Chapter 46. Round three fight.
"Let us go, before you get hurt." Erza warned them quietly. She saw the look on Gavin's face. The anger and barely controlled rage stilled her beating heart and sent a shiver down her spine. This wasn't her controlled mate. This was the feral warrior that went through hell against two Valkyries.
Erza's eyes glowed a deep amber as he mana flared out around her in warning. Dark brown hues filled the hallway as the bronze eye statues flickered open. "Aggressive mana has been detected. Disperse before a proctor arrives."
Other students in the hallway cried out from the conflict and scattered to clear the area as Gavin glared at the bullies.
Bradley was on edge. He had to put this mongrel in his place before the kid got too big a head on his shoulders. He didn't understand why but just being near him set off his animal instincts. He was afraid and angry at the same time. The kid just smelled wrong, and it did not make sense. "There's something not right about you kid. Something wrong, dangerous."
It was a primal, animal-like desire to either fight the kid or run away, and Bradley would never run from a challenge. "No one is going to interrupt us this time. It's time you learned your place." His arms ignited with fire magic.
Gavin's eyes narrowed as he realized who had attacked him. This makes the third time this fool has danced with death. Don't come knocking at the devils door and expect him not to answer. Gavin took a deep breath and locked his eyes on Erza. She wasn't panicking or reacting violently yet to the hold on her arms. In fact, she barely registered the man's grip around her. Her gaze locked with his.
"Let them go Bradley, and we won't have to fight," Gavin called out, still holding out hope this wouldn't turn into a brawl in the dormitory building. "There are too many students nearby," Gavin said as he attempted to solve this peacefully. He wanted to beat the snot out of Bradley, but he wasn't willing to risk his admittance to the academy to do so right now.
Bradley shook his head as he took another step forward. "Like I care about that. There is something wrong with you. You are hiding something, and I will find out what it is," Bradley said as he held up one of his arms and pointed at Gavin. A stream of fire magic came flying towards Gavin.
"Damn it man." Gavin knew behind him there were a bunch of students down the hall, so dodging it was out of the question if he wanted to make sure no one got hurt. Gavin gritted his teeth as he summoned a wall of water magic to appear in front of him. He felt the drain on his mana as he did so. But he had to make sure innocent people did not get hurt due to this idiot's attacks.
Screams filled the hallway as other students realized what was going on and scattered out of the way. No one wanted to be caught in the middle of a grudge fight in a narrow, confined space. That was a recipe for disaster. The stream of fire hit Gavin's wall of water, and the heat combined with the water created a blanket of steam to fill the space between them. The sound of the steam explosion was loud in the cramped space and hurt his sensitive hearing.
"You really shouldn't use powerful spells inside a narrow space dude," Gavin shouted out in frustration. Damn it. Do I just shift and end this idiot, or what is the best move here?
Bradley growled softly in surprise as a wall of water filled the space between them, blocking his fire. The heat was intense as the steam blasted around them, seeking escape from the narrow hallway. Nothing could be seen from the wall of steam. Even his sense of smell was almost useless in this situation. He could only focus on his hearing as he stood back away from the black-haired boy.
Jackson called out, "Gavin!" in fear as the steam blocked his friend and roommate from view. He struggled to break free from the brute of a man holding him tight but was unable to do so. The grip around his neck from the man's arms was almost crushing in force as he struggled against it. He pushed and tried to worm himself free, but to no avail, as the man tightened his arms around Jackson's neck. He was not letting the blonde-haired kid go free to intervene. Bradley would be severely angry if they neglected their job to keep people out of this fight. Jackson cried out as the arms tightened and caused him pain.
Erza cried out in pain suddenly as her arm was jerked and twisted behind her back by the man holding her. The sound went through Gavin like a lightning bolt. "Shit." Erza muttered while she tried to struggle against the idiot holding her.
An explosion of crimson mana filled the hallway. A low, deep growl echoed through the dormitory. The sound was deep, reverberating through their bones. Something about it set all the hair on their bodies on edge as they listened.
"Gavin calm down. I'm alright!" Erza shouted back as she felt the rage rolling off her mate. These damn idiots are gonna get hurt! She struggled against the hold thrashing about in his arms. Should I use magic to break free? No, it could cause more problems with the teachers when they arrive.But I have to calm him down.
