Chapter 0 Prologue

WARRIORS INTO THE WILD ERIN HUNTER

《猫武士：走入荒野》 艾琳·亨特

PROLOGUE A half-moon glowed on smooth granite boulders, turning them silver. The silence was broken only by the ripple of water from the swift black river and the whisper of trees in the forest beyond. There was a stirring in the shadows, and from all around lithe dark shapes crept stealthily over the rocks. Unsheathed claws glinted in the moonlight. Wary eyes flashed like amber. And then, as if on a silent signal, the creatures leaped at each other, and suddenly the rocks were alive with wrestling, screeching cats. At the center of the frenzy of fur and claws, a massive dark tabby pinned a bracken-colored tom to the ground and drew up his head triumphantly. "Oakheart!" the tabby growled. "How dare you hunt in our territory? The Sunningrocks belong to ThunderClan!" "After tonight, Tigerclaw, this will be just another RiverClan hunting ground!" the bracken- colored tom spat back. A warning yowl came from the shore, shrill and anxious. "Look out! More RiverClan warriors

序章 半月洒在光滑的花岗岩漂石上，把石块染成了银亮色。 只有湍急黑河的浪声，和远处森林的树叶沙沙声，打破了这片寂静。 阴影里一阵晃动，四面八方灵活的黑影悄悄爬上了岩石。 亮出的利爪在月光下闪着寒光。 警惕的双眸像琥珀一般发亮。 接着，仿佛收到了无声信号，这些生物猛地扑向彼此，岩石上瞬间挤满了扭打、嘶叫的猫咪。 在这场皮毛与利爪的混战中心，一只健壮的深虎斑猫把蕨花色公猫按在地上，得意地扬起了头。 “橡心！” 虎斑猫低吼着。 “你竟敢到我们的地盘打猎？” “阳光岩属于雷族！” “过了今晚，虎掌，这里就会变成河族的猎场！” 蕨花色公猫恶狠狠地回敬道。 一声警示的嚎叫从岸边传来，尖利又焦急。 “小心！ 更多河族武士

are coming!" Tigerclaw turned to see sleek wet bodies sliding out of the water below the rocks. The drenched RiverClan warriors bounded silently up the shore and hurled themselves into battle without even stopping to shake the water from their fur. The dark tabby glared down at Oakheart. "You may swim like otters, but you and your warriors do not belong in this forest!" He drew back his lips and showed his teeth as the cat struggled beneath him. The desperate scream of a ThunderClan she- cat rose above the clamor. A wiry RiverClan tom had pinned the brown warrior flat on her belly. Now he lunged toward her neck with jaws still dripping from his swim across the river. Tigerclaw heard the cry and let go of Oakheart. With a mighty leap, he knocked the enemy warrior away from the she-cat. "Quick, Mousefur, run!" he ordered, before turning on the RiverClan tom who had threatened her. Mousefur scrambled to her paws, wincing from a deep gash on her shoulder, and raced away.

来了！” 虎掌回头望去，光滑湿滑的躯体正从岩下的河水中滑出来。 浑身湿透的河族武士悄无声息地冲上岸，连毛都没抖就扑进了战场。 深虎斑猫怒视着橡心。 “你们或许能像水獭一样游泳，但你和你的族人根本不属于这片森林！” 他咧开嘴露出尖牙，身下的猫还在不停挣扎。 一声雷族母猫的绝望嘶喊盖过了战场的喧闹。 一只精瘦的河族公猫把棕色母武士牢牢按在了地上。 他刚游过河，嘴还滴着水，此刻正朝着母猫的脖子猛扑过去。 虎掌听到呼喊，松开了橡心。 他猛地一跃，把敌方撞开，救下了母猫。 “快，纹毛，跑！” 他下令后，转身扑向那只威胁母猫的河族公猫。 纹毛撑着站起来，肩膀的深伤口疼得她发抖，飞快地跑走了。

Behind her, Tigerclaw spat with rage as the RiverClan tom sliced open his nose. Blood blinded him for an instant, but he lunged forward regardless and sank his teeth into the hind leg of his enemy. The RiverClan cat squealed and struggled free. "Tigerclaw!" The yowl came from a warrior with a tail as red as fox fur. "This is useless! There are too many RiverClan warriors!" "No, Redtail. ThunderClan will never be beaten!" Tigerclaw yowled back, leaping to Redtail's side. "This is our territory!" Blood was welling around his broad black muzzle, and he shook his head impatiently, scattering scarlet drops onto the rocks. "ThunderClan will honor your courage, Tigerclaw, but we cannot afford to lose any more of our warriors," Redtail urged. "Bluestar would never expect her warriors to fight against these impossible odds. We will have another chance to avenge this defeat." He met Tigerclaw's amber- eyed gaze steadily, then reared away and sprang onto a boulder at the edge of the trees. "Retreat, ThunderClan! Retreat!" he yowled.

