Paladin's Path

"God damn kid. If I knew you'd be so sad all the time, I would have just gotten an abortion."

That was the most memorable sentence of Arte Grahams life. And his mind always gave him the same answer back whenever he thought back to that time.

'Then should I just die?'

He couldn't get it, most people around him would have something they could be happy about or even give a half smile to, but ever since Art could remember he couldn't smile at anything. Not even a fake one without him looking like some psycho.

But there was one thing, one thing that Arte did enjoy. A radio show that he tuned into every Friday for a long six years. Quiet Hour, was what it was called and it was hosted by his now team leader Greg Knox.

The public never really liked it when Paladin's made business decisions that were so far out of their job description. Greg Knox was a powerhouse that was quite famous, and with his radio show on every Friday evening for a good ten years his fame only rose as people got to know his personality a bit more.

Arte remembers how midway during the show he would invite some callers in and answer questions or just give some motivating words from experience. And the lessons of the week felt like a treat to Arte.

Before he even got his own phone Arte would always use his mother's phone to call and try to be one of the callers that would have a chance to speak with the man, the hero. He never even knew what he was going to say, he never did speak to him during those times though.

It was only in the tenth year of the radio show, when he had his own phone, that he got through... It wasn't something he was going to recall on now.

It was hard to put into words for him.

But he was grateful that the man couldn't easily recognize every voice he had heard. That skill seemed more reserved for their homeroom teacher.

The day was over after their introductory period with the teams they were in. Greg Knox was almost exactly like Arte would have thought he would be in person.

His presence was larger than life, a boisterous laughter, energetic personality and very animated and like an open book. Everything Arte was not.

Once Arte started seeing how easily Cole and Corey got along with him he felt a pang of hurt, or maybe it was envy at the fact he could never be like them. That he was the odd one out.

The almost childlike glee of being taught by his hero slowly evaporated away.

Arte was walking in the night sky holding a gym bag heading back to the dorms when he nearly bumped into someone. But that was nearly impossible with how his powers worked, the lithe girl seemed to just slip past him as she came from another path following his direction.

"Oh.. Arte." It was Juno Darby.

The pale blonde hair that stood out in the night but what usually caught people were her bright purple orbs dancing on her face.

Arte Had eyed everyone in class and from conversation had noticed enough about almost everyone and even had clues on their backgrounds.

Juno was among the few he couldn't figure out though. She was smart and capable but didn't like to show off. She was one of the one's who's power he still doesn't know.

She talks in a smooth and elegant way and can be very blunt which some may see as rude, but she came across as noble in rank but she certainly didn't use it to better her standing.

"My bad, There's too many paths like this." Arte said as he thought on the many paths to get to and from places on the campus that always led to someone having interactions like this.

Juno laughed, "Yeah but it seems like you weren't paying that much attention either." She looked at his bag. "Were you at the school gym?"

He nodded.

"My team leader already made it a point to tell us how scrawny we looked. Especially me." That seemed to get another soft laughter from her, "'Build muscle cause you can't enhance what you don't have' he says."

Being a paladin was never really in the cards for Arte so he never took care of his body like someone with higher aspirations in fields to do with something like athletics would. But he wasn't fat or constantly bloated, just skinny.

"Do you like your team Arte?" she asked, Arte took to long to answer and his initial reaction must have gave away an answer she could interpret. "Well be happy you're not stuck with Corbin."

Juno was one to speak her mind without restraint if one asked not really thinking or caring much for the repercussions Arte guessed.

"Honestly I think I'd rather that." Arte could see the look of surprise as she rose her brow, he shrugged his shoulders as he began walking with her at his side. "Well I've noticed that he's actually really quiet and doesn't really disturb anyone that doesn't get in his way or try to rile him up. I could work well with someone like that."

She nodded. "Yeah you're not really one to get up and begin conversation with others." she said that so matter-of-factly.

'Well it's only natural that I wasn't the only one keeping a closer eye on everyone.'

"But still. Our team leader, Zara Bennet is her name, she seems to be trying to make it a point to joke around with Corbin so he's always irritated."

"Sounds like a mess." His own team leader seemed to be the type but so far he knew how to not overstep boundaries, 'Maybe that came with the experience of the job.'

"Hope we go through the ranks smoothly enough though, though I could hold them back. Not really a powerhouse like Corbin or as fearless as Aaliyah."

