AvatarCat12: Well, this is it! The Day Of Dark Sun! You all excited?
Katara: You bet we are! And for this episode, we're actually going to upload these two chapters today.
Aang: We've already uploaded the two-part finales for the past two Books. So we decided to do the honor and upload this too.
AvatarCat12: Yep. He's right. But enough talk for now. Now on with the disclaimer!
Disclaimer: You should all know that I don't own either series. I blend them together for the enjoyment of others. And the song Look Through My Eyes doesn't belong to me, as I explained in Book 2. It belongs to Phil Collins.
Summary: The day of the invasion has finally come, and AvatarClan and their old friends and allies are ready for the ultimate battle! Will Ashfeather prove he is a true warrior by leading his Clanmates into battle? And before the battle begins, Goldwing reveals his ultimate secret to Silverheart. Meanwhile, Irontail gains a new friend in prison. Is she aware of what he's up to? And what about Bearclaw?
Uploading Date: August 18, 2012
All three: Enjoy!
...
Day Of Dark Sun: Invasion
Goldwing stretched long and hard, finally feeling refreshed after sleeping like a kit. The awful nightmares he had in the past few days were becoming a thing in the past, and he felt ready. And there, he realized what day it was. The day of the invasion had finally arrived. But this time, Goldwing did not feel nervous at all.
Instead, he bounded over to where his friends had gathered, Ashfeather observing a map while Nightfoot and Silverheart watched as they sat the side. Ashfeather's dark gray tabby pelt had been restored while Nightfoot had her black fur back. Silverheart also had her silver-gray fur back...but her chest and paws were silver again while dark silver stripes streaked everywhere on her body.
Oh well. Today's the day!
"Good morning!" Goldwing chirped, bounding over to them. "You too, Tobi!" he added, giving the hawk a pat on the head.
"Looks like someone slept well," Silverheart purred. When she saw him looking at her new tabby coat, she added, "For some reason, the stripes reached down to my silver fur. So I'm a silver tabby now."
Goldwing nodded. "That's good. Anyways, I DID sleep well. I slept like a bear with a bellyful of cubs! I'm ready to fight Darkstar!" he added, getting into a battle stance.
"So what's your strategy for taking him out?" Nightfoot asked, flicking her tail towards her face. "Gonna get your glow on and claw him with a little Avatar Cat State action?"
This made Goldwing drop the happy look and look down. He hadn't told them that he had failed to master the Avatar Cat State because of his love for Silverheart. And plus...he hadn't been able to achieve the Avatar Cat State even if he got really angry. But now that Silverheart and Ashfeather were looking over at him, he knew he would have to tell the truth.
"Actually...I can't," he finally confessed. "When Frostfire shot me with lightning back when we were in BoulderClan, my seventh chakra was locked, cutting off my connection to all the cosmic energy in the Universe. So unless I reconnect with the chakra, I can't use it at all."
At first, there was silence...and then Nightfoot mewed, "You know what I just heard? All I heard was 'Blah blah spiritual mumbo jumbo blah blah' and something about space. You know we're not as good at this shit as you are."
Goldwing smiled a bit at this as he rolled his eyes. It was so much like Nightfoot to talk about spiritual stuff like that.
Suddenly, he saw something misty out of the corner of his eye. Fog was rolling in from the sea and towards the harbor at the bottom of the cliff. It appeared that the weather wouldn't be as bright and sunny for the invasion after all.
"Oh no," Silverheart groaned, turning to her brother. "Do you think the fog will delay the invasion, Ashfeather?"
"No..." Ashfeather mewed, smiling. "That fog IS the invasion!"
Goldwing bounded over to the edge of the cliff and peered through the fog in the horizon. Five WaterClan ships started appearing out of the fog, following the ship of Emberstar. The dark gray WaterClan leader was peering through a telescope with his deputy, Volefoot, standing beside him. Both were wearing WaterClan warrior armor, the kind of armor Twolegs had worn in times of battle.
So all four cats raced down the cliff until they arrived at the port. When they made it, Goldwing and Nightfoot started EarthBending some docks for the great ships to stop and drop their fares off. Right when the ships dropped off their passengers, Emberstar was the first cat to arrive onto the dock. Blue eyes shining happily, Silverheart and Ashfeather raced over to greet their father.
"You made it, Dad!" Silverheart cheered, covering her father's face in happy licks.
Noticing this, Goldwing smiled. It seemed that Silverheart had finally patched things up with her father and was no longer mad at him. He knew how much family meant to her.
"Did you locate everyone I told you to find?" Ashfeather asked when the greetings were passed.
Emberstar nodded. "I did. But Ashfeather, I'm a little worried. Some of them don't exactly look like the warrior type."
Goldwing looked over his broad shoulder to see what he meant. Three recognizable cats were slowly padding down the plank and onto the deck. Not only did he recognize them by their pelt colors, but how they talked...and smelled...was familiar enough to him. He curled up his nose at remembering the scents of swamp fish and other swamp stuff.
"Whooo-wheee!" the skinny black tom yowled, sounding full of energy. "This place shere ain't nothin' like a swamp!" Pointing a scraggly tail at a stump in the water, he yelped, "What choo think that is, Bloat? Some sort of explodin' FireClan exploding trap that eat cha up?"
"That there's just a stump, Skunk," the fat tabby beside him corrected him. "Like back at our swamp."
Skunk cocked up a brow at this. "Really? Well, shut my mouth and paint me red! That IS a stump!"
Emberstar now raised his brow in confusion. "Is it just me, or are those fellows a little...loose in the head?"
"I just wish they'd groom their pelts," Volefoot replied, his green eyes narrowing.
Now they saw the leader of the swamp cats, Cajun, licking himself. The big fat tabby didn't seem bothered by what the WaterClan deputy just meowed. But upon hearing that, he lifted his head to give them a smile.
"Grooming is an illusion," he simply meowed. "And so is death."
As he went back to licking himself, Emberstar, Volefoot, and Silverheart had some confused and worried looks on their faces. Only Ashfeather was smiling widely; Goldwing supposed that since the swamp cats were WaterBenders, they could prove to be useful. He just silently wished that if they came across any plants along the way, then Ashfeather would treat them more nicely.
