“So then, let’s get down to the nitty gritty, shall we?” asked Archius, looking down at Kazuki as the two exchanged glances.
How the fuck has he not noticed? Archius slowly patted Kazuki’s shoulders. The holographic face scrambler was still active, he was lucky to be nearly as tall as the interrogator. Archius let off a small smirk, seen through the scrambler as the torturer’s scowl.
He lowered himself towards Kazuki, slowly going towards his binds. But the exact moment that Archius got even a bit too close, Kazuki grabbed his right leg from behind. And he started to crush down on his femur.
“HEY…” Archius trailed off. He wasn’t letting go. Archius let off a muffled groan, smacking Kazuki’s hand as he whispered, “You dumb fuck, even after the Relcani op you still can’t see past holos!”
“Archius?” asked Kazuki, still holding onto his leg. “Shit… you should have told me. I was going to break your femur.”
“Jiri!” Archius groaned, swearing in his native tongue, before kicking himself away from Kazuki the moment he released his grip. “Fucking idiot, you really thought I’d let them torture you!?”
“No. You’d do that yourself,” Kazuki sarcastically sneered.
Archius continued, “Look, we don’t have a lot of time. Let’s get you the fuck out of here.”
Kazuki slowly nodded as Archius cut the binds, ripping the face-scrambler off as the holographic projection faded, revealing Archius’ face, cold and dark. The one-use scrambler shorted, electrical wires blowing up as it fell onto the ground.
This wasn’t the first time that Archius has saved Kazuki’s life like this, and he was sure it won’t be the last. Kazuki nodded, standing up as he grabbed hold of the wall, looking down at a now dead Tifta. Kazuki coughed up more blood, staggering to the side.
“Power.”
Archius knelt down to Tifta, or whatever their name was, and grabbed their pistol from them, along with the magazines. He shoved the pistol into Kazuki’s chest whilst throwing a spare power charge at him, courtesy of Eliza’s collection.
“Liz’s been storing a fuck-load of charges, safeguards or failsafes or whatever she said, seems like they’re useful!” Chuckled Archius.
Kazuki caught it, slamming the charge into his exospine. It was good that Liz made backups, Archius noted. But Kazuki slowly knelt down, towards Tifta’s dead body. Archius paused for a moment. Kazuki shook his head for a moment, before standing up once again.
“We’re even.” said Kazuki, closing Tifta’s eyes with a shaking hand. It was the only thing he could do, Archius thought.
He was uneased. But as Kazuki coughed up more blood, he steeled himself for what was to come. Archius picked up another pistol. “Communications are tight around these parts. I can’t get a signal out from here, we’ll have to reach the comms centre, five floors above us.”
Protruding his ICAPAD, he showed a massive spire, in the shape of a retrofitted cruiser. It marked their location, and that of the communication centre. Kazuki pointed at it. “Route?”
“Elevators, we’ll try and stealth our way through most of it.” said Archius, “My man on the inside has done some work for us, it should be easy.”
“Are you sure this isn’t a trap?” asked Kazuki, sliding the pistol into a holster as he tugged at his collar. “And this is an Imperial Sago-Class… My father didn’t use them. Leon’s wrong…” He seemed almost disappointed, giving an absentminded look.
“My eye’s desperate; doesn’t want to die. One wrong word from the relay and Leon kills him. Sureeee, he needs a little motivation, but everyone’s willing to work at a price.” said Archius, smirking, as he slapped on his contractor-personality. His voice changed from an uncaring cold to a serious-cold tone. “Anyways, are you hurt?”
“No, the massive stab wound you gave me is purely aesthetic choices on the part of the make-up department,” Kazuki spat out, jabbing at Archius with a gut-wrenching punch. “But no… my wounds clot easily. Most of my height’s gone into regeneration, so there’s that.”
Archius paused, grasping his stomach for a moment. Even with the armour and padded clothes, it hurt. He paused and raised a finger. He coughed, looking towards the ground, before walking towards the door, ignoring his statement. Kazuki stacked up opposite him.
“Sorry. That was uncalled for.” commented Kazuki. Archius nodded, not really caring. “So, what’s the cover?”
“Prisoner transfer, if it works on Clandestine, it’ll work on them.”
Kazuki visibly mulled it over, then nodded. He placed his hands together as Archius slabbed on the same scrambler he used on his face onto Kaz’s arms, a thousand polygons created the shapes and illusions of binds - restricting the Contract-Breaker, at least theoretically.
