“Come at me, Klaus. This time, I’ll be sure to win!” Dax said declaratively.
Klaus had gotten enough bullshit for the day, and his entire body was twitching for some action. Without even bothering to tame his power, Klaus charged at Dax wildly, running in a flash.
>FWOOOOOSHHHH<
The wind howled as he dashed, distorting the very space itself as he growled at his target.
The ground split and parted away from him with each step he took and flashes of purple energy caused by his aura raged forth. Still, Dax appeared undaunted by this flashy display and raised his two hands in a combat posture. His eyes remained transfixed on Klaus, despite the frightening speed.
"Dieeeee!!!"
Swinging his claws violently, Klaus launched both hands at Dax. The force was enough to move the very wind around the village, causing the hairs of everyone to dance as both of Klaus' hands neared Dax. But, the attack never connected.
Before they could meet their targets, Dax grabbed each hand with his, gripping them very tightly.
"W-wha-?!" Klaus let out in surprise.
Before he could say any more, though, Dax crushed the bones and ligaments of Klaus, causing his hands to be loose.
"Gahhhhhh!!!" Klaus burst out in pain.
His bones formed after being shattered, regenerating in response to the damage, but Dax broke them even further, causing Klaus to scream in more pain. Pressing him to the ground until Klaus knelt in a submissive pose, Dax kept exerting force and crushing Klaus' hands.
"Guarhhh! You bastard!" The crazed werewolf yelled.
"That's dirty." Dax muttered.
Realising he needed to end things quickly, Dax flung Klaus away from him, throwing him high into the air.
"W-wha-?!" Caught by surprise, Klaus found his body floating uncontrollably in midair.
Before he could fully grasp what was happening, Dax was already amassing an intense surge of energy on one of his fists, concentrating it on his right claw.
>FWOOOSH<
As Klaus' body fell, Dax calculated the distance and rushed to his opponent, driving his hand into Klaus' chest, similar to what was done to him.
"Uarrrk!!!" Klaus spat out blood.
Dax raised Klaus high with one hand, his hand still buried in his chest. Blood dripped from the dangling body of the wounded werewolf. Both his hands were rendered useless due to the messed-up state Dax had put them in, and his life was literally in the palm of Dax's hand.
"I am currently touching your heart, Klaus. If I decide to, I can rip it out right now and kill you…" Dax said.
Upon hearing this, Klaus' eyes bulged, and to the surprise of everyone… tears fell from them. His body trembled in utter fear and powerlessness. As much as he wanted to win and dominate, as much as he hated losing, there was something Klaus feared the most. Death!
"Please… don't… don't kill me…" Klaus pleaded, crying and sobbing in absolute subservience.
His eyes darted to the audience, seeing as they watched his crushing defeat. Shame swallowed him whole as his body kept shaking. Narrowing his search among the audiences, his eyes caught Larry.
Larry's bloodshot eyes screamed one very thing. Rejection. In Larry's eyes, he had already lost his purpose and use. Someone who couldn't obtain the position of King and was now begging for his miserable life… such a man was no longer useful in his grand scheme.
'I'm sorry, Larry… but, I-I don't want to die!" Klaus screams internally.
"How anticlimactic… to think it ended this way…" Dax mumbled, removing his hand from Klaus' chest. The shock of Dax's actions, Klaus' pent-up stress, and the heavy emotional burden that weighed on him, made him lose consciousness, falling to the ground in a heavy thud.
His partly transformed wolf form faded, leaving his human self on the ground. His wounds slowly healed and the blood oozing from his body stopped.
"I suppose… it's my victory, then." Dax smiled.
For a moment, no one said anything, and then a single sonorous voice rang out from the crowd.
"Wohoooo!!! Dax won! Awooo, bitches!!!"
Everyone was stunned to hear something so strange and crude, and the crowd turned behind them to see who the culprit was. Dax smacked his head and sighed, already recognizing who made such an absurd statement.
Even Asher and Roxanne laughed and shook their heads. It was none other than Rita. As the eyes of the crowd went toward her, she looked at them innocently.
"What? I heard it from the humans when I went to the city." She whispered, wondering if her cheer was wrong.
Still… she had to give it to her husband. He pulled through.
"Awooooooooooooooooooo!!!!" Rita let out, pouring her emotions into the melodious howl she made to the darkening skies.
The Werewolves followed her lead and did the same. They all closed their eyes and gave their all into cheering for their new leader and showing subservience to the Wolf King of Oregon woods and Alpha of the Rockwood Pack… Dax!
"Congratulations. You won." Asher smiled, moving closer to Dax.
"Yeah. All thanks to your mate. Thanks a lot. I'm glad you're back." Dax smiled at Roxanne.
Roxanne shrugged slightly.
"I merely brought out the power latent within you. Everything you displayed just now was your own ability."
Dax smiled and nodded upon hearing this. He was fascinated though. When did Roxanne become so mature and powerful, giving him pearls of wisdom.
"It looks like we're nearly wrapped up now." Asher smiled.
There was only one thing left to do.
"Yup. Now that I've been officially relieved of my titles within the Pack, I'm no longer shackled by etiquette or rules. I can fully dispense justice to the culprit." Asher smiled.
He looked in Dax's direction and made a mock bow.
"May I, Lord Dax?"
For a moment, there was silence between both men, and then suddenly they burst out laughing. Dax didn't know what Asher had planned, but he trusted him enough to do the right thing."
"You may, Lord Asher. Pfft."
Laughing silently, Asher walked to the edge of the cliff, Alpha's peak, watching the audience from his height.
"Now that this is all over, the formalities have been done with. I will now reveal the true reason for all this. The cause of this elaborate event has always been toward a particular goal." Asher shouted, drawing the attention of everyone.
Their focus shifted on him instantly, curiously wondering what else was in store for them.
"This was all to catch someone amid us, a traitor!"
Shocked gasps were heard, and whispers exchanged among one another.
"This person was responsible for the recent Hunter attack on the Rockwood Pack, the scandal between Camilla and me, the close assassination of my one and only mate, Roxanne, and even her family. They are also responsible for the recent uprising of the former Wolf King, and their goal is to tear down the current Werewolf community."
Asher's statements seemed unbelievable, however, everyone knew better than to imagine Asher was lying at this point.
"After using this elaborate event as bait and carefully observing everyone, this culprit has finally been identified. He is none other than…"
Asher paused for effect, his eyes darting straight at the man who glared at him murderously. He looked surprised, stunned beyond words, and from his movements, he appeared to be trying to hide or escape. It was too late though… everything was already over.
"… Larry, Omega of the Rockwood Pack. He is a traitor!"