When all the swamp cats were off the boat, Ashfeather padded away to give them some seating arrangements. Goldwing, Silverheart, and Nightfoot watched them go just when a familiar mew reached their ears.
"Hey Silverheart."
They turned around to see a dark brown tabby tom with leaf-green eyes smiling at them. His fur length and fur color was quite a shocker, but Goldwing recognized the voice all the same. This cat was a friend they had met when they were apprentices.
"Brindle!" Silverheart cheered, racing over and embracing him. "It's so good to see you again!"
"Nightfoot, this cat here is Brindle," Goldwing meowed, padding forth with her at his side. He remembered that they didn't meet her until newleaf, so there was some explaining to do. "When we met him, his town was being controlled by FireClan. So though we were just apprentices, we had to help him hide his EarthBending."
"Yeah. But Silverheart stirred me and my father to take back our village and chase FireClan out," Brindle explained. "In fact, since she's a good friend to my family, I decided to be a warrior and have a name like hers. My father gave me the name Brindleheart after Silverheart's name."
This made Silverheart blush a faint pink.
Brownstone, Brindleheart's large dark tabby father, padded forth and laid his tail on Silverheart's shoulder. "Silverheart, you had helped us regain our independence and save our village. In fact, you are now a legend among us. So now we're here to help you and your friends in return. May StarClan look down kindly on you during this fight."
Silverheart looked around at him, gratitude in her dark blue eyes. Goldwing felt that she really deserved to be a legend after all she had done to help the villagers be freed from the cruel prison warden. If it weren't for her, many more cats would have died.
But suddenly, Nightfoot got into a defensive pose and spat, "No way. No freakin' way! Is that..."
And just then, a huge red blur carried her off her paws and down to the ground. Before any other cat could do something, the blur was revealed to be a reddish-furred wild boar hog, who had started licking the black she-cat all over. Goldwing instantly recognized this pig.
"Warthog glad to see Blind Outlaw!" the boar cheered, continuing to lick her.
"You!" Nightfoot spat, glaring up at the Warthog. "You guys wanna re-match?"
"Negative!" A large tabby cat had prowled forth and stood beside the Warthog. "The Boulder and The Warthog no longer fight for others' amusement. Now...we have come to fight for our Clan!"
Nightfoot blinked up at her former enemy before a smile came across her face. "Sweet!"
Ashfeather had been watching this from a short way away, sharing a wistful look with his , a boat exploded from behind all the other cats, shocking them as they proceeded to run towards it. Goldwing hoped that whoever was in there was all right. If they were killed, then they would not be able to attack FireClan.
When they got there, a familiar cream-furred tom with a glass eye and a missing paw was just appearing from the lower deck, his face covered with orange goo. As he coughed, his gray-furred back-legless son was wheeling his wheelchair down the gangplank. His father, The Dude, and Tiny were trailing behind him, all covered in orange goo.
"Hey, was that a new invention?" Ashfeather asked as they greeted them.
"Indeed, dear boy!" the Scientist purred as Gray-limp started licking the orange goo off his gray fur. "Alas, the provocative aptitudes of peanut sauce proved to be nothing more than a failure."
Ashfeather's eyes shone. "So you're making peanut sauce bombs?"
"Yeah!" Tiny prowled forward with The Dude riding on his shoulders. Both ginger-&-white toms were covered in peanut sauce. "They're destructive."
"And delicious!" The Dude added as they licked the sauce off their faces.
Tobias cawed and flew over to the two rogues, where he perched on top of Tiny's huge head and tries to nip the peanut sauce off his face. This caused Tiny and The Dude to purr in amusement.
Ashfeather purred at this before turning back to the Scientist. "Did you complete the work on the plans I sent you?"
The Scientist nodded. "That's right. And I think FireClan be quite surprised. This will literally become the cat's meow!"
"Goldwing." Gray-limp's meow made the tiger-striped tom turn to face him. The crippled gray tom took a pole-like object from his wheelchair and mewed, "My dad and I made this for you."
Mewing in thanks, Goldwing took the pole and pawed at a button near the bottom. And to his amazement and joy...blue wings popped out from the pole, wings like a jay. He never thought he would see an ancient relic like this ever again.
"Wow!" he gasped, inspecting it. "A new glider! This is amazing...thanks!"
"And I added a feature to this," the Scientist meowed, limping forth thanks to his missing paw. "A snack box!"
The cream-furred loner ducked his head under the handle and pulled on it. Peanuts tumbled out of the box into his mouth, making him nod in satisfaction as he crunched on the nuts.
Goldwing tilted his head to the side, quite amazed yet confused of why he would want it. But he knew that he would have to be polite about it, so he mewed, "I'm sure that'll be handy. Thanks."
But the little add-on wasn't that important now. What was more important was that their allies were now here to help out with the invasion. Now...with his newest glider and his friends and allies with him, they were nearly ready.
...
"I bet you're getting' tired of that cell, old man."
Irontail could see the Warden Poon sitting on the floor doing his grooming. The former FireClan warrior had hardened himself to ignore the taunts, so the insults would have no effect on him.
As if he hadn't answered, the Warden Poon sneered, "Well, guess what? Too bad, you crazy old bastard. You ain't never gonna step outside these walls again."
Irontail did not let the orange tabby see him smile. If he did, then he would know something was up. But he did know that he would get outside again and see his nephew.
"Time for breakfast, Irontail."
The newcomer was revealed to be a brown she-cat with amber-yellow eyes. She appeared to be carrying a tray with a bowl of cream and three voles on the top.
"Careful there, Quailsong. Don't get too close," the Warden Poon sneered, standing up. "His dog stench will knock you out."
He let out a harsh laugh before spitting at Irontail's paws and leaving the room. Quailsong glared after him, looking annoyed, but she dropped the look when she looked over at Irontail. Her eyes softened when she saw the gray tabby sitting alone in his cell.
As soon as the ginger tabby was gone, the brown she-cat padded over to Irontail's cell and laid the tray at his paws. "Don't listen to him, sir; he likes to get under your pelt. Anyways, I snuck in some Taiwanese cream. I know how much you like rare cream."
