I Claim Your Love novel Chapter 30

"Today is the day Cornell." The petite bird sitting on the shoulders of Callan nuzzled its mane to the flesh of the man. Callan looked at the open field which was starting to fill in with young enthusiasts who wished to prove their capability and serve the Alpha. The contenders this time were three times more than what used to be in the previous trials. He was aware of the fact that most of the men were eyeing the head warriors spot. The men presumed that levelling a human in the field would be a child's play and they could easily surpass Callan's mettle.

Everyone underestimated Callan for he was human.

Callan looked at the ground which had a long rope circled above the earth around his knee height and then he looked sideways at the long stand where his father and other elders had already taken their seats with their mates. His eyes caught the anxious and hopeful eyes of his father- the current head warrior.

Justus was devastated when he came to know that Callan was not a shifter. Still he kept his hopes alive and trained the boy to outperform any expectations which came his way. Callan had proved that he could tackle any shifter or any adversity with ease. Justus made his son tough and brave. What worried him though were the sheer number of participants who nominated themselves to challenge his son. Under any other circumstances Callan could fight four to five people at a stretch but to face these many people would tire him out and eventually his exhaustion would force him to quit.

When Justus registered Callan looking at him, he smiled in acknowledgement. He smiled for he knew that whether his son wins or loses today he was already a champion for his parents. The love Mary and Justus will shower on him, would never depend upon the legacy of their forefathers which Callan may lose today.

Callan smiled cheerfully and shifted his focus to take note of the other participants. He noticed that among the men some juvenile entrants were also present. It was a no brainer that they were willing to grab the easy pie.

Callan huffed at their stupidity and moved his focus to other people. His smile faltered when he saw Aldous, Marden, Richard and Tusker flexing their muscles and glaring at him. This was not a good sign. Though these four were always after Callan and deeply hated him, the fact that they were some of the best fighters amongst the pack could not be ignored.

Callan fidgeted his fingers as he exhaled an air of anxiety.

"I have been preparing for the trials for my entire life and now when the moment has finally arrived I feel like a deer caught by the hunter." The raven cawed and bobbed its head up and down. Callan chuckled "No you silly bird. I don't want you to interfere in any of the fights I go through today. I appreciate your concern but I will keep myself safe."

But the bird was not having it as it cawed and bellowed its voice in a threatening manner. Soon the entire crowd looked at the man in confusion. Callan embarrassingly smiled at them and bowed his head. "Fine, fine you can meddle in between only if my life is in danger."

"If that's the case than you should take the bird with you. Keep it as your secret weapon." Callan was startled for a moment when he heard Aurora's voice. He embraced her with a smile. She winked at him and caressed the mane of the bird "I can see you are all ready."

"I think so. By the way what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be going to the stands, cheering for me perhaps."

Aurora chuckled "You are my one and only favorite people around here. Who do you think I would root for? I just came here to see how you are and to tell you something."

"What? "

The healer hesitated "It is more of a request actually.." Aurora held one of Callan's hands and brought it up to his chest height, pointing to the shining metal wrapped around his wrist "I want you to keep wearing this throughout your bouts."

Callan was taken aback at this appeal "No way! keeping this bracelet would mean that I am cheating my way up. Besides this metal acts on its own sometimes. I have no control over it. If something happens, we could get exposed."

Aurora was persistent "I know you are worried but I am worried too. If you keep wearing this bracelet it would give me assurance of your safety. Just wear it for my sake please."

"What if it shows its powers?"

"It wont. It will only act when you have extreme emotions. So try to take deep breaths and keep your mind cool." However what Aurora was saying was the complete opposite of how the metal worked. She just wanted to keep him under check. For the past few days she had been working on deciphering the know how of Callan's powers through the old book. In the meantime she wanted Callan to control his powers so she could be ready to teach him what she learned through the book.

Callan reluctantly nodded at his friend which brought an enthusiastic smile on Aurora's face.

****

The anticipation and anxiousness of the crowd was silenced when the Alpha entered the arena and took his rightful place besides Rosaline. He moved his head around the entire open field and saw the one for whom his heart ached, standing near a tree all alone. He looked to his sides and noticed that Garrick had left his place to stand among the participants.

Einar stood from his place and raised his head to reach the sky. He bellowed his howl to show his authority and declared that there was no one above him. The crowd all at once bowed their heads and kneeled in their own places expressing their respect and acknowledging the Alpha's dominance. These were the times when Callan regretted not being a wolf. Unlike everyone else, he was not compelled to bow down or submit to the Alpha. It was very hard for his conscience to give in before any other force. His instincts denied this enfeeblement. With a sigh and reluctance he kneeled before Einar.

Einar then linked everyone and commanded them to take their positions. He saw the look on Callan's face expressing dispassion. Though he would have overlooked a million of his misdeeds but when it came to respecting him as the leader, Einar could not tolerate the disregard Callan showed.

He gulped his anger at the moment and looked at everyone around with delight "It is with great honor and privilege I announce that this years participants are the most ever witnessed than in any of the previous trials. I am humbled to know that you all are willing to serve your Alpha. It means that I have proved my worth. Thank you." He quickly scanned the ground and located his father. He acknowledged the proud look of his father with a smile of his own.

"Now to begin with, to make our pack more efficient and self reliant I have decided to bring in some changes..." As soon as the words left his mouth the crowd erupted in murmurs. The wolves loved their everyday lives however monotonous it might've been. It was their basic instinct. It was one of the reasons the rituals and traditions were followed generations after generations without any questions. They did not wanted to embrace change.

Einar cleared his throat "I know that you all are disinclined to do something which you have not done ever. However I would want you all to trust me because whatever I do will only be for the betterment of the pack."

The crowd hummed in response. Einar looked around before bellowing his voice "Before we begin the trials I would like the defenders to step forward." Amongst the chattering and buzzing of the people Garrick, Arthur and Callan made their way to the stands of the Alpha. They stood at a comfortable distance from each other and turned their backs to their Alpha to face the crowd.

"Standing before you are the sons of the former beta, gamma and the head warrior. Make sure you choose the right person to challenge for there are no second chances." Einar pointed his finger towards Garrick "The ones who wish to challenge Garrick; step forward."

People looked around each other and wondered who would turn up to face the former beta's son. Though Garrick was not at the same level as Einar but still he was a skilled fighter nonetheless. Add it to the fact that he had been trained along side the Alpha and had never lost to anyone aside from his best friend. After long anxious breaths a tall muscular man raised his hand and marched his way to stand in front of Garrick. It was Aldous.

After waiting for a few brief moments Einar spoke again "I guess that's it for Garrick then." He looked towards Arthur and gestured his hand "The ones who wish to challenge Arthur may step forward."

Tusker and two other men made their way to stand in front of the former gamma's son.

"Finally the ones who want to face the head warriors son may step forward."

To the astonishment of everyone in the stands, a chain of people lined up in front of Callan. The numbers were such that three rows had to be formed to accommodate the challengers.

While some laughed at the situation, people close to Callan were tensed and worried for he was outnumbered by a large factor. To face so many people and overcome their confrontation was out of the bounds challenge for Callan. He cautiously put a brave front in front of his opponents and smirked in artificial confidence.

Callan knew he was cornered.