Chapter 33

Deep breaths… This is it, deep breaths, Fallingsnow thought to herself as she heard the sounds of gurgling behind her, Rowanstar's head continuing to be held beneath the water and pausing every few heartbeats. The leader was unable to breathe, and there was no possible way for him to come back up. Darkfire had first sunk his teeth deep into Rowanstar's throat, tearing into it like a fresh mouse in the middle of green-leaf.

This was so close to the end that Fallingsnow could feel it, her eyes scanned the clearing as recognizable warriors were tearing the rogue force into pieces. Several rogues screeched and tried to leave the battle, only to be blocked off by the warrior force that had started to secure other exits in the broken barrier. Every warrior continued to participate to the fullest of their extents, claws flashing as warrior battled rogue and rogue fought back. The battle itself was terrifying, yet Fallingsnow found a thrill in the idea that Rowanstar was dying behind her. A war that lasted far too long and killed far too many was being put to a quick and bitter end on Rowanstar's end.

A splash made Fallingsnow look up, Rowanstar finally fighting back, his claws reaching up and clawing into Darkfire's face. Fallingsnow stood still for a moment, everything seemed to collapse and Fallingsnow's only coherent thought is He can't die. This wasn't true and it took convincing on Fallingsnow's part to realize this, but she growled and leaped toward Rowanstar, splashing the water around and baring her teeth at him in a loud hiss.

"I will not stop here! You will not stop peace!" Fallingsnow cried out, her tail lashing as Rowanstar ducked beneath the waves of water, disappearing for a split heartbeat. She breathed hard and glanced over at Darkfire, who had his back turned and was trembling hard. His legs barely worked now and blood dripped off his pelt and into the water. The scarlet coloring stained the ground and Darkfire gasped a moment.

The first words out of his mouth terrified Fallingsnow to the core.

"Where are you, Fallingsnow?" Darkfire whispered, his ear flicking, turning his gaze and revealing a ripped open eye that was bleeding heavily. "I can't last much longer… This is it, and I need to know… Where is Dawnpelt…?" His voice made Fallingsnow hurt on the inside, her stomach whirling and her eyes unable to keep off of the eye. There was no yellow coloring, she used to see the sun in his eye and now it was gone. Nothing remained as it should have, everything was turning around and Fallingsnow padded forward.

Rowanstar was nowhere to be seen, having disappeared in the water and probably off somewhere else now. Fallingsnow had more to deal with.

"I don't know, the Thunderclan camp, I would assume…" Fallingsnow whispered as she pressed her face into Darkfire's shoulder. The tom was silent for a moment before chuckling, closing the ripped eye, blood leaking out like tears and sliding off his face.

A chuckle erupted from Darkfire. "I don't have much longer, Fallingsnow… Kill Rowanstar, find him and end this, if I am right, I took out six of his lives." Darkfire coughed and almost collapsed, Fallingsnow hoisting the tom up with her shoulder. "Don't save me, besides… I want to see Dewstep again… Like I did earlier… I could feel his presence, he is still here and I think Starclan still watches over your precious clans." Darkfire's spine seemed to collapse in on itself, his hind legs doing the same as the only part of him that was up was his head and chest.

"You don't deserve to die!" Fallingsnow growled. "You're finishing this with Rowanstar, it is your job! You had one job, Darkfire!" If it wasn't for the rain, any cat would have noticed Fallingsnow's tears, her eyes barely open as she continued to try to hoist him up. "This is your battle, Darkfire! Yours!"

There was no response other than a grunt from Darkfire, his body slowly feeling more and more heavier as Fallingsnow struggled to keep him up. "Darkfire!" Fallingsnow hissed, gasping for breath at the heavier weight until she couldn't bear it and dropped Darkfire. His body slumped into the water, no movement from the tom at all. He didn't respond to his head becoming submerged into the water, and no current was able to move him. There was mud clinging to his fur, Fallingsnow lifting her paw and splashing it. "Darkfire, wake up!" she cried, pressing her claws into his pelt and cutting to get something. "Darkfire…"

Fallingsnow pulled her claws away, letting the body just sit by itself as she realized how much blood the tom actually lost. The battle here was slow now, the rogues starting to retreat rather than fight. They were moving closer towards the lake, which was dangerous on its own, and Fallingsnow sighed a bit as she moved away from Darkfire.

