"Are you quite sure this is where he lives?"

"Yes, Scourge, I am certain this is the place. I caught a glimpse of him in the window the other day."

Darkstripe pricked his ears as he heard the sound of voices coming from outside the Twoleg nest. He turned his head in the direction they were coming from curiously. It wasn't the first time someone had passed by, but this time, it sounded as though they were looking specifically for his new residence. He felt a spark of hope in his chest. Perhaps Tigerstar had finally found a way to rescue him after all. Still, a twinge of doubt lingered in the back of Darkstripe's mind. Neither of the voices sounded like any of the cats he had known in ShadowClan.

Maybe he decided to ask the other Twolegplace cats for help? the dark gray tabby wondered. It didn't seem like something that Tigerstar would do, but he supposed that desperate times called for desperate measures.

A few moments of silence passed before the first cat grunted, "Is he going to come out?"

"Let me try," the second cat answered. He pounded against the side of the Twoleg nest and called out, "Hey! Forest cat! Are you in there?"

"What do you want?" Darkstripe snapped back, bristling with indignation at being called forest cat instead of his name. Although, I suppose I can't blame them. After all, they don't know who I am or anything about the Clans beyond whatever tales kittypet queens like to tell. They couldn't be expected to know my real name.

"Come outside. We have a proposal for you," the stranger meowed.

Well, I guess that answers the question as to whether Tigerstar sent them to rescue me or not.

"I can't," Darkstripe replied irritably. "It's impossible for me to get out of here."

"No, it's not." It was Scourge who spoke this time. "Your housefolk's door has a cat flap. I can see it right now. Just push on it and you'll be able to get out."

Now Darkstripe was embarrassed. He had been cooped up in the Twoleg nest for what felt like seasons, waiting for Tigerstar to save him, and all this time he could have escaped on his own. Feeling his fur grow hot, the dark gray warrior rose to his paws and walked in the direction the voices were coming from. Almost at once, he spotted the cat flap that Scourge had mentioned, and he felt even more embarrassed. How could he have missed something so obvious?

As he pushed his way outside, Darkstripe noticed two toms sitting a few tail-lengths away, their tails curled neatly around their paws. They must have been the cats who had called for him. The first one was an almost comically small black cat with blue eyes like chips of ice and a single white paw, and the second was a large black and white tom that reminded Darkstripe vividly of Barley, the loner from the barn outside of Clan territory. Both cats were wearing collars around their necks; however, Darkstripe shivered when he saw that the two strangers' collars had dogs' and cats' teeth sticking out of them.

Great StarClan, who are these cats? he wondered. Out loud, he meowed, "What did you need from me?"

The black cat stepped forward. "Greetings," he meowed, his voice high and cold. "I am Scourge, the leader of BloodClan, and the tom with me is Snake. As we mentioned before, we have a proposal for you."

Darkstripe narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "BloodClan?" he repeated scornfully. "Don't make me laugh. There are only four Clans–ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan, and ShadowClan."

"You are correct in a sense," Scourge meowed, dipping his head. "There are only four forest Clans. However, I have spent many seasons forming a Clan of my own, one that consists of cats from the city."

"Right," Darkstripe scoffed. "Well, I'm afraid I can't do anything to help you. I am the deputy of ShadowClan and it's time I got back home. I've been away from my Clan for too long already."

Scourge's eyes narrowed into slits of anger for a few heartbeats, his lip curling in displeasure. Darkstripe tensed his muscles, preparing himself in case the smaller cat decided to attack. A moment later, however, the black tom relaxed again.

"I understand your hesitation," he replied in a voice that made it clear he was attempting to suppress his temper. "However, I assure you that if you help us, you will be rewarded greatly for your service."

Darkstripe had to admit that Scourge's proposal held a small amount of appeal for him. He wasn't about to give in so easily, however. After all, Tigerstar had promised to make him his deputy as a reward for his loyalty, yet it certainly hadn't felt like one. He paced back and forth for a few heartbeats before turning to speak to the two BloodClan cats again.

"Alright," he meowed finally. "Let's say for an instant that I do agree to help. What exactly is it that you need me to do?"

"It's nothing too difficult," Scourge answered. Darkstripe wondered why Snake had bothered coming along if he wasn't going to say anything. "I have some business to settle with a cat from the forest Clans, and a few...sources have told me that you were once a forest cat yourself, which you have now confirmed for me. So tell me, are you familiar with a cat named Tigerpaw?"

"He's called Tigerstar now, but yes," Darkstripe replied warily. "And just why do you need to know this?"

"To put it simply, we have a score to settle." Scourge's eyes narrowed menacingly and Darkstripe had to fight hard not to flinch at the cold hatred that blazed in them. "Tigerstar has wronged me and I intend to see justice served."

Russetfur followed Fireheart as the ThunderClan deputy led her in the direction of his camp. An awkward silence hung in the air between them, and she guessed that the flame-colored warrior was uncomfortable with having one of Tigerstar's warriors on his territory. In a way, she supposed that she couldn't blame him. If she were in his place, she knew she wouldn't be pleased about taking the deputy of a Clan that had allowed an attempted murderer to become their leader into her camp.

She had been uncertain at first about following Tigerstar's plan to take over ShadowClan when sickness ravaged their camp, sure that StarClan would punish them somehow. After making the mistake of following Brokenstar, she had sworn never to ally herself with another cat like him ever again. But moons of living as a rogue had taken its toll on Russetfur, and she had been given no choice but to follow Tigerstar–Tigerclaw then. If it was a choice between starving to death and displeasing a few dead cats, she would happily take the latter.

