Tug of War

[Minerva]

It was several hours after the Culling ended when the drug left her system and Minerva's eyelids began to flutter open. In the fringes of her darkened vision, the otterwife saw rough stone and iron bars. She scrunched up her brow and groaned- tasting blood on her tongue- before pressing herself up to her elbows on the cold stone floor so she could get a better look at her new surroundings.

As she feared, she was in a cell somewhere in the underground access tunnels of the Crater. Flames crackled within a brazier right outside the bars in the tunnel corridor, casting the cell in a mixture of orange light and dark shadows. Minerva blinked tiredly, her eyes tracing along the rough and jagged rock walls to her left and behind, before settling on the rightmost wall which was laced with soft moss. Built out of the floor beside it was a stone water trough and the otterwife licked her dry lips, realizing she hadn't had anything to drink since long before her battle with Hammerpaw.

Minerva tried to rise and move towards it, but something snagged at her left footpaw. She looked to see a shackle clamped firmly around it. A chain sprung from it which disappeared through a barred grate at the bottom of the leftmost wall next to her. Experimentally, she tried to draw in her leg but it hardly moved more than a few inches before the chain grew taut.

Furrowing her brow, the otterwife peered through the grate and followed the chain's length. Attached to the shackle at the other end was Komi Banton, the singing stoat she recognized from the slave caravan.

"Wonderful," Minerva grumbled. "I'm chained to a vermin."

At the far end of her own cell, the stoat rested comfortably asleep against the mossy wall with nearly the entire length of chain to herself. Minerva furrowed her brow, knowing that so long as that was the case she wouldn't be able to even stand let alone get to the water trough.

Everything made sense to the otterwife then. The jagged walls. The chain that was just long enough to reach the moss and trough. The second beast it was attached to. This wasn't just a cell. It was a battlefield just as much as the arena was. Whichever of the two prisoners was stronger would control the chain and be allowed drink and comfort, while the other would be forced to suffer.

Minerva took another look at the sleeping stoat and scowled, recalling the nights in the Drag the vermin kept everybeast awake with her incessant singing. Grabbing hold of the chain around her leg, the otterwife braced herself...

...and then tugged as hard as she could.

Minerva heard a yelp and a thud from the other side of the wall as she pulled Komi forcefully out of her slumber. Before the stunned stoat could even attempt to recover, the otterwife was already on her feet, tightening her grip on the chain and dragging the vermin roughly across the floor.

There was only enough time for Minerva to drink a pawful of water from the trough before a low growl erupted from behind her and the chain suddenly snagged at her leg. She stumbled back a few steps but quickly recovered, spinning around and grabbing her end of the chain before she could lose any more ground.

The chain instantly grew taut as both beasts took hold of their respective ends and pulled. They struggled against one another, footpaws bracing against the smooth stone floor, but neither beast let the other have an inch.

Through the small, barred window in the cell wall, Minerva saw the stoat scowl. "You crazy mud-dog! What is wrong with you? I was asleep!"

Minerva growled. "That didn't bloody stop ye from draggin' me around now, did it?"

"I wanted to get comfortable."

"Aye, and I wanted a drink."

Komi rolled her eyes. "You're a bloody riverdog. Of course you wanted a drink."

"Oh, well, is yer trough filled with blood then, vermin? You beasts seem t' like that a good deal." Minerva spat.

"Oh, you're a fine one to talk, Monster of Mossflower, murdering and hanging vermin around your home like trophies!"

"Warnings," Minerva corrected. "There's a difference."

"Typical woodlander warnings. Keep clear or we'll butcher you and your kin."

"Only so ye don't butcher ours!"

The two beasts held firm against the other's pulls, continuing to fight and tug in vain as they spat insults and argued. Minerva glared at her opponent through the window before clenching her teeth and pulling hard, earning herself another two inches of slack. Komi responded in kind and reeled her back.

"Oh ho! Is that the sound of rattling chains I hear? Has the Monster woken from her slumber?"

