"Ava?" Theon had finished up his conversation with his mentor about half an hour ago, he had gotten the greater details from her also about a child from Grid being the cause of the insanity attacks and that Charlie Liber was in possession of him.

Ava had been on his path, probably just out of the assembly hall as the debriefing was finished.

"Theo." She looked happy but the happy smile faded as she stared longer.

"Are you alright?" Theon realized that this was the first time he had spoken to her since the incident with Robin. He did notice her though, she seemed more distant. She was around people but not paying complete attention, like her mind was always elsewhere.

"Yeah, kind of."

"Details about what's been going on was probably a bit of a shock right?" He asked.

"Yeah dark."

'Darker than you could imagine.' He thought to himself.

She paused for a second, "I didn't really think it would be like this you know."

Theon gestured for her to carry on. "I mean I always knew that there would be awakened people like Charlie Liber out there, but I kind of got the impression that we would focus more on fighting chimera. I didn't think people could just let themselves go and get this bad."

"What do you mean by that?" Theon asked in relation to her last point.

"Well I thought that people who awaken powers would be stronger because of what they went through or not want similar things to happen again so they fight to make that a reality. Not continue spreading the negativity, just not be..." She struggled to find the right words. "be broken."

Theon continued walking with Ava following behind him with her head down absentmindedly, they had stopped at a bench and sat down while gazing out towards just one of the beautiful landscapes the campus had to offer.

He thought back on what she said only a moment ago... "People react to pain differently. Normal people who go through pain think that gaining some power in the world will prepare them in case they go through the same pain again..." Ava listened intently to Theon as he spoke. "and awakened people are given power for their hardships. But none of it matters, it never will. Power can't fix the damage that's already been done."

Maybe it was because of his earlier conversation with his mentor earlier, but Theon felt different. Like he could think more clearly now. He could almost laugh.

"It's a little hard to understand for me. When I awakened I had my dad who was already a gold rank, and I still had my family too, few friends and a dog. I admit I am incredibly fortunate, I could get almost everything I wanted. And when I awakened all I could think of was helping people out like my father did and fighting alongside him."

Theon glanced at her, weighing her words with his incoming response, "Well, maybe in some ways you're lucky, and also unlucky."

Ava frowned slightly, as if the idea was absurd. "Unlucky? How?"

"Reason being, you haven't really seen the worst of things yet," Theon said quietly, his voice steady but heavy with meaning. "You haven't felt what it's like to have everything stripped away from you. You experience luck because you haven't known what it's like to lose yourself in your own pain." Theon didn't like speaking like that. He didn't like speaking as if he knew the deepest parts of a person, but he felt he had to phrase it in this way for her to truly understand.

"That's why people like Charlie Liber... get stuck. They get trapped in their own darkness and can't get out."

Ava's frown deepened, and she shifted uncomfortably. "You think he's just stuck?"

"Yeah," Theon said with certainty. "He's lost in his pain, dragging everyone else down with him. I don't think he's ever gotten over what has happened to him." Theon remembered their first encounter where Charlie spoke on his lost sister, Theon may have acted a little foul, but Charlie... "his power and hatred all wrapped up together and smothered him the moment he awakened and he never got over it."

Ava now looked away, her gaze distant as she processed his words. "I can't imagine living like that. I don't want to end up like that."

"You won't," Theon said reassuringly. "You have something he doesn't. People. Your family, your friends, and even your dog. So you're not alone in this Ava."

She glanced back at him, her eyes softening and seeming to lose their clouded expression. "Thank you Theo. That means more than you know."

Theon nodded, offering a rare but brief smile of his own. "Anytime Ava."

Just as Theon was about to send her off he noticed a figure stood a few edges away by her side of the bench. He was dressed in all black, well it was just the uniform, but maybe it was the aura he was emitting. It was dreary and dark, not in an ominous way, just strange and downcast.

It was the new kid in class.

"Oh Damien." Ava got up as she acknowledged her teammate Damian Santoro.

Theon still new nothing about him, it was hard to when he joined as soon as the teams were announced.

"Sorry for disturbing you..." he spoke in a low voice with an inappreciable shake. "But Mr. Bruno had called us all for a team meeting and you hadn't shown up yet, so he sent me to find you and..."

"Oh, sorry Damien," She pulled out her phone to see the missed messages that there team received and then gave herself a light conk on the side of her head. "Thanks for coming to get me, lets go." She pulled on his arm to rush away, he flinched slightly only to clench his gloved fists and then allow her to drag him forward.

