Shinestar blinked open her pale yellow eyes. Looking around, she found herself in a forest of tall trees with brilliant green foliage. Birds chirped enticingly overhead, while faint rustles around her hinted at other types of prey. She was in StarClan territory, a place that she had not visited in quite some time. Life in SkyClan had been fairly calm and uneventful for the past few moons.

A cat padded out from the trees. Shinestar recognized the she-cat as Leafstar, one of the former SkyClan leaders.

“Greetings,” the StarClan warrior said, giving a slight dip of her head.

“Greetings, Leafstar. What do you have to tell me?” Shinestar asked.

Leafstar let out a small mrow of amusement. “You certainly get to the point, Shinestar.”
“I’m sorry, Leafstar. You usually do not visit unless something is wrong.” Shinestar tried to push the worry out of her voice. Perhaps Leafstar just wanted to visit. She watched as Leafstar pauses to consider her response.

“This is true,” the StarClan cat finally admitted. “I am here with a prophecy for you. Come.”

Shinestar followed Leafstar through the trees. Leafstar stopped at the top of a small hill and sat, motioning with her tail for Shinestar to do the same.

“Look,” Leafstar commanded.

As Shinestar peered down the hill, chills pricked her fur, along with a sense of dread. The place that Leafstar wanted to show her had been destroyed by twolegs. As the twoleg monsters, drove off, the land suddenly evolved into a bustling twolegplace.

“Do you know where that place is?” Leafstar prodded.

“No,” Shinestar admitted, looking down at the mess below her.

“That is SkyClan’s old territory. Now, pay close attention.”

As Shinestar directed her attention back to the twolegplace, the twoleg dens began to fade. A new scene spread out beneath the hill; a place that Shinestar recognized immediately. It was SkyClan’s current camp.
Suddenly, the rumbling of monsters drifted up the hill. Shinestar watched in horror as the monsters crashed through her camp, sending cats scattering.
“No!” she yowled, springing to her paws and casting a frantic glance at Leafstar. Although Leafstar calmly met her gaze, there was worry in the StarClan cat’s eyes.
“When history repeats, four can become five,” Leafstar said.

Shinestar padded out of her den and stretched. Early morning sunlight was just beginning to bathe the camp with its soft glow. Shinestar could not sleep. The rumble of monsters and Leafstar’s voice repeated over and over in her mind. She shook her head, trying to push the terrifying images away, and padded briskly towards the medicine den. There, she found the medicine cat curled in a ball. The cat’s ears flicked as if she was dreaming; suddenly, she opened her ice blue eyes and jumped up. Her long black fur stood on end and she looked nervously down at her apprentice. Petalpaw was stretched out in her nest, tail-tip flicking peacefully as she snored.
“Nightecho?” Shinestar mewed hesitantly, taking another small step into the den.
“Shinestar?” the medicine cat looked at Shinestar in surprise, as if she had not head the leader enter her den. “I think I have received a message from StarClan.”
Me too, but I cannot figure out what it means,” Shinestar admitted, keeping her voice soft so as not to wake the snoozing apprentice. “Leafstar came and told me that ‘when history repeats, four can become five’. I saw the old SkyClan camp ruined by twolegs, then our own camp ruined by monsters as well.” Shinestar gave her head a quick shake as the images came flooding back.
“I had a similar dream. In it, a large group of cats were gathered around a lake. Our Clan was being chased by twoleg monsters, but the monsters disappeared when we reached the other cats. Our former medicine cat Breezewing, was sitting beside me. She told me that old allies will soon reunite, along with old enemies.” Nightecho fell silent; she had a faraway look in her ice blue eyes, as if she was reliving the dream.
“Could the prophecies relate to the same thing?” Shinestar wondered quietly, almost to herself.
“I do not see how they could be related,” Nightecho responded thoughtfully. “But it is possible. Both involve monsters.”
“How could what be related?”
Shinestar and Nightecho, both previously lost in thought, leaped in surprise as two bright green eyes blinked open beside them. Petalpaw sat up in her nest, bringing her tongue over her silver paws and wiping behind her ears.
“Shinestar and I had dream from StarClan,” Nightecho explained to her apprentice.
“No fair! I want a prophecy from StarClan!” Petalpaw whined, tail drooping in disappointment. She squeezed her eyes shut again, as if trying to force a prophecy to come to her.
“I am sure you will get one soon,” Nightecho reassured the apprentice. “In the meantime, Shinestar and I must focus on was StarClan has told us.”
“But I want a prophecy too!” Petalpaw protested. Shinestar felt bad for the eager, newly apprenticed cat. She remembered the excitement of being an apprentice, of finally being important to the Clan.
“Petalpaw, you will get your prophecy eventually,” Nightecho said, a hint of impatience in her voice. “Now, if you cannot focus, I am sure the elders could use some help removing ticks.”
“Nightecho!” Petalpaw moaned. The young cat had been a pawful even as a kit.
“There is moss for the mouse bile in the corner of the den.” Nightecho’s tone was dismissive.
Petalpaw grumbled under her breath, then, tail-tip flicking angrily, collected the moss and left for the elder’s den.
“As I was saying,” Nightecho continued briskly. “I suppose there is a small chance that the dreams are connected.” She pauses, deep in thought. “When history repeats, four can become five. Old allies will reunite, along with old friends,” she murmured. “Both are about reuniting, but other than that…”
“I’ll give it some thought, but I certainly cannot see the connection right now,” Shinestar meowed. “Sorry to have bothered you so early.”
“Oh, I had just woken up,” the medicine cat mumbled absently, her blue eyes gazing across the den in a faraway manner.
Back outside the medicine den, cats were just waking. Shinestar looked around nervously for any sign on the monsters from her dream, but Clan life was continuing a usual.
“Blazepaw! Wake up!” Birdwind called sharply from outside the apprentices’ den. She had to go through this routine every morning. Her apprentice was a very deep sleeper. Shinestar gave Birdwind a sympathetic glance. The memory of being a mentor was still fresh in her mind, although her former apprentice had become a warrior many moons ago. Speckleflight had been a very difficult cat to train; the young cat had a habit of acting before thinking that often got her in trouble. Although Speckleflight had matured and calmed for the most part, the older cats often teased her about her hyper personality.
In the middle of the camp, a dark brown tom stood organizing half-awake cats into patrols.
“Shadeclaw, you can lead a hunting patrol. Bring Ivycloud, Spiderleap, and Wishpaw,” he instructed. Spiderleap, a small cat with thick black fur, joined Birdwind outside the apprentice den. Within moments, a silver tabby apprentice emerged from the den, sleepily blinking open her light blue eyes. The hunting patrol left and the dark brown tom turned to Shinestar.
“Are you alright? You look upset,” the tom meowed.
“I didn’t sleep well,” Shinestar admitted. Lowering her voice, she added, “I had a message from StarClan. ‘When history repeats, four can become five’.”
“What does it mean?” the deputy asked, a troubled look flashing across his amber eyes.
“I’m not sure, Thrushleap,” Shinestar admitted. “I discussed it with Nightecho. He had a prophecy as well: old allies will soon reunite, along with old enemies.”
Thrushleap looked thoughtful for a moment. “Old enemies…do you think it means there will be a fight?” he asked finally.
“I’m not sure,” Shinestar replied, “but in my dream I saw twoleg monsters tearing our land apart.”
“Twolegs?” Thrushleap’s fur bristled and his voice was suddenly alarmed. He sank his long claws into the ground. “How can we fight twolegs?”
“I don’t think we can,” Shinestar answered quietly as her dream came flooding back to her. “Do not tell the others yet. I want to find out what the prophecies mean before getting the whole Clan involved.”
Thrushleap looked like he wanted to protest, but instead he dipped his head and padded away.
Shinestar was just returning to her den when a small silver cat collided with her.
“Did you figure out the prophecy yet?” the cat asked rather loudly, looking at Shinestar with an expectant bright green gaze.
“Petalpaw, the prophecies are between Thrushleap, Nightecho, and I,” Shinestar said sternly, then, wrinkling her nose, added, “and please go wash off. You reek of mouse bile.”
“It’s not my fault; Nightecho made me go remove the elders’ ticks! This is not fair. I’m going to be the medicine cat one day, so I have the right to know about the prophecies too!” Petalpaw protested, her tail lashing angrily.
“Until then, you will have to continue with apprentice duties,” Shinestar told the apprentice, her voice a mixture of sympaty and sternness. Petalpaw stalked away, looking infuriated.
Shinestar was deep in thought when a ball of fur crashed into her.
“Leafkit!” Blueflame exclaimed, hurrying over and pulling the ginger kit away from the Clan leader. Leafkit, mistaking this for play, nipped her mother on the ear.
“It’s fine,” Shinestar assured Blueflame, standing and shaking dust from her orange tabby fur.
“Leafkit, watch me!” a voice called out. The next second, a silver flash came barreling towards the cats. A tiny kit ran into Blueflame’s leg, bounced backwards, and fell over with a surprised squeak.
“Moonkit, that’s not how you fight!” Leafkit informed her brother arrogantly. “It’s like this!” She launched herself onto her brother with a ferocious yowl. Moonkit let out another surprised squeak, then scrambled out of the way.
Shinestar and Blueflame exchanged amused looks, then Shinestar padded away. Just as she was once again about to enter her den, Shinestar noticed the hunting patrol return. Shadeclaw, Ivycloud, Spiderleap, and Wishpaw all carried prey. Shinestar hurried over to them.
“Is the territory alright?” she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.
“Of course,” Shadeclaw replied.
“Is something wrong?” Ivyclod asked, sounding concerned.
“It doesn’t seem so,” Shinestar replied thoughtfully, feeling that now was not the best time to tell them about the prophecy.

A moon passed uneventfully. Shinestar had forgotten all about the prophecy, at least for the time being. Other, more pleasant thoughts filled her mind. Greenleaf was here. Blueflame’s kits would soon be apprenticed.
Shinestar walked out into the center of the camp and watched her Clan carry on around her. Thrushleap was organizing patrols. Birdwind was standing outside the apprentice den, calling impatiently to a snoozing Blazepaw. Petalpaw and Nightecho were leaving the camp in search of herbs. Moonkit and Leafkit were asking the elders to tell them a story.
“I still remember when I was just an apprentice,” Mistheart told them. “I almost got stuck in a tree once.”
“Tell us how, please!” Moonkit begged.
“It’s a funny story,” Mistheart began.
“Oh, I remember this story!” Duskleap exclaimed, sitting down beside Mistheart.
“Of course you remember; you were there!” Mistheart exclaimed, whiskers twitching in amusement.
“Oh, yeah, we were training,” Duskleap reminisced.
“I thought it would be funny to hide in a tree, then launch down from it and surprise-attack Duskleap here. Sadly, I was just a new apprentice at the time, and my climbing skills were pitiful,” Mistheart continued.
“They never improved,” Duskleap teased. Mistheart swatted him, but her claws were sheathed. Leafkit, with an aggressive yowl, launched herself into the fight. Moonkit eagerly followed his sister.
Shinestar had heard the story about the tree many times. Mistheart and Duskleap had been warriors before she was born, but had retired to the elder den when she was a new warrior. As an apprentice, Shinestar had bugged the other cats to tell her about their own times as apprentices.
“Shinestar! Shinestar!”
Shinestar turned to see Petalpaw hurtling towards her, followed by a panting Nightecho. They were not carrying any herbs.
“Is everything alright?” Shinestar asked, even though she thought she might already know the answer. She was concerned, but tried to hide it as the two cats caught their breath.
“There was…really loud rumbling sounds…..twolegs….near our territory,” Petalpaw reported between breaths. Her eyes were wide and her fur fluffed up with fright.
“Lead me there,” Shinestar ordered, beckoning Thrushleap over with her tail.
“Petalpaw, stay here,” Nightecho added. The two cats were now breathing normally once more.
“What?” Petalpaw shrieked. “Never!”
“We need a medicine cat to stay here in case someone is injured. The Clan needs you here,” Nightecho mewed in a persuasive tone.
“I know you’re just making me feel important so that I stay behind at the camp,” Petalpaw interrupted matter-of-factly. Shinestar could not help but be impressed by the apprentice’s ability not to be swayed by flattery.
“Petalpaw, you are staying in the camp,” Shinestar said.
“But-”
“No more protesting,” Shinestar interrupted. As the apprentice sulked away, Shinestar turned back to Thrushleap and Nightecho.
“Can someone please explain what is going on?” Thrushleap asked.
“Nightecho and Petalpaw heard twolegs by the border,” Shinestar informed him.
“Which one?” Thrushleap demanded, letting out a low hiss. The tom was fiercely protective of his Clan; this trait was one of Shinestar’s main reasons for choosing him as deputy.
“Follow me,” Nightecho said.
The three cats crossed their territory at a run. At the border, they paused to listen. Shinestar’s orange tabby fur stood on end as a rumbling sound reached her ears.
“Monsters,” she murmured to the others.
“They sound closer, too!” a voice exclaimed from behind them. As Shinestar, Thrushleap, and Nightecho whirled around, a silver-furred cat padded towards them.
“Petalpaw!” Nightecho exclaimed, tail lashing angrily.
“Didn’t even hear me coming, did you?” Petalpaw asked gleefully.
“Go back to camp immediately,” Shinestar ordered.
“But-”
“Go on,” Thrushleap interrupted.
“Just because I’m an apprentice doesn’t mean I cannot handle some twolegs!” Petalpaw hissed angrily. “Not to mention the fact that I figured out what those prophecies mean, while you three still don’t know.”
The last remark had the desired effect on the three older cats. Petalpaw let out an amused snort, then bounded away with a smug look on her face. The older cat stared after her for a moment.
“Surely she is lying,” Thrushleap meowed dismissively.
The cats returned to the camp in silence. In Shinestar’s den, they decided to check on the monsters tomorrow and to warn the Clan only if they were getting closer.
Shinestar felt jumpy and nervous for the rest of the day. Every sound reminded her of a monster. Every thudding pawstep could be a twoleg sneaking towards them. She spent much of her day in her den, trying to think clearly. Later in the day, she ventured out of her den for a meal. On the way to the fresh-kill pile, she noticed Petalpaw, talking to Wishpaw. The medicine cat apprentice had a knowing look in her eyes. Shinestar wondered whether the silver cat could be telling the truth.

