"Ah, Lisa, there you are."
The speaker was a tall, handsome, sculpted man in a tasteful and very expensive suit of clothes. His surprising pink hair was well styled, bringing out his purple, gem like eyes. Eyes that burned with infinite curiosity .He gave off a presence of confidence that drew ones attention and at the same time told them that messing with him would be the worst decision of ones life.
This was Mark Manabe. Genius inventor, business magnate, scientific pioneer, occasional model and Lisa Manabe's father.
He spread his long arms wide and hugged his small daughter tightly to his chest.
"Oh how I've missed you," he muttered into Lisa's hair.
"Hey dad," Lisa mumbled into his chest before hugging him back slightly. The last thing she wanted to do was make a scene in the crowd filled underground park.
"So, are the school housing facilities up to standard, or do they need any upgrades?" Mark asked as they disengaged.
Lisa rolled her eyes and shook her head. "They're great and done need any changes."
Mark nodded as a man and his son passed. Both had bright gray skin, as if it was made of iron.
"Have you made any friends yet?" the inventor asked.
"Dad, its only the first day," Lisa answered, a little exasperated.
"Does that matter?" Mark rose an eyebrow in genuine confusion. "Who wouldn't want to be friends with my dear daughter?"
The man was a genius, but he could be a little foolish when it came to his daughter.
Lisa held herself back from facepalming and sighed. " Well if you must know, I met an old friend of mine, from middle school."
Mark grinned, brightening up. "Really? That's good then. Familiar faces can be very reassuring. Who is she, someone I know?"
Lisa paused for a second before replying tentatively: "W-well, he's a boy and-"
"What is his name?"
The temperature dropped by several degrees, and the shadows of nearby cars seemed to become even daker. Nearby people had a variety of responses to the sudden change, ranging from scared to aggressive.
Lisa shivered as her father's eyes turned hard and icy, and his entire presence gave off fear and oppression. Her instincts immediately flared telling her to run, but Lisa held her ground.
"Dad...," she managed to get out despite the suffocating pressure, "You can't use your Venma here."
Mark Manabe maintained a chilly silence for a few seconds before sighing. The moment he did, the pressure vanished, and everything went back exactly to the way it was before.
"His name, Lisa." He quietly pressed.
Lisa, a little pale, muttered: "Liam..."
Within that split second, the neural-chip embedded in Mark's brain fired up, and the man accessed his frighteningly large network of local information.
Do a deepseek for all individuals named-
"Liam Paxton," Lisa finished, a meaningful look on her face.
Mark paused the data dive and looked at his daughter's face. He was immediately hit by the memory of a large man with glowing eyes that resembled the rainbow standing before him.
He also remembered the large man and his little boy bringing his girl home.
"I see," he said, the corner of his mouth rising. "I hope he is well."
Lisa sighed in obvious relief. "Yeah. Yeah he's great."
Mark nodded. "It's too bad about his father though."
Lisa nodded as well. "You aren't going to do anything to him right?"
"Of course not," her father scoffed whilst fixing his tie. "What do you take me for, a monster?"
Mark Manabe was a scientist, and much like those in his trade, he was slightly eccentric.
And more than a little overprotective.
"Well all things aside, there's someone I'd like you to meet."
Mark rose a hand, and the window of the huge car behind him rolled down to reveal nothing but shadows.
"Um...who exactly am I meeting?" Lisa frowned.
"A friend of mine, and also my benefactor," came the reply.
Suddenly, a voice came from the shadows within the car. It was distinctly male, and quite pleasant to the ear.
"I am your father's...to use his word, benefactor. I am also his coworker, advisor, and teacher."
Lisa looked incredulously at the darkness. Within it contained a man who had taught her father?
And it was a coworker she didn't know of?
"Who...who are you?" Lisa asked.
There was silence for a moment, the the voice answered with a little humor in its tone,
"You, may call me D."
****
Liam bought his groceries, handed them over to a delivery bot then made his way through the school mall to the call center.
Which he found after downloading the mall's map from the school's website.
How convenient, he thought while walking through a pair of automatic doors which opened and was immediately blasted by cold air.
Not that it bothered him, his own body temperature being as high as it was.
The call center was large, with roughly sixty glass boxes taking up space on both sides of the place. The sheer scale of it all didn't surprise Liam though; this was to be expected.
One would expect noise, but the place was eerily silent. Some of the transparent boxes were black, and one such box was right beside Liam. It opened up, lightening up as it did, and the previous occupant nodded at Liam before leaving.
Liam nodded back before taking the guys place. Before him were an elevated seat and a rectangular panel that covered the entire opposing panel.
