"Alright Sutton, show me what you've got." Benjin stood with his legs slightly apart, arms hanging loosely at his sides. He was leaving himself completely open, but I wasn't stupid enough to believe that he would simply stand there and let me hit him. We had trained enough for me to know his tactics by now. Most of them usually left my muscles screaming in pain. I danced back and forth on the balls of my feet, glancing toward where Ajax stood next to Octavia and the twins. He gave me a toothy smile, his attempt at encouraging me. A sharp pain radiated through my thigh and I stumbled to the side with a small yelp, catching myself on my hands.
"Never take your eyes off the enemy. That's rule number one." Benjin snipped at me. I tilted my head up to see him standing over me with a goading look in his eyes, "I thought I had taught you better than that by now. Maybe I was wrong to waste my time training you, mongrel. Perhaps we should just hand you over to Revan and save ourselves all this trouble." I gritted my teeth as I pushed myself up off the ground, ignoring the pain in my leg. I could see through his game. He was trying to poke at my ego, to see if that would snap my beast out of her funk.
She only let out a huff at his comments, remaining quietly at the back of my mind. The only anger that existed in me was my own for having let myself get distracted, "That was just a lucky shot, old man." I remarked, flashing him a forced smile. I watched his brow lift, as his foot swept forward catching the heel of my bad leg. I sucked in a breath as my body lost balance and my butt hit the ground with a firm thud.
"That one had nothing to do with luck." His voice rumbled as the pain and humiliation reverberated through my being. I bit into the side of my cheek as I lifted my face, cheeks burning. His expression folded into it's usual scowl, "Are you going to sit there looking stupid all night?"
I heard Octavia let out a snicker, "I don't think she can help that Benjin. That's simply her face." She'd been a bit leisurely with her wine tonight and so her comments were flying freely. I gritted my teeth as I pushed up off the ground, resisting the urge to return Octavia's jab with one of my own. I couldn't afford or rather my body couldn't afford me getting distracted again.
"You better not get any blood on that dress. It's impossible to get out of that type of fabric." She called out to me, "On second thought, take it off."
I found myself turning toward her with a growl, "You can't be serious?" As the words left my mouth I felt the crushing weight of Benjin's heel to the back of my knee. My knees hit the ground with enough force to have me biting the tip of my tongue, the tang of my own blood filling my mouth. Octavia was staring me down with a lifted brow as if that had simply proven her point. She lifted her hand and held out, waiting for me to do as she commanded.
My cheeks blazed as I recollected that the only thing I had on underneath the dress was the green lingere that Ajax had been enamored with. My gaze strayed to the male in question, finding that he wasn't looking at me at all but glaring daggers in Benjin's direction. I closed my eyes and collected myself as I pushed myself up off the ground, again. I found the hem of the dress and lifted it up over my head. Secretly I hoped the damned thing fell on the ground and got dirty, and never got clean again.
I turned away from them as I tossed the stupid dress toward her outstretched hand, only to find myself on the receiving end of Benjin's fists. A hit to the face, followed by a jab to my ribs. I staggered back, coughing out the air he had knocked from lungs under his surprise attack.
"I told you, never take your eyes off of your enemy." He growled at me.
I met his hardened stare, the side of my face burning where he had hit me, "Cheap shots." I accused.
He snorted at my comment, "You think that your enemies will fight fair? This isn't a fun game between friends." He started to circle around the outside, eyes roaming over me, searching for my weak spots, "This is the wild, it's eat or be eaten. Kill or be killed."
I narrowed my eyes watching as he shifted forward, his right arm tensing as it prepared for another strike. I wasn't going to let him get me a second time. I shifted my stance to defend myself against him just as he stepped out, swinging at my face. I lifted my arm, blocking his attack proudly even as the pain reverberated up my arm.
"Don't get cocky." He remarked dryly as he caught my little smirk, swinging at me from the other side. I took most of the hit to my eye, which hurt like a bitch. I hissed between my teeth as I stumbled back away from him, grabbing onto my face.
"Come on." He growled at me, nailing me with another punch to the ribs as I blocked the fist coming toward my face. I sucked in a breath as I staggered to the side, doing everything I could to keep my feet planted on the ground, "You're protecting the wrong things. Focus, Sutton. Remember what I taught you."
