Ander - Part 5: Subchapter 23
23
A huge circle was drawn in the dirt, right in the village centre, easily two dozen strides from one end to the other. Wolves crowded around the line, and those that couldn't get close enough for a good view clambered up the watchtowers and lined the walkways like crows, their legs swinging off the sides with restless energy.
Hezzi didn't know whether it was courteous or cruel, but they had opened a special spot right up against the line for Renna and her mother, the latter of which looked as though she had swallowed an entire lemon whole. Apparently her daughter's little display of public affection did not sit well with her at all.
"Combatants, step forward!" Del shouted, a Wolf so old he made the mountains look young.
Hezzi and Dorin both approached the centre of the circle, their eyes locked together, neither of them showing any weakness.
"Dorin, first in command of the warriors, has challenged Hezzi, drisa of Kadai, for the title of Chieftain! If either of you want to back out, this is your last chance. Hezzi?"
"No."
"Dorin?"
"No."
"Very well then. I will now go over the rules. Listen carefully, because I will not repeat them." He cleared his throat and spat a yellow glob of phlegm to the ground. "First rule: no weapons save for what the Cora gave you. That means teeth, claws, fists, feet, pretty much anything goes. But not daggers, Dorin."
Dorin snorted in derision, unclipped his belt and threw his dagger to the crowd, scabbard and all.
"Second rule: this is a one-on-one fight. Any outside interference will be met with harsh punishment, so nobody cross the line! That goes for aaaaaall of you..." Del pointed a crooked, shaking finger at the crowd. "Third rule: this is not some petty sparring match, this is a fight for the chieftaincy. Simply knocking your opponent off his feet or pushing him out of the circle will not be enough. Try to keep yourselves contained, but if one of you does go outside the line, the crowd will be well within their rights to throw you back in, provided they don't cross the line. Bottom line is, stay inside the damn line!"
Del seemed to be enjoying himself, and so were the others. They jostled for prime viewing spots and whispered to each other in hushed tones. They were all so excited they didn't even seem to care one way or the other about the sudden change in who their Chieftain will be, as long as there's blood, and lots of it.
"Third rule: you give up, you lose. You get knocked unconscious, you lose. You die, you lose. Any questions?"
Hezzi and Dorin shook their heads.
"Then let the fight..." Del raised his hand in the air and brought it back down. "Begin!"
Hezzi jumped back and immediately went into a fighting crouch, his knees slightly bent, his arms up and ready to defend while the crowd cheered and stomped their feet, shouting Dorin's name. As for Dorin, he didn't so much as move a muscle. He simply regarded Hezzi with a small smile, his stance wide open and vulnerable.
He wants me to try and rush him, like I did with Garten, Hezzi thought. He thinks I'm still the same angry, confused, whiny little pup that almost got himself killed at his big brother's trial. It's just like Nilia said - he's going straight for one of my weaknesses. The thing is, he doesn't know I'm not that weak little pup anymore. That assumption is his weakness.
"Come on, Chieftain!" Dorin taunted. "What's the matter? Too afraid?"
Wolves chuckled all around him, their grinning faces forming the borders of a complete circle, but Hezzi barely noticed. The only faces he saw with any real clarity in that rippling sea of black and grey and brown belonged to Renna, standing just behind the line, nervously chewing on her fingers, and Nilia, still as a statue amidst the chaos. She saw him looking and mouthed two little words.
Show them.
Hezzi growled, then sprinted as fast as he could, his body bent forward and low to the ground, his feet kicking up a cloud of dust behind him, and he watched for the slightest movement.
Dorin's stance changed to the offensive and Hezzi planted his foot immediately, skidding to a stop just as Dorin swung his right hand, his claws passing right through the space his head would have occupied a scant split second later. Hezzi saw Dorin's eyes widen as his hand continued its arc, having hit nothing but empty air.
You will know when to strike. Once your eyes become used to it, any opening will practically scream for your fist.
Hezzi lunged forward just as Dorin finished his swing, lashing out with a strike of his own, his arm turning into a grey blur in the dust cloud.
One of the best times to strike is right after your opponent's strike. It is incredibly difficult to attack and defend at the same time, so even experienced Wolves will often switch back and forth between attacking and defending. It is in that moment, before the switch can be made, that your enemy will be vulnerable.
But only if you're fast enough to take advantage.
