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On Hire	By : Czmadzia Category: +. to F > Ai no Kusabi Views: 4860 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Ai no Kusabi, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Language corrections were made by Shayne and Phaedra7veils.
* * *
Chapter 7
Huge floor-to-ceiling windows in Raoul's study offered a good view of the regular lights of nighttime Tanagura. Beyond it was the garish, chaotic glow of Midas that adhered to it like a parasite.

Katze admired the picture, his feet just a few inches away from the illusory gulf. Daylight timidly crept into the sky, but there was still quite a lot of time before it would gain advantage over the darkness. Yet, the lights in the room were off. Only a small desk lamp was lit. It illuminated the side of the monitor and Raoul's morose face.

"I won't let him get away with that," the Blondie spoke after long minutes of silence.

"We both know that much. So what are you planning to do?"

A few more silent moments. Then:

"First I need to see it with my own eyes. I have to be absolutely certain that we are not mistaken. Then... I will destroy it with my own hands."

Katze turned to glance at him. The Blondie sat in his characteristic closed-off pose, his arms wrapped around his chest. Golden waves of hair fell over the back of the chair. With sharp shades of light and shadow playing on his face and figure he looked deadly serious... and menacing.

"You want to raid the place?" Katze asked.

"I don't see any other option."

The official information about Shisei Kano planning to set up his own research lab wasn't quite true. Kano already had his lab. Kept as top secret, it was situated in Her Bay – the most prominent district of Midas. Katze had managed to get the labs' exact bearings. It was located in a huge trade tower complex. Rented under a false name for false purposes, it occupied a few underground levels. The guise worked perfectly – it was extremely hard to get through all the smokescreens Kano had created. If one wasn't looking, one would never find it.

"I'm going to need your skills again, Katze," Raoul spoke in an even, stern voice. "I need you to hack the complex's intranet, find out as much as you can about its security systems, alarms, cameras, the management of electronic devices – like doors for example, possibly get plans for underground. Everything you can find. Will you do it for me?"

Katze was staring into the night over the glass.

"Of course, that's what I'm here for."

"Good. Do it as fast as you can. Will a day be enough?"

"Should be."

"Great," there was a quiet threat in Raoul's voice.

"Should I start working already?"

He heard a soft rustle as the Blondie turned his armchair to watch him. He lifted his head to meet the biologist's gaze.

"It's four in the morning, Katze," Raoul's voice was more like what Katze was used to – warmer, more gentle. "No more work today. We're going to bed."

He sucked in his breath, his muscles tensing on reflex. And cursed himself for being so readable. Not that the reaction was strong, but after a few hours of maximum output, he was just too worn out to hide it. Raoul smiled without humor, studying him for a moment.

"No sex tonight, Katze. I'm too tired. And I think you are even more so. Come on, let's get some rest." He got up and gestured the dealer towards the door.

* * *

The comm unit was buzzing impatiently. Iason peered at the number, feeling the pulse in his wrist beat fast. Too fast. He didn't like this reaction. He half closed his eyes and relaxed his face, determined not to show any of his emotions. Then forced his finger to evenly press the button.

"Katze."

The redhead nodded at him from the screen and spoke without preamble:

"You know the situation already, don't you?"

"Yes."

Raoul had passed him the news earlier that day. Katze's discoveries were hardly comforting. For Raoul mostly, but for him as well – he was, after all, the second biggest investor in this project. Shisei Kano with his sharp mind and big ambitions could be a very dangerous opponent. Even worse, he was Raoul's business partner. Having a partner messing with him was a serious blow for the biologist's position as a leader.

They had both agreed – Kano had to be taken care of. Fast.

"Then you also know Raoul's plans," Katze took up.

"Yes."

On-screen, the redhead lit a cigarette. His eyes left Iason for a moment – gold irises reflecting the gold flame licking the smoke – then came back up. Their narrow lines revealed nothing in particular, but only now did it occur to Iason that they looked as if they were permanently hiding some irony or... passion.

Did you have sex with him last night? How was it? Did you face him, or did he take you from behind? How many times?

Iason shuddered as the thought appeared unexpectedly in his mind. Damn, what was that?

"We want to do it tomorrow night," the mongrel went on. "We'll need a few men for that. I'd like to take Riki."

Iason stirred. "Why Riki?"

"He's one of the best. And currently in the city."

Currently in the city. Right. Always in the city. The Blondie couldn't help a little smirk.

"I see."

Katze inhaled the smoke, his features relaxing. He left the cigarette between his lips and started explaining Iason the details of the plan. The Blondie tried to listen, but soon his thoughts took their own direction.

How does he do you, Katze? In what position? What are you thinking about when he's inside you? Do you return his caresses... does he caress you? How much can you feel, Katze?

"Iason," Katze's sharp voice broke into his consciousness.

Iason blinked and shook his head. Jupiter, what was happening to him? These thoughts weren't his. Couldn't be. They surfaced in his head without his permission. He wasn't controlling them.

"I apologize, I was... thinking."

"So I see."

"So, you were saying—"

"I asked if I can take him."

