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As she reentered the main part of the Cave, Skystep went to the middle of the Cave to mourn for the lost warriors, Lionfang and Hawkclaw. Their mother, Softpelt, was wailing into the night with sadness and pain of losing her only pups. Sharktooth, their father was trying to sooth his mate as best he could, but it was obvious that he was in as much pain as his mate. You see, unlike the wildcats of the Forrest of Secrets, wolf fathers keep a strong bond with their pups, for the fathers train and mentor their pups. Skystep went up to Hawkclaw, who was her friend when he was alive, and layed down beside him and pressed her snout against his already stiff body. What did this to you,old friend? What happened to you and Lionfang?! Cold tears fell from her eyes. She felt a soft prodding against her flank. Skystep looked up sadly and saw that Shadowedsoul had joined her. He smiled at her weakly. "Are you okay?" Skystep stiffly rose to her paws and faced her mate. "not really. What could have done this to them?" Shadowedsoul shook his head from side to side. "My mother said it could have been anything. We will have to wait till Featherfoot and Sireneyes are better so they can tell their account of what happened." Skystep nodded in understanding. Both female wolves were very injured. They would have to rest for a while. Shadowedsoul licked Skystep's head affectionately. "Come on, lets get some fresh-kill. We haven't eaten since dawn! Plus we have to pick out a den for us." Wolves of the Forrest of Secrets chose dens for them and their mates within the Clan's camp or cave. If a wolf didn't have a mate yet, they had to live in a den by themselves. Before Skystep had become Shadowedsoul's mate, she had lived in a den with her mother and her father. The pair picked a den closest to the warmest part of the Cave. As Shadowedsoul set up the nest of moss for them, Skystep went over to the fresh-kill pile to pick out a few pieces of fresh-kill that would sustain them until they were able to make a fresh-kill pile for themselves in their den. she picked out a couple of rabbits and two ravens. As she padded back to the den, she saw that a lot of other wolves were already returning to their dens. Everyone in the clan was scared and upset at the loss of Lionfang and Hawkclaw. Skystep turned into the den. Shadowedsoul had pulled two nests made of moss and feathers he had gathered from an eagles nest that was outside the Cave. Skystep put the pile of prey on the side of the wall of their mini-cave. She brought Shadowedsoul a raven and picked out a rabbit for herself. As they sat eating, they began to discuss what could have killed Lionfang and Hawkclaw. "It could've been VampyreClan, you know they can't be trusted." Skystep thought about this for a few moments, then replied,"No. It couldn't have been them. Didn't you see Lionfang and Hawkclaw's wounds? They had bite marks and burns. Vampyres don't burn their victims, they slash them open and drink the blood. Their blood was wasted. If a vampyre did this, both warriors would've been drained of their blood." Shadowedsoul thought about this for a moment, then said," So it could've either been DragonClan warriors, warriors from Tribe of Harpies, or Tribe of DeathBringers warriors. What're we going to do to figure out what did this to them?" Skystep shook her head hopelessly. "I don't know. But for the time being we should make sure that Masivestar knows about what happened." Shadowedsoul nodded in agreement. "But, first we need some rest. You've had a long day." Skystep nodded in agreement. "So have you. Good night." She licked Shadowedsoul's muzzle then settled into her nest and within moments she had fallen into a deep sleep. As she dreamed, the mountains she lived near became bright and warm with newleaf. She knew immediatley that she was dreaming. Butterflies flew in their crazy way in the bright blue sky. Skystep let the warm newleaf sun soak into her fur. As she expolored more, she got the unmistakable feeling of being watched, and turned around to come face-to-face with a vampyre. A common fear came over her. The vampyre must have sensed her fear, for she said,"There is no reason to fear me, young wolf. I'm hear to help you." Skystep let out a whoosh of air in relief. "Who are you? Why do you wantto help me?" The vampyre sat down on a large boulder. "My name is Luna Jin, High Priestess of the Tribe of Vampyres. I want to tell you that vampyres did not kill your friends. I know what killed them. It is a new enemy that is a threat to all the Clans and Tribes here in the Forrest of Secrets." Skystep said," I knew vampyres hadn't done those horrid things to Lionfang and Hawkclaw! But what is this new threat?" Luna shook her head," I do not know, young warrior. All I know is that all creatures in this forrest are in grave danger." Skystep looked down in frustration. Then an idea brewed in