Zenyatta Mercy Hospital, fully funded and supervised by the ZOO corporation. It's known as one of the first buildings to be erected in the city after ZOO Headquarters made a place in the center. Through advanced medical science, patients are checked in, treated to the best of the staff's abilities, and then discharged without issue.

On a bad day, foot traffic ranged between 5-10 people involved in a traffic collision during rush out. Today, that number has risen to the double digits. Civilians and police officers were brought in just over an hour ago, all from the same cause, the Mantis Cyberbeast.

One of the officers closely related to the case, Officer Masaru is recovering alone in his own hospital room. While still in rough shape, he's wide awake, his eyes fixated on the TV beside the bed. It displays live reports of the park incident, which he turns off.

There's a knock at the door. He calls out saying that it's unlocked. Tatsuya lets himself in. Seeing the old cop laying in bed, he smiles.

"Hi there," Tatsuya breaks the ice with a common greeting. "I heard you were doing better, and I wanted to check on you. Do you mind?"

"No no, please, take a seat. You're that guy from the park. The one with the guitar."

Tatsuya holds up the case he carries with him, "Guilty." He grabs a seat across from the bed and sits down. "And you, are also the officer that apprehended the purse thief."

Masaru's expression changes to reflect his concern. Slumping back in his bed, he doesn't answer.

"And…from what I gather, you know him personally, correct?"

Masaru nods, "Yes." His voice is stoic but with cracks of sadness behind it.

"Okay, I thought so. I didn't really realize when you dragged him away in cuffs, but…," Tatsuya puts down the case, and changes his tone to be more serious out of respect, "I don't think just any officer would call out, and plead with a monster like that."

The old cop's eyes widen, "You know?"

"I was there."

Masaru puts it together from Tatsuya's expression and his claim. "You…you were that bug hero?"

"Apparently, that's referred to as a Kamen Rider, but I'm not really the man for the job."

The ice freezes over again, leaving the pair in an awkward silence. Tatsuya removes his hat and sets it down beside himself on his case.

"Listen, officer. I want to know what your relationship is with the mon…with the purse thief."

Masura sits up in his bed before reaching out for his phone. He pulls up a picture and hands it over to Tatsuya. "His name is Ren. I know his parents. His father and I were old-school friends."

Tatsuya examines the picture of younger Masura with two other people and a baby. He starts flipping through the album, confirming his story.

"I remember him having a normal childhood, but after some time, he changed. I figured it was a coincidence that this happened after his parents began their long-distance business trips."

Tatsuya hands back the phone. "So he's been acting out for his parent's attention?"

"I'd hate to admit it. I tried to be there for him and even try to help pull him in the right direction, but every so often I have to pull him on petty charges." It's clear to Tatsuya the pain Masura is feeling in recounting this to him. "To some people, attention is attention, regardless of the consequences. I just thought I could be enough for him, and be there."

"And now. I don't know what's happened to him. I know deep down he's not the type of person to…I just thought…"

Tatsuya can see the grief in the old man's eyes. He clenches his fist, shaking on the inside.

"My mother's dead," Tatsuya drops a bomb into the frozen waters, catching Masura off guard. "Next week is the anniversary. That's why I came to this city. To pay my respects before returning to my travels."

Masura doesn't know what to say other than, "I'm sorry."

Tatsuya lets a small smile slip, "Don't be. You actually remind me of her a little."

Unsure what he meant by that, Masura lets him continue.

"She was a researcher for ZOO. One of their best, so I'm told. Nose to the grindstone, working herself to death, always delivering. Yet, she always made time to show that she cared. She would always say 'Tatsuya, you're going to be great. One day, you'll bring this world of ours to a new frontier'." Tatsuya's voice begins to crack, his eyes sparky as tears well up. "Even when I was pain in the ass, acting like a brat, failing in my studies, or even wasting my time at a hobby. She would say the same thing. She never gave up on me."

Tears fall down his cheek before he wipes them away on his sleeve. He sniffs a bit before standing up. "From how I hear it. You never gave up on Ren before. Are you going to give up on him now?"

Tatsuya opens the door to leave the room only to find Lady Luck standing outside the room directly in front of the door.

"How did you find me?"

"The receptionist told me you asked for directions to the hospital."

"How much did you hear?"

"More than enough."

After the quick-fire back and forth, Lady looks at him with her same deadpan expression and tilts her head as if to examine him before correcting her stance. "The Mantis Cyberbeast is still running amuck."

"He needs to be stopped before anyone else can get hurt, including himself," Tatsuya dawns his hat, "Let my father know that I'm willing to put our history aside for now, as long as it means I help Ren."

Lady Luck tilts her head again, "Ren?"

"My nephew," Officer Masura appears behind Tatsuya, already kitted in his uniform. "If you're going after him, you'll need my help to find him."

Tatsuya looks back at her, "Satisfied?"

"Almost," she holds up the ZOO briefcase from before, "You'll also be needing this."