Guild Master here.
I usually try to keep a backlog of at least five chapters, but this time I've decided differently.
I'll substitute one upload with a prelude chapter later on if I can't get this next chapter done today.
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Hawk was already done with this day. He didn't want to deal with this whole mess anymore than he wanted to. It was his first day back in Japan and this was far too much work for his first day back. It was nothing but a massive headache that he wanted to sleep off.
After flying under the radar and finally landing in an abandoned construction zone, he approached an inconspicuous underground parking entrance that was sealed off with what looked like a completely abandoned shutter garage door that had seen better days. Just by landing in front of the door, what should have been a dilapidated underground garage suddenly began to open up. Entering the dark corridor, the garage door closed behind him as he kept walking through the darkness.
Lights then activated in a rather interesting manner. Sections of the hallway were sliding downwards to form a stairway with the lights built into the exposed surfaces. Hawk took this staircase downwards to then come face to face with an elevator in the concrete wall. He just stood in front of it before it opened up to let him in. Taking it downwards, he was just relieved that now he can relax.
Arriving at the floor he wanted, the door opened up to reveal a rather homely setup that was mostly an empty concrete floor with nothing until the edges of the room disappeared into the shadows.
"Now arriving at the living quarters."
"Thank you, Eve."
"Of course, Nakamura."
On one of the couches facing the TV hanging from the ceiling with all sorts of information scanning across it was the one who owned this humble abode in the first place. Turning to face the exhausted, Nakamura just smiled at the young man before turning back to the information he was analyzing.
"You're late."
All Hawk could manage was an exhausted sigh while retrieving a glass from one of the cabinets in the standing kitchen in the middle of the expansive space. A drink of water was a godsend for the hero at this point.
"Well, yeah. You're the one who decided to show up in front of the news; all I did was help…"
He drank two glasses of water before putting the glass in the sink.
"You're welcome, by the way."
"Yes, yes; thank you, my dear and lovely son."
It was sort of a normal banter for these two to just be normal around one another. Hawk's room began to rise out from the floor of the concrete until it locked with the ceiling. For him, there truly was no place like home.
Fifty Minutes Later
Coming out of the room that came out of the floor; Hawk was refreshed with a fresh pair of pajama pants with slippers and a shirt that was just blue. Nakamura was in the kitchen with a seafood stew on a wide cast iron pot boiling with all the intensity of a stormy sea. It was Carried with a bare hand without a second thought and placed on a rack that kept the hot metal away from the coffee table.
Both Haru and Hawk sat Next to each other while having dinner with a bowl of rice in their hands. Before talking business came the usual updates that one Nakamura wanted from the other.
"How was America? Anything interesting?"
"It was hot and the people there sucked. It was also oddly relaxing at the same time too, strangely enough."
"Mhm, sounds about right."
They went back and forth while updating each other over their own lives. Something that both of them valued as their family time.
"Inko-san good?"
"Mhm, she wanted to check up on you. We're having dinner tomorrow; you want to come?"
"Sure."
"Great. You'll get to meet your new sister."
"... What?"
"Yeah, I adopted."
"Oh, okay; I thought you popped one out with Inko or something."
"You know how I feel about that."
"Yeah; that's why I was startled, pops."
After dinner, the dishes were washed by Hawk and left to dry in their respective cabinets. Haru still let his adoptive son, Keito, share a drink with him on the couches while enjoying American cinema. Comedy was the consensus, so they popped on a recent comedy and just enjoyed each other's company while getting drunk.
"... So, you wore it to come pick me up."
"Well yeah, you haven't been home in a while. It was a special occasion."
"Hm… You think she saw it?"
There was a pregnant pause as Keigo threw the ball into his dad's court. Being raised by a man who could read people like he did made it just as easy to read the one who taught him everything he knew. Haru knew there was no point in the pronouns game with his son.
"The news had her husband dying on the street; what do you think?"
"Hm."
There was mostly silence with the rare bit of laughing at the comedy. It was a good time for both men to bond as parent and child. It was past midnight by the time they decided to hit the both stumbled to bed and left the work that needed to be done for the next day. A good day indeed.
The Next Day
Keito was up and about around eleven thirty AM while Nakamura was just doing his usual amount of work while just listening to music that was mostly American R&B. Without bothering his father, Keito just made himself a rolled omelet with salad and rice before sitting down with Haru to discuss business.
"So what's up first?"
"This."
