Okay, I don't have much to say here other than please enjoy. There's going to be one more chapter, and I'm still considering whether or not to write a sequel. I've got a few ideas, but I'm actually really tired of Skyeyes. I don't like her very much. What do you guys think? And the book I was alluding to was the Bible! Yeah. The Bible. I literally quoted it, haha. I'm surprised only two people got it! Please R&R

Chapter Twelve

From the beginning, Skyeyes never truly believed the others would die. Maybe naivety kept her from considering it. She wasn't a 'warrior ruined by years of experience', as Tigerheart called them. The only death she saw first hand was unintended. A warrior named Icepelt, who was Whiteblossom's brother, died in front of her during her first month as an apprentice. A monster hit him while he chased off a few ShadowClan warriors they met on a patrol. She remembered how small he looked when the life had been squeezed out of him. He lay in a pool of blood with his pure white fur stained by it. Watching him be crushed under the monster's foot didn't bother Skyeyes as much as she thought it would. What really hit home was the horrible, gut-wrenching sound that Whiteblossom made when she saw his mangled body.

That's the very sound she was making now.

"Skyeyes, stop that," Elmwhisker hissed, but Skyeyes only threw her head back and cried louder, her body quivering with the force of it. He promised from the beginning that he'd be there with her. He swore. This body lying at her feet didn't even look like him. He looked like drowned rat. There was no glory in his death or a smile on his face as there had been on Icepelt's. He was just…broken. "Stop crying like that!" Elmwhisker snapped. "Stop acting like a child! You're a warrior now! Stand up!"

Some father he was. Elmwhisker offered no support or comfort. He only bristled and let out a low growl. Skyeyes soon lost the energy to scream. She let the cry die down and lowered her head to Rowanheart's neck. "I'm sorry," she whispered into his fur. "You died for me. I'm so sorry!"

"We have to move!" Elmwhisker growled. "Get up! They're gaining on us!"

Skyeyes sniffed. "Who is?" she murmured.

"The Dark Forest! Some of their warriors broke off from the fight. The StarClan cats in the battle were too preoccupied to chase them. They warned me that they may try to interfere with—" The gray warrior went rigid. His amber eyes locked on something behind her. "If you have any value on your wretched life," he snarled, "you will stay far, far away from my daughter!"

Skyeyes gasped as she recognized the soft laughter. She spun about to see Mist, sitting with her tail wrapped around her paws on a rock a few fox-lengths away. The disturbing white she-cat purred and cocked her head. "I'm over here, and you're over there," she purred. "I don't see why we can't share the cave."

"You know damned well why we can't!" Elmwhisker snapped. He threw himself in front of Skyeyes. "Run along—back to that coward you call a master! Be gone!"

Mist gracefully leapt down from the rock, and every hair on Elmwhisker's body stood straight up. "Not to be rude," Mist chuckled. "But…" Her eyes suddenly went sharp. All playfulness drained from her. "If you want to get that piece of foxdung out here," a much deeper voice threatened from within the small body. "You'll have to go through me."

Elmwhisker extended his claws. "With pleasure."

"Skyeyes…?"

Skyeyes gasped and whipped her head around to see Rowanheart, his eyes open and his head lifted off the ground. She gave a cry of triumph and threw herself onto him, sobbing hysterically. "You're alive, you're alive!" she whimpered. "Rowanheart!"

The RiverClan tom grunted in pain. "Everything hurts," he mumbled. Wh-What happened?"

"You don't remember the water?" Skyeyes whispered. "The wave washed us further down the cave." Her eyes softened. "You protected me. You risked your life to save me."

Rowanheart faked a smirk. "I promised, didn't I?"

Skyeyes licked his bloody cheek. "Yes, you did."

"This is all very heartwarming!" shouted Elmwhisker. "But if you haven't noticed, we've got a bit of company!"

