Let the battle begin!
BADUM! BADUM! BADUM!
The drums' thud was much louder now that only a grid separated them from the arena. The beating of the drums hammered into their skulls, almost plunging them into a kind of tribal and hypnotic trance.
For Jake, the rhythmic and heady sound of the drums helped him to calm down and remain in the semi-meditative state he had learned to appreciate when he was practicing his Extrasensory Perception. For others, this reminded them of how close they were to dying.
Pssssssssssssssssssshhhhhhhht!
Alerted by the sound of flowing water, Jake turned around to find a shaky recruit peeing himself. He was looking straight ahead as if nothing was happening, but his tense grimace, sweat, and chills indicated how terrified he was. He was the only one who lost his temper like that, but no one dared to make fun of him under the given circumstances.