Iason frowned. "Is it dangerous?"

"Not really. Maybe a little more dangerous than usual, that's why I ask you. But, like I said, we are planning to enter the place in the night. There will be just a couple of security guards. We should handle them without problem. Then everything's up to Raoul. We are just guarding him."

"All right then, you have my permission."

"Thanks," Katze's lips curled slightly. He hesitated for a moment, but then continued. "By the way, Iason, you've heard that Riki was the key factor in this case." Iason nodded. "I'm glad that he didn't lose his reflexes. You have a smart pet, Iason."

The Blondie allowed a little smile on his face. "I know."

How do you feel when he does it to you? These words threatened to escape his lips and he bit them back at the last moment.

"Katze?"

"Yes?"

"How... are things going? With you and Raoul, I mean."

The dealer's mouth opened, but for a long while he said nothing. The cigarette dangled from his lower lip.

"Um... good, I think. Everything is quite all right."

It was hardly enough. 'All right'. What did he mean by 'all right'? The answer was as good as none. Iason needed... had to hear more. And he felt that Katze's words weren't quite true. But he just couldn't ask. Not now, not like that.

"I'm glad," he said dryly.

He disconnected quickly and fell back in his chair. His hand reached for the drawer where he kept his smokes, but stopped when he suddenly remembered Riki's words. You hardly ever smoke. Usually when something's on your mind. Katze was on his mind. Dammit.

He closed his eyes and let his mind work through the problem. Two months – that was the deal. And most of that time had already passed. Katze's black market affairs were going smoothly. Whatever happened between those two, it didn't affect the dealer's excellent performance. Did it mean that Iason would have to give him away? There were only two weeks left, it was close and... he didn't want to.

These last few days made him realize how fond he'd grown of having the redhead around. He'd always thought that it was only about work, but now he knew it wasn't. For the last couple of years he and Katze had called each other at least twice a week. And met personally at least twice a month. During the last month they'd only talked twice and – save for Kano's party – hadn't met at all. And the business thrived. So... why had they spent time together before? Why had they talked to each other so often?

Iason didn't need to dig deep into his Blondie's soul to know the answer. It was the silent adoration he saw in the dealer's eyes that made it so convenient, so... gratifying. Katze belonged to him, and he liked that.

Only he hadn't realized it back then, when he'd made his deal with Raoul.

What had made him realize it now?

Raoul's words ringed in his head. To see him, lying like that beneath you... He gets nothing out of this, but he is there, he holds you with his arms, he opens his legs for you. It makes me feel... important. I love the thought of him surrendering to me like that.

The thought was fascinating. What would it be like to feel that the person who shared your bed did so out of pure devotion for you? Iason knew he would receive such devotion from Katze. The redhead would endure anything for him, he would be happy about it. And it was the very thing he desired most – and never received – from Riki.

Face it, Iason Mink, he told himself, you're experiencing an unhealthy attraction to your former furniture.

* * *

Next night, Her Bay, 22:30

Dream City Tower had closed its doors to customers half an hour ago. Cars of staff members and employees of lease-holding companies were leaving the tower parking lots one by one. Yet, none of the night-shift guards were especially surprised when a small delivery van requested passage through the main gate in the opposite direction.

The red-haired driver showed his permit to the tower officer and briefly explained the purpose of the visit. The only thing that surprised the guard a bit was the fact that the man in the passenger seat looked like a Blondie. But he didn't try to ask questions. After all, who dared to question Blondies' actions? If one of them wanted to work as a supplier, then so be it.

The car passed through and slowly glided down the ramp, descending towards the lower level of the lot. None of the guards gave it any more thought.

"You can get to the labs from two opposite sides. Each entrance is guarded by one man. Each guard is monitoring everything that goes on in the labs, and in his companion's post. It's a kind of protection – if you want to attack the place, you have to do it from both sides at the same moment, otherwise one of the guards will raise the alarm in the labs and send the message straight to Kano's private terminal."

The van stopped in the furthest and darkest corner of the lot. If cars could create appearances, this one definitely tried to look inconspicuous and innocent. For a moment nothing happened, then the doors opened and six men scattered from the vehicle. They were dressed in casual, dark clothes, obviously meant for comfort rather than looks. Well, except for one of them – a tall, broad-shouldered blondie who was dressed like... a Blondie.

One of the men, a redhead almost as tall as the blonde, gestured at the rest and they gathered around him.

"I'll ask you one last time. Is everything clear?"

They answered him with nods and confirming murmurs.

"No questions?"

They shook their heads and murmured again.

"Then split up."

The men were apparently well prepared, since they divided into two groups without a word. Two of them stood behind the redhead, the other two behind the blonde. The leaders looked at each other.

"You sure you can handle it, Raoul?"

The blonde looked slightly offended. "Give me a break, Katze, you've been explaining that to me for half a day."

"In any case you've got Riki and Kyle to help."

The blondie's eyelids drifted to half-mast. "I'm sure I'll do just fine without their assistance."

The redhead smiled. "Very well, then. See you in a few."

