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"Kali! Kali! Tell us another story!"

Two little mollies fixed their intrigued gazes upon the slim, cream tom standing before them. His elongated muzzle pointed in their direction with a smile carved across it, he seemed amused by the kits. The way their whiskers twitched with every movement and their paws trembled and itched with excitement. They glanced up to him, grins stretched across their face as they awaited a reply.

His gaze flickered over to where two mollies sat watching. Jupiter, the kits' mom, and their caretaker, Naak, observed from a few foxlengths away. Naak's own kits, Aart and Abha, had scrambled over as well, eager to learn what the fuss was about. Kali's ears twitched and he beamed, his tail flicking to and fro as he spoke up.

"Have you ever heard the tale of Rinka? She was Astéraki's mate, and she deserves just as much recognition as he does," Kali started, the kits leaning forward as he continued on. "She met him on the journey to the sacred lands and they instantly fell in love. In fact during the times where Astéraki was ill, she helped lead the Guardians against a ravaging pack of coyotes. She was the one who proposed we name ourselves the Guardians of Astéraki. After he passed, many looked to her for leadership but she did not value herself as a leader. She instead let their son lead, and she continued on until she sacrificed herself to lead away a bear from the camp."

"A bear!?" Zita exclaimed, her eyes round. "Bears are so scary! I want to be brave like Rinka one day!"

Ziva rolled her eyes at her sister, cuffing one of her ears. "Not on my watch! I want to be Rinka!"

Aart and Abha merely blinked, the older tom kits scoffing at the she-kits' behavior. Kali smirked though, obliged to be telling stories to the youth of the Guardians. They enjoyed it and it kept them on their paws and out of the shadows from where the eldest kits murmured about battle and hardships. He winced when thoughts of AsterClan threatened to intrude his mind, but he was thankfully saved by Naak and Jupiter approaching them.

"Come on! It's time for you all to get some rest," Naak meowed, casting Kali a look of gratitude.

The kits groaned, agitated by the sudden demands of Naak. As her tail beckoned them inside of the nursery though, they followed swiftly after her. Kali watched after them until he felt Jupiter's pelt linger alongside his, his gaze wandering over to the mackerel molly.

"The kits really like you," Jupiter purred, meeting Kali's gaze as she chuckled on. "Your sisters won't keep their jaws shut about how they love your stories and your games."

Kali could only smile in response to Jupiter's words. Zita and Ziva were only his half-blood sisters, but they still meant every whisker he had to him. Jupiter on the other paw he hadn't necessarily warmed up to. He could feel his blood boil and his body grow tense whenever Adonus referred to her as his mother. Jupiter was not his real mother, but she still looked after him with keen eyes and a caring attitude. She was sincere and sweet, but the thought of his mother being replaced left a foul taste in Kali's mouth.

"How about you go enjoy some prey with your friends? A hunting party just returned and I saw your friend Dante already settling down for a quick bite," Jupiter suggested, giving Kali's shoulder an amiable shove.

Kali nodded and parted from Jupiter's side, but he could feel the mollies gaze boring into the back of his head. Perhaps he should have at least granted her a little purr or have chuckled in response to her word about the kits. Jupiter always seemed utterly disappointed when Kali would easily dismiss himself from any faint conversation with her. He cursed at himself under his breathe as he padded away, his tail streaming behind him.

The camp was lively at this time, hunting parties returning and scouting patrols delivering their reports to Adonus. He watched as his father stood upon the Pointed Pillar, a few guardians reporting their observations to the Chief. Meanwhile, other cats wandered about the clearing that buzzed with conversation, whether it was bemused chatter about current conflicts or gossiping amongst the eldest Guardians. Kali's ears perked and he bathed in the atmosphere that surrounded at him. No matter how much there was to worry about, being within camp always left Kali feeling comfortable and safe.

As a hunting party tossed their catches into the prey pile, Kali spotted Dante lingering there with Echo and Val at his side. Kali had been companions with Dante and Echo since they were kits, and although Val was slightly younger the feline eventually befriended them as well. Dante's stubbed tail wiggled and he glimpsed over his shoulder, smirking at the sight of Kali approaching them.

"Kali!" Dante mewed as Val picked a shrew from the pile and Echo followed his gaze. "How were the little menaces today?"

Kali scoffed at Dante's question. He stepped in between the tom and Val, casting the ginger feline and Echo a friendly nod. "Just the usual. They were eager to hear so many stories. Soon enough, they'll know more than even the Serenities do," Kali snickered in reply.

"Want to share?" Val asked, beckoning to the large shrew at their paws. Kali nodded to the ginger tabby as he settled next to them, Dante speaking up again as he did so.

"Every time I see those little furballs scurrying across the camp and causing trouble, I can't help but thank Astéraki I'm not a father," Dante hummed.

