Chapter 11

Blake yelled at the man once more, but no matter what he said, they wouldn’t let him in the ring.  Rage tore at him as they treated him with disrespect.  He was above them all.  He was the second in command, the person directly under the Queen.  What he said should be listened too, not ignored as if he was an insistent fly buzzing around.

“Listen to me,” he demanded.  Surprisingly enough, the man in front of him stopped talking and stared at Blake.  “I am going into that ring, and I am stopping what would be a war between our kinds.  It is my duty to protect our Queen, and that is what I am about to do.”

The man shook his head at Blake and went to open his mouth.  The man wasn’t able to utter a sound though, as a fist connected with the man’s jaw.  Glancing over at Isaac, Blake sent him a tiny smile. “Thanks.”

“Get in there and stop this.  I can’t without starting a war between the leopards and the lions, but you are above them.  Go prove yourself.”

Blake nodded as he took a step forward.  No one stopped him as he walked closer to the ropes surrounding the two girls.  Magic pulsed from the rings, reminding Blake who he was dealing with.  If it weren’t for that magic, Blake would not have stepped in.  He knew that it was allowed during a fight, but this was too much.  This was from an outside source who wanted a war.  How Blake knew that, he had no clue, but he was positive neither of the women in the ring were controlling this.

Grabbing the top rope, Blake jumped over it.  A strong voice called out to him, but Blake ignored it.  As he got closer, he could see the blood dripping from Kris’s white throat.  The leopard’s body was still, letting Blake know that she had no fight left in her.

“Sydney,” Blake said in a soothing voice, “we both know this is not you.  You do not kill helpless people.  She did nothing to you, do you honestly think you would be able to live with yourself if her blood was on your hands.”

The lion did not move an inch, but Blake knew she was listening.  Somewhere in there, Sydney could hear him.  All Blake had to do was make sure she was the one to win her internal battle.  If the magic was the one tp prevail, there would be a war. 

“You want a normal life?” Blake asked.  “How normal do you think it will be when you kill her?  Your brother will be disappointed in you.”

Still, the lion did not move.  Building up courage, Blake began with his next line of verbal assaults.  “We’ll go after your nephews first,” he snarled, hoping it sounded convincing.  “How do you think your sister-in-law would like that?  Watching her nephews die in front of her eyes.  Do you want to know who would take the orders to kill them, Sydney?  Me.”

The lion’s head snapped towards Blake.  He could see the rage flaring in her eyes.  Good, this was exactly what he wanted, her attention off the leopard and on him.  She stalked closer, but Blake stood still.  If it was a fight she wanted, he would give it to her, but no one was going to die on his watch. 

He could hear the familiar sounds of shifting, and soon, a panting Kris lie in the ring.  Blake flicked his gaze to her momentarily and signaled with his eyes for her to run.  He saw the brief hesitation before she nodded and fled the ring.  The small amount of time Blake took his eyes off Sydney was enough.  The lion launched at him, slamming him into the hard ground.

Her teeth snapped in his face, and slight panic entered his body.  What was he supposed to do?  He didn’t know how to fight; he didn’t know how to protect himself like the others did.

“Blake,” someone whispered in his mind.  He recognized the voice immediately, and for once, was happy the bond was firmly intact. 

“Ally, what do I do?”

Her heard her let out a tiny sigh.  “Fight her, Blake.  Ignore the fact that she is a girl, and fight her.”

“I can’t.”

“You can.  Just stop thinking and let instinct take over.  You’re a shifter, Blake.  Fighting is practically engrained into us at birth.  Quit thinking and use the power you have.  We both know it’s there, Blake. Use it.”

He could feel her leave his mind and knew that he was on his own.  That wasn’t true though, was it?  He still had Ally’s power flowing through him.  He could still tap into it whenever he needed too, but did he want to use her power?  Did he want to seem weak in front of the people he was supposed to rule?  No, he concluded with a shake of his head.  He would not be weak now; he would fight without aid and prove that he could do things on his own.

Grabbing Sydney by the throat, he used his shifter power the flip them.  Lying on top of the large lion wasn’t something he felt comfortable with, but it was better than having her teeth snap at his face.  The lion clawed at his back, but Blake ignored the pain.  He could deal with a little pain as long as the result was gratifying, and to him, the only gratifying thing was to escape this thing with all parties breathing.

“Sydney,” he snarled with a slight command in his voice, “I can’t command you to do anything, but you need to think.  This isn’t you.  You’re a snobby girl who wants to be human, not a coldhearted bitch who wants to kill.  I admit what I said earlier was harsh, but it’s not true and you know it.  Your family is safe, will be safe, if you just stop this.”

Something flashed in her eyes letting him know that she was hearing what he was saying, but it still didn’t stop her from clawing at him once more.  This time though, the cut hit deeper, and it was impossible to ignore.  The blood was draining from his body, and Blake didn’t know how much longer he could hold on. 

“This is ridiculous!” a voice shouted from the crowd.  “If you are all going to throw magic on them, I am going to help."

Blake did not recognize either the voice or the young woman who came forward.  Her blonde hair was tied back, streaks of white were easily visible, but it was her eyes that caught his attention.  They were white.  She felt around before finally making contact with the rope.  Pulling it up, she ducked underneath it.  Her head tilted to the side before she walked towards the two of them.

Blake couldn’t take his eyes off her no matter how hard he tried.  Sydney growled at him, but it still did not bring his attention away from the woman.  Blake had to figure out what was different about her.

She stopped in front of him.  “Get off her.”

“I don’t think that is a good idea,” he mumbled.

“Don’t think,” she told him.  “Let instinct take over.”

Her words echoed in his mind, reminding him of the same words Ally had spoken only moments earlier.  With a smile, Blake jumped to his feet and dodged the swipe that was thrown his way.  The woman stood still, and Blake had to fight the urge to jump towards her and push her behind him.

Sydney roared; the sound vibrated through the empty land.  As soon as the sound left the lion, the woman’s hand snapped out towards her.  “Shift.”

The lion froze; an agonizing yowl escaped it before it doubled over.  Bones cracked, fur retreated, muscles shifted, leaving Sydney panting on the ground with tears flowing through her eyes.  A pained expression crossed the woman’s face before she collapsed.  Blake just stood there, not knowing what to do.  Blood was seeping from his back, Sydney was crying, Kris was trembling in the crowd, Isaac was shouting, and the woman who had saved them all was lying motionless on the ground.  What was he supposed to do?  He did what they had told him too, he let instinct take over.