Subtlety is Out

It had been a while since Dacedream had found herself awake before dawn, blinking open her restless eyes in the pale darkness of the warriors' den. The warmth of Duskrain's powerful body - so strong yet so soft, fur mingling as they curled together - radiated through the she-cat's pelt as she gathered her senses. Her nestmate was present, sleeping soundly. She could hear her daughter, Cherryblossom, in the nest beside theirs, curled up tight and comfortable. Dacedream absently reached a paw out, pressing it to her daughter's soft tabby shoulders and flexing it, kneading drowsily. She could feel a tiny subconscious purr bubble up in her sleeping daughter's chest, vibrating in her shoulders. Dacedream's own purr started in a sleepy reply, and she spent several long moments in the bliss of her loved ones. Her mind, however, was destined to roam as always, and Dacedream was unable to resist her wakefulness for long.

Slowly Dacedream took in a deeper breath and let it out in a slow exhale, releasing all her weariness. Immediately her green-hazel eyes brightened, and she withdrew her paw from her daughter's soft coat and began to detangle herself from her lover. The tortoiseshell queen knew that the world was out there waiting, and she knew what use she would make of this early morning. She emerged from the warriors' den and immediately lengthened out her legs into a sprawling stretch of a stride, her muscles flexing and rippling beneath her thick coat. When she straightened, she gazed around the camp; the sky straight up above was inky blue, but near the horizon - the edge of Dacedream's sight within camp - a deep red-and-gold was blossoming. The camp was empty save for the cat on the night watch in the middle of camp. They heard Dacedream and gave her a nod of greeting before turning back towards the camp entrance.

The queen herself glanced towards the apprentices' den, thinking of her beloved kits inside. Jaypaw might have forgiven her for waking him at dawn for more fishing practice, but Vixenpaw certainly wouldn't have. Still, she lingered for a few moments considering whether or not to go to them. Certainly Stormpaw wouldn't want to learn a trait of a non-ThunderClan cat, regardless of how useful catching prey of any kind was. Birds chirped gently outside the camp, beckoning Dacedream out to them; she heard the river's hum in the distance. She blinked slowly before finally looking away and continuing on the straight path out of camp. She slowed as she neared the night watch.

"I'm gonna go hunting by the river," Dacedream told the night watch as they locked eyes. "If you see Jaypaw, or Stormpaw - oh, or Duskrain or Cherryblossom, too - could you tell them?" The other cat nodded. Dacedream began to continue but then stopped and added warmly, "Oh! Or Minkstream! Or Vixenpaw." She took another step, then again stopped and added with a sheepish giggle, "O-Oh, and Oakstar or Nettlefire, too. I guess they should all know." The weary night guard let out a half-hearted chuckle, though they smirked and nodded agreeably. Dacedream dipped her head gratefully and turned, continuing out of camp.

The walk to the river was swift and uneventful; Dacedream had watched the birds flit overhead in the slowly brightening sky, and a few squirrels had crossed her path, but her paws itched for something else. Ever since her failed attempts to fish with her son, Jaypaw, she had been distracted with the thought of the skill she had seemingly lost. She had only been an apprentice in RiverClan for one sunrise, maybe two, but swimming and fishing connected her to her birth Clan, her mother, and all the cats she loved there. So much else was being threatened in the ThunderClan warrior's life, and Dacedream feared losing the bonds that she had once held - that Dappleshine had so fiercely defended to Torrentstar when Dacedream was still a 'paw. Dacedream would defend those bonds, too, by honoring them. She wouldn't forget what she knew. The cry of the river growing louder only made her more certain.

When it was in sight, the sun had fully risen; dawn had come. Light danced on the roaring waters as Dacedream traversed the rocky shore, seeking the outlet where she and her son had practiced fishing the moon before. She located it in no time and felt a peace settle over her, though a determination hardened within her too as she gazed at the choppy surface. Today I'm going to catch a fish for Jaypaw, Dacedream thought, her sharp eyes searching the flickering depths. It was still darker than midday by far, and many shadows danced in the waves and distracted her eyes. She paced slowly along the edge of the river, gazing into the shallows, hunting for fish in the shadows.

