The stone statue was the first thing Lyre saw when opening his eyes. The water was gone, and the body of Calico and Soot id in front of it, mangled; Calico was missing his front right and back left leg, leaving just his dislocated left leg and back right leg remaining; Soot was shaking, breathing raggedly. Her tail was bent, and her body was spyed in an awkward position. Both of them looked like they wanted to die.

  Lyre’s ears fttened. This can’t be good. He took a step back, and as he did, he bumped into that soft but solid figure.

  A loud, echoey creak sounded from the statue, and the stone cat reached out its paws, unsheathing its cws. When it did, long, stone cws unfurled from the cwbeds.

  Lyre immediately leapt out of the way as the snake-like stone arms shot out in front and viciously grabbed the figure. As they did, a soft sizzling sound was heard, then the parts that touched the figure began darkening into a sickly bck color. Moments ter, a burning smell filled the air.

  And that was when he saw it.

  Lyre shot upwards, screeching loudly as if his cws were getting torn right from his paws while slowly being impaled by the sharp tip of a long, twisted tree branch.

  His vision was blurry at first, but as it focused, he was still alone in the dirt clearing next to the tiny ke. Still trembling, he slowly went over to it and stared at his reflection.

  Wow, I’m handsome. He smirked. The smile faded once he saw the small yer of ferns Quartz had forced him to put on his scar. Something felt really hard and cold on his skin, but at least his wound no longer was stinging. Maybe the faintly lingering pain was what caused him to have that terrible dream.

  He blinked, and saw a barely visible figure fade into view from beside him. It felt like that same cool feeling that had pressed against his forehead when at the mist shrouded area.

  The shape suddenly vanished before he could make out what exactly it was. These strange happenings follow me even when I leave the forest! I definitely need to leave as soon as possible, with or without those other two.

  Lyre thought about the rock cats or whatever they were called- specifically their alleged leader, Calico, and the incident that had finalized his decision to leave them once and for all.

  And you would never think of returning to them.

  A voice spoke.

  It was his.

  As much as Lyre liked how he was able to rest, he disliked how, by staying there, the cats erased his memory of his one purpose- his motivation- as to why he even entered The Stone Forest in the first pce.

  So then I must…escape while I still can. Escape from the forced company of Root and the… he couldn’t think of anything bad about Quartz. Is that a bad thing?

  He pped up the cold water, almost shivering as the cool liquid slowly slid down his throat and reawakened the cold pit that was already in his stomach.

  Once he finished, he lifted his head and saw nothing but the darkness of the night shadows on the other side of the ke. There’s no way I slept for that long. But then he remembered the failed hunt, and the wait for a successful one.

  The air was warmer this time, but still a bit colder. The dark gray sky looked fuzzy and blurry. Behind him on his left was a blurry light gray odd-shaped circle in the sky. It made his fur prickle, but once he recognised the soft glow, he felt a faint sense of relief.

  Lyre looked again, drawing in a breath. The clearing was small, just like the ke. Beyond that was darkness; all around him was darkness. He was practically standing and walking inside of a void. The only light was coming from the blurred moon.

  He knew he didn’t know any part of this forest; neither did Root. Quartz was the only one who could technically lead him to whatever parts of The Stone Forest would show its end. But if he made it through the cold, eerie area that got him here in the first pce, then he was sure he’ll make it.

  Besides, he turned a little to the right, then slowly began creeping along the ke as he used his left paw to feel for the cold, damp earth where the water pped at, this might be the only chance I get. The sooner I lose them, the better.

  He kept turning little by little, and since it wasn't a perfectly round ke, there were several occasions when he accidentally dipped his paw into the cold water. He still felt like he was going the right direction, so he continued straight once his paw touched dry ground.

  Lyre carefully padded forwards, ears perked and whiskers twitching. A faint, slow breeze ruffled distant grass.

  Grass. Am I going back into the forest or entering another, different area? Lyre sniffed the air. The wind was blowing from his left.

  He sped up into a trot, and before long, his hopes began to lift as the only thing he felt beneath his paws was dirt. It was soft and dry at first, but as the texture suddenly shifted to varying strands of itchiness, the tom stopped.

  Wait a minute. If we entered through an area with grass that wasn't turned to stone, then I’m definitely not going the right direction. But just to make sure..

  He cautiously lowered his muzzle until his nose lightly touched a few bdes, then began sniffing. It smelled of nothing at first.

  The wind slowly carried the sickly scent of something, and Lyre followed it. He suddenly bumped into a grassy wall that felt like it sloped upwards. A hill? He attempted to leap upwards, but as he did, he felt his head fur graze something solid and rough.

  Muzzle facing upwards, he outstretched his paws and slid out his cws before jumping again. Colpsing his paws around what felt like a tree branch, he dug his cws in the wood. The scent was significantly stronger, and even had a hint of blood- dried blood.

