“You’re finally here!” Anne rushes me. “What happened at the academy two days ago?”

I look down at my rags and the hastily bought cloak, “Was I that easy to recognize," None of the clothes are the usual black I wear and I'm not showing any of my hair.

“Considering you’re the only one who covers up from head to toe and you’re always rubbing your hand when you come in, yeah, it was that easy,” Anne yells to Hannah to bring Carlyle over. From what she says, it seems like he’s been wanting to talk to me.

“Explain,” he says as soon as he sees me. He waves Anne away and she reluctantly leaves the two of us alone.

“Well, the reason I’m dressed like this is-”

“Now’s not the time for jokes. Yesterday, someone I don’t particularly like seeing came to pay us a visit. He said you were involved in an incident involving the academy two days ago. It also seems like this Mr. Rune character turned out to be more than a teacher.”

I give Carlyle my side of the story while he listens, taking it all in.

Now it’s my turn to ask questions, “Where were you two days ago? I came in here but saw nobody. It was as silent as a graveyard so I went to the academy by myself. How come no one told me that everyone would be gone?”

“The person I don’t particularly like seeing called me to him so I told the others to take the night off. He informed me of the unusual predicaments that the Green City is going under. It seems like that bastard is pretty suspicious himself.”

“Suspicious? Who?” the man with the porcelain mask enters with two men behind him. “I’ve just arrived but I have a feeling I’m being talked about. The urge to sneeze has been growing stronger every second and I don’t exactly feel like taking my mask off.”

“You’re here,” Carlyle says with disdain. Allan appears from around the corner and the other members perk up. Everyone’s paying attention to how this will go down.

“Don’t act like you weren’t expecting me, First. You have also been dodging the ‘Thirteenth’s’ registration despite the many times I told you to hurry and do it. Is there something you’re trying to hide from me? To hide from our friends in the capital? In fact,” he walks up to Carlyle, “You’re acting quite rudely to an official. It is unlike how you were before… the Thirteenth came. You can be severely punished you know?”

“Don’t act like you’re the radiant light of justice.”

“And are you?”

“No, I’m not.”

What are their histories with each other? As far as I know, Carlyle’s been a member of the Twelve since the conception of them in this city, considering he’s the First. How long have these two known each other?

“Hmph,” he turns his back on Carlyle, “I am not here to argue with you. I came on matters concerning the attack on the academy a few days ago. I, of course, didn’t expect to be so lucky as to run into the person I wanted to see most.”

He turns to me. Carlyle and the others don’t move an inch. I’m sure he came looking for me yesterday. If worse comes to worse, I can always teleport away. I don’t exactly like Carlyle but I can at least trust he’ll keep my identity a secret. Anne probably won’t say a peep either.

His two men step closer, “You need me for something? Getting things violent won’t end this well.”

“Hearing your nickname in the streets, I was not expecting cooperation with an authority figure like myself. If you choose to come in quietly then there’s no problem and no need for violence today. We’re only going to ask you a few questions.”

This isn’t turning out very good, “What’s wrong with those questions being asked in here? From my time spent with them, I know they’re more than a little group that goes around stopping crime in the city. If that was all they did there would be more of them.”

“This is something that needs to be kept under wraps as much as possible. I’m sure you understand, considering you wear a mask to hide your face and go by a number to hide your name,” he flicks his hand and a stun zooms toward me.

I manage to dodge in the short time I have to react. His two men reach out for me with their hands- no, gloves, glowing. Shit. I wasn’t expecting them to act so soon. I need to leave right now.

Just as I’m about to teleport away, a lightning bolt cuts through stopping them in their tracks. Anne glares at the masked man and his companions. In her off hand, she has three scrolls prepared for use.

The air in the room drastically changes as each member stands.

“What is the meaning of this?” the official’s voice lowers as he scans the room. There’s not the slightest of movement underneath his cloak but I know he’s prepared. The scent of someone ready for a fight leaks from him.

“Unless you have some kind of warrant for his arrest, we won’t be letting you take him,” Anne states while brandishing her scrolls, “The only other way you’ll have him today is if you’re looking to have a disagreement with us.”

He says nothing. Even from under his mask I can tell he’s analyzing each and every one of us. His men look toward their leader and wait for his orders. Although they’re not weak, hesitation outlines their bodies.

They don’t want to be ordered to take on the eight of us; Anne, Carlyle, Allan, Adrian, Hannah, Francis, the Twelfth, and myself… Two usual members are missing.

Silence once again dominates the room until, finally, he says, “We’ll take our leave,” he motions for his men to leave. “You will regret this later.” the door eventually closes behind him.

Anne’s shoulders drop and she stuffs her scrolls away, “Lucky that worked out.”

Carlyle focuses on her, “Anne, don’t act on your own again,” just like the official from before, Carlyle’s words are lined with threats. If Anne does do something like this again, what may happen to her won’t be nice.

“I get it Carlyle, but I know you would have backed me up if he chose to fight today,” Anne says.

