Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17 Fireheart padded heavily back to the Thunderpath. The smell of Tigerclaw and the rogue cats was still heavy in the air, but he could hear no noises other than birdsong and the whispering of the breeze through the leaves. In the calm after the battle, he noticed how strongly the scent of ShadowClan mingled with the other smells. Had there been other ShadowClan cats, as well as Whitethroat, among the rogues? He wondered if the sickness in the ShadowClan camp was so bad that its warriors were imposing their own exile and joining up with Tigerclaw's band of outcasts for protection. Or perhaps the scent had simply wafted from the territory on the other side of the Thunderpath. Fireheart stared across the hard gray path at the body of the black-and-white warrior. If Whitethroat had joined the rogue cats because his Clan was too sick to support him, it didn't explain the look of horror on his face when he'd seen Tigerclaw. Why would Whitethroat have been so terrified if Tigerclaw were now his leader? With a flicker of guilt, Fireheart suddenly wondered if

第十七章火心沉重地走回雷道。 虎爪和流浪猫的气味仍然浓重，但他听不到任何声音，只有鸟鸣和微风吹过树叶的沙沙声。 在战斗结束后的平静中，他注意到影子氏族的气味与其他气味混合在一起是多么强烈。 除了白喉猫之外，还有其他影子家族的猫吗？ 他不知道影族营地里的疾病是否严重到战士们被迫流亡，加入虎爪的被放逐者队伍寻求保护。 或者，气味只是从雷道另一边的领地飘来的。 火心穿过坚硬的灰色小路凝视着黑白相间的战士的尸体。 如果白喉加入流浪猫是因为他的氏族病得太重，无法支持他，那就不能解释他看到虎爪时脸上的恐怖表情。 如果虎爪现在是白喉的首领，为什么它会如此害怕？ 火心带着一丝愧疚，突然想知道

Whitethroat had stumbled on Runningwind's body by sheer accident, after Tigerclaw had led the attack on the ThunderClan patrol. But what was he doing in ThunderClan territory? And where was Littlecloud? There were too many questions, and none of the answers made sense. One thing was certain: Fireheart could not leave Whitethroat's body to be battered by monsters on the Thunderpath. It was quiet now, and Fireheart crossed to the middle and grasped the warrior's scruff in his teeth. He dragged him gently across to the verge on the far side, hoping that his Clanmates would find him soon and give him an honorable burial. Whatever Whitethroat had or had not done, StarClan would judge him now. When Fireheart entered the moonlit ThunderClan camp, Runningwind's body lay in the center of the clearing. He looked peaceful, stretched out as if he were asleep. Bluestar was pacing around the warrior's body, her broad gray head swinging from side to side. The rest of the Clan hung back, keeping to the

在虎爪带队攻击雷霆族巡逻队之后，白喉偶然发现了奔风的尸体。 但他在雷霆部落的地盘上干什么呢？ 小克劳德在哪里？ 有太多的问题，没有一个答案是有意义的。 有一件事是肯定的：火心不可能离开白喉的身体，任由雷电之路上的怪物蹂躏。 现在四周安静了，火心走到中间，用牙齿咬住战士的颈背。 他轻轻地把他拖到另一边的边缘，希望他的族人能很快找到他，给他一个体面的葬礼。 无论Whitethroat做过或没有做过什么，StarClan现在都会评判他。 当火心进入月光下的雷霆部落营地时，奔风的尸体躺在空地的中央。 他看上去很安详，伸开四肢，好像睡着了。 蓝星围着战士的身体踱来踱去，她那宽大的灰色脑袋左右摆动。 氏族的其他成员都站在后面，保持着

shadows at the edge of the clearing. The air was thick with distress. The cats weaved silently among one another, glancing anxiously at their leader as she padded back and forth, muttering under her breath. She didn't even try to control her grief, as she would have done once. Fireheart remembered how quietly she had mourned her old friend and deputy, Lionheart, many moons ago. She showed none of that silent dignity now. Fireheart could feel the Clan watching him as he approached their leader. Bluestar looked up, and he felt a stab of alarm when he saw that her eyes were clouded with fear and shock. "They say Tigerclaw did this," she rasped. "It might have been one of his rogues." "How many are there?" "I don't know," Fireheart admitted. It had been impossible to count in the thick of battle. "Many." Bluestar began to shake her head again, but Fireheart knew she had to be told everything, whether she wanted to know what was going on in the forest or not. "Tigerclaw wants vengeance against ThunderClan," he reported. "He told me he is going to kill our warriors one by one."

空地边缘的阴影。 空气中弥漫着痛苦的气氛。 猫们静静地在彼此之间穿梭，焦急地望着他们的首领，而她则来回踱步，低声咕哝着。 她甚至没有试图控制自己的悲伤，就像以前那样。 火心记起许多个月前，她是如何静静地哀悼她的老朋友兼副手狮心。 她现在没有表现出那种沉默的尊严。 火心可以感觉到，当他走近他们的首领时，氏族正在注视着他。 蓝星抬起头，当他看到她的眼睛里充满了恐惧和震惊时，他感到一阵惊恐。 “他们说是虎爪干的。”她粗声说。 “可能是他手下的一个无赖干的。” “有多少？”“我不知道。”火心承认。 在激烈的战斗中，根本无法计数。 “许多”。蓝星又摇了摇头，但火心知道她必须知道一切，不管她想不想知道森林里发生了什么。 “虎爪想要报复雷霆家族。”他报告说。 “他告诉我，他要一个接一个地杀死我们的战士。”

