AvatarCat13: Hey there, everyone! We have some good news for you! First, my mom and sister are coming up for Thanksgiving and for the baptism of Caroline; that, I can't wait for. Second, we have seen the grand finale of The Legend Of Korra Book 2, and what a finale it was! We might have to plan on something like that for this story!
Korra: That way, it'll be an Avatar Cat premiere that you won't forget in a hurry! And I have a surprise that you might all know about...so Avatar Cat, how's your vacation in Pennsylvania doing?
AvatarCat13: Doing good so far...still haven't seen my ex-girlfriend yet, though. I've already gotten Pokémon X version, and it's awesome!
Korra: I heard that, and that's great! I hope you saw a lot of new Pokémon, and I hope you do well reading scriptures at the baptism; that, I heard of too. Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta go say the disclaimer.
Disclaimer: Just remember. I DO NOT own The Legend Of Korra or Warrior Cats. They belong to Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko, and Erin Hunter.
Uploading Date: November 20, 2013
Enjoy!
...
The Aurora Of The South
It was early in the morning in the Southern WaterClan, but Owlflame was up and ready, already riding Nisa over to the musk oxen stables. She was eager to learn from Cinderstar and get to the good stuff...unlike Sunstar, she thought in a mildly cross way. It was thanks to him and her father that she hadn't had time to grow and train the way she wanted to.
Owlflame could have sworn she felt her pelt ruffle not from the cold...but by something not right around...something supernatural. But she didn't want to think about it right now. As she arrived, there were supplies on the ground and several cats tending to the musk oxen, large shaggy brown beasts that looked like massive sheep. She spotted Cinderstar at the lead, scanning the area with narrowed green eyes.
"Good morning, Owlflame," her uncle remarked. "Seems like you're up and early."
"Well, what can I say?" Owlflame meowed, her tail tip twitching. "I'm pumped up to learn that spirit fighting anytime."
Cinderstar rested his tail on her flank. "I admit your courage, but I'm not here to teach you to fight spirits. I'm here to help you begin your spiritual training. We're going to go on a short expedition to one of the most remote places in the world, the long neglected spiritual center of your Clan: The South Pole."
Owlflame was surprised. "The South Pole? You're training me there?"
"Yes. But we will do more than just train," Cinderstar explained. "By neglecting the spirits of StarClan, the southern cats have brought this darkness upon themselves, and now it threatens to destroy our Clan. We must set things right. The Southern WaterClan's fate rests in your paws."
"A dangerous trip to the South Pole, huh?" Owlflame meowed. "Count me in!"
Cinderstar nodded with approval, and Owlflame felt light all over again. With him around, she could learn a lot faster instead of having to go through training step by step. Plus, her father would not worry about her all the time, and she would learn with ease.
Owlflame looked back towards the mountains and smiled. South Pole, here we come!
...
The clouds around Ryu clouded over until Sunstar was seeing nothing. Part of him was happy to spend time with his family again, but a day of travelling had tampered the good mood a bit. His siblings kept teasing him, and the kits were getting restless. Even Ivypaw, his oldest kit and the most patient, was getting a little bored and eager to explore. Sunstar prayed silently to his warrior ancestors for patience, for they were soon bound to be there.
Finally, the clouds began to dissolve, and Sunstar knew that they had arrived. They had made it to the Southern AirClan camp, where Goldstar was born many years ago.
"There it is," Sunstar sighed, breathing in the late leaf-bare air. "Isn't it magnificent?"
Ryu swept low until he was heading towards a courtyard, where cats were walking around and feeding white-tailed hawks. Ever since United City had been founded, Goldstar had elected a group of cats to follow the ways of AirClan and to carry on its tradition. True, none of these cats were AirBenders, but they were loyal to their Clan and the Warrior Code that bond all of them together as one.
The cats on the ground noticed Ryu, who landed on the ground before the main building. As Sunstar helped his kits down, he noticed a tabby tom with white paws approaching him. So he got Crowkit and Goldkit to the ground and approached the group of cats arrived. They had brought over boxes containing lots of stuff.
"Welcome, Sunstar!" the tabby cat purred, dipping his head to the AirClan leader.
"It's good to see you again, Abbot Snowfoot," Sunstar meowed back as he returned the gesture.
Snowfoot nodded. "Is there anything you need, Sunstar? Water? Fresh-kill? Or perhaps to find inner peace by ruminating in the gardens?"
Sunstar held up a gentle yet firm paw. "No, thank you. I'm fine."
"All right then." Snowfoot turned to see Dawnfall and dipped his head to her, purring. "And you must be the honorable and beautiful Dawnfall. It's nice to meet you at last."
"The same to you," Dawnfall purred with a smile and a blush.
Snowfall beckoned for some cats to scoot some stuff forward. "Please accept these gifts. This is an ancient AirBender fur brush we've refurbished just for you." He gave Sunstar an odd-looking device resembling hairbrushes attached to a wire dome with a propeller on top.
This made Sunstar gaze down at the gift in confusion. On one hand, it looked bizarre. But on the other hand, it would be rude to insult a gift in front of guests, and he did not want to be rude. Thus, he meowed, "Oh...thank you. My pelt is feeling rather knotted in any case."
"And Dawnfall." Snowfoot nudged an enormous bouquet of flowers over to her paws. "These rare and beautiful mountain flowers once filled the mountainside. Now they can brighten up your room like the sun through the clouds."
Like Sunstar, Dawnfall thanked him a bit awkwardly through the mouthful of stems in her teeth. "That's...very sweet of you. You didn't have to."
The tabby tom flicked his ear. "Nonsense! Whatever is ours is yours too, from the prey we hunt to the stream water we drink. We would all do anything for the blessed mother of the next generation of AirBenders."
"That gift is mine!" Sunstar looked up to see Plumpaw scooping a book away from Ivypaw and staring indignantly at her.
Ivypaw mewed, "Hand it over. You don't even like to read anyways."
