SIXTY-SIX
**-Raki’s POV-**
It’s time. It’s the night of the fight. I’ve spoken to Ryan and Scott and I know they’ve done the right thing to plan all this. A pack can’t survive without a human leader, can they? But I’m restless. I still hear the voices of my wolves, of the members of the pack. I hear their laughter, their joy but also their tears and fears. I’m not sure if I can say goodbye to them. Together with Khal, I’ve lived for the pack. I know we were not perfect, but we did what we could. We loved our pack!
I think about Indy, about Buwan. Oh, that gorgeous wolf. She’s pure, and a bit feisty - I love that. But Indy is too, her intentions are pure and innocent. She acts for the good of her people, her surroundings, never for her own good. She’s selfless and would be a lovely Luna one day. But she’s like a rocky diamond, she has to be sharpened. Polished. And her mates can do that with her. Mates, *her* mates. I feel a knife in my chest and I growl a bit. She was mine one day too. I enjoyed her hands on my fur, her voice close to my ears. I loved her smile, bright and open. But Khal had to destroy all that. I feel lucky to still have such a vibrant pull with Buwan. I know I can’t live without her anymore, it doesn’t matter what I decide to do tonight.
I watch the sky and see by the moon it’s time. I shake my fur and stretch my legs, before I disappear into the night.
---
**-Scott’s POV-**
“FIGHT!”
The first fight has begun. I’ve decided to draw straws, the three guys with the short straws fight together and the three with the long straws. Fair and easy. It doesn’t matter, though. All six warriors are capable enough to win the fights. All with their own strengths and weaknesses. Some are big and strong but slow in movements, others agile and lean but lack strength, or some have great stamina - which is only handy *if* you survive the fights.
I watch the first round and see that Lee and Mogu are almost equal when it comes to strength, they immediately attacked each other. Rudi is circling around the two fighting men, waiting for a chance to strike. Rudi is one of the agile and fast guys, but not as big as Lee and Mogu - not as strong either. He knows he has to be careful, if he wants to win. But Rudi is smart and from Beta blood, I bet he’s the one surviving this round. It’s almost fun to watch, but I know these fights can end with death if no one decides to surrender. But I’ve good hopes that this will be fine, ‘cause 5 of the 6 fighters basically grew up together. They’re like brothers to each other and I think they know when to accept the loss.
Mogu and Lee are still fighting each other, still in human-forms. And then, without warning, Rudi runs from behind and hits Mogu on the side of his head. Mogu falters and Lee uses this moment to strike too. He kicks the feet under Mogu’s body out and soon Mogu’s on his back. Surprised by this combined attack, Mogu’s not on time to recover and soon he’s under attack by Lee and Rudi. It takes them a while, but after a minute or so, Mogu taps out - surrendering.
Some wolves help Mogu out of the circle and now it’s between Rudi and Lee. Lee knew he had to take out Mogu first, because he sees Mogu as his biggest rival. But I think he was wrong, together with a lot of members watching this fight. I look around the circle and see a lot of disbelief that Mogu was knocked out relatively fast. I smile and I cross my arms. The next minutes are going to be fun…
“Baby?” I heard Ryan’s voice and I realized I almost forgot about Indy. I look to my side and see her shaking body. “It’s fine, are you cold? Here.. take this blanket.” Ryan says to her. She smiles at him and nods in approval. “Thanks…” I hear her soft voice, which makes my wolf jump in my chest. I love her so much. I caress her hair and continue to watch the fight.
I see how Rudi is smiling at Lee, almost mocking him. Rudi knows, just like me, that he has the advantage over here. He just has to watch the strong kicks and hits from Lee, be patient and strike exactly on time, and he’s fine. Lee’s trying to get close to Rudi to hit him, but Rudi doesn’t let him. He’s fast and agile and knows how to dodge the hits from Lee. “You darn and annoying brat. Come closer and I’ll show you who’s in charge over here!” Lee yells to Rudi, trying to intimidate him. But it’s not working, Rudi keeps smiling and circling around Lee. Rudi hits Lee several times, not hard enough to injure him but I know what he’s aiming for. If Rudi continues, Lee will feel the relatively ‘softer’ hits from Rudi and will be weakened. Meanwhile, Lee will get tired of trying to get close to Rudi and that is the moment Rudi will strike and knock him out. It’s smart, and one of the base techniques from wolves that haven’t the muscles. Lee should know better, he is trained better.
The fight goes exactly as I expected, Lee gets tired and the hits from Rudi are more painful to Lee. You can see it in his face. The moment Rudi wants to hit Lee another time, Lee is prepared and shifts exactly on time to block the hit with his even bigger wolf-body. Rudi didn’t see that coming though, and falters. Lee uses this time to attack Rudi and I can see that Lee’s wolf has scratched Rudi’s leg badly. Rudi tried to get away, but wasn’t fast enough.
“Come on, Rudi. Focus.” I whisper.
Rudi recovers his focus and I can see the determination on his face. He knows he must finish soon, because he will slowly bleed to death if his wolf has not the energy to heal himself enough. Lee’s wolf tries to attack Rudi again, but of course Rudi sees it coming this time. He dodges the attack and jumps away, shifting mid-air and jumps straight back to Lee’s back. Rudi’s wolf bites the neck of Lee’s wolf, and holds tightly. I hear Lee’s wolf howling from the pain due to the unexpected attack. Lee tries to shake Rudi from his back, but he’s too tired. After almost 20 seconds, Lee’s wolf bows his head, as a sign of surrender and Rudi lets go of his neck. Lee’s wolf is bleeding badly and I can see he has not much time left before he bleeds to death.
I walk over to Lee’s wolf, and I look at the wound. “Nurse!” I yell around, and within two seconds Autumn is beside me with all the necessary tools. I pet Lee’s wolf and whisper in his ear. “You did great; hold on, warrior. Heal yourself as much as you can.”
I stand up and let Autumn do her job. After a few minutes, she smiles and searches for my eyes and she nods. The sign that he’s OK. I nod back. I look at some other warriors and the moment they get my sign, they run to the field and lift the big wolf on the ground and carry him to a better place.
“Alright, people! The winner of the first round is Rudi! All three warriors did great, take care of them. The next three fighters: be ready. Your fight will start in ten!” I talk to the gathering around me.
I tap Rudi on the shoulder, who had shifted back to his human-form. “Well done, Rudi. Let somebody check your leg - you’re not done yet.”
“Yes, Alpha.” He responds, before he walks over to the first-aid.
The moment I stare around and watch the people getting ready for the next round, I see him. A big, black wolf on the top of a hill nearby. His fur is moving in the wind and I can see the moon shining right behind him. I smile, he has seen the fight and he’s here tonight. I nod at him, knowing he sees me.
I stare at Indy, but she hasn't seen or noticed him, yet. Too busy to watch the fight and the happening in front of us. I grab the battle of water we brought and take a few nips. One fight is cleared, two to go… Or is Raki going to surprise us tonight?
---
Author's note: *Dear readers, I know you've been waiting for this update! As I explained in the comments, I wasn't able to do so the last two weeks - due to personal issues. I'm so sorry that you had to wait so long, and I can promise I will update more frequently this week. I hope you understand and again: I'm really sorry! What do you think of the fight? And about Raki, is he going to fight too or is he there to watch only? You'll know soon! -x- B.*
---