Sure enough, a group of Dark Forest warriors were massing behind Mist. Her clear blue eyes gleamed with excitement. The warriors oozed out from every nook and cranny. Their eyes were burning red, and their pelts were black as night. Elmwhisker retreated slowly until his back legs were against Skyeyes.

"You'll have to make a run for it," he told her. "And be quick about it."

"Okay," Skyeyes panted. She was beginning to shake in terror. She glanced down at Rowanheart. "Can you make it?"

The ginger tom coughed. "Leave me," he huffed. "Please…just go…If you survive, you'll make it possible for Koipaw and my mother to live normal lives. That's all I really want."

"Fox-dung!" Skyeyes hissed. "You can't just give up! Come on! Stand!"

"I can't!" he fired back. "Go already—go!"

"I won't leave you," she muttered. She leaned down and grabbed him by the scruff. She knew instantly it would be impossible to drag him all the way up the incline, but if she could carry him, they might have a chance. Ignoring his grunts of pain and yowls of protest, she heaved him onto her back. Her legs buckled with his weight at first, but Skyeyes screeched and straightened herself. She took a few steps forward and marveled at how easy it was. She really did have the strength.

"Get out of here!" Elmwhisker commanded. The Dark Forest cats were closing in. "I won't be able to hold them for very long! It's just me against all of them!"

Skyeyes was about to respond when a battle cry echoed through the cave. Three balls of light were careening towards them. Skyeyes leapt away to avoid being hit by one of them. She stood and in awe as they took shape into three different cats. They turned to her, and Skyeyes smiled.

"Wolfpelt, Sleetfur, Nightstorm!" she shouted.

Wolfpelt dipped his head to her. "Get goin'!" he called back. "There's no time for recollection!"

With a nod, she turned and sprinted as fast as she could up the slope. The rocks were sharp, and they sliced her pads as she ran, but Skyeyes thought only of emerging into the light after a long, long period spent in darkness. She ran faster and faster. She imagined herself to be in her dream, with the wind at her back, carrying her. She was faintly aware of a light chuckling that sounded from all around her. Mist's voice began to sing:

"Into darkness they

Fall, fall, fall

Their fates they try to

Stall, stall, stall

They will run, they will fight

But all, all, all

Will be dead tonight!"

"Not me!" Skyeyes shrieked. She picked up the pace. She could see the top now, and the cave floor was illuminated at last. There were skeletons all around her, but she ignored them and squeezed her eyes shut. She was going to make it! She—

Something hard crashed into the side of her. Both she and Rowanheart were thrown into the cave wall. Skyeyes screamed as claws tore through the side of her face. A white blur began slicing away at her stomach, and Skyeyes thrashed wildly as an agonizing pain coursed through her. She kicked furiously to try and shake Mist.

"I won't let you escape!" she yowled. "I won't!"

Skyeyes wailed loudly. Mist's claws cut right down her belly, and blood seeped out of her. She'd never seen so much of it in her life. Her body began to convulse, and Skyeyes saw spots. In a desperate attempt to free herself, she continued to score Mist's pelt with her claws. None of her blows were forceful enough to shake her. She was about to give up when Mist was yanked away. Skyeyes rolled over and watched from a canted angle as Rowanheart reared up on his hind legs, roaring like warrior of LionClan, and brought his paws down on her head. Mist tried to doge, but his claws sliced through the corner of her head, and blood flew into the air. She gave a high-pitched caterwaul and launched herself at Rowanheart. Skyeyes scrambled to her feet. She stood briefly, but the crippling pain dragged her right back onto the ground. She crawled forward slowly and watched the battle between the two cats in front of her. Mist had Rowanheart pinned now, but he had a grip on her throat. All at once, he twisted his head. There was a loud snap, and Mist went limp. He kicked her body off of him and slumped.

"Rowanheart…" Skyeyes mumbled as she dragged herself over to him. Her belly was on fire, but she bit back tears to try and reach him. "Rowanheart…"

His eyes were blank. He stared up at the ceiling with a slight smile on his face. "Flintpaw…" he whispered. "Flintpaw…I can see you now…"

Skyeyes looked up but didn't see anything. She couldn't help it anymore: tears began to pour down her cheeks. "No…" she whispered. She pressed her face against his shoulder. She couldn't stop him from leaving. She knew that. "I'm going to miss you."

"I-I'm coming…" he stammered. Blood tricked out of the corner of his mouth. He gave a faint smile. "I'm coming…" Skyeyes watched his eyes shut slowly. He was gone.

"Good-bye," she murmured. "I…love you."

Skyeyes forced herself to get up. The light shone her face, and it warmed her shivering body. Her blood splashed onto the ground while she took tentative steps towards the entrance. The world swam before her eyes. She swayed back and forth on her feet and nearly lost her balance more than once. She teetered on the edge before she forced herself through. Light flooded her vision and drowned out all other thoughts.

---

A bright light burst forth from the cave. It eclipsed the dim light of the incoming dawn, and Longstar felt heat wash over him, as though he were standing in a ray of sunlight. He saw nothing but white for several moments. It overwhelmed all his senses. He smelled the scents of hundreds of cats long past, including the husky scent of his father, who died shortly before he became deputy. He felt them running through and all around him. They were laughing, purring, and whispers to him all at once. A strong wind ruffled his fur. This is the love of StarClan that the RiverClan prophecy described, Longstar thought. He watched the flow of light flow through them and down the river. It poured through the heather in the moorlands, and Longstar lost sight of it when forked off into the various sections of the forest. He smiled.

All the joy flooded out of him at the sound of Featherstar's cry. He whipped about to see that there were shadows bursting from the cave. The cats of the Dark Forest were not happy about being driven from their long-time home. They raised their voices in a single, piercing cry that shook Longstar down to his bones. He dug his claws in and took hold as they flew overhead, twisting and shrieking in the early morning light. Longstar's eyes widened as they evaporated like mist, becoming thinner and thinner until they gave their dying breath and vanished. A few, he noticed, made it as far as the darkness of the forest. He narrowed his eyes and wondered whether they would have the strength to survive there. Something slammed into the back of him, and Longstar grunted as his head hit the ground. Through the blades of grass, he watched a large dark shape spiraling into the sky. As the sunlight poisoned it, the figure howled in agony. The rays shot through him. It withered down to a small speck of blackness, which fell slowly, painfully slowly, down to earth like a snowflake.

"It's her!"

Longstar leapt to his feet. He turned and gave a cry of joy when he caught sight of a blue-gray shape moving into the light. "Skyeyes!" he shouted.

The other leaders turned to him with frowns. "What are you talking about?" asked Copperstar. "That's—"

Dognose leapt aside with a shriek as Skyeyes threw herself out of the cave. The blue-gray she-cat stayed on her feet for a pause before she collapsed onto the ground, eyes rolling into the back of her head. Blood splashed out from under her.

"Skyeyes!" Leopardclaw shouted. He pelted towards the fallen she-cat and crouched down beside her. He sniffed her briefly before he looked up at Dognose. "She's going to need moss or something to soak up the blood," he hissed worriedly. "A-A-And get Emberfur over here. He knows how to put intestines back in, right? Rubblefur never got a chance to teach me."

At that, the leaders and medicine cats charged in, lashing their tails frantically. The medicine cats shoved their leaders out and surrounded her body. Every few moments, they heard loud meows and saw either Mousepelt or Dognose run off to gather more supplies. Longstar started to pace. She couldn't die like this! She couldn't! He'd never forgive himself! He could never live with himself!

"Longstar."

He jumped when he heard Lightningstar's voice. He composed himself and met her eyes.

"Longstar," she said again, "is there something you'd…like to tell us?"

He peered over to her shoulder and saw that the other leaders were listening in as well. He let out a sigh. "Yes," Longstar mumbled. "I do. That's not Dawnstorm. That's her twin sister, Skyeyes. Dawnstorm committed suicide the morning after the Selection. We…we put it to a vote. The Clan decided that sending Skyeyes in her place would save more lives than it would take. I know now that forcing an innocent cat into doing something like that…into bending to my cowardly whims is…appalling."

