Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Claude and Leo were inseparable; they were like soulmates. Meant to always be by each other side.

They were always together, their love for each other full and tender.

Their happy days were always fill with memories of each other; laughter and warmth surround them.

Claude couldn’t even begin to put into words how much Leo meant to him.

Leo was his anchor, his safe place,
Leo would’ve probably said the same thing about Claude.

Even when nobody dared to take Claude’s heart in their hands,

Leo always did,
He always held it,
Gentle and unwavering.

At some point Leo presence grew bigger in Claude’s life.
Always there beside him.
Always there for him.
Devotedly and indisputably there.

They would always joke that it was fate for them to meet. Laughing and saying that it sounded corny, but something in them believed. Believed that it was actually fate.

Well,

Until that fate took Leo away.

---------------

Claude works under A.S.H. a secret organization specializing in multitude of different services. The people under it consisting of secret agents like Claude, heroes and even people who threads the more mysterious part of the world, sorcerers, mages and such.

It was when A.S.H. collaborated with NEO-PORTE, a secret intelligence company that Claude met Leo.

They were assigned to a mission together, a secretive risky one. The expectation of success was low, but they still
manage to succeed it. It went unexpectedly smooth even to their own surprise.

Their relationship at the beginning was nothing more than two trusted agents working together. The two clicked together fairly quick but they kept it professional. Expressing nothing more than friendly praise for each other’s ability and the typical “It was nice working with you”.

But their relationship doesn’t end there.

They were paired for another new mission which ended as another ‘Mission Complete’ on their records and this back-to-back success was the start of it all as they were assigned to more missions together.

Some of them were simple quick one, some with others, some with just the two them, some needed them to fight on the front lines, and some were far away where they spend weeks together working under the radar.

It was during these missions that their professional relationship slowly melts away. They became more casual with each other—friends, and slowly it blooms into something more.

Something intimate and romantic. Lovers.

Although dating in their line of work could be considered taboo, it didn’t stop them—or more precisely, they just didn’t care.

After some time, the two acquire a private house together, a quiet respite for the two when they’re not at their respective HQ.

They were days when one of them would come home with a heavy heart. Whether it be losing a comrade in duty or failing an important mission. It was those days that they would make sure to hold each other tight, grounding and comforting one another.

They went on like that for a long time, even when they were so busy they could barely see each other. The quiet moments of simply being there for each other or the happy little memories that they have together was more than anything they could ask for. It was more than enough.

Before Leo got announced to be missing in action.

---------------

Their work is dangerous; it’s an undeniable fact. They both knew this, aware that they could lose each other at any moment. But that didn’t make it any easier for Claude.

When people broke the news to him, his heart sink. Panic and dread fill him almost instantly. This is not happening, it can’t happen, he can’t lose Leo-

His body shakes as the thought clings onto him, grabbing onto him like a parasite. He feels dizzy, dark thoughts threatening to eat him alive. He took a deep breath, “It’s only been three days since they lost contact with him, it’s still too early to draw conclusion,” he whispers, as if trying to convince himself that Leo was fine.

He chose to held hope as they try to find Leo. He can’t lose Leo.

He wanted to help find Leo too, how could he not? but the mission that Leo took on was exclusively from NEO-PORTE, he didn’t have access to any information. Not even the location of the mission nor his last whereabouts. He asked them to let him help, even bringing up records of the times they worked together, but they denied him—not surprising, that’s just how it’s always been with these top-secret agencies. They wouldn’t let anyone outside in.

He planned to track Leo himself. He was willing to try even with no lead whatsoever. But when the higher up of A.S.H. found out, he got stopped. They warned him to not meddle in the other agency business as it could cause damage to the inter-agency relationship.

And so, Claude had no choice but to just wait. Wallowing in his own anxiety.

He remained delusionally hopeful even after two months had passed. “Leo is still out there, he’s fine” he would repeat it to himself like a mantra. Like he would go insane if he didn’t.
Days past like a daze in Claude’s mind.

Leo is still out there, he’s fine
Leo is still out there, he’s fine
Leo is still out there, he’s fine

And then an update came.
News of Leo. Bad news of Leo.

They had found his clothes and belongings in an empty warehouse, covered in his blood. Too much blood—old blood, likely from when he first when MIA. Evidence of violence and fight filled the warehouse.

Everything they had found pointed to a horrible conclusion and they couldn’t keep searching for him forever.

So, a funeral was then held for him.

---------------

Claude was in denial. He couldn’t accept that Leo is dead.

So he forgets, forget that the funeral had happened, forgets when they told him that Leo was probably dead and even forgets the fact that Leo went missing. As if his mind was still in the past and Leo still with him. As if trying to protect him. Claude went on with his life normally, the same way he was before Leo went missing. The diligent, strong, strict and sometime cold Agent Clawmark.

But his friends noticed. They watched as he deludes himself in his little fantasy.

He would talk to them about Leo, casual and lighthearted. A normal occurrence had it been a few months ago. He would talk to the shadow of Leo, genuinely believing he’s there.

They thought of simply letting him be like that. “Maybe he just needs some time, maybe he’ll snap out of it when the time comes.” But they knew that’s not the case. They knew that if they don’t intervene, he would continue to live in this delusion for years to come. Maybe even until the end of his life.

And so, they decided to try to break him out of it. For his own sake, so that he can properly move on. They were prepared to support him through it.

That’s what Leo would’ve wanted.

