Notice: This story contains characters belonging to HarperCollins and Erin Hunter. I do not own any characters/plot points contained in the original Warriors books.
Dark Forest cats were flooding into the camp. Dovewing whipped around in horror, watching as her Clanmates were pummeled to the ground and slashed open by sharp claws. Yowls of pain split the air. Darkness had settled upon the clearing, and thunder was rumbling in the distance.
"Darkstripe!" Mousefur's hiss sounded from outside the elders' den. "I hoped I'd never see you again."
Dovewing turned in time to see the old she-cat lash out at the dark-pelted tom. She raced towards him, claws outstretched, a snarl crossing her bloodstained face.
Suddenly a crack sounded throughout the clearing. Dovewing froze as she looked for the source of the sound. A gasp of horror escaped her mouth as she saw Poppyfrost dangling from the jaws of a huge tom with icy blue eyes. A triumphant growl escaped his mouth as he tossed her body beside that of Hollyleaf's.
"Poppyfrost! No!" The yowl of Daisy echoed through the forest.
"The time has come, my warriors! Destroy them!" the huge tom with blue eyes caterwauled.
"It's not over yet, Hawkfrost!" a growl sounded as Brambleclaw shot towards the tom and tackled him.
Lionblaze suddenly shot through the throng of cats, leaping fearlessly into battle. Behind him were a group of cats who were… transparent. Dovewing's mouth dropped in shock as a Midnight rumbled through the clearing.
But something was horribly wrong. Thunder loomed closer, and dark clouds covered the stars. The transparent cats let out yowls of shock as they began to fade away.
"No! No! What is happening…" Rock called as he appeared from the forest, his eyes bulging more than usual in complete shock. Cries of anguish split the air as the spirits faded completely.
"What…" the shocked mew of Jayfeather sounded behind her. "Half Moon! Rock! No!"
"Dovewing!" Lionblaze wailed as he pushed through the battle to her. "Use your powers! Try to listen for StarClan! They should have come by now…"
Dovewing pricked her ears and leaned forward, straining her senses to the farthest corners of the forest, and then to the sky. There was utter silence.
"StarClan… it's gone…" Jayfeather moaned, listening in on Dovewing's thoughts. Her crumbled to the ground, shaking.
"Get on your paws, Jayfeather! This is no time to be lying about!" the hiss of Firestar sounded beside Dovewing. The ginger tom was speeding in to the thick of battle.
The yowls of Mousefur sounded beside Dovewing. She turned to see the elder dangling from the jaws of Darkstripe. Her eyes had dulled, and the life faded from her.
"Mousefur! No!" Dovewing cried, launching herself at Darkstripe. The tom mrrowed with laughter, batting at Dovewing with sharp claws. Pain pierced her side as he raked through her skin, blood spilling to the ground.
Dovewing lashed out with her forepaws, knocking the warrior to the ground. She leapt on him and clawed at his soft underbelly. But he was much stronger than she was. He kicked upwards with his back paws, causing Dovewing to crash into the rock behind her. Black spots swarmed her vision as she struggled for consciousness.
"You've got guts, she-cat. Pity you decided to stay with the clans. We could have made you great. Now you will be slaughtered... just like old Mousefur over here," Darkstripe chuckled, advancing towards her. A flash of a pale tabby pelt caught Dovewing's eye.
Ivypool began pushing Darkstripe back, but the warrior was matching her moves with precision. Dovewing stumbled to her paws, blood dripping into her eyes.
Another crack echoed through the clearing. Dovewing turned to see the limp form of Ferncloud tossed aside by a huge dark tom with bright yellow eyes. He cackled gleefully and turned towards the kits in the nest.
"No!" Dovewing meowed weakly as she stumbled towards him, pain throbbing through her skull. Strength pulsed through her body as she lurched at the tom, raking his sides, causing blood to drip freely down his sides.
"What a stupid little cat you are," the warrior growled, turning to her, "Thinking you can defeat me, Brokenstar! I-" He cut off, staring into her eyes, curiosity crossing his face. "Well, well. Dovewing."
"H-how do you know my name?" Dovewing asked, fear replacing the bravery in her heart. She was standing before Brokenstar, the most feared cat in clan history. And he knew who she was.
"I have eyes and ears, young one. I know what you are capable of. Tell me, can you hear StarClan now?" He chuckled, weaving around Dovewing menacingly. "You are your traitor of a sister are experts at spying. However, your power is most useful… while your sister is weak. She will be eliminated, but you will live as a prisoner of the new era of the clans." He lashed out with his paw, pinning her against the ground, applying pressure against her throat.
Dovewing gagged, trying to squeeze any air down her windpipe as possible. "I… will… never… help… you," she choked, black spots dancing across her vision.
Brokenstar chuckled. "You speak as if you have a choice."
The last think Dovewing saw was his menacing yellow gaze before her world faded to black.
Ivypool shook blood off her snowy pelt as she faced Darkstripe. They were evenly matched, their moves swift and brutal. As soon as Ivypool nicked his ear, his claws would rip across her cheek, and so forth.
Ivypool suddenly felt panic flutter in her chest. Where was her sister? She turned to see Brokenstar picking up a limp gray cat and padding into the nursery.
"DOVEWING!" she screeched, her fur standing on end. Darkstripe chuckled, blocking her way.
"She's good as dead," he growled, lashing his tail. Ivypool felt a surge of strength rush through her muscles as she launched herself at Darkstripe. He let out a grunt of surprise as she raked his underbelly and pierced her claws into his throat.
