Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1 Dead bracken rustled beneath Lionblaze's paws as he stalked through the forest. Above the leafless trees, the sky was dark and empty. Terror raised the hairs on the young warrior's neck, and he shivered from ears to tail-tip. This is a place that has never known the light of StarClan. He padded on, skirting clumps of fern and nosing under bushes, but he found no sight or scent of other cats. I've had enough of this, he thought, tugging his tail free from a trailing bramble. Panic sparked in his mind as he stared at the darkness that stretched away between the trees. What if I never find my way out of here? "Looking for me?" Lionblaze jumped and spun around. "Tigerstar!" The massive warrior had appeared around the edge of a bramble thicket. His tabby pelt shone with a strange light that reminded Lionblaze of the sickly glow of fungus on dead trees.

第一章 狮焰在森林里悄悄潜行，干枯的蕨叶在他爪下沙沙作响。 光秃秃的树林上方，天空昏暗空寂。 恐惧让这位年轻武士后颈的毛发竖起，他从耳朵到尾尖都忍不住发颤。 这是一片从未有过星族光辉照耀的地方。 他继续往前走，绕过一丛丛蕨草，探过灌木丛，却没找到其他猫的踪迹和气味。 我受够了，他一边想，一边把尾巴从拖曳的荆棘里拽出来。 望着树林间蔓延开的无边黑暗，恐慌在他心头炸开。 要是我永远找不到出去的路怎么办？ "在找我吗？" 狮焰吓了一跳，连忙转过身。 "虎星！" 这位壮硕的武士从荆棘丛边缘现出身形。 他的虎斑皮毛闪着诡异的光，让狮焰想起枯树上真菌那令人不适的幽光。

"You've missed a lot of training," Tigerstar meowed, padding forward until he stood a tail- length from the ThunderClan warrior. "You should have come back sooner." "No, I shouldn't!" Lionblaze blurted out. "I shouldn't have come here at all, and you never should have trained me. Brambleclaw isn't my father! You're not my kin!" Tigerstar blinked once, but he showed no surprise, not even a flick of his ears. His amber eyes narrowed to slits, and he seemed to be waiting for Lionblaze to say more. "You... you knew!" Lionblaze whispered. The trees seemed to spin around him. Squirrelflight isn't the only cat who kept secrets! "Of course I knew." Tigerstar shrugged. "It's not important. You were willing enough to learn from me, weren't you?" "But—" "Blood isn't everything," Tigerstar snarled. His lip curled, showing the glint of sharp fangs. "Just ask Firestar." Lionblaze felt his neck fur begin to bristle as fury coursed through him. "Firestar's a finer

"你落下了好多训练，"虎星边说边往前走，直到站在离这位雷族武士只剩一条尾巴长度的地方才停下。 "你早该回来的。" "不，我不该回来！" 狮焰脱口喊道。 "我根本不该来这里，你也从来不该教我本事。 黑莓掌不是我父亲！ 你也不是我的族人！" 虎星眨了一下眼，却没露出半点惊讶，连耳朵尖都没动一下。 他琥珀色的眼睛眯成了细缝，仿佛在等着狮焰说出更多话。 "你…你早就知道！" 狮焰低声说。 周围的树木都好像在他眼前打转。 守住秘密的可不止松鼠飞一个！ "我当然知道。" 虎星耸了耸肩。 "这没什么要紧的。 你当初本来就心甘情愿跟着我学，不是吗？" "可是——" "血脉不代表一切，"虎星低吼道。 他撇起嘴唇，露出尖尖闪着光的利齿。 "不信你去问火星。" 怒火涌遍狮焰全身，他感觉后颈的毛发都炸了起来。 "火星可比你

