Deep within the Lupus Forest, birds, pests, critters, and every other creature of nature were sent into a frenzy. They fled as fast and as desperately as they could, driven by a single instinct—escaping the carnage caused by two clashing mages.
On the ground, several silver-furred wolves barked as they weaved through the forest with practiced ease, their glowing eyes fixed on two figures fighting high among the trees.
With a grunt, Dom drove his fist into a tree, snapping the trunk clean in half. Then, midair, he gripped the severed log and hurled it at the alpha behind him.
With a deep growl, she slashed through it like a hot knife through butter, the severed ends crashing to the ground as she leapt in his direction.
Dom clicked his tongue, landing briefly on a branch before leaping again just in time to evade her next strike. This time, her claws tore through the entire length of the tree, splitting it apart until it finally collapsed.
So much for the plan. He thought as he bounced erratically through the canopy, but she kept pace with ease, her rampage shredding everything unfortunate enough to fall within her reach.
"You… humans! Go! Die!" She growled, the forest answering her rage with crashing trunks and panicked cries from crushed creatures below.
Dom grunted as a claw grazed his cheek while he narrowly blocked another strike.
"You're a human too, you know!" Dom shouted, shoving her away.
The words triggered something. Her eyes flared brighter as if she'd been insulted.
With devastating speed and weight, she kicked off a tree, obliterating it with the sheer force as she rocketed toward Dom midair.
Dom instinctively drew back his arm, fist tightened and aimed at her exposed chest while she swung her claw…
Then her humanity crossed his mind, freezing his movements for a second. A hesitation that cost him.
With a savage growl, the alpha slashed across his chest, ripping through his jacket and once impervious skin with ease.
As Dom groaned in pain, she grabbed one of his arms and drove a brutal kick into his side.
Dom's body became a projectile, tearing through trees and branches like a bullet until he exploded from the leaves, his body now hovering briefly above a familiar stream.
As he began to fall towards the rushing water, he gritted his teeth and landed feet-first with a heavy thud.
He groaned as he stumbled into the shallow water, his hand pressed against his chest, which bled into the water below him. His mind and senses trembled as an intense pain radiated through his body.
The alpha landed on the riverbank with a heavy thud, her wolves arriving at her side a second later.
As she saw Dom's crouched frame and the now unstable mana shroud covering his body, something resembling a smile crossed her long maw. With a sharp bark, the two largest wolves stepped forward.
With a deep growl, they charged, their paws padding audibly on the floor before they leapt at him.
Just then, the alpha froze, and a chill instantly ran up her spine once Dom's blue aura suddenly surged outward.
In one swift motion, his foot snapped upward, slamming into the first wolf's gut. Bone shattered with a sickening crack as the creature was launched into the air, blood spraying from its mouth as it covered several feet in seconds.
The second wolf bit down on Dom's exposed shoulder, but he suddenly seized it by the neck and ripped it free, tearing his jacket and most of his shirt off. Then with cold, glowing eyes, he smashed it into the stream, the impact blasting water away and exposing wet bedrock beneath its crushed skull.
The tremor from the force staggered the alpha and her pack, shaking the nearby trees with terrifying intensity. As water rushed back into place, covering its mangled head, Dom slowly pulled his blood-streaked hand from the stream.
At that same moment, a heavy thud drew the alpha's attention to the side--where the mangled corpse of the first wolf now rested.
Some wolves gathered around it, whimpering as they sniffed and licked the pooling blood of their fallen brethren.
Meanwhile, she turned back to Dom, her entire body trembling with fury. "You… humans. All…" She spoke, her primitive words raw with emotion. "Come… kill…"
"I'm not here to kill…" Dom said, running a hand through his wet hair as he looked up. Then, his gaze zeroed in on the corpse. His eyes widened once he realized what he had done. "Wait. No. I didn't… I just acted out of self-def—"
"Kill… Protect… Pack. Protect…" She growled, dropping to all fours as veins bulged beneath her fur, her limbs seconds from springing into action.
Dom instinctively took a stance, his fists raised defensively, then the image hit him again.
That same girl in this very stream, splashing water and laughing with that wolf cub. It was innocent. Joyful. Like a child at play with her siblings.
The other wolves began to advance, eager to avenge their fallen family, but a sharp bark stopped them. They backed away, whining submissively while she slowly approached Dom, eyes glowing brightly.
