Telling personal secrets to Mi-Yung wasn't on Yondu's mind right now. He imagined everything worsening, so the situation was pretty much unsolvable. William was here, and Yondu won't back down from his pacts or leave them behind. He accepted it, like those in the shadows or everywhere, aware or not.

  It was also true that Yondu should've done something, either visiting the boy elsewhere rather than in that arena. Seeing him himself and being so nonchalant and fine with that was definitely not a good start.

  IT sent shivers down his spine, and Yondu couldn't even imagine what William endured out there. And Mi-Yung was with him for weeks at that point, and obviously didn't want to back down from anything because that was her happiness. She might be blind to some facts, or she might be pretty much okay with anything at this point, because she was satisfied.

  Perhaps Mi-Yung had long secured that something was off or wrong, yet never knew what or where it was, or if it even fucking mattered. Maybe it didn't. If that's the case, Yondu was the one being wrong, and he should have supported her and done much more for that kid, whose parents might be bad, but Viktor was still Yondu's lad. He put him in quite a nasty spot indeed.

  She might be pretending not to know about it. It was possible if he was considering Songs as a whole, as those were clever and proud. There were always more words to tell, even if they shouldn't always happen.

  Perhaps William helped her out with that, offering words about what had happened, or twisted it. Yondu could only guess that and didn't dare to act on such assumptions.

  Interrogating her was out of the question right now, while William was under her protection. Yondu was the first to let her have it that way, and that alone made Old Dream, Dachy, and Tamara the majority that allowed it.

  When Yondu looked at her firm eyes, her reason might be silly, simple, or trivial. She was like an immovable mountain, yet he was a bigger one, yet so what?

  Looking at her boss, Mi-Yung was impressive to go eye-to-eye with him. Luke was a little surprised by that, as he rarely got to see their interactions, but understood where each of them was coming from. In the end, he supported both of them and knew they weren't angry with each other. A mere frustration was healthy, as that was the position they had maintained for years.

  Yondu reconsidered his choices because Viktor Gale was rather special to him. It was his words that were heavy. It wasn't in his blood, nor was it too much about family either. William wasn't under his radar because of Camp Nolan and what became of Viktor later in his life.

  William came like lightning, survived Nolan, and grew up Outside like a damn rat, but even that... felt silly. He saw him in him out there, in that arena, and it deeply struck him like a knife in the heart. Yondu didn't want to visit it again. He was a coward for it. People were looking for this kid, yet they never found him. Then... there were those who remembered, and never stated a word, and hid it.

  Yondu thought William must have been far away from anyone related to anything, so no one noticed him or recognized him, because, well, he was nobody, so what would anyone expect?! For a decade, he did all sorts of things to get by, and now, he was here, acclimated to the Federation little by little.

  Viktor was like that, too. He was a youth whom Yondu recruited himself a long time ago, a nameless kid who grew up in the wild areas when the USA fragmented into many pieces and lost its regime. It was a time before the Federation truly began to form, and he was a young boy who couldn't do much alone. Since then, a lot had changed in their world.

  Yondu felt somewhat responsible for the problems that arose from Viktor, as he was his most skilled disciple. He remembered the moments, a kid bathed in crimson, fighting Darks with bare hands, twisting limbs or necks, and seemed not to enjoy it, yet he did it out of pity and harm. He wasn't of age yet; his fierce vision, eyes, and wild acts weren't meant for humanity.

  It was an old history, long gone, yet kids these days were hardly like that anymore. They were more disciplined, so what about his son? Wrong. There were insane Walkers out there, and Yondu thought about them to this day and wondered what Viktor could have become in one more decade if he were around. Power to content Rank 8 Walkers wasn't out of question, even if he was so much younger than any of them.

  Mi-Yung was almost certain about Yondu and what Viktor meant to him. Their relationship was not too open, due to all the scraps and scars in the past. She had been reading and conducting her own research on this matter for as long as she could, and became his Pillar for it, yet not for him. It was the best choice to get out of her bloody family, yet sort of stay on the same path.

  Yondu was fair to her. He was easier to follow than doing questionable acts that weren't right.

  “Is it his time soon?” Yondu asked, recalling memories that weren't haunting him. They were nostalgic. That was all. Glimpses included even Mi-Yung in front of him, whose involvement in the Yondu Division was small back then, when she was young and fierce. He wasn't shocked by how little it changed.

  She impressed him, and her fixation on Viktor and Nolan wasn't good or bad. It was her strength that allowed her to focus on the unknown kid whose face was a mystery, and the Emblem was out of sight, veering little by little in cues.

  In the end, nobody was sure he was out there, but the rumor that Viktor had a child spread nonetheless, and Mi-Yung had hope. That's the end of it.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Very few people get this sentiment because another dead elite was nothing. It was characteristic at the end of the twenty-first century.

  “He will Awaken if that's what you worry about, sir. Viktor was good. William is the same, here, and under me. Not you. I am his proxy, so don't go where you think you are going, or say more words than necessary when the Examination begins, because I will be there.”

  “I know. It is still surprising. I wouldn't be surprised if you became his teacher. That proposition should've happened on that table. I would've pushed it forward and helped if you... You know, get it.”

  By now, Mi-Yung was gritting her teeth like her fists and found his words repulsive. “Thanks for nothing, sir.”

  “Yeah... What is his number?” Yondu shook in pity.

  “130.”