warrior than you ever were." "Don't forget that he's not your kin, either," Tigerstar hissed softly. "There's no point defending him now." Lionblaze stared at the dusk-lit warrior. Does he know who my real father is? "You knew all along that I wasn't Firestar's kin," he growled. "You let me believe a lie!" Tigerstar twitched one ear. "So?" Rage and frustration overwhelmed Lionblaze. Leaping into the air, he threw himself at Tigerstar and tried to push him over. He battered at the tabby warrior's head and shoulders, his claws unsheathed, tearing out huge clumps of fur. But the red haze of fury that filled his head made him clumsy, unfocused. His blows landed at random, barely scratching Tigerstar's skin. The huge tabby tom went limp, letting himself drop to one side and hooking one paw around Lionblaze's leg to unbalance him. Lionblaze landed among the bracken with a jolt that drove the breath from his body. A heartbeat later he felt a huge paw clamp down on his shoulders, pinning him to the ground.

优秀太多了。" "别忘了，他也不是你的族人，"虎星轻声嘶声道。 "现在维护他已经没用了。" 狮焰盯着这个蒙着暮色的武士。 他知道我亲生父亲是谁吗？ "你一直都知道我不是火星的族人，"他低吼道。 "你居然让我一直信着谎言！" 虎星动了动一只耳朵。 "那又如何？" 愤怒和挫败感淹没了狮焰。 他纵身跃起，扑向虎星，想要把他撞倒。 他伸出利爪，猛揍这只虎斑武士的头和肩膀，撕下一大撮一大撮的毛。 但填满他脑袋的猩红怒火让他动作笨拙，注意力涣散。 他的攻击杂乱无章，只勉强擦破了虎星的皮。 这只大块头虎斑公猫放松身体，顺势往旁边一倒，用一只爪子勾住狮焰的腿，让他失去了平衡。 狮焰摔进蕨丛里，震得一口气都喘不上来。 一眨眼的功夫，他就感到一只巨爪按在了自己肩膀上，把他牢牢钉在了地上。

"I've taught you better than that, little warrior," Tigerstar taunted him. "You're out of practice." Taking a deep breath, Lionblaze heaved himself upward. Tigerstar leaped back and crouched a fox-length away, his amber eyes burning. "I'll show you who's out of practice," Lionblaze panted. He forced his anger down, summoning a cold determination—all the fighting moves he had ever learned were at the tips of his claws. When Tigerstar sprang at him, he was prepared; he dived forward and hurled himself underneath his opponent's belly. As soon as Tigerstar's paws hit the ground, Lionblaze whipped around and landed a couple of blows on the tabby tom's hindquarters before leaping out of range. Tigerstar spun to face him. "Better," he meowed, mockery still in his voice. "I have mentored you well." Before Lionblaze could reply, the huge tabby darted toward him, veering aside at the last moment and lashing out with one forepaw as he

"我教你的可比这点东西强多了，小武士，"虎星嘲讽他。 "你生疏了。" 狮焰深吸一口气，猛地撑起了身子。 虎星向后跳开，蹲在一狐步远的地方，琥珀色的眼睛燃着烈火。 "我会让你看看谁才生疏了，"狮焰喘着气说。 他压下怒火，唤起冰冷的决心——他学过的所有格斗招式都 ready，所以翻译：他压下怒火，唤起冰冷的决心——所有学过的格斗招式都凝聚在了爪尖。 虎星朝他扑来的时候，他早已做好准备; 他低头前冲，钻到了对手的肚子底下。 虎星的爪子刚一沾地，狮焰就猛地转身，在这只虎斑公猫的后臀狠狠拍了两下，随即跳开躲开。 虎星转过身面对他。 "有点进步，"他开口道，声音里依旧带着嘲讽。 "我这个导师教得不错吧。" 狮焰还没来得及回答，这只大块头虎斑猫就冲了过来，在最后一刻猛地转向，挥起一只前爪朝他