An assorted amount of data from financial to others came up on the TV. While eating, Hawk snapped his fingers, which converted the windows on the screed to holographic pages he could manipulate in free space. Since he wasn't as fast a reader his dad was, this was his preferred way of doing things. While waiting, Haru just started smoking right next to his son.
By the time Hawk finished his breakfast, he looked over enough of the data to understand what was going on. He picked up his dishes and started to take care of the dishes while still talking to Haru.
"Really? What could they want now? Is publicity really all that?"
"You know how these types are; just cut them some slack."
"Fine."
Now came the work they were here for. Keigo and Haru were seated on the same couch as they started to go over their next few steps for the events about to come. As it were, Hawks had a keen enough of a mind to keep up with his adoptive father. There was no other person in the world he trusted in this sort of work more than his son, Nakamura Keigo.
Years Ago
There was an incredibly filthy apartment in Kyushu that was closer to a dumpster than any place that a child should live in. All there was to access the outside world for all its occupants was a single tv. An artificial window into a world that seemed to be too far away.
In this home there was no love. Hope wasn't even a concept to any of its occupants for how miserable everything was already. It was led by a convicted murderer with a woman who had a son with him out of passionless sex. The life of their son was a bare minimum that the mother wanted to keep for her moral compass. This isolation was something that even the worst that humanity had to offer deserved.
This environment was all Keigo knew. It was a tv where a sad looking woman would sit in front of a tv until a mean man who would come and just make things unhappier for a bit appeared. Being quiet was something of a defensive mechanism for such a small and inexperienced creature like a child.
Nothing was ever real to the child. Losing himself to the things he saw was a far easier thing to do than having to deal with the things that were all around him in reality. To him, it was all something that wasn't real one way or another.
It was another day that he woke up to the woman who was just staring at the same tv while not responding to anything else. She didn't even acknowledge her own son as he got up from the filthy floor of the rickety old home that she and the boy she gave birth to were trapped in. Hungry, the boy was about to go find something edible enough to eat that he wouldn't get sick from before he sat next to the sad woman until he either passed out or yelled at.
While scouring the trash, a tingle went down the back of his neck. Looking behind him, the thing that opened up to the place other than the filthy place was somewhat open. Something was calling him like a subtle whisper. He knew that the one rule that was set up was to never go past this door. It was the one and only rule.
Being denied something would only make the urge to obtain it stronger. It was almost painful for how much he was denying the urge to just even get close to the open gap. Just being closer wouldn't hurt. He technically was still behind the door. It was harmless.
Looking through the slot was beyond anything he thought he would feel. Day after day, it was the same sky he would perhaps het a glance of for a few seconds at a time when the man kept leaving or came here. Simply being able to look at the outside was so invigorating. Then another urge washed over the child. Something he knew he couldn't defend. There didn't seem to be anything blocking his way out. Perhaps he could just be outside for a little bit and come back. He was going to be there just for a moment. Not a far distance away. Just outside the door.
He was careful to the point of being scared of both taking too long to open the door while not wanting to alert the sad woman who would yell at him for just going too close to the door. Each little sound was like a thunder strike. His eyes kept snapping back and forth between the freedom and the woman who just sat there.
There was no time from when he realized he was able to go out and to be outside. The air was completely different. A place that was so free of everything that was the other place. All of it was a new place for him to explore.
The grass fields that went to the city were so strange. Off to the distance was a place he knew was a city. There was something always happening there. It looked close enough to him. How far could a place he could see be? His energy was still too high when he felt the hard concrete and asphalt underneath the soles of his feet. Nothing about this made him want to stop. It was still just a little more until he would go back.
There were all sorts of places he never saw as real until he saw it for himself. Roads, buildings, cars, nothing was too mundane to his young eyes.
Losing track of time, he came bumping into someone who felt sticky when he ran into them. Hitting the ground, they were already used to the feeling of pain, so crying was useless. Looking up, Keigo saw something he thought was only fantasy.
A towering man who was masked in a strange costume. Something was sticking out of his mouth that was weird. His face was covered by more stuff. A hood like some of those heroes was over his head. Seeing someone like this wasn't the least bit scary. In fact, he even surprised the man who he ran into with what he said.
"Are you a hero?"
It was something the man had not expected from a child to see a man covered in blood. Finishing a job nearby, Nakamura was about to resign for the night before heading home to just sleep. What he saw in the child was how malnourished and horribly kept they were. He knew that leaving this child here was something that he would never allow himself to do. The mask was a bit of a barrier between him and the boy, so he removed it to at least speak to the boy.
