Reign's Rule

Prologue

Hushed voices rippled through the crowd as a cats' eyes glimmered with worry.

"How could it be?" whispered a white she-cat with clear blue eyes, "These days, suddenly so many cats, their personalities alter to such degrees."

A tortoiseshell she-cat with soft blue eyes sighed somberly, running her tail against her slim, lithe body. "I don't know. But we need to give them a prophecy."

A silver she-cat with mint-colored eyes bounded over.

"Silvershine?" whispered the tortoiseshell.

Silvershine's eyes were dark as she took a deep breath. "A fluffy little kit will follow darkness as he is vulnerable to the world's cruel clutch on him, unleashing a terrible clutch whereas only the cooling water can defeat."

The tortoiseshell took a step back in shock.

The white one, however, stayed firm. "We need to tell Thrushflight and Wingfeather."

Chapter 1

A slim shape padded to the Highledge, as he let out a growl. They were crushing him-not knowing he was there. He was so small, so tiny. Perhaps that would change when he aged. They would respect him. He would make sure of it.

"Who's my mentor?" he whined.

"Sharpfang," whispered one.

"Ok," he replied.

Sharpfang smiled. "Come on."

Chapter 2

The small apprentice and Sharpfang padded out of camp.

"It's very important to protect our borders, Fluffypaw," announced Sharpfang, "So we'll go over the territory."

"What's that?" asked Fluffypaw, gesturing to a tree that towered over others.

"That's Ancient Oak," Sharpfang explained.

He nodded.

The cats padded on. Seeing a soft pile of moss, Fluffypaw guessed, "That's for training?"

Sharpfang nodded. "If it was me, I wouldn't bother. If someone's weak, they get hurt by falling on the moss."

They came to a Thunderpath. There was a faint roaring of the monster's paws in the distance. The acrid tang of Twoleg's and their monsters stung Fluffypaw's nose.

Fluffypaw bristled in annoyance. "That's *disgusting*!"

Suddenly a huge yellow monster whooshed by, nostrils flaring, it's orange eyes glowing eerily and it's huge black paws churning the Thunderpath and causing the ground to crack.

"I'll shred the twolegs," he hissed, "And the monster."

The cats padded on.

"I almost forgot!" Sharpfang gasped, "How could I?“

"Forgot what?" Fluffypaw asked.

"If we meet a kittypet, loner or rogue, kill them. If we meet  kits, we kill them. If it is apprentices, warriors, leaders, or deputies from other Clans, kill them." Sharpfang declared.

Fluffypaw nodded. The words echoed in his head. *Kill them. Kill them. Kill them. T*he repetition was obvious.

A young black cat with a green collar padded through the forest.

"Watch me," Sharpfang whispered, brushing along a bush.

He leapt onto the cat, ripping at him. He growled furiously as the black kittypet paws flailed, trying to escape. He grabbed her, ripping the collar off him and biting his throat as the kittypet stopped protesting.

"And that, is how you kill a kittypet," spat Sharpfang, glaring at the dead kittypet in disgust.

Fluffypaw nodded. Seeing the blood spill out sent a bolt of relish into him.

"I want to do that!" he yowled.

"You will," Sharpfang murmured. "I guarantee it."

He didn't speak as Sharpfang padded back to camp, only following him.

Chapter 3

"Let's go gather some moss," meowed Sharpfang, "The Clan forces us to nurture the weak, to reject the strong. When I'm leader, you will be deputy. The Clan will be strong then. Elders will finally be killed. Everything would be perfect.

Fluffypaw nodded.

Padding to a tree, he unsheathed his claws and scraped some moss down.

"It helps you with hunting and fighting," he explained, "Fighting, more importantly."

Fluffypaw did the exact replica, gathered up the moss, but it fell off.

"Fox dung!" he cursed.

