GroveClan:

Grovestar woke up from her den, after training all night she felt a little more, but strong. "CLAN MEETING!" she shouted. "We are attacking NOW. Follow me." Grovestar walked out of camp.

"Where exactly are we attacking?" asked Thornstrike. "Where can we find the Children of the Ember?"

"I know where their camp is." Grovestar said, walking out of the camp. Cedarclaw followed his leader eagerly.

"Finally," whispered Rosepaw, "a chance for revenge." Rose's ghost narrowed her eyes.

The Cave of Prophecy:

The Oracle shivered alone in the cave of Prophecy, trying to sleep. Her worries tormented her ceaselessly and she shook back and forth. Nothing seemed to work until suddenly her body fell limp on the floor.

Grovestar burst into the Cave of Prophecy, screeching loudly enough for every cat to wake up. "ATTACK!" Rose's eyes widened as she saw the cats.

Warned by Rose's shades, more and more Children of the Ember came running. From the hills, the dunes, and the forest, cats came to defend their seer. The GroveClan cats soon found themselves outnumbered. Rose suddenly summoned her body. She fit in right with the crowd, baring her teeth.

"Live this place while you still can, Filthstar!" hissed Pike mockingly.

"ATTACK, NOW!" Rose screamed.

Owl screeched, flinging himself at the nearest warrior, shredding his pelt. Owl laughed hysterically, slashing open old wounds. "The Children will get our revenge!"

"ATTACK, NOW!" Rose screamed.

"Agh!" screamed Larchfang, "Get him off!" Silverstep leaped at Owl, trying to dislodge him with a flurry of scratches.

Rosepaw fought with Fern, using her defensive training to avoid and counter his blows. "Dewpaw, get him!" she screeched. Dewpaw lunged at the cat, hissing with fury.

Grovestar hissed, jumping on Rain. She slashed her legs.

Breezewing jumped on Pike, protecting her leader and 'mate.' She tucked in her tail, grabbing Pike's shoulders and locked them onto the ground. Rose leaped onto Breezewing. Breezewing ducked her blow and headbutted her into the chest and went back to holding down Pike's shoulders.

Rose got straight back up. She hissed, taking her flanks and turning away. Pike used his back legs to kick hard against Breezewing's stomach, leaving bloody gashes in her fur. "Come on Rose, we can take her together!"

Rain backed away from Grovestar, melting into the crowd.

Fern fell to the ground and tumbled out of the cave. "Good one Dewpaw!" called Rosepaw gratefully.

"Thanks." Dewpaw panted, looking towards Pike and Rose.

Rose smiled and raked Breezewing's muzzle slowly. Breezewing played dead for one moment, shooting back up into the air again. She darted under Rose's underbelly, slashing at the back of her forepaws. Breezewing backed out quickly out of the way she came and hooked her claws into Rosepaw's fur, dragging them to the ground.

Rosepaw screeched, "Have you gone mad Breezewing, why are you attacking me?!"

Breezewing let go of Rosepaw's fur. "Sorry!" she said.

Rose hissed, latching on to Breezewing's throat. Breezewing bit Rose's paw. She flung herself over Rose's back, and held Rose's head with her forepaws and used her hindpaws to knock Rose's hind legs out from under her. Rose gasped, but managed to break free.

Grovestar attacked Pike, flicking her hind legs into the air while spinning around on her forepaws. Then she reared up and raked Pike with her claws before tucking her head down and performing a forward roll.

Pike sidestepped her roll, letting her crash into the hard and sharp wall of the cave. One of the stones sliced into Grovestar's leg, leaving a cut there. "Fancy moves aren't everything," taunted Pike, crouching down in preparation for GroveStar to strike again. Two other cats moved on either side of Grovestar, waiting to see if she'd attack again. Rose crouched beside Pike.

Grovestar jumped, aiming for Pike's throat. She bit down hard, killing him.

Pike shook for a moment or two, then went still. But while Grovestar was distracted, Rain leaped on top of Grovestar, pinning her to the ground. "Rose quick," Rain screeched, "aim for that cut on her leg!"

StarClan/The Paradise Below:

Stargazer licked his shoulder. "Those living cats are a pawful to deal with." He grumbled grumpily, glancing towards the starry pool that served as a portal to the living realm.

The Oracle looked at her surroundings. "Why am I back in the Paradise Below?" she wondered aloud.

Stargazer looked behind him. "The Oracle..?" He turned around, his tail flicking to and fro.

Distantly, The Oracle heard the sound of Grovestar's screeches. "Stargazer, what do I do? Those savage cats are going to kill me!"