That said, two groups of men moved in the opposite directions and disappeared through the doors at the opposite ends of the parking lot.

"You have to take the elevator to get down to the guard's lobby. Of course you won't be admitted if you don't have the authorization code. In that case you have to call and explain to the guard the purpose of your visit. We don't want to do it, therefore we have to disable the elevator ports. After we cope with that, we comm each other."

Katze winced, staring at the numbers on the display and trying to focus. Breaking the code in such a device was only distantly related to hacking and he didn't trust his skills in this area. He wondered how Raoul was doing – as a beginner, the Blondie would have a tough nut to crack. Well, Katze shrugged a mental shoulder, elites were supposed to be intelligent.

The voices behind him seemed not to give a damn about his psychological comfort.

"What a freakin' pansy. Did ya see his clothes?" Han muttered. "I mean, man, I can understand elites dressing like clowns for everyday shit, but wearin' something like that to raid his pal's joint? What, is he expecting a welcoming committee?"

"He might be dressed like a total loser, but he's cute," Suki snickered. "Hell, don't you feel like jerking off just looking at that pretty face?"

Han didn't seem moved. "Sure he's cute. They all are. But I don't get off on that. I can't imagine a guy like that bein' a bottom. And the tops – they don't turn me on."

"He ain't a top or bottom, you moron," Suki jeered. "Don't you know anything? Elites don't screw around. At all."

"Bullshit. They're alive, aren't they? Who the hell goes without?"

"Shut up already!" Katze snapped at them, casting a sharp glance over his shoulder. "You're distracting me."

"Relax, boss!" Han raised his hands defensively. "We're just killin' time here."

"Try killing it by counting the spots on your noses. Silently."

With that he turned to the panel again. For a while there indeed was silence behind him and he used it frantically to make some progress in his work. He didn't have much time though.

"I don't believe those rumors," Han murmured again. "Imagine a guy in his prime who's not interested in fucking. He'd go insane! Besides, just look at Riki's Blondie. I heard that the guy screws him every night. Every fuckin' night, man! Sometimes more than once. I tell ya, they've got libidos like you wouldn't believe."

Katze punched the key angrily and was about to turn and snap at them again when the port beeped in acceptance. He blinked. He'd made it. And it was that very moment when his wrist comm beeped as well.

"Katze?" he heard Raoul's voice. "I'm done. How about you?"

The dealer raised his brows in surprise. Well, the guy was good.

"Great timing, Blondie," he grinned at the comm. "I was just about to call you. Alright then. We start the lifts fifteen seconds after the moment we disconnect, agreed?"

"Agreed. Begin counting."

And the Blondie disconnected.

"The thing is to get there at exactly the same moment and take the guards down as soon as the doors open. There's a slight chance that they'll be alarmed seeing the elevator going down. Well, that's the risk. There's another port to disable from either side – the main doors to the labs."

Suki lowered his stunner. Through the open doors of the lift they could see a big, brightly lit lobby. The wall opposite them was occupied half by the guard's counter, half by the double transparent doors – their main target. Behind the counter, slumped numbly in his chair, sat the unconscious guard.

Katze stepped out of the elevator, followed by his men.

"Check the connections," he ordered, gesturing in the counter's general direction. He moved to the door's port, skirting the entrance from afar not to be spotted in the doorway. He crouched before the panel and assessed it with his gaze.

"It's all right boss," Han informed him after a moment. "The guy never had time to lift a finger."

Katze nodded and activated his comm. "Raoul? How are you doing?"

The Blondie didn't need more to understand what he had in mind. "It's alright. The guard is out. No alarms raised."

Katze whistled quietly. "Well, that was easy."

"Raoul you'll take Riki and Kyle, I'll take Han and Suki."

"You must be joking! You expect me to put up with that mongrel? Why do you want the two of us to split up in the first place?"

"Because, Raoul, I think you're the only one of them who can learn in one day how to disable such port."

"What!? Don't you have other men who can cope with that?"

"A few. All outside Tanagura at the moment."

"At least don't group me with that little scum!"

"That wouldn't be reasonable. Riki and Kyle have some basic skills when it comes to electronic devices. In any case they can try to help you. Han and Suki are completely dumb in that area."

"Ughh."

"Done!" Raoul exclaimed, triumph in his voice.

"At last," Riki grumbled and stopped pacing. "If you'd listened to me and pressed that stupid button, you'd have been done five minutes ago. You made Katze wait for us."

Raoul turned to him angrily. "If you're so brilliant, mongrel, you should be the one to tinker with this port instead of distracting people with your snide remarks. I'd love to see how well you would do."

Riki folded his arms on his chest and looked down at the squatting Blondie.

"Well, I'm sure I'd do just..."

"Guys, please, knock it off," Kyle cut in. "You've been going at it since we left the boss. If you really want to argue, wait until we're outta here. We've got work to do."

Riki twisted his lips. Raoul rolled his eyes.

"Work. Right."

