09.30.2019 → There has been some exciting changes on CD lately! We've added a new monarchy to the groups of cats on the islands, as well as restructured the boards a bit to allow for some space - thus, redrawing the map! We've also promoted Nifty to Global Mod! There are some auditions open right now for JungleClan Deputy as well as for all of the new Kingdom of Mokuhau high ranks - Artemis
09.12.2019 → Unfortunately Elaedria is stepping down as administrator due to life being too busy to keep up! The site will be going through some restructuring in high ranks as well due to this. Effective immediately, the word count is now 100 minimum. Some more changes will be coming in the future - members have been emailed a survey to help us figure out what to change and how to get better. Thanks for your patience! - Artemis
WEATHER
Year 55, Scorching Sands 09.05.2019 → The temperatures of the islands are a steady 98° F on land/ high 80s in water. There is almost no breeze, the sun is uncomfortably warm.
Prey during the day is pretty scarce due to the heat, however is quite active after the sun goes down.
Lost in the dense jungles of scattered islands, facing perils unimagined by their ancestors, are three warrior groups - The traditional JungleClan, descendants of the original clans carried aboard a twoleg contraption from their home long ago and breaking new ground on old beliefs. Second, the curious TidalClan, made up of kittypets who chose to abandon their long since passed twoleg civilization ways for those of true felines. Lastly, the mysterious Tribe of Twisted Roots, hidden in the mist from others with their strange ways and a deeper knowledge of the land around them. Together they must learn how to take their fate into their own paws if they wish to survive this land of erupting mountains and roaring waters.
Join our crew and dive into an island-based Warriors roleplay - a twist on the original series by Erin Hunter. We are a semi-literate site with a minimum of 100 words per post.
hen he was thinking about where he wanted to start with Pearlpaw's training, the lake ended up crossing his mind. There were certainly other vital places within TidalClan territory that struck him as important to cover, but he felt like traveling to the lake would be a good idea. It was fairly close to their border with JungleClan, so that would enable him to show Pearlpaw how to pick it out by sight and smell. When he had first told Pearlpaw that he would like to take him out for training out by the lake, and to meet him outside of camp after lunch, he'd been a bit nervous of the possibly of the young tom not showing. Ever since he'd been assigned to be Pearlpaw's mentor, he quickly could tell that he was significantly much quieter than his last fledgling and so far - even though it's only been recent since he assigned to him - he could tell that it was going to be a bit more difficult to connect with Pearlpaw. He knew one thing for sure - he couldn't keep on comparing him to Sharksong. Everyone was different and he knew he couldn't expect every fledgling to be the same either. He would need to find another way to get through to the quiet white tom.
He didn't try to worry too much - so during his time waiting, he decided to distract himself with planning out what he all wanted to teach Pearlpaw during the time out there and in spite of his earlier concern, the fledgling did end up meeting with him and the pair headed out toward the lake. As he suspected, though, their journey was a quiet one. There'd been moments where Sandblaze felt as if he had to glance behind him to make sure the fledgling was still flowing behind him. Sandblaze held back a sigh, his brain was working overtime - most of his thoughts involved conversation starters, but he gave up after a while. He wasn't really sure if idle small talk was something Pearlpaw enjoyed.
Once they reached the lake, however, he turned to face Pearlpaw, his mood lifted a bit. Under the sunlight, the small body of water was always a lovely sight, and a smile crossed his muzzle. "I think this is a good place to pause for a moment. First of all, I wanted to test your memory and do a bit of a pop quiz. I was curious of how much you were paying attention to our surroundings during our walk. Was there anything in particular that you either saw, smelt, or heard while we were walking here? We covered quite a bit of ground after all from the camp to here."
It had taken Pearlpaw a long time to leave the camp. He had never been outside before since he never tried to be mischievous as a kit. He woke up super early, just to sit around and give himself time to decide if he showed up or not. Eventually, he decided this was a normal part of most apprentices' lives and forced himself to greet Sandblaze outside.
