All right guys, I didn't want to fuss with the entire list of EVERY cat in the forest, so here are just the Frostclan cats for you!
Frostpool / Small silver she-cat with odd green eyes
Whisperleaf / Tiny, chocolate point, Siamese she-cat (Hoshi)
Zander / Dark brown tabby tom with black stripes
Ninjafruit / Very dark gray tabby tom with orange eyes (Ninja)
Ambercloud / Solid orange she-cat with white paws with gentle amber eyes (Pumpkin)
Desertfang / Light sorrel-tabby tom with brown eyes (Xavier)
Ashstorm / Beautiful, mostly gray calico she-cat (Pirate)
Patchtail / Black-and-white patched tom (James)
Battleheart / Massive, gray-and-white tom with smoky blue eyes (Raidon)
Shadowclaw / Huge, dark gray tom with hazel eyes (Gambler)
Nightheart / Large black tom with piercing yellow eyes (Morris)
Brownpaw / Brown tabby tom with pale blue eyes (Titan)
Flamepaw / White tom with orange patches
Rockpaw / Huge black tom with white stripes down his back
Thunderkit / Big silver-white tom with light green eyes
A familiar, thick, scent drifted into my nose and I opened my eyes, finding myself curled on some glowing moss, staring at Wolfstar as he sat watching over me. I pushed myself to my paws and blinked, "Hello." Wolfstar flicked his ears in a friendly way, but did not return my greeting. He was staring at me and I twitched my tail impatiently. I asked, "Is there some reason I am here again?"
The sides of his muzzle twitched, and I was aware for the second time he was trying not to smile. He spoke gently, "Dear Frostpool, it is, again, you who have called for me. Before you slept you called out for guidance, and I can offer it to you." I nodded, admitting I had indeed whispered to Starclan that I wanted some help picking my second in command. I looked around and the fur on my neck bristled. This didn't look anything like the forest I was in with Midnightstreak.
I asked first, "Is this Starclan, Wolfstar? It's awfully dark and…" I refrained from calling it eerie, incase it made me sound weak, but it was indeed quite the eerie place. Wolfstar's eyes glinted and he started, "You have experienced the sensations of both guilt and pleasure from causing the death of another cat, have you not?" I tilted my head, not sure what this had to do with anything. I found myself unwilling to lie to Wolfstar, however. "Yes, I have."
The large gray tom sighed, his shoulders sagging a little as he glared bitterly into the shadows around us. "I too had those feelings when I was a warrior. I did not like the idea of taking another cats life, but I found myself unable to control those feelings. I had to kill, Frostpool, it is in my warrior blood. I killed prey, and foxes, and even other cats." I nodded and said gravely, "Sometimes the enemy must die or you will, I understand that." Wolfstar shook his head, "It is not that simple. There was not always a cat from another clan around."
For a few heartbeats I was silent, unsure of what he meant. His eyes were glittering with the same dark hunger that Bad Apple's did, and I understood. He had murdered cats from his own clan, because he could not control the impulses. Wolfstar was searching my face calmly, as if waiting to see if I rejected him for such behavior. I just shrugged, the hardness of my street life still within me. He smirked and meowed, "I knew you were a smart one, you understand what it means to be truly wild."
He was silent for a few heartbeats before changing the topic. "Frostpool, no, this is not Starclan. This is the opposite, actually. Cats who did not follow the warrior code dwell here, cats that Starclan banished from their hunting grounds after death. I am one of a select pawful. The elite few who realized that the only thing we need Starclan for are extra lives. Being a great leader comes only through power, not through mercy and honor. Do you understand that?" I nodded eagerly, feeling like an apprentice as I was pinned under his strong brown gaze.
Wolfstar growled in pleasure, "Good, you will go far in life. Now, tell me, why did you visit me today?" I was silent, confused, for a second before I realized that I had not come just to talk with him. I frowned, "I can not choose who my deputy should be. I trust all of my clan mates to be my loyal supporters throughout the seasons." Wolfstar suggested, "Is it a supporter you are looking for, or the cat who may be the next leader of your clan?"
I sense he was hinting and I guessed, "The next leader." He nodded, pleased, and flopped onto his side. He asked, "So, tell me, which cats possess leadership skills as well as loyalty." My heart told me the answer, and I immediately answered, "Zander does." Wolfstar narrowed his eyes, "Zander has the devotion to you, yes, but it is through emotional connections. That may cloud his actions in the future. Besides, does he really have what it takes to be a strong leader?" I frowned and reflected upon how many times his 'leadership' in the gang had shown weakness and flaws.
I shook my head, "No. But Ashstorm, Patchtail, and Battleheart do." Wolfstar notified me, "Ashstorm will enter the nursery soon." My eyes lit up and I purred, "Really? That's wonderful!" 'And it eliminates her from the list.' I was minorly suspicious of how he knew all of this, but it didn't merit a question. He must be watching over the clan like he had promised he was!
I thought out loud. "Patchtail uses forethought and intelligence, as well as experience, to make his decisions. Everyone trusts and respects him. However, Battleheart can best protect the clan, he is loyal mainly to me over any other, and he is very shrewd. Both would make fine deputies." Wolfstar nodded, "Indeed they would, you have a difficult decision to make." I lowered my head in disappointment, "You aren't going to help me pick?" He purred in laughter, "If I did, it would be me choosing your deputy. Where would that get you?"
