Lucas shifted. He considered his options for a moment.

"I'd like to go to class, if that's alright."

The receptionist smiled widely. "A boy who takes his work seriously." She nodded her head as her hand shifted and she pressed a button of some sort. "Your things will be in your room later. Also..." she paused as she glanced over Lucas' clothes. "I see you don't have your uniform yet. It's alright since you came late. I'll make sure a set is sent along with your things. I'm assuming you're measurements are in?"

Lucas nodded.

"Alright then. Starting tomorrow make sure you're wearing your uniform at all times during school hours. Once the bell rings for the end of the day you're free to wear what you want."

Sensing a new presence, Lucas looked to his right out of the corner of his eyes. A man wearing a suit and tie was hurrying over. His hair was a mess and he looked out of breath.

"Ah, Mr. Jordan." The receptionist smiled tightly.

"Ms. Howard," Mr. Jordan replied shakily as he tried to straighten his tie.

"Would you please escort Mr. Johnson here to classroom 3H?" Even though she asked, Lucas was sure it wasn't really a question.

"Certainly." Mr. Jordan nodded.

"Alright then." The receptionist turned back to Lucas. "Mr. Jordan will take you and answer any questions along the way." She shot a look at Mr. Jordan who only nodded. "I'll have your dorm head find you afterward to take you to your room." With that she turned away and picked up the phone; most likely calling back the person she had been gossiping with before Lucas came.

"This way," Mr. Jordan told Lucas.

Lucas followed him, leaving his things behind. I wonder if they check through luggage, he thought as he shot a glance back. Probably, he decided with a shrug. Yes, he had brought a few...special things. But if ECHO was as prepared as usual, they would easily be mistaken for everyday things.

Mr. Jordan exited through the door and Lucas followed. As they began to walk towards a large four story building, Mr. Jordan fell into step beside Lucas.

"So, do you have any questions?"

"Tell me about the classes," Lucas replied smoothly. Although he had already re-searched it, and knew most if it, he decided hearing it again wouldn't hurt. Besides...new students are meant to be somewhat curious, right? he thought.

"Ah...yes. Here at Ellison High we do things a little differently than the other schools in the country. See, we divide classes according to ability. Therefore, it's easier for the teacher to teach at everyone's level. If you excel ahead of your class, you move up. Similarly, if you fall behind you move down a class."

3H, Lucas thought of the number the receptionist had mentioned. 3 for third floor, which is for juniors, H for the class level. Classes go from A to J. He resisted the urge to snort. It looked like ECHO had decided to put him in an easier class. It made sense as he would be able to concentrate on his real objective and not have to worry about school work too much.

"Also, we only have around fifteen to twenty students per classroom," Mr. Jordan continued. "That way the teachers are able to give you more attention. It's one reason why students at Wilson High excel as they do," he added proudly.

"They classes are small," Lucas commented while he scanned the building as they got closer.

"Yes," Mr. Jordan agreed. "Though for some subject certain classes merge. Labs are an example."

Lucas was only half listening as he took in the building. It looked fancy, yet Lucas didn't pay attention to the architecture. Fifteen classroom windows on one side...so therefore thirty per floor, he noted. One hundred and twenty altogether. According to the report it's three windows per classroom. That makes forty classrooms altogether and ten per floor. If it's twenty to fifteen people per classroom then there has to be a maximum of eight hundred students. Not too large...but considering how few they accept... "Does everyone live in the dorms?" Lucas asked when he realized that Mr. Jordan had stopped talking.

"Yes. Everyone must live on campus. However, on weekends those that live close enough may go home," Mr. Jordan said what Lucas already knew. They came to the door. Mr. Jordan pulled it open and Lucas followed him in.

Stairs were right in the middle, leading to the next floor. To the right and left there were hallways with doors on either side leading to classrooms. There were also glass windows so that one could look in form the hallway and see the students. However, Before Lucas could have a closer look Mr. Jordan was already leading the way up the stairs.

"3H," Mr. Jordan murmured to himself.

As they walked towards the end of the hallway and past other classrooms, Lucas noticed a few students look up to see who was passing. They came to 3H and Mr. Jordan paused at the door to give Lucas an encouraging smile.

