Countless bubbles flew around Larkwing, seemingly close enough to touch and yet so far away. She hung weightlessly in the air — if one could even speak of air here. Below her, the infinite crevice from which mysterious violet rays shone out seemed paradoxically dangerous and inviting at the same time.

Although it was only her second time in this wondrous place, Larkwing immediately felt much safer. Perhaps it was because she already knew what to expect.

Okay, all right, then. Look for a bubble whose contents might prove useful to us. Concentrating, Larkwing paddled around, careful not to touch a bubble and get drawn into it against her will. Just as she had to be careful not to accidentally push it away. It seemed that the bubbles reacted to her presence and barely noticeably sped up as they flew past her. As if they had something to hide.

If the situation hadn't looked so serious and if she hadn't had an important task, Larkwing would have loved to take the chance and experiment to what extent she could use these great flying skills here. She wanted to do loops, try to fly backwards and simply test everything she could think of. Being born as a cat and not a bird meant that she was unable to take to the skies and see the world from above, no longer bound to the earth.

Perhaps that was the reason why she was so fascinated by this place. It gave her the opportunity to feel like her namesake. She just had to remember that it wasn't really happening, since it was all in her head.

That got her thinking. Is this really just some kind of dream, like Crowshadow claimed?, she asked herself. I don't even understand how I got here. It's clear that the stone is doing something to get me into this dimension. The only question is how and what?

Then she shook herself and pulled herself out of her thoughts. It would be better if she didn't ponder it so much and simply accepted it. Even though her curiosity yearned to find out everything about the Ancient Stone and its magical might.

Banishing any thoughts of flying to the back of her mind, Larkwing concentrated on examining the bubbles again. She saw both memories that she had remembered well and experiences that she had forgotten.

There was her first day as an apprentice, for example. She remembered exactly how Fernpool had sent her alone through RoseClan territory. Back then, she had found it exciting to explore the Forest Mountains without the company of an adult cat. However, she probably wouldn't do the same if she had an apprentice one day. At least not before the danger from the Shadowless had been averted. Although they only ever attacked the camps and not patrols, she wasn't comfortable with the way they appeared unnoticed every time.

Another bubble showed the moment Lakepelt had begun to shed his dislike of Larkwing. Back then, they had been Larkkit and Lakepaw, and pushed by Goldenshadow and Elderpelt — or Elderpaw in that case —, they had been forced to spend more time with each other and accept that they were Clanmates who had to rely on each other.

That had annoyed Larkwing so incredibly that she had continued to pick on Lakepelt in the absence of other cats, just as he had picked on her. One day, she had just blurted out that she hoped he would get a really boring and simple name. The fact that Lakepelt wanted nothing but a really boring and simple name, however, had thrown Larkwing off so much that she had stopped talking to him out of shame.

Funnily enough, that had been the turning point and the initial rivalry had slowly but steadily developed into a kind of friendship. Today, Larkwing was glad that they had been able to get along. There was a very special emotional connection between them, a kind of love that had never been romantic in nature, but also didn't really fulfil the typical expectations of friendship. At least that was how Larkwing sometimes felt. So far, she had been content to describe their relationship as platonic. However, this word was sometimes too ordinary, not quite appropriate. Their bond with each other was almost on a transcendental level, or so it seemed to her.

Maybe I'll just invent my own word if there's nothing suitable. For example... transcendental-platonic!, she thought, shaking her head. Wait, no, that's so stupid. What a long and complicated word. It's probably not good for my brain to linger here too long.

Eventually she banished these thoughts from her mind and continued to search the bubbles for anything that didn't show her own past. It soon became apparent, however, that it would be easier to find a particular leaf on a tree. She had the feeling that the more she focussed on finding a bubble that had something to do with the Shadowless, the more difficult it became. The number of bubbles had seemingly tripled by now and they were literally racing out of the crevice past Larkwing, giving her no chance to get a closer look at them.

She was beginning to feel queasy. How much time did she have left in this otherworldly dimension? The first time, she had regained consciousness when she was thrown out of the memory by herself. But what if she simply never entered a memory? Would she still wake up at some point?

Larkwing took a few deep breaths to calm herself. Okay, think. Think, think, think...

