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Carnivores Versus Herbivores

Part Two

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Written by Arian Mabe (Amethyst Mare)

Commissioned by Meeper

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"Sit still," Haru said, the small, white bunny clicking her tongue impatiently against the roof of her mouth. "I can't fix your leg with you squirming about like this!"

Louis clenched his jaw, though remained silent, tipping his head down. They didn't know if there were any other carnivores around, though the wooded area around them where the fight had gone down was quiet, seemingly clear. He couldn't help that it hurt, though the bandage helped, even if it was only one torn from scrap fabric. Haru had lamented about how she would have ripped her skirt for him, with that little flirtatious bob of her tail that she did without thinking of it, he was sure, and used that as a bandage...but they were all in their underwear. It struck him that there was a distinct lack of sexualization, even with every one of his over eighteen classmates in their final year wearing very little, though it was not something that the deer could linger on.

"Thank you, Haru."

She glanced up at him, securing the makeshift bandage, puffing her cheeks out.

"They don't give you many supplies," she said, shaking her head. "But they drop supplies for us when we win a fight, when the...others are all locked up in those cages, knocked out cold. But it will have to do. The antiseptic will make sure it does not get infected. Can you walk?"

Of course, he could, though the medicine available to them would have likely been strong enough to heal a broken bone if it had been required, he was sure. There was a lot more going on there than Louis and Haru knew, the fight of carnivores against herbivores, and vice versa, in the dome having only just begun.

Alas, his senses were not up to par for the situation they had found themselves in, a light bank to their left sheltering them, though also hiding others that could be hiding up top from their line of sight. Haru's ears twitched as she ducked her head, but she did not catch the rustle in the trees as Kai and Sheila, from the drama club that Louis had been the leader of, latched themselves to the trunks, hidden.

"We need to move," the mongoose hissed, Kai's head tucked down low, roughed up around his cheek as if he had already been in a fight. "We've got the jump on them... If we don't move now, we'll never get them!"

Sheila shook her head, the cheetah smiling faintly, though it was not as if she took any pleasure from the fights. It was not something that she had ever wanted, not something that she honestly thought that many of the predators at the school had wanted, but it was what they had to do. The thoughts of her family locked into her mind as she gave a short, tight nod, the smile fading from her lips.

The stakes were high. She couldn't let her family down. And neither could she let the skittish mongoose slow her down either, holding up a hand to stay him.

"In a moment..." She breathed, the tip of her tail curling back and forth where black ringed it, dark rosettes covering the rest of her golden-furred body. "On my signal..."

She raised her hand - and dropped it, giving the signal, the two of them moving as if in perfect sync, though it was a fluke. They were not two predators who would have spent much time together and anything that happened in smooth fluidity between them was merely a fluke, their shadows cutting across the air above the two prey creatures, Louis' eyes darkening with realisation.

"Move!"

He shoved Haru, sending the bunny sprawling, though she was up on her feet again in no time. He didn't have a chance to test his leg out before he was forced to run, leaping out of the way as Sheila landed in the spot where he had been only moments before, scuffing up the dirt. The mongoose tumbled down, a length of rope in his paws that he didn't seem to know what to do with, though it was the rag with chloroform sticking out of the back of his underwear, awkward to hang onto, that he was the wariest of.

Louis scowled, lips twisting the tiniest amount, keeping his body between Haru and them as the predators circled, coming in closer. Two different species and two very different hunting styles... They would not go well together.

The bunny shook herself off, more annoyed about being knocked over than the attack itself. When she realised who had attacked them, her head tilted to the side, ears flopping with the direction of her head.

"Well, well, well..."

Haru's face twisted, though there was a smile on it as she straightened, a hand on her hip as she popped it out cheekily.

"Ohhhh, so you were up there like snakes in the trees," she teased them, though there was a bite of truth behind her words, "waiting for us to be unaware? Haven't you heard that that's bad form?"

Kai drew up short as if he had not considered that, but Sheila, more on the ball than him, scoffed and shook her head.

"There are no rules in this game other than the ones that they gave us," she said flatly, tail lashing back and forth in anticipation. "So, you shall not find me playing by any rules that you think you have made up for me!"

She moved in a blur, a burst of speed lending strength to her feet, lunging at the deer, the one that she thought would be the hardest to take down. The silly bunny had always had the eyes of everyone around that school, prancing around the predators as if she did not hold any fear of them at all. She should have known her place, even if Sheila had no stake at all in Haru's life or who even the bunny hung out with.

It was not her game and yet it was fuel for the fire that demanded that she protect her captive family, her loyalty fierce, locking her in place. Slipping into a fighting stance, Kai did the same, though the mongoose hunkered down a little lower to the ground, where he was more confident. Abandoning the rope, he readied his fists.

Haru was the first to attack, breaking the crackling tension in the silence between them, forcing Louis to move to. She lunged for the mongoose, a blur of cheetah beside her telling her just where Sheila had gone, but could only focus on one of them at a time. Her heart pounded - she had to defend Louis! She had promised she would and yet two against two demanded that they each take a partner, even if they swapped who their opponent was during the fight itself.

"Yaahhhhh!"

Kai lunged, striking in a cross-chop that she dodged, ducking her head so that his hand whistled past her ears. Turning on her heel, she brought her leg up and followed through, twisting into a light-of-foot cartwheel kick. It was a move that left her head vulnerable to a kick or a strike while she fell through the latter part of it, but the greatest element of it was, of course, the nature of surprise. There were few, even those more practised in martial arts than her, that would know of such a move.

BAM!

"Yaaaaaooooowwww!"

The kick caught him on the underside of his jaw as she kicked up, changing the move to suit her and his size, following through on the tumble safely while he was too incapacitated, howling in fury, to attack her.

"What's the matter, Kai?" She said with a smirk, though it was so small that it barely pulled at her lips. "You seem hurt."

The mongoose rounded on her, though she should not have underestimated him, for he had more weight on her, despite his short stature.

"You're going to regret that, rabbit! Yahhhhh!"

He lunged for her in a fury of cross-chops and side kicks, moving quickly, even if Kai was not as fluid as her. He was clumsy yet not slow, moving with deadly intent and Haru was forced back onto the defensive as he came at her with a roundhouse kick, spinning his leg with brutal force up in front of him, slamming into her chest.

POW!

"Ooofff!"

She grunted, flung backwards clean off her feet, the fight between Louis and Sheila going on around her. Yet Haru did not want Louis to help her as Kai pursued even as she managed to get around and onto all fours, the impact of the ground from her initial fall not registering. He shoved her down onto her front, grabbing her leg and shoving her ankle between his thighs, holding her in place. His teeth bared, eyes blazing with the fight that he thought he'd already won.

"I've got you now!"

He twisted around, lying on her back in such a way that he could lock his arms around her head, squeezing to keep her ankle in place between his thighs, wrenching all the way back at a vicious angle in a Stepover Toehold Facelock.

"Arrrrgghhh!"

Haru grunted as he stretched out her back, neck and knee, squirming in place, though the pull of the hold had her gasping for air. There was nothing a bunny loathed more than feeling trapped and her instincts longed for a dark hole to secure herself away in, a burrow where she could feel safe, secure. Yet the mongoose's clumsiness was his undoing, shifting his weight at the wrong time as he tried to get a better grip on her head, allowing her to lock her other ankle around his leg and flip him. It was not much of a flip, more of a shrug as he didn't go that far, though it was enough to dislodge him and for Haru to scramble up.

She wasn't down yet.

Louis circled Sheila, the cheetah breathing more harshly. After an initial sprint of speed, she didn't have too much stamina, while Louis had spent his whole life learning how to conserve his energy.

"Give up, prey," she hissed, though she would never have usually talked to him like that. "This is not your fight to win."

But Louis didn't grace her with an answer as he dropped and charged, levelling his antlers at her. It was not a martial art move, as she had expected from one as refined for him, but was barbaric and reckless and caught her entirely off-guard.

WHAM!

His antlers slammed into her, tossing her up in the air, though the cheetah twisted, despite having the breath knocked from her lungs, coming for him even before she landed. However, it put them in close contact with each other, Sheila shorter than Louis, grappling as she bared her teeth at him, fire lashing in the backs of her eyes.

"Submit!" She snarled, though Sheila should have already known there was no way that Louis would do that. "This fight is mine!"

Louis smirked.

"It seems you have forgotten about your partner..."

Her attention wavered for a heartbeat of a moment and that was enough for him to drop her to the ground with a leg sweep that took her legs clean out from under her. She crashed down and he pursued the attack, using his legs so that he could better keep her snapping teeth away from him. Even with his history, there was something about fangs that still sent a shudder of distaste through him.

With his legs, however, he could wind them around hers in another kind of grapple, locking them with hers in a figure four leg lock that nicely disabled her, a cleaner move than any she had thrown at him. In complete control of himself, Louis ignored the throbbing of his leg, though the healing was working quickly still. He could have done with a little more time to allow it to set in, but that wasn't an option.

"Unnnff..."

Sheila groaned as he tightened his grip, unable to get her hands near him, though she struggled, the mongoose in her sights. He was up again, circling Haru, neither giving any ground. But she saw an opening and ached to go for it, predatory instincts sinking their claws into her.

Yet she had to get the deer off her first as she curled up, using her abdominals, to reach him, fingers groping, seeking a pressure point on the back of his knee. Shelia had to move quickly, but, with a quick jab in the right spot, she loosened his grip on her enough to wriggle free, her legs small enough that she could slip right out of his hold.

She didn't want for the deer, however, turning on the bunny as she went for her, a hand lashing out in a back fist that struck Haru with the back of her hand, trying to get her over her shoulder so that she could toss her. Even though Haru would have gladly taken them both on, Louis charged in, taking Kai, at least, off her hands with a swift roundhouse kick that swept his bare foot up under his jaw.

WHAM!

Kai cursed and rubbed his face, though it had been a glancing blow as he'd reeled back for it, ducking in close and trying to get his arms around the deer's neck and head. A hold, yes, if he could grapple with Louis, he could get the upper hand, though he was shorter and had to shift up a small incline in the wooded area to get into position. The ground was not even under their feet, which only complicated the fight, trees blocking the way, though they were sparser than they could have been.

Louis, however, was quicker, grabbing the mongoose and dragging him to him from the side so that Kai's left leg went between Louis' thighs. The mongoose pulled back, not knowing what was happening, but Louis grabbed his near arm and locked it behind his back, following through with a squat that pulled Kai down with him. His height gave him the advantage where Kai writhed and howled, the deer twisting to the side so that he could flex his opponent's back, stretching Kai's abdomen out and out and out.

It left Kai's stomach exposed to further holds, Louis' legs quivering, though a surge of power could not be helped from flowing through him.

"Unnnfff..."

Pinning the mongoose against him in the abdominal stretch, even though it was an evenly matched fight at a quick pace where no one had gained the upper hand yet, Louis took a moment to breathe. It was almost a rest to squeeze around Kai. He had to get his bearings, though Haru seemed to be holding her own with the cheetah at the very least.

The mongoose, however, was a slippery creature that he had not given due credit, though it had been a long, long time since he had fought against anyone that was not of his species. Louis grunted, having pressed in so close that Kai had been above to shove his fingers up into the deer's clavicle, a tender, sensitive spot that Louis would have done well to protect. Yet he couldn't cover everything as he stood, him and Haru back side by side, facing off with Sheila and Kai.

The deer's eyes darkened.

