Warriors: Mapleshade's Vengeance (Warriors Novella) by Erin Hunter

Author:Erin Hunter [Hunter, Erin]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2015-03-24T07:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6

The sun dragged slowly across the sky. Mapleshade’s belly was still full from the mole; besides, she was too tense to eat. Her claws were blunt after her long day of walking, so she sharpened them on a stone. A hawk swooped overhead and Mapleshade imagined it feasting on Ravenwing’s body after she had finished with him. He would bleed a river of blood, every drop spilled for her helpless kits. . . .

At last the sky faded and the shadows between the rocks grew thicker. Mapleshade fluffed up her fur against the chill and crouched on top of a boulder, watching for any sign of movement at the foot of the hill. Suddenly a darker shadow flitted across the grass. Ravenwing was here! Alone and early, as he usually was. Mapleshade unsheathed her claws and let them scratch against the stone. She stayed very still, hardly breathing, as Ravenwing climbed the slope toward her. Mapleshade tensed her hindquarters, ready to leap down onto the medicine cat, but then she paused. If she attacked him out here, she might be seen by the other medicine cats. And where was the satisfaction in a simple ambush? She should follow Ravenwing down to the Moonstone and tackle him there, at the source of his precious omens.

Mapleshade pictured the long, stifling tunnel from her visit as an apprentice. Her pelt pricked at the thought of entering that darkness again, but then the wails of her kits echoed in her ears and she slid soundlessly off the boulder just a heartbeat before Ravenwing padded past. Mapleshade could hear him breathing heavily after the climb. She waited until he vanished into the gaping maw of Mothermouth before slipping out and trotting after him.

The hole swallowed her up at once, thick black shadows pressing around her until there was no glimpse of moonlight when she looked back at the entrance. Mapleshade padded over the stone floor, trying to keep her steps as light as possible. But Ravenwing must have heard something because he stopped, invisible in the dark ahead of her, and called out. “Who’s there?”

Mapleshade froze, convinced that her heart was thudding loud enough for the medicine cat to hear. But after a moment Ravenwing carried on, his paw steps the softest whisper in the silence. Faint gray light appeared ahead, silhouetting the medicine cat’s ears. The Moonstone! Mapleshade realized she had dropped into the hunting crouch and was stalking forward once step at a time, her tail flattened behind her. She reached the opening to the cave and almost gasped out loud at the sight of the Moonstone glittering in the silver light. Ravenwing knelt in front of it, his head bowed.

With a hiss, Mapleshade sprang forward, claws extended. She landed on his back, sending him rolling onto the smooth cold stone. She caught a glimpse of his eyes, bright in the reflected moonlight.

“Mapleshade!” Ravenwing choked. “What are you doing here?”

Mapleshade let her claws sink into the fur around his throat. “Avenging the death of my kits,” she snarled.

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