I apologize for the pace of updating, and I have no good excuse. My offer from last chapter still stands.
I also would like to thank my awesome beta, Aviation. She rocks, and helps make this story the best it can be.
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The sun shown down into the stone hollow, but there was little warmth in its rays. A crisp wind blew, rattling the trees above the hollow. Leopardcloud was taking her turn to guard the camp, sitting near the lower edge of the hollow's wall. She caught scent of cats approaching the camp, but just as she was about to call out, she recognized the scents of Sootclaw and his patrol.
The returning patrol burst into the camp, Sootclaw in the lead, with Hailclaw and Tigershadow on his heals. Their eyes were wild, and their fur was fluffed up. Otterclaw leaped down form a rock that jutted out over the elder's den, her paws making small puffs of dirt as they hit the ground.
"What happened?" Otterclaw demanded, her amber eyes concerned.
"Rouges!" Sootclaw gasped, his eyes stretched wide in fear. Sootclaw was about to explain Ripplefeather burst into the clearing, her patrol behind her. Yowls erupted somewhere behind them. Leopardcloud made her way into the bottom of the hollow, to join the other warriors.
"Get the kits into Blazingstar's den with the elders, and then prepare to fight." Otterclaw ordered calmly. The warriors around her nodded, and then moved to obey. Stormpaw and Hailclaw went to the nursery, and slipped inside to help Blacktip get the kits to safety. Sootclaw ran to help the elders, the other cats taking up positions around the entrance of the camp.
A large tabby to leaped though the tunnel, and barreled into Leopardcloud. As she fought with the rouge, she was vaguely aware of more rouges pouring into the camp. Within a few moments, the ThunderClan cats were fighting for their lives. Leopardcloud managed to send her opponent fleeing, and looked around.
Stormpaw was fighting with a long haired tabby, while next to her Hailclaw fought a silver tabby. Otterclaw was fighting two spotted toms at once. Movement out of the corner of her eye caught Leopardcloud's attention. She turned her head, her green eyes focusing on Tigershadow. He was bleeding from a scratch on his muzzle. He swiped at a rouge, but his claws were sheathed. Dismay and rage swept through Leopardcloud. His Clan was fighting to survive, and he was messing around with sheathed claws?!
Suddenly, Leopardcloud was knocked to the ground. She looked up at the cat that had knocked her down, recognizing the she-cat who had pulled Wildtail out of the lake after the Gathering. The white she-cat did not pause to fight Leopardcloud, but pushed past her up the rocks leading up to the Highledge. Leopardcloud was about to go after her when a rouge landed on top of her, preventing her from following the white she-cat. She felt his hot breath on her neck, and felt his claws sink into her back.
With a furious shriek she reared, forcing him to fall off. She turned on him, clawing his ears. "Stay away from our Clan, Rocktail!" she hissed, recognizing him. Rocktail blinked in surprise, and then turned and ran from the battle. Leopardcloud felt a tremor of fear. The sun was setting, and ThunderClan was losing.
A wail of fury and despair cut through the noise of the battle, and Leopardcloud instantly knew that voice. It was Blacktip. Leopardcloud looked up in time to see the white she-cat running down from the Highledge, Bearkit and Brackenkit in her jaws. A smaller cat, a dark gray tabby came out next with Blacktip's last kit, Firekit. Wildtail burst of out Blazingstar's den, sinking her claws into the gray tabby. The tabby dropped Firekit, who squealed in pain and fright.
On the hollow floor, the white she-cat fumbled with Bearkit who was striking out at her face. The white she-cat dropped Bearkit and Brackenkit, instead turning to fight Leopardcloud. Leopardcloud found herself fighting off strong blows from paws and snapping teeth. Remembering a favorite training move, Leopardcloud allowed her paws to be swept out from under her. The white she-cat let out a yowl of triumph, and then leapt in for the kill. Leopardcloud brought her paws up, and shoved with all her strength, sending the white she-cat flying.
