Ship dawn arrived with a cold, merciless glow.
The G.A.M.B.I.T.'s internal lights rose from deep indigo to stark white, sliding across the cadet barracks like a judgment passed by an indifferent god. An automated voice, too cheerful for what it announced, filled every hall.
"Ship dawn. All cadets to Training Concourse Zero-One. Failure to report will result in disciplinary action. Attendance mandatory."
Danny opened his eyes instantly. No grogginess. No hesitation. The lingering echoes of his transformation kept his senses sharp, even half-asleep. A faint gold shimmer traveled across his skin before he forced it down—he didn't know what counted as cheating here.
Swift was already awake, stretching with precise discipline, tail folded neatly around him. His breath moved in calculated intervals like a martial artist ready for battle.
Jake fell off his bunk and hit the floor so hard the metal groaned. "Ow," he mumbled into the floor, "I am not built for mornings."
Shadeclaw was hanging upside-down from a ceiling pipe, blinking awake like this was the most obvious sleeping position ever invented.
Jade rubbed his temples. "Military ship at dawn. Love that."
Mira sat up silently, already dressed, hair tied back, notebook tucked into her uniform. Her precision almost made Danny feel disorganized.
They gathered in the hall, a rough cluster of nerves and readiness.
"Let's go," Danny said softly.
They walked.
And it began.
Training Concourse Zero-One was enormous—far larger than any facility Danny had imagined. The ceiling stretched hundreds of meters overhead, reinforced with gravitational supports. Holographic emitters poised to simulate weather, terrain, or entire worlds hung like dormant stars. Combat grids lay etched into the floor in concentric squares.
Hundreds of cadets from dozens of species stood in loose formation, murmuring nervously.
Then everything fell silent.
A heavy metal door slammed open with such force the deck vibrated.
What stepped through was not a man.
It was a force.
Nine feet tall. Broad as a shuttle hull. Fur black and silver, muscles layered beneath like plates of living armor. Cybernetic implants gleamed across the right side of his skull and down his arm. His jaw was square stone sculpted with violence.
His voice dropped from the air like a thunderhead collapsing.
"LISTEN. UP."
Every cadet straightened instantly.
"I am Staff Sergeant Veldrak Sorn," he growled, pacing before them like a predator surveying a field of prey. "For the next fifty MONTHS—your tiny, fragile lives belong to ME."
Jake whimpered.
Swift's spine stiffened.
Shadeclaw smiled.
Sorn continued:
"I don't care where you're from. I don't care how strong you think you are. I don't care if you fought in some tournament, or beat some champion, or crawled out of your planet's mud with dreams of glory."
He stopped.
Right in front of Danny.
Even though Danny was tall, Sorn was taller—massive—imposing.
"And I don't care if you're a dragon," Sorn snarled. "Even YOU, sunshine."
Danny swallowed. Hard.
Jade snorted a laugh under his breath.
Sorn teleported in front of him.
Not moved. Not stepped. Teleported. A nine-foot cyber-gorilla blur.
"Do we have a comedian?" Sorn roared.
Jade's smirk died instantly. "No, Staff Sergeant!"
"GOOD. Because I haven't laughed in thirty-seven years and I don't intend to START NOW."
He turned and stomped back into position.
"Warm-up begins NOW."
Gravity slammed downward.
Cadets hit the floor.
Danny staggered. Jake collapsed. Mira braced against the wall. Jade cursed. Shadeclaw landed on all fours, tail flicking with excitement. Swift adjusted instantly, breathing deeper to compensate.
"Run laps!" Sorn barked.
The gravity increased again.
Danny forced his legs to move. Jake dragged himself forward like the floor was oil. Swift maintained perfect stride. Mira stayed focused, using momentum to stay upright. Jade staggered but refused to fall. Shadeclaw sprinted like a shadow-wolf on the hunt.
Sorn appeared beside Jake.
"YOU CALL THAT RUNNING, BRONZE BABY?! MOVE THOSE LEGS!"
Jake screamed incoherently and flailed faster.
Next came push-ups under shifting gravity, then drone-dodging drills. Shockbatons crackled across the field. A drone zapped Jade; he swore violently. Another targeted Mira; she flipped it with surprising precision. Swift flowed like a trained warrior through every strike.
Danny held back—instinctively pushing down every surge of creation energy to avoid blasting equipment apart.
Shadeclaw was clearly enjoying himself.
One hour later, half the cadets lay on the floor barely conscious.
Sorn walked through the carnage like examining produce at a market.
"You six," he said, pointing at Danny, Swift, Jake, Jade, Mira, and Shadeclaw. "Front and center."
They staggered into a line.
Sorn studied them with eyes like molten iron.
"Golden Dragon. Silver Dragon. Bronze Dragon. Chi-Brawler. Shadow Assassin. Quiet Knife."
Mira blinked. "Is that… me?"
"Yes," Sorn barked. "You stab things quietly. It's a compliment."
Mira nodded, unsure.
Sorn snorted.
"You six are going to be a PROBLEM. You're strong. You're talented. You're dangerous. Which means you are MY special project."
Jake mouthed: "We're doomed."
Sorn leaned down until his breath nearly incinerated their eyebrows.
"This is not a school. This is a forge. I don't forge spoons."
Shadeclaw grinned. "I accept this suffering."
"SHUT UP."
Shadeclaw shut up.
Sorn raised his whistle.
"Warm-up is OVER!" he bellowed. "REAL training starts NOW!"
The lights snapped to red.
The gravity shifted again.
Drones descended by the dozens.
A battle simulation grid ignited across the floor.
Jake screamed.
Swift drew a breath and braced.
Mira tightened her grip on her training stave.
Jade cracked his knuckles.
Shadeclaw hissed in anticipation.
Danny felt creation pulse under his skin—and for the first time since the tournament, he embraced it.
Sorn roared:
"WELCOME TO HELL, CADETS!"
Everything exploded into motion.