The Forbidden Alpha

Adea

“Is that clear?” Alpha Ethan roared across the field.

“Yes, Alpha,” the new recruits said in unison.

“Is there anyone here who held a position of power under Dante in the Lagoon Pack?” Ethan asked.

There was a moment of silence and a few people shuffled their feet before a beautiful long hair that was half blonde on the left and half black on the right. She had brown almond-shaped eyes.

“Name and previous position held?” Ethan asked. He didn’t use his Alpha power but I could feel it radiating off of him in waves.

“Darci Li and I held the position of Gamma under Al-Dante, at my previous pack,” she replied with her head bowed.

Ethan stared at her for a few seconds before nodding his head.

“From this moment on, you are all a part of The Desert Moon pack and I am your Alpha. Darci will help lead training while my Beta is indisposed,” Ethan yelled out to the group of recruits.

His eyes found Darci and she stood at her full height. “Do you have a problem with that?” Ethan asked.

“No, Alpha. Thank you,” she replied.

“I want you to separate the recruits into teams of two. We will start off with one on one fights,” he demands.

She nods and starts to pair members off.

“The winners of these fights will move to the right side of the field and when all the fights have finished. We will assign new teams of two which will fight again. When that round of fights ends we will then have three groups. The winners of the second round will be our Tier one, winners of our first fight will be Tier two, and the ones who lost the first round will be our Tier three. Tier three will be our weakest fighters and will need the most training going forward,” he explained.

Darci moved quickly and almost everyone had a partner at this point. When she stood in front of me, her eyes raked up and down my body before she throws her head back and yells, “LEO!”

I don’t hear him but something strong and muscular bumps into my back and I turn around to see who it is. What I’m faced with is pure muscle bulking out of a loose tank top. I gulp and let my eyes trail up his chest to find a cocky smile and light eyes dancing as he stares down at me as if he finds something funny.

“You two,” she says. She points back and forth between the two of us before walking off. I stare up at him in shock when I hear her move on to the last few people. He chuckles and I pull my jaw off the floor. I don’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he makes me nervous.

“Well…,” Korra says. “He’s going to be a challenge.”

“Yeah, I get that, thanks,” I say.

Leo’s brown eyes are smiling now as he leans down to talk to me. “My name’s Leo,” he says and stretches out a hand to shake. “I was one of the top warriors at my old pack but I’ll go easy on you.”

I shake his hand.

“Charmed,” I say before turning away.

“When everyone has a partner, I want you to distance yourself from the other teams. Make sure there are at least 5 to 8 feet in between you and the other groups. Start when you’re ready,” Ethan calls out.

I scowled at Leo as he drew closer. I let my eyes wander up and down his body as I search for any signs of weakness or weak spots. He looked young but I could tell from his size that he took his training seriously.

Something must have flickered in my eyes because Leo hesitated for a moment, his gaze tightening on me.

“I don’t remember seeing you around back home,” Leo murmured as his gaze wandered my body.

“We aren’t home. This is our home now,” I said, “and I don’t remember seeing you back home either.”

He scoffed.

“Everyone knew who I was, everyone here knows me,” he said as he took a step forward. “But… I wonder how many people here would recognize you? Are you a spy or maybe a rogue?”

I ignored his questioning.

“Let’s not pretend you know anything about me. Focus on fighting me,” I taunted. “If you can beat me, then maybe I’ll answer some questions.”

He let out a roar of laughter.

***

I wouldn’t be weak. I wouldn’t give up. I was going against an opponent and I wouldn’t lose unless he pounded me into the ground. I was going to give it my all.

I looked up at him impassively and I could see just how much that pissed him off. Barely an inch of space divided us and my heart was thundering a panicked tune but I refused to let him see me flinch.

The other teams had spaced out and already started fighting. I reached up, parting my hair and pulling it back, twisting it in a small tight bun as I looked up at him. “Don’t underestimate me,” I warned.

He flew at me so suddenly that I swear the wind whistled as he cut through the air. One look in his eyes told me.

At the last second, I dodged to the right and barely missed his outstretched razor-sharp claws. They were mere inches from my throat. I could hear Korra begging me to let up and give her some control but I didn’t let her.

I needed to do this. I needed to know that I could handle this. This would be MY victory. I turned around with a speed I didn’t know I possessed and kicked the back of his knees in forcing him to the ground. In a second, I was pressed against him, I gripped the back of his head with one hand and the bottom of his jaw with the other. With one twist of my hand, I could snap his neck.

He lost.

He growled in anger and I could feel the muscles in his back tensing. I knew he was contemplating trying to get out of my hold.

I leaned down so my lips were an inch away from his ear. “I wouldn’t do that… I hold your life in my hands. I might not hesitate to snap your neck.”

My eyes find Ethan and I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face. “You’ve lost.. Do you forfeit?” I ask.