Both beasts tore their glares from one another in confusion as Nire Borean's voice carried loudly through the tunnels. Hardly a moment passed before the Lord of the Crater appeared in front of Minerva's cell with a wide smile on his maw and a spring in his stride. A few moments later, a bored-looking Commander Nix took her usual position behind him and rolled her eyes.

"Aha! There she is. The Monster of Mossflower!" The lynx eyed her like a treasure as he pressed himself against the bars with glee. "I knew you were special. Didn't I say she was special, Nix?"

The marteness gave a muted, "Yes."

Nire looked back at Minerva. "You are the talk of the Crater, did you know that? Everywhere I've gone today, from the stands, to the pubs, to the Drag, beasts have been talking about the otterwife who slew Hammerpaw. Hellgates, I'm still getting goosebumps thinking about it, myself. Hiding the hook in your mouth? Genius. And the bloodied fangs? Absolutely chilling. Exactly what I was hoping for from the Monster of Mossflower," Nire said.

"Bloodied fangs?" Komi muttered with a glance towards the otterwife.

"Oh, aye! You should have seen it, Miss Banton. She's going to give babes nightmares for weeks!" Nire said excitedly.

"What's the point of this, Nire?" Minerva growled.

"The point? The point is that you've impressed me and a lot of other beasts, too. I want more beasts to come and see what I've seen. I want more to see you," Nire explained. "Already I have beasts hounding me about when your next match might be scheduled, which means we need to get to work."

From the inner pocket of his vest, Nire produced a bundle of parchment that was bound tight by a simple cord. The lynx licked a claw and flipped through them, smiling finally when he came to the page he was looking for. Fitting it through the space between the cell bars, he turned the book so that Minerva could see.

"What do you think of this?" he asked.

The otterwife raised her brow in confusion. Drawn on the page Nire was showing her was an illustration of her fishhook. The cord attached to it however was replaced with that of a thick, knotted rope, and the hook itself curled to complete the design of a noose.

"What- what am I lookin' at?" Minerva asked.

"Your Sigil." Nire said with a smile. At the otterwife's silence, he sighed and closed the book. "Like a knight has a coat of arms, a popular gladiator must have a Sigil. After what you did to Hammerpaw, I figured that fishhook of yours would be fitting. Do you like it?"

"Do you?" Minerva said, narrowing her gaze.

Nire laughed. "Good answer. Once I'm done commissioning my seamstresses, this will be on every banner and every flier from here to Northvale. I'm sure beasts will come far and wide to see the Monster of Mossflower."

The lynx turned towards Nix behind him. "Do you have it?"

"Aye," the marten answered, reaching into a satchel she wore and pulling out a light blue bundle from it. Without a word, Nix tossed it through the bars and it landed lightly at Minerva's footpaws.

The otterwife picked it up tentatively, only realizing what it was when she unfolded the cloth and held it in front of her. It was the dress she had worn the day of her capture. They took it from her when she first entered the Drag.

"Every gladiator needs an image," Nire explained, "and I want you to keep the homely otterwife look. Anybeast in the audience who hasn't seen you will be surprised, and taking beasts by surprise seems to be your specialty. Of course, we made some changes."

Minerva's eyes flitted over the rips torn haphazardly in the hem and sleeves of the garment.

"Now it truly looks like something a savage Monster would wear," Nire continued. "Go on, put it on. A true gladiator shouldn't be wearing slave rags."

Minerva did as she was bid, quickly pulling off her bloodied rags and donning the familiar garment. "And my hook?" she said, realizing that in her struggle with Komi, she had failed to notice it wasn't around her neck.

"Oh, that tiny thing?" Nire asked. He pulled the hook from his vest pocket, twirling it by the cord casually with a claw before he stopped and inspected it in the firelight. "It was a clever trick what you did with it, but I feel you could do more damage with a real weapon. I'll commission a blacksmith to make you a real hook, one big enough you can swing around like a dagger. This one... this one can go in a waste bin somewhere."

The chain grew taut as Minerva tried to run towards the bars, but snagged halfway. She held out her paw in desperation. "Please don't!" she cried. "It ain't just a weapon. It's all I... it's- it's important t' me."

