Vincent Kane's Rise From Ash

Orders from the general were flying around when the call came in. The assistant, Gary Lynch, came forward- hands trembling at the furiousity of his superior.

“Sir, there's an important call for y-” 

“Not now Gary,” the general brushed it off even when the assistant tried explaining. 

A different call came from the headquarters this time and Sheryl, another officer, was forced to put him on. 

“What's going on Kane?” Said the brash voice on the other end of the phone.

“A minor inconvenience-”

“Well, you better handle it before we have no choice but to send in Special Ops.”

The call ended, and it was as brief as his level of patience was getting.

The counteragents were a known terrorist group who were already on their way to infiltrate the border, but thanks to the insider among them, Vincent knew he didn't need help from the headquarters to control the situation.

“Send out our squad to the frontiers immediately. The order is to target the enemy, kill on site!”

Boots moved immediately with obedience at his command, now all they needed to do was wait and watch. The general had sent out the Division's best soldiers and in no time, news of victory reached Vincent Kane's ears.

A long raspy breath escaped his lips as he let his eyes drop momentarily. The camp filled with hollers and loud claps as they celebrated his leadership skills. It came with the acceptance of finality, one last battle finally won before his retirement.

*

A stinging nostalgia hit Vincent Kane as he stepped down from the craft onto the wet floor of the helipad. The sudden rain seemed to announce his arrival. After thirteen long years, he finally found his way back into this wretched and god-forsaken country. 

He remembered leaving at only sixteen, when he had been thrown out and cast away like a beggar. His father hadn't even said a word in defence- and then that was when the accident happened.

Flashes of blood stained glass and a pair of lifeless blue eyes filled his mind for a brief moment.

“Sir, it's best we head straight to the hotel,” Gary, his assistant and former second in command, advised, pulling his thoughts back to present.

“No,” he replied, voice cold with resolve. 

Minutes later, a tall slender figure made his way over to the Major General, collecting his bags and leading them both into a black vehicle. The drive was twenty minutes long, and the view of grey concrete slowly blurred into tall, dark groves that led into an old cemetery. 

The car stopped and silence hovered when the two men walked towards an old musty gravestone. The name carved onto the cold monument was almost faded, but Vincent saw it clearly. 

“Here lies Emelia Kane of blessed memory. Wife of Richard Kane, mother of Vincent and Tamar Kane.”

“I'll make them pay. Every single one of them will pay for what they did to you.”

Gary heard it and quietly watched the cold countenance that washed over his boss. He had never seen him this way, and although knew that General Kane was a man of secrets and high walls, the hatred Vincent felt in the moment was very tangible.

“Vincent”

A familiar voice called out to him, and when he turned to see, it was an elderly woman who approached him- she wasn't alone. Several bodyguards dressed in midnight black accompanied her.

“I had a feeling you'd stop by here first,” she said in an English accent.

“If we've met before, I'd prefer you go straight to the point,” Vincent's voice was cold.

“Now now boy, that's no way to talk to your maternal aunt, is it?”

He saw it immediately she said it. Even when the hour dimmed everything including their faces, Vincent still found small traces of a resemblance to his mother in the woman’s piercing grey eyes. She had the same light blonde hair, and the familiar smile that tugged at the corner of her lips.

Without hesitation, Vincent charged at the woman and held her neck firmly. The men behind brought out their guns and knives then, ready to attack. She held her hand up immediately, signalling them to stop.

“Why show up now? She needed your help, but instead, you hid and pretended.”

His eyes were full of rage, and tears threatened to expose a weak spot in him he thought had been buried long before.

The woman calmly placed her hand on his, and he eventually loosened his grip.

“She wanted nothing to do with us.” She finally said in between ragged breaths. “That was her decision to make Vincent, not ours.”

“What do you want now, a happy reunion? Not after thirteen f*cking years.”

“Maybe not a happy reunion….” slowly, and to Gary and Vincent's surprise, she knelt and low

ered her head in reverence. “But to ask for forgiveness as we plead your return, Lord Vincent Roth.”