Path of Stars (23 page)

Red purred. “Call me Red Claw from now on.”

Clear Sky dipped his head. “A good name for a fine hunter.”

River Ripple turned to Moss. “Would you like to change your name?”

“Yes.” Moss's whiskers twitched happily. “I'd like to be known as Moss Tail.”

“And I want to be Pine Needle!” Pine mewed beside his father.

River Ripple glanced expectantly at Drizzle.

She was staring thoughtfully at her paws. As silence fell
around her, she lifted her head. “Do I
have
to change my name?” Worry sparkled in her eyes. “I
like
being Drizzle.”

River Ripple purred. “You can be Drizzle for as long as you like.”

Drizzle gazed at him gratefully with round, blue eyes. “Thank you.”

Tall Shadow nodded toward Juniper and Raven. “Do you want new names?”

Juniper nodded. “Will you choose them for us?”

Tall Shadow frowned, her eyes clouding with thought.

Sun Shadow blinked at her. “What about Juniper Branch?”

“And Raven Pelt!” Pebble Heart chimed in.

Tall Shadow faced her new campmates. “Do you like those names?”

Juniper purred loudly. “Yes.”

Raven dipped his head. “May I join the first patrol tomorrow?” he asked. “As Raven
Pelt
?”

Tall Shadow's eyes shone. “You can lead it, if you like.” She glanced toward Sun Shadow, Mud Paws, and Mouse Ear as though searching for approval. As they nodded, Jagged Peak stepped forward. “You can show us new places to hunt.”

Holly whisked her tail. “You said there was a great place to hunt frogs near the Thunderpath.”

Thunder wrinkled his nose. Did the pine cats eat
frogs
?

Reed padded forward. “I've been a moor cat for many moons, and I think my name should reflect that.”

“Mine too!” Minnow hurried to join him. “I'd like to be Swift Minnow.”

Wind Runner blinked at them in surprise. “But—”

Reed interrupted her. “I know you don't like change, Wind Runner. But I'd appreciate it if you'd call me Reed Tail from now on.”

“Reed Tail.” Wind Runner echoed the words, her pelt rippling uncomfortably along her spine. “Okay.”

River Ripple nodded to Thunder. “Are your cats going to take new names?”

Thunder glanced at Violet. “You'll have to ask them.”

Violet gazed at him warmly, as though there were no other cats in the hollow. “I'd like to be Violet Dawn,” she mewed huskily.

“Violet Dawn.” Thunder repeated her new name dreamily. “That's beautiful.”

He jerked from his thoughts as River Ripple turned to Ember. “And what about you? Do you want a new name now that you're part of Thunder's group?”

Ember stared at him. “Just because I sleep in the same camp doesn't mean I want to change who I am.”

Tall Shadow's tail quivered. “I guess he doesn't
have
to change his name,” she meowed cautiously. “Drizzle kept
her
old name.”

River Ripple ignored her. His gaze was fixed on Ember. “Are you part of Thunder's group or not?” he asked softly but firmly.

Ember eyed him challengingly. “Thunder lets me sleep in his camp. Does that mean I have to act like we're kin?”

Thunder shivered. Ember sounded hostile. Was it safe to let him stay in the ravine?

River Ripple hadn't moved. “You've just promised to hunt
for your campmates and protect them when they are weak and stand beside them when they are strong. Isn't that a little like being kin?”

Ember snorted. “Slash never expected anything of us. Our lives were our own.”

Anger surged beneath Thunder's pelt. He darted forward and faced the orange rogue. “Your lives were
never
your own with Slash. You had to obey every word he said!”

A vicious snarl sounded from the high rock.

Thunder spun, his eyes widening as he saw the thin, muscly outline of Slash. The rogue was glaring down at them, lit by moonlight at the top of the boulder. Thunder's fur lifted along his spine. Had the rogue come here to fight?

“No one ever had to obey me,” Slash hissed. “They could have left if they wanted.”

“That's not true.” Fern limped forward and glared at Slash. “You said you'd hurt Beech if I didn't come back.”

“So?” Slash curled his lip. “Beech died anyway.” As he spoke, Bee padded from behind Slash.

Fern recoiled, hissing.

More shapes moved at the bottom of the rock. Splinter, Beetle, and Snake emerged from the shadows and faced the gathered cats.

