THE RED PRINCE VS EJ

25 FEBRUARY, THURSDAY, CONTINUED

"Eihhhh!!!" EJ exclaimed, "Me?"

"Maybe esteemed young warrior might consider another dog to spar with?" Fluffy smiled his beautiful smile, "If the esteemed young warrior does not mind, perhaps I can entertain you instead?"

Wth?

"Would you like to play with me instead?" Fluffy invited.

From the look on Link's face, I think he was as confused as I was.

"Uh...no, that's okay." Link shook his head instinctively, "I know since I'm a senior here, it doesn't look good to challenge someone younger than me, but you guys are all professional fighters and to be honest, I don't have all that much fighting experience yet. Plus this is just a sparring match... Right?" Link had to look at Hank now.

Hank nodded his authority, "Yes. Just a sparring match."

Ki raised his hand now, "Delta Oran is on his way, sir, so if it's just sparring, it shouldn't be a problem."

Now Link was having second thoughts, "That's the Lorents' healer, right? Why... Why do we need a healer?"

Fluffy smiled, "That is why I suggested esteemed young warrior choose someone else to play with. EJ is fine but triggering his wolf can have dire consequences. Keys is right to have a healer and tranquilizer gun on hand."

A healer and a what now?

At this point, I realized that the buzzing of mindlinks around me was not just idle chitchat or secret bets being placed or any of the usual light-hearted fun wolves had while spectating fun fights.

On the Beta Channel, my betas were planning where to position Delta Oran with the tranquilizer gun should anything goes awry.

{That should give him a clear shot without endangering Link.} Harvey considered the beeches, {If he can't, then take two shots - better to have Link asleep than dead.}

{We shoot on first blood.} I barely recognized Ki's stern tone. There was no room for debate.

"Wait. Stop." This was Ben, quite aloud too, "This is a waste of time and a stupid risk, sir. Link choose someone else. EJ, you're banned from the mat. Better still, you're banned from training sessions. Go back to your room."

"That's not fair!" I protested before Hank agreed, "EJ is one of us now. He should have the right to participate and train with us like any other wolf."

"But EJ isn't any other wolf, Alpha." Harvey worried... But my good beta was always worrying. EJ was EJ!

"I heard you killed countless wolves in the fight cages." Link's friendly demeanor was gone now. I guess someone had mindlinked him more information, "And you didn't stop till the cage was covered in blood."

"No... he said the b-word." Barry covered his mouth and muttered into his hand.

"Let's not talk about our depressing pasts, esteemed young warrior." Fluffy quickly interjected, "We have all since moved on."

Which was a lie. I didn't even need my alpha sense to know. The fact that Fluffy had suddenly regressed to this super weird speech pattern should've have alerted me from the start that something wasn't quite right.

Everyone's wolf was out.

Delta Oran entered without a word. He had a long black case in hand. On any other day, I would have assumed it held some kind of healer equipment or musical instrument. But of course I knew what was inside.

"Stand down, EJ. Go to your room." Ben ordered.

I guess Ben must have noticed EJ's change in demeanor, but we were all too late.

EJ stepped up very silently onto the mat. His wolf produced an oppressive aura, almost like an Alpha's domination, but darker. I felt my wolf ears pop up at the bloodthirst it radiated.

When EJ spoke, it was with an eerie calm, "Not just in the fight cages. Even after I came out, I spilled blood in every direction."

Which couldn't be true, since nobody died when EJ moved in. But I didn't sense a lie either.

"EJ! Snap out of it!" Hank ordered.

{Dear uncle. Please fire at your earliest convenience.} Ki mindlinked.

{Brat! I'm setting up as fast as I can!} Delta Oran sounded stressed out.

Ki stood up. I think he meant to step into the mat, but Link beat him to it.

"Link, fall back." Hank ordered, "The rest of you too. All trainees below Tier one, get up and leave the hall."

"Awwww...." The other trainees protested.

"Again?" One of them complained, "The Tier One always makes trouble."

"Yeah, this is the second time our training got cut short."

"I didn't hear you. Do you guys want to repeat that?" Ben threatened. Why? Did my scary beta take that personally?

The other guys didn't wait to find out, "What? No..."

"Not to you anyway." One of them quipped.

Hahaha. They still had the guts to provoke Ben, but Ben only chuckled, "Jack... Just you wait."

Jack and some of the guys around him laughed, but the trainees were exiting. No one could just sit on the floor anyway. Not with our wolves heightened like that.

EJ... Or should I say the Red Prince was making it very hard for us to ignore him.

Ben stood in front of me, as if his body would be a better shield than my hair!

{Buy some time for Delta Oran.} Ki mindlinked over the Beta Channel.

Torque pulled Link off the mat, "You're not his opponent kid."

But Link shook the big man off, "No! I must fight him!"

Wait what?

"Link, be serious." Ben said.

"I am serious!" And Link looked really seriously too, "I'm dead serious."

"If you fight, you'd just be dead though." Barry told him.

"I can't let this go." Link growled, "Although it started as a friendly challenge, now that I've seen your true colours, don't blame me for not holding back."

Link was all fired up. His wolf on the surface, but really, you could tell at a glance that he didn't have a chance. He was the only one not holding back, even the Red Prince was holding back magnificently, and Link was still the weakest.

"EJ!" Barry suddenly shouted, "Hang on it there!"

Eh? Why was Barry cheering for EJ?

"Yeah, little guy!" Torque called out, "You're going to be okay!"

