The King's Guard

Chapter 9

The courtyard had filled slowly with groups of new trainees arriving in silence. Kael stood near the side wall, arms folded, watching as more recruits filed in under the overcast sky. No one spoke a word. The mood was heavy but not tense—more like people waiting for something inevitable.

The banners above the courtyard flapped slightly in the wind. Most of them bore the crest of the Academy—two wings crossed over a blade. Kael stared at it without really thinking, his mind blank. He felt rested, but not ready.

A chime echoed across the yard. Archon appeared on the upper platform, flanked as usual by Ember and Drax. There was no announcement beforehand. His voice simply filled the space.

“You’ve completed your entry trials. Now begins operational training.”

Still no one spoke.

“You will be deployed,” Archon continued. “You will work in squads. Your task is simple: infiltrate the simulated city, track your target, and extract information. You must not be identified or caught.”

Kael listened, but kept his eyes on the ground. There were no questions, no further instructions. After Archon finished, the metal doors at the far end of the yard creaked open.

“Squads will be announced as you enter. Move in.”

Kael stepped forward with the others. Inside, the corridor was lined with rune-lit arches, the soft blue inscriptions pulsing faintly. A few guards stood by with lists in hand, calling out names as the recruits passed.

“Kael, Kyna, Reyna Voss—squad twelve.” one called in a clipped tone.

Kael paused and stepped to the side. His boots echoed faintly on the polished stone as he waited. Kyna arrived moments later, her expression as tightly shut as a locked box. She didn’t look at him at first, only gave a curt nod as she stood beside him.

The third person arrived in a few sharp strides. She was shorter than either of them, with lean muscle packed under a plain uniform and eyes that flicked between them with quick, hawk-like precision.

“Reyna,” she said, her voice dry, as if the introductions were a waste of time. “Hope you’re not dead weight.”

Kael raised a brow. “I’ll do my part.”

“Good. I’ll be doing mine either way,” she replied, already turning towards the next archway.

They were directed forward, past a glowing threshold. A low thrumming started beneath their feet, as if the very air were holding its breath. Then the floor lit up in a perfect circle beneath them.

Kael felt the sensation like a short fall. His stomach tightened, and his body tugged slightly upwards. Cold and white light burst around them. When it faded, the world had shifted.

They were no longer indoors.

Old and uneven stone buildings rose up around them, with cracked plaster and crooked signs that squeaked faintly in the breeze. The sky above was murky, dimmed by a false dusk. The simulation was detailed to the last corner: gutters, market stalls, even pigeons perched along overhead wires. Kael blinked once, and then twice trying to adjust.

The street was quiet. Too eerily quiet though.

“Guess this is it.” he muttered.

Reyna tapped her wristband. A tiny panel glowed blue, casting a soft light across her palm.

> Locate the merchant’s manifest. The informant is mobile. Do not be seen. Do not engage. You have one hour.

Kyna studied the objective without a word. She adjusted her belt, checking a small pouch at her side, then stepped forward with silent ease. Kael matched her pace.

“This district’s too open,” Reyna muttered, squinting at the layout. “We need a vantage point. He won’t hang around here long.”

They moved along the lower market area, sticking close to the sides of buildings. Kael noticed the civilians—projections, clearly, though not immediately obvious. Their faces were indistinct, like watercolour sketches, and their movements were too smooth. None of them made eye contact. They walked in loops, repeating gestures without thought.

“They’ve got a reset delay,” Kael murmured. “Watch that woman by the bread stall—same turn of the head, every twelve seconds.”

“Noted.” Reyna said.

She stopped at the corner of a rickety fruit cart, peering round the edge. “Figure in a tan coat. Near the fruit stall. That’s him.”

Kael leaned out just enough to glimpse the target. He was of average height, with a light brown coat and a plain face. He held a wrapped parcel in one hand and looked around only once—quick, like he’d trained not to.

Then he turned down a side alley and vanished from view.

“Follow at a distance,” Reyna instructed. “I’ll take the rooftops.”

Before Kael could speak, she was already moving. One boot found a crack in the wall; she swung up the drainpipe like it was nothing, then disappeared over the lip of the roof.

Kael exhaled slowly, turning to Kyna. “Let’s keep a pace, shall we?”

She gave him a faint look, unreadable as ever. “Sure. But don’t slow me down.”

He gave a tight smile. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

They followed with heads down, moving with careful steps along the edges of the street. The man didn’t rush. He strolled with a strange patience, pausing now and then to glance at a vendor’s stall or rest against the crumbling brick of a wall. His movements were casual and deliberate but not once did he glance over his shoulder.

Reyna appeared intermittently above, crouched along roof edges, flashing silent signals with two fingers or a tilt of her wrist. The team passed through five alleys in sequence, keeping their interval exact. No one tripped the alert wards. No eyes turned toward them.

