A week passed, and the transformation among the recruits could not be avoided. Gone were the slow paces and complained murmurs that filled the air during their first day. In their stead were hard-set faces, straightened backs, and heavier footsteps with purpose. The arduous training that tested them to their physical and mental limits started yielding its dividends.
Axel stood in the melee training chamber, his sword held tightly in his hand. The accustomed pains in his muscles had vanished, replaced by a keen watchfulness in his stance. His motions were all deliberate and economical, his blows stronger and quicker. The holographic training drones—formerly causes of frustration—were now mere practice targets for him.
Around her everywhere in the building, gunfire rang out. Lila kneeled low with her sniper rifle, barrel fixed as she panned over her targets through the scope. Her hands, previously shaking a bit during her first days of training, now remained firm and rock-steady. She exhaled rapidly, then pulled the trigger.
**BANG!**
The bullet tore through the simming target at beyond range. One shot, one clean hit. Her instructor next to her stood with a nod, a silent admission of her prowess.
Ginger snapped and devirginized in shock as she watched what transpired.
"Hey," a soft voice said behind her at it. Lila turned to Ava watching her with a cheeky grin. "You've got a lot better, you know. No shaky hands anymore.".
Lila smiled faintly. "Thanks… and you're still quick. I can hear you cutting up targets from where I am."
Ava shrugged. "What's to say? I have a talent for cutting things into pieces."
Halfway across the obstacle course, Kaid and Eli worked together, climbing walls and running through barricades. Kaid's agility was greatly improved. His once awkward tread was now light and calculated, his motions smooth. Eli, while still sometimes complaining about the severity of the workouts, ran through the course with more vigor.
"Think this makes us soldiers yet?" Eli panted as they reached the end of the course.
Kaid smirked, glancing back at the obstacles they had just tackled. "We're getting there. Still a ways to go."
In the training pits, meanwhile, Atlas stood arms crossed and watched Axel and another recruit clash with swords in a fierce fight. Axel's face was set, unreadable as he circled his opponent. His movements were fast but precise, each strike intended to find an opening. In what seemed like seconds, the fight was done—Axel's opponent unarmed and gasping.
"That's enough," the guard watching the sparring snapped. "Well done, Sage."
Axel took a step back, his breathing calm. He hardly caught the compliment, his thoughts already on the next challenge. His progress wasn't for the trainers or guards—it was for himself and the mission that burned within him.
***
At the end of the day, the recruits were given a brief moment to rest before being dismissed. Axel's team, drenched in sweat but visibly stronger than they had been a week ago, gathered near the edge of the facility to catch their breath.
"Hell of a week," Eli muttered, collapsing onto the ground. "I don't think I've ever done this much running in my entire life."
"You're still alive, aren't you?" Ava said, tossing him a water bottle. "That's something."
"Barely," Eli replied, uncapping the bottle and taking a long drink.
Kaid leaned back against the wall, his expression thoughtful. "You've got to admit, though. We're not the same group that walked in here a week ago."
Lila nodded, her sniper rifle resting on the ground beside her. "It's hard to notice when you're in the middle of it, but… we're stronger now. All of us."
Atlas, sitting nearby, crossed his arms. "Stronger, yes. But this is just the beginning. Don't get too comfortable."
Axel, slumped against the wall with folded arms, remained quiet for a second before talking. "Comfort is not an objective." He was calm in his tone but resolute in his words. "We have come here to survive. To grow stronger. That is all that counts."
The weight of his sentence hung in the air. The team looked around, each understanding that there was merit in Axel's words although they were painful to hear.
"No way," Ava still replied, trying to sound apologetic for something she would probably never eat, "any little comfort isn't going to kill anyone. I mean, I don't know, some food?"
They laughed softly, tension relaxing ever so slightly as they puffed their breath back into their systems.
***
The recruits trudged back into the barracks after training that evening, the stresses of the day hanging around their necks like a damp coat. Axel's squad marched with more synchronized yet slower step together.
"Do you ever think we're going to get used to this?" Lila asked quietly, gazing up at the ceiling as they marched.
"You don't get used to it," Atlas said. "You survive it. And after a while, you emerge stronger."
"Or dead," Eli said bluntly, though there was no ill intent in his voice.
Ava arched her eyebrow. "Geez, thanks for being cheerful, Eli."
Axel remained quiet, his thoughts elsewhere as they returned to their quarters. The week had tested them all to the extreme, but he knew all too well this was only the start. He sat on the edge of his bunk, clenched his fists for a moment before releasing them.
He had a mission, and no one—no training, no suffering, no uncertainty—would deter him.