All the gray tabby did was stick her tongue out at her. That made Ivypaw leap at her until both she-cats were rolling around on the ground, pawing at each other with sheathed claws.
Sunstar felt a bit embarrassed about how rudely his children were behaving in front of their honored guests. Even Dawnfall remarked sarcastically, "Yep, those are the world's next generation of AirBenders."
Just then, a young white-tailed hawk swooped down from the sky, Foxkit in its gentle talons. The little kit was mewling in his kit voice, "Mommy, Daddy, look! I finally got a bird! I'm gonna name him Crunchy."
The hawk let go of Foxkit, who dropped onto Snowfoot's back, as it flew away. Foxkit jumped off of the tabby cat and chased after "Crunchy", calling his new name. Sunstar knew that this was perhaps not the way he wanted the vacation to start, but he knew it would soon be fine. Kits will be kits, his father had told him and his littermates once, and he knew the same was true for his own children.
Meanwhile, Seashell and Rockfall were just getting off of Ryu, getting the luggage off of the saddle. Rockfall was holding two large sacks in his jaws and wheezing while Seashell slid down with the same grace as a WaterClan cat, just like their mother. As they were trying to get the stuff together, they saw a mottled light brown she-cat padding by; perhaps she could help them.
"A little help here?" Rockfall panted. After a look from Seashell, he added, "Please."
The she-cat looked quickly around at them before looking away again. "I'm sorry," she mewed politely. "I thought you were the servants."
Rockfall looked confused. "What in StarClan's paw pads are you meowing about? We're Sunstar's littermates."
"What?" the she-cat meowed, looking excited now. "Goldstar and Silverheart had other kits? The world is filled with more AirBenders?"
Seashell shook her head. "No, we're not AirBenders. I'm a WaterBender, and my brother here is a non-Bender."
Thad made the she-cat drop the excited expression as she dipped her head to them. "Oh. I'm so sorry. Sorry to bother you."
This made Seashell and Rockfall glance at each other, looking annoyed.
...
The time of the expedition had arrived. Owlflame, Redblaze, Cinderstar, Palepaw, and Duskpaw were on the outskirts of town, preparing Nisa and their musk oxen to travel. Cinderstar had said that Palepaw and Duskpaw were close enough to becoming warriors, and this trip would be like an assessment to them. This made Owlflame thankful that they didn't talk much; whenever they did, they would often talk down to her, Avatar Cat or not.
She looked around the snowy area. Stonetail had wanted to come along, but it seemed to be taking him a while to get there. With an impatient look towards tow, she looked back towards Redblaze, who was packing a sack onto Nisa's saddle.
"Isn't Stonetail coming?" Owlflame asked. She wanted all three of them to make the trip at the same time; Emerald couldn't, though, because of business.
Redblaze leapt down. "Yeah. He said he'd be here, but I can't worry about it now. I have to make sure you have everything you need for a safe trip."
Owlflame swiped his muzzle with her tail and meowed, "Thanks for that, Captain Gilligan, but I'll be fine. I'm a warrior."
"I know you are."
But as she let Redblaze get onto Nisa's saddle with her, Owlflame heard the sound of an engine and turned around. Tanrock was riding up on a cat-sized snowmobile, or what many cats called "snow monsters". Owlflame hoped that he would not distracted her from what she had wanted to do for a while; he would never stop them from this mission.
"What do you want?" Cinderstar asked right away, approaching his brother.
Tanrock's gaze traveled over to his daughter as he still faced Cinderstar. "I heard you're taking Owlflame out to the South Pole. I'm coming with you."
Without any hesitation, Cinderstar replied, "No, absolutely not. You will be a distraction to your daughter and a burden to what needs to be done."
"My daughter is not going without me," Tanrock growled. "There are hazards and predators out there that can snatch up a young cat. She needs someone to watch after her."
"Why the hell do you always think you know what's best for me?" Owlflame hissed at him from Nisa's saddle. "I can take care of myself!"
"For once, I will ignore the foul language," Cinderstar meowed. Throwing his brother a look of contempt, he went on, "And your father wants to come along because he's foolish. The sad truth is it is cats like your father who have put StarClan out of balance. He has ignored my warnings in the past and hasn't learned since."
Owlflame tilted her head to one side. "Really? What happened in the past?"
With a scowl still towards Cinderstar, Tanrock meowed, "It doesn't matter. What matters now is the Everstorm.
"The Everstorm?" Redblaze asked. "What's that?"
"It's a massive blizzard that's battered the South Pole for decades." Tanrock glared back at his brother and snarled, "I'm coming along with you, and if you try and stop me, then we'll fight, and I'll be your opponent."
Owlflame could feel her heart skip with tension and her pelt bristle as her father and uncle glared at each other. She prayed for StarClan to break up the tension with something...anything. To her relief, it did happen.
"Guys! Wait for me!"
They all turned around to see Stonetail heading to them. The brown tabby tom was riding up to the group on a snowmobile with a sidecar, and he appeared to be wearing green Twoleg pelts. He called out with a smirk, "Check it out! I'm now travelling in style!"
But then, he rested a foreleg on the throttle and accidentally made it lurch forward. "Okay, sorry," he mewed, steadying it. "Still getting used to that throttle."
"Where'd you get the ride?" Redblaze asked.
"I got it from Dodger," came the reply. "He's really awesome. He also gave me this real fancy snowsuit made for cats. It's inflatable with an internal heater, emergency beacon, and a food pouch. I mean, if I get lost, I can survive in this thing for like...like a moon." He reached into the snowsuit and pulled out some thin strips of meat. "Who wants some seal jerky?"
No one answered.
This made Stonetail look around and mew "Nobody? Did I interrupt something?" As he said it, Timon emerged from the snow suit and snatched the seal jerky from him.
"No, the talking's over anyways," Owlflame told him. With a glare towards Tanrock, she told him, "Dad, if you want to tag along, it's fine. Just don't interfere with my training, okay?"
At this, she steered Nisa away and rode up to the front of the group. She did not really want him to come along with them, but he seemed to be insistent on doing so. Still, Owlflame was happy that Cinderstar was letting her train outside of the Clan...unlike Sunstar.
