A/N: Okay, in order: thanks to Lux Leroux, Tall Star, Krissy25, Sunfur, and Flameclaw for reviews! Glad to see you lovely people are liking the characters! We finally get some action in this chapter, and more elements to the prophecy come into play. And yes, Lux Leroux, your review did cheer me up: I read it after a day of sitting in a chair for 2 hours, and that time was spent deciphering math problems and filling in little circles. Ugh. Anywho, let's get this on with.

Disclaimer: Well, I own the first six Warriors books in paperback, does that count?

Chapter Five

Sunpaw bounded silently through the forest. Tiny, bright green leaves were appearing on the trees now, in addition to the pink and red buds. Thick moss coated the ground in springy patches. Slowing her pace by a fraction, Sunpaw crossed over a wide, deep stream, padding quickly across the fallen birch that served as a bridge over the water.

She couldn't believe her luck: Lightningstar had sent her on a solo mission to the sun-drown-place! The sun had barely broken the horizonand Sunpaw could feel the grass warming beneath her paws as she ran. She had already caught two rabbits and a small finch and she hadn't even reached the cliffs yet. More good luck. She would be able to stop long enough to jump down the rock path on the cliffs and see what lay below.

As the grass thinned and morphed into bare rock, she slowed her pace and looked around. There was the ocean, the great, roaring, crashing body of water. Taking a moment to catch her breath, Sunpaw swung her gaze over to where the shadow-cat had appeared both in the waking world and in her dreams. No trace of it. Still, she hadn't come all this way just to hunt, even if that had been Lightningstar's intention.

She padded over to where she had seen the rock path. It was just as it had been in the dream: about a dozen flat rocks forming an easy path down the cliff. Without stopping to consider how stupid it might be to jump down or if the rocks were even closely spaced enough for her to climb backup, Sunpaw leapt easily down.

Why hasn't anyone noticed this path before? she wondered.It's right here in plain view! And if this is how medicine cats reach the Silverstone, they must be able to climb back up, so why would we be told how hard it is to get back up from the sand? Makes no sense.

As she landed on the sand, she was unable to hold back a slight mew of surprise at how warm the sand was. It was nowhere close to sunhigh, but the sand was warmer than the air around her. The salt smell was even more powerful down here, and she took note of how close to the rocks the waves were breaking.

Padding along the edge where rocks met sand, Sunpaw found she was strangely calm around so much water crashing so near herself. She saw strange things dotting the sand every few tail-lengths; walking over to one that was not too near the waterline, she leaned over it. It looked like a rock, but had ridges running through it, and was much thinner than any rock she had ever seen.

StarClan, you lead me to this. she thought, turning her emerald gaze skyward.What are you trying to show me, if anything?

She began to jump from rock to rock then, and gasped when her paws met a patch of slippery moss. Scrabbling for a pawhold, she managed to heave herself onto the rock properly. Unsheathing her claws to grip the slimy moss, she looked around from her point and felt a thread of irritation run through her. StarClan, what was the point of showing me the way down here if there's nothing here? What am I supposed to find when there is nothing but the waves and the sand?

Leaping down gracefully from her perch, Sunpaw started back towards the rock path. As she reached the bottom boulder, a strange scent wafted across her nose. Frowning, she leaned closer to the rock and sniffed deeply. She was unused to the scents of salt and sand, which, compared to the earth and moss of the forest, were powerful. Pressing her nose against the rock, she inhaled.

Cat scent! Not ThunderClan, but the powerful salt scent made it impossible to tell if it belonged to another Clan. Whatever cat left behind their scent had to have jumped up the rocks while Sunpaw had her back turned. Which meant the only place they could have gone would be up on the cliffs.

On ThunderClan territory! Sunpaw bristled. Whoever it was was intruding, and no cat intruded on ThunderClan land and got away with it.Anger at the trespasser propelled Sunpaw back up the rock path, and when she leapt from the last rock back onto the cliff itself, she saw the cat.

Sunpaw was a cat of impulse, and impulse certainly had a grip on her. The moment she had all four paws atop the cliff, she hurled herself at the cat.

