Rising Storm

Chapter 17

Skyfall's claws felt rooted to the Thunderpath as she stared at the cat that had cast a menacing shadow over her life for so long. There was no need for any pretense of shared Clan loyalty now. Tigerclaw was an outcast, the enemy of all cats who followed the warrior code.

The fiery evening sun bled through the tips of the trees, its orange rays glowing on the dark pelt of the massive tabby. Across the silence of the deserted Thunderpath, Tigerclaw sneered at Skyfall.

"Is chasing puny cats to their deaths the best you can do to defend your territory?"

Skyfall's mind cleared in a heartbeat, leaving her body pulsing with the strength of cold fury. She stared straight into Tigerclaw's eyes as the thundering of another monster stirred her ear fur. She held her ground as it whipped by her, another roaring at its heels. But Skyfall felt no fear. In the fleeting gap between the two monsters she focused on Tigerclaw and sprang.

Tigerclaw's eyes widened with surprise as Skyfall crashed into him, claws unsheathed and hissing with rage. They rolled together across the grass into the cover of the trees. Skyfall drew strength from the familiar scents of the forest—her territory now, not Tigerclaw's—and the pair struggled wildly, flattening the brittle undergrowth and gouging deep scars in the ground with their claws.

Skyfall had gotten a good grip on Tigerclaw in her first pounce. She could feel every one of the tabby's ribs. Tigerclaw had lost weight, but his muscles felt hard beneath his thick pelt, and Skyfall quickly realized that exile had not diminished the warrior's strength. Tigerclaw crouched and leaped upward, twisting in midair. Skyfall felt herself being flung from Tigerclaw's back, felt the impact of the parched ground as she landed on her side. She gasped for the air that had been knocked from her lungs and struggled to her paws. She wasn't fast enough. Tigerclaw pounced on her, pinning her to the ground with claws that seemed to pierce Skyfall to the bone.

Skyfall yowled in agony, but the massive tom held her down, and she smelled the stench of crowfood as Tigerclaw stretched his neck forward to hiss into Skyfall's ear, "Are you listening, Skyfall? I will kill you, and all your warriors, one by one."

Even in the heat of battle, his words sent a chill through Skyfall. She knew Tigerclaw meant what he said. She suddenly became aware of new noises and smells around her—the rustle of unfamiliar paws and strange cat scents. They were surrounded. But by whom? Confused by the scents of the Thunderpath, Whitethroat's blood, and her own fear, Skyfall wondered bleakly if these could be the remaining cats from Brokentail's band of outcasts, who not long ago had helped Tigerclaw attack the ThunderClan camp. Had Whitethroat chosen to join these rogues rather than return to his own disease-ridden Clan?

In desperation Skyfall pushed up with her hind legs, her claws raking for a hold on Tigerclaw's belly. Her old enemy must have underestimated how strong Skyfall had grown, for his grip loosened and he slithered onto the ground. Skyfall scrabbled away from him, lifting her head in time to see Whitestorm and Mousefur hurl themselves from the undergrowth onto two of the cats that had surrounded them. She glanced back at Tigerclaw, who had sprung to his paws and was rearing up onto his hind legs, towering over Skyfall with his teeth bared and his amber eyes gleaming with hatred. She ducked as Tigerclaw lunged, darting forward and turning to swipe the dark warrior on the nose. Beside her she could hear the yowls and hisses of Whitestorm and Mousefur as they battled with the courage of StarClan. But they were badly outnumbered. As Skyfall dodged Tigerclaw once more, she looked around desperately for any means of escape. Claws raked at her hind legs, and she turned to see one of Tigerclaw's rogues grasping her and snarling viciously. He was skinny and ungroomed like the others, his eyes glittering with spite.

Tigerclaw reared up again with a furious hiss. Skyfall was bracing herself for Tigerclaw's blow when she saw a blaze of gray. A broad pair of shoulders flashed past, and Skyfall recognized a warrior she had fought alongside many times.

Graystripe!

The gray warrior lunged at Tigerclaw's exposed belly, knocking him backward. Skyfall whipped around and bit the shoulder of the cat that clung to her hind leg until she felt her teeth scrape against bone. She released the rogue when he squealed, and spat out the blood that had dripped onto her mouth.

Astounded, Skyfall looked around the battle that raged around her. Graystripe must have brought a whole RiverClan patrol, for now it was the rogue cats who were outnumbered as they struggled against the sleek-furred warriors. She turned to see Graystripe twisting free of Tigerclaw's grasp and sprang to help her friend. Together they reared at Tigerclaw, swiping at him to drive him backward, matched step for step as they had practiced so many times in training. Then, without even exchanging a glance, they lunged as one and forced the massive tabby onto the ground. Tigerclaw let out a muffled hiss as Skyfall pressed her foe's muzzle into the dirt while Graystripe grasped the tabby's shoulders and pounded his flank with his hind legs.

Skyfall heard screeches fade into the woods and realized that the rogue cats were fleeing the battle. Tigerclaw took advantage of Skyfall's lapse of attention and wriggled free. He fled toward the brambles, spitting with fury, and disappeared among the barbed stems.

As the wails of the rogue cats faded away, the warrior shook the dust from their pelts and licked their wounds. Skyfall realized for the first time that Bluestar's son, Stonefur, was among the RiverClan cats. "Is anyone badly hurt?" she gasped.

The cats shook their heads, even Mousefur, who was still bleeding from the first attack.

"We should return to our own territory," meowed Stonefur.

"ThunderClan thanks you for your help." Skyfall dipped her head respectfully.

"Rogue cats steal from all of us," Stonefur replied. "We couldn't leave you to fight them alone."

Whitestorm shook his muzzle, scattering drops of blood, then padded up to Graystripe purring. He pressed his muzzle to Graystripe's forehead. "It's good to fight beside you again, son. What brought you here?"

"He heard Skyfall's yowl from Fourtrees, where we were patrolling," Stonefur answered for Graystripe. "He persuaded us to come and help."

"Thanks," answered Skyfall warmly. "All of you."

Stonefur nodded and turned away into the trees. His patrol followed. Skyfall touched Graystripe with her muzzle as he passed, sorry to see him leave, and painfully aware that there was no time to say as much as she wanted. "See you, Graystripe," she meowed.

She felt Graystripe's purr rumbling through his thick coat. "See you," murmured the gray warrior.

Skyfall shivered as the sun finally disappeared from the forest. She could see Mousefur's eyes shining in the dark, tense with pain. Then she felt a rush of sorrow as she remembered the price that had been paid for the rogue cats' attack. Runningwind's body would be growing cold by now. And this was not the only untimely death Tigerclaw had brought to the forest that day.

Skyfall looked at Whitestorm. "Can you and Mousefur get Runningwind back to camp without me?"

The white warrior narrowed his eyes curiously but said nothing and nodded.

Skyfall twitched her ear that wasn't torn, her other ear now almost completely immobile. The tears from her scuffle with Graystripe had limited her movement but she could still lower it slightly. "I'll follow you back soon. There's something I must do first."