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I grip on to the rope tighter as he leans down and licks a path up to the back of my ear before biting it, making me gasp.

He moves around me with ease, releasing his shadows while I try to gain control over my body.

With every limb trembling, I somehow make it to the other side and climb down.

I glance around, glaring at the four hot teases, each of them moving through the obstacles like they’re on a damn kid’s playground.

There’s still a couple of obstacles left, and Malakai and Cyrus are gaining ground on me. It won’t be long before they reach me.

I glance around, trying to think of something I can do to slow them down, when the thought of my shield pops into my head.

I’ve never used it outside of myself. But maybe…

Reaching down inside me, I focus on the energy of the shield but imagine it outside myself instead.

A huge smile spreads across my face when I see it come to life in front of me instead of forming around me.

Pushing it back behind me, I make it larger and larger, curling and blocking the last couple of obstacles after I make my way through them.

“What the?—”

I keep moving, rushing through them while holding the shield in place.

Raising my fist in the air when I pass the last one, I yelp when I’m lifted and placed on Malakai’s shoulders.

“Our girl has won. Meaning she gets two hours with each of us,” he says. But instead of any of them looking disappointed, they smile thinking they’ve won this. But I never said what I wanted them to do in those two hours.

“Maybe I just need my shower cleaned,” I tell them.

Knox smirks, his eyes trailing up and down my body. “I could use a shower. Might as well clean it while I’m there.” He nods, and his eyes find mine, the hunger and heat in them unmistakable. “But I’ll need someone to oversee my work.”

Theon shoves him with chuckle, and I shake my head.

“You were all supposed to help me train not distract me.” I try to glare at them but there’s no real heat to it.

Even though they ruined my training session and haven’t helped me get any closer to cutting down my time, I had fun.

And it’s the first time I’ve felt this light and happy in a long while.

Malakai leaves me where I am on his shoulders, and I don’t object, already feeling exhaustion setting in.

Knox shrugs as we get moving into the forest. “Well then, you shouldn’t have taken off your top. Next time, wear old baggy clothes if you want us to act all serious.”

I laugh and roll my eyes at his thought process.

“When did you learn how to create the shield outside of yourself?” Cyrus asks.

“Just now,” I admit, and his brows raise.

“Fuck, that’s impressive,” Knox says and looks like he means it.

“Really?”

He nods. “It took us years to learn how to control our shadows. Those first few months were frustrating as hell.”

“Well, I guess that’s one thing. You’re all able to move through that obstacle course like it’s nothing to you.” I start thinking about how I’m going to need to come back here later to get in some more practice when Malakai squeezes my thighs trying to get my attention.

“We’ll help you,” Malakai promises.

I glance over at the others as they watch me.

“Properly this time,” Theon says with a smirk.

Knox turns around, walking backwards. “But when you win your privileges, we’ll be the ones taking you out of the academy.”

I smile. “Deal.”

T he day of the obstacle test comes way too quick. The guys stuck to their promise and trained with me every day. By the third day I hit ten minutes, and by the seventh, I hit nine.

When they’re not trying to distract me or piss me off, they’re actually not bad instructors.

Feeling more than ready for this obstacle test, I stand beside Robin and wait to find out when I’ll be taking my turn but wince when I hear my name called in the last group when I was hoping I could get this over and done with soon.

Moving to the side, I watch the other girls move through the obstacle course. None of the guys are here or anyone other than the small group of instructors and girls.

All Shadows were told its off limits, to prevent any distractions. I guess that’s a good thing in my case, considering any one of my four walking into a room now distracts me.

Releasing a deep breath, I focus on the obstacle course and why I need to pass it today no matter what.

I can’t let the guys down. They still don’t know about the new little rule of us all having to pass our tests for them to qualify in the war games.

Hopefully they won’t kill me when I tell them after this either.

The first couple of girls pass while the next three barely make it. The fourth and fifth fail by two minutes and the six by three.

Robin is right before me. She starts heading through them with a fierce look of determination on her face. She heads onto the jungle rope and gets through it quicker than I expected but slips near the end, snapping the rope completely off.

