Chapter 2 The Arena's Welcome

LINA'S POV

The arena loomed like a beast carved from stone, its high walls swallowing the morning light. My boots echoed on the path as I followed the stream of new students, my stomach twisting tighter with every step. The Alpha Trials. I'd heard the stories-grueling tests of strength, cunning, and control, designed to weed out the weak. My pendant pulsed against my chest, its magic humming, but I wasn't sure it could hide me through this. One wrong move, one crack in my disguise, and every wolf in Silverclaw would know I was a girl. A fraud. An intruder.

"First time's always the worst," Jasper said beside me, his voice light but his eyes darting nervously. His glasses slipped down his nose, and he shoved them back up. "Last year, a guy passed out before it even started. Blood everywhere."

"Comforting," I muttered, adjusting my cap. My fake name, Linc, still felt foreign on my tongue, but I was stuck with it. "What are we walking into?"

Jasper grinned, all teeth. "Pain, probably. The Trials change every year. Could be combat, could be a hunt. Whatever it is, it's public, and it's brutal."

Public. My wolf whined, pacing inside me. I clenched my fists, forcing her to settle. I'd trained for this-not as much as these guys, born and bred for dominance, but enough. My father had taught me to fight smart, not just hard. I just hoped smart was enough.

The arena's entrance was a gaping maw, flanked by older students who jeered as we passed. "Fresh meat!" one shouted, and laughter rippled through the crowd. I kept my head down, blending into the pack, but my skin prickled. Bryce's scent-musk and malice-hit me a second before his voice did.

"Ready to eat dirt, runt?" He loomed behind me, his buzzcut gleaming in the sun. His buddies snickered, circling like vultures. "Or you gonna cry for mommy first?"

I turned, meeting his glare. My wolf growled, eager, but I kept my voice steady, low. "If I cry, it'll be from your stench, Bryce. Ever heard of soap?"

Jasper snorted, and a few nearby students chuckled. Bryce's face twisted, but before he could swing, a sharp whistle cut through the noise. A professor-tall, lean, with silver streaks in his dark hair-strode toward us. His eyes were piercing, like he could see straight through my pendant's magic. My breath caught, and that strange tug I'd felt with Kade flickered again, softer but undeniable. My wolf perked up, whispering, Mate. I shoved her down. Not again.

"Enough," the professor snapped, his voice calm but laced with authority. "Save your energy for the Trials, not schoolyard nonsense." His gaze lingered on me, and I swore his nostrils flared, testing the air. "You. Name?"

"Linc, sir," I said, my heart pounding. "Ironfang pack."

He raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "Ironfang. Small pack. Ambitious, sending someone here." He didn't sound convinced, but he moved on, barking orders to line up. I exhaled, my knees shaky. Jasper shot me a look-half pity, half awe.

"That's Professor Elias," he whispered as we shuffled into the arena. "Teaches pack lore. Tough but fair. Don't get on his bad side."

"Not planning to," I said, but my eyes trailed Elias. He moved with a predator's grace, his blazer doing little to hide the strength beneath. That tug in my chest wouldn't quit, and it scared me more than Bryce's fists. Two mates? Impossible. I was here to become an Alpha, not to chase fairy tales.

The arena was a coliseum of dirt and stone, tiered seats packed with students and faculty. Their cheers and taunts roared like a storm, and my wolf bristled, itching to prove herself. We newbies-about thirty of us-gathered in the center, surrounded by a dirt ring marked with claw marks and old blood. My stomach churned. This was real.

The headmaster took a platform above, his scarred face grim. "Welcome to the Alpha Trials," he boomed, silencing the crowd. "Silverclaw High forges leaders through fire. Today, you prove you belong. Fail, and you're gone."

Gone. The word hit like a punch. I couldn't fail. Not for me, not for my father, not for the pack counting on me to defy the elders' sneers.

"The first Trial is simple," the headmaster said. "Survival. You'll face a gauntlet-obstacles, traps, and your peers. Reach the other side, you pass. Fall, you're out. No killing, but everything else is fair."

