Dorian slowly put away the last of his clothes into his bag, having remained silent the entire ride back to the base. Double checking to make sure he had everything, he shook his head as he slung his pack over his shoulders, trying and failing to hide his obvious disappointment as to what happened. Farnell glanced over at Dorian as he waited at the door. “Got everything?” Farnell asked, hesitant to talk to Dorian.
Dorian nodded. “Yeah, I do. You?”
Farnell nodded. “Yeah…I’m sure Digby and Olive are waiting for us, so let’s get a move on.”
The two left the room and walked towards the entrance of the base, where the others were waiting. The two soldiers who had driven them there noticed them first. “Ah looks like everyone’s here. Let’s get a move on. Your train leaves in just over an hour and your academy has been notified. Your instructor will be waiting for you when you arrive.”
The group stepped into the vehicle and rode in silence as they were driven to the station. Within several minutes, they had arrived. The two soldiers walked up to the ticketing agent and were soon handed the four tickets. Handing the tickets to everyone, the soldiers nodded. “Thank you for all the help you’ve given us! Good luck on the rest of your studies!”
The soldiers saluted the group before walking back to the vehicle and driving away. Dorian walked over to a nearby bench and sat down, stretching as he sat. Digby sat next to him, sighing. “Kinda seems like we just got here, and yet here we are, leaving.”
Dorian nodded as Farnell and Olive walked up to them. Olive grinned. “Yeah, it seemed to have just flown by. Can’t say I was expecting this trip to be the way it was, especially considering we were just kind of thrown into the fire.”
Farnell chuckled. “Yeah, the tasks we were assigned were…interesting to say the least. At least we can say that we were able to complete the ones that we did and learn from the experience.”
Dorian sighed, but nodded. “Yeah, we did everything that was asked of us, so we’re bound to get a great score, especially after we write our reports. However, it just…still doesn’t sit right with me. Leaving now when the person who killed those poor people is still out there, even after trying to kill us in a fire.”
Olive gave Dorian a sympathetic look before asking, “So, what exactly were you doing before you joined the academy? I mean, knowing an intelligence agent to the point she treats you like a brother isn’t exactly common.”
Digby nodded. “Yeah, and you seem to be one of the most well trained among the entire class. Plus, with Miriam telling you to keep us safe, and agreeing with you that you’d be able to keep us safe from a crazed cult as long as you were around…I’d say there’s a lot that you haven’t told us.”
Dorian glanced at the group as Farnell had a look of unease on his face, remembering what Dorian had told him before. Dorian slowly nodded his head. “I can’t say much, but what I can say is that the academy was given a recommendation to have me join. I was never an agent of the agency, but they know of my skills. That’s all I can say…”
“And where did you get these ‘skills’ of yours?”
Dorian shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I’m under a strict gag order about that. I can’t say anything else regarding that.”
“C-can we at least ask how you know Miriam?” Farnell asked, glancing over at him.
Dorian shrugged. “Let’s just say she met me at my worst and was the only one who was willing to offer her hand to help. She acts like an older sister to me because that’s how she feels about me. I think of her as someone who I can trust, but that’s it.”
“I…see. Well if I can say something, it really looked like your relationship with her was of that of an elder sibling trying to embarrass her younger sibling, and you kinda embraced the role.”
Olive grinned and nodded. “Yeah, especially after we had just first met her. She seemed like she was a proud sister who was genuinely happy to see you again, while you were the younger brother who was just too embarrassed to admit that you were happy to see her again.”
Dorian chuckled and smirked. “I’m sure she would have been absolutely thrilled to have heard you say that, and I could just imagine how much teasing she would–”
Dorian’s eyes widened as that same sense of fear he had experienced earlier suddenly overwhelmed him. Quickly reaching for his swords, he jumped up and looked around, his eyes scanning around the station. Olive and Farnell gave Dorian a confused look before Digby stood up and reached for his weapon as well. “So…this is what you felt…” Digby said, also looking around. “That sudden wave of fear is…disturbing.”
Dorian nodded as he continued to look around. “The only question is why we’re feeling it now of all times? It’s in the middle of the day in a busy train station. It doesn’t fit the–”
There was a sudden scream towards the entrance. Quickly looking over, the group could see a man on the ground, blood pooling around him, as a woman tried chasing after someone, screaming for help. Dorian immediately began sprinting towards the entrance and looked to the right, seeing a hooded man taking off with a young child. “Stay here and call for help!” Dorian shouted at the others as he ran as quickly as he could after the man. He could hear the child crying, screaming for help, but before anyone could react, the man had already run past them.
“Get out of the way!” Dorian screamed out as people stopped and stared at the chase.
However, despite the obstacles, Dorian was making headway, inching closer and closer with each step. The man, having realized that he wouldn’t be able to outrun Dorian, made a sharp turn down an alley, dropping the child as he did. As Dorian approached the alley, he could see the man at the end, a red dagger out, ready to fight. A red dagger? Was it always a red dagger or is this…
Dorian unsheathed his swords. “I don’t know who you are, but you made a big mistake. Murder, attempted kidnapping…these are all crimes that are punishable by death you know.”
The man didn’t move an inch or reply in any way, sticking with his fighting stance as Dorian moved closer to the man. “Just what purpose does kidnapping and murdering innocent people serve? What crazed cult are you a part of that thinks that this is even remotely–”
The hooded man dashed forward, stabbing his dagger forward. Dorian easily dodged the strike and kicked his feet out, knocking the man onto the ground. Before Dorian could subdue the man, he had rolled to the right, used the wall as a support to easily jump back up, recklessly slashing his dagger at Dorian. As Dorian continued to easily dodge the blows, a look of concern spread across his face. There’s no way this man was as well trained as the man I had fought earlier…and he wouldn’t be able to cause that sense of fear that even Digby felt. So why…
After dodging another haphazard strike, Dorian hit the man’s face with the hilt of his sword, sending blood flying everywhere as the man crumpled to the ground, groaning in pain. Kicking the dagger away from the man, Dorian stood above the man, who was holding his face. His hood was now pressed against his neck, revealing a young, red haired man. Before Dorian could do anything else, the sense of fear returned. However, at this point, he was expecting this as he glanced back behind him, seeing another robed man carrying a familiar dagger. Dorian turned to face the man, tightening the grip on his swords. “Well, look who decided to show himself in broad daylight.”
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