Chapter 1
Floodwater echoed through the stone hollow, braking the wall of tight brambles as if they were the slenderest twigs. Graykit stood at the entrance of the nursery, watching in horror as the scarlet water swirled around the ThunderClan camp, mounting higher. Lightning flashed from the black clouds above.
Blood crashed though Jayfeather and Shrewpaw's den, dragging them out, the two medicine cats struggling frantically, their heads dipping beneath the bloody water, and vanishing from sight. Shrieks and pleads for help sounded from everywhere, cats being swept from their dens and drowning. Graykit saw Ferncloud's speckled head break from the blood, yowling for safety.
Out of the corner of Graykit's eye, he saw the mighty Highledge crash down, being dragged around as if it was a pebble, crushing any cat underneath it. Before he could bunch his muscles to help, a wave sucked him up, dragging him down with his drowning clanmates. Sticks, and bracken stabbed into his sides. "StarClan save us!" Graykit pleaded, blackness creeping from the sides of his vision.
Graykit opened his eyes slowly, not wanting to see only blood and the shapes of his dieing clanmates. His mossy nest was scattered around him, and there were deep claw marks from were his struggled against his invisible enemy. A dream? That's what it was… It seemed so real to Graykit, his clanmates struggling to survive, the forest crashing down around him.
He looked around him. His mother Sandstorm was curled around him, her tail-tip twitching. His sister, Orangekit, was curled into a tight ball, her ear twitching as she slept. Sunlight creased into the cracks of the nursery. Graykit flicked off some moss stuck to his ear, the smell of his mother filling him with warmth and contempt.
Moss scattered all over him, and Graykit turned to see Orangekit rising to her paws, the ginger tabby's pelt turning golden in the sunlight. "Why were you shrieking all night?" She asked tiredly, her green eyes faint. Graykit shrugged, if he told her, she would fret over him like most of ThunderClan already did.
Graykit was born weak, and Jayfeather thought he wouldn't survive. Most of the time, he caught a cold, or a fever. Not one cat thinks he should be a warrior, and that he should be sent to the elders den. Graykit sighed rousing to his paws. Someday, he'll show them that he could be a warrior.
"Do you want to go outside?" Orangekit's mew brought him from his reverie. "Er- Sure." He meowed, following his sister out to the camp. The sun shined brightly in camp, it's golden light shedding over the ThunderClan cats. Out in camp, Birchfall, Mousewhisker, and Cloudtail were all sharing a rabbit, and Rosepaw and Toadpaw where showing Dovekit and Ivykit some hunting crouches. Bramblestar's broad tabby head stuck out from his bramble-hidden den, and Squirrelflight jumped up the Highledge to meet him.
"Hello Graykit, Orangekit," The voice of Spiderleg growled, the long-legged tom suppressing a sly grin. Graykit shrunk behind Orangekit. No one liked Spiderleg, or Bramblestar. Both were cats who cared only about themselves. Graykit wondered why his older sister Squirrelflight liked Bramblestar so much. "What's a matter Graykit? Scared I might bite you?" Spiderleg hissed.
"No…. No, I'm fine." He stuttered. Coughing broke out as Graykit's back heaved up and down. Another fever! He dug his claws into the ground to stop from collapsing.
"Go to Jayfeather and Shrewpaw's den right now!" Spiderleg ordered. Giving Spiderleg a menacing glare, he padded off to the medicine cat's den, saddened by the glares he drew as he slunk towards the den.
"I'm almost six moons old, they all need to stop acting like I'm stupid!" He snarled to himself.
He padded into the medicine cat den, the smell of herbs lingering in the air. Jayfeather was hovering over Icefall's belly, sniffing it curiously. "Well, your only a few days into your pregnancy, but I would tell Berrynose that your expecting a litter." Jayfeather announced. The white she-cat wiggled excitedly.
"Thanks!" She mewed, leaving the den.
"Oh, Graykit you're here. Another fever?" He asked sniffing Graykit's head.
"I'm fine!" He hissed. Even Jayfeather thought he couldn't be a warrior!
"If you want, I can ask Shrewpaw if he wouldn't mind starting warrior training. Being a medicine cat is you're only option. What if you get sick in battle? Your too weak." Jayfeather murmured.
"No, I'm fine." Graykit hissed back, leaving the medicine cats den. He will be a warrior!
