A/N: I am SO sorry to everyone for the extremely long wait for this chapter. It was a difficult chapter to write, totalling at 5420 words, but I ended up writing about a hundred or two hundred words a day, then having to stop and think about what I was going to do next. Thank you to everyone who was so patient with us, especially with all the false alarms with the chapter accidentally getting published before it was ready. Anyways, without further ado, I give you the finally completed Day 4.
- Dragon
~★~
The apprentice's den was dark. Only a little moonlight shone through the gap in the brambles, glinting off of several pairs of bright eyes. All six of the den's occupants were awake tonight.
"I don't like it," Tinypaw mewed nervously. "It's too dangerous. What if someone gets hurt?"
Blackpaw swished his tail, flippantly brushing her worries aside. "No one will get hurt," he reassured his denmate, despite not having any proof to back his claim.
"I agree with Tinypaw," Redpaw said, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "There are so many things that can go wrong. I don't think we should do this."
"We should let the leader deal with it," Echopaw agreed, nodding her head.
Blackpaw's dark fur started to prickle up around his scruff as his fellow apprentices shot criticism at his plan. "Because she's doing so well so far?" he challenged. "Cats are still dying. We need to find out who the traitors are. This will make them reveal themselves!"
Dewpaw was the only one who seemed to be really considering Blackpaw's proposal. "It does have something to it," she meowed eventually, a contemplative look in her yellow eyes. "It just might work. If only one of us does it, and then the others can look for the traitor's reactions..." she trailed off, but then continued before anyone else could speak. "I want to be the one to do it."
Blackpaw immediately fluffed out his fur indignantly. "No way! It's my plan, I'm doing it!"
"Wait!" Echopaw hissed, sounding like she was yelling even though she was keeping her voice down so as not to wake any warriors in the camp. "We aren't really going through with this?"
"Of course we are," Dewpaw replied, looking unruffled. "It's a clever plan."
Viperpaw stared at her incredulously. "I can't believe you just said that about something Blackpaw came up with."
Blackpaw glared at her. "You'd better watch your nest for fire ants."
Ignoring them, Dewpaw continued. "I think it's our best shot at discovering who the traitors are. It should be safe enough as long as we can all keep up our acts."
Redpaw looked slightly excited at having a part to play, despite his earlier doubts, but Tinypaw, Viperpaw, and Echopaw were still against it.
"There's no way I'm letting you guys do this," Echopaw said in a bossy voice. "It's not our job to find the traitors. It's Graystar's."
"Besides, it's too dangerous for us," Tinypaw insisted. "Why don't we get a warrior to do it instead?"
Viperpaw rolled her eyes. "And risk spilling all of our plans to a traitor?"
"Then we get Graystar to help us," said Tinypaw. Irritation was starting to overpower the concern in her green eyes as she stubbornly defended her 'against' standpoint.
Dewpaw just shook her head. "It wouldn't work the same. We need everyone's reactions to be pure, especially Graystar's."
Echopaw looked about to say something further, but Redpaw cut her off. "Echopaw, think about it. If this works, and we find out who the traitors are, Graystar would be so proud of us. We might even get to be warriors."
Echopaw backed off, a dreamy look in her bright amber eyes.
"Can we get on with this?" Blackpaw grumbled. "I'm going, and none of you can stop me, so you might as well help me."
It was quiet for a few long heartbeats, and then Viperpaw finally spoke up. "If you go and screw everything up, or get yourself murdered, I'll kill you myself. So... don't."
Blackpaw shot her a grin. "You got it."
~†~
Longclaw slipped out of the warrior's den and into the moonlit clearing, small twigs raking her back as she ducked through the exit. Her heart was pounding with anticipation. She crept around the edge of camp, keeping to the shadows, hoping to stay out of sight if she avoided the center of camp. She padded past the apprentice den, completely oblivious to the meeting going on inside. Longclaw had plans of her own.
She'd just reached the camp exit when an accusatory voice stopped her from behind.
"Where are you going?"
