Chapter 5: The Frozen Patrol

The heavy iron bell rang five times, shaking the dark barracks. It was midnight, but there was no time to sleep.

Instructor Reyne stood in the middle of the chilly courtyard, holding a burning torch. The orange light threw dark shadows across his scarred face. Beside him, two large crates rested on the cold stone ground.

"Listen up!" Reyne shouted, his rough voice cutting through the freezing wind. "A real soldier does not get to choose when he fights. Tonight, you face the outer forest."

A quiet murmur ran through the tired students. The academy’s outer forest was a dense, dark woodland surrounding the mountain grounds. It was famous for steep cliffs, icy rivers, and dangerous wild beasts.

"This is a dusk-to-dawn wilderness patrol," Reyne continued, pointing his leather whip toward the open iron back gates. "You will trek twenty miles through the eastern ridges and reach the northern watchtower before sunrise."

Reyne looked across the rows of students, a cruel smile touching his lips.

"To make sure you learn how to work with people you hate, you will not choose your partners. I have paired every student with their biggest rival."

Zade’s stomach dropped. He slowly turned his head to the left.

Xander Vale was already looking at him.

The tall Alpha stood with his arms crossed, a smug, arrogant grin spread across his handsome face. The soft torchlight caught the silver dragon crest on his uniform. He looked completely untired, as if a twenty-mile night hike was nothing more than an easy walk.

"Looks like we are partners, new guy," Xander said smoothly, walking over to Zade with long, easy steps.

"Don't get in my way, Vale," Zade replied, his voice flat and cold. "I won't waste my time dragging you up the mountain."

Xander let out a short, mocking laugh. He leaned down slightly, looking Zade up and down with sharp blue eyes.

"Drag me? Take a look at yourself, Varyn. You look like a gust of wind could blow you over. With that weak physique, you'll be begging me to carry your pack before we hit the five-mile mark."

Zade clenched his jaw, his fingers tightening around the straps of his heavy leather backpack. He ignored the insult and turned toward the back gates as Instructor Reyne blew his silver whistle.

"Move out!" Reyne barked.

The pairs of students marched into the dark, freezing woods, their heavy boots crunching against the frosty grass.

Within an hour, the forest swallowed them whole. High pine trees blocked out the moonlight, leaving the narrow dirt path in deep shadow. The air grew colder, turning their heavy breathing into white clouds of mist.

Xander set a brutal, fast pace at the front. He stepped over thick tree roots and sharp rocks effortlessly, keeping his head high.

Zade walked right beside him, matching every single step. He refused to give Xander the satisfaction of seeing him fall behind.

"You're quiet," Xander taunted after three hours of silent marching. His voice was steady, showing no sign of fatigue. "Saving your breath? Or are your legs starting to give out?"

"I'm keeping quiet so I don't have to hear your voice," Zade said coldly, keeping his eyes on the trail ahead.

Xander chuckled, but his eyes narrowed as he glanced at Zade. "You hide it well, but I can tell you're struggling. You don't move like the other Alphas. You're too quiet. Too careful."

Zade’s heart skipped a beat, but he kept his expression perfectly blank. "I move like someone who actually uses his head."

"We'll see how long that head keeps you up," Xander sneered, pushing past a heavy evergreen branch.

As they climbed higher up the mountain ridge, the temperature plummeted well below freezing. Ice coated the pine needles, and a biting wind howled through the high trees.

Every other student would be shivering from the freezing mountain air.

Zade, however, was burning alive.

Deep inside his chest, a wave of intense, suffocating heat suddenly burst open like a furnace. The back of his neck felt like it was on fire. His skin turned red under his dark collar, and sweat began to pool at his temples.

Zade’s breath hitched in his throat as a dizzying spike of pain shot through his brain.

No. No, not now! he thought in absolute horror.

It was a delayed heat flash—the terrifying result of his body rejecting the stolen, military-grade chemical suppressants he had taken. The sudden physical stress, mixed with the intense Alpha presence walking right beside him, was forcing his true Omega biology to crash through the artificial barriers.

Zade stumbled slightly, his boot catching on a sharp rock.

Xander instantly reached out, his fast hand catching Zade by the shoulder to steady him.

The moment Xander’s hand touched him, a jolt of pure shock ran through Zade’s body. Xander’s fingers felt like ice against his burning skin, but at the same time, the close physical contact made the heat in Zade’s blood spike twice as fast.

Xander paused, pulling his hand back slowly. He looked down at his palm, then stared directly at Zade’s face with a strange, searching look in his blue eyes.

"You're burning up," Xander said, his voice losing its mocking tone, replaced by genuine confusion. "Your skin is hot enough to melt ice. What is wrong with you?"

Zade slapped Xander’s hand away, taking a quick step backward into the cold shadow of a large pine tree. His vision swam with spots of light, and his heart was hammering so hard he could barely hear Xander’s voice.

"I'm fine," Zade choked out, his voice raspy and tight as he fought to keep his breathing under control. "Don't... don't touch me."

Xander took a step closer, his sharp eyes tracking the bead of sweat running down Zade’s flushed cheek. He tilted his head, his dark eyebrows pulling together.

"You're lying," Xander whispered, stepping into Zade's personal space as the cold wind howled around them. "Something is very wrong with your body, Varyn."