Dog Patrol (Bluethorn's Group)

[Ki]

While the dog turned its attention towards Snaketail, Bluethorn ran to its side. He jumped and raked his claws down its side. Just as with Snaketail, the dog seemed more annoyed than in pain. He jumped aside as it snapped its jaws at him. It probably would have snapped again if Honeypaw hadn't jumped from the bushes, attacked, then vanished again. Bluethorn couldn't help but smile. She was a clever apprentice. The dog was confused after that attack, leaving Bluethorn, Snaketail, and the others perfect opportunities to strike. Bluethorn yowled and dug his claws into its side again. The dog was about to grab him in those giant vice-like jaws, forcing Bluethorn to retreat momentarily. The tom had to catch his breath anyway.

It's powerful and large, but it's bulk is slowing it down. It isn't the smartest of the bunch, either. Bluethorn observed. Meanwhile the cats were agile and using their wits. They had the upper hand when it came to brains and skill. Specklestar had assigned many strong warriors to this patrol as well. But would it be enough?

[froststream]

Lionfang snarled at the huge, drooling beast. He did admit that the pit of his stomach had dropped considerably, that his mouth was dry and his eyes wide. He was afraid. However, fright was not going to be something keeping his claws from the tan and black pelt. He knew he would lay down his life for the Clan, and would do it as many times needed to make it safe. Lionfang looked back at Whiteheart, and then scampered into the battle. He was smart enough to be careful, with sharp, clean and calculated blows. He leapt up, hissing, and clawed the dog's side. Then he quickly dodged out of the way, panting. The dog's fur was very thick. He doubted even making a scratch.

Lionfang, once he had his balance, readied himself for another blow. He knew the rest of the patrol was also fighting, but he seemed to zone out. He saw them, but he could only focus on the dog. He lowered himself, and slithered through the grass like a lizard. Then he snaked up and clawed at the underbelly. The dog had reared at something, and so teh battack wasn't a great one. He felt his claws make contact with flesh, but he felt no tearing or blood. He scampered back breathlessly, shaking out his ruffled mane.

[☆ Y e l l o w ☆]

Her heart seemed to freeze as the dog came into view. Just like her worst fears, it was huge! It was the biggest dog she'd ever seen, and she'd hardly seen any dogs in her whole life. As Bluethorn yowled the signal to attack, her Clan mates went at the dog. While she stayed standing where she was, trying to come up with some way to attack without getting herself killed, she watched as everyone else confronted it seemingly without fear. She witnessed in horror that as Bluethorn and Lionfang tried to land some effective blows on the dog, its dark black eyes fixed on her, the only one standing still.

Don't act like a scared rabbit!

Just before the dog's teeth closed around her, Whiteheart darted out of the way. With her fur bushed up and her eyes wild with panic, she searched for some escape. But it was coming at her again, and the warrior had no choice. She ran around to the side of it and with one powerful leap, launched herself onto the dog's back. Bad idea, bad idea, She dug her claws into its flesh to steady herself and bit down hard on its shoulder. The dog let out another howl of fury and started thrashing violently. Before she knew it she was thrown back to the ground with a thud. Whiteheart scrambled to her feet, ignoring the ache in her hind leg from the fall, and darted into the bushes not far from where Honeypaw disappeared in.

((*Hopes no one minds I controlled the dog so much* o-o Oh yeah, and the one it was rearing at was her, let's just say.))

[Yoko]

Snaketail circled back to see the damage done. The dog seemed immensely confused, but no less powerful or dangerous than it had when it errupted into their sight. Snaketail's heart jolted in fear as Whiteheart hit the ground. And then there was Honeypaw who was darting in and out of the bushes, which was quite clever, but he feared the dog may chase her into those bushes in one such attack.

Letting out a furious yowl, Snaketail darted for the dog's flank again, but it turned it's jaws to face him. Not able to stop his charge, the dark tabby raised his claw and slashed the dog's face, leaving a nasty clawmark on it's eye and as the dog let out a yelp, Snaketail continued running past it, circling again to face it. His amber eyes glittered in taunting.

[:c a i:]

Oakstorm watched anxiously as Whiteheart launched a shaky attack on the dog. He knew she was scared; he could sense it on her. She was brave to plunge in like that, but he worried about her safety. This dog was huge, they would struggle to bring it down. He had been distracted worrying about the other patrollers and when he realised the dog was a mere foxlength away from him and he could smell it's terrible, foul breath, his heart leapt in alarm and he sprang away, forcing himself to focus.