"Goodbye, old friend… may Starclan accept you, and may your path be lit up by more stars than we see in the sky every night…" Fallingsnow whispered, licking her lips as she glanced towards the entrance, realizing it was mostly Riverclan warriors who were fighting. Mistystar appeared from the entrance, her eyes gazing around and starting to order warriors closer to the lake rather than further.

Fallingsnow gave Darkfire's body one last glance, then took a deep breath and looked at Mistystar. "This isn't the Shadowclan camp," she meowed, the answer becoming simple as she gave it a moments thought. This was the rogue camp, it was away from the heart of Shadowclan, a bit further away than the camp should have been. Mistystar nodded, her fur clinging to her pelt. The she-cat glanced at her deputy, who gave a nod and they turned away. "I'll kill Rowanstar," Fallingsnow growled, her eyes narrowing as her paws gripped the earth beneath the water.

Run.

Her paws moved with speed, the water feeling as if it wasn't hindering her.

Rowanstar will perish by my claws. Not theirs. He is mine.

Fallingsnow sped past the Riverclan warriors, each glancing at her as they trudged through the muck and the brown water. This place was no longer clean, no longer was she able to hold her anger back as what felt like the roar of a lion erupted from her throat. If this is how it was going to end, so be it. Fallingsnow wasn't stopping now, her dream of leaving this place no longer in her mind as she set out towards the actual camp.

The smell of Shadowclan was spread through the air, and Fallingsnow stopped right at the entrance of another camp. Cats were on the inside, fighting desperately for life and limb. Blood thickened in the air and the water was up to Fallingsnow's shoulders now, she wading through it and looking into the Shadowclan camp. Several bodies lie below the water, and a golden ginger tom with blood splattering his pelt stood in the center, standing on top of several bodies to keep himself elevated. Thunderclan and Windclan were here, attacking what remained of a large rogue force.

The ginger tom noticed Fallingsnow and growled darkly as lightning struck down from the sky, hitting a tree nearby. Fire erupted, unable to be put out by the constant rain. How these cats fought was beyond Fallingsnow, but most were larger than her and were able to fight easier against the current that had tried to pull them out. Fallingsnow caught sight of one rogue who had lost his grip and balance, hitting the thorn barrier and crying out, trying to pull away but too weak to fight.

Fallingsnow looked up at Rowanstar now, silence between the two of them. A growl continued to escape Fallingsnow's lips, drawn back in a sneer as she felt the water weigh her body down. Her paws brought her forward, she standing on top of the pile of bodies and feeling disgusted by the idea.

"This place is a swamp, now," Fallingsnow growled, noticing two tiny bodies nearby, weighed down into the water by mud. They were no older than a few moons and she brought her gaze back up to Rowanstar. "Starclan is no longer with us," she continued to growl, padding closer and hating every heartbeat of standing upon these bodies. It was horrifying, and it made her want to puke. "They left because of you, you let your hatred fester so deep inside and now you stand at the mercy of your enemy. You got your wish, Darkfire is dead. Your family is against you, your warriors no longer stand with you. The rogues are a fighting force easily beaten. Surrender and I will show you mercy, you pitiful piece of fox-dung."

The ginger tom sat there for several long moments, his eyes watching her and then glancing at the bodies below himself. Something flashed in his gaze, dark and light fighting inside his bright eyes, each keeping their own control over portions of his body like he was bipolar.

No response came from the tom, unsheathing and sheathing his claws into the bodies.

"Then perish in your own dirt," Fallingsnow hissed and bolted forward, her throat constricting and her breathing slowed so she wouldn't take in the scent of death. Her claws flashed out and her eyes stayed on his, Rowanstar still for several heartbeats before ducking under the attack. Fallingsnow's claws connected and tore a chunk off his ear, it landing and floating just barely above the bodies that surrounded them.

