Shattered Sky

by Erin Hunter

  The joy faded from Violetpaw’s eyes. “Darktail took Needletail and me down to the lake,” she explained. “He was going to drown Needletail as a punishment for what I did, helping cats to escape from him. Roach and Raven and Sleekwhisker were there too.” She paused, swallowing, and Twigpaw rested her tail comfortingly on her sister’s shoulder.

  “Needletail turned on them and attacked them,” Violetpaw continued after a moment. “She was so brave! She told me to run, and I did. . . . But I should have stayed and fought beside her!”

  “No, you shouldn’t have,” Twigpaw meowed. “Two of you against four of those vicious cats? You would both have died, and Needletail would have given you a chance for nothing.”

  Violetpaw nodded reluctantly. “Raven followed me,” she went on. “I couldn’t think about anything except losing her—and when I finally did, I had no idea where I was.” Her head and tail drooped. “It took ages for me to find my way back to the lake, and then I met the ThunderClan patrol on the ShadowClan border.”

  “Thank StarClan you made it!” Twigpaw leaned forward and nuzzled her sister’s shoulder. “Come on,” she murmured. “There’s a cat I want you to meet.”

  Leading Violetpaw farther into the camp, Twigpaw saw that the remaining ShadowClan warriors were emerging from their den, having been alerted by Berrynose and Cherryfall. When they spotted Violetpaw, their eyes widened with an expression of awe and deep respect.

  “Here she is!” Scorchfur exclaimed, bounding toward them. “Welcome, Violetpaw! You’re a hero to us all!”

  “You certainly are,” Snowbird purred, stroking her tail down Violetpaw’s flank. “It’s so good to see you alive and well.”

  Twigpaw let Violetpaw’s Clanmates greet her, then gave her a nudge and guided her over to the apprentices’ den. Hawkwing had risen to his paws and was waiting for them.

  “This is Hawkwing,” Twigpaw meowed to her sister, feeling as if her excitement was going to bubble out of her like a mountain spring bursting from the rocks. “He’s the deputy of SkyClan—and he’s our father!”

  Violetpaw halted in front of him, her jaws gaping with astonishment. Hawkwing leaned forward and gently touched noses with her.

  “I never hoped to have both my kits close to me,” he mewed, his amber eyes shining with delight. “This must be a sign from StarClan, that kin should stay together, always. You can help me rebuild SkyClan!”

  Just as he was speaking, a rush of paw steps sounded behind Twigpaw. Turning, she saw Alderheart dashing up to them, with Leafpool, Jayfeather, and the other medicine cats following him through the thorn tunnel.

  “Violetpaw!” he exclaimed. “You’re okay!” He pressed his muzzle into her shoulder, then raised his head to look at Hawkwing. Twigpaw could see that his joy and excitement at seeing her sister was mingled with uncertainty.

  “Have you discussed this with Bramblestar?” he asked. Clearly, he had overheard Hawkwing’s last words.

  “Bramblestar isn’t here,” Hawkwing replied. “He and the other leaders took some cats over to RiverClan. Why—is there a problem?”

  “There may be,” Alderheart replied, clearly choosing his words with care. “Twigpaw and Violetpaw have allegiance to other Clans.”

  “But—” Hawkwing began to protest.

  “There’s no need to worry about that just now,” Alderheart went on rapidly. “Violetpaw, you look so skinny and exhausted. You need to come to the medicine-cat den and have some juniper to build up your strength. Twigpaw, can you fetch her something from the fresh-kill pile?”

  He padded off with Violetpaw, his tail resting on her shoulders.

  Before Twigpaw could go to fetch prey for her sister, Hawkwing asked her, “Do you both have real allegiances to the other Clans? Obviously, you’re grateful to ThunderClan and ShadowClan for taking you in and raising you, but . . . I am your kin. Surely that’s more important?”

  At first Twigpaw couldn’t think how to reply. She dipped her head, unwilling to meet her father’s gaze.

  “You have SkyClan blood in you,” Hawkwing continued. “You’re SkyClan cats. Twigpaw—”

  “It’s all too much to take in,” Twigpaw interrupted desperately. “And I’m not sure what I want to do.”

