"Sorkins!"

"Haha, the future billionaire is here—ack, cough, what is this body slam, girl…!"

Thud, bang.

As soon as I stepped out of DARPA's hallway into the cold winter air, another connection from my past revealed itself. A tall man with brown hair stood outside, waiting for me, dressed sharply in a suit.

Edwin Sorkins. One of the ten members of Task Force Dagger and currently the Chief of Staff under the Secretary of Defense. Our reunion started in a rather aggressive manner, more like a body slam than a proper greeting.

Beneath his suit, I could feel the thin but distinctive sensation of body armor. No wonder he didn't seem cold; he was wearing a multifunctional bulletproof vest under his clothes.

Anyway—

"Only a Chief of Staff would walk around this well-armored on a regular basis."

"...And you, with a mere body slam, managed to inflict physical damage through said bulletproof vest. My insides are still reeling."

"Haha, just a light greeting. How have you been?"

"Same as always, dealing with the usual drudgery of being a Chief of Staff."

Towering over me by a head, he reached out and ruffled my hair, a habit he had back when I was the youngest in the team. Back then, he ruffled my hair so much I feared I might go bald. Given our long-awaited reunion, I decided to let it slide this time.

Though the outside wind was biting, I had no hesitation in activating the temperature control function of my Icarus Gear. Thanks to numerous meetings in the U.S., I had managed to ease my lingering PTSD, and now I could handle the winter more comfortably.

But of course, Sorkins, ever observant, had something to say.

"Last I saw on your personal streaming channel, you hated even a little bit of cold. Got the temperature control working now?"

"Yeah, it's no longer something I have to worry about… Wait, you watched my stream?!"

"The fact that you didn’t think I’d watch is even more surprising. By the way, Chester spent the most money on your stream. Got bored while recovering, I guess."

"Cough."

Of course, he went on to say that every single member of Task Force Dagger had probably watched at least a few dozen times. I was mortified. The idea that they might have seen me giggling over strange weapons in some crafting game was enough to make my head spin.

This is why streaming is a bad idea. Every little embarrassing moment gets broadcasted worldwide, and you can never meet your friends without awkwardness again.

Anyway, hunger set in quickly since I hadn’t eaten lunch yet. And the person in front of me was one of the most perceptive individuals I knew.

"Let’s grab some lunch. Seems like you’re free for now, no?"

"Yeah, I was supposed to stop by the Pentagon, but that got canceled. Probably because everyone’s busy these days."

"Of course. The Iowa caucuses are in two months. Everyone’s getting ready for the storm ahead."

"What about you?"

"Well, as a think tank executive, I’m set. Once you start funding the company properly, I won’t have to worry about my future. Not that I would, even if things didn’t go well. I’d just head back to the family estate."

Screech.

At that moment, a black car appeared, carefully pulling up to the road outside DARPA. Even at a glance, it was clear this was no ordinary vehicle. Its windows were deeply tinted, making it impossible to see inside.

Sorkins casually walked over to the car and opened the door. From the thickness of the doors alone, it was clear the vehicle had been heavily modified.

Before I could ask if it was his car, he spoke up.

"One of our unofficial government vehicles. No need to worry about any stray words leaking out. Get in. There’s a reservation waiting for us. I even had a tailhole cut into the back seat for your comfort."

"Oh, please."

Still, I climbed into the car without protest.

The moment I sat down, warmth filled the cabin. The cut-out in the seatback for my tail was a nice touch, making the ride more comfortable. As the door closed automatically, the car began smoothly navigating the streets of Washington, D.C.

Like the bus I took to Incheon Airport, this car, too, was autonomously driven—a common sight in this era.

Rolling my eyes a bit, I wasn’t bored but curious, so I accessed the vehicle's network through my Icarus Gear, wanting to figure out our destination.

"Conrad Hotel, Washington D.C., huh. I was debating whether to stay the night or head back to New York."

"So, you hacked the car in the meantime. This vehicle is reinforced with the latest security protocols, by the way… but as you’ve seen, we’re headed to the Conrad Hotel."

Suddenly, I wondered why a hotel, but Sorkins explained further.

"There aren’t many restaurants in this area for various reasons, but there are plenty of government offices and key American institutions nearby. Naturally, the places entertaining important guests are luxury hotels around here, where famous chefs are often stationed temporarily to prepare meals for dignitaries."

"So, instead of the nearby restaurants, we’re headed to a hotel where top chefs are serving short stints for important guests."

"Exactly. You catch on quick."

He patted me on the shoulder and opened up a different topic.

"I hear you’ve been hanging out with the 'Shark,' the 'Polar Bear,' and the Senior Officer a lot lately?"

"It’s been quite the ruckus."

"Sounds lively. Makes me wonder if I should’ve reconsidered retiring."

"Miss the chaos, do you?"

"Some people are born for the military, you know. What’s money compared to that?"

He laughed briefly.

