Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors, but I do own the characters created for this story. Please don't steal them.

Chapter 16

Ghostpaw's breath was coming in ragged breaths. The leaves and branches of the underbrush rushed past him. He dodged a holly bush and skidded to a stop at the spot where he'd buried the fresh-kill the day before. A huge badger was snuffling as it dug up the fresh-kill. Dirt flew through the air as the badger's long, black claws dug into the dirt.

“Thunderstripe! Over here!” Pureheart’s voice shouted.

Ghostpaw turned to see Thunderstripe, Pureheart, Shadepaw, and Meadowpaw appear. The light of a new day barely lit up the forest. The four ThunderClan cats had to be the dawn patrol.

“Badger!” Thunderstripe hissed, his ears flattening against his head. “Attack! Chase it toward the mountains!”

Meadowpaw gave a loud caterwaul. The badger spun around, blinking beady, black eyes at them. Shadepaw hissed and ran toward the badger. His sister snuck around the back of the badger as Shadepaw clawed at its face. Thunderstripe and Pureheart charged forward at the badger's right side.

What's going on? What am I doing here? Ghostpaw thought to himself. Please don't tell me one of them is going to die!

The badger swung a paw. Pureheart ducked as the claws swung over his head. Ghostpaw's heart thundered in his chest. He knew the scar on the black and white tom's left eye had been because of a badger. Was Pureheart going to die after getting away the first time?

Meadowpaw leaped and attached her claws into the shoulders of the badger. She snared her teeth in the badger's ear and shook her head violently. The badger roared in pain. It reared up onto its hind legs and attempted to claw her off her back. Its belly now showing, Shadepaw and Thunderstripe darted in and left bloody scratches down the badger's stomach. Meadowpaw leaped off as the badger lowered onto all four paws once more.

The badger began to lumber off into the forest.

“Chase it toward the mountains!” Thunderstripe screamed.

Ghostpaw was frozen as he watched the four cats chase after the badger. Moments later, the roars of the badger and the screams of his Clanmates were gone.

“It's okay, Ghostpaw.”

He turned to see Firestar walking toward him. The tom's orange pelt glittered.

“Don't worry, Ghostpaw. You're only dreaming of something that is happening right now,” Firestar said, trying to reassure him.

Ghostpaw's paws trembled beneath him. He stared at them. “Why, Firestar? Why did Jayfeather give me these powers?”

“Obviously, he and his siblings saw something special in you, Ashpaw, and Cottonpaw,” Firestar meowed quietly. “Be calm, Ghostpaw...and wake up.”

His eyes flared open. Outside the den, he could hear cries of triumph. Ashpaw and Cottonpaw were waking up.

“What's going on?” Ashpaw grumbled sleepily.

“The dawn patorl back,” Ghostpaw replied. His paws were still trembling in his nest. “They chased a badger from our territory.”

I can't believe I didn't take care of that soggy fresh-kill better! I should have buried it better and marked it...I should have done something so it wouldn't attract badgers! It's all my fault! Someone could have died because of me...

“Would you quit it with the guilt trip?” Ashpaw said with a huge yawn. “That's not the sort of thing I want to wake up to in the morning, Ghostpaw!”

Cottonpaw looked curiously at Ghostpaw. “Are you blaming yourself for the badger attack? How'd you know what was going on, anyway?”

Ghostpaw looked down. “I was dreaming about it.”

Ashpaw hit him in the face with her tail. “Get over it, already! Nothing bad happened, okay? Now let's go see what's going on!”

Ghostpaw followed his siblings outside, where their Clanmates were gathering. Rowanstar was sitting on the Highledge already. Thunderstripe, Pureheart, Shadepaw, and Meadowpaw were sitting directly beneath him.

“There you three are,” Cedarspirit said as they walked up to sit next to their mentors.

“We thought you might have been sleeping through all the noise Meadowpaw and Shadepaw were making,” Oakpelt said with a laugh.

“Attention!” Rowanstar called out. The crowd fell silent. “If it wasn't obvious before, the dawn patrol caught a badger on our territory! They chased it off into the mountains.” The leader turned glowing, yellow eyes on the two apprentices seated before him. “Because of their bravery in the face of such a dangerous creature, it is time for Shadepaw’s and Meadowpaw's warrior ceremony!”

