Head Wolf

Chapter 3

Blenda woke up to a fire alarm blaring. The sound hammered her sleep deprived brain. What could've happened in the two hours she slept? The fort was in the middle of nowhere, and this was a secret event.

What could have gone wrong?

She stood from her bed, put her coat over her pyjamas, and tiptoed to the door. She stuck her ear to the wooden surface. There were running footsteps and some muffled voices, but nothing indicated a full panic.

She grabbed her daggers from the nightstand and opened the door a sliver. The corridor was empty. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. No smell of smoke reached her nostrils. Her brows knitted together. She opened the door further and slipped through it, closing it with the softest click.

At the first hours of dawn, the corridor was still dark. She stuck to the wall and walked towards the bailey, ears strained to detect any movement. A body came from nowhere and collided with her. Her hand flew to her dagger, but was held by a firm hold. She pushed the person against the wall and pressed her forearm against their throat.

"Easy, woman. I'm a participant too. There's no time to waste." The woman squeaked, pushing on Blenda's arm.
"What do you mean?" she looked at the short woman in front of her. Her brown face was getting purple by the time. A shove to Blenda's stomach sent her a few steps back. The woman coughed, glaring at Blenda.

"I mean, you'd better run instead of standing here chit-chatting. You're lucky your welcome party was a mere fire alarm, Blenda. Mine was wolves barging into my room after one hour of my arrival here," she said, running in the direction of the podium.

"How did you know my name?" Blenda asked, catching up with her.

"Everybody knows after the show you did yesterday. I sure needed the laugh. The guards looked hilarious. How did you do that? I thought they only allow one personal weapon," she said, eying the dagger in Blenda's hand.

Blenda looked away, embarrassed. She lost a whole day, fighting imaginary enemies and swimming in nonexistent rivers. She was lucky she didn't fall off a cliff. "I found it on my way here."

She ran faster, trying to surpass the shorter woman, who didn't seem to have a problem keeping up with her.

The arched doorway at the end of the corridor led to the bailey. The podium in the middle had more people around it than what Blenda would've wished.

"I hope we're not the last to arrive." The woman's words were lost in the soughing of the wind as they reached the courtyard. The dewy air slapped the remaining sleep off Blenda's face. Her cheeks burned from the cold. They arrived as a group of five men came running from a doorway in the opposite direction.

"Well, at last. I was about to send someone to wake you up, ladies." One judge addressed the two women, although they weren't the last to arrive. "You're not in a vacation here. I understand it's your first time out of the kitchen, but you have to keep up, pups."

Eyes with various expressions looked at them. Blenda faced the pity, the malice, and the awkwardness with squared shoulders and a blank face. She didn't come here to impress anyone. She was here to win.

"We'll start with hand to hand combat. Every one of you will fight the person next to them. No weapon's allowed. You'll fight till only one is standing at the end of the day. The rules are simple. Don't kill your opponent. Every winner will fight with the winner of the other pairs."

The twenty fighters dispersed towards the ten makeshift fighting rings around the bailey. Blenda walked alongside the woman. "What's your name?" she said, pronouncing the word name in German.

"Kavya, but you'll call me my queen when I beat you up." She laughed as she jumped inside the ring.

"I'll spoon-feed you your words, oh, mighty queen." Blenda half joked, eyeing the petite woman. Kavya's looks wouldn't fool her. She knew better than to underestimate an opponent. Especially one who was handpicked by the king's generals.

Kavya didn't disappoint. She attacked like a piranha. Using her small body to her advantage, she jabbed and backed in a speed Blenda's mind couldn't comprehend. Every time, pain erupted in a different place than the one Blenda was protecting. The difference in speed caged her in a defensive position. She couldn't deliver a punch to Kavya.

Bruises formed on Blenda's sides and arms. Twice, a blow to the back of her knees sent her to the ground. Her heavy breathing distracted her from hearing the fast approaching feet of her opponent when a blow to her back knocked the air out of her lungs. She fell on her hands, which were too weak to hold her weight. They slipped, banging her elbows on the stone ground. But pain never stopped Blenda. She had a high pain tolerance that kept her alive despite the harshness of the nature in the Alps.

She rolled to the side and jumped to her feet, catching Kavya's huff of frustration. The women were panting as they circled each other. Kavya sent a punch to Blenda's bruised ribs, but it never reached its destination as Blenda jumped to the side, missing it by a whisker. It might not mean much, but Blenda's expert eye knew that tiredness was catching up on Kavya.

As she saw her chances rising, a newfound strength surged through Blenda's veins. She charged at her opponent, using her height and weight to land a life-sucking punch to Kavya's ribs. A grunt skipped her lips as Blenda's fist contacted with her side. The blow stunned Kavya for a second, then a long gasp left her lips. She backed away, swaying, but Blenda was right on her. With a left hook, she knocked Kavya out. Her body hit the ground with a thud.

Blenda leaned on her knees, blinking away the stars she was seeing. When the buzzing in her ears receded, a very annoying voice shouted.

"Woohoo, good job Blenda. I knew you'll win. Woohoo, woohoo."