John stood before the bathroom sink on the main floor, wiping away the dried blood from his nose with a dark blue rag. A soft knock came from the door. The young man turned around and opened it, peering out to see who knocked. Standing at the door was an older woman, his mother. John's eyes widened. She took the rag from his hands and began to carefully wipe away the remaining blood from his face.

???: "Did your sisters hurt you too badly?"

John shook his head slightly as his mother continued her cleaning.

???: "You kids must be more careful"

As his mother now cleaned the wounds on his arms, he began to recap some things in his mind. While fooling around in London he was captured by Rainbow Six, interrogated and somehow reunited with his biological in a million to one against chance scenario. He then roomed himself with a mysterious and downright lovely woman, doing that while creating an AI before leaving to meet he rest of his biological family.

'This world truly is small and easy to understand'

He thought.

John's mother eventually finished cleaning his wounds and placed a hand on his left shoulder.

???: "I never thought in my lifetime that I would see you again"

The older woman hugged John tightly. He stood still, moving his arms slowly to embrace his mother. John stood nervous as his mother pulled away.

???: "You must have so many questions my boy"

John nodded.

"That would be one way to put that"

The older woman gently took John's arm, pulling him to the very large family room at the center of the house.

???: "Sit on the couch. I will get us something to drink"

John sat his sore body onto the off-white leather couch. Eventually his mother came back with a small black tray with glasses of water with charcoal-black coasters.

???: "Now John, I want this to be a moment for you to ask me anything. You deserve to know more than you already know"

John let out a nervous exhale, taking a glass of water and holding it with both hands.

"Well... I guess the only real question is... why? Why did you send me away for adoption?"

His mother's eyes lowered slightly. She cleared her throat and spoke.

???: "John... when I was pregnant with you, your father was the cruelest he had ever been. The only thing that had kept his wrath upon everyone away was his job. You were a complete surprise to the both of us. And when we found that you were a boy, he was ecstatic. You were the son that he always wanted. He even named you after himself. But..."

John's chest felt a little cold his mother said 'but'.

???: "I knew the type of hell that he put Zofia and Elżbieta as children as well as their adulthood. And when he began to tell me about his plans with you, I panicked. I was scared for you"

John turned his head slightly.

"What were his plans?"

His mother had finished taking a sip of water and placed her cup onto the glass coffee table before them.

???: "Your father was going to train you. Put you through the toughest military training he could possibly make up when you were old enough. His vision was to make the perfect soldier, and the perfect son. Like I said, the son he never had. But I didn't view his intentions as if he was raising a soldier or even a son. I saw it as if he was making a clone of himself"

John spoke with confusion.

"And me becoming a clone of him was that bad?"

His mother nodded.

???: "John, he wasn't a very kind man. Your father was born and bred for the military. He was high brass within GROM, and he ground his military ideals into this family, for good and bad. But at his age and mine, I couldn't bear to see what he would do to you. So shortly after you were born... I handed you off to a friend..."

John sat still. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He tapped his left knee with his index and middle finger at the same time. He was nervous to ask the question, because he knew the ending to its answer. But John summed up the courage to ask.

"What happened to my father?"

John's mother lowered her eyes.

???: "To start, I never told him about sending you away. I hid it well enough and took you to a local park during a quiet evening where I handed you away to your new family, thinking that I'd never see you again. I then filed a missing child case. Your father was devastated after the search for you went cold. He wasn't the same for his remaining years"

His mother then paused for a moment, then continued. This was the interesting part.

???: "Then a few short months after your niece was born, your father committed suicide. At that point he was a frail and fractured man. He had lost a son, had a daughter who wanted nothing to do with him, and had another too busy to see him. I was all he had, which he didn't care much for because he blamed me for 'losing' his only son. He felt that he had nothing left in life. So after a day of running errands I came home and found him dead in his office, holding an envelope with pictures of our family"

John sat quietly as his mother stood, taking a step towards her son and sitting next to him. She placed a hand on his left shoulder and embraced him with the other arm.

???: "What ever hardship and confusion you went through John... I want you to know that I am sorry, and that I did what I had done to protect you"

John heard his mothers words and turned his head to her aged face.