Thunder pushed his way through his campmates and glared at Slash. Anger churned in his belly. “How dare you come here!”

Slash looked past him, his gaze flicking over his old campmates. Moss Tail and Dawn Mist moved closer to their kits.
Willow Tail shifted her paws. Fear showed in Red Claw's eyes. “Thank you for looking after the weakest members of my group,” Slash hissed. “But it's time for them to come home now.”

Thunder stiffened. These rogues had just pledged loyalty to their new campmates. Surely they wouldn't leave now? Could Slash bully them into returning to their old group?

Wind Runner backed away, her pelt spiking. Her distrustful gaze flicked over Willow Tail and Fern Leaf.

She thinks they will betray us!
Thunder's heart pounded in his ears.
Prove her wrong!
He stiffened as Ember barged his way through the gathered cats and padded toward the high rock. “I want to come back,” he told Slash.

Slash's eyes lit up with triumph. “Of course you do. Bee's told me what a bunch of simpering mouse-hearts these cats are.” He glared at Thunder. “Perhaps
you'd
like to join us. Your skills are wasted on these chattering pigeons!”

Thunder growled. “Never!” He braced himself, ready to defend his campmates. His thoughts quickened. Violet Dawn would fight beside him. Lightning Tail too. Every cat he'd grown up beside would face these rogues at his side.

But what about the others? He glanced toward Juniper Branch and Raven Pelt. He hardly knew them. What if they joined Slash? Gray Wing was clearly not as strong as he used to be. If a fight broke out, protecting him would be tricky. Suddenly Thunder felt vulnerable. The wind moaned through the branches overhead as the cats glared at one another.

“I will never share a camp with you again.” Moss Tail's hiss cut through the icy air.

“Nor me!” Dawn Mist stiffened beside her mate.

“I belong to Clear Sky's group now!” Red Claw padded forward and stopped at Clear Sky's side. “I am loyal to him.”

Thunder glanced at Juniper Branch, Raven Pelt, Willow Tail, and Fern Leaf as they lined up beside their new campmates, hackles high.

Relief swept through his fur. He stared at Slash. “Take Ember and go,” he snarled. “We didn't take your weakest cats. We took your strongest.” Pride swelled in his chest.

Slash glared at him angrily. “You can keep them,” he hissed. “But don't think you've won. Go back to your camps, you mouse-brains. You'll learn quickly enough the price you've paid for defying me.”

At Slash's words, Gray Wing's heart
lurched. He blinked at Clear Sky. Where was Star Flower? And the kits? Was Slash planning to kidnap her again?

Fear sparked in Clear Sky's eyes. “Star Flower!” He raced for the slope. Acorn Fur, Nettle, and Birch tore after him, pelts bristling.

Breath tightening, Gray Wing looked up at Slash, who was watching the shocked cats, his whiskers twitching with delight. “If you've hurt Star Flower or her kits—”

Slash cut Gray Wing off. “Why should I bother with
them
? I've had enough of making Clear Sky suffer. It was
you
who led my cats away.” Hatred gleamed in the rogue's slitted gaze.

Fear slipped icy claws beneath Gray Wing's pelt. “What do you mean?”

Slash didn't answer. Instead he signaled to his rogues with a flick of his tail and leaped from the great rock. Slinking into the shadows, they disappeared.

Gray Wing began to tremble. Slash was blaming
him
.

“Slate and the kits!” Wind Runner's panicked mew shook Gray Wing from his thoughts.

He stared at her across the snowy clearing. “Spotted Fur's with her.” Even as he spoke, he knew that Spotted Fur couldn't fight a band of rogues single-pawed. “We have to get home!” He turned for the slope. Invisible jaws clamped his chest. He could hardly breathe.

Wind Runner raced to his side. She glanced at River Ripple. “Get back to your camp. Take shelter in your strongest den and protect Drizzle and Pine Needle until we know what Slash has planned next.” As River Ripple nodded, she turned to Thunder. “Take your cats home too. We'll all be safest in our camps.”

Clear Sky's cats had already disappeared into the forest. Only Sparrow Fur lingered, her pelt pricking along her spine.

Thunder lifted his chin. “If Slate and the kits are in danger, I'm staying with Gray Wing.” He nodded to Lightning Tail. “Take our campmates home. You're in charge until I get back.”

Leaf's eyes widened. “You can't leave us now, Thunder! Slash is back and wants revenge.”