Longclaw turned around to see Shademask standing outside the warrior's den, watching her with narrowed eyes. Their dark gray fur with swirled black designs made them blend in almost perfectly with the obscurity of the night, and the black markings around Shademask's eyes gave them the appearance of being made to lurk in the shadows. Longclaw couldn't help but feel suspicious. She knew Shademask fairly well, better than she knew most other cats, but seeing them following her set off alarm bells in her head and put her immediately on the defensive.
"Nowhere," Longclaw replied.
Shademask scowled and padded closer. "You're sneaking off in the dead of night while there are murderers active in the clan. I don't think you're going nowhere."
Longclaw blinked, imagining herself lunging forward and swiping her claws across their chest, effectively stopping them from discovering her plans, but she remained still. That wouldn't help her any, especially since she didn't know if Shademask was actually a traitor or not. "Why are you following me?" she demanded instead.
"Maybe because you're sneaking off in the dead of night when there are murderers in the clan?"
Longclaw shook her head. So they suspected her of being one of the traitors? Not surprising. Quite a few cats did these days, after Ratflame's frenzied accusations against her. "Look, I'm just going to the dirtplace. I was sneaking around so that I didn't bring any attention to myself because, as you said, there are murderers about," she lied, but while twisting one ear back as though telling the truth and ashamed of it. As though she could be afraid of a few lawless clanmates.
She had a reason to lie. If Shademask was a traitor, then she didn't want to reveal her plans. And if they were innocent, then she didn't want them to get hurt.
Shademask kept their eyes narrowed at her for a few long moments, evidently trying to decide if she was telling the truth or not. Longclaw's tail-tip was twitching uncomfortably under their stare, but the dark-furred warrior didn't seem to notice it, being too focused on her expression. Longclaw kept her eyes as emotionless as possible.
"Fine," Shademask said finally, giving in -- too quickly? They normally didn't give in so easily -- and turned away. "Just be careful."
Longclaw forced herself to nod and turn her back on them. No matter what Shademask's allegiance was, no one would dare to attack her in the middle of camp, where a single yell would wake up everyone. The white warrior slitted her eyes as she walked away. Tonight she would find out if they were still her friend or not.
Once outside camp, Longclaw swerved to walk in the opposite direction of the dirtplace. She'd spent all day yesterday thinking of where her hiding spot would be, after grieving for Cascadefall's death. The place she had decided on was close to camp, but in the direction of the river. Somehow that seemed to be the most likely direction for the traitors to go.
Longclaw quickly reached her destination and immediately crawled underneath a low-lying barberry bush, ignoring the wood stems that dug into her pelt. Her lip curled as a pungent scent reached her nose. Wild garlic grew under this bush, now crushed under her claws, but that had been one of the reasons she had chosen this spot to hide. The garlic would cloak her scent from the traitors.
Longclaw settled into a slightly more confortable crouch, preparing to wait in her position for a long time.
Perhaps an hour or two had passed by the time she heard voices. It was still dark. At the first mutter, her heart rate picked up speed. She was right. The traitors were here tonight, and she would see them, she would discover who they were.
It sounded like a group. Multiple voices, coming gradually closer, talking over each other at times and quieting for another voice at other times. The fur along Longclaw's spine lifted. One of them was laughing, as though the pressure of having killed clanmates didn't weigh on their chest like a boulder, didn't bother their conscience in the slightest. Anger bubbled up in Longclaw's stomach, white-hot, like live coals.
They weren't going to come close enough. Longclaw could hear it in the way the source of the voices traveled, coming closer and yet somehow moving further away at the same time. They were going to pass her and she wasn't going to be able to see who they were.
"So any ideas on the next target?" one voice said clearly.
A jumble of sounds responded, words from different speakers overlapping each other so that Longclaw couldn't understand what was being said. Eventually she was able to decipher a female voice say "We should get Smallcloud out of the way. I don't believe that he didn't see any of you yesterday, after Cascadefall."
"Then again, he makes a good scapegoat," another cat snickered. "Echoleaf has everyone convinced that he was in on it with Troutstripe."
Longclaw couldn't take any more. The anger had traveled from her stomach to the rest of her body, pulsing in her limbs, urging her to action.
