Lucas’s POV
The recruits stood in a crooked line when Zack brought them into the training ground. Some looked like they hadn’t eaten a full meal in weeks, others puffed up their chests, pretending they were already warriors.
I paced in front of them, my arms crossed, letting my silence do the work. The air was heavy, their eyes following me. Finally, I stopped.
“You think you’re ready,” I said, my voice sharp, cutting across the field. “You think holding a blade or having claws makes you warriors but It doesn’t. Warriors bleed, warriors fall, warriors break and still get back up. That’s the only difference between a fighter and a corpse.”
A few of them shifted uneasily. The young boy, Lior, Zack had told me his name, stood straighter than the rest, though his fists trembled at his side