"Thank you, Quailsong," Irontail replied, gratefully taking a few laps of cream. "Ever since I was put in here by FireClan, you have been very kind to me."
Quailsong merely tilted her head to the side and gave a cheerful purr of amusement. Irontail almost wished there were cats like her in the world, but he knew no one was perfect...not even his own family.
...
The warriors of WaterClan and EarthClan were just having their meal. There was no time for battle training, for they would soon be out in the field. Goldwing saw that despite Ashfeather holding scrolls in his jaws, he was gulping nervously.
"Don't worry, son," Emberstar told him reassuringly. "You'll do fine."
So Ashfeather took a deep breath and padded up to the platform. As soon as he arrived, all the other cats stopped what they were doing and looked up, as attentive as cats in a Gathering.
"Good morning, everyone!" the dark gray tabby tom called. But as soon as he meowed this, he suddenly tripped and started to pick up his fallen scrolls hurriedly. After some more awkward silence, Ashfeather went on, "Uhm...as you all know, we're invading FireClan today. I mean, I know you know that. Because why else would you guys be here?"
He laughed nervously, but none of the other cats laughed. So Ashfeather clumsily dropped some more scrolls, picked them up, and placed them on a board. With that done, he began, "Anyways, Darkstar's palace is right here...uh...no, wait!" He flipped a page, flipped again, and flipped for the final time, meowing, "Actually, it's here."
Again, no response. Yet Skunk looked up from scratching at his ear as he heard this, looking very confused.
"Uh...and an eclipse is coming today, and Goldwing's gonna fight Darkstar," Ashfeather went on. But he looked like he was going to panic, so he meowed on, "And the FireBenders won't have any fire to use...so that's good for us! And...uh..."
No response. Gray-limp and the Scientist were starting to look bored.
Seeing this, Ashfeather meowed, "Sorry, lemme start at the beginning." Then he took a deep breath and talked in the fastest way Goldwing had ever heard him talk.
"Silverheart and I found Goldwing frozen in a white stone. Silverheart was Silverpaw, Goldwing was Goldpaw, and I was Ashpaw. I didn't like him at first, but I grew to love him like a brother over time. Then we went over to the Southern AirClan camp where Goldwing used to live. And then we went to the Island Of Heavy Roses and met Echo In Quiet Storm, who is a Tribe cat. She made me dress like a she-cat and then she licked me on the cheek and..."
The WaterClan cats looked bored and began to yawn. Quietly in Goldwing's ear, Silverheart whispered, "Wow. When he says beginning, he means THE beginning."
As Emberstar began padding up the platform, Ashfeather continued talking, "And we saw that Goldwing's friend was a crazy old cat and then Silverheart got Brindleheart arrested, and now his fur's darker. And if you look in the front row, you can see him..."
"Thank you, Ashfeather," Emberstar finally meowed, laying a paw on his son's shoulder. "It's okay; you did great. How about you take a break?"
Ashfeather looked disappointed, but he obliged and sat down with the rest of AvatarClan.
As soon as Emberstar began to speak, the warriors began to take interest in what he had to say. The WaterClan leader was meowing, "Let me just clarify a few points for everyone. Today is the Day of Dark Sun, and I want to thank you all for your self-sacrifice and your courage. The warriors of the ancient Clans value those traits, and we value them today. There are two steps to the invasion. A marine stage and a land stage. To gain sea access to FireClan's capital, we have to get pass our first major obstacle here. The Great Gates of Thistlestar," he added, flicking his tail to the center of the map. He flipped to another map and went on, "Next, we hit the land and hit it hard. We fight past their ramparts and secure the square tower. Once we do that, we'll head up to the royal palace. At that point, the eclipse will begin."
"Excuse me," The Boulder called. When Emberstar allowed him to speak, the brown tabby rogue meowed, "Sorry, but The Boulder is confused. Shouldn't we just attack during the eclipse? You know, when the FireBenders are defenseless?"
"True, but the eclipse will last only for eight minutes," the dark gray tom replied. "There won't be enough time for the whole invasion, and the royal palace is heavily guarded. So that's when we'll need the eclipse the most. When this is done, Avatar Cat Goldwing will defeat Darkstar. We will take control of FireClan's capital, and this war will be over! To the Clans!"
At the sound of that, every cat stood up and began yowling and cheering. The Dude and Tiny were in the middle of them in the crowd, cheering wildly as The Dude rode on Tiny's massive shoulders. AvatarClan had joined in with the yowls...yet Ashfeather was still looking downcast. Whatever was upsetting him, Goldwing knew he could use that in battle.
After that, everyone started getting geared up for battle. Silverheart was Bending somewater from the stream from the hiding place into her pouch. Nightfoot was putting on a scarf around her neck, her claws sinking into the ground. Emberstar was putting on a helmet, which closely resembled a wolf's head. And Archie stamped his foot on the ground, his new armor glinting in the sun as he roared.
As for Goldwing...he had noticed that a bit of golden was appearing on his tiger fur. So he padded towards a tree by the river and started rubbing against it, leaving black-&-ginger fur to fall off towards the ground. When he stood up as he finished, he looked down into the water as he held his glider in his jaws. His fur was back to the sunny golden color he was named after, the white arrow stripe on his head glowing proudly in the sunlight.
The Avatar Cat is back! he thought as he stared on ahead. A sheep walked up beside him and bleated, making him reach over and pat it on the head. The battle was drawing nearer than before.
...
Bearclaw gave a weary sigh as he sat on his nest, removing the pin that fastened his royal collar onto his neck. Feeling the cool breeze on his neck, he felt the fur fall down until he looked like a brown tabby lion again. After he put the collar into his bag, he proceeded to remove the shoulder padding from his armor and set it down.
I know what to do now. This is for the good of FireClan.
He looked over at the calligraphy brushes, an ink plate and a piece of paper with two wooden paperweights on it. Bearclaw padded over and smoothed the paper down with one of the wooden blocks before staring at the paper. Then he reached his paw over to one of the brushes and began dipping the end in ink. Finally, he began writing what he had to say, asking StarClan to let Rose forgive him.