She exploded from the cover of the bush, sprinting towards the source of the voices. They weren't far. Her vision narrowed to become a tunnel, dark around the edges, with only one aim in sight: to hurt the traitors like they'd hurt Cascadefall, Pinestep, and Mallowheart.
Five of them. Looking up in surprise as Longclaw burst through the undergrowth before them, her amber eyes alight with fury.
The white warrior launched herself onto the nearest cat without even registering who it was. Her claws raked across her opponent's shoulder, leaving jagged gashes in the light-colored pelt. A she-cat. The traitors retaliated at once, and Longclaw felt the blows rain down on her from five sets of paws without feeling the pain; she just twisted her claws in her enemy's fur and pulled her forwards, lunging toward's the she-cat's throat, her teeth gleaming white in the darkness.
A clawed paw struck Longclaw's jaw and she was forced sideways, away from the cat she had been about to bite. Her opponent's fur tore away, caught in her claws. In the brief moment Longclaw was motionless on the ground she tasted blood. Then she was back on her paws with a roar, lashing out, but her paws swiped only air.
The enraged she-cat was forced to the ground once more from behind, and a great pressure between her shoulders kept her pinned there, unable to do more than flail her paws and scream in frustration. Her rear paws caught on something and she kicked out hard, forcing someone away; they landed with an "oof," but it was not the cat holding her down. Then she felt pain cut into her stomach. Longclaw's gaze met amber eyes like her own and she snarled, but the eyes held no pity, just a slightly uncertain fierceness as the traitor they belonged to swiped their claws through her belly.
Even Longclaw, one of the best fighters in the clan, could be taken down when outnumbered.
Her vision dimmed, and all she could hold onto were the amber eyes of her murderer as her life bled out onto the grass.
"Well, I guess that's our kill for tonight," someone said as the light left Longclaw's eyes forever.
~†~
Graystar stood on the Highrock, her gaze scanning the clan below her. It was dawn; a pale morning glow illuminated the scene, chasing away the shadows of the night. So far the camp seemed calm.
Rosepool was lying in the clearing with her paws underneath her, looking tired but alert, watching the others just as Graystar was watching; Crowtail was padding out of the warrior's den, yawning and stretching; Icespark was on her own, grooming her pretty white and crème pelt; Laurelgaze and Iriswhisper were sitting facing each other near the freshkill pile and talking in animated voices; and Graystar was thrilled to see Snowsong up and about, padding over to the prey heap to pick a meal for herself. Dawnpetal was sitting in the entrance of the medicine den gazing after her. It seemed she was still concerned for the widowed she-cat.
Graystar decided to speak with Rosepool first. The light brown tabby looked up at the leader and smiled as she approached, but weariness lined her face and showed in her eyes.
"Why so tired, Rosepool?" Graystar asked gently, sitting down beside her.
Rosepool looked down at her paws. "I can't sleep," she muttered, "seeing how it's so peaceful around here. Obviously there isn't enough excitement in my life right now." The sarcasm was half-hearted and not at all funny.
Graystar frowned and rested her tail-tip on the pale tabby's shoulder. "Hopefully this will be over soon. And then we'll all be able to get some rest."
Rosepool said nothing, just looked up gratefully at Graystar. They stayed side by side in silence for a few long moments, and then Graystar stood, feeling the need to continue on. She was upset that Rosepool wasn't able to sleep, but then again, the fluffy gray she-cat couldn't help but harbor some doubts. The attacks have mostly been happening at night...
Icespark looked slightly alarmed to see Graystar approaching, and narrowed her eyes warily, slowly lowering her paw from where it had been poised to move over her ear.
"Good morning, Icespark," Graystar greeted, flicking her tail to signal to the tabby that she was here on friendly terms, not to accuse or blame. Icespark twitched an ear in response.
"Good morning, Graystar," she replied, her defensive walls falling away. "Can I help you?"
"I just wanted to talk a bit," the leader answered, taking a seat once more. "I don't suppose you've seen anything, or heard anything, lately?"
Icespark shook her head. "Aside from the obvious, no. Although," she added, swishing her tail, "I noticed that a few cats were missing from the warrior's den when I woke up. Iriswhisper, Laurelgaze, and Rosepool, and they're out here of course, but Longclaw and Whisperdrizzle are gone too."
