Gamer4 in. I don't really have anything to say, so let's just continue on with the story.

Disclaimer: You only really need to hear it once.

Chapter II

The Lost

Fireheart and Sandstar were walking through the forest. They could see the asylum looming up ahead. After a fair amount of argument, Sandstar had finally agreed to let Fireheart come. Graystripe had been unable to: he had business elsewhere. Finally, they pushed into the old, abandoned twoleg nest that served as the place's entrance.

Inside, they saw four warriors. Two of them were Dustpelt and Ferncloud. Before the fall of the clans, they had been warriors of Thunderclan, but in the wake of the Attack, they ran a group of warriors that sought to keep a relative peace in the clans. That's what they pretended, at least. The other two were Onewhisker and Talltail, two warriors of Windclan, and both on Dustpelt's force.

For a second, none of them spoke. It was Dustpelt who spoke first. "Sandstar. It's been a while. What are you doing out here? You can't let your paws get dirty, can you?"

"Watch it," Fireheart growled defensively.

"I thought you and your warriors had somewhere else to be tonight," Sandstar said.

"Well, the thing is, I missed your message for a real escort out here," Dustpelt said. "I couldn't let you come out here alone, so I took it upon myself to meet you here."

"You didn't miss that message, it was never sent," Sandstar said. "I didn't need you."

"Exactly," Fireheart growled. "She had me."

"You have to be careful, Sandstar," Dustpelt retorted. "If people see you with him too much, they might start thinking that you're used to running around with the wrong kinds of warriors."

Fireheart stood up, about to say something, but Sandstar motioned for him to remain silent with her tail. "How did you know I was here, if you didn't get any message?"

This time, it was Ferncloud who answered. "The news must have leaked out somehow. We heard a rumor, and what use would we be if we just let you disappear?"

"What warriors are we entrusting the clans to, if they follow any rumor?" Sandstar retorted. "Dustpelt, I have a clan that I want to see safe. And keeping that clan safe starts with talking to him."

Dustpelt sighed. "Cloudtail will escort you down." Turning on Fireheart, he added, "He stays here."

Fireheart opened his mouth to object, but stopped with a motion from Sandstar. Looking over, Sandstar saw a Cloudtail, another warrior of Dustpelt's, who kept the asylum safe. Cloudtail flicked his tail, muttering, "Come." Without another word, he turned and headed down the tunnel to where the insane cats were kept, and Sandstar followed behind.

XXXX

Graystripe was travelling across clan territory. By his side was a friend of his, Blackpelt. Of course, the clan boundaries didn't really mean anything anymore, but it still paid to not be alone when traveling across territory that wasn't your own. He wasn't entirely sure what clan Blackpelt was from, because even Blackpelt himself wouldn't say. His entire pelt was, as his name would suggest, black. Finally, they arrived in Skyclan territory.

"See you, Graystripe," Blackpelt said, turning to head back to his own territory.

"Thanks for sticking with me," Graystripe nodded.

"Any time. You need all the help you can get, with the clans like this," Blackpelt said before heading off into the darkness.

With Blackpelt gone, Graystripe continued to his usual meeting spot with Hoot. Their agreements were always the same. Graystripe always waited just outside the Skyclan camp for Hoot to send one of his 'friends,' for want of a better word, and the deal would be finished with them. He sat down, looking around, wondering who Hoot would send tonight.

Once again, he didn't have long to wait. No sooner had he sat than a cat came out of Skyclan camp, and, seeing him, hurried over. "Hey, Graystripe!" he said, waving his tail in welcome. The cat was black all over, except for his tail, which had a tip of white at the end.

"Ah, Ravenpaw," Graystripe said. He was happy that Hoot had chosen Ravenpaw to make the deal with. "You look happy tonight."

"Life is just great, that's all!" Ravenpaw said happily. He was the only cat that Graystripe knew who had gone relatively unaffected by the Attack. It was said that crisesbrought out the best in some and the worst in others. Ravenpaw seemed to be the only one who had had his best brought out by the fall of the clans. "For a moment there, I thought you weren't going to make it!"

"Yeah, I got held up," Graystripe muttered. Pushing the catmint he'd brought forward, he said, "Take that to Hoot, will you? Hurry back, and I'll have something for you."

"Right away, Graystripe!" Ravenpaw said cheerfully, rushing off with the catmint in his mouth.

With Ravenpaw gone, Graystripe looked around, considering going for a hunt, when he heard the sounds of fighting nearby. Investigating the source, he found that it was coming from in Skyclan's camp. In the center, there were two cats, rolling around on the floor. Other cats were standing around them, pushing fresh-kill and herbs around. Looking around, Graystripe saw Hoot sitting off to the side. He saw, with a small amount of satisfaction, that Hoot still had scars from Fireheart's attack. Kittypet, indeed. Nevertheless, he headed over.

Looking up, Hoot caught sight of Graystripe padding towards him. "I was wondering if you'd turn up."

"I heard about Hawkstar. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, you're the only one," Hoot said, laughing darkly. "You know how they know it was the same cat as the others? All they found were his insides, just like Firekit and Deadfoot. No one had gotten any orders for a while, and, of course, that's unusual for him. So, a couple of warriors went into his den to investigate, and sure enough-"

"Who do you think's going to win tonight?" Graystripe asked, looking at the cats struggling in the center of camp.

"The clan's going with that cat there," Hoot nodded at a large mud-colored tom with long claws. "Clan warrior, goes by the name of Sparrowpelt."

"I didn't ask you who they thought would win," Graystripe said, looking at him.

"Well, I'm siding with him," Hoot said, flicking his tail at a black cat, who currently seemed to be readying himself for a turn in the main fight. "He really is a kittypet, but he's ready to end any mouse-brained fox dung that stands in his way. Oh yeah, it's going to be him."

"Best of luck," Graystripe muttered, turning and heading back out to wait for Ravenpaw.

XXXX

Sandstar and Cloudtail continued their trek down. As they descended, Cloudtail began speaking again. "He's trapped, but don't get too close to him. Never look him in the eyes. And do not- do not- tell him anything personal. I will be here... watching." With this, he pulled back into the darkness of the long tunnel.

As Sandstar continued on without him, she passed by another cat in the cave. He was large, with a black and white pelt. Another that she passed looked similar to Hoot, but smaller.

Sandstar headed down the dark path. Even though she knew there were warriors up above, she felt alone down here. Knowing what lay at the path's end didn't help.

Finally, she reached her destination. There he was. The most evil cat the clans had ever seen. He was patched black and white, with a wild-looking face that struck fear into the hearts of all who saw him. Nervously, she called out his name. "Smudge?"

He turned, and saw her. His face broke into a grin. "Good evening, Sandstar."

"I haven't seen you in a while," Sandstar said, sitting down.

"It's been about... oh, I'll say... fourteen and a half moons, and three days since you had me put in this place," Smudge said. Searching his face, Sandstar saw no sign of anger or resentment. "Can't say I've changed much. How are things up in the clans?"

"You know why I'm here," Sandstar said.

"Cats are disappearing, only to have their insides turn up a few days later. You want to know if I'm involved." It wasn't a question.

"Are you?"

"How could I be? I've been a prisoner here since last Newleaf. And you know I'm not, but you want to know if I know who it is. I hate to change the subject, but I'm curious: how are you doing under the pressure of being leader, with the clans falling apart? Do you worry that even your strength, fueled by a belief that the clans aren't truly rotting from the inside, and faith in a failing set of rules-"

"This isn't what I came to discuss," Sandstar said, feeling anger come up in her.

"-is completely futile?" Smudge finished, acting like he hadn't heard her. "Do you still hear the cries of those who fell to me? Do they whisper in your ears as this- ah- butcher reopens the wounds you'd hoped had closed for good?"

Sandstar struggled to not respond to this. Instead, she said, "A Windclan warrior and a Shadowclan kit, Deadfoot and Firekit, were found dead not that long ago. Do you know who's responsible?"

"Responsible for the death of one so young and full of promise? Responsible for weeding out the crippled- and insufficient?"

Sandstar had suffered these mind games from Smudge before. He was trying to make her angry. Rather than correct his last statement, she simply said, "Yes. Who did it?"

"I thought that you would have put your golden toms on the case," Smudge said. "They did a fine job of catching me for you, after all. What's happened to Fireheart and Graystripe?"

Sandstar knew that she couldn't answer. Cloudtail's warning rang in her ears: Don't tell him anything personal. "I can tell Cloudtail what we know already, and he can pass it on to you. Does that work for you?"

"It does," Smudge agreed. "I'll identify your butcher for you, on one condition."

"What?" Sandstar asked, feeling slightly nervous.

"Oh, relax, I just have a question that I want answered," Smudge said in what was a mockery of a reassuring voice. "Surely, it's very stressful, being a leader with the clans crumbling around you. You must have to release that tension, in the name of service to your clan. So, tell me, Sandstar, when you are- ah- relieving your tension- which do you prefer? Sleek and fire-colored- or wild and gray?"

This was too much, even for Sandstar. She stood up, said, "I'm leaving," and turned for the exit. However, she'd only managed a few pawsteps before she passed the large black-and-white cat she'd noticed earlier. As she did, she jumped back as he spit at her. She jumped back-right back to where Smudge waited in his prison.

"That wasn't exactly polite, Sandstar," Smudge said, still without any sign of anger in his voice. "But I can't say much for Bone's manners either. Naughty, naughty Bone," he said, waving his tail at the black-and-white cat who'd spat at Sandstar. Turning back to Sandstar, he said, "Give your information to Cloudtail. He can pass it on to me. Come back tomorrow morning, and I'll have the name of your butcher."

Sandstar wasted no time in her return to the surface.

XXXX

Back outside Skyclan's camp, Ravenpaw had delivered Graystripe's payment to him. "I don't know what that stuff you give to Hoot is, but it must be good for him to pay you like this," he said cheerfully.

"I like to think so," Graystripe muttered.

Maybe noticing that Graystripe seemed unhappy, Ravenpaw asked, "Are you alright?"

Graystripe looked up. "Hey, Ravenpaw. Do you still sing?"

XXXX

Back in Thunderclan, Fireheart and Sandstar were having another argument.

"I won't discuss this with you again!" Sandstar said.

"Look, Sandstar, I'm just trying to-"

"Go back to your den!" Sandstar said, turning on him. "We can talk in the morning."

Fireheart opened his mouth, closed it again, and reluctantly turned to leave.

XXXX

"Sing?" Ravenpaw asked confusedly.

"Yeah, you used to have a wonderful voice," Graystripe said, looking at him. "It's been a long day, things aren't the best. I could use one of your songs right now."

For a moment, all was silent, and then Ravenpaw opened his mouth, and began singing a low, beautiful song.

XXXX

As Ravenpaw sang, back at Thunderclan camp, Sandstar turned, and felt a bolt of fear at what she saw.

At the same time, Fireheart ran in, a similar look of panic on his face.

XXXX

When the warriors looked through Thunderclan camp the next day, they found Fireheart, unconscious on the floor, and Sandstar was missing. There was no sign of a struggle.

XXXX

The next morning, Graystripe awoke to realize that he had fallen asleep outside Skyclan camp. Panicked, he jumped to his feet, and was preparing to head back home when he heard a panicked muttering from inside the camp. Looking in, he saw Longtail and... Dustpelt. What was he doing there? Longtail was speaking to the clan.

"Sandstar has gone missing!" he was announcing. "She disappeared after an unknown cat broke into the Thunderclan camp! The only one there was Fireheart, unconscious on the ground." Turning, Longtail added, "Dustpelt, leader of the protective force of our clans, has made a hard decision. He's here to tell you about it himself."

Dustpelt stood up before the clan, and the unknown watcher, and announced, "These are harsh times that we live in! The clans are always in danger of crumbling, and now the last pure leader has gone missing. In response to this crisis, I have no choice but to take temporary leadership of all the clans, until I decide that it is safe for us to return to our normal lives."

From his silent watching place, Graystripe felt bolts of both fear and anger run through him.

XXXX

And thus ends that chapter. Please R&R, constructive criticism is welcomed, as it can help make the story better, flames help nothing, Gamer4 out.