Chapter 2: Break Them or Be Broken
Fort Moore, Georgia
Week 1 – Basic Combat Training
It started the moment the bus door hissed open.
"GET THE HELL OFF MY BUS!"
The voice was thunder. Zane didn't even see the drill sergeant's face before the world turned into a blur of screaming and motion. Recruits scrambled, fell, tripped. One kid lost his duffel and went back for it—he got lit up so hard by two more drill sergeants that Zane felt it in his own bones.
He didn't move fast.
He moved right.
Deliberate. Focused. Eyes forward.
"You think this is the Boy Scouts, princess?!" one drill sergeant screamed into a recruit's face. "You just bought a one-way ticket to the United States f*ing Army!"
Zane stood straight, pack strapped, boots clean. His heart was steady. Not from courage—from training. He'd prepped for this for two years straight. While others were on TikTok or chasing girls, he was doing rucks, pull-ups, running through mud with a weight vest and whispering one word under his breath:
"Delta."
Week 2
Zane didn't talk much. Most of the guys figured he was just quiet. Some thought he was weird. They all figured out pretty quick not to challenge him.
He crushed the PT test.
Perfect push-ups.
2-mile run under 12:00.
Over 90 sit-ups. No sweat.
Drill Sergeant Mackey took notice.
"You Cross?"
"Yes, Drill Sergeant!"
"You a robot or somethin'? Or you just hate comfort that much?"
"No excuse, Drill Sergeant!"
Mackey smirked. "Well, keep leading from the front, robot-boy. I like robots."
Week 4 – Weapons Qualification
The first time Zane touched the M4, it felt like an extension of his own body. Not because he was some video game kid or gun-obsessed fool.
Because he respected it.
His dad taught him to shoot a rusted AR at ten years old. Taught him the rules. Clean your weapon like it's your lifeline—because it is. Never aim at something you don't plan to destroy.
Zane zeroed in fast. 38 out of 40.
Mackey watched through binoculars. "Goddamn. This kid's dialed in."
Some recruits were celebrating after hitting 32 and barely qualifying. Zane said nothing. Just stripped and cleaned his rifle while the rest talked.
"Yo Cross," one recruit, Wyatt, walked over. "You ever smile?"
Zane didn't look up. "When the mission's done."
Week 6 – The Forge
Ruck. Rain. No sleep. No food. 45 miles over four days.
The Forge was designed to break men. And it did. Three dropped from heat exhaustion. Two quit. One sprained his ankle and cried until medevac.
Zane?
Zane marched on a bloody blister and a busted knee.
He carried another recruit's gear without being asked.
He slept for 20 minutes in the mud and woke up like a switch flipped.
He wanted the pain. It made him feel sharper.
End of Week 8 – Graduation Approaching
Mackey called him into the office.
"You ever think about Rangers, Cross?"
"No, Drill Sergeant."
"Why not?"
"I'm not stopping there."
Mackey leaned back in his chair. "Delta?"
"Yes, Drill Sergeant."
Mackey stared for a moment. Then nodded slowly.
"Then keep doing what you're doing. But know this — if you make it, you won't come back the same."
Zane just said, "Good."