Fire'Scar - A Warriors Legend |Book 1; Apprentice's Code|

Prologue

The moonlight shone over the Forest Territories, everything was still and silent except for the bone-chilling breeze that rattled the leafless tree branches. A monster hurled past on the thunder path - Shaking the ground in its wake. A glimpse of amber eyes flashed in the shadow of a bush, waiting for a chance to cross.
As another monster roared by, the soot-black tom emerged, grasping the bundle in his jaws tightly as he made a beeline for the other side, paws pounding on the cold concrete, and ears ringing as a monster came closer in view.

The tom made it to the other side, diving into the snow powered bushes before the monster finally roared past. He was safe. They were safe.

He padded onward, deeper into the forest as the snow silently crunched beneath his paws. He stopped, looking around, before shoving his way into a small clearing, past some bracken bushes.
The clearing was surrounded by bushes, a single boulder, and a tree which had roots jabbing from the ground like adders. Perfect shelter for a night or two.
The tom bent down, putting down the small, flame colored kit he had been so carefully trudging around with. The kit's eyes were wide open, looking around disgruntled as it felt the cold, wet snow hit its paws.

The kit's ears went back, and he turned to the warrior, who seemed to be hovering over him.
"I'm not gonna see you again, am I, Soot'bark?"
The only thing he'd said, through everything. The explanation of danger, and his new home, nothing came out, but that single question. Soot'bark pushed the thought from his mind, unnerved by how calm the kit seemed.
Soot'bark slowly shook his head, eyes filled with both pain and exhaustion. "No, Fire'kit. No." He hesitated slightly before adding a final direction to the young kit. "Stay here until sunrise, when the Thunderclan Dawn patrol comes 'round. You'll be safe here. Just.. Keep yourself out of trouble."

Fire'kit watched Soot'bark, knowing that despite his calm temperament, he was actually frightened.
Soot'bark slowly turned around, his paws crunching louder and more heavily in the snow as he shoved his way past the snow powdered bracken bushes, leaving the young kit all alone, confused, cold and lonely, in the middle of Thunderclan territory.

                                     ______

"What do you mean you can't find the kit!?"
An outrageous yowl rose from Shadowclan's leaders den. Where the medicine cat, leader, and a mother sat, making all ears swivel towards the direction of the noise, so late at night for such sounds to be coming from the den, then again Pine'star was always yelling.

"Someone took him out of camp - he might have even run away-"

"Do you think I care?" Pine'stars furious snarl made the two cats flinch back, avoiding conflict with the dangerous and tempered Shadowclan leader, who's dark black and brown, scarred up pelt didn't give him much more of a friendly look. The medicine cat, a bright brown, long hair tabby, shuffled her paws nervously, and glanced at the mother of the three kits. "You're.. Sure, that the prophecy meant Fire'kit? Right, Pine'star?" She looked up and saw the deep brown eyes of the leader glaring at her as though she suggested it was his kit who was the bad omen.
Pine'star looked away and sat down, growling without a word.

"You know that kit could be the destruction of all the clans, Bracken'tail." The silence broke as the toms brown eyes flashed in determination as he looked at the medicine cat, sending a shiver down her spine. "We have to know that he's-"

"Dead?" Bracken'tail's bitter tone began, and didn't stop. "He's a kit. We're not even sure-"

"You've heard and seen the things he's done to his den-mates and clan!" Pine'star snapped, cutting off the she, unwilling to listen to anything but his own words. "Thorns in his litter mates nests.. stealing.." His complaints became deafeningly silent grumbles.

"You should at least be happy that he's not in camp now." The tortoiseshell queen finally spoke up. "He's less of a threat - Our clan comes first." The queen looked accusingly at Bracken'tail. "You seem pretty sure the prophecy referred to my kits, when it only mentioned two kits- not three."
"Because I saw two cats, none of which had a white pelt, and each one was similar to your kits, Finch'heart."

Finch'heart growled. "You can say that lightly because you're never gonna have kits of your own, let alone a mate who could care less about everything, Bracken'tail."

Pine'star closed his eyes, ears flattened as he let out a hiss. "Get out, both of you. I need time to think this over without petty she-cat complaints filling my ears."

The two she-cats left, separating ways. Finch'heart returned to her remaining kits, and Bracken'tail headed to her den, shivering from the icy wind. Since she wasn't sleeping anytime soon, she was going to make herself useful and sort through herbs.
Suddenly she stopped a few paw steps from the den, ears swiveled forwards and pupils slit as her heartbeat quickened.. it was a voice, surrounding her every move. It was back.. and saying the same, repetitive phrase that had most likely cost a kit its life.

"From two who are born, one outcast will rise - And bring the destruction, of all Four Lives"