» C u r š ε - - || December Missing Chapters Event?? 10/30

Prologue
And she pleads to the stars

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The hunter waits. She is patient, silent, controlled; a perfectly tuned instrument of death.

She uses the shadows to hide from the eyes of her enemies, her pelt melting into oblivion.

It is a perfect night for a kill; for the moon is hidden away in its own veil of darkness and the stars are too cold and distant to shed their light onto the mountain side below.

Yet, she does not flex her claws against the earth in anticipation, nor feel the rush of blood roaring in her ears.

She is calm, silent, focused.

The only sound that can be heard is the aching creak of the ancient pines as they bend to the will of the wind.

Then, out of the darkness, comes the dim glow of a celestial being wrapped in a swath of stars. A thin halo of pure, pale light outlines her figure as she steps out into the pine needle littered clearing, the soft crunch of her padding across the ground breaking the tense silence emitting from the huntress.

The starry feline stops once she reaches the center of the circular clearing, her pelt wavering and shifting like a wispy fog caught on a hook, her eyes large and unblinking like an owls, glowing a bright evergreen.

“I know why you’re here, my dear,” the ghost-like being rasps, her voice scratchy and hoarse as if she had spent a lifetime screaming out to the heavens.

The hunter hesitates briefly, disturbed to have been found out so quickly and effortlessly. Reluctantly, she thrusts herself out of the brush, revealing herself as a young ginger, white, and black she-cat with the same exact evergreen eyes as the ghostly she-cat. “Don’t call me dear. You have no right to call me that,” she growls, her eyes as cold and desolate as the icy tundra.

Sadness and regret pools into the brightly lit she-cats eyes and she bows her head in submission. “You are right. I will only call you by your name, Jadefox,” she murmurs.

Jadefox does not let her glare waver as the she-cat speaks, instead she locks in her legs, as if bracing for impact. “You know why I’m here, so let’s get it over with. Tell me why; why did you do this to us?”

The she-cat shakes her head slowly, turning her flank away from Jadefox so she can gaze off into the forest without looking into her eyes. “He would have killed you if I hadn’t,” she says bleakly.

Jadefox takes a few steps forward so that she is upon the otherworldly feline. “That’s a lie! You did it to save your own skin!” She spat.

The celestial apparition turns so that she can respond with a fierce retort. “I did not! I did it to save you, my daughter, and to save the many other daughters who will come after you! You will understand once you have kits of your own,” her voice booms, echoing off the trunks of the pines.

Jadefox doesn’t flinch, but now her claws are set deep into the ground, tethering herself in. “That won’t matter now! Don’t you see? This sacrifice that you have made will all be for nothing. You have cursed us all, Shadowhunter! You have doomed us to a life of darkness and death! Like you, we will all die alone!”

Silence meets her words.

Shadowhunter’s evergreen eyes now glint with deep, raw, sorrow.  She steps closer to her daughter, her right paw shaking as she brings it up to place it along Jadefox’s cheek bone just below her own evergreen eye. She smiles painfully, swallowing thickly as she speaks. “I remember when your eyes were blue…so clear and beautiful…like the sky. They reminded me of your father…so brave and kind he was…”

“Mother…I-”

Shadowhunter shakes her head, moving her paw over Jadefox’s muzzle to silence her. “But now this curse has taken him away from me, all because I made a foolish mistake. I thought I was in love with another…but he was nothing more than a shade, a trickster. He is the one who brought this curse upon us, Jadefox. He is the one who has taken our souls and marked us with the eyes of the cursed. Know this; I sacrificed my happiness so that you may live on. One day, you will have to do the same for your daughter.” As she speaks, her form begins to fade, the trees becoming visible behind her fur.

Jadefox’s whole body now quivers as her tether is broken. Her eyes are no longer cold, but they are sad and filled with longing as she reaches out with her paw to touch her once living mother’s shoulder, only to have her paw pass through completely. “Wait, please! There must be more…there has to be a way to break it, right?”

Shadowhunter’s body is now nothing more than a thin fog, her cursed evergreen eyes shining out into the dark. “The only way to break the curse is to speak its name; know its name, and you will have power over it.” Shadowhunter meows urgently, her gaze becoming fearful as her body slowly evaporates. “Never forget the name! Name her - !” In a flash of blinding light, Shadowhunter is eradicated from the clearing, leaving Jadefox sprawled out on the ground, the blast carrying her off her paws and flinging her against the base of a pine.

Once she comes to, Jadefox is no longer in the dark pine forest, but is instead lying on the smooth surface of a rock jutting over a deep green valley below. She grunts as she sits up, her body weak and trembling as if she had been running for miles, but her evergreen eyes are now flaming with determination. She rests until the darkness clears and the sun begins to rise to the east over the valley, its light warming her cold, soulless body.

She looks up to watch as the last of the stars blinks out, the glow of the sun overwhelming them, its brightness swallowing theirs.

I promise mother, she thinks to herself, imagining Shadowhunter watching her with bright, loving, yellow eyes. My cursed daughters will always defy him, and we will fight for what we have lost.

Prologue Second Act
And her fate is sealed

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Blood flows like water over the hungry stones of a rushing river, swirling in cadence with the pregnant waters. It fills the shore, expanding like a bed of roses in a garden of kings.

The valley, in the dead of winter, sits in solemn despair as the tormented screeches of its daughter rings out, like the fevered pitch of a blazing fire before a field of wheat, destroying every blade and every small creature in its path.

It is the sound of agony.

Not pain, not sorrow, not despair; just pure agony.

And the forest sits; silent, still, and powerless against the darkness that now infects the screeching victim like a poison.

"Do you see it now, my precious one? Can you see the darkness calling to you?"

Another screech answers the torturers questions, cut off by the sound of gurgling as the victim is dipped into the river, more blood fleeing into the now tainted pureness of the water.

Once the victim is freed, she is thrown back onto the pebbled shore, landing with a wet, lifeless flop. Blood flows from her closed eyes like bloody tears, her soaked pelt hugging her rounded belly that protects three tiny precious lives; lives that will undoubtedly suffer the same fate as she.

"P-please...understand that I never meant to hurt you...," she feebly pleads, clear liquid running out the side of her jaw and trickling down onto her chest fur.

Her attacker approaches slowly, like a hunter would to its prey, a wicked smile warping his features in an unnatural way. "Of course you meant to hurt me! Why would you have done it otherwise if not to punish me?" He growls, raising one of his paws and striking down on the right side of her face, slicing deep into the fur and sinew there.

She cries out, her eye lids opening wide with shock and pain; deep, black, blood stained holes occupying where her eyes had once been.

Her attacker laughs with sickening glee as he pushes her to her paws, thrusting her back so that she is backed into the side of a large grey boulder, the right side of her face now unrecognizable.

"Look at how pathetic you are...too weak to fight back...too defeated to stop begging for mercy...in one single day I have managed to make the most feared and respected warrior queen of the Valley beg for her life like a helpless kit! Where is your courage now, leader of MountainClan?!" He taunts the queen with vicious malice, his pupils wide and crazed.

The queen hisses, hunched over her unborn kits, her fur sticking up in matted clumps. "You may have taken my sight, you may have wounded my body, but you will never taint my soul!" She snarls roughly, her throat sore from screaming.

A terrible glint chills the tom’s gaze, dark humor dancing across his lips, his ears standing to attention at the new prospect of a challenge. "Well...we will see about that, now won't we?" He purrs sardonically. He then slinks away, his paws moving silently over the stony beach that now resembles a colorful painting of mud, snow, and blood. He stops at the edge of the river where two large rocks forms a tight crevice between them. He looks back over his shoulder, his bright green eyes glittering with a sick glee. "I know your weakness. I know exactly how to break your spirit...," the crazed, green-eyed torturer then reaches inside the crack to take out the battered body of a broad shouldered tom with unmistakable lynx-like ear tufts.

The queen remains silent as her attacker manages to haul the large muscular tom up from out of the dark crevice by the scruff of his neck and into the snowy glow of the daylight, a deep groan eliciting from him as he is dragged across the pebbled shore to be laid down only a few tail-lengths away from the she-cat.

At first the queen is confused as the scent of the nearly unconscious tom becomes tangible on her tongue, but then that confusion is wiped clean from her face as recognition suddenly breaks like a sunrise within the planes of her scarred face. Horror, guilt, astonishment, and pain flicker across her features in a violent torrent of emotion.

“No…no, this-this isn’t real! He is dead! I saw him die!”

The cat that lay in front of the blinded queen was not just any tom, he was the tom.

He was the tom that would break her curse.

Yet, knowing the torturers ways, the she-cat knew her one hope for revival was about to be lost forever.

Death knocked upon the doors to her soul, and she could feel it slowly rot away as her attacker slinked forward like a tiger, her one and only chance of life lying helplessly beneath his fangs…

Her fate was sealed. 

Chapter 1
And there was sight

300 years later...

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They say that the eyes are windows to the soul, that through them, all of your deepest secrets can be revealed.

It is the eyes that can betray you in a moment of need; a spark of defiance, a glimmer of sorrow, a sparkle of happiness, a glint of murderous intent.

Your face may be as chilled as a glacier, and your body may be as immovable as a mountain, but your eyes will always reflect what is inside you.

But what about the eyes that are empty, that are soulless?  Is it as easy to see what is inside them as it is to see inside another’s?

What if those eyes, the eyes you thought you knew so well, were not even real?

What if they belonged to someone else…something else?

It was hard to have these questions buzzing around my head like stinging wasps when I was so new to this world; someone who was just starting her journey through life.

Even as a young, innocent kit, I knew that my life was to be ruled by fate.

And fate can be cruel to the innocent, for they don’t see the brutality of the world.

I can still remember the day my fate began…looking back it seems so long ago, as if it was from another life...

.     .     .

My earliest memories are the memories of waking up.

It was the first time I had seen colors.

After being accustomed to darkness for so long, I had to shut my newly opened eyes, and re-open them, to make sure what I was seeing was real.

I was encompassed by a soft, spongy material that tickled my sensitive muzzle. It was a bright, vibrant color that glowed in the dim light. Looking closer, I could see tiny individual segments that looked like the edges of a feather, but they were tougher, and much more cushioned. Experimentally, I slowly brought my right paw forward to dab at this mysterious substance, which I later found to be called moss, but what truly excited me were the colors of my own small paw.

Most of the top of my paw was a pale color…almost like a blank, like a more vibrant color was missing. Just beyond this void of color, which turned out to be white, was an opposite color, a color so dark that not even darkness could hope to copy it. It was called black, and it was accompanied by splotches of a color that, when staring at it, reminded me of warmth. It was a burnt orange with white stripes.

I was instantly happy to be so colorful; to be so alive.

I took a moment then to tilt my chin up, my eyes widening at the strange ceiling above my head, my mouth opening in a small “o”. 

It looked like a tightly packed, tangled mass of mouse tails, except each mouse tail had tiny spikes along their length. It looked deadly, but at the same time very safe as I concluded that those thorny tendrils were there to protect me from whatever was outside.

Outside…what a strange word…yet it inflicted tangible excitement and wonder within me.

Only moments after my visual exploration of my home, a chorus of purrs and exultations of joy echoed in this small mossy space.

“Oh, Cloudspots…they are simply beautiful!”

“Five healthy kits, it’s a blessing from StarClan!”

“Maskstar must be so proud.”

Their voices were quite loud…they echoed in my ears like loud bird calls, causing me to flinch and let out a loud whine of protest.

Another chorus of meows followed, only louder and at a higher pitch this time.

“So cute! She’s a strong one that one.”

I could then feel a tight pressure in my chest, building slowly, a feeling so unfamiliar that it took me a few moments to name it; annoyance.

A loud rustling then paused the exclamations as another voice made itself known.

