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"I tried carrying the weight of the world

But I only have two hands..." –Wake me up by Avicii

Chapter 28

Larkblossom

Is this how I die, Mother? I didn't even fulfill the prophecy.

I failed you...

Larkblossom clenched her eyes shut as she felt Witherstar's teeth press harder against her neck. He had been dragging her across the FireClan territory for quite some time now; Larkblossom's pelt was covered in dust and her dignity crushed.

Suddenly, he dropped her unceremoniously from his jaws and she fell to the ground with a thud. Larkblossom wasn't sure what to do, but she got up onto her paws and was surprised by what she saw: Witherstar had brought her to the Ancient Falls. The FireClan sharply pushed her forward.

"Move." He commanded and she gingerly moved forward towards the Falls. They made their way up to the top silently. Larkblossom scrabbled her way up and turned around to watch Witherstar with fear rising in her throat. He calmly made his way up and sat down near the edge and wrapped his tail neatly around his paws.

"So, daughter of Rowanstar, I'm sure you know where my she-cats are. Am I wrong?" Larkblossom remained standing and tried to keep enough distance between them, but she felt that would never be possible until he was gone for good.

"Even if I knew, why in StarClan's name would I tell you? You're just a heartless-" Witherstar jumped back onto his paws and snarled in Larkblossom's face. Larkblossom flinched and stepped back.

"You accuse me of being heartless, yet don't know of what you've done. StarClan even blinded you from your mistakes so it wouldn't get in the way of their petty little prophecy." Witherstar lashed his tail and began to pace.

Larkblossom narrowed her eyes at the tom in confusion.

"What? No, I have not been blinded!" She protested. Witherstar growled savagely.

"Fool! Not physically, they have taken away a shred of your memory, kit. You let your Clanmate fall into darkness. You are entirely to blame." Witherstar hissed, and then he began to take in ragged breaths, his eyes wild.

"I guess I should thank you for that. A cold heart is excellent for my services." Witherstar meowed and abruptly stepped forward and shoved his nose on her forehead. A sharp, burning sensation filled her and memories began to flood her mind.

She remembered playing with Jayfrost as kits, practicing with him as an apprentice, and the guilt ate at her as she saw herself leave Jayfrost alone in the forest to go find Briarpath. She gasped for air when the memories stopped.

"He loved you, and you abandoned him. That is heartless." Witherstar told her, his dark eyes glinting coldly at her.

"How did you- why did you even show me this?" Larkblossom growled at him angrily. Witherstar stepped in front of her and stared down at her.

" I wanted to show you who you really are: a selfish she-cat, only focusing on herself. I needed to show you that before I got rid of you, just as I had done with your father."

Kindlestrike

Kindlestrike slowly fought his way over to Fawntail and Nightwhisper.

"Do either of you know where Larkblossom is?" He asked breathlessly. The she-cats briefly glanced at each other and shook their heads no. Kindlestrike sighed desperately and gazed over the battlefield again. Dust was rising from the ground from all of the battling cats, making it hard to see.

"Kindlestrike, watch out behind you!" He heard Fawntail's warning just as a cat tackled into him. He struggled out of his attacker's grip and jumped away, barely avoiding getting clawed in the face.

"Why fight if you're going to fight like a coward, Badgerswipe?" Kindlestrike growled as the FireClan deputy advanced towards him.

"You ForestClan cats just don't know how to fight!" Badgerswipe hissed and jumped at Kindlestrike. Kindlestrike waited for a heartbeat and sidestepped, but he misjudged his timing. He was crushed by the large black and white tom and he grit his teeth in pain. He came up with an idea and went limp, hoping that Badgerswipe would fall for his trick. Kindlestrike grinned to himself when he felt Badgerswipe's weight on him lessen, and he used that moment of opportunity to swiftly jump up and bring the deputy to the ground. Kindlestrike held his claws to Badgerswipe's throat.

"You won't kill me, you're far too soft." The tom laughed coldly. Kindlestrike narrowed his eyes at the tom's words and pressed his claws down harder.

"Do you want to try out that theory?" He asked and watched the deputy's eyes flash with brief fear.

"If you kill me, you won't know where Witherstar took Larkblossom." Badgerswipe meowed tauntingly and smirked. Kindlestrike's eyes widened.

"What? Where did he take her, Badgerswipe?" Kindlestrike asked him and made sure the deputy remained on the ground. Badgerswipe spat and looked away. Kindlestrike let out an agitated growl.

"WHERE DID HE TAKE HER?!" Kindlestrike roared at him angrily. He stared at Badgerswipe while he took in ragged breaths. He did not notice that all of the other cats had stopped their fighting, or that they were staring at the feared FireClan being pinned onto the ground by some ForestClan warrior that was known but not known for his strength.

