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Long ago, before the sun scorched all in its path, there were five Clans: ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and SkyClan. The five were led by Thunderroar, Windrunner, Riverripple, Shadowstretch, and Skyjumper. All five lived together but never worked together, often fighting over borders and prey. Much blood was shed over unnecessary matters, all fought tooth and claw over even the tiniest morsel of food.
One day, Skyjumper brought a cat named Suneye, a large tom with a single fiery eye, to help him in defeating Thunderroar and Windrunner. With him, Suneye brought his daughter Starflower, said to be the most beautiful molly to ever roam the Clans territories. When the time came to strike ThunderClan and WindClan however, Suneye turned on Skyjumper, killing him as he slept. And from there Suneye made his intentions clear— he planned to destroy all of the Clans.
After killing Skyjumper, Suneye killed the rest of SkyClan as well, leaving them furless and their skin cracked, covered in boils. One by one, the other four Clan leaders fought Suneye, and one by one, they lost. Although they did not die, they all lost pieces of themselves: Riverripple lost his tongue, Shadowstretch lost her ears, Thunderroar lost his eyes, and Windrunner lost her claws.
The four Clans convened in the wake of this loss, and ultimately decided they must work together in order to defeat Suneye. They merged, becoming LionClan, and prepared for the next attack by Suneye. Little did they know, however, was that Suneye was having quite the difficult time keeping Starflower under his hold, unable to continue his plans as a result. She had been madly in love with Skyjumper, and became utterly infuriated when her father killed him. She began to rebel, causing great trouble for Suneye.
One day, during a fit of rebellion, Starflower strayed from the territory she and her father had claimed. It was then she met a molly named Shadedfern of ShadowClan, and fell madly in love with her. Shadedfern felt the same, and the two became mates. But when Suneye caught wind of his daughter mingling with the enemy, he became enraged. He threw caution to the wind, no longer caring for his daughter or her rebellious ways.
Despite LionClan's size, Suneye laid waste to them, leaving both kit and warrior furless in his blind fury. Shadedfern fell to his paws, and before Starflower could do anything, she was dead. Anguished by the death of her mate, Starflower screamed at the sky, as the sun above blazed. As she did, the moon suddenly raised, taking over the sun and casting the battle into darkness.
The moon broke in two, and the warriors whose lives had been taken by Suneye spilled from it, their pelts shining with moonlight. They set themselves upon him, tearing Suneye apart until all that remained was his soul, angry and writhing. Suneye's soul rose to the sky and into the sun as the moonlight-pelted warriors returned to the moon, letting it sink back below. The sun began to glow brightly, becoming hotter than ever before.
As the sun grew in its ferocity, warriors began to fall ill, strange lumps growing on their skin. The plants, grass, and flowers shriveled away, the earth becoming hard and dry. It was then that Jackdawcry and Shatteredice of WindClan created a solution— the tunnels.
Soon, all four Clans resided underground, every cat safe save for one. Starflower remained above, refusing to leave the body of Shadedfern for the sun to take. It's said that she died of a broken heart, and from her love for Shadedfern grew the Blazing Star, and from Shadedfern's love for Starflower grew the blackberry bushes, providing shade for the herb.
And from their collective hate for Suneye, the Blazing Star became the only cure for Sun Sickness.
From the moonlight-pelted warriors rose MoonClan, a shining and cool afterlife that provides the leaders of the four Clans with nine lives. Thunderroar, Riverripple, Shadowstretch, and Windrunner were the first to be granted these nine lives, becoming Thundermoon, Rivermoon, Shadowmoon, and Windmoon.
Water grew scarce in wake of the sun's hatred, and although none were happy with the idea, the four Clans came to a compromise; they were to be united but separate, offering help and kindness to one another when needed but still their own groups. Underground rivers and streams are held as sacred, neutral ground, and every full moon there is to be held a gathering, where no blood shall be spilled.
It has been many, many moons since. The sun above still blazes and scorches angrily, the Blazing Star still hides beneath the shade, and the four Clans still take shelter beneath the ground, far from any danger.