CHAPTER 16

They headed back the way they had come. The moon had

disappeared behind a bank of clouds. It was dark, but at

least the Thunderpath was quieter now. The only monster

they heard was far off in the distance. The cats crossed the

path together and pushed their way through the hedge on

the other side.

Firepaw could feel his muscles growing stiff with

tiredness as they hurried on. Bluestar kept up a swift pace

with her nose thrust forward and her tail high. Tigerclaw

loped beside her. Firepaw fol owed a few paces behind

with Graypaw, but Ravenpaw was flagging.

“Keep up, Ravenpaw! ” Tigerclaw growled over his

shoulder.

Ravenpaw flinched and bounded forward until he caught

up with Firepaw and Graypaw.

“Are you okay? ” Firepaw asked.

“Yes, ” Ravenpaw panted, not meeting Firepaw’s eyes.

“Just a bit tired. ”

They scrambled down a deep ditch and up the other

side.

“What did Tigerclaw say when he came out of the cave? ”

Firepaw meowed, trying not to sound too curious.

“He wanted to check that we were stil guarding the

entrance, ” replied Graypaw. “Why? ”

Firepaw hesitated. “Did you scent anything strange

about him? ” he asked.

“Only that damp old cave, ” Graypaw mewed, looking

surprised.

“He seemed a little edgy, ” ventured Ravenpaw.

“He wasn’t the only one! ” Graypaw meowed, looking at

the black cat.

“What do you mean? ” asked Ravenpaw.

“Just that the fur on your neck stands up whenever you

see him these days, ” whispered Graypaw. “You nearly

jumped out of your skin when he came out of the cave. ”

“He just surprised me, that’s al, ” Ravenpaw protested.

“You have to admit, it was a bit creepy by Mothermouth. ”

“I suppose so, ” agreed Graypaw.

The cats slipped under a hedge into a cornfield that

glowed silver in the moonlight, and fol owed the ditch that

ran around its edge.

“So what was it like inside, Firepaw? ” Graypaw

demanded. “Did you see the Moonstone? ”

“Yes, I did. It was amazing! ” Firepaw felt his fur tingle at

the memory.

Graypaw shot him an admiring glance. “So it’s true! The

rock real y does shine underground. ”

Firepaw didn’t reply. He closed his eyes for a moment,

savoring the image of the Moonstone that dazzled his mind.

Then pictures from his dream crowded into his head, and

his eyes shot open. Bluestar was right: they had to get back

to camp as quickly as they could.

Ahead, Tigerclaw and Bluestar had leaped through a

fence, out of the cornfield. The apprentices fol owed,

squeezing under the fence, onto an earth track. It was the

path that led past the Twoleg nest and the dogs. Firepaw

looked up and saw Bluestar and Tigerclaw trotting tirelessly

together, silhouetted against a skyline tinged with red. The

sun would be rising soon.

“Look! ” he cal ed to Graypaw and Ravenpaw. An

unfamiliar cat had jumped out in front of the two warriors.

“It’s a loner! ” hissed Graypaw. The three apprentices

hurried forward.

The stranger was a stout black-and-white tom, shorter

than the warriors, but wel muscled.

“This is Barley, ” Bluestar explained to the apprentices as

they caught up. “He lives near this Twoleg nest. ”

“Hi! ” meowed the cat. “I haven’t seen any of your Clan for

some moons. How are you, Bluestar? ”

“I’m wel, thank you, ” replied Bluestar. “And you, Barley?

How’s the prey been running since we last passed this

way? ”

“Not so bad, ” replied Barley, with an amiable gleam in

his eye. “One good thing about Twolegs—you’l always find

plenty of rats nearby. ” The black-and-white tom went on:

“You seem in more of a hurry than usual. Is everything al

right? ”

Tigerclaw looked at Barley. A growl rumbled deep in his

chest. Firepaw could sense that the warrior was suspicious

of the loner’s curiosity.

“I don’t like to be away from my Clan too long, ” Bluestar

answered smoothly.

“As always, Bluestar, you are tied to your Clan like a

queen to her kits, ” observed Barley, not unkindly.

“What is it you want, Barley? ” asked Tigerclaw.

Barley flashed him a reproachful look. “I just wanted to

warn you that there are two dogs here now. You’d be safer

going back into the cornfield instead of past the yard. ”

“We know about the dogs. We saw them earlier—”

Tigerclaw began impatiently.

“We are grateful to you for the warning, ” interrupted

Bluestar. “Thank you, Barley. Until next time…”

Barley flicked his tail. “Have a safe journey, ” he meowed

as he bounded away up the track.