But things prove to be harder than they thought. Claude wouldn’t listen, denying everything they told him. Getting defensive over it,

“What are you guys talking about?”
“Leo’s fine.”
“Stop saying stupid stuff.”
“Stop talking about that.”
“He’s not dead.”

Despite his aggravated behavior whenever they talk to him about it, they continue to be gentle with him. Slowly providing him with facts and evidence, giving gentle reminders of things that happened.

It took them weeks, but they could tell that he was slowly breaking out of that bubble, slowly listening to what they had to say. His expression anxious as he continue to take in everything, slowly facing the truth. The delusion slowly cracks.

Then on a cold night as he stands alone in their once shared house, his mind deep in thoughts. That little delusion finally shatters. The truth finally registers in his mind.

Leo is gone.

And Claude broke, harder than he ever have. He fell on his knees; broken raw sobs escape his mouth as he chokes on his tears. His body trembles as ugly noises escape him, his head dropping onto the floor, hand clutching his chest. His head hurts. His heart hurt. Everything hurts.

Memories of Leo surges through his mind, eliciting more painful noises from him. He can’t breathe, sharp pain surging through his body. It hurts. His hand flew onto his mouth before he screams into them, pain too much to contain. It hurts. He curled up on the floor, his shivering arm hugging his body, almost like a futile attempt at comforting himself. It hurts. His heart begs for Leo, for the warmth that Leo gave him, for the comforting arms that would hold him when he cries. He wants Leo, he misses him.

It hurts; it hurts so much Leo.

The last thought passes through his mind before he lost consciousness on the cold floor.

---------------

Claude woke up with a scratch in his throat, his brain feels like tv static. He blinks as he takes on his surroundings. He’s no longer on the floor; someone had move him to his bed. “Claude?” a familiar voice ring as three figures walk into his view, looking at him with worries in their eyes—Vanta, Zali and Wilson, his coworker and friend.

A beat of silence passed before Vanta spoke, his voice careful and low. “You didn’t check in for duty yesterday and you weren’t at HQ, so they send in a wellness check. We offered since we knew where your private house is”

He continued, “You okay dude?”. Claude didn’t answer, his eyes continue to stare at the ceiling. His mind still blurry. “Let’s give him some space.” Zali said before the three of them walk away from the bed. They linger in the bedroom, their whispers the only noise in the otherwise quiet room.

A few minutes passed before the doorbell rings, pulling Claude out of his trance, his eyes finally leaving the ceiling as he sees Zali going out the room. “We need to go back to HQ, so we called someone to come instead,” Wilson spoke as he walks toward Claude. “Sorry we can’t stay longer, let’s talk when you feel better.” He continued before he left the room, Vanta following close behind him. They probably knew what happened, simply choosing not to talk about it until he does.

He was left alone until the door to his bedroom opens again, another familiar figure walking in—Elira, his old friend who sometimes work with A.S.H. “Hey,” she greeted. “How are you feeling? I got some food for you” He didn’t answer and so she tries again, “Do you need anything Claude?” still no replies. She sighs before she spoke again, “I’ll get you some water,” she was about to leave the room before he stops her.

“No... I’m good” his voice hoarse as he slowly sits up. A beat of silence past before she speaks again, her voice gentle but firm, “Claude”. Claude knew what was coming, he can tell just from the way she looks at him. She’s about to say something that he didn’t want to hear, a reality check he’s not ready to face. She spoke gently, “Sorry we broke you out of that bubble, but we couldn’t let you stay like that forever. You have to move on, for your own good.”

He looks at her, as if trying to say something with his eyes.

But I can’t. I can’t move on without him.

She sits on the bedside, eyes not leaving him. “Now’s the time to cry and grief him all you want, but to do that you have to accept it first. Denying it won’t get you anywhere, you have to walk forward.” He looks down, quiet tears streaming down his cheek. His voice tremble as he speak, “What if I can’t?” more of a statement than a question. Elira didn’t answer, simply wrapping her arms around him, pulling him into a hug. He cried harder, sobbing into her shoulder. “Everything will be okay.” She reassured, grounding him even as her own eyes prickled with tears.

“You’ll be okay.”

Chapter Text

2 YEARS LATER

Two years have passed since Leo have been gone from Claude’s life. Although he managed to pick himself up to some degree, it would be a lie to say he moved on.

He thought of Leo occasionally. In the quiet moments between mission and in the cold nights where he couldn’t fall asleep, memories of Leo haunt his mind. The lack of closure on what happened to Leo causes nightmarish thoughts to breed in his mind. The reminder that Leo probably suffered on that goddamn mission was constant.

His nightmares filled with different scenarios of what Leo might’ve gone through, and he could do nothing about it, only able to watch from afar. The image of Leo getting hurt and the sound of Leo’s scream vivid is his mind every time he wakes up.

---------------

It’s a cold morning, the earthy scent of petrichor fills Claude’s nostrils as he walks through the memorial site, each step accompanied by the sound of crunching autumn-red leaves under his boots.

Granite and marble monuments filled the flattened land, the names of those who fell carved onto them. He continues to walk mindlessly before stopping in front of a white marble headstone. The familiar name carved onto it eliciting a heavy sigh from him—

KUGA LEO

His heart quietly ache as he crouches in front of it, his words barely above whisper, “Happy Anniversary Leo.” he wishes as he set a bouquet down—a mix of yellow and orange chrysanthemums.

