The Secret of Bluetail

The Secret of Bluetail is an unofficial book written by Paradox, featuring Bluetail as the main protagonist. It is the first book of the Conquerors series and the first book of the Peace Before a Storm arc.

## Story

### Prologue

It was midnight. A shadow fell upon the bushes. The Chartreux cat slipped out of the warriors’ den and stalked over to the bushes on the opposite side. He hesitated, then stepped into the bushes and out of sight. The blue cat paced the area until he found IceClan’s scent marker in the Moonlit Clearing. More specifically, *her* scent marker. He remarked it to show that he was there, then curled up in the middle of the moonlit area of silver birch. Finally, after what seemed to be ages, he heard pawsteps and smelled the familiar scent of IceClan. The white pelt of the she-cat gleamed silver in the moonlight, and she gave a small squeak of happiness when she saw him. The two cats approached each other, nuzzling. They finally broke apart, and the beautiful white she-cat stepped back, looking at the stars of Silverpelt for a long moment.

“I have good news,” she said finally, breaking the silence.

“What?” asked the gray-blue cat, unable to contain his joy to finally be with his love after all these long weeks.

“I’m going to have our kits!” she exclaimed.

“But that’s wonderful!” yelped the blue tom. “When?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted, looking at her paws. “I can feel them moving.” She looked up at Silverpelt again, thinking.

“Bluetail, do you think that my Clan will accept half-Clan kits?” she asked nervously.

“No, I don’t think so, especially since IceClan and FireClan are enemies,” Bluetail replied after a brief pause. He licked his paws and ran them over his head three times.

“Then what should we do?” fretted the gray queen. Bluetail looked her in the eye.

“If it’s all right with you, Frosttail, I think I’ll take a few kits to be raised,” he said quietly.

“You-you mean, take them into *FireClan*?!” yelped Frosttail. “Why?” Bluetail looked at her, surprised. He didn’t expect his mate to be so against bringing them into FireClan.

“Because they will be well-cared for, and they will be apprenticed at six moons,” replied Bluetail. “Besides, we’re already infamous for being kit-stealers, whether we steal them or not.” Frosttail considered, then nodded. A few days later, they met again at the riverbank that marked the borders of FireClan and IceClan territory. Frosttail was leading five tiny kits, one of whom looked cool and weird. Bluetail yelped when he saw the fluffy kit with wings and a stinger at the end of her tail.

“What’s wrong with her?!” he exclaimed, stepping back.

“There isn’t anything wrong,” responded Frosttail. Bluetail was afraid he had offended her when she went on, “You will take three, any three, and I will take the rest.” Bluetail chose the strange-looking kit, a white kit and a blue kit that looked just like him. Frosttail scooped up the silver tom and the gray she-cat that remained.

“Bye, Bluetail,” she said. “I only came to bring you the kits.”

Bluetail mewed, “Good-bye Frosttail.” Frosttail turned and led her kits back into the bushes. Bluetail turned around and walked the opposite way. He silently named the strange kit Riverkit, the white kit Snowkit, and the blue kit Bluekit, like his father. When he entered the forest, a flash of orange caught his eye. A fox! His hackles raised and he hissed. The fox aimed for the kits, and Bluetail pounced. The fox whipped around, barking. The noise startled Bluetail, and he ran into a tree, surprised. He shook the twigs loose, snarling.

He jumped and this time landed on the fox’s back. He dug in his claws, and a squeal made all the fur on the back of his neck stand up. He leapt off, fearing the worst. Snowkit was clasped tightly in the fox’s jaws. The fox snapped its jaws shut, and a horrifying crack echoed throughout the trees. It turned and gave him a triumphant look, then turned and bounded away into the undergrowth. Bluetail threw back his head, howling in frustration and grief. *What am I going to tell Frosttail?*

*Chapter 1*

Bluetail yawned and stretched. Sunlight was pouring through the fern curtains at the entrance to the warriors’ den.

“*Finally*, you’re awake. We were beginning to think that you would never wake up,” drawled a voice in his ear. Bluetail jumped and whirled around to see Redfur, the supposedly *greatest* warrior to have ever existed. Personally, Bluetail liked to think of him as the greatest *nuisance* to have ever lived.

“That’s no way to talk to your deputy,” he said sternly. Redfur slunk off, muttering. *Just because noble Fireblaze is his father doesn’t mean he’s so amazing,* he thought bitterly. An image came into his mind of the powerful warrior dipping his head respectfully to Flamestar. Fireblaze had been killed by Frosttail in a battle with IceClan. He shoved the thought and the image away as he washed himself. He walked out of the den and ran into Flamestar.