“Your face?” asked Kazuki, turning to Archius as he slowly stepped behind Kazuki, preparing to leave.
“My face? I’m nobody.” said Archius, “Plus, you willing to bet they knew some teen actor years ago? These people, on this planet?”
“They’ll be expecting the interrogator, or torturer,” stated Kazuki.
Archius paused, that is true, he thought. But the interrogators were disliked at best by the rest of the gunrunners. “The interrogators were hated,” Archius said. “Would you remember the face of some irrelevant person?”
Kazuki stared at him. His eyes were a dull hue of gold.
“WAIT… NO. THINK OF IT METAPHORICALLY!” Archius spat out. “Look, simple as: they’ll probably think I was one of the other smugglers, not the interrogator. Plus, I can always lie out of it.”
Kazuki paused for a moment, then shook his head, not in the mood for many words. Archius sighed, wondering what Kazuki thought. As much as he was an enigma to him, the same could be said vice versa.
Because despite their closeness, the years the two have fought alongside each other, he rarely opens up. Probably because the two are complete opposites… He pried the door open, peering into the brig, only two guards were present - both were sleeping on stools or chairs.
Walking out, he led Kazuki down the prisoner brig. The air was harsh and frozen, with each breath steeled into frost. Even here, in the heart of the Gunrunner’s citadel, the frozen shit-hole was still felt. The empty cells had splats of blood in them, whilst some body bags littered the hall, filled with people.
Kazuki slowly spat out more blood. But Archius had to maintain the persona, pushing Kazuki forward as he began to violently cough up. Archius panicked for a moment, before Kazuki stopped, heaving for air… He’ll need to get Claire to check him up later. But for now, they’ll need to get out, and fucking fast.
“Don’t worry, it’ll heal,” whispered Kazuki.
With everything going on, if a word gets to Leon, the gig’s up. The steel framed walls of the prison block had condensation and frost all over it. And as they reached the elevator, Archius pressed down on the call button.
And as the two remained silent - the elevator doors opened… revealing Osmond.
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Osmond froze in place. Achius remained calm, simply pushing Kazuki into the elevator and stepping in himself. Kazuki was on edge, obviously, and his hands were positioned so he could draw his hidden pistol. Of course, Osmond wasn’t stupid.
“Communication level,” said Archius. Osmond frantically nodded, shifting in front of them as he pressed the desired floor. Good dog, Archius thought. “It seems you’re upholding your end.”
The elevator doors slid close as the lights flickered on and off, the cruiser’s barely online it seems. Ascending, Osmond softly spoke, “Just… keep your end of the bargain…”
Osmond’s desperation helped wonders. Anyone with strong integrity would have been harder to blackmail, but Archius guessed that working alongside Leon for so long would wear away at one’s confidence. Perhaps he should feel bad for Osmond, but any empathy left in him after the fiasco vanished. He merely placed a hand on Osmond’s shoulder patting him.
“Fret not, Contractors always keep their contracts, isn’t that right, Kazuki?” Archius fooled around, chuckling to himself. He wants to ensure that Osmond knows he can’t get help, it just so happens that Kazuki is perfect for this. The mere presence of a member of the Seven Mercs was intimidating enough, but the Contract-Breaker? This was fantastic, Archius thought.
“We uphold our end if you uphold your end,” stated Kazuki, his voice unflinchingly filled with apathy. Even after the torture, he remained calm. If Archius was in his position, he’d have to fight the urge to split heads open. But Kazuki? It seems that he’s over it.
But surprisingly, Osmond twisted his head around, gritting his teeth. A level of confidence grew inside him, or perhaps it was fear; or more likely disgust… “Contract-Breaker… who’s to say that you won’t kill me?” asked Osmond.
Kazuki’s golden stare penetrated Osmond’s eyes. Despite being taller than him, He casted a much larger shadow against Osmond. “I can kill you now if you prefer. Just stay in line and do your job, listen to orders. It’s how jobs operate in places with functioning plumbing.”
“That’s the spirit!” joked Archius.
However, Osmond didn’t take the joke too well. His eyes were filled with excess fear. He turned forward, simply staying put as one of the deadliest men in the galaxy had his hands right behind him, ready to do who-knows-what on him if he dithered in his agreement, probably just a snap to the neck, but that’s not what the rumours would have Osmond believe.
