Tonic was probably one of the most decisive and risk-averse men I've ever met. I don't think the man buttered his toast without regretting it afterward, so I don't understand what prompted him to step into the slaughterhouse, which was this sandpit. 

 What can I do? 

I'll be killed if I follow him.

"What position are you competing for? You understand the rules... any fight is to the death if you wish to climb in rank." Sota asks, his tone satisfied, his expression that of a man who had finally found some entertainment. "If you're hoping to find a merciful competitor, there are none here."

"Tonic-" Alpha snarls, only for Sota to bark back at him. 

"Do not interfere." His voice is harsh, and Alpha flashes his fangs in response, his ears flat back against his skull.

"Officer." Tonic responds almost too quickly, nervous, shrinking under the weight of the Alpha's gaze. 

"How did he get past us?" I hiss as Adriam places his arm across my lap, pinning me here. "He'll die. If we don't do something, Tonic is going to die."

"He can hear you, Nicolas." The Frenchman whispers through his teeth."Let Alpha do his job and don't get in the way; there's nothing we can do now. I didn't know that's where Tonic was going; seeing Delta fight might have encouraged him to make an attempt?" 

 My body is rigid, my throat dry, and once more, I'm forced to make peace with someone dying for an unworthy cause. It's school all over again, only my peers weren't typically the ones trying to take my life. I could reason that a starved dragon or a mythical creature couldn't help its predicament, that we were standing between it and freedom, but these men had no reason beyond bravado to kill each other. 

"Do we have any contenders for the officer position?" I hear Sota call, but there is no response, and I hope beyond hope that maybe the pack has taken pity on this poor man. The gangly youngster looks so brave, despite how he tips his muzzle away from his mentor's glower.

 His long, lean limbs cast thin shadows, making him look even smaller in the dimming light.

A challenger steps forward. 

 Another person I love will die. 

It comes out quicker than I can stop it, I love Tonic as if he were my own brother. He was my only friend in this cruel existence.

The tears threaten to spill over, and I reach over to grip Adriam's hand. He clutches me just as hard as I'm holding him.

"Are you ready?" Sota asks. 

Victor and Alpha crowd at the peak of the rock; leaned forward, intense like two gargoyles at attention. The fires flicker off their coats, casting harsh shadows against the grays and whites, sending a shudder down my spine as I force myself to look away.

This fight starts similar to Delta's and I'm seeing a pattern. It was becoming increasingly obvious that the little display at the beginning of the night was a good show of defense skills, proof that there is no shame in not going head-to-head with a much larger foe. 

Tonic lacked the poise and strength to maneuver effectively in the deep sand. I racked my brain in an attempt to conjure up a memory of Tonic attending any of the training sessions. Instead, the majority of his time had been spent watching me; he was underskilled and out of practice. 

The crowd is in a frenzy as the contender grabs him by his hock and throws him across the arena. The motion makes Adriam grab my hand, I flinch, fighting to keep feeling in my fingers. "He's too weak." Adriam murmurs. 

"Someone needs to stop this. Alpha needs to stop this." I plead, "Adriam, do something."

"I told you, we can't!"

Tonic rolls like a log back across the arena with a swift kick from a hind leg. The challenger was toying with him; he wasn't fighting back in a way that would convince me he was taking this seriously. The rival knows he will win, that there was no outcome in which Tonic could best him.

 My gray friend cries out as a paw comes down on his back, knocking him back into the sand. The challenger wants him to last; he wants him to suffer.

 I know the answer. 

His silence screams at me that we are about to watch the end of an omega—a life that, to this pack, was considered forfeit.

Tonic attempts another stand, and once again, he's kicked over; the young wolf tumbles across the arena and lands on his side in a daze. 

To my surprise, Sota raises his fist, bringing the challenger to a halt. "Stand Tonic," Sota commands him. 

"Tonic!" I shout. Adriam flashes his teeth, forcing me back into my seat. It seems so unfair. Why did he do this? Why did he decide to enter the ring? 

"It's fine. I'm fine." The gray wolf stands. Alpha's mini-me could not hold a candle to the size or presence of the silver Alpha. Climbing to his feet, he yelps as he flies across the arena, courtesy of another blow.

"You're pathetic." The challenger spits, "This is hardly even worth the effort, if you think this will get you into Valhalla, they wouldn't even use your pelt as the welcome mat."

"Stand Tonic." I hear Sota command again. 

This time, my gray companion doesn't stand, my sweet chocolate-eyed friend. Slowly, he curls into a ball, placing his paws over his muzzle, a stance I knew all too well.

"Let go of me!" I snap at Adriam, shoving out of his grasp to rush towards the edge of the rock only for Alpha to glower at me, stopping me dead in my tracks. "Help.Him." I mouth, lifting my hands in surrender, for I knew a step closer would be crossing a boundary I wasn't ready to cross.

