Brock stared up to the ceiling and sunk into his hospital bed a little further. Three months. Three. That was all he had left until he died, and even then, it was only an estimate. According to the doctor, if he got seriously injured and ‘strained his lifeforce’, it’d be even shorter.

It was rather comedic, he felt. He’d survived a fall from a building, survived being torn in half, survived the jungle, the Sky Bandit, even Gor’eth Kung, yet now, he was going to wither away slowly and croak it. Honestly, it all felt like a bad joke. Heaving out a breath, Brock glanced around the room, looking for something to distract him.

Doctor Zane and everyone else had left half an hour ago, per his request. He had felt that he needed some time alone, needed some time to just think and reflect. They had all left with long hugs or tearful goodbyes, and it only served to make his heart tighten. He was going to leave all these people behind.

They were going to mourn for him, cry for him. The mere thought that both Carrie and Jane would have to deal with the pain of his death a second time made him want to vomit. The thought was sickening to him.

That aside, Brock was left wondering; wondering what to do now. Any personal achievements he made, whether in levels or Augments, would be pointless in a few months’ time. Sure, there had been evidence that an increase in race levels seemed to prolong one’s lifespan to a degree, but it was rather minimal.

He could roam around and help people, but he was weakened considerably. He knew his family – his new one - would much rather he had a peaceful death on a bed than one where he was ripped to pieces because of his own weakness. At least with the former, there’d be a body to bury.

Did he have any regrets? That was his next thought, and he considered it for a long while.

Nah.

He had saved lives, and he’d done his best at every turn. The only regret he had was not being able to say goodbye to his mother, but there was a pretty high chance that Jane’s shadow troop would find their mother in the three months he had left to live, so he was fine with it for now. He had wanted to visit another Source, but in his current condition, he didn’t know if that was a good idea.

If only there was some way he could increase his lifespan naturally, or even artificially. He wasn’t going to alter his body or go full mad scientist, but surely with the coming of the System there were way to replenish one’s life…

Wait… The images of Ur’Kahn and Gor’eth Kung flashed in his mind. Maybe…

The two of them were beings capable of intelligent thought and speech, and both clearly had a history under the System until he’d ended it for them. He guaranteed himself that they knew more about the System than him in every way. Meaning…

There was a chance that they knew of a way to increase lifespan.

Within him, Brock felt his Ascendancy throb with agreement. It was a vague feeling, but he was certain that’s what it was. The only question was how he’d find another such beast as them. Both had been utter flukes, one the final boss of the Source and the other an overpowering, E Grade Tyrant.

What decided whether a beast was intelligent? Was it E Grade? No, because then Ur’Kahn wouldn’t have spoken. It wasn’t a Tyrant status either, as the Sky Bandit and Iz’ Takon hadn’t voiced themselves. There were no reports of the other Tyrants that were appearing speaking either. Brock clicked his tongue.

He knew of two known situations; E Grade Tyrant and final boss of the Source. He could seek either out to confirm his thesis, but that again posed a set of issues, namely, finding them and defeating them.

Either option had the problem of him actually finding them. No E Grades had been reported anywhere yet, and he knew Hiroto would tell him if there were any out and about, which meant they were still in hiding like Gor’eth had been. That aside, however, he had literally zero chance of beating one as he was.

The Source was a different story. He’d need to find one first and foremost, but when he did, as long as the beasts were a similar level to what they’d been back in the jungle city, he was more than confident that it’d work.

It was clear to him that the latter was the far better option.

Now… who would know where to find one?

A select cast of people flashed in his mind. Hiroto may know, as he receives a continuous stream of information from his scouts at all times. He could also ask Ari, though how he’d get back to Australia was an issue in and of itself. The last person that came to mind… was Adam. Genesis had proven themselves to have an expansive network, so it wasn’t too farfetched that they’d know the location of a Source.

He gritted his teeth. Moral implications and his own pride aside, he knew the stakes here. If he didn’t try to grasp onto every straw around him, the chance of his own demise would only rise. He didn’t want to die as much as the next guy, and if that meant throwing aside his pride, he would gladly accept the cost.

In the end, he decided that if he truly had no other leads, he’d pay them a visit.

Sighing aloud, Brock let his aura senses expand and he pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind for later. Harry, Fon, and just about everyone, save for Mio, he detected in the waiting room. He wasn’t quite sure if he wanted to talk to anyone yet, but he’d also feel bad if he just left them waiting like that.

Brock scratched his head, and a thought came to his mind. There was someone he needed to speak to right now. He’d see the others later.

**

Jane raised a brow, “That… could work…”

“…But?” Brock ventured. He had relayed to his sister his plans to save his life, as well as his nearing expiry date, and she’d reacted rather tamer than he’d expected. It seemed his sister had finally regained her cool and calm out shell.

Jane levelled her gaze with her brother, “But it’s a terrible idea. You’re literally dying, weakened, and you have no idea if that… ‘Source’ will even be as safe as the last one was. You may as well wear my blindfold for me.”

Brock’s lips straightened out into a line as he considered his sister’s words. They made sense to him. He was indeed weakened, being unable to use his Techniques or Augments, and he was in fact dying. He had also had no actual proof about the consistency of enemy power between Sources. Still, despite that, he waved her off dismissively.

Brock hadn’t come here to hear the voice of reason.

“Yeah, maybe,” he saw her face fall into an unimpressed expression, “but you do think it could work?”

His older sister heaved out a sigh, “Possibly. These ‘Alphas’ seem to be somewhat low in the monster Hierarchy, but it’s certainly possible. What makes you think the creature will being willing to tell you in the first place?”

Brock cracked his knuckles, “I can be persuasive.”

