Entering the elevator, the estranged father and son wait in silence. Agami glances over at him. The man is wearing a faded leather trench coat with a hoodie underneath. He notices that he is wearing black gloves on both hands and a silver necklace around his neck. His slightly sunken eyes and unkempt hair suggest restless and busy nights. The man casually taps his feet to the tune of the elevator music, as if remembering some old song. Is he also feeling awkward?

  “Knowing Sora, he probably is. A parent is never ready to confront their child after 20 years, especially when they were left for dead.” Tenmei responds. Looking closer, he can see that the tune Sora is whistling is slightly off beat and is trying his best to avoid eye contact.

  The rest of the ride remains quiet as they ride the elevator. After what felt like an eternity, the elevator finally stops on their floor. As the elevator slows down, they both take a deep sigh as the silence is killing them. Sora steps out of the elevator first, and Agami can only follow.

  With each step, Agami is constantly thinking about how to respond, unsure how to feel. Multiple thoughts and scenarios are rushing through his head. Suddenly, the walls seem to be getting a bit closer. His heart is suddenly racing, and he can’t stop sweating.

  “Agami, calm down. You are overthinking this.” Tenmei quickly says, trying to stop his mind from running away. “Do not worry, I am sure they are as nervous as you are.”

  Although the words do little to help Agami, he simply nods and continues following. Reaching the room at the end, Sora pulls out a keycard from his pocket and opens the door. He takes the other grocery bag from Agami, saying, “Thanks for the assist. You'd better go introduce yourself. I'm sure they have been waiting.”

  As Sora walks away, two sets of footsteps can be heard running towards him. “Oh, looks like the twins are first.” Tenmei says calmly.

  A young boy and girl run towards him, both gleaming with excitement. The boy wore a shirt with a hero from the cartoon and had spiky grey hair. He wore a mischievous grin and gleaming eyes. The girl beside him wore an orange dress and a neat ponytail. Unlike the boy beside him, her smile was more gentle.

  “Are you, Agami?” The girl shouts in excitement. “I'm-”

  She is then interrupted by the boy, who pushes her out of the way. “Nice to meet you, I'm Vito!” he excitedly says, quickly grabbing Agami’s hand and shaking it vigorously.

  The Sister returns a bit annoyed and scoldingly says, “Hey, Mom said no pushing.” Suddenly returning to Agami, she resumes, “Apologies for that. I am Maria.” Giving a slight bow as she finishes.

  “Pffft! Lame.” The boy remarks, to the scorn of his sister.

  “I apologise for our brother's lack of manners. It seems that he has taken the burden of being the brat of the family.” She says, somehow throwing an insult while remaining composed, something that Agami is all too familiar with. In retaliation, the boy sticks out his tongue at her.

  “Nice to meet you guys.” Agami says, unsure what to make of the interaction, although his greeting is ignored as the two continue to argue.

  Suddenly, a hand is placed on Agami’s shoulder. Turning around, Sora appears behind him and says, “Just leave these two for now, they're going through a bit of a phase. Let’s go meet the rest.” Guiding him towards the living room, where, upon their arrival, a group of people turns their attention towards them. “Hey, look who I found on the ground floor!” Sora announces with a slight chuckle, but the heavy atmosphere makes it feel out of place.

  Agami looks around the room and quickly observes the individuals whose eyes are focused on him. To his left stands the man he met earlier, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. In front of him is a woman with long silver hair. Like the man beside her, she wears an orange cloak that covers most of her body and the lower half of her face. To shield the rest of her face, she dons goggles with an orange tint, leaving it unclear whether she is hiding her identity or has just returned from a mission.

  A young man with glasses and neatly kept hair stands across from them, seemingly interrupted mid-conversation with the young woman before him. Given his appearance, which resembles that of Sora and Vito, Agami surmises that he must be somewhat related to them. In front of him is a young girl with brown hair, appearing much younger than the man in front of her. Based on the notebook in her hands and attire, she is more of an assistant than a family member.

  After an awkward pause, the gruff man speaks, “Sorry for bringing you in like that. I needed to be sure that you wouldn’t cause any issues if I brought you here.” He stands up and approaches. “My name is Gearfried Daragoneir. That stickler over there is Imino, my sister, and subsequently your mother.” They both look at her, but she turns her head away. Unsure what to make of it, he lets out a brief sigh and continues, “Ignoring whatever that was, you probably have a lot of questions that I’ll get to later.”

  “Oh, come on.” Sora says under his breath, leaving Agami and walking over to Imino, while Gearfried shifts his and Agami’s attention over to the others in the room. “These two over here are Danzo and Olya. Danzo is the eldest child of those two,” He points towards Imino and Sora, “While Olya is the child of a close family friend. She holds an armament and is assisting us with vanquishing the targets.”

  The two walk up to them, and Danzo speaks first, “It’s nice to finally meet you. It seems that you have been quite busy, even taking down Phenton.” He looks over to Sora and Imino speaking before returning his focus to Agami. “Please forgive our mother, she has been…struggling with how to approach this. You wouldn’t believe what it took for us to get her to even be here.”

