Chapter 15 ❖ Asterpaw
The sun woke her and Asterpaw blinked her eyes open in confusion, the feeling of warmth unfamiliar after days of cloud cover and rain. Purring as she stretched, the apprentice glanced about her den to see the sleeping forms of Whitepaw and Littlepaw. They didn't know what they were missing.
She moved into a pool of light just outside of the den entrance, settling down on the small ledge to groom herself. Below, cats milled about the freshkill pile and Fallen Tree, exchanging greetings and sharing tongues. Asterpaw briefly thought of joining them before deciding that she liked watching from above better. It made her feel strong, important, powerful.
Her green eyes moved over an unfamiliar ginger pelt briefly before spotting a small grey shape moments later, winding its way up the cliff path. Behind it, a small tortoiseshell followed, green leaves in her mouth. Asterpaw narrowed her eyes, knowing today was Kestrelpaw's turn to check the elders for ticks. Why was she helping Pebblepaw when she had her own duties to attend to?
Sighing, Asterpaw rose to her paws, making her way down to the medicine den. Otterheart always kept mouse bile there, so it wouldn't be hard to remind Kestrelpaw of her new apprentice duties. The she-cat was no longer a kit, though she still acted like one.
Before the cream tabby could reach the den, her path was blocked by Starlingpaw. The black she-cat's eyes lit up and she mumbled something through the freshkill in her jaws. Asterpaw shook her head slowly, thinking this apprentice, too, was very kit-like.
"Would you like to share with me?" Starlingpaw asked, dropping the freshkill on the path. Asterpaw glanced at the medicine den only once before agreeing. Kestrelpaw had only been an apprentice for a half moon and, as much as it annoyed the older apprentice, could get away with forgetting her duties this time.
Following her sister to a ledge in the cliff wall, the two made themselves comfortable and tore into the large lizard. Its scales brushed against Asterpaw's tongue as she chewed, her fangs breaking through the hard flesh easily.
"This sun's so nice," Starlingpaw commented, glancing up at the yellow orb above them. It was getting close to sunhigh, the light pouring into the red rock canyon bright and hot. Asterpaw mewed her agreement.
"It's too bad Sun didn't get to enjoy it," the black she-cat continued sadly.
"Sun?" Asterpaw asked. The name sounded unfamiliar to her.
"Pebblepaw didn't tell you?" Starlingpaw asked. "It was the name of the kit I found."
The cream tabby shook her head, eyes narrowing slightly. "No, Pebblepaw didn't tell me anything."
Sun, she thought, looking up at the sky where a single cloud floated over the kit's namesake. It disappeared for a moment before returning in all its blazing glory, temporarily blinding the she-cat with its light.
Suddenly, the name clicked. Sightless eyes watch the Sun disappear... She gritted her teeth slightly, wondering why her brother had told Starlingpaw and not her.
"Did he tell you anything more?"
"Just that she died not too long ago," her sister replied and Asterpaw nodded, knowing their littermate had not betrayed her trust. The prophecy remained a secret and would until they both decided to make it known to others.
Asterpaw liked the idea that the prophecy was theirs, and theirs alone, to share. With Pebblepaw's inability to tell Otterheart about it, it felt almost like StarClan wanted the two of them to keep it secret; a great responsibility but also an immense power.
"Anyway, do you know what you're up to today?" Starlingpaw asked, finishing off the rest of the lizard.
Snapping out of her thoughts, Asterpaw shook her head. "I think Beetlestar wanted to do some training with me, but he might be sending me with a different warrior. He's been incredibly busy lately, being a leader and all that." She licked her cream-coloured chest, puffing it out proudly.
Starlingpaw didn't seem to notice Asterpaw's boasting. "Redblaze said he wanted me to stay in camp and help clean out dens. That rain made a real mess." Asterpaw nodded, remembering how damp her moss nest had been for the past couple of nights.
Hearing her name being called from down below, Asterpaw said goodbye to her sister and descended the cliff face, pausing at the medicine den to see if Kestrelpaw was still shirking her apprentice duties. Sure enough, the little tortoiseshell sat in the centre of the den, conversing with Emberpaw.
"Kestrelpaw, it's your turn to clean the elders of their ticks," Asterpaw said, voice slightly commanding. Kestrelpaw jumped, not having noticed her, but Emberpaw cut her off before the younger apprentice could say anything.