Kali glanced sideways at Dante and Echo as Val took the first bite from their shrew. He noticed how vexed Echo appeared by Dante's words, the small molly quickly nudging him to get his attention. Dante glanced her way and his ears pinned to the back of his head as he noticed her frustrated expression.

"Well, not a father yet," Dante chuckled sheepishly.

Kali snorted at his friends as he turned back to eye the shrew. His mouth watered and he quickly sunk his teeth into it's flesh, the taste satisfying as it lingered in his mouth. He chewed slowly and savored every moment, Val clearly hysterical over his behavior. "Do you ever eat, Kali?" Val asked, the Heir glancing over to him as he finally swallowed. "You savored that bite as if it would be your last!"

"I eat when I can," Kali simply answered, his gaze wandering away from his friend as he took another bite.

It was the unsettling truth to Kali. Ever since AsterClan had been regularly traveling across the border and stealing their prey or starting skirmishes with Guardians, prey was a little scarce. There was enough to feed most mouths, but most of the time Kali found himself hunting later in the day to feed others empty bellies and the tom never tending to his own hunger. Luckily the patrols had returned with enough prey for every cat today, and Kali felt as if he hadn't tasted even a feeble mouse for moons.

Most of the Guardians were growing tired of AsterClan's malicious intentions though. Dante was one of the few who was eager to rip his claws across an AsterClan squirrel-brain's face. Kali remembered the several times him and Dante had bickered during a patrol when they encountered AsterClan cats stepping over the border and antagonizing them. As much as Kali wanted to end the surging conflict as well, he did not want to risk any Guardians' lives. None of them were prepared for war yet, and it would be too risky to stir up more trouble.

As Kali and Val finished their shrew, they noticed Dante and Echo conversing in a hushed murmur beside them. The two of them were now smiling with their tails drawn over one another's. Kali and Val shared a knowing look, a grin pressed across their muzzles. It had been obvious for the last few moons that Echo and Dante were growing feelings towards one another, and it amused Kali when they tried to act oblivious whenever their friends teased and mocked them.

"You two are so cute," Val teased with a light mrrow.

Dante flashed Val a glare, while Echo only traced a paw across his ears and nodded to Val. "Thank you, Val," Echo replied, nudging Dante afterwards. "Dante doesn't seem to think so."

"What!? I never said that," Dante exclaimed, his neck fur fluffing out of obvious embarassment. Echo only giggled at his reaction and he snorted at the little she-cat. "I think we are perfect together."

Kali rolled his eyes at his friend, prodding Dante's shoulder with a paw. "Oh yeah? Then why do you try so hard to act as if nothing is going on between you two?"

"I just-"

"Zahra! Adonus! Help!"

Kali leapt to his paws at the clamorous yowls that erupted from the entrance to their camp. His friends quickly followed, the fur along their spine bristling as their gazes latched onto the cats that rushed into camp. Paloma took the lead, her frantic cries echoing across the camp as Sable and Cael followed behind her, an injured molly between them with blood matting her white pelt.

"Orchid!" The familiar cry of the Vótano fledgling, Zahra, called from her den as she rushed towards the band of Guardians. Kali's eyes widened and the tom bounded over, his gaze examining the wounded molly.

One of her ears were shredded, along with the mollies tail. She was brutally battered, scars webbed across her body that seeped with blood. Her teeth clenched and her eyes were squeezed shut, pain shadowed across the Vótano's face. Kali's eyes were round with trepidation, but he instantly stepped forward and directed orders to help the injured molly.

"You two!" Kali started, his voice loud and sharp as he beckoned to Sable and Cael. "Help escort Orchid to her den and do whatever Zahra asks you to do to help." The two nodded and as Zahra fell into step beside them, Kali turned to face Paloma. "What happened?"

"We were returning from a quick scouting patrol when we heard Orchid crying out for a help. A few, mangy AsterClanners had rushed over the border and ambushed the innocent she-cat!" Paloma scowled in reply, anger dripping from her voice like icy cold water streaming down the side of a chiseled rock. "Luckily, we were able to reach her and chase them off but... Kali, her wounds are fatal. She's lost so much blood already."

Kali's ears fell and his face dropped at Paloma's words. Anxiety made his heart throb with every breath but before he could reply to the she-cat, Adonus stepped over and lowly growled a direct command. "Kali, go help Zahra and the others. Paloma, explain to me everything that happened."

The Heir nodded to his father, whirling around on his paws and bolting over to the Vótano den. Many cats had gathered near, worry flitting about in the murmurs they shared with one another. Kali passed through them though as they parted to make space for the tom, panic causing his chest to throb and his head to ache.

He entered to Vótano den, a shiver sliding across his spine as the air around him grew cold and dense. Sorrow hung in the air like snowflakes during leafbare and he slowly stepped forward, every step heavy with his paws growing tremulous. His jaw hung open as the scent of rancid blood filled his nostrils, stimulating the Heir to wince.

