For many long moons, the three clans of RainClan, DawnClan, and StoneClan have been at peace. But evil is never still for long.
The cats of the Dark Forest have been waiting long enough. The time has come to put their plan into action.
Ebony padded out of her den, looking around with bright eyes. Sunlight shone down amid the branches of the trees, casting shadows that made ever changing patterns on the dry forest floor as the trees' branches bent and twisted in a strong, refreshing wind. She opened her mouth to scent the air and caught the distant scent of rain. Glancing up through the trees, she spotted an ominous wall of clouds on the horizon.
"Great. And now my hunting time will be cut short," Ebony muttered. In truth, though, she was glad of the rain. It had been too long since the last rain, and the forest floor was littered with dry leaves. The plants that normally covered the ground in lush green had died of lack of water, and their remains were brittle and dry. Conditions were prime for a forest fire. Ebony had experienced one of those once, and she had no wish to repeat it. She didn't even want to remember it.
Irritated with herself, Ebony shook the gloomy thoughts away. She couldn't change the past, but she could make sure she didn't fall asleep hungry that night, as she had done so many nights after the fire, when prey had been so scarce. Things were better now.
Padding a few paces away from her den, Ebony opened her mouth to scent the air for prey.
--
The forest pool was still. Not a ripple disturbed its calm surface. It reflected only darkness, though, because it was surrounded by a darkness that no ordinary cat could see through. The two cats peering into the pool, however, were not ordinary.
"There," one of them, a dark gray tom, said, gesturing into the pool. "You see her?"
"Her?" The other cat, a red she-cat, spun toward him, hissing. "She's a loner, Windfang! She probably doesn't have a violent bone in her body!"
"Calm down, Redflight," the dark gray tom mewed, his orange eyes glowing in the darkness. "That's exactly the point. A violent cat couldn't fool the clans into trusting her. This gentle-hearted loner can."
"She lives a moon's journey away from the clans!" Redflight protested.
"That will give us time to finish our preparations."
Redflight clawed at the damp ground in frustration, lashing her tail. "I volunteered for this because someone has to do it for the plan to succeed, and most of the others are cowards. But if she is our pawn, the plan will not work, and I am not going to die a second time for a faulty plan!"
Windfang sighed and began to pace. "I do not doubt your courage, Redflight. Trust me, though. I know what I'm doing. The loner will be able to fool the clans precisely because she won't know she's fooling them." He stopped, staring at her evenly.
Redflight met his gaze for a long, tense moment before sighing, apparently appeased. "If there is a life after this one," she growled, "and the plan doesn't work, if I meet you there, I will kill you."
He nodded, unconcerned. "Fair enough. Now, go. Do your duty, and I will see to the rest."
Redflight waited another moment, giving him a measured look through narrowed eyes. But after a moment she turned and dashed into the trees, her red tail streaming out behind her.
Windfang stood and watched her go, his eyes glowing in satisfaction.
--
Ebony dropped the still body of the mouse into a shallow hole and scraped loose dirt over it to conceal its location. She was still hungry, but she'd already eaten a finch, and she had to hurry before the rain started. There was no time to waste eating, and she could collect the mouse on the way back to her den.
Glancing up at the sky again, Ebony stepped away from the place where she had buried the mouse and drank in a long breath of air. The rainclouds were getting closer, and she wanted to catch something else before she got soaked and all the prey hid in their dens.
She caught the scent of a squirrel on the breeze, and moved carefully in its direction. As she padded forward, making sure to place her paws carefully so the dry undergrowth didn't rustle, she caught another smell, faint and unfamiliar. But it was gone the next instant, and she dismissed it. She spotted the squirrel, rustling for acorns in the dry leaves under the sheltering branches of an oak.
Dropping into a crouch, Ebony slunk forward. The unfamiliar scent came again, this time stronger. Ebony froze. It reminded her of the smell of dog, but it seemed wilder somehow. And it was accompanied by a sickly sweet scent, like the smell of rotting leaves. Her stomach turned queasily, and a chill ran down her spine. The squirrel froze, then fled, chittering, up the trunk of the tree.
