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21 | Trackers |*Special Chapter*| ___________________________________
| Quick Talk |
• There's going to be FOUR parts to this chapter
• Each part has around- or should eventually average out to- a little less than TEN pages!
• Hopefully this makes up for my hiatus? ^-^b *crosses fingers* _____________________________________
3 years later.
___PART I___
Present time _ The clock ticks it's large hand 'round one complete rotation. An hour had subconsciously passed and my lower abdominal region was gradually beginning to numb out, my fingers crisping as they contract and tense around the pistol grip of my sniper rifle. I kept my breath steady and reserved my heat the best I could, frequently eyeing the area below every 3 seconds or so. We stationed ourselves in Beta Formation, a name for something our team leader assigned us to. Beta Formation consisted of 4 positions: FL, SV, BU, and SS. FL- Front Line SV- Safe View BU- Back Up SS- Surveillance Spotting FL was Chestin. The man was from the Special Force Assault Division, SFAD, and did the dirty work for us without complaining. SV was Axel. He's always positioned in a separate building, away from the soon-to-come chaos, and exposes our enemy's weakness. BU was Helene and little Kora. Kora was a junior in training, and this would be the first mission she was assigned to test her teamwork abilities. And SS was me, the girl who'd been punishing her body for the last 3,600 seconds. Speaking of formations and my team, the suckers had been too quiet these past 15 minutes. "... Y'all aren't sleeping on me are you," I breathed out silently, diverting my attention away from the scope for a moment to watch my own breath condense in the chilly air. "It's been an hour," Chestin's voice broke through our earpiece, "they haven't come yet." "Helene, status check," I murmured, repositioning my earpiece a bit after staying stationary for an hour. "The two we killed earlier were dragged away," she responded after a series of crackling from the earpiece were heard as she connected, "The blood dried up a bit here. It won't be noticeable in the dark." "And Axel?" I questioned. "Here James," His deep voice chimed in and sent warm shivers throughout my frozen body, "Keep warm, you're the only one so high up." I smiled and reached up to my earpiece to disconnect it with the others. I reconnected it to the R.U.'s channel, more specifically our team leader's communication system. "Agent W," My team leader's voice came after a few seconds, "Is something wrong?" I frowned as I surveyed the buildings 8 stories below and mentally envisioned where my teammates hid waiting. "More like nothing's wrong," I replied matter-of-factly, "Can you check the movement of the Trackers? It's been a little over an hour and there hasn't been any signs or sightings of them. You don't think we've been mislead right?" "Send an agent in the building," he said, "Try to find-" There was a cackling noise that surprised me momentarily before Helene's voice broke through our connection. "Chestin left his station," she informed us. I heard her staggered breathing and quiet footsteps through the earpiece, "He didn't answer when I connected to him either." "I guess our conversation cuts short here," I bid goodbye to our team leader, "See you back at the quarter, Jay." I disconnected from the agency and focused back on the current situation. Connecting my own earpiece to Chestin's, I began speaking as soon as I heard the soft connection spark. "Chestin, come in." Silence. Suddenly, from the corners of my vision, I saw shadows shifting on the ground. It gradually became more noticeable when I took up my former position and readied myself.
"Trackers."
They were here and they were on the move. The others heard me inform them on our enemy and they shifted in alert. "It's too obvious in the front," I murmured. I was letting the others know where our enemy would enter. Helene came in afterwards, "The back as well." "There's a security camera hanging on the roof in the east alley," Axel chimed in, "'Course I have access to it now." "I'm in-" A deafening bullet shot through the air and pierced right through an oblivious male figure lurking in the West alley. I'd say I at least struck the abdominal region, if not the heart, and any miss-shot would be due to my numb fingers. "Chestin," Helene cried through the earpiece at the person who had just spoken up earlier, "Where have you-" I heard a series of punches and a snap of a neck bone, "- been." "They- [spark... crackle] Kora- [crack]" came Chestin's voice again. "Goddamn Axel!" I whisper-yelled, "Fix his damn connection." Chestin's urgent voice kept trying to reach our pieces, "- They... [spark]" We heard our technician silently curse for the first time today due to some issues. "They got into my system," Axel mumbled, "One moment." I saw Helene appear from around the corner, walking into the dark alley lit up only partially by a worn down street lamp that was years old. She was on alert and held her handgun in front of her cautiously. A woman snuck up behind her and held behind her small frame a much larger, deadly gun which she aimed at Helene's head. Two men crept around behind a crate on either sides of the alley. "Helene," I warned calmly, putting my right eye back on the scope. A moment later I heard her little "tsk" and took that as a sign to begin counting down. "3... 2... 1... now."

20 | It Was For You

"Hey," Tired. I'm tired. Let me sleep. "Kitten, wake up." ... Kai? My eyes slowly fluttered open and I saw the blonde haired and blue eyed man stand in front of me. "Kai?" I let out quietly, trying to wake myself up. "You're discharged," he said back to me, "I'm here to take you back." "Where?" I asked, although I knew where it was. "I.O. Academy." I groaned. I really didn't want to. The school had no meaning to me anymore. Allison hasn't returned to school since the incident, or says the boys. "I want to go back to the R.U." I let out all of a sudden. Kai looked at me with an unreadable expression. He placed his hands inside his pant pockets and returned his gaze back on me. "Do you?" he commented, raising his eyebrows slightly. I nodded, "I need to report back anyway. The mission's taken a turn for the worst. The goal isn't the same anymore, and I've just reconnected with someone from my past. I need time to think about what I want to do, who I want to do it with, and who I need to look into. After a week of laying here with nothing to do but think about my next move, I've made up my mind." Kai listened to me silently and nodded, gesturing for me to come. I was being discharged. With a final talk with some doctors, Kai dealt with some papers and soon took me out of the building. _ We entered the same school we've been attending and walked into the boys' dorm. Soon, we were right outside of Liam's door. Kai typed in the passcode and the door swung slightly open. We entered and I closed the door behind us. I looked around Liam's room. It was still the same as I had remembered it. "What class is he in right now?" I asked, going to check up on the baby. Cherish was fine and healthy. She was currently sleeping in her bed. "Uh, Social Studies?" Kai answered, going to the bed and plopping himself down. He crossed his legs and looked back up to watch me. "Lunch is next, then," I commented, trying to figure out his schedule. "We could meet him on the roof," Kai stated, "Is that what you're suggesting?" I turned to the man and smiled, "Yeah." I went to wash up and decided to change into some comfortable clothing. Then I realized I had none. "Kai..." I said carefully as I peeked my head out of the door. "What," he dully replied, closing his eyes as he tried to rest on the bed. "Do you know where Liam puts his clothes..." I asked bluntly, holding my breath. It was a weird question, and pretty awkward at that too. "Why," Kai stated, opening his eyes and looking at me suspiciously. "No no it's not like that," I reassured him, "I just don't have clothes." "Oh," Kai answered, suddenly going back to his sleeping position. Wait. Help me you jerk. Before I was about to give up, I heard him say, "Cabinet, open drawer four, that's all of your clothes." I frowned at his comment. What does he mean by 'all of your clothes.' I didn't have any clothes. Still puzzled, I followed his directions and opened that drawer.
My eyes widened a bit at some new clothes I found. This definitely wasn't here before. Did they... buy it for me? My eyes found the edge of my neatly folded dark blue gown that I had worn a week ago and I took it out, frowning. These weren't my clothes, then. "Kai, I think you remembered it wrong," I murmured unsure, turning to look at him from my squatting position. After he opened his eyes to look at what I meant, I held up the dress and stood up, walking towards him. "This is Isla's," I stated, looking at it. The dress was now freshly washed and fixed at the rims. It looked just as new. Kai raised his eyebrows amusingly at me, "Is that so?" I tilted my head slightly at him, unsure of his tone and expression, "Yes?" He chuckled, throwing me off guard. "What," I pressed, a hint of a whine in my tone. I didn't like it when he knew something that I didn't. "Last time I checked," Kai explained, placing his hands behind his head, "Isla doesn't live here." "But," I started, getting confused. Wait, is the dress... for me? Liam bought it for me? But how? It was the dress that had gotten my attention at the mall, which he wasn't there at first. Also... "Hold up, how does he know my size?" I let out, suddenly addressing the uncertain truth. "He saw the size on your sweater when he replaced it with his clothes for you to change into the first night you were here," Kai responded, "Or so I guess." Ah. That makes sense. "Why would he buy this for me though?" I asked more to myself than the man in the room with me, "He didn't want me to go to the party." Kai sighed, "We all know you don't listen." I pursed my lips together and quieted down. It's not that I don't listen... it's just I had a mission. Which makes me not listen... okay I guess he was right. Kai checked the time on his watch and he announced to me, "You should hurry and change if that's what you plan to do. His class's almost up." I nodded quickly as I snapped out of my thoughts and grabbed a pair of clothes. I rushed into the bathroom and changed into something comfortable. Kai took one look at me and nodded an okay, the both of us getting ready to leave. "Do we need to feed Cherish," he asked abruptly as he placed one hand on the door knob. I cracked a smile as I pushed the man forward and closed the door behind us, "I'll feed her her baby formula when we get back. She's still sleeping." _ I had texted Helene and Carlos on the way to come meet us on the school's rooftop at lunch. They needed to know what happened, and help me if that was possible. Even though I wasn't as close to them as my enemies, Helene and Carlos were still on my team. And if I was to go back to the R.U. like I had planned, they were to follow me. We made it to the roof after carefully maneuvering though the crowded cafeteria. I passed the milk carton crate and hesitated a bit before grabbing one strawberry milk and going to catch up to Kai. "Seriously?" Kai quirked at me once we were up and had found a place to settle. I pushed away from the edge and looked down at the man who was leaning on the wall at my feet. "What? I'm hungry," I mumbled back, continuing to drink my strawberry milk, "You're just jealous you didn't grab one on your way up too." Kai quietly scoffed and told me to shut up. Before I could argue back, I heard footsteps climbing up to the roof. Kai and I shared a quick glance before we turned our attention to the person arriving. "Bennet, you know I have to write a ten page essay on the history of plants?" Liam complained, tossing his book bag up and skillfully landing on the roof. "And it's all due tomo-" he stopped when he saw that Kai wasn't the only one on the roof. Our eyes stayed on each other for a moment before he regained his breath and slowly came over. "So you're back," his voice hits my ear as he passed me and leaned on the rails as well. I stayed still for a moment before I too turned around and faced the streets and cars below. "Yeah," I piped. "How long have you two been back?" Liam asked Kai as he leaned back and looked at his friend. Kai shrugged, "Couple of minutes before you were let out. I took her back to the room to change." At the mention of changing, Liam raised his eyebrows at Kai and eyed him with a hint of suspicion. "Bro, I'm not like you okay," Kai remarked back, slightly smirking as he closed his eyes. Liam sighed and turned back to look at me, "You're wearing the clothes I bought you," he pointed out. "About that," I started, shifting a bit in my position, "Thanks for getting them for me." Liam smirked lightly, "The Jamie I know doesn't stop there." I returned his cheeky smile, "You're right. Anyway, about that blue dress I found in your bathroom..." He watched me talk and ran a hand through his black hair, "What about it?" "You seriously bought that for me?" I asked, turning to face him, "Be honest." He chuckled, "Is it that hard to believe?" "I'm just confused why," I stated truthfully, "Kai gave me a reason but I want to hear it from you." "Annnd she doesn't listen to me," Kai muttered to himself silently on the ground. I ignored his comment.
"Didn't you want it," he teased lightly, looking me straight in the eyes. I frowned slightly, "Well it's nice, but I couldn't afford it." I wanted to know. He was being strange. He was doing things for me, even though he shouldn't be. He was making everything harder on me... "Just accept it as a gift," he shrugged, looking away, "You looked nice in it." At that I raised my eyebrows, "What did you just say?" "Nothing." Before I knew it, a small smile had appeared on my face. "You just complimented me," I let out. "Never did." "Carter." "You have hearing problems." I hit him on his shoulders and he let out a soft grunt, causing the both of us to laugh. I haven't laughed in a long time. It felt nice. "Hey," I started, "... I need to ask a few questions before you have to go back to clas-" Suddenly, we heard several footsteps climbing up to the roof and the three of us turned our heads towards it. You could never be too careful. We didn't want some random student climbing up here for their free time and overhearing our conversations. Helene's face popped up and then Carlos followed after her. "What's going on here?" Helene asked, looking at Liam, Kai, and I just standing around being comfortable with each other. "You were saying?" Liam teased, smirking at me to continue. I rolled my eyes at him, "You know what, I'll just continue when the whole crew's here." It felt weird to say that. Two weeks ago, I was a lone agent working on a two-year long mission. Two weeks later, I had a crew that I talked to, fought with, and fought against. "Who contacted Isla?" I asked, being nice to include her as well since the people who provided my sleeping space were acquaintances with her. "Were we... supposed to?" Kai mumbled slowly, reaching for his phone. Liam raised his eyebrows, "She should be coming. She comes everyday." At that I felt a strange feeling that ran through my body, making me feel a bit uncomfortable. My chest tightened unconsciously and I felt cold. I was always the one that came on the roof. But since I've been away for a week, Isla had quickly taken my place. My head unconsciously tilted away from everyone and I instead faced the bustling scene below. Liam felt me shift around and turned to me, looking down at my silent form, "What's wrong?" I snapped out of my thoughts and looked up at him, "N- nothing..." He raised his eyebrows at me. "I said nothing," I pressed, avoiding his stare. Isla came after this and when she got up to the top, she eyed Helene and Carlos suspiciously. "Who are these people?" She asked and turned to Liam. "Who is she?" Helene asked me. Liam, Kai, and I took a quiet glance at each other before mentally preparing ourselves for what was about to come. It was story time. _ "The moment you lost conscious the door bursted open and Allison came in," Liam explained. We were all sitting on the roof with our legs crossed in a circle. "Isla and I saw a dozen men dressed in black coming to charge at us," he continued. "We were outnumbered and they managed to knock us out," Isla came in, "When we woke up we were in some sort of cell. I happened to be a good lock picker and got us out." "We heard screaming coming from down the hall," Liam came in, glancing briefly at me. "So that's what happened," I commented quietly, "I can tell the rest from here." I told Helene and Carlos about the scene where I came in. Everything from seeing my father to Allison to piecing it together with my past. Then the escape and the car ride to the hospital. "No wonder you were out so many days," Helene came in, "Liam and Kai wouldn't tell me anything besides, 'I fed your baby, she's sleeping.'" I held back a chuckle. It was nice of them to care for the child even though they had no relation to it. "And now," I summed up, looking at everyone, "I want to go back." "Back?" Carlos asked. I nodded, "Back. I need to go back to the R.U. You guys in?" I was talking to Helene and Carlos. It didn't matter to me much if they came along or not, but considering there was no point for them to be here, I figured they might as well. "You're going back?" Liam questioned, suddenly staring at me. My eyebrows arched a bit as I returned his gaze, "Yeah. This mission is far from over, but I need to finalize some things with the R.U." I stopped talking for a moment and let my eyes linger on the man before me for a while, "I guess this is goodbye." There was a change in the atmosphere as things got quiet between all of us. Everyone was looking at everyone, but no one was looking at anyone. We were all lost in thought in some form or way. Suddenly, the academy's bell rang loudly from below and inside the building. Lunch was over. Isla began sitting up, but she paused when she saw that Liam had not moved. My eyes landed on the man, "Carter, the bell..." "I know," he replied, eyeing the way back down from the roof dully, "I'm not going. I'm not a student at this school. None of us are. Allison had always been our target, and now that she doesn't show up, we have no purpose here." I stayed quiet upon his words. He was right. I was glad he understood the situation as well as we all did. It really was time to move on from this place. "We're leaving too," Kai spoke up distantly, getting up from the hard concrete. Liam followed him and so did Isla. Helene and Carlos got up as well, and I followed suit. We all took one final glance at each other and I finally found some words to say one last time. "I... hope we never see each other again." The wind blew swiftly against our expressionless faces and I avoided everyone's eyes. I meant what I had said. If we did see each other again, we were enemies once more. Everything that happened at I.O. would've been a past mission that we all shouldn't care about anymore. They were out to find Allison. We were out to find Allison. I hoped we never crossed paths again. How bloody would it be. Because if Liam and I had met each other under different circumstances, one of us would've definitely been long gone. _ Thanks for reading 20 chapters I hope you enjoyed it