She landed square on the cat's back. Whoever it was, they were only about half again Sunpaw's size. As she dug her claws into the cat's flank, she could feel how weak it was. That, however, was not enough to stop Sunpaw from pinning it down, flattening her ears, and baring her teeth.

"Intruder!" she spat. "Why are you on Clan territory?" She could tell it was a she-cat now, and that it wasn't from any Clan. Probably a loner or rouge that had no sense to heed Clan boundary lines.

"Please!" said the she-cat, her voice shrill with fear."I didn't know this territory belonged to anyone!"

"How can you not scent Clan boundary lines?" growled Sunpaw.

"I was born in the mountains! The smells are so cluttered here!"

Mountains. Yes, Sunpaw had heard about cats living in the mountains.What do they call themselves? She couldn't remember. Not Clans.

Tribe! That was it. The Tribe of Rushing Something. She'd only heard about them only once, and that was when she'd been four moons.

"I needed to get away," whimpered the she-cat. "I couldn't stay with the Tribe any longer, needed to leave, I'd be dead..." she seemed to be talking to herself. Now that she was further away from the salt scent, the she-cat was emitting an almost overpowering fear-scent. And, thought Sunpaw, she must be terrified if she's begging to me, the apprentice. Though the gray cat was small, Sunpaw could tell she was full-grown. Slowly, she sheathed her claws and stepped off her. True, Sunpaw was impulsive, but she wasn't a killer.

The other cat had the palest gray pelt Sunpaw had ever seen; it was nearly white. Amber eyes were bright with fear, and her ribs poked out. No wonder she was weak: she hadn't been eating. Her body was short and would be stocky, Sunpaw guessed, if she was given time to eat some decent meals.

Sunpaw stood and watched the she-cat watch her. Deciding the best thing to do would be to bring her to Lightningstar, she beckoned with her tail. "Come on," she growled. Even if the cat was in a sorry state, she had still intruded, and Sunpaw wasn't ready to forgive that. She was mildly surprised when the pale gray cat followed her; she was old enough to be a warrior, but she obeyed what an apprentice said.

They had just reentered the forest when they heard something crashing through the undergrowth. An instant later, Treeshadow burst out from under a bush. His fur was torn and a deep scratch ran across his nose. He was panting, and Sunpaw guessed he had run all the way from camp.

"Sunpaw!" he gasped, taking no notice of the other she-cat. "Lightningstar sent me to find you."

"What's going on?" demanded Sunpaw

"C-camp is being attacked," he panted. "Strange cats. They're not any C-clan."

The pale gray she-cat made a whimpering noise, but neither cat paid her any mind. Treeshadow continued, "It's w-worse. A f-...f-," he was too out of breath to finish the word, but Sunpaw guessed what he was trying to say.

"Fox?" When he nodded, she managed to reply in a voice both scornful and believing, "Foxes don't mingle with cats! What's a fox doing-"

"H-have to go," Treeshadow said. "We're losing b-badly."

Sunpaw tore after him as he whipped around and took the quickest route back towards the camp. A pale gray shape entered her peripheral vision, and she knew the intruder she'd found was following. Was she really going to aid them in battle, or did she just not know what else to do?

The battle could be heard before the camp wall was even in view. Even as Sunpaw hurtled to the slope that led into the clearing, she could smell strange cats, the scents all jumbled togetherSunpaw was down the slope in two bounds, which surprised her; it usually took her four. With Treeshadow ahead of her, she leapt into the fray.

She landed on the back of a brown tom who was fighting Rainpaw; the gray-tailed apprentice, who was small, was being beaten down by the larger cat.The brown cat was distracted by the sudden weight on him, and he shook himself, trying to throw her off. In that time, Rainpaw managed to struggle to her feet, and Sunpaw slithered off the tom's back and lashed out at him. He seemed bewildered by Sunpaw's sudden appearance, and, as though the prospect of taking on two seven-moons-old apprentices was too much for him, he fled.

