CHAPTER 34: CHAPTER 34 — NEW BURDEN

Bright walked through the dim hallway leading out of the underground chamber, the air still humming around him. Every step made his senses sharpen, adjust, re-calculate. The world hadn’t changed.

He had.

Duncan and the others eventually dispersed, whispering among themselves. Some stared at him with awe. Others with disbelief.

But all of them understood one thing now:

Bright Morgan was no longer a recruit.

And soon, the officers made it official.

The squad assembly area that was also repurposed for administration smelled of dust, metal, and worn boots. A Staff Sergeant—square-jawed, voice like a dropped anvil—marched up to Bright with a tablet in hand.

"Recruit Morgan," he barked.

Bright straightened.

Or tried to—his body still trembled with leftover energy.

"Yes, sir."

"Effective immediately, by order of Training Command..." The Staff Sergeant looked up, eyes narrowing. "You are promoted to Private Morgan, provisional handler of five fledglings."

The words landed like stones in Bright’s chest.

Private.

His first real rank.

The Staff Sergeant continued, "Your performance in the Tier-2 Shroud was flagged. Your advancement speed was... unprecedented. Too fast, some say."

He leaned closer.

"But Training Command confirmed it: you’re an Initiate. That alone qualifies you for leadership trials."

The tablet beeped. Promotion sealed.

Bright swallowed. "...Five fledglings? Sir, I just—"

"Good." The man stepped back. "Learn fast. Or they die."

Then he turned on his heel and left.

Bright stood frozen.

Private Morgan.

Handler.

Five lives.

He hadn’t even fully stabilized his core yet.

Duncan approached him, scratching his head. "Crazy, huh? You really catching up to Roegan now."

Bright blinked. "What? Roegan was a Captain—"

"No." Duncan snorted. "Man just acted like one."

Bessia who got there unexpectedly added, "He was a Lance Corporal, Bright. One step above a private. He barked commands because there was no one else to do it."

Bright felt something twist inside.

Roegan—dead now—had always seemed larger than life. Competent. Commanding. A natural leader. Bright had followed him without question... , well some questions were asked.

But Roegan had only been two steps above a Recruit.

Just a Lance Corporal.

And he had carried that weight alone.

Bright suddenly understood the burden of rank in a way he never had.

Bright leaned against the wall, breathing slowly.

Initiate.

That word echoed in his skull like a bell.

Most crawlers spent months—even years—trying to fill their core enough to trigger it. Many died before getting close. Others plateaued forever, stuck just below the threshold.

Initiation wasn’t normal advancement.

It was evolution.

It was rare.

It was brutal.

People celebrated if a squad produced one Initiate per year.

But his squad...

Six of them were almost ready.

Adam’s cognition sharpening daily.

Duncan’s tank-like body mutating from constant combat.

Silas and Bessia conserving merit like long-term investors.

Even the fledglings were growing faster than normal trainees.

It was unnatural.

Impossible.

Which meant—

It only happened because of that Tier-2 catastrophe.

Because of the foreign interference Bright still couldn’t explain.

A presence that had bent fate so violently that their growth skyrocketed.

Bright touched his chest where his core now rested—heavy, warm, powerful.

Without that intervention...

None of them would be standing here.

Many would be dead.

He would still be a recruit.

The reality hit him again:

Reaching Initiate wasn’t just hard.

It was nearly impossible.

And he had done it at fifteen.

As Bright walked across the compound, he thought about the ranks he knew now.

He was a Private.

Above him were Lance Corporals, Corporals, Sergeants... all the way up to Sergeant Major.

Those were the people who shaped the enlisted.

Then the officers—Second Lieutenants, First Lieutenants, Captains.

Bright frowned.

He didn’t know much about anything beyond Captain.

Not really.

Recruits weren’t taught that far.

Only rumors.

Whispers.

"You don’t need to know higher ranks if you never meet them," Roegan once said.

Now it made sense.

The higher officers stayed far away from the training grounds.

Far away from cannon fodder like them.

Bright looked at his new insignia—simple, small, but heavier than any equipment he’d ever carried.

Private Morgan.

He belonged to the structure now.

He had expectations.

Responsibilities.

And eyes watching him.

As the sun lowered, painting the east yard in gold, Bright stood in the spot where he first collapsed hours ago.

His core thrummed.

His new rank pressed on his shoulders.

His soul pockets glowed faintly inside him.

One waiting for a companion to fuse with danger sense.

One waiting for his first earned Initiate ability.

And five fledglings—five inexperienced lives—now depended on him.

Bright inhaled shakily.

"Roegan... I get it now," he whispered.

Being strong wasn’t enough.

Being ranked wasn’t enough.

The burden was the lives that followed you.

The lives you had to protect.

Tomorrow, he would meet the fledglings.

Tomorrow, he would begin training as a true soldier.

Tomorrow, he would become someone Roegan would be proud of.

Bright Morgan straightened, the glow of Initiation still pulsing under his skin.

"From Recruit to Private," he murmured.

"From nobody... to someone responsible."

The wind passed through the yard, carrying dust, memories, and the quiet promise of the battles ahead.

Bright turned toward the barracks.

Tomorrow would hurt.

Tomorrow would matter.

Tomorrow, his real path would begin.