Chapter 8

Trrrrrrial!!!!!

A week had passed and today was the day that Star would have to undergo the trials. Apparently there were hundreds of individual kinds of trials. But he only needed to pass three. and the three that had been decided on by the ruling Alphas of the city were the Trial of Senses, the Trial Gravitas, and the Trial of Battle. Star had not been told what to expect of the three trials, Amy said that she was not allowed to tell. But the last trial seemed self explanatory. Soon he would be escorted to the first trial where he would begin the process of proving himself as an Alpha.

The last week had been damn boring. Except for all the time he’d gotten to speak with Amy about things. Learning the differences in culture between humans and beastkin society was actually quite fascinating. Gammas and Zetas, the regular folk, were culturally almost exactly the same as humans. But more loose in the areas of sexuality and gender norms than even 22nd century america had been. The culture of Alphas and Betas was basically politics. There were so many little rules and things that didn’t even make sense that he was learning and cataloging.

The craziest thing that he’d learned over the week was by far how beastkin developed their animalistic traits. It was apparently 100% random, and did not start to manifest itself until the age of two. As a baby they looked exactly like human children until the age of two. But the thing that was crazy to him was that the traits were entirely random. two bunny eared beastkin were just as likely to produce children with antlers or scales as they were to produce offspring that actually developed the same physical traits. and that was just wild to Star. It seemed like magic just took the normal laws that governed genetics and threw them out the window for beastkin. Aside from the obvious defenestration of genetics Star hadn’t really learned anything earth shattering.

Thinking on some of the crazy stuff that he’d learned, Star reviewed his inventory one last time. He’d already recycled most of the crap he had accumulated from his two battles so far and he’d replenished his stocks of specialty ammos, along with purchasing a bunch of regeneration syringes and even some revival shots. He also, bit the bullet, as they say and spent the War Coins to repurchase all of the unique kits that he’d gotten through the campaigns of WarZone Online. The True Assassin kit, The Juggernaut kit, and the RKKV kit.

The True Assassin kit was basically a skin tight suit that had active camouflage with a silenced fifty cal pistol that was utterly silent, and a set of knives that were twisted triangular blades along. Everything in the kit had the same active camouflage. The active camouflage wasn't as good as, say, the Predators. it was significantly more visible than that. But at night in almost any environment that didn’t have adequate lighting he was practically invisible in the kit.

The Juggernaut kit, contrary to the name, was not a hulking mass that could take unimaginable amounts of damage for him. It could take a lot of hits but it was sleek and made of plates of some kind of black ceramic material. It looked almost like a modern day full plate armor; the helm had no openings for the eyes, instead the inside of the helm was a screen that showed everything in front of him and the front was covered with dozens of camera lenses that saw in every spectrum imaginable. The whole thing had a self repair function that Star didn’t care to try and understand, and it had a reservoir for regeneration syringes that it would shoot him up with should anything actually manage to get through the armor.

The real gem of them all was the RKKV kit. The Kit wasn’t like the others. It was a set of three different guns. The first was a comically tiny pistol, the second was a bullpup rifle, and the third was a rifle that was so large it was basically a cannon. None of the guns actually had a real life equivalent. And the defining trait of all three of them was the unimaginable velocity of the rounds they fired. The tiny pistol fired a round that was actually smaller than a 22LR round; but it moved so fast it was like a micrometeor hitting the target. And each gun was just a step up in power from there. The downside of these guns was how much resources they cost and how much resources the rounds fired cost. He'd only had enough resources, even after recycling almost everything from the last two battles, to get three rounds for each of the weapons.

Checking everything one last time his escort arrived. It was Lupin and about a dozen guards. Apparently he would not be able to see Amy until the trials and she was somehow involved in them. That was fine because he had given her one of his Spy kit items, a small tracker that displayed her location on his minimap... Ok he hadn't really given it to her as more like he’d snuck into her room and made sure to plant one tracker on each of her pairs of clothing a few days ago. body heat activated the devices so he didn't have a bunch of active pings on his minimap.

Lupin and his guards remained silent as they guided Star out of the compound and deeper still into the city. until they reached a square that was filled with people. Star was guided to a platform at the center of the square where he stood before the crowd of spectators. There seemed to be an abnormally large split in the numbers of males to females, with females making up nearly 90% of the crowd. The males in the crowd were all obviously warrior types. They were big and looked tough, it seemed like they were giving him the look you’d give an unknown opponent in a boxing match. The females seemed to be examining Star closely with curiosity.

