Chapter 64: Chapter 64

Avril noticed that something was wrong with Ñiraka as they made it to the Ring. It was the semi finals, and she had worked so hard. Dakar was fully against her fighting, but he couldn't stop her. Instead, he decided to help her pass through the stages by training her at night. He had known about the method of the tournament's challenges for a very long time, and could predict the next challenges. After a week of it all, he was proud to see that Avril and Verona had reached the semi finals. Avril had been scared a little, because from here onwards the rules were reduced. Contestants could now use full power, or even mischief to win as long as they were fighting while at it. But Dakar assured her she was more mischievous than them. Besides, the greatest power they had over her was speed and shifting ability. But he had somehow managed to thwart that ‘speed’ aspect in the fighting arena. Their speed would be reduced drastically and they wouldn't be in control of it.

“And as for the shifting aspect, it's strictly forbidden. The wolves have their own wrestling show in their animal forms only and it's usually brutal. You know, filled with g0re. But for this tournament, we don't want bodies strewn over in bl00d so we forbade the shifting aspect,” Dakar had said to her the night before as they stood in the woods training.

“And, that means you're totally acing this level. Trust me, babe. You're winning this,” Camper hailed with a bright smile and ruffled her hair.

“Thanks Camper,” she had appreciated as she breathed down. Her huge fear was having a wolf rip her head out from her neck in the tournament. But since it was forbidden, as Verona had earlier told her and now confirmed by Dakar, she was good to go.

But why was Ñiraka looking weird and acting weird as they began to fight? She kept growling lowly and looking menacingly at her. Avril would throw a kick and Ñiraka would catch her leg and pierce long fingers into it, leaving Avril groaning and retreating. She could see that those fingers were extremely long and sharp. Ñiraka would smile sideways and Avril would see elongated teeth.

“No, this isn't happening,” she muttered to herself as reality dawned on her. She had been thrown on the floor, in pain and particularly very weak when she looked up to see Ñiraka changing and the sound of bones snapping loudly. That instant, she saw a brown wolf launch up with a ferocious growl and directly at her. She screamed loudly but that didn't stop the wolf from jumping on her and tearing her skin with its fangs and claws. The fear of pain and death reared its ugly heads in Avril's consciousness, then pulled her into unconsciousness.

“Fiorella!” Verona kept screaming as she and Camper sprinted forward towards the ring. It wasn't only her, the crew members were also running into the ring. But before either of them could even reach it, a huge whitish-gray wolf jumped over all the obstacles and into the ring. He took the smaller brown wolf by the neck with his jaw and flung her away from Avril. He grabbed the wolf again, knocked her on the ground and began to claw her all over—ripping out her fur and skin and not giving her a chance to even retaliate. The she-wolf's loud whimpers showed she was totally overpowered.

“Fiorella,” Verona called as she made it to the Ring and held Avril's arm. The crew members were already carrying her onto a stretcher. Camper frowned angrily as he saw the bloodied and terribly wounded state of Avril. He felt a lump in his throat and angrily pushed it down. He looked at Dakar's wolf who was still trying to murder Ñiraka.

“Derek!” he called to him with a loud voice. But no, Derek was surely planning to rip Ñiraka's wolf apart. No other person dared to come close to him. No one at all. Camper growled and shifted himself into a pure black wolf, bigger than the brown wolf but nothing close to Dakar's wolf. He sprang up and pushed Dakar away. Then he stood between the two and roared angrily at Derek. He nudged his head towards Avril that was being taken away on the stretcher with Verona crying beside her. Derek's ears fell and instantly, Dakar was back.

“Avril,” he muttered under his breath then ran out and sprinted towards the stretcher. Camper followed him in his wolf form.

“Fiorella!” he called and the crew members stopped. He ran to her and held her bloodied arm.

“No, please,” he found his voice cracking up and his vision blurring.

“My Prince, we have to give her medical attention or else she might...” the person trailed off as he couldn't bring himself to say the next part. Verona was clutching onto the stretcher and crying. Avril's face was totally ruined, claw marks dug deep into it and fang wounds were drawn from up to down. The only part not covered with blood were her legs. Dakar stared at Avril while breathing deeply.

“Take her to the palace, my castle. And call only the best doctors we have to attend to her,” Prince Dakar gave the order. Then he turned around to Camper's wolf.

“Follow them and take care of Fiorella,” he ordered and began to walk away.

