The next session began without warning.
Jones entered the training chamber expecting another one-on-one drill. Instead, the platform expanded wider than before, the floor panels locking into place with a low mechanical thrum.
Commander Derick stood at the control deck, eyes fixed on the space below.
"Combat rarely comes one at a time," he said. "If you hesitate choosing a target, you die."
Jones scanned the room.
Three humanoid training droids rose from the floor this time. Identical frames. Identical glow in their eyes. All adaptive.
Jones felt his systems respond automatically—threat assessment, trajectory prediction, optimal strike paths—then he shut most of it down.
*One decision at a time.*
"Same rules?" Jones asked.
Derick nodded. "Controlled force. No excess. Stay standing."
The droids moved together.
Jones shifted instantly, not backward but *through* them, breaking their formation before it could tighten. A strike came from his left—he deflected it and drove a sharp elbow into the joint of the attacking arm. The limb locked up.
He didn't finish it.
Another droid swung from behind.
Jones ducked low, sweeping the unit's legs just hard enough to unbalance it. The third pressed in immediately, learning fast.
Pressure mounted.
Jones' breathing stayed even as he kept moving, never planting his feet for too long. He felt the familiar pull to escalate power, to end it quickly.
He refused.
A strike landed against his shoulder—hard enough to stagger him.
Jones rolled with it, letting momentum carry him sideways instead of resisting. He came up already moving, slamming a controlled blow into the first droid's torso. It powered down mid-motion.
Two left.
They attacked from opposite angles.
Jones narrowed his focus.
*Distance. Timing. Position.*
He baited one forward, stepping just close enough to invite a strike. The moment it committed, he shifted aside and redirected its momentum—sending it crashing into the second unit.
Metal collided.
Jones didn't wait.
He stepped in and struck both units in rapid succession, precise hits to structural weak points. One collapsed immediately. The last tried to recover.
Jones ended it with a final, restrained blow.
Silence returned.
Jones stood alone, chest rising steadily, systems warm but controlled. No alarms. No overload.
Derick descended from the platform and stopped a few meters away.
"You didn't dominate them," Derick said. "You managed them."
Jones nodded slightly. "If I went all out, I'd lose awareness."
"And awareness is what keeps you alive," Derick replied.
Derick turned toward the exit. "Next phase won't be in a controlled room."
Jones' gaze hardened. "Field simulation?"
Derick didn't answer immediately.
"Rest," he said instead. "Tomorrow, we test judgment."
Jones watched him leave.
For the first time, the thought of facing real droids didn't ignite rage in his chest.
It sharpened his focus.