"Let us end this now."

It was a mad scramble of kicks and punches, Kai even yanking Haru's ears, though the prey had more, in a way, to fight for than the predators. Louis grabbed at Sheila's arms, trying to pin them behind her back, though the cheetah wrenched herself free from him with such force that the deer staggered to the side.

"No!"

POW!

A foot hooked sharply behind his ankle and pulled forward, yanking him off his feet as the deer toppled onto his back, Sheila pressing the attack. Leaping on top of him, she pinned him while whipping out a rag of chloroform, all hissing rage, the fury of the fight upon her. She wasn't even sure she remembered who her opponent was anymore.

But the deer was not down and out yet as he heaved and twisted to the side, getting a knee under him to buck her off violently, the rag flying out of her hands.

"No!"

Sheila scrambled after it, but the deer was quicker than her, a solid kick to her stomach dropping her instantly, a low groan of pain rising from her lips as she knelt, unable to do more. It sank through her, a deep throbbing, though the urgency to be up and on her feet was overpowering.

Calculating, Louis let her get back up to her feet, though she was severely weakened, merely taking her arm and using the momentum, and heft of his body to finish her off with a throw back over his shoulder. The solid thump that the cheetah's body made connecting with the ground let him know that she was down, not moving, still conscious but weakened to the point that he had her where he wanted her.

At least for the fight.

He took her rag of chloroform, using it for the intended purpose as he dragged her up against him, as he crouched, into a sitting position, her back to his chest.

"Go to sleep, Sheila. You have no part in the rest of this fight."

The cheetah's eyes widened, eyelashes fluttering wildly, but he secured his other arm around her, pinning her arms to her sides, holding her there. Unable to get her legs under herself, Sheila was helpless to him as he secured the rag over her mouth and nose, allowing the sweet sickliness of the chloroform to infiltrate her body.

No! She struggled and struggled, but she could not hold off against the influence of the drug as it sank into her. there was no fresh air for her, not as her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, dragging her down and down and down. She fought it and fought it, though she wanted to go, pulled by the slow, dull heaviness hauling at her limbs.

She couldn't move, couldn't do anything. Her eyelids fluttered closed, the last thing she saw being the deer's face. Louis pressed the rag a little closer, ensuring there was no space at all for her to even get a drop of fresh air, sleepier and sleepier, teetering on the edge of unconsciousness.

"You don't have to fight anymore," he told the cheetah as Sheila finally succumbed fully to sleep, slumping in his arms. "Just sleep."

He laid her down, holding the rag firmly over her face for several long seconds more, checking her breathing, just to make sure that she was knocked out.

He turned his head at the sound of a scuffle, although he had no concerns, not really, about Haru. The bunny could hold her own better than most and pinned Kai, the breath knocked out of his lungs, though a strike to his head with the heel of her hand had him dizzy. It was rough and it was harsh, but there was no time for gentleness when it came to the fight in the dome. Even the prey creatures there had to take every chance they got.

As Louis passed Haru the rag, intending to allow her to chloroform Kai too, the mongoose put up his last fight. It had never been his fight to win as she locked her legs around his a little too late, Kai fighting and twisting, howling.

"You'll never take me!"

It was fear, however, that made him fight as he did, flailing awkwardly, throwing his legs around and striving with all his might to push her off. Louis would have offered help but a look from the bunny warned him off. He didn't want to interfere when she already had a handle on it.

The mongoose, however, could not hold on, not when she had the rag wrapped around his face more and more firmly, covering his snout so that both nostrils and his mouth could not take a breath that was not the sweet drug. They could not see his eyes, though they knew it was working as his struggles grew weaker and weaker, fading before their very eyes. But one more predator down would mean they were one step closer to victory, still in the game, still able to protect those that they cared about.

Kai slumped fully onto the ground, a dead weight, unconscious. Only then did Louis and Haru methodically drag Sheila and Kai next to one another, laying them on their backs, for the victory poses to come.

Louis' lips pressed together.

"I dislike this."

But they had to do it if they wanted the rewards that came with doing the victory poses, pleasing the watching overlords who controlled their fate. Louis took a deep breath and posed first with his foot on Sheila's chest, presenting it across her breasts so that the heel pressed into one and the toes brushed the other. There was nothing sexual about it, though even he could not deny that it was empowering in a way, making him want to lift his chest.

The stag tilted his antlers, striking a pose with his arms held high in triumph, moving on to her stomach. The drones circled them, so many in the arena that Louis had started not taking notice of them. Beside him, Haru placed her foot on Kai's chest, right in the middle with her toes pointing towards him.

"Yeah!"

It was not a convincing cry, but it didn't have to be, flexing her arms like a male trying to impress a lady on either side of her head, her knee jutted out confidently. Louis gestured to her and they swapped places, the drones floating by, capturing everything, Haru taking up position on top of Sheila's chest too. They felt, in a way, that they had to cover everything, though Louis' bare foot did not feel quite right on the body of a male. It brought it too close to home, though the predator was smaller than him.

They changed positions with their arms, holding one hand straight up in the air with a clenched fist of victory and swapping to holding their arms outstretched overhead in a V-shape, demonstrating their victory. Haru took it more methodically than Louis, careful to shift her weight just so, not putting too much pressure on them.

"It's like they weren't fighting us at all, when they're like this," she muttered, ears drooping. "I don't want to hurt them...but they tried to hurt us."

All part of the game, the gamemasters getting into their heads. Louis nodded sympathetically, though the way his blood pumped through him in the aftermath of the fight had him taking another pose with his foot on Kai's stomach, bearing down carefully as he flexed, letting his bare chest show, the power of a herbivore on full display.

Just because he was a herbivore did not mean that he was weak, his toes wriggling on Kai's bare stomach, the mongoose quiet, unconscious, helpless.

The whirring of a drone landing caught their attention and Haru rushed to make sure the supplies were unpacked and in their possession, laid out on the ground where they could take what was needed, considering that they could not carry much with only their underwear on. There was nowhere to store things, but Louis wondered if something like a shoulder pack would be supplied later. It had not hindered them in the fights so far.

"Come on."

He led the way, going to pick up Kai, but Haru shook her head.

"No, let me."

The rabbit was firm and he allowed her to do it, though Haru struggled with the mongoose's weight. It was not his place to stop her, however, letting her carry Kai while he hauled Sheila over his shoulder as gently as he could. Two more cages designated for carnivores had been lowered nearby for them, between the trees, and they slid them into the cages as gently as they could, ensuring all limbs and extremities were tucked within.

Haru smiled, closing the cage after Kai, though the rabbit's eyes were more hopeful.

"We came up with a plan, Kai, don't worry," she whispered, glancing back at the drones, quiet enough so that she would not be heard. "We're going to save everyone. Don't worry, Kai."

But they would need time to put that plan into action.

*

"This isn't much food," Juno grumbled, tearing into stale bread and the meat substitute that was so popular at the schools and mixed carnivore-herbivore establishments. "My stomach's growling..."

Legosi, without needing to hear more, pushed a bit of his towards her. It wouldn't be more than a mouthful, both needing their strength, but she mumbled her thanks anyway, a little starry-eyed around the wolf who she looked up to. They sat on a flat-topped rock in a more barren area that had been sculpted into hills, little cover or protection there, but it also meant that it was more difficult for someone to sneak up on them without the denser vegetation and trees to hide in.

"I suspect the host only gave some supplies," Legosi said, his ears pricking. "So... So, we would be forced to humiliate our opponents. They know we're hungry, they know we want food."

Juno sighed.

"So, they know we'll do it again. That makes sense."

But a twig snapping behind the wolves, a short distance away where a few scrubby bushes resided, had Legosi up on his feet, tail stiff behind him.

"Stay here."

He crept forward, shushing her concern, though she was more struck by how worried he seemed about her, how protective he was of her. As smitten as she was by his bravery, Juno did not know that that was simply how Legosi was.

He crept up the slope, listening intently, taking in slow, deep breaths, the scent of a herbivore nearby. But perhaps not just a herbivore, but one that was omnivorous, not quite fitting into either category. For the games, however, it looked like omnivores, for how they took their diets to be, had been paired into the herbivore category.

"Come out," he said quietly, eyes fixed on an outcrop of rock, too sculpted and shaped to be natural, though it looked as if it had been worn smooth by the wind, hard-packed dirt under his feet. "I can smell you. I know you are there."

Juno was not far behind, though Legosi stood tall as a male raccoon came out of hiding, short of stature with a traditional black mask across his eyes. Juno hissed.

"You!"

The raccoon scoffed.

"Oh, you can't still remember that, meat-eater, can you?"

For it was the raccoon who had tried to pick on Juno before Legosi had put them off, back at the time when she had first met Legosi. It was a good and a bad memory for Juno, though the wolf was fortunate that it had not escalated back then.

An unseen wind picked at the wolf's grey fur and he clenched his jaw. He was ready. He'd been ready before the raccoon had even come out of hiding, though it seemed that few words were to be exchanged.

It was the raccoon who lunged first to attack, though Legosi did not even know his name. He did not have to, not as he blocked a cross-chop to his throat, driving his knee straight up into the raccoon's stomach. It was not enough to knock the raccoon away, but it did briefly wind him, the other male taking some distance, circling.

"Get him, Legosi!"

Juno cheered for him, though it was more of a distraction than anything else and the raccoon took the chance to charge in, pummelling Legosi with the offensive. He was lighter on his feet and moved quickly, throwing himself into the fight, even bouncing off a rock for a little more height, his leg snapping out straight in front of him to slam it into Legosi's chest in a jumping kick.

POW!

"Oof!"

Legosi stumbled, though the raccoon was not quick to recover as he landed, Legosi grappling with him, their hands on shoulders, grasping at any body part that they could in the frenzy to gain the upper hand. The raccoon tried to kick Legosi's feet out from under him, but the wolf was quick to jump, pushing the raccoon away and following up with left and right hooks, an overhand punch going for the head. He only needed to disable the raccoon for a moment, though the smaller male was quick and flighty, ducking under his arm to step on his feet and slam his fingers straight up into Legosi's eyes, jabbing into the sockets.

"Ahhh!"

Legosi hissed through the pain and lunged, showing his teeth, which gave the raccoon a moment of pause, which was enough for the wolf to slip in. In a moment, he had the upper hand, twisting to the side as the raccoon followed his movement, allowing him to kick the raccoon swiftly and sharply in the stomach, driving all air from his lungs.

WHAM!

The raccoon groaned, eyes watering (after the eye jab, Legosi's were not all that much better) as he drooped, sinking, to his knees. He struggled to get up, though all his body clearly wanted to do was to curl over, to give in, his eyes hopeless as, too late, he realised that he was as in over his head as he had been that first time with Legosi and Juno. Either of them could have defeated him.

"Give up," Legosi said, kneeling a short distance away, ready to launch back into the attack at any moment. "I don't want to hurt you... Please, just give in. I'll make sure you're safe, we'll make sure you are all safe."

The raccoon's muzzle twisted, grimacing through the pain.

"No... Go...dig a hole...mangy dog..."

It was not much of an insult, though it was him lurching towards Legosi that started the fight again. Down on the ground, they rolled and grappled, each fighting for the upper hand, though it was difficult for the raccoon to get the air needed back into his lungs. Up on their feet, scrambling for distance that Legosi did not allow, the wolf searched for an opening.

