As part of our disguise, we had to undergo some transformation. At first, I didn't think much of it, but it soon became clear that I underestimated this.

"Come on Tom, we got to go to the stylists," Owen said as he emerged from the bathroom. I frowned, then remembered that it was mentioned by Nirmal at some point.

"Sure," I replied and got up, following him out. Oscar, Bowen and Nate had gone earlier today, they could only accommodate up to three at a time. As we headed down the corridor, a black-haired boy approached from the opposite direction. There shouldn't be anyone else aside from us in these part.

"Hey, you are not meant to be here," Owen called out. The stranger froze and there was something about him that felt familiar. When he raised his head, my jaw dropped.

It was Bowen.

"What happened?" I asked before I could stop myself. For once, instead of rushing into bit my head off, he sighed.

"This is my disguise." He sounded so defeated that I almost felt sorry for him. But my concern at what they would do to me outweigh my sympathy. The initial shock was wearing off and I started to see how funny it was.

Bowen threw me a warning glare before storming off, which was just as well or I might have laughed at him. However, a sense of dread built up inside me as Owen and I continued to make our way there.

Nate and Oscar were outside when we arrived and neither of them looked particularly different, which was a relieve. They nodded at us as we approached.

"Did you see what they do to Fred?" Owen asked and Nate stifled a laugh. Even Oscar looked amused.

"They gave him extra attention, that's for sure," Nate mused. "I think it has something to do with his background."

We'd all be idiots if we hadn't figure out that Bowen was from a P.O.E. family. Though why he was sent to the Academy was still a mystery.

"Good luck, boy." Nate tipped an imaginary hat at us before ambling off with Oscar. Owen gave me a tight-lipped smile before entering before me.

The wall to our left was mounted with mirrors in a straight line rimmed by light bulbs, almost blinding me with the intensity. There were four people milling around the room and they all spun around to face us.

"About time, let's get you both started," one of the men shouted and immediately two others approached us and steered us towards the chairs in front of the mirrors. I had to squint to avoid being blinded by bright light.

"Don't worry, we won't eat you." The girl with her hands on my shoulder winked at me. I would rather be back outside the Wall than in this chair.

"Whatever you do, just don't move your head," she said with another wink. I resisted the urge to bolt and grip the handrest tightly. I was pretty sure this place wasn't empty because their expertise wasn't needed; it was because these people wee scarier than Legres.

Tired of the bright light, I closed up eyes and tried to concentrate on anything other than the sound of snapping scissors. Owen was chatting amicably with his "stylist", but I evaded all attempt at conversation. She got the hint eventually and joined the other two.

"I'm done," she called after what felt like hours. I breathed a sigh of relief and opened my eyes slowly, allowing them to adjust to the unnaturally bright light. The first thing I saw was three expectant faces staring back at me through the mirror. Then I saw myself.

I jolted from my chair towards the mirror, unable to comprehend the reflection that looked back. What had they done to my hair?

"I must say, you look very different with your hair flat," the girl said, amusement evident in her eyes. "Your hair was also very determined to stay curly. I'll give you some cream to help with that."

My eyes widened as she handed me a pot of hair product. Owen was watching us with a broad grin. His head was encased in some kind of tinfoil and a globe of some sort was positioned above him. What were they doing with his hair?

"They are dying my hair," Owen answered my unspoken question. He stole a glance at the weird contraption and shrugged. "You got off lucky with straightening. I need to be here for another few hours."

"I'll see you at the meeting later," I said to Owen. I didn't want to stay longer here in case they decided they weren't done with me. The girl bombarded me with a host of information on haircare that I wished I never know before I was able to get away.

I also got my alias, which wasn't all that different from my real identity. I was Timon Boulanger from Paris Citybase, transferring to the Eastern Sector after a disruption in basic training there. I joined on my own after graduation from the Academy and there wasn't the need for any other information.

When the time finally came for the meeting, I entered the room reluctantly. I wasn't keen on the other's reaction to my new look and while I appreciate the effort it took to alter our appearances, it was taking me longer than expected to get over it.

"Tom?" Casey's gasp as soon as I opened the door was enough for me to want to run away. That girl was a nuisance to your ears and should be avoided if at all possible. Her outbursts drew everyone's attention to me and I suppressed the urge to grimace. Bowen was already here, unfortunately, so one less person to take the attention off me.

I ignored Casey and looked around. Everyone looked suitably different but not overly so, but only those who had known us would be able to recognise us. Bowen was brooding in a corner and Natalie was talking to him in a low voice, no doubt trying to get him to be less grumpy.

"Nirmal isn't here yet, neither is Owen and Gail," Nate greeted me. I wished anyone of them would show up right now so that Casey would stop scrutinizing me. That girl was scarier than a Hancock.