20 | It Was For You

"Hey," Tired. I'm tired. Let me sleep. "Kitten, wake up." ... Kai? My eyes slowly fluttered open and I saw the blonde haired and blue eyed man stand in front of me. "Kai?" I let out quietly, trying to wake myself up. "You're discharged," he said back to me, "I'm here to take you back." "Where?" I asked, although I knew where it was. "I.O. Academy." I groaned. I really didn't want to. The school had no meaning to me anymore. Allison hasn't returned to school since the incident, or says the boys. "I want to go back to the R.U." I let out all of a sudden. Kai looked at me with an unreadable expression. He placed his hands inside his pant pockets and returned his gaze back on me. "Do you?" he commented, raising his eyebrows slightly. I nodded, "I need to report back anyway. The mission's taken a turn for the worst. The goal isn't the same anymore, and I've just reconnected with someone from my past. I need time to think about what I want to do, who I want to do it with, and who I need to look into. After a week of laying here with nothing to do but think about my next move, I've made up my mind." Kai listened to me silently and nodded, gesturing for me to come. I was being discharged. With a final talk with some doctors, Kai dealt with some papers and soon took me out of the building. _ We entered the same school we've been attending and walked into the boys' dorm. Soon, we were right outside of Liam's door. Kai typed in the passcode and the door swung slightly open. We entered and I closed the door behind us. I looked around Liam's room. It was still the same as I had remembered it. "What class is he in right now?" I asked, going to check up on the baby. Cherish was fine and healthy. She was currently sleeping in her bed. "Uh, Social Studies?" Kai answered, going to the bed and plopping himself down. He crossed his legs and looked back up to watch me. "Lunch is next, then," I commented, trying to figure out his schedule. "We could meet him on the roof," Kai stated, "Is that what you're suggesting?" I turned to the man and smiled, "Yeah." I went to wash up and decided to change into some comfortable clothing. Then I realized I had none. "Kai..." I said carefully as I peeked my head out of the door. "What," he dully replied, closing his eyes as he tried to rest on the bed. "Do you know where Liam puts his clothes..." I asked bluntly, holding my breath. It was a weird question, and pretty awkward at that too. "Why," Kai stated, opening his eyes and looking at me suspiciously. "No no it's not like that," I reassured him, "I just don't have clothes." "Oh," Kai answered, suddenly going back to his sleeping position. Wait. Help me you jerk. Before I was about to give up, I heard him say, "Cabinet, open drawer four, that's all of your clothes." I frowned at his comment. What does he mean by 'all of your clothes.' I didn't have any clothes. Still puzzled, I followed his directions and opened that drawer.
My eyes widened a bit at some new clothes I found. This definitely wasn't here before. Did they... buy it for me? My eyes found the edge of my neatly folded dark blue gown that I had worn a week ago and I took it out, frowning. These weren't my clothes, then. "Kai, I think you remembered it wrong," I murmured unsure, turning to look at him from my squatting position. After he opened his eyes to look at what I meant, I held up the dress and stood up, walking towards him. "This is Isla's," I stated, looking at it. The dress was now freshly washed and fixed at the rims. It looked just as new. Kai raised his eyebrows amusingly at me, "Is that so?" I tilted my head slightly at him, unsure of his tone and expression, "Yes?" He chuckled, throwing me off guard. "What," I pressed, a hint of a whine in my tone. I didn't like it when he knew something that I didn't. "Last time I checked," Kai explained, placing his hands behind his head, "Isla doesn't live here." "But," I started, getting confused. Wait, is the dress... for me? Liam bought it for me? But how? It was the dress that had gotten my attention at the mall, which he wasn't there at first. Also... "Hold up, how does he know my size?" I let out, suddenly addressing the uncertain truth. "He saw the size on your sweater when he replaced it with his clothes for you to change into the first night you were here," Kai responded, "Or so I guess." Ah. That makes sense. "Why would he buy this for me though?" I asked more to myself than the man in the room with me, "He didn't want me to go to the party." Kai sighed, "We all know you don't listen." I pursed my lips together and quieted down. It's not that I don't listen... it's just I had a mission. Which makes me not listen... okay I guess he was right. Kai checked the time on his watch and he announced to me, "You should hurry and change if that's what you plan to do. His class's almost up." I nodded quickly as I snapped out of my thoughts and grabbed a pair of clothes. I rushed into the bathroom and changed into something comfortable. Kai took one look at me and nodded an okay, the both of us getting ready to leave. "Do we need to feed Cherish," he asked abruptly as he placed one hand on the door knob. I cracked a smile as I pushed the man forward and closed the door behind us, "I'll feed her her baby formula when we get back. She's still sleeping." _ I had texted Helene and Carlos on the way to come meet us on the school's rooftop at lunch. They needed to know what happened, and help me if that was possible. Even though I wasn't as close to them as my enemies, Helene and Carlos were still on my team. And if I was to go back to the R.U. like I had planned, they were to follow me. We made it to the roof after carefully maneuvering though the crowded cafeteria. I passed the milk carton crate and hesitated a bit before grabbing one strawberry milk and going to catch up to Kai. "Seriously?" Kai quirked at me once we were up and had found a place to settle. I pushed away from the edge and looked down at the man who was leaning on the wall at my feet. "What? I'm hungry," I mumbled back, continuing to drink my strawberry milk, "You're just jealous you didn't grab one on your way up too." Kai quietly scoffed and told me to shut up. Before I could argue back, I heard footsteps climbing up to the roof. Kai and I shared a quick glance before we turned our attention to the person arriving. "Bennet, you know I have to write a ten page essay on the history of plants?" Liam complained, tossing his book bag up and skillfully landing on the roof. "And it's all due tomo-" he stopped when he saw that Kai wasn't the only one on the roof. Our eyes stayed on each other for a moment before he regained his breath and slowly came over. "So you're back," his voice hits my ear as he passed me and leaned on the rails as well. I stayed still for a moment before I too turned around and faced the streets and cars below. "Yeah," I piped. "How long have you two been back?" Liam asked Kai as he leaned back and looked at his friend. Kai shrugged, "Couple of minutes before you were let out. I took her back to the room to change." At the mention of changing, Liam raised his eyebrows at Kai and eyed him with a hint of suspicion. "Bro, I'm not like you okay," Kai remarked back, slightly smirking as he closed his eyes. Liam sighed and turned back to look at me, "You're wearing the clothes I bought you," he pointed out. "About that," I started, shifting a bit in my position, "Thanks for getting them for me." Liam smirked lightly, "The Jamie I know doesn't stop there." I returned his cheeky smile, "You're right. Anyway, about that blue dress I found in your bathroom..." He watched me talk and ran a hand through his black hair, "What about it?" "You seriously bought that for me?" I asked, turning to face him, "Be honest." He chuckled, "Is it that hard to believe?" "I'm just confused why," I stated truthfully, "Kai gave me a reason but I want to hear it from you." "Annnd she doesn't listen to me," Kai muttered to himself silently on the ground. I ignored his comment.
"Didn't you want it," he teased lightly, looking me straight in the eyes. I frowned slightly, "Well it's nice, but I couldn't afford it." I wanted to know. He was being strange. He was doing things for me, even though he shouldn't be. He was making everything harder on me... "Just accept it as a gift," he shrugged, looking away, "You looked nice in it." At that I raised my eyebrows, "What did you just say?" "Nothing." Before I knew it, a small smile had appeared on my face. "You just complimented me," I let out. "Never did." "Carter." "You have hearing problems." I hit him on his shoulders and he let out a soft grunt, causing the both of us to laugh. I haven't laughed in a long time. It felt nice. "Hey," I started, "... I need to ask a few questions before you have to go back to clas-" Suddenly, we heard several footsteps climbing up to the roof and the three of us turned our heads towards it. You could never be too careful. We didn't want some random student climbing up here for their free time and overhearing our conversations. Helene's face popped up and then Carlos followed after her. "What's going on here?" Helene asked, looking at Liam, Kai, and I just standing around being comfortable with each other. "You were saying?" Liam teased, smirking at me to continue. I rolled my eyes at him, "You know what, I'll just continue when the whole crew's here." It felt weird to say that. Two weeks ago, I was a lone agent working on a two-year long mission. Two weeks later, I had a crew that I talked to, fought with, and fought against. "Who contacted Isla?" I asked, being nice to include her as well since the people who provided my sleeping space were acquaintances with her. "Were we... supposed to?" Kai mumbled slowly, reaching for his phone. Liam raised his eyebrows, "She should be coming. She comes everyday." At that I felt a strange feeling that ran through my body, making me feel a bit uncomfortable. My chest tightened unconsciously and I felt cold. I was always the one that came on the roof. But since I've been away for a week, Isla had quickly taken my place. My head unconsciously tilted away from everyone and I instead faced the bustling scene below. Liam felt me shift around and turned to me, looking down at my silent form, "What's wrong?" I snapped out of my thoughts and looked up at him, "N- nothing..." He raised his eyebrows at me. "I said nothing," I pressed, avoiding his stare. Isla came after this and when she got up to the top, she eyed Helene and Carlos suspiciously. "Who are these people?" She asked and turned to Liam. "Who is she?" Helene asked me. Liam, Kai, and I took a quiet glance at each other before mentally preparing ourselves for what was about to come. It was story time. _ "The moment you lost conscious the door bursted open and Allison came in," Liam explained. We were all sitting on the roof with our legs crossed in a circle. "Isla and I saw a dozen men dressed in black coming to charge at us," he continued. "We were outnumbered and they managed to knock us out," Isla came in, "When we woke up we were in some sort of cell. I happened to be a good lock picker and got us out." "We heard screaming coming from down the hall," Liam came in, glancing briefly at me. "So that's what happened," I commented quietly, "I can tell the rest from here." I told Helene and Carlos about the scene where I came in. Everything from seeing my father to Allison to piecing it together with my past. Then the escape and the car ride to the hospital. "No wonder you were out so many days," Helene came in, "Liam and Kai wouldn't tell me anything besides, 'I fed your baby, she's sleeping.'" I held back a chuckle. It was nice of them to care for the child even though they had no relation to it. "And now," I summed up, looking at everyone, "I want to go back." "Back?" Carlos asked. I nodded, "Back. I need to go back to the R.U. You guys in?" I was talking to Helene and Carlos. It didn't matter to me much if they came along or not, but considering there was no point for them to be here, I figured they might as well. "You're going back?" Liam questioned, suddenly staring at me. My eyebrows arched a bit as I returned his gaze, "Yeah. This mission is far from over, but I need to finalize some things with the R.U." I stopped talking for a moment and let my eyes linger on the man before me for a while, "I guess this is goodbye." There was a change in the atmosphere as things got quiet between all of us. Everyone was looking at everyone, but no one was looking at anyone. We were all lost in thought in some form or way. Suddenly, the academy's bell rang loudly from below and inside the building. Lunch was over. Isla began sitting up, but she paused when she saw that Liam had not moved. My eyes landed on the man, "Carter, the bell..." "I know," he replied, eyeing the way back down from the roof dully, "I'm not going. I'm not a student at this school. None of us are. Allison had always been our target, and now that she doesn't show up, we have no purpose here." I stayed quiet upon his words. He was right. I was glad he understood the situation as well as we all did. It really was time to move on from this place. "We're leaving too," Kai spoke up distantly, getting up from the hard concrete. Liam followed him and so did Isla. Helene and Carlos got up as well, and I followed suit. We all took one final glance at each other and I finally found some words to say one last time. "I... hope we never see each other again." The wind blew swiftly against our expressionless faces and I avoided everyone's eyes. I meant what I had said. If we did see each other again, we were enemies once more. Everything that happened at I.O. would've been a past mission that we all shouldn't care about anymore. They were out to find Allison. We were out to find Allison. I hoped we never crossed paths again. How bloody would it be. Because if Liam and I had met each other under different circumstances, one of us would've definitely been long gone. _ Thanks for reading 20 chapters I hope you enjoyed it

