Don wasn't just a name, it was a title that would be passed down. Only one person would be worthy of inheriting the title, and that person would be the person who would kill the current title bearer.
Although the origins of the title have been long forgotten, the promises it holds towards countless organizations remains the same. Whoever holds the name Don is widely respected, given benefits others would dream of.
Of course, bearing the title also came with people who would come for their lives. People who sought for the benefits or the title itself would constantly come and try to kill Don, but each time he would end up victorious.
They went from their hideout to the restaurant, moving cautiously as they entered. Wing went up to one of the employees. "Hey, can I get a bowl of beef?" He smiled as the employee recognized him. "One for my friend here too." He pointed to Asel.
"Sure..." He tried to escape, but Wing's grip on his shoulder tightened. "And come sit down with us once you're done, we're going to need that favor you promised." He told him before pushing him away.
"We're good here!" Wing told the rest as he sat down on a table with Asel. "I don't get why they're going through all that work," Wheel watched them. "We already have someone specifically for this type of thing."
Don led Wheel and Frogo to a spot in the front of the restaurant. "This spot is the last confirmed sighting, about two days ago." He pointed at the ground. Frogo understood and touched the floor, her eyes lit purple as she activated her powers.
Flames then erupted around her, shaping themselves as people. "I'm going to go back now." The figures then began rewinding, moving faster with the phantoms becoming rougher as it continued going.
"Stop!" Don shouted, "That's him." He pointed towards a shape. It was someone who was sitting down, enjoying one of the restaurant's noodles.
"Wheel, keep watch as we follow his movements." He nodded, watching his surroundings but also paying attention to what Asel and Wing were doing.
They were eating food, sitting with one of the employees. "So what do I have to do to keep you guys quiet?" He asked them, obviously nervous.
"Nothing much," Wing told him, he slid the picture of Robert. "I need you to tell me everything you know about this guy."
He took a look at his face, "Oh, this guy. Yeah he was here about two days ago, " he recalled. "I wasn't the one who served him though."
He called another employee to come. The person who came and sat down with him was someone twice their size. "You recall this guy?" He pointed at the picture.
"Nope," The other employee told him. "Not a clue." He got back up and went to work. "Well, that's the guy you have to ask if you want anything."
The employee got up and tried to get away, but got stopped by Asel. "It isn't our problem to get him to talk, it's yours." He told him before letting him go. "Now go find a way before we tell your wife about those little escapades you've been having." Wing threatened him.
"How's the food for you?" Asel asked Wing. "Like everyday food." He replied. Wing knew that Asel, for some reason, wasn't able to taste anything. Not even the most bitter thing he could find could make him react.
Wheel then got up next to the two and placed his hands on their shoulders, "How's your break going?" He asked them. "We're already moving on to another lead, come on." He pointed to the others, they were already following the target's phantom.
"Not yet, we're still pursuing this lead we have." Wing brushed him off. Before Wheel could say what was on his mind however, Asel got up.
"I'll go," He told Wing. "I already know you're going to stay no matter what." Asel pushed his share to Wing and went with Wheel. "I'll catch up in a bit!" Wing shouted out as they went away. Wheel looked at Asel curiously, "You guys are doing something useless, you know that right?"
"There's the right way, and there's our way." He told Wheel, only confusing him further. They eventually caught up with the other two, meeting them right outside a worn down shop, a sign hanging on top.
Wonderful Peculiarities.
There were an array of interesting items on display, each of them with an intricate design. "Where's Wing?" Frogo asked, only seeing Asel behind Wheel.
She was quickly tapping her feet, a clear indicator of her patience running thin. "He said he was busy playing around, and that we should go ahead." Wheel explained to them. Don looked at Asel, he nodded as a way to tell him that Wheel was telling the truth.
Wheel was known to lie at times, especially when telling the truth would be annoying for him. That trait often led them to unfavorable situations, some of them leaving them close to death.
