Whoops and cheers filled the watchtower. A minute had gone by, but the cadets showed no sign of stopping.

Will clapped along with the rest of them, but his eyes were fixed on Damian's armored legs. His cousin yawned, and with a flash of light, the half-formed mech vanished, and Damian was back in only his CAD suit.

"Aw, man!" Remy lamented at the disappearance of the battlesuit. "It's a pity that we didn't get to see their full manifestation."

"Maybe we would have if the match went on a bit longer," said Victor. "It was a close call near the end."

"It was amazing!" Becca gushed. "Lawson nearly had Kade."

"Hey, props to Kade," Remy shook his head. "He took on both Damian and Lawson together. What a monster!"

"Speaking of," Will looked at Remy and Victor, "you two lost the bet. It's time to pay up."

Remy suddenly became very interested in his slate. "Oh, would you look at the time. I really must get going. Isn't that right, Vic?"

"Yeah, you know how it is," said Victor. "Busy, busy, busy."

Will clamped down on both of their shoulders before they could get away. "Let's discuss the terms of your payment. I'm sure we can work something out."

A chime rang from the overhead speakers. Instructor Yacob spoke over the intercom. "Attention all cadets, assemble near the Red team base for debriefing."

"Wow, I guess we better hurry up," said Remy, and Will shook his head. They got in line with the rest of the cadets and took the elevator down. The jog towards the Red team base was intense. The streets were trashed after the brief battle. Walls were scorched black, and the roads were torn up. The smell of burnt metal stung their nostrils, and Becca sneezed.

Will followed the class around the bend, and they found themselves before the Red team's home base. Only rubble was left of the building. Without a word, the cadets fell into formation. The drills were ingrained into them by now, and Will stood at attention facing the three remaining members of the arena battle.

Damian, Lawson, and Kade stood in front of them, and the cadets held their breath. There was a newfound respect for their instructors after finally watching them in battle. The hero worship was plain to see in some of the cadets' eyes.

Damian looked pleased with the attention. He thumbed his blades with a small smile on his face. Will's eyelids twitched; he really needed to get Damian talking about how he got his battlesuit. He doubted that his cousin would reveal much, but just the same, he had to ask him face to face.

Beside Damian was Lawson, who was finally out of her armor. The ivory mech stood behind her with its chassis open. It was slowly closing itself while Lawson scanned the formation for any errors.

Kade was standing off to the side with his arms folded in front of him. He was looking at his younger brother standing in the front row. The two brothers shared a nod.

Lawson's mech shut itself with an audible click, and everyone's attention snapped to her.

"At ease," said Lawson finally, and the cadets relaxed.

"So, how was your first live arena battle? I doubt many of you have stepped foot onto the ground stage of a mech battle," she waved at the rubble around them. "Take in the view, recruits. Someday this might be your reality, whether it is on the front lines or taking your place in the circuits. In either case, you could take away some crucial lessons from today. We will review today's match and see how you can apply it to your skills and tactics."

Lawson gestured to Captain Kade. "And to give us some expert insight, we have a special guest with us today, Captain Arman Kade. You've seen what he can do on the battlefield. Listen well, and you might learn something valuable today."

Lawson turned to Captain Kade, who offered her a brief nod.

"Appreciate the introduction, Instructor Lawson," he spoke with a deep, authoritative tone as he glanced at the gathered cadets. "It's fantastic to see such a dedicated group of recruits, and I'm happy to offer my perspective on today's exercise. Especially the part where we brought a building on top of our heads. That was pretty interesting."

There were a few restrained chuckles from the cadets. Remy snorted under his breath, and Will gave a quirk of a smile.

"Yes," said Lawson. "On that note, we can begin our lesson. Let me start by asking you this: What happened in the final clash? How did I manage to restrain Captain Kade?"

She stared at the standing cadets. "Anyone?"

Valerie's hand shot up, and Lawson nodded towards her.

"Signature modulation, Ma'am," said Valerie.

"Correct," said Lawson. "Today, we will go into signature control, the third and final path in psionics."

"As you know, everyone has their own personal signature. It is the different ways our channels interact and connect with the layers of subspace. These connections are not static but dynamic, continuously shifting around along with biological processes within our bodies. Therefore, a signature is unique to the individual. No two are alike."

"So, what is signature control? It is the ability to deliberately make or break these connections and access different layers of subspace. For example..."

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Lawson's field pulsed, and something ascended from the depths of subspace like a submerged iceberg slowly resurfacing from under the ocean.

Will flinched as the pulse crashed into his field, which flared in response. It was almost a protective instinct as his body felt the foreign signature. Remy and Becca did the same, and so did the rest of the cadets. A few of them were tottering on their feet.

Damian stepped forward and started walking among the recruits. He stopped by a few students who looked like they wanted to throw up. "Are you having trouble staying on your feet, cadet?"

"No, Sir!" came the automatic response.

"Then stand up straight, recruit! Shoulders back, chest out!" barked Damian. "Use your field to shield yourself."

Will was drenched in cold sweat as the pulse intensified. The pulse tried to worm its way into his body, but his field formed a wall around him, blocking the invading force. He had instinctively been doing the same between himself and the shard, but now he could truly articulate what was going on.

The signatures connected different subspaces with an 'energy differential'. When two subspaces connected, there would naturally be a transfer of energy, like when you touch a hot stove or grab a live wire.

This was a rough analogy. What was really happening was that each subspace had different fundamental forces governing it. When each subspace made a sudden connection, there was a clash between these laws.