After a long while a promising flicker shone on the edge of the shadow of a tree, and then another flicker followed, and another. Dacedream focused on the school of fish and immediately poised over them, gauging her shadow and her balance. Her tail swept out behind her, hovering over the sandy stones upon which she stood. She raised one paw, claws flexing as she watched. Her eyes locked onto a silvery fish that darted farthest from the shadow, and an instant later her paw was sweeping out. The cold was shocking and invigorating. Dacedream was almost immediately electrified, and she felt her claws hook at the fish as she scooped upwards. She yielded the same result as the first hunt, however; before she could register it, it had flipped around her paw. It fell from her grasp and immediately disappeared into the darkness. Splattered, Dacedream withdrew her leg again with a huff of frustration. What was she missing?

Though free time had become more scarce over the last moons, Vixenstar preferred to spend what little she had by Lavenderbreeze's side. The stunt that they'd pulled with Torrentstar seemed to keep most RiverClanners away from the borders, but patrolling the along the riverside never seemed to get old. Occasionally, a rebellious apprentice would near a little too close to the border, but there had never been any incidents where either of the she-cats actually needed to chase anyone back to camp. ThunderClan seemed to err on the side of caution as well, only coming as close to the river as they needed to in order to mark the scent borders.

On this morning, Vixenstar found herself watching a dilute tortoiseshell she-cat from behind the reeds, with Lavenderbreeze at her side. The so-called ThunderClanner had been a subject of interest in Vixenstar's mind for quite some time, what with her heritage and bloodline. She'd come from a once-proud family, one that had been broken apart by sin and tragedy, as well as a total disregard for the code. What to do with Dacedream had been a constant plague in the starry leader's mind, a problematic situation that she'd only recently decided on how to handle. Dacedream still held tightly onto some of her more obvious RiverClan roots, one of the most forefront being her desire to fish. It was quite a pitiful sight, watching a she-cat with such good potential as a RiverClan warrior wasting it away on the wrong side of the river. It was beginning to show, as well- The warrior had been struggling to properly catch a fish.

With a sigh, the former RiverClan leader rose to her paws, flicking her tail for Lavenderbreeze to follow close behind. After Dacedream's display of frustration, she abruptly spoke up. "What a waste this is, my darling." Somehow, the she-cat's voice seemed almost... motherly. "If you would have stayed in your true home, this wouldn't be an issue for you." She gestured across the river with a tilt of her head, keeping her gaze locked on Dacedream's, attempting to read her reaction. "You're a very smart cat, Dacedream. As I'm sure you've realized, things are changing here in the forest. It's time for us to truly realize the importance of the Warrior Code, and abide by it. Traitors to the Code, such as yourself, have gotten away with their sins for long enough, and it has proven to be detrimental to the forest. The lies that you've spread, making those you think are dearest to you believe you truly belong with them... It's simply pitiful. ThunderClan is not your home, and it never will be." Vixenstar sat down a couple of tail lengths from the warrior, the tip of her tail twitching with anticipation for what was to come.

"Alas, my dear, I have come to you with a deal." The corners of Vixenstar's maw curled up in a truly devilish smile. "Return to your true home. RiverClan is awaiting you just across the border, and have no worries- Ivystar will welcome you gratefully, I'll see to it. Your sins will be forgiven and you can live life as you were meant to. You will thrive as a RiverClan warrior, just as you should." Though the offer was something Vixenstar felt Dacedream simply could not refuse, there was more to be said. "In the event that you choose to stay on the wrong side of the river, your death will become a symbol to the Clans- a warning. We will not be ignored. The time for change is now, and our voices cannot be silenced. You may attempt to fight back against our cause- but you will die trying." Silence stretched out across the space separating Dacedream and the StarClan cats, their sparkling fur standing out against the bright hues of the forest. Dacedream had a choice to make, and Vixenstar wasn't going to wait forever.

An unfamiliar voice spoke from off to Dacedream's side, and the queen whirled to face the source, the fur along her spine bristling with alarm as she'd not detected any cat approaching. What she saw in that following moment was even more alarming: two figures she didn't recognize, walking more gracefully than a dream in ThunderClan territory. Dacedream was disarmed, caught off guard, by both their sudden appearance and the almost motherly, sympathetic comment of shame from the great, gloss-furred tabby she-cat at the forefront. Instinctively, however, her thick plume of a tail bushed out and her pelt stood on end. "I-I'm sorry?"