The steam was still thick and obscured the hallway from view as the low growl rumbled. "I will not tell you again. Release my mate, and you can still walk away." the voice called out from the other side of the blanket of steam.
Bradley turned his head around and focused down the hallway where the voice and growl originated. His canine was screaming at him to run now. A musky, familiar, yet unknown scent filled Bradley's nose as the growl began. Wait… His mate? Bradley looked at the red-haired woman behind him and he paled. Oh no.
Bradley gritted his teeth as he fully shifted into his own were-dog form. Beautiful golden fur manifested itself over his skin as his teeth elongated, and his ears grew to the size of a golden retriever. He would not run away this time, nor would he allow anyone to intervene. This time he would put the punk in his place. "Come and make me boy," Bradley called out.
Gavin gritted his teeth in agitation. He did not want to fight. His stomach rumbled and reminded him of his hunger and desire for food before this whole thing began. But by now, he was tired of playing this game with Bradley. If he wanted to dance, Gavin would be his partner for the final time. He would do so without shifting though. He wanted to keep that nugget hidden until it was necessary.
Gavin ran forward through the wall of steam and fog and quickly encountered the were-dog form of Bradley that he had seen earlier that afternoon. He lunged for him, tackling him to the ground as Bradley growled and struggled against Gavin. Both teens were throwing punches at the other while they struggled to maintain control and gain the edge over the other.
Bradley knocked Gavin back off him and rose to his feet. He had a trickle of blood running down from the corner of his mouth. He wiped the blood away and spat a glob of blood from his mouth onto the ground at their feet.
"For a freshman, you can throw a halfway decent punch," Bradley said begrudgingly as he tested his jaw, relieved to find it wasn't broken. The bastard has a mean right hook.
Gavin grinned as he looked back at the golden fur-covered human. "You're not so bad yourself, man. Now why the hell are we even fighting?" Gavin asked, still hoping for a peaceful way to end this. Bradley glared at him. The kid was a decent scrapper, but something about him still set his animal instincts on fire.
Demanded he act in response. "Because you aren't right. There is something dangerous about you, and I intend to find out what it is," Bradley said as fire ignited over his arms again. "Maybe I need to go over to that sweet red piece of meat you had on your arm and ask her..." Bradley meant this to antagonize him into making a mistake. However, it had the opposite effect.
Suddenly, a fierce primal surge of power filled the hallway as Gavin's mana flow was chaotic in its release. The swirling force of energy covered Gavin from view as he struggled to contain his rage. The red swirls of mana lashed out around the hallway, causing deep slashes into the walls as it connected.
"Alert. Magical fighting has been detected. Proctors have been notified and are on their way. Students are to stand down and await investigation. Further conflict will result in harsher disciplinary actions." The Bronze eye shouted out another warning as it recorded the situation.
Gavin shook all over. This idiot threatened my mate? Gavin's rage was blinding. His wolf was all consuming as Gavin's wolf surged to the surface. His body instantly shifted in response to his rage and anger. Midnight black fur manifested over Gavin's body as his body grew in height and muscle mass because of his shift. Crimson blood red eyes glowed brightly in the hallway. The overhead lights in the hallway burst from the ferocity of the mana flowing out of control.
Gavin's eyes were the only source of light in the otherwise dimmed hallway.
"Holy gods," Jackson muttered as he witnessed the shift and change in his friend. Gavin threw his head back and let loose a fearsome howl that froze the hearts of everyone nearby. It felt like an oppressive energy gripped him by the throat as Gavin's mana raged out of control. Jackson could feel his rage, hatred and anger as Gavin shifted into a terrifying were-wolf form.
Hunter's howl activated. Veronica's cool, soothing voice filled Gavin's head as he activated one of his powerful skills. He didn't want any witnesses to know what was about to happen to this mutt. As the howl filled the hallway and everyone froze what they were doing, silence filled the absence of the movements.
The men that were holding onto Jackson let go and ran out of the hallway in terror. Jackson stumbled a bit as they suddenly let him go. His restricted airway was freed and he was able to breathe normally as he faced Gavin and Bradley.
