Stormbound

*Stormbound* is the second book in the Guardian Herd series. It is written by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez.

## Summary

When Star received his powers on his first birthday, he became the most powerful pegasus in Anok. However, many pegasi were afraid to follow him, and felt safer staying with their over-stallions. The rest unified with Star and formed a new herd called River Herd.

But now, not only does a horrible plague threaten the five herds, but Mountain Herd's over-stallion, Rockwing, has plans to kidnap Morningleaf, Star's closest companion, and take back Sky Meadow. Star begins to question his ability to keep his herd safe, especially with the threat of Nightwing the Destroyer's return. As much as Star wants to rely on his friends again for support, he's afraid of the starfire he's inherited. Star can heal, but he can also destroy. And the question is, will his dark powers overcome him?

## Plot

Star and those with him are now the River Herd, where the decisions are made by a council which consists Thunderwing (now Thundersky), Silverlake, their son Hazelwind, Sweetroot, Dawnfir, and Icewing (now Iceriver). Twistfire is now Twistwing and over-stallion of the Snow Herd. More pegasi have joined the River Herd since Star received his Starfire.

Brackentail comes to the River Herd for help after being banished by Rockwing and badly beaten and left for dead by Frostfire. Star takes pity on him, the council decide to let him stay and keep close watch on him so he can earn their trust back, and Star heals his wing so he can migrate with them. Echofrost, who hasn't been the same since she was captured and tortured by the Mountain Herd, stops talking to Star after this, as she and Hazelwind cannot forgive Brackentail.

A Snow Herd messenger informs the River Herd that a deadly plague called Blue Tongue has infected and killed many of the Snow Herd. Three River Herd pegasi are infected, but are healed by Star, and the River Herd migrate to the Ice Lands. Star, Morningleaf, Bumblewind, and a battle mare named Dewberry fly to the Snow Herd territory where Star offers to heal the infected Snow Herd pegasi, but Twistwing and Petalcloud refuse out of fear that Star will take control of their herd in exchange.

Meanwhile, the Mountain Herd is overpopulated and starving, and Rockwing and Birchcloud's yearling daughter Shadepebble was kidnapped by the Snow Herd during flight school to replenish their herd. Rockwing has flight instructor Hedgewind punished for hiding and letting Shadepebble be taken, and sends Frostfire to rescue Shadepebble and kidnap Morningleaf in order to force Star to give him the Sun Herd territory, Sky Meadow, even though Star does not intend to return to it.

Frostfire takes two sky herders, Larksong and Darkleaf with him. When he reveals their mission to kidnap Morningleaf, while Larksong is looking forward to it, Darkleaf is against it, revealing she is on Star's side, like many Mountain Herd rebels who were subsequently executed by Rockwing. Frostfire breaks Darkleaf's leg and wing and sends her home, knowing she will be eaten by wolves or bears before she can get there.

The River Herd is attacked by a fierce blizzard. As Star and Silverlake search for Dawnfir, Star tells Silverlake that his receiving Starfire awakened Nightwing from his hibernation and there is a connection between them. When they find Dawnfir, she is attacked by a bear. Star kills the bear with Starfire, but is unable to save Dawnfir, and Star realizes that he is both the healer and the destroyer depending on his choice each time he uses Starfire.

When Sweetroot tells Star not to heal a stallion's frostbitten hoof and that he should use his Starfire in moderation so as to not make the pegasi feel immortal and forget the preciousness of life, this causes more rifts with the River Herd. Combined with the vulnerable state of the herd and Star forgiving Brackentail, many pegasi in the River Herd, led by Hazelwind and Echofrost, abandon the River Herd and return to Sky Meadow.

Frostfire and Larksong find the Snow Herd, but among the Desert and Jungle Herd yearlings they have captured, they do not find Shadepebble.

While traveling to the center of Anok at Thundersky's suggestion, Star saves Shadepebble from drowning and heals wounds inflicted by an ice tiger. She says that after she was kidnapped by the Snow Herd, Petalcloud recognized and banished her, along with Clawfire, the captain of the raid, whom she was separated from during the tiger attack. Frostfire and Larksong arrive, and noticing Shadepebble, intend to take her back to Rockwing. Shadepebble wants to stay with the River Herd due to Rockwing's lies, but decides to go with Frostfire to prevent the herds from fighting each other.

After Star gets a vision of Nightwing flying across the sea towards Anok, he informs the rest of the River Herd that Nightwing is coming to deal with him as a threat and to continue his quest to destroy all the pegasi. The council discusses this and agrees to hide in the Trap, a forest where they cannot be seen from above, and to warn the other herds so they can hide as well while Star fights Nightwing. Star also wants Morningleaf hidden from him so that Nightwing, who saw her in an earlier vision between them, cannot use her against him. Frostfire volunteers so that he can kidnap her. Iceriver, three River Herd stallions including Summerwind, and, at Star's suggestion, Brackentail go with them.

Once a distance from the River Herd, Frostfire kills Morningleaf's three protectors (with Summerwind calling Star "Starwing" in his final moments) and captures Morningleaf. Brackentail escapes after an unsuccessful attempt to protect Morningleaf, and Frostfire spares Iceriver because he is his sire and has Larksong pull his flight feathers so he cannot follow them. Frostfire and Larksong hide Morningleaf in the Lava Tubes in Jungle Herd territory, as most pegasi do not know they exist.

Answering the River Herd's warning about Nightwing, some of the Jungle and Desert Herds, including Sandwing, arrive to hide in the Trap, but some of them, including Smokewing, as well as the entire Snow Herd, stay behind. Iceriver arrives and informs Star of Frostfire's betrayal, before dying of exhaustion. Brackentail also arrives and says why Frostfire took Morningleaf for Rockwing. Although Frostfire sent Shadepebble home, she instead met with Brackentail and suggested that she pretend to be the River Herd's prisoner as leverage over Rockwing.

When Frostfire and his team are attacked by bats, Morningleaf escapes by flying through a jet stream towards Sky Meadow.

Star arrives at Sky Meadow first, where Shadepebble has told the Sun Herd about Rockwing's plan. Clawfire is revealed to still be alive but severely injured by the tiger while protecting Shadepebble, and Star heals him. Rockwing and the Mountain Herd arrive to take the Sky Meadow, and refuses to trade Morningleaf for Shadepebble even when the Sun Herd pretend to threaten Shadepebble. Morningleaf arrives, and nearly dies from exiting the jet stream but is saved by Star. Thundersky, Silverlake, and Bumblewind arrive, and Rockwing banishes Frostfire for losing Morningleaf and not delivering Shadepebble.

Before the Mountain Herd can fight the River and Sun Herds over Sky Meadow, Nightwing arrives. Rockwing tries to make a pact with him, but Nightwing kills Rockwing with Starfire instead.

## Points of view

* Star
* Frostfire
* Morningleaf