I'm sorry if this chapter sucks. I've got really bad flu, and it's currently 4:20 in the morning here, so I think I did alright for this chapter. Maybe. T-T


"Just wait behind this bramble," Kestrelflight whispered to Jayfeather and Flamepaw. "We'll be by shortly." His voice faded a little, and Jayfeather knew he had turned around to look for his leader and Sol. "Here they come," he squeaked. "I've got to go."

"We'll tail you," Jayfeather promised. "We won't let anything happen."

A spark of uneasiness came from the WindClan medicine cat. "I pray to StarClan that your words are true, Jayfeather." His pawsteps faded into the distance as he ran to catch up with Onestar.

Jayfeather turned to Flamepaw. "Can you see them?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," the ShadowClan medicine cat apprentice mewed. "They're just outside your territory." There was a pause as Flamepaw scented the air. "That's Sol, alright." He let out a low growl. "I'd recognize his scent anywhere."

Jayfeather strained his ears to listen to the conversation but he only picked up every other word or so.

"Kestrelflight," Onestar mewed in surprise. "What…ThunderClan…hurry…Gathering."

Kestrelflight mewed something unintelligible, and the voices faded.

"Where did they go?" Jayfeather hissed, more to himself than to Flamepaw.

"I can still see them. They've just started to head into the woods. Let's go!" He gave Jayfeather a rough nudge, but Jayfeather shook him off angrily.

"I know where I'm going," he spat.

Surprise and fear fluttered from the apprentice's pelt. "S-sorry," he mewed hastily. "But we're going to lose them if we don't hurry."

"Fine," Jayfeather relented, knowing that Flamepaw spoke the truth. "Lead the way then." He placed his tail across the apprentice's shoulders and Flamepaw took off.

They ran softly, placing their paws down gently on the soft grass so that Sol and the WindClan cats wouldn't hear them. Where could they be going? Jayfeather wondered. They aren't going the right way for the Moonpool-- what other ancestors are there?

"Stop," Flamepaw hissed suddenly. "They're standing still now. I can't tell what they're doing."

"Move closer," Jayfeather meowed, his voice barely a whisper.

"O-okay," Flamepaw stuttered. He grabbed Jayfeather's scruff and hauled him closer, the voices becoming clearer. Brambles tugged at Jayfeather's pelt, and he knew they were well hidden. "I can't see them well from here," Flamepaw whispered.

"That's okay," Jayfeather whispered back. "We can hear them." He raised his tail for silence and the two medicine cats leaned forward to listen.

Sol was speaking, and Jayfeather fought down a bitter hiss. The loner had promised to help him and his littermates but never followed though. "All you must do is take a single sip, Onestar," he said, anticipation in his voice.

"This water is stagnant," Onestar growled. Jayfeather was surprised by his voice: a deep, rough rasp of a noise. "I'll get sick."

"No, no!" Sol insisted. "This will cleanse you. These ancestors are much more powerful than StarClan. They will give you the strength and power to do anything you want."

"Is it a pool?" Jayfeather hissed to Flamepaw, and he could feel the apprentice nod.

"It's dark, though. I can't see the bottom. It's smaller than the Moonpool-- this one's a little bigger than a puddle." He let out a sound of disgust. "It smells foul."

Jayfeather could smell it, too. The scent was not unlike the smell of rotten leaves and crowfood. "They're going to drink it?" he questioned.

"Maybe. It looks that way."

"I can't drink that!" Kestrelflight yowled. "Look at it! A kit could tell that water is bad."

"Do you want to be strong?" Onestar rasped to his medicine cat. "Barkface never gave me and trouble. Maybe you're not cut out to be a medicine cat."

Jayfeather could feel a pang of guilt and anger flood from the WindClan medicine cat. "You can't be serious, Onestar."

"I am." There was a pause-- the only sound was the splashing of water and Jayfeather knew Onestar had drank the water. The WindClan leader cried out in pain and fear as the water slid into his belly, and a loud thump told Jayfeather he had collapsed and was seizing on the bare ground.

"Drink it, Kestrelflight," Sol mewed, a hint of a snarl in his voice.

There was a second sound of moving water, and Kestrelflight's voice joined his leader's.

"Sol's drinking now," Flamepaw murmured. "Onestar's just now fallen still. Kestrelflight is thrashing on the ground." Surprise colored his tone as he went on to add, "Sol isn't affected by it! He just fell asleep."

Despite Flamepaw's words, Jayfeather could feel the pain that was happening in Sol, but also felt the loner's rapturous fascination with the dark water. What in StarClan's name is going on here? Jayfeather wailed internally. He settled onto the ground and tucked his paws beneath his chest.

"What are you doing?" Flamepaw demanded, fear radiating from his pelt.

"I'm going to see if I can join Kestrelflight's dreams," he answered. "Now stay quiet." Jayfeather closed his eyes and rested his chin on the ground.

Immediately, Jayfeather opened his eyes to see the burning gaze of the cat who had been stalking him in his sleep. "Jaykit," the cat said mockingly. "If you want to join his dream you must pay the toll."

Jayfeather jerked awake, opening his eyes to the darkness and feeling Flamepaw's panic echo his own. He knew exactly what the dark cat had meant, and what it required him to do. He started to pad towards the water.

"What are you doing?" Flamepaw hissed.

"I'm going to taste the water," Jayfeather answered, not stopping. "I…I need to know something." He flipped his head around to where he assumed Flamepaw was. "Stay up there and keep watch," he ordered.

Flamepaw's breath came in a startled gasp, but he settled back down, crushing several small dead bramble shoots.

Jayfeather opened his mouth and tasted the air, instantly letting out a soft noise of disgust at the scent of the water. It was repelling, especially at this closeness, but he padded forward until his paws came to cold, slimy ground, and he knew he was at the pool's edge. He bent his head and sniffed at the soil: it seemed to be covered with slick moss that gave off an unusual odor-- not revolting like the water, but not quite pleasant.

"Jayfeather," Flamepaw called softly. "Don't do this!"

"I have to," Jayfeather whispered, more to himself than to the apprentice. "I must know." He dipped his head and stuck out his tongue to lap up a single tongueful of water, and cried out in shock.

The water felt like he had just licked fire and the feeling didn't go away. Jayfeather fell on the ground as his head swam, his legs curled up underneath him in agony as the fire blazed through his body. His vision turned red with the strength of his pain. He vaguely heard Flamepaw call his name, but sighed and let himself fall into darkness.

Jayfeather hit the ground with a thud that drove the breath from his body. He wheezed on the ground, his eyes adjusting to the dim light of the environment around him. With dread, he realized he was in Tigerstar's dark forest, and the light was given off by a repellant yellow fungus. Jayfeather curled his lip to drive the scent from his nostrils, standing up and shaking his pelt free of clinging dead leaves.

What am I doing here? Why would any cat want to come here? The fire smoldered in his veins here, but he felt an odd sense of power-- untouchable but barely there. He heard voices from deeper within the forest, and he began to pad stealthily towards them, watching shadows dance across his paws. Where's the moon? he wailed, looking all around him. The sky was made of the same swirling shadows from his nightmares. Am I meant to be here?

"We are here, brother." Sol's words surprised Jayfeather, and he crept over a fallen log to peer into a small clearing. Jutting from the ground at an odd angle was a massive rock, and the WindClan cats and Sol stood beneath it.

"Who are these ancestors?" Onestar rasped, and Jayfeather could see the damage Lionblaze had afflicted upon him. Four lines of bright red infected scars ran down from the top of his head, across one ear, through one of his eyes, then under his chin and across his throat. His amber eyes burned with a heat as palpable as a forest fire.

"They are strong," Sol reassured the leader. "They will lead you Clan to greatness! Not like those so-called warriors of StarClan." At his words, the clearing began to darken-- even the light from the fungus faded to a dim glow. Jayfeather felt the ground rumble beneath his paws, and quickly backed up as shadow cats poured into the clearing.

Oh, StarClan! These are the cats that were rejected from StarClan! These are the murders and code-breakers! Jayfeather pressed himself into the ground, his mouth open in a silent wail.

He picked out Tigerstar and Hawkfrost, padding side-by-side; the effect of the two of them, so shockingly alike, was terrifying. Only their eyes burned different colors. Tigerstar did not lead the way, strangely. A huge, long-haired dark tabby did, his amber eyes scorching. Jayfeather noticed that the cat's tail was bent in half like a broken branch.

"Welcome, Onestar," the cat mewed, his voice calm and deadly. "Why have you intruded upon our solitude? The cats of the dark forest have never gathered like this in all the seasons I've been here."

Onestar's eyes were wide in panic. "Brokentail!" he whispered in hate and anger.