Once she was a few meters away Ava turned around again to Theon and said.

"Again. Thank you Theo. See you later."

___

Whisper Between...

_“But Ed, I don’t want to…”_

A trembling voice,

A boy’s plea,

Tears hidden in the corners of wide, unknowing eyes,

Squeezed fingers grasping for something solid,

Something safe.

But safety is a lie dressed in silence.

_“Please…”_

The word hangs like a breath lost to the wind,

A thread between innocence and duty,

Between trust and betrayal.

_Oscar._

A name carried with the weight of promises,

Of things that should never be said,

But will be.

And Edwin—

What are you now?

A guardian, or a guide leading him to the wolves?

_“This’ll be the last time,”_

The lie slips so easily,

Laced with hope that neither believes.

_“I promise.”_

Promises become anchors,

Dragging them both toward a horizon they cannot see.

Freedom, a dream

Chained to the words of others,

To texts that blink on a screen,

The whispers of a man pulling strings from the dark.

_Charlie._

Is he the villain? Or are we?

Bear with it, you say—

But what does the boy bear?

What do you?

In the end, the lines blur,

And who becomes the monster

When monsters roam in every shadow?

_It will all be worth it,_

That’s what you tell yourself.

But when does the lie become the truth?

When the deed is done?

When the silence becomes louder than the plea?

And what of Oscar’s hand,

Still warm in yours?

___

Everyone was assembled outside by the institutes front gates, with a few hours to come before welcoming a new day.

Of course, all new team leaders were there as well as the rookies. Theon noticed that no third years were at the school campus and only five second years, one being the rookie of the year.

Juniper Fay was standing by the school gates.

It was clear that everyone was nervous, even the more experienced second years looked a little off, not Milo Nadir though. He played up his senior act and greeted all juniors and even past Theon with a sly smirk to play in his face.

Theon ignored him and looked toward his teammates. Bell looked more calm than he would have expected, 'Maybe Carmen had a talk with her too.'

Jon on the other hand was a lot more quiet, he held his hands behind his back and didn't try to make any little jokes but instead paid great attention.

Theon seen another face start walking up to Juniper Fay, the face of a sly fox that had sent shivers down his spine earlier in the year he remembered. The familiar auburn hair and closed eye smile... he can't for the life of him recall why he was so frightened by the man.

He knows the man as the required agent of the BPA sent to basically monitor the institute and make sure it is running up to standard, he also acted as the school counsellor. His name was Marc Simpson.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

He whispered in Juniper's ear, Theon could hear it from all the way in his position.

"Here's the list of every paladin we could gather."

Juniper held the piece of paper and even tried separating the paper with a dab of wetness on her finger from her tongue only to be disappointed.

"Seriously Marc. You, an agent of the BPA couldn't get anymore than silver ranks and one gold."

"Sorry, but there's another big attack going on that I don't believe is coincidence, and there are sighting's of Charlie Liber there."

Theon winced when he heard the name.

Juniper sighed, "Can't even keep the students away from potential high risk areas. A shame that the patriarch of the Ikhiana family won't be stopping by the city anymore." She tore up the piece of paper in her hand and comically threw the scraps in Marc's face. Then Theon seen another familiar face walk up behind her.

It was the detective from his last mission, Brian was his name, along with his sidekick Sam. And then another figure appeared.

"Who are you?" Juniper asked, her tone quite harsh but it didn't faze the man who had instead shown an arrogant grin.

"Sorry for my late appearance, the bureau just didn't want to let me go," he stretched out his hand in greeting to which Juniper ignored as she stared at him. "Silver rank paladin, Lance Onida."

"The bureau sent him due to the growing tension surrounding the institute." Marc jumped back in to the conversation to inform Juniper. "Long time no see Lance."

The man with short and stylish black hair acknowledged him, finally putting his hand down after the cold rejection from overseer. He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, a sword that appeared from his person.

Juniper frowned and gave a little huff and then turned around. "It's annoying that the BPA think that I can't run my post properly."

"I assure you I'm just here for support. I hope we can get along." He said in a charming manner.

Lance Onida had a face that many would instantly recognize as handsome the minute they glanced at him. Blemish free, chiselled and no sign of baby-fat and a well-defined jaw line. Match that with his dull grey eyes and he was the typical charmer with a cocky attitude right from birth.

"Greg," Juniper called out to the man who had just made his appearance. "Make the announcement. Everybody's ready."

He nodded and then turned to the small crowd muttering in low whispers.