She waited."Can't you send them a sign to make this stop?" she begged. Still nothing. The Oracle scowled at Stargazer. "Can't you even hear me?"

Stargazer shook his head. "You're a blur, Oracle. Those cats are chaos." Stargazer looked down. "They're savages for sure, but there's nothing we can do."

The Oracle stared defiantly at Stargazer. "I trust and respect you Stargazer, but I will never turn my back on my people." She willed herself to return to the Cave.

"I understand."

The Cave of Prophecy pt. 2:

Rose began to tear the cut open. Grovestar didn't react to the pain, she shrugged off her emotions and stared silently. Rain grinned as more and more blood started to pour from the cut. A loud crack was heard throughout the Cave. Many cats stopped fighting to stare at what Rose was doing to Grovestar.

Grovestar screeched, "STAY OUT OF MY CAMP AND IF I SEE YOU FLEA-BAGS THERE AGAIN, YOU ARE ALL DEAD. NOW RETREAT!"

GroveClan's cats took this opportunity to race to their leader, pushing Rose and Rain to the side. They helped their leader up. Suddenly a sickly green smoke filled the cave. "LEAVE OUR TEMPLE AT ONCE!" boomed a voice so loud it felt as if they were being blown back by a strong wind. GroveClan broke, carrying their injured leader from the cave and back to camp.

Rose groomed her fur down after it was ruffled by the wind. "Well, that happened." She looked around. "Where's Sky?"

The Oracle took a shaky step forward before leaning against one of the cave walls. "That is something We would like to know as well," she hissed.

Owl limped over to her. "Do you need a medicine cat?" He asked, his tone tender.

"No thank you, Owl. Unlike the clans, We are perfectly capable of finding the herbs to heal ourselves." The Oracle sank to the cave floor. "Owl, have you ever had a vision?"

Owl looks at her, his eyes clouding in a familiar creepy stare. "I.."

"Go on Owl," whispered The Oracle, "tell Us what you see."

Owl flicked his tail. "I.. I see cats. Fighting. Blood is spilling onto the ground, flooding. Dead body's wash away, but I can't recognize any of the cats..." Rose turned to Owl.Owl gasped, spasms gripping him in a fit for a moment before he relaxed. "Sorry," he muttered.

"That's fine," purred The Oracle. "All We needed to see is if you had the potential. Stay here Owl, and We will help you develop your talents." She turned to her other Acolytes. "Take Pike's body to The Passage, see that he gets the dignified ceremony that he deserves."

Owl looked at her. "If I don't get to feel flesh tearing underneath my claws, then I'm out," he growled.

"You mean fight?" The Oracle laughed. "If you still wish to be active in the field, by all means. We don't believe that exploring one set of talents means you have to neglect another."

Owl looked at her skeptically. "If you're sure.."

"I don't know." Rose shrugged.

"Oh?" said The Oracle, looking at Rose. "Do you have some other cat in mind better suited to learn Our craft, Rose?"

Owl twitched. The Oracle looked back at Owl quizzically. "Something to say?" Owl turned, stalking away.

"You might be right, Rose," said The Oracle. "Owl may not have the temperament for Our position."

Owl nodded. "You don't want to trust me." He said, "But there are better cats for the job." He unsheathed his long claws and raked the ground, making a mound of dirt. "I would like to devote my life to fighting."

"Mhm." Rose mewed. "However, devoting your life to fighting gives you two choices; one, join those Clans that nearly destroyed us, and two? Stay with us and practice fighting with some other experienced cats."

Owl spun around, hissing. "I would never join the Clans! You don't feel like you need to be as good as other cats because you think you are better than everybody else! How DARE you think I will join the Clans? You don't know what its like out there!" Owl advanced on her, saliva flinging from his mouth and his eyes narrowed to slits. "Never say that again," his voice was low and dangerous.

"I'm just listening to The Oracle like a TRUE child of the ember!" Rose retorted.

"So you're saying I'm not a true Child of Ember? Well at least I have the guts to fight two cats 3 times my size while you were over here being lazy!" Owl knew he should not have said that, but he did anyway.

Rose shrugged. "I never said you weren't a true child." She bared her teeth. "And lazy? I'm the one SPYING on the Clans, stripping all of my energy away to get out of my own body AND shadowing the Chosen! If one of us is lazy, it's you." She turned back to the Oracle. "My apologies, anything else you need? Stargazer is hanging around us again."

Owl growled, then he fell, twitching and foam flinging out of his mouth. He gasped in pain and got up, dragging himself out of the cave before his legs folded under him as he whined in pain.