Nire smirked, twirling it by the cord for what felt like an eternity. Finally, he stopped and tossed it at the otterwife's feet. "Wear it. Don't take it off. It's your Sigil. Consider it a reward for putting on a good show."

"Have you forgotten that she cheated with that?" Nix argued.

"Of course not," Nire said with a look towards the marteness. "I was just about to get to that actually."

The lynx clasped his paws together as he turned back to his prisoner. "Right, onto that unfortunate matter." Nire's expression turned colder. "While you certainly put on a good show, Monster... you did cheat. You were told you could use two weapons yet you used three, and that stunt left one of my best gladiators dead."

"I thought that was the point o' the game," Minerva growled.

"It is," Nire said. "But there is a certain... honor, that must be held in the arena. Many beasts bet and gamble their hard earned wages on fighters they like, so they hold trust in me to ensure each battle remains fair. And with that trick of yours against Hammerpaw, let's just say you made a lot of beasts lose a lot of money, and that reflects poorly on me."

Minerva had many things to say about the 'honor' of the arena, but knew to stay quiet. Sullenly, she continued listening as the lynx drilled on.

"Blasio Timberfell, one of my associates, has called for your death. He was hit particularly hard by the results of that match, but I disagreed. I already lost one gladiator, losing two would just be a waste- especially one with so much potential. So, I came up with a different solution."

Minerva's eyes widened. Was he going to hurt Fable?

Seeing her reaction, the lynx seemingly read her mind and chuckled. "No, no. Nothing so drastic," he said, waving away her concerns with a paw. "I have something else in mind... for both of you."

"For both of us?" Minerva repeated.

"Aye," Nire said. "Have you not wondered why Miss Banton is in the cell next to yours?"

Minerva looked towards the stoat, but she said nothing.

"She tried to escape," the lynx explained. "'Komi the Coward, always running' - that's what the letter that came with her said. But, she won't be running anymore. Why? Well, because she'll be chained to you, Monster."

"What!?" both prisoners shouted at once.

"From here on, until I decide otherwise, you two will be chained together by the ankles working as partners."

"Absolutely not!" Minerva shouted. "I'm not workin' chained t' some vermin! Especially not one called the bloody Coward!"

"I am not a coward!" Komi spat at her before rounding on Nire. "And you can't make me fight with some blasted riverdog!"

"I can and I will, unless you'd prefer there be three dead gladiators instead of one." Any warmth in the lynx's voice was gone, and both of them quieted. "The Monster needs a handicap, something to remind her what it's like being at an unfair disadvantage, while you, the Coward, need something to keep you from running. And why pay guards to keep an eye on you when the Monster can do it for me for free? I'm sure she won't let you think twice about running- seeing as she'd be forced to go with you if you did, and well..." Nire trailed off for a moment, looking towards the otterwife, "I don't think she'd do that. Would you?"

"No," Minerva answered.

"Then it's settled. The Monster gets a handicap, and the Coward a guard. A perfect solution."

"And what's gonna stop her from shovin' a blade through my gullet?" Minerva argued.

"Or slitting my throat with that hook of hers?" Komi said.

"Like I said, you will be chained until I say otherwise. So, if you wish to kill each other, by all means, go right ahead. Just keep in mind, from then on you'll be dragging around a corpse everywhere you go. The same applies if either of you fall in the arena," Nire answered. "So, play nice, because, from what I hear, it's easier to survive tugging against a beast you hate than it is dragging around their carcass. Sleep well, tomorrow training begins for the both of you."

Nire turned to leave then and beckoned for Nix to follow, but, before the lynx could take a step down the hall, Minerva called out to him. "Nire, wait!"

"Hrm?" The beast turned his gaze towards her. "Is there something you need?"

The otterwife kept her demand simple. "I want t' see my daughter," Minerva said. "I may've cheated, aye, but I still gave ye everythin' ye wanted from me. I gave ye a show. Beasts chanted my name. I even tried t' give ye a story t' sell. I want t' see my daughter."

