily picked Gorse up and held him down while maintaining control over Crescent. Smirking, she gloated.

     "The thing I find most interesting is how easily we can be twisted and swayed," she commented, dragging Gorse closer. Crescent shouted and fired insults at her, thrashing haplessly as her claws stabbed aimlessly in the air. Blizzard pulled the tiny kit and locked eyes with him, absorbing his fear.

     And then she released Crescent and turned her full attention on Gorse.

     It lasted two seconds.

     One second, she had squashed the tom. Crescent scrambled to her shaking paws, snapping and shouting at him to run. Useless against the mountain on him, Gorse gasped for air, his heart beating at the speed of thunder. Blizzard found it an amusing lullaby.

     Another second and her jaws snapped around the fragile neck, cutting his life in half.

     And Crescent screamed an unbearable sound, one of a mother's love, sorrow, and rage.

     Blizzard met claws with her in an instant, spitting out Gorse's body like a rotten piece of prey. Crescent watched with horror as the body landed like a limp bird, fueling her rage.

     The skinny rogue wasn't a match for her. All she had to do was dodge blind attacks powered by emotions until Crescent's energy wore out, her shrill voice splitting the air. Blizzard danced around the field, sometimes flinching as the thorns ripped across her pelt but, nevertheless, kept herself calm and enjoyed the ballad, waiting for the moment to strike.

     Then she spotted her opening and dove, wrapping her paws around Crescent, forcing both of them on the ground. She wasted no time and locked her jaws around the she-cat's neck, squeezing.

     Minnow was howling for a few moments and then her cries were silenced.

     Crescent weakly coughed, strength dwindling. She reached a paw out to the open sky for help. All that met her plea was a painful yank by Blizzard, who tugged on the limb roughly. The rogue gave up the struggle and coughed out blood through her open neck, eyes growing darker as she stared at her two kits in a pool of their own blood.

     Blizzard let go and watched her push herself up, crawling toward them. She didn't make it far as Viper jumped in. The tom came crashing down on Crescent's spine, making her choke and fall limp. Red drops dotted her snow-white pelt, a color the Storm Sibling thought looked good on a rogue like her.

     But the mother lifted her head a few centimeters off the ground, one eye shut as she fought to keep the other half-open. Sputtering out another mouthful of blood, she collapsed, a long and painful exhale releasing her.

     Seeing Crescent fall out of the sky made the grin widen. Blizzard turned her attention to Viper, keeping the dangerous look on her face as she stepped closer, spitting on the rogue.

     "What about that?" she whispered, looking at the white she-cat's corpse with amusement. "Can you trust me?"