by Erin Hunter
Contents
Special Thanks
Allegiances
Maps
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Excerpt from Warriors: Leafpool’s Wish
Excerpt from Warriors: Dawn of the Clans #1: The Sun Trail
Prologue
Chapter 1
Back Ads
About the Author
Books by Erin Hunter
Copyright
About the Publisher
Special Thanks
Special thanks to Victoria Holmes
ALLEGIANCES
THUNDERCLAN
LEADER BLUESTAR—blue-gray she-cat, tinged with silver around her muzzle
DEPUTY FIREHEART—handsome ginger tom
APPRENTICE, CLOUDPAW
MEDICINE CAT YELLOWFANG—old dark gray she-cat with a broad, flattened face, formerly of ShadowClan
APPRENTICE, CINDERPELT
WARRIORS (toms, and she-cats without kits)
WHITESTORM—big white tom
APPRENTICE, BRIGHTPAW
DARKSTRIPE—sleek black-and-gray tabby tom
APPRENTICE, FERNPAW
LONGTAIL—pale tabby tom with dark black stripes
APPRENTICE, SWIFTPAW
RUNNINGWIND—swift tabby tom
MOUSEFUR—small dusky-brown she-cat
APPRENTICE, THORNPAW
BRACKENFUR—golden-brown tabby tom
DUSTPELT—dark brown tabby tom
APPRENTICE, ASHPAW
SANDSTORM—pale ginger she-cat
APPRENTICES (more than six moons old, in training to become warriors)
SWIFTPAW—black-and-white tom
CLOUDPAW—long-haired white tom
BRIGHTPAW—she-cat, white with ginger splotches
THORNPAW—golden-brown tabby tom
FERNPAW—pale gray with darker flecks, she-cat, pale green eyes
ASHPAW—pale gray with darker flecks, tom, dark blue eyes
QUEENS (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)
FROSTFUR—beautiful white coat and blue eyes
BRINDLEFACE—pretty tabby
GOLDENFLOWER—pale ginger coat
SPECKLETAIL—pale tabby, and the oldest nursery queen
WILLOWPELT—very pale gray she-cat with unusual blue eyes
ELDERS (former warriors and queens, now retired)
HALFTAIL—big dark brown tabby tom with part of his tail missing
SMALLEAR—gray tom with very small ears; the oldest tom in ThunderClan
PATCHPELT—small black-and-white tom
ONE-EYE—pale gray she-cat, the oldest cat in ThunderClan; virtually blind and deaf
DAPPLETAIL—once-pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with a lovely dappled coat
SHADOWCLAN
LEADER NIGHTSTAR—old black tom
DEPUTY CINDERFUR—thin gray tom
MEDICINE CAT RUNNINGNOSE—small gray-and-white tom
WARRIORS APPLEFUR—mottled brown she-cat
BOULDER—silver tabby tom
FERNSHADE—tortoiseshell she-cat
FLINTFANG—older gray tom
RATSCAR—scarred dark brown tom
ROWANBERRY—brown-and-cream she-cat
RUSSETFUR—dark ginger she-cat
WETFOOT—gray tabby tom
APPRENTICE, OAKPAW
LITTLECLOUD—very small tabby tom
WHITETHROAT—black tom with white chest and paws
QUEENS DAWNCLOUD—small tabby
DARKFLOWER—black she-cat
TALLPOPPY—long-legged light brown tabby she-cat
WINDCLAN
LEADER TALLSTAR—black-and-white tom with a very long tail
DEPUTY DEADFOOT—black tom with a twisted paw
MEDICINE CAT BARKFACE—short-tailed brown tom
WARRIORS MUDCLAW—mottled dark brown tom
APPRENTICE, WEBPAW
TORNEAR—tabby tom
APPRENTICE, TAWNYPAW
ONEWHISKER—brown tabby tom
APPRENTICE, WHITEPAW
RUNNINGBROOK—light gray tabby she-cat
QUEENS ASHFOOT—gray queen
MORNINGFLOWER—tortoiseshell queen
RIVERCLAN
LEADER CROOKEDSTAR—huge light-colored tabby with a twisted jaw
DEPUTY LEOPARDFUR—unusually spotted golden tabby she-cat
MEDICINE CAT MUDFUR—long-haired light brown tom
WARRIORS BLACKCLAW—smoky black tom
APPRENTICE, HEAVYPAW
STONEFUR—gray tom with battle-scarred ears
APPRENTICE, SHADEPAW
LOUDBELLY—dark brown tom
GRAYSTRIPE—long-haired gray tom, formerly of ThunderClan
QUEENS MISTYFOOT—dark gray she-cat
MOSSPELT—tortoiseshell she-cat
ELDERS GRAYPOOL—thin gray she-cat with patchy fur and a scarred muzzle
CATS OUTSIDE CLANS
BARLEY—black-and-white tom who lives on a farm close to the forest
BLACKFOOT—large white tom with huge jet-black paws, formerly ShadowClan deputy
CLAWFACE—scrawny brown tom
MOWGLI—brown tom with green eyes
PRINCESS—light brown tabby with a distinctive white chest and paws; a kittypet
RAVENPAW—sleek black cat who lives on the farm with Barley
SMUDGE—plump, friendly black-and-white kitten who lives in a house at the edge of the forest; a kittypet
SNAG—huge tabby tom
STUMPYTAIL—brown tabby tom
TANGLEBURR—gray-and-brown she-cat, formerly of ShadowClan
TIGERCLAW—big dark brown tabby tom with unusually long front claws, formerly of ThunderClan
Maps
CHAPTER 1
“Kill him!”
