ERIN
HUNTER
Special thanks to Kate Cary
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Keep watch for
Warriors Adventure Game
Uninvited Guests
After the Adventure
Also by Erin Hunter
Copyright
About the Publisher
ALLEGIANCES
THUNDERCLAN
LEADER
FIRESTAR—ginger tom with a flame-colored pelt
DEPUTY
BRAMBLECLAW—dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes
MEDICINE CAT
JAYFEATHER—gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes
WARRIORS
(toms, and she-cats without kits)
GRAYSTRIPE—long-haired gray tom
DUSTPELT—dark brown tabby tom
SANDSTORM—pale ginger she-cat with green eyes
BRACKENFUR—golden brown tabby tom
SORRELTAIL—tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with amber eyes
CLOUDTAIL—long-haired white tom with blue eyes
BRIGHTHEART—white she-cat with ginger patches
MILLIE—striped gray tabby she-cat
THORNCLAW—golden brown tabby tom
SQUIRRELFLIGHT—dark ginger she-cat with green eyes
LEAFPOOL—light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes, former medicine cat
SPIDERLEG—long-limbed black tom with brown underbelly and amber eyes
BIRCHFALL—light brown tabby tom
WHITEWING—white she-cat with green eyes
BERRYNOSE—cream-colored tom
HAZELTAIL—small gray-and-white she-cat
MOUSEWHISKER—gray-and-white tom
CINDERHEART—gray tabby she-cat APPRENTICE, IVYPAW
LIONBLAZE—golden tabby tom with amber eyes APPRENTICE, DOVEPAW
FOXLEAP—reddish tabby tom
ICECLOUD—white she-cat
TOADSTEP—black-and-white tom
ROSEPETAL—dark cream she-cat
BRIARLIGHT—dark brown she-cat
BLOSSOMFALL—tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat
BUMBLESTRIPE—very pale gray tom with black stripes
APPRENTICES
(more than six moons old, in training to become warriors)
DOVEPAW—pale gray she-cat with blue eyes
IVYPAW—silver-and-white tabby she-cat with dark blue eyes
QUEENS
(she-cats expecting or nursing kits)
FERNCLOUD—pale gray (with darker flecks) she-cat with green eyes
DAISY—cream long-furred cat from the horseplace
POPPYFROST—tortoiseshell she-cat (mother to Cherrykit, a ginger she-cat, and Molekit, a brown-and-cream tom)
ELDERS
(former warriors and queens, now retired)
MOUSEFUR—small dusky brown she-cat
PURDY—plump tabby former loner with a gray muzzle
SHADOWCLAN
LEADER
BLACKSTAR—large white tom with huge jet-black paws
DEPUTY
ROWANCLAW—ginger tom
MEDICINE CAT
LITTLECLOUD—very small tabby tom APPRENTICE, FLAMETAIL (ginger tom)
WARRIORS
OAKFUR—small brown tom APPRENTICE, FERRETPAW (cream-and-gray tom)
SMOKEFOOT—black tom
TOADFOOT—dark brown tom
APPLEFUR—mottled brown she-cat
CROWFROST—black-and-white tom
RATSCAR—brown tom with long scar across his back APPRENTICE, PINEPAW (black she-cat)
SNOWBIRD—pure-white she-cat
TAWNYPELT—tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes APPRENTICE, STARLINGPAW (ginger tom)
OLIVENOSE—tortoiseshell she-cat
OWLCLAW—light brown tabby tom
SHREWFOOT—gray she-cat with black feet
SCORCHFUR—dark gray tom
REDWILLOW—mottled brown-and-ginger tom
TIGERHEART—dark brown tabby tom
DAWNPELT—cream-furred she-cat
QUEENS
KINKFUR—tabby she-cat, with long fur that sticks out at all angles
IVYTAIL—black, white, and tortoiseshell she-cat
ELDERS
CEDARHEART—dark gray tom
TALLPOPPY—long-legged light brown tabby she-cat
SNAKETAIL—dark brown tom with tabby-striped tail