She's protecting them. He thought, watching the wolves obediently standing behind her. Then, his mind drifted back to the village--to the villagers' hateful glares, to that child's desperate outburst, and to the Chief's bowed head.
They're both just trying to protect their homes.
The more Dom saw the resemblance, the less his fighting spirit became. Sensing this, the alpha dashed forward, her thunderous steps causing the earth to tremble beneath.
But Dom didn't react. He slowly lowered his fists and looked up, watching silently as her large frame leapt towards him.
If I attack… doesn't that make me the bad guy?
His eyes softened as her claws rapidly closed in on him, his body and mind completely unmotivated to even defend himself.
In that split second, a bolt of purple lightning slammed into the alpha's side, followed by the frightening roar of thunder.
She howled as the light quickly dispersed, revealing Dae, feet planted deep into her torso, before his momentum promptly flung her across the river and slammed her into the trees beyond.
Dom barely reacted as Dae landed behind him, residual electricity crackling around his body. "When you weren't answering your comms, I knew something was wrong." He said, cautiously eyeing the growling wolves in the background.
"Thanks," Dom muttered weakly.
Dae nodded, then turned to the sound of trees cracking. His purple glowing gaze narrowed on a certain figure emerging from the broken trees, a low growl escaping her large jaws.
"So that's the alpha," Dae muttered, calmly reaching back for his swords.
"Yeah," Dom said, turning towards her with a hand on his side, which still ached from her kick. "She's strong."
"She?" Dae asked, glancing curiously at Dom just as she let out another deafening howl. She then crouched, her claws digging through the dirt as she fixed her glare on Dae.
Once he noticed the torn fabric clinging to her fur, Dae frowned in recognition. "So that's what this is." He muttered, drawing his blades out of their sheaths, the stark contrast between the colors of the steel and their sheaths emphasizing their unique design.
"So the alpha's not a magic beast." He said, taking a defensive stance with his black katana in his right hand and a white in the other. "That's a beast mage's Primal form."
With an explosive burst of speed and weight, she pounced with a rapid swing of her claw. Water and stone scattered under her attack while the two mages landed on the dirt beyond the river at a safe distance.
Dae retook his stance, a calm shroud of purple mana surrounding his body before turning as Dom stumbled to a knee some feet away from him, gripping his bruised side while gritting his teeth in pain.
The alpha saw this and charged in his direction, eager to finish him off, but Dae intercepted her path with sound-breaking speed. She growled and struck, her claws clashing audibly with his blades.
With a grunt, Dae's aura flared, quickly converting into electricity that traveled through his weapons and tore into her wet body. She howled in pain, her body trembling from the surging current, then retaliated with a slash that forced Dae to retreat.
As she dropped to a knee, steam rising from her fur, Dae slid to a stop in front of Dom, his blades raised in defense. "Is there a reason you're not fighting seriously?" He asked, raising a brow at Dom's defeated expression. "I could barely sense your mana on my way here."
Dom's fingers dug into the ground, his eyes darkening. "She's not the bad guy…" He said, his voice now hesitant. "…She's just trying to protect her people."
Dae glanced at a wolf that seemed eager to attack them, but the alpha shot it a glare, causing it to back away. "A natural-born leader," Dae muttered, understanding Dom's point.
They leapt apart as the alpha's next strike shattered the ground they were just standing on.
"Regardless," Dae said, skidding to a stop, his feet planted as he took a more aggressive stance. "…it's still our job to capture her."
With a thunderclap, he dashed towards her with his electrically-charged blades raised. She reacted instantly, easily meeting each of his rapid strikes with terrifying accuracy; the clash of claws and steel echoed around them, sending sparks scattering in every direction.
Dae deflected the next slash, then thrust his black blade towards her torso--just as she suddenly pulled her attacking arm back, her claws slashing across his shoulder along its path.
Dae gritted his teeth and countered with a sudden twist of his grip, the black blade rapidly changed course and slashed across that same arm.
As blood stained her fur, she cried out--her voice now more human than beast. The sound finally stimulated Dom, his body instinctively reaching out, not to fight her as a monster--but to save the girl he saw.