The crowd cheered happily.

See? Nothing bad happened! Ashpaw's voice whispered in Ghostpaw's mind.

Ghostpaw looked up at his father and saw Firestar standing beside him. The StarClan cat tilted his head to Ghostpaw before disappearing.

Nothing bad, Ghostpaw thought to himself. Everything is okay.

“I, Rowanstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these two apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the way of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn.

“Shadepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?”

“I do!” the striped tom meowed for all the hear.

Thunderstripe and Gingerheart looked proudly at their son.

“Then, by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this day forward, you will be known as Shadeclaw!”

Rowanstar turned to Meadowpaw. “Meadowpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?”

“I do,” Meadowpaw replied, her light green eyes shining.

Gingerheart leaned into Thunderstripe with a purr of happiness.

“Then, by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this day forward, you will be known as Meadowbreeze!

“StarClan honors your bravery and strength, and we welcome you both as full warriors of ThunderClan! May StarClan light your paths.”

Rowanstar stepped down and touched his nose to each of their foreheads. Shadeclaw and Meadowbreeze licked their leader's shoulder with respect.

“Shadeclaw! Meadowbreeze! Shadeclaw! Meadowbreeze!” the cats of ThunderClan shouted in happiness.

I guess this is what the Clan really needed, Ghostpaw thought, watching all of the cats gather around the two newest warriors, congratulating them. Two new warriors will help reassure them that everything is going to be fine, even with that rogue tom hiding out in the forest.

Rowanstar climbed back up onto the Highledge. “I have another announcement to make!”

The cats all glanced at each other and quieted down once more.

“Mistmeadow and I have been talking, and we both agree it is time for Stonekit and Shimmerkit to become apprentice!” Rowanstar meowed.

Ghostpaw looked up in surprise. He hadn't seen that coming.

“Stonekit and Shimmerkit, please come forward,” Rowanstar said.

The two kits raced forward, stumbling over their paws.

“Stonekit, from this day forward, you will be called Stonepaw,” Rowanstar meowed. His eyes scanned the crowd. “Pebbletail, you are young, smart, and you work your hardest to uphold the warrior code. You sometimes seem to melt into the background. I hope that by mentoring Stonepaw, more cats will appreciate your faithfulness and hard work.”

The brown and dark brown tabby she-cat walked forward. She looked up at Rowanstar with thankful, light silvery-blue eyes before she touched noses with her new apprentice. Together, Pebbletail and Stonekit walked over to sit next to Silvermoon and Ashpaw. Silvermoon looked happily at his son.

“Shimmerkit, from this day forward, you will be called Shimmerpaw,” Rowanstar went on. His eyes sought out Stormtail from the crowd. “Stormtail, I regret to ask you to begin mentoring so soon after being attacked by that rogue tom...”

“I can do it,” Stormtail meowed, interrupting.

“...but you are a resilient young warrior. I think your dedication to the warrior code will be good for Shimmerkit. Show her everything there is to know about being a warrior,” Rowanstar finished with a laugh.

Stormtail came forward and touched noses with Shimmerkit. The leader's nephew looked excited as he led his new apprentice over to where Pebbletail and Stonekit were seated.

“That is all for now,” Rowanstar said. “May StarClan watch over our new warriors and apprentices.”

Ghostpaw sighed. Despite the anxiety of the Clan over the rogue tom, Rowanstar was showing them all that life could go on.

“I feel like we were there just moments ago,” Ravenheart meowed as she followed Ashpaw and Ghostpaw to the edge of the lake. “And now we're heading back to the island!”

“Ravenheart, shhhh,” Ashpaw whispered. “Remember, that rogue tom is out here.”

“Oh. Right. Sorry. I forgot,” Ravenheart whispered.

The rest of the trip to the island was silent. Ghostpaw felt rather grumpy tonight. He'd had a difficult time sleeping the night before. Rather than the dreamless sleep he'd been having lately, last night had been filled with flashes of something he couldn't quite distinguish. Waking up this morning had been torture...he'd wanted to sleep more to see if he could figure out what was happening.

