A Good Distraction (Open Hunting Patrol)

When Ashstorm returned she could see neither Birdsong or Quietstep on the ground.  The creaking of branches caused her eyes to lift up to see that both of the other cats were in the tree.  Squinting and focusing her eyes, she was able to spot why they were up there.  An eagle.  The older warrior leaped up and hopped from branch to branch as fast as she could until she was near them.  Quickly, she steadied herself on the branch.  She unsheathed both her front paws and sliced at the eagle, causing quite a bit of blood to spill.  She put her paws back on the branch.  The branch creaked and lowered slightly, so she silently preyed to Starclan that it wouldn't break beneath her.

Ashstorm used Rending Front Paws, dealing 13 in damage and using -25SP

Ashstorm
60HP / 169SP (-25SP)

Eagle
26HP / 180SP (-13HP)

Birdsong
40HP / 179SP

Quietstep
40HP / 107SP

Just as quickly as Quietstep and Ashstorm had joined her, the eagle managed to sink talons into the scruff of Birdsong's neck. The warrior flinched at the pain, a hiss escaping gritted teeth as she hadn't been quick enough to dodge the strike.

Birdsong leaped upward, claws digging into a branch above the eagle, then dropped down with unsheathed claws. The back of her neck hurt, and she could feel blood soaking into her fur. This would be fun to explain to Beechface, she was sure, but right now she was more focused on making sure the eagle wouldn't hurt anyone else. It had been weakened by Quietstep and Ashstorm attacking it, and Birdsong shot her aunt and cousin a grateful look.

Birdsong used Sky Drop for -15 sp, dealing -12 damage.
Eagle used Talon Strike for -10 sp, dealing 10 damage.

Eagle
14 / 60 hp (26 - 12)
170 / 200 sp (180 - 10)

Birdsong
30 / 60 hp (40 - 10)
164 / 200 sp (179 - 15)

Standing up onto her hind legs (if a bit unstabley), Herbo Delilah slashed at the eagle, before coming back down. One of her paws slipped as she did so, though luckily she managed to stay balanced. She couldn't fall now! She had to help Birdsong and Ashstorm fight the eagle!

Quietstep used Rear Up Slash on Eagle, costing -15 SP and dealing -9 HP

Quietstep:
40/40
92/120 -15

Eagle:
5/60 -9
170/200

Birdsong:
30/60
164/200

Ashstorm:
60/60
169/200

Ashstorm watched the eagle get weaker and weaker.  It seemed like it wouldn't last too much longer.  Ashstorm unsheathed her claws and quickly scratched at the eagles stomach.  Flesh covered by feathers got caught in her claws and fell to the ground.  Blood pored and it quickly fell off of the tree branch and she watched it hit the green ground below them.

"Great job," she told them both.  Quickly, she hopped from branch to branch.  Her paws hit the ground with a small thump.  She walked over to the eagle and saw that it was clearly dead by the pool of blood that surrounded it.  She strode back over to Quietstep and Birdsong after, smiling and slightly panting.

Ashstorm used Front Paw Strike, dealing 11 in damage and using -10SP

Ashstorm
60HP / 159SP (-10SP)

Eagle dead
-6HP / 170SP (-11HP)

Birdsong
30HP / 164SP

Quietstep
40HP / 92SP

The eagle sank to the ground unmoving before it could do any more harm, and Birdsong couldn't help the relief that flickered across her expression. It was dead, and at least nobody else had been injured.

"Thanks," Birdsong panted, leaping down from the branch she'd been standing on with a wince. The back of her neck hurt more than she'd realized, and Birdsong could feel the blood soaking into her fur. Her ears flicked back in discomfort, not at all thrilled about the sensation.

Herbo Delilah watched as the eagle fell and hit the ground, dead as a fern in Leaf-bare. She then slowly got down from the tree, careful not to slip and possibly fall. Once she made it to the ground, she glanced over to Ashstorm and Birdsong, and noticed blood dripping from Birdsong's neck. "O-Oh my g-goodness, B-Birdsong your h-hurt!" Herbo Delilah exclaimed, her voice panicky. "W-we s-should bring you b-back to camp!"

Ashstorm walked over to her niece, just noticing the blood that flowed from her neck.  That couldn't be comfortable at all.  Beechface would want to help her right away.  "I agree with Quietstep," she exclaimed, giving a concerned look at her niece.

"I'm sure I'll be fine... And Beechface probably has enough to worry about." Her neck hurt... But Beechface was intimidating. She'd been in her den before, with Copperfox, and the medicine cat had been pricklier than a porcupine. It was strange, for a medicine cat, and there was something about Beechface that was simply unnerving. And then there was the strange tension that even Birdsong's oblivious mind could pick up on between the medicine cat and her mother. She didn't know why, and figured that it wasn't her business to ask, but it still made Birdsong's pelt prickle uncomfortably.

But Ashstorm and Quietstep were right, Birdsong knew. She could feel the sticky warmth that stained her fur, and turning towards their previous catches sent pain throbbing through her neck. "You're... probably right." She grumbled eventually, "Let's go, then. I just hope she doesn't claw our ears off."