"Humans are at the bottom of the power scale. Inherently weaker than the other races," the sergeant continued.
"You will be dominated, beaten, and left behind. The only thing that will keep you from being trampled underfoot is your will. And let me be clear," his eyes hardened, "weak wills will end up as cannon fodder."
The silence deepened, and at this point, many had begun trembling in their seats. The man's words were beyond blunt. They were going to hell.
Darnell's cold eyes settled on the ones seated in the front row, stopping on Aurora as he sighted her white hair.
"And thanks to the brilliant workings of our magnanimous Apex," Darnell sneered slightly, "it's going to be worse this time around. They'll be gunning for you. For all of you."
His eyes were weirdly more focused on Aurora, Nate, and Lucas, his disdain obvious.
Nate felt a flicker of tension spread through the room, but he only grinned wider. Lucas, however, kept his expression neutral, his sharp eyes taking everything in.
Aurora's fiery eyes locked onto the man, unmoved. Her gaze showed not even a flicker of fear.
Darnell's voice became sharper.
"Here's a piece of advice," Darnell said, his voice dropping to a cold tone. "Don't stand out. Keep your heads down if you want to survive."
He let that hang in the air for a beat before stepping back from the podium.
"That is all."
With that, he turned on his heel and marched out of the hall, leaving the recruits to sit in suffocating silence.
"Man, who pissed in his rations this morning?"
Nate's words were supposed to be low, but the silence made them carry across the entire hall, heard by all.
Despite the tense situation, he still got a few laughs and many forced smiles. It had been funny, but there was nothing that could get rid of the fear surging through them.
Normally, in a gathering of the leaders of the divisions, people from different families of the human domain, there would be tension, but none of them could think about that right now.
The airship abruptly came to a stop in front of a massive portal. Black thunder filled the surroundings, the clouds chaotic.
It was followed by another wave of airships appearing behind them, each one carrying the other students of the academy.
After a short and brief scan, they were each allowed in, and then, the walls of the hall disappeared, showing the recruits the world that unfolded.
It wasn't beautiful. Instead, it was a sight that intensified the fears in each one of them.
Black thunder crackled across the skies, its light radiating off the large numbers of floating islands that dotted the sky.
The atmosphere was dark and gloomy, as though the military was making it perfectly clear that they were not here for fun.
As the airships cut through the skies, they suddenly split, moving towards different floating islands.
The gazes of Nate and the others glinted as their airship brought them to the highest floating island.
They landed on a large platform filled with other airships, whose occupants had already started disembarking.
The lights in the hall suddenly turned off, and an AI voice sounded, urging them to disembark.
"Let's go!"
Nate pulled Lucas, much to the latter's dismay, and after moving through the halls, they finally disembarked, only to be stopped in their tracks by a human soldier whose hardened face made even Nate take a pause.
"Form up."
It sounded like an order that left no room for refusal, dousing Nate's excitement like water on flames.
Nate sighed before stepping forward with Lucas and standing to the side. Soon enough, the other recruits disembarked, receiving the same order from the man and forming up in an orderly fashion.
Seeing as they were all present, the man's aura suddenly spread out, enveloping every one of them like an unseen weight.
"My name is Drill Sergeant Kosher, and I shall be addressed as Drill Sergeant. I will lead you towards where you will all be addressed. You must maintain this formation, follow my footsteps, and never stray. Am I clear?" His aura pressed down on each one of them.
"Y-yes,"
Many answered reluctantly, unsure of the situation.
"Did I stutter?"
"Yes!"
The weight intensified.
"Yes, Drill Sergeant!" they bellowed.
Kosher nodded, satisfied. Then he turned, his steps swift as he started leading the recruits. As they walked, they caught sight of different races being led towards the same direction.
Leaving the landing area, the atmosphere only grew heavier. The recruits managed to follow orders, matching the steps of the drill sergeant. Soon, they caught sight of a very large auditorium with different openings at various parts.
As they entered, the recruits were greeted by a striking sight: youths of sixteen different races, each distinct in appearance and aura, gathered in precise formations around the vast arena.
Every group was led by a drill sergeant from their respective race, their stern expressions mirroring the gravity of the occasion.
The recruits' gazes were drawn to the empty podium at the center of the coliseum. But as they turned their attention back to their surroundings, they realized that each of their drill sergeants had silently vanished, leaving the recruits standing alone.
While many of them wondered where they had gone, the humans weren't given such respite.
Bloodlust, so thick and intense, slammed into the human youths. As they turned, many of them cursed under their breath. Of all the races that could be beside them, it had to be the vampyros!
The vampyros youths' crimson eyes bore into the human youths like predators looking at prey, their bloodlust bleeding into the air.
The metallic stench of blood assaulted their nostrils, an intense chill crawling up their spines.
Humanity and vampyros. The tension between their races could not be explained in words. The Blood Queen had personally declared humanity their enemy, stating that they entered into their lands and slaughtered their people.
Naturally, this hatred was carried by all members of the vampyros race.
The human youths had heard about this only in their last days at the academy when learning about which races to steer clear of and why.
The vampyros had been number one, and the Dimensari number two.
But lo and behold, another wave of killing intent slammed into them, and as they turned, their eyes landed on the Dimensari youths, gazing at them as though looking at their life-long enemies.