LEGACY OF SHADOWS

Disclaimer: My characters, Brian Jacques' world. Got it?

CHAPTER FOUR: REVELATIONS

The young wildcat was perched in the fork of an ancient weeping willow that overhung the stream. It was a beautiful spot, but this fact was lost upon him at this moment as he stared at the water through eyes blurred with tears. Kayto was still really very young, and it hurt to think that the only mother he had ever known had saved his life simply so she could use him later for a specific purpose, much as she had once fished a long branch out of this stream just so she could teach him to use a staff as a weapon.

Bitterly he wondered what she would do if he ever fought Lisk and lost. Find another warrior, he supposed. He wasn't sure if he should fight his father; she claimed Lisk had never loved him, but Kayto had never met the older wildcat and had no idea if this was true. What did it matter, anyway? He wasn't likely to meet his sire, so it made little difference how they stood. One ear twitched; he could hear her calling him. Let her call; he didn't care any more.

Black Tip stood beneath the willow and looked up at him, paws on her hips, panting. "Kayto, come down here. I need to talk to you."

"I've got nothin' to say to you," came the sullen reply.

"You're not saying anything. I'm going to talk, and you're going to listen if I have to speak loudly enough for the whole of Mossflower to hear. Now are you going to come down, or do I have to shout?"

Kayto reluctantly slid to the ground, knowing that she meant it. If necessary she would shout. The young wildcat was starting to feel ashamed of himself for snivelling like a kitten, and he recalled somewhat guiltily that Black Tip had never told him anything unless it was important that he know it; she had never lied to him either. Except for this once. Staring at the ground, he waited, stubbornly determined not to speak first.

The vixen regarded her young charge wearily. Raising a wildcat was hard work; Kayto was now almost an adult. Fiercely independent, but like any adolescent his self-esteem was very tender; she knew she had hurt him. Shaking her head slowly, she wondered what to say. Black Tip would be the first to admit that she had taken him in for a purpose, but there was far more to it than that; she had not been able to bring herself to harm him and she had in her own way grown to love him, in as much as a vermin could be said to love. He was old enough now to challenge anything she said, and smart enough to spot a lie. She owed him the truth.

Linking paws with him, she said softly, "Walk with me." They started off along the grassy path back towards their den, and after a moment she began to speak.

"When I was a little older than you are now, I lived not far from here. I was one of many loners around these parts, until a band of two dozen or so vermin happened by. Their leader told me I would join them or I would die; he promised plunder and food and easy living. I had no real choice, so I joined, and grew to enjoy it in a way. We roamed around, enlisting other vermin, living off the land whilst the leader searched for a stronghold, a territory of his own. He had plans, you see.

"In time the band numbered over a hundred vermin, and I met a dog fox, a big male from the Northlands named Slate. The band was full of vermin in similar circumstances; at that time many of those gathered up had families, some with young ones as well. Anyway, the long and the short of it was that we became mates, Slate and I, and about a season after that I bore a litter of four healthy cubs.

"But the leader wasn't happy. We were quite far north and needed to travel fast if we were to get clear of the highlands before the winter snows trapped us; and he wanted a fighting force, not a gathering of families with camp followers and babes. He decided that the vermin under him needed to be convinced to leave their families to follow him, and he chose to do so brutally with an example.

"He killed our cubs, all four of them, in front of the whole band. I attacked him; I scarred his face with the dagger I carry now. He threw me aside and almost knocked me out. Slate attacked him then, and he was killed as well. Then the leader ordered me bloodied on face and body and tied to a tree, left for the crows, and the band marched off.

"Eventually I got free and tried to follow them, but I lost the trail and was forced to head south to find shelter for the winter, leaving behind the bodies of my mate and cubs. I wandered back here eventually and settled in once more, knowing that one day I would hear of them again and know where to find my enemy."

Kayto had listened in silence to this tale. He had never heard her story before and found it hard not to show sympathy, but he was still hurt and angry. "I don't see what this has to do with me."

Black Tip looked at him, her eyes filled with a blend of sorrow and anger. "The vermin leader who killed my family was your father, Kayto. It was Lisk Greeneyes I served under faithfully for so long, Lisk Greeneyes who murdered my cubs for no reason other than because he thought the families of his band were slowing us up, Lisk Greeneyes who slaughtered my mate when he sought to defend his brood, and Lisk Greeneyes who left me to die. The same as he left you to die when you were no more than a babe scarce able to walk."

He shook his head slowly, confused, not wanting to believe her. By now they had walked back to their camp and stood again in the clearing where he had lived ever since he could remember; not far from here his father had abandoned him, if Black Tip was to be believed. This was where his own father had left him to die. Her paw moved into his vision; she held on her outstretched paw the medallion engraved with the sign of the Thousand Eyes, the legendary badge of his family.

Lifting his head, he gazed into the vixen's eyes; yellow-green shadowed gaze met emerald green gaze for a long moment before Kayto looked away. He could see that it was true. Taking the metal disc from her, he turned to over in his paws, examining it to help clear his mind. It looked to be an alloy, at least partly gold but with enough other metal mixed in to make it strong and durable. The chain it hung from was the same. It looked very old.

The wildcat thought about what was expected of him. He could not feel any liking for his father once he had learned that the other was alive and had not attempted to find him; after hearing what Lisk had done he was filled with something not too far from hatred. But it all seemed so futile; what good would training do? He doubted he would ever find Lisk. Then again, they did hear news from travellers sometimes; if the warlord had managed to establish himself anywhere they would hear of it eventually. And then?

He thought about Black Tip and tried to imagine what it must have been like for her, with her mate and cubs dead and only a faint hope and a terrible, all-consuming hate keeping her alive until finally Fate seemed to offer her the chance she sought in the shape of a tiny kitten, betrayed by the same enemy who had taken her family. It occurred to him that he was in part a replacement for her lost family; it must be terribly lonely living out here alone.

Finally Kayto made his decision. Wordlessly, he hung the chain about his neck so that the Thousand Eyes symbol rested on his chest, and tucked it beneath his tunic. Silently he walked into the cave, and came out a few moments later with bow and quiver; walking past Black Tip and out beyond the ashes of their fire, he hung the simple painted target on a convenient branch. Backing up to a decent distance, he set himself and began to shoot, all without a word. His choice was made.

END OF CHAPTER FOUR

It's going slowly at the moment, I'll admit, but the quest itself should start in the next two or three chapters and then hopefully it should become more interesting. The more you review the more inspired I will be, so keep 'em coming.

Frosteh