As time had passed, however, there were no signs of anger from her warrior ancestors. Indeed, things were running as smoothly as ever in ShadowClan, at least from her perspective. Tigerstar was a good leader and seemed content with his position. Soon, Russetfur had found herself relaxing. Surely, she thought to herself, the fact that everything was going well was proof that Tigerstar had StarClan's blessing.

"How much longer?" she asked Fireheart, breaking the silence.

Fireheart twitched his tail irritably. "Not much farther," he replied shortly. He shot her a glance through narrowed eyes. "I don't know why Tigerstar insisted on sending you here. He should know by now that we aren't going to send Bramblepaw and Tawnypaw to ShadowClan."

"He is aware that your Clan is...unwilling to agree to his demands," Russetfur agreed, nodding.

"Then why bother?" Fireheart repeated.

"I don't know for sure myself," she admitted, twitching her ear. "Nobody really knows the way Tigerstar's mind works, not even the cats who are closest to him. But ShadowClan just recovered from a devastating illness, so as long as they have a strong warrior to lead them, they won't ask too many questions."

"So that's why they allowed a bunch of rogues to take over?" the flame-colored tom snorted.

Russetfur didn't answer, knowing full well that anything she said would only displease the ThunderClan deputy even more. Fireheart turned away from her as well, and the two cats continued walking in silence. Trying to distract herself from the tension brewing in the air, Russetfur allowed her eyes to travel around the forest. While she would never admit so to anyone, ThunderClan territory was far superior to ShadowClan's. The woods were rich and green, perfect for prey to make their homes in, unlike the dark, dreary forest and marshland in ShadowClan territory. But ShadowClan cats were the best night warriors in the forest, and their territory was perfect for that. Russetfur would gladly take being able to hunt and fight amongst the darkest shadows over getting a few extra pieces of fresh-kill any day.

Suddenly, Fireheart stopped dead, nearly causing her to crash into him. She sputtered indignantly, but the ThunderClan warrior ignored her. His ears were pricked and his eyes were narrowed at something in the bushes a few fox-lengths away.

"What are you doing?" Russetfur snapped.

Instead of answering her directly, Fireheart bounded forward in the direction of the bush. Confused, Russetfur watched as he slashed his claws at it and was even more bewildered when the bush let out a howl of pain. As she raced over to see what was going on, a dark gray tabby tumbled out in front of her. The fur along her spine prickled in shock as she recognized Darkstripe.

"Darkstripe!" Fireheart snarled, his green eyes flashing with fury. Russetfur suddenly remembered that Darkstripe had murdered Rainkit, the son of one of the ThunderClan queens, Willowpelt. "What do you think you're doing here?"

Although Darkstripe was bigger than Fireheart, he cowered in the face of the fiery ginger tom's anger. His fear stench threatened to choke Russetfur, and the contemptuous look on Fireheart's face told her that he could smell it as well. His claws were pinned against Darkstripe's throat, and for a moment, Russetfur wondered if he would kill the former ShadowClan cat.

Evidently, Darkstripe was wondering the same thing, for he meowed pitifully, "Don't kill me, please."

"You have some nerve, asking me to spare your life when you so callously murdered a kit," he snarled. Russetfur couldn't help agreeing with him. "However, you're in luck today. As much as I think you deserve to have your throat torn out and your corpse fed to the rats, I won't deny Willowpelt the satisfaction of killing you herself. So you get to walk free today, Dirtstripe, but watch your back from now on because when I tell her that I saw you today, she will stop at nothing until she manages to hunt you down."

"Y-yes, Fireheart, I understand," the tabby stammered.

Fireheart nodded curtly and stepped off, allowing Darkstripe to get back to his paws again. He did so shakily, giving his chest fur a few rapid licks before turning to Russetfur with a curious expression in his eyes.

"What are you doing here?" he asked. "You haven't gone to join ThunderClan, have you?"

"No," Russetfur answered sharply. "I'm here on Clan business. Tigerstar named me the new deputy of ShadowClan after you were chased out."

Darkstripe stiffened visibly, and for a moment, Russetfur thought she could see anger, hurt, and betrayal in his eyes. But the dark gray tabby relaxed and forced his expression into one of neutrality before she could be entirely certain of what she saw. He stepped back, dipping his head to her.

"Congratulations," he meowed. "I'm certain that you will do a fine job."

Without another word, he turned around and bounded off toward what Russetfur knew from experience was Twolegplace. She stared after him in confusion, then glanced over at Fireheart, who still looked as furious as ever. After a few heartbeats, the two deputies continued on their way, the silence still hanging as thick and heavy in the air as ever. As they walked, Russetfur's mind kept wandering back to Darkstripe's behavior when he learned that she had replaced him as Tigerstar's deputy.

What in StarClan's name was that all about?

Scourge and Snake were still waiting when Darkstripe arrived back at the Twoleg nest. When they saw him approaching, the self-proclaimed BloodClan leader rose slowly to his paws and padded over to meet him. His eyes were as cold as ever, but there was a hint of arrogance to them now, and Darkstripe guessed that Scourge already knew what his answer to his proposal was going to be.

"So, what do you say now?" the small black tom asked.

Darkstripe lashed his tail. "I'm in."

This is the final chapter of Echoing Flames: A Dangerous Path. I'll be posting the new story as soon as I can find the time.

Thanks for reading!

-TheShadowedWarrior