Disclaimer: I clearly do not own Warriors, I would've found a way to connect this to the books if I did.

Shatter silently looked up at the sky, lost in thought as she sat in the branches of one of the many trees of the valley. If there was a moon, one would know two moons had passed since the encounter with the strange dying cat known as Clue. Here she was, too many thoughts on her mind as had become usual as of late. She'd lost track of how many cats she'd seen die-a few of which her claws had directly been involved in. That was life in the Bloody Valley. Learn to kill or you'll surely be killed. Unlike her sister Shadow however, she didn't feel exactly proud of her accomplishments. It had been a mix of self-defense and using her still small size for some aid in her stealthy kills. Shatter shook her head when her gaze drifted to the top of the wall. It's not like I can just leave. Night or Shadow... possibly both would hunt me down and try to kill me themselves. I can't fight my own kin... I wonder how long that'll be true though... She thought darkly before climbing down to the ground.

Eventually me or Shadow will have to kill Night... And whenever Night's dead I'm pretty sure Shadow's going to try to kill me regardless of who kills Night. Sighing to herself Shatter's tail tip twitched before deciding to start her periodic little wall patrol. Night had ordered Shatter and Shadow to start living on their own recently. And that during every waking session(their version of a day-the time they're awake) they should do a patrol of a section of the wall. Shatter wasn't sure where in the valley Shadow had gone, but she didn't necessarily care as long as her twin didn't bother her.

Shatter trotted towards the nearest section of the wall, calm and very much in tune with her surroundings. Her ears were perked, eyes searching the surroundings and her nose on alert, ignoring the smell of blood. She could smell other cats that had gone by but it wasn't like there were territories set, these cats probably don't expect to live long after all. But as she neared the wall she could detect a fresh scent, very fresh, like the cat was still in the area. She tilted her head to the side ever so slightly before picking up the pace and following the scent.

What she saw was a newcomer to the valley. She could tell because of the scratches and the the way his limbs were arranged. He was a dark ginger tom with darker marks here and there almost like burn marks. If Shatter had to guess she'd say he was a quite a few waking sessions older than herself. He lay on his left side, with the left front paw behind his head awkwardly. The right front paw was under the left back leg whose paw almost touched the tom's mouth. And the right back leg was stretched out backwards. Had she not known better she would think he was dead. Cats were usually unconscious, a little injured and in an awkward position when they fell in.

The young tom suddenly groaned. A sign he was waking up and feeling the impact he'd taken when he landed in the valley. His legs slowly moved into more regular positions, as if the muscles ached at the slightest movement-which they probably did being in that position for however long he'd been out.

Shatter frowned slightly, normally she left before she could be seen. But she was pretty sure she could handle herself if he attacked, most cats didn't start battle training until around a certain size. But Shatter had pretty much been training for fights since she was born. So even if he had been a quick learner, he was likely to be about an equal, unless he'd been training since birth too that is. But even if he was, Shatter was smaller, had the stealth down and she knew the lay of the land well. Either way, she was certain she could handle herself.

"What happened...?" He mumbled to himself as he pushed himself up to his paws slowly, like each muscle ached-which was likely with that position he'd been in. Shatter watched as he shook his head a little. For a little bit he stayed still, then stiffened like he'd just recalled what had occurred before the fall. "The clan... last I remember Branchtail, Clawfur and... Wetpaw..." She could hear the betrayal heavy in his voice as he spoke the last name.

"But I had to be dreaming... I have to have been." He said suddenly standing up and grunting as his muscles likely protested from the sudden movement. That ache must have made him realize it was real. All of it. His head dipped down sadly. But it didn't last long. His nose most have woken up because he suddenly seemed alarmed and got onto all four paws, eyes wide and alert as his head swung around. At first he overlooked Shatter, but then his gaze slowly turned back to her, and for a while there was silence. Except for the occasional yowl and the laughter of a crazy cat in the distance.

Shatter simply sighed. "Get used to the smell, it's everywhere in the valley." Well, she'd figure she might as well start whatever type of conversation they would be having.

He narrowed his eyes, suspicious most likely. "What do you mean? What valley? Where are we? Who are you?"