"You... I..."

The young man paused for a moment before turning to his mother.

"I... need a moment"

John's mother nodded, letting go of her son and standing up. She placed a soft hand on the right side of his face and spoke.

???: "If you would like to talk again don't hesitate"

With that the older woman left, leaving John alone on the couch with his thoughts.

He was named after a man he could not remember... hell at this point never met. His sisters and the rest of his extended family were... interesting to say the least. Then there was the information given to him by his mother. Even though he had no control of his fate whatsoever, since he was only a baby in that situation, John felt responsible for most of it.

The dread his mother felt for his saftey, the hatred his sisters had towards their father, and ultimately his fathers death. To John he felt it was mostly his fault. He felt a dark weight in his chest. He needed to speak to someone about all of this, someone not related to him by blood.

John took his phone from his pocket and unlocked it, swiping to the contacts app and pressing a name: Nøkk. He placed the phone to his ear and waited as it rang. After the third ring someone on the other line answered.

Nøkk: "John?"

The young man heard her voice and let out a soft sigh.

"Hey"

The young woman heard John's voice and could sense something was bothering him.

Nøkk: "Are you doing alright?"

John stopped himself before answering. Should he even tell her? Would Nøkk even care?

Nøkk: "John, answer me. Please"

The end of her sentence was spoken in a softer tone than the rest. John felt that his questions had been answered. For now at least.

"Uh... yeah I'm doing okay. I just needed to talk to someone is all. Someone who isn't in my family"

Nøkk was a little surprised, but welcome to John's call.

Nøkk: "What is on your mind?"

John took another deep breath before settling down the dark feeling in his chest. He then went on to explain the situation he had with his mother. Every detail that he retained from their conversation. Nøkk stayed attention throughout the conversation, listening to John as she read through a few Intel files recovered from her last mission by Monika. When John finished explaining everything, he felt the dark feeling in his body lighten.

Nøkk: "John, I think it is ridiculous that you feel responsible for your fathers death. You had not control over it, you were half a world away at the time. You didn't even know the man either"

John stood up from the family couch and began to walk through the hardwood hallways of the Bosak home. The hallways and rooms were all a minimalist white with the occasional white floral pattern at the four corners of each wall. He spoke to Nøkk quietly for the rest of their conversation, not wanting anyone to hear what they were talking about.

"You're right... I just feel a bit of guilt is all. But maybe that will go away soon since I talked to someone about this stuff. Thanks"

As John finished speaking he stopped. He took a glance to his left and saw a closed wooden door, covered in an ornate floral design that had been carved into the dark brown wood. John took a hold of the door knob and twisted it, feeling and hearing the door click as it became unlocked. He pushed the door open and stepped foot into an office.

At the back of the room sat a large brown wood desk with designs like the door he had just opened. A soft leather chair sat behind that with large white and grey fireplace that stood tall behind everything he had seen before. Hanging above the fireplace was a 3/4 angle portrait of a man wearing a pristine dark blue military officer uniform. Commendation medals and rank pins were present on the ends of his cuffs and chest.

This must have been his fathers office. John stood still as he observed his fathers face. It was almost like looking in the mirror. Same hair, same mouth, nose, chin, hell even the same ears. The only thing different between him and his father were the color of their eyes. John had green eyes while his fathers were brown.

As John stared at the portrait he heard someone clear their throat from behind. John turned back and saw Zofia standing in the doorway to the office. John spoke to Nøkk one last time.

"Thanks for talking with me. I appreciate it"

Nøkk felt like he had more to say, but didn't push the issue. She showed a subtle smile as she responded.

Nøkk: "No problem John. If you need to talk again don't hesitate. I'm always here"

John said his goodbyes and hung up, slipping his phone back into his pocket before returning his gaze back to his eldest sister.

Zofia: "Who was that?"

John showed a faint smile.

"A friend I needed to speak with"

Zofia walked into the office and stood at John's side, looking to the portrait of their father.

Zofia: "That's good"

John turned back to the large image of his father and let out a low sigh.

"I look a lot like him"

Zofia nodded.

