'You taught me the courage of the stars before you left
How light carries on, even after death
With shortness of breath, you explained the infinite
How rare and beautiful it is to even exist.'
Saturn - Sleeping at Last
/ - \
Chapter One: She Strikes
Under the sun's watchful eye, but tucked into the shadows cast by pines, she sat. The air was warm and the forest brimming with life; a far cry from the moons of cold and hunger, a time that had seemed to stretch on forever. Leaf bare's curse had been broken, finally, and the Clans freed from despair. Yet she still sat in the shadows, listening, watching. Her whole life had been spent surrounded by danger. The sense of peace trying to settle over her was new and strange, she wasn't used to it, didn't know if she ever would be used to it. So each day, in between her duties as a warrior, she left the camp and came to this patch of pine trees to sit with the shadows.
They weren't as lively as they had been. Perhaps with the defeat of the Elementals they'd realised they were no longer of great use to their Shadowstalker. It worried her sometimes, when she reached out to them and got only a weak murmur in response. What if something did happen? What if a new danger arose and she was left to face it without her shadows?
A spatter of embers fluttered about her muzzle; the effect of a power she had but didn't really trust. Cyrith knew she'd stolen his power now. The look of fatherly disappointment certainly hadn't helped her guilt for lying to him. He was helping her get used to it, to the unpredictable flames that now lurked in her blood. There was no one left alive that could help her tame the unruly wind - that was up to her to muddle through.
There was a creek nearby - quick to flood when it rained - that covered the sound of approaching footsteps. "I knew I'd find you here," Willowclaw said. "You know Cyrith calls this your 'brooding' spot right?"
"He told me yesterday; he is right, I do come here to think." She turned away from the pines, towards the sun and Willowclaw. A softness had made its way over him in the few moons since Crimson's final defeat, something gentle that had settled into his bones. He watched her now with a small smile. "Not that Cyrith knows what thinking is."
"I'm going to tell him you said that, Sunheart," he teased.
"Please do," Sunheart retorted. "The look on his face will make my day. Do you need something or have you come to brood with me?"
He shook his head. "Stripepaw and Breezepaw's warrior ceremony is starting soon. Icestar sent me to fetch you, said you wouldn't want to miss it."
"I bet they're excited," Sunheart said, dropping into a long stretch. She'd sat in the shade for too long, bones popping. They left her pine tree patch together, side by side. He was still taller than her, and he made sure she remembered it. "Has Icestar told you what their names are going to be?"
"No, she's kept them secret. Wouldn't want you finding out and ruining the surprise for them, would we?" Willowclaw purred.
Sunheart gasped, "I would never."
"How did you feel before your ceremony?" he asked.
She ducked under a low-hanging branch. "Well I didn't know when it was going to happen; I didn't have an assessment or anything like that. But...I felt relieved. Despite everything I'd done, despite who I was, who my mother was, the Clan trusted me enough to let me become a warrior. StarClan could have rejected me, told Icestar I had no place among the Clans, but they didn't. It was a good feeling."
"You know you'll always have a place among us, don't you?"
"I do now."
It was quieter than the basin had ever been but ShadowClan's camp was still loud. Sunheart could hear Willowclaw's kits playing before she even reached the tumble of fallen trees. Passing under them she'd used to feel the shadows reaching out to her; now they stayed back, nestled in their wooden crevices. The Clan was already mostly gathered in front of the log Icestar spoke from. She wasn't there, instead tossing a mossball to her kits. Cyrith stood behind them, watchful eye cast over the kits.
Willowclaw called to Icestar and she grinned at him, leaving the kits with Cyrith to look after to make her way over to them. "You found her."
"She was in her brooding spot," he replied, leaning over to nuzzle her.
"Because that's all I do there, brood," Sunheart snorted. "Not to escape your unruly kits."
Icestar stifled a laugh. "They're only unruly if you refuse to do what they want."
"Oh, great, so next time they ask me to take them to the river I'll say yes!" Sunheart purred.
"Do not. We will never get them to stay in camp again," Willowclaw warned.
"Now that you two are back we can finally start the ceremony. I'm sure Breezepaw and Stripepaw have really enjoyed waiting. Stripepaw can hardly sit still." Right in front of the log sat the two apprentices, and Icestar was right, Stripepaw was bouncing his forepaws. Sunheart shifted her gaze from him to Breezepaw only to find him already looking at her. He offered a warm smile and she gave a flustered one back.
