The cold and miserable memories flooded back in. All of them played at the same time in the elevator. He was badly damaged. Bruises were hidden beneath his clothes, the edges and fringes of them barely visible on his arms and torso. He blinked within the reflective mirror, seeing his younger self in the reflection.

Azure blue eyes… Burnt to gold. Nothing of Kazuki remained, he thought. The memories kept bleeding out, none of them were good. But that implied that he had many good memories, to begin with.

He was hiding on the inside balcony hanging over the living room. He could hear his parents argue below…

"I don't care what happened! He's still our son, nothing will change that," said Misty - Kazuki's mother.

His father responded, "You sold his life. Whatever came out of that surgery is not our son anymore."

Kazuki placed his face on his knees.

"I… We must do our best for him nonetheless," said Misty. "He may not be able to succeed in the ways we believed him to, but I know our son is more resilient than what you give him credit for!"

That was all Kazuki needed to hear to understand his situation. Fuck all the other information. He's been abandoned in the depths of death… Kazuki, however, didn't cry. They'd find out he was eavesdropping if he did.

But his face said it all, staring mindlessly forward. The soon-to-be-trainee-mercenary was as good as dead.

"Ugh… Just… I know. But keep your voice down, we don't want to wake up Yuki… Doctors say she lost her memories, I wouldn't want her first ones here to be us arguing." Yamagata was more concerned with Yuki than Kazuki.

Of course, he'd be. Of course. Kazuki was dead. All that remained was the corpse of the boy who once was, freezing alone in a tundra far from home.

One gold eye, one blue eye, shone brightly. His exospine whirred to life, dried blood still visible with the surgical marks. He pressed his legs together, suffocating himself on his bed.

His memory changed. He was in his room… Date: 4915, Apri 28th. He was alive… But barely. Kazuki's memorised vision glanced down to the contract by his feet. His eyes were red from tears… How couldn't they have been?

The bedroom was cold, dull, dark. Only moonlight lit it up. Calling it a bedroom, however, would be an understatement. It was a whole living quarter unto itself. Below, on the quarters' table, stood a large building set.

It was a model of a whole fleet, hovering above the table, with a holographically designed Anagora skyline below it. To the corner was a map of the galaxy.

It was a game he; Noah and Victoria were making… His father helped with the specifics, being the High Admiral of course. It lacked some refinement.

Now, it'll never see completion.

A thousand nightmares clung up from below the bed and from the ceiling above. The rotting, dead hands of the dead stretched out. They beckoned Kazuki. Clenching his hair, the memory continued in silent agony. He saw Victoria's silhouette amongst them, a bloodied and messy clot of pink hair, darkened.

Kazuki turned away, clutching at his eyes to forget. He could feel a hallucination's grasp around his neck. It was gentle and soft as if trying to calm him down.

He knew what illusion it was. It was the one he keeps having, the one who never seems to leave... "Go away..." Kazuki murmured, feeling his hallucinations and mind gear back awake, showing only reality.

Contract with Clandestine. A soul for a soul. He read it again, skimming the key details.

'In exchange for the application and utilisation of the Experimental Prototype Exospine V42-DTIC, Kazuki Izumi Geminorum-Ryzaku, Prince of Trasia, must adhere to ten years of service to the Clandestine Defence Corporation.'

It was illegal. Most definitely. But who cared? This galaxy was so filled with corruption and death that his plight would only fall on deaf ears. Service to mercenaries…

He buried his face into his knees. "Why did you agree to that… Why couldn't you just have let me die…"

All those lives on that station… It was all him, Kazuki verbally abused himself again.

"It was you. You stupid boy… Why couldn't you have just run…" The guilt kept piling up. Victoria… The Incident… There was too much he couldn't say. Blood sept out from his wounds once again, and his surgical marks, before his exospine clotted up his façade.

With that knife…. It was only a mere chance that Kazuki would have escaped with his life… If Noah wasn't… Kazuki stopped himself. It was foolish of him to believe that…. Of course, it was the easy way out…

Still. That was unbefitting of him. He's alive… But at what cost?