"Get up, Tonic."  Alpha snarls, turning his back on me to approach the edge. "You cannot just lie there; get up!" 

 The rival begins his approach, running his tongue over his teeth and shaking his head in disbelief. "Even in your final moments, when you've proven that you're a waste of space, you get the favor of the Alpha. Is this what you want?" He calls over his shoulder to the silver wolf. "You want us to curl up and surrender? Is this death with dignity? This is a mercy kill... pathetic."

 "Tonic, I'm ordering you to get up!" Alpha shouts past him.

"Get a hold of yourself, Verando." Sota thumps the wolf on the shoulder with his fist. "This is a bad look; cheer on the champion; do not pity the fallen."

 I can hear the desperation in Alpha's voice. 

The male is hovering over him, "Don't worry, I won't torture your pet, Alpha. I'll end him quickly, this is what mercy looks like. Putting the sick out of their misery rather than listening to them scream on the battlefield."

Turning away, I shut my eyes tightly, pleading that it be quick. 

 I hear the snapping of jaws; in the echo of death, the crowd is completely silent. There is no sound save for the crackle of fire and the whisper of one hundred breaths. "Oh, thank god." Adriam exhales, standing beside me now.

"What? What happened?" I whisper, finally lifting my gaze to see that my request has been answered.

Alpha is standing over Tonic; whatever he'd done had severed the competitor's lower jaw almost completely off.

The dark male staggers backward; the noise he makes and the blood rushing from his wound are quite a sight. He flails and falls to the ground, no doubt going into shock from the pain of such an injury.

 A murmur starts in the crowd. 

The rules have been broken. Alpha's sides move in a slow rhythm; his coat is standing on end, tail erect, ears fully pricked, and fangs exposed. He doesn't look afraid, standing over Tonic, who pants wildly, seemingly in disbelief.

"What.. what happens now?" I ask quickly, grabbing Adriam's arm. "What happens now?"

"Now... we see who the loyalists are." Adriam swallows, his voice hollow. 

Multiple wolves step into the ring, and the onslaught of accusations begins.

"The laws have been broken!"

"Tonic was meant to die!"

"Who pays for the life that was just taken?"

"An Alpha should not interfere with rank!"

"He's just an Omega!"

They circle him, but he doesn't meet their gaze. Alpha stares straight ahead in a way that I never could when I was faced with a certain death. He's patient and skilled, and he knows better than to panic. I can't help but marvel at the calm resistance; they have him where they want him, and the determination in which his stares ahead is absolute. 

"Move Alpha," I whisper, willing him to do anything but stand there.

"He can't. They want him to move, they'll kill Tonic." Adriam responds.

Two silvery coats slowly become swallowed by the growing number of bodies surrounding them—browns, tans, blacks, and gold, all swirling in the sand. 

Victor leaps down into the circle, and I hear Adriam's breath catch. "Do we want more broken jaw? Is one not enough? I'm too sober for this bullshit." The snarl that rips through him resonates in my chest. 

The circle widens as the angered wolves consider their options. 

I can't recall who started the fight, or maybe it was just a mutual decision.

The clashing of teeth and the sounds of battling titans don't send me spiraling; my parent's death stays in the back of my mind, and all I can focus on is that Tonic must live. 

Sota has called forward his wolf. "Enough! That is enough!" he shouts, his voice cutting through the fight.

Silence spreads over the crowd in a curtain of obedience, for they respect One Arm almost as much as the Alpha himself. In an ocean of red, the sand does little to disguise the massacre of all who stood against the pair defending the Omega. Bodies litter the circle, bloody and battered, muzzles gaping in the eternal surprise of their demise. 

Their reddish coats were tinted with fresh blood and gnarled wounds.

 Alpha has hardly given up any ground, Tonic remains firmly underneath him, and Victor has his back to him. Hip to hip, judging by the scuffle marks, they'd remained within his vicinity the entire time. 

Victor's beautiful white coat is stained and soaked through. The pearly white sand bears the bloody scars of battle, pools of murky ink in the darkness. The morning would show the true colors of what had occurred here; the bloodshed could only hide in the dark where evil lurks.

"That is quite enough. The Alpha has spoken; the fight was an unfair advantage, and you bastards are dropping like flies! We do not have time for this! We do not question the Alpha!" Sota reprimands the remaining brawlers, though his yellow gaze never leaves the gray wolf. 

"Get back to your groups; we have bodies to send to Valhalla... Pray to Oden that they are welcome at the gates with the conduct shown here tonight. It's an absolute disgrace. Ready the fires, light the stack, and load these bodies into it. The night is almost over, and the smoke pillar must reach the clouds before sunrise." 