She blinked her wide green-hazel eyes as the strange she-cat continued, and the words she spoke made Dacedream flush with shame and humiliation, ducking her head slightly. She saw me trying to fish, she thought miserably, and failing. It was almost certainly true that Dacedream would've been a remarkable fisher had she stayed in her birth Clan, and it stung that she wasn't skilled enough to have retained the knowledge all this time.

Yet... how did this stranger know that Dacedream didn't come from ThunderClan - and more specifically, that she had come from RiverClan? The regal she-cat seemed to know her, but Dacedream's initial scan offered no recognition. In fact, the she-cat and her companion both hardly seemed recognizable at all, with no discernible scent, no sound when they moved... As the strange she-cat tilted her head towards the river, an unusual shifting of light caught Dacedream's attention, and the tortoiseshell froze, her eyes widening. As the intruder spoke in an almost patronizing tone, the warning just on the edges of Dacedream's perception, the words and the sight of the starlight glittering in the strange cat's pelt sank in at once. StarClan, Dacedream realized. A warrior of StarClan itself had come to Dacedream - come to the RiverClan traitor.

She immediately lowered her head, once again ducking her gaze in shame as the StarClan she-cat sat a few tail-lengths away with her companion shadowing her. The words spoken were manipulative, but Dacedream was often easily manipulated. She knew she was a blood-traitor; she had known since before Torrentstar had cast her forever out of RiverClan, but she had been too young to understand the weight of the sins she'd committed. When StarClan's warning first came to light, Dacedream had begun to truly realize what she'd done. For the first time in her life, she'd begun to regret leaving RiverClan to follow her father. She had endangered ThunderClan with her presence. The StarClan messenger continued that ThunderClan would never truly be Dacedream's home and Dacedream felt her heart break. "No..." she whispered, but perhaps the StarClan warrior saw Dacedream's deepest fears.

Too often Dacedream stepped on thorns or got snagged in brambles. She was heavy-pawed, clumsy-pawed, broad-pawed, and broad-shouldered with a too-thick coat for the heat of the forest and tufts of fur that always caught on everything. The she-cat had come to love the forest dearly - it and all her ThunderClan companions in it - but she had always felt the call of the river, and she had often wondered if she would have flourished in her place of birth. She felt like she'd never thrived in hunting like the rest of the cats she had trained alongside. StarClan itself had descended to tell her these things... Was she so naive that she had seen it all along and yet seen nothing at all? Did StarClan see how much better she would be in RiverClan?

Dacedream lifted her head at the mention of a deal. She sniffled, staring through a thin veil of tears. "A deal...? What kind?" Dacedream asked nervously. The first choice that the StarClan warrior offered was for Dacedream to return to RiverClan - her "true home". It was a tempting offer... but then the StarClan cat continued ominously, and it was then that Dacedream spotted the wicked smile on the she-cat's face. "In the event that you choose to stay on the wrong side of the river, your death will become a symbol to the Clans - a warning." Dacedream straightened up, face immediately full of shock. Her stomach dropped. "Death?" she echoed, her meow cracking.

The starry cat continued. As she spoke, Dacedream took a few small steps back, pleading between the she-cat's sentences. "No - no, please, I don't understand. I-I haven't ignored you. I've heard all your messages. Wait - I don't want to fight. We don't have to fight! I-I don't want to fight you," the tortoiseshell pleaded. When the stranger had finished, Dacedream sucked in a breath, caught in the commanding silence. Her whole body started to tremble as she realized what had come. Was this how they had come to Torrentstar and Thornstar? Had her pawpaw and mawmaw had a choice, like this? Had they chosen to fight against StarClan? The ThunderClan cat's thoughts were racing as her mouth gaped, and she tried for words but none came. Return to RiverClan, or die for staying in ThunderClan?

