"Welcome home, child..."
A fond whisper, parting from the lips of his mother, that he never would have expected. He knew his mother despised failures more than half the things in the world.
Yet here she was, welcoming him with a soft, affectionate voice. How ironic...
But obviously, he didn't buy it as he immediately kneeled down on the floor, on the red carpet, apologizing from the deepest pits of his heart.
"I am sorry, Mother... I am sorry that I failed... I am sorry that I couldn't kill him... I am sorry... for being the disappointment I am..."
His sapphire eyes were trembling, tears pricking their corners as they were locked with the dust motes of the carpet.
His voice was a quiet, quivering mess, his throat gulping anxiously every now and then.
He couldn't even look up at his mother's desk, let alone face her completely. And without a doubt, Likho knew it, despite having her back turned to him.
The room was brimmed up with the smell of smoke and ash, golden lights shining dimly from the fancy lamps.
Glaz was standing a couple of steps behind Chaos, her face slowly clouding up with distress as seeing her precious little brother in such a state was the last thing she wanted to do.
But of course, she didn't have a choice. She couldn't really do anything about it. This was their mother after all. And she had gone through the same thing herself in her early days.
So why bother? This was a path Chaos needed to walk alone anyway. And this path would indisputably be a benefit for him in the near future, just as it did with her.
Even so, she couldn't help but wonder what she would have given away to have the chance of accompanying her beloved brother.
Her face, however, switched from concern to curiosity when Likho stood up from her seat, pronouncing a word that she rarely, if ever, used for failures.
"Rise."
And without even wasting a second, the young blond obeyed, standing up from the floor, his eyes never leaving the redness of the carpet underneath his feet.
The woman was a giant, possessing a staggering height of 6'5, easily making her the tallest person in the room, if not the entire building.
Silky, golden hair, much like her son's, was tied into a strict ponytail, leaving her bangs to drift softly against her brows.
Burnt, sharp scars ran across her porcelain skin like the jagged edges of a shattered window, a testament to the harsh treatment she had to experience from her past life.
But even with all those fleshy, wrinkly scars, Likho looked just as majestic as ever, a goddess that never had the chance to shine her beauty.
Her lips were plump with the silky texture of her crimson lipstick and her shoulders were broad, just as much as a professional bodybuilder's.
Her eyes were sapphire blue, matching his own, and her attire was red—just like the suit Chaos had left behind at the facility.
"You are not a disappointment... You would have been one if you didn't make it out alive. But you did. And that... is enough."
Stepping towards the young blond, Likho spoke in a calm, lingering voice before placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Look at me, child."
The soft yet stern command was enough for the young killer to immediately look up at his mother, despite the fear that was built up in his heart for her.
A pause of silence washed over the conversation as Likho and Chaos locked their eyes onto one another, their focus narrowing deeply on their matching irises and nothing else.
Likho's height was a sharp contrast to the young killer's short stature, allowing her to tower over him with intimidating ease.
Her eyes portrayed no emotions whatsoever, much like her son's usual expression. But this time, Chaos' eyes were different—wide and vulnerable, like those of an anxious puppy.
With a soft, warm kiss on his forehead, Likho pulled the young blond to her bosom, petting his head with love and affection that she reserved for Chaos alone and no one else.
"You did good..."
And that murmur of approval was all it took for the young killer to melt in her embrace, fading away all the unspoken fears he had of her.
Nothing else around him mattered anymore, for his mother's love and validation had always been his first and foremost necessity.
A necessity that had been meticulously placed in his mind by Likho herself, for his life held no meaning, no purpose to serve other than to obey for the affection of his family.
Watching this unexpected interaction, Glaz was pleasantly surprised, as this was the complete opposite of what their mother used to do to those who failed their tasks.
But she was also well aware of the rumor that Chaos was among Likho's favorites and that she was going easy on him.
Needless to say, that rumor was not true in the finest of ways possible, for her favorites always had the worst.
Glaz, however, had something different in her mind. The rumor was not entirely false either, since that was the only explanation she could give as to why their mother was so strict about Chaos' training, yet so loving when he used to fail.
Likho... saw herself in Chaos. And if that was the case, if that was truly the case, then it would all make sense, why he had blond hair, why his eyes were sapphire blue, why she took him in that night in Moscow.
"Go take a shower, child."
Likho spoke, her russian tongue a gentle whisper, giving Chaos one last pat on the head before cupping his padded wound.
"And have your wounds tended. They would not look good once we visit our clients."
"Who are we visiting, Mother?"
Chaos questioned in response, matching his mother's native tongue and tilting his head to lean more into her gentle touch like a pet cat.
"Mr. Smirnov."
The mother stated, her voice firm yet delicate as she crossed the room to her seat, taking a slow sip of whiskey from the glass waiting on her desk.
