"Okay, that's the last scent marker," Berrynose announced, stepping away from the edge of trees that acted as the border between WindClan and ThunderClan. The cream-colored tom padded back to the rest of the patrol, arching his back as he stretched. "Should we hunt before we head home? I'm starving, and the Clan could always use the extra food."
Warm afternoon sunshine fell through the canopy of leaves overhead, dappling the forest floor in light and shadow; a pleasant breeze whispered through the branches, making the pattern dance and dip. It was a lovely day in early summer, and Dovewing, along with the rest of the border patrol consisting of Cloudtail, Berrynose, and Rosepetal, simply sat and observed the beauty of the day. The pale gray she-cat gazed out over the open moor, her thoughts slipping from the present to the past. Six months after the Great Battle, peace was finally returning to the lake.
It had been a rough time for ThunderClan. They had lost so many of their friends in the battle: first Mousefur and Ferncloud, then Firestar had given up his last life taking down Tigerstar a last time. Sorreltail had succumbed to the wounds she had gotten while defending her kits. Hollyleaf gave up her life saving Ivypool from a warrior named Hawkfrost. They had finally found Foxleap's body later, amongst some dead ShadowClan warriors, and Dovewing didn't think she'd ever heard Dustpelt wail like that. Then winter came, and with it greencough; they lost Icewing, Toadstep, and Hazeltail before it was over.
Her gaze drifted back to Cloudtail, settling on the jagged scar running across his flank that he had gotten during the battle. Everyone she knew had scars in some way; even Dovewing had one, right across her cheek where a Dark Forest cat had slashed her. But not all of their scars were physical; night after night nightmares haunted her sleep. The eyes of those Dark Forest warriors, burning with hatred and malice and longing to tear her apart, were etched into her memory, and she would often wake next to Bumblestripe shaking and crying out in fear. She wasn't the only cat who suffered this either; Ivypool had confided that she often had dreams of Hollyleaf dying over and over again, or Hawkfrost catching her before she could get away.
But there had been no signs of the shadowy figures stalking the forest, and Leafpool and Jayfeather had reported that all seemed well when they visited the Moonpool. The warm weather had brought new prey, and the Clans were beginning to heal; they had even began to bicker at the borders again. They were going to be okay.
"That sounds like an excellent idea," Cloudtail replied, bringing Dovewing's thoughts back to the present. "Our patrol is over, and the Clan always needs to be fed. I'm sure Cinderheart would appreciate a mouse or rabbit." The gray tabby had recently announced that she and Lionblaze were expecting their first litter together, much to the happiness of ThunderClan. Kits were a sign of hope, of life persevering in the face of darkness.
Rosepetal, a pretty dark cream molly, jumped to her feet. "Berrynose, let's see if we can track down something for Cinderheart," she called, trotting towards the forest. "I'm sure Purdy would appreciate a juicy mouse as well."
As her half-brother began to follow her, the wind shifted and suddenly the smell of fox overwhelmed Dovewing. The entire patrol froze, and Cloudtail parted his jaws to taste the air. "It's close," he announced, claws digging into the soil. "Could be on WindClan territory, but its nearby."
"We should drive it away before it comes any closer," Berrynose snarled, his tail lashing. Cloudtail only shook his head.
"If it's WindClan's problem, let them solve it," he replied, turning to leave. "We can't cross the borders to go after it anyways. Let Onestar deal with it."
The snapping of a breaking branch rang through the forest, followed by a low, raspy growl. Dovewing's heart hammered, and she unsheathed her claws; the fox was closer than they thought. The rest of the patrol shared her thoughts, the fur raising along their spines as the sound of footsteps got closer. Something sounded off about it, though, something Dovewing couldn't quite put her paw on. The fox stumbled out into the open, and she gasped quietly at what she saw.
The creature was thin and ragged, its pelt hanging off its skeletal frame. It stumbled forward, head twitching from side to side as it took in the patrol. For a heartbeat, nothing happened. A stench filled the clearing, a powerful odor that made Dovewing's stomach drop. It smelled rancid, like rotting meat that had been left by the Thunderpath.