Duskpaw padded up to Stonetail and asked in that dull tone of hers, "Does this sidecar have the capacity for two passengers?"
Stonetail nodded proudly. "Yep. But who's gonna drive?"
...
Palepaw and Duskpaw seemed to have provided an answer without saying anything. Stonetail was now driving the snowmobile, looking cross with a scowl on his face, while Palepaw and Duskpaw rode together in the sidecar. This made Owlflame want to laugh, but there wasn't any time for laughing, for they had to get to the Everstorm quickly.
Redblaze, however, decided to make a joke. He steered the ox he was riding to Stonetail and chuckled, "Well, what do you know? Looks like-"
"Shut it," Stonetail grumbled.
Owlflame felt a smile tug on her muzzle before seeing Cinderstar steer his own ox up to the top of a small hill. This, she let Nisa run after them until they were scanning the barren tundra together. It really looked like nothing (or no one) had lived here a long time, though she knew that it must have been the opposite years ago.
"What happens when we get to the South Pole?" she asked her uncle.
Cinderstar looked around at her. "Once we get there, you will open an ancient spirit portal."
This stumped Owlflame. "The what now?"
"At the South Pole, there is a portal that connects our world to StarClan," Cinderstar explained. "But it has long been closed for countless moons."
"And that's why the evil spirits are attacking everyone?" Owlflame guessed.
Cinderstar gave her a rather intense look. "Yes and no. You see, Owlflame, there is light and dark in all spirits. So there is really no need to call them 'evil spirits'. But when they become unbalanced just like recently, the darkness takes over. If you can open the portal in time, peace and balance will be restored to all the Clans."
That just made Owlflame even more confused. "Okay, you lost me there, Uncle. What do you mean by 'in time'?"
"There's a reason why the Glacial Festival ends on the leaf-bare solstice. That's when StarClan and the physical world are close together." The determination in his green eyes seemed to glow even brighter. "Only then can the Avatar Cat open the portal."
Owlflame remembered that. It usually appeared around the start of leaf-bare, and Avatar Cats like Goldstar before her would communicate with StarClan this way. She would actually get to visit the place on her own this time instead of a StarClan warrior appearing before her. That would take the pressure off my shoulders.
"Really?" she asked out loud. "The winter solstice is tomorrow."
Cinderstar nodded. "Exactly. And we can't wait another year."
He went down the hill, Owlflame following him. She just knew something big was going to happen once the leaf-bare solstice (or known as the winter solstice by others) would arrive. But she knew that once she had the proper training she felt she deserved, then she could be able to use whatever Cinderstar taught her and use it for the greater good. That part, though, made her wonder what this "greater good" thing was.
Just then, Nisa started growling, making Owlflame soothe her by saying "Whoa there, Nisa", and rubbing her ears with a paw. Just under some large icicles hanging from a rocky outcropping, a couple of dark spirit began materializing out of nowhere.
"What are those?" Stonetail mewed with a whimper.
Owlflame's eyes narrowed. "Dark spirits."
But as soon as they appeared, the dark spirits suddenly vanished in the fog. This left a bad feeling in Owlflame's insides, and she felt like her paws wanted to leave right away.
"Let's keep moving," Tanrock spoke up as if reading his daughter's thoughts. "We have to find a safe place to set up camp. After that, we hunt."
Much as Owlflame was still angry at her father for overprotecting her, he had a point. They needed to find shelter or else predators like wolves or polar leopards could find them. Plus, her belly gave a slight rumble, and she knew she hadn't eaten anything since yesterday night at the carnival. Food and shelter were very much needed to replenish their energy until they continued their journey to the Everstorm.
...
Noticing the snow hare look up from grazing, Owlflame hid in a snow bank, trying to hide her scent and herself from the prey. No one else was stalking it, so she was free on this hunt. As she recalled a trick Silverheart taught her while hunting, the rabbit suddenly looked up and ran. But Owlflame was ready; she Bended the snow with her tail, turned some of it into icicles, and threw them at the hare, piercing its leg and making it squeal in pain. With a triumphant yowl, she dealt the final blow to the neck and carried it back to camp.
The cats were huddling in a cave for warmth and shelter, away from the howling winds and the hungry wolves outside. Thanks to having two EarthBenders in the group, they were able to make part of the rock wall fall down so cats could get in our out. A fire burned in the middle of the inside of a cliff, which kept the wind from blowing at them.
Once Owlflame dropped the hare, she asked Cinderstar, "Uncle, why do you think the dark spirits are following us?"
"Can we not talk about dark spirits please?" Stonetail whimpered pathetically.
Redblaze gave Stonetail a rather embarrassed look before turning to Cinderstar. "Sorry about that. My brother doesn't like ghost stories, especially the story of some 'donkey lady' or whatever the hell that is."
Duskpaw looked over at Stonetail. "Don't worry," she meowed tonelessly. "I will protect you, my feeble turtle."
"Thank you."
Cinderstar shook his head. "To tell you the truth, this isn't a ghost story. This is real. The spirits are angry, and it's all his doing," he added with a growl and disdainful look at Tanrock."Haven't you ever wondered how your father ended up here in the South Pole? Why he's never taken you to visit his birthplace in the North?"
Right away, Tanrock leapt to his paws, glaring at his brother. "Cinderstar, this is not the time."
Cinderstar snorted. "You're right. You should have told her a long time ago."
"Told me what?" Owlflame asked sharply, whiskers twitching.
"He's right; I should've told you before." Tanrock looked down at his paws. "I left the North Pole not on my own accord...I was exiled."
...
Commercial Break
...
What Tanrock had said nearly took the breath out of Owlflame. Her father was banished from the Northern Clan? Wasn't he happy here with her and Dovesong while making a life here? It made her feel angry, betrayed, and confused all the same time, and she didn't know where to even begin this talk.
"You were exiled?" she asked her father. "But...why?"
