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Raven woke slowly the next morning, enjoying the feel of the first real bed he had used in more than a week. The sunlight was streaming through the two bedroom windows, but it did not hit the bed, so Raven was unconcerned. He only stirred when he realized that LeShana was not next to him, since that was more than enough reason to wake up. He sat up and looked around the bedroom. Finding the door to the main room was open, he grabbed the robe that was hanging from the bedpost and pulled it on. His bare feet made very little sound as he moved and found LeShana was sitting at the table in her robe with breakfast near her right hand as she read something from a computer pad. He wandered across the floor to sit across from her.
"Morning." LeShana murmured with a smile.
"Is it?" Raven asked, looking out the windows uncertainly.
"Pretty much." LeShana replied chuckling.
"I should call Destin." Raven commented, brushing his hair back with his hand in a futile attempt to contain the chaos.
"Before you do that, I want to teach you Mophen'kora." LeShana told him, looking up from the terminal.
"That could take years." Raven commented ignorantly, to which she chuckled.
"It’s not the same way you learned Dego, it’s a knowledge implant. Mophen'kora is pretty much the universal language of the halls, and it’s the language used at the Center. Now that we’re here, I don’t have the restrictions against using magic that I had before. It won't take me long to recharge the energy I use, so I can give you some of the information that you’re going to need." LeShana explained, giving him a loving smile.
"What do I need to do?" Raven asked, returning her smile.
"Just relax, it won't take long." LeShana told him. Raven sat back and took a few deep, calming breaths as LeShana got up and walked around the table to stand over him. She laid her hands on his forehead and he could feel her touching the edges of his mind. LeShana's influence slowly extended deeper into the center of his mind, reaching for the areas that were not under his conscious control. Raven could not follow her movements there, but he could feel her shifting about inside. She then opened a channel from her own mind and a flow of information poured through. Raven felt a new awareness awakening, a new language growing on the tip of his tongue. It was over in seconds, but in that short time a wealth of information had been learned. Raven could now understand the words that had been exchanged with the gatekeeper. In addition to this, there was now an inherit knowledge of the Center, all of the halls and places that he would need to know and where they were, as well as knowledge of the technology used at the Center and the halls. LeShana lifted her hands and stepped back. Raven opened his eyes and smiled up at her.
"Thank you." He whispered in Mophen'kora. LeShana smiled and returned to her seat.
"Get dressed and get something to eat before you call Destin, he is not patient man, unless he does not know if you're ready." LeShana added returning to her seat and the terminal with a smile for him. Nodding, Raven walked into the kitchenette. There was a small alcove in one of the walls which was called a replicator, and it could produce any food that it had been programmed to make. Raven had a few ideas about what he would like to program into it, but that would have to wait for another time. He ordered a simple breakfast and returned to the table, glancing at what LeShana was reading. It was a report about the recent incidents in the Salak'patan where agents had intervened. Raven ate quickly and returned the dishes to the replicator, where they promptly disappeared. He gathered some clothes that would not be a loss if they were destroyed, since Destin was a master swordsmen and an opal belt in martial arts, so Raven knew it would not be an easy match. He was in for a surprise, but Raven was perversely not going to tell anyone until he had sprung said surprise. LeShana was still at the table when he returned to the living room. Using the large screen terminal, Raven punched in Destin's number and Solair answered.
"Could you please tell Destin that I am ready whenever he is?" Raven told her in Mophen'kora. Solair smiled and nodded before she broke the connection. He turned away from the large panel and looked over at LeShana. "Would you like to come?"
"I had better, I’m your sponsor and you're going to need me to patch you up after a bout with Destin. I cant very well present you to the Dean looking like we just finished beating you up." LeShana replied with a smile. "Call Sarath and tell her that she can do an official testing once Destin is done." LeShana added as she stood up. Raven bowed with a smile and turned back to the terminal. Raven dialed her number and let it ring, but she did not answer, so Raven left her a message. LeShana emerged from the bedroom, dressed and tying her hair back in a pony tail. There was a knock on the door shortly after that. Destin stood in the doorway holding a sword in its' sheath.