"Well, you gather it up in your teeth, you know," growled Sharpfang, biting his ear so that blood spilled down the tips. "You need to be smart. Not mouse-brained. Next time I'll bite it off. After that you will have a wound on your flank that's infected. Clear?"

Fluffypaw nodded, wincing.

He gathered up a clump of the moss, and Sharpfang the other, going back to camp.

Chapter 4

Fluffypaw looked at his mentor and Sharpfang growled, "What are you looking at? Go. Eat. Now."

Fluffypaw nodded, fishing out half a rabbit. He bit into it, blood and flavor bursting on his tongue as he gobbled all the delicious morsels down and spat out the bones.

He grabbed the moss and took them to the elders' den, setting the moss down and taking out the old moss.

He padded to his moss nest, and with a heavy sigh, he was sucked into the world of dreams.

Chapter 5

"Fluffypaw! Wake up!" called Sharpfang.

He climbed to his paws, running outside.

"Not fast enough," growled Sharpfang, ripping off part of his ear."Change the mouse brains, who are our elders, Silentsong and Shortwind's bedding."

He started to pull off a long face, but quickly changed his mind. No one messed with the Lone Fang.

He padded to the medicine cat den.

"Thrushflight, Wingfeather, I need mouse bile," he called.

"For the elders, I suppose?" Thrushflight meowed.

"Yup," he replied.

"Here. When you're done, wash your paws in a stream," meowed Wingfeather.

He nodded, padding to the elders' den.

"Come, let me tell you a story," old Silentsong croaked.

"So, there was this cat who died whose's name was-" began Shortwind.

She winced at the mention of her died.

*Maplestar had jumped at the ShadowClan warrior. That warrior...he had fought viciously, and strength flowed inside him as he dug his claws into Maplestar's throat deeply, killing her without attaining any wounds. Maplestar's eyes glazed, her body convulsed, she gasped out her last breath, buckling in agony. Her head hit the ground with a 'thud'. Fluffykit's mother was d-e-a-d dead! His legs trembled with emotion as he stared in horror.*

*A yowl of fury erupted as another cat bolted into the clearing. Jaguarclaw! Relief spread through Fluffykit as his father flung himself into the clearing. Another cat slashed him, grabbing him with a claw and dragging Jaguarclaw towards him. He stood in horror as the cat bit into his father's throat. Fluffykit looked in surprise as a little cry rang out. Fogkit and Deepkit! He stared in horror as his sister and brother piped up.*

*"You killed our parents!" squeaked Fogkit.*

*"You are mean cats. Bad, bad, mean cats!" squealed Deepkit.*

*Before he could coax them to join him in the nursery again, the cats exchanged a look, rolling their eyes. He realized what they were going to do, but he was too late. Claws sliced through the kits' throats, and they fell to the ground.*

*He saw his uncle and aunt jumped towards them. Uncle Alderleaf and Aunt Hopewish. A crowd of cats pounced on them, and not long after their bodies lay torn to shreds.*

*A small white she-cat pouted, "Hey, that was mean!"*

*A tortoiseshell she-cat complained, "Now we're orphans!"*

*They growled, biting the throats of the two little kits.*

*Fluffykit stood shocked. His mother, father, uncle, aunt, siblings, and cousins were dead. It was because the Clan was too weak! If he ruled, not that many cats would die. Everything would be perfect. Fluffystar-actually, that sounds weak too. Before I go to the Moonpool, I'll change my name. I don't know what to change it to yet, but, anything will be better, than well, Fluffystar. That sounds like a kittypet name!*

"Fluffypaw?"

He snapped back into alert and saw the elders.

They let out huffs of annoyance. "Our ticks are still there!"

Forcing himself not to spring at the two cats, he sheathed his claws and nodded. He dipped the moss in the mouse bile, patting Silentsong and Shortwind's  backs.

"Thank YOU!" they meowed, "Run along now, Fluffypaw. I don't want to catch you dilly-dollying again next time you get rid of our ticks."

