Everyday Stresses of Kazuki - Sci-Fi Action/Intrigue Webserial

Two wounded warriors stood on equal footing within the halls of containers. The only thing stopping one from destroying the other was the implicit truce created in the heat of combat. Kazuki kept walking alongside Lady Antiar. Behind them were Nihara and Václavos.

She had steely fingers to replace the ones she lost. It was a weird sight, but Kazuki is more bizarre.

In the large corridors between rows of containers, dozens of lights shone forward and backward. Suspicious things were checked. Anything out of the place was searched. The Knights and their Squires were thorough, armed to the teeth in case of an ambush.

"You could have given me up," Lady Antiar commented, speaking to Kazuki. Nihara and Václavos trailed back a bit. They were supposed to be keeping an eye on Lady Antiar. But, of course, they were bickering with each other. "Why didn't you?"

"I believed it was not necessary," Kazuki stated. "If I killed you, I wouldn't be able to ask you: why?"

Kazuki's movements were more robotic than human. His exospine was still damaged, but he took it and strode.

Lady Antiar answered, "You're everything I despise… Contract-Breaker… Murderer… You broke a Contract with Clandestine, used their men against them, and broke all sacrosanct rules in the galaxy and within the Ball Palace's confines. I demanded for the Marquis to send me to kill you."

"Then why didn't you?" Kazuki asked in turn. "Director Antonious, the fourth, nearly killed me. If you were there at Old Terra, I'd be dead."

"The Marquis Fer-Charelota stopped me. He told me that it wasn't worth my time, told me you weren't my enemy," she said, eyes scanning around the place. "As he was the sole Lord of the Ball Palace, I had to oblige in his orders."

Kazuki placed a shaking hand up to the scars around his eyes. These scars would leave their mark on him.

The burns were still there... The cracks beside his lips, and the fragmentation wounds highlighting next to his eyes. More scars, he thought. "You also had a pledge to Fer-Charelota to protect Eliza. Why did you go back on that?"

At first, Lady Antiar didn't answer. They kept walking in silence, watching the Knights across the warehouse tear it up from the top to the grave. Kazuki glanced up at her. She was mulling it over inside her head.

"It was not my intention to," Lady Antiar said. "My hand was forced by Obadiah. When I became a member of the Seven Criminals, I made a pledge to the Triarchs of the Board to adhere to their rules. I couldn't go against that, nor the Coin he used to bind my hands."

"But you had a choice. Either way, you were going to be breaking a contract. You chose wrong, Lady Antiar," Kazuki remarked. "Why did you choose Obadiah over Eliza?"

Lady Antiar shot back, "You are wrong."

"Why's that?" Kazuki kept his eyes peeled. They were looking for cargo codes. TRJ-53A. Aha… Kazuki clicked his fingers, attracting muzzles and attention his way. "Obadiah's allies said this was the place. Bit cold at first, but they soared into space for the opportunity to backstab him…"

Lady Antiar smugly smirked at his remark.

"I elected to protect Eliza," Lady Antiar said. "I told her that she'll be safe."

"And yet she was taken hostage in a desperate gamble." Kazuki gave her nothing but the cold truth of the situation. "Counter-intuitive."

The Knight sighed, acknowledging that Kazuki spoke truthfully. "I believed I could. I believed I could uphold both contracts. I tried to play a third path, and I failed. My head still hurts."

"So does mine," Kazuki said. "You tried to play Obadiah; you failed."

"I know." Lady Antiar crossed her arms. "I tried to bring you to Obadiah… I thought if I could simply 'detain' you in flimsy cuffs… you'd do what I could never do."

Hmm. "interesting," Kazuki commented. "But you failed."

Lady Antiar looked at Kazuki hard. She gave him an inquisitive look. She slowly nodded, though not sure of herself. "There are ears and whisperers in all walls, Kazuki. Word will make it back to the Board. And I my head will be for forfeit."

"You should have become a Seven Merc then," Kazuki said. She raised her pistol, whistling as more and more Knights stacked up and around the container. Some took up firing positions. "The other side of the coin is fast and loose. Emiya finds us amusing. Demeaning. Bastard. Yes. But better that than the Board."

The experienced Knight shook her head. "I became a Seven Criminal as a statement, that I will not tolerate their actions..."

