--- A dark abyss. One might find it eerie but Belligerentstar found it oddly comforting. No disturbance to their work, instead a comfortable void. In all honesty, it was the corruption. They had trained in the Dark Forest far too long-- Any cat would have experienced symptoms by now. The darkness within their heart called out to the void, and the void did in turn. An alliance, if you will. Wails. A cry for help. Turning to the direction from which it came, the russet leader ran. No matter how dark their soul, they would never deny any cat help. Tears slicked down a kitten's face, green and blue eyes filled to the brim with water. Their curly long fur was messy, and a necklace held a piece of green seaglass. Green seaglass. Belligerentstar knew this cat. This cat was him. A younger him, but still him. Light surrounded the child, teardrops glowing and sparkling as they hit the void. A being of innocence, shrouded in oblivion and blessed with a foolish heart. How had he become this way? Lies had acted as a shield when they were still a glowing ball of light, untouched by the wicked curtains of darkness that now kept Belligerentstar from the world they once knew. The worst part of it all.. He was scared. The younger him was quivering, frightened of the looming leader. To the apprentice, the future was terrifying. Eyes that glowed with an unnatural fire, a streak of ink across their slender neck? A crown, forged with bones and forgotten memories? What small child wouldn't be scared, especially when that cat seemed to merge into the ominously whispering void like white watercolor on a clean canvas? It made Belligerentstar ill. Not in a typical way. Not horrified at the changes nor revolted that they had become the very thing they feared. No. It made him ill because he wanted to go back. He didn't mind who had become, at least not normally. It was for a reason, for survival. For those they cared about. But that hadn't worked. Joydazzle, Galerun, Sequoiatower, Sparkderelium, Bunnystar, Secretlullaby.. Dropping like flies and Belligerentstar hadn't done a single thing to stop it. All of that effort, yet nothing had worked. It would be so much easier to go back, to be blinded once more by the light. No. They were here now. They couldn't change that. They couldn't avoid fate. They could alter it. They had nine lives. Nine lives and months of training, blessings of the Dark Forest. Belligerentstar was like the sun, like fire. If molded right, a warmth for those who need it. A weapon, scorching enemies, and a burning wall of protection. Yet there was one thing that set the sun apart from fire. The sun was always there. The sun never left, always somehow present. The sun's light reflected in the moon, looking over life without ever being forever gone. The sun watched. That was how Belligerentstar was different from the sun. They weren't watching. Not anymore. Turning their back to the golden child of sun-lit tears, Belligerentstar's dream faded. No more waiting. ---