Chapter 3
That evening, Shinestar decided to apprentice Moonkit and Leafkit. She had planned to hold the ceremony the next day, but felt it was best to apprentice them before they found out if the monsters had moved. That way, all attention would be on the new apprentices.
The Clan gathered eagerly as soon as Shinestar called them.
“Moonkit, Leafkit, please step forward,” Shinestar began. Leafkit bounded forwards with a loud mew of excitement, while Moonkit stepped forward with a look of determined pride on his face.
“Leafkit, you are now old enough to be an apprentice. Your mentor will be Foxclaw. Until you become a warrior, you will be known as Leafpaw,” Shinestar announced.
“Leafpaw!” the Clan cheered. Even Moonkit gave up his attempt to look mature long enough to cheer and give an excited bounce. A light brown tom stepped forward to touch noses with his new apprentice. Foxclaw’ patient, but stern personality would go well with Leafpaw’s proud, aventurous one.
“Moonkit, you will now be known as Moonpaw. Your mentor will be Ivycloud.”
Ivycloud was a fairly new warrior and Petalpaw’s sister. Although the warrior shared a bit of her sister’s dislike for taking orders, she was determined and intelligent. She would be a good mentor for curious, friendly Moonpaw.
“Moonpaw!” the Clan called as the apprentice scurried forward to meet his mentor.
“Thank you for apprenticing me,” he mewed politely as he passed Shinestar.
“Can you show me the territory? Can we hunt? Or practice fighting?” Leafpaw pestered her mentor eagerly. She was still bouncing with excitement.
“Let’s start with exploring the territory,” Foxclaw replied, whiskers twitching with amusement.
“I cannot believe our kits are apprentices!” Blueflame exclaimed to her mate.
“They’ll make wonderful warriors,” Squirrelchaser answered joyfully.
“You’re a mentor!” Petalpaw exclaimed to her sister.
“I know! It’s brilliant!” Ivycloud replied happily. “Moonpaw, are you ready to explore the territory?”
“Just don’t go to the border furthest from camp! There are-” Petalpaw fell quiet at a glare from Thrushleap. “Herbs that I don’t want you stepping on,” she finished quickly. Despite the pause, her lie convinced Ivycloud and the new apprentice.
“Okay; we’ll stay away from there. Let’s go, Moonpaw! Foxclaw, why don’t you and Leafpaw come with us?” Ivycloud suggested. The four cats padded out of the camp. Nightecho immediately began chastising her apprentice in a hushed voice.
“Should we check the monsters tonight?” Thrushleap asked, appearing suddenly.
“Yes,” Shinestar replied.
The day passed in a bit of a blur. The new apprentices, still bursting wih energy, soon returned to camp; close behind them were their new mentors. Foxclaw looked exhausted, while Ivycloud seemed to have nearly as much energy as her apprentice. The four cats were followed by Swiftpool, who had went hunting and brought back plenty of prey. Moonpaw hurried forward to bring the meal to the elders, who exclaimed over how quickly he had grown.
“It seems like just yesterday that you were a kit,” Duskleap purred sentimentally.
“Just yesterday, he was just a kit!” Mistheart replied.
“Now I’m older though!” Moonpaw exclaimed proudly. “I get to have apprentice duties! Do you need fresh moss for your bed? Or more prey? I’ll even be able to catch prey myself soon!”
Leafpaw, meanwhile, was bragging to Blazepaw.
“I nearly caught some prey on my very first try, even though I’ve never had a hunting lesson. I just instinctively knew how to hunt! You should see my fighting skills too; they’re phenomenal!”
With that, she leaped suddenly onto Blazepaw. With a lazy swat of his paw, Blazepaw knocked the younger apprentice off of him.
“If I had proper training, I could easily beat you in a fight!” Leafpaw informed him arrogantly, shaking dust out of her ginger fur. Blazepaw’s whiskers twitched in amusement.
“Oh really?” he asked.
“Shinestar!”
Shinestar jumped. She had been gazing absently across the clearing, deep in thought.
“Ready to go?” Thrushleap asked.
“Yes,” Shinesar replied, waving Nightecho over with a flick of her orange tabby tail. The medicine cat stood from where she had been sharing prey with Spiderleap and hurried over.
“Are we going to check on the monsters?” she asked in a hushed voice.
“Yes,” Shinestar answered, leading the way out of the camp. Feeling eyes on her, she turned as she left the camp. Petalpaw had fixed her with an intense, bright green stare. The apprentice’s silver tail gave an irritated flick; she padded away into the medicine cat’s den, but not before Shinestar noticed the smug look on her face.

The cats traveled across their territory in tense silence. Shinestar was trying her best not to jump at small noises. As they approached the border, she strained her ears for any unusual sounds. Her fur stood on end as a faint rumbling reached her ears. Beside her, Thrushleap let out a low growl; Shinestar gave her tail a warning flick and he fell silent, although his claws were still digging deep into the ground and his ears were flattened against his head.
“They sound closer,” Nightecho murmured quietly. Her thick fur was puffed to twice its normal size.
“It leaves us no choice then. We will have to tell the Clan,” Shinestar decided, already dreading the task. She despised having to bring bad news to her Clan, but they had to know about the potential danger.
“We should keep hunting patrols away from this border,” Thrushleap added.
“Yes, but we should send patrols to check the progress of the monsters,” Shinestar answered.
“How long will it take them before they reach us?” Nightecho asked, so quietly that Shinestar barely heard her over the monsters’ roars.
“I do not know,” Shinestar admitted, trying not to sound as worried as she felt. She had to stay calm for her Clan, but how was she supposed to stay calm when the monsters could be moving towards them at any moment?
“Petalpaw,” Nightecho said suddenly.
“What?” Shinestar asked. Beside her, Thrushleap swiveled his head, as though expecting the small silver apprentice to appear from behind them.
“She said she knew what the prophecies meant,” Nightecho murmured, sounding deep in thought.
“I thought we had decided that she was lying,” Thrushleap meowed dismissively.
“But what if she wasn’t?” Nightecho asked, half to herself. “These prophecies could be what we need to save our Clan. We need to try everything to find out what they mean.”
“But asking Petalpaw?” Thrushleap asked in disbelief.
“Why not?” Nightecho countered, snapping out of her thoughts. “We have no other ideas yet. We need to find out what those prophecies mean.”
“But Petalpaw was clearly looking for a reaction!” Thrushleap exclaimed.
“Or was she?” Nightecho wondered.
“I suppose it is worth a try,” Shinestar decided. They had to do something; every moment that procrastinated was time during which the monsters could be getting closer. “Let’s return to camp. We will speak with Petalpaw, then warn the others.”
The cats set off towards the camp in silence, all deep in thought. When they arrived at the camp, they immediately walked to the medicine cats’ den. Inside, Petalpaw was sorting through the herbs. She turned and gave the older cats an arrogant look.
“The monsters are closer, aren’t they?” she asked knowingly.
“Petalpaw,” Nightecho started.
“Yes?” Petalpaw asked innocently.
“We need to know about the prophecies,” Nightecho said.
“Of course you do,” Petalpaw replied simply. “I’m surprised you haven’t figured out what they mean yet. It didn’t take me long, and I’m just an immature apprentice who can’t be trusted to know what’s going on.”
“Petalpaw, this is important,” Shinestar meowed sternly, annoyed with the apprentice’s attitude, which was even worse than usual now.
“Fine, fine,” Petalpaw replied impatiently. “Clearly the prophecies mean that we need to rejoin the other four Clans.”

Rejoin the other four Clans?” Thrushleap spat, as if he found the idea disgusting and absurd. “Wherever did you come up with that nonsense? They showed us how much they cared about us when they let us get driven out the first time by monsters! Do you really believe that they would rush to our aid? I doubt they even know of our existence!”
“That’s the meaning of the prophecy, whether you like it or not. If you’re so much of a mousebrain that you refuse to believe me, just because I am an apprentice and because you carry grudges, then you will be responsible for the destruction of our Clan,” Petalpaw replied crossly. Thrushleap started to respond, but Shinestar flicked her tail warningly at him.
“Petalpaw, would you please explain how you came to this conclusion?” she mewed calmly.
“It was easy. One of the prophecies said ‘four will become five’, and the other one hinted at us ‘reuniting with old enemies’. There are four other Clans that we did not always get along with. When we join those Clans, four will be five, and we will have reuniting with allies and enemies. Understand now?” Petalpaw finished, the smug look returning to her face.
“I cannot believe that it is that simple,” Nightecho said thoughtfully. “How did we not think of that?”
“You were too busy chastising me,” Petalpaw replied sourly, giving an annoyed flick of her tail tip.
“I suppose we were wrong about that,” Shinestar admitted. She was beginning to wonder if the apprentice was a bit more insightful than she sometimes seemed. Petalpaw had certainly proved to be a nuisance, but she was an intelligent cat nonetheless.
“Now, what are we going to do?” Thrushleap asked, unsheathing his claws as if expecting to fight his way past the twolegs to reunite with the other Clans.
“We must speak with the Clan. All four of us,” Shinestar decided. For a moment, Petalpaw glowed with pride at being included in such an important announcement; she then noticed the other three cats giving watching her and assumed a disinterested appearance.
“Let’s go then,” Nightecho mewed.
The four cats made their way into the main clearing of the camp. Shinestar climbed onto the Rockpile, where she always gave announcements to her Clan, and called for attention. Nightecho, Thrushleap, and Petalpaw gathered around the bottom of the Rockpile; as the other cats began to arrive and settle around the Rockpile, they stayed standing.
“SkyClan faces a terrible danger,” Shinestar began, trying to keep her voice level and calm. “Twoleg monsters have been heard by the border farthest from camp. They have been growing closer.” She paused as murmurs rippled through the Clan. Once they had once more fallen silent, she continued, “luckily, Nightecho and I have had two prophecies from StarClan that hint at ways to save our Clan. The first one is that four will soon become five. The second is that old allies will soon reunite, along with old enemies.”
“What old allies and enemies?” Leafpaw called out; she was quickly shushed by Wishpaw, who was sitting beside her.
“Thanks to Petalpaw, we are able to answer that question,” Shinestar answered, beckoning the medicine cat apprentice forward with a wave of her tail.
“As most of you know, SkyClan originally lived in a huge forest with the four other Clans, ThunderClan, ShadowClan, RiverClan, and WindClan,” Petalpaw began, telling the story that the elders often told the kits of SkyClan. “One day, twolegs invaded SkyClan’s old territory. Our Clan had to flee, and it eventually scattered until no Clan was left. However, many moons ago, long before any of us were here, two ThunderClan cats arrived to help rebuild our Clan.”
“We know that already!” Blazepaw called impatiently. His mentor gave him a warning look and he fell silent.
“Well, what you don’t know is that those two prophecies related to the other four Clans. StarClan wishes for us to rejoin the other Clans,” Petalpaw told him.
“That is what we must do, if we wish to keep our Clan from being destroyed once more,” Shinestar said. “We must leave and travel to the other four Clans.”
“But where do they live?” Speckleflight asked. Shinestar paused, unsure of how to answer. None of the SkyClan cats really knew where the other four Clans lived.
“We will wait for a while to leave,” Shinestar meowed finally. “Hopefully, StarClan will have sent us a dream showing us where the other Clans are.”
“Didn’t your dream have a lake?” Nightecho asked her quietly. She then added, more loudly, “it may be near a lake. Shinestar’s dream involved a lake.”
“Perhaps we should send a small group of cats outside the territory to search for the lake,” Thrushleap suggested.
“Good idea,” Shinestar replied.
“I will go!” Swiftpool volunteered immediately.
“So will I!” called Spiderleap.
“Me too!” Shadeclaw howled.
“You’ll need a medicine cat!” Petalpaw added, eyes gleaming with excitement. “I’ll go, since the Clan needs a full medicine cat here!”
“Alright,” Shinestar agreed, raising her tail for silence. “Swiftpool, you will lead a patrol of Spiderleap, Shadeclaw, and Petalpaw. You will search for the other four Clans. Once you find them, make sure there is suitable territory for us near them, then return to our Clan.”
“We won’t let SkyClan down,” Swiftpool mewed, eyes gleaming with determination. She was an ambitious cat; Shinestar may have even considered her for deputy if she had not been only an apprentice at the time.
“When are we leaving?” Spiderleap added; the adventurous, energetic tom was clearly anxious to get going.
“You should stay here tonight and rest, then leave at sunrise tomorrow,” Shinestar said. “The Clan is dismissed.”
“We should discuss our plan,” Shadeclaw told the rest of the patrol. The intelligent tom liked to be prepared for anything; this quality would make him a good choice for part of a patrol exploring unknown lands.
“You will have to take this seriously, Petalpaw,” Nightecho was telling her apprentice seriously. “This is an important patrol, do you understand?”
“I’ll be fine. I know what I am doing,” Petalpaw answered.
Shinestar stood at the top of the Rockpile in silence, wondering whether she had made the right decision.

