Warriors: Omen of the Stars #6: The Last Hope (23 page)

“I know,” Jayfeather mewed. “It’s because of the Dark Forest.”

“How is Firestar?” Whitestorm asked, standing up and circling Jayfeather.

“He’s fine.”

“What about Mousefur?” Longtail blinked anxiously at him.

“Grumpy.” Jayfeather forced out a purr. He wanted to reassure them that nothing had changed in ThunderClan territory. “And Ferncloud rules the nursery as ferociously as any warrior.”

“What about Briarlight?” Longtail asked. “Has she recovered?”

“She’s doing well,” Jayfeather promised. “And Brightheart’s expecting kits.”

Whitestorm’s eyes gleamed. “That’s great news!”

“Jayfeather!” Spottedleaf’s mew called from behind. “We should get moving.”

“Where are you going?” Longtail leaned forward.

“To find Flametail.” Jayfeather’s ear twitched.

Whitestorm’s gaze darkened. “Don’t cross the border,” he warned.

“StarClan shouldn’t have borders,” Jayfeather growled.

Longtail lowered his head. “StarClan shouldn’t have leaf-fall, either.”

“I have to find Flametail.” Jayfeather turned away.

Whitestorm whipped around him, blocking his path. “You can’t go there!”

Spottedleaf ran her tail down the old warrior’s spine. “We must,” she mewed gently.

Whitestorm blinked at her, worry sparking in his gaze. “They’ll force you back.”

“They won’t stop me.” Jayfeather flattened his ears. “This is too important.”

Whitestorm backed away, letting Jayfeather pass.

“Be careful!” Brindleface called as he followed Spottedleaf away from the rocks.

She led him downstream, following the river across the meadow till it turned and headed away toward a distant wood, finally stopping beside a tree stump. “We’ve reached the border.”

Jayfeather could smell the washed-out scent of ShadowClan clinging to the dripping brambles that lined the path. He glanced nervously around.
This is StarClan!
he reminded himself.
All cats are safe here.

“Get down!” Spottedleaf suddenly crouched, signaling to Jayfeather with a flick of her tail. Pawsteps sounded ahead. Spottedleaf’s gaze darted from side to side. “We should hide,” she warned.

“No! This is ridiculous.” Lifting his chin, Jayfeather marched past her and stood in the center of the path. He lifted his tail as Russetfur rounded the corner and halted.

The ShadowClan deputy curled her lip to show sharp yellow teeth. “What are you doing here?”

Raggedpelt and Hollyflower appeared behind her. Raggedpelt hissed as he caught sight of Spottedleaf. “I thought we told you not to cross the border.”

“This is StarClan!” Jayfeather hissed. “There should be no boundaries.”

Spottedleaf weaved around him. “I know you think you’re doing the right thing,” she meowed. “But we have only come to speak with Flametail. Once we’ve done that, we’ll leave.”

Raggedpelt unsheathed his claws. “What do you want with Flametail?”

Jayfeather let his fur smooth and met the ShadowClan deputy’s gaze. “I had a sign,” he explained. “It told me I should talk with Flametail.”

Hollyflower bristled. “StarClan sent no sign.”

Jayfeather dipped his head. “With respect, given all these boundaries, how would you know?” he pointed out. “A cat from any Clan could have sent it. But it
was
a sign.”

The brambles behind Russetfur shivered and Cedarheart stepped onto the trail. “Let them pass.”

Russetfur bristled. “Why?”

Cedarheart tipped his head on one side. “What harm can it do to let them speak to Flametail?”

Hollyflower growled, “They crossed our border.”

“And they’ll cross it again to return to their own territory before long,” Cedarheart told her.

Russetfur padded closer to Jayfeather. “What’s the point of boundaries if we let any cat cross?”

Cedarheart didn’t move. “Jayfeather isn’t just any cat. You
know
that.”

There was a pause. Then Russetfur lowered her head and took a step backward. “I guess we can make an exception,” she muttered.

Jayfeather nodded. “Thank you.” He padded past the ShadowClan patrol, feeling their gaze burn his fur. He glanced back for Spottedleaf. The ThunderClan medicine cat was following, eyeing the ShadowClan cats warily as she passed. Once they rounded the corner, Jayfeather picked up the pace. “Come on,” he urged over his shoulder.