Deep down, however, Kazuki knew he was responsible. The figures in the room held Victoria… He could see it so clearly. Despite his memory, it felt so dreamy. Their faces were all but gone, mirages of his nightmare.

"She died anyways…" Kazuki trailed off. Tears bled from his eyes, falling down his burned cheek. He could feel the steel switch in his hands… Beckoning him to have chosen correctly.

He clawed his palms until his nails cut the surface of his skin.

The endless sparks that changed it all. Kazuki could have stopped it all. All he had to do was run… He traded all of them, for her.

Here he was, alone. In his room. The jugular's thoughts were slashed, his mind cleared with the opening of the elevator doors.

He was home… Whatever that was.

The lava lamp by the entrance was the only thing to greet Kazuki.

He took a step forward. His wrists and arms were covered with fading cuts and wounds. He rubbed them, taking in a deep breath. The elevator doors closed, as the finely furbished entrance hall rebounded sound in from deeper within his family's condo.

Leaning against the cold, iron door, Kazuki smelt the faint steel stench stuck to his skin and clothes. Blood, he thought. The date was the 5th of Juli, 4920. Kazuki was fifteen years old...

Who was he? So much death. Just what is he?

His mind started to fracture at the seams as if something was calling for him. He stood up, ignoring the headaches.

Fuck the prescription, he thought, he'll just down the whole jar. Walking forward, service drones hovered around the corner towards him.

They started to take his coat off, but he shoved them to the side. "No," he said... "Thanks..."

Kazuki took a glance at the drones, nodding at them. They were far more nicer than humans, he thought. They nodded back, and deactivated - hanging themselves against the wall…

Kazuki stared at their hanging artistic frames. Even in the entrance hall, the decor and splendour shouted extravagance. He took his shoes and coat off. His slippers weren't even out.

The lights of Anagora's surface glittered up at him through the windows. The floating islands up above said nothing back.

Pulling his eyes away, he entered the living room/ It was large... Massive. It had enough space to host an entire party of people. It did. Sometimes.

The lava lamps and the low hues of coloured lights bombarded him from above.

He continued walking, hoping to not get noticed by his family. The stairs were on the opposite side of the room, curling upwards to the second and third floors of the suite.

"Back home..." Kazuki said to himself.

Chatter could be heard from the dining room and kitchen. Wooden dividers acted as 'doors' to the kitchen section, with the silhouettes of those within visible. He stood still for a moment. His father's set of 'ceremonial' Trasian swords hung on the wall.

Kazuki stared out into the distance through the large glass wall. A pink-haired reflection stared back at him, pensive and with a look of pity. "No..." he muttered, drawing his eyes away. He felt the components of his exospine move over and lock in place.

His leg gave way as he started to cower in the middle of the room.

"No..."

Kazuki looked back, seeing only his face. That's right, he thought, it's only him. Cyrus, Václavos and Nihara are on death's doorstep. Kazuki was prepared for the worst.

Now, he remains – as always. Did he inherit both his father's curses?

The door to his room opened as Pi flew out, perching on the bannister and looking at him.

Kazuki pressed a finger to his lips. The bird cooed loudly. Footsteps could be heard. They were approaching him. Fuck. It's her. Kazuki sped up the stairs. He hid behind the half wall of the balcony.

A pale light entered into the living room. Yuki stormed in.

"Kazu?!" she shouted, walking around the living room. "You're back?! Hellooooo?"

Pi fluttered over to Kazuki, immediately licking his face. It must have missed him. "I'll get you your own place…" Kazuki trailed off in a whisper to Pi. "Eventually."

Then, Kazuki said nothing. He peered over the bannister, seeing his 'sister' wander about. Kazuki shimmied his way towards his room on the second floor, tucked away in the corner, along a long hall.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

The atmosphere felt so suffocating, being here... Yuki didn't seem to relent, instead searching around the place to see if Kazuki was hiding. Kazuki and Pi hid, still licking his face with warm, antiseptic drool.