“Lightning Tail is in charge for now,” Thunder told the black-and-white tom. “He's the strongest cat in the group, and I trust him completely. Do whatever he tells you.” Thunder leaned closer to Lightning Tail, lowering his voice until Gray Wing had to prick his ears to hear. “If I don't return,
you
must be leader. I trust you to take care of our campmates. Keep the group together. The future lies in your paws.”

Lightning Tail blinked in surprise at his friend. “You're coming back, aren't you?”

Before he could answer, Violet Dawn pushed past Lightning Tail and pressed her nose to Thunder's cheek. “You
must
come back!”

Thunder let her cheek rest against his for a moment, then pulled away. He whisked his tail. “I'll be home as soon as I can,” he promised.

Gray Wing stared desperately up the slope. “We have to go!” Slash could be in the camp right now. Struggling for breath, he stumbled toward the bracken.

“Let me come.” Pebble Heart crossed the clearing and pushed his shoulder beneath Gray Wing's. He looked back to Tall Shadow. “I'll be back in camp as soon as I can.”

Tall Shadow dipped her head to the young tom. “Take Sun Shadow with you,” she ordered. “He can help.”

“I'll do what I can.” Sun Shadow nodded quickly and rushed to join the moor cats.

“I'll help too!” Owl Eyes hurried forward and pressed against Gray Wing's other side.

Gray Wing was surprised at the young tom's strength. He remembered him as a kit, clambering over his flank while Turtle Tail looked on fondly. Now he felt Owl Eyes's powerful muscles press against his own bony frame.

Wind Runner had already crashed through the bracken, her campmates at her side. Dust Muzzle and Moth Flight kicked snow up as they followed.

“Let me come!” Sparrow Fur's mew startled Gray Wing. Gratitude swamped him as the tortoiseshell she-cat streaked after the others. All of Turtle Tail's kits wanted to help.

Willow Tail lashed her tail. “If Slash has harmed a hair on their pelts, I'll hunt him down and kill him!”

Fern Leaf showed her teeth. “I'll help you,” she hissed.

As they disappeared between the orange fronds, Owl Eyes and Pebble Heart guided Gray Wing up the slope. At the top, he blinked into the icy wind that flayed the snow-covered moor. Flecks of snow stung his eyes.

The camp hollow showed in the distance, a shadow on the moonlit hillside. Wind Runner and the others raced toward it.

Gray Wing stumbled, desperate to keep up. Pebble Heart and Owl Eyes pressed closer against him, supporting him as he struggled through the deep snow. His chest burned. Darkness pressed at the edge of his vision as he struggled for breath. His thoughts focused on the camp.
Please let Slate be okay!
And the kits!
Perhaps Slash had been bluffing, just to scare him.

His campmates streaked ahead, their dark shapes showing against the snow as they pelted uphill. They disappeared into heather, then broke from the far side.

Frustration pulsed through Gray Wing. “Faster!” he gasped.

Pebble Heart's shoulder pressed harder against his. Owl Eyes leaned closer on his other side. Lifting him between them, they carried him over the snow. Gray Wing's paws churned helplessly beneath him as they whisked him toward the camp.

By the time they reached the gorse entrance, the others had disappeared inside.

Gray Wing smelled blood. Heart quickening, he pricked his ears and listened for the sound of fighting. But he heard
no battle cries. Only the eerie moaning of the wind over the moonlit moor.

He shook free of Pebble Heart and Owl Eyes and staggered through the entrance. Stumbling over the tussocks, he saw blood staining the snow.

Wind Runner and the others were circling around two shapes on the ground.

Hardly breathing, Gray Wing barged past his campmates and stopped.

Spotted Fur and Slate were lying like abandoned prey in the snow, their pelts glistening with blood.

Are they dead?
Gray Wing's heart seemed to stop as he stared.

Then Spotted Fur groaned and pushed himself heavily to his paws. “I tried to save them,” he croaked. With a gasp, he began to collapse as his hind legs buckled beneath him.

Pebble Heart dashed to the golden tom's side and began sniffing his pelt anxiously.

Gray Wing hardly noticed. His gaze was fixed on Slate.

She lay unmoving while her campmates stared in horror.

Reed Tail crouched beside her and was lapping her bloody neck with urgent strokes.