“Just do what you have to do…” said Osmond, placing his hands together, trying to hide the fact that he was shaking. “In the end… nothing changes.”
Archius smirked, placing one hand into his armoured coat, pulling out a strap of standardis steel credit. He passed it to Kazuki. He gave it one look, instantly noting down the bill size, before sliding it to Osmond. At first, Osmond shook his head as he looked down at Kazuki, but with his insistence, he took the money, his hands still shaking as he squeezed the strap.
“Since you’ve been so loyal to our deal, that’s a little bonus,” said Archius. “Keep it up and you’ll be swimming in money in no time, your head will blow up even trying to comprehend what to do with it.”
“And Narisa will continue to freeze over…” said Osmond. “You know why we do this? Why we peddle guns? It’s because people in power like you do nothing for us.”
“Interesting, this one has a mouth.” Kazuki leaned in closer to Osmond.
Osmond shook in place for a moment, before steadying himself. He gritted his teeth. “You people… you leave us here alone… we’ll be born, live and die on this frozen waste, but we give each other warmth, housing… some beer to look forward to.”
“So?” asked Kazuki.
“If you get rid of us, you’ll shatter everything! Someone else, more vicious, will take our place.”
“Then you should have considered that before attacking us.”
Osmond fell quiet, having nothing more to say. He wasn’t wrong, Archius thought. Osmond slammed his hand on another level on the panel. “Look, just… I never saw you two.”
“Just what I was about to say,” said Archius. “Now then, better get going. And I don’t think I need to say this, but—”
“—Not a word to Leon… I know, I know,” Osmond quivered.
Archius smiled, satisfied by the answer. What a good little pair of eyes. And as Osmond left the elevator, he gave the two of them one last glance, a level of fear and hate in his eyes, understandable. The elevator started to move up once again.
“Alright, what’s the plan?” asked Archius, jokingly as Kazuki’s head twisted on a swivel to him. His golden slits staring directly at Archius.
Then, Kazuki let off one word softly, but Archius could tell that he was pissed. “What?”
His reaction was priceless. And as Kazuki grabbed onto Archius’ shoulders, he started to shake him with a drop of sweat rolling down his face. But Archius simply extended a large grin. “I’m just kidding, come on. You really think I’d come here without a plan?!”
“Considering how scuffed your last mission was, my concerns are warranted.” remarked Kazuki, “Your missions always end in bloodshed.”
“So do yours. All missions end in bloodshed, but it’s no excuse to keep things dirty.” Archius waved his concerns away, “Anywhom, we go to the communication centre, see how far we can go until we start blasting and send a distress signal. Easy and simple, right?”
“Fine.”
Archius let off a small laugh as the elevator doors opened, revealing the communication relay. It was upon one of the smaller sections on the vessel. With only a few elevators connected to it, along with sealed doors. Luckily, there were only a few people present. But then again, he’ll have to create a convincing lie about why Kazuki was here to begin with. Prisoner transfer? He’ll have to deal with the details, but he was sure he could get them through; after all: this was his forte. Maybe for once, they won’t have to go guns blazing.
And with a plan in mind, he pushed Kazuki out of the elevator, exiting out onto the communication centre as the room was filled with dozens of panels, monitors and screens. It looked similar to a command bridge, but with far less amenities and modules.
“Move it, Contract-Breaker.” snapped Archius, guiding Kazuki towards the main control panel, shoving him further.
Archius made sure he had some fun with it, pushing Kazuki to the side as he approached the person operating the main console. And as Archius got close, someone got in the way. One of the three smugglers placed themselves between Archius and his prize. He did his best to hide his frustration.
The smuggler pointed a finger at Kazuki. “Hey, play it safe, I say you take his kneecaps.”
“I’d prefer not to carry him, he’s heavy!” remarked Archius, kicking Kazuki in the leg as he chuckled to himself. Kazuki staggered, but Archius dragged him back up. “Prisoner transfer. Getting this guy somewhere where the AGENCY can never find him, maybe throw him into one of the thermal pits left over from the war.”
The smuggler chuckled and said, “You think you can do it alone?”
“Cath no!” Archius shrugged, gently slapping his friend. Kazuki didn’t hide his anger at Archius… or perhaps at the smugglers? Hopefully the smugglers. “I’d only feel safe if I had him in stasis the whole way through, but ya know: heavy. I’d prefer not to pull my back.”
