Эрин Хантер - The Raging Storm

“Flood!”

At Plumwillow’s shriek, Violetshine scrambled to her paws. Fear shrilled beneath her fur. Where the hill had once been surrounded by muddy fields, now a great lake swirled around it and lapped at their nests.

“The water’s still rising.” Hawkwing hurried around the Clan, nudging them higher up the slope. At the top, a great elm rocked in the wind. The Clan had camped beneath it because it was the tallest tree as far as the eye could see. A maple grew nearby, but it was smaller and had promised less shelter. Saplings sprouted around its roots where they’d wanted to build nests. Violetshine stared at it now, wishing they’d made their camp there. The land where it grew sloped upward, beyond the reach of the flood, but there was no way to reach it. Water cut it off, and they were trapped on a rapidly shrinking island.

Violetshine’s paws seemed to be rooted to the spot. She stared at the water. It washed over the grass. Currents churned the muddy torrent.

“Get back.” Hawkwing steered her toward the elm as the flood lapped higher and the grass where Violetshine had stood disappeared.

Leafstar stared across the drowned landscape. Her eyes were round with disbelief. “StarClan help us.”

Bellaleaf swung her muzzle toward the stricken leader. “They tried to warn us, remember?”

“We were meant to stay with the other Clans!” Sagenose hopped clear as the water lapped higher.

Dewspring flattened his ears. “This is what happens when you ignore StarClan.”

Leafstar blinked at him, fear showing in her eyes. Her voice was tight. “There was no place for us beside the lake.”

“We should have fought harder to make one,” Bellaleaf snapped.

“Instead we’re going to drown in the middle of nowhere!” Dewspring’s pelt bristled.

Hawkwing glared at his Clanmates. “Don’t blame Leafstar! She has always done what she thought was best for the Clan. How could she know the future?”

Sagenose grunted. “StarClan knew it.” He nodded toward the saplings. “Look!”

Violetshine followed his gaze and counted five saplings growing in the shadow of the maple.

“They warned us,” Plumwillow whispered.

“They knew what would happen if we left.” Sandynose paced frantically.

Frecklewish pushed her way to the front of her Clanmates. “The saplings are all healthy.” She flicked her tail toward them. “None have been broken by the storm.”

Hawkwing lifted his muzzle. “She’s right. The saplings are surviving the storm, and so will we.”

Quailpaw shrieked and leaped backward as water lapped his paws. “We’re going to drown!”

Hawkwing glanced up at the elm. “We’re SkyClan,” he yowled. “We can climb!” He leaped up the trunk, scrambling easily onto the lowest branch.

Leaning over, he called down. “There’s plenty of space up here.”

Violetshine nudged Sunnypaw toward the trunk as her Clanmates hurried toward it and swarmed into the branches.

Frecklewish waited at the bottom while Fidgetflake clawed his way up. Violetshine pressed beside her. “Do the saplings mean we’ll be okay?”

Frecklewish looked at her, hollow-eyed. “For now.”

Fear tightened Violetshine’s belly. She glanced back toward the maple as Frecklewish climbed into the tree. The stretch of water between the elm and the maple was as wide as a river. If only they could cross it, they could escape the flood.

“Violetshine!” Hawkwing called down.

Violetshine realized she was the last cat left on the ground. Water swirled higher around the hilltop. A wave washed over her paws. As the last trace of grass disappeared, she scrambled upward and heaved herself onto the branch beside Hawkwing.

Harrybrook and Macgyver had leaped to higher branches. They helped haul the others up. Violetshine glanced at her Clanmates, dotted along the branches. They populated the tree like crows waiting out the night.

Leafstar sat resolutely on the end of Hawkwing’s branch and gazed into the churning water. “Perhaps we should have stayed beside the lake,” she murmured.

Sagenose leaned over the branch above her. “I wish you’d decided that earlier.”

Violetshine glared at him. “Leafstar is our leader and she would die to protect us,” she growled. “If she brought us here, she did it with good reason. How can you be sure we wouldn’t have faced danger if we’d stayed?”

Harrybrook peered down through the leaves. “We’re safe for now,” he called. “We should be grateful for that.”

Violetshine looked at her father. “How long until the water goes down?”

His gaze was dark. “Not until the rain has stopped.”

Plumwillow called from a branch overhead. “That’s not going to be anytime soon!” She jerked her muzzle toward the sky. “Look at the clouds.”

They darkened toward the horizon. The rain swept down in great shadows, obscuring the distant hills.

Nettlesplash curled his tail over his paws as he hunched against the storm. “If we don’t drown, we’ll starve.”

Violetshine’s belly was hollow with hunger. Nettlesplash’s words frightened her. She shifted closer to her father. “We’ll find a way to escape, won’t we?”

He touched his muzzle to her head. “StarClan won’t let us die here.”

She wanted to believe him, but StarClan had warned them not to leave the lake. Had StarClan known that this flood would be waiting for them? In the medicine cats’ vision, a storm had ripped the saplings from the earth. Would it destroy SkyClan just as easily?

Has sunhigh passed? Violetshine couldn’t be sure. The clouds were unreadable. She only knew that her claws ached from gripping the bark as rain battered her face and wind tugged her pelt. She fought to stop her teeth from chattering.

The Clan had fallen silent around her as they waited out the storm. Even Hawkwing’s shoulders sagged.

She pressed closer to him. “We’ll be okay,” she whispered, hardly able to believe it.

He looked at her, his eyes round with pity. “I’m just glad I had a chance to know you and Twigbranch.”

Her heart lurched. He thinks we’re going to die! “We’ll see Twigbranch again,” she mewed desperately. “This isn’t the end.”

Farther along the branch, Leafstar’s ears twitched. She looked at Violetshine. “You’re right,” she mewed firmly. “This isn’t the end.” She sat up and raised her voice. “SkyClan will not die here.” Faces peered from the branches above as she went on. “We have come too far and survived too much to die here.” Leafstar got to her paws. “I may have been wrong to lead you here, but I won’t let anyone die because of my mistake. We are SkyClan. We have relied on our courage, strength, and intelligence since the Clans began, and we can rely on them now. If we work together, we can find a way to safety!” She looked up at her Clan, her eyes shining with determination.

Macgyver hopped onto the next branch down. “Why don’t we swim for it?”

“Too dangerous.” Leafstar flicked her tail. “SkyClan cats aren’t swimmers, and the currents look strong.”

The floodwater had stopped rising, but it swirled menacingly around the trunk of the elm. Broken branches floated past.

“We could leap onto one of those.” Violetshine nodded toward one as it sailed beneath them.

“How do we know it will ever reach land?” Hawkwing cautioned.

“I’d rather be stranded in a tree than on a log,” Sagenose called.

I wish Tree were here. Violetshine longed for his reassuring presence. He’d be able to come up with a good idea.

“Perhaps we could jump from here.” Plumwillow slithered down the trunk and landed on a long thick branch that jutted toward the maple. She padded along it. “It almost reaches the far bank.”