  “Good luck to him, I guess. Though such words don't help anyone at all.” Yondu laughed as if nothing better came to his mind. Even if his voice echoed far, nobody paid him much attention.

  “Let's return to our business, while you can do whatever you can in his Awakening and on his side. I trust the process and that kid. Why wouldn't I? I am sure he won't disappoint either of us, but who would be sure of it? Perhaps no one is. Like that child, Celeste, you see, few of us know what's going on out there, but we get it. It's odd.” Yondu said, and before waiting for her to work out her anger, he dragged Luke away and joined some talks elsewhere.

  A small wave and a helpless smile from Luke came off as pleasing, yet Mi-Yung was far too engaged to care about it.

  This exchange left her with many odd feelings in her chest. There was something very nasty brewing in everything and everywhere. Breathing in and out, she relaxed her fist and wished no further troubles would come. It might be a weird sentiment, but she wanted to meet them regardless.

  “How surprising for him to be so shameless. It seems his interest in William is getting too much control of him, courtesy of his coming to that arena against my wishes, yes? Old people... Well, it could be a farce since he softened because of it. William's Affinity is up for debate. Yondu won't be a big help because of Gales, me, and... wasn't Viktor an enormous talent when young? He proved himself. Considering bloodlines, if he doesn't get at least 80, I would be shocked. Numbers are that, however. The and results help me more, yet his past, Emblem, and everything else might be far from my hands, or... Celeste? Yes. She has a peculiar impact indeed, and there is no doubt she helped me a lot more than I thought by becoming the craziest subject of this Awakening. Great. She changed this room. I must thank her later.”

  Mumbling to herself, Mi-Yung walked away from the windows.

  “A sly man like Yondu knows what is good for him. If he can't do it, what about the others? I am still forgetting the matter of the mother, and the Academy is never cooperative because of those party politics. Or Fain. Yeah... fuck that guy. Yondu must have thoroughly researched William anyway, so what else am I missing? He let me go. He is waiting, just like Kaufman, isn't he? William knows about him and less about Viktor, so what will happen? He knows his mother was part of the Academy and perhaps even the Gale Family. Or he doesn't know much about... that. I didn't... do him justice. I was greedy.” Mi-Yung wondered and moved around the paths and people.

  More time passed, and Mi-Yung distanced herself from the most annoying people. She wanted to make it clear to herself that her time was correct and those old farts were wrong. Now, it didn't seem that bad, yet seeing so many Walkers in one place was unsettling.

  Unlike her presence, which was fine for most people. She couldn't forget the Academy. Fain helped her a little, although dealing with him was a subject in itself. Ruckus was over, while her Rank 6 wasn't much in this room. Her status did a lot of heavy lifting, but it was like another chandelier overhead, because that's just how it was.

  Her actions and responsibilities helped, even when she didn't mean to. Foreigners were fine with that. It was her private dealings that Yondu sought, and assisting people regardless of their politics was his goal, just like maintaining the integrity of the Federation and his Division.

  It might not appear that way, but her work involved both evident and hidden politics that she might not even be aware of. After all, she had very little to say when Yondu pushed missions to her that were hard to change, force, or refuse.

  She dealt with China and Japan more than anyone in the Federation because of it. She was familiar with their respective issues, their strengths as associates, and how they represented different aspects of this world and Walkers. Some of them were in this room, being patient for the sake of business and facade, while others were impatient or not very happy.

  No one in the world had this sort of Accelerator, which left nothing but doubts in foreign Walkers. Frankly, there was much more to this Awakening than one would guess. Those were the secrets of Tom Hough, Assembly's focus, and Emblem Association as a whole. There were actually two other minor Accelerators built elsewhere. One was in the Utah Desert, the other in California. They had a much lower grade, not suitable for many youths, as they were mere first-generation products with limits.

  Tom Hough considered them secondary products, and their use wasn't limited to the Awakening alone.

  Hough worked on Walkers and Emblems all his life, so it went without saying how important his opinion and tools were. Other lands might be jealous of him, but he didn't care. He was unwilling to share the secrets of his tech, even with those in the Federation, so some foreigners might as well scram!

  Most didn't get it. Wouldn't sharing it with the Outside be for the best? There was one reason for being this petty and private. Even if foreign organizations were upset and unhappy with him, they could still provide youths and Awaken them, so what's the problem? It was a clever business decision, hidden behind much devious work that went into this process.

  So what if others tried their hardest to see through him, that machine, and made many leaps in their similar research facilities, yet never reached the same level? Hough found it piteful. They were years behind, so their success was negligible.

  The Federation was blunt about Hough's purposes and considered his standing top secret. Thus, they will assist Outside forces as long as they come here in exchange for business opportunities, or become involved with the rest of the world and provide youths with this opportunity at no cost to them. But the organizations would pay for it in other ways. It was that sort of nuance that had to move them, and Mi-Yung couldn't argue about it. It was effective and powerful, cutting into the hierarchy of this world.

  That was what forced China and Japan to open up after many decades of isolation. African Tribes didn't even have to think twice about such proposals, as the former distance and separation were quite physical, rather than mental. It was a clever way to encourage the world to come together and not get lost in their own cocoons, hiding behind their shields.

  Not even Mi-Yung could do more than that, so she always tried to build more trust, help, and links across different lands. She excelled at mitigating conflicts, easing the dramas that arose when foreign Walkers met, and handling heavy missions was her life. It didn't change with this. It described a complex society, its treasures and loot, differences, and circumstances.