Graystar's brows furrowed in concern. "And do you know where they went?"
Icespark turned her head side to side in denial. "I've no idea. I haven't seen either of them since last night."
The leader sighed, her ears angling down. She felt drained. There were so many signs pointing to so many possibilities, and the truth still eluded her grasp. Dark times had befallen her clan, and Graystar could not yet see a light at the end of them.
Icespark seemed to understand Graystar's sentiments, and offered a tight, humourless smile. "If you ever want help thinking of a way to catch the traitors, I'd be more than happy to help."
"Thank you, Icespark," Graystar replied, summoning up a purr. "I'll keep that in mind."
The pale-colored tabby nodded, her blue eyes glimmering. Graystar returned the gesture and then moved on.
A few more cats had emerged from their dens as the morning wore on, but Graystar made her way over to Crowtail, who was now picking over the prey on the freshkill pile. Snowsong had retreated to a remote corner of camp to eat, so only Laurelgaze and Iriswhisper were nearby, still muttering away.
Crowtail's eyes were cautiously guarded as the black and white warrior looked over at Graystar's approach. They had chosen a scrawny vole from the pile, but set the prey down at their feet to acknowledge her.
"Crowtail," Graystar greeted, and received her name in return. "How have you been?"
Crowtail appeared to consider their words carefully before responding. "As well as I can be, under the circumstances," they said softly. "And you?"
"It's been a difficult few days," Graystar admitted. She started to ask if they had seen Longclaw or Whisperdrizzle this morning, but before she could, she was distracted by Iriswhisper and Laurelgaze's steadily rising voices.
"I won't accept it!"
"Have you no morals?" Laurelgaze demanded, her light gray fur bristling along her neck. "What you're thinking of -- it's no better than the traitors."
"The clan needs better than this!" Iriswhisper spat back, her tail lashing from side to side. "We've all been sitting back idly, waiting for things to get better, but they won't! We need to take action!"
With a fiery screech, Iriswhisper launched herself at Laurelgaze, claws outstretched. Graystar leapt back in surprise. The two she-cats were grappling, hissing fiercely, but Laurelgaze was obviously on the defensive; she cringed back with a scream of pain as Iriswhisper's claws swiped over her shoulder, coming away red with blood.
"Stop! Stop!" Graystar yowled, coming to her senses and lunging towards the pair. The she-cats broke apart, both stepping back so that there was a fox-length of space between them. Bright blue eyes glared at golden ones. Graystar stepped between them, breaking off their stares.
"What is the meaning of this?" the leader demanded.
Laurelgaze was standing with her weight on three paws, tenderly holding her front right paw off the ground and grimacing at the gashes in her shoulder, but she still spoke up first. "Iriswhisper wants a change in leadership. And I disagreed with her."
The pale spotted she-cat hissed, then seemed to force herself to calm down. She sheathed her claws and sat back on her haunches. "I just believe that the head of our clan should be actually doing something about the traitors, instead of just watching and waiting for them to reveal themselves, while more and more innocent cats are killed." Iriswhisper's voice trembled with suppressed anger as she struggled to keep her temper under control. Her blue eyes sought out Graystar's amber gaze. "And I will not apologize for defending my opinion, or stand for being accused as a traitor."
Graystar's tail swayed slowly back and forth as she considered her words. "I understand your perspective, Iriswhisper, but that does not give you the right to attack your clanmates," the gray she-cat growled. "Or to try to undermine your leader." She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. If Iriswhisper wanted a more decisive leader, she would get one. "Iriswhisper, you will stay in camp for the remainder of the day. You will not go hunting or on patrol. You will stay where others can see you and you will not use your claws against a clanmate again. Do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal," Iriswhisper responded in a monotone.
"Good." Graystar turned to face Laurelgaze. "Thank you for defending my position. You should go see Dawnpetal for your wounds." There was already quite a bit of dried blood around the cuts on Laurelgaze's shoulder. The warrior dipped her head and limped off in the direction of the medicine den, where Dawnpetal was already waiting with a mouthful of herbs.
