Ascent Trilogy.
Chaos.
A/N:
This is a trilogy. These are my own Clans that I made up. These are Clans that you aren't allowed to steal without my permission, and I do realise that that just defeated the point of stealing. Review and there will be biscuits.
Disclaimer:
I don't own Warriors. Do you want me to spell it out for you? I-d-o-n-t-o-w-n-W-a-r-r-i-o-r-s.
Three warriors stood on an elevated, dark grey slate of rock. A mob of sleek shapes gathered on the maze of small, disjointed islands that stood tail lengths from the next. The cats around them turned their eager eyes to these warriors. The cats all sat in the light of the claw-moon, waiting for something, anything.
"Cats of the Clans," the black and ginger tom started, "there is no news to give."
The statement was met with shocked meows.
"It is true," the dappled white she-cat called over the noise of the caterwauling. "MoonClan has shown us nothing. We are all suffering the same as you, if you think your Clan is the only one to fall prey to this ... Thing, then you are severely mistaken, WingClan is no better of than yourselves."
"Whitestar speaks the truth," a black and white tom whispered, making every-cat present fall silent. "MoonClan hasn't shown anything to me, it seems that all hope is lost!"
The red tabby leaped from the podium, and the seas of cats split for him.
"Mossstar, where are you going?!" Several cats called from crowd.
"We're going home, Emberpelt. Where else can we go? There is nothing here that any-cat needs to here. Who listens to silence? For that is all you will receive here."
"No, Mossstar, listen." The russet tom turned to the silver eyed tom that spoke from the base of the rock. "FlightClan cannot leave until the gathering is over. It is as the law lain down by our ancestors come to pass."
"Where is MoonClan now, Riverleap? Where? Because they certainly wouldn't stand by and watch their descendants get picked off one by one, not the MoonClan I know, not the MoonClan I'd follow to the end of the earth. No. They are gone, Riverleap. They. Are. Gone!" The leader's dramatic speech was met thing stunned and horrified silence. "FlightClan, to me," he ordered.
All the cats stayed still, not daring to move a bone in their bodies. Mossstar accepted the lack of movement is silence.
"I thought better of you, FlightClan," the black and ginger leader spoke from the Highstone. "Of all cats, you should know the importance of loyalty to your Clan."
One of many shapes padded towards the tabby leader.
"I will always stand by you Mossstar, no matter what," a grey she-cat meowed loudly, flicking her long tail.
"Thank you, Dapplelight. I was right to make you deputy," the tom murmured, clearly audibly through the deafening silence.
A smokey grey she-cat stepped forward from the shadow of the Highstone, where she stiffened and remained that way for several long moments. Two other cats, Riverleap and the black and white that had spoken about the truth in Whitestar's words, mimicked the she-cats poise. In one, echoing voice the meowed in a frightening rasp, "There is a new star in the skies tonight, a star to save us all. Darkness, past and page will join it, and change all which we know."
They opened their eyes as a bright star flashed into sight.
"MoonClan has spoken," the white she-cat spoke. "Darkshadow, Spotwhisker, we shall leave now. I, Whitestar of WingClan, call this gathering to a close, may MoonClan light every-cats paths ..." She paused. "We need MoonClan's guidance now more than ever."
The two remaining leaders leaped from the Highstone, and padded away from the cats of FlightClan.
Mossstar stood still for a moment before trotting away from the Highstone, the three medicine cats crouched there, discussing the new prophecy in hushed whispers.
Mossstar lead his warriors back to their camp, traveling across the marshes and around reeds and through streams to get to their destination. They heard the screams tearing through the air as they approached.
"That's Comfreylight!" A inky black tom called. "But she isn't due of another moon!"
A huge silver tom leapt forward. "If that's Comfreylight, that means ... Great MoonClan, she's kitting!" The tom sprinted forward, followed by Riverleap, the inky black Medicine Cat. The moonlit camp seemed like a ring of bushes and pot-holes, but the bushes were the Apprentice and Kit Dens and the burrows were the dens of the warriors. The big silver tom bounded into the Kit Den, his white hind paws churning up dust.
"Comfreylight!" He wailed.
The three she-cats turned to glare at him.
"Hush, you'll wake them," the small, silver she-cat hissed. Her gaze softened as she looked at the anxious father. "Come have a look, but be quiet, they're sleeping, and Backfoot, when I say quiet I mean hunting voices please."