“What is this? All of you, out! You’re scaring the kits-no, all the way out Darkestday!  Sitting with your head poked in the entrance is not out!”

As the rustling of the bramble walls finally stilled, a warm breath blew across my face, smelling of milk and moss.

“Thank you, Nighthawk. I was afraid I would have to get out of the nest and push them out! I always forget how excited the clan gets over a birth,” a warm, soft voice meows. Unlike the pitchy meows of the spectators, this cat’s voice was quiet, gentle, and even a bit humorous. It sounded familiar, as if I had listened to it many times before.

The answer to this mystery came in the form of a face.

The cat lowered her head so that her large luminous green eyes were trained on me, their depths glowing with so much love that my whole body tingled from ear-tip to tail-tip with fuzzy warmth. Her face was soft looking, colored black with spots of white. Her fur was wispy, like the vapor of a cloud, and her muzzle was gently narrowed like the corner of a triangle, topped off with a shiny black nose.

I knew without a doubt that this was my mother.

Beyond her sat a very lithe, black she-cat with sharp white markings on her face and chest, her eyes the same exact shade of green as my mothers. This was Nighthawk, the cat that had come earlier to relieve me of the raucous noise of the other cats. 

“I heard that you still haven’t given that one a name yet?” Questioned Nighthawk, leaning down closer so that her whiskers brushed against my flank, tickling my side and causing me to squirm and bat at her muzzle.

My mother purred, brushing her cloudy tail across my forehead. “Her siblings names just came to me so easily; Ospreykit, Mintkit, Stormkit, and Blackkit…but this one…every time I think I have one it slips away. None of them feel right, mother,” she sighs, clear distress and worry clouding the tone of her meow.

Nighthawk narrows her eyes as she observes me under her piercing evergreen gaze. “She has quite the unique marking…it’s almost as if it’s a birthmark of some kind, like her father’s.”

“Maskstar noticed that too when she was born, but he thought it would send the wrong message of favoritism if we gave her the name Maskkit. Besides, the black fur only covers the right side of her face…” 

Nighthawk sat back then, a tiny hint of shock flittering across her eyes before it was wiped away. “You know, that marking almost reminds me of my grandmother’s scar. It covered the right side of her face…the most peculiar scar…instead of turning a pale pink over time it scarred black, like she had been clawed by claws of fire.”

Cloudspots purred. “You and your stories…I still don’t understand why you talk of the past so much,” she teased her mother.

Nighthawk smiled knowingly, the expression not quite reaching her eyes as they stared into space. “The past is the key to the future, my daughter. Without the past we will never learn from our mistakes.”

My mother was silent, the sound of a lapping tongue brushing against fur breaking the silence.

“What was your grandmother’s name?”

“Her name was Shadowstar; one of the few great leaders of MountainClan.”

I could feel my mother’s gaze then, looking down at my tiny body curled up against her soft belly fur, surrounded by the bodies of my brother and three sisters.

I wonder, while looking at her innocent, young, daughter, if she ever thought about what might become of her.

“Then her name shall be Shadowkit, my little Shadowkit,” my mother murmured, nuzzling me with her nose.

Unbeknownst to them, they had just sealed my fate by the choosing of my name.

I was no longer innocent, for I could see.

Chapter 2
And another rule is added

4 moons later...

SPOILER: Click to show

In this chapter of my life, time seemed to pass seamlessly. No bumps, tears, or road blocks deterred my young spirit, so I was free to explore my new home without having a heavy weight in my chest.

In the four moons that followed my birth, I learned a few basic rules for surviving as a kit in MountainClan:

        1. Never, EVER eat alongside the warriors. You will soon be trampled and squashed like a tick on an elder’s pelt. It’s not that their rude or anything…it’s just that…well, they don’t tend to notice the small things.

        2. Always obey your mother. You will find that life will be a lot easier if you do.

        3. Don’t even think about going into the medicine den. In fact, don’t even look at it.

        4. If you want the elders to tell you a good story, don’t bring your moony-eyed sister along who thinks every story needs romance. The elders will never let you come back.

        5. Be an adult. Follow the code.

        6. Family is more important than anything else.

As long as I followed these rules, I knew I would be safe and happy. It was that simple.

If only life could be that simplistic…

“Shadowkit! C’mon you’re staring off into space again!”

My ears swiveled to the left in response to the familiar teasing, high pitched squeaking meow of my most annoying sibling; Ospreykit.

Ospreykit was the runt of our liter, but for some odd reason our ancestors decided to bestow upon her the gift of most critical, loud-mouthed, picky, and hyperactive, tattle-tail sister ever.

“Why are you glaring at me like that again? Momma said it wasn’t nice to glare!” She squeaked, her voice scratching away at my already aching ear drums from her earlier bout of complaints about there not being enough moss in our shared nest.

I growled loudly, swinging my body around to face Ospreykit who was sitting nonchalantly in front of the entrance to the nursery. Crouching low to the ground, I wriggled my hind-quarters in preparation for taking down my prey. Yet, my hunt was interrupted by a fluffy black and white splotched coat and a pair of deep blue eyes blocking my view of my target.

“Cut it out sis; she’s just trying to provoke you into a fight,” came the slightly lower pitched meow of my only level-headed sibling and brother; Stormkit.

Stormkit, unlike Ospreykit, was rather large, but much more quiet and kind. He was the mediator of most of our sibling show-downs.

I sighed and stood, feigning disappointment. “Oh, fine. She wasn’t worth it anyways.”

“Hey!” Ospreykit piped up indignantly, her colorful orange, white, and black spiky fur fluffing up to make her appear like a painted moss ball.

Another black and white spotted figure came into view, this one much more streamlined and fragile looking. This was my sister Mintkit who had lovely minty green eyes; most likely the reason for her bizarre name.

“Momma said that we could be outside in the camp today as long as we don’t cause trouble. Can we please be nice to each other? It’s a lot more fun when were sweet and considerate,” she meowed quietly, shuffling her paws in the dark pine needle soil of the camp ground.

I inwardly groaned, but felt grudging respect for my sister. Mintkit was a bit of a romantic, but as annoying as it was, it was still nice to have at least one cat that had such a positive outlook on life. Especially with what was coming next.

“Hey look, a patrol is coming in!” Ospreykit cried.

All four of us shuffled forward into a huddled group, making sure we gave the protective thorny bramble entrance a wide berth as a storm of fur, claws, and sinew exploded into the cool camp clearing, their strong jaws filled with snow hare, crow, and fish.

My eyes widened in awe as I looked upon the four warriors now depositing their catches into the prey-pile in the center of camp. Each one of them had strong, compact legs and tough wiry shoulders with multiple scars lacing across their bodies. I remember many long nights where the elders would tell us stories of the great mountain cats who dared to live on the peak of the world where the rocks were as sharp as lion’s teeth and the wind was as harsh as a freezing dip in the Siberian River. They told us all warriors of MountainClan wore their scars with pride, for scars were a sign of strength, bravery, and experience.

“Whoa…they look so awesome!” Stormkit meowed appreciatively, his blue eyes glittering with excitement.

Ospreykit for once was silent as she nodded in agreement, her tiny needle-like claws kneading into the dirt.

Mintkit on the other hand wrinkled her nose and shied away from the scarred warriors as they walked past. “They look scary to me…why would they want to keep their scars? Did the medicine cat not know how to treat their wounds?” She inquired, looking wide-eyed and deeply concerned for the hunters as they settled down outside the warriors den which was made out of more brambles and thick moss.

One of the warriors I recognized as Darkestday, a large black tom-cat with stark silver eyes. He was our mother’s brother; our uncle.

“Well, think about it this way Mintkit. If invaders ever try to cross into our lands they will be scared out of their pelts just at the mere sight of us! They wouldn’t want to tussle with us,” I explained matter-of-factly, puffing my chest out with pride for my clan.

We are the most fearsome clan in the world! Nothing could tear us down!

The bramble entrance trembled again as another figure stepped in, holding a large, shiny silver trout by its midsection, blood dripping down the toms muzzle and onto his white, orange, and black splotched chest, creating a gruesome and terrifying aura around him.

His flaming amber eyes were identical to my own, and his face was encompassed by a black-furred mask, hence his name; Maskstar.

He was our leader and our father; a powerful and intimidating combination.

We were all silent, watching him expectantly as he came prowling up to the fresh-kill pile, opening his jaws to let the fish plop down onto the growing pile with a wet splotch.

At that moment I felt a warm pelt press up against me from behind; it’s fur smelling of milk and moss. “You should go ask him to teach us how to fish!” A voice whispered encouragingly, sounding young and bright.

I turned my head to look over my shoulder at my nearly identical twin; Blackkit.

Like me, Blackkit was a tortoiseshell, except she hardly had any white fur on her body besides a small dash on her chest, and her orange fur was just orange, not orange tabby. Her eyes were also amber, but they were lighter, more golden, and they had darker chips of amber surrounding her pupil.

 

I liked to think that we were born at exactly the same time sense me and her were so close, and could always tell what the other was thinking, but momma told us that was physically impossible.

At the time I didn’t understand why.

I shivered, turning back to look at our father as he leisurely cleaned the blood from his fur, his large shoulder muscles rippling with the movement.

I swallowed thickly, trying to appear confident when really nervousness ate at my insides. “I-I don’t know…”

Of course, Ospreykit took this moment of indiscretion to ruffle me up. “What? Are you scared of our own father? Don’t be such a chicken. If you won’t do it, I will,” she meowed, her voice laced with sarcasm and a tempting challenge.

It wasn’t that I was scared of my father, it was just that he seemed so…intimidating, so different and out of this world. He rarely came by the nursery, less so than before, and when he did his attention was mostly focused on our mother, Cloudspots.

None of us had ever held a conversation with him.

I growled, standing up and lifting my chin. I refused to let my little sister get the better of me.

“No, I’ll do it. I just wasn’t sure because he probably has better things to do then to talk hunting strategies with some little kit,” I sniffed, ignoring the stabbing pain in my chest that the words brought me.

Could he really not want to talk to his own kits?

I could feel Blackkit’s gaze burning into the back of my skull, her concern tangible even without looking directly at her, but I turned away from her and marched over to my father, our leader, determined to impress him and earn his affections.

Upon approaching, one of the warriors from an earlier patrol came up to my father and started conversing with him. My father’s gaze became as still as stone, and his brow creased on his forehead in a clear message of concern and serious thought.

My paws faltered as I came into his shadow, but it was already too late to turn back.

“The patrol picked up more disturbances on the mountain side. It appears as if the snow is weighing down the rocks and the trees dramatically. We found more fallen pines and large broken up boulders from when we checked last,” the she-cat reported, her blue tabby fur sprinkled with snow-flakes from her border run.

Maskstar nodded; his golden amber eyes attentive. “It’s clear then. We should start taking measures to preserve the mountainside from collapsing. Inform all patrols that they are to stay away from that part of the forest. Also, put up a bramble wall on the main trail. We don’t want anyone or anything going up there and causing an avalanche.” 

The blue-tabby warrior dipped her head. “Yes, Maskstar,” she conceded, backing away and padding off toward the other warriors to inform them of their orders.

Maskstar’s gaze then found me; my little form crouched in the pine needle mulch, my amber eyes wide and my fur fluffed up nervously.

He tilted his head, an impatient look coming into his flaming orbs. “Yes? What is it that you want kit?”

I visibly flinched, and anger welled up inside me. I ignored the loud, warning hisses from my siblings on the other side of the clearing. They already knew it was no use trying to stop my response.

“I’m not ‘kit’. My name is Shadowkit, your daughter, for your information,” I replied haughtily.

An amused look quickly flashed over my father’s gaze before it disappeared just as quickly as the morning dew on a blade of grass. “Oh, really?” He rumbled, his mew reverberating in his wide statured chest. “Then what is it that you want, Shadowkit, my daughter?”

