Chapter 1: The Secret

When I turned twenty, my father confessed a secret.

“Don’t freak out. Just listen.”

“Okay?”

“You’re actually...an immortal.”

“What?”

“I’m an immortal so I’m sure the genes must have been passed down to you.”

What the heck? Was what I wanted to say. But twenty years of eastern ethics, courtesy of South Korean education, wouldn’t dare let me.

“Come again?”

“You won’t die. Well, most likely.”

This conversation was taking place in a supermarket, of all places. My dad picked out fresh scallions before glancing over his shoulder to check for people.

“Don’t tell anyone.”

“Dad, we are in the middle of a supermarket.”

He glanced around my shoulder and said, “It was barely a whisper. Don’t worry.”

What was I to do?

“Your mom doesn’t know, so promise me.”

A secret from mom, a pact between men. That’s how these things go down. In addition to good old-fashioned normal humans, there existed three unique types of human beings. They were called “irregulars” and were born regardless of race. It wasn’t even a secret.

They were known to receive special government training and engage in top-secret missions. But it wasn’t something you could easily tell others either. Cults, mad scientists and their minions, the list went on. So many groups targeted immortals. The list of immortals managed by the government was considered to be a top priority in national security. Some chose to hide while others were active in various fields such as the military or civil affairs.

My father was a civil servant, a rank-five deputy director. Though, I wasn’t exactly sure what he did at work. But he had a high salary and excellent benefits. I knew that much. Also, the government provided the house we lived in.

Back to the matter at hand, the first kind of irregular is immortals. They don’t die. Their main physical features are pearl white skin and delicate good looks.

“Me?”

“Is it because you don’t look similar to your old man?”

“Honestly, yeah.”

I wouldn't have dreamt it in a million years.

“But you are, son. You are an immortal.”

And that was that. Me, an immortal. There was a distance between me and “delicate good looks.” But I wouldn’t say I was ugly either. The average person on the street would say, “Yeah, you’re handsome.” Exactly, just handsome enough, not the celebrity kind.

“Your blood will awaken on your twentieth birthday. It’ll take effect at the hour of your birth, so around 11 o’clock tonight?”

“You’re talking like we are going to see a movie or something, Dad.”

But my father ignored me and continued to talk. “She said to buy garlic, right?” he asked.

“Yes, not minced garlic, though. She said she was going to mince them herself,” I answered.

“Should we buy peeled garlic?”

“No, she wanted them with the skin on.”

“I’d have to peel them myself, won’t I?”

“Most definitely.”

“I want peeled garlic.” He complained, but he ended up buying the unpeeled variety.

“Don’t tell your mom. She doesn’t know this hidden side of your dad.” He said it right before the checkout and the cashier stole a quick look over the counter. “Don’t ever tell her, she might divorce me if she found out.” He genuinely looked sad as he said it but the checkout lady’s eyes started glittering like stardust.

No, it’s not what you think. I didn’t catch my dad cheating on mom.

“Let’s go,” I said quickly.

I placed the groceries in the basket we brought from home and we left. There were soft drinks, beer, beef, and some vegetables. It was pretty heavy but nothing I couldn’t handle.

As I lifted the basket, Dad exclaimed, “Woah, son, look at those arms.”

Immortals did have milky skin and good looks going for them but were found lacking in the raw strength department. Though they did compensate for it by having excellent vision and hearing after their awakening. An immortal's weak strength was a natural trait, even before the awakening, but it wasn’t me. I was strong. It’s because I had a second secret.

“Have you been working out a lot lately?” he asked, impressed by my effortless lifting of the basket.

Nope. Just my usual routine.

My second secret, well technically, my first, is related to my mom. And now, I’ve got two secrets, thanks to my dad.

Beep Beep Beep.

I punched in the entrance door code and got in the elevator. Dad was reminding me to keep it a secret the entire ride up. Mom was the same. That time, it was my eighteenth birthday.

“We’re home.”

“Welcome back.”

She was wearing an apron when she came to greet us. People were in awe of her beauty with just one glance. Though, the word “healthy” definitely had to be used in tandem. My mom was one strong woman. Her hobbies included weight training, marathon running, and swimming. If she were to run a triathlon right now, she would kill it, hands down. Physically, she and dad were direct opposites. My dad looked like he had a vitamin D deficiency. Mom had thicker arms than he did too.

“You got the garlic, right?” Mom asked.

“Of course.”

They are like two peas in a pod. It was only a short trip to the mart, but they welcomed each other back with a warm embrace followed by a kiss. Excuse me, your son is right in front of you. Come on, you two.

