Graystar jolts awake in terror, gasping for breath. He is lying in the cavern beneath Highstones with his nose pressed against the Moonstone. The shaft of moonlight has vanished, and only the faintest glimmer of starshine lights the cave. But there is no relief in waking up, for the stench of blood is still all around him and his fur feels hot and sticky.
Heart thudding wildly, Graystar scrambles to his paws. Across the cave he can just make out Cinderpelt. She has risen too, and is signaling urgently to him with her tail.
Graystar's first impulse was to pour out to her all that he has seen, but he remembers her instructions to keep silent until they have left Mothermouth. Paws skidding on the cave floor in his haste, he pushes past the medicine cat and bolts into the tunnel, anxious to talk about the vision.
As he stumbles upward toward the open air, following his own scent trail along the dark passage, the way seems twice as long as before making his pelt prickle with more anxiousness and fear. Graystar's fur scrapes against the tunnel walls and he is filled with horror at the thought of being buried alive.
The air feels too thick to breathe, and as his panic grow in the unbroken blackness of the tunnel he begins to imagine that it would never end, that he will be trapped forever in blood and darkness.
Suddenly he sees the pale outline of the tunnel entrance, and bursts out into the still night air, where the moon is sinking behind thin clouds. Graystar digs his claws into the loose earth of the hillside while shudders pass through his body from nose to tail.
A few moments later, Cinderpelt emerges behind him and presses herself against his side until he manages to control his dreadful shivering and his breathing steadies.
"What happened?" she asks quietly.
"Don't you know?"
Cinderpelt shakes her head.
"I know that the ritual was interrupted—the scent of blood told me that. But I don't know why."
She looks deep into his eyes; her own are burning with concern.
"Tell me…did you receive your nine lives and your name?"
Graystar nods, and the medicine cat relaxes slightly.
"Then the rest can wait. Let's go."
"No it can't!" He snaps at the Medicine cat. "The vision, it was….."
Graystrar struggles with the right words to say. He can still remember the hill of bones, and the blood gushing out of it. And the dreadful prophecy that accompanied it. 'Three will become one. Lion, shadow and blood will meet in battle, and blood will rule the forest.'
Meaning that Tigerstar is still not done tormenting them, all because they refused him the right to lead Thunderclan. He wonders what could have created such a monster that would forgo their previous ties to their clan, and their own kits, to die at the paws of a bloodthirsty dog pack. It terrifies him.
Cinderpelt brushes her tail along his flank, "I know what you saw terrified you. But you have to rest and eat. Barley's barn isn't too far from here. You'll be no use to the clan when you're terrified and exhausted to deal with what is coming."
"They said blood will rule the forest, meaning Tigerstar's reign of terror isn't over. We have to stop him… And whatever is coming that will make his terrible ways live forever. We have to warn the other clans before the next gathering."
"And we will, but you need to rest."
"I know… But with everything moving so fast, I'm worried that Tigerstar is enacting his plan now. We've seen what he's capable of and he will not stop until all of us are destroyed. I can't lose any more cats that I care about Cinderpelt…. I just can't."
"I understand Graystar. But Thunderclan has remained strong and will continue to do so. Remember you are the one who ensured our survival against the dog pack, led the clan bravely. You may not be who you were before becoming deputy or leader, but your charming positive nature and confidence makes Thunderclan strong and united. Along with the three other clans."
"Yeah. I can do this."
He purrs, forgetting the dreadful fear and terror he felt earlier, "Besides I'm not alone. I have Sandstorm, Longtail, you, Cloudtail and all the warriors to help me. We can get through this."
"That's the spirit."
The walk to Barley's barn is slow, because of how exhausted he is. His paws feel heavy despite him wanting so desperately to return to his clan before Tigerstar enacts another cruel plan. Though stopping at Barley's barn will be nice, with everything happening so fast, he hasn't managed to eat or sleep for a solid day or night.
Cautiously the two cats approach the twoleg barn. Graystaris worried that the dogs might be unchained, but their scent is faint and distant making him sigh in relief. Much stronger is the scent of cats, and as they draw closer Graystar spots a muscular black-and-white tom squeezing himself through a gap in the door.
"Barley!" he meows in greeting. "It's good to see you. You know Cinderpelt, our medicine cat?"
Barley gives both cats a brisk nod. "It's good to see you too, Graystripe."
"Graystar," Cinderpelt corrects him. "He's clan leader now."
Barley's eyes widen in astonishment.
"Congratulations! But that means that Bluestar must be dead. I'm sorry."