All it took was one moment, the raccoon missing a strike and flying past him, stumbling over his own feet while he tried to catch himself, for Legosi to take his chance. He followed the raccoon before he could turn around, arms whipping around him, up and across his chest, around his neck and head. With his arms around the raccoon, Legosi locked the raccoon against him in a sleeper hold, squeezing him tighter and tighter, applying as much pressure as he dared. His instinct not to hurt herbivores did not serve him well there.

The raccoon groaned, legs kicking, Legosi holding him up off the ground. It felt wrong that he didn't know the raccoon's name.

"Ennngghhh..."

That didn't mean he could stop.

"It'll be over soon, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..."

But Legosi could not do anything other than that as he held the raccoon tighter to him, squeezing, applying more and more pressure to the sides of his neck. He had to knock him out, had to end it, the raccoon's weight pulling him to his knees, though Legosi stayed in a crouch behind him, alert and ready.

"I'm sorry, I really am..."

Yet the fight was not over yet as his spine shot ramrod straight, jaw falling slack, a sharp pain in his neck lancing through him. He groaned, eyes wide, something pinching, a ringing in his ears as he grunted thickly. In a moment, he slumped to the ground, his body no longer obeying his commands as he was forced to release the raccoon. Limp, he lay flat on the ground, awake but not able to do anything, hardly twitching the tip of a finger.

What had happened? The raccoon stood, smiling widely, the kind of smile that Legosi didn't like one bit on his muzzle.

"I thought you'd never get here to get that mutt!"

The bird, a friend of the raccoon's who had sought to bully Juno all that time ago, laughed as the wolf collapsed to the ground. The curve of his beak was soft, designed to eat an omnivorous diet too, though the wolf blinking up at him had never honestly considered that so much before that day.

"You're so weak, Legosi!"

"Where's your sister to defend you?"

"Can't a big, strong carnivore do anything for themselves?"

A kick landed to his face, but they were more interested in carting him off and away, Legosi swallowing a whimper that had no place on his lips. The bird, demonstrating surprising strength, picked him up and restrained his arms behind him with Legosi's long legs stretched out on the ground in front of the wolf.

No... Legosi tried to push through it. Have to...fight...

_ _

But the raccoon moved in front of him, tipping a bottle of something that had to be chloroform and soaking another rag with it. It was a good way to render someone unconscious, but Legosi rumbled a growl, lips trying to quiver, the rag moving closer and closer to his muzzle. He only hoped that Juno had gotten away, for the wolf was nowhere to be seen, at least in his line of sight.

"It'd be so easy to knock you out right here," the raccoon taunted him, moving the rag under the wolf's nose, moving it back and forth without actually putting it on his muzzle. "But I want you to beg... Beg for mercy, mutt!"

Legosi tried to shake his head, growling, the sound rolling from him. His jaw would not obey him, but it was not as if he would have agreed to it. There was to be no begging.

The raccoon's face twisted and the next thing the wolf knew was his fist connecting with his face, snapping his muzzle to the side. Pain radiated across him, though the raccoon and even the brown-feathered bird too groped and poked at his body, taking advantage of his helpless immobility.

"Look at him - look how weak he is!"

They jabbed at his abs, Legosi groaned, a little of his senses returning to him, though he could not do anything about it, not even as his pecs too were poked and mocked.

"Such little muscles... It was no trouble at all to defeat such a weak carnivore."

He wasn't weak, but it almost felt like it as his fingers twitched, watching the raccoon flex his muscles before him while the avian laughed raucously, slapping his thigh as if the display was the funniest thing in the world he had seen. Legosi's foot twitched, faintly trying to kick at the raccoon, though he barely even managed to move, throat working, his growl rumbling through, more and more prominent by the second.

Him trying to kick them, however, only made them laugh all the harder and the bird darted in with cruel, dark eyes, pinching his neck again, getting the same nerve from before that had made him go limp. Legosi let out a low groan, the pinching sensation emanating through him, throat trembling with the sound.

Damn it.

_ _

He fell limp again, every ability to move leaving him, even his vision wavering at the edges. The bird stayed behind him, holding his arms while the raccoon taunted, parading and flexing before him.

But one could not enjoy the moment truly without the other as they swapped places, the raccoon taking the wolf's arms in a tight grip behind him while the bird was left free to do as he pleased.

"Go on, get him!" The raccoon growled, breath hot against the back of Legosi's head. "Show him we're not to be pushed around!"

That Legosi had never even tried to push either of them around was not something that he could voice with even his tongue limp and soft in his mouth, drooling a little as the bird took full advantage. Rather than words, he fought with his fists and feet, slamming them into his stomach, clumsily standing on the wolf's thighs, treating him as if he was nothing more than a punching bag.

"You can't do anything, wolf!" He shrieked, his wing-like arms flapping, a brown feather flying off. "Try to fight back - beg for mercy!"

He snapped Legosi's head up with an uppercut to the underside of his jaw, a side kick to Legosi's shoulder, intending to leave no part of him unbruised. The wolf's head lolled forward, not even able to hold it up himself, tongue moving within his mouth.

He tasted blood. But there were words too.

"See, Legosi," the bird said, almost crooning, petting the top of the wolf's head as if he was a much less dangerous carnivore. "We don't want to do any of this to you. You made us do this. It's really on you... But won't you beg for mercy now?"

Legosi clenched his jaw, shaking his head to the tiny limits that he was able, defiance in his eyes. The bird sighed.

"You leave us with no choice then..."

Taking the chloroformed rag from the raccoon's pocket, the bird approached, dragging out the anticipation of each step as if he had all the time in the world. Legosi froze, trying to find the fight in his limbs, the strain of the nerve pinch still radiating from his neck.

"And what do you think you're doing to my Legosi?"

Juno stood there, defiant, towering, thundering in her glory. She did not need any fanfare to announce herself, yet the wolf was so glad to see her that he would let it slide that she had called him "her Legosi." There were other more important matters to focus on.

"Ohhh, look, it's his sister!"

"What are you going to do, whine to us that we have your brother?"

Juno rolled her eyes. Did they really think that she was still his sister? She could hardly believe, even back then, that she had ever been in a position where they had been able to bully her, though Legosi had been her protector. And that was something that she would not forget easily.

The bird pinched the nerve on Legosi's neck again, the wolf groaning long and low without moving as he was forced to remain limp, helpless as the raccoon pushed him to the ground. He could only watch as Juno fumed, stomping the ground, though it was far from in a tantrum but a building of rage.

"You think you can push us around, because we're wolves?" She shouted, chest heaving with every breath. "The school would have been a better place if you never had been there!"

They laughed at her, leaning on one another for support, but that only enraged the she-wolf even more.

"Oh, look at her - I think she's getting annoyed!"

"You going to bite us, wolf? You think that you're better than us!"

Not better, per se, but stronger, more powerful, more motivated to attack with a ragged howl. Juno was more feral in that moment than any other, her jaws opening wide in the attack even though she had no intention to use them. Her moves were untailored, using an overhand punch on the bird while the raccoon tried and failed to dodge, too late, a swift front kick. Against two at once, she didn't have the chance to pick out any fancier moves, using the fact that she was bigger and stronger than at least the raccoon, even if the bird was perhaps an inch taller.

She didn't like that. And that added fuel to the fire for her.

Ducking under a swinging punch from the bird, she drove her foot into the raccoon's calf in a low shin kick, looking for another way to disable them. Taking their legs out from them would have done the trick, but with two of them that left her vulnerable to them grabbing at her legs while they were down on the ground and she didn't want that. But she could move faster for them with greater aggression, the aggression of a carnivore well and truly on her side.

The raccoon landed a kick to her thigh, though she pushed through it, grabbing him by the shoulders and shoving him back off-balance while the bird came for her, trying to grapple. That time, she did have to knock him back, slamming the side of her hand into his throat in a throat chop, the avian staggering and clutching at his throat while she went for the raccoon, tossing him into the off-balance bird.

Legosi might have wanted to help, though he was still limp and helpless on the ground, eyes following her while a tiny modicum of twitching life came back to his limbs. However, Juno had the upper hand over them while they languished in the confidence of a bully, faint and fragile. It was the sort of thing that she could exploit and use against them as they tumbled down to the ground, tangled up with each other, and she followed through.

She didn't want to be down on the ground with two at once, but it was the best she could do, scissoring her legs around their necks, both at once. It was a true demonstration of just how much stronger than then the she-wolf was, all the power she held in her body, squeezing her thighs around them, pressing down on the instep of the opposite foot, though she had to press harder than ever to get both at once.

"Unff..."

"Oof..."

The raccoon and the bird struggled and struggled, though their attempts grew weaker. It was there that their inexperience was truly shown in that they didn't know how to get out of the hold, the she-wolf bearing down more and more, panting with the strain of it.

"Unff... This is for...Legosi..."

She had to do it, had to make sure they were unconscious, though those two were, thankfully, two herbivores that she was confident were not smart enough to try to fake being asleep. That was one thing at least, one little thing that she could count on as they slumped unconscious, dead weights between her legs.

She released them slowly, unclamping her legs, Legosi lifting a hand, struggling onto all fours and then, finally, staggering to his feet. She exhaled a sigh, relief flooding her. That was good. She wasn't sure she would have liked to go on without Legosi or if dragging him like that to a safer location would have even been an option.

"Ooof... Why are you...so heavy?"

It was a complaint rather than a taunt as she hauled the unconscious raccoon on top of the bird, stacking one body on top of the other. After worrying so much about Legosi and seeing him limp like that, for once she just wanted to get it all over with, as much as posing and taking her moment of triumph had made her feel powerful before.

The games were not meant to make the participants there happy, after all.

She posed with her foot on the raccoon's stomach, feeling the softness under her toes, wriggling them a little. She faced directly across him, perpendicular to his body, her arms on either side of her defiantly, the palms facing upwards and her fingers lightly curled. From that to the line of defiance in her jaw said to the world that they could try to take her on, but they weren't at all going to get very far.

The wolf stood, looking at Juno, waiting for her to finish. Yet that only seemed to entice Juno into something more, shifting to face him, her arms flexing, showing where the muscle lay in her arms, tipping forward a little with a more seductive smile pulling at her lips.

"Do you like what you see, Legosi?" She murmured, fluttering her eyelashes. "I defeated them for you!"

Legosi moved slowly, closing the distance between them with his long, rolling, slow gait. Juno's breath caught, forgetting entirely about posing as she drew back, heart pounding. Was it really happening? She had to try, rushing into another pose, arching her back, her hands back behind her head with her muscles flexed once again, squashing the raccoon down too hurriedly into the bird under them. She didn't care as much as Legosi did for their comfort, especially all that they had tried to do to her.

If she showed him how strong she was, Legosi could not help but fall for her, surely? He would love her, yes! She was sure of it!

She shifted again, blowing a kiss to the floating drones, even laughing, practically twirling on top of the raccoon, their soft, unconscious bodies helpless to do anything against the she-wolf. She posed with her arms raised overhead, swapping to her right foot, trying to find anything and everything that could possibly get Legosi to come for her, with the tall, dark, sultry, handsome look he had on his muzzle right there and then.

Finally, she leaned forward over the raccoon's body, her pride displayed in her victory pose, hands clasped between her breasts. She leaned towards Legosi, closing her eyes, forgetting everything, where they were, the games, even what they were fighting for. For her dear, sweet, kind Legosi was coming to kiss her and Juno was going to enjoy every last moment of everything he had to give her.