“Put the groceries away, please.” Her eyes were smiling as she said it. I picked up the basket and began putting them away, one by one. I retraced my thoughts as I moved the meat and vegetables over to one side.

Dad told me a secret today. That I’m an immortal.

Mom also told me something similar on my eighteenth birthday.

“Kwangik, I have something to tell you.”

I still remember that day like it was yesterday. She put down her home training kettlebells and said, “You have to promise me that you will not speak a word of this to your dad.”

I was willing to take this secret to the grave. It was the least I could do for the person that bought me a PL4 for my eighteenth birthday.

“Of course, Mother.”

Dad was away on business at the time. He was sad to be away for his only son’s eighteenth birthday.

“So, your mom, me, well...” She was cautious with her word selection. I wanted her to spill the beans quickly because my new PL4 was waiting for me.

“So, I’m an irregular.”

“Oh, okay.” All I had in mind was my beloved PL4. I gave her the plainest response and turned towards my room. But then, it finally hit. I stood still, cocked my head back towards her, and opened my mouth.

“An irregular?”

I had no idea what that meant at the time. Irregulars, the first of which is “immortals”. If there is a first, there is a second. The next ones are called “animorphs”. It’s just like the name suggests. If immortals don’t die, animorphs morph into things.

“Your mom can transform!”

My brain needed a few seconds to compute her sudden coming-out moment.

“Into Sailor Moon?”

She was a bit older but was still beautiful. She wouldn’t look hideous.

“If you want, I can even turn into Saint Tail.”

She also had plenty of wits. Saint Tail to my Sailor Moon, touché. She then sat me down and explained. Most immortals fell under one umbrella that shares a common trait, immortality. This is why they are also referred to as “singulars”. Animorphs were slightly different. They took on certain features of animals such as wolves, bears, or mice, and transformed. In other words, werewolves. In the past, when humans were not aware of irregulars, people thought that they imagined them at night. When in fact, myths and legends were made to bury various rumors from actual sightings. Anyhow, my mom was one of those animorphs. That was my mom’s secret.

“What do you want for your birthday?” Dad’s voice brought me back from my memory.

“I don’t know.”

I really didn’t know.

We were well off. My parents got me pretty much anything I wanted and were very generous since I was an only child. There was even a time when my granddad used to send thousands for just pocket money.

“I’m okay.”

Coming to terms with my current predicament was far more urgent. One was an immortal, the other, an animorphs. What the hell am I going to be? Animorphs awakened when they are eighteen. Immortals awakened when they turned twenty. Two years ago, when my dad was away on business, I took the worst of my life.

Every muscle in my body felt like it was tearing apart and threw up copious amounts of blood. Plus, all my hair and fingernails fell out. Though they did grow back quickly. The thought of being bald at eighteen was sheer torture. My hair grew back thicker, and my muscles felt stronger. I went from barely managing to pull up to doing fifteen without breaking a sweat. It was then that I finally realized what mom had said.

I’m an irregular. An animorphs at that.

“You sure you don’t need anything?” asked mom.

“I’m just grateful that I was born,” I replied.

“Such sweet words, you’re just like your father.”

“Not at all, he takes after your wonderful personality.”

“He’s the best of both.”

Please stop. In twenty years, I’ve only held a girl’s wrist before. Must you two be like this in front of me? Wait a minute, I remembered I had a question.

“Hey… Dad.”

“Yes?”

“Can we talk for a minute?”

My mother’s eyes lit up like a Molotov cocktail. “Do you have a girlfriend?”

“No!”

“Sure, shall we talk outside? We’ll be right back, honey.”

“Of course. Kwangik, don’t get her pregnant. You know that right? No glove, no love.”

“Come on, I don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Why don’t you with a face like yours?”

It’s easier said than done, you know. Dad laughed as dads would do then led us out. He made a face soon as we closed the door. The kind you’d make when you wanted to discreetly ask someone if the location was okay.

“Let’s go downstairs and talk.”

I wondered if we needed to go even further away. The awakening made my hearing more sensitive than before. The apartment walls weren’t soundproof so at least it’d be better here. A secret is a secret after all.

Ding.

The elevator arrived and we went down. The humid summer night greeted us as we arrived on the first floor. It was sweltering outside. The monsoon season went on for over a month this year. The sultry air still lingered in some places.

“So, what is it, son?”

“Dad, is the awakening painful?”

I’ll be honest. I do not want to go down that whole transformation again. You wouldn’t know if you haven’t experienced it, but it hurts. A lot. Mom added that it was even worse than childbirth. She said it was easier having a baby.

“Huh?”

“Does it hurt?” I asked again.

