Incessant nagging kept Kazuki awake. His mind was still, taking in nothing and giving nothing back.

Eliza's suite was cold, lit with lava lamps by the side. Yuki was with him, sitting across from him on the sofa. She had her legs crossed, with a wide grin.

"Kaaazu!" Yuki groaned. "Let's play Lowguard! I need a raid partner for the new Dhavaha Trials!"

Kazuki replied with the same thing he had been saying for the past few minutes. "I'm busy." He was not. After all, he was literally watching some documentaries on the holo-vision. It was about some near-extinct alien fauna in the colonial rims of the galaxy.

"But you're nooot! Come on, you barely spend time with mother or father and me!" she said. "Come over to my suite and we'll organise like this LAAAARGE raid party!"

She continued blabbering. Kazuki didn't care. His wounds were already patched up, most of them had healed already across the hour since the attack ended.

It was the only thing Kazuki liked about himself, his excessive healing factor. He'll be fine, probably... Her response, however, was something he could not ignore. "Everyone will be over?"

"YEAH!" she shouted. "After what happened, everyone's bound to be hungry, right!? We'll have barbecue… or pizza… or like… I dunno, sushi?"

"I think they'd lose their appetite if they saw friends, family, people get sliced in two," he remarked. "So no, I won't be going."

She grumbled under her breath, standing up and pacing around the room. Yuki wasn't paying attention to the documentary… How uncivilised. Kazuki liked the narrator's voice.

Kazuki was somewhat enjoying it, better company compared to her. "Come on! JUST COME WITH ME! I'M YOUR SISTER, AND I COMMAND—"

"—Nothing," Kazuki snapped at her. He looked towards her, his head spinning to see her pace around the room quickly. "We share the same brooch name. Do not command me."

His eyes narrowed at her. Out of all places, does she think she has authority here? Mother and father are very far away, he thought.

Their influence does not stretch this far. Nothing happens unless Yuki says it... The all-so-perfect girl they wanted... Kazuki glanced away, shaking his head.

"FINE! If you're so worried about the brooch, then you wear it!" She ran across the room, taking the brooch off her hoodie and presenting it to Kazuki. It glows a cyan hue, a cool warmth emanating from the jewel within. "If you really want it, just take it! I don't mind! It's just a lil' piece of jewellery."

Kazuki glared at her. He's already weighed down by one brooch, why must she add another? He turned away, taking out and feeling Irya's Shard Brooch. Kazuki then shook his head.

"No."

"No?"

He stood up, closing Yuki's hand. "Mother and father would be disappointed if you gave it away to me. I already have my own, after all."

"You don't wear it, though," she said. Yes... Kazuki wondered why? Why would he, the Contract-Breaker abandoned by all, left to rot alone, fly his family's Sigil. He thought to himself, they were worthless. This girl in front of him might be his legal sister, but to Kazuki, she was more than that... not in a good way.

Kazuki asked, "Why do you bug me so often? Shouldn't you be with Nathaniel? He's timid. You might be able to stay cheery, but he won't."

Nathaniel doesn't have the spine his older brother has, Kazuki thought. She responded, waving the thoughts away, "Naw, he's fine! He's sleeping right now! Václavos is missing though, did... he..."

"He's alive," Kazuki replied instantly. "He'll be with him shortly."

He walked to the kitchen, and putting the kettle on. He needed some tea... He took a spoon and scooped some jihara leaves into a teapot.

The water started to heat up.

"Ugh... You barely spend time relaxing! You're always so tense! Just relax a little!" she shouted at him.

The words struck Kazuki across the head. Relax? What the fuck was she talking about? The one word spiralled into a thousand, in Kazuki's mind. The Contract-Breaker does not rest. The Arbiter does not sleep on laurels. This is his life from now on... Blood. Pain. Suffering. He gazed at her, staring with a dead face.

"What do you think I'd do if I did relax?" he asked. Nihara walked past him, grabbing some alcohol from the fridge, before leaning against the wall, keeping silent and hearing nothing. "Do you think I can relax?"

"Pfft, relaxing is easy! You just sit down and turn on the television and BOOM! You're ten seasons into a shitty rom-com show!"

He shook his head. Of course, it'd be easy for her. Yuki's life has only ever been relaxation, peace, and barely any drama or pain. She was the chosen child of the Geminorum-Ryzaku family. She was the child who his parents loved. Kazuki remembers watching his parents dote on her, praising her for everything she's ever done.

Meanwhile, he's the murderer, the broken child - discarded. Slowly, Kazuki's fingers curled in on themselves. Digging into his own skin. He's been so alone...

But then again, that's what he should expect. What's ten more years?

She continued, "Come on, we're in this together! Two siblings against the galaxy!" She gestured with her hand upwards, showing the 'galaxy' in the palm of her hand. "The whole galaxy, ours for the taking!"

How lofty and stupid, to bring up such an idea to him. Neither took it seriously. Kazuki's mind snapped into place at her first words, however. Were they in this together?

He asked himself, who was it that bled whilst the other slept with a thousand plushies on her bed?