Once his fit was over, he was exhausted beyond belief. He looked at the other two cats and sat down. "I-I'm sorry." He rasped.

"You should be," said The Oracle, "That sort of display is unacceptable. While We respect that you don't want to do anything that takes you away from fighting, you nearly attacked Rose! Any more aggression towards your Brothers and Sisters, and We will be forced to address it at the Summoning. You are dismissed Owl."

The Oracle turned to Rose. "Perhaps We have been overlooking the obvious candidate. Rose, your abilities are great and you have sacrificed a great deal for Us. Would you like to learn from Us?"

Rose dipped her head. "I would love to do that, Oracle. Thank you." The small she-cat smiled.

A flurry of flapping wings interrupted the three cats' conversation. A shrill and repetitive scream echoed in the air. Overhead, there was a glimpse of gold before a dark shadow passed over the cats, as if a cloud had blocked out the sun. All of a sudden, a golden eagle swooped down, it's claws aiming for Finch who was relaxing at the edge of the cave.

Rose turned her head then, seeing Finch in danger. "Finch!" she cried.

"There must be something we can do! Rain, Fern; attack that eagle!" cried the Oracle. Finch managed to dodge the first pass of the eagle, but its claws caught some of his fur. The two other cats flanked him, growling with anger that any creature would dare harm their Brother. Rose gasped, leaning away to find a sharp stick to throw at it.

The eagle swooped down for a second go at the wounded Finch. "Rose, now!" shouted Rain as the eagle's claws sunk into his pelt and lifted him into the air. Rose leaped onto the eagle, viciously ripping at its wings.

The eagle gave a scream and buffeted its great wings, blowing all the cats back. The eagle lifted a claw and gave the prone Rose a crescent shaped scratch. Deciding these cats were more trouble than they were worth, the eagle lifted its wings and flew away until it disappeared over the horizon, Finch still trapped in its claws.

Rose gasped as she fell to the ground. She rubbed the wound, blood spilling onto her paw.

Owl lifted his head and let out a yowl. He looked around backing away. "It got Finch.." Rose panted, looking back.

Owl ran over to Rose. His fur was ruffled and bloody, but not with his own blood. "You'll be okay, sister."

"Rain, Fern, go and see if you can find your Brother. Fox, fetch me some wet moss to clean the blood, and comfrey and cobwebs to wrap it up," commanded the Oracle. Fox soon did as she was told. The Oracle cleaned Rose's wound and applied the cobwebs and borage to stem the bleeding completely. "There now, We can't have anything happening to my new student, can we?" The Oracle purred.

Rose purred. "Yeah." She looked at the others. "Will they be okay?"

"All have been trained in the knowledge of herbs. We trust that they can take care of their own wounds. If not, We request that they report to Us." The Oracle offered Rose a shoulder to lean on. "Shall We go back inside?"

Rose sighed. "Yes." She meowed simply, licking her wound as it stung.

Owl got up, foam still edging his mouth. His eyes rolled back as he got up, but he limped away as best as he could. He knew he would not make it to his temporary den.

"You are welcome to stay here until your wounds heal Owl," said The Oracle lightly.

"No, No I'm okay. You do your Oracle things," he stuttered.

"If that's what you want, We respect your wishes. Take some moss and comfrey at least, for your wounds," said The Oracle.

Owl nodded, picking out the herbs and limping away the best he could. "Have a good day." He called, stopping his voice from shaking.

"Farewell Owl," called The Oracle. "Contact Us if you have any more visions."

EyrieClan Camp:

Breezewing padded into camp. "Eyriestar?" she asked.

Eyriestar yawned. "Oh look, it's GroveClan, our 'friendly neighbours.' What do you want?"

"The Children of the Ember have been attacking us and GroveClan would like to know if you want to ally with us to defeat them."

Eyriestar examined his claws. "Maybe. What's in it for me?"

"The territory of the Children of the Ember after they leave," Breezewing replied.

Eyriestar said, "deal!" but Eagletalon cut him off.

"The Children of the Ember don't have a territory. They come and go as they please throughout all the clans. If we were to get the territory of The Children of Ember, we'd be getting nothing," said Eagletalon. "Didn't you know?"

"They have their Cave of Something! That's territory and their volcano place...that's territory!" Breezewing retorted.

Eagletalon sighed. "We already control those things. They're part of our territory."

"Well then, you'll get your territory back! The Cave of Prophecy, I think, is like their hideout base or something," Breezewing thought aloud.

"Well, they are a nuisance," agreed Eyriestar.

"How about this?" offered Eagletalon. "We'll help you after the gathering if you give us the Moonstone territory."