"Not really. Are you lost? Where did you come from?"
Seeing the man and the strange expression on his face was a completely new experience. Keigo had never seen that expression on another person's face. Watching that face on the TV versus in person was still incredible.
"... I… Uh… Nh…"
"It's okay. I'll try to walk you home. Don't get into a house that isn't your house, okay?"
The glove that was on the man's right hand came off to reveal his normal one. Standing up, he lowered it to the boy for him to take. It was like he knew what to do without even knowing. An instinct he almost completely forgot. Keigo put his hand into the outstretched one and was gently guided by the hand. The warmth and gentleness of the touch felt like nothing he ever felt.
This trip eventually ended them at the fields that had the small place he came from. There were few times he said anything to the man, and yet here they were. About to tell him that's where he came from, the nice man cut him off.
"There?"
A shy nod. Something changed in the man. It was scary, but not in the way he was used to. Seeing the man look different didn't make him feel good. The nice man knelt and looked at the boy while turning the boy towards him. Another look that the boy felt was out of his realm of understanding.
"Do you eat and feel bad after you eat?
Not wanting to lie to such a nice man, he nodded yes.
"Have you ever been outside? Have you been not there before?"
Language was a bit of a trick that kids at this age still haven't had a chance to understand. Haru could see a mind grasping at concepts, but still lacking fundamentals. Whoever these people were didn't even know what they had and still just let this happen.
"... Do you love the people who are there? Who you see a lot?"
Something influenced the immature Keigo to answer in a specific way. An instinct that was involuntarily for a boy of his age. He shook his head back and forth. He knew what the word love meant as well as the words yes and no. Whatever the word love was isn't in there.
On the man's face was a look the boy knew as sad. It was a very strange feeling for him to see it on someone who has been nice to him so far. There was some time until the nice man moved the boy to a wall looking out at the grass field. Keigo's back was to a cement wall when Haru said something to the boy that he failed to grasp completely at the time, yet knew what was being referenced. Unsurprisingly to Haru as well, he could sense the boy's mental acuity as well. Honesty was no different to lying to a mind as perceptive as this one.
"If I go over there, those people will never be seen again. They are your parents, and will never be your parents after this. I will make sure you are safe, but still; it's your choice. I cannot do this unle-"
Seeing such a cold and empty space in the child's heart was enough of a cause to go through with what he was about to do. At the very least, he wanted to make sure that this child was aware he wasn't alone. A very simple security exercise he knew for child psychology, but would require his diligence. Attentiveness for a child in need was no price worth too much. He used his mobile to reprogram a switch he had for different purposes to alert him when the button was pressed.
"Okay. If you feel scared or lonely, press this button and this will happen…"
The buzzing and alert all happened in time of the button press.
"I'll have this on me. See?"
The phone went into his back pocket.
"So just press that and I'll come in ten seconds. Okay?"
He presented the strange switch. It was like a weird thing with a red button on top of it. To test it, Keigo hit the button a few times to test the validity of the alarm.
"See? Just keep this on you for now. I'll be over there."
The nice man then put on the mask he had on earlier and went to the place where he came from. It was quiet. It wasn't a very long time until the boy heard a noise to his left and saw the mean man start to walk towards the place he was from. By instinct, Keigo hit the button. From the place came a black blur that swept out and struck the mean man hard before showing up in front of the boy. Whipping off the mask, Haru asked the boy a bunch of questions.
"What's wrong? Are you okay? Did something happen? Are you okay?"
Keigo couldn't understand. This man was nice and even kept his promise to be there for him. This sort of unconditional care was an alien concept to a boy who never received unconditional love his whole life. The boy did something for the first time in his short life; he started to cry. It was a type of crying that was just a release of all his frustration and sorrow all at once. A release that felt both amazing and awful all at once, but necessary for a child like Keigo.
He didn't silence the child nor reprimand him for letting his emotions out. Haru just cradled the boy against his bloodied chest and patted the boy's back until the crying eventually came to a stop. Right after, Haru gave the boy a handkerchief that was the same blue silk he always preferred. The boy cleared his nose and was even allowed to keep it, despite the bloodstains from when Haru grabbed it.
Some time later; Haru put the man he knocked unconscious into the hut with the body of the woman he killed when he entered the shack. He wasn't feeling particularly enthusiastic when he saw how dilapidated the environment was. A single bullet into the back of her head was all it took. Things like this were just better off burned to the ground.
