Everyone knows who they are. This is how they began.
He was never meant for the battlefield. He was meant for the fields.
Rich wanted only the quiet life of a farmer-soil beneath his hands, family at his table, and a future that stretched beyond the fences of his land.
But when disaster came, it left nothing but ash behind.
Drawn into conflict, Rich must decide whether grief will bury him-or forge him into something harder. Training will strip him down, battle will scar him, and every step will push him closer to a new identity he never wanted. The line between survivor and soldier is thinner than he ever believed.
This is the story of how a farmer became Vanguard.
This is one in a series of short stories exploring the origins of the War Angels-told one soldier at a time.