Chapter 56: Aftermath

Darkstripe woke to a familiar sight. It was the medicine den, which he seemed to have become a local resident of. Despite the air being filled with the powerful scent of herbs, he could only feel safety here. As he waited for his eyes to adjust, he scented for other familiar smells to get a hint of what happened since his fight. Beside his nest was the faded smell of Sandstorm, Fireheart, and Bluestar. Longtail's scent was also present, but it conglomerated closer to what he could only guess was Swiftpaw. That poor cat had got the worst out of all of them from the dogs. If he remembered correctly that apprentice was now without a tail and had some severe damage along his back. His front legs also probable got some nasty scarring from all the nips the dogs got off him in their trades. There was also Brightpaw to consider. She definitely had some strong facial scarring from that last attack, but the rest of her body was relatively untouched. The only real question was if the dog had gotten her eye as well. If it did, she'd have a long road to recovery.

Darkstripe started to rise only for his right leg to flair up un pain. He gritted his teeth in pain and allowed himself to fall back into his provided nest. Even he hadn't come out of the encounter unscathed. His eyes had adjusted to the dark and he could see it was him alone with the two unconscious apprentices. The shelves that were so frequently stocked with herbs were barren in portions. Likely caring for Swiftpaw and Brightpaw had used up all the available stock. Thankfully, he was not left alone to muse his thoughts very long as Cinderpelt camp hobbling in. The way she carried herself implied she'd been exhausting herself to gather even more herbs for the two wounded apprentices and likely himself. She must have noticed him staring.

"Darkstripe! You're awake. I'll have to let the clan know. Every cat is looking for answers right now for what happened and you're the only witness."

Darkstripe could only shake his head as he tried to clear the fogginess from his brain. The last thing he remembered was a blur. He'd done something stupidly reckless, and it had resulted in his leg being unusable.

"I followed the apprentices out around sunup. I couldn't sleep remembering Cloudtail was out there alone while a dog threat was out there. I saw them sneak out the dirtplace entrance and I followed. I failed to stop them because I wasn't too keen on the dogs hearing us, and they were moving too fast. The two got ambushed by five dogs. All were nasty bruisers I wouldn't usually want to fight."

Fireheart had to have been beside the medicine den because he emerged at that moment. Darkstripe could smell Bluestar making her way in as well. He didn't stop his story. He didn't want to repeat the horrors of watching the two apprentices get maimed again.

"Swiftpaw and Brightpaw fought hard and well, but two cats aren't much to five fighting dogs. The leader, a big brownish red monstrosity, caught Brightpaw off guard and did that to her. I couldn't reveal myself because even one more cat wouldn't have changed the outcome. Instead, I waited for my chance. I needed to scare the dogs off, so when the big red went to grab Swiftpaw like it had Brightpaw, I took the opportunity. I stuck my paw as deep into its eye as I could and it fell. Unfortunately, it fell on my leg. I scared off the rest by growling and eating a piece of the dog I felled. I gave what aid I could to the two before it all went black."

Fireheart remembered the scene well. He'd heard Darkstripe's yowl and came running. What he saw at the scene was a grisly sight. Two apprentices lay fighting for their life. Both were gravely wounded with the impromptu bandaging seeming to be the only thing keeping them alive. Then there was Darkstripe, covered in blood and brains. His leg was bent at an unnatural angle. Fireheart had hastily checked his mate for wounds to find only the broken leg was ailing him. He had let out a relieved huff before moving to help the rest of the patrol with the apprentices. Cinderpelt had been pulled out of camp to futher stabilize the two, but Darkstripe's paw work had covered most of the needed bases. Fireheart had returned to Darkstripe and noted the blood on his muzzle and the chunk ripped from the dog's stomach. Had he really eaten dog? As he looked closer, he saw how monstrous the dog really was. It could not have been an easy kill. Something had puzzled Fireheart. What killed the dog? Its neck was intact. Only when he peeked beneath the dog's head did he get an idea. The dog's eye was gone. Its eyelid was torn leaving a gaping hole. From the hole leaked blood and soft clumps of brain matter. When he looked back to Darkstripe he could see on the broken leg the same blood and clumps of soft flesh as the hole. He'd killed the dog through its eye. A faint sense of pride for his mate swelled within him, but that was also accompanied by the worry of seeing him injured again.

As Fireheart came back to the present, Sandstorm made her entrance.

"I heard Darkstripe woke up."

She looked at Darkstripe the same way an annoyed mother would.

"What do you have to say for yourself?"

Darkstripe sheepishly replied, "I'm officially the better dog killer now?"

The annoyed look broke as she moved to lie next to the injured warrior.

"So, you used the dog killer after all. I'm glad you're safe. I think Bluestar and Fireheart would have lost it if you died."

Then with a fainter mew in a whisper she said, "I would too."

He pressed myself against the two the best he could while ignoring the hot lances of pain from my bad leg. Cinderpelt must have noticed.

"Hey! Stop! That leg won't set right if you keep moving. Honestly, with how often you are sent here, you'd think you would be used to sitting still. I can make a splint for it, but these two have been keeping me on my toes with how touch and go their conditions are. Speaking of that, can you two come out with me for some marigold and cobwebs. I need to change their dressing soon."

Fireheart and Sandstorm were guided out leaving Darkstripe alone with Bluestar. Her fur was unkept and she looked as if she hadn't been sleeping.

"Bluestar."

She seemed to have woken from whatever had frozen her.

"Darkstripe… Why? I keep thinking things are getting better but then they all come crashing down again. You nearly died again, and I could do nothing. Why is this happening?"

Her voice lacked all the courage and conviction she was known for. It sounded like a cat who had given up on existing. A cat like that was delicate. Even a nicety could cause the cat to collapse. He decided to give her honesty over kindness.

"The world isn't always kind. Bad things happen to good cats and good things happen to bad cats. I can't tell you things will get better because that would be lying. Things are hard. Those dogs are still out there. It's not over, but we're still here. I'm still here. The apprentices are still here. They may die, but our clan is still here, and they need you. We need you. I need you. I was wrong all those moons ago when I called the clan traitors and liars. I was just hurt like you are. I decided to recover. It wasn't easy and I had to make some leaps of faith. I think you can do the same. If you can't trust the clan, trust me when I say we're here with you. We all want to get through this. We need the Bluestar who bravely stood against Shadowclan and could put her trust in a medicine cat from another clan. The one who made a leap of faith and recruited a kittypet who turned out to be one of the greatest boons to our clan. We need you back."

Darkstripe could see a quiet resolve building in Bluestar. Bluestar had already made up her mind. If Starclan wouldn't save her clan, she'd protect it with her own four paws. The clan may still be traitors or liars, but they were under her protection regardless. She'd remind them why she had been made clan leader over Thistleclaw.