Path of Stars: Visions of Destruction

PROLOUGE:

Rainfeather bent her head to lap at the starry water, reflecting all the stars of Silverpelt. It was ice cold to the touch, stretching out, she lay down beside the pool, preparing to see her ancestors, the warriors of StarClan.

The world blurred until all was black. Rainfeather calmly blinked open her eyes to survey the landscape stretched out before her. No starry warriors appeared. "StarClan!" Rainfeather wailed, "Why have you brought me here? What do you wish to show me?"

"Rainfeather!" a voice called. "Reedshine?" Rainfeather, spun around, recognizing her fellow medicine cat's voice. Reedshine pelted over the crest of the hill, "Has StarClan not appeared to you as well?" she asked, panting as she skidded to a halt.

"No," Rainfeather meowed, "I wonder if Ravenfall, Frosttail, and Thrushwing are having this dream as well," she meowed thoughtfully, referring to the other medicine cats.

"Hello?" an uncertain voice shouted through the mist, "StarClan where am I?" "Ravenfall!" Rainfeather meowed, "Over here!" A few moments later, a black tom cat emerged out of the gloom, his amber gaze sparking with apprehension. He sighed in relief, "Thank StarClan," he mewed, "What are our ancestors trying to say?"

"I am not sure," Rainfeather admitted, "But perhaps we should first find Frosttail and Thrushwing." "You don't need too," another voice broke in, a sturdy white tom and a brown tabby she-cat stepped out of the mist, "We're here. What is StarClan going to show us know?"

On cue, the mist began to swirl, blocking out everything. The world began to spin slightly, swaying side to side. Rainfeather's tail stood on an end as she watched, wide eyed.

An eerie voice bellowed, "History will repeat itself, when the world is dead and broken, pale and gray, a single green leaf will lead you out of your sorrow and despair, to where sky, water, wind, shadow, and thunder belong…"

Then all went black.

Rainfeather's eyes shot open, she was still beside the Moonpool. Self-consciously, she groomed her ruffled fur. The other medicine cats were stirring as well. Frosttail sat up, his fluffy white tail swishing back and forth, "Did you all see that?"

Reedshine nodded, "It was a prophecy, an omen." Ravenfall nodded, "The voice said, 'to where sky, water, shadow, and thunder belong.' It's talking about the five clans." "Yes, but what is the single green leaf the voice spoke of?" Thrushwing meowed, "This message was very vague."

Rainfeather agreed silently, how would they ever figure out StarClan's latest prophecy. Whoever or whatever the "single green leaf" is, we're waiting for you…

Chapter One:

"No! Stop!" a voice wailed. Pepper spun around to see a massive Twoleg machine bearing down upon a ginger she-cat and her three kits. "Mommy!" one kit screeched, "Help me!" A Twoleg scooped up the terrified kit and thrust it into the machine.

"No! Wingkit!" the mother shouted with grief. Wingkit? Pepper's mind spun in confusion, who were these cats? The other two kits squealed in terror, "What did the Twoleg do to Wingkit?" one cried.

"I don't know," the mother whimpered, "Move!" The she-cat bundled her remaining kits together and sprinted to an opening in the circle of machines. "Wait!" Pepper shouted, flying after them, her paws sending up the plowed dirt as she went, "Who are you? What's happening?"

The cats did not reply. The ginger she-cat gathered her kits with a sweep of her tail, "Come on my sweets," she whispered hoarsely, "We'll be safe here. We can grieve for Wingkit later."

"Wingkit's not dead!" Pepper meowed, trying to comfort the grieving mother, "She's probably been taken to be a housecat!" The mother did not reply. "Um?" Pepper padded apprehensively towards the mother, "Hello?"

The she-cat's eyes swept over Pepper, not ever meeting her eye. She can't see me, Pepper realized, shock flashing up her pelt like lightning striking a tree.

"Robinwing! Robinwing, where are you?" a male voice shouted, "Robinwing!" The she-cat's eyes lit up like a newborn flame, "Stoneclaw! Stoneclaw I'm here!" she shouted hoarsely.

