West’s expression darkened slightly, realizing that something was seriously off with that time frame. Two weeks ago was before Zu Li even mentioned anything.

"...And the apartment?"

The man flinched slightly.

"I—I heard sounds..."

"When?"

"...Midnight. Yesterday."

West’s eyes flickered.

"I swear I don’t know what’s going on!" the man rushed out. "I didn’t even know her properly! Maybe—maybe she pissed off someone important or something—!"

He paused slightly before adding; "...But she was already gone."

"Long before... whatever happened in there."

West straightened with a look of understanding.

"...I see."

Without another word, he turned and walked away.

The man stood in place waiting for some sort of punishment but nothing happened.

There was no sudden attack or any sort of retaliation like he had expected.

West simply... left...

"...I’m alive..."

The man collapsed back against his doorway, trembling.

"...I’m actually alive..."

He was in utter disbelief because awakened folks didn’t usually spare people even at the slightest bit of misdemeanor.

West returned to the elevator and soon arrived outside.

His mind churned with thoughts as he tried dissecting the situation. His mother had been gone for two weeks before Zu Li even made a move.

"...So what were you running from?"

Because West could clearly see that it wasn’t them...

He reached the car waiting for him and jumped in after opening the door.

He proceeded to pull out his phone and check that number that had been messaging him.

He stared at it for a moment before unblocking it. Afterwards, he dialed the number but yhe call didn’t go through.

West frowned slightly. "...Switched numbers?"

His thumb scrolled, checking through his messages... unsurprisingly, he found other unknown numbers with similar short texts.

His eyes narrowed. "...You’ve truly been switching numbers."

He found the most recent one and dialed.

This time the call went through, so he waited while it rang multiple times.

Click~

The line suddenly connected but West didn’t speak immediately, neither did the other side.

A drawn silence ensued for numerous seconds before a soft voice finally rang out from the other end.

"...West?"

His grip on the phone tightened slightly.

"...Is that you, son?"

The silence on the line stretched thin, like a wire pulled too tight.

West didn’t answer still but his grip around the phone tightened slightly.

"Who is this?" after a while, he finally asked without a hint of emotion in his voice.

There was a faint exhale from the other end.

"...It’s your mother."

The words were heavy buut West didn’t flinch.

"I don’t have one," he responded flatly.

On the other end, there was no anger or defensiveness... only a quiet sigh was heard.

"...I don’t blame you for that reaction."

West’s eyes narrowed. "I don’t even know if you’re the real deal."

"...It’s me," she said softly. "It truly is, my son."

"Stop calling me that," West stated with a clearly irritated tone.

"I’m sorry... but it truly is me... your biological mother."

A pause followed after her statement before West spoke again.

"Where is my birthmark?"

"...Behind your left ear."

"Hidden. Small. You used to hate when I tried to check it because it tickled."

West’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"...What happened on my tenth birthday?"

There was a brief pause before an answer came. "You knocked over a kettle."

Her voice softened slightly.

"Hot water spilled on your leg. You cried for hours... even after the burn was treated."

West said nothing.

"Your dad panicked more than you did," she added quietly. "He nearly slipped trying to carry you."

However, West’s questions didn’t stop there. He asked other personal things from memories buried deep.

And she answered every single one accurately.

By the time he stopped, there was no doubt left... it was definitely his mother.

West exhaled slowly. "...Fine... I’ll hear you out."

There was the faintest hint of relief from the other end.

"Son—"

"Don’t," his tone sharpened instantly. "Don’t call me that."

"...Alright," she replied in a tone that carried some sadness.

He leaned back slightly against the car door. "I’m giving you one chance to explain what’s going on."

"That research facility."

"That ruin."

"What were you involved in?"

"...I wish I could explain over the phone," she voiced with a hurried tone.

West’s eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I can’t stay on this call long," she lowered her voice. "It’s dangerous. They’re tracking signals... watching movements."

West’s expression darkened. "They?"

"...We need to meet," his mother stated.

"Where?" West inquired.

"I was supposed to leave Equivon City already..." she continued with a terrified voice. "But it’s not that simple. There are eyes everywhere."

