Dark Skies- Book #2 in Sunrise

Chapter 8
Nightmares. Jadepaw had them for the past moon after Fernsong's death.

She was in battle training with Ravenstar, learning some basic moves that she already knew. Jadepaw dove in for a belly rake, and achieved the move with sheathed claws. "Good-" Ravenstar's meow wasn't broke off by a sound, but he just disappeared. Jadepaw felt fear bubble up inside her, and she was in camp, suddenly. It was night, and she and Ravenstar were the only cats in camp. Ravenstar didn't seem to notice Jadepaw, and his eyes turned a red color.

He began yowling a battle chant wildly, sprinting to where Jadepaw was standing. This was the most wild dream Jadepaw had ever had in her lifetime. She jumped up, willing her dream-self to move, but she couldn't. Ravenstar crashed into her. Jadepaw didn't fall, but she felt a series of tingling down her spine.
* *. *
Jadepaw couldn't see, but she could hear gentle snoring. She tried to look around, but wherever she turned her head, pitch black surrounded her. She could smell all of her Clanmates, but she also smelled the night air. She shivered, even though she couldn't sense if she had a body or not. She heard pawsteps, and she followed them. Suddenly, loud screeching burst through her ears, and she heard the rustling of cats leaving their nests. Silence.
*. *. *
Jadepaw could see this time, and everything was silent, except for the dripping of water in a pool. The moon reflected in the pool, and the whole cave gave her a sense of peace. Jadepaw relaxed, and a starry cat appeared. Their blue eyes glittered kindly, before letting out a yowl that could bring down the forest. The cave spun, transforming into...a medicine cat den? Jadepaw watched, and she saw unrecognizable cats looking down on a scrawny cat in a bed of moss. The cat writhed in pain, and lay limp. The den disappeared, leaving her in the dark before a blurry image of three kits appeared.

One was white, one was blue, and another was black. They all looked like they weren't related to one another, because they were all separated into different corners of the den, with different cats looking over them. The black kit ran over to the white one, and began to play-fight with it. The blue kit ran over, but Jadepaw didn't get to see what happened next.

The image flickered away, and a clearing replaced it. There were berry bushes everywhere, and the dark red berries exploded into a river of blood. The river was streaming fast, spraying droplets of blood onto her fur. One landed on the tip of her nose. It was a dark red, and it exploded into her face, her eyes. Her mouth. Jadepaw tried to wake herself up, but she felt like she had no power over her body. A voice sounded through the clearing. "The skies will darken, and one cat can throw everyone's faith in one another." The voice boomed in Jadepaw's ears, causing them to ring loudly.

"Jadepaw! Jadepaw! Wake up before you get in trouble for sleeping in!" Jadepaw woke up to see Clearpaw standing over her with a mouse in his jaws. "Are you okay?" He asked through the mouse. Jadepaw nodded and sat up, letting the moss clumps fall from her pelt. Jadepaw left the den and began to clean herself. She licked her paw and drew it absently over one ear. Jadepaw began to lick her back, pausing as she saw Clearpaw out of the corner of her eye. "I just was er wondering if, uh, you know, er...wanted to, um, share the mouse. I mean, this mouse." He corrected himself, showing him the prey.

"I...Um, I went out last, I mean, tonight, Um...this morning and, um, caught it. Not for you, just, uh, for the Clan...do you want it?" Jadepaw laughed. "Um, I , er, sure." She said jokingly. Clearpaw relaxed and sat down beside her, setting the mouse down in front of him. Jadepaw strained her neck to reach the mouse and took a small bite out of it. Clearpaw let out a nervous laugh and nudged it closer to her. "Thanks." She savored the flavor, almost certain that she wouldn't be eating for the rest of the day.