She stood there, silent like a hunting owl as everyone else slept either in their comfy clan nest or around her at the edge of camp, hidden under logs and bushes.
Glint had always loved her life as a rogue, she had quickly become known as one of the most feared cats in the group. One of Thornheart mighty vices! A cat you had to make sure to stay on the good side of, if you didn't, well…you had to make sure you were another vices friend or fight your way onto Thornheart's preference list.
Glint had everything she could wish for, a group of young cats would call family, respect and all the power she needed to be satisfied. Finally she had something no other cat had, a chance of infinite knowledge and protection from something stronger than Starclan.
The she-cat stiffened as she felt the cold presence of the dead cat behind her, its piercing yellow eyes boring on her back as if trying to see right through her. She'd made a pact with the devil, but she did not regret her decision. Her knowledge against the support of a greater power? What more could she wish for? Not even Thornheart had the knowledge she did, but he had more than her, she'd seen him with those cats in her dreams, the same cats who came to speak with her just the night before...
They all shared a same enemy, forest cats who would kill if you placed one pawstep in their territory.
Fools! The clan cats had no idea of what lay outside their precious lake territory! A world of pain and suffering closed off from their ears. Clan cats thought they saw and knew everything, with their all so mighty Starclan to protect them. A group of young rogues could easily kill all nine lives of a clan leader and she could take on single paws a strong clan deputy!
But fighting wasn't the way to win, Glint knew when it wasn't the right time to attack and when they were destined to win. Finally she had been gifted with the gift of dreams, the ability to see what no other cat could, all that topped with the alliance of a powerful friend.
Glint let out a sigh, her storm of cloud of thoughts seemed to grow calmer as she realized they'd been circling in her mind all night, repeating over and over again...
"Hey!" she called out as she spotted the shape of a cat moving near the edge of camp. Standing up the vice sauntered over to the newcomer.
"Is Thornheart awake?" the cat, Singe, asked as Glint came over to sit by her side.
"I am afraid he isn't around." She meowed in reply before twisting her head around to give herself a few rough licks on the back, "Our oh so powerful leader has gone off to visit the make-up camps! Wraithen, Scarred Eye and I are the ones in charge of base camp for the time being. Don't worry though! He'll be returning soon to name some news vices to replace his loyal daughter's place!"
The black and red she-cat blinked in disappointment as she settled on the ground. "Pity! Lets hope he does not name Jade as the new vice! We'll never hear the end of her replacing Flamestrike if that is the case!"
The black and white vice grinned at the idea. They'd been hit with many deaths and betrayals. What probably had shaken them the most was when their vices began dropping like flies. Starting with Altrotone, closely followed by Tall Legs and finally during a Lakeclan patrol ambush that's when Flamestrike and Sharpfang sided against their cause, joining the clans...
"Something bothers me..." Singe meowed as she glanced at Glint with a hint of worry on her face, "Why would Thornheart kill Sharpfang for siding with his daughter...Whitesomething, while he lets his own daughter get away with it?!"
Glint smiled, this was her chance to test how much she knew about her leader. How would Thornheart react to rumors that revealed his true intentions for not killing his daughter, reasons that would be open to spies ready to prey on them. She wondered whether it would be a good idea to see how long it would take him to find out who started them...
"Oh you did not know?! Thornheart has it all planned!" She laughed as if the fact Singe did not know was the most absurd thing she'd heard all day, "Everything will happen when the moment comes! Our enemies will suffer and we shall rise among the flames!"
Singe sat in silence for a few moments before letting out a large yawn. "You seem very sure of yourself, I understand why Thornheart made you one of his Vices, at least you will stay loyal to our cause!"
The Vice huffed in annoyance, it seemed no one understood anything said around here except for what Thornheart told them. The tom sue knew how to manipulate others, she'd have to learn, especially if she wanted to lead one of the main wars against the last three surviving clans.
"You know what! I'd rather this did not wait for Thornheart's arrival!" the rogue began, immediately drawing Glint's attention.
"You were ordered to watch that growing group of copycat loners? Weren't you?" she asked Singe as the she-cat shuffled under her gaze.
