4. The Spartan Merit Test

As the twelve-hour Spartan merit test ends, Alexis races to finish a Latin physics essay and pricks her finger to fill the required blood bubbles. A teacher notices her page smoking and disintegrating, triggering a formal protocol call.

Two massive House of Zeus enforcers arrive amid an explosive entry. Mistaking Alexis for a boy, they accuse her of fraud, inject a dose of purified adrenaline meant to kill humans, and start a timer. When Alexis survives, they confirm she is an abandoned female Spartan mutt, question her about House ties, Chthonic heritage, and Titan contact, and grant her Spartan citizenship and candidacy for the War Academy.

The boss whispers a command and teleports Alexis through agonizing darkness to the Dolomites Coliseum. Disoriented in the rain, Alexis realizes she is the only girl among dozens of male initiates, with Olympian and sparse Chthonic banners looming and elite Spartans—some with predator protectors—watching.

Zeus appears with a Nemean lion, proclaiming Sparta’s strength and welcoming heirs, mutts, and creatures. Declaring that immortality is a privilege, he announces the initiation massacre as the first and likely final trial before the crucible. Alexis, terrified and unpowered, braces for the ordeal as the crowd chants.