Fury swelled up inside of Fluffypaw, and a voice whispered in his ear. *Cats like that are mouse-brained. Are you going to stay here or kill?*

*Stay here,* he thought.

*That's a weak answer,* growled the voice.

*I don't care,* he shot back.

Fluffypaw padded out of the elders' den, to a stream.

He dipped his paws in, the cold water seeping through his fur as he forced himself not to draw back. After a while, he stood up and slipped.

*Whoops,* he thought. *Glad Sharpfang didn't see that! He would kill me for sure.*

*He really would,* the voice murmured.

He rolled his eyes in annoyance. The voice was so annoying!

*Careful what you think,* the voice hissed, a sly note sliding into it.

He stiffened. *Who are you?*

*Rather not say until you're older,* the voice whispered back.

He rose up to his paws, a growl rumbling through his throat in pure fury, trying to shut off his connection to the voice-obviously a she-cat.

He could feel the voice slipping away as he shook his fur. Finally!

He bolted back to camp, the lush forest whispering phrases to him that he couldn't catch. Well, he didn't care for the phrases anyway! Especially after having that annoying voice in his head. He relished the fact that the voice was gone, hiding a small smile as he padded towards Sharpfang.

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**Hey guys! I usually don't do this, but that she-cat has appeared in my books before! Take a guess who she is! Alright, Dreamcloud out. Bye dreamers! Enjoy the next chapter when it comes out, and hopefully, the rest of the book!**

Chapter 6

"I'm going to teach you how to hunt," Sharpfang growled, "don't mess up."

He crept up on a mouse, pouncing on it and nipping its throat.

For once, thoughtfulness and pride flashed in Sharpfang's eyes, then flashed back to his sharp amber eyes.

"Okay for once," meowed Sharpfang. "Again. Don't worry about thanking StarClan for the prey. Everyone knows they're petty kittypet mouse-hearts."

A young squirrel was starting to scuffle around a tree, slowly creeping in as he dropped into the hunter's crouch, pouncing on it. He bit on its throat before it could let out a shrill shriek that would split the silence.

Sharpfang nodded. "Off to camp. Now."

Chapter 7

Fluffypaw climbed to his paws, racing out of the camp. *It's the dawn patrol.*

He heard a rustle in the bushes.

A kittypet!

He leaped forward, slicing the kittypet's throat as the cat fell to the ground with a thud. Dead. Relish spread through Fluffypaw's body as he saw the dead body.

Two rogues padded by, and he jumped at them, quickly biting their throats. He was as nimble as SwiftClan.

He caught up to the patrol, padding back to camp.

Chapter 8

Fluffypaw padded back to camp.

"Fluffypaw! Let's practice fighting moves," Sharpfang called.

"Okay!" Fluffypaw called back.

They padded to the mossy area.

Immediately, Sharpfang jumped at him, sweeping his legs across and causing him to fall, then doing a flip through the air, and pouncing on him before he tried to roll out of the way. Teeth sank into his flesh as Sharpfang rolled him over. Fluffypaw lunged at him, darting under him and yanking his tail, causing Sharpfang to fall. Sharpfang used his weight to roll him over again, slashing his muzzle. Pain filled Fluffypaw, but he stubbornly continued to fight. Sharpfang pinned Fluffypaw to the ground as Fluffypaw went limp. Sharpfang loosened his grip as Fluffypaw jumped to his paws, rearing onto his hind legs to attack Sharpfang. Sharpfang nipped his belly, flinging him across the clearing as Fluffypaw desperately slashed Sharpfang's flanks. Blood began to spill out of the wound, but Sharpfang ignored it. Fluffypaw twisted under Sharpfang, pouncing on him from behind. He bit into Sharpfang's tail hard, Sharpfang shaking him off. *Thud.* He jumped onto his back, digging his claws into his fur. Sharpfang let out a screech of pain, and for the first time, he noticed his long claws. He kept holding on and bit off part of Sharpfang's ear. Sharpfang slashed open his cheek as Fluffypaw stumbled back. He started to jump towards Sharpfang again. Time swept by quickly, and inwardly Fluffypaw moaned. Dry blood stuck to his fur, his body ached, and scratches littered his body. His paw was almost broken, and from new wounds, blood was filling the ground in a pool of blood, which seemed to be taunting him, *"Ha, ha! Look at you, weirdo!"* His fur bushed, in anger at the little voice. And the annoying she-cat came back, all right.