With her eyes closed, seconds passed, though the sound of him moving, feet shifting over the dirt, had stopped. Something shifted under her foot, the one that was poised prominently on top of the raccoon's stomach, bearing her weight into him more than she should have. What was happening? Why wasn't he kissing her? This was his moment to finally tell Juno how much he loved her!

But when she opened her eyes, Legosi was down on his knees - and not even for a good reason! He had the chloroform rag in his hand and pressed it firmly over the racoon's face as if the damn thing wasn't already knocked out and helpless!

"What..." She said slowly. "What are you doing?"

"I have to make sure they don't wake up again, not when they can hurt us," he said quietly, in his usual matter of fact voice that made her heart sing so. "They might not be completely out."

Juno shook with indignation, though Legosi was meticulous in how he ensured their safety: just another thing that made her fall even more deeply in love with him.

Yet what she had not noticed was that the raccoon had been struggling and twitching a little, fighting back to consciousness, and Legosi had gotten to him just in time. The rag folded around the raccoon's snout to cover his nose and mouth, sending dose after dose of the sweet-swelling, sickly drug into his system.

He passed out, slowly, tediously, as if was clinging to the waking world with every scrap of tenacity that he possibly had in him. Then and only then did Legosi turn to the bird, who was at the very least trapped under the dead weight of the raccoon's body, folding the rag over the nares in his beak, which were the only thing he could breathe through. The wolf was suddenly glad that he had paid the attention that he had in anatomy classes, biology not being his strongest of subjects. But it helped to know that he could send a stronger dose into the avian if he focused on the nares, the holes in his beak, funnelling more and more of the drug straight down into his lungs.

The bird's struggles, though they had not been strong, to begin with, grew weaker and weaker, as if he was sinking into a slumber that he could not be called back from. The chloroform would only knock him out and would not harm him, though he might wake up later with a pounding headache. That was not for Legosi to worry about, however, as he held the rag there until the bird stilled, once again, into the sweet oblivion of unconsciousness.

Legosi sighed, standing and meeting Juno's eyes, the rag still held loosely in his hand.

"It's a good thing I can move again," he said without a smile. "You did not see them, Juno. Could you move your foot?"

She blinked at him, inadvertently stunned by what was happening, though fury coiled with longing in her stomach. Still, she did as Legosi asked, her jaw dropping when she realised that the raccoon had been a little tougher than expected, his lips moving even then, eyelids fluttering, coming back to consciousness.

"Why won't he stay...knocked out?" She muttered, tipping over the raccoon, though she had done as Legosi asked and stepped back from him so that the wolf could ensure that both were safe. "He's not that strong."

That was true. But strength in a fight did not always translate to the kind of strength that would come into play when fighting to stay awake, the raccoon's eyes glassy and fearful. He grunted through the rag that Legosi pressed even more firmly around his muzzle, forcing him to breath in the painful sweetness, though his fate would be the same either way.

Juno stared at Legosi, too stunned to do anything else, everything happening around her - though that was stranger than ever when it had been her who had won the fight. It felt like she should have been the one in the spotlight, the one taking centre stage, but it was still Legosi in the end. It felt like the rightful place for him as he stilled the raccoon's struggles with a gentle but firm hand on the smaller anthro's arm, the chloroform rag held meticulously in place.

He was not going to let up at all until he was sure, unlike Juno, waiting for several long, drawn-out moments after the raccoon's struggles had ceased entirely before drawing the rag, cautiously, away from his muzzle. Legosi leaned down, checking his breathing rate, his heart rate, wanting to be sure, though Juno thought that his eyes slid to her.

She hoped they slid to her. But the wolf was busy, too busy, right then, for her.

Legosi dragged the unconscious raccoon off the bird, taking another moment to check that the avian was well and truly out of it, for he did not want to see the same mistakes repeated all over again.

"You shouldn't pose with your foot on their stomach," he told her. "Remember how strong a wolf's foot is, like I showed you before?"

He demonstrated, standing on one leg as he held up his own foot, pointing to the toes, the short claws, the powerful ball and the line of the foot running back to the heel.

"They are too strong, weighing down on a stomach like this. They didn't know what they were doing, it's not their fault either. It will press down into their stomach and the organs underneath if you do not go lightly, with feet this large."

Juno swallowed, watching as Legosi demonstrated with just the raccoon, placing his foot a lot more delicately down on his stomach. Even if that considerate touch along, the raccoon's limbs reacted and jerked to the sides, Juno's eyes widening.

"Oh... That's why they woke up."

The raccoon let out a soft yet unconscious groan as Legosi used him to demonstrate again, swapping to his left foot. He pressed down, letting her see again how the raccoon twitched, as if by pressing down even lightly in the centre of his soft stomach his body was forced to react. Another soft huffing groan rolled from the raccoon's lips and Juno shifted into a fighting stance, expecting him to be waking up again.

"He will not wake up now, not with the chloroform, Juno. Look - come see."

Cautiously, she approached where Legosi had laid down the raccoon, following his instruction. In many things, Legosi knew more than her. She would likely have not been as infatuated with him as she was if not for his depth of quiet knowledge.

"Here... He will not know, will not react, will not wake. But that's because of the chloroform."

Legosi showed Juno by moving his foot, the left one, to the raccoon's chest, showing her. But he did not press down too hard, all too aware of how fragile a ribcage lay beneath the skin, the lungs within able to be crushed and restrict the raccoon's flow of breathing even without something more dramatic happening.

"You've just got to be careful, Juno, for you and for them. But the safest place for us to pose is with our foot on their face."

He pointed, demonstrating with his left foot still, resting it over the raccoon's face so that it covered an eye, his cheek and part of the "mask" that all raccoons had marked into the lines of their fur coats. He didn't put his foot over the raccoon's mouth or nose, deliberately, ensuring that he did not stop the raccoon from breathing. It was not something that Juno would have minded doing, temporarily, considering how they had treated her, but she still wanted to be strong for Legosi, to follow his lead.

If that was the lead and the example that he set for her, then it was the one that she would follow.

Legosi, however, could not help but notice too that she was not posing on the bird as he struck another pose with his arms flexed softly for the drones. Juno shook her head, tightening her lips, her earlier bravado gone. She'd gotten swept up in the moment and it had taken her away, made her someone that, truly, she was not.

Yet another side effect of the games.

"Juno, I'm sorry..." He sighed, brushing his hand back over the fur on top of his head. "I know... This gets into your head. You don't have to do it if you don't' want to. But we need the supplies too and...we won't get them if you don't do it. I'm sorry."

So it was that Juno had to force her way past the reluctance, tempering the pride and the infatuation that had made her forget just who she had been standing on. Maybe it was easier for her, first of all, because she had not liked the others. After all, they had bullied her. But that did not mean that she wanted to become a bully herself, not in any way.

That wasn't Juno. That would never be her.

She copied him, flexing and trying to think about something else, holding her arms up triumphantly, making sure to make eye contact with the drones, simply because it would make it at least a little easier for her to rack up points with the poses. That was how she imagined it anyway, shifting from the bird's beak to his chest, though she made sure not to lean forward and put her weight onto his chest that time. It helped, a little, making her feel more like herself again, as if she was not being twisted by the games.

A drone whirred in, flickering with a green light on the front, dropping off more supplies for them, though that was almost becoming normal for Legosi and Juno by that point. It was the cages that extended down from the ceiling, on strong, steel cables, that boded ill for them, both for herbivores, for their felled charges.

Juno sighed.

"I think we need to get on with this. Come on, Legosi."

"Oh!" He seemed surprised that she wanted to move on, but smiled anyway. "Thank you for the help, Juno."

She tried to help, at least, as Legosi moved his foot off the raccoon, hauling him as carefully as he could over his shoulder. As much as he tried to be gentle, he knew that anything he did would still end up feeling rough to the herbivore.

"I'll see you at the cages then, Juno!"

Even though the cages were not actually all that far away, they could have been miles upon miles. With her foot still on the bird's chest, she looked down, tears prickling cruelly in the corners of her eyes. Legosi... He was just playing with her feelings again, that wolf. He knew how she felt about him, had to know how she felt about him, but he didn't say anything, didn't do anything. Why? It had to be obvious!

But Legosi didn't see things that way, even though her emotions twisted in turmoil, frustrated that he could not see how much she liked him, how passionate she was about him. He was toying with her, he had to be, he couldn't_not_ see things after so long!

Clenching her jaw, the wolf inadvertently bore down on the bird's stomach, where she was still standing, his limbs twitching, jostled by her weight. Even though he was unconscious, his beak parted, eyes flickering under closed lids, but she would never know how fortunate she was that he didn't wake up. Although his body reacted to her pushing down on the organs within, the avian did not shudder, did not move, fought and defeated.

With her eyes on Legosi putting the raccoon into one of the cages, she sighed.

There might be something there or there might not...but there was still a dome to fight in, a game bigger than even the carnivores or the herbivores at play.

*

Sitting by himself, the yellow Labrador Retriever sighed, his head in his hands.

"Where is everyone?" Jack said, though it was like him to know quite know what was going on, not always the most up to speed with everything that he could have been in the know on. "Why are they even doing this to us?"

He knew that he was supposed to fight, but he hadn't even encountered anyone and sitting on a log on the edge of the trees where he could see if anyone was coming or not seemed like a good option. Cages hung from the ceiling, drawn up high, and the edge of the dome gave him something to put his back against, to plead with someone else to not fight him, if it ever came to that. If the canine had his way about it, he wouldn't see anyone until it was all over and would mind his own business. It was the typical way that he went through life anyway.

His ears shot up at the rustling of a bush, though he did not get up, not even as Els, a goat with pure, white fur stumbled out of the bushes, squealing as a thorn dug into her arm.

"Ow!"

She stumbled, yanking it from her thicker coat, the soft fur ruffled in the wrong directions, her horns small and golden-brown, stopping dead in her tracks when her eyes locked onto Jack. For several long moments, they stared at each other, unblinking, unwavering.

She was a herbivore.

He was a carnivore.

And that meant...

The drones circled, the cameras on them, recording everything for the overlords watching, whoever they were. It was a subtle reminder, however pointed it still was, that they were to fight, even though the Angora goat visibly recoiled at the thought, her hands half held up in front of her face.

"Jack..."

Els trembled, fear taking her like it never had before, her legs shaking, not knowing where she was, what she was doing, adrenaline pumping. Her body locked down, freezing, seeing only the carnivore before her, even though Jack would not have been all that much of a threat to her before. He was nice, really, lovely, sweet... He hadn't set out to hurt anyone, yet he was taller than her, bigger than her and so very easily stronger than her.

Without saying a word, the canine rose to his feet, approaching her slowly, though she could not meet his eyes, shaking in place, her fingers trembling. They cut in and out across her vision, showing the dog closer and closer to her with every flash she caught of him between her hands and fingers. The woods framed him to his back, the shiny side of the dome holding them in, reminding Els, once again, that she was trapped there.

The anticipation of what was to come built as the band around her chest tightened and tightened, leaving her gasping, heaving for air that did not want to seem to enter her lungs. He was there, he was towering and the end that she had feared for so long in the dome was about to come.

At least it would not end her life, she thought, closing her eyes, too afraid to open them, using every last ounce of willpower she had to stay on her feet. He was there and she was helpless to whatever fate the carnivore decided for her.

"How about a tickle fight?"

What?