"Because I almost destroyed the Clan." Tanrock gave a sigh and began his tale.
"Nearly three years ago, I was the deputy of the Northern WaterClan, sworn to protect my Clanmates at the cost of my life. I had also followed the Warrior Code even though I wasn't really spiritual. Plus, I had trained an apprentice well in the ways of the warriors, and things were calm and peaceful for a while. Then came the time when I was really exiled.
"I was patrolling with some warriors, making sure the Clan got fed and keeping enemies out of the city. Just as we were making a round near the palace, Cinderstar came forth on a long-furred horse. He was Cinderdusk back then, and I saw that he had something important to say.
"'Brother, we're being attacked by rogues,' Cinderdusk told me. 'Father said to help him repel the intruders. Hurry!'
"I was astonished beyond belief. How did intruders get into the city? A heavily guarded city? I thought. But my duty to help my Clan and my family won over.
"Right when I arrived in the middle of the city, chaos reigned. Cats were fleeing as the rogues attacked, one of them tossing a recently-killed warrior into a canal. He was ready to whirl around at a cornered kit when I sprang forth and sank my fangs and claws into his pelt, ripping hard at it before throwing him away. I Bended the water from the canal and threw it at them, surprising them by this ambush, and soon, I drove them out and into the frozen tundra.
"We gave chase to them, chasing the rogues with yowls as we charged forward, following their retreating forms and pawprints. Soon, we eventually tracked them deep into an ancient forest, a lush green forest nestled in the valley. Many believed this forest was the home to spirits, and those bastards had come here because they wouldn't attack on such sacred ground.
"They thought wrong."
Owlflame quivered in mild alarm at the fresh anger in his voice, and there was also...regret? What had he done to get banished from the Clan?
Tanrock went on, "We had come across the sled tracks and the hoof prints of the caribou the rogues had ridden and followed them up a hill. I looked over it to scan the forest and then flicked my tail for my fellow warriors to keep an eye out, for they were dangerous.
"Once we were inside, three warriors Bended a huge wave of water at a couple of rogues who were nearby. They yowled and tried to flee, but they were swept way as the water rushed at the lot of them. I did the same thing, not knowing that the forest was slowly getting flooded, the lake water filling the clearing, before we went to round up the rogues. We had defended our Clan and captured the rogues...but at a cost: we had destroyed the forest, many trees broken and mangled and the ground dug up and flooded.
"I didn't realize the consequences of what I had done. I was in the main palace, asleep, until I heard a badger-like snarl outside. As quick as a flash, I leapt out of bed, wondering what that sound was coming from. I ran over towards the balcony of my den and saw a horrifying sight: By destroying the forest, I unknowingly let loose angry spirits, and they were now attacking our city when it was already safe.
"I spotted an old cat running away as a huge crocodile-like spirit prowled towards him. Without even thinking of what I was going to do next, I leapt down, ice forming around my claws, and raced towards it, catching it under the nose with a big hefty swipe. As the spirit turned on me, I threw a stream of water at the spirit before dodging out of the way as it lashed out at me with its large scaly tail. They threatened to destroy everything and the entire city, and StarClan spirits or not, we just couldn't let that go.
"The spirit was about to strike again, but it was stopped by a twisting helix of water being Bended around it. Cinderdusk was Bending the water, which began to glow, as the same thing happened to the other spirits being calmed by other WaterBenders. Finally calmed down, they went back to where they came from.
"In the end, Cinderdusk was able to guide the spirits back to the forest. But by then, the damage had been done. For being the cause of so much devastation, my father and leader banished me from the Clan in shame. That's when I came to the South and started a new life: I had met your mother and had you, the only kit in the litter. I had kept this a secret to protect you."
There was silence as all the other cats except for Cinderstar thought it over. Finally, Stonetail spoke up, "Whoa. So you were supposed to be chief, then he became the leader. No wonder you guys don't like each other."
In response, Redblaze cuffed him upside the head with a stern look.
"Ow!" Stonetail yelped, looking back at him and massaging the stricken spot. "What? Isn't that what happened?"
But Owlflame did not join them. Inside, she was furious and vengeful towards Tanrock. There were more lies he had told her, and there was the fact that he was protecting her too much. She stood up and hissed at her father, "So you kept this a secret all this time? And you never told me? Not once?"
Tanrock looked even more ashamed. "Yes, that's the truth. But I was protecting you from the shame I brought on the family."
"Why do you keep hiding things from me and then telling me it's for my safety?" Owlflame cut him off harshly. "I'm tired of you protecting me! I just hate you right now!"
Without seeing his reaction, she spun around and stalked off. But while she had walked away, Tanrock had bowed his large head in shame.
Owlflame didn't care if she had hurt him with those words, for she wanted him to feel the anger of being lied to. It wasn't fair that he lied to her and Dovesong about what happened, not fair at all. After what she had heard, she had a feeling to just go back, but the mission would fail, and all the training would be up to nothing.
...
Ivypaw could not help but feel excited: it was time for Sunstar to show her and her littermates the room where all the statues of the Avatar Cats resided. She had heard much about how each Avatar Cat like Owlflame and her grandfather Goldstar was reincarnated into each Clan (WaterClan, EarthClan, FireClan, and AirClan respectively) for many moons. It was very exciting to learn all kinds of history from all sorts of places, like in the stories her grandmother Silverheart told her about.
They were now walking into a room filled with statues of the past Avatar Cats arranged in a spiral. These statues looked rather ancient due to dust covering nearly all of them, and they looked as old as the earth itself. It was one of the reasons why Ivypaw wanted to visit this AirClan camp so much; her grandfather had made history here.
"Wow," Ivypaw mewed in awe, looking around. "It's the statue room."
"That's right, Ivypaw," Sunstar meowed with a nod. "This is the most sacred place in the entire Southern AirClan Temple. Here, you will find statues of every Avatar Cat who ever lived, even your grandfather." But just then, he looked around and asked, "Where are your littermates? They should be here by now."