Who was it that slaughtered so that Anagora could have its crime statistic lowered by a... quintillionth of a percentage?

Who here was it that suffered his consequences.

The answer was clear: him.

He takes the brunt of everything.

She thinks she's in this with him? Kazuki ignored the boiling kettle, an antique that doesn't automatically turn off.

He stabbed Yuki with his eyes. She has no wounds. No scars. No trophies of sacrifice. There is nothing on her to denote anything linking between the two.

She may be half Lautrasian as he is, but she is not his sister. This girl in front of him is nothing, he thought. She's done nothing and will do nothing. He has moved entire galaxies to see his blood-soaked dream arise from the dead.

"Heh..." Kazuki let off a husky chuckle.

It sounded like an animal dying. Both Nihara and Yuki stared at him. He grabbed onto the counter, realising that she actually meant what she said. Kazuki let off another dying croak.

"Do not flatter yourself."

"Hmm?" Yuki paused. Kazuki looked up from the counter, straightening his back. The kettle continued to boil over.

Kazuki decided to let her down slowly. "I have bled pools whilst you slept. Ate. Lazed. Look at me, Yuki..." He placed a hand up to his face, shaking. He did not hide it. Let her see it all. He touched his cheek, feeling the coarse burn marks against the cracks beside his lips. Let her see all of the Contract-Breaker. "The man you see in front of you is not your brother."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

She was silent. Even Nihara didn't comment on it, trying to ignore the brewing storm/

He walked around the counter, up to her. He wasn't too tall, but he was taller than her, by a light year. H looked down at the creature before him with golden bulbs - this small, insignificant insect.

He slowly moved his head down towards her ear. "Kazuki Izumi Geminorum-Ryzaku died on that station you lost your biological parents on. This person you see is just a husk of who he is. Kazuki's dead. He was always dead."

In the corner of the room, Pi slowly woke up, peering at the argument.

The kettle was whistling off. Nihara turned it off.

So many expectations were placed upon him, that Kazuki has never had time to live. It's been one thing to the next, one worry to the other.

He was everything his parents hoped for, a perfect child capable of anything and everything. Maybe Kazuki never lived to begin with.

Yet the moment this perfect child bled and caused others to bleed: they ran. Ran to their corner with Yuki... This girl... This pathetic girl with no talents.

"Kazuki... you're tired, aren't you?" Yuki asked awkwardly. She patted him on the arm, nodding to his room. "It's alright to relax, it's alright to be tired, we all need rest, right?"

Kazuki tugged on her twin tail lightly. She tried to pull his hand off her, failing. Her face was immediately filled with panic. "Let go of my hair…" she muttered under her breath.

The strand of hair on top of Yuki's head shook in fear.

At the mere sight of violence, the caged phoenix started to smack its wings on the cage.

"You are nothing to me. You were never anything to begin with. This facade... these decade-old lies... just drop them."

"We're... siblings... aren't we supposed to have each other's backs?" she muttered quietly. "We…"

Kazuki shook his head. "We are not siblings. To put it bluntly: I was never family in the first place. Our… your parents sought to that."

She said nothing, slowly stepping back. Frowning, her eyes teared up. She turned away.

Kazuki had no reaction. This was him, he thought. This was always him. Damn, be the child who he was. Don't forget who he is... That's what his grandfather told him. What a sick joke…

Why must he remember that… Now of all times?

To the Eclipse with that. This is who he is. Don't forget what? That naive boy that killed his best friend?! That boy that betrayed everyone on that station?! The boy that caused the deaths of countless billions?! That's the boy who he was.

Kazuki releases his grip.

That was who he was.

Nothing more, nothing less.

He turned away from her, as water fell from her face. He tried to give her a cruel smile, but the muscles didn't move.

Even his body refused to acknowledge her worth. He walked towards the exit, Nihara following him.

"Kazuki..." Nihara said quietly.

Cutting her off, he said, "Stay. Escort her to her suite if she wishes. I need a smoke break."

"So you do care about her?" Nihara asked quietly.

Kazuki ignored her.

Stepping back, Kazuki saw one of the stones that Yuki had brought with her. It was placed on top of a small pile of souvenirs that Yuki brought. That stone was what summoned Pi here in the first place.

Pi deserves a strong partner, a strong wielder. Kazuki snatched the stone.

Kazuki phased the door open and left. Nihara's question stung somewhat. The only reason why she must be protected is because he'll get into trouble if his parent's prized child gets killed.

That's right. They only care if she lives. He cares not for her, not at all… Kazuki rolled his fingers, clenching them into a fist and clawing at his own palms. Leaving, Kazuki needed something to clear his mind.

Out in the shopping centres of the Palace, Kazuki ignored the sting of combat. Walls were plastered with shots, whilst lights flickered. Half of his face was shrouded by the shadows of the broken lights. The other remained bright. Fresh air... that was hard to come by. Everywhere stank of iron. Blood. Or maybe it was him. Either way, it doesn't matter.

Walking through the station, Kazuki happened upon one of the casualty stations... Cries and sorrows came from the tents, makeshift with beds for the wounded.

