Author's Note: Okay this one is kind of short, partially because I'm trying to summarize events over a period of time and partially because I just want to finish this fic. That also means some of the writing may seem kind of rushed if you pay attention to that kind of thing. I wrote it all in one sitting on a Monday morning.

Also warning! Character death but not really. It's open ended. I don't know if the character is dying yet or not but it's implied something's happening.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"

Ivypool didn't even twitch at the summons. She was already at the head of the clan alongside Firestar and Brambleclaw. It was kind of exciting to be standing there but any excitement was tainted by guilt. She was only here because Hawkfrost had tricked her as an apprentice. She didn't really deserve to be here, not like Firestar and Brambleclaw. She was no leader, not a cat others should look up to.

The clan trickled over slowly, taking seats around the Highledge. No one really seemed surprised and there were no gossiping whispers or murmurs of confusion. They all knew why they were there.

"Cats of ThunderClan," Firestar began, "as you know we are about to face a threat unlike any other the clans have faced. Together, we've faced BloodClan and survived the Great Journey. I hope those experiences have prepared us for what's coming but we still have a long way to go."

"As you know," Brambleclaw jumped in, "the fo- three- clans have agreed to start a rotation based training system so we can learn each other's skills and get used to fighting alongside each other. Senior warriors, you will be in charge of that training. Sandstorm and Graystripe, you two will be in charge of the group teaching ThunderClan cats to fight alongside WindClan and ShadowClan cats. Dustpelt and Brackenfur, you two will be in charge of teaching WindClan and ShadowClan cats to fight like ThunderClan cats."

Graystripe and Sandstorm both nodded, seemingly happy to be given the responsibility, while Dustpelt and Brackenfur looked a bit more hesitant but didn't protest. Brambleclaw then turned to Ivypool.

"Ivypool will be teaching ThunderClan cats how to defend themselves from Dark Forest battle moves," Brambleclaw announced. "Harespring and Tigerheart will do the same in WindClan and ShadowClan."

"How do we know we can trust them?" Cloudtail spoke up, rising to his paws. His tail swished behind him, not quite aggressively but it was enough. "They already betrayed us once. How do we know they won't do it again?"

Ivypool opened her mouth to respond but Firestar beat her to it. "The same could be said about you, nephew, but none of us are questioning your loyalty."

Cloudtail squawked and Firestar let out an uncharacteristic cackle of laughter. A few rumbles of amusement were heard rippling through the clan. Ivypool didn't really understand what was happening and shot Brambleclaw a confused look.

"Cloudtail doesn't believe in StarClan," Brambleclaw whispered in her ear, "and when he was an apprentice, he accepted food from twolegs for awhile. It took a long time for him to earn the clan's trust again."

"I see," Ivypool responded quietly before raising her voice to address the clan. "I assure you, Tigerheart, Harespring, and I wouldn't dream of betraying the clans. We've risked everything to warn you. Not every cat who trained in the Dark Forest is on our side but I promise I will stand with you. Hawkfrost manipulated me into joining him, Tigerstar intimidated Tigerheart into following him, and Brokenstar tricked Harespring into training with him. You know these cats and what they're capable of. We didn't realize until it was too late.

"But we fear what they will do to the clans more than we fear what they will do to us. I'm fairly certain that Hawkfrost will come after me on the day of the attack or kill me in my dreams. I'm standing with you anyway because I know it's right. I don't know why the Dark Forest is attacking the clans but a life under their paws is not one I wanted any of you to live. And if that means risking my life or losing your trust, so be it. I know in my heart that I am a warrior of ThunderClan and whatever you think of me will not change that.

"So I'm going to fight beside you and do everything in my power to teach you to survive. The Dark Forest is strong and they have a lot of cats and they are vicious. They can tear you apart but in StarClan's name, I swear I will not let them."

Ivypool didn't realize she was giving a speech until Berrynose gave a yowl of approval and the clan began chanting her name.

"Ivypool! Ivypool! Ivypool!"

Ivypool flushed and ducked her head, giving her chest a few embarrassed licks. Firestar nudged her, prompting her to look up to meet his glittering green eyes. Ivypool never knew she needed to see that look in her leader's eyes until now. He looked proud. So proud. "I think I'm leaving the clans in capable paws."

"-which is why you must always be aware of your surroundings down here," Hollyleaf continued as she trotted through the tunnels. The stone and dirt was damp under her paws, the earth soaked by the effects of the river. She ignored it. She was used to it. Especially now.

Around half a moon had passed since the clans began training and it was going fairly well. There was a tad bit of tension here and there but the clans' senior warriors were able to smooth it over quickly. The Dark Forest was still targeting cats in their dreams but the medicine cats were working hard to keep them safe. All the training against Dark Forest moves were making the warriors more than capable of defending themselves against their forgotten ancestors' claws.

What Hollyleaf was most proud of was that Firestar asked her to teach cats to fight underground.

It was too good of an opportunity to pass up. Ivypool had confirmed there was nowhere in the Dark Forest like the tunnels for the warriors to train in so the Dark Forest cats would be at a huge disadvantage. They'd be fumbling in the dark and crashing into walls too much to put up a proper fight and that made the tunnels a perfect hiding place. If a cat was injured, they could run down here and lose a pursuer in the winding maze or turn the tide of the battle and overwhelm an opponent while they were disoriented. And it was easy for cats to regroup down here.

At the moment, she was down there with Fallen Leaves, Berrynose, Brightheart, Crowfrost and Scorchfur of ShadowClan, and Sedgewhisker and Sunstrike of WindClan. Overall a pretty good unit. They'd all been down here before and they'd taken to the environment well. Not well enough to be ready for what was coming though.

"They're coming!" a voice yowled, echoing through the tunnels. "They're coming!"

Fallen Leaves broke from the group immediately, trying to find the source of the mew. "Willowshine? Willowshine, follow my voice. Come here. What's coming?"

"The Dark Forest!" Willowshine exclaimed as she stumbled into the tunnel the rest of the group was in. She'd been down here a long time. Supposedly she felt a stronger connection to StarClan here? Hollyleaf didn't know how that worked, considering their ancestors couldn't see Fallen Leaves down here. She trusted her friend though. "I had a dream! Leopardstar, she was there. The Dark Forest is attacking both StarClan and the lake at the same time!"

Hollyleaf only allowed herself a heartbeat to wrap her head around the RiverClan cat's words before springing into action. "Sedgewhisker, Sunstrike, go warn WindClan and ShadowClan! Brightheart, go to ThunderClan! Berrynose, Crowfrost, Scorchfur, go with them and protect them if you need to. Fallen Leaves and I will stay here to help any cats driven into the tunnels. May StarClan's light guide your path."

Sedgewhisker, Sunstrike, Brightheart, Crowfrost, and Scorchfur nodded and sprinted away with the urgency of a hungry forest fire. Berrynose waited a moment longer, blue eyes meeting her green ones. "Stay safe, Hollyleaf."

"I'll try," Hollyleaf said softly. She paused. "And Berrynose?"

"Yeah?"

"You're not half bad," she purred and Berrynose seemed to glow.

"Thank you," he whispered and turned away. Hollyleaf could've sworn he said more but he was already too far to hear.

Cinderheart was hunting when they arrived.

Foxleap, Hazeltail, and Blossomfall were with her. They were good cats and she trusted them but they were not exactly the cats she wanted by her side when she was fighting for her life. By StarClan, why didn't they bring some more experienced warriors with them? Oh right, because they were training the other cats so the younger cats were left to feed the clan. There was a huge flaw in that plan. How hadn't they seen it before it was too late?

She'd been stalking a squirrel when she heard Foxleap's yowl. It startled her prey away so at first she was more annoyed than anything else. Then she remembered the dire situation they were in and she jolted up. Almost on cue, faded cats began materializing around her. Dozens of them.

"Run!" Blossomfall yowled and Cindherheart didn't question it. She broke into a sprint, almost slamming into Foxleap, and ran to catch up with Blossomfall and Hazeltail.

"Oh StarClan… Oh StarClan… I don't want to die!" Foxleap yelped as he leaped over a fallen branch.

If they weren't running for their lives, Cinderheart would've slapped him upside the head with her tail.

"We're not going to die," she announced. She got a few surprised looks. Cinderheart swallowed and she prayed she was making the right move. "We're… We're going to keep running."

"What?"

"Are you sure?" Hazeltail asked. She looked uneasy. "We're just going to abandon our clanmates?"

Cinderheart closed her eyes for a moment regretfully before shaking her head. "No… If we can help we will. But right now we're just going to run. Try to survive. We can't fight that many cats. I don't think we'd even be able to defeat one. But maybe we can lure them away so they can't hurt any other cats."

"Where?" Foxleap asked. "The tunnels? That was the only place we had planned."

There was a heartbeat of silence before Blossomfall spoke up. "The twolegplace. We're going in the right direction, let's go there. There are twoleg nests and fences and thunder paths and dogs and- and-"

Cinderheart gave her a soothing look. "I think you have the right idea, Blossomfall."

"We need to hurry then," Hazeltail said, glancing behind herself nervously. "They're gaining on us fast."

The soft earth of the forest transitioned into the rough, hard stone of the twolegplace. The Dark Forest cats were close behind them but seemed to slow as soon as the scenery changed. They still didn't let up though.

"Onto the fences! Onto the fences!" Blossomfall urged.

"Isn't it dangerous to lead them toward where the kittypets hang out?"

"..."

"We need to split up," Cinderheart said decisively. "Blossomfall, you go on the fences. Foxleap, go on the rooftops. Hazeltail, stay on the main path."

"What about you?"

"Trust me."

"There they are!" an unfamiliar voice yowled. "Get them!"

"They're coming!" Hazeltail shouted. She crouched, ready to spring away, but nodded to her clanmates first. "If I don't see you again, goodbye. May StarClan light your path."

"May StarClan light your path," Blossomfall and Foxleap echoed before running off to the fence and the rooftops respectively.

Cinderheart didn't move a mouse length.

"Cinderheart?!" Foxleap yowled once he was on the rooftop and noticed what she was doing. "What are you doing?!"

"Trust me!" Cinderheart yowled back.

"Trust isn't going to get you far," a large tom with a faded black pelt sneered as he prowled over. The Dark Forest cats slowed down, stalking up to her with dark glints in their eyes. Cinderheart turned and began to run. The Dark Forest cats laughed at her efforts and darted after her. "You've got nowhere to run, kitty! Nowhere!"

Cinderheart didn't hesitate to run into the thunderpath, fully aware of the monster rushing towards her.

Author's Note: Honestly I don't know if Cinderheart is going to survive this or not. I've killed her before and I kind of feel bad doing it again... We'll find out in a few chapters.

I wrote this one, like, really soon after the previous one. I don't know if the next one is going to be finished in a week again or another four months. I'd love to see your predictions on character deaths (or if they happen or not) and what's happening next though! I have everything planned out but it's not written yet so it's subject to change if you guys have any good predictions.

Here's a main character list if you'd like to make some guesses about what happens to them: Ivypool, Cinderheart, Hollyleaf, Fallen Leaves, Berrynose, Tigerheart, Dovewing, Lionblaze, Jayfeather, Brairlight, Harespring

Edited 5/13/2021: Few minor changes