He turned away when Icestar hopped onto the log, face falling into seriousness and poorly concealed excitement. Sunheart wondered, briefly, what it felt like to finally achieve something you'd strived your entire life for; wondered what a Clanborn cat truly felt in the moments before being named a warrior.
"We've gathered today to honour the hard work of two apprentices. It has been a strange couple of moons and these two have done all within their power to help wherever they could. I am grateful for their hard work, as I sure the rest of you are." There were murmured agreements. "As leader of ShadowClan I call upon our ancestors to look down upon these two apprentices and see all they have done, all the hardships they have faced, all the good deeds. Their mentors, in different Clans now, would agree that they are ready for what comes next. Breezepaw, Stripepaw, do you promise to uphold the Code and defend the Clan with everything you have?"
Breezepaw was drowned out by Stripepaw's enthusiastic shout, "I do!"
Their leader inclined her head, a show of respect to the two apprentices that had survived Crimson. "Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Breezepaw, you will now be known as Breezepool. We honour your loyalty and your kindness. Stripepaw, you will be known as Stripefang. We honour your spirit and cleverness. You are now both warriors of ShadowClan." Icestar grinned at them as the Clan shouted their names.
Sunheart couldn't help but laugh at the discomfort growing on Breezepool's face. It was strange having everyone shout your name at you. With the warriors named the meeting was over and the Clan broke up. Some surrounded the new warriors with pleased purrs, offering congratulations. Others retired to the shade supplied by the trees ringing the camp. Marah took to her den, Rainkit chasing after her demanding she show him all the herbs. The kits, tired after a long day playing, were nudged sleepily into the nursery where a soft nest waited.
"Are you going to congratulate your friends?" Willowclaw asked quietly.
She hadn't noticed that he was still even there. "Of course I am. I was just thinking."
"You've been doing a lot of that lately. Let go a little, Sunheart. The world is safe. We're safe. Relax, enjoy your life. You've earned it," he said, cuffing her gently as left. Cyrith met him just outside the nursery. Watching them, her family, always warmed her. They'd gotten the happiness they had fought so hard for, the happiness they'd lost so much for. To see them living the life they'd always wanted made all the suffering seem worth it.
Perhaps it was time to let go. Willowclaw was right. They weren't in danger anymore, she didn't need to worry. Maybe it was time to find her own happiness. With that in mind she glanced back up at her friends. Something hard lodged itself in her throat and sunk low into her stomach. Bumblenose had beat her to them, tucked up close to Breezepool, eyes full of wonder. They were listening to Stripefang list all the things he was going to do now that he was free from apprentice duties. She pushed past the hardness - it wasn't important - and joined them.
"I'm going to spend all day out in the forest hunting," Stripefang was saying, "and no one's going to be able to stop me."
"Except maybe the leader and the deputy," Sunheart interrupted.
Stripefang frowned. "You always ruin my fun," he whined.
"You're a mature warrior now, you have to act like one," Bumblenose snarked.
Breezepool laughed, deep and loud. "She's right you know. We're the face of ShadowClan now, we can't spend all day playing in the forest." He jostled Bumblenose off his side and jumped to his paws. "Come on, let's go catch some prey to share later."
"I'm going to catch more prey than all of you," Stripefang promised with a wink.
"Well now I have to catch more just to spite you," Sunheart purred.
They left camp together, veering into the forest far from her pine patch. She stayed away from Bumblenose and Breezepool. Something about the way Bumblenose looked at Breezepool sat strangely with her. Rather than think about what it could be she let Stripefang's competitive energy sweep her away, dashing through the forest after fat squirrels. Still, she couldn't quite shake the disappointment that curled in her gut when she turned back to tell Breezepool something only to find his attention occupied solely by Bumblenose.
/ - \
She was falling.
Into shadow and darkness. Into nothing.
It was a slow descent this time, not like the last hurried plummet into inky depths. There was no one yelling at her, no one demanding she pull away; it was silent save for the wind rushing by her ears. The plummet abruptly stopped, paws gently touching the smooth rock of the Edge. On either side of the thin rock was pure blackness. Far, far above shone a steady, white light. She visited here often now, most nights in fact. Each time she was alone. Each time she felt that same temptation to step into the waiting darkness. Yet each time she refused.