The big tom joined in the attack with Snaketail, deciding he ought to work with the other warrior right now. As Snaketail circled, he moved in a battle-ready crouch around the other side, waiting for the right moment to strike. If the dog was distracted by Snaketail from the front, it would leave its back unprotected and Oakstorm could throw his weight into the fray, hopefully dealing some serious blows. He glanced briefly at Snaketail, trying to convey his plan. The other patrollers would have to join in and help with the attack. They were all trying to attack separately, but Oakstorm thought their combined force would be more effective if they trod carefully. "Come on..." He muttered, seeking a moment to strike.

[Ki]

Bluethorn watched Whiteheart and her attack on the dog. She was obviously frightened. No cat could blame her. This thing was huge! But Bluethorn refused to back down. This was ShadowClan territory. And he refused to be driven away from it by some slobbering mouse-brained dog! Bluethorn noticed Oakstorm trying to silently tell Snaketail of his plan. Bluethorn understood it and decided it would be best to help the two toms. All of the warriors had to work together if they were to get rid of this dog. Bluethorn crouched down and moved to Oakstorm's side, nodding slightly to the other warrior. Dark green eyes watched carefully for an opening. His tail swished side to side in the air, his ears erect. Their ability to plan and attack was their biggest advantage. What they lacked in brawn they made up for in brain power. And, hopefully, the combined strength of all the warriors would make up for their severe disadvantage in the size and strength department.

[froststream]

Lionfang was frusterated now. The big dog didn't seem to be that hurt, even if it was now growling and looking a bit taken aback. This big brute weasn't going to take any lives today, as far as Lionfang was concerned. He had been using a battle strategie unlike what he usually did - clean, calculated blows. But they didn't really seem to be that effective. So, in a final, desperate decision, he leapt at the dog, claws tearing and slashing all around him. He felt himself bowl into the dog, felt the thick fur smooth. Felt a jerking as the dog felt him. He felt his claws make contact, and the tearing of flesh. He felt blood come from the gash, and he kept clawing. Now he was finally doing some real damage. When his sore muscles couldn't do anymore, he staggered backwards, and stumbled as far as he could. Now he could feel a deep wound on his shoulder, and he shuddered.

[Yoko]

Snaketail nodded to Oakstorm. He hoped the tom was thinking what he guessed he was thinking. He nodded to Bluethorn as the patrol's leader got into position. Lionfang, on the other paw, didn't get the hint. The tom kept fighting despite his wound. Snaketail was reminded suddenly of Twistedclaw's attack against the fox. That had killed the fox, but the dog would not fall to the same tactics.

"If we're going to do this, we have to do it now, Oakstorm!" Snaketail hissed.

Already one member had been weakened. Snaketail charged first, worried mildly that Honeypaw might follow. Snaketail was facing the dog head on to it's jaws and the dog rushed forward to meet him. No effective attack could be done this way! He cursed himself for lacking Lizardeye's wit or Twistedclaw's sheer strength!

He rolled to the side and the dog whipped around to bite him, catching his tail. He hissed at the sting of ripping fur from his tail to pull away. He kept dodging, and moving. If the dog was focused on him, it wouldn't anticipate a side attack.

[Amber]

Honeypaw had continued to stay out of sight, knowing it was probably best for now, her being the only apprentice in this patrol and well she thought she would get in the way of the warriors. They looked like they had everything under control. Until cats started getting hurt, and then when her mentor lauched his own attack she quickly jumped out of the bushes. She wanted to get a closer look at what was going on. She heard him mention something to Oakstorm, but didn't catch anything other than 'do something'. And so when Snaketail attacked the dog, she thought she could help out and charged after him, leaping up from the ground as she dodged his teeth for a few moments. She felt like she was gonna get the creature good until she soon felt something hit her on the head. The dog's massive paw had hit her across the head. Honeypaw was sent flying, the dog being more agile than she could have thought. Her calculations had been off.

The last thing the honey apprentice remembered was feeling a sharp pain in her head before landing hard on the ground against something or another and the wind being knocked out of her before the world became black. The last thing she thought about was being able to smell Heronpaw's scent, but then again she was delusional at this moment.

