The Alpha's Daughter

Sparing with Saphira, my head snapped towards the woods as I heard Zander's wolf howl. Instantly, I stopped training and looked around. In the distance, I could hear many wolves running in that direction. I shook my head, "Zander, what have you gotten yourself into now?" "Vi, get back here," Saphira yelled out as I shifted into my wolf before charging into the woods recklessly. "You're going to get yourself in trouble!" she hollered after me. "If you want to help, get Victor," I snapped over mindlink. Nothing could stop me from going to check on what was happening. When I reached the clearing, I could see Zander was squared off against Blue. I quickly shifted and yelled out for them to stop. They both turned their head and stared at me for a second before squaring off once again with each other. I chuckled as I pulled Zander's discarded shirt over my head, "Here I thought there was trouble. Instead, I find just two stubborn wolves. Either of you care to explain what this is all about before the Alpha Victor or Beta Rex arrives?" "Stay out of it, Viviana," Zander yelled, "he deserves it," he growled fiercely. Blue yelled back, "I was just doing what I was instructed," he defended his actions. "Save it!" Zander charged him, catching Blue off guard and sending him to the ground. The two exchanged blows rolling in dirt until Blue got his feet under Zander and kicked him off, sending him flying back a few feet. Watching as Zander landed before jumping up to his feet, looking even angrier at Blue. Suddenly, Max and Victor appeared on the scene. "You have to stop them," I insisted. "Why?" Max winked at me. "It's just a little rivalry between friends." Max laughed, watching Zander attack Blue again. "Seriously," I pushed him, "This is your fault!" I yelled. Max looked at the spot I touched him, looking eyes on me, "Don't start something you can't finish, Viviana." he eyed me menacingly. "You don't want to be the next one begging me to release you, or perhaps you want to be under me," he smirked. Victor growled out upon hearing Max, "Enough of this," and everybody froze. "Max, take Blue and get him out of here. I'll handle Zander." "You're not in charge," Max yelled back. "Would you rather the Alpha come out here and deal with you four?" He replied calmly, not willing to be worked up by Max "I am not involved with this, "I held up my hands, trying to appear innocent. "Drop the act, Viviana. Saphira is the one who sent for us because of you. Just because you are the Alpha's daughter does not mean you need to be involved in every scremish these two fools get into. Perhaps you should shift and go back to the packhouse," he said matter-of-factly, making me even madder. "I don't take orders from you," I yelled back. "You don't take orders from anyone, and that is your problem," he yelled bitterly, and his words made me drop my head. "That's not fair," I whispered, knowing full well he heard it. Our hearing was so good that all of them did. "Well, I'm not leaving," I replied defiantly. Zander was not willing to back down just yet and, taking the momentary distraction provided by Victor and I tried to lunge again at Blue. Victor's instincts, though, were faster, and he caught him and forced him to yield. "Now, Max!" he yelled. "I don't take orders from you," he argued back while making sure to maintain control of Blue, which was basically unnecessary since Blue was only defending himself and not being the aggressor. "Please leave, Max," I asked nicely. "Only because you asked so kindly," Max winked, "Let's go Blue," he called out as he partially shoved Blue back into the woods. I hoped that Max would not beat up Blue because of this fight. It was common knowledge that Max accepted no surrender or yielding; his squad always fought till their opponent was out cold. After they left, Victor turned his anger toward Zander. He grabbed him roughly by the shoulders, "Zander, get control of yourself. If gamma ray knew you were out here teaching Blue a lesson, he would likely ban you from the tournament or teach you a lesson himself." He released him, looking very disappointed. "Zander, what were you thinking?" I stepped closer and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. Zander looked up into my eyes, and we just stared at each other. "He wasn't!" Victor huffed. "You're not helping, Victor." "Excuse me, I believe I'm the one who jumped between them and stopped this mess," Victor replied with increasing irritation. "Zander, talk to me," I said calmly, wanting to know what this was all about. Zander looked hurt as he stood up and turned away from me with a deep sigh. He muttered, "He...beat up Ruby." Victor and I both turned and looked at each other. Even in training exercises, Blue should not have been matched against Ruby. "Where did this happen?" I asked cautiously. "On the training field," he spat out, casting a heated glare at Victor, "and don't you dare say what you are thinking. It's not training, it's being irresponsible. It never should have happened." I stepped forward and took his hands in mine, causing him to look at me again. "You're right. It was irresponsible and never should have happened. How bad is it, Zander?" I questioned. With his eyes locked on my mine, he interlocked our fingers. "It broke Ruby's leg in three places. The pack doctor says it will heal fine, but can't guarantee it will be okay for the tournament. " "If the doctor said he would recover, what is with all of this?" Victor asked, which caused Zander to squeeze my fingers. I winced, and he immediately dropped my hands. "Under whose orders were they fighting?" I asked him, afraid to hear the answer. "None. They were practicing," he laughed bitterly. "Excuse me," I almost yelled. "Why, of all people, would she choose to spare with Blue knowing? Oh, never mind..." I yelled. "Not saying she deserves it, but seriously, Zander, she better have an excuse as to why that even happened. The Alpha won't accept that." "Viviana, calm down," Victor called out. I turned around and got right in his face, pushing my finger into his chest, "You know they should not have been fighting or training together. Nowhere near the same skill set or size. It was dangerous and reckless. Besides, they are not even on the same squad." "All of that is true, and I trust the Alpha will sort that out. Our problem here today is why Zander decided to take on Blue our here by himself." Victor replied. "And we are still waiting for an answer for that. I don't doubt that Blue had it coming, but why today, and why in this way?" Zander looked at us and through gritted teeth replied, " To send a message." "What message is that exactly?" Victor grated out, "That a leader can rip into a recruit and beat him up because of something that happened on a training exercise." "It was not a training exercise," Zander shot back. "Sorry, I misspoke, an unauthorized practice session." Victor replied gently, trying to resolve the situation. "It was not an accident," Zander would not let it go. "How can you be sure?" I interjected, not wanting to see them fight. Bitterly, Zander argued, "How do you accidentally break a person's bone in three places exactly?" "What did Ruby say about the incident?" I questioned. "That they were practicing and Blue was showing her something and lost control," he said sadly as he dropped his head. "How did he lose control?" I pondered. Blue was a very well-trained wolf. "She didn't say," he answered. "Let's just head back. See you on the training field tomorrow. And Viviana?" "Yes," I answered. "You can keep the shirt," he laughed before running into the woods and leaving me with Victor. "Anything else to say?" Victor looked at me suspiciously. I winked at him, then said, "Tell Zander no thanks." With that, I ripped the shirt off, threw it at him, and shifted before running off, hearing him laughing still in the clearing.