Five Clans ruled the lake: RiverClan, ThunderClan, ShadowClan, WindClan, and SkyClan. One particularly harsh leaf-bare, four of the Clans found prey much more scarce than usual. Starvation was beginning to claim the lives of many cats, especially the young, and the Clans began to fear that their numbers would dwindle until nothing was left. RiverClan, the Clan of fishers, remained plumper than their neighbors. The lake had not frozen, despite the bitter cold, and fish were still plentiful. RiverClan's leader was selfish with her territory, refusing to allow the other Clans to fish or to share their catches. The other four Clans began to conspire against their selfish neighbor, until this scheming culminated into an ambush on RiverClan's camp. The four Clans meant to take the territory by force, and offered the clearly outnumbered Clan one more chance to share the plentiful fishing - the leader refused, and with that, a devastating battle would ensue. The stubborn old leader was the first to fall, and RiverClan's warriors scattered. Some surrendered, and were given the chance to ally with other Clans. Some fled the Clan territories all together. Many more fell and were buried in a mass grave, placed in what remained of RiverClan's camp.
One cat, Pikefur, who had been the deputy of RiverClan, couldn't cope with the fall of his Clanmates. Pikefur gathered every warrior, kit, and queen of the former RiverClan that would come with him, and they fled. After an entire season of travel, Pikefur received a dream. The fallen warriors of RiverClan, his leader among them, assured Pikefur his destiny was to lead RiverClan somewhere it could thrive. They told Pikefur, that once he arrived at the final destination, he would find a way to speak with StarClan. Soon enough, Pikefur and his warriors came across a beautiful meadow, teeming with prey and plenty of winding streams to drink from and fish in. Soon the warriors found a simple clearing, and set to work digging out and weaving dens. Finally, the Clan could rest - and it was here that StarClan guided Pikefur's paws to the Moonwell. An old Twoleg ruin, with a winding tunnel that led into the earth, where a pool of sparkling blue water never dried. Here Pikefur met with StarClan, and was named Pikestar - the first leader of AshClan.
For many, many moons, AshClan thrived in their new territory. The days of the five Clans, and their origins in RiverClan, were long forgotten, until even Pikestar's name began to feel like a fairytale. It was during this time of peace that AshClan was given a startling prophecy:
Three will pave AshClan's way,
Three will guide to the light of day.
One, the one with the name of a bird,
Will use teeth and claw to make the Clan heard.
One, the one named for creeks winding through,
Will cause streams to run red instead of blue.
The one of much sorrow, thought she would die,
In her last moments a Fox will fly.
Moonstar, the Clan's leader at the time, was startled by such a chilling prophecy after his Clan had only experienced peace in the home they traveled to. It wouldn't be long before the danger made itself known: prey began to show up, brutally killed and only half-eaten reeking of rogue scent. Cats would be ambushed on border patrols, though their enemies were fast, seeming like evil shadows to the frightened warriors. One such ambush would cost the Clan's leader his life, as well as revealing the evil that truly plagued them: on a border patrol, Moonstar's patrol was ambushed, and his warriors pinned to watch as a bulky gray-and-black tabby attacked the tom. Moonstar's lives were ripped from him, one by one, as his warriors watched in horror. "Let this be a warning to all of you," snarled the tom, his golden eyes flashing like fire, "AshClan will fall! Salazar's Rogues will rule the forest!"
It was the deputy, Kestrelclaw, that rallied his Clan together. Taking the name Kestrelstar, the Clan began to prepare for battle. Their troubles didn't just remain outside of the Clan, though - it was soon revealed that Creekstorm, one of AshClan's finest warriors, had betrayed them. He had tipped Salazar off about Moonstar's patrol. He was driven from the Clan, along with his loyal apprentice, Brindlepaw. Now going by Crekara and Brindle, the two fled to Salazar. More warriors followed them, and mistrust furthered between the warriors of AshClan. Kestrelstar did his best to keep the Clan calm and confident in their ability to defeat their enemies. The rogues continued terrorizing the Clan, and Kestrelstar traveled to the Moonwell as often as he could to beg for StarClan's guidance. They simply repeated the prophecy each time, and Kestrelstar began to put the pieces together. It was clear that Crekara had been the cat destined to turn streams from blue to red. His only hunch about the final cat couldn't make sense: he couldn't assume any cat but Foxcloud, a crippled warrior who had been severely injured on a Thunderpath. She could hardly perform her own duties, much less help save the Clan - at least, that's what Kestrelstar thought. The she-cat had always had a complicated history with the leader; it was no secret that she had always pined for Kestrelstar's love, despite the fact that the tom already had a mate and children. He felt it best to leave her out of it and continue to search what had to be the true meaning.