Slowly, Graystar let the tension drain out of her muscles, leaving them weighted and weary. Iriswhisper had stalked away to sit off at the side; Crowtail had followed her, and Graystar heard them mutter "hey, are you alright?"
Honeyrose, who must have just recently emerged from the warrior's den, padded up beside Graystar and flicked an ear in Iriswhisper's direction. "Tensions are running high," she observed correctly. "We're all letting a little bit of our worst selves come out."
"Indeed," Graystar murmured. She felt heavy, as though gravity was increasing on her alone. The traitors were winning. Her clan was tearing itself apart.
Honeyrose touched her furless tail to Graystar's flank. "I know you're troubled; these are trying times for all of us. But we cannot neglect our duties. Shall I take out a hunting patrol?"
"Yes, that would be excellent," Graystar agreed, shaking herself out of her heavy stupor. "Wake some cats in the warrior's den, would you?"
"Of course," Honeyrose purred. "Don't worry, Graystar. We'll get through this."
Graystar looked into the warrior's striking yellow eyes, full of certainty, and wished that she could believe her.
Honeyrose darted off to wake some sleeping warriors, as Graystar had suggested, and the leader stood and glanced around the camp again. A few more cats were mobilized now, milling around the clearing, talking and eating. She spotted Morningrose the deputy speaking cheerfully to Snowsong, and Redpaw and Dewpaw standing side by side in front of their den. The apprentices caught Graystar's eye, and after exchanging concerned glances with each other, started to slowly approach her.
Graystar pricked her ears. "What is it, you two?"
"Um..." Dewpaw scuffed her paw against the ground. "Are there any patrols out right now?"
"Honeyrose is about to take one out," Graystar answered, her eyes narrowed curiously. "Why?"
"Blackpaw's gone," Redpaw blurted out, then ducked his chin. "I mean, he wasn't in the den when we woke up, and we've been waiting for him, but he hasn't come back."
"We're really worried about him," Dewpaw insisted.
Graystar's heart skipped a beat. These days, the first conclusion she made about a missing cat was the worst one -- that the traitors had struck again. "Oh, no," the leader moaned. "Thank you for telling me... I'll send out a search patrol for him."
"Did someone say patrol?" a cheerful voice asked from behind them. It revealed itself to be Snowstrike, who padded up to Graystar's side and then settled back onto her haunches. "Honeyrose is organizing one right now, but she didn't pick me to go on it, for some reason."
"Blackpaw is missing," Graystar informed the small white warrior shortly.
Snowstrike tilted her head, her mismatched eyes glimmering curiously. "Missing?"
"Hopefully not because of traitors," Graystar added with a frown.
Confusion passed over Snowstrike's expression before transforming into alarm. "Oh! Uh oh. I see. So you need someone to lead a search patrol for him, right?" She didn't wait for an answer before continuing, "I'll do it. I'll find Blackpaw and bring him home safe."
"May StarClan let it be so," Graystar sighed. She was deeply concerned. If Blackpaw had been killed... She had only herself to blame. He was too young to die in such a way. She should have protected him. She should have protected all of the apprentices.
"I'll get some more cats," Snowstrike announced, jumping up and running off.
"I want to go too!" Dewpaw cried, running after her.
Graystar and Redpaw were left facing each other alone. The leader touched her tail to the young tom's shoulder. "I'm sorry," she meowed. "It's my fault if Blackpaw is gone."
Redpaw shook his head. "It's not your fault, Graystar," he mewed. "But I sure hope he's okay." With that, the reddish brown apprentice turned and walked away, but not before Graystar could see the worry clouding his yellow eyes.
She watched as Snowstrike charged out of camp with Lightdream, Dewpaw, and Smokefern at her heels, and then as Honeyrose led her hunting patrol of Basilwisp, Leafsky, Featherwing and Echoleaf towards the exit, the latter group moving with less urgency.
And then, once all of the patrol cats had passed, Whisperdrizzle slipped in through the camp entrance.
Graystar narrowed her eyes. According to Icespark, Whisperdrizzle had been gone before most cats were up, and the tom carried nothing in the way of prey or anything else to explain his absence. The leader's gaze flicked to the camp entrance -- she could not help the search patrol by standing there and worrying about them -- and then flicked back to Whisperdrizzle. Except that the quiet grey-blue tom was gone.