I could feel my own frustration building at the fact that my beast had practically abandoned me, leaving me to the take the brunt of this beating alone. She could have at least lended me some of her speed or strength, but no. She seemed like she couldn't be bothered at the moment to anything other than mope. So I was left fighting Benjin like a weak human girl whose only true talent was running away. I glared at Benjin as I sidestepped, following his movements to a T.
He came for my face again but this time I was ready for the hand coming for my weak spot. I caught his hand with mine as I took the brunt of his first strike to my face. The force tossed my head to the side, my teeth cutting into my cheek. I did my best to not loosen my grip on his hand, pulling him in closer as I lifted my leg. My knee caught him in the stomach, not with as much strength as I wanted but enough to have him hunching forward as I released him.
He lifted his face a bit, grinning at me in a way that only made me want to groan, "That's all you've got? Come on, Sutton. Show me." He came at me harder, and faster than he had been before. I could only block about half of the punches and kicks he was throwing at me, which meant I was taking a lot damage and feeling all of it. I went tumbling head over heels across the ground with a solid kick to my lower abdomen. My body screamed in protest to the damage I was taking. I couldn't do more than lay prone on the ground, trying to catch my breath and gather the will to raise back up to my feet.
Ajax let out a loud snarl, "No more." He was very agitated at the moment from the sound of his voice. My beast perked up at the sound more then she had the entire session with Benjin. I struggled to push myself up off the ground, lifting my face and shoulder a few feet before I lost my strength and slammed back into the ground. Maybe I needed to come to terms with the fact that my beast was never going to be the same again, too much had happened to us in such a short time for her to recover from the stress. It made me sad. As much as I had longed to be back on Haven, as much as I longed to be an average human; I had grown rather attached to her.
"Get up, Sutton." Benjin nudged me with his foot, "We aren't done. You're still conscious, so get up."
"We kill one eyed man." Ajax growled loudly. His words bounced around in my head, forcing me to take control of my limbs. I couldn't let him kill anyone or worse I couldn't let him get killed protecting me needlessly. Slowly I scrambled up off the ground with the remain strength that I had, the world around me swaying slightly as I did so.
"No, Ajax. No...I'm fine...I'm fine." I spoke firmly as I held onto my side, every breath I took felt like my lungs were full of glass shards. Benjin had definitely broken a couple of my ribs, that was going to be a pain in the ass to heal later. I could hear the twins struggling to hold Ajax back, cursing at one another in russian. Benjin circled around me with a mischievous glint in his dark eye. I was having trouble keeping up with him as the world spun around me slowly.
He pushed towards me, punching out slow enough that I was able to dodge it easily even in my current state which had me cursing myself. I knew immediately that I had made a error in my judgement as I felt the breeze from this barely missed strike hit my face. I caught the light in his eyes as he shifted his leg forward, swiping it behind my heel as I stepped back. My world shifted as I lost my balance. It teetered one way and then the other before I toppled forward. The side of my face hit the ground with a solid smack, my vision winking in and out for a moment.
I lifted my head as I pressed my palms to the ground, ears ringing loudly. I could see Ajax wrestling with the twins for freedom, his body all hard planes and angles. I wanted to tell him to calm down, that I was fine but my brain wasn't cooperating.
"Let him go." Benjin growled, taking a defensive stance.
"You sure?" Dimitri shouted back.
Benjin snorted pridefully, "I said let him go." The twins gave him a wary look before they did as he had ordered.
Ajax rushed Benjin, catching him around his waist with open arms. Anyone else would have landed on the ground but Benjin was ready for the attack. His shifted back a couple of steps but remained upright. His face twisted up into a predatory sneer as he lay elbow after elbow into Ajax back, hitting his kidney's several times. The two of them separated only to come back together again. It was like a clash of the titans, though I could tell from Ajax that he hadn't expected such a fight out out Benjin despite the fact that he had been watching him beat on me the entire time.
I slowly gathered myself up off the ground, hobbling forward on shaky legs. My head was swimming and every part of body screaming out in protest at my movements. I knew I was hanging on at the moment by sheer will alone, there was no way that I could take anymore from Benjin unless my beast got her shit together.
"Come on, wild man. Pups fight better than you." Benjin growled as he spit blood out of his mouth, I had no idea if it was his or Ajax's. I knew he was using the same tactic he had on me many times, poking at the ego of the beast within. The pride of the animal always turned out to be it's downfall because it didn't understand the intentions and complex thoughts of the human. To the animal they only understood the language of dominance and submission.