"Oh, good. You’re awake,” she said mildly. “I’ve never seen a single cat oversleep before.” Her greenish yellow gaze fixed sternly on him.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, looking at his paws.

“But never mind all that,” she said dismissively, changing the subject. “Bluekit and Riverkit are ready to be apprenticed.” Bluetail’s ears perked.

“Who’s their mentors?” he mewed. Flamestar studied him.

“You’ll see,” she said with a mysterious smile. She swept by and onto the Ember Spire, a large rock jutting sideways out of the Flaming River, a river of lava that disobedient cats were thrown into. “Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Ember Spire for a Clan meeting!” she yowled, her voice cracking slightly with age but still loud. Cats began to gather around the Spire, murmuring to themselves. Once they had quieted down, Flamestar began, “Two of our kits are ready to be apprenticed.” Bluekit and Riverkit looked at each other, excited. “Bluekit, your name will be Bluepaw until you have received your warrior name, and your mentor will be Redfur.” Bluetail groaned inwardly. Redfur stepped forward and touched noses with Bluekit. Flamestar continued, “Riverkit will be apprenticed to Bluetail, and she will be known as Riverpaw until she has earned her warrior name.” Bluetail swelled with happiness and pride. He was going to mentor his own daughter! He stepped forward and touched noses with the strange-looking she-cat.

“What’ll we do today?” she asked.

“I’ll show you around,” Bluetail promised. He led the way out of camp and into the Moonlit Clearing. “This is the Moonlit Clearing, where we can see Silverpelt up there.” He pointed up, and Riverpaw’s wide-eyed gaze followed.

“What next?” she asked, not seeming very interested. He could smell her impatient excitement. Bluetail considered for a moment.

“The Fire Cave,” he decided.

“The Fire Cave?” Riverpaw echoed.

“A cave with lots and *lots* of dark-red bellied snakes, not to mention rats,” he said. Riverpaw shuddered; she hated rats, but her eyes were glowing with excitement all the same. She leapt onto a rock, looking around.

“Is that it?” she asked, pointing. Bluetail followed her gaze and saw a cave mouth yawning in the distance. He nodded.

“Well done!” he said, impressed. They crept towards it.

“Quick-what do you smell?” he asked, detecting a scent that should not be there. Riverpaw sniffed the air, frowning.

“I smell something cold and-and familiar,” she said, frowning. “But what is it?”

“IceClan,” Bluetail replied grimly. “Hide!” They both scurried under a bush, watching, as an IceClan patrol walked by.

“What’s that?” asked a snowy white cat, pointing at the Fire Cave.

“Fire Cave,” grunted another. “Let’s hunt there.”

“They won’t know what’ll be waiting for them!” snickered Bluetail quietly. Indeed, no sooner did the IceClan patrol walk in they heard a chorus of terrified yowling, before the cats came charging out, screeching, with black dark red-bellied snakes slithering at their heels. The vipers didn’t like light, though, and slithered back in, hissing. Bluetail and Riverpaw crept out.

“They sleep during the day,” explained Bluetail, “and hunt at night, so they’re probably angry that their nap was interrupted.” Riverpaw laughed.

“Come on, let’s see your hunting skills,” said Bluetail, sweeping into the cave with Riverpaw at his heels. Inside the cave, it was dark and musty, and stalagmites and stalactites were everywhere.

“What do you smell?” Bluetail quizzed her. Riverpaw sniffed carefully. “Open your mouth to smell it better,” he advised her. Riverpaw opened her mouth slightly.

“I smell something that might be delicious,” she said carefully.

“*If* we catch one,” Bluetail reminded her. “Let me show you how to stalk up on them.” He sheathed his claws, dropped into a crouch, and padded lightly towards the snake, who had its back turned to him. He stepped lightly and carefully, and suddenly sprang. The snake whirled around, hissing, but he quickly killed it with a bite to the neck. He turned and showed it to Riverpaw, the dead snake dangling from his jaws.

“Let me see you try,” he said, dropping the snake. “Not on the snakes,” he said quickly, as Riverpaw dropped into a crouch. “I might need to correct you.” At first, Riverpaw was making a bit of noise, which was not supposed to happen. Bluetail paced around and checked her stance, adjusting her legs and swishing tail.

“Don’t swing your tail, or the snakes might hear you coming,” he warned. Riverpaw nodded and held her tail still, her wings spread out to either side. Then, she suddenly pounced on invisible air, startling Bluetail.

“Like that?” she asked.

“Great StarClan!” he whispered in awe. “I’ve never seen a cat strike so fast!” Riverpaw purred in delight.