Confused, Graystar turned her head, her amber stare sweeping the camp for any sign of the absent warrior, but she didn't see him. She sighed. She wanted to talk to him about where he had been...
The she-cat shook out her thick gray fur and raised her head. She would keep an eye out for him, and speak with him later.
She spotted Kestrelberry crossing the camp, walking in a sort of arc towards Snowsong, as though his original destination had been the other side of the clearing but then he had seen Snowsong and changed his course. Graystar glanced, puzzled, at the camp wall he had been aiming for -- just a barrier of twigs and ivy.
"Good morning, Snowsong," Graystar heard Kestrelberry purr as the golden-furred warrior reached the she-cat's side. He looked at her with kind green eyes. "How are you doing?"
Snowsong's fluffy white pelt was slightly haywire, probably in need of a good grooming, and her green eyes were not as bright at they had been before Pinestep's death, but she still straightened her shoulders and raised her chin to look at Kestrelberry as she replied. "I'm fine."
Kestrelberry gave her a small, shy smile. "I'm glad to hear it," he said honestly. "I was worried about you, staying in the medicine den."
"Dawnpetal frets about me too much," Snowsong replied with a light laugh. "Then again, if I were the medicine cat, I'd probably make me stay there too."
Kestrelberry laughed with her. "Good for her. Well, hey, if you're feeling better..." He ducked his head shyly and scuffed his paw against the ground. "Do you want to go hunting with me?"
Snowsong's green eyes rounded and her ears flattened back. "Oh... No, no thanks, Kestrelberry. Not right now." She swished her tail. "Anyways, I'd be useless at hunting right now. I'm too distracted. The traitors... I want to find out who they are." Her gaze hardened with determination as she spoke the last words.
Kestrelberry seemed smaller than he had before he'd asked; it looked as though he'd shrunk in his fur. "Of course. I understand," he mewed.
Snowsong gave him a small smile, but the sudden tension between them was almost tangible.
A yell interrupted them. Graystar whirled around just in time to see Rainsong strike Dawnpetal's nose with outstretched claws.
The spotted grey she-cat immediately recoiled from the medicine cat, her eyes wide with shock. "Oh my stars, I'm so sorry!" Rainsong apologized, her tail flicking side to side. She peered at Dawnpetal's muzzle. "Did I hurt you?"
Dawnpetal sat back, rubbing her nose with a raised paw. "No, it's alright," she reassured Rainsong. "Just a scratch."
Rainsong looked relieved, and then a heartbeat later she puffed up, standing on her toes and lashing her tail. "Then what in the name of StarClan were you sneaking up on me for? I thought you were a traitor coming to attack me!" she hissed angrily.
The medicine cat shrank back. "I wasn't sneaking up on you," she protested in a very small voice. "I just wanted to talk to you... You asked about how Laurelgaze was doing earlier..."
"Then don't walk up silently behind a cat!" Rainsong cried, exasperated. "You nearly scared me out of my fur!"
"I'm sorry!" Dawnpetal apologized, ducking her head.
Graystar couldn't help her whiskers from twitching. Dawnpetal /did/ move around very quietly.
Over by the apprentice's den, Smokeflash was staring down at Tinypaw and Echopaw. "What do you mean he's gone?" the dark gray tom demanded.
"I mean he's gone," Tinypaw snapped back, her short temper showing itself once again. "As in not here."
Smokeflash didn't seem happy with her answer. His striking orange eyes narrowed. "Well then, where is he?"
Echopaw quickly stepped between them. "We don't know," she informed Blackpaw's mentor. "He was gone when we woke up." She allowed a moment for that to sink in, then continued on. "Snowstrike took out a patrol to look for him. In case... you know." The white-furred apprentice gulped. "He was taken by traitors."
Tinypaw looked nervous.
Smokeflash looked completely taken aback. "Stars," he said quietly. "I hope that's not the case."
"Me too," Echopaw admitted, and her voice was sincere.