The tom's eyes gleamed in rage. "It's Brokenstar," he corrected. "That pitiful ThunderClan thought they could change me." His mouth opened in a horrible bark of laughter. "They thought they could strip away from me what always had been mine."

Kestrelflight was eyeing a black-and-white she-cat with with a smooth, unscarred pelt nervously. At his glance, she leapt forward with an explosive hiss and raked her claws at him. The medicine cat leapt backwards, his ears flattened and his eyes wide.

Brokenstar watched with amused eyes. "Now, now," he snarled mockingly. "Let's behave, eh, Blackflower?"

The she-cat, Blackflower, looked over at him in disgust. "I told you," she spat. "I'm no longer Blackflower. It's Raven."

"You were in my Clan when you received that name," Brokenstar hissed. "You will wear it in my territory!"

"This isn't your territory!" she yowled. "It's unnatural for us to gather like this. If it wasn't for Tigerstar, no cat would know how to do this anyway."

"Be silent, Blackflower," another cat beside her mewed, her voice low and dangerous. "We are here for a reason."

"Yes," Sol whispered, his eyes wide and excited. "Brokenstar, when you came to me in a dream, I--"

"You may go, loner." Brokenstar's voice was blunt. "Your usefulness is over."

"W-what?" Sol stuttered. "But, I thought you'd give me power as well!"

Cold laughter filled the air-- the sound made Jayfeather's fur stand on end.

"Don't be stupid, loner," a silver tabby mewed. "Why would we give our power to you? You don't belong to the Clans."

Brokenstar wheeled on the tabby, faster than Jayfeather could blink. "Silence, Darkstripe!" he hissed furiously. "Who gave you permission to speak?"

"Now, now," Tigerstar spoke for the first time. "Brokenstar, let him go."

Brokenstar's amber eyes were incredulous. "Are you really the one to give orders to me?" he snarled softly. "You're lucky I let you walk here with me. You're not even pure ShadowClan, yet you wear the name -star like you were raised by a ShadowClan queen!" He released his hold on Darkstripe and sat down, his ragged pelt looking strangely familiar to Jayfeather.

"It doesn't matter," Tigerstar mewed smoothly. "Let's get to why we're here." He turned and looked into the forest as if he could see Jayfeather crouched there. Oh, StarClan! Let him look away! Tigerstar's head snapped towards Onestar on the ground. Thank you, Jayfeather whispered in his mind.

"Leader of WindClan," Brokenstar started. "You have come to us with your medicine cat to accept the help of the dark forest, have you not?"

Even though Kestrelflight started and began to stand, Onestar laid his tail on the younger cat's shoulders. "We have," he growled.

Brokenstar dipped his head. "Very well," he said, "but you must run the trial." He flicked his broken tail and the shadow cats parted like a wave, their pelts glowing with a dark light and their eyes were red.

"The trial?" Onestar echoed, his pelt bristling.

"The Trial of Claws," the shadow cats intoned. "You must run the Trial of Claws." Their voices were soft and chanting, but their eyes burned with otherworldly light.

"I will do anything to make sure my Clan survives and prospers." Onestar's voice was strong despite the fact his fur was on edge.

"Onestar, please," Kestrelflight begged. "Please don't do this."

Onestar rounded on him, his single eye gleaming in horrible rage. "Come on now, Kestrelflight," he hissed softly.

Kestrelflight's pelt bristled, but he followed his leader through the pathway of cats. As they passed, the cats of the dark forest struck out with their claws, ripping pawfuls of fur from the WindClan cats' pelts. Onestar cried out in agony as a small black tom with piercing blue eyes caught the fur along his belly.

"Squirm!" the black cat cried in a voice like ice.

Jayfeather could only watch in horror as the WindClan cats were maimed by the claws of long-dead cats. He hurriedly snuck down behind the line of cats to look at the clearing where Onestar and Kestrelflight had just emerged. Onestar's face matched the rest of his pelt now, Jayfeather thought darkly. Kestrelflight's green eyes were glimmering with pain, and he limped on one paw.

Brokenstar awaited them at the end of the line. "Congratulations," he growled. "You've made it to the end."

Onestar's breath came in sharp pants. "My wounds," he whispered.

"They will heal. Your lives will not."

Jayfeather's breath caught in his chest. What can he possibly mean?

"My…my lives?" Onestar rasped. "My lives are…gone?"

