Birthday Situation.
When he got to the gate, he reached into his pocket and pulled out an identification card which he swiped down the lock at the gate. He waited for a few moments before the lock glowed green. This was just one of the many identification steps taken by his parents to keep people out.
<Infentification confirmation initiated. Present hand print.>
He pulled off his black left glove and scanned it on the scanner that analyzed his hand before another green light lit up.
<Comfirmed. Kratos Cromwell of the Cromwell family. Now, a DNA sample is required to confirm.>
"I forget how paranoid they could be."
Quency nodded.
"Well, they are rich, right?"
He nodded.
"Unbelievably rich. Much richer than me that is for sure."
The DNA sample he presented was just some spit which was analyzed as a final confirmation before the giant reinforced gate opened up automatically for him.
"Step inside, it will close very soon."
The two Nikkes followed him inside the gate which closed behind them. Here, they found a regal garden full of many fruit-bearing trees which were hard to come by. But his family owned one of the only privately owned orchards in the Ark.
Guilty and Quency looked around with curiosity at the many types of trees in the garden. Guilty looked over at him.
"Your family sells the excess?"
He nodded.
"Yup, the rich fucks pay big credits just to have the bragging right of being able to eat Avocados and stuff."
Quency giggled as she looked at him.
"Sounds funny when it comes from one of those 'rich fucks'."
He scoffed at the notion.
"Oh please, I am not that vane. Come on, might as well get this show on the road."
The way he said it with restrained venom in his voice made Quilty pause.
"Kratos, do you have something against your parents? You don't sound happy coming here?"
"My sisters, mother, and grandparents are fine, it's my father I have a shit relationship with. Because I am his only son he was always harder on me than my sisters, and he was the one who funded my life-saving surgery by calling on some big favors Missilis owed him, but he refused to tell me what alterations they did.
All I was told was that my left eye, right arm, and left leg were now those of a Nikke. And just a few days ago, Maxwell let it slip that they had to replace my entire spine so I am not too interested in seeing him. But for my mother's sake, I will eat my pride."
Guilty and Quency looked at each other as he stood as tall as possible and walked toward the front door. He did not knock as it was only locked at night. The inside of the mansion was just as regal as the outside which he did not like.
A butler who was walking by noticed him and was quick to give him a bow.
"Master Kratos. Wonder for you to stop by. The madam was expecting you to come later in the day."
"David, haven't seen you in a few months. And I decided to come early because it's mom's birthday."
David the Butler was a tall middle-aged man with slicked-back greying hair. He was 48 and had been a butler working for his parents since he was born. When he noticed Quency and Guilty.
"Your new Nikkes?"
"In a sense. These are Guilty and Quency. Treat them as if they were me."
"Of course Master Kratos. Ladies, I wish you well on the surface in the near future. For now, you may all follow me."
Kratos began to follow David along with Guilty and Quency. As they walked through the mansion, he had to keep a close eye on Quency whose cleptomania would go crazy in a place like this. As for Guilty, he kept her close to him as he did not want her touching any of the expensive items in the house.
Eventually, David led the three of them to a large room which was the equivalent of a living room. Inside, were his parents, his grandparents, his three sisters, Hera's husband, and her daughter.
All of them turned their heads when David entered. He was quick to take a bow and present Kratos.
"Master Kratos has arrived."
When Kratos stepped inside with Guilty and Quency, it got quiet as Kratos' father stood up. The patriarch of the Cromwell family, Kronus Cromwell. He was 7'2 and despite being 59, he was just as muscular as Kratos. Meaning he was 3 inches taller than his son.
His hair was black with just some of it starting to grey and his eyes were a dark green just like his son's. When looking at Kratos and Kronus, they looked almost identical with the older man being taller.
He walked toward Kratos and patted him on the shoulder.
"Son. Been a few months since your life-saving surgery. In that time you have not called your mother or me at all. Why?"
Kratos exhaled as he looked his father in the eyes.
"You refuse to tell me what was done to me."
"It's better if you don't know son."
"That does not work for me, Father. I need to know what was done to me."
"It saved your life. Isn't that enough?"
"No."
Kratos clenched his right hand with considerable strength that the biomechanical muscle fibers tensed hard. His sleeve bulged under his muscles as it was clear just how angry he was at being denied what he wanted to know.
He exhaled and relaxed his grip on his arm. Seeing him calm down, Kronus turned to Guilty and Quency who had to also cran their head to look up at Kronus.
"Guilty and Quency, criminal Nikkes you requested yes? I get they have some perks, but if you needed a new squad I could have gotten one for you. Made from top-of-the-line Nikkes and not criminals."
"It's fine."
He walked away this time not challenging him on this.
"Do as you please. You want to sign your life away instead of being safe. It's what caused your injuries in the first place."