But as soon as he said this, two blurs of fur (one gray and one pale orange) zipped past them on their air paws, shouting loudly and playfully. The wind they whipped up blew Sunstar's mane over his eyes, making Ivypaw sigh inwardly. If only her siblings showed as much interest in the spiritual stuff like she, then they wouldn't be running around and disrupting the peace.
"You can't catch me!" Foxkit was squeaking. "I'm the bestest air-scooter-er of all time!"
Just then, he tripped and crashed into a statue, which started to crack. Sunstar looked shocked as he exclaimed "No, Foxkit!" and rushed off to help his oldest son.
Once her father was busy, Ivypaw noticed a certain statue and padded to the front of it. It was the statue of her grandfather himself, Avatar Cat Goldstar. Once again, Ivypaw recalled the stories she had heard about him from Silverheart, of how he was frozen for fourteen years before saving the world from FireClan's former leader, Darkstar. She also knew he had a rich golden pelt and looked around at her shoulder fur; her fur wasn't golden, but it was a crisp golden brown.
Ivypaw sat up on her haunches and tilted her head back to get a better look at him, for he was a rather tall cat. Just as she did so, she heard a whisper behind her and turned to see if it was her father, but Sunstar was already herding Plumpaw and Foxkit from the statues. There was no way any physical cat got this close to her; a spirit must have called to her.
...
After a night's worth of sleep in the cave, the cats were on the move again. Owlflame stuck close to Cinderstar, still not wanting to talk with her father. Tanrock had betrayed her and Dovesong by keeping this secret, so he had given up the right to talk to her freely. But that didn't keep him from trying, though.
"Owlflame." She heard Tanrock meowing to her, yet she kept walking. "You have every right to be angry with me, but I don't want you to make the same mistake I made those moons ago. I should have never gone into that forest, I know that. And we shouldn't be going to the South Pole now. StarClan and the physical world should remain separate.
Owlflame stopped walking and turned to glare at her father. "Dad, don't try talking me out of this. It's my job to be the bridge between the spirits and the physical world, and I finally have a chance to reach my potential."
Tanrock gazed at her with exasperation. "You don't even know if what Cinderstar says is true."
"You want proof in my words?" Cinderstar snapped at him. "Look up to the sky. Where I'm from, the spirits are at peace, and they light up the dark as easily as day."
"The Northern Lights," Owlflame murmured, imagining seeing the spirits in the stars dancing.
Cinderstar nodded. "Yes. There used to be lights in the South as well but during the hundred year war, the South was thrown out of balance and the lights disappeared. When the Fourteen Year War ended, the cats of the North helped to rebuild you physically as a Clan, but we have not yet rebuilt you spiritually. Now the spirits no longer dance in your skies as they had once done all those moons ago. Instead, they rampage in the Everstorm."
Before Tanrock could reply, Redblaze called from a cliff, "I think we're here."
Hearing him, they steered Nisa and the musk ox to the edge of the cliff, wind and snow blowing hard against Owlflame so she had to keep her head down. Before the cats was a sight she never thought she would see in the South Pole.
The Everstorm was just ahead of them, lightning thundering in the huge storm clouds. Owlflame could feel something strong and powerful coming from deep within the chasm, and if she got near, then things could become clearer. With a nod from Cinderstar, the blue-gray cat and Nisa slid down the slope, the others following them. It wasn't that long to go; just a few hours, and they would finally reach the Everstorm.
But suddenly, Nisa stopped and growled at a certain wail. Owlflame looked behind her after she heard a soft whispering wail of a spirit. Around them, the other cats looked around and scanned the area for something amiss.
"Is that what I think it is?" Stonetail mewled. "I hate ghosts!"
Cinderstar just merely walked on ahead. "Hurry. We must keep moving."
So they did. But as they padded along the snow, Owlflame heard it: it was a louder and more menacing growl, like a leopard. Stonetail shivered in the snowmobile, mewling, "Great piles of goose feathers! I got a REALLY bad feeling!"
"Stay calm, Stoner," Redblaze reassured him from on top of the musk ox he rode. "There's no reason to...panic!"
Suddenly, he swiped his claws at a small black creature, which burst from the snow below him and leapt at his ox, snatching away some supplies. Three more dark spirits leapt from the snow at the others; they all looked like monkeys. One grabbed onto Nisa's ears, making her howl and bark in rage, while another stole some of the supplies Cinderstar brought along. Another swiped supplies from Owlflame and causes Nisa to real back and fall to the ground.
Owlflame looked up in time to see a falcon-like spirit emerge, creating wings and flying. It was about to come at her, talons outstretched, when Tanrock got in between them and Bended a wall of ice in front of it. The dark falcon spirit flew around the wall, but was hit by his claws. Just as Owlflame was about to snap at her father for helping, she heard a roar behind her and noticed a short raptor-like spirit running at her.
"Hurry, Owlflame!" Tanrock yowled, shoving her out of the way. "Get to safety!"
Owlflame hissed at the thought of being protected yet again by him, but she leapt out of the way anyways. Tanrock Bended a downward wave of water at the falcon spirit, but it dodged to the side and knocked him down towards Stonetail's snowmobile with a powerful gust sent from its wings. But that was a mistake, for a monkey-sized spirit jumped at the snowmobile and phased on into the engine.
"Shit!" Stonetail cursed in terror. "It's in the engine! IT'S IN THE ENGINE!"
The engine burst into a cloud of smoke, and the monkey spirit popped out from the top. With a burst of fire from the exhaust, the snowmobile sped out of control and away from the group, Stonetail yowling in panic and Palepaw and Duskpaw still calmly sitting in the passenger seat.
Owlflame leapt at the raptor spirit and swiped her claws down its face while Redblaze lashed out at the falcon spirit behind her. The falcon also swooped in from behind, the other two spirits doing the same towards the two cats, who dodged out of the way. But when the cats got out of the way, Owlflame saw why this was a bad thing to do: dodging ended up causing the spirits to all collide into each other, forming one large gorilla-like spirit.