Behind him the Clan exploded into horrified yowls. Fireheart let them wail, keeping his eyes fixed on Bluestar. He felt his heart flutter like a trapped bird as he begged StarClan to give her the strength to cope with this openly declared threat. Gradually the Clan fell silent, and Fireheart waited with them for Bluestar to speak. An owl screeched in the distance as it dived through the trees. Bluestar lifted her head. "It's only me he wants to kill," she murmured, so quietly that only Fireheart could hear her. "For the sake of the Clan —" "No!" Fireheart spat, cutting her off. Did Bluestar really intend to give herself up to Tigerclaw? "He wants revenge on the whole Clan, not just you!" She dropped her head. "Such vicious betrayal!" she hissed. "How could I not have seen his treachery when he lived among us? What a fool I've been!" She shook her head, her eyes closed. "What a mouse-brained fool." Fireheart's paws trembled. Bluestar seemed determined to torture herself by claiming all

在他身后，氏族爆发出惊恐的嚎叫。 火心让他们哭，眼睛一直盯着蓝星。 他觉得自己的心像一只被困住的鸟一样怦怦直跳，他恳求星族给她力量来应对这个公开宣布的威胁。 氏族渐渐安静下来，火心和他们一起等着蓝星说话。 一只猫头鹰从远处的树丛中俯冲而过，发出刺耳的叫声。 蓝星抬起头。“他想杀的只是我。”她低声说，声音轻得只有火心听得见。 “为了氏族——”“不！”火心啐了一口，打断了她的话。 蓝星真的打算把自己交给虎爪吗？ “他想报复整个氏族，而不仅仅是你！”她低下头。 “如此恶毒的背叛！”她嘶嘶地说。 “他住在我们中间的时候，我怎么能看不见他的奸诈呢？ 我真是个傻瓜！”她摇了摇头，闭着眼睛。 “真是个鼠脑傻瓜。” 火心的爪子颤抖着。 蓝星似乎下定决心要把所有的东西都拿出来折磨自己

responsibility for Tigerclaw's wickedness. With a sickening jolt he realized he would have to take charge. "We must make sure the camp is guarded day and night from now on. Longtail." He looked over at the striped warrior. "You will sit guard till moonhigh." Then he swung his head toward Frostfur. "You will take over then." The two cats nodded, and Fireheart bent his head toward Runningwind's body. "Mousefur and Brackenfur can bury Runningwind at dawn. Bluestar will sit vigil with him until then." He glanced at his leader, who was staring blankly at the ground, and hoped that she'd heard him. "I will join her," meowed Whitestorm. The white warrior shouldered his way through the crowd and sat beside Bluestar, pressing his pelt against hers. One by one the Clan padded forward to pay their respects to their lost friend. Willowpelt slipped from the nursery and touched the dead warrior gently with her muzzle, whispering her sorrowful farewell. Goldenflower followed her, signaling to her kits to stay back. Fireheart felt a

对虎爪的恶行负责。 一阵令人作呕的震动使他意识到他必须负责。 “从现在起，我们必须日夜看守营地。 长尾。”他看了看条纹战士。 “你要守到月高。” 然后他把头转向弗罗斯特弗。 “你会接手的。” 两只猫点了点头，火心朝奔风的尸体低下头。 “鼠毛和蕨毛可以在黎明埋葬跑风。 在那之前，蓝星会一直守护着他。” 他瞥了一眼正茫然地盯着地面的队长，希望她听到了他的话。 “我要去找她。”白风暴叫道。 白衣武士挤过人群，坐在蓝星身边，把自己的毛皮贴在她的毛皮上。 氏族们一个接一个地走上前去，向他们失去的朋友表示敬意。 柳树从育儿室里溜出来，用它的嘴轻轻地碰了碰死去的战士，低声说着它悲伤的告别。 “金花”跟着她，示意她的孩子们退后。 火心觉得

chilling sense of foreboding as he saw the dark tabby kit peering curiously around his mother. He couldn't help feeling that this kit, however innocent, kept Tigerclaw's menace alive inside the Clan. Fireheart shook away the thought as he watched Goldenflower gently lick Runningwind's cheek. He must have faith in her and the Clan to raise the kit to be a truer warrior than his father had been. After Goldenflower had padded away, Fireheart stepped forward and leaned down to lick Runningwind's dull pelt. "I will avenge your death," he promised softly. As he backed away, he saw a figure step forward from the shadow of the Highrock. It was Darkstripe. Fireheart watched his eyes flick from Runningwind to Bluestar and back, burning, not with fear or grief, but with a brooding thoughtfulness. Unsettled, Fireheart headed for one place he knew he would find comfort. He padded through the ferns to Yellowfang's den, his bites and scratches beginning to sting as much as the thorn- sharp doubts that fretted in his mind.

当他看到那只深色虎斑猫好奇地盯着他妈妈的时候，他有一种不寒而栗的预感。 他不禁感到，这个工具箱，不管多么无辜，却使虎爪的威胁在氏族中生生不息。 火心看着金花温柔地舔着流风的脸颊，打消了这个念头。 他一定对她和氏族有信心，相信她会把基特培养成一个比他父亲更真正的战士。 金花走开后，火心走上前来，俯下身去舔流风的钝皮。 “我会为你报仇的。”他轻声保证。 当他往后退时，他看见一个人影从海岩的阴影中走出来。 是暗条纹。火心看着他的眼睛在奔风镇和蓝星镇之间来回切换，目光灼灼，并非出于恐惧或悲伤，而是一种沉思。 火心不安地朝一个他知道能找到安慰的地方走去。 他蹑手蹑脚地穿过蕨类植物来到黄牙的洞穴，他的咬伤和抓伤开始像刺痛他的心一样刺痛——尖锐的怀疑在他的脑海里焦躁不安。