Chapter 57

They walked for almost half an hour until they arrived at one of the most important sections of the South District, where a variety of military departments had main areas for operation and politics.

There were big building complexes, with the size and style that William had seen in pictures alone. They were far too big and costly for camps to build or rebuild. William didn't know where he was, or what was here for him.

Stopping before a tall building with quite many floors, there was a big sign to give him some clarity. There were also many shiny clear windows, and metallic plates on the floors, including the first floor and entrance.

[Federation Headquarters Division]

“What a tongue twister...” he mumbled, causing Anna to laugh.

“I think so too. Many of the naming schemes have been lost in time or... calmer times, I think. Better times?”

Luke turned to William and gestured for Anna to stop. “Alright. I have some advice. Considering the situation and how we fled the military, you are basically a refugee. There are regulations for them, as you've never been part of anything but Outside, but that is wrong. We gonna make a citizen out of you.”

“Citizen? What about that time with my parents? If they were such Walkers as you said, they must have been close to the Federation.”

“Right. It is proper, but your existence was lost, haven't I said that? They kept you out of the loop for some reason.”

William stayed silent and felt bummed.

“I have rules to follow, while you don't. Higher-ups in this building are people partially responsible for many things, including all kinds of Walkers, or your kind. Someone was interested in your direct retrieval. So to speak, take it as an opportunity to get your words to important people, meet them, and become proper. ”

“Are they Walkers?” William asked a question that came on its own. Out of many, this one sounded foolish, but what if there was some Walker who looked for him? Who? Why?

If the military had some regular people in high positions, what about this palace? What about that Assembly or Academy? Did they also have some important regular people?

“Well, important people are almost always Walkers. It depends on who you want to meet and where, or how. Some organizations are full of them, with little to no regular people. Some require more older approach. Now, let's go inside.” Luke walked to the door and pulled a token from his pocket, which looked like a rough piece of marble. He placed it on the door and it opened, revealing a spacious and nice-looking interior. In front of them was a reception, where a pretty-looking lady sat, reading and writing some documents on the table before her.

She noticed sudden arrivals and got to her feet when she noticed Luke, who put his jacket away and got a little bit professional. Bloody scars and the remains of his Yondu Uniform came off as strange, but not surprising.

She understood someone big came.

“Can I be of some help, sir?”

“No,” Luke bluntly answered, smacking a little envelope with papers towards her. It was his identification, a badge, and on papers, there was his image and military rank, and Walker statements.

She was speechless by Luke's attitude and looked at his identity. Then, she could only watch how he, alongside two other people, disappeared up the stairs.

On the upper floors, carpets and furniture resembled a living space even when it was a regular hallway barely fit for five people to walk side by side. Apart from them, there was nobody. No soul. Chairs, tables, and some vases were simple decorations, with few chances for someone to sit. William could tell that since the dust in them was obvious. This was a farce. A deceitful decorum and a place with not many visitors.

Luke walked with a destination in mind and didn't even glance at the wooden doors scattered on the walls.

But William did, noticing names written on the doors.

[Jayden Hudson. Secretary of England Roundtable]

[Park Song. Spokesperson of People of South Korea]

[Ichida Hiroshi. Dealer of Japan]

[Simonov Arseniy Valeryevich. Agent of the Russian Republic]

[Mao Lingxin. Representative of China]

William read them and figured this place had a connection to some pretty big corners of this forsaken world. And there were even more doors on the following walls, giving him plenty of other sights.

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He wondered about them, but Luke already stopped before a door with no name. Instead, it had a specific sign. [General Federation Division] No name.

Luke looked at William and opened it. Silent, he wasn't sure what else to say.

William looked inside, noticing a regular-looking office that he had seen many times before. The orphanage in Roshwell had the same thing where Miss Anderson dealt with the economics and people alike.

It was relatively sporadic yet inviting. For the Federation, it seemed out of place if William forgot the whole building and what was behind him in the hallway, or all over the land outside. Was it fake, or forced? He couldn't tell.

Simple in nature, there was a space and walk towards a desk further back. There was a window half as wide as the whole room behind the desk. The room was spacious, with curtains flowing in gusts of wind, coming from... where? William saw no open windows and no wind came from the door as well. He would notice it, he assumed.

Before glancing further, he looked aside, noting a sofa and some paintings on the wall depicting people. A lot of people. It was either a memorial for noteworthy people, past, or just decorum. Aside from them were some chairs before the primary table. The carpeted floor was soft and the window gave the room a natural light and cozy feeling. Luke walked in without looking too much, unlike William who stayed behind.