The lynx pressed a claw to his chin in contemplation before turning to Nix. With a sly smile, he asked her, "Commander, why don't you tell the Monster here what happens to beasts who don't do as I ask?"

Nix gave him a look before answering simply. "They're punished."

"Aye. And those that do?"

"Rewarded."

"Indeed," Nire said. "Fetch the cub for her, Nix. She can have five minutes."

"Thank you," Minerva said.

"Keep up the good work," Nire replied with a smirk. "I expect your next show to be even better." Without another word, the two beasts departed back down the corridors.

They were gone for only a few moments before both Minerva and Komi looked back towards one another. They stared in silence for only a moment before grabbing at their ends of the chain once more.

"I'm not working with some woodlander!" Komi yelled, pulling hard.

"Ye think I'm happy about this?" Minerva said, regaining her footing.

"Just stay out of my way."

"Said the Coward t' the Monster," Minerva spat. "Try not t' trip over the chain when ye run with yer tail tucked between yer legs."

"Don't worry, if I ever decide to do that, I'll be sure to bring you down with me," Komi sneered sarcastically.

"Like Hell."

They continued struggling until the both of them were exhausted, panting heavily as they glared daggers at one another. Footsteps echoed down the tunnel, and Minerva looked to see Nix leading an otter cub by the paw towards the cell.

"Mummy!" the young otter bawled, breaking from the marten's grip and scrambling towards the bars.

"Fable!" Minerva called to her. The otterwife nearly cried as she turned towards the bars and rushed to meet her child, but only made it halfway before her leg snagged on the chain. The otterwife stretched and reached for the bars, but couldn't touch them, and, with a look of horror, slowly turned to meet Komi's cold stare as she gripped her end of the chain.

"Please. It's my daughter," Minerva begged as the young otter continued wailing for her.

The stoat's glare subsided as she looked away from Minerva to the young child by the bars. She looked away after only a moment with a glisten in her eye. Without a word, Komi let go of the chain and stepped as close as she could to the grate.

Minerva hesitated, looking towards her for another moment before remembering how limited her time was. Quickly she turned, the chain rattling behind her as she ran to the bars where Fable waited. Putting her arms through the gaps, she pulled the young otter as close to her as she possibly could.

"Fable, I'm so happy ye're safe," Minerva said, her eyes beginning to water.

"Mummy!" Fable cried, tiny paws grabbing at her through the bars.

Minerva stroked the young one's head as she cried, remembering the long list of questions she prepared for her daughter.

"Are ye alright? Has anybeast hurt ye?" she asked, twisting the cub side to side to inspect every inch of her.

The young otter shook her head.

"What about that?" Minerva asked, pointing to a scratch on the young one's knee.

Fable looked at it, blinking as she tried to remember. "I was playin' wid Verna and I fell I think," she answered after a pause.

"Verna? Who's that?" Is it another young 'un yer age? What kind of beast is she?"

Fable nodded. "A hedge'og."

Minerva grimaced. There were other children in the Crater. Her heart sank then, not knowing how many of their parents could have been killed during the Culling. "And what other beasts are with ye? Do ye have a beast takin' care of ye?"

Her daughter nodded once more. "Uh-huh. Mister Marik. He's gotta funny back."

"Fable, that ain't very nice t' say," Minerva scolded. At an apologetic look from the young otter, she stroked her head tenderly. "It's alright, it's alright. What kind o' beast is he? Do ye know?"

Nix raised a brow as Fable turned and pointed towards her. Minerva couldn't help her darkened gaze as she looked towards the pine marten. "Ye've got a vermin lookin' after my daughter?"

Nix's expression hardened. "That vermin is likely the only beast in here with the heart to be willing to. If it wasn't for him offering to take charge of those children and keep them out of the way, Nire would have likely just thrown them in cells and forgotten about them."

Minerva studied the nearly-fuming pine marten, wondering why she had been so defensive. An answer came to her head but the otterwife didn't let it leave her lips. She had too little time to spend it questioning the slaver. She turned back to Fable. "Is he a nice beast?"