  “She always has been the nervous one.” Tenmei adds, appearing from Agami’s arm. “It’s been so long, but it is nice to know that some things do not change.”

  “It seems so.” Danzo surprisingly responds with a slight smile.

  “Wait, you can see him?” Agami says, suddenly surprised and confused.

  “Of course. Those with Tenmei’s power can see him, but his soul can only travel and live in one of the armaments.” Agami checks him for anything strange but finds nothing, noticing his curiosity, Danzo responds, “Don’t worry, I do have one, but it's less conspicuous than you think.”

  Olya clears her throat, trying to interrupt their conversation and grab their attention, “Oh, sorry about that, Olya. Please introduce yourself.”

  “Thank you. As you have already been told, my name is Olya and I’m a family friend. Just like Danzo, Tenmei has also told us a lot about you. Unlike your brother, who chooses to surprise you with his, I have the leg armaments.” She signals to her legs, which are lightly clad in armour. “It will be a pleasure to work with you.”

  After the introductions, Agami looks around the room and notices that Gearfried has already moved to a separate corner and is busy with what looks like a bulky tablet. Agami stands there, unsure of what to do next. He has this weird feeling in his chest that he can’t quite describe.

  “Not much of a talker, I’m guessing.” Danzo says, interrupting Agami’s train of thought. “It’s alright, I know this situation is all new and overwhelming, so if you need someone to talk to and help you, feel free to come talk to me. Right now, there isn’t much for you to do, so feel free to take a load off and absorb everything.” Danzo and Olya return to their discussion, Tenmei joining them, while Agami remains standing alone.

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  Feeling out of place, he walks up to Danzo and asks, “Hey, do I have a room or something?”

  “Oh, yeah. It’s the room at the end of that hallway. Last door on the right.” He replies, pointing in the direction of the room.

  Arriving at his room, Agami closes the door behind him and looks at his room. He quickly realises that this was the room he escaped from earlier. Well, that was pointless. A whole lot of work just to get back here. He removes his jacket, throwing it on the floor, and flops on his bed, looking up at the ceiling. He continues staring at the white ceiling, his mind taking in everything.

  “Huh, so I found my family. I-...I thought it would have felt different. More exciting. I thought I would feel some sort of happiness, but all I feel is…empty.” He says to himself, sitting up and staring at the city. Watching the clouds float by and the planes cross the sky, only one thought crosses his mind: “Now what?”

  Several hours later, the sun has set and the buildings are alight. Agami sits by his bedside, facing the window, watching the lights pass through the city. He snacks on some chips that Olya brought him earlier, his mind still focused on his next plan of action, but it often veers towards the emptiness he felt. Someone suddenly knocks on the door.

  “Hey! We’re having dinner! Don’t know what you’re doing, but come join us.” Sora’s voice booms through the door.

  Agami lets out a deep sigh as he stands up and makes his way to the dinner table. Huh, last time I had dinner, I flipped a table and nearly died, but hey, this can’t be any worse.

  “Good of you to join us.” Danzo greets warmly, gesturing at the open seat next to him.

  Everyone at the table is busy grabbing their servings and happily chatting. Agami surveys the table, noticing that Imino is seated the furthest, still wearing her goggles and cloak, while her brother has removed his. Guess she’s not eating with us.

  Agami is handed a portion and quietly eats by himself. Sometimes Danzo or Olya will strike up small talk to make him feel included, but the conversations would die quickly. As he eats his meal, he silently watches them as they socialise. He wishes to participate, but he cannot think of anything to ask.

  I don’t know these people.

  A thought that constantly blinks in his mind whenever he looks at them. After dinner ends, He returns to his room. The family paid no mind as he left the table under the guise of putting dishes in the sink.

  After a couple of hours, the house went silent. Tenmei flew over to the conflicted man. Noticing his thoughts from earlier, he asks, “Are you alright. You seem to be struggling with handling the whole situation.” A tone of concern was evident in his voice.

  “I don’t know. When you told me about my family, I thought I would be happy finding them, but looking at them…I’m filled with so many questions. Many that I am afraid of learning the answer to.” He says, struggling to get out the words. “I want to leave, and I want to leave now.”

  “But we can’t leave now!” Tenmei says worriedly as he flies in front of him. Upon looking at his face, he suddenly sees that Agami’s face is devoid of emotion. The unanswered question and confusion destroying him emotionally and mentally are evident. “I-...I understand.” Struggling to find the right words, he feels it’s best if there is distance between him and his family. “How do you plan to leave? Gearfried will notice you if you leave through the front.”

  “I plan to escape the same way I did earlier.” He opens the window and stands on the windowsill, ready to make the plunge again. “Second time's the charm.”

  “Oh, planning to jump again.” He suddenly hears Sora’s voice. Looking around, he finds the man casually leaning on the balcony wall and watching his window.

  “Uh, yeah. How did you know I would do this?” He replies, feeling some slight embarrassment as he stands on the windowsill.

