What We Are

Chapter 10: A Duel

Both Head Alphas didn't wait, neither wanted to delay the duel any longer. Not even an hour later, the two Packs arrive at City Forest at Dean's suggestion; still in neutral territory, but with enough space and less chances of accidentally attracting a crowd.

Similar to the restaurant, the staff at the City Forest recognized both Head Alphas immediately. Dean did not choose to explain their purpose, only that he'd need the City Forest free from other werewolves and vampires for the next hour or two. The manager, a woman named Mariah, ordered other employees to make others already inside the premises aware of what was to happen. Mariah allowed the two Packs use of the City Forest on the condition that they not ruin the trees.

It took about half an hour of tense waiting before they were allowed to enter. The first few moments of observing their surroundings made it apparent to Dean that whoever had been in charge of creating City Forest had done a decent job. It's not blatantly obvious that the whole place was man-made as it had the same unpredictability and wildness as a real forest, with the occasional pond and fallen rotting logs complete with bugs.

As they went deeper, that's when Dean began to pick up on the differences.

Besides the occasional purposeful slope, the soil was a little too even underneath their shoes. The grass and the leaves were a little too green given that it was summertime, signifying that the roots were watered routinely. Under the familiar smell of dirt and s**t from the animals who ran away upon hearing the werewolves' footsteps, Dean could pick up the scent of something mechanical and completely out of place in a real forest.

Worst of all, there were several cameras pointed at them. They were camouflaged, difficult to spot, but it still made Dean feel more on edge knowing he was being filmed, that the duel was going to be caught on tape. Mariah stated that it was part of their policy to keep whatever happened inside the City Forest confidential unless needed for official reasons.

Dean doubted that the duel would remain confidential.

There's light chirping of birds, hidden within thick clusters of tree branches. Their tweeting was like music, almost soothing, and Dean found himself thinking about Claude and how his best friend hunted frequently in this very place.

Dean wondered if Claude actually believed all the defenses he's mentioned; how he didn't even remember that it wasn't a real forest, or how it didn't bother him to be within range of other hunting vampires and werewolves. Maybe he did, but it's also possible he just wanted Dean to think he was totally fine with it. The first time Claude set foot in City Forest, he had probably picked up on the same things Dean just did.

"Daydreaming there, Axel?" Kihyun snorted, the first words he's said to Dean since they arrived here.

They've stopped at a clearing.

Dean met Kihyun's eyes in time to see the gleam of a challenge in them. "There's no shame in backing out." Kihyun extended his bulky arms out to his sides, beginning to prowl the middle of the clearing. "I'm sure being Axel Pack's Head Alpha and doing everything by the book has made you a bit starchy with your werewolf form. Hey, remind me again about those Village Feasts you're known to have?"

The mocking tone in Kihyun's voice made Dean's jaw muscles twitch. The Head Alpha of the thorne Pack was being annoying on purpose, and Dean was not about to give him the satisfaction of seeing Dean ruffled before their formal duel.

Formal duels between werewolves were how disputes used to be settled before human laws transformed to include werewolves and vampires alike. Not many Packs practiced duels anymore, as it often led to grave injury or death. The Packs that still followed the practice had modified the rules from having to subdue your opponent completely to allowing werewolves to tap out, therefore giving their opponent the victory.

"Let's get this over with." Dean turned away to the other side of the clearing, making quick work with the buttons of his dress shirt.

Finn, Opal, and Ace crowd around him. "Usually werewolves fight similar to how they talk." Ace fell to the familiar routine of coaching Dean. Ace Campbell was nosy and had the bad habit of thinking too highly of himself—but he was an impressive fighter and an even better teacher. Dean learnt most of his fighting skills from Ace, and so Opal and Finn chose to keep silent as the alpha continued to say, "He'll be messy and eager to attack you, don't make the same mistake. He'll taunt you even in his werewolf form. It'll be advantageous for you to make him think you fell for his traps, 'cause that's when you catch him off-guard."

Opal's jaw was locked. The beta simply nodded at Dean. She did not need words for Dean to understand her expectations.

Dean stripped out of his pants and tossed both pieces of clothing onto the floor. Finn looked over Dean's shoulder, an indifferent look on his features. Dean knew him well enough to see the nervousness in his clenched fists. "Now that I've met him, it's not a stretch to think that Kihyun Na went through all that just to offer you a duel he knew you couldn't refuse."