Kestrelstar wouldn't have anymore time to figure it out: with the help of his now right-paw cat, Crekara, Salazar planned an attack on AshClan's camp. As if taunting them, Salazar even sent a cat to inform the Clan of the attack, so that they could prepare. With shaky paws, AshClan's warriors stood ready to defend their camp, as the dawn of the attack turned the forest golden. It came as planned - with a loud cry, rogues flooded into their clearing. At once cats began dropping like flies to the rogues' willingness to murder their enemies. As more warriors fell, things were looking hopeless for AshClan.
As Salazar leaped onto the high-rock, his voice rang out: "Kestrelstar! Face me, here and now, us alone. Let us decide if AshClan lives or dies!"
As Kestrelstar glanced around the clearing, his warriors driven back and huddling down, the camp littered with bodies of their fallen Clanmates, Kestrelstar knew he had to defeat Salazar - the fate of the entire Clan depended on it. The fierce leader charged at the leader of the rogues, and the two collided in a mess of fur and claws. Should he fall, it would be simple for Salazar to rip each of his lives away, just as he had done to Moonstar. Kestrelstar was already exhausted from battling away other rogues, while Salazar had been surveying his cats only from the sidelines, and still came with all of his strength. Salazar pinned the leader to the ground, and it seemed as if it might be over - but then, as StarClan warned, in her last moments, a fox would fly. With a blood-curdling shriek, Foxcloud clumsily leaped, bowling into Salazar's side. She hit the ground with a hard thump, and Salazar wasted no time in whirling on the she-cat with a hiss and burying his teeth in the offender's neck. Foxcloud died a quick death, but not in vain - for this gave Kestrelstar the time to leap to his paws and latch his claws into Salazar's back, hauling the surprised tom towards him and sinking his teeth into the cat's throat. Kestrelstar dropped Salazar to the ground, and yowls of anguish rose from the rogues. Around them, the starry pelts of the fallen warriors began to rise, yowling their praises of Kestrelstar and encouragement to their Clanmates.
"Avenge your fallen leader!" Hissed Crekara to his rogues, but even he had a fresh look of panic in his eyes. AshClan, invigorated by the encouragement of their fallen, leaped back into the battle, and rogues had already begun to flee following Salazar's death. AshClan won the day, effectively defending their camp, territory, and way of life.
As the dust settled, it became clear that several rogues had no idea what to do with themselves. It seemed every cat had been forced to battle - even cats as young as four moons were among them. Kestrelstar took pity on the misguided cats - while they had done Salazar's bidding, they hadn't done so with malice, and they were granted temporary refuge. It was in a dream that StarClan, and give him a new set of words: "Smoke wll rise from the Ashes." This troubled the leader, as he thought this danger had ended, and it seemed the rogues were trying their best to fit in. Among those they took in were Salazar's mate, and his young kits, not willing to cast a nursing mother into homelessness. The rogues truly did their best to fit in, but the AshClan cats weren't particularly trusting. It was one of Salazar's own kits that would be spoken to by StarClan: Firefly, who had taken the name Fireflywing. Hardly a warrior, and having only lived with the Clan for a few seasons, no cat expected StarClan to call upon a cat bearing such evil blood. Nonetheless, Fireflywing was given the same words, "smoke will rise from the ashes," and the young she-cat took the words straight to Kestrelstar. The leader aired on the side of caution, and Fireflywing became the first of the rogues to ever set foot at the Moonwell. Kestrelstar took the young cat there, and together, they communed with StarClan.
A new destiny was set before the young warrior: in the coming moons, she would be tasked with building a Clan for the cats that had joined AshClan, where they could be at peace without worry of their Clanmates' hatred. Fireflywing and Kestrelstar returned home, sharing this news with their Clanmates. AshClan's warriors were shocked by this revelation, but the rogue-born cats rejoiced. The rogues had begun building a life in AshClan, and some chose to stay with the Clan that had taken them in, especially those that had fostered friendships and mateships in the Clan. Kestrelstar's warriors helped Fireflywing explore the territory just outside of AshClan's borders, and soon enough, a suitable camp was found. AshClan helped Fireflywing build up their camp, and set their borders. Animosity diminished between the rogues and Clan cats as they accepted StarClan's will, to have the rogues among them. Eventually, the territory was suitable, and Fireflywing led her small band of warriors - including some AshClan cats - to this new camp, and once settled, went to the Moonwell to receive her nine lives. Fireflystar became the leader of SmokeClan, rising from the ashes of their fallen group, and the two Clans proceeded to enter a new era of harmony.
by C a s » Wed Jul 03, 2024 11:56 am 
