Due to publishing restrictions with Amazon, the full version of this book and the other books in the series will no longer be available on this platform after June 7, 2024.
“Rain Oren!” Cole's hoarse voice booms from the end of the locker room aisle, silencing the chatter of the other cadets.
Here we go again. I thought today, of all days, they’d give it a rest. My combat uniform and my patience are shredded. My red Primus, first in class, arm band lies at the foot of my locker. The tattered remains are coated in something I know better than to investigate.
I pull in a long drag of the dank air and let my shoulders drop. This is the last time. After today, I’ll never have to endure them again. All I have to do is suck it up, put on the required combat uniform, and pass my trial. Then I’ll be free.
I squeeze the thin metal of the locker door, before releasing my hold and turning around to face him. Cole moves toward me in his predatory stride. His perfectly shined boots thunder across the damp floor beating in time with my pounding heart. The rest of the cadets follow in his wake, moving in to watch the show.
He looks more pissed than normal. But it's expected. He and his followers worked so hard to make me fail. To make sure I never rank first. Cole is supposed to be Primus. No one wants a traitor like me representing our class. What they don’t understand is surviving their attention for the last ten years, made me the best.
“Oren!” Cole’s voice curls my fingers into fists.
I scan the eager faces that surround me. Always so eager. Eager to spill some Oren blood. I can't blame them. They have good reason to hate me. I’m not like them. I’m dangerous, the bad guy.
"Cutting it kinda of close, aren't you?" He says.
I stiffen to keep the tension in my muscles from shaking. Any reaction is a weakness, an invitation to their violence. His narrowed black eyes are a soulless void. Cruel, calculating, and cold. Cole Targe thinks he’s had the last laugh. No one can take their trial without the proper combat uniform. No trial, no graduation. I’d be forced into another year at the academy and Cole would take first place.
"You better get into your gear soon. It'd be a real shame for you to miss your trial." He chuckles and right on cue everyone else’s laughter follows.
I stand tall and give him a hint of a smirk. Cole’s stare widens and his open-mouthed grin turns down in a cruel slash. He hates that he’s never been able to rattle my mask of calm, even when I’m outnumbered and taking a beating. I like making him guess what I'm up to. Making him wonder what’s really going on underneath my unbothered exterior. Besides the unnatural abilities I'm hiding, not too much.
I should thank him for the one thing he taught me: always prepare for any possibility. I reach for the zipper at the neck of my training uniform. Cole flinches at the sudden movement and I can’t help but flash a smile at that. I give the zipper a tug and look over my classmates as I reveal the fresh, crisp combat uniform I wear underneath. Cole's knuckles crack, drawing my attention to see his jaw muscles working overtime.
I pull my arms free and kick my legs out of the jumpsuit, smoothing a hand down the bright red Primus band around my left arm. I’ve been hiding and stealing to survive since I was six years old. And I’m very good at it. I made a little visit to the academy storage as soon as our ranks were announced. This is one of three uniforms I hid around the barracks.
Cole's face flushes red and my legs lock to keep me from backing up. I can't back down, not today. I have to take my trial. I have to get out of here.
An electric hum draws my attention to the rusted speaker mounted high above the locker room exit. My head tilts towards it, ready for the crackling screech of an announcement. I slide my eyes back over to Cole’s. The hard lines between his eyebrows ease as he looks at the speaker and back to me with a questioning gaze. A series of pops have everyone’s eyes turning away from me to the speaker now. The announcement signals it’s time to move out to the arena.
Cole’s dark brows lower into the scowl he wears when he’s trying to figure me out. Trying to understand how I’m just a few steps ahead of everyone else. The truth is, I don’t even understand these abilities. It’s not like I’m psychic. All warrior-born have inherent speed, strength, and endurance. From what I can tell, my warrior abilities and my senses are heightened way above normal, boosted with more power than my classmates.
But these powers are hard to control and grow stronger every day. And although they’ve helped me survive, the added boost can cause some real damage to myself and others. It’s why I can never fight back. I’m already the most hated person in all the regions of Centrum. No need to add unstable freaky super powers to the mix.
I’m just trying to be left alone. I’m not proud of what my family did. I understand my place. I've got to graduate before someone finds out about my powers. Or worse, I turn out to be like the rest of my family and hurt someone.
Cole leans in, slamming my locker door shut behind me. We stand toe to toe. I drop my smirk when my forearms warm, signaling my warrior blades are ready to manifest to this new threat. Cole rubs one hand over his shoulder where his weapon manifests before dropping it to his side. His breath rushes out between clenched teeth as we watch each other. We’re both over six feet tall, but that’s where the similarity ends. Complete contradictions.
He’s the only son of our highly decorated regional general and I’m the last son of a family of disgraced traitors. He’s a tank of muscle, and I’m lean but quick, which is a good thing for me. My white hair and pale gray eyes stand across the spectrum from his.
“Enjoy wearing that, for now.” Cole pinches the red colored band around my arm in a hard twisting motion, grabbing more skin than band.
I tightly hold a bored expression on my face through the burning sting. I know better than to engage. Cole’s a ticking bomb. Just one word from me lights his fuse. It’s not worth my trouble, not today.
“You still have to pass the trial to claim Primus.” Cole says, pulling his hand away and backing up a few steps.
I stay rooted. My arm throbs, and my stomach churns. He turns his back to me, crossing over a couple of benches to join his friends.
“Good luck with that,” he barks out, “you’re going to need it.”
His laughter echoes around the concrete walls as the rest of the class follow him towards the exit. I sag against the lockers and press my palms against the cool metal behind me. The weight of his presence lifts as the drip of the showers tick out my last moments at the academy.
I’ve looked forward to this day for ten years. I will graduate. I will finally be free of my tormentors and the tireless vigil of keeping my powers under control. I'll go home, my family’s home. I’ve dreamed of nothing else since being shipped here. To learn the truth about what happened to them. To figure out if what they did is the reason I have these powers. But first, I’ll face whatever Cole has planned for me. He’s not finished with me yet.
