Registration Done And Dusted

The door slid open with a soft hiss, revealing an entirely different hallway, with steel-paneled walls and minimal lighting.

Dorian glanced around, silently wondering what happened to the hall, or maybe he had just mixed up the doors.

He walked beside Kyle, hands in his pockets again, his gaze low but aware of everything.

They didn't speak until they entered an elevator. Kyle tapped a code into the panel before leaning against the back wall with his arms crossed.

"Do you normally let your mind wander that far?" he asked casually, reaching into his pocket, oblivious to Dorian's gaze following his every movement.

Dorian then lifted his head and replied, "It's something I always do to avoid getting annoyed."

Kyle chuckled softly. "Sounds fair enough. You seem like a guy who'd avoid drama at all costs."

Dorian nodded and tilted his head. "What about you?"

"Well... I like having fun, so it's only normal that I enjoy stuff like that."

Dorian's face twisted in annoyance, his brows knitting together like Kyle had said something extremely irritating. He stepped away from him, earning a frown.

"Now you're treating me like I stink."

Dorian averted his gaze, smiling awkwardly. "I felt a little nauseous."

Kyle's jaw dropped. He was in utter disbelief, not because of what Dorian said, but because this was the first time someone was actually uncomfortable with his presence.

"I... I never thought someone would actually not like my bright aura," Kyle winced, leaning against the wall with his hands over his chest, feigning heartbreak.

"Eh..."

"No one has ever felt uncomfortable around me. I'm the joy of the team."

'With your size?' Dorian thought, staring without blinking, then quickly shook his head. "It's not that I'm uncomfortable. Just trying to avoid too much excitement."

Kyle snapped his head toward him, his brow raised. They both stared at each other like that for close to ten seconds before the elevator chimed and slid open to a new hallway.

A sigh of relief escaped Dorian's lips, but that relief was cut short when Kyle threw his arm around him and started walking.

The hallway was wider, with windows overlooking parts of the facility. They passed the twin cadets, who kept staring at Dorian like he looked weird.

"Ignore them," Kyle said. "Everyone's just cautious."

"I know. Just hoping they'd stop looking at me like I'm a beast," Dorian replied flatly, earning a chuckle from Kyle.

They stopped in front of a door marked Ward 9A – Subject Zero. Kyle scanned his ID across the panel. The door unlocked with a click, sliding open to reveal a spacious, minimalistic room.

The walls were matte gray, with one side made of reinforced glass that gave a view of the field and the empty land beyond the facility gates.

A bed sat in one corner, next to a desk and wall shelf already stocked with files, books, and writing materials.

On the table was a tablet and pen, left untouched beside the box, indicating it had only recently been opened. Beside it was another smaller box, one meant for a phone, but with the insignia of the facility's general logo on it.

The far side of the room, opposite from the bed, was a tall wardrobe, more like a locker, but fancier and larger. It was left open, with neatly folded black and gray jumpsuits.

Beside it was a pile of folded white trousers and shirts, compression shirts mostly, with a few regular ones. There were also other differently colored clothes, but mostly compression shirts and trousers, kept away from the jumpsuits and whites.

Dorian reached out to check what was so different about the clothes that they had to be separated, but the second his hand made contact with the fabric, it tingled.

"Woah," he muttered, reaching out again to touch the jumpsuits, and it tingled, stronger this time.

Dorian stepped away slowly, scanning everything. "It's better than I expected."

"We had a lot of issues picking out your uniform, but we did our best," Kyle replied. He moved to the table and picked up the ID card on the tablet. "Your ID. It has your name, biometric data, and status."

Dorian nodded. He pretended not to wonder about the biometric data, that was somehow collected without him even realizing it. He picked up one of the jumpsuits and ran his fingers over the fabric.

It was oddly lightweight, despite feeling like mana-woven armor. He slid his hand into one of the sleeves to feel the fabric on his skin, but it shrank and wrapped around his arm like a body hug.

His eyes widened, feeling the mana tingle over his flesh and spread out through his body with a cool, calming sensation.

"I take it this isn't the regular uniform," he said, sliding his hand out of the sleeve carefully.

"Nope. Yours was customized a bit. Aurora figured you'd appreciate something breathable since, y'know... you fight strangely."

Dorian let out a faint laugh. "Thanks, I guess."

Kyle dropped onto a nearby chair and stretched his legs. "Your schedule starts in two days. Until then, settle in. You'll have access to the indoor training grounds, the library, and the labs. Oh, and the cafeteria. You'll need an escort if you want to leave the premises."

"I don't need a babysitter."

Kyle shrugged. "Doesn't matter. You're not officially cleared for field movement yet. No one is, not after what happened at 077."

Dorian didn't respond. He moved to the window, gazing down at the enclosed yard.

"Do you know when the next mission will be?" he suddenly asked, not taking his gaze away from the field.

Kyle, from where he sat, tilted his head, wondering why Dorian was asking such a question at this time. He simply shrugged. "It depends. It was scheduled for tomorrow, but we're not sure yet."

"Oh," Dorian muttered, then sighed. "How long do I have to be here every day, though?"

"You can leave anytime you want to. You're not trapped here," Kyle replied. "You could decide to leave to buy something in the city and return, or go home and come back the next morning."

Dorian nodded. Of course this facility was that considerate, enough to let their soldiers leave the area and do as they pleased.

If it was even that easy, he wouldn't have been so skeptical about fighting the rifts as a kid, knowing the kind of treatment the soldiers got.

Just thinking about it made him laugh.

"Well," Kyle said as he rose to his feet, and Dorian turned around. "I'll be on my way. My parents might need me back home for dinner."

'Parents? Since when did the cadets have parents?'

Dorian thought, memories of what he was told about the awakened children working with the facilities, and their parents, flashing in his mind.

None of them had parents. They were either dead, or had abandoned them because of fear of raising a beast. That's what they always told him when he asked about the parents of the other children, and why they weren't visited.

And as a kid who was desperately trying to get stronger and meet his mother, he believed it.

Then again, it was probably a lie to get him to shut up about the stupid question.

Dorian let out a sigh and turned around fully. "I'm supposed to head home too. Have you seen Rose?"

"Your girlfriend? She's probably downstairs with the other cadets, first floor."

Dorian left his spot to follow, then paused just as he was about to pass Kyle. He glanced up at him, expression unreadable.

"She's my sister," he said flatly. "Not my girlfriend."

Kyle gave a small nod, smiling as if he already knew, and exited the room with Dorian trailing behind, relieved that he was finally heading home, to rest and eat good food.

'Waffles....hehe'