All of the cats woke early the next morning, eager to see the patrol off. Swiftpool woke even earlier than the rest. She wasted no time in gathering the rest of her patrol.
“What is it?” Petalpaw mumbled, sleepily opening her bright green eyes.
“Time to get going,” Swiftpool replied briskly; she was a bit annoyed that the apprentice had not remembered that she needed to get up early in the morning.
“Oh yeah!” Petalpaw mewed, suddenly sounding much more awake. She bounced excitedly out of the medicine den. Swiftpool followed her out into the camp, where the rest of the patrol was already waiting.
“We should have something to eat before we leave,” Shadeclaw suggested.
“True. Let’s eat quickly though,” Swiftpool replied. The cats gathered around the fresh-kill pile, each with a piece of prey. As they ate, the rest of the Clan began emerging from their dens. The sun was just beginning to rise. Nightecho padded over to her apprentice and began reviewing the uses of different herbs with her. Swiftpool hoped that the apprentice would remember it all, since none of the other patrol cats knew anything about medicine.
When all four cats had finished their meals, they joined Shinestar, Nightecho, and Thrushleap near the Rockpile.
“We should leave now so we have plenty of time to travel,” Swiftpool told the others.
“Alright then,” Shinestar replied; Swiftpool thought that she heard a trace of worry in the leader’s voice, although it was very well disguised.
“We’ll be okay,” Swiftpool said comfortingly.
“I know. I trust you to lead the patrol safely to and from the other Clans’ territory,” Shinestar answered kindly.
“Thank you,” Swiftpool replied. Shinestar’s praise meant quite a bit to her. She turned to the rest of the Clan, who were watching expectantly. “We will be back soon with news of the other four Clans!” she called.
The Clan cheered loudly as the patrol exited the camp.
The journey to the border was simple. At the border, the patrol paused.
“We don’t actually know where to begin, but I think we should follow the river,” Shadeclaw said. “Perhaps it empties into a lake.”
“Good idea,” Swiftpool replied, feeling rather relieved that someone had come up with an idea of where to go. It had suddenly dawned upon her how difficult this task would be; she had agreed to help find four Clans in completely unfamiliar territory. For a moment, Swiftpool considered panicking, but thoughts of how wonderful it would be to find the other Clans calmed her a bit. She refused to let SkyClan down.
“Let’s go then,” Petalpaw meowed impatiently.
“Yes, let’s,” Swiftpool ordered, a bit irritated with the apprentice, but not wanting to get into a fight with her before they had even left the territory.
The patrol kept close to the river as they walked. Overhead, the sun was now high in the sky, which was a brilliant blue. The leaves of the forest rustled invitingly, but the cats did not pause to explore the land. Only when the sun set did they stop to hunt. After catching and eating their prey, the cats found a sheltered area to sleep in. Spiderleap agreed to stand watch for half of the night. When he grew tired, he would wake Swiftpool.
Swiftpool could not sleep; she was a bit relieved when Spiderleap, thinking she had dozed off, gently prodded her in the side.
“Are you ready to guard?” he asked sleepily.
“Yes,” Swiftpool replied, springing to her feet. She padded out of the small shelter and sat at the entrance, eyes, ears, and nose alert for any type of danger. She heard the occasional small scuffling, but identified the sounds as prey moving through the undergrowth.
Just as the sun was rising overhead, bathing the forest in a faint yellow glow, Swiftpool heard a noise that made her fur stand on end. A squeaking, scratching noise was coming closer, and it was not the sound of prey. Rats were scurrying towards her; there were so many that it looked like a dark cloud, hovering low above the ground. Swiftpool let out a low, threatening growl and leapt to her feet. Behind her, the other cats woke up.
“What’s happening?” Petalpaw mumbled, yawning and stretching lazily.
Spiderleap sniffed; his fur stood on end and he let out a growl as the reek of rats reached his nose.
“Rats!” Shadeclaw hissed, unsheathing his claws.
“There are so many,” Petalpaw gasped, staring in wide-eyed fear at the swarm of rats heading towards them. Swiftpool suddenly remembered that the medicine cat apprentice had never been trained for fighting.
“Petalpaw, climb up that tree,” she ordered. “The rats won’t be able to reach you there.”
“But-”
“Go! You’ll be no use to us here; you can’t fight,” Swiftpool snarled impatiently. Without looking back, she launched herself into the crowd of rats, claws out and teeth bared. She heard her Clanmates let out threatening howls as they did the same. The rats squealed angrily, and Swiftpool felt tiny, but sharp teeth clamp down on her tail. She gave her tail a furious lash and felt the rat fall off with a shriek.
“There are too many!” Spiderleap panted, shaking two rats off of his side, then nipping a third that was trying to cling onto his leg.
“Just keep fighting!” Shadeclaw replied, knocking rats aside with swipes of his claws. One rat tried to climb onto his paw, but he brought it to his mouth and gave it a sharp bite. The rat squealed and ran away.
“Help!” Petalpaw squeaked suddenly. She had fallen from the lowest branch of the tree, where she had been swatting rats away carelessly, and the rats were now racing towards her. Shaking a single rat off of her back easily, Swiftpool charged after the rats and pounced, squashing most of them. Shadeclaw threw himself in front of Petalpaw and chased the remaining rats away from her as she got unsteadily to her feet. Spiderleg raced after them, nipping their tails until all of the rats had fled.
“Is everyone okay?” Swiftpool asked, staring around at her Clanmates. Spiderleap had a few scratches on his side, but seemed fine. Petalpaw appeared frightened, but otherwise fine. Shadeclaw had a deep bite mark in his paw and winced as he tried putting weight on it, but nodded anyways.
“You need that looked at,” Petalpaw told him, hurrying forwards.
“I’m fine,” Shadeclaw replied.
“No you aren’t,” Petalpaw answered, examining his paw with her observant, bright green gaze. “Poppy seeds for pain, and cobwebs to stop bleeding,” she murmured to herself, now gazing around the clearing.
“There are some cobwebs over here,” Swiftpool mewed, gathering the sticky webs with her paw and bringing them over to Petalpaw. The medicine cat took them and carefully applied them to Shadeclaw’s paw.
“I cannot believe that happened when we’ve barely left our territory,” Petalpaw murmured, looking shaken. Swiftpool knew what the young cat was thinking; is this was what lurked beyond SkyClan territory, how would they ever make it to the other Clans?

Shinestar could not sleep. The patrol had now left two days ago, but Shinestar could not stop worrying about the cats who had left to find the other Clans. She wished she had went with them, but supposed that then she would just worry about the cats who had stayed behind.
Each morning, a patrol traveled to the border to check the progress of the monsters. They were still coming steadily closer, their rumbling growing louder as the distance between them and SkyClan grew smaller. Shinestar was not sure if there would be any SkyClan territory for the patrol to return to by the time the patrol journeyed back. She knew that the other Clans lived far away, but still hoped that Swiftpool, Shadeclaw, Petalpaw, and Spiderleap would return soon. She was unsure of what she would do if the monsters entered SkyClan land.
“The monsters are scaring all the prey away,” Ivycloud complained; she and Squirrelchaser had just returned from an unsuccessful hunting patrol.
“Try hunting farther away from that border,” Shinestar suggested.
“We did,” Squirrelchaser replied dispiritedly.
“There are even more monsters than usual today. It’s so loud that the ground is shaking halfway across the territory,” Ivycloud added, sinking her claws into the ground in frustration.
“How close are they today?” Thrushleap asked, padding up to the group.
“A few tailengths more than yesterday, but it’s still early in the morning, so they’ll probably come closer before nightfall,” Squirrelchaser reported.
“If I see a twoleg anywhere near the part of our territory that hasn’t been destroyed by those monsters, I’m attacking it, and nothing will stop me,” Thrushleap hissed, his tail lashing furiously.

“Are the monsters any closer?” Blueflame asked around the plump mouse that she was carrying; she and Birdwind were returning from a hunting patrol that was slightly more successful than the first.

“Yes,” Thrushleap replied angrily.

Blueflame dropped her prey and padded closer to the group. “How long will it be before they reach our camp?” she asked quietly.

“At the rate that they are traveling, not long at all,” Shinestar replied.

The cat continued traveling as soon as Petalpaw had finished checking everyone’s wounds. Swiftpool kept her ears alert for any returning rats, but all seemed calm now. The cats were still padding alongside the river for lack of a better plan.
That night, the cats slept atop a tree, balanced safely on the branches. Swiftpool felt safer in the trees, where rats and other predators would be unable to reach them.
“Swiftpool! Wake up!”
Swiftpool blinked open her eyes to find another cat’s face just whisker-lengths from her own. The cat’s bright green eyes were glowing with excitement; as Swiftpool opened her mouth to respond, the cat prodded her in the head with a small silver paw.
“Wake up! Swiftpool! Hello? Are you up?”
“Yes, yes!” Swiftpool exclaimed, rising her feet and arching her back in a stretch that shook the tree branch. “What is it, Petalpaw?”
“I got a dream from StarClan!” the young apprentice mewed joyfully. “I saw the river that we’ve been following, and at the end was a twolegplace. It was sunset, and I saw a horde of cats chasing after the setting sun. There were so many of them, at least four times as many cats as there are in SkyClan! The cats followed the sun to a giant lake, and then they all crowded onto this island on the center of the lake, and then I woke up.”
“So we have to follow the sun now?” Swiftpool asked, feeling very confused and relieved that it was not up to her to interpret StarClan’s vague signs.
“I think we should follow the river to the twolegplace first,” Petalpaw replied. “It must have been in my dream for a reason, right?” For a moment, she looked uncertain.
“That makes sense,” Swiftpool said. “We can tell the rest of the Clan when they wake up. Until then, try to get some rest.”
“Okay,” Petalpaw mewed, although she was so energized by the excitement of her first dream from StarClan that Swiftpool doubted the apprentice would fall asleep again that night.
The next morning, Petalpaw explained her dream to the rest of the patrol.
“We are going to follow the river to the twolegplace, then follow the setting sun from there,” Swiftpool said once Petalpaw had finished.
“But will we have enough time?” Shadeclaw asked.
“What do you mean?” Swiftpool mewed.
“We need to find these other Clans and return to our own Clan before the monsters ruin our entire territory. Do we have time for such a long journey?” Shadeclaw wondered. Beside him, Spiderleap muttered his agreement.
“We’ll have to have time,” Swiftpool replied. “If Petalpaw is correct, that is the path that we need to take to find the other Clans. Now, there’s no time to waste. Let’s go.”
Spiderleap and Shadeclaw still looked uncertain, but they followed Swiftpool down the river anyways. Swiftpool kept the patrol moving at a brisk pace. She had to admit that she had the same uncertainties as Shadeclaw. Would the patrol make it back to SkyClan in time?

