BadgerStrike's Sketchbook! *Dat's Right!!!*

Old Void Of Stars!

Now this one isn't a picture, but a document! This is the first copy EVER of the first version of Void Of Stars! Hope you enjoy!

Prologue
In The Beginning There Was Hope

Rain poured on the fallen tree, echoing in the empty space. A small white she-cat curled herself around her three newborn kits. The first two were dark gray like their unknowing father, but the last was a pale, sandy brown. He was small and weak, writhing in the stale moss of the bottom of the log. The snowy mother saw that the last born tom was sickly and wouldn't survive the night, never mind the coming cold of winter.
Pushing him aside she focused on the first two of her litter, she picked them up and began to leave the den. But she turned and through the fur of her other kits, she whispered her last message as she left,
"As you drift into eternal sleep,
Away the shadows creep,
Light will cover her small pelt with stars,
This is hope, and it will never be far."

The white she-cat left her only son in the hollow log, and crept away into the undergrowth. From behind the log, a ginger tabby she-cat went inside the log, and went to the sand colored kit. The little tom was mewling for his mother, crying for love. The tabby's heart broke, and she layed down and pushed his small body into her young, feather soft fur. His shivering calmed as he finally fell asleep, his breath making her tufts of white, belly fur shimmer. She began to lick her new kit until he was dry and purring.
"Hello, my new son." She whispered, her voice trembling. She looked at his small, helpless body and fell in love with him.
"I will be your mother, little one, your name will be Wolf."

Chapter 1
Moonlight

"Come on, Pine! Get over here!" Yelled Amber at her denmate. A fluffy gray tomkit scrambled over to her, rolling his green eyes.
"Wait up!" Said Pine's younger sister, Willow, running towards them from her mother, Creek's side, running across the the holly bush den. Following close behind her was her other brother, Stag, Sunny and Storm, daughters to Holly, and finally Shade, Amber's brother. Shade's fuzzy gray tabby pelt was ruffled from sleep. Amber's fur was still feather soft, but, unlike her brother's, was ginger, with darker tips, giving her her name.
The other kits gathered around her, looking at her, curiosity in their eyes.
"Why are we here?" demanded Storm, "It's the middle of the night!"
"Yeah, I was having a really good dream," said an annoyed looking Shade, "I was about to bite into a mouse!"
Amber rolled her eyes, "You guys complain a lot! But it's worth it! Look at the moon!"
All the kits turned their heads to the sky, looking confused.
"What?" asked Sunny.
"Duh! It's a claw moon!"
"Yeah?" said Storm, "It happens every month!"
"Well we've never seen one! We've only heard about it from our mothers! Isn't it cool!?" The other kits stared at her, angry, tired, and bedraggled.
"I don't know about you but I'm done looking at a hunk of rock in the sky! Goodnight!" said Storm, walking back into the nursery, followed by Willow, who was tripping over her own paws in her tired state. Stag walked over to her as the rest of her denmates walked angrily back into the den. He looked at her with his shining green eyes.
"I thought it was cool..." He said getting embarrassed and trailing off.
"Thanks."
"But we should get to bed before our mothers' get angry. Come on."
"That's right!" Yelled Amber's mother, Rose from inside. They both laughed quietly. Amber followed his tail back into the den, taking one last look at the moon. The moonlight seemed to follow her, turning her ginger fur to dark silver. She looked at the talon in the sky. It seemed to twinkle in front of her eyes.
A voice suddenly rang loud and clear in her head,
"As you drift into eternal sleep,
Away the shadows creep,
Light will cover her small pelt with stars,
This is hope, and it will never be far."
***

