Chapter 3

RiverClan POV

"Pebblestar!" Tidepool, Pebblestar's brother and deputy, crashed into his den. "What?" asked Pebblestar, already on his feet.

"Stormspirit is hurt. It's bad. You should come see," Tidepool meweed. The fear in his tone made Pebblestar streak out of his den, where he saw Sandfoot, Stormspirit, and Breezeleg. Circling anxiously was Sandfoot's apprentice, Sedgepaw. Sandfoot and Breezeleg were supporting Stormspirit, who had a large gash in his side.

"What happened?" Pebblestar asked. Sandfoot opened his mouth, but Pebblestar put up his paw. "Wait. Take Stormspirit to the medicine cat den and then tell me what happened," he meowed. But he followed them to the medicine den.

Brackendew got to his paws at the sight of the warrior. "Will he survive?" came Breezeleg's anxious mew.

"I don't know," said Brackendew. "I will do what I can. I will try to ask StarClan what to do. Snowpaw," the RiverClan medicine cat mewed to his apprentice, "fetch some horsetail, goldenrod, and marigold and make a poultice. I'll get cobwebs. Also, have him eat some poppy seeds or chamomile so we can work on him." Sandfoot, Breezeleg, and Pebblestar left them to it.

"So what did happen?" asked Pebblestar, back in the clearing.

"Me, Breezeleg, and Sedgepaw were on border patrol when this red and black rogue came out of nowhere! He ripped Stormspirit like that and left," Sandfoot told Pebblestar.

"Ankit," Pebblestar muttered. He motioned for Tidepool to follow him into his den.

"It was Antkit," said Tidepool, stating the obvious.

"I know. But after Palesplash's death, he told us never to tell…" Pebblestar mewed

"Frogeye did, in ThunderClan," Tidepool reminded him.

"Yes. But he knew it was Frogeye, not us. So why is he attacking patrols?"

"Maybe he doesn't know they are RiverClan?" Tidepool ventured.

"He can smell RiverClan," Pebblestar meowed.

"But why was he aiming to kill Stormspirit? Because-"

"Because he obviously was," Pebblestar finished.

"Why? Antkit is an honorable warrior."

"I don't know," Pebblestar mewed grimly. Tidepool got to his paws to leave, but stopped.

"One thing, Pebblestar. Are we going to mention this at the Gathering tomorrow?"

"Yes," Pebblestar meowed. "I think it's time they knew." His deputy nodded and left. Pebblestar padded out of his den after the sandy warrior.

"Cats of RiverClan!" he called. "Littlepool, Bluesun, Clearwing, Sandfoot, Breezeleg, and I will go to the Gathering, as well as Sedgepaw, Reedpaw, and Buzzardpaw." There were mutters among the assembled cats: This was a surprisingly low number.

"The reason for this small group is that there is a dangerous rogue on the loose and I want to leave the camp well guarded," Pebblestar mewed. "Sedgepaw, go tell the other Clans with my word to do the same."

Sedgepaw watched the cats go and then ran off to do as he was told.