Chapter 52 When The Mountain Opens
SERAPHINA
“The mountain?” one of the Alphas muttered, frowning at the looming terrain ahead. All of us stood at the base of the jagged ridge, having been brought here by the Alpha instructors for the team trial. No wonder it had taken nearly twelve hours to reach this place.
Even from the foot of the mountain, the wind was colder–crisper, biting against skin and clothing alike. Around me, the other Alphas looked tense. Some were stiff with anticipation, others crackled with adrenaline. But then there was the group I was part of four Alphas who looked like they’d strolled into a picnic rather than a trial that could end our futures.
Finn was casually chewing gum like he was wandering through a garden, entirely unbothered. Asher had his hands tucked in his pockets, humming a tune that somehow sounded like a haunted lullaby–only the Goddess knew why. Dante had earphones in his ears, and I couldn’t even begin to understand how he’d smuggled those in when electronics were strictly banned at the Academy. Then there was Ronan–leaning back slightly, exhaling smoke from a cigarette like it was just another Tuesday, not a violation of at least three Academy rules, Cigarettes, alcohol, or the use of any kind of drug was forbidden.
And me? I clenched my fists tightly at my sides.
While they looked like they didn’t have a care in the world, I was brimming with unease–not due to the trial itself, but of the fact that they were my team. If I were alone, I could move freely. I could take risks, shift if I had to. But now? Now everything was tangled and complicated.
Alpha Gideon strode forward, his dark cloak trailing behind him like smoke dancing from fire. His voice boomed across the clearing.
“Everyone, stand in your teams!”
His sharp gaze swept across the crowd and lingered on us–me, Ronan, Dante, Finn, and Asher for a beat longer than the others. I noticed for the first time that there were eleven groups in total. Fifty–five Alphas remained.
The energy in the air shifted, tension pulled taut like à bowstring.
Alpha Gideon’s voice cut through the wind. “As you’ve probably guessed, this is a team trial. But unlike anything before… you will be told nothing about it. No rules. No maps. No briefings. Nothing.”
u’ve faced
The murmur of confusion rippled through the groups. I wasn’t immune to the unease.
He continued, eyes sharp as steel. “Because in the real world, danger doesn’t come with a handbook. It doesn’t announce itself. It arrives suddenly, shifts shapely, and wrecks every plan you thought was solid. Only those who can adapt–together-
make it out.”
He paced slowly in front of us, every step purposeful.
This trial is about more than just strength. It will test your instincts, your leadership, your trust in one another, Especially when nothing makes sense.”
Then he stopped, facing us all again. “This is not an individual challenge. If one of you falls, the whole team falls. If one fails, everyone fails. If one of you makes a mistake, your teammates will pay the price
I felt my breath catch. My pulse skipped. This wasn’t a test. It was a trap with teamwork as the primary weapon.
Alpha Hugo stepped forward “We’re not here to see how strong you are alone. We’re here to test how far you’ll go to keep one another alive. One death means failure for all”
That was when Alpha Jude delivered the final blow
The team that returns last, or returns with a missing or dead member, will be disqualified from the Academy”
Silence fell like a blade
It wasn’t just a challenge anymore. It was a warning Our futures were in each other’s hands.
“Hal” Alpha Jude added, “the team that returns first, with all team members alive, will turn the entire leaderboard upside
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Chapter 52 When The Mountain Opens
+8 Pearl:
Anniversary Celebration
You have completed the task, congratulations on receiving a prize, come and claim it.
meant by flipping the leaderboard, but I wanted it. Whatever it was, I wanted it.
Read
Alpha Gideon raised his arm and pointed toward the mist–veiled wilderness beyond the mountain ridge. Then let the trial begin.”
A chilling bowl echoed somewhere in the distance–sharp, long, and unnatural.
The Alphas exploded into motion, each team surging forward toward the wild unknown.
Except ours.
I glanced left. Finn and Dante.
Then right Asher and Ronan.
Not a single one of them moved. Not a single one even looked at each other. There was no unity here, no bond. Just silent hostility, cold rivalry, and mutual disinterest. This wasn’t a team.
It was a disaster in the making
And I was right in the middle of it.
Steeling myself, I took a deep breach and stepped forward, heading toward the mountain alone. I wouldn’t be the last to move. Not today.
Seconds later, I heard footsteps crunching behind me. I turned my head just slightly, and saw all four of them following.
I pressed my lips into a thin line, gaze locked onto the fog ahead as I started running and all four of my teammates matched my pace as we finally entered into the darkness.
This wasn’t just a trial.
This was going to be the hardest survival test of my life.
Up ahead, sharp movement caught my eye. But when we reached ahead no group was there, it was as if they had disappeared. There was only a torch in a tree.
“There is something in that branch,” Finn pointed at the tree.
Tucked between the branches of an old pine was a scroll. Dante stepped forward and pulled it free.
As he unrolled it, a pen shimmered into existence beside the parchment, hovering mid–air before falling into his hand.
His voice was even as he read aloud:
“Choose the leader of the group within one minute with everyone’s agreement and write their name on this note Or after every minute one of the group members will die.”
What?” Asher frowned and my eyes widened.
“It does not seem like an empty threat,” Ronan murmured, his eyes going to the shining pen
A strange pressige tightened in the air the moment he finished. The scroll pulsed faintly with golden light, and the pent shimmered ominously
None of us moved
Silvice stretched between us like a blade.
muttered, glancing around. “We don’t even know what the next trial is. How are we supposed to choose a leader for it!” My heart thudded. The tute wasn’t just a prompt, it was a trap. “Choosing the wrong leader could cost us everything.” I stated
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Chapter 52 When The Mountain Opens
lowly. But the worst part?
The clock was ticking.
Still, no one spoke up.
No one volunteered,
But
at no one refused either.
+8 Pearls
“Twenty seconds left.” Dante pointed out as everyone looked at each other. If what the note said was true, one of us was going
todic.
“How about we do it alphabetically? First letter of our names.
Everyone’s gaze went to Finn. It sounded fair and neutral. Then everyone’s gaze shifted to Asher. A came first.
He blinked in realization and then nodded, “Alright, I don’t have a problem with that.”
Dante passed him the pen, and Asher stepped forward. He quickly scribbled his name across the scroll with neat precision.
The moment he was done, the ground beneath us shook. “What was that?” I murmured as all of us stilled, my wolf was completely alert in my mind as the next second, the earth beneath us lurched.
“What the
The ground tilted violently. My feet slipped out from under me as the tree behind us cracked open with a mechanical groan, like stone grinding against stone.
fell.
My eyes squeezed tightly shut as I felt someone’s touch on my hand almost as if protecting me, before we went down, down, deeper into darkness. I hit the slope hard, rolling uncontrollably, dirt and roots whipping past me until we crashed against solid ground again with a thud.
I groaned, blinking at the dim red glow surrounding us.
“What the hell…” Asher muttered beside me, brushing dirt off his arms as he stood.
I staggered to my feet, and froze.. just like others.
The walls around us were stone. Cold, slick, and ancient. Carvings were etched into the archways overhead. A thick metallic scent filled the air. And at the center of the underground chamber….
stood a throne of bone and blood.
Dante swore low under his breath. “This isn’t a cave”
“No.” Ronan said grimly. “This is a vampire den.”
I held my breath.
The trial had begun.
And we’d just landed in hell.
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