There had to be another option. There had to be! Dacedream crouched submissively, glancing fearfully from the starry messenger to the silent starry warrior behind her and back. "I want to obey StarClan, I promise, but please - please let me make up for this some other way. I can't leave ThunderClan," Dacedream pleaded. "You know I can't leave. I-I know I'm not perfect for ThunderClan, but I can do better. I can! I can train harder, more often! I can stress even harder to my kits that what I did was wrong; th-they won't be like me, I'll make sure!" The pitch of her voice was rising in desperation. She searched for mercy in glittering eyes. "I took the vow when I became a warrior, to protect and defend ThunderClan even at the cost of my life. I took the vow for StarClan! I've devoted my life - please, I can be better for you."

The shock on the she-cat's face was something that Vixenstar had fully expected, and she simply waved her tail a bit as she stood up. For each step the smaller warrior took backward, the star-spangled leader took one forward, and eventually closed the distance between the two until they were just inches away. She could feel the rapid breathing of the she-cat hot on her nose, and it was almost tempting to keep walking until Dacedream was forced into the frigid, cold river. Despite her urges, Vixenstar remained where she stood, planting her paws firmly to the ground.

"It's imbeciles like you that have plagued this forest with sin for so many moons, Dacedream. You think that your situation is unique, that an exception must be made for you. By no means!" Anger boiled behind Vixenstar's starry amber eyes, her tail lashing viciously behind her. "Leave your excuses behind, with the dying age in which you've been raised. ThunderClan is not meant for you! Nothing you can do will change that, as it is nothing but simple fact. And as for your darling kits- they belong in ThunderClan, where they were born and raised, where they learned the truths of the code, despite how the Clan may break them. The best thing you can do for the poor dears is show them what you know is right. Lead by example, Dacedream, otherwise your points go straight over their heads! Why do you think that as an apprentice, you believed it was okay to abandon your Clan, hmm?" Vixenstar's obvious reference to Dappleshine and Sparkfrost surely wouldn't go unnoticed.

At the warrior's mention of vows, Vixenstar's anger grew. "Fool!" Frustration simmered throughout the tabby she-cat's veins, the stars lining her fluffy pelt pulsating with rage. "You made the vow to the wrong Clan! Are you so blind that you cannot see the weight of your actions?" Circling around the she-cat, the former RiverClan leader had to keep herself from exploding, impatience the driving force behind her words. "I'm no idiot, Dacedream. I can see that you've made your decision. You want to be better for me?" She stopped in front of the she-cat, ears turned back against her skull. With the slight flick of her tail tip, she motioned for Lavenderbreeze to come forward. It was time. "Darling, you're better of dead than in ThunderClan." The words had barely left her maw when the starry leader leaped forward, her jaws closing around Dacedream's fluffy scruff.

Vixenstar used Scruff Shake, dealing -10 Health Points and using -25 Stamina Points. Dacedream is stunned for two turns.

Vixenstar:
120/120 HP
275/300 SP [-25]

Dacedream:
50/60 HP [-10]
200/200 SP

Lavenderbreeze:
120/120 HP
300/300 SP

The member 'maple' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Effect Dice' : 5

The river's quiet babbling would have been pleasant to Lavenderbreeze in any other circumstance, but today she was with the former RiverClan leader, on a mission. Privately, she knew that Dacedream would never leave ThunderClan, as foolish as the queen was. She almost pitied the queen for the decision she would have to make.
She's a good and loyal warrior... but for the wrong Clan. If only she had the sense to return to RiverClan.

Vixenstar's speech was punctuated by the pleas of the dilute tortoiseshell, her words only serving to anger the former leader more and more. Lavenderbreeze dug her claws into the ground as the queen continued to plead for forgiveness, and she advanced upon Dacedream as Vixenstar did. Soon, the time for words was past, and the former leader leaped forward, grabbing Dacedream's scruff in her teeth.
If only it hadn't come to this... If only she'd just agreed to return to RiverClan...

No. It's too late for 'what if's. She made her decision, and she must live- no, die by it.

The starry leader having attacked, it was her own cue to move. She leaped forward, claws unsheathed and teeth bared, and raked her claws down the queen's face.

Lavenderbreeze used Rending Front Paws on Dacedream.

