“What . . .” he muttered.
Then he reached the edge. His eyes widened in pure panic as he caught a glimpse of water pouring over rock in a smooth curve. Far below him, there was turmoil as the river cascaded into a pool in a chaos of spray and foam. Ripple let out a screech as his log tipped over the edge.
The thunder of the falling water was all around him. He lost his grip on the log. His paws flailed helplessly as the weight of water bore him down and plunged him into the pool. The river closed over his head and rolled him over and over until he didn’t know where the surface was.
His senses were spinning away into darkness when his head bobbed up into the light. He took in a gulp of air, but when he opened his jaws to let out a yowl of terror, water gushed into his mouth and he sank again.
But Ripple refused to give in. He pumped his legs with all the strength he had left, forcing himself back upward. A moment later he reached the surface. To his amazement, the river was bearing him up, supporting him as it swept him along. He kicked out in the turbulent water, managing to stay afloat as the current whirled him onward.
I can swim! he thought triumphantly. Just like those creatures who attacked me!
Forbidding walls of rock stretched above his head on either side. Panic clawed at Ripple as he saw no way of climbing to safety up the sheer face of the cliffs.
But gradually the river grew wider again and the speed of the current slackened. The rock walls gave way to grassy banks. Ripple glanced from side to side, knowing that his strength was ebbing and he would have to find somewhere to come ashore soon.
Before he could strike out across the current, the river washed him gently against a boulder. Ripple grabbed at it with his claws and scrambled up until he could collapse on the flat top of the rock. He lay limp, his paws splayed out, and coughed up a few mouthfuls of water. Then a sparkling darkness filled his head, and he knew nothing more.
A long time later, Ripple became aware of warmth beating down on him. He blinked his eyes open and raised his head to look around. While he was unconscious the clouds had cleared away and the sun shone in a bright blue sky.
Muscles shrieking in protest, Ripple tottered to his paws and looked around. He was standing at the edge of a group of flat rocks that rose above the surface of the river. Deep channels of fast-flowing water separated him from the banks on either side.
Ripple gazed longingly across at the banks. They sloped upward, covered with long grass and clumps of fern, to where bushes and trees grew at the top. A little farther downstream a willow tree leaned over a reed bed, its branches trailing in the current.
As he watched, a mouse darted out of a clump of ferns and scuttled across the grass to the shelter of a tree stump. It was so close that Ripple could pick up its scent, and water gushed into his mouth. His belly was complaining again, and there was nothing to eat among the sunbaked rocks.
Ripple worked his legs, stretching and relaxing his muscles until the aches faded. Then he crouched down at the edge of the rock and lapped a few gulps of water, reveling at the cool touch in his parched mouth.
There were fish here too, he noticed, resting in the shade cast by the rocks. Ripple dipped in a paw and tried to catch one, but it swam off with a flick of its tail before he could get anywhere near it. There must be a way of doing this, he thought determinedly.
After a few more failed attempts, Ripple worked out that he had to position himself so that his shadow didn’t fall on the water, and not lean over so far that the fish could see him. He let his paw slide into the water so slowly that it didn’t disturb the flow of the current, edging closer to a plump fish that lay close to the rock. When he thought he was near enough, he flashed his paw upward as fast as he could.
To his delight, the fish flipped out of the water and landed beside him on the rock. Ripple slammed his paw on top of it and bit down hard. The fish stopped wriggling, and Ripple devoured it in eager mouthfuls.
That’s so good. . . .
But when he had eaten the fish and sat cleaning his whiskers, Ripple still yearned for the grassy comfort of the riverbank. The rocks where he was sitting were bare. They’re great for snoozing in the sun, but I don’t want to live here. The shady spot under the willow tree looked like a perfect place to hide and hunt. This place is beautiful, he realized, even though it’s nothing like the Park I came from.
Ripple stared across the channel, waving his tail in indecision. He had managed to swim when he fell down the waterfall, but it was a different matter to actually make the choice to jump in.
The sun and earth have protected me all my life, he thought. Just like the river has taken care of me, over and over again. It gave me a soft landing when I fell from the wall. It carried me away from the danger that was destroying the Park. It saved me from those fierce creatures, it fed me, and now it has brought me to what could be a wonderful new home. Maybe it will help me to get to the bank, if I can just trust it.
Ripple rose to his paws and lifted his head to let out a clear meow. “Thank you, river, for all you’ve done for me. If you can help me again, one last time, and get me to the bank, I will stay beside you and praise you all my life.”
Without giving himself the chance to change his mind, he plunged into the current.
At once, Ripple found that he was swimming strongly. The river bore him up, carrying him to the bank just upstream of the willow tree. Almost before he knew it he felt his paws touch solid ground. He waded out and scrambled up the bank, shaking water from his long, silvery fur.
“What are you?” a voice asked. “A water rat?”
Spinning around, Ripple spotted a young black-and-white she-cat watching him from beneath an arching clump of ferns a couple of tail-lengths away. She was staring at him with a stunned expression, but in spite of her amazement her voice was friendly.
Ripple dipped his head toward her. “Greetings,” he mewed. “I’ve come from the Cats of the Park. Will you and your Cats allow me to stay here?”
