Warriors: The Trail of Centuries

Chapter 14

     When Spottedpaw came to, she realized she was in a den she'd never seen before. The comforting scent of assorted herbs washed over her and eased her anxiety; she realized she must be in some kind of medicine den. Spottedpaw cast her gaze around the den slowly and blinked the sleep out of her eyes. She spotted a deep crevice and several rows of ledges along a wall made of stone. Bundles of herbs sat lined and sorted along the ledges, and a shuffling noise came from inside the crevice. Brambles lines the sides of the den and leaves were woven intricately along the ceiling, with some brambles entangled with them as well.

     Immediately growing restless, Spottedpaw tensed and moved to stand up. As she rose to her paws, her muscles and bones screamed in defiance at the pain that surged through them. The apprentice gave a hiss at the pain and stumbled a bit before her legs gave out, landing her back in her nest.

     "You're far too weak to get up yet, apprentice." A blueish grey tom emerged from the crevice and shook his head in amusement. Spottedpaw looked him over and saw that his dull fur was sticking out at the ends, and he was remarkably skinny. Behind him, a dark grey she-cat sorted through the herbs on the ledges—her fur almost blended in with the wall of the den.

     "Your shoulder wound isn't too deep, luckily," the she-cat added, turning from her task to face Spottedpaw. "You lost quite a bit of blood, though, presumably from running far too much after you received it." The skinny blue-grey tom left the den awkwardly, and the she-cat padded over to Spottedpaw.

     An uncomfortable silence fell over them for a few heartbeats, but it felt like ages to Spottedpaw. The apprentice shuffled her paws self-consciously and tried to keep her mind from wandering the events of the previous day, though she had no success. Spottedpaw thought back to Hawkscar, wondering if he had somehow survived the battle with Deadeye. She knew that it would have been nearly impossible, but deep inside her chest, hope flickered faintly.

     "I'm Skyfeather. That old furball is Blueheart. If he gets cranky with you, just ignore him," the female medicine cat spoke after a moment. She swished her fluffy tail around and fixed her light blue eyes on Spottedpaw. "You know, my brother will not stop trying to check on you. He claims that you're good friends." When Spottedpaw looked confused, Skyfeather let out a gentle laugh.

     "Your brother?" Spottedpaw asked slowly, giving the healer—no, the medicine cat a guarded glance. She couldn't think of a cat that resembled her much, though her build reminded her of Nightpaw. Oh, Nightpaw, Spottedpaw thought to herself sadly. I might never see you again. Even though Spottedpaw suspected that her friend might have turned her in—after all, the apprentice had only told Hawkscar and Nightpaw—she wished she could see her friend again.

     "Jayleaf, of course," Skyfeather chuckled. "Some of our youngest warriors seemed a bit shaken up to see a bloodied Gorge apprentice brought into camp, especially with that raging storm. Even so, they wanted to check on you, as well. Some of them even recognized you." Skyfeather kept chatting lightheartedly with Spottedpaw, who didn't say much in return.

     Spottedpaw let her gaze wander the den while she listened to Skyfeather. The she-cat seemed friendly enough—and, under different circumstances, Spottedpaw might have jumped to befriend her. Eventually, her wandering gaze flitted to her own body, her disheveled fur sticking out noticeably. For the first time, she noticed the poultice and cobwebs on her shoulder and stretched her leg awkwardly. Spottedpaw held back a hiss when the action brought on a fresh wave of pain.

     "Now, don't go screwing up my dressing," Skyfeather scolded her quickly. Spottedpaw's ears heated up in embarrassment. "If it looks alright tomorrow, we can take it off and see how you fare without it. Does that sound good to you?"