Chapter 51-

Time slows. Scarletstar's eyes glow with malice and amusement as she leaps forward, teeth snapping at Smoothpearl's ears. The she-cat barely flinches, eyes focused on Scarletstar in confusion. Her eyes are still filled with rage, but also confusion, like a fox kit after seeing a praying mantis take the butterfly they were chasing. Now Smoothpearl is frozen, eyes flashing with a mix of strong emotions. Sagestar's probably do too. Terror and anger mix in the tom's stomach, making him want to vomit. 

What? 

"What? Think your scent is invisible?" Scarletstar snorts, rolling her eyes, "If I remember correctly, Mallardkit came whining about how Smoothpearl left him, mingled with crying about a cat named Bluebell. Know about that?" The she-cat laughs coldly. Sagestar glances to his sister.

The she-cat is terrifyingly calm. Her facial expression is smooth and well-rounded, like she hadn't just learned the truth about her missing kit. Like her brother isn't sitting uselessly there. Like she knows where her kit is, that he's safe. Like she doesn't know her kit isn't safe in the clan. Like her world isn't falling apart. 

Sagestar turns his gaze back to Scarletstar, teeth bared and voice shaking. "Liar." Scarletstar laughs coldly again, her laugh like windchimes and malice. 

"Sure. Anyways, Thunderclan isn't seeing Mallardkit until Sagestar is gone," the she-cat says, looking directly at Smoothpearl. Smoothpearl growls. Scarletstar laughs. 

Sagestar wants to die. 

                                                                       ~~~

The battle doesn't stop, doesn't pause, but that feels wrong. It feels like the world should stop. It feels like everyone should turn their heads and gasp and ask, 'What?" Sagestar feels like they should be the center of attention, but no one turns. No sound eases, not even for a moment, and the battle continues steadily on.

Smoothpearl leaps at Scarletstar in slow motion, and instantly Sagestar turns tail and runs away from the scuffle. His paws land on an apprentice, wide-eyed but tiny. Her tail lashes. Her fur is huge and puffed up. Her lip is curled. Yet her frame is small, kittish, and Sagestar recognizes her from the Windclan border skirmish. 

"You killed-" 

Sagestar pressed his claws out, feeling nothing as he rises his paw. Sappaw's cowering form flashes in his mind, her small, rounded face and curly cheek fur. But this isn't Sappaw. This is nobody. This is an obstacle. Sagestar raises his paw and brings it down on it's face, a nothingness, a blankness, and he hears an ungodly yowl of pain. Blood sprays, and the blank slate turns into red, red, instead of blank there is a face. Agony. Sagestar blinks, eyes widening with horror, and he runs again. 

Claws prick into Sagestar's skin and he turns, seeing eyes wild with anger. Sagestar doesn't process the words, but he processes the she-cat, Brittleleaf, maybe, leaping at him with a curled lip. Sagestar screeches and claws blindly at the she-cat. He connects with her cheek, but the hit is uncoordinated and holds no power. The unknown cat laughs. 

Sagestar swings again. Shoulder. It hits the shoulder. Harder. Hard. The she-cat pulls away, anger flashing a swamp of blue eyes, and she darts forward again. She's slow. She's limping. Like Aloestar but calico, multicolored, small and weak. Like Aloestar. Like Mallardkit. Sagestar bites down on neck ruff and skin and throws the she-cat away. She crashes into the dust with a huge sound, like an explosion, and weakly lifts her head just to bare her teeth. 

"Evil Thunderclan mange-pelt-" 

Sagestar turns away, looking around the bloodied Windclan camp. Blood is spread like invasive moss, clumps of bloody fur tossed around haphazardly. Sagestar blinks and still sees blood, red, carnage. 

Sagestar blinks again and suddenly two cats are upon him, fighting the dazed tom together. Two cats. Against one. This isn't fair. 

Sagestar leaps back, gaining clarity and space, and he hesitantly rakes his claws down a tan tom's nose. Blood wells, and tan the tom leaps forward, growling. "You killed Voidflicker!" The tom, who Sagestar now recognizes as Gorseslip, yowls into the sounds of battle. The she-cat beside him, an unknown silver bengal she, nods with contempt. Sagestar blinks. It's funny two cats had begun with that

"We all smelled your scent. We know." Sagestar cracks a smirk that he doesn't mean, that's fake, not truthful, and he laughs tensely. 

"Who said he didn't deserve it?" 

The she-cat lashes out with her claws, catching Sagestar on the shoulder and giving him a nasty cut down it. Sagestar winces, eyes blurring with pain, but he doesn't dare cry out. The tom fights back, biting down hard on the silver she-cat's ear and twisting until he hears a rip and then he yanks back, hard. 

The she-cat screeches. 

Sagestar dodges Gorseslip's coming attack. Too slow. Too predictable. The leader strikes back to Gorseslip's side, knocking him over. Sagestar bares his teeth, anger and determination slipping through him. With a raised paw he- 

"Thunderclan! Retreat!" 

It should hold no authority; it's not Sagestar's voice. Yet, Thunderclan listens. Cats scramble away from the Windclan cats, Riverclan included. Even Turtlesplash, with a blink of confusion, scrambles backwards. Echopaw, scrabbling with another apprentice, lashes his tail once and then claws the other cat one more time before leaving. Each cat fades from the camp, including Sagestar, hesitantly, of course. He wants to go, he does, but he doesn't want to be forced to.

Sagestar growls gently as he retreats, searching the crowd. The cats of Windclan are smiling, smirking, maybe. Their fur is puffed up, or at least what's left of it. Clumps of missing fur expose bloodied pink and black skin, but their expressions just show joy and triumph. 

Sagestar's eyes wander to Scarletstar, dread pricking at his chest. The she-cat is standing there, tail up and curled. 

Subtly, slowly, she smiles. 

                                                          ~~~

next chapter is the last one, get ready!! (: