Chapter 22: CHAPTER 021(Toxic Matanis)

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CHAPTER START---

Law leans back into the couch with his arms spread across the backrest as he nervously taps his foot. Feeling his heartbeat in his ears, staring at the black screen on the laptop as it connects to Tartarus.

He glances to the left to see Nezu sitting quietly waiting for the connection to be established.

"I can't believe this is happening," Law mutters quietly. "I expected that the next time I see them would be when I get them out..."

Nezu nods, "I know that's what you expected, but with more and more international pressure demanding their executions we have to move them into isolated confinement for a while, at least until the next big story overshadows them... this is the only chance you'll have until you get them out."

Law runs a hand through his hair, "thanks."

"It's the very least I could do, although getting a connection through Tartarus was difficult, even I didn't have enough leverage for it to happen alone, thankfully All Might is a UA alumnus," Nezu says.

"All Might? Did you---"

"No," Nezu waves off his concern. "He trusts me enough to allow me to use his name without asking questions. And I sent Naomasa ahead to inform them not to say any names on the call, the camera in the laptop also isn't working, you'll be able to see them but they can't see you."

"How much did he tell them?"

"Only that they'll get to speak to you without revealing your identity or connection, what you decide to speak about will only be known to yourselves and me, even the Tartarus guards won't be able to hear you..."

"Right," Law sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes to focus his mind. "Just a few minutes to unpack all the things that happened...no big deal," he says bitterly.

BEEP BEEP BEEP!

Before he can even focus the screen goes live, split down the middle, the left showing his mother and the right his father.

His heart drops at the sight, a sickening feeling permeates his body as he stares at the screen for a few moments.

To the left is his mother, strapped and chained to a metal cross with her limbs spread out, stuck upright with her body wrapped in white durable metal mesh fabric, and tubes flowing into the floor from in her wrapping, likely for waste. All to avoid her using her Quirk. Her long black hair seems to blend and merge perfectly with the sleek grey metal cross holding her. Taking a closer look he sees the division between flesh and metal is non-existent, it was as if the cross was attached to her very skin.

As he feels his rage bubbling up he looks at his father, the man was in a much different cell. While his mother was bound to a cross in her empty cell, his father had much more relaxed accommodations.

The man sits on a metal chair, a metal table in one corner of his cell while a small single bed was neatly made in the other, wearing a white jumpsuit. What Law noticed however was a metal cord connecting to his left wrist, it didn't take a genius to assume that it was also fused to him like Kiku's cross.

'They basically merged them with Tartarus, since I can't warp only part of an object I can't just grab them out of their cell unless I can move the whole prison...and they probably have implants that explode if I do move them,' he scowls at the screen.

Taking in the forlorn look of both his parents Law speaks up, "hi mom, dad..."

They both suddenly burst with excitement at his voice, "Son!" they yell in unison, both equally surprised to hear each other's voice, the entire family on this three-way call.

"Have you been ok?" His father asks.

"I should be asking you two that," Law frowns. "I'm sorry things went like this. I---"

"It's not your fault," his mother cuts him off sharply. "We trained you to do exactly what you did, and you performed perfectly."

"But---"

"She's right son," his dad cuts in. "You can't blame yourself for this, you did everything right, but sometimes that doesn't mean you win, that's just life. We're just glad you're not in here with us," the man chuckles, he actually manages to chuckle in this situation.

The sound of his laugh surprises Law, bringing back memories of old.

"So what have you been up to?" Kiku asks, "how did you manage this call into Tartarus of all places?"

Law takes a deep breath and gets right into it, without mentioning the specifics he explains everything, and their faces shift from curiosity to complete disappointment.

"---And when I've done enough then I can get you guys out on some special conditions, then we'll all be back together again," he says with a hopeful tune in his voice, for the first time he sounds like what Nezu would expect a fifteen-year-old to be like.

That youthful vigor of hope that he always tries to nurture in his students. As expected it only comes out when he speaks of or to his family.

Dead silence fills the air as both his parents take in exactly what they just heard, and in one voice they speak in unison.

"No."

"What? What do you mean 'no,' what's wrong?" Law asks.

"This isn't right," Kiku says. "You got out fine, and now you're giving up this chance at a new life, to be truly free, for us...no."

"We chose the lives we did," his father says. "Now you get to start a new one, why waste so much of it chasing after the past?"

"But I...no...this is how we get back together," Law argues, "this is how I fix it, how I make our family whole!"

"You sound so fucking pathetic," Kiku spits out the words harshly. Nezu almost falls off his seat in shock. "We taught you better than this!"

"Apparently not enough," Corazon agrees.

"We don't bow to anyone," Kiku says. "We do whatever the hell we want, because we're adventurers. And we certainly don't play that stupid hero-villain game, we're above that."

"And we especially don't do things we don't enjoy," Corazon adds. "You'll hate every moment you spend risking your life and wasting your time to save those useless people who can't fend for themselves, people who always need some wannabe hero coming to hold their hand just to cross the street. You're too good to be spending time on people like that."