“Pfft, can’t tell if it’s the metal or something else.” said the smuggler, walking to the side as he got along with the joke, “Just make sure Leon authorises it. I don’t wanna end up like Brenda, or Sebita… you heard what happened to them?”
“Ha… it is what it is.” Maybe he can stir up some discontent? It won’t be game-changing, but everything counts in the long run. “I uh… feel like if I do…”
Archius then made a slicing motion with his finger, up to his neck. He shook slightly as the smuggler sighed, Sympathising with Archius as he patted him on the shoulder, taking the time to jab Kazuki in the chest. Yikes… not his day, is it? This time, Kazuki gave the smuggler a death stare - a promise of death.
The smuggler nodded, lowering his voice. “Don’t worry, he can be a bit harsh, but we all share the same vision…”
“Narisa, I know, I get it…” lied Archius.
He had no love for this frozen planet. In fact, he couldn’t care less what happened to it.
“Well, I won’t keep you waiting, maybe we can even ransom the Contract-Breaker.” said the smuggler, moving to the side as he lit up an aspiara-black, Kazuki coughed as he smelt the tobacco filling the air. Kaz’s lungs were modified EXPLICITLY so he couldn’t even inhale tobacco… Very thoughtful parents, Achius joked to himself.
Archius nodded, pushing Kazuki forward into the centre of the room. Kazuki kept silent, probably annoyed at Archius’ schemes. He knew Kazuki could wipe them all out in a matter of seconds, injuries were merely an annoyance to him at most. But where was the joy in completing a mission like that? No manipulation? No fun? To hell with that. Approaching the woman operating the main console, Archius cleared his throat.
They turned around, looking at Archius, then glancing towards Kazuki. “The fuck you brought him here for?” Their eyes shook slightly at the sight of the Contract-Breaker. If only they bothered to get to know the guy…
“Transfer. Need to get a pass so the guys down in the cargo bays don’t holler and shoot me to death, you know how it is.” said Archius, placing his hands on his waist. He gave the smuggler that walked away one glance, seeing that he was out of earshot. “And make it quick… Leon won’t be happy if it’s delayed.”
“The boss?” the smuggler raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t he say he wanted to crush the fucker’s skull in?”
“Well, things have changed, keeping him alive’s better for us,” lied Archius, it was… good for him, yes, but not for them.
In fact, Kazuki getting his hands on anything that resembled a weapon would be the worst outcome for them, no matter the pretence.
“Ugh, I hope he’s right.” The lead gunrunner groaned, turning to face the panel as it shot up a GUI. It had a lot of information Archius didn’t care about, most of the software was definitely Imperial-era though. But then they shot a look back at Archius. “Hold up, you got your name and registration?”
Archius paused for a moment. SHIT. They have ID?! Since when the fuck did they have that? “Sorry?” he asked, pretending to have forgotten, he plunged his hands into his various pockets.
“Registration! ID! Come on, we might be smugglers but we’re not cathing amateurs. Greenie, this isn’t the dark ages,” joked the smuggler. She reached around and smacked Archius on the shoulder. “Sure, that shit the Contract-Breaker caused earlier might have put a downer on you, but don’t worry. We’ll be roaring with standardis when we ship our stock across the Mercutio-way.”
“Aren’t you afraid of pirates?” asked Archius, trying to shift the conversation in a different direction.
Kazuki glanced back at him, catching on. He was out of gas, there was no way he could lie through ID and registration. Well, he could try, but better to have the element of surprise in its fullest extent. This lady looks far too experienced to be lied to, knows a lot as well, a shame really… Kazuki gave Archius one look, and he blinked in response. The time for lies was over, it seems.
The smuggler laughed. “Pirates? Doesn’t matter if it’s the Corsairs, Mischief Board or even the Purple Fleet, they all have a price. Plus, did no one tell them their manners? We sell shit to them, ain’t really kind for them to attack us.”
Kazuki took one step forward as she glanced down at him, confused for a moment. The two others in the room slowly turned to look at what was going on, standing off to the side, resting or smoking. But in the split second that Kazuki’s golden eyes glowed, he lunged forward.
And before even Archius knew what was going on: the smuggler’s chest was cracked open with a bang, blood dripping like a pool.