Chapter 205

Chapter 205

ARIA

Finished

The male participants barely hesitated. “Kael!” someone called out, and immediately there was unified. agreement. Of course it should be Kael. He was their Alpha. Their strongest warrior. Their best chance at winning this advantage for the male team.

Kael accepted with a slight nod, moving toward the designated competition area with the kind of confidence that came from knowing he was capable of handling whatever challenge came next.

For the women, the response was equally immediate and unanimous. “IVORY! IVORY! IVORY!” The chant started among the warriors and spread rapidly through the spectators. “IVORY! IVORY! IVORY p>

I watched Ivory’s expression transform from theatrical exhaustion to something like genuine horror. She was still sprawled on the ground from her performance, and now she looked like someone who’d just been informed of their own execution.

“No,” she said, her voice losing all theatrical quality and becoming genuinely distressed. “No, absolutely not. Pick someone else. Anyone else. I’m dying, remember? Can’t compete while actively perishing p>

“IVORY! IVORY! IVORY!” The chanting just got louder, pack members refusing to budge from their choice.

“I hate all of you,” Ivory muttered, dragging herself upright with obvious reluctance. “Every single one of you is on my list. When I recover from this ordeal, there will be consequences p>

But she was moving toward the competition area despite her protests, and I could see the shift happening. The theatrical exhaustion was falling away, being replaced by something more focused. More dangerous. Like a switch being flipped from “dramatic entertainer” to “serious competitor p>

The obstacle course was being set up rapidly-I watched as course markers were positioned, barriers erected, climbing structures assembled. This wasn’t going to be simple. This was going to be genuinely challenging, designed to push even the strongest competitors to their limits.

And I was suddenly, desperately grateful I hadn’t been chosen. Because looking at that course-the height of the walls, the complexity of the balance beams, the sheer physical demands of navigating it at speed-I knew with absolute certainty that I would have face-planted spectacularly. Would have failed in ways that would be both humiliating and potentially injurious.

Better that Ivory was representing the women. Better that our chances of winning rested on someone who was actually capable rather than on the Luna who’d only advanced due to political necessity.

Kael and Ivory moved to the starting line. And I watched in fascination as Ivory’s entire demeanor changed.

Gone was the woman who’d been crawling on the ground moments ago, complaining about dying from exertion. In her place was someone focused, alert, her body positioned in a runner’s crouch that suggested explosive power waiting to be released. Her golden eyes were fixed on the course ahead with intensity that suggested she’d already mapped out every obstacle, calculated every movement, determined the optimal path to victory.

This was Ivory the Huntress. The warrior everyone remembered from eight years ago. The champion who’d dominated the last Ghost Hunt with capabilities that had become pack legend.

The commander raised his hand, holding their attention. “Standard obstacle course rules. First person to

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Chapter 205

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grab the flag at the end wins. Any method of navigation s acceptable as long as you complete each obstacle section before advancing to the next. Understood p>

Both Kael and Ivory nodded, their focus absolute.

The whistle blew.

And they exploded into motion.

I’d never seen anyone move that fast. Kael was powerful, his longer legs eating up ground with massive strides, his strength allowing him to simply power through obstacles that would require more finesse from smaller competitors. But Ivory-

Ivory was something else entirely.

She was keeping pace with him. Actually keeping pace, her smaller frame somehow generating speed that matched his through pure technique and efficiency. Where Kael used power to overcome obstacles, Ivory used precision. Where he smashed through, she flowed around.

The first barrier was a wall-maybe ten feet high, requiring either climbing or jumping to clear. Kael hit it at full speed and simply leaped, his hands catching the top edge, his momentum carrying him up and over in one powerful movement.

Ivory didn’t even slow down. She hit the wall at an angle using her speed to run up the surface for several steps before pushing off and twisting in mid-air to clear the top. She landed already running, the transition so smooth it looked like the wall had barely interrupted her forward motion at all.

The crowd was going wild. Cheering, shouting encouragement, completely absorbed in watching two of their strongest warriors push each other to the limit.

They hit the balance beam section-narrow wooden beams suspended at varying heights that required careful navigation. Kael slowed slightly, his larger frame making the careful balance more challenging. But Ivory crossed them like they were solid ground, her feet finding purchase with absolute certainty, her movements so confident she might as well have been running across flat earth.

She pulled ahead. Actually pulled ahead, her technique and agility giving her an advantage in this section that Kael’s raw power couldn’t quite match.

Then came the cargo net climb-a massive rope structure that required both strength and coordination to navigate quickly. Kael’s power gave him the advantage here, his arms pulling him upward with force that made the climb look easy despite its difficulty.

Ivory climbed differently, using her legs as much as her arms, finding handholds that maximized efficiency and minimized wasted energy. She was fast, incredibly fast, but Kael’s pure strength meant he reached the top first and threw himself over, landing already moving toward the next obstacle.

They were neck and neck. Trading the lead back and forth as different obstacles played to their different strengths. The crowd was screaming encouragement to both of them, pack members completely absorbed in the competition, in watching their Alpha and their legendary healer push themselves to the absolute limit.

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