He stands up with a grunt before continuing to gaze at the cold marble in front of him. No words are coming out of his mouth, only the cold wind blowing through his hair and the sound of birds chirping accompanying him. He took a deep breath before taking a step back, ready to leave—oh

Someone’s watching him.
He can feel it.

They’re on his left, a bit further away behind him, but he can feel their eyes on him, watching him intensely. Claude’s instinct went into gear, keeping his guard up almost instantly—is it also a visitor? Leo acquaintance maybe? —but his senses is telling him otherwise. They didn’t approach him so continues to stand there, pretending to gaze at the tombstone.

Only after a few minutes passed as the unknown person continue to stare at him that he’s now convinced this person is watching him. Questions rushed in his head—Who is it? An enemy? Someone seeking revenge? Did they found him here or were they following him and he simply didn’t notice? Did he put his guard down that low?

He turns around—naturally—walking away, pretending to leave. He glances at them, casual as if seeing someone when you turn around the block. But he catches it—the man looking away the moment Claude’s eyes land on him.

Claude looks away and continues to walk, writing a mental note of what he had caught of the man’s appearance—Slightly tall, slightly pale white skin, around middle-aged? beige trench coat, mid-length goatee. Couldn’t catch the man’s eye color.

The man is further away on his right, but he still treads carefully. Bracing himself for anything that could happen as he walks past the man—breathing relief when nothing of the sorts happens.

The man is now behind Claude, still standing still. Claude was about to chuck everything to his overthinking when the man didn’t follow him, but he spoke too soon.

The memorial site isn’t exactly a prohibited area nor is it hidden in secret, but it’s secluded—located on top of a high hill connected to a big park. There’s a parking lot on top of the hill. Most people would’ve ridden their vehicle up there, but Claude didn’t, choosing to walk instead. And it’s when he started descending the hill via the pavements, that he noticed the man following him. He hates it. He can’t see behind him, and the way down is quiet, no human seen in sight. He can focus on sound making sure the man isn’t getting closer, but the possibility of the man carrying a gun is still up in the air.

Claude lets out a deep breath when he reaches the bottom of the hill. They’re in the park now. It’s not crowded but there’s still people around. Good enough.

Claude stroll through the park, noting how the man continues to follow him. Is he trying to follow me to HQ? he sighs—this is getting annoying, guess I’ll just have to buy time.

---------------

After a few minutes Claude started walking to the more secluded part of the park, leading the man along with him. When they had reach to a quiet spot hidden behind tall trees and after making sure that there’s nobody around, Claude stops walking. He pulls out his gun—swiftly putting his mask on before turning around. He stares straight at the man, pointing the gun at him.

“Who the fuck are you?” Claude’s voice low, not aggressive nor provoking but enough to give a warning to the unknown man. Although the man didn’t retaliate nor pull out any weapon, he didn’t seem to be surprised either. He continues to stand still, his hazel eyes glaring straight at Claude.

“Where is he?” The man asks, his voice gruff and deep.

“Who?”

“Don’t play dumb” the man speaks again, impatience lacing his words.

Claude doesn’t know who this man is referring to, so he stays quiet simply waiting for the man to speak. After what felt like an eternity the man finally talks again, “Leo Kuga” another beat of silence past, “Where is he?” the man reiterates.

Leo?

The mention of Leo’s name caught Claude off guard, but he stays calm—his face expression unchanging. Claude sighs internally, this whole ordeal starting to annoy him even more.

“He’s dead” He speaks flatly, tired of this conversation.

But the man didn’t seem satisfied with his answer—his eyebrow knitted together, his face twisting and revealing a layer of unmistakable anger. He speaks aggressively now, any and all kind of restraint gone. “You fucking intelligence company never knew when to mind your own fucking business, always nosing around in people’s shit—” the man starts to ramble.

Intelligence company? Does this guy think I’m a part of NEO-PORTE?

“Where the fuck is he?” The man asks again, gritting his teeth. He looks like he’s going to jump at Claude at any moment, his face red from anger.

Claude would rather not kill this man if he didn’t need to, especially with the now known information that this man is an enemy of NEO-PORTE, he’s wary that things would get messy.He tries to speak to the man again, “You got the wrong people buddy, I don’t know what’s your beef with them, but I got nothing to do with it”. The man stays quiet so he continues, “The only thing I can tell you is that Leo Kuga is dead, you saw me at his grave”

The man scoffs, before going silent again—unmoving, almost like a statue. The tension builds as everything goes still. Then out of nowhere, the man reaches into his coat, fast—like an attempt to catch Claude off guard. But before he could pull out anything, strips of bandage like cloth flew around him. It wraps around his body and immobilizes him as Claude took the opportunity to get closer. He gives a firm strike to the man’s temple, knocking him unconscious and the man drops down onto the pavement, the bandages still wrapped around him.

Claude looks up at the sound of heels clicking in front of him.

“We got your signal” Zali says while smiling.

“Thanks, Zali” Claude sighs, fiddling with a tiny coin-shaped transmitter in his hand—specifically used to signal for help or emergency.

“No problem” Zali replies before another voice chimed in, “You’re lucky we were nearby” Vanta speaks walking from behind Zali. Claude hums in agreement as he stares at the unconscious man. Though he didn’t bring it up earlier, there were some thoughts that flew through his mind when the man had mention Leo.

How much information does this man have? He seem to believe that Leo's alive, does he have any lead to what happened to Leo? The closure he’s desperate for, or maybe Leo is still—

Claude’s heart thumps at the possibility presented in front him, reckless thoughts growing louder in his head. A sudden hand on his shoulder jolts him out of his train of thought. He looks up to see Vanta looking at him. “You good Claude?”

