Ven hadn't expected Amon to play along with her game and she gave him a curious look. "This is where I work, is it that surprising I would be here? Regardless, there's something I'd like to speak to you about if you have time.

-What a coincidence, there's also something I need to discuss with you. How about we go somewhere private?

Without a word, Ven headed for the largest building of the three, probably the command center. She didn't turn back to see if Amon would follow her, knowing full he didn't have a choice. Sighing at his misfortune, Amon gritted his teeth and went after her. The interior of the command center was, as was the rest of the Order's official building, decorated in a minimalist design and had very in the way of furniture. They were in a big empty hall with white floors and white walls. A large set of stairs in the middle of the building lead to the next storey, but Ven headed for a small door of the right side of the hall. She opened it using a magnetic card and signalled to Amon to follow her quickly.

The both of them then went down a narrow spiral staircase made of stone. After what seemed like an eternity, they arrived at a metal gate which was once again opened via Ven's magnetic card. Amon started to have a bad feeling about the whole ordeal, but he needed to see it through. Behind the door was a long hallway with a series of similarly heavy-looking metal doors of each side. Ven went to the first one on the left and opened it with her access card.

Resigning himself, Amon followed her inside and saw an interrogation room. There were only two chairs and a table; all bolted to the ground. The room was somewhat spacious, but the lack of windows and the drab cement walls made it slightly claustrophobic. A single bright lightbulb protected by a metal grate bolted to the ceiling provided the only light. Without prompt from Ven, Amon closed the door behind him. They were now five meters apart and staring into each other's eyes.

Almost simultaneously, they reached for their retractable sword. Amon was slightly faster and lead with a thrust to close the gap between them. Ven was more agile than he expected and she dodged the attack by quickly stepping to the side. Amon tried to redirect his blow into a sideways slash, but due to his lousy positioning it lacked power and couldn't break Ven's guard. Amon was slightly surprised because although his last-minute adjustment weakened his blow, Ven still had no problem defending against it. A normal human would have recoiled from the shock. Amon knew he had to exercise caution if she was augmented.

Ven took advantage of the fact that Amon was destabilized to slash down with her sword. Amon managed to draw back his arm just in time to block but doing so, he lost the advantaged and was pushed back by the flurry of blows immediately unleashed by Ven following her first attack. The door was right behind Amon, and he didn't have much space left to retreat, so he decided to drop down when Ven did a high slash. He executed a quick somersault and struck with his sword while still crouching down. Ven jumped back to avoid the blow, and the two halted their assault and resumed their staring contest.

"You're good, but sadly for you, you won't get to live another day." With those words, Ven stuck out her left hand and Amon had a bad feeling when he saw a small vein near her temple throb. Out of sheer instinct, he jumped to the side. Just as he did, a powerful gust of wind blasted the area where he stood previously. A bead of sweat rolled down Amon's forehead; she was an augmented with the gust augmentation! This augmentation allowed it's used to manipulate small pockets of air and create strong winds at a short range. Among the nanotechnological augmentations, it was one of the weakest but also had the smallest backlash on the user's body. As such, it was a great complement to a good fighter. A well-timed gust of wind could change the course of battle. Ven seemed to need a short instant to use her abilities, a fact that didn't escape Amon's sight.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Not wanting to give her the time to send another gust his way, he charged and one more thrust his sword. She evaded the blow, but this time Amon was prepared. He forcefully stopped his charge and spun to redirect the momentum he had accumulated right into his next slash. Ven was pushed back, and Amon followed with a strike at her leg. Ven couldn't recover in time, and she felt the metal bite into her leg. The wound wasn't deep, but it was enough to throw her off.

Amon took advantage of her temporary weakness to land a couple of solid blows, and a few wounds were added her body. She was weakening quickly, and Amon saw this as the perfect opportunity to land a crippling blow. He readied himself and launched a powerful thurst to her stomach. However, instead of the feeling of his sword tearing into flesh, Amon only felt a strong force suddenly striking him in the gut. Having put his full power into his blow, he was caught off guard and was sent flying to the wall of the room. He fell violently, and the shock almost made him drop his weapon. He looked up to see Ven charging towards him. She had tricked him! She was able to release her gust of wind faster than what she had let on and used his misunderstanding to land a solid blow.

Amon wasn't ready to admit defeat, and he waited until she was close enough to send a violent kick to the back of her knee from his position laying down. He quickly got up and pointed his sword right at her throat. Amon smiled victoriously and said, "You almost had me there, but I guess you were a bit out of luck. So, how about we discuss things more calmly now?

-What do you mean 'almost had you'? I'd say we managed a pretty fair draw.

Startled by her words, Amon looked down and saw the sword hovering a few centimetres in front of his crotch. Beads of sweat formed furiously on his forehead, and he thanked his past self for not rashly trying to finish her off just then. The two of them squared off for a while before Amon retracted his sword as a show of good faith. He hung the handle on his hip and stepped back. Without looking at Ven's reaction, he sat in one of the chairs in the middle of the room.

With a slight smile, Ven also retracted her weapon. She got up and dusted her clothes before sitting in front of Amon. A strange silence settled in the room. For the first time, Amon truly looked at the woman that sat in front of him. He hadn't noticed the first time, but she was stunning. She had shoulder length silky brown hair and green eyes. He celestial nose throned above her sensual mouth. She had high cheekbones that emphasized the features of her face. Amon couldn't keep his jaw from gaping a little bit. Upon seeing the playful light in Ven's eyes, he composed himself and said. " You aren't a Holy Knight, you aren't part of the military, yet you infiltrated them. Just who are you?

-I could ask the same. You called yourself Oliver Black on one instance and Amon the other. That's not something a righteous man would do. However, what tells you I'm not a Holy Knight?

Amon kept his mouth shut, realizing he might have said too much.

-So, here we have a man who knows about holy knights, infiltrates the city guard and is augmented with some powerful physical augmentations. If I didn't know better, I might say you were a part of the Ravens.

Amon saw the bait she had laid in front of him and decided to skip past it with an enquiry of his own.

-Well, how about you? A woman infiltrates the military, has a gust augmentation and tries to kill someone she knows is aware of her status as an impostor. If I didn't know better, I might say you were the one who is part of the Ravens. By the way, how is the cut on your leg?

-It's okay; it'll heal in no time if I apply some ointment and let it for a few days. It looks like we'll get nowhere if someone doesn't take the plunge first. I'm an intelligence operative for the Ravens.

Amon was startled as he didn't expect her to reveal that on her own. He hesitated a little before speaking. Even though he couldn't trust her, he was confident that if things turned awry, he would be able to take care of her.

-I see. I also am a part of the Ravens, though I am a field operative. Aren't you worried that I won't let you live to see the light of day now that I've revealed that?

-I am confident that if we fought seriously, I could take you down.

The seriousness in her tone and the resolution in her eyes sent a chill down Amon's spine, and he took a mental note to be careful around her.

-So, mind telling me why you're here? And why HQ didn't warn me of the presence of other operatives in New-Paris?