A/N: Here's another chapter!
Chapter 6
Kestrelflight urgently beckoned with his tail for Ashfoot to follow. He sped out of the cavern, and Ashfoot ran after him. Once they were both outside, Kestrelflight bombarded Ashfoot with questions.
"What happened? Have you got your name? Did you get all your lives? What went wrong? Are you okay? Tell me, what happened?"
Ashfoot was hollow-eyed, but she managed to reply, "I only got two lives, and Tallstar said…"
"I know I shouldn't ask…" Kestrelflight murmured, and then in a louder voice, he meowed, "What'd he say?"
"He said 'be careful. They're going to—'then he broke off," Ashfoot mewed, but her eyes were still troubled.
"He was right, then." Kestrelflight lowered his gaze, and closed his eyes. "And I didn't believe him. But now I do. I'm sorry."
"Who are you talking about?" Ashfoot pressed.
"What—Oh, nothing." It was obvious he was lying. "We need to get back to camp. Now."
Crowfeather looked up. Coming across the ridge was a gray she-cat, and a tom next to her.
"Ashstar?" he called hopefully.
"No," the she-cat replied dully. "Ashfoot."
"Didn't you get—" He was interrupted by Kestrelflight.
"Tell the senior warriors to meet us in Ashfoot's den. You come too, Crowfeather. We have a lot to talk about."
The dark gray tom nodded, and leaped from his perch. He stuck his nose into the warrior's den, and hissed to a couple of sleepy cats, "Ashfoot needs to talk to us. Where are the others?"
"Tornear is on patrol, and Owlwhisker is hunting," Nightcloud replied stiffly.
The warriors got to their paws, and shaking the moss from their pelts, followed Crowfeather out of the den.
Ashfoot surveyed the assembled cats. Tornear had arrived just as her meeting started, but Owlwhisker was still absent. Her medicine cat, Kestrelflight, was beside her. Eight pairs of eyes watched Ashfoot, and she began her story.
"You all know why I called you here," she meowed, "My leader ceremony was disrupted, and I only have two lives."
Gasps of surprise met her words, and she realized her warriors didn't know why she had called them.
"But—but a leader ceremony hasn't been disrupted ever since…" Gorsetail trailed off, and the cats realized that the last time this happened had escaped the memory of the living cats. "StarClan might know," the cat struggled.
"No," Tornear growled. "I may be wrong, and you can ask the elders," he said, lifting his head up to face Ashfoot, "but I'm pretty sure that this has never happened."
"This can't be the first time!" wailed Whitetail. "The history of the Clans goes back all the way to our original leaders. You must have missed something, Tornear."
"Warriors!" Ashfoot suddenly snapped. "We cannot argue amongst ourselves. We must face this as warriors!"
"But what do we do?" hissed Whitetail. "We cannot hide, but something must be done. Kestrelflight? In your apprenticeship, did Barkface ever…"
Kestrelflight closed his eyes. "Medicine cats' knowledge is passed down throughout the generations. Barkface only knew what his mentor knew. And if this is the first time, then none of the medicine cats know anything."
Ashfoot sighed. "Kestrelflight, I did not tell you at the Moonpool, but… Tallstar gave me a prophecy."
The cats pressed closer to her. "What is it?"
"Do not run into the shadows, and avoid flashes of light. The watery forces must come together, and if so, all will be bright," she recited.
A/N: Can anyone solve the prophecy? Hint: It does not mean the obvious.