“Yeah, I’m good. We should contact HQ, I think it’s better to bring this man with us.”

Chapter Text

5:00 a.m.
A.S.H. Headquarters,

“Then please tell me who would be more suitable for this mission?”

The air in the room is thick as Claude spoke, his turquoise-purple eyes stare unwaveringly at the intelligence agent in front of him, his tone enough to send icy chills through the room.

The NEO-PORTE agent responds, his voice betraying him as hint of nervousness slips through, “There are other things to consider,” a pause before he speaks again, “I heard you were close with Agent Kuga, but please do not involve personal feelings into this.”

Claude’s eyes narrow at the mention of Leo, glaring at the agent like a warning to not mention the name. His voice cold as he speaks, “You didn’t answer my question. We’ve been here since yesterday morning and we barely have anything to work with. An unknown man with no identification record, no nothing, is searching for one of you guy’s dead man and your higher-ups clearly doesn’t think this is important enough considering they only send one person—you—here.”

He remembers yesterday occurrences,

They were cautious when they were transporting the unknown man. Taking his weapons away, scanning for any wires and trackers, even making sure he had no death-pills in his mouth. Everything went well at the start when the man woke up. They informed NEO-PORTE what the man said to Claude, and they sent an agent to A.S.H. but just seconds after the interrogation started—right after the first question, the man suddenly started to convulse, choking sounds escape his mouth before he goes silent. The man was still alive, but something went wrong with him. He went into a vegetative state, his eyes opens but he became unresponsive towards words and physical stimuli, his gaze looking straight through everyone.

A deafening silence past before Claude speaks again, still looking down at the agent sitting down in front of him,

“That man was prattling about your company but now look where we are, left with nothing but a gold emblem that you couldn’t find anything about and something cuckoo in his body that I couldn’t figure out what it is. We’ve tried everything, we won’t get anywhere like this, we need to expand the investigation, ‘but our company wish to keep this ordeal as secretive as possible’—well fuck who do you think can do that? I already know about this anyway so you wouldn’t have to worry about letting someone else in on this, and secretive? C’mon if you know about me and Leo then you know enough about me to know I’m your best bet.”

Claude opens his mouth to speak again when the agent remains silent, but his own higher-up who was present stops him, “That’s enough Clawmark, stand down.” Claude obeys but not before a quiet scoff leaving his mouth first.

The agent contemplates before finally speaking again, his voice meek, “I’ll have to confirm back to HQ, it’s their decision to make. Give me a bit to contact them first.” And so, Claude and his boss leave the small meeting room, leaving the agent to do what he needed to.

Claude didn’t linger—before his boss could even say anything he went straight to the interrogation room still holding the unknown man. The metal door slides open before he steps in, his eyes going straight to the man—a one way mirror separating them. The man’s expression is blank, his head down as he stares at the floor, any and all traces of anger he had shown in front of Claude gone.

They still don’t know what happened to the man. They double checked everything, any chip hidden in flesh, anything that can administer poison, but still nothing came up, and when they had no other choice, Claude decides to take it further. He took sample of the man’s blood, and that’s where he found it, something in the blood, something that shouldn’t be there naturally. Some sort of unnatural biological change done to him that Claude’s not sure about. The more curious thing is why now? The timing was too convenient. It was probably in the man’s body from the beginning but how did it activate itself now. Was it by himself? Or was it done remotely by someone else? How?

It'll take a long time if he were to actually try researching it.

His train of thought broke when he heard the metal door slides open. The NEO-PORTE agent from earlier—Agent Klyde, walking into the room. He stands next to Claude, eyes on the unknown man as he speak, “They gave the green light, you can take on the mission.”

A beat of silence before he continues “I am not an on-field agent so I won’t be joining you on-site, but I’ve been ordered to assist you in any way I can. Please tell me if you need anything.”

Claude took a deep breath, “Thanks man. My bad for earlier, I’ll contact you if I need your help.” He said, patting the other man’s shoulder before walking out the room.

--------------

6:15 a.m.
A.S.H Living Headquarter,
Claude’s room,

Claude sits down at the edge of his bed, his hair still damp from shower. This is the first time he’s been able to sit down and properly think since his encounter with the unknown man. He fiddles with his fingers and sighs; it was unfortunate that he couldn’t get more info of Leo from the man, but not all hope is lost, he can still figure out more from this mission, or at least he hopes so. Now that they gave him the green light, nobody can stop him. He can do whatever he wants, he can actually look for Leo—even if it’s too late now. He sighs looking at the time.

Guess I can take a quick nap.

--------------

The same day,
12:00 p.m.

Claude stands in front of a huge gate—gold roses adorning its black metal in elegant designs. He looks straight into the CCTV camera above it—walking in when the gate opens with a low screeching sound. And without the gate in the way, he can see it clearly now, a medium sized mansion standing right at the end of the stone brick pavement, a white marble fountain standing proudly in the middle. A place he has visited on multiple occasions before.

He walks to the front door, raising his hand but before he could press on the doorbell, the doors open. A middle-aged man—the butler, greeting him. He quietly holds the door open, gesturing for Claude to comes inside.

The moment Claude steps inside he was greeted by two things, the luxurious interior of the mansion that smells of money, and people—all dress in suits with gold colored animal-shaped masks covering their faces.