The other queen stepped aside, allowing the bumbling tom a peak at the sleeping kits. The turned away from the mother and father and padded away, her pretty white pelt flashing in the moonlight.
"What're their names?" Backfoot asked the sandy queen.
"I was thinking, that one, the dark grey tom should be Slatekit, and the white and silver she-cat should be Featherkit," Comfreylight whispered, her meow horse from her cries.
"They're beautiful."
...
Whitestar let Darkshadow lead the patrol back to camp, as she dropped back to help Thornweb clear the ditches rock formations that were scattered around their territory. Cool, hard nostalgia hit her like a wave. She remembered when she was a kit, she had almost found her way to the tunnels when Frondstar, her idol, caught her and sent her back to camp. She remembered she kitted the first, and only, litter. They were so beautiful.
The memories turned dark and hateful as her life fell apart. First, she was turned down for deputy, then she lost her firstborn, her son Skykit, to the owl that had came out of now where. Then her mate, Twistwhisker, perished in the tunnels. Her most recent low, becoming leader after her idol failed her, and turned down Clan life for the role of a Kittypet.
She was snapped back to the present as Darkshadow growled at her. "Whitestar, after you."
She looked at the thorn bush in front of her, shoving it aside, she exposed the entrance to the main tunnel. They padded back through the camp in deathly silence. They finally reached the moonlight, just when Whitestar began getting paranoid, and picked up speed as camp neared. She glanced at the skies, almost waiting for the owl to take her to her dead son's resting place.
She entered camp, and leapt on to TallBranch and called, "I, Whitestar, call all cats of WingClan before the eyes of MoonClan, to gather by TallBranch."
She watched as her warriors gathered before her, their pelts mingling with the star's of the MoonClan ancestors.
"Cats of WingClan, MoonClan has spoken at last." She surveyed the crowd, measuring their reactions. She caught the gaze of her only remaining kit, Badgerfang. "Spotwhisker, tell the Clan what happened."
Spotwhisker opened his mouth to begin his speech when he was interrupted.
"Scribekit!" A red tabby she-cat wailed from the Nursery. "Scribekit is gone! He's dead!"
Whitestar stiffened with shock.
'Must have caught the sickness!' She thought.
Whitestar sprang from the branch and pelted into the Nursery. She took one glance at the small, stagnant body and confirmed what Daffodilmist feared. The white and brown tom that resembled her dead kit so much had joined Skykit in eternal hunting.
Scribekit was dead.
...
Coalstar sat in the clearing of HeatherRock and glanced around at the assembled cats. Tonight, I, Coalstar of leader of FeatherClan, have called all of FeatherClan to gather in front of HeatherRock to make an important announcement. MoonClan has given us hope. MoonClan has sent us a prophecy, 'There is a new star in the skies tonight, a star to save us all. Darkness, past and page will join it, and change all which we know.' That is all."
The black and ginger tom jumped off the HeatherRock and padded up to a dark tabby she-cat.
"How was it?" She asked, concern glistening in her icy blue eyes.
"Bad," he said truthfully. "Mossstar tried to leave before every-cat had finished, Whitestar confirmed the suffering. There will be dark times ahead for the Clans. I'm worried, Berrylight, the Clans are falling apart, if MoonClan doesn't help soon, I don't know what we'll do. But that's enough about me, how are you, and the kits," he whisked his tail along her back as he spoke.
Berrylight smiled. "I'm fine, Coalstar, we're all fine."
"Have you seen Thymefeather yet? We need to know when you're due, although any-cat can tell that it can't be that far off," he joked.
"No, I was going to go tomorrow, but I might go now."
The tom sighed. "I love you, Berrylight, I really do."
The she cat purred, that's good to know! Have you thought of names?"
"I had one, but only if it's a tom."
"Well," she prompted.
"I was thinking Timekit, maybe."
"I think we should wait until the kits are born, then we'll name them."
"I agree, good night Berrylight,"
"Good night Coalstar."
...
The Highstone stood eerily quiet as the three clans trickled away, if any-cat was there to listen, one would have heard the name carried on the breeze.
"Sribekit. Come to us, there is much to see. And so much more to learn."
If any-cat had been at the Highstone, they would have seen the white and brown pelt shinning in the shadows.
The worst of the three clans was yet to come.
The newest star in Silverpelt twinkled ominously as the spirits of MoonClan slipped below the horizon to sleep.
They didn't know it yet, but the Clan's world was closer to the brink than ever before.