Gray Wing stumbled closer. “Slate—” Her name seemed to stick in his throat. Above, the silent stars glittered.
Don't take her,
he silently begged his ancestors. Were they watching? The ground swayed beneath him. Grief spread barbed claws around his heart.
Not again.
Wasn't it enough he'd lost Turtle Tail?

Slate stirred. “Gray Wing?” Her mew was barely a whisper.

Gray Wing dropped to his belly beside her. As he struggled for breath, Slate opened her eyes. She stared at him blankly
for a moment; then terror shot through her amber gaze. “The kits!” Fighting to stand up, she yowled across the clearing. “Silver Stripe! Black Ear! White Tail!”

Gray Wing jerked his muzzle around. Where were they?

Slate's gaze was frantic. “We fought for them!” she gasped. “Slash came with his cats after you'd all left. We tried to drive them out of the camp. But there were too many of them.” She darted forward, scrambling this way and that across the clearing, her pelt bristling. “White Tail! Black Ear!”

“Slate?” A frightened mew sounded from the gorse wall of the camp. The branches trembled and snow showered down as a tiny dark gray tom-kit slid out. A pale gray tabby she-kit followed him, sprigs of gorse sticking out of her fur.

“Silver Stripe!” Slate ran toward them, her bloody paws staining the snow. “White Tail!”

Relief washed Gray Wing's pelt. Two of his kits were safe.

Silver Stripe blinked at her mother as Slate stopped beside them. “We hid like you told us.”

“We hardly breathed,” White Tail whispered. Trembling, he dived beneath Slate's belly and crouched there.

“We thought they'd killed you,” Silver Stripe wailed.

White Tail shrank deeper under his mother's fur as Slate scooped Silver Stripe close. “You were very brave to hide when we told you to.”

“Black Ear wasn't quick enough,” White Tail sobbed. “They saw him and grabbed him.”

Slate swung her gaze toward Gray Wing. Horror froze her face. “Black Ear!”

“I'll find him.” Gray Wing tried to straighten, but his breath was so shallow, darkness threatened to overwhelm him.

Thunder padded to his side. “Stay here, Gray Wing. I'll find him for you.” Determination hardened his mew.

Gray Wing gazed at him helplessly, frustration throbbing in his paws. “But they're
my
kits!” he wheezed.

Thunder gazed at him solemnly. “You have done so much for me, Gray Wing. Let me do this for you.”

Gray Wing held his gaze for a moment, touched by Thunder's warmth. “Thank you.”

Wind Runner lashed her tail. “We don't know which way they're headed. Thunder, Sparrow Fur, and Owl Eyes! Head toward the pines. Slash might be taking Black Ear to his old camp. Swift Minnow, you take Reed Tail and Dust Muzzle toward the river. Check the gorge and the reed beds. I'll take Sun Shadow, Gorse Fur, and Moth Flight to the oak forest. We'll search the woods.”

Willow Tail lifted her chin. “I'm coming with you,” she told Wind Runner.

“And me.” Fern Leaf stood next to her friend.

Wind Runner eyed them doubtfully.

Gray Wing tensed. Surely she couldn't reject their help?

Wind Runner flicked her tail. “You're still recovering from your wounds, Fern Leaf,” she meowed briskly. “Stay here in camp and help Pebble Heart. Willow Tail.” She dipped her head to the pale tabby. “You can join my patrol. You know the routes the rogues use. And you're smart and strong. We'll need you.”

Willow Tail puffed out her chest. “I won't let you down.”

Gray Wing tried to stand again, but his paws buckled. Rage flared through him.
I can't even save my own kit!

Pebble Heart pressed against him and nodded to Fern Leaf. “Do you know what coltsfoot looks like?” he asked the young she-cat.

Fern Leaf nodded.

“It'll be wilted by the cold,” Pebble Heart warned her. “But you should be able to find stems. Frost-burned ones will do. Bring them here. They'll help Gray Wing's breathing.” He turned to Slate. “Get the kits into your den and keep them warm. I'll check on your wounds when I've seen to Spotted Fur.”

The world swam around Gray Wing. Paws thrummed on every side. His campmates were heading for the entrance.

Thunder's mew sounded fiercely in his ear. “I'm going to find Black Ear,” he promised. “And I'll bring him home safe.”

Darkness closed in as Gray Wing felt the last of his strength seep into the snowy earth.