Once Star was situated on the platform with Lupin and his guards arrayed behind him, another beastkin with whom Star was unfamiliar made his way up the platform. This beastkin looked like an anthropomorphized Gorilla. He was big and looked like he could snap most people in half with his pinky finger.

Turning to the crowd the Gorilla man raised his hands for quiet before spoke, his voice a deep rumble that fit his massive frame to a tee.

“Alphas and Betas, Gammas and Zetas… I welcome you all to the beginning of today's Trials. This man… Star, has been nominated by Beta Amy SilverEye to become an Alpha. May the viewing begin.” the Gorilla man said as he stepped aside.

Star had not been informed about this part of the trials. Apparently he was up here on this platform for the crowd to be able to come up and get a good look at him. The males in the crowd immediately formed a line and began a procession up to stand directly in front of him where they would cast an appraising eye up and down his frame before they would step forward and shake his hand. No words were exchanged, just a quick look over and a handshake.

Then it was the females turn and it actually made Star uncomfortable at what they did. They started off the same as the males, casting an appraising look across his body, but then they would get close and sniff at his neck for a second before heading off. He was glad that he’d managed to take a bath this morning. It felt very strange to have a fuckton of women staring you down before coming to take a whiff of you. Star did his best to keep himself as impassive as he could through it all and he was pretty sure he succeeded..

After about an hour the ‘Viewing’ was done, and Star found himself being guided towards the first trial, which also happened to be in the same direction as Amy’s transponder on his minimap.

“Want to tell me what that was about?” he asked Lupin who was walking beside him at an easy stride.

Lupin nodded,

“The viewing is for your potential competitors in the Trial of Battle, and for the Zetas to be able to assess you as a potential breeding partner. To see if they will want to apply to the position if you make it. Those who want to participate in your trial will have already made their applications with Amy and may be trying to steal you away in your first Trial or just make you fail. Depending on how many are interested in one way or another your trial of senses may end up being very difficult.”

It was not long after that they came upon the cliff face that surrounded the city of Dragons Roost. And set in the cliff face was a massive cave entrance. There were people lined up on either side of the entrance like a parade path. and the Massive Gorilla man was waiting at the entrance to the cave. Lupin and the guard guided him directly to the giant gorilla man who spoke to Star and the crowd simultaneously. Bellowing his words for all to hear.

“Perspective Alpha! You stand on the threshold of your first trial. The Trial of Senses. Your task is to enter and retrieve your Beta depths of the cave of suppression. Be warned that should you retrieve the wrong Beta or one of the many Zetas within that you will be bound to the will of the one you retrieve.” The Gorilla man took a deep breath before bellowing out louder than before, “Let the Trial Beginnnn!!!”

The man stepped aside and gestured that Star should proceed.

Star shrugged and walked into the cave and immediately understood why it was called the cave of suppression. The second he passed the threshold of the cave all sounds from outside ceased and an oppressive darkness dropped around him. there should be light here at the entrance, but it was pitch dark.

Star pulled out his WarPad and swapped his outfit to the Juggernaut set, it took the helm a few seconds to switch to a spectrum of light that was not being actively suppressed but it found one and the cave lit up to him on his hud. This entrance cave had three different paths he could go down to proceed. Looking at his minimap based on Amy’s location, Star decided he’d take the leftmost route.

He set off at a jog and after a short tunnel he entered another large cavern with three more branching paths. The only difference was that inside of this room were about a dozen women and they were all staring straight at him. Somehow they could see. And when he obviously ignored them several of them began walking towards him. Star shook his head at them and sprinted around to take the centermost tunnel leading to the next room.

Star was surprised by how extensive this tunnel network was. He actually moved through dozens of rooms and about two miles of tunnels till he found Amy. She was surrounded by about six other women and she definitely could not see like they could. All of them were staring at Star the second he entered the room but Amy was sitting there looking a little scared and a little bored. Star just walked forward, ignoring the women who interposed themselves between him and Amy, gently brushing them to the sides until he reached her.

Kneeling beside Amy Star gently touched her shoulder and she jumped in fright, but visibly relaxed as he held firmly onto her shoulder. Once she relaxed he scooped her up into a princess carry and made the twenty minute trek back to the cave exit. The females in the tunnels were obviously conversing among themselves but Star couldn’t hear them for some reason. Some of them were smiling, and others looked put out. but they all followed him and Amy out of the cave.

Returning to the exit Star switched back to his civilian outfit before stepping back into the light with Amy held in his arms. The crowds had not dispersed, and Lupin and the Gorilla man were having a conversation as he emerged into the light of day.