Fable nodded without hesitation. They waited in silence for only a moment as her daughter ran her paw against the bars. "Why are ye in dere, Mummy?"

"It's a long story, sweetheart. Not one meant fer ears so young. So, let's talk about somethin' else." Minerva paused and looked towards Nix, who stood idly by seemingly unconcerned with either of them. The marten's ears were perked though. She was listening, and the otterwife wondered if Nire instructed her to tell him what was said. Regardless, the question Minerva had for her daughter burned in her throat and she whispered it as quietly as she could. "Why don't ye tell me more about where ye are?"

Nix cocked a brow but otherwise had no response.

Minerva braved another question for her daughter. "Did it take long fer ye t' get here?"

Fable nodded. "We had d' go down a lodda stairs."

Minerva smiled. "Stairs? And how many sets o' stairs did ye have t' go down?"

"Four."

The top floors of the Crater then. That was where she was being kept.

"Time's up," Nix said, stepping forward. "I gave you more than five minutes. I have to get her back now or Nire will start getting suspicious."

Minerva looked up at the marten pleadingly. "Please, not yet."

Nix hesitated. "One more minute. Say your goodbyes."

"Mummy, I don't wanna go. I wanna go home," Fable said.

Minerva grimaced as the young one tugged at the collar she was forced to put on her. "I know ye do, sweetheart, but we can't just yet. We will though, I promise. And we'll go back t' swimmin' in the stream and pickin' blackberries, just as we used to."

Minerva felt tears begin to spill down her cheeks as she pulled her daughter into another embrace.

"Ye're so brave, did ye know that? Last I checked, ye're still scared o' the dark, but ye still came down all these tunnels t' see me. Stay brave, okay? When ye have nightmares, it's gotta be you who tells yerself that they're not real. When ye trip and fall, it's gotta be you who dries yer tears. 'Cause... I'm not gonna be able to."

Her daughter merely nodded.

Minerva remembered then what Nire said about the sigils and banners. Taking her fishhook in her paw, she held it up for her daughter to see. "Ye know what this is, right?"

Fable nodded. "Daddy's hook."

"Aye, yer daddy's favorite fishhook. Ye know how I like t' wear it? Well, soon, I think a lot of other beasts will be wearin' it too. And it won't just be beasts. It'll be the walls, banners, tapestries, fliers. Everythin' will have a hook on it."

"Why?"

"I dunno. I wish I knew why. But, I think it's gonna happen, so, whenever ye see those hooks, I want ye t' remember that..." Minerva glared at Nix as the marten stepped forward. "...I'm comin' t' save ye."

Minerva pulled Fable as tight as she could against the bars, the young one's paws holding desperately to her. Her daughter pressed something into her paw then, smiling cheekily behind her tears. "Yer turn," she said.

Minerva clutched the needle and flower stitching tight in her paw as Nix took hold of Fable's and pulled her from the bars. "Marik will keep her safe," the marteness said. "Worry about yourself now. You have a part to play, Monster."

Fable wailed as Nix led her away back down the corridor. "I love you!" Minerva called desperately before she was lost to sight. "I'm gonna find ye. I'm gonna save ye, I promise!"

Then she was gone.

Minerva stood there, hanging on to the bars for support lest she fall to her knees to weep. A quick look at her paw revealed that Fable had finished their stitching of the lily. The otterwife had given her daughter her reminder, and now she had one of her own.

Without a word, she took the needle and the leftover thread, and began to sew it to her lapel.

"How old is she?"

Minerva looked up with a start, remembering Komi's presence. The stoat still stood by the grate, her back turned.

"Five," Minerva answered. She stepped away from the bars.

With the slack returned, Komi stepped from the grate and took a seat in the center of her cell. Minerva looked at the floor. In their struggle against one another, neither had noticed that it was just as smooth as the mossy wall was. Minerva followed the stoat's example and took a seat upon it.

"And her father?"

"Gone," she said, caressing the fishhook with her paw.

They were silent after that. Neither reached for the chain or struggled. Instead they merely sat and waited.