A.N: Geez, I'm sorry I've been neglecting this story so much, and then I just update with filler chapters ^.^' Thank you to all the Lurkers as well, don't think I don't see you ^^ I just hope you guys enjoy this one.
What happens now?" The medicine cat spun around to face his siblings. "Even through my powers, all I see is darkness. I must speak with StarClan as well. We must hurry."
The Clan were on their feet now, Hollyleaf and Bumblestripe leading the way through the dark forest without a sound. Their eyes gleamed in the hazy moonlight, as the round silver globe itself began to fall through the sky, searching the shadows for a glimpse of the threat that stalked them. Though the trails beneath their paws were familiar, and the trees offered shelter- even marks of the few generations that only knew the land by the lake. No matter how many happy memories of warm greenleafs and fresh newleafs, the land the crowds of felines tread upon now felt cold and alien. The very territory itself felt hostile and dark to the touch, like the den of a feral animal.
"It's just up ahead," Poppyfrost muttered to Molepaw, who clung to her side like a burr. Thornclaw tread beside Brightheart, carrying one of her kittens. Mousefur and Purdy stumbled along in the center of the group, along with the older kits, Lilykit and Seedkit- whose mother trailed behind closely.
"Hollyleaf, we have to hurry up," Bumblestripe whispered. It was eerie, walking in complete silence in a giant crowd like this. Even on the way to Gatherings, there was rustling and a few quiet conversations, maybe two of the apprentices would run off and rejoin the group later after a few midnight hunts. But now the cats huddled together, afraid of the unknown and taking comfort only in the warmth radiating from the pelt beside them. "It's fraying on my nerves."
"Mm." Hollyleaf replied, not in the mood to talk as she scanned the bushes and the thin trail between them ahead. If they were ambushed, it would be because of her lack of observational skills; if she could help it there would be no more lives lost today. 'But what about tomorrow? And the next day? If this was just the beginning, in order to drive these cats out, there will be many more casualties. In all the Clans'
The entire Clan had been walking with only their thoughts for company for a long time before the shadow of the abandoned Two-leg nest loomed out of the dark. Almost all the time before now, the cats would shy away from the smooth walls and cracked holes in the sides, but now they filed inside with a suppressed feeling, sniffing the tension-filled air with tails lashing.
"Cloudtail, Sandstorm, Bumblestripe" Hollyleaf summoned, staring into the supposedly empty blackness. "Scout the whole place, the upper level and this one. I don't want any surprises."
The cats she had ordered slunk off while the Clan waited just outside, blinking fearfully and pressing themselves to the ground in the lack of shelter. Though the brambles and ferns had returned to choke out the neatly trimmed grass that had grown wild and tall, there were no trees to offer shelter from prying eyes. And a mob of cats made a sizeable gap in the tall fronds of the clearing.
Cloudtail's bright face reappeared, his short muzzle and bright blue eyes shadowed by the blood dripping down his face. "It's clear on the upper ground."
"Same for this one, there's a few mice scurrying around, but some of the cats could do with a meal." Sandstorm confirmed, coming up to her nephew-in-law's shoulder.
"Where did Bumblestripe go?" Hollyleaf asked as she started waving her Clanmtaes through the door with her tail. They streamed in quickly, like shadows themselves, with fluid motion in order to get themselves away from the light as fast as possible.
"It looked like he was checking out all the holes and the area around the nest…" Cloudtail said, shepherding Brightheart and Molepaw, Poppyfrost and Rosepetal, who carried her children in their jaws in order to move quickly. The kittens were being extremely good, it seemed like they hadn't made a noise yet, as if they were sensing the silence that enveloped their parents and Clan.
Hollyleaf nodded quickly. "One last thing Cloudtail, could you find Thornclaw for me? And both my brothers." The cat looked a bit exasperated, but nodded and exchanged a few words with his mate before disappearing into the nest. Hollyleaf took his spot and walked in with Brightheart, steering her toward the odd hill that led upward. After prompting the queen and her escorts, she ascended the hill quickly. "All queens and elders go up," the whisper-shout could be heard easily in the almost-silence and soon Sorreltail appeared to go up, followed by Mousefur who had Seedkit in her mouth. Purdy, normally the chattering starling of the group, was subdued greatly as he followed. Hollyleaf expected Ferncloud to try and join them, but the gray spotted she-cat was nowhere in sight.
"Hollyleaf," Bumblestripe greeted from behind her, "The area around the nest is clear too. For now," He added darkly. Then sat back on his haunches. "Hollyleaf… you said that Cloudtail was more experienced than me and now that we know who's missing…"
"Bumblestripe, not now." The black she-cat rolled her eyes. "If we survive the battle, I will tell you my final decision. But for now, I'm not even your leader." The younger cat lowered his head, eyes flitting to the side and the black she-cat sighed. She didn't mean to be hard on the tom, but her brothers were still missing and moonhigh was not far away at all. "Look, Bumblestripe," She started, her tone gentler, "You're a very able cat. I feel that Firestar didn't give enough of the apprentices to the younger warriors. I feel that my… grandfather… ignored some of the most able warriors; even Cloudtail hasn't had an apprentice either for StarClan's sake. For right now, the Clan just needs someone to look to. You may be that cat, you may not be, and your own actions will decide that. But I don't want to discuss this until after this entire Dark Forest war is over." Hoping that she had salvaged his feelings, Hollyleaf pushed past him to meet Thornclaw and Lionblaze who were coming out of the crowd. "It's time to go, we need to leave." Her desperation started showing through.
"It's okay Hollyleaf, we'll go. It's okay." Lionblaze flicked his tail and Thornclaw silently followed the two siblings, out of the nest to leave Cloudtail, Sandstorm and Bumblestripe in charge. 'The faster I leave, the faster I get back,' Hollyleaf promised herself. 'I won't leave them again after this.'
