Hazelstar awoke with ambition, ready to bring down the clans. Before the light had even touched the sky, Fire had woken her, telling her the sun would be up soon. Hazelstar nodded and padded out from her den, the rest of the clan sleeping in silence. She had sent messengers the night before to the other clans, warning of them of their destruction that would take place the next morning.
Now Hazelstar stood, a rabbit in her paws. She glanced down at it, but she could not eat it. She knew she shouldn't be nervous, but her nerves clenched her. What if they truly couldn't beat the clans?
Mouse-dung, she told herself. You've outnumbered them.
Hazelstar repeated this over and over, knowing they had more members, knowing that only a miracle could save them. In a few hours, the forest would be theirs and Moonstar's mission would be completed. Hazelstar would please her mother.
"Eat, Hazelstar. It'll be good for you," Fire urged.
Little does he know I'm kicking him out of the deputy spot, she smirked.
Hazelstar obeyed him though, taking small bites of her rabbit. When she ate all that she felt she could, she stood up, watching as the sky turned from indigo to a lighter blue. The sun had begun to rose.
"EVERY CAT UP!" she shouted, parading around the camp. Cats began to rise, though she continued to shout, padding through the forest so that the rogues could hear her.
"EVERY CAT UP!" she shouted again. "ROGUES! MEET IN THE CAMP!"
Cats began to gather in camp, their numbers swarming. She padded up her rock, Fire padding up beside her. She stood, smiling down at the cats. Guards brought the captives forward, and Hazelstar smiled at their tired and exhausted eyes. They'd die in battle most likely. Still, she had to hope a few would survive. Moonstar's offspring had to continue.
"Is every cat ready and awake?!" she yowled. Yowls of agreement sounded below, some snorts of disgust coming from the captives. She could've killed them off right then, but it didn't matter. She'd already spoken to the rogues about killing them off if they misbehaved.
"TODAY, WE FIGHT FOR MOONCLAN, THE DARK FOREST!" she shouted. The cheer of cats rang in triumph and Hazelstar smiled. Still, her heart beat rapidly, scared Moonstar would appear out of thin air again.
"Now," Hazelstar began. "Today, we are going down to the meadow on SnowClan's border. We'll most likely be the first ones there, but it's been said that the first to arrive to battle are the winners. Some rogues, I've spoken to you already, will be guarding our territory and the camp in case some cats want to plan a raid. They won't come back alive. All the rest of us will be out there fighting for our clan. We surely will win, I can tell you that.
"Now, Crystal, however," Hazelstar began, glancing at the nursery. Cats turned, confused. "She won't be joining us."
Yowls of arguments came from this.
"Now shush, shush. She decided to have kits at this time. There's something in store for her later. Still, I don't expect you to praise her later during the celebration after she did not fight. But let's ignore this for now, and focus on the battle. There will be no mercy. Kill any cat in your way. Even if every cat is not killed, we will make slaves out of the live ones. Now, are you ready?!"
Yowls of agreement came, and Hazelstar laughed maliciously.
"LET US BRING MOONCLAN BACK!"
The cats padded through the forest, Hazelstar and Fire leading the way. Though he did not sound worried, he showed it. She could tell by the way he darted his eyes back and forth quickly, by the way his paws skipped a step. Last battle, he had been a young kit and had watched his sister die in battle. But Hazelstar too had been in battle as she watched her mate die in front of her. She'd been fighting for MoonClan then, even if the FoxClan cats had thought she perhaps was fighting for them.
After Rockclaw had fallen dead, however, she had fled. She supposed all this had been punishment for her behavior.
The sun had just risen over the hills, casting its golden rays on the forest below. The meadow sat just on the other side of the SnowClan border. It was already visible from where the cats stood.
Hazelstar began to rush now, racing down the hill towards the SnowClan border. She strayed from the NightClan border, walking along the edge of FoxClan's until the meadow sat, the perfect distance between the SnowClan and FoxClan border.
"Take a deep breath. We are entering SnowClan territory," she purred. She took a step forward, immediately recognizing the new SnowClan scent. The FoxClan scent had been familiar to her. After all, she'd grown up there, but this SnowClan scent was new.
The meadow was quiet, just as it had always been. The army gathered, patiently waiting for the cats to arrive.
The sun was halfway up the hill when SnowClan and FoxClan had arrived, side-by-side. NightClan came behind them, yowling as they prepared to fight. She watched the clans together, grinning. She knew they were too small, and they surely would lose.
As they stood, lined up against MoonClan, Hazelstar gave a simple command:
"MOONCLAN, ATTACK!" she shouted.
The first blood had been spilled. Cats shrieked and cried, rushing to greet their partners in battle. Hazelstar grinned, shoving cats away, trying to get a better view of the battle. She had five lives, and there was no way she'd die in this battle.
A calico tom knocked her down, but Hazelstar ended his life in mere seconds. She then scampered forward, catching sight of the cats fighting, at times pushing cats away and injuring them.