"Yes, they seem well decided on becoming our rivals, both against us and against the clans. But they are disorganised, untrained and definitely not prepared for battle. But there is…or more was one thing that I thought would interest our leader. Three newcomers arrived a few nights ago, one seems to be an old clan warrior, though I am not sure which one. The cat seemed to have done something to have gotten himself exiled by his clan, it was made enough to have angered Gravity so much that he was sent away almost as soon as he woke up! "
Glint let her shoulders slump in disappointment, "You returned to us, just for one cat with a problem with clan and crew?"
"No….yes. This cat seems to know more than he is letting on, and ever since we brought him in he's been having weird dreams…"
The last sentence got all the vice's attention, "Dreams you say? This cat may know things we can use to our advantage? You really believe Thornheart would jump happily at your useless information?!"
Singe's fur began to rise alone her spin as her tail fluffed up twice its size. She'd struck a nerve and she needed to be ready in case Glint attacked. Letting her whole body relax Glint smiled at the rogue's reaction to her authority.
"What you say is interesting, but useless to Thornheart. How do you expect to use this cat as an advantage if we do not know where he is?"
The vice froze as she felt an invisible presence beside her, clearly what Singe was talking about was of great important to the dead if it arouse them out of their sleep to draw their attention her way.
"We shall leave camp immediately!" she meowed sensing the Darkforest cat's urge to find the cat, whoever he was, "You will lead me to were you'd last sensed him, and from there on we shall hunt him down and bring him back with us."
Confused by Glint's sudden change of mood the red and black she-cat let her fur lie flat. Glancing around the still dormant camp she straightened up.
"Alright! If you wish to find this cat follow me!"
The sky grew dark as the tom gradually made his way through the woods.
Alone, like it was always meant to be…
Exiled, from clan and crew, with no place to call home…
Finally, haunted, by the dead and the living, during his wake and his dreams…
This was how this warrior would fight his battles, with neither tooth nor claw, but by seeking the shadows...
A faint rustle from a nearby bush snapped the warrior right out of his thoughts and he exiled deputy halted on his track as two small kits emerged from the shrubs. Shadowstrike blinked in surprise as he recognized the two kits as they raced right through his dreamlike image. Those were the two newly apprenticed loners, Doublepaw and Wildpaw.
The tom's mind echoed with cries of warning as he realized that the kits were alone, something was wrong…he could feel the tension in the air like static as the two kits continued running, unaware of the odd silence that haunted their surroundings, watching them make their way to their doom.
The ghost tom gasped as a dark shape passed above him in the sky, blocking the moonlight with it's looming figure. Not wanting to miss what would take place next, Shadowstrike raced after the two kits, his paws silently hitting the ground as he tore through the underground. Maybe he'd learn something useful that he could use as an excuse to return to Blueberry and Milky-way's side as his two friends healed from their travels.
The two kits' playful cries suddenly grew silent, sensing an approaching danger Shadowstrike picked up his speed and hurl himself against the nearest tree branch he could reach. Digging his claws into the dream tree's branch he gradually began climbing upwards, clinging to the bark with all his might as his escalade left no traces of climb behind him.
Reaching a viewing point the tom shifted all his weight onto his hind legs as he stood carefully of the branch to launch himself onto the next tree to follow the kits path. "What are they doing here?!" he hissed under his breath as he watched Doublekit lead Wildkit to whatever was awaiting them ahead. The exiled deputy relaxed his shoulders as he jumped onto another tree to continue his path though the airs before reaching a large clearing.
The scene that was taking place before him made the tom freeze on his track as he starred unmoving at the horror.
Wildkit lay crouched behind a bush as the small kits watched in fear as the blood was shed in the clearing in front of her.
Doublekit lay pinned to the ground, a small black tom towering over him. Beside to hunter and its prey stood a large warrior that Shadowstrike had met several time in battle when both were still in the clans.
The warrior was huge, his chestnut pelt was topped with a coat of mandarin red fur that resembled blood dripping from his back. The red in the tom's eyes seemed to reflect his lust for the scarlet liquid that would soon cover the sandy clearing.
"Kill him!" the tom ordered, a large grin spread across his face as the smaller tom stiffened at his words, "Do it! You'll finally be accepted as one of ours!"
The young black cat seemed to hate the idea of killing as much as Doublekit did. The tom was clearly not a fighter, nor was he fit to be a murder. His light green eyes seemed to shimmer with an odd sadness as he peered down at the kit.
The large tom frowned "Just do it Shade!" He yelled as the young rogue flinched at his leader ordered the kit's death.
