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The Biography of Kaia

Hisashi Kai Ivakira was born in 794 AS to the Ivakira family on Kyushu. He was the first child of Elrich Satoshi and Umeko. They lived in a house built by Elrich's Rheinland-born father on Kyushu, the same man who gave Hisashi his second name. He was taught in the traditional Kusari manner: to be the strongest, help and protect the family, to be the family's heir.

Just as Hisashi was sent to school in 800 AS, Umeko gave birth to a girl, Yukine, and the nomad war broke out. It was a heavy load on his family as his father had to avoid going to the army to sustain their family. Fortunately, the war calmed down in the same year. Three years later, the family was blessed with another daughter, who they named Yumiko.

When Hisashi reached the age of fifteen, he had to leave home and go work in the same company as his father, The Tau Asteroid Mining Operation to help the lowered financial income as their father didn't make enough money due to problems at work. This continued for six years. Hisashi worked hard in conjunction with his father.

During a winter on Kyushu, a tragedy befell their family: Elrich died. An accident had happened in the Tau systems, and his father's ship exploded. This meant that the Ivakira family had to starve and live in poverty. At least they still had their home. The incident made Hisashi very angry, as he was sure that it was no accident; that it was sabotaged. This lead to problems at work, but he had to suppress further trouble to guarantee the income for his family.

One year later, in 817 AS, Hisashi was kidnapped while at work and sold to the Outcasts. Of course, this didn't sit well with Hisashi and he protested and resisted wherever possible. This lead to the Outcasts humiliating him completely: He was made addicted to cardamine and had him undergo hormone therapy and many other changes. He wasn't the man his family wanted him to be anymore, he wasn't the strong man, the heir to his family. His body was now feminine, devoid of past masculinity, except for what he had between his legs. Otherwise, it was extremely hard to notice that he was not a woman. From there on, he was mockingly called 'Kaia' - the sissy princess. If it wasn't humiliating enough, he was sold to a minor but greedy Don. Soon he would more and more behave as a she, in fear of displeasing her master. After almost four years of service, Kaia was sold back into the slave markets on Malta. There, she awaited her next fate. Her service to the Don however would remain within her mind forever.

On May 19, 821 AS, somewhere in one of the many slave markets on Malta, a taskmistress named Alessia Palermo, who was hired by Kenneth Matzke while he was away on assignment was browsing for slaves to work the fields of his new plantation located in the Skorba Valley. She needed quite a few, as this new plantation was much larger than the one Kenneth previously owned. She however, was finding the last few that she would need, having spent the entire day at the market. One slave caught her eye that seemed quite timid, clearly having been abused previously, surely it would make a fine toy for Kenneth, and while he was out, she would enjoy her as well. Alessia found who was selling her, and the vendor gave her the price of five hundred credits. This was quite a lot for a slave, but Alessia wanted her greatly. She paid the sum, had her loaded onto the transport, going to find the last few slaves she would need.

This was Kaia, and was once again on her way to serve somebody again. Her thoughts revolved around what kind of master she would have, still scarred by her previous master. Kaia made sure to behave all the way so that the one who bought her wouldn't find reasons to punish her. She needed to be a good girl, and good girls obey their masters.

They reached the plantation after a few hours. Most of the slaves were told they would be working the fields, some were told they would perform maintenance on equipment. Kaia, however, was told she would be working as a maid, not only cleaning the house, but serving Alessia personally. Kaia stepped inside the mansion, which was much larger than any other building on the property. Instantly, she was to begin her duties, doing everything as best as she could, fearing punishment from Alessia.

Her duties were simple, and it wasn't too difficult to clean the house, as there was only one person occupying it. Other than that were some small demands, such as what clothing to wear and how she was to act. Kaia was given a maid's outfit, which given its appearance, seemed to be smuggled from Gallia, and wasn't good at anything but making the wearer look more attractive. She was also to act submissively, something Kaia had grown accustomed to over the past few years.

That night, however brought difficulties, as she was called to Alessia's room. Kaia knew what this probably meant, as her pervious masters abused her in other ways as well. When she arrived and confronted Alessia, she was told to remove her outfit, and Kaia obeyed. Alessia then saw that Kaia was not female, but instead was tortured by her previous masters and made this way. Alessia then laughed mockingly. As this was Kaia's greatest humiliation, she felt great shame and embarrassment from it, but did her best to be as submitting to her as possible.

When her secret was discovered by Alessia, Kaia's life was made worse. She was constantly humiliated and Alessia started to give her more female hormones, supplementing to the ones that her body already produced since being forced to undergo surgery, something Kaia had hoped to not deal with again. This continued for a few months, with what seemed to be no end. Her suffering was only made worse by her body becoming increasingly more feminine.

