-Vaughn Blackmore:
Training always starts the same way, but it never feels the same twice.
There's a kind of pressure that builds in the seconds before the instructor even gives the command, like the entire field is holding its breath without meaning to. The ground feels harder under my boots today, or maybe it's just me noticing it more.
My body is already warm from earlier drills, muscles slightly tight in that familiar way that tells me I've been working too long without enough rest, but I don't slow down. I don't adjust. I just moved into position with the others, cap pulled low like always, keeping everything contained the way it needs to be.
The instructor's voice cuts through the air, and everything snaps into motion.
"Start!"
And just like that, the world becomes movement.
