The pact was sealed, but the reality of the Death March was an immediate, brutal test. The air inside Even's cave, once a temporary sanctuary, now felt like a cage. Outside, the jungle teemed with predators, both human and animal, all sensing the presence of the two vulnerable boys. Their five-year ascent had begun with pain and strategy.
1. The Healing of The Unseen Edge (Month 1-3) đź©ą
The first month was dedicated entirely to Kevin's broken leg. Even, true to his word, ignored conventional wisdom. "Rest is for the dead," he'd declared. He didn't want a healed body; he wanted a body that obeyed the mind, even through agony.
The training was not physical; it was mental torture. Even deliberately caused sharp, searing pain to Kevin's splinted leg, bumping it, dropping small stones on it, or applying sudden pressure. Kevin's task was simple: do not stop the calculation. He had to maintain his internal map—the Unseen Edge—of the jungle's dangers, predicting the patrol patterns of the guards, the movement of predatory snakes, and the hunting paths of the convicts, all while managing absolute physical agony.
"The enemy will never wait for you to heal!" Even would snarl. "If you break inside, you are useless!"
Kevin's innate analytical mind thrived under this pressure. He found a strange kind of release in the pain; it became a white noise that helped him focus. His mind became a fortress, an impenetrable wall against physical suffering. He perfected his Geometry of Violence, calculating the angles of attack and escape based on environmental factors like sun glare, wind direction, and the density of foliage. He realized his father, Thomson, died because his precision was broken by the unexpected physical shock. Kevin vowed his mind would never be broken. By the end of the third month, his leg was functional, not perfectly healed, but hardened—a constant, dull ache that served as a reminder of his commitment.
2. The Taming of the Ghost Hook (Month 4-6) 🔥
With Kevin mobile, the focus shifted to Even. Even was a natural killer, a force of nature whose raw power was the seed of the Ghost Hook. However, his anger was a liability. His brutal attack on three lieutenants in his first week had turned him into a target for the three major Gang Lords—The Butcher, The Spider, and The Warlord—who controlled the Death March's resources.
"Your anger will get us killed before we get out," Kevin observed during a tense planning session. "They know where we are. We must move before the full force comes."
Even raged. "I'll kill them all! I don't run from anyone! I am not a mouse!"
"Strategy is not running; it is choosing the battlefield," Kevin countered, his tone utterly devoid of emotion, which always unsettled Even. "We are not strong enough to fight all three at once. We must split them; we must use their greed and arrogance against them."
This was Even's core struggle: The Taming of the Chaos. Kevin forced Even into grueling, painful sparring sessions focused not on winning, but on control. Kevin would use his speed and small frame to land quick, irritating strikes, and Even was forbidden to use his full power. He had to learn to hold his explosion until Kevin gave the signal. Even's Ghost Hook wasn't just about the strength of the swing; it was about the timing of the swing—the exact, crucial moment Kevin's Unseen Edge revealed the enemy's weakness. The goal was to harness the explosion, not let the explosion control them. Even's rage remained, but it was now a weapon on a leash, waiting for Kevin's command.
3. The Butcher's Ambush: The First Kill 🔪 (Month 7-9)
Six months into their partnership, they faced their first major combined test. The Butcher, the leader of the nearest and most brutal gang, decided to eliminate the dangerous "ghosts" who dared to operate independently. The Butcher and eight of his men set a predictable trap near the main water source, intending to overwhelm Even and then torture Kevin.
Kevin, however, had predicted the attack with the chilling accuracy of his Unseen Edge.
They didn't fall into the trap. Instead, Kevin led Even on a circuitous, pre-planned route through the dense, mapped terrain. They didn't fight The Butcher's entire group at once; Kevin forced Even to pick them off in twos and threes, using the terrain's shadows and natural obstacles.
The Execution – A Dance of Edge and Hook:
The Edge: Kevin's first move was to lead Even to a spot near a small cliff where a guard patrol was due to pass in two minutes, but which was cleverly hidden from The Butcher's main view. Kevin knew The Butcher's scouts would be too focused on their path to look up.
The Hook: Even, using his brute power, ambushed three of The Butcher's scouts who were lagging behind. He used the jungle's noise to mask the initial sounds of the fight, employing his heavy, hook-bladed weapon to disarm them and his fists to brutally incapacitate them without making enough noise to alert the main group. The fight was swift, savage, and silent—a perfect blend of Even's force and Kevin's timing.
The Final Confrontation: When they finally faced The Butcher, the massive convict was alone, confused, and terrified. He couldn't understand how his men had simply vanished into the jungle Kevin had mapped. The Butcher was pure, powerful muscle, wielding a heavy metal cleaver.
The Lesson: Even lunged first, driving The Butcher back with a whirlwind of chaotic, overwhelming force. But The Butcher was too strong, too resistant. Kevin didn't engage in the direct fight; he used the small, crucial seconds of Even's powerful assault to find the true weakness. He noticed the slight, predictable tilt in The Butcher's spine every time he blocked Even's powerful swings. With a final, silent burst of speed, Kevin darted past the fray of Even's movements. His improvised piercing weapon found the exact vulnerable joint in The Butcher's spine, severing the cord.
The Butcher fell, the first major figure in the Death Match to be eliminated by the nascent partnership. The victory proved the core tenet of their pact: Kevin's precision was useless without Even's brute force, and Even's force was suicidal without Kevin's strategy.
4. The New Hierarchy (Month 10-12) đź“Š
The death of The Butcher sent shockwaves through the Death March. No one saw it happen; his men simply vanished, and the biggest man in the jungle was found dead, killed by a wound so small it seemed impossible. The surviving gangs assumed a powerful, invisible entity had arrived. They established themselves not as leaders, but as ghosts—lethal forces that moved only when the Edge and the Hook were perfectly aligned.
The last three months of the first year were dedicated to resource acquisition and refinement. Kevin forced Even to focus on learning the jungle's internal economy: mapping medicinal plants, finding hidden water sources, and tracking the guards' weaknesses for acquiring better equipment. They replaced their crude weapons with sharp, scavenged metal. Kevin crafted his own piercing weapon, sleek and designed for silent penetration, directly channeling the spirit of his father's Silent Blade. Even refined his hook, giving it a heavier head and a razor-sharp edge—the true Ghost Hook was born.
They survived the first year, not by brute strength, but by the geometry of violence. They had transformed the hell of the Death March into their personal training ground, and the world had no idea what was being forged in the silence of the jungle.