"I remember a time when I was the one reminding you," she said shortly, eyes glinting with a challenge. Asterpaw shot the older apprentice a distasteful look, but did not reply.
Kestrelpaw cut in politely. "Actually, Redblaze told me I was supposed to go out on patrol today and that Starlingpaw would take my place." The apprentice rose to her paws. "Are you on your way down as well?"
Gritting her teeth at the she-cat's polite tone, Asterpaw nodded and turned to head down the cliff. After exchanging a brief goodbye with Emberpaw and Pebblepaw, Kestrelpaw followed.
Both she-cats were met by Gentlefern, who let them know they would be patrolling the south border together. Kestrelpaw seemed excited by the news, but Asterpaw's tail drooped, remembering the training Beetlestar had promised her. Her mood brightened slightly when she found out Leafpelt would be joining their patrol.
"Caught any rabbits lately?" he asked her, whiskers twitching.
"Not since our catch, no," she replied, shuffling her paws slightly. It wasn't like the younger warriors to pay attention to the apprentices; they preferred to appear above the warriors in training.
"I haven't caught anything yet," Kestrelpaw cut in sadly. Leafpelt gave the little she-cat a sympathetic glance and Asterpaw suddenly felt bad for feeling superior to the new apprentice. Much like Silverhawk and Badgerclaw, who shunned the apprentices, she had made the tortoiseshell feel unwelcome. Yet, she felt a twinge of annoyance as Leafpelt offered to help Kestrelpaw with her hunting.
The patrol set off soon after, with Gentlefern at the head and Asterpaw, Leafpelt and Kestrelpaw behind. The tom walked in between the two she-cats, alternately making small talk with one or the other as they followed the river through the canyon.
When the canyon narrowed, he carefully guided Kestrelpaw towards the small gap, making sure she wasn't running into any walls. She insisted that she could make her way through it herself but accepted his help gratefully all the same.
The tom stepped aside to let Asterpaw through the gap next, catching her by surprise. Looking at the chivalrous tabby curiously, she too accepted his offer, pausing on the other side to wait for him before they rejoined the patrol.
No one spoke after that, choosing to enjoy the feel of the sun's rays warming their pelts and listening to the tuneless song of the slight breeze that blew through the canyon. After over a half moon of ceaseless rain and blowing wind, this felt like bliss.
Reaching the south border, Gentlefern divided them up into groups. To Asterpaw's disappointment, she paired Kestrelpaw and Leafpelt together. Asterpaw respected the motherly tabby and, if it had been anyone else on the patrol, would have been very excited to be paired with her. The thoughts of her and Leafpelt's previous teamwork while on hunting patrol drove those feelings from her.
Sighing, she turned to follow Gentlefern to the west side of the Training Cliff while Leafpelt and Kestrelpaw headed for the Maze. Padding over the great expanse of the training area, Asterpaw shook out her fur, closing her eyes and purring as the sun soaked into her skin.
"Distracted, are we?" Gentlefern called from somewhere up ahead, but before Asterpaw could reply she found herself pinned to the ground.
Eyes shooting open, she found the grey tabby she-cat sitting atop her, green eyes gleaming playfully. Her sheathed paws rested on the apprentice's shoulders, pushing her back against the hard rock of the Training Cliff.
Flashing her teeth in a grin, Asterpaw twisted, throwing one of Gentlefern's paws off. Rotating so that her belly faced the ground, the cream she-cat arched her back, pushing the warrior off of her and to the ground.
Rounding on her, she lunged, swinging a paw at the tabby's face. Gentlefern parried with a blow of her own, catching Asterpaw on the ear before lunging past her and moving to rake her sheathed claws against the apprentice's side. Retaliating too slowly, Asterpaw felt the she-cat's paws make contact with her ribs.
Angry with herself for being such an easy target, Asterpaw pounced onto the tabby before the warrior had a chance to turn back to face her, trying her hardest to stay balanced without using her claws. Before she had a chance to regain her stability, Gentlefern had thrown her off and knocked her to the ground once more.
"Your retaliations are a little slow, but you would have gotten me with that pounce if you were allowed to use your claws," Gentlefern said kindly, letting the apprentice up.
Asterpaw nodded, though she couldn't help the feeling of disappointment that welled up inside her.
"Come on, let's go mark this border," the warrior said. "Then maybe we can get the rest of the patrol in on some battle training." Brightening at this prospect, Asterpaw sprang to her paws.