"Let's go to the weapon's training room." he suggested.
"All right." Raven replied, and LeShana followed them out into the hall. Solair was with him, and they all exchanged greetings before heading off towards the transports. The section of the Center devoted to training was on the far side of the crater and down thirty levels. They took the transport over to the far side and an elevator down to the correct level. Nearly a quarter of the crater was devoted to training agents, with twelve large weapons rooms, two-hundred work rooms, five hundred or so class rooms, a large section of offices, ten cafeterias, and enough dorm rooms to house a small army of fifty thousand. Normally Raven would be staying in one of the small rooms with the other students, but being bonded made that out of the question. Most of the rooms were not equipped with replicators, so they had the large cafeterias to service the need of food. Destin was taking them to the weapons room used by upper class men, so it was used mainly in the afternoon while the other weapons rooms were used almost around the clock. They pushed inside the swinging doors and he could see that there were four large mats dominating the floor, all of which were empty at the time. There was a small loft for the trainers, and three doors along the right hand wall opposite the loft. Two were locker rooms, the third lead to an archery course. To the left, along the wall, there was a selection of weapons; staves, swords, knives and greater number of weapons that Raven did not recognize, some of which could not logically be used by humanoids. The other three walls were lined with benches and cabinets which held padded armor. Destin indicated the closet mat with the tip of his sheathed sword and went in search of padded armor for the both of them. Raven headed towards the racks of weapons to select something that wasn't too ill fitted to his style.
The edges of all the weapons were dulled, but were kept in immaculate condition. His old master would have been quite pleased. Raven picked out , a long, graceful sword with perfect balance which he felt was the best suited to his needs. He then returned to the mat and started to strap on the padded armor around his vulnerable parts. Destin was already suited up and was checking the fit of a plastic sheath that covered the blade of his sword, which would dull the edges so that he would not take a chunk out of Raven by mistake. The padded armor was easy to get on and not heavy so it was not long before Raven was checking the fit of the gauntlets. He knew from the information that LeShana had given to him that most agents, unless they were undercover, would wear gauntlets to protect their arms and hands. There were an advanced combination of metal and technology. When retracted, the gauntlets would look like armbands, but when activated, they would spread and circle the forearm, hands, and fingers in a coat of protection that was virtually indestructible. The practice gauntlets only protected the forearms while agents had to have their own gauntlets fitted so that they could protect their fingers.
"How do I use this thing?" Raven asked jokingly as he lifted the sword.
"The pointy end goes in the other man." LeShana called from where she was sitting next to Solair.
"Okay." Raven chuckled as he proceeded to balance the sword on the tip of his finger. "I am ready." He replied, and Destin stepped o
ut of the ready box and onto the mat. Raven did the same still balancing the sword on the tips of his fingers.
"Are you going to continue to act like a circus performer or am I going to have to beat the playfulness out of you?" Destin asked in a low, threatening voice. Raven pretended to consider his question for a moment before replying.
"I think I'll take the beating." Raven told him, and Destin growled low in his chest, charging across the distance. Raven watched his approach with disinterest, but at the last possible second, he flipped the sword over and grabbed the hilt. Almost playfully, Raven blocked Destin's slash and whipped the sword around to sweep Destin's leg out from under him. Destin hit the mats with a surprised thump before taking a swing at Raven's feet. Raven leapt over the swing and ran to the other end of the mats. Destin got back to his feet looking extremely sour.
"You never told us you can fight." Destin growled.
