FicWad

-Togot extended his arm out into the rushing water in front of him and brought the freshly soaked cloth to his head. Despite his new healing powers and even after a nights rest his skull was still throbbing. As the cool water dripped down his face Togot closed his eyes and contemplated recent events.

-Through some small miracle he had fought Kaitlin, a Fury elder to a draw. Though he had no doubt in his mind that she had taken it easy on him, the fact remained that he had become stronger than he had thought. He wondered if the other werewolves knew just how far beyond humans they were. His senses, even in human form, were so sharp that he heard the person approaching him even over the roar of the water fall. When the intruder got close enough he picked up their scent, a scent he now recognized.

-"If you want a rematch could we please wait until tomorrow?" Togot asked jokingly, "my head is killing me."

-Kaitlin stood bellow the ledge Togot sat on. She managed a small smile, pleased that he wasn't holding a grudge. "I wanted to ask you something," she said in her normal, serious tone, "when we were fighting...why didn't you change?"

-There was a long pause from the ledge above her while Togot thought it over. Finally he answered, "Because you didn't. If I had been the first to change, to resort to that advantage then I would have admitted defeat. I would have conceded that I couldn't beat you on even ground. Besides, if we had resorted to using teeth and claws I imagine we would both be suffering from more than headaches right now."

-Kaitlin couldn't help but smile again, "when MourningKill and I first learned of what you had become we both feared the sudden surge of strength would make you overconfident and reliant on shifting. I'm relieved to see that you are wiser than that."

-Togot leaned back against the rocks with the wet cloth over his eyes. He smiled to himself; any compliment from Kaitlin was high praise. He heard the gravel under her foot grind as she turned on her heel to leave. He listened for her footsteps but heard none, meaning she had something else to say.

-"If your healing powers are up to par with the rest of us, your head should feel fine in about an hour." Kaitlin said. Togot could tell she was talking while facing away from him, that and the tone of her voice told him that she was troubled. "Meet me at your training spot, that tree of yours. Parmock and BlackFire will be with me waiting for you."

-Without waiting for his response Kaitlin briskly walked away. Togot had no idea why BlackFire would be involved with anything including him, but he supposed he would find out in an hour. Togot only hoped that Kaitlin was right about his healing powers getting rid of his headache.

-Kaitlin entered MourningKill's den. The queen stood with her back to the doorway holding her hands over a white, glowing orb. Kaitlin waited patiently for her queen to finish without saying a word. After a few seconds MourningKill lowered her hands and the orb dimmed. She looked over her should at Kaitlin.

-"How is he?" MourningKill asked.

-"No worse off than I am," Kaitlin answered.

-MourningKill nodded and looked off in a daze. Kaitlin could tell she was worried. "I'm sorry I failed," Kaitlin said, lowering her gaze. MourningKill snapped out of her thoughts and looked at her second in command with surprise. "If I hadn't gotten careless during the trial, if I had simply beaten him this might have been avoided."

-MourningKill put a reassuring hand on Kaitlin's shoulder. "Togot has been making a habit of surprising us," MourningKill said, "besides, we both knew that the moment he became what he is this day would come. We tried to use his being human as an excuse and if he had failed the trial we might have been able to stall even longer."

-"But now that he is officially a Fury, not to mention the head of his pack, we can't put it off any longer." Kaitlin said, finishing MourningKill's thought. "If we say no, they make it a political issue that could start a war, and if we say yes Togot could be killed."

-"Well...we could always fight the war," MourningKill said with a smile which Kaitlin returned.

-"Togot would never allow that, it there's one thing I've learned about him it's that he doesn't send others to fight in his stead."

-MourningKill regarded Kaitlin with surprise. "You almost sound fond of him," MourningKill teased, "when I first brought him here you suggested eating him."

-Kaitlin smiled at the memory, "I'd say he's proven himself. And I will do my best to prepare him for what is to come."

-MourningKill dismissed Kaitlin and raised her hands over the orb again. Kaitlin left the queen's den and headed for Togot's private refuge to wait for him. She would pick up BlackFire and Parmock along the way. She didn't like Togot's chances of surviving what was to come, but then she hadn't thought he could have beaten her either.

-Togot waited in the field, leaning against his punching tree. He had left the waterfall right after Kaitlin had walked away. His headache had left him even faster than Kaitlin had predicted so he had spent much of the time beating his fist against the tree to sweat out any fatigue. He heard Kaitlin and the others approaching long before he saw them. He waited impatiently, eager to find out what was going on.

-Kaitlin, Parmock and BlackFire approached him together, BlackFire looking friendly as always. Kaitlin stood between and ahead of the other two, showing her dominance. Togot was beginning to pick up such things. With the Furies, and probably all werewolves, much of what they said wasn't spoken.

-"We don't have much time so I'll try to explain why you're here," Kaitlin said. "To put it bluntly, you need to get stronger, and fast. I brought BlackFire because she won't hold back on you; I brought Parmock to help make sure she doesn't kill you."

-Kaitlin shot BlackFire a scolding look. BlackFire broke her gaze from Kaitlin and went back to glaring at Togot. She clearly didn't want to be there, but she managed a smile at the thought of fighting him. No doubt she wanted to pay him back for the exchange they had when they first met years ago.

-"I don't have time to explain why this is necessary," Kaitlin continued, "just know that this is for your survival. We will do this every day, all day for as long as we have. You will fight in your human form until you are ready to fight as a true werewolf."

-"But that doesn't make you a true werewolf," BlackFire said scornfully as she stepped forward. Although her posture was threatening her stance looked relaxed. Her hands rested at her sides and her feet were side by side. "Ready when you are."

-Togot's face hardened with determination and he launched himself forward and threw a straight punch at BlackFire's face with his left hand. He had hoped that she would be caught off guard by the sudden attack, but he was wrong.

-BlackFire grabbed his left wrist with her right hand. Before Togot's momentum had fully stopped she backhanded him so hard that it knocked one of his teeth right out of his mouth. Before the blood in his mouth had even touched his tongue BlackFire pulled Togot forward and drove her left knee up into his stomach with enough force to lift him several inches off the ground.

-Togot felt a strong urge to retch but his wind pipe squeezed itself closed to stop the wind from escaping his lungs. His feet hadn't even come back to earth when BlackFire switched the hand that had a hold of his wrist, twisted his arm out to the side and drove her right elbow down onto his shoulder. The bone popped out of place and Togot dropped to the round like a stone.

-Parmock stepped forward to come to his aid but Kaitlin raised a hand to stop her. BlackFire was doing exactly what she was supposed to be doing, she wasn't holding back. BlackFire waited patiently while Togot coughed up blood and tried to catch his breath. She could have stomped him into the ground but it was so much more satisfying to beat an opponent that was on their feet.

-Togot finally got to his feet spit out the blood in his mouth and grabbed a hold of his left arm. WhiteEye had long since shown him how to reset his own bones to save herself the trouble. With a grimace of pain Togot twisted the bone back into its socket and moved the arm to make sure it was set right.

-Togot looked at BlackFire with a newfound respect. Her attacks had come in such rapid succession that he hadn't even had time to register where he had been hit before the next one had landed. He was already sore and BlackFire hadn't even broken a sweat yet. She might have had a sharp tongue, but at least she could back it up.

-Togot readied himself again and BlackFire smirked, as if she were amused. "This is going to be a long day," Togot said to himself as he charged forward again.