Chapter 3: The Makings of a Warrior
Blaze's paws barely skimmed the ground as she raced through the forest, it was about a half-moon since Meek had first told her about Amaya and the old clans and she was headed to yet another sunhigh meeting with the puma.
Several other cats had joined them since that day but the group was still small. Between meetings she, like Meek, Slash, and Bright, had been busy spreading the news throughout the twolegplace. Most saw them as crazy or just stared like they couldn't possibly understand.
She shook her head to clear these distant thoughts and carefully leapt the gap to scramble up the cliff. They had found safer ways to cross the bad stream but she wasn't in the mood for a swim today.
Once she was safe on the cliff she took off running again, letting her paws guide her to the gathering place. As she carefully picked her way down into the dip she spotted Amaya sitting in the midst of several new cats, probably briefing them on the basics before the meeting started.
She settled in her spot next to Bright and scanned the area, identifying the cats she knew and getting names from Bright when she didn't.
Meek and Slash were off to one side of the dip, deep in conversation with Mindheart. Behind them sat two other cats she had met only yesterday. The first was Dusk, an oddly quiet she-cat with raven black fur and bright hazel eyes. She was busy speaking with the dark blue-grey tom called Ice, his icy blue eyes and white front paws making his name easy to remember.
Sitting on the edge of the dip with wide eyes sat the two queens and their mates; Sparkle was a black and brown tortoiseshell with soft blue green eyes who had left her kittypet nest to protect her soon to be born kits and River was a silvery-blue with soft brown eyes. Both were so close to kitting that Blaze had to wonder how they had even made the trip.
The toms standing over them were nervously scanning the crowd while the queens talked, the lean red-brown Speed looked slightly angry to be involved in this madness while the kind-hearted Leaf simply looked worried for his mate's safety.
Blaze shifted her eyes to the other side of the dip as she caught more voices and spotted a trio of cats sitting just behind her. The two she-cats Spark and Water were arguing with the often irritable Bash. The grass-stained white tom was probably the youngest of the group and he had been a kittypet before deciding to join them.
Further back, on the opposite side of the dip sat the last of the group. Forest and Mountain were talking in hushed whispers, their voices barely distinguishable from the murmur of the crowd.
Blaze shifted her gaze back to Amaya as the mountain lion rose to her paws, the group around her having disappeared earlier. "Is it time yet?" she asked above the noise of the crowd.
Amaya raised her head at the voice and gave a faint smile "Yes Blaze, today is the last day you will be loners and kittypets for tomorrow you will all be warriors. I have done all I can for you as a group…"
Mindheart returned to her shoulder as she leapt into the tree branches to better address the gathering. "I have no lessons for you today; you already have the makings of warriors. This evening I will take a few of you with me to determine the clans' separations and the new leaders."
The crowd dispersed into groups as they began discussing who the leaders would be. A few of them even dropped back into the discussions of medicine cats from the day before.
Amaya laid her head on her paws as she watched them, enjoying the breeze for the moment but the prophecy still haunted her thoughts. What was she getting these young cats into?
"Beware…pain only breeds more pain…blood will be spilled in days of peace…and the one who knows will never tell…"