“Thanks,” she replied, smiling.

“Do you think you’re ready to start testing it out?” Bluetail asked. Riverpaw nodded. She stalked stealthily up on a viper, and then pounced. She killed it by crunching its neck, then she did the same for another, although a little slower this time.

“Good!” said Bluetail, impressed. “Let’s bring this back to the elders. I can’t wait to see Redfur’s face when he sees what we have caught!” Riverpaw snickered. They took the three snakes and ran back to camp. Bluetail found Redfur and boasted, “Look at what *we* caught!” Redfur snorted.

“What, some fat vole?” he asked, unimpressed.

“Fire Vipers,” Bluetail corrected him, looking smug. Redfur’s jaw dropped.

“But-but h-how?!” he spluttered. Bluetail left, leaving him standing there looking bewildered, and calling over his shoulder, “The elders will have the snakes!” When Flamestar saw their catch, she was very impressed.

“Well done!” she praised. Bluetail stood up straighter, as Flamestar rarely praised anyone. “For your catch, you and Riverpaw can each take one snake and the rest will go to the elders.” This time, Bluetail’s jaw dropped. What an honor! The last time they had caught a viper, nine moons ago, Flamestar didn’t let *anyone* eat it. She had saved it as a special treat to any warrior who pleased her. Bluetail had been furious when it was Redfur who got it. He bounded over to Riverpaw, bursting with excitement.

“Riverpaw! Riverpaw!” he called. Riverpaw spun around.

“What is it?” she asked, looking excited and nervous at the same time.

“We can each have a snake, and the other one will go to the elders! Oh, Redfur will be so jealous that his pelt will turn even redder!” Bluetail declared. Riverpaw laughed, and she shot off towards the fresh-kill pile, with Bluetail hot on her heels. They each took one snake, and brought it to a corner to eat. Redfur hissed when he saw the snakes dangling from their mouths. Bluetail crunched on the snake. A delicious taste and smell wafted into his mouth and nose. He gobbled up the rest eagerly. Riverpaw was picking at her snake. She ate about three-quarters, then pushed the rest away.

“I’m full. What do I do with the rest?” she asked Bluetail.

“Give it to the elders,” he suggested. “I’m sure one snake won’t be enough for them.” Riverpaw’s eyes grew wide.

“But my mouth touched it!” she cried.

“Silly of you. Do you think the other cats mind?” asked Bluetail incredulously.

“Oh,” said Riverpaw, deflating. She picked up the snake, then dashed off to the elders’ den. Bluetail watched her go, smiling a little to himself. Riverpaw was smart and talented, and he wondered when she would be ready to be made into a warrior. He thought about what her warrior name might be. Riverclaw? Riverwhisker? Riverpelt? Riverfur? Rivertail? The possibilities were endless!

He heard Elderbranch, an elder, say, “I haven’t tasted one of these in ages!” Bluetail walked over to join them, carrying the uneaten half of his snake. Elderbranch slurped up the last bit of his snake. He had that strange habit which often drove other cats (especially Rosewater, a pretty queen) mad.

Rosewater stuck her head out of the nursery and snapped, “Elderbranch, quit being disgusting! In case you haven’t noticed, some of us are trying to eat in peace without you slurping and gulping in the background!” She ducked back inside, muttering. Bluetail caught words such as “crazy”, “gross”, and “something’s definitely wrong with that cat”. It didn’t surprise him, though. She wasn’t very fond of Elderbranch, even though the strange old cat had been her mentor. Bluetail was surprised no one had taken him to Lilypetal in case there was something wrong with him.

Bluetail picked at the remains of his snake, not feeling very hungry after Elderbranch had ruined his appetite. He stood up to leave.

“I’m going to go see Flamestar,” he called.

“What for?” asked Elderbranch. At the same time, Riverpaw demanded, “Can I come too?” Bluetail shook his head at the enthusiastic apprentice.

“Sorry, not now,” he apologized. Riverpaw’s whiskers drooped slightly and she sighed. “Don’t worry, I’ll take you out exploring tomorrow,” he added, in an effort to cheer her up. Riverpaw brightened.

“All right!” she mewed, dashing off to the apprentices’ den, probably to take a small nap, Bluetail assumed.

“Bet you think you’re so great, huh?” sneered a voice in his ear. Bluetail jumped and saw Redfur right beside him. Redfur hissed at him. “Tell you what, we’ll compete tomorrow. The one whose apprentice *and* him catch the best prey wins. *And* is the key word,” he challenged briskly, before Bluetail could say a thing. It was clear that he had followed Bluetail just to tell him that. Bluetail considered this carefully. He knew that Redfur knew the best places to hunt that the rest of FireClan didn’t know about. He couldn’t risk it, because he knew that Redfur would go there to find fat mice and plump rabbits as well as astonishingly slow and lazy finches. The food must be abundant there, because once Redfur came back with a fat, juicy rabbit and declared that the plants, seeds, and fruit grew in great clumps.

