They left the market an hour later.
The return journey was silent. Marcus walked with the same steady pace. Adrian followed, his mind racing.
Scout material. Reconnaissance. Intelligence gathering.
That's what Marcus sees when he looks at me. Someone to watch from shadows while real Hunters do the fighting.
They emerged from the Broken Crown into evening darkness. The streets were emptier now. Late enough that most people were home. Early enough that the truly dangerous hadn't emerged.
Marcus led them through different districts. Not the same route they'd taken down. This path was more direct. Efficient.
"Questions?" Marcus asked after they'd walked for ten minutes in silence.
"Why show me this now?"
"Because you needed to see it. The market. The scale of what exists outside Vigil control." Marcus's expression was unreadable. "Most Initiates don't learn about it until they're promoted to full Hunter. But your situation is different."
"Different how?"
"Your Dao is unknown. That makes you valuable to people down there. They'll want to study you. Recruit you. Offer you things the Vigil can't." Marcus stopped and turned to face Adrian directly. "I'm showing you this so you understand what you're dealing with. The choices you'll face. The temptations."
He's warning me. Showing me the market but also showing me why I should stay loyal.
"You think I'd leave the Vigil?"
"I think you're smart enough to recognise opportunity when you see it. And that market is full of opportunities the Vigil would never allow." Marcus started walking again. "But I also think you understand consequences. Leaving the Vigil means becoming a target. We don't forget. We don't forgive."
They walked in silence for another few minutes.
"The reconnaissance squadron," Adrian said finally. "Is that really my only option?"
"It's the best option for your abilities. Shadow Sight is valuable for intelligence work. You could save lives by identifying threats before they become problems."
"From a distance. While others fight."
Marcus stopped again. His eyes narrowed slightly. "You're thinking about the warehouse. About Elena."
Adrian said nothing. But his hands clenched at his sides.
"
"You think being on the front line would change that? That throwing yourself into combat would somehow fix what happened?"
"I think standing back and watching while others fight will make it happen again."
Marcus studied him for a long moment. His expression was unreadable.
"Combat isn't glorious. It's brutal. Messy. Most practitioners die in their first year of active hunting. The mortality rate for front-line Hunters is sixty percent."
"But they fight. They act. They don't just watch."
"They die." Marcus's voice went flat. "Elena died. She was talented, trained, prepared. She still died. You want that to be you?"
"I want to be useful. Actually useful. Not relegated to watching from shadows because everyone thinks I'm too weak to fight."
Marcus's jaw tightened. For a moment, Adrian thought he'd overstepped. That Marcus would shut down the conversation or report him for insubordination.
But Marcus just sighed. "You're right about one thing. I recommended reconnaissance because I thought it was safer for you. Less chance of ending up in pieces on some warehouse floor."
"I don't want safe. I want to be good enough that safe doesn't matter."
"Those are the words of someone who doesn't understand what they're asking for."
"Then make me understand. Train me properly. Not just survival. Not just reconnaissance skills. Real combat. The kind that lets me fight beside people like you instead of watching from behind."
Marcus was quiet for a long time. They'd reached a quieter district now. Residential streets. Fewer people.
"If I train you for combat," Marcus said finally, "it won't be gentle. It won't be safe. I'll push you past every limit. Break you down and rebuild you. And there's no guarantee it'll work. Your Dao might not support front-line combat. Shadow Sight is useful but it's not The Armament or The Crucible."
"I don't care. I'll make it work."
"Why? Really. Why are you so determined to fight?"
Adrian thought about lying. About giving Marcus some noble reason. Protecting the innocent. Honouring Elena's memory. All the things a good Initiate was supposed to say.
But Marcus had shown him the market. Trusted him with secrets. The least Adrian could do was be honest.
"Because I'm tired of being weak. Of being the one who needs protecting. Of standing by while others do the real work." Adrian met Marcus's eyes. "I want power. Real power. The kind that lets me decide my own fate instead of having it decided for me."
Marcus's expression didn't change. But something shifted behind his eyes.
"That's honest at least. Better than pretending you're driven by selfless duty." He resumed walking. "I'll think about it. No promises. But I'll consider whether you're suited for combat training."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me. If I agree, you'll wish I hadn't." Marcus glanced at him.
They reached the Vigil headquarters as full night settled over the city. The building loomed above them. Dark stone and iron gates.
Marcus stopped at the entrance. "Get some rest. Regular training tomorrow at dawn. I'll let you know my decision after that."
He turned and walked inside without waiting for a response.
Adrian stood alone outside headquarters. His hands still clenched around the reconnaissance tools Marcus had given him.
Telescope. Lockpicks.
Tools for watching. For staying hidden. For never engaging directly.
Adrian looked at them for a long moment. Then he slipped them into his pocket and walked inside.
The corridors were quiet. Most Initiates were already in their quarters or cells. Adrian made his way to his room on the second floor.
Thomas was in the hallway, heading toward his own room. He looked up as Adrian approached.
"You're out late. Special training?"
"Something like that."
Thomas noticed something in Adrian's expression. "You alright?"
"Fine. Just tired."
"You sure? You look like someone told you bad news."
Adrian almost told him. Almost explained about the market, about Marcus's recommendation for reconnaissance, about the conversation that followed.
But Thomas was a good person. Genuine. He'd try to help, to say the right thing. And Adrian didn't want to be talked out of what he'd decided.
"I'm sure. Just need sleep."
Thomas nodded slowly. "Alright. See you tomorrow at training."
He disappeared into his room.
Adrian unlocked his door and stepped inside. The small space felt confining after the vast cavern of the market.
He sat on his bed and pulled out the tools Marcus had given him. Laid them on the blanket.
Telescope. Listening device. Lockpicks.
Everything a good scout would need.
Adrian stared at them for a long time.
Then he stood and walked to his wardrobe. Opened the bottom drawer. Placed the tools inside carefully. Closed the drawer.
I'll keep them. They might be useful.
But that's not who I'm going to be.
Adrian lay back on his bed and stared at the ceiling. His body was exhausted from the long walk. His mind was racing.
The market had shown him something important. The Vigil wasn't all-powerful. Wasn't the only source of knowledge or training or advancement.
If Marcus refused to train him for combat, if the Vigil insisted on relegating him to reconnaissance, there were other options. Other paths.
The market would always be there. Full of practitioners who'd chosen different roads. Who'd found power outside Vigil control.
But that's not what I want either. Not really.
Adrian wanted to stay with the Vigil. Wanted to be part of something larger. Wanted the structure and purpose they provided.
He just wanted it on his terms. As someone who fought, not someone who watched.
Marcus said he'd think about it. That's not a no. That's a maybe.
I need to show him I'm worth training. That I can handle combat. That reconnaissance would be wasting my potential.
Tomorrow's training. I need to be better. Faster. More controlled.
Show him what I can become.
Adrian closed his eyes. His body needed rest. Tomorrow would come too soon.
But sleep was slow to arrive. His mind kept returning to the market. To the ancient woman with white eyes who'd looked at him and known exactly what he was.
What are my abilities
No answers came. Just the darkness of his room and the steady rhythm of his breathing.
Eventually, exhaustion won.
Adrian slept.
And dreamed of shadows that moved like living things. Of power that existed beyond Vigil control. Of choices that would define everything that came after.