Warriors - Times of Anarchy (Book 1, The Flame)

Chapter 2

"You mouse-brained fool!" snarled Wishstar, leaping up and towering over Molestar like a snowy shadow, her pelt bristling. "Have you already forgotten the tales of your kithood? One clan alone in the forest is doomed to chaos, even in good intentions. To wish that under ambition might corrupt the trust of Starclan upon us forever," she mewed coldly, staring down at him.

Molestar didn't flinch from her gaze, smirking smugly. "If we all united, their would be no more deaths in leaf-bare, for are medicine cats would work together. We'd have more warriors to hunt and more queens and kits!" he replied, facing up to the she-cat. Watching her unsheathe and sheathe her claws rapidly, his neck fur crept up, bristling in fear of losing another life.

"You hear me? Never. Why would you even attempt such a foolish act against Proudclan, who literally dominates both of ours?" she spat, her golden amber orbs glowing in the dim light of the weaved nest.

Molestar forced himself to calm down, and felt his hackles lower. "Why? I'll tell you why, Wishstar. Starclan is in our favor. They have sent us a prophecy," he said smoothly, yet his eyes glittered with exhilaration, as if he'd been dying to tell her the prophecy all along.

"The sky shall fall apon the ruins and with help the flame shall grow and under it's power a powerful leader will rise." Molestar's voice lowered and deepened as he recited the exact words he'd heard in his dreams. Wishstar's gaze became puzzled- if the wish for alliance was under the will of Starclan, then, she was forced to accept.

"I will bow to your commands," she murmured slowly. "You have our aid and alliance... but, I'm unsure about the prophecy's meaning. Does it truly want us to ally? What do they mean that the sky has fallen?" she mused, and as she trailed her gaze slowly upwards, the white queen sighed.

"Everything will clear up in time," mewed Molestar with disdain, a smirk on his face. Flicking his tail, he padded the first out of her den, and Wishstar tagged behind him, weary. Molestar wasn't saying everything he knew, but she had agreed with him, and she couldn't go back on her words now. She watched him leap up ungracefully on an oak's lower branch and yowl out a call to reassemble all the cats in the clearing.

Wishstar leapt up after him, seeing Ravenskies, which she knew was Molestar's new deputy, pad near them with eyes glittering with bemused impatience. A shiver passed along Wishstar as she met the icy gaze of the she-cat, who gave a hardly visible nod to Halfclan's leader. Wishstar looked at the cats gathered and realized Molestar's patrol had crowded at the front and that her clanmates were giving them space.

"Halfclan," meowed Molestar, sweeping his gaze across her clan, and Wishstar saw a few cats, including Tornear, bristle aggressively at being summoned by an enemy clan's leader.

"Today, I announce wonderful news to your clan. With the power of joint leaders, Ruinsclan, Halfclan and Skyclan shall become one, Flameclan, and we'll rid the forest once-and-for-all from Proudclan!"

The uproar of her clan was instant, as cats yowled their protest or agreement. "What is this nonsense?!" yowled Tornear, pushing himself to the front of the crowd, accompanied by Wyverncry, near the Ruinsclan cats. "What's Skyclan?" cried out Wishstar to Molestar, but he ignored her with a flick of his ear. A glimmer in his eyes told her he hadn't made any mistake.

"Already forgot your old tales?" spat Ravenskies, silencing Halfclan with her icy stare as she leapt up beside her leader. Even Tornear was wise enough to keep his mouth shut, as the deputy began telling a story.

"A long time ago, before the times of three clans, before the times of four clans, there were five clans," meowed the queen, lifting her muzzle as if showing everyone that she knew something they didn't. "Skyclan, Thunderclan, Shadowclan, Windclan and Riverclan." Dewpuddle, an elder of Halfclan, flicked his tail in annoyance, as if he didn't trust one word from the black-and-white she-cat. Wishstar had to admit that herself, she didn't agree much to Ravenskies' words.

"One day the Twolegs came," a few hushed gasps came from her clan and Wishstar herself- Twolegs, Upwalkers or No-furs, whatever were they called, always brought trouble. "They built nests on Skyclan's territory. Skyclan had no more territory, and the four other clans didn't want to share. In the end, not even Starclan opposed to their dispersion."

Darkshadow opened his mouth to say something, but Wishstar silenced him before he could say anything with a glare. Wyverncry, her deputy, sat in silence as Ravenskies swallowed and continued on. "It's happened again, Skyclan was driven out of their territory. The twolegs came and flooded their dens. They went to the old territories, only to return here in the end, tired and famished."

A few murmurs came from her clan, but Wishstar was surprised that no cat opposed directly to the enemy deputy's words. Now, Molestar's reason for alliance was clearer. Exhausted, Skyclan must have bent down to his demands of alliance after having traveled for so long in exchange for shelter and a few measly catches.

"Wishstar, you can't possibly trust them?" yowled Tornear. His pale pelt bristled at the patrol, who had their backs against the leaders and were facing all of Halfclan, bristling and spiting.

"I have already agreed to the alliance, under Starclan's will," replied the leader calmly, her golden orbs slightly foggy in regret. Had she done the right choice? Would her clan be stronger allied with Ruinsclan and Skyclan? She nodded in approval at Molestar as her clan cried out their protest.

"If it was nothing but me, he's lying!" spat Mousefur, a Halfclan queen, her short fur spiked up like a pinecone. "Yeah, what says that they're telling the truth?" rasped Dewpuddle, the first elder to pipe up. His sister and another elder, Amberpool, gazed in surprise at the cats seated on the low branches, her eyes round, pressed against him.

"Silence! Your leader has accepted the alliance. Two guards of my choice will be stationed each day at your camp and all cats from Flameclan shall be free to hunt and pass in your territory without conflict." said Molestar, and Wishstar's hackles rose at Molestar's orders. It's as if he owned Halfclan now! Well, after a short reflextion, Wishstar admitted to herself that he kind of did...

"Lastly, on the next hidden moon, we'll chase Proudclan from their nests and Flameclan will become the only clan around the lake!"