Legacy: Infinity (Book 3)

Epilogue

"The mountains finally have peace."

Song lifted her head, ears pricked as that old, familiar voice resounded in her head. "Time," she sighed, turning around knowing she would find the ancient black tom. He was there, standing with his head raised and a glow in his red eyes that was unnatural and yet, suited him. Song noted that he seemed wearier than the last time she had seen him.

"It's good to see you, Time," she mewed warmly, walking across the starry meadow to her old friend. But he took a step back and shook his head. He was always like this, he never stayed in the starry hunting grounds like most long-dead cats. It was part of his curse, he had nowhere to belong, so he wandered around looking for others to share his gift and curse with.

Time turned and stalked away with his back toward her, but didn't make to leave. "So, after three generations-"

"Four," Song corrected.

"Four generations," he gave her an annoyed look, "You've finally corrected the path of the mountain cats." He didn't sound pleased, or impressed. Song knew why.

"I never forced them to take their paths," she objected as he gave her a disapproving look.

"You pushed them hard enough," he scoffed.

"You helped me," Song reminded him, walking up behind him, the soft moonlight glowing like silver on their black fur. But while hers sparkled with stars, his remained pitch-black like a moving shadow.

"Yes, because I respect you and it is not my concern," Time mewed gruffly, averting his eyes from hers. "Giving Scorch those powers and guiding Jay along when she started breaking your plans helped keep me occupied for a time."

"But now it's over," Song broke in abruptly, flicking her ears at the mention of Jay.

The tom rolled his eyes, "You still can't stand her?"

Song growled, "It was hard-hearted cats like her that led the mountain cats along the wrong path to start with. But she's doing an acceptable job for now."

Time looked around the meadow and with a flick of his paw a round surface, like a clear pool, appeared, and images moved inside it. "'Acceptable?'" he echoed.

In the pool was an image of Jay training a young group of cats on how to properly hunt as teams, working with a filed-out and able Adder to demonstrate the moves. "She's doing more than an 'acceptable' job if you ask me."

"Well, I didn't ask," Song mewed, fur fluffing up defensively as she viewed Jay through a slitted glare. "She rubs me the wrong way," the black she-cat admitted with a growl.

To her surprise, Time laughed out at that and she looked up to see his eyes glittering brightly. "Aren't you a little too old to hold such petty feelings?"

"And aren't you too old to tease me so?" Song shot back, but she was on the brink of laugher now. She knew she was a little ridiculous, but Jay was too wild and unpredictable, she didn't like the idea that the fate of the mountains was in her paws.

"And what would Ice say if she knew you were so suspicious of her mother?" Time asked, a little more seriously.

Song's whiskers drooped, her heart had broken when the young she-cat had died. To have to go and guide a young cat with so much life ahead of her to a place in the stars was hard enough. But to know that it was her fault, that was even worse. It was as Time said, she had set Rainstone, Scorch, and Ice all upon their paths. She wondered if it was karma that the one cat she passed up, Jay, was the one who saved the mountains in the end. Of course, if it wasn't for her, Jay never would have been born, but she wasn't splitting hairs.