But he stopped once Dae shot him a glare. "Make up your damn mind!" He snarled as he narrowly blocked a slash, his feet sliding against the dirt as she pushed. "I can't fight her alone."
His word barely slipped out before she broke through his guard with a swipe, then shoved her padded foot into his gut. The explosive kick sent Dae rocketing into a tree.
Blood spilled from his opened mouth before closing as Dae gritted his teeth and dashed at her again. "Are we doing this or not?!" He shouted before colliding his blade with her claw again.
As the clashes raged on with the wolves growling in the background, as if cheering for their leader to win, time slowed down for Dom, who now stood trapped between his duty and morality.
With every clash of steel and claws, he contemplated what the right choice was--until a sword was knocked into the air while his partner simultaneously took a crushing blow.
That sight was enough for Dom to finally make a decision. With a grunt, he dashed forward, his once hesitant eyes now focused on completing his objective.
Some time later…
A sense of dread washed over the Lupus Village. In a settlement this small, word traveled fast.
Within the small streets, a familiar boy ran, worry etched across his face as he found the crowd of villagers gathered around the recently built military outpost on the village's outskirts.
Pushing his way through, he reached the front—and froze. His eyes widened as he looked past the two Royal soldiers stationed there, their gaze calm and vigilant, while watching the three approaching figures.
Dae walked slowly, a hand pressed to his bandaged shoulder, while a similarly injured Dom grunted under the weight of a shackled monster on his back.
"No," A woman murmured, tears welling in her eyes as she recognized the beast's frame.
That same boy next to her glared at them, then disappeared quickly back into the crowd.
Moments later, Dom laid the barely conscious beast into the large cage erected some distance from the outpost.
One of the soldiers moved forward, placing a thick, black metallic cuff around one of the alpha's hands. The device instantly suppressed her mana, forcing her to revert to her human form.
The villagers watching gasped, stunned by the sudden revelation of their protector's true identity-- the young, innocent-looking girl, a sharp contrast to the powerful monster they once revered.
The soldier secured the alpha's other hand and attached it to the cage using heavy chains. As he later began to lock the cage itself, the second soldier turned to the two injured mages.
"Didn't think you guys would actually pull it off. Nice job." He said, patting Dom on the shoulder, which elicited a pained wince. "My bad." He muttered apologetically. "I'll get you patched up."
Dom didn't answer. His eyes stayed fixed on the now helpless captive inside the cold cage. As he noticed the bruises on her skin, the guilt of his actions weighed on him like a stone.
"We appreciate it," Dae interjected, noticing Dom's expression. He shook the soldier's arm in thanks, giving Dom a judging look—but Dom didn't even notice.
With their objective complete, the soldiers led them back to the outpost for proper treatment.
But on the way there, an audible wet smack drew their attention to Dom. His widened eyes blinked in confusion as the smashed tomato slowly slid down his face before hitting the ground.
"Give her back!"
Dom turned toward the crowd, his body stiffening once he saw that same boy from earlier glaring at him. "I hate you! You should have just left her alone!" He shouted, flinging the second tomato in his grip, splattering it across Dom's now exposed chest.
"Give her back!" He shouted again, just as his mother pushed through the crowd to stop him. But just as she grabbed his wrist, a man's voice rang out of the crowd.
"He's right! She saved us when we had nothing to offer her!"
A young woman stepped forward, her gaze just as furious. "Release her!" She shouted.
"She's our guardian!" An old man shouted, his loud voice a stark contrast to his feeble body. "She did nothing wrong!"
"Let her go! Let her go! Let her go!"
The villagers' chants filled the air, mounting tension that pressed in from all sides.
The soldiers, however, remained unmoved by their cheers.
Meanwhile, Dae frowned, concern flickering across his face when he saw the hurt expression etched on Dom's features as he watched the crowd.
The rage, the hatred, the distrust—it was suffocating him to the point that Dom found it harder to breathe.
Then his gaze locked with the Village Chief's, somewhere in the middle of the rioting crowd.
The old man's face held none of that anger or hatred. Only disappointment, sorrow, and regret.
With one sad look, he silently turned and walked away, leaving Dom's heart sinking even further into the abyss.
"Come on," Dae said, tapping Dom on the shoulder.
Mindlessly, Dom followed, the villagers' chants echoing behind them for the captured hero who had saved them in their greatest time of need.