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Code Oblivion Chapter 8- Another Chat with No One

Noah just sighed as he watched the landscape pass him by from the driver area of the tank. It had been about 3 days since they had left Eldra. They had long passed through the Salmartan-Rillotian border and they were probably about a full day's drive towards Crosstown and he was getting antsy, it was hard to believe that he was so close to home. He was homesick but at the same time he was scared, it would be the first time he would return there without his father. Could he really face everyone? He was different, he would probably have nightmares about the events of Eldra until he was his dad's age...if he lived that long. He knew there was a high chance he probably wouldn't survive this little adventure in Graesham. He knew he probably shouldn't be thinking of how he would die, he was still young after all, but he had almost died in Eldra so it made sense at least to him that he would think about it.

Another thing he had swirling in his head was the barely suppressed identity crisis storming in his mind, the revelations of his past driving him crazy. Despite what he had told Aidan and the others, deep down he did want to see his birth mother and his brother more than anything but he knew he had other things to do. Besides, for all he knew he could run into one of them during his travels. But his name...his true name, Jacob Reaper? Why did that sound so familiar? Like he had heard the name Reaper before? He was broken from his thoughts however when he felt a paw land on his shoulder and shake him gently. He looked up to see Elena smiling at him gently.

"Hey, you've been staring outside for almost an hour. You okay kid?" She asked him with a bit of a concern in her voice. "But you hungry? Flint is about to fix some lunch, wanna help?" She said, looking over towards Aidan who was driving. "Will you be okay without your little partner?" She teased gently. Aidan just looked over and shrugged and nodded. She smiled again and patted him on his shoulder. "Hey, you look tired, maybe you should have the Major take over for a bit so you can get a bit of shuteye. So really, after lunch get some rest okay big guy?" Aidan just nodded and she gently led Noah away from the driving area and into the living area where Flint was standing in the little kitchenette which was obviously too small for his large bulky frame.

Loni and Major Burke were sitting at the table waiting patiently for Flint to finish. The smell of bacon made the young wolf's stomach growl and his mouth water. He also saw a bunch of bread out on the counter and he guessed Flint was making some BLT's for the gang. He decided to sit down next to Loni who looked towards him.

"Hey there Noah, I was thinking about something, your real name is Jacob Reaper right?" Noah just nodded, wondering exactly why she was asking this. "It's funny, have you ever seen the Elemental Lord of Space?" Noah nodded, he had remembered when the current EL had been confirmed, it was about two years ago and the guy was surprisingly young...his name was Rex...something.

"Yeah? I mean, he caused a sensation in my school when he was confirmed. The girls all went wild for the guy." Noah said calmly. "What does that have to do with me though?" He asked, confused.

"Because you and Commander Rex Reaper have the same last name." She said as she clapped her paws together. "I mean Reaper is a bit of an odd name and I doubt it's a very common last name so the odds of you sharing the same last name and not being related doesn't seem likely." She muttered in a curious tone.

"She has a point, plus didn't Aidan's dad say you had an older brother or something? He could be the one, mate." Flint said as he laid down Noah's food along with Loni before he sat down next to Noah.

"You think I might actually be related to an Elemental Lord? I mean sure, we might share a last name and it might be kinda unusual but it can't be." He said, his voice sounding dismissive but deep down his heart was beating a thousand times a second. 'It really can't be, I mean the odds are so absurdly small...right?' He thought to himself before he saw a flash of something for a few moments before his head suddenly felt like it was splitting open. With a pained whine he nearly fell out of his chair, only being stopped from doing so by Flint's quick catch.

"You okay kid? What happened?" He asked, his voice worried. He saw Loni, Elena and even the Major also looking over towards him with their own looks of concern.

"I don't know... I just saw some flash of something but it went away so quickly I couldn't really catch a glimpse but I'm fine." He said with a sigh as he rubbed his forehead. 'Okay that was weird, what was that about?' He thought to himself as he took a bite out of his sandwich. He gave a happy hum as he savored the taste which made Flint smile.

"Glad you like it!" Flint said with a bright smile. "I'm going to bring some food for Aidan. How about you help the girls clean up okay bud?" He said after taking another plate and heading towards the driving area. Noah just nodded and started picking up the dishes as he finished his own food and took it to the sink. But right as he was about to put them into it, another flash happened and his head felt like it was going to explode which made him drop the plates as he grabbed his head in agony. The plates clattered to the ground but thankfully they were made to be almost indestructible so they didn't shatter when they hit the floor like they did in the old movies. Though he couldn't really care about that right now when his head felt like it was going to explode from the sheer amount of pain coursing through it.

He kept getting more and more flashes. There was a young version of himself, around seven years old sitting in a living room making something. He was playing with an older looking wolf who looked to be around thirteen whose platinum blond hair shined in the light of the room. He snuggled asleep in the arms of a tall and beautiful amazon of a wolf who held him gently and was humming brightly to him as he napped. 'Mom?' He thought as he felt a small tear run down his cheek as he felt the warmth of that memory and how it reminded him of his father and the last flash was him snuggled up reading a book with a thin gangly wolf who must have been his birth father. The flashes started to slow after that and once he started to come to he felt his body being shaken as sound returned to his ears.