This time felt distinctly different. In the shadows beyond the Edge something was stirring. She could feel it, sense it. So she turned away from the light and peered down, searching the endless dark for whatever lurked below.
A quiet voice, a hiss. "I see you." She jerked back, hindpaws near slipping off the otherside. The black shifted, stirred. From within it opened two eyes, burning amber. "I am coming for you. You can't escape this, you can't escape me." A great paw emerged, thick claws sinking into the stone beside her. "I will destroy you."
Sunheart jolted awake, breath caught in her throat, heart hammering in her chest. Frantically she searched the warriors den, eyes jumping from corner to corner till she was satisfied that whatever had been beyond the Edge hadn't followed her out. Dawn filtered in through the den mouth and she needed to sit in its light, needed to remind herself that it was only a dream; the Edge was far away, it could never hurt her. As she scrambled out of her nest she heard Breezepool murmur sleepily nearby, "Sunheart?"
"I'm fine," she whispered, "go back to sleep."
He mumbled something, then rolled over, tail flicking up over his nose. Satisfied that he wasn't about to follow her out and pester her with questions, Sunheart crept from the den. Outside the dawn patrol was shifting sleepily towards the forest - Pebblefrost murmured something to Soaringhawk and he barked out a laugh. Crowstrike waved his tail at Sunheart as they left.
Like she always did when things became a little too much, when the fire burning beneath her skin threatened to burst free, she escaped to her pine patch. The cool of dawn soothed the heat thrumming through her veins, and the quiet calmed the panic. All the times she'd visited the Edge she had been alone. There wasn't another Shadowstalker alive and even if they were she didn't know if they could meet down there. So what had it been? What had emerged from inky blackness and threatened her?
Something cold touched her cheek and she jumped, but it was only a thin shadow stretching from the pines. Absently she tugged it closer, humming quietly while she worked, till the shadow was a glossy black feather.
Long after the sun had risen fully Icestar found her in the pines, tucked into some exposed roots, eyes focused on something far away. "I need you to come with me," she said, leaning down to nose at Sunheart's head. "But if you need more time to yourself I can go myself."
"No," Sunheart replied, uncurling from the roots and shaking bark free from her fur, "I'm fine. Where are we going?"
Icestar was silent for a moment, studying Sunheart. Whatever she was looking for she didn't find and relaxed slightly. "ThunderClan. Risingwhisper died." A pain struck her heart. No Clan cat had died since the new Clans were formed. It was strange to think that death would still be a constant in their world; it would never go away. Life had to continue, and that meant death needed to as well.
"I'm sorry." She licked Icestar's shoulder. "You two were friends, weren't you?"
"Friends is a strong word. We put up with each other. She listened to me when I needed to talk, and I spent time with her when she needed to not be alone," Icestar answered. "She was a good cat, one of the few truly old Clanners; she was there when RisingClan formed and she was there when it fell apart. She saw alot in her lifetime."
Sunheart smiled, "let's go say goodbye then."
In ThunderClan's airy forest all her troubles seemed so very far away. It was hard to worry about what lurked in the darkness when the sun warmed her very bones and the forest teemed with life. A dream, it was only a dream. Shiverstar was waiting for them outside her camp - a shallow dip in the forest, nests curled into the side of trees. The two leaders bumped heads, purring.
"It's good to see you again," Shiverstar said to Icepetal. "You too, Sunheart. I just wish it was under better circumstances."
Before either could say another word Arrow came barrelling up the incline, wide grin plastered across his muzzle. Sunheart had little warning before he knocked into her, sending them both tumbling to the grass. "Arrow!" she laughed, "get off!"
"No. You hardly ever come visit me anymore so now I've decided that I'm just going to smother you every time we see each other," he retorted, nose buried in the fur around her neck.
She sighed and let him remain crushing her to the ground for a little longer before she flicked him off with gust of wind. "I've missed you too," she said.
"The life of a deputy is hard," Arrow sighed. "You need to come bless me with your presence more often, okay?" It had been moons since Tornheart's death but there was still a light missing in his eyes, a part of him Sunheart feared they'd never get back. He tried though. He tried so hard. She thought he was so very brave to keep going.
"Yeah, I'll come see you more," she promised.
Shiverstar flicked her deputy with her tail. "Are you done now? You need to check on the apprentices training."
