A grey figure, barely audible in the blazing fire, blocked the path to a fire-safe ground.

"You tore my heart out when you chose Brambleclaw over me."

If he had felt any pain whilst saying this, he hid it well.

"But your kits, if you watched them die, then you would feel the same pain I did."

An orange she-cat, pale green eyes blazing, bared her lips in the start of a snarl.

She lifted her head high, gazed locked onto Ashfur's.

"Kill them then. You won't hurt me that way."

She walked away from the three cats behind her, exposing them to Ashfur's claws.

"They are not my kits."

Ashfur twitched, and them tilted his head back high, letting out a long, rasping laugh.

"Ha! I bet you're only saying that to protect them!"

He unsheathed his claws.

Squirrelflight met his gaze unflinchingly.

"They're not my kits. They're Leafpool's."

Ashfur froze for a spilt second, surprised at Squirrelflight's sudden comeback, before shaking himself out of his trance, and laughing again.

There was a deathly silence.

Without warning, he sprang for the black she-cat near him, who had Firestar's brilliant green eyes.

Hollyleaf was staring at Squirrelflight in horror, and had not noticed Ashfur's claws meeting her pelt.

Ashfur dug his teeth into Hollyleaf's thoat, squirting blood over the two other transfixed cats.

Then, he ripped out her throat with his claws as she let out an ear-splitting shriek.

Lionblaze was the first to move.

He shoved Ashfur off Hollyleaf, before rushing over to her side, using all the effort to trap the blood flowing freely out of Hollyleaf with his large paws.

Hollyleaf wheezed, before the rising of her flanks had come to a halt.

Her eyes had rolled to the back of her head, fur matted and sticky with thick red blood.

Lionblaze and Squirrelflight let out mournful meows, and soon after realising what had been done, so did Jayfeather.

Ashfur leaped onto Lionblaze, raking him fiercely.

It was as if he had raked the thin air, for Lionblaze's thick skin was not harmed at all.

Ashfur smiled, nodding as Lionblaze threw him off at once.

"I forgot. You're one of the Three."

Lionblaze's eyes widened, as did Jayfeather's, and Squirrelflight's eyes clouded in thought.

"No warrior would take notice if a senior warrior was to stand outside the leader's den," Ashfur began, spitting at the three.

"Perhaps, to discuss their recommendations for who should mentor the next kits, or the border patterns."

Lionblaze and Jayfeather started shaking.

"And all I had to is slip away after what had been said. Any questioning clanmate would know what I had to say was not worth waiting for."

Squirrelflight snarled at Ashfur.

"You're evil! A stalker!"

Ashfur tutted, eying Squrrelflight with hunger and longing in his gaze.

"I knew that your filthy mate Brambleclaw had a bad influence on you, but I didn't think it was this bad."

Ashfur snarled, baring his sharp yellowing teeth.

"I've been studying those kits ever since you came back with them."

He turned his head towards Lionblaze.

"Oh Lionpaw... you wouldn't dare think about hurting your own mentor, would you?"

Lionblaze stared at Ashfur, and his neck fur started bristling.

"You aren't my mentor. You're not the Ashfur I know."

He sprung for Ashfur, but Ashfur simply dodged and grazed his tail, before leaping on his back, digging his claws into Lionblaze's thick fur.

"I know your every move, Lionblaze," he hissed, shredding Lionblaze's ear with his teeth.

Lionblaze tried the move he did earlier, by trying to throw him off, but Ashfur was ready.

He slid off his pelt and lunged straight for his throats with his claws.

The skin broke, but did not yet yield blood.

"Hollyleaf was easy," Ashfur taunted as Lionblaze gasped for breath.

"She obviously didn't have a power."

Lionblaze's eyes flared, and he leapt for Ashfur again.

Squirrelflight stepped forward, fluffy tail curled protectively around a cowering Jayfeather.

The fire was closing in on them now, a fox-length from singeing their furs.

"Lionblaze. Don't attack. He might kill you too," she whispered, choking back tears.

Lionblaze made small eye contact with what supposedly used to be his mother, away from Ashfur's snarling insults and dangerous gaze.

"But he killed Hollyleaf," he growled.

"He said she was weak."

Ashfur seized the opportunity and dug his teeth into Lionblaze's stomach, ripping out a pawful of fur, before shoving him harshly to the side, winding him.

He dug his claws into Lionblaze's heaving stomach as his struggles grew weaker.

Squirrelflight whisked her blazingly hot tail.

"Ashfur, we won't made it out alive! The fire!"

The fire bore down on the two physically unharmed cats, and a burning sensation rippled though their skins, thrashing both of them forward.

Ashfur glanced at Lionblaze's thrashing body. He was almost fully recovered and able to breathe.

Ashfur unblocked the log path to safety.

"Go ahead."

Without thinking, Squirrelflight grabbed Jayfeather's scruff and flung him across to the other side before following.

"Come on Lionblaze!" Squirrelflight encouraged, though it was obvious she had doubts.

"It's safe over here! Keep fighting-" Her encouragement died down immediately, jaws gaped in horror as Ashfur kicked Lionblaze into the open fire, and as he shrugged nonchalantly.

He stayed in his spot until Lionblazes's dying screams satisfied him, before climbing over and kicking the log out of place, making it fall into the ditch.

Jayfeather yowled mournfully, shaking all over. He knew he was next.

Squirrelflight curled around Jayfeather, at the same time baring her teeth at Ashfur.

The change in the log placement had temporarily stopped the fire in it's tracks, but it still neared them as it crawled into the ditch.

Jayfeather pressed his side again Squirrelflight's, hoping for the same comfort he had received as a kit in the nursery, but it wasn't the same.

Nothing was ever the same.