"Finally, there's the last guard in our way. He sits inside the labs. Luckily, he can't see what happens outside, so we're safe in the lobbies. The main corridor is full of cameras however. That means one of us will have to do some gymnastics to get to the guard's room. Riki should do, he's the smallest."

Riki looked skeptically at the suckers attached to his hands and feet.

"Great," he grumbled. "After all the shit I went through, I end up playing spider-man. I wonder if the elites would get hot having a pet crawling over their walls."

"From what I heard, you were bored in Eos," Raoul pointed out. "You should be glad of such a pastime."

"Yeah, glad like hell. If I fall and break my neck, you'll be the one paying."

The Blondie threw his head back, giving a low, sensual laugh. "Oh, I'll be glad to pay if it means I won't have to listen to your foul tongue anymore."

Kyle was crouched by the wall with a small monitor on his lap and his gaze focused on the screen. The device was connected to a miniature spy camera poked in front of the closed door and scanning the corridor. He raised his head and looked at the mongrel.

"It's your moment, Riki. You've got about twenty seconds before the camera turns to the door again. Get in fast."

Raoul put his hand on the scanner, opening the door. "Just remember to stick close to the ceiling, otherwise you'll be noticed."

"Hey, you don't have to tell me, I remember that," Riki bridled and went in. The door closed behind him.

"He'll put the guard down by letting the soporific in through the ventilation shaft. That's when we go in."

They were squatting beside the closed door with their backs against the wall. It was five minutes since they'd received a message from Raoul that Riki was in. Soon the mongrel should reach his destination and get his job done. Han and Suki on the other side of the entrance were continuing their dissertation on whether elites had sex or not. Katze tried not to listen.

His comm unit buzzed almost unexpectedly, stirring him to life. Riki's voice sounded joyful.

"Katze, Raoul, the guard is out. Piece of cake."

"First, we need to get into the guard's cubbyhole, but it should be easy, maybe the door won't even be locked. From his post it's possible unlock all the other doors inside the labs with one switch. No codes needed."

They met in the middle of the way. From the plans they found in the guard's room they learnt where the main lab was situated. They found it without a problem. The door opened when Raoul put his hand on the scanner. The lights went on the moment they entered. And that was the very moment they knew something had gone very wrong, but were too stunned to do anything about it. The door swooshed closed behind them, muffling the sound of unlocking guns.

Shisei Kano swiveled his chair away from his terminal and smiled at them.

"Raoul, here you are, my friend. It was a great fun watching you."

* * *

There were six people holding guns on them, Raoul counted as he quickly looked around. Real laser guns, not stunners. Kano sat at the huge terminal that occupied half of the wall. Lucius stood beside him, one hand resting on the back of Kano's chair, the other armed as well. All in all, eight people against six, laser guns against stunners.

"You mentioned something about a welcoming committee," the Blondie's ear caught a quiet, spiteful murmur from behind. And then another voice he'd never heard before:

"Hello, little pet. So nice to see you again."

Something in the hissing sound of these words made him look back again. He wasn't surprised seeing a tall, green-haired man. A dark, sleeveless tank top exposed the guy's muscular shoulders and an impressive snake tattoo decorating them and coiling around his right arm.

Viper was grinning wickedly at Riki, but the mongrel only cast one glance in his direction and ignored him. Raoul turned back to the terminal. Only now – as if deliberately giving them time to asses the situation – did Kano speak.

"I'd be very pleased if you put these stunners of yours down. They make me feel uncomfortable."

Reluctantly, they did as they were told. No one tried to play hero against the obvious odds.

"Just kick them away a bit," the Platina went on with his polite instructions. "We don't want them to tempt you. Very good, thank you," he sent them a dry smile and finally focused his gaze on Raoul. "Now, Raoul, I don't think you wanted to talk to me, given that you paid a visit to my labs after hours, but since we're both here, maybe you'd like to ask me a few questions. I'll gladly give you the answers."

Only now did Raoul's mind regain its clarity. And with that came the realization – damn, this wasn't good. They were in a great deal of trouble. But there was also curiosity. And asking questions, when you were so kindly offered the answers, was a good way to play for time.

"How did you know?" he asked then, already guessing what he would hear.

Kano chuckled contentedly. "Oh, Raoul, I knew you wouldn't be able to resist a little talk. Well," he got more serious, "don't forget, my friend, that you discovered the truth at my party. Your sudden departure stirred my curiosity. I asked Parthea's security service for the records from the reception. They handed them to me without a problem. Thus I overheard your conversation. I put two and two together and figured who your red-haired assistant really is. Not only one of the most prominent black market brokers, but also a tremendously talented hacker – the ex-furniture who tried his hand with our dear [Lambda] 3000 herself. And almost succeeded. That's when I knew you'd find us. And it was an easy guess what you would do. So I decided to let you in and talk with you. You think you'd have gotten in so easily if I haven't made it that way for you?"

"So what now?"

"We'll talk," Kano shrugged lightly. "Hopefully, I'll manage to convince you that there is no point in excesses like calling the police or trying to mess with my plans. Once we've made our positions clear to each other, I'll let you go. If you refuse to accept my arguments however... well, I really wouldn't like to raise my hand against such an important man as Raoul Am."