  She could hardly bear to see the look of disappointment in her father’s amber eyes. She wanted to find the words to console him, but she had no idea how to do that.

  “I’d better fetch the fresh-kill,” she mumbled, and bounded off before her father could say any more.

  As Twigpaw was choosing a vole from the fresh-kill pile, more cats began to pour in through the thorn tunnel, with Bramblestar in the lead. Rowanstar, Leafstar, and the ThunderClan and ShadowClan warriors followed him. All of them looked exhausted.

  Squirrelflight, who had been watching over the camp from the Highledge, bounded down the tumbled rocks to meet the returning cats in the center of the clearing. Other warriors gathered around eagerly.

  “Is everything okay?” Squirrelflight asked.

  “More or less,” Bramblestar replied. “We saw nothing of the rogues, but you wouldn’t believe the mess they’ve left behind them in RiverClan! The camp is in a disgusting state—I can’t imagine what it was like to live there.”

  Leafstar shook her head. “It doesn’t surprise me,” she said. “He and his cats destroyed the gorge after they drove us out. He has no respect for the Clans, or how we live.”

  Rowanstar shook his head. “Indeed he doesn’t.”

  “Mistystar and her warriors have stayed behind to start rebuilding,” Whitewing added. “But they’re going to continue living in our camp for a while longer, until they’ve cleared away the worst of the debris.”

  Rowanstar stepped forward, puffing out his chest. “I feel responsible for Darktail, that mange-ridden scourge of the forest,” he announced. “Now I know what I must do: return to my territory and rid it of that terrible rogue cat once and for all.”

  Yowls of agreement rose from the rest of the warriors. Twigpaw could see their eyes gleaming with enthusiasm, and their fur bristling with the anticipation of a battle to come.

  “But not alone!” Bramblestar raised his voice to make himself heard, and the fervent voices died into silence. “This burden cannot fall on one cat, or one Clan,” the ThunderClan leader continued. “All cats, all Clans, must unite and do their part.”

  “SkyClan is behind you,” Leafstar said solemnly. “Many of our cats would welcome the opportunity to fight Darktail again, after everything he’s put us through.”

  Rowanstar nodded at her. “ShadowClan feels the same,” he said. “That flea-pelt nearly tore our Clan apart. It’s time for him to leave.”

  “Bramblestar is right.” A quiet voice broke into the discussion, and Twigpaw saw that Alderheart had emerged once more from the medicine-cat den and padded forward to stand beside his father.

  “All cats, all Clans, must unite,” he repeated. “According to StarClan, none of our efforts will succeed unless we involve one more Clan. . . .”

  CHAPTER 19

  A stiff breeze blew across the moorland, bringing with it the distant scent of cats. Violetpaw’s fur was flattened to her sides as she climbed the hill, and she felt her eyes begin to water. The chill air of dawn probed deep into her pelt, but her sense of anticipation warmed her through and through.

  Another day had passed while the Clan leaders made their plans. “We need to confront Onestar,” Bramblestar had meowed, “but we must be very careful how we do it.”

  “Yes.” Rowanstar was in agreement for once. “If Onestar feels we’re trying to intimidate him, he’ll dig his claws in all the harder.”

  In the end, the leaders had decided to send the Clan deputies to meet with Onestar. “He won’t see us as so much of a threat,” Squirrelflight had pointed out. “And as the only leader present, he’ll feel more important.”

  “Why not send Twigpaw and Violetpaw too?” Leafstar had suggested. “They both have stories to tell, and they’ll remin
d Onestar of the prophecy, and how vital it is to clear the sky.”

  So this morning, Squirrelflight, Tigerheart, Reedwhisker, and Hawkwing had set out, along with Violetpaw and Twigpaw. Reedwhisker was still recovering from his time in Darktail’s prison, but he insisted that he was strong enough for the journey to WindClan.

  “My paws will take me anywhere if it means I can help get rid of that mange-pelt Darktail!” he declared.

  Violetpaw was immensely grateful to the SkyClan leader for suggesting that she and Twigpaw be part of the mission to WindClan. Her paws wanted to skip along, and she had to keep reminding herself that this was a serious undertaking.

  As she padded along beside her father, Violetpaw noticed that he was glancing from side to side, his amber gaze taking in every detail of the moorland.