Hezzi jumped back, feeling both excited and terrified, his heart beating wildly, his breath rushing in and out of his lungs.
The dust cleared, revealing Dorin standing in the centre of the circle, his hand clapped over his mouth. He slowly took it away, his fingers shaking, and right there, across his bottom lip, was a short, shallow cut, slowly dripping beads of crimson to the ground. He stared at his bloody fingers in amazement, as if the very idea of getting wounded in this fight was something that never even occurred to him.
"First blood goes to Hezzi!" Del shouted, his enthusiasm not quite met by the other Wolves. Some clapped politely, but for the most part they just regarded each other with mild surprise, their eyes wide and their eyebrows cocked.
None of them were laughing, though.
None of them were laughing.
Hezzi looked down at his hands, almost unable to believe it himself, and sure enough, there was a dab of blood on his knuckles. Not much, but it was something.
He quickly went back into his fighting stance, his knees bent and his hands up, just like Nilia showed him. It was almost as if he could feel her at his back, correcting his posture, whispering her lessons in his ear, guiding him through everything.
"I see that name of yours isn't just for show," Dorin said, suddenly back to his old self, full of bravado. "And it looks like Nilia taught you a trick or two. But tell me, Hezzi, is it really all right for you to run around like that with such a wound in your belly, hmm?"
"I dunno, is it okay for you to fight with such a lopsided ear?"
Dorin's face fell and his lips peeled back into a snarl. His ear has been all floppy ever since Ander got a hold of it, and he's been surprisingly self-conscious about it. "This isn't some play fight, pup. You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into."
"You're wrong, I know exactly what it is I'm fighting for," Hezzi said, sparing a quick glance Renna's way. She was holding onto the necklace in a death grip and biting down on her bottom lip. She looked so worried, with her ears pulled back and her tail curled around her legs, and _that's_what he was fighting for. If he couldn't take her to a place where she'd never have to worry again, a place where she'd never have to show a face like that, then he'd simply have to remake this one.
Hezzi only looked away for a fraction of a second, but Dorin wasn't the kind of Wolf to let even the slightest lapse in concentration go unpunished. He dove in low, going straight for Hezzi's legs, his arms outstretched and his mouth wide open, ready to bite and tear.
Hezzi leapt out of the way, hoping to get on top of him as he crashed to the ground, but Dorin was a rather agile Wolf himself and simply rolled through his reckless-looking dive and was back on his feet in an instant.
"Fighting for a piece of tail is nothing new, pup!" he said as they slowly circled each other, looking for openings. "You should keep your eyes on me instead of that skinny little piece of flatbark!"
"I guess that's something we have in common, Dorin. You have absolutely no idea what I'm really fighting for, and I have absolutely no idea what you're really fighting for."
"Me?" Dorin stopped and cocked his head. "Don't be stupid. I'm fighting for the title of Chieftain, same as you."
"No, I couldn't care less about the title. What I'm really fighting for is a better life for me and my friends, just like my brother. But it doesn't end there. I want to make this village a better place for everyone, even those that don't deserve it. But what about you? You're fighting for Wardo. Even the dimmest Wolf here knows that. But if you win, what happens then? Do you intend to let Wardo take command through you? Do you let him give the orders while you just bark them out for everyone to hear? That's not what makes a Chieftain, and that's not what makes a warrior, either. If you go through with this, you'll just end up a lowly messenger boy with an ugly necklace."
Dorin made a mad swipe at Hezzi's face, but he was able to pull back with plenty of time to spare. "I'm not like Garten, Hezzi!" he shouted. "I won't get mad no matter how many insults you throw at me, so come on! I dare you to try that cute little move on me again! I'm standing right here!"
"Why do you work for that fiend!?" Hezzi yelled back. He knew he shouldn't get worked up, but it was proving difficult. "Don't you see what he's doing to this tribe!?"
"I don't know what you're on about. If I see half an opportunity before me, I'll grab it with both hands. That's all this is. And if you want to get out of this with your head still attached to your body, you'd better give up right now."
"If you care about this tribe, Dorin, even just a little bit, you'll be the one to give up. I can make this place work again, I know it."
"Work? _Work!?_It's working fine the way it is! You know, you're starting to sound an awful lot like that dead brother of yours, Hezzi, always going on about how things should be done differently."