Els blinked, startled into opening her eyes and lowering her hands, though she only found softness in the carnivore's dark, doleful eyes. Really, Jack was almost as much of a herbivore as she was and it was a known fact that they would eat pretty much anything too. A herbivore suitable diet had never bothered Jack one bit, as long as he got enough to eat.

"What the..." She shook her head, taking a small half-step back, her arms dropping, though she wouldn't be able to get them back up in time if she needed to protect herself. "What are you saying? We're not going to fight? Or you're not going to..."

She didn't want to finish the sentence, not even as Jack shook his head, letting out a soft bark, tail tucking down.

"No! I don't... I don't want to... But I don't want my family to get hurt either! But I used to tickle fight with Legosi all the time when we were kids... It was really silly."

The canine rubbed the back of his neck as if embarrassed.

"They want us to fight, this could be a way to get through it without hurting each other. The loser will have to willingly let themselves be chloroformed...but, this way, we don't have to hurt each other, still playing by their rules."

Els swallowed, ears twitching, though there was no understanding of the situation that she could catch on the air.

"Well... I guess..." It wasn't all that bad a thought, even though her pulse was still pounding, her adrenaline up. "I guess that would work. I don't want anyone to get hurt either."

Truth be told, Els would have not fought at all, but it was just as well that Jack had been there to remind her that it was a stipulation of them being there, within the dome. They couldn't just do nothing, not when there was so much more than them at stake.

Jack didn't waste his chance, not wanting the drones or anyone else to push them into the kind of fight that would spiral too quickly out of control. He leapt at her, ears flying out softly from the sides of his head, fingers grasping and groping, though the only "pain" that would be brought from them was derived from laughter.

The drones pressed in closer, focusing on the scene as Els gasped, breath whipped from her lungs, though the next drag that she managed to get in was torn away in a laugh as his fingers went straight for her armpits.

"W-w-w-aiiiiit! I-I wasn't r-r-r-ready!"

She tried to force out the words as he latched an arm around her to better hold her in place, a grin even lifting to the dog's muzzle, tail wagging. That was better! That was more like hi, like Jack, all to make light of a situation that they, frankly, should never have been caught up in. He had thought that it would have been easy to pin the smaller goat against him as he tickled her armpits with manically dancing fingers, but, to his surprise, Els twisted away from him with the slipperiness of an eel.

"Hey!"

She lunged for him with a shriek, though no objections came from any of the drones, even if they did not know quite what the drones would do to stop them if there were any objections. Her fingers, however, raked down his sides in a tickling tease, reaching for his stomach, searching out those spots that would make him weak to laughter.

Laughter was hardly what anyone could have expected to hear in the dome as they twisted and lunged and wound around one another, grappling as if they really were fighting while tickling one another mercilessly. Hands roamed stomachs and thighs and armpits, the usual culprits, though Elsa got a particularly good hold on his arm at one point, yanking it out so that she could dig her fingers into his armpits.

"Ahahahahahaha!" Jack wailed, heaving, tears streaming down his face as he tried to ward her off. "Els - n-n-noooooo!"

Yet she would not stop, not as he dropped to the ground and rolled on the thin grass with her, dirt scuffing up their coats, though neither cared. For a moment, it was as if they were not in the dome at all, younger than they actually were, enjoying harmless fun. Though that did not stop Jack from wriggling and pushing her off, grabbing her legs while he sought out another ticklish spot on the back of her knee.

Yet one place that was more ticklish than either had given credit to was both feet, Jack latching onto those as he tucked her legs under one arm, using his free hand to wickedly tickle her feet. The goat heaved and gasped, her eyes pricking with tears, beating her fists on the ground, wailing with laughter. Her shrieks and screams of forced laughter echoed through the air, seeming louder for how they bounced off the wall of the dome, the drones coming in closer as if they wanted close up shots of the action.

It was hard to control herself, pain lancing through her stomach and lungs where her muscles had contracted too much from laughing, but she wasn't the kind to give up on something when she was already entrenched in it. Whipping around, she managed to get on top of the canine's back, shoving him uncomfortably face-down while she sat on his legs, over the point of his knee. There, she could pin him as she took full advantage of the game that he had already started, fingers dancing over his feet.

Jack's laughter escalated tenfold, though she didn't want to take a moment to let him breathe, her fingers between his toes, over the heels, even taking advantage of the arch of his foot. His feet were larger than hers and had far more sensitive areas, the goat dragging in all the breath she could. Still, she did not let up, not even as he thrashed under her, weak from laughter, though he could have thrown her off if he was at full strength.

"Okay, okay! Stop - stop-p-p!"

Jack held his hands up in surrender as his heart ached and pounded from the force of pushing so much blood around his body. His chest heaved, fur coat soaked with sweat, though his eyes gleamed, the fading flutters of laughter on his breath. Els paused with his foot in her hands, eyes on him.

"You surrender?"

"Yes..." He closed his eyes, fighting to regain his breath while she had had the upper hand. "I give in. I am the loser."

She flopped to the side, her body aching. Els had not realised how much it had taken out of her, though she could not hesitate, had to move on, in case the drones and those watching thought she was not taking it seriously. It was better that way, all so she could carry on and Jack, hopefully, would be somewhere safe.

At least Jack wouldn't have to fight anyone anymore.

Slowly, she rose, collecting a bottle and a rag, automatically trying to smooth out her skirt as she knelt by his head. She'd forgotten that she was down to her underwear, though little movements like that were hard to rein in. Else murmured to him as she drew Jack's head into her lap, being as gentle as she could with him.

"I'm sorry you lost, Jack."

She readied the chloroform, one that Jack had received from the kits, tipping the bottle slowly to soak the rag. She hadn't had her own but, after defeating Jack, she could change that.

"It's okay, Els..." Jack breathed, chest still heaving, dragging in more air to replenish all that had been lost. "It's better this way."

Els sighed, her eyes solemn, despite everything, the rag prepared.

"Are you ready for it?"

Gulping, Jack looked between the rag and Els and steadied himself, his tail still where it lay between his body and the ground. Not a sound rang out around them besides the whirring of the drones.

"I am ready. Put me to sleep, Els."

It was not anything that the goat would ever have wanted to do, pressing the rag tenderly over the loser's mouth, folding it over his nose and around his lips. It had to be spread out, thickly soaked, to cover as much of his snout as possible, for he had a longer jaw, though Jack was, at least, amenable to the drug entering his system. The carnivore could not take slow breaths, but he could take big breaths, his body recovering from the tickle fight, though he was glad that he would not have to fight anyone else. It was better that way, all as he'd said. He had always been honest with everyone and the dome wasn't going to change that.

"It's okay, you're okay," she soothed him, holding his head gently steady in her lap as he breathed it in, eyelids heavier and heavier, sleepier and sleepier. "Everything's okay, Jack. Sleep peacefully...and have sweet dreams."

He drifted, falling, fading, trusting her completely. He would not have noticed if he was uncomfortable as he fell unconscious, slipping into it as naturally as he would fall asleep. Maybe it was easier when he wanted it too and was willing, though Els held the rag there, making sure that he was unconscious.

Had he really fallen asleep that easily? She was unsure, though the goat didn't think that he was tricking her, checking his pulse, her fingers fluttering, not knowing what to do. She settled for stroking his head gently, soothingly.

"You'll wake up back with your family, no longer in this nightmare," she told him gently, fingers rubbing the back of his neck, the soreness there. "Everything's going to be okay, Jack."

Not that she could do anything about it, but she could do something for Jack, putting the rag aside and taking a breath. The next bit would be the hardest for Els as she struck a pose, her arms folded across her chest, suddenly feeling exposed, her foot upon Jack's chest. It would only be the one that she could manage as the drones zoomed in on her, her lower lip wobbling, struck by too much emotion for her narrow shoulders to carry.

She stayed there, wriggling her toes on his chest, feeling the strength of his ribcage. Even though he had not wanted to fight her, she knew that Jack could have easily overpowered her. Taking a breath, she shifted her foot while remaining on his chest, her heel weighing into him with a little more pressure, facing across his body at the drones while she raised her arms. She'd seen Jack throw his arms up in the air, celebrating, after a game of ball in the school and tried to mimic that, though Els probably didn't pull it off.

When she had composed herself enough and the drones had dropped off a small box of supplies for her, she got her arms under his armpits, heaving and panting, dragging him off to a cage. It would only be the next step for them in the fights.

*

"I hope this will end soon," Bill grumbled, the tiger's tail lashing discontentedly. "This is so boring."

At the side of the Bengal tiger walked Aoba, a bald eagle who was also from the drama club - well, back when there had been one. Who knew what was going to happen when they got out of the dome? He clicked his beak discontentedly, the tip wickedly hooked as was the way for a carnivore, a beak designed to rip and tear at meat.

Bill grabbed his arm, pointing, his ears pushing forward keenly.

"Look!"

For before them, sitting on a tree stump without a care in the world, was none other than Pina, the Dall sheep from the drama club who had sought to be the "next Louis" - as if that was even possible. Bill growled, lips pulling back threateningly from his teeth, revealing a little more of his carnivore instincts.

"Oh, hello, my friends."

Pina smiled pleasantly and waved as if everything was the most normal thing in the world. The tiger drew himself up tall, shoulders broad and blocky, making himself look even larger than he already was.

"It would be best not to fight us," he rumbled, his forehead creasing with tension, body aching for a fight. "You know this...don't you, Pina?"

The Dall sheep shrugged, fingering a softly curved horn as he nodded. Hopping up, he held up his hands in surrender.

"Oh, I'm sure you are right. Take me now then, let us see this matter put an end to."

Bill smirked, Aoba watching with some trepidation, stalking up to the sheep as if he had won the fight. However, the eagle fluffed up his feathers as the tiger stopped dead in his tracks, still a couple of metres away from the sheep.

What was wrong with him? Why had he stopped? Aoba grunted, stiffening. Something wasn't right.

Pina's smirk didn't sit right with him, though it was gone from the pretty sheep's face the moment it had sprung.

"Bill, bring Aoba to me."

"What? No!"

Aoba struggled, but Bill the tiger closed his hands around the eagle's upper arms and marched him to Pina, the eagle squawking and scrabbling the entire way. He thrashed, but the tiger was bigger and stronger than him, avian bones more delicate, his heart pounding while he tried to make sense of what was going on.

A couple of feet away from Pina, they stopped, Bill seemingly waiting. But waiting for what, exactly?

Pina smiled.

"That's better. Relax, Aoba... There's nothing bad here. Breathe in, nice and deeply now. Keep breathing deeply."

Aoba's eyes locked onto Pina's horns, entranced as Pina stroked them again, drawing his attention to the glint of light there. Try as he might, he couldn't wrench himself away, not struggling physically, but mentally locked in place.

He stared at the sheep's horns, following the smooth lines of them, the shimmer of light. How had he not realised how beautiful they were before? And not in the sense that the carnivore part of him wanted to crack them between his beak, but in the sense that he wanted to do...

Aoba trembled, hardly moving, barely breathing. He wanted to do something else, something that he was not even willing to admit to. The sheep's horns tilted towards him - and he was gone.

Pina grinned. Ah! The element of controlling them, bringing them under his influence: it was as sweet as it had been the first time. He rose fluidly, pointing at the ground before his feet.

"Down. Kneel. It's the best place for carnivores, like you, to be before the one who holds all the power here!"

