At a police station in the upper city, John was given a shower and his wounds were taken care of, as was his clothes. He was then taken to a small room with a single light hanging above a table. The officers sat him down in a chair and stood by each side of the door.

“After all this time, we finally meet. John Beru, right?” a man said, walking into the room. The man was a tall man with a medium figure and upright posture, wearing a black suit and red tie. He wore a single gold ring on one of his right hand fingers that bore a hawk insignia and had a head of short, well-kept brown hair and a trimmed goatee and mustache. His face gave off a sense of power, his bright blue eyes shined in the light and his presence stabbed a position of authority into the guards in the room.

The man sat down on a chair on the other side of the table facing John, “Your gang’s plan was quite smart but they could’ve spent more time planning instead of getting into wars with other gangs. But all in all, not bad for a band of criminals.”

“I’m sorry, have we met?” John asked.

“Oh, my apologies. My name is Aiden Mherr: one of the highest ranking protectors in Oreana and head of the protectors academy board. I am also a member of the city’s high council.”

“You’re a protector, huh?”

“Well, I mostly now just sort out paperwork and find people like you, but yes.”

“What do you mean by ‘people like me’?”

“You’re a magic user. Magic is rather rare these days, really only being used by protectors or people who took the time to learn it. Mana in people have gotten weaker as magic fades away from our knowledge. So, how did you come to learn magic? Knowledge or heredity?”

“Why should I tell you that?”

“Please John, answer the question.”

“I learned from a book my mother had.”

“So knowledge then? Impressive, there’s not a lot of magical literature left in Sorim. I once found a…”

“why are you here?” John interrupted.

“I’m here to give you an offer: you attend the protectors academy, or you spend half of your entire life working at the silver mines in Lux. And spending the other half, free but suffering from lung tumors caused by the toxic gas produced by underground fissures in the mountains.”

“why would I want to be a protector?”

“John, your magical abilities are exactly what I look for in people, and when I find these people, I offer them a chance at becoming more than what they are. Sure, your magical abilities aren’t anything amazing yet, but at the protectors academy, you can unlock your ultimate magical potential.”

“Oh please, I don’t even know what a protector is.”

“A Protector is someone that vows to protect Sorim from beasts known as The Dark Ones.”

“The Dark Ones? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of those.”

“Good. That means they did their job.” Aiden responded in a trailing off tone, “Protectors can also act as bodyguards for whoever can afford us. Just think of us as mercenaries but with allegiances to the crown. Protectors have international freedom of travel, but are prohibited from getting involved with the affairs of other countries unless the Dark Ones are involved. And when called, every Protector must rally to the call and fight for Oriana.”

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“And you want me to protect this city?”

“Maybe, if that’s what you want. Like I said before, it’s either that or the mines. I pulled a lot of strings to get you this.”

Aiden put a piece of paper on the table and moved it close to John.

“What’s this?” John asked.

“Your invitation to the academy, all you have to do is sign right here at the bottom of the page.” Aiden then looked up at John, “We also took blood samples from you when you were unconscious and discovered that you’re a Demonite.”

“A what?”

“You’re half human. Demonites are quite easy to distinguish from humans, all you have to do is look into their eyes and if you see an orange hue, they’re Demonite. You have a light orange hue around your pupils so this means that you’re a half Demonite. If you don’t know what a Demonite is, then I’ll give you the brief summary: Many years ago, demons were all killed off by humans, but before they were all eradicated, they procreated with some humans and that led to the creation of the Demonite race.”

“That explains why my dad’s eyes were orange in color.” John said.

“You’re lucky that your orange hue isn’t that noticeable at first glance. Demonites are feared and seen as vicious monsters. So they tend to use colored eye contacts or just avoid people as much as possible. The ones at the academy however, are mostly seen as equals although there are instances of discrimination from the students that seems to be rising slowly every day. The academy accepts almost anyone with the exception of those over the age of thirty or if they’re an enemy of the state. All you have to do is pledge allegiance to the church of Oreana. You also need to convert to the faith, although you don’t have to, it is at least encouraged that you do.”

“That also explains why back in our old town, my dad would always put something in his eyes and why he took that harbor job that didn’t require him to be around so many people.” John said to himself. “Are there any Demonite protectors?” he continued aloud.

“There’s a few, about thirty or so. But it could be thirty-one if you accept my offer.”

John took the paper and read it, “And this is legit, right? This isn’t some kind of scam?”

“Do I look like a man that offers a scam? I’ll give you a day to decide on this, in the morning you can give me an answer then.” Aiden said, getting up and heading out of the room. “Oh, John.” he said, turning around and tossing something at John. “We found this in the remains of one of your gangs vehicles, think of this a my way of showing you that I’m on your side. And as a member of the counsel, I was the only one to vote for you to revive this offer, If it wasn’t for me and a friend of mine, you’d be halfway to Lux by now.”

John caught and looked at the thing Aiden tossed and saw that is was his necklace that he had given to Aoi. “I promised I would teach her how to dance.” he said softly.

“I’m sorry, what?” Aiden said. John didn’t respond, “Well, I await your answer tomorrow, goodnight, John Beru.” Aiden turned away.

“Wait!” John said, causing Aiden to turn around.

“Yes?” answered Aiden.

“You said you looked at a record of my family, correct?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Did you look at my father’s?”

“Of course, why?”

“My father was declared dead after a boat he worked on capsized.”

“I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”

“Do you know what company the boat belonged to?”

“Yes, records show that your father worked on a boat owned by Stone Tech Industries.”

John finally had it. A lead he’s been searching after for months.

“Is that all?” Aiden asked.

“Yes.” John answered, lowering his head back down.

“Ok, have a good night then.” Aiden replied, leaving John alone in the room.

John stared at the necklace until two police officers walked in and escorted him out of the room. The officers put an ankle tracker to his leg and sent him off on his way. Watching John walk away, Aiden sipped a drink in a small cup; as he drank, a man in a suit walked up next to him, “You think that boy is gonna take your offer?” he asked

“Don’t worry, my friend, I’m sure he will. Besides, I’m a very simple man, when I see something I want, I always get it. One way or another.” Aiden responded. “Declining this offer would be idiotic."