*You're so weak! You wouldn't stand a chance in battle! Sharpfang's being quite kind to you-I would have killed you by now,* the voice hissed.

Fluffypaw let out a low growl. *I'm an apprentice, what do you expect?*

*A weak apprentice,* shot back the voice.

*There are apprentices that are weaker than me!* he retorted.

*There are apprentices that are STRONGER than you! How do you expect to become the leader of ThunderClan? How would you be the strongest leader? The leader is bound to choose someone else!* snapped the voice.

*How do you know what I want? Why are you bothering me?* he thought.

*Because weak cats need cats to guide them, why else?* snarled the voice.

His eyes narrowed in passionate anger. "I'm not weak!"

Sharpfang spat, "You are, alright! In your actions! I didn't even say anything, stop making things up!"

He bounded over, slicing his nose. "Do not question me. Do not dilly-dolly. Is this clear?"

He nodded numbly.

*You're a mouse-brain,* sang the voice.

He shook his head fiercely. He couldn't pay attention to this voice. She had gotten him into trouble.

*That was your decision!* the voice meowed.

He dug his claws into the moss, staring at his mentor. All healthy, a few wounds that he shrugged off. The back wound had turned into a spot of dry blood.

He forced himself to continue fighting, lunging at his shoulder, but Sharpfang swatted him away with one of his massive paws.

He sat there, stunned and vulnerable as Sharpfang started sending flurries of blows to his chest. He slashed right above Sharpfang's eye as blood dripped into it. He started attacking his mentor again, a fierceness gleaming in his eyes until Sharpfang shook the blood away and started attacking him again.

He could sense the she-cat snapping at him again. *You're so weak!*

*Why are you this annoying?* he snapped back.

The voice hissed, *I'm not annoying, you are!*

He dug his claws into the moss again, shredding it.

He felt bile rising into his throat as he gulped it down again.

The battle continued. Sharpfang was relentless. He felt like he was slammed into the ground one billion times, hit by a monster, stuck in a prisoner den without food for 100 moons, and thrown all the way back only to be mauled by a badger, attacked by a fox, almost drown, and thrown to the mossy clearing he was in now.

Sharpfang held up his tail. "I'll take it easy on you. We'll stop for now."

Fluffypaw nodded, his belly growling with hunger. It was almost dawn, and he had skipped 3 meals. Sharpfang slashed him once again.

"Don't show weakness," he snapped.

Fluffypaw, too tired and terrified to object, agreed.

*He's taking it real easy on you. I would shred you to pieces, and send you to your death if it was me-* the voice started.

He mentally sent a fierce glare to the cat, who ignored it. He tried to shut off his connection to her, which he failed in. He felt a low grumble of anger in his throat, but he kept a normal face, because if he didn't Sharpfang would attack him again.

He kept his mouth shut as he padded back to camp.

Chapter 9

...Fluffypaw, and Sharpfang! Alright! Get ready for the Gathering!"

Fluffypaw bounded to the Gathering. There were so many cats!

A while later, they padded back to camp.

(Haha, short chapter and no details because I'm LAZY! Bye dreamers!)

Chapter 10

Fluffypaw stretched, padding out of camp. Moons past and the young tom was 12 moons old.

He was on a hunting patrol with his mentor.

He slowly crept in, pouncing on a mouse. He bit its throat.

He gathered his prey-a mouse and thrush and brought it back to camp.