Quickly, Owlflame got to her haunches and waved her forelegs in circles, trying to create a spiral of water around it like Cinderstar did to calm it. The gorilla spirit stood still as if it would glow and be calm for a moment, but the attempt failed, and it rushed at Owlflame. It swiped a large arm at the blue-gray warrior and knocks her down. It quickly pinned her down and brought its face close to hers, opening its mouth to screech and revealing rows of sharp teeth. Owlflame froze for a moment as it got closer, its stale breath staining her pelt.
But then, the spirit began to glow and dissolve, and Owlflame saw why: Cinderstar was using the calming ritual again. The spirit transformed into a large bright-colored owl and flew up towards the heavens. When it was done, Cinderstar finished his ritual, and Redblaze stepped forward to nudge his mate back up to her paws.
"Is everyone okay?" the red-orange tom asked, looking around.
They heard Stonetail yowling, and Owlflame saw the snowmobile heading towards her and Redblaze. Quickly, they leapt out of the way as the snowmobile started racing up a slope towards a tall mountainside, Stonetail yowling, "I can't stop this thing!"
"I'll save you," Duskpaw meowed stoically as she and Palepaw grabbed Stonetail by the scruff and leapt back with him.
Stonetail yelpedas they flew backward, and they all saw the snowmobile crash hard into the mountain. The twins dropped the brown tabby tom, and the green Twoleg pelt he was wearing inflated as it slid down the slope with Timon riding on top. He now looked like a raft as he slid down towards the cats, cheering, "Look at this! I'm Stoneraft!"
Palepaw and Duskpaw leapt down the slope ahead of him, their claws unsheathed and formed into icicles to grip the finally came to a halt before Redblaze, who managed to stop him by holding him still. Owlflame was happy that they all made it back in one piece; the ache in her side where the gorilla struck her still hurt, but they were all alive.
"Uh...can someone deflate me?" Stonetail asked. Duskpaw Bended ice spikes from the snow and pierced the suit, deflating it quickly. "Thank you."
Beside Owlflame, Redblaze went back over to the oxen, where they were shivering from being startled. Other than scared from the attack, the spirits hadn't harmed them...but their supplies weren't so lucky.
"Well, there goes our stuff," Redblaze growled, glaring around at the ruined supplies. "Now what the hell do we do?"
"We have to turn back," Tanrock meowed right away. "Right now."
"No," Cinderstar replied right away. "The solstice is tonight. We're so close to the Everstorm."
Tanrock shook his head. "This mission is too dangerous even for warriors. We're leaving."
That made Owlflame bristle in anger. Her father didn't want what was best for her; all he cared about was keeping her under his paw. She still did not want to forgive him for getting himself banished from his Clan and not telling anyone. In fact, if it weren't for him, then they wouldn't have much to worry about.
"No, Dad," she growled, glaring at him. "You're leaving. You've done enough damage."
...
Commercial Break
...
"Don't worry, sir. I'll keep Owlflame safe for you."
"Thank you, Redblaze. May the fleas be banished from your pelt."
Redblaze and Tanrock traded nods before the latter leapt onto the snowmobile and sped off into the fog. Owlflame had been watching them with displeasure; even if he wasn't going to be around, her father was still trying to baby her by having Redblaze watch her. She knew she wanted to have her mate by her side, but if he was going to be like him, then she wasn't going to go down quietly.
"Let's go." Owlflame looked over at Cinderstar, who was ready to depart. "We need to open this portal and lead your father and the entire Southern Clan back in the right direction. We don't have much time left."
"Then what're we waiting for?" Owlflame asked, steering Nisa to him. "Let's go!"
She made it back to the group and looked around. Stonetail was sitting in the now-separated side car of his snowmobile, looking disgruntled just like last time, being pulled along by the musk ox being ridden by Duskpaw and Palepaw. They were all going to travel in a single-file line to make traveling a little easier for the group.
"What were you and Dad talking about?" Owlflame asked Redblaze as they rode together.
"Nothing...nothing much," Redblaze meowed, though she knew he was lying. "It's not that bad. He was just worried about you, that's all."
But that didn't satisfy Owlflame; instead, it made her even moodier. "I sometimes wonder whose side you're really on," she muttered, urging Nisa onward with a light shoulder tap.
Redblaze caught up with her, growling, "Owlflame, we're all on the same side, and we all just want to help however we can. You have to trust that we're here for you. Doesn't that mean a lot to you instead of doing stuff by yourself?"
That made Owlflame stop and think this over. Now that she realized it, she knew that she had been rather harsh with her own mate recently. Plus, she had also been slightly short with anyone who asked why she wasn't Sunstar's apprentice anymore. She had been taking out her anger on several cats, and she didn't know why. To make it up, she leapt over from Nisa onto the ox that Redblaze was riding on, licked his cheek, and leapt back.
Up ahead, large ice structures were jutting upwards with ice-covered trees below, glowing with a faint blue light. Cinderstar was looking out towards it, green eyes shining with some sort of light as he rasped, "We've arrived at last."
"Wow...these trees are frozen in ice," Owlflame commented, looking around.
"Indeed," Cinderstar meowed. "This is just like the sacred spirit forest Tanrock destroyed back in the Northern Clan."
Owlflame nodded. "Okay. So what do I do now?"
Her uncle cocked his head towards the trees. "You must find your way to the heart of the forest where the dormant spirit portal lies. Just remember that there is not prey to be found, and that is why we brought the travelling herbs along on this trip. As of now, from here, you're on your own, my niece."
"There's no way she's going alone," Redblaze meowed, stepping forth. Owlflame wanted to snap at him for that, but after hearing what he said, she kept her mouth closed.
"Yeah!" Stonetail had stepped forth too, Timon riding on his head. "If she goes in that forest, we go too."
"No," Cinderstar told the two toms, holding his tail up. "I value your loyalty to your fellow warrior, but the Avatar Cat must go alone."
Owlflame tilted her head to the side. "But Cinderstar, I don't have any connection with StarClan. In fact, it seems like they hate me.
