The Edge of Honour

Chapter 33

Morgan's POV: 

A week and a half had passed since we had rescued Alma. Gorran and I had a few days of rest and recuperation. He of course spent this time with his family, while I spent it contemplating the future and remembering my past. Though I never admitted it, I envied Gorran and his relationship with every member of his family. The only person who had ever cared for me was my aging grandmother. She tried her hardest throughout her time with me, it was something I never appreciated while she was alive.

She could rarely play tag with me in the yard like other families did and after making delicious meals, she would often have to nap because she had been standing too long. Never once in our years together did I hear her complain. When my mother died, she had taken me in without any hesitation. Grandma gave the warmest hugs and as I watched Gorran interact with his family, I longed deeply to bury my head in her shoulders as her arms encompassed my body. My younger stronger body wrapped tightly in her fragile aged body.

The only conciliation I had was that I was acutely aware of how proud she would be of me. Gorran's family invited me to spend time with them throughout their stay with us. Although, I intensely enjoyed being part of a family unit, I knew that they needed time together and I respected that- spending many silent hours alone in my room.

Unfortunately for Gorran the time soon came for him to say goodbye to his family. April had worked out a protection plan for his family. It insures that there would be armed surveillance close to them at all times while being minimally invasive on their lives. He had explained what he was really doing at the training centre to Alma and his younger brother; neither completely understood his meaning, but they knew that they had to be more careful.

Afterwards, our week had consisted of exhausting training sessions daily. We reviewed all the recordings from our time in the warehouse- heart monitors, blood pressure, body temperature and everything else you could possibly think of it. Each detail was scrutinized and its significance explained to us in lengthy detail, as well as how we could improve them.

Jet and April decided that one of our weakest skills was hand-to-hand combat. Our own powers were becoming second nature to us and we could use them almost instantly now. We started with dummies filled with straw and slowly we advanced to real people, skilled fighters. Each of us quickly grasped the new skills we were being taught. Jet explained that our bodies and minds had been sharpened so much with our earlier training, that they were prepared for each new skill we acquired and were capable of mastering much sooner than others would.

As we trained, April and Jet regularly stepped outside for private discussions. There were many phone calls taken at the side of the room. "Not yet. Give them a few days," Jet would whisper to the caller as he watched Gorran knock a master fighter to the ground. It was clear that something was awaiting us in the not too distant future. Gorran and I had discussed what we thought was approaching us, but we were never able to come up with anything close to the truth. Our trainers refused to give us any insight until the day they called us to a meeting room.

"I'm sure that both of you are aware that your help has been requested on a mission. We had planned on spending more time training, but the governments are insisting that we send you immediately," April began. Jet was laying out detailed diagrams, maps and character profiles on the table as she spoke.

"We have been given information from a trusted source that the French government is aiding a well-known terrorist organisation. We have been asked if you would be willing to pose as French operatives to try and dissolve this ring," he said as he placed a large sheet on top of the rest and began to write.

"You want us to go all the way to France to work with an illegal group to see if we can stop them by joining them?" I repeated, startled by what I had just heard.

"Won't that be dangerous? I mean, what if they find out why we are there?" Gorran added. The apprehension was visible on his face and I could tell that I was not doing a good job at disguising mine either.

"I assure you that they are highly unlikely to suspect a thing. They have hired several young people to work for them already according to our source and applications for both of you under a pseudonym. The information has all been falsified, but we have created vast amounts of information to make it look authentic." 

Jet placed two folders in front of us filled with information. The only thing real about our identity was our photographs, everything else had been created. As I flicked through mine, I wondered if I would be able to maintain the characteristics which had been attributed to me.

"Morgan, you will be known as Jamie Frier. You grew up in New York city and have been a trained fighter since you were eight. You have documentation showing that you won titles worldwide and that along with your vast knowledge for plotting is what got you the job," Jet said, handing me the file detailing exactly who I must become in order for us to succeed.

"Gorran, your name is Ray Allen and you have grown up in Kent in Southern England. Your main skill is your strength, but they also have expressed a keen interest in your ability to hack computers." He laughed as she said that, he had only told me this recently and had never mentioned it to April, but it did not surprise me that they had uncovered it. He began learning about code when he was five and began hacking websites soon after. He claimed never to have done anything malicious when he broke in; he just liked to explore how they were built and maybe change the odd word when he was especially bored.

We both studied our information carefully as we tried to place ourselves in Ray and Jamie's mind frames. If we blew our cover, our mission would be a failure, but more importantly our lives would be in immense danger. The French government and the terrorist organisation were unlikely to appreciate us snooping around in their business. We had to know each of the characters like we really were them. The folders contained absolutely everything about their falsified, computer generated past- school records, medical reports even details of goals that Jamie or I had scored in football tournaments.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" April asked after we had spent over two hours discussing the finer details of the mission.

I looked expectantly at Gorran, if he was willing to, I would be to. We were in this together no matter what consequences were in store for us.

"I am if you are Jamie," he laughed. We repeated the handshake that we had created the first day we had met and smiled broadly at our trainers.

"I guess we are going to La France!" I said in my best accent.

 This was the life that I had chosen and I was going to stick with it and try my hardest to achieve the best possible outcome for every mission.

Ray and Jamie would have to be extra careful if they were going to intercept a skilled gang, but I was confident that they could do it. If only I knew what was ahead of them, I might not have agreed so readily to putting them forward for such a mission, but the decision had been made.