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1021 Words
The moment Mir heard the word "dog," his body began to shift without him even turning around. His breathing turned rapid and shallow. His nails elongated into claws. Hair started sprouting along his arms. A growl built in his throat. He spun, ready to launch himself at Alyona.
And stopped.
In front of him stood a scrawny little thing, barely a hundred and sixty centimeters tall, swallowed by a cape that made him look even smaller. Mir burst out laughing. The transformation he had started just seconds ago melted away. His human form returned in an instant.
Mir turned to Alex beside him. "This is it? This is the guy who's been making you run drills all day? One sneeze and he'd fly away. Hahaha."
As Alpha Mir laughed, the crowd joined in. Everyone was howling.
Alyona cracked her neck left and right. "Patience," she muttered. "Patience."
"Seriously," Mir roared. "When I heard someone was stupid enough to challenge us, I expected something big. A giant. But this? This is a half-portion. A quarter. A quarter-portion. Hahaha!"
The crowd fed off his laughter. Some started chanting. Others whistled. A few voices rose in mockery. "Yuh! Yuh!"
Alyona pulled a scarf from her pocket and tied it over her face, leaving only her eyes visible. Then she shrugged off her cape.
"Are you done?" Her voice was calm. Self-assured.
Alpha Mir frowned. "Done with what?"
"Done with your dog-like cackling." She didn't raise her voice. "I have things to do. I don't have time to wait for your entertainment."
The grin vanished from Mir's face. His expression hardened. The old seriousness returned.
"What did you just say?"
"I said a lot of things. Which part caught your attention? The dog part? The worthless mutt part? Should I repeat it all?"
She smiled behind the scarf.
"Listen, you piece of trash. I swear on my life I'll drink wine from your skull. Don't push me."
"Oh no. Now I'm sad." Alyona tilted her head. "How are you going to drink from my skull if you don't have it? You'll have to do it with one eye."
"One eye?"
"You heard me. I said I'd take one of your eyes. Or did you miss that part too?"
"Enough. Get out while you still can. I'm giving you one last chance."
But Alyona didn't move. She laughed, then turned to the crowd.
"Beta Alex here says I get two hundred thousand gold if I beat this mutt." She spread her arms. "Anyone else want to place bets? Don't bet on me. Bet against me. That way I'll win everything."
The crowd surged into action. Bets flew. Every single one landed on Alpha Mir.
Mir stood with his hands on his hips, watching. The little thing amused him. Her movements were odd. Strange. Somehow he didn't hate it.
Alyona addressed the crowd again. "When I win this fight, no one will stand in my way. I'll take the gold and the money and walk out with both hands swinging."
Another wave of laughter rolled through the arena.
Alyona turned back to Mir. "Do you accept?"
Mir looked at the frail little thing in front of him. Then at his men. Then back.
"No one touches her," he said. "She walks out."
The fight began.
The crowd chanted Mir's name. Alex, confident in his bet on the girl, was still shouting "Quarter-portion" at the top of his lungs.
The referee stepped back.
Alpha Mir lunged forward.
The ground shook when his foot landed. His right fist flew toward Alyona's head. She ducked at the last second. His punch crashed into the iron bars of the cage. The metal rattled and screamed.
The crowd held its breath.
Alyona didn't wait. She spun and drove a hard kick into Mir's knee. Any ordinary man would have crumbled.
Mir only smirked and stomped his foot harder into the ground.
"Is that all you've got?"
His hand shot out, claws spread, grabbing for her shoulder. Alyona dropped her weight back and flipped out of his grip.
They both reset.
This time Alyona attacked.
One step forward. Left punch. Right elbow. Spinning kick. Three moves in rapid succession. Mir dodged the first punch. Blocked the elbow with his forearm. But the spinning kick caught him across the cheek.
The arena went silent.
For the first time that night, someone had landed a hit on Alpha Mir.
Mir ran his tongue over the blood on his cheek. Then he smiled.
"Now this is fun."
He lunged at her like a wolf. Alyona slid under him, hitting the ground, then sprang up and launched herself off the cage wall. She spun in the air and drove both feet into the back of Mir's neck.
He stumbled. Only one step. But the whole arena had seen it.
Mir straightened. "Enough games," he said. "Let's really start."
"Didn't we already start?" Alyona thought. But she said nothing.
"Fine," she said instead. "Enough playing."
She attacked first. Mir moved to meet her with sharp precision. He wound up for a strike, but Alyona ducked low and drove a kick straight between his legs. He doubled over.
Mir wasn't laughing anymore.
"This has gone on too long," he said, voice flat.
He looked into her eyes. And her eyes were laughing at him.
His own eyes began to change. They glowed amber. Wolf eyes.
Then he moved. Faster than light. He slammed into her before she could dodge. She flew across the cage floor, sliding several meters, her back hitting the ground hard.
But his hand had come down on her chest. His fingers registered something. A softness. A fullness that didn't belong on any man.
Mir froze. His body went rigid.
What the hell? How does this guy have a chest like that? And then he saw it. The necklace. It had fallen from Alyona's neck when she hit the ground.
Behind Alyona, three massive white wolves materialized from thin air, towering. And in front of them, extending toward Alpha Mir, a golden chain.
Alyona saw the necklace on the floor and cursed under her breath.
"Shit."
- Writer