"Then…the curse isn't over?" murmured Copperstar.

"No! The curse is very much over!"

The leaders turned towards the cave where four glowing figures were standing in front of the medicine cats. The medicine cats seemed unaware or disinterested in their presence. One of the four shimmering cats stepped forward and dipped its head. In a split second, color flushed into the cat's face, Lightningstar gasped.

"Nightstorm!" she exclaimed.

The other three turned as well, and Longstar recognized them as the chosen four that ventured into the cave with Skyeyes all those hours ago. He averted his gaze from looking at them. He wasn't worthy of looking StarClan in the face.

"The curse is over," the black she-cat repeated. "Skyeyes did what no other cat has done before: she survived."

"Of course, we helped 'er just a bit," chuckled the gray tom from SkyClan.

"Only when she needed it," added the white tom from WindClan.

"The truth is, StarClan always knew this would happened," purred the ginger tom from RiverClan. "The Dark Forest thought they could trick us."

"One of their warriors heard of our prophecy," said Nightstorm. "They then came up with a plan to destroy it."

"They overshadowed Dawnpaw as she walked back to camp," said the WindClan tom. "They forced her to eat the deathberries. They thought that killing Dawnpaw would assure that they'd keep a hold on this sacred land for the rest of their lives. But they were wrong. Before Dawnpaw was even born, we gave Bluestorm a second daughter, one that looked just like her."

"We knew the Dark Forest would try and foil our plans," said the SkyClan tom. "So we just outfoxed 'em. They ended up killing the wrong cat."

"We worded the prophecy to make it seem like Dawnpaw was the chosen cat," explained Nightstorm, "when it was actually Skyeyes all along."

"Thus, with her escape, the cruse is broken," purred the WindClan tom. "It's over."

"The dawn has come," the purred in unison.

Longstar took a trembling step forward. "Then…this…this was all the will of StarClan?"

"Every bit."

"Even right down to the—"

"Vote you held."

"We've been watchin' you, Longstar."

"And we're pleased with the way that you handled things."

"Truly Foxstar made an excellent decision in choosing you as deputy."

Longstar smiled faintly at their praise. He sank to his haunches. "Then…will she die?"

"No."

"There's enough fight in 'er for a while."

"The Clans will need her in the days to come."

"What does that mean?" asked Copperstar as he walked forward. "Do you mean that, though the curse is over, the Dark Forest are still here, around us? Will they try and hurt us?"

The four StarClan cats smiled at him. "Your kits are safe," they purred. "They are bathed in light and will be raised in light. It is those who remain in darkness that must cover their heads and fear. The Dark Forest have fled only this place."

"But will they attack us?" asked Featherstar.

"Only if you leave them room," said the WindClan tom. "After all—"

"Darkness—"

"Exists—"

"Only where there ain't no light."

"Keep the light around you," they purred together. Their forms began to blend together until they formed a great light bright enough to block out the sun. "Keep it in your hearts. StarClan are always watching, always listening, and we always will be." They rose higher until they shot off like a comet, blazing across the early morning sky. They flew over the forest and danced and twisted through the clouds before they burned out and disappeared.

"She's breathing again!" shouted Leopardclaw. The leaders exchanged glances and rushed over. This time, their medicine cats backed off just enough for them to get a fleeting glimpse of her. There were cobwebs all along her neck and back, and a huge mass of moss stuck to her side. The pool of blood around her began to dry. As Leopardclaw said, her flanks were slowly rising and falling in a labored breath.

"She'll need to stay with us for at least the night, if not longer," said Emberfur. "It's too dangerous to carry her back to ThunderClan territory in this condition."

Longstar smirked. "I know one cat in particular that's not gonna be happy about that."

Please R&R! It makes me happy!