Ethan's eyes drifted away from the glowing panel, his thoughts pulled back to Mark's words from their earlier training.
"Your body's already beyond average. More than enough to form the core. All that's left—is your decision."
And that was before today.
He could still feel the aftershocks of the sudden 20-point injection coursing through his system. His limbs tingled, the air around him felt thin, and every breath reminded him of what it cost.
That kind of pain—the searing, body-breaking kind—wasn't something a person forgot. It wasn't just physical. It clawed into his nerves, tore through every cell, and rebuilt him from the inside out. Like being burned alive just to emerge as something new.
It made him shiver.
But then… something settled in his gut.
A thought that wouldn't leave.
'If I've already survived it once,' he told himself, jaw clenching, 'then why stop here?'
The corners of his mouth twitched into a crooked smile. Not from arrogance.
From hunger.
