In the time of the great clans lived a great tiger named Marl. Tigers are normally orange with stripes of black, but instead of orange Marl was as white as the snows of Leaf-bare. She was well known among TigerClan where she served as a young warrior to be a good hunter, but a lazy cat. She took short-cuts whenever possible, like dumping soiled bedding just outside camp instead of far away by the dirtplace like an apprentice who had not listened. She hunted close to the Twoleg place and even occasionally brought home as freshkill the ones that wandered into the territory.
On one of these trips close to the border she met one of the large and dangerous Lynx in the woods. Lynx are thieves and tricksters, the most dangerous sort of rogue a cat can meet, even when the cat is a Tiger and stands as tall as four cats standing on each other’s backs! Instead of driving the lynx away, she spoke with him. He introduced himself as Droven Thorne, Ghost of the Pines. He spoke about life nearer to Twoleg place, and how they left food to be stolen, and kept other animals closed up within little dens that trapped them.
Droven Thorne purred in happiness as Marl chuffed with excitement. She was eager to see these camps of Twolegs and the animals they held prisoner. For the first time she left the borders of not only her own Clan’s territory, but of the lands held collectively by those who followed StarClan’s laws. She followed the Lynx as he led her amongst the nests that reek of dead wood and poison. Past plants forced to grow in unnatural rows and grass cursed short in foolish limitation. She saw the animals trapped in dens, killed and quickly at the little dog that howled at her.
She lost herself to that place of easy living. Moons passed while she grew fat and sleek on the abundance, in her greed not even returning to camp so that the elders might have a share of her hunting. When finally she returned to the clan, it was in Melting Waters. Avaru, TigerClan’s leader, watched as the rest’s shock of her return. Even his young apprentice1 joined in the revelry. Avaru, however, needed to know why Marl had left for so long. And thus she told him of the rich place she had found. She urged Avaru to move the entire clan, telling him that all of TigerClan could live a rich life there!
Avaru, however, knew better. StarClan had brought them here, and here they must stay and keep the territory as the code demanded. He told Marl that if she set a paw outside of TigerClan territory again, he would be forced to confine her to camp in punishment.
Marl rumbled under her breath, but she did obey. But while she obeyed, she approached her friends, telling the young warriors of the riches of the place she had found. Over moons, they chuffed back, and the group began to form a plan. They volunteered to be responsible for the camp while many of the others went to the gathering. After those going to the gathering had retired, and those staying behind without tasks assigned had taken to their dens, Marl, who was camp sentry and the patrol that had been sent to watch the borders, assembled and crossed the little thunderpath into Tallpines. There they met up with Droven Thorne, the Lynx.
After introductions, Marl led the party deeper into Twoleg place, where they hunted as they began to lay plans for their new camp. They would become a new clan in this generous territory, and they promised the Lynx a valuable place amongst them, honored like a Medicine Cat, to be protected and provided for.
That was not to be, for Clans can only be made with StarClan’s blessing. A new Clan has not been formed since StarClan turned the four Great Clans into the four Clans we know today2. As the group prowled through Twolegplace, a sharp blast came, like the sound of lightning in a thunderstorm. One of the young warriors who had come away with Marl dropped, blood streaming from the sides of a twoleg farbiter3.
As quick as a fox, the Lynx, Droven Thorne, vanished. Marl was left to run in a panic, trying to reach the group of twolegs that had come to guard their territory. One by one, her friends fell, leaving only Marl. She fled, hoping to at least honor their lost lives someday. After the Twolegs dragged away her friends, making it impossible to hold vigil for them, the morning came.
Marl had hidden herself at Tallpines, and Droven Thorne came to her. The lynx huffed a laugh and told her that those who cannot hide fast enough fall, as that was the way of the Twolegs. She snarled at him and attacked. Marl had finally learned of the treachery Lynx bring to our lives. Droven Thorne was not fast enough. He died quickly on the teeth of Marl, but her revenge was not yet complete.
She returned again to TigerClan, this time met with scepticism, where she beseeched the loyal members of the clan to help her wipe out Twoleg-kind. Avaru snorted and told her that she had decided when she left TigerClan the first time that she was no member of it. Instead of help, she found herself exiled as Avaru spoke the words to send her away forever. He gave her the name Cumbling Rock in honor of the way she betrayed them all. Then she was driven forever from the lands of the clans by TigerClan, who sent messengers to the rest of the Clans to warn against this new and dangerous rogue who stalked beyond their borders.
This is why we keep the borders and our home. We do not intrude on Twolegplace, instead honoring StarClan and the code. If a cat is separated from the Clan, they are lost to it without StarClan’s own grace to bring them back.
Footnotes
1: This apprentice was Gnarus, who was very young at that time.
2: See Birth of the Modern Clans
3: Gun
Originally written by Kitsufox, 9 May 2026