"Ajax. Don't..." As the words left my mouth, he was charging forward. Benjin punched him quick to the face, throwing him off balance as he swept out a leg. Benjin had Ajax on the ground, punching him over and over again. My eyes were focused on the blood that was beginning to coat his knuckles.
"Stop..." My voice trembled softly, unable to tear my eyes away from the sight. A shiver raced up my spine and I felt my beast lifting her head. Her rage began like a gentle whisper before turning to a storm of vicious snarls. I could feel my skin stretching tight against my muscles as I became too big for it. My bones were grinding painfully against each other as they prepared to mangle themselves into my other form.
"Please. Stop." The voice that came from my throat was guttural and murderous. My vision was being tinted hues of pink as her anger consumed all the cells in my body. She was going to try and kill Benjin if I shifted. I could feel it in every part of my consciousness, her intentions were to make sure that he never touched what was hers again.
He ignored my pleas, knocking Ajax square in the jaw. That was the last of my restraint. She pushed outward and I found myself being sucked inward toward the recesses of my mind. She released a howl before she scurried forward, claws digging into the floor as she bum rushed her prey. Her body collided with Benjins with a resounding peal of thunder.
She knocked him to the ground, clamping her teeth down on his shoulder and biting hard. He didn't make a sound, simply lifted his hands to block her from hitting any of his vital organs while he kicked at her with his powerful legs. He was able to knock her loose with a solid kick to her stomach, launching her back a few feet away. It gave him enough time to roll onto his stomach before she came for him again, biting into his ankle. She began to drag him back toward her like the predator that she truly was, her mind full of images of Benjin disemboweled by her razor sharp claws. She wanted to rip off his head and play with it like a toy.
She jumped onto his back, snarling low as she bit as his hands which he was using to cover the back of his neck. I could tell he was tired out from all the fighting, he didn't have any strength left other than to try and keep himself alive. Her claws cut through the thin material of his shirt, slicing at his skin over and over. I fought against her hard, trying to force her back and away but the beating I had taken left me too weak to reach through the rage that enveloped her.
"Someone get her off of him, now! If I have to kill Sutton because of this I will very, very upset." Octavia snarled, I could tell from the tone she was on the verge of shifting. I could only imagine that she felt very divided within herself, wanting to save Benjin and not wanting to kill me. Deep down I knew that if it came down to it she would kill me to save Benjin. In the end no matter if she liked me more than most the people she had in her ranks I was still expendable. He wasn't.
"Little Ribbon." Ajax called out in a gentle voice behind her. I knew he was trying to reach me, past the craze of the beast. She didn't seem to understand that he was talking to her or if she did understand she simply didn't care. She was completely focused on Benjin.
Octavia let out another snarl as she threw her dominance around the room. "Kiska, You are not helping. You need to leave. Let us take care of this." Viktor's voice was gentle but firm as he spoke to her.
"If either of them die. I swear..." She was barely hanging on I could tell from the harshness of her tones. The beast was pushing to join in with Benjin and I, though to protect or to destroy, I couldn't be certain of that one and I doubt she could either.
"He is right, Zaika. Leave to us. We make sure no one dies this night." Dimitri urged. There was tense silence followed by the sound of high heels moving over hard floor and the slam of the door.
I found myself pulled back into the moment as large hands roamed over my beast's body, fingers digging into her fur and pulling at her. I knew it was Ajax. I could tell from the electric scent that danced around us. Despite the fact that he had been beaten within an inch of his life he was still trying to help us. I wanted to tell him to stop, to let her because she was completely unstable at the moment. I had no doubt that she would attack anyone despite their relation to her.
As I expected she let out a snarl, twisting around and snapping out at the hand he had wrapped around her shoulder. Her teeth sunk into his hand, the metallic tang of his blood coating the inside of her mouth. Ajax didn't react to the bite or try to shake her off, he kept his grip on her. She met his eyes and bit down harder, growling low.
His lips pulled back to show his sharp canines, "Enough, my moon." He growled, letting a bit of his dominance leak out around us. That seemed to only upset her more, like a child throwing a tantrum. She was tired of all the dominance. She was proving once and for all that she was just as powerful as any of them.
He heaved a breath before using his strength to knock her off balance, wrestling her to the ground so that was a top her. Ajax clamped his teeth around her neck, a deep growl echoing over the sudden commotion that had broken out in the room. It rattled her brain, bringing her out of the bloodlusting haze she had been buried under. She gave a small warning growl, as she glanced at the approaching twins. I knew that they probably just wanted to get to Benjin who was luckily still breathing at the moment from the shallow movements of his chest. I tried to urge her to let them have Benjin. She had succeeded in saving Ajax. It was safe to let me have control again.