Very true. Finn had a point. And yet, "Whatever the reason, it's too late to back out now." Dean didn't say it—he probably did not need to for them to know—but part of his determination to win wasn't only for their continued sole ownership over the Lycan River. He would also take the opportunity to make Kinhyun Na pay for the things he's said about their Pack, and for the way he spoke to Finn and Opal.

With a deep inhale, Finn gave a single nod. "Don't get yourself maimed."

Dean shifted to his werewolf form in reply.

The scents around him strengthened tenfold. He could smell the hidden metals and even some oil much more clearly now, and it was all kinds of wrong. The scents of animals put inside this man-made forest also reached his werewolf nose. If he stopped to listen, he could hear the differences between the chirps of various birds flapping away.

Kihyun Na had also shifted and was now approaching the center of the clearing, his werewolf form smaller than Dean's but much bulkier, with brown fur and a white underbelly. His cocky expression as a human seemed to mirror onto this form.

Both pairs of red eyes stared down at each other.

Predictably, Kihyun pounced first.

Dean quickly leapt to the side, easily managing a succession of dodges due to Kihyun's hulking stature giving him a disadvantage at speed. The enthusiasm at which Kihyun kept attacking was intimidating. Combine that with the fact that Dean hadn't fought or trained against anyone other than his Pack members made the start of their duel quite overwhelming.

It was nothing Dean could not see past. He noticed Kihyun's pattern immediately, the other Head Alpha too impatient to think that Dean could find an opening. Once Kihyun launched himself from his hind legs, Dean charged forward, catching Kihyun by his underbelly. He pushed Kihyun to the ground and took a swipe with his left claws over Kihyun's chest, putting enough force to draw blood.

Dean was already a safe distance away before Kihyun growled at the sting, scrambling back onto his feet. His red eyes narrowed, pissed that Dean got the first hit.

Kihyun's fighting strategy relied on his muscle power. The longer they tried grabbing at each other, the more Kihyun got used to Dean's own fighting abilities. He was also a skilled fighter, managing to pin down Dean two times consecutively. He first sank his claws into Dean's back. The second time, Kihyun baited Dean into going left at a pretend attack. Once Dean had realized Kihyun wasn't going the opposite direction, sharp teeth were already piercing at the muscle in Dean's neck. Dean managed to throw him off before the other Head Alpha could do more damage.

Both times Kihyun got to him, Dean picked up Finn, Ace, and Opal's inhales of suspense, their breaths stopping until Dean got away from Kihyun's hold.

Another close call, Kihyun suddenly charging with impressive speed he's only shown right now.

Dean's had enough of this.

With a deep breath and his core engaged, Dean took a running start before leaping towards Kihyun. He spotted Kihyun's legs lock, ready to hold his ground. With this, Dean quickly changed his trajectory, landing at the space next to Kihyun and attacking the other Head Alpha from the side, using momentum and Kihyun's current inability to center his gravity to deliver a painful bite to the nape of Kihyun's neck.

Dean did not let go, locking his muscles as Kihyun struggled underneath his attack. Dean was growling in effort, and Kihyun continued to try and push him off until he let out a pained howl.

He felt his mouth fill with blood. Only then did Dean let go.

Their respective groups have grown quiet.

Dean took several steps backward, jowls still pulled back to bear his sharp, bloodied canines. Kihyun remained on his side, the spot where Dean bit slowly becoming covered in dark red. The bite would heal with no problem; Dean's past fights and intense training have taught him that sometimes the amount of blood that came out only made the actual injury seem worse than it was.

Still, seconds passed, Kihyun still did not get up. Dean decided to approach the other Head Alpha again, huffing through his nose and using his foreleg to nudge Kihyun's heavily breathing form.

It happened in an instant.

Kihyun had only been acting. He waited for Dean to come close so his mouth could close around the foreleg Dean had extended, snapping shut with the force of a giant boulder coming down a cliff.

The pain that shot through Dean's body caused a spasm to break out his whole wolf form, his legs feeling weak as he blinked away the sudden blinding, white-hot sensation. His howl reverberated throughout the whole man-made forest. If the employees hadn't been spying through the security cameras, they probably have a good idea now about what was happening.

