It was too loud, but it was too quiet.

The roars around seemed to send Sam into some sort of… Stunned state, watching the warriors charge in. The slaves - rebels - and a few soldiers that had stayed behind at the old Saber camp reared up to fight the attackers, but Sam was frozen where he stood. He hadn't expected a fight so soon. He'd thought they were smart enough to take a few weeks to recharge. A month, maybe.

But they'd want the element of surprise, Sam realized, his lips curling back slightly. The rebels seemed to have the upper hand so far, but Sam felt his confidence wavering as he watched the soldiers continue to stream in and attack. He spun around when he heard one rushing for him, and a quick swipe across the face started the fight between two pretty angry tigers. Snarls erupted from Sam's muzzle as he bit down into the other tiger's shoulder, claws sinking into the striped pelt as he writhed out of the large soldiers grip.

"Where's the Runt, Sammy?" The tiger hissed in his ear, struggling to pin the former soldier to the ground. Sam surged up and shoved right back, sending him staggering.

"Careful now, don't do anything you might regret," Sam sneered, backing up and crouching down low, his blue eyes glinting dangerously as he let out a deep snarl. "I think we've all learned not to mess with my fearless leader."

The tiger snarled right back, baring his teeth and advancing forward, earning a light growl from Sam. "Tell me where he is."

"Make me, Nigel," Sam spat right back, and the other tiger - Nigel - Launched at him with a fierce roar, sending the two rolling. Sam wanted to look around to see how they were all doing, but he had to focus on the fight.

"I think the worst part in all of this," Sam hissed, kicking the tiger away from him and gasping in a sharp breath, lips curling back over his teeth. "Is I never expected any less from you."

Nigel roared, leaping to his paws and advancing forward. His nose was shoved against Sam's, but the younger tiger didn't seem at all afraid. "You don't know me."

"Oh, no, big brother." Sam spat the words out, his blue eyes glinting coldly as they met Nigel's piercing amber ones. "I know you better than anyone." He took the chance to sweep his gaze around the clearing, and the angry look fell from his face. His jaws locked together silently, and Nigel turned his head to follow his gaze.

"Look at that. Guess you rebels aren't so tough after all."

"Why are you doing this?" Sam demanded, whipping his head back up to snarl at his brother, who sneered right back down at him. "I'm your brother. I mean God, Nigel, you've never been much of a family man, but shouldn't that mean something to you?"

Nigel's tongue trailed over his jaws silently. Sam's words seemed to have the desired effect - Nigel's expression changed, turning to guilt for a split second, before it was masked with that stone-cold expression Sam knew too well. "No." He said coldly. "We're reclaiming our territory, Samuel. Call the rebels off, and we can do this peacefully."

Sam hissed under his breath and turned his head to watch again. Peacefully. The word stuck. Sam narrowed his eyes, his expression turning sour. Because marching into a camp and straight up attacking can be considered peaceful.

But they were losing. And Sam didn't want to lose any more lives than they had in the last battle. He sucked in a breath through his teeth and raised his head.

"Rebels, retreat!"

"What?" A leopard his age stopped short, just a few feet away, obviously having been prepared to attack Nigel. She turned to Sam, wide eyed with disbelief. "Sam, we can't!"

"We don't have a choice, Kito." Sam held Nigel's gaze for a moment before turning his head to look at his friend. Kito's tail lashed, a growl rumbling in her throat, but she didn't say anything else. The rebels did as told, former soldiers and slaves beginning to retreat.

Nigel's eyes glittered, a grin appearing on his face. "Glad we could come to a compromise, brother."

"Screw you." Sam growled, shoving past him and heading for the others, bristling. "You can have the stupid camp. This is far from over, Nigel."

"Yeah." Kito spat at Nigel's paws before taking off after Sam, falling into step with the tiger and looking up into his blazing blue eyes. "Now what?"

"I don't know about you," Sam glanced back for a second, watching the rebels stream out of the camp. Most of them looked angry, others seemed.. Defeated. "But I think this is the start of a war." Kito exhaled sharply, nodding.

"I'm ready for this."

Sam glanced at her, waiting until all the rebels were safely out before padding after them, raising his head. "And if it's a war, we'll need all the help we can get to fight it." He frowned. "We have to win this. Not just for us… For everyone."

"Definitely." Kito agreed, a small skip in her step now. Her claws dug into the ground. "...Where do we go now?"

Sam blinked as several of the rebels turned to him, quite obviously seeking the answer to that question themselves. Sam shook his head and looked toward the Pridelands, his eyebrows raising slightly.

"I've got a pretty good idea."