He was not wrong as no one forced him to become a Commander. But then again, he wondered if he was assigned a faulty mass-produced squad because his superior had something against his Father. Because he was still a Cromwell and he should have been given better treatment, but it was like someone wanted him dead.
Once the small argument with his father passed he looked toward the rest of his family especially his mother who was looking ashamed. Today she was turning 55, but that did not diminish her natural beauty.
She was a tall woman she was 6 Feet Tall, but she looked at least a decade younger than her real age. She walked toward him in a red dress.
"Kratos, I started to think you would not come."
He leaned down and gave her a big hug along with a kiss on her cheeks. She always wanted her children even Hera to greet her like that. He thought it made them look like Mobsters so he let it go.
She grabbed his arms firmly as she looked up at him.
"I am so glad you are alright. When are you being deployed again?"
"Three months."
She sighed as she let go of his arms.
"When you do, I hope you find the strength to face any Rapture."
"As do I mother."
With a smile, she turned to Guilty and Quency.
"Well, you girls may have a record, but you certainly make up for it with looks."
Quency walked over and shook her hand.
"Your son said the same thing."
His mother, who was named Eleanor smiled before she grabbed Quency's ear and pulled on it.
"OWW! OWW! NOT THE EAR!"
"Trying to steal my wedding ring. I see your thieving ways are not yet over."
Kratos chuckled as he knew she was faking it. An ear pull from a human would not hurt a NIkke at all. Eleanor let go of Quency who hid behind Kratos while she went to Guilty.
"Take care of my boy up there will you?"
Guilty blinked slowly before nodding.
"Of course."
Eleanor smiled as she grabbed Kratos by the arm.
"Come on then, it's my birthday today, a good day. Don't brood all day, enjoy the food, the cake will be to die for like always."
He smiled as he joined the rest of his family, Hera, Artemis, and Athena. He had seen Artemis earlier, but Hera was the first of his three sisters to walk up to him. She was the tallest of the three as she was actually 6'5 and just as beautiful as her mother.
When she stood in front of him she scrutinized him all over.
"Still going up there after all this?"
She motioned to his entire body and he just nodded.
"Can't waste the training you gave me since I was 5 now can I?"
"Well, I wish you were you big retard. I wonder if they also had to switch out parts of your brain to deal with the sheer retardation going on up there. You get brutalized by a big wolf rapture, you are brought to the Ark barely alive and saved with extensive life-saving and enhancement surgery, and you still want to go back?"
"Well when you put it like that I sound like a moron don't I?"
"Yeah. I wanted to ask them to check out that weird brain of yours."
Athena walked over and grabbed Hera's arm.
"Come on Hera, he suffered enough."
Hera scoffed as she punched him in the chest.
"Not hard enough I say."
With that, she turned her heels and walked away leaving Artemis and Athena with him. Athena sighed as she looked up at him. She was the shortest of the three sisters just barely being 5'11 as she was still growing.
"Sorry about that brother. She just cares about you."
He knew that. She had never wanted him to become a Commander, but he was much too suborn to give it up.
"I know. When I was born she was already 10 years old, so as I grew up she was my big sister. She was like a second mom to me when I was really little."
Artemis nodded.
"You may not be the youngest, but she always gave you special attention because you were her little brother. We did not see what you looked like before your surgery, but she did. She did not tell us when we asked, but her face looked like she had seen something horrifying. So, take care of yourself for her sake as well please."
"I know."
The both of them hugged him before leaving to join the rest of his family. Before he went to talk to more of his family Quency looked up at him.
"So those are your sisters? It's night and day between them and Hera."
He nodded.
"Tell me about it."
Guilty smiled as she looked around.
"It's nice."
"I think so too. Well then, let's try to enjoy ourselves then."
While he was here, he spoke with his grandparents. Miraculously all 4 of them were still alive despite them being in their early 80s.
He also spoke a few polite words with his Brother In Law and his Neice Elleine who had just turned 11. Guilty and Quency got to enjoy the food that had been prepared and he gave his mother the gift he got her.
She could get any highly expensive jewel, clothes, or electronics so he got her something else. Something no one expected as he reached into his coat and pulled out a necklace made from what looked to be smoothed metal shards.
"What is this?"
"A necklace made from Rapture metal. Every time I went up there on my first couple of missions I collected some of this to experiment on it myself. Instead, I just turned it into a necklace."
She laughed as she put it on her neck on the spot.
"Thank you, son. That is a first and much better than if you got me a regular necklace. I have so many already."
He nodded.
"I am glad you like it."
"I truly do."
Everyone else gave her their gifts, but none of them were as unique as his necklace. He stayed a few more hours before he Quency and Guilty. Went home. Quency would need to return to the Rehabilitation Center soon, but they had time.
He would be happier if his Father just told him what they did to him. He would find out one way or another as he needed to know. But that would just have to wait and Maxwell would be his answer.