The subspaces would then find a new equilibrium. This was what was happening to his channels. They were forcibly being converted to a new configuration.

But that wasn't all; he had a feeling that the psions themselves were being annihilated with each interaction. They would attack each other until only one side was left. Will was pretty sure that it wouldn't be him. Lawson's reserves felt limitless. She was displaying only a fraction of her prowess. This iceberg went a lot deeper than what was being displayed.

Lawson scanned the sweating cadets. "What you are feeling is my mana signature trying to overwrite your own. Fight it with your field. Stabilize your signature."

The radiation bored into him, and Will gritted his teeth. He felt his right knee itch. Lawson ramped up the pressure until most students were having trouble standing.

"The deeper your connection to the subspace, the easier time you would have to defend yourself. But that isn't all you can do."

Lawson's field shifted, and Will felt cool, refreshing sensations of spring that oddly reminded him of the Hallucia Mountains. The field shifted again, and he was back in the undercity, and then it shifted to the bustling floors of the Tower. Lawson's signature went through a rapid set of changes, and Will caught brief sensations of being next to a roaring fire, inside a mech, and finally, the prickling sensation came back again. He realized that this was the same radiation that he had felt in the exclusionary zone.

"This is signature modulation," said Lawson as she watched the cadets gasping for breath. "Conversion goes both ways. You can mimic various signatures, replicating those of locations, individuals, and objects. Alternatively, you can align them with your own signature, essentially making them mirror yours. This is how battle suits are made."

Lawson indicated at Kade and Damian. "It is a very involved and painstaking process to convert an object's mana signature to your own. Unfortunately, this is not something that we can teach over this course. The small training window wouldn't allow us enough time. So, what we are going to do is the next best thing. We are going to teach you how to defend yourself from signature conversion, which is a lot easier process. Captain Kade, if you will."

Arman nodded and looked around at the crowd. "I would need a volunteer. Let's see, how about this gentleman right here?"

He pointed towards his brother, and Rowan's eyebrows twitched. He sullenly walked forward towards his older brother who smiled happily and thumped him on the back. Arman was half a foot taller than Rowan, and he pulled his little brother into a side hug with one arm. Rowan tried to keep his face even, but the tips of his ears went red.

Remy snorted. "I never thought I would see the day our little Kade be treated like a toddler."

"They don't get to see each other much," said Becca. "Arman is always out of the tower and Kade stuck inside."

"Riveting family history, Becca, but I don't really care. Kade is still a Kade."

"Who was gushing over a Kade during the match?" asked Becca.

"That's different," Remy protested. "Right Will?"

"Yeah," Will let out a breath, suddenly missing home as he stared at the two brothers.

Arman had Rowan take a wide stance beside him. When he was satisfied with the positioning, he addressed the rest of the class.

"There isn't enough time to go into proper signature control, so we will go with a close second."

He raised his hands and gave a sharp clap. The sound rang like a gunshot, and Will felt a short, intense pulse coming from Arman. It brushed aside Lawson's field in a flash. The pulse was short and intense, but it didn't last long. Lawson's field snapped back almost immediately after the pulse faded.

"What I just did was forcibly burrow deeper into the subspace than I can naturally connect to on my own. The connection collapses catastrophically, and we can disrupt all hostile fields."

"This is a brute force method. You need a strong body and robust channels if you want to attempt this," Captain Kade stated. "Now remember, with this method, you cannot modulate your signature, nor can you convert an object's signature to match your own. But in terms of defending yourself, it is perfect."

"Now, how do we forcibly connect to the subspace? The method is pretty simple. You have to—"

Arman paused when he spotted a soldier rushing towards the class at a brisk pace. He saluted Arman and handed him a datapad. Captain Kade glanced at the report for a solid minute before nodding grimly.

"Unfortunately, the class ends here," said Captain Kade. He turned towards the other two instructors. "I have orders to move. Lawson, Ryder, we can reschedule dates accordingly."

Captain Kade gave them a curt nod and left the training arena along with the other officer. Lawson and Damian looked stunned at the sudden departure.

"What was that?" Remy whispered.

Will frowned when he heard another set of hurried footsteps. Someone wearing a white exosuit made their way towards Damian.

"That's Instructor Yacob," said Becca. "What's he in a hurry for?"

Yacob stepped towards the instructors and began a hurried conversation. Damian's frown deepened with each passing second, and Lawson was breathing heavily.

"What's gotten into them?" asked Remy.

"Something must have happened," said Will slowly. "Something serious."

"The Revenant?" suggested Becca.

"I doubt there was another attack," said Will.

"Then what could it be?" Remy wondered.

"In any case, the military is being mobilized," said Will.

Yacob had finished his message, and their instructors stood in silence for a moment. Lawson finally turned towards the gathered cadets. "We will be ending class today. All the instructors will be having a meeting. You are free for the rest of the day. Class dismissed."

The cadets looked around, confused, but the trio ignored them and resumed their conversation.

"What the hell?" whispered Remy. "They didn't even bother for a proper dismissal."

"You know what this means, right?" said Becca suddenly.

"What?" asked Will.

"All the instructors are going to be busy," said Becca. "Damian is going to be busy. We can finally visit the pub."

Will's eyes widened. "That's right!"

He had been waiting for this for days, and finally, he would get to visit the pilot's bar.

"Hot damn!" said Remy. "Good thinking, Becca. You ready, Will?"

"Yes," said Will determinedly. "Let's go get some answers."