"What is it Swiftpaw?" Whitestorm asked cautiously.
"Look at B-Brightpaw." Swiftpaw stuttered before collapsing in a heap of bloody, matted fur. Whitestorm padded over to Brightpaw's limp figure, weaving in and out of the other bodies. He drew in a sharp gasp of horror at the state of his apprentice. "What happened?" He asked Swiftpaw.
"B-B-Badger." Swiftpaw murmured from the frozen forest floor.
Fireheart slowly limped over to join Whitestorm. What he saw shocked him so much that the air in his lungs disappeared and he was left without the strength to draw in more. Brightpaw's face had been mauled; the eye on the right-hand side of her face was gone and the ear had been shredded to ribbons of tender flesh. The whole half of her face looked like it had melted away. The rest of her body was covered in oozing wounds and one leg was bent at a sickening angle.
"We must save her." Meowed Fireheart determinedly, "Her and Graystripe."
"Yes, Swiftpaw, can you run?" Whitestorm gently asked the emotionally fractured little apprentice.
"Yes." Replied Swiftpaw, he had been lying down out of grief rather than physical pain.
"Run back to camp and tell Cinderpelt and Yellowfang to come at once with any herbs they might need. Get them to bring a warrior to guard them." Whitestorm instructed.
"Is there anyone else who can't walk?" Whitestorm inquired as Swiftpaw scampered off into the trees.
"No, everyone else can get back to camp without help, but let's stick together, we're vulnerable now with our wounds and that crowfood eating dungfaced badger may still be lurking around." Mewed Sandstorm in reply.
"Okay, everyone back to camp. Fireheart, Mousefur and Sandstorm; please stay and help me look after Graystripe and Brightpaw. I will watch Graysrtipe with Mousefur and you two can watch Brightpaw." He mewed this to the whole group but looked at Sandstorm and Fireheart when he said "You two." Whitestorm clearly didn't want to have to look at his poor apprentice's disfigured body. Mentors and their apprentices formed extremely strong bonds.
Sandstorm was already sat, staring at Brightpaw when Fireheart joined her. "What is left for her future?" She asked Fireheart, her pale green eyes clouded with sadness.
"I don't know." He sighed, "Whitestorm must be devastated." They sat in silence until after sun-high.
"Thanks for earlier, Sandstorm, you saved my life." Whispered Fireheart, suddenly.
"It was nothing, and you would've thrown of that tom eventually, without me." Sandstorm muttered.
"No I wouldn't have, he wasn't going to be afraid to end me with a bite to my neck." Fireheart whispered back. Sandstorm looked into his eyes with a look of pain and worry in hers. Fireheart read the affection in them and purred.
Yellowfang and Cinderpelt appeared through the leaves and Fireheart's purring cut off abruptly. "Would you love birds be so kind as to move away from my patient?" snorted Yellowfang, "You seriously think I didn't notice?" she muttered, amusement sparkling in her buttercup yellow eyes. Cinderpelt let out a mew of hilarity. Sandstorm and Fireheart looked down out of embarrassment. "Gosh!" Exclaimed Cinderpelt when she saw Brightpaw. "I can't believe she's still alive, the poor thing!"
"Is she alive?" Yellowfang asked Sandstorm and Fireheart. They nodded, rolling their eyes, wasn't Yellowfang supposed to be the medicine cat? Yellowfang snorted (once again) at their response and started to check Brightpaw over, to see if anything on the inside was damaged. "Cinderpelt, don't just stand there! Go and see to Graystripe, take the herbs you need." Yellowfang meowed sharply, not even bothering to look at her apprentice. Cinderpelt picked up a fraction of the herbs and padded over to Graystripe.