The course buzzed with a newfound energy. The once humble crowd, which had started as a quiet gathering, was now a lively throng. Murmurs rippled through the onlookers, with hushed bets being placed on who would conquer the next challenge. "He'll be the first to quit," someone whispered, followed by a ripple of chuckles. A jovial scent filled the air, a mix of lighthearted anticipation and something else – a growing intrigue. People weren't so hung up on the "defective" label anymore; they were genuinely fascinated to see how those raised in the human realm would tackle a task compared to a wolf. The atmosphere was charged with a playful tension, a stark contrast to the initial apprehension.
Stepping onto the ground, Trinity was grateful to be out of the air. The descent had been uncomfortable at best, but she, along with the rest, had managed it with ease. Only Ryan and Johnny seemed to want to take the monkey bars in the traditional way, locked in a silent race to the bottom.
While Johnny was quick and focused on grabbing each bar securely, Ryan was fearless, deciding to swing, skipping three bars at a time. The two made it to the ground within moments of each other.
Ryan had a satisfied smirk on his face. He hadn't quite beaten Johnny to the ground, but he had only been a second behind him. Something he knew would work on Johnny's mind, proving that he could effectively keep pace. He did it to prove a point, to make a statement: he was taking the easy path with his friends, with his group of defectives, but he didn't need to.
Johnny held Ryan's stare, a growing sense of respect blooming in his body. Even though he wasn't prejudiced against defectives like others from the pack, he hadn't thought highly of their strengths. He loved his sister, but he just didn't see her as a strong, powerful, meaningful part of the pack. She just meant something to him; she was family and that was enough for her to be important. But in the general sense of the pack, he had never thought defectives were worthy of status because they would never be able to earn it. But having the defective hot on his heels made him think twice. He knew he could still overpower Ryan, but he wouldn't underestimate him.
"Having fun?" Jess asked the two guys who had seemingly out of nowhere engaged in some sort of pissing contest.
"Tons," Ryan laughed, bumping his shoulder against hers.
Johnny nodded, giving his sister a broad smile. Internally, he was becoming wary of Ryan around his sister. Now that he knew Ryan wasn't with Trinity, his friendliness towards his sister was unsettling.
"Hey, can we get some food?" Mona called over to Thomas. They had started this course after their morning run, which happened at 5:30 in the morning every day, and it was already noon. From what she could see ahead, there was still quite a bit of ways to go.
Thomas thought about the yelled question. No one had ever asked for food during the course, but it wasn't not allowed. Sending a mental message to one of the second stagers, he told them to grab some simple snacks, sandwiches, and waters for the group.
Mona had thought her request was being ignored until she noticed two guys she hadn't seen before jog over with sandwiches, water, and granola bars, dumping them all at her feet.
"Nice!"
"Oh my God, I'm so hungry."
"Why didn't we say anything before?"
A chorus of excitement grew amongst the small group as they happily filled their bellies.
"Mona is the new MVP!" Trinity said happily, talking around a mouthful of food. She was dying for something to eat. If anything would make her give up, it was definitely her growing hunger.
Mona felt herself blush amidst all the compliments lobbed her way. She hadn't really felt like she was contributing to the group until this exact moment. At every step, she had been scared or worried to continue, and someone else, like Trinity, or Johnny, or Jess, had always stepped in to be that forward momentum. She'd always wanted to stop, to go back, to give up.
She wasn't sure what had happened, but before she had been forced to come to this pack, she hadn't been so much of a defeatist. It was just that living here felt hopeless at times. It wasn't like the rest of them, who had been openly welcomed back to their family. She'd been sent back to them, only to become their servant. Her family wasn't of the lowest ranking in the pack; they were more middle ground. And because they weren't low enough to not care, they had been embarrassed in their social circles.
So she wasn't treated like the rest of the family. She was a maid, who cleaned up after them, an unwanted roach that they just couldn't seem to step on hard enough. She'd been grateful when she was allowed to leave her family's house to join the warrior house. It wasn't kind being here, but it wasn't worse than being with her family.
At least while she was here, there was a way to be a little less of a speck in the room. Her roommates were cruel and found every way possible to torture her. They'd wake her from her sleep by throwing her off her bed, destroy her clothing for fun, push and slap her whenever they felt like she had insulted them.
It had been torture, but bearable. And with her roommates' rough handling, she had found that there was a way for them to leave her alone. She had found herself on her knees in front of one of the second stagers, relegated to his sexual object, all so she could have some moments of peace.
Being his whore was the only thing that kept her roommates away. When your life had been reduced to such acts, when all that you were good for was the holes in your body, it made it easier to give up. To always think that was the easy way, that it was the right way of things.
The small amount of praise for her complaint made her feel lighter. It ignited a spark in her chest, a feeling that she had forgotten while being here: that there was more than one way to fight back, that you didn't have to choose the same path as everyone else.
Mona found herself staring at Trinity for a few seconds too long, as she realized that this girl, who was at least a few years younger than her, had become her role model. That she had inspired her.
Thomas stared at the group from the sidelines, not missing a thing. He wasn't just watching for what they would do or listening in on their conversations. He was keeping track of the scents, the various pheromones their body had been releasing.
