Another chapter for my readers! I also have to give a very happy shout out 'thank-you!' to Invisia! Thank you so much for your words of inspiration; they are in my heart and I appreciate that you and many others like the story's plot so far. :)

Hope you like it! Review if you have comments, questions, etc.

I do not own the Warrior cat series. All original references, characters, ideas, etc. belong in the ownership of the amazing Erin Hunter.

Chapter 19

She couldn't move. She tried to, but her muscles—her whole body—would not obey her. Her mind did work, though it was incredibly difficult to even think through the thick mud-like fog heavily weighing itself inside her consciousness.

Her chest was moving up and down, though she wasn't breathing on her own. It felt like she had forgotten to breath altogether. 'Am…am I…dea…dead?' She thought exhaustedly. Again, her chest moved up and down, but it didn't hurt; unlike the rest of her, which was falling out of the numb but empty euphoria into a slow awakening of indescribable pain.

She couldn't suck in her own breathing if she tried to; something was blocking her throat. But it wasn't suffocating her—her chest moved forcefully by the object.

Her mind was growing hazy again, the darkness pulling her back into that same black hole she was trapped in before. It was quiet, empty, almost peaceful in some unknown way;

And it all terrified her to no end.

With nothing else to think of, her mind shut off, the only thing giving her some unusual comfort was the feel of her chest moving.

Up. Down. Up. Down. In. Out. In. Out.

.

.

Something was nudging her. It hurt, but she couldn't wake up still. Her eyes felt as if they were sewn shut by cobwebs.

"I know you can hear me, kit." The voice was muffled badly, enough that she couldn't tell if it was a No-Collar, or cat of tom or she-cat. Unable to do anything, she just resided in the pitch darkness, hearing the voice coming from all around her.

"You mustn't give up yet. Remember who you are, or else you will too fall into the pits of Nothingness upon death."

Was she dead? But she vaguely remembered her chest moving on its own.

"You may think you are alive, but you are locked. By locked, I mean that you are one pawstep away from dying. The time isn't right; it hasn't been since…since…" The voice paused, as if the creature was…in pain?

"Please…I'm begging you now, you must stay alive. You are a brave warrior; you must live in order to fufill your destiny. Your fate is chosen not by anyone else but yourself. You are your own fate."

Her throat must've obeyed her finally, because she felt herself croak, "Who…who am I?"

"Remember…Remember, my little briar flower…"

Briar…Briar…flower…the light in which flows through me…

"I am…I am…Briarlight?"

Suddenly, memories flooded back into her, overwhelming her senses to no end. Even with her eyes closed and there only being darkness, her head throbbed like the motor of a monster.

A tom looked over at her, his eyes a blue so pale and bright, she thought he was blind. But he had a far off look on his scorn-filled face, almost as if whatever he saw was in his mind.

Then she realized that he was blind.

Herbs were clumped in his jaws, making him resemble that of a chipmunk. He turned fully in her direction, coming closer till he was directly above her. Then she heard a voice.

"Thank you, Jayfeather!"

It was close, much closer than she was expecting it to be. It was herself speaking to him, the tom; the one she had called Jayfeather.

More and more memories flooded back, and finally she recalled a fight she fought. One that she had passed out from the pain and blood loss. The pain came back to her, making her want to cry out, but she couldn't find her voice to do so.

"Now do you remember?" The voice was back, no longer alien to her ears.

Her voice came back, raspy and weak. "Amy...where do I go now? Where?"

"You were right before, about going to the city. I have sensed…terrible things there. Things that make me cower and run away." Amy whispered closely.

Briarlight wanted to ask why, but she decided against it. "I'll go there. But I need to wake up first."

"Then let me help this time. It's…you deserve so much more gratitude for what you're doing…I'm sorry."

Briarlight felt something heavy touch her forehead. Light exploded behind her eyes, making her head throb even more. But then she felt her muscles move and contract, listening to her as she tried moving. Though her head swam in dizziness, Briarlight was moving closer and closer to the light, even if it felt like she hadn't moved from her spot.

"Awaken, my little kit." Amy's voice echoed the air, holding an usually motherly tone.

.

.

Briarlight gasped sharply, which she wanted to take back when she started choking. Something beeped at a high pitch, its ringing hurting her ears. Heavy footsteps became closer, before Briarlight saw someone hovering over her. The beeping stopped as the person began bringing something out of Briarlight's throat, making her gag reflexively.

"Shh…it's okay, honey. I've got you, Briar." The person spoke, her feminine voice clicking something in her head.

"R…Riley?" Briarlight whimpered, blinking rapidly so that the blurriness in her sight would fade away. Sure enough, Riley was standing over her, her own eyes brimming with tears.

"Oh, Briar, thank goodness. You woke up." She choked out, backing away with her forepaw against her mouth. The tears fell on their own, her voice becoming sobs.