“Good evening,” Eaglefeather said as he and Swanpool arrived.

“Where's Moonpaw?” Ashpaw asked. “She normally arrives first.”

The slight breeze in the trees picked up.

“Here I am!” a voice called from above.

They looked up to see a white patch zooming down toward them from the night sky. The patch of fur giggled as it circled around their heads. The wind in the clearing grew stronger still as Moonpaw flew around them.

“How are you doing that, Moonpaw?” Ghostpaw shouted over the roar of the wind.

The wind died down and Moonpaw landed lightly on the grass in front of them. “Moonpaw? I'm Moonmist now! Isn't that such a lovely name? Moonmist!”

“Are you going to answer Ghostpaw's question, lovely-named Moonmist?” Ashpaw asked.

The new WindClan warrior's blue eyes danced in the moonlight. “It's quite easy. I just gather the wind together and force it to life me up into the air. I can fly!”

“Yeah, that was pretty obvious,” a rough voice said.

Tigerpaw and Russetpaw padded into the clearing. Tigerpaw looked just as grumpy as he usually did. The shadows around him were twisting and dancing into frightening shapes.

The moonlight suddenly brightened in the clearing. Tigerpaw’s dancing shadows dissipated, and Tigerpaw turned glaring eyes on Fernpaw as she walked into the clearing.

“I can't stay long,” Fernpaw replied. “I'm supposed to be on my vigil. I'll get into so much trouble if we're attacked, and I'm not there to send a signal.”

“You got your warrior name, too?” Moonmist asked.

“I'm Fernstripe now,” Fernpaw replied.

“That just leaves Ghostpaw, Ashpaw, Tigerpaw, and Russetpaw now,” Eaglefeather meowed. He looked at Ghostpaw. “Now that everyone is here, we should have them vote.”

“Vote?” Tigerpaw snorted. “Vote on what?”

“Who should be the leader,” Eaglefeather said. “You had such a problem with me taking the lead last time, I thought it would be better if we established a leader. It was Ghostpaw's idea for everyone to decide together.”

“I vote for Ghostpaw!” Fernstripe meowed. “He was the one who brought us all together, so it only makes sense for him to lead us.”

“Why not Ghostpaw and Eaglefeather?” Moonmist suggested. “They can make decisions together, and then Ghostpaw can make the final decision. That way, if something happens to one of them, there is still another cat who can lead us.”

“Wait, what could possibly happen to one of us?” Eaglefeather demanded to know.

Moonmist shrugged. “How should I know? I control the wind, not see the future.”

“I like that idea,” Ashpaw said. “Who thinks that both Ghostpaw and Eaglefeather should lead?”

“I do,” Fernstripe said.

“Me, too,” Swanpool added.

“It's fine with me,” Russetpaw said. He looked at Tigerpaw expectantly.

“What? Do you really want me to vote?” Tigerpaw grumbled.

“You're one of the chosen cats. Your vote matters,” Russetpaw said.

“Fine. They can both lead,” Tigerpaw said.

“Now that that's decided,” Eaglefeather said. “We need to figure out the next part of the prophecy. 'One friend from old, one who is quite bold. Two groups at war. The bold are looking for more. Know that conflict is not the answer. Find the eyes of terror and know that all is secure.' Does anyone have any ideas what it could mean?”

“Well, obviously there are two different groups at war,” Moonmist said, sounding quite serious for once. “I'm not really sure if this part is talking about SkyClan, though.”

“Why do you say that?” Fernstripe asked.

“Listen to the words. 'A friend from old' might mean SkyClan, but it says that the other group is bold and that they are looking for more. What we understand from the first part of the prophecy is that SkyClan has been split in half because of...love, I think. We have to heal a love divine, so that makes sense.” She paused for a moment. “That means the next part of the prophecy is asking us to do something entirely different. We aren't talking about SkyClan any more.”

“Then who are we talking about?” Eaglefeather asked.

