Recruits

The parade ground stretched farther than Kaien could see.

Three hundred recruits stood in perfectly straight rows beneath the gray morning sky, their new uniforms crisp and untouched. Some stood proudly with their chins high. Others shifted nervously, trying to hide trembling hands.

The academy itself towered behind them like a fortress.

Massive stone walls enclosed training yards, barracks, archery fields, stables, and enormous arenas where generations of soldiers had been forged. Countless banners bearing the crest of the Allied Coalition fluttered in the wind.

Three years.

Three years had passed since Kaien had watched his home burn.

Three years since he had lost his mother.

Three years since he had sworn to reclaim everything that had been taken from him.

He was no longer the frightened fifteen-year-old boy.

He stood just over six feet tall now, his once-boyish features sharpened by years of relentless training. His black hair had grown longer, brushing against the back of his neck, and the bright blue eyes that once carried innocence now held something quieter.

Resolve.

Beside him stood Riven.

Somehow, despite the years, he still managed to wear the same carefree grin.

"You know..."

Riven whispered without moving his head.

"I never thought we'd actually make it."

Kaien allowed himself the smallest smile.

"You doubted yourself?"

"I doubted waking up this early."

Kaien let out a short laugh.

"You haven't changed."

"Nope."

Riven nudged him with his elbow.

"And neither have you."

Before Kaien could answer—

"Still talking before training starts?"

Seraphina appeared beside them.

Her silver-blonde hair was tied into a practical braid now, and there was a quiet confidence about her that hadn't existed three years ago.

Riven grinned.

"Good morning to you too."

"I've been standing beside you for almost five minutes."

"I know."

"You ignored me."

"I was testing your patience."

"You failed."

He laughed.

"I succeeded."

Kaien watched the two exchange familiar banter.

Three years apart hadn't changed them.

It felt...

Comforting.

For a brief moment, they weren't future soldiers.

They were simply three friends again.

"I'm glad," Seraphina said quietly.

Kaien looked at her.

"What?"

"...That you're both alive."

Neither boy answered immediately.

Eventually, Riven smiled.

"So am I."

Kaien nodded.

"So am I."

Their reunion was interrupted by the sharp blast of a whistle.

Every recruit immediately straightened.

Heavy footsteps echoed across the training ground.

A tall man walked toward the front of the formation.

His broad shoulders filled the dark officer's coat he wore, and countless scars marked his weathered face. His steel-gray hair was cut short, and one eye had been replaced by a polished black prosthetic.

The recruits instinctively became even quieter.

The man's presence alone demanded attention.

He stopped in front of the formation.

For several long seconds...

He simply stared.

His single remaining eye slowly swept across all three hundred recruits.

Nobody dared move.

Finally...

He spoke.

"My name..."

His voice was deep enough to silence even the wind.

"...is Instructor Owen."

No one reacted.

Good.

"I have trained soldiers for twenty-eight years."

"I have buried more recruits than most of you have met in your entire lives."

His gaze hardened.

"If you're here because you think war is glorious..."

He pointed toward the academy gates.

"Leave."

No one moved.

"If you're here chasing medals..."

"Leave."

Silence.

"If you're here because someone forced you..."

"Leave."

Still...

Nobody moved.

A faint smile crossed Owen's face.

"It appears you're either committed..."

"...or too stubborn to listen."

A few recruits nervously chuckled.

His expression instantly became cold again.

The laughter died.

"There are three hundred of you."

He slowly held up one finger.

"Only one hundred will graduate."

The words landed like a hammer.

Murmurs spread through the ranks.

Owen continued.

"The Coalition doesn't need average soldiers."

"It needs exceptional ones."

"We train the best."

"We deploy the best."

"We bury everyone else."

Silence returned.

"If you fail..."

"You go home."

"If you quit..."

"You go home."

"If you cannot protect the person standing beside you..."

"You go home."

He paused.

"And if your recklessness gets another recruit killed..."

His single eye narrowed.

"...I will personally ensure you never wear this uniform again."

The atmosphere became suffocating.

No one doubted him.

Owen turned toward a clipboard handed to him by another officer.

"We'll begin with introductions."

He looked toward the first recruit.

"Name."

"Lucas Renn, sir!"

"Why are you here?"

"To protect my homeland, sir!"

Owen simply nodded.

"Next."

One after another...

Each recruit stepped forward.

"Mara Ellison."

"To serve my family."

"Next."

"Finn Calder."

"To become strong enough to defend others."

"Next."

Some wanted honor.

Others wanted adventure.

Some had lost family during the war.

Others sought purpose.

Each answer was different.

Owen's expression never changed.

Eventually...

He reached the middle of Kaien's row.

"Riven."

Riven stepped forward confidently.

"Riven Ashcroft, sir!"

"Reason."

Riven smiled faintly.

"I couldn't save enough people three years ago."

His smile disappeared.