Shatter just frowned at the onslaught of questions. "This is the Bloody Valley. Where no moon gives us a break from the blood red sun. Where no stars shine. Where the sun never sets. Where most are murdered before they could so much as think of escaping the stone walls that imprison us."

The tom shuddered slightly at her cold tone. "I didn't catch your name."

"I didn't mention it." Shatter stated, but less coldly this time.

He frowned at this, looking down slightly. "... Oh... Umm..."

"But it's Shatter."

The tom lifted his head and blinked, confused. "What?"

"My name. It's Shatter."

"Oh. My name's Flamepaw." He paused shifting from paw to paw uneasily. "So what exactly did you mean by... well... by what you said?"

Shatter sighed glancing up at the blood red sky. "As I said, this is the Bloody Valley. The sun is always setting, so just about everything is red. Most cats here fell in over that wall like you." She pointed with her muzzle to the top of the wall behind Flamepaw. "Some of them pushed in by the cats outside, so this place has kind or become a prison of sorts I guess, some simply falling in by accident. Some go in willingly, but those are usually the crazy ones."

"So... this is basically a hollow filled with killers?" Flamepaw asked tilting his head to the side.

"It's a valley surrounded by stone walls. But yes, it's pretty much filled with killers." Shatter confirmed with a small nod.

Flamepaw frowned slightly, looking more directly at Shatter. "So... how'd you end up in here then? You look a little young to be a killer."

Shatter snorted, lashing her tail slightly. "So do you." She pointed out. "But not all of us come from outside the valley. I was born here."

Flamepaw blinked, looking a bit surprised. "Why aren't you with your parents then? Isn't it safer in numbers?"

"Ha! My mother killed my father before me and my sister were born. My sister wants to kill me. I don't know where you come from, but in this valley, numbers are a hazard, and they hardly do any good." Shatter spat bitterly at the ground. "There's a cold reality in this blood bath called a valley so get used to it." With that Shatter turned to leave. Family was an extremely touchy subject with her. The whole notion of her father was still bugging her after all.

"W-wait!" Flamepaw called before running to catch up.

"Get lost!" Shatter whirled around and snarled in warning.

Flamepaw stumbled back startled by the sudden hostility no doubt. "But-"

"Go! Before I use my claws!" Shatter hissed, she was getting annoyed now.

Flamepaw took a few more steps back, hesitant to leave. But he seemed to see that she wasn't playing around and that she would attack if he didn't leave. After a moment's silence he nodded. "Okay... maybe I'll see you around?"

Shatter answered him with a piercing glare to which he visibly flinched from.

He sighed before turning and padding away, tail dragging a little. Padding alongside the wall while glancing towards the trees with apprehension. Shatter knew he'd go in eventually if he planned to live, prey didn't live close to the walls. And the space is open between wall and trees, giving some of the hunting-killers a good view for potential victims. It was why her mother traveled by tree branch-it was mostly to enjoy watching a show without getting involved but still.

Shatter shook her head in disapproval. He's probably not going to last long if he takes everything to heart. She thought to herself before turning back to the trees, deciding she was too tired to continue for the time. She scented the air. There were few distinct scents in the valley. Blood covered up most. But the reek of crow-food generally stuck out, it was the scent of Top-Hollow Tree. Most cats avoided the tree, that was partly why she liked it and made her den near it. The valley was full of death-traps. The mountains were full of monstrous creatures-well except Dead Mountain anyways. There was the Sand Pits that'll suck you right in. There was the Fang River, with an extremely strong current and many sharp stones under the water that no cat had survived. The worst however, remained as the Ledge Path, an almost guaranteed escape, but setting paw on the path caused the ground to shake viciously and when the ground stopped shaking there'd be a new mountain with new monstrous creatures. And if you managed to survive the path escape or no, it was the job of Bloody Valley's Secret Keeper to kill you.

Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. Computer issues, then school, then I was feeling all depressed and such... but it's all good for the moment. Anyways, I feel kind of sorry for Flamepaw actually, mainly because of what happens much later on. But I'm not giving any spoilers here. :P