Before leaving, he left an incendiary standing to leave the place to be consumed in a field fire. Just another homeless couple who burned to death in a freak accident. A heartless truth to allow a child a better life. That night was the night that the legendary hero Hawk was brought under the tutelage of the legendary assassin that was the man who owned the country.
Present Time
"Right now their accounts are going to be managed by these firms here, so be sure you get in contact with them if you need to."
Hawk and Haru were through a good chunk of data already, but would need to remain cautious if they were to get out of this unscathed. Intel from America that Hawk gathered confirmed what was already there to begin with. Every person on the board thought they were leading, even when the one controlling the rolls and spaces was already twisting and turning things in perfect synchronicity to what they had in store.
"Alright. Do we have the accounts for these portfolios?"
It was nothing that Haru couldn't get for Hawk.
"You'll get access. Just be sure to leave the right papertrail, okay?"
Sometimes it amused Hawk how his pops acted. He knew his son, yet still kept making those comments.
"Sure, I got it. What about contacts? Do you know who'll be there for transfers or communication?"
Another stack of holographic windows appeared in front of Hawk. The windows were flicked and laid out in one large grid format. He was careful to read each dossier and memorize the critical details.
"They've got their own tasks to worry about, but I have them prioritizing yours in the meantime. Just do the usual and It'll be done asap."
"Got it."
For a few hours, they were getting all their information sorted while checking up on the current situation to see if there was any need to readjust. They eventually began to wrap up, though Haru was a bit hesitant regarding one thing involving his son.
"... Are you sure you want to do this? It can still be done; I just hope you don't think that this is something that you have to do."
There was no shortage of times Haru has made it clear that he was truly concerned for Hawk on these types of tasks. Even if he was qualified to an excessive amount, the man who raised him always cared about him.
"I learned from the best. Who do you think I am?"
Haru got up from the couch and roughed up Keigo's hair when he passed him. An act of affection that the young man took in good grace.
"You are my son. No more and no less. Want a beer?"
There wasn't a single day that he regretted leaving that ramshackle of a nightmare to then run into the man who raised him as his own for almost his entire life. It was the way the dice rolled, apparently.
"Oh yeah, combat training is at four; by the way. I saw your technique with that Nomu and it was definitely me picking up the slack. Plus, your feather control is slipping recently. Those clones were twenty meters too low by the time you got rid of them."
And there it was. He loved his dad, but his time at home was often a little agitating with the training he had to endure. Although, it was a way for him to have a sort of tune up when he felt himself slipping. That fight was certainly a good example of just that.
"I know. And the strikes I had against the Nomu were all a quarter slower."
"Now you're getting it."
Indeed he was. Just not enthusiastically.
Several Hours Later
Hawk was huffing his lungs out after the training he underwent to get his physical prowess assessed. As it were, his dad wanted him to stay in Japan for seven months at least if he were to let Keigo go off to do international work for at least four years.
Everything under the sun was tested for Keigo's aptitude. Stamina, feather control, hand to hand combat, strength, speed, muscle mass, everything. All of it was exhausting and made Hawk want to throw up, but at least his dad was merciful enough to let his son rest for the remainder of the day.
"Have you not been doing your accuracy routines? I even made them once every three days!"
"I know! I just… Y'know…"
"... Okay, Once a year."
"What?! I can't just-"
"A year! You're already unable to dodge this!"
From his hand, Haru threw his pen at Hawk and got the man to use his feathers to block the projectile. None of the feathers stopped it as the plastic writing utensil left an ink stain of Hawk's face when it shattered. Apparently that was the requirement for Haru to let Keigo do his hero work. A yearly check up with him getting back to the physical requirements for the older Nakamura to be satisfied his son won't be lagging behind.
"Eve, what was the difference between Keigo's last time?"
"Over a thirty five percent drop from Keigo-san's last recorded optimal results."
"See? Even Eve is taking pity on you."
Having one's father prove a point was one thing. Having the AI you grew up with spouting the same thing hurts even more.
"Thank you, Eve…"
"Maybe you should text me back more often for more accurate readings in the future, Keigo-san."
If that's all it took, he would have messaged back every single time Eve sent him an sms. Now she was clearly on the side of devils.
"... What was the actual drop?"
"... Twenty two."
"... I loooove you, Eve"
"As I love you, Keigo"
Even after all these years, he still couldn't stay mad at Eve. No matter what; he would always be thankful of the life he's led until now. There was still work to do.