"Come out, come out! You know I'll just find you if you hide," Yuki playfully jeered. Kazuki rolled his eyes, and he looked at the mirror opposite him.

Two gold eyes. Bulbs plastered onto a burnt face and dead soul.

"You died," he muttered to himself. Kazuki must never forget that.

Then, a voice cried out.

"AHA! Found you!" shouted Yuki. Kazuki turned to his side, seeing his sister point at him with an air of pompous arrogance. "You thought you could escape me, but no!"

Kazuki found the energy to bite off more words. "What do you want?" She froze as he twisted to look at her. Oh yeah... His new eye... Kazuki stood up, much taller than his sister. She took a step back as if scared by his mere presence.

Oh…

"The hell? Is it a new trend to get eyes replaced?! Is becoming an Artigonal in trend now?!" she shouted out loud. Storming towards Kazuki, she tried to poke his new gold eye. She didn't get very far, with Kaz placing a hand out to stop her in her tracks.

Artigonal? No matter what, he'll never become one of those juiced-up metal freaks.

So annoying... Kazuki kept himself busy with Pi, sending his phoenix to his quarters.

"Don't. It's not... It won't get you new followers." Kazuki twisted around and started to walk to his room. He needed time for himself, even though he already knew what would happen. He'll hate himself, and then he'll move from hating to harming.

Yuki seemed to have other ideas, instead grabbing hold of Kazuki.

"Blegh... you smell like iron, don't tell me you want to become an engineer!" she shouted.

Kazuki nodded. "Inventor, like mother," he lied. He kept walking, despite Yuki's pressure to drag him back. "What?"

" We're having dinner and you're late!" Yuki shouted at him, trying to drag him back, all the way to the dining room. Kazuki remained still. "Come on! Stop resisting!"

"I'm not," Kazuki replied. His exospine was so heavy that Yuki couldn't move it. "I'm going to bed."

"Nuh uh, not with an empty stomach. Don't make me get mother and father!" Yuki shouted, pretending to lean over the bannister.

Kazuki acquiesced, turning around and allowing Yuki to drag him down with her.

"Just a quick bite, I'm tired," Kazuki lied. "Alright?"

"Sure! Sure!" Yuki dismissed whatever he had to say, dragging him down to their dining room. Yuki stood beside him, as their parents glanced at the duo.

The dining room was large, with a large table in the middle. Neon-white lights were embedded into the walls, with drones setting out new cutlery for Kazuki. They didn't even expect him...

Kazuki ignored their gazes, dragging a chair to the opposite side of the table before sitting down.

Yuki skipped over to her seat, near her father. Silence deafened the four, as Kazuki's father was reading the holo-news from a data-pad. A drone refilled Kazuki's cup. It was just a standard cup...

The four ate quietly.

"So..." Yuki clapped her hands together. Their mother gave a calm-headed nod towards Kazuki. He returned it, not wanting to attract his father's own glare.

Kazuki knew it was no more than just a formality. All the chatter that existed before ceased to exist the moment he was introduced into the picture.

"New eye?" Yamagata asked, a voice as dull as Kazuki's. Kazuki looked up from eating, seeing his father wearing an off-duty naval officer's uniform. His navy coat was hung on his seat, adorned with a thousand medals - including the High Admiral's crochet.

Nodding, Kazuki ignored any follow-up questions by answering himself. "New trend," he lied.

He didn't want to speak to any of them about anything, especially this new gift he had… Just another weight to burden him down… More will come, he knows that.

Misty spoke up, "Well, I thought the heterochromia looked better, Kazu, but I must say there is a level of elegance in two golden eyes." She finished off with a light-hearted chuckle.

All knew. Except Yuki. "Yeah... I just decided to do it on a whim."

"Hmph, change it back," Yamagata said, placing the newspaper down.

Kazuki caught a brief glimpse of it. Nothing important was being reported, as expected. Even the rampage that Freyja and Hartius left behind was nothing.

