Plague. Destruction. The bodies piled up faster than the clans could bury them. Starclan was silent. An illness was wiping out the cats and their ancestors spoke not a word. For moons this went on. Any healthy, able-bodied cat adopted one of two rolls: hunter or grave digger. The medicine cats were dying out, from sickness and exhaustion, and with no other cats knowledgeable about herbs, the disease began to kill at a more rapid pace. Finally, on the third full moon since the epidemic began, the last living medicine cat, only an apprentice of seven moons, received a dream. A cat with stars in his fur told her that there was only one way for their clans to survive. The remaining cats needed to leave their home at the lake and journey once more to find a new home. But before the starry-cat could tell her more, she was awakened by the wail of a sickly cat in her care.
Marigoldpaw's gold eyes snapped open and she fumbled to her feet, moving to the crying tom's side. She turned quickly to fetch him water, but froze when his cries ceased. Too late. Another one gone. The young she-cat took a deep breath, returning to her former patient. Taking his scruff in her jaw, Marigoldpaw slowly dragged his body from the den. She then moved across the clearing to the 'safe' den. She wasn't allowed inside as she was constantly around sick cats. Only five of her clanmates were allowed to reside there. The rest were dead or dying. And there was nothing she could do but ease their pain. "Blacksnake?" the apprentice called softly. When no one replied, she called again a little louder. This time, a black head poked out of the den.
"Again?" the tom cat asked. His eyes were lifeless and his voice weary. When Marigoldpaw nodded, unable to look him in the eye, Blacksnake sighed. "Alright, alright." He stretched out his long, dark body before following the medicine cat back to her den. Stopping outside, the warrior stared down at the body of his clanmate. "How long will this go on..." Shaking his head, Blacksnake turned to Marigoldpaw. "Go back to bed. I've got this. Rest." With a nod, she obeyed him. As she settled back into her nest, her mind went back to her dream. They would have to leave.
Upon awakening the next morning, the medicine cat apprentice made a beeline for the 'healthy' den. Luckily, all of its inhabitants were present. Once she had explained her dream, the six cats sat in silence. The first to speak was Acornfur. The tawny she-cat currently acted as the diminished clan's leader. "You say that Starclan told you this?" A hint of doubt was in her voice, which Marigoldpaw noticed. The apprentice nodded and the warrior frowned. "After so many moons being absent?"
"They abandoned us!" The outburst made the medicine cat jump. The new voice was Thistleclaw. Once an avid supporter of the ancestors, the silence from Starclan was especially hard for the tom. "When we need them, where were they? They never even warned us! And now they're suddenly back! And where do they expect us to go?! It's not like we can just wander around until we-"
"Thistleclaw!" Acornfur snapped, silencing her clanmate. After a moment of quiet herself, the temporary leader continued. "Marigoldpaw would not lie." She paused here for a moment, as if waiting for someone to disagree. When no one spoke, she continued. "We must go to the other clans and tell them this message. Those who wish to leave will come with me at sunrise tomorrow. Those who wish to stay may stay." The she-cat looked from cat to cat; Blacksnake, Thistleclaw, Robinsong, and Swiftwing. Each held her gaze. When she reached Marigoldpaw, the apprentice looked at her paws.
"I'm going to stay." Robinsong gasped in surprise. The three toms and Acornfur looked almost as though they were expecting it. "I'm the clan's medicine cat. Or at least the closest thing we have. I need to stay with the others. It's..it's my responsibility."
Acornfur's eyes glowed with pride. "Your mother would have been so proud of you." Marigoldpaw's heart twinged a bit, remembering Leafshine. She had been one of the first. The apprentice shook the thought from her head.
"Thank you."
Each clan that the five warriors visited had different reactions to the news. Windclan was thrilled. Or what was left of them. There were five cats, and all agreed to come. They had no sick cats left. Riverclan took the news very similar to Marigoldpaw's clan. Unsure at first, they finally agreed, as long as they could take their ill to Thunderclan's camp to stay with the medicine cat apprentice, which Acornfur easily agreed to. They only added four cats to the group. Shadowclan on the other paw laughed at the others. Only two of the seven healthy cats left the forest. That made for sixteen cats in total, the size of a small clan. That's what they were now; a new clan. The last of the warriors.
Acornfur- former Thunderclan warrior; tawny she-cat
Blacksnake- former Thunderclan warrior; black tom
Cloudysky- former Windclan warrior; white and brown tom
Crookedstream- former Riverclan warrior; gray tabby tom
Eeltail- former Riverclan warrior; gray and white tom
Grasswhisker- former Windclan warrior; brown tom
Hareleap- former Windclan warrior; brown tabby tom
Hazelcloud- former Windclan warrior; light brown she-cat
Poppyshadow- former Shadowclan queen; black and ginger she-cat
Robingsong- former Thunderclan warrior; black she-cat with a white chest
Swiftwing- former Thunderclan warrior; brown tom with black spots
Thistleclaw- former Thunderclan warrior; a tawny tom with darker streaks
Troutripple- former Riverclan warrior; gray she-cat
Dustpaw- former Shadowclan apprentice; black and gray she-cat
Honeypaw- former Riverclan apprentice; light gray she-cat, sister of Berrypaw
Berrypaw- former Riverclan apprentice; light gray she-cat, sister of Honeypaw