"Tis not my fault no one asked and just assumed." Raven replied with a smile. "Besides, a beginner could have blocked that swing." Raven added with a grin. Destin started forward with a scowl, approaching Raven in a far less direct fashion after having been given a good reason to be cautious. Raven circled away, forcing his opponent to try and catch up, therefore putting himself at risk. They circled each other, both of them looking for a weak spot to exploit. Raven was the first to make a move, with a feint to the right and then charged straight at Destin. Destin hesitated, struck by a moment of rare indecision as he watched Raven's massive form approaching at full speed. At the last second, Destin dodged to one side. Raven ran right past him and then spun, the sword arcing out in a low sweeping movement. Their blades collided as Destin tried to strike at his back. Raven was the first to recover, and he swung low, aiming for an outstretched knee. Destin blocked it by hitting Raven's blade from below, sending it flying upward before stabbing towards Raven's midsection. Raven sidestepped and the blade passed within inches of his side. Raven then countered by bringing his sword up and over, Destin blocked it and grunted under the force of Raven's swing. Destin pushed him back and used the chance to get his feet under him. They faced off for a second each of them a little surprised. Destin was the one who attacked next as he leveled a cross-slash at Raven, which was blocked just as quickly.
They started to battle in earnest, Destin continued his attacks, speeding up his thrusts and blocks while forcing Raven back and back again. Raven managed to keep up, narrowly avoiding blow after blow. He managed to get Destin to back off a few times, but he was fighting a veteran warrior with years of experience on him. They both of knew that Raven was going to lose, but he was not giving up so easily. Destin forced him back several more times, and then stepped up the pace. Destin started to score hits, minor ones, but enough to make Raven falter. Just as Raven was about completely back off to catch his breath, Destin flipped his sword and disarmed him. It spun off to thud against the mats thirty feet away. Raven dodged and blocked six more potentially lethal hits with his gauntlets before he stumbled and fell to his knees. Destin brought his sword around over his head and swung down. Raven saw it coming, his hands moved almost of their own accord to perform a maneuver that he had never pulled off before. Destin brought his sword down with frightening speed, aiming for Raven's shoulder, which would count as a finishing move, and Raven caught the blade in the palms of his hands, stopping it in midair. Had the blade been sharp, of course, he would have been missing chunks of his palms. Destin seemed surprised and that was what Raven was hoping for as he shoved back on the sword between his hands. The hilt rammed into Destin's thigh, not enough to hurt him but it succeeded in distracting him just long enough to allow Raven to shove upward with all his strength, still clutching the sword, and slam it into Destin's chest.
The impact would leave a bruise, even with the padding, as well as leaving Destin unbalanced. Raven got to his feet and shoved hard, toppling the agent. Raven then released the sword and flipped high into the air, dodging the swing that Destin aimed at his knee. He landed on his hands and pushed off once more, flipping in the direction of the sword three times, before his hand landed squarely on the hilt of the blade. Armed once more with a weapon of his own, he canceled his momentum by planting his feet. Just as he got his feet under him and his sword up in a defensive position, Destin was on him, having wasted no time crossing the mats towards him. Raven blocked the first swing and attacked, his sword hit nothing but empty air. He flipped the sword over his head and felt the impact of a swing aimed at his back. Raven then spun, swinging the sword in a low arc only to have Destin jump back and bringing his sword down. Raven was overextended and was not be able to pull back in time. The sword came down on his shoulder, the impact numbed his hands and his own sword fell from his fingers. Raven fell back against the mats defeated. The point of Destin's sword appeared at his throat seconds later.
"Should I finish you off?" He asked with a small smile.
"I don't think I have a choice in the matter." Raven commented, looking at the sword pointed at his exposed throat. Destin swung the sword out of the way and offered Raven his hand. He accepted and grimaced in pain as Destin pulled him to his feet.
"You did far better than I expected." Destin told him softly.
"You expected to beat me like a raw recruit." Raven replied as he bent to retrieve the sword.
"That is where you were wrong. Don't think that I didn’t see those secretive smiles that you got every time someone mentioned your weapons skill." Destin replied, clapping him on the back. They walked back to the benches where Solair and LeShana were waiting with towels and water. Raven accepted both after setting the sword to the side, and then collapsed back against the bench.
"Where the hell did you learn that?" LeShana asked him, mildly angered.
"One of my neighbors taught me. He was a Japanese master and he was staying with his daughter. One day I saw him working in his garden, trying to move a large block of wood, so I helped him. After that we became friends. I helped him with tasks he could no longer do himself, and he taught me how to fight." Raven told her and received her forgiving smile.