I was silent, suddenly forgetting what I was going to ask, and what my purpose was.

He called me by my name! He called me his daughter!

His tail-tip began to twitch and he sighed heavily. “Well?”

I snapped out of my astonished trance and beamed up at him, sitting up straighter and holding my chin up. “Me and my siblings saw the big fish you caught. We were wondering if you could teach us how to catch trout too!” I purred, casting a furtive glance back at my siblings over my shoulder to see them all giving me encouraging looks. Even Ospreykit was on her toes, stretching out to catch what we were saying.

Maskstar looked over my head to stare at the rest of his brood, his gaze suddenly becoming dark and slightly apprehensive. What I didn’t know was that Cloudspots had come out to watch our confrontation, and as I waited for his response the leader and his mate faced off with silent conflicts between them. When he returned his attention to me, he appeared resolved about something, but no emotion could be placed in the cold planes of his face.

“Sorry, but I have more important duties to take care of. Why don’t you go run along and…play with the elders or something,” he growled, standing and stalking off to go join the warriors.

I stared at the space he had just occupied, rooted to the spot as his shadow fell away from me, exposing me to the cold wintry sunlight filtering through the canopy. I could feel the sympathetic glances from the on-lookers, and I could almost taste the shock and disappointment that soaked through my body like a thick mist from my kin.

Soft footsteps crunching over the pine needles sounded beside me, and a soft, cloudy tail flicked my nose lightly, causing me to look up into the solemn evergreen gaze of my mother. Her voice was grave as she spoke.

“Your father is a very busy tom. He has a whole clan full of kits to watch over, to teach, and to lead. Just because he did not reciprocate this time does not mean he won’t the next. When it starts getting dark, try again. He will be alone in his den away from clan politics, so he should be more willing to spend time with you then.” 

I sniffed, an overwhelming feeling of rejection making it hard to breathe. “You really think so?” I choked out.

She nodded, her soft triangular muzzle caressing the top of my head. “Of course, my love; despite what you may see, deep down, he loves you very much. He wants to get to know you; all of you.”

I breathed in deeply, feeling the cool crisp air cleanse the tight feeling in my chest, making it dissipate. “Ok, momma. I’ll try again.”

.         .         .

Night fell upon the mountainous valley, the gloomy mist filling every dip and depression it could find. The white vapor quickly dampened all the light, making the air chilling even to the happiest of its victims.

My fur felt damp and heavy as I padded away from the nursery, the fog so thick that I couldn’t even tell where the other side of the camp was. I used the edge of the bramble wall as my guide, following it by sight alone as the nursery was swallowed by the mist behind me.

In the gloom I could make out a hollowed trunk of a fallen pine that was used as the elders den. Lichen and mushrooms bloomed in the crevices and grew in the pine mulch, and the smell of rotting wood was prominent over the aroma of freshly applied mouse-bile.

I softened my footsteps as I crept past, not wanting to waken any of the elders, for they would be on me quicker than vultures. But, apparently, I wasn’t the only one who was awake so late on this shrouded night.

“…such a tragic end…she would have…death should never be that way.”

Something foreign tugged at my gut, making it squirm and knot up as I overheard the mysterious words floating from the elders den. Something in me wanted to know more, something in me wanted to get closer…

I didn’t realize I was at the entrance of the den until I could see a glowing pair of evergreen eyes shining out in the darkness. I halted and crouched low to the ground, pressing my belly into the cold damp earth.

I held my breath as I realized that those eyes belonged to Nighthawk, my grandmother, but she wasn’t the one who had spoken. Another pair of eyes glowed in the dim light of the den; a milky blue. I recognized them instantly as belonging to Riverstep, the oldest cat in MountainClan. He was a thick-haired dark brown tabby tom with distinctive lynx tufts on the tops of his ears. He had gone blind long ago when he first became an elder, his eyes becoming clouded with some rare infection that had evaded our medicine cat. Riverstep was one of the kindest elders I had ever met, and he was a talented story teller. He was very popular among the young kits in the clan. Even the apprentices would come to listen to his grand stories of adventures long past.

He was speaking now in a low raspy meow.

“…yes, she was quite beautiful...very brave, strong, and stubborn, as most of your family is, Nighthawk.”

Who are they talking about? Some long lost kin of mine?

Nighthawk chuckled, shifting in her warm mossy nest. “Yes, she was, wasn’t she? I always looked up to her…I wanted to be just like her.”

Riverstep purred, but the tone of his voice was grave. “Thank the realm of the living that you did not turn out to be like her. Such foolishness would have cost you your life.”

Nighthawk growled protectively, her voice as hard as flint. “Wolfheart was not foolish; she was just lost and depressed. You remember her past, don’t you? Her father, my grandfather, died the day she was born. Her brother was crushed by a rock slide a year after during a hunting assessment. Her sister passed away during child-birth. Her mate, my father, was slaughtered by a pack of wolves before he could see his kits be born into this world. Her own mother died of green cough soon after, and out of her three kits, only one survived,” she meowed, stating the horrifying string of events effortlessly as if they had been repeated many times before.

Riverstep rasped his tongue over his chest before responding. “I know of her tragedies, Nighthawk. I’m talking about after. Instead of moving past those dark memories and raising you normally as a mother should have done, she went haywire, raving on and on about some curse. She claimed that the curse was the reason why she was doomed to die alone, why she said she didn’t think you would live much longer than a couple of months,” he rasped, his voice calm, but sympathetic.

My heart beat rose, the word ‘curse’ pulsing in my mind like a sore pad.

Nighthawk dipped her head curtly to the older tom, her evergreen eyes flashing brightly, almost unnaturally so. “I see what you mean. Yet, one can call that foolishness, while others can call it a desperate cling onto a reality she could no longer take. She paid a high, unfair price for her loss of differing between what was real and what wasn’t…”

“She took her own life, in the end.”

She took her own life… 

     She took her own life…

          She took her own life…

I quickly scrambled away, my head pounding in tune with my heart-beat, my senses becoming scattered by their harmonic beating within my body. I found myself stumbling backwards into the thick fog, the elders den melting into its clutches. I then slammed face first into a cold rock face glittering with dew, thick strands of moss hanging from a small overhang over my head. The impact managed to help clear my head of the alarming pounding, but that relief was quickly over-shadowed by heart-stopping fear as I realized I was in front of my father’s den.

 I can’t do this now! Not after what I just heard! I need to find my way back to the nursery. I need to tell Cloudspots everything, maybe it was just a big misunderstanding, or maybe they were just rehearsing some messed up horror story. Whatever it was, it was more important than-

 No.

I promised.

Don’t bow out on me now Shadowkit. You can do this. Remember what Cloudspots said. He loves you, and he wants to talk to you. Remember rule number six; family is more important than anything else.

Squaring my shoulders, I took a deep breath, letting my thoughts, emotions, and my body calm before slipping into the moss covered den.

He was lying on a bed of moss with his back turned to me. You could tell he was still awake by the way his shoulders were tensed up, and the way his tail flicked back and forth over the ground with obvious frustration.

In that moment I felt a little sympathetic towards my father. I could never imagine what it would be like to have the weight of responsibility that he carried on his shoulders. It was hard enough for me to watch over my siblings, I couldn’t even imagine doing the same for an entire clan.

I took a tentative step forward, swallowing thickly before speaking up. “Fath-uh, Maskstar? Are you alright?” I stammered.

The leader of MountainClan turned to glare at me with detached golden amber eyes, his tail-flicking increasing in tempo.

“What are you doing here Shadowkit? You should be in the nursery with your mother,” he scolded, his eyes beginning to flame up.

 I swallowed again, trying to grasp my bearings.

"Actually momma told me to come here. She said that you were too busy to talk earlier, but when it got dark you would be free to speak with me,” I replied. I was proud that my voice did not waver or shake.

Maskstar narrowed his eyes. “Well, she was wrong I’m afraid,” he snapped. “I don’t want to be bothered with kits at the moment. My job is to take care of a clan, and yours is to stay by your mother’s side and let the warriors do their work. Now, please leave, and don’t come back.”

A feeling I didn’t recognize welled up inside my small, little body. My legs trembled, and my ears felt like they were burning.

Confused and afraid of this new emotion, I turned away from my fath-no, from my leader, and ran.

I ran until my vision blurred and my breath was coming out in gasps, and I didn’t stop until I reached the nursery. I squeezed inside, the thorns scraping at my sensitive flesh, but I welcomed their stinging pain. I flung myself into the nearest empty nest and curled up against the edge where I could bury my face into the soft bedding, hoping that my whimpers couldn’t be heard in the small dank space.

Something soft and light tickled my nose then, causing me to sneeze and whip my head up to meet the startled blue gaze of a young dark brown tabby tom kit.

Our eyes locked, fiery amber and frosty blue meeting for the first time, fire and ice battling out to see who would break first.

It was him who broke the connection, looking down between us and then looking up again, his gaze as clear as the sky, compassion and outward concern written plainly on his face as he pushed the soft, ticklish object toward me again with his white stained paw.

I looked down then, my chest still aching, my stomach still churning, to see a large, delicate feather resting on the moss nest between us.

It was rather long and sleek, colored a rich dark brown with an ever so light golden tint near its base.

It was beautiful.

I looked back up at this small young kit who simply smiled and nudged the feather toward me again.

“Wh-what is that?” I murmured; my voice raspy and thick with sadness.

He was still smiling as he answered. “It’s an eagle’s feather. I thought you might want it.”

“Why?”

“Because, when you have an eagle’s feather, you can soar higher than the world, away from all its troubles that could ever bring you down; I thought you might need it.”

I smiled then, the feelings of hatred, rejection, and pain melting away as I stared down at that one eagle’s feather, then back up into a frosty sky.

“I’m Eaglekit by the way,” he meowed, a tiny hint of a grin coming through as I smiled back at him. “What’s yours?”

“Shadowkit,” I replied, returning his bright grin. “My name is Shadowkit.”

From that moment on, I knew that no matter what dark things life threw at me, I would always have a friend to show me the light. Rule number seven; when life gets hard, find an eagle’s feather.

Chapter 3
And the green eyed soul awakens

1 moon later...

SPOILER: Click to show

Every time I look back onto this particular day in my life, a feeling of sickness crawls into my gut. Could it have been avoided? Could I have stopped what was to come? These questions I have always pondered; have always struggled to understand the answer…

The answer that is so frustratingly simple that to this day I still refuse to take it as it is.

It was fate. Nothing I could have said or done would have altered my final destination. I could have gone a different way, but as someone I used to know said; all paths head in one direction.

My fate was to be cursed. Cursed like the many she-cats in my family before me. A dark, twisted, and cruel fate it was.

If only I had known…if only someone had told me…

Could I have broken the line of cursed daughters on that day?

If only I hadn’t let myself be so blind…if only I had listened…

If only I had avoided that place high up on a mountain cliff, where the sun would rise in the east and shed a golden light on the valley below…

Many of my kin would still be alive.

.       .       .

A moon had passed sense that fateful meeting the night after my father’s rejection. Eaglekit and I became inseparable, so much so that we even formed our own secret group called the Shadowed Wings, though Eaglekit’s mother Sunblaze got pretty enraged when we came into the nursery one day with sloppy black wings painted on our backs with mud.

Yet, despite this new relationship and all its positive attributes, it was not enough to stop me from going over the edge.

Bitter anger and disappointment from Maskstar’s treatment of me and my siblings became like a festering wound. It grew; infecting more and more of my being until it was so overwhelming that I began to go against my father in every possible way…

Which included breaking the code.

“Shadowkit, you need to stop this now.”

I paused, my tongue still hanging out of my mouth mid-way through grooming my fur that was growing quite thick as it got deeper into Leaf-Bare.

I gave an exasperated sigh as I retracted my tongue and licked my cracked lips. “Stop what?”

