AN: I suppose this chapter is long overdue. Sorry, assignments and all. Enjoy.

Chapter 25: Alone

Soft dapples of early sunlight illuminated the grassy meadow that was dotted with flowers of blue, purple and yellow. Bright butterflies fluttered lazily in the early morning breeze, gently landing on the fragile petals of flowers. A light breeze sent the blades of grass waving and twisting in hypnotic patterns that were so relaxing. Birdsong sounded in the few trees that dotted the meadow and from the trees that ringed it. The whole scene was a place of paradise for the lonely tom that sat in the middle on a small raised hill. To him all he could see was a reminder of loss and the souls that ho longer roamed the world beside him. He sighed loudly and hugged his tail closer to him, hoping, praying, that somewhere someone he cared for still lived on.

But he knew the prayer would get lost amongst the fluffy white clouds and baby blue sky.

In the meadow that seemed so full of life, this one tom felt so alone, so out of place amongst the bright scenery. He did not belong here, but he could not bring himself to leave. He did not know if it was the flowers, the sun, the butterflies, the way the wind seemed to caress his fur, but whatever it was it had an irresistible pull.

The sun steadily rose into the sky and the heat within the meadow became almost unbearable. It was clear to the tom that the season of heat was on its way. With the heat still rising he arose from his spot atop the grassy hill and padded slowly, almost with a limp, to a patch of inviting shade spread out under an oak tree. The oak's flaking trunk reminded the tom of the name he had once carried with pride. The name he no longer wished to be addressed by for the painful memories it induced.

As swiftly as the heat soared, it plummeted. The abnormal turn of weather surprised the silent tom, stirring him once again for his dozing state of mind. It wasn't the sudden chill that had descended upon the warm clearing, nor was it the black clouds that had suddenly massed in the once baby blue sky that forced the tom to his paws. No, instead it was the tendrils of voices that echoed within his ears and chilled his fur. He did not like the atmosphere that had descended upon his calm meadow. He did not like it one bit.

A low growl rattled his throat, causing the collar around his neck to rub uncomfortably. He flinched, aching to tear it from his throat, but right now it was all that was left of his identity. Even time had stripped him of his name.

The sound of snapping twigs and rustling grass alerted the tom to the presence of another living – and large – creature. He raised his hackles and crouched low to the ground, ready to pounce forth on whatever bloodthirsty creature dare disturb the peace in his meadow. Fronds of green grass split in two as a soft black head appeared from it, pretty amber eyes sparkling with curiosity. The tom relaxed slightly, caution also scraping the coldness from his eyes. "Who are you?" he queried, peering closer at the cat.

"My friends call me Night," the cat replied, voice definitely female. "What about you?"

A sudden wave of sadness washed over the tom and he stared at his paws to avoid the curious gaze of the strange she-cat. "I have no name."

"No name?" Night tilted her head. "How can you have no name? Surely your mother gave you a name when you were born? Or your friends gave you a nickname?"

Friends. The tom's ears perked up slightly at the use of that word as it slipped so easily from the tongue of the she-cat. No. He no longer needed friends. They would only turn around and betray him when they got a better deal. "No. I have no name."

"Oh." Night sounded dejected and the tom looked back up, the false sense of companionship making him feel bad for hurting the innocent she-cats feelings. She certainly wasn't going to kill him; she wouldn't have started talking to him if she was going to. "That collar," Night began, "where'd you get it from? I don't recall their being any house cats around here."

"My collar?" the tom repeated, dumbfounded for a second. Sometimes he forgot he even had the rancid red collar. "It is..was part of my identity. But it is useless now. Just like me."

To his surprise, Night padded closer, pulling her long-furred body out from the grass. He felt a shiver race through his body as he stared at the pretty she-cat. She had certainly had to fend for herself, the mean looking scar on her forehead showed that. But despite her scars, Night was beautiful. Like a goddess walking amongst mortals. "You're not useless. No cat is useless. We are all put here for a purpose. Maybe you just haven't found yours yet." The black she-cat took a closer look at the collar. "If it was a part of your identity then you must have come from somewhere far from here. You won't find any cats wearing things like that here. Maybe the occasional wanderer with a vine tied loosely around their neck, but nothing like yours."

"I have come from far away," the tom replied after a moment's hesitation. "But none of that matters now. It's all in the past and all needs to be forgotten, sooner rather than later." But as the tom spoke he realised that he would never forget the betrayal he had faced just over the mountain that peeked at him from over the trees.

