Werewolf's Gambit

Chapter 1

"I staked the farm on you, Silver Fang!” A man in the crowd shouted. “You better not lose this fight!" He said whilst shaking his fist. "I'll f*****g kill you if you lose all my money!" He sat down with a huff and folded his arms, looking grumpy. Around him, his fellow audience were yelling and hooting, excitement on their faces. He sighed, his eyes drifting to the combatant in the ring. "I hope I didn't make the wrong choice in betting on you..." He grumbled under his breath.

‘Geez, you weren't asked to wager on me.’ Ethan yelled to himself as he avoided being struck by his adversary. ‘If I lose, I won't owe you anything! It's not like I intend to lose, anyway. Although this man is strong, I still have a trick up my sleeve!’

He put some space between himself and his opponent and focused. He began to harness the crimson energy, spreading it throughout his body, as he felt it coursing through his veins. His cells were strengthened and given new life by the red energy, but that wasn't all that happened. His physique started to transform right then. His eyes grew small and elongated. He was covered in fur. His teeth and nails grew longer, becoming razor-sharp canines and claw-like nails. He not only became taller but also bigger. He appeared to be at least twice as big as before due to the transformation. He spoke in a rough, slightly altered voice due to the form he had assumed, but he ultimately had little to say. As soon as his physique started to alter, he realized this match was done.

“So, this must be a Mystery Class ability of yours," his opponent said after pausing, his eyes glinting with intrigue.

“Your career will end because of this form,” Ethan said with roguish smile.

“We’ll see about that. Do not underestimate me. During this battle, I haven't been using my power either," Ethan’s opponent admitted.

“So why not use it already to lessen your pain?" Ethan sneered. In a flash, he rushed towards his opponent with his hand raised, claw at the ready. His opponent tried to block but Ethan’s fist broke through his guard, causing him to fly about. He skidded to a stop, face twisted in pain and anger.

Ethan’s opponent yelled in anger, twisting his hands but not closing them, "Che... you bastard!" Red balls of light started to take shape in the palms of his hands. They increased in size gradually, eventually surpassing the size of his hands. “Once I'm done with you, we'll see who is hurting.”

Simply grinning, Ethan lifted his hands. ‘This shouldn't be a problem.’ He thought to himself. ‘If I recall properly, this form is unaffected by an onslaught of this magnitude. There is no reason to dodge, even though I could. In addition, I want to defeat this man intellectually and physically.’

As anticipated, the assault from Ethan’s opponent had little impact on him. When it hit, there was a tremendous explosion that even partially destroyed the arena. The type of fighters involved meant that the arena was practically made of stone. A square built of reinforced steel encircled a sizable mound of soil that formed the ring.

His adversary dropped his arms next to him. His chest and shoulders were moving up and down, giving the impression that he was breathing deeply. His face was also covered in obvious sweat. It was obvious that the attack had consumed a significant amount of energy. He was only praying that everything would be worthwhile in the end.

"How did that go? I sincerely hope it wasn't too much for you."

A werewolf appeared behind him, grinning broadly, as the dust finally died down. The man jumped away, throwing another attack at Ethan who swatted it to the side, causing another expulsion of debris – but this time it wasn’t as huge as the previous one, telling Ethan all je needed to know about the decreased Mana of his opponent.

Ethan bared his teeth in a bloodthirsty amusement. "Haha! You fool!” He got on his tip toes and sprinted towards his opponent, closing the gap between them in a split second. He quickly slashed from the man's right shoulder to the left side of his waist with his right claws. The man let out a screaming, his blood splattering onto the floor. Before he could move back, Ethan grabbed hold of his neck in a tight grip.

Ethan leaned in close and said, "I hope this isn't too much for you.” He increased his grip and didn’t flinch as his opponent clawed at his hands. It didn’t take long for the man to pass out due to suffocation and the moment the man’s eyes rolled into the back of his head, Ethan let his opponent's unconscious body fall to the ground.