Liam sat, and immediately the glass box closed up and darkened.
The glass has a special composition, Liam thought absently as a podium-like contraption came out of the ground. it has a very specific molecular composition that allows one to control its opacity through electricity. It seems the seat is the trigger for the opacity in this case.
He typed in his house address, and in a few minutes he was connected.
Liam sucked in a breath at the utterly realistic sight before him. It was a small but colorfully furnished room that had been made specifically for the kind of communication Liam was going for.
Before him, as if he could reach out and touch them, were his family.
A beautiful woman with shoulder length violet hair and black eyes, and a boy and girl both possessing short light blue hair. They looked quite like each other, so much so that one could go ahead and call them twins-
"HI LIAM !"
Liam flinched as his little brother yelled. He smiled as his sister hit the back of the boy's head.
"Hey Chad, Chloe. Hope you guys are getting along?"
"Hello big brother," Chloe smiled quietly. "Hope you're well."
"Wha-" Chad stared open-mouthed in indignation.
"Y-You should be more excited!" the boy admonished before grinning at the screen.
"Hey bro! I miss you butthisissocool!Bythewayyguesswhat ?!"
Chloe whacked him on the head again and sighed quietly.
"Sorry for Chad's nonsense big brother."
Liam snickered as his little brother protested. Even though they were twins, they were nearly complete opposites. Chloe was the duo's voice of reason, while Chad... had ADHD on top of being naturally hyperactive.
Also, he was born with superspeed, which kind of made things worse.
The beautiful woman with them sighed, and the two immediately stopped bickering.
"So, Liam, how is everything going so far?" Maria Paxton asked, her smile tender.
Liam leaned back and caught himself before falling over, causing his siblings to snigger.
"W-well, it's great. No problems whatsoever. We start actual school tomorrow."
Liam knew better than to give his mother any fuel that could fan the flames of worry in her heart, so he danced around her questions with some ease.
"Is the dormitory good?"
"Its great! Just needs my stuff and it'll be perfect."
"Ah. Good. Any bullies?"
"No mama, geez."
"Oh, but I can't help but worry, considering that...how are the school facilities?"
"Top notch. Already been to the classroom area. It is amazing."
"That's great to hear. What about the teachers?"
"We haven't even started class yet mama..."
"Oh yes, almost forgot. By the way, have I told you how proud of you I am that you got second place in the entrance exam?"
Liam smiled as his mother beamed proudly. So did his siblings.
"Ah, mi hijo es el mejor!" His mother said proudly in her local dialect, Spanish.
My son is the best.
"Gracias mami..." Liam smiled bashfully, scratching the back of his head. But his mother was not done.
"Even though I do not fully approve of you being a Hunter, as your body is too frail, it warms my heart to see you do well."
Liam flinched from the unconscious jab and lowered his head.
That's a low blow mama...
"Anyway your siblings have something to tell you!"
At Maria's words, it was like a dam had broken in Chad.
"Igotpickedfortheinterschoolcompetitiondeadsprinteventschedulednextmonth!We'llsendyouaticket!"
Long accustomed to hearing Chad's hyper speak, Liam heard and understood everything clearly. As such, he grinned at his panting brother and showered him in a little praise before his sister brought up her own news.
"I won our grade's beauty pageant," she said with a small smile.
"Of course you did!" Liam smiled proudly, "You're our little princess after all."
Chad of the Speedster Venma, and Chloe of the Skin Venma. Her ability allowed her too make her skin look and feel however she wanted, whether smooth and soft or hard and rough.
The differences between the twins were vast, and Liam could already see their possible high school futures.
Chad being a boisterous track team ace, and Chloe being a little beauty queen. It was honestly a bit scary to think about if they'd give him the cold shoulder as they grew older, but Liam was determined to make sure that didn't happen.
After talking a bit more, his mother asked, "Knowing the recluse you are you haven't made any friends yet, but its the first day, and I've heard it takes longer for highschoolers, so take your time."
His mother said this with all-smiles, but Liam felt cut by her words. Especially the 'recluse' part.
That-that is so not true!
"Well, I do in fact have an old friend here." Liam said.
"Really?," his mother asked with a small eyebrow raise. "Who is it then?"
"D-do you remember a Lisa Manabe?"
Maria paused to try and recall the name whilst Liam's siblings ran around the room in a small argument.
"Ah! You mean that little minx you swore up and down you had no feelings for?" she smiled coyly.
Liam's ears reddened. "I did not-and do not-have any feelings for her."
Maria chuckled at her son's expression. "Sure, sure. Don't mind me. What would I know about young love?"
"Ugh.." Liam groaned as his mother continued to tease him. "Whatever...."