Getting to her paws, Leopardcloud noticed something strange. Though the hollow was filled with fighting cats, everything seemed to slow down. Tigertail fought with a black tom, which Leopardcloud remembered Rocktail calling Crow in her dream. Otterclaw and Ripplefeather fought side by side, forcing a pair of she-cats into a gap in the barrier. Wildtail still struggled with the gray tabby, and Stormpaw and Hailclaw chased away an intruder. Foxpaw stood beside Moonpaw, whose eyes were closing as blood oozed out of a gash. Stripepaw was nowhere to be seen, but Russetpaw was clawing at a rouge with Owlpaw. Leopardcloud watched as Rocktail speed past Tigershadow, who did not lift a paw to stop him.
Leopardcloud watched in horror as Rocktail ripped his claws across Flowertail's throat as she tried to stop him. Flowertail's body hit the ground, she was already dead. Rocktail let out a battle yowl, and it became clear to Leopardcloud that ThunderClan that if the tide of the battle did not change soon, all of ThunderClan would die.
Another yowl sounded outside of the clearing, and a silver blur leaped into the battle, quickly sending two rouges fleeing for the hills. It was Icefeather; fighting as if all of StarClan themselves were clawing her tail. Blazingstar and Lionfur burst into the clearing behind her, falling on the invaders with fury.
The rouges began to flee, seeing fresh, powerful and angry warriors arrive. The white she-cat ran, scooping up Brackenkit before any cat could stop her. The gray tabby also fled, along with the rest of the invaders. As suddenly as the fight had begun, it was over. Icefeather, Blazingstar and Lionfur had come to the rescue.
A yowl of pain and sorrow rose from the cats of ThunderClan. Leopardcloud turned to look, and saw a sight that wrenched her heart. Rockfrost was staring down at his former apprentice and daughter, Flowertail. She lay on her side, the fur on her throat ripped from Rocktail's blow, and she wasn't breathing. Leopardcloud felt empathy for Rockfrost, for she had also lost a kit. Ripplekit, the kit Russetpaw had replaced had died when she was only a few days old.
A white hot rage surged through Leopardcloud, and the world went dark around her. She saw glaring amber eyes in the darkness, and she heard a deafening crack, and a vision filled her mind.
A blood soaked field on an island, towering trees that clawed the sky. All four Clans fought together, against cats she now knew to be the rouges of DawnClan. Leopardcloud stood on a bluff above the bloody plain, watching with horror the scene taking place beneath her. All of Leopardcloud's Clanmates, friends and family fought against DawnClan. Out numbered, the cats fought against the rising tide of the enemy. Icefeather was nowhere to be seen.
Tigershadow's black tabby fur flashed in her field of vision. She turned her head to see his amber eyes gleam with triumph as he leaped and Leopardcloud. He slashed at her shoulder with her sharp claws. A searing pain in her shoulder told her that his claws had found their mark. The force of the blow knocked her onto her side, blood flowing onto the ground from her wound.
She heard a voice rasp in her mind, but not in her ears. "Beware the moonshine and the flame it hides." The voice mewed, the ominous words sending a shiver down Leopardcloud's spine.
Something in the sky caught her attention. The moon, normally white, was turning a blood red, and started to vanish. Tigershadow purred darkly at Leopardcloud, and than ran back to the battle on the field below. Leopardcloud opened her mouth to yowl a warning to her Clanmates, but no sound came out.
"Beware, beware!" yowled the voice in Leopardcloud's head, "Watch the shadow constantly!"
"I am!" Leopardcloud replied to the strange voice. "StarClan! Help me; show me what I need to do!" But there was no answer, no sudden inspiration from the warrior ancestors Leopardcloud put her faith in. For the first time in her life, Leopardcloud felt completely alone.
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I am glad to have that done.
Look out for the next chapter soon. Lady Bright (the author, I, Lady Grace, am just the humble editor.) and I have decided that we want this story to be completely finished by New Year's.
When this story is done, we will begin posting a story called Blazing Eyes, about who else, Blazingstar, whose warrior name was Blazingeyes. That story is being written right now, so it should be completely written and ready from posting at the same time we finish up Nightfall.
Reviews and constructive criticism are always appreciated.