“No,” said Bluetail, shaking his head.

“Scared?” Redfur asked smugly. Bluetail glared at him.

“Not scared; being sensible,” he corrected him. “I know your little secrets about where you hunt. I don’t know where you bring back such plump prey, but I’m not going to accept.” It was Redfur’s turn to glare at him.

“Smart,” he spat. Redfur walked off to the warriors’ den, snarling under his breath. Bluetail caught  a few snippets, such as “failed to lure him” and “better tell Icestar. He won’t be pleased”. *Icestar?* Bluetail wondered with a flash of horror. His exiled brother appeared in his mind, and he shivered at the thought of the IceClan founder/leader. What could Redfur be planning with Icestar? Or maybe he was wrong. Maybe there was another cat named Icestar? That didn’t seem very likely. Bluetail watched him for a moment, then walked off to Flamestar’s den with something new to tell her. When he neared, Flamestar poked her head out, as if she’d been expecting him.

“Hello, Bluetail,” she said ducking back in. “Why’s Riverpaw with you?” Bluetail jumped and whirled around, hissing. Riverpaw stepped back, mildly alarmed. She shot him a shy smile.

“Riverpaw!” hissed Bluetail. “I *told* you to stay!”

“I know!” said Riverpaw brightly. “But then I saw you leaving and I couldn’t resist!” Bluetail growled softly.

“Let her listen,” Flamestar advised. “Well? Are you coming in or what?” Bluetail stepped into the cozy den with Riverpaw trailing after him.

“So, Riverpaw did great on her first training lesson,” Bluetail began. Riverpaw purred proudly. Bluetail ignored her. “So, I was wondering if there was any FireClan apprentice who accomplished such.” Flamestar paused, apparently in deep thought.

“I don’t think so,” she said finally. “Riverpaw is the most accomplished FireClan apprentice so far.” Riverpaw glowed with pride. “But,” Flamestar continued. Riverpaw’s pleased aura dimmed a little. “I would not advise you to tell Redfur. He does not like you, and he may get mad and try to harm you.” Riverpaw’s excitement brightened. Bluetail nodded.

“Flamestar,” Bluetail began hesitantly.

“Yes?” Flamestar asked.

“I-I think that Redfur might be planning something with Icestar,” Bluetail said in a rush.

“*Icestar?!*” Flamestar yelped. She looked deeply agitated. “How?”

Bluetail mumbled, “He challenged me and I declined. He was muttering some words, and I heard ‘failed to lure him’, and ‘Better tell Icestar. He won’t be pleased’.”

Flamestar frowned. “Then I would advise you to be careful around Redfur. I’ll put some cats to guard him, to make sure he doesn’t leave camp,” she said. “Don’t let slip anything that would be of great use to Icestorm.” Flamestar continued. “I mean, Icestar.” she quickly corrected. She still had a habit of calling Icestar by his old warrior name, Icestorm. “But I’m more worried about *you*, Bluetail. Redfur is more dangerous than I thought, now that we know he’s plotting something. So, please, be careful.”

“Yes, Flamestar. I think I'll have to leave now,” said Bluetail, glancing outside. The sun was beginning to set. He stalked out of the den, to the warriors’ resting place. Riverpaw sniffed hopefully at the fresh-kill pile, which only a small, plump mouse remained. She looked at Bluetail questioningly. Bluetail sighed. “You can have that,” he said.

“Thanks!” she called. Riverpaw gulped it down and dashed off to the apprentice’s den.

“Good night, Riverpaw,” Bluetail murmured, watching her tail barb swing out of sight.

“Bye,” she yawned from somewhere inside the den. The young she-cat sounded unusually tired, all of a sudden. Bluetail felt a flash of concern, but he quickly shook it off. Probably not serious. He ducked into the warriors’ den. He fell asleep uneasily, wondering what Redfur was possibly planning.

*Chapter 2*

Bluetail awoke abruptly from a nightmare in which he had lost Riverpaw. What had woken him? It was still midnight, after all. He lay there for a moment, thinking. Just then, he heard a rasping sound coming from the apprentices’ den. A jolt of fear shot through Bluetail. He *knew* that voice. It was Riverpaw, and she was sick. Bluetail charged out the den and into the apprentices’ den.