A wall with small ledges made up the west border of the Training Cliff. Asterpaw leaped up onto the first one, marking it, before making her way up to the next to do the same. The previous scent markers had been washed away by rain, the scents barely noticeable even to Asterpaw's heightened senses.
It was a different scent that filled her nose, one that cascaded over her like water. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks, vision clouded by a darkness that glinted and shimmered, as if moving. She stared up at it, mesmerized by the way it flowed over her and gasped when a single, small ripple broke it.
Then, her lungs began to collapse, shrivelling up like prey left out in the sun as the gleaming substance moved through her. She tried to draw a breath, but choked on the invisible liquid. Her mouth opened and closed in futile screams for help as the darkness sucked at her, a heaviness that left her feeling weightless dragging her down.
"Asterpaw!" Gasping for air, the cream she-cat was relieved to feel its coolness enter her lungs. Getting to her paws, she coughed, trying to get rid of the taste of water in her mouth.
Looking up, she saw Gentlefern and Leafpelt looking at her worriedly. Off to the side, Kestrelpaw's eyes were stretched wide, a look of horror on her face.
"What happened?" Asterpaw asked shakily, glancing around her. Not a trace remained of whatever had triggered her vision but, when she sniffed at the air, she found the faintest scent of water.
"You suddenly fell from the ledge," Gentlefern said quietly. "We thought you might have been stung by a wasp or sprained a paw."
"You were shaking and moaning," Leafpelt added. "It looked like you were choking."
Asterpaw shook her head as the images returned to her. Water, moving over her in glittering waves, dragging her down into its depths.
When she inhaled another breath of fresh air, she had to fight the images that came flooding with it. Fur bristling, she realized the scent was growing stronger, filling the air all around them. The rock beneath her paws gave the slightest tremble and Asterpaw's eyes widened.
"We need to leave, get out of this canyon," she said quickly. "We'll be trapped if we don't." Springing to her paws, she found her way blocked by Gentlefern and Leafpelt.
"We need to get you to Otterheart," the tabby tom replied.
"We don't have time to get back to the camp. We need to find higher ground, then go back to the camp to warn the others," Asterpaw pleaded, green eyes large with fright.
"Asterpaw, I really think - "
"She's right." Everyone turned, astonished, to Kestrelpaw. "If we don't move, we'll die."
Incredulous, Leafpelt turned to Gentlefern, whose eyes were moving between the two apprentices. Finally, she nodded, leading the way to the Maze. With three swift leaps, she had climbed the ledges beside it and stood overtop of the broken canyon walls, just as mentors often did during training.
Kestrelpaw joined her next, Asterpaw following and Leafpelt bringing up the rear. The tortoiseshell's shoulders were tense, but relaxed slightly once the patrol got up to higher ground. Asterpaw herself felt slightly relieved, but the smell of fast-moving water remained and the rocks beneath her continued to tremble. Already the sky darkened with storm clouds, moving in faster than any of them had ever seen.
The two warriors didn't ask any questions, instead moving swiftly ahead of the two apprentices. Asterpaw gave Kestrelpaw a brief word of thanks before picking up her own pace, heart racing as fat raindrops began to fall around them.
"Leafpelt, run ahead, warn the others!" Gentlefern's voice rang out clear over the sounds of the sudden storm. Not a trace remained of the warm and friendly sun or the cool breeze.
The canyon trembled like a giant beast below them, rocks sliding loose of their holdings and falling to break into pieces onto the red floor below. The smell of water now thick in the air, Gentlefern's own pelt bristled, telling Asterpaw the warrior believed her warning.
Leafpelt disappeared in the haze of rain quickly and the cream apprentice spurred herself on after him, breath leaving her in fast, short gasps. Her paws pounded the slippery ground in a rhythm unheard by her ears, drowned out by the unmistakeable roar of water that moved angrily through the canyon beside her.
She let out a cry of dismay, running as fast as her legs could carry her until she reached the edge of the cliff where she knew the camp to be. A group of cats waited there, soaked to the bone with their fur plastered against their bodies.
Asterpaw came to a halt beside Pebblepaw and they watched, eyes filled with grief, as the flash flood wiped away their home.
A/N: Camp NaNo has certainly been keeping me busy and motivated (along with finals) but, sadly, leaves little time for editing. I apologize for any errors and promise I will be back to fix them!