That evening...
Dom is sitting on the porch behind his small house, his frustrated looking eyes fixed on a familiar book in his lap.
"Hey, did that blast fuck with your ears?" Pops asked as he opens the door to the porch. "I said dinner's ready." He stops once he finds Dom engrossed in his research. "You still haven't figured it out?"
Dom sighs as he lays on his back, his eyes staring at the dark sky above while his mind replays Anthony's riddle.
"I think he was just bullshitting you." Pops said as he sits beside Dom who punches him with a glare.
Pops smirk. "It'll be okay. You'll figure it out." He added as he picks up the book.
Dom sighs. "I hope so."
A moment of silence hangs around them. The soft howling of wind and chirps from the locusts in the background while Dom star-gazes as Pops flips through the book.
Pops eventually closes the book and notices the cover. "Wait. Isn't this that book you keep sneaking out to read?" He asked.
"Yeah." Dom said.
Pops places the book on his lap, his eyes now filled with aggression as he stares at Dom.
"If you stole this thing, I'll knock the fucking stuffing out-"
"Chill!" Dom shouted as he sits up with arms raised in defeat. "The bald guy felt bad because of what happened and gave it to me to cheer me up. I also get some other cool stuffs too. See?"
Dom reveals a strange toy from his pocket. Pops stares at him suspiciously as he takes the toy and examines it.
"You do know that bald guy has a name, right?" Pops asked. He looks up from the toy to meet Dom's sceptic stare. This makes him laugh. "Yeah, I don't know it either."
Dom laughs and Pops smiles before frowning in confusion once the toy makes a strange sound once he accidentally presses something.
"I still can't believe you're okay after everything. I'm pretty sure I'd shit myself if I was in your shoes." Pops said as he silences the toy.
"Ew. Gross."
Pops gives Dom a proud smile. "You're strong, kid. Don't ever forget that."
Dom grins, the compliment lifting his spirit from the troublesome riddle…
Dom suddenly jumps to his feet, his eyes widened once he realized the hint. Wordlessly, he suddenly rips the book from Pops laps and rapidly flips through it.
"You figured it out?" Pops asked, his expression now curious.
"I think so. Where is-Here!"
Dom stops at a page and quickly reads it. Pops looks over and realizes that this page is about the Mage Emperor.
Dom then drops the book and jumps forward. He stops on the bare ground beyond the porch where he gets on his knees and holds up his right fist.
He closes his eyes and furrows his brows with his fist tightening. Pops' eyes narrow once he sees the blue aura swirling around Dom's small fist.
"What are you doing?" Pops asked.
Dom opens his eyes, his teeth gritted as he intensifies his mana output, his fist visibly trembling from the intense power filling it.
With a grunt, Dom sends his fist into the hard-concrete ground… which instantly crumbles… rapidly sending out several cracks from the point of contact with one extending to the house, nearly severing the outer wall in two.
Pops jumps, startled by the explosive sound and slight trembling of the ground beneath him.
The commotion even alerts their neighbors, their startled silhouettes' visible through their curtains.
"What's that?! An earthquake?"
"A bomb."
"Mum, I'm scared…"
The sound of confusion continuously echoes through the small neighborhood.
Meanwhile, Pops pulls himself to his feet, his widened eyes fixed on the figure in the epicenter of that chaos. "Holy fuck." He mumbled as Dom pulls his hand out of the crumbled earth.
His wide blue eyes stare at the small crater under him before shifting to his knuckles which remain completely unharmed.
"Physical Enhancement." Dom whispered, his expression still filled with shock… before switching to wide grin as he turns to Pops with his fist held up. "That's my affinity."
Pop's eyes then light up with understanding. "You're right." He said as he looks at the book discarded on the floor.
"Ethan Maximus was such a powerful mage that people tend to forget that his only power was his unbeatable physical strength. It's why he was called the Strongest Soldier." Pops mumbled before slapping his forehead with a laugh. "Why didn't I think of it?"
Dom jumps to his feet with a giddy laugh before frowning in realization. "Thank God that I never got really angry and punched someone that hard before." He said as he stares at his hands.
"Yeah." Pops laughs as he sits back down. "Well, you've already cleared the first step."
Dom nods, his expression filled with excitement again while Pops goes through the book to get more details.
"That means Tony will keep his promise too, right?" Dom asked as he walks back to Pops but stops once he realizes something. "Wait. How did Tony know what my affinity was even though I've never met him before?"
Pops stares at the sketch of Ethan Maximus, looking for any clue which is impossible with the image's full body armor and helmet.
But this is not a surprise since despite being the most popular man in the entire Great-Land, other than his name, the emperor's face and identity is unknown.
"No idea." Pops sighed as he shuts the book and sets it down. "Still…" He gives Dom a long stare. "Not only are you aiming to surpass Ethan in status, but you also have his affinity. It's like the universe is on your side."
"Really?" Dom asked as he sits beside Pops with a growing smile.
Pops places a hand on Dom's head, ruffling his hair. "And now that I know what your affinity is, I can start working on a training routine until you're old enough to join the academy."
Dom turns to Pops, his eyes wide with shock.
"It'll be a little tricky with work and your school resuming soon but we'll make it work." Pops said as he rubs his chin.
Dom frowns with confusion. "I thought you didn't want me to join the army."
Pops smirks. "Don't get me wrong. If it was my choice, I'd take you as far away from fighting as possible. I doubt that feeling will ever change."