A yowl sounded from the entrance of the clearing. Ivypool became distracted just enough to allow Darkstripe to slip beneath her and retreat into the shadows.
A massive brown tabby stood, holding a bloodied ginger cat in his jaws. He tossed the body to the ground.
"ThunderClan! Behold your precious Firestar!" he yowled as lightning flashed across the sky.
A shot of grief caused Ivypool to fall to the ground. She could barely stand as she wobbled over to her leader. The fighting had ceased and a silence overtook the clearing. ThunderClan warriors stumbled toward their leader, eyes welled with grief.
Firestar's chest was barely rising and falling. Sandstorm pushed her way forward, crying out and buring her muzzle in his orange pelt. Blood matted his ginger pelt, yet his face was somehow calm, despite the blood welling from his throat. His green eyes were just beginning to cloud over. Leafpool and Squirrelflight pushed their way to their mother's side, pain crossing their faces.
The clan exchanged glances. Ivypool met the eyes of her mother, her father, Blossomfall, Brackenfur… They shifted tighter together, forming a close circle, blocking out the Dark Forest cats who were hissing behind them. Warriors leaned on eachother, entwining tails. No words were needed. ThunderClan was united for this moment, united in fear, in sadness, in love for one another. They would give their leader his last moments of peace. The leader who had lead them through unfathomable journeys and trials. He deserved to die in a moment of stillness, a moment of nonviolence.
"Do not… give up… stay… strong," Firestar whispered, his breaths coming out even more ragged. "Destiny… will… prevail." Looking up into Sandstorm's eyes, a peaceful look overtook the leader's face as he breathed his last. With a light sigh, he was gone.
Ivypool lifted her head, staring at the sky. Rain began to pour from the sky. Lightning flashed, and suddenly an ember caught up in flames, shooting upwards towards the sky. The rain quickly clenched the fire, and the clearing remained for another moment in still silence.
"Firestar, Firestar!" Squirrelflight had begun to chant. ThunderClan joined in, raising their voices to the heavens.
"ENOUGH!" a gruff voice shouted, cutting them off. Tigerstar pushed through the throng of cats, laughter echoing through his chest. He roughly took Sandstorm by the scruff, tossing her off of her mate's body. She hissed, unsheathing her claws, grief clouding her gaze.
"The battle is won. Already my warriors have overtaken the other clans. The new era of the forest has begun! Only the strong may live now!" his voice rose as he kicked the body of Firestar roughly, causing ThunderClan cats to hiss and Dark Forest warriors to yowl in agreement.
Brokenstar, Darkstripe, Mapleshade, and Hawkfrost padded up to stand beside Tigerstar. Brokenstar pushed Tigerstar slightly to the side. "Do not forget, Tigerstar, you are not above the rest of us. We shall rule the new legions equally," he growled, narrowing his yellow eyes. Tigerstar dipped his head, though a flash of anger crossed his amber gaze.
"Let's pick off the weak… now!" Brokenstar growled. Suddenly a cat hauled Ivypool away from the crowd. She whipped around to face Brambleclaw.
"Ivypool, we have to leave. The others have a chance, but we will be the first to die," he hissed. "Follow me."
Ivypool blinked back shock and shot through the forest after Brambleclaw.
"Where are we going?" she murmured, her paws thrumming in rhythm with her deputy's.
"Far, far away, until we can find a way to stop this madness," he wheezed. "Birchfall, Blossomfall, and Mousewhisker are meeting us at the Moonpool. We will go from there."
"Surely we'll get caught! And what about our clanmates?" she mewed, her voice shaking.
"The Dark Forest warriors are preoccupied at the camps. And our clanmates have a better chance of survival than any of us do. You, Birchfall, Mousewhisker, and Blossomfall all betrayed them, and I am the deputy. We would be the first to go if we stayed."
Ivypool skidded to a halt, surprising her clan deputy and causing him to look at her curiously. Anger shot through her chest, and she pierced her claws into the forest floor. "You're the deputy! How could you abandon your clan? What about Squirrelflight? And it's as if you don't feel any grief for Fire-"
"Don't ever tell me I don't feel grief for Firestar! He was my mentor, my closest friend, the father I always wanted…" He growled, lurching forward so he was nose to nose with Ivypool. She noticed the dull grief clouding his gaze. "Of course I fear for ThunderClan, even Squirrelflight. But what help would I be dead? We need to leave to search for answers. We must plan an uprising. And we can't do that in ThunderClan right now. Come on. We need to hurry." He turned and shot off again.
After running for a bit longer, Brambleclaw slowed his steps. Ivypool followed him into a cleared area. In the center was a large, dark hole.
"The Moonpool!" Brambleclaw gasped. "It's dried out!"
"But it's raining!" Ivypool protested, shaking out her blood and rain drenched pelt.
"The Moonpool wasn't full of rainwater. Something terrible has happened to StarClan," he murmured.
Ivypool heard cats approaching and raised her hackles, baring her teeth in case any Dark Forest warriors should appear. Instead, Mousewhisker, Blossomfall, and her father slipped beside them.
"The Moonpool…" Birchfall said in shock, walking up beside Ivypool and brushing his soaked pelt against hers. "StarClan won't be able to help us now."
"Then we must help ourselves," Brambleclaw declared, straightening up. "Let's go." He turned and slipped into the forest.
With one last glance towards ThunderClan territory, Ivypool shuddered and followed his lead. "I'll be back for you, Dovewing," she promised herself as she sped off into the darkness.