My sister Blackkit was sitting across from me in the empty nursery. All the residence had gone out to get some fresh air, but my sister had pulled me back, claiming she had something important to talk to me about.

Her honey-like amber gaze was deadly serious as she responded. “Stop acting like this! Stop acting like the rules don’t apply to you! You think you’re the only one who has been hurt by fathers-“

“You weren’t there!” I snapped, my fur lifting on my spine. “You didn’t see how he rejected me-rejected us!” My small chest rose and fell at a furious pace, my limbs feeling like they had been torched by liquid flame. “And don’t call him father, Blackkit. He’s anything but,” I spat. With that I stood and stomped out, ignoring her pleas for me to come back.

That was the first time she confronted me.

The second time was outside the medicine den after me and Eaglekit had stolen poppy seeds to help Riverstep get some sleep after complaining of aching joints. The only ones besides my siblings that were angry at me were my father and mother, though I felt that Cloudspots was rooting us on behind Maskstar’s back.

The third crime was hunting a mouse outside the perimeter of the bramble wall of the camp. The mouse was given to a young apprentice who had been suffering from White-cough. This time Eaglekit and I were grounded by Maskstar’s orders, but the clan praised us for such courage.

And the battle raged on.

Countless times we broke the rules to help those in need, and every time Maskstar became more furious and was constantly on watch for our next rebellion, and the clan began to favor us over his punishments.

That was, until it all went to my head.

“We should venture out of the camp!”

Eaglekit choked, coughing up a bit of a crow’s feather that he had been eating. It was a scrawny little thing; the meat tough and dry. Leaf-bare was in full swing. Snow fell every day, prey kept to their underground nests, and the Siberian River was frozen over, forcing us to travel to the most southern edge of our territory to catch fish in the Lonely Lake.

“But, we’ve already been out of the camp!” He gasped, still trying to catch his breath from his bout of coughing.

I turned my head away from him to peer out into the little looking hole that I had made in the side of the nursery wall. Through it I could see the forest, the trees still thick and green despite the heavy snow weighing the branches down. In the distance the Great Mountain soared high into the sky, the top looking so small that it looked like the top of an ant hill.

“No,” I murmured, still looking up at the mountain peak, “I mean go venture out of camp,” I emphasized, turning to look back into his skeptical icy blue gaze for a response.

He shifted in the moss nest, his face a neutral mask. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

I tilted my head in confusion. Why is he backing down now? After all that we have done together? Is he scared?

”Are you scared?” I taunted him, nudging his small, underdeveloped shoulder.

His expression instantly turned to outrage. “Of course not! It’s just…” he paused, looking over his shoulder to look at his mother Sunblaze lying in the nest across from us, her ginger tabby fur gently rising and falling with each of her breaths. He then turned back to look at me, his blue eyes solemn. “It’s just that it could be dangerous. We’ve never been out of sight of the bramble wall, and Maskstar was furious after-“

“I don’t care what Maskstar thinks!” I hissed, glaring at Eaglekit. ”He’s the reason why we’ve been doing these things. I’m trying to show him that I’m not some little kit he can just toss aside! I’m his daughter, so he should at least notice me,” I growled, setting my jaw in stubbornness.

Eaglekit grinned. “Well, you obviously care about what he thinks if you want him to notice you.”

I narrowed my eyes at him and gave a playful swat to his lynx-tufted ear with my right paw, just barely missing as he managed to duck out of the way and counter with a tackle that rolled me onto my back.

I laughed, my own smile plastering my face. ”So, will you come with me?” I panted; a hopeful hint to my voice.

Eaglekit shrugged, but he still kept a grin on his features. ”Of course I will come with you, Shadowkit. Shadowed Wings forever, remember?”

I pushed him off, rolling to my paws and letting out a soft purr. ”Yes, Shadowed Wings forever.”

.       .       .

We didn’t begin our adventure until the next morning. We waited until the dawn patrol left the camp, and then silently followed through the bramble entrance and out into the forest for the first time.

”I don’t remember the trees being so big!” Eaglekit exclaimed, his breath coming out in frosty white vapor clouds.

I nodded silently, knowing my fiery amber eyes were wide with awe at the sheer majesty of the evergreen trees surrounding us like tall, watchful guardians.

We followed a trail worn down by many generations of MountainClan cats that headed toward the base of the Great Mountain. We kept our senses on high alert, hoping that no one else was following the same trail.

The dirt trail wound through the trees like a viper, snaking its way between enormous fallen boulders and trees. At one point we had to climb over the trunk of a large rotting trunk that had crashed into the middle of the path. Eaglekit’s long legs made it easier for him to get over, but my smaller, more compact body did not have his jumping ability, so he had to drag me up by my scruff, much to my annoyance.

Once over the trunk, we stopped to stare wide eyed at what lay ahead of us.

The dirt path seemed to run straight into the mountain side, the sheer grey rock soaring high above our heads until it disappeared into the tree line. On closer inspection you could see that the path actually made a sharp turn around the edge of the rock face and vanished behind it.

I could feel Eaglekit’s sudden aversion to my plan even before he opened his mouth.

“Shadowkit…I think we should turn back.”

I turned to face him, determination making my voice hard as steel. “Why?”

Eaglekit straightened his shoulders as he faced me down, his face lit up by the cold winter sun high above us. “Think about it. We’ve never been out this far before. It’s one thing to step outside and smell the roses, Shadowkit, but it’s another to pull them out by their roots.”

“Can you drop the cryptic tone and just be straight with me?” I growled, my tail flicking with annoyance.

Eaglekit sighed. “It’s dangerous out here. Yes, sure, I get that you don’t care about breaking the code that prevents us from venturing out of the camp, but it’s there for a good reason. It’s the dead of winter, and we’re only five moons old. Even the best warriors can catch a cold out here, what do you think will happen to us if we keep going?” He urged me, his expression almost pleading.

I laughed.

I wasn’t mouse-brained; I knew that he was right.

I just didn’t care.

“Well, you don’t have to come with me, Eaglekit. You can run back home to your mother and her milk while I’m out here reaping the benefits and getting all the glory. I’m going to gain all the respect I can get from my clan mates so that one day Maskstar’s opinion of me won’t matter anymore. I’ll be untouchable.” I spat bitterly, turning and leaping off the log and unto the shockingly cold ground that had now given way to stone. I ignored the way my fleshy pads burned against the freezing rock and kept walking, making my way up the path that lead higher up onto the mountain.

I heard the sound of scrambling paws as Eaglekit rushed up to my side. He was silent, but as I turned to look at him I could see in his eyes that he was sorry, and that no matter what he wasn’t leaving my side.

I felt guilty then. Here was my friend, the one that had brought me up when I fell down, the one that gave me courage when all I could see was darkness, and he was facing this ridiculous quest that could get him hurt or worse, and it was all for me.

But I didn’t smile back or show gratitude, I simply nodded and walked in silence.

The path became rather treacherous, and the temperature dropped as we climbed higher. Yet, Eaglekit and I had made it into a kind of game; our minds moving past our disagreements about the adventure.

For every boulder we climbed, we would tell each other a secret.

“You remember that one day when Stormkit bullied me into a duel and I lost?”

I chuckled at the memory, the air cold but my heart warm as Eaglekit pressed up against my side, pushing me up onto the next grey rock. “Oh, yes! I remember that! Who could forget the epic beating of Eaglekit?” I joked, digging my tiny claws in and hauling my body onto the smooth surface, turning to help Eaglekit up.

Eaglekit gave a playful growl as I hauled him up by his scruff, his long legs easily reaching the distance without much muscle strength from me. “Haha, very funny. Well, do you remember the next morning when Stormkit woke with five ticks attached to his rump? That was…me,” he admitted, his icy eyes sparkling with mischief.

I rolled onto the ground with laughter, my whole body shaking with mirth. “No way? Really? Haha! That’s hilarious! You better not try that on me,” I purred, rolling back to my paws and nudging his shoulder as he shrugged.

“No promises,” he meowed, padding up to the next ledge and jumping onto it. He then faced me and gestured with his chin. “Your turn.”

I sighed; sifting through all my memories as I scrambled up beside him, hoping that I could find a secret that was better than his.

It then struck me flat in the face.

“You know that night when we first met?” I murmured, pausing to catch my breath as I squatted on the cold stone boulder.

He nodded, squatting beside me with his dark brown tabby fur pressed against my tortoiseshell. “Of course, how can I forget?” He purred.

I smiled fondly at him, and then continued. ”Well, when I was going to see Maskstar in his den I passed by the elders den, and I overheard a conversation between Riverstep and Nighthawk. Apparently they were talking about Nighthawk’s mother, my great grandmother. I think her name was Wolf…Wolfheart? Yes, Wolfheart.”

Eaglekit playfully began snoring, his eyes closed and his mouth gaping.

I laughed and whacked his ear with my paw, protesting with a “Hey! before he quit and returned his full attention to me.

”Anyways, they were talking about her life…and it was awful. Her whole family died one after another, and all her kits died besides Nighthawk, not to mention her mate also perished…but what was really awful was that she-she killed herself…”

Eaglekit was wide-eyed, his mouth parted in an “o”. ”That-that’s awful Shadowkit…I’m sorry that you had to hear that.”

I shrugged, but my insides were tingling at what I was about to say next. ”It’s alright. The thing that really got to me though, was that according to Riverstep, Wolfheart went crazy in the last part of her life. She kept babbling about some curse that had plagued her, and that it was the reason for all her tragedies,” I meowed quietly, feeling that faint pounding in my head again.

”Whoa,” Eaglekit murmured, ”That’s creepy.”

”Tell me about it.” I muttered, slightly shivering.

He pressed closer to me in a comforting way, a small, brave smile lighting his features. ”That won’t ever happen to you, Shadowkit, I promise.”

I nodded, burying my muzzle into his shoulder briefly before leaping to my paws and shaking the cold from my bones. ”Well, c’mon, we’re almost to the ledge!”

After a few more boulders and secrets we finally made it up onto a large rocky overhang that stretched outward facing towards the eastern horizon. The rock was overgrown by moss, withered vines, and leaves, the wind occasionally picking a few of them up and flinging them over the cliff. There was a lot of snow too, but it was broken up by the plant life.

”This is so cool!” I exclaimed, bounding toward the edge of the cliff.

”Be careful, Shadowkit!” Eaglekit called, though I could tell from the tone of his voice that he too was in awe of the view. Stretched out like an unreal dream was the entire valley; right below us was the Forest which extended for miles to the left and right of us. Ahead in the distance was the glittering shape of the Lonely Lake settled at the base of the sister mountain across from us; more like a lonely pond at this viewpoint. The land was covered by snow, the sun causing it to give off a lovely glittering sheen, as if the valley was glowing with pure light.

I sighed contentedly, slowing my pace as I approached the edge.

Then, about four fox-lengths away from the edge, my paw became frozen to the ground.

I tugged hard, but my left paw refused to come off the stony ground. I growled in annoyance and tried bracing my back legs and forcing my paw to come loose, but then my hind paws also became stuck to the stone.

”Eaglekit! I need some help, I think I’m-“

And then death started crawling up my legs.

There was no other way to describe the bitter, deadly cold that began racing up my legs, into my gut, and up to my skull. It felt like every bone in my body was turning to ice, making me feel fragile and vulnerable.

It was too late to scream.

Total darkness fell over my gaze as the world I knew melted away into the black abyss, the only sound being Eaglekit’s shout of alarm, but even that was fading.

I couldn’t see anything, nor smell anything. I couldn’t even tell what was up and what was down, for I felt like I was floating in a thick black lake, yet I could breathe, and the air way dry.

Then, a faint glow began to shed some light into this nightmarish dream, but the light still couldn’t penetrate the darkness surrounding me.