"Then can I assume that you can fight hand to hand with some level of skill?" Destin asked.
"If I say yes, does that mean we can skip it?" Raven asked him in return.
"No, I am afraid not." Destin replied with a chuckle.
"All I'd like to know is how you caught that sword." Solair commented to him.
"That's the first time I’ve managed to pull it off." Raven told her as he pulled off the gauntlets. LeShana then offered him the padded gauntlets that were used for hand to hand combat. Raven took them while LeShana helped him to take off his boots. Raven put on the hand guards and the head gear while she helped with the foot pads. Raven checked the pads and put in the mouth piece as he waited for Destin to finish with his own gear. He nodded, and they both returned to the mats to take their places in the ready squares. They both stepped out and circled each other, Destin now cautious. He had learned better than to try and charge straight at Raven. Raven noticed as he switched directions that Destin was slower to his right side. He let a small smile cross his lips as he took in that fact.
This match was far shorter and ended with Raven as the victor. Destin had gotten impatient enough to charge straight at Raven, who sidestepped and used Destin slowness to the right mercilessly. Raven won by flipping Destin and dropping him to the mats. He then pinned him there with a foot on the side of his neck, and Destin conceded the fight. Raven helped him up and they both limped back to the benches. Raven had given as many good hits as he had taken, and they both knew it. Sarath was there waiting for him. Raven waved to her and promptly collapsed onto the bench, pulling at the straps of the armor as he did so. He discarded the padding as if it weighed twenty times its' actual mass.
"LeShana, darling, if you had any romantic plans for tonight, Destin just ruined them." Raven said with a weary smile.
&n
bsp; "Solair, the same to you." Destin added as the three woman all laughed. Destin pulled out a small pad and started to write something on it with the stylus. Raven grabbed the sword and walked over to the weapons rack to hang it back where he had found it. Solair and LeShana dumped the padded armor in the dirty bin so it could be cleaned. As Raven returned to the bench, Destin finished what he was writing and handed the pad over to Sarath, who slipped it into her pocket. After saying their goodbyes, Destin and Solair left, heading back to their quarters.
"Do you want to do this here or in a work room?" Raven asked her.
"If I hear correctly, there's a gaggle of upper class men on their way here, so we had better do this in a workroom." Sarath replied, indicating the rambunctious noise coming from the locker rooms and hallways. Raven nodded and offered LeShana his hand, which she accepted with a smile and Sarath lead the way out of the weapons room. The hall was filled with excited students all clambering to get into the locker rooms, but they quieted instantly at the sight of three adults. Just for the amusement of it, Raven glared at all of them, silencing them even further. They walked on without saying a word, turning a few corners to the nearest set of workrooms, where they fortunately found a room that was unoccupied. Since the next closest was three floors down, they all considered it fortunate. Sarath flipped the card around in the holder and pushed the door open. The room was somewhat like the room back on earth. There was a simple round table and a few wooden chairs just as there had been before, and it was obviously the discarded and repaired furniture from the rest of the Center. He could feel Sarath raising a strong shield around herself, and LeShana did the same before putting a shield around him.
LeShana explained quietly. With a nod, Raven took one of the chairs as LeShana took one that was across from him, but Sarath remained standing, waiting for him to settle himself. Raven nodded that he was ready and leaned his head back against the headrest before closing his eyes. Sarath set one hand on his head before touching the edges of Raven's pitiful attempt at shielding. They worked, but Raven knew that they were not up to standards after feeling LeShana's and Sarath's own. By the time he had grown used to the sensation of someone else rummaging around inside of his mind, he began to notice how different LeShana's aura was from his sister's.
> Raven felt a pressure in the center of his chest. Sarath retreated and Raven opened his eyes. "Got it?" Sarath asked verbally, as Raven looked up at her. He nodded with a grateful smile. It did lessen the pressure of the other minds he could sense all around him.