Carlyle shakes his head, “Maybe I would have. Then again, maybe I wouldn’t have. Who I stick my neck out for is my choice,” he turns his back on us and begins to walk away, “Thirteenth,” he stops, “You can’t be here anymore. Steer clear of this place for now. You being here will only cause more trouble for the both of us.”

“What about what you said-”

He raises his hand, “I’ll contact him and ask for his opinion. I can guarantee you that master of yours will be glad your nightlife is coming to an end for a while. So, while I contact him later, be a good boy and stay on the path he and I set you on.”

...

Anger wells in my chest. If putting my fist in his face got me anywhere, I would’ve done it by now. I take a deep breath. Getting mad will make matters worse. And I can’t win in a one on one fight as it stands.

Anne walks over and grabs my shoulder, “Do you have any injuries from the incident at the academy,” because I’m all covered up, her attempts to check for wounds end in vain and the only thing she can do is ask.

“No, I’m fine. There are no noticeable injuries other than a slight cut on my cheek and a high-pitched ringing in my left ear. It’s not loud enough to bother me. I ignore it most of the time. Other than that, I don’t feel particularly weak.”

“Well that’s good to hear,” she smiles.

Hannah comes over rubbing her neck, “Yeah, sorry we weren’t here when you needed us… again.”

I shrug, “Bad timing, what can I say?”

“Eheh. Having it come down to bad luck or bad timing makes me feel a bit better. There wasn’t too much we could’ve done about it huh.”

“Yep. Sometimes there’s just nothing we can do about it.”

Hannah and Anne stare at me without saying a word.

“Is there something on my face… or mask?”

“No,” they both say.

The door behind me opens. I turn to see two men whom I’ve never met before. One has a suit of tight leather clothing with various items hanging from his belt and the other wears dozens of colorful rings on his hands. They throw sidelong glances at me while asking for Carlyle.

He breaks from a corner of the inventory again and as soon as he sees the two men, he tells me and the Twelfth to leave. Everyone else nods in agreement. I guess newbies aren’t allowed to know the veteran talk. I won’t be leaving that easily. Not since I gathered up these clothes, randomly thrown together, of course, to come here.

“Who are these two,” I ask, pointing to them. I have an idea but I want it confirmed. I won’t be leaving with any doubts on who they are.

Carlyle steps between us, “Ian and Julius, meet our Thirteenth. Thirteenth, these two here are other members of the Twelve. They’ve been gone for a while doing a task I assigned them on,” he glances at them and they nod.

Allan then ushers the Twelfth and I out of the warehouse, “You two are free to leave. Have a nice night. And sorry about having to toss you out.”

The Twelfth throws his hand up and hastily tries to ease Allan’s mind, “No need to concern yourself with us. I’ve worked in some government positions before. I can see that it’s not something to be easily leaked, just like with what the Seventh of the capital said.”

Seventh of the capital? The official from before?

I shrug, “Don’t apologize for it. It doesn’t need a… sorry,” hearing that word used too many times by one person gets on my nerves. I know it's a dumb thing to get annoyed about but it annoys me.

“Glad you two understand,” Allan says as he closes the door.

The Twelfth and I sit there for a moment wondering what to do. I guess I’ll call it a night then. I have another long day of school waiting for me tomorrow. Maybe when I get back, I’ll see a message from Aisha. Though, I wish I got one yesterday. It would’ve cheered me up quite a bit.

“So, Thirteenth,” the Twelfth catches my attention, “Do you have any clue as to what they are speaking about in there? I understand you were kicked out as well but you have been with them longer haven’t you? If so, I’d appreciate it if someone filled me in.”

“Nope,” I shake my head, “I don’t have the slightest clue about what they might be discussing in there. Anyways, I’ll be off now.”

“Well, have a nice night then.”

“Same to you,” I start back to the dorms. Once there, I throw off all the extra clothing and the cloak I’m wearing. I meander to the drawers and check for any messages left by Aisha or my master. None.

I just have to lull myself to sleep tonight I guess. I lay on the bed and allow my mind to drift further and further until darkness envelops me.

I hope we’ll speak again soon. Something whispers.

That night, I dream of being chased by a monster. One that’s too strong for me to fight back against, and one that I have no hope of escaping. Each turn I path I take is blocked off, each attack I try is deflected, each scream for help is unheard.

In the end, there's nowhere for me to go.

-------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, when I arrive at school, Miss Ein makes a shocking announcement, “The Headmaster, due to various concerns regarding our ability to keep the academy safe, and the unknown circumstances to why animals and monsters alike are suddenly growing stronger and more violent… has decided to shut down the school for the year. This is our last week. Enjoy it as you will.”

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Author’s Note: I’ve been struck with some unexpected news and am feeling pretty bad about it (It's not bad news about life, it's just news that makes me groan, UGH!). Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Please leave a comment or a review if you haven’t because I really appreciate it.

I don’t know if a chapter will come out tomorrow but I’m pretty excited to finish this book and move on to the third. Also, I know my writing is a bit slow so if anyone has any tips on how to speed it up, I’d be glad to hear it. It’s good if I try experimenting here and there every once in awhile.