Not so Hostile Invasion

Morningstar followed Atalante to the location of the Thunderclan camp. He immediately looked and smelled for Waterlily. It was a good feeling to be able to walk where he wanted. Once he was close to the camp, the undead horrors closed back in around him like a shield. Atalante had done her job, and if she wanted to run off before being seen to avoid any conflict with her clan, she may. Morningstar would be reasonable and civil, as long as everyone else was.

Nearly making it to camp, he noted more movement in the camp than there was before. He halted and his undead soldiers halted with him. Perhaps someone wanted to speak to him first. Regardless, he was going to demand Waterlily and the kits come out. He was content to wait for now to keep the tension as low as possible, but he did not intend to be denied.

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

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'Camp Invasion Dice' :

Mottlerose froze as an unfamiliar scent hit her nostrils, and yet at the same time, a familiarity probed her brain. Having been taking care of camp business as best she could, all of her efforts were paused when the stranger arrived. Her amber gaze didn't take long to find its origin, and they narrowed as unkind memories flooded her mind. "Morningstar." Her mind told her exactly who it was. It was the origin of a lot of her issues, including the reason that she refused to leave camp.

Even despite that, her frame was back to the shape it had been before having her kits. It helped that she kept herself busy, calling apprentices over to train and try out their battle tactics on her as she could. For the time being, she would find a place to observe from. After all, being only a warrior, it wasn't exactly her place to go march forth and demand answers from such a... high profile visitor.

Morningpaw shuffled close to his mother, head tilted as he observed the ghostly cats. The young tom wanted nothing more than to ask Mottlerose about them, but the sheer presence of the cats kept his head low. It was an unknown pressure, he felt it on his shoulders as if the Highrock fell over onto his back. Whatever they were, he hoped no one would get hurt.

With as much grace as he could muster, Morningpaw's frame hung low, his fluffy pelt pressing against Mottlerose's for just the slightest reassurance.

As a sudden, incredibly awful stench hit her nostrils, Fawnpaw resumed from her duties, whiskers twitching in caution as she looked for the origin of the smell. Peeking out from the medicine den, she found Mottlerose and Morningpaw, staring at the unfamiliar crowd of cats near the camp entrance. Who.. are they? Warily sniffing the cats from afar— she noticed they all bore injuries. Harsh ones, that even Dovefrost nor her would've been able to treat. Eyes scanning them, the one in the front.. she bit her inner cheek. His gash down the neck was stained with blood, and she continued to gaze from afar, uncertain of whether to approach, or not.

With slight hesitation, Fawnpaw padded towards Mottlerose, standing beside her. "Do you know who they are, Mottlerose?"

It didn't seem like anyone truly wanted to fight, so Morningstar began to advance forward. He had his undead brutes all around him, but he kept his stance and his gait as relaxed and non-threatening as he could. Entering the camp itself, he looked around, searching in particular for a dark pelt or any of the pelts that belonged to his alleged children.

"I'm not here for violence," He announced to the cats looking at him. No one seemed to be willing to try their luck with him or the undead cats around him. That was fine. It made everything far easier. "I'm looking for Waterlily and her kits... my kits. I only want to talk, then I will be on my way." He kept his claws sheathed and his tone light. He knew Waterlily probably didn't want to see him, but she hadn't pulled away from him last time they say each other at the Gathering. Maybe there was still some hope.

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Darkpaw had just returned from hunting, a scrawny quail in his jaws, when he entered camp to see more undead monstrosities than normal in it. Right in the center of them all was Morningstar... his father. He dropped the quail with a gasp and backed away behind a nearby warrior, his heart pounding. He was looking for them... and mom. He was tempted to turn tail and run back into the forest, but by then, Morningstar's eyes were on him. He froze.

"I don't know where mom is," He called out, fur standing on end. Hopefully his siblings would hear him. There was nothing threatening in Morningstar's stance or his voice, but Darkpaw wasn't entirely sure that he trusted the Dark Forest cat anyway. What if Starlingflare told the Dark Forest cats what he'd been saying earlier and Morningstar was here to kill him for it?

