Prologue

Wingflight sat in her den. Her sky blue eyes gleamed like ice. Her fangs glowed. Because now was the time, the time she had been waiting for.

However, this time, he was taking a really long time to show up. If only he could be quicker... she got up from her sitting position and padded around restlessly. And just like that, she slipped into a dream world. She was standing on the Highboulder, hundreds of screaming cats below her, chanting their praise. So many cats, and she could dispose of all of them with a simple snap of her paws. Prisoners lay bowing at her feet, begging for mercy, begging for her forgiveness. She would toy with them, torture them, make them suffer before they died. The whole land would be hers, all hers, if only the feather- brain she was waiting for would show up.

Out she slipped of her wild wishes and into the present. These dreams were her only escape from the pain of reality, the only way to end her suffering. In her mind, she suffered worse than the prisoners she herself longed to torture. The pain drove her further than any cat, and she would stop at nothing to get her way.

"Greetings, Wingflight, Deputy of MountainClan."

The voice was rusted in a way, as it sounded old, like a Twoleg radio that was glitching. It was ancient, older than any sound or sight in her world. Underneath the rust was frost and ice, giving the voice coldness and command. Along with all that, there was a sense of authority that demanded respect, and even cats as strong- willed as Wingflight would bend in to the power, or be subjected to the ruthlessness hidden away.

"I see you've finally arrived... Dark, Leader of DarkClan."

She spoke in a voice equally as cold as the mysterious leader's, though she carefully made sure to remain impassive while showing respect. Wingflight was not stupid: she had heard the rumors, generations of tales passed down, each one warning of the dangers that Dark brought. She had to refrain from insulting him there, though it was tempting to show who would be the powerful one soon. Soon. She must keep a good relationship with him before her prize arrived, or else it would all fail, and everything she had worked for would be demolished forever. This could not happen.

"Careful, there, mortal," the voice sneered. "I have more power here than you do."

It was as if he had read her mind. Actually, he probably had read her mind, as the elders always used to say to be as careful with your thoughts as well as your words when you were dealing with Dark. She quickly shielded her feelings from herself, burying them deep into the darkness of an abyss in the very back of her head. Hopefully, there they would remain, until the time came that she could safely recall them, and wallow in her victory.

She also knew that medicine cats were fiercely insistant on troubled or stressed cats not doing this.

They thought that it would damage your health. Slowly, over time, the thoughts you buried would build up, until one day your mind could not hold it in any longer, and it would all come rushing out at precisely the moment you least wanted it. It would take cats their entire lives to recover from the traumatic experience, that was if they were even lucky enough to recover. The thoughts, now that they were in the open, would slowly eat you from the inside and drive you mad, every day another day of torture and agony to get through. Many had killed themselves in the hope that they would be sent to StarClan, and there they could rest in peace, never being disturbed by their pain again.

Wingflight thought very lowly of medicine cats, though. She did not know that her opinion would partly be the cause of her downfall.

Maybe, the pain in her head was caused by these buried thoughts. The only reason she wasn't driven to madness was because she was so intent in her dreams, and her dream world, which she could escape to every time the pain became unbearable.

Well, when Dark gave her what she so badly wanted, she would never have to worry about pain ever again.

"My apologies, Dark," Wingflight spoke, trying to keep her mind blank so that he would not suspect her true colours as a traitor. "May I ask why you have granted me with your presence?"

MountainClan was always cold, the second coldest of all the Clans. CaveClan was the coldest, for their caves were a world of ice, though pretty as it was, it weakened the CaveClan cats, a large benefit for MountainClan. It was cold enough that when she spoke, her breath misted the air, sending translucent white wisps towards Dark, fading away after a few seconds.

"Why, to give you the last of the strength you need to kill Cliffstar, of course!" he laughed coldly.

Dark was the legendary leader of DarkClan, the place where evil cats went. He was immortal and immune to any threats, a great holder and caster of magic, and had many other gifts. Usually, he regarded mortals as insignificant little specks, but this one seemed to promise something. Amusingly, the mortal thought that he was helping her, but anyone should know that Dark never helped someone without considering what was in it for him. And this time, he had a chance to hatch his grand plan by... ahem... helping this poor little kitty. He would finally have his revenge.

He was a god among cats, appearing to be a gigantic tom twice the size of an average mortal. He was made of shadows, the darkness clinging to his fur, his eyes endless black abysses, but unfortunately for him, he was a spirit, which meant he could not truly touch the living world, thanks to his insolent brother, Star. How he hated him for confining him to a dark spiritual world trapped deep underground, while Star roamed the skies and had everything he could possibly want. Not for long, though.

While he was deep in thought, Wingflight was practically dancing in triumph in her mind. With the final strength spell Dark gave her, she would have enough power to take down her stupid leader, Cliffstar. No cat would doubt her rule, since she was a respected and trusted figure in her Clan. Then, she would take over all the Clans, while coaxing more power from the DarkClan leader. Once she was strong enough, she would overthrow Dark and Star, and rule over the spiritual realms too!

"Well, then! What are we waiting for?" she prodded his side with a sheathed claw impatiently, though of course her paw went straight through. She shivered violently- inside him, it felt deathly cold.

"Very well," he rumbled. "I shall begin. Have you brought the sacrifice?"

"Yes, Dark!" she responded eagerly. She clapped her paws together, and very slowly, a small dark brown she poked her head into the den- an apprentice.

The apprentice was trembling, a look of terror on her face, and her eyes widened like discs when she saw Dark. Her mouth opened in a silent scream of fear as she padded over to Wingflight, crouching down timidly.

"I have my apprentice, Robinpaw," she smirked. Her face was twisted with evil, Robinpaw thought, and nothing remained of the sweet mentor Cliffstar had gave her, who taught her many wonderful things.

With a face of pure dread, she turned to face dark, who merely laughed at the pitiful creature trembling before him. His laugh belonged to a villain, bloodcurdling and echoing. "Stand between us!" Wingflight ordered, too blinded by ambition to care about hurting those cats close to her.

Dark gently put his paw onto Robinpaw's brown head. "Rest your paw under mine!" he barked icily at the deputy. She slid her paw under his, trying not to wince at the stinging cold that burned and left her numb.

The evil spirit was silent, staring at the apprentice cowering below him. The life had been drained from her body, all of her strength flowing into Wingflight. She snatched her paw as if she couldn't bear to touch Dark any longer, and the lifeless cat fell limp onto the ground. "The strength spell," she whispered admiringly, gazing at her muscles. Their appearance hadn't changed, but they felt like the energy would never run out, and she could take on anything.

Without warning, she punched the ceiling, which shattered immediately, even though it was made of solid rocks. Dark dissolved into smoke, safely out of harm's way, and probably off to see DarkClan again. The dead Robinpaw, however, was not so lucky. The sharp fragments of rock slammed into her, leaving her completely buried under boulders and rubble. A cloud of grey dust like smoke rose into the air, entwining around Wingflight like a wreath. Through it, only a victorious pair of sky blue eyes could be seen.

Loud shouts and screams sounded from the other dens. She glanced at the cave- dens. Cats must be waking up, prabably to see what the noise was all about. The dust had fallen to the ground, and her moment was over.

She smiled.

Her dream was finally coming true.