"Uh," Kai began, suddenly realizing he probably did. Isla's eyebrows twitched and she sat up a little straighter, "What baby?" I glanced at her and was satisfied to see her so jumpy. Sorry, I wasn't a perfect angel. Sometimes, I liked it that other people were confused and in misery. "You said you didn't care," I said in the air to her. "I said I didn't care about you," she shot back, "Kai's my teammate." "But it's my baby," I dully stated back, enjoying being the calm one while she was in an opposite state. "It's not what it seems," Liam announced calmly, turning on me with a frown, "Lennon-" "What do you mean, Carter," I said his name for the first time since this all happened, "You were supposed to look after her too, but you took off to the party and told me to 'take care of everything.' What kind of father are you?" I was referring to the comment that one time when we both entered the room with Cherish and Kai had addressed us as 'mom' and 'dad.' But of course, Isla wouldn't know that. "Lennon-" Liam came at me, done with me and my comments. I cracked a weak smirk. This was fun. "What?" Isla exclaimed, pointing at Liam, "Why does she talk like you all live together or something?" Haha... Silence fell upon the room as Kai looked down at his hands, Liam with his hand rubbing his neck, and I outside the dark window. The night sky was beautiful. Cough cough. "YOU LIVE WITH HER?" Isla yelled, hands on Liam's shoulders as she forced him to look at her. Hey hey hey. Woman. I'm supposed to be having this lecture with Axel only. I don't need you to lecture then him to lecture. No thank you. "Not exactly," Kai came in, "At least I don't..." Isla looked back and forth at her two teammates in disbelief and came charging at me instead. "I swear to god," I started, scaring the shit out of her advancing body as I popped up from my laying position into a sitting position, "If you touch, hurt, mess with, look at, or breathe in my bubble, I will kill you." It was a friendly warning for her to back off of me. Just because I was held back by hospital tubes and wires that supplied my life source right now, it doesn't mean I was spiritually weak. "Did she just-" Isla started, turning to Kai and Liam to defend her. To her surprise, none of the boys said anything. "What," she tried again, taking a deep breath to calm herself down, "is the relationship between you three?" "You mean me, Carter, and Kai?" I stated, looking over at her, "enemies?" She frowned all of a sudden, "I also noticed, why do you and Liam call each other by last names? And only you two?" I wanted to laugh. It wasn't even that big of a deal. "Yeah, we call each other by our surnames and have a love- hate relationship, jealous?" I teased, stopping myself when I saw Liam's disapproving stare. I'm sorry, did I mention I wasn't an angel? "It's an old habit," I decided to answer truthfully, but was surprised when Liam had said the exact thing I said at the same time I did as well. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and all of our heads turned to it. The same doctors and nurses that had been here minutes earlier filed back in. "How are you feeling?" A doctor came towards me and asked. "My throat's dry and I think the gauze wrapping needs to be changed," I replied, "Also please reposition the oxygen mask and bring me a cup of water. Also," I started after some nurses had started moving, "Can you take these tubes off of me?" Kai watched me amused and glanced at Liam with light eyes as they both watched me take the doctors off guard. "Right," the doctor replied, rushing the nurses to carry out their tasks, "And no, we can't take the tubes off of you." "Darn," I said under my breath. "Lennon," Liam lectured. "It was worth a try, Carter," I defended, the both of us rolling our eyes at each other. Isla looked at the two of us and gave up, taking a seat next to Kai. "Would you guys please leave?" A nurse said to Liam, Kai, and Isla. "Yes," I chimed, nodding at the perplexed doctors, "I agree. Please leave." Kai and Liam looked at each other and then at me for a second before they gestured to Isla to leave with them. I stayed there throughout the rest of the night. The duration of it was me falling into a deep sleep. I'm sure Kai and Liam took turns checking up on me throughout the night. I wasn't to be discharged for another week though. Although I didn't show it around the others, my wounds were extremely severe and I still didn't have the energy to do anything. I was going to be okay, however. I needed to rest and get better because after this I needed answers. I needed my energetic self back to carry out my new mission. It was no longer to protect Allison. If anything I needed to kill her, but that's jumping a bit ahead. _

"Stop," I protested, "Go away. You're making everything worse for me." He didn't move. He just held me. "Why don't you listen to me?" I said, getting irritated and annoyed. "Because," he finally spoke, pulling me away and looking down so that our eyes were fixed on each other, " You don't listen." "Why are you doing this," I asked him now that we had each other's attention, "Why didn't you let me die? Why did you come?" "I still had a mission, Lennon," He answered firmly to me, "It was always to kill Allison." Allison. "She's my stepsister," I said to him quietly, still not believing it, "That piece of... she's my..." "I know," Liam replied, "I saw everything." I glared at him. "What," he tested, a teasing eyebrow-raise forming. "I don't know if I should hate you or be thankful for my life," I let out honestly, "... I should just hate you." "You're being real stubborn, Lennon," he replied, running a hand through his hair. Suddenly, the door opened and Isla and Kai walked in. I shut my mouth. Liam saw my change in expression and turned around to see his two teammates. "She doing okay?" Kai asked, coming over to me to check my condition. "I'm still alive," I said to which I earned a quick smile from him. Isla came over too and kept her gaze on me, her expression emotionless. "Who are you," I asked, taking her in, "Why are you here? Last thing I remembered, you said I shouldn't be cared about." Isla scoffed quietly and rolled her eyes, "I still hate you." "I didn't ask for your love anyway," I replied dully, looking away. "Isla," Liam stated firmly, shutting her up. She wanted to protest but another look from Kai and her mouth remained shut. "What happened to Allison?" I asked into the air, "Did you guys kill her?" "No," Kai answered, "She was calling her mother. We left before anymore people found out about us." My step-mother. "Damn it," I said out of frustration. It was to nothing specific, but instead to everything that had happened. I was angry at everything, and at everyone. I also understood now that Allison was probably the one that bombed my room that day when I was in detention with her boyfriend. "Kai," I addressed him suddenly. The blonde haired boy looked up at me. "Did you... just leave the baby alone?" I asked randomly. Even after everything that had happened, there was still a baby I was in charge of that was still at the academy.

19 | I was No Angel
There were tubes and wires hanging all over my body. It was injecting air into my system. They had changed me into a hospital gown. My eyes gradually fluttered open and looked to the side. My reflection reflected off of the surface of one of the medical equipments and I saw just how weak I looked. I lost color in my skin and lips, and my eyes no longer held its fighting spirit. My body laid limply on the creaking bed the hospitals provided as the doctors and nurses rushed in and out to check on my heart beat and condition. Soon, they were chatting quickly with one another, in a language I couldn't understand in my state. It annoyed me. I just wanted peace and quiet. "Can you all... leave the room," I let out weakly. They didn't hear me. They kept talking about something. They kept panicking about something. They kept arguing about something. "Please," I tried again, raising my voice, "Pl- "Please leave." I was quiet when I heard that voice. My eyes traveled to the man standing at the door that had gotten the doctors' and nurses' attention. "You know we can't do that," A nurse replied, "And you're not allowed to be in here." "What relation do you have with this young lady?" The doctor closest to me asked. "I'm a friend." Liar. "That's too vague," He said back to Liam, "Please be understanding and exit-" "I'm her boyfriend," Liam tried dully. Psh. Liar. There was a moment of silence as everyone tried to figure out what to do. "Her condition's stable right now," a nurse finally chimed in, "She's been okay for the past five minutes. How about we give her some space?" Yes. Thank you. "Alright then," came the same doctor after a short sigh, "Just a few minutes," he said to Liam. Every doctor and nurse began making their way out. Wait. I take it back. Don't leave me alone with him. The door closed and silence took over. Damn it. "Jamie," Liam called to me, coming closer to the bed I was laying on. I pretended to sleep. "Jamie," He tried again, standing right before me. One eye peeked open. "..." I stared at him and his slightly messy hair. It was fine though, he still looked good. Like always. "What," I replied. "You feeling okay?" I stayed silent. Was I feeling okay? "No," I responded, "I'm feeling awful. Thanks for asking." "Jamie," he trailed off, watching me deal with my thoughts. Everything that had happened in the last 24 hours came rushing through my mind and I replayed each of them vividly in my head. "If I said I didn't panicked, or felt lost and tired, I'd be lying," I managed. There were so many things I wanted to say. There were so many things I wanted to rant about. And there were so many things I wanted answers to. But I stopped myself when I felt his arms wrap gently around me and pull me into his warm chest.

"If you take one step closer," I exclaimed, frowning dully at Allison and the men behind her, "I will kill him." "You wouldn't kill your own-" She began in a different tone then I was used with. I scoffed silently and a tired smile appeared, "So you knew this whole time, didn't you Allison?" She frowned at me and crossed her arms firmly as she stated, "Sure." The man I was pinning down managed to kick up a random needle with an unknown liquid already inside and catch it. He started giggling and at that moment I knew something was wrong. He twisted his hands so that the needle injected something into my left forearm. I felt something rushing into my blood and instantly pushed him away. "Would you stop for one fucking moment!" I shouted in frustration, suddenly deciding to take matters into my own hand. I found his pressure point and knocked against it firmly, causing him to fall to the ground stunned. Suddenly, five men were knocked down after a series of shots were fired. Everyone's head snapped towards the door. "Kai," I said under my breath. "Kai!" Liam and the girl both said in unison. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS PLACE," Kai's familiar voice rang throughout the air. "We're in her basement," Liam replied after Kai entered the room, "I was examining the area just now with Isla." Isla. Good to know. "What is Jamie doing here?" Kai asked, frowning at me. "I should be asking all of you..." I let out tiredly. Allison motioned for the men to start fighting and Kai, Liam, and Isla all charged forward to combat. I started forward too, but Liam stopped midway and turned back to me, grabbing my arms and leveling his face with mine for a split second just to say, "Stay still and stop moving." "I don't want to," I countered back. "If you keep being stubborn that'll be your fate whether you like it or not." he growled angrily. He meant death. I stopped talking and looked at him in the eyes. Seeing that I had given up on disobeying him, he released me and went back to the brutal scene happening before me. They were all fighting, shots and punches being heard every second. I stayed still alright, but if one of those men came towards me, I did my best to ward them off with my own fighting abilities. It was then I realized I was still in my dark blue dress. After knocking two men out, I looked back to all the agents I knew and realized everyone was still in their formal clothes. I was getting tired, my mouth was dry, my dress was torn, and my wounds were agitated. It took everything in me, and I kid you not when I meant everything, to keep my body upright and conscious. I was strong-willed, even I acknowledged that, but there was a limit to my strength. I should be knocked out right now. I had no energy left. Before I knew it, a strong hand wrapped securely around my right wrist and started pulling me for the door. Even though I didn't know who it was, I had a faint idea upon the warm feeing that came to my mind upon contact. I ran. I ran with all my might. I ran until my lungs hurt, and kept running. I ran until my legs buckled out, but I picked myself up and kept moving forward. We ran up the stairs and around the back of the house. The music blasted through my ears and I resisted the urge to block it off. I saw some people who looked our way. We must look like lunatics running so fast. I'm sure everyone was smart enough to hide their weapons upon reaching this floor. Soon, we were all out the door and running across the lawn. The music had stopped blasting so hard and I was dragged closer and closer into a car. It was Kai's car. Kai sat at the driver's seat, Isla next to him, I behind Kai, and Liam next to me. He started the car quickly and began driving down the road. I caught a glimpse of the sky before my head arched back into the car. It was pitch black outside. The atmosphere soon became quiet with no one uttering a sound except for our now steady breathing. "Auto-drive mode, initiate," I whispered weakly into the band around my left wrist. It was a command for Carlos's car to self-drive itself back to I.O. Academy. I heard Liam do the same for his car. Breathing harder and faster than everyone else, I caught everyone's attention. "What's wrong with her," Kai finally spoke up. "She was shot," Isla replied indifferently, "I shot her." "Why?" Kai pushed, turning a corner. "She's our enemy," Isla snapped, suddenly raising her tone a slight bit, "I don't know why we're doing this at all. Who cares about her?" Thanks, Isla. I agree with you. "Why are you doing this," I came in, moaning at a sudden pain that erupted from my left forearm. I let out a gasp of air and quickly became alert again, glancing down at my left arm. It had turned a strange color of orange and purple. "Is this poison..." I muttered to myself, acting fast. I began sucking out the poison dangerously with my mouth, and spitting it to the side in the crack of the seat nearest to the car door. "Poison..." Liam commented, confusion taking over, "That needle had poison in it?" "Apparently," Isla replied back. "I have a wound on my upper right arm," I began again and everyone hushed, "a bullet through my back, aching wrists and ankles, bruises all over my body and head, broken bones in my neck, and poison injected into my left forearm... when are we going to reach the hospital?" I asked softly. I was losing it. The situation before had taken my mind mildly off of the pain that was inflicted onto my body. Now that there was nothing to do but pay attention to it, I don't think I could stay awake any longer. There was a moment of tensed silence before Kai replied back, "10 minutes. We'll be there in 10 minutes, Jamie." "I'm so tired," I let out quietly, finding it hard to breathe, "... I want to sleep." "No," Liam finally spoke to me, "Jamie, stay awake." "Why do you even care," I croaked out, straining my eyes to look at him, "It's better if I just die." He didn't reply. It was my last straw. I fell into a deep sleep, not knowing when I would wake up again- If I would wake up again.