Raoul studied the Platina with his gaze. "Your arguments, such as?"

"Very simple. Your black market affairs."

The Blondie slitted his eyes, anger slowly building in him. Kano smiled.

"It wasn't difficult to find out about them, you know. Much easier than to get hold of the Special Breed data."

"How did you find out about the Special Breed in the first place? Even as an associate you shouldn't know about it. Where did this whole idea come from?"

Kano sent Raoul an affectionate gaze. "So, you want to hear the whole story."

"I definitely want the whole story."

The Platina looked critically around. "Oh, but the arrangements are awful. And I am so inhospitable. Not even asking my guest to sit down."

Listening to him, Raoul decided that Kano's mocking tone definitely bugged him. But he could bear it. At the moment he first of all needed to feed his curiosity.

"Well, come down here, Raoul," Kano gestured at him and got up from his chair.

The Blondie accepted the invitation silently. He came up to the two elites and took the seat Kano offered. Lucius stepped back, aiming at him. Shisei sent his lover an exaggerated look of disapproval.

"Why, Lucius, you are so hostile towards our guest."

The Sapphire apparently lacked Kano's dramatic touch as he simply kept silent. Shisei turned to Raoul, leaning against the panel.

"Why did I do it? Ambition, I suppose. Personally I don't have anything against you, Raoul. I respect you as a great biologist. But it pisses me off that you, Blondies, are given all those privileges and Jupiter's favors only because of the color of your hair. I mean, what is that? Some kind of racism? Your parameters are no better than those of other elites – neither body nor mind. So, I ask you, why? I've lived my entire life accepting this status quo. It was only Lucius who made me realize that it doesn't have to be that way. That I don't have to succumb to that."

From his place, out of the corner of his eye, Raoul had a good view of Katze and the others, standing nearby the door. And suddenly he caught a faint stir from that direction.

"He gave me the idea to start my own research," Kano continued. "My knowledge of biology is sufficient to handle that. But I needed something what would make me visible. An explosive introduction, if you know what I mean. And then – quite by accident – I came across your experiment. How – does it matter? Believe me that as your associate I had plenty of opportunities to find out that such a project existed. Papers you tend to leave on your desk, shreds of conversations on the corridors... I figured it was exactly what I needed. But how to get it? That's where Lucius was invaluable. I believe I mentioned to you that he's a great computer expert. I wonder who, he or your red-haired mongrel, would prove better in direct competition. It was Lucius who worked out your unbreakable system, Raoul. The man, Viper, was just an executor. He's one of Lucius' old acquaintances from Daars, apparently quite a good hacker himself, but with that matter he only followed my friend's instructions."

Raoul glanced at Lucius. The Sapphire gave him a cold smile.

"So you see, we took every precaution not to be discovered. We assumed that it would take your people more time to detect the break-in and much more time to figure out which data was stolen. At best, we hoped that they won't figure it out at all. You were not supposed to find that dirty net caf�. And, if by any means you did, it was practically impossible for you to associate our green-haired man with anyone you know. We were extremely unlucky that your friend turned out to be the same man Viper dealt with back then. But who could predict something like that?"

Not turning his gaze from Kano, Raoul continued to observe his men. Riki blinked at Han, who after a moment passed the sign to Kyle.

"And now we've come to the last part of our plan," the Platina went on. "The most ironic one, I would say. In addition to the big entry we were preparing, we were planning to use you. Thus our new alliance." Kano looked at the Blondie seriously. "You discovered our plot too early, Raoul. We hoped you'd vouch for the new line of my company here and there and win some important associates for us before we'd introduce the Special Breed to the market. Then you'd naturally withdraw your support but I don't think you would have told anyone the real reason for it."

The words didn't move Raoul as much as they should. Actually, they didn't even surprise him after all he had already heard.

"What?" he drawled. "Did you plan to use your black market arguments again, Shisei?"

"Exactly. This, plus I was counting on your Blondie pride. I don't think you'd be eager to admit publicly that you were cheated and defeated by an inferior."

Indeed, wasn't that an accurate guess?

Raoul's eye kept catching very interesting glimpses of the proceedings over by the door. Katze turned his head minimally and nodded at Suki. Suki nodded back. The Blondie kept his face blank. Lucius, he thought. What were they going to do about Lucius? The guy was too far...

"You do realize that our cooperation is canceled," he said to Kano. "You may cross the Center off the list of your clients."

Shisei's lips twisted in mock regret. "But of course. That's a pity but I knew that would be the price. Well, I believe we'll get by somehow without it. Our new revolutionary scientific project should more than compensate for it. By the way, as you probably guessed, we've already started the experiment. It's going perfectly."

The Platina turned to the panel and tapped on the keyboard. A file opened on the screen. The file Raoul knew so well. The Blondie swallowed with a strange feeling.

"I must say this project is a masterpiece of yours," Kano murmured with appreciation, eyes glued to the screen. "When I first saw it, I was speechless. I spent long hours staring at it, admiring it... trying to understand all the nuances. It's brilliant."

