The melting snow made the grassland slippery as Brambledusk followed Scorchclaw, Sandfall, Aspenstep, Heathercloud, and Waspberry. The newleaf sun bore on their pelts, and Brambledusk itched to turn around and go back home. The patrol's goal was to find a RiverClan patrol to attack and teach them a lesson, to warn them of WindClan's strength. But what was the point? Why did they throw themselves in battle again? To kill another cat?
Scorchclaw lifted his tail and tasted the air. "Fresh RiverClan scents," he reported, turning his head over his shoulder to address the patrol. "Near the marshland."
Well, duh! We're near the border! Brambledusk bit his lip to stop a sarcastic comment from escaping his mouth.
Heathercloud shook out her fur. Even though she was an older warrior than Scorchclaw, she spoke to him with the respect she would give Berrysplash or Swiftstar. It made Brambledusk's fur prick and his claws unsheathe. Just because he's Swiftstar's son means nothing! He's younger than every single one of us, yet we're supposed to follow him like he's our Clan leader? "What do you want us to do, Scorchclaw?"
"We'll find a patrol and we'll attack them," Scorchclaw declared. "Like my father said."
"Even if it includes crossing their territory?" Aspenstep asked, furrowing his eye whiskers. "That would just enhance their ire more."
"It's what my father said," Scorchclaw repeated. "If he wants them to be attacked, then we attack. Simple."
So your father can get another cat killed? Brambledusk recalled back to Oakcloud's dying words, the words his father uttered to him as the life slowly began to die out from his eyes.
"Defend your Clan. Do the right thing. Fight for justice and truth." How did fighting RiverClan for some territory dispute equal truth and justice? How was it defending their Clan? Swiftstar's twisted logic – and Scorchclaw's willingness to follow it – made Brambledusk sink his claws into the damp grassland. Is this what my father died for?
"Are you all right, Brambledusk?" Waspberry's words knocked Brambledusk from his daze, and the pale tabby tom looked up to meet the gray-and-white she-cat's gaze.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Brambledusk replied. "I just can't wait to sink my claws in a treacherous RiverClan cat's pelt." It was a lie. If there was one cat he wanted to sink his claws into, it was Swiftstar. He made Oakcloud die by sending him on a suicidal mission. What's to say this won't be the same? Brambledusk looked up to see Scorchclaw racing towards the marshland, and Brambledusk quickened his pace by pumping his muscles and rolling his shoulders.
As the WindClan cats sprinted through the moorland, the grass slowly began to change into peaty marshland, and the scents of RiverClan became thicker and thicker. It was then when Brambledusk noticed they had crossed the border. On the signal from Scorchclaw, the cats formed a single-file line, following Scorchclaw as the ginger-and-white tabby navigated the marshland. The sticky mud underneath Brambledusk's paws was a foreign feeling to him, nearly worse than water itself, and it made moving hard. Brambledusk was used to striding through the moor as if nothing could chase him, but now it was hard to move with the mud slowing them down.
With a WindClan cat's excellent vision, Brambledusk craned his head and peered as far as he could. In the distance, he could spot rolling hills. Hills on RiverClan territory? Interesting. Maybe we don't know RiverClan territory as well as we thought. Scorchclaw seemed to echo Brambledusk's thoughts as the WindClan tom spoke.
"We can skirt around the hills, like we do at home," Scorchclaw suggested. "Perhaps we'll find a patrol around there. I don't see RiverClan cats climbing hills, they like to get their paws wet. Heathercloud?" Scorchclaw turned to look at the older warrior, perhaps asking her for advice.
Heathercloud nodded. "Sounds good to me."
Just as the WindClan cats began to approach the hills, Brambledusk stopped. There was something wrong. It was too quiet. Shouldn't there be a patrol around this time, around this area? Heathercloud would say something if there was. Brambledusk began to walk, following the patrol, but he couldn't shake away the suspicion that gnawed at his heart like a mouse and a nut.
In seconds, Scorchclaw was pinned down by a flash of tortoiseshell-and-white fur. Heathercloud was jumped on by a cat with pale tawny fur, Aspenstep was thrown to the marsh by a ginger-and-white tabby tom, Waspberry was landed on by a gray tabby tom, Sandfall was squashed by a brown-and-white speckled she-cat, and Brambledusk found the wind crushed out of him by a pure white tom. Each cat held the unmistakable fishy scent of RiverClan.
