Seeming to understand, Toklo dipped his head in return and kicked fallen leaves over the grouse until they were ready to carry it away. As they headed farther into the trees, Toklo stopped to sniff the air, his ears pricked alertly. Kallik heard a scuffling sound from the debris underneath a tree and picked up the scent of a ground squirrel.
Toklo slunk forward, crouching close to the ground, while Kallik and the others spread out silently in a wide circle. The ground squirrel must have sensed them, for it popped up into view, darting frightened glances all around. Yakone let out a low growl, and the squirrel fled away from him, right into Toklo’s paws. Toklo sank his claws into it, and the creature let out a thin shriek that was cut off as it went limp.
This time Toklo picked up his prey and carried it over to Kallik and Yakone. “This is for you,” he told them, repeating Kallik’s words with the same solemn bow of his head.
Yakone looked around, his ears pricked. There was a bush not far away with scarlet berries hanging from the branches. Yakone padded over, broke off a laden twig, and carried it in his mouth to Lusa. He laid it at her paws, the berries looking like drops of blood on the dusty ground. “This is for you,” he murmured.
Kallik’s throat felt too choked up to reply. The exchange of prey had proven how much they cared about one another, and the debt that they owed one another for their survival on this long and often terrifying journey.
Lusa clearly felt it, too, her dark eyes bright with emotion. “Thank you, Yakone,” she whispered.
But all this will end soon, Kallik thought, fighting with sadness.
Dusk was falling, and the bears found a comfortable spot in a hollow between two trees where they settled down to share their prey. The Pathway Star glimmered above them, pointing them toward the very end of their journey.
As they ate in the silver-gray light of evening, Kallik noticed some movement just beyond the hollow. Turning her head, she saw a shadowy brown bear pad up to join them. It sat just outside the circle, silent and barely there, but sharing with them the last day of their journey.
“Ujurak!” Kallik exclaimed.
Toklo caught her eye and nodded, while Lusa let out a murmur of delight.
Yakone leaned closer to Kallik. “I see him, too!” he whispered. “He deserves to be here. I wish I’d known him before . . . before he left.”
Kallik blinked lovingly at the white bear. She couldn’t put into words how much it meant to her that Yakone believed in the star-bear’s friendship. “We will never forget him,” she promised.
Kallik woke in a warm huddle of bears: brown, white, and black. Dawn light trickled through the trees and traced a shifting pattern on their pelts. Kallik could spot patches of blue sky among the branches, but the day was cool, with a fresh breeze whispering through the leaves.
Her three friends were asleep. Kallik lay still for a moment, listening to their soft breathing, trying to capture the whirl of emotions that swept through her.
This could be the last time we wake up together. . . .
Memories flickered through her mind of all the places they had been, and all the adventures they had shared. Rescuing Ujurak from the healing den . . . stampeding the caribou to save the wild . . . watching the spirits dance in the sky. She remembered their grief when Ujurak died, and their wonder when he turned into blazing stars and rose into the sky beside his mother. Riding the firesnake . . . chasing the wolves away . . . and now we’re here, and it’s almost over.
But Kallik didn’t only look back. She was full of wild hopes for the future, too. Hopes of meeting Taqqiq again at Great Bear Lake, of finding a home where she could spend the rest of her life with Yakone. Above everything, she felt an immeasurably deep gratitude for the three bears who had been her best friends, her family, her guiding stars, for so long. And for Ujurak, who had saved them more times than she could count, and who had never let them down.
The light was brighter by the time the other bears stirred and rose to their paws. The distant sound of bear voices reached them on the breeze. Toklo pricked his ears, his gaze traveling around the other bears. Anticipation and dread mingled in his glance. “Ujurak, I guess I’ll find out what you meant soon,” he muttered.
Kallik didn’t understand what he was talking about, but she suspected she wasn’t supposed to have heard. Ignoring the puzzling words, she gave Toklo a nod. There was no need to say anything. We all know this is it.
Toklo took the lead as the bears set off, but when they emerged from the trees, they walked a little more closely than usual, their pelts brushing, their paces matched evenly. The land in front of them rose in a smooth, gentle slope. The bears padded in silence until they reached the top of the hill. Kallik caught her breath when she saw what lay beyond.
Great Bear Lake spread out in front of them, a silver expanse that seemed to stretch on forever, dotted with the dark shapes of islands. There were bears everywhere, black, white, and brown, clustering close to the water’s edge or shuffling through the surrounding woodland or among the rocks. The vast stretch of water glittered in the sunlight, with bears of all colors splashing at the edges. Beyond the lake, the horizon burned with the heat of the lengthening days.
Kallik let out a deep sigh. “We made it!”
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About the Author
ERIN HUNTER is inspired by 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 Warriors and Survivors series.
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.
Books by Erin Hunter
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
Book Four: Forest of Wolves
MANGA
Toklo’s Story
Kallik’s Adventure
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
Book Three: The First Battle
Book Four: The Blazing Star
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 Super Edition: Bramblestar’s Storm
Warriors Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans
Warriors: Cats of the Clans
Warriors: Code of the Clans
Warriors: Battles of the Cl
ans
Warriors: Enter the Clans
Warriors: The Ultimate Guide
Warriors: The Untold Stories
Warriors: Tales from the Clans
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
Tigerclaw’s Fury
Leafpool’s Wish
Dovewing’s Silence
Book One: The Empty City
Book Two: A Hidden Enemy
Book Three: Darkness Falls
Book Four: The Broken Path
Book Five: The Endless Lake
Book Six: Storm of Dogs
NOVELLAS
Alpha’s Tale
Sweet’s Journey
Credits
Cover art © 2015 by Wayne McLoughlin
Copyright
THE BURNING HORIZON. Copyright © 2015 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 hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
www.harpercollinschildrens.com
* * *
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hunter, Erin.
The burning horizon / Erin Hunter. — First edition.
pages cm. — (Seekers, return to the wild ; book 5)
Summary: “The four bears are determined to reach Great Bear Lake before the longest day gathering, but when Lusa is separated from the others, she faces difficult questions about her future”— Provided by publisher.
ISBN 978-0-06-199647-4 (lib. bdg.)
EPub Edition © November 2014 ISBN 9780062354396
[1. Bears—Fiction. 2. Voyages and travels—Fiction. 3. Fate and fatalism—Fiction. 4. Fantasy.] I. Title.
PZ7.H916625Bu 2015
2014026691
[Fic]—dc23
CIP
AC
* * *
14 15 16 17 18 CG/RRDH 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
FIRST EDITION
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