They dropped instantly, as if there was no question in their minds, Aoba's beak partly faintly while Bill's lips quirked in a smile. Their eyes glazed over, though they could still see, everything coming through an odd kind of haze. Pina grinned widely, enjoying the moment to its fullest as he towered over them, for once.

"Now... This is better. To have you both under my control now too is truly why I am the next Beastar!"

He smiled and spread his arms widely as if he was speaking to an audience, the carnivores kneeling before him as if it had all come about entirely of their own free will. But he would not be one to not take advantage of it as he sat back on the stump and crossed one leg over the other, lifting his left foot.

"Massage my feet, carnivores," he said, addressing them both. "Give them both plenty of attention. Use your hands and your lips. I trust you will be well practised in this by the time I am done with you..."

He grinned softly, though power swelled through him as the two carnivores tried to worship his foot at once, both at the same time. They moved fluidly, though there was no room for them there to adequately massage his foot at the same time, fighting with one another for precedence. Pina shook his head as if sadly. Carnivores would always be a cruder, rougher sort than herbivores. Best to put them in their place.

"Now, now, there is plenty to go around."

He lifted both feet, leaning back on the stump for balance, giving Aoba his left and Bill his right. That was easier, Aoba nuzzling lightly with his beak where he could not kiss and form the shape with his lips as Bill did. The eagle was clever, however, taking his chance to use his fingers more adequately, as he lavished attention over the heel. His fingers dug in gently, finding all the sore spots, kneading and soothing, Pina's bare feet smooth and clean with pink skin.

The sheep shuddered with power, enjoying the situation more than he should have, though Bill kissing all over his right foot was just as enjoyable. The soft brushes of lips that hid a predator's teeth had him trembling, lips quirking, leaning into the sensation as the tiger layered kiss after kiss of worship down. It set the path for more still, the tiger taking his foot between two hands, his fingers massaging over the top side, the arch of the foot. He kept his claws, short as they were, carefully away, intending only reverence, content to be there with the sheep, doing Pina's bidding.

It was funny how easy it was for their minds to slip away under the little concoction the sheep had cooked up, but they were not to know that he could use its aroma to charm them. It was Pina, however, who took control, wriggling his toes teasingly. The tiger had to move to keep up with him shifting his foot, though Pina enjoyed being worshipped like that, having his feet paid so much tender attention, that he didn't toy with the tiger for long.

"Carnivores," he said, clapping his hands to gain their attention. "I tire of you. Wrestle for me!"

A short, sharp command packed more of a punch than a lengthy one as the carnivores scrambled back, the tiger and the eagle rushing to make space for themselves. They grumbled and shrieked, respectively, circling one another, though it was Aoba that lunged first.

Between carnivores like them, they were evenly matched, the eagle more agile as he went in to grapple, twisting around the back of Bill while he grabbed him in a bearhug. His arms closed tightly around the tiger as Bill thrashed, Aoba hefting him off the ground with the force of his grip. The tiger's leg kicked out as he howled, though his weight was too much for Aoba as they crashed to the ground.

It was a messy fight, neither of them in their right minds, crashing together, snarling and shrieking. Pina clapped in glee as he watched them scramble onto their knees, their hands coming together, holding onto one another with brute force, a test of strength. Muscles bulged as they strained brutally against one another, bearing down, a beak and a jaw parted in vicious fury.

"Give in!" Bill snarled. "I am the strongest!"

Aoba shrieked, a bald eagle's cry cutting through the air. His arms shook with the effort, but he did not submit, not even as Bill roared and shoved him back, forcing him onto his back. The ground came up to meet the eagle with a slam, knocking the air from his lungs as the tiger pursued the attack. There were fewer clumsy kicks and blows from one to the other than in other fights, the tiger approaching his fallen opponent and seating himself heavily beside him, rushing to tighten his legs around the eagle's head.

"Unnff... Give...in..."

Bill squeezed his legs around Aoba's neck in a head scissor, his top leg crossing over the other after it had gone around Aoba's chin, applying greater pressure. Choking the bird out, the tiger let out a harsh chuff of laughter.

He thought he was winning, that he could do better than Aoba, that he could press down and down, increasing the pressure of the chokehold, the neck scissor tightening, and he would be the winner. Yet his technique was off and all it took was a flash of clarity from the clawing, spluttering eagle to get his hands under the tiger's knee.

"Aaaaarrrrghhh!"

With a shove, Aoba got himself free, scrambling, heaving for breath, skin flushed under his feathers, the two of them parted. Pina cheered as they both heaved back up onto their feet, slamming together, a roundhouse kick from the tiger swiftly followed by a front kick, though Bill was too keen to press the attack into a right hook and an uppercut, opening himself up to attack.

BAM!

WHAM!

Aoba rounded on him with raw fury, jabbing and punching, holding his arms up to block and protect his face. His bones were lighter and more delicate than the tiger's, though he still did not match him for strength.

POW!

Bill didn't see it coming as the eagle used his momentum against him, a wild lunge on Bill's part, intending to charge and knock Aoba off his feet, going awry at the last moment. Aoba might not have been able to best the tiger in a true test of strength, but he could duck under Bill, grab his arm and leg and heft him onto his shoulders in a torture rack. It was also known as a backbreaker, or a version of such, stretching the tiger out over his shoulders until he screamed, begging for relief.

Using a hold of submission, Aoba didn't let up, ignoring the pounding of the tiger on his back, hands flailing, though he had his arm hooked around the tiger's, knees buckling, using his momentum to turn on the spot. It helped keep him upright as Bill roared and growled, though the tiger was failing, fading, and it would only take a drop at the right moment to knock the air from his lungs.

And then the eagle would have the advantage.

He bent the tiger into the backbreaker with a shriek, forcing him down, around his body, though the drop had to come, for he could not carry a squirming, fighting opponent for too long, not as he heaved for his own breath. Fading fast, Aoba hurled the tiger over his head, letting him scream, barely landing a weak punch on his way down.

WHAM!

Once the tiger was dropped, wheezing, struggling to stagger again to his feet and barely managing it, Aoba knew he had won, grabbing him tightly, squeezing around him from behind. His arms found their rightful place around the tiger's neck and chest, scrabbling, struggling, dragging him to him while Bill was vulnerable.

Aoba, however, wasn't letting go. Holding his arms around Bill's neck, he tightened his grip more and more in a sleeper hold, dropping to his knees as the tiger tried to take him forward with his weight. It might have worked, both falling to their knees, if the tiger had not already been weakening, raking at Aoba's arms with his sharp claws, tearing up his feathers. The eagle growled and bore down, however, exerting more and more pressure as he squeezed in around the pressure points on the sides of Bill's neck.

There was no telling what Aoba would have said if he had not been in a mind-controlled state, Bill's struggles growing weaker and weaker, though it had clearly not ended up being a test of brute strength in the end. That was what Pina had wanted to show everyone, one way or another, that being a herbivore and lacking muscle did not mean that one had to lose, to be on the bottom of the chain, all the time.

No... Not at all, in fact, not as the sheep watched with evident pleasure as Bill dropped, his eyelids drooping, passing out in a rush of breath, exhaled through his nostrils. Aoba held him there, ensuring that the tiger was indeed unconscious, before allowing him to drop to the ground, falling out of his arms onto the grass. Pina clapped, cheering as if it was all a show put on just for him.

"Wonderful, wonderful! Such skill!"

Aoba rose to his feet and bowed deeply to the sheep, flushing with pride under his feathers. He did not know why it felt so good to please Pina, but he just couldn't drag his eyes away as the sheep walked up to him, his stride slow, long, relaxed. He moved as if he had all the time in the world.

Pina smiled confidently, his charisma something that came naturally to him. His hand lifted, placing his curled thumb and forefinger in the centre of Aoba's forehead. The eagle squatted a little so that Pina could reach more easily, though did not know what Pina wanted of him.

"Aha!"

Pina flicked Aoba in the centre of his forehead, grinning more widely in a dazzling flash of white teeth.

"You are defeated! Fall before the victor!"

Obediently, Aoba folded to the ground, fainting, losing consciousness. For Pina did not need something as crude as chloroform to take the spoils of his wings, both the tiger and the eagle knocked out cold. They would both be able to wake naturally when they were out of the range of his concoction and influence, but he intended to have them well in the cages by the time that came to pass.

Aoba fainted on top of Bill, his body loosely sprawled over the tiger, allowing Pina his chance to take his victory poses. The sheep had not paid the drones much mind, trusting that they would catch all that they needed of the fight, blowing a kiss to the camera, practically flirting with it. Oh, it would have been a shame for him to hold back when his adoring audience was surely all out there waiting for him!

He struck a pose with his foot on Aoba's stomach, feeling the hard muscle under his layer of feathers. The pride of winning flowed through him, of conquering, and he raised his fist triumphantly in the air as if he was re-enacting a scene, perhaps in a play, from one of the Roman conquests. Yes, that made him feel powerful, like an emperor, and he shifted to pose with his right foot on top of Aoba's face, though the position the two were in, both facing up, allowed him to do the same to Bill.

One thing at a time, however, as he stretched his arms overhead and back, showing off the definition of his triceps and biceps, smaller muscles that could go unnoticed on a herbivore. With a charming grin, he held the pose for the cameras, letting them circle him. He wouldn't have wanted them to miss anything, not as his foot shifted on the eagle's beak.

He took a moment to do the same to the tiger, though he could not pose on more than Bill's face, the toes of his right foot wriggling over Bill's eyes, while his heel neatly covered the feline's jaw. He trembled with power, energy coursing through him. He could get used to the feel of having a carnivore under him, arms lifted high above him as he posed, challenging all to come to him.

Finally, he finished his final pose with a smile and his arms folded, quietly confident - which wasn't quite like him, but suited the moment. He had not had to make a drama or performance at it and had merely taken his victory with cool confidence. That was why he was the winner and they were the losers.

"Oh, all shall fear me, revere me," he boasted, spreading his arms out wide with his foot still pressing down into the eagle's bare chest. "Pina - the conqueror of carnivores!"

He proclaimed his might, his bravery, his cunning, for Pina did not need to use brute force to get his way, not like a mindless carnivore. Though he didn't need to worry about them, not one bit, helpless and unconscious under him. He leaned down more heavily, grinning as their limbs were jostled, bodies shifting, so clumsy, so useless. In a way, the world would have been far better without carnivores, though Pina thought that he could find uses for them too, if he could use his concoction, the special flower, and his hypnotic horns to bring them under his control.

"Ah, the power of hypnosis will forever be mine," he said, winking at the cameras, striking another pose, enjoying the moment too much to let it go swiftly. "And the carnivores will bend the knee to me, forevermore, the hypnotic Pina!"

Alas, he could not stay there for too long, the cages awaiting the carnivores, swinging a few inches over the ground. But he would not reduce himself to a beast of burden, lugging them there like a common carnivore himself.

With a snap of his fingers, he ordered them awake, looking down imperiously at the two carnivores, their expressions soft, lips neutral. They didn't know what was happening to them, but when everything was so calm and so comfortable, they didn't care either. Aoba's mind fizzled blankly, though he still could have done something under his own free will if Pina had not been there. Though neither Bill nor Pina had any concern about what was happening, calm and comfortable, softened in the world. It was almost a better way of living than through the tension of the games, though they would not be able to recall any of that until much, much later.

Pina pointed at the cages.

"Put yourselves into the cages, my friends. I will not carry your hides further."