Antoinette. Charles. Wendy. That was the three of us. Except, there was no longer an 'us.' Those three names should never have been together again. Yet here we were, the past jumping out at me in a blink of an eye. Suddenly, the door bursted opened and in came Allison in her white dress and a dozen covered armed men. Allison Frances. 17 years old. Half French, Half Korean. Blood type A. A total chic and playgirl. Currently in a relationship with football team's captain Daniel Ordeon. Current daughter of Charles Lennon, stepsister of Jamie Lennon, daughter to Raelyn Frances. Who was Raelyn Frances you asked? My 7 years old form ran into my room and busted the door open to reveal a beautiful, young woman I've never seen before. She dared to be naked in front of me, in my room, in my house, and for who? My father? "You're not mommy," I said to her startled face, "Get out of my room." "Oh, sweetie, you won't understand," the woman began, trying to smile at me to lighten up my mood, "This is the adult world, and-" "Don't try me," I informed her lowly, "If you think kids are merely nothing more than dumb animals running around with no brain and heart you can poop yourself out the door because you're not ready to be my mother in any way or form." My father left with her. She, was Raelyn Frances. Allison was her daughter. So, Allison was also my stepsister. This doesn't make any fucking sense. So the girl I've been trying to protect, turned out to be trying to capture me? And for my father? A longer thought at it and I realized a possible explanation to my father's actions. He was trying to bring my mother back to him. I guess he'd never let go of her. And because there was only one other person he was close to that had her genes directly, he was out for that person. And it just so happened that I was his daughter. It just so happened that I was Wendy's daughter. It just so happened that my middle name was Antoinette. It just so happened that Allison and I were bound together by my mission, and she by hers. Maybe that was why the R.U. refused to give me further information about this mission. If I had known how deeply connected the girl I was protecting was to me, I would have never accepted it. I would have never met them. I would have never resolved my past. I would have never met Liam or Kai, or resolved things with Axel, Helene, and Carlos. Everything was a mess right now in my head. To others everything was fine, but to me I had to revisit my unwanted past. I was in pain. I wanted to be alone. I wanted to rest. I wanted to stop thinking, stop knowing, stop everything. But life was unfair. And being an agent meant sucking up your complaints and snapping back to reality. So that's exactly what I did.

"What the hell are you doing," I tried to tell him, wanting to cry. Did he know he was hurting me? Did he even care? He found the needle and I froze. This wasn't happening. I didn't want this to happen. He grinned and charged forward. "DAD STOP," I shouted, choking on some blood that remained in my mouth. I immediately shut my eyes and my body tensed up. Someone help me... Please.... Please... _ A door bursted opened and in came rapid feet movement and the sound of heavy breathing. Before I could open my eyes, I felt a gush of wind hit my face and suddenly the table I was tied to slid swiftly backwards. Someone had kicked it away. My eyes shot open and more confusion came when I saw the boy I had been fighting earlier in the room, as well as his girlfriend. "Li-," I exclaimed, suddenly shutting my mouth upon choking on my blood that was repositioned in my mouth after the kick against the table. My whole body ached severely, and I wasn't even supposed to be conscious right now with the amount of blood I was losing from that bullet earlier. With the stress I just experienced, I probably did myself no favor by speeding up the bleeding process. I realized the girl was about to shoot my father. I don't know why, but suddenly I was able to talk again. "Don't touch him!" I croaked, gritting my teeth together, "Don't touch someone else's father!" Liam noticed me and he frowned, rushing over. The girl had stopped and instead restrained my father from moving. Liam was kneeling right next to me, trying to break apart the metal clutches. I heard his loud, heavy breathing as it hit my ear. One metal strain off. He wasn't saying anything, just keeping busy with his task at hand, and didn't even bother to look at me. I wouldn't blame him, I didn't want to look at me either. "ANTOINETTE!" exclaimed my father from the other side. He was so angry. I was too. "Antoinette, huh," Liam commented, still working quickly on the strains that held me. Two metal strains off. "What happened," I asked, suddenly feeling exhausted. But I couldn't relax right now. As soon as these strains were off, I had some business with the man I called my father. Three metal strains off. "I'll explain later," Liam stated, continuing to take off the last strain, "Stop talking." I watched him work and a thought came across my mind. Why was he helping me? Why wasn't he killing me? "Why..." I tried uttering a sentence, to which I failed. He suddenly paused and looked me straight in the eyes. I stared at his familiar blue eyes as he said, "Why don't you ever listen, Lennon?" Four metal strains off. I dropped immediately on his lap and let out a muffled grunt. He supported my head with his arms and helped me to sit up. "Don't touch me," I strained, pushing him away. I was grateful for his help deep down, but it was overpowered with hate and hurt. He tried to kill me. Twice. While I barely did. I guess I haven't learned. I was the only one hesitating. "Lennon-" He spoke up, grabbing my arms to help me up. "I don't want your pity," I spat in his face with the energy left in me, "Leave me alone. And tell your girlfriend to back off my father. He's my business." I hoisted myself up and clutched my aching left arm that had been strained before Liam and the girl arrived. The girl saw me and backed away from my father as soon as she saw my expression. She went back to Liam. My father spun around and grabbed the same needle he had been trying to use on me, and turned back to me. I watched him silently as I realized he had no care about his daughter anymore. The moment his eyes met mine and it didn't waver, I struck the needle out of his hands and grabbed his arms, spinning him around and pinning his arms tightly behind his back. I forced him against the wall and waited until he stopped snickering. I could hear my own disorganized breathing as I eyed the man before me. "Explain yourself," I growled into his ear, "Charles Lennon." There was a moment of silence before he started again with his singing, " She's coming back! She's coming back to me!" "Who," I pressed, pinning him harder so that he couldn't wriggle free. I could tell he was constantly trying to kick me or whack me in some way to break away. I was caught off guard when he suddenly stopped making noise and whispered to himself ever so quietly. "Wendy Emerson," he stated. My eyes widened immediately as my expression darkened. That was my mother.

17 | Antoinette, Charles, & Wendy
"Lennon, get up," Liam sneered into my blocked ears, "Stop stalling." I didn't know what he meant. It was getting harder to hear. "..." I tried. I tried saying something. I tried moving something. I was losing conscious. Damn it! Wake up, Jamie. Wake up. I could barely open my eyes, but Liam was holding my form, which was leaning against him, by the shoulders. My face scrunched up in pain as I gasped for air, to which little came to my aid. "Lennon, why-" "Liam, she's bleeding," the girl from behind exclaimed, rushing forward and to his side. Liam frowned and looked back at me, examining my back. No doubt, the bullet hadn't missed its target. He turned back to me and leveled his face with mine, getting my attention as I strained my eyes to keep open. "WHY DON'T YOU HAVE ON A BULLET-PROOF SUIT," he shouted angrily, tightening his grip on my arms so that I could regain balance. It wasn't working. My legs buckled out and I fell to my knees, grunting inaudibly. "W-Why..." I tried, still gasping quietly for air, "are you... so... mad.... for..." I was heaving big breaths to make up for the bullet jammed into my system and destroying my organs. "Isn't this... what you... wanted?" I choked, curling up due to the pain. I couldn't stop the blood myself since it was located on my back. My bloodied mouth stopped forming words and my throat stopped producing sound. I had stopped talking. It was too difficult. It hurt. It hurt a lot. My body was heating up abruptly and I was sweating. All my limbs lost its ability to function, and my eyes gradually began to droop. "Jamie, wake up!" I heard him shout. Why..? Why should I? What happened? My head felt heavy.
_
Beep beep. Beep. Clink. Would everyone be quiet? I'm trying to sleep. A minute of laying there and I realized my head and back hurt. The pain accumulated the more awake I became. What was going on? Jamie, think. I hope that's my name... What happened in the last few hours? Why does my head hurt? Why does my back- I went for him and the two of us made eye contact as he aimed his gun at my chest and I at his forehead. My breath hitched. The barrel was too close. In that moment, the girl had spun around and pulled the trigger on me. Everyone was breathing hard, and I couldn't tell the distance between me and that bullet. I tried moving, dodging, something. It made contact with my skin and pierced right through my lower back. I choked out blood. The memories came rushing back to my head and I instantly felt the urge to throw up. I was not okay. I needed help. But first, where the Bleep am I... Beep beep. Machines..? Technology? Am I in the hospital? My ears began listening to my surroundings and my body became more aware of what I was in contact with. I was chained up. This was no hospital. The metal enclosed around my two wrists and ankles weren't hospital equipments. It didn't smell like the hospital either. "It'll take a minimum of an hour," a deep grunted man spoke into the atmosphere. There was slow-pace walking. "Dad, just do it," A girl's voice snapped, "You've been waiting years haven't you?" "10 to be exact," the man replied, scoffing and then back to checking on the equipments. Hold the Bleep up, who the Bleep are these people. And what does he mean by, 'minimum of an hour?' What are they trying to do? Father and daughter? They are, aren't they? Why would they be waiting for me for years? 10? 10 years? What happened ten years ago? 10... I'm 17. Subtract 10 years. 7? 7 years old? My thoughts were interrupted when the father said, "Allison, you should leave. You shouldn't watch this." Al... Allison?? Wait. No. Please. My head hurt and I let out a quiet moan out of frustration. "Make it quick," Said-Allison replied, "I'll go deal with the others." Wait. No, come back! If she's my Allison... I... She can't be. The door clicked shut and the atmosphere became quiet and weird again. Suddenly, I heard the man speak up. "I know you're awake, Antoinette." How the Bleep does he know my nam- My eyes shot open and I gasped for air as I struggled with the equipments binding my entire body to a table. The room was set up like a lab. Only, the floor and table were wood, and the lab part was set up closer to the walls, which were dimly lit. A large spot of light shined over me and the area around my form. I searched quickly around the entire room and found a figure standing in the corner diagonal from me. "Why," I croaked, suddenly realizing my throat was dry, "Do you know... my name." The man giggled strangely and hushed almost immediately after it began. I was creeped out. Because he didn't answer me, I tried a different question, "What do you want with me?" "She's coming back," sang the man all of a sudden, "She's coming back to me!" Please. I don't do creepy. Please. I'm scared. I hate to admit it, but to be honest with myself, I'm scared. This is a new scenario and a new set of people to deal with. And you know what I do with my fears? I work them out. That's Jamie Lennon. I tried yanking my arms around calmly, but the wound I got from Liam on my right arm prevented me from moving. My back was wet, either from sweat or from blood. Or both. The man stopped making noise all of a sudden and I saw from the side of his face in the dimly lit part of the room that he was smiling. A big creepy ass smile. What is wrong with him? Why is he like that? Did someone make him act like that? He suddenly spun on his heels and came towards me with a large, pointed needle that would inject a liquid in me. No liquid I want inside me should be that color. I squirmed a bit, but I took the opportunity to stare at the man's face. Wild gray hair poked out in every direction. He was wearing a brown trench coat and dark colored shirt and pants. His shoes were home sandals, and he had on clear round glasses that were crooked to the side. I frowned immediately as I took his form in. He looked an awful lot like... He bent over me and placed the needle right next to my skin, ready to pierce. Alcohol. My eyes widened as I realized an ugly truth that I never wanted to know. He... was my father. How else would he have known my name? But why?? Why was he here? Why was he doing this to me?? "-Dad!" I yelled, catching him a bit off guard, "DAD WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? WHAT ARE YOU DOING??" He shook it off and continued with injecting that needle. Well he tried to. I bit his sleeve and snapped my head forcefully to the side, probably breaking several bones, and got him to fall perpendicularly across my body. I quickly thrusted one side of my hip and stomach up to keep pushing him forward and soon he fell on the ground with the amount of movement I just created. His feet dragged down the table and my breath hitched for a split second as my body was going to be smashed onto the ground, but his body was there and I used it to roll off him and land to the side of him. The table was on its side and I was hanging parallel to the ground. My left arm and leg were strained from suddenly having to heave all my weight up. My father regained his balance and started searching for the needle again. I watched him for a split second with confusion and hurt flashing openly across my eyes.