WHITEWATER—white she-cat with long fur, blind in one eye
WINDCLAN
LEADER
ONESTAR—brown tabby tom
DEPUTY
ASHFOOT—gray she-cat
MEDICINE CAT
KESTRELFLIGHT—mottled gray tom
WARRIORS
CROWFEATHER—dark gray tom
OWLWHISKER—light brown tabby tom APPRENTICE, WHISKERPAW (light brown tom)
WHITETAIL—small white she-cat
NIGHTCLOUD—black she-cat
GORSETAIL—very pale gray-and-white she-cat with blue eyes
WEASELFUR—ginger tom with white paws
HARESPRING—brown-and-white tom
LEAFTAIL—dark tabby tom with amber eyes
ANTPELT—brown tom with one black ear
EMBERFOOT—gray tom with two dark paws
HEATHERTAIL—light brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes APPRENTICE, FURZEPAW (gray-and-white she-cat)
BREEZEPELT—black tom with amber eyes APPRENTICE, BOULDERPAW (large pale gray tom)
SEDGEWHISKER—light brown tabby she-cat
SWALLOWTAIL—dark gray she-cat
SUNSTRIKE—tortoiseshell she-cat with large white mark on her forehead
ELDERS
WEBFOOT—dark gray tabby tom
TORNEAR—tabby tom
RIVERCLAN
LEADER
MISTYSTAR—gray she-cat with blue eyes
DEPUTY
REEDWHISKER—black tom APPRENTICE, HOLLOWPAW (dark brown tabby tom)
MEDICINE CAT
MOTHWING—dappled golden she-cat APPRENTICE, WILLOWSHINE (gray tabby she-cat)
WARRIORS
GRAYMIST—pale gray tabby she-cat APPRENTICE, TROUTPAW (pale gray tabby she-cat)
MINTFUR—light gray tabby tom
ICEWING—white she-cat with blue eyes
MINNOWTAIL—dark gray she-cat APPRENTICE, MOSSYPAW (brown-and-white she-cat)
PEBBLEFOOT—mottled gray tom APPRENTICE, RUSHPAW (light brown tabby tom)
MALLOWNOSE—light brown tabby tom
ROBINWING—tortoiseshell-and-white tom
BEETLEWHISKER—brown-and-white tabby tom
PETALFUR—gray-and-white she-cat
GRASSPELT—light brown tom
QUEENS
DUSKFUR—brown tabby she-cat
MOSSPELT—tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes
ELDERS
DAPPLENOSE—mottled gray she-cat
POUNCETAIL—ginger-and-white tom
CATS OUTSIDE CLANS
SMOKY—muscular gray-and-white tom who lives in a barn at the horseplace
FLOSS—small gray-and-w
hite she-cat who lives at the horseplace
OTHER ANIMALS
MIDNIGHT—a star-gazing badger who lives by the sea
Prologue
Torn clouds streaked the stars. Branches whisked the night-black sky and showered leaves over the shadowed glade. Wind hollowed the shallow clearing while, around its rim, bushes stirred and rustled as though wolves paced through them.
At the center of the glade, an old she-cat hunched her shoulders against the growling air. Starlight sparkled on her matted gray pelt. She flattened her ears as two feline shapes padded down the slope to join her.
“Yellowfang.” A white-pelted she-cat spoke first. “We’ve been looking for you.”
“Lionheart told me.” Yellowfang lifted her chin. Rain specked her muzzle as the medicine cat blinked at her former mentor. “What is it, Sagewhisker?”
Sagewhisker answered sharply: “We’ve been talking.”
“The whole of StarClan has been talking,” her tortoiseshell companion cut in. “Every cat thinks you should have stopped it.”
“The battle between ThunderClan and ShadowClan?” Yellowfang flicked her tail. “Do you think I have that much power, Fernshade?”
Sagewhisker leaned forward. “You could have sent a message to ThunderClan.”
“If you had, Russetfur might not have died.” Fernshade stepped closer. There was a hint of claws in her words. “I trained her, you know.”