“This way, Sir.” The butler gestures.

Claude follows the butler as two of the masked people follow suit, tailing right behind him. After a little bit of walking with nothing but the sounds of shoes on marble floor, the butler finally stops in front of a door. He knocks, only opening it when a light shout of permission can be heard from the inside. The butler holds the door open, his hand gestures for Claude to go inside and so he did, walking in the office alone before the door closes behind him.

His eyes look up to see the male before him—purple eyes, blond hair, the tattoo adorning his body exposed from the crack of his black dress shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows.

Luca Kaneshiro, a mafia boss whom he has personal connection with.

“Claude hey! It’s been a while man. How’ve you been?” The man greeted him cheerfully; a wide smile plastered on his face.

“Luca yeah, it’s been a bit haven’t it. Could be better but you know how it is.” Claude responds casually. “You know what I’m here for right?”

Luca chuckles, “Right to business as always. Don't worry, take a seat.” He says gesturing for Claude to sit down on the sofa in front of a coffee table located in the middle of the room.

Luca sits down opposite of him with a grunt before he asks, “So what do you need from me?”

Claude pulled out the golden emblem brooch they had found on the unknown man, sliding it on the coffee table for Luca to see. The design on it detailed albeit being simple—a circular frame with a stem of foxgloves and a stem of orchid side by side, running diagonally from bottom left to top right of the brooch.

“Any idea where this could be from?” Claude asks.

Luca picks up the brooch, eyes scanning it in a flash before putting it down as quickly as he picks it up. The mafia stayed quiet, instead resting his elbows on the sofa’s armrest before putting his chin on top of his knuckles. He smiles coyly at Claude.

Claude sighs, “Name your price. For the info and for your silence. Me showing you this and you seeing this can’t go out.”

“I heard you used to be a cleric.” Luca replied.

Claude almost jolt at Luca’s word. I never told him that. Guess that’s the mafia for you.

Luca continues, his voice lace with dangerous mischief, “A very good one at that. You know how to make potions don’t you?”

Claude contemplates before finally replying with a sigh, “Depends, what do you want...Careful though I’m not reckless enough to give you everything.”

“Truth serum.” Luca says.

“Truth serum?” Claude echoes.

“Yeah, been having to 'talk' to a lot of people recently. Need something to make it easier.” Luca reveals casually, “Heard they’re hard to make, a taboo too, most don’t even want to make it—heck I only know it existed recently. But you can make it can’t you? No, I know you can.”

Claude stays silent.

“C’mon it’s a good deal, no? Not too dangerous but not second-rate that I could get it from anyone either.” Luca says.

“Sure. Warning thought, truth serums doesn’t just make someone suddenly talk or make them can’t lie out of nowhere, it distresses their brain. So much so that they can’t even think of what they should or not say, raw words from their mind will just spill out of their mouths when asked questions. It’s technically a torture potion.” Claude warns, making sure that Luca knows what he’s asking for.

“Yup, perfect.” Luca confirms.

“So, the brooch?”

“It’s some kind of secret society group that started showing up around four years ago, don't know their name, they move low profile, the kind you only see when you look closely. They keep their work mysterious too, not sure what they do other than it’s something to do with researching stuff. They have a lot of people under them; the type of people you stay far away from, the type that gives you creeps just from talking to them.”

Luca pauses for second before continuing, “I’ve seen another type of that brooch, same design but with gems on the rim. I’m assuming one’s probably for people working under them, and the other for VIPs—investors, ‘consumers’, and such. At least that’s how these kinds of brooches work like anyway. I would tell you where to find their members, but I’ve only seen them at random places. You’re more likely to find them alone rather than with their buddies, that’s how secretive they are”

Another eerie pause before the mafia continues, his eyes looking straight into Claude’s, “You should be careful Claude, they’re everywhere. I’ve seen the most random people with those brooches—and people goes missing around them.”

“Are they aggressive?” Claude asks.

“Not on the front at least. They seem to stay away from conflict, probably to avoid standing out as much as possible… Sorry, that’s all I really know.”

Claude sighs internally, they must be really under the radar for the Kaneshiro Family to not know anything about them.

“You’re not interested in finding out more about them? That’s rare, I thought you loved a challenge.” Claude says.

“It’s just not worth it with how cautious they are. They give me the kind of creepy vibe that I don’t want my men to get involved with. I think that tells a lot, no? I mean it looks like your people knows nothing about them either.”

“I see.” Claude looks at the clock hanging in the office, checking the time.

“Sorry I can’t tell you more, but I can send you some info of the people I’ve seen with those brooches, you know, to make the serum actually worth your time.” Luca says while smiling.

“I would appreciate that,” Claude says while picking up the brooch and standing up, “I need to get going, I’ll send you that serum when its done. Thanks man, pleasure working with you again.”

“Hey, no problem.” Luca replies, watching as Claude walks out the door.

Claude checks the time again on his phone while walking to the front door, Guess it's time to finally have that meeting.

Chapter Text

1:23 p.m.
A.S.H. Headquarters,

The meeting room is quiet. Claude, one of his higher up, his handler and a secretary sit in their respective chair, no words being spoken in between them. The air didn’t feel tight; a normal silence for a solo agent like Claude whenever he had to wait for these kinds of meeting to start—at least that how it usually was. But this time it’s different, he can feel the lump in his throat, the sound of his heartbeat too loud in his ear, the air too cold on his skin. This meeting is crucial for the mission and admittedly even more for himself. He had wished he could’ve done this way earlier but now that it’s actually happening, he can’t let it slip. He needs to know.

