Warriors: Ashfur's Insanity

Chapter 31

Ashstar was at the head of his group. They were away from Clan territory. He never wanted to ask the other Clans for help. They might not listen anyways.

"Ashstar," Stoneheart turned to him. His right ear was bleeding. Rain was soaking his pelt. "We need to find somewhere to shelter from this cold rain."

"I know," He meowed. "I'm soaked."

Jaywing was beside him. And Millie was behind him.

All of a sudden, a lightning bolt flashed across the sky like a snake and hit a tree close to Ashstar's group. It sparked up in flames. The sound of thunder was loud. All of a sudden, more lightning flashed around Ashstar. A bolt hit a tree behind his group. Ashstar's heart pounded. Flames were hissing and crackling all around him. 

Shrieks split the air. 

Ashstar's cats scattered. 

"Wait!" He called. 

The tree in front of him cracked. It leaned over and fell, its branches shaking. 

Millie, Jaywing, and Stoneheart were still crowded around him. But the rest of the group had scattered. "Run!" Ashstar called. He ran to the left. The flames from the fallen tree were slicing through the grass. They blocked Ashstar's path, standing high. 

Another tree that was lit on fire cracked and fell onto the ground. Its flames crossed the grass towards him. 

"Run! Faster!" Ashstar called to the group. Jaywing ran ahead of him. Then, the flames blocked their path. They were all closed in a tight, flaming circle.

"What are we going to do now?" Jaywing asked.

Ashstar flexed his claws, his ears twitching. "I'm not sure."

Millie stalked over to the crackling flames. 

"Millie?" Ashstar growled. "Get back over here!"

Millie turned to him, the flames reflecting in her blue eyes. "The rain won't come down any harder," She meowed. The flames blew in the wind, hissing more. 

"What do you mean?" Ashstar asked.

"To make up for everything I've done, i'm going to save you," Mille meowed. 

"How?" Ashstar demanded. 

Millie padded really close to the flames. She crouched.

"What are you doing?" Ashstar asked. 

"Get on my back and hop over the flames," Millie meowed. "I know I won't make it. But I can save all three of you," She meowed.

Ashstar gasped. "No! Millie! You're going to get out no matter what!" He looked around for some escape. 

"No. Let me do this," Millie meowed. 

Jaywing padded to her. "Thanks for being my friend and mentor. You're a really nice cat. I'll miss you," She touched noses to Millie.

"Hurry!" Stoneheart yowled. "The flames are getting closer!" 

Ashstar felt the heat of the flames against his pelt. Stoneheart was right.

"Tell Graystripe and my kits that I love them," Millie cried. 

"I will," Jaywing mewed.

Jaywing crawled onto her back.

Millie clenched her teeth and almost slipped against the weight.

Jaywing then leaped over the flames. 

Ashstar looked towards Stoneheart. He nodded at his son. 

Stoneheart crawled onto Millie's back. He reared and leaped over the flames.

Ashstar was left. He crawled over to Millie and crouched. "Get on my back," He meowed. "You are going to live, Millie!" He hissed. He flexed his claws. "You only have one life, like a regular cat, but I'm a leader, and I have 6 lives left. Go on without me!" He cried.

"No!" Millie looked at him. "I'm going to save you," She meowed.

"But you'll die!" Ashstar hissed. "Let me save you! I'll come back alive and we'll still be ok!" He looked at her, sadness swamping over him. 

The flames were getting closer.

"Come on!" Ashstar cried.

"I won't let you die!" Millie cried. 

Teeth sank into Ashstar's scruff. He was hauled upward into the air. Millie threw him over the flames just in time. His soaked body hit the ground beside Stoneheart and Jaywing. He slipped on the wet ground. "Millie! No!" He cried.

He heard a terrified shriek get cut off as the flames crackled and hissed and grew larger.

"No!" Ashstar cried. "Millie!" He cried. He slumped on the ground. "Millie...."

Jaywing looked at him, sorrow filling her gaze. Stoneheart rested his tail along Ashstar's spine.

"It's all my fault she's dead! I'm such a terrible leader. If only I was the one who..." His voice trailed off.

Jaywing bristled. "Don't say that!" She growled. "Millie died to save us. She wanted to save you. She didn't want you to lose a life. She didn't want it to get wasted."

Ashstar turned on her. "My life wouldn't have been a waste if I saved her!" He hissed. 

Lightning flashed across the clearing. 

"I've lost everything. Wolfpaw and Softpaw. My territory. And now Millie and the rest of my Clan. What am I going to lose next?" He asked himself. He looked at his daughter and son. "You two?"

Jaywing shifted her paws. 

The rain then got harder. 

"We should find shelter," Stoneheart meowed.

"You two can go look for it," Ashstar hissed. "I'll stay and grieve over Millie."

He watched as his kits left him sitting in the hard rain. They disappeared over a hill. 

Ashstar looked at the slightly big fire that was still burning and crackling. He lifted his head to the stars. "Millie, I hope you're up there," He mewed quietly. "I hope you're well and safe in StarClan," He mewed. "I hope you understand that I couldn't save you," He drooped his head in shame. 

"Ashstar, it wasn't your fault," A soft voice mewed.

Ashstar lifted his head. He gasped. Millie stood in front of him. Her pelt was dull and translucent. Her outline was made of tiny stars. Her eyes were slightly a dull greenish white color. 

"Millie?"

"I want to thank you for trusting me. I want to thank you for everything you've done for me. But I want you to know that my death wasn't your fault. I'll thank you for that after you know that. Tell everyone I love them. The shadows are claws with blood that will make you strays. The shadows are getting stronger," Her form began to fade.

"Wait!" Ashstar cried. "Millie, don't go! What does that mean? How and why must the shadows get stronger? Why are the shadows claws with blood that will make us strays?" He asked. "What does it mean? Please tell me!" He cried. 

Her form fully faded. 

Ashstar was left standing alone in the hard, cold rain.