Chapter 0 Prologue

WARRIORS A DANGEROUS PATH ERIN HUNTER

勇士在猎人中走了一条危险的道路

PROLOGUE Inside the kennel-that-moves, everything was dark. The pack leader could hear the scrabbling of claws and feel the sleek pelt of the dog next to him, but he could see nothing. Dog scent filled his nostrils, and beyond that the smell of the burned forest. The pack leader sat uncomfortably on the vibrating floor until the kennel-that-moves bounced to a halt. Outside, he could hear Man voices. He understood some of the words. "Fire… keep watch…guard dogs." The pack leader picked up the Men's fear- scent, along with the bittersweet smell of cut wood. He remembered coming here the night before, and the night before that, more than four paws' worth of nights. He had prowled the compound with the rest of the pack, sifting through the scents for intruders, ready to drive them away. The dog snarled softly, his lips drawn back from sharp teeth. The pack was strong. They could run, and kill. They craved warm blood, and the terror-scent of prey before it died. But instead

在会动的狗窝里，一切都是黑暗的。 狼群的首领能听到爪子的摩擦声，也能感觉到旁边那只狗光滑的皮毛，但他什么也看不见。 他的鼻孔里充满了狗的气味，除此之外还有森林烧焦的气味。 领头的狗不安地坐在震动的地板上，直到狗窝停止了运动。 外面，他能听到人的声音。 他理解其中的一些词。 “消防……放哨……看门狗。” 狼群的首领闻到了人们的恐惧气味，同时也闻到了砍下来的木头的苦乐参半的味道。 他记得前天晚上来过这里，还有前天晚上，足足有四个爪子那么多的夜晚。 他和其他狼群一起在院子里徘徊，从气味中寻找入侵者，准备把他们赶走。 狗轻轻地咆哮着，嘴唇从锋利的牙齿上缩回来。 狼群很强壮。他们能跑，能杀人。 他们渴望温暖的血液，以及猎物死前的恐怖气味。 而是

they were penned up, they ate the food the Man threw to them, and they obeyed the Man's orders. The dog rose to his powerful paws, rattling the doors as he butted them with his massive black- and-tan head. He lifted his voice in a bark that sounded all the louder in the confined space. "Out! Pack out! Out now!" The rest of the pack added their voices. "Pack out! Pack run!" As if in answer, the doors of the kennel-that- moves were flung open. In the twilight the pack leader could see the Man standing there, barking an order. The leader jumped down first, close to a pile of logs stacked in the middle of the compound. His paws threw up little puffs of ash and soot. The rest of the pack followed in a stream of black- and-brown bodies. "Pack follow! Pack follow!" they barked. The leader padded restlessly along the fence that separated them from the forest. Beyond the fence, burned-out tree trunks leaned against each other or lay on the ground. Farther away a barrier of undamaged trees rustled in the breeze.

他们被关起来，吃了那人给他们的食物，并且听从了那人的命令。 那只狗伸出有力的爪子，用它那黑棕相间的大脑袋撞门，把门撞得格格作响。 他提高了嗓门，在狭小的空间里，声音听起来更响了。 “出去!包了!现在!”其他的狗也跟着说。 “包出来!包快跑!”好像是作为回答，狗窝的门突然打开了。 在暮色中，狼群的首领看见那个人站在那里，大声地发号施令。 领头的人先跳了下来，靠近院子中间堆着的一堆木头。 它的爪子吐出一团团灰和烟灰。 其余的狗也跟着跟着，黑褐色的躯体一串串地走了出来。 “包跟随!收拾东西跟我来！” 领队不安地沿着把他们和森林隔开的栅栏走着。 篱笆那边，被烧毁的树干或靠在一起，或躺在地上。 远处，一排完好无损的树木在微风中沙沙作响。

Scents flowed enticingly from the leaf-thick shadows. The dog's muscles tensed. Out there, in the prey-filled forest, the pack could run free. There would be no Man to chain or command them. They would feed as often as they wanted, because they would be the strongest and most savage of all. "Free!" the lead dog barked. "Pack free! Free soon!" He walked up to the fence and pressed his nose against the mesh links, drawing the smells of the forest deep into his lungs. Many of the scents he had never smelled before, but there was one he knew well, stronger than the rest, the scent of his enemy and his prey. Cats! Night had fallen; the leafless branches of the blackened trees were silhouetted against a full moon. In the darkness the dogs ranged to and fro, deep shadows in the night. Paws padded softly among soot and sawdust. Muscles rippled under shining coats. Their eyes gleamed. Their jaws were parted, revealing sharp teeth, and their tongues