"Well maybe he was right! Did you ever consider that?"
"No, but here's something you should consider. Do you honestly think you've ever been in any real fights, hmm? And when I say real, I mean real."
Dorin was starting to get a bit too close for comfort, so Hezzi backed up, moving in a curve to keep from running out of room.
It's just like Nilia said. All fights, down to the core, are about pitting your own strengths and weaknesses against the strengths and weaknesses of your opponent, and right now Dorin is going after another of mine.
"I've seen you spar with the other young ones every now and again, and I've seen you walk away with a smile every time, thinking you did well, thinking that someday you'd be on the same level as Banno. Ha!" Dorin laughed. "Do you honestly think anyone would ever go all out against the Chieftain's runt of a drisa? No, even those that bested you were going easy on you, getting wins by knocking you down or pushing you out of the circle. Didn't you ever think it was weird that the first real injury you ever got was when Garten nearly gutted you in front of the entire tribe? That was your first real fight, and you failed spectacularly."
"Don't listen to him, Hezzi!" Renna shouted. "He just wants to get in your head! He - Ow!"
Hezzi couldn't afford to let his eyes wander, but the sound of that slap almost wrenched them away by force. Still, he didn't need to actually see it to know what had happened. He could imagine it so clearly; the way Renna's mother just clouted the back of her head to keep her quiet.
When I become Chieftain, he thought, I'll make sure that never happens again...
Dorin lunged, going straight for Hezzi's legs yet again. He sidestepped just in time and Dorin went sprawling, leaving a long line behind him like a giant snake's trail in the dirt. Hezzi raised his leg and brought it down as hard as he could, aiming for the puppet's back.
Dorin flipped over and caught Hezzi's kick, his movements just as quick and unexpected as any real snake's. Hezzi was able to keep a himself upright for a few seconds, hopping on one free foot, pinwheeling his arms for balance, but all it took was one hard jerk and he fell flat on his back, his foot caught firmly in Dorin's grasp.
"Hezzi!"
Hezzi raised his head and saw Dorin pulling on his foot, bringing it up to his open mouth, ropes of slobber hanging from his jagged teeth.
A smart opponent will go for your legs. Don't let that happen.
He wants to take my speed... Hezzi thought feverishly, knowing that if he was unable to run, this fight was as good as over. He bent his free leg and lashed out as hard as he could, kicking Dorin right in the ribs. He winced, but his grip did not loosen. Hezzi pulled back, pushing against the dirt with his arms, scooting back on his butt and kicking out with his free leg all at the same time, aiming to hit the same spot in Dorin's side again and again.
Dorin yelped in pain and rolled away, but not before raking his claws across Hezzi's calf muscle. The pain didn't even register until they were both back on their feet, staring each other down, their breath pluming in front of their faces in clouds of white mist.
And then the burning began. Hezzi didn't dare look down, but he could feel them in his leg: four long gashes, burning in the cold, pouring blood down his calf in hot streams. He could feel it pool beneath his heel, making the dust all squishy, like mud.
The crowd erupted in joyous cheers. The ones up in the watchtowers and along the walkways on the walls stomped their feet, making the old planks beat out a frenzied rhythm like giant drums.
"That's for my jaw, you bloody whelp," Dorin wheezed, clutching his ribs.
"What? This little scratch on my leg? Did you do that? I barely noticed. I thought it might have been a sharp pebble on the ground."
"Heh, that's good. I'm glad this fight is turning out to be a bit more exciting than I anticipated. That's what makes the difference between a bothersome chore and something worthwhile. Wouldn't you agree?"
"I don't think any kind of fighting is 'worthwhile'. Not after what you tried to do to my brother."
"You mean what we succeeded in doing."
"No, Ander is still al-"
"Oh will you shut up with that nonsense already!?" Dorin shouted. "Your precious brother is dead! Stone cold dead! He might have been able to drag his carcass out the gates, but with a hole in his chest and two broken arms it was just the last gasp of a desperate Wolf trying to crawl away from his betters with his head down low and his tail between his legs. You mark my words, his body is out there in the woods somewhere, rotting away as we speak! It's just a matter of time before some hunter ends up pissing on his bones, and when that happens I'll make sure you get -"
Hezzi dashed forward, not caring about the sting in his calf. Dorin's face went from cocky smugness to outright surprise in one second flat, and that was when Hezzi bowled right into him, head on, pushing into his gut with his shoulder, knocking all the wind out of him with a gasp. It was exactly the opposite of everything Nilia had taught him, but in his rage he simply couldn't hear her voice anymore. That soft whisper telling him what to do, how to move, how to attack and defend, it was just gone.