"Allison isn't here," Daniel scoffed, "Besides, she's still my girl." Aw. Cute. I looked away and tried to find Liam or Allison, but to no use. When I looked back, I realized Daniel had been talking to me. "Hey, listen," I began, suddenly serious. Daniel stopped and eyed me irritatedly because I had interrupted him. "No, YOU listen-" "Daniel, I'm asking a favor," I restated under my breath. "Why are you talking like that?" He pushed, frowning at me. A friend of his came over and eyed me amused. "Yo, who's this girl?" He asked Daniel, hitting him on the back as a man's way to greet each other. Now was my time to leave. I pushed away and before I left completely, I uttered out to Daniel, "Whatever you do, stick with Allison." Seeing that he seemed unmotivated, I added, "You'll regret it, Ordeon." I left from there. It was up to him to protect his girlfriend right now. If I found Allison first, of course I wouldn't need him. Liam Carter was my target. I was ordered to kill him, not anyone else. "Maybe," I murmured to myself as I looked around the place, "You're upstairs.." I found the stairs towards the back of the main room and had to stop when I saw a couple making out at the bottom. Honestly, I was... scared. I may be knowledgeable in kicking ass, but if this was what being a normal teenager was like, I- I don't... I don't know. Maybe my future would just be working on missions. I don't think relationships would work out. It's already been proven to me once, I hoped I've learned. Snapping back to reality, I walked around the couple to the side of the stair rails and climbed up, jumping over the rails and landing quietly on the stair steps. The couple behind me was oblivious to what just happened and I continued up the steps. I checked every room on the second floor. Some were locked, some were filled with girls, some with boys, some with couples, some empty, some with Liam and a girl, some- I paused. Checking through the door again, I saw Liam talking to another girl with her back to me. She was dressed up in a peach and blue gown, very calming and peaceful. Unlike me. I stopped myself from checking my dress and looked back at the two. They were talking rather intimately. I knew it was Liam, not from his face, but the pen that he had sticking out of his pocket. The girl had black hair that was put up in an elegant bun. I think... she was his girlfriend. Now I allowed myself to look at my dress. It was for her... wasn't it. I was wearing her dress. I don't know why she wasn't wearing it, maybe Liam got the size wrong? Haha... Why do I even think. I have the worst thoughts ever. I didn't know what they were talking about. Was she in on the situation? She probably was. I felt something in my chest and was about to look away. If he wasn't going to hurt Allison right now, I didn't want to stick around and watch him talk to... What am I even saying, I shouldn't care. Just then, the two started moving and Liam looked towards the door, his eyes widening slightly as it met with my equally shocked ones. Damn it. I tried shutting the door before I saw he had thrusted something at me and I ducked and stayed down as I felt a knife pass over where my head used to be. It pierced sharply through the wall opposite of me outside and I froze dead cold. Did he just... I opened the door wider from my squatting position and looked at the boy in the eyes. He wasn't going to let me leave after he saw me. Even I knew that, yet I tried getting away. "Who are you-" the girl started, turning around to look at whatever had gotten Liam's attention. She was beautiful. It hurt to admit for some reason, but she had the looks. She could pass for a normal teenager. A thought from the past suddenly came into my mind: "What about you," I turned on him, "Haven't you ever liked someone? I know girls fly head over heels for you but has it ever been the other way around?" Liam let out a light smirk as his blue eyes stared deeply into mine, "That's a secret." "Jamie," Liam's voice interrupted my thoughts. I snapped my head to him and my body tensed up. The only reason why I ducked that knife was because I needed to get closer to my two guns hidden on either sides of my knees. "You actually went to the party," I stated straightforward to him, "I really hate you." He glared at me. A real glare. He hasn't ever glared at me before. It didn't feel good to receive a glare from him. I quieted down and waited for the man to speak. "Jamie?" The girl next to Liam asked, tugging calmly at his sleeves. Liam looked towards her and nodded slowly. "She's a R.U. agent." Upon those words, I knew there was going to be trouble. Instantly, the girl pulled out a gun and aimed it at my head, to which I boosted myself up and grabbed my two guns at the same time, also aiming it at her. I kept it steady at her head as she did the same to me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could tell Liam was startled with what just happened and made an effort to pull out his own gun. He stopped midway when I moved my right arm swiftly over to him and aimed my right gun at his head. We all froze for a moment as the girl's eyes widened at the fact that I could possibly shoot Liam. "So you have a gun," She commented, frowning at me. Liam watched me silently. "You don't have to state the obvious," I snapped, "We can end this peacefully or with a pile of corpses." "How," She stated, tightening her grip on her gun. "Leave Allison alone," I replied matter-of-factly, "Just let the damn girl live." "Lennon, I warned you," Liam came in irritated, "Why don't you ever listen?" I turned to face the man and moved the gun slightly closer to his body to remind him that I was the powerful one right now. "And I warned you," I answered him with a cold glare, "Leave. Allison. Alone." The last thing I saw was his own annoyed expression before I heard the familiar clicking of a gun's trigger being pulled back. My head snapped to the girl as I swung both my arms at her gun, hitting it to the side. She didn't drop it, but the delay gave me the chance to knee-kick her in the stomach and she backed up with a small grunt. Liam came for me and I fired at him. He managed to dodge to the side and grab my arm. I aimed my left arm towards him that held my other gun. The girl fired at me from behind and I jumped to the side, quickly spinning on my heels and shooting at her chest. It hit alright, but I knew it would take more shots. As I had suspected, they had on bullet-proof suits. I cursed silently to myself as I turned around and freely shot at Liam, who was hit on his side and forearm. The girl and Liam came at me at the same time and I punched her on the shoulder before she too punched me on the side of my face. My lip started bleeding and I was thrown off for a moment, where Liam took his chance to use full force of his elbows to knock me down. I gasped for some air and held back a painful grunt as I pushed myself off the floor with the energy left in me and shot at Liam to preoccupy him. I went for him and the two of us made eye contact as he aimed his gun at my chest and I at his forehead. My breath hitched. The barrel was too close. In that moment, the girl had spun around and pulled the trigger on me. Everyone was breathing hard, and I couldn't tell the distance between me and that bullet. I tried moving, dodging, something. It made contact with my skin and pierced right through my lower back. I choked out blood.

"Hey," I called out sternly, catching the attention of all five jocks. The boys and girls turned to me in confusion before the guys realized what I was trying to do. "Is this loser trying to stand up to us," one of the guys said to his friends, immediately cracking up menacingly. I scoffed. "Excuse you?" Another spat at me. I frowned, "I can't even breathe?" "This little bitch," He commented, getting angry. Good. Get angry. Work it out on me and leave others alone you fucking son of a bitch. "Call me what you want," I shrugged back calmly, "Leave the girls alone." I turned to the girls and told them to go. They stared back at me in awe and nodded, walking briskly away. "HEY," a boy shouted in my face. Then they advanced towards me. It all happened fast. One boy aimed a punch at my face and I ducked, moving forward to grab his arm and twisted it behind his back with a snap. The others swung their arms forcefully at my lower regions. A fist was a split second from making contact with my stomach and I turned to the side away from it, jumped over the boy, and kicked two other boys on my way down. The two other boys behind me managed to grab my arms, however. I was thinking of flipping over and knocking them out, but I remembered I was in a dress. And this was why mission suits stuck to your body so that your underwear doesn't expose. Then again, I wore black shorts underneath so... But there was a technique every agent knew to get their wrists out of someone's grip. I twisted both my arms parallel to their arms, and used it as a lever to pull my wrist free by turning and sliding it out, and after that my elbow jabbed into their arms. I then pushed the both of them forward with my palms against their backs. A few people noticed. Just a few. Darn. I quickly left the scene before the boys could process what happened to them and, even worse, who I was. I had two people to find. I maneuvered through the crowd and resisted the urge to stab my fingers into my ears. Not just because of the music, but because of the... Um... Human... sounds... I'm internally cringing every two seconds as I tried to find Allison. Suddenly, two strong hands wrapped around my shoulders and turned me around. My eyes widened at the boy before me. It soon turned into an irritated frown. "Let go of me," I said, trying to push away. I didn't want to push off of Daniel's chest, because that would mean I had to put my hands on his chest, twice. "You actually showed up," He smiled smugly, looking me up and down, "Look at you." I glared at him, "Allison wouldn't be happy."

16 |I warned You

Annnnd he broke my car. I stared at the wheel with all my emotions lost and my eyes losing its glint of fun. Like if your siblings came into your room and drew all over your walls, and you come in ten centuries later and see it and you're just looking at it like, "..........." Yeah, same. Except he left a message in pen on my white steering wheels and it read: "Why don't you ever listen." If that pen doesn't wash up and I end up dying today, I'm coming back to earth as a ghost and haunting his ass. Frustrated, I racked my memory for information I received two years ago from Axel about Allison. I'm sure her address was somewhere in that file. I pulled out my phone moments later and did some uncool hacking around, aka opening apps and secret apps and stuff. Found her address. Looking around at the parking lot behind the school, I decided to use Carlos's car. I went nearer to the silver vehicle and memories starting rushing back, but I forced them away. Now wasn't the time. Actually, it would never be time to remember those anymore anyway. Opening the side door and climbing inside, I sat there for a moment and gazed at the interior of the vehicle. Not only was I familiar with the car's functions, but I also had an identical key to his car. You could say it was for old time's sake.
_ A block from the massive mansion and I had the illusion that I was blasting music within the car. It wasn't me obviously, it came from Allison's party. There were dozens of people standing around outside the lawn as well. Allison was also one of them who was standing outside and talking to Kayla and her group of girls. They were all dressed fancily, as I had expected of Allison. I sighed in relief before catching myself at the end. It was weird. I haven't had this feeling in a while. Scratching my head, I wondered if it was strange to other people that I actually enjoyed feeling anxious again. Shaking my head of meaningless thoughts, I turned off the car and turned it on self-lock mode. You would be surprised at how well a vehicle could defend itself unless you've lived the secret agent life. I waited a moment for Allison and her group to migrate back inside and waited another moment to confirm that she wasn't coming back out before I left the car and started for the house. When I thought people weren't going to pay attention to me, I was dead wrong. Everyone outside snapped their heads towards my direction and tried to make out who I was. I did my best to avoid the stares and kept my face hidden as I entered the mansion. The first thing I noticed was the loud blasting music. It was spouting out inappropriate words and I didn't like it, but I admit it would make for a good action movie. Second, I noticed the "lower rank" of the school. They stuck together in a group. Third, I realized they were being bullied. The anger inside me boiled and I had to keep my cool by reminding myself to tone it down. Five jocks against six defenseless girls. It was nowhere fair, and they were stooping low.

He replied, "Only a few hours until the sun rises." I'm on tight schedule, Lennon. If you want to live you'll stay out of my way. "You're not tired?" I asked. Give up. Just leave her alone. She's not worth it. "No." At that response, I shut my mouth. I couldn't persuade him. I couldn't stop him. "Take care of everything here, I'm gonna go for a walk," Liam said to me, nodding before pushing himself off the bed and into the restroom. Merely moments after, I didn't turn to see, but I heard the faint click of the door opening, and then closing. He was gone. And you know what? My eyes traveled over to his sleeping best friend and my best friend's baby. They were oblivious to the situation. Deciding in two seconds, I went to the restroom to wash up. I was going to that party. If Liam's going to be there, he's planning to kill Allison tonight. And that defeats my whole mission if he succeeds. I can't stress it enough, but two years. Two years I worked hard to even care to protect this girl, and if it all ends tonight, I might as well kill myself. _

Confused, I picked up the familiar fabric and held it up in front of me so that I could examine it in the mirror. My eyes frowned at the gown. It was the same dark blue dress I saw at the mall. Why was it here? He couldn't have bought it, right? And... for who? As I stared at it, I realized that the dress fit my size. I wasn't going to assume or think anything at the moment. But I'm going to apologize to that someone else that he bought his dress for, because I'm using it tonight. I realized Liam had changed too. His t-shirt and shorts were hung on a rack above the shower. He has a suit on, then, I thought to myself. But that doesn't help much. A lot of the boys from school would wear a suit. Or would they? Is Liam the only one? I'm not even sure if he has his suit on. ... Suit. At that moment a thought clicked into my head. My suit. My mission suit. I rushed out of the bathroom and over to my bag and rummaged through my things quietly and quickly. Soon, my fingers grazed over the cool fabric of my suit. I pulled it out and tiptoed back into the restroom. And I was disappointed. The suit didn't fit anymore. I had grown, no doubt. It was a strange thought. I didn't feel like anything had happened these past few years. Giving up, I put on the elegant dress that Liam bought and transferred some gadgets and small weapons over from my suit to areas underneath my dress, like my ankles and legs, waist and hip. No suit meant no bulletproof protection, but what can I do. I also went the far length to straighten out my wavy hair so that it all laid softly out on my shoulders and down my upper back at the end. Accessories, makeup, posture, I was a master at it. These things were easy. We were trained to disguise quickly and effectively back at the R.U. The dress was perfect as well. I was glad the girl Liam bought the dress for didn't like skin-tight outfits. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to equip my weapons and retrieve them when time calls for them. As for my wound on my upper right arm, it was located high enough for the the slightly sagging sleeves to cover up. No one would notice if it showed anyway. It would be a dimly lit room with loud noises and a handful of other teenagers. I took one last glance at myself in the mirror. Although I was dressed up and beautified, and most certainly in a dress I would've never worn on a daily basis, I knew one thing for sure. Tonight, I was the Jamie Lennon. My old self in disguise. That was the real me. "It's great to be back," I chimed quietly to myself, a side smirk appearing quickly before I turned off all the lights and headed out of the bathroom and soon, Liam's room. _

