As Alexis walked inside the motel room, she was relieved that there was no smell of mothballs. She was actually surprised that for looking so rundown on the outside, that the inside looked like a normal hotel room. The white wallpaper had no stains or tears, and the beds looked fairly clean. "So how are we going to track down this PoE?" she asked, " We don't really have an Animus to work with." Jin sat a box of files down on the small desk provided before answering

"The old fashioned way. Luckily we have a pretty solid lead to start with." With that, he sat a file down in front of her. "I believe we are looking for Carnwennan, the legendary dagger of King Authur." Alexis' eyes widened.

"King Authur? Like the sword stuck in a rock King Authur? I didn't know he had a dagger."

"Most people don't. It's from another story that gets ignored. Anyways Carnwennan was said to be given to Authur by God which allowed him to become shrouded in shadows."

"Sounds like a Piece of Eden alright," Alexis replied. "So we know what to look for, but where do we start looking?"

"That's going to be a bit harder." Jin sat down and for the first time today, Alexis thought he looked exhausted. Hunting a Piece of Eden was never easy, but Alexis worried about the added stress of avenging Maria that Jin might crack.
"Our best lead is Michael Drayton," he said, "He was an English poet in the Elizabethan era. I brought everything I could find about him at the bureau with us." Alexis nodded and looked at the box. It was one that he had her pull from the archives just a few days before. Suddenly it all seemed to hit her. She was in the field hunting for a Piece of Eden. She didn't even have a hidden blade yet, what is she supposed to do if there's a fight? Her face must have betrayed her because Jin spoke up.

"I'm going to run you through the basics. We'll take turns researching, so when it's your break you'll be following a training regimen I made. I also brought weapons so in the evenings I'll show you how to use them. We have to be ready for a fight." She nodded and stretched.

"When are we going to start?" she asked, " It's late and we've been on the road all day."

"Tomorrow."

The next morning they started to put their plan into action. Jin took the first shift researching Drayton's life, pouring over both physical and digital sources. He hardly even acknowledged her as she headed out to jog. Outside the crisp autumn air greeted her. As her feet hit the pavement of the road she examined her surroundings. For the first few minutes, all she saw were trees lining the road with the occasional rabbit running off into the woods as she approached. Soon however she entered the small town they passed through the day before. She eyed a small diner before shaking her head. 'No time for coffee' she thought 'I have to at least show Jin I'm serious'. After noting where the gas station as she turned back for the motel. About two hours later when she had finished her workout and showed she tapped Jin on the shoulder.

"My turn," she said with a small smile. "You need to rest and eat something." He shrugged but gave her the chair at the desk.

"Drayton was prominent in the Royal Court-" Alexis cut him off.

"And the royals do like shiny objects and power." This got a small smile out of Jin before he replied.

"Yes, they do. Anyways continue looking at some of his correspondence and see if you can find any mention of the dagger." Alexis nodded before turning her attention to the documents in front of her. Picking up the first letter she saw she began to read. By evening they had switched a total of four times. By the time they finished their humble attempt at dinner, it was finally time for her to learn how to handle weapons. What she thought would be an hour or two of learning turned out to be only a few minutes. He had covered most of the basics in such a short time that she was surprised when he turned to his bag and pulled out a small box.

"And of course you'll need this" As he said that he opened the box revealing a simple hidden blade with a slim leather bracer. Her eyes widened, this was the moment that every apprentice waited for. Yet as she looked down at the weapon as Jin strapped it to her wrist she couldn't help but feel disappointed. She didn't earn this weapon, she only had it due to the danger of their mission. She frowned a bit as the next thought hit her. Soon she would most likely have to kill someone with this blade. Suddenly she remembered something Jin had said to her on her first day as his apprentice. 'Having a hidden blade does not make one an assassin. It's much more than a fancy knife'. At the time she had thought he was being cynical but now it all made sense. With this blade, she would have to fight for not only her life but the lives of everyone in the brotherhood and the freedom of everyone who didn't even know about her world.

"You're quiet" Jin's voice snapped her back to reality, "What is it?"

"Just something you said to me a while ago. Do you think I'll have to kill with this?" He nodded. She took a deep breath "Then how do I cope with it once I do?"

"I don't think anyone has the answer to that Alexis. Now get some sleep. We continue in the morning."