Disclaimer: See Chapter One

Author's Note: This chapter is unfinished.but I thought I would upload it as well, since I don't know when I'll get back to finishing it.

Chapter Five

Maniacal laughing. . .screams of terror. . .flashes of red. . .blood staining the ground. . .blood marking the trees. . .blood everywhere. . .yells of victory. . .blue eyes. . .so bright . . .full of sorrow. . .gazing. . . staring. . .disappointment. . .sadness. . .

Darkstar woke early and gazed out the window but only the darkness of early morning met her glance.  Rubbing her eyes, she stretched and then rolled out of bed, her footpaws soon touching the cold floor beneath her.

She soon was dressed and strapped her sword against her back and her sickle weapon against her side.  Picking up her throwing weapons, she put them in her belt on her waist and stepped out her room where she met with Skipper, Snow, Karia, the Abbot and Rosestripe. 

Without much talking the group made their way to the front gate, where the Abbot let them out.  Taking the abbot by the paw Darkstar bowed respectfully to him.  "Words can not describe how thankful I am to you.  I owe you my life and so much more, thank you."

The abbot smiled kindly.  "It was no problem at all.  Come back safely, all of you."  And with that the group turned and walked out of the abbey onto the main road leading towards the water.

They were walking farther and farther from the large red building, and soon there wasn't too much of Redwall to be seen, except for the tower at the top. 

Karia yawned widely, "Man, am I so tired!  Never have I gotten up this early."  She commented as she rubbed her eyes, trying to stay awake.

"I appreciate you all coming with me."  Darkstar said sincerely looking at each beast around her. 

"Oh, was no problem at all."  Skipper said.  "Snowpaws needed to go there anyway, and I was ready to go on a bit of an adventure.  Besides, we're all curious about your past."

Karia nodded in agreement, "Definitely!  And we couldn't leave our new friend alone in Mossflower woods all by herself without knowing where to go!"

Darkstar was getting a nice warm fuzzy feeling inside and she turned her head upwards towards the sky, noticing the stars that still brightening the early morning sky and the moon that was still hanging in the sky waiting for the sun's time to rise.

Flashback.

Stars shining brightly against the black sky. . . two foxes sitting on a hill staring up at the moon.

"It's so beautiful. . ." The black female fox commented in awe. . .  She was older in this flashback than earlier. . .it seemed to be the fairly recent.

"Aye, 'tis indeed. . ." Her male companion agreed in a tenor tone, a bright smile on his face.  Turning his head towards her, he stared intensely with his blue eyes into her green.

Taking her paw, he held it tightly in both of his.  "Darkstar Ripclaw. . .I promise, for as long as I live, to always protect you.  We will always be together, you and me.and I will always care for you."

End of flashback.

Darkstar stared pensively at the ground in front of her.  Who was that young fox companion. . .he was always in her dreams. . .always there!

The sky was starting to turn bright shades of orange, pink and yellow as the sun began to rise.  "Ooooh!"  Karia's gasps of awe came as the group stopped to stare at the beauty of a sunrise.

Suddenly five beasts stood in front of them, blocking the path.  There was a hare, an otter, two squirrels and a large hedgehog.  They had their weapons drawn and aimed at them.

"Darkstar Ripclaw," said a squirrel, pointing his sword at the black fox.  "Prepare to die."

Skipper held his paws up, "Now, now.  There's no reason to be so hostile.  What can we do for you?"

"Be quiet, riverdog," snapped the hedgehog.  "Since you're with this vermin, you'll have to die as well."

"Who are you, and why are you after me?"  Darkstar shouted angrily at them, but there was no answer to her question as the beasts rushed at them, their weapons aimed for killing them all.

Skipper, Karia, and Snow all had their weapons out.  Snow blocked a squirrel with his sword, Skipper with his short sword and Karia with a sturdy looking staff.

Darkstar also had her sword unsheathed and was in ready stance.

"Try not to kill them if you can help it."  Skipper yelled over the melee of the battle.

Snow untangled his sword from the squirrel's knife chopped the squirrel in the neck with his paw.  "Aye, friend!  I hear you."

Karia thwacked her staff between the hare's ears.  "Alright!"  She called.

Skipper was dealing with the otter ramming the hilt of his sword into his opponent's gut.

Darkstar was dealing with the hedgehog and the other squirrel. 

The thrill of battle. . .the scent of blood. . .killing. . .it was so natural to her. . .

It took every inch of strength to keep from ramming the end of her sword into the hedgehog's soft belly, and from thrusting her sickle weapon into the squirrel's throat, but instead she hit the hedgehog with the flat of her sword, knocking him down, and thrust a back kick towards the squirrel's gut.

With lighting speed she had her sickle weapon aimed at the squirrel's neck and her sword pointing at the hedgehog's nose.  "Now tell me who you are and why you're after me."  She growled through clenched fangs.

"We're bounty hunters.  You have quite a price on your head, fox.  Didn't you know that?"  The squirrel spat at her.

Her green eyes widened.what had she done to have a bounty on her head? 

"Why so you look so surprised?  You should know the constant sins you've committed in your life, vermin." The hedgehog shot at her angrily.  "But, I guess the rumors about your skills as a fighter weren't lies. . ."

As if in a trance, she sheathed her sword and stuck her sickle back against her side.  "I'm sorry." She shook her head sadly.  "To be honest. . . I have no idea what I've done in my life. . . that's what I'm trying to find out. . .  I can't remember anything from my past."

She turned her back for a moment to the other two.  "Tell me.what have I done?"  She cried with despair.  She turned around to face the two again and saw them both with their weapons aimed towards her heart.

In a flash she had her sword out slashed through the mid section of the squirrel and through the chest of the hedgehog.  She watched them fall lifelessly to the ground blood staining the ground.

Her companions gasped and stared in surprise at her and at the dead bodies at her footpaws.  "WATCH OUT!"  She cried, as their opponents in a sudden move, rushed at their backs.

Darkstar threw her throwing weapons at them, scoring with amazing accuracy at their necks, and again, watched their dead bodies fall to the ground in a bloody heap.

She shut her eyes tightly against the bloody sight. . .she didn't mean to kill them. . .but she had to save her friends. . .

"I'm. . .sorry. . .so sorry. . ." She whispered. . .her knees hitting the hard ground beneath her.