I should have been focused.
I should have been preparing myself, mentally running through the techniques I’d learned and observed, anticipating my opponent’s strengths and weaknesses,
But all I could see was Max
He stood across the field, muscles tense, movements precise as he dodged a strike from his friend as they spared before class started. Even now, pissed at me beyond belief, he was a force to be reckoned with
and falling
I took a hesitant step toward him, watching as he ran a hand through his already tousled hair, his chest rising steadily. He hadn’t even broken a sweat. I opened my mouth to call out to him, to try to say something–anything–but just as his silver eyes landed on me.
His jaw licked.
And he turned away.
My breath hitched before I blow out a defeated sigh. Despite the hollowness in my chest and the evident look in his eyes that he wanted nothing to do with me, I took another step, my pulse pounding-
“Max,” I whispered once I was close enough, but he had already moved on, already focused on something–someone- anything that wasn’t me.
Pain pierced through my chest, but before I could chase after him, a sharp voice cut through the tension.
“Johal Instructor Bastian called just as the hour for Combat and Training struck. I watched Max walk away with a heaviness in my heart as I turned to glance at Instructor Batsain with his regular clipboard with the list of challenges for today
And my challenge had been the first to be called.
I clenched my fists, forcing my emotions down as I exhaled slowly and turned away. Not now. I had to push it down now. As I walked toward the designated ring, my steps faltered slightly when I caught Nate’s eyes from across the field
He had been watching
300
He had seen everything.
His brows lifted in silent question, and for a second, I thought he was about to come over. Instead, his gaze flickered to Intrsyor Bstain who I now realized was heading straight for me.
“Are you ready for the challenge?” he asked in a tone that seemed normal to anyone who might have heard, but I knew exactly what he was asking. Did I use the dagger in anticipation of the shift.
I lifted my pinky subtly, flashing him the tiny, almost invisible prick.
His shoulders relaxed slightly, and he gave the smallest nod. It was a bit, odd.. seeing the sternest instructor in the most rigid academy in the world care if I lived or died.
It just made me even more curious. What the hell would be the waste of a millennium if I died?
I brushed it off as I turned toward the makeshift curtained–off enclosure where students would shift before their matches. It wasn’t really private–nothing in this damn school ever was–but it provided enough coverage for students to strip and shift without a full audience.
I stepped behind it, my fingers shaking slightly as I pulled off my clothes, folding them neatly before exhaling deeply This is it
My first shift in front of the entire academy. My first challenge in wolf form. The snow was about ankle length and we were freezing out asses off. But this was just another day at the Alpha Training Academy, where if you aren’t uncomfortable, you aren’t doing it right
Taking another breath, Het go
I felt the familiar snap of my bones, the rush of heat crawling beneath my skin as my body twisted and morphed, the change familiar yet still unsettling My claws elongated, fur sprouting along my limbs as my spine stretched and cracked. And then I was on all fours. It had been way to exhilarating to be in this form again, even if it v
Successfully unlocked!
and we both knew it. It felt so free–so
My Wolf hadn’t been too keen about using the dagger, but i think she understood that we would die if I didn’t
I rolled my shoulders, stretching slightly, shaking out my fur as I stepped forward, past the enclosure and into the open Then–gasps,
Chapter 39
A sharp, collective intake of breath rippled through the crowd
My ears twitched and I froze
For a terrifying moment, I thought the dagger hadn’t worked. That something had gone wrong and whatever it was that Bastain and Max were afraid of, was now evident to everyone.
Panic shot through me, and my wolf whimpered
But then I caught a glimpse of Bastain’s face and he didn’t look like I was doomed. He didn’t even look shocked–as if he expected what he saw,
I caught Max’s gaze across the ring too, and though there was shock in his eyes, the amazement outweighed it, despite his anger. It was then that I realized that most of the gazes were the same, and I huffed in relief.
“Holy shit,” Eva whispered, suddenly right in front of me.
Her eyes were wide–not in fear, but in absolute awe.
“You’re beautiful, she breathed, reaching out hesitantly as if unsure if she was even allowed to touch me.
I blinked, confusion knotting my chest.
Beautiful?
My wolf huffed in amusement, but my unease remained, I turned slightly, eyes scanning the other students. They weren’t just staring.
They were gaping
Murmurs rippled through the crowd, hushed whispers, wide–eyed disbelief.
