Warrior Cats: Sky of Storms

Chapter 21

The day after the Gathering, rain pounded, and never seemed to stop. Finally, the drought was over, and Bluetail reported that the river was moving faster and faster, which meant all the black water was draining. 

The bad part was that some cats had started to get Whitecough. Wishpaw and Hopepaw had started to cough the other day, and Mosspelt had been shivering violently all night. 

And of course, above all things, Twolegs were still contaminating the river. 

Echostar walked out of her den, seeing Bluetail sending out patrols. She jumped up onto the Highrock, calling, "Lets all cats old enough to swim gather here beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting!"

They gathered around, and this time Echostar thought she would say something that would cheer them up in this dark, gloomy, wet, day.

"StarClan has gifted us rain!" She said, and the Clan cheered. "The weeds will not become fresh and new again for a while, so we still have to deal with that. Pebblewing, I'd like you to keep an eye on that.

"Twolegs still threaten to destroy our territory, and we must act. The rain is washing away all the poison in our territory, but Bluetail has discovered a building Twolegs have built on the side of the river. It's about as big as a Twoleg nest, and it has a hole that pours out the black water. We must destroy it, and our territory will finally have peace."

She waited for cheers as she ended her speech, but the only said was the drip drop of rain. She looked down at her Clan to see most of them with uncertain faces. 

"Are you sure we can take down a whole Twoleg nest?" Stormfur called. "There a lot bigger then us, and who knows is we can take down a Twoleg, let alone more."

Echostar narrowed her eyes. "We do have a certain Clan that will help us though." She said in a dangerous voice. "ThunderClan is in our debt." 

The Clan dispersed as she jumped down, some worried, and others confident. Mosspelt stared at her from across the camp, and Echostar trotted over to her, but stayed her distance. 

"You act as if Dawnflower's death is a good thing." Mosspelt said, tilting her head. Echostar flicked her tail, dismissing the question. 

"All things happen for a reason." Echostar said. "Maybe Dawnflower's death was a good thing. RiverClan will be able to strive with ThunderClan's help."

Mosspelt bristled her fur, hissing. "What has happened to you? You used to be such a sweet and kind apprentice who wanted to help anyone. You where the first to realize about the poison, the first to help anyone, and now you think your foster mothers death is a good thing?" Mosspelt growled.

"You need to figure out your priorities." Mosspelt started again, followed by a fit of coughing. "Being leader changed you, and not for the better." Echostar stopped dead. She had felt that way about Waterstorm too!

Echostar remembered how mad she was, and how he pointed out things that were wrong and gave the Clan good news instead of the truth. No. 

She turned away, calling the cats she wanted to come on the patrol to ThunderClan. I want to have a piece of Waterstorm with me, but not that piece. 

Rockheart, Pebblewing, Skypaw, and Blacklaw. Specifically cats that were smart and wouldn't seem threatening or charge into battle. 

As they crossed the stepping stones, Echostar sat down at the edge of the river, waiting for a patrol. Rockheart sat beside her, and she could feel his fur ruffling against hers.

A noise sounded from the bushes and a tiny kit popped out. "Birchkit!" A voice called behind him. Dustpelt stormed out of the bushes, picking up Birchkit fiercely, but he dropped the kit when he saw the patrol.

His fur bristled, but he saw Echostar and jerked his head so they would follow them. Picking up Birchkit, they set off. Echostar noticed that Rockheart's eyes were locked on the kit, and he whispered to her, "Do you think we- I mean, I'll have kits like that one day?"

Echostar stared at him as they walked. What did he mean by that? "Sure." She answered instead. "You just need to find the right cat."

Rockheart was silent the rest of the way, and soon the emerged into ThunderClan's camp. Cats buzzed around; she saw apprentices putting moss into dens, and warriors restocking the freshkill pile, but most cats where inside their dens, away from the storm.

Firestar, who was sharing tongues with Sandstorm, walked up to them. "Greetings, Echostar." He said. 

"Greetings." She mewed back. "I hope the prey is running well." Firestar laughed, giving a sideways glance to Sandstorm who had a mischievous look on her face.

"Well, but wet." He said. "Do you want to talk in my den?" Echostar followed him, feeling the eyes of ThunderClan warriors on her.

Firestar's den was cozy and warm, and she almost found herself falling asleep as she explained the story to him. 

Firestar looked up at her, his eyes worried and guilty. For his own Clan, and for the debt he owes us. She guessed.

"Very well." He finally said. "ThunderClan is in your debt. We will help you defeat these Twolegs."