Ashton turned to Anna and said, "Hey, can you give me a moment alone with Tarek?"
Anna gave him a curious look but nodded. "Sure, I'll wait outside."
Ashton watched her leave, then turned back to Tarek, his voice serious. "Alright, let's get down to business."
Tarek gulped down hard, sensing hostility within Ashton's eyes for the first time since they had met. He had only seen the kind and considerate side of his and hence was a bit taken aback by the sudden change in Ashton's demeanour.
"What do you mean?" Tarek looked up at him, his expression guarded.
"Let's talk about what's really going on here," Ashton replied. "I don't believe you're telling us everything you know about the Cult."
Tarek's eyes narrowed. "What are you talking about? I've told you everything I know."
"Really? Because there are some inconsistencies in your story," Ashton said, folding his arms. "For one, you claim to have been recruited by a Deacon, yet you seem to know an awful lot about the Cult's hierarchy and operations. That doesn't add up."
Tarek shifted unfortably on the bed. "I...I just did my own research and wanted to know more about the people I was working for."
"As a lowly Deacon? e on, Tarek. You expect me to believe that?" Ashton said, his voice sceptical. "And then there's the fact that you say no one has seen the Pope, yet you seem to know a lot about him too. How is that possible?"
Tarek swallowed nervously, his eyes darting around the room. "I...I don't know," he stammered. "I just...heard things, you know? Rumours and whispers, and I pieced it all together."
Ashton's jaw tightened. He knew Tarek was lying through his teeth, thanks to [Heartbeat Sense], and the more he lied, the more Ashton wanted to smack some sense into him.
"That's not good enough, Tarek. You were a Deacon. How did you get this information? And how can we trust that you're not still loyal to the Cult?"
"I swear, I'm not working with them anymore. I saw what they were doing and couldn't be a part of it. That's why I left! You have to believe me!" Tarek shook his head frantically.
Ashton narrowed his eyes, studying Tarek's face. He couldn't detect any signs of deception, but he wasn't convinced. Tarek knew a lot more than he was telling them, but he was smart enough not to lie openly about it.
[Ashton, I think it's enough for the day. Mentally breaking this guy would do us more harm than good.]
'You're right...' Ashton thought before turning towards Tarek. "I'm sorry, Tarek, but I can't just take your word for it. You're going to have to prove your loyalty to us."
Tarek looked crestfallen, his shoulders slumping. "What do you want me to do?"
"We're going to keep you under surveillance. We need to ensure you're not working with the Cult." Ashton leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Until then, you're not to leave the Tower without an escort. Understood?"
"Yes, sir." Tarek nodded, his eyes downcast.
Ashton stood up from his chair, his expression cold and unreadable. "I hope for your sake that you're telling the truth, Tarek. Because if you're not, there will be consequences."
With that, Ashton strode out of the room, leaving Tarek alone with his thoughts.
***
Ashton walked out of the hospital room and took a deep breath, trying to clear his head. He heard Anna's footsteps behind him and turned to face her.
"What happened in there?" Anna asked, her voice laced with concern.
"I'm not sure. But something about Tarek's story doesn't add up. Nah, a lot of it doesn't," Ashton ran a hand through his hair, still processing everything Tarek had told him. "It's like he's been fed certain information to make us believe him."
Anna raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, if the cult has the power to brainwash people, then how do we know Tarek isn't under their control?" Ashton said.
"You think he's been manipulated like the Xylopian leader?" Anna's expression shifted from concern to realisation.
"It's possible. And if that's the case, then we can't trust anything he's said." Ashton nodded. "I could try to remove the influence if that was the case. But doing so might inform the caster about it."
"What are you going to do?" Anna asked.
Ashton hesitated for a moment before making a decision. "I'm going to put him under surveillance until we can clear him of suspicion."
Anna nodded in agreement. "I'll help you with that-"
"No, not you." Ashton immediately shot down her opinions. "You're the one the Cult wants more than anyone. If Tarek is under their control, it'll make sense to keep the two of you as far as possible."
They walked in silence for a few moments before Ashton spoke up again. "I just can't shake the feeling that there's something bigger going on here. Something we haven't even begun to uncover yet."
"Whatever it is, we'll take care of it, like always." Anna playfully punched him on the shoulder.
Ashton smiled at her, punching her back. "Dang, it... I need to get back to training."
"e on, I'll walk you."
They walked the rest of the way in fortable silence, lost in their thoughts. When they arrived back at the administrator wing, Ashton arranged for Tarek to be placed under surveillance with Ghosts and the Tower guards and Androids.
Otiga was made in charge of overseeing everything related to Tarek, and the only person allowed to do medical checks on him was Laihud.
It was to ensure that someone else didn't hurt Tarek before he spilt all the beans about the Cult. Vimur would lead the Guards, while Leon would assist Otiga in any way he could.
"Hm.. one more thing," Ashton informed Anna before leaving. "Tell laihud to run a scan on Tarek and make sure he has no implants. You know, the ones Laihud found on creatures from Verdantia."
"Will do," Anna replied while typing something on her pad. "Good luck with your training!"
"Training? It's more like getting assaulted..."
Once the preparations were done, Ashton returned to get his ass kicked by the Xyran Grunts.
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