an//
So I haven't updated in a loooooonggg time v sorry. I recommend going back and rereading if you've forgotten wtf is even going on rn.

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"Lightspark? Lightspark!" Smokeflood scrambled back to her paws. The big white ThunderClan tom was writhing a tail-length away, static still lingering in the air from Lightspark's electricity-charged bite. All of a sudden, the weight of the situation landed on her shoulders. He told me not  to go in yet-- this is all my fault. While they seemed to have gotten the upper-hand, the silvery tom lay unconscious at her paws, and the other cats on the patrol seemed pretty beat up as well. She stood over the patrol leader's body, looking out to the other cats. He wouldn't have been hurt this bad if I would've waited for an easier fight like Lightspark had wanted. We all wouldn't have been hurt. Smokeflood shut her eyes tight before blinking them open.

"Just hang on, Lightspark," she whispered to him. He didn't respond.

The white ThunderClan tom was regaining control, but he still was unsteady on his paws. His eyes, pinkish-blue, narrowed in on Lightspark's vulnerable form.

"He hurt me. And you hurt the earth...! I'll claw you both up!" His eyes seemed.. full of hurt. She tipped her head up slightly. Hurt the earth? What is he even talking about?

She stepped in front of Lightspark and lowered slightly. The water had stopped raining from back when she had let it fall; all that was left was the shallow flooding of water that hadn't been able to be reabsorbed back into the earth. He moved forward then, water sloshing with the movement, and his lip curled back to reveal sharply pointed teeth. Her own body protested standing, still tired from the big lift of all water she had performed. I can't give in yet. I'm the one who jumped out to start the fight. So I can't give in, not until we win.

The white ThunderClan tom didn't even bother to move the earth, he charged right at her with sharp speed. I have to hold my ground, I can't let up a whisker-length. She swished her tail, and in a curtain-like motion the water replied by rising and splashing the tom with a sharpness. It slowed him down for a second, and in that second Smokeflood sloshed forward in the flooded forest floor, claws unsheathed, and summoned more water to her side. It rose up to follow her like the spine fins on a fish, creating with white peaks until it was a tail-length tall. The white tom regained his sight from being splashed and resumed his onslaught, however too late. With a flick of her tail, the crest of the water responded and bore into him, relentlessly pushing with more and more water until he was splashed onto the ground. She leaped forward without waiting a beat, continuing to use the force of the water to hold him down. The gray warrior pushed her claws into his chest, and he whimpered sharply.

"What's happening with the RiverClan cats you took prisoner?" Smokeflood hissed. The white tom turned his head to the side, refusing to answer. She dug her claws in. "What's happening to them?!" Eelpaw. I'll save you. I promised Mintstar I'd protect my clan, and you're stranded in enemy territory. I won't let you die.

"You hurt the ground— you made it choke!" He growled, referencing to when she had collected all of the groundwater and started the downpour. She blinked.

"I did, and I'll do it again and again until you tell me where my clanmates are!" The big, icy earth Warrior's face snapped up in surprise.

"N-no! No, no! You can't! The cats we took are all ours now, that way there can be ThunderClan warriors that can use water." ...What..? Wait...no way. No way. "They're queens now in our camp, and they're going to have kits for us to have." Her heart hammered heavily against her chest. They're using my Clanmates for kits. Even non-elemental RiverClan warriors have a chance at having water elemental kits just because of how it's passed on. Sometimes it skips a generation. So... they probably just picked Eelpaw because of how she looks. Her mind traced over the image of the sleek, pretty night-colored she-cat, and she bowed her head. I won't let them abuse my clanmates like that.

"And Mintstar? What's happening with her? Is she alive?" The white tom turned his head again.

"Yes. But I don't know what Pearstar is doing. I can't say anymore, I've said too much."

Smokeflood raised her paw, claws sheathed, and with a small trail of water coming to back up the force of her next hit, she smacked her paw down onto the side of his head. He fell limp and passed out. She shakily took a step back, her eyes scanning around the clearing for Lightspark. Her eyes fell on a mound of sopping wet silver pale fur. She trudged through the water to him, looking him up and down. His eyes cracked open, and he blinked slowly.

"Smokeflood...?" he whispered. He saved me earlier.

"I can't let you die," Lightspark panted. "Deerskip would be so mad at... me...." And then he had passed out over her. Her pelt warmed, and she ducked her head.

"Are you okay? Were you poisoned at all?" He shook his head.

"No, no. Help me up?"

She nodded, and he struggled to stand up. She pressed against him, and used a wave of water to gently push against his other side until he was on all fours. He blinked heavily. "The others..?" There was a caterwaul of victory.

"Take tha' you shriveling, filthy earthworms!" Coalpelt's triumphant screech echoed through the woods. Lightspark smirked and flicked his tail, and they moved together to where the others on the patrol were grouped. Slatepaw had a proud look on her face, blood almost dripping into her dull blue eyes from a new gash in her left ear.

"Lightspark, Smokeflood! You should've seen Slatepaw's ember technique, Darkblaze would conceal her and then she'd blind the enemy! It was awesome!" Smolderlion praised, purring brightly. He blinked and nodded slightly.

"Let's get back to camp," he meowed weakly. Coalpelt nodded in agreement as he favored his hind right leg.

"Yeah, we all look pretty bad. You especially, Light." He murmured sympathetically. The patrol set off back to where they came.

+++

They pad back in mostly silence, Smokeflood thankful to be far from the earthy smell of ThunderClan and instead in the sharp smoky scent of ShadowClan, increasing as they neared the camp's entrance. Sunset light lit their now-dry pelt up with a warm golden glow and stretched their shadows to be long.

