As I rushed towards the Alpha, it wasn’t long before I had lunged towards him and managed to sink my teeth into his leg. 

“Damn you!” Snarled the Alpha wildly and he threw himself around, his held back grunts soon turning into ear-piercing yelps as he finally grabbed the back of my neck and threw me to the side, burn marks as well as teeth marks on his leg. 

With my flames dancing fiercer than ever, blood trickling down my sides and the taste of dirty metal within my mouth, I had found myself at a stand-off against the Alpha. His snarls were animalistic...and almost demonic as he kept me within his line of sight, moving when I moved. Losing to me was not on his mind. 

‘You should have considered my words more carefully before you hastily rushed into this battle my champion.’ Ibis said as my collar suddenly vibrated out of the blue.

 ‘Too late to regret now...’ I thought, letting out a stress heavy sigh before I suddenly rushed forward, burned paw marks appearing on the grass as I lunged myself forward but this time towards the Alpha’s muzzle.

Before I could get a grip on him, the wolf had suddenly rushed out of the way before he stormed back over to me, his jaws immediately clamping onto my back as he started to shake me around. I let out an almost ungodly yelp, the sheer burn of the pain sparking my flames to get even hotter as the Alpha quickly threw me to the side. 

“O-Ouch...” I whined, lying on the ground for a moment before I tried to stand up. No use, I was soon knocked off balance once more with the crushing feeling of something similar to a boulder pressing down on my neck.

 “Hm...I’ll give you my congrats mutt.” The Alpha stated darkly with a wicked smirk, his fur burning before my eyes while his own showed no regret nor care. 

“Not only did you manage to entertain me, but you also managed to hold your own as well! This was very unexpected...” He chuckled. 

“But...in the end, all prey must suffer their fate.” The Alpha before he suddenly pressed all his weight on me. 

The feeling as if I was drowning mixed with the feeling of something crushing me with no remorse starting to make my eyes water and chest feel tight.

‘N-No...I can’t die here!’ I thought with blurry eyes, black dots appearing in my vision as my collar soon started to vibrate once more, the feeling making me feel as if I was choking even more.

 ‘Canis stultum....’ I heard Ibis hiss furiously, my vision managing to catch the sight of a single feather drop on the ground before it suddenly exploded, sending the wolf flying off of me. 

“T-Thanks...” I coughed as I rolled onto my buckling paws, still gasping for air as my eyes cleared up quickly enough to see the incoming attack from the wolf before I leaped out of the way. 

“Damn pup, just die!’ The Alpha roared, sliding a little before he rushed towards me again, the familiar feeling of my stomach starting to boil making me narrow my eyes and stand my ground. 

‘Not today.’ I thought as I opened my mouth, a jet of fiery red escaping it. As the smell of ash and burnt flesh filled the air and began to overwhelm my nose, I had soon heard the sounds of fighting begin to cease before I closed my mouth to reveal a scorched, charcoal black wolf.

“Mission completed.” I smiled proudly as I walked back to the village, a small limp in my step.

 Suddenly the Alpha’s pack all gathered in front of me, their eyes holding shock, sadness along with hints of anger.

 “...Unless you want to end up like buddy-boy over there then I suggest y’all move.” I threatened with a quick snarl, one of the wolves soon stepping up to me with her tail underneath her. 

“Y-You’ve freed us...” The she-wolf whined as her tongue started to lull out of her mouth, my eyes going wide at her words. 

“W-What...?” 

“You’ve freed us!” The she-wolf said even louder with a howl following suit, the rest of her pack beginning to howl and bark in celebration. 

“Freed y’all? From who? Him?” I gestured towards the deceased Alpha. 

“Indeed, our former Alpha...he was nothing but a tyrant who wished to become a god. You defeating him has freed us from his torture.” Said another wolf whose fur was a gorgeous steel gray with black tipping the ends of his fur.

“So now what? Are y’all going to go back to your home?” I asked, the she-wolf in front of me shaking her head before she bowed her head towards me, the rest of the pack doing the same. 

