"Skyheart, where are you going?", Quailstar yowled from the blood-shed battlefield, but he was wasting his final breaths. Skyheart wasn't going to fight, or cause tension between Clans. He wasn't going to witness the horrific scene of blood sputtering the ground, staining the vibrant blades of grass for an unworthy cause. He was sick of his aching belly, hungering for food. He was dreading the scarcity of prey, and nearly starving because of opposing Clans' selfishness. He was done, he was definitely done. He just couldn't hold in his fears any longer.
Skyheart continued to run, on and on, until the ringing yowls of pain and protest that caused blood to thump rapidly in his ears, to completely vanish. When it finally did, he panted, completely breathless from his faithful run to safety.
When the rhythmic thumping in his ears gradually suppressed, a vague, whispering voice embraced him, his ears swiveled forth and alert. Between the harsh gusts of wind, it said:
"In the hour of hostile, fading depart, the song of echoes will change the heart".
This was all the whispering wind could muster, as it whisked past Skyheart, causing his racing heart to thump rapidly, even more so than before. It continued to ring in his ears, while troubling illusions that illuminated the prophecy was all he could see, as it blinded him from the scarce reality. The reality that he did not wish to see...
"Skyheart..Skyheart.."
"Skyheart!"
He felt a sheathed paw cuff his flank, as his eyes fluttered agape. Shuffling in his nest, he met the gaze of distinctive, violet eyes, that were furrowed with concern.
"I called your name countless times!", The she-cat mewed crossly. "Did you sleep alright?"
"I'm fine, Echosong", Skyheart muttered, his voice groggy and lethargic.
"Oh, well then, come on!", The pale gray she-cat ushered him to follow, as she skittered outside of the warrior den.
Reluctantly, Skyheart clambered outside, past the sweet-scented honeysuckle entrance.
His thoughts began to settle, except for the one thing he couldn't quite wrap his mind around; the dream he had. Like all dreams, it became a vague blur still nestled in his mind, but it wouldn't leave. "In the hour of hostile, fading depart, the song of echoes will change the heart...",
"Skyheart!"
His eyes widened in alarm, his state of mind being clicked back to reality once again.
"What is up with you this morning?", She complied, her gait defining an indication for him to follow, as previously.
There was a silence, as Echosong stared at him expectantly. He assumed she wanted an explanation, due to the way he was acting.
"I don't know, I just had this strange dream...", His voice trailed off.
"About what?", Echosong pressured.
Skyheart explained every detail he could remember to her. Strangely enough, the one thing he didn't quite remember was the prophecy. The only critical thing in his dream.
"Huh, strange", She muttered. "And you thought this meant something?"
"Well, yeah", Skyheart shrugged loosely.
"Something from StarClan?"
Why so many questions?
"Well, I would think so", He tried his best to answer all of her dumbfounded questions.
"If it's bothering you this badly, you should try to get your mind off of it", Echosong mewed warmly, as if trying to reassure him.
Begrudgingly, Skyheart decided to take her advice as a benefit. Anything that troubled him, he tried his best to forget. But something told him, deep down inside, that it wasn't something to forget. This was different. Way different. This was definitely something he shouldn't forget.
~o0o~ In the hour of hostile, fading depart, the song of echoes will change the heart ~o0o~