Briarlight started getting up, grimacing at the stiffness of her body. She looked at her belly and saw that her wounds were all stitch up. She must've been out for quite a while, for she could see them starting to scar up.

"B…Briar? Is that you?"

Briarlight looked up to see Katie standing a few pawsteps from the open cage. Her golden eyes were wide, tears also brimming the edges. She shakily stepped forward towards the older she-cat, but she nearly collapsed at her body still half-asleep. Luckily, Katie raced forward, allowing Briarlight to place some of her own weight against the barn leader. Katie sighed heavily, though it was ragged.

"Thank the Meadow ancestors you're okay!" She whispered softly, rubbing her own head against Briarlight's shoulder in comfort. The warrior purred in reassurance.

"I'm glad too…" She said back. Her eyes snapped open in realization, and she backed away, forcing herself to stand straight. "Are…are the others okay? Where's King? And Lily? Did Maple and SJ—"

"Slow down, love!" Katie ordered. Briarlight did so. "To answer all of your questions; yes, King and Lily are okay. King had the least damage done to him, considering he is the biggest of us all. But Lily…" She trailed off.

"What happened to her, Katie? Tell me." Briarlight couldn't stop herself from ordering Katie around like that. But she had to know.

"Lily…she woke up from her coma two days ago, but she is unable to walk properly again. Her left hindleg was so badly infected and damage by those invaders, that Riley had to put hours of extensive surgery into making sure that her left hindleg would not be amputated. It was a success, but the damage has been dealt that the consequences have been revealed. She will have a limp on her for the remainder of her life. Though that probably will not stop her." Katie chuckled softly.

Briarlight couldn't help but laugh too. When the room became silent again, she took in a breath. "Is…Is it alright if I see her? I was pretty rude to her before all this happened."

Katie nodded with a smile. "Of course. In fact, she has been really worried for you. You did save her after all, with King by your side."

Riley watched the two cats converse in their tongue and she walked out of the room, having a feeling that Briarlight wouldn't stay in her cage even if she tried to. She waited outside of the surgery room and watched the two work together to limp their way out to the living room. She couldn't help but smile at the strength of the wild cat.

When they reached the living room, Briarlight saw King lying on the sofa with Lucinda by his side, licking his face lovingly. They were perfect for each other as mates. Lily was on a cat bed, resting in an awkward position. Her black and white head snapped up when she noticed them in the room.

"Briar! You're okay!" She gasped, jumping down clumsily from the cat bed on the sofa and limped over to her. Briarlight saw that the tissue and muscle around her left hindleg were thinner than normal, and a bandage was covered over the naked skin. Lily rubbed affectionately Briarlight's shoulder, giggling in relief. "You were out for quite some time."

"How long was I out?" She couldn't help but ask.

"Almost for a whole week!" Lily said exaggeratedly. "You were pretty beat up. Luckily, Riley knows what she was doing, and you were done with surgery and only a few scar implants will be shown in the future." She paused and bowed her head.

"I'm…I'm sorry for causing you trouble, Briarlight. I didn't mean to have it come out this way." Lily apologized.

"I should be sorry too, Lily. If I hadn't left you in the forest that night, you wouldn't have lost your ability to walk right. You may be a pain in the neck most of the time, but you shouldn't have received such a low punishment like that ambush." Briarlight said sincerely.

"I forgive you, kit. You know, you're not as weak as I interpreted. I was the one that is weak then. Without my claws, it's tough to survive a battle, especially when you don't know how to fight right with your hindclaws." Lily laughed.

Briarlight glanced over at Katie, noticing the proudness gleaming in her predatory eyes. "Well played, little sis. Perhaps now you will behave better in the nesthold too."

A thought occurred to Briarlight. "Oh! Where are SJ and Maple right now? I need to talk to them."

"They went out hunting to relieve the stress and sadness of you being hurt. They were the ones that were hit pretty hard, no pun intended though, dear."

"May I go and find them?"

Katie looked serious again. "I wouldn't leave this nesthold if I were you, Briarlight. Not just because of the ambush incident."

"Then why?"

Lily and Katie looked at one another, but it was—surprisingly enough—Lily who spoke next. "Another cat was killed right after our ambush, Briar. And it wasn't just any cat; it was Viola."

The world seemed to come to a screeching halt. Briarlight did a double take mentally and physically. She looked at the two older she-cats, hoping that they were just joking around.

But they weren't.

Briarlight felt herself collapse onto her rump heavily, ignoring the pain that shot up from her stomach thanks to the stitching. She looked down at her paws, watching as her tears fell from her eyes and dripped onto them. "H-How…I…I…"

"None of this is your fault, Briarlight!" Katie said sternly, using her tail to bring the warrior's face back up to meet hers. "Viola…she…she left the barn on her own. Her scent possessed no fear in it when she did. She must've left to get some fresh air and a drink. Hansel…he was the first to find her body."

