Berrynose's Prophecy

Prologue

Berrystar skidded to a halt at the top of the slope; the stench of dogs hit her throat. Below, the ferns shook as dark shapes swarmed through the gully. Ravenwing's black pelt flashed like a crow through the greenery. He was keeping a good distance between himself and the pack, but the lead dog was breaking away and closing fast on the ThunderClan deputy.

No! Not that one! You cannot use him as prey!

Berrystar flung herself down the slope. Gulping air, muscles burning, she weaved around the trees, her paws skidding on the leafy forest floor. She hurtled through a swath of ferns, running blind as the leaves whipped her face. The gorge was close by. She could hear the river crashing between the sheer gray walls. Would Ravenwing really be able to lure the dog pack over the edge? What if the pack's leader caught him first?

She erupted from the bracken and scrambled to a stop in a clearing at the edge of the cliff. Leaves sprayed into the chasm as her paws slipped and slid.

Oh, StarClan, no!

Ravenwing was dangling from the glistening jaws of a huge dog. The ThunderClan deputy struggled, spitting with fury. The dog shook him, its eyes shining with triumph, but its clumsy paws were skittering dangerously close to the edge of the gorge.

"I will not let you destroy my Clan!" Berrystar roared. She flung herself at Ravenwing's tormentor, slamming headfirst into its flank.

The dog dropped Ravenwing and spun around in surprise.

Berrystar crouched and unsheathed her claws. Blood rorred in her ears but she felt no fear. She had not felt this alive for moons. SHe lashed out at the dog's muzzle, but her claws raked empty air. The dog was sliding away from her! The ground beneath its hind legs was crumbling. Shards of stone showered down the steep face of the gorge as the dog's paws scrambled to get a grip, but its blunt claws were slithering on the leaf-strew forest floor as its haunches dragged its hind legs backward over the cliff.

The pack thundered closer.

"Berrystar!" Ravenwing warned.

But Berrystar didn't take her eyes from the pack leader. She was locked in its panicked gaze as dogs began to crash through the bracken behind her.

The pack was upon them.

Berrystar dug her claws into the soft earth as the air suddenly roared with fear. The lunging dogs had seen the gorge, and their howls turned into yelps as they skidded at its edge. Berrystar held her ground as a desperate yowl echoed down the chasm. The first dog had fallen. Its body thumped against the cliff, and there was a moment of quiet before she heard it splash into the roaring water below.

Berrystar narrowed her eyes, still fixed on the pack leader. "You should never have threatened ThunderClan! She hissed.

Suddenly the dog stretched its head forward and grasped her foreleg in its jaws. She felt the ground slide beneath her as the dog dragged her with it over the edge. Wind roared around her, blasting ehr pelt as she fell. The river swirled and foamed below. She scrambled desperately against the cold wet air and struggled free of the dog just a moment before she hit the water.

The freezing river knocked the breath from her body. Blind, she struggled against the current, fighting her way toward air, her heart gripped by panic. Goosefeather's prophecy burned in her mind: Water will destroy you.

Her thick fur, heavy with water, dragged her down. The river tumbled all around her; she didn't know which way was up. Her lungs screamed for air. Terror scorched through her. She was going to drown, there in the foaming waters of the gorge.