Cindersong and Lightfeather woke up with a jolt in the Gathering Place. It was night; stars were twinkling and the wind was whispering calmly. Lightfeather stood up from where she laid while Cindersong stayed where she was with her head up, groggy and confused. The two medicine cats weren't sure why they were at the Gathering Place. "Do you think SoulClan is trying to tell us something?" Lightfeather murmured, gazing around the empty rock.

"I'm not sure," Cindersong replied, standing up slowly and calmly. The fluffy grey medicine cat padded to the Gathering Places' edge and watched the water churn and swirl. It was a perfect mirror to the empty skies. The mirrored image of the half-moon wavered. Cindersong blinked and flicked her ear, unsure of what to say or do.

Suddenly, a new star flew by quickly and silently. It had no glow like a usual star; it was barely noticeable. Cindersong looked up and watched it fly by. It made Lightfeather's stomach twist and Cindersong's heart lurch. They both ignored the sudden feeling as if it were normal.

"A shooting star." Cindersong gazed at it, following the strange star as it traveled. Like an abnormal star, it didn't shine nor leave a momentary trail. Lightfeather noticed it, too. "Is that the sign?" The cream medicine cat wondered, hurrying towards Cindersong.

Cindersong looked over her shoulder and flicked her bushy tail. "Possibly," She answered simply.

"Well they could've given us a better sign! For all we know, it could mean-" Lightfeather's impatient hiss was interrupted as a painfully loud boom came from far away. Cindersong and Lightfeather jumped backwards, their fur spiked up in hostility, as it scared the daylights out of them.

Cindersong opened her mouth to comment, but she couldn't get any words out as a hot wind threw the she-cats to the ground. Cindersong tumbled away from her territory until her claws hooked on a large crack in the Gathering Places' boulder. Lightfeather tumbled back as well, but found a claw-hold quickly after. The air was hot and rancid. It burnt their throats when they breathed, it stung their eyes even when they squinted, and it seemed to be burning the flesh and sweet-smelling pelts right off of their bodies. The medicine cats found it hard to breathe after the wind came to a complete stop.

The she-cats scrambled up on shaky legs, their fur still spiked up and whiskers twisted. "W-what was that?" Lightfeather gasped, dashing back over to Cindersong. "I... don't know," The grey she-cat murmured, "It sure wasn't a shooting star, that's for sure."

The air around them was hot and stuffy, as if it was a nice greenleaf day. Cindersong coughed until she spat up blood while Lightfeather gagged at the smell. "Why... is it so hard to breathe? Is this the sign?" Lightfeather panted after she had stopped gagging.

"I don't know why, Lightfeather, but we can't tell anyone. If SoulClan sends a better sign, I'll tell Marshstar. We can't bring the Clans into panic," Cindersong suggested. Lightfeather didn't argue, just nodded.