香气诱人地从茂密的树荫中飘来。 狗的肌肉绷紧了。在那里，在充满猎物的森林里，狼群可以自由奔跑。 没有人用锁链或命令他们。 他们想吃多少就吃多少，因为他们是最强壮、最野蛮的。 “自由！”领头的狗叫道。 “包免费的!很快就自由了!”他走到栅栏前，把鼻子贴在网扣上，把森林的气味深深地吸进了他的肺里。 许多气味他以前从未闻过，但有一种气味他非常熟悉，比其他气味更强烈，那就是他的敌人和猎物的气味。 猫!夜幕降临；在一轮满月的映衬下，漆黑的树木的光秃秃的树枝显出了轮廓。 狗儿在黑暗中走来走去，成了黑夜里深深的影子。 爪子在煤烟和锯末之间轻轻地摸索着。 肌肉在闪亮的外套下荡漾。 他们的眼睛闪闪发光。它们的下颚张开，露出锋利的牙齿和舌头

lolled. The pack leader sniffed along the bottom of the fence, searching for a special place on the opposite side of the compound from where the Man stayed at night. Three nights ago the dog had discovered a narrow hole leading under the fence. He knew at once that this would be the route to freedom for the pack. "Hole. Where hole?" he growled. Then he spotted the place where the earth floor of the compound fell away into a hollow. One massive paw scraped at the ground. The dog raised his head to bark to his followers. "Here. Hole, hole. Here." He could feel their eagerness in his own mind, sharp as thorns, hot as carrion. They came bounding up to the lead dog, answering his bark. "Hole. Hole." "Bigger, hole bigger," the pack leader promised. "Run soon." He began scraping at the ground again with all the strength in his lean, powerful body. Earth scattered as the hole under the chain-link fence grew wider and deeper. The remaining dogs

懒洋洋地躺。狼群首领沿着栅栏底部嗅了嗅，在院子的另一边寻找一个特别的地方，从那个人晚上住的地方。 三天前的晚上，狗发现篱笆下面有一个狭窄的洞。 他立刻明白，这将是狼群获得自由的途径。 “洞。哪里有洞？”他咆哮道。 然后，他发现了一个地方，在那里，院落的地面塌陷成了一个洞。 一只巨大的爪子抓着地面。 那只狗抬起头来向他的追随者吠叫。 “在这里。洞,洞。在这里。”他能在自己心里感觉到他们的急切，像荆棘一样尖锐，像腐肉一样灼热。 他们跑到领头的狗跟前，响应它的吠叫。 “洞。洞。”“再大一点，洞口再大一点，”狼群首领保证道。 “快跑。”他又开始用他那瘦削有力的身体的全部力量刨地。 铁丝网下的洞越挖越宽越深，泥土也散落了。 剩下的狗

milled around, snuffling at the night air that carried scents from the forest. They drooled at the thought of sinking their teeth into the warm bodies of living prey. The pack leader stopped, ears pricked for the sound of the Man coming to check on them. But there was no sign of him, and his scent drifted from far away. The lead dog flattened himself on the ground and squirmed down into the hole. The bottom of the fence scraped along his pelt. The dog thrust hard with his hind paws, propelling himself forward until he could scramble up and stand in the forest outside. "Free now," he barked. "Come! Come!" The hole grew deeper still as each dog forced his way through, to stand beside his leader among the burned-out trees. They padded back and forth, pushing their muzzles into the holes at the roots of trees, gazing into the darkness with eyes that glowed with a cold fire. As the last dog dragged itself under the fence, the pack leader raised his head and let out a triumphant bark. "Run. Pack free. Run now!"

绕来绕去，嗅着带着森林气息的夜晚空气。 一想到要把牙齿咬进活着的猎物温暖的身体里，它们就流口水。 狼群的首领停了下来，竖起耳朵倾听着那人过来检查他们的声音。 但是没有他的踪迹，他的气味从远处飘来。 领头的狗趴在地上，蠕动着钻进洞里。 篱笆的底部刮过他的皮毛。 那只狗用后爪使劲向前推，直到它能爬上去站在外面的森林里。 “现在自由了。”他叫道。“来!来!”当每只狗都挤过去的时候，洞变得越来越深，站在被烧毁的树林里的主人旁边。 它们来回踱步，把嘴伸进树根的洞里，眼睛里闪烁着冰冷的火焰，凝视着黑暗。 当最后一只狗拖着身子爬过栅栏时，领头的狗抬起头，得意地叫了一声。 ”运行。包免费的。跑了!”