"Fuck! Wake up kid!" He heard Aidan scream, his voice raw with terror. Noah had no clue what was going on, he was so confused. What was all those flashes about? Were they of his old life? The life he had before he got taken? He let out a pained moan and opened his eyes to see Aidan and the others standing over him, all with looks of pure worry on them.

"What...what happened?" He asked, looking around he saw he was no longer in the kitchen but was instead laying on his bed in his and Aidan's shared room. He must have been moved during his fit.

"You were having a seizure! A nasty one too, Elena was screaming like a banshee so I checked out and saw you on the floor twitching like you were being electrocuted. What happened? Do you have a medical history of seizures or something?" Noah just shook his head, he never had a seizure before. Was it linked to those flashes he had seen?

"I don't, but during that fit I was getting these flashes...as if they were from my old life. I think my memories are slowly coming back...it's weird." Noah said as he rubbed his head, it was still throbbing a bit but the worst of the pain had thankfully passed. When he tried to get up AIdan pushed him right back down and held him there.

"Don't get up, you are probably weak from the fit so just get some rest alright? We'll be in Crosstown by tomorrow so you should make sure you are rested up for that since I have a feeling it's going to be a trying time for you." Aidan said with a yawn. "And I think I'll take a nap too, I've been up for a while so I'm gonna take a shower and get some shut eye. But please get some rest." He said before walking out. Both Loni and Elena gave him a hug and Flint gave him a gentle pat on the back while Major Burke just gave him a curt nod before he left, leaving Noah all alone in the room.

'I just don't get it, what is with that man? He hasn't spoken ten words to anyone since we've been on this trip. Why did he even bother coming?' Noah just shook his head once again and sighed, annoyed with the jackal. He still didn't fully trust the man, he just didn't understand why but everytime he saw the man look at him he felt a chill run down his spine. He still couldn't shake off the feeling he had met the man before in his old life. 'Bah, no point in wondering, he came here for his own reasons. I don't think he's a bad person per se but he could stand to be less of an asshole. I kinda feel bad that Flint has to share a room with him.' Noah just let out a tired sigh and lied down on the bed, he was a bit tired. The fit wore him out both physically and mentally. Those flashes he had seen left him so confused, what was going on? Why was he just now getting these flashes? After seven years living with this identity, why were his old memories just now coming in?

Noah sighed once again and rolled over on his side, there was no point to this, he doubted he would get any answers anytime soon. He hoped he would get some in Greasham but who knew? 'Ugh, I don't know what to do, only a week or so my biggest worry was school and now I'm basically on a trip to fight some evil emotion monsters.' It was something so weird, the Malefactors by their existence didn't make sense, they were tangible emotions in a sense, physical representations of the worst aspect of Mortals. One thing was for sure is they weren't supposed to exist, not in Mortaelis at least. They were alien to this world so how did they come to exist here? How many of them were there? And just what was the limit of what they could do? One was able to completely take over the body of an Elemental Lord, even if for a short time. The fact they could take over some of the most powerful individuals on the planet, what hope did a normal person have to fight against them? What harm could they do?

'I'm way in over my head aren't I? How can I even begin to fight against them? I know so little about them and I doubt anyone does.' He said before shaking his head in frustration. 'There is no point in stressing myself out over this, just get some sleep.' Noah thought to himself as he closed his eyes and let himself fall asleep.

...

'Okay seriously, again?' Noah thought to himself as he found himself floating within the familiar dark void. Unlike the other times he could feel his body and was able to move. 'Well that's a relief, at least I can move now.' He thought to himself as he started to float around the void to explore and see if he could find anything in this darkness but sadly, after what felt like an eternity of looking he didn't find anything. 'Alright, so this place is basically empty. Where the hell am I?' He thought annoyed as he started flipping around bored with being here.

'Right, so I guess I'm stuck here? At least until I wake up I guess.' He continued to think to himself in a mildly annoyed tone. 'Not going to lie, this place is pretty lonely.' His unhappy musings however were interrupted by a calm male voice, one he had heard several times before.

"It can be, this realm is your inner realm. However, when you were taken and when you lost your memories your inner realm was broken and reduced to the blank void you see now, however since you are slowly beginning to heal the damage and regain your memories the realm will slowly be rebuilt." This made Noah jump and swirl around to see a tall figure cloaked in brilliant white and gold armor that covered his entire body. The only part of his body that Noah could make out were the brillan sapphire blue eyes, ones that looked almost identical to his own except for the pupils. They were extremely odd, like six pointed stars and when the figure looked at him Noah shivered, it felt as if the man (or at least Noah figured it was a man?) was staring right through him.