Dom's frown deepens while Pops pulls out his cigarette pack.
A moment of awkward silence hangs in the air… only to be broken by a loud sigh by Pops as he lets out a puff of smoke.
"Back when I was in the army…" Pops said, getting Dom's attention. "The war was over, but it wasn't exactly peaceful either."
He pauses momentarily to take a smoke.
"I became a Captain 8 years after the War… but even then, it was more of a truce. The Official Peace Treaty was signed 2 years after that."
"Why did it take so long?"
Pops holds the lit stick close to his lips as he responds, "Because some people didn't want it to end."
As Pops smoke, Dom furrows his brows, his expression riddled with confusion.
Pops notices Dom's expression and sighs; "We've been fighting each other for over 500 years. There was no way everybody was just going to accept a truce made by fear."
Pops' eyes darken as he stares at the ashy end of his stick. "Not after everything they lost."
Dom looks down at his laps and nods, even though he doesn't quite understand the reason.
"But…" Pops grumbled as he switches his position to lean on the pillar next to him. "Regardless of those people's wishes, the kings continued with the plan for peace. So those people chose to take matter into their own hands and tried to stop the signing as hard as they could."
Pops leans his head back as he takes a deep whiff and sighs heavily, his eyes fixed on the misty smoke in front of him.
"10 years." He muttered. "That's how long they fought for." He then frowns as he looks up at the sky.
"My… last mission… was to stop one of those rebel groups from attacking an East-Land Diplomat."
Dom's eyes widen a little once he sees Pops' body stiffen with his fists tightly clenched on the porch floor.
"We were 45 soldiers when we deployed." He places his free hand over his face, a bitter frown visible through his fingers.
"I was the only one who came back."
Dom's eyes widen even more as he sees Pops grit his teeth. To Dom, this is the first time he'd ever seen Pops look so… vulnerable.
Pops then quickly wipes his face and sits up, his eyes now fixed on the floor. "Watching my men die like that. Brothers who fought tooth and nail with me to get that far. Only to be killed by monsters who only wanted more bloodshed. It was… hard."
Pops takes a moment to smoke in an attempt to compose himself. Dom doesn't interrupt, he waits patiently for Pops to collect his thoughts and resume his story.
"When I was… healing, I couldn't shake the memory away. It kept replaying…over and over." He taps his head, sadly. "The worst part was that the more I thought about it, the more… scared I got until I just… couldn't handle it anymore."
He turns to stare at the garden again. "I took off my uniform and disappeared. I heard about this town from my right hand and used all the money I saved up to build myself a life here…"
He runs his hand over the floor while he stares at the house behind them. "At first, I thought that would be enough to move on… but…I was wrong."
He pulls out the half-burnt cigarette from his mouth and glares at it. "No matter what I did, how hard I tried to get away… the nightmares never left." He angrily crushes the cigarette onto the porch with a loud hiss. "I thought I was going to die with that shitty feeling."
Dom's frown deepens even more, the sight and feeling of Pops' frustration, regret and grief resonating with the little boy's mind… until he notices Pops smile again. sad expression, just as Pops lets out a long sigh.
"And that's when I met you." Pops said as he smacks Dom's arm. "I never had any plans for a wife or kids. But… raising you was the best decision I ever made."
Dom's eyes widen, a slight blush in his cheeks.
"You were the glue that kept me together all these years." He emphasized.
Dom looks away to hide his embarrassed grin… before suddenly frowning in thought. "But… I'm going away." He mumbled, sadly.
Pops nods, his smile fades a little. "Having someone like you go to the very place I tried desperately to run away from… I think even you can understand how that makes me feel."
"Yeah." Dom said, his mind now filled with conflict.
Pops then grabs Dom's head with a smirk. "But you're different."
Dom looks at Pops as he removes his hand.
"You're just a kid and you've already come face to face with a real monster."
Dom flinches at the thought of Elon. "But I couldn't do anything." He mumbled, remembering his helpless state.
Pops laughs. "Of course not. There was nothing you could do."
Dom frowns, Pops words further worsening his regret.
"But… even after seeing that guy… even after seeing those boys get killed and almost dying yourself… you still shout that you want to fight."
Dom looks up again to meet Pop's now softened expression.
"That's not something even the bravest of soldiers can just say like that."
Pops places a hand on Dom's head again and grins.
"You're strong, Dom. Stronger than a lot of people... including me."
Dom stares, speechless at the heartfelt compliment and smiles. "Thanks."
Pops nods as he drops his hand while he stares up at the sky again.
"That's why as a coward who ran from battle, I have no right to stop you." He added with a shrug. "So, the least I can do is everything I can to give you a good fighting chance."
"Yes." Dom chanted with his fists raised in excitement.
Pops expression then hardens; "Don't get too excited. I may be a coward, but I was still a damn good commanding officer. I'm not going to go easy on you just because you're a kid."
Dom grins as he punches his palm. "Fine by me."
"That's my boy." Pops chuckled as he rubs his hair again before standing. "Come on. Our dinner's most likely cold by now."
Dom nods as he picks up the book and stands.
"Oh, and first thing tomorrow morning…" Pops said as he points to the cracks on the wall. "… you better fill those in. I don't want my house looking like it's a billion years old." He added coldly as he walks into the house.
Dom's expression falls as he follows the crack to the point of contact where several more cracks emerge. With a heavy sigh, he walks into the house.