Now it became harder to breathe. 'Dear StarClan…why did it have to happen this way? No male should see his mate, whom was filled with their kits, dead. NO! He should've never been the first cat to discover her dead!' Then a cold feeling washed harder over her.

"The kits…where are they? Were they dead too?"

Katie backed away, shaking her head. "Viola was attacked just as she was in labor. We smelt the blood of her birthing. Somehow, she managed to fight off the enemies for a short period. But…we have belief that another cat was there to protect her. We could smell it thickly in those bushes. However, despite that, we still found two kits dead."

"Katie! You're missing out a very important key piece in this puzzle!" Lily snapped annoyingly. She then directed her attention to Briarlight. "The kits weren't killed by the intruders; they were already dead when they were born. And there was far more blood than for just two kits. There were more; and they're missing to this day."

Briarlight shut her eyes tightly, feeling the storm of anger roll through her. Unbeknownst to her, her claws came out and dug deep into the carpet. 'Whoever this monster is, they now have it coming for them! Viola's death will be justified.' She vouched to herself.

"Briar?" Lily's voice interrupted her inner rage.

"I have to go. I need to find—"

"Katie! Katie!"

'Speak of one devil.' Maple's form skidding to an uneasy halt, her breath slightly off. She looked down to see Briarlight standing up on her own, eyeing her intently. Gasping happily, she tackled the warrior she-cat before she had time to move away. "Briar! You're okay! Oh, thank the Meadow ancestors that you're up and going! It's been so quiet and not fun without you awake—"

"Maple!" Briarlight laughed loudly, pushing the younger Savannah cat away from her. "You came to tell Katie something."

"Oh yeah!" Her voice turned back to worry. "It's SJ. She found a body not too far from here; in the back forest no less! She told me that she was barely breathing when she dug her up from the ground."

"The ground?!" Lily exclaimed. "You mean—"

"There's no time to explain this at all, Aunt Lily!" Maple interrupted, though her face proved so that she didn't like doing it. She turned back to Katie. "Katie, we need to leave. Now."

"I'm coming with." Both Briarlight and Lily said together. They went to follow the two cats, but both pushed them back, shaking their heads in disapproval.

"No, you're both not," Katie growled. "Briarlight, you just woke up from a week long coma. You still have your stitches in place and you using your power to run fast isn't going to help; in fact it will for certain make it worse. And as the leader of this household, you are to not leave this place under any circumstances unless I deem them worthy enough for your safety. And you," She glared at her sister, however her gaze softened in motherly concern. "you are in the same ordeal, except I cannot debate who's worse. Your leg may be near full recovery thanks to Mama's abilities, but you still can't fight for yourself. Now stay."

With a whip of her tail, both Maple and her vanished out the cat door in the kitchen. Inside, Briarlight was screaming to object, but it would prove pointless to yell out at nothing.

The sound of fading footsteps caused her to turn her head. She gasped at Lily moving towards the kitchen cat door. Staggering slightly, the warrior got in front of her. "What in the name of StarClan are you doing?! Didn't you just hear Katie? She wants—"

"I know what she wants, kit!" Lily hissed back. "But that doesn't mean it's the right need."

"Can't you listen to someone other than yourself for once in your life?" Briarlight objected harshly.

"I have and I know when to, and now isn't the time to lollygag around! I'm leaving!" Lily tried to push past Briarlight, but the younger, stronger and smarter of the two pushed her back.

"I won't let you leave, Lily! I can't see you die in front of me. If you went out there, there is a chance that you could get killed and I won't be able to protect you with my conditions. Please just…just stay here until they come back. Then you and I will go out with Maple, SJ, and Katie too."

Lily shook her head. "Kaite won't be here tonight, Briar. She is attending another meeting with the other barns. She has to guide her cats there safely; Scar is meeting up with her along the way. But…I guess you're right when it comes to both of our safety now. I'm sorry for my irrational behavior. It always gets me into trouble."

'Then maybe you should learn how to cope with it and try thinking smarter.' Was what Briarlight wanted to sneer at her, but she decided letting the older she-cat mull over her decision would be bad enough.

With guidance, Briarlight jumped up onto the sofa, sitting in-between the two big dogs. They both gave her licks of comfort as she placed her head down on King's giant paw. She sighed, suddenly wishing that she was back in the black void, where the tension of life wasn't able to intervene with her.

Half an hour passed, and all that time, Lily couldn't sit still so she paced till Briarlight was afraid that the carpet would form a indent from the older she-cat. King's head, which was resided next to Briarlight's form, snapped upright, his nose nosily flaring as he smelled the air. Disappointingly, Briarlight knew that the white German Shepherd had a stronger nose than hers. His barking was what got her alert, noting how urgent it sounded. Lucinda then joined in, but was the first one to jump off and vanish up the stairs. All that time she didn't stop barking loudly.