Behind Fallingsnow, the battle was remaining the same, a fifty-fifty chance that either side could win. A cry came out from the group and a black she-cat on three paws bolted out of the group.

"You monster!"

Hollypaw…

Fallingsnow moved and stood in front of her sister. "Stop," she growled and looked at Hollypaw, who was trembling with her teeth bared. "You won't win, I'll fight him," Fallingsnow growled lowly towards her littermate. The green eyes were filled with hate and despair, Fallingsnow wondering why the little she-cat joined the battle at all. She was supposed to be with the medicine cats. "Why are you here?"

The black pelt trembled, Rowanstar breathing heavily and glancing at his own torn ear, which was drifting away towards the den of the queens. Her littermate growled and hissed and spat, before sobbing quietly. "He killed the kits! He forced them to stay instead of evacuate! I was going to save them myself but I'm too late! Too late…"

She must have had a vision, same as I, Fallingsnow thought. Just one about the future, so Starclan may be watching after all. Fallingsnow turned her head to Rowanstar and unsheathed her claws.

"You can't stop me," Rowanstar growled as he glared at them. "An injured medicine cat and a traitor for a warrior. Oh yeah, I heard from my ancestors about this choice you made." Fallingsnow blinked, listening as Rowanstar padded forward, the pelts beneath him lowering at his weight and pressing down. "They told me that you were going to betray the clans by leaving, the dismantle them from the inside and ruin them… permanently."

Hollypaw shivered and didn't move from where she stood, Fallingsnow growling lightly. "That's what you think, but the clans are gone anyways." Hollypaw flinched and gasped. "Every disaster you go without Starclan is closer to the day where there are no clans - period." Fallingsnow paused to stand tall, her eyes meeting Rowanstar's. "I am teaching the clans that there are ways to live without the will of Starclan, and you are no exception. We do not need Starclan to protect us!" Fallingsnow insisted, padding forward as Hollypaw stared at her. "We do not need our ancestors to survive. We never will." Fallingsnow narrowed her eyes and kept them locked on Rowanstar.

Rowanstar snickered, growling with a light smirk stretching across his lips. "This place is a wasteland, but the other clan territories are emptied of their inhabitants, and I will take what is rightfully mine. Full leadership is what these clans need and it is what I deserve after all the pain Darkfire put me through-"

"You did that to yourself!" Fallingsnow growled. "Just because someone in your life dies, it doesn't mean you get to be a crazy leader and it also doesn't mean you even get to be leader at all. Leadership is granted to those who deserve it." Fallingsnow glanced at Hollypaw, who was still shivering and trembling in the muck and water, still slowly rising but very slowly. "Nothing is left for you here, Rowanstar. I will show mercy."

The old leader coughed a bit and hissed. "And I won't!"

His claws flashed out and reached towards Fallingsnow, who backed away at barely a pawstep, the tom missing by the width of a whisker. Rowanstar's eyes widened and Fallingsnow snarled, she lifting her paws up with incredible speed and grace. One claw connected with Rowanstar's eye, getting stuck behind it. Fallingsnow practically gripped and felt the blood seep up her foreleg, pulling away and hissing as something splashed into the water and Rowanstar hissed and spat.

"That was for Darkfire," Fallingsnow growled as the leader opened his last eye, Fallingsnow lunging forward and chomping her teeth into his face. Her teeth ripped into the other eye, and she began to pull and tug as she knocked him down and started clawing at his pelt. She wanted the leader to stop screaming, to just die already. Her claws continued ripping and tearing as Hollypaw coughed and started gagging nearby.

The taste of Rowanstar's blood was bitter against the tongue, and it was long before he stopped moving. Removing her teeth, she realized how mangled she had made the leader's face, before pulling away and trying to spit the blood out.

It wasn't long before the leader gasped himself back to life, and Fallingsnow hissed in irritation. "Just die!" she cried as she placed her paws on his head and buried him back beneath the water. "Drown and never return!" Fallingsnow opened her jaws and snapped them down, biting into Rowanstar's neck, pulling at his spine and snapping his neck now, the body beneath her dying quickly for another time. She held it there, but the body didn't move for several heartbeats and Fallingsnow backed away now, trembling on all four paws.