He saw a person waiting for him and Luke swore this was bound to be very different from what he considered to be a final judgment or work. It seemed he was very much wrong. New troubles came and they were watching.

“Come. Come in. We have been waiting for you.” A powerful, yet older voice declared.

The one who spoke was an older gentleman sitting behind the office table, smiling and looking at them. He was the only one in the room. For some strange reason or another, he wore a cowboy hat and a leather open vest over a nice quality jacket. He looked out of place in this simple room. Fitted in great leather quality materials, William discovered with his keen eyes. Though, he wasn't sure what kind of leather it was.

His clothes were weird, but William never judged any attire. Words and actions were enough for any judgment, and he had seen enough sickness out in the wild.

Luke was already seated before William even found the courage to walk inside. He looked around the room first and found it abnormally normal. For Walkers and the name of this room, it was strange. Walkers were eccentric figures with strange ideas, tough duties, and personalities that regular people couldn't understand.

And before him, there was an old Walker.

“I appreciate the concluded mission, Luke,” the old man said, offering a handshake that Luke refused without smiling, sitting, and glaring at this old man as if he had eaten his lunch.

“What the hell are you doing here? Was there some change in order or did something else happen about my mission? Why are you here?”

“I reckon your little miss got summoned. So yes. Something happened and I got in instead. Shame, truly. She caused yet another incident without batting an eye for consequences. I call it a bad luck. I wonder who she got it from. Were you not included in that, I wouldn't be so quick. You have my thanks for a lot of it and she is out for a couple of days.”

“Out? Troubles... She never did such a thing,” Luke stated. “Her mission and words were my rules. If you got involved, so what? She stands face to face with worse people than you.”

“I am not questioning that. In fact, I do. She hardly.... well, I don't question anything.”

“You do. You will. Dealing with it is worse than talking to you.” Luke said coldly.

“Oh, I bet,” the old man smiled. “You went in without asking for more words, haven't you? Now, how do you plan to face the unknown?”

“What is there to doubt? Soldiers don't ask too many questions for a reason, but you don't care about it. My mission was simple, even if the start of it wasn't as obvious. Now, it became something else.”

The old man chuckled and adjusted his hat. “Would you fall to save her life? Such a nice soldier you are...”

“Stop speaking nonsense, Kaufman.”

This was the first time William heard Luke this: serious, tensed, and almost fearing someone else. Either this old man was a higher up far above the likes of Jackson, or he was someone Luke knew very well. It was probably both if William listened and understood their words and meaning.

Luke even leaned forward and got serious about this Kaufman, who was quite some menace. Caused by his remarks and taunts, Luke did not have much leeway when dealing with this old man.

Kaufman had gray short hair with a thinly shaved beard, which was his try to appear younger. His hat was obscuring most of his face, however, hiding his eyes a little, and completely covering his forehead.

He still radiated powerful vigor and life. The kind that William had never seen in an old person before. Those eyes were especially alarming, glaring past the shadow, and seemed to look through people and things alike. They were sharp, looking through everything at once, and his voice was powerful and demanding, yet calm and firm.

The passing of years was only visible in his hands, and William couldn't see that his face was somewhat younger. As a whole, he looked like someone closing on their sixties, but if his face and his demeanor were included, he was decades younger. But if someone spoke of his age, those were his palms and voice.

Either way, William couldn't guess his age in the slightest. His manners and eyes were powerful than Luke's and there was some tense aura all over him. Perhaps that was why the curtains behind him wavered on their own, dancing as if there was a wild wind.

What was power or an aura? Wasn't it relative? Even a child could see or feel things if one compared it to appropriate words, whereas adults or... old Walkers, were what kind of beings?

William quickly realized this old man was an old freak. The aura and that little shimmering object felt like a different sunshine in the sunlight, facing everything, yet looking as if it wasn't for eyes to see. Out of curiosity, William walked forward.

Kaufman still eyed Luke and loved this forced position that wasn't even his. He stole it, while this room was cozy and too little for him.

“Yeah. That is right,” Kaufman said. “I wasn't the one who tasked you with anything. But a mission regarding Gale's kid? That, I understand. I know what such touch entails, you see. I also see that you've succeeded against odds and terrible timing, so who are we to talk about that? It is an interesting fact. Consider this old man intrigued by such a prospect that Mi-Yung had found and created out of the blue. No. That is wrong. She has been blessed with wit and luck I reckon. That boy has always run around, wrecking and breaking just to return where it all started. Interesting.”

“Should I cheer?”

“Yes!” Kaufman tapped his hat and slammed the table. “Do me that favor! Add to it some interesting spin like some poetry. Do you know poetry?”