Vixenstar:
120/120 HP
275/300 SP

Dacedream:
30/60 HP (-20)
200/200 SP

Lavenderbreeze:
120/120 HP
275/300 SP (-25)

Dacedream could feel the fury radiating off the starry cat as she pleaded for another choice, but it was clear that the StarClan warrior clearly had no intention of relenting unless she did as they commanded. The great tabby closed the distance between herself and Dacedream and loomed over her. The tortoiseshell queen ducked with each venomously punctuated word, scrunching her head into her shoulders with her sweeping tail twitching anxiously at her heels. Her mouth felt dry as she tried to stammer, "N-No, that's not wh-what I meant, please, I'm not an exception, I--" She swallowed her words as the StarClan cat verbally trampled over her, insisting that ThunderClan wasn't right for her - never was, never would be - and she would never deserve to be one of them. Her kits deserved to be shown by example, and Dacedream squeaked but bit back a protest, and the taste of her sinfulness felt wretched on her tongue. But if I leave I teach them to break their vows!

The fact was that they were both right; whether Dacedream stayed or left, she had done irreparable damage to her kits' understanding of the warrior code. They knew her as a she-cat who had left her birth Clan, "but it's okay now" because she had proven herself loyal to her new Clan. No matter how hard she insisted to her kin that what she'd done was wrong and that following the code was more important than following her heart, she was also a living testament that she could still survive in the Clans despite it. A catch-22. The choice was removed for Dacedream then. No vow could protect her, as evidenced by the StarClan cat's explosion of fury. Never had the glistening stars of Silverpelt looked so cruel. Never had starlight looked so truly cold and malevolent.

Dacedream flinched from the furious ancestor, her heart pounding in her chest. The sensation of dread that had been slowly mounting began to boil within Dacedream's belly as she realized that the she-cat had begun to circle her like a helpless vole, the silent shadow of a StarClan warrior still hovering threateningly a few tail-lengths away. "I d-do see b-but I c-c-can't fix it this way!" Dacedream stammered, her eyes focused on the glittering tabby rounding her. The tears in her eyes stung; one fell to the sand below. She hated the tears and wished they would go away, fogging her sight and blurring the already horrific visage of a StarClan cat come to collect vengeance for breaking the code moons ago. The StarClan cat spoke mirthfully of Dacedream's desire to be better, stopping and standing in front of her to loom like a fox.

"Darling, you're better off dead than in ThunderClan."

The words sent an electricity through Dacedream's pelt, but she was too slow to understand the warning it was sending her as the starry cat lunged. Before Dacedream could even gasp, painful fangs hooked into her scruff, holding her tight and shaking new stars into her sight. Her body tried to go limp by instinct, eyes wide as she struggled to fight the feeling and defend herself. "Stop!" Dacedream cried through her haze, but a second later her words were lost in a shriek of pain as the second ancestor - who had been silent and distant up until that moment - slashed a brutal starry paw down her cream-patched face. The ThunderClan warrior fought her limbs, scrabbling and reaching and trying to get a grip on herself.

Dacedream is stunned and cannot move. She will be stunned for one more turn.

Vixenstar:
120/120 HP
275/300 SP

Dacedream:
30/60 HP
200/200 SP

Lavenderbreeze:
120/120 HP
275/300 SP

It was no surprise that Dacedream had been unable to fight back- moons of training among the land of the living and many more of rest and rehabilitation in StarClan had proved to do Vixenstar well. The she-cat's muscles flexed underneath her starry, glittering fur, cascading down each tuft as she moved. "The only way you can convince me to stop is by taking your rightful place across the river, and you've made it clear that's nothing you'll be doing anytime soon." The tabby leader growled, spitting out a wad of grey and cream-colored fur and blood. Her demeanor had turned cold; the motherly, helpful tone she'd taken on completely amiss as she growled, narrowing her glittering amber eyes. Lunging forward, the she-cat brought large, heavy paws down on the skull of the she-cat she'd left sprawling in the sand just moments ago. Her gaze fell down upon the mass of fur and muscle, an almost pitying look overcoming her. "Lavenderbreeze, finish her." She spoke firmly, looking to the StarClan warrior. The leader had such confidence in her abilities, but she'd never taken the life of another before, and Vixenstar had to ensure it was something that she would be willing to do; she had to, for the sake of their cause.

Vixenstar used Upright Lock, dealing -20 Health Points and using -25 Stamina Points.