But Kazuki knows. Ten thousand dead in under an hour. Two combatants. All across the Sub Level. Those were who he was up against, Kazuki thought - a member of the Seven Mercs.

"Hmm," Yamagata continued, as Misty gave him a dead cold side-glare. "I support it. You will always have your mother's eyes on you."

"Now now, I think gold suits Kazu, what do you think, Yuki?" Misty asked his adopted sister.

"Well, I'm not against it!" Yuki shouted as she shoved rice down her throat. She spoke with food in her mouth. "I mean, it looks really cool! Like with the burns as well!"

A strange sensation came over Kazuki. Cool? Well… Kazuki didn't describe the sensation any further. He nodded. The food was great, as expected, but Kazuki didn't want to linger.

This place was nauseating. He placed a food-covering bowl over his bowl. Standing up, Kazuki was going to excuse himself.

Yamagata did the same, standing up. The High Admiral towered above Kazuki, white hair pale as the Eclipse. It was a constant reminder of what his father had been through for this Republic… Throwing himself into the Eclipse at their command.

For the senate's pride.

His eyes shone with a crimson hue. The same as Kazuki's grandfather... Mother always told of how Yamagata got his hair 'bleached' by the Maelstrom, how its effects cause men to go mad. And his father is one of those survivors...

"Stay seated, it's not every day that you get to eat with us, with how hard you're studying," he said.

Oh yeah... Studying... What the fuck was that? Yuki nodded at Kazuki, trying to get him to stay. He sat back down...

Sister always gets what she wants, Kazuki thought. Misty said, "Kazu, you should sit closer to us."

This was something he could not accept. He shook his head.

"Why?!" Yuki shouted out loud, swallowing as she burst up, looking at Kazuki. "You're always acting soooo glooomy, Kazu! Live a little, come on! I'll need you to help me in this game."

Yamagata sat back down, continuing to eat and read. Misty, meanwhile, walked over towards Kazuki. She ushered him to sit opposite Yuki, as drones took his plate and cutlery over the table.

His mother pushed him down into the seat. No comfort came his way... Kazuki watched as Yuki kept shovelling food down her mouth.

Yamagata gave him a side glare. A reminder to answer Yuki's demands. "What game?" Kazuki asked, going in to finish his food. "Don't tell me it's shit."

"Language!" Misty raised her voice at her son. Oh... so they're fine with Yuki shovelling food down her mouth, but one swear?! Did the world shatter, Kazuki asked himself sarcastically.

Kazuki grunted in response.

"It's uh, this game called Lowguard! It's in closed alpha right now!" Yuki answered, shooting up two projected images of her gaming collection. "Father and mother knew a few people and got the both of us vesarian edition keys!"

Kazuki shot his parents a glance. "Thanks..." he said. Yamagata gave a slow nod, as Misty gave a heart-warming smile. "What is it about?"

"Oh, oh, oh!" Yuki started, trying to think of something to say, probably. "It's a rogue RPG! But like, with SOOOO many people, the beta footage looks amazing!"

He wasn't really impressed. Knowing Yuki, she'd probably want to use her exclusive access to the game to boost her online popularity. She's already known as the 'Sparkle girl', why not add this under her belt, Kazuki thought.

"No. I'm not interested, sadly..." Kazuki said. He stood up, having finished his meal.

Misty grabbed him by the arm. "Oh, come on," she whispered into his ear. "I've heard of what happened and I think you need a little break, don't you agree? Your father and I are here for you."

"Sure," Kazuki sarcastically murmured to himself. His mother's now the CEO of a tech giant... Using manipulation like this was most definitely not out of her reach.

If agreeing will make her go away, then he'll agree. "Sure. I'll play," Kazuki said, as he tugged his own arm out from his mother's grasp.

"YUS!" Yuki shouted. "I'll... I'll give you your code and we can play later tonight!"

"Tomorrow." Kazuki walked through the door into the living room. His eyes slowly closed for a moment, taking in the small amount of respite he was offered.

