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That question was answered when I threw a swift punch, and Del blocked it by grabbing my wrist and raising it over her head. Without missing a beat, she threw a fist of her own into my gut which I couldn't avoid since she had me. Del then once again flipped me over and had me on my back.
"Woo! That's my girl," I heard Caleb exclaim with a clap of his hands.
"What's the problem, pup? I thought you were going to take this seriously," Del taunted. "If that's the best you got, then you're better off stepping down. Your recklessness will only put Rosie and Kai in harm's way. Spare yourself any more embarrassment."
My claws stretched out, scraping against the soft dirt as my hands balled into fists. This was not at all how I imagined this going. Not only was Del toying with me, but I was looking more like a weakling pup. Was I not even strong enough to take on a human? Was I that useless? No, I refused to back down. I pulled myself to my feet, and with no real plan in mind, I charged for Del like a bull seeing red. I went for it, my claws out swiping at all directions hoping to put any injury on her. Whenever Del swerved away, I moved in close, latching onto her like glue. She wouldn't escape me.
Del was doing a great job blocking all my blows, but I was able to do the same. Now it was a real sparring match. I took a swipe at her face, but Del managed to jump back seconds before the pointed tips touched her skin. Only a couple strands of her hair were cut. She backflipped away giving herself some room. I charged for her but she windmill-kicked my claw back then delivered another kick to my gut. I felt the air vacate as it was pushed out of my stomach and I recoiled. That split second was long enough for Del to swipe my feet out from under me, and back on my back I was for the third time. This time Del slammed a booted foot against my chest pinning me in place.
To my satisfaction, she did have a few cuts along her arms and one off to the side of her neck, but nothing fatal. She glared down at me, panting heavily, but otherwise in one piece. I could see why she was so well-known and feared throughout wolf shifters. She was human and was somehow able to keep up with a shifter in a fight.
"Give up?" Del asked, daring me to keep going.
I shook my head. "Not even close to being done."
"Come on, Kao, now you're being stubborn. You obviously can tell I'm better than you. Why continue punishing yourself?"
I gripped Del by her ankles and shoved her off me. Del hobbled back but stayed upright while I forced myself to get up. My muscles ached and the logical side of my brain was urging me to stop, but as she said, I was stubborn. My wolf was enraged by how we were getting bested by this human, pushing me to shift and letting him take over. I held off from doing that.
"If I give up now, then how will I ever face Alpha Pierce in a fight?" I asked.
"Simple, you can't face him," Del quipped. "You may have heart, pup, but you're still weak. Facing adversity when the odds are stacked against you is noble, but not when there's so much riding on you staying alive. You don't have what it takes to face your alpha in an official challenge."
"Kao." I looked off to my right where the campsite was at the sound of Rosie's voice. She was up on her feet facing us with a stern look on her face, but her emotions were etched with concern and fear. "That's enough. Just stop."
"Listen to your mate, Kao," Del ordered. "There's nothing you can do to change the outcome. None of you are ready to face Pierce, so you might as well let us protect you guys and fight him ourselves."
So that was it? That was the best I could do? I had no chance at all? Once again, I was completely useless to help those I loved. I couldn't step up for Rosie and Kai like I wanted to. I wasn't strong enough. I was a failure, just like I was when our stepfather abused Kai and pushed him to the point of killing the bastard who was supposed to take care of us. Because of my own weakness, Kai succumbed to the pain and anger and unleashed something monstrous. I did that to him, and I always swore I'd do better by him. But I failed.
No! No, I won't accept that!
I shifted faster than I ever had before, letting my wolf's fury take over. My clothes exploded into tiny pieces of fabric that rained down around me. My wolf bared its giant teeth, growling and ready to pounce. Del's composure never wavered. She took two steps back, reaching for something behind her and pulled out that weapon I saw her grab earlier. The ends were carved to look like wolf heads with their mouths open in a roar. The eyes glowed in a bright blue color. Del held it out in front of her, gripping it by the center piece with both hands and gave it a twist. Both ends extended until it became a large staff that was taller than her. My eyes widened when I noticed strange archaic symbols revealed on both sides, glowing in that same blue shade as the eyes.
An bizarre aroma wafted from the weapon, like dried herbs and cinder wood. I felt like I should know what the smell was, but it was escaping me. Whatever it was, it had my wolf's hackles raised. Taking two of her fingers, Del ran them through the symbols while muttering something under her breath. The markings grew brighter as did the aura that came off it.
Magic... That was the smell.
The weapon was enchanted with magic.
"Del," I heard Javier call to her with a warning tone, but she didn't acknowledge him.
"Kao, stand down now," Rosie demanded of me.
Even if I wanted to listen, my wolf had a mind of its own. It wasn't backing down, even though I felt like I should. He lowered his front half, ready to jump and lunge for Del. Del spun the weapon in her hand once before pointing one end at us, the carved wolf head glaring at us, feeling as alive as an actual animal. Right as my wolf charged, Del slammed the end down to the ground. The magical energy within the spear exploded, the force of it pushing my wolf back and went sailing across the field until it crashed against the tree. Something cracked against the impact, and I wasn't sure if it was the tree or my spine. My wolf dropped to the ground hard, the shift happened instantly as I was back in control and in excruciating amount of pain.
Yeah, that crack definitely came from me. My body convulsed with electric tingles running through me. I heard someone scream my name, but I wasn't sure who on the count of my ears ringing.
What the hell was that?
Someone dropped to their knees beside me, and I felt cool hands resting against the warmth of my back.
"Kao, are you okay?" Rosie asked me, her voice cracking slightly.
I couldn't find it in me to make more than a groan while the shock of the magic started to wear off.
"Well, I guess the fight's over," I heard Del mutter from a distance.
It was hard to argue when I could barely move my body. Yeah, the fight was over. I knew my physical wounds would heal after a while, but the mental wounds wouldn't. That was it; I lost. I couldn't win against Del, and I doubt I could win against Pierce. I truly was as weak as she said.
