Introspect [The Mating Games #3]

WENDELL ZERONE

When Wendell walked onto the top floor of the hotel not even half an hour late, Wendell was surprised to find seven people sat in the living room and a further person stood in front of them; no doubt the steward that would be looking after them for the remaining eight days.

It appeared that the management of the Mating Games had seemingly improved since last time. Though that was probably because the future Alpha queen had arrived more than a day late.

“And with Wendell, that makes eight,” beamed the steward.

“Hi, Heather,” Wendell grinned back as he greeted one of his former classmates. “Were you all waiting for me?”

“Yes,” she nodded, albeit politely. “But you’re only a little late so don’t fret. If you could take a seat, I’ll start off by explaining how this is going to work and you all can get started on today’s task.”

Nodding respectfully, Wendell moved over to take a seat on one of the sofas. As he sat down, he glanced briefly at the man that he was sat next to but as they didn’t have time for introductions right now, neither of them said a word to each other. While the man next to him turned back to face Heather, Wendell took advantage of the moment to glance around the room.

Heather was in her observation that with him, there was now eight of them.

Never before had Wendell been in a room, or even close proximity for that matter, to this many people of high rank. While he sensed that there were no Alpha’s in the room, there were quite a few Beta’s – possibly three. Four, including him.

They may be Betas but they don’t hold a candle to us, his wolf snorted, peering at everyone through those beady, wolfish eyes of his.

How very humble of you, Wendell replied dryly though couldn’t help but agree with his wolf. While everyone was powerful in their own ways, none of them could compare to him or his Royal Beta lineage.

I have to admit, the blonde Jack Frost over there is pretty impressive.

Taking heed of his wolf’s words, Wendell glanced up and locked eyes with the man sat on the sofa directly in front of him, separated by the large coffee table sat between them.

He’s rather intense, his wolf hummed.

Yes, but he’s also very powerful.

I’m surprised that he’s only a Beta.

Either he’s a very powerful Beta or he’s just a weak Alpha.

I’m interested to find out.

As am I.

Before Wendell and his wolf could continue the conversation, pondering over what was wrong with the Jack-Frost-looking man sat in front of him, he was rather rudely disturbed.

“Pay attention, will you?” Heather chuckled as she dropped something in his hands before moving onto the next person.

“Sorry,” Wendell murmured quietly, chuckling as he glanced down at the device in his hands. As he had one of these packed away in his suitcase, he knew exactly what to do with it. Except, he was sure that this one was not nearly as functional.

“If you could all turn on your Hex Charm’s and click on the first app, you’ll find the itinerary for this work,” Heather stated firmly as she returned to the front of the room, another bright smile on her face.

Glancing down at the Hex Charm in his hands, both of his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Day 1 – Compatibility Test

Day 2 – Scent Masked Mixer

Day 3 – Mate Roulette

Day 4 – The Maze

Day 5 – Silent Chess

Day 6 – Mate Spar

Day 7 – The Final Test

Day 8 – The Mating Ceremony

Other than the first and last two, Wendell wasn’t familiar with any of the other remaining tasks.

“If you have any questions, feel free to ask me before we move onto the first task.”

“I have a question,” Wendell was the first to speak up, still glancing down at the itinerary. “Are we gong to meet our mates during the scent masked mixer on day two?”

“I don’t know. Such sensitive information is not shared with stewards,” Heather denied although Wendell knew better.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Wendell,” Heather chuckled but was quick to move onto some of the other questions that people had. Most of them were similar to Wendell’s: asking about the tasks and trying to find out as much information as possible but somehow, she managed to avoid answering every single one of them.

It was almost as if she had been trained to be an expert in such deflective behaviour.

“So, you’re the Royal Beta?”

“I am, but you can call me Wendell,” he replied politely, rising to his feet before accepting the outstretched hand in front of him. “Which pack are you the Alpha of?” Wendell asked, deciding to play it safe in case this Jack Frost looking wolf was just a weaker Alpha.

“Thank you for thinking that I’m an Alpha but I’m just a Beta,” he chuckled, returning his hands to his side. “I’m Jack Riverside, Beta of the Islenska pack.”

Well, at least we got half of his name right.

“From Iceland,” Wendell hummed, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. From the eighty-eight pack that they had spread around the world, the Icelandic pack was the smallest one with less than a thousand wolves so it wasn’t often that they had wolves from there participate in the Mating Games.

“Yes, good catch” Jack chuckled. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Beta Wendell. I very much look up to you so it’s been a pleasure getting to know you.”

“Thank you, Jack,” he smiled politely before turning around briefly to pick up his Hex Charm. “We should probably get started on the first day but let’s get a drink together sometime this week.”

“That sounds great! I’d love to pick the brain of the youngest Royal Beta in history.”

Smiling politely, he returned the various curious gazes that were set around him. No one had made a move to get started on today’s task of the compatibility test yet so Wendell decided to be first.

After all, he had all week to get to know everyone between tasks.