“Riverpaw,” he whispered urgently, unable to think through his terror. “What’s the matter?”

“Can’t… breathe,” she gasped. Her white wings jerked uncontrollably at her side.

“Why?” he asked urgently.

“That… mouse I ate… last night,” Riverpaw wheezed. Her claws scrabbled at her throat frantically.

“I’m taking you to Lilypetal,” said Bluetail. He took Riverpaw’s neck in his jaws, half-carrying, half-dragging his apprentice towards Lilypetal’s den as fast as he could. As he approached Lilypetal’s den, Riverpaw began flailing and twisting and choking, filling Bluetail with a new wave of panic. “Almost there,” he panted. Several cats were stirring, and some peering out curiously at him. Lilypetal’s sweet scent wafted out of her den as she peeked out.

“Bluetail!” she cried. “What’s the matter with Riverpaw?”

“She has trouble breathing,” Bluetail said in a rush. Lilypetal grabbed Riverpaw in her jaws and pulled her into her den without another word. The medicine cat bent over Riverpaw.

“What happened?” asked Lilypetal, now feeling Riverpaw’s belly. “Did she eat something, or did she go somewhere she wasn’t supposed to?”

“It was something she ate,” said Bluetail. “She ate a mouse last night. It made her tired.”

“It must have been smeared with a little bit of deathberry juice,” muttered Lilypetal. “Not strong enough to kill.” Bluetail felt a pang of guilt. It was all his fault. He should have known that Riverpaw’s loss of energy meant something was wrong. *You foolish cat,* he scolded himself. *What sort of a deputy* are *you, not realizing danger was near until it was right under your nose?* “But who did this?” Lilypetal’s soft voice brought Bluetail back to reality. He noticed the silence that surrounded them. Riverpaw had passed out. Bluetail struggled to remember what the mouse had smelled like. It had smelled like… something familiar, but Bluetail couldn’t pull the memory into focus.

“It smelled familiar,” he said slowly. “But I couldn’t remember what it was.” Lilypetal didn’t seem to hear him. She tipped some water on Riverpaw’s face, and she woke up.

“Eat these,” she said, pushing some herbs towards her. Riverpaw gulped them down, and her breathing cleared a little. “Now spit.” Riverpaw spat on the ground, and some red juice came out, mixed with her saliva. “That’s deathberry juice,” Lilypetal murmured. “I was right. Riverpaw, you may leave. Tell Flamestar what happened.” Riverpaw bounded out of the den. The sky was still dark, but Riverpaw didn’t bother running. She spread her wings and took off. Bluetail was startled, because he had never seen a cat fly. Even in the darkness, Riverpaw’s wings were clearly visible. She glided through the air elegantly and landed lightly outside Flamestar’s den. Bluetail felt rather embarrassed that they had to bother Flamestar so many times these days. He ran after Riverpaw and arrived in time to hear the last bit that Riverpaw was telling Bluetail’s mother.

“...and she told me to spit and I did, and some red juice came out with it. Lilypetal said it was deathberry juice,” Riverpaw was rattling. When she finished, she looked at Flamestar expectantly, evidently hoping for a reaction.

“I’m glad you survived, Riverpaw,” she said slowly. “You would make an excellent elder, one day, with your storytelling.” Riverpaw straightened her shoulders proudly. “But the question is, who did this?” Bluetail sighed. Flamestar looked at him. Predictably, she asked, “Do *you* know?” Bluetail shook his head. Flamestar looked faintly disappointed.

“But I’ll find out,” he promised. “They won’t get away with it.” Flamestar looked at him for a while. She nodded.

“Very well,” she said finally. “You may leave.” Bluetail, slightly startled at this abrupt dismissal, crept out of the den, the long strands of moss at the entrance slithering coolly against his muzzle. Riverpaw followed him. Bluetail walked off to the warriors’ den, but Riverpaw stopped him.

“Hey, how about we go out hunting together? We can surprise the Clan by refilling the fresh-kill pile,” she suggested. Bluetail shook his head.

“I’m sorry, Riverpaw,” he said. “I’m too tired.”

“Just by walking between two dens?” Riverpaw asked sceptically. “Come on, you sleepyhead. You *promised* you would take me out exploring today.”

“Does it *have* to be now, though?” Bluetail asked with a sigh.

“YES!” shrieked Riverpaw.

“Shush!” Bluetail hissed. “You’ll wake up half the Clan!”

“And that half is already awake!” Riverpaw countered. Bluetail gave up.

“Fine. But we’ll have to be back before sunhigh,” Bluetail said, dragging himself to his feet. To his disappointment, the sky was still dark.