Dmitry Ivanov stood at the center of the training grounds, his breath visible in the frosty morning air. Around him, the other participants in the Dogs Program watched silently, their expressions a mix of apprehension and curiosity. Captain Mikhailov had called them here for a reason, but none of them knew what to expect.


    “Comrades,” Mikhailov began, his voice sharp and commanding. “The time has come for us to push this program to its next phase. You have all proven your worth as soldiers, but now we will determine who among you is truly exceptional.”


    The tension in the air was palpable. Dmitry’s enhanced senses picked up the faint murmurs and shuffling of boots. He could feel the energy of the group, their shared anxiety mingling with determination.


    “You will face a series of challenges,” Mikhailov continued. “Physical, mental, and… experimental. Only the best will advance to the final tier of this program. The Motherland demands nothing less than perfection.”


    Dmitry’s jaw tightened. He had come too far to falter now. Whatever these challenges entailed, he would meet them head-on.


    <hr>


    The first test was endurance. The soldiers were tasked with carrying weighted packs through the dense forest surrounding the base. Snow fell steadily, the icy wind biting at their faces. Dmitry moved with an ease that unnerved even him. His body, strengthened beyond human limits, barely registered the strain. He noticed, however, that some of his peers struggled. A few fell behind, their breaths ragged and labored.


    “Come on!” Dmitry barked at a fellow soldier, a younger man named Yuri who had been part of his unit before the program. “Don’t give up now!”


    Yuri looked up at him, his face pale and glistening with sweat. He nodded weakly and pushed himself forward, but Dmitry could see the fear in his eyes. Fear of failure. Fear of what would happen if he couldn’t keep up.


    By the time they reached the checkpoint, only a few dozen soldiers remained in the running. Mikhailov stood waiting, his expression impassive as he took note of each arrival.


    “Good,” he said when the last soldier staggered in. “But this was only the beginning.”


    <hr>


    The second test was far more grueling. The soldiers were taken to an underground facility, a maze of dimly lit corridors and reinforced steel doors. Each was given a simple directive: survive.


    39 soldiers stepped into fights against groups of 3 padded combatants each and were forced to take them all out, non-lethally if possible, to progress forward.


    1 soldier stepped into something else.


    As Dmitry stepped into his designated corridor; his senses heightened. The air was thick with the scent of oil and metal, and the faint hum of machinery echoed around him. He moved cautiously, his instincts guiding him. He knew this wasn’t just a test of physical prowess. It was a test of his ability to control the animalistic side of himself that the injections had awakened.


    A low growl reached his ears, and he froze. Ahead, in the shadows, things writhed. Dmitry crouched, his eyes narrowing as he tried to make out the figure or figures. The sounds weren’t human. The creatures that emerged into the faint light, amber eyes gleaming were from the program’s earlier experiments—failed experiments, but no less deadly for it. Their bodies were twisted, their movements jerky but powerful.


    Dmitry held his ground as the creatures began to attack. He sidestepped, his reflexes faster than he had anticipated. With a swift motion, he drove his knife into it’s the side of one, the blade sinking deep into the creature’s flesh. It let out a howl of pain but didn’t stop. Another tackled him from the other side and Dmitry was knocked to the ground, his strength barely enough to throw the creature and jump back on his feet. As the next creature jumped moved forward the first and second regained their footing behind him. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    He could count 5 creatures, 4 the same grotesque damnation and the 5^th something more akin to a gorilla, only, larger.


    Sensing the creatures pressing in on all sides Dmitry pulled a rage from deep inside and told it to kill. In the time it took his eyes to flicker amber, then blue Dmitry grew. Two feet taller, 200lbs heavier, hands and feet tipped with enormous claws. His body had thicken and grown a protective coat of fur all while he turned and jumped towards the two injured creatures behind him.


    By the time Dmitry made impact the transformation had completed. He absolutely smashed the face of the creature on his right. Reaching down pulled the creatures head clean away from its body. Turning he smashed the corpse into the other creature while continuing to rush forward shoving both fists through the creatures chest and ripping outward showering everything in the creatures blood and innards as he ripped it in half.


    All of this left him with distance to the final 2 attacking creatures and the 5^th that continued to hold back, sitting, watching.


    A guttural roar escaped Dmitry as he dug his feet into the surface of the stone, turned, and lunged forward at wild speeds. Running at, then between the two creatures ahead of him he punched right through the throats of each ripping their heads clean off. Blood, gore, and the sounds of his deep-guttural breathing filled the room as he flexed, stretched and beyond his control loosened a howl of victory as his form pitched skyward. Standing there, muscles taught, violence feeling as necessary as breathing Dmitry considered the final creature in the room. He threw himself towards it, stopping with his face inches from the gorilla shaped beast. The creature stood starring right back, enormous chest puffed but made no move to attack. After moments turned into minutes the beast took a step back, and dropped to one knee. He pulled his shoulders forward and bowed his head in gesture of subservience to whatever Dmitry had become.


    Dmitry couldn’t stop himself, he moved to tear the beasts neck apart, he bent down, took a deep breath and realized he could sense much about this beast from the air around it. A taste, a smell, a population of knowledge telling him that this beast was powerful, intelligent, and something tugged at Dmitry to bring more of his human self forward. Several deep breaths later and Dmitry had reduce his form almost back to normal. He had successfully overcome his drive to kill and put rage back in the box.


    The beast made no move to reassert dominance.


    “Stand up” Dmitry said and so the beast stood.


    <hr>


    By the end of the trials, only 27 soldiers remained. Dmitry stood among them, his body bruised but his resolve unshaken. Mikhailov addressed the group, his tone almost reverent.


    “You are the best of the best,” he said. “The elite. From this moment forward, you are no longer merely soldiers. You are the Dogs.”


    The soldiers exchanged glances, the weight of the captain’s words sinking in. Dmitry felt a strange mix of pride and unease. He had earned his place, this is what he had been after all along but there were sides to him now that he didn’t recognize, uncertainty tampered elation and the gap between weighed on his soul.


    All gathered in the yard in pack formation Mikhailov addressed the group.


    “Through Dmitry we have perfected the serum.” Mikhailov said. “The rest of you have been on a fine cocktail of vitamins and steroids. With the success Dmitry has shown and your graduation of this program you will all now receive the true Dog serum,” Mikhailov continued. “Dmitry you will select nine comrades to form your pack. There will be 3 packs for now.  These packs will operate independently, each with its own leader. Ivanov,” he said, turning to Dmitry, “you will choose first.”


    Dmitry stepped forward, his mind racing. He scanned the faces of the remaining soldiers, looking for those he trusted, those who had proven themselves in the trials.


    “What will become of the beast from my fight” Dmitry asked.


    “It will be disposed of properly; it is a failed experiment.” Mikhailov replied.


    “No, I would like to have the beast beside me as a member of my squad.


    One by one, he called names of other soldiers to join him. Yuri was among them, though Dmitry couldn’t shake the memory of the fear he had seen in his eyes.


    When the selections were complete, the newly formed packs stood at attention, their leaders at the forefront. Mikhailov nodded, satisfied.


    “You are ready,” he said. “Soon, the world will know what the Motherland has created.”


    Dmitry felt a chill that had nothing to do with the cold. The path ahead was clear, but it was far from certain. As he looked at the soldiers who now depended on him, he vowed silently that he would not let them down—no matter what the future held.


    There were now all going to become Super Soldiers.