It was just another day of winter on Malta on the 20th of November of the same year, another day where Kaia was going to be humiliated by Alessia. Their routine was interrupted, however, when a shuttle landed near the house. Kenneth had just returned from his assignment, and was looking forward to being at home again. Everything was where it was, not having changed since he purchased the plantation a few months ago. The house on the hill was still there, and the fields, although empty due to the winter weather, were still far-reaching, with the mountains out on the horizon. He then walked up the hill to the house, anticipating being able to enjoy sitting by the fireplace, reading a few books he "acquired" while out in space. He entered the door and saw that everything was clean, no dust was to be seen, and everything was in order. He figured that Alessia wanted to impress him. He walked around the house for a bit, and found her going over some paperwork. He said hello and went about his way, not wanting to interrupt her further, and then found Kaya cleaning some dishes. "How thoughtful," he thought, "Alessia got a maid for me while I was on assignment." He greeted her, and she quickly responded "Hello master!" before returning to her work. As he was looking forward to relaxing, he made his way to a chair by the fireplace and began to read.

Kaia was partially used to things in the mansion by now, but even during nights she wasn't always let to be at peace, instead tormented in various ways by Alessia. Kaia kept her mindset deep away, if it existed at that point anymore, to not displease her mistress. She must remain a good girl for her own sake.

It wasn't until that night when Kenneth was trying to sleep and he heard some agonized moaning and screaming that he started to question what was going on. He got out of bed and went to find Alessia. He found her in the basement of all places, and found her with Kaia, who was being abused heavily. He turned away in disappointment and anger, and planned to bring this up in the morning.

The next morning, he woke up early and went to the chair he sat in yesterday to wait for Alessia to wake up. Eventually, she woke and went downstairs, expecting Kaya to have already prepared breakfast. On her way, she was interrupted by Kenneth, who asked what she was doing to the maid last night. She claimed that Kaia was being disciplined for her lack of effort while working. Kenneth immediately shot back that the house was spotless, and he claimed that Alessia was doing this for enjoyment. Kaia was in the kitchen when the argument took place. It sounded like he was defending her against Alessia, something that she thought would never happen. The argument ended with Kenneth stated that the three of them would head to the temple and that the spirits would determine Alessia's punishment.

The three of them boarded the shuttle and headed off to the temple. the ride was silent, Kaia was too afraid to speak, Alessia was only giving hostile glances, and Kenneth was busy piloting. They reached the temple within ten minutes, but it seemed to take hours, given everyone's mood. They then entered the large doors of the temple, and Kenneth told the two to wait while he spoke to a cardinal about the issue. The two waited, remaining silent for their own reasons, and after about half an hour, Kenneth and the cardinal returned, with the cardinal carrying a whip. However, he did not use it, but instead gave it to Kaia, saying the spirits were leaving judgment up to her.

Kaia looked at the whip in her hands, trembling lightly. She was still in her maid outfit, which subconsciously fixed the role she was given in the mansion, in other words bound her to complete obedience to her masters. The way Alessia looked at her made her feel very uneasy. She gulped, opened the whip and both reluctantly and feeling that she deserved it, whipped it around on her own backside from above herself. Kaia did this quite a few times, each time yelping from pain, until she got down on her knees from the pain and exhaustion. After it, Kaia recollected the whip and handed it back to the cardinal with a look of shame on her face.

Both Kenneth and the cardinal seemed disappointed, while Alessia seemed to be gloating over what just happened. Kenneth then suggested that he should go, and he took Alessia and Kaia with him. The ride back seemed to be even more silent, if that was even possible, and by nightfall, they were back in the house. Once inside, Kenneth told Kaia to head up to her room, and once there, find remove her outfit and hand it to him, then she was to spend the rest of the night in her room. She did this and went back to her room, upon which, Kenneth locked it from the outside. He then handed Alessia the outfit and told her to change into it. She refused at first, asking why she should, and Kenneth replied that either she would wear it or she would be killed. Shocked and somewhat frightened, she wore the maid's outfit. Kenneth then took her to the kitchen and told her to clean it. "The kitchen is already clean though." She replied. Kenneth then took various things, such as what seemed like flour and other foods and threw them about the room. He then repeated, "Clean the Kitchen."

They did this for every room of the house, throughout the night. Kaia heard what was going on, but was locked in her room, unable to do anything. Meanwhile, Alessia was in tears, cleaning the mess that Kenneth, who was almost always there with her, created. He did leave a few times to go and do various things, one of which was that he went out and bought a plain outfit, which he left in Kaia's room, after she fell asleep. She woke early in the morning and still heard Kenneth shouting downstairs. She saw the outfit that Kenneth left her, and not wanting to appear indecent or let him know about her secret, she put it on and went downstairs. Kenneth then noticed her and told the two to follow him back upstairs to Kaia's room. Kaia avoided looking at Alessia. He then asked Kaia to tell Alessia to clean her room, not using any titles, only telling her to clean it.

It was evident that Kaia was conflicted. In the short time she was at the mansion, Alessia has been the mistress and her master. But she had always told of Kenneth and that he was the complete master of the house. Finally, she glanced with slight fear at Alessia and said: "C-Could you please clean the room Alessia?" Her voice sounded uncertain, awaiting punishment any moment.