Chapter 2
Shadows Creep

Morning light peeked through the spiked leaves of the holly bush den, waking Amber from her dream. It had been many months since the claw moon. Her fur was less fluffy, and more adult like. She got up and stretched, feeling the muscles moving beneath her ginger pelt. Looking at her mother, Rose, Amber saw her belly rising and dropping slowly, her brother at his mother's belly. She padded over to where Sunny was sleeping on top of her sister. She muttered in her sleep, moving her legs in the air frantically. She laughed silently. Amber prodded Sunny with a paw, and proceeded to shake her awake. One blue eye opened, and looked lazily at Amber.
"Get up, you hedgehog!" She whispered harshly. Sunny grunted and got up on four long, but unsteady legs. Her russet fur flattened on one side.
"What do you want?!" Sunny asked.
"We are the first ones up! Wanna go play fight?"
"Fine, alright I'll come. But when everyone starts waking up, we have to go back inside, Ok?"
"Cool, ok."
They both walked out of the bush, and went into the clearing. The sun was now higher in the sky, beating heat down. Sunny crouched and uttered a growl. Amber crouched too, flattening her tail to the ground. Then she leapt at her friend. They tussled in the sand and dust, growling playfully as they went. Amber put Sunny on her back and held her down.
"Alright you win, you win. Now let me up you big lug!"
Amber let her get up, and they caught their breath. She then realized her left ear tip hurt. She brought a paw up and touched it. There was a long slit through it.
"Oh no! I'm so sorry Amber!"
"No, don't be! It's my first battle scar!" They both laughed and talked for a while longer until they heard a rustle in the holly bush. Out came Rose, looking around.
"There you are, Amber! Get over here right now!" Amber sadly walked over to her mother. "What have you guys been doing!? Your ear! And you're all dirty!" She then began to fiercely lick Amber's fur.
"Mother! Stop! I can clean my own fur!" She pushed away from Rose, but she pulled Amber right back. While she got the bathing of a lifetime, and a schoulding, Holly and Creek came out with the other young cats. They walked over to her and Rose.
"Oh um...Rose we need to talk...alone." Rose released her angry daughter, and the three she-cats walked to the other side of the clearing. Amber met up with others.
"Do you know what they're talking about?" Amber asked Pine.
"Not much, When we were getting up I heard the word "kill", but that's about it." He licked his fur flat, while Amber talked to her other friends.
"Do you think we're in danger?!" Said Willow nervously, "I don't want to die!"
"We are going to be fine!" Storm yelled. Amber turned to look at her mother. Her face was worried and scared as she spoke with Creek and Holly. She whispered something back, and seemed to gasp. Amber walked over to them to ask what they were waiting for. As she approached, she started to hear some of the conversation.
"Do you think he'll come here?"
"No he wouldn't dare! We have her!"
"Are you sure? My kits aren't safe while he is walking the earth freely-" Holly stopped short as she saw Amber.
"Who's he?" Amber asked Creek. The three cats exchanged a glance, and Rose turned to her daughter.
"Nothing that should worry you, little Amber. Go back to the others."
"Tell me!" Amber pleaded, looking at Rose sweetly. She looked back at Holly, who shrugged helplessly. Rose sighed, "Go get the others and we'll tell you."
Amber excitedly ran to her friends and they went back to the she-cats together.
"Alright everyone sit down." Creek said. The cats settled and sat.
"Long ago there was a white she-cat with three kits." Rose began. "She had two she-cats and a tom. The she-kits were healthy and strong. But the last, the tom, was weak from the start. He coughed and shivered. She knew she had to save the strong kits, and sacrifice the other." The kits gasped in shock. "I know it's sad, but she had too. Anyway, she began to leave but before she left she spoke her final words to her only son-" Suddenly Amber began to speak against her will,
"As you drift into eternal sleep,
Away the shadows creep,
Light will cover her small pelt with stars,
This is hope, and it will never be far."
Rose and the others looked at her. Creek was in shock and Holly had stepped nervously away from her.
"How did you know that, Amber?" Rose asked, looking both shocked and confused.
"The moon told me." Amber said with the fullest confidence. Rose looked back at the other two, dumbfounded. Rose sat down and turned back to her daughter, "What else did the moon tell you?"
"Nothing." Amber saw the look on her mother's face, her green eyes twinkled with worry and fear, "Did I do something wrong, mother?"
"No it's alright, little one." Rose sighed. "I just didn't think your powers would come so fast..." she muttered.
"Powers?" Amber asked, cocking her head.
Rose sighed, and took a deep breath, "All you kits have abilities, powers, if you will." Rose looked at the younger cats. "Long before any of you were born, I had a dream that told me of a prophecy." She cleared her throat and began,