A new sense of determination had dawned on the traveling cats. Flamestrike was eager to see what SkyClan was like. He was even more eager to find out what the Tribe of Rushing Water was like. From what Birdpaw had described them, they had changed over the last few seasons. They were once a peaceful group of cats who had helped the Clans during their journey to the lake. But somewhere along the lines, they had changed. Whatever their reasons for attacking SkyClan, Flamestrike knew that they couldn't tolerate their actions.They had finally left the confinement of Twolegplace. Now they were at the grassy base of the mountains, where Birdpaw and Spruceleaf were busy chatting like they were old friends. Flamestrike wasn't surprised to find them getting along so well. Spruceleaf seemed to get along with just about everyone, and could easily relate to the situation Birdpaw was in."I'm just hoping that everyone made it out okay," Birdpaw sighed when he caught up with them. "I wish there was
She had to work harder than any other apprentice in order to gain her leader's approval. Longkit, Bramblekit, Marshkit and Newtkit had finally become apprentices. Because there was a shortage of warriors, Russetstar had made Snowstorm a mentor at a very young age. She was mentoring Marshpaw, a young apprentice with what felt like boundless energy. Talonclaw mentored his own son, Bramblepaw. Sleetstorm and Nightclaw got Longpaw and Newtpaw as apprentices.Now the apprentice's den was getting cramped, and Smokepaw was forced to sleep outside once again due to her lack of ShadowClan blood. She was furious that she couldn't just rip their fur off and take her place as top apprentice. But that would only make the Clan suspicious of her actions. Whatever happened, Smokepaw knew that her life was completely changed after joining ShadowClan.Her fur now longer had any of it's kit-fluff. Her green eyes were sharp as ever, constantly scanning the forest for signs of danger. Lean muscles showed
"Hey, Stormshadow, what do you know about the Tribe of Rushing Waters?" Spruceleaf asked as the group carried on through the mountains. She knew that the elders used to tell stories about the Tribe, but, she never heard them herself. WindClan didn't have much to offer in terms of telling stories, especially since Icestar was going mad with power."I'm not sure," Stormshadow meowed, looking at her in confusion. "I remember one of our elders used to mention that they had a leader known as Teller of Pointed Stones... or something like that. And they all have weird names like that.""They were never aggressive before," Oakfire put in as he joined them. Spruceleaf glanced at Flamestrike and Reedriver, noticing how the two toms seemed concerned about their path ahead than anything else. "Which leads me to wondering why they attacked an entire Clan without reason."Spruceleaf flinched as she caught Birdpaw's expression. She knew that SkyClan had suffered a brutal blow when the Tribe attacked
The makeshift den Flamestrike had found for their group wasn't nearly as comfortable as the bed of reeds that Reedriver normally slept in. He kept turning around in his sleep, hoping to find a more comfortable position to sleep in. It didn't help matters that he was surrounded by cats from different Clans. Their mingled scents burned his lungs as he tried to breath. He wondered how Acorntail or Blizzardwind could stand it. Both cats didn't seem to mind sharing nests with Oakfire, Stormshadow or Flamestrike.Reedriver's whiskers twitched at the thought of the ThunderClan cats. All they ever seemed to do was boss everyone around like they knew what they were doing. He knew better. Oakfire had seniority over the rest of the group, aside from Blizzardwind. Surprisingly, she was the eldest of the group, having been RiverClan's medicine cat for moons. Reedriver was actually thankful that Minnowstar had agreed to letting the medicine cat go with them.Imagine if we had gone out here without
It felt as if they'd been traveling for days along the mountain's slopes. Birdpaw was beginning to understand the meaning of patience when she noticed how often the ThunderClan and RiverClan cats argued. Of all the cats who seemed to enjoy picking a fight, it was Oakfire and Acorntail. Birdpaw realized with a start that the two were probably clashing personalities, and Clan pride. She was more than annoyed with their bickering, and almost wished that they would both stuff a tail in their mouths for a change.Blizzardwind was the only one with enough sense to stay out of these arguments. Birdpaw suspected she was also annoyed with them, but, Blizzardwind didn't dare speak out against them. She kept glancing at the RiverClan medicine cat warily."I know what you're thinking," the silvery white she-cat murmured, looking at Birdpaw warily. She froze on the spot, staring at Blizzardwind in alarm, "Why am I not taking sides?" Birdpaw only tilted her head to one side, flicking her tail as sh
Working together hadn't been all that difficult. Flamestrike worked alongside Birdpaw to convince a few of the Tribe cats to work with them rather than against them. To his surprise, a few of them had already been against their leader's orders. From what Flamestrike was able to gather, their old leader had suddenly died without warning, and a new order was brought to the Tribe. That in itself had rung a bell of alarm for Flamestrike.He couldn't shake off the feeling of dread that was slowly creeping through him. Seeing the SkyClan cats for the first time was enough to tell him that Birdpaw had been right, all along. What bothered him more than anything was how badly in shape Blizzardwind and a few of the SkyClan warriors were in."It isn't right, what Stoneteller has done to you and the rest of your Clan," the same she-cat who had cornered him during their fight whispered. Her ears were flattened with unease as she looked at him, "I'm sorry for attacking you the way I did. We were un
Time felt as if it had slowed down when Spruceleaf watched the Tribe cats regroup. The battle had been quick and painful. She could still feel the sting of a Tribe cat's claws from where they tried pinning her down and delivering a final blow. It was only thanks to Strike that she had survived that attack. Seeing the tabby now, she noticed that he looked as if he'd suffered the most injuries. She glanced at Stormshadow and Flamestrike warily when she noticed they were all sitting together with Oakfire.Not for the first time, she wondered if all the Clans would continuously feel divided. Acorntail and Reedriver looked equally uneasy, while Birdpaw remained with the SkyClan cats who had fought with her. Spruceleaf was more than relieved that she hadn't suffered from any severe injuries. It was impossible to tell who had suffered the worst, but, Spruceleaf noticed with a start that the Tribe cats seemed smaller and frailer than ever.A shiver of unease swept through her when Strike limp
Anxiety swept through Reedriver as he watched the Tribe cats interact with one another. The injuries that everyone had received during the battle were currently being treated by Blizzardwind. She carefully weaved her way through the crowd, sniffing each wound and making sure that the injuries were tended to. Despite herself, it was obvious that she had received the worst injuries from their little group.Reedriver's claws scraped the stone as he remembered Blizzardwind's announcement. Her words had shaken him to the core when she told them that she would be staying behind. When she told them that the Tribe needed her more than the Clans, he wanted to rake his claws across her muzzle. She had bees in her head if she thought they would appreciate her more than her own Clan.Yet, Reedriver could see the wisdom in her choice. Reluctantly, he agreed that the Tribe would need all the help they could get. Seeing them now only reminded him of what they had done to SkyClan.True, that had been