...
Goldwing climbed over some rocks, sniffing the air a few times. The invasion force was ready to move out, yet Ashfeather had gone missing. As he rounded around a rock corner, he looked up and found the WaterClan warrior looking down at his battle helmet despondently. Deciding to test his new glider out, he flew over to where Ashfeather was.
"Ashfeather, there you are!" Goldwing meowed. "We were looking for you! The boats are ready to leave."
His friend didn't speak at first, but then he mewed, "I messed up, Goldwing." As the golden tom felt confused at this, he went on, "The invasion plan was my defining moment. And I completely screwed it up. I just...fell apart."
There will be times
On this journey
When all you'll see is darkness
Goldwing sighed slightly and laid his tail on his shoulder. "Ashfeather, that speech wasn't your defining moment. That was just public speaking, and nobody's perfect at that. Not even a leader can have perfect speaking skills."
"My dad is, thought," Ashfeather mewed sadly. "He explained the plan perfectly and inspired everyone. Like a real leader should."
"Look, your defining moment isn't going to be in front of a map," Goldwing told him, flicking his tail towards the sea. "It'll be out there on the battlefield. And a warrior isn't judged by how smart or strong they are; they're judged by their loyalty and courage."
Ashfeather looked over at him, amazed. "You seem sure about everything. How the hell do you know we'll win?"
Goldwing lowered his gaze, still unable to get over the fact that he failed at BoulderClan. Yet he had not let it get in the way of training. So he looked up at his friend and mewed with willpower, "Because I already failed the world at BoulderClan. I won't fail again."
But out there somewhere
Daylight finds you
If you keep believing
This made Ashfeather look over at him with empathy and a small smile. Once he was absolutely reassured, Goldwing began climbing down the rocks, Ashfeather following him. Now that the dark gray tabby tom got his confidence back, he could really prove himself well in battle. And once the battle was over, they would win, and the Clans would be in peace.
...
Once everyone was ready, the five ships began heading out into sea. Ashfeather noticed five large gray whales following the ships; he knew they were part of the plan. Every part of his body was tingling with excitement and fear at the same time. He knew many warriors would die this day...including himself...but he knew it was for all the Clans.
"There they are." Volefoot's voice made him look over to see the blue-gray tom looking over at a statue of Thistlestar shrouded in fog. "The Great Gates of Thistlestar."
"I don't see any gates," Silverheart spoke up, her silver tabby pelt shivering in the fog.
Volefoot scanned to the right and spotted a griffin statue with a net sticking outside its mouth. Beside him, Silverheart and the SwampBending cats were trying to peer through the dense fog.
"Silverheart, you and the swamp cats whip up a fog cover," Emberstar told her. "Quickly!"
Bloat nodded. "We'll sneak past them statues just like we sneaked by that blockade!"
So Silverheart and the swamp cats jumped into position, spreading their paws apart at the same time as they sat on their haunches. By this time, the boats were now being rapidly covered in fog. At the Gates of Thistlestar, nets were slowly coming out from the statue's sleeves.
"Keep it up! We're almost through!" Emberstar called.
But suddenly, an alarm rang out across the quiet water. Smoke emitted from the griffin statue's beak, and the net rose above the fog. And just as the alarm had begun...it stopped. Ashfeather let out a small sigh, thinking it was all over. But he was wrong.
Just then, fire shot out from the griffin statue's beak, engulfing the net in a wall of flames. The net continued to rise out from the water, and fire slowly spread out through it. Thistlestar's statue towered above the ships, a net of fire on both sides of the statue's body. Ashfeather stared on in disbelief and horror; this was not how the invasion was supposed to start.
Damn! StarClan give us a sign now!
...
Commercial Break
...
The statue of Thistlestar with nets of fire on both sides looked like it would spring to life and attack the invaders. As if on cue, the boats began stopping directly in front of the net. Many cats on board (Goldwing, Silverheart, Emberstar, and Volefoot included) all stared on in shock. Their heads turned as the sound of FireClan jet skis pierced the silence. A couple of jet skis were seen rushing towards the boats.
"Everyone below deck!" Emberstar called as AvatarClan and a few EarthClan warriors ran down to the deck below. Before Ashfeather followed, the dark gray tom gave his son a confident smile and purred, "Let's hope your invention works."
Ashfeather nodded, and both proceeded to join the others below.
Unknowingly to them, as soon as they left, the jet skis stopped beside each boat. Climbing hooks were being shot into a boat, and FireClan warriors landed aboard in a bowing position, preparing to search the entire ship. Then they spread out and began sniffing the area, yet they were unable to find any cats.
Three FireClan warriors kicked a door down, their claws unsheathed, but there was just an empty WaterClan bedroom. Two more warriors blasted down a door with fire and entered the room in a battle position. They maintained their guard as they looked around the empty room. Just then, the other warriors came down to explain their report.
"No one's on board, sir," a black-&-gray tabby cat growled.
"Where'd they go?" a ginger she-cat asked.
...
Below the water, the five gray whales were slipping by the gates undetected, little cabins stuck to either their bellies or their huge heads. Archie was swimming with an air bubble over his head, though Ashfeather knew it was Silverheart doing that. But all the same, he felt proud of the new inventions he and the Scientist made; this was working very well.
"This is a fine invention you have, son," Emberstar meowed to Ashfeather. "You should be proud of yourself."
Ashfeather purred; he WAS proud. But what was even better was that his father approved of this.
"Yeah. Well done." Nightfoot was lifting a paw from her head, a look of discomfort on her face. The Dude was sitting beside her as she went on, "You invented a worse way to travel than flying."
But she couldn't say anything else, for she was starting to gag.
"Need a helmet?" The Dude asked, taking off his battle helmet and offering it to the black she-cat. Nightfoot quickly accepted it, and Ashfeather heard her wretch inside the helmet.
Turning back to his father, he meowed, "Well, I just came up with the idea. But the Mechanist here did all the work.