With his suitcase and Hex Charm in hand, Wendell headed into his room to get started on the compatibility test. As there were a total of eighty-eight questions that he needed to work through, he knew that he would be bent, pondering over this task for quite some time.

After all, he wanted – no, needed – everything to be perfect.

1. What is your position in your pack?

Do we say that we’re Beta? Wendell hummed, already stumped by the first question.

Fuck that! his wolf swore. You say that we’re the Royal Beta of all werewolves.

You’ve clearly never heard of being humble, he snorted but decided to follow his wolf’s instructions with his own little twist on it.

I’m the eldest son of the Royal Beta which makes me the future Royal Beta. But around training to take over my father one day in the near future, I’m also a warrior.

What’s the point about being humble regarding the truth?

You raise a valid point, he hummed before moving onto the next set of questions.

9. What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?

Is it sad that I can’t think of anything?

I can think of quite a few things, his wolf shot back at him. What about being good enough to train with not only the current Alpha King, but the former Alpha King?

You’re right, he hummed in agreement. Not many wolves can say that.

There’s also you graduating high school a year early and being the youngest wolf ever to lead the Royal training sessions. You’ve even managed to put the Head Warriors on their backs more times than I can count.

How many achievements do we need because I can think of so many more.

Those should be enough, Wendell chuckled as he began tapping away at the screen.

I’ve achieved a number of things during my lifetime, some average and some great. I’ve got a lot of life left ahead of me, especially with me getting ready to taking over my role of Royal Beta soon so hopefully I’m yet to achieve my greatest achievement.

I really don’t understand why you’ve got such a hard-on for being so humble all the time? No one but the stewards are going to see these answers anyway.

In response, Wendell laughed before swiftly moving onto the next set of questions.

16. What is the biggest challenge you have faced so far and how did you overcome it?

My biggest challenge would be patience. More so with taking over as Beta because I feel like I’ve been ready for years now. Everyone thought it was best for me to wait a few years so I’ve had to be very patient – something that I am not good at.

25. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be and why?

I would make myself a few months older so I would have been eligible for the Mating Games last year.

But if our mate is younger than us then she wouldn’t have been eligible and we still wouldn’t have been invited, his wolf made sure to point out.

Okay, fine, he sighed, deleting what he had just wrote.

I would make myself a year older and there to only be a few months between my mate and I so we would have been eligible for the Mating Games last time. That means we would have met each other five years ago and wouldn’t have had to wait all of this extra time. That, and maybe we would have taken over as the Royal Beta and Beta female by now.

Sounds good to me, his wolf chuckled, seemingly satisfied with the amendments.

38. Name five qualities you are looking for in a mate.

Loyalty, Intelligence, Integrity, Patience and Caring. The last one would not just be for me but for everyone around us. But most of all, I’m looking for someone that I can love and grow old with.

And it helps too if she’s beautiful.

She’s definitely beautiful, Wendell scoffed but couldn’t to laugh at his wolf’s brazen antics.

51. Where do you see yourself in five, ten and fifteen years?

Five: with a mate and as the Beta.

Ten: maybe a few pups by this point. It’ll depend on my mate though since she’ll be the one carrying them.

Fifteen: All of the above and so much more.

63. What does a normal day look like for you? Be as detailed as possible.

Well, this is an easy one, Wendell hummed to his wolf. His thumbs were quick to begin tapping away at the screen, not even needing to consult his wolf.

I start off my morning fairly early. Usually between five and six in the morning. After training with the warriors, maybe even a run if I feel up for it, I have breakfast with my family. After that, I shadow my father in Beta business. That lasts all day and then most evenings, I also train with the Alpha king. If not, my father or Bernard usually have some work for me. The rare days that they do not, I either spend time with my family or friends. Hopefully, I’ll be able to start spending time with my mate, too.

75. What are you afraid of the most?

Why do these questions probe so much?

You’re right, but this is so fucking long. I’m so bored of this already, his wolf groaned. How much more is left?

Not much. There’s eighty-eight questions in total.

That’s still so many, the beast groaned again. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can try and sneak out to find where they’re keeping our mate.

I don’t think that’s allowed but let me finish this really quickly.

I’m afraid that I won’t be a good enough Beta. My father and ancestors have left very big boots to fill.

83. What is the most important factor in a relationship?

Trust, both him and his wolf said in unison; this being an answer that they didn’t need to deliberate over.

The most important factor in a relationship, to both build a new one and maintain an already existing one, is trust. If you can’t trust your mate, then you can’t trust anyone. But trust also requires honesty which is another very important requirement of a relationship.

I couldn’t have put that better myself, his wolf hummed but Wendell didn’t have long to dwell on that thought.

Almost as if with perfect timing, he heard Bernard’s voice in his mind as soon as he turned off his Hex Charm; just having finished the compatibility test.

Wendell, you need to get to my office now. Consider this a royal emergency.

A royal emergency? his wolf questioned but Wendell didn’t have time to answer as he was already on his feet and out of the apartment.

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Layla Knight

26.05.2021