That was when an idea occurred to her. If the right bubbles didn't come to her, she would simply summon them. It sounded crazy, but until she tried it, she had no way of knowing if it might work.

Larkwing closed her eyes and forced herself to think of the Shadowless. Of their bloody, cratered bodies. Of the pieces of spine that had ripped out of their backs. How they had appeared unnoticed every time, killing cats and then suddenly disappearing, as if they were listening to an order in the distance.

She thought of the fear she had felt every time she had met them. She thought of the grief and helplessness that froze her body as she watched cats die.

The emotional chaos that soon took hold of her seemed so realistic that it almost took her breath away. "No... They bring death... and despair. They... they must not even exist... and yet they are here."

The whisper sounded so clear and distinct, so close, that Larkwing's eyes widened in horror. But she was still alone in the endless, unfathomable expanse.

She let out an aggrieved sigh. None of this was any use. They would never be able to unravel the secrets of the Shadowless. Looks like we'll have to force the ruin cats to talk after all. Larkwing was still against the idea, and she hated having to admit that they might not have any other choice. Time was running out for them. Soon it would be full moon again and that meant they were already a whole moon away.

Sluggish as a butterfly, a bubble tumbled over Larkwing's head. She barely managed to flatten her ears and prevent herself from being drawn into this memory. Her gaze refocussed on the crevice beneath her.

Something had changed in the few heartbeats in which she had closed her eyes. Now she realised what it was.

The bubbles floated much more slowly and no longer retreated from her. What's more, their number had largely decreased, which drew Larkwing's attention immediately to a single bubble.

A bubble that looked very different from the rest. Its size had doubled, if not tripled. Several smaller bubbles were attached to it and it was strangely dark in colour.

Without hesitating, Larkwing flew straight towards it. Secretly, she prepared herself for it to float away from her, but it did not. Quite the opposite: it even stopped so that Larkwing could take a good look at it.

With an oppressive feeling where her heart was, she realised that thick storm clouds veiled the inside of the bubble. Every now and then, small flashes of lightning flashed and — Is that thunder? — and Larkwing backed away reflexively.

At the same time, she was unable to tear herself away from the bubble. In some mysterious way, it exerted a strong attraction on the she-cat. It almost seemed as if it was calling, begging her to come and enter a still unknown memory.

This bubble did not belong here. It was probably a sign that Larkwing would see something other than her own past in it. Cautiously, she approached it again. At the sight of the chaos that reigned in the bubble, she felt queasy. Her fur prickled unpleasantly from muzzle to tail tip, as if ants were running over her. An unmistakable sign that her gut was warning her.

Oh no, I'm going in there now! With a determined spirit, Larkwing pushed herself forwards. There had to be a reason for the sudden change in this intermediate dimension and for the appearance of the anomalous bubble. Even if it turned out that it didn't show what Larkwing was looking for, that would still be a small success. It would allow her to find out whether there were also bubbles that held strange memories.

Her paws were just touching the outer shell when a dazzling white burst of light illuminated the surroundings and she was speedily pulled whirling into the past.

Barely a heartbeat later, she was floating in the middle of nowhere, between impenetrable dark, almost black clouds. As she tried to gasp for air, she was overcome by a violent coughing fit. A pungent, unpleasant odour hung in the air, making it practically impossible for her to breathe. Instinctively, she immediately realised what it was.

Fire. A huge fire was raging in this memory. It also meant that everything around her wasn't just clouds, but thick clouds of smoke that were choking her lungs.

Screams suddenly shattered the silence. They sounded odd, not like the noises cats make. There was a tremendous amount of anguish in them — mortal anguish even, which drove their vocal chords to their maximum power.

Distraught, Larkwing tried to recognise something through the masses of clouds and smoke. In vain, for the grey-black wall hid her view of the earth. The acrid taste of the smoke settled in her mouth and she had to clench her jaws tightly. As she did so, she was shaken by another series of coughing fits.

StarClan, stand by me! She couldn't think of anything else at that moment. Twilightwing, my ancestors — and the ancestors of all the other cats — stand by me. Please! And help me to understand what has happened here. Normally, she wasn't the kind of cat who particularly relied on StarClan for guidance and protection. It was important for her to make her own decisions, independent of dead cats. Right now, however, despair held her firmly in its cold grip. She couldn't help but at least pretend that StarClan could reach her here.