"The Ancient Falls. He took her to the Ancient Falls. He probably has already disposed of her though, you'll probably be too-" A searing fury filled Kindlestrike, and he slashed Badgerswipe's throat. The white tom coughed, and tried to speak, but only a terrible gurgling was let out from his lips.

Kindlestrike stared at the pool of blood that was staining the sand. Run messenger! Hurry, go now! We fill you with the speed of the fastest winds!

Kindlestrike didn't hesitate at the voices of the StarClan cats that filled his mind.

He ran faster than any WindClan cat had ever run, and nothing hurt his paws while he cleared bear-lengths of FireClan territory. The power of StarClan had filled him to the greatest extent, and he hoped it would save his friend.

Unbeknownst to him, Jayfrost was trailing after him, his icy blue eyes hungry for blood. He had sprung after him when the WindClan cats began to back away fearfully after they watched Badgerswipe die pitifully in the dust. He also didn't know that the FireClan warriors who had been scared and tormented under the tom's watch sank low to the ground next to the ForestClan and RiverClan warriors, their eyes filled with hope that they would be spared. Crowcloud and a few other toms backed away, but they were cornered by RiverClan and ForestClan warriors.

None of that was on his mind. He was only focused on getting to Larkblossom, and that determination was increased when he bounded his way up the Falls.

When he reached the top, he almost collapsed at what he saw. Larkblossom was on the ground, her fur slick with blood, and he couldn't tell if she was breathing. He then saw Witherstar standing nearby, his legs shaking. His eyes had a glassy look to them, but they shone with a wild, defiant look. But deep in his mind, Kindlestrike knew that the tom was sure death was near.

Kindlestrike padded softly to Larkblossom and put his ears to her chest to find that he could hear her heartbeat- weak, nonetheless- but still there.

Witherstar let out a weak snarl and took one pawstep towards them. Kindlestrike narrowed his eyes.

"What position are you in to do anything but wait there for death? Stop and realize of what you done, realize of how many lives you have ruined or unfairly ended." Kindlestrike meowed with a voice that did not belong to him, but belonged to several cats from StarClan. "

"You StarClan cats...," Witherstar rasped pitifully," you are all weak. You know nothing of power or how to use it without...without realizing what...what you could really do. I should have been...the strongest. I should've gotten rid of ForestClan...long ago..."

The dying leader took another pawstep and fell onto the ground.

"That was never your destiny, Witherstar. You had a rather difficult life, yes, but ForestClan is not to blame. You brought your darkness upon yourself. Now rot in the Dark Forest where you have condemned yourself to." Kindlestrike was filled with an unexpected strength and he leapt at Witherstar, slashing his throat as he had with Badgerswipe. He watched the life leave the old tyrant's body, then he turned to Larkblossom.

Now he saw her flank slowly rising and falling, and he was filled with a strong, motherly feeling. Olivefur's soul had melded with his and she pulled him forward towards Larkblossom's body.

"I am here, my darling bird." Olivefur murmured through Kindlestrike. He felt the mother's love that burned in his heart. He saw the extent of her injuries now: there were many cuts on her legs and paws, and there was a long slash along her back. Blood still flowed from a cut on her chest.

"We need to get you home..." Kindlestrike meowed softly and licked her wounds. She weakly tried to lift her head, but she didn't get too far.

"No, no, no don't try that. Keep still so you can conserve your strength." Kindlestrike mewed with worry. He didn't know what to do now, because he couldn't leave her in fear that she'd die when he was gone, and he couldn't drag her down the Falls.

He perked his ears when he heard the sound of scrabbling paws behind him. He looked over his shoulder and hissed when he saw Jayfrost climb over the ledge of the Falls. The golden tom remained where he was and looked past Kindlestrike at Larkblossom.

"She needs help." Jayfrost meowed and padded towards them. Kindlestrike snarled and barred his way between Jayfrost and Larkblossom.

"Don't take another step, Jayfrost." Jayfrost stopped and frowned.

"If I don't help you carry her down, she'll die!" Jayfrost snapped and shouldered past him and stood in front of Larkblossom. His eyes were soft, and seemed to have lost the dark edge to them. Kindlestrike sighed and shook his head.

"Fine. Let's hurry."

The next chapter is the last one of this story. I will upload the prologue of Destiny of the Forsaken after I post chapter 29. It was so much fun to write this, and thank you to all of my followers, reviewers, and lurkers. Your support is much appreciated and it helps me to keep up my writing. Not to mention that I still love writing, but I love writing things that entertain people Again, thanks!

~Lark