"I doubt any of the team leaders will put us up for anything that we'd be unprepared for. And anyway, everyone has their own strengths." Arte done his best in reassuring her.

He can't remember talking this much to one of his own age mates before. Though throughout the conversation though he had done his best to not make eye contact with Juno. She was one to stare right at you when speaking which made Arte uncomfortable for a variety of reasons.

A faint whiff of mint would assault his senses each time she turned her head, her hair fluttering in the air like a teasing breeze. It was an odd sensation—sickening yet not unpleasant—but it made him acutely aware of her proximity. He didn't want to be so close to the opposite sex that he could discern the lingering scents entwined in her hair, those delicate fragrances that should have faded throughout the day.

An unsettling feeling churned within him, as if something dark lurked beneath the surface, eager to take hold and twist his emotions into shame and disappointment. The very essence of her presence stirred a conflict inside him, a battle between attraction and aversion that left him feeling both vulnerable and trapped.

The two were at the dorms now, splitting off in the separate floors to their rooms.

"See you later." Arte was glad she spoke first, there was only silence after his last remark making him feel unnerved.

"Bye." he said lightly. Hoping for a better tomorrow.

___

It was midnight and the new trio was still out with their team leader.

Theon felt a calm at the light shades of light coming in at the darkness of the night. Jon walked slowly closest to their team leader as Bell walked quietly behind the three ahead yawning but also keeping very alert.

She was the most fearful.

The night was quiet though, nothing was happening and there was no conversation going on, just the silent cadence of steps as the four were walking through a closed off area that Theon felt didn't have much people going through it even during the day.

The buildings on this side of town were broken down and Carmen had told them that this hadn't even been a spot that was attacked in the previous month.

Another thing had sprung up in Theon's mind that he wanted to ask.

"?" he didn't speak as he realized he didn't really know what to call Carmen. She acted too friendly to just stick with 'Teacher,' and he didn't know how he would feel by just calling her by her first name. Maybe he was overthinking things but he also didn't want to be the first one to test it out.

"Theon do you have a question?" She didn't even turn back as she asked this.

Theon sighed in slight irritation while thinking he needs to figure out what her power may be, he hopes its not something to do with mind reading.

"I just wanted to know how the ranking system works."

Jon cut in before she could answer.

"We already know of the standard three ranks, Bronze, Silver and Gold." He said excluding the Monarch title that was held only for the strongest person in a nation and only one at a time. Again, this was not something every nation would have or at least not on the same level as the well known ones.

"I meant how do we progress." Theon corrected leaving Jon to only shrug his shoulders before stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Well right now you guys aren't even bronze rank, just rookies. And Jon, hands out your pockets!"

Jon removed his hands at her quick response. It was only now she looked back and started to explain, she stopped walking and let us all be closed in.

"Bronze rank is the simplest to gain and has the most paladins in the field along with silver rank. You just need a month of outside experience and approval from your team leader." she said while pointing to herself. "Silver rank is where some people stay stuck on, you need to have killed one hundred chimera and apprehended and turned over five awakened. And that is only after you have reached bronze rank,"

The trio understood that anything they do in their first month before attaining the initial rank of paladins didn't contribute to it. Magically killing fifty chimera in a month meant nothing if you weren't at least bronze rank.

"Also the hundred kills thing doesn't have to be individually in most cases. Since you three are a team you can split it over the course of time."

That would still require some self-awareness. If someone were holding the team back and not executing any then could they proudly take on that silver rank just to fumble when put in a situation where they are not ready to deal with it?

"And Gold rank are only for people who accept a teaching role, like what I'm doing with you guys. Leading a team."

Jon and Bell scoffed at that. Even Theon didn't feel too amazed by it.

He felt it was always something more power based, but as he thought on it now he couldn't even imagine himself being a team leader. His head was down as he thought not paying any mind to Jon's remarks about how stupid it was.

It was probably why so many were stuck in the silver rank.

And that was only confirmed by Carmen.

"Not everyone can just do it though, you need approval from the BPA in most cases."

"And Monarchs...."

"No need to explain that one." Jon said and his two agemates agreed. "Everyone knows that position is only for the strongest."

And not one of the three even believed they would reach that rank or even that level of strength.

"Putting aside the fact that I don't think anyone in this group could get to that level, there's probably tons of people that would get there before us."

"Don't speak like that Jon, Anyways being at that level doesn't mean much, its more of a political thing."

Bell asked what she meant by that but Theon had already thought of it on his own.