The minutes on the clock hit 30 and the sound of crackling static cuts through the silence. A holographic screen flickers in front of the meeting room, ‘NEO-PORTE’ the screen flashes for a second before it pans to a live image of four people, two higher ups, a case officer and an agent. Claude recognizes the agent, he was the one working with Leo as a HQ support on the mission that he went missing. He remembers reaching out to the agent in hope of being let to have a hand on finding Leo.

Claude’s higher up speaks first, exchanging pleasantries with the other agency that Claude didn’t bother to listen to. Then his handler, codename: Petra, speaks, briefing the situation before she turns to Claude, “…with that Agent Clawmark would like to inquire something in regard to this mission, it would be appreciated if you would listen to him.”

Claude stands up, his body language composed as he swallows the bile in his throat before his speaks, “Good afternoon gentlemen, as my handler has briefed the situation I’ll get straight into it,” A small pause before he continues, voice calm and professional, “ As you are aware, this whole mission started when an unknown man came to me in search of one of your late agent, Agent Kuga more precisely, who went missing two years ago. Keeping that in mind, I would like to request for something that will be of significant value to this mission—a copy of the file and reports of Agent Kuga’s last mission.”

Claude’s gaze catches the slightly stunned and cautious look that slips through the NEO-PORTE agent’s face. An expression Claude would overthink if he was not so tunnel vision and desperate on obtaining his request.

A beat of silence before the case officer speaks to their own higher-ups “When Agent Kuga went missing in action, Agent Clawmark has made the same request sir, but we denied it following your order.”

One of the two higher-up sighs before he speak, “Agent Clawmark we are aware of your countless successful partnership with Agent Kuga, but this matter goes way past simple trust. That mission is strictly confidential, I’m afraid we cannot do that.”

‘Simple trust’? Don’t piss me off. He thought to himself.

“You have made the same request before, I’m sure you must have lost a cherished partner when Agent Kuga went missing—but even with the added mission, personal reasons like that are all the more why we cannot comply to your request.” The other higher-up adds, his kind voice creeping under Claude’s skin.

Claude doesn’t back down, “Please don’t be mistaken sir, I know the implications with me making the same request a second time and I won’t deny my closeness with Agent Kuga either, but this is an impersonal request. The last whereabout of Agent Kuga, the people he saw during his own mission—all those information simply have that much importance towards this mission.”

Petra chimes in, “If I may sirs, Agent Clawmark is one of our best and trusted agents. I’m sure you have seen his works with Agent Kuga; he is not the type to let crucial information slips away from him. With the discoveries of the secret society, we need everything we can get. Although the direction of where this investigation will lead to is still unknown, I think both A.S.H. and NEO-PORTE can agree that any discoveries on this secret society will benefits both parties.”

The mention of the secret society seems to cause a flicker of interest in their eyes, but their cautiousness persists. Almost like gatekeeping a secret they don’t want to let out.

“Won’t you agree sir?” Petra asks the A.S.H.’s higher-up present.

“We will not push if NEO-PORTE is unwilling to share that information with us, but Handler Petra makes a fair point. The progress of Agent Clawmark investigation will bring great benefits to both agencies.”

The room goes silent, the two higher-ups caught in a discussion between them, their voices unheard on Claude’s side as the silence makes him aware of his loud heartbeat. After a few minutes, their voice could finally be heard again.

The case officer speaks, “We will send you the files and reports, but certain information we don’t think is significant for your mission will be cut. This is unnegotiable. Please understand that this for the sake of confidentiality.”

Claude would bargain for more but he rather this than nothing, and they couldn’t make it more obvious that they wouldn’t share any more than this.

The meeting concludes with some last words and confirmations before the hologram screen flickers with a crackling noise as it disappears, silence enveloping the cold meeting room once again.

The higher-up gets up and leaves the room first before the other three follow suit. But before Petra could step out of the room Claude mutters something, just loud enough for her to hear, “Thank You Petra.”

Petra looks back at Claude, her blue eyes reading Claude’s expression. Her eyes soften, “Safe mission Clawmark.” She replies before walking out the room. She has been Claude’s handler since the moment he got recruited into A.S.H., she was the closest one to have watched Leo and Claude working together. She knew of their relationship, simply choosing to never say anything about it out of grace—out of the way Claude’s eyes lit up so brightly for the first time since joining this grim profession.

Even from a professional standpoint Clawmark never falter because of his relationship, so she saw no reason to meddle—she’s not one of those higher-ups that derives from their agents unnecessarily. She had no intention of getting in between two people who clearly needed one another.

She knew Claude’s ‘impersonal request’ is a lie, yet she still chose to feed into it, still chose to chime in during the meeting and help. Maybe it was pity, maybe it was guilt, but seeing the grim look on Claude’s face, she can’t help but think to herself that maybe she should’ve stopped them. She knew why the other handlers were ordered to prevent their agent from getting into this kind of relationship, she knew the risks it usually brings—traitors, rogues, backstabbing, death—all too familiar yet she still kept quiet. And then it was too late, Leo’s gone, and Claude broke.

She remembers some of the more uncouth higher-up’s ‘concerns’ regarding Claude’s behavior towards Agent Kuga’s death. They brought up ‘unnecessary attachment’ and question his ability as a secret agent, something like—what if he gets attach to an enemy while going undercover or betray the organization—stupid, Petra thought but they didn’t stop there, stressing that Claude only to be sent on solo missions, isolating him. Controlling and cruel.