It all went into his opinion of each one in the group. And right now there was a change in the air, from someone he hadn't expected it from. Mona, the smallest and the least motivated. She smelled of pride, and even the faintest amount of determination. He could smell it. Pride was a scent he knew well. Wolves were always prideful, warrior wolves especially. The smell was unforgettable. The determination was something he always looked for. That smell was the smell of future leaders. And she was the first in the group he could smell it from.
The only wolf in the group, Thomas noticed Johnny, was less focused on the course. He smelled of curiosity, of growing attachment towards Trinity.
Tim had a very unique scent amongst them all. It was the smell of trust. He had noticed that the boy seemed to be extremely insular. He wasn't the kind that you'd ever expect to work well with others. But his scent had also started to change, trust and hope mingling together. Nothing too strong, it was a test. He was testing out what it was like to have trust in others and himself.
Jess was tricky. Envy and jealousy could be smelled on her, but it would dissipate as quickly as it would form, being replaced with a sense of respect. The two scents were battling each other for dominance.
Ryan was cocky. Thomas found it to be something very unexpected: a defective with a large amount of arrogance. One that he seemed to hide so he could remain amongst his fellow defectives. It made Thomas wonder how brightly he would shine if he chose to leave them behind.
Trinity was most curious of everyone in the group. She was doubtful, filled with fear. There wasn't an ounce of confidence. She smelled of pure survival instinct. She wasn't trying to lead them to victory, but to keep them and herself alive. Her smell was a desperation, a desperate fight to make it to the end. It perplexed him. A pretty girl who was being fed adoration by a group didn't have it affect her in the slightest. With every look of gratitude, the aroma around her still hadn't adjusted. She was stubborn, an impenetrable brick wall. She was a rock, able to keep the group grounded while seemingly at a loss internally. She was exactly what Thomas thought a leader should be: conscious of the risk you put your people in, wise enough to understand that fear could keep you alive, as well as help you meet your goals, if utilized properly.
"She will be hard to hide from now on, Beta," Thomas told his beta in warning. No one this special could ever be kept hidden.
Boris felt an ache behind his eyes. He was proud of his daughter, watching her fight through this course, the way she struggled and overcame. But a selfish part of him wanted her to just stop, to throw in the towel before too many more eyes locked onto her. It was hard being exceptional as a wolf. He couldn't imagine what it was like as a defective. People wouldn't come to you with respect, trying to build friendships and alliances. With someone who was weak and exceptional, the bargain would always be through force.
Thomas noted their next task: a balance beam 25 meters in length. The beam was thin and wobbly. They would need to make it to the other end, having brought their body weight in sandbags to the other side with them. Beneath the beam was ice-cold water. If they fell in with their sandbags weighing them down, they would need to detangle themselves from it to be able to swim back up.
Uncharacteristically, Mona took the lead, setting the pace as they jogged to the next task. Feeling invigorated, she didn't want to just listen to someone else's idea. She wanted to have one, to help.
Arriving, they saw the beam and the sandbags, and easily figured out what came next. A sheet of paper near the sandbags listed how many sandbags each person would have to carry across.
Jess read out the amount each person would need to grab: "Trinity 6, Ryan 9, Mona 4, Tim 8, Johnny 15, me 5." She called out so each person could go and grab the appropriate amount of sandbags.
Mona didn't grab her sandbags yet. She just lifted one of the bags. It was heavy, but nothing too crazy. Placing it back down, she went over to the beam, stepping on it, noticing the way it wiggled with her weight.
Hopping back down, she already realized one benefit: they didn't need to actually walk across it. They could just slide on their bum. The weights were the difficulty.
Trinity watched as Mona thought about the task and how to overcome it. She had her own idea in mind, but she didn't say it out loud. She wanted to hear what Mona would come up with. She wanted to give her a chance, give anyone else a chance to think of something.
Deciding that there was more than enough sandbags if she messed up, Mona grabbed a sandbag, swinging it in her arms before throwing it to the other side of the beam, hoping to avoid it ending up in the cold water beneath. With a loud thud, it crashed to the other side, and she smiled, looking back at the group.
"We don't actually have to carry it across. We can just throw our weight to the other side."
The group looked to Trinity for confirmation that this was the path they would take, but she ignored them.
"Okay, I'll grab you the rest of your sandbags, Mona." Trinity ignored their eyes. She wasn't the leader. They didn't have to only go with her plans. If someone had a good plan, there wasn't a reason to confirm it with her. Helping Mona, she grabbed the last three sandbags she would need, plopping them beside her, before going back and grabbing her own.
Without missing a beat, she began throwing her own sandbags to the other side. Once she was done, she waited for Mona to take the lead, seeing whatever she wanted to do next, smiling at her encouragingly.
Mona got up on the beam, planting herself down on her bum before scooting across. She felt heat rush to her cheeks but refused to stand, knowing she would fall.
Once on the other side, she shrugged her shoulders at the rest of them. "Not the most dignified way..." she laughed awkwardly.
Trinity didn't change a thing. She scooted just as awkwardly as Mona had, making it to the other side with relative ease.
Johnny walked across the beam on his two feet, as graceful as any ballerina she'd ever seen on TV.
Ryan, refusing to be outdone, did the same as Johnny. Only he pretty much ran across the beam in a bid to show off a little bit. Unlike the last time they raced, he only smirked at Johnny again.