“Blind him!”
“Drive him out of the forest!”
The wound in Tigerclaw’s belly pulsed with agony, and he felt warm, sticky blood pooling beneath his paws. His Clanmates’ furious words seemed to be coming from a long way off, as if he were underwater, cocooned in peaceful cold. You lost! screeched a voice inside his head. Beaten by kittypets and fools! Tigerclaw felt his lip curl up in a snarl. I lost this battle, he conceded silently. But for as long as there is blood in my veins, I will not give up.
“Tigerclaw,” Bluestar meowed, “have you anything to say in your defense?” The ThunderClan leader’s blue-gray fur was streaked with blood—Tigerclaw’s as well as her own—and her eyes were dull and unfocused. Tigerclaw felt a thrill of satisfaction that his actions, his careful plans, had left her shattered and flailing inside. He knew a broken cat when he saw one; this was the end of Bluestar’s leadership, even if he hadn’t managed to take her last lives. The thought numbed the pain in his belly and gave strength to his trembling legs.
“Defend myself to you, you gutless excuse for a warrior?” he hissed. “What sort of a leader are you? Keeping the peace with other Clans. Helping them! You barely punished Fireheart and Graystripe for feeding RiverClan, and you sent them to fetch WindClan home! I would have never shown such kittypet softness. I would have brought back the days of TigerClan. I would have made ThunderClan great!”
“And how many cats would have died for it?” Bluestar replied softly. She shook herself, then lifted her head. “If you have nothing else to say, then I sentence you to exile,” she declared. “You will leave ThunderClan territory now, and if any cat sees you here after sunrise tomorrow, they have my permission to kill you.”
“Kill me?” Tigerclaw echoed. “I’d like to see any of them try.”
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“Fireheart beat you!” Graystripe yowled.
“Fireheart.” Tigerclaw slowly turned his head to look at the ginger kittypet. A warrior name will never make you forestborn, no matter what your Clanmates tell you! “Cross my path again, you stinking furball, and we’ll see who’s the stronger.”
Fireheart sprang up, tail lashing, even though one of his eyes was swollen shut from a blow from Tigerclaw’s paw. “Any time, Tigerclaw,” he spat.
“No!” Bluestar interrupted them. “No more fighting. Tigerclaw, leave my sight.”
Tigerclaw made himself stand up, in spite of the trembling that shook his paws. A fresh wave of blood oozed from his belly as the edges of the wound shifted. He heard gasps from the cats around him but ignored them. Pain is nothing! Defeat is nothing!
“Don’t think I’m finished,” he warned, staring at the battle-stunned faces around him. “I’ll be a leader yet. And any cat who comes with me will be well looked after.” He looked for his closest ally in ThunderClan, the cat who’d always told him that he should have been leader by now. “Darkstripe?”
The black-striped tabby stayed where he was, sitting among the warriors. “I trusted you, Tigerclaw,” he whimpered. “I thought you were the finest warrior in the forest. But you plotted with that . . . that tyrant.” Tigerclaw guessed he was speaking of Brokentail, the exiled ShadowClan leader who now lived in ThunderClan’s camp. “And you said nothing. And now you expect me to come with you?” He dropped his head, unable to meet Tigerclaw’s gaze.