Yet Petra still followed their order, and Claude followed hers.

---------------

The walk away from the meeting room feels heavy. He finally got it, the information he wanted so badly. It’s a good thing, more clues for his mission and Leo. He didn’t think he’d feel happy about it, or that he would celebrate it or anything, but he’d at least thought he would feel accomplish—Instead he’s hit by an ache in his chest. It feels like someone is grabbing his heart, squeezing it tightly in their hands and making it harder to breathe, every inhale of air a punch to his lungs, he feels dizzy and the pounding in his ear not helping.

Claude managed to drag himself to his room in the living quarters. The door closes behind him before he drops down onto the floor, breath labored as he leans against the metal door. He curled into his knees trying to calm his breathing. The thought of Leo flashing through his mind as his eyes prickled with tears. He muttered under his breath, guilty, “I’m so sorry Leo. I’m sorry it took so long.”

God he really wished he could’ve done this earlier.

---------------

4:00 p.m.
A.S.H. Living Headquarters,
Claude’s room,

Claude sits at his desk; his eyes focus on his computer screen. He had received the info from Luca sent to via encrypted letter and Leo’s mission files, both ready for him to peruse. He took a deep breath before beginning his work.

He starts with the file Luca had send him. When he opens the file, he was greeted by an image of the other variant of the golden brooch Luca had mention. The image is blurry probably zoomed in from a CCTV camera but clear enough to see the difference between the brooch in his possession.

The scroll down is filled with info on different people that has been seen wearing the brooch—an image of them, which brooch they were seen wearing, the location they were seen wearing it, their occupations and additional info on them, some having more than others.

Claude scans through them, founding the accuracy of Luca’s words. The range of the people listed is astonishingly wide—their age, occupations, and even social hierarchies. CEOs, policemen, a kindergarten teacher, a lifeguard, etc. Hard to imagine what people with these professions have working together for. Claude decides to leave the list aside for now, moving one to the mission files instead.

---------------

8:00 p.m.

Claude leans back on his chair, finally finishing going through the mission files and records, thankful he was able to focus without his mind drifting. His thought process strayed a little bit when he heard Leo’s voice in the voice recordings attached to the files, but he managed to cut it off, focusing back and working the same way he has during other missions. He can’t afford to be emotional now if he wants to make progress.

He thought of his next moves before he taps his wrist; a blue translucent bracelet lights up before a hologram screen appears above it. His hand finger taps on the screen as he contacts Agent Klyde, sending him an abrupt private message,

CLAUDE:
-Agent Klyde
-**************

KLYDE:
-coordinates?

CLAUDE:
-Yes, I need a full site scan
-Any underground area and everything
-Preferably before tomorrow morning

KLYDE:
-Can I ask what is this location?

CLAUDE:
-Agent Kuga last whereabouts.

KLYDE:
-Do you plan to go there?

CLAUDE:
-Yes

KLYDE:
-I see
-Do you need my support from HQ?

CLAUDE:
-No, but be ready. I might need help abruptly.

KLYDE:
-Understood.

The conversation ends there, and Claude closes his terminal. He spends some more time going through the files again and making preparation for tomorrow before he flops down on his bed. He sighs, it’ll be a long day tomorrow.

Chapter Text

The next day,
8:00 a.m.
**************,

Claude steps onto the barren land, fine sand leaving faint footprints with every step he took as the scent of rust lingers in the air—slipping through his mask.

This is the place where they had lost contact with Leo and also the place they had found his items weeks after.

It’s an absolute wasteland, nothing but sand and decaying containers and warehouses filling the plot of land. It’s clear this place have been abandoned for quite some time, and for better or worse the site scan he had requested from Agent Klyde came back with no more than what his eyes could already see—no basement, no secret room, no nothing. The only thing he has going is the pictures of the place when Leo had been here, practically as empty and abandoned except now with more traces of decay and rust. With no particular objective Claude walks around the area, checking every containers and warehouses.

The mission file stated that this area was suspected to be one of the secret society operation base, or at least was their operation base as when Leo had come here it was already abandoned.

As expected, the place is as empty as it had been in the photos, absolutely no traces left behind—back then or now. Still, a thought gnaw in the back of his mind.

This place is unbelievably empty, suspiciously empty.

Other than the corrode of time possibly removing any traces of the society, was there really no one else stepping foot on this land? Even after presumedly a minimum of two years being abandoned? No graffiti, no signs of people possibly seeking shelter in the containers or anything left from kids snooping around abandoned places, no signs of urban explores, no signs of animals, not a single trash, nothing. Maybe he’s overthinking it. This place is a bit further from civilization but even then, the agency stop keeping an eye on this place after Leo’s funeral. If it’s so abandoned and unguarded is it not slightly odd how this place is so…devoid of human traces.

Is the society still keeping tab of this place?

Claude kept the thought as it is, not something so big and important, yet still something to take note off.

He continues walking. After a few more rounds of checking the containers he stops at the biggest warehouse in the area, its blue zinc roof coloured down and rusty—the warehouse they had found Leo’s belongings.

The hangar door is wide open, revealing the inside and like the other warehouse its empty saved for the sand blown through the door. He steps in, looking around and taking notes,

No furniture at first sight, the second floor a balcony from the inside looking down to the ground floor, a stair leading up to an office with a big window overseeing the inside of the warehouse, an office table can be seen inside the office from the ground floor—

Ah—footsteps, it’s getting closer,

Claude pulls his gun out, whipping his head around towards the entrance as people dress in black with their face covered in mask enter his vision and blocking the entrance to the warehouse—trapping him inside.