Zofia: "You do"

John thought for a moment as Zofia made her way around the desk and opened one of its ornate drawers. She leaned down and reached for something as John spoke.

"What was he like? You know, in your experience?"

Zofia's eyes widened before quickly returning to their usual place.

Zofia: "Well... he did care for all of us kids. In his own ways of course. He was a military man first, and a father second. The man was always hard on Ela and I. But that all made us who we are now. For good and some bad"

John slightly lowered his eyes.

"Do you think I have the chance to turn out like him?"

Zofia shook her head and stood up straight after she found what she was looking for.

Zofia: "No, I think you could be what he never was. A loving guy with a family who fully cared for him"

Zofia revealed a brown wooden box with a lock on the front of it. She clocked in the number combination and opened the box, revealing a bottle of fine liquor surrounded by extremely soft dark green material.

Zofia: "Before he died, our father said to me that he was saving this for you when you were going to turn the right age or when you made him the proudest he had ever been. That was before you were 'lost' of course. But now I think is the time to do this. He would be very proud to have his son home"

His eldest sister then took a pair of glasses that rested in the same box as the alcohol and filled them with the strong liquid. Zofia slowly held out John's glass. Her younger brother took it and looked to her as she spoke again.

Zofia: "Do naszego ojca"
(To our father)

John's eyes eased their way back to the portrait of his father while he gave a slight gesture with his glass.

"À notre père"
(To our father)

The siblings drank their glasses. Zofia drank the alcohol quickly while John coughed at the end. He had never had something so strong in alcohol content in his life. Zofia grinned as her younger brother tried to compose himself.

Zofia: "Come, little brother. We still have training to do"

Zofia put everything away and left the office, leaving John alone once again. He took one last look at the portrait before turning away to leave.

[Unknown Archipelago]
[Pacific Ocean]

Amber stood next to her father as they exited their helicopter, walking towards a man she had never seen before. Behind him were the Elite soldiers the Phantoms had trained: The Wolves.

Stone: "Walker"

The unknown man and Stone shook hands, nodding in respect as a sliding glass door from behind the Wolves opened. A finely dressed man and woman appeared. The two of them definitively were not soldiers. The man approached Stone and Amber while the woman stood next to the person now known as Walker.

Stone shook the new man's hand before introducing himself and Amber.

Stone: "Mr. Skell, it's an honor to be here sir. I am glad you chose us as your company security"

The man smiled and nodded.

Skell: "Your company is very respectable, with well armed and disciplined men and women who I can count on. I didn't see a better candidate than you"

The man then turned his attention to Amber and gently took her hand, shaking it respectfully.

Skell: "And you are?"

Stone quickly responded before Amber could let out a word.

Stone: "This is my daughter Amberlynn. You could call her my right hand man so to speak"

Skell nodded before grabbing stone by the shoulder in a friendly manner.

Skell: "Come with me and let's have some coffee. We have much to discuss"

The pair left Amber and the Wolves behind as they disappeared behind the fogged sliding glass door. The woman who had accompanied Skell looked to the Wolves.

???: "If you would like to follow me, I would like to show you your barracks within this facility"

The soldiers behind Walker followed the woman. But Walker stayed still and silent with his arms crossed. He waited for the group to be out of sight.

Amber: "I've never seen you in our ranks before. Who are you? If you don't mind me asking"

The man grinned.

Walker: "Your dad made a deal with me. We share a vision. So I'm the head of these Wolves you two put together in secret"

Amber was surprised that her father made such a decision without telling her.

Amber: "That's quite the surprise. What's your background?"

Walker took a step towards the direction his Wolves had gone in and spoke one last time.

Walker: "I'm a killer, sweetheart. One of the best too"

With that the old soldier left, leaving Amber alone with her thoughts.

'Could this plan really work?'

She shook her head and tried to think of something different. Suddenly the thought of John passed her mind. She revealed her phone and pressed the hidden contact that had eyes on his every movement.

It was only a matter of time before he'd be back. John would finally be able to see the new vision of the Phantoms. Amber would be able to see 'Wonderland' with John at her side.

-To be continued-

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]