More noises joined the screams. Among them was one that sounded like claws scratching over stone, only much, much louder.

What drowned out nearly everything, though, was a long, thunder-like drone. It made Larkwing's whole body vibrate, forcing her black, ginger-cream and white fur to bristle. The sound pierced her to her very core, incomparable to anything she knew, causing her panic to take on new, more tremendous dimensions.

And then she saw them, mere outlines beneath the clouds of smoke. Numerous black tentacles coiled in the air like giant snakes. A light wind came up and blew the smoke away, not much of it, but enough to reveal a huge, flattened, round black object, of which the tentacles seemed to be a part.

The drone sounded again, while four golden-white beams of light shot into the sky from the surface of the unnatural thing with a barely perceptible delay. Holes were briefly torn in the cloud cover, only to be covered again too quickly.

Larkwing was about to open her mouth and let out the scream of her life when she realised the cramping feeling in her chest again and let it go. So what I just saw wasn't a real thunderstorm! She started to feel dizzy. It can't be a real thunderstorm! The lightning always comes before the thunder. Frozen, half in fascination, half in fear and ignorance, she couldn't tear her green-blue eyes away from the huge monsters. How immense must be the power of this... this thing if it can create its own thunderstorms that are not subject to the laws of nature?

The wind continued to drive the smoke away until it opened up a view of the horizon. Behind several shattered and crumpled skydens, Larkwing spotted another huge, unnatural object in the distance. It reminded her of a tree that had lost all its branches and leaves — in short, it was barely a trunk.

Surrounded by a white cloud, it ascended and trailed a fire streak beneath it. At unearthly speed, it headed for the cloud cover.

Just as it had broken through the grey, no less than ten tentacles shot upwards, tearing the huge, trunk-like object back to earth with a crash. Upon impact, it shattered into countless pieces that were hurled through the air as it burst into flames with a deafening roar.

Almost simultaneously, the shockwave reached Larkwing and, blinded by all the smoke, she was thrown backwards with full force.

And then the nightmare was over.

Gasping, she found herself in the cave of the Ancient Stone. Still with the smell of smoke in her nose and the droning and screaming in her ears, she rushed to the opening outside. The lush green foliage of the trees rustled soothingly. The air was fresh and clean and the only thing she could hear was the lively chirping of a few birds.

I am back. Everything is fine. I am fine.

Larkwing slid down the rocks to a ledge and from there catapulted herself forwards with a mighty leap. The whole of StarClan seemed to give her a tailwind as she dashed through the forest.

This time, what she had seen did not fade. Rather, it burned itself into her memory. She could still feel the overwhelming panic, see the clouds of smoke before her inner eye. She hadn't seen what she was looking for, but it was still important information. Because now she knew what had happened here, far outside the Clan borders. Even though there were still many unanswered questions.

For example, when this tragic event had taken place. Where the huge monsters with the tentacles had come from.

Her body shuddered. And above all, who or what had screamed like that back then.

"Guardian! I have something to discuss with you."

Caught off guard by the call, Larkwing stopped. Sunray stepped out from behind a tree. Her bright green eyes were narrowed suspiciously.

"Oh. Um, hi." Larkwing tilted her head in puzzlement. What is she doing here? "Long time no see."

Sunray looked her straight in the eye. "I assume you were just at the Ancient Stone," she said with a strange undertone.

Larkwing's perplexity grew ever greater. "That's... that's right," she confirmed hesitantly, stepping from one paw to the other. "It's my job, after all... As a prophecy cat."

All at once, Sunray bared her fangs threateningly. "You're abusing its power," she hissed tensely. "You've seen it, haven't you? You were supposed to be denied it, but you had to find out the secret."

What is she talking about? Larkwing backed away, her fur ruffled. There was no way Sunray could know what kind of memory she had seen.

"I didn't see anything!" Larkwing objected. "Well, at least nothing that—"

With her eyes glowing fiery, Sunray hurled herself at her. "You'll regret this!" was the last thing Larkwing heard her screech before her head hit a root hard and she lost consciousness.