"But don't sell yourself short, my dear boy," the cream-furred loner purred. Flicking his ears at Silverheart and Cajun working together in WaterBending, he went on, "It was your idea to use WaterBending to make the subs sink and float. Brilliant! Although...your original designs were a bit difficult to translate."
He unrolled a scroll with a picture of a whale with cats inside drawn in cartoon style. Ashfeather chuckled nervously; he had made it look like the whales ate the cats. He felt lucky at seeing this error in time.
But the Scientist went on, "Alas, there is one problem I couldn't fix. The subs have a limited air supply. The whales will have to resurface before we land on the beaches of FireClan."
True that, Ashfeather thought as his father began meowing instructions.
...
"Lunchtime, Irontail."
Irontail looked up to see Quailsong padding over to his cell with a tray of food; on there were a bowl of cream and three mice. Since the Warden Poon wasn't keeping up guard duty this time, this was a good idea to put his plan into action.
As Quailsong gently pushed the tray over to the old gray tabby, she added quietly, "And this time, I managed to bring you an extra mouse."
"Thank you, Quailsong," Irontail purred. "Your little gestures of kindness had made my days in prison even more endurable."
At that moment, he decided that his plan should carry out here and there. So he looked over at Quailsong and spoke up, "You know...I think you should take the rest of the day off."
"What?" the brown she-cat asked, surprised.
"You don't look so well," Irontail went on, rearing onto his hind legs until he was leaning against them. "Maybe you should go home and take a nap."
Quailsong looked even more confused. "What're you meowing about? I feel fine."
So Irontail pressed on, "Trust me, Quailsong. It is better that you are not here for the rest of today."
The FireClan warrior looked like she was going to protest some more. But Irontail guessed she was thinking that he was going to be put to death sometime today. So she nodded and obeyed as she hesitantly left the room, Irontail watching her go.
It shamed him a bit to go against a new friend like this, but he knew he couldn't think about it now. He knew this was the day the eclipse had arrived; he had heard several warriors telling each other about this day. If only Bearclaw had not turned away from good, then he would be able to perhaps help the Avatar Cat...
...
Finally, the whales had to come up for air, taking huge mouthfuls of krill along the way. As soon as they floated up to the surface, the cats got out of the machines and were getting ready. The Dude was scooping some seawater in his helmet, sloshing it around a few times before dumping whatever Nightfoot threw up back into the sea. Not far away, The Boulder and The Warthog were doing some stretching and warming up exercises.
A meow made Goldwing turn to see his friends padding up to him, ready for battle. He realized that they were not the same young cats always getting into misadventures. Instead, they were now seasoned warriors ready to save the world from harm.
"So this is it," Goldwing mewed, breaking the short silence.
"Yep," Ashfeather replied, nodding. "You ready for FireClan to know the Avatar Cat's back?"
Goldwing nodded. "I'm ready."
Ashfeather nodded and clapped his paw on the AirClan warrior's lean shoulder, wishing him luck. Then Goldwing saw Silverheart and Nightfoot gather around for a group hug, which in fact happened, Tobias joining in. This made Goldwing think over all they had gone through over the last moons: going to the North Pole to learn WaterBending, finding an EarthBending mentor, and going on the long journey to BoulderClan.
"I hope you kick some serious Darkstar ass, Twinkletoes," Nightfoot purred.
"Everyone listen up." The small pack separated and looked up at Emberstar, who was addressing the entire invasion force from the submarine's entrance. "The next time we resurface, it'll be on FireClan beaches. So stay alert, keep your eyes open and your ears pricked, and fight smart. Now this break is over, so back in the subs."
At this, he leapt back down into the submarine-whale. Nightfoot and Ashfeather followed him, but Goldwing and Silverheart remained behind. Both cats stared at each other and looked away. Goldwing knew that this day could be the last time he would ever see Silverheart...the only she-cat he had ever loved. He did not want to part from her, but he knew he would have to fight Darkstar alone.
Then they meowed...
"Goldwing, I-"
"Silverheart, I-"
They stopped. Goldwing looked over at her and mewed, "Sorry. You go first if you want."
So don't run, don't hide
It will be all right
You'll see, trust me
I'll be there watching over you
Silverheart nodded, her eyes gazing into his. "We've been through so many things together over the past eight moons, and I've seen you grow up so much. You're not that goofy little apprentice Ashfeather and I found in the white stone anymore."
Goldwing blushed.
"But what I'm trying to say is...I'm so proud of you, Goldwing," Silverheart purred. "I really am."
"Thanks," Goldwing replied. A few more seconds of awkward silence passed between them before he asked, "Everything is gonna change after today, isn't it?"
Silverheart nodded. "Yes...it is."
"But what if...what if I don't return?" Goldwing blurted out. Up until now, he knew he would have to fight hard to save the Clans or die trying. But after hearing Silverheart's comforting words, he now felt afraid of being away from her for that long.
"Don't say that, Goldwing," Silverheart told him firmly yet softly. Of course you'll come-"
But Goldwing did not let her finish, for he stepped forth and rubbed her muzzle gently against hers. Silverheart looked shocked, but she closed her eyes as she let him do so, doing this for a few more seconds. When he broke away, the silver tabby she-cat looked over at him, blushing as she gave him a confused and concerned look, her blue eyes reflected in his eyes. She looked so beautiful to him now, so precious, yet he knew she could die today too.
Just take a look through my eyes
There's a better place
Somewhere out there
As Silverheart looked away, the Avatar Cat opened his new glider's wings and took off towards land. Watching him go, Silverheart thought over what had just happened, blushing. Just now...the cat she thought was her friend...had nuzzled her like mates would. She tried to dismiss this as a sign of friendship, but she couldn't get it out of her head.
Is Goldwing in love with me? she thought. And...do I love him back?
"Silverheart, what the hell are you still doing out here?" Ashfeather's voice made her turn to see her brother poking his head out from the submarine entrance. "Are you gonna stand there until moss grows on your paws? It's time to submerge!"
"Huh?" she mewed, still unable to get what she experienced out of her head. Silverheart cleared her mind and replied, "Sorry. I'm on it."
She WaterBended herself over to Archie and began to Bend an air bubble around his head. The white-furred dragon growled, and the entire invasion force began to submerge. But as she did so, Silverheart could not get Goldwing out of her head now. She figured she could like him back, but he would need to mature just a little more.