For many days, the cats traveled at a near run alongside the river, pausing only when the sun had set to hunt and rest, then waking long before sunrise to continue their travels. Swiftpool was beginning to wonder whether they would ever reach the twolegplace. They had passed multiple twolegplaces in the past few days, but Petalpaw had dismissed them, saying that they looked different than the one in her dream. Swiftpool wondered how Petalpaw could tell them apart; they all looked the same, with their tall, square dens and bright monsters, which growled aggressively as they sped down long, hard pathways winding between the twoleg dens.
“Wait!” Petalpaw exclaimed suddenly. Swiftpool turned to see that the apprentice had paused next to a tall fence.
“Is this the twolegplace?” Swiftpool asked, bounding over.
“Yes,” Petalpaw said, not a trace of uncertainty in her voice.
“So now what?” Spiderleap asked, eyeing the twolegplace nervously. “We don’t have to go in there, right?”
“No. Now, we follow the sun,” Swiftpool replied.
Before the cats could take a single pawstep, a ginger cat launched himself from the fence, into the middle of the group of SkyClan cats.
“Who’re you?” he demanded, looking around with wide yellow eyes at the cats.
“We could ask you the same,” Petalpaw retorted fiercely. Behind her, Spiderleap and Shadeclaw unsheathed their claws. Swiftpool flicked her tail warningly at them, then stepped forward towards the ginger cat.
“I am Swiftpool. These are Spiderleap, Shadeclaw, and Petalpaw. We come from SkyClan,” she said.
“I’m Tiger,” the ginger cat responded. “What’s a sky clan?”
“We are a group of cats that live far away from here,” Swiftpool replied.
“Really? Do you live with humans?” the cat asked interestedly.
“Humans?” Petalpaw repeated.
“The big, furless creatures,” Tiger explained.
“You mean twolegs?” Swiftpool wrinkled her nose in disgust. “No! We’re not kittypets; we’re warriors.”
“I don’t live with the…twolegs either,” Tiger mewed, his former wariness seeming to have vanished completely. “I live in the forest near the twolegplace.”
“There’s still forest here?” Swiftpool asked in surprise.
“Yeah. Follow me and I’ll show you!”
With that, Tiger leapt onto the fence and began following it further into the twolegplace. Swiftpool exchanged glances with the rest of the patrol, but before she got a chance to ask them for their opinions, Petalpaw jumped onto the fence.
“Come on!” she mewed to the others, hurrying after Tiger. Swiftpool was annoyed at the apprentice for making the decision herself, but sprang onto the fence anyways.
Tiger led them through rows and rows of twoleg dens. Just as Swiftpool was wondering if they would ever be able to find their way out again, Tiger jumped off of the fence. He landed in a small, grassy area, in which only a few trees remained. Swiftpool saw that the trees were surrounded by other trees, which seemed to have been knocked down. She realized that this must have been the former home of all five Clans. She wondered where the rest of the Clans were now; they couldn’t be living in this puny forest. Perhaps they had relocated too. She suddenly remembered the elders telling her a story of how SkyClan had to leave their previous territory to escape the monsters and twolegs. Perhaps the twolegs had grown greedy and taken the other Clans’ land as well. Swiftpool felt a rush of fear that they would never find the other Clans.
“This is what you call a forest?” Petalpaw asked. “Where we’re from, there are forests ten times as big as this!”
“Really?” Tiger mewed. “Do you think maybe you could show them to me?”
“Our territory is very far away, and anyways we’re leaving it soon. We’re on a patrol,” Petalpaw said importantly, ignoring Swiftpool’s warning glance.
“Wow!” Tiger exclaimed. “Could I join your…clan, was it? I want to live in a big forest, with lots of trees and stuff!”
“There’s more to being a SkyClan cat than that,” Swiftpool mewed dismissively.
“Then I’ll learn all that stuff too!” Tiger said eagerly. His pale yellow eyes were glowing with excitement.
“We do not have time to teach you. We need to keep traveling,” Swiftpool meowed impatiently.
“I can travel with you!” Tiger pressed on. “I want to live with other forest cats, in your clan! It seems fun!”
“Fine, you can join us,” Swiftpool sighed, getting the impression that Tiger would not take no for an answer. “Now let’s get going. Show us the way back to the fence.”
By the time they returned to the edge of the twolegplace, the sun had set. Swiftpool let out a growl of frustration.
“What’s wrong?” Tiger asked, still cheerful from his acceptance into SkyClan.
“We need to follow the sun. We cannot do that now that it has set,” Spiderleap explained.
“I guess we may as well hunt, although the twolegs probably scare of any prey around here,” Shadeclaw said.
“Sometimes we get mice in my forest,” Tiger mewed helpfully.
“Or we can try this area on the other side of the river,” Spiderleap suggested, clearly not eager to venture back through the twolegplace.
“Yes, let’s do that,” Swiftpool decided.
“I’m going to head to the forest and hunt there,” Tiger said, looking a bit disappointed. “I’ll be back soon though.”
“Maybe we should just keep walking and leave without him,” Spiderleap muttered as the ginger tom disappeared back into the twolegplace.
“That’s not very nice at all!” Petalpaw said. “He seems nice, and maybe he’ll end up a really good warrior with a bit of training.”
“Doubtful,” Spiderleap grumbled, leaping over the river and heading into the small patch of pine trees beyond. Shadeclaw followed him, while Swiftpool stayed behind with Petalpaw.
A small thud announced the reappearance of Tiger, carrying a small mouse in his jaws.
“Look what I caught!” he exclaimed happily.
“That’s all?” Petalpaw asked. “You’ll need to improve your hunting skills if you’re going to join SkyClan.”
“Sorry. I almost got a squirrel, but it ran up a tree,” Tiger said.
Swiftpool stifled a groan; how was a cat who couldn’t even hunt in trees going to join SkyClan? She could already imagine Shinestar’s face when the patrol arrived with an extra cat.
Spiderleap and Shadeclaw soon joined the others. Spiderleap let out a small snort when he saw Tiger eating his mouse, then dropped two birds onto the ground. Shadeclaw added two large mice to the pile. The SkyClan cats each chose a piece of prey and began to eat. Shadeclaw led the way to a sheltered spot that he had found for the cats to sleep in. Swiftpool agreed to take the first watch. Tiger offered to take the second, but Swiftpool did not trust him yet. Instead, she woke Shadeclaw up when she needed to sleep.

“The monsters have moved even closer,” Foxclaw reported, dashing up to Shinestar with Leafpaw and Speckleflight behind him.
“How much closer?” Shinestar asked.
“Two tail-lengths,” Foxclaw replied.
“There are more monsters, too,” Speckleflight said.
“What do we do?” Leafpaw asked, sounding uncharacteristically concerned.
“Wait for Swiftpool and the others to return,” Shinestar answered, wishing that they could do more, but knowing that there was nothing else to do.
“I hate waiting!” Leafpaw complained.
“Then you can do something productive, like changing the bedding of the elders’ den,” her mentor answered.
“Fine,” Leafpaw said, darting away to collect fresh moss. Speckleflight walked away to go talk to Ivycloud, who had just returned from a hunting patrol.
“How is Leafpaw’s training going?” Shinestar asked Foxclaw.
“Not too bad,” Foxclaw replied. “She needs to learn to follow directions better and to stop rushing into things without knowing what she is doing.”
“I had a difficult time choosing a mentor for her,” Shinestar admitted. “I was not sure if there was any cat in the Clan who was up to it!”
“She certainly is hard to mentor at times,” Foxclaw said.
“Speckleflight was hard to train as an apprentice too,” Shinestar mewed, watching her old apprentice speaking happily with Ivycloud.
“Would you like to take a walk?” Foxclaw asked.
“Sure,” Shinestar replied, glad for the chance to get her mind off of the monsters and twolegs. She pushed all thoughts of the twolegs out of her mind as she walked out of the camp with Foxclaw by her side.

All but one member of the patrol woke with the sunrise the next morning.
“Tiger, get up!” Petalpaw mewed, prodding the former loner with a paw.
“Wha…? Where am I?” Tiger mumbled sleepily, rising to his paws and blinking slowly. He gazed around at the other cats for a moment, arched his back in a stretch, then said, “oh yeah, the patrol to help the sky clan!”
“Let’s go. There is no time to waste,” Swiftpool meowed sharply, turning and heading towards the sun. The other cats followed her, Spiderleap bringing up the rear. Petalpaw padded beside Tiger, telling him all about Clan life, while Shadeclaw shot her warning glances that she ignored.
Just as the sun began to set, Swiftpool stopped suddenly.
“What’s going on?” Spiderleap asked, bounding to the front of the group. In front of them was a large, dingy twoleg’s barn.
“It doesn’t look like it is in use anymore, but we should be careful anyways,” Swiftpool decided.
“We’re fine!” Petalpaw mewed. Swiftpool swiveled her head around and saw that the foolish apprentice had ran right up to the barn. Now, Petalpaw was sniffing eagerly along the edge of the building. “The twoleg smell is really faint,” she reported. “But the smell of mice is strong!”
“Maybe we should stop to hunt and sleep,” Shadeclaw meowed.
“In a twoleg den?” Spiderleap asked, backing away from the barn. “Never!”
“Twoleg dens are actually really comfortable!” Tiger said defensively. Spiderleap narrowed his eyes at the former loner, but said nothing. Swiftpool gazed up at the sky. Streaks of orange sliced through the light blue, and the sun appeared to be nearly touching the earth in the distance. Soon, the sky would fade to an inky blue, and the first stars would appear. Swiftpool thought it would be best to stop here. If they kept walking, they may not be able to find a suitable place to sleep.
“If we travel any more today, we will risk getting lost,” she decided. “We will stay here.”
Spiderleap lashed his tail angrily. “But this is a twoleg den!”
“It’s clearly abandoned,” Petalpaw replied. “Go inside and look if you don’t believe me. Unless you’re too scared, of course!”
Spiderleap let out a low growl, but followed the others through a small hole in the wall. Inside the barn, Swiftpool could smell old hay and fresh prey. Beside her, Shadeclaw dropped into a crouch and stalked towards an invisible mouse in the hay. He pounced, sending the hay flying into the air, and caught the mouse in his claws. The others watched him for a moment, then set off in separate directions to catch some prey of their own.
The cats soon settled down on a tall bale of hay, their stomachs more full than Swiftpool could ever remember them being.
“Maybe we should just stay here,” Tiger mumbled lazily, laying with his stomach in the air.
“We have a Clan to save, if you cannot remember,” Spiderleap replied stiffly, shifting away from Tiger. “We have no time to waste.”
Suddenly, a hiss sounded from below. The SkyClan cats and Tiger sat up, alert, and scented the air. Swiftpool’s fur stood on end as the smell of cats reached her nose. She got to her feet and leaped down onto the hard barn floor.
“Hello,” she began. “I am Swiftpool, and-”
“We don’t care,” a voice said. A large gray tom padded into sight from around a bale of hay. “We just want you out of here. Now.”
“Yeah,” a light brown tabby added, following the tom into the open. Behind her, two black and white cats and one orange one appeared. All five cats were heavily scarred and had their claws out.
“I have traveled from far away,” Swiftpool continued.
“We don’t care,” the large gray tom repeated. Swiftpool opened her mouth to reply, but he launched himself at her, bowling her over and clawing at her exposed belly. As she sank her teeth into his paw, she was glad to hear soft thuds as the other SkyClan cats launched themselves into battle with her.
Swiftpool shoved the grey cat off of her. Before he could scramble to his feet, she leaped onto him, clawing his back ferociously. He let out an outraged yowl and tried to shake her off, but she dug her claws deeper into him. Shadeclaw darted past, headed towards the orange cat, and swiped the gray tom on the nose without looking away from the orange cat. The gray tom let out a surprised yelp. Swiftpool watched a Shadeclaw bit the orange cat’s tail. While she was distracted, the gray tom shook her off, then turned on her. She jumped to her feet and slashed her claws across his muzzle, just as he clawed her ear. Seeming to realize that Swiftpool was stronger than him, the tom darted away. Swiftpool threw herself at the nearest enemy, one of the black and white cats, and began raking her claws across his side. The cat snarled angrily and knocked her into a hay bale with his paw. He lunged for her, but Tiger grabbed his tail and did not let go.
“Let’s go!” the gray cat howled, struggling out from under Spiderleap’s paws. “We’ll find somewhere else to stay.”
The enemy cats darted away from the SkyClan cats and raced away. Each one was missing clumps of fur and sported multiple bite marks and scratches.
“Did anyone get seriously hurt?” Petalpaw asked, springing lightly down from her hiding spot on top of a hay bale and sniffing at a scratch on Tiger’s side.
“One of them bit the paw that I injured in the other fight with the rats,” Shadeclaw said, wincing. Petalpaw hurried over and sniffed at the wound, then made a face.
“This is a really bad bite,” she mewed, looking uncharacteristically nervous. “You might not be able to walk for a while. We are going to have to stay here for at least a few days.”
“What?” Shadeclaw looked down at his paw in surprise. “Not for this little injury! I can still walk.” He took a single limping step forwards, wincing, then sat down again with a hiss of frustration.
“It’s fine. We’ll stay as long as we have to for Shadeclaw’s paw to heal,” Swiftpool said, trying to keep her voice calm even though she was panicking a bit over how much time they were about to lose.

