A/N: Just over 70,000 words with this chapter, which goes nicely with my just over 70 reviews. I am very, very proud of myself, but I am more grateful to you guys, everyone who has taken the time to read this story. Especially those of you who reviewed or Favorited this story. But it's not over yet, and I hope to have a hundred reviews by the time I hit 100,000 words - roughly fourteen chapters from now. It's been more than a year since I started this, mostly because I suck at overcoming writer's block, but mostly, I love you guys! Thank you so so much. :)
"Cats of ShadowClan!" called the voice that Russetfur had begun to hate with more passion than ever since Featherstorm's death. Regardless, the queen got to her paws and padded out of the den. It was late the next day, and Flamesong, who barely clung to life through her ordeal, was allowed to have her kits suckle at her stomach. She had named the she-kit Falconkit for her bright, sharp golden eyes, and the tom, who had yet to stop shaking, even in his sleep, Quakekit.
Brokenstar stood, his scarred pelt gleaming in the sunlight, in front of the cats who had already gathered. "Leaf-bare is approaching, and soon we will not have enough food to sustain us." Russetfur flattened her ears to the lies, not paying attention until a shocking new piece of information passed his lips. "In order to retain the health of the Clan, we must remove the parts of us that weaken the whole. That is why the elders, and anyone who wishes to join them, should live outside of the camp from now on."
There was a collective gasp from the warrior below, except for those who sat closest to him; Clawface in particular looked quite pleased. Stonetooth, the grizzled ex-deputy, got shakily to his paws. "This-" he called to his leader in a gravelly voice, "is a mistake. Even your misguided followers will soon realize the truth about you, Brokenkit." he spat, before walking stiffly, head and tail held high, out of the camp. Nightpelt, Cinderfur and Ashfur, and several others, followed him. Dustfang looked back at the same time as Nightpelt. Russetfur longed to go with them, but Brokenstar fixed her with an icy stare, reminding her of the threat.
When he saw that she wasn't coming, Nightpelt met her gaze with a look of betrayal and disgust, and Russetfur knew she deserved it. She stared hollowly at the ground. Just go! Run so far away Brokenstar will never find you or the kits! A voice howled in the back of her mind. But another contradicted it. You can't go. He might not be able to find you, but he'd certainly be able to hurt your family and friends that remained. You can't risk that.
"Now that only those truly loyal remain, I am now appointing four new warriors." Brokenstar announced. "Icepaw, Tanglepaw, Greenpaw, and Maplepaw, come forward." Two apprentices stepped forward. Maplepaw and Tanglepaw were nowhere to be seen. "Correction." Brokenstar began, eyes flashing. "Two new, loyal, warriors. Appears your sisters don't measure up to you, do they, Greenpaw?"
The apprentice asked shakily, "Where is Lilypaw?" Brokenstar, the mentor of Lilypaw, let out a small growl. "The kittypet ran away after training, probably to Twolegplace. Now, Icepaw, Greenpaw, do you accept the full responsibilities of being warriors?"
"I do." said Icepaw.
Greenpaw hesitated before replying slowly, "I do."
"Then I name you Icetalon and Greenfang. Congratulations. You will sit vigil tonight."Brokenstar said. Russetfur was unsettled at the unconventional naming ceremony, and by the explanation given for Lilypaw's , she cheered half-heartedly with the rest of the cats, her ears flattened against her head. "Now, ShadowClan, we have a battle to fight. WindClan will not defy us any longer! We must have their territory to feed all of the kits. And more are on the way. We fight now." A few yowls and cheers came from those sitting nearest him.
"Oakfur, Gingerheart, and Brownpaw will guard the camp. Wetfoot, you and Kinkfur will guard Brightflower, Shadestorm, Flamesong, and the kits. The battle party will include myself, Jaggedtooth, Blackfoot, Clawface, Darkflower, Skyheart, Duskfeather, Boulder, Nightwhisper, Stumpytail, Rowanclaw, Cedarheart, Tallpoppy, Sleetpelt, Icetalon, Greenfang, and Russetfur."
What? Russetfur thought, confused. But- "She's pregnant!" yowled some cat. Exactly, Russetfur replied mentally.
"Are kits suckling at her belly or falling out of her, Darkflower? No? We need every cat we can get to drive out WindClan, no matter how scrawny they are. Besides, Russetfur already agreed. Isn't that right?" Brokenstar asked.
The dark ginger queen swallowed. "Right, Brokenstar."
Dusk, the time for the battle patrol to leave, appeared to sprint to greet ShadowClan, it came so quickly. Russetfur stilled her fluttering heartbeat, forcing it to beat in slow, even time. She stood by Tallpoppy in the clearing now, as the rest of the patrol emerged from their dens or returned from hunting. "Brokenstar? The others are setting up a temporary camp just beyond those bushes." Icetalon's voice came from a little ways away, and Russetfur turned to see him pointing with his tail to a thick hedge of bushes not very far away from camp.
"Very good, Icetalon. You and Greenfang will sit vigil after the battle." Brokenstar replied silkily.
The white and black warrior dipped his head."Thank you."