Damn that Carter. "No one," I reassured the man, "No one." Axel was quiet on the other line. He knew something. "So this is the Axel you've been talking to," Liam commented from his bed, smirking at my panicking form. "Liam!" I shouted in a whisper, all the muscles in my face scrunching together just to get the message across to that one boy to shut up. "Liam??" Axel exclaimed, "Wait a fucking second, wasn't he-" "Uh," I interrupted quickly, looking for ways to end the call. I wasn't ready. I didn't want to be lectured. Not by Axel, not by Axel, not by Axel. "It was nice talking to you hope we can catch up one day love you bye," I squeaked, ending the call immediately so that the last word I heard was my name being screamed at the lowest volume my phone allowed me to go. I shut off my phone and tossed it to the side, hurriedly getting up. "What the actual Bleep Carter," I snapped at the boy who was watching me silently. "What," he said calmly back, "Someone had to tell Axel." "Don't say his name like you're close to him." Liam put his hands up in surrender before putting them down again. I let out a loud sigh and was about to go back to sleep when I realized the fact that my enemy was awake. I suddenly frowned and looked at him, "Hey." Liam's eyes met mine and he broke into a side smile, "What." "Why are you up?" I asked straightforward. The man stalled by looking away and at the time on the clock. 1:59am He wasn't. He couldn't. He wouldn't...? He would. "You're not going to..." I trailed off, not sure if I should imply what his next moves were. It was dangerous. When the both of us started taking on our actual role, we were complete strangers, and complete enemies. Not only that, we can't trust each other, and it was always wise to keep in mind that our little charade that we put on everyday was only to keep ourselves alive in the current situation. If Liam and I had met at a different time, and a different place, one of us would've been long gone by now. Sometimes, I had to remind myself that. I was getting a little too comfortable. "Back to sleep Lennon," he suddenly said, smiling softly at me. I stared at him for a moment. Just a moment and I understood what he meant. Close your eyes and pretend you don't know what I'm planning to do. Listen to me, Jamie. If you follow me, it'll get ugly. My eyes frowned ever so slightly as I stated, "I'm tired. Maybe I should. It's 2:00am." I know you're going to Allison's party.

15 | It's Good To Be Back
12:55pm They were fast asleep. All three of them. I would have been too, if the wound on my right arm didn't hurt every three seconds of me falling into sleep. Keeping quiet, I forced my body off the ground with one hand and gasped for air the second I managed to hoist myself up. The gauze needed changing, but it would take three centuries for me to do everything myself. That being said, I was preparing to sacrifice sleep for a stupid arm. I found my way through the dark and entered the bathroom, making sure the door clicked softly shut before I dared turn on the lights. My hair was a bundled mess. I grabbed the brush and combed through my hair for a while before using the same black ribbon I've been using to tie my hair into a high ponytail. While I was in the process of cleaning myself up, I did myself a favor and washed my face as well. Two years and five decades later, I exit the bathroom feeling exhausted and defeated. The gauze wrapping was changed. 1:26am I glanced at the clock and an irritable thought crossed my mind. According to my mission, I was to follow Allison Frances wherever she went and protect her from being assassinated. However, said assassinators were knocked dead out on the bed, snoring. I don't think I want to go. Suddenly, a quiet ringer went off from my phone. My eyes widened immediately and I quickly went to snatch it up before it woke the whole crew. Opening the contact, my breath hitched as I realized who it was. "Axel??" I exclaimed under my breath, quickly checking to see that the screen brightness was all the way off. "Hey," He greeted me in the calm, yet playful voice that I knew. "Why now," I whined, though it was short-lived. I was glad to talk to him again, no doubt. It's just the place, the time, the people here... It wasn't exactly the best moment to have a conversation. "Just checking up on you..." Axel replied, "Hey, what's wrong? You're not whining cause I woke you up from your sleep, are you?" Oh yeah. Sleep. Forgot that existed. "... No," I answered, scratching my head slowly. "How's the mission going?" he changed the topic. "I uh," I began, silently cursing myself in my head for not being a better liar when he interrogates me. Axel would freak out if I told him that not only was the mission going smoothly, but I was also currently sleeping with both of my enemies, and I'm raising a baby with them. Haha, no way in hell could I tell him. Someone else would have to do that, I'm out. "She's great, Axel. How've you been buddy?" Yeah, like that person. Thank you so much for- ... Wait- My head snapped to the bed and although it was pitch black inside the room besides the faint glow of light on the side of my face from my phone, I could tell Liam was up. And he was staring at me too. "Who... in the fucking hell is that," Axel's voice came menacingly through the phone, his tone suddenly dropping three octaves.

We walked silently back with Cherish. _ "Welcome back mom, dad," Kai lazily said to us once Liam opened his door. Liam tossed his keys inside a cabinet drawer before replying, "Greetings, gramps." I rolled my eyes and started spreading out an area on the floor for the baby with the supplies that Helene gave to me. "Uh," I said under my breath afterwards, scratching my head a little as I held the child awkwardly, "I think I put you in here..." The second I placed her inside her cushion bed thingy, Liam pointed out before he headed into the bathroom to wash up that I had placed the baby in upside down. "But how would you even know," I asked to no one in particular. Kai replied, "The pictures were upside down, dumbhead." I raised my eyebrows at him, "Don't you tell me the sun and clouds look different upside down." "But obviously the sun doesn't go under the clouds," he countered irritated. "It does during sunset," I glared at him. "It's not even sunset though!" he exclaimed, sitting up on the bed as he crossed his legs together and frowned at me, "Look how far away the mountains and the sun are from each other!" "Ohmygod it's not even to scale," I shot back, "The sun and mountain's only 3 inches away from each other! It looks fucking sunset to me!" The bathroom door bursted open and Liam's irritated head popped out. "Would y'all shut the Bleep up? Can't I wash my face in fucking peace." "He's right!" Kai exclaimed abruptly, scaring the shit out of both me and Liam, "Bleep PEACE. I call war!" "Oh... mygod," I cried, covering my head inside my hands as I was 100% done with him and his shit. Suddenly, baby Cherish cried. We all snapped our heads towards her and I leaned down closer to the bed to check what was going on. "She's crying," I exclaimed, suddenly feeling panicky. Is this what mothers felt? I don't like it at all. "Obviously," Liam replied, closing the bathroom door and looking back at the new scene. I picked her up and cradled her the best I could in my arms. She was still crying. "Why hasn't it stopped," Kai groaned, shutting the noise out with the pillows that Liam had neatly laid out for himself. If I could see Liam's face at the moment, his eyebrows would've been twitching. "Uh," I began, fumbling with my words, "I-I got it! MILK HER!" I piped, holding the baby out to Kai. My mistake. Kai looked at me with the most disgusted and weirded-out face a man could possibly make before he stuttered, "Did she just- Did she-" to Liam. Liam bit his mouth closed and silently occupied himself with scratching his head over and over again. Kai turned back to me and shouted, "DO MY BOOBS LOOK LIKE THEY CONTAIN ADEQUATE MILK SUPPLY FOR THAT CHILD, HUH? DOES IT LENNON?" I was so embarrassed. Kill me now. "N-No I didn't mean that I-" I stuttered, pulling the baby back to me and whining, "I meant pass me her bottle you misunderstanding jerk." Liam was turned away from us with his head in his hand. Aside from his silent corner, we have the weirded out corner featuring your assassin Kai Bennet. Then come on down to my corner and you'll have a disorganized woman and a wailing baby. Just what is it with this year? I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a tad bit scared for my future. _ How was the last two chapters? :3 Did it give you guys a moment to connect and relate with the characters? Well, I'm here to say that I wish it did fulfill those goals... Because the next several chapters I have planned for you guys, ... are no longer carefree and safe. There's always a moment of relief before danger makes its appearance. Enjoy the happiness while it lasts.

I turned back to the ill-fated group I was always bumping into. "Hey," I snapped, eyeing down all four of them who were lined up perfectly in front of me. I was at a lost for words. Not because I had nothing to say, but because I had too much to say. If I started talking and lecturing that group in front of me right now, we'd might as well camp out at the mall for the night. "I can't believe you two," I finally managed to let out at Liam and Kai instead. "Lennon, I meant what I said," Liam chimed, "If he's asking for a fight, he's got it." "It's my business," I countered back, frowning, "My conflict with Allison and the likes of her go back two years before you all were even here. I'd appreciate it if you stayed out of it like it had been so far." Kai rolled his eyes and he and Liam quickly glanced at each other before looking back at me. "Why do we even have to deal with her? She's so ungrateful. My heart hurts," he commented slyly, running a hand through his dirty blonde hair. Liam cracked a smile and hit the man playfully on the chest. I looked back and forth at the two in their own world with my eyebrows raised. What have I gotten myself into? What is it with this year? Why is stuff suddenly happening to me now? I gave up and turned to Helene and Carlos, and my form instantly turned quiet. Needless to say, it was still awkward between the three of us. "Jamie," Carlos broke the silence. I gave him my attention and waited for the two words I needed to hear from him before I could secretly put the two-year grudge against him and his girlfriend behind me. Secretly, I say. I'm not going to show that I accept them. From now on, they're going to have to work for my trust again. Carlos didn't avoid my eyes either. His bright green eyes stared back at me and out of his two lips came the words, " I'm sorry." And another weight was finally lifted. I was so thankful for it as well. There were some things in the past that I did wanted to have back, and two of those were my friend and my best friend. Physically, I had them. Mentally, they were years behind. But that's where we start today. If our friendship was real, then that gap would gradually begin to close. And although there would always be a gap, maybe one day it'd become unnoticeable.
Day 1. _ We stopped by Helene's temporary dorm to pick up baby Cherish. And by 'we,' I meant Liam and I. Kai did himself a favor and went back to Liam's room without asking the man himself, while Carlos had to go back to his dorm room. "You hold the baby," I suggested to Liam after we had left the girls dormitory and entered the boy's. Liam eyed me weirdly before, I assumed, he chose to ignore me. I groaned. I wasn't kidding. I didn't know a thing about handling a child, nevermind holding it.

14 | Day One

We were gonna back out. "Haha, let's not," I started, grabbing onto Liam's shirt and tugging him as a sign to retreat. Liam looked back at me and cocked his eyebrows amusingly, "Why," he whispered with a smug smile pasted on his face, "You scared, Lennon?" I leaned into him and sped-whispered, "Carter you know goddamn well we're gonna end up murdering the poor boys before they could even see their grandkids, have you no mercy? " He seemed to think about it for a moment. "Guess not," he popped, averting his attention away from me and instead at a heated Daniel and his pumped up friends. I wasn't sure what to do right now. 99% of me wanted to join in. The other 1% was bound to the contract we agents follow. But I didn't have time to think anymore. They were gonna do it. They were gonna end it today. I'm gonna have to dig three graves today. I'm gonna having to dig three goddamn graves today- Oh, hold up. Someone came to stop that from happening. "Would I be able to interest your group in any special sales we're offering today?" A young working attendant obliviously came up and greeted us cheerfully in a sing- song voice. Everyone paused. I turned around and 'ctrl + c, ctrl + v'-ied the same sweet face I'd been using with my teachers since 2015. "No ma'am we're shopping separately," I answered, "However, the girl with the golden locks and her three guy friends would like to go and peruse the underwear section. I heard you're having a special buy two get one free sale?" I have never prayed harder in my life. And not just to one god, no, I needed all the gods. I prayed that there was a buy two get one free sale for underwears today. To, Jesus and friends. "Oh, you are quite right!" she replied to my question, placing her hands together and glancing at Allison and her group. Quite right. Q-ui-t-e right? Since when was there a 'quite right.' You know, if the head of the R.U. said to me, "Agent W, I assume you finished your mission?" and I had answered him, "You are quite right, sir." Do you know how I would end up? Not with my cash that's for sure. I'm gonna end up starving that week. Goddamn, why can't there just be a right and wrong. The world's so complicated, and the English language along with it. "Please follow me then," the attendant directed at Daniel. He seemed to still be trying to understand the sudden change in the situation, but Allison wrapped her arms around him and dragged him away. The other two boys followed suite, equally confused. Allison and Daniel glared daggers into my eyes as they passed. The attendant worker guided them away and I was able to let out a loud, long breath.

