Prologue
Prologue
A small, lithe, golden she-cat sat, stared into a glittering, silver pool. Her tail twitched, and she stood up.
"Let all cats in StarClan join beneath this rock!"
One by one, starry cats slunk out to join her. They sat, gathering around the golden she-cat. Eight cats stepped forward, joining the golden she-cat.
"Goldenlight," they murmured as one. Goldenlight greeted each one of them.
"Flowerpetal," she said to a silver she-cat.
"Flametail," she greeted a ginger tom.
"Stripedpelt," to a white tom with striking dark gray stripes.
"Rainshine." A gold-and-silver striped she-cat.
"Leafstream," she nodded to a blue-gray she-cat.
"Spottedsky," she said to a brown-spotted gray she-cat.
"Greengrass," to a white tom with striking green eyes.
"Sunshadow," to a black tom with yellow eyes.
Goldenlight raised her voice. "We now perform an ancient ceremony; one that has not been used for many years."
The cats nodded worriedly. Ancient ceremonies were held sacred.
"One cat has been called upon to save the forest!" Goldenlight yowled. "This she-cat must succeed, or all will be lost!"
"All will be lost," whispered the eight other cats. "All will be lost."
"This she-cat will rise into the stars now, to be blessed upon by us!"
"To be blessed upon by us…"
A shining, silver she-cat rose up in between the circle made by the nine cats. She was small, with tiny gray paws and large blue eyes. She looked around curiously, as she was only a kit.
Flowerpetal stepped forward.
"With this life I give protection," she mewed softly. "Use it well to guard the Clans."
The she-kit's wide eyes narrowed in pain as she gasped for air. But then it subsided, and she was left, gasping.
Flowerpetal stepped back and Flametail took her place.
"With this life I give you courage," he purred. "Don't be afraid."
The kit trembled, but she had braced herself, and she remained standing. Stripedpelt stepped forward.
"With this life I give you speed," he meowed. "But only flee if you have to."
The she-cat's head lifted with the exhilaration of running as fast as she could, tail flying and the wind in her ears. Rainshine took Stripepelt's place.
"With this life I give you healing," she purred, her green eyes shining. "Never leave a cat wounded."
The she-cat bowed her head, feeling the sadness of death and the joy of recovery. Rainshine stepped back and Leafstream stepped forward.
"With this life I give you love," she meowed softly. "Don't be afraid to love."
Blue eyes closed in ecstasy as the life surged into the young she-cat; she purred and took deep breaths. Leafstream took one last look at the kit; then she stepped back and Spottedsky took her place.
"With this life I give you wisdom," she meowed seriously. "Always contemplate something before acting."
Wisdom far beyond the she-kit's age surged into her spirit, and she bowed her head in respect. Greengrass stepped forward.
"With this life I give you empathy," he meowed. "Always feel for those around you."
Pain, sadness, and joy surged into the kit all at once; the power made her gasp. Greengrass smiled sadly and stepped back as Sunshadow took his place.
"With this life I give you power," he meowed, his eyes shining. "Use it wisely. You hold much in your paws."
He bowed his head to her and stepped back.
Goldenlight took his place.
"With this life I give you imagination," she said. "Use it to find your goals. Don't forget about imagination."
Then she stepped back, and all the cats bowed their heads to the little kit.
"We hail you by your name," announced Goldenlight. "Shiningkit. You will save the Clans."
Far below, in the forest, a medicine cat sat staring at the stars. Suddenly she gasped.
"A prophecy!"
She got to her paws and raced back to her camp, her eyes shining. As she dashed into the place where her Clan lived, the leader emerged from the den.
"Great StarClan, Waterleaf," he exclaimed. "What happened?"
"A prophecy, Runningstar," Waterleaf breathed. "A prophecy happened."
"A prophecy?" whispered Runningstar, his gray fur bristling. "What—what—how—where—how does it go?"
"A shining light will come and save the Clans."
"A shining light," mused Runningstar. "The Clans? Are you sure it wasn't the Clan?"
"I'm sure," replied Waterleaf irritably. "I'm the medicine cat, for StarClan's sake."
"Okay, okay," replied Runningstar. "No need to get your fur ruffled."
He padded back into his den. "I'll think about this, Waterleaf. You should, too."
Waterleaf nodded. "I will."
Then Runningstar went back to his mate, Dawnstorm, who was also the deputy, and Waterleaf went back to her den, both musing over this mystery.
In the nursery, a reddish tom woke up, panting. He glanced over at the four-moon-old white tom and his silver sister. He grinned.
"Eaglekit," he whispered, nudging his brown brother. "Eaglekit, wake up."
Eaglekit didn't wake up.
"Eaglekit!"
Redkit unsheathed his claws and scored them down Eaglekit's back. The handsome, glossy brown tom didn't move.
"Eaglekit?"
Redkit began to panic.
"Eaglekit! Wake up! Please!"