Eight fighters remained in the waiting room. The space that had felt crowded with students now felt almost empty.
Team Soup had claimed a corner. Renna sat with her feet up on a bench, the towel still pressed to one eye but her energy completely restored. Lyra was cleaning her spear with slow strokes. Emric was bent over his notebook, scribbling calculations.
Holden leaned against the wall eating a protein bar.
"Can I have a bite?" Renna asked.
"Get your own."
"You're so mean. I'm injured. I'm a war hero. I deserve a bite."
"You got flash-banged by a guy who throws kitchen knives."
"They were barbed kitchen knives!"
Lyra shook her head without looking up from her spear. "Renna, you've asked him for food four times in the last hour. He's said no four times. If you look at what happened before, a fifth attempt will end just like the others."
"Things don't always have to stay the same!"
"It won't."
