Warriors: Poisoned Loyalty {COMPLETED}

Chapter 19

Poppypool stirred as the first light of dawn filtered through the cracks of the medicine den's walls. She blinked, groggy and disoriented, but the sound of restless movement nearby quickly pulled her into full awareness. Newtflake was pacing, his tail twitching, eyes narrowed in thought.

"Newtflake?" she asked, her voice soft with concern. He had been this way for days- ever since the attack. The fire of vengeance burned in his yellow-green eyes, a simmering anger that had begun to harden him, and Poppypool feared what it could do to him in the long run.

"They have to pay," he muttered under his breath, his voice tight. "Those rogues- what they did to Daisystep, to Cedarpelt- I can't just sit here while they get away with it."

Poppypool sighed, her heart aching at his words. She padded over and touched her nose gently to his shoulder, hoping to calm him. "You're still recovering," she reminded him. "Your wounds aren't fully healed, and revenge won't bring Daisystep back."

Newtflake stopped and looked at her with a hardness she'd never seen before. "I can't rest while they're out there, waiting to strike again. I don't care if I'm injured. The next time those rogues show their faces, I'll be ready."

His determination was fierce, but it scared her. This wasn't the Newtflake she knew- the gentle, warm-hearted apprentice who had always put others before himself. The attack had changed him, and now she was watching the shift in him happen before her eyes.

"You won't help anyone by getting yourself killed," Poppypool warned, her voice firm but laced with emotion. "I need you, Newtflake. GlacierClan needs you. Orchidfern needs you. Daisystep wouldn't want you to throw your life away for revenge."

Newtflake flinched at her words but said nothing, his gaze drifting to the entrance of the den, as if already imagining the rogues lurking beyond the camp.

As Poppypool turned to check her herb stores, a sudden chill swept through the den. It was as if all the warmth had been sucked out, leaving only a biting cold in its wake. Poppypool froze, recognizing the feeling. Slowly, she turned around, her eyes widening as a faint shimmer of light began to coalesce at the edge of the den.

The spirit had returned.

The starry spirit had visited her her a few times before, always delivering cryptic messages and warnings, but today there was something different about their expression. Their luminous eyes were soft but solemn, and they looked straight at Poppypool.

"You must be careful," they murmured, their voice a low hum that seemed to echo in the space between the living and dead. "His heart is clouded with anger. If he follows the path he is on now, it will lead him to a place darker than you can imagine."

Poppypool's chest tightened. "I've been trying to guide him," she whispered, her voice trembling. "But I don't know what else to do. The rogues have taken so much from him... from us."

Their gaze didn't waver. "It is not the rogues that will destroy him- it is the thirst for vengeance. You know this, Poppypool. You have walked that line yourself."

The words hit her hard, like claws sinking into her heart. She bowed her head, her guilt overwhelming. The spirit was right- she had walked this dark path herself, had made choices she regretted, and now she was watching Newtflake teeter dangerously close to that same edge.

"Please," she whispered. "Help me save him."

The spirit stepped closer, their starry form flickering slightly. "Guide him, as you once wished someone had guided you. His heart is still pure, but it is being clouded by grief and rage. You must help him before it is too late."

Before Poppypool could respond, the spirit faded away, leaving the medicine den cold and still once more. Poppypool stood there, staring at the empty space where the spirit had been, her heart heavy with both hope and fear.

Would she be able to save Newtflake from the darkness she knew so well?

*****

Later that day, as the sun began its descent, the mood in GlacierClan's camp grew even more tense. The threat of the rogue group weighed heavily on every cat's mind, especially as a few rogue sightings had been reported soon after Newtflake's attack. Patrols had been doubled, and the warriors walked with unease, always alert for signs of an impending attack. The last raid had been devastating, and the losses were fresh wounds for all of them.

Poppypool found herself preoccupied, thoughts racing as she tried to balance her duties with the rising fear in her heart. Newtflake's determination for vengeance were festering, and the rogue attacks were becoming bolder. She could feel the storm brewing, and it terrified her.

Just as she was preparing to check on Sparrowstar, Hawkflight approached her, his gaze troubled. But before he could speak, Poppypool felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Poppypool, I need to speak with you privately," Sparrowstar's voice was firm, but there was a flicker of something in her eyes that Poppypool couldn't place.

The two cats walked to the leader's den, leaving Hawkflight standing there, his own words swallowed by the urgency in Sparrowstar's tone.

Once inside, Poppypool turned to face her leader. "What's going on?" she asked, her stomach twisting with unease.

Sparrowstar hesitated, which only made Poppypool's anxiety grow. "It's Tawnyheart," Sparrowstar said, her eyes flickering with something close to worry. "I've just found out... she's expecting a litter."

Poppypool blinked, taken aback. "Tawnyheart? But... I didn't even know-" She broke off, stunned at the news. Tawnyheart, distant and seemingly lost in her own world for moons, was expecting kits?

Sparrowstar's gaze was unreadable. "She's been distant, but this... I don't know. Something feels wrong. She won't talk to anyone, not even her new mate."

Poppypool's heart raced as the weight of everything of everything came crashing down. Between Newtflake's anger, the rogue threat, and now this new revelation about Tawnyheart, she felt like she was drowning.

"I'll check on her," Poppypool promised, her mind spinning. "But... her new mate?" she added, still reeling from the shock.

Sparrowstar nodded. "It's someone from outside the Clan. But... you've been distant yourself, Poppypool. You haven't been paying attention."

The words stung more than she expected. She had been so wrapped up in her own guilt, her secrets, that she hadn't noticed the changes around her. How could she have missed something so significant?

*****

That night, as Poppypool lay awake in her nest, the camp quiet around her, she felt the full weight of everything she had been carrying. The burden of her secrets, Newtflake's growing obsession with vengeance, the threat of the rogues, and now Tawnyheart's unexpected news.

She was overwhelmed- drowning in it all.

But as she stared up at the sky, her thoughts kept returning to the spirit's warning. She couldn't let Newtflake fall into the darkness. She couldn't lose him to the same path she had once followed.

And yet, she didn't know how to save him.