Where did they come from? Brambledusk thought, panicking as the white tom lashed his paw out at him. I saw nobody! The white tom's claws slitting his skin open brought Brambledusk back to reality, and the pale brown tabby tom jumped back. But, every time he tried to dodge one of the tom's blows, the RiverClan warrior was right back on him. Brambledusk had been so taken aback that he hadn't been ready to move on the offense. It was a surprise attack that none of the warriors had seen coming. It had been their plan to attack first, not to be attacked.
"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" the white tom hissed through his teeth, lunging at Brambledusk. Brambledusk crouched down, and when the tom dove over him, he thrust his head forward and grasped the base of the tom's tail with his jaws, biting down as hard as he could. The RiverClan tom let out a squeal of pain, but Brambledusk's blow seemed to make him even more furious, and the tom let out a flurry of wallops from his claws on his forehead.
Brambledusk rolled with the tom through the marshland, and threw a number of blows on his sides, but couldn't penetrate the thick fur the RiverClan warrior had. He risked a quick glance at the rest of his Clanmates, and his jaw dropped as he realized just how badly they were faltering against the RiverClan cats. He clearly wasn't the only one who was ill prepared to defend themselves against such a surprise attack.
Scorchclaw was being attacked by a warrior Brambledusk recognized as Dapplewing, and Heathercloud was in close combat with another warrior Brambledusk recognized as Shimmerwing. The other cats, he had no idea who they were, but they were powerful and skilled in fighting as they easily were picking off the WindClan cats. No! WindClan cats were strong too, and there was only one reason that they weren't doing well – because they weren't ready.
Brambledusk kicked the white tom in his belly, but for some reason, the big tom didn't falter. That move always worked. Is RiverClan much stronger than we give them credit for? Brambledusk asked himself. We always say they're weak… but… I think we're wrong. Brambledusk tried to claw the tom again, but he gave no indication of moving.
"Retreat!" Scorchclaw's cry echoed through the air, and the white tom immediately stepped off Brambledusk. Brambledusk gave him one last claw before following Scorchclaw, and the rest of the WindClan cats pulled themselves away from their attackers to pelt through the marshland and back across the border, where the marsh disappeared into the moorland and the WindClan scents were rampant.
Brambledusk was running faster than he ever had in his life. The wounds at his skin stung immensely, and all he could remember was the terrifying look in the tortoiseshell she-cat's eyes as she clawed Scorchclaw repeatedly, the determined spark in the tawny she-cat's eyes as she defeated any warrior that came her way, and the white warrior's thorn sharp claws ripping into his fur. These are different cats than the cats who attacked us when I was just an apprentice, Brambledusk thought.
The sentiment seemed to be shared by the other WindClan warriors, as they walked with a limp in their step and a sense of defeat in the air. Scorchclaw's ears were flattened, and Brambledusk realized that he was the one who would have to report their loss to Swiftstar. For a moment, sympathy for the WindClan warrior swamped over him. But then it quickly melted away. Scorchclaw's his son, Swiftstar will forgive him in seconds. If it was any other warrior, they'd probably be imprisoned for failing.
"It wasn't your fault, Scorchclaw," Sandfall suddenly meowed. The she-cat's eyes were glazed with exhaustion and pain as blood trickled down her legs.
Scorchclaw flattened his ears. "Yes, it is!" he snapped at Sandfall. "I should've known those cats were coming! I wasn't careful enough." The fur on the back of his spine pricked. "Now I need to report this to my father."
"Good luck," Aspenstep muttered. His mate, Sandfall, shot him a glare full of venom. Aspenstep shrugged, not replying to his mate's silent reprimand.
Scorchclaw let out a sigh. "Let's go home." The ginger-and-white tabby tom led them through the moorland, past the heathers and the gorse and through the paths that cats had traveled on for generations. The wind buffeted against Brambledusk's ragged fur, and fear made his heart pound as he wondered how Swiftstar would react to their failure. Would he force them to attack again?