Raoul frowned, studying the data. "You changed the imprint."

"Of course I did! Please, Raoul, do you think I'm an idiot? And let me tell you something. My trademark is already listed in the Federation's official registers. You can't turn it back anymore."

And that was the very moment they struck. Raoul didn't see exactly what was happening. Nor was he watching. He had other things to do. Digging his heels into the ground, he pushed strongly. His chair shot backwards and before Kano had time to even look away from the screen, it hit Lucius, throwing him off balance. Raoul leapt up and grabbed the Sapphire by his waist. The sound of laser fire and a few screams came from the other end of the room. He wrenched the gun from Raimi's hand, twisted him over his hip and threw him on the ground, backing away quickly. When he aimed the gun at Lucius, the room was silent again.

Kano stared wide-eyed at him. Then over him.

"Good job, Blondie," someone said. "That was the one thing we didn't know how to handle."

Raoul felt his lips curve. A pansyish Blondie, huh? Who would have thought? Only now did he allow himself a quick glance over his shoulder. Four of Kano's thugs lay unconscious on the ground, two others were held at gunpoint by Katze's men.

How about now, Shisei? – a sneering thought surfaced in his mind.

He was just opening his mouth to throw some witty remark at the Platina, when the sound of a shot broke the silence and in the same instant something hit him hard in the back. The world whirled around him and the floor rose up to meet his face. He managed to turn, avoiding the head-on collision, and thumped on his side. Something heavy fell on top of him, pinning him to the ground. For an instant he lay stunned. Raised voices reached him from afar. Then he became aware of two things. First – he was still clenching the gun in his hand, he hadn't dropped it. And the second – there was no pain, he wasn't hurt.

The thing on him moved aside and he turned around to get a look at it. The soles of black leather boots stared him in the face. Then, as he glanced down, along his body, the rest of the small, black-clad figure came into view. What was it? Some flying kick? Another trick from Ceres' repertoire? He snorted with indignation while Riki lifted himself from the ground.

"Always watch your back, Blondie," the mongrel grumbled. "Not even you are laser-proof."

He got to his feet and looked around on impulse. Lucius still stood as he had, guarded by Katze's gun. He found his would-be assassin in the corner beside the door. The snake on the man's shoulders seemed animated as he wriggled angrily in Kyle's strong grip.

"Had another one we didn't notice," Kyle gestured with a gun he'd apparently wrenched from Viper's hand. He pushed the green-haired hacker to the ground and pointed the gun at him. "Try it, scum, and you're dead."

Raoul could swear that he heard Viper's furious growl.

He smoothed his clothes, trying to regain his dignity. Well, well, it seemed that Riki had saved his life. How unexpected.

"Your mongrels are good, aren't they?"

He looked at Kano. The Platina was pouting with contempt.

"Yes, they are," he admitted. "Now." He paced slowly towards the other elite. His spirit, tattered a bit by Riki's boots, was returning in the face of the impending triumph. "Things look completely different when the odds are on our side, don't they? More like I wanted them to look in the first place." He stopped before Kano and looked him in the eyes. "And your black market arguments don't seem so convincing anymore. I mean – if I destroy the experiment now, will you start a war with me just for vengeance? I don't think so." He was aware that his smile was very unpleasant and he liked that. "So, I can't see anything that would stop me from doing it. Take me to the breed, Kano."

A long moment passed in silence and complete stillness. Kano stared at Raoul defiantly. The Blondie sighed.

"Look at Katze. Look where his gun is directed. You think he'll hesitate if I tell him to shoot?"

Kano's eyes narrowed, fury now visible inside them. The blue irises shifted slightly and looked over Raoul. For a moment they stayed like that, calculating. Then Shisei's jaw clenched.

"All right. Let's go," he said. His voice was exactly like his eyes – cool outside, furious underneath. He didn't meet Raoul's gaze when he pushed himself away from the terminal. He turned quickly and headed for the door. The Blondie followed him. He heard Katze giving quick orders:

"Lucius, you go first. Just please, don't try anything. Riki, you're coming with us, you'll help me with him in any case. Rest of you guys stay here and keep an eye on them."

* * *

They descended one level on the elevator, then walked down an identical corridor until they stopped before a big, metal door. Kano placed his hand on the scanner and the door hummed open. They entered, the lamps switching on automatically... and stopped. They stared incredulously at the picture before them.

"Holy shit!" Riki exclaimed.

"Jupiter," Raoul moaned.

"The Accelerator," Katze growled.

The sight that met their eyes on the opposite side of the room was not a row of incubators with six week old human embryos. It was several growth chambers, each one holding a fully developed child's body around the four-year mark.

Kano cast a slightly surprised glance at Raoul.

"You didn't expect that, did you?" Slowly his lips twisted into a smile. "They are beautiful, aren't they? The experiment worked, Raoul, I can say it already. They are healthy and exactly the way you wanted them."

