Several voices woke me up. Blinking open my eyes, I was shocked by the bright sunlight. I sat up and rubbed one of my eyes with a paw. "Mudpaw, you're awake!" Lilypatch purred, her gaze filled with warmth. I nodded and stretched until my legs quivered.

Redfur was still sleeping but Eclipse wasn't. Lilypatch and Cloudjaw dipped their heads to me. "No troubles?" I asked as I shook out my fur. The two former deputies both shook their heads. "None," Cloudjaw murmured without looking me in the eye.

I tipped my head to the side. What are you hiding? Something was up and I had to get to the bottom of it. "There's something you're not telling me..." I growled, narrowing my eyes.

"We came across-" Lilypatch started but Cloudjaw slapped her jaws shut with his paw mid-sentence. "We can't tell him! He's only an apprentice," Cloudjaw muttered, glaring deep into Lilypatch's eyes. She rolled her eyes. 

"Hey, I'm just as mature as you two! I've been through just as much as anyone... Tell me!" I pleaded. My curiosity was boiling inside of me. Was it the herd? Twolegs? More cats that survived? I wondered, clawing at the ground with unease.

Cloudjaw lowered his voice and the two group leaders came closer, "We saw a group of dead cats, newly eaten to the bone. I made note where it is before I came here. It is right in the center of our path. On the good side, we got lots of prey." My jaw dropped. 

"Are they going to turn?" I asked. Lilypatch and Cloudjaw shrugged, "Beats me. They were almost completely eaten, but I'm sure their brains' weren't touched," Lilypatch mewed.

The white warrior narrowed his eyes at me and then gestured with his muzzle to the small pile of prey. "Now, eat up before someone takes what you want." Cloudjaw mumbled. I nodded. 

A pile of dead prey lay behind them. I padded over, my mouth watering and my stomach growling like a lion. I picked out a pigeon - my personal favorite - and ate it so fast I got the hiccups.

"I'm surprised you haven't puked! Eating that fast might make you heave..." Poppyheart yawned. Shrugging, I looked up at her tortoiseshell figure. Her eyes were half open, but after fluffing out her fur and letting out another yawn, she seemed to wake up fully. Did she hear what Cloudjaw and Lilypatch said? I wonder what she'd think? 

Poppyheart didn't wait for a reply, instead woke up Redfur to share the sparrow she had picked out. 

***

After several heartbeats of just laying there in the blazing heat and watching others wake, Cloudjaw finally announced we should start getting ready to leave. When I had woken up, it was in the middle of the day already. By the time we all had eaten and stretched, the sun was sinking. Stars started to reappear as the sun made its way down the horizon-line. Shades of pink and purple cascaded the sky below the sun. It was colorful and pleasing.

Too bad it couldn't be as peaceful as we had all hoped it would become. 

"How is your ankle, Squirreltail?" Redfur murmured as he sniffed around the wrap. The rush was wrapped safely around it and Squirreltail barely flinched when Redfur nudged it with his nose. 

The red she-cat glanced at it and shrugged. "I can almost put weight on it now. It feels much better," Squirreltail replied with a nonchalant look in her amber eyes. Redfur nodded and took apart the leaves with one claw. Poppyheart joined in and set down the leaves she had brought along. 

"Almost done? We have to head out in a bit. Sun's going down, stars are coming out..." Cloudjaw murmured to the two medicine cats, pacing back and forth. He let out a sigh. Redfur glared back at him with narrowed eyes, "You should have thought of that while you let the rest of us sleep in. This could have been done a while ago." He muttered with the twitch of an ear and then turned back to his sister.

Poppyheart shooed the white warrior away with her tail, "This takes time. The stars will be out plenty long." She insisted and Cloudjaw simply paced elsewhere, his tail dragging through the grass. 

I had to admit it: it felt like seasons before they had dressed her ankle. Poppyheart's herb bundle was half the size of what it originally was; the rush and bindweed completely gone. The moon continued to make its way up, the stars twinkling in the sea of dark blue. 

"Finally..." Lilypatch muttered under her breath and then announced out loud, "Alright! Lets get going." 

I took the rear again with Ebonykit on my back. Poppyheart padded beside me while Lighteningice had Stormkit, Heatherleg had Sunkit, Redfur had Sootkit, and Squirreltail - who was leaning on Redfur - stayed in front of us. Eclipse, Cloudjaw, and Lilypatch led the way north. 

"Where do you think we're headed?" I asked Poppyheart. She didn't turn to look at me, but muttered through the herbs, "I'm not too sure, Mudpaw. North is the only answer. Who knows? Maybe we'll run into a Clan!" I shrugged. I doubt that. We are the only Clans! I am positive of it. Surely StarClan would have mentioned there were more?