Comfreypaw could tell a ruckus had formed outside- her nose tipped her off too easily. It was that putrid smell she had grown to hate over the short time the undead had begun to inhabit Thunderclan's land. This time much more potent, and if she had to guess it was because there were extra beasts within the camp. An army? she asked no one, her black fur already beginning to bristle with alarm, A raid? She didn't waste another breath, quickly bursting from her den to see what problem she must attack. What foes to defend against. And she found her enemy alright.

The young she-cat felt mainly one thing as she stared at the golden tom with blood on his neck. A small twitch of fear was soon consumed by a rush of hissing fury. He claimed he was here peacefully. "That's pure fox dung," she growled lowly, but with roaring anger underneath. This was the wretched cat who had messed everything up. Who brought his stinky battalion of ghosts here- and boy did she hate how he had talked to Waterlily. Her tail trashed this way and that as she stalked closer to her clanmates gathering to see the invaders. As most could tell Comfreypaw's mood was anything but "let's talk civilly."

If this dog breath thinks he can come to my home all calm like that after all the trouble he's caused- wanting business with my family? He's gonna get my claws in his face. And I even wonder if I can deepen that horrid wound of his, she ranted silently, though her gaze told everything.

But the angry she-cat knew better than to attack, not even taking another step closer to the hoard that shielded that coward. Even the angriest parts of herself could admit it would be the biggest mistake of her life if she acted upon any impulses. So Comfreypaw had to swallow her rage. Wait for whenever he's less guarded, she guessed. The barely battle-trained apprentice stood with her tail still flicking about, her cold glare watching for his next move.

A whisper in the back of her screaming mind did wonder, what exactly was he here to tell her?

Daypaw had been resting by the fresh-kill pile, a half-eaten mouse laying between his paws, when the too-familiar stench of rot that had settled into camp walls thickened and grew deeper. His hackles rose on end, especially at the sounds of his Clanmates starting to gather– of a cool and commanding voice, calling out his mother's name. His blood ran cold in an instant, and the golden apprentice scrambled to get to his paws, turning around to view the scene. Morningstar, of course, had found his way into their home. Daypaw wasn't entirely sure if Morningstar really knew where he was, or if the fear-scent from his Clanmates at the impending invasion led him here like some sort of terrible bloodhound.

Either way, the apprentice was moving himself to their front lines, skirting past Mottlerose and the apprentices that had gathered around her– pausing only briefly to give Fawnpaw and Comfreypaw a worried glance –to stand just between the group and his father. Darkpaw was beyond them, just in front of the mouth of camp, but Morningstar had already seen him. Daypaw's heart was starting to pound, and it took everything in him to will his fur to lay flat. The last thing I want is to talk to you. The tom almost spat, but he instead his tongue. Instead, he rolled his shoulders back, forcing himself into the stance of refinery and poise he'd been practicing so he didn't feel so small looking up into his father's eyes. But this close, standing face to face with the perpetually pooling gash on his neck, soft golden fur still visible under all the dark smoke... It made Daypaw shiver again despite himself, tail fluffed and starting to lash.

"I don't know where mom is, either," he mewed, voice shakier than he wanted it to be. "Mo- most of my siblings are out here. We're here. Uhm–" Daypaw's confidence dropped, and he sagged, voice lowering into a quivering whisper, "please don't hurt my family. I mean– I- I won't let you." He wanted to call out for Mottlerose to come closer, or ask her to find Minnowfin, or Stoatstar, but his throat felt caught. He could only force himself to swallow, any more words dying on his tongue.

Specklepaw has been sitting by Daypaw, cleaning his pelt for once in his life, yet his fur seemed to spike up still with each lick. As he opened his mouth once more, he could smell more than the usual bad stench that came with the Dark Forest warriors. Seeing Daypaw moving to the sound of voices, he jumped up, stumbling a little with a tiny grunt, before following his brother to see a cat he only sort-of recognised.