"ATTENTION!" His voice boomed, everyone immediately quieted down and stood straight with their hands behind their backs.

The students this time were still wearing their uniforms but with a few addons. All of the first years were wearing capes with hoods on them, they were allowed to take them off at anytime once the mission started, wearing it for the announcement was just part of etiquette. Along with that they wore combat caps with the outline of a star stitched onto it.

With them all standing in line out in the dripping rain, they did not look like students anymore but instead soldiers ready to march off to war.

"The operation discussed earlier at today's assembly will commence shortly!" Gregory Knox continued with a stern voice commanding the students stood in front of him. "Once your outside, you will be provided communicators and a police officer will escort you to your patrol routes! Your objective is to retrieve the boy named Oscar Dempsey."

Theon wouldn't admit it because of the gravity of the situation, but he was feeling... excitement. He thought on it as he looked up to where the orders were being shouted from, an image of a young boy showed in the dark crying skies. 'I was just like him,'

Juniper Fay then spoke, her voice elevated by Caleb Adams with his sound based power. Her presence demanded attention.

"Other than the few exclusions, you guys will be moving in your normal teams, do not expect your mentors to be there to save you."

The rookies were meant to be focusing on rescue, this was done to help clear the way for the more experienced paladin to sort out the trouble with efficiency. They couldn't have rookies getting in the way.

"Just as Mr. Knox said, once your outside you'll be given communication runes, they will allow you to speak to your teammates as well as anyone nearby with the same inscriptions that are within range. Stick together and do not forget this is a rescue mission. So if you encounter dangerous individuals do not engage unless it's your last option." she paused gauging the reactions of everyone. "And if you run into any chimera, deal with them as swift as possible."

She looked toward Bell as she said that last part.

The second year, Milo Nadir, raised his hand to ask a question. "What happens if Oscar Dempsey goes crazy and activates his power?"

Theon believed that the reason an attack was being setup to be this big was most likely because Charlie Liber had found a way to amplify Oscar's power, or he had just found a way to figure out the best timing for the worse effects whenever he had taken the boy.

"We do know that Paladin and awakened people with OD overall have a slight resistance. But it does not last long. Just long enough to escape, so if you feel an attack is coming, you are to get to safety and then block off the area. No one in or out." She said resolutely.

"If we just up and leave then the people stuck in the area of effect would just die!" Milo shouted back.

"Yes, and it would be a tragedy. But, Oscar Dempsey will still be in the center of the attack so once the smoke clears that would be your time to grab him before he is whisked away. If that happens then another attack like whatever is going on tonight will happen. So, I hope you now understand your orders?"

There were mutters from the crowd. But everyone agreed.

Theon noticed Jon shifting over to his side, "Aye Theo. Let's really try stick together on this one." He said, he sounded different. Like he was trying to act on his best behaviour, not cause someone told him to, instead it was initiative. "You don't stray too far behind Bell alright?"

And then his playful side erupted the moment Bell crossed out vicinity. She ignored him but left out the glare, she had other things on her mind.

"She said Chimera might be out there." Bell shivered, "Maybe I should be excluded from this..."

"No." Theon said. "We'll be okay."

"But what if we're near a crowd and then chimera start grouping up-" Theon cut her off.

"That's only a what if, plus she said chimera might show up." Although due to the nature of their first mission Theon believed it was highly possible. "And, since we're being escorted to different patrol routes I bet they'll send us far off the grid. Somewhere we can handle."

"Yeah, no need to run off with your tail between your legs now." Jon said and Bell seemed to fall into an emotion of acceptance as she just sighed. "We'll all cover each other's backs."

Bell gave the most minute nod to acknowledge Jon. 'Great, we should be good to go.'

"Students!" Juniper Fay called out. "I trust that you have all prepared yourselves."

Everyone was again in formation without even giving it a thought. Their hearts pounding.

"Before sending you off I want to thank you all and commend your bravery. For my first years. I truly did not want to send you off on something so dangerous this early on without your mentors already, but the evil that threatens our safety has already forced me to selfishly call on you." She stood tall and looked with pride with her legs spread apart as she continued on. "Do not forget that the recovery of Oscar Dempsey belongs to the officially ranked paladins fighting alongside you. And do not worry about the safety of these grounds and the surrounding area as you are gone. And most of all, Do not die!"

She raised her hand, pointing a finger gun up toward the stars above.

"Go Forth!"

___

The radio crackled to life, piercing through the quiet tension like a knife slicing skin.

