The Fate of The Clans

Chapter 6

The darkness of the forest was cold, staring, filling him with an uneasy feeling. There was a silence that gripped the air, only being broken by the echo of pawstep. A quick taste of the air told him he was not alone, others being a few fox lengths away, hidden by bushes.

"Hello?" He meowed out, the echo of his voice sending a chill down his spine. The undergrowth in front of him rustled, a slender she-cat making her way towards him. Her silver coat looked familiar, ice-esque eyes glittering in the pale lighting.

"Does the darkness displease you? Shall we venture to a place where your precious ancestors see you? Where they watch your every move and make you doubt your right from wrong?" The quiet hiss filled the air, bouncing off of the large pines.

"What are you meowing about?" He asked, his tail twitching with suspicion. The she-cat padded forward, touching her nose to his.

"How easy the dead can manipulate you," she purred, her claws placed gently against his throat. "How easy they can, and will, destroy you." As the words left her mouth, her claws slashed through the soft flesh, blood matting the fur on her paws.

Bluestorm woke with a twitch, his eyes adjusting to the pale light. He shook his head, clearing the dream from his mind, and rose to his paws. He padded out into the clearing, dew sparkling on the dens, his paws lead him towards the leader's den.

As he poked his head in, Thunderstar almost collided with him. Startled, he backed up a pawstep. She stared at him wide eyed for a moment before blinking, her ice blue eyes looking at him expectantly.

"Good morning, Bluestorm. What can I do for you?" She sounded uneasy, her gently nudging outside of the den. She sat down, her tail wrapped neatly over her paws, licking a paw and swiping it over her ear.

"You have been waking up late, so I came to make sure you were awake. Also, Waterleaf told me about Grassfelt so we are short a warrior, so if you wouldn't mind joining a patrol later."

"Of course, I wouldn't want to over exert our warriors. By the way, how has Bushpaw been doing in his training?" Her mew was soft, a yawn forcing its way out of her jaws.

Bluestorm hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to answer. On one paw, he would want Bushpaw off of his tail. On the other, his apprentice just didn't seem cut out to be a warrior. As he shifted from paw to paw, Thunderstar tilted her head.

"I feared as much," she meowed, drawing her own conclusion. "We have enough medicine cats but the warriors den needs to be filled. I knew there was a reason Boltstar had made a different role yet I don't want to judge so soon."

"What do you mean, Thunderstar?" Bluestorm moved a little closer, catching Bushpaw slithering out of the apprentice den. Being a few tail lengths away, he could hear anything they said if he tried.

"You remember, don't you? Your own father was one of them, before he passed," a small pang shot through him. "I pushed myself to avoid being reduced to such a....embarrassing position. Keep in mind that I-"

"I don't believe he is that incompetent. He isn't so useless that he should stay in camp and laze around until he is needed for whatever stupid task!" He snapped, catching Thunderstar off guard. Her ears were flattened against her head, her body shifted backward.

"Of course, Bluestorm. I apologize for jumping to such an extreme conclusion. If you believe that he has a chance to grow into a warrior, than I shall judge both you and him in training."

"Thank you, Thunderstar. I apologize for my outbur-"

"It doesn't matter," she interrupted, her face was impossible to read and her voice was calm. "If I don't see any progress, I shall give him a new purpose."

Bluestorm nodded, turning to leave. Thunderstar stood and padded past him, making her way to the prey hole for a quick meal before a patrol. She stopped a tail length away, turning her head back slightly.

"And find myself a new deputy that can actually train warriors."

Her harsh words froze him in his tracks. Never before has his leader had to jump to such extreme notions. He gulped, shaking out his pelt to try and calm himself. Bushpaw walked up to him, gently pressing a paw into his leg.

"Bluestorm, you alright?" His apprentice asked, looking concerned. He didn't have a clue on how to break the news to him. Without trusting his voice, he gave a small nod.

Placing his tail across Bushpaw's shoulders, he lead him to the fresh-kill. The two sat a distance away from their leader, Bluestorm not sure if she will keep her mouth shut. His apprentice reached over, grabbing a robin and a squirrel.

As they ate, he kept a close eye on Thunderstar. She groomed her silver fur and stretched, being careful of her right hind leg. When she disappeared into the warriors den, he relaxed a little.

"When are you going to start organizing patrols?" Bushpaw's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. The sun started to peak into the sky, turning it pink and cream. They both stood up, the deputy stretching out his limbs.

"Right about now, actually," he meowed as his apprentice bolted off to wake up his friend. Bluestorm rolled his eyes, making his way to the warriors den. Grassfelt slipped out as he approached, giving the deputy a small nod before heading to the medicine den.

Upon poking his head into the den, most of the warriors were starting to wake up. Streambolt noticed the deputy and motioned him in, implying a quick discussion about the morning patrols.

"Streambolt, Foxfang, and Flamecloud," he meowed, getting their attention. "I would like you three to go on a border patrol by the MistClan border. Breezetail and Frostwhisker, go hunting towards the creek and the top border."

The five warriors nodded, standing up, and headed out of the den. He sat down, curling his tail around his paws, and looked at the few remaining warriors. BoltClan is low on warriors, how are we going to survive?

"Tinysong, take Blackpaw and Thunderstar to the SnowClan border. We have been a little lenient on checking there and I don't want any of their warriors in our territory. Keep things neat and don't start a fight over it, no matter what happens."

Tinysong stretched before she stood, leading the leader out with a gently wave of the tail. Thunderstar eyed him as she passed, a cold stare that sent a shiver up his spine. He followed a heartbeat after, nearly bowling into Bushpaw.

"What are we going to be doing?" His apprentice stared at him, hope glittering in his eyes. The small tom was bouncing from paw to paw, excitement bubbling at the surface.

"We are going to be doing some battle training. You need to polish up on most of your stances," he spoke, nudging his apprentice out the camp entrance. They weaved through the undergrowth, their paws sinking into divots that have been created over generations.

Bushpaw stumbled over a rock, his legs flailing as he fell. Bluestorm heaved him up by the scruff before he splattered on the ground in front of them. They ducked under a hollow tree stump and pushed themselves into an old rabbit's den. A hole brought in the daylight, revealing a large cave-enough room for four full grown cats.

"Are you ready for practice?"