As the challenge was accepted, the forest erupted in commotion. The sheer audacity of Lily was mind boggling. She had not hesitated to accept the challenge.
'Oh, little she-wolf, you must have a trick up your sleeve,' the mysterious voice evaded Lily's mind again. His tone irritated her as she didn't find this situation funny at all; however, Lily could not back down from Brandy. 'I didn't mean to offend you, little...'
'My name is Lily and yes, you did offend. Please stop invading my mind while I prepare,' Lily snapped. The mysterious voice chuckled before leaving her be.
'Lily, I...' Garrett started.
'Have faith in me like I have faith in you or did you lie about that too?' Lily snapped at Garrett.
'I deserved that. I only wanted to say is remember what we practiced. Watch your breathing and watch her movements. She is going to rely on the fact that you are weaker than her. Use that against her. You can do this,' Garrett responded. 'Then when she tires herself out, go for the jugular.'
'I won't kill her,' Lily said firmly.
'You may not have a choice,' Garrett said solemnly. He could feel and smell the animosity rolling off Brandy. She had a sweet smile on her face, but her true desire was to paint the snow in Lily's blood.
'She will beat this bitch and show that she is deserving of the Luna title,' Berric said. 'She will not fail.'
The air crackled with anticipation, and the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife. Debra frowned, wondering if the Moon Goddess had cursed her family line. Why would something like this be allowed? Was her granddaughter going to be taken from her too?
'You need to trust the Moon Goddess. She blessed her just like she did our daughter and us,' Amber, Debra's wolf, said. 'She needs to go through this to be who she needs to be.'
Adam held onto Tiffany, offering her comfort as she worried about the potential outcome of the duel. He also held her to ensure that Tiffany would not interfere in the challenge no matter what happened.
"Are you two ready?" Mandy asked. Lily and Brandy nodded. "Then, begin."
Lily and Brandy circled each other, their gazes locked in a fierce stare. Lily could see the crazed look in Brandy's eyes. She wanted to hurt her. This wasn't about fixing the situation. This was about embarrassing her in the worst way possible.
Brandy lunged first, her movements were messy and erratic. Lily dodged swiftly, punching Brandy hard in the side of her head, earning a swipe from Brandy, but Lily nimbly dodged again. Lily continued to dodge until her foot caught on a branch hidden in the snow. Brandy lunged at her, slamming into Lily.
"Got you, you bitch," Brandy growled, trying to pin Lily, but surprisingly Lily was able to flip them. Brandy gaped at Lily as she began to reign down blows to her face. All the built up stress and pain from enduring years of Brandy being the favorite boiled to the surface as Lily didn't pull her punches.
Tiffany couldn't help but feel a mixture of pride and concern for Lily. It was evident that Lily had grown stronger, but how? An Omega should not be able to go toe to toe with Alpha, but here Lily was defying the odds.
"It is because she is a red wolf," Debra whispered, answering Tiffany's silent question. "She needed this. She is coming into her own."
Brandy bloodied with a swollen face glared at Lily, who only had a few bruises. This was not how this was supposed to go. She shouldn't be this strong. 'Use what I gave you Brandy,' Mandy's voice was clear in her mind.
Brandy ran her sweaty hands over her shorts, her claws grazing the wolf's bane flower hidden in waistband. She lunged again at Lily. Lily, who was no longer afraid of Brandy, stood her ground.
'Wolfsbane! She has wolfsbane on her!' Dina screamed in Lily's mind. Before Lily could dodge, Brandy managed to slice Lily's arm, earning a scream from her. She gripped her arm and attempted to back up, but Brandy pressed forward.
"You're nothing. You're just a pitiful Omega. You should have never tried to best me. You should've just stayed in your place and now you're going to be a tool like you were meant to be!" Brandy snarled viciously at her.
Brandy's claws were dangerously close to Lily's neck and a surge of energy went through her body. Lily lunged straight for Brandy, shocking her as Lily originally had been on the defensive. She shifted in midair, slamming hard into Brandy. Brandy attempted to shift, but Lily caught her by her leg slamming her into the snow, violently shaking.
Brandy screams echoed throughout the forest as Lily continued her assault. She tossed Brandy away like a ragdoll. Brandy slammed hard into a tree, coughing up blood. Lily approached her snarling, "Submit! Submit to me!"
Mandy watched in horror as Brandy had lost the upperhand. She couldn't process it. Had the world gone crazy?
"Do something," Mandy demanded of Kenneth.
"There is nothing that I can do. We have to follow werelaw," Kenneth responded, cringing at Brandy getting brutalized in front of him. He clenched his fists, hating to see his beautiful daughter beaten like this.
"Then, I'll do something about it," Mandy said. She shifted and charged forward when Lily's back was towards her. Mandy took advantage of Lily not expecting to be jumped and bit her hard in the back, causing Lily to cry out. As Mandy prepared to bite the back of her neck, a large black wolf emerged from the shadows grabbing Mandy by the throat.
This wolf was larger than any of the male wolves. His snout is longer, more formidable. His paw was more human-like as it gripped Mandy's neck tightly causing her to flail in the air as this wolf stood up on his hind legs.
This was not a wolf, but a Lycan.
The black Lycan threw Mandy away from Lily as if she was a dirty rag. His attention turned to Lily, who was now on the brink of unconsciousness. He picked up Lily's frail body as more Lycans emerged.
"The challenge has been determined. Lily Bray is the victor," the black Lycan said. Lily looked at him in surprise as he had the same voice as the mysterious voice that had been talking to her all night.
"How dare you hurt my Luna? Who do you think you are?" Kenneth snarled.
"Lycan King Ethan,"