After rehearsing the words "good morning" a thousand times in his head, Pearlpaw finally managed to greet his mentor and the two set off into the unfamiliar territory. The strange sounds and colors confused Pearlpaw, and the rough rocks and sands underfoot provided no sense of stability or comfort. His soft, pink pads were getting a little worn and he actually struggled to keep up with Sandblaze's swift and skillful steps. Sandblaze did not try to force conversation or intrude on his personal thoughts, no matter awkward it might have seemed to him. After their silent walk, however, Pearlpaw did feel a little more at ease. It was surprisingly nice for once to get away from his siblings and his father. He wasn't sure if Silvershell or Bleakpaw were following him; they had a knack for doing that.
When they reached the lake, Sandblaze finally broke their silence. A little quiz, he said. Pearlpaw flinched; he had been trying so hard to keep up with Sandblaze's pace that he hadn't really been looking for prey or anything. Pearlpaw wondered for a second if he would be compared to Sharksong; that fighter seemed much more physically fit than him and perhaps Sandblaze was already disappointed. What was Sandblaze expecting?
"Um... all the ants were swarming out?" he muttered. "Weather might be cooler tomorrow and it might rain..."
It was quite an outlandish suggestion compared to what cats usually think about while out in the forest, but Pearlpaw's mind was fixated on things like this. Pearlpaw tried to think of something more useful and conventional, maybe something regarding nearby prey or threatening predators. He considered making something up, but then decided against it in fear of harsher punishment. His ears flattened, preparing to hear some scolding words for his ridiculous answer.
ontrary to Pearlpaw's inner turmoil, Sandblaze didn't seem to appear either angry or annoyed. In fact, as he listened to the younger tom, he seemed to be thoughtful instead. He would admit that Pearlpaw's answer was unique - most would have either mentioned the smell of prey - or maybe some sort of tracks another creature left behind - something as the such. The mentioning of the weather made him glance toward the sky briefly and he nodded slowly in agreement. "I feel like you're right about the rain. Hopefully the storms this coming season will be kind to us."
Something like the weather was always a good thing to pay attention to - ants not so much. "As for ants, there's little need to worry about them," Sandblaze chuckled lightly, "they're an inconvenience, of course - especially when they swarm and try to bite you," He paused for a moment - as if he remembered something, "they're also pests when it comes to eating herbs - along with other insects that eat plants, they can be especially bothersome."
With that being said, he moved on forward to his main point. "Being aware of your surroundings is something very important to remember. Even if you feel as if you know an area like the back of your paw, it's still a good idea to take a moment to take in everything every so often. This doesn't mean you have to be anxious about every little noise you hear or anything like that, but if something in your gut tells you that something feels wrong, always trust yourself and speak up. Don't be afraid to do so either. It's better to speak up and be potentially wrong, than to not speak up at all and have it plaguing your mind whether if you should have."
He quieted for a moment to allow that to sink in Pearlpaw's mind before letting his seriousness ease up a bit. His smile returned. "I'll be asking you the same question when we return back to camp. Just so you're aware. Now that that's out of the way, though, how about I show you around the lake? I thought we could explore around it a bit and perhaps do a bit of hunting practice as well." Depending on how long that took, maybe it'd be best to save visiting the border with Jungleclan for another day. Other than the beach, the lake was one of his other favorite places so he didn't want to rush through their visit.
Pearlpaw didn't see anything wrong with his ants statement. It was true; ants often swarmed before rainfall and storms. Bleakpaw never believed him but he was convinced this was the case. Still, Sandblaze didn't give him an example of what to look for so Pearlpaw continued to muse at his natural theories. He was even more confused regarding Sandblaze's main point. It was quite different from how he was taught and he was reluctant to obey. Did Sandblaze know how to be a teacher?