"[Unit 4, shots fired at Broadway and 7th. Multiple armed suspects-requesting immediate backup. Code 3, all available units respond.]"

Another voice, harsh and ragged, broke through the static:

"[Dispatch, unit 12 here-civilians are down at 10th and Island. They're everywhere, God, there's too many! Need backup, need EMTs it's a massacre!]"

The dispatch line lit up, voices overlapping, each one more desperate, more panicked than the last. The weight of it all hung heavy in the air like a storm, thick and suffocating.

"[10-13! Officer down, Market and 14th! Heavy fire... No way out! We're pinned down. Send everything you've got!]"

Downtown San Diego was crumbling under the weight of it's own nightmare. Once filled with the hum of city life, the streets now screamed with chaos. Near the heart of the city, where the iconic Gaslamp Quarter stretched beneath the neon glow of club signs, madness reigned. Not the madness of the gas they were anticipating, in that regard they may have been fortunate.

SWAT teams wore heavy specialised masks to move through the area, but they knew it wouldn't last if they were caught up in it if they were trapped long enough. Arms of men unleashed waves of gunfire, tearing into crowds of civilians. Bullets ripped through flesh, shattered glass sprayed into the air like shards of forgotten memories, and the streets... those familiar streets, were now choked with blood and fear.

"[Dispatch! Unit 9-4th and B! They've set up blockades... Bodies are everywhere. We can't hold it! I-]"

Static drowned the rest, but the screams lingered.

Then, from the depths of that nightmare, up above in the sky something far worse than imagined showed itself.

Five massive detached hands, all a pale greyish yellow colour appeared in a swirling motion in the sky, but what was more terrifying was what lay in it's hands.

Chimera. Demonic creatures had suddenly erupted in the night being flung in all directions, dropping atop the chaos, adding to it. Each scream fed them.

"[Dispatch! We've got chimera... Repeat, chimera near Petco Park, God help us, we need-]"

The voice was cut off and replaced by a low guttural growl.

As if the chimera weren't enough, prisoners, awakened and normal humans just with weapons in hand ran amuck as well. This week had seen the prison break conducted by Charlie Liber, unfortunately not all have been recalled, and now the innocents were seeing the result.

Another awakened, a woman with arms as black as obsidian was ripping through a squad of police officers. Her fingers stretched into razor-sharp tendrils, cutting through armour like it was paper. Blood splattered across storefronts as bodies hit the ground, lifeless.

"[Unit 15! Armed vehicles, heavily modified! Heading westbound on 5th, they're not slowing down! Awakened on top of them too, one of 'em is tearing through our barricades like it's nothing.]"

Cars were flipped onto their sides, flames licked the sky's with explosions that rocked the heart of San Diego. The shriek of metal collapsing in on itself reverberated through the streets, followed by the deep, bone rattling rumble of buildings collapsing under the strain of the battle.

"[Officer down! We've lost control at K and 6th, there's too many.]"

Another voice interrupted.

"[Anyone with a weapon, shoot to kill!]"

There was no order anymore, no semblance of control. Just madness, violence and fear... The perfect breeding ground for Chimera!

One officer was wandering down the road, seemingly dazed while holding the bloody stump where his arm used to be. Muttering to himself.

"W...where are the... paladin? Where are... our saviours?"

A crash was heard as a large chimera that turned into itself similar to an armadillo, came crashing through a billboard rolling, ready to turn the man into paste that would serve to decorate the street he was standing on.

But then. It felt as though time was slowing down and the man looked up again to see a tall and broad shouldered man with the bulging physique of a Greek God gliding through the air with his right arm pulled back, in the stance of a champion.

And as soon as that right arm punched forward the chimera burst into a splatter of blood.

"There we go." The man landed and placed a hand on the officers shoulder, the one not aching from blood loss. The man was certainly older than the officer, but that face was recognizable anywhere. It was Hero, Gregory Knox.

"Boys! Bring this man to the medical bay using the same route we got here and then follow the plan."

Three boys came from the direction he shouted in. "Boys" was certainly the way to describe them, they were young teens with not a speck of hair growing on their faces. One had long brown dreads, and another was tall with pure white hair. The officer judged him the most because of his constant scowling expression. And the last one, if he didn't have that beauty mark under his eye he would probably be forgettable.

"Yes sir!" And with that the tall white haired one clapped his hands together before separating them to form a cloud,

"Get on officer!"

The officer, was blessed. He would live to see another day. The paladin.... the saviours had arrived.