Namir charged toward Grizzler at full speed.
He's coming… Grizzler's gaze locked on Namir as he shoved the other leopards away.
One of the flying leopards shouted, "How could he?!"
But suddenly, Namir cut to the right with a sharp smirk.
"Do you think I'm easygoing like Vein? Do you think I'm naïve like Gash?" Namir shouted as he leaped.
Grizzler braced himself, muscles coiling beneath his blood-matted fur, ready for whatever came next.
But what came next was the one thing he despised most.
"STOP!" Grizzler roared, his arm thrust toward Namir.
"His defense is down, take him now!" a leopard shouted, and a swarm of them leapt into the fray.
Grizzler's heart pounded like thunder, torn between fury and dread.
Deep in his chest, instinct whispered a warning he'd long tried to ignore.
Somewhere beyond the chaos, Namir's smirk hung, half challenge, half promise.
"You will suffer, Grizzler. Pay for Claw's death!" Namir spat.
Thud!
Namir's claws struck Cougar's corpse.
Blood spattered the grass in dark, obscene petals.
Grizzler's fur stood on end; every nerve in his body screamed. The only thing he could see was Namir's claws tracing over Cougar's body like scythes through grass.
"I TOLD YOU TO STOP!" Grizzler's cry vanished beneath the wild chorus of leopards.
"PLEASE!"
With every desperate plea, Namir's laughter deepened, raw, unhinged.
Grizzler staggered forward, trembling between rage and disbelief, hands covering his head.
He pressed his paws to his ears, trying to smother the roar of memory.
"I will bury you where flowers meet riverlight," the promise echoed in Grizzler's skull.
"Rad, what a coward… this bear drove you off?" Namir sneered.
"I'll make you suffer, Grizzler; you're more pathetic than Rad!"
Wounds pelted Grizzler's hide, leopards had already begun to chew.
"LET'S EAT HIM ALIVE!" one leopard howled, a tuft of fur spitting from his lips.
'I only wanted peace…' Grizzler thought, Leila and Ivy flashing like ghosts.
"Sorry, human… sorry, Ivy… I think I might, I might!" Grizzler's paws clawed at the dirt as he forced himself upward.
ROAR!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The leopards scattered everywhere.
Grizzler charged forward, striking down every leopard in his path.
"GET OFF ME!" Grizzler's voice cracked like lightning.
He stormed ahead, thunder in his steps, fury in his eyes, each stride bringing Namir closer.
Namir's grin shattered the moment their eyes met.
Namir's claws flexed, hesitation flickered for the first time.
Every creature nearby froze, caught between awe and terror.
Do you think I'm like you, mindless beasts?
You always act without thinking! Grizzler thought.
"G—Get back!" Namir's voice faltered; panic leaked through the command.
"DON'T YOU DARE HUMILIATE MY FRIEND'S BODY!" Grizzler's claws wrapped around Namir's neck.
"MY PROUD FRIEND!" Grizzler roared.
CRACK!
Namir jerked away from Cougar's body, then collapsed to the ground, motionless.
"Since your leader's fallen… that's enough," Grizzler panted, breath ragged.
Every leopard trembled, staggering backward in horror.
"FLEE, GUYS! FLEE FOR YOUR LIVES!" one leopard screamed, and the pack broke.
When the last leopard vanished into the dark, Grizzler dropped to the ground, lungs burning.
"I… Ivy…" he whispered, the name trembling from him.
His eyes were beginning to dim, then a faint sound made them snap open again.
"D… don't you have mercy?" Namir croaked, blood wetting his words.
Namir's gaze steadied one last time, locked on Grizzler.
Grizzler's heart clenched; he thought the fight was finally over.
"M… make sure to bury me beside this proud lion, then."
Namir's eyes lost their fire, fading to stillness.
And with that, silence claimed the field.