His father always told Pearlpaw to obey him because he was teaching. Pearlpaw knew to sit and agree, but this time he wasn't sure what Sandblaze wanted. He continued to follow Sandblaze along the lake. It was nice, he had to admit. The breeze danced through the leaves and they rustled quietly. How could Sandblaze not let his guard down in this sort of scenery? It was breathtaking even for Pearlpaw's anxious heart. Pearlpaw almost let himself enjoy the walk for a bit until...
Squish. His paw sank a little lower in the soft, lakeside soil that he expected. Pearlpaw looked down.
He froze. Under his tiny paw, there was a gigantic paw print. He stopped for a second and looked at his mentor's paws a small ways ahead of him. Sandblaze's feet were not that big... were they? He looked down again. It was wet and fresh, indicating some sort of big cat predator was nearby. He wondered if he should ask Sandblaze what it was. Was it still relevant this time? Maybe the big cat was just passing through? It's better to speak up and be potentially wrong, than to not speak up at all and have it plaguing your mind whether if you should have.
Pearlpaw's anxiety grew as Sandblaze walked further and further away from him. Pearlpaw didn't like this. He didn't like it at all. What was he even supposed to say?Sandblaze. I found a big pawprint I'm scared now please let me run out of here and I also hate mud. His mentor would think he was being immature.
"S-sandblaze," his voice came out instead as a high-pitched whimper.
andblaze was several paces ahead near the lake's edge when he heard Pearlpaw's voice behind him. He'd kept his pace a bit slower this time, having noticed that the younger tom seemed a bit winded one their way to the lake, but he frowned a bit when Pearlpaw's voice sounded a bit distant. The ginger tom glanced behind him to find that the fledgling was still close to where they had paused originally, and with frown, he backtacked - his gaze doing a sweep around them to see what had the other nervous.
Not seeing anything in particular, Sandblaze focused down at the mud, noticing that Pearlpaw was staring down at it. No, not the mud - what was imprinted in it. He relaxed a bit. "Oh that's a lemur track. They're usually harmless as long as they're left alone," His tail flicked toward the lake, "it isn't too uncommon to see tracks around here. The lake doesn't have salt like the ocean so it's safe to drink. That's also why there's quite a few smells lingering in the air as well if you take a good whiff - also, if you lean down and sniff a certain trail of tracks carefully, you may be able to tell if it's either stale or fresh."
He was slightly pleased that Pearlpaw had already taken in consideration of his words. He knew there was still a long way to go, but the fledgling speaking up was definitely a good start. "Which was why I mentioned hunting just a bit ago. Most think of only fish straight away when they see the lake, but other types of prey visit as well to take a drink." Sandblaze pointed one of his paws toward a set of very small tracks in the mud - they lead straight to the water's edge. "They're oftentimes more cautious here, but if you're quick and quiet enough you may be able to take them by surprise. Just be careful, though. The mud is a bit slick in a few places - especially near the lake's edge - and I don't want you to end up becoming a fish yourself." His whiskers twitched in amusement as he spoke.
After he spoke, an idea came to him. "With that being said, how about you try to see if you can pick out a fresh scent now? Tracking is the first step to catching prey, so that'll be a good place to start. Don't worry if it takes a moment, as I said there are quite a few scents lingering in the air around us, but there's one that is currently a bit stronger than the others - and it's definitely prey. Tell me what you think it is once you believe you know and then which way you think it is coming from."
A lemur. Pearlpaw had certainly made a fool of himself this time. He lifted his muddied paw from the print and flattened his ears in shame. Luckily Sandblaze wasn't one to scold him. A lot of things about his mentor confused him.
I don't want you to end up becoming a fish yourself.
Pearlpaw tilted his head. Cats don't become fish. Do they? He was slightly foreign to the idea of joking, and although he knew of the concept, wasn't sure if what Sandblaze had just said was a joke or not. Pearlpaw wasn't exactly the cat for humor and he spent a small bit of time trying to decipher the meaning of that.
Tell me what you think it is once you believe you know and then which way you think it is coming from.