Cinderstar replied, "Nonsense. StarClan would never turn its back on their Avatar Cat. You have to believe in yourself like I believe in you."
Hearing what her uncle had just meowed, Owlflame looked away, trying to figure out the feeling of disbelief. No cat had ever really said that they trusted her. If Sunstar had said it himself, then that was a long time ago. But still...hearing that a cat trusted in her made her relieved too.
As if seeing her look away, Cinderstar asked, "Owlflame? What is it?"
"Sorry," Owlflame mewed, turning back and rubbing her eyes with a forepaw. "I guess I'm just so used to other cats telling me how to do things that I forgot what it was like to have someone trusting me. It was a powerful surprise."
"All the past Avatar Cats live in you," the dark gray tom answered as he rested his tail on her flank. "Let them guide your pawsteps. Let them help you find the light in the dark."
Owlflame nodded, feeling as if the spirits of Goldstar, Whitestorm, and more Avatar Cats were beside her. She could do this, she knew it.
So she flicked her tail towards the other cats and instructed, "Wait here. I'll be fine."
Redblaze nodded. "Good luck, sweetheart," he murmured, briefly licking her ear.
Stonetail nodded with his brother while Timon made a small concerned squeak. Cinderstar's green eyes shone with approval while her cousins didn't move. And after a bark from Nisa, the blue-gray she-cat padded on towards the edge of the forest. Once she got there, she took a deep breath and headed on inside through two trees.
The area on the inside was like a network of ice tunnels; it was as if seals or something bigger had carved their way through here. Owlflame looked around. Tree branches and roots protruded from the ice. She padded on down the tunnel, the sound of her paws on ice muffled by an eerie silence. She made a turn down a different path and tried not to feel scared of going through a place that was so quiet.
This is kinda spooky, she thought as she padded on. But it's just hours away from home. Nothing more, Owlflame.
Suddenly, a hissing noise made Owlflame turn behind her...only to look up at a dark snake spirit slithering above her. As if this wasn't bad enough, another snake spirit had joined the first one, shadowy eyes glaring down at her. Owlflame turned to run away, but one of the snakes caught her around the legs and tripped her, and she rolled over the ground as the snakes wrapped their long bodies around her. One snake coiled upward and lunged down to bite her, but she was ready now; another fight was what she needed.
Owlflame swiped her claws against the snake's neck, and she felt the fire swell its belly before it exploded. Her blood pumping harder, she leapt up and did a circular kick with both hind legs while doing a paw stand, creating a twister with AirBending and blowing the other snake off of her. The two snake spirits regrouped and went after her again, but Owlflame used WaterBending to push two ice walls out of her way. She jumped between them and then created a new ice wall, which the snakes collided into.
The Avatar Cat stood up, panting, as the spirits trapped on the other side slithered away. Once that danger was gone, Owlflame turned around and carefully padded forth. She was now inside a domed area, with an ice floor with a glowing center.
"The spirit portal...it's amazing," Owlflame gasped, looking around as she approached the center. "I made it."
...
The sound of the wind blowing over the mountains woke Ivypaw that night; she was in her own nest where AirClan apprentices had usually slept in. Plumpaw was curled up next to her, and Foxkit was already with Dawnfall and her recent litter in the nursery since he was a kit too. For some reason, though, Ivypaw couldn't sleep. She could tell that something was going on around the temple. Giving a slight yawn and stretch, the golden-brown she-cat got to her paws and made her way wearily out of the den.
She had made it to the room with the Avatar Cat statues, walking past said statues with faint light shining through windows. Ivypaw knew that once an Avatar Cat died, then they would be reborn into the next Clan in the Avatar Cat cycle. What would happen if Owlflame would die? What kind of EarthClan cat would she be? But as she pondered this, she looked around and gasped.
It was a statue, but unlike the other statues (which were made of stone), this one was made out of wood. It appeared to be a young cat encircled by a spirit.
This is so cool, Ivypaw thought with excitement. But...which Avatar Cat is this?
And when she looked closer, she could have sworn that its eyes were starting to glow.
...
"The light in the dark," Owlflame murmured, looking at the portal her uncle talked about. "Just like what Cinderstar said."
The blue-gray she-cat looked towards her reflection and then looked back at the portal. She took a fighting stance, raised a forepaw, and swiped hard and downward at the floor. A whirlwind formed around her, but there was no effect. Owlflame blinked for a moment as she got back up, unsure as to why nothing happened. So she took a few steps back and clawed at the ice with a large torrent of fire with both paws, continuing the stream of fire for just a few seconds before stopping. The dust cleared...and to her dismay, the ice showed no damage.
This made her hiss, "What?! Why isn't it opening?"
Other hissing sounds made her look up and gasp as several dozen spirit snakes slithered on the outside of the ice dome towards the top. She thought this was bad enough, but as if it weren't bad enough, the spirits began meeting at the top of the wall, all attempting to break through the ice. Quickly, Owlflame turned back around and continued to attack the ice floor with air blasts.
"Come on, you damn portal!" she panted between each swipe. "Open!"
To her horror, the snake spirits had broken through and merged together into one giant snake, its head poking through the hole in the top. It snarled and quickly moved downward as it attacked her in the back, ensnaring her. Its mouth transformed back into smaller snakes, which wrapped themselves around Owlflame. She panted and gasped as the bodies of the snakes started to form some sort of net, like a fishing net. Owlflame was lifted high into the air, and she continued trying to break the ice with fire blasts, but she stopped when the dark spirit snakes wrapped themselves around her forelegs.
Owlflame continued to struggle as she was lifted higher and the spirits continued to tighten their hold on her. There was no easy way out of this mess, but there was one thing she could do. In this state, it would be tricky, but there was no other alternative.
She gave a grunt while her eyes glow as she entered the Avatar Cat State. She managed to free her forelegs and fell back towards the floor, but her legs were still trapped by the snakes, so she could only dangle from the ceiling like a bat. The spirits created more tendrils that wrapped very tightly around Owlflame while she tried to reach for the portal below. She struggled to reach it, and just as she was about to give up, she had managed to tap the floor with a claw.
