Zero Two

Cinderheart freed Cinderpelt in the Last Hope. Leafpool, Jayfeather, and Lionblaze thought everything with Cinderpelt was over. They didn't know how wrong they were.

StarClan, who had been busy preparing for the war, hadn't noticed Cinderpelt trying to reach them. Their gates were closed at the time. Unable to enter StarClan, Cinderpelt became distressed and went down the only other path she could find—the Dark Forest.

Meanwhile, Cinderheart receives a visit in a dream from one of the cats she least expected to find and the news she is given is far from fantastic. Cinderheart doesn't know what to do with the information she's received. She struggles over the decision of whether to tell her mate or not. She makes the wrong decision and realizes far too late that her grip on life is slipping right between her claws...

Allegiances

Leader: Bramblestar—dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Deputy:Lionblaze—golden tabby tom with amber eyes

Medicine Cats: Leafpool—light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Jayfeather—gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes

Briarlight—dark brown she-cat with crippled hind legs

Warriors: Graystripe—long-haired gray tom

Dustpelt—dark brown tabby tom

Sandstorm—pale ginger she-cat with green eyes

Brackenfur—golden brown tabby tom

Cloudtail—long-haired white tom with blue eyes

Thornclaw—golden brown tabby tom

Spiderleg—long-limbed black tom with brown underbelly and amber eyes

Birchfall—light brown tabby tom

Whitewing—white she-cat with green eyes

Berrynose—cream-colored tom

Hazeltail—small gray-and-white she-cat

Mousewhisker—gray-and-white tom

Poppyfrost—tortoiseshell she-cat

Cinderheart—gray tabby she-cat

Foxleap—reddish tabby tom

Apprentice, Cherrypaw

Icecloud—white she-cat

Toadstep—black-and-white tom

Rosepetal—dark cream she-cat

Apprentice, Molepaw

Blossomfall—tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat

Bumblestripe—very pale gray tom with black stripes

Dovewing—pale gray she-cat with blue eyes

Ivypool—silver-and-white tabby she-cat with dark blue eyes

Apprentices: Cherrypaw—ginger she-cat

Molepaw—brown-and-cream tom

Queens: Sorreltail—tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with amber eyes, mother of Lilykit and Seedkit

Brightheart—white she-cat with ginger patches, mother of Amberkit, Dewkit, and Snowkit

Millie—striped gray tabby she-cat with green eyes, mother of Splashkit, Featherkit, and Silverkit

Squirrelflight—dark ginger she-cat with green eyes, expecting Bramblestar's kits

Kits: Lilykit—dark brown tabby she-cat with white patches

Seedkit—very pale ginger she-cat

Amberkit—gray she-cat with white paws, white muzzle, white right ear, and amber eyes

Dewkit—gray tom with amber eyes

Snowkit—white tom with amber eyes

Splashkit—black-and-white she-cat with blue eyes

Featherkit—silver tabby she-cat with black paws and blue eyes

Silverkit—silver-and-white tabby she-cat with green eyes

Prologue

Goodbye, Cinderheart.

The dark gray she-cat blinked her blue eyes. She reached out her paw and tried to push through the barrier again, but she couldn't. She took a few steps backwards. Then she ran forward and tried to jump through, but she was thrown backwards by the invisible barrier. She could see the stars, but the starlight wouldn't reach her paws. The dark gray she-cat spat at the barrier and hissed before turning around and walking back up the path she had gone down.

She stood at the edge of the path where two paths met. This was the point where both paths began. This was where every spirit came when they died. Usually a close friend or family member would be there to guide the spirit to StarClan.

Usually.

But no one was there.

Instead, everyone was down below fighting a war…between StarClan and the Dark Forest. Between the two paths that the dark gray she-cat could walk down.

The dark gray she-cat flexed her leg which had been crippled for so long. Now it was fine. It had been healed when her spirit had arrived at the two paths. The dark gray she-cat glanced longingly at the stars one last time before she slowly started walking down the other path. She hung her head and stared at the ground as she began her time with the darkness.

She lifted her head and glared at the starlit path one last time before walking through to the barrier to the Dark Forest.

You didn't let me in, she thought angrily. I will never forgive you for that, StarClan! I am going to get my revenge against you and everyone who messed this up for me!

"What are we going to do without Spottedleaf?" Bluestar fretted. "We have never lost anyone of such great value before. Not forcefully."

"We haven't had any StarClan casualties in a long time," Yellowfang agreed.

"This is certainly strange," Whitestorm agreed.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand," Firestar meowed, exchanging a quick glance with Hollyleaf. They were new to StarClan; they were a bit lost in the conversation with the StarClan veterans.

"The war is over; there aren't any other difficulties going on right now," Hollyleaf meowed.

"Wrong," Yellowfang meowed. "We still have to clean up the aftermath of the war."

"Which is what, exactly?" Hollyleaf asked.

"We have to recover from the StarClan casualties," Bluestar replied.

"There weren't very many of them, were there? Spottedleaf is honestly the only loss I can think of..." Firestar muttered.

"There is someone missing from within our ranks," Whitestorm meowed.

"We fear they were unable to find their way to us," Bluestar agreed.

"The reasonable explanation is that they were killed while they were trying to reach us. We weren't here to help them. They were left on their own. We can only assume they are gone forever," Yellowfang put in.

"Who?" Hollyleaf asked.

"Yes, who?" Firestar questioned.

Bluestar, Whitestorm, and Yellowfang exchanged a worried glance. Yellowfang sighed.

"Fine, I'll do it," Yellowfang muttered. She turned back to Firestar and Hollyleaf.

"Do what?" Hollyleaf asked.

"Is it really that bad?" Firestar asked.

Yellowfang looked at her paws. "Your apprentice, Firestar. Both yours and mine..."

"But aren't you talking about one cat? This doesn't make sense—oh..." Firestar broke off. His entire expression changed as he realized who it was. He hung his head in sorrow.

Hollyleaf, however, was completely lost. "I'm sorry, but I still don't know who you're talking about," she meowed. "Who has been lost?"

Yellowfang lifted her head.

"Cinderpelt."

I know the prologue was pretty short, but I didn't want it to carry on for too long. It is the prologue after all, not an actual chapter.

This prologue may seem pretty vague, but that's because it's meant to be vague. I don't want to give everything away in the prologue, after all...

Well, I'll try to get the first chapter up soon. (By the way, soon for me means in a few days...)

Hey, today's 12/12/12. That's cool. :)

~Icy