在她身后，河族公猫划开了虎掌的鼻子，虎掌愤怒地嘶嘶低吼。 鲜血让他瞬间失明，可他还是往前扑，一口咬住了敌人的后腿。 那只河族猫尖叫一声，挣脱逃跑了。 “虎掌！” 嚎叫的是尾巴红得像狐狸毛的武士。 “这样没用的！ 河族武士数量太多了！” “不，红尾。 雷族永远不会被打败！” 虎掌吼着回应，跳到了红尾身边。 “这是我们的地盘！” 鲜血从他宽大的黑口鼻涌出来，他不耐烦晃头，血珠甩到了岩石上。 “雷族会铭记你的勇气，虎掌，但我们不能再损失更多武士了”，红尾劝道。 “蓝星绝不会让她的武士硬拼这种不可能赢的战局。 我们总会有机会报仇的。” 他稳稳迎上虎掌琥珀色的目光，然后往后一跳，落到树林边的巨石上。 “撤退，雷族！ 撤退！” 他高声喊道。

At once his warriors squirmed and struggled away from their opponents. Spitting and snarling, they backed toward Redtail. For a heartbeat, the RiverClan cats looked confused. Was this battle so easily won? Then Oakheart yowled a jubilant cry. As soon as they heard him, the RiverClan warriors raised their voices and joined their deputy in caterwauling their victory. Redtail looked down at his warriors. With a flick of his tail, he gave the signal and the ThunderClan cats dived down the far side of the Sunningrocks, then disappeared into the trees. Tigerclaw followed last. He hesitated at the edge of the forest and glanced back at the bloodstained battlefield. His face was grim, his eyes furious slits. Then he leaped after his Clan into the silent forest. In a deserted clearing, an old gray she-cat sat alone, staring up at the clear night sky. All around her in the shadows she could hear the breathing and stirrings of sleeping cats. A small tortoiseshell she-cat emerged from a dark corner, her pawsteps quick and soundless.

雷族武士们立刻挣开对手，往后退去。 他们呲着牙嘶嘶叫着，一步步退到红尾身边。 一瞬间，河族猫都愣住了。 这场仗这么轻易就赢了？ 接着橡心发出了欢呼的嚎叫。 河族武士们一听到声音，就跟着副族长高声嚎叫，庆祝胜利。 红尾低头看着自己的武士们。 他甩了下尾巴发出信号，雷族猫就冲下阳光岩另一侧，消失在树林里。 虎掌走在最后。 他在森林边顿了一下，回头看着满是血迹的战场。 他脸色冷峻，眼睛气得眯成了两道缝。 接着他纵身一跃，跟着族群走进了寂静的森林。 在一片空旷的林中空地，一只年迈的灰母猫独自坐着，仰望晴朗的夜空。 她四周的阴影里，能听见睡梦中猫咪的呼吸和轻动声。 一只小巧的玳瑁色母猫从黑暗角落走出，脚步轻快又无声。

The gray cat dipped her head in greeting. "How is Mousefur?" she meowed. "Her wounds are deep, Bluestar," answered the tortoiseshell, settling herself on the night-cool grass. "But she is young and strong; she will heal quickly." "And the others?" "They will all recover, too." Bluestar sighed. "We are lucky not to have lost any of our warriors this time. You are a gifted medicine cat, Spottedleaf." She tilted her head again and studied the stars. "I am deeply troubled by tonight's defeat. ThunderClan has not been beaten in its own territory since I became leader," she murmured. "These are difficult times for our Clan. The season of newleaf is late, and there have been fewer kits. ThunderClan needs more warriors if it is to survive." "But the year is only just beginning," Spottedleaf pointed out calmly. "There will be more kits when greenleaf comes." The gray cat twitched her broad shoulders. "Perhaps. But training our young to become warriors takes time. If ThunderClan is to defend

灰猫低下头打招呼。 “鼠毛怎么样了？”她喵声问道。 “她伤得很重，蓝星，”玳瑁猫回答完，伏在夜凉的青草上。 “不过她年轻力壮，很快就会好起来的。” “其他猫呢？” “它们也都会康复的。” 蓝星叹了口气。 “这次我们没损失任何一名武士，已经很幸运了。 你是个天赋异禀的巫医，斑叶。” 她再次歪起头，凝望星空。 “今夜的战败让我十分忧心。 自我当上族长以来，雷族还从没在自己的领土上吃过败仗，”她低声说。 “我们族群正身处逆境。 新叶季来迟了，出生的幼崽也更少了。 雷族要想存续，就需要更多武士。” “不过今年才刚刚开始，”斑叶平静地说道。 “绿叶季到来的时候，就会有更多幼崽出生了。” 灰猫抖了抖她宽厚的肩膀。 “或许吧。 但训练幼崽成为武士需要时间。 如果雷族要守卫