It got brighter, and the light was yellow. It was a bright yellow, a happy yellow. It reminded me of the warm sunlight that would penetrate through the trees back home.

Home…where is home?

The yellow light then became a large pair of eyes, glowing so brightly that I could now make out who the eyes belonged to.

The face of this feline took up my entire vision. It was a she-cat, her fur a ghostly pale white, the right side of her face ugly and scarred with three long slashes running from her forehead, across her eye, and down to her chin. Yet, you could tell that she had once been quite beautiful.

A smile came upon the enormous she-cat; it was soft and caring. I couldn’t help but smile back, her warmth being the only thing keeping me from the dark abyss around me.

Then, her gaze became pained, and her jaws strained open in an ear piercing scream, her beautiful yellow eyes rolling into the back of her skull. As I watched the yellow began to melt off her irises, slowly being replaced by a glowing evergreen, the same exact shade of my mother’s and my grandmother’s eyes.

I tried to get away, but my flailing limbs were no use in this dark, frightening world. I yelled out for help, cringing as the screams of the she-cat reached a fever pitch.

And then it went silent.

I gazed back into her unblinking green orbs, my heart racing and head bounding.

Deep as the winter’s glade, clear as the spring’s spades. Out of darkness comes light, only to be purged by blood’s might…

Her voice was deep and ancient, the sound echoing all around me as if we were in a large cave.

Beware the sharp-clawed foe who wears the mask of love, for on the day that life gives, life shall be taken away…

The sound of large crumbling boulders thundered in the distance, and suddenly I could feel ground beneath my paws, but it was shaking violently.

Only to leave behind a green-eyed soul in it’s wake…

The ground then fell out from under me, plunging me into the chasm. I cried out to the green-eyed being as her evergreen eyes slowly faded away, leaving behind nothing but darkness and cold.

I woke gasping, my body quivering uncontrollably as I collapsed onto my stomach, the ground now feeling almost hot to the touch. The sun above me seemed bigger and brighter from when I last remembered, and I squinted my amber eyes against the glare.

Eaglekit was beside me, his fear scent overwhelming. ”Shadowkit, Shadowkit what happened? Are you ok?!”

That was when my eyes started burning in my skull.

I screeched in agony, getting back to my paws in an attempt to shake the fire out of my head. I was staggering dangerously toward the edge of the cliff, and I felt teeth tug desperately at my neck fur, trying to haul me back to safety, but my momentum was too great, and I fell off the overhang, screaming in pain as I plummeted.

Eaglekit crying out my name above me was the last thing I heard as I hit the ground.

Chapter 4
And there are consequences

SPOILER: Click to show

Deep as the winter’s glade, clear as the spring’s spades.

Out of darkness comes light, only to be purged by bloods might.

Beware the sharp-clawed foe who wears the mask of love, for on the day that life gives, life shall be taken away…

Only to leave behind a green-eyed soul in its wake.

.       .       . 

I didn’t feel the pain. In fact I didn’t feel anything as my free-falling body collided with the ground.

It was just darkness, and fire.

Fire was eating away my eyes, my skull, and my chest.

That was all there was.

Once in a while I felt like I would be coming to; I caught a glimpse of snow weighing down the evergreen tree’s branches, the sun shining coldly in the sky, and the occasional white-tipped tail that would flash into my peripheral view.

Then at one point I felt thorns scraping my side, and I swore I heard my mother’s panicked voice over the roar of the fire that was now concentrated in my eye sockets. I heard more commotion and more panicked and stricken meows and wails as I was picked up by my scruff.

Why is there so much alarm?

That was when I realized I was screaming.

I could feel my throat, sore, and dry; contract over and over again. My ears were still ringing from my fall, and my senses still mixed up and confused. I still wasn’t fully aware of my body either, yet for some reason I could scream.

I tried to clamp my mouth shut, but I had no control over the loud piercing screeches that came out of my mouth.

Then I felt a weird sensation start at the base of my spine and crawl up, leaving a tingling trail of nerves along my whole spine which spread down into my legs.

I could feel again.

I gasped as I was bombarded by sight, feel, smell, and taste all at one time.

The pungent smell of herbs struck me first, making my head spin and my nose twitch. This was followed by a smell that was almost…metallic?

My screams were cut short as a couple of seeds were shoved into my gaping jaws. It tasted bitter and had a smooth texture. In that moment I could feel a warm pelt pressed up behind me, sheltering my body with theirs. The smell of my mother washed away the revolting iron-like smell, and I felt calmer, more at peace.

“Shhh, my love, you have to stop screaming and thrashing. It’s ok. Moonfern is going to do everything she can to help you.”

I could then feel myself becoming drowsy, my limbs becoming heavy and numb.

But it was long enough for me to see the pool of blood surrounding my front legs.

The blood was oozing out of my right front leg, soaking into the green moss nest that I had been placed on top of. I could see a pair of pale, silver tabby paws furiously working to stop the bleeding with cobwebs, but that seemed to be the least of my problems.

Sticking out of the side of my front leg was a long, gleaming white stick that was broken badly on the end. That seemed to be where most of the blood was coming from.

Before I could ask my mother what the stick was doing in my leg, I blacked out, my consciousness floating away into the darkness once more.

.       .       . 

“Please tell me what I saw in there was just a trick of the light!”

“You knew this day would come, Cloudspots. The curse-”

“No! No, don’t you start with me about that crazy curse talk, Nighthawk! You told me that the medicine cat dubbed my eyes turning green as some genetic anomaly in our family!”

“You are a blind, foolish she-cat, Cloudspots! Did you really think your eyes’ turning green was a ‘genetic anomaly’? Do you not remember how the fire burned in your skull, in your chest, in your soul?”

“That was jus-just-…ugh! I’m not the one we should be focusing on, Nighthawk! This is Shadowkit. My daughter, your granddaughter! Besides, if this-this…thing really is a curse, then why did Shadowkit’s eyes change color so early? Why now? Why didn’t it happen to any of my other kits?”

“The curse is like a virus, Cloudspots. It’s always changing, evolving, adapting. For each generation the curse will inflict different ‘symptoms’, and for each generation it will pick a new target, a new approach to inflict pain on our family.”

“…If what you say is true, mother…if this ‘curse’ really exists…what happens now?”

“Death.”

.       .       . 

I awoke screaming at the top of my lungs, my head throbbing, my injured leg burning, and my throat ragged and sore.

Instantly I was rushed by our medicine cat, Moonfern, who pushed her paw to my small chest, lowering me back down into my nest as I slowly gasped for breath, my heart beating wildly out of control.

“There, there now. You’re safe. Your family is here with you,” she murmured gently, picking up a damp ball of moss and carefully dabbing my head with it.

I stretched my muzzle up and around to look over toward the medicine den entrance where I was greeted by six silhouettes.

My brother, Stormkit, was standing with his black and white head anxiously stretched forward in my direction, his face haggard and sad, his nose twitching as he sniffed over and over again.

My youngest sister, Ospreykit, was sitting next to him with her jaws gaping in a small, high-pitched wail. Her colorful pelt was messed, and I thought I could see a spot of blood on her muzzle.

Next to Ospreykit with her long black spotted tail wrapped around Ospreykit’s shoulders was my other sister, Mintkit, her soft mint green eyes gazing at me with relief, her legs trembling slightly as she tried her hardest to stay strong.

Standing a little ways from them was my oldest sister, Blackkit, her tortoiseshell fur covered with little splotches of blood. She looked exhausted, her shoulders sagging and her honey amber eyes glazed over. Her black nose was dry and cracked, but she looked at me with a huge grin plastered to her face, mouthing; ‘you’re in so much trouble’.

Then, standing behind my siblings like tall foreboding pine trees, were my parents.

Cloudspots looked like she hadn’t slept in days, her evergreen eyes unnaturally bright, her usually beautiful coat caked with moss and pine needles. She looked at me with pure love in her eyes, no hint of anger or betrayal in them.

Then I looked at my father.

He was standing, his thick tail resting on my mother’s flank, his fiery amber eyes wide and frightened as he gazed at me. His fur was bristled up, his claws outstretched like he was bracing for a fight, but once my eyes landed on him he visibly relaxed, his eyes glistening over with so much relief and love that it made my chest ache.

I love you too, father.

“H-hey guys…” I meowed quietly, wincing as I heard my voice for the first time.

It sounded like my vocal chords were taken out, ripped up, and then put back in.

Instantly all four of my siblings scrambled forward and burrowed themselves into my nest, laughing and purring. They were gentle and gave my right front leg a wide berth, but I honestly couldn’t care at the moment.

Our little reunion was interrupted by three more shapes that pushed themselves into the already crowded place. It was Eaglekit, with his parents, Sunblaze and his father Hawkshade, who was a dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

Hawkshade nudged Eaglekit forward with one of his massive paws, a small smile on his face.

Eaglekit glared back at his father, sticking his chin out stubbornly. Then my best friend walked forward and faced my parents.

“I-I just wanted to apologize! Um, apologize for…letting Shadowkit venture out of the camp…and not forcing her to come back to camp when it got dangerous…and for not-not trying harder to keep her from falling…off-off a huge, scary cliff…”

My siblings giggled, my sister Blackkit nudging me as I purred loudly.

My father grunted; his amber eyes amused by Eaglekit’s rather awkward apology, but my mother on the other hand leaned down and scooped Eaglekit to her side with her paw, nuzzling the little dark brown tabby kit affectionately.

“There is no need to apologize, Eaglekit. If it wasn’t for you, my daughter would have died. You saved her,” she assured him, releasing him with a lick to his forehead.

Eaglekit’s ear tips were bright red as he smiled, his icy blue gaze looking over at me with happiness.

I look back on this moment fondly…it’s one of my most precious memories.

Voices suddenly began screeching outside the den, a sound like thunder making the ground quake beneath our paws. Maskstar’s deputy, Hiddenheart, came crashing into the den, panting heavily.

“Maskstar! Something has disrupted the mountain! It’s an avalanche, and it’s heading straight toward us!”

The rest was a blur of chaos.

I remember my father giving my mother a furtive glance, one that was full of understanding between them, before he quickly slipped out of the den, yowling orders to the warriors to get everyone out of camp.

My mother ran over to me, scooping me up by my scruff. Stormkit came up beside her, refusing to leave my side as he helped keep my injured leg from getting jostled.

Sunblaze managed to pick up Eaglekit and Blackkit in one swoop, her long legs carrying them out of the den, their forms disappearing outside.

Hawkshade picked up Mintkit, quickly following his mate out, while Moonfern abandoned her herbs and went for my sister Ospreykit instead who was wailing loudly.

My mother waited for everyone to go before she followed, making sure all her kits were in safe paws.

I remember getting a quick glance of the sky, for it was curiously dark and dim, the camp empty of nearly everyone besides Maskstar who was waiting for us at the entrance.

I remember my mother’s heavy panting and my brother Stormkit’s determined meow of encouragement telling me to stay calm and to not look back.

My father rushed forward to take me from my mother, leaving her jaws free to pick up Stormkit.

I remember the speed at which my father ran, as if a clan of badgers were chasing his tail, and the sound of tree’s groaning and cracking behind us. The ground shook and rocks went tumbling ahead of us along with icy chunks of clumped snow. Maskstar twisted and turned to avoid the debris as it chased him. My broken leg was waving wildly, the cobwebs, marigold, and dock leaves peeling off in the wind. My blood was pounding too loudly for me to feel any of the pain.

He didn’t stop till we reached a clearing where the rest of MountainClan had taken refuge, far enough away from the hillside where the avalanche could come to a full stop..

Once there, we were instantly surrounded by our clan-mates, their wails and cries drowning out almost every one of my five senses. They called out to each other, looking for their kin and friends, their mates and companions.

I was put down, and once my father sat next to me everyone became silent, their eyes trained on us expectantly.

My siblings squirmed forward in the crowd, their eyes wide and frightened.

