The third and final day of the Selection had begun like a storm hiding behind calm clouds. The tension was thick—cadets moved with caution, nerves on edge, eyes sharp. Everyone knew that by the end of this day, only the best would remain.
But just ten hours into the day, the forest changed.
A deep, unnatural rumble echoed across the zone. Birds took flight in panic. Beasts howled and retreated. The ground shuddered.
Then—
BOOM!
A towering pillar of dark energy erupted from the center of the Selection zone, so massive it pierced the sky, blotting out the sun in its radius. Its darkness pulsed and crackled like lightning trapped in a void. The entire zone fell silent as every single cadet turned toward the phenomenon.
Even those hidden away in caves, under barriers, or far in the outer zones saw it—there was no avoiding it.
Whispers rose.
As most cadets wondered if this was part of the selection.