"Rosepetal, go back to camp," Cloudtail ordered, his eyes never leaving the fox. "Tell Bramblestar to send backup." Even emaciated, the fox was much larger than even Cloudtail, and was fast and agile. Rosepetal nodded and turned to race back to camp. With a menacing snarl, the fox lunged after her. Cloudtail, Berrynose, Rosepetal, and Dovewing moved forward to meet it halfway.
Dovewing launched herself at the fox, slashing at its flank and managing to dodge it when it turned and snapped at her. Spittle flew from its open jaws, and it snarled again, lunging at her. Berrynose barreled into its other flank, letting out a battle cry as he raked his claws through its skin. Blood splashed across the earth, and the fox stumbled away from Dovewing with a yelp. Growling, the fox charged towards the white tom and sank its fangs into his back, picking him up and shaking him as if he were no more than a scrap of moss. Berrynose shrieked in pain, and Cloudtail and Dovewing launched themselves at the fox again, Cloudtail tearing into its foreleg while Dovewing leapt onto its back and bit down hard onto its ear. The fox let go of Berrynose, sending him flying, and he landed with a hard, wet crunch. He didn't get back up.
The fox turned its attention to the white tom at his feet, ignoring Dovewing as she bit down hard on its ears. Cloudtail began to back away, but the fox lunged forward and grabbed his foreleg with its powerful jaws. Cloudtail slashed with his free paw, but the fox didn't even flinch; if anything, it bit down even harder, causing Cloudtail to scream as a snap rang through the clearing. Dovewing bit hard onto its ear, tasting blood, and violently shook her head from side to side. The fox let go of the white warrior, bucking and shaking to throw Dovewing off. She dug her claws deeper into its back, blood pooling slick and hot beneath her pads, feeling its shoulder blades through its thin pelt, and hung on.
A battle cry rang through the air and suddenly two cats burst from the trees, running towards the battle. Ivypool and Blossomfall threw themselves at the fox, slashing at its stomach and flanks and making blood splash onto the grass. They jumped out of the way as it lunged to follow them, and Dovewing kicked along its spine, clawing at its thin body. The fox violently shook again, this time dislodging the gray warrior and sending her flying. She landed hard, the breath knocked out of her lungs, and the fox turned to face her. Its eyes burned with pain and rage, its stench rolling off its body and nearly suffocating her. Dovewing was helpless, struggling to regain breath as she got to her paws.
"Stay away from her!" Ivypool snarled, tackling the fox and biting hard at its hind leg. It turned its attention to her sister and the other cats. Blossomfall slashed at its flank, snarling as she jumped away from it. Why doesn't it leave? Dovewing wondered desperately. It was severely injured; blood stained the earth from multiple gashes. Instead this seemed to fuel its rage; it snarled and lunged at Ivypool, and Dovewing's heart leapt into her throat. Her sister's icy gaze never wavered, and instead she lunged towards it, meeting the fox halfway. Her claws dug into its throat and ripped back out, sending scarlet spraying across the grass. She moved to the side to avoid its fangs again, then stopped and watched it.
The creature stumbled and gagged, blood mixing with its saliva, the pinkish foam dripping from its teeth. It tried to turn and attack them again, but instead fell to the ground, it's wheezing, gurgling breaths filling the clearing. Its jaws moved, as if it still wanted nothing more to attack the cats, eyes filled with a crazed light. Slowly it's jaws stopped moving, yellow eyes glazing over as it's labored breathing stopped. Dovewing's breath returned to her, and she sighed deeply in relief. The patrol looked at Ivypool, whose attention was now focused on Cloudtail and Berrynose. "We need to get them back to camp as quickly as possible," she barked out. Blossomfall ran to Berrynose's side, the cream warrior groaning as he got to his feet. He leaned heavily against the tortoiseshell warrior, his foreleg dragging limply. Cloudtail got to his feet, his leg pulled tight against his chest. "Can you walk?"
Cloudtail shook his head. "My leg is broken, I think," he growled, leaning against Dovewing.
"Pretty sure my shoulder is dislocated," Berrynose added, blood dripping from a wound across his back. He leaned against Blossomfall, the muscular molly easily taking his weight.
Ivypool nodded. "Dovewing and I will help Cloudtail, and Blossomfall will stay with Berrynose," she said, getting on the other side of the white warrior. The patrol nodded in agreement and slowly began making their way home, the silent forest slowly coming back to life with birdsong above them.