The last piece of the puzzle jumped into place in Raoul's mind. It wasn't just a coincidence that Viper had bought the growth speeder thus marking his way to be tracked. Oh no, it would be too beautiful. He had ordered exactly the stuff his boss needed.

The Blondie peered at the pets, fascinated.

"Damn, Kano, how much of that thing did you use on them? It was a great risk."

"A lot. And yes, it was a risk. But you are forgetting one thing, Raoul. It was the only way I could be ahead of you. I had nothing to lose."

"Indeed," Raoul murmured, one more thing becoming clear in his head.

Of course. Why would a person steal – and begin – someone else's experiment if they wouldn't have a chance to finish it on time? The question now seemed obvious. And the answer had been staring them clear in the face since the moment they found out about Viper. They could have guessed. But then, would it have changed anything if they had?

He slowly walked to the apparatus. There were twenty chambers in the lab – he knew it without counting. They all stood on the platform occupying two walls of the room, a huge control panel before it. Thousands of buttons, control lights, numerous gauges and monitors indicated just how complicated and strictly controlled the procedure was.

"They are almost ready," Kano said. "In a month I would have shown them to the world. They were my greatest hope."

"Your greatest hope, Shisei? Someone else's achievement? Would that have satisfied your ambitions?"

The remark must have hit a nerve, as there was no answer.

Raoul stopped in front of the first tube in the row. He stared at the creature inside. Jupiter, it was beautiful. They all were. Not even the way he'd imagined. Better. Their price would reach an astronomical level within a week. Kano would become a billionaire. Would have.

He moved along the line, studying each pet closely.

Their fair skin was slightly opalescent – flashed pink, blue or violet when looked at from the right angle. The bone structure of their faces and bodies was flawless. Perfect – it was the best word to describe them. But it wasn't their beauty, nor their skin that made them so special. Most pets nowadays were flawlessly beautiful and experiments with skin color were nothing new either. It was the original non-human genes that had been added to the genome of each of them. After many years of experiments Raoul had finally discovered how to combine the genes of different species in a way to avoid side effects and deformations, how to predict – and control – the interactions to be able create a completely new fenotype. The Special Breed was the final test of his hypotheses. Now he saw they were correct.

The pets were all different within the breed – each two of them having the same specific feature but varying by sex. There was a mermaid boy-and-girl set with fish tails instead of legs, alongside both gills and lungs for breathing water and air. There was an 'angel' couple with wings as an extra pair of limbs and bones hollow like those of birds. There was also a cat-like pair with elven-pointed ears, vertical irises in their slanted eyes and senses several times stronger than a human's.

Half of those unique features could not be seen, but it didn't matter. Raoul knew them all, could recite them by heart.

He halted in the middle of the row in front of the mermaid girl and had to stifle a sudden urge to raise his hand and touch the transparent surface of the chamber. It was his work, his own work, not Kano's.

"So you've won," Shisei's voice reached him from behind, strangely bitter. "Now you'll kill them and it will be your right. But I tell you what, Raoul. It was worth trying. I sure had a great time watching them grow and playing this game with you."

Raoul gritted his teeth, not turning to the Platina. Slowly, he passed the corner and moved towards this very particular spot on the panel. He knew the apparatus to the smallest button. It was the same equipment as in his own labs, Kano wasn't his supplier for nothing. Considering how incredibly complicated the procedure of pets' maintenance was, cutting off their life support was ridiculously easy. Just enter your authorization code and press a single switch, that's all. Raoul put his hand on the keypad. In a way, he thought, it was good they'd met their traitor here. It'd spare them the trouble of tinkering with yet another device.

"Hey, you don't have to do that!" Riki exclaimed in his typical aggressively accented Ceres voice. "We can take them with us. Call for transport, move them to your lab. You'll make your money off them anyway."

"He can't," Katze growled, his voice low and frustrated.

Right. Katze knew something about the business.

"Why?"

"Because there's a trademark of Kano's labs imprinted in their genome."

"Whaddaya mean?"

"Every bioengineering company has its unique trademark," Raoul explained, still staring at the panel. "A sequence of amino acids that can be added to the product's genome without affecting its features. It's just there, marking it. Every time a new pet is created, it's imprinted in the stem cells before fertilization. So in effect every cell of the pet's body has it, it's impossible to remove it. It doesn't really matter who sells you the product. It's the imprint that matters. It's the sign of the lab which created it."

Riki was silent. Raoul smiled bitterly.

"So, Kano? Give me that code. I don't have to threaten you with Lucius' life again, do I?"

They didn't wait long. Kano recited the row of ten digits. Did it just seem to Raoul or was the Platina's voice shaking? The Blondie entered the code as it was spoken. He moved his hand to the switch and stopped it there. He raised his eyes to the beautiful creatures in the tubes.

His creation. He was destroying his own creation, no matter that Kano was the doer.

But... even if it wasn't his creation... He studied the girl before him. Her eyes were closed, but the minimal flicker of her eyelids proved that her little brain was working. Her chest rose and fell steadily. A sudden memory flashed in Raoul's mind.

They are humans.

They are pets.

They are human pets.