Ajax bit down harder on her neck, the sharp points of his canines breaking through the surface of her skin. His growls echoed around the room, bouncing off the walls and making him seem even bigger than he was. That had her whimpering, and quivering underneath him in complete submission. He held onto her as the twins rushed forward, grabbing Benjin by his arms and dragging him away to safety. Once he was a good distance away Ajax released her, nuzzling his face into her fur as he let out apologetic sounds in the back of his throat.
He didn't want her to be afraid of him but he had done what was necessary to save her and to keep her from doing something that I would have regretted for the rest of my life. She would have never felt any guilt over killing Benjin. To her it had been within her right to take his life because he had tried to take her mate from her. It was simple laws of the wild, but I didn't live in that world with her. I lived in a world much more complex and I was immensely thankful for Ajax at the moment.
She whimpered softly as she gave up control, pushing herself back into my shallow form. I groaned as my muscles screamed in protest to the shift, especially after the beating that I had taken from Benjin. I lay balled up on the ground underneath Ajax, shivering at the blast of cold air over my sweat soaked skin.
I stared up at him with tears filling my eyes, "I'm sor-sorry." I pressed the word out between my chattering teeth. Ajax said nothing as he eased one of his hand behind my neck, and the other underneath my thighs. Slowly he lifted me up off the ground, cradling me close to his chest. He didn't need to say anything in response, his actions said more than enough. I found myself snuggling in deeper to his chest which was radiating with warmth.
I peered over to see the twins hovering over Benjin, their hands working over the wounds that he had received at my hands. I felt the lump in my throat grow larger, the bubble of guilt in my stomach had me fighting back the urge to purge my dinner. I bit into my lip, worrying it as I watched them work diligently. Every couple of seconds they would share a glance or say something in their mother tongue.
"No worry. Man that throw punch that mean, be okay. We are sure." Ajax spoke to me, and I tilted my head back to meet his gaze. My eyes scanned his face which looked like hamburger meat at the moment. Though I could already tell that his inhuman healing abilities were taking place. The cut on his cheek had already scabbed over and the swelling around his left eye was starting to go down. I could only imagine how I must have looked to him, definitely a sight for sore eyes.
I reached up, hesitating for a moment before I brushed my fingers over his bruised cheek, "I am sorry. This is my fault." My words carrying a double meaning that I doubted he would pick up on. Tonight hadn't started off that bad, but it was certainly ending on a somber note.
He leaned his face into my touch, nuzzling the palm of my hand before he turned his head and kissed it. A shiver rushed through my body at the innocent touch and I dropped my hand away as my cheeks grew a little hot with the awareness of where our bodies were pressed up against each other. His dark eyes roamed over my face, "No fault with Sutton. Beast was provoked. We are happy to bleed for our little piece of the moon."
I nibbled at my lip to hold back the emotions as tears flooded my eyes and spilled down my cheeks, stinging my open wounds. He had no idea what his simple words did to me. Even After years of constructing walls around myself to keep out the world I was ill prepared to defend myself against his more subtle attacks. His words simply passed through the weak spots and the cracks in my barriers and shot me straight through the heart.
"No cry, Sutton. We take you from mess. Get you cleaned." Ajax shifted me around in his arms so that my chest was pressed to his, my arms weaving around his neck as I wrapped my legs around his waist. I buried my face in the crook of his neck as he kneed the underside of my thighs, holding me against him as he started walking towards the door.
I lifted my head to a bit, peering over his shoulder at the twins as they slowly lifted Benjin up between them. He looked terrible but his eye was open, and staring at me. I tightened my arm around Ajax neck as I propped my chin on his shoulder, "I'm sorry..." whispered in his direction, "I didn't mean to. I swear I didn't."
His lips pulled up into a pained smirk as Dimitri lifted his good arm up around his neck, "I know. You did good, Sutton. She's got lucky this time. I took my eyes off my real enemy. Just know that's the first and last time she'll ever get the jump on me." I knew he was talking about my beast, trying to make light about the fact that she had nearly killed him. I was never going to understand these people and their fascination with beating the shit out of each other for the fun of it. All I knew was I was happy to have my beast back and she seemed rather content to have us so close to Ajax.