“Come, ” ordered Bluestar, heading off the track. She

pushed her way through the long grass between the path

and the fence that led back into the cornfield. The three

apprentices fol owed, but Tigerclaw hesitated.

“You trust the word of a loner? ” he meowed.

Bluestar stopped and turned to face him. “Would you

rather face those dogs? ”

“They were tied up when we passed them earlier, ”

Tigerclaw pointed out.

“They may be untied now. We’re going this way, ”

meowed Bluestar. She ducked under the fence into the

field. Firepaw slipped after her, fol owed by Graypaw,

Ravenpaw, and final y Tigerclaw.

By now, the sun had lifted its head above the horizon.

The hedgerows sparkled with dew, promising another

warm day.

The cats padded along the edge of the ditch. Firepaw

looked down into the deep gul y, steep-sided and fil ed with

nettles. Firepaw could smel prey-scent. There was

something familiar about the bitter odor, but it was one he

hadn’t smel ed for a long time.

An earsplitting squeal made Firepaw whip around.

Ravenpaw was struggling and clawing at the earth.

Something had hold of his leg and was dragging him down

into the ditch.

“Rats! ” spat Tigerclaw. “Barley has sent us into a trap! ”

Before they could react, al five cats were surrounded.

Huge brown rats swarmed out of the ditch, squeaking

shril y. Firepaw could see their sharp front teeth glinting in

the early dawn light.

Suddenly one leaped onto Firepaw’s shoulder. Fiery

pain shot through his shoulder as the rat sank its teeth into

his flesh. Another grasped his leg between its powerful

jaws.

Firepaw flung himself down and writhed madly, trying to

shake free. He knew the rats were not as strong as he was,

but there were so many of them. Yowls, hisses, and spits

told him that the others were also being attacked.

Firepaw slashed fiercely with his claws, slicing out at a

rat that held on to his leg. It let go, but another one gripped

his tail. Fast as lightning, powered by fear and rage,

Firepaw fought and hacked at his attackers. Twisting his

head around, he sank his teeth into the rat that had

embedded itself into his shoulders. He felt the bones of its

neck crunch in his mouth and its body go limp, before it fel

away onto the dirt track.

Firepaw gasped with pain as yet another rat leaped onto

his back and sank its teeth in. Out of the corner of his eye,

he saw a flash of white fur. For a moment he was confused;

then he felt the rat being dragged off him. Firepaw spun

around to see Barley flinging the rodent into the ditch.

Without hesitating, Barley glanced around and sprinted

over to Bluestar. She was writhing on the path, covered in

rats. In a flash Barley had the spine of one between his

teeth and was plucking it off her with practiced ease. He

spat it onto the ground and grabbed another in his mouth

as Bluestar thrashed beneath him.

Firepaw rushed over to Graypaw, who was being

attacked from both sides by two smal er rats. Firepaw

lunged at the nearest one, giving it a bite that left it dead.

Graypaw managed to turn and pin down the other with his

claws. He grabbed it with his teeth and flung it into the ditch

as hard as he could. It did not come back.

“They’re running away! ” Tigerclaw yowled.

Sure enough, the remaining rats were fleeing down into

the safety of the ditch. Firepaw could hear the scrabbling of

smal paws disappearing into the nettles. The bites in his

shoulder and hind leg stung sharply. He licked careful y at

his fur, wet and matted with blood, its sharp tang mingling

with the stench of the rats.

Firepaw looked around for Ravenpaw. Graypaw was

standing at the edge of the nettles, mewing encouragement

as Ravenpaw pul ed himself out of the ditch, muddy and

stung. A young rat was stil hanging on to his tail. Firepaw

bounded over and finished it off quickly while Graypaw

helped to pul Ravenpaw over the top of the ditch.

Now Firepaw looked for Bluestar. He saw Barley first,

standing at the top of the ditch, scanning the depths for

more rats. Bluestar was lying on the path nearby. Alarmed,

Firepaw dashed to his leader’s side. The thick gray fur at

the back of her neck was drenched with blood. “Bluestar? ”

he mewed.

Bluestar did not reply.

A furious yowl made Firepaw look up.

Tigerclaw leaped on top of Barley and pinned him to the

ground. “You sent us into a trap! ” he snarled.

“I didn’t know the rats were here! ” spat Barley, his paws

scrabbling in the dust as he struggled to stand up.

“Why did you send us this way? ” hissed Tigerclaw.