They both crashed down to the ground amidst thunderous jeers, Hezzi on top, and he just let go of all restraint and rained down punches as fast as he could while he still had the upper hand, his arms pumping forward and back at a blistering speed.
"Ander is still alive you piece of pus!!" he shouted, caught in something akin to a frenzy, punching blindly at every bit of exposed flesh he could find.
Dorin was doing a good job shielding his face with his forearms, but Hezzi was moving far too quickly. His strikes connected with the side of his face, his ears, the top of his head, his chest, his shoulders, everything all at once, as if he were trying to beat the truth into this Wolf with sheer force.
"Ander is alive!" Hezzi shouted again, blood flying from his knuckles. "I know he is! He's on the other side of the Cora somewhere because of Wolves like you! That's just one more reason I have to become Chieftain! So I can make this place safe again! He'll be able to come and go as he wishes, and I won't have to sit here and rot, wondering if he's okay! And -"
Dorin flung a handful of sand right in Hezzi's face. The coarse grains went into his eyes and up his nose, making him hack and cough. He blinked and rubbed at his eyes, trying desperately to clear his vision. Everything was a wash of colours; browns and whites, all blurred together like melted tallow, with faces swimming in from all around, angry and cheerful, cursing and laughing.
Something hit him on the side of his face and he fell back, staring straight up at the sky, his jaw throbbing. He didn't know if there were really little white dots dancing around up there among the clouds or if he had been knocked silly, but they seemed to be getting closer the longer he looked...
"You little bastard!" Dorin said. Hezzi couldn't see him, but he could hear him shift and move, could feel his claws grabbing at his pants, pulling himself along, dragging his weight up to -
Hezzi instinctively covered his neck with his arms just as Dorin lunged forward. Pain exploded in Hezzi's right forearm as Dorin bit down, his teeth sinking deep into his flesh, his hot breath blasting Hezzi in the face, blowing his hair back in quick bursts that smelled of blood.
Your speed is useless on the ground, so never let a fight deteriorate into a wrestling match. If an enemy drags you down, you have to fight with everything you have. Punch, kick, claw, bite, do whatever it takes to get back on your feet, otherwise you might never get up again.
Hezzi blinked his burning eyes, trying to get the damn mess of colours to make sense again. It finally solidified into Dorin's snarling face, wild and crazy, mere inches from his own. Hezzi screamed (more out of anger than anything else), raised his free hand up high and brought it down like a hammer right between Dorin's eyes.
The cur yelped, but the grip of his jaws did not weaken. He returned Hezzi's blow with even more force, punching at his face even as he bit down harder on his arm.
Hezzi could feel his own blood patter onto his neck and chest like rain, and still the white dots up above were coming closer and closer, drifting with the wind.
He saw the next punch coming and caught it with his teeth, biting down on Dorin's wrist as hard as he could. Blood suddenly flowed into his mouth like a bitter river.
But unlike Ander, Hezzi had absolutely no problems with the taste of blood.
Dorin's scream was muffled because he refused to let go of his own bite, but Hezzi heard it just the same, rushing out against his forearm in a warm burst of air.
Hezzi bit down harder on the wriggling piece of meat between his jaws, pushing his teeth deeper and deeper until they stopped against something hard, something that could only be bone.
Any likeness this fight once had to a civilized contest deteriorated into a snarling, screaming mess of blood, claws, teeth, and fur, rolling around on the ground as a thousand Wolves cheered for more.
If you enjoy my story, please help keep my face un-mauled by irritable ostriches by dropping me a donation.
Thank you! ^_^
Paypal:[email protected]
Donation Progress $100 / $300 (Unlock Sunday update)
How and Why: The Story behind "Ander" (Journal): https://www.sofurry.com/view/517234
Special thanks go out to the following furs for helping me keep this project afloat with their generous donations. I couldn't do it without your support.
- Mystery fur
- PyrePup
- KmlRock
- Faan
- Sunny-Fox
- Mystery fur #2
- Sky Star
- Claybrook
Thank you! You guys are the best! ^_^