[☆ Y e l l o w ☆]

Whiteheart crouched in the bushes, watching as the other warriors made a team to face the dog. She watched carefully, searching for an opening to help. She couldn't let them down, or make them think she was too afraid. The truth was she was still terrified. But she also worried about what her Clan thought of her at times like this. Tail twitching in concentration, she watched the movements of the warriors and the dog closely.

At a flash of orange, Whiteheart watched as Honeypaw ran out to fight the dog. All of the movements were fast and she had a hard time tracking them. Within seconds it was over, and the she-cat started in horror as Honeypaw fell back with a thud and didn't move. That was it; Honeypaw could be dead and she had just stood there doing nothing. Whiteheart charged out of the bushes without thinking and ran over to Honeypaw, fearing that the dog would still try to get at her even though she was collapsed. Whiteheart flashed out a lightning-quick claw at the dog, managing to catch the side of its leg before she ducked down and braced herself for a blow.

[hedgie]

It was like magic, some sort of chain reaction. Honeypaw leapt at the dog, getting swatted away in the process. Heronpaw watched in awe, fury soon crossing his shocked face. That stupid mutt would pay for that.

But what to do? Honeypaw had been knocked towards the other side of the clearing. He'd have to run under the dog to get to her asyway, so why not throw in a few angry swipes while he was at it? These thoughts shot through his head in a manner of seconds, and soon he was barreling out of the bushes and under the dog, quickly rearing up to swipe at the unprotected belly before shooting off to find Honeypaw.

He gasped. There were no external wounds, but she was out cold. Ignoring whiteheart and the rest of the patrol, including the dog, Heronpaw grabbed her gently by the scruffing, briefly acknowledging that it probably wasn't very smart to move her in case her injuries were more severe, and carefully moved her far enough away from the screeches of the patrol to be safe. He stood guard over her, amber eyes determined as he watched the surroundings. Anything that came their way would be in trouble. He would be the best guard he could be for her.

[Yoko]

Snaketail was sho shocked he could hardly take in what was happeneing. Honeypaw had run out and been hit, Whiteheart went to protect her, and out of nowhere, Heronpaw dove in and dragged Honeypaw away from the battle. His lips curled in a snarl. The fight was too hard...And taking far too long.
They needed back up or they would surely lose!

Meanwhile the dog had swept focus to the two apprentices and Whiteheart. Hissing furiously, Snaketail leapt into the air and onto the dog's back, digging as deep as he could into the skin beneath the smooth pelt. He used his hindpaws to claw hard. He reveled in the pained yelp the dog sounded. Now they were getting somewhere! It was tough to get under the skin of it's slick fur, but once he did his claws sliced easily through.

"We must claw harder!" Snaketail called to his clanmates. "Quick strikes won't do!"

[:c a i:]

Oakstorm nodded grimly, wincing as their patrol was weakened by the snapping jaws. Snaketail had understood; all they had to do was deal the right blows. He joined Snaketail in throwing his great weight upon the dog, feeling it growl with rage as he made impact. Jaws outstretching, Oakstorm bit as hard as he could, feeling his teeth lock around fur and flesh alike. Then there was blood, and he knew he had done damage. The dog was tiring as it gained wounds from the ShadowClan forces, he could hear its yelps of pain. Still hanging on grimly, Oakstorm felt himself being shaken off, yet still his grip held around the dog's throat. If he could hold on, the wound he left might well prove fatal for the vicious creature...

[Ki]

Bluethorn attacked at the same time Oakstorm and Snaketail did. He managed to jump clean on to the huge dog's back. Quickly he latched his claws in as deeply as he could, more out of an effort to stay on and not get thrown into the air than anything else. But when he smelled cat blood fury rose up like fire inside of him. He couldn't see which cat was injured, nor did he have time to look around to. So Bluethorn settled for getting revenge on the dog. Deeper he dug his claws in. Through the coarse, thick fur and into the skin. Bluethorn dug his fangs in as well, fury still setting his blood on fire. The dog was yelping, which was a good sign. It succeeded in shaking him off. Bluethorn went into the air, twisted, and managed to land on his feet. Oakstorm, however, was still hanging on to the dog's neck.

Just a little bit more! Bluethorn thought as he ran around the dog and raked his claws into his flank.

((Will Oakstorm make the kill?))

[:c a i:]

((If no-one has any objections, then he can do.))