Oh! The super cool mean cat! Specklepaw tilted his head when the golden, sort of cool but also extremely smelly cat spoke. "I don't know where your kits are, but mama- Waterlily's kits are riight here!" He looked around at his siblings. "Are your kits smelly like you? Do they also lead an army?" His eyes gleamed at the cat, unknowingly looking at his father. "Oooh! Do you have magical powers like Starclan?... Wait does Starclan even have magical powers?" His tail raised. Who cares if this cat was bad? He was super cool! Why did his siblings hate him so much?

Mottlerose's gaze continued to stare as Morningstar came to their camp, and she let the apprentices near her stay close by. "Morningstar, once known to the forest as Dawnhawk. Seems like the Dark Forest put him in charge of them all." Her comments were quiet, but they were worded carefully should they be overheard. Her ear flicked in a mild frustration at his arrival, but it wasn't like she could do much about it. The molly could only simply observe. Giving both Morningpaw and Fawnpaw a gentle nuzzle to the head in well-wishes, she moved over towards Daypaw and Specklepaw.

Her motherly instincts told her to guard those in question, the target of Morningstar's arrival. Her stomach was rather tense from the sickening smell of death, and it took all of her self-control not to wretch. She would let his self-claimed children do most of the speaking, and leave it up to them to reveal their locations. "I do not know where Waterlily is, my apologies." Her tone was cool and sweet, like the petal on a rose. Her body language clearly spoke that of protection, but it also gave a hesitant trust. She could understand wanting to speak with his children, if they were even his. Part of her could hardly comprehend the idea that Waterlily would mate with such a... vile creature.

A comforting nose also pressed upon Daypaw's head at his wavering frame. It seemed that Specklepaw would be just fine handling himself, but nevertheless, she stood as a pillar of support for any of the apprentices to lean upon. When Waterlily would show up, then she would step away. Even though she wasn't a mentor to all but one of them, as a warrior, it was her responsibility to ensure they were cared for should their mentor be away.

Softfall took an entirely different approach when compared to Mottlerose. During this time he used the reactions of the apprnentices to see which ones of them he could possibly manipulate later on in life. He had already begun the process of slowly turning the kits angry towards Riverclan he grinned at how he had gotten Mosskit (mottlerose's and minnowfin's kit) all angry towards Riverclan and he would do the same next for the apprentices.

Specklepaw immediately caught his attention as he was drawn by Morningstar's power. He also asked alot of questions before even knowing what his situation was entirely ... hmm yes he would be sure to speak to Specklepaw very soon and with any amount of luck his anti Riverclan protest would grow another member very soon. So far he had to keep it relatively quiet growing his force in secrecy for now. One day he would be strong enough to strike at those fish eating thugs. He was too reckless before and he had received wounds for his overzealousness.

He sat near the outskirts for now just watching what would unfold. He was curious as ever as to what this Morningstar would really want. He didnt really dislike the DF cats... they smelled like rot but besides that they had not done anything so far to harm thunderclan which was his main concern. One of them had even attacked a Riverclan cat while at the gathring...

Perhaps... if Morningstar were to see how ill fed Waterlilly was his anger could also be turned on that of Riverclan. Softfall's eyes narrowed as he continued to watch Specklepaw yes that one would do nicely if he could slowly spready his anti riverclan propaganda to him as well things would begin to fall more and more into place.

Morningpaw let out a short purr at the nuzzle of his mother, but it shortly ended as she walked away to support his fellow apprentices. Unsure of what exactly was happening, the fuffy tom followed in suit, though making an effort to keep his mouth shut. Settling next to Daypaw, he gave the other tom a gentle lick on the shoulder as a reminder that he was not alone. He stood as tall as he could, hoping his fluffy fur did enough to make him look just a bit larger than he actually was.

After a long moment, Morningpaw asked lowly; "Should I go get dad or Stoatstar?" His green eyes flickered towards Mottlerose, then towards Morningstar. They both shared the same first name. It felt like a curse, almost. He hardly knew the cat, but shame filled him. This same cat was making his denmate uncomfortable, and Morningpaw wasn't going to stand for that.

My kits.

