Klaus had always been strong since he was young. Even among his peers, none could match him in both intellect and strength. His talent was too amazing.
As he grew older, he awakened much earlier than anyone in the history of his pack. His family wasn’t too prestigious in their community, but solely due to his existence, that all changed. His father gained more repute, and his mother was adored for birthing such a genius.
“You’re our family’s pride and joy, Klaus. You’ll be the one to lead this Pack one day ” They often told him in their private chambers.
This slowly formed a dominant and entitled mentality within Klaus. He became more violent and direct in his approach.
“If I want something, I’ll take it!” He often stated.
In such a world where strength determined everything, it wasn’t exactly a wrong ideology to have, at least in his opinion. Slowly, he began dominating the Pack, and as a youth, he was able to defeat the Gamma and Beta within their village.
Finally, he caught the attention of the Alpha, and in his young adulthood, Klaus defeated him too, gaining the position of Alpha. It was a surprising sight, how a young boy from a destitute family gained such a high position due to nothing but power.
It was only a matter of time, however, before Klaus became dissatisfied and tried aiming higher. The very idea that there was someone out there who was stronger than him and ranked higher repulsed him. I’m the strongest in Oregon woods. I should be on top.
And so, Klaus bore with the choking feeling of subservience to the community’s wolf king, gathering his strength and sharpening his fangs, until he was ready to win. And so, when the time finally came, many years had passed since he became Alpha.
The contest for the new Wolf King was held since the current one had grown too hold to keep the mantle in his grasp. Klaus gazed at the competitors he would be facing off against. They were older than him, Alpha’s of their various packs. He recognized Benson, as well as other faces whom he occasionally took note of during a Convergence.
Finally, the tournament began… and just as he had trained for all those years, Klaus achieved victory. He was huffing in exhaustion, blood and seat dripped from his skin, yet… He was smiling. He had finally reached the pinnacle of the Werewolf Community.
“I am now king!” He grinned, drowned in the pleasures of power.
Unfortunately, his reign didn’t last forever.
The cause was something he would never have expected. It was a prodigy with far greater talent compared to his, a young rising star from the Rockwood Pack who seized the position of Alpha as a mere teenager and shook the whole woods with his might. It was Asher!
Klaus felt threatened by the young man’s existence, and tried exerting dominance in order to put him in his place. However, the boy was unruly.
“You’re not strong enough… to command me.” Asher finally spoke back in one instance.
This was the spark that led to the next clash they had. A new conflict, the selection of a new Wolf King… at least that was how it appeared to be. However, the true nature of the gauntlet, was a challenge between Klaus and the young Alpha, Asher.
“There’s no way I’m losing to an immature kid like you…” He whispered, smiling confidently at Asher.
After all, he knew what it mean to be talented and rise above expectations at such a young age. However, even for Klaus, he had never been so conceited as to think he could take on a Wolf King at such a tender age of early adulthood. Yet, Asher was before him with that exact desire.
‘Fool!’ Klaus grimaced.
His victory was assured.
And so, the fight began, a battle between two natural born geniuses, a clash of superiority… a conflict of pride. The end result was the most shocking thing to have ever visited the Pack. The you g man, in his early twenties, defeated the Wolf King!
Klaus couldn’t believe his eyes. His body kept shaking in the presence of the overwhelming force exuded by the boy he had looked down on. No, this wasn’t just any genius or prodigy… this was something much more.
It was at this moment that the invincible and all-powerful Klaus realized that there was always someone who was better than him. And the identity of that person, Asher, transcended that of any other.
“H-he’s… He’s a monster!”
Even till date, Klaus had not forgotten the humiliation he suffered, as well as the constant throbbing of fear his body had in the presence of Asher. He tried to mask it as often as he could, but he couldn’t lie to himself.
He was terrified of Asher.
‘I can’t… I can’t live like this forever…’ He told himself, gritting his teeth.
Finally, after years of being lost and drowned in his defeat, he was saved. There was only one thing that could truly give him back his dignity and restore his pride as the one above all.
“I must be king… I will be king!”
Now that the stage had been set and they had come this far, Asher had thrown his easy ascension to the top into disarray. Things weren’t going as planned once again.
“This time, we’ll decide on the Wolf King the way it’s usually done. The Selection ceremony… the battle of Alphas.” Asher said.
Klaus remained silent. There was nothing he could say again. Even his body refused to respond.
The battle would feature the Alphas of each Pack, including Dax, as well as Klaus, who was the former Wolf King and had every right to contest in order to regain his position. Altogether making six contestants!
“I suppose that settles it then. I’m certainly expecting you to live up to your title… Mad Tyrant Klaus. After all these years, let’s see what you’ve got!” Asher smiled, narrowing his eyes on the frustrated man.
Asher’s sudden announcement shook, not only Klaus, but also the remaining Alphas who were present. They stared at each other awkwardly, realizing they had to compete for the prize of supreme ruler of the Woods.
Even though most were downed in hesitation, Alpha Benson grinned wickedly within himself.
‘This is a perfect chance for me. Hehehe…’
Benson had assumed, just like Klaus and basically every other Alpha, that Klaus would be the next Wolf King. To seize the power of royalty, he had made preparations to bring Camilla and Klaus together, still fulfilling his ambitions. But now, things were different. He now had equal grounds to obtain the positon of Wolf King for himself.
Of course, he knew he stood no chance winning against Klaus directly, but if he managed to play his cards right and come in at the last minute, he could reap the labors of everyone else and end up being the winner.
‘Even if I don’t win, I could still go with my original plan and use Camilla. Klaus will hold nothing against me, since the match was a condition made by Asher in the first place.’ Benson schemed.
No matter which way it turned out, he would make sure to reap the rewards! Definitely!
“Now then, let us prepare the stage. We shall have the tournament here… on Alpha’s peak.” Asher declared.
And so, right there and then, six contestants would struggle for the absolute power within their community. Things hadn’t turned out the way any of then had expected, but some of the contestants and spectators were pleased.
‘Asher, you sure are a sly bastard. However… even this doesn’t matter.’ Larry smiled, watching the whole incident from where he stood.
No matter the farce Asher tried playing, even putting six contestants against one another, the outcome was obvious. Even with the bravado, Dax was weaker than Klaus, same as all the other Alphas.
“Klaus will end up winning. There’s no doubt.” Larry grinned.
‘After all, he’s my greatest pawn in this game… my Trump Card!’