Kali noticed Cael and Sable standing off to the side, bewildered and shocked by the sudden events. His gaze flitted over to Zahra, the smaller she-cat desperately trying to communicate with Orchid. She paced to and fro, examining their herb storage as she begged Orchid to not let sleep consume her. The white molly was drenched in blood though, her chest heaving with every ragged breath that escaped her.

Zahra applied some poultice to her wounds as she messily dressed cobwebs over them. Kali noticed the she-cat pause and falter with every step, panic leaving her pelt bushed and her eyes stretched wide. Orchid only groaned with every desperate plea Zahra spoke, the mollies form even shaking with a few, exasperated gasps for breath.

The Vótano fledgling peered over at Cael and Sable, snapping at the two Guardians. "Go fetch some soaked moss! We need to keep her hydrated and awake!"

The two nodded and broke off in a sprint, but Kali's gaze remained attached to Orchid. The Vótano trembled with every movement she made, pain suffocating her once vivacious presence. Zahra swiveled her head back towards Orchid, her gaze darting to and fro as she searched for more wounds to dress.

"Orchid, I need you to-"

"Zahra," Orchid rasped. The white molly reached out a trembling paw, laying it over one of Zahra's as her fledgling stared at her, horrified. "P-Please stop."

Zahra stared down at Orchid's blood stained paw and glanced over her shoulder for a moment at Kali. The Heir held his breath as the fledgling met his gaze. She was still so young with so much left to learn, so Kali knew she was terrified by the thought of losing Orchid. The Vótano and Zahra had grown so close throughout her training and Kali flinched at her pained expression. The black and white she-cat turned back to her mentor though, shaking her head to dismiss Orchid's plea.

"You're j-just... wasting herbs," Orchid breathed out, struggling to speak without groaning out in agony or slurring. "Astéraki i-is here with m-me... now."

"No!" Zahra cried out. Kali could only watch with his muzzle pointed to the earth below and his ears low as Zahra begged for Orchid to stay alive. She frantically rummaged through the herb storage, peering back at her mentor with every blink. "I can save you. I can help you! Orchid-"

The air fell still. Chilling and suffocating.

Orchid released one, final exhale, her paws twitching as her eyes slowly shut. Zahra turned back towards the Vótano, her eyes mirroring every possible emotion in correlation to terror and melancholy. Cobwebs fell from her grasp and danced towards the surface below her, her jaws gaped as she realized the treacherous end of the situation dwindling in her paws.

Kali's gaze was fixed on the fledgling, who's tail fell to skim the earth below. He could hear the rest of the Guardians outside the den fall silent and the sound of pawsteps growing closer ceasing. He could only guess that Cael and Sable had returned, but the petrifying, rancid scent of blood and death kept them cowering outside of the den. Kali sighed and approached Zahra, parting his jaws to speak to her but the fledgling simply ignored his presence.

Zahra stepped over to Orchid's limp body, crouching alongside her. The fledgling leaned in closer and buried her muzzle in the blood soaked fur lining the Vótano's neck. Kali swallowed his words and hung his head, deciding it was best if he kept silent and allowed Zahra to mourn the loss of her teacher and companion.

"There is still so much I need to learn," Zahra mumbled. "She was such a great teacher. She taught me everything and at the same time, she granted me a sense of stability and... friendship. No cat like her deserves this to happen to them. She didn't deserve this!"

Kali silently agreed with Zahra's words, pain and anger spiraling inside of the tom. Why would AsterClan harm an innocent Vótano? She was only out to fetch a few herbs for their supply and they crossed the border, ambushing her as if she was a vile, rabid fox scavenging within their territory. The thought had frustration boiling within Kali and his paws itched to batter the apprehended form of an AsterClan cat. If they could harm a sweet, sensible molly like Orchid, then they truly deserved not even a foxlength of mercy.

He remembered the many Guardians they had lost to skirmishes with AsterClan. Guardians with families or even fledglings to train. Now as Zahra cried over the devastating loss of her mentor and dearest friend, Kali sought for revenge that felt sour on his tongue, yet relieving to his heart.

"Antío fíle mou," Zahra whispered to the fallen Orchid, her voice soft yet wretched with sorrowful sobs.

Kali kept his gaze locked onto his paws as he bowed his head. Orchid was now bounding about with the rest of their ancestors and the benevolent she-cat was most likely euphoric to finally be seeing Astéraki, body molded of stars and a smile promising her an everlasting home. She had no wounds to fret about or clean any longer, but now Zahra was left with an overwhelming feeling of loneliness and many responsibilites tied to her like the web of a venturing spider.

The Heir felt his heart ache. An exhale fleed his body, his breath dispersing into the air as if it was a signal for help, faint and gone in an instant. He glanced up for the final time at Orchid's lifeless body and he shivered as he spoke softly, agony lacing his ragged voice.

"Goodbye, my friend."