The WindClan patrol skidded down the camp walls and entered the clearing. Cats watched them intently, perhaps hoping that they had succeeded in their mission, but when they noticed just how beat up the patrol was, their ears flattened and the hope dwindled from their eyes, replaced with disappointment. Brambledusk felt his tail lash back and forth, and he was ready to curl his lip and snarl, "Well? Why don't you go back and fight those cats?"
Brambledusk looked up to see Swiftstar marching across the clearing, his amber eyes blazing as he hovered over his son. The fury that radiated from the Clan leader was striking enough to send Brambledusk backwards. Scorchclaw met his father's gaze, giving him a low, respectful dip of his head before waiting for him to speak.
"What happened to you?" Swiftstar demanded, studying each member of the patrol intently. When Swiftstar's gaze fell upon Brambledusk, a shiver ran through Brambledusk's pelt. The last time he had spoken to Swiftstar had been when Russetstripe raced out of his den. Swiftstar's words to him had been, "You better control your future mate, because as long as you're both alive, she's yours." Brambledusk sighed as the tom spoke again. "Are you okay? Did you attack a RiverClan patrol?"
"We did," Scorchclaw replied, "but they had the upper hand. They plotted a surprise attack on us, and they had the higher ground. Because of those elements, we lost. I am so sorry, Father."
Swiftstar's fur bristled as he stared orange flames at his son. The WindClan leader studied the wounds of the patrol once more, and then he let out a sigh. "Who was leading the patrol that attacked you?"
"Dapplewing of RiverClan," Scorchclaw replied. "I told her that she may have won once, but she won't win the next time."
"Good," Swiftstar snarled. "Because you're right. You may have lost this time, but the next time we attack, we'll rip them to shreds. I will be leading that patrol." Although anger made Swiftstar's nostrils flare, and Brambledusk assumed he wanted to say more things, the tom dropped the subject. I knew he'd be easier on Scorchclaw than his other warriors. "Get yourselves to the medicine den. You first, Scorchclaw."
Scorchclaw glanced at his patrol. "I think Heathercloud should go first. She's the most gravely injured."
Heathercloud shook her head, even though blood was pumping out of several of her wounds and staining the grass beneath her red. Swiftstar gave Heathercloud a quick nod before disappearing back into his den. Brambledusk watched Scorchclaw and Aspenstep guide Heathercloud to the medicine den, and Waspberry and Sandfall were on their tails. I'll go later. Even though Brambledusk's wounds screamed at him to be treated, he'd be last in line, anyway. The pale tabby warrior walked through camp and headed towards the nursery, squeezing himself under the gorse bush.
"Mother?" Brambledusk called out, searching for his mother's pale spotted fur in the shadows of the den. As Brambledusk moved one of the branches of the bush with his shoulders, a shaft of sunlight hit the den, illuminating his mother's fur and the kits next to her. Cinderkit let out a gasp of joy as he scrambled over to Brambledusk.
"Brother!" Cinderkit exclaimed. "Lightningkit, Buzzardkit, over here! Brother has come!"
Brambledusk stepped back as the three kits raced to crawl over him. He could see his mother's pale-yellow eyes glowing in the den, and she got to her paws to pad over to him, nuzzling his cheek. Spottedwing took a step back as she studied Brambledusk's face. "You look tired."
"Nothing more than usual," Brambledusk meowed, watching as his little siblings bounced around his feet.
"You haven't come here in ages!" Lightningkit complained. "Where have you been, Brother? We've missed you!"
"They bring up a point, you know," Spottedwing said, meeting Brambledusk's gaze. "You rarely visit anymore. You've probably been here only twice since they were born."
"They're getting so big now," Brambledusk remarked, trying to ignore his mother's statement as Buzzardkit leaped onto Lightningkit, wrestling him on the ground. Cinderkit bounded over to nip at Buzzardkit's heels, but Buzzardkit turned and pawed at Cinderkit playfully.
"Tell me, Brambledusk," Spottedwing said. "Why don't you come anymore?"
Because I'm plotting revenge against my Clan leader and I don't want you to know about it? "They remind me too much of Oakcloud." It wasn't a lie. Cinderkit had his father's narrow face, Lightningkit had his broad shoulders, and Buzzardkit had his stocky figure. Although none of them shared the same coat as Oakcloud, if they all did, they'd look like exact duplicates. Pain created a lump in Brambledusk's throat as he thought about his father. He had been trying to avoid thinking about him lately – it wouldn't do well in his quest for revenge. But that's the entire point.
