River of Blood (A Warrior Cats Fanfiction)

Prologue

The sky was full of silver stars, glimmering and reflecting delicately over the stone-embedded creek. Spottedpaw shivered, feeling prickly grass brush against his belly. His eyes gleamed, barely able to contain his excitement. In a few more moments, he'd be face-to-face with StarClan!

He could hardly believe it.

Behind him, his mentor, Puddletail, was silent, picking his way carefully over the slope. His gray pelt ruffled with the night-breeze, ears twitching as a mouse scurried past them.

Mallowfern raised her chin. "It's nearly time," she said. Her fur turned silver under the pale moonlight, leaving the lingering scent of FrostClan on her pelt. It was obvious that she wasn't used to the feeling of grass underneath her paws, instead accustomed to the snow and ice of her own territory.

In the distance, a raven screeched, and Spottedpaw quickly hurried after Puddletail, his heart pounding.

The Moonpool glistened, brimming with tiny, white stars. PineClan's medicine cat, Stormberry, approached the water, sniffing around cautiously for any sign that they would be disturbed. Her apprentice, Palepaw, followed hastily behind her, brushing against her pelt as he settled beside the older she-cat.

Puddletail whispered, "press your nose against the water, and close your eyes. Allow StarClan to enter your dreams."

"Yes, Puddletail," murmured Spottedpaw. He padded closer, touching his muzzle against the water. it rippled underneath him, and after a moment, he was asleep, his world swallowed in darkness.

-

When Spottedpaw finally awoke, he was face-to-face with the starry pelt of a StarClan warrior.

His eyes widened. "Wow," he said. "Are you really a StarClan warrior?"

"Yes," meowed the she-cat, whiskers twitching. She smiled. "My name's Swanfeather. I have called you here myself to deliver you a prophecy."

"A prophecy?" asked Spottedpaw. He stared at her uneasily, feeling his belly turn. "But aren't prophecies an indication that trouble is coming?"

Swanfeather was silent. After a heartbeat, she nodded. "Yes," she said. The StarClan warrior closed her eyes. "And you will have a long, perilous journey ahead of you, one of bloodshed and slaughter."

"Tell me," whispered Spottedpaw.

She stood up taller. When she spoke, it sounded like she was speaking through a completely different cat. "The territory will be bathed in blood when pine trees ascend. A honey bee will fly to smother the approaching darkness, but only if her heart is true and her mind is pure."

Spottedpaw tilted his head. "But what does it mean?" he asked, confused.

"That is for you to find out, young one," said Swanfeather. Her silver pelt was nearly transparent now, impossible to make out between the star-streaked grass and the pale white rocks of StarClan territory.

"But," he stammered, swallowing. "I can't do this alone!" he cried, until she had fully disappeared, leaving him to stand alone in the empty clearing.