"I don't want to stand helpless again."

Owen studied him.

Then nodded.

"Next."

"Seraphina Vale."

She stepped forward.

"I want to become someone people can depend on."

Her answer was calm.

Measured.

Owen wrote something onto his clipboard.

"Next."

Then...

His eye settled on Kaien.

"You."

Kaien stepped forward.

His boots stopped with a sharp click.

"Name."

"Kaien Voss."

His voice was steady.

Not loud.

Not quiet.

Simply unwavering.

Owen looked at him.

"Reason."

The entire training ground seemed to fall silent.

Kaien's thoughts drifted back three years.

His mother's smile.

The collapsing roof.

The burning village.

The screams.

The enemy commander's order.

"Kill every man."

"Capture every woman and child."

His fists slowly tightened.

When he finally spoke...

His voice carried no hesitation.

"I want revenge."

Several recruits glanced toward him.

Owen remained expressionless.

"Continue."

Kaien's eyes remained fixed straight ahead.

"The nation that destroyed my home..."

"They murdered innocent people."

"They took everything from us."

His breathing remained calm.

"I intend to destroy them."

The recruits listened in stunned silence.

"I don't only want to defeat their army."

His voice became colder.

"I want their nation to disappear."

A few recruits exchanged uneasy looks.

Kaien continued.

"I want every city they built..."

"...every symbol of the regime that destroyed my home..."

"...to be gone."

His jaw tightened.

"I want to make sure they can never wage that kind of war again."

The silence that followed felt heavy.

Instructor Owen stared at him for several seconds.

"So..."

he finally said,

"Hatred brought you here."

Kaien answered without hesitation.

"Yes."

Owen closed the clipboard.

"When hatred becomes the only thing guiding a soldier..."

he said evenly,

"it can make them fearless."

He took a step closer.

"But it can also make them blind."

Kaien didn't lower his gaze.

"I understand."

"Do you?"

Owen asked.

"Because the battlefield doesn't reward rage."

"It rewards discipline."

"You'll be judged here by your actions, not your anger."

For the first time, Kaien's expression shifted slightly.

Not in disagreement.

In thought.

Owen gave one final look before moving on.

"Next recruit."

As the introductions continued, whispers quietly spread among some of the recruits.

"Did you hear what he said?"

"He wants revenge."

"He looked serious."

"He didn't sound angry..."

"That was the scary part."

Riven glanced toward Kaien but said nothing.

Seraphina did the same.

They both knew.

Those words hadn't been spoken for attention.

Kaien had meant every one of them.

And somewhere deep inside him...

The fire that had begun the day he lost his mother still burned.

It had simply learned to hide behind a calm face.

The sun had already disappeared beyond the academy walls by the time Instructor Owen finished speaking.

The three hundred recruits stood exhausted beneath the fading light, their bodies tense from the pressure of their first day.

Owen looked across the formation one final time.

"Listen carefully."

The recruits immediately straightened.

"Your training begins tomorrow."

A few nervous whispers spread.

Owen ignored them.

"Wake up time."

He paused.

"Five in the morning."

The entire group went silent.

Some recruits looked shocked.

Others looked annoyed.

Owen continued.

"If you're late, you fail your first evaluation."

"If you're weak, you fail your first evaluation."

"If you cannot handle waking up before sunrise..."

His eye narrowed.

"...then you have no business becoming a soldier."

Nobody spoke.

"You have until then to eat, choose your bunks, and prepare yourselves."

He turned away.

"Enjoy your last peaceful evening."

A small smirk crossed his face.

"Because after tomorrow..."

"You won't have one."

The recruits watched him walk away.

Only after he disappeared did everyone finally breathe again.

Riven let out a long sigh.

"I already hate him."

Kaien looked at him.

"You haven't even trained yet."

"I know."

"That's impressive."

Seraphina shook her head.

"You complain too much."

"I complain the correct amount."

"You complained before he even finished talking."

"Exactly."

Kaien couldn't help smiling.

Some things really hadn't changed.

The academy dining hall was massive.

Rows of long wooden tables filled the room, with hundreds of recruits sitting together while soldiers and instructors moved between them.

The smell of freshly cooked food filled the air.

For many recruits, it was the first peaceful moment they had experienced all day.

Kaien, Riven, and Seraphina sat together near the middle of the hall.

A few recruits from other regions eventually approached.

One boy with messy blond hair sat across from them.

"Mind if we join?"

Riven shrugged.

"Go ahead."

The boy smiled.

"I'm Leon."

Beside him sat a quiet girl with short black hair.

"And I'm Mira."

The last recruit introduced himself as Darius, a tall boy with a confident grin.

"We heard you three are from the Veil Village."

Kaien's expression slightly changed.

"Yeah."

Leon leaned forward.

"What was it like?"

The table became quieter.

"What?"

"The attack."

A pause.

"You were there, right?"