A gauntlet. My mind raced. Traps I could handle-my father had drilled me in evasion. But my peers? Bryce's glare burned into me, and I spotted Kade in the stands, his smirk sharp as a blade. He wasn't competing-probably a privilege of being top dog-but his eyes locked on mine, and that tug flared again, hot and confusing. I tore my gaze away.

"Line up!" Elias barked, and we scrambled to the starting line, a wooden gate at the ring's edge. I ended up between Jasper and a wiry guy who smelled like fear. The gate led to a tunnel, its mouth dark and reeking of damp earth and metal. Traps. Great.

Jasper leaned close. "Stick with me, Linc. We'll make it."

I nodded, grateful for his optimism. "Deal. Don't trip."

He grinned, but his hands shook. I didn't blame him. My own were clammy, the pendant's warmth a constant reminder of my lie.

The headmaster raised a hand. "Begin!"

The gate slammed open, and we surged forward, a tangle of elbows and snarls. The tunnel was narrow, forcing us single-file, and I ducked a swinging blade that dropped from the ceiling, its edge glinting. Someone behind me screamed, and I didn't look back. My wolf urged me on, her instincts sharp. I leaped over a pit spiked with wooden stakes, my boots skidding on loose dirt. Jasper cursed beside me, barely clearing it.

"Keep moving!" I hissed, grabbing his arm as he stumbled. The tunnel opened into a maze of stone walls, vines, and shadows. Fire pits flared at random, singeing my sleeve. I swerved, heart pounding, and caught Bryce's scent a second before he barreled into me.

"Got you, runt!" he roared, shoving me into a wall. My cap flew off, and panic spiked as my hair-tucked but too long-brushed my neck. I dove for the cap, jamming it back on as Bryce lunged again.

I rolled, using his momentum to trip him. He hit the ground hard, cursing, and I sprinted, my wolf howling with glee. Smart, not strong. That was my edge.

The maze twisted, and I lost Jasper in the chaos. Voices echoed-grunts, screams, cheers from the crowd above. A net dropped, and I slashed it with my pocketknife, barely dodging a spiked log that swung from nowhere. My pendant burned, the magic straining under my sweat and stress. Hold, I begged it. Just hold.

I rounded a corner and froze. Kade stood at the maze's edge, not in the stands anymore, his arms crossed. "Not bad, newbie," he called, his voice carrying over the noise. "But you're slowing down."

"Mind your own business," I snapped, my voice rougher than I meant. His smirk widened, and that tug in my chest turned molten. My wolf whined, torn between running and-stupidly-staying.

"Make it out, and maybe I will," he said, eyes glinting. He was toying with me, but why? Before I could snap back, Bryce's roar echoed behind me.

I bolted, the maze spitting me into a final stretch-a rope bridge over a pit of mud and jagged rocks. The crowd roared, their scents overwhelming. I grabbed the ropes, my arms burning as I hauled myself across. Jasper was ahead, his glasses fogged but his grin fierce. "Almost there, Linc!"

I nodded, focused, but a shadow moved on the other side. Not Bryce. Someone else-taller, leaner, his scent unfamiliar but sharp with intent. He watched me, his eyes cold, calculating. My wolf growled, sensing a threat deeper than Bryce's bluster. Who was he?

The bridge swayed, and I pushed forward, reaching solid ground just as a horn blared. The Trial was over. I'd made it. Jasper whooped, slapping my back, but my eyes found the stranger. He was gone, melted into the crowd.

Elias appeared, clipboard in hand, his gaze sweeping the survivors. "Fifteen of you passed," he said, his voice cutting through the cheers. "The rest, pack your bags." His eyes met mine, and my pendant flared, hot enough to sting. Did he know? Could he tell?

Before I could dwell, Kade's voice rang out from the stands. "Nice moves, Linc. Let's see if you survive what's next."

The crowd laughed, but his words weren't a taunt. They were a warning. I turned, searching for the stranger, but he was nowhere. My wolf snarled, restless, and I knew one thing for sure: the Trials were just the beginning, and someone-maybe everyone-was already watching me too closely.