Pearlpaw was a little overwhelmed by the various scents. He wanted to tell Sandblaze he really wasn't able to identify anything yet. He didn't really know the difference between a panther and a lemur, not to mention a mouse and a hare. The strongest scent he smelled right now was the dirty mud caking his white fur. He would have some grooming to do tonight.
However, since Sandblaze had given him the time to do so, Pearlpaw took a long moment to try and identify other scents. He would like a hunt. Pearlpaw, despite his anxiety, had an adventurous side to him that he hadn't set loose since his early kit days. He felt a little more eager to try things now. It took Pearlpaw several heartbeats, but there was one stronger scent, a musty one, which he couldn't identify but was probably an animal. He glanced at Sandblaze and didn't say anything but instead ticked his head in the direction he thought it came from.
andblaze waited patiently as Pearlpaw worked on identifying where the scent was coming from. After a few moments of silence, the younger tom's ears perked and he dipped his head in the direction of where he believed the source was. He was slightly disappointed that Pearlpaw hadn't mentioned what he thought the prey was, but maybe that was something they simply needed to work on. He couldn't expect him to know all the scents of the jungle in one session after all. Giving Pearlpaw a nod of approval, Sandblaze said, "Good. Another thing to always keep in mind is the direction of the wind. Right now - we're both downwind of the prey we're tracking, which in turn doesn't alert it of our presence by scent." He paused. He wasn't sure how much of this Pearlpaw already knew, but either way it was a good review. "That doesn't mean it won't be able to hear or see - so you still have to be careful, of course."
The ginger tom lowered himself into a crouch, his attention now focused on the prey. "Watch me closely." Up until this point, he really had only been guiding and questioning Pearlpaw, so he felt like it may be a good idea to do a demonstration to keep him engaged. With that being said, Sandblaze began creeping in the direction of their target. His pelt quietly brushed against some reeds as he carefully stepped around them, and after stalking just a bit further, he suddenly froze, his eyes locked on a small shape ahead of him. It was small, but not a mouse - it was actually slightly larger than a mouse. It was a sugar glider. By the size of it, he assumed that it was a rather young one. Usually they tended to remain up in the trees, but as he mentioned earlier on - all creatures needed water at some point. It was facing away from them, taking sips of water. Every so often, it would glance about - checking for danger - before returning to its drink.
He waited for a moment - until he was sure the marsupial was completely focused on quenching its thirst - and with practiced stealth he moved slowly in. As he stepped lightly, he was careful to watch where he step - it'd be pretty embarrassing if he ended up scaring the prey away whilst trying to demonstrate hunting techniques.
Once he was close enough, Sandblaze's shoulder's shifted and bunched up, and with a powerful leap forward, the tom pounced down upon the surprised creature. It managed to give a startled squeak as his paws pinned it down, but before it could attempt to wiggle free, he snatched its neck up into his jaws, feeling its small bones crunch under the pressure as he clamped down upon it.
In terms of hunting, Pearlpaw knew close to nothing. Many kits learned a few tips and tricks from their parents as they played and grew up, but Pearlpaw had never been brave enough to try. He generally zoned out during his father's lectures or discredited his dysfunctional family's ideas. For once, he decided he would trust Sandblaze to hold the right information. He was Pearlpaw's mentor, after all.
Pearlpaw was fairly easily distracted; he had gotten into the bad habit of zoning out with other cat's talk. He made a considerable effort to steer his eyes back toward Sandblaze as his mentor demonstrated hunting techniques. His tail tip flicked back and forth in anticipation, knowing he had to keep quiet. Pearlpaw hoped he wouldn't accidentally sneeze or something and scare away the prey.
Sandblaze shot forward through the grass with speed that Pearlpaw could not imagine mustering. His mentor re-emerged from the grass with a small, marsupial creature in his jaws that Pearlpaw could not identify. He knew he'd seen one before, probably in the fresh-kill pile, but he couldn't put a name to it. Food was food. Nevertheless, he couldn't say he was unimpressed with Sandblaze's technique and wondered if he could live up to it. Slightly more inspired and motivated, Pearlpaw opened his jaws slightly as to scent more prey.