Ebony watched it go but made no attempt to give chase. The breeze tugged at her fur, and she shivered. Perhaps she had better just take the mouse and get back to her den.
She turned quickly back to the hole she had made and unearthed the mouse. She picked it up in her teeth and shook it gently so that the dirt fell out of its fur.
Suddenly, the odd scent returned full force. Ebony glanced around wildly for its source, instinctively afraid.
A large gray from burst into view, running straight for Ebony. Too startled and terrified to run, Ebony saw that the creature was very similar to a dog, but it had a wildness about it that she had never seen on any dog.
In the moment before it reached her, Ebony realized that the creature had to be a wolf. Her mother had told her stories of wolves, though neither of them had ever seen one. This new terror finally forced Ebony into movement. She turned and leaped.
The wolf caught her around the middle in its foaming jaws. Ebony let out a terrible shrill shriek as the wolf swung its head around, trying to shake her into stillness.
And then the wolf had let her go, and she had fallen to the ground. She gazed up in terror and amazement as she saw two cats fighting it furiously. One, dark gray, leaped up onto the wolf's back, clawing at it. The other danced in front of it, teasing the wolf into fury with quick darting slashes of its claws.
At last the wolf collapsed, exhausted, and Ebony saw that the dark gray cat had his fangs sunk into the wolf's neck. But in a final act of fury and revenge, the wolf's jaw snapped out and seized the red cat, crushing her spine.
Ebony gave a wordless cry of horror and attempted to push herself up, but the wolf's head dropped limply to the ground. It was dead.
The dark gray cat stood and shook himself. He seemed unharmed, but when he saw the red she-cat still in the wolf's jaws, he gave a wordless cry and leaped over to her.
But to Ebony's astonishment, the body of the red she-cat was fading away. After another moment it was gone completely.
"She's dead!" The tom's cry was haunting. "Redflight is dead!" He bowed his head and took several shuddering breaths. After a moment, however, his sorrowful eyes turned to Ebony. He padded over to her. "But you're alive!" he mewed, his eyes widening. He saw the gashes in Ebony's fur. "The wolf bit you? Did the wolf bite you?" His voice was urgent.
"Ye-es," Ebony managed to croak, coughing.
The tom looked at her in dismay. "The wolf was sick! And I fear it has transmitted its sickness into you."
Ebony recalled the sickly scent that had lingered about the wolf and shuddered in horror. "I - I'm sick?" she said weakly.
The tom sniffed her, then nodded solemnly. "His saliva has gotten into your blood. I'm afraid there's no other possibility."
"But - what is it? This sickness?" Ebony asked, stunned. The bite marks in her side stung and she winced.
"It has no name," the tom mewed. "But you saw what it did to the wolf. The signs won't show for a while, but they'll come."
Ebony shivered as she thought of the wolf's foaming mouth. "Isn't there a cure?"
The tom shook his head. "No--" He paused. "Wait. I heard a rumor--" He shook his head. "It's probably nothing."
"Tell me," Ebony pleaded desperately.
"I've heard that there are clans of cats that can heal anything, cure any disease," the tom mewed hesitantly.
"How can I find them?" Ebony asked.
"Go west," he mewed. "It could take moons... I've no idea how far away they live."
"But they're my only hope." It was half a question.
The tom nodded. "I wish you luck." He hesitated, then said, "You should probably go now, if you can. You'll need all the time you have."
Ebony nodded. "Thank you." She turned and began to limp away. Then she turned back. "My name is Ebony," she mewed.
"Windfang."
"Thank you, Windfang," she mewed, and limped away. She didn't look back.
If she had, she might have seen Windfang's eyes glowing in satisfaction as he faded away, returning to the Dark Forest. If she had listened, she might have heard him say softly, "All according to the plan." If she had been able to read minds, she would have known that Windfang thought, 'What is acting but lying, after all? And no one is better at lying than me.'