Traitor! You dare to deny me in front of all these cats? You’ll pay for this with every hair on your pelt!
Tigerclaw forced his fur to stay flat. “I needed Brokentail’s help to make contact with the rogue cats. If you choose to take this personally, that’s your problem,” he sniffed. He looked at another cat who’d listened to his plans, promised to stand by him when he brought clear, strong leadership to their Clan. “Longtail?”
The pale tabby almost leaped out of his skin. “Come with you, Tigerclaw? Into exile?” He sounded horrified. “I—no, I can’t. I’m loyal to ThunderClan!”
You’re a pathetic coward, more like! Tigerclaw screeched silently. He scanned the ranks of cats, looking for a hint of understanding, a recognition that this weak and kittypet-favoring Clan was no place for a true warrior. “What about you, Dustpelt?” he growled. “You’ll have richer pickings with me than you ever will in ThunderClan.”
The young brown tabby got deliberately to his paws and picked his way through the surrounding cats until he stood in front of Tigerclaw. “I looked up to you,” he admitted. “I wanted to be like you. But Redtail was my mentor. I owe him more than any cat. And you killed him.” His eyes grew huge and he started to shake. “You killed him and betrayed the Clan. I’d rather die than follow you.”
Redtail deserved to die! He was too much like Bluestar, always looking for peace and reconciliation. It was only luck that Oakheart hadn’t killed him before being caught by that rockfall. Redtail would have never survived that battle.
“Tigerclaw!” Bluestar broke into his memories of dust and falling stones and the bright red slash opening up in Redtail’s throat. “No more of this. Go now.”
Tigerclaw lifted his head and met her gaze. “I’m going. But I’ll be back; you can be sure of that. I’ll be revenged on you all!” He turned and walked away, gritting his teeth against the pain in his belly. I will not show them how badly I have been wounded! He paused as he drew level with Fireheart. “And as for you . . .” he growled. “Keep your eyes open, Fireheart. Keep your ears pricked. Keep looking behind you. Because one day I’ll find you, and then you’ll be crow-food.”
“You’re crow-food now,” Fireheart snapped, but the stench of fear rose from him.
Tigerclaw stared into the warrior’s wide green eyes. You know already that I will kill you one day. Your last breath will be gasped beneath my paws. Your last drop of blood will be spilled on my fur. Stones will break and the sky will fall when we meet in our final battle.
With a flick of his tail that felt as if it was ripping his belly apart, he walked across the clearing without looking back. From inside the nursery he heard the tiny mewls of his son and daughter, Bramblekit and Tawnykit, quickly hushed by their mother, Goldenflower. I will come back for you, Tigerclaw vowed. He would not leave his kits to be raised in this Clan of weaklings. They deserved to learn from his example, to model themselves on his courage and skill in battle. Some skill you showed today! came the voice in his head again. Thistleclaw would have clouted you over the ears for letting yourself get beaten by a kittypet and a star-crazed old she-cat.
Thistleclaw wouldn’t have dared to take on the leader of his Clan! Tigerclaw lashed back. If he hadn’t let Bluestar become deputy in the first place, everything would be different. He would have chosen me to succeed him, and ThunderClan would be as strong as we deserve!
He pushed his way through the gorse tunnel, hardly noticing the thorns that clutched at his blood-matted fur. The barricade had been ripped and scattered by fleeing cats, cats who had sworn to fight alongside Tigerclaw until he had killed Bluestar, on the promise that he would make them his foremost warriors in the new ThunderClan. Tigerclaw spat onto the dusty earth. He should have known better than to rely on those half-trained rogues. Only a forestborn cat had the true instincts of a warrior. The ShadowClan outlaws had disappointed him, too, made soft by moons of surviving alone, too easily cowed by cats fighting to defend their home. Tigerclaw needed more time with them, to remind them of the training they had received under Brokenstar. The former ShadowClan leader may have been criticized for asking too much of his warriors, but he had made his Clan the most feared and powerful in the forest. Who could judge him for that?
And Tigerclaw might still have won if RiverClan hadn’t turned up at the tipping point of the battle, Mistyfoot and Leopardfur bounding in to rescue the Clan cats who had been their sworn enemies just a few moons earlier. Why did the Clans show so much mercy to one another? What did it matter to RiverClan if ThunderClan lost its leader? Tigerclaw felt his hackles rise. Of course, it was in RiverClan’s interests to keep Bluestar in command, weak and addled and unable to maintain her grip on Sunningrocks. It was probably Crookedstar’s greatest fear to have Tigerclaw in charge of his closest neighbors.