Shinestar looked up in surprise as a dawn patrol came barreling into camp and skidded to a stop in front of her.
“The monsters are just fox-lengths from the camp!” Blueflame panted. Her usually sleek silvery fur had puffed to twice its normal size, and her blue eye were round and worried. Pricking her ears, Shinestar suddenly noticed the faint rumbling sound coming from outside the camp.
“They were coming closer,” Birdwind added urgently, shaking dust that the monsters had sent flying in clouds above the ground from her white fur.
Shinestar beckoned Thrushleap and Nightecho over. The two cats hurried to her side, each looking worried.
“The monsters are almost to the camp,” Shinestar told them. “We cannot wait any longer for the patrol.”
“But where will we go?” Nightecho asked softly.
“We could follow the Swiftpool’s patrol’s scent trail!” Thrushleap suggested.
“But what if they never found the other Clans,” Blueflame said.
“It is our best chance of surviving,” Shinestar decided, leaping onto the Rockpile and calling the Clan around her. They gathered quickly, all looking up at her with worried eyes. “The monsters are just fox-lengths from our camp,” Shinestar began, echoing what Blueflame had told her. Nervous murmurs broke out amongst the Clan, but Thrushleap silenced them with a flick of his tail. “Our best option is to follow the scent trail left by Swiftpool’s patrol,” Shinestar continued. “There is not time to waste. We will leave when the sun has fully risen. Everyone must get ready.”
As she jumped down from the Rockpile, the Clan broke into urgent conversation. Wishpaw dashed across the camp, delivering prey to the elders. Speckleflight and Foxclaw were pacing the entrance to the camp, ears pricked and tails lashing. Shinestar took a deep breath and gazed around at SkyClan’s camp, wondering whether the Clan, which had now been forced to relocate twice, would ever have a permanent home.
When the sun was bright overhead, Shinestar gathered her Clan together. She was glad for once that there were no kits in the Clan; it would make the long journey ahead a bit easier.
“I cannot believe we are really leaving,” Blueflame said. Squirrelchaser wrapped his long ginger tail around her comfortingly, and she leaned into him.
“Just think of how nice our new home will be,” he said, purring and blinking affectionately at his mate.
“We need to get going,” Thrushleap reminded them, tail flicking impatiently.
“Thrushleap is right,” Shinestar meowed, turning and leading the cats out of the camp. At the border, she paused, sniffing, until she found the stale scents of Swiftpool’s patrol. She followed the smell through the trees, keeping her nose close to the ground so that she would not lose it.
“What’s that?” Leafpaw asked a few moments later. Shinestar paused, lifting her head and following the apprentice’ gaze to a clearing. She suddenly noticed a faint smell of blood.
“You don’t think...” Speckleflight trailed off.
“It definitely smells like our Clanmates,” Thrushleap replied uneasily.
Shinestar continued following the scents out of the clearing. “It seems like they kept going. Let’s just continue to follow the scents.”

“I’m fine,” Shadeclaw growled. It was a few days after they had decided to stay at the twoleg barn for a while, and Petalpaw was fussing over his paw.
“If you were fine, we would be traveling right now,” Petalpaw retorted, flicking her tail impatiently. “Now, sit back down.”
“Just listen to her,” Swiftpool mewed, padding over to the other two cats.
“I’m fine though!” Shadeclaw protested, struggling to his feet. Swiftpool used her paw to gently push him back into a sitting position.
“I know this is hard for you, but trying to keep going with an injury will just cause more trouble,” she said.
“I think we’ll be able to start traveling again in two more days, if you rest,” Petalpaw added.
“Can I at least hunt for myself?” Shadeclaw asked. Swiftpool had been bringing him prey ever since he got injured.
“No,” Swiftpool told him firmly.
“But I’m sick of being a bother!” Shadeclaw exclaimed. “It would be better if the rest of the patrol just kept going without me. I’d catch up to you eventually.”
“We aren’t leaving you here,” Swiftpool said, shocked that he would come up with such an absurd plan. “You’re stuck with us.”
“But-”
“Stop being a mousebrain!” Swiftpool swiped playfully at his ears.
“Fine.” Shadeclaw did not sound pleased, but Swiftpool thought that she heard a purr in his voice as she padded away.

A few days later, the patrol had started to travel again. They were going slowly, and Shadeclaw was still limping heavily, but they were glad to be on the move again. Spiderleap was especially happy to be out of the twoleg barn; he seemed far less tense than he had in the past few days and kept darting ahead of the group. As night began to fall, the cats came upon a cave.
“This seems like a good shelter,” Swiftpool said, walking forwards and giving it a sniff.
“Will we all fit in there?” Tiger asked, eyeing the mouth-like opening doubtfully.
“There’s only one way to find out!” Petalpaw exclaimd brightly, dashing ahead into the tunnel. “It’s really dark in here!” she called, her voice echoing a bit. “Come on!”
Swiftpool stepped into the cave, and the rest of the patrol crowded in behind her. The tunnel was dark, cold, and seemingly endless. Finally, she heard Petalpaw’s yowl up ahead.
“Whoa, this is amazing!”
Swiftpool increased her pace eagerly. Suddenly, the tunnel opened into a huge cave, empty expect for the cats and a large rock. Above the rock was a hole in the cave ceiling. As Swiftpool stared up at it, the moon shifted into view through the gap. Swiftpool stepped back in surprise as the moonlight hit the large rock. The rock began to sparkle, glowing as bright as the moon itself.
Petalpaw started forwards, as if drawn by an unknown force. The rest of the patrol watched, stunned into silence, as she settled herself next to the stone and pressed her nose to its surface. Something flickered in her green eyes, but before Swiftpool could tell what it is, the apprentice’s eyes snapped shut. Swiftpool’s fur stood on end as the small, delicate apprentice went rigid.

“Petalpaw?” Shadeclaw mewed uneasily.
“I’m scared,” Tiger said, backing away from the stone. His legs were tremulous, and his eyes were wide.
“We have to get her away from that stone.” Swiftpool darted forwards. “Petalpaw? Petalpaw, can you hear me?”
The apprentice remained silent.
“Spiderleap, help me out,” Swiftpool said, gently grabbing hold of Petalpaw, who was as cold and still as the rock itself. Spiderleap bounded over and helped Swiftpool pull Petalpaw away from the stone. The second that her nose was away from the glimmering rock, the medicine cat apprentice’s eyes flickered sleepily open.
“What did you do that for?” she asked, struggling out of her Clanmates’ grips and starting to pad back towards the rock. Spiderleap quickly held out a paw to stop her.
“That rock is dangerous,” Swiftpool said, stepping between Petalpaw and the still-glittering stone.
“You just padded towards it…like…like it was drawing you closer.” Tiger’s eyes were still wide with fear. “And when you touched it you went completely still!”
“We need to get out of here,” Shadeclaw said, starting to limp towards the cave exit.
“No!” Petalpaw exclaimed sharply. The cats turned to look at her in surprise as she tried to push past Swiftpool, who let out a growl of frustration and blocked the young cat’s path.
“Petalpaw, come to your senses!” Swiftpool meowed. “I don’t know what that rock did to you, but it is clearly a danger! You cannot go near it again.”
“It is not a danger!” Petalpaw’s green eyes were blazing now. Swiftpool was beginning to feel even more worried; what had happened to Petalpaw?
“That’s the Moonstone!” Petalpaw exclaimed.
“Petalpaw, you don’t know what you are saying,” Swiftpool began.
“Yes, I do!” Petalpaw interrupted. “That is the Moonstone, and the medicine cats from the other Clans, and even the old SkyClan, used to come here to speak with their ancestors!”
“Stop making things up,” Spiderleap snapped.
“I’m not,” Petalpaw answered. “Touch your nose to the stone if you don’t believe me. I spoke with the ancestors of the other four Clans.”
Spiderleap looked at the stone warily. Tiger took another step backwards, his ginger fur fluffed up with fear. Shadeclaw appeared deep in thought. Swiftpool was hesitant to press her nose to the stone. What if it really was dangerous? All the same, she felt that someone should find out whether it truly was the Moonstone.
“I will,” she said finally, padding towards the rock. Her fur prickled as she touched her nose to the ice-cold surface of the rock and squeezed her eyes shut. Instantly, everything went dark.
Swiftpool opened her mouth in a yowl. She unsheathed her claws, desperate to sink them into something and stop the odd, falling sensation that was making her fur prickle, but there seemed to be no solid ground.
“I suppose that you are a SkyClan cat as well?”
Swiftpool felt her paws finally touch grass. She dug her claws into the ground.
“It’s alright; you can open your eyes,” the voice continued.
Swiftpool slowly opened her eyes. She was still sitting in the cave beside the glimmering stone, but the rest of her Clan had vanished. The only cat nearby was an unfamiliar she-cat.
“I am Leafpool,” the cat said. “One of ThunderClan’s medicine cats.”
“ThunderClan?” Swiftpool paused, then added, “Petalpaw was right.”
“Petalpaw?” the cat repeated, tilting her head to one side.
“You didn’t meet her?”
“No.”
“Huh.” Swiftpool was not sure what to make of this.
“This is the Moonstone,” Leafpool said. “Where the four Clans used to speak with their ancestors. They use the Moonpool now. It is much closer to their new land.”
“Are we near their new land?” Swiftpool asked eagerly.
“Oh, no,” Leafpool replied. “The journey from here to the four Clans will be long and hard. However, you will reunite with the rest of your Clan soon.”
“What do you mean?” Swiftpool asked. The patrol still had to find the four other Clans before they could return to SkyClan.
“Take your time on this trip,” Leafpool said.
“What?” Swiftpool asked. “Every moment that we rest, the monsters get closer to SkyClan!”
“Not necessarily,” Leafpool mewed. Swiftpool started to reply, but the scene was fading slightly. She could tell that the dream was over.

Swiftpool blinked open her eyes to find Spiderleap and Shadeclaw standing over her, looking nervous. Tiger was still cowering by the tunnel entrance, while Petalpaw sat next to him, her tail draped comfortingly over his shoulders. She gave Swiftpool a smug look as the patrol leader got to her feet.
“I told you it’s the Moonstone,” she said.
“It is,” Swiftpool confirmed.
“I want to try pressing my nose to it!” Spiderleap exclaimed, hurrying forward.
“Take all the time you want,” Swiftpool murmured. Nobody seemed to hear her but Petalpaw, who padded over.
“You got the message too, didn’t you?” she asked, her voice unusually quiet.
“Yes,” Swiftpool replied.
“Yellowfang came to you as well?” Petalpaw asked.
“No, the cat that I met was named Leafpool,” Swiftpool replied.
“But you seem to have had the same dream as me,” Petalpaw said thoughtfully.
Before Swiftpool could reply, Spiderleap woke up.
“We need to take our time,” he mumbled sleepily, blinking his yellow eyes open.
“We know,” Petalpaw responded. “I’m going to see if I can find out more.” She padded forward, pressed her nose to the stone, and once again went rigid.
Swiftpool and Spiderleap turned expectantly to Shadeclaw. He gave them a small nod, then limped forward and settled in a sitting position in front of the stone. He touched his nose to it, then he too went still.
“Who did you meet?” Swiftpool asked, turning to Spiderleap.
“Firestar,” he replied.
“I met Leafpool.”
Shadeclaw awoke soon after and reported that he had also met Firestar. When the three cats fell asleep, this time without their noses pressed to the Moonstone, Petalpaw was still dreaming. They woke the next morning to see her pacing around them, looking troubled. Her usually sleek silver fur was ruffled, and she looked older than ever before.
“Is something wrong?” Swiftpool asked anxiously. She had never seen Petalpaw like this before.
“We have to take our time,” Petalpaw murmured.