Much to my relief, the door started to open and I quickly cut off Casey. "What took you so long?" I asked whoever was coming throw the door before I even saw their face.

Owen stepped in and shrugged, they had dyed his hair blond and it was cut shorter. Behind him was another blonde, there was something familiar about her, but I didn't think I had seen her before.

"Excuse me, this is a private meeting," Casey immediately shouted. The girl turned around and I can see her face properly. My heart sped up and the nagging sense of familiarity continued, but my brain just couldn't seem to make the connection.

She looked around in alarm before turning back to us, her brows slightly furrowed. When her gaze settled on me she let out a laugh and I frowned at her. That was rude.

"Gail?" Natalie asked in surprise and my brain felt like it just melted. It wasn't just because of the haircut and colour, though it was largely that which made it hard to recognise her, but she also felt different, more vulnerable.

It was kind of cute.

"What? It's not like I grew another head," she retorted. Just like that, she was back to her old self. I relaxed my shoulder and turned out of their bickering. At least Abigail was still Abigail.

Nirmal arrived soon after and gave us all a new identity watch with our future group's meeting place before bidding us farewell. I got put in a group myself, like Abigail, while the rest were all in pairs. I didn't know why I was singled out, but it wasn't hard to deduced that Bowen was the one who was meant to, but he had to be in the same group as Natalie.

"I wish you good luck and hopefully we'll see each other at some point in the future." Nirmal smiled at us. Even though I was never a fan of authority, I appreciated her efforts in helping us.

"Hopefully," I echoed. Abigail threw me a surprised look and I let the smile slip from my face. What was that?

Casey peered at Abigail's watch after Nirmal was gone. It seemed her meeting was taking place soon.

"Which room number are you at?" I asked and looked at mine. Room 333.

"Room 213," Abigail answered. I quickly calculated the route in my mind, I should be able to make it to my meeting if I run after sending her there.

"I'm going to that area, too. I'll go with you in case you get lost," I said and everyone laughed. Abigail puffed her cheeks out indignantly but still followed me out of the room.

"So, Gwen is it?" I asked, remembering Abigail's alias. Bowen and she got vastly different name, whereas the rest of us all got pseudonyms that strongly resembled our old one. Abigail didn't look happy about her name and sighed.

"Yes, Timon. By the way, I'm loving your new hair," she retorted. I chuckled and shook my head. I didn't like what they had done to my hair, but at least it wasn't dyed to another colour.

We fell into a silent and I could tell she was bothered by her new looks. But the point wasn't making us look good or bad, the point was to make sure no one could recognise us.

"You look good. We could barely recognise you. Which means people who don't know you probably won't at all," I said, hoping that would help ease her state of mind.

Abigail nodded at my words and she seemed happier.

"What do you think it's out there waiting for us? And what is happening in the Academy?" she asked after a few seconds. It wasn't something that I hadn't thought about, but the truth was I didn't know what to expect, either.

"Honestly? I don't know. But as long as we all stay together, we'll be fine," I finally said. Whether I liked it or not, I cared about these people to a certain degree, and we had kept each other alive for so long that I was starting to really believe that we would be able to face whatever might come next.

"That was the most positive thing I had ever heard you say," she stuttered. I coughed in an attempt to cover up my embarrassment; I wasn't meaning to share my feelings.

I kept my mouth shut for the rest of the journey, determined not to give myself another chance to embarrass myself.

"This is you," I said as I stopped in front of a plain door. We were all the way on the other end of the Ganesh Yuanan Citybase. I waited for Abigail to go in, but she stood still.

"Um... I guess I'll see you later?" she said uncertainly after a few seconds and I remembered that we weren't meant to be seen with each other. In fact, our alias shouldn't know each other at all.

"Okay, um, right. Er—good luck," I mumbled. Catching the time on my watch, I quickly broke into a small run towards my meeting place or else I'd be late.

I was right on time when I arrived at Room 333. There were eight other people in the room but I paid most of them no attention, heading straight towards the oldest member of the group and reporting myself in.

After that, we were forced to introduce ourselves and I made sure to say my alias correctly. I could feel the curious glances from my teammates, but I wasn't interested in befriending any of them. In fact, it would be best if I didn't have to talk to any of them at all. I had a long list of people I call friends already and I would rather that didn't get longer.

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I had a good laugh writing this part: we never really went into how their disguises were carried out and it's hilarious to watch Tom squirms.

I have been busy going through the plot on Dark Ages, it's a very different writing experience than when I wrote Evolution - I am not sure why. Maybe it's because I knew the ending but not the process of Dark Ages, but the reverse is kind of true in Abigail's case. Hmmm... anyway, I hope you are keeping up to date with the Dark Ages (because that's why I am posting it here!) x