The Mission

Prolgue

A brown and white tabby she-cat sat beneath the blanket of stars, her thoughts racing. She jumped when a white she-cat with gray ears appeared from the bushes.

"You seem quite jumpy tonight," the newcomer meowed, amusement edging her voice. The brown and white she-cat sighed, "I have every reason to be. Dawnclan has grown stronger and there is nothing we can do about it. They have taken warriors from us for no reason and continue to steal our prey. I'm just out of ideas of what to do."

The white she-cat layer her tail across the older she-cats shoulders, "Don't loose hope Fernstar. Surely there is something we can do."

Fernstar's head drooped down. She was exhausted and stressed. Her clan counted on her to make a decision, to make a plan that best benefited them. She sat their beside the white she-cat thinking about what she could possibly do. But no ideas ever came.

"Come on Fernstar, let's get back to camp," the white she-cat accompanying Fernstar meowed. Fernstar sighed once more before following her clanmate back to camp.

By the time they reached the camp the sun had started to rise. In the clearing the dawn patrol began to assemble. Fernstar walked past them with her head and tail drooping.

As she passed, a group of apprentices chattered on about something. She decided to prick her ears and listen to what the young cats were yapping about.

"Alright Tigerpaw your going to be a Dawnclan warrior and I'm going to spy on you, okay?" Rosepaw, a light brown tabby she-cat, meowed. Her brother, Tigerpaw, nodded and went on with the game. Fernstar snorted as Rosepaw hid from Tigerpaw's view, truly spying on her brother.

Fernstar's jaw dropped as she stopped in her tracks. The apprentices had just given her an idea. She looked at the white she-cat who still stood beside her with joy. "Hazeleaf I have an idea!"

Hazeleaf looked at her, interest sparking her gaze, "Well, let's hear it then."

"So what if we send spies into Dawnclan to pretend to be interested in becoming one of their clanmates. But every quarter moon they reported what they had learned about their plans and weaknesses back to Sunclan," Fernstar meowed with a grin across her face.

Hazeleaf stared back at her uncertainly, "Fernstar, I know we have to fix this problem for the clan but I don't think this is the best way to do it."

Fernstar shook her head, "No this is the only way. We have to pick cats that will be dedicated to this cause. We need young cats! Like kits so they can be raised from the beginning to know what their mission is."

"We can't send kits into an enemies home, Fernstar."

"Come on Hazeleaf. Plus they would be apprentices by the time we sent them off. Moonwing is expecting kits isn't she. I'll talk to her right away about how big of an honor it is for her unborn kits," Fernstar meowed.

Hazeleaf sighed, "But if you were to go through with this no one can know, not even our own clanmates."

Fernstar nodded, "Your right. So we would just say that the kits were born ill, and convince Moonwing to go along with it. Then right before they are to become apprentices we place them outside the Dawnclan camp. We then can tell the whole clan that they got out of camp and a fox killed them. Then no one would ever know, and Sunclan would still benefit from it."

Hazeleaf shifted her paws anxiously in the dirt, "Fernstar I'm not sure about this. We shouldn't put innocent kits in danger."

Fernstar's fur then began to prickle, "Hazeleaf, don't argue with me. I know what is best for the clan, and this is best. In order to save the clan we have to do what has to be done. And no harm will come to those kits. You either stay and do whatever is necessary for your clan or you can leave."

Hazeleaf looked shocked by her leaders sudden dark side. But she nodded in obedience, even though deep inside she knew this was wrong.