Warriors New Rivals
Chapter 16
It had been one moon since Ashclaw and Pipkit had arrived in the camp and everyone seemed to be accepting them as if they had been in the clan their whole lives.
"Hey Ashclaw!" Swiftleap turned to face where the voice had called from. Oh, it's just Shredflame, He thought to himself.
"And then I got into this huge conversation with a dead bird and-"Ashclaw had been talking to Honeyclaw and Stumpyleg before Shredflame had interrupted her.
"Can you come over here a sec?" Shredflame shouted.
"Yeah sure, sorry you two, duty calls," Ashclaw joked before padding toward her mate.
"I'm going hunting with Icebreeze and Breezefang, do you want to come?" Shredflame asked.
"I'm bringing my apprentice Whitepaw as well," Icebreeze added.
"Yeah sure," she replied cheerfully, her tail sticking right up. All four cats raced out of the clearing through the thorn tunnel.
"Run!" A meow split through the clearing like a branch snapping off a tree.
"Lightwhisker, what's wrong?" Redfeather had raced to the she-cat who looked as if she had been running as fast as she could back to camp.
"Badgers…" Lightwhisker's meow drifted off as she flopped onto the ground, her sides heaving, Redfeather's head instantly shot up and his head whipped around the clearing.
"Get the kits and elders out of here now!" Redfeather shouted to every cat that was in the clearing.
"What about the queens?" Sweettuft had heaved herself out of her nest and pleaded with Redfeather.
"Sweettuft will go with the kits; Brindlestar you stay here and help protect the camp," Redfeather ordered. Brindlestar looked shocked at first to be ordered around by her deputy but she simply nodded and helped get the kits out of the clearing.
"Where are they coming from?" Redfeather pressed to Lightwhisker who still hadn't gained her breath but she made out a whisper.
"Shredflame's hunting patrol and Moonblaze are fending them off by the old fallen over sycamore tree," Lightwhisker whispered her head flopping back to the ground when she finished.
"Swiftleap, you're the fastest, I need you to go find where they are now," Redfeather told Swiftleap.
"What do I do once I'm there?" Swiftleap asked.
"You report back to me," Redfeather replied. Swiftleap nodded and pelted out of the clearing.
"Don't get too close!" Swiftleap heard Chestfall add.
Swiftleap pelted as quickly as he could through the forest making sure to smell for badgers or listen for fighting. He suddenly heard a loud cat screech from far off in the distance. He sprinted toward it only to find six badgers fighting four cats.
How come there is only four? Where's Whitepaw? Swiftleap tried to scent his kit but all he could smell was badgers and cat blood. He travelled toward the scent of blood and followed that around the clearing. There he is! Whitepaw was crouched down really low in bush making sure he stayed away from the badgers.
"Swiftleap!" Whitepaw sprinted toward his father.
"Where's Breezefang?" Swiftleap had only just realised that the she-cat wasn't there.
"She threw me into the bush but then she was crushed by a badger and thrown away in its massive jaws," Whitepaw grieved. Swiftleap felt as if someone had ripped part of his fur off, he had loved Breezefang like a mother. She was my mentor… Swiftleap clawed the ground beneath him and looked up again at the fighting in front of him.
"More are coming," Swiftleap told Whitepaw whose eyes filled with horror as three more badgers poured into the clearing.
"What are we going to do?" Whitepaw whimpered slowly backing away
"I am going to stay here and help, you are going to go back to camp and tell Redfeather how many badgers there are," Swiftleap ordered shoving his kit away. Whitepaw nodded and sprinted back to camp. As soon as he was gone Swiftleap leaped on top of a badger and hooked his claws deep into its back.
"Swiftleap!" Moonblaze's eyes filled with glee at the sight of his kit.
"No time to chat!" Swiftleap hissed biting the back of the badger's neck and ripping its fur off. Please hurry Whitepaw… Swiftleap sent a silent prayer to his kit.