“Yes, yes, we all heard that,” Swiftpool mewed briskly. “But how can we do that when our Clan needs us to hurry?”
“I don’t know,” Petalpaw answered, frowning.
“We’ve already been here for a while,” Spiderleap pointed out. “And we waited for a long time in that barn when Shadeclaw couldn’t travel. Perhaps those things count?”
“Yes!” Tiger exclaimed eagerly. “So now that we’ve waited, we can get going!” He inched further away from the Moonstone. Now that the sun was shining overhead, the stone appeared duller than before. It was no longer glittering.
“Perhaps.” Petalpaw turned to gaze at the Moonstone.
“It is settled then,” Swiftpool decided. “Spiderleap, Tiger, and I will go hunt, then we will set off once more.”

“Shinestar?”
Shinestar paused at the edge of the twolegplace and turned to face the medicine cat.
“Yes?”
“We have reached the other Clans’ old territories,” Nightecho mewed softly. “According to my dream, we should follow the sun from here.”
“Alright.” Shinestar stared into the twolegplace. She could not imagine the land full of cats, but she supposed that it must have been at one point.
“What are we waiting for?” Thrushleap asked, springing onto the fence of the twolegplace.
“We are not going in there,” Nightecho told him.
“Oh.” The deputy leaped back down from the fence. “Well, where are we going then?”
“We are following the sun!” Shinestar called, raising her voice so that the entire Clan could hear.

“Is everyone ready to go?” Swiftpool asked, rising to her feet.
“Almost.” Tiger licked his paw and rubbed it over his face.
“Must we leave?” Petalpaw asked, gazing longingly at the Moonstone.
“We cannot stay here forever,” Swiftpool reminded her.
“We could,” Petalpaw murmured. “Perhaps I will just stay here.”
“You can’t. We need you as our medicine cat,” Swiftpool told her firmly.
Petalpaw sighed and rose slowly to her feet. “Fine,” she grumbled.
“Let’s go.” Swiftpool flicked her tail, motioning for the others to follow her. They padded through the long, tight tunnel and emerged, blinking, into the sunlight. The air was crisp, and a slight breeze ruffled the cats’ fur. Swiftpool realized suddenly that it would soon be Leafbare. There was no time to waste.
The patrol set off at a brisk pace, stopping only once the sun had set to hunt and rest beneath a large bush. As soon as the sun began to rise again, they continued their journey.
The cats continued on in this manner, resting only when the sun could not guide them, until finally they reached a cliff. Swiftpool raised her tail to stop the others, then padded cautiously to the edge of the cliff and peered forward. Below her were swirls of salty smelling water, which the sun seemed to disappear into.
Suddenly, she heard a shriek.

“What’s going on?” Swiftpool dashed away from the edge of the cliff, back to where the patrol was standing a little ways off. Petalpaw was not among them.
“I don’t know.” Shadeclaw’s eyes were wide. “Petalpaw wandered off to explore. I have not seen her since, but that was certainly her voice.”
“P-Petalpaw?” Tiger called, flicking his tail anxiously.
Another meow sounded from the direction of the cliffs, just a few fox-lengths from where Swiftpool had been standing just moments before. Swiftpool rushed towards the sound, the others close behind.
In the water, paddling frantically and still howling, was Petalpaw.
“Petalpaw!” Tiger gasped. Without thinking, he launched himself into the water after her. He yelped in surprise as the cold water enveloped him, dragging him down.
“Stupid cat,” Spiderleap muttered. “What was he thinking, jumping in to save her if he cannot even swim?”
Swiftpool barely heard him as she sprang into the water.
The waves were colder than Swiftpool expected, and they felt hard as stone when she hit them. She felt herself go under for a moment, and had to fight not to panic. Instead, she paddled determinedly. Her lungs were burning, and the water stung her eyes, but she knew that the surface had to be near. Finally, she felt cool wind on her face, so powerful that it was blowing her whiskers back against her muzzle.
She opened her eyes, trying to ignore the sting as water dripped into them from her fur, and drew in a long breath. She could see Petalpaw nearby, flailing her paws and tail as the waves swept her towards a hole in the side of the cliff. Swiftpool paddled after the apprentice. To her side, Spiderleap had gotten hold of Tiger and was trying to return to shore, but the added weight made it hard, and he too was being swept towards what appeared to be a cave.
Petalpaw yowled again as the water swept her through the cave’s spikey entrance. Spiderleap followed after her, still trying to keep his hold on Tiger. Swiftpool heard a splash and turned to see Shadeclaw behind her.
“What are you doing?” she asked, still padding to keep her head above the waves.
“I-” Shadeclaw coughed as water entered his mouth. “I want to help.”
“You will hurt your paw again!” Swiftpool exclaimed.
“Too late now,” he replied, wincing, but paddling forwards.
Swiftpool turned her attention back to the cave in the cliff. She swam towards it. The waves seemed to be even choppier now, and she inhaled a mouthful of water. She stopped paddling as she sputtered, nearly sinking underwater in the process, but she regained control just in time and kept swimming.
The cave loomed in front of her. It was too dark to see what was in it. Without pausing, Swiftpool pulled herself out of the water and into the cave. Waves sloshed into the cave behind her, bringing with them a bedraggled Shadeclaw. Swiftpool helped him to his feet, and together they walked over to where Spiderleap and Tiger were standing beside a small grey cat, who was lying on her side drawing in rattling breaths and shivering uncontrollably.

“Their scents are fresh here!” Thrushleap exclaimed, bounding back to Shinestar’s side. “They must have come here recently!”
Shinestar scented the air. Thrushleap was right; the scents of her Clanmates were mingled with the salty smell of the water.
The Clan murmured excitedly.
“We will follow the scents,” Shinestar declared, raising her voice so that the entire Clan could hear. With the rest of the Clan behind her, she followed Swiftpool’s scent to the edge of the cliff. It doubled back, then returned to the cliff.
Shinestar sniffed the air again. The salty water smell covered Swiftpool’s scent completely now. It was as though the water had swallowed the patrol leader. Shinestar shuddered at the thought.
“Why did we stop?” Speckleflight called.
“The scents disappear at the edge of the cliff,” Shinestar said.
“They must have swam!” Blueflame gasped.
“Now what?” Leafpaw wondered.
“We will have to swim too,” Shinestar decided. “Or at least some of us will. Who here is a good swimmer?”
Leafpaw proudly waved her tail in the air.
“I think I can swim,” Blueflame said, giving her kit an anxious look. Shinestar could tell that the mother did not want her kit to swim.
“As can I,” said Thrushleap.
“Blueflame and Thrushleap, you will go,” Shinestar announced. “I will come too. Leafpaw, you are too young.”
The apprentice started to protest, but Wishpaw shushed her.
“Foxclaw, you are in charge,” Shinestar added.
“Good luck,” the tom said.
Shinestar led Blueflame and her deputy to the edge of the cliff.
“You are positive that you can swim well?” she asked.
The two cats nodded.
“Be careful,” Shinestar said. “If you need to go back, do so.”
“We will be fine,” Thrushleap said, determination in his eyes.
The three cats jumped into the water. Shinestar closed her eyes as she hit the waves, then opened them as she began paddling. She could see a cave ahead.
“Maybe they went in there,” she said, nodding towards the cave. She was not sure whether Blueflame and Thrushleap would be able to hear her over the waves, but they seemed to understand. Together, the three cats swam towards the cave.

“Petalpaw?” Swiftpool asked, stepping closer. The apprentice’s chest seemed to be moving up and down, but she was otherwise still.
“Is she okay?” Tiger asked.
Suddenly, Swiftpool heard pawsteps behind her. She turned to see three cats, all drenched and shivering, standing in the cave entrance.
“Shinestar? Thrushleap? Blueflame?” she asked in shock.
“Petalpaw!” Blueflame exclaimed, rushing forward towards one of her oldest kits. Petalpaw did not move.
“What are you doing here?” Swiftpool asked, still staring at Shinestar and Thrushleap.
“The monsters were getting too close,” Shinestar said. “We had to leave. The rest of the Clan is at the top of the cliff.”
“How will we get back to them?” Swiftpool asked.
“I do not know,” Shinestar replied.
“Someone find out how, and get Nightecho to come!” Blueflame said, licking Petalpaw’s fur backwards in an attempt to warm the tiny cat.
“I will try,” Spiderleap said, starting to pace around the cave, searching for a way out that did not require swimming. Finding nothing, he took a deep breath and launched himself back into the water.
“Petalpaw,” Blueflame murmured again, licking the apprentice even more frantically. Tiger rushed forward to help her. Shinestar, Swiftpool, Shadeclaw, and Thrushleap hurried forward and joined the other two cats, desperately trying to warm the apprentice.

“What is going on?”
Shinestar looked up to see Nightecho standing nearby, Spiderleap at her side.
“We don’t know,” Shinestar said. “When we arrived at the cave, Petalpaw was curled up here shivering.”
“She was like this when I arrived,” Spiderleap said. “Tiger and I were the next to arrive after her.”
Nightecho padded to her apprentice’s side.
“She seems to be still breathing,” the medicine cat reported.
“Then why is she so still?” Tiger asked.
Suddenly, the apprentice opened her eyes.
“Petalpaw!” her mother exclaimed, licking her even more furiously.
“Are you okay?” Nightecho asked. “What happened?”
Petalpaw stared at her Clanmates, looking disoriented.
“Shinestar?” she croaked. She paused to cough up some water, then continued, “Thrushleap? Blueflame? Nightecho?”
“Yes, we are here,” Nightecho said. “What happened?”
“I-” Petalpaw broke off, coughing up more water. For a second, her eyes closed. Blueflame drew in a sharp breath, but Petalpaw’s eyes opened again a few moments later. “I had a dream from StarClan,” she said. “Or at least I think it was from StarClan.”
“What was it?” Nightecho asked.
“A-” Petalpaw coughed again.
“Don’t make her talk if she isn’t feeling up to it!” Blueflame exclaimed, stepping between Nightecho and Petalpaw as if trying to shield the apprentice from her mentor’s questions.
“I’m fine,” Petalpaw said between coughs.
“Are you sure?” Blueflame eyed the tiny cat nervously.
“Yes,” Petalpaw said firmly. She seemed to be breathing better now, although she was still trembling from the cold. As she spoke, Blueflame and Tiger continued licking her to warm her up. “A…a badger was in my dream.”
“A badger?” Spiderleap looked horrified.
“Yes,” Petalpaw said, “but it was a nice badger.”
“A nice badger?” Spiderleap asked.
“Let her finish,” Nightecho said.
Petalpaw coughed, then continued. “The badger was named Midnight. She told me that the other Clans were beyond the mountains, near a lake.”
“But how did the badger speak with you?” Tiger asked, pausing mid-lick.
“She spoke cat language,” Petalpaw said. Scrambling to her feet, she added, “I am fine now. We need to get going.”
“Not yet,” Nightecho said, gently pushing the apprentice back down. “You need to rest first. We will leave after that.”

Once Petalpaw had taken a short nap, the cats swam back to shore. The SkyClan cats on shore had gone hunting, and a small pile of fresh-kill was available for the drenched group of cats who had swum to the cave. Swiftpool realized suddenly how much she had missed the rest of her Clan while she was traveling. For a while, the cats just mingled and shared stories. As stars scattered themselves across the sky, Shinestar called the cats together for a meeting, during which she explained Petalpaw’s dream to them.


“We must travel through the mountains,” the leader finished. “We will start the journey tomorrow. Everyone should rest now.”


Swiftpool wanted to rest, but could not seem to. The other cats seemed to feel the same way, because instead of resting they spent most of the night talking.


“I cannot believe we left our old land,” Speckleflight said, sounding unusually serious as she sat down next to Swiftpool.


“Neither can I,” Swiftpool replied. She had expected to return to her territory at least once more to gather the rest of the Clan.


Only Petalpaw seemed able to sleep. Swiftpool wondered whether the apprentice was dreaming about the journey ahead again. She had to admit that she had underestimated Petalpaw; the medicine cat apprentice had proved to be very intelligent and helpful, despite her tendency to argue and her inability to keep herself out of trouble.


“I wonder what it will be like in the mountains,” Speckleflight said, now sounding more like herself again. Her eyes were gleaming with excitement.