“We're talking about two new groups who are fighting one another. It's not really clear what they're fighting about, but it is clear that conflict isn't the answer to their problem. This 'eyes of terror' we're suppose to find will resolve the problem,” Moonmist went on.

“Wait!” Tigerpaw snapped. “Does that mean we're being asked to fix SkyClan's problem, and some other groups' problem as well? This prophecy is asking us to abandon our Clans and go help cats we've only heard about in stories!”

“I know it's difficult to think about abandoning your Clan,” Ghostpaw said. “But it isn't as easy for all of us to ignore the prophecy like you're trying so hard to do, Tigerpaw. We've been given this prophecy for a reason, and that reason is to fulfill it. Even if that means we have to leave our Clans behind.”

Tigerpaw’s ears flattened against his head.

“I need to get going,” Fernstripe meowed. “Tonight was...interesting. I'll see you all in two days?”

Ghostpaw nodded.

“Come on, Tigerpaw. Let's get home. Maybe some sleep will help you feel better,” Russetpaw said.

Tigerpaw didn't say anything as he followed his brother away.

Ghostpaw sighed as he watched Eaglefeather, Swanpool, and Moonmist leave. Ashpaw and Ravenheart looked at him sympathetically.

“Are you okay, Ghostpaw?” Ashpaw asked.

“It's just...everything is going so fast,” Ghostpaw meowed. “I feel this tension building inside me. Something is going to happen tonight, I can just feel it.”

Ashpaw stared up at the moon, her eyes glowing in the moonlight. “You know I'll be here for you, Ghostpaw. Just remember that.”

“So will I,” Ravenheart added.

“And Cottonpaw, too,” Ashpaw meowed, looking at him. “We're here for you.”

“Thank you,” Ghostpaw told them. “Let's go home.”

A little while later, Ghostpaw curled up into his nest when he got back to camp. Cottonpaw was snoring quietly in his nest. For some reason, Ghostpaw found the sound comforting. He closed his eyes and listened to Cottonpaw snore and Ashpaw pure. Slowly, he drifted off into sleep.

A black tom with yellow eyes faced off with a black she-cat with light brown eyes. Both looked furiously at the other, as if they had greatly offended one another.

“Whiskerstar was right to throw out the traitor!” the black tom snarled.

“You know Squirrelflower loves Whiskerstar with all her heart, Swiftnose!” the black she-cat snapped.

The silver tom with the gray-striped tail that stood behind the black tom snorted with laughter. “Yes, the sight of her with that filthy rogue was evidence enough of her love for our leader!”

“Stonetail, that's enough!” the white she-cat with a cream nose and tail said. Her light blue eyes were filled with tears. “We can't fight each other!”

Swiftnose opened his mouth to say something, but he was cut off by a strange sound. A howl echoed through the darkened forest around them. Reddened leaves came flying off the trees as the wind brought another howl directly toward them.

“The dogs!” the black she-cat screeched in anger.

“We must run, Darkbreeze!” the white and cream she-cat yelped in terror.

There was a tremendous barking in the distance.

“They must have found our scent!” Swiftnose spat. “Let's go, Stonetail!”

The she-cats were left alone as the two toms turned and disappeared through the underbrush.

“Come on, Darkbreeze!” the white and scream she-cat said. “We can't stay here, or the dogs will certainly find us!”

Darkbreeze hissed. “I'm tired of all of this, Blueheart! All this fighting amongst ourselves is keeping us from being able to defeat those dogs!”

“I know, Darkbreeze,” Blueheart said, sounding defeated. “But there's nothing we can do to change it.”

The two she-cats dashed off into the darkness.

The scene grew brighter and the barking of the dogs grew louder. There were now a dozen or so cats in the forest, fighting one another. Their hissing and caterwauling made them deaf to the sound of the approaching dogs. A huge black monster crashed through a bush and landed on a small, dark gray and silver she-cat, who instantly died beneath the enormous paws of the dog.

“Mountainpaw!” Darkbreeze, the black she-cat from moments ago, screamed in agony.

Two more dogs, one brown and one gray, bounded into the fight. The brown dog's teeth closed in around the body of a brown tom with a white face and chest, and it began to shake the tom like he was something to play with.