  “Are you worried WindClan will attack us?” she asked him.

  “Actually, no,” Hawkwing replied. “I was working out how likely it would be for a cat to even get attacked on such an open space. You can see so far . . . and there are so few places for an attacker to take cover.”

  Violetpaw exchanged a glance with Twigpaw, who was walking on their father’s other side. She could see from her sister’s slightly worried air that Twigpaw was sharing her thoughts.

  Is Hawkwing scouting out territory for SkyClan? But surely he won’t want to take WindClan’s . . . will he?

  Before Violetpaw could ask her father what was going through his mind, he suddenly halted.

  “Do you think there’s something strange going on?” he asked, turning to the older warriors.

  Squirrelflight looked puzzled for a moment; then her eyes widened in understanding. “We haven’t come across any WindClan patrols. That’s odd. . . . I’d expect the dawn patrol to be out, and one or two hunting patrols. But we haven’t even picked up their scent.”

  As if in response to Squirrelflight’s words, a sudden stronger gust of wind swept across the moor, bringing with it the sound of screeching and yowling.

  “That’s coming from the WindClan camp!” Tigerheart exclaimed. “Are they under attack?”

  Instantly Squirrelflight sprang forward, leading the deputies as they raced across the moor. “Stay back!” Hawkwing warned his kits as he followed.

  Violetpaw and Twigpaw bounded along at the rear. WindClan’s camp lay in a deep hollow on the moor, where the ground fell away near the top of the hill. A thick barrier of gorse and other bushes guarded the edges.

  Now the sounds of battle were even louder. Wriggling her way through the thorns, Violetpaw looked down on a mass of fighting cats.

  Darktail and his rogues are attacking WindClan! And it looks like they’re winning!

  She realized that Darktail must have led his Kin across WindClan territory under cover of darkness. That was the only cover they could expect in this bleak landscape. And with the WindClan cats asleep, they would have the advantage of surprise.

  Whatever else Darktail may be, he isn’t stupid!

  The four deputies sprang down the slope into the camp and flung themselves into the fray. Violetpaw watched as Hawkwing barreled through the battling cats, knocking rogues aside as he headed straight toward where Darktail was wrestling with Onestar. Pride warmed her from ears to tail-tip to see what a strong, fierce fighter her father was.

  Before Hawkwing could reach Onestar, the WindClan deputy, Harespring, leaped forward, trying to come to his leader’s aid. But Nettle thrust himself between them, his claws out as he aimed a blow at Harespring. Then Hawkwing was there, blocking Nettle and swiping his claws across the rogue’s face. Nettle backed off with a screech of alarm.

  Violetpaw exchanged a glance with Twigpaw. “We have to help!” she meowed.

  With a nod from Twigpaw, both young cats hurtled down into the fight. Violetpaw saw her sister skid to a halt as Raven lunged for her, then dart aside to aim a blow at the back of the rogue cat’s head.

  Raven spun around so fast that Twigpaw’s blow never landed. Her foreleg flashed out at Twigpaw, catching her on the side of her head so hard that she fell to the ground.

  Violetpaw sprang to help her, only to be intercepted by Roach, the silver-gray tom, looming over her with death in his eyes. Violetpaw moved to slash at him, only to draw back a pace as if her paws didn’t want to obey her.

  “Stop!”

  An ear-splitting yowl rang out commandingly above the noise of battle. Violetpaw gasped in astonishment as she realized that the voice was Darktail’s. Roach turned away from her, staring across the camp, and Violetpaw saw that every fighting cat, friend and foe, had grown as still as if they had been frozen by the cold of leaf-bare.

  Every cat’s gaze was fixed on Onestar and Darktail. The two cats stood nose to nose, their flanks swelling with their heavy breathing.

  “You mouse-hearted excuse for a cat!” Darktail taunted Onestar. “Is that the best you can do? A kittypet fights better! But then . . . you always were a coward.”

  A puzzled murmur ran through the Clan cats. Violetpaw shared their bewilderment. I don’t understand what’s going on.

  It was Harespring who voiced the question every cat wanted to ask. “Darktail, you’re talking like . . . like you know Onestar. How can that be?”