My stomach drops but eases when she holds on tighter to the rope and swings the rest of the way before climbing down the steps.

Rushing through the last couple of obstacles, she passes the finish line and glances up at the timer with a wide smile on her face.

9:01. She made it. And now hopefully I will too.

A loud whistle rings out. “Two-minute break to fix the rope.”

Robin comes over to me with a happy expression.

“Well done. You cut off a whole minute,” I tell her.

Her smile widens. “Good luck.”

The two-minute break passes quickly, and my name gets called.

I move over to the start of the obstacle course and drown out everything around me. The horn rings out, and I run for the tilted wall, getting over it in seconds to the stepping stones. Keeping my focus, I move onto the balance beam but pause when it starts to sway.

Thinking I’m probably just feeling a little dizzy, I get moving again but have to slow down when it starts to sway again.

What the hell?

I get moving while trying to keep my balance. It takes longer than I would have liked with the beam swaying from side to side but I pass it without falling and quickly bend down and start my crawl through the trip wire.

My back brushes against the wire and a sharp burst of pain spears through me making me hiss. Moving again, I try to ignore it, but it happens again and again every time I accidentally touch off it.

Lowering my body to the ground, I keep moving, not willing to give up.

Getting up, I shake of the sting of pain and head for the high wall. I move closer to it but pause when I find small spikes all over it.

My stomach churns. It’s not hard to figure out what’s happening here. Someone sabotaged it.

I immediately slam down the barriers between me and my mates. If they find out what’s happening, this will end, along with it their chance in the war games.

Gritting my teeth against the sharp slices of pain in my hands, I keep moving and make it over the wall in no time. Getting to my feet, I slide my hands down my trousers trying to wipe the blood away before heading for the long tunnel. But as soon as I enter it, I know something is wrong.

It’s dark. Completely dark and covered in shadows.

My gut tells me to turn the fuck around and not be stupid. But my head and heart tell me I need to finish this no matter what.

Ignoring my instincts, I rush forward but gasp and still when cold steel slashes across my legs and back, leaving a fiery burn of pain in its place.

Catching myself from falling, I try to push the pain to the back of my mind and get moving when I realize there’s something or someone else in here with me. And that someone is going all out to sabotage me and the guys.

The sliver of anger inside me grows to a pit of rage and explodes out of me in a burst of light.

I hear a gasp as I make my way out of the tunnel, but I blank everything around me as I move to the pit.

Jumping in, I rush as fast as I can to the other side.

But halfway there, mud coils around my ankles trying to stop me from moving any further.

I glance down and try to wiggle it free when a sharp sting slams into my ankles over and over.

I hiss and bend forward. Fuck that hurts.

Allowing myself to fall into my continuously building rage, something almost shifts inside me. Like another part of my mind awakening. I glance down and somehow see through the mud to the dozens of black snakes coiling around my legs.

A rush of energy slides down my body as an almost out of body experience happens and I watch on as more energy rushes out of me in small pulses into the muddy water, instantly killing the snakes.

The pain almost disappears, but I know that all of my injuries are still there.

As if on autopilot, I get out of the mud and head for the jungle ropes, my eyes narrowing when I spot the slimy substance on the hanging knotted ropes and the fraying ends of the long ones.

Glancing down at my hands, I watch on in awe as tiny shadows cover my palms.

I climb up to the ropes and grab the first one, smiling to myself when the tiny shadows on my palm dig into the knot like nails giving me the grip I need.

Pushing my body, I nearly make it to the end when the strange out of body experience slowly starts to fade, bringing back every slice of pain. Every bruise and ache.

I gasp but keep moving. Dragging my trembling body to the end.

The rope snaps and breaks away just as I make it.

Heading down the steps, I rush through the last couple of obstacles in a blur and with nothing but the last of my adrenaline rushing through me before glancing up at the timer.

9:59. I made it. Just .

Relief rushes through me, and black spots slide across my vision as every ounce of adrenaline from my body disappears.

“Sena!” someone screams as my knees hit the ground followed by my body just as darkness completely takes my vision.