“I hadn’t forgotten,” Yellowfang rasped.
Fernshade narrowed her eyes. “I’m the one who’s going to have to fetch her.”
Yellowfang’s shoulders sagged. “She was old,” she murmured. “Maybe she’ll be glad to join us.”
Sagewhisker lashed her white tail. “No warrior wants to die. Especially in a battle that should not have happened.”
Fernshade curled her lip. “You knew what the cats from the Dark Forest were doing. There was no need for Firestar to challenge Blackstar over that worthless stretch of grass. Did you want cats to die?”
Wind swirled through the hollow, tugging ears and tails, as Bluestar’s mew sounded from the top of the slope.
“Enough!”
Sagewhisker met her gaze. “A lesson in what?”
Bluestar stood with her paws rooted in the streaming grass. “We know what we’re up against now. The Dark Forest cats can change the destinies of the Clans. This battle would not have been fought if not for them.”
Yellowfang shuddered. “I should have known the Clans would suffer the moment I saw Brokenstar in the Dark Forest.”
Sagewhisker jerked her head toward her former apprentice. “And whose fault is it that he is there? Or that he was ever born at all?” Her eyes glittered. “You broke the warrior code and kitted him. What did you expect?”
Yellowfang flinched.
“Blaming each other won’t help.” Bluestar brushed past Yellowfang, drawing her tail over the old cat’s knotted pelt. “We’ve all made mistakes in our time.”
Fernshade’s whiskers twitched angrily. “Not every cat breaks the warrior code!”
Bluestar didn’t blink. “Mistakes are where we learn the most,” she meowed evenly. “And we can learn from this battle. We must set aside old grievances. The Clans must join forces.”
“Brokenstar has already punished me more than I ever deserved,” Yellowfang muttered. “And now he’s trying to punish me again by destroying the Clans I once called my own.”
“This isn’t about you!” Sagewhisker snapped. “Whatever’s going on in the Dark Forest affects us all. We need to deal with it before it does any more harm to ShadowClan!”
A growl rose in Bluestar’s throat. “Not just ShadowClan! Firestar lost a life, too!”
Lightning flared. The cats crouched and blinked upward, pelts bristling. As thunder rolled in the distance, more cats began to slink into the glade.
“Lionheart!” Bluestar called. There was relief in her voice as she saw her old friend lead Mudfur and Oakheart down the slope.
“What’s going on?” Lionheart stopped beside Bluestar.
“We know the Dark Forest was behind the battle between ShadowClan and ThunderClan,” Bluestar told him.
“ThunderClan started it!” Fernshade growled.
“The cats from the Dark Forest started it!” Bluestar reminded them. She glanced at Yellowfang. “Not just Brokenstar. Tigerstar and Hawkfrost, too.”
Oakheart narrowed his eyes. “Do we know who they’re training?” His slick RiverClan pelt was starred with beads of rain.
Yellowfang showed her cracked and stained teeth. “Brokenstar will claim any soul he can reach.”
“What if they recruit a Clan leader?” Fernshade growled.
Mudfur, the old WindClan medicine cat, shook his head. “We can no longer trust any cat.”
“Or Clan,” Sagewhisker muttered darkly.
Mudfur stiffened and tasted the air, ears pricking. “Who’s there? Mudclaw? We weren’t expecting to see you here.”
The cats turned to watch the WindClan warrior hurry down the slope. “I came as soon as I heard. What’s the plan? How are we going to deal with the Dark Forest cats?”
Grass ripped beneath Bluestar’s paws as she unsheathed her claws. “We must persuade the Clans to join forces and fight this threat together.”
Sagewhisker flattened her ears. “How will they know who to fight?”
“Why don’t the Dark Forest warriors just come and fight us, if they’re so hungry for a battle?” Fernshade snarled.
Lionheart stared over the rippling grass. “Because that would be too easy. They know they’ll hurt us much worse if they attack the Clans we left behind.”
“Is there no other way to defeat them?” Oakheart fixed his questioning gaze on Bluestar.
