Leaving

A chipper young man swung the doors to his apartment open as he walked in and tossed his backpack on the ground. With a smile, he made his way to the kitchen where he was met with an old man in a tank top and apron.

"Hello, Grandpa. I trust you're having a splendid day." He said as he took a seat at the kitchen table. His Grandfather turned around and stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

"What's wrong with you?" He asked, confused at the boy's unusually happy attitude. Isaac had always been tired or weary due to recent training, therefore it was surprising to see him in this mood.

"Nothing. I'm just feeling nice today." He said with the same smile.

"I see you're enjoying the time off I gave you. Don't get too comfortable. We'll be back to training tomorrow." Said Derek as he went back to the stove.

"Hey lemme enjoy my free time, old man. You've sucked the life out of me enough. Any more and I'll start looking old and withered like you." Derek stood still as he slowly turned to Isaac with a smile.

"Alright, the break is over. We start training right now." Isaac's previous smile quickly changed to a face of despair as he stood up and bowed.

"No no no, please. I'm sorry. You aren't old and withered. Quite the opposite, you're handsome, strong and you don't smell like old people." Begged Isaac. The old man nodded in satisfaction as he went back to his cooking.

"To be completely honest, I don't blame you. Not only have you mastered the basics, but you've also performed a special. That's no easy feat." Admitted Derek as he chopped some vegetables.

"Really? I mean, sure it was hard, but does it usually take longer than this?" Questioned Isaac. To him, it had taken more than he had liked, but now he was being told it was usually a long process.

"Don't get cocky. I just meant that learning this martial art at all is commendable. Compared to your peers, you're just above average." He lied. Derek knew the gift Isaac had. However, praising and pampering him would only spoil the boy in the old man's eyes. It was better to put him down and allow that to fuel his determination.

Isaac frowned upon hearing this. All that work he suffered through, only to be called average.

"Oh yeah? Watch me, I'll be the strongest in the world!" He said as he stood up in his chair and placed his foot on the table. Derek smiled inwardly after seeing this. No one knew his Grandson better than he.

"Good. Until then, get the hell off my table." Said the old man as he brought over a mountain of food. They ate like they hadn't had a bite to eat for centuries. It was one of those instances where you had to see first before you believe they ate all that food.

After they were done, they breathed a sigh of satisfaction as they smiled happily. Plates and bones filled the table with other utensils and kitchenware littered the space where they ate. Derek opened his eyes as he stared at Isaac for a few seconds. He quickly stood up as Isaac raised his eyebrow at the old man's sudden movements. Derek opened one of the cabinets as he searched and ruffled through countless objects.

After a few seconds, he pulled out a familiar large white vase with a small rope around it and a cork lodged in it.

"Aurora Hops? We still have that?" Questioned Isaac after noticing the vase.

"Hell yeah, we do. I drink a lot but even I'm not crazy enough to down this fine bottle all at once. I'm not your mother, after all." He said with a laugh while grabbing two shot glasses and sitting back at the table. He pulled the cork off as it made a satisfying pop, the sweet aroma of the beverage instantly drifting below their nostrils.

"This goes to the success of your training." Said Derek. He quickly poured the amber liquid for the two of them and didn't wait a second. They quickly downed their glass in one go. Despite his previous attempt at downing alcohol ending in a coughing fit, this time, being accustomed to it, he handled the beverage better than last time and savoured the symphony of flavours that occurred on his tongue.

Derek stared at Isaac with a raised eyebrow, expecting him to at least have made a face. Instead, he drank it like a pro. His face quickly changed to that of a nervous smile as he slowly reached for the vase.

"Perhaps you're more like your mother than I thought. Maybe we should limit the alcohol." He said with a chuckle while placing the vase under the table. Isaac, confused, looked at him with a confused glance.

Isaac stared at his glass as he remembered the last time he drank with his Grandpa. It was a drink he would force himself never to forget. Because of that, he decided to follow the pattern and change the mood. Ever since the warehouse, a question had resurfaced in Isaac's thoughts. It became prominent the more he saw the old man fight during training. What better time to ask it than now?

"Grandpa, that night I almost died in the alley, did you kill those men?" He asked, not making eye contact. After a few seconds of silence, Isaac couldn't help but slowly raise his eyes to the old man's face, only to catch Derek smiling wholesomely.

"Yes. I did." He admitted without hesitation, the same smile still on his face as if he didn't regret his actions.

"Before you say anymore, let me explain. The day you were born, I sat beside your mother as she handed you to me for the first time."

"At the time, I was a selfish cunt. It had been so long since I held such a small creature in my arms that I felt nervous, frozen without words. I didn't know what to do. This was at the time when I would wrestle bears for fun and climb mountains barehanded. Yet I was afraid of a tiny baby that could barely keep its eyes open."