“You are the new Beta, sol et luna.” The wolves said in unison, the foreign words making me tilt my head a little but not even bother asking for a translation. 

“This calls for a feast!” Announced one of the goblins suddenly before the cheering started up again, the sound of the wolves howling making me grin to myself for a moment as I howled along with them. 

With the crackling fires of the bonfire in front of me, dancers dancing to the cheerful music and the scent of cooking food in the air. I wasn’t afraid to let a wide grin cross my face as well as let my tongue hang out, I was proud of what I did for everyone! I may have not been the knight in shining armor like I always imagined I would be when saving people but...I was the person who was saving people nonetheless! The only thing that made spoiled my mood was...the thought that sooner or later, Ibis would call me to her side to punish me for going against her orders.

‘...Screw the owl, I did the right thing.’ I thought to myself as I ate my fill and enjoyed the feeling of people scratching my back and the sounds of everyone singing (or howling) merrily. 

Suddenly, my collar vibrated however...it was time to remove myself from the party. “Well, time to head out!” I announced with a laugh, my words causing the crowd to go silent as the darker green goblin quickly rushed up to me. 

“A-Already?! Lady Eos-” 

“Ah, don’t be so scared!” I grinned. 

“I’m just gonna walk off all this food for a bit! Can’t risk losing my perfect figure.” I snickered, my tail whipping the air side to side as the crowd let out scattered chuckles before returning to their celebration. 

Once I was a good distance away from the village, to the point where I couldn’t even see the light of the bonfire anymore, I had then saw a flurry of feathers envelope me for a moment before I was back in the cave...back in front of the tree where not only Ibis but a few of her guards were right there waiting for me.

 “I assume you know what is going to happen?” Ibis said as she flew down, her golden eyes narrowed fiercely.

“Not exactly, I don’t understand why I’m getting in trouble for helping people who needed to be helped,” I grumbled as I took a seat and scratched behind my ear, my words only adding more tension to the air as the sound of hissing began to come from Ibis. 

“You have disobeyed me my champion! I am your Magistra; therefore, you should be listening as well as more willing to do as I say...” She hissed before it was my turn to narrow my eyes at her words. 

How arrogant could this owl be?! I saved not one but two groups from their problems today! I was simply helping people out! It wasn’t a crime to do that in the slightest and I wasn’t about to sit here and let her think she could own and order me around like I was a slave.

 “...I’m grateful to you.” I sighed. “But I am not a thoughtless, stupidly willing-to-everything slave!” I roared, my words the apparent breaking point as I suddenly felt shackles go around my legs and neck. 

“Quid enim censes?” Suddenly spoke one of the pale guards. Ibis looked at me, her beak couldn’t show it but I knew it...

She was smirking, like the sadistic egotistical bird I knew she was from the very start. “Et verberabunt eius in hasta duabus horis.” Ibis hooted before she flew back up to her branch, the guards approaching me with one holding a whip and another holding a spear. 

“W-What are you planning to do you crazy bird?!” I snarled as I tried to fight my bonds, the sudden feeling of the weapons on my skin making Ibis sigh.

 “Something to hopefully fix that tongue of yours,” Ibis said before she made a clicking noise. 

That very noise being the reason why I soon felt the whip lash against my skin and the spear begin to stab me mercilessly.

 I don’t know how long the torture went on...I don’t know how long I felt hot tears go down my face or how long I let out screams that sounded so horrid that they could’ve been something out of a horror film. The torture could’ve went on for minutes, hours or heck! It could’ve gone on for days, all I knew is that it complete and utter hell to endure it and the fact Ibis was just sitting perched on her branch...watching with those emotionless golden eyes of hers made my blood boil.

But...it also made me realize this, I wasn’t in the Land of the Free anymore, I was in a world of fantasy more specifically medieval times. Things didn’t work the way it did in my old world, torture is probably seen as an okay thing to do and there wouldn’t be any police, riots or parents to save me from it. I had to either keep my mouth shut and endure it or finally cry uncle and submit to the bird and I already knew deep within my soul that I absolutely couldn’t do the latter.