As he entered the room, twenty Guardians-in-training not wearing any armor were training on various workout equipment until he made it to the center of the room, and one of the Cadets noticed him. They all looked like teenagers and barely topped off at six foot seven with a petite human-like frame. They were adolescents or often called ‘unmatured,’ the last growth before their spurt into maturity into a towering giant.

“Guardian present, all Cadets get in line!” he shouted, and they all split from their activities and ran on the double to get lined up next to each other and stood at attention. Kayden looked them over as he sipped his coffee, slurping it loudly, making them feel uncomfortable. He made a long sigh and waited for any sort of misbehavior or glare, but none came.

“So, you’re what the Citadel has to offer for new Guardians? Pathetic,” he said outright.

“In all my years of service, I’ve seen bigger, tougher, hardier Guardians step through those doors. What makes you think you’re even worthy of being called a Guardian?” he asked. Then it happened, one of them stepped out of line.

“What makes you think you’re worthy of being called a Guardian, yourself…sir?” one Cadet asked, and the others turned and looked at him as he stared straight ahead. Kayden sipped his coffee and walked over to the Cadet, who stood out of line.

“Apparently, I’m more qualified than you, or else I wouldn’t be here as your instructor. Like it or not, you’re stuck with me. And you’re lucky, because I’ve trained some of the better Guardians to leave these halls and come back alive and with all their limbs intact. If you’re lucky, the same will happen to you,” Kayden said as he looked at the Cadet, who began to perspire under the pressure of Kayden’s stare. Kayden smirked as he paced, looking at them all and sizing them up.

“I assume you all are here because you were drafted. These days no one in their right mind wants to become a Guardian out of choice. Am I wrong?” he asked.

“Who is here because they wanted to be here?” he asked again. Each one of them raised their hand.

“Then you are all incredibly stupid, or incredibly brave. Being a Guardian means putting yourself last, putting the other alien first, and guarding that person with your life. To uphold justice to the highest degree… ‘I am honor-bound to guard thee,’ is the Guardian creed, ” Kayden started.

“Is that why you broke the codex and killed someone? Upholding justice?” the same recruit spoke out of turn once more, and Kayden glared at him. He walked over and looked him in the eye and sipped his coffee while holding his gaze.

“You want to punch me. I see it in your eye. You hate me with all your guts, don’t you?” Kayden asked.

“Speaking frankly, sir?” the Cadet asked.

“Yeah,” Kayden said.

“I believe you are a complete disgrace to the Guardianship. You lack self-control and respect for authority. You forsook your post and your title for a lapse in judgment with a hussy on a lower planet, and you lost all the respect of the Guardians by losing your head over her,” the Cadet said, and the others sweated and stepped back. Kayden stared at him and put his coffee down.

“Come at me,” Kayden said. The Cadet tilted his head in confusion.

“If you’re so high and mighty, surely you must be a better Guardian-in-training than I ever was,” Kayden started before he took off his jacket and began to shrink in size to an adolescent frame.

“Now the playing field is even, I’m just a few inches taller. Surely you can take me if I am so pathetic. Come at me and bring all that you’ve got. I’ll even use just my organic arm,” Kayden said with a glimmer in his eye. The Cadet grinned and reared up to punch him, but Kayden dodged it; he also dodged the next punch and the next after that. He reached down with his metal hand, picked up his coffee, and managed to drink it while dodging his other punches. He caught one in his hand and tossed him back. The Cadet roared as he ran to tackle Kayden, but Kayden sidestepped and grabbed him with one arm and flipped the Cadet onto his back, and sat on him. The Cadet gasped for air as Kayden sat with his full weight of 230kg on him. The other Cadets looked in shock. Cadets had yet to mature and usually did so in their last month at the academy.

“I’ve made a few mistakes in my life, but I’ve given nine hundred-some-odd good years to the Guardianship. Eight hundred of which I was among the highest-ranking Guardians in the Citadel. That hussy you spoke of was the love of my life, my mate. Speak of her like that again, and I’ll show you how Cyril can get scars and keep them,” Kayden said before standing up and walking to the side of the room. The Cadet wiped his jaw and stood back in line quietly. Kayden eyed him warningly, and the other Cadets sweated at the tension.