The dappled shadows cast by breeze-stirred oak and beech leaves gave way to cool damp gloom beneath the pine trees that bordered Twolegplace. Tigerclaw paused for a moment to check that no cat was following him, but the woods were silent apart from the call of a blackbird and a tree branch resting against another with a soft creak. He let himself sink down on a patch of moss, letting out a grunt of pain. He craned his neck to study the wound on his belly. Fireheart had been lucky to get so close to him. But if he’d really wanted to hurt Tigerclaw, he should have gone for his neck.
Tigerclaw dragged some loose moss against the wound, hissing as he pressed it hard to stem the bleeding. His head swam with pain, and he fought off a wave of blackness that rose behind his eyes. He pictured the Clan he had left behind, battle-bruised and cowering in the dust. Did he really want to command warriors that were so nearly beaten by a half-trained patrol of rogues? Fireheart had taken all the credit for winning, as always, and every cat had been hanging on his words, gazing in doe-eyed admiration. If they were so willing to listen to a kittypet, they didn’t deserve a leader such as Tigerclaw. How dare Bluestar cast him out? Had she forgotten how many times he had won battles for ThunderClan, found food for his Clanmates, defended the borders against their enemies? They owed him everything! But in the end they had treated him worse than a lice-riddled fox. He could have been the best leader ThunderClan had ever known!
Better than your father, Pinestar, purred the voice in his ear. He betrayed his Clan—betrayed you—when he left to become a kittypet. You would never walk away from your Clanmates if you were their leader.
The moss under his paw started to overflow with blood. With a grunt, Tigerclaw ca
st it aside and looked around for another clump. There was no more soft green moss, but he spotted some dry leaf-mulch within reach. He clawed it against his belly, packing it into the cut. He felt a burst of triumph against his surroundings: The forest had tried to deny him moss, but he had found something else!
Tigerclaw half sat up, pricking his ears as he stared into the trees. As clear as stars, his path stretched out before him. There was more than one Clan in the forest. More than one chance to become a leader. His destiny must lie elsewhere. Tigerclaw would return to ThunderClan only to crush his former Clanmates in battle. He would not fail again.
CHAPTER 2
The air beneath the pine trees grew colder and the ground under Tigerclaw started to feel damp. He licked it to get some moisture, then heaved himself to his paws. He couldn’t stay here; the evening border patrol would be coming this way soon. He didn’t want to see pity in the eyes of his Clanmates if they found him wounded and exhausted, still inside ThunderClan territory. Wincing with every step, Tigerclaw limped deeper into the pine trees. He stayed away from Twolegplace, with its curious kittypets and stray dogs. Instead he headed for the wooden den behind a tall fence of pine trunks, where the Twolegs that cut down trees came in the daytime. He squeezed through the fence, leaving a smear of blood on the stripped wooden post. There was a gap the height of a rabbit below the wooden den. Tigerclaw crawled into the shadows and lay full-length on the earth. There was a faint hint of mouse from farther under the den, but Tigerclaw didn’t have the strength to pursue the scent, let alone a scampering piece of prey.
Where is the moss that lines your nest in the warriors’ den? Where are the feathers? Is this how your life will be from now on, huddled on bare dirt, starving because you’re too weak to feed yourself?
Tigerclaw’s belly rumbled, but he pressed his cheek deeper into the soil to block out the sound. Right now, sleep was more important than food. Once he had rested, once he had eaten, then he could begin the destruction of ThunderClan.
He dreamed that he was on fire, scorched by the claw marks that Fireheart had left in his skin. He thrashed with his paws, but sleep held him fast, clutching him in a semi-conscious daze. He was dimly aware of the daylight seeping in from outside, but before he could rouse himself and go out in search of food, it seemed that night was falling again, shrinking Tigerclaw’s world to a blur of pain and tortured sleep. He lashed out blindly at screeches from the mist that surrounded him, felt claws rake his fur and teeth snap close to his ears. He whirled, stumbling on legs that felt heavy and sore, but there was nothing except damp gray clouds behind him. Too slow, hissed the voice. Don’t let Fireheart and Bluestar catch you! They’ll crush you like a bug!