Lupin's eyes widened as he noticed Stars return with Amy in tow. A big grin plastered itself across his wolfish face. and he gestured for the Gorilla man to look back at Star. Amy leaned up and whispered into his ear.

“I think you just broke some kind of record. No one finds their Beta that fast.”

What followed was more of the Gorilla man talking to the crowd and congratulating Star. Star still hadn’t put Amy down and apparently he was supposed to carry her through the next trial anyways. The trial of Gravitas. Turned out to be a staircase that led to the arena where he would undergo the Trial of Battle. The staircase was actually three separate staircases with the center one being enchanted to increase gravity the higher he climbed the staircase. and he had to carry Amy up it.

Star did not pause as he just started walking up the staircase. He could feel the gravity increasing as he climbed. And Amy was obviously highly uncomfortable but the gravity never never seemed to breach about 3Gs and Star was at least 5.9 times stronger and more enduring than any human had any right to be, so he did it as fast as he could and it barely took him a minute to climb the thousand steps of the staircase. Yes he counted them.

Reaching the top of the staircase, Star saw a colosseum-like structure and just made his way towards it without waiting on Lupin and the Gorilla man who were still making their way up the staircase.

Star entered the colosseum and walked down to the arena floor where he went to the center and set Amy on her feet. Then he looked around and saw the people in the stands. and waiting warriors whom he was probably going to have to beat down.

Amy was looking at him with wide eyes when his gaze returned to her.

“How are you so strong? I felt like that weight was going to break me, but you just… Took the steps three at a time and… I made the right choice.” She said and nodded to herself turning to see the Gorilla man and Lupin entering the arena at a quick pace, both appearing slightly winded.

“Magnus was fairly certain you would fail the first trial, the second trial he was absolutely sure you wouldn't pass. Now you’ve got a bunch of warriors very concerned that they are about to make fools of themselves if they face you.” Amy whispered in his ear.

“Magnus is the Gorilla dude?” Star asked.

Amy chuckled at that.

“Don’t let him hear you say that, or you will have a fight on your hands. But yes, Magnus is his name.” She confirmed

Star nodded to himself as Magnus pulled up beside them, took a deep breath and addressed the crowd.

“The Challenger has passed through two of the trials. But the most challenging Trial lies before him. All participants please enter the arena for your shot at becoming the newest Alpha of Dogs Run kingdom!” Magnus bellowed.

Nearly thirty people entered the arena and much to Stars surprise there were at least ten women among them. They all looked hard and battlescarred. these people who he would be facing were veterans of combat.

“The challenge will be Bare Knuckle Brawl. One on one, with a one minute break between matches. Any questions?” Magnus continued.

No one spoke up so he just opened up with the beginning of the challenge.

“First contestant, step forward, everyone else to the stands.” When everyone complied Magnus bellowed, “Let the match begin!”

Star's first opponent was one of the females. She looked like an amazon with antlers. She was tall and with her antlers added she was actually taller than Star’s six foot six self. she approached with her guard up, moving slowly. When she was close enough she started out with a few jabs and Star lazily batted them to the side. The woman's eyes widened a bit but then she firmed up her stance and really tried to go all in. Star was kind of disappointed at her speed, he’d figured that beastkin warriors would be at least two or three times faster than the average human Warrior. She was definitely faster than most humans would be, but compared to Star she was underwhelming.

After she threw out a one two combo. Star snapped forward and grabbed the base of her antlers with his left hand then with his right hand he straight up bitch slapped her so hard that her eyes rolled and he felt her weight suddenly being supported by just his arm.

Star gently lowered the woman to the ground and turned to stare at the other contestants. He raised his right hand and gave them a come hither gesture with as cocky of a smirk as he could plaster on his face.

The males stared back at him warily as Magnus called the match and called out for the next contestant. The females on the other hand looked extremely excited. Star had no idea why that might be as he looked down at the antlered woman who was just now coming back to her senses. She was looking up at him with a wonder in her eyes. She stood up shakily and bowed to him before leaving the field.

The next contestant was another woman. She had a rainbow of colored feathers instead of hair and a curved beak that reminded Star of an eagle. She approached very quickly, her movements sharp and very fast. Actually fast enough that Star found himself impressed as he actually had to try in order to keep her from landing a strike.

After playing around with her for a few minutes he noticed that she started to tire, she was moving slightly slower and she hadn’t managed to land a single hit. Star quirked an eyebrow at her,

“Want to give up? You are not even making me try, Little Birdy.” He taunted her.