Raising his voice, the ShadowClan leader called, "Time to go, ShadowClan. Remember, we sneak up on the camp and then we just attack every cat you can. The idea is to drive them out, not make a point. Follow me." The dark tabby tom led them out of camp, and Russetfur hardly had time to wonder how he knew where WindClan camp was before they started moving.
Tallpoppy walked on one side of her, Greenfang on the other, and Skyheart and Duskfeather just ahead. The long trek, through most of ShadowClan territory, across the Thunderpath, and through WindClan territory, seemed to be over in the blink of an eye, seeing as Russetfur dreaded their destination so. Far, far too soon, they were crouched just below the crest of the hill, the sounds and smells of the camp flooding their senses.
Brokenstar waited for a moment, then twitched his tail and the huge patrol crawled forward silently, melting into the shadows as only ShadowClan could. The silence of the evening was shattered when the leader of her Clan yowled a fierce battle cry, and the swarm of cats shot forward into the camp, where they were met by yowls of fear and of anger. Russetfur, while at the back of the patrol, soon had an opponent to fight. Shrewheart, a skinny brown she-cat, flew at her, and Russetfur snarled fiercely.
Russetfur sank her fangs into the she-cat's shoulder as Shrewheart's own teeth met in Russetfur's ears, while one of the WindClan cat's clawed paws raked down her chest. This was too close to her stomach and her kits for Russetfur's comfort, so she leaped backward, taking a piece of shoulder with her. The cat hissed in pain but started to circle her anyway. The ShadowClan queen's heart was pumping so fast she was afraid the kits would start to come just from stress, but it was early enough for Russetfur to halfway dismiss the thought.
Shrewheart, striped ears pressed so flat against her head they seemed to not even exist, exposed her glittering fangs in a snarl before charging at Russetfur again, this time leaping easily over her slashing claws and landing squarely on her back. The russet queen, with a tremendous effort, flipped onto her back. The warrior tried to leap away, but two of her paws were crushed. The very thin warrior's bones were no match for the weight of a well-built, expecting ShadowClan cat, and they cracked. Yowling, the WindClan cat freed herself and limped away as fast as she could.
Russetfur had started to breathe a sigh of relief when a new opponent, an elderly tom, confronted her. He took one glance at her swollen stomach and snorted. "ShadowClan's so desperate they need their queens to fight for them?
"WindClan's so desperate they need their elders to fight for them?" she shot back and slashed at him with claws outstretched.
He jumped back nimbly, despite his age, and spat. "I'm not fighting you, queen." While Russetfur was glad that a cat from WindClan had the decency to do that, the comment irked her. Regardless, she simply let him run, knowing she couldn't possibly catch him. A white and black tom, probably an apprentice, came at her as she looked around for Tallpoppy. His claws went straight for her jugular, but she ducked and they scored from between her ears down to her shoulder blades.
Growling deep in her throat from the pain, she whipped her tail back and forth, waiting for him to strike again. The patched apprentice lunged again, but overshot, and Russetfur ducked and twisted her neck so that her teeth closed on his side as he leaped over her. He crashed to the ground, bleeding. She raked her claws deeply down his flank as he struggled to bite her when a huge tom slammed into her. "Starlingpaw..." he murmured, glancing at the apprentice. as Russetfur recovered.
He pinned her down, claws sinking into her shoulder muscle. Knowing she didn't stand a chance, she exposed her swollen belly to him. His claws retracted slightly. "A queen..." he muttered, but her status didn't stop him from cuffing her strongly with a powerful paw and biting the flesh adjacent to her spine. She yowled, struggling to stand and fight. Her claws cut into the inside of his flank, but not deeply, and he hardly flinched. She relaxed her muscles for a moment, before gathering her strength and shoving upward desperately.
While the force of it was enough for his large paw to slip down to her foreleg, her still held her until the white form of Sleetpelt screeched in his ear and tore her claws through the tom's dark gray belly fur. With a snarl, he turned to fight the younger she-cat, releasing Russetfur, who shot to her paws and started battling the tom side-by-side with her niece.
He was a strong fighter, but the two aggravated the wounds he had already collected and created new ones. "Thanks," Russetfur said breathlessly as soon as she got the chance.
"Anytime." Sleetpelt replied, exacting a heavy blow to one of the gray tom's ears. At the same time, Russetfur had dug her claws into his side, and as he jerked to the side, they twisted and ripped out. He finally ran off, bleeding from a multitude of wounds. The two she-cats had a fair amount of bloody decoration themselves, but they were better off than him. They moved forward, hoping to find the rest of their Clanmates, when two cats, one a wiry cream she-cat and the other a young black-furred tom, attacked them. The ShadowClan she-cats fought back to back against the already weakened WindClan cats and sent them howling.
A deadly quiet rested over the camp a moment later. The ShadowClan cats stepped over to the edge of the camp and saw that every last WindClan cat was gone. Fur and blood and flesh was everywhere, making the scene even more haunting. Russetfur thought she could hear the faint cry of a kit in the distance and she shuddered. ShadowClan won.