Her breathing intensified slightly. "...I need your help."

West’s gaze hardened as a faint vibration came from his phone.

A message with an address came in next.

There was a timer on it that displayed;

Self-destruct: 60 seconds.

"...You’ve got to be kidding me."

The seconds ticked down, giving West barely enough time to memorize it.

40 seconds.

30...

31...

22..

10...

3...

2...

1...

The message vanished immediately after the timer counted down completely.

West immediately turned toward the driver and gave him the address.

—

The journey was anything but straightforward.

The address didn’t lead to a clean road or a mapped destination... it led... off... deeper away from structure and order.

The paved roads eventually gave way to rough terrain, leaving the city fading behind them as the environment transformed into something far more isolated... dirt paths, narrow trails and branches scraping against the sides of the vehicle.

At some point, even the driver slowed...

"...Sir... this route..."

"Keep going."

West’s tone left no room for discussion.

The deeper they went, the more the terrain changed.

Soon swamps and patches of shallow water reflecting the dimming sky could be seen all around them... Alongside these were trees thick enough to block out most of the remaining light.

The car eventually couldn’t go any further.

"We stop here."

West stepped out into the damp air causing the scent of wet earth and decay to linger faintly.

"...I’ll go on foot."

The driver nodded while West moved forward, following the final stretch of the path.

Branches snapped softly beneath his steps as the sound of distant insects filled the silence.

Finally, he spotted a worn out shack in the distance nestled within the trees like it didn’t want to be found.

West slowed slightly, scanning the surroundings with his heightened senses.

He couldn’t spot any immediate threat but there was no doubt that someone was there waiting.

A figure stepped forward and then, he spotted her.

Time seemed slow as his mother fully came into view.

Surprisingly, she barely looked older than the last time he saw her which was over five years ago.

Except for barely aging, she looked exhausted.

Those same eyes that used to have so much warmth and care in them, locked onto him.

And in that moment, a melancholic feeling settled heavily in the air.

She took a small step forward and lifted her hand slightly.

"...West..."

She wanted to touch him just once... to confirm that he was real but West stepped back immediately.

The distance between them extended as West spoke. "I’m not here for a mother-son reunion. You’re undeserving of that."

His voice was cold and detached causing her hand to slowly lower as a flicker of pain passed through her eyes.

"...I understand," she didn’t try arguing, she could only accept it.

West glanced at her before speaking again. "You have five minutes to explain what’s going on..."

"And to convince me why I shouldn’t hand you over to the Dragon Fang Gang."

She nodded in acceptance before turning around. "...Come inside."

West followed after her, entering into the shack.

The shack was simple... nothing about it suggested comfort which wasn’t surprising since it was a temporary location.

She gestured lightly for West to seat before offering; "Tea?"

"Don’t waste my time," West didn’t even bother sitting. "Begin." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

She nodded slowly and took a breath before beginning.

"...It started years ago."

"The research project... wasn’t supposed to be what it became."

West’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"We were scientists," she continued. "Researchers. Working under a private consortium... Frankincense..."

She paused briefly before continuing. "...The goal was simple... enhancement."

West listened without interrupting, wanting to get every detail.

"Not the kind you’re thinking," she added quickly. "It wasn’t about turning people into monsters."

Her gaze darkened slightly. "It was about evolution."

"Controlled growth."

"Awakened capabilities without the risks."

West’s expression remained unchanged.

"But..."

A faint, bitter smile touched her lips. "...someone wanted more... someone got too greedy..."

Her eyes lifted to meet his. "And that’s when everything changed."

Her fingers tightened slightly around the edge of the small wooden table as she continued.

"It started as a collaboration. A controlled environment where we could explore enhancement without... crossing certain lines."

"But then," she continued, "the government found out because of a blabber mouth colleague who was unsatisfied with our budget..."

Her gaze lowered briefly. "And once they stepped in... everything changed."

West’s eyes narrowed slightly. "They didn’t shut it down?"

"No." A bitter smile appeared on her face. "They overtook it."