Lunalympics

Chapter five

"We will proceed by elimination. The losers of each test would be those who finish last or fail to finish at all." After More than 3 hour of standing around. A speaker stood on a wooden podium and explained the procedure of the Luna selection.
"There are 86 of you and 3 stages. But only 30 will proceed to the second stage." They explained.
"The first test is a physical, you will have to discover and go through the prepared course as best as you can. Guards have been placed all around to insure that each osticle has been completed properly. As well as to point the way if any of you should get lost and give aid in times of danger. However if you accept their aid, it would be the same as forfeiting your participation in the Luna's Selection"
The speaker explained a few more rules and regulation. Basically saying that there was none as long as they got pass the obstacles without the aid of any guars and where amongst the 30 first the cross the finish line they could proceed to the next stage in the selection.
Then they told everyone to prepared for the race which would begin in about an hour.
For the four rogue young women, the first stage could not be any more terrible.
"Maybe you should take off your shoes" Tina proposed to Jenna who was the fastest amongst them but could barely stand up straight in her footwear.
"And risk ruining our cover?" Jenna shocked her head. After all, they were accepted in as members from a nameless small tribe. If they came out as rogues there was no telling if they would be able to participate at all. She felt that it was important for them to keep up the lie.
The rest of the girls believed so as well.
"If they began to bother you, don't hesitate to take them off." Denia told the read head. "We are here to win after not to keep up airs"
"Got it" Jenna nodded. She then began jumping in place warming up for the race.
Denia then glanced over at the remaining two of their group.
"Will you be okay?" she questioned.
A race was the worst draw for them. As Omegas, Tina and Sofi were not physically strong. Tina had a rough older brother so she was better indurrence then Sofi who had an overprotective father who didn't hesitate to carry her when she tired.
"We just have to be amongst the top 30 candidates" Tina stated as she began to stretch. Sofi nodded and did the same.
.....
The starting line was packed, the path they were expected to take was a mere few meters wide and everyone seemed to be hellbent on starting off in the middle.
The young rogues had finished their warm up earlier and initially stood in the front. But with the arrival of the tribal women. Their much thinner and weaker frames were pushed and nudged into the center of the pool of women.
Even Denia appeared short and small when compared to the majority of these women.
Muscles they had never seen in any of their pack's men where tensed in anticipation. Smood skin shone in sweat from their warm up and well cared for hair were tied and held back from their clean faces.
Sofi looked up, staring at the back of a much taller stranger. The girl must have noticed her stare because she looked back. Sofi clickly lowered her gaze.
She felt intimidated by a mare glance.
Tina held her hand and squeezed for comfort.
"Let's stay together." She whispers. But her heard where overhead by others and chuckled emerged from the crowd around them.
Tina squeezed Sofi's hand again, but this time she did so to find comfort as opposed to giving it.
"Get ready" Denia warn, Jenna along with a few other runerss did a few more jumps before getting into a stance.
Denia also took a stance too.
Sofi tried but felt awkward as if her arms and legs were her own.
"DUNG!"
A loud sound of metal hitting metal marked the start of the race.
The group of women shot forward. It was like a tidal wave and many were overwhelmed by the mob. Some fell and or where knocked aside.
"Ah" A strange cry was cut short as someone was pushed aside, tripped and crashed into the a random tree. Her nose gushed blood but she still persisted, stumbling to her feet and running as a hand held her no doubt broken nose.
Another was not so lucky and fell in the middle of the path at the very beginning. She was trampled on by two or three before the other were made aware of her presence and went around her.
In the group of four, only Denia was able to keep up with masses. Sofi and Tina were pushed aside toward the prefecture. This was the best outcome and had it not been for their training, however lack it may have been. They would have been at the bottom of a pile like a few unlucky candidates.
As for Jenna she was pushed down and nearly ran over if she hadn't rolled out of the way.
"Jenna!" Denia, who had run a short distance and managed to move off the aside, stopped and looked back for her fellow packmates, and let out a cry out in panic.
