Chapter 10 - THE UNSPOKEN CODE
Master Sergeant Daniel Hayes clicked his pen, reached down to his wooden clipboard, and neatly drew a single horizontal line through the digital zero recorded under Maya Bennett's name in the logbook.
In the space beside it, he did not write a score. Instead, he stamped the sheet with his personal instructor seal and wrote a single word across the entry margin: EXEMPT.
Captain Logan Pierce stepped forward, his face turning red. "What are you doing, Hayes? You can't just pass someone who didn't register a score on the board! The range commander will have your stripes for this!"
Daniel closed his clipboard with a sharp, heavy snap that cut off the captain's protest instantly.
"The range commander signed this authorization sheet two hours before we opened the gates, Captain," Daniel said, his voice cold and absolute. "Operator Bennett wasn't here to qualify on a standard silhouette."
Logan froze, his eyes widening as the title "Operator" echoed across the quiet range pad.
Daniel turned to Maya, raising his hand in a crisp, respectful salute. "Your gear is clear, Operator Bennett. The transport vehicle is waiting for you behind the main tower."
Maya returned the salute with perfect, fluid precision—a gesture that carried a quiet weight that left no doubt about her true pedigree.
"Thank you, Master Sergeant," Maya said softly.
May you like
She picked up her rifle case, slung it neatly across her shoulder, and walked calmly off the shooting pad, passing Captain Pierce and the silent group of soldiers without looking back once.
Daniel stood at the edge of lane seven, watching her form cross the heat-hazed gravel toward the dark armored sedan idling behind the range tower. As the black car pulled away under the harsh sun, Daniel looked downrange one last time at the distant steel target, a quiet nod of deep respect gracing his weathered face before he turned back to reset the line for the next order.