Asel looked at the shop, "So it led to here?" His eyes looked around the street, quickly looking for any signs of Robert.
"Not quite," Frogo told him. She pointed at the shop, "It went inside."
Frogo's ability was incredibly useful for situations like these, but it was also draining for her. Using it more than needed would cause her to fall from exhaustion. Asel looked at her current condition, she was already breathing heavily.
Don got up to the door and tried getting in, but it was locked. He backed off a bit, making distance before ramming it open. The door easily burst open, splitting to fragments. "Alright, let's start searching."
They spread out, clearing the area to look for any leads. The shop was full of trinkets, shelves filled to the brim with unknown gadgetry.
Wheel grabbed one of them, observing as the liquid inside flowed unnaturally. "What's this even for?" He asked Frogo, shoving it to her face.
She quickly backed off, barely avoiding it from hitting her. "To capture the attention of idiots like you." She told him before heading off in a different direction.
Wheel looked at her confused, "What's her problem?" He asked himself before going off in a different direction. The interaction made him wonder why he couldn't get along well with anyone. Then he saw Asel, the oldest of the group.
"Hey, Asel" He called out to him, "How about instead of just you and Wing, I join in too?" He proposed.
"Think about it, we can become a legendary trio. With you at the front, Wing in the back, and me in the middle of it all, we can take anything down." Asel watched as Wheel enthusiastically tried to convince him, remaining silent as he waved his arms around.
"Aren't we already in a group?" He asked, confused. "All five of us." Wheel sighed, "No, I mean like you and Wing." He tried explaining. "All five of us are just workmates, you know? Associates."
"But you and Wing are different, you two talk as friends." He used his hands to convey his message more clearly, but it seemed to only confuse Asel more.
"I don't understand what you're referring to, I treat everyone in this squad the same" Asel clarified while going further in. Wheel quickly followed behind however, "Alright, if you treat everyone the same then why do you usually only hang out with Wing?"
He thought about it, stopping in his tracks. "Cause it's usually Wing who invites me. If it were anyone else then it would end up the same." Asel looked through the old books, using his fingers to clear the dust in the titles.
You denied it when it was me though.
Wheel thought before going his own way. Recently, he could feel that the team was becoming more and more distant with each other. He thought that if things kept going this way, they might end up parting their own ways.
That won't happen.
Wheel needed to find a way to keep them together, he didn't want to end up losing the people close to him. While searching deep in thought, he ended up finding a door with an 'Employees only' sign.
Opening it wide, Wheel saw a lifeless man sitting on a desk. "Found something!" He shouted out as he went closer, inspecting the corpse. Multiple stab wounds were visible from the back. "What a mess" Frogo commented as she entered the cramped room.
She grabbed the dead body's head, its eyes still wide open. "Poor guy didn't have the time to react." She said, closing both of his eyes.
Wheel looked at the blood spilt, it was scattered all around the room. "They didn't even bother cleaning up, huh?" He remarked, "Looks like we're dealing with amateurs."
"You're looking at it wrong," Asel scolded him as he entered the room. "We're dealing with experts, people who specialize in assassination."
"Instead of thinking of this as a blunder, think of it as intentional." He told him, trying to correct his thought process. Don lowered himself to enter through the doorway, "He's right you know, the missions assigned to us aren't cakewalks."
He went to the body, then looked at Frogo. "You think you can still do it?" She shook her head, "Only once more, but that's for emergencies."
It was decided beforehand that Frogo should always save her last use due to the permanent backlash. Although it would be useful if she could use it now, it would only cause harm in the long run.
"Alright, let's assume he's right." Wheel agreed to Asel, "Then why would they leave evidence here?" He asked him, eagerly waiting for an answer.
Asel smiled, "If you always ask for the answer, you'll never learn how to do the solution." He went to a seemingly normal lamp post and lifted the cover up, revealing a hidden camera.
"They're waiting for all the targets to die before dealing with the mess." The room went silent at the realization before they heard glass shattering.