The red head attempted to stand only to slip and fall back down to her knees.
"Damn it" Jenna snapped and directly pushed herself out of bounds, narrowly avoiding getting stepped as began undoing the bindings of her shoes,
"Go ahead, i'll catch up" She cried out.
Denia who had nodded and then looked over towards the omegas.
Somehow, despite falling twice, Jenna had covered more distance then they had. Even on the side, they were being bushed around like leaves in the wind. This was what it was like for two omegas in a race filled with primarily alphas with a few betas mixed in.
"Go, one of us has to make it to the end" Sofi called out, she was breathing hard only after a few minutes into the race. Being pushed around had already taken it's toll.
"Damn it" Denia swore as she turned around and continued to run.
However, as she advanced, the path only got worst. Some of those who slowled down had not been as lucky as she had and were pushed down. Many young women laid fallen on the path while other jumped over them. Some where even stepped on. Some had twisted a foot and were ignored as they cried.
Denia closed her eyes and told herself to continue. But behind her lids, the faces of those fallen girls became Sofi and Tina.
Jenna she believed would be fine but the omegas had been all but battered from the beginning.
"Go, One of us have to make it to the end." She recalled Sofi's words of desperation and Denia's feet sped up.
"Let's make it together" A soft, calm and deptermind voice spoke in her ear. Her words were not as loud as her earlier cry. But-
Denia Swore stopped and turned around only to collide with the person running behind her. They both fell, but neither paid the other any mind as they stood back up and went in the opposite direction.
Denia was running not towards the finish line, but back.
"Denia why-" Sofi's eyes widen as Denia approached them. She was confused. Why was she running back to them?
"We just gotta make it into the top 30 right?" Denia's repeated Tina's words. She was breathing hard. But she didn't seem tired at all. "Follow close behind me, We'll make it together"
Once again turning around, Denia began to run in a slower pace.
Thankfully, the girls had not given up and so she they weren't too far behind. Also, because a lot of people had passed or fallen, the path was not as crowded thus they could run freely, only dodging a few discarded candidates here and there.
Soon, they arrived at the first obstacle. It was like a sea of thigh thorny vines. It was boarded at each side by rows of trees and It expanded for about a full 70 meters.
The only way through seemed to be by scrawling in the ditches beneath the vines.
Denia turned to face the omegas.
"I'll go first and push everything out of the way, you follow closely behind." She explained her planed and they quickly got to work.
"Remember, keep your stomach in, your elbow to your side, knees slightly bent and your body as close to the ground as you can" She called out pointers from time to time. The tunnels was dark, humid and thorns caught at their clothes and scraped at their skin from time to time.
"Help, help" Some people had already begun calling for help and sometime beams of light could be seen from places where the thorns had been cut away in a rescue.
Denia kept her eyes forward, her mind focus on their destination as she repeated her pointers to the girls.
Still, despite how careful they were being. Accidents still occurred.
"My foot got caught" Sofi who had entered right after Denia cried out. Her voice trembled slightly as she held in her pain and tears.
"Don't worry," Tina called out from behind them and began to physically work Sofi's foot free from it's captive. " I got it"
"Talk to me Tina, how is it?" Denia asked. But it was far too dark underground and with the mood covering Sofi's shoe she could,'t get a good look at the injury.
"I can't see" She admited.
"It's fine just a few scraps, i can go on" Sofi declared. Neither Tina or Denia was quite convinced but there was nothing this could do but move forward.
Slowly, they pushed through the mud, and avoided one stuck candidate after another as they advanced.
At one point, just before Denia was able to reach the light at the end of the tonel, she passed a young woman.
Her face looked pure and fresh even in the mud. She seemed young, about the same age of Sofi and with the light in her face, her blue eyes seemed to shine. Denia who was overtaking her was shocked by her almost angelic beauty.
However, she soon noticed that this beauty had her long platinum hair caught in the masse of vines. Looking closely it was actually the cloth she used to tie up her hair that had been caught.