The dead were in bags... All the same size. Noble. Servant. Slave. Anyone caught in the crossfire met the same fate – none got some special treatment. Their bodies were simply rotting in a bodybag, whilst their family and friends cried over them.

Kazuki tried to pry his eyes away from the sight, but a shriek snatched his attention back: "No! Please! Just... do something!"

"Ma'am... we can't! He's already dead!" One of the doctors cried back in an exasperated tone. She glanced around at one of her nurses. "Give him a dose of morphine whilst you're at it..."

The woman who shrieked was familiar with Kazuki's database. Enemy? No. His brain cross-references it perfectly: it was that woman with a child who wanted to play with his Phoenix.

Oh.

The smell of the dead was a familiar stench. Yet the sight of a dead child stirred disgust in Kazuki. Half his head was gone... The kid was just lying there, lifeless...

The kid who wanted so fervently to see Kazuki's pet was now dead. Dead. The mother glanced up, peering through the makeshift station at Kazuki. She snarled, "You caused this! I know you did! Look at my son! Look at him!" Her shrieks were getting annoying.

But true.

Kazuki closed his eyes slowly and nodded. Then, he glanced away and started to walk. So many dead, but another face to the mountain. Another digit to a statistic. Another tragedy to this galaxy.

But as Kazuki got further away, the silence took over. That was it, he thought. Silence... This galaxy cared not for the dead. Nor the living.

Kazuki slowly clenched his hand, feeling it tremble. The dead are his to revel in, to regret and respite. Yet as the area around Kazuki faded into the blackness of his mind: he found himself unable to face the music.

No... Kazuki felt the faces around him, the endless corpses and bodies he wrought. The lives he ended. The lives he helped end. The lives died for him. And for nothing at all.

They all stared, blankly, even those without faces and those without eyes.

All stared at him.

Kazuki turned away and stepped forward. The dead hummed and sang for him, yet Kazuki turned away. The projections of his insanity and mind bled away into the ground as Kazuki found himself a distance away from the station.

The smell was gone. But the memories? The sights? No. Never.

He had to clear his mind. Kazuki decided that he should let himself get something to eat. Food... "Maybe it'll kill the thoughts," Kazuki hopelessly murmured to himself.

The station was barebone and empty. He decided to eat the one thing that he still liked, ramen. A timeless classic from the east side of the Eurasian tectonic plate, back when Terra wasn't fifty-five thousand separate pieces of rock.

Still, its legacy lives on through all sleep-deprived college dropouts. Him included. He frowned, sitting down at the ramen bar. He sat alone, with only the faint chatter of the interweb radio to keep him awake.

The chef approached Kazuki from behind the counter, numerous drones seemingly packing things up for the day. He pushed the curtains aside, glancing at Kazuki. "Hey uh... kid, I'm sorry but we're closed. Didn't you hear what happened?"

At least he was trying to be nice. Kazuki pointed at the wounds, patches and bandages across him. The chef slowly nodded, scratching at his black hair. He was a fellow Lautrasian, so far from home. Kazuki raised his head, looking at the man directly.

"Uh... Oh... shit... uh..." He did a light bow. "I'm sorry, I wasn't—"

"—Today has not been my day," Kazuki remarked. "I command you to ignore my background. As of now, I am a humble patron. One bowl of what you recommend, please." He owed him some manners, at least. He looked old enough to have survived the Razing of Trasia.

The chef nodded and turned back into the kitchen. "Coming right up, Prince… sir… You know, Prince Kazuki... my mother always told me about how food not only feeds you but heals your body and soul... whatever that means." He let off a small chuckle.

"No formalities. I do not wish to repeat myself. Just call me Kazuki. I'm no prince whilst I'm here." Kazuki nodded. "And she's not wrong. Tell her that she is wise, on my behalf."

"Oh! No can do!" The chef started to cook in the kitchen behind the bar. After everything that happened, Kazuki didn't find the energy to keep his usual façade up. This was simply a working man, someone who toils and sweats. Unlike the scum that permeates these halls, Kazuki found this humble person respectable.

Worthy of respect. Though Kazuki didn't know if it was his personal code or Trasian tradition that knitted the respect.

"My mother's dead, died during the war."

"My apologies," Kazuki replied. He wiped some sweat from his forehead.

"Nah, it's fine, trust me! Your grandfather helped me rebuild my ramen shop back in the day, and helped rebuild the whole city I lived in! This one's on the house!" he shouted, smiling back at Kazuki. "It's not much, but he provided and I'll provide back."

"Thank you," he said. It was all he could say. After a minute or so, Kazuki heard the movement of cloth behind him. He turned his head, seeing the holographic cloth move out of the way.

It was Eliza... Cyrus must have told her.

Kazuki looked forward again, avoiding her glare. "You here to eat?" Kazuki asked.

She nodded her head, sitting beside him. Her movements were stiff. He didn't blame her. After everything that has happened, he'd be worried too... "I'll have what he's having, sir," Eliza said whilst looking into the kitchen.

The chef gave her a thumbs up. "Another one coming up, then, maybe I'll have to keep things open for a whole hour after this!"

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