Night shifted closer, amber eyes still showing an air of curiosity. They seemed to shimmer every now and again, entrapping the tom in their vivid colour. "Did you come from a Clan?" she whispered, as hiding her question from any eavesdroppers, not that there were any.

"From a Clan!?" a loud voice, one that was unfamiliar to the tom, laughed. "Have you lost it? The only Clans are the ones in this valley; you of all cats should know that!"

The black she-cat raised her head with a snarl, eyeing a waving patch of grass that was steadily moving closer. But the tom had sensed not one but two new cats and he suddenly started to feel that he was in the wrong place at the worse time. He began to edge away from Night, closer to the tree line in the vague hope that he would be able to make a run for it. As he shifted sideways the grass parted in two places and two cats appeared. It was a cream she-cat with blue eyes that held a sneer on her face that was obviously directed at Night. "Did you forget the plan?" Night spat. "Or did you ruin it on purpose?"

"Neither," the cream she-cat threw back. "The plan was going to waste when you started asking about his collar."

However the other cat, a black she-cat with red flecks, had her eyes fixed on the tom. Her pale green gaze unnerved the tom but he still shifted sideways. He realised his mistake almost immediately. "Whatever you are planning on doing to him I'd do it now," the red flecked she-cat meowed, her voice unnaturally void of all emotions.

Night curled her lip and twisted her head to stare at the tom. He bit back a cry of surprise. Her eyes were no longer the light, dancing shade of amber they had been moments before they arrival of the two other strange she-cats. Instead they were an unnatural shade of blood red, an eye colour that was impossible to have. "W-what are you!?" he cried, stepped backwards.

"I've been given many titles. Demon, murderer, rogue, crow-food, you name it and I've probably been called it. But I do prefer to go by Crimson, if you do not mind." The grin Crimson gave the tom was one of pure malice and evil. "Now," she snarled, slashing at him with sharp claws. He fell to his side, wincing as blood welled up in the three angry looking scratches. "Tell me your name, loner."

He squeezed his eyes shut. "I already told you I do not have one!"

"Wrong answer!" Crimson roared, pressing her claws into his shoulder. Her lips were drawn back to reveal her long, pointed fangs and her red eyes were blazing in anger. No longer did she look like the pretty, innocent, sweet she-cat the tom had seen earlier. "Tell me your name."

"You want to know my name?" the tom rasped, glaring up at Crimson with dark yellow eyes. "I was Flake. Then I was Fake. Now I am no one. Happy?"

Crimson smiled coyly. "Very. Now, Flake. Tell me. Where did you get that collar? I want to know exactly where."

"I cannot tell you," Flake replied. "When I took it I was bound by a code that said I could never speak of the place I received it from. Especially cats moons from where my old home is."

Paw steps sounded and the scent of the strange she-cats grew stronger as the cream one suddenly appeared at his side, claws extended and gripping his throat. "Not a very talkative one, is he?" No one answered. "Very well. I'll just take your collar and ask around. Some cat's bound to recognise it."

"No!" Flake protested, writhing under Crimson's iron hold. "Please! My collar is the only part of my identity left! Please do not take it from me!"

The cream she-cat laughed loudly, a sneer painted across her face. "My dearest, Flake. You will not need your identity once Crimson has finished with you." With one claw she sliced the collar and pulled it roughly from Flake's neck. The look of pain in his eyes made it seem like she had cut his throat. She had merely stripped the mourning tom of his last shred of identity and left him with nothing. Nothing more to live for. No reason to fight.

He stared into Crimson's unblinking red eyes. "Whatever you are going to do, please make it quick. The longer I remain in this life, the longer I must suffer."

"Never has a cat begged me to take their life before," Crimson murmured. "I'm not sure whether I want such a depressed cat in my army," she shrugged, "oh well. You'll have to do."

Flake's eyes widened and he once again tried to free himself of Crimson. He did not want to become part of some crazy she-cats army. He wanted to die and be reunited with the family he had lost, all because of that one stupid mistake. One last try, he vowed.

As Crimson opened her jaw a hush came over the meadow and all life became silent. "Shadow, come claim this life who I have slain. Fire, come ignite the passion within. Wind, blow your song and make him bow. Ice, freeze his heart and mind. Make him mine and anchor his soul. Deaden his pelt and pale out his eyes. Turn him plain, ugly, boring. Make him a fighter with a lust to spill. Make him a soldier with his mind mine to control."