I didn't respond to her, just kept looking forward. The only thing I could really see were their tails as they swung with each step and the backs' of their heads. Squirreltails' tail was especially waving in the wind. She kept her hind leg propped up as she padded along, keeping her shoulder against her brother.Not one of the cats in the group were plump, none of us had shiny, well groomed pelts... A lot has changed, I glanced down at my paws.

Glancing up, I could see clouds roaming across the starry sky. It was a navy blue, darkening to pitch black as the night rolled on. The wind carried whispers that seemed to speak to me, swaying the trees' branches softly. Branches above creaked creepily and the grass wavered. It's tall blades brushed my chest as we pushed on.

The forest seemed to dense up, spruces and oaks became all pines and cedar in a matter of steps. There was even a large redwood tree, its bark gnarled, showing its age. In the very center of its trunk was a hole, suggesting a bird or maybe a squirrel once lived there. "Where is the North Star? We went off track!" Lighteningice fretted and I looked forward to the sky. Sure enough, there were just other smaller stars. Scanning the open sky, I quickly caught sight of The North Star; it was a sharp left turn away. 

He must've done that so we didn't near the gruesome sight... I thought, looking forward again. 

As if he read my mind, Cloudjaw replied to the worried queen. "There was an obstacle that way. I thought it was best to steer clear of it." No one responded. Ebonykit fastened his tiny claws into my pelt and whispered, "Does that mean there will be those... monsters?" 

"I don't know. Either way, we'll keep you and the other kits safe." I reassured him quietly, looking over my shoulder to nod to him. 

The group froze as a scream echoed through the treetops. I flinched as Ebonykit's claws sunk in farther. "Help! Someone!" The mystery cat yowled. It sounded close. Immediately I set Ebonykit down to go see who was in trouble. Cloudjaw looked briefly at Lilypatch, "Stay here with the group. I'll go check it out." He dipped his head to her and then took off. I rushed to catch up with him. "I'm coming, too!" I called after him. 

I could have sworn he sighed, but he didn't order me to stay back. Cloudjaw narrowed his eyes at me and hissed, "Hurry up then." Picking up my pace, I followed close on his tail.

"Heeellp!" The mysterious cat wailed. Birds flew out of the trees in a hurry, scattering among the dark sky and calling out to others. The two of us glanced through the trees until I caught sight of a cat dodging three others.

"Over there!" I gasped and pelted toward the four figures. Cloudjaw ran in sync beside me. Three bloody cats surrounded an injured black and white tom. The tom glanced over at us and then back to the infected. "StarClan answered my prayers!" He whimpered as we neared him. I hurtled myself at the bloody flesh-eater closest to him and shouldered it to the ground. Cloudjaw dove for the next one, knocking it over with a grunt.

"Thank you, thank you so much!" The black and white tom looked to me and then to Cloudjaw, his eyes glimmering with relief. 

Cloudjaw nudged the shocked tom forward, "Come with us!" He pushed down the other flesh-eater. I went to the tom and urged him to move. He was as tall as Cloudjaw - possibly taller - but he was no more than skin and bones. With a sunken in stomach and cheekbones sticking out, he seemed like he hadn't had a real meal in moons. His muzzle was speckled heavily with grey, and old scars scattered his sleek body.

The tom limped as quickly as he could with me to support him. I only noticed Cloudjaw hadn't of followed when I had came into view with the rest of the group. Lilypatch and Heatherleg hurried to meet me half way. "Who's this?" Lilypatch sniffed his pelt, ears flat to her head, while Heatherleg let the tom lean on him. I shrugged and dashed away again, toward Cloudjaw and the three flesh-eaters.

If he would leave those brain-dead idiots alone, we could get moving without any trouble! We would be able to outrun them. I have yet to see a flesh-eater who can run. Turning from the path Eclipse had shown us, I hurried to grab Cloudjaw.

As I padded toward the sound of moaning, I called out to him. The white warrior was fighting the three. None of them looked weakened and showed no signs of pain as he struck them over and over.

"Come on, this is south not east!" I jumped as Redfur padded farther ahead, "We can avoid them instead of worrying about your mouse-brain getting injured!" The medicine cat yowled. Cloudjaw turned around and started to run toward us, but as he took off, he tripped over his front bloody paw.

I pelted toward him as the flesh-eaters opened their jaws...

But it was too late. Even as I shoved the first one I could get to away from him, the other two had already sunken their teeth into his flesh. The flesh-eaters growled hungrily as Cloudjaw let out a ear-piercing screech. I halted, my jaw hitting the ground. I cowered away, knowing it was too late and too dangerous to interfere with. The fur along my spine bristled up as his warm blood splattered my face. 

Cloudjaw stuttered, but no real sentence came out. He looked up at me, bewilderment and horror flashing through his fading amber eyes. I let out a shriek. "No!"