  “Well, it was a mixture of a gut feeling and experience. I was watching you at the table earlier. You looked like you had a little too much on your mind, and seeing how well the first attempt worked out for you, I was thinking you would try again.” He says, giving a sly grin.

  “Oh, right. I forgot. And the experience part?”

  “Oh, that. When your mother is stressed or feeling anxious, she usually tries to leave so she can calm down or disappear for a bit. In places like these, she’d always go for the window. And given the situation, I was expecting her to be the one I’d catch.” He chuckles to himself. Unsure what to do now, Agami stands on the windowsill, looking back at Sora. Sora gestures for him to come stand by him, and seeing no other choice, he obliges. As he leaves his room and passes by the lounge, he notices Gearfried is sitting on his laptop.

  “Sora catch you?” He says as he quickly glances up from his computer.

  “How often does this happen?” Agami asks.

  “More frequently than you’d think.” He sighs.

  Closing the door behind him, Agami joins his father as he leans over the balcony. There’s a brief pause between them before the silence is disrupted by Sora, “You know, when your mother and I found out about you possibly being alive, we were super excited. We never thought you would be in our lives again. You don’t know how happy we are for you to be here.”

  “What do you mean alive? I don’t remember you being there for me, even before my death.” Agami replies, emotions building up in his chest.

  “Well, it’s a little complicated.” Sora sighs, taking a deep breath before continuing, “When you were born, you were meant to inherit Tenmei’s soul and right armament. I’m not sure what went wrong, but after speaking with the old man, it seems that maybe the power was too much for you. We didn’t know it would happen, because when Danzo received his armament, he was fine, but when it came to you…” Taking another deep sigh, he continues, “It was too much, and it led to you being stillborn. You…” He pauses again, gripping the balcony wall harder as if reliving the day, “You died. Your… your mother and I were so distraught, not knowing what to do. We didn’t know Tenmei could revive from death, but it seemed that to bring you back, he had to go to sleep and…I don’t know what happened in between when they took you away and when I wanted to confirm what happened. It seemed that someone had already taken you. Gearfried and I tried to track you down, but without the energy signature or any clue as to what happened, it was a lost cause.

  Only after six years had we finally given up.” A tear streams down Sora’s face, he wipes it and weakly chuckles, “Huh, look at your old man. Not even a whole day, and he’s already crying. I need to do better.”

  Hearing Sora's side of the story, Agami is unsure how to respond to what he heard. It felt good that he wasn't abandoned, but he couldn't help but wonder what could have been. With mixed emotions, he only looks at the city lights.

  “I don't blame you for what happened. From what it sounded like, no one would have been able to see it.” Agami responds, understanding that this may have been weighing on them more than he realised. “When I first heard that you were my parents, I was excited, thrilled that the Stilmurs weren't my real parents. But when I first met you, I couldn't help but feel out of place. I spent the whole day wondering if I should just pretend nothing was wrong, or maybe now I should lash out, shout at you and mom. I don't know if she even likes me…” Agami pauses, struggling to put his thoughts into words as Sora watches him. “I thought it may have been better to just disappear and sort out the issues with the conspirators on my own. But after speaking to you, I don't know what to do with this feeling.”

  “Channel it.” Gearfried's voice suddenly appeared behind them.

  “Oh, Gears.” Sora says, surprised, “Out for a smoke?”

  Gearfried pulls out a cigarette and lights it, standing next to Agami. He sighs, “For the hundredth time, it's Gearfried, and yes. As I was saying, it must be tough for you to find out about your lineage and responsibilities this way, and you may have a lot of feelings that feel unresolved. But sometimes there's only so much we can do before we lose ourselves to it.” He pauses and looks at his covered hands before continuing, “Listen and remember this well, do not mistake loss for sacrifice.”

  Dwelling on those words, the three men look over the city. Watching in silence. After his cigarette was finished, Gearfried spoke, “Agami, your combat ability and proficiency with that arm are not good enough for the fights we may soon face. Unfortunately, Tenmei's soul can't be transferred, nor are we able to fully vanquish one of the conspirators. With that, we'll hold off on transferring the left arm to you and will begin your training tomorrow.”

  “Again?” Agami responds confusedly.

  “Yes. I'm also bringing in Imino and Olya to assist. Sora and Danzo will be busy tracking Baltro. Before he finds us, we need you to be ready.” With that said, he returns to his room.

  “Such a serious guy. But when you're right, you're right.” Standing up and scratching his head, Sora also walks to his room. “Don't stay up too late.” Closing the door, he quickly opens and pops his head out, “Or jump off the balcony.” Leaving for a second time

  Agami returns his focus to the city, and Tenmei appears from his arm and speaks, “Well, Agami. How are you feeling?”

  “I'm unsure. But I feel a bit better about things.”

  “That is good, because from here on out, things will only get more serious.”

  After the conversation, Agami returns to his room. His shoulders suddenly felt lighter, and his mind focused on what the next day would bring.