The sounds of cracking leaves under paws filled the musty air. "Robinwing!" the voice called, getting louder and louder.

Suddenly, a sturdy gray tom leapt out of the bushes, "Robinwing!" his voice cracked with joy and relief, "I'm so glad you're safe!" He pressed his flank against hers and twined their tails.

Robinwing broke away from Stoneclaw's embrace, "The Twolegs took Wingkit," she said hollowly. Stoneclaw's eyes widened in horror, "No… not my daughter… I'll never let them harm you or any of our remaining kits."

A brown tabby tom broke away from the group of cats, "I'm so sorry," he whispered to Stoneclaw, "We have to get out of here. Emberstar's waiting at the island bridge."

Stoneclaw shook himself, "You're right. Finchtail, Birchfeather," he meowed in a commanding tone, "Take Featherkit and Larchkit. I'm helping Robinwing." Two cats raced forward and grabbed the two kits gently by the scruffs and raced off into the undergrowth.

Stoneclaw nudged Robinwing gently to her paws, "Lean against me if you need to," he offered softly. Robinwing shook herself, "No, I'm not going to hold us up," she meowed determinedly.

Then the small tussle of cats raced off and disappeared into the undergrowth. Pepper braced herself to sprint after them when an earth-shaking roar swept her off her feet.

A Twoleg machine loomed over her, its mouth suddenly open, revealing long, sharp pointing fangs, dripping with black ooze. "When the monster makes its rampage against wind, water, shadow, thunder, and sky, follow the path of stars," it bellowed, blasting back Pepper's fur.

Scrambling back, Pepper slammed her paws hard on the forest floor and took off as fast as her legs would carry her.

Pepper sat up, winded. She wasn't in the forest, instead, curled up on her soft plushy bed. She gave a sigh of relief, it was just a dream, not a dream, a nightmare. Nothing more. But something told her it was important. How can a dream be important to real life? Pepper told herself briskly.

Still, the machine's deep, roaring voice echoed in her head, "…follow the path of stars." Pepper forcefully banished the dream as she bent her head to lap at the bowl of water set before her.

The pellets, as usual were tough, disgusting, and hard to swallow down, but she forced some down her throat. Then she stretched, grooming her ruffled dark gray fur. "You're awake," a playful voice meowed, "About time, you sleep like a pig."

Pepper spun around and bowled a spotted white, brown, and black she-cat to the ground, "Hey!" she protested gleefully, as she pinned her friend to the ground, "Ha! I win Aspen."

Aspen grumbled, shaking out her rumpled fur, though her eyes were bright, "I'll get you next time!" Pepper batted Aspen playfully on the ear with one sheathed paw, "Never!"

Suddenly there was a loud yowling noise that disrupted Pepper's grooming. "That came from the yard!" Aspen meowed urgently, "It sounded like a cat."

The two cats raced to the door and pushed through the cat flap. A young silver she-cat was caught in the netting Pepper's owners used to keep rabbits out of their garden. The cat cursed as Pepper approached cautiously, "Back off kittypet!" she snarled, wiggling herself strongly, "I can handle this stupid Twoleg trap."

"Stop," Pepper told the silver she-cat firmly, "You're just getting yourself stuck in more, let me help." The cat's burning blue eyes softened, but just slightly, "Fine," she spat reluctantly, "But don't expect me to owe you any favors!"

"Tell me your name," Pepper meowed, "I've never seen you before." "I'm Silverpaw of ThunderClan," the she-cat meowed proudly, "And you?" "Pepper," Pepper meowed, she flicked her tail at Aspen, "And this is Aspen."

"Kittypet names," Silverpaw snorted in disgust. "Well your name isn't much better," Aspen mewed impulsively. Pepper gave her friend a hard nudge, "I'm sorry," Pepper meowed quickly to Silverpaw.

"What's ThunderClan anyway?" Pepper mewed curiously. Silverpaw flinched, "You don't know what ThunderClan is? Only the strongest, best clan in the entire forest!"