Please, Goldwing. Come back to us soon. We need you...the Clans need you...and I need you.
Just take a look through my eyes
Everything changes
You'll be amazed what you'll find
If you look through my eyes
...
Bearclaw was just picking up a cape with the hood before something caught his eyes. He looked over at a nearby picture of him and Rose on Black Sand Island, staring at it for a moment before looking away. He knew his mate would be very angry if he did this, but there was no turning back now.
"I'm sorry, Rose," Bearclaw whispered as he placed a scroll on the scarlet pillow of her nest. "Truly, I am."
And at that, he silently went back to packing.
...
Goldwing was still sailing through the air on a grassy plain, thinking over what had happened. He had finally done it; he had shown Silverheart his deepest secret. But he didn't want to lose her and the others in the invasion, so he knew he had to defeat Darkstar quickly. So he kept his eyes back on the path and continued on as if his thoughts weren't bothered.
Just then, he heard a low growling from out of nowhere. It took a few seconds to realize that his belly was growling; he hadn't eaten a lot before the invasion. So he started maneuvering the handle to release some peanuts into his mouth.
"Huh. What do you know? It DID come in handy," he mewed to himself out loud, his mouth full of peanuts.
He looked down at the shadow of him flying, several antelope grazing beneath him. Goldwing added some more speed and flew off quickly towards FireClan's capital. Where Darkstar was said to live at.
...
"Everyone into your positions," Emberstar was meowing. "EarthBenders, get into your tanks. This is gonna be a bumpy ride."
Nightfoot and the EarthClan cats nodded as they leapt down a ladder to their positions. Just the thrill of the battle and fighting alongside his father was enough for Ashfeather to slide his claws out. Goldwing was right; his defining moment was out in the battlefield, not talking in front of others. He prepared himself as they slowly approached the land.
As the submarines approached the gate, an alarm similar to the one heard at the Great Gates of Thistlestar began ringing. Harpoons shot out from various ramparts into the water as the whales tried to dodge them. Harpoons continuously filled the water as Archie narrowly swam to the side to avoid being speared by one. Skunk started WaterBending the submarine as a harpoon pierced through the submarine, filling the ship with water. A roar of pain told the cats that a whale had been struck, its blood obscuring the water. He froze the water and quickly lost his balance as the harpoon reeled the submarine in.
As the injured whale was slowly being pulled out of the water, Silverheart and Archie saw the situation from underwater and began to ascend. Archie roared loudly as he left the water, and Silverheart proceeded to cut the harpoon with WaterBending, allowing the whale to land safely back into the water as it continued on like nothing happened. The whales then started heading towards some holes in a wall.
"Ready the torpedo!" Emberstar ordered. A torpedo encased in ice was loaded by two engineers as they locked and sealed the canon. "Ready...launch!"
Cajun did a WaterBending move, and torpedoes shot out from the bottom of all the submarines, destroying the vents on the wall. Columns of water sprayed upwards upon impact. Since they could not fit, the whales stayed on the outside, and the submarines entered the holes in the wall. The two remaining submarines joined up with the other three in front. They were close now.
The EarthClan and WaterClan warriors were now quietly waiting in the tanks. Ashfeather sighed during the wait, knowing that his defining moment had really come. Soon, he would be fighting alongside his Clanmates and allies for the safety of all Clans.
"I'm ready," he mewed mostly to himself.
The submarines were resurfacing and heading towards the shore while numerous projectiles were hurled at the submarines. The submarines landed on shore and their base retracted, revealing a big team of tanks that moved and looked a lot like caterpillars. These new tanks were advancing towards the capital as projectiles continued to be thrown at the submarines. And so, Ashfeather and the other warriors yowled battle cries and rushed out to attack. Above the noise, he heard this:
"Cats of the Clans! ATTACK!"
...
Commercial Break
...
The invasion force was slowly making its way to the capital city, projectiles still being thrown at them. The EarthClan warriors were moving their paws in a pushing motion to move the tanks. Ashfeather led a team of WaterClan warriors, some carrying weapons and shields but all with unsheathed claws. A missile was shot at the invaders, but one way or another, it missed. A truck-like monster loaded with rocks was making its way through the battlefield, releasing three rocks which Nightfoot, The Boulder, and The Warthog used to EarthBend towards a wall, destroying it in the process.
Behind them, Archie landed on the ground, and Silverheart leapt down. Up ahead, a group of big FireClan tanks were making its way into the battlefield, FireBending at their enemies at the same time. But the heroic tanks still kept advancing towards the capital as projectiles continued to be thrown at the submarines. A caterpillar tank with Gray-limp and two EarthBenders inside started crawling up a barricade as the FireBenders inside tried to destroy the tank with FireBending in vain. The tank proceeded to crush the roof of the battlement as another crushed a FireClan tank and moving on when it was done, leaving behind the bodies of the cats crushed to death inside.
More reinforcements were sent in, surrounding the invaders. The swamp cats were stopping in their tracks as they spotted incoming enemy tanks. They Bended some water from barrels on a monster to shield themselves from enemy fire before Bending the sides of the FireClan tank. Thus, it spun wildly, causing it to crash into the sides of another fellow tank as they exploded on impact. However, one swamp cat tried to fight physically, but he ended up getting his throat slashed by a FireClan warrior.
"Dammit! We're a cat down!" Bloat hissed. "Where in tarnation is Cajun?"
But he and Skunk unleashed their attacks, and a FireClan tank was tossed into the water. All of a sudden, they saw a shadow moving underwater, resurfacing. Ashfeather recognized it as the swamp monster he and his friends battled.
It swiped a fire blast away with a hand and began to extend its arms to grab a tank. The FireClan warriors took one look at it and fled, leaving the tanks at the last minute. Another tank tried to FireBend at the monster, and FireClan cats fled from the tank before it got crushed by the swamp monster's arm. A FireClan she-cat Bended fire from the mouth of a tank as she and her cohort escaped when the swamp monster threw the tank aside.
