I could feel the influence of [Absolute Dominance] even before I saw any [System] notification about it. Maybe it was all in my head, but as I stood and held back the trembles in anticipation of Redael’s arrival, I could feel myself wanting to begin to grovel. With a firm force of will, I stood tall again and prepared myself for the inevitable. Inside, I still cursed Rulac’s name and the smug grin stretching across his smug features, but externally, I schooled myself as well as I could manage.

Inside the deepest den, I heard a sigh. “What, Rulac?” There was a more relaxed tone to his voice than the other only time I’d heard Redael’s voice, but still there was the electric current of threat, the penchant and desire for violence.

“Come look, Alpha. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.”

Redael growled his displeasure, and I noticed a slight tremor pass through Rulac at the sound. Before I could truly internalize that, Redael stepped out of his quarters and laid eyes on me. He cocked his head before speaking.

“I said I’m willing to beat you up, down and sideways. You taking me up on that offer? Or are you already looking to die?” The timbre of his voice communicated his seemingly permanently present desire to work violence beyond his mere words.

I waited for Rulac to speak. He didn’t. He simply looked down on me with a grin cocking his cocky stupid mouth. I didn’t look down on him as I did most of the rest of the keelish, but still I wanted to somehow hurt him. Regardless of how I felt about it though, he had gotten me into this situation, and it was time for me to try to get myself out of it. I began to try to explain that this wasn’t at all what I’d wanted, but I couldn’t get myself to say the words. After all, this was actually what I’d wanted, just… more threatening.

“I asked Rulac to teach me to fight. He brought me here, said you were the second best fighter in the swarm, and you’d teach me.”

“Nope. Never said that. Said you’d help him out, that’s all.” Rulac’s response came before my initial statement’s echoes had fully faded from the space. He didn’t deny calling Redael the second best fighter in the swarm though.

“Eh. I’m maybe the fourth best fighter on a good day.” Redael flicked his tail in a shrug. “I’m just stronger than the rest of you and will kill you if you challenge me.” His tone was even, uninflected, and seemingly uncaring.

“I…” I felt my mouth go dry as I decided to keep talking. “I wasn’t trying to challenge you. I just wanted to learn how to fight as well as hunt.”

Redael nodded slowly as he approached, looking me up and down. I tried to stand tall, impressive, and unfazed. I was taken completely by surprise when the back of his balled fist struck me in the mouth and, with an explosion of pain, knocked me prone. All the inside of my mouth was sliced from my fangs, and the taste of iron spread over my tongue as I laid still, trying to figure out what had just happened. Still stunned, I could barely understand when I heard a sigh from above me.

“Too weak. You haven’t lost enough.” Again, before I realized it was about to happen, Redael struck. His hand darted down and his fingers closed around my throat before he effortlessly lifted me off the ground, where I dangled with my tail dragging on the ground as I gagged and choked. The blood from the inside of my shredded mouth began to fill my throat and I felt it dribble down my face as Redael’s unfeeling eyes regarded me. I couldn’t move as my mind struggled to keep up or understand a single thing that was happening.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“Still, you’re not doing anything? Just taking it?” He shook his head in disappointment and, with a slight grunt, Redael turned and tossed me against the wall. I wheezed as I smashed into the unforgiving tunnel wall and crumpled to the ground. Unsure if this was going to continue, if I was going to be killed, or anything else that may happen, I laid there, tensing my body and activating [Improved Bloodlust] for the first time.

The injustice of what was happening to me filled my mind. I knew this feeling was the influence of [Bloodlust], and I wasn’t nearly so completely changed by it as I would have been before. Regardless, I couldn’t hardly think or hold myself back from launching myself at Redael, but I knew doing so wouldn’t help. I needed to wait for him to close the distance, to strike when he wasn’t expecting it, as he’d done to me. With more real than feigned pain, I flopped to my side so I could watch Redael’s approach. I knew Rulac was here, but my mind was wholly focused on Redael and his implacable, deliberate steps towards me. Under my body, I stiffened the scales on my left hand, preparing it to lash out and somehow damage Redael.

Five steps.

Three steps.

One step… he stopped and cocked his head at me. I averted my eyes, hoping and wishing for him to come closer. Just a single step, that was all I needed. After a moment of my tense waiting, I heard the crunch of an approaching footstep. Immediately I shot upright, my left hand hurtling towards Redael’s stomach. I would, if possible, disembowel him right now, if not at least fatally injure him.

His own hand interrupted my attack’s trajectory an inch before I made contact with his stomach. Redael’s scales covering his hand were linked together just like mine, and I imagined I could see a faint shower of sparks from where my claws skittered off his defense. I didn’t allow myself to be taken aback or startled and began to give in to the slowly building [Bloodlust]. Immediately I lunged forward with my right arm, disregarding the pang of pain as I overextended my shoulder in my strike. Again, before my claws could make contact with his chest, Redael’s hand covered in thick, interlocked scales blocked my stab.

I lunged forward with a bite, trying to do something, anything, the building influence of my [Bloodlust] beginning to purge my mind of any thought beyond total aggression. I didn’t make contact, and snapped my jaws again. Again. Again. The screams of my fangs against each other echoed throughout the space as I lost myself in my need to hurt Redael. He dared to attack me one-sidedly like that? I would have my payment in blood, in his pain and suffering!

Again and again I lashed out with both hands and my jaws, almost unable even to see Redael, until my legs were both swept from underneath me. Then, a heavy weight pressed down on my chest, which I immediately slashed both hands at. My claws didn’t find much purchase, and the weight pressed hard into me, pushing the air from my lungs. I let myself relax, and nearly immediately the insanity of [Bloodlust] drained from my mind.

Redael stood partially on my chest, and my mouth and head resumed their debilitating pain. I had, in my desperation and frenzy, bitten my cheeks and tongue a couple times beyond the injury I’d sustained from Redael’s backhand. My right shoulder pulsed with pain with every heartbeat, and my heart was thumping desperately quickly. On top of that, my ribs and throat both ached from Redael’s first attack, while my legs ached from the solid thack I had sustained from his tail across my shins.

The Alpha looked down on me, slightly nodding before raising his right hand and observing one of the large, flat scales across the back of his wrist. There, a thin cut could be seen, from my first attack.

“Even though I saw it coming, you still could do something.” Still gently nodding, Redael turned and began to return to his quarters. As I began to struggle to my feet, Redael’s voice echoed towards me.

“Come back tomorrow.” And then, he was gone.