Four silhouettes appeared, each shimmering and hazy. They strode closer to the four cats but never lost their shadow. All to be seen was their eyes, each different and frightening. Black, orange, white and blue. The colour of each element. Flake stared in both fear and amazement as the shadowy figures stood over him and placed a single black paw upon his body in turn. And then his body went rigid with pain as all life drained from him. Every memory flashed before his eyes. Every emotion he had felt was felt again. "Look for Arrow," he breathed.

And then he was gone. All was gone. His golden pelt littered with odd brown flecks no longer existed, nor did his bright yellow eyes. Instead they were replaced by a dull brown pelt and pale yellow eyes with no pupil. A mindless follower now inhabit the shell of once was a mighty tom. All that was left of Flake was his rancid red collar that hung from Jinx's jaw, swaying slightly in the chilling breeze.

Crimson bowed to each silhouette in turn as they faded with the breeze before she turned to look at Flake's collar. "Throw it to me," she ordered Jinx with a growl. "Watch Flake, Tornheart. I don't want him dying on us. We need more followers for our army. Our siege on CedarClan begins at sunset tomorrow."

Jinx tossed the red collar at Crimson and waited. Crimson observed the collar with an expressionless face. She turned it over and over, inspecting every last inch of it until she was sure there was nothing on it that could tell her where Flake had come from. She snarled in anger and swiped the collar back at Jinx. "It is useless to us. There must be a large number of cats with the identical collar. No one is bound to know where it is from."

"Not many cats have collars studded with teeth now, do they?" Jinx snorted. "Let's go, Crimson. There is nothing left for us here. The army is probably wondering where we are. We still have training and a plan to execute. Tornheart's final trial is tomorrow, if she completes it then we know she is completely trustworthy and not an inch of her former self is left."

Crimson inclined her head and blinked at Tornheart, "Carry him on your back. Make sure he doesn't fall off. We have a rather long walk back to CedarClan's camp."

"Camp?" Tornheart repeated, finally speaking up after her lapse of silence. "I thought we were stationed at the meadow in SnowClan territory?"

"Were," Jinx replied with a yawn, "our plan is already in motion, apprentice. Don't question it."

Tornheart curled her lip and hissed, arching her back in an effort to look scarier. "Do not call me an apprentice, kit. I do not belong to a Clan therefore my ranking is non-existent."

"Whatever you say," Jinx replied with a wave of her tail.

Crimson spat at the two bickering she-cats and then dove into the long grass, not waiting for them to catch up. As the three she-cats, with a body of a tom resting upon ones shoulder, exited the meadow and returned to the shadows f the forest, light returned to the meadow. The butterflies returned, the clouds disappeared showing the baby blue sky and even the birds began to sing their sweet song again. But all was in vain for the tom that had seen and heard all the life within the meadow had been taken, stripped of all he was by the greed of another. And as Crimson bounded silently through the forest her mind drifted over the one word that meant all to her. Arrow.

-000-

Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. RUN!

Screech repeated the words to himself as he threw himself through the thick forest. Vines tore at his pelt, thorns ripped into this skin and nasty looking bugs whizzed past his ears. He was terrified. Terrified of the creature that he couldn't hear but knew was behind him. It had his scent and wanted to slay the cat that had wandered too far into his territory. Actually, Screech had practically fallen into its lair. A loose ledge, a couple of angry hawks, all of it ended up in him slipping off a ledge and tumbling into a pile of soft moss surrounded by skulls. It had been horrifying.

But not as horrifying as the creature hunting him down at the precise moment. Now that…thing, was terrifying. I would have preferred Night of Rising Fury of this thing any day! He snorted to himself. That dragon had been kind to him, probably too kind seeing as he would have to kill him in order to save Berrypaw. Still, the honesty had been nice. A high pitched screech ripped through the forest and set Screech's fur crawling. All he needed to do was outrun it and maybe have it kill one of the other contestants. The ground vibrating beneath Screech's paws told him he didn't have much time. He put on a burst of speed and hurtled through the thick forest, ducking under branches and clearing piles of brambles and thorns in clear leaps.

A flash of brown flitted across the right of Screech, catching his eye and bringing him to a sudden stop. There was no way he was going to be able to outrun this creature. It was just too fast. But how was he supposed to take it down? The thing was huge from what he had seen! "Do not fret, my love. I will watch over you, fight beside you, guide you until you return." The voice sounded so familiar that it nearly broke Screech's heart in two.

"Berrypaw?" he whispered in the rare hope that she was alive and had found him.

"I am here. Be brave, Screech. You will need all your bravery for this fight."

