Chapter 36: 36: Rivals

MAX

Three weeks into our training, things are going pretty smoothly, at least for me. Most of our time is spent in the classroom, learning about the hierarchy and history of our world.

I’m surprised to find that our lessons cover packs from all over the globe, not just our own Royal Pack. It’s enlightening to learn about the others, though not all of it is pleasant.

There’s a fair amount of tension between some of the alpha heirs, which makes for some long, grueling days. Whenever conflicts escalate, the guards take us outside and work us to the bone.

Sometimes, we go without food and spar for hours until the ones causing trouble surrender. This happens quite a few times between Derek and the alpha heir from Denver.

I spend many days trying to talk some sense into Derek about his lack of self-control, but it’s not entirely his fault. Michael, the Denver alpha heir, has a knack for making snide remarks about the Half Moon Pack, my mother’s pack.

His comments irk me, too, since my grandparents and my uncle, the current beta, still live there. Half Moon might be small, but they’re far from weak.

Some of their warriors are the best trained, having been trained by Milo and Connor from our pack. Michael is a real pain in the ass.

I can see why Derek has a hard time keeping his mouth shut, but that’s what I’m there for, right? To help him stay in control and follow the king’s rules, or so I thought.

We’ve just wrapped up our history lessons and moved on to torture and interrogation tactics. I’ve been learning about this with my father, but he warned me that there had probably been updates in the last twenty-five years.

They show us several videos of recent interrogations conducted by a pack in Africa. The alpha there has a unique approach, using animals that a wolf wouldn’t normally fear.

But when you’re injected with wolfsbane and can’t shift or heal quickly, it’s a different story. They put them in boxes with hundreds of unfed snakes or use tarantulas as a form of torture.

The room is buzzing with chatter after the videos, everyone firing questions at the instructor. Today, it’s a warrior from the Africa Pack, who is part of the team that developed these tactics.

He’s also going to teach us survival skills in jungle environments, and give us some tips on desert survival, though that’s not his specialty. Word is that the alpha from the Phoenix pack will be joining us soon for desert survival, along with the alpha from the Saguaro Pack who lives in the southern part of Nevada, not far from Death Valley.

The classroom education is here, but the actual physical survival tests take place in other parts of the world. The locations of those have not been announced as we’re supposed to keep things as confidential as possible.

As I sit in the back of the room, observing the others, I notice one of the king’s guards has entered through the side entrance, standing stiffly. Warrior Greer from Africa hushes the room, giving the guard a moment to speak.

Once the room is silent, the guard announces that the king wishes to speak to several of us, including myself and Jameson. I’m a bit confused but remember that the king is always on the lookout for potential recruits for his Royal Army.

The nine of us who are called stand and follow the guard to the king’s Meeting Hall. As we enter the room, there’s no time to take in the surroundings as the king is already present.

We follow protocol, baring our necks in submission and kneeling on one knee. Once we’ve all done so, the king orders us to rise and motions to the chairs around the meeting table.

He’s seated at the head, and none of us take a seat until he has. I take a moment to look around the room.

It’s lavishly decorated with fine art on the walls and marble floors that gleam as if freshly polished. The table we sit at is made of solid stone and looks centuries old.

I doubt it could be moved very easily. In one corner stands a cabinet filled with what looks like expensive bottles of Whiskey.

Several guards are stationed around the room, and an omega is kneeling quietly by a door, waiting for her king’s instruction. Once everyone is seated, he calls the omega over and asks her to bring pitchers of water.

After she has done so, she’s dismissed and disappears, not to be seen again for the rest of our meeting. “I’m sure you’re all wondering why I’ve called you here,” the king begins.

“I’ve been informed that each one of you has requested to test out of some our requirements. I’m not opposed to this, however, do understand that the time you spend away while testing out could prolong your training.

“What I mean by that is if you fail the test, you must return here to finish the training you missed out on while in whatever remote location we’ve sent you. You would then not be testing with your present group and would be held back at the end to finish what you failed to complete.

This brings me to my final point; do you honestly think you’re capable of passing my tests without further training?” He asks this last question with a hint of anger, an eyebrow raised.

“I will go around the room and you tell me who you are and where you’re from and what part you wish to test from. Then I want to know what you’ve done to prepare you to test out of any of this. Am I clear?” He asks as he looks at each one of us.

There’s a collective affirmative response and around the table we go. Jameson wants to test out of desert survival, no surprise there as his father is the instructor for it.

There’s the alpha heir from Africa who wishes to test out of jungle survival and part of torture tactics. The king denies him the latter, stating that it’s combined in testing with the others and so not possible.