"Did you see Jayfeather in there?" Lionblaze quietly asked Thornclaw. The older warrior shook his head; he had become quiet after the death of his brother, and hadn't even grieved with Brightheart at his body during the brief pause between fighting. Actually, Lionblaze wasn't sure if he'd heard the tom talk too much at all since he was… an apprentice maybe?
A familiar gray shape emerged from the shadows of the Two-leg nest, and trotted over to the party. No words were spoken as they moved like shadows down a trail into the depths of the forest, heading toward the open moors of WindClan territory. The patrol skirted actual Clan territory and headed north until the trees were unrecognizable and monotonous. The warriors couldn't help but glance around, paranoia weighing on their minds until each cat's pelt bristled with fear, and the air around them was thick with the heavy scent. Eventually the babbling of a stream caught all their attentions, and the overall pace picked up until all of them were rushing through the woods, dodging bushes and stringy bittersweet vines. They burst out of the cover of the trees to a grassy bank, and had to stop short in order to avoid sending Hollyleaf over the edge. Lionblaze pulled Jayfeather back from the abrupt edge quickly and the three of them stared at the source of the MoonPool.
It wasn't an exaggeration that the water literally glowed with moonlight, though the silver globe was at its zenith of the night as well. The water was crystal clear, the reflection of the stars were almost perfectly mirrored in the smooth liquid. It seemed that even in the dark, any of the viewers could see straight down to the bottom, with the clearest details visible too. It was an astounding sight to say the least, and the three cats that could see were gawking openly at the stream. Jayfeather was twitching his ears back and forth, his whiskers quivering as he sniffed delicately. It was obvious that he could sense something as well, something that the other cats couldn't sense. "Let's go, we need to get to the Moonpool before Moonhigh ends. I don't know what will happen if we don't."
The small group continued on, slithering from one shadow to another, following the pure river that murmured to them from inside its gulley, almost like whispers from the stars themselves. Hollyleaf felt her breath shortening and her paws trembling as the bushes thinned and it was easier to walk, as the grass became withered and stunted. Jayfeather took the lead through some thorny brambles, leading them around the edge of the hollow with a confidence born of practice.
Because they approached from the back of the hollow, it was a bit harder for the gray tabby to lead the patrol, but they all got to the pool relatively unharmed. Lioblaze and Thornclaw chose to stay at the top of the hollow to guard. Jayfeather led Hollyleaf to the sloping ramp downward, dimpled with impressions of the generations that had come before to this hollow. It was a miracle that they hadn't been smoothed away by time and rain, but it seems it was proof of StarClan's power over this place. "When we get down to the center, you lie down and touch your nose to the water." Jayfeather murmured to his sister. Though she was anxious to get back to the battleground, this sacred place seemed so peaceful and… quiet that it was wrong to run, to rush. For once… she felt safe and welcome. When Hollyleaf returned to the Clans, it was obvious that none of the cats received her well, and because of that, she felt like a shadow in the Clan she once knew. Cats gave her weird looks and avoided her- or just straight up ignored her- other than her family. This was the first time she felt warm and safe…
"Don't forget that the Dark Forest cats can get in here. Breezepelt and Brokenstar almost killed me one Half-moon," Her brother murmured, his fur standing on edge. Immediately Hollyleaf's warm feelings disappeared and she glanced around sharply, alert for danger once more. From a strategic viewpoint, they were in a hole, with one way out, and an uncountable amount of enemies outside, searching for them.
"Here," Jayfeather mewed, feeling the edge of the pool with his paws, the river rushing past them out of the hollow on one side, and the shallow pool directly in front of his paws. The waterfall that filled the religious place had turned silver in the moonlight, and the water literally looked like starlight flooding downward to earth.
Above their heads, the moon was beginning to shift downward in the darkness, obscured just a little by clouds. "I hope this will still work," he seemed to sense that the moon was not as powerful as it should have been. "I've never heard of a leader ceremony when it was not Moonhigh. But…" He kneeled down awkwardly, and Hollyleaf felt a stab of pity for her brother. Though it was now habit for him, the thought that he couldn't see the beauty of the place that they sat in made her sad. She joined him shortly, gracefully tucking her paws under her, and wrapping her tail around her body as well, before watching Jayfeather touch the surface of the puddle with his nose and settle back. He licked the droplet that hung from his wet gray nose before his eyes closed and his body stiffened- so very different from regular sleep.
Hollyleaf hesitated for a moment, her ears twitching back and forth as she stared down, but unlike the stream, she couldn't see the bottom of the Moonpool. Only the starry oblivion of the sky above her looked back, and her black fur that looked like a piece itself. "StarClan…" She murmured, her breath stirring ripples on the water, which warred with the splashes of the waterfall, "Please accept me." And with that, she craned her neck to touch the water.
As soon as she touched, the world began to fade, a grayness swirling like smoke around her vision. Her limbs felt tired and heavy, and she slowly licked up a few drops of the liquid as well. Its taste was ice-cold, like the water she had found deep in the tunnels. Somehow, it tasted as though the water had never seen sunlight, and yet it was the same water that carried life down through the WindClan territory as well. Hollyleaf settled back on her paws, like her brother, as ice crept up her body. She was freezing solid, the breath in her lungs escaping and every hair on her pelt stilled as she gave into the fog that was clouding her mind.
A.N: Sooooo... Boring... Ugh, well we get to see the state that StarClan's in... I'm sorry, I promised dead cats every chapter in the beginning didn't I? Broke that last chapter, and this chapter xP Well you'll get some next chapter... One way or another ;)
It's snowing here so I should update relatively quick, thanks for your patience ^^