Chapter 4: Training

"Strength doesn't come from overcoming what you can do. It comes from overcoming the things you thought you couldn't"-- Rikki Rogers

A wave of cold liquid inundated Alyenna's sleeping figure. She shot out of bed with a gasp and sputtered as the water clogged her nose and mouth. She glared at the perpetrators of the disruption. She was having quite a pleasant dream for once too. Meanwhile, Aagvardak surreptitiously hid the bucket behind his back with a mischievous smile and an almost invisible wiggle. "What the heck was that for?" Alyenna exclaimed as she blew water from her face, and shook her head like a sopping dog. She was with frigid arms wound tightly around her shivering body. "Time to start your training." Baellnar spoke with a beguiling and broad grin, "and you know 'cause it was fun." "What training?" Her eyes were wide with suspicion. "Oh come on pookey you can't possibly believe that we would let you sleep all day? Especially when you have the living embodiment of evil out there with a target on your back." Baellnar's voice was blandly grave, but his eyes held a small twinkle of glee. Alyenna could not help but giggle at the two of them. "No," She paused for effect, and smiled broadly back at them, "that would be downright ridiculous!" She pulled the sheets away from her goosebumped legs and stretched out lethargically. She was oblivious to the cold water's effect on her appearance. Especially in consideration of the peach nightgown that she had lazily dressed in the night prior. Under the water's influence, it had become nearly translucent and hugged tightly to her athletic figure. The two men stood frozen in place. Baellnar's ordinarily alabaster skin was an unflattering shade of chartreuse. As soon as he was able to gather his thoughts he spun away deliberately fascinating himself with his quiver. Aagi on the other hand just stared enraptured. Their reactions meant something entirely different to Alyenna. Paul had frequently told her of her less than flattering appearance. The words typically included things like 'plain at best' or 'she fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down.' Neither led Aly to believe the most flattering things about herself. She fought back an ashamed blush and turned away from them grabbing the sheets instinctively and hugged them around her body. " I am sorry my appearance offends you." She struggled to maintain the strength that the words required, but the melancholy never failed to seep through. Even here in a magical land far from him, she had always been perceived as a 'freak.' "No-no not at all!" The two men said in unison. Baellnar smiled nervously. Aagi, on the other hand, had no sense of proprietary decency, gave her an appreciative smack on the butt. "yup! Looks great 'n feels even betteh!" He winked at her theatrically. The gesture reminded her of some old Ace Ventura movies from, the days before Paul. She should have been offended, but she wasn't. Aly wandered over to the familiar ornate bureau and flung open its doors. She expected to see what she had seen last night; which had been an assortment of clothing. Today it was with something entirely different. It was not a closet; it was a doorway. Alyenna gazed in awe at the room before her. Automatically she felt her legs moving forward. The floor was a complex tessellation of dragons each with a glowing jeweled eye. The tiles were the source of light for the entire room. What it illuminated made her squeal with glee. She stepped forward allured by the welcoming and floral smell of the bath filled to the brim with scented bubbles. The mirrors in the room had a light layer of steam, alluding to the heavenly temperature of the water. She pealed across the bathroom floor discarding her clothes as quickly as possible and plunged into the bath.

Why is that? Alyenna asked back in the silence of her own mind. You'll find out in good time hatchling. "Greetings Alyenna, I am Allabandar. I am sure you are very confused as to why you're here." Alyenna blinked herself out of her reverie and looked toward the source of the voice. It came from the smiling man who had been descending the staircase. "Oh no it's very common to be smacked on the head, kidnapped, and then wake up in a magic land filled with dragons, moving carvings, dwarves, and elves" she paused dramatically "yup all part of the basic everyday life." Annoyed sarcasm dripping from each word. Baellnar and Agi chuckled knowingly. "Really?" Inquired Allabandar lightly smirking. "What a wild life you lead back on Earth!" "Well No not really." She said sheepishly. She held her tongue wanting to comment on how much kinder her world was now. Confused, she wondered why these men made her feel so at ease. The man with auburn hair smiled slightly "Well Alyenna you're handling the change quite well I must say." He said smiling. There was a brief silence interrupted a light airy chuckle and a booming laugh. Alyenna glared at the two men behind her. When Aagi caught her eye he feigned fear and started whistling. Baellnar kept laughing. Allabandar continued unaffected. "Much of this will be explained in time; but, for now, I will give you a light overview. You were chosen because a prophecy lead us to you. Them," he nodded towards Aagi and Baellnar "more than a hundred years to hunt down and retrieve you from the other world. Granted, their way of acquiring you needed a bit more finesse; but, we were in a rush to get you. Before Scelestra did." "What would Scelestra want with me?" Aly asked confused. How can I already have enemies? I just got here. "Yes, rumor has it she is part goddess and part demon. She has a nasty habit of exploiting people's weaknesses. No one knows what she actually looks like. Scelestra is a shapeshifter. She takes on the shape of her victim's hearts' desire. Once she controls their heart she controls their mind. The curse only ends when she forces them to murder the thing they love most."Allabandar balled up his fists. "She can turn anyone into a spy. She sees through their eyes. She knows their mind. She hears what they hear. She has killed thousands of innocent people with her spells and her trickery. Our kingdom lives in fear of her." He paused watching a servant girl working at the far end of the room. "For our own safety and the safety of our people public displays of affection among the nobility is forbidden." " She has magic and shapeshifter abilities and you think I am meant to defeat her?" Suddenly this world did not seem like the better option. "One day an oracle told a prophecy that everyone believed to be about Eleanor our beloved queen of the resistance." He stared for a long while at a memorial painting of Queen Eleanor. "Unfortunately Eleanor was not the hero of the prophecy. That is the danger of all prophecies. You never know what they really mean until it is too late." "Through a great amount of research Aagvardak and Baellnar figured out how to find you and get you back. Their only option was a portal that opens once every hundred and fifty years. "Oi luckily she was right there when it opened! fates were on our side!"-Aagi said exuberantly. "Ok, if these two were so good at solving the riddle of the prophecy, and crossing planets to find me, why can't they beat her?" "Because we need you." He said walking over to the pearl dragon. Alyenna was completely silent for a moment. "What was the prophecy?" Then the strangest thing happened both Allabandar and the dragon's voice sang together; but, her voice was in Aly's mind. In a time where light is at its end And naught is what it seems When red encompasses the land and our greatest hero is no longer seen A new will rise born of love and flame. For this hero to rise another will be lost a hero felled by the touch of frost
"How does any of that lead you to me?" Alyenna asked in awe. Still recovering from the effect of the dragon's song. "It is far too complicated to explain right now," Allabandar answered gently. "You will understand in time." "Sir," Baellnar spoke up. "Perhaps we should give Aly a chance to recover?" "I would prefer answers." Alyenna replied stubbornly, "and to be able to speak for myself." Baellnar sighed and threw his hands up in the air. Aagi popped up next to her. "its a bunch o' magical mumbo jumbo and elven nonsense. Allabandar actually should take the most credit!" Allabandar nodded to Aly. "Aly, it took me centuries to figure it out myself. It will take me hours to explain it to you. How about you rest up tonight and we will work on your cultural knowledge more tomorrow. As if in answer Aly felt her body agree. A gentle blanket of exhaustion crept over her. She gently nodded and followed Aagi and Baellnar back to her room. Her mind reeling with images of talking dragons, strange creatures, and a beast with red eyes. Aly awoke in the middle of the night to the sound of her own screams. Drenched in a cold sweat. Her sheets were strewn all over the floor. She sat wide awake. In her dream, she was falling. She was surrounded by smoke and bursts of rainbow flame. She plummeted past mountains, past demons, orcs, and past screaming dragons. Yet, It was not the falling that forced her to wake up in a pile of sweat and terror. It was the seeing her heart ripped from her chest.

The group continued forward, and she lost the thought in the wonder of the cavern. She could not help it. She was in a wonderland of sorts. Logic meant nothing here. Her dark and tortured world no longer mattered here. She prayed with every step she took that it was not a dream, and if it were, she would prefer never to wake up. In her bewilderment and wonder, she completely missed that they had entered another room and everyone had stopped but her. When she finally caught herself, she realized that this was much grander than any she had seen before. At the far end of the room was an opalescent pearl toned statue. If the world around her did not hold enough magic, she began to question her own eyes. As she watched, the sculpture itself seemed to move which was a possibility she was starting to accept. It took a while; but, she eventually realized her jaw happened to be stuck in an open position. She caught Baellnar staring at her. "What?" she demanded. "I was wondering if you had another face. You know other than that of a slight minded child seeing a lollipop for the first time?" Agvardak groaned. "Miss don' mind this enormous piece o' straw over 'ere. 'e's just bummed 'cause you ain't looking at 'im dat way." He sauntered behind Baellnar and whacked him on the shoulder. "Oh," She said smiling and stopped to turn around looking directly at Baellnar. "It is because you aren't my type." She pointedly looked him up and down. "I prefer my men to have a face that doesn't look like it's going to break by simply having an expression." Aagi howled with laughter at Baellnar's expression went blank with shock. She wheeled around immediately trying to hide the victorious expression on her face. Aagi continued to laugh hysterically at Baellnar. Aagi slapped his knee with humor. "Oi miss we are keepin' ya! Serves 'im right to 'ave a lady put 'im in 'is place!" The trio walked towards the end of the room., their playful banter echoed throughout the hall. Alyenna was suddenly stunned into silence. Her feet froze on the ground when an unfamiliar feminine voice slipped into her mind. Hello hatchling, we have been waiting for you for over a century. Welcome to Kaelen's Keep. "Who said that?" Aagi and Baellnar watched her with their eyebrows cocked. Aly blushed. She heard the sound of footsteps and realized someone was descending the grand staircase. She watched him cautiously. He wore what resembled leather armor; but, it was a vibrant cream color with royal blue trim. On his back was a sword well over 5 feet long. She also knew that the voice in his head was not his. She surreptitiously searched the room for a woman, any woman. Her eyes found their way back to the pearl statue. Which slowly began to move. It's long neck craned up and over to look directly at Aly. She was several feet from the dragon, but she could still feel her warm breath on her face. Conflicting fear and awe ran rampant like wildfire through Aly's veins. Her body was torn between an overwhelming desire to run away and to pet the dragon. She was not entirely sure what kind of dragon this was and she had a fifty-fifty shot. Logic kept her still. She gauged the reaction of the men around her. If they were not afraid then neither was she. Aly stood her ground and stared directly into the dragons swirling jeweled rainbow eyes. The familiar feminine voice lightly chuckled into Alyenna's thoughts again. Be careful little one be brave when it counts but always know when to run. You made the right choice this time. I am Ruth, and that man is my companion. We have been waiting for over a century for this day. The dragon bowed her head. It is an honor to meet you cousin. "How is that possible" Alyenna said spoke aloud. Baellnar looked at her quizzically. Child, you don't have to use your voice to speak with me, in fact, you probably should not. As it is you and you alone who can hear me

Thanks lady

ladyverere:
Oh yeah! A new story. Thanks for the mention dear. Let me quickly start following.

Thanks ladyverere

Fazemood:
Let me first commend you on your determination to write this story, its not easy writing talkless of an action thriller.
But there are errors in your storyline,
1, Action stories are expected to be more suspence filled which this story lacks
2, Movements of our suppose protagonist "jamie" is too predictable and childish.Nothing depicts any trait of a trained agent except for her ability to disguise and stay hidden for 2yrs.
3, In chapter 5 jamie went on a mission to kill Liam, yet instead of doing what she went for was chit chatting with not just him but another assasin kai who are both well trained and on a mission.This never happens as agents are known to talk little and act more.
4, Jamie movement to Liam's dorm was totally unprofessional.An agent calculates and is in proper kit b4 embarking on a mission.This part made the story childplay like 4 me tho.
5, Lastly, agent in their various field don't advertise their skills just as Jamie did in Liam's room.
Anyway WELDONE it aint e~z ,doin wat you're doing

Thanks for the observation

"Don't touch me," I growled in a low tone, taking a step back, "We have no business with each other." He simply smirked, "Calm down Jamie. I was just going to invite you to Allison's party tonight." "Why?" It wasn't me that said that. I was going to though. Daniel turned to Allison and said, "I just feel like it. Why not, everyone's there. Even the geeks and the nerds. It's a chance for the losers to come and understand how much of a loser they are." "Oh this boy," I commented hysterically, one hand going to my hip as the other ran up swiftly atop my earth-brown hair that was put up into a bun earlier. "You have a problem, Jamie?" Daniel jeered. I stopped and turned back to him, "Oh I don't, but you definitely do. Don't try me, Ordeon." Allison and Carlos stared at the two of us arguing at each other in our own worlds. I'm assuming they were confused. "Maybe I should punch some sense into you," Daniel continued, flexing his muscles, "Your smart mouth's bringing you all kinds of consequences." "I'm surprised you even know that word. But," I stalled, pursing my lips together, "can you spell it though?" "That's it-" He aimed a punch at me. I was ready. The idiot's been getting on my last nerves and I was so prepared to just deliver some of my own skills at him. But you know who always ruin the fun for me? My other group of enemies. Aka Liam Carter and Kai Bennet. "Liam. Kai," I uttered, eyes wide at them now stationed in front of me. Kai was the one blocking the punch impressively. I realized we should stop and tugged fiercely on his sleeve to go. We were totally blowing our cover. I mean, they wouldn't know. But still. "Who the hell are you?" Daniel growled, confused at being stopped by two other men his size. He didn't recognize Liam at first because they didn't have first block together, but apparently they had some class together, because in two seconds his eyes arched at the boy and exclaimed, "Liam Carter? The new kid?" Liam looked up at him innocently and put on a quick, fake smile and replied, "Hey there, classmate." And that's not all of our new additions. In comes two other friends of Daniel and Allison, and Helene. I'm assuming Cherish was still tucked in at the temporary dorm room Helene was assigned to before they officially set her up with another student. She had slowed down upon entering the scene, and went towards Carlos who probably was summarizing the situation to her. "Mind your goddamm business," Daniel hissed in Kai's face. His other two friends caught on quickly and knew that he was about to fight someone. They were instantly pumped up. "Leave my girl alone, then," Kai smirked up at the angry man before him, "We have a deal, pal?" Daniel scoffed and glanced at Allison, who kept quiet but glared at us nonetheless, before turning back to all of us. "We can go right now," Daniel suddenly suggested, "You losers need someone to teach you your place." Once I realized what the boy was intending to do right now, I had to hold back a small laugh. No, I really had to. Oh, has this boy miscalculated. Imagine the look on his face when he realizes that he wasn't picking a fight with just I.O. students Jamie, Liam, Kai, Helene, and Carlos. Instead, he was picking a fight with undercover R.U. and Renai agents. The captain of the football team and his two players... Versus one sniper, one spotter, one trained-in-combat agent, and two assassins. Boy has he miscalculated today. Like I said: The nerds will become future hackers, and the quiet will become undercover agents.
You never know.

