"Lucendra! You and me, outside, now." Kayleen commanded. Lucendra let out a quick sigh before standing up, slightly trembling.

"Wolf hag, warlord gave order to…" Annie responded, putting away her food.

"Half a year had passed, Annie, unless you missed. Time to get them a good taste of what it is to be a part of the Tribe."

"Wolf hag, it was a hard day and…" Annie tried to find a way to calm down her superior.

"Shut it, Annie. People can’t grow without walls that they need to climb before them. You know the drill, they will be fine." Kayleen smiled, cracking her knuckles as Lucendra walked away from the table.

Keep our new allies out of trouble, scout Annie. Came the voice in Annie’s head, and the scout slammed the plate with her food onto the table. Lucendra and the others were part of her pack, they were given to her. She won’t let others lay even a finger on her subordinates, not when she can still stand.

"You know what, wolf hag, I don’t think I know. Lucendra, back to your food. I will be Kayleen's sparring partner for tonight. No claws?" Anni rocked her shoulders, hearing nice popping sounds. She was still missing some claws and two fangs, but aside from that, she was as good as she could ever hope to be.

"Agreed. Begin." Annie barely had time to dodge, as the wolf hag was on her. The left arm of Kayleen was behind her back, while her right paw crossed around the neck of Annie, pushing scout back. The back of Annie moved the table to the side and Outsider caught plates with food in his arms.

"Take it elsewhere, will you? Others are trying to eat here." The champion calmly said, putting Annie’s food aside and giving Lucendra her own plate.

"Of course, sir." Annie felt herself flying as the wolf hag lifted her in the air with one arm. Kayleen grunted when the scout grabbed the wrist of her opponent with both hands and landed a heavy kick into the stomach of the wolf hag. Annie used the belly of her opponent as a platform, trying to do a backflip away from Kayleen. The hold on her neck became tighter for a moment, preventing Annie from breathing. Then the world started spinning around as Kayleen threw Annie into the passage between tables with a flick of the hand.

The scout fell on her shoulder, jumping back onto her feet just in time to evade the kick of Kayleen. With her back to the counter and with Kayleen blocking the road to the entrance, the scout had little room for maneuver.

So what? I have a duty.

Annie made a feint with her right paw, stopping her hit just as Kayleen caught her paw. Annie pushed her muscles to the limit, not allowing the wolf hag to twist her arm away. She blocked the incoming left knee with the palm of her left paw, sending it aside just as Carty had shown her. Still holding Annie by the wrist, Kayleen made a quick attack with her right elbow. Annie took this attack onto her own right forearm, stopping the swing before it could gain power. Anger appeared on the snout of the wolf hag, as she pushed her elbow further, winning in a battle of strength. With a thin smile, the scout punched with her left paw, aiming at the lower jaw of the wolf hag. Carty showed her numerous times that sometimes a single hit can make an opponent groggy, if you hit the right point on the head and make their brain go spinning.

The smile disappeared from the lips of the scout when Kayleen caught the wrist of Annie with her left paw.

She is using both paws! A panicked thought came and Kayleen stepped on the left foot of Annie, locking the scout in place. Holding the scout in place, Kayleen made a demonstratively big swing with her right paw, aiming to bring both pain and fear into the scout's heart. Unable to back away, Annie ducked, allowing her fist to pass overhead with a loud sound. Pushing herself forward with her right foot, Annie launched herself forward like a bullet, aiming her head at the neck of Kayleen. The scout felt the hold on her wrist disappear, and Kayleen stopped Annie’s charge with the palm of her left paw. Not allowing Annie to get even a moment of respite, Kayleen grabbed the scout by the nape of her neck with her right paw and kicked with her left knee, forcing Annie to block the incoming hit with her forearms.

Pain from this simple hit caused Annie to groan, it was as if Kayleen had whipped her across Annie's arms with steel rope. The area where the knee connected with the scout's arms had already begun to swell. And yet this time, Annie refused to be scared and retreat. With a roar, she pushed aside the knee before her, spreading her arms wide and sending them into the sides of the wolf hag in a thrusting motion.

