- Redtail: Betrayal -

The tortoiseshell tom was being driven to the ground by a barrage of blows. Oakheart was yowling triumphantly, as if he had already defeated the ThunderClan deputy, but Redtail wasn't dead yet. He heaved upward with his hind paws and flung Oakheart away from him. Surprised, the RiverClan warrior skidded on his paws, and hit hard against one of the Sunningrocks.

Redtail spun around and lashed out at another warrior. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Tigerclaw drag a sleek warrior off of wiry Mousefur. At once, other RiverClanners leapt atop the huge dark tabby, and Redtail knew at once that they were hopelessly outnumbered.

At that moment, there came a huge rumbling from behind him.

The tortoiseshell warrior turned, his tail, as red as fox fur, flashing behind him. He got only a glimpse of Oakheart's terror-stricken face before the deputy went down under a rockslide. Redtail's heart sank and grief gripped his stomach. He had never liked the RiverClan deputy, but he had hoped that no cat would die in this battle.

Turning again, Redtail dashed up and pushed a thick-furred RiverClanner from Tigerclaw's back. "Tigerclaw!" he hissed. "This is useless! There are too many of them!"

"No, Redtail. ThunderClan will never be beaten on our own territory!" Tigerclaw swung a gigantic paw, connecting so hard with a RiverClan warrior's shoulder that Redtail heart the bone slide from its proper place.

Redtail felt desperation as the brave ThunderClan warrior refused to leave. "We can't afford to lose any more of our warriors," he meowed urgently. "We will have another chance to avenge this defeat." He met Tigerclaw's amber eyes with a steady gaze, determined to make the dark tabby see reason. Tigerclaw's eyes were furious slits, but Redtail ignored them, turning to yowl to his warriors, "Retreat! ThunderClan, we must retreat!"

He hated to hear the sudden jubilant cries from RiverClan. They were obviously overjoyed, and a snarl rose in his throat as they pranced around one another and hissed triumphantly at ThunderClan.

Redtail gave a flick of his tail, and the ThunderClan warriors fled from the scene deep into the forest. Redtail waited until they were all gone, then followed after them, but he didn't realize that Tigerclaw was behind him until he heard the dark warrior's voice hiss, "Redtail, wait! I have to talk to you!"

Redtail paused in his retreat, and the other ThunderClan warriors melted into the darkness, continuing their run. But before Redtail could even turn his head, to give Tigerclaw a stern talk, the dark warrior had leapt on him.

Even before Tigerclaw had delivered the deathblow, Redtail's life flashed before his eyes, particularly about his daughter and his apprentice. Who would mentor Dustpaw? And who would watch over ferocious and sarcastic Sandpaw? He envisioned her pretty ginger pelt, and knew he would watch over her in the afterlife. He would be at both his daughter Sandpaw's and his apprentice Dustpaw's warrior ceremonies. He would...

Tigerclaw's paw came down, huge curved claws unsheathed, and sank into the back of Redtail's head. Blood leaked from the wounds, and pain overcame him. The agony stayed for a long time, until it had faded to a painful tingling in his nerves. Then blackness swept over him in a thick, dark wave.

Betrayal...

Redtail waited. He thought that something was about to happen, and he was right, for out of the darkness appeared beautiful Fawnfeather. His pale ginger mate wound herself around him lovingly. She had died during Sandpaw's birth, and a day had not gone by in the six moons since that Redtail had not thought of the slender, white-flecked ginger she-cat. He purred deep in his throat.

"It's good to see you again," he told her gently, rasping his tongue across her forehead.

"And you. I have always watched over you," Fawnfeather purred, entwining her tail with his. "But much terror is to come, my love."

"I will guide my Clan through it all," Redtail declared. He paused. "And I will also have my revenge on Tigerclaw..."

Fawnfeather nodded. "All of ThunderClan will. I have much to show you, Redtail," she murmured, and, running her tail along his back, she led him up a grassy hillside. At the foot of the hill, on the other side, was a perfectly circular pool, touched silver by the moonlight. Cats stood all around it, their fur tipped silver, and they all gazed at him with faith and love in their eyes.

"Welcome to StarClan, my love," Fawnfeather meowed, and Redtail ran down the hillside, his long fur streaming and his gentle eyes full of joy.