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The drive had been a long one, and Akihiro had been moved from one facility to the next. He'd been in Yuriko Oyama's company for most of the facility hopping, and now, finally, it had happened. Now it's nearly impossible to know where they actually are.
The opeartionhad been only days before. The adamantium process, this time, had been relatively simple. While some experienced extensive transformations of their skeletons, thanks to the costs associated with the process, the team had dipped Akihiro's claws in the liquid metal.
The other process, however, had been much more intense. The agreement had been a bomb in the brain, and sure enough that had been on the menu.
It's been several days of monitoring, but now Akihiro wakes up in the facility. The cot he lays on, complete with heart monitoring and other equipment isn't the most welcoming, yet it is just where he happens to be.
"The process took fine," Oyama states blandly as she stands adjacent the waking patient.%
*
"Yeah." Akihiro grunts, cracking one eye open just enough to look at the woman standing near him. "Looks like it did." He pushes up so he's sitting on the edge of the cot, careful not to disrupt any of the machinery he's hooked up to.
He brings his hands up to rub at his eyes, "So what's next? Got a bomb stuck in my skull and some new toys I'm about ready to test." This time there isn't the sound of tearing flesh, but rather the soft snikt of metal on metal as his claws emerge, and it's clear from the way he's looking at them he hasn't quite adjusted to the color change just yet.
*
"You're one of our agents now," Oyama sounds bored rather than intrigued. "It's not glamorous, but it is…" her lips twist to the side, "imminently important." She walks towards a map. "The red threat looms. We require you to pay attention to the embassies. Currently the East and Iron Curtain are problematic. We will train you, but allow you to return to New York where the embassies are in full force." Her fingers steeple, "We have reason to believe that American interests could suffer."
*
"Whatever gets me closer to finding out about Madripoor." Akihiro says, letting his claws retract. "How long until I'm in the field?" He pushes to his feet, unhooking machines and moving forward to get a better look at the map. "Suppose this is what those four years of training were leading up to."
*
"Weeks. We relocate back to New York by nightfall. Then we train at the facility outside the city." Oyama frowns — it's a stiff, not quite emotional expression. "And it is not that you do not occupy skills already, yet your new skills need to be honed. The weight will feel different. Your body will feel different. All of it. From start to finish."
*
"Yeah." Akihiro nods slightly. "And you won't hear any complaining from me. Got a few things I need to go back over, fighting criminals is different from fighting people who have been training." He flashes Oyama a smile, "And try to loosen up a little. Can't spend our whole lives worrying." Which is funny, considering a broody Howlett is the one giving that advice.
*
Oyama's eyes roll. "Yuriko," she finally states. "You may call me Yuriko," it's a high level of trust getting to call her by her first name. "But it's not worrying, it's survival." Her gaze darkens, and then her posture straightens. The notion of what's in her head is enough to silence her any further. "Most of our missions revolve around Soviet spies. We find them and we take them out."
*
"Yuriko." Akihiro repeats. "Well, you picked the right man for the job, because I'm the best there is at what I do. But what I do best isn't very nice." He claps his hands together and rolls his shoulders. "Suppose I should go ahead and ask, this insurance policy permanent? Not that it really matters, but it'd be nice to know I could earn a little trust."
*
Yuriko's eyes flit downwards and then force themselves up to meet Akihiro's gaze, "I don't know." The admission is weirdly honest. "I still have mine." She taps her temple and take a single step back. "It's an investment. Stryker's investment. Adamantium isn't cheap."
*
"But our lives are cheap, good to know." Akihiro doesn't seem detered at all. In fact, this is probably the most alive he's felt in years. His expression does soften a touch though, "It'll be fine, you know. One day this'll all be a distant memory, aside from the nightmares. But if you're anything like me, those already keep you up."
*
Yuriko arches an eyebrow. Her lips curve into a feline smile, "Our lives are worthless. They can get the metal back. They can always find another subject." Clearly. Her lips hitch up on one side, "Of course, you know that. They are not people to be trifled with." Pause. "We are not people to be trifled with."
*
Akihiro furrows his brows slightly. At first it may seem like it was because of Yuriko's words, but he speaks up soon enough. "Do you think I'll get any leads on the man that killed my mother through this?" That may just be the whole reason behind him joining.
*
Yuriko's lips purse. "Maybe," she offers softly. "But the people here are — " she straightens as a sound rings over her consciousness. Her chin drops and she takes a step back. "Possibly," she finally answers. "I must get back to my other duties." Her lips straighten into a thin line.
*
"Of course." Akihiro nods, stepping back over to sit on his cot. "I'll keep questions to a minimum from here on out." he promises, reaching up to scratch at his jaw.