"In doing so, you became their pawn," Kazuki stated. He stacked up on the other side. Nihara and Václavos joined him. "Obadiah must have felt smug knowing what you did."

"He did," Lady Antiar replied. She slowly grabbed onto the crate's door handle. "I have failed…. I have to pick a side. I can't play both, I must choose and choose hard - even if it costs me my head."

Kazuki tried to open the container, only for Lady Antiar to stop him. "You provided me with information that assisted in Eliza's rescue. That's what you wanted to hear, right?"

Lady Antiar wasn't convinced by his answer. "I harmed both you and your Phoenix. Nearly kill you many times."

Kazuki sighed.

"So?" Kazuki mused. "I've been pushed closer to that cliff more than most ever will."

"So that's just it?" Lady Antiar stared at Kazuki, her eyes thinning at him. "I gave you something insignificant and you allowed me to walk free?"

Kazuki shook his head. "I may be a Contract-Breaker, but I can differentiate between my enemies and those who are not. You are not my enemy... Right?"

The truth was probably that Kazuki couldn't see straight. Without her information, he would have spent an extra millisecond calculating. That was a risk Kaz would not accept. This was simply quid pro quo. Something for something. She gave him info. He spares her.

"No. If I broke my Contract, then what about you?" Lady Antiar asked. She injected a device into the lock of the container. It started to brute force its way through the combination lock. Only Obadiah had it… and he's already been extradited.

"Same reason," Kazuki muttered. Lady Antiar's eyes widened as her mind realised what he was talking about. "Matt Oria-Tessie demanded things from me that contradicted existing agreements. Nihara. Václavos. Ears closed."

"Sure..." Václavos muttered. The two glanced away. He'll keep them to their works that this will be a private matter between him and Lady Antiar.

Kazuki continued, "Oria-Tessie wanted to enslave a brooch wielder."

Lady Antiar followed up with a long pause. After a moment, she nodded. "Then we are the same? Both Contract-Breakers of our respective terms... You had a reason that I won't ask why… But why? Why call yourself a Contract-Breaker?"

The stigma around Contract-Breakers is strong. Incredibly strong. Contracts are considered sacred. It was even worse back in the Imperial Era. Civil wrongs of contract breaches were sometimes charged criminally. Contract-Breakers are shunned, Kazuki thought. They are hated and despised.

Best of all: feared. They feared who he was. All of them.

"It is in my interests to be the Contract-Breaker they all think I am," Kazuki said. "But look at me, Lady Antiar. What do you see?"

Kazuki tried once again to open the door. She nodded, as the two slowly pried the container open. "Kazuki Izumi Geminorum-Ryzaku."

That was her reply. Kazuki was satisfied with it.

The code-breaker beeped with success. Lady Antiar took it off and slid it into one of her many plate pockets.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Lady Antiar nodded, as the two grabbed both sides and tugged the door open. Murmurs and muffled voices could be heard inside, as lights flickered on, sensors signalling the whole container to life. Looking in, the insides of the container were larger than the exterior.

It was still Euclidian, though. Several containers were merged together to create this monstrosity. A holding prison.

The two members of the Seven glanced in, standing tall with pistols in hand. Entering in, they saw cages of people lined up against the walls...

The Knights and Kaz's guards rushed in, taking points of domination around the room. It was clear. Nothing was here, except a few nursing droids. The Squires turned them off. No resistance was given.

There were cages lining the walls in large columns.

Lady Antiar glanced at the people in the cages... "What the fuck?"

"Surprised?" asked Kazuki. "Matt and Obadiah knew each other. Board connections beget his position. Obadiah is Matt's successor. This is what he inherited."

"And you said nothing?!" Lady Antiar spoke up, as she ran over to a control panel beside the wall. She looked through it, opening all the cell doors. The people in the cells stared at the four, as they searched around the place. 'This is Lady Antiar. We found the target, we'll secure the location, send additional retinues to my location.'

Kazuki ignored the children, as they muttered and whispered to each other in hushed tones - many wearing rags and torn clothes. "Who'd believe me?" Kazuki asked. "All I had was a hunch and a few whispers. We all know the Whispers, even the Marquis. However, there are some things that men like Obadiah will protect more than their lives. This… is one of them."

