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Knowledge is man's only birthright. Though he is born an incomplete being it is only through his endless pursuit of the truth that he finally becomes whole.

Chapter Eighteen : Innocent Sin

Staring into his empty cup, at the dregs that lingered at the bottom, Kato had never felt so lost and alone. How strange, He thought to himself. That I could have lived my whole life without ever knowing the truth about myself. That I would have wiled away my days never thinking, never questioning. But little by little, I've started to open my eyes. And the worst part of it all is, knowing that I can never go back.

I have tasted the forbidden fruit of knowledge, and now only truth remains to comfort me.

Despite the fact that he had little recourse but to continue moving forwards, Kato found his calm, rational acceptance of such profound revelations to be almost inhuman, and that having learned that he alone was the only human chimera hybrid in all of existence served to surprise him more then anything else. “I'm the only one?” He asked. “But surely; where there's one, there must have been others.”

“If there have been others,” Said Morishita softly. “Then it is likely most of them never lived long enough to even be born. Barring that, Exotica Geno-Works would have simply had them all systematically hunted down and eliminated. Exotica Geno-Works is nothing if not thorough when it comes to cleaning up their own mistakes.”

Hearing the truth in his words, Kato shuddered. It was a frightening thing to know that someone could be coming for him at any moment. “But why let me live, and still kill off all of the others? Something about that doesn't make any sense.”

“Perhaps someone at Exotica Geno-Works simply wished to preserve a hybrid for future study, and perhaps your existence has become too widely known to make disposing of you without raising any suspicion all but impossible.” Morishita dismissed the question with a wave of his hand. “The why of it isn't important. So long as they believe that they can still obtain from you that which they desire, then they will be content to let you live.”

Somewhere in the back of Kato's mind, the pieces were finally starting to fall into place.

So that's why they took me away from my mother and placed me into my foster family's care. They wanted to ensure that they could come for me at any time. That someone with a vested interest in my survival would spend their days watching over me. But even that isn't enough. The King family was already in the palm of their hand, John himself is a member of the board of directors.

Morishita's position in the King family household, all the days he spent training me as a bodyguard. He wasn't there to act as a tutor Johnathan at all! Exotica Geno-Works only wanted someone to keep an eye on me. Someone who wasn't willing to risk losing the only thing that he had left. Hope.

“Morishita Sensei,” Said Kato without even realizing he had even spoken aloud. “What did Exotica Geno-Works do to your family?”

“They stole them away from me. The very people that I valued most in this world, taken because it suited their ends.” Swallowing before he continued, Morishita tried to force the fury that his memories awoke within him into some dark corner in of his mind. “My wife was one of the doctors working at the Sisters of Heavenly Mercy, the hospital where you were born. On the day that Exotica Geno-Works began working to erase all traces of your existence, her only mistake was admitting to having overheard a rumor in passing. There was no way she could have known that such a rumor would have condemned her to a fate worse then death.” Silent for a moment as he recalled the frightened look that she had had on her face when she had finally walked through the door to her own home, Morishita felt the familiar terror that he felt then take hold of his soul. The complete lack of recognition, the endless emptiness he had seen in her eyes. “Weeks I waited for her return, never once knowing her fate. And on the day that she was finally returned to me, she could no longer even say her own name. My daughter on the other hand, was not so fortunate.

“Exotica Geno-Works had come into my home you see, and had offered me a deal. They would allow my family to live, so long as I was willing to work for them.”

Shaking his head for being such a fool as to ever think that he could have trusted them, Morishita couldn't help but recall the fear, and worst of all, the power that his choice had given them over him. “No sooner had I agreed then they showed themselves to be without a shred of honor. My family lived, but at what price? With my wife's memories gone she was no longer the person she was, and my daughter . . .” It was Morishita's turn to tremble as the rage at what they had done threatened to overwhelm him. “Was taken into the care of Cyber-Life Industries and turned into a living weapon.” Morishita met Kato's eyes for the briefest of moments. “Kato, you must understand that the only reason that I am telling you any of this, is so that you can understand the kind of power the people around you are willing to wield, and worse, what they're willing to do to keep it.” Hoping to pass on his will, along with a glimpse of the unyielding resolve that had allowed him to walk the path he had, Morishita said. “Because if you allow yourself to believe for even a single second that anyone who works for the Companies is willing to play by any sort of rules, then you will lose.”

