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“Again.” I said, checking my nails, not even bothering to look up as I heard him shift into his panther form. His loincloth fell off his sleek panther body as he threw himself at me. I laughed and stepped out of the way, forcing him to slam into a nearby tree as he struggled to gain control of the momentum he had put behind his attack.
“Ouch. That was embarrassing.” I sneered at him, and to my pleasure, he turned, ready to come for me again. I had to give it to him, he was tenacious, and he reminded me a little bit of myself. Or maybe Raven. I suddenly had a flashback of me kicking her ass in her backyard when I had first met her, and how angry she had been at me. I grinned at the memory.
Ah. Good times.
“You’re in your panther form now, so I guess you’re stuck like that for the foreseeable future.” I said, as he tried to circle me, looking for an opening. “Which is unfortunate, seeing as that means you don’t have any fucking thumbs.” I pulled a handgun from my hip and pointed it directly at the cub’s head, cocking it to put a bullet in the chamber. He froze, and I smiled.
“Why don’t you shift and fight him like a true Rhoan!” His sister hissed at me, getting to her feet.
“Don’t get involved, Short Stuff, unless you want your brother to get a bullet between The Eyes.”
She snarled at me, but fear flashed across her face and I knew she believed I would do it. She looked over at K’yen, who had been watching quietly nearby with his arms crossed over his chest. He pursed his lips but shrugged.
“Rycon is Rhoan, I cannot intervene.” He said and a look of total betrayal crossed her face, making me grin. K’yen knew better than to challenge me. He had tried that once, and it had not gone well for him.
The rest of the K’aalpa-kah who had gathered to watch took a step away as well, making it clear that Kyro was on his own. He growled at me, and I felt the hatred rolling off of him.
He thought I was cheating, but he was going to learn that there was no such thing as cheating when it was life or fucking death. There was only you and the other guy, and you better make damn sure you killed the other guy first, no matter what it took.
“Bow to me.” I sneered down my nose at the young panther. He met my eyes in challenge, and I knew his instincts were demanding that he try to come against me. I contemplated killing him right there for his defiance. It would make an excellent example for the rest of the K’aalpa-kah but I found myself hesitating.
I liked that he had challenged me. I liked that he had seen me hurting his sister and his instinct had been to defend her, despite being grossly outmatched and knowing he wouldn’t win.
That was the type of shit I was looking for in a K’aalpa-kah warrior. I shrugged, and turned the gun to point at his sister, never taking my eyes off of him. Predictably, he snarled, taking a step forward before I snarled back at him.
“Bow to me, or I’ll kill her.” I threatened, and without hesitation, he dropped to his forepaws and rolled onto his back, baring his throat to me in surrender. I grinned, slipping the gun into its holster, and stepping forward to press my boot into his throat. I crouched down over him, meeting the fury in his eyes with a smirk.
“Good cub.” I praised him, though the way his lips pulled back over his canines told me he didn’t appreciate it. “Next time you challenge me, make sure you’re ready to kill me, Little Cub. I won’t be so lenient in the future.” I warned, before kicking off of him to address the rest of the K’aalpa-kah.
“Everyone but Kyro will now stand at attention until training begins tomorrow morning.” I snapped. Their eyes widened and they exchanged horrified looks with each other, before Kyro’s sister spoke up.
“But Rhoan! That’s nearly twenty-four hours!”
I grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the tree, pointing my gun back at her brother with my free hand, knowing that his instincts would drive him to attack me again, even if it meant his death.
“What’s your name, Short Stuff?” I asked and she swallowed so hard I felt it slide past my hand where I held her against the tree. She scowled at me but wasn’t dumb enough to ignore a direct question.
“Rykara,” she ground out, and I smirked.
“Great. You, Rykara, will stand for two days. If I see you move a fucking muscle, you will be banished.”
Her eyes widened and I threw her into the ranks, gesturing at her with my gun to stand up straight. Kyro got shakily up onto his paws and looked at me with so much rage in his eyes, I thought he might attack me again, regardless of my earlier threat.
“Why doesn’t Kyro have to stand?” Another young shifter grumbled. “He’s the one who challenged you, why isn’t he being punished?”
I fired a shot into the air and whipped around.
“Did I tell you that you could fucking speak?” I snarled at the panther who had spoken out of turn. His face blanched and he swallowed loudly, straightening his posture and standing at attention.
“That’s what I thought. Lucky for you, I’m feeling generous today, so I’ll answer your question.” I turned to face Kyro and smirked down at the pint-sized panther. He was still glaring at me as if he could light me on fire with his gaze alone.
“Kyro won’t be standing because he’ll be needing fucking medical attention.” A collective gasp ran through the ranks. It was so rare for shifters to need medical attention, that they could barely fathom it. You were either hurt just enough that you could still regenerate, or you were dead.
Looking at the little angry cat before me, I knew he may never forgive me for this, but he would thank me for it later.
“Shift.” I ordered him. His eyes widened and he flattened his ears against his head, taking a step away from me. All the fight left him and his tail curled under his belly. It was rare for a shifter to change again so soon after a shift. I remembered when I had first started conditioning, that even two shifts had been difficult. Kyro wouldn’t be standing with the rest of them because I was certain he would be too hurt to move after I was done with him.
It might have seemed cruel, but it very well could save his life one day. It was a lesson he was going to learn whether he liked it or not.
