The Earth After Rebirth

The doors to their meeting flew open, revealing Ishaan from the other side.

"Sorry I'm late, are you guys okay? I only heard this morning, I was worried sick."

"What do you know about the Sanctum, Ishaan?" Kiro asked him, looking dead in the eyes.

"Wh-what? do you mean..."

"Holy hell Ishaan! You do know!" Nikolai chimed in.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

Ishaan had a genuine confused expression on his face. He was also a little lost for words, nobody should know what the Sanctum was but a few people. So few it was only their fathers and the children they've chosen to take over for them once they've left.

Nikolai and Hiro were just about ready to pound him, they'd gotten up from their seats with crazed looks on their eyes. Ishaan wasn't fast enough as he was still in his state of confusion.

They however froze just as they were about to reach him, Ishaan already had his eyes closed shut ready to receive the blow. Kiro used vibrations to specifically stun the both of them.

"Both of you calm down, Ishaan explain." He had to be the calm leader.

"I was told never—" When he saw Kiro's eyes, he decided to betray his father, they already knew anyway. "But, it's a stupid club for rich people. They just go there to discuss which new businesses they should endorse.

"They basically plan out everything, so that they never go into wars with each other. Whatever is decided in those meetings, is final. That's all. I'm supposed to take over for my dad once he's too old."

Kiro then let the two hotheads go. Instead of embarrassment they both had a defiant look on their faces, as if to say 'speak sooner if you have nothing to do with them.'

"So their sons are pawns who know nothing about the evil side of the Sanctum?" Felix asked finally joining the conversation.

"We can't assume that, Isaac's father probably hasn't told him everything because he knows his son is a bragger." Kiro said thoughtfully.

"The evil side—wha-what do you mean?" Ishaan was obviously very confused.

They didn't mean to do it but they completely ignored Ishaan. They were talking amongst themselves, not whispering, he could hear them clearly he just couldn't make sense of what they were saying. His father? In cahoots with evil people? That wasn't possible in his eyes.

"Hey, you can't just ignore me!" He shouted.

That grasped their attention. Kiro sighed looking at him, he felt sorry for Ishaan. He was an only child, he only had his father as his family. Now he was possibly going lose him to this.

"Well, then the thing is Ishaan..." Kiro started.

He tried letting him down gently, he started narrating everything they knew and were hoping to achieve. Ishaan almost didn't believe them, but when they told him the reason for their kidnapping he was forced to rethink what he was told by his father.

He sat there, dumbly unbelieving of the atrocities the Sanctum, his father's pride, were being accused of. He wanted to believe his father was innocent. His reaction was normal, no child wants to believe their parents were evil beings.

"I can't believe it..."

Kiro patted his back, sitting him down. He could understand, more or less his pain. He couldn't imagine how distraught he'd be if one of his loved was actually a bad guy.

"There's no way... I have to ask him..."

Kiro only gave him a slight tap on the cheek but it sounded throughout the meeting hall. Jerking everyone's attention to him.

"Hey, how come you get to beat him!" Nikolai complained.

"Listen to me, Ishaan," He started, ignoring Nikolai and holding Ishaan's neck so he could look him in the eye.

"If you breathe any of this to anyone, at all, for whatever reason. You'll become an enemy of after dark and when do take down the Sanctum, we will not be meeting you as an old friend. I don't know what will happen but it won't be pretty. So, think very carefully about who you want to be allied with."

Ishaan truly heard and understood Kiro, the shock hadn't completely clouded his judgement.

"But he's my dad..." He said softly.

"He's your dad so he gets a pass? Hiro doesn't have a dad right, he's missing because of the shenanigans committed by the Sanctum. My grandfather has been missing for 10 years, his body has never been found. Do you truly think the status quo is right as is?" Kiro was now getting angry, Ryu was egging him on.

"I understand you Kiro I do..."

"If you wouldn't like to participate, that's fine just don't get in our way." Kiro shrugged with finality.

"No..." He said and paused for the longest time, "I'm his son, I'll clean up his mess. Count me in, I'll find out what I can."

Kiro silently looked at him, his eyes were unwavering, his voice was resolute. They had unwittingly gained a 5th man for their mission, that made him happier.

He didn't want to lose none of them he'd grown fond of the after dark members and he wanted to keep it like that.

Ding!

[Not to interrupt the emotional meeting but a harbinger is currently wrecking Havoc at the capital all guardians shall be transported there immediately. Kill it or suffer the consequences]

Everyone in the room except Ishaan started glowing and they were gone. He hadn't heard the message so he started panicking as his teammates disappeared before they could even fill him in about what was going on.

They arrived at the scene instantaneously. Every player that wasn't a guardian was locked out of the game, which caused an uproar in the forums.

"Sh*tty game, this is a sh*tty, I've always known that much."

"Anybody know why we can't login?"

"I was fighting a boss monster too! They better reimburse me for this!"

The complaints poured in like rain on a summer's afternoon. But nobody answered their cries, they had no idea that some players were stuck there fighting to keep Asgard safe.