But she didn't, and so she knew nothing.
It began to rain.
The cats of the Dark Forest have been waiting long enough. The time has come to put their plan into action.
Ebony padded out of her den, looking around with bright eyes. Sunlight shone down amid the branches of the trees, casting shadows that made ever changing patterns on the dry forest floor as the trees' branches bent and twisted in a strong, refreshing wind. She opened her mouth to scent the air and caught the distant scent of rain. Glancing up through the trees, she spotted an ominous wall of clouds on the horizon.
"Great. And now my hunting time will be cut short," Ebony muttered. In truth, though, she was glad of the rain. It had been too long since the last rain, and the forest floor was littered with dry leaves. The plants that normally covered the ground in lush green had died of lack of water, and their remains were brittle and dry. Conditions were prime for a forest fire. Ebony had experienced one of those once, and she had no wish to repeat it. She didn't even want to remember it.
Irritated with herself, Ebony shook the gloomy thoughts away. She couldn't change the past, but she could make sure she didn't fall asleep hungry that night, as she had done so many nights after the fire, when prey had been so scarce. Things were better now.
Padding a few paces away from her den, Ebony opened her mouth to scent the air for prey.
--
The forest pool was still. Not a ripple disturbed its calm surface. It reflected only darkness, though, because it was surrounded by a darkness that no ordinary cat could see through. The two cats peering into the pool, however, were not ordinary.
"There," one of them, a dark gray tom, said, gesturing into the pool. "You see her?"
"Her?" The other cat, a red she-cat, spun toward him, hissing. "She's a loner, Windfang! She probably doesn't have a violent bone in her body!"
"Calm down, Redflight," the dark gray tom mewed, his orange eyes glowing in the darkness. "That's exactly the point. A violent cat couldn't fool the clans into trusting her. This gentle-hearted loner can."
"She lives a moon's journey away from the clans!" Redflight protested.
"That will give us time to finish our preparations."
Redflight clawed at the damp ground in frustration, lashing her tail. "I volunteered for this because someone has to do it for the plan to succeed, and most of the others are cowards. But if she is our pawn, the plan will not work, and I am not going to die a second time for a faulty plan!"
Windfang sighed and began to pace. "I do not doubt your courage, Redflight. Trust me, though. I know what I'm doing. The loner will be able to fool the clans precisely because she won't know she's fooling them." He stopped, staring at her evenly.
Redflight met his gaze for a long, tense moment before sighing, apparently appeased. "If there is a life after this one," she growled, "and the plan doesn't work, if I meet you there, I will kill you."
He nodded, unconcerned. "Fair enough. Now, go. Do your duty, and I will see to the rest."
Redflight waited another moment, giving him a measured look through narrowed eyes. But after a moment she turned and dashed into the trees, her red tail streaming out behind her.
Windfang stood and watched her go, his eyes glowing in satisfaction.
--
Ebony dropped the still body of the mouse into a shallow hole and scraped loose dirt over it to conceal its location. She was still hungry, but she'd already eaten a finch, and she had to hurry before the rain started. There was no time to waste eating, and she could collect the mouse on the way back to her den.
Glancing up at the sky again, Ebony stepped away from the place where she had buried the mouse and drank in a long breath of air. The rainclouds were getting closer, and she wanted to catch something else before she got soaked and all the prey hid in their dens.
She caught the scent of a squirrel on the breeze, and moved carefully in its direction. As she padded forward, making sure to place her paws carefully so the dry undergrowth didn't rustle, she caught another smell, faint and unfamiliar. But it was gone the next instant, and she dismissed it. She spotted the squirrel, rustling for acorns in the dry leaves under the sheltering branches of an oak.
Dropping into a crouch, Ebony slunk forward. The unfamiliar scent came again, this time stronger. Ebony froze. It reminded her of the smell of dog, but it seemed wilder somehow. And it was accompanied by a sickly sweet scent, like the smell of rotting leaves. Her stomach turned queasily, and a chill ran down her spine. The squirrel froze, then fled, chittering, up the trunk of the tree.