Fawnpaw widened her eyes, fur bristling. That... couldn't be. Morningstar, or Dawnhawk, whoever this cat was... he seemed most uncanny out of all, and she knew better than to let her guard down. With eyes lingering at the warrior before she left, Fawnpaw sat up straighter, eyes sharp and observing closely.. in case Morningstar decided to make a move. With a flick of her tail, steadily, the apprentice made her way over to her siblings, a bit behind the growing crowd. She stood with Comfreypaw. While her stomach gnawed at the number of open questions Specklepaw asked, her curiosity made her have questions of her own, too. Though for now, she best kept them to herself.

With the stranger's appearance, she doubted the conversation he wanted to have— however he described it as, would be anything but comforting. Though the cats surrounding her were wary of him, she was, too, but they all didn't make a move. Glancing at her sibling, she posed a quiet question. "Have all our siblings met him before, Comfreypaw? Even you? I don't trust him."

The amount of answers he got was... nice actually. Waterlily wasn't around, but several of his kits were. Including one that apparently wasn't aware that Morningstar was his father. Excitable little one... Moving passed his undead soldiers, he made himself available to his kits and allowed them to approach if they wanted. "I can wait for Waterlily then. Come here, all of you. I'm not here to hurt anyone, I just wanted to talk, as I said. If someone could retrieve Stoatstar or your deputy, that would be great." He sat down and waited patiently for them to get closer, if they would.

"I'm Morningstar, once known in Skyclan as Dawnhawk, Nightwind in Windclan and to the rogues and your mother, I was named Klaus." He swept his eyes over the apprentices, trying to remain as calm and as casual as he could. Meeting them finally however was a treat. He hadn't felt this happy about kits since Honeycomb was still in Skyclan. There was a stab of guilt that he hadn't thought of Hyacinth in quite the same way. He cared for her, but not with as much intensity as he did with Honeycomb or Waterlily.

"I'm your dad, if you hadn't guessed it by now. I've given you my names, I want yours. You don't need to be afraid of me." His eyes went to the excitable tom and he smiled a small smile. "If Starclan had magical powers they wouldn't be dead right now. I wouldn't consider my abilities magical per se, but I don't need to eat or drink. I can run fast for days and not get tired. I don't need to sleep either. And obviously..." He tapped his fatal neck wound with his tail. "I can't die."

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Darkpaw listened to Morningstar speak and hesitated behind the other warrior. Slowly... eventually, he came out and approached. What if he hurts someone here because we don't do what he wants? He stopped about half a fox-length away, his eyes staring at the bleeding gash in Morningstar's neck and the wispy shadows of darkness in his fur.

"I'm Darkpaw." He said simply, hoping that answer would be enough. Now would he go away?

Stoatstar had been focused on various duties. With each passing day, he became more ragged. Although his state rapidly deteriorated, the leader did his best to stuff it away. No matter what, his pelt was groomed and his duties completed. The clan had worked together, hard as ever. It was now that he'd begun to recognize that there were shared burdens between himself and the cats that he lead. But every sunrise he found himself uniquely plagued by this circumstance. He'd been caught between unfavorable options and balanced keeping his clan safe the best he could. Speaking his mind to any cat wasn't safe - for their sake.

Clenching his teeth so tightly his jaw hurt from the tension, Stoatstar focused on the sensation in an attempt to rouse his mind the best that he could. There was something happening near the entrance to camp. Padding over, the little brown and white warrior shouldered his way through gathered clanmates. His tail lightly brushed the pelts of clanmates he passed, some weak attempt at reassurance. He knew their minds had become soured towards him, he felt it, and he understood. What he did not expect was Dawnhawk standing before him. Morningstar, he had to remind himself.

"Is there something I can help you with, Morningstar?" Stoatstar's words were pleasant, a casual greeting, but the expression across his maw was neutral. His head tipped slightly, quizzically. Waterlily had told him everything he needed to know. This monster had fathered some of the clan's apprentices. Every ounce of him wanted to rip into the Dark Forest beast, feel the satisfying tear underneath his claws and maybe draw forth screams of pain. He needed to hurt for what he had done to Thrushnose. But this was supposed to be his ally, in some weird sense, and it would be fighting a losing battle. He needed to wait.