Vixenstar:
120/120 HP
250/300 SP

Dacedream:
10/60 HP
200/200 SP

Lavenderbreeze:
120/120 HP
275/300 SP

Up until now, Lavenderbreeze had only been a bystander in the deaths that their mission had caused, simply watching as Vixenstar was the one to end the lives of those they needed to kill. The starry warrior watched as the former leader brought her paws down on the hapless queen, and nodded when Vixenstar gave her the command. She looked into Dacedream's eyes as she bared her teeth, and for a moment, she hesitated.

The moment was short-lived, and without another thought, Lavenderbreeze plunged her teeth into the queen's neck.

Lavenderbreeze used Killing Bite on Dacedream. Dacedream is dead.

Vixenstar:
120/120 HP
250/300 SP

Dacedream:
0/60 HP
200/200 SP

Lavenderbreeze:
120/120 HP
265/300 SP (-10)

Blood. Cat's blood.

The scent was enough to send most cats immediately into a frenzied panic. Who's hurt? How can I help? What's the danger?

But Rainstrike wasn't most cats.

Simply put, there was no cat the warrior cared about enough, no cat that the thought of losing made her feel that absolute, gut-wrenching dread at the scent of blood. Not since her father. Instead, the she-cat was filled with a sort of morbid curiosity. Who had managed to get themselves into trouble? Who, like she, was out here alone? And did whatever was harming them intend to move on after?

Her footfalls were silent as she wound through the undergrowth, powerful shoulders rippling beneath a coat of thick, silver-tan fur. The cries of an injured cat reached her ears as she leaped, unafraid, on to a boulder at the edge of the treeline, and the scene before her unfolded. Dacedream, rent and bleeding, cowering at the paws of two other cats. For the briefest of moments, her hackles rose, and the inclination to fight, to chase these intruders off of ThunderClan territory, boiled within her. But then their scent drifted on a breeze towards her. The same scent that had graced Badgerstar's pelt when he came to her. StarClan.

Her eyes narrowed. What had Dacedream done to incur the wrath of the starry cats? And to this extent, at that?

Rainstrike fell to her haunches on the boulder, ears twisted back to better hear anyone else coming. She would not interfere with StarClan. And nor would she let anyone else. Her eyes met Dacedream's as the dappled queen writhed on the ground, pleading, desperate.

But Rainstrike did not move.

As the world around her shifted, leaving her head feeling like it was being tossed in the currents of the river, Dacedream felt panic and pain. She groaned as her writhing slowed, focusing whatever strength she could muster on her assailants. The she-cat who'd shaken her like a dog shakes a rat was looming nearer again, her shadow a death sentence over the ThunderClan warrior's struggling body. She blinked hard against her confusion, and her wincing green gaze fell on the StarClan cat whose voice had become poison and malice. Dacedream whimpered and found the footing to roll to her belly, forepaws gripping the sandy stones on either side of her like her life depended on it - and for all she knew, it did.

Once again the starry warrior offered her ultimatum - cross the river or die - only now Dacedream knew there was no choice. She couldn't even lie to save herself now. She couldn't save herself at all. Her desperation mounted, and Dacedream tried the only thing she had left. The tortoiseshell warrior pulled in the deepest breath she could, and with all of the volume and strength she could gather, Dacedream screamed. "Help!




The starry warrior reared up. Dacedream's eyes widened, then, knowing she couldn't dodge what was coming, closed in a tight grimace as the starry paws came racing towards her. The weight of her failures came crashing down onto her skull in the form of thorny claws at the end of murderous paws. She was aware, at first, of the pain at the top of her head, but a second later her jaw slammed to the earth, and her teeth cracked together with such force that for a moment all she saw was darkness; all she heard was a fierce ringing in her ears. Her brain was fire and ache. Dacedream was splayed out before them, sprawled on her belly, with blood dripping down her face. The she-cat let out a weak moan, her paws gripping uselessly and helplessly at the stone. Dazed and swimming in her fear, the warrior whimpered, "Pl-Please..."

