Dreams of Blood (Dark Storm #1)

Chapter Six

The sky was just beginning to turn gray with dawn light as the members of ThunderClan gathered in the clearing. Pineleaf's cry of grief had woken many cats, while the rest were roused from their sleep by those who were already awake. Now, they huddled in clusters in the camp, eyes dull with sleep and pelts ungroomed, whispering about what could possibly have happened. Ambercloud had not left the apprentices' sides since moonhigh, and Oaktail and Flowerfoot had said nothing about the incident- each time they were asked, they would only reply that Sandstar would say soon enough.

As rays of orange and red spread across the sky in the east, the bodies of the three apprentices were carried into the clearing by their mentors and kin. Larkpaw sat next to the fern tunnel, her pelt now groomed of blood, her head bowed as each of the young cats was carried past her and laid gently in the clearing. She was not deaf to the shocked murmurs which spread through the Clan, their fur bristling as they realized that all three of the apprentices were dead. Larkpaw looked up as they began to quiet, just in time to see Sandstar taking his perch on the top of Highrock. Silence once again settled over camp as the cats waited with morbid curiosity, eyes flicking anxiously between the bodies of their Clanmates and the shadowed forest beyond.

For a moment, Sandstar was silent as well, gazing forlornly at the three young cats lying still in the center of the camp. Then he began to speak, grief barely concealing the fury in his tone.

"Cats of ThunderClan," he began. "As you can see, tonight we have suffered a terrible tragedy: the loss of three of our Clanmates. And not just any Clanmates, but three spirited and promising apprentices, who had many moons ahead of them and much to give to our Clan." He let out a quiet sigh, one which easily carried through the stillness of the clearing. The cats barely dared to breathe, waiting to hear what had caused this terrible tragedy.

"It was just before moonhigh when Patchpaw, Mousepaw, and Rainpaw were discovered missing," Sandstar continued. "Most likely, they snuck out of their nests for a night in the forest on their own. They had the misfortune of picking the worst night possible." He shook his head slowly. "Ambercloud, Oaktail, and Flowerfoot went to search for their apprentices, and what they found was shocking. A clearing soaked in blood, and our apprentices horribly wounded. The area was rank with the stench of blood, but below that... ShadowClan."

Larkpaw looked up at the announcement, surprised. She had heard terrible things about the Clan across the thunderpath ever since she was a kit: they were sneaky, manipulative, and savage. They would never miss an opportunity to further their own agenda, and would take what they wanted by force if necessary. Even so, she found it difficult to believe that mere cats would be capable of such brutality. Meanwhile, several other cats gasped with a similar surprise, and others still let out low yowls of fury.

"They'll pay for this!"

"Kill the crow-food eaters!"

"Murderers!"

"Sneak into camp and kill their kits, see how they like it!"

"Which cats did it? They must be punished!"

A chorus of outrage rang out, which Sandstar quickly quieted by raising his tail. "I led a patrol there before dawn to investigate. We tried to identify the individual scents... after all, Mothstar herself may not be in on it. It may have been a group of wayward warriors, and I doubt she wants them in her Clan any more than we do." He paused. "Unfortunately, their scents were hidden. I doubt they could be identified even by their own Clanmates. There was too much blood, and they had covered their trail with other scents as well. Garlic and herbs, and crowfood."

"We should go straight to their camp and root out the murderers," Owlfeather put in, stepping forward. He was practically shaking with fury. He extended his claws, digging them into the soil. "I'll kill them myself."

Sandstar cast the Owlfeather a scolding glare, and the smoky tom fell silent, though that didn't stop his tail from lashing back and forth with fury. The leader turned his gaze back to the rest of the Clan, again pausing for a moment. "Believe me, if I thought there was a chance that they would give up their Clanmates, I would march there right now." Again, he shook his head. "But their fatal flaw is that they have always been too prideful. If there are murderers in their ranks, Mothstar will take care of it quietly, herself. She would never give them over to our justice."

"So what do we do?" It was Frostface who piped up now. "We can't just let them get away with it. We have other Clanmates to consider. Other kits. I don't want to have to worry about what might be lurking on our own territory."

"Don't get me wrong, I have no intention of letting them go," Sandstar assured the pale queen. "But I will not confront them just yet. The Gathering is two days hence.... I will confront her there. They will be unwilling and unable to fight then, and when all four Clans know that there are murderers in ShadowClan, they will have no choice but to root them out themselves. It may not be the justice we desire, but it may still be justice yet."

Murmurs again spread through the clearing as cats commented on the wisdom of Sandstar's plan. Some seemed to agree that it was the only way to avoid them being ignored and turned away at best, and attacked at worst. Others felt that letting the murderers have even two day's peace was too much.

"As for Mousepaw, Patchpaw, and Rainpaw... we will sit vigil for the day, and bury them at dusk." Sandstar slid down from the rock and made to head for his den, but before he could, Ambercloud blocked his path. Larkpaw could see that the queen was shaking, but still she stared Sandstar dead in the eye, and her voice did not waver as she spoke.

"And what of my sons? They were days from earning their warrior names," she meowed, loud enough for all to hear. "You can see their wounds. You can see that Mousepaw is torn to shreds! They fought their murderers bravely, and they suffered all the more for it. Don't they at least deserve to go to StarClan as warriors?"

Sandstar stood still for a moment, considering his sister's words before he finally dipped his head and turned back to the Clan. "What Ambercloud says is right. I can only lament that I didn't realize it myself." He stepped forward and bent his head so that he nearly touched Mousepaw's mangled shoulder. Larkpaw had helped Ambercloud and Maplefrost to clean and smooth their pelts over the night, dressing them with fragrant herbs to mask the scent of blood and death, but even so their fatal wounds were easy to see.

"I, Sandstar, leader of ThunderClan, ask StarClan to look down upon these two apprentices," he began. "They trained hard to learn the ways of your noble code, and have given up their lives in service of their Clan." He paused for a moment before dipping his head to brush his nose against Mousepaw's ear. "This apprentice will be known as Mousetail. His Clan honored his energy and courage." Now, he shifted and instead touched his nose to Patchpaw's cheek. "And this apprentice will be known as Patchfur. His Clan honored his forethought and determination. Let StarClan receive them as warriors." With that, Sandstar raised his head and stepped back, as the Clan began to chant the two warriors' names. It was not cheerful and celebratory, as when Briartooth had been made a warrior. No, it was solemn and melancholy; rather than a celebration of achievement, a lamentation of what should have been.

Larkpaw almost hadn't noticed as Ashpaw had padded up to her, settling in the soft grass beside her as Sandstar named the new warriors. Now, he didn't join in the cheering, and only stared at the small body of his sister with hollow, empty eyes. Larkpaw shuffled her paws, not sure what to say to him. He hadn't spoken a word since last night, and she couldn't imagine how it must feel to lose a littermate. She couldn't even think of what she might do if she lost Tigerpaw or Nightpaw, but even if one of them died, at least the other two would still have each other. Ashpaw now was left with no one. After a few heartbeats, he seemed to notice her staring sideways at him, and slowly looked up to meet his gaze. For a moment he was silent; then he spoke, his voice quiet and hopeless.

"What do I do now?"