"Yes."

Onestar stood up, rage flooding through him and touching Jayfeather's own fear. "You tricked me!" he accused.

Brokenstar's eyes gleamed with terrible humor. "I did nothing of the sort. Your StarClan lives are gone," he announced. "And now we will give you new ones."

Jayfeather could only watch in terror. No, no, no! he wailed. This is wrong! This is wrong!

"I will give you the first," Brokenstar hissed. He padded forward to press his nose against Onestar's forehead. "With this life I give you power," he snarled. "Use to it gain what you want."

Jayfeather could tell Onestar was in agony. The WindClan leader's legs buckled underneath him and he fell to the ground wailing. Brokenstar watched him with cold eyes, then turned away and padded back to the lines, allowing room for Tigerstar to approach.

"You," Onestar hissed.

Tigerstar's eyes gleamed as he touched his nose to Onestar. "With this life I give you ambition. Use it constantly to claim what is yours."

Onestar didn't yowl this time, but he closed his eyes and let out a low hiss as Tigerstar's life flooded through him. He opened hate-filled eyes to glare at Tigerstar, but the next cat was already padding up.

"Hawkfrost!" Onestar spat.

The huge tabby dipped his head. "With this life I give you confidence. Never let any cat tell you what to do."

Onestar's teeth ground on each other, and Jayfeather watched him sink his claws into the bare ground.

The tiny black cat padded up to the WindClan leader next. His claws glittered unnaturally in the dim light and Jayfeather felt a thrill of horror course through him at the realization. Dog teeth! His claws are reinforced with dog teeth!

"With this life I give you the power to undermine enemies." The cat's voice was filled with cynicism. "Use it to cut the legs out from underneath them."

"Scourge," Onestar rasped, as the pain overtook him. "You…nearly killed me."

"Well, let's call it even now," Scourge said scornfully as he stepped back for an enormous black-and-white tom to come forward. "My deputy," Scourge greeted him. "Take it away, Bone."

"With this life I give you strength," Bone hissed, his green eyes furious. "Use it better than I did."

What can that mean? Jayfeather questioned, but the next cat was already padding up.

Darkstripe's pale eyes glittered as he stepped forward. "With this life I give you your own mind. Never let any cat question you."

Darkstripe glared upwards as Onestar writhed on the ground. He must be cursing StarClan! Jayfeather thought.

Darkstripe walked away to sit next to Tigerstar as a mottled tabby padded forward. "Well, isn't this a strange coincidence!" he mewed. "Who would have thought that I'd be the one to give you a life."

"Mudclaw!" Onestar growled. He began to rise, but Mudclaw pushed him back down and pressed his nose to Onestar's forehead.

"With this life I give you the power to fight. Use against all who challenge you." Mudclaw watched with glittering eyes as Onestar yowled in pain on the ground, letting out a purr.

He really must hate him, Jayfeather pondered, his claws flexing in and out as he watched the dark ceremony.

The black-and-white she cat, Blackflower, padded up next. "With this life I give you the power to stand out. Don't let any cat hold you back." She shot a hate-filled glance towards Brokenstar, then pressed her nose to Onestar's forehead. "One left," she murmured as she stepped away, kindness almost touching her voice.

Silence fell upon the clearing then, and Jayfeather looked around for the next cat to pad up.

No cat came.

"Where is our last warrior?" Hawkfrost called, his pale eyes annoyed. "Come out now."

Where is it? Jayfeather questioned. Where is the last--

"Hello, Jaykit."

Jayfeather whirled around to peer into the darkness at the cat who had haunted his dreams for moons now. "No," he whispered through unmoving lips. "Oh no."

"Oh yes, Jayfeather." The cat stepped into the light and Jayfeather fought down the urge to screech aloud with fear. "Did you think you could get rid of me that easily?" He walked past Jayfeather and pressed his nose to Onestar. "With this life I give you determination." The cat's eyes looked up and smoldered as he met Jayfeather's gaze. "Use it to finish off what you started." His eyes mocked Jayfeather as Onestar received the life.

Jayfeather turned and ran into the depths of the forest, not caring if the shadow cats saw him. How can he be here? Jayfeather wanted to wail. He's going to kill us! Ashfur is going to kill us!


I wanted this to be more dramatic, but it kinda failed. Sorry. I'm going back to sleep now, so R&R!

A very sick and sleepy Shadow