"How did you pinpoint its exact location after scenting it?" he asked in a barely audible voice; it was almost a whisper. He wasn't sure if it was alright to ask questions, and glanced over his shoulder in case any other cat besides Sandblaze had heard.
s Sandblaze returned to where Pearlpaw stood, he was pleased to see that Pearlpaw had made an effort to keep his eyes on him throughout the process of capturing the prey. He had to strain his ears a bit to hear Pearlpaw's question, but thankfully he was used to the younger tom's quieter voice now and was able to understand him. Before answering, Sandblaze set down the sugar glider by his paws so his mouth wouldn't be muffled by the fur. "Tracking. For the most part, scent is the key to finding its location - but you can also search for signs of prey as well. Such as the tracks you pointed out, loose fur, and another large thing is sound. A lot of times smaller rodents like mice will make scratching and nibbling noises if you listen carefully - so that's another way to be able to pinpoint where they are." He paused, trying to think if there was anything that he missed as he explained. "Does that make sense to you?" He wondered, curious of what inner thoughts or questions may be swirling in Pearlpaw's mind.
"If you do understand, I would like for you to try it out yourself. It's okay if you don't know any hunting techniques - I don't expect you to since this is our first time out. I just want to see if you're able to track and pinpoint where prey may be." He'd been sure to snatch up the sugar glider quieter so Pearlpaw would have the opportunity to try it himself - it wouldn't do them any good if all the prey was scared off.
He tilted his head, gesturing toward their surroundings. "And if you do and want to try your own luck in capturing it, then I definitely think you should try." It was one of his approaches he had with Sharksong a while back ago. When they first started out, Sandblaze observed him at the beginning just to see how he would go about tasks with little experience, and from there he picked out the things that would need to be worked on and improved.
What did Sandblaze say again? Pearlpaw did not nod or react to Sandblaze's question of whether it all made sense to him. Pearlpaw had unintentionally zoned out. Something about tracking and scenting. Sandblaze seemed to be waiting for an answer, though.
"Um... yes," Pearlpaw muttered even though he did not know what the question was. This prompted Sandblaze to continue, and even ask Pearlpaw to try it for himself. Pearlpaw's ears flattened against his head. Stupid. Why did he zone out again? He sniffed the air again. There was a multitude of scents, and he was still unsure which were important. He only could identify familiar ones, such as the wet smell of grass and the sappy taste of the trees.
There was no going back now. He had to give it a try. While other apprentices might have been motivated by excitement, Pearlpaw forced himself to hunt as he was ashamed to admit he had not been paying good attention. Since he was unable to identify any scents of prey, Pearlpaw used his ears and listening skills instead, which he was much more comfortable with. Listening and being quiet were two things that Pearlpaw was surprisingly good at. Since his kithood he had been alert at all times, fearing and listening for the pawsteps of his family and his father. He was suddenly sure that he could do what Sandblaze had done. He was no stranger to tracking, but he just needed to know what to look for. The scent and sounds of prey were unfamiliar to him but surely once he recognized them... There was a faint noise against the nearby tree trunk. Pearlpaw turned to see if it was his mentors claws, but it did not appear to be. Scratching and nibbling! That had been what Sandblaze was saying! Pearlpaw recalled suddenly. He opened his mouth to tell his mentor, but then wondered if such a noise would scare the small creature off. Besides, he was supposed to try to hunt it himself. He tried his best to remember what his father had always been practicing with Bleakpaw when they were kits, but could not.
Well here goes nothing. Pearlpaw gave a running leap, trying to make his paws touch the ground as quietly as possible. He landed on the mouse! He had not been wrong. But despite feeling the furry animal between his claws, Pearlpaw did not know to kill it. He was not the strongest or most aggressive cat, and instead he observed its struggles for a confused moment. It was fuzzy, it squirmed, and it made noises. It slightly frightened him. And then it bit him on the paw.