"Who are you?" Noah demanded, as he managed to regain himself. "What do you mean by inner realm? Are you talking like the inner realm of the Seals?"

"In a sense, it is similar in some ways but this world is personal to you and you alone. Think of this as the inner sanctum of your very own soul." The man said as he floated towards the boy. "It's good to finally talk to you Jacob, or would you prefer Noah? I can go with either really so it matters not. The first few times you arrived here you weren't ready but after your fight with Hydra you have shown yourself worthy of taking this task."

"I prefer Noah right now, I've just learned what my birth name is so I'm not very comfortable with going by Jacob right now. It might be the name I was born with but I've been Noah for all the life I can remember, it was the name my father gave me." Noah said in a firm tone. "I just need to learn more about my old life before I can feel right being called Jacob." The figure just nodded.

"That makes sense, it's scary isn't it? You've gone all your life going by one name. One gifted to you by someone you loved and cherished and suddenly you find out a name which was given to you at birth by a family you have no memory of. It's hard isn't it? You're going to have to balance your memories, old and new. The person you once were is gone. You are no longer just the innocent child Jacob Reaper or the moody teenage Noah Littlesea. You are a combination of both. A new complete being." He said as he pointed towards the area where the glowing tattoo rune was, covered by Noah's shirt. "That sigil on you is the power you've been granted. It's a special power." Noah just grabbed his arm and looked down at it.

"A sigil?" Noah asked, confused. "Why do I have this power? And who are you? Were you the person who stole my watch back in Eldra?"

"I'm known as R3 or the 'Writer of Reality', I'm one of a group who are known as the No Ones. As for how you gained this power, it's something you will find out yourself. And No, I was not the one who took your watch, that was another of my own. He enjoys causing chaos, you'll meet him again soon enough." The man said as he summoned a table out of nowhere. "But please, sit down, let us talk some more." He said as he summoned two chairs. Noah eyed them warily as they were literally floating but when he saw R3 sit down on one he sighed and sat down on the other and R3 summoned a pot of tea and two cups. "Tea?"

"Um, sure?" He said as he took a cup of tea and when he took a drink he felt his eyes water, this was the same tea his dad would make when he wasn't feeling well. He always loved it and it made his heart hurt as he remembered his dad was gone.

"You okay Noah?" The man asked in a kind tone. Noah didn't say anything at first, just wiping his eyes to hide the tears.

"Where did you get this recipe? My dad made it himself, nobody else should know this. How did you get a hold of it!" Noah shouted out, suddenly angry. "Are you fucking with me!" R3 just sighed but stayed calm, crossing his paws in front of him as he stared down at the boy waiting for him to calm down. It took awhile but Noah managed to get himself back under control. "Just how? I don't understand. My Dad never shared his recipe with anyone, not even me. It should have died with him but you made it. Where did you get the recipe?" Noah asked but the man didn't answer. Figuring that he wouldn't get anything out of the armored man the wolf just let out a frustrated sigh.

"Aren't you a bit too old for pouting Noah?" The figure, R3 teased which made Noah's hackles rise and he couldn't contain the snarl that left his lips. But his attempt at intimidation fell flat as R3 seemed completely nonplussed by Noah's actions, in fact he seemed almost amused. "It takes a lot more than that to phase me child, maybe it will work when you get older but right now you are an adorable pup who has yet to grow into himself." This made Noah blush, he hated being called cute. A lot of the girls called him that and everytime they did so he felt like his balls were going to shrivel up into his body.

'You know, I'm amazed that I hadn't figured out I'm gay earlier...Em was right, it really is fucking obvious.' He thought to himself as he shook his head and refocused on the man before him. "I wasn't pouting." Noah pouted, annoyed at being teased, he hated it when grownups treated him like some idiot, he did plenty good at school. 'Speaking of school...I guess I'm going to be a highschool dropout? That kinda sucks, I didn't even get past 10th grade.'

"You were, but it's okay I find it cute like I said before." R3 said before laughing at the annoyed expression on Noah's face. "Easy Noah, I'm just here to talk. I've been wanting to talk to you for a good while." R3 continued while he casually sipped his tea, which confused Noah as he couldn't see anything of the man's face. It was completely shrouded in the darkness of his helmet. The only thing he could truly make out were his eyes which still unnerved him. Those eyes just seemed wrong somehow and the fact they looked so similar to his own made him very uncomfortable.

"How are you drinking that tea? Do you have a face underneath your helmet?" Noah asked curiously. "It's just, all I can see is your eyes and it's kinda creepy really." Noah stated, feeling a bit awkward. It really was a strange thing. R3 just chuckled and stood up and placed his paws on his helmet and lifted up and when he saw the face underneath, it made Noah's heart shatter all over again. He saw his dad's face. Everything was identical except the eyes, the eyes remained the same creepy blue star-shaped eyes. "Dad!?" Noah shouted out as he stared at the man but the man just shook his head and put his helmet back on to hide the face.