Bowing obediently, Chaos did not prolong the conversation any further, turning around to face his sister before taking a few slow steps towards her.
Glaz gave a warm, tender smile, cupping her little brother's face as he came within her reach. She planted a soft kiss on his forehead before intertwining her fingers with his.
As the siblings exited the room, Chaos took one final glance at his mother, who was already leaning back in the swivel chair, lighting up a cigar for her to smoke.
.....
.....
.....
"168 cm as always."
A feminine voice rose in the rusty locker room as Chaos stood beside a measuring tape, his bare back pinned against the cold wall.
He was half-naked, wearing only his trunks and nothing else, revealing all the bluish-black bruises on his body from the bullets that slammed into his kevlar suit.
"So what is that? Like 5'6?"
Glaz asked casually, her eyes filling with concern as they darted from one of his bruises to another.
"Pretty much, yeah."
The brown-haired woman answered, raising her eyebrows up as she wrapped up the measuring tape.
"How tall is Mother again?"
Another voice cut through the locker room, this time more masculine and dryer than the first.
"I don't know. Like... 190 or something?"
Answering with a shrug, the woman put the wrapped tape in her pocket before moving a bit for the man to reach Chaos.
"195."
Sila spoke from the corner of the room, his arms folded across his chest as he stepped towards the lockers.
"Mmh. She's like 6'5, right?"
The woman asked again, glancing at Sila as her colleague placed a weight machine in front of Chaos.
"Yeah."
Sila nodded at her before directing his eyes at his little brother, inspecting the bruises with a look of disappointment.
"God, how many times did you get shot?"
Hearing that, Glaz immediately glared at her elder brother, ready to call him out again just as she had in the van.
"Sila..."
The bearded man took a glance at the eye-patched woman, letting out an annoyed whiff as he scoffed derisively.
"What? I'm just asking."
He then turned to Chaos, repeating his question as the young blond stepped up on the weight machine.
"How many times did you get shot?"
"7 times."
Chaos answered casually, looking down on his scarred, youthful body as he spotted out the bruises from the gunshots.
Sila, on the other hand, did not have it at all as he snapped, yelling at his little brother without any plans of stopping.
"7 times!? Fuckin' 7 times!!? You gotta be fucking kidding me, Khaos-"
"Sila."
Glaz hissed his name again, glaring at him as she stepped towards the young blond, wrapping an arm around his neck protectively.
Watching this, the bearded man sighed, speaking in a quieter yet firm tone.
"You're lucky your sister's here to save you. Because 7 times is fuckin' insane. How are you going to step up the ranks if bullets can touch you this many times?"
The young blond's face did not shift from the usual cold, blank expression but deep down he knew he had failed. So he just kept his head low, his blue eyes fixing on the concrete floor.
Sila crossed his arms, tilting his head slightly as he looked at the light abrasions on Chaos' abdomen.
"And not only just bullets cuz apparently you got punched in the stomach with brass knuckles, didn't you?"
"It was a shattered mug."
Chaos corrected quietly under his breath, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground as Glaz pulled him tighter, still glaring at the bearded man.
"Of course, it was... Open his fuckin' gauze pad and treat his wound."
Giving one final sigh, Sila tossed the order to the woman with the measuring tape before walking towards the exit, glancing at Glaz one last time.
"And stop fucking looking at me like that."
"I can look at you however the fuck I want."
Glaz shot back immediately, her piercing gaze still locked on the bearded man as he stepped towards the door.
When Sila left the locker room, Glaz didn't wait for even a second, turning to her little brother and giving his cheek a soft kiss as she spoke in a low, loving hum.
"Don't listen to that moron, Love. You did good. Even Mother said it. And her words are always final."
Chaos looked up at his sister, his drowsy eyes wide and innocent as he blinked, forming a faint curve on his lips.
He nodded, dropping his gaze once more as he allowed the woman to peel away the wet, blood-soaked gauze.
"Ooh, that's gonna leave a nasty scar."
The staff woman stated, furrowing her eyebrows as she took the crimson-stained pad in her hands.
"Was it the mug too?"
Glaz asked, tilting her head to look at the blackish-red slashes, causing Chaos to answer with only a small nod.
"Mhm."
She smiled, lingering for a moment before stepping back, speaking to her colleagues with a firmer tone.
"Alright, treat his wounds and clean him up."
Turning to Chaos one last time, Glaz took his hand, planting a kiss to his knuckles before remarking with the same low, loving voice.
"I am gonna go now, Love. Mother told me to prepare the family for her lecture. But you can always call me if you need anything."
And with that, she disappeared through the door, leaving Chaos alone with the coldness of the locker room and the familiar care of the staff...