Breezewing paused, but sighed. "Fine."

"Alright, it's a deal," said Eyriestar. "We'll let everyone know at the next gathering."

Breezewing nodded and walked back to camp.

"Lightningtail!" said Eyriestar. "Can you take your apprentice with Quailpaw and Kestreleye on a patrol? Something's not right..."

"Of course Eyriestar." Lightingtail mewed. "Lets go guys."

"Hey Lightningtail, long time no see," purred Kestreleye. "Normally, nothing I'm looking for escapes my eyes, but you seem to be the exception." Quailpaw rolled his eyes at his mentor.

"It's good to see you too Kestreleye," purred Lightingtail. "Let's get going." Lightingtail began to pad out of the camp.

Outside the cave, Eagletalon suddenly stiffened at the sound of the dreaded shrill and repetitive shriek she remembered from their journey. Overhead, there was a glimpse of gold before a dark shadow passed over the cats, as if a cloud had blocked out the meagre sun streaming into the cave. "Eagle!" she screamed, "back inside!" as a golden eagle swooped down, its claws sharp and wicked.

Eagletalon waited with baited breath, but eventually the eagle's cry faded away. She cautiously crept out of camp to see that the eagle was long gone.

EyrieClan Territory:

Kestreleye walked close beside Lightningtail, her eyes wandering to her instead of watching the territory they were patrolling. "So, you got your first apprentice too, Lightningtail? How are you finding Dahliapaw? Quailpaw can be quite the handful." Quailpaw lagged behind, chasing a mouse.

Dahliapaw stayed focused on the hunt. She wanted to prove to her mentor that she COULD IN FACT concentrate for more than ten seconds! Just as she was thinking this, she started to follow the path of a butterfly. She was soon pouncing and trying to claw it from the air, squealing.

"She is a handful. She reminds me of myself when I was an apprentice," Lightingtail purred, his attention focussed on Kestreleye instead of the patrol or his apprentice.

"I remember only too well," laughed Kestreleye. "You were always getting into mischief and driving the deputy up a wall." She looked down at the ground. "As for me, my eyes were always on the prize, focused on my future as a warrior." She looked up again into Lightningtail's eyes, "I have my eyes on a very different prize now."

Lightingtail's grew sweaty. Could she mean him? "What do you mean Kestreleye?" he mewed.

Quailpaw padded over to Dahliapaw. "You catch it?" he murmured with mild interest.

Dahliapaw shook her head. "I was about to, then those two started mooning over each other again." She rolled her eyes as the warriors continued their conversation.

"Oh Lightningtail, I can't keep my freakishly large eyes off of you!" said Quailpaw, mimicking his mentor. Kestreleye glared at the two apprentices.

A shrill and repetitive scream echoed in the air. Overhead, there was a glimpse of gold before a dark shadow passed over the cats, as if a cloud had blocked out the sun. All of a sudden, a golden eagle swooped down, its claws aiming for Dahliapaw.

"No!" yowled Quailpaw. He pushed out of the way of the hawk but found himself snatched up instead. The eagle carried him into the air and over the horizon. His screams went ominously quiet after a few moments.

"No!" Lightingtail rushed after Quailpaw but it was too late. His tail drooped. He was a horrible warrior

"It's not your fault," whispered Kestreleye, wrapping Lightningtail in her tail. She stiffened. "It's mine."

Lightingtail sighed and wrapped his tail around hers. "It was just bad luck, Kestreleye. No one could have seen this coming. We should probably go back and tell Eryiestar what happened," he mewed.

"You're right," she sighed. "I'll go tell Eyriestar. Dahliapaw, come on. We're heading back to camp."

DuneClan Territory:

Nightflame spotted Sunscar and padded towards him, ear's flicking curiously. Sunscar waved him over with his tail. "Hey Nightflame, come walk with." He waited a few moments until they were further from camp. "I've set it up with Dunestar. For your bravery in battle today, as well as your zeal and self-control, we've agreed that you'll be the next deputy if something happens to me." Sunscar smiled at Nightflame. "Pretty great, right?" His face darkened. "There is one little thing though."

Nightflame meowed in surprise. "What's the little thing?" He asked, shifting uncomfortably.

"Well, it's only a small thing, you shouldn't worry about it," Sunscar sighed. "Dunestar has decided not to attack GroveClan. She wants to follow the will of that spirit cat and make peace with them. We won't be getting any revenge."

"Oh." Nightflame huffed, slightly disappointed. Look where being peaceful had gotten them!

