I'm so sorry about the long wait between this chapter and the previous one! I've been stuck with writer's block for some time now with this story and I've been super busy with school. I'll try to keep up with this story a little better, I promise!


Leaves crinkled underpaw as we trekked through the woods. We were using the cover of night to help disguise us on our mission to rescue our Clanmates. I felt excitement running through every vein of my body as we got closer and closer to the Greenleaf Twolegplace. I wasn't going to screw up this time. I'd be a hero, and my father would finally see me for a mature, level-headed warrior instead of a senseless kit.

"Alright." Dewdrop hissed under his breath. We all stopped as he signaled for us to do so. Despite being the second youngest cat here, he had taken the role of leader of this operation. I admit that I was actually relieved it was him and not anybody else leading this rescue patrol. Despite having the temper and forward personality that made his father an occasionally unpopular cat, he made a fine leader.

"We're almost at the Greenleaf Twolegplace." Dewdrop whispered. "The captured cats are being kept very close to here. We get in there, we free them, and we get out. If cats from other Clans are there, we ignore them. Our duty is to our Clanmates, not to every Clan cat around the lake. No unnecessary heroics. Okay?"

Everyone nodded. Dewdrop flicked his tail. "Good. Let's go, then. Remember- silence, speed, stealth." He darted away, keeping low to the ground. We hurried after him.

In no time the nest where the captured cats supposedly were loomed before us. The background of clouds streaked across a moonless sky seemed rather fitting.

We split up, some of us heading one way and some heading another. I ended up following Dewdrop and Bumblestripe. We found an entrance on the side. A clear box of reflective stuff that reminded me of ice had been lifted up to give us access. We easily squeezed through the opening and jumped down to the ground.

There were a lot more traps than I had originally been expecting. They were piled high, nearly touching the roof. Upon closer examination, I saw that not all of them were filled. However, most of the ones that were contained cats I didn't recognize as belonging to any of the Clans. My eyes widened a bit when I saw that Coriander was one of the captured cats.

Dewdrop nudged me and jerked his head toward a small stack of traps in one corner. Three traps sat side by side in the front. Inside each of them sat Rosepetal, Hollyheart, and Blizzardpaw. Rosepetal was asleep, while Hollyheart and Blizzardpaw sat crouched in their respective traps, eyes wide with terror.

We stuck to the shadows to keep the other cats from seeing us and calling for help. I spotted the elders Whitewater and Snaketail of ShadowClan, as well as their deputy. Slightstep and Crowfeather of WindClan were in traps near the top of the stack against the back wall, and Lizardleap of RiverClan was in a trap nearby. Countless rogues, loners, and even kittypets sat huddled in their own traps. These Twolegs truly were monsters.

Dewdrop tapped a claw on the side of Rosepetal's trap. The noise attracted the attention of Hollyheart and Blizzardpaw immediately. They smiled with relief when they saw us, their eyes shining with joy. I met Hollyheart's eyes and nodded. While Dewdrop continued his attempts at quietly waking Rosepetal up, Bumblestripe and I went over to Hollyheart and Blizzardpaw's traps.

There has to be a way to free them. I thought, scratching and pawing at different parts of the trap. Hollyheart tried to help me from inside, but to no avail. I tried biting the hard web, but recoiled at the pain that shot through my jaw as a result.

"Pull the release, dummy!"

I jerked my head up. A long-furred, dust-covered brown tom sat in a trap a few tail-lengths above my head. I stared at him in confusion. He rolled his green eyes and huffed in annoyance. "The release! Pull it!"

I blinked. "What's a release?" I asked, sounding a lot stupider than I actually was.

The cat curled his lip. "Seriously?" When that question earned him a dumbfounded look, he sighed and turned around in his trap. "Let me show you." He pointed a long, hooked claw at a shiny grey stick-like thing that was curled on one end. The curl was hooked around the webbing. "See this thing? It's called a release. All you have to do is hook it under the spring plate and pull the spring plate up. That'll open the door of the trap and let the cat escape." When he saw that I was still giving him a confused look, he explained further. "The spring plate is the rectangle thin piece of grey stuff that sits on the inside of the trap, near the middle bottom. When the trap is set, the release keeps it lifted. When a cat steps on the plate, the force releases the release and shuts the trap. The trap can't be opened until the release is used to lift the spring plate again and open the door."