“Do you know where to look for him?”

“The vision was a burning reed,” Jayfeather told her. “He must be near reeds.”

Spottedleaf looked doubtfully at the pine trees that loomed ahead. “Reeds? In ShadowClan territory? That sounds more like RiverClan.”

It was a fair point. Jayfeather scanned the brambles, wondering if there was any water close by.

“Wait.” Spottedleaf halted, her tail lifted. “The river runs through this part of the hunting grounds.” She veered off the path and slid between the rambling bushes. Jayfeather followed, his fur snagging on thorns. Spottedleaf twisted between the stalks, seeking out gaps they could squeeze through. The ground sloped down beneath their paws and before long, Jayfeather heard the whispering of the river once more.

“There.” Spottedleaf nodded to the muddy river swirling ahead. The slope flattened into reed beds at the river’s edge. “ShadowClan claimed this land just to spite the RiverClan cats.”

Jayfeather scanned the swath of pale stalks, hoping for a flash of orange. “Can you see him?” he asked Spottedleaf, but she was already bounding down the bank. As she slid between the reeds, Jayfeather raced after her. “Flametail?” He nosed his way into the thicket, shivering as cold water swallowed his paws.

He glimpsed Spottedleaf’s tortoiseshell pelt through the reeds. “Any sign?” he called. Then he paused. A scent touched his nose. ShadowClan, definitely, and fresh. Could it be Flametail? He headed onward, the ground growing softer beneath his feet. Water brushed his belly fur and he began to struggle with every step as the spongy peat sucked him down. “Flametail?” He strained to see through the stalks. “Flametail!”

Jayfeather tried to take another step but his hind leg was stuck. He tugged, trying to pull it out of the black peat, but the mud sucked harder and he sank deeper. He stretched his shoulders, trying to pull out his forepaws, but they slid farther down until he was buried to his knees. “Spottedleaf! Help!” Panic flooded him. With every tug on one paw, another sank deeper. Wetness rose past his belly, soaking his flanks. He lifted his chin as mud began to climb his chest.

“Have you found him?” Spottedleaf poked her head through the reeds.

“Don’t come any farther!” Jayfeather screeched. “I’m sinking!”

Spottedleaf lunged forward and tried to grasp Jayfeather’s scruff in her jaws, but her teeth clacked shut beside his ear. She scrambled back onto firmer ground. “I can’t reach!”

“Stay there!” Jayfeather hissed at her. “We can’t both drown!”

Spottedleaf’s eyes glittered. “Keep as still as you can! I’ll find a stick. You can grab it with your teeth.” She turned, her tail whipping past Jayfeather’s nose as she hared away.

“You look as if you’re in trouble.” A voice sounded from the reeds. Jayfeather jerked his head around and saw an orange face peering at him through the stalks.

“Flametail!” The ShadowClan cat was watching him coldly. “Help me! I’m drowning!”

Flametail took a step forward, then stopped, his eyes burning. “I know how you feel.”

“Can you reach me?” Jayfeather strained to see the ground behind him. Perhaps it was solid enough there to take Flametail’s weight.

“Why should I?” Flametail’s mew was icy. “You didn’t save me.”

“I tried!” Jayfeather felt his whiskers brush the surface of the mud. He tipped his head back, feeling the peat suck at his chin. “But I couldn’t! It wasn’t my time to die. I had to survive!”

Flametail hissed. “And I didn’t?”

Jayfeather searched desperately for something to say to convince the ShadowClan cat that his death wasn’t Jayfeather’s fault, but bitter-tasting water was bubbling into the corners of his mouth.

“It wasn’t fair,” Flametail snarled. “It was such a stupid way to die!”

“But you still have a destiny to fulfill!” Jayfeather shook his head and spat out a mouthful of black water. “You are the only one who can save ShadowClan now! A darkness is coming that will wipe out all your Clanmates if you let it! I need you to unite the Clans. It’s the only way we’ll survive!” He coughed again as a lump of mud hit the back of his throat. “You have to tell Littlecloud I didn’t drown you!”

“Why should I believe you?” Flametail spat. “ThunderClan is full of murderers! Even if you didn’t drown me, your Clanmate tried to kill me as soon as I arrived here.”