They scatter, and Sota limps down the stairs. I steal after him, breaking away from Adriam, and my lips part, but Sota quickly cuts me off.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Sota's voice is stern, low, and menacing.

"Of all the stupid, immature, ridiculous things you could have done, Verando, this was one of them. Tonic made his choice, and you put us all at risk to defend him. To defend the Omega! These men are already on the edge of their rope; we've been on this mission for months and are no closer to taking Ziduri, so allowing them to blow off a little steam would have been way more helpful than slaughtering six of our best generals in cold blood!

 Do you understand what this does to our support? What this means for us?"

"It was an unfair fight," Alpha responds, his tone cold. "Cold blood... cold blood? Cold Blood is slaughtering a man who is too afraid to stand up and fight. I let them come; I didn't pursue a single one of those bloodthirsty bastards. We weeded out the men who were too far gone to take into battle; this war is not meant to leave beyond bodies but free lands for our people to return to. No home will be left if we destroy everything in our wake, Sota. "

"For fucks sake... This is WAR Verando. The men doubt our abilities to conquer the elf nation, and you show your weakness by defending the lowest form of life in our ranks. We cannot appear weak. This is what this was, your weakness. Your failure." He turns his yellow gaze to Tonic, his eyes blazing like lanterns in the dark. 

His body grows, a former Alpha against dust in the wind, a dead man walking.

"A whore's son ruining our only chance at preventing an uprising; if I was any sort of mentor for you I'd have you kill him with your own hands. He should be banished; there must be punishment, and there might be reprimand that fits the loss of these men. Men who were valuable, in exchange for one who has no value, is not 'fair,' either." 

"That's quite enough, Sota." Alpha retorts. "Go. Drink. Terrorize the men. But you're done here."

 Victor raises a brow but Sota has little to say to him. "Learn English. You sound like you're fucking five..." Charging off into the distance, murmuring about a drink, Sota leaves us as Victor glances back toward Alpha.

"I think I speak the English pretty good." 

Alpha rolls his eyes, helping Tonic to his feet. 

Verando? Is that Alpha? 

I slowly finish my trek down the stairs and approach the trio, composing myself though I struggle to stop the tremble from what I'd just witnessed. 

"Are any of you hurt?" I manage, unable to keep my eyes off the silver creature, unable to reason with why someone who was supposed to be the end of my nation was the one who showed the most compassion. 

Victor shrugs, "A scratch. Will heal to good scar. Not as good as one on face but will have to do." He departs, he knows he's in trouble with Adriam and he doesn't want to deal with.

Watching Alpha and Tonic, of the two, Tonic seems like he's more banged up than bloody. Alpha, on the other hand, appears to have taken the brunt of the damage. I sigh because I know he won't want my help, much as I feel compelled to try. 

The expression he watches Tonic with is one of concern, not one of blame or regret. I know that he would do it again, even if it meant the same outcome: he would save Tonic. 

"Anything serious?" I feel helpless; he shouldn't be punished for saving Tonic's life. The urge to thank him climbs into my throat, but how will he receive it?

"No." Alpha exhales, shaking lose from his staring, sparing me a dismissive glance. 

"For what it's worth, I think what you did was very brave." My words hang in the air, and the large artic eyes watch me in quiet assessment. Uncertain, or perhaps disinterested in my opinion, he leaves Tonic to my care.

I note the severe limp on the left front and hope that he'll find me if he's truly in any trouble. "Adriam, please check him," I beg the Frenchman, who nods, touching my arm before trailing off after the injured Alpha.

"How are you?" I ask Tonic, looking him over.

"I've been better." His wide chocolate eyes searching around like a frightened feline, his body crouched as his fur attempts to settle.

"Tonic, what were you thinking?" 

"I just was sick of how things have been going. I was hoping I could win and get into the upper ranks. Then, I would have a say and could maybe start to change things. I don't know... It was stupid. If Verando hadn't jumped in, I don't know what I would have done." He sighs and shakes his giant head in disbelief. 

There it is again. Verando.

Much as I don't want to derail from my disappointment in Tonic, I have to ask. "Is that Alpha's name? Verando? What an odd name..." 

Tonic looks at me with a look of pure terror. "Erm... No. His name is Alpha." The look on my face says I'm not amused. I wait patiently. "Nicolas, I can't say more; I'm already going to be in trouble."

"Hey, Sota said it first." I try to encourage him. 

Tonic simply groans in response; he knows he's trapped. 

"Isn't almost dying punishment enough without you prying into the life of our leader?" All empathy goes out the window when the man holds onto something I desire. "Yes.. okay? His name is Verando. Why do you care? I thought you hated him?" 

I don't know why the information means so much to me, but it does, and I'm happy to know it. It's just one more piece into the puzzle that is my captor.