her mind. She lifted her head and faced Luna," Luna, I have an idea. We need to get all of the Tribes and Clans together and call all of our ancestors to aid us in unmasking this threat." Luna thought about this idea for a moment, then replied," That is a brilliant idea, young warrior!" Skystep grinned at Luna. "This is going to be hard, but it has to work. By the way, my name is Skystep. It is nice to meet you,Luna." Luna placed her fist over her heart in the strange way vampyres greet each other. "What a strong and lovely name for such a strong and lovely warrior. I believe it means One Who Steps In The Sky. Am I right?" Skystep nodded her head in awe. " Thats exactly what it means!" Luna laughed at Skystep's awe. "You'll learn, young warrior, that vampyres have a strong intuition. We know things you'll think that we wouldn't know about our friends and enemies. In fact, I know you have recently chosen a mate. Congratulations." As the words left her lips, Luna began to fade. "I shall bring some of my warriors to your Cave in a few hours, to talk with your leader. We shall meet again, young Skystep. Feel free to tell your leader,Massivestar, that message. Merry meet, Merry part, and Merry meet again!" Luna completely faded away. As the newleaf forrest began to fade away, Skystep awoke in her and Shadowedsoul's den. Shadowedsoul was still asleep, snoring softly. Skystep got up quietly, as not to wake him. She left the den and padded softly toward Massivestar's den. Almost all of the den was awake. before she entered, she gave a low growl of welcome. After a few moments, the familiar bark-of-greeting. Skystep entered the warm den and saw that her leader was sitting up, grooming himself. He paused in his grooming and said," What is it, Skystep?" Skystep gulped down her nervousness and began. "Um, Massivestar, I had a dream last night and I spoke with Luna Jin, High Priestess of the Tribe of Vampyres." Massivestar's eyes glittered with interest. "Luna Jin you say. What did you two speak about?" Skystep continued,"Well, first she said that vampyres weren't responsible for Lionfang and Hawkclaw's death and the attacks on Featherfoot and Sireneyes. Neither were any other Tribes and Clans." Massivestar's eyes lost their intinal doubt. "Thats good. What else did Luna say?" Skystep said,"Well, she said that there was new threat in the Forrest of Secrets. That threat could spell the end of the Tribes and Clans. She also said that her and some of her warriors were going to come her to talk to you about what we should do." Skystep waited for Massivestar to explode with rage at this, but her leader remained as calm as usual. "Hmmm, I beleive this is a good idea. I'll tell the Clan to be on the lookout for a patrol of vampyres and guide them to the Cave." Skystep nodded and backed out of the den. When she had exited the den, she let out another whoosh of air. "Thank you, Massivestar." Massivestar nodded his head. "Your very welcome,Skystep. Now, go and get something to eat." Skystep nodded respectfully and left the den. Instead of going to the fresh-kill pile, she went out to go hunt. As she reached the top of the cliff, she caught the scent of rabbit. She located the rabbit as soon as she scented it. Skystep tracked it to a couple of bushes. She crept up to it and jumped and killed it with a swift bite to the back of the neck. Another rustling alerted Skystep of more prey. She followed the rustling to a young harris hawk. She timed her kill strike perfectly. The young bird of prey didn't even had time to look up before its life was ended. As she buried her catch to collect later, Skystep picked up the scent of another prey. A kestrel was shuffling hopelessly on the ground. Its right wing was badly injured. Skystep made quick work of it. What a great hunter I'm becoming!,she thought to her self,I might even be better than Stalkingfox himself! As she buried the kestrel for later, Skytep picked up an unfamiliar scent. She carefully followed it to the edge of FierceClan territory. As she sat there wondering what the scent was, a familiar face appeared out of the brush on the other side of the scent marker. Luna Jin! Her and a couple of other vampyres were coming toward the FierceClan border. "Why, hello there, Skystep! How are you today?" Skystep nodded toward the mound of freshly dug up earth. "Just doing a bit of hunting. Its so nice to actually talk to you in person,Luna!" Luna nodded in agreement. "As it is to you, young Skystep. This Fyre Hearten, Gretchen Grin, and Erin Freestar." As she said their names, each vampyre nodded to Skystep. "Its very nice to meet you all. Please follow me to the Cave so you can speak with my leader,Massivestar." As she led them toward the Cave, she paused to pick up her kill. "That is a fine catch,Skystep. Here let us help you." Luna took the rabbit from her jaws and placed it in Fyre's hands.
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