Erza winced as she rubbed her shoulder from the hold the brute had on her. She glared in the direction he fled and promised she would get even with him in the future. In the meantime, she had a mate to calm down before someone got hurt.
"What are you?" Bradley asked, he felt his animal instincts telling him to run away as far as he could. Before Bradley could ask anything else or even register that Gavin had moved, the other had run forward at blinding speed and gripped Bradley by the throat and pinned him against the wall behind him. The force of the impact was hard enough to cause the walls to shatter the stone behind them. Bradley coughed up blood from the impact as he stared down into the most terrifying pair of red eyes he had ever seen.
Gavin snarled in Bradley's face. His teeth were inches from the boy's neck. The veiled threat against Erza was all it took to cause Gavin to lose control over his animal self and shift fully into his were-wolf form. His wolf was angry. He demanded blood payment for the disrespect shown to his mate.
"You want to repeat that threat against my mate?" The low rumbling words scorched Bradley's ear. He felt a shiver run up his spine as he struggled against Gavin's hold.
This could not and would not go unanswered. He pressed Bradley back into the wall repeatedly, slamming his body with each attempt. The wall crackled and stone crumpled under the force of the blows. Bradley coughed up blood from the impacts as Gavin used him like a ragdoll.
Gavin was determined to make him pay for disrespect. He felt a compulsion to bathe in his entrails and make a statement. No one would threaten her. He snarled as he glared at Bradley. "No one ever disrespects my mate," his words were guttural and almost feral in their ferocity.
Bradley shook all over. From pain or fear he didn't know. He only knew that he was powerless before this black wolf. He felt embarrassed as his bladder emptied down his legs as a soft hand appeared to grab Gavin's. "Gavin bro, calm down man. It's okay. Just calm down. You haven't done anything that can't be forgiven yet," Jackson's soft voice called out to Gavin. It somehow got past the animal intensity in his mind that demanded blood from Bradley for the threat.
Gavin looked between Jackson to Erza as she walked over. Her eyes glowed a warm amber as she placed her hand on his arm. "It's alright. I'm okay. I'm safe baby." Her words were a comforted whisper as she reached up to cup his furry cheek in her palm.
The wolf's head turned to look at Jackson beside him. "You didn't run when you heard the howl." His tone was filled with surprise and respect.
"He dared to insult and threatened my mate. I can't just let that slide." Gavin declared as he tightened his grip around Bradley's throat. Bradley was clutching at Gavin's hand in a futile attempt to break his hold.
"It doesn't matter. Remember why you came to the academy. You won't be able to get stronger for whatever reasons you have, if you kill this idiot now," Jackson said. He kept his voice calm and low as he tried to talk some sense to Gavin. He had to talk him down. Make him see reason or Gavin would be thrown out of the academy.
"Let him go, now Gavin." Erza's stern words brought his attention back to her and his features softened slightly.
Gavin looked around and saw the only ones around were Bradley, Jackson, Erza and himself. He let out a deep sigh as he closed his eyes and concentrated on his mana flow. It was still running wild and chaotic; he had to regain control of his emotions and calm himself down. He took a few deep breaths as he ended his shift and released his iron grip on Bradley's throat. Bradley dropped to the ground in a painful whimper as blood trickled from the nail marks on his throat.
Jackson let out a sigh of relief as the black wolf vanished and Gavin stood there. "Good on ya mate," he said as he clapped him on the back.
Gavin's eyes were still red as he glanced at Jackson then back to Bradley. "I trust you learned your lesson tonight, Bradley," Gavin said softly as he looked at the pitiful student that coward at his feet. Gavin should feel something. Remorse, pity, maybe even regret over going all out. But he didn't. He accepted who and what he was when it came to his wolf. He already had blood on his hands; he doubted that Bradley did as well.
"Yes, I understand. Please forgive my words and actions," Bradley said as he bowed low on the ground. His forehead pressed to the stone floor.
Gavin said nothing as he felt the sudden mana drain from the fight. He turned and headed up the stairs towards his dorm. He needed rest and to calm down fully before he indulged in his inner wolf too much.
I let it out again in rage and anger… I almost killed that kid tonight. What if next time I can't pull him back? Maybe Astrid was right.