Finding

(35) Distractions

It was painful.

Hearing Thomas with that adoring and fervent tone as he called him 'Angel' made Tord's heart drop as it reminded him of the time the eyeless Brit would lovingly call him as his 'princess.'

His Tom was gone.

Thomas Rodgewell was gone.

And yet a single word and an all too familiar look from the six-year-old version of his deceased lover had him feeling conflicted. He was conflicted on whether he should reach out and cry in the arms of the darned brunet or push away and let fate run its natural course just like it did in his original timeline.

Sure, the six-year-old in front of him might not know what he was doing and was calling out to him unconsciously. But that doesn't put out the fact that Tord was finding himself affected as he was being reminded of his loss and the unbidden guilt for losing someone like Tom.

Forcing himself to smile, Tord shoved down his worthless feelings and turned away as he ignored the brunet's attempts of talking.

He needed to get away.

He had to get away.

This version of Tom was too young to start taking an interest in him and Tord wouldn't want the Brit to fall in love with him again. He didn't want to have Tom make another useless sacrifice because Tord knows that he doesn't love Tom back.

He wouldn't be able to give anything back.

Making up his mind, Tord walked away and ignored the hurt look that was given to him by the other child.

______________________________

For the following years that came, Tord did his best to make his contact with Tom minimal. He made sure that the way he acted towards the brunet and the rest of his friends was similar to his past.

He smiled at them just the way like he did back then and talked to them in a similar manner. He portrayed to them an intelligent trigger-happy male that was a bit of an edge lord and liked Hentai to a great degree.

He acted like back then; having fun with the gang and teasing/annoying the hell out of Tom.

He allowed fate to run its natural course (except he left earlier than usual) and didn't hesitate to leave England for a couple of years to have his academic acceleration in America.

While he was in America, Tord finished High school in a year. Following which, he took a quadruple major in MIT (Math, Physics, Electrical engineering and Chemistry) which everybody else said was impossible. But look at him now. After 4 grueling school years of sleepless nights and exhausting academic endeavors that turned him more of a zombie (the whole thing got him a nickname as 'Masochistic Zombie Scholar' or some other kind of bullshit), Tord graduated at the top of class at the age of fourteen.

Those years of only focusing on his studies were enough to distract the silvernette from the unnecessary worry that he had for his friends and Tom. He was distracted him enough that when he realized he still had two years of freedom he was tempted to return to England. But the sudden thought of changing his friend's fates any further had him stopping.

After all, back then, he left for America when he was ten and only returned when he was sixteen (with a triple major) to 'attend' high school with the guys. But now, Tord left when he was eight and a half years-old and he still had two free years that he could use which he was now debating on what to waste on.

He had the option of remaining in going to Norway and strengthen his influence there using the Crescent Moon while he could brush up his military skills or he could try to start up a new company here in the U.S. The new company that he would set up, depending on how he plays it out, could be of great use to him when the war comes since he'd use to infiltrate it the American government.

Tord recalled how difficult it was to get America to bow down to him and his Army. It took enough years, sacrifice and bloodshed that Thomas had to be dispatched more than enough times to that country just to use his monster form to get a real advantage.

Remembering that fact, a new company was becoming much more appealing and remaining here in America a few more years won't be that bad. That said, he had to think of what kind of company he was about to make and have America and its citizens so interested in it.

He had to make sure that it was to become something so integral that it could deal with different sectors and that without it could end up crippling the country. And what was more integral to a country?

"Manpower," the sudden thought came to the silvernette as he watched people go about while he stood at Times Square in New York. Office people were walking to their destinations, hawkers were selling their wares and a few other people were doing their jobs.

How could you affect a country's need for manpower?

Give them something better, stronger, faster and more efficient.

Give them a machine that looks so human that it could easily replace them.

Tord knew that he already had something like that.

A number of his own servants and followers were like that.

They were the androids that he created and he could give America something like that. Except, they won't have the same features of them being capable of possessing magic which could hide their presence as a machine. These new androids would be weaker in a sense compared to those who readily serve him.

Nonetheless, the public would probably lap them up for the ingenuity and newness their presence could provide. Their blue synthetic blood would call unto them and have everyone disregard everything else.

Grinning at his thoughts, Tord finally made up his mind.

Staying in the U.S with his new plans for the next remaining two years doesn't look that bad anymore. It could prove to be a productive distraction.