Joshua's boots thundered across the floor as he charged Werewolf 2, his sword a blur of silver in his hands. He swung wildly, full of fury and instinct, forcing the werewolf to leap back. Lancelot's limp body fell to the ground like a discarded toy, his blood still dripping from the sword embedded in him.
Joshua's strike missed.
His grip slipped.
The sword flew from his hands, clanging as it struck the floor and stuck upright, quivering in place.
But none of that mattered.
Joshua caught Lancelot before his body hit the ground.
Without hesitation, he turned and sprinted toward the girls. He gently laid Lancelot down in front of Merlin and Blanchette, placing him on his side, blood staining the floor beneath him.
"Merlin, heal him. He still has a pulse," Joshua commanded, his voice sharp and focused.
Merlin nodded and knelt beside Lancelot, hands trembling as she summoned a dim purple light from her palms. It glowed faintly over the gruesome wound.
"Blanchette, pull the sword out slowly while I heal him," Merlin instructed.
Blanchette hesitated only for a second before hurrying to Lancelot's side. She wrapped her hands around the blood-soaked hilt, her expression tight with fear and resolve. Slowly, inch by inch, she pulled the sword from his body. The light around Merlin's hands grew brighter and brighter as sweat began to run down her face. Finally, with a gasp of breath, the blade slid free.
Merlin exhaled, exhausted. "He's stable now… but unconscious." Her hands fell to her lap, shaking. "I'm just… I'm happy he's still alive."
She slumped against the wall, placing Lancelot's head gently on her lap.
Across the room, the werewolves staggered back, their eyes wide with sudden understanding.
"He's a noble werewolf…" one of them muttered.
"Doesn't matter," scoffed Werewolf 1, trying to rally the others. "He hasn't awakened. Probably never will. Remember what Beta Jack said."
Joshua's eyes narrowed.
Beta Jack... I know that nickname.
Memories surged back, memories from a forgotten, bloodier childhood.
He saw himself, a small boy sitting alone at a dusty playground, his face bruised and swollen, holding broken toys in trembling hands.
A voice, youthful, bold.
"Joshua, I beat up those damn low-class werewolves who jumped you!"
A lanky boy with sharp red eyes and a wide grin stood above him, his fists bruised.
"Why you so weak, Joshua?" he said, standing with his hands on his hips. "You're an Alpha, but I gotta protect you? I'm a Beta, remember? And I'm the one fighting your battles."
Betas, less pure nobles of the Xeno bloodline. No ears, no tails. Weaker than full nobles, but still far above the low-class werewolves. Red eyes. Claws. Sharp teeth. Still deadly.
"I tried… I tried to be strong…" Joshua whimpered, mucus running down his nose. "But I'm scared…"
The boy puffed up his chest.
"It's okay, Joshua. Me, Beta Jack, I'll always protect you, baby Alpha. That's what best friends do."
Joshua sniffled, wiping his face.
"One day… I'll be your hero instead."
Jack grinned. "I'd be happy to see that day."
But that day had long passed.
Back in the present, Werewolf 1 lunged forward. Joshua dropped into a peekaboo boxing stance, raising his steel gauntlets like gloves.
The werewolf swung with a clawed right hand. Joshua weaved under it and hooked him hard in the liver. The beast gasped, coughing blood.
Another strike, this time the left. Joshua ducked again, then exploded upward with a brutal uppercut. The werewolf's eyes rolled back as he collapsed.
Silence.
Even the other werewolves froze, stunned.
"He's… strong!" Werewolf 3 gasped.
"But… he hasn't awakened. How can he be this strong?" said Werewolf 6, backing away.
Joshua stayed in his stance, hopping lightly on his feet, his blood boiling, his focus razor-sharp.
"Who's next?" he asked, calm and cold.
Werewolves 5 and 6 rushed him at once, claws slashing wildly in different directions. Joshua bobbed and weaved between them like water slipping through cracks. Their attacks grew frantic, desperate.
Then they slowed.
Breathing heavy. Dripping sweat.
"I can't land a hit…" said Werewolf 5, gasping.
"I'm too tired… I can't even lift my arms…" said 6, swaying.
Joshua surged forward.
A sharp hook to Werewolf 6's jaw knocked him cold.
Then he closed in on 5.
The werewolf raised his arms awkwardly to shield his face. Joshua jabbed through the sloppy guard, smashing his nose. Blood burst forward.
Then Joshua twisted low, nearly touching the floor, coiled like a spring and snapped up with a full-body hook across the temple.
The werewolf's neck snapped.
He hit the ground with a dead thud.
Joshua straightened, bouncing in place. "Who's next?"
Across the room, Merlin and Blanchette could only stare in stunned silence.
But then the air shifted again.
A figure stepped into the room. Tall. Broad. Brown hair. Red eyes glowing.
"Still using that style I taught you," the man said. "Humans use weapons 'cause they're weak. But us? Noble werewolves? We use martial arts. We don't need weapons."
"Beta Jack…" muttered Werewolf 3, awe and fear in his voice. "It's the squad leader."
Lancelot stirred, his eyes fluttering open. He felt Merlin's lap beneath his head. Then he looked up and saw Joshua standing face to face with the man from his past.
Joshua stared. "Jack… why are you doing this? I thought we were best friends."
Jack's smile disappeared.
"DON'T GIVE ME THAT SHIT!" he roared. "Where were you when your uncle murdered my parents? When he raped my sister and forced her to marry him?! When he made me his soldier, threatening to kill her if I didn't obey?!"
Everyone froze.
Merlin gasped. Blanchette covered her mouth. Even Lancelot's breath caught in his throat.
Joshua's face dropped. "I didn't know… I was banished from the kingdom…"
"SHUT UP!" Jack snarled, his eyes burning with fury. "You could've stayed! You could've fought! But you ran away like a coward! You lived… and I lost everything."
He stepped forward, raising his fists.
"I'm going to take everything from you, Joshua."
Joshua didn't flinch.
He raised his fists, taking his stance once more.
"I'm not running anymore."
Two best friends. Two warriors. No weapons. Just fists.
The room held its breath as they faced each other...
The Alpha and the Beta.
The baby Alpha had grown up.
And now…
It was time to fight.