“This is what is to come if you and your friends do not hurry,” a mysterious voice said.

Ghostpaw turned to see a silver tabby she-cat sitting behind him. Her green eyes were filled with sorrow.

“Who...are you?” Ghostpaw asked. “Is that SkyClan fighting? Why are the dogs here?”

“Yes, that is SkyClan. What is left of SkyClan, that is,” the she-cat replied. “The dogs are a stray pack. They have no Twolegs now. They are wild and crazy creatures.”

“You haven't told me who you are,” Ghostpaw said.

She lifted her chin. “My name is Echosong. I was the new SkyClan's medicine cat. Firestar brought me to this place so that I could learn how to heal the cats of my new Clan. SkyClan has been going strong for many generations...until now.”

“What happened?” Ghostpaw whispered. “It had something to do with love, right?”

“Yes. Whiskerstar, leader of SkyClan, found his mate, Squirrelflower, with a rogue tom in the forest. Whiskerstar thought she was having an affair with the tom. Squirrelflower tried to convince her mate that she was not, but he did not believe her. She left SkyClan and led the few cats who believed her into the forest,” Echosong explained. “They now call themselves WhiskerClan and SquirrelClan. The dogs showed up barely a moon later, and what you see behind you now is what will come if you and your friends do not help.”

Ghostpaw didn't want that sort of future for SkyClan, even if he had never met them. “Is that all we have to do? Save WhiskerClan and SquirrelClan from the dogs?”

Echosong began to disappear. “You know what you must do, Ghostpaw. It is time for your journey to begin.”

Ghostpaw's eyes opened slowly. He blinked and looked up to see Ashpaw and Cottonpaw looking down at him.

“It's time, isn't it?” Ashpaw whispered.

He sat up and shook the moss from his fur. “Yes, Ashpaw. Let's go tell Rowanstar.”

Ghostpaw led his siblings out of the apprentices' den and over to the stone wall where their father's den and the Highledge were. They slowly climbed up the face of the wall and paused outside of the leader's den.

“Rowanstar!” Ghostpaw called.

“Ghostpaw? Come in!” Rowanstar replied.

They entered the den, blinking as their eyes adjusted to the darkness. Rowanstar was lying beside his nest, sharing tongues with Stormypelt.

“Rowanstar, we need to talk,” Ghostpaw said.

Stormypelt looked worriedly at her children. Ghostpaw noticed that she was beginning to look a little different, now that she was pregnant with her second litter. He wondered briefly how many new sisters and brothers he was going to come back to.

“Stormypelt, would you please excuse us?” Rowanstar asked, giving his mate one last lick behind her ears. “I promise you'll know everything soon.”

“Okay, Rowanstar,” Stormypelt meowed. She stood up and walked over to her kits. “I don't know what's going on, but I have a feeling that two of you are going to be leaving very soon. I can't tell why you're leaving, but I know that you three are capable of handling anything that happens. I love you.” She touched her nose to each of their cheeks. “Whatever happens, please be careful.”

Rowanstar watched his mate leave the den. “I'm not sure how she knows what's going on. It must be because she's your mother.” He turned to look at them. “What's going on, Ghostpaw?”

Ghostpaw took a deep breath and looked at his father. “I know what we have to do. We have a journey we must make, Rowanstar, and it is time for it to begin.”

The End

Author's Notes: I know the ending was just a tiny bit rushed, but I wanted to keep it at 100 pages. I had a plot sketched out, but it totally changed as I was going along. I have a feeling Eyes of Terror is going to be filled with two parts of the prophecy rather than just one, like I had intentioned.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the first installment of the second half of my series! Please be courteous and review! I want to know that my stories are still just as exciting as the first half of the series was.

Keep an eye out for Ghostpaw's next great adventure in Warriors A New Age 5: Eyes of Terror!

Interesting Side Note 1: This story was published in January and was finished in April of 2009. That's only about three and a half months!

Interesting Side Note 2: The first half of the series was a rewrite of a rather terrible first attempt. The second half of the series is being written pretty much from scratch, so the fact that Journey of Knowledge was written in only four months is interesting to me.