Kaien looked down at his food.

"Yeah."

Darius shook his head.

"I can't imagine."

"One of the instructors said the breach was the first time anyone got through in hundreds of years."

Riven nodded.

"It was."

Mira looked at Kaien.

"What happened?"

The question was simple.

Curious.

Not cruel.

But the moment the words reached him...

Something inside Kaien stopped.

The dining hall disappeared.

The voices around him faded.

Suddenly he wasn't sitting in the academy.

He was back there.

The collapsing house.

His mother's voice.

"Go."

The sound of his own screaming.

"NO!"

His father's arms carrying him away.

The feeling of leaving her behind.

His chest tightened.

His stomach twisted.

The smell of smoke.

The screams.

The flames.

Everything returned at once.

Kaien covered his mouth.

His breathing became uneven.

"Kaien?"

Seraphina noticed immediately.

"Kaien?"

He stood suddenly.

The chair scraped loudly against the floor.

Everyone nearby looked over.

"I..."

He couldn't finish.

His body moved before his mind could.

He rushed out of the dining hall.

Kaien barely reached the bathroom.

He grabbed the sink.

His body shook.

Then he collapsed forward.

The memories came out violently.

Not just sadness.

Not just pain.

Something deeper.

Something he couldn't explain.

When it finally stopped...

He remained there, staring at the floor.

Silence.

His hands trembled.

"...What's wrong with me?"

His voice echoed against the empty walls.

He slowly lifted his head.

His reflection stared back.

A tired eighteen-year-old soldier-in-training.

Someone who wanted revenge.

Someone who claimed he was ready for war.

But the moment someone asked about it...

He broke.

"I can't even talk about it."

He gripped the sink.

"How am I supposed to fight them..."

"If I can't even remember what happened?"

His reflection gave no answer.

Only silence.

Meanwhile, back in the dining hall...

The conversation had become uncomfortable.

A few recruits whispered.

"Did he seriously just leave?"

"That was dramatic."

"He acted like some kind of tragic hero."

Another recruit laughed.

"He probably just wanted everyone to think he's dangerous."

"Yeah."

"The whole 'I'll destroy their nation' thing earlier?"

"Who talks like that?"

"He thinks he's some legendary warrior."

Riven's expression darkened.

"What did you say?"

The recruit looked over.

"What?"

"You heard me."

Riven leaned forward.

"You weren't there."

"You don't know what he lost."

The recruit shrugged.

"Neither were you."

Riven's hand tightened.

"I was."

The table went quiet.

"I saw what happened."

His voice became colder.

"I saw people running."

"I saw families torn apart."

"I saw people lose everything."

"So don't sit there acting like you understand."

Seraphina also stood.

Her calm expression had disappeared.

"You think someone would pretend to carry that kind of pain?"

Nobody answered.

Riven continued.

"Kaien isn't trying to look cool."

"He's trying to survive."

The recruits looked away.

For a moment, nobody said anything.

Then...

The entire room became quiet for another reason.

Seraphina had stepped forward.

Several boys who had been mocking Kaien suddenly stopped talking.

One whispered,

"..."

Another blinked.

"Wait..."

The tension immediately disappeared.

Even the recruits who had been laughing suddenly found themselves speechless.

Riven noticed.

He sighed.

"Oh no."

Seraphina looked confused.

"What?"

"Nothing."

One recruit cleared his throat.

"Uh..."

"Anyway."

Another nodded quickly.

"Yeah."

"Exactly."

The same boys who had been mocking Kaien moments ago suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable.

Seraphina narrowed her eyes.

"What?"

Riven shook his head.

"Nothing."

He leaned closer.

"Your existence just defeated their ability to argue."

She frowned.

"That makes no sense."

"It does to them."

Seraphina rolled her eyes.

The moment was almost enough to make Riven laugh.

Almost.

But then they remembered.

Kaien was still gone.

A few minutes later...

Kaien splashed water onto his face.

He stared at himself again.

The person looking back felt like a stranger.

He had spent three years training.

Three years preparing.

Three years convincing himself he was ready.

But maybe...

Some wounds didn't disappear.

They simply waited.

He wiped his face.

Then he looked toward the bathroom door.

His friends were probably waiting.

He didn't want them to worry.

So he took a deep breath.

Straightened his uniform.

And walked out.

When he returned to the dining hall...

Riven immediately looked up.

"There he is."

Kaien sat down quietly.

"I'm sorry."

Riven shook his head.

"Don't apologize."

Seraphina nodded.

"You don't have to explain everything."

Kaien looked at them.

For a moment...

He remembered the day they promised they would meet again.

The day everything changed.

Three years later...

They were still there.

The only people who understood.

And as the three friends sat together beneath the academy lights...

None of them realized that tomorrow's training would be the beginning of something far greater than they imagined.

Because the army wasn't only going to test their strength.

It was going to reveal who they truly were.