Shadows danced across the floor of the dark office, cast by the only source of light in the room.

The computer screen illuminated a hunched figure sitting before it, watching a female reporter on-site for a commemorative Cerberus Day.

It was an old news video from several years prior, and most definitely not something the average individual would be watching after work. 

When a superior had instructed a non-negotiable crash course on Cerberus though, that was reason enough to find oneself figuratively chained to a computer.

The words the news anchor spoke were generic praises of appreciation for saviors that humanity could not do without.

[I am standing here today at the original location site for Cerberus’ first headquarters, Gentry, and it is such a privilege and an honor!]

[This world would not be anything like the peaceful way of living that we know today. Standby for an exclusive interview with one of the top facility researchers, he was–]

Click.

Kyrian’s finger hovered over the mouse, poised to click off of the video that he had abruptly paused.

He rolled his broad shoulders, stiff from the hours of sitting at the computer watching an endless stream of videos… He absently lifted his free hand to ruffle his nearly pure white hair, thinking to himself that he’d better be getting paid overtime for this.

There were still several minutes remaining of the news article, and though he desperately wished to close it out and leave for the night, he had to watch it.

Stoic, he gazed at the woman’s face frozen on the screen as his long fingers tapped an anxious rhythm on the surface of the cluttered desk.

It was just Cerberus propaganda, and anyone with good sense could tell her praises were nothing more than shameless boot licking.

They weren’t such a spotless institution, but the power they held over society was an impressive enough reason for blind devotion.

“Politics,” he muttered under his breath, brows furrowing with his annoyance.

He’d seen enough boot licking to serve a lifetime.

If it hadn’t been for a Cerberus mutt showing their face at his own organization’s doorstep, he wouldn’t be obligated to bother with this. Especially not after hours.

They’d come bearing their own form of gifts for Aegis Division. A contract, heavily favoring Aegis no matter how one looked at it, because they insisted they needed their help.

‘We sincerely ask for your consideration of the matter, Mr. Averin. We would not dare to approach such a busy and esteemed Guide as yourself if not for the dire situation we are in.’

‘Dire?’ He had asked skeptically.

"Yes, we need someone of your classification to stabilize our Esper…. You see, he has refused all of our best Guides.’

‘And why do you think I will be an exception…?’

The Cerberus employee had covered his lower face and coughed, clearly hiding an amused smile.

‘Tales of your incredible classification as a Guide has reached far and wide, Mr. Averin! We have no doubt that you would be able to… tame our Esper.’

‘Just please consider us, Mr. Averin, we would be very grateful, and… it would also be a very beneficial joint operation for our organizations.’

Kyrian precariously leaned his chair backwards to distance himself from the computer screen, scowling to himself.

It was an impressive opportunity, yes, but something about it unsettled him. Couldn’t they find some other Guide? Someone else more willing to bruteforce an Esper.

Unfortunately, his supervisor, Seok Hov, had been oddly accepting of the offer. 

He’d said something along the lines of it being a good experience for him. Perhaps that was all there was to it, but after watching countless videos of Cerberus fluff he felt inclined to resent it.

The world needed focus, not arrogance and false pretenses. Rifts were deadly. Rubbing shoulders with the elite would not resolve that any better than a trained taskforce.

“Sorry, Seok,” he muttered, “but I don’t know if I can do this…”

With a flick of the mouse he closed the tab to the news video, but hesitated instead of closing the entire page.

On impulse, he selected the search bar.

E-i-d-e-n

He barely finished typing before suggestions bombarded the screen.

‘Does Eiden not have a Guide?’

‘Does Eiden not have more supervision?’

His eyes scanned the range of suggested searches, but he ignored them and hit ‘enter’ with a bit more force than he’d intended.

As a Guide he of course had heard of this infamous Esper… but the topic had never caught his interest the same way it had his coworkers. They enjoyed discussing societal gossip.

He narrowed his eyes, trying to casually scroll through the search results.

Class-SS Rift defeated by Cerberus Hound!

Cerberus Hound conquered Black Rift.

Cerberus Special Ops called to Rift Explosion: See More.

One finally caught his eye, and he came to an abrupt halt as he read the article title.

S-Class Eiden | Cerberus Esper Highlights.

Unable to resist the urge, or maybe he didn’t want to resist, he clicked.

Seok, we are not accepting just yet, I simply want to see…

The first thing that grabbed his attention was a candid shot of the Esper getting into a black sedan.

There was nothing special about the photo, but still Kyrian found himself returning to it.

Nothing in the article was of any use, full of information he already knew…

He leaned forward, feeling rather ridiculous as he tried to study the photo.

A tall, lean figure half-way into the backseat, angrily blocking the camera’s view with an outstretched hand. The scars were visible even through the zoomed lens, and Kyrian clicked his tongue.

His Cerberus uniform hung on his frame like it had been issued two sizes too big, and the red lights from his wave dampening ear cuffs glowed like they were jewels.

One, two… damn, seven. And one is an Ultra Block.

He exhaled heavily through his nose, realizing that this Esper may end up being much more trouble than he had initially believed. Though the face was blurred, it was obvious that he was glaring at the camera.

Elemental Esper, Class-S… refuses Guiding.

“How charming,” Kyrian mused, his lips curling upwards at the corners into a rueful smile. “Looks like he probably bites though.”