"Oh, that's what I thought at first, too," Spottedwing confessed. "But they're their own cats. They're growing well, and I like to think they'll make their father proud when they're older."
"Have you told them about him?" Brambledusk asked.
Pain glittered in Spottedwing's eyes. "I told them he was a brave warrior."
"Was," Brambledusk echoed.
"There is no skirting around the fact," Spottedwing replied. "If, one day, they ask me, I will tell them."
"The dead don't come back to life," Brambledusk remarked dryly. He wanted to ask his mother if she would tell her kits what exactly led to Oakcloud's death, but from the twisted expression on his mother's triangular face made it obvious that she didn't want to discuss the subject anymore. So he changed the topic. "Is Patchshine okay?"
Spottedwing looked over her shoulder, and Brambledusk followed her gaze to see the mottled gray-and-white queen curled in a circle, snoring softly. Her belly was incredibly swollen, even moreso than the last time Brambledusk had seen Spottedwing before she gave birth. "She will be having her kits any day now."
"She'll be lucky to have you to guide her," Brambledusk said. Just as he stepped forward to pull Lightningkit off Cinderkit's tail, the sudden movement made the wound on his shoulder pulse in agony. "Gah!"
"Huh?" Spottedwing peered closer to stare at Brambledusk. "What is it, dear?" Just as the sunlight shone on Brambledusk's fur, Spottedwing's eyes widened in shock. The wounds on his pelt must be visible, now. They had been sheltered in the shadows, but now that the sun had reached its peak and was piercing through the nursery, Spottedwing had been able to get a better look at him. "What happened?"
"Just a little accident with RiverClan," Brambledusk explained through gritted teeth, putting his paws back on the ground. "Nothing to worry about." The blood had crusted and dried, but the pain was still there, vibrant and fresh.
"That is not an accident!" Spottedwing snapped at him. "Go get treated, now!"
"Heathercloud and the others are there first," Brambledusk told her. "I've got to wait until they're out. Then I'll go."
Spottedwing shut her eyes and sat on her haunches, watching her kits wrestle with each other. "I don't want them to grow up in a world full of war," she confessed, fear shadowing her pale-yellow eyes. "I don't want them to die."
"We're doing all we can to stop the wars," Brambledusk told her.
"By contributing to them?" Spottedwing asked, her ears twitching in faint annoyance.
"Don't worry, Mother." Brambledusk touched his nose to his mother's cheek. "I'll do everything I can so that my little brothers will live in a world full of peace, where the only thing they need to worry about is what piece of prey they're going to eat next. I won't let anything hurt them. I promise."
The spotted queen let out a sigh. "You always were a gentle one," she meowed, gazing at Brambledusk with love in her eyes. "I'm glad to see you grown up, but you'll always be my kit at heart. I'm so proud of you."
"Yeah." Brambledusk's heart twisted in his chest. Will you be proud of me once I am known as the cat in the Clans who has slain his own leader? I don't think so. "I've got to go." If he stayed any longer, his mother would surely see that the only thing bothering him was not Oakcloud. He gave his mother a lick to her shoulder and glanced over at the kits. "Goodbye."
"Wait!" Lightningkit yowled, bounding over to Brambledusk and hanging on his back paws. Brambledusk's eyes widened. "Will you come back?"
"Will you teach me how to chase a rabbit?" Cinderkit barked.
"No! Teach me a fighting move!" Buzzardkit exclaimed.
"Um…" Brambledusk glanced over at his mother.
"They are your brothers, Brambledusk," Spottedwing told him. "They missed you."
Brambledusk gently forced his leg away from Lightningkit. "Yes, I'll come back, and I'll teach you everything you need to know." Just, don't take after me. He touched his nose to Lightningkit's forehead and licked the pelts of Cinderkit and Buzzardkit before haring away, exiting the gorse bush with a sigh escaping his mouth.
Will my brothers love me that much when they know that I'm planning to kill their Clan leader? What will my mother say? Brambledusk took a steady breath. I'm going to save my Clan. I can't back out now. Adderstripe needs me.