Author's Note: I am still accepting character ideas going forward. Let me know if you have an idea for a character in this series and leave a comment. I might PM you for more details if your character is used.

Chapter 20: Battle training

Splitpelt and I decided to take our apprentices out for battle training. This included Northpaw, Potentpaw, Patch, and Shellpaw. My end goal was to teach fighting techniques while also revealing the true extent of my powers. As much as I saw myself in Shellpaw, she was an active threat to the order of the Unseen Stars. I led the group to a sandy clearing of my design to begin. Splitpelt wasn't surprised at this point. The spontaneously created clearing seemed well within the scope of my powers.

"Today we are working on battle techniques. I need an assessment of your current skills before I aid you in perfecting your style."

Shellpaw looked dismissive, Patch looked uninterested, Potentpaw was bouncing like a kit, and Northpaw looked worried. My eyes glanced over the waiting cats looking to see which would be the best for a demo. My eyes landed on Shellpaw. She was older but undisciplined, so she'd be the perfect way to show how technique affects combat.

"Shellpaw. I know you are largely self-taught, so how would you like to see how you stack up against me?"

A cruel smile lit up her face as she entered the arena. "With pleasure."

Shellpaw had a weight advantage on me, but I was used to fighting heavy weight Riverclan Cats, so I wasn't going to let her use that weight effectively.

"Then begin."

Shellpaw threw herself into a charge. Normally that would be a good choice for fighting a large cat like me, but it was ultimately predictable. I low jumped over her head with a half turn. Before she could spin, I swept her back legs with my forepaws. That should have given me an opening for a pin, but she instead rolled and landed a one paw kick to my face. It wasn't damaging, but it did stun me long enough for her to right herself.

"A good answer, but I can feel you're holding back." I spat.

She went for quick swipes trying to wear me down, but she didn't realize her own body was taking more of a toll in her barrage than I was. I responded with a heavy hitting counter by throwing my whole weight into a paw swipe that met hers. Mine obviously overpowered hers and sent her tumbling.

"You aren't meant for fast attacks. You're heavier than me. Use it!"

Shellpaw responded with some heavy overhead paw swipes. They certainly had power, but she limited her strike range with that by over telegraphing. I weaved through them. Then I batted her face and shoulder tackled her to cause her to stumble.

"You're too focused on getting the correct answer. Listen to what your body wants to do. It knows how it wants to fight. Your job is to choose how to use it."

Shellpaw's attack style changed again. She moved to overhead strikes, but as soon as I closed the gap, she shoulder checked me. I was sent stumbling as she spun into a side kick on me forcing me to roll. Using her own momentum, she followed after me. I tried to make space, but her assault seemed relentless. I was holding back somewhat, but this is what I wasted her to see and learn. Before I could get up, she pressed me down with her massive paws.

"How's that?" She said with a smirk. Her confidence at besting me seemed to have boosted her mood.

"Perfect. You've got the instinct for combat. You could probably best most warriors." I responded with a similar smirk.

"Most warriors?" She questioned.

My tail slipped around her hind paw. With a pull, her balance was thrown off. With a fearsome shove, I rolled her with me following. Now I was the one pinning her down.

"Most warriors." I said with that same grin. "Never let your guard completely down in the face of an opponent. They may surrender, but that doesn't mean you can celebrate victory early."

I let Shellpaw up, but my defensive position was not compromised. I didn't leave her an opening. Once she was with the rest of the learning cats, my attention shifted to Splitpelt. A cruel grin grew on my face.

"Splitpelt. Let's show them our powers and how much different fighting is here for those as strong as us."

In truth, Splitpelt and I rarely sparred, not because it wasn't fun opposite. Splitpelt and I could easily go too far in a spar. We enjoyed the challenge far too much. luckily Frecklewish was usually a good mediator, but today we were trusting our instincts and pride to stop ourselves.

Splitpelt entered the arena, his own bloodlust reignited. The scent of our hunger was ecstasy. This aroused me far more than any of Splitpelt's flirting ever did. Something faintly in the back of my mind asked if this is why I ever mated with Appledusk. My own battle hunger buried the thought. The air visibly thrummed in our starting contest of willpowers. Then the actual fight began.

Splitpelt threw himself forward with an assistive launch from two summon stones. I skid sideways riding a wave of shifting earth. I left behind a blunt pillar to meet Splitpelt's leap. Splitpelt responded by pushing off a construct summoned in the air. It was like a thin barrier. With it, his trajectory corrected to make his airborne meet me. I wouldn't let him have a free hit. As he went for a swipe, I grabbed him by the shoulders and threw him down. He responded by trying to hammer me away with summon pillars. They failed due to my indomitability, shattering to pieces. I placed my paw on his chest forcing layers of stone to coat him until only his head was visible.

"Do you yield?" I asked.

I was panting from effort, but I was also incredibly happy and somewhat flirtatious.

"Yes Mapleshade. I yield to you entirely." He responded in the same form of post battle lust.

I pulled away the layers of stone, letting my paws feel his mismatched pelt. It felt right. If we weren't there teaching at the moment, I'd probably have given in to my lust. Noticing the learners, I grunted. Splitpelt's eyes met them, and he quickly corrected himself.

"Right. That is what high level combat will look like for cats with powers like us. It is also a demonstration of what we want to teach you and can grant once you become one of our warriors and thus a cat we can trust. This is also to remain a secret to outsiders. We don't want them capturing members with the misguided belief that they can steal our powers."

That last line that Splitpelt tacked on was genius. He implied the powers were unable to be stolen once given which with firm enough belief would make it the truth. His analytical and tactical nature firmly complemented mine.

"Split into pairs. Patch and Shellpaw, Potentpaw and Northpaw. Spar and we'll give advice as you do. Remember, your body knows what it is doing. Instincts are just unrefined techniques." I said.

It wasn't a lie. Most of my most powerful moves were things I tried off instinct and then refined to a battle worthy state. It was my own firm belief that a cat always had their own instinctive way to fight. The only cats who can't get better at fighting are the ones who denied their instincts to copy some other cat. I watched Patch, a monster of efficiency, fight. It would be perfect if it weren't predictable. Potentpaw had the flaw of acting too quickly without assessing his opponent which left him open to counters. Northpaw was the inverse. He was too patient leaving him purely defensive. He would have no answer to getting overwhelmed. Shellpaw had taken my lesson to heart. She was a natural at using her weight and large paws to pressure her opponents. She liked to make the fights into endurance matches where she'd capitalize on a flaw she found in her opponent's attacks. How she was still an apprentice was beyond me.