Just below the ribs, push with all your might and… She was met with a flurry of quick blows. Kayleen pushed the head of Annie back, freeing her paws and punching forward. Throat. Belly. Head. Nose. Belly again. Annie raised her paws before herself, taking hits upon her forearms. Incoming pain caused her to groan in pain, the shower of hits felt as if someone was unleashing a full volley from a rifle into the arms of the scout. Left, right, left, right, belly, left, belly, right. Left shoulder…

Now! Annie smiled through pain as the fist of the left paw of the wolf hag connected to her left shoulder. She half turned to the left, allowing the left fist to slide way behind her and opening Kayleen up for a massive punch with her right paw. Annie clenched the fist of her right paw and punched, certain that she had perfectly timed the attack.

She did time the moment right. Kayleen lost her balance for the briefest of moments. And yet the difference in strength and speed remained. The wolf hag ruled over her pack with an iron fist, the wolf hags were the best of their subordinates. Strongest. Most durable. And fastest.

Despite her mistake, Kayleen made a blindingly fast uppercut with her right arm. The fist moved between the wolf hag's left arm and the scout's body, rubbing across Annie's skin before finding her jaw and landing with such force that Annie flew over the counter, right into the kitchen area, scaring the cook away. The wolf hag made a mistake in the fight. However the sheer speed allowed her to not suffer the consequences of her mistake.

I can’t beat her. The horrible realization hit Annie as she landed on the cold stone floor, sending tremors across the hung-up plates, frying pans, and knives. Pain hit across her body while drool and blood reached toward her mouth, but worse than the pain was the shame. She can’t even protect her pack. The Branded were given into her care. And she was weak. Weak. Wea..

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She turned on the side and saw a crate with hot peppers and wildly smiled. Who said that victory needs to be fair?

"Come out or I will come after you!" Kayleen shouted.

Annie tore the cover of the crate and grabbed several crimson chili peppers in her paws, putting them into her mouth. Crushing them with her fangs, Annie spat the drool, mixed with the remains of pepper, onto her paws.

"Come and get me, you ugly bitch!" Annie laughed back, standing up.

With a roar, Kayleen jumped over the counter, landing on her feet just in time to meet Annie’s charge. The wolf hag nimbly evaded the punch of the right paw of her opponent and punched Annie in the stomach, sending the scout a step back. A close-range hit usually lacks power, but Kayleen's was so powerful that Annie briefly lost her breath. In panic, she kicked with her left leg, only for her leg to be kicked into the ground as the left foot of Kayleen landed on the knee of the scout.

"Weakling." The wolf hag fiercely smiled as Annie fell onto one knee from sudden pain.

Enough of the fear. Annie decided and jumped forward, ignoring the pain of the beat, ignoring the pain in her knee. The palms of her paws closed on Kayleen's eyes as the wolf hag caught her by the wrist, landing another brutal knee kick into Annie's belly and causing the scout to throw out in pain.

And then Kayleen stopped blinking, feeling a burning sensation in her eyes. She tried to rub her eyes and missed the moment when Annie punched her in the side, forcing the wolf hag to step backwards. Kayleen made a wide swing with her right paw, blindly trying to hit Annie. Tears were flowing from the eyes of the wolf hag and she could barely see because of the pepper in her eyes. The scout caught her opponent by the hand, throwing her foe over herself, face down into the floor and cracking stone with the snout of Kayleen. Before the wolf hag could stand up, Annie was on her back, punching repeatedly into the back of the head of the foe.

The head of Kayleen was slammed into stone each time she tried to stand up, leaving blood smeared across the cracked floor. The wolf hag roared and managed to turn her body around, wildly smacking the jaw of Annie with the fist of her right hand during the turn. The world became blurry for a second, yet Annie pushed on, still sitting on her foe and punching wolf hag into her face, evading incoming hits as best she could, feeling how bruises appeared on her cheeks just from glancing blows.

Kayleen grabbed the sides of Annie with both hands and pushed on. Annie let out a groan, as she felt her ribs cracking and raised both of her fists overhead, clenched together. Wielding her fists like a hammer, she sent them down, with full force behind her, right across the lower jaw of Kayleen. The world spun for the wolf hag this time, and her cruel hold on the ribs of Annie weakened.

Kayleen put her paws onto the floor, breaking stone beneath her palms as she tried to slide from underneath Annie. Yet Annie only tightened the grip of her legs around her opponent’s torso and continued to strike. With each hit, Kayleen hit the ground with the back of her head, after the tenth hit, the wolf hag no longer lifted her head, trying desperately to get out from underneath Annie. After the twentieth punch, blood flowed from the nostrils of the wolf hag, blood bubbles appeared on the lips of the wolf hag.

