**OLD** Valley Cats: Of Sky and Stone 1- Daughters and Darkness

Chapter Thirty-Nine

 "Rosepaw!" Twistertail yowled, racing down the mountain. "Where is she? Is she alright?"  She squinted to see through the rain, barely making out the cat's pelts. Squirrelstrike was watching intensely as Sagepool and Mosscurl took the opportunity to demonstrate proper wound-care to Duskpaw. The two most injured cats, Lightshine and Rosepaw, were the ones being treated. As she got closer, she could see that they were loosely gathered beside a flooded river.

 The ginger she-cat stood up to greet her, pricking her ears sharply. "Rosepaw only has two wounds- the deep one on her shoulder and a bruised paw. But Lightshine was the cat to fight Brightstar, who obviously had an advantage with his gift." Squirrelstrike reported. "Glowheart wasn't that injured, and she got him caught in some brambles. Her brother, however..." she turned her gaze to the courageous tom, whose thick white pelt was matted with blood.

 "Did you... Did you defeat Brightstar?" the ginger warrior asked timidly, casting a considerate glance at her son.

 "The prophecy was about actual brambles and hail. He tripped over the vines caught on his paws, and when he fell a chunk of ice hit him on the head." Twistertail panted, still winded from the run downhill. 

 "Oh. Was it quick?" Squirrelstrike said painfully.

 "Yes, yes. He didn't even know what hit him. What happened to his evil tench-cats?" the young warrior asked oddly, trying to change the subject.

 "I finished off Snakelash, but Ratchaser and Viperstrike are still out there somewhere, and I think Crowpelt got away, too. But none of us are too badly injured, except for Lightshine and Rosepaw. I hope Glowheart will be back soon with those... Things. Whatever Sagepool called them."

 "Where is Glowheart now?" 

 "She's collecting some herbs for Sagepool and Mosscurl. Apparently CliffClan cats forage by this river-"

 "Onyx-eye!" Twistertail suddenly remembered, her head shooting up. "She's badly hurt, and I left her all alone!" she whirled around to where the top of the mountain would be if she could see it through the rain, but by some outrageous miracle, a familiar black cat was already stumbling towards her.

 "Sister?" the young warrior narrowed her eyes. Even though it was much more likely that she had died and was appearing as a dark spirit, Onyx-eye was slowly climbing over the rocks. "Is that another CliffClan thing?" Twistertail asked, stunned. "Coming back from the dead?"

 "Yes, CliffClan cats have been known to survive falling on rocks." Sagepool offered, not looking up from where he was patching up a cut on Lightshine's back. "But she may not live much longer if she bleeds to death out here."

 The scrawny cat blindly stumbled closer. Now that Twistertail could see her more clearly, she noticed that one of her eyes was unfocused and her breathing was ragged. Onyx-eye flopped down next to Lightshine, obliviously mumbling praises to the sleeping warrior. Sagepool rushed over, using a claw to peel back one of her eyelids. The healer glanced over his shoulder at Duskpaw, waving his tail at the apprentice. "Here, Duskpaw." he called. "This is what brain damage looks like."

 "Is she going to be alright?" Twistertail demanded, her fur bristling. Just when her heart had stopped pounding and the fog in her head had cleared, she felt another spike of nervous energy. But before she could say anything to her sister, Glowheart returned with a bundle of herbs. The soft-furred she-cat took one look at Onyx-eye and rushed over, her eyes widening with concern.

 "Smokesight told us about this, didn't he? Is she going to be blind in one eye for the rest of her life?" she fretted. The cream-colored tom shooed her back with a paw, hissing on behalf of his patient.