Is it over…? Can I finally leave…? she thought as her gaze turned to a horrified Hollypaw, green eyes wide and watching her. Must I explain my thoughts to my littermate…? Fallingsnow wondered as her gaze softened and she began to pad away from the increasing copius amount of bodies. The place made her sick to her stomach, and staying here any longer was a thought that made Fallingsnow queasy.

As she passed Hollypaw, she glanced at her littermate still trembling and whispered, "I'm so sorry… This was not something you should have seen, but my truth is my own. Nothing can stop me, and I think I know what I'm going to do beyond this…" Fallingsnow glanced over at the battle, which was slower, and the warriors were winning. Few cats fought now, but the rest of the warriors were driving the rogue force back. "Sol had a point towards the clans, we believed so much in Starclan that no one bothered to ask what happens if they leave? This is what happened at first, but now the clans can learn to live peacefully."

"And what about you!?" Hollypaw hissed, her jaw trembling and her eyes remaining on Fallingsnow, wide and filled with the hurt of moons upon moons. "You're just going to leave!? We need you-"

Lifting her tail, she whacked Hollypaw's ear gently with it. "No, you don't," Fallingsnow meowed as she lowered her head. "Frostclaw will make a great leader someday, and you will make a great medicine cat. Without Starclan, you could even take a mate if you wished…"

The trembling she-cat looked down and sobbed quietly.

Tell her this… Dewstep's voice appeared in her ear, soft. The voice helped Fallingsnow to relax. No life can exist without the forces of nature. Nature is a beast - and soon, it will attack this land and tear it apart. If the cats of the clans are to survive, they must walk across the stars.

Walk across the stars? Fallingsnow thought as she turned her head towards Hollypaw and repeated the words the best she could.

"Walk across the stars? Fallingsnow, what do you mean?" Hollypaw whispered, pressing into Fallingsnow quietly. "Fallingsnow…"

"It is not my place to say," Fallingsnow replied as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Get out of here, this place isn't for you, and this is no longer my battle. I promised Darkfire I would kill Rowanstar and I did, this battle is now Frostclaw's."

Her pelt slowly tried to fluff up, but the fur was plastered to her sides, feeling awkward and anxious, wanting to leave this place behind permanently and never return. Out of everything that had happened, this was what she had been waiting for, a chance for an escape and to go out and explore the world. The world was far bigger than the clans, and there would be other ancestors to see and other groups of cats that would have their own ways of life.

Maybe I'm supposed to find a solution to the problem the clans created. Fallingsnow glanced at Hollypaw, who tried to bury further into her fur. "Protect Ivypool for me, would you? She will be upset that I am not returning home, and if it suits you best, you can tell her I perished to the claws of Rowanstar."

"That might be best…" Hollypaw continued to whisper. "She will feel betrayed if you leave without helping the clans get back to their paws. Now go… Get out of this storm and go as far as you want…" Hollypaw lifted her gaze, the green eyes soft and filled with a sort of understanding now, her eyes tearing up but it was hard to tell with the rain continuing to fall.

The pressure against Fallingsnow's sides seemed to be relieved and she smiled softly. "I'll see you again one day, if not in this world, then amongst the stars where we can laugh and share our stories together… I promise!" Fallingsnow purred softly, barely able to amongst the bodies surrounding them. "I give you my best wishes, my best luck, and hopefully Starclan will light your path someday."

Nearby, the battle had become entirely silent and Fallingsnow turned away from Hollypaw.

She ran and disappeared into the barrier, no one but the black she-cat saw her leave. No one but the black she-cat knew she was even still alive. No one but the black she-cat knew that Fallingsnow was travelling the world to search for herself.

No one but the black she-cat stood amongst the camp, water pooling near her shoulders now, before she quickly began to wade back to the Thunderclan camp.

No one could save the cats of the clans but her now, if they were even worth saving…