They did as he asked immediately, hustling so that they did not make Pina wait for too long. The Dall sheep closed the doors on them, clicking them closed, though there was one thing left to do before he would have to be on his way. After all, there were other carnivores that he could bring under his control still left in the games, surely.

"Knock yourselves out," he said simply, waving his hand at the cruder, rougher language. "I don't need your attention anymore."

The carnivores did as he asked immediately, pressing down on the pressure points of their necks that would render them incapacitated, almost as if they were performing chokeholds on themselves, though it didn't cross their minds that what they were doing was strange. They only knew Pina, his horns, his will, falling into unconsciously with the gold glint of his horns being the last thing that they saw.

However, the Dall sheep was not destined to get much time to himself as the cages lifted, taking the carnivores out of sight of the main part of the games, for there was a wolf before him. And there was only one wolf that he knew closely at the school.

"Well, well, well, Legosi, who would have thought that I would find you here, all out on your own?"

Pina smiled pleasantly and Legosi's ears perked, perhaps glad to see a face that he at least thought was friendly. Oh, how wrong Legosi would turn out to be there.

"Pina..." He breathed, ears twitching, though he did not approach, keeping some distance between them across a flat stretch of grass, a clearing in the trees. "It's good to see you and that you are okay. I worried about those in the drama club."

Pina laughed.

"Oh, I am sure... How many herbivores have you locked into cages so far, Legosi? I am sure that a crude carnivore such as yourself has truly no concern for the plight of the herbivore."

His words came out with a little more bite than intended, Legosi taking a step back, shaking his head.

"No... I mean, yes, I've had to put...some in cages. No one was hurt, I hope not. But I think I'd rather be left alone for now, Pina, I'm sorry."

The wolf turned his head back and forth, eyes brimming over with questions. Where was Juno? He'd thought that the she-wolf had been only a few steps behind him, but it looked like both cages had been filled, so that was fine, she wasn't in danger there. But the sheep didn't give him the space that he wanted to sort out his muddled thoughts, one streaming forth to crowd on the heels of the one that preceded it.

He didn't want to hurt anyone...yet it almost seemed as if Pina was determined not to give him a choice, the wolf sniffing, taking great, deep breaths, something sweet catching his attention.

"Pina, what are you doing?"

The sheep smiled, gesturing with his hand. Somehow, even then, Pina managed to make it look eloquent.

"Do you smell something, Legosi? Perhaps you should take deeper breaths. Nice, big breaths now, there's a good carnivore..."

Legosi took a step back, ears pinned, his eyes guarded.

"Yes... I smell something...different."

His body filtered through the scent, though he couldn't quite make sense of it, something juddering in his chest as he tried to turn and caught himself stumbling instead. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he take his eyes off Pina?

The sheep laughed lightly, twirling a finger in the air, a glint in his eye. It was too easy, though the concoction on his horns was the perfect place to hide what he could use to hypnotise them, all in plain sight. It was a splendid plan, something that no carnivore would see coming. Even Legosi, aware that something smelled different, did not catch on. Perhaps Pina was even more skilled than he had thought.

Legosi growled, stumbling again, wavering back and forth like a drunkard trying to stand upright and not show how intoxicated they were. Pina raised his eyebrows, feigning concern.

"Oh, dear Legosi... You do not look well. You should probably get on your knees. You don't' want to fall over now, do you?"

Legosi blinked, nodding quietly and doing as the sheep bid. In his mind, it seemed like a sensible idea, everything soft and light around him. Maybe he had been hit over the head too hard in the last fight, or the nerve pinches had had a more far-reaching effect than he had expected. Either way, the Dall sheep could not be much of a threat.

Little did he know.

Legosi shook his head, still swaying, sitting up on his knees so that he was close to the sheep's height, even while he was down there.

"Are you all right, Legosi? Do you know who I am, Legosi? Do you even know who you are?"

The touches of mind control entwined the wolf, though there was nothing caring or loving about the hold of control he placed over the wolf, lips parted in a faint smile. All the wolf could do was stare straight back at him, swaying in place, grunting faintly.

Before Pina's eyes, Legosi placed his hands respectfully on his thighs, palms up, sitting back down on his legs while still kneeling, which allowed him to lessen his height. Now shorter than the sheep, he bowed his head lightly, tipping his nose down, bowing reverently in the Japanese manner, tipping far forward.

"You are my master," he said simply. "Master, how may I serve you?"

Pina chuckled. Oh, the wolf had fallen even further even more quickly than the other carnivores had! Oh, the power was too much, the delight of control... He wouldn't have had it any other way, languishing in his newly found power, his horns tipping, allowing their hypnotic effect to become even more potent.

"Poor Legosi," he taunted. "Brought under the heel of a herbivore... It must feel so degrading to be down there, to know that there is nothing you can do about it."

The wolf did not lift his bowed head, remaining precisely in place where he was supposed to be, nose tipped down to the ground. He'd folded forward over his thighs, the tips of his fingers stretching to touch the ground, his entire body in a highly vulnerable position if the sheep wanted to strike him. The wolf did not think of that, however, merely staying in the most respectful position he could think of while the sheep worked out exactly what it was that he wanted to do with him.

Pina stood close, smiling faintly as he inched his foot closer and closer to the wolf's bowed head. How beautiful it was to see a hypnotised carnivore finally accepting their place in the natural order of things. Closer and closer, his foot scooted, until Legosi's muzzle rested lightly on Pina's instep.

"Wonderful... So beautiful... So strong and so cowed, Legosi. This is the best place for a carnivore to be, you see, submitting to the great Pina."

Legosi didn't say anything. The wolf didn't have anything to say in response to that, though there was no agreement either. The sheep was his master and all he had to do was to obey, nothing more than that.

"Stand, Legosi."

A short command, a simple command. A command that was easy to obey. Unfolding himself from his position, the wolf stood slowly, getting his long legs under him, much taller than Pina. The sheep was not fazed, however, standing back a little only so that he could better admire the wolf's body, his strong, board chest, the rounded strength of his shoulders. Yet it was the power contained within the bite of his jaws that was the most stringent of all, what put a wolf head and shoulders above so many other carnivores on campus. There were some, of course, like the bear, who had brute force on their side, though Pina had easily been able to overcome that.

He'd only had to be subtle.

"What a beauty... It is a shame that you are a carnivore, Legosi."

Pina took his time, running his hands all over the wolf's body, admiring him, all while Legosi was helpless to do anything about it. He started at the wolf's shoulders, pressing his fingers into and around the round of them, where so much more muscle lay. Few herbivores were that defined, though Pina had come across a couple of bulls and bison in his time, to name a couple, who could have faced off against some of the larger predators. Not many could compare when it came to that amount of muscle, however, though the wolf was not as bulky either as Bill the tiger.

Still, that did not stop the Dall sheep from taking his time in rubbing his hands down and over the wolf's pectoral muscles in his chest, admiring everything that the carnivore had to offer. He was beautiful and it was a grace indeed to enjoy his time with a carnivore, to take in the power of Legosi's body, though he had not considered how he would feel being so close to a carnivore like Legosi before. It should have frightened him rather than excited him, though Pina was too confident in his power.

His fingers came down over his abdominals, teasing the six-pack that was easily hidden under the wolf's fur, even if the definition could not be seen at that moment. Yet Pina could feel it, pressing his fingers through the wolf's grey fur before sliding back up again, tenderly caressing and squeezing Legosi's biceps, fingers massaging, even if, for him, it was not in worship.

No... Admiration and worship were both very different things. He took his time massaging the wolf's biceps, as if he could absorb the power contained there, though he moved on to the wolf's muzzle, opening his jaw, admiring the sharp teeth inside.

"What big teeth you have, Legosi... That is where the power of a carnivore is contained. But, in a herbivore, it is our wit! You should have - agh!"

Cold water doused him and the sheep leapt back in shock, shaking his head, his head damp, horns glistening with moisture. With a flask of what had to be only water in one hand, held high above his head so that Pina would not notice what he was doing, the wolf froze in place, breathing harshly, eyes locked onto the sheep.

"Maybe so, Pina."

Pina gasped, and held up his hands, more confused than anything else, though he was emboldened by the fact that the wolf did not immediately come for him. That was reassuring, yet the soft oil that he had painted his horns with slicked off as the water ran from them, leaving them glistening, but not with what Pina needed them to be shining with.

"What? What have you done?" He cried, stumbling back, tripping over his own feet, though that was hardly becoming of one who wanted to become the next Beastar and take Louis' place in the drama club. "Legosi! You..."

But he couldn't get the words out as the wolf set the empty flask aside and shook his head.

"I was never under your control, Pina," he said levelly, though he did not take pleasure in besting the sheep. "I played along, because I already watched you boasting and bragging about your hypnotic horns when you were taking your poses with Bill and Aoba. If you had stayed a little quieter, I might not have known."

The wolf did not say that to be mean, only to state a fact, for Pina could have bested him if he had not stated his intentions aloud. It was one of a few mistakes, so far, that the Dall sheep had made. He tugged a pair of nose plugs, each one set into a separate nostril so that they were not connected, from his nostrils, needing a little manipulation to get them back out again.

"I held my breath whenever you came close to me, though these helped," he said, tucking them away where he could use them again if needed. "I think you had quite a rare plant there, Pina. It was very clever."

Pina trembled, lips twisting, pressing together into a hard, determined line.

"This is not a fight you shall win, Legosi."

His will was not broken, despite his position, the water having already washed away whatever was left of the plant on his horns. Without it, he was back on even ground with Legosi, though Pina still held himself up as tall as his short stature could allow, fine and delicate, refined. It was the way of him being who he was, casting his eyes about discreetly for something that would serve as a weapon.

"Give up, Pina, this isn't going to end with you winning this fight. Please... I don't want to hurt you."

Pina scoffed, swiping up a long stick of bamboo, a good seventy centimetres long, though they had been placed there, of course, by those controlling them, making them fight. They knew the measurements where everything was recorded, though Pina stood tall and proud, staring at Legosi down the length of bamboo, clasping it in one hand like a sword.

"Did you fence, Legosi?" He said, a smile returning to his lips. "For there are far better ways to take on an opponent than brute force!"

Legosi shook his head, though snatched up another length of bamboo, the makeshift sword warming to his palm, closing his fingers around it. At sixty centimetres long, give or take, it was not as long as Pina's, giving the sheep an advantage - that was, of course, if he was trained in fencing and knew how to best employ the tactics used there.

"Pina, we don't have to do this!"

But the sheep struck first before Legosi had even sunk into a front-facing fighting stance, hardly braced at all. The bamboo sword cracked into his own as he tried to duck out of the way, though Pina had the advantage, Legosi all too aware of the fact that his bamboo would break if he allowed it to take too great of a strike. True to his word, Pina shifted into a fencing stance with his left foot forward and his right foot behind him, dancing back and forth as if he was moving along a straight line. Legosi, however, was not as restricted, only knowing a little from a couple of classes they had had on fencing from exercise at the school and no more than that. He'd watched a lot of old-fashioned documentaries, low quality, on sword fighting, however, even if he did not know the names of a lot of the moves and tactics he remembered.

Pina came for him in a lunge and Legosi rapped his bamboo stick away, heart pounding. There was more time to think in a sword fight and yet still the same amount of time to react, everything happening very quickly as they danced back and forth, Legosi a little more clumsily than Pina, across the clearing. The bamboo sticks rang out with a loud "rap" when they connected with one another, the sound acutely different to that of bodies striking one another with brute force, the crudeness of the wrestling and fumbling martial arts that Legosi had, so far, engaged in.

