Darkstorm's Code✔️

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Darkstorm padded through the small forest, her clan trailing behind her. Although the forest was beautiful, it held little prey, and therefore wasn't meant to be their new home. Darkstorm froze. "Look," she whispered. A tuft of dark grey fur had caught on a thorny bush.

"That's Arrowheart's," Orangetail guessed. "Isn't it?" The black she-cat nodded.

"We're... close." Thorntail flicked his ear. "There are a lot of cat scents." Darkstorm nodded again.

"Arrowheart's. And Thinfur's," Shadeflight stepped in front of them. "They're really, really near here." Darkstorm bounded after the scent, once again her clan following. Her ears perked up and she skidded to a stop.

"Thinfur!" she and Shadeflight yowled, hearing familiar footsteps and smelling a familiar scent. Thinfur came dashing out of the bushes.

"You're here," he meowed. "You're here!" The two littermates nuzzled their father happily, purring.

"Where were you?" Shadeflight asked. 

"By myself. Why?"

"Arrowheart got banished, too!" Darkstorm explained. "You didn't see him?" Thinfur shook his head, licking hers.

"No. But you'll find him. My kits are resourceful. What's this?" He flicked his tail at DarkClan. Darkstorm looked up at him. 

"My- my clan. DarkClan. Our deputy is Thorntail. We're the cats who want to change the code." Thinfur's eyes locked with Sparrownose's, and they glared at each other. "Stop, Thinfur!" Darkstorm protested. "We forgave him, we forgave Sparrownose. Even Coralfall after Finkit."

"You... have to catch me up on everything." Darkstorm blinked and gazed at her clan.

"Patrols," she muttered.

"Tenderleaf, Sparktail, Hardclaw and Troutfin, hunt?" Thorntail asked. The chosen cats scampered off. "Ravenfur, lead Grassfang, Orangetail and Bushpaw and scout the area. We'll make a camp here for the night. The rest of you, gather moss. Yowltail, can you and Snarlfang go for herbs and water?" Again, the chosen cats left in their  patrols. Thinfur yawned. "I'll go help with the moss." Darkstorm watched him pad away.

"So Darkstorm got fed up and finally spoke against the leaders," Shadeflight began excitedly. "And so then she said she was leaving, and a bunch of cats went with her." Thinfur's eyes narrowed.

"Wait. What- what happened to your eyes?" Darkstorm took over as Shadeflight quieted.

"Well, before we left, we fought two dog foxes. Strong ones. One scratched Shadeflight's eyes, and we couldn't help him. I... I lied and said that he would be able to see again one day. I shouldn't have, but I didn't want him to always be miserable. I tried to give him hope."

"I was mad. I'm sorry," Shadeflight mewed solemnly. "I was worried."

"Go on," Thinfur encouraged. Darkstorm flattened her ears.

"Beechleap died. He was old- he couldn't take the journey." Thinfur winced. "And then Featherheart attacked Coralfall- she's Coralfall now, even though I'm not Darkstar. He tried to kill her, but she ended up killing him." His eyes widened. Darkstorm watched his expression as she continued. 

...

Darkstorm blinked and got up. Thinfur had reacted well to the news. She took a mouse and padded over to Snarlfang and Orangetail. "Share?"

"Sure." The three cats chewed the mouse slowly, nourishing the delicacy. Darkstorm sniffed the air and heaved to her paws.

"The cats we scented,"she hissed. "DarkClan!" she yowled, glimpsing white fur behind a bush. "We're under attack!" The clan scrambled to their paws. A white-and-grey tom stepped out from behind the bush.