“Sh-Shadowkit? Where are momma and Stormkit?” Squeaked Ospreykit, her fiery scarlet orange gaze dampened by fear.

I was confused, hadn’t they been following us?

But when my father and I turned around, no one was there.

Only a big pile of snow, rock, and ice was left.

“Cl-Cloudspot’s…Stormkit?” Maskstar murmured, leaping to his paws and rushing over to the pile of melting ice, his paws digging furiously at the snow. Pieces of rock and ice clattered downwards onto him, but he paid them no mind.

“Cloudspots? Stormkit! Can you hear me?” He cried, using his shoulders to push over a large boulder, accidentally cutting himself on the sharp surface, blood trickling down his shoulder.

Nighthawk stepped forward hesitantly and went to him; her black pelt being buffeted by the harsh, cold wind now coming in from the west, following the new cleared path through the tree’s made by the avalanche.

“Maskstar…Maskstar. Stop. Their gone,” she murmured gently, nudging him back from the pile of rubble.

Horror washed through me, my ears roaring with blood and despair.

“Momma? S-stormkit?”

A tail attempted to comfort me, but I shoved it away, standing and stumbling over into the snow, my broken leg crumbling underneath me, unable to control my cries and my screams as I dragged myself toward the pile of ice.

The pile of ice that was now my brother’s and mother’s tomb.

“Shadowkit, stop, you’re going to re-injure yourself-”

“No! Get away from me! They’re not dead. They can’t be dead!” I wailed, my voice echoing in the silence, my throat so raw it felt like it was bleeding on the inside.

They’re not dead, they’re not dead, they’re not dead…

“No! Mother! Stormkit!”

My screams reached out to the sky, to an entry to a realm on a mountain cliff…

To a long line of green-eyed she-cats, their heads bowed solemnly, my cries echoing around them as another member joined their cursed ranks.

Chapter 9
And they wait till sunrise

One moon later...

SPOILER: Click to show

The soft crunch of pine needles under paw kept me calm and alert, my eyes swiveling from left to right, scanning the trees as we approached the Lonely Lake. As a part of MountainClan custom, once an apprentice has gained enough fighting experience in training, their first assessment will be to see how they handle a border patrol. Mine took place on the GlacierClan border.

My mentor, Darkmoon, padded a few paces behind me flanked by a tall, long-legged senior warrior by the name of Greytail, his name coming from the fact that he was a pale white warrior with a long ash-colored tail.

His apprentice was my sister, Ospreypaw, who stalked through the undergrowth to my right, keeping a good distance between us. Her bright honey-scarlet eyes always seemed to be straining away from me, being careful to never look straight at me.

A small part of me hoped it was because she didn’t want to look at my thin, frail body. Despite the weeks of vigorous training and stuffing my face with as much prey as possible, my hip bones still jutted out awkwardly, and my legs looked a bit too thin compared to my body.

I had a feeling that most likely it was because she hated my guts.

“What do you smell, Ospreypaw?” Greytail asked, his voice slightly echoing through the pines.

Ospreypaw paused and took in a deep breath through her nose, her mouth parted to take in extra senses that her nose could not.

“I detect GlacierClan’s border marks…is it supposed to be that strong so far away from the lake-side?” She meowed, her brow furrowed and her nose wrinkling in disgust.

I took a whiff as well, surprised to smell the damp, fishy smell that went along with GlacierClan cats.

Darkmoon came to stand next to me, her mouth parted as she too checked for the border. “This isn’t right. Their border is not supposed to be this far up from the beach…they’ve moved it into the tree line,” she growled.

My tortoiseshell fur prickled. I had never heard of another clan expanding their borders without first proposing it at a gathering. Why would GlacierClan break custom?

Greytail lashed his tail against the ground, anger glowing in his irises. “Those fish-faced cowards are trying to seek out a weakness within our ranks. They think the avalanche took more lives that we let on in the gathering.”

Darkmoon glanced at him, concern making her face more sharp and angular. “But we did lose many cats…don’t tell me that Maskstar hid that from the other clans! You know as well as every other cat that he is a terrible liar,” she hissed.

“What do you think he did, Darkmoon? Telling the other clans that we lost a quarter of our population would have led to raids along our borders; it would have been chaos!” He growled, frustration making his weary shoulders tense.

Darkmoon rolled her crimson eyes, exasperation clear on the planes of her face. “The Clans of the Valley are not that cold-hearted, Greytail. We share a common moral responsibility to each other. Lying is one of the things that lead to discord in the clans; that you would know if you learned more about our history.”

Greytail grunted, but did not respond, giving into Darkmoon with a dip of his head.

It was surprising how so many of MountainClan, including older warriors such as Greytail, respected Darkmoon as if she were older and wiser than all of them, despite only having been in one war. Curiosity at the scope of her influence dug into my brain, but I let it slide as Darkmoon took the lead, walking over the new GlacierClan border and toward the lake shore.

This time I could feel Ospreypaw’s gaze burning into my skull, and I returned her stare, seeing the apprehension set in the stiffening of her jaw bone. She nodded curtly to me, walking after Darkmoon. I followed, closing the distance between us until I could detect her sharp scent on my tongue, painful memories swirling through my mind with each breath.

With Greytail taking up the rear, we cleared the pine forest and walked onto the pebbled shore of the Lonely Lake, a noon-high sun shining defiantly through the heavy cloud cover. It appeared like it was going to rain soon.

“Stop, I see some cats coming,” Greytail warned, flicking his tail toward GlacierClan territory where a large glittering glacier could be seen clinging onto the slope of the sister mountain across the lake. Six distinct shapes were quickly moving toward us; obviously a GlacierClan border patrol.

I could see Darkmoon become very still in front of me, then shift slightly back as if to block me from their view. I wanted to open my mouth and protest, but a fleeting glare from her had me shutting my mouth before I could even breathe.

Why does she feel like she needs to protect me? This is a test I need to pass on my own!

“Well look at what the forest spit out, a couple of MountainClan rock-heads!” One of the GlacierClan cats meowed mockingly. It was a thick-furred pale brown tom-cat, his amber eyes narrowing as he stopped a few tail-lengths away from our patrol. Behind him were four other warriors and two seasoned apprentices who were clearly older than me and Ospreypaw, their well-developed muscles rippling with strength.

Greytail took a step forward, running his gaze over the GlacierClan patrol. “It looks like you have come prepared for a fight, Buzzardclaw.”

“We have, Greytail. GlacierClan is much larger and it needs more land and prey to support its growing numbers. We figured sense MountainClan lost so many of its members to such a horrible accident…that they wouldn’t need it anymore,” Buzzardclaw meowed, a small smirk on his lips.

I growled, unable to control my anger and my rage as I pushed past Darkmoon, standing shoulder to shoulder with her.

“How dare you! You think you can come and steal our land and our prey and walk away without any consequences?” I hissed, my pelt bristling.

I could feel Darkmoon’s disapproving gaze on my neck, but she didn’t try to stop me, so I continued to glare at the GlacierClan patrol.

Buzzardclaw laughed, his gaze curious and mocking. “Sense when did MountainClan let half-starved kits patrol their borders?”

“Since immoral GlacierClan cats stole other clan’s territories out from under their noses!” I spat back.

I saw two or three of the cats step back, looking weary, and I could see a bizarre green glow on Buzzardclaw’s face.

That was when Darkmoon shoved me to the side, cutting off my view of the patrol.

“That’s enough, Shadowpaw,” she said sternly.

“Your apprentice has quite a mouth, Darkmoon. Maybe we can teach her a lesson for you,” Buzzardclaw growled, the other GlacierClan cat’s hissing in unison, their claws out and fangs bared.

“Buzzardclaw, what do you think you’re doing?”

Both MountainClan and GlacierClan patrols turned to face a new shape coming from the forest side of GlacierClan’s territory; a lanky she-cat. As she came closer I was shocked to see that she was quite young, yet the way she had addressed Buzzardclaw suggested dominance in rank. Her coat was as pale and silvery as the moon, dusted over with darker tabby stripes and leopard spots, and her stark silver eyes flashed with a raging emotion I couldn’t place, but the way she stared at the MountainClan patrol like pieces of prey gave good indication of her inner thoughts.

Yet, there was also something terribly familiar in her eyes. I could have sworn I’ve seen those eyes somewhere…

“Sp-spottedmoon! I-I was just-“

“Making friendly conversation? I didn’t send out this patrol for you to be fraternizing with the enemy,” she growled coldly, her chilling eyes sweeping over us.

“Y-yes, Spottedmoon…sorry,” he mumbled, casting his amber eyes down at the ground but keeping one glaring eye on me.

Darkmoon narrowed her eyes at Spottedmoon. “Enemies? What has MountainClan done to earn that title?”

Spottedmoon smiled coldly, her eyes lacking emotion. “Nothing. MountainClan is just another obstacle to be removed. I have orders to attack any of you who come near our new border, and sense all of you crossed over it…it looks like you’re in need of a greater punishment,” she hissed.

“Shadowpaw, run back to camp and get reinforcement’s, now!” Darkmoon hissed, her eyes wide and her pelt bristling, her claws sinking deep into the ground.

“Wait, what? Why-“

“GlacierClan, attack!”

Not wasting more time, I turned and ran, looking over my shoulder briefly to see the GlacierClan patrol overwhelm Darkmoon, Greytail, and Ospreypaw.

Hissing in frustration I blundered through the pine forest, my paws flying underneath me, my muscles burning and my blood boiling. Thanks to my lack of weight I could run faster, making it to camp without issue.

“The border patrol is under attack!” I yowled, nearly tripping and landing on my face as I tore into camp.

Instantly I was surrounded by warriors, apprentices, and worried queens alike, their pelts bristling and their growls vibrating through the air. I caught sight of Eaglepaw trying to push through the crowd to get to my side, but instead it was Rushpaw who appeared at my shoulder.

“Who’s attacking? Are you alright?” He meowed, his misty blue eyes wide with alarm. Eaglepaw then appeared behind him, standing in front of me but not speaking; a silent guardian.

“It’s a GlacierClan patrol. There were seven of them, and they were protecting a new border they had set up inside the tree-line. Darkmoon told me to come here and get help. I didn’t stay for the fight,” I said, my chest heaving as I panted.

Maskstar and most of the other warriors had been listening in on my explanation, and there was sudden movement among the group.

“I want Hiddenheart to take three other warriors along with their apprentices to the border to stop GlacierClan at any cost! I want that border placed back to its original position along the lake! Shadowpaw, you lead them there!” Maskstar ordered, his amber eyes blazing with fury and worry.

Hiddenheart followed Maskstar’s orders, taking three warriors and three apprentices, Darkestday, Rushpaw, Eaglepaw, and Blackpaw among them. She then nodded to me, letting me take the lead as we rushed back out into the forest.

Once we burst through the tree line the situation had become dire. The only one still stable on their feet was Darkmoon who was fiercely locked in battle with Buzzardclaw and another tom warrior, her crimson eyes glowing with ferocity. Greytail was limping badly, three of the GlacierClan cats surrounding him, teasing him by jumping in and nipping at his flank then jumping away again as he tried to swing at them, and Ospreypaw was wobbling and bleeding from a head wound, her long claws hooked into the spine of one of the apprentices, her fangs snapping at Spottedmoon’s throat as she tried to take Ospreypaw to the ground.

“MountainClan, attack!”

Without hesitation I charged at Spottedmoon, zeroing in on her midsection as I ran at her at full speed, jumping at the last second and slamming my head and shoulders into her stomach, the sound of her startled gasp making me grin as we hit the ground.

Surprisingly she recovered, but it was clear to see that she was in pain from my blow, her legs stiff and her mouth in a permanent grimace.