“We will find out soon enough,” Swiftpool replied.


Speckleflight barely seemed to be listening. “And after that we have to go to the lake and meet the other four Clans! I wonder what they will be like? I hope we all get along. It will be so fun to meet new cats!”

“The Clans were never meant to be particularly close with each other,” Swiftpool reminded her.

“I know, I know,” Speckleflight said. “But that does not mean we cannot be friends.”


Swiftpool did not reply, but she wondered whether Speckleflight was correct. The SkyClan cats did not know what they were getting themselves into. Perhaps the other four Clans had changed since SkyClan left the forest. After all, SkyClan had changed quite a bit over the years, so it would not be a surprise. Would SkyClan still be able to keep its independence once it reached the lake?

Shinestar paused at the bottom of the mountains and tilted her head back, trying to see the top, but it was useless; the mountain’s peaks were concealed by swirls of grey cloud. She knew that climbing the mountain would be difficult without having started to climb yet. She could tell that many of her Clanmates were feeling a bit wary. Spiderleap’s tail was swishing so quickly that it appeared to be a blur, and beside him Moonpaw and Tiger were looking even more hesitant than the rest of the cats. Blueflame’s fur was fluffed out to twice its usual size.

“Are you sure we have to do this?” Thrushleap asked. “Perhaps we can go around the mountains.”


Shinestar shook her head. “Petalpaw said that the Clans were beyond the mountains. If we go around them, we risk veering off course and losing our way.”


Thrushleap let out a growl of frustration. “It will take longer to convince some of these cats to climb than it will take to actually cross the mountains. Going around would be so much easier.”


“All the same, we must go over them,” Shinestar told him firmly. Raising her voice, she added to the others, “let’s go!”


“Must we?” Tiger groaned.


“Hey, nobody made you come with us!” Leafpaw said, lashing her tail angrily. Moonpaw shushed her.



“Yes, we must go,” Shinestar told Tiger. “And it would be wise of us to leave now, so we can find shelter in the mountain before dark.”



“I don’t want to spend the night up there,” Blazepaw murmured, looking frightened.



“You will be fine,” Wishpaw replied, draping her tail comfortingly around his shoulders.


“Let’s go,” Shinestar said again, turning to face the mountain. She sprang up onto the smooth rock, trying to dig her claws into it as best she could and using her tail for balance. Once she was a few fox-lengths off the ground, she paused on a ledge to peer down at the rest of her Clan. Petalpaw was scrabbling on the rock not far from Shinestar. To the side of the medicine cat apprentice was Specklflight, who looked more confident than most of the cats as she made her way up the mountain. A bit below Speckleflight was Foxclaw, who kept glancing down at the ground. Duskleap and Mistheart were starting the climb up the mountain.


The mountain soon grew less steep, so that cats could pad side by side. Shinestar glanced down at the area they had just scaled and was surprised to see Swiftpool and Shadeclaw still at the bottom.


“Are you coming?” Shinestar called, waving her tail for the rest of the Clan to stop walking. She was surprised that Swiftpool and Shadeclaw were so hesitant to climb. Both cats were quite brave, and their balance was impeccable.

“Shadeclaw injured his paw during our journey,” Swiftpool replied. “We do not know whether he can make it up the mountain.”


“Well, how can you find out without trying?” Speckleflight asked, bounding over to join Shinestar. “Come on!”


“We can help you,” Shinestar added. “Swiftflight, you climb behind Shadeclaw and make sure he does not fall.” She turned to glance at the cats around her, trying to decide who was up for another steep climb. “Speckleflight, Thrushleap, go on either side of him to keep him from falling. Ivycloud, come to the edge of the cliff and help me pull him up as he nears us.”


The cats hurried into place as Shadeclaw started to climb. He stumbled a few times, but finally reached Ivycloud and Shinestar.

“Are you okay?” Nightecho asked, hurrying over to inspect his paw.

“I think so,” he said.

“Why don’t we take a break?” Shinestar asked, looking up at the sky. “We can find somewhere to rest for the night.”

The cats had a hard time finding a sheltered place to sleep, but they eventually found a small crevice in the side of a cliff to stay in. Shinestar took the first watch, and by the time she woke Squirrelchaser up to stand guard, she was exhausted. She fell asleep as soon as she curled up next to Foxclaw.

Early the next morning, the cats continued on their journey.

“This is so weird!” Petalpaw exclaimed, peering over the edge of a steep cliff into the valley below.

“Get away from there,” Nightecho said, pulling her apprentice away from the ledge.

“I was fine!” Petalpaw moaned. Her complaint was so loud that Shinestar nearly did not hear the sound of pawsteps heading towards them.

Shinestar held up her tail to stop the rest of her Clan. The pawsteps could still be heard after the cats had sat down.
“Who is there?” Shinestar called.
The pawsteps stopped. There was a pause, during which none of the SkyClan cat dared to say anything, then two grey cats stepped out from behind a large rock.

“We could ask you the same thing,” one said, narrowing its amber eyes warily.

The second cat nudged the first one gently. “Calm down,” she said. “Not all visitors are bad. Don’t you remember the story of the Clan cat who defeated our tribe’s enemy?”

“But we do not have any enemies that need defeating this time,” the first cat said, unsheathing his claws.

“Be nice,” the second one chided. Turning to the SkyClan cats, she added, “my name is Flower that Sways in the Breeze. You may call me Flower. This is Hawk that Screeches Overhead. He goes by Hawk. We are from the Tribe of Rushing Water. This is our territory.”

“I am Shinestar,” Shinestar replied. “I come from SkyClan. My apologies for trespassing.”

Flower gave Hawk a smug look. “Clan cats. I told you so.”

Hawk growled again. “No Clan cats that I have ever heard of. The Clans that came in the past were WindClan, ThunderClan, RiverClan, and ShadowClan. There was never a SkyClan.”

“Things change,” Flower reminded him calmly.

“You have met the other Clans?” Shinestar asked.

“Yes,” Flower said. “Are you looking for them?”

“We are,” Shinestar responded. “Could you show us where they are?”

“It is far away,” Flower said. “We know the way from stories about the Clans. Many moons ago, they helped our tribe. We may be able to show you where the other Clans live, but we must ask Stoneteller for permission first.”

“She will never agree with it,” Hawk said, lashing his tail.

“We will see,” Flower replied simply. “Follow me.”

She turned and led the way through the mountains. Hawk bounded ahead of her. Shinestar hesitated, then followed the tribe cats. The rest of the Clan stood and did the same. Soon, Shinestar could hear the rushing of water. A few moments later, a large waterfall came into view. Flower walked towards it confidently. Ahead of her, Hawk disappeared into the water. Shinestar gasped.

Hearing Shinestar, Flower turned around. “It is okay,” she said. “This is the entrance to our cave.”

With that, she raced forward and plunged into the waterfall. Shinestar took a deep breath, then followed her. For an instant she was surrounded by water, then suddenly she was standing in the middle of a large cave full of cats, who looked up at her with curious expressions.

“Hawk has gone to get Stoneteller,” Flower said, watching the tom’s tail tip disappear down a tunnel to the side of the cave. “We will wait here. Where are your cats?”

A moment later, Petalpaw came hurtling through the waterfall.

“This is amazing!” she exclaimed as Speckleflight appeared behind her. “I don’t know why the others are so scared to come in here. I don’t understand it at all!”

“Some of us do not like to get our fur wet,” Spiderleap replied stiffly, appearing beside Speckleflight, who’s whiskers twitched with laughter at the sight of his wide eyes and damp fur, which was standing on end. Blueflame appeared moments later, whiskers twitching in amusement as she turned to watch Squirrelchaser trudge reluctantly through the water. Before long, the entire Clan had gathered in the middle of the cave.

“Hello.”

Shinestar whirled around to find a grey tom with pale blue eyes standing in front of her.
“You must be Stoneteller,” she said.
“I am,” the cat said. “And you must be Shinestar of SkyClan. What brings you here?”
“We are looking for the other four Clans,” Shinestar replied. “Flower told us that your tribe knows where they are.”
“Flower is correct,” Stoneteller said.
“We were wondering whether you could show us the way there,” Shinestar said.
Stoneteller remained silent for a few moments. “I think I can send a patrol with you to show you to the other Clans,” she said eventually.
Relief rushed through Shinestar. “Thank you, Stoneteller.”
“It is a long journey,” Stoneteller warned her. “You should rest here for a few days first to gain your strength.”
Shinestar hesitated for a moment. She had spent most of the journey worrying about whether the cats would reach the other four Clans quickly enough, but she now realized that they could take their time; once they had left their old territory, there was no danger to flee from. “That would be great,” she said. Her Clan needed to rest.

Swiftpool shifted positions, trying to get comfortable. The nests in the tribe’s cave were nothing like those in SkyClan’s old camp and the constant rushing of the waterfall made it hard for her to sleep. Eventually, she gave up entirely and scrambled to her feet. Across the cave, another cat was sitting near the entrance to the cave, also awake. Swiftpool padded over.
The cat looked up in surprise at the sound of the approaching footsteps. She was about the same age as a new apprentice, and her thick, fluffy fur made her look even more like a kit than most cats of her age. “Hello,” she said. “You must be one of the Clan cats.”
“My name is Swiftpool,” Swiftpool said.
“I am Owl Perched in Tree,” the cat responded.
“How do you ever sleep with the waterfall?” Swiftpool asked. “It is so loud!”
“Most cats get used to it,” Owl responded.
Swiftpool noticed that she had said most, not all.
“What is it like in the Clans?” Owl asked.
“Well, I only know what it is like in SkyClan,” Swiftpool said. “It is great there. We are skilled in climbing and hunting in trees. We are joining the other Clans soon.”
“Wow,” Owl said. “I am good at climbing too, although I have never tried hunting in a tree. Maybe one day I can visit SkyClan and see what it is like there.”
“You would like it,” Swiftpool said around a large yawn. “Do you have any tips on falling asleep with the sound of the waterfall?”
Owl shook her head.
“Thanks anyways.” Swiftpool turned and headed back to her Clan, where she curled up once again and continued trying to sleep.

Swiftpool woke early the next day and joined a tribe hunting patrol. She was interested to see how they hunted; perhaps their techniques would help the SkyClan cats catch prey in their new territory. The patrol was made up of Flower, Owl, and a cat named Stars in Dark Sky, who was referred to mainly as Stars.
“It’s cold out,” Owl said, fluffing out her fur against the wind.
“Shh!” Stars replied, tensing. Swiftpool watched in awe as the large, dark grey tom leaped into the air after a bird.
“How did you do that?” she asked as he landed on the ground again. Flower instantly hurried forward to help him store the bird in a crack in the stone cliff beside them.
“It’s easy,” he said, ducking his head. “Every tribe cat knows how to do it.”
Flower nudged him teasingly. “Stars is too modest sometimes. He is the best hunter in the tribe.”
“Hawk is better,” Stars muttered. “And so is Snow.”
Flower was about to retort, but instead she snapped her eyes back to the sky. “Another bird is coming. Why don’t you try to catch it, Swiftpool?”
“But how?” Swiftpool asked.
“You just have to leap up and hook your claws into it,” Flower responded. “Go on. You’ll do fine!”
As the bird came closer, Swiftpool sprang forwards. Pride flowed through her as she felt her claws dig into the bird.
But suddenly she was getting higher and higher in the air. The bird was trying to flee, and it was taking Swiftpool with it.
“Help!” she yowled, staring down at the ground, which was getting further and further away.
“Just keep holding on!” Flower launched herself forwards. Swiftpool felt the tribe cat’s teeth gently holding her tail.
The bird lowered a few tail-lengths towards the ground. Owl and Stars both jumped into the air to help; Owl grasped onto Swiftpool’s foot, while Stars attached himself to the bird’s other wing. Soon, they were all plummeting towards the ground. Swiftpool braced herself to hit the hard, stone ground, but instead she twisted midair and landed on the bird.
“Thanks,” she said as she got to her feet and forced her fur to lie flat.
“It was nothing,” Flower said. “That is how we usually hunt anyways. Why do you think the patrol sticks together?”
“But Stars jumped up and caught the bird all by himself,” Swiftpool said, confused.
“Most cats can’t do that,” Flower said. “Stars is just larger than the rest of the tribe. And that was a small bird.”
“That bird was the same size as this one though,” Owl said, not noticing that Flower was joking.
“Either way, I think that is enough mountain hunting for me,” Swiftpool said. She hoped that SkyClan’s new territory would not be like the tribe’s.