When he gets to me, he’s taken aback by my responses. “Your Majesty, my name is Maximus Moon of the Ridge Mountain Pack.

I wish to test out of mountain survival, cold weather survival, water survival, and all written tests regarding history and politics. I wish to take oral exams for the history and politics.

I believe I can test out because I’ve been training for years for these with my father, Alpha Sebastian Moon.” The king stares at me for a few moments, and I can see the others looking around the table at each other.

I’m sure they don’t believe I can do it. “You do realize that this is eighteen months of training plus the testing?” The king asks.

“Yes sir, I do. I’m ready,” my voice doesn’t waiver. “Your father and I go way back,” the king begins, his eyes scanning the room.

“He was always a bit of an oddball, even as a young alpha. His leadership style hasn’t changed much over the years. Always full of surprises. I often wish he’d been part of my Royal Army.”

He pauses, his gaze landing on me. “The only other person to request so many exemptions is my son, Prince Ricardo. He passed all but one—Desert Survival. Why do you think that is?” His question is clearly directed at me.

“Perhaps, your Majesty, he didn’t have much opportunity to train in desert conditions,” I suggest. “Quite likely, young Alpha Max,” he agrees, nodding.

“He’ll be joining you all for his desert survival training. Some of you, if you pass your exemptions, will be assigned as his Royal Guard during this time. It’s an honor, really.

It gives me a chance to see who might be fit for my Royal Army.” His smirk is back, and I remember my father’s warning. I keep my face expressionless.

“Let’s get started. Those of you taking oral tests will meet here tomorrow at eight sharp. That gives you time for your morning workout and breakfast. Don’t be late.”

With that, the guard signals us to stand. The king exits through a door I hadn’t noticed before, hidden behind a large piece of furniture.

It’s time to put my father’s teachings to the test, starting tomorrow.

MAX

The oral testing is grueling. We’re grilled by the king’s Council, the king himself, and even the queen.

They leave no stone unturned when it comes to history and politics. Besides me, only two others have requested oral boards for these subjects.

Jameson wants to test out of Politics, and an alpha from Rome wants to test out of History. I think his name is Antonio, but with over sixty alpha heirs here, it’s hard to keep track.

One of the tests is to remember everyone’s name, their pack, and when they’re expected to take over from their fathers. It’s a lot to remember.

The king reenters the room after the queen finishes her questioning. We’ve been sitting in silence for over an hour.

We were told to stay put, keep quiet, and not leave. We’ve been separated all day, each of us confined to our own rooms.

Lunch never came, and as dinner time approaches, it seems we might miss that meal too. My stomach growls in protest.

The only comfort is the glass of water I quickly drain. The king moves around the table, informing us if we’ve missed any questions.

To my surprise, only one question is missed, by Jameson. It was one of the queen’s questions about her court.

It doesn’t affect his test, he still passes. It’s not surprising he missed it. The change was recent, only three months old.

My father, who regularly communicates with the king, was updated about it and naturally, I was in the loop. Some might consider this an unfair advantage, but honestly, any of us could have accessed the secure platform the king uses to update the packs about changes.

When the king turns to me, he studies me closely. I keep my gaze lowered, not wanting to disrespect him.

But as he starts to speak, I realize I shouldn’t have been so obvious about my knowledge. “Maximus, your knowledge doesn’t surprise me.

Your father has always been a strong leader, always striving to know more than most. I can only assume he has shared a lot with you.

It’s commendable, but you do realize this puts you on my radar?” I lift my gaze to find the king smiling.

“Sir?”

“Playing naive won’t work now, Maximus. We’ll discuss this later.

Do you plan to stay here and lead your late grandmother’s pack in Venice?” The king’s question catches me off guard, and I feel compelled to answer as honestly as I can.

“Your Majesty, I do plan to visit Venice while I’m here. But I can’t say for sure if I want to take over that pack.

My father has been thinking about retirement, and my younger brother might be interested. I have strong connections in Montana and with our allied packs.

In fact, I recently helped take down a troublesome pack, and now we’re responsible for them. I wouldn’t want to leave all that to my father for another six years.

My brother won’t finish his training for at least that long.”

“I see. We have a lot to talk about in the coming years, Max.

I’d like you to stay in Italy, but it might be too soon for that.” He glances at all of us, stands up without another word, and leaves.

I look at the other two alphas sitting with me. Jameson is grinning, but the alpha from Rome, he looks furious.

Being so close to the crown, he probably wanted the king’s recognition, and it seems like I’ve just made an enemy.