A glowing ring rippled out from the center, and the area grew darker bar the glowing sphere underneath. There was a hum like a psalm being sung, then the ice cracked, and a pillar of spiritual energy exploded from beneath. Owlflame was knocked to the side as the dark spirits were hit with the energy. The pillar of light shot upward into the storm clouds, reaching above toward the stars where it split and formed the Southern Lights, which spread across the night sky.
Owlflame looked up at this in awe. "Great StarClan...the spirits are dancing in the sky," she mewled, feeling as small as a kit right now. "The fire in the sky."
Outside the pillar of light, energy spiraled within it, and the other cats watched on in awe. Redblaze was the first cat to speak, meowing, "I can't believe it. It's amazing!"
"It's beautiful," Stonetail sniffled with joy, wiping a tear from his eye.
Cinderstar didn't say anything, but he nodded in approval.
Meanwhile, Tanrock was far away from the group, trying to catch a snowshoe hare over the snow. Just as he caught it to take back to the Clan, the area around him suddenly got lighter. He turned to look behind and saw the lights, realizing that Owlflame had done it. His own daughter had finally activated the spirit portal, and it was likely that Cinderstar didn't have to help her.
"Owlflame..." he sighed in relief. "I'm really proud of you..."
Back at the spirit portal, Owlflame had finally emerged from the fog, slowly walking towards the pack of cats. She felt tired from all of that, but it was worth it. When she looked up, she saw her mate and his brother looking excited, Cinderstar looking at her in pride, and her cousins just staring blankly at her.
"Owlflame!" Stonetail cheered, rushing forth to happily lick her ears. "You're back! Hey guys, she's back! She's back!"
However, he was separated from her when a wall of ice formed between them, his head trapped within a groove at the top. He was turned around and was made to face an irritated Duskpaw, Palepaw by her side.
"Why are you initiating physical contact with another she-cat?" she muttered.
Stonetail looked rather nervous and frightened, gulping and whimpering softly. Seemingly happy with his response, Duskpaw turned the ice wall back into water, and he fell to the ground.
Owlflame looked back at her uncle, feeling pride and joy tingle in her heart as warm as fire. Due to his guidance, she had finally done what he had dreamed of doing all this time: reverting the Southern WaterClan back to spirituality. She didn't care that her muscles were screaming at her to lie down anymore; Cinderstar's approval made her feel energized.
"Uncle, everything you said was true," Owlflame purred. "You're a great mentor!"
Cinderstar nodded. "Avatar Cat Owlflame, you have taken the first step in bringing balance back to the South. And soon, you will bring balance back to the Clans and then the whole world. I am proud that you have become my apprentice."
Just then, Redblaze raced up to Owlflame and embraced her, covering her ears and face in licks. "You never cease to amaze me," the handsome ginger tom purred into her ear, making her smile.
"Thanks." But after the way she had treated him the past few days, Owlflame felt that she didn't deserve to be fully praised. "Redblaze, I'm really sorry for being a total pain in the ass earlier," she meowed, pulling away from him. "It's just...things were really stressful and confusing. It's hard being the Avatar Cat."
"It's harder being the Avatar Cat's mate," Redblaze told her with a grin, nudging her.
Owlflame purred and gently bumped her head against his, relishing in having him by her side. As she looked up to the mountains and saw that the sun was rising over the worlds, ushering in a new dawn. So they gathered up their remaining supplies and made the trek back to the city, where they would rest and then make plans.
But as they arrived and looked out to the bay, Owlflame saw something that made her earlier joy fade away into shock.
Large battleships were entering the harbor. At first, she thought they were FireClan ships like the ones that raided the Clan when Silverheart was a kit, but Northern WaterClan cats were now marching towards the city. The sun shone behind them, light glistening on the water and briefly blinding Owlflame while she slid down from Nisa's saddle, watching the warriors.
"What're all your Northern warriors doing here?" she asked Cinderstar.
Cinderstar looked at her from the corner of his eye. "Opening the spirit portal was only the first step in getting the Southern Clan back on its righteous path," he told her. "There's more work to be done before WaterClan is truly united."
Owlflame looked at him with shock before looking back towards the warriors, worried. If what he said was true, then they could get WaterClan united and brought back to spirituality. But what she had seen strongly reminded her of the raids she had heard of in nursery stories. She hated to find out how Silverheart would discover this; it would probably remind her of how her mother Seamist was killed in a raid. But there were more important matters to worry about.
Why did Cinderstar have to send his warriors all the way to the South? The southern cats could try to find their way to spirituality thanks to the portals being opened, so why send warriors over here to ensure that? Still, she figured that after being lied to by Tanrock and Sunstar, Cinderstar was doing this for the greater good.
StarClan, are we doing the right thing?
To be continued...
...
AvatarCat13: Well, there we have it. The Southern Clan is being invaded by its Northern counterpart, and it's thanks to Cinderstar.
Korra: (Angrily) I sure wish I could've taken him out right there and then. I can't believe Unalaq tricked us all like that! Once I see that jerk again, I'll-
AvatarCat13: That's enough, Korra, calm down. Think of the spoilers and the fans.
Korra: (Calms down with a small smile) Yeah, you're right. And you kinda sound like you're assuring a pregnant woman, you know that?
AvatarCat13: Yeah, I guess so. Well, here's the preview for Civil Wars Part 1, and don't forget to read and review to get a virtual plush doll of Korra. We don't allow flames, but we allow advice and constructive criticism as long as it's not harsh.
Preview: Owlflame has reopened the Southern spirit portal and taken the first step to restoring balance between StarClan and the living cats. But tensions run high between her and her father as Northern WaterClan cats land on Southern shores and take control. What other plans does Cinderstar have for the Avatar Cat? Meanwhile, Plumpaw had run away, and Sunstar and his littermates have to find her, but it proves to be difficult thanks to their father and their past.
Both: See ya next time! And Happy early Thanksgiving!