It was something that seemed standard, or at least easy enough to piece together.

"I think its showing the world how much power certain countries have."

"Ding, Ding, Ding!" Carmen said in a higher and louder tone while pointing her thumbs up at Theon for his answer. "Considering the fact that much conflict has happened due to awakened people as well as the potential for far more for far less, its kind of to show other countries what they may be up against, as well as normal people to see remind themselves of how destructive awakened people can be."

So even if there were people that many knew could be contenders for being next Monarch, there were still more factors at play. Like people showing more potential throughout their careers may be advised to show off less so that they wouldn't be caught on so quickly.

"How many are there again?" Jon asked.

"Only five are in the world right now. One here in the states. Two in Asia, Japan and China to be specific and another two in Africa. South Africa and Nigeria."

Pretty spread apart.

"Is there a record time for getting to silver rank?" Bell asked. Since gold rank was only attained more so from teaching she didn't seem interested.

Carmen smiled, a big nonsensical and goofy smile to show off her shiny white teeth and almost fully close her eyes. She then pointed to herself.

"Me. I'm the record. I went from bronze to silver rank in six months."

Bell looked at her with suspicion while Theon looked with surprise. Jon didn't seem to care all that much as he was thinking of something himself.

"I don't know about other countries all that much. But I know that within the states the only other person to come close is actually your brother, The Silver Star. He got there in ten months."

Bell lost her look of suspicion and gained a look of shock and admiration. She seemed to look at Carmen Ford with more respect just from that alone.

Carmen then pointed toward the trio.

"I want you guys to achieve silver rank in five months or less." Her smile was different now, warmer and more radiant and maybe even slightly expectant.

Jon clicked his fingers and smirked as if he had just come up with the best idea known to man.

"I just thought of something," he then pointed to Bell. "Since she's cursed with her curse then we can easily get to silver rank."

Bell looked as if she wanted to refute but stopped. She didn't know how to respond so just settled for a hardened glare.

"You're right." Carmen nodded along. "But that doesn't mean you should tease her like that Jon. As a team you three should look after each other."

Jon waved her off understanding but also happy at the prospect. Theon wondered if other teams that had just started off were like this, would they be more afraid of confronting chimera?

Carmen clapped her hands and signalled to the trio.

"Alright now. Time to go on ahead with what we came here for."

"Which was?" The three asked in upbeat and snarky tones.

Carmen laughed it off while pointing over to one of the abandoned looking buildings that was made of red brick that had been left in a bad state. Good enough to the point that you couldn't see what could have been going on inside.

"There was a reported disturbance going on in there and we're here to check it out."

___

The group approached the building with Theon taking the lead as per instructed. His eyes were sharp as they inspected the dilapidated structure in front of them. The red bricks were chipped and worn out by the weather on closer inspection, Ivy was clinging to the walls as if the building itself was trying to be swallowed back into the earth.

The windows were blacked out by grime and cracks zig-zagged across them like veins. Not a sound came from inside but Theon's senses were sharp and he did notice that there was a mass amount of living creatures in there.

He reported this to his leader and she told him to walk on in slowly. "Fun place to spend a weekend eh?" She joked but her gaze was focused as she glanced at the three students. "Ready team?"

Bell was looking restless and interjected before anything else could be said. "Wait!" She was lightly scratching at a spot on her arm, "I can sense them in there." she pointed to the building.

Her face softened truly shining a new light to her bright features.

"The Chimera. There's tons of them in there." Carmen Ford looked a little more serious now but nodded.

They knew that Bell was likely scared.

But there was no turning back. Carmen had promised them all that they would be protected so even if it was a den of chimera she would vanquish them before they touched any of her students.

"Wait one second." Carmen put her index finger up and in a blurred motion she disappeared leaving a small gust of wind.

Theon looked to Jon who seemed as shocked as he was. Bell didn't fall behind in surprise.

Teleportation was the first thought but seeing the gust of wind still there that let them know she most likely did not just blink to another location.

And right in the same spot Carmen Ford appeared.

'Such great speed.' Theon was impressed yet again.

"Okay yeah, you're certainly right." She said while looking to Bell. "But it's nothing to worry about... kind of."

Jon tilted his head in confusion and Theon was eager to know what was going on.

"They're all locked away in cages. And the cages have a suppressant runes on them." She pointed out.

"I'm bringing you all in to see. This is most likely a case of Chimera Trafficking!"