"Zandor!!!" the tiger charged at him, unable to sustain himself any longer. His heart was pumping and his blood boiling. His eyes were filled with years of frustration and he was ready to either win or die trying.

"Stop!" Anciel summoned Panusa in front of the tiger.

"Don’t interfere!" he swung his claws but the black panther dodged and bit him. The golden vambraces he always wore protected his wrist, but he had trouble shaking the beast that appeared seemingly out of nowhere. He shook his arm and yelled.

"Face me you coward! You hide behind them? You are a disgrace!"

"Stop! He can’t fight you… even though he’d want to," Anciel tried to explain, while fending off the enraged orgriash, "He wants to face you in battle, as much as you want to face him. His heart, soul, and mind want to jump at you and have a battle of a lifetime, but he CAN’T!!!"

Anciel transformed Panusa into a sword and slashed next to the tiger’s face, shortening his whiskers.

The tiger was breathing heavily, having to restrain his rage to be able to ask what now was really bothering him.

"Wh…what do you mean.. you can’t? What do you mean?! I trained day and night, to become what I am today. So I could defeat you and prove once and for all that all YOU ever had over ME was the advantage of being older! I am now faster and stronger than you were at my age. I could defeat you now! What do you mean, you can’t!!?"

"Bai Lao-Hu… It is as the boy says. My body is almost completely paralyzed by poison," Zandor said.

"What poison?!" Bai Lao-Hu roared.

"Abraxia’s venom flows through my veins. I would love nothing more than to do battle with you now, even if I lose. But would you really consider it a victory, if you fought me in this state?"

The tiger’s eyes filled with tears, as he fell to his knees.

"NOOOO!!!!! Curse you!" he smashed the ground in his frustration.

Even Sheena who hated his guts felt sorry for him. As a fellow orgriash, she understood his pride and nature.

"Bai Lao…" she approached him.

“I will fight in his stead,” Anciel interrupted.

The tiger looked up, weighing the boy. He remembered him from their brief encounter on the galley. He was the other boy. The one who cut all the oars with a single slash of a katana. He seemed a little different now.

“You?” the tiger let out a chuckle, “You are far too young and inexperienced. On top of that, you are blind as a bat. Besides, how does defeating you mean anything to me?”

“If you can’t defeat my student,” Zandor stepped forward, “How would you ever hope to defeat me, Bai Lao-Hu?”

The tiger remained silent for the longest time. The wind rustled the forest and made small waves on the lake next to them. Before anyone could blink, the tiger seemingly disappeared and appeared next to the boy.

“Anciel!” Zandor shouted in panic.

But there was no need, as the boy already ducked under a speedy jab the tiger threw his way. He rolled between the orgriash’s legs and stood up on the other side. Not even turning around he summoned Panusa as a sword and struck backward under his arm, aiming at the tiger’s back.
Lao-Hu deflected the stab behind his back with his golden vambrace, then rotated into a low sweep with his leg.
Anciel jumped over it, anticipating the attack as well as the few next ones the tiger sent his way. It was his timely providence that allowed him to dodge and intercept the incredibly fast movements of the tiger, and he was aware of it. He knew that without this ability there would be no way for him to move as quickly as the orgriash did. His speed was out of this world.
If he had to guess… Anciel would say Bai Lao-Hu was moving…

“Even faster than Zandor!”

He yelled in frustration as he deflected an attack with his katana, sending the beast's arm upward.
He flipped backward to gain some ground. Fighting at a distance would be advantageous for the small nomad, since he had a plethora of abilities available to him, while Bai Lao-Hu was only a master of the body, much like his master.
But the tiger was well aware of this and would not let Anciel have a moment of respite.

“Show me all of your powers, human! I know you are a nomad and a versatile one at that. There is no need to hold back!”

The tiger roared as he charged at Anciel, but not in rage or mockery. No, Zandor could see it plain as day as he observed his former student… Bai Lao Hu was overjoyed that he can go all out and didn’t have to hold back against his current pupil, Zandor concluded.
Anciel was constantly forced to jump away, to avoid getting grounded into minced meat. He was afraid, but also full of respect for the tiger’s technique.

“Why, Bai Lao-Hu?” Zandor asked, “Why do you serve that witch?!”

“Why?” the tiger got distracted, but quickly refocused on his opponent, who gathered his power and forced a lightning out of his arm. Anciel aimed at the beast but the tiger suddenly disappeared.

“He can dodge lightning?!” the boy yelled in surprise.

Before he knew it, a metal claw smacked him on the chest and carried him through the air before smashing him into the ground. He couldn’t move and all of his air left his lungs. His katana was lying next to him but just out of reach.
This tiger was something else.

“Why do I serve Milenia? Hmm…” he let out a long grunt, “Little pirate... I lied about your father. He fought like a madman. He almost destroyed Vatraal with his bare hands. But even Suiris the Immortal stood no chance against the Witch Queen. So if you ask me why I serve her, the answer is simple... For the same reason as  every other orgriash… out of fear.”

Anciel’s small chest was pressed down by the tiger and he had trouble catching his breath. A human would have been already defeated, but the nomad boy could go without air for a long time. He asked the tiger…

“If you fear her so much… why not run away?”

“And leave my people in her clutches? To fend for themselves?” the tiger turned to Zandor, “Like a coward?”

“Bai Lao-Hu…” Zandor looked down, “I was banished by her when she took over. Much like I banished my own chieftain.”

“Karma is a bitch, isn’t it?” the tiger remarked and then looked down at Anciel…

“Now yield!!!” the deep voice shook the young boy’s chest.