Shade's shoulders seemed to slump under the weight of the knowledge of his soon to be kill. "I'm sorry…" he mouthed as he raised his paws high above him, claws unshed as the still white weapons glinted in the moonlight. Lifting his head, eyes closed the tom brought his paw down, slicing the kit's throat with a quick swipe.
Shadowstrike seemed to finally snap out of his trance as he switched his gaze to Wildkit who lay frozen behind the bush, a single tear pearling at the bottom of her eyelid to slowly make its way down the kit's cheek.
Doublekit lay on the ground, fighting to breath as red liquid oozed from his neck. Wasting his last moment of survival the kit let of a feeble cough, blood dripping from the side of his mouth.
Small silver drops of salty water began pouring down from the kit's eyes to race down his face to the ground. Doublekit let out his final breath, as his whole frame went limp, cold.
Both kits' tear hit the ground at the same time.
"Everything is meant to be…" a soft voice meowed behind him as Shadowstrike was swept further away from reality "The lines of light and dark will merge into one being, the borders of StarClan, the Dark Forest, and this world will shatter, and only one cat can mend the bond."
The exiled deputy fought to turn his head and face the painful sight that awaited him.
"Silverdrop…" he whispered, breaking the surrounding silence of his dream.
"Much suffering awaits you my mate…this has always your path, to travel in between truth and lies, to fight our wars on the outside while everyone else will face only what they can see in the inside."
"I…I don't understand!" Shadowstrike whimpered as he trembled from all over "How can I face what others do not see?"
The silver she-cat flickered her tail as she turned her attention to the dream scene below them.
"You must ask questions my dear, it is as simple as that...Question everything you see. Haven't you wondered? How can a dead kit have been made apprentice if he was killed right before your eyes?"
Shadowstrike gazed back and forth between the dead kit and his mate, a cool breeze caught his fur as everything around him faded to dark…
"Wait! What do you mean?"
Shaking as he stood up, awake, Shadowstrike took a few moments to recall where he was.
The grey tom has made a nest under a large cedar tree, protected from the snow but not the cold.
A sudden grief overtook him as he realized he wouldn't be reaching his home with Milky-way or Blueberry by his side. The two she-cats would probably be taken care of until they were recovered, afterwards, knowing from what he'd seen of the crew's leader he could guess they would be forced to swear loyalty to the loners. Blueberry, being a kittypet would have no chance of surviving without a warrior by her side, Milky-Way would probably refuse at first, but duty towards the cats who had saved her from the hounds would keep her by Blueberry's side.
A movement out of the corner of his eyes brought the tom back to reality.
"Who's there?!" he growled, unsheathing his claws as the shadow raced by him again, closer this time.
"The poor warrior is scared?" a voice mocked, "How about we take care of the frightened kitty?!"
Shadowstrike took a few steps back before colliding with the base of the tree. Suddenly not one, but two cats emerged in front of him.
"Singe?!" he gasped recognizing the black and red she-c at he'd met a morning ago, in the loner's camp.
"Indeed you guessed right!" the cat by Singe's side laughed, "And you must be the fearless warrior I've heard about! Oh wait! No! The frightened warrior who is shaking all over!"
"Who are you?!" Shadowstrike hissed in reply as he tried hard to control the panic rising inside of him.
"My name is Glint!" the black and white rogue grinned, "But you may call me tonight's nightmare!"
At those words the vice flicked her tail. Reacting to the swift order Singe pounced, meeting the rogue in mid-flight Shadowstrike took hold of the she-cat's shoulder as he pinned her down. Joining her friend in battle Glint raced forward but met empty ground as the exiled deputy dodged her attack, dragging Singe with him.
"You will do as I say!" the black and white vice spat to no one directly present, "Stick to our deal!"
A sharp pain suddenly exploded throughout his body as an invisible forced clawed at his sides. Yowling in surprise the tom fell back, letting go of Singe to shake his unseen enemy off his back.
Smiling with an odd look of mad delight Glint rushed forwards to attack the tom, digging his claws into his shoulder and using her other paw to take hold of the warrior's forehead as she began repeatedly smashing Shadowstrike's head against the tree.
Slowly losing control of his body the tom thrashed around in attempt to free himself from the she-cat's grip. As blood oozed from his chest the exiled deputy let his muscles go limp and closed his eyes, praying that if he were to die that this cat would end his life as quickly as possible…