"Forest?" Aspen butted in, "You're one of those wildcats Titan talked about! I thought he was just meowing nonsense." "Who's Titan?" Silverpaw asked warily. "He's a tabby, black, with blue eyes," Aspen meowed, her tail curling up.

Silverpaw's eyes sparked with recognition, "I know that fat cat! Stoneclaw and I drove him off our territory a little while ago," he mouth curled up with amusement, "It was fun." Aspen's tail lashed in outrage, "That's not nice! Titan's just curious!"

"Curious?" Silverpaw snarled, "He was an invader, and invaders get what they get!" "Stop!" Pepper meowed loudly, "Can you two say anything without arguing?" "No," Silverpaw growled.

"Why are you here anyway?" Pepper mewed, changing the subject, but this just made Silverpaw more agitated. "The Twolegs are destroying our forest," Silverpaw growled, showing her sharp teeth, "They've destroyed the area where we gather catmint, Birchfeather's got greencough and she won't make it much longer if we don't get catmint. These Twolegs had catmint, so I tried to get it and got stuck."

Silverpaw clawed at the metal mesh, "Now get me out of here!" "Don't you need the catmint?" Pepper meowed. Silverpaw rolled her eyes, "Yes, but I can't get it because I'm stuck!" Pepper purred in amusement, "I'll get the catmint, Aspen, get her free."

Aspen grumbled as she slowly began to work Silverpaw out of the fence. Pepper sprang up onto the garden fence with one bound and stuck out her tail to balance herself on the narrow pathway.

Then she wiggled her haunches and sprang, landing directly in the patch of catmint. Aspen was still struggling to remove Silverpaw. Pepper pressed her paws hard against Silverpaw's rump and pushed with all her might. With a tearing noise, Silverpaw slipped out of the mesh, leaving large clumps of silver fur behind.

Pepper stared at the torn fur in surprise. Silverpaw shook herself out, "Well don't just stand there!" she meowed, "Get the catmint!"

Pepper nodded quickly, tearing out large clumps of the herb and tossing them over the fence, "Good enough?" she mewed, tossing the last bit of catmint over the metal guard. Silverpaw carefully grasped the precious herbs with her teeth, "Yeah," she meowed, her voice muffled by the catmint.

"Thanks," she mewed curtly before vanishing over the fence. Aspen showed her teeth, "Arrogant wildcat," she meowed with distaste. "It seems cool," Pepper meowed wistfully staring at the nearby forest. Aspen cocked her head to one side, "What seems cool?" "Living out there," Pepper breathed, "Surviving, having a purpose, not just to amuse out Twolegs."

Aspen thought for a moment, "Yeah," she concluded, "Now that I think about it."

"Goodnight Aspen," Pepper meowed drowsily at the end of the day as she circled her soft bed before settling down. Aspen yawned, "See you in the morning."

Pepper curled up comfortably, letting her tail rest over her nose and drifting off into comfortable blackness.

Where am I? Pepper spun around, all around was a forest of tree stumps. The air tasted like a mingled mixture of dust and blood. A shrill wail pierced the icy silence, "Mommy? Robinwing, Featherkit, Larchkit? Some cat help me!" Robinwing? Pepper's head spun. I remember her! And Featherkit and Larchkit!

"I'm coming!" Pepper shouted, "Where are you?" "Robinwing! Robinwing!" the voice squealed. Flicking her ears, Pepper pelted toward where the sound had generated. A small gray kit was huddled in between the roots of a tree stump.

"Don't worry," Pepper meowed, "We'll find Robinwing." Suddenly, the kit's eyes glowed pure red. Surprised, Pepper stumbled backwards, "Wha…?"

"Follow the path of stars!" the kit bellowed in a deep voice before glowing a brilliant red, "Before it's too late." There was a powerful shock wave as the kit disappeared.

Pepper's eyes shot open. Not another weird dream! Pepper blinked a couple of times, she wasn't in her usual waking spot, and instead, she was in a cage, in a crude wooden area, Aspen beside her.

An unusual amount of food was poured into her bowl. Where am I? Pounding rain could be heard from outside, along with howling winds. It's a thunderstorm, but why am I here?

