[Riven's POV]
It was already the third day in the 'training camp'.
And also the third morning without Marcus.....it all felt like waking up in someone else's life.
Riven stared at the empty bed across from him, where Marcus should have been complaining about the Guild's early wake-up calls or making stupid jokes to lighten the mood.
Instead, there was just regulation gray sheets pulled tight with military precision...he was rotated.
The other trainees in the dormitory moved around him like he had some kind of contagious disease.
No one made eye contact, no one spoke unless absolutely necessary. The message was clear: getting close to people here was dangerous.
"Morning, Mr. Duke," Cross said, appearing in the doorway with that calculating smile that made Riven's skin crawl. "Ready for today's equipment readiness assessment?"
Riven sat up, immediately alert.
Cross never called anything by simple names. "Equipment readiness assessment" meant something else entirely.