"No, I am not your father. It's a funny quirk of mine, whoever sees my face doesn't see my face. Instead, they see the face of the person they desire the most. That right now would be your lost father," The man said in an understanding tone. "I'm sorry for your loss Noah, it's hard losing someone you care about. You do a good job of hiding your pain but I can see it." The man said as he stared Noah right in the eyes. "Your friends worry about you, after all no child should have gone through what you did." He said as he pointed to the boys chest. "Especially Aidan, he thinks of you as a little brother and worries about you more than anyone." This news made Noah blush.

"He does?" Noah asked shyly, he was a bit embarrassed to admit but he had developed something of a crush on the military wolf. He was quite handsome and very well built in terms of physical fitness and he was also incredibly nice if a bit gruff. But even more than that, he was Noah's savior, he doubted heavily that if he hadn't been with Aidan he wouldn't have even made it to the tent area, let alone survive to help fight Hydra. R3 seemed to pick up on this and let out a small chuckle.

"Yes, he does care about you quite a lot, you remind him of how he was when he was your age." The man said with another deep chuckle. "But you have a lot on your plate don't you? Fighting the Malefactors. They are a dangerous sort I hope you know."

"Wait, you know about them? Can you tell me more about them?" Noah squeaked out, feeling his heart nearly beat out of his chest. "Please, you've got to tell me, any information would help!" Noah hated begging but this was his best chance to talk to someone who knew about the Malefactors. If he could get him to talk it would be invaluable in their fight. "Please, I want to know so I can help stop another Eldra from happening."

"I can't tell you much, it would ruin your story." The man said, his voice sounding almost sad. "That's one thing I refuse to do, is interfere too much with the stories of mortals." Noah just gave him an odd look, having no idea what the man was talking about.

"My story? What the fuck are you talking about? This isn't a book! This is my life and the lives of countless others. What are you anyway!? What the hell is a No One?" Noah asked, getting frustrated from the vagueness.

"In many ways you could view this as a book. A book of your own life, everything you go through winds up in a metaphorical book of life. The first part of your story was lost but is slowly being recovered but what you write in your book from now on is up to you. I cannot interfere directly in it. I am only here because I wanted to see you and talk. But after this I won't interfere directly but I can tell you one thing about the Malefactor, they are incredibly dangerous and powerful but they have been defeated before, and the ones you are dealing with are far weaker than the ones who lost before. They are also led by another Malefactor, one who survived the culling. Be on the watch for him because he is your biggest threat." The man said as he started fading away. This made Noah jump and rush towards him.

"Wait, Where are you going?! Don't leave me here alone!" Noah stated, voice panicked. The man just gave him a small nod.

"I've interfered enough. It was good to see you Noah, I hope you have a good time. I will see you at a later point." The man said as he vanished completely, leaving Noah alone once again in the void.

'Well that was really weird, what was all that about?' Noah thought to himself as he tapped his chin as he continued to float. 'Okay, this was fun but I want to wake up. But how do I do that?' Noah continued to ponder this strange conundrum. Was he stuck here for good? Maybe he should have asked R3 how to get out? 'Maybe I can just click my heels together three times and say I want to go home? Maybe that'll work?' Just as he was about to do exactly that he saw a light in the darkness and a bright white door open several feet in front of him. 'Or some random white door can show up, that'll work.' Noah thought with a shrug as he drifted towards the door and as he passed through, he was a bit confused to see that instead of waking up in his bedroom he found himself in what looked like the entryway of what looked like a nice home. 'Okay, this is weird, I went from some blank void to this place? Things just keep getting odder and odder huh?' He thought to himself as he started walking around, it seemed a decent size, perfect for a family of four or so. 'This is weird, it's as if I've been here before. It feels so familiar.' He continued looking around.

The place seemed empty. He checked several rooms, including a kitchen and a bathroom and what looked like the master bedroom given how large it was; it looked fairly nice and the bed looked quite comfy. He saw a few doors on various sides of the room which he guessed led to closets and presumably the master bath. After getting bored he crept upstairs and saw there were a few more doors. Looking into one he saw it was a bedroom, one that was obviously owned by a young boy given the massive amount of scattered toys and the fact it was messy. But when he walked in he felt a strong feeling of nostalgia. 'Was this my room? Is this my home? The one I lived in before I was taken? How did I get here?' So many thoughts were running through Noah's head that he felt like it was going to explode again.

'Ugh, my head hurts, why am I here? Is this a memory?' He asked himself as he slowly picked himself up from the floor but briefly stumbled a bit, still woozy from the headache but he quickly managed to regain his footing. Once he was sure that he wasn't going to fall flat on his face he started exiting the room and right as he exited it he heard some noise downstairs which piqued his interest. 'That's interesting,' I thought I checked downstairs. 'Maybe people are here.' Being as careful as possible he crept downstairs and saw a door open, one that he had somehow managed to miss. As he crept close he heard talking which piqued his interest even more so he peeked inside to see a father and son snuggled up together on the couch reading a book. The boy looked around seven and his bright blond hair was a bit messy and when he smiled, Noah noticed he was missing a tooth. He looked absolutely adorable...and he looked exactly like him.