Rainpaw nodded her thanks, and Sunpaw saw blood dripping from her friend's shoulder. "Go see Treeshadow," she told her. Rainpaw took her advice, which was lucky. In the time Sunpaw spared to watch her stumble across the camp, it was plain Rainpaw could hardly accomplish that, let alone continue battle.

An orange tabby she-cat flung herself at Sunpaw, knocking her down. Winded, the golden-red apprentice lay stunned as the other cat reared above her on her hind legs, claws outstretched. Sunpaw instinctively drew her back legs towards her belly, and when the tabby began to drop, she kicked out. Her legs were weak from the mad dash to camp, and her move did little more than cause the tabby to stagger slightly. As the she-cat pulled back a forepaw, preparing to give Sunpaw a blow, a flash of black knocked her flat.

Sunpaw scrambled up. Darkcloud had slammed himself into the tabby's flank, and was now clawing her shoulders. Since the dark warrior was doing far better a job than she would be able to, Sunpaw turned to scan the clearing.

Treeshadow had been right; the Clan was losing. Whoever had invaded, they were many. With a needle of horror, Sunpaw saw a great shape lurking at the edge of the camp. It was a fox. Or was it?

It had a deep black coat, and Sunpaw had been told that foxes were identified by their vivid red fur. It looked to be surveying the battle occurring,but it made no move to fight.It turned its head in her direction, and Sunpaw could see, despite the distance, that it had piercing, ice-blue eyes.

And with the thought of ice came an image in Sunpaw's mind, an image of a handsome, silver-white tom with deep blue eyes. Where was Icepaw?

She swerved around the screeching catslooking for one specific pelt. She saw ThunderClan cats, but not the one she wanted.

"Sunpaw!"

Lightningstar had called her. She spun around, looking for him. Just outside the nursery, he was pinned to the ground by two of the strange cats. The thought of finding Icepaw was momentarily driven from her mind as she rushed to help her mentor. Snarling, she flew into one of the attacking cats' flanks. As she did, she swore she heard the sharp crack of breaking bone. As that cat was knocked off, she clawed at the face of the remaining one, trying to make it rear back and release Lightningstar.

Lightningstar, now that some of the extra weight holding him down had departed, was able to scramble to his paws and shove the attacking cat with his shoulder. Working as one, he and Sunpaw clawed and bit the other cat until he tore away from them, yowling.

It was then that Sunpaw saw a flash of silver amidst all the other pelts filling the camp. Icepaw. Without a second thought, she hurtled towards it.

It was indeed Icepaw, and Sunpaw felt a surge of pride as she saw he was somehow managing to hold off a cat much larger than him. But that pride vanished in an instant and was replaced with fear as the bigger cat struck Icepaw hard in the shoulder, sending him crashing to the ground. Icepaw's attacker stood up on its hind legs, ready to drop down on the apprentice.

Moving quicker than she would have thought possible, Sunpaw rolled on the ground and came to a halt directly beside the enemy tom's back legs. Bracing her forepaws against the ground, she swung her hind legs into Icepaw's attacker's. Her move sent the larger cat to fall sideways, and she had to fling herself out of its way.

"Retreat!"

The yowl that sounded above the battle did not belong to a ThunderClan cat. Wondering what could cause the attackers to beat retreat when they still had the upper hand, Sunpaw looked wildly around the camp and saw. Six ThunderClan cats streamed into the clearing; a returning patrol. These cats were not worn and injured like the rest of the Clan; no, they were fresh and fit and fiery with energy.

"Retreat! Stand down! Leave them!" This time Sunpaw saw it was the black fox that called from its place at the camp's edge. A fox that mingled with cats and spoke their language! A river of cats not ThunderClan flowed out the entrance. The midnight fox with the icy eyes was last to go.

Sudden quiet filled the camp.Clumps of fur floated in the air and clung to the grassy ground. Blood was spattered on every surface, and small pools of the same substance stood out against the bright green grass. Sunpaw panted heavily. Her lungs were on fire, her legs were blocks of stone, her wounds burned with invisible flame.

