Hailstorm's Fear

Chapter Seven

The eerie silence of Twolegplace made Hailstorm's pelt bristle on instinct. It almost made it seem like Twolegplace had no life at all.

"It's the abandoned nest."Robinpaw whispered,her belly fur brushing against the hard ground as she crept forward.

Hailstorm gulped at the sight of it,and flashes of his nightmares started to echo in his ears. He shook his head,trying to clear the visions away.

"Are you alright?"Robinpaw pressed herself against him reassuringly.

"I'm just...creeped out."He felt ashamed at how he was behaving. I'm a RiverClan warrior,not a coward.

"What are you both Clan cats doing here?"

Both of them whirled around,ready to attack when a black she-cat leapt down from a fence gracefully. She looked expectantly at the both of them.

"How do you know about the Clans?"Hailstorm relaxed,intrigued.

"I met a group of you Clan cats in the abandoned Twoleg nest."She twitched an ear distractedly,as if recalling a memory.

"You must be talking about the Rebellion!"Robinpaw's eyes were wide with awe.

"They named themselves the Rebellion?"She smiled softly. "Did they all survive the Twolegs?"

"No. Their leader did not make it. He was taken away."Hailstorm remembered the story from Duskwater,the only cat who was willing to retell the tale.

Her eyes clouded in grief as her tail drooped. "I'm sure he was the one who drove the Twolegs away from here. I forgot what was his name though...but I remember what he looked like. He was powerful,and had an air of confidence around him. The Rebellion followed his orders too in the very short time I was with them,although I could tell that some of them were much older than him."

"You must be talking about Shadeheart,"Hailstorm met Robinpaw's gaze. "Although none of the RiverClan cats really describe him."

"Then it's still fresh,"The she-cat shook her pelt and straightened. "Why are you in Twolegplace?"

"We're here to find my mother."Robinpaw stepped forward,hope sparking in her eyes.

Suddenly,the she-cat's eyes widened. "I knew I recognised you somewhere...I can't believe that idiot gave you all away,just like that!"

"You know my mother?Where is she?"

Her gaze darkened,almost to the colour of the shadows in Twolegplace. "She was found dead,and two of her kits was gone,except one,"She scanned them carefully,before continuing, "I knew her very well. She was my sister,and her name was Skye."

"She's dead?"Robinpaw swayed on her paws,and Hailstorm hurried to catch her. The apprentice's eyes were as wide as moons. A sudden shriek interrupted them as they all whirled around towards the forest.

"Something's happening!"Hailstorm faced Robinpaw with his pelt bristling in fear. "I know you're grieving,but we have to go back to RiverClan."

Robinpaw nodded numbly as he dipped his head to the she-cat before racing off to the direction of the river,with the apprentice following close behind.

Not long after,they heard the sound of the river. Hailstorm felt his flanks struggle to steady themselves as his chest burned. He dived into the water and swam forward with as much strength as he could muster from his aching limbs.

"Robinpaw,come on!"Hailstorm felt bad for goading the apprentice on when she just heard the news about her dead mother,but his loyalty to RiverClan was pulsing through his paws.

She gasped as she caught up with him,shooting him a look before matching his pace.

"Where have you both been?!"Leafpelt skidded into view,panting. His ear was torn and clumps of fur clung onto his pelt as blood smeared his pelt.

"What happened?"Hailstorm looked wide-eyed at the warrior's injuries.

"Rogues,"Leafpelt growled. "I was chasing one off. There's still a lot more at camp!"

The warrior raced back to camp,with Hailstorm and Robinpaw following close behind. The camp was full of fighting cats,but Hailstorm could recognise the sleek pelts of his Clanmates as they fought back the rogues.

Snarling,he pushed a rogue off of Foxpelt. He turned to help the senior warrior up when he realised that his eyes were glassy,and his flank was no longer moving.

He's dead!Horror filled him as he scanned the ground of camp. Who else was dead?He couldn't tell. Suddenly,a rogue barrelled into him,clawing his pelt off.

Hailstorm fought back with his own flurry of blows,but the rogue was fast. Mustering the last of his strength,he landed a blow across the rogue's cheek. The rogue hissed in pain and tumbled off of him,giving the opportunity of him to roll onto his paws.

"Who are you?!What do you want with us?!"Hailstorm bared his teeth.

The rogue smirked as blood gushed out from the wound on his cheek. "All will be revealed."He let out a caterwaul before darting in between the cats,heading towards the entrance.

All the other rogues seemed to stop at the caterwaul,before bounding out of the camp like shadows.

"Cloudstar!Are you alright?"

Hailstorm whirled around to see the leader staggering to his paws,with blood turning his fur crimson red. Branchpelt was standing over him with a worried look.

"Who-who-"Cloudstar cut himself off as his gaze surveyed the camp. Hailstorm followed it,and found familiar RiverClan warriors among the few dead bodies of rogues.

Firegaze,Foxpelt,Littlepelt,Stonewhisker-He swallowed and backed away,his nightmares taking over his vision. He could not even hear Duskwater's call as the RiverClan cats moved around him in a blur.