She froze for a moment as though she were scanning his thoughts. Then she blinked. “Tigerstar has only ever understood violence.”
Oakheart looked away.
“That’s all any Dark Forest cat understands,” Bluestar pressed. “If we try to reason with them, they will see it as weakness.”
Sagewhisker snorted. “Just as long as no one’s blaming ShadowClan for Brokenstar.” She glanced at Yellowfang.
“As far as I can see, it’s ShadowClan who’s suffered most this time,” Fernshade added.
Thunder cracked overhead.
Sagewhisker nudged Fernshade. “You’d better fetch Russetfur.”
As she spoke, the skies opened. Rain pelted the glade, and the cats scattered, racing for the shelter of the trees.
“Fernshade!” Yellowfang called after the tortoiseshell warrior.
Fernshade skidded to a stop and glanced back. “What?”
Rain blurred Yellowfang’s gaze. “Have a safe journey.” Her voice cracked. “And tell Russetfur that I’m sorry.”
Chapter 1
A yowl sliced through the shriek of battle, sharp with grief more than rage.
Dovepaw ducked out of Toadfoot’s way and spun around.
Firestar!
The ThunderClan leader was being dragged away across the battle-crowded clearing. The grass glistened crimson behind him. Birchfall sank his teeth farther into Firestar’s scruff and heaved him over Spiderleg’s shoulders, then helped to carry him away into the trees.
Horror pulsed through Dovepaw. Around her, the fighting was shuddering to a stop as cats sheathed their claws and stared in bewilderment. Firestar’s deputy, Brambleclaw, his broad shoulders wet with blood, padded toward Blackstar. The ShadowClan leader didn’t look up. His head was bent over a dark ginger pelt.
Brambleclaw dipped his head. “The battle is won,” he growled. “The clearing is ours. Do you concede or shall we fight for it again?”
Blackstar flashed a look of burning hatred over his shoulder. “Take it,” he hissed. “It was never worth the blood th
at has been spilled here today.”
As Brambleclaw backed away, Dovepaw recognized the ginger pelt.
Russetfur! Is she dead?
The ShadowClan deputy lay unmoving, apart from the blood that trickled from her lips. Her Clanmates began to step carefully past the ThunderClan warriors and head for the pines. Scorchfur, Tigerheart, and Rowanclaw stopped beside their leader. While Scorchfur nudged Blackstar to his paws and guided him gently into the trees, Tigerheart grabbed Russetfur’s pelt and slowly, gently, heaved her onto Rowanclaw’s shoulders. Then in silence they followed their battered Clanmates into the mist-wrapped trees.
Dovepaw stared after them, the energy draining from her as she saw Tigerheart’s tail snake into the shadows. She looked around for Ivypaw. Her sister was helping Blossomfall limp toward the forest.
“Come on, Blossomfall,” Ivypaw was murmuring to her Clanmate. “Jayfeather’ll fix you up.” There was no hint of their past quarrels in her mew.
Squirrelflight was checking Leafpool’s wounds, while Leafpool scanned the battlefield, her eyes round with worry. “Lionblaze is okay,” Squirrelflight reassured her sister.
Brightheart lay panting on the grass, her one good eye so wide that a circle of white showed around the blue.
Cloudtail nudged her with his muzzle. “Come on, you’ll feel better once you start moving,” he urged.
Brightheart let out a low moan as she hauled herself to her paws.
Bumblestripe, one ear torn, surveyed the flattened grass. “I think we showed them,” he declared.
Hazeltail glanced at him with scorn in her eyes and pressed closer to Mousewhisker, lapping at her sister’s bleeding, ruffled fur. “Showed them what?” she muttered between licks. “How much blood can be spilled in a pointless battle?”
Only Lionblaze looked uninjured. A smear of blood stained his flank, but Dovepaw knew it wasn’t his. She frowned, doubts flocking into her mind like starlings. Lionblaze was part of the prophecy, like she was. His power was the ability to fight any cat, any creature at all, without being hurt.