"But I'm not doing this for them!" Law argues. "I'm doing this because I want you two back. I just need to save enough people."

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"You need to follow your training!" Kiku yells. "Did you forget what the fuck I taught you?! Always talk only to the man in charge, and if he has leverage on you, get rid of it, so why haven't you gotten rid of it?!"

"..." Law sits back and just stares at the screen, he knew this is what he was supposed to do, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. "Because you're my parents..." he says in a quiet voice.

"Yes," Corazon agrees. "And parents exist to help their children, to nurture them and build them up. We've done that perfectly, you're perfect son. You're more than we could each ever be, you've taken everything we taught you to heights we could never have dreamed of, you're a god, and now we're holding you back from living the life you want."

"Let us go," Kiku says. "Just let us go and they won't have any leverage, then you can really do whatever you want, and nobody in this world can even hope to stop you."

"But...but, you'll die," Law says in a quiet desperate voice.

"And you'll be truly free," Kiku says, and both of them nod. "You're a perfect god, and we've clearly outlived our usefulness, it's time for you to show the world what you're really about, and do it all your way."

Nezu nervously fidgets about, not at all expecting this turn of events, and now slightly unsure of how things would go.

A tense silence befalls the trio as Law leans back and considers his options.

"You're right," he says, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees, fingers knitted together under his chin. "I am a god, you trained me to be perfect and peerless, and I am. You've both outlived your usefulness to me."

Both his parents smile at that, at the prospect of their son being truly free.

"But," Law says. "Since I can do whatever I want, that means I can save you... because all I want is for us to be whole again, and to fix my mistake. So I'm going to play this game out, complete this contract, and save both of you, you'll see."

Corazon shakes his head sadly, but with a small smile on his lips.

Kiku scowls, "you really are a fucking disappointment," she curses. And after a tense moment she cracks a wide smile, " but I also couldn't be prouder, deciding your own path and not letting anyone stop you, not even us, that's exactly the kind of person you're meant to be son. Just do us one favor."

"Anything."

"Show them why you're the best, peerless, a god. If you're gonna play the hero-villain game, then crush everyone and everything that tries to compete with you, alright."

"Of course, that was always the plan," Law chuckles.

"We really couldn't have asked for or raised a better son," Corazon admits. "Don't let what happened to us distract you anymore, and remember, we love you, no matter what."

"Yes, no matter what, we love you, always," Kiku says.

"I love you too," Law says. "And I promise I'll get you out of there, and then we'll never have to worry about anything else again."

Kiku chuckles, "in that case, we can't wait to see what you'll have become by that time, we're counting on you."

"I'll be on top of the world, I promise."

"We don't doubt that one bit," Corazon says. "That's where you've always been meant to be, we'll see you then."

"Yeah...I love you two..." Law says as the connection cuts off.

As the screen shuts off Law leans back, head tilted back on the soft couch to stare up at the ceiling. Taking a deep breath he suddenly feels mentally and emotionally exhausted.

To his left Nezu is breathing a sigh of relief, the conversation ended how he expected, but the road to get there was certainly filled with surprises. But at least now he's seen firsthand where Law inherited his thought process.

Nezu checks his phone then sets it aside, "they're already moving them down to level-5 of Tartarus, down there on the deepest floor it's inevitable the world forgets about them, we just need to wait for the international pressure to settle down."

"Right..." Law sighs and gets up, opening a massive ROOM reaching 5km in every direction, enough to cover UA's main building. Feeling it straining his energy he doesn't let it show at all, the perfect facade of effortless power. "With that out of the way I need to get back on my routine, and I'll need to go to Monaco to check the modifications on the new Megayacht."

"Oh... And perhaps visit that Nami girl you were running around with a few months ago in Monaco?"

"I prefer new shiny things," Law shrugs. "I just need to get as many miracles under my belt before UA, when Horizon goes public during the sports festival the higher the number the better it looks."

"And how many have you done thus far?" Nezu asks.

"Only eighty-seven."

Nezu's supercomputer brain instantly does the math, "with a fifty million minimum bid that's at least 4.3 billion, not bad for nine months of work at 15."

"Yeah, nothing compared to you, but thankfully I don't have most of my money wrapped up in UA and other companies, so I have more spending power than pretty much anyone else."

"The joys of working in cash," Nezu muses. "Well, you can send me back to my office now, I'll contact you if needed, aside from my usual calls."

"Gotcha, see ya," Law snaps his fingers.

SHAMBLES

Nezu disappears from his seat, swapped with a single pen from in his office.

Closing the ROOM, Law takes a deep breath and wipes a hand down his face, feeling the emotions hammering away at him.

"C'mon," he says to himself. "You're perfect, let's just get the job done, just three months left until UA, time to make the most of it..."

END CHAPTER---

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