passed. Lionblaze felt Tigerstar's claws rake along his side, and blood begin trickling out of the scratches. Fear stabbed at him. What happens if he kills me here? Will I be really dead? His mind cleared. Tigerstar was hurtling toward him again. Lionblaze scrambled aside; he aimed a blow, but felt his claws slide harmlessly through the tabby's pelt. "Too slow," Tigerstar spat. "You'll have to work harder, now you know that prophecy wasn't meant for you. That was for Firestar's kin, wasn't it?" Lionblaze knew that the tabby tom was trying to make him too angry to fight. I won't listen! All I need to do is win this battle! He sprang at Tigerstar again, twisting in the air as he had been taught during those long nighttime visits, and landed squarely on the massive tabby's broad shoulders. Digging in with his claws, he stretched forward and sank his teeth into Tigerstar's neck. Tigerstar tried the same trick of going limp and pulling Lionblaze down with him, but this time Lionblaze was ready. He wriggled out from

结束了。 狮焰感觉到虎星的爪子扫过自己的侧腹，鲜血从抓痕里慢慢渗了出来。 恐惧攫住了他。 要是他在这里杀了我怎么办？ 我会真的死掉吗？ 他的脑子骤然清醒。 虎星再一次朝着他猛冲过来。 狮焰连忙滚向一旁； 他挥爪出击，可爪子只是毫无杀伤力地滑过那只虎斑猫的皮毛。 “太慢了，”虎星啐了一口。 “现在你知道那个预言根本不属于你了，你得再加把劲才行。 它本来就是给火星的后代的，不是吗？” 狮焰知道这只虎斑公猫是想激怒他，让他乱了阵脚没法好好战斗。 我才不会听他的！ 我只要打赢这场仗就够了！ 他再次扑向虎星，按照多次深夜特训教的那样在空中扭身，稳稳落在这只大块头虎斑猫宽阔的肩膀上。 他爪子深深扣进对方身体，探向前一口咬住了虎星的脖子。 虎星故技重施，假装全身发软想把狮焰一起拽倒，但这次狮焰早有准备。 他扭动着从

underneath the heavy body, battering with his hind paws at Tigerstar's exposed stomach fur. "I'm not falling for that trick twice!" he hissed. Tigerstar struggled to get up, but blood was pouring from a gash in his belly; he stumbled down again, rolling onto his back. Lionblaze planted one forepaw on Tigerstar's chest and held the other, claws extended, against his neck. The tabby glared up at him; for a heartbeat, fear flashed in his blazing amber eyes. "Do you really think you could kill me?" he growled. "You'd never do it." "No." Lionblaze sheathed his claws and stepped back. "You're already dead." He turned and stalked away, his pelt still bristling and all his senses alert in case Tigerstar followed and leaped on him again. But there was no sound from the dark warrior, and soon he was left behind among the endless trees. Lionblaze's mind whirled. He had beaten Tigerstar! Maybe I do have power after all... but how can I, if I'm not one of the Three? He paused, scarcely seeing the tangling undergrowth and the trees of the dark forest all

笨重的身体底下钻了出来，后爪狠狠拍向虎星露出来的腹部皮毛。 “我才不会两次掉进同一个陷阱！” 他低吼道。 虎星挣扎着想站起来，可腹部的伤口正血流不止； 他又一个踉跄摔倒，滚得肚皮朝天。 狮焰把一只前爪按在虎星胸口，另一只伸出爪子抵在他的脖子上。 这只虎斑猫抬眼瞪着他；有那么一瞬间，他炽热的琥珀色眸子里闪过一丝恐惧。 “你真以为你能杀得了我？”他低吼道。 “你下不了手。” “没错。” 狮焰收起爪子，向后退开。 “你早就死了。” 他转身走开，毛发依旧根根倒竖，所有感官都绷紧了，以防虎星追上来再扑他。 可这只黑暗武士没有一点动静，狮焰很快就把他甩在了无边无际的树林里。 狮焰脑子里乱成一团。 他居然打败了虎星！ 说不定我真的拥有力量…… 可如果我不是那三只预言猫之一，我怎么会拥有力量？ 他停下脚步，几乎看不清黑森林里交错的灌丛和林木，所有