Alison’s POV
I squared my shoulders, exhaling as I stepped onto the training grounds. Every step I took felt heavier under the watchful eyes of the pack members who were present today. It’s two solid weeks into my Luna training and I can strongly say I was improving, physically and mentally, but Katherine’s relentless regimen and barely hidden disdain didn’t make it any easier. I expected resistance from her. What I hadn’t anticipated was the simmering hostility of the pack, whispers, sidelong glances, and thinly veiled sneers that felt like daggers in my back, I had thought that by now seeing my resilience they would finally accept me, but I was wrong.
“Good thing You’re early today,” Katherine’s voice cut through my thoughts like a whip. She stood at the edge of the training field, her posture rigid, her eyes as sharp as ever. She crossed her arms, her gaze sweeping over me as if searching for a flaw. “Let’s not waste anymore of our time. Warm up with the forms we practiced yesterday. And remember, precision over speed. A Luna who falters in form falters in leadership.”
I nodded, suppressing a sigh. The forms were grueling, a series of choreographed movements meant to simulate combat scenarios. They required balance, focus, and strength. As I began, the fabric of my training gear clung to me, damp and uncomfortable. Something about it felt off, but I pushed the thought aside.
Halfway through the sequence, I leapt into a high kick and my foot slipped. My shoe, its grip mysteriously worn, skidded across the ground, sending me sprawling into the dirt. Laughter rippled through the crowd of onlookers.
“Get up,” Katherine barked. Her tone was void of sympathy, but her eyes narrowed as if she too noticed the oddity of my fall.
I scrambled to my feet, brushing dirt off my hands and knees. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Caitlyn leaning against a post, her arms crossed, smirking like a cat that had just cornered its prey. My blood boiled.
“Again,” Katherine ordered, her voice cutting through the murmurs of the crowd. “And this time, focus.”
I did as she instructed, repeating the movements with renewed determination. My muscles screamed in protest, but I gritted my teeth. Katherine’s instructions rang in my ears: “A Luna does not give in to weakness. Pain is temporary. Leadership demands resilience.”
The session dragged on, with Katherine pushing me harder after every mistake but not that pushy with Caitlyn who seemed more amused. The crowd thinned, but Caitlyn lingered, her amusement unabated.
By the time Katherine called for a break, my body was trembling from exhaustion. I retreated to the sidelines, grabbing a bottle of water. As I drank, I couldn’t help but notice the damaged rope near the obstacle course and the oddly frayed straps on one of the sparring dummies. These weren’t coincidences.
“Your gears are in such a rough shape,” Katherine observed, appearing at my side. Her tone was unreadable, but her sharp eyes held a flicker of suspicion.
“It wasn’t like this yesterday,” I admitted, keeping my voice steady and filled with respect.
Her gaze hardened. “Excuses! If you are insinuating a sabotage then I suppose you’d keep an eye on it. A Luna must anticipate sabotage. Weakness invites challenge.”
I nodded, her words sinking deep. Katherine wasn’t offering comfort; she was belittling me. “Prove you’re better than this”, her sharp eyes seemed to say, but I took her words as comfort.
The sabotages continued during the next drill. A jump rope snapped mid-exercise, sending me sprawling again. The sandbags I was supposed to lift had been swapped for heavier weights, throwing me off balance. Each slip-up drew Caitlyn’s smug smirk closer to the forefront of my mind as she excelled in her own tests with ease gaining her applauds from the crowd.
By the time we broke for lunch, I was fuming. Caitlyn’s obvious sabotage wasn’t just an attack on my training, it was an attack on my right to stand here.
On my way back from the meal tent, I overheard a group of young women whispering nearby.
“She’s a joke,” one sneered. “Lady Katherine’s wasting her time on this one.”
“She’s stronger than you give her credit for,” another said hesitantly.
“Please,” the first voice scoffed. “She’s just a desperate young girl clinging to Alpha Xander for relevance.”
The words hit harder than I expected. I bit my lip and stepped forward, forcing them to meet my gaze. Their faces paled as they realized I’d heard every word.
“Say it to my face next time,” I said coldly. They scattered like startled birds, leaving me with the weight of their judgment.
Afternoon training brought more tests, this time sparring. Katherine paired me with one of the senior warriors, a gruff man named Victor who outweighed me by at least 50 pounds while Caitlyn stood with another warrior who looked like he weighed 30 pounds.
“Your objectives is not to overpower him,” Katherine explained as we squared off. “A Luna uses strategy, not brute strength. Leverage your opponent’s weight and speed against them.”
Victor lunged, and I ducked, remembering Katherine’s earlier lesson. “Stay low, conserve energy. Use their momentum.” I sidestepped his next strike, aiming a quick jab at his exposed side. He grunted, but recovered quickly, forcing me to pivot and dodge again.
“Good,” Katherine called. “Keep moving. Don’t let him corner you.”
As the match continued, I found a rhythm, using Victor’s aggression to tire him out. When he finally overextended, I swept his legs out from under him, pinning him to the ground with a triumphant smile.
“Well done, both of you” Katherine said, her approval rare but undeniable. “Now, again.”
By the time training ended, my body ached in places I didn’t know existed. As I gathered my things, Caitlyn approached, her grin sharper than ever.
“You were Impressive with the last task,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “But don’t get too comfortable. You’ll never make it past the real challenges, I was trained for this.”
“Funny,” I shot back, meeting her gaze head-on. “I thought I already was in the real challenge.”
Her smirk faltered, but she quickly recovered. “We’ll see how long you last.”
As she walked away, I clenched my fists, my resolve hardening. Caitlyn could scheme all she wanted. I wasn’t going anywhere.
When I returned to my room that night, I found my training gear neatly folded on the bed, completely dry and clean. A note lay on top:
“Sabotage is the price of ambition. Learn to expect it, and you’ll survive. Ignore it, and you’ll fail. -K”
I stared at the note, a mix of frustration and gratitude swirling in my chest. Katherine hadn’t seemed like one to be impressed, but maybe that was the point.
As I lay in bed, exhaustion tugging at my limbs, I made a silent vow to myself “tomorrow, I’d come back stronger. Caitlyn’s tricks might slow me down, but they wouldn’t break me” .
This wasn’t just about proving myself to the pack anymore it was now about proving myself to me.