“The dogs! ”

“The dogs were tied when we passed them earlier! ”

“The Twoleg unties them at night. They guard his nest, ”

Barley panted, wheezing under the weight of Tigerclaw’s

massive paws.

“Tigerclaw! Bluestar is injured! ” Firepaw burst out.

Tigerclaw released Barley at once. Barley got up and

shook the dust from his coat. The great warrior bounded

over to Bluestar’s side and sniffed her wounds.

“Is there anything we can do? ” Firepaw asked.

“She is in the hands of StarClan now, ” meowed

Tigerclaw solemnly, stepping back.

Firepaw opened his eyes wide with shock. Did

Tigerclaw mean that Bluestar was dead? His fur prickled

as he looked down at his leader. Is this what the spirits at

the Moonstone had warned her about?

Graypaw and Ravenpaw had joined them and stood

beside their leader, horror-struck. Barley hung back,

craning his neck to see what was happening.

Bluestar’s eyes were open but glazed, and her gray

body lay motionless. She didn’t even appear to be

breathing.

“Is she dead? ” whispered Ravenpaw.

“I don’t know. We must wait and see, ” replied Tigerclaw.

The five cats waited in silence as the sun began to climb

into the sky. Firepaw found himself wordlessly begging

StarClan to protect his leader, to send her back to them.

Then Bluestar stirred. The end of her tail twitched and

she lifted her head.

“Bluestar? ” mewed Firepaw, his voice trembling.

“It’s al right, ” Bluestar rasped. “I am stil here. I have lost

a life, but it wasn’t my ninth. ”

Joy flooded Firepaw. He looked at Tigerclaw, expecting

to see relief on his face, but the dark warrior was

expressionless.

“Right, ” Tigerclaw meowed in a commanding tone.

“Ravenpaw, fetch cobwebs for Bluestar’s wounds.

Graypaw, find marigold or horsetail. ” The two apprentices

dashed away. “Barley, I think you should leave us now. ”

Firepaw looked over to the loner who had fought so

bravely to help them. He wanted to thank him, but under

Tigerclaw’s fierce gaze, he didn’t dare. Instead of

speaking, Firepaw gave Barley a tiny nod. Barley seemed

to understand, for he nodded in return and left without

another word.

Bluestar was stil lying on the dirt track. “Is everyone al

right? ” she asked hoarsely.

Tigerclaw nodded.

Ravenpaw came charging back, his left forepaw

wrapped in a thick wad of cobwebs. “Here, ” he mewed.

“Shal I put them on her wounds? ” Firepaw asked

Tigerclaw. “Yel owfang showed me how. ”

“Very wel, ” agreed Tigerclaw. He walked away and

scanned the ditch again, his ears pricked for more rats.

Firepaw peeled a clump of cobwebs from Ravenpaw’s

paw and began to press them firmly onto Bluestar’s

wounds.

She winced under his touch. “If it had not been for

Tigerclaw, those rats would have eaten me alive, ” she

murmured, her voice tight with pain.

“It wasn’t Tigerclaw who saved you. It was Barley, ”

Firepaw whispered as he took some more cobwebs from

Ravenpaw.

“Barley? ” Bluestar sounded surprised. “Is he here? ”

“Tigerclaw sent him away, ” Firepaw answered quietly.

“He thinks Barley sent us into a trap. ”

“And what do you think? ” Bluestar rasped.

Firepaw didn’t look up, but concentrated on pressing the

last bit of cobweb into place. “Barley is a loner. What would

he gain by sending us into a trap only to rescue us from it? ”

he mewed eventual y.

Bluestar laid down her head and closed her eyes again.

Graypaw returned with some horsetail. Firepaw chewed

the leaves and spat the juice onto Bluestar’s wounds. He

knew it would help stop infection, but he stil wished

Spottedleaf were with him, with her knowledge of and

confidence in healing.

“We should rest here while Bluestar recovers, ”

announced Tigerclaw, padding up.

“No, ” Bluestar insisted. “We must return to the camp. ”

Narrowing her eyes in pain, she struggled to her paws.

“Let’s keep going. ”

The ThunderClan leader limped along the edge of the

field. Tigerclaw walked at her side, his face dark with

unknowable thoughts. The apprentices exchanged anxious

glances, and then fol owed.

“It is a long time since I saw you lose a life, Bluestar. ”

Firepaw overheard Tigerclaw’s whispered words. “How

many have you lost now? ”

Firepaw couldn’t help feeling surprised at Tigerclaw’s

open curiosity.

“That was my fifth, ” replied Bluestar quietly.

Firepaw strained his ears, but Tigerclaw did not reply.

He padded on, lost in thought.