Amusement glinted in the she-cat’s eyes. “I’m not part of any group of cats,” she told him. “This land belongs to wild cats who hunt alone. You’re welcome to stay here, as long as you don’t steal the prey out from any other cat’s paws.”
“Hunt?” Ripple asked uneasily. He had only hunted a few times before, and only for fun. And he had always been with other cats. “The cats here hunt . . . alone?”
Loneliness stabbed through Ripple at the thought. His tail drooped as he remembered Arc and the other Cats of the Park. He had always lived in a group, and an intense sense of loss swept over him like a chill wind through his fur. What will I do without them? Will I ever see them again?
The she-cat let out a sympathetic purr, as if she understood his sorrow. “Even though we hunt for ourselves,” she meowed, “that doesn’t mean that we can’t hunt with a friend. Would you like to join me today? I’ll introduce you to my brother, and we can all hunt together.”
“Really?” Ripple felt hope rekindle inside him. “Thank you!”
“Maybe we can give you some tips,” the she-cat went on. “And maybe you can show us what a water rat can do.”
“I’d be glad to,” Ripple agreed happily, wondering if these cats knew how to catch fish.
“My name is Night,” the she-cat meowed. “What’s yours?”
Ripple looked back at the river flowing by. It had given him food and protected him from his enemies, and he had to believe it was still protecting him and taking him where he was meant to be.
I’m not the young Cat of the Park anymore, he realized. Not really. I’m something else now, something more—a Cat of the River. And I should honor my protector.
“I’m River,” he told Night. “River Ripple.”
About the Author
ERIN HUNTER is inspired by a love of cats and a fascination with the ferocity of the natural world. As well as having great respect for nature in all its forms, Erin enjoys creating rich mythical explanations for animal behavior. She is
also the author of the bestselling Seekers and Survivors series.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.
Books by Erin Hunter
Book One: Into the Wild
Book Two: Fire and Ice
Book Three: Forest of Secrets
Book Four: Rising Storm
Book Five: A Dangerous Path
Book Six: The Darkest Hour
THE NEW PROPHECY
Book One: Midnight
Book Two: Moonrise
Book Three: Dawn
Book Four: Starlight
Book Five: Twilight
Book Six: Sunset
POWER OF THREE
Book One: The Sight
Book Two: Dark River
Book Three: Outcast
Book Four: Eclipse
Book Five: Long Shadows
Book Six: Sunrise
OMEN OF THE STARS
Book One: The Fourth Apprentice
Book Two: Fading Echoes
Book Three: Night Whispers
Book Four: Sign of the Moon
Book Five: The Forgotten Warrior
Book Six: The Last Hope
DAWN OF THE CLANS
Book One: The Sun Trail
Book Two: Thunder Rising
Warriors Super Edition: Firestar’s Quest
Warriors Super Edition: Bluestar’s Prophecy
Warriors Super Edition: SkyClan’s Destiny
Warriors Super Edition: Crookedstar’s Promise
Warriors Super Edition: Yellowfang’s Secret
Warriors Super Edition: Tallstar’s Revenge
Warriors Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans
Warriors: Cats of the Clans
Warriors: Code of the Clans
Warriors: Battles of the Clans
Warriors: Enter the Clans
Warriors: The Ultimate Guide
Warriors: The Untold Stories
MANGA
The Lost Warrior
Warrior’s Refuge
Warrior’s Return
The Rise of Scourge
Tigerstar and Sasha #1: Into the Woods
Tigerstar and Sasha #2: Escape from the Forest
Tigerstar and Sasha #3: Return to the Clans
Ravenpaw’s Path #1: Shattered Peace
Ravenpaw’s Path #2: A Clan in Need
Ravenpaw’s Path #3: The Heart of a Warrior
SkyClan and the Stranger #1: The Rescue
SkyClan and the Stranger #2: Beyond the Code
SkyClan and the Stranger #3: After the Flood
NOVELLAS
Hollyleaf’s Story
Mistystar’s Omen
Cloudstar’s Journey
Book One: The Quest Begins
Book Two: Great Bear Lake
Book Three: Smoke Mountain
Book Four: The Last Wilderness
Book Five: Fire in the Sky
Book Six: Spirits in the Stars
RETURN TO THE WILD
Book One: Island of Shadows
Book Two: The Melting Sea
Book Three: River of Lost Bears
MANGA
Toklo’s Story
Kallik’s Adventure
Book One: The Empty City
Book Two: A Hidden Enemy
Book Three: Darkness Falls
Back Ads
Credits
Cover art © 2013 by Wayne McLoughlin
Cover design by Megan Stitt
Copyright
Thunder Rising
Copyright © 2013 by Working Partners Limited
Series created by Working Partners Limited
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
www.harpercollinschildrens.com
* * *
ISBN 978-0-06-206350-2 (trade bdg.)
ISBN 978-0-06-206351-9 (lib. bdg.)
EPUB Edition OCTOBER 2013 ISBN 9780062063540
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13 14 15 16 17 CG/RRDH 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
FIRST EDITION
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Erin Hunter, Thunder Rising
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