"Maybe Cherrystar will make me a warrior now. After all, I did better than even Smokeflood, and she's supposed to be the best RiverClan's got."

"I'm far from the best," Smokeflood meowed gruffly as she supported Lightspark. He raised a brow with interest. I never thought I'd say that. But... looking back on the last half moon, I've come a long way. I'm far from the best.

"You both contributed a lot to that battle," Darkblaze input, giving a side-eye to the tortoiseshell apprentice. The chocolate and ginger she-cat flicked her tail.

"Well, maybe before the moon rises tomorrow you'll all be calling me Slatefire... or Slateblaze. Or Slateslash!" She purred. The guard at the entrance stood as they entered with shock on their face.

"Did you guys fight ThunderClan?!" He barked in shock.

"Yeah, you should see the other guy!" Smolderlion meowed proudly, and the injured patrol ducked into the thin opening in the thick fern and bracken walls. The camp was full of cats, and all eyes were already looking toward the entrance with interest, as the scent of blood was carried on the wind.

"Someone get the medicine cats!" A cat shouted. The patrol limped toward the hollow stump of a fallen pine that served as the medical center, where ShadowClan's medicine cats were quickly getting ready for the incoming injured.

"What happened? Is ThunderClan coming for us too?"

"No, I think these are Deerskip's battle patrols.

"He's going to lead all of our warriors to their deaths on those patrols!"

"Is that that RiverClan apprentice?"

"Lightspark went?"

Smokeflood touched her nose to Lightspark's ear cautiously. He had grown much weaker over the walk back to camp; he leaned heavier into her and his breathing had gotten shallower.

"Smokeflood?! So help me StarClan, do not tell me you were just at that border fight!" As soon as she stepped into the den, Laurelstep was shouting at her from where he lay in his nest, still too hurt to stand. The black ShadowClan medicine cat, Cherrytongue, immediately was there to relieve her of Lightspark's weight and to lead the small, light-furred tom to a nest. Smokeflood took a step forward toward her clanmates, trying to explain, but the shadow of a large warrior fell on her. She lowered to the ground as Pearlfrost lumbered over her. A cold air hung over him as he looked down.

"You didn't tell me you were going on a battle patrol! I cannot explain how-- how livid I am right now, Smokeflood!" The massive, snowy deputy glared with a fiery coldness at her. The new, fresh scar over his right eye somehow increased how scary he seemed.

"I--I--"

"Pearlfrost, get back to your nest! You shouldn't even be standing right now!" Leopardnose chastised, hurrying over. "I have all these warriors to treat, I'm not going to start retreating any wounds you open." Leopardnose followed the deputy's gaze to the bloodied Smokeflood, and a whine erupted from him.

"Smokeflood! StarClan, what is wrong with you?! I've had to treat you more times than I can count in the last moon! Why did you go fighting again?! You're the worst patient in the first place!" the RiverClan medicine cat raised a paw to cuff her over the ear, but thought better of it. "Go lay down, I'll get some herbs for you. Go. You're giving me a stress induced headache!" The mottled gray warrior retreated to a moss nest lined with pine nettles next to Pearlfrost, which was close to Laurelstep.

Pearlfrost narrowed his green eyes with some unknown emotion, like he was angry but a soft fondness erased the hateful part of the anger.

"We could've lost you," he pointed out with a huff. Smokeflood gave a small nod, watching two ShadowClan medicine cats hurriedly work on Lightspark's wounds across the medicine den.

"I didn't mean to worry you. I just... I wanted to help out the clan. They wouldn't have made it without me," her hazel eyes looked up in full seriousness to the cloud of fur that was the deputy. "I'm serious. I gave them a window to freely rush at ThunderClan without any earth attacks to stop them. I could only do it for a moment, but it gave us a huge advantage. Lightspark might've died if I hadn't."

Pearlfrost breathed out, as if expelling the disappointed anger, and then nodded.

"I bet you did an amazing job at protecting them," he murmured, mostly to himself.

"Lightspark saved me. I don't even know what would've happened if he hadn't jumped in." Pearlfrost fixed her with a soft look. Leopardnose had returned, and started manipulating a small stream of water to wash the dirt out of the wounds.

"Next time... tell me. I want to make sure you're safe. It's what Mintstar would've wanted."

"Speaking of Mintstar...," Smokeflood looked to Leopardnose. He's our medicine cat. He can know. "I don't think this should be passed on to the other cats, but I got information on what happened to our warriors are that were taken prisoner." Pearlfrost pricked his ears. "They're... being used." Smokeflood closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "They're being used so ThunderClan can have water elemental kits be born." The deputy grit his teeth.

"That makes more sense on why they chose who they did. They took several she-cats, a few toms, and our queens who were expecting kits. I thought it was strange they didn't want queens who already had kits, though, but that makes sense...," Smokeflood tipped her head to the side with confusion. "It's harder to brainwash a kit who was already born into another clan and witnessed a bloodbath caused by your claws. That's why they didn't take Honeybreeze or her kits."

"That's messed up," she whispered, setting her head in paws. Leopardnose applied a poultice that stung, and she shut her eyes from the feeling. The black-spotted auburn tom murmured an apology.

"One of the warriors I fought looked just like Laurelstep," she said loud enough for the tom to hear a few nests away. He picked up his head with interest.

"Really?"

"Yeah. He had the same lavender eyes, and he looked just like you. He was an earth elemental."

"Alright, Smokeflood. Enough talking, it's time to get some rest. These wounds need to heal." She blinked in annoyance at the request but complied anyway, her eyes going across the den to where Lightspark lay slathered in poultices and cobwebs. Slowly, she felt herself drift off, and dreams consumed her.