"TONIGHT!" she shouted at him, voice muffled.

"TOMMOROW!" Kazuki replied with a raised voice. "I'm going to bed."

"FINE!" Yuki returned with an equally raised voice.

The living room was pristinely decorated... A large holographic display covered a wall, showing a thousand accolades.

If his parents weren't here, he'd throw himself on the sofa. A large 'wall' display of lava sprouted up from the backrest of the sofas. So extravagant... After spending so much time in the Sub-Levels, this level of flavour had all but lost its feeling on Kazuki.

Clandestine named him the Arbiter. A sick joke. All those people that kept him alive. Kazuki curled his fingers into his skin, feeling the pain of his nails digging in.

He's just a secondary concern... The replacement child, now that his parents have a new kid, one far brighter than the last. He relaxed his muscles, shifting his glasses back up his nose.

He... doesn't need them anymore. Kazuki continued walking.

"Kazuki?" Misty asked, entering the living room to follow Kazuki. "If you want to say something, then say it."

"What is there to be said?" Kazuki snapped back quietly, making sure his voice could not be heard from the dining room. "Look at me, mother… What can I say?"

Misty paused, then nodded. "I understand… But whatever you may think, you are not alone. If you need to take a break from school… or… that… I'll pressure Jessica to allow it."

Kazuki's eyes slowly thinned against his mother's blue gaze. "Why are you telling me this now?"

"Because you're my son."

Kazuki nodded towards the dining room. "You've already got your perfect replacement. You're great at business. Best to leave the outdated products to rot."

"Kazuk!" Misty quickly hushed her voice, taking in a deep breath. "The idea that your cousin was meant to replace you is absurd." She took a few steps towards him.

Reinforcing his own feelings, Kazuki took one step back. The thousands of images of him all alone flickered once again. He's been bleeding for so long, for six long years. He nodded. "Sure. I'll… see that I agree to it."

The amount of snarky sarcasm was enough to poison the whole room.

Misty shook her head, releasing another sigh again. Luckily for her, she kept her calm, it seems. "We're family, we're here for you, I know it's hard for you to believe me… But we're with you."

"Over my dead corpse," stated Kazuki. "Well. You're just about there, I guess." He reclocked his exospine manually with a mere shift of his shoulders. It was damaged badly…

"I'll fix your exospine right up and neat for you again," Misty said. Kazuki started to walk towards the stairs. He was done talking. "Tomorrow, for now: get some rest. You earned it, Kazu."

Kazuki was a dead man walking. Fixing it was only going to prolong his life for what? A few years at most? He could feel it in his back… He was slowly dying with each repair.

"Just leave me alone," Kazuki groaned audibly, letting slip a husk of emotion into the air.

To that, Misty paused. Then, she walked back towards the dining room. "Welcome home, Kazuki," she said, before leaving his life once more.

Kazuki lingered motionlessly for a moment, before continuing.

Walking up the stairs to his room, his mind became fuzzier. Looking down at his hands, he saw blood splatter down once again. He couldn't tell if it was his blood, Victoria's, or the blood of the tens of Eden Initiates he dragged to their deaths...

Fire and debris scattered around with the visage of death. Murals of blood and limbs adorned the burning walls...

He can see the bodies so clearly, surrounding him, suffocating him. There's no reason to fight anymore, he thought. He looked back in the mirror, seeing a crazed face. That's right! He has no reason to fight...

Why not finish his final act?! Why not... WHY not!? He glared at himself, unable to hold his sanity as—

—yet as he blinked, it was all gone. He was alone... in a hospital bed. Brain dizzy. He glanced around. Eliza was resting beside his bed, typing away at something. He… really should stop falling unconscious, even if it was blood loss.

The more blood he sheds, the more the memories will gnaw at his mind.

That's right... He still has one mission left. One contract was left unfulfilled. As long as she breathes, his fight isn't over yet. Not till every last one of those conspirators lies strewn in body bags.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.