"At that moment, your mother made me promise one thing. That I would always take care of you. So I don't care whether it's a bunch of gangsters or a bloody dinosaur. Anyone hurts my boy, and I'm going for their head. Just you remember that, Son. You're never alone." The old man downed another glass as Isaac stared at him. After a few seconds, Isaac smiled as he raised his hand in a fist bump.

"We stick by each other's side and we do whatever the hell we want. That's the way of the Hales, isn't it?" His Grandpa slowly smiled as he raised his fist and connected it with his.

"And we don't mess around with our grub." He said with a smile. As Isaac began to laugh, he noticed a black text on the bottom of the vase he hadn't seen before. He picked it up from the floor and stared at it, reading it out loud.

"I pledge my loyalty to my lineage and the chosen one. I will live for the cause and die for it too, for I carry my ancestor's wishes." Said Isaac, reading the text and raising an eyebrow to it.

"Sounds like an acceptance to a cult." Said Isaac with a chuckle, before Derek quickly snatched the vase from him. With a dark face, he quickly put the cork in the case and placed it in his cabinet.

"Grandpa, what's wrong?" Said Isaac, noticing the man's discomfort. After a few seconds of heavy breathing, he answered.

"Nothing, my boy. Why don't you get ready for bed, ay?" He said, prompting Isaac to feel a wave of confusion. Before he left, he heard the old man speak once more.

"By the way, you've seen my stash. If you try anything funny I'll throw you out of a window." Said Derek, suspiciously changing his attitude to an unpleasant one as Isaac felt a shiver run down his spine.

"I always feel like Grandpa is hiding things from me. As if he's telling me half the truth about everything. Now that I think about it, I know nothing of his past or what he was like before I was born. Who was he back then, what did he do and who did he know?" Isaac thought internally before stepping into his room and glancing back slightly.

"Who are you really, Grandpa?"

***

Derek washed some plates as he fell into deep thought. He didn't blink as his rough hands kept moving in the same motion while he held a plate in his hand. The water splashed on his apron as he slowly placed the plate down.

He slowly turned around and was met with a figure in an expensive suit, with slick blond hair and sharp blue eyes, standing in the middle of the kitchen.

"Colt, you better give me a damn good reason why you're standing in my house right now." Said Derek with a straight face. For a few seconds, Colt stayed silent as he took a cigarette out of his pocket.

"It's time." Said Colt after lighting his cigarette. Derek looked at him with a face full of shock and surprise, unwilling to believe the words.

"What are you talking about? I thought I had more time." Despite him knowing this was coming, he hadn't expected it so soon.

"I told you we were close. My men and I are just waiting for you. You're all that's missing." Derek stared at him for a few seconds before looking out of the kitchen door, into the hallway.

"I can't leave. Not yet. I still have a responsibility here." Said Derek, prompting Colt to stay silent for a few seconds.

"You promised me. You gave me your word." Protested Colt, his voice still staying the same while a tinge of darkness fell upon his face.

"You aren't the only one. I also promised Lucile."

"The boy is an adult. You've taught him Tempest and he's in better shape than he's been his entire life with the MacGregor's Syndrome. He can look after himself."

"You're asking me to leave Isaac without a word, alone, knowing there's a chance I won't come back. I can't do that, Colt!" He said, trying his best not to raise his voice but still making his emotions clear through his tone. Colt stayed silent for a few seconds as he continued.

"Then don't. You said the boy is a genius. We'll train him in Vitalis, get his Tempest to an adequate level and drown him in however many VitaFlow pills he needs. Let him play a role in regaining his family's honour." Suggested Colt, invoking a negative reaction from the old man.

"You're out of your bloody mind. Isaac will never be involved in this madness. If you ever try and change that, I'll forget which side you're on." Threatened Derek, a suffocating aura seeping from his words.

"Fine, then come with me. This has been an inevitability ever since that day and you know it. Remember all they took from you and use it to reawaken the flame inside the Lion prodigy."

Derek said nothing as a wave of conflicting emotions took over. His mind raced as his being was constricted between two oaths he knew he had to keep. Yet he knew he could only keep one. He knew in his mind, the next decision he made would not only determine his fate but the fate of countless people.

"When is it?"

"Like I said, my men and I are waiting on you." Replied Colt.

"Men? Are they Loyal?" Asked a sceptical Derek.

"You keep asking me this. Yes, they are. Led by Khan."

"Khan? He's always been so… passionate. I'll trust you if you say he's loyal." Grunted the old man. Colt stared at him for a few seconds before asking.

"So are you in?" After a suspenseful pause, and a long stare from Colt. Derek scrunched his face as he removed his apron, revealing a new, cold and beastly demeanour.

"When do we leave?"

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