"I'm sure your kits are doing fantastically. I'll check on them anyway," he purred, leaning over to lick Sunheart's forehead. "See you soon!"
"Splashpaw's preparing Risingwhisper in the medicine den," Shiverstar explained, ushering them into the camp and leading them over to a hollow log. Maplepaw, now Mapleclaw, meowed a greeting as they passed.
Icestar flicked her ears back. "How did you find her?"
"In her nest, like she'd died in her sleep. We would have thought nothing less if Splashpaw hadn't smelled deathberries on her. She ate them and then died," she answered and ducked into the log. "Maybe she decided her time was finally up. StarClan knows she was an old cat. It's a shame to see her go."
Stretched out on the cool wood Risingwhisper looked like she was fast asleep. Her fur was smooth, patches of gray showing her age. Knelt down by her side Splashpaw continued to groom her mentor steadily. Grief spoke in the slump of her shoulders.
"She ate the deathberries herself?" Icestar asked curiously.
"I can't imagine what else could have happened," Shiverstar said. "You have to remember she grew up in a Clan drastically different from the one you did. Perhaps this was something their elders did when wasting away became too much. I can't imagine how heavy the world must feel when you're as old as she was."
Sunheart felt the shadows in the log hum quietly to her. "I hope she's happy now," she murmured.
"I bet she's telling all sorts of stories up in StarClan," Shiverstar replied warmly. "I sent for you so you could say goodbye, Icestar. You and her were close enough that I figured you'd want to see her one last time."
"Thank you. We'll be out of your fur soon, I know you have a Clan to run," Icestar smiled.
Shiverstar snorted. "Sometimes it feels like an impossible job, but I can always find time to see you two." She nipped at Sunheart's ears. "You're always welcome to visit. Arrow misses the both of you a lot, Willowclaw too. Sometimes I think he wishes we were all in one Clan together." With that said she slipped out of the medicine den.
While Icestar made herself comfortable by Risingwhisper's head Sunheart crossed the den to stand by Splashpaw. "Are you okay?"
"I don't know," the apprentice sniffled. "She seemed okay last night, her usual self. I just wish she'd spoken to me. I don't know how I'm going to finish my training without her."
"Marah can help. She's still training Minnowstripe a little. I can ask her when I get back, if you want?"
"Oh, thank you!" Splashpaw beamed, "I just want to be able to look after ThunderClan like Risingwhisper did. She was so good at everything and I want to make her proud."
Sunheart knew how Splashpaw felt, she'd been there before, knew what needing to make someone proud was. "I bet she's already proud of you. You'll be a great medicine cat."
Whatever Icestar said to Risingwhisper it was quick and quiet. They left not long after, pausing only to say goodbye to Arrow. Sunheart could tell there was something on Icestar's mind but they remained silent while they walked through ThunderClan's territory. Did she think Risingwhisper's death was strange? Eating deathberries seemed extreme. But she'd never known the elder very well. Maybe she had simply been tired.
It wasn't until they were far into ShadowClan territory that Icestar spoke. "Keep an eye out for anything strange."
"For what?"
She shrugged, "I don't know but I do know Risingwhisper wasn't the kind of cat to just lay down and die."
"You think she was force fed the deathberries?" Sunheart pressed.
"I think it's a possibility," Icestar replied hesitantly.
She scrunched up her nose. "But who would do that?"
"That's the concern."
/ - \
Breezepool gave her a strange look when she curled up in her nest that night. He might have said something if Bumblenose hadn't dropped into her nest beside him, voice loud as she spoke. Sunheart was almost grateful for the interruption. She had things to do. Risingwhisper's death was still bothering her, it just didn't seem right. So just before she fell asleep she pictured a golden beach.
The sound of the waves crashing into the sand greeted her first. Then the beat of a warm sun on her back, heating her fur, warming her bones. Beneath her paws the gritty sand shifted. She opened her eyes to an afterlife she would one day come home to. Thick white clouds massed far out on the horizon over the ocean, stretching into a picturesque blue sky. Sunlight glinted off the clear water.
Playing in the shallows, splashing water about without a care in the world, was Leon; gold fur plastered to his sides. He was calling to Soran, trying to tempt him into the water. Soran looked displeased where he sat further up the beach out of reach of Leon's splashing. Neither of them noticed her appearance, far too caught up in each other. It was until she sat down next to Soran and flicked sand at him that they realised she'd come to visit.