Near the freshkill pile, Echolight and Tigersplash were lying down, sharing a hare between them. Scraps of rabbit fur had somehow ended up clinging to Echolight's brown tabby pelt, despite the fact that it looked like Tigersplash was eating most of the prey. The two warriors were chatting idly. When Smallcloud approached to take something from the pile, however, Echolight and Tigersplash looked over at him, immediately silent.
Smallcloud met their gazes curiously, tilting his head. "What?"
Echolight just stood and moved silently around to the other side of Tigersplash, to be further away from the short white and cream tom.
Smallcloud looked terrified. Graystar could see the betrayal in the warrior's blue eyes and the understanding that his clanmates didn't trust him anymore. Echolight, at least, was convinced that Smallcloud was a traitor.
The munchkin tom flicked his tail back and forth as he tried to joke it off. "Do I smell or something?" he said with a light laugh, but his voice was shaking.
Tigersplash gave him a stern look. "Or something," the dark tom growled.
At that moment, Graystar heard her name being called and turned around. Snowstrike was standing at the camp entrance, her fur bristling.
"Did you find him?" Graystar asked, sprinting forward to meet Snowstrike. "Did you find Blackpaw?"
Snowstrike shook her head. Her ears were pinned back, flattened against her skull. "There was no sign of him. We found..." she trailed off, took a deep breath, and then started again. "We found Longclaw instead."
Graystar's heart sank.
Snowstrike looked back, and Graystar followed her gaze. Her chest constricted when she saw Lightdream and Smokefern slowly approaching the camp entrance, dragging a limp white form between them.
Longclaw.
The loyal warrior's fur was stained scarlet with dried blood, her limbs slack and motionless, her eyes void of life's light. Graystar couldn't help but let out a little gasp when she saw the wounds marring Longclaw's pelt.
Someone screamed; it sounded like Featherpath. Runningstream and Morningrose scrambled forward to help pull the body into camp. Dewpaw was trailing after the search patrol, her eyes round with shock.
The body was laid out in the center of the clearing. Cats inched forward to take a closer look at the fallen warrior.
Snowstrike padded to Graystar's side. "She wasn't far outside camp," the snow-white warrior meowed in a businesslike tone. "It looks like she was killed by the stomach wound, but she has injuries everywhere. Multiple attackers, probably three at least."
"I see," Graystar choked out.
"Three? That looks like she was attacked by six!" Featherpath exclaimed. She had come up with the other warriors who were attracted by the commotion. "Longclaw could have dealt with just three!"
Lightdream, standing nearby, made a noise that sounded like a dying mouse. Graystar glanced sharply over at him. The large white tom looked stricken, his amber eyes filled with grief. Lightdream had been closer to Longclaw than most other cats, Graystar reflected. He, Rosepool, and Shademask probably knew her the best. Rosepool was there too, hanging back from the rest of the gathered crowd, looking on with a sorrowful gaze, but Shademask was nowhere to be seen.
It didn't take long for most of the cats to disperse; as horrible as it was, the majority of the clan was becoming desensitized to the whole dead-bodies thing. There had been too many deaths recently. Soon only a few cats remained gathered around Longclaw's motionless form. Lightdream was seated by the deceased warrior's side, his head bowed and his eyes closed. Runningstream had approached after all the others and was taking a moment to pay her respects, and Dawnpetal was slowly beginning to prepare the body for burial. Graystar hadn't yet moved from her position.
Dawnpetal beckoned to the leader with her tail. When Graystar obediently padded up beside her, Dawnpetal quietly pointed out Longclaw's paws.
Tufts of torn gray fur, stained dark with blood, were caught in her claws.
"The fur of her attacker," Dawnpetal murmured. "Or one of them, at least."
Graystar stared down at the incriminating evidence. Quite a few cats in the clan had gray fur, but perhaps only a couple with that particular light shade. The whole scene smelled too much of garlic and blood to get a scent from it.
"Get Morningrose to search," Graystar ordered in an undertone. "Find me the names of all the cats with that fur color. Perhaps it will give us a hint as to who will be exiled tonight."
Perhaps there was a light at the end of this darkness after all.
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~★~ Comment your vote down below who you think is a traitor! The cat with the most votes will be exiled in the next chapter! ~★~