The King's Guard

Chapter 44

The summons came at dawn.

Recruits lined the outer yard in two columns, armour buckled, weapons clutched tighter than usual. Across the training field, veterans of the Shadow Corps waited. Their stances were loose, relaxed, the kind of posture that came from years of surviving real wars. Their armour bore dents, their blades nicks. They weren’t here to prove anything.

Darius stood at the centre. His voice cut through the mist like steel scraping stone.

“Today you face veterans. Capture-the-flag rules. The banner is at the centre. You retrieve it, you win. Real weapons. Wounds will be treated. Death is unlikely. Failure, however, is certain if you hesitate.”

Kael felt Jared’s eyes slide toward him even before the horn blew. Jared’s grin was sharp.

“Finally,” Jared muttered. “A chance to show the difference between children and soldiers.”

Reyna answered flatly, “You’ll trip over your ego before the fight starts.”

“Try to keep up, then,” Jared shot back.

Kyna’s eyes stayed on the veterans. “They aren’t holding back. Not even a little.”

Kael murmured, “Neither should we.”

The horn sounded.

Jared shot forward. “With me!”

“Too soon,” Reyna hissed, but he was already sprinting.

Kael moved after him, Reyna at his shoulder, Kyna flanking. The field stretched wide…barriers, towers, and the black banner swaying at the centre like a dare.

The first clash came fast. Jared swung high at a veteran twice his size. The man deflected it with one hand, the strike reverberating like steel against anvil. Jared stumbled back, breath ragged.

Reyna called, “Left! Cover!”

Kael slid into position, blocking another strike. Kyna blurred forward in a quick shadowstep, her blade grazing the veteran’s arm.

The veteran’s grin widened. “Good reflexes. Shame you’ve no discipline.”

Reyna snarled back, “We’ll see about that.”

Another veteran closed in, sweeping wide. Kael caught the strike but felt the jolt through his bones.

“Hold formation!” Kael shouted.

Jared spat, “I don’t take orders from you!”

“You’ll take a blade through your chest if you keep charging blind,” Reyna snapped.

Jared lunged again, teeth clenched. His strike was parried easily, sending him skidding across the dirt.

The veteran he fought laughed. “Eager pup. No patience.”

Kyna stepped beside Kael. “We can’t win straight on.”

Kael nodded quickly. “So we stall.”

“For what?” Reyna asked, parrying another strike.

“For a chance to break them,” Kael said.

Jared barked a bitter laugh, panting. “We’re already breaking.”

The veteran taunting him smirked. “Division is always the first weakness. You wear it on your sleeves.”

Kael’s jaw tightened. He surged forward, forcing the Rift to stir. Just a spark enough to tilt time slightly. A heartbeat stretched, the veteran’s guard lowered, and Kael’s blade cut across his sleeve. Not deep, but it landed.

The veteran looked down at the mark, then grinned wider. “Interesting. Dangerous. You’ll burn out before you learn.”

Reyna’s eyes snapped to Kael, catching the flicker. She said nothing, but her silence spoke volumes.

The clash dragged on. Veterans pressed them harder, strikes landing heavy. Jared grunted as his guard faltered. Kyna darted in and out, leaving shallow cuts but risking counters. Reyna’s arm bled from a nick, sweat dripping.

Kael shouted, “Fall back, regroup!”

Jared snarled, “No! Push forward!”

The veteran across from him barked a laugh. “Listen to him, and you’ll all die. Listen to the quiet one, and maybe you’ll last another minute.”

Reyna spat, “We’re not here to entertain you.”

“Oh, you are,” the veteran replied, circling. “You’re here to see how far you have to fall before you rise. Or break.”

Kael lunged again, blocking a strike aimed at Reyna. His arms shook under the weight. “We hold together!”

Jared shoved past him. “Get out of my way!”

Kael snapped, “You’re not leading this fight!”

“I should be,” Jared growled, slashing wildly. The veteran dodged with ease and knocked Jared flat with the hilt of his blade.

“You can’t even lead yourself,” the veteran mocked.

Reyna pulled Jared up roughly. “You nearly got cut down.”

“Better than hiding behind him,” Jared spat, jerking his chin at Kael.

Kyna interjected sharply, “Stop wasting breath! They’re watching us tear apart.”

The veteran closest sneered. “Smart one, this. She’ll outlive the lot of you if she learns when to run.”

Kyna’s lips thinned, but she said nothing.

They pressed on. Blades rang. Dust rose. Kael felt every strike in his bones, but he kept his stance.

Reyna gasped, “We’re being dragged apart.”

Kael answered, “Then we close the gap.”

“How?”

“Like this.” He surged forward, striking low. The veteran blocked easily, but the sudden move gave Reyna a clean angle. Her blade skimmed his armour before he shoved her back.

The veteran laughed again. “Better. But still clumsy.”

Another horn blew. The round ended.

Recruits lay sprawled across the field, groaning, bleeding. Veterans barely had scratches. Kael’s squad stood together, battered but upright.

Darius’s voice rang. “Last place.”

Jared bristled. “If they’d followed my lead—”

“Silence,” Darius snapped. “You charged blind. You squandered your squad. You lost.”

Jared’s face flushed. “We all lost.”

“Yes,” Darius said coldly. “But some of you learned why.”

Reyna muttered, “And some didn’t.”

Jared rounded on her. “Say that again.”

Kael stepped forward, voice low. “Enough. We lost. Don’t tear each other apart over it.”

Jared sneered. “You think you can lead? You’re nothing without your Rift.”

Kael’s jaw tightened. “Maybe. But at least I don’t confuse pride with strategy.”

The veterans began filing off, some chuckling. One called back, “Train harder, children. Or next time, don’t bother bringing blades.”

Kael exhaled hard, turning away.

Darius’s tone cut deep. “If you can’t fight together, you’ll die together. Remember that.”

The squad marched back in silence.

Later, in the barracks, the air was thick. Reyna sat on her bunk, rubbing her arm. “Humiliating.”

Kyna leaned against the wall. “We weren’t supposed to win. We were supposed to see the gap.”

“Between us and them?” Reyna asked.

“Between us and each other,” Kyna said softly.

Kael sat on his bunk, staring at his palms. “She’s right. Absolutely right.”

Jared stood by the door, arms crossed, still bristling. “Speak for yourselves. I’ll be ready next time.”

Reyna snapped, “Oh please, shut the hell up. Next time you’ll get us killed.”

He smirked, though his eyes burned. “Maybe I’ll finally be rid of you.”

Kael rose slowly. “Say that again.”

Jared’s lips curled. “Maybe I’ll finally be rid of you.”

Kael almost got rattled, but maintained composure. “I'm sure you had a rift with wisdom since childhood.”

Jared flared up. “Do you mean I'm foolish?”

“Oh, finally someone gets it!”

Jared moved closer to Kael in anger, but Reyna stepped in front of him.

“Stop this. Now!”

The tension crackled. Jared stormed out furiously, his eyes shooting daggers at Kael.

Reyna whispered, “We’re breaking apart.”

Kael sank back onto his bed, voice barely audible. “Lets not act like this hasn't been the case all this while. What a facade.”

“Indeed.”