I’ve already had an animorphs’ awakening, so perhaps I won’t have one as an immortal. Who knows. Still, I had to mentally prepare for it just in case.

“For me, it was okay. I felt my blood getting hotter, then it completely cooled down. I even felt a little cold. That’s when I felt my senses had been heightened.”

Immortals had their heightened senses. Animorphs had their exceptional strength. Contrasting abilities. While animorphs were known to possess a higher sensitivity of the senses compared to the average human, immortals had even higher sensitivity. Their abilities extended beyond the five senses as they could feel the sixth sense.

“So, it doesn’t hurt?”

“Pretty much, no.”

Oh, that’s a relief!

“S-so, mom is just a normal human. Are you sure I will be awakened?”

What I actually wanted to ask was if mixed-irregulars were even possible.

“You will.” Dad sounded dead certain. Why? I asked him with my eyes, and he said, “Because the blood of an immortal is stronger.” He followed his answer with a simple explanation. The blood of an immortal runs stronger and thicker than normal human blood. I wasn’t sure about the science but dad seemed certain. Then it may not be possible after all. Mom once said that animorphs blood came down from a ruthless bloodline.

“And I... hmm... nevermind. That shouldn’t matter at all.”

There is nothing worse than half-mentioning something, especially when it’s probably important. Dad. But I couldn’t bring myself to ask him once I looked into his face. Twenty years on earth has given me the ability to read people’s faces, at least there was that. My dad’s expression said it all. It was of a person that knew he couldn’t expect a bronze-tier gamer to have the abilities of a master-tier gamer. He knew it could lead to a heavy conversation and didn’t want to trouble my young head too much. It was also my birthday. I didn’t want to push him further. I knew it was complicated for him too.

“Let's go up, dad.”

As long as it doesn't hurt, it’s fine. There might not be an awakening anyway. That would actually create more problems. What excuses would I have to tell dad? My birthday was a low-key affair. But the dining table said otherwise. The celebrations were simple. Typical birthday seaweed soup, the one we’d usually have for birthdays in Korea, 9 kg of beef chuck flap tail, and three bowls of rice. The dinner was a solid pass. I needed this much food to make me happily full. Because I could really eat. It was a classic animorphs trait. The increased density of my muscle fibers after my awakening meant that I required a greater caloric intake.

It wasn’t just me, though. Dad ate a lot too. And mom, well, there were simply no words to describe her appetite. We were a family of big eaters. It might seem odd that we never suspected each other. It’s definitely plausible. Well… Asking someone if they were an irregular based on how much they ate would be a baseless guess at best.

Later, we lit candles on the cake and sang “Happy Birthday.”

“Sleep well, Son. Happy birthday.”

I lay down on my bed after receiving their good wishes. Will it happen? Will I awaken? It was all I could think about. I wasn’t tired but I was the type to fall asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I fell asleep and when I opened my eyes, I could feel my blood boil and then quickly cool down.

“Ahh.”

This isn’t painful? Blood circulating through my entire body is burning up and cooling, and this isn’t painful? My entire body was overcome with indescribable pain. It was as if fire ants were moving through my veins. It was horrible. I couldn’t even make a sound. My body wasn’t mine anymore. After much endurance, it felt like my body was trapped in ice.

What’s going on?

Just as I started asking myself if something was wrong, the pain left my body and it was mine once again. It no longer hurt. Then my room started to look a little less dark.

“Woah.”

I couldn’t hold in my amazement. The first change I felt was my vision. The vision of an immortal. It was like having night vision goggles. I was nocturnal. That wasn’t all! My hearing became more sensitive. Sounds of screaming cicadas rang inside my ear like a gong.

“Ahh.”

I closed my ears shut and hunched my head down. Fortunately, I had experience controlling my body as an animorphs. Controlling the heightened senses of an immortal was similar. The key was to consciously push your ears further out. The noise would follow and diminish. Vision and hearing were similar to one another. After some practice, I was able to change everything at will. It was much better.

Taste, touch, and smell. Everything had changed. Wait, my sense of smell felt the same. Animorphs must also have an exceptional sense of smell. I’ve awakened. After hearing my dad’s theory, I didn’t think it would happen if my animorphs blood was stronger.

Am I the only mixed-blood irregular?

It couldn’t be. How could my parents be the only irregulars to fall in love with a different type? And why were they keeping it a secret from one another? I knew I had to get to the bottom of this secret. It was obvious they would avoid direct answers.

What good will thinking do now?

I was suddenly overcome with fatigue. My eyelids felt heavier, and my body sank. My sheets were drenched in sweat.

Never mind. Let’s sleep.

Then I closed my eyes.