That laugh brought back memories, and I felt compelled to ask something that had been on my mind for years.

"That reminds me, you used to tell me I wasn’t cut out for the military every time we locked eyes. You always said you'd explain after the mission, but you never did."

"Haha, that’s right…."

He hesitated for a moment before finally answering carefully.

"You’re not asking because you genuinely don’t know, right?"

"...I wanted to hear it from you."

"Figures."

With that, he pressed a button.

Suddenly, the view transformed into something out of a dream. The walls and roof of the vehicle turned into transparent holograms, revealing the bustling city outside. The heart of Washington D.C., the frozen Potomac River, and the intact Roosevelt Island came into view.

As I glanced around at the winter landscape, Sorkins spoke.

"A city that reeks of corpses and gunpowder isn’t good for anyone’s sanity."

"…"

"Looking at you now, this is the best I’ve ever seen you."

Of course.

I couldn’t hold back my laughter and replied playfully.

"You’ve always had a way of making things awkward, Edwin 'Butterkins' Sorkins. Is that cheesiness I smell? Should I get out and grab a cab instead?"

"Damn it, not that nickname again! Is my way of speaking really that strange?"

"I don’t know. Maybe you should ask someone else."

"You're the one who should tell me, you!"

Haha.

I had a feeling my time in Washington D.C. wouldn’t be boring.

"…So, that happened."

"What an idiot…"

Laughter filled the room.

As expected of the capital, Washington D.C.'s nightscape was as impressive as New York’s. The reason I was talking about this now was because key members of Task Force Dagger had driven all the way to Washington to join me.

The reason was simple enough.

"We took three weeks off, and our youngest keeps running around? That’s not okay!"

"Ouch, it hurts. Stop biting me, Lorentina! You know how sharp your teeth are, right?"

"Oh, stop whining."

"You stripped cable wires with those teeth once."

"Pfft—!"

Logan almost spit out his drink laughing, probably because that was a story only Lorentina and I knew. I realized I might have just shared something I shouldn’t have, especially when Logan shot me a look that said, I’ve got you now.

"I can’t believe we’ve got someone here who bites through underwater cables. Must be a DEVGRU specialty."

"Eugene!"

"Hey, hey, don’t pick on our youngest."

Suddenly, I felt something soft and squishy press against my neck—there was no denying what it was. Lorentina’s famous hugs had once again found their mark, but thankfully, Logan intervened before I could get properly nibbled on.

Meanwhile, our Senior Officer, already used to these antics, was casually chatting with the somewhat bewildered bartender, paying us no mind. He was good at ignoring things when necessary.

The conversation naturally shifted.

"Seems like our youngest is going to be the richest of us all. Are we getting a cut of that retirement bonus?"

"Don’t worry. Everyone on Task Force Dagger will get a percentage."

"Now that’s good news. How big is it going to get?"

"Hmm, let’s see…"

After a moment of thought, I used my Icarus Gear to quickly calculate.

"If everything goes well, it could grow to be as big as Apple one day."

"Holy hell."

"Hey, Eugene, about that bite earlier… sorry."

"Haha, no need to apologize."

We laughed and bantered for about five minutes before the conversation shifted back to Sorkins.

"Funny how the guy who set this up isn’t even here."

"He mentioned visiting his hometown since he had some time off. He left right after lunch, so he didn’t know we were all gathering. I bet he’ll regret it once he finds out."

"Knowing him, he definitely will."

At that moment, someone activated the soundproofing. The bartender, having noticed the signal, discreetly stepped away, and our table became an island of privacy in the bustling bar.

It wasn’t like we were planning anything grand, just reminiscing about old memories. Even so, it was the kind of conversation that couldn’t be allowed to leak.

It began with a simple question.

"If we had stayed there, what would we be doing now?"

"It’s been five years since the Omega Virus outbreak, so I imagine we’d spend another three years or so helping rebuild the country."

"Three more years in that hellhole… now that I think about it, it sounds awful."

"It was never pleasant. And with our youngest gone, it was probably worse than expected."

"Hey, I’m right here now, aren’t I?"

"You have no idea how grateful we are for that."

Really?

Lorentina had been the one to bring up the topic, so I began thinking too. I was genuinely curious. If I had stayed, what would my life have been like? I probably would’ve continued fighting to help rebuild that place.

But suddenly, another thought crossed my mind.

'…That world has influenced the people here significantly through something called timeline synchronization… but is that really all?'

What if it wasn’t just one way?

What if that world, too, was influenced by factors from this one? Was that possible?

And if so, how?

"Eugene, something wrong?"

"No… just thinking."

The pieces of the puzzle regarding my visit to Icarus HQ were slowly falling into place.

"I’ll have plenty of questions to ask at HQ tomorrow."

"Yeah, find out what tricks they pulled to sell off our past so eagerly. I’ll even let you off the hook if you give them hell."

"Oh, please."

Night was falling deeper.

The time to face the truth wasn’t far away.