"Sunheart!" Leon called happily from the water. "You've come to see us!"
"I promised I would, didn't I?" she replied.
The afterlife was quieter now. Sheara had been cast from it, her powers stripped and given back to the world. Shaken by the betrayal of one of their own, Murai and Reyn had disappeared into the furthest parts of their afterlife. In the steep mountains that lurked on the horizon Murai let those that worshipped her catch a glimpse of their goddess. Beyond the thick forest that embraced the river were endless grasslands. Reyn wandered them, lost and unsure. Soran hadn't wanted to leave the ocean, or his shadowed nest by the river; Leon had stayed with him.
She'd come to talk to them about Risingwhisper and about the worries that surrounded her death but seeing them, so happy and content, she held back. This was their life, playing by the ocean in the warm sun, enjoying a peaceful eternity after a life filled with pain. Her life was not theirs. Her worries, her troubles, they were not their burdens to bear. Instead she slipped a smile onto her face and answered all the questions Leon shot her way about being a warrior.
Beside her she could feel Soran watching her. Did he know about the dream? Did he know about her visits to the Edge?
The ocean was cool when she stepped into it - coaxed in by Leon. They played, splashing water and pushing each other into the waves. As Leon emerged from a wave coughing and spluttering Sunheart wondered how old he had been when he'd died. He didn't look old, not in the same way Willowclaw or Cyrith did; it was something in the way they moved, like their moons of life had weighed heavy on their bones.
Soran strayed down to the water's edge, the golden patch of fur on his flank shining. He wasn't wholly good, he never would be; the things he'd done when alive would stay with him forever. But he was growing, changing. Perhaps Leon had softened him, or he had softened himself. Whatever it was Sunheart was glad for it. Soran had helped her. Without him she might have let her power win. She hoped he could learn to be happy someday, truly happy. The way he looked at Leon told her that one day he would be.
The setting sun found them curled up on the sand, Sunheart stretched out on her back staring up at the fading blue sky and Leon flung across Soran's side. "I know something's wrong," Soran said quietly. "You can talk to us."
"It's not really important," she answered.
Soran nipped at her flank. "If it's bothering you then it's important. Tell us."
"Risingwhisper died today." It fell out before she could stop it.
"She was old, Sunheart. But I'm sorry," Leon murmured.
"But she didn't just die in her sleep. She ate deathberries."
Sand shifted as Soran flinched. "She did what?"
"When we got to ThunderClan's camp Shiverstar told us Risingwhisper had eaten deathberries. It was pretty obvious that she believes Risingwhisper did it willingly," she replied.
"You don't?" Leon asked.
Sunheart shook her head. "I don't know. I'd like to think that it was Risingwhisper's decision, that she wanted to die, but I can't believe that entirely. Icestar said Risingwhisper wasn't the kind of cat to die without a fight."
"I can't imagine anyone wanting to die like that," Soran said. "But I didn't know her so I can't say for sure. It just seems odd. If there is something more sinister going on, Sunheart, you are still a Shadowstalker, and a warrior. You're perfectly capable of looking after yourself and your Clans."
"Yeah, I know, I just thought all the death and worrying was finally finished."
He leaned over and pressed his nose into her fur. "Try not to worry about it too much. Besides, if something really was wrong your StarClan would warn you about it, wouldn't they?"
"I don't know."
/ - \
A little under a moon later Sunheart sat on the edge of the forest on the Isle listening to Icestar tell the gathered Clans that her kits had been apprenticed. Rainpaw looked petrified where he sat beside Marah, eyes darting all over the place. Sunheart supposed it was scary for an apprentice's first proper trip outside the camp to be a gathering. At her side Stripefang was trying to impress a few apprentices with his grand tales of warriorhood but they all ignored him pointedly. Breezepool attempted to get his attention before one of the older warriors hissed at him for being a nuisance but Stripefang was having none of it. Endlessly amused by her friend's poor attempts at mingling outside the Clan, Sunheart stifled laughter.
Shiverstar had already announced Risingwhisper's death taking care to not mention how the medicine cat had died. In the days that had passed Sunheart had begun to wonder if there was anything sinister about it. Nothing else had happened. She sent out shadows every now and again to check ShadowClan's territory but each time they came back with nothing.