The beauty did not seemed distress however,, in fact she was desperately reaching out a hand as if attempting to grapes something. Is was only when Denia had her head out from under the sea of vines did she see the small stone knife completely out of the girl's reach.
She couldn't explain why she did it. Perhaps it was because the girl reminded her of Sofi. maybe her beauty was enticing, her determination praise worthy or perhaps Denia just took pity on her circumstances. Whatever the reason, she gently pushed the knife into the girl's reach.
It was a simple gesture. One that didn't even take a second. It wouldn't even leave a mark in Denia's memories. It was just something she did on a fly without much effort.
Getting out of the pit. Denia immediately turned around and pulled the girls tout one after another.
And the first thing both Tina and Denia did once they were under the light of day. Was glance at Sofi's foot. But it was covered by her shoes and caked in mud. There wouldn't see anything at first glance but they don't have the time to inspect either.
"I can continue" Sofi's voice was calm and rational, the tears and pain they had heard before was nowhere to be heard.
Perhaps it had been the shock that made her cry out.
As they continued jogging down the path. The girls were relieved to see former candidates who were rescued watching from the sideline.
With every candidate they passed the hope that they could make it to the next stage increased.
That is, until they arrived at the second obstacle. They had ran into a wall. A vertical stone cliff which they where expected to climb. It was steep, the top was easily over two hundred meters off the ground, maybe even 3 Tina hadn't even left the ground yet when she began to tremble.
"I can't do this" She whispered. Denia mentally swore.
This stage was truly their achilles heel.
.....
Jenna fumbled with the vines around her legs. Earlier she had tightened it in fear that they could loosen in her run and now the knots she'd made was keeping her from freeing her feet and running the race.
She looked up, and her already limited patient pummeled. There was noone left running that she could see.She didn't know how long this race was. Such information was given. They just said to follow the path and reach the end through obstacles.
For all she knew the winners might already be decided.
She gritted her teeth and stood up.
"I'm sorry Vicky, Danna" She apologized to the two women who spent so much time preparing their clothes, making their shoes and fussing in order to make sure that they looked presentable in front of the tribal people.
Then, without a hint of hesitation, she turned into a beast.
The second form of shifters was hardly seen in females. Why? Because the sight was quite horrendous.
She grew taller, her body became slightly hunched over as she balanced her weight on the front of her feet.
They burst from the confinement of her shoes, long claws cut open the front and her wide back tore her dress. What was left hung off of her upper body like a ragged shirt. Wild copper fur covered certain parts of her body such as back, legs and forearms. Her face elongated, her mouth wided and her teeth sharpened.
It was the face of a wolf that smiled like man.
Women naturally wanted to be seen as beautiful. Thus in the race to be the Luna for their handsome Chief Alpha. The thought of shifted to their much fats, stronger and more dominant form hadn't crossed the minds of many.Af for the others? They didn't know how long the race was. If they shifted and spent all their energy before reaching the end, wouldn't that mean that they could have showed their less flattering side for nothing?
Jena was not calculative, nor was she much of a logical thinker. She only knew that she was far behind and needed to catch up. Even Sofi and Tina had gone ahead. Her pride as a beta would not survive and their two omegas placed higher than herself.
Tina kicked off and what took the average alpha female 10 minutes to cross was done in five.
She reached the sea of vines. Her enhanced visions allowed her to see it from a good distance away but she did stop or slow down. Instead she sped up and just before the vines. She jumped.
The sea of thorny vines was 70 meter long but it was only 10 meter wide with trees lining the sides.
With her powerful legs and sharp claws. Jenna was able to jump from one side of the sea to the other, grabbing and kicking off from the thick trunks of the bordering trees.
It was a manner for crossing the thorns that up to now, none had tried.
Those who had been helped and thus forfeited their right to compete watched awestruck as the best overtook countless candidates who were struggling beneath the thorny sea in a matter of seconds.
In that moment, the hearts of many women who dreamt of being luna were filled with regret. They felt that they could not compare with the woman that risked her image for the chance to be luna.