Alessia did not look at Kaia, most likely out of shame, trying to hide the tears in her eyes. She then went in and remade the bed and cleaned the room. In the meantime, Kenneth took Kaia to the kitchen and made breakfast for the two of them. He tried making an omelets, but soon after beginning, decided on scrambled eggs. Kaia tried to take over, but Kenneth wouldn't let her, saying that she would not be the one serving anymore. Once he finished, he took two plates of it and brought it to the table and told her to eat with him.

Kaia nervously sat down, and began eating it in an over-appropriate way. It seems that Alessia had disciplined and shaped her into a perfect servant. Kenneth realized that she was not going to talk or relax for that matter, and asked "Tell me about your family, if you can remember." Kaia froze the moment he mentioned family, as if he had pulled on a string. "F-Family?" she gulped. "I.. I had a family on Kyushu.. Parents and two younger sisters.." she began, looking saddened. "We were quite poor.."

Kenneth then said, "Well, tell me about your sisters, they seem to bring back some emotions." Kaia looked away slightly, continuing to eat from time to time. "One is six years younger than me, the other nine years younger.." she said. Although she remembered her family quite often at nights, they seemed so distant to her by now. Just remembering how they looked or sounded like was quite difficult.

Kenneth then asked, "And your parents, do you remember them?" Kaia glanced at him from time to time. "I do.." she said. "Although my father.. died.." she said, feeling a small glimpse of anger for a moment, recalling the day her family held the funeral. Even to this day, Kaia didn't believe that it was an accident, but she had no time to think of anything else other than the present while a slave.

"Oh... I'm sorry for your loss," replied Kenneth. By now, the two had finished breakfast, and Kenneth took their dishes to the kitchen. Kaia tried to clean them, but he wouldn't let her. Instead, he brought her back upstairs where Alessia had finished cleaning. He then told Kaia to tell her to clean the kitchen for them. Reluctantly but obeying her master, Kaia asked Alessia: "U-Umm.. could you.. clean the kitchen?" she said silently. While looking at Alessia she felt both slight pity as well as satisfaction from it. Kenneth then spoke up saying, "I'm sorry, you'll have to speak up. I couldn't make out what you said." Kaia gulped, and once again said the same thing but with more voice, which sounded slightly stern as well. "Alessia, clean the kitchen..!" she said. Kenneth smiled, seeing that Kaia was making progress. He then asked her if there was anything she had wanted to do that day, hoping that this freedom to choose would help her recover.

"Do?" she asked a bit uncertainly. After all, she wasn't given nor room nor time to want to do anything else. Alessia made her work hard all day, and if she didn't do that or sleep, she had her way with Kaia. "I... don't know.." she said, trying to think. For years others told Kaia what she had to do. And now, first time in years was she to choose her activity herself. The recent emotions that emerged in her however made her want to have vengeance for all the wrongfulness people in the past as well as Alessia have caused her. Yet, she was still bound to servitude. Kaia's will did not matter, as her only purpose was to serve her master.

"Well, why don't we go for a walk then, the area is quite beautiful, even if it might be a bit cold" Kenneth said. He found some winter coats, and some food that they would eat when they'd get hungry. Kaia once again tried to carry the supplies, but Kenneth refused, saying, "Remember what I said earlier about you not serving anyone anymore? I meant it." The two then went out, walking towards the river that went through the valley.

Kaia remained still quite silent, obviously not used to the situation. Finally, she couldn't help but ask: "W-Why are you helping me, a servant?" Her voice expressed how Kaia viewed herself: a servant whose life was in the hands of her master. Kenneth turned around again, restating his point. "You will not be serving anyone ever again. You are not a servant anymore."

"B-But why?" It seems Kaia couldn't comprehend how anybody, especially her master would help the servant, the slave they had bought become free. Her previous master's brainwashing was still strongly affecting how she viewed everything. Kenneth smiled and answered: "Because you deserve better." Kaia glanced over at him, surprised, but looked again in front of her. She still couldn't comprehend the situation and the reason behind his actions. She remained silent.

Eventually they reached the river, and they walked beside it for some time. By midday, the two were hungry, so he took out the food and handed Kaia a sandwich. The two began to eat, and Kenneth said: "Is there anything you want to talk about, anything you want to get off of your chest?" Kaia slowly munched on the sandwich, and looked away. There wasn't much anything she'd want to talk about. Although Kenneth seemed like a very nice person, she couldn't bring herself to tell him about the greatest humiliation she had faced. Each time somebody had found out about it, something very humiliating happened to her. Even recalling a small bit caused her to flinch. Kenneth saw how she felt, and knew something was bothering her. "I know something is bothering you. What is it, let me help you."

Kaia glanced at Kenneth occasionally, looking conflicted. "N-No.. It's nothing.." she tried to belittle it. "I can clearly see that it is something," replied Kenneth, "it clearly is worrying you. I promise I am not like Alessia or any of your previous masters. I want to help you." Kaia didn't know whether to tell or not, but finally she brought out all the courage she had in her heart: "I-I used to be a man." Kaia instantly closed her eyes, awaiting his judgment.

"Oh... I-I see...," replied Kenneth, "That is why Alessia treated you so harshