Echostar looked around as the misty field that he stood in. Where am I? he thought. Aloud, he mewed, "Blackstar? Do you have a message for me?"
Suddenly, he heard a loud, desperate scream, which chilled him to the bone. A gust of wind came, carrying the scents of WillowClan and blood. No! he quickly forgot about StarClan and dashed towards the root of the scents.
The black pawed tom closed his eyes when another cat let out a bone-chilling cry. What's going on? What's attacking them? I must help! He picked up his pace as best as he could.
Echostar stopped once he reached his Clan's camp. The smell of blood was overwhelming now. "Crookedtail?" he mewed hesitantly. "Forestgaze? Shadowclaw?"
"No!" Echostar perked his ears when he heard the sorrowful yowl of Birdsong. "How could they do this?"
Whipping his head around, Echostar let out a choked cry at what he saw. His throat was full bile as he unsuccessfully tried to look away from the blood, the torn fur, the shredded ears…
There, lying at his mother's paws was the mangled body of Littlekit.
Blue eyes flew open as the WillowClan leader gasped for breath. It was just a dream… he thought. Just a dream.
Blinking, turned and looked out of the entrance to his den. The sun was shining brightly, but in the distance were dark clouds, threatening rain. Below his hollow, he could hear the cheerful chatter of his warriors.
Was it an omen from StarClan? He asked himself as he stretched. It couldn't be. Would they show me something so horrible?
Once he had scrambled down the tree, he was greeted by Crookedtail. "Good morning," the old tom mewed. "I just sent out the sunhigh patrol."
Echostar nodded. "Good, thank you." He paused before adding, "How are Birdsong's kits?"
"They're perfect!" Both toms looked up to see Sunpaw padding towards them, moss stuck in his claws. "I just went in there to change the bedding. Willowkit's already acting up."
"Willowkit," Crookedtail repeated with a purr. "She is lucky to carry the name of her Clan."
Echostar quickly nodded, although he truthfully wasn't interested in the young she-kit. "What about Littlekit?"
The light ginger apprentice shrugged. "He's pretty quiet. I've seen elders more energetic than him!"
Echostar nodded, not bothering to remind the tom that he was most likely too young to remember meeting any elders.
"Sunpaw!" Blacktail growled. "I've told you three times to come here. Aren't you listening?"
Sunpaw lowered his head. "It's not my fault!"
"I'm sorry, Blacktail," Echostar said. "I called him over here."
Blacktail snorted and looked away from the leader. "Training is more important than gossiping," he reminded his apprentice as the two walked off.
Echostar sighed. He hadn't been Blacktail's favorite cat since he convicted Amberstorm of murder.
"Alright, Echostar," Crookedtail rumbled, "tell me what's really on your mind."
"What do you mean?"
The deputy looked him straight in the eye. "You asked about the kits, but you were only interested in Littlekit. Then, before that, you came out of your den looking like you had seen a badger! What's wrong?"
Fox-dung, Echostar looked at his paws. "I-I just had a dream," he muttered.
"What kind of dream?"
Just tell him, mouse-brain, he snapped at himself. "I was in a misty clearing and heard the cries of two cats. When I got back to the camp, I saw Littekit's body with Birdsong by him. It was awful…His ears were almost gone as well as his fur and…"
"And?" Crookedtail whispered.
"There was blood everywhere. More than what could have come from a kit!"
For a few moments, the brown and white cat just stood there looking at him, slight shock and confusion written all over his face. "Was it from StarClan?"
"I don't know," he admitted.
Crookedtail studied his paws as if they were the most interesting thing in the world. "Did Birdsong kill him?"
"How could you think that?" Echostar yowled. "She was crying. Besides, do you really think that Birdsong would kill her own son?"
"No, I know that she wouldn't. She was my apprentice, in case you have forgotten."
"Right, sorry," Echostar forced his fur to lie flat, worried that he had offended the elder tom with his outburst. "So what do you think I should do?"
Crookedtail sighed. "I don't know. I'm not leader yet, you know. This is up to you. But, I do suggest speaking to Forestgaze."
-
Amberstorm put her ears back at she stared at the cat slowly advancing towards them. "Who are these trespassers, Kenobi?" Kamikaze snarled. "And why did you bring them here?"
The tom crouched down low to the ground. "They wish to live here," he rasped. "I was showing them around."
Kamikaze let out a hiss. "I told you, you old fool! No one is allowed in my territory!"
"You're territory?" Amberstorm repeated with a growl. "You don't look like much of a leader to me."
The battle-scarred whipped his gaze towards her. "Who are you to defy me?"
"Please be careful, Amberstorm," Lilly whispered.
Kamikaze perked his ears. "Amberstorm is your name? You're a Clan cat?"
The tabby drew her self up taller. "I was. Until I ran away."
"A traitor, eh?"
Maybe I can intimidate him, she thought. "I killed one of my comrades in battle." She looked back at Lilly, who had known about Mistpelt. The she-cat's yellow eyes clearly spoke one message. What are you doing?
Kamikaze took a step forward. "We don't need killers here."
"Then why are you here?" Kenobi snapped, clearly becoming brave, or just senile again.
The tom let out a hiss and lashed out to strike Kenobi, but Amberstorm was quicker. Letting out a battle cry, she rammed into him and pinned him to the ground. "No leader would harm a cat weaker than them," she hissed.
Kamikaze caterwauled and squirmed under her grasp, which was slipping. Soon, the larger cat had thrown her off.
As Amberstorm stood back up, she was finally able to see how big Kamikaze was to her. A memory of when she was a kit flashed through her mind.
Leafstar looked doubtfully at Angerstrike. "She's rather small. Are you sure she's ready to become an apprentice?"
Angerstrike nodded. "Of course. Her mother was small as well, but she made a wonderful warrior."
Amberstorm put her ears back. Curse my StarClan forsaken mother for passing her size on to me!
The gray rouge ran at her, but she was prepared. When he leaped at her, she dashed to the side and waited until he landed, in which afterwards, she jumped onto his back, her claws slicing through his rough skin. Unfortunately, Kamikaze soon had thrown her to ground yet again.
What's wrong with me? She thought angrily. I've taken down cats just like him! Why am I losing?
Her anger turned to surprise when she saw Lilly, who had been leading Kenobi to somewhere that he would be safe, claw at Kamikaze's sides. The two were soon a writhing blur of gray and white.
Amberstorm got up so she could assist her friend, but froze as she looked around to see cats of all shapes and sizes slowly approaching the fighters, their eyes gleaming with hunger. They formed a tight circle around Lilly and Kamikaze and stood there, remaining silent. What are they doing? She would soon find out.
She closed her eyes when she heard Lilly's cry, but opened them again when she heard a soft thump and a chorus of yowls. Standing in front of her was Kamikaze, while the other rouge cats who had been watching, had pounced on Lilly, tearing at her with no mercy.
Amberstorm tried to get up to help her friend, but she couldn't move. The she-cat just remained rooted to the ground, fear pulsing off her in waves.
"Unlike you," Kamikaze hissed in her ear, "we don't have a sacred code. The only law we abide by is don't go down."