'Wait, that's me...does that mean that wolf is...'

"Hey papa, can I have some brownies? I'm hungry!" The boy whined out, looking away from the book and towards his father who gazed down at him with a generous smile. He was a rather small man, a bit shorter than Noah and he seemed quite lean. But his bright smile warmed Noah's heart. A smile he just now remembered and his heart broke. This was his papa, the man who helped give him life, he had forgotten about him and that hurt. He had lost two fathers in his life.

"You may have one, and only one Jacob. Your mom won't be happy if you spoil your dinner you know." The man said as he mused up the boy's already messy hair.

"Why couldn't I go with Mommy and Rex to the store?" The boy asked with a pout which made the man chuckle and muse up his hair even more.

"Because your mother didn't want to deal with both a seven year old and a twelve year old at a clothing store. She'll take you out tomorrow so you can get your clothes."

"I can't wait!" The boy said excitedly as he giggled to himself.

"I bet you can't, you'll be in second grade now you are growing up!" The man said as he started tickling the boy, making him squeal in laughter. This made Noah smile, he looked so happy, this was what he had before he was taken? Not that he would ever trade the time he spent with his dad for anything but it was still a bitter pill to swallow. But his dad was murdered right? Why was he seeing this memory? This couldn't be could it? His heart dropped when he heard some banging on the door which made the man, his papa frown.

"That's strange, your mother would have called me before she got here if she needed help, and I wasn't expecting company today." Isaac said as he patted the boy on his head. "Stay here Jacob, it's probably just some of those damn missionaries, I thought I told them not to bother us anymore." The man muttered as he got up from the couch and walked into the foyer. Noah briefly panicked, afraid the man would discover him but the man just went right through him as if he wasn't even there.

'Oh this makes sense, this is just a memory, I am just an observer so I can only watch.' Noah turned his head to look towards his pops as he reached the door. First thing he did was look through the peephole and Noah saw the man give a confused frown as he unlocked and opened the door.

"Who are you?" Isaac asked as he partially opened the door eyeing the figure on the other side. "What are you doing here and why are you dressed like that?" He said, his voice dripping with suspicion. Noah snuck up to get a view. Even though he knew he wouldn't be detected, he was still a bit cautious about getting too close but as he got closer to the man and the door he saw a tall masked man standing on the other side. He couldn't make out anything about the figure as everything was covered and when he spoke his voice was masked by a modulator so his voice sounded outright robotic and it sent a chill down his spine.

"Isaac Reaper, I've come to see you about the events that happened in Graesham, regarding the events that happened with your son." The masked man said as he pushed passed the smaller canine, ignoring his protests.

"This is private property! And I already talked everything over with Conway, he gave us the clear to leave so get out of my house and go away!" Isaac snarled, he looked like he was ready to fight the man even though he was obviously outmatched. The man just shook his head as he walked right up to Isaac and grabbed his arm and bent it which made Isaac yell out in pain as he dropped to his knees. "Your son came into contact with a very important artifact that MODD was keeping in Graeham. Commander Galloway was out of line for allowing the boy to go without authorization with the higher-ups. I have come to collect the boy and take him so we can look into the effects his contact with the artifact had on him." He said, his voice as cold and robotic as ever.

"I don't want to hurt you Reaper, you are an invaluable asset to MODD with your research and I've been ordered to leave you alive if possible and I don't want any trouble. Just hand your son over and MODD will take good care of him." The man said in an almost pleading tone. Isaac however didn't budge, instead he managed to fight through his pain and got back up on his feet glaring at the man.

"I am NOT giving you my son! I don't care what you do to me, you are not going to lay a single finger on him!" He said as started pushing the man out of the door. The mystery man was caught off-guard by this and was nearly pushed out the door before he caught himself and grabbed the other man by the scruff of his neck and threw him across the room. The mystery man then brushed himself off and sighed.

"I don't want to hurt you, just hand over the child and I will leave you be. You have a wife and another child do you not? Do you want to leave them alone?" The man said but what else he was going to say was cut off when a tiny voice rang from the other room.

"Papa...who is this man? Why is he hurting you?" Noah turned around rapidly to see his younger self standing in the door glaring at the man. The mystery man looked towards the boy and he spoke, his robotic voice seemingly amused.

"Well, it's the man of the hour. Good to finally meet you Jacob, your father and I are having a little disagreement. I want to take you on a little trip but your father is most opposed to it." The man said. The little Jacob just frowned, looking between his father who was gasping and trying to get himself off the floor and the mysterious stranger who had hurt his papa.

"I don't believe you." The boy said, glaring at the man as his tiny paws were balled up into fists. "You hurt my papa so you are a bad guy! Go away or I'll beat you up!" The boy said which made the mystery man chuckle sadly.

