Roxy jumped, nearly spilling her tea.
What the heck.
Kaelen was on his feet in a second, his body shifting into a defensive crouch, a low snarl ripping from his throat.
Shocked that his Beta would enter his territory without announcing himself.
The Beta stood in the doorway, looking furious. His fists were clenched at his sides, his chest heaving. Behind him, a crowd of wolves, Rax, Sera, and others, gathered nervously, looking like children watching their parents fight.
They had never seen their Alpha and Beta of the pack clash together like this.
And they sat for the gossip, just like Roxy, who continued to feed on the at, quite relaxed on the bed, instead of panicking.
She even leaned back to relax her muscles.
"Vorn!" Kaelen roared, keeping himself between Vorn and Roxy. "You enter the Alpha’s den without knocking? Do you seek death?"
Vorn didn’t back down. He stepped into the room, his eyes sweeping over the scene.
He saw the plush rug. He saw the warm fire. He saw the tray of food sitting on Roxy’s thighs, and then his gaze landed on the "apron" on Kaelen.
And he sneered.
"I seek the Alpha," Vorn spat, his voice dripping with contempt. "But what I see is a wolf turned slave."
Everywhere suddenly went quiet, save for Roxy’s loud chewing. Roxy put down her toast. Oh, here we go.
"Careful, Vorn," Kaelen warned, his voice dropping to a dangerous, icy whisper. "You speak to your Alpha. One more word, I will snap your neck and bury you under the dirt."
Roxy shivered as if they were talking to her.
"Do I?" Vorn stepped closer. "The King I followed loved to hunt. He hunted until his paws bled. He was alert, cold, and prideful."
Vorn pointed a shaking finger at Kaelen.
"This?" He gestured to the warm cabin. "This is a pet. You feed her berries in bed while the pack sharpens spears? You wear... leather napkins? You have grown soft, Kaelen. The human female has gelded you with her stew and her pillows."
"I am stronger than I have ever been!" Kaelen argued, his muscles tensing. "Look at the pack, Vorn! Sera breathes without pain! The pups will be born in warmth! We are surviving!"
"We are hiding!" Vorn shouted. "We are playing house! When the Dragons co, and they will co, will you fight them? Or will you ask them to wipe their feet on the rug first?"
Roxy felt a vein twitch in her forehead. She stood up on the bed, adding six inches to her height. She hated it when they talked about her dragons that way, knowing she had put in a lot of work there, too.
"Hey! Pig-headed Wolverine!" Roxy shouted. "I don’t recall asking for your opinion on my ways! Kaelen is treating his pregnant mate with respect. It’s called being a decent partner!"
"Silence, outsider!" Vorn snarled at her. "You have poisoned his mind. You make him weak with your comforts."
He turned his gaze back to Kaelen. His eyes were hard, yellow, and unforgiving.
"The Pack cannot be led by a pet," Vorn declared. "The Pack needs a Wolf. An Alpha who rembers why they were born by the moon goddess."
Kaelen went perfectly still. "What are you saying, Vorn?"
Vorn reached up and tore off his own fur cloak, throwing it to the floor. He stood bare-chested, scarred, and gaunt, though he had gained so muscle from Roxy’s diet.
"I challenge you," Vorn announced.
Gasps erupted from the wolves outside the door.
[System Alert: Clan Hierarchy Crisis.]
[The Beta has issued a Challenge for Dominance.]
[Outco determines the Alpha of the Moon Pack.]
"The Circle of Fangs," Vorn said, reciting the ancient rite. "No weapons. No magic. No shifting. Flesh against flesh. Until one submits... or dies."
Roxy’s heart stopped. Was that even a thing in the beast world?
[TheMotheroftheWorld laughs, saying that this has always been a thing in the world of beasts, even dogs fight for dominance in a place that isn’t ant for them. Nothing new to see here.]
That ans there would be a lot of blood...
"No," she breathed. "Kaelen, don’t—"
"I accept," Kaelen said instantly.
"Kaelen!" Roxy grabbed his arm. "Are you crazy? You don’t have to do this! We have laws! I can write a constitution! We can vote!"
Kaelen turned to her. His eyes weren’t the soft, doting eyes of a husband anymore. They were the eyes of the Killer of the North.