"I hope you're not too nervous," Mr. Jordan told him.

Lucas simply smiled back. I haven't been nervous since the mission in Peru, he thought. And this really doesn't compare. He winced as he remembered the mission. It gave him the sudden urge to rub the scar in his shoulder from a bullet, however, he resisted.

Mr. Jordan knocked. The voice, which had been droning on inside, paused. There was the sound of footsteps and the door opened. A man with graying hair and glasses, peered at them.

"Ah, Mr. Jordan," the man said in a thick German accent.

"Mr. Zurich," was the reply. "I brought along a new student."

Mr. Zurich looked Lucas up and down while Lucas did the same to him, though somewhat less conspicuously.

Doesn't look too physically fit, Lucas noted. Perhaps not a threat when it comes to combat. He could exceed elsewhere. Conclusion...German. Somewhere from the south by the sound of his accent. Government operative? If foreign not likely...but don't rule out possibility.

"Ah...yes. Lucas I'm presuming," Mr. Zurich said.

Lucas nodded. He noticed that students in the classroom were leaning forward on their desks and craning their necks to try and get a look.

"Class is almost over..." Mr. Zurich began, "But since you are here, you might as well come in." He nodded to Mr. Jordan and then turned back to the classroom. The boys all reacted by sitting back down and looking as though they had never moved.

Lucas followed Mr. Zurich in. Behind him, Mr. Jordan closed the door and left. Lucas ignored him as he took in the room. There was a bunch of fancy looking lockers at the very back. Sixteen desks were in the room with four per row. Boys filled all except one which was the in the second row from the front, next to the row by the windows looking outside.

The boys themselves were dressed in Wilson High uniforms. They wore black pants, a white collared shirt with a yellowish/gold tie. A black jacket was worn on top with white square patterns outlining the edge. It had four gold buttons, two on either side. It looked like the boys could chose to either pull one side of their jacket over and fasten it so that only the top of their white shirt was visible, or they could fasten just one so that the jacket only closed in the middle. The latter looked somewhat more comfortable. The school crest was also on the left side in gold.

Most of the guys were currently staring at Lucas, curiosity written on their faces.

Coming in the second semester and a week late sure doesn't help, Lucas thought as he stood next to the teacher's desk. Though he looked straight ahead, he had taken in what he could in one glance. Threats...at the moment all fifteen. I'll have to see how many I can rule out.

"Class, I'd like to make you acquainted with Lucas Johnson," Mr. Zurich spoke. "Due to some circumstances he was only able to just arrive. He will be your classmate. Please treat him accordingly."

Some eyes looked away, seeming to lose interest. As Mr. Zurich turned to Lucas, Lucas saw a boy take the opportunity to throw a piece of paper to another. The other boy snatched it from his desk and quickly opened it, skimming over the contents.

"The free desk is yours, please take a seat."

Lucas walked towards the desk without hesitation. A few eyes followed him, Lucas ignored them. He sat down calmly, his gaze to the front.

"Okay..." Mr. Zurich turned to the board where a few phrases were written in German. "As class is almost over anyway, how about we end it by telling Lucas what we learned today." Every time he said 'we', he mispronounced the 'w' as a 'v'."

He turned to the boys. "Do we have any volunteers?"

Not one hand went up.

"No one?"

Still no response.

"Niemand?" Mr. Zurich repeated, this time in German, as he tapped the board.

Lucas scanned what was on it. It was a whole bunch of present and past tenses followed by sentences they were used in. He could read it with ease, for German was one of the six languages he had been drilled in, until he was fluent, in ECHO. However, as he was posing as a high school student, something told him that letting that out wouldn't help his cover.

"Then how about someone simply put the following sentence into German?" Mr. Zurich changed his tactic. "Hello, would you like to go to the mall with me?"

"Not with you," someone muttered. There was a snort and a few snickers.

"Mr. Tanton?"

A student with brown hair sank lower in his chair.

"Would you like to give it a try?"

The student sunk even lower as his neighbor snickered at his discomfort.

"Come on Mr. Tanton, stand up and give it a try," Mr.Zurich encouraged.

