Silver Elite

Cross and Ford enter the sparring pit, attracting everyone’s attention. Their fight is brutal and captivating. Roe claims that Ford and Cross are childhood friends, but he points out that Cross has a ruthlessness in him that could override even that. Though Wren doesn’t believe him at first, there are moments throughout the fight where she thinks she glimpses proof that Cross is capable of killing a friend without remorse. When Wren leaves for a bathroom break after the fight, she crosses paths with Cross, who questions her about her conversation with Roe. Wren admits that Roe thinks she wants to sleep with Cross. Before Cross can respond, she rejoins her friends but soon leaves for the barracks. Cross follows her, corners her in the hallway, and they exchange flirtatious banter. Cross is drunk, and Wren, knowing it’s a bad idea to entertain the attraction between them, convinces him to go back to the pit.

Recruits fly to the Point for the next round of drills. They are split into teams and tasked with climbing a five-story building and then jumping to another building without safety gear. Wren, Lyddie, Roe, and another recruit named Jones are team one. Lyddie struggles but makes the climb and jump safely with Wren’s encouragement.