What to do Next

"What do you mean the faculty has already taken care of the assassins?" Lucario questions after abruptly hanging up the phone on the caller.

"When the men made it to the school, they were met with the headmaster," Billy explains while closing the door behind him. "It seems like they were waiting for them."

With a click of his tongue, Lucario gets up from his chair and heads for the door. "I guess that means that they are waiting for me as well. Any news from the team that was sent to the location?"

Following closely behind, Billy answers, "They haven't made it yet, but they should be there soon."

Lucario throws himself into the passenger seat while Billy takes his place in the driver's seat. Lucario has never been beaten to punch before, so knowing that the faculty reacted faster than he did gives him mixed feelings. On one side, he's angry that he couldn't have the satisfaction of taking down a group of men. On the other side, he's grateful that the school kept up its end of the deal and protected his daughter.

Once they arrive at the school, Lucario wastes no time in jumping out of the car and zooming straight to the headmaster's office.

"Hey, old man!" Lucario shouts as he slams the door to the office open. "How did you know there were people after my daughter?"

Taking a long sigh, the headmaster sets down his cup of coffee before looking up at the beast before him. "There's nothing in this school that I don't know about. Everyone who works in this school is highly trained in order to protect the children."

"I need to know how you knew they were after my daughter," Lucario continues to grill while stomping over to the headmaster's desk.

"Do you really not understand, or are you just that ignorant?"

"What do you mean by that?"

The headmaster stands from his desk and turns on the tv that contains the cameras surveilling the elementary school building. "I guess you really are just that ignorant. Listen well, Mr. Buenavista, your name is known throughout this entire country for your unforgiving nature. However, out of nowhere, it is discovered that you have a child, and a little girl at that. Everyone who wants to get back at you, control you, or get closer to you will use your child in order to do that because she is your one and only weak point in a once impenetrable monster."

Dropping into a nearby chair, Lucario clasps his hands together while glaring at the headmaster. "So you're saying that my daughter has a massive target on her back? Is that right?"

"Well, more or less."

Lucario glances over at the cameras when he notices Lily leaving the elementary school building with Ethan. "Hey, old man, let me put some of my men to work here since you say that my daughter is a massive target."

"That will prove to be difficult since the hiring of new prospects needs the approval of the school's board," the headmaster explains as he also watches the camera. "However, I do understand your reasoning behind it, so I will properly relay this information to the school's board."

"I want my men in here before the end of the week," Lucario demands, crossing his arms. "I won't take no for an answer."

The headmaster makes his way back to his desk and grabs a sheet of paper. "Take this. It's the form to apply to the school. The most we can take at one time is five people, so you should select the best men for this role who can easily blend in."

Taking the five application forms, Lucario stands from the chair. "Where are the men who tried to kill my daughter?"

"We are currently holding them in the warehouse. I figured you might want to deal with them on your own terms since they were after your daughter."

Lucario walks over to the door where Billy has been quietly waiting. "I'll walk myself there since I know that place all too well. Don't worry. I'll try not to disturb the 'peace' with my presence."

With that, the headmaster watches the doors slowly close on the back of the monster he had to raise all those years ago.

"Should I call for a truck to come in order to transport them to the estate?" Billy asks as he navigates the both of them around the secret tunnels that hide around the school.

"Sure" is all Lucario says.

Noticing his friend's odd silence, Billy peeks over his shoulder and finds Lucario with a distraught look in his face. "Lily will be safe as long as she's within the walls of the academy when she isn't at home with us," Billy reassures. "No one can get to her too easily."

Lucario clenches his fists even more tightly than they already are, causing blood to drip from his palm. "If I had known Lily would be in such a predicament, I would have never allowed her to go to school. We were just lucky because she is within this fucked up academy's walls. If I had chosen any other school, Lily might have been dead before we could get to her."

Reaching the end of the tunnel, the sun shines brightly on the two men's faces when they are suddenly faced with the large chained up doors to the warehouse. Lucario begins to remember the awful memories he had in this building and freezes up.

"Are you going to be okay?" Billy asks as soon as he notices his friend tensing up. "I know that you don't particularly like this place."

—

"Cool your head in here for a while," commands a younger headmaster before shutting the door to the warehouse.

A younger Lucario dashes to the door and begins pounding on it. "Let me out of here!" he shouts, pounding so hard on the door that the sides of his hands start to bleed from the rough wood. "I didn't do anything wrong! It was that bastard Nicholas!"

Hearing chains being coiled around the handles of the warehouse door, a younger Lucario drops on the floor helplessly and weeps to himself as he begins to count the seconds like a timer.

—

"I'll be fine," Lucario answers while grazing his fingers along the patched up hole in the door that he made when he was finally strong enough to break out one day. "The place itself is already boiling my blood, so the men inside will be my punching bags for today."

Acknowledging his boss's agenda, Billy starts to open the door, revealing three chained up men against the wall. At first, they all act cocky, thinking that Lucario's failure to get to them first will make him wary. However, what they weren't expecting was being kicked so hard in the stomach to the point of throwing up.

"You bastards thought you could kill my daughter?!" Lucario releases his overflowing anger onto the men without a single break. "You thought that it would just be that simple?! You must have been out of your goddamn mind if you even thought for a second that it would work!"

"Lucario," Billy calls out, grabbing onto his boss's shoulder. Dodging a punch to the face, Billy shakes his head. "We need them alive. Remember? We have to interrogate them first before killing them off."

"Tch!" Lucario swings one more good kick into the nearest guy's stomach before walking off.

It isn't long after that a couple of Buenavista men appear at the door to help load the assassins into the truck that Billy called for.

"Lu-"

1 2 3 4

"Lucar-"

5 6 7 8

"Lucario!" Billy exclaims after failing to get his friend's attention.

"9. 10. 11. 12."

Without realizing it, Lucario has subconsciously started to count like how he used to when he was younger. Billy takes heed to his friend's relapse and swiftly gets him out of the warehouse.

"It's okay, Luca. You're stronger now. You don't have to count anymore."