She saw Treeshadow running from cat to cat, looking calm despite all the injuries. She turned her gaze to Icepaw, who had stood and was gasping for breath. Deep cuts stained his fur crimson.

The just-returned patrol began to talk at once, their voices thick with fear and confusion. Lightningstar hauled himself up onto the Hightree and called for silence.

"Count each other!" he commanded. "Each rank is to count themselves!"

Sunpaw gently nudged Icepaw to his feet. He was limping on his right front leg, and blood dripped from cuts on his shoulder, left flank, and cheek. "Come on," she whispered. "You can make it to the den."

"No," he gasped. His breath came in heaves. "No, I can't." He met her eyes. "You know me, Sunpaw. I can't."

Sunpaw did know him. He wouldn't lie. He didn't lie. He couldn't make it. "Lean on me," she told him, but Treeshadow hurried up.

"Don't move him," he told Sunpaw. "Lay down, Icepaw."

Reluctantly leaving Icepaw with the medicine cat, Sunpaw went to look for the other apprentices. She knew Rainpaw was in Treeshadow's den, and there was Badgerpaw, being helped to Treeshadow's den by Darkcloud. She spotted Shadowpaw talking in a low voice to his mentor, Hawkclaw; they appeared to be nursing their wounds, but Sunpaw couldn't quite tell. Nightpaw. Where was she?

She saw the black, long-haired she-cat staggering across the camp. It looked like she had been guarding the nursery. Like Icepaw, she too was limping and seemed on the verge of collapse. Quickly, Sunpaw went to her side and supported her with her shoulder, though she could barely manage it. "Come on," she said. "I'll take you to Treeshadow's den."

Nightpaw nodded. By the time they reached the sheltered space created by the fallen tree's entwined branches, Sunpaw had her teeth in the other apprentice's scruff to help her keep moving. Carefully, she laid her down. Nightpaw had never been her friend, but she'd never exactly been her enemy eitherand she was a fellow apprentice. That counted for a lot of things. Treeshadow came over then, and Sunpaw flicked her tail to indicate Nightpaw. She could see the small, white shape of Rainpaw curled at the back of the den.

"Lightningstar," she called to the Clan leader, "all apprentices are alive."

"All the warriors too, and the queens, and the elders," added Mudspeckle. As Lightningstar jumped down from the Hightree, the Clan deputy went on. "Nobody's dead, Lightningstar. Plenty wounded, and wounded bad. But not a single one dead." The mottled brown tom shook his head. "It doesn't make sense. All those cats who we've never seen before come flooding into the camp. They outnumber us plenty, they hurt us bad, but they don't kill a single one of us." Those of the Clan who could walk were coming over to them.

"Why?" said Lightningstar, mostly to himself. "And the fox...Foxes don't mingle with cats. It's unnatural. And it even spoke cat."

For reasons she didn't know, Sunpaw looked over at Shadowpaw and Hawkclaw. They were still talking together, and Sunpaw didn't know why the dark warrior didn't come and talk to Lightningstar. Hawkclaw was Mudspeckle's brother, and Lightningstar often listened to his opinion as well.

"Why didn't they kill any of us?" asked Mudspeckle again. "Not that I want any dead, but it's like they want us all alive."

"They do."

Leader, deputy, and apprentice turned towards the voice. It was the pale gray she-cat Sunpaw had found on the cliffs. She's still here? She stayed?

"Who are you?" asked Lightningstar, stalking over to her.

The Clan was all gathered now, and Sunpaw could see the gray she-cat quiver under so many eyes on her. Some cats were snarling, hissing, and baring their teeth at her.

"My name is Morning of Gray Dawn," said the she-cat shakily. "I know why these cats came."

;-;-;-;

Of three minds that know why, only one speaks out.

–B.E.M., One

A/N: Kind of longer than usual. Well, hope this is enough to hold you lovely reviewers until I can get up chapter six, which, I think, will be shorter. Also, I've posted allegiances in my look-up if anyone's interested.Well, go on. Review.