The Wolf Among Us (Completed)

Chapter 1 - Mercy

Boots drummed the arena's wooden benches, creating a steady rhythm for the chants singing Estera's name as she shadowboxed to get her blood flowing. Sweat dripped down her face from the sun drenching the chalky earth at her feet, and she shook out her arms, causing the spikes on her leather armor to glint under the sizzling rays. If someone looked closely, they would still see crimson stains on them from her last fight.

And like that occasion, she knew she would win again.

Propping her leg on the weathered railing in front of her, she cast a long glance at the thrones nestled under the black awning on the second level. Only six of the seven seats were occupied, making her wonder where her mother was? Switching legs, she held the pose to observe her opponent. They paced back and forth in the center of the arena, wasting time instead of preparing.

"Matalo," her mother, Catalina, whispered in a warm breath across her ear, but Estera didn't need to hear it to remember her task.

The rules were simple: Follow the laws of the community or die. Her opponent signed their death certificate when they spat in her mother's face during a town hall meeting. Never in the history of their community had someone been so bold to accost a leader.

"Lo hago por ti." Estera turned to her. "This time, it's personal."

Smiling proudly, her mother pulled out a tiny glass jar, and Estera got down on one knee. She straightened her shoulders and tilted her head back just enough to let the sun warm her mahogany skin.

"Sangre, de mí sangre." Catalina traced a crooked finger from Estera's hairline, all the way down to her chin. As the breeze blew, she felt the cool touch of garnet paint left behind. "Rise."

"The blood of my people relies on my hand. The blood of my people will never soak this land. For I am the chosen, a warrior, a mountain, a force no enemy can command," she recited.

"Sangre, de mí sangre," Catalina concluded and covered Estera's hands with hers - hands which had deep scars and fractured bones that never healed correctly from the Great War of the Territories. To an outsider, her mother was disfigured, but to Estera, it was the sign of a true warrior. A badge that many wore proudly, and one she hoped to wear as well someday.

"Look." Catalina pointed to the old woman standing up from the middle throne.

A crown of deer antlers and rabbit skulls adorned her head of long silver waves, with wiry strands coaxing the breeze as she walked to the balcony overlooking the fighting pit. The crowd went silent. It was time. Like every fight, her cloudy eyes scanned the audience absently as her flabby arms brought a conch shell to her lips, and the rabbit bones dangling from her necklace clanged like wind chimes with her movements. Estera closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she heard the familiar sound circulate the arena, she glanced at her mother one last time, and Catalina blew her a kiss.

Pushing her shoulders back, she clasped the stair rail to make her descent into the pit. Recently, Dev began waiting at the bottom. He was older than her by five years, and the rumor was that he wanted her to be his partner.

"It's your fiftieth fight today." He handed her a sword, and she held it out, admiring the razor edge in the sunlight.

"You've kept track?"

"It takes most Enforcers ten years to accomplish what you've managed to do in five, so yes, I've taken notice."

"How long did it take you?"

"Six." He smiled and glanced at the thrones under the awning. "Maybe one day we can sit up there together. Would you like that?"

Estera felt a faint thump in her chest as she finally looked him in the eyes. Dev was one of the strongest Enforcers, and together they could make a powerful partnership. Her mother once said to look at them as business deals and go with someone who could strengthen her community position. Love was a privilege, and if she wanted to sit on a throne as a leader one day, she would have to make sacrifices.