"You got spirit, I'll give you that kiddo. But I can't leave without you, so please I beg you. Just come, your dad will be fine as will your family." The man said pleading once more, it was clear to Noah that this man was desperate. He seemed terrified of what would happen if he failed. What exactly he feared was a mystery but the desperation was still palpable.

"I don't wanna go with you." The boy said with a defiant pout. "I wanna stay here with Papa, Mommy and Rex. Besides, I was told never to go anywhere with a stranger." He said as he walked up towards his Papa and tried to help him up. The mystery man gave a frustrated sigh at this and walked up towards the boy and grabbed him by the arm, painfully making the boy yell out in pain as Noah himself winced and rubbed the same spot as if he was feeling the pain himself.

"Stop struggling, I don't want to hurt you kid." The man said in a frustrated tone as he tried to grab the kid by the waist to drag him out forcefully but before he could do so he felt something heavy around his leg. Looking down he saw Isaac had managed to wake up and grab him by his ankle.

"You aren't going anywhere...let my son go!" Isaac pleaded as he held on as tight as he could. "Just leave us be, why are you doing this?" He cried out as he clinged onto the man. The mystery man tried to move but the skinny wolf man kept holding on, being fueled by adrenaline.

"Let me go!" The mysterious man shouted as he struggled to get the wolf off of him while struggling to keep a grip on the struggling child who was doing his best to get away. Noah just watched, unable to do anything as he was just an observer but he had a feeling he knew what was coming. This was how he was taken, and how his papa was killed and as much as he wanted to look away he knew he couldn't, he had to see this. If only out of respect for his papa. Eventually he got too distracted by the elder wolf and his grabbing that he loosened his grip on the child who bit the man's hand, causing him to let out a scream as he forcefully let the boy go which caused the boy to be able to try and run away. "Godamnit!" The man shouted almost exasperated at all that was going on.

"Leave us alone!" The boy shouted as he made sure to get out of the man's grab radius. This made the man snarl in frustration.

"I didn't think this would be so much trouble." The man muttered angrily as he took out a gun from his pocket and aimed it at the older wolf. "Don't make me shoot you Reaper, just let me go and let me take the boy and you will live. I don't want to kill you, but I will if I have to." The man said coldly as he looked towards the determined wolf.

"I don't care what you do to me intruder but I swear I will not let you take my boy!" Issaac shouted as he gripped himself tighter around the man's ankle. "Please just leave us alone, don't take away my boy. I'll do anything, just don't take my son, he's just a child." Isaac cried as he begged the man for mercy. The man looked torn, though Noah couldn't see his face he could tell he was torn by his body language.

"I can't, I'm sorry but I can't just leave without the boy, I got a family of my own to look after." The man said, his voice sad as he aimed his gun right at the man. "I'm so sorry, but I have to do this. If I don't, my own family will suffer." He said, his voice still seeped in regret. "May you find peace in the afterlife if there is one Isaac Reaper, I'm sorry it came to this. If we had met on better circumstances I am sure we would have been on good friends." He said before he pulled the trigger, sending a metallic bullet right between the wolf's eyes. Those eyes widened in shock, as if surprised at being shot before they went dull and his body limp.

"Papa!" the little version of Noah shouted as he ran up to the man. Noah himself could only look on with shock. He had just seen his birth father, the man who had taken part in his creation shot dead right in front of him. He could only watch as his younger self cried over the man's dead body, shaking him and begging him to get up. But he knew he wouldn't, he had known the end of this story before he even saw it. But the boy didn't stop as he cried over the man. The Mystery man just stood there, watching the boy cry over his father for several minutes before he sighed. He gripped the boy by the shoulder and lifted him up which caused the boy to flail wildly in an attempt to get loose.

"Stand still will you?" The man exclaimed in frustration as he struggled to keep a grip on the boy.

"You killed my papa! You are horrible!" The boy cried out as he tried to hit the man but he wasn't strong enough to phase the man much.

"I know I'm horrible, and selfish. I killed a man and destroyed a family to protect my own, I deserve your hatred." The man said cooly before he hit the boy on the head, knocking him out. Once he was sure he had everything under control he took out a phone and dialed a number and waited for a few seconds before speaking. "It's Sharp, I got the target, unfortunately it resulted in the death of Isaac Reaper. What do I do now?" He asked and waited for several moments, obviously listening to whoever was on the other end, though Noah couldn't hear what the other person was saying. The man kept nodding as he listened and finally once the other person was done talking he spoke again. "Very well then, I'll take him to the drop-off point. When I do that you will free my wife right? Like we agreed upon?" There was another nod and he sighed before exiting the door, looking back towards the dead body of the wolf who fought so hard to protect his child.

"You have my respect, I'm so sorry it came to this Reaper, may you find peace in the afterlife." The man said as he exited the building with the unconscious boy, leaving Noah all alone with the corpse of the man who used to be his papa. He looked towards the man and knelt down next to him.