I quickly stood and backed up a few paces as she came at me, but I misjudged her lightning fast reflexes and her reach as the claws of her left paw collided with the right side of my face, black fur and blood spiraling in a deadly array next to my eye. I hissed and ducked under her body, trying to use my more bulky stature against her slender one as I pushed up with all my strength and managed to topple her back to the ground.

I heard an agonizing yowl behind me preceded by a flash of color as the apprentice Ospreypaw was fighting fled back into GlacierClan territory, her tail between her legs. Ospreypaw then appeared in my line of sight, attacking the defenseless Spottedmoon viciously, tearing into her exposed stomach.

I lunged forward to help, but Ospreypaw was thrown off Spottedmoon like a tiny bird, a tall dark figure standing over my sister.

“Darkestday? What in StarClan’s name are you doing?” I yowled, outrage making my eyesight turn red.

Darkestday growled at me. “MountainClan does not fight like savages! We fight to defend, not to kill!”

Spottedmoon spat in Darkestday’s face then and struck him across the chest, making him fly back to the ground. Shock at the she-cats strength was then replaced by horror as she pounced on Ospreypaw, the look in her eyes deadly.

“Savagery always wins in a fight, you fool! You will do well to remember it as I take this apprentices life!”

I screamed, flying at her, my world moving slower than hers as I watched her claws close in around Ospreypaw’s throat, my sister’s eyes filled with both fear and defiance as she snarled from Spottedmoon’s merciless paws.

I managed to careen into Spottedmoon, knocking her back and away from Ospreypaw before she could finish the job, sinking my fangs deep into her shoulder until I could feel them scrape bone.

She yowled and thrashed, but I didn’t let go. A green light began glowing hungrily on her fur, seeping into the ground and into the air around me, my eyes burning like a raging fire in a dry grass land, eating up everything in its path; destructive, and full of pain.

Her yowls turned to screams of agony, and I realized blood was welling up into my mouth. Panic filled my chest and I quickly let her go, watching Spottedmoon scramble to her paws and hiss at me, the other members of her patrol backing her with other bleeding injuries and missing fur.

A wail broke the tension, and I turned to see Blackpaw’s tortoiseshell pelt leaning over Ospreypaw who was coughing and choking, blood flowing freely out of her throat and mouth. I had managed to stop Spottedmoon from killing her on the spot, but her claws had managed to rip into my sister’s fragile throat as I had pushed the GlacierClan she-cat away from her.

My legs shook as I rushed over to my kin, my paws furiously pushing against the deep wound in my sister’s throat, murmuring words of comfort as she feebly watched me from stubborn eyes that still burned with adrenaline.

“You…you will pay for this, Spottedmoon.”

I turned to see Darkmoon facing Spottedmoon, her crimson eyes brightly lit, her voice quiet and ice-cold.

Spottedmoon moved her eyes from Ospreypaw to Darkmoon and back, her shoulder turning a dark scarlet from the wound I had given her.

“I curse you…,” she hissed softly, “I curse you for bringing death upon this life. I will personally escort you to the Realm of the Dead if it is the last thing I do!”

Spottedmoon shivered, backing up and then turning and fleeing, her warriors following her blood trail into the darkening horizon.

Darkmoon then turned and padded quickly over to me, motioning for Rushpaw and Darkestday to come and pick up Ospreypaw.

“Carry her gently, and keep these leaves pressed to her throat. We have to get her to Moonfern, and quickly.”

Our patrol made it back to camp where chaos ensued. Cats cried out in horror as they saw Ospreypaw’s slit throat, her blood trickling onto the cats that supported her sagging body. Eaglepaw and Blackpaw pressed against me on either side, following Ospreypaw into the medicine den.

Inside the den, Moonfern instantly began to work, ordering Mintpaw, her new apprentice, to direct the cats to lay Ospreypaw in a moss nest. Moonfern then quickly wrapped Ospreypaw’s entire throat in cobweb, but her blood quickly soaked through it. Mintpaw rushed back to the herb supply to grab more leaves and cobweb and gave them to Moonfern who strategically wrapped it around Ospreypaw’s throat in layers; soft, thick leaves and then cobweb. Over and over again until no more blood could be seen seeping through. She did it tightly so that Ospreypaw’s head was stretched upwards away from her chest at an awkward angle, but sense she was unconscious she did not complain or comment.

I observed silently, watching another battle take place, feeling helpless and out of control. My eyes were glued to Ospreypaw’s colorful chest, watching it struggle to rise and fall. Thankfully it did not seem to slow or waver, her breathing the only noise in the hollowed out den as me and my kin watched silently.

As the rain started and the night closed in, the cats of MountainClan retreated to their dens. The only ones left in the medicine den were me and my sisters, Blackpaw and Mintpaw. Moonfern left us to watch Ospreypaw while she reported to Maskstar on the wounded.

“Do you think she’ll make it?” Blackpaw murmured, her warm amber gaze clouded over in worry and grief.

Mintpaw swallowed, her pale green eyes focused solely on Ospreypaw. “She lost a lot of blood…but we did our best. If she can recover from the shock and the blood loss then she has a very good chance of living.”

“She’s strong. She will live,” I meowed stubbornly, watching as her chest rose and fell, rose and fell, rose and fell.

Eventually both Mintpaw and Blackpaw fell asleep at Ospreypaw’s nest-side, their mouths slacked and their limbs twitching as they dreamed. I hoped they were good dreams.

“Sh-shadowpaw?”

I jerked upwards, stumbling over to Ospreypaw as she awakened; blood staining her chin and chest, adding even more color to her already multi-colored coat.

“Ospreypaw! How are you feeling?”

She rolled her eyes around the den, taking in the sight of it. The glow from the adrenaline had long since faded, and now her honey scarlet eyes were dull and weak.

“I feel…cold.”

Instantly I crawled into the nest with her, pressing my body against her back and propping her head up gently on my fore-legs, softly grooming the fur around her cheeks and fore-head.

“It is a cold night. Everyone is probably feeling cold.”

It was a warm night.

“Makes sense…usually when it rains it gets cold up…up in the mountains,” she sighed, slightly smiling as I cleaned her fur of blood.

“Shadowpaw…how bad is it?”

I froze, pulling my tongue back in my mouth, tasting rust. “You lost a lot of blood. Mintpaw says if you overcome the shock and recover from the blood loss that you will be just fine, all you will have is a nasty scar.”

“I don’t feel shocked. Honestly I was expecting to be injured…just not like this.”

Her voice sounded so far away, like it was fading.

“I-I’m so sorry…I should have gotten to you quicker,” I murmured, my voice thick with regret.

Ospreypaw shook her head; her eyes meeting mine with more strength than I thought could be possible.

“No. You did nothing wrong. You did exactly what you should have done. You saved me, Shadowpaw. I’m here because of you.”

I dipped my head, my throat tightening. “Yes, you are here because of me. You should have been the one to deliver the message to camp, and I should have stayed behind.”

“Ha, you and your little bony body? Please, you wouldn’t have lasted as long as I did,” she teased.

I laughed lightly, but it didn’t reach through into my heart.

“My fault again.”

Ospreypaw sighed, her gaze becoming weary. “Honestly Shadowpaw…in a way I was jealous of you.”

“Wh-what?”

She looked down at the moss lining the nest and not into my eyes.

“I was jealous of the way you grieved. Our mother and brother died…in a freak accident that took the lives of so many others…they were taken from us as kits…we’ve had to grow up without a mother…we had to grow up without a mother, Shadowpaw…and I didn’t grieve for them properly. I just…moved on and told myself that grief was for the weak…but I see now that enduring pain can make you stronger than any impervious warrior.”

Her voice became rough and cracked, and in response I curled up tighter around her, forcing back my mournful whimpers and my cries of relief.

“No, you did what mother would have wanted you to do. You lived, Ospreypaw; you lived!”

She smiled, her eyes once more glowing with the fire I was so familiar with.

“Will you stay awake with me?”

I purred, resting my chin on her head, my heart filled with love.

“Of course; until the sun rises.”

“Until the sun rises.”

Chapter 10
And there is a deal in death

SPOILER: Click to show

The sun rose, but the rain continued.

It fell from the sky in cold sheets, turning the pine trees into glittering stars and soaking the ground until little streams threaded through the slopes of the land.

The sound of the rain echoed in the gaping jaws of the Cave of Revelation, the spiritual ground where cats of the clans could come and communicate with their ancestors. It was nestled on the slope of the highest peak of the Great Mountain where it could overlook the valley; forever a guiding presence.

A large crowd of cats were gathered in front of the cave, both from GlacierClan and MountainClan. They sat respectfully amongst each other, heads bowed, sharing their mingled grief and loss.

Others also sat with them, unbeknownst to the two clans. Their bodies glowed and glittered with stars, their eyes staring straight ahead at the cave with expectation.

But I could see even more than that.

Other apparitions flowed in, their ghostly bodies waving in an invisible wind like a string on a hook, their eyes glowing brightly, all of them the same evergreen.

One paused to sit beside me, one I did not recognize. She was strong, her muscles well defined in her legs and shoulders, her muzzle tapered and regal, her fur a foggy combination of white, grey, and black. The fur around her neck and shoulder’s was thicker, and her tail flared out behind her like the wing of a falcon. Her body was much more transparent than the others, yet she put off a stronger energy that made my fur stand on end on the side that was next to hers.

All of this I observed in one sweep, careful to keep my eyes mostly trained on the dirt and grass at my paws. I felt a brief sadness that I could not alert my clan to the fact that their ancestors sat among them, but it was replaced by numbness as the cats around me began to stand.

To my right, a path formed. Two cats walked through the crowd carrying a large wrapped package on their backs. It was the body of a fallen GlacierClan warrior. GlacierClan had ceremoniously wrapped the warrior in layers of soft aspen leaves from their territory as well as moss and some wild flowers. He had not recovered from his wounds from the border skirmish the day before.

But I did not look for long, for my eyes were already trained on the path to my left.

Rarely did a leader carry his own dead, but today no one questioned the formidable MountainClan tom as he slowly trudged up to the cave with Greytail at his side, both cats bearing the weight of a similar, but smaller package.

As they walked by, I caught the scent of the wild flowers I had placed among the pine needles and moss. They had long stems and were colored a light scarlet orange, the petals rigid but striking, much like the wild flower they adorned.

Poking out from behind the wrapping was a long spiky tail with splatters of orange, white, and black; the tip flicking lifelessly in the wind.

My sister, Ospreypaw, did not survive her wounds either.

Together the two bodies were laid gently to rest side by side in front of the cave, their heads facing toward the darkness that would soon become their grave.

A few GlacierClan cats came forward and laid smooth pebbles from the lake-shore along-side the bodies. One apprentice that I recognized from the fight laid a stone beside Ospreypaw’s flank, dipping her head before moving away.

“Go, Shadowpaw. Go leave your gift.”

I looked up to meet Darkmoon’s crimson eyes, drawing strength from her stability. I realized then that in some way she had become like a mother to me. Always pushing, yet always trying to guide me on a better path.

She briefly licked my forehead before nudging my sister, Blackpaw, forward, who held dried out fish scales in her mouth, their coloring reminding me briefly of a rainbow.

Mintpaw joined Blackpaw and I as we walked forward, stopping to look down on our sister’s body.

She appeared to be sleeping, a small smile present on her muzzle. Her neck wound had been covered up and the blood cleaned from her fur, so it was almost easy to forget that she was gone.

Blackpaw dropped the fish scales next to Ospreypaw’s skull, her amber eyes gleaming with grief.

“Her favorite prey was fish…all she seemed to eat was fish. She was one of the only ones in the clan that was good at it too…,” Blackpaw murmured, a small heart-broken smile peeking through.

Mintpaw placed two poppy seeds as well as a thick twig that was badly scratched up alongside Ospreypaw’s front legs.