The student grudgingly got up. "What was the sentence again, sir?" he asked.

Mr. Zurich smiled patiently. "Would you like to go to the mall with me?"

The student paused as he seemed to try find the words. "M...möchten..." he trailed off and some classmates snickered at his accent.

Mr. Zurich leaned back. "I don't know why this is so funny." He looked over the boys. "Look at it this way. If you know how to use this phrase, won't you be able to impress a Bel girl by asking her in German to see a move?"

Students all around sat up straighter and a few hands shot up from guys who wanted to give it a try. However, the one standing wasn't about to be outdone as he began again and stuttered through the translation.

Looks like the girls' school really motivates them, Lucas thought.

The boy just reached the end when a bell rung.

"Finally!" Someone yelled as boys everywhere sprang to their feet.

"Do your homework!" Mr. Zurich yelled over the noise. He had already packed his things in his briefcase and was making his escape from the classroom, seeming to want to get out as soon as possible.

Lucas sat in his chair, observing the guys pack up around him, shouting to each other to be heard above the noise spreading throughout the whole school. A guy slid a window, which looked into the hallway, open. He and two others lost no time in clambering through it instead of using the door. They joined other guys in the hallway.

A method of escape, Lucas noted in case he was ever in need. His eyes wandered to the ceiling. There's also a vent.

When a hand suddenly banged down on Lucas' desk, he looked up. A guy with an army buzz haircut was staring at him. Despite the fact that every muscle in Lucas' body was ready to spring into action if he was attacked, he kept a calm outward appearance.

"Lucas, right?" the guy all but growled.

Lucas nodded.

The guy narrowed his eyes. "You any good at German?" he suddenly asked.

Lucas didn't show his surprise. Instead, he simply shrugged.

"What about Math?" the guy asked.

You're undercover, Lucas reminded himself. He shook his head.

The guy leaned closer. "You're not an aspiring rocket scientist or anything, are you?"

Again, Lucas shook his head.

"Man!" the guy turned away looking frustrated. "Why don't we ever get any geniuses in this class?"

"Give it up Frank. This is class H. Two steps from the bottom," another guy with dark brown hair placed a hand on Frank's shoulder.

"And even if we did, they probably still wouldn't do your homework for you." He added with a grin.

"Man," Frank grumbled.

"Raymond," the new guy told Lucas as he held out a hand.

Lucas took it. "Lucas," he replied.

"Welcome to Elison High, Lucas," Raymond told him. "Hey!" he let out a yell as a piece of paper hit the back of his head. The culprit laughed.

A paper plane flew right by Lucas' face. It looked like the guys were taking their time in leaving the classroom.

"So, Lucas," another guy turned up next to him. "You got a girlfriend?"

All around, guys seemed to suddenly tune in.

Lucas shook his head. There were groans of sympathy all around. One guy, however, laughed.

"I told you this class is made up of losers!" he yelled.

"Takes one to know one, Dean!" another guy yelled back.

"Yeah, yeah," Dean replied as he slung his school bag over his shoulder and headed towards the door. "At least I have a girlfriend," he called back.

"One who no one's ever seen," someone else murmured.

"Probably made up," someone else agreed.

"I heard that!" Dean growled.

Lucas stayed seated. He wasn't used to this...to having so many people his age around him. They all seemed so...carefree. He was used to sitting tense, waiting to jump into action or avoid a shower of bullets.

"Bel alert!" someone yelled.

Lucas watched in surprise as all around, guys dropped what they were doing and flew to the nearest window. Dean joined them, as did a few guys who had been walking by from another classroom. Those that couldn't find space at the windows stood on their desks.

Lucas got up and pushed his way through, trying to find out what the fuss was all about.

"Hey," Raymond told him as he ended up beside him. To Lucas' other side was a classmate who had his face squished against the window.

"What's going on?" Lucas asked curiously.

"Bel girls," Raymond replied.

Lucas saw three figures walking by. They were a good distance away, so making out their facial features was impossible. However, he could see that it was girls wearing uniform skirts and blouses.

"Oh, it looks like we have a looker," a guy behind Lucas yelled.