I was still fairly confused, but I understood enough of what he was telling me to know what I had to do. "Hang on, Hollyheart." I whispered. "I'll get you out." I found what the tom had called the release and gripped it in between my jaws. Slowly and carefully, I lifted it off of the hard webbing and lowered it toward the spring plate. Slipping it through one of the little openings in the trap, I hooked it under the spring plate and started to lift. I felt satisfaction pour through me as the trap door started to open. Hollyheart stood up, ready to dart out when the door was fully open.

But not all was fine and dandy. As Bumblestripe and Dewdrop copied my movements to free Blizzardpaw and Rosepetal, the trap door on Rosepetal's cage screeched loudly. That loud noise triggered the dogs outside to start barking madly.

"Fox dung!" Thornclaw snarled from somewhere behind me. I let go of the release as Hollyheart dashed free of the trap. I ran after her, keeping pace with her as we headed for the door, which was slightly ajar.

We didn't make it out in time.

We were a tail-length from the door when it swung open, nearly taking Hollyheart out with it. That same white-furred Twoleg from earlier that day stood above us, looking furious and menacing. He pulled something out of his pelt- a small fire-stick. He pointed it at us and fired just as we jumped to the side.

Chaos ensued after that. The Twoleg called something out, and in an instant, two more Twolegs joined him. They too had their own fire-sticks. They started shooting everywhere. One of the ice-plates shattered, making a loud noise that made the dogs bark even more. I heard a loud shriek that was abruptly cut off. Someone was dead. I felt a flash of panic as one of the Twolegs suddenly loomed in front of me, fire-stick aimed at my face.

I thought fast and darted in between his legs, just as he fired. I heard him scream something, but I couldn't understand it. I spotted a flash of cream fur. Recognizing it as Rosepetal's fur, I raced toward it. I skidded to a halt as I got to her. Her eyes were wide with fear, her fur spiked up with horror.

I was about to call for her to follow me when one of the Twolegs seized her by the scruff. He pressed his fire-stick against her neck and shouted something, attracting everyone else's attention. The other two Twolegs stopped firing their fire-sticks and stared at their companion. My Clanmates and the other trapped cats all turned their eyes on Rosepetal.

The Twoleg started chanting something, sounding absolutely furious. I screamed in fury and horror as he fired his fire-stick, blasting a terrible hole in Rosepetal's neck. Blood and fur went everywhere. The Twoleg dropped her and came for me.

I managed to escape being caught, but before I could make my escape, more Twolegs appeared. Five or six of them stormed inside and surrounded all of us. We slowly backed away from them, eventually huddling together in the center of the circle of Twolegs. I found myself squashed in between Hollyheart and Thornclaw. The Twolegs all trained their fire-sticks on us, ready to kill us all.

I looked around frantically, trying to find an escape route. I spotted a gap in the circle just barely big enough for a cat to fit through. "The gap." I hissed in Hollyheart's ear. "I'll distract them. Run through their and get out of here. Run as fast as you can and go back to ThunderClan. Tell them everything."

Hollyheart's eyes widened in horror. "I'm not leaving you all behind!"

I shook my head. "We can't all go. Only one of us can make it out right now. Go, Hollyheart. Think of your kits."

The black she-cat stared at me helplessly for a few moments before nodding. "Okay." She whispered. She touched noses with me. "Thank you, Thornsting."

I nodded, feeling a lump form in my throat. I told myself that this wasn't my final goodbye. Throwing my head back, I let out a bloodcurdling screech. The Twolegs, surprised by the sudden vocal display, were distracted long enough for me to make my move. I sprinted toward the nearest Twoleg, sinking my teeth into its leg and biting hard. The Twoleg screamed in surprise and horror, shaking its leg violently. I clung on for dear life, aware of my Clanmates jumping to help me and Hollyheart streaking toward the entrance.

Once I saw that she was leaving, I gave up. I let the Twoleg shake me off. I felt its paw grasp me by the scruff and lift me high. I found myself staring into its brown eyes. I saw a lot of emotions reflected there. Some were recognizable, while others were foreign. I closed my eyes tight, prepared to meet StarClan.

It never happened.

The next thing I was aware of was being shoved into one of the traps. I collided with the spring plate, which triggered the trap door setup and trapped me inside. I let out a wail of despair, clawing desperately at the webbing as the Twoleg set the release well out of my reach. He then took my cage and shoved it against the wall before leaving. I watched, wide-eyed, as all of my Clanmates, including Blizzardpaw, were shoved into traps as well.