Ebony watched it go but made no attempt to give chase. The breeze tugged at her fur, and she shivered. Perhaps she had better just take the mouse and get back to her den.
She turned quickly back to the hole she had made and unearthed the mouse. She picked it up in her teeth and shook it gently so that the dirt fell out of its fur.
Suddenly, the odd scent returned full force. Ebony glanced around wildly for its source, instinctively afraid.
A large gray from burst into view, running straight for Ebony. Too startled and terrified to run, Ebony saw that the creature was very similar to a dog, but it had a wildness about it that she had never seen on any dog.
In the moment before it reached her, Ebony realized that the creature had to be a wolf. Her mother had told her stories of wolves, though neither of them had ever seen one. This new terror finally forced Ebony into movement. She turned and leaped.
The wolf caught her around the middle in its foaming jaws. Ebony let out a terrible shrill shriek as the wolf swung its head around, trying to shake her into stillness.
And then the wolf had let her go, and she had fallen to the ground. She gazed up in terror and amazement as she saw two cats fighting it furiously. One, dark gray, leaped up onto the wolf's back, clawing at it. The other danced in front of it, teasing the wolf into fury with quick darting slashes of its claws.
At last the wolf collapsed, exhausted, and Ebony saw that the dark gray cat had his fangs sunk into the wolf's neck. But in a final act of fury and revenge, the wolf's jaw snapped out and seized the red cat, crushing her spine.
Ebony gave a wordless cry of horror and attempted to push herself up, but the wolf's head dropped limply to the ground. It was dead.
The dark gray cat stood and shook himself. He seemed unharmed, but when he saw the red she-cat still in the wolf's jaws, he gave a wordless cry and leaped over to her.
But to Ebony's astonishment, the body of the red she-cat was fading away. After another moment it was gone completely.
"She's dead!" The tom's cry was haunting. "Redflight is dead!" He bowed his head and took several shuddering breaths. After a moment, however, his sorrowful eyes turned to Ebony. He padded over to her. "But you're alive!" he mewed, his eyes widening. He saw the gashes in Ebony's fur. "The wolf bit you? Did the wolf bite you?" His voice was urgent.
"Ye-es," Ebony managed to croak, coughing.
The tom looked at her in dismay. "The wolf was sick! And I fear it has transmitted its sickness into you."
Ebony recalled the sickly scent that had lingered about the wolf and shuddered in horror. "I - I'm sick?" she said weakly.
The tom sniffed her, then nodded solemnly. "His saliva has gotten into your blood. I'm afraid there's no other possibility."
"But - what is it? This sickness?" Ebony asked, stunned. The bite marks in her side stung and she winced.
"It has no name," the tom mewed. "But you saw what it did to the wolf. The signs won't show for a while, but they'll come."
Ebony shivered as she thought of the wolf's foaming mouth. "Isn't there a cure?"
The tom shook his head. "No--" He paused. "Wait. I heard a rumor--" He shook his head. "It's probably nothing."
"Tell me," Ebony pleaded desperately.
"I've heard that there are clans of cats that can heal anything, cure any disease," the tom mewed hesitantly.
"How can I find them?" Ebony asked.
"Go west," he mewed. "It could take moons... I've no idea how far away they live."
"But they're my only hope." It was half a question.
The tom nodded. "I wish you luck." He hesitated, then said, "You should probably go now, if you can. You'll need all the time you have."
Ebony nodded. "Thank you." She turned and began to limp away. Then she turned back. "My name is Ebony," she mewed.
"Windfang."
"Thank you, Windfang," she mewed, and limped away. She didn't look back.
If she had, she might have seen Windfang's eyes glowing in satisfaction as he faded away, returning to the Dark Forest. If she had listened, she might have heard him say softly, "All according to the plan." If she had been able to read minds, she would have known that Windfang thought, 'What is acting but lying, after all? And no one is better at lying than me.'
But she didn't, and so she knew nothing.
It began to rain.