Lucas glanced back to see the guy was standing on a desk and had whipped out a pair of binoculars with which he was following the girls every move. As the others noticed the binoculars too, chaos broke out.

"Give it here," one guy demanded as he reached for them.

The guy who had them ignored him. Another tried to snatch them from him and a fight broke out as guys scrambled to try and get the binoculars.

"What's the big deal?" Lucas wondered out loud.

"Dude!" the guy next to him looked at him with wide eyes. "It's girls!"

There was a triumphant shout as one guy finally got the binoculars. He looked through them, taking a stand on the teacher's desk as two of his friends defended his position against other contestants.

"Hey!" a voice yelled.

Everyone froze.

"What are you all doing?"

Lucas turned. He found a guy with black hair and brown eyes standing in the doorway. Though he had on the same uniform as the boys, there was one difference which sprang out...a red armband around his upper arm.

Armbands... Lucas' mind whirled as he recalled what he had learned the night before. The four dorm heads wear them. It's a sign of their authority. Each has a different color depending on their dorm.

The guys all around shrank back from the window.

"Awe, come on, Auden," a guy told him. "It's Bel girls."

Auden snorted. "Creepers, the whole lot of you," he said. His eyes narrowed. "Don't half of you have somewhere you need to be?"

There were grumbles all around, yet the guys listened as they grabbed their things and started to file out.

"Give me that," Auden jerked the binoculars off the guy on the teacher's desk.

The guy jumped from the desk and made his escape.

"Jordan, don't forget to clean your room before the next room check!" Auden called after another guy. "You don't want penalties again this semester."

The guy grumbled as he hurried off.

As the room emptied, Auden turned his attention to Lucas.

"Hey, you must be Lucas," he told him warmly as he walked over. He held out a hand. "I'm Auden, head of dorm three where you'll be staying."

Lucas shook his hand.

"Now, if you could give me a moment." Auden shot a glance around. Seeing that the classroom was empty, he lifted the binoculars to his eyes and peered through them, scanning the area. "Now...where were those Bel girls at?"

Lucas watched in surprise. Even the dorm head?

"Ah...they disappeared." With a sigh, Auden put the binoculars down. He turned his attention back to Lucas. "You ready to head to the dorms?"

"Sure," Lucas replied.

"Alright then..." Auden paused. He suddenly placed a firm hand on Lucas' shoulder.

Threat? The thought ran through Lucas' mind.

"I'm warning you..." Auden leaned closer. He glanced around, as though to make sure that no one was there to hear him. "Once you move into dorm three, you'll probably never be able to leave."

Lucas' eyes narrowed as he tried to decipher the threat. Is he threatening with death, or locking me up? Another thought hit him. Am I already discovered? Options of escape rushed through his mind.

"Because...despite our residents being a bit crazy...we also just so happen to be the most awesome of the four," Auden finished off as he leaned back again. He grinned in satisfaction.

"Ah," Lucas said as he relaxed.

"Then again..." Auden muttered, "the other three heads always claim the same thing about their dorms..." He shook his head. "Well, how about we get going?" He placed a hand on Lucas' back and began to shove him towards the door. "I'm sure you're roommates will be excited to meet you, and unpacking is also something you still need to do before dinner; I was told you came straight to class."

Lucas nodded.

"I see," Auden said. "You're the first student I know who would choose that over skipping when you can." He laughed. "If you keep this up, maybe you can move up to class G."

"What class are you in?" Lucas asked curiously.

"Me?" They entered the hallway. "4B."

Senior, and in the second highest class, Lucas noted. "Don't you have to be in an A class to be a dorm head?" he asked.

"Nope," Auden replied. "You just need to be a senior and have the recommendation of three professors." They reached the stairs. "Have you seen the whole school yet?"

"No."

Auden paused. "Really?" He shot a glance at his wrist watch on. "Tell you what, I have a few minutes to spare. I could give you a brief tour now. But if you prefer, I could take you to the dorm and perhaps one of your roommates can show you around later?"

Choices:

a) Lucas should go to the dorm, meet his roommates, and unpack.

b) He should take a tour now.