"It's most likely nothing but I felt the need to tell you all just in case." Stormstar caught her attention. The blue-gray tom looked a little apprehensive, like what he was about to say might cause trouble. She shifted and Breezepool glanced at her. "A strange scent has been noticed on some of our borders. It's hard to describe what it is exactly, but it's not a Clan cat. I don't want to cause panic or worry, and whatever this scent belongs to hasn't bothered any of us, but I thought you should all be made aware of it."
"Sunheart."
She whipped her head around, staring into the dark forest behind her. Only shadows stared back.
The leaders began to talk about their queens, Shiverstar saying, "Whitestream gave birth to two healthy kits, Nightkit and Eaglekit."
A prickling sensation erupted at the base of her spine. "Sunheart." It was the same voice as that night on the Edge, a rough hiss. Hot amber eyes flashed in her memory. Why was it talking to her now? How? She wasn't on the Edge, she was nowhere near it. The things down there couldn't get out. It laughed, grating and cold. "Will you believe I'm real when I stand over your body?"
She felt sick. Mumbling a hurried excuse she scrambled from the grass and disappeared into the shadows. Her paws slipped and stumbled, head spinning. "Am I still a part of your imagination, Sunheart?" It spat her name like it tasted foul. Grass turned to sandy dirt under her paws and the moonlight caught the river, glinting off its surface.
You aren't real. You aren't real. You aren't real.
The water was cold, lapping at her paws. She stared down into it, at her reflection wobbling on its surface, and bit back a scream. A dark mass hovered over her head, not quite feline but something else, something with a thin, long muzzle and teeth that poked out over its lips. "Aren't I?"
"Sunheart?"
A fish splashed nearby disturbing the water. When it settled the creature was gone. Sunheart sagged, head hanging low, throbbing and aching. Fur brushed against hers and she jumped, reaching out for her shadows before she could realised that it was only Breezepool. He eyed the half formed shadow cat, "sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's fine, I didn't mean to do that," she flicked her tail at the shadow cat. She let it crumble and fall, its shadows slithering back to where they'd come from. "Sorry."
He nudged her shoulder. "Are you okay? You seemed pretty spooked."
The sick feeling was beginning to pass and her heart was slowing its rapid pace. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said. "Just needed some air."
Breezepool tilted his head, "you know you can talk to me right? You don't need to suffer in silence. I'm here and so is your family."
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Something about him soothed her, made her feel safe. Maybe...maybe she could tell him a little bit. Not all of it. No, she didn't need anyone knowing about the creature her imagination had coughed up. "It's just memories and nightmares," she whispered.
He shifted slightly closer. "I was scared for you," he said. "When Ice showed up and you made us run all I could think about was you dying alone on the river. I didn't want to leave you to fight her alone but I knew I couldn't do anything to help. Sometimes I have nightmares where you don't come back alive, where she wins." He twitched the stub of his right ear, "I have nightmares about the wolf that did this to me too."
"I..I had no idea," she mumbled. On the ice that day her head had been filled with her powers vying for control. She hadn't been able to think of anything else. It made her feel guilty to know that others had worried for her while she hadn't given them a second thought. What would she have felt if Breezepool hadn't made it? The thought came with an ache in her heart; she didn't want to think about what losing him would feel like.
"I never told anyone, I kept it to myself. But now you know. We all still have nightmares about it, Sunheart, though I can imagine that yours are a little worse. Please, talk to me. I want to be there for you but I can't read minds," he smiled. "Promise me you'll talk to me."
She let her eyes wander over his face. Warmth spread from her heart. "I promise."
Breezepool's smile grew, "come on, let's get back. I bet Stripefang's gotten himself into trouble without us to watch over him."
It felt then, in that moment, that nothing could go wrong. The voice was nothing more than her imagination feeding off her nightmares. Risingwhisper had died of her own choice. The Clans were safe. The valley was peaceful. Everything was okay. But there was a darkness brewing that no one was prepared for. Late that night, when the moon was low and the sun close by, Blackfoot stumbled into ShadowClan's camp wide-eyed and panting. Blood was smeared across his muzzle. Awoken by the guards yowls Sunheart watched their peace crumble with only a few spoken words.
"Fadedtail's been attacked."
disclaimer: this fits in between chapter 40 and 41 of eod but 41 was written before this was planned so expect discrepancies.