But Anciel could not. He was not fighting for himself but for his Master’s honor and the love of his life alike. He grabbed the tiger’s fist and froze it to himself.

“Panusa, now!”

The katana transformed next to them and the panther aimed its fangs at the tiger’s side. Left with no choice, Bai Lao-Hu pulled his arm out of the frozen metal claw and evaded the bite by a hair’s length. He rolled out of the way and stood up a few meters away from them.

Anciel melted the ice, transformed the panther back into the katana, and grabbed her hilt.

“You forgot something. Here, let me give you a hand,” he threw the metal claw at the tiger’s feet.

“You…” the beast picked it up and attached it once again, “You will regret looking down on me, boy…”

The muscled beast moved his arms in a rotating motion, while simultaneously lifting a leg, getting ready to finish this. Zandor recognized it straight away, it was Bai Lao-Hu’s signature move.
He was prepared to kill the boy.
But just as he was going to interfere, Sheena stepped in front of Anciel.

“Stop,” she said, with no mocking in her voice, “I don’t want anyone to die on my behalf."

Bai Lao-Hu lowered his paws and listened to her.

“I suspect you are as you are because of me. Your anger… your frustration… I’m the source of it all. It’s because of how I’ve always belittled you… made you feel small, despite you being a great warrior in your own right.”

Bai Lao-Hu was at a loss for words. He didn’t move, but kept staring at her eyes.

“I’m sorry… Bai Lao… I wish things were different, but just as you feel for me… I feel for Zandor.”

The tiger fell to his knees.

Sheena approached him.

“… can you forgive me?” she asked, her eyes fixed on him.

Silence.

Bai Lao-Hu slightly opened his mouth to speak, but Vatraal’s screech echoed through the skies.

“We have to run!” Anciel snapped them all to attention.

The dragon burned the woods around them. Their ship was across the lake and further through the jungle but they had no time to swim, for the dragon was approaching.
Anciel thought quickly to turn the water into an ice bridge that led over the lake, motioning for them to follow him. Zandor started running but then turned around and saw Sheena near Bai Lao-Hu.

“Come with us!” she offered her paw to the tiger.

“Hurry, or we’re all gonna die!” Anciel yelled.

At the word ‘die’, Bai Lao-Hu looked at her and stood up. He ran with them.

As they got close to the other side, where the fire was raging, the boy manipulated the water from the lake to put out the yellow flames. The rest came shortly after, crossing the lake the same way he did, but just as they almost reached him, the black metal dragon descended, disturbing the calm lake surface with the winds from its wings.

On top of the dragon’s neck was riding the Queen of orgriash, her horned silhouette in contrast with the full moon behind her.

Zandor threw Sheena and Mai over to the shore with the last ounce of strength. The poison took its toll on his body and he fell into the lake.
He was sure he is going to drown, breathing out the last of his air. Just as his body betrayed him and he started sinking to the bottom; he got grabbed by his arm and pulled out of the water with tremendous force.

Flying through the air towards the shore, Zandor saw a tiger somewhere on the lake’s surface.
Anciel caught him into a large bubble of water.

"Let’s go!" the boy hurried everyone to pass through a tunnel of ice he formed to protect them from the surrounding fires.

Zandor went in last. Looking down to his arm he saw a metal claw clenching his wrist. He stopped and turned around.

"Bai Lao-Hu…”

Without his metal claw he lost his balance and fell into the lake after rescuing Zandor, not for his sake… but for Sheena’s.

“Master!”

Anciel pulled Zandor in before the tunnel collapsed.

And not a moment too soon, since Vatraal flapped its wings once more, pressuring all the water out of the lake and with a snap of the witch’s burning fingers the wave turned into an arena made of ice, trapping the tiger inside.

 "A loyal general or a traitor?" her cold voice was louder by the extent of the huge dragon echoing her.

On the now dry bottom of the lake was Bai Lao-Hu, now exposed.

"Queen Milenia…" his voice was low and somehow quiet.

She stared down at him.

The fleeing party managed to pull through just before the ice closed them in its circle, but even on the other side of the cold walls, Anciel stopped to have a look at her.
He found it almost impossible to observe the mysterious woman, as her power overloaded all of his senses, making his otherwise extraordinary vision a complete blur, and yet, he had this shivering feeling that she was looking back at him.
Not being able to withstand the sheer pressure of her presence, he ran after the rest, disappearing into the depths of the jungle.

"Bai Lao-Hu," she called out her servant’s name slowly, while Vatraal covered the icy walls with his wings, trapping the small tiger inside of the sorcerer's cage.

The tiger had a calm expression as if he had already accepted his fate. He witnessed numerous times how she dealt with her enemies and worse with the traitors.
But that all changed when he saw her gaze not on himself but staring into the jungle where the others have fled.
His eyes widened and his body shook.

Sheena!

The orgriash stepped forward and roared with all his might. He let his lungs like never before, his deep voice reverberating through the jungle and sending animals into a run. It was a voice of a tiger, a mighty beast, unyielding in a face of ultimate danger.

It was a voice of a man doing whatever he can to bid time for the one he loves.

Vatraal lowered its head, bringing the half naked witch closer.

" An impressive performance” she said coldly, “If not a bit foolish. So, you dare challenge me, general?”

"I…" the tiger took a fighting stance, considering what to do next.

With his incredible speed and strength, there was still a chance.

"I will—"

"Finish him."

Even a moment before she commanded, Vatraal let out a flaming breath, scorching all of the lake leaving no trace of the beast.