New Life : A Second Chance

After bathing and changing his clothes, Kyle entered Nitocris's office. Once inside, he took off his black wig and rubbed his hair. It felt nice to loosen up.

He walked over to the desk, where there were some files and papers strewn all over. Sitting down, Nitocris looked at him and shook his head.

"Blond doesn't suit you," he said casually.

Kyle shrugged, not really bothered.

"So," Kyle said, waving his hands on the material on the table, "Was the information useful?"

"It had some value," Nitocris said, "But only in confirming what we suspected. They haven't given up on their base here."

"They're really not taking you into consideration in this, huh," Kyle said in a huff.

"Can't really blame them," Nitocris answered, leaning back on his chair, "They came and made their mark while Kazuya was in power. They aren't going to just drop everything simply because there's a new boss."

"So they are testing the waters? Checking you out? Trying to find your weakness?" Kyle said, listing out all the possibilities.

"Most likely," Nitocros agreed, "And there are probably even more moles, maybe hidden quite deep inside. It will take time to weed them out."

"So what is the next step then?" Kyle asked, "They know we got these three moles, right?"

"Most likely," Nitocris answered, "So they will be even more on guard. It will just make the game more interesting."

"You really are enjoying this, aren't you?" Kyle observed, "Despite the danger and such, you enjoy the chase."

Nitocris gave a slow smile and replied, "Life would be boring otherwise."

"Is that why you like teasing Xing Han so much?" Kyle mused.

Nitocris laughed at that, startling Kyle. He had never heard Big Bro Nic laugh before.

When he finished laughing, there was a smirk on his face and he lazily looked at Kyle, "That, my dear little brother, is not something you need to concern yourself with."

Kyle raised an eyebrow then tsked, "He's my BFF, Big Bro."

"I know," Nitocris replied, the smile not leaving his face, "I won't cross the line."

Kyle nodded, knowing that was the best he could get out of Big Bro. Kyle then looked down at the files in front of him, missing the expression in Nitocris's face.

'For now', he thought to himself. After all, he was still a puppy. The smile that formed on Nitocris's face would have made anyone, who saw it, shiver.

"But what I do not understand," Kyle said, "Why are they still so insistent on this? Why must there be a base here? Well, yeah, Country Tz is strategically located but it's not like there aren't any alternatives."

"It's more troublesome to start all over," Nitocris explained, "First, they tried to win me over to their side. When that failed, they try to carry on under my nose. This is the stage that we are at. When they fail at this ..."

"They'll try to eliminate you?"

Nitocris scoffed, saying, "Try is the operative word. Before that, I will find out who is the mastermind and eliminate him. Or her."

"They have the advantage as they know you but we don't know them," Kyle said with a sigh.

"That's where you come in. As Kyle Smith, that is," Nitocris replied, "You are our secret weapon. The variable that they have no idea about."

"We need to get rid of them before they start targetting those close to me," Nitocris continued, "Even though Father is there to protect Mother, it is still too dangerous. I do not want to expose her to that sort of life. Ever again."

"Agreed," Kyle said, "What can I do?"

"Gather more information from some of the places you go to for your promotional tour," Nitocris replied.

Kyle sighed.

He felt like he could understand Peter Parker in Spiderman: Far Away From Home movie. All he wanted was a holiday yet he still had to be spiderman.

Kyle wasn't a superhero but the promotional tour was going to be taxing enough. Now he had to do ninja-stuff?

He slumped over the desk and Nitocris patted his head.

"Be good," Nitocris said emotionlessly.

"If you get too stressed out from the tour, just beat up people when you're gathering intel," Nitocris advised, "That would be killing two birds with one stone, isn't it?"

Kyle's eyes brightened.

? Train Station ?

Xing Han was beginning to feel restless. The train was going to leave and yet, Kyle wasn't there yet. He knew Kyle would not miss the train, but he sure was cutting it close.

Not daring to wait outside any longer, Xing Han went into the train. Just then, there was a shout and Xing Han peered out.

Sure enough, it was Kyle. He wasn't carrying anything at all, and was simply running at high speed alongside the train. Despite the fact that Kyle could have simply entered any of the carriages that he passed, he didn't want to.

He had seen the dejected look on Xing Han's face as he struggled to keep a happy, confident stance while waiting for him. So how could he waste time by entering in an earlier carriage and walk through from one carriage to another?

Might as well go straight to the waiting Xing Han.

Laughing happily as he finally reached the carriage Xing Han was on, he jumped in and gave Xing Han a hug.

"Come on! Let's get into our cabin," Kyle said. He was tired of planes at the moment and just wanted another mode of transport. Even though it would take longer, it was way better than being half-dead on a plane!