The Rules Of Pursuit

6. Orientation

The huge campus of the college of Espionage had five buildings.

"That is the administrative building." Shivam pointed at the white two-storied structure infront of us. The cobblestone driveway forked at its front, only to circle and converge behind the building. Our car drove past the administrative building along driveway that ran across the campus.

We crossed the large dome shaped theory building to our right which was further away from the administrative building.

"Whoa this looks like an army camp!" Mandy gasped in amazement. The open stretch ahead left us dumbstruck. A gigantic swimming pool and an open-air firing range separated by a row of cabins, stood to our left, with a jogging track acting as their boundary.

To our right there were a soccer and volleyball field, bleachers rising on their either side. That part of the campus appealed to me the least, since I hated sports. There was an obstacle course beside the sports fields, much grittier than the one I had gone through in the Stage II tests.

"Is that a part of our training?" I asked, warily looking at the obstacle course.

"All of them are," Shivam chuckled, noticing my expression of horror, through the rear-view mirror.

"This is where your time with me comes to an end." Shivam said, parking the car on the side of the cobblestone driveway. Two tall five storied brick buildings stood opposite to each other, on either side of the driveway.

"That is for the staffs and mentors," Shivam tilted his head towards the brick building on the other side of the driveway. "And this one is for the students."

I could make out the outline of the fifth building in the distance, situated near the edge of the campus. It was humongous and looked somewhat like a stadium, the field beyond it gave way to the forest.

Shivam told us, that was the indoor sports arena. It was well equipped with a swimming pool, tennis court, gymnasium, football field and basketball court along with an indoor firing range and an indoor obstacle course.

Since most of the other rooms allotted for the first years were taken, Mia and I were allotted the last one. The room was tiny with two single beds, a study table, two chairs and a cupboard.

I was relieved that the rooms had attached-toilets. Atleast we would not have to endure the pains of community bathroom for the next four years.It was already past midnight, and the journey from Dehradun to Auli had left us exhausted, so we went to sleep without wasting much time.

We got dressed early the next morning and joined the rest of our batch for the Orientation Program in the large auditorium situated at the top floor of the theory building. I didn't want to leave Brute at the dorms alone, so he was giving company to the security guard and his indie guard dogs outside the theory building.

Once we settled down, nine middle-aged men and women climbed up the stage of the auditorium.

"Welcome freshers," the oldest of them spoke into the microphone on the podium. "I am Jeevan Rathore, your guide, criticizer, care giver, and most importantly your principal for the coming four years."

Jeevan Rathore was probably in his early fifties. The salts on his head were more than the peppers. He wore a V-necked tshirt and a pair of military cargo pants. Even though there was sternness in his poise, his voice was laced with compassion.

"Each of you who sit here, were chosen from thousands of brilliant minds in your states." He continued. "You each possess a unique talent, but just like a diamond needs to be polished and sharpened before it can be used, for the coming four years, we shall do the same to you."