Warriors: The Trail of Centuries

Chapter 34

     When Spottedpath came to once more, she found herself in the darkness of a den that smelled of herbs. A scratching, rustling sound pulled her to full consciousness, and when she opened her eyes, she saw the back of Muddapple from across the den. The brown tabby tom seemed to be sorting through herbs tirelessly, his tail tip twitching at a rhythmic pace.

     Spottedpath looked down and noticed that there was some kind of woven next beneath her. While she was inspecting it, she came to three realizations.

     Firstly, she was absolutely parched. Her mouth felt like how the BlazeClan territory looked.

     Secondly, she felt more famished than she had ever been. The pit in her stomach felt like she hadn't eaten her days, which was crazy to her, considering how quickly she had left her dream from StarClan.

     And lastly, she ached. Everywhere. Her body felt like it had been pummeled into the ground relentlessly. 

     The pain and discomfort wasn't about to stop her, though. Spottedpath moved to rise to her feet, the nest beneath her creaking quietly as she did so. Her legs started shaking before she was even halfway up, and with a grunt she collapsed painfully back into the nest. Muddapple raised his head at the noise and spun around, his golden eyes lighting up when he saw Spottedpath.

     "Rest," he ordered gently while stepping away from his task. "There's a damp moss ball next to you for water, I'll fetch you some food."

     Spottedpath flicked her ears as she watched Muddapple rush out of the den, leaving her to sit in confusion. There was an uncharacteristic amount of concern in his words, rather than the curt or chiding tones he liked to take. What's he so worried about, anyways? Spottedpath thought. I'm only sore—I'm fine! Before she knew it, Muddapple had returned with a plump vole and placed it at her paws.

     "Eat it slowly, or else you'll upset your stomach," he instructed more plainly this time. Spottedpath let out a soft sigh; even though he'd adopted his usual tone again, his instructions seemed unusual.

     "Why are you talking like I've been starved for a moon?" she queried, meaning it as a joke. When Muddapple only shifted uneasily on his paws, Spottedpath narrowed her eyes.

     "It's been a few days since the battle was won," Muddapple explained slowly, his eyes trained worriedly on his patient. "I doubt you've noticed—based off what others reported, you acted like you hadn't noticed your injuries in the first place—but you were seriously injured. You lost consciousness almost immediately after you won your fight against Deadeye. Spottedpath, we thought you weren't going to wake up." The last sentence was hardly more than a whisper, and with each cautious word Spottedpath's heart dropped further.

     "O-Oh." She couldn't muster up any other words as she glanced down over her body. Cobwebs covered patches of poultices, and for the first time she noticed the sting of each individual wound on her body. I could have actually died? she thought in astonishment. No—I was nearly dead.

     "A-Anyways." Muddapple cleared his throat awkwardly and looked away from the warrior he'd grown close to. "The cats of BlazeClan and NightClan came together to weave that nest you're on—that way, four cats could pick it up to carry you to the NightClan camp without worsening your wounds. Once we patched you up there, we moved you here with the rest of SwiftClan. You're going to need to take it easy for at least a few more sunrises—probably more, depending on how quickly those wounds heal."

     Spottedpath could only manage a slow nod as she processed his words. The brown tabby returned to his duties after a moment, but he kept an eye on Spottedpath as he did so. For once, she didn't mind the attention he paid her; even if she did, she knew how worried he must have been. She looked back down at the vole in front of her and tried to focus on eating it slowly. The more Spottedpath thought about what had happened, the more uneasy she felt.