“Thank you for letting us stay with you,” Shinestar said. It had been two days now, and Shinestar thought it would be best if her Clan continued looking for the other four Clans. By now, everyone was well-rested and ready to keep travelling.
“It was our pleasure,” Stoneteller replied. “Flower and Stars will accompany you to the other Clans. Good luck with your trip.”
“Thank you,” Shinestar said as Stars and Flower stepped forward. She would miss the tribe cats.
“Can I come too?”
Shinestar and Stoneteller both turned to see a tiny, orange tabby cat padding forwards.
“I want to see SkyClan’s new land too,” she said quietly.
Stoneteller looked at the cat for a few moments, her expression impossible to read. “Okay,” she said finally. “But be careful.”
“I will!” the tabby said, bouncing happily as she joined Stars and Flower. Flower nudged the younger cat kindly, while Stars looked worried.
“She is barely more than a kit though!” he exclaimed. “Is that really a good idea?”
“If she wants to go, she may go,” Stoneteller replied evenly.
“Thank you for sending some of your tribe with us,” Shinestar said, nervous that the two cats were about to get into a fight. Turning to the three tribe cats and her Clan, she added, “is everyone ready to go?”


“Thank you for letting us stay with you,” Shinestar said. It had been two days now, and Shinestar thought it would be best if her Clan continued looking for the other four Clans. By now, everyone was well-rested and ready to keep travelling.
“It was our pleasure,” Stoneteller replied. “Flower and Stars will accompany you to the other Clans. Good luck with your trip.”
“Thank you,” Shinestar said as Stars and Flower stepped forward. She would miss the tribe cats.
“Can I come too?”
Shinestar and Stoneteller both turned to see a tiny, orange tabby cat padding forwards.
“I want to see SkyClan’s new land too,” she said quietly.
Stoneteller looked at the cat for a few moments, her expression impossible to read. “Okay,” she said finally. “But be careful.”
“I will!” the tabby said, bouncing happily as she joined Stars and Flower. Flower nudged the younger cat kindly, while Stars looked worried.
“She is barely more than a kit though!” he exclaimed. “Is that really a good idea?”
“If she wants to go, she may go,” Stoneteller replied evenly.
“Thank you for sending some of your tribe with us,” Shinestar said, nervous that the two cats were about to get into a fight. Turning to the three tribe cats and her Clan, she added, “is everyone ready to go?”

The cats from the Tribe of Rushing Water seemed to know exactly where they were going, and they travelled even during the night. A few days after they had started their journey, just as the full moon was appearing overhead, Stars paused at the top of a fence. The cats had been in a twolegplace all day, but now Shinestar could smell something other than twolegs and their monsters. Cats.
“A border marking!” Spiderleap exclaimed, appearing behind Shinestar as he inhaled the scent.
“Are these the Clans then?” Petalpaw asked. She, Tiger, and Owl’s eyes were wide with anticipation.
“Yes,” Stars said. “I believe so.”
Flower leapt onto the fence beside him, sniffing the air again. “I am almost positive.”
“We will be heading back to the mountains now,” Stars said, jumping down from the fence to stand beside Shinestar. “We should return to our tribe.”
“But I want to see the Clan cats!” Owl protested.
“We should get back to our tribe,” Flower told her gently.
Owl’s tail drooped sadly. “I want to stay with SkyClan.”
“I suppose you can,” Stars said, already turning and walking away, “but we will not.”
“Come with us,” Flower added, guiding the younger cat away. “Goodbye!” she called back to the SkyClan cats.
“Goodbye,” Shinestar replied. “Thank you for your help.”
Once the tribe cats had disappeared, she jumped onto the fence. “Let’s keep going.”
She jumped back onto the ground on the other side of the fence, then waited for the others to join her. Once everyone was on the ground, they crossed the scent markings, weaving through trees and following the fresh scents of cats to a lake. There, she paused.
“What’s going on?” Thrushleap asked her.
“Did they swim in the lake?” Nightecho asked, looking hesitant.
Shinestar sniffed again. The scent was still fresh, even more so than before, as though the cats were still nearby. “They used this log.” She bounded over to a long, fallen tree, which made a bridge between the land that they were on and a small island.
“What are we waiting for?” Leafpaw called. Foxclaw shushed her.
Shinestar motioned with her tail for the other to follow her, then stepped onto the tree branch. It was surprisingly sturdy. Shinestar crossed it easily, then waited for the rest of the Clan to follow her. Once everyone had made it off of the log and onto the island, she led the way through a wall of trees and into a clearing.

In the clearing, countless cats swiveled around to face the SkyClan cats. Four cats were perched on a large tree across the clearing. A smooth-furred silver cat, the only one on the tree to be standing up, gazed at them curiously. Beside her, a grey cat fixed them with a wary yellow stare. On the other side of the grey cat was a large tom, his dark brown tabby fur prickling as he stared at the SkyClan cats with piercing yellow eyes. Beside the tabby tom, a cat with thick black fur jumped to his feet, the tree branch wobbling beneath him.
“Who are you?” he demanded, unsheathing his claws.
“I am Shinestar, leader of SkyClan,” Shinestar answered, keeping her voice calm.
The cats in the clearing began to whisper. The dark brown tabby got to his feet, waving his tail for silence. The cats turned to face him expectantly, although many of them kept glancing back at Shinestar. The clearing was completely silent; even the trees seemed to have stopped rustling.
“SkyClan?” the tabby asked finally.
“Yes,” Shinestar said. “We come from far away. Our territory was destroyed by twolegs. Our medicine cat and I received prophecies that told us to find the other four Clans. Are you the four Clans?”
“Yes,” the grey cat said, getting to her feet. “I am Mothstar of ShadowClan.”
“I am Silverstar of RiverClan,” the silver she-cat added, her voice so quiet that it was barely audible.
“I am Rootstar,” the brown tabby said. “My Clan is ThunderClan.”
The cats from the other Clans all turned expectantly to the black tom, who remained silent. His long claws were sinking into the tree branch on which he perched.
“That is Quickstar of WindClan,” Rootstar said finally.
“Greetings,” Shinestar meowed, dipping her head.
“What brings your Clan here?” Mothstar asked.
“Like I said, my medicine cat and I received prophecies.”
“When history repeats, four can become five,” Silverstar murmured.
“Old allies will soon reunite, along with old enemies,” Rootstar continued.
“I take it you received the prophecies as well?” Shinestar asked.
“Yes, we got them,” Quickstar snapped. “They mean nothing.”
“Excuse me?” Shinestar said, confused.
“You think you can just show up and take over our land?” Quickstar asked. “Never. I will not give up my territory.”
With that, he leaped down from the tree and walked out of the clearing, flicking his tail for his Clan to follow.
“This gathering is over,” he called as he disappeared through the trees.

“No, it is not.” Rootstar’s voice projected through the clearing. He sprang down from the tree and crossed the clearing until he was just tail lengths from Shinestar. The other two leaders follow Rootstar and stood beside him. “Not until we decide what to do about this.”
“We cannot make them leave,” Silverstar reasoned.
“StarClan clearly meant for the five Clans to be together,” Mothstar continued.
“But it is as Quickstar said,” Rootstar meowed. “We must think of our own Clans. What will this mean for our Clans? We will have to give up territory.”
“Remember Bramblestar’s addition to the warrior code,” Mothstar meowed.
“True.” Rootstar paused for a moment. “Well, we cannot make the decision whether to let these cats join or not without Quickstar and the WindClan cats.”
A cat scurried forward. “Rootstar, would you like me to get the WindClan cats?”
“Yes, please, Spottedtoad. But take a few warriors with you, just in case,” Rootstar said.
“Bring Goldenheart,” Mothstar suggested. Seeing the look on Rootstar’s face, she added, “this will affect all Clans, so all Clans should play a part in it.”
“Yes,” Silverstar agreed. “Minnowleap will go as well.”
A black and white cat padded over to Silverstar. A long-furred golden cat took her place beside Mothstar.
“Swiftpool will join too,” Shinestar decided. The she-cat had shown herself capable of staying calm and collected, even in unknown territory.
“Alright.” Spottedtoad flicked her tail and led the rest of the patrol out of the clearing.

“Perhaps you would like to tell us a bit about SkyClan?” Mothstar asked, leading the other Clan leaders to a quiet area below a tree at the edge of the clearing. Around them, the other cats got up and began to talk amongst themselves. All of the mingled scents made Shinestar’s nose twitch, but she tried to hide it.

“We came from far away,” Shinestar began, keeping one eye on her Clan as she spoke. They stood clumped together, gazing around uncertainly. A white-furred cat from another Clan padded forward, meowing a greeting. Petalpaw and Nightecho followed the cat to where a grey and white cat sat. Shinestar assumed that these were the other Clans’ medicine cats.

“Moons ago, we received the two prophecies. Soon after, our home was invaded by twolegs.” She shuddered at the memory. “We came here in the hopes that there would be territory for us. Is there?”

“That is yet to be decided,” Rootstar answered shortly.

“Don’t be silly, Rootstar,” Silverstar mewed, flicking him with her tail tip and laughing as he flinched away. “Of course there is room for your Clan, Shinestar.”

There was a furious howl across the clearing, and the Clan leaders turned, ears pricked, towards the sound. The patrol had arrived, looking battered. Behind them stood the WindClan cats, eyes gleaming with triumph. Shadeclaw limped over the Swiftpool, looking livid. The medicine cats hurried over.

“What happened?” Rootstar asked, his mouth open to reveal sharp teeth.
Silverstar’s gleaming fur had been standing on end, but she was trying to force it to lie flat. Mothstar’s tail was lashing. Shinestar surveyed the scene nervously.
“How dare you send cats onto my land?” Quickstar demanded.
“Those cats came in peace,” Mothstar snarled.
“Those cats trespassed nonetheless,” Quickstar spat.
“Please, let’s talk about this calmly,” Shinestar said, although her claws were sinking into the ground angrily.
“Calmly?” Quickstar hissed. “Your Clan is trying to take our land!”
“There is nowhere else to go,” Shinestar said.
“Quickstar, be reasonable.”
“Silverstar, I am being reasonable.”
“My Clan means no harm by coming here,” Shinestar said.
“By coming here, you are taking my territory!” Quickstar exclaimed, eyes wild and claws out.
“Quickstar, please.” A brown and white cat hurried to Quickstar’s side. “Listen to what Shinestar has to say.”
“Moortail, you are my deputy,” Quickstar snarled, swiping the cat over her ears. “Do not give me orders.”
“By driving these cats out, you are violating the warrior code,” said a white-furred WindClan cat.
“I will not let them take our land!” Quickstar was outraged.
The cats from the other Clans watched silently as the WindClan cats argued.
“I don’t care if we are violating the warrior code. SkyClan is a threat to the four Clans!” the medicine cat snarled.
“You are being foolish!” An orange tabby told Quickstar.
“Am I?” Quickstar asked.
“Yes,” the tabby said firmly.
“Quickstar, please just listen to reason,” another cat urged.
“Fine,” Quickstar said angrily. “We will see how this goes.”
“It has been decided then,” Mothstar said. “You will find territory here.”
“Outside of our borders of course,” Rootstar added, a threat in his voice.
“Of course,” Shinestar mewed. “Thank you.”
“SkyClan cats are still known for hunting in trees, correct?” Spottedtoad asked.
“Yes. We are the best climbers in all of the Clans,” Thrushleap answered proudly.
“Why don’t they take the forest behind our border?” Spottedtoad suggested to her leader. “I can show them where it is.”
“That would work,” Rootstar said.
“Thank you again,” Shinestar said. She flicked her tail, and her Clan gathered behind her. As she led the way out of the clearing, she heard Mothstar announce that the gathering was over.

“Follow me,” Spottedtoad said, padding out of the clearing. A few SkyClan cats glanced at her uneasily, but Shinestar flicked her tail again for them to follow.
“I am Spottedtoad, by the way. ThunderClan’s medicine cat. I’m not sure if I ever introduced myself,” Spottedtoad said after a few minutes.
“Lovely to meet you,” Shinestar replied.
“I’m Petalpaw!” Petalpaw said, hurrying to the front of the patrol to join the ThunderClan cat. “I’m a medicine cat too, or at least I am a medicine cat apprentice. I can’t wait to get my full medicine cat name!”
“You never will if you spend your apprenticeship still acting as foolish as a kit,” Nightecho meowed, although she blinked her ice-blue eyes good-naturedly as she said it.
Spottedtoad stopped at the border between ThunderClan and SkyClan’s new land.
“Welcome to your new land,” she said, turning and heading back into her own territory.