The feathered woman's eyes widened and took on a dangerous gleam for a moment before she put on a burst of speed and tried to slip past his defenses. Unfortunately for her, she just wasn't fast enough. as she swung for the fences, Star ducked into her guard and clamped his left hand around her throat and before she could even blink his bitch slap of doom rocked her into unconsciousness.

Gently lowering her to the arena floor he again gestured for the next contestant. He wasn't a fan of hitting women. But his fists and hands were all about equal opportunity.

The third contestant was again a woman. this one looking feline and graceful. She looked mostly human except for her eyes and the leopard ears atop her head… Oh and she had a tail.

This time Star didn’t play with his food. When the match began he burst into motion grabbing both of her wrists in one hand and yanking her forward into yet another bitch slap of doom that turned into a pimp slap of doom when the first slap didn’t render her unconscious. But he again found himself lowering an unconscious woman onto the sandy floor of the arena.

Looking back to the contestants he saw that the males had all vacated the premises. For some reason only the females remained. Seven of them and Star felt like this was kind of just a show of him beating up women at this point so he looked over at Magnus and asked.

“Can I just face the rest of them at the same time? At this point I feel like an asshole who's beating up defenseless puppies. Maybe together they might prove to be an actual challenge?”

Magnus turned to the waiting contestants, “Well you heard him! He doesnt think any of you are worthy enough to challenge him alone. Show him what you are made of or prove him right and walk away like the rest already have.” He boomed.

Magnus sounded irritated but the remaining seven women hopped into the arena and charged at Star. Star smirked at them and charged back. It wasn’t like an actual fight to him. even when they managed to land hits it felt like children were trying to fight him. One by one they fell before his mighty bitch slap of justice, until only one remained. She seemed to have fox features and she was actually almost on par with him in speed.

Star ducked past a giant left hook of hers as she swung past him. As he stepped forward he couldn’t resist slapping her ass nice and hard, adding a good squeeze as she passed. She yelped and spun around looking startled as hell, and that was all the opening he needed for the bitch slap of doom to render her unconscious.

Standing in the midst of seven women that he’d practically beaten the hell out of didn’t particularly feel like a great accomplishment, but when he looked at Amy and found her smiling brightly at him he smiled back. He gestured to the women laying around him and shrugged like he wasn't sure what happened.

Amy nodded, like Star had just somehow communicated something he hadn’t meant to but just shrugged internally as Magnus stood from his place and bellowed out.

“Let it be known from this day henceforth Star SilverEye has claimed his rightful place as an Alpha of Dogs Run. May his pack flourish and his run be stable.”

With that Magnus disappeared into the stands, and Amy jumped down to the arena floor and rushed over to him. Literally leaping over a few of the women who had still not recovered enough to rise and then she pounced on Star. Wrapping her legs around his waist and hugging into him.

“That was amazing! I’ve seen a few challenges before, but nothing like that. We’re going to have so many applicants to our pack that the SilverEye family is going to come out of all of this stronger than ever. I wouldn't be surprised if we even get a few Beta’s applying as well.” She said in a rush, her words spilling out faster than Star thought was reasonable for people to actually comprehend.

Star nodded as if he understood what the implications of all that was. It sounded to him like it just meant that a lot more women were about to be trying to sleep with him, and he was totally ok with that. Technically Amy would be judging all of that and he found it kind of strange, but hey, when in Rome do as the Romans do. As they say.

“So what now?” he asked, setting Amy down on the ground as she untangled her legs from around his waist.

“Now we head over to the city center and confirm the paperwork then we head home and plan out how we retake our Run and figure out how we are going to fund the construction of a new village. Along with figuring out whether or not you are going to be called on for further confrontations with Justin’s Kingdom, which I am sure you will be. We will probably have a few weeks before we sort out what is really going on.” She said.

Star didn’t have anything to add, and just followed her back down the long staircase that led back into the city. Amy had her arms wrapped around his one arm and seemed to be purposefully smooshing it into her cleavage. Rubbing herself on him. After contemplating what she was doing he realized that she was marking him as hers. Getting her scent onto him and his onto her. She kept sniffing at his arm then rubbing against him again. Beastkin almost universally had incredibly sensitive noses and they placed a great importance on the sense of smell culturally. After getting down to the city center and signing a few papers. Star and Amy made their way back to the SilverEye residence.

Arriving back at the compound Amy practically dragged him into the house and into his room. She seemed nervous and jittery. It was then that Star realized what was probably about to happen and he took a deep breath before he scooped her up into a princess carry and deposited her on his bed. Her breath caught in her throat as he scooped her up and she looked him in the eyes, her voice quivering slightly, her face turning red as she whispered.

“Be gentle with me.”