The Knights started to free the kids, who immediately came clutching to them like flies to a flame. The Knights and Squires took their helmets off, showing their faces underneath.

It wasn't much. But it did help them comfort the freed kids. Kazuki grumbled. He should have been harder on Obadiah… Well, at least this is evidence for… at least a shitty death sentence.

Lady Antiar raised her voice, yet kept it calm and relaxing for the children. "Get them outside, give them water and food. If they can't walk, carry them… Gently."

Lady Antiar's eyes latched onto the squalid conditions they were kept in. Disgust hung to her gaze. Kazuki, however, was not.

"Anagora's Sub Levels aren't the only place," Kazuki remarked. "Sick men exist across the galaxy."

"These conditions… they're worse than the gangs on Anagora," Lady Antiar said. She placed a hand over one of the cages… It was rusting.

This was not the worst Kazuki's seen in the galaxy, however. "Running Judicial Contracts on Anagora builds up resistance to these types of sights. You?"

Lady Antiar shook her head. "I'm not shocked. I'm just… disappointed. For a man of extreme wealth… Obadiah seems to treat all men and women as equal livestock."

"Cutting costs," Kazuki remarked. "The gangs of Anagora grew up in squalor. They learnt pain. They were forced into pain. Giving and taking. Obadiah was not. He learnt pain on his own. And how to give it. But never take it."

'Marquis Gilbera, do we have additional accommodations?' asked Lady Antiar.

Fer-Charelota responded, 'Indeed we have, I've sent you the location, send them to the barracks for medical examinations first, however.'

'Understood,' Lady Antiar answered. Lady Antiar walked over to one of the cages. The Knights had to pry the cages open by hand. Lady Antiar stared into the eyes of some kid… Half Kazuki's age at least. "Any idea of their origins? I doubt their parents are alive…"

Kazuki shook his head, crossing his arms. "Orphaned conflict-children. Low chances of ID, especially if they're from the Hinterlands or the Southern Satellite Galaxies."

Lady Antiar ripped the bars open with her bare hands, signalling for the child, barely older than Kazuki during P-1, to leave. Kazuki stood idle, as they slowly escorted everyone out of the container.

"Like us?" Nihara asked, she looked around at the kids... "They barely look older than us when we were picked up by Eden."

"Yeah... Like you. Except these children have a much grimmer fate than you," Kazuki stated. He needs some fresh air... The smell of old clothes and rust permeated the interior.

He left.

Nihara and Václavos followed them out.

Václavos asked, "They're not going to be abandoned… right?"

Kazuki shrugged. Human relocation was not Kazuki's business. Lady Antiar came out with the final few children. The kids were quiet, some eating on ration bars and drinking in water canteens.

One of the kids was trailing behind, barely able to walk. Lady Antiar and her Knights had their arms filled. Nihara knelt down and helped carry her. Kazuki and Václavos joined the convoy.

"You are safe now," Nihara muttered to the girl. "Don't worry, I can show you a trick with a coin later that will impress everyone you ever meet."

It wasn't a surprise that this was Nihara's soft spot. Eden Initiatives were orphans, sent and drilled to war… But everyone needs a weak point, Kazuki thought. Even Contractors… His was animals; Quinn and Amyé's is beer; and Václavos… Kazuki glanced at Václavos.

Václavos' weak spot was Nihara. Even so, Václavos did not fail Kazuki, not this time.

Lady Antiar turned back to Kazuki. "What do you think Obadiah and his clients were going to do with them?"

"What do you think a bunch of incredibly wealthy, essentially untouchable people would want with children?" snapped Kazuki. Lady Antiar understood it immediately. "What will you do with them?"

Lady Antiar paused, before turning to one of the children she was carrying on her arms. "Protection and Wardhood of the Palace, until we can find somewhere to put them... Can you tell me your name?"

The kid shook their head, meekly refusing to speak. That's bad huh? The convoy was leading them all out of the warehouse… This was a success, but the cages were not filled to capacity…

There were definitely more of these, but Kazuki knew that Lady Antiar and the Marquis would search thoroughly. Kazuki gave them the cassis belli. They will continue to seize this opportunity.

