Chapter 5: Training Day

I threw open the door to the old gymnasium and was greeted by the shouts and grunts of my pack, who were paired off into training groups. The place smelled of sweat and blood mixed with rubber from the wrestling mats and bleach that was used to clean the narrow planks of hardwood flooring. 

My warriors could be seen in every corner of the one hundred year old gym. They were throwing punches and kicks, rolling to the side to avoid impact, and hurdling over backs to put their opponents into chokeholds. 

This was the first training shift of the day. One would be in human form, since both versions of our bodies would be strengthened if one was. The first daily session was always in human form since we couldn't shift in daylight. Transforming into our werewolf bodies was only possible at night- or on the lucky days when the moon shown in the sky even while the sun was still out.

At night, we would train in our preferred fighting form. As soon as the moonlight peeked over the high mountain tops behind our town, we'd shift and perfect defensive maneuvers that could save our lives, and offensive skills that would end others. We'd hone in on our heightened senses in this state, making it easier to hear, see and, smell our victims.

I took a few steps inside the gymnasium and was noticed by my training troops. All of the young men and women stopped brawling, facing me and dipping their heads low.

I stood proudly, scanning the crowd of bowed heads for my Beta. 

"Good morning, everyone. Continue." I bellowed, my voice echoing around the now silent space. I caught Reed's gaze in my peripheal vision. He was on the far side of the gym working with new recruits on disarming an enemy with a weapon. He looked away bashfully when our eyes met- he knew he was still in the dog house and would most likely avoid me the rest of the day.  Which was fine by me, I needed to keep my distance from the Beta right now.

If I was around him, I'd be confronted with the possibilty of taking him as my life partner. 

I was already starting to regret the words I had said only to spite him earlier that morning. I knew when I had said I hadn't met my mate in this pack yet, that it was a lie. I knew everyone in this terriorty and none of them made me feel the pull of the mate bond. Many had described the bond and instant recognition of your soulmate. They said the world fell away around them. All that would be left is you, your mate, and the moon. Some people even went as far as to say they saw the moon in the eyes of their mate. That last part always seemed cheesy to me. How in the world can the moon appear in someone's eyes? As ridiculous as some accounts were, I knew the mate bond was real. I also knew I hadn't felt like that towards anyone here, meaning my mate was in the other pack. He was an enemy.

The only way I could ever find him would be to win the war by killing the Phantom Alpha, taking over his pack and searching for my mate then. As cruel fate would have it, I would probably be tied to a submate by then. To Reed.

I snuck another glance in my Beta's direction and watched as his sparring partner, a new recruit of sixteen or seventeen named Troy, swung a knife in his direction. With one arm, Reed caught the boy's wrist as the blade was only and inch from his face. He brought his other arm down hard against the teen's forearm. The young boy yipped, dropped the knife to the ground, and began cradling the injured limb to his body.  Even through the noise of the fights in the gym, I could hear Reed comforting Troy, telling him it wasn't broken and he just needed to sit out for a few minutes for it to heal.  

Quick healing was a perk of being a werewolf. Sprains, strains, bruises, and minor cuts would all heal in a matter of minutes. Broken bones, internal injuries, and major blows could take days or weeks, but recovery was still faster for our kind than humans. 

Reed helped the boy, who was now pale and looked like he was about to be sick, across the gymansium and over to the bench along the side wall. I watched with appreciation for my kind Beta, he was the stongest male in my pack, a brutal fighter the others feared sparring against. He was also one of the most beloved members of Selenian. Maybe a life with Reed wouldn't be all that bad.

I heard a bone crack to my left and shook my head to get the thoughts of Reed out of my head. I was still pissed at him for growling at me, and was now annoyed at myself for daydreaming about taking him as a submate. I needed to distract myself. 

I crossed the room to where the punching bags were and saw Ivan, a Sigma and one of the largest in my pack, with two other Sigmas.  While he was shorter than Reed by a couple of inches, he was even more muscular. In the human world, Ivan would have won every body building competition he entered. The sleeves were cut off of his his white shirt, giving me a full view of the powerful arms he was using to make contact with the bag in front of him.  

Sigmas were the third highest tier of our pack heirarchy and typically controlled troops of their own. While there was one Luna, and one Beta, I had five Sigmas in my command. Two of which I occasionally used for pleasure. Ivan happened to be one of those Sigmas. 

Ivan suddenly threw his full weight behind a punch, making the bag swing so far in the opposite direction that it broke off of the chain and violently crashed into a the wall ten feet away. The other Sigmas stopped their own workouts and laughed, going over to congratulate Ivan on breaking his third bag of the morning. They high-fived and chest-bumped until Ivan noticed me watching. He jogged over to me while shaking his shaggy blonde hair out of his square shaped face.

"That was for you, Luna." He said when he reached me, flashing a cocky smile and bowing dramatically at his waist. 

Ivan would be considered the class clown of our pack, if clowns were devilishly sexy and could contort your body in ways you could only dream of. I enjoyed his easy-going personality even more than I did his body. Everything was light hearted and fun with Ivan. We never had serious conversations about battle stategy or mating. And while I was sure there was a deeper side to this giant of a man, I didn't care to get to know it. 

"Very impressive, Ivan." I said while hooking my finger under his still bowed chin, pulling him back up to a standing position. I could feel Reed's eyes on us the entire time. "I can think of something else you can do for me later." I said while giving the Beta my best seductive grin. His eyebrows shot up and I knew he was picturing what I had in mind. "Come to my house after night training." I let my gaze travel back to his rippling arm muscles, glistening with a light layer of sweat and added, "That's an order."

He dropped his head back and laughed while turning to rejoin the other Sigmas. "I would never disobey that order."