“She wanted to be the most fearsome warrior, so she did everything she could to grow her claws extra-long and extra strong,” my sister began. “In the process she tore out more of her claws than I care to remember…so she was always coming to me for poppy seeds for the pain. She used this stick to sharpen the rest of her claws while I treated her. She was so stubborn, yet one of the most dedicated cats I ever knew,” Mintpaw meowed, her voice strong but wavering.

I knew it was my turn, but I didn’t want to move. I didn’t want time to keep rushing forward, to keep taking things away from me. Why couldn’t time stop, if just for one day?

I swallowed and batted forward a long, sleek object that smelled like wind and pine needles. It was an eagle’s feather, the brown hues glowing with liquid golden warmth.

“Let this feather take you away…to soar higher than the clouds. Let it take you away from the pain and the troubles of this world. Let it find you peace.”

I picked it up and placed it on my sister’s neck, tucking it in to her fur.

A form materialized in the cave then, a small, bright point that grew larger and larger until I could see that it was a cat.

He was very handsome, his fur thick and sleek, his muscles well developed but still lean enough to suggest that he was a runner and a fighter. His pelt was a mix of black and white patches, his shimmering deep blue eyes filled with compassion and love as he approached us.

Stormkit?

“No longer Stormkit, it appears,” he meowed; his voice deep and husky and gentle all at the same time.

I opened my mouth to say more, but I saw that I was the only one who could see him. Blackpaw and Mintpaw still had their heads bowed.

“I would have been called Stormshadow according to StarClan. Fitting…as it seems the shadows have a strong hold on our family.”

He knows about the curse!

His deep blue eyes dropped to Ospreypaw’s body, his voice wrought with frustration and grief. “I did everything I could to keep her alive, but StarClan refused to aid me…they seem to want nothing to do with it.”

I wanted to ask why, but something told me he couldn’t. If I knew anything about the dead, it was that they liked clinging on to secrets.

Stormshadow lowered his head until his nose touched Ospreypaw’s head, her body glowing brightly until it slowly faded away, her body appearing colder and more lifeless than before.

“She will be at peace now.”

I nodded slightly, not understanding what just happened, but having a feeling that Ospreypaw truly wasn’t with us anymore.

Stormshadow met his dark blue eyes with my evergreen then, his gaze moving from me, to Mintpaw, and to Blackpaw.

“Take care of them, Shadowpaw. You will need each other more than ever.”

I opened my mouth again, only to watch him fade away into the air, along with all the other StarClan visitors.

I looked over my shoulder to see most of the wind-blown apparitions turning and walking away into the trees. The only one who stayed was the one she-cat who had sat beside me earlier, her evergreen eyes trained on Ospreypaw’s body.

Where’s Cloudspots? Wouldn’t she want to come say goodbye to Ospreypaw? Or was she being held back by Shadowhunter as punishment for speaking out for me?

“Shadowpaw? How…how are you holding up?”

I turned to meet the frosty blue gaze of Eaglepaw. His face was haggard, as if he hadn’t slept in days. His fur was also messily groomed, as if he had rushed through the routine that morning. He tried to hide his emotions from me on his face, but his eyes revealed pain and regret.

“I’m…trying my best to be brave…for my family,” I answered honestly, my chest contracting painfully.

He nodded, his large awkward paws shuffling tensely.

“I gave her an eagle feather, too.”

I looked down at the ground, not wanting to see the regret on his face that was now overwhelming my controlled emotions.

“Thank you. She would have appreciated it.”

“…Shadowpaw…I-”

“Shadowpaw!”

I turned to see Rushpaw; his messy silver-streaked fur slightly bristling. He appeared apprehensive, his eyes not exactly meeting mine, but looking beyond me over my shoulder.

He padded up to my side, his eyes not leaving the spot over my shoulder.

“Rushpaw, what’s up with-“

“Do you trust me?”

I felt frozen, my eyes moving from Rushpaw to Eaglepaw, who had followed Rushpaw’s gaze and was now hissing quietly, regret being replaced by rage.

“She’s behind me…isn’t she?”

Rushpaw nodded, his jaw clenched.

I knew what would happen then.

I wanted it to happen.

“Go ahead, Shadowpaw. She deserves to hear what you have to say,” Eaglepaw growled.

Rushpaw whipped his head to face Eaglepaw, his misty blue eyes disapproving. “At a burial? That would send the wrong message. Shadowpaw doesn’t have to stoop to that level-”

“Oh, and suddenly you know all about her? Why not let her make her own decisions?”

Rushpaw clenched his jaw again, his chest expanding and then relaxing. “I am simply stating that her engaging Spottedmoon will only lead to more anger and pain between MountainClan and GlacierClan. That murderer will get what she deserves in the Dark Forest.”

I spat then, anger and frustration welling up inside me.

“Both of you shut it! I will not be fought over or told what to do! If either of you know anything about me, then you will know that once I make a choice, I will follow through it, and no one will stop me. Is that understood?”

Eaglepaw flattened his ears, looking like he wanted to rip Rushpaw into shreds, but he acknowledged my request with a shrug, pushing past me and walking back down the path to camp.

Rushpaw looked…embarrassed. He quickly licked his chest, his ears twitching, but his eyes gleamed a bit with humor.

“I love it when you get bossy,” he murmured, laughter in his voice.

“Didn’t I say to shut it?”

“Yes, you did. I’m sorry about that…I usually don’t get that worked up over a conversation,” he admitted.

I stared at him, disbelief making me want to laugh as well.

Who knew I would be laughing at my sister’s burial?

“Well, first off, that wasn’t a conversation, that was an argument. Second, you controlled yourself very well. Eaglepaw can be…argumentative,” I meowed.

Rushpaw chuckled. “Like you?”

I rolled my eyes, shoving his shoulder with my paw.

He smiled. “Do you want me to walk with you back to camp?”

I shook my head, a part of me still clinging onto the cave and the bodies inside it. “No…I think I’ll stay a bit longer.”

He nodded, his misty blue eyes becoming very gentle. “I’m here for you, if you ever need me, ok?”

“Ok.”

With that he turned and walked away, leaving me alone in front of the cave.

I realized later that Rushpaw had kept me from turning my head and looking at Spottedmoon, who had left right before he did. It was because of him that I did not engage her like I had planned.

I sighed and tilted my head upwards, noticing that the sky was slowly becoming darker. Most of the cats had already left, but a few stayed behind to say their last goodbyes before heading back to their respected territories.

The rain was also beginning to ease up, becoming a light mist in the wind. I let it collect on my tortoiseshell fur, sighing as the water cooled my weary body.

Slowly, I let my mind drift…

“I’m sorry about Ospreypaw, Shadowpaw.”

I sighed heavily, knowing it was only a matter of time before she would come before me again.

“What do you want, Wolfheart?”

The she-cat stood before me, her ebony black fur not being buffeted by an imaginable wind like others of my dead kin. She stood nearly solid and firm, as if she were alive.

“I have a message from your mother.”

I perked up then, my heart rate increasing and my thoughts running wild. “What did she say? Is it about why she didn’t come today?”

Wolfheart shook her head, her eyes void of any detectable emotion. “No. It’s about the curse. She was mistaken. She's been doing some digging with our ancestors to try and help you, and it seems there is much confusion about what the words of the curse actually mean, and if there is even a way to properly predict the order of events the curse describes.”

“You’re kidding me right? After all this time none of my ancestors know what the curse actually means?” I hissed, disbelief making my stomach churn.

Wolfheart shrugged, attempting to look nonchalant. “The meaning sometimes changes depending on the cat and the situation-but anyways, your mother was wrong. She instead has received anonymous help from another one of your ancestors. She believes that the curse is going to be more…direct with you.”

I felt confusion. “Direct? How would this ‘anonymous helper’ know that?”

Wolfheart sighed, her expression becoming wary.

“The she-cat who is trying to help is my mother; Shadowstar. You are her namesake,” she explained.

A memory fluttered in the back of my head, but it was too fuzzy and dull to call it forward into my mind.

“Sense the first cursed she-cat was named Shadow at birth…the name has a stronger tie to the curse. Shadowstar believes that you will be affected by it, as she was,” Wolfheart said.

A dark foreboding feeling crawled over my skin. “My fate was decided at birth, then,” I murmured.

Wolfheart opened her mouth, about to say something, but then she froze, her evergreen eyes widening in terror.

“Wolfheart? What’s wrong?” I asked, my pelt bristling as I felt a familiar coldness run up my legs and into my spine, nestling into the dark recesses of my head.

“Shadowpaw…I-I’m so sorry…”

Her body vanished, then, as quickly and swiftly as prey would run from its hunter.

“Wolf-ahhh-ugh…”

My skull was starting to burn, the flames engulfing my eyes so that I became blind. I felt myself stumbling, falling sideways into a thick bush where I was hidden from the eyes of the cats who still sat vigil in front of the cave.

There…that’s much, much better…, said a voice inside my head.

The voice was raged and chilling, making shivers run up and down my spine. The pitch was low and guttural, obviously belonging to a tom-cat.

“Wh-who are you? What do you want with me?” I hissed. “Give me my sight back!”

Tsk-tsk. This will just not do. You see, in order for me to return your eyesight, we're going to have to make a little compromise, the voice hissed.

“I will not be compromising with some-some body snatcher!” I stammered, pawing frantically at my eyes. It was all black. I couldn’t see movement or light or shadow.

Quiet, kit. Verbal communication is so dull; surely you can do me the courtesy of opening your mind to me for a little chit-chat? He scolded.

Does he mean mental conversation? I wondered, starting to consider that this all might just be a really freaky nightmare.

He growled harshly. What else could I mean? Hasn’t that worthless she-cat Wolfheart been training you?

Training me? For what?

Haha, to fight me of course. He chuckled. That’s what all you little she-cats do! Excluding a few generations of course, because come on, some of you are so gentle and weak it makes me sick. Especially your mother, Cloudspots…It’s hard to believe she came from Nighthawk’s brood.

Panic filled every ounce of my body, slowing the flow of blood in my veins, feeling every pore seize up with electric ice. You…you can’t be…

Ohhh, yes, yes, yes! He cried. The big reveal! Honestly your ancestors have become so dramatic. You would think that they would just tell you everything from the very start. I prefer bluntness myself. It brings more pain in one fell swoop than would it be to drag it out…slowly…carefully…hmm; maybe there can be pleasure in such a leisurely perspective?

You’re him…aren’t you?

Ahhh, yes, he sighed, clearly taking great pleasure in my terror. I took revenge on your ancestor…Shadowhunter…she is the one who has cursed your family, Shadowpaw. She is the enemy here. Not me.

That’s not what I heard. I growled mentally, still waiting to hear his side of the compromise.

Of course it isn’t! He snapped, sounding exasperated. You are all the same. Stubborn, proud, and yet so weak. If anything threatens your precious lives you turn and run like a bunch of mewling kits to their mothers. I have found great pleasure in watching you all suffer in eternal pain….but I have become quite bored.

Here is my compromise, Shadowpaw. Entertain me. Show me that you are stronger than the rest of your cursed kin, and I might just lessen the effects of the curse on your behalf.

I paused, feeling nauseas. And how would I do that?

By playing a little game, he purred. I want you to ignore them; don’t accept any help from your cursed family whatsoever. If I find that any of them have contacted you, I will burn your perfect little world to the ground with all your loved ones cold bodies serving as the fuel. In return, I will give you your eye-sight back as well as your mind, but I will remain as a presence…lingering…always watching.

I guess I really don’t have a choice, then?

Of course you do sweet, sweet Shadowpaw. You can either choose to take this deal, or you can turn away like so many of your ancestors did, and leave innocents to die in suffering and pain in your place.

That was not a choice. I knew it from the moment he proposed it. My friends and family were the only good things in my life. Living without them would be worse than dying.

Alright, I’ll do it.

Excellent.