"I forgot about you, I forgot your sacrifice. I'm so sorry, I wish I remembered you before I saw this." Noah said as he felt tears flow down his cheeks. "I miss you papa." He muttered as he tried to keep himself together.

"It's okay, young one, it's okay to cry." A familiar voice stated from behind him which made him twirl around to see a tall wolf in a robe. "It's good to see you again."

"Oh, Thanatos, how are you?" Noah asked, surprised to see the figure. "I wanted to thank you for helping me back in Eldra, if it wasn't for you we would have never defeated Hydra." Noah said as he got up and approached the man, looking back briefly towards the body. "He didn't suffer did he?" He asked, hoping the man wasn't in pain as he passed. Thanatos just shook his head and patted the boy on the head which caught him by surprise. "Wait, you can touch me, but I guess that makes sense doesn't it? You aren't part of this memory either are you?"

"No I am not, I am here because you are." The man said. "But no he didn't suffer, it was instant." Thanatos said as he looked towards the man. "At most he just felt regret that he wasn't able to save you." The man said as he brushed a paw against Noah's cheek. "He loved you dearly boy. And the fact you found some happiness and security would warm his heart." Noah just sighed and snuggled into the man's paw as the man hugged him close. "You will need to wake up soon, but I'm sorry you had to see this but at the same time I think you needed to see this. Your memories will slowly come back to you as time goes on, some memories will be painful like this and others will be happy but you will be able to do this, I have faith in you."

"Thanks..." Was all Noah could say as he blushed at the praise and slowly, things started fading away. Soon enough he started to vanish into darkness. The last thing he saw was Thanatos waving him goodbye.

///

Noah was startled awake by his body being shaken and when he saw Aidan above him. "Ai-Aidan?" He asked, confused. "Why are you shaking me?" He asked as he shoved the man off of him. Aidan looked relieved as he backed away a bit.

"Sorry, you were seizing again and I was worried, seizures are dangerous after all. I lost a friend in the academy from a seizure attack, I didn't want it to happen to you." The man said as he patted Noah's hair. "What happened though? Did you have another memory flash?" He asked curiously, Noah just nodded. "What did you see? You don't have to answer if you don't want to." Aidan said politely. "But I am curious, I've never seen a case like yours, so it's a bit fascinating really." He admitted, Noah just nodded, it was indeed a fascinating thing. His dad was apparently working on some compound that would erase memories and he had used it when he took Noah from wherever MODD had him at. He gave him a chance to forget his trauma and live as a normal kid.

"It is crazy right? I am slowly regaining my memories of my old life, I saw how my papa died. He did his best to protect me and he died for it." Noah said as he rubbed his arm where the man had grabbed him for so long ago. "I feel awful for forgetting him, he did everything he could to protect me and I forgot him." Noah said sadly. "I wonder how my life would have turned out if I had never been taken from my parents. I would have never met my dad and I would have never met Emily or her family. But I would have made other friends, I would have been Jacob Reaper and not Noah Littlesea."

"We might have never met either, or if we had it would have been in very different circumstances." Aidan said with a sad smile. "But no matter what, I'm glad we got to meet, even if it was under less than stellar circumstances." Aidan said as he rubbed the boy on the head. "You are pretty incredible, you were the entire reason we managed to defeat Hydra back in Eldra. You and your crazy powers." Noah could only blush from the praise.

"Thanks Aidan...it means a lot, I'm glad I got the chance to meet you as well." He said as he looked towards his elder. "You saved my life, I would probably have died with my father back in Eldra. Jerome might have died as well." He said with a small smile, remembering the feline, he wondered if he had reached the Academy yet?

"He might have, but he's a tough kid, you wouldn't know it but he was on the gunnery team at school. He's pretty good with a gun but then again, his dad had him around them for his entire life, much to his wife's chagrin." Aidan said with a chuckle. "But I had a feeling he would join the academy eventually. I was actually surprised when he didn't try to join when he turned sixteen like most guys his age and like I did back in the day. But I guess things just clicked in his head after what happened."' Aidan said as he rubbed his chin. "He'll certainly stand out with that pink hair though but I doubt he will have to worry about bullies much, his dad didn't raise a pushover I can tell you that." Noah just nodded.

"So he and your sister Aria were classmates right? A year ahead of me. So you must have grown up with him, were you two close? Being sons of the top men in the entire country's MODD branch?" Aidan just chuckled and shook his head, smiling cheerfully as he spoke.

"I guess, he was always over at my house hanging out with Aria so we saw a lot of each other, he was always a cute kid really and I was sure it broke a lot of girls hearts when he came out as gay. His father was happy for him but you should have seen his face when Jerome came down to breakfast with pink hair." Aidan said with a deep charming chunkle. "Guy almost had a heart attack." Noah just nodded and chuckled with the other wolf. He had wondered about the pink hair the feline had sported but between them fucking each others brains out and the general chaos of dealing with the aftermath had left him unable to ask.