“Here?” Jayfeather struggled to speak. “Who?”

“Ivypool!” Flametail thrust his muzzle through the reeds. “I was looking for the path to StarClan and she tried to claw my throat out! She would have succeeded if Tigerheart hadn’t stopped her! Now I’m going to let you die instead!”

Water flooded Jayfeather’s mouth. He slammed his jaws shut, drawing air desperately through his nose as the mud seeped up around his cheeks.

“Flametail!” Spottedleaf’s yowl cut through the air. “Stop making threats like a warrior! You’re a medicine cat!” Flametail’s gaze shot toward the tortoiseshell she-cat. She glared at him, a twisted branch at her paws. “You have more power than you ever dreamed of,” she snarled. “You only need to tell the truth.”

Flametail flattened his ears as if he didn’t want to hear.

“Help the medicine cats work together again.” Spottedleaf was begging now. “If our code is broken, the Clans will fall. We are the heartbeat of the Clans, not the warrior code. Think of the promises you made.”

Water bubbling at his nose, Jayfeather watched Flametail shift his paws. Mud slid over his spine and he could no longer feel his legs. A strange peace had washed over him, as if he knew there was no point fighting anymore.

“Is it really in my power?” Flametail murmured.

Jayfeather tried to nod.
Yes! You have the power of the stars in your paws!
But his muscles wouldn’t work and he closed his eyes, suddenly feeling more tired than he had ever felt in his life. He was dimly aware of a blur of movement in front of him, but it seemed a long way off.

Suddenly he felt something jabbing against his forepaws. Spottedleaf had pushed the branch deep into the mud and was prodding him with it. “Wake up, Jayfeather! Come on!” she hissed. “I will not let you die like this!”

There was a crackle of reeds and the sound of splashing as Flametail forced his way through the reeds to join her. He crouched down and held the end of the stick in his teeth, steadying it while Spottedleaf steered the other end closer to Jayfeather.

“Come
on!
” Spottedleaf yowled.

Jayfeather blinked. He couldn’t give up. He had found Flametail! There was still hope! Fighting through the mud, he flailed his paws until he hooked a claw around the tip of the branch. Dragging it closer, he wrapped both front legs around it. Sodden peat splashed into his face, forcing his eyes to close and making him retch, but he didn’t let go.

“Pull!” Spottedleaf gave the order and the two medicine cats began to heave on the branch.

Jayfeather felt himself being hauled forward and upward. He gasped as his mouth surfaced, gulping in air. Spottedleaf and Flametail grunted with effort as they slowly dragged him from the mud. Kicking out with his hind legs, Jayfeather managed to scrabble out of the bog. He collapsed, panting among the reeds, and felt Spottedleaf’s paws massaging his chest.

“I’m okay,” he gasped. “I only swallowed a bit.” A hacking cough cut him off and he spewed up muddy water.

“We should go.” Spottedleaf turned away. “There isn’t much time.”

Flametail nudged Jayfeather to his paws. “Time for what?”

“To speak to the medicine cats!” Spottedleaf called over her shoulder as she bounded up the slope. Flametail shot after her.

Not much time?
Jayfeather pushed through the reeds and struggled up the slope. When he reached the top, he saw Spottedleaf and Flametail pelting toward the pines. He raced after them, gathering speed as the shock of his soaking began to fade.
What’s the hurry?

Then he remembered.
They’ll be dreaming like I am. We must speak to them before they wake up!
He pushed harder against the ground, closing the gap on Flametail and Spottedleaf until he caught up with them at the edge of the pines.

Spottedleaf stopped and stared into the trees wild-eyed. “We have to find them!” she panted. “Before the sun rises.”

Flametail’s eyes widened. “Quick!” He hared along a trail that swerved among the pines. “I know where Littlecloud visits!”

Jayfeather pelted after him, Spottedleaf at his heels.

“Littlecloud!” Flametail called his Clanmate’s name as they crested a low rise.

The ShadowClan medicine cat was standing in a hollow. He jerked around, blinking in surprise. “Flametail?
Jayfeather?
”

Jayfeather bounded down the slope toward him. “I know,” he mewed quickly. “I’m not supposed to be a medicine cat anymore, but Flametail has something to tell you!”