Noticing the monster, Skunk and Bloat traced the path of the tank being thrown into a wall. The wall exploded into flames upon impact just as the swamp cats turned to their leader.
"Howdy, Cajun!" Skunk called, waving his tail. "Where you been?"
"Connecting with nature," the brown tabby purred in reply, making a hole appear in the middle of the swamp monster's body so he could talk. "Takes a while to collect these here seaweed." Then he spotted an incoming attack and quickly covered his face as a fire blast narrowly tried to injure him.
Meanwhile, some FireClan cats on komodo dragons began to catapult small projectiles of fire towards Ashfeather and his Clanmates. The projectiles exploded harmlessly behind the group as they continued to press forward, making the big lizards rush at the group. One of the monitors disbanded from the pack and towards Ashfeather as he jumped on its head and sliced at the eyes of the rider. The dark gray tabby tom, feeling the blood on his claws, kicked the warrior off the komodo dragon as he gained control of it.
"Dad, look out!" he called, watching his father fight.
Emberstar had just leapt out of the way of some fire. An orange cat rushed towards him, his fangs bared, but Emberstar grabbed the cat by the neck, blood spraying in the air, and threw him down. The FireClan cat quickly grabbed a spear and swiped it at Emberstar's paws, but the dark gray tom did the same thing. So the FireClan cat was left without a spear while Emberstar had one in his jaws. He used the spear to jab at the face of a FireClan cat before throwing it to one of the other enemies. As that cat was pierced through the heart, Emberstar quickly leapt onto the komodo dragon his son was riding.
They looked back at a missile destroying the monster loaded with rocks, but the driver was comically driving the destroyed monster. Meanwhile, the swamp monster was busy destroying two FireClan tanks in one fierce swipe, but a fire blast collided with it, and the swamp monster lost an arm. The cats beside the caterpillar tank fled when the tank got knocked over by an enemy projectile. Seeing blood everywhere, this battle was getting deadly.
"We have to take out those battlements," Emberstar rasped as they looked down at the battle. "It's our only chance."
Ashfeather nodded before looking up at a battlement. An idea quickly forming in his head, he muttered, "Dad...I think I've got an idea."
...
Ashfeather was hanging off on one of Archie's horn as he flew through the air with Silverheart on the white-furred dragon's head and Emberstar in the saddle. They had managed to explain the plan to each other before they lifted off. Ashfeather raised his meteor sword from its hilt and cut off a missile from a tower. Emberstar tossed a few small grenades into another battlement. A few FireClan cats had fled as the tower exploded a split second later, groaning from the impact. Others weren't so lucky.
Silverheart quickly removed a barrel through WaterBending and threw the water inside a tower, freezing a female soldier inside as she yelped in surprise. Archie landed between two towers as all three WaterClan warriors dismounted.
"You two take out that battlement," Emberstar told his kits. "I'll get this one. Make sure you watch each other's backs."
At this, he headed towards his battlement while the siblings headed towards the other.
Ashfeather sliced through the metal door with his sword while Silverheart froze the warriors inside with WaterBending. With that done, Ashfeather scaled up the ladder swiftly and destroyed the missile. As they fled from the tower while it exploded, they paused to see their father just entering the tower through the roof by smashing down on the wood. Sounds of claws clashing, cats shrieking, and blood splattering were heard and they heard a grunt of pain as an explosion came through the window.
Silverheart and Ashfeather stood there, frozen in their tracks and shocked. To their great relief, Emberstar had survived, covered in blood. But to their horror, he staggered a few more steps before collapsing.
"DAD!" both siblings screamed, dashing to him and checking his condition.
Emberstar had fallen unconscious, not breathing and covered in so much blood. Wounds were racing across his body like stripes, and one of his paws looked like it was sprained. They were not medicine cats, so they had to try and get him back to camp.
Son of a bitch, Goldwing! Where are you? Ashfeather pleaded silently, looking up to the sky.
...
Bearclaw looked up at the portrait he had wanted to see throughout his life. This was a picture of his mother, his kind and beautiful mother. He knew Bearheart had always encouraged him to do the right thing, and he wanted to do so. But after she had vanished, things fell apart. Darkstar got even worse up until he abused his kits, and Frostfire was becoming as smug and arrogant as their father.
Yet Bearclaw did not let it bother him now. Instead of feeling Mapleshade's evil presence next to him, he thought he heard his mother's sweet low voice whispering to him. He looked up at the picture of his light brown tabby mother and sighed.
"Mother...I know I made some bad choices after you left," he mewed. "But today, I'm gonna set things right. I have to leave FireClan...willingly this time."
So Bearclaw grabbed his broadswords and backpack before looking at his mother's portrait for one last time. He knew that Darkstar would never allow him back into the Clan after this...but this time, he felt that he did not care. Bearclaw also knew he had wronged other cats that had become his friends...like Silverheart.
Finally, he threw on his cape and padded away, not looking back.
...
Archie landed softly on the ground, away from the battle. Emberstar grunted in pain as he was being laid on the ground by Ashfeather. Silverheart Bended some water from her WaterBending pouch and moved her paws across her father's wound, healing it in the process.
"How does that feel, Dad?" she asked. "Did you lose another life?"
"I-It feels...a little better. I did lose a life...but it wasn't my last...fortunately," he grunted. He tried to get to his paws, groaning, "I need to get back...to the battle."
He groaned in agony as he rose slightly to his paws, only to stumble. Silverheart laid him back down to the ground, mewing, "No. You're badly hurt. You can't fight anymore today."
Emberstar winced from the pain as he tried to get back up again before falling back down. "My daughter...everyone's counting on me to lead this mission...I won't let them down...and I won't give up..."
Ashfeather sighed, for he did not want his father to give up. So he turned to his sister and asked urgently, "Can't you heal him any faster?"
"I'm doing everything I can," the silver tabby she-cat retorted, but she also looked worried.
Ashfeather looked away before closing his eyes to make a decision. He always thought he would survive a warrior's battle with his father by his side, but that looked like it would not happen now. However, he had fought against many great things with his friends by his side, and he did not want all of it (and Emberstar's sacrifice) to be in vain. There was one thing left to do.