Briarlight jumped off the sofa and raced to the kitchen, King and Lily beside her. Behind them, Riley's thundering footsteps cascaded down the stairs and ran into the kitchen to see them standing anxiously at the door.

"What's wrong guys? It's almost noon, so no intruders—" Before she could finish her sentence while opening the door, King and Lucinda were around Maple and SJ, Maple being the one who carried another form—one that wasn't moving—into the house. Briarlight heard Riley gasp in horror and instantly her body was filled with mixed concern.

"Mama! You have to help her! Please hurry!" Maple yowled loudly, even if they knew Riley didn't understand their language. However, Riley didn't need to be told anything as she—with impossibly careful hands—picked up the feline form from Maple's back.

"Good work, girls. Now stay." Riley muttered, turning back around and headed into the surgery room. Maple was greeted with showers of sloppy kissed by King and Lucinda, causing her to smile and speak dog tongue to them, failing in attempt to calm them down.

"SJ, where's Katie?" Lily said, worry filling her voice.

"Right here, sis." Katie came around the corner and entered the kitchen calmly. Briarlight could tell, however, that she was still recovering from internal shock. Lily was instantly on her, questioning her yet rubbing her in comfort.

'What an odd she-cat.' She thought with a smile. Briarlight rubbed her cheek on SJ's shoulder, feeling the Oriental mix lick her head in reassurance. Lily and Katie sprinted upstairs into Riley's room.

"What happened?" She asked quietly, moving the two littermates into the porch.

"That cat you just saw Mama take," Maple started "she was completely buried underground when I first found her. I was hunting, and I tripped upon this large lump in the ground. Thank the Meadow ancestors she was still breathing when I got her nose and parts of her head above ground again."

"Did she tell you her name? Or anything to you at all?" Briarlight continued to ask.

"Sadly, she was out cold by the time we dug her completely out, Briar." SJ sighed. "Our only concern was getting her here and to Riley. However…I do remember her saying something about other cats…mumbling about kittens…"

"That's weird…" Briarlight mumbled, racking her brain to figure out what the black and white she-cat could've meant. "Did you guys notice anything else before you left the place?"

SJ and Maple were quiet, both of them eyeing her suspiciously. Then SJ spoke. "Briarlight, you just woke up. Perhaps you should take it easy for a while—"

"I can't SJ!" Briarlight snapped, surprising the sisters. "I can't just sit around and let myself be tormented with whatever is going out there that I can't help bring to a right point! I'm tired of sitting and watching helplessly and clueless as other cats, regardless if I know them well or not, die like fleas! I'm a warrior, and warriors don't just let others die off for such a long time." It all came out at once, leaving her panting and somehow relieved she finally got it out of her system.

SJ's eyes were the size of an owl's, while Maple was shaking a little. Briarlight breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly, getting and started for the porch steps. "And if you two don't want to assist me, then so be it."

"Now hold on there, girl!" Maple's giant form took two strides and was instantly in front of her. "Whoever told you that we weren't in this with you?" As she said it, a bright smile came over her face.

"She's right, Briar," SJ injected into the conversation, placing her elegant tail on the brown she-cat's shoulder. "We're sorry that our words came out the wrong way. We'll help you in anything. You should've told us point blank before."

"I thought I was." Briarlight mumbled, resulting in them laughing.

"But can you at least take a nap, Briarlight? You can't help but admit that you are a little sore, no?" Maple nudged.

Briarlight cursed the Savannah cat's keen sight. Sure enough, her eyes were starting to drop a little. Heaving a defeated sigh, the warrior she-cat and the littermates moved up onto the hammock on the porch. Curling up in the hypnotic rocking, Briarlight didn't hold back in falling back into the blissful darkness.

There you have it~ :) Another chapter in the bag! :D

Interesting Fact Time!

Cats have five toes on each forepaw, while having just four toes on their hindpaws. However, there is an exception to this; it's called being polydactyl. This means that a cat has extra toes on its paws. There is quite a higher rate of polydactyl cats in the US, specifically in Boston, Massachusett, which has led many of the citizens to nicknaming 8-toed cats as "Boston Thumb Cats" They usually inherit this trait through genetics. A cat without being poly has 18 toes. However, according to the Guinness World Records, Tiger, a Canadian polydactyl cat, has been recorded to have the most toes of any cat; 27 of those little toes! OMG!

Though this is short, and this being it's wrap up, a polydactyl cat has more than just 18 toes on its body. It's a trait only obtained through breeding/genetics.

Hope you liked the chapter and IFT! Comment on how you liked the chapter or IFT!

Until next time~