She watched as a black tom fought valiantly, only to die by his opponent's claw. His mate cried in exasperation, then died moments later.
Hazelstar laughed, though she felt darkness inside her. She had not laughed when Rockclaw had died. Losing a mate had been hard.
Oh, it's no time for my stupid FoxClan thoughts to come back now! she thought, striking the nearest cat down by her.
She climbed up a nearby rock, watching the cats fight. Rogues fell dead, but they didn't count. The opponents were losing warriors rapidly as some were injured and others killed.
She watched a ginger tom cry out in shock, sobbing hysterically at the sight of his dead mate on the battlefield.
She watched a mother and her warrior kit fall together.
Was this really what Moonstar had wanted?
Hazelstar didn't know why all these thoughts were coming back to her so suddenly. She quickly grabbed a few rogues from the battle.
"Go find the SnowClan camp. Kill the elders and the queens. They won't do us any good as slaves."
The group of rogues nodded and rushed off, leaving Hazelstar to fight. She sat on the rock impatiently, slashing at cats who came near her. She would not die like Moonstar. She would not bang her head on a simple rock.
The battle continued. Cats fell, the golden meadow became soaked with red blood. She grinned, unsheathing her claws to knock a cat creeping up behind her. The cat fell below, as if he had never climbed up the rock.
Moments later, a few rogues returned, out of breath.
"We've killed most of the warriors. Some are attempting to fight," one breathed.
"THEN GO BACK AND HELP!" she screeched, issuing them off. They nodded, rushing past her to head back towards the SnowClan camp.
Hazelstar swished her tail back and forth. The SnowClan, NightClan, and FoxClan cats were losing warriors rapidly, and she could already tell they would lose. If she knew she was guaranteed victory, why did she feel an empty feeling inside? Had it been too easy? The sun had only just risen over the hill.
Suddenly, a cat appeared by her. Hazelstar was about to swipe when she stared into Moonstar's green eyes.
"MOTHER!" Hazelstar gasped, nearly losing your balance.
"Careful, you'll die that way!" she spat, laughing as she padded down the rock. Hazelstar followed her.
"Mother, are you here to fight?"
"Of course!" Moonstar laughed, killing a cat beside her easily. "I want to fight in this battle too, you know. You're completing my mission."
"Yes, of course," Hazelstar nodded.
"They're dying quickly," Moonstar observed. "The forest will be ours in moments. You'll see. They'll retreat soon."
Hazelstar nodded, but the cats did not retreat. They kept on fighting, knowing they'd die, knowing they'd lose.
"Why do they keep fighting?" Hazelstar whispered to herself.
"Because they have nothing else to fight for," Moonstar replied, overhearing her thoughts. "They don't want to serve us. They'd rather die defending their clan."
"But they'll lose."
"Of course they will. I don't see why they think dying is better," Moonstar commented.
Hazelstar glanced up, seeing another group of cats gather at the top of the hill. BirdClan. She'd run into them on the way to receive her nine lives. Were they going to help too?
Hazelstar got her mother's attention and pointed to the cats perched on the top of the hill.
"They're cowards, probably debating whether they should risk it," Moonstar explained. "They won't fight."
"STOP YOUR FIGHTING!" came a yowl.
"Oh, for the Dark Forest's sake, if it's another stupid apprentice!" Moonstar muttered, climbing up the rock. Hazelstar followed behind, but it was no apprentice.
A white and golden she-cat stood before them, her blue eyes fixed on Moonstar and Hazelstar in anger.
Cats began to stop their fighting to face the she-cat.
"Shinypelt, what are you doing?!" a black and white she-cat gasped.
"I understand the prophecy now, Mother," the she-cat replied.
"Shinypelt, no," her mate called, his eyes widened in fear.
Moonstar moved forward as if she were mist, floating down below to face the brave she-cat.
"You can't defeat us!" she spat. "Look around you, at the blood, at the bodies of your clanmates."
"Oh, but I can," Shinypelt replied calmly.
Before any cat could speak or move, the she-cat shut her eyes, and her pelt began to glow.
"No," Moonstar gasped quietly, loud enough that Hazelstar could hear her.
The pelt grew brighter, suddenly beginning to blind any cat nearby. Hazelstar gasped, the light hurting her eyes and causing her body to fall in gasps of pain. The she-cat rose into the air, her blue eyes and bright pelt lighting up the forest.
Moonstar's yowl of pain rang among the clan, and Hazelstar gasped, her vision cloudy and her body in pain.
"No…no…" she murmured, trying to move.
I didn't want to choose this, she told herself.
Suddenly, a light lit up the forest, and Hazelstar felt her body growing heavier, the pain growing stronger.
"I didn't want to be a MoonClan cat!" she yowled as one last yowl of Moonstar couldbe heard. Then, the forest fell dark.