"He questioned my strength, Roxy," Kaelen said softly, removing her hand from his arm. "If I do not answer, I am not Alpha. And if I am not Alpha, I cannot protect you."
He untied the leather apron and let it drop to the floor. He looked at Vorn with a calmness that was more terrifying than any rage.
"Outside," Kaelen commanded. "In the mud. Where you belong."
****
In the sa place where they all danced in celebration of Roxy’s pregnancy was where they all gathered for the duel.
The wolves ford a wide circle in the mud between the cabins. The air was thick with tension. Rax was holding a drum, beating a slow, ominous rhythm.
A sound for war.
Roxy stood on the porch of their cabin, clutching her robe tight. She felt sick. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They were supposed to be building nurseries, not fighting to the death in the dirt.
"System," she whispered. "Odds?"
[Analyzing Combatants...]
[Combatant: Vorn (Beta)]
Strength: High.Style: Brutal, dirty fighter.Motivation: Desperation/Tradition.
[Combatant: Kaelen (Alpha)]
Strength: Peak (Buffed by ’Beast-Mass Gainer’ & ’Love Hormone’).Style: Precision/Speed.Motivation: Protect the Mate.
[Predicted Outco: 70% chance of Kaelen’s victory. 30% chance Vorn fights dirty.]
"Thirty percent is too high," Roxy muttered, biting her nail.
Kaelen and Vorn stepped into the circle. They were both stripped to their waists. The cold wind whipped around them, but neither shivered.
"Last chance, Vorn," Kaelen said, cracking his neck. "Submit. Acknowledge the Queen. And I will let you keep your head."
"The Queen is a distraction," Vorn spat, circling him. "I will free you from her spell, brother. I will break you to save you."
"Then break ," Kaelen challenged, opening his arms wide.
Vorn didn’t hesitate. With a roar, he launched himself at the King, shifting into his wolf form.
Kaelen shifted too and received his Beta headfirst.
He fought like a starving animal. He went low, aiming for Kaelen’s calf, tackling him into the mud.
They hit the ground with a wet, sickening thud.
It was brutal. Vorn was fast, fueled by resentnt. He bit into Kaelen’s arm with a sickening crunch. Blood sprayed onto the earth.
"Kaelen!" Roxy scread, moving only for her to stop after a few steps forward.
Her heart thudded in her chest.
I swear to god, if anything happens to my baby, I will kill Vorn and use his at for soup.
The pack watched in silence. They were torn. They loved the warm cabins, they loved the stew... but Vorn spoke to their fears. Was the softness killing them? Was Kaelen truly weak?
"Yield!" Vorn scread through the mindlink, tightening his grip. "Yield, and I will exile her! I will let her live!"
Kaelen growled. He was pressed against the mud. For a second, it looked like he might lose.
But then, Kaelen’s eyes locked onto Roxy.
He saw her standing on the porch. He saw the fear in her eyes. He saw his unborn pup safe inside her belly.
And sothing primal snapped.
Weak?
He wasn’t weak. He was fed. He was loved. He was a father. It took him decades to be able to get to this point; no matter what she gave him, it was for his own good and not the opposite.
Kaelen let out a roar. He reached up, bit down onto Vorn again, which caused the latter to whimper. With a display of strength that defied logic, he simply pulled.
He pulled Vorn off him and threw him a very far distance that caused him to knock into a tree, his whines slipping out of his mouth.
Vorn shifted back to his human form, and just when he was about to get up, Kaelen pinned him to the floor again, in his human form, his hand wrapped around his neck.
"You call this soft?!" Kaelen roared, "You think love makes weak?!"
He slamd Vorn’s head into the mud. Thud.
"Her food built these muscles!"
Thud.
"Her shelter gave this breath!"
Thud.
"Her love gave a son!"
Kaelen raised a fist, ready to deliver the killing blow. Vorn was dazed, bloody, and defeated. He looked up at his King, but a monster that had awakened.
And his eyes cleared.
The pack held its breath. By the laws of the Wolf, the challenger must die.
"Kill him!" a random wolf shouted.
Kaelen’s fist hovered. His chest heaved. The ice in his eyes burned hot.
"Kaelen! Stop!"
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