WHAM! RAP!

He parried Pina's strike, but the sheep pressed the attack, leaping into a flunge, which was just like a lunge but involved a jump at the start, using the quick motion to get past an opponent's defences. Legosi had to use the bamboo harder than he wanted to bat the sheep away, though he came at him like a creature possessed. All Pina wanted was the triumph of conquering him and Legosi could not blame him for that.

Still, the wolf did not want to lose as he lashed out with the bamboo, swiping from left to right where the sheep's stomach would have been - if he had not rolled out of the way. Agile, Pina leapt back to his feet and came at Legosi with a jabbing strike, a high shoulder, aiming to get his "sword" inside Legosi's and jab at his shoulder. It was too fine a move for such high stakes, yet perhaps that was something that Pina had not thought of. Yet what it did do was force the wolf onto the defensive, struggling to keep up with a parry.

Pina smiled, cutting across the wolf's body as he struck the outside of Legosi's shoulder in a sweeping motion, earning himself a cry from Legosi's lips.

RAP!

"Aha! The reaper shall not take my soul!" He proclaimed. "Today is not the day!"

Legosi's ears twitched, pain brimming over from the blow to his arm, a bruise already forming. That was from the Adler play... He remembered that. He didn't say anything, playing the part of his opponent, though the sheep still had the advantage, moving more quickly than Legosi as if he had the lightness of a hero around his feet.

Legosi, however, found his style, the bamboo stick sturdier between his hands as he caught his breath. He swung the sword overhead as if to bring it down on the sheep's head in a two-handed motion, Pina moving to block it - and then drove his knee up. Even though he only struck a glancing blow of the sheep, having tricked him into thinking he was going for a different kind of attack, it was enough to send Pina off-balance.

Sometimes, all it took was a single moment, Legosi pressing, cutting and chopping, handling the bamboo stick with two hands while Pina left one hand out behind him for balance. It allowed him to put as much force behind the sword as he dared, striking in a sharp lunge that whipped straight by Pina's head. The sheep gasped and stumbled to the left, away from the makeshift sword, but the swipes at the wool around his head came quickly, confusing him, distracting him enough for Legosi to barrel his way in close.

And then it was over, Pina blinking, not even knowing what had happened as Legosi slammed his sword-fighting hand up and back, flinging Pina's bamboo stick right out of his hand, flying over his head. It flipped over and over through the air until landing on the ground some distance away with a light thump that went unnoticed as Pina's eyes grew wide. Although the sheep's breath came in shorter pants, he showed no other sense of being afraid, his trademark smile, charming and charismatic, on his lips.

"Alas! I surrender!"

He held his hands up in mock surrender as Legosi levelled the bamboo stick at the sheep's neck, bearing Pina down on his knees. Yet Pina still acted as if it was in a play, Adler, to be specific.

"Now the reaper shall take my soul... And I shall be no more!" The sheep glanced up, a twinkle in his eye. "But I will be back to take more carnivores at my disposal, oh yes. The might of the herbivore is not yet concluded!"

Legosi shook his head. How had he gotten roped into the sheep's performance that didn't make any sense? Walking slowly behind the Dall sheep, he levelled the bamboo stick at Pina's neck.

"I'm sorry, Pina, for what I'm about to do."

It was the best mercy he could give Pina, the bamboo stick held out to the side, perfectly poised for a sideways chop into the sheep's neck. It would not be hard, of course, but enough to hit that pressure point in his neck with calculated precision.

CRACK!

The deep groan that the sheep gave sickened Legosi to his core, but there was to be no more of that fight as Pina's body slumped forward, tilting, sliding to the ground as his lower jaw fell slack. Pina let out a low groan as he fell unconscious, half on his side, resting on a shoulder, his legs splayed out almost beautifully before him. The way he fell was dramatic, as if he was posing even in unconsciousness, though that was not something that Legosi, to be frank, could ever understand.

He shook his head slowly, checking Pina's pulse and pulling back his eyelids to check that he was out cold, before stretching Pina's legs out in front of him, arranging the sheep so that he was lying flat on his back, arms at his sides. Pina breathed slowly and evenly and the drones floated in, though Legosi had not noticed them during the fight. They were becoming so commonplace to him that he hardly even paid them any mind at all, for they were just one more thing in the arena that was set to trip him up. He had to keep all his attention on his opponents, all so that he could get out again, to find his family, to protect all of those who were close to him.

He would do what was needed as the drones circled, recording and taking photos of him as he posed reluctantly with his foot on Pina's chest. He needed all the supplies he could get for him and Juno, though he still had no idea where the she-wolf was.

There were no defamatory, bragging words from Legosi's lips as he did only what was needed, posing and flexing his arms, showing off his muscles. He lifted his arms on either side of his head as if to show off the muscles of his upper body, flexing, but it was hard to do a pose like that when he felt so silly about it, as if he was taking advantage of Pina at a moment when the sheep was at his most vulnerable.

Glancing down, he checked that the sheep was still asleep before swapping his right foot for his left on Pina's chest, making sure to keep most of his weight on the foot that was not on the sheep's body. If he let go and let Pina take his weight, who knew what could happen. It wasn't something that the wolf wanted to find out.

But something that Legosi could not help but notice was how soft the sheep was under his foot, wriggling his toes on top of him. The sheep's wool was so very soft and it was closer than Legosi could ever remember getting to a herbivore like Pina, even under such circumstances. Tentatively, he shifted his right foot to Pina's stomach, one foot on the ground and one on the sheep, testing how it felt, shifting his weight back and forth, rocking it from heel to toe. Although Legosi squashed lightly into the sheep's body, Pina did not react. The wolf hadn't pressed hard enough for that, not when he was being so careful.

"I'm so sorry, Pina, I never meant for any of this to happen..."

It was not Legosi's fault, of course, but the wolf had a habit of taking things on his head that were not his struggles to bear. The drones whirred, coming in closer. Maybe they knew, by that point, that he did good poses, for he had always been pleased with the supplies he got. They had kept him and Juno going, so far.

Pina groaned under him and Legosi muttered quietly, glancing down. He didn't have any chloroform on him, checking the waistline of his underwear, not having anything more to carry things like that around with. The chloroform he'd had would have been back near where he had fought the raccoon and bird, but he'd been distracted by the commotion that Pina had caused.

The sheep opened his eyes slowly, fluttering them free as Legosi stared down at him, Pina taking a deep breath through his mouth, lips parting.

"Ah..."

Pina did not appear to understand what was happening, not as he panted under Legosi, trying to ease the strain in his body, though Legosi took his chance before the sheep could take another deep breath. Placing his foot confidently over Pina's nose and mouth, he pressed down, hoping against hope that it would work, though it was not something he had ever tried before. If he placed enough pressure, he could stop his ability to breathe and knock him back out, letting him slip back into unconsciousness without needing to do anything hard. There was something about it being a foot, which he'd seen online somewhere before, that he vaguely remembered being...humiliating?

It was not something that the wolf fully understood, to be fair to him, but he bore down gently, shifting his weight only to ensure that he was adequately covering his nose and mouth. He had to press down, had to use the power still contained in his foot, to quiet the sheep, though Pina's eyes were wide open, staring up at him.

Pina's eyes, if anything, got wider, rounder, staring and staring. He was fully aware of everything happening and yet he gave in to it, submitted to it as he never would have expected to find himself submitting.

The sheep breathed in the wolf's foot, the softness of the skin on the underside, taking it all in slowly and evenly as if the moment could be lost at a moment's notice. He knew that it would lead to his downfall, if he did not push back, fight in some way, but Pina knew too that he was greater than any carnivore who might have professed to lay any kind of power or claim over him.

No... He could take it all in, breathing slowly, deeply and evenly as his face was smothered, exhaling in a long rush of breath.

So sleepy... So very sleepy... When had he gotten so tired?

He had to let himself go as Legosi looked down on him, towering above, watching him fall back to sleep. Slowly, so slowly, Pina's eyelids grew heavier and heavier, so weighty, weighed down merely by the force of Legosi's foot. The wolf didn't apply all that much pressure to him, not so much that Pina would be hurt, yet it still did everything that it needed to do as he was gently and firmly smothered, allowed to see just which of them held the power in that situation.

"Go to sleep, Pina. Everything's okay."

Legosi didn't want Pina to worry, watching him carefully, how he exhaled long and slow, letting himself slip closer and closer to unconsciousness. Truly, he was surprised that Pina gave in to it so easily, but that was perhaps something that he would take forward, fresh knowledge that he could use if he had to knock out another herbivore.

Smothering with his foot, or feet, could be just as effective as chloroform, even if Pina wasn't struggling. The wolf rocked his foot lightly on the sheep's face, bearing down a little more, very careful in his movements, for he didn't want to cause him harm. He might just end up squashing his muzzle for a little while, but that wasn't the sort of thing that would hurt Pina, especially after he passed out.

However, what Legosi did not know was that the sheep, drifting back and forth along the edge of consciousness with only a tiny little bit of air entering his lungs, was enjoying it. Somehow, it was relaxing, the sweet, clean scent infiltrating his nostrils, slipping down into his lungs. He wanted to breathe slowly and deeply, but Legosi controlled that, even as a part of him whimpered softly and leaned in ever so softly, wanting to rub his face against Legosi's foot.

It was so strong, so softly flexible. Pina could not believe that he was enjoying such a moment, but he drifted, faded, falling lower and lower and lower.

"I'm sorry, Pina. Sleep peacefully..."

Legosi was who he was and Pina would not speak against that, not even as he was suppressed by the wolf's foot. Slowly, dragging up the last vestiges of strength and energy he had in him, Pina's fingers crept towards the wolf's foot, inching in closer and closer until he brushed the side of Legosi's foot with his fingertips. He didn't have the energy left in him, as the world around him grew darker and softer, the clawing of unconsciousness dragging him down. But he could still touch that foot, revere it gently in his own way.

He didn't try to push Legosi away, some deep, dark part of the sheep revelling in the pleasure of it all, the soft, clean aroma sinking deeper and deeper into his lungs. It was too good there, for every moment to drag out more and more, the clean scent filling his lungs. It was all the sheep could think about, everything and more, the edges of his vision going grey, unconsciousness slow to claim him.

"Keep breathing in my foot, Pina, it's all going to be okay, just relax. Keep breathing... Keep going... Fall asleep..."

It was not true something, yet an overload of pleasure, the sheep shuddering and fainting, entirely of his own accord, merely from the pleasure of enjoying Legosi's foot. Forever would he be left with the memory of that debasement, as he fell unconscious, yet Legosi was there still to protect him.

Legosi stayed over him, making sure that Pina was gone, though the wolf did not understand what had happened, only that the sheep was unconscious, knocked out cold. He didn't have to understand fully, not as he finally moved his foot from the sheep's face. Then and only then did he put his arms, very gently, around Pina, carrying him in his arms to a cage.

He had to do it, had to keep going. At least he had not hurt Pina. That was not something he wanted to do to anyone, let alone a herbivore.

As gently as possible, he laid Pina down in the cage on his side, a horn tapping lightly against the metal floor of it. Yet the sheep did not wake, sleeping peacefully, the cage door closing after him.

The poses had been enough for Legosi to receive another delivery from the drones, dropping a small box in front of him.

The spoils of his victory. Legosi sighed.

It didn't feel like a victory, not anymore.