"I'll do it."
The other two cats looked over at him while Silverheart sighed, "Ashfeather, I don't want to offend you, but you're not exactly Mr. Healing Paws."
"No, not that," Ashfeather retorted as he got to his paws."I'll lead the invasion force."
"What?" Silverheart looked like her littermate had invited a fox to join the invasion. "Don't be mouse-brained, Ashfeather."
Ashfeather retorted, "Maybe you're right; maybe I AM mouse-brained. But the eclipse is about to start soon, and we need to be up that volcano by the time it does."
It took a few seconds for anyone else to reply before Emberstar finally looked up at his son. "You can do this. Ashfeather. I'm proud of you and your sister."
Silverheart sighed, giving her brother a smile that was half reassuring and half annoyed. "I still think you're mouse-brained, but I'm proud of you too, Ashfeather."
With that said, Ashfeather fitted himself into one of the best armor made in WaterClan before leaping onto Archie's head. Silverheart and Emberstar were watching him with pride in their blue eyes before he turned back to the battle.
"Yip yip," he told Archie. The Asian Lung dragon grunted and soared off into the sky.
Ashfeather looked down in awe over the damaged FireClan vehicles. Most of the FireClan tanks were now encased in ice. The caterpillar tanks were now leaving the mess behind (including the bodies of squashed cats) and heading towards the volcano. More missiles were hurled towards the caterpillar tanks, but Archie landed and knocked back an enemy tank with his head.
Seeing his friends and allies fighting, Ashfeather yowled, "All cats old enough to Bend and fight listen up!"
So all the cats gathered to hear what he had to say. Gray-limp was staring up at the dark gray tabby warrior with curiosity from his tank.
"All right, I want the tanks in wedge formation! Warriors and Benders in the middle!" While Nightfoot and the EarthBenders got into position, Ashfeather went on, flicking his tail at the nearest tower, "We're taking that tower and headed for the royal palace! Move out, everyone! For the Clans!"
So the caterpillar tanks began moving into said formation. Ashfeather had padded right to the front with Archie, ready for the true battle to begin. Loudly, he let out a battle cry.
"Warriors of all Clans...ATTACK!"
...
Goldwing was starting to get tired of running through the streets of the capital city. So he opened his glider and flew deeper into the city, where he landed on a roof and closed up his glider. He peered out from the roof and looks at the empty streets.
To his surprise, the streets were empty; not even prey was around. Goldwing wondered how this happened, leaping down from the roof and staring about. After some more prowling about, he realized that there were no cats or other animals in the city. But all were left here were nothing but cockroaches.
That's weird, he thought. Where'd everyone go?
Not pausing to rest, he managed to run all the way towards the palace doors. Once he got to the door, he opened it a bit and looked around; the corridor was in total darkness. The door opened, filling the corridor with light as Goldwing quickly got into a defensive position.
"The Avatar Cat is back!" he yowled. "Fight me, Darkstar! Today, I'll be your opponent!"
But there was no answer. He was surprised that no one was there to receive him. Deciding to try and find if someone was home, he started prowling towards the inner palace doors.
"Hello?" Goldwing called. "Anyone home?"
...
There was now a lone FireClan warrior trying to fight the advancing caterpillar tanks. He slowly retreated as they climbed up the stairs towards the capital; however, he quickly got killed by an EarthClan warrior. After that, two other warriors were doing their best to send deadly fire blasts at a caterpillar tank. When no damage was done, they fled. So a mini-monster and two caterpillar tanks got to press forward.
Ashfeather leapt out of the monster, thankful this was going good so far. The monster loaded with barrels of explosives suddenly collided into a wall, exploding upon impact. The smoke that covered the wall began to clear, and the invading warriors began charging into the capital city. FireClan warriors and tanks retreated while three FireClan cats at the front sent three nonstop blasts towards the group. The shields of the invasion force, however, blocked the fire blasts.
"FireClan is fleeing!" Brownstone roared.
Ashfeather nodded in approval as Archie landed on the ground. When he did, Volefoot ran up to beside Archie, looking fine other than a couple of scratches on his back.
"We're on our way to victory," the WaterClan deputy panted.
Once again, Ashfeather nodded in approval before looking back at the volcano. Wherever Goldwing was at, he had to hurry; the eclipse would start in a few minutes.
...
Goldwing sliced a FireClan drapery out of the way and leapt into a defensive stance as he stalked into yet another room. He felt his heart beat in disbelief. It couldn't be...Darkstar was supposed to stay here and plot things. But that gave him an idea; the leader could be in his throne room.
So he ran off towards a large pair of doors and opened them the best he could. It was a throne room, all right...an empty and dark throne room. Goldwing couldn't believe it...Darkstar was gone. The invasion was going wrong.
"Shit..." he rasped, dropping to the ground and shaking his head. "Shit, shit, SHIT!" Raising his voice and his head, he roared angrily, "WHERE ARE YOU, DARKSTAR!"
His voice echoed slightly throughout the empty throne room. And then...there was only silence.
Goldwing once again dropped down to the floor, but he picked himself up in time. Unable to believe what had happened, he began to half-run and half-stagger out of the throne room and out of the palace. He would have to tell everyone the bad news.
Did...did FireClan know about this? Are they winning so soon?
To be continued...
...
Aang: I can't believe we got this far!
Katara: Me neither. But...I'm still amazed at the kiss you gave me, Aang.
Aang: It was to show you how much you meant to me. (They kiss)
AvatarCat12: That's nice. I'm not into romance a lot, but that's nice. Anyways, here's the review thing and the preview for Day Of Dark Sun: The Dark Sun. So...read and review, folks! Those who do will get virtual plush dolls of any of your favorite ATLA characters in their cat forms. I don't allow flame, but advice and constructive criticism are allowed.
Preview: The invasion still rages on, but the warrior cats are running out of time. So Goldwing, Ashfeather, and Nightfoot decide to find Darkstar and defeat him. Will they be prepared for what they meet in the end? Meanwhile, as the eclipse arrives, Bearclaw tells Darkstar about what had happened throughout those moons...and reveals his inner self.
All three: See ya next time!