The tom blinked a few times, shaking slightly. He had not expected this at all. "How are you talking to me? Are you dead!?"

A light chuckle vibrated outside his left ear and he turned, just catching a glimpse of Berrypaw's shining eyes. He smiled and suddenly the world didn't seem so dark. That was until the creature he had been running from burst out from the bushes in front of him, wild green eyes flashing from side to side. It growled and raised its head so that it stood its full height. Screech swallowed nervously and peered at the creature with a curious eye. It had a thin, emaciated body, its ribs sticking clear out. Light brown fur covered its think frame and white-gray hair sprouted from the ridge of its back to where the forehead was. Its head was made of bone, but only partially with the cheeks showing skin and white stripes. However it was the jaw that made Screech shiver. Long, sharp, deadly white fangs sat over the top of the bone, specks of blood staining them in a few places. The creature, whatever it was, glared down at Screech. And then it spoke, its voice harsh with moons of not being used. "I heard there was to be one who wished to challenge me in a duel. I was not told how small he would be or how much he shook."

"I was also not told such strange creatures were allowed to roam freely throughout the arena," Screech retorted. He grinned smugly and the creature snarled.

"Enough of these games, child. You are here to face me in order to save your love. A noble cause but one that will serve to be your death."

Screech curled his lip. "I will not be dying here today!"

The creature laughed and strode closer, winding around Screech in a circle, barbed tail flicking. "You may not have a choice. My name is Skull and today I will be your bringer of death, for the moon has shone upon puddles and shown me blood tinged with tears of a lost love weeping for her saviour. Your death has been decided, Screech. Are you ready to accept it?"

"If I am supposed to die here then so be it," Screech spat, unsheathing his claws. "But I'm taking you down with me, Skull!" And then he pounced, claws striking out at Skull's shoulders.

Skull hissed but it came out as a rasping sound before he swiped large clawed paw at Screech and bowled him over. A loud crack rang out as Screech hit a trunk of a tree, gasping as his shoulder cracked, but he wasn't ready to give up yet. He struggled to his paws, keeping the weight off of his cracked shoulder blade, and glared at Skull only to see the emaciated creature streaking towards him. With a cry of surprise Screech dove behind a tree and buried himself under a pile of moss and bracken. Moments later there was a loud thud and leaves fluttered down to the ground, covering Screech in green leaves. A loud snarl ripped through the air as paw steps vibrated the ground beneath Screech's paws. Snorts and snuffles filled his ears as Skull's foul smell filled his nose. Screech cowered closer into his hiding place of moss, leaves and bracken, hoping that Skull would not find him.

Heartbeats ticked by until Screech was certain that Skull was no longer lurking around. He shifted under the pile of undergrowth and stuck one paw out. And then the ground lurched beneath Screech's paws as sharp teeth gripped his scruff, lifting him from his hiding place. He screeched in anger and writhed in Skull's jaws, desperate to feel the ground beneath his paws. "Thought you could hide? There is no hiding from me, little coward." The creature arched its neck and then hurled Screech into the air, laughing loudly as the tom crashed into the ground a few metres away.

All Screech could feel was numbness. There was no pain, no aches, nothing. He couldn't feel a thing, but he still knew that something inside him was broken. He barely registered Skull when the thin creature appeared above him, smirking in amusement. "Are y-you happy now?" Screech gasped.

"I am never happy, but this did amuse me. Many moons have passed since I have seen your kind and it was relaxing to break your fragile bones again."

"H-how could you?" Screech choked out. "All I w-wanted to do was s-save Berrypaw."

Skull suddenly narrowed his eyes and pressed his claws against Screech's throat. "And kill me without a second thought. I am not ready to lose my life, Screech. But you are."

"No. His time is not up." The voice sounded familiar to Screech and he switched his gaze to stare up at the golden brown figure of Thorntail. "You will not stain the ground with his blood."

AN: Where's the stand-off between Hawkfrost and Redflame, you ask? In the next chapter. Enjoy the suspense. Oh, what did you think of the first part with the mysterious tom? Funky, aye?

Silverwind1313: Don't worry. If Redflame steals Sinkingsun away I won't be writing about anything he does. I'll never write something like that in detail. Hints perhaps but never in small or large detail.

I do believe this chapter was 3,709 words long, give or take a bit.

I have a request/competition for my reviewers! Details are on my profile or you can PM me. Basically I'd like a new cover picture for this story, preferably one drawn by one of my fantastic reviewers. :D