Chapter 1 - Eleven Seconds
Brody Knox and Ethan Vance kicked Lieutenant Avery Hale at the same time.
One strike came from the left.
The other from the right.
Avery hit the combat floor hard enough for the impact to echo through the training bay.
Three hundred Navy SEALs fell silent.
Brody stood over her, massive and confident, one boot still planted near her shoulder.
“Stay down, Lieutenant.”
Avery placed one palm against the floor.
Her breathing remained even.
She pushed herself upright slowly, dust clinging to her olive training shirt and camouflage pants.
Her eyes moved from Brody to Ethan.
Then to the narrow space between them.
“You first.”
Brody charged.
Ethan moved from the opposite angle, attempting to trap her between them.
Avery stepped forward instead of retreating.
She slipped into the gap at the exact moment their paths crossed, redirected Brody’s shoulder across Ethan’s line, and let their combined momentum turn against them.
The two men collided.
Before either recovered, Avery dropped low, hooked Brody’s base, and sent him onto the mat with a controlled rotation.
Ethan stepped in.
She had already read the movement.
One sweep removed his balance. He dropped to one knee, rolled, and remained down.
Eleven seconds after Avery hit the floor, both men were unable to continue.
She stood between them with her hands loose at her sides.
Master Chief Jack Reardon opened the black evaluation notebook in his hands.
“Now you know why she was invited.”
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No one applauded.
The silence carried more respect than noise ever could.