"She died as she lived, protecting her Clan," Graystar tells him, grief for his leader once again pricking his heart.
"I can see there's a story to tell," meows Barley, turning back to the barn, "and Ravenpaw will want to hear it. Come on in."
Inside the barn is warm and dark, full of the scent of hay and mice. Graystar listens to the telltale scuttering noises and his head spins with hunger.
"A soft place to sleep, and all the prey you can eat," he remarks, a little jokingly and trying not to let his desperate hunger show. "Better not tell Thunderclan or they'll all be out here, wanting to be loners."
Barley chuckles softly.
"Ravenpaw," he calls, "come and see who's here."
A dark shape springs down from a nearby stack of hay with a welcoming purr. As an apprentice, Ravenpaw had been the only cat in Thunderclan who knew the truth about the death of Redtail—that he had been murdered by Ravenpaw's mentor, Tigerstar. When Tigerstar tried to kill his apprentice to prevent him from reporting what he had seen, Graystar along with Fireheart had found this new home for him. The life of a loner suits Ravenpaw much better than that of a warrior, yet he has never forgotten his birth clan, and remained a loyal friend to his former clanmates.
"So Bluestar is dead," he murmurs when Barley has passed on the news. His eyes cloud with grief. "I'll never forget her."
Barley gives a comforting rumble in his throat, and he senses how welcoming he must have been to the scared young apprentice who had come to him so many moons ago. Straightening up, Ravenpaw flashes the black-and-white cat a grateful glance.
"So you're clan leader now," he continues to Graystar. "Starclan made a good choice."
He leads the way to the other side of the barn.
"Would you like to hunt?"
"That would be great," replies Cinderpelt. She gives him a questioning look, and murmurs, "Shall I catch something for you?"
In spite of his exhaustion,Graystar shakes his head. A fine clan leader he will make if he can't catch his own prey! He stands alert, listening, and drops into the hunter's crouch when he hears a soft scuffling deep within the hay. Pinpointing the mouse by hearing rather than sight, he springs, and dispatches the creature with a swift bite.
Ravenpaw is lucky, He reflects as he picks up the prey in his jaws and pads back to the others to eat. This is twice the size of the leaf-bare-thin mice in the forest, and easier to catch in the shadows of the barn.
He gulps it down in a few famished mouthfuls and feels his strength beginning to return.
"Have some more," Ravenpaw urges. "There are plenty here."
When Graystar and Cinderpelt have eaten as much as they can manage they lie in the soft hay, sharing tongues with their friends and bringing them up-to-date with clan news.
Ravenpaw and Barley listen, their eyes huge with shock, as he tells them about the dog pack.
"I always knew Tigerstar was bloodthirsty," Ravenpaw meows, "but I didn't think even he would try to destroy a whole clan like that."
"Thank Starclan he didn't succeed," Graystar replies. "But he came pretty close. I don't want to go through anything like that again." "
You'll have to do something to stop Tigerstar now, before he tries something else," Barley points out.
He nods and then hesitates, confessing, "But I don't know how I'm going to do anything without Bluestar. Everything seems dark and…and overwhelming. Even though I have led the clan through some troubling times."
Graystrar mews nothing about the interruption of his leadership ritual, or the horror of his dream, but he sees from the sympathetic look in Cinderpelt's eyes that she knows what he is thinking.
"Remember the whole clan is behind you," she mews. "No cat will ever forget that you and Bluestar saved us from the pack."
"Maybe they expect too much of me."
"Nonsense!" Cinderpelt's tone is bracing. "They know you're going to be a great leader, and they'll all stand by you to the last breath."
"So will I," Ravenpaw offers, startling Graystar. The sleek black tom looks slightly embarrassed as the gray warrior turns to look at him, but he goes on: "I know I'm not a warrior, but if you want my help you have only to ask."
Graystar blinks his gratitude. "Thank you, Ravenpaw."
"May I come to the camp soon?" Ravenpaw asks. "I'd like to pay my last respects to Bluestar at her burial place."
"Yes, of course," He replies. "I'll notify my warriors and deputy to look out for you. I'll also tell them that you are a friend and can come and go on Thunderclan territory as you please, if for a visit or something more serious. "
Ravenpaw dips his head. "Thank you."
As he looks up again, Graystar sees a glow of respect in his eyes. "You saved my life once, Graystar along with Fireheart. I'll never be able to repay you for that. But if trouble with Tigerstar comes, I'll be proud to stand with the warriors of ThunderClan and fight him to the death."