Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15 Leafpaw burst out of the tunnel that led under the Thunderpath. Brambleclaw and Squirrelpaw followed, with Firestar stumbling between them. For a moment, the light was blinding, and Leafpaw screwed up her eyes. Then they adjusted to the cold daylight after the shadows in the tunnel, and she looked around at the ShadowClan cats lying exhausted on the narrow strip of grass beside the deserted Thunderpath. Tallpoppy's kits mewled as they huddled close to their mother. Littlecloud hurried from one cat to another, helpless without any of his supplies, and Blackstar stood staring at his Clan as if he couldn't believe what was happening to them. His white pelt was stained with blood, and his black paws were pricked with bark and splinters. Firestar's voice croaked behind her. "Is everyone okay?" "You should lie down," Leafpaw urged him. "There are no monsters here." "We can't stay in the open!" Brambleclaw

第十五章 叶爪冲出了通往雷路下方的隧道。 黑莓掌和松鼠爪跟在后面，火星跌跌撞撞地走在他俩中间。 有那么一瞬间，光线晃得眼睛都睁不开，叶爪紧紧眯起了眼。 等眼睛适应了隧道阴影外清冷的日光，她环顾四周，看到影族猫们精疲力竭地躺在废弃雷路边狭长的草地上。 高尾的幼崽们挤在妈妈身边喵喵叫着。 小云焦急地在猫群里穿梭，没有任何药品他什么也做不了。黑星站在那儿望着自己的族群，仿佛不敢相信他们遭遇了这一切。 他白色的皮毛沾满血污，黑色的脚掌扎满了树皮和木刺。 火星的声音在她身后沙哑地响起。 “大家都没事吧？” “你快躺下，”叶爪催促他。 “这里已经没有怪兽了。” “我们不能待在开阔地带！” 黑莓掌

objected. "We have to rest before we go on," Leafpaw insisted. Tallstar limped toward her. "Is Firestar all right?" he asked hoarsely. "Yes, but he lost a life when the tree fell," Leafpaw explained. Tallstar closed his eyes and shuddered all the way to the tip of his long tail. "I'm taking my warriors home," Mistyfoot called from where the RiverClan cats had gathered at the edge of the grassy space. "Will you help us get ShadowClan to Sunningrocks first?" Firestar asked. "Sunningrocks?" Blackstar narrowed his eyes. "Why do you want to take us there?" "It's where ThunderClan lives now, and you'll be safe from Twolegs there," Firestar meowed. "Cinderpelt has herbs for your injured cats, and there's room for you all to rest." And where else can ShadowClan go? Leafpaw thought grimly. There was hardly a place left in the forest that hadn't been taken over by Twolegs.

反对道。 “我们继续赶路之前必须休息，”叶爪坚持说。 高星一瘸一拐地朝她走来。 “火星没事吧？” 他声音沙哑地问。 “没事，但树倒的时候他丢了一条命，”叶爪解释道。 高星闭上眼，从头到尾打了个寒颤，连他长长的尾巴尖都在抖。 “我要带我的武士们回家了，”河族猫们在草地边缘聚集起来，雾脚在那儿喊道。 “你能先帮我们把影族送到太阳石吗？” 火星问道。 “太阳石？” 黑星眯起了眼睛。 “你为什么要带我们去那儿？” “那儿现在是雷族的地盘，你们在那里很安全，不会被两脚兽骚扰，”火星说道。 “炭毛给受伤的猫准备了药草，也有足够的地方让大家休息。” 除此之外影族还能去哪儿呢？ 叶爪忧伤地想。 这片森林里几乎找不到没被两脚兽占领的地方了。

"Okay," Mistyfoot nodded. "We'll go with you as far as Sunningrocks. But just because you've welcomed ShadowClan onto ThunderClan territory doesn't mean they're welcome in ours." "We'll be patrolling the border!" Hawkfrost warned, his eyes cold as ice. Squirrelpaw glared at him. "How can you worry about borders at a time like this? When will you realize what our journey meant, for all the Clans?" Brambleclaw silenced her with a glance. "ShadowClan will not cross the border," he promised. "Of course we won't," snapped Blackstar. Brambleclaw turned to Leafpaw. "How long before we can leave?" When Leafpaw hesitated, Firestar lifted his head. "I'm growing stronger," he insisted. "We can go soon." "Littlecloud?" she called to the ShadowClan medicine cat. "Can everyone make it to Sunningrocks?" "I think so, if we travel slowly," the small tabby tom replied.

“好吧，”雾脚点点头。 “我们会陪你们走到太阳石。 但就算雷族欢迎影族进入雷族领地，这不代表影族也能进入我们河族领地。” “我们会好好巡逻边界！” 鹰霜警告道，他的眼神冷得像冰。 松鼠爪怒视着他。 “这种时候你怎么还能担心边界？ 你到底什么时候才明白我们这次旅程对所有族群来说意味着什么？” 黑莓掌一个眼神就让她安静了下来。 “影族不会越界，”他保证道。 “我们当然不会，”黑星厉声说道。 黑莓掌转向叶爪。 “我们多久之后出发？” 叶爪犹豫的时候，火星抬起了头。 “我已经好多了，”他坚持说。 “我们很快就能出发。” “小云？”她朝这位影族巫医喊道。 “大家都能撑到太阳石吗？” “我觉得可以，只要我们走慢点儿，”这只小个子虎斑公猫回答道。

Leafpaw looked up at the sky. The sun was a fiery ball, sinking toward the treetops. "We should try to get back before it's dark," she told Brambleclaw. "Before it's too cold." "Okay," Brambleclaw mewed. "We'll rest long enough for everyone to catch their breath, then we'll move on." Thin clouds drifted in front of the sinking sun as the cats trekked through the woods. "Tallpoppy?" Leafpaw matched her pace to the limping ShadowClan queen's. "Are your kits all right?" Tallpoppy gazed at her three kits, carried now by warriors, and nodded. "Just scratches," she murmured. "We can clean them and treat them with marigold when we get to Sunningrocks," Leafpaw promised. Mistyfoot padded close beside Tallstar, pressing against the WindClan leader's flank whenever he stumbled. Brackenfur carried one of Tallpoppy's kits, and Tornear followed the ShadowClan apprentices, nudging them gently forward whenever they slowed their step.