Pearlpaw gave a startled yowl and let the mouse go. The mouse promptly bolted away from him. Pearlpaw gave a confused whimper and glanced back at his mentor. He had caught it, but apparently that was not all there was to hunting...
andblaze observed the young apprentice as he went forward with his task. Not wanting to distract the other, he decided to keep quiet. He could always go back later and mention anything that came to mind while watching. When Pearlpaw first started off, Sandblaze wasn't so sure how the other tom would fair. He seemed... a bit unfocused and nervous. However, once he was off - Sandblaze did notice that he seemed to be trying to concentrate more on the task at hand. The ginger tom noticed the exact moment when Pearlpaw heard his prey and he watched as Pearlpaw dipped into his hunter's crouch. Hmm. Not too bad, but it isn't very steady. He mused thoughtfully to himself. His apprentice still appeared to be nervous - almost as if he was expecting something to rise up behind him and pin him to the ground.
The tip of his tail twitched. He does think things through though. Sandblaze didn't miss the moment of hesitation on Pearlpaw's part. He realized that the apprentice had caught himself in almost giving himself away. Good catch. Pearlpaw continued forward and Sandblaze began to follow at a distance so he would be able to see the catch better. His stalking and steps still seemed a bit unsteady, but as he progressed - he did seem like he was trying to remember everything he had told him about watching where he stepped.
Sandblaze's ears perked a bit when he saw Pearlpaw's shoulders bunch up and as the apprentice launched forward, the older tom felt a rush of satisfaction. Even though his previous movements had been a bit unsteady, the pounce was really good. Pearlpaw's paws landed precisely on the mouse, trapping it beneath them.
Before he could call out and praise him, though, he noticed that while Pearlpaw did have it trapped under his paws, he was hesitating and Sandblaze could see a glint of confusion in the other eyes as he stared down at the creature. He doesn't know how to kill it. He realized. He opened his mouth, intending on giving the younger tom some instructions, but he was too late. Pearlpaw suddenly gave a yowl of surprise, his body jumping a bit when the mouse managed to squirm around and nip his paw.
The small mammal didn't hesitate to scurry off as soon as Pearlpaw's grip loosened and it was gone in a blink. As he approached, Pearlpaw turned to face him, looking rather dejected. Sandblaze offered him a reassuring smile. "It was a good first effort," He praised sincerely, "You just hesitated for too long after you trapped it under your paws. Prey will do anything it can to get away - just like we would if something tried to attack us. Do you remember how quickly I bit the back of my prey's neck? That was the step that you missed."
He turned to glance toward the direction of where the mouse had disappeared. "Unfortunately, any prey around here is likely to notice our presence soon. Would you like to try again? Or should we go explore a bit more before heading back to camp?" He wasn't sure how tired the other was after making the journey over and trying to hunt on top of it, so he figured he'd ask.
PEARLPAW words: 253 Sandblaze was smiling at him. Had he done something funny? Perhaps his clumsy attempt had been funny and his mentor was laughing at him. Pearlpaw did not quite understand that Sandblaze was trying to be reassuring, and he lowered his gaze in shame. He was supposed to kill it but the way the small animal squirmed and squeaked made him slightly afraid.
Pearlpaw shook his head vigorously when Sandblaze asked if he wanted to hunt again. He was not about to embarrass himself again and flattened his ears against his head. Pearlpaw was not one to be excited or even happy about his mediocre attempt. He was one to give up and give in. It was too hard for him, at least for today, he decided. Gingerly, he tried to clean the leftover mouse fur out of his claws. The forest was silent now. His loud scuffle with the mouse had clearly scared away all the prey in the area anyway. "I..I... I don't know. U-up to you," Pearlpaw finally stammered in response after an excruciatingly long moment. He knew that his mentor was asking him what he wanted to do next, but Pearlpaw was not so used to making decisions. He was tired, for sure, but he did not want to let Sandblaze down or appear weak. He sat down on the his hunches just as his stomach gave a loud growl.
