She was not the strongest, or the fastest, or the smartest. She was not the bravest or the cleverest or the wisest. She was not even the most resourceful. But she never gave up.
She knew when the battle started that she could not win. Her opponent was full-grown, a hardened fighter who had defeated many Totoma in battle and had the scars on his skin and the cracks in his horns to prove it. She, on the other hand, was small and wiry, untested in battle, still nameless. She had no false hopes of gloriously defeating her foe.
Still, she did not intend to go down without a fight. Bloody and half-beaten she lay, knowing she couldn't last another rush from her opponent. But when he wheeled around and came thundering back toward her, head lowered, she was ready. At the last minute, she rolled aside, her mouth snapping desperately for the soft spot under his jaw. Her teeth found purchase and she clamped down, tasting blood. With the last of her energy she bit him -- twice.