叶爪抬头望向天空。 太阳像一个燃烧的火球，正朝着树梢沉下去。 “我们得在天黑之前赶回去，”她对黑莓掌说。 “别等天变得太冷了。” “好的，”黑莓掌说道。 “我们让大家歇够了喘过气，就继续出发。” 群猫在树林里跋涉的时候，薄云飘到了西沉的太阳前面。 “高尾？” 叶爪放慢脚步，跟上一瘸一拐的影族王后。 “你的幼崽们都还好吗？” 高尾看着她那三个被武士们抱着的幼崽，点了点头。 “只是点儿擦伤而已，”她轻声说。 “我们到太阳石之后就给它们清理伤口，敷上金盏花，”叶保证道。 雾脚挨着高星走，每当高星踉跄的时候，她就贴紧这位风族族长的身侧扶住他。 蕨毛抱着高尾的一只幼崽，荆皮跟在影族学徒身后，每当他们慢下来，就轻轻推着他们往前走。

"It's as if we don't belong to different Clans anymore," Leafpaw whispered, catching up with Squirrelpaw. Her sister nodded. "This is what it was like on the journey to the sun-drown-place." But as the cats limped onto the sloping surface of Sunningrocks, the old rifts returned. ShadowClan climbed to the top of the rock, while RiverClan halted beside the trees. Brackenfur placed the kit beside Tallpoppy and rejoined the ThunderClan cats as they padded slowly up the slope. He pressed his golden-brown flank against Sorreltail's, supporting her as her exhausted paws swayed beneath her. Tallstar lay down close to the base of the rock, too tired to climb any farther. Onewhisker, Tornear, and Crowpaw gathered around him. "How did it go?" Whitepaw rushed over to Brightheart and pressed her nose into her flank. She drew back quickly. "You're bleeding!" "Just some scratches," Brightheart reassured her. "You're alive!" Cody hurried down from the overhang, with Birchkit stumbling after her. She

“好像我们再也不属于不同族群了。”叶爪小声说道，追上了松鼠爪。 她的姐姐点了点头。 “我们前去太阳沉没之地的旅途上，就是这样的感觉呀。” 可当猫咪们一瘸一拐走上阳光岩的斜坡时，旧日的裂痕又出现了。 影族爬到了岩石顶端，河族则停在了树林边。 蕨毛把幼崽放到高罂粟身边，重新回到雷族猫群中，跟着大伙慢慢爬坡。 他把金棕色的身子贴紧栗尾，支撑着摇摇晃晃、累得抬不动爪子的她。 高星躺倒在岩石基座旁，累得再也爬不动了。 一根须、托尼尔和鸦爪围在了他身边。 “情况怎么样？” 白爪冲到亮心身边，把鼻子贴在了她的腹侧。 她很快往后退开。 “你流血了！” “只是一点抓伤而已。”亮心安慰她说。 “你还活着！” 科蒂从悬岩上急忙跑下来，桦爪跌跌撞撞跟在她身后。 她

pressed her muzzle against Leafpaw's. Ferncloud appeared at the lip of the nursery and stared in bewilderment at the cats crowding onto the rock. "What happened?" "Everyone's safe." Brambleclaw shouldered his way to the front of the patrol. "That's the main thing." "Thank StarClan." The ThunderClan queen sighed. Cinderpelt clambered out of her hollow. "Where's Firestar?" "I'm here," Firestar croaked, weaving his way to the front. Leafpaw followed him closely, aware that he was still shaking. "Firestar lost a life," she murmured before Cinderpelt could say anything. "What about the ShadowClan camp?" Frostfur demanded. "Did you save it?" "We cannot fight the monsters," Firestar meowed bleakly. "We could do nothing except help ShadowClan escape before their camp was destroyed." "They destroyed the camp?" Frostfur gasped. "There's nothing left but fallen trees,"

把鼻子贴在了叶爪的鼻子上。 蕨云出现在育婴室门口，困惑地盯着挤上岩石的猫群。 “出什么事了？” “大家都平安。” 黑莓掌挤到了巡逻队的最前面。 “这才是最重要的。” “感谢星族。” 这位雷族猫后松了口气。 炭毛从她的石洞里爬了出来。 “火星在哪里？” “我在这儿。”火星哑着嗓子说，挤着走到了前面。 叶爪紧紧跟在他身后，察觉到他还在不停发抖。 “火星失去了一条命。”没等炭毛开口，她就轻声说道。 “影族营地怎么样了？” 霜发问道。 “你们救下营地了吗？” “我们打不过那些怪物。”火星凄凉地说。 “我们什么都做不了，只能帮影族在营地被毁前逃出来。” “营地真的被他们毁掉了？” 霜发倒吸一口凉气。 “除了倒下的树什么都没剩下，”