Now I had to take a second look. What was all this about? Except for spewing the dark aura and a few words, the Red Prince had not moved an inch on the mat.

"Think about the pretty girls, EJ!" Fluffy joined in, "If you become a monster, they'll be too scared of you to play with."

"Yeah!" Barry apparently felt Fluffy was on to something, "You might grow old without ever having a girlfriend!"

What kind of threat was that?

But whatever, it was working. The Red Prince clenched his fists but they were held firmly to his side. He was growling lowly though, and the dark energy around him was moving in a chaotic way.

"Don't cheer for him!" Link was furious, "Ben! Come help me defeat this monster. Evil wolves like you who kill indiscriminately are a stain on our Lycan name."

"It's not like that, Link!" I felt I had to defend EJ.

"You've heard him yourself, Sam." Link shook his head, "I know you're an alpha with a very kind heart, but that guy has no remorse for what he has done."

"Well, it's not like he remembers." Barry tried to explain, "EJ and the Red Prince don't share the same memories."

Wait, what?

At the corner of my eye, I saw Delta Oran lift up the gun to take aim. I wasn't the only one.

"Arugghhhhh!!!" EJ?

The red head jumped and dodge the bullet. Cobra pushed Ink out of the trajectory and got hit. Immediately, he fell over. That tranquilizer had quite the immediate effect.

"Cobra!" Barry shouted. Ink turned back to drag Cobra's body further away from the mat.

"Bring him here." Harvey instructed, and then he stepped up, my calm cool beta.

"Stand down." My calm beta gave the beta command, "Both of you."

"But..." Link said even as he instinctively took a step back.

I don't think Delta Oran was very good at dealing with guns. He seemed to be fumbling to reload.

I remembered how he had fumbled with the IV drip too. Delta Oran didn't have the most nimble fingers. Or maybe he was just out of practice.

But I had more important things to deal with. It wasn't so much the Red Prince's bloodthrist, but that EJ seemed to be struggling. I took a step forward.

"Be careful, Sam." Ben warned as a passed him.

"You don't have to worry." I stepped up to stand next to Harvey.

"EJ, that's enough. You've worked hard, but I'll take it from here." I decided.

"Wait, no!" Harvey realized immediately what would happen. He raised his arm to block the red head's attack.

So EJ had this other side too. Just like me and Boo.

{Don't compare me with a weak wolf like that.} Boo took offence.

That's not it, there was nothing weak about EJ's wolf. While it wasn't an Alpha wolf, it was a pure warrior bloodline, a rather deadly one at that.

Imagine an army of elite blood warriors - bloodthristy wolves who would rush into battle and turn the battlefield into a sea of blood. It's just one of those things I've only ever read in Lycan legends.

On its own as one wolf, it seemed lonely though.

Boo flared dominance as I took the last few steps forward. No one stopped me, its not like anyone could move, not with the density of alpha bombing my wolf was doing.

{Sam.} Ben warned.

I shut him out.

The Blood Prince dropped down to his knee and bowed his head, "What are your orders, Alpha."

Good. At least he recognised his Alpha. I touched EJ on his shoulder, "It's over. Just sleep. I will call you when I need you."

And then the Blood Prince tumbled forward into an unconscious heap on the ground at my feet.

I blinked. Then I looked up at Delta Oran, did he finally manage to shoot that tranquilizer? He immediately shook his head and raised his hands in surrender, the gun over his head. No? Not him?

Then seriously? EJ's wolf just fell asleep purely on my alpha command?

Wow, I'm good.

"Alpha." Harvey was by my side immediately, he was looking at me the way he did when Flynn made it sound like I used to break punching bags as a pup.

"What happened?" Barry asked.

Good question.

"As expected of our beautiful alpha," Fluffy praised, "To have the profound ability to seal away one's wolf. I have only ever read of that Alpha ability before."

Wait, was that what happened? When did Boo master such a high level ability? Boo puffed out with pride.

"What should we do with EJ?" Harvey asked me.

I looked at the crumpled heap at my feet, "Bring him to his room and let him rest. He will be okay."

It wasn't going to be so simple. I kind of knew even as I considered everything. At most, I've only placed a temporary seal on EJ's inner demon.

I watched Barry hoist EJ up, "Fluffy, come help me."

"Sure." Fluffy suddenly turned back to normal too, "I know where all his things are."

We all had our own inner demons, I suppose. Our own skeletons in the closet. Compared to Fluffy, EJ was actually the most straightforward. As long as he didn't shift or trigger his wolf to take control, he was fine.

His wolf though... Hahaha.

{Fun} Boo nodded her approval.

Sigh. Birds of a feather flocked together. Don't worry, EJ. Stick with me. I'll protect you from yourself till you're strong enough to stand up on your own again.

"You know, Sam, if you did that from the start, it would have saved us a lot of trouble." Ben informed me.

Harvey frowned at the younger beta, "Ben, it's not easy to execute that level of Alpha dominance and command to suppress and seal another wolf. The amount of power and focus required is unimaginable."

The way Harvey spoke, it was as if I really had broken a punching bag in a single punch.

"Our young Alpha Princess is not only beautiful and kind, but also peerless in her power and wisdom." Ki chimed in.

I don't know what weird narration Ki was cooking up in his head, but I had better not see that kind of embarrassing praise floating online!

Sigh, I really didn't feel like dealing with anymore complicated things for now, "I want to check on River's progress."

Yeah. Let's just leave the complicated things aside for now.