Warrior Cats: Sprout || Book One

Chapter Four

Lily shrieked for her friends, practically overwhelmed by sheer terror. Her feet seemed to finally repel the ground and she sloshed forwards desperately. Her stomach was twisting with nausea and she had to fight to control her gag reflex. The whole neighborhood seemed to have gone silent. It felt like it had been abandoned for years; Diego's house was boarded up, the streets dusty and devoid of life.

A sudden low swish echoed eerily through the vicinity. The blood seemed to be receding, but achingly slow, and her friends were still no where to be seen.

There!

Lily bounded through the bloodstained grass and skidded to a halt beside Luna's limp body. She thrust her muzzle into her friends fur, faint and dizzy with repulsion and fear. Grief exploded in her chest as her nose brushed Luna's cold flesh, the international brand of death. She collapsed with the strength of it. Her slim body was wracked with violent sobs; tears ran dark tracks down her cheeks.

A low growl sounded ominously in her ear. "No running, Silverstar..." 

The dull roar of a monster sounded in the distance. In a dizzying rush of light, Lily snapped back to her senses as she was met with Diego's concerned emerald eyes. "You okay?" he queried anxiously.

Lily immediately sat up, and instantly regretted it. The quick movement had made her feel ill again. She paled, and weakly retched up the  contents of her stomach on Diego's garden. "Sorry," she murmured quietly when she was done. "And yeah. Yeah, I'm okay."

She swiveled around and fixated her gaze on Luna, who looked slightly perturbed by the intensity in Lily's eyes. "Are you okay?"

Luna cocked her head to the side. "Uh, yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" The soft grey she-kit padded to Lily's side and sniffed her forehead. "Did you hit your head when you fell?"

Lily hesitated briefly before replaying firmly. "No. I... Uh... What happened?"

Lucas, Diego and Luna exchanged an unreadable glance that did not bode well for Lily. "What?" she demanded hoarsely.

Lucas looked nervous. "You don't remember? You..." He trailed off uncertainly and avoided his gaze.

Lily was beginning to tremble. Her companion's disturbed tones and awkward movements were scaring her almost as much as her vision had. "You're freaking me out!" She trembled. "What happened?"

Luna stepped back, as if to permit her some space. "Well, you looked like were having a kind of seizure. Your eyes got all cloudy and you fainted. Then you started ranting about 'dark fire' or something." She stared at her paws sullenly. "You were just screaming other things that we couldn't understand too."

"Like what?" Lily's mouth was dry.

"Stuff about stars and thunder." It was Diego who replied then.

Silverstar. That was the word that voice whispered to me. I wonder if I said it out loud... I said something about stars. She stared vacantly at her petite ivory paws, her brow furrowed in concentration as she fought to recall her surreal vision.

Diego clearer his throat meaningfully and Lily glanced up sharply. "Are you sure your okay?" he was murmuring. "You just had a fit! You should be lying down or something! I'll go get Clara."

Lucas nodded sagely. "Yeah, you should really get checked over."

"No, don't get Clara!" she pleaded. "I'm fine, I swear." Lily turned furtively in Luna's direction, expecting unconditional support from her companion. However, her friend's grey eyes were dark with trauma and her lips were peeled partially back in thinly disguised fear. Lily's heart sank in her chest as she took in the severity of her predicament; Luna had been completely scarred by her seizure, and she herself had received a gore riddled omen of destruction.