  Onestar never took his gaze from the rogue leader as he replied. “This cat’s word is not to be trusted. Look at what he’s done: raided camps, kept prisoners, killed more Clan cats than we can count. He’ll clearly do or say anything in his efforts to steal territory. And that’s what this is all about, isn’t it?” he challenged Darktail.

  An evil gleam lit the white tom’s dark-furred eyes. “Of course it’s about territory. It’s always about territory. And I think you handing some of WindClan’s territory over to me would only be fair.” His eyes narrowed, and his voice grew more intense and menacing with every word. “Especially after what you did to me!”

  Without waiting for a response from Onestar, Darktail turned to address the other Clan cats. “You all think of Onestar as an honorable leader, don’t you? Well, I know things about him that would make every WindClan cat’s fur stand on end.”

  Now every cat’s gaze was trained on Onestar. “What is he talking about?” Harespring asked.

  Onestar’s tail stood straight up, while he flexed his claws and ground them hard into the earth. “Why would you listen to him?” he demanded. “You’ve all seen the kind of cat he is!”

  Darktail spun around to face Onestar again. “And they should know what kind of cat you truly are,” he meowed defiantly. “The Onestar they think they know could not have done what you did to me!”

  The rogue leader’s words ended in a frenzied yowl, and he hurled himself once more at Onestar.

  But this time the Clan cats were ready, and as the fighting broke out again, it was clear that the rogues were outmatched. Squirrelflight grabbed Darktail and flung him away from Onestar, aiming a pawful of claws at his throat.

  The rogue leader writhed away from her and staggered to his paws. “Retreat!” he screeched.

  The Kin broke away, fleeing up the slope and through the bushes, out of the WindClan camp. Darktail was the last to go; at the top of the hollow he turned and looked back, his eyes glaring hatred.

  “We’re leaving now,” he yowled. “But we’ll be back! You can count on that, Onestar!”

  As he vanished, Violetpaw glanced around at the Clan cats. Their eyes gleamed with victory, but they seemed apprehensive, too, like they knew that Darktail would make good on his threat. A chill ran through her.

  This isn’t over.

  As sunhigh approached, Violetpaw and Twigpaw were sitting with Hawkwing at the bottom of WindClan’s hollow. All three of them were sharing a rabbit.

  When Darktail and his rogues had disappeared, Onestar had stood silent for a moment, gazing at the cats around him. At last he had straightened up, gathering dignity like an extra pelt.

  “Now I must tell the truth,” he meowed. “But I will not speak until the Clan leaders are here. This is
a matter for them, and I can only bear to explain once.”

  “Okay,” Squirrelflight responded. “Bramblestar, Rowanstar, and Leafstar are—”

  “Leafstar?” Onestar interrupted.

  Squirrelflight nodded. “Oh, of course . . . you don’t know. Leafstar is the leader of SkyClan. They have returned! This cat,” she went on, above wondering murmurs from the WindClan warriors, “is the SkyClan deputy, Hawkwing.”

  Hawkwing dipped his head respectfully. “It’s an honor to meet you, Onestar.”

  Onestar replied with a grunt. “You might not say that when you’ve heard my story.”

  Violetpaw thought that sounded ominous; she could see the WindClan cats exchanging worried glances.

  “I’ll fetch the leaders from ThunderClan’s camp,” Squirrelflight mewed, moving on tactfully from the awkward moment. She bounded up the slope and slipped through the bushes.

  When Squirrelflight had left, Onestar retired to his den, while Harespring sent out hunting and border patrols, with orders to keep a sharp lookout for Darktail and his Kin, and to avoid fighting except as a last resort. After that, there was nothing much to do except share the prey the hunters brought back, and wait for the leaders to arrive.

  “I wonder what Onestar is going to tell us,” Violetpaw remarked, swallowing her last mouthful of rabbit and swiping her tongue around her jaws.

  “I don’t know,” Hawkwing responded, a worried look in his amber eyes. “Onestar has some kind of secret—and it looks as if Darktail thinks it gives him some kind of power over WindClan.”

  “I wonder if the secret is why Onestar fled from the battle in ShadowClan’s territory after Darktail spoke to him,” Twigpaw mewed. “And it must be really important to have made him do that.”