“Where are you going!?” Camper called after him as he shifted back to human form but Dakar did not answer. He exhaled and turned to the crew members.

“Let's go,” he said and they all began to run with her out of the tournament arena.

The happenings was too much for the spectators to keep shut. The noise in the arena was too much and the panic in the air was evident. No one needed a soothsayer to tell them that the Prince was deeply angry about what happened to his ‘friend’. And the way he walked back menacingly towards the ring was making them count their heart beats. Officials ran to the Ring and tried to take Ñiraka up and out. She had automatically shifted back and was gasping for air.

“Don't you dare!” his voice reverberated through the arena and the officials froze. His green eyes turned darker and darker, until they were a shade of red. And his dark brown hair began to have red highlights. Dakar was slowly turning into a menacing creature. His claws were elongating and his fangs began to portrude from his mouth. A few officials took to their heels and ran away from before him, while the others who didn't, stood there like statues. But when he came super close, and they sensed the aura around him, they too took to their heels.

“Ñiraka,” he said and she cried and tried to move back. He climbed into the ring and she cried more.

“I'm sorry. Please,” she pleaded. Dakar smirked evilly and rubbed his tongue against his fangs. He took a step forward and a dark vapor began to rise from his hands. Ñiraka's eyes widened. She was done for. She just knew it. Dakar raised his hand and was going to throw her whatever dark magic he was wielding. She closed her weak eyes and expected to be thrown across the whole arena the next second. But it didn't happen. She opened her eyes and saw Dakar's hair back to normal, his eyes back to green and the fangs and claws back to their length. He was staring at the hand he had lifted up, like he had never seen a hand before. His eyes looked dazed and confused. She released a breath she had been holding and he looked at her.

“Ñiraka,” he called softly.

“My Prince... Please, I didn't do anything. I don't know how—”

“I release you from the position of my Royal Concubine. And ban you from stepping your foot in my quarters. However, you are under arrest and would be sent to the Palace dungeons until further notice,” he expelled calmly and her eyes bulged.

“No! No! Please no! What would I be of I'm not your concubine? You can't do this to me!” She shrieked as she felt arms pulling her up and dragging her away. It was the palace guards, they had come after Camper alerted them immediately she attacked Avril through the Mindlink.

As Ñiraka cried and was taken away, Dakar resumed staring at his hand. All he remembered was giving the order for Camper to follow Avril. How he got to the ring, and was about to do some terrible harm to Ñiraka was a surprise to him. He had nothing to do with any of that.

**

Ñiraka had cried her heart, lungs and all the liquid in her body out. She had been in the dark, scary and filthy dungeon for hours. She could not believe she was there. The mighty Ñiraka thrown into a cell. That would be the talk of all the concubines for a long time. The look in the Prince's eyes was one she would never forget. It told her she was done for. She would never be forgiven for harming his beloved. She had no idea Fiorella meant that much to him. She had suspected he had taken a deep likeness for her. But not to this extent. Now that she had been demoted, wouldn't Fiorella take her place?

“That's if she even survives,” she said to herself and cried. If Fiorella doesn't survive her attack, then she too would not live to see the next minute. She would be killed brutally. Who knows, by the Prince himself.

Parched and vulnerable, she closed her eyes and slept off. But a few minutes later, she heard the outer iron doors opening. She flung her eyes open as light flooded her cell. She looked and saw her father approaching.

“Father,” she cried and crawled to the iron bars to hold them. Her legs were totally weak, and her wounds inflicted by Dakar weren't healing rapidly.

Nobleman Adolphus stared as his daughter and he got really angry.

“Ñiraka,” he called and squatted down.

“Father,” she teared down.

“Don't worry, I'll get you out of here. I'm so sorry. I had no idea the Prince would be at the Tournament today. If it wasn't there, my plans would have gone through,” he apologized and Ñiraka's brows furrowed.

“What do you ...what do you mean?” she stuttered. But he didn't answer. She blinked her eyes repeatedly and gasped.

“No...no father, you didn't,” she stated and moved back.

“I'm sorry. It was not supposed to turn out this way.”

Ñiraka cried and grabbed her hair in her palms. She knew then it wasn't her. She could never openly break the rules in front of everybody. She would never try to take anybody's life. She hadn't shifted of her own accord. Her father, Nobleman Adolphus had hypnotized her into making her shift and try to murder Fiorella.