Again. Again. One more. And another! Annie was shocked that her opponent was still conscious. She was pummeling the wolf hag with all her might, and still, Kayleen refused to give up, refused to be knocked out. The blood showed up from the left ear of the wolf hag, the knuckles of Annie started bleeding as her shin got torn, yet she punched and punched.

Just one more. Annie hesitated briefly before landing another hit. Each morning, Kayleen would check her pack. The wolf hag knew exactly where each member of her soldiers was, who needed support and who needed a break. She always checked the gear of soldiers, made plans for training, found time for personal training when needed, and was present during briefings in command, always checking out and knowing who was sick and who faked not being sick. As horrible as Kayleen was, could Annie do the same bare minimum for her fellow soldiers? No.

"Listen," Annie whispered, as she crushed her fist into the ground near the head of the wolf hag and grabbed Kayleen by the collar of her jacket, "Listen, let’s say that you have won. Spirits, you can even knock me out, just don’t lay a finger on my pack anymore, ever."

"Why… stop?" Kayleen spat words along with blood and two fangs, "You won. Go on, take the titl…"

"Because I can’t do things that you can!" Annie whispered in desperation, feeling how her jeans were suddenly getting a tiny bit tighter. Power acknowledged that she had won and that a reward was in order, shifting her body slightly, "I can’t… command the same way you do. I don’t know logistics as you do, and I don’t know people as you do. Soldiers have no need for honor, but we have a duty! My duty tells me to let you stay in charge because it is better overall because you are a better officer, but I also won’t allow you to lay even a finger on my pack! I know that you feel the same, you know that you are a better commander! Please, for the sake of our duties, for the sake of those under our command, let’s cut a deal, please. Promise not to beat up soldiers anymore and I will tell everyone that you won."

Kayleen rubbed her eyes, trying to look at Annie’s face through tears. She spat blood again and nodded, still rubbing her eyes. When she spoke, her voice sounded strained and filled with pain: "Fine. You won, the loser has to do what the winner wants. I won’t touch anyone else from my pack with as much as a finger. When you feel like you are ready, tell me and I will give up my position."

"Thank you!" Annie hushed in response, helping the wolf hag to stand up and clean her eyes with water from a nearby sink. Hearing that the sound of fighting had ended, the cooks came back, and Annie along with Kayleen, apologized for the mess.

When the pair left the kitchen area, they came face to-face with Dragena. The warlord was dressed in loose black shorts, a simple white shirt, and a green jacket. Two ugly scars were on her knees, not even fur was growing back on the deformed skin. She had not a single trace of dirt or dust on her, her fur was cleaned with water and combed with a hairbrush. Dragena partially confined herself to her chambers on the orders of Wyrm Lord. The warlord appeared on television during an award ceremony organized by Iterna officials to thank her for rescuing Iterna citizens. During the ceremony, the warlord lowered herself on her knees before Iterna’s ambassador. Dragena put her head to the ground and humbly begged the ambassador to provide healthcare for the cub of Alsyn.

Naturally, the confused ambassador quickly agreed, but this scene caused an uproar back in Iterna, civilians were insisting that government officials of Iterna humiliated warlord's on purpose to assert their dominance over the Reclaimers and Wolf Tribe. Annie had no idea why this would be a bad thing in the eyes of citizens of a rival country, seeing rivals grovel before you is merely a sign of superiority, that is all. One day, Annie will make Virginia stand on her knees before her, and this will be the happiest day of her life. According to rumors, Dynast laughed at the ensuing chaos in the rivalling state, while Wyrm Lord and Dragena gave interviews to several reporters from Iterna, trying to mitigate the situation and clear up the confusion. Annie herself received an exquisite looking golden pin with diamond engraving on it at that award ceremony, which was now the most precious and beautiful thing in her possession by far.

Annie, and all others who participated in the operation, also received free access to healthcare from Iterna for the remainder of her lives, but that was far less interesting than the golden pin.

Outsider and scared-looking Lucendra were still sitting on their seats. From time-to-time, Outsider asked Lucendra to show him something on terminal and gave her advice about investment, utterly ignoring the chaos that ruled in the room just a minute ago.