WARNING: This chapter contains violence, though I'm sure many of the Warrior Cat readers are used to it.
The littermates all knew what to do, even Bird. They ran. Maso stared at Bird, ready to leap to her defense. Bird was running into the den and yelling "Mom!".
Maso shifted his view just enough to look at the badger just as it picked up Ari by the throat and threw her into the tree.
"Ari!" He cried, running to her side.
The black shekit was unconscious, her brown tail covering most of her face. Maso tried to wake her up but the badger threw him aside, knocking him into a tree.
His vision blurred. His head was throbbing with pain. Yet he still raised his head slightly, just as the badger ripped open Ari's chest, spattering blood everywhere.
Just then, Night came out of the den, leaping onto the badger's back, her frontclaws digging into it's neck, her hindclaws digging into it's spine. "You will not hurt my kits anymore!" She yelled. The badger tried to throw her off, but Night held on, biting the badger's ears.
Maso watched his mother fight the badger. There was still black spots in his eyes, but they slowly went away as Night attacked the badger without mercy.
Then everything went wrong.
Night did one of her uncontrollable meows that sounded like bird calls from inside the den, distracting Night for a second. The badger took this chance to shake her off then claw her without hesitation. It left her, bleeding, before moving to the den to kill Bird as well.
Maso didn't know what was going on in his mind. All that went through his head was Protect Bird. So, of course, like a fool, he ran in front of the den's entrance, blocking the badger.
He looked in the den and saw her black pelt nearly hidden in the darkest shadows of the den. She whispered "Run, it won't see me."
He muttered back, "If it can't find what made that sound, it'll tear the entire den down. I'll distract it, you run."
Before Bird could respond, the badger came up. It glared at Maso, seeming to be trying to figure out if he would put up a fight this time. He didn't. But he did run. And he ran right under the badger and kept running, even when the badger turned around and chased him, even when he was far enough away to be sure Bird had escaped.
He had drawn the badger away, but now what? It obviously didn't want to stop. Maso couldn't remember if badgers could climb trees or not. He didn't want to get trapped in a tree and find out. Instead he kept running. It took him a while to realize he was slowing down and the badger was now gaining, as if it had been saving it'd energy until it was sure he was tired. Maso tried to run quicker but his small, tired legs wouldn't work.
The badger caught up and before Maso could do anything, it bowled him over into a tree. The pain in his head he had forgotten about returned, worse than he thought possible. He looked up, seeing fury in the badger's eyes and knew it would not spare him. It would give him the most painful death possible, mostly because he annoyed it by running so far.
The badger bit off some of his ear then picked him up and shook him like a mouse. Then it threw him into another tree before padding up, raising it's paw for a finishing blow.
Maso closed his eyes. There was pain, then there was nothing. He somehow knew he didn't die. He blacked out. He failed Bird.