Hours later...
In a certain apartment near the edge of the city, a young man lay on the bed of his small room, playing some sort of video game. The boy had ragged blonde hair that fell down to his shoulders and dark blue eyes that complimented his hair.
He wore a thick muted yellow hoodie, black trousers and white socks – all of which kept his body warm in the harsh cold of Ashland. Minutes passed in silence as the boy continued to play, the sound of rain falling outside playing in the background.
Eventually, though, the young man sighed and swiped off his game, letting his hands fall on the bed. He stared at the ceiling for a few moments, his eyes filled with anxiety and... tiredness.
He sighed and sat straight, blankly staring at the wooden floor. He stayed like that for a few minutes, processing something in his mind.
He was the Drug Lord of the syndicate that had been reigning terror across Ashland for the past year – Sun Daishen.
Now, he was sitting in his temporary apartment – his last apartment in Ashland ever. Why? Because he was leaving for Paragonia tomorrow – to see out his parents and find out why they abandoned him on that fateful day nine years ago.
The teenager didn't know how to process his emotions at that moment. Ever since he had been left on the streets of Kharagen that day, when that cop had taken him to the CPS, when he had been taken to the orphanage and when the realization that his parents had abandoned him had settled in...
All that time he had been dreading to meet them – to ask Why? Why they had left him, their own son, in a foreign country.
Yet, now that he was leaving for Paragonia, he suddenly felt unsure of the eventual reunion. How would his parents react? What if they didn't welcome him? Or even worse, what if they had forgotten about him and moved?
Maybe they had raised another child in his absence, to fill the void he had left in the family? Would he have a little sibling waiting for him as well?
These question had kept him up all night and his last call with his most trusted lackey had increased the melancholy in his young heart.
He had tried to distract himself by playing his favorite game – However, that too hadn't been able to distract his mind. Now, he sat in his room – alone, with thoughts his young mind didn't know how to fully process.
He was scared, he was filled with dread, he was... paranoid.
He could admit to all that because that was what had helped him avoid the police for so long. Every trap they tried to lay, every scheme they tried to trace, any amount of information that they could gather on him... it proved to be useless when they finally faced him.
Perhaps, it was because of his stunned emotions – the trauma of being abandoned by his own parents and the realization of it at such a young age had left a deep scar on his mind.
But now, that was in the past, he could not dwell on it for too long. His lackeys had always told him to take it easy and to not think about the past too much.
They had even recommended going to a therapist. However, the idea of the therapist calling the police on him made Sun decline the offer.
The Drug Lord heaved another sigh, trying to calm his nerves.
'... I don't have to worry about anything now. The syndicate will he in good hands once I'm gone. I just want this to be behind me now... Pangea, please.'
He fell back on his bed and closed his eyes, trying to sleep.
However, as the clock struck midnight, a knock came from the door. Sun opened his eyes, blinked and then groaned before slowly standing up.
"What idiot is knocking at 12 in the Goddamn morning?!"
He tried to approach the door, but before he could, a loud thrash resounded throughout the complex and the door to his room suddenly flew past his face.
'...What?'
Before Sun could even process what had happened, something drilled itself in his neck. He felt the object – something akin to a needle – pierce his flesh.
The next second, he felt a little dizzy and almost tripped on his own legs. Barely catching himself, he lifted his head and tried to get a good look at the intruders.
Once again, before he could even properly seen anything or anyone, a small metal cylinder shot towards his face. Sun narrowed his eyes and tried to dodge out of instinct.
Nevertheless, the cylindrical object was suddenly basked in a brilliant glow. And along with that light, an ear piercing sound bounced off the insulated walls.
A second later, Sun screamed.
***
"Now!"
Krishna shouted as the stun grenade exploded in Sun's room, the artificial light of the bomb reflecting off his Meta-glasses. Henry – who was right beside him – gripped his rifle and dashed inside with Mary following closely behind him.
Missio was crouched behind Krishna, watching the room through the lens of his Meta-glasses. The light of the stun grenade dimmed and the sound produced by the bomb also diminished.
The Lieutenant General stood up, preparing to rush into the room as well. However, before he could, Henry flew past him. Missio froze, his pupils dilating as his teammate crashed against the corridor's wall.
The Lieutenant General spun around and caught Henry before he fell onto the hard wooden floor. As he did, a mouthful of blood spouted out of Henry's mouth, staining Missio's clothes and the floor beneath it.
Missio hurriedly placed his friend down, a concerned look making its way onto his face.
Henry himself was dazed. He did not know what was left or right, north or south. The only things he could feel were his broken ribs, his wildly beating heart and his damaged spine.
And the pain... It was just... too overwhelming.
It was to the point that his entire body was temporarily disabled from the aftershock.
However, as he saw Missio's panicked expression and looked past him, he saw the Drug Lord's figure with Mary's unconscious body laying on his feet.
He could only think of one thing in his mind at that very moment.
At last, before he himself went unconscious, his lips bubbled up and down before whispering in a fearful tone:
"Strong... very strong..."