"Lavenderbreeze, finish her," the brutish she-cat demanded of her companion, and Dacedream rolled feebly onto her side, trying to raise a paw in a plea for mercy. "Pl...ease... n-no..." she gasped. Her green-hazel eyes fluttered open to see her would-be killer, but something else caught her gaze instead, over the shoulders of the starry soldiers. There was movement on a boulder several fox-lengths away from the horrific scene, and flickers of recognition considered the pale fur... the distinct stripes... Rainstrike? The blue-eyed she-cat sat. Rainstrike! Dacedream realized for certain. She's here! She's here, she heard me! She's come to help! Delirious thoughts ached for rescue, but some part of her knew it wouldn't come.

Rainstrike stared in Dacedream's eyes from a distance... yet she didn't move. She sat as though merely watching an apprentice's assessment from the shadows. Dacedream's breathing was shallow and rapid, panicked. "Help... m-me..." the tortoiseshell begged in a too-quiet voice of her Clanmate, but the warrior was motionless even as they held each other's eyes. Dacedream didn't understand - Rainstrike saw her. Rainstrike knew Dacedream was hurt. What...? A figure blocked the queen's gaze then, and she was forced to turn her green eyes up to the face of the so-named Lavenderbreeze. Dacedream gazed into the depths of those starry eyes, and with the last clarity she possessed, she knew she was going to die. The instant of hesitation was lost in bitterness, and then Dacedream felt the deepest pain she'd ever felt as fangs plunged into her neck: the pain of death, the pain of betrayal, the pain of being hated.

Then, she felt nothing at all.

The dilute tortoiseshell's body immediately ceased its struggling, letting out a final wheeze, her unsheathed claws slowly relaxing while her tear-pooled eyes stared sightlessly at Lavenderbreeze's paws.

Vixenstar simply nodded her head in acknowledgment of Lavenderbreeze's compliance; she'd expected nothing less of the she-cat, but she had to be sure. "Such a shame, she would have made an exceptional RiverClan warrior." Shaking her head, Vixenstar lifted Dacedream by the scruff, ignoring the steady trickle of blood staining her starry coat. Laying her body on the largest stone she could find, Vixenstar turned to face their visitor. She had only become aware of Rainstrike's presence after the deed was done, but the pale furred she-cat's calm demeanor and lack of intervention proved that the two StarClanners had nothing to worry about. Badgerstar had made an excellent decision, she supposed.

"Rainstrike, come forward." Vixenstar mewed, sitting down beside Dacedream's lifeless body. She was unsure if Rainstrike knew who she was and why she was there, but if not she would gladly explain. She would play an important role in the cause of the Righteous Few, and how she decided to proceed was important.

The dappled warrior's cries for help fell on deaf ears, and Rainstrike's gaze hardened as Dacedream's eyes met her own, two chips of ice blue in the shadows of the treeline that were painfully indifferent to the other cat's suffering, her desperation.

She didn't look away until Dacedream did, unable to tear her gaze away from the scene unfolding before her. If you're going to stand by and watch her die, watch until the end. Don't be a coward. She'd committed herself to the path laid before her by Badgerstar, and she would see it through - she owed herself that. She owed ThunderClan that. This would wound them, she knew, but in the long run, it would be best for the clan. She had to believe that.

It was Dacedream who broke the eye contact, but not before the bitter realization of betrayal colored them. She and Rainstrike had become warriors together, held their vigil together. She could imagine what the other she-cat was feeling, and wished she could bring herself to speak, to explain. You don't understand, Dacedream. This isn't personal. This is for the better of ThunderClan. This is for your kits.

Rainstrike lifted her gaze as the dappled she-cat took her last breath, looking first at Lavenderbreeze, and then Vixenstar. When summoned, she leaped down from the rock and approached, giving Dacedream's body a casual glance as she passed it. Rainstrike ducked her head in respect to the StarClan cats. "This will hurt ThunderClan greatly," she said, voice level, calm. "But I realize it was necessary."

Lavenderbreeze stood up, unhooking her cruel fangs from the throat of the now dead queen, blood staining her starry gray pelt. She watched as Vixenstar stepped forward, dragging the body to the biggest rock in the area, displaying her where no one could miss her. She followed the former leader's gaze to the pale-furred warrior, Rainstrike, where she sat watching the scene unfold.

When Vixenstar summoned Rainstrike forward, she fell into place beside the starry leader as the ThunderClanner approached. Her own task for the time being complete, she simply sat and watched as Rainstrike began to speak.