28 28

'.....'= Thoughts 

"....."= Conversations 

____________________________________________________________________________________

John listened attentively as Logan lectured the group, noting that Logan's demeanor was quite different from the loner he played in the movies. It was clear that Logan genuinely cared about the kids and their future.

Just as John was engrossed in Logan's words, his phone suddenly rang. Excusing himself from the group, he retrieved his phone and saw that it was an unknown number calling.

"Mr. Wick, it's Phil Coulson from SHIELD," the voice on the line said.

"Agent Coulson? How can I assist you?" John asked, his voice filled with curiosity.

"I need you to sit down for this news, Mr. Wick," Phil responded, his voice growing softer towards the end of the sentence.

"Mr. Coulson, what's the matter?" John's confusion was apparent.

"You remember the news from a year ago, stating that your parents died in a car accident? Well, it turns out that news was false. We have just recently uncovered the truth about the actual circumstances surrounding the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Wick," Phil explained.

"What do you mean? Are you telling me that my parents are actually alive?" John asked, his voice trembling with emotion, which could be seen as his finest acting yet.

"No, I'm afraid not. They were indeed killed, but it wasn't a car accident. It was an orchestrated assassination," Phil explained calmly.

John's mind raced as he tried to process this new information. He had always suspected that there was more to his parents' death than what had been reported, as the same thing had actually happened with Tony's parents and it was not a big surprise to him.

"Who did it? Why were they targeted? And why was I lied to?" John demanded, his voice growing sharper.

'Man, it's really hard to maintain this pretense. On top of that, I am not a good actor. Still, I am getting the hang of it,' John thought while pretending to be fuming with rage while talking with Phil.

"After an intense search, we have found the people behind this whole operation. As you know, your parents actually developed the Super Soldier Serum, and although the news was highly classified, some people got a hint of it," Phil answered.

"How? Did someone infiltrate SHIELD?" John asked, internally rolling his eyes.

"Not exactly," Phil replied. "There are always people on the lookout for any kind of classified information. In this case, it seems that someone within the government leaked the existence of the Serum to outside parties."

John's eyes widened in shock. "Someone within the government? How is that even possible?"

'What the hell! I thought HYDRA was actually behind this whole conspiracy,' John wondered.

"Unfortunately, he had already committed suicide by the time we reached him," Phil answered. "However, we found out that he had contacted the organization named 'RED', and we are about 95% sure that they were involved in your parents' deaths and your kidnapping," Phil continued.

"What's your motive in telling me all this, Mr. Coulson?" John asked, though he had an idea that SHIELD was trying to control him by providing the information so that he would have to depend on them for revenge against the people who killed his parents.

'Now, if I don't try to take revenge against those who killed the parents of the previous John, it would make me look quite suspicious in the eyes of others,' John understood the crispness of his situation.

"Where is this organization located?" John asked.

"Their main headquarters are located in Sokovia, Russia," Phil answered, not holding back any information. "I will message you with all the details about this organization."

"Thank you, Mr. Coulson. I will remember this. I know there's no such thing as a free lunch, so if SHIELD ever needs anything from me in the future, and if it's within my powers, I would definitely do it," John replied.

Phil also knew he couldn't push John further and should be satisfied with the promise John made.

"Don't worry, Mr. Wick. We will cover up any actions you take in Russia. Just be careful and avoid hurting civilians," Phil answered before hanging up the phone.

John quickly read through the details sent by Phil about the organization located in Russia.

John discovered that the organization, known as RED, was a powerful and secretive group that operated across multiple countries. They were involved in various illegal activities, including drug trafficking, arms smuggling, and even human trafficking. Moreover there were even few mutants present in the group, although their abilities were unknown.

'Its going to be quite the adventure,' John thought.

Suddenly a blue exclamation appeared in front of his eyes indicating a notification from the system.

John quickly pressed on it, before anyone else could notice his weird actions. A familiar blue interface appeared in front of his eyes, however the things written on it were different from before.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

••Upgrade System•• (Optional)

••Requirement

°Head to Russia ↓

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

John saw that the 'Upgrade System' part and the arrow next to 'Head to Russia were currently greyed out.

'Seems like I have to head to Russia before I could see the following tasks,' John wondered while looking at the interface.

The system had been quiet since the day he got his abilities. Though it was a system it acted more like an ordinary information pane, till he got the system upgrade notification.

He was quite excited to know what would change after the upgrade of system. He mentally crossed his fingers and hoped that he would gain something good.

That said, he shook of all these thoughts for now and focused on the information provided by Phil.

John had no actual feelings for the previous owner's parents, and he was not liable to seek revenge for them. However, after transmigrating into the body of the original John, he felt that it was the least he could do for the deceased former owner of the body and his parents.

Moreover John had to go there anyway as his trip to Russia concerned the upgrade of his system, which John was not stupid to miss, even though the upgrade seemed to be optional and not compulsory at all.

However he had to be careful about the real motive of SHIELD. John wasn't entirely sure if he was being paranoid, but the existence of mutants in this world made him consider the possibility that SHIELD could compromise him in some way.

Even when John refused Nick Fury's offer the first time, Nick didn't seem fazed by the rejection. John was aware of Nick's reputation for being persuasive, but he found it suspiciously easy for Nick to accept his refusal.

Furthermore, even after John caused chaos during the battle with Abomination, SHIELD did not attempt to contact him or try to recruit him again.

John found this strange, as he had expected SHIELD to at least try to reach out to him after such a display of power. It made him wonder what their true intentions were and whether they had something else in mind for him.

John could only draw two conclusions through the interpretation of this situation.

Either conclusion had its own implications. If SHIELD was afraid of his abilities, it could mean that they saw him as a threat and wanted to keep him at a distance. They might have been concerned that he could become too powerful or unpredictable to handle, and thus chose to monitor him covertly rather than actively recruit him.

On the other hand, if SHIELD was not bothered by his abilities, it could indicate that they had other plans in mind for him. They might have considered him a low priority or believed that they could easily manipulate or control him if need be.

Either way, the lack of contact from SHIELD left John feeling uneasy. It made him question their motives and wonder if there was something more going on behind the scenes. He knew that SHIELD was known for its secrecy and manipulation, and their silence only added to the mystery surrounding his abilities and their true intentions.

John decided that he needed to be cautious and stay on guard. He couldn't afford to trust blindly or be lured into a situation he didn't fully understand. With his powers and uncertain future, he had to rely on his own instinct and judgment to navigate the murky waters of SHIELD and whatever plans they had in store for him.

______________________________________________________________________________________________ 

For 5+ advance chapters visit my patreon. 

patreon.com/StoryTeller229