While Dean had held back from applying too much strength behind his own bite, the opposite could be said about Kihyun Na. Dean tried to pull his foreleg away, only to let out another gutted howl as he felt Kihyun's teeth sink deeper into the muscle of his leg.

"Come on, Dean. You can do this," He heard Finn's voice call out, the beta's tone frantic, desperately trying to keep himself from coming closer. "Come on."

Dean gritted his canines through the throbbing agony before he steeled himself and used his other foreleg to claw at Kihyun, this time making each scratch count. Kihyun would have no other choice but to try and get away too.

The other Head Alpha's jaw loosened due to the sting of the relentless lacerations Dean was inflicting on his side.

Finally—finally—Dean broke free from Kihyun's bite, but the relief was short-lived and came with a price. The sharp canines tore more of Dean's flesh as he made to pull his foreleg away, another wave of torture racking through him.

But Dean was expecting this kind of fresh pain, he'd planned for it. With his jaw locked in effort, Dean did not give Kihyun any inch to gather his bearings. Almost viciously, and without any finesse, Dean attacked Kihyun, putting his whole weight into the movement.

He deemed it only fair that Kihyun felt the same treatment he gave.

Dean snapped his jaw shut around Kihyun's hind leg instead of his foreleg, and he allowed himself to pierce through fur and flesh, making the bite even deeper.

Kihyun began thrashing on his side. Even he knew that Dean now had the upper hand. The other Head Alpha's high-pitched whimpering was evidence of this, too exhausted to try and push Dean's wolf form away.

After an eternity, Kihyun snapped his tail down on the floor three times, signaling that he tapped out.

Dean wasted no time releasing the other Head Alpha, the adrenaline of the fight the only thing allowed Dean to put some weight on his (he's guessing severely injured) foreleg, but not a lot. He didn't spare another second on Kihyun, already limping towards his companions who met him halfway with varying panicked expressions.

It was a little difficult to assess the damage his wolf form had taken, so he let Finn, Ace, and Opal do so while he caught his breath. His body would heal the wounds from Kihyun's claws and canines, but the whole process might slow down and become much more bothersome if the lacerations got infected.  Ace ran to get a first-aid kit from the staff, meanwhile Opal repeatedly told him not to shift back to human form so he wouldn't use more energy than he needed to.

Finn, after checking that Dean was fine save for the nasty bite, met Dean's already awaiting gaze.

They still had a deal to finalize.

Aware that the responsibility fell on him, Finn bravely approached Kihyun Na who remained laying on the ground, surrounded by the three alphas from Thorne Pack. None of the three alphas tried to steer Finn away, and even Kihyun Na who was still bleeding out and experiencing a similar pain level to Dean looked to be listening attentively as Finn spoke to them, reminding their Pack of their end of the deal now that everyone has witnessed Kihyun's formal loss.

Dean's tired body worked to begin patching up his injuries, the bleeding not stopping but thankfully slowing down. His black fur was sticky with smears of blood hard to see, coming from multiple wounds that made a layer of hurt that rendered the Head Alpha's body immobile.

Opal circled around him once more to check the extent of his injuries. Dean has dealt with worse before, and this time he didn't feel any broken bones. Disregarding the state of his foreleg which looked like it had been caught in a bear trap, Dean considered himself lucky.

"You're fine," Opal said, mouth in a straight line. "By the time we get that leg of yours patched up, the other cuts will have already closed up." She met Dean's eyes, and Dean already knew what the Village Elder was about to say. "We should get Helen to take a look at you in the clinic."

Dean let out a small rumble from his throat, signifying his disapproval.

He'll be fine with a few stitches, gauzes, and some well-deserved rest.

"Predictable." Dean may have been injured, but Opal didn't hold back on the eye roll. "You look like you've got a butchered leg attached to you, and yet you refuse to be treated properly."

The Village Elder looked over Dean's form to glance at Finn, the second-in-command still speaking with the Thorne Pack. None of the Thorne Pack werewolves had dared to cut-off Finn this time, mouths remaining shut.

She looked at Dean with a hundred unspoken words held in her eyes. "I'm sure they got your message. Good job." The smile Opal had on made Dean huff through his nose.

He did not usually need direct reassurance. Nevertheless, his chest swelled with pride knowing he'd done exactly as Opal expected of him.