  With a grunt, he let go of the branch and twisted in the air, nding on his side. Only a bit of air was forced out of his lungs, since the branch wasn't that high. He scrambled back upwards and tried to remember what direction the branch was pointed towards, then wandered that way.

  Then his whiskers grazed something, and he waved with his paw to feel a tree trunk. Wait. No one taught anyone how to climb, period; trees, steep hills, nothing. I don’t want to end up like Velvet. He remembered seeing his “brother” stuck up on a tree after non-blindingly rushing up it.

  But could he really bme him? Yes, a part of Lyre said. He was too scared to fight them off; so what if they were much bigger than us and killed…killed Splinter?I thought Velvet was too scared. Look at me. If I hadn’t entered that stupid clearing…

  He felt a fuel of energy sparking like his anger. I worked hard to get this far, and I’m doing it alone. If Velvet had done this instead…no! Don’t think that way about him. He turned to the side, pressed his haunches to the ground, and sprang up with as much force as he could, waving his paws around until they brushed against a branch.

  Velvet made some mistakes, sure, but that doesn’t give me a reason to hold a grudge against him. He was on the branch now, crouching and testing the area in front of him with his left paw before taking slow pawsteps forward.

  As a creak came from the branch, Lyer stopped and slowly moved his tail off it and to the side. Nothing was there. Obviously. He took a deep breath, bracing himself. Do I jump or continue until the branch falls? What would happen if it did fall? He hesitantly continued forwards, moving his tail directly behind him.

  Another creak, and he felt the branch shift.

  Crack!

  A rustling ahead made Lyre freeze. That was when he realized that since he changed directions, the wind was blowing away from him, and towards whatever- or whoever- was there.

  There must be a bush somewhere around here. Lyre leapt down from the branch, accidentally putting too much force into it, and facepnted onto the ground as more weight pressed onto his left paw.

  He winced in pain and got to his paws, licking his left paw. Thankfully it didn’t seem sprained. He shook out his fur. The ground felt really dry, and he could smell dust as it scattered off his fur.

  A pain of longing hit him, and his ears fttened to the back of his head as his tail drooped. No time for that, Lyre. He put himself together and pointed his ears towards where the rustling sounded. He crouched down and stalked towards what could be a bush.

  His nose touched another one. He recoiled backwards, feeling really awkward and uncomfortable.

  “Hi,” a quiet mew said.

  Are you kidding me? He sighed. “Get out my way.”

  The cat responded with the sound of silence, and so Lyre walked around them, only to step on something. A deep growl sounded from the cat.

  Lyre accidentally stepped on their tail again and walked away, hoping the cat would stay where it was. But it didn’t take long for him to feel the presence of the other feline beside him. I’m not here to conversate, and I hope this cat knows that. He thought despairingly as the cat meowed again.

  “You smell like you’ve been in The Stone Forest.”

  He sniffled. Yeah, so? It’s not like that concerns you.

  A purr rumbled from their throat. “I love that pce. It’s so interesting.” Thankfully that was all they said.

  What Lyre touched with his paws was not a bush. Rather, it was a carpet of leaves that was as wide as a cat. So this cat was sitting here. He narrowed his eyes and leapt over it, holding back a light wince despite properly nding on his paws. The st thing I need is to stay with another group of cats. They’ll only push me back.

  There was a soft nudge on his side. “Hey, why don’t you follow me? Come stay until there’s more light out.”

  Lyre ignored the cat and sped up. Strangely enough, he felt rock solid ground again. He was about to turn until the cat spoke again.

  “Just go straight until you feel dirt again.” Then they nudged him forwards.

  Soon the path gave way to another dirt ground, and all kinds of smells instantly attacked his nose; from mice, to a weird salty and wet smell, and all the way to a sweet smell. And also the smell of fire. He flinched. There was an orange glow in the distance, and as the two cats came closer, his light uneasiness subsided. It was a small fme flicking calmly on top of thickly cut short tree branch parts.

  There was a cat sitting by the fire. The light was bright enough for Lyre to make out the short, dark orange-ish fur that glowed in the firelight. The cat opened his eyes and Lyre suddenly felt a strange sense of fear stab through him.

  The tom smiled at him and got up to his paws. As he did, his muscles created dim shadows across the fur that was reflected in the orange glow. His light turquoise eyes glowed with the warm light.

  “Hello, Lyre.” He said in a deep meow. He made a light grin.

  The cat stepped towards the dark tom, her gray fur being clearly visible. She was a completely different cat; sleek fur, and even muscles of her own beginning to show. “I’m so gd I found you.” She smiled.

  “Yes, yes. We are gd to find you here.” He circled Lyre, eyes glowing even with his head facing away from the fire as he studied him. “I’ll pester you when you’re rested up. Sleep now.” He stalked back towards the fire and id down, still grinning.