Chapter 12 Part 1 Zora

CHAPTER 12 part 1 

SERENA POV

“Serena, wait.”

I stopped mid-step.

For a brief second, I considered ignoring her, the way Jayden had ignored me earlier. Walking away would have been easier. Cleaner. Less complicated. 

Who did she think she was, demanding that I stop, that I wait for her?

But something in Zora’s tone, sharp, controlled, almost challenging, made me turn slowly.

She stood a few feet away, arms folded across her chest, posture straight, chin lifted. Sweat clung to her skin, darkening her training clothes from exertion. 

She looked every inch the warrior leader she was: strong, confident, commanding. Watching me as if she were measuring my worth, every movement deliberate.

“What do you want?” I asked calmly.

Her eyes flicked briefly in the direction Jayden had disappeared.

“You don’t back down easily,” she said. 

It wasn’t an insult. Not quite praise either. More like an observation.

“I don’t see why I should,” I replied. 

“Especially not here. At the kingdom, where I am not wanted.”

A corner of her mouth lifted slightly. “Most women would’ve broken already. Or begged. Or cried.”

“I’m not most women,” I said firmly.

“No,” she agreed. “You’re not.”

Silence stretched between us, thick and tense. Around us, the training grounds were slowly emptying. Warriors left in small groups, their voices low, glances curious.

I could feel them wondering. Judging. Choosing sides. And I didn’t care.

Zora stepped closer, not invading my space, but close enough for me to feel the weight of her presence, the authority radiating from her.

“You should know something,” she said quietly.

 “Training with the omegas isn’t punishment. They are also part of us.”

“I know,” I said immediately. “And I don’t see them as lesser.”

Her gaze sharpened. “Good. Because if you had, we’d already have a problem.”

I held her stare. “Then what is the problem?”

She exhaled slowly, measuring her words. “The problem is that the king doesn’t do anything without intention.” Of course he doesn’t.

“He wants to break you,” she continued. “Not just your strength. Your patience. Your pride. Your ability to endure humiliation without losing control.”

My jaw tightened. “So I’m entertainment.”

“For some,” she admitted. “For others, you’re a threat.”

That caught my attention. “Explain.”

Zora’s eyes scanned my face, then my stance, my hands, my posture.

“You don’t carry yourself like someone who plans to disappear quietly into the background,” she said. “We can sense strength when we see it. And you, you are strong.”

I let out a short breath. “I didn’t come here to be invisible.”

“No,” she said. “You came here to survive.”

Something in her tone made my chest tighten. The words weren’t just advice. They were a warning.

“Listen carefully,” Zora said, lowering her voice further.

 “If you want to last in this pack, if you want to walk into tomorrow’s sparring match with the king and not be crushed, you need allies. Even temporary ones.”

“And you’re offering?” I asked skeptically.

Her gaze held mine. “I’m offering fairness.”

That was more than I’d been given so far.

“I don’t need it,” I said. “And I don’t want pity.”

“Good,” she replied. “Because you won’t get either.”

She turned and began walking toward the far side of the field. Then she stopped and glanced over her shoulder.

 “You can never be my queen. Jayden will never accept you.”

“I don’t need you to accept me as your queen,” I said sharply. “Nor do you have to concern yourself with what’s going on between Jayden and me.”

I walked away, not bothering to listen to what else she had to say.

I headed toward the king’s pack house which belonged only to him and the high ranking wolves. 

The palace was enormous. I had heard rumors that the king and his high-ranking members had a separate, private house within the palace, isolated from the public pack house. 

Now, I could see it for myself, grand, imposing, untouchable.

I entered the building without hesitation, ignoring the few people who stared. My body ached from the training session, every muscle reminding me of the effort I had put in. 

I collapsed onto my bed immediately, letting exhaustion sink in. I couldn’t stop thinking about the training with the omegas. 

To tell the truth, Zora was a capable leader. Firm but fair. And I appreciated how they treated the omegas here. Respect, discipline, encouragement, it was a world I had never truly seen before.

Flashback

“Training with the omegas starts now. You’re coming.”

I followed Jayden without hesitation.

The omega training grounds were simpler. No spectators. No grandeur. Just space, dirt, and bodies moving with quiet determination.

They looked up as we approached, surprise flickering across their faces. Whispers followed me like wind over dry leaves.

Zora didn’t acknowledge them. “Warm-up,” she ordered. “Everyone.”

The session was different from the king’s training. Less brutal, yes, but no less demanding. Endurance, balance, control, every motion repeated until muscles screamed and lungs burned.

I didn’t complain. I didn’t slow down. When my arms shook, I steadied them. When my legs trembled, I adjusted my stance.

Artemis flowed through me, grounding me, strengthening me.

“They’re watching,” she murmured. “Not just the omegas.”

I felt it too. Halfway through the session, I sensed him. Jayden. Watching. Evaluating. Waiting for me to falter.

I didn’t give him the satisfaction.

When the training ended, the omegas bowed slightly before dispersing. 

Their gazes were different now, no longer mocking, not warm, but a mutual recognition. Respect was being negotiated, quietly, silently. Zora turned to me.

 “You learn fast.”

“I don’t have a choice,” I said. She nodded. 

“Tomorrow’s sparring match won’t be fair.”

“I know.”

“He won’t hold back.”

“I wouldn’t want him to,” I replied.

For the first time, I thought I saw something like approval in her face.

As I turned to leave, my chest tightened again.

Jayden stood at the edge of the field, arms crossed, eyes dark and unreadable. The bond stirred violently in my chest, heat and warning colliding with desire, twisting through my veins.

His gaze swept over me slowly. Calculating. Possessive. Cold.

“This isn’t over,” he said.

I met his eyes without flinching. “It’s only just begun.”

As I walked past him, I knew one thing with terrifying certainty: tomorrow wouldn’t just be about strength.

It would be about dominance.

And neither of us intended to lose.

End of Flashback

Today had been tough. Only the goddess knew how hard tomorrow would be.

A knock on my door snapped me out of my thoughts.

I was about to call out, but before I could speak, the door burst open. My head shot up. My heart thumped.

I stared at whoever had just entered, every muscle tensing.