“Clearly, if that’s how you fight, I can assume none of you are properly trained in combat at this moment in time,” Kayden said before putting his cup of coffee down. He remained sized down.

“Each one of you come at me, I’ll give you each ten seconds to try and flip me or land a blow per round. When one of you manages to do either of the two, your training is over, and you won’t have to see me again,” Kayden said, and the Cadet who spoke out of turn stepped forward. Kayden stood ready and grinned.

“Begin,” he said. Roughly ten minutes later, each Cadet was either on the floor panting or leaning against the wall with a few bruises to the face and arms, and Kayden remained unscathed.

“I’m to be your combat instructor for one month, so for one month, you will honor me by my title as Guardian Kayden, no more, no less. Within that amount of time, I will teach you to throw a proper punch and learn to tackle your opponent to the ground with the fullness of your strength. Without landing a killing blow, believe it or not,” Kayden said as he picked up his leather jacket and put it on the bench press and his empty cup right next to it.

“Pair up and put up your guard,” he said, and they listened.

“Guard the face and neck—vital spots you don’t want to get hit at; there is no armor to cover you there,” Kayden said, and they stood ready.

“Aim for the head and throw your first punch. The other person block it with your forearms,” Kayden instructed. He taught them the proper stance for combat and how to throw a thorough punch that connected. Kayden trained them for hours and dismissed them before picking up his cup and jacket on the way out.

The consecutive days he continued training them in even more advanced maneuvers and postures with more techniques and different fighting styles, adjusting to each Cadet a style that fitted their balance and body type.

One particular day of the week came—Faronday—it was equivalent to a Sunday on Earth. Kayden dressed in black slacks and a black button-up shirt that for a change had sleeves. He was unarmed as he attended church. Kayden sat in the back and groaned as he heard the pastor speak about forgiveness. They shared the same religion as humans, though their history varied slightly, they had the same creator known as God as their faith’s figurehead, but instead of calling him by that name—they called Him the ‘Creator.’ It ended the exact same way humans knew it—One being dying to save all from death and themselves. Some things were universal—love was one of those things. Kayden waited until the Citadel was empty and made his way toward the exit before bumping into the pastor. He had one brown eye and short brown hair. He wore a white robe with a black center. The pastor smiled warmly as he offered his hand.

“Kayden, what a pleasant surprise!” he said, and Kayden frowned.

“Yeah…it’s been a while since I’ve come to church,” Kayden confessed.

“It’s never too late to return,” the pastor said.

“I have to confess to you, I’m not ready to let it go, Pastor Evans…I still hate them,” Kayden admitted.

“The Creator gave us our capacity for emotions, Kayden. What we do with them is entirely up to us. But don’t try to rush it, let forgiveness happen gradually so you can accept it with peace in your hearts. One day you will be able to,” Evans said.

“I don’t know if that day will ever come, Pastor Evans,” Kayden said.

“Don’t push yourself. You’ll just make yourself more bitter,” Evans said.

“Come see me anytime,” Evans said, and Kayden nodded as he left the Citadel.

Kayden made it on the way to his quarters but bumped into a young Squire.

“Excuse me—” Kayden started but suddenly recognized the Squire, it was Rio from the seven people he dropped off.

“Rio! How are you holding up? Squire training isn’t too hard, is it?” Kayden asked.

“No, sir! I’ve just come back from church with my sister. She’s so proud of me. Thank you, Kayden!” Rio exclaimed eagerly.

“Did they pair you up with a Guardian yet?” Kayden asked.

“Not yet…they said they have someone lined up for me real soon, though,” he said, and Kayden grinned as he shook Rio’s hand.

“I hope it’s a good Guardian. You deserve a good one,” Kayden said, and Rio blushed.

“Thank you, Sir Guardian Kayden,” Rio said.

“Just Kayden, please,” Kayden said, and Rio nodded.

“Thank you, Kayden,” Rio corrected himself. Kayden nodded and returned to his quarters.