Four people, he counted.

There’s no time to think, one of them already had their gun pointed at him and so without hesitation he shot them immediately in the head, killing them.

In that time two people manage to run up to him, one of them swings at him with a knife. After a few steps of evading the swings he manage to block the person with his free arm, his forearm pushing against theirs before he shot them two time in the chest.

The other person took this chance to runs up behind him, both hand holding the knife in an attempt to stab him from behind, but he steps aside in the last second, barely avoiding the knife. He grabs the person by their arm pulling them to the side, making them lose balance as he shot them in the head point blank.

He drops the body before jumping back as a gunshot rings through the air missing him, and before they could re-aim to his new position he raise his gun in swift motion shooting the other person’s hand, causing them to drop their gun, clutching their hand as they scream in pain.

The person attempted to run away but before they could take more than two steps, Claude shoots them in the legs causing them to fall on their knees. He steps closer to the masked person with the intend to question them, but the person suddenly started to convulse, foaming at the mouth before they go limp.

Shit—

Claude runs up and check their vitals—nothing, they’re dead.

A straight up death-pill, different from the unknown man they brought to HQ.

“Fuck-!” He shouted as he stands up.

Claude stays in place, his brain catching up with what just happen.

So the secret society were still guarding this place?... Did they saw him walking around and decided to deal with him?...But there’s no way he wouldn’t have notice if they were watching…

…

No—that was an ambush, they waited for him to went in the warehouse before attacking. Did they knew he was coming here? No they definitely knew, that’s the only explanation. But how?

Did info get leak?

He sighs looking around the warehouse and the dead bodies. Claude roams the place for a bit longer, clearing the area and when he found nothing more he taps the earpiece in his ear. It buzzes before he speaks, “HQ, this is Clawmark, requesting cleanup crew.”

---------------

1:00 p.m.
A.S.H. Headquarters,

Claude sat in the small meeting room he had acquired for himself, leaning back into the office chair as he stares into the ceiling deep in thought, his finger tapping in a mindless rhythm on the keyboard of his laptop.

The four attackers were brought to HQ, their bodies were examined. They ran an identity check on the four—no identity records on two of them, one is a male who went missing with no trace three years ago and the last one was an active police officer.

The male who went missing was an ordinary office worker.

Nothing to note, might ask Agent Klyde to track some info on his past.

Then come the police officer.

A person of justice working with the secret society? Concerning.

Still even with all this, there’s actually nothing that point the four to the secret society. No more than assumptions based on circumstances. When they had checked their belongings, there were nothing on the four other than their weapons and the death-pill in all of their mouths—not even any earpiece or radio to communicate with each other.

Another prove of how much these people don’t want to be track down.

This really went nowhere, Claude sigh internally.

A knock on the door pulls Claude out of his train of thought. “Come in.” He says, turning his head towards the door.

The metal door slides open to Agent Klyde as he walks into the meeting room, the door closing behind him.

“Ah Agent Klyde, you really didn’t have to come all the way here.”

“I wanted to see the attackers myself.” Agent Klyde reply.

“I see.”

“Did you get injured Agent Clawmark?”

“Nope, not even a scratch.”

“That’s good to hear, impressive I must say.”

“I got lucky, four people with nothing more than pistols and knife. If anything I’d say they sent these people to their death door.” Claude respond casually.

“Sent? You think this is an ambush?” Agent Klyde asks, his brows furrowing.

“Maybe.” Claude shrugs.

A silence fell into the room before Agent Klyde speaks again, caution lacing his voice, “You don’t think there’s a leak do you?”

“Eh who knows, I might’ve just been careless and not notice I was being watched.” Claude replies, groaning in between his words.

Another silence—longer this time.

“What are you planning to do next?” Agent Klyde asks.

“Don’t know, didn’t think that far yet.” Claude says picking up a pen and spinning it in his hands.

“I see.”

And another silence.

Claude breaks it this time, “Ah right, there’s something I would like to ask of you.” He says sitting up and turning on the holographic terminal on his wrist.

With a few taps he sends something to Agent Klyde who opens his own terminal.

“Some info we have on the attackers. Would appreciate if you could try dig any more info on them, especially those that we couldn’t identify—NEO-PORTE have always been better in terms of intelligence compare to A.S.H. you might actually find something on them.” Claude says.

Agent Klyde scrolls on his terminal for a second before switching it off—looking up at Claude again, “I’ll see what I can do.” He replies.

“Is there anything else you need assistance with?” Agent Klyde continues.

“Nope, that’s it.” Claude replies.

“If you plan to go somewhere else, please know that I can always try to provide you with more site scans or internal structure plan—even private properties and such. So please, do not hesitate to contact me.” Agent Klyde says, his eyes not leaving Claude’s.

“Okay thanks man, I’ll contact you.” Claude respond promptly, cutting the discussion there.

“Then I’ll be on my way.” Agent Klyde replies before stepping out the room.

The metal door closes and silence envelops the room once again, Claude’s mind immediately drifting back into his thought.

I’m right though…If info got leak then they know who I am. And they send just four people—with nothing but pistols and knifes? Those people were actually send to their death. Did they underestimate me?

…

Maybe they didn’t plan to kill me at all.

I see. A warning huh?