“He’s heading for the fountain square.” Kyna said, voice barely audible beneath the ambient hum of the city.

Kael gave a single nod. “He’ll make the drop there.”

The square was quiet, framed on all sides by squat buildings with shuttered windows. In its centre stood a stone fountain, the water flowing in a slow, artificial loop. A few old carts stood idle; wooden benches ringed the area in uneven lines. It was open—too open. Exposure on all sides.

The informant approached one of the benches and sat with his back to the fountain. From within his coat he drew a small, rolled scroll and unwrapped it slowly. He didn’t read it. He held it casually in front of him, his hands steady.

Kael lingered at the mouth of an alley watching. His shoulders were tense, every fibre in his body waiting for Reyna’s signal.

Then something shifted.

One of the market carts: an old wooden thing with rusted wheels snapped loose. The right wheel jolted free and the whole cart tipped forward with a heavy clatter. The contents, mostly fabric and metal scraps, scattered across the stones. The sound rang through the square like a dropped bell.

A nearby projection guard broke formation and jogged over to investigate. Other projections turned their heads instinctively.

Kael shifted his weight, hoping to adjust position but his boot clipped a loose cobblestone. The stone shot out across the path and struck the leg of a bench with a dull thud.

The informant’s head snapped around.

His eyes narrowed. His grip on the scroll tightened slightly.

“Damn it…” Kael muttered, under his breath.

The man stood without haste, slipping the scroll back into his coat, and began walking briskly toward the east sector with a purpose that hadn’t been there before.

Reyna’s voice crackled in his earpiece. “You moved too early.”

Without a second thought, Kael stepped forward and broke into a run.

“Kael—!” Kyna’s sharp voice chased him furiously, but he was already rounding the corner.

He reached the side street just in time to see the man vanish through a narrow wooden door. Kael threw himself after him, one hand against the wall to steady his pace. The door resisted at first, then gave way with a groaning creak. He slipped inside.

The interior was dim and smelled of old dust and damp timber. Empty crates were stacked haphazardly against the walls. Shelves lined with aged supplies leaned at odd angles.

Three projection guards turned in unison from a far corner. Their movements were fluid but unmistakably alert.

“Step back. Now…” one said with a clipped and automatic tone.

Kael froze mid-step.

Kyna arrived behind him, eyes flashing.

“You absolute idiot.” she hissed, barely keeping her voice under control.

There was a clang above. Reyna dropped from a vent opening in the ceiling and landed in a crouch, rising with a scowl.

“We’re burned.”

“Back exit?” Kael asked quickly.

“Go.”

They moved fast, ducking through the crates and into a side corridor. The back door gave under Reyna’s shoulder, spilling them into an alley behind the building. No alarm sounded, but they could hear the guards following. Their steps were swift but measured. They wouldn’t fire. That wasn’t part of the scenario but every action was being recorded.

Kael darted left into a narrower lane. The others followed. They finally stopped between two looming buildings, breath misting in the simulated air.

Reyna rounded on him. “Want to explain that brilliant move, eh?”

Kael looked away, jaw clenched. “He saw me.”

“He saw you because you followed too close. You rushed it. You gave him cause to run.”

Kyna leaned against the wall but said nothing.

“We’ve got forty minutes left,” Reyna said, already checking her wrist panel. “He’ll change his pattern now. Let’s double back before the route locks.”

They moved again, this time with more caution. Reyna took a longer route over the rooftops while Kyna kept to the shadows. Kael stayed behind them both, quiet and alert. He said nothing. His expression was tight with focus, and something else.

They passed another market stretch: this one was busier with more projection civilians moving through, and then paused at a side gate tucked beneath an arch.

“I’ll search east,” Reyna said, adjusting the strap across her shoulder. “Kyna, north side. Kael, hold the gate.”

Kael nodded and leaned against the low stone wall near the gate. The city felt louder now. There were more footsteps, more chatter. Guards passed in pairs. Lights flickered behind drawn curtains.

And yet, none of it registered properly.

Something shifted again.

But it wasn’t in the simulation.

It was inside him.

A faint humming started in his ears. It pulsed in time with something else beneath the surface.

The edges of his vision pulled slightly outward, as if the world had been gently warped. The buildings seemed to lean. The gate shimmered not with light, but with distortion. It bent and tilted.

Kael’s fingers tightened on the wall. His breath caught in his throat. His chest rose once, sharply. The rhythm of his heart altered.

Not here.

Not now, please...

He shut his eyes hard, trying to centre himself, to find something solid inside the sudden drift.

But the feeling remained.

Time didn’t stop, but it slowed noticeably.

Kael’s head tilted downward. His limbs felt heavier. The air had thickened, and wrapped around him like he was being drowned in an ocean.