I turned sharply, twisting my head to glance at Nate even though I didn’t want to a hundred percent. Ethan was with him and they looked perfectly fine. Nate had a knowing smirk on his face–somewhat proud, too, though I didn’t understand why. But it was then that it dawned on me that they had seen my wolf before. No one else ever had. And I was a fully white wolf
Ethan had been fully black. That had always been our one difference apart from gender differences.
But as I looked around now–at the other wolves shifting for their matches, at the other students in the crowd I
remembered that white wolves were incredibly rare. They weren’t impossible, just rare.
Every other wolf was barely fully white.
They were either black and white, or majonty white with spots of other colors.
But me?
I was pure white.
No. I was only white.
Something about that plus what Max has been telling me, and even more Bastain’s sudden interest told me that it wasn’t so much of a coincidence anymore.
A sense of unease curled deep in my gut, but I forced it down.
I didn’t have time for this
I could analyze it later–after I won.
The second–year male opposite me was already shifted, his massive form towering as his fur bristled. He let out a deep, guttural growl, lowering himself into an offensive stance
I mirrored it, but at the last second, instead of waiting for the signal-
I lunged.
Surprise worked to my advantage.
He hadn’t expected me to attack first, and his hesitation cost him,
I crashed into him, using all the weight I had, my teeth sinking into the thick muscle along his shoulder
I He snarled, shaking
me off, but not before I tasted blood
The match was on
We circled each other, snapping, dodging, biting I used every move I had observed and from my wolf’s natural instincts What I practiced with Nate, Eva and even Max couldn’t help me in wolf form. It was now strictly up to my wolf to keep me alive
He was strong. He was experienced
But I was faster.
We collided, claws slicing through fur, jaws snapping dangerously close to vital spots. His movements were calculated. precise, like he had fought a hundred battles before this one. But I had one advantage–he was expecting me to be weak
He underestimated me
I darted beneath him, my paws skidding against the floor as I twisted just in time to avoid his fangs snapping toward my throat. I lunged for his exposed side, sinking my teeth into the thick muscle of his ribs.
He snarled in surprise, twisting violently, and before I could react-
Pain
His teeth found purchase along my side, piercing deep enough to send a sharp, searing burn shooting up my ribs.
I yelped, wrenching myself free, my breath ragged. The scent of my own blood filled my nose.
The pain was blinding, every nerve in my body screaming as my legs buckled slightly beneath me. I staggered, but I refused
Across the field, I saw Bastian move. He was about to call the match. But I didn’t want him to.
With a guttural growl, I forced my body back onto my feet, ignoring the sharp pangs ripping through my ribcage and I charged.
My vision pulsed as I moved, each step slower than the last, but my determination burned hotter than my pain.
Then sudden agony caused me to bellow in pain as he landed a second bite.
This time deeper.
I barely felt the impact at first. But then the pain exploded, like fire spreading through my body, like claws tearing through me from the inside out.
out beneath me.
My vision blurred as my legs s gave out
A pained wall ripped from my throat again, my body crashing onto the ground. The force of the fall sent another wave of agony rolling through me, my head spinning as I fought to keep my consciousness.
I could barely think, barely breathe. My lungs burned, my limbs trembled, my wolf howled in distress. Bastain had no choice but to call the match whether I wanted it or not because the wolf would have killed me.
The edges of my vision darkened.
I tried–moon goddess, I tried to stay upright, to crawl toward the enclosure.
But my body was done.
And before I even made it past the makeshift curtain, I shifted back
Before the entire school had a chance to see my nakedness, a warmth enveloped me.
I recognized the scent instantly as Nate’s, and despite myself, I relaxed into him.
He moved fast, shielding my body with his own, his arms wrapping around me tightly, his body blocking me from the crowd.
I barely felt the fabric of the robe as he wrapped it around me, barely registering the weight of it settling over my trembling
form
His arms tightened.
I sucked in a shallow breath, my entire body screaming in pain.
Through hazy, blood–loss–blurred vision, I turned my head just enough-
And met Mar’s eyes
His expression was unreadable, but his jaw ticked at Nate’s actions.
His eyes were dark, stormy, his hands clenched so tightly at his sides that his knuckles had gone white
He didn’t move toward me
Didn’t even flinch
But I could feel his rage Feel his frustration
I felt a little solace when I also felt his worry
Nate lifted me easily cradling me against his chest as he turned toward the exit.
I didn’t even have the strength to protest
Didn’t have the energy to fight the exhaustion closing in on
And then-
Darkness