Reminding himself that he still needed to breath, Kato had remained deathly still while listening to what had happened to Morishita's family. In its own twisted way, it had made what had been done to his own family seem a kindness in comparison. And at least in his case, he had been able to grow knowing the warmth of his mother's love. And possibly a father's.

And then he knew, that in that narrow sliver of need Morishita had seen an opportunity.

“All those times you let me remove my collar, it wasn't to keep Johnathan from beating me in sword practice, it was to teach me what it would be like to be . . . free.” It was then that the picture became clear in his mind. In choosing to forgive him for the crimes of his birth, and instead seeking to raise him as his own son, he had found a way to strike back at Exotica Geno-Works, of exacting his revenge upon the nameless masters who had stolen his family from him so long ago. But somewhere along the way, it had become something more then all of that.

Why? He shouted the word. “Why! Why would you risk everything just to help me!”

Morishita bowed his head, he had dreaded this moment, for even though it meant parting ways with him forever, still he needed to know. “Because simply by being, your existence has the power to change our world.”

Morishita's words shook Kato to his very core. “How . . . how can such a thing even be possible? I'm just one man.”

“Not just a man, but a being that bridges the divide between humans and chimeras. The very fact that our two races can exist as one, is proof enough that the delicate balance that exists between us has at last begun to change.” Dipping a lone finger into his cup of tea in order to illustrate a point, Morishita said. “You see Kato, your existence is like a stone that has been cast into the still waters of this world. Your actions disturb the calm surface of the water, sending out ripples. And someday Kato, those ripples will come together and form a great wave that will wash away the sins of this world. Without you,” Lifting his finger, the ripples stilled. “That wave may never come to exist.”

Reaching into a pocket and withdrawing a small bundle, Morishita placed it on the table between them and said. “This is from the young woman who helped me find you, she was quite insistent that I give it to you once you had awakened.”

Opening the small bundle, Kato was surprised when all he found inside was a small tuft of white fur that had been wound with a single red thread.

The scent surrounding the fur was unmistakable. It was Lady's.

It was a relief to know that she had gotten away safely. That even now she was out there somewhere, waiting for him to find her. There was even a small note that had been written on the inside bundle. It only said one word. Thanks.

“You see Kato,” Said Morishita. “A small wave has already been born between the two of you, one that will continue to ripple outwards, changing the lives of those that it meets.”

Holding the bundle close to his heart as he tied the thread around his wrist, Kato simply said. “But Sensei, if I am the bridge between our two races, and my actions create ripples, doesn't that mean that I more than any other am the one in danger of being washed away?”

Nodding as if Kato had just touched upon a very real and powerful truth, Morishita said. “Yes. And that is why no one else will ever be able to make your decisions for you. From this moment on, you will begin to encounter those who will seek to use you for their own gain, those who would hope to influence you into fighting for their cause, and those who would seek to destroy you simply because of the threat that you represent.

“Kato, I have to ask. What will you do, now that you know the truth?”

“I don't know, it's all so overwhelming. Yesterday, I was nothing more than bodyguard who was content to live out his days as a servant. Today, I learned that I've been living on borrowed time, and that the only crime I've committed is not ceasing to exist. Tomorrow, who knows what I'll be. All I know is . . . I have to go back. They'll send someone to find me if I don't return home soon, won't they?” Kato wasn't eager to leave, but he knew that the longer that he stayed, the greater the danger would become, to both of them.

“Yes.” Said Morishita as he sipped his tea, a sense of fatherly pride settling in about his shoulders. It had been a joy to watch as Kato had grown to manhood, to see the spark of greatness withing him and to be the one to nurture it. And now that Kato was about to set out on his own path, to seek his own place in the world, the student would at last begin to surpass the teacher. And for an old man like him, there was no higher honor.

“For now,” He said. “The safest place for you to be is the King family household. They won't be expecting you to hide from them in plain sight.”

Kato started to get up. “You're right of course.” Rising to his feet with an easy grace, he looked to the only man he would ever consider his master and thought. Morishita Sensei, you've been protecting me for the last twelve years, and for that I will always be grateful. But now it's time for me to learn how to protect myself.

Bowing low he said. “Then until we meet again. Sayonara Morishita Otousan.”