The Twoleg who had trapped me returned a few minutes later. He had something soft, green, and fuzzy in his hands. It was large and rectangular, and looked warm. He draped it over my trap, blocking out my light and my view of the other cats. I snarled in frustration as I heard him walk away. The door creaked as he opened it, and made a loud bang as he shut it again.

And then it was quiet.

I'd never been in this kind of quiet before. All I could hear was my own breathing. I felt even more trapped than before, confined to a box of darkness. I felt my heart begin to pound even harder. Was I still on death row? Would the Twolegs kill me yet? Those questions burned in my mind like the embers of a fire. I thought about my family, and how I'd never get to meet Hollyheart's kits. I felt a pang of grief as I remembered Rosepetal, killed by that StarClan-cursed fire-stick. I felt ashamed, thinking of how Bramblestar would be so disappointed in my disobeying him.

I sank down on the ground, the webbing pressing into my stomach rather uncomfortably. However, I failed to notice that at the time, my feeling numbed by guilt and fear and grief. I'd come here planning on leaving as a hero, and had ended up a trapped prisoner. I had failed. Again.


I blinked open my eyes, expecting sunlight to wash over my eyes. I felt a flash of surprise and concern when I was greeted by darkness, only to remember where I was and what had happened to me. I snarled in frustration as remembrance washed over me. I leaped to my paws, smacking my head against the top of the trap. I cried out in pain, my head throbbing.

My head was still faintly pounding when someone lifted the cover from off of my trap. Sunlight washed over me, blinding me. I recoiled back from it, suddenly longing for the darkness as my head started throbbing hard again.

As my vision cleared, I saw that one of the Twolegs was crouched beside my cage. I hissed at him as he lifted the trap door a little and slipped his paw inside. I lashed out at him, my claws scratching his paw. He cried out a little and drew his paw back. Shaking his head, he reached behind him and brought something forward. He slowly pushed it into my trap. Upon inspecting it, I saw that it was a small piece of thin white stuff marked with black lines and shapes I didn't recognize. On the strange piece of thing sat a few pawfuls of soft, mushy kittypet food. I scowled at it.

I heard the Twoleg say something gently to me, but I ignored him. He stayed crouched there for a few more moments, watching me closely. He finally stood up and placed the soft thing back over my trap, covering me in darkness once more.

I felt my stomach rumble, and was aware that I hadn't eaten anything since sunset the previous day. But was I really going to stoop to the level of eating kittypet slop? The trap started filling itself with a sweet aroma, making me feel even hungrier. My feline instincts took over, and before I knew it I was gulping down the mushy wet stuff.

It didn't taste as good as fresh squirrel or vole, but it wasn't absolutely disgusting either. I didn't get how a kittypet could live their entire lives on this stuff without even once wishing they could taste wild prey.

I was just swallowing the last of the food when I heard some cats talking near me. I didn't recognize their voices.

"Yeah, apparently they want to send us all away or somethin'."

"You ain't serious. Where're they takin' us?"

"Dunno. Probably to one of their communities or somethin'."

"You know when?"

"Nah. The guy said that they wanted those wild cats. All of 'em. Said they're unusually sociable. Wants to experiment on 'em, ya know?"

I bristled. Experiment on them? What in the name of StarClan does that mean? Whatever it meant, it didn't sound good. I angled my ears toward their continuing conversation.

"They gonna do anythin' with the resort?"

"I dunno. Guy said they wanted to rebuild, but they can't with all these wild cats around. They pose a risk to their safety, supposedly."

"That sucks. I wanna leave, don't you, bud?"

"Of course I wanna leave, dude. I wanna go back home and have a nice rabbit. I'm sick'a this gobshite their feedin' us. Ain't you?"

"'Course I am. Think they gonna try and make us housecats?"

"Dunno. Wouldn't care if they did. I'd just run away soon as I got the chance."

"I thought Guy told you all 'bout their plans."

"Not everythin'. Just some stuff. He doesn't know everythin'."

"Shame."

I flattened my ears against my head. None of what these cats were saying sounded good. I felt a sudden flash of panic. If these guys' informer wasn't mistaken, then that meant ThunderClan was in serious danger. These Twolegs clearly weren't done harming cats yet, nor did it sound as if they were going to stop any time soon. And here I was again, completely helpless and incapable of helping my Clan. Was I destined to always end up like this?