The crowd went wild, some happy whilst others angry. An excited man with blonde hair could be seen in the audience. The announcer awarded the victory to Silver Fang – who had reverted back to his human form – after a ten-second countdown. Ethan left the ring, heading towards his manager who clapped his back and gave him a bottle of water to drink. Alex told him to go catch some fresh air outside and Ethan nodded, picking up his bag from the duffle bag Alex had kept on the bench.

As he made his way out towards a door, he sighted the blond haired man walking down to meet him – trying to push their way through the crowd. The man called at Ethan, waving his hand and exclaiming, "I know you wouldn't let me down!"

Ethan had no zeal to deal with such a man and hastily made his way outside, the crowd preventing the man from getting to Ethan fast.

Ethan leaped into the air and landed on the roof. He walked over to a big structure and was perched atop it, staring blankly into the night sky. He let out a heavy sigh and breathed in the night's fresh air. He was still a little bit high on adrenaline from the fight, but the refreshing breeze helped calm him down. Later on, he heard his phone ping. He brought it up to his face and examined it closely and saw that it was a notification.

"$7,000... not bad…” He muttered under his breath with a charming smile. He heaved a sigh, dropping his phone on his thigh and he kept on staring at the night sky, the nigh breeze caressing him softly. Even while it wasn’t precisely what he need, it was something. He had to begin somewhere, right?

His phone started to ring whilst he was lost in his thought. He picked it up and stared at the screen When he recognized the caller, his eyes went wide and his heart began to beat quickly. His hands trembled violently and his sight blurred a little. He had to use all of his strength to keep from dropping the phone from such a height.

"I- it's him.” Ethan’s breath came out with panic puffs. He inhaled deeply, counting down from ten in order to prevent a panic attack from happening. Now was not the time.

With steeled resolve, he answered the phone.

"You took too long to respond." The voice on the other end of the queue said, sounding amused. "I was beginning to worry that you were no longer interested in preserving the life of your darling little sister."

"P- please! Give me a few more days, please! Look! I've already accumulated 7,000 dollars! If you would just give me more time, I- I could get more! I swear I won't disappoint you.” Ethan spoke hastily. In all honesty, he was battling the temptation to cry at that exact second, a suffocating pressure on his shoulders and wrapped around his throat like a rope.

"Hmm, seven thousand. That's not even close to the agreed upon amount. You appear to be a diligent young person, that I'll give you. You still have three days. You will have your sister back if you pay me before the deadline. You'll still get her back if you don't. A portion of her back, that is.” The man replied.

Ethan's heart sunk when he heard that threat. He swallowed. "I won't disappoint you. Just keep my sister in one piece like you promised.”

“Don’t keep me waiting, kid.” The man on the other end of the line abruptly ended the call without saying anything else, leaving Ethan's mind racing.

“f**k!” Ethan gripped his hair, his face twisted into that of distress. “I... I need to keep fighting tonight."

Without any further words, he free fall to the ground – landing on his hand and the balls of his feet. When he stood up, his face was now in a blank mask – his eyes as cold as the harshest of winters. One of Ethan’s ways of handling pressure was to detach himself from his emotions, leaving him an empty looking husk until he snapped back.

He had returned to the underground fighting area, exuding an aura that had people giving way for the teen. Even though fights were pre-scheduled, if one fighter wasn't in the right condition to compete, another may step in.

“Silver Fang, hey! What do you desire?!” A man screamed. Ethan just ignored him.

He met his manager and he and Alex had a heated whispered conversation. Once they were done, Alex nodded his head and went over to the office whilst Ethan waited on the bench watching the current match. Alex came back moments later, informing him that his request had been granted. After the current match was finished, he entered the ring next. People were confused at his appearance in the ring, knowing that he wasn’t supposed to be next.

The announcer cleared the air after getting word from the office. “From what I understand, the Bruiser isn't up to the challenge. He has consented to let someone else fight in his place. And look who decided to take it up ladies and gentlemen! It appears Silver Fang is ready to dominate this fight as well! This newbie is on fire!”

Ethan’s opponent came into the ring, grinning wildly at him. Ethan just cracked his neck and raised his fist up.