'I was wondering about that, do you know what made him decide to go ahead and dye it that color? It really did stick out even if it looked good on him." Aidan just chuckled and shrugged his broad shoulders gently.

"I honestly don't know, never cared to ask him honestly. I just figured he just wanted to make a statement. From what Aria said, his teachers weren't happy but he wasn't breaking any actual rules so they couldn't really do anything."

"What about the MODD Academy? Will they allow him to keep his hair?"

"Yeah, the academy is pretty lax about that stuff, despite being a military school. MODD allows a lot of freedom in how soldiers express themselves as long as it doesn't interfere with their duties. I mean, the MODD armed forces aren't officially a military organization. Those were disbanded with the Treaty of Shellington after all so they have lax standards than a true military would." Noah just nodded. He had remembered the Treaty of Shellington back in school. It was the treaty that ended the bloody Rillotia-Weleshna War.

Around a century ago Weleshna, in desperation, invaded the coastal areas that boarded the two countries. The desert country was facing both a massive economic crisis plus a nasty famine. Lots of people were killed, especially once the Rillotian military forced the invading army back to Weleshna. It got so bad that the world council was forced to step in and MODD, who recently founded their own military forces was asked to step in. Within the year both countries were forced to demilitarize and a year after that the Treaty of Shellington was passed which resulted in the complete demilitarization of all nations who signed the treaty which was replaced by MODD's own forces. This treaty of course was extremely controversial but the bloody aftermath of the war was still fresh so it eventually died down.

This was part of the reason MODD had become so powerful. Since countries were literally dependent on them for protection they were able to do a lot more than they would be able to do otherwise and this gave way to the multitude of Anti-MODD militia groups throughout Mortaelis. "What do you think about the treaty?" Noah asked in a curious tone. Aidan let out a sharp shrug and let out a low murmur before he spoke, his voice soft.

"Given I work for MODD I don't have any real right to say anything for them. After all, if it wasn't for the treaty I wouldn't have a job." He said calmly. "I honestly don't know what my family would have done if not for the treaty. We would have probably worked for the country's military maybe but I doubt we would be living in Eldra." He continued, still seemingly nonchalant. "But honestly part of me wonders if things would be better if countries still had their own militaries. MODD pretty much controls everything now. I mean, there are other businesses that MODD allows to keep an illusion of competition but none of them are big enough to really challenge MODD. And the various anti-MODD militias are too busy fighting against each other to really do any damage to MODD. A few have tried to attack Eldra a few times but they were quickly dealt with." Noah just nodded, listening to the man intently.

"I always thought it was a bad thing. It didn't stop wars, it just made MODD even more of a monopoly." The boy said sadly. "It's kinda scary that one company has so much power. Even our Governments bend over backwards to appease them, no matter what the populace says. And they employ so many people it would be catastrophic. If they do fall apart it would wipe out the entire world economy." Aidan just grinned and patted Noah on his head and chuckled.

"You're pretty smart kiddo, I'm impressed." The man said cheerfully. "Yeah, it would be bad if MODD collapsed. I don't think the anti-MODD militias realize what would happen if they actually took MODD out. It would be anarchy but I'm pretty sure it's what a few of those militias want honestly." He said with a shrug.

"I heard about one militia called Inquisition, they were behind those terrorist attacks in the Capital of Welishna a few years ago. I heard they worship the Silent Lady of the Tribals of Oxis, is that true?" Aidan just snarled at the mention before he nodded.

"Yup, they were also the group that attacked Eldra when I was a kid. They were the ones who killed my mom." Aidan said sadly before letting out a rueful chuckle.

"And don't bring up Inquisition around Commander Custler, he gets pretty upset whenever they are brought up. It's quite entertaining to see the big guy rant." Noah just nodded, he knew who the man was talking about. The Commander was the EL of Lightning and was a Tribal of Oxis and thus still lived the old ways. He was an impressive figure if Noah was honest, he had been a common wank fantasy whenever Noah needed inspiration though he was still too embarrassed to say anything about that.

"I would bet it would piss him off." Noah admitted, he wasn't a particularly religious person himself but he could only imagine if he was and he saw someone use that to justify their violence. He would be furious, so he felt that Tribal Commander was justified with fury. But being so close to the wolf made Noah's heart beat fast. Aidan was his first true crush and he wanted to tell the wolf but he wasn't sure how the other would react. The age difference was one thing, plus he wasn't sure if the man would be interested in him but he felt like it was worth the risk so taking a breath he started to speak.

"Um Aidan, I want to say something." He asked, blushing brightly, being very much grateful for his dark fur. The older wolf just regarded him curiously before silently nodding to bid him on. But right as Noah was going to open his mouth, a frantic looking Flint rushed into the room gasping. They both regarded him with a confused look as he regained his breath. After a minute he managed to regain it and start to speak and the words he spoke froze Noah's blood in horror.

"Crosstown has been attacked by Inquisition, we got to get there fast!" Flint shouted and with that, Noah let out a gasp before he fainted from shock.