"Raven, could you step outside for a moment so that we can finish this form?" LeShana asked. With a nod, he slipped out into the hallway. There was no question as to why they wanted a bit of privacy, there was a preliminary psychological profile on the form and they were no doubt going to be as honest as they could be in their assessment. Not wanting to offend him openly, they had sent him outside. With a sigh, Raven took a seat at one of the benches that lined the hall, settling in for the wait ahead and watching people as they swirled past him. There were a great many students, all of whom had a certain overconfident look about them that identified them easily from the number of graduated agents that had been in the field. Raven knew from the impression that he had gotten from LeShana that the field was not as easy as the youngsters thought it was. Considering the trouble he had caused back on Earth, he could only too easily imagine how that could be nothing but the understated truth.
However, there was one person walking through the halls that captured Raven's attention completely. There was something about him as he walked with such grace and power that it set him apart from all of the others around him. The other occupants of the hall did not even seem to take note of him as he walked through it, as if unable to sense the strange power hiding just beneath the surface. His face was hidden within the hood of his white cloak, on the shoulder of the white fabric there was an emblem of white silk. The emblem shimmered in a curious way but Raven could not quite make out the shape of it. He wore a scarred leather scabbard at his hip and his hands were hidden in black leather gloves. He did not wear a uniform and his clothes were somewhat shabby, as if he had just gotten out of the field. Raven could feel a penetrating gaze emanating from the hood, yet it was not an evil gaze. Instead, it was somehow the look of someone that answered to a higher power. Raven was not afraid, but he had the feeling that anyone that angered the strange man would die, and die quickly. Raven continued to watch the man as he neared, fascinated even though there was nothing truly remarkable about him. The man in the white cloak almost walked past him, but something made him turn to look right at Raven before he had past. His hand lifted and touched his chin, and he turned Raven's head from one side to the other. He nodded just slightly before his hand dropped, then he turned and walked away without a word. Raven watched him as long as he could before the man disappeared from view, passing behind a knot of students. The two women emerged from the workroom a little bit later, but Raven's thoughts were still stuck on the man in the white cloak. LeShana had the pad in her hand and she gestured for him to follow as Sarath walked off down the hall on some other errand. Raven pushed himself up and fell into step next to his bonded.
"LeShana, what's with the people in the white cloaks?" Raven asked her.
"White cloak?" LeShana asked, confused by the reference.
"There was a man walking through the hall a moment ago wearing a white cloak, with some emblem on his right shoulder." Raven explained persistently, even though he almost thought to forget the whole thing.
"I don't know, some agents get a bit eccentric after a few years in the field." She told him with a soft chuckle. Raven took the answer for what it was worth, but still his thoughts dwelled on the strange man long after their conversation. They were headed for the closest set of elevators on their way to the Dean's office. He was five floors above them in an area dominated with the administration section of the training quarters. When they arrived, they were asked to wait, and the secretary took the assessment so that the Dean could read over it in private. They settled in the waiting room and discussed Sarath's own conclusions. Raven was careful not to mention the psych profile, since that was something he might be better off not knowing. After a while they started to trade childhood stories. Despite their long term/long distance relationship of the bond, there was much that was still unknown between them. They waited for about twenty minutes before the Dean was ready to see them.
The meeting with the Dean perhaps could have gone a little more smoothly, but Raven quickly grew to have a serious dislike for the Dean on multiple levels and in multiple ways. The Dean made it quite clear that he thought Raven did not deserve something so wasteful as having four fully trained field agents all dedicated to his training, much less any kind of special treatment because of age, size or origin. However he also could not counter whatever authority figures were set higher in the chain of command than he was, who had already issued the orders that would see to his training. Even still, Raven was hard pressed not to give into the temptation to break the nasty little man into tiny pieces simply for giggles, but with LeShana there to keep him and his temper in check, they managed to get away with a minimum of courtesies. With his evaluations done, and his near future all but set along the path of being trained so that he could one day, hopefully soon, become an agent, there was no reason why the two of them could not simply slip out of sight and spend the rest of the day and night alone and in each others company. It was a prospect that Raven would never have denied that he valued above a great many things, and to say that the events of the afternoon and evening were a 'delight' was an understatement that might be the biggest one of his life.