Clear Sky looked around the other cats. “If she shows any signs of disloyalty, it must be reported to me. Immediately!” He waited until Petal nodded and Leaf blinked in agreement.
Fircone and Nettle shifted their paws uneasily.
“Immediately!” Clear Sky showed his teeth.
They gave hasty nods.
“Quick Water?” Clear Sky glared at the gray-and-white she-cat.
“I won’t need to report her.” She glared back. “Falling Feather would never be disloyal.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Any cat may give Falling Feather orders. Any cat may take her prey if they wish. She is lower than a snake until she has earned our trust again.”
Falling Feather’s eyes sparked with hurt but she didn’t argue. Quick Water moved closer to her friend.
Clear Sky flicked his tail. “But we have more important things to discuss.” He looked down at Fircone and Nettle. “Some cats have been questioning my decision to expand our boundaries.” He saw Nettle unsheathe his claws defensively. His warning had been heard. Content, he softened his tone. “I want to put your minds at rest,” he soothed. “It’s for your own good. Can’t you see that?” He nodded toward the trees crowding the camp. Blackened trunks showed among them. “The fire destroyed much of our territory and it will take time for the forest to recover and prey to return. We need more land to hunt until it does. And with Thunder and Frost gone and small mouths to feed…” He glanced toward the yew. Birch had crept from the shadows and was staring up at him while Alder tugged his tail between her teeth, trying to haul him back beneath the branches. Clear Sky went on. “We need to claim as much territory as we can.”
Leaf frowned. “Claiming territory is one thing,” he called. “How do we keep it?”
Clear Sky flexed his claws. “We patrol our borders and we fight any cat who crosses them.”
“Even Gray Wing?” Quick Water tipped her head. “He’s your brother.”
Fury surged from Clear Sky’s belly. “He attacked me! He accused me of murdering the kittypet Bumble!” Outrage spiked his pelt. “Me! Murder a kittypet?” He flicked his tail toward Birch and Alder. “I rescue cats, I don’t kill them.” He pressed on before anyone could remind him how the kits had lost their mother. “These are dark times, and the cold season is not yet here. We must work together to build a strong, safe home!”
“Together! Together!” Petal chanted eagerly.
“Together!” Leaf joined her.
Fircone joined in with the black-and-white tom. “Together!”
Clear Sky’s chest flooded with pride as the cats yowled their support. Even Quick Water and Falling Feather joined in, though their eyes watched their new mates warily. So what? He knew that building loyalty and trust among his cats was going to take time. But it would be worth it. By next warm season, the forest would belong to them and they would be well fed and safe. We must be strong. Clear Sky lifted his chin. “Let us train until no cat can outfight us!”
“Train?” Leaf stared as the other cats fell quiet around him.
“We will practice fighting until we’re better than any rogue or moor cat!” Excitement rushed through Clear Sky like wildfire, his thoughts spiraling. If we share our skills and our strengths, we’ll be able to protect our territory. “Nettle!” Clear Sky leaped from the rock and circled the gray tom. “I want you to fight Fircone.” He padded toward Fircone and nudged his mottled gray shoulder. “Go on,” he urged. “Fight!”
“I don’t want to hurt my friend!” Nettle objected.
“Then keep your claws sheathed,” Clear Sky told him. “I just want you to show us your fighting technique.” He nodded to Leaf and Petal. “We can watch.” He beckoned Quick Water and Falling Feather closer with a flick of his tail. “And we can learn your skills, then show you ours.”
Leaf was nodding. “Great idea, Clear Sky. I bet they have moves we don’t know.”
Petal leaned forward. “And I have moves they can learn.”
“You can fight next,” Clear Sky promised, exhilarated to see his cats so eager to share their skills. He blinked at Fircone. “Are you ready?”
Fircone nodded, his amber eyes shining. “I’m ready.”
“Me too.” Nettle whisked his tail and dropped into a crouch.
Fircone narrowed his eyes and faced his friend.
Clear Sky padded across the clearing, nudging Leaf, Petal, Falling Feather, and Quick Water back until there was a clear, wide circle for the two young toms.
“Can we watch?” Birch was straining against Alder’s teeth as she tugged on his tail.
“Yes.” Clear Sky purred indulgently. “You’re never too young to learn.”
Quick Water flashed him a disapproving look. He ignored it. Hopefully, she’d change her mind when they grew into fearless, skillful fighters.
He stepped aside as Birch and Alder hurtled forward and skidded to a halt beside Petal.
Fircone’s tail was sweeping the earth behind him as he stared at Nettle.
Nettle narrowed his eyes, muscles twitching beneath his pelt.
Fircone leaped.
Nettle reared and met him in midair. The thump of their bodies as they clashed rang throughout the camp.
They dropped. Nettle landed on top of Fircone and, raising his forepaws, slammed them down onto his friend’s shoulders.
Breath burst from Fircone. He rolled, bunching his hind legs and kicking out as Nettle reared to hit him again.
His back paws caught Nettle on the chin and thrust him backward.
Petal darted out of the way.
Alder and Birch stared frozen as the huge tom careened toward them.
“Move!” Petal ordered.
Shrieking, they scattered like mice, escaping a moment before Nettle collapsed heavily onto the ground beside them.
“Finish him, Fircone!” Clear Sky goaded.
Fircone had already leaped to his paws, rage burning in his eyes. He clearly hadn’t expected Nettle to attack him so forcefully. Hissing, he leaped at his friend.
Nettle scrabbled to find his paws too late.
Fircone hit him hard, smashing him to the ground.
Growling, Nettle curled like a caterpillar and grabbed Fircone’s hind paws as the mottled tom reared. Clamping his jaws around his friend’s leg, he tugged until Fircone staggered and fell. “No one finishes me!” With a hiss, Nettle dived for Fircone’s throat, teeth bared.
“Enough!” Clear Sky darted forward and grabbed Nettle’s scruff. He tugged him back. “We don’t hurt each other.”
“He tried to hurt me.” Nettle glowered at Fircone.
Fircone glared back. “I was defending myself!”
“You both fought well,” Clear Sky praised. He was pleased to see such ferocity. If they were this fierce with friends, how fierce would they be with enemies? “That was a good move, Nettle.” He nodded approvingly at the gray tom. “Fircone wasn’t expecting you to grab his hind legs.” He turned to Fircone. “And you moved well in the air. You must teach us all how you managed to twist like that.”
“I used my tail,” Fircone told him.
Leaf tipped his head curiously. “How?”
“I’ll show you.” Fircone dropped into a crouch. “When you leap, the twist starts in the tail-tip. If you flick it right, it’ll alter your balance just enough.” He leaped, twirling as he streaked through the air, then landed gracefully on his paws.
Nettle leaned forward, rage giving way to curiosity. “I didn’t know you could do that.”
“Try it,” Fircone encouraged eagerly.
Clear Sky sat down. The friends’ anger was forgotten already. They were only interested in learning how to fight better. Satisfaction warmed his pelt. They were skilled cats. And, with training, they’ll be deadly.