There was still some scum left on the station, to this calibre at least. They'll have to weed them out. But perhaps death is a mercy for them. Archius is probably keeping tabs on a few of them, probably thinking of how he could torture them. Archius will get his pay due soon.

The column left the warehouse, into the private lower halls of the Space Station. Its walls were pristine and pale, with arching pillars and hovering lights, along with a window to space… Some of the kids were mesmerised by the endless abyss and lights.

Lady Antiar led the convoy as she paused, standing at one of the large windows. Kazuki stood with her, as a few squires stood beside her. The rest of the knights kept leading the children forward. 'We're inbound to the Barracks, don't keep us waiting when we get there.'

A few of the children tried to look outside the window, peering past Kaz and Lady Antiar. The squires stopped them, slowly ushering them forward and out of their view.

'Understood,' said Fer-Charelota with his thick Kasté accent. 'I'll arrive shortly, make sure to ID any of them to see if there are any relatives to them.'

Kazuki shook his head as the final Knight and child left their view. The Squires rushed back to join the convoy, as Kazuki and Lady Antiar stood alone. Kazuki turned towards Nihara, as she gave the kid over to one of the running squires. "Nihara, you'll take over Cyrus' role. Guard Eliza. Václavos, guard Archius. Pronto."

The two nodded, but Nihara paused for a moment. They knew what she was going to say. "What will we do with Cyrus' body?"

Václavos walked off, leaving her alone. Kazuki didn't have a good answer. For how much time Cyrus spends around Kazuki, he's never gotten to know him quite as well as Kazuki would like. Though perhaps that is a blessing. Knowing so much, only for them to be killed.

"I'll let you and Václavos decide. You were basically one dysfunctional family."

Nihara nodded at him. "What about you?"

Kazuki paused to collect his thoughts. "I'm his, boss. I ordered him to die protecting Eliza. I will not command where he is to rest."

It was a cold thing for Kazuki to tell Nihara, but she took it well. Her blue eyes moved away, as she nodded. It should ease the pain. Give the two final goodbyes to Cyrus… The rest of Eden didn't get that, all brunt beneath a flaming compound.

"Understood, Kazuki," said Nihara. She turned and left, slowly walking away. It was now only Lady Antiar and him left...

Lady Antiar turned around, peering out the window. She shook her head in disbelief, somewhat angry at herself. "They should have gotten worse. They'll be more."

"You'll weed them out, eventually," Kazuki remarked. "I'll leave it up to you to pick up the pace. I've got things to do—"

"—Board grade Virus," Lady Antiar cut Kazuki off. Oh well... He was going to say nothing after that anyway. Kazuki scratched his head and back, feeling the icky residue from his exospine stick to his skin. He was lucky his overclock didn't kill him. "It was a thumb stick, right?"

Kazuki nodded.

"I'll look into it, they don't hand those stuff out on whims," Lady Antiar said. "And he had three, enough for the assassination, the attack and the hostage crisis."

"It takes a lot of connections," Kazuki said.

Lady Antiar raised a hand towards Kazuki. "When the time comes when we can find out who provided Obadiah with the virus. He must have had a huge stockpile as well..."

"We?" Kazuki inquired. Lady Antiar nodded her head. Kazuki paused, then nodded. He shook her hand. An agreement was made between them.

They will assist one another.

For this specific assignment: learn the truth. But all in due time… Lady Antiar will be busy.

Kazuki placed his hand in his pocket, turning out into space. Dead corpses littered the space around the station. A flock of them. Conspirators and clients all for Obadiah. Lady Antiar shook her head once again, sighing at their state.

"Slow and painful death. Asphyxiation and freezing dry. They got what they had coming."

Lady Antiar slowly nodded. "Fer-Charelota traded Obadiah's life with all of these..."

"He did. Obadiah is worth more to us alive than dead. This is the cost of his justice," Kazuki remarked. He started to walk away, leaving Lady Antiar alone.

"They'll be officially recorded as missing," Lady Antiar continued. "They'll think it was you, even if it's stated otherwise."

Kazuki uttered a single word, "Good." It was all he needed to say to that.

Their fellow conspirators will wonder what happened to them. Some will picture the puzzle together.

Those clever enough to do so will dread him greater than mere name-lickers and pickers.