In spite of all the mutations they were still human. Raoul felt as if something squeezed his throat.

Stop these stupid thoughts, Blondie, he scolded himself. You can't allow yourself to be sentimental. You can't be weak. There are millions of credits waiting for you. And for Iason. And for the others. There is your Blondie pride on the line.

There are those beautiful children at your mercy. Twenty, perfectly healthy children.

His head turned of its own volition. His gaze searched for the certain amber eyes. And found them, staring right back at him. Katze didn't move when their gazes met. His face remained perfectly still. And what else did Raoul expect? A nod? A shake of head? No, the redhead was too smart to suggest anything to him in such a situation. Only... why did this golden gaze seem so intense? Why did this blank face seem so full of expression? Why did it seem to reflect exactly what Raoul felt?

His hand dropped. Dammit.

He turned to the group, not wanting to look at the pets anymore. Katze's eyes widened. Only now was the Blondie able to see anything beyond them. He noticed Kano's perplexed face. And a smile slowly forming on his lips.

"You couldn't do it," the Platina whispered. And then louder. "You couldn't do it." There was a laugh rising in his voice. Lucius in Katze's grip smiled as well.

Unable to speak, Raoul came up to them. He stopped in front of Kano and met his gaze. The other man sneered.

"Raoul, Raoul, I should have known. You try to create the appearance of a perfect Blondie, but you were always so soft at heart. What a laugh! The great Blondie of Tanagura unable to get rid of a few lowlifes."

Raoul felt his hand clench into fist, his nails digging into his flesh.

"Don't push it, Shisei, I can still do it."

But Kano wasn't scared one bit. "On no, you won't. Since you didn't do it already, you won't do it now."

Raoul desperately searched his mind for some sharp reply to wipe this infuriating smile from the beautiful face before him. He found nothing. Instead there was one overwhelming, irresistible urge that tugged at his guts. And he indulged it. His fist sprang up and smacked into Kano's jaw, full force. The next moment the imperious aristocrat was sprawled on the ground, cupping his face and looking at the Blondie with indignation. In spite of the grave circumstances, a spiteful snicker rose in Raoul's throat. He stifled it there.

"We're going," he said to Riki and Katze. Before turning and stepping through the door, he caught sight of the redhead, pushing Lucius away from his grasp.

"Get your hands off me, dirty mongrel," the Sapphire hissed.

He walked quickly along the corridor, his rage surfacing in his angry, thumping gait. A few moments later the mongrels caught up with him, but kept a step behind. Katze activated his wrist comm.

"Guys, it's over. Get your butts out of there. We'll meet at the car."

With that he broke the connection. For a while there was only a sound of their steps in the corridor. Then:

"You did right," Riki said.

And just a moment later:

"You did right," Katze said.

Raoul closed his eyes and said nothing.

* * *

The van hovered along Orange Road, approaching the main gate of Tanagura. They'd dropped Han, Kyle and Suki in the center of Midas five minutes earlier. Since then no words had been spoken. The light inside the car was off, the heavy atmosphere overwhelming.

Riki watched the road before them, his elbows resting on either of the front seats. Occasionally he cast a furtive glance at Raoul. The biologist had pressed deep into the cushions of the passenger seat, wrapped his arms around himself and dropped his head. Looking at the miserable picture the Blondie presented, Riki felt almost like patting his shoulder.

A comm unit beeped suddenly, violating the silence. Raoul stirred. Katze wordlessly pressed the button. The screen emerged from the middle of the car's dashboard. Iason's face looked at them from the other side. For a moment the Blondie's eyes met Riki's, then slid over Raoul and stopped on Katze.

"I can see you are headed back. Is it over already?"

Riki swore silently. Fucking ring with its fucking tracker. Moments like this always reminded him of who he was. No matter how many nights he spent outside, running black market errands, his 'master' always had a lock on him.

"Yes," Katze answered laconically.

"How did it go?"

For a moment there was no reply. The redhead glanced at Raoul. The Blondie sighed.

"Bad," he said. "We lost, Iason. Because of me."

The slightest trace of alarm decorated the perfect face for just a blink, then disappeared. One platinum brow rose at the biologist.

"What do you mean?"

"They were there, waiting for us. It was a trap. But we managed to deal with them, so it wasn't a problem. The problem is that... I didn't destroy the experiment. The breed, Iason, these weren't embryos anymore. These were four year old kids. Kano used the Accelerator on them."

Iason's face froze in a frown. "I see."

Raoul shook his head fervently, allowing his misery to twist his features. "I'm sorry, Iason. I let him get away with it. I'm sorry for all the money it will cost us. I... was too weak. I just couldn't kill them."

For a while icy blue eyes studied the biologist, calm and unblinking. Finally Iason spoke.

"I understand. Try to calm down, Raoul. We'll talk tomorrow." And he disconnected before Raoul could say anything. The Blondie stared at the screen, as it disappeared back into the panel. He looked devastated.

"He understood," Riki murmured.

"Yeah, he did," Katze agreed.

But Raoul only shook his head. "No, he despises me."
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