Sunscar saw Nightflame's face fall, and tried to cheer him up. "Dunestar thinks the clan needs time to rest and recover. After how the last battle went for me, I think I agree with her. I'm not sure I'll get my strength back for a few moons!"

Nightflame nodded, licking a few of his wounds.

"Makes sense,"

Sunscar and Nightflame walked in silence for a while until they came to an isolated part of the territory. "Nightflame, you have a strange look in your eyes," said Sunscar. "Everything okay?"

"Just a trick of the light, I suppose." He shrugged. He got up and said; "Tell Dunestar I'll be out hunting." He lied. When Sunscar would be out of sight, Nightflame would go for a walk to clear his head.

A fat cat lay coughing on the shore, his body caked in salt. His eyes narrowed when he saw Nightflame approach.Nightflame approached the salted figure and his pupils narrowed to slits as he recognized the cat. It was Juluis, the blue-and-black tom's father. "What are you doing here, you treacherous snake?" Juluis' son hissed. He was secretly pleased and he unsheathed his claws, digging them into the ever-shifting sands.

"I was on a boat with my housefolk and I was washed on to this horrible place," Julius moaned. He started licking his fur clean. "Well, why are you just standing there, get me some food! I'm famished!"

"Stay famished." Nightflame snarled, looking at his father with hatred.

Julius glared at his son. "Oh well, I was hoping you'd turn out to be useful for once. Instead, as usual, you've shown yourself to be a selfish, rapid, disobedient little wild cat. If you won't help me, then get out of here!"

"At least, if I had a mate, I'd care for her." Nightflame was referring to his dead mother, Fishsplash. "You didn't care for her, did you?"

"Not a bit," scoffed Julius. "She became ugly after she had you and an ugly she-cat is worse than useless. I deserve only the best."

"Well, you'll see her soon enough," Nightflame sighed, swiftly pinning his father.

"What are you doing you fleabrain, get off me!" yowled Julius. "How dare you attack your own father; I demand respect!"

"Respect?! You get as much respect as a flea-bitten rogue." Nightflame spat, extending a wickedly-sharp claw. "You deserve this."

"No!" squealed Julius. "No, please don't hurt me!"

"Why not? You disrespected my mother, you've rejected me as your son and now you are asking for mercy?" Nightflame growled. Juluis was the worst father Nightflame could ever ask for.

"I uh... only did it to make you strong!" said Julius unconvincingly. "Now let me go!"

"You are a terrible liar and even worse as a father," Nightflame sighed. "Anything else you'd like me to know before you die?"

"This isn't what you really want! Whatever happened to that poor little kit I knew so long ago?" Seeing that it wasn't working, Julius started to yowl loudly. "Someone, anyone! Save me!"

"Shut up!" Nightflame hissed. "No clan cat shares sympathy for a fat Kittypet like you, Julius." Nightflame shook his head, glaring at his father one more time."I hope you're a better father in your next life." With swift paws, he pierced Julius' jugular and watched as the tom bled out.

"Nightflame, I heard shouting. Are you o-" Sunscar stopped suddenly, arriving just in time to see Nightflame finish off Julius. "W-what's going on here?" he asked, shrinking back from the look in Nightflame's eyes.

"It doesn't concern you, Sunscar." Nightflame shook out his pelt, cleaning his bloodied paw. "He deserved it." Sunscar looked uncertain, and turned back towards camp, flicking his tail for Nightflame to follow.

A shrill and repetitive scream echoed in the air. Overhead, there was a glimpse of gold before a dark shadow passed over Nightflame, as if a cloud had blocked out the sun. All of a sudden, a golden eagle swooped down, its claws aiming for Nightflame.

"Look out!" shouted Sunscar, pushing Nightflame out of the way of the eagle's claws. Their talons reopened some of Sunscar's old wounds and he stumbled to the ground.

Nightflame howled in surprise before attempting to tackle the giant bird. He grinned as his claws found their mark. Sunscar leaped to help him. The eagle's claws left a strange crescent star on Nightflame's pelt before its body went limp.

Nightflame huffed in effort, looking hatefully at the limp body of the dead eagle. The spot where the eagle had clawed Nightflame's pelt was bleeding. "Are you alright Sunscar?" the young tom asked the deputy, sounding genuinely worried.

"Ugh, I'll be alright," grunted Sunscar, slowly pushing himself to his feet. He looked at Nightflame's scar. "I'm more worried about you. That eagle cut you pretty bad. Sandyflight better take a look at it."

Nightflame shrugged. He eyed the deputy's opened scars. "I'll be fine," Nightflame insisted.

'If you say so," said Sunscar, shrugging. "Let's get back to camp."