I shrugged, and he shook his head. "No, the decision is yours finally. However, you came for my advice and here it is. Ambition is what I would choose as the best quality for a deputy. Just remember where too much as led Bad Apple." He twitched his whiskers before I could say anything else, "Moonrise had begun, you must return, your clan awaits. Think of what we have talked about." He dipped his head and then vanished into the forest. I closed my eyes and willed myself to wake in my nest, back in the Frostclan camp.
After thinking for a short time I emerged from the den, reappearing on top of the highrock. Even Thunderkit was awake and waiting for me to announce my choice. I used the ritual words so that I would be in good favor of my warrior ancestors. Despite what Wolfstar said, I had a feeling I needed them to trust me… for now. "I say these words before the spirits of Starclan so that they may hear and approve my choice. Battleheart will be the first deputy of Frostclan!" What Wolfstar said about ambition is what helped me. Battleheart had it, but only enough to want Frostclan to be the best it can be. He wasn't driven enough to plot to kill me and become leader like my father had been.
Every cat cheered for Battleheart, and the massive gray-and-white tom dipped his head, "I accept your offer, Frostpool. I promise to serve the clan the best I can." I smiled at him and after all the commotion had died down I spoke again, "I will speak to Battleheart in my den now, this meeting is over." I padded into my den, Battleheart squeezing in behind me. His smoky blue eyes shined and he meowed, "So, what is it we need to talk about?"
I blinked at him and the tip of my tail twitched. "I just need to tell you what your job will be. Deputies of the clan oversee the training of apprentices and organize all of the patrols." He nodded and meowed, "I can do that." I flicked my tail at him, "Good, now go get some sleep. You need to be refreshed for your first official day as deputy!" He purred and left the den. I curled into my nest and fell into a dreamless sleep.
After the hunting patrol was sent off I led Battleheart, Shadowclaw, and all three clan apprentices into the training hollow the scouts had found a few days previous. I slipped silently into the grassy trench. The flowers were thick and the soil was soft here, it was a good place to train. We needed a proper battle system, with universal moves. By the time the clan training for apprentices, and warriors, are finished every cat will know the styles of every other clan member. As rogues, we had all inherited out our strategies. Frostclan is going to be war-quality by the time we are all trained!
We stood in a little circle around them and I said, "Alright, you three are out on patrol when enemy cats jump you. With your claws sheathed, show us what you'd do." I had assumed each cat would take on one other cat, about the same size as himself, but I was wrong! Instead, Flamepaw, the smallest, started darting between the two large toms, delivering well-aimed strikes to each before leaping out of range. Both Rockpaw and Brownpaw screeched and leapt at me, bowling me right onto my back.
It was an interesting strategy, that's for sure. I knew what they were doing right away; they were getting rid of the smallest cat first, to make the battle easier. I yowled a mock war cry and pushed by back feet into Rockpaw's stomach, flinging him off and he slammed into Battleheart just as the massive tom was about to whack Flamepaw. Brownpaw nipped my shoulder, and I hissed, jerking my body to the side and dislodging him. I have learned many strategies to compensate for my smaller size, including a pawful of ways to get away from the stronger cats.
I sprang to my paws and gave three powerful, dizzying, blows to Rockpaw head before leaping into the main fray. I pounced on to Flamepaw's back and grasped his ear gently between by teeth. He knew pulling it away would only wound it more, so he instead reared back and his head slammed right into my sensitive nose. Pain coursed through it and my eyes began to water. I stumbled backwards and growled crossly, Flamepaw's eyes grew wide and he meowed, "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to –" Too late to finish, Shadowclaw had him pinned a second later.
I peered to the side, where Battleheart had Rockpaw pinned under his feet and Brownpaw held by his scruff, despite his flails to break free. I smiled, "I guess we won." Taking that as a cue, the mentors released their catches and the apprentices shook off, and then regrouped in between us. I inquired, "That was a very unique demonstration, I have never seen it before. When did you practice that?" It was Brownpaw who spoke, "Flamepaw thought of it when we were back in that two-leg garden, and Pumpkin said it would be a smart thing to try and learn. We made it with each other when everyone else was out."
Rockpaw and Brownpaw stared at us with shining eyes, but Flamepaw looked at his paws, shuffling them with embarrassment. I flicked him with my tail, "That was good thinking. Let's see what else you can come up with." Flamepaw reminded me of myself when I was young, just a little jittery. He was intelligent, cunning, and saw things from an abstract point of view. He was a war planner, as was I. (It had been my rank, after all!) He lifted his head and blinked in surprise, but shrugged coolly. "Ok, Frostpool. You and Shadowclaw go stand with Rockpaw and Brownpaw."
I followed Shadowclaw to the two apprentices. Flamepaw whispered with Battleheart for a few seconds and the large tom nodded, looking impressed. He announced, "Flamepaw wants to try a plan on distracting a patrol if it was just a mentor and his apprentice that are caught spying." I nodded and meowed eagerly, "Whenever your ready." I was not like most adult cats. I know that a lot of the time young cats have important things to say, and can contribute to the better of the clan. If Flamepaw's ideas work, Frostclan will be a feared and powerful army, just like shadows, when fighting.
Swampclan- my father- will never know what hit them!