'Stop it!' I told myself. 'Feeling sorry for yourself isn't going to get you out of here. Start thinking.'

I couldn't reach the release latch to my trap- my captors had made sure of that. But what about the other cats? Those two cats from earlier had seemed especially eager to get out of here. If I told them how to escape, and they did, they might free me in return. Then, I could escape and go back to ThunderClan. Once I was there, I could get together a big group of cats and come back for the rest of my captured Clanmates. I'd make sure to get the approval of Bramblestar, of course. I felt another flash of panic as I thought of my father. He and Squirrelflight had to be worried sick about me. They probably thought I was dead.

I shook my head. All the more reason to get out of here, so that I could go back to them. I started contemplating ways that I could communicate with those two cats and deliver the directions to them without sounding crazy. I knew it was stupid to put my trust in two rogues, but I was desperate.

I started bashing on the trap. "Hey!" I hissed. "Hey!" The bashing made my whole body ache, but it was a worthy sacrifice for being able to get out of here.

Thankfully, the two rogues noticed me after about three bashes. "Whaddya want, wild cat?" One of them asked.

I stopped banging against the trap. "I need you guys to help me get out of here. Or at least help one of my Clanmates. You recognize any of them?"

"Nah. Just recognize yer voice, that's all. I reckon though, even if we did know what'ye look like, we wouldn't help ya. Why should we?"

I thought fast. "I'll tell you how to escape from your own cages. Then, you can free me in return."

"Why you so willin' to put yer trust in a stranger, boy? Didn't your mamma teach you anythin'?"

"I'm desperate." I answered levelly. "My Clanmates are probably worried sick about me."

"Clanmates?"

"The other wild cats. Listen, if I tell you how to get out of here- will you help me escape too?"

The two rogues were silent for a while. Just when I was about to start bashing again, one of them spoke.

"Alright, alright. But don't go pissin' on us if we leave ya, kid. Here, it's every cat for himself."

"Thank you." I breathed. "Now, do you know what a release is?"

"Yeah." One of them said.

I was a bit surprised by that. "Okay, well, can you guys reach the ones on your traps?"

They both ended up being able to reach their releases, once I described to them what exactly it looked like. I held my breath as I heard their traps spring open. Would they stay true to their word and help me? Or would they do as rogues did and leave me behind?

It got very quiet all of a sudden. I released my held-in air, feeling a flash of immense disappointment. As the moments began to tick by, I became more and more certain that the rogues had left and broken our agreement. I was just beginning to sink to the floor in defeat when someone nosed aside the drape over my trap.

A wide smile spread across my face when I saw two toms standing before me. It was the first full view I had gotten of these toms. The one that had nosed aside the drape was a big brown and black tabby with sharp green eyes. The second cat was a blue-grey tom with pale blue eyes. He studied me curiously as his tabby companion began fiddling with my release.

My heart rate increased as the tabby struggled with the release. I was just beginning to panic when he managed to unlatch it, and the trap sprung open.

I held back a yowl of triumph. I darted out of the trap and into the open, momentarily disoriented as I was greeted with sunlight. I spun around as the two toms padded out behind me.

"Thank you!" I purred. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

The brown tabby twitched his whiskers. "Don't get too comfortable with it, boy. You can't trust everyone."

I nodded. "I know. I just had to this one time. My name's Thornsting, by the way."

The tabby flicked his tail. "I'll be Shane, and this is my companion River."

I nodded. "Well, I guess I'd better be getting to my Clanmates now."

Shane shook his head. "Not a good idea, boy. They'll be comin' soon."

"The Twolegs?"

Shane nodded gravelly. "Yeah. They always come 'bout this time for feedin'. You don't leave now, you never will."

"But my Clanmates-"

"-will be fine." Shane said sternly. "You must go now, Thornsting. If your Clan is the way everyone says, they'll come back. Ya know it."

As much as I hated it, I knew he was right. "Okay." I said. "I'll go. But I will be back." I started toward the open window I'd came in through the previous night. When I got there, I looked over my shoulder one last time at my rescuers. Meeting each of their gazes, I said,

"Thank you again, Shane and River. I am forever in your debt. May StarClan light your paths, wherever they will lead."


I know this was pretty short, but I can't think of anything else to do with this chapter. What do you guys think of Shane and River? Are they two characters you'd like to see make another appearance?