“This isn’t a nineties movie, Brock.”

“Who said?”

Jane scoffed, “Society.”

Brock gave her the middle finger for ruining his fun. She returned it back. They chuckled.

“Your friends won’t like what you’re going to do, you know?” she said, moving her eyes to gaze out the windows and at the drifting clouds above.

Brock sighed, “I know. That’s why I don’t think I’m gonna tell them.”

“You’re going to just leave without warning?” Jane seemed rather shocked.

The man scratched the back of his neck, “Well, no. I’m just going to lie where I’m leaving to. I don’t want them to be there to see me injured. They always are.”

A silence fell between them, and Jane’s eyes narrowed icily. She seemed like she wanted to say something, but instead let the silence fester, Brock could see the thoughts behind her eyes, and was silently curious about what was about to follow from her lips. Her shoulders fell slightly.

“You know dad did that right?”

Time slowed to a crawl and Brock felt the blood in his veins turn to ice. He felt his face move, although he was unsure of what expression it ended up in as he felt a maelstrom of emotions swirling inside him: Disgust, rage, regret, acceptance. He saw Jane’s eyes widen, and the regret form on her face.

His breathing felt laboured, “…what?”

“He’d… he’d told me that he was just ‘going out for a drive’,” she took a steadying breath and looked away, “I think you know what happened next.”

The asshole never came back.

He supposed that she did have every right to feel this way. She had actually been old enough to know their father. Brock couldn’t even remember the sound of his voice, let alone his face, and James had never even met him. Despite that, Brock still knew the pain of losing him, of having a father absent his entire life, and what she had said…

He met her covered eyes, and she flinched slightly.

“Don’t you dare compare me to him.”

Brock didn’t say anything more as he turned around and reached for the door handle. Jane called out behind him, but as the door opened and subsequently closed, her voice was drowned out by the aged wood. He felt his heart hurt, and this time, it wasn’t due to any sickness or ensuing death.

He stormed down the hallway, his emotions running rampant within him. Jane was wrong. Their father – he felt disgusted to even call him that – had left because… well he didn’t know why the man had left them. Brock was telling a lie and leaving because he didn’t want his friends to worry.

Or maybe, it was because seeing them in pain over him caused him more agony than any wound.

One last time, he felt for their auras through the building. They were still down below, waiting for him. He sighed, glancing back toward Jane’s aura, dulled and masked within her body. Briefly, he considered going back, but he just… couldn’t. His legs refused to take him. What do I say to them?

Licking his teeth, Brock wandered down and met with the family he’d grown over his time under the System. He was rewarded with tears and questions. Hugs. They cared, he could readily tell. That’s why lying was so hard.

Fon’s eyes had narrowed upon his explanation of him ‘leaving to enjoy life’, though he knew that was because the woman was too smart for his own good. The others had bought it, and their beliefs seemed to influence her into doubt somewhat. The presence of a box full of Treasures for them certainly helped persuade her otherwise.

Sorry Fon.

He left ten minutes later, steeling his resolve. He refused to die. Maybe his paths would even be regenerated by the time he reached his final destination. It was unlikely though. He’d asked Kim to check, and they still had a… really long while until they recovered.

Brock exited through the front door, the others bidding him goodbye, and his feet touched down onto the terrace outside. The air was cool, and from the position of the sun, it was nearing midday. The breeze lapped against his cheeks and soothed his tumultuous soul. He took a deep breath. His Ascendancy beat comfortingly.

His legs were moving only a minute later. He had a few stops in mind before he moved out. Hiroto first, the Smithery second. He couldn’t go out without a weapon and Hiroto potentially held exactly the information he was looking for. The information he needed.

People recognised him as he sped through town, many pointing and chattering excitedly. He was confused for all but a second before he remembered his fight with Asahi in the arena a few days prior. Had news about it already gotten around? Were Honour Duels that big of a deal?

I don’t really wanna be famous for knocking some cockhead around…

Regardless, he zoned them out and put his current objective to the forefront of his mind. He knew the rough location of where Hiroto’s special garden was tucked away, assuming that was the place he’d find him, and he adjusted his path accordingly.

The tree line approached soon, and Brock already felt a familiar aura already waiting there for him.

**

Minerva watched as the outsider sped through the city in search of her old friend, or perhaps simply acquaintance now that he was furious with her. While she didn’t exactly think her treatment was fair considering their twenty years of history together, she had refused to save his star pupil then tried to grievously wound that pupil’s younger brother.

Whether it was the surge of hormones she was yet to control assaulting her as of late or it was just the state of the world bringing out the worst in her, she didn’t know.

Idly, she felt at the smooth skin of her face. She was already approaching sixty-five, yet her skin was radiant, free of wrinkles and spots. Her hair had regained its previous fiery colour from grey. Who knew those fruits she had found in the wilderness had the capability to restore her youth in such a way? She looked and felt thirty, despite her actual age being twice that.

Evolution was a wonderous thing. Even more so, it had improved her looks immensely from how she’d originally appeared in her 30s. She guessed it was just one of the many benefits boosting her race a grade came with.

Her eyes traced the rapid movements of the man as her focused returned to the task at hand. She had witnessed his battle at the arena, and she was certain. He hadn’t used any Augments then, and he hadn’t when they had fought either. Neither had he brought his Techniques out, save for his uniquely… physical Aura Technique.

It seemed he was restricted in some way or another. Yet, he was still that powerful? The thought baffled her.

Dearly, she wished to know this man’s secrets. She wasn’t foolish enough to try an assassination, nor was she truly invested enough to force it out of him, but he had peaked her interest, nonetheless. As she bled back into the shadows, Minerva made a promise to keep her eye on him.

She never knew what surprise would come out of him next.