Ayoshewa12:
Thanks for the update sir

u wlcm ma

O==[]::::::::::::::::> Prophecy
[I]"We must take adventures to know where we truly belong."--James Joyce[/i]
Alyenna was lost in a strange world, that seemed to have been created by her own imagination. Every detail of this magical place seemed eery and familiar. Logic could not save her now. Alyenna was resound in the fact that she was 'not in Kansas anymore.' Despite that all that mattered to her, Kansas or no, was that for now she was safe from Paul. The thought of him sent an ominous shiver down her spine. While the trio ambled through the intricate hallways of the keep Aagi, who she established as a very chatty fellow, was telling her all about how many years it took to build it. How it was one of the last strongholds for those of a magical persuasion. The one thing that stood out was that it was a sanctuary for all. It did not matter if they were dwarven, elven, or drake. Creatures from all walks of life and persuasions were welcome to the safety of Kaellen's keep. Those that sought sanctuary was assigned tasks. Everyone had to help. Women or men of an able body were trained in the art of war. Children tended to the gardens and cleaned. Those with more the more technical skills of bookkeeping, culinary, leadership, or cartography were assigned to their respective stations. No man, woman, or child was without purpose. Sanctuary was not free; it was a team effort. Alyenna kept her eyes on those around her. Despite being forced to contribute not one citizen of Kaellen's objected to their work. In fact, from what Alyenna could see many of them enjoyed it. Eventually, she focused back on Aagi's and his descriptions of the Keep itself. Buildings were never her forte, she preferred the outdoors, but everything was critical in this world, so she willed herself to listen. Aagi enjoyed pointing out the intricate carvings and telling her their stories. The part that struck her the most was how many of these creatures had red eyes. In each sculpture, there was always at least one human or animal that hid in the shadows with ruby eyes. The composition varied in height and even gender; but, the eyes were invariably the same. Her curiosity got the best of her. She pointed to one particular battle scene that featured many of the red-eyed figures. "What does this mean?" "dat dere is Scelestra's work" He spat. "dat crazy daughter of phoebetor destroyed everything!" He silenced his banter into sullen resentment. The tension caused by her question lasted for several agonizing minutes. She rubbed her arm defensively afraid to break the tension herself in this strange land with people she did not know or understand. Aagi assessed her discomfort. His hazel eyes penetrated her soul and then softened. In her efforts to avert her eyes from the tension her attention was grabbed by a golden sculpture. Her hand drifted over the delicate craftsmanship. The statue featured a dazzling image crafted entirely from intricately spun gold. It was a golden dragon mid-flight, fire poured from its jaws, and a heavily armored woman rode on top of it her sword lifted high over her head. "That is Eleanor. She was a queen about one hundred and fifty years ago." Baellnar paused, a wave of sadness captured his expression. His hand gently stroked the face of the woman in the sculpture. "The man she loved betrayed her and, to no fault of his own, became one of Scelestra's minions." He stared at it for a long time and then continued. "He struck her from Skendiiri, her dragoness, and partner." After biting his lip, he spoke again this time in a whisper. "Kaelen's keep was built on the very spot she fell. "We neveh foun' 'er body," Aagi voice tinged with echoes of old pain. Alyenna gazed at the statue in disbelief. That name, she thought with trepidation. Then scolded herself for the irrationality of the thought, It has to be a coincidence. She continued to logic herself out of it. That name is reasonably common. It could mean anything or be anyone.

"So that Karate is working out nicely for you then?" Baellnar snorted, "Humans are so entertaining." "You are really into 'this whole thing' aren't you." She asked with deep skepticism. Almost as if the world itself was out to prove her wrong. A small pink light floated through the room. It appeared in front of her nose and appeared to have the shape of a small person. Alright, this officially goes beyond a concussion. Feeling defensive and pugnacious Alyenna stomped over to the stranger with silver hair, "What did you give me?" He raised an inquisitive eyebrow and laughed at her yet again. Alyenna's mind raced with doubts and questions as she caught sight of his pointed ears and sapphire eyes. Everything about him was alien to her. It was as if his snide and casual manner made her doubt everything she had accepted as fact versus fiction. Her determination was slipping; but, she refused to give in, never again would she accept the words of anyone with a blind eye. "I am serious what is it, PCP? LSD? Bath salts what did you give me?" Alyenna's eyes raced from one man to the other. She felt her heart thunder in her chest. Fear overwhelmed her with the realization that she had jumped from one sociopath's 'frying pan' into the fire of two. This time concern wrinkled his brow. "Girl, I am not sure what any of those words mean. If you are referring to some earthly potion? Then the answer is no we did not give you a potion, though a sleeping one might be recommended." He pauses and rubbed his temples "not for you, for me, you are giving me a headache." Again that sarcastic smile touched the corner of his lips, and his eyes twinkled playfully through his fingers. "You know you may be pretty, but you're a prick!" She glared at him from Her sheltered corner. Her back rested on the cold stone wall. It was her only assurance that no one could approach from behind. Her eyes darted around the room seeking an escape path. The strange man let loose a gentle and chiming chuckle like bells on the wind. "You think I am pretty?" He batted his eyes at her in playful mockery. "Yeah, for a buffoon with weird ears!" Alyenna had to admit, she was beginning to enjoy herself. This man's gentle demeanor and subtle humor were frustratingly contagious, and for the first time in years, she was no longer afraid. He smiled and opened his mouth slightly to retort; but, before the air left his lungs, the door slammed open. A sturdy looking man of about four foot nothing strode through. He exuded the confidence of a man nearly twice his size. If she didn't know any better, she would say he looked like one of the dwarfs from her book. I am losing it. Then, with a broad smile and a gravelly voice he spoke "Aly! good, you're up little miss time to get a move on then eh?" Then he turned toward the man with silver hair. "Quit ogling her you spindly beanstalk, don't you 'ave some nature to snuggle with or somethin'?" The silver-haired man just laughed and shook his head. The dwarf held out his hand. "That is Baellnar; you can ignore 'im." His calloused sausage-shaped fingers outstretched. "Mines Agvardak, Agvardak Stoutfist." She leaned over and accepted his hand, his grip nearly crushing hers. She bit her lip tightly in pain and through a forced a small smile she said. "How do you know my name?" The dwarf smiled but did not reply to her question. "Sorry 'bout the bump on yer head lass! Twas a bit on the necessary side. C'mon we 'ave people ta meet. Lots o' folk are excited to make yur acquaintance." He led her from the room. Baellnar followed behind in contemplative silence, his delicate features stretched in a gentle smile. When he caught her eye he winked and then drifted off into his own musings. As they strode through the great hall, Agvardak babbled in the background. Her eyes were wide as she took in the wonders of the room around her. It was the size of a football field and covered in elaborate stone carvings. Each of them was incredibly intricate and colored by a dazzling collection of gemstones. Each creature and the weapons they held were easily distinguishable from another. There were multiple battle scenes. One, in particular, caught her eye. It was far too familiar for comfort. In it was a particularly gruesome battle with a golden dragon and rider tumbling to their deaths. Below them was a battlefield littered with the disembodied corpses of dragons, humans, and other races she had only heard of in her stories. Flying above the massacre was an ebony black dragon and its rider with blue eyes and black hair. Alyenna stopped and stared at the carvings, shaking her head in disbelief. That is way too familiar. The dwarf turned to her and barked for her to hurry up. She shook off her feeling of deja vu and hurried to catch up. He had stopped and was petting something that was slipping in and out of his legs. When it saw Aly, it let out a cheerful chirp. It looked like a lizard; but, it was the size of a house cat. Its shoulders and knees were plated in crystals. It butted its head against her knee. "Well hello, little one what's your name?" Alyenna said kindly. It looked up at her and flashed what she thought would be a smile "Roxanne," said a pleasant female voice inside Alyenna's mind. She turned to the dwarf, her eyes bulged "did that lizard just talk?" "She may be amazing, but talking is not one o' 'er talents." Agi stared at Alyenna like she was crazy. "She's my mount though I'll let ya ride 'er sometime." "How can I ride her, she's the size of my forearm?" Alyenna asked in shaken disbelief. "Oh, when she needs. she can be any size dat she wants, but She saves 'er biggest size fur those special occasions." He winked at her he patted Roxanne gently. "Even small she can outrun almost any living thing, you know other than a full-blooded dragon of course." He scratched the lizard on the crest of her chin he got a bit too enthusiastic, so Roxanne made a playful bite at his hand." He laughed, "she's just how I like muh beer: scaly, fast, and with a bit o' a bite." The man with silver hair, he smirked slyly "that's what I said to your mom last night, Agi." Alyenna's jaw dropped despite her earlier exchange with the silver man she was surprised by the nature of what he was saying. He looked like an elf out of the 'Lord of the Rings'; but, had the manners of a pirate. "Dorothy Stoutfist is a saint ya gnarly toad fart." Aagi grinned broadly. Alyenna cut in frustrated. "Um I hate to break up this love fest; but, I still don't know where I am, nor what in God's name I am doing here." Her chest heaved skin the exertion of her emotions, "I mean this place is amazing!" She gestured emphatically around the room. I would love to stay, but what the hell is going on?" Chuckling the elf smiled "You need to be patient. You will know in time." "With what you know of me so far, Baellnar, how patient do you think I am?" Alyenna stared with determination back at his leveled gaze. Then after several seconds, her expression caught her by surprise, she realized that she was smiling. Somehow she felt more at home in this alien world than she ever had in, she paused searching the recesses of her mind, she could not remember how long. Baellnar gave her a knowing smile, "No, Aly you have never been patient."

Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this chapter, please comment
Always remember not everything is as it seems.

Your comments will be appreciated


O==[]:::::::::::::::::::::> Awakening

"The wise adapt themselves to circumstances, as water
molds itself to the pitcher" – Chinese Proverb



Alyenna slowly opened her eyes; her vision was hazy and
painful. She winced as she absentmindedly rubbed the
lump that was forming on the back of her head. She made
a clumsy attempt to sit upright; but, she almost lost her
breakfast.
Sleep wanted to claim her. She felt her eyes clothes and the
gentle touch of her silk nightgown. She looked down at the
satin garment ; this is not mine. Adrenaline pumped
through her veins. She attempted to sit up again. Shaking,
she braced herself against the headboard and scanned her
surroundings.
Polished marble floors and columns traced with golden
sculptures of the extravagantly decorated room. Moonlight
cascaded through lancet windows. Aly's mind raced with
questions which quickly lead to an overwhelming sense of
panic.
She forced herself to breathe and as the lids of her eyes
drifted closed. She counted controlled her breaths as her
chest rose and fell in a calculated rhythm. With each
breath, her emotions eased, and she was able to refocus
on more constructive thoughts. Her eyes traced back to the
windows as her gaze lingered there as hope corrupted her
heart.
Without a second thought, she scrambled to her feet and
leaned over the edge into the fresh night air. It was a
mistake. All of her hope vanished. The stone walls of the
castles morphed into a sheer rock face that disappeared
into a pit of unending darkness. There were not enough
bed sheets in the world to safely repel down this wall.
A gentle creak sounded from the door on the other side of
the rooms. A fresh shot of adrenaline spread through her
veins. She crept into a nearby shadow concealed behind an
enormous bureau. Her fingers twitched under the throes of
anxiety.
A graceful shadow crossed the threshold of her door.
"You're awake." said a soft, airy voice.
"Watch your next steps. I am armed!" Aly lied. "I know
several forms of" Her voice trailed off as he took an
exaggerated step closer to her.
"Are you about done with your hissy fit?" His sapphire eyes
twinkled with mirth as he revealed the hilt of his sword. "I
come armed as well, though you seem to be lacking your
weapon of choice. A frying pan was it?"
"With a sword that small I am not even worried." Aly
jeered. He took another step closer.
She blinked her eye rapidly. Each time her lid closed she
expected to see human ears. Every time she opened them,
his ears were still pointed. Elves are not real. She reasoned
with herself, repeatedly. I have to have a concussion.
She took a moment to assess her kidnapper. On top of the
sword strapped to his side, he also had a quiver strapped
to his back. A weapon of choice that was incredibly out of
date. Was I kidnapped into a renaissance fair?
"Not to break up your medieval fun or anything; but, who
are you and why am I here?" She snapped at him as she
positioned into her best approximation of a boxer's stance.
The strange man snickered and silently walked toward her.
She could see his legs moving; but, it was almost like his
feet never left the floor. She cursed her concussion. Come
on think straight, Aly! She barked at him. "Where are my
clothes!" Suspicion lined her tone. If that creepy silver-
haired freak did anything, she did not have time to
complete her thought.
"Relax, you are not my type. Your clothes are being
washed." His eyes twinkled with mirth, and a small smile
touched the edge of his lips.
She attempted to slap him; but, she miscalculated and
landed nearly face first on the cold stone floor. She quickly
picked herself up and cursed her relationship with gravity.