The full moon shown down coldly from the night sky, surrounded by hundreds and thousands of stars. A soft breeze blew across the forest, ruffling the fur of cats as they journeyed through the forest to the island.

A black tom watched from the top of a tree from opposite the island, as the group of cats crossed the small stretch of water separating the main land from the island using a fallen tree.

As the last of them crossed, he glanced around to make sure no more cats were around, then leapt down from the tree he was hiding in and streaked across the log. He climbed another tree again, with a view of the many cats gathered in the clearing, his dark pelt blending in with the shadows cast by the moon in the cooling night.

He watched as the many cats quieten down when one of the cats, an orange tabby, yowled.

He watched as each of the cats on the tree, four of them, spoke respectively.

The black tom narrowed his eyes as the orange tabby she-cat yowled again, and the other cats on the tree leap down, and the cats in the clearing divided into four groups.

Clans, they were called, and gatherings, are meetings once every full moon of the four Clans. ForestClan. FireClan. WindClan. RiverClan.

The black tom had watched enough gatherings to know that the orange tabby was called Mossstar, leader of FireClan.

She had killed his brother, who had joined FireClan not too long ago. His other brother was long gone. Disappeared.

The clearing was empty. The cats had gone home.

The black tom leapt down from the tree into the clearing, pacing as a plan formed in his mind. It has been moons since he had stumbled upon his brother's murderers. He will make them pay. After spying on FireClan and the gatherings, he had a good idea of what to do – and say – to create chaos between the Clans. In fact, that is what he is going to do.

He will set the Clans against each other. They will fight – and when they were weak enough, he will take over. He will rule the four Clans, and avenge his brother.

The tortoiseshell blinked, narrowing her eyes against the bright sun.

"Where am I?" she meowed aloud. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep in the warriors' den.

A mouse appeared from a nearby hollow tree. The tortoiseshell saw it, and instinctively dropped into hunting crouch. She followed the mouse and was so intent in hunting it that she had no idea where the mouse was leading her.

Suddenly, the mouse disappeared into nothingness. The tortoiseshell she-cat let out a shock mew, then looked up.

The earlier bright sun had been covered up by a thick, gray mist. The she-cat shivered slightly.

"Thrushtail?" she meowed, spotting a faint outline of a cat through the mist, then smelling her familiar scent. The she-cat emerged from the mist and stood in front of the tortoiseshell.

She stared at the starry cat, awed by the shimmering of the stars in her fur every time she moved.

"You are dreaming," Thrushtail meowed. "Listen closely, young one."

The tortoiseshell sat down in front of the former ForestClan deputy. "I'm listening."

"The earth will tremble, and the river will run dry. Fires will rage, and the land will become barren. An outsider, will become part of four, pitting member against member, and blood will rain, and the stars will fall. One cat will stay pure, and return the stars to the heavens," Thrushtail meowed.

"W-what does it mean?" the tortoiseshell asked.

The StarClan cat faded, but a pool of water appeared in front of the tortoiseshell. She peered into it.

The still water began to show images, flashing pass quickly, but finally it slowed down, and the tortoiseshell was able to make sense of what was happening in the vision.

The trees were shaking, and huge cracks were opening up in the earth. Then the scene changed. Now wind was blowing across a barren land, where no plant grew. The scene changed again. The river was running dry, and not even a trickle of water was left. Then the tortoiseshell gave a gasp. She recognized FireClan's territory, her Clan's territory. A huge fire was raging across it, and she spotted an orange cat lying lifeless at the edge. Then the last vision showed her a black tom and herself, locked in battle, fighting to the death.

Allegiances

FORESTCLAN

Leader
Rubystar – dark ginger she-cat with amber eyes

Deputy
Thornmask – dark red tom, tinged colour muzzle

Medicine cat
Icemask – tortoiseshell she-cat

Warriors
Skywhisker – light brown tom

Iceclaw – white she-cat with blue eyes

Swiftpelt black she-cat with dark blue eyes

Breezefoot – swift gray tom

Sapphirestorm – blue-gray tom with blue eyes
Apprentice, Ashpaw

Shadowflight – shadow-gray she-cat
Apprentice, Moonpaw

Apprentices
Ashpaw – silver gray and white tom with blue eyes

Moonpaw – pure black she-cat

Queens
Brightfire - light ginger she-cat with blue eyes

Elders
None.

FIRECLAN

Leader
Mossstar – dark orange tabby she-cat with green eyes

Deputy
Hawktail – brown tom with darker spots

Medicine cat
Iceeyes – gray (with darker flecks) she-cat
Apprentice, Opalpaw

Warriors
Cherryheart – tortoiseshell she-cat
Apprentice, Maplepaw

Fallenleaf – pale ginger she-cat with blue eyes
Apprentice, Orchidpaw

Lionstorm – light orange tom with green eyes
Apprentice, Galepaw

Rainflower – blue tabby she-cat

Apprentices
Opalpaw - cream-coloured she-cat

Maplepaw - light gray she-cat

Galepaw - golden tabby she-cat with hazel eyes

Orchidpaw – tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Queens
Battlesong – golden she-cat with blue eyes

Elders
None.

WINDCLAN

Leader
Sootstar – dull gray tom

Deputy
Nightheart – black she-cat with green eyes
Apprentice, Foxpaw

Medicine cat
Iceweed – gray and white she-cat
Apprentice, Ravenpaw

Warriors
Fennelheart - long-legged gray she-cat

Spiritsoul - jet-black tom with amber eyes
Apprentice, Rustpaw

Dawnflower – beautiful pale gray she-cat

Apprentices
Foxpaw - orange tom with blue eyes

Rustpaw - reddish-brown she-cat

Ravenpaw - dull gray she-cat with amber eyes

Queens
Starlingclaw – small dark gray tabby she-cat

Elders
Airlion - light brown she-cat

RIVERCLAN

Leader
Deathstar – black tom with blue eyes

Deputy
Iceheart - silver-blue she-cat

Medicine cat
Frostpelt - white she-cat
Apprentice, Russetpaw

Warriors
Blacktail - black and white tom with amber eyes

Blizzardstorm - white she-cat with blue eyes
Apprentice, Oakpaw

Stormcrow - dark gray tom with blue eyes
Apprentice, Mosspaw

Swiftfoot - ginger and white she-cat

Ravenwing - all black she-cat with blue eyes

Apprentices
Oakpaw - dark brown tom with blue eyes

Moonpaw - dark brown she-cat

Russetpaw - black and white she-cat

Queens
Spottedcloud – tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes

Elders
None.