"Aspen," Pepper hissed, shaking her friend, "Aspen wake up!" The she-cat grumbled, opening one amber eye, "Seriously Pepper? Let me sleep." "No! We've been moved!" Pepper meowed loudly. Aspen's eyes opened, "Where the heck are we?" she mewed, sitting up.

Suddenly a large snap could be heard, like one of a falling tree. A tree's falling! "Aspen move!" Pepper yowled, slamming the cage sideways just as the trunk of a tree crashed down from the roof, landing right where the cage was a moment ago.

Aspen's amber eyes were stretched wide, "A tree?" "We've got to get out of here, this isn't normal weather," Pepper meowed urgently, "Help me pick the lock!"

"How do you know?" Aspen asked warily, "It's just a fallen tree." "One that almost killed us!" Pepper snapped, "Our Twolegs aren't here either." "How would you know?" Aspen demanded. "Or else they would be thundering up here! How do they not notice a tree falling into their home? They've left us!" Pepper snarled.

She unsheathed her claws and began clawing at the lock desperately. Another snap, "Incoming!" Aspen screamed, as she and Pepper rolled the cage forward. A tree slammed into the roof and came crashing through, its branches narrowly missing the two cats.

"I take it back!" Aspen yowled, joining Pepper's attempt to pick the lock. "There!" Pepper gasped as she claws caught something, there was a sharp click as the door swung open.

"Come on!" Pepper meowed, shoving her way quickly through the cage. "Where from now?" Aspen cried shrilly, "We're trapped!"

Mouse dung! Pepper scanned the surrounding before her eyes lit on the hole in the roof the tree had made. "There!" she yowled, springing up and catching the top with her claws.

Flexing her muscles, she pulled herself up and balanced, wobbling slightly. Her breath caught in her throat… Oh my… "What's wrong?" Aspen meowed as she muscled her way up, "Ohhh…."

"We're on the roof!" Aspen wailed, "In the middle of… of a killer storm!" All around them the wind howled, blowing with such force that Pepper had to dig in her claws to stay straight, "We've got to climb down, before the wind blows us down itself."

Aspen's eyes screwed up in fear, "I'm scared Pepper," she meowed simply. "It'll be okay," Pepper meowed, unsure if she was just reassuring herself, "We'll get through this, together."

Ears flat against her head, Pepper stalked forward, pressing so low that her belly fur brushed the hard roof tile. The wind howled, threatening at any time to sweep Pepper off her paws. Digging her claws deeper into the surface, Pepper made her way to the edge step by step.

A strong gust of wind buffeted Pepper's fur, sending her skidding backwards, she stopped herself with a painful wrench of her claws. "Are you okay?" Aspen's panicked mew could barely be heard above the roaring wind. "Fine," Pepper meowed through gritted teeth, "Just wrenched a claw."

Ignoring the stabbing pain shooting up her leg, Pepper edged up to the cliff. Cautiously, she dangled her back legs over the edge, grasping the ledge with her front paws. Screwing up her eyes to stop them from watering, Pepper's eyes lit onto a ledge sticking out from the wall. It was risky, as the landing would be on a narrow strip of wood and it didn't look very stable.

With no other choice, Pepper bunched up her dangling legs over the wall, pushed off and soared through the air. With a little wobble, Pepper landed, balancing precariously on the narrow ledge. It was creaking under her weight, she had to move fast.

"Aspen hurry!" Pepper shouted over the wind, "This ledge won't hold up for you much longer!"

Aspen peered fearfully over the edge, "What if I miss it?" "Then you'll land in the bushes!" Pepper yowled, "Just go!"

Pepper sprang down to the floor, landing much more gracefully than she had expected. Aspen hesitated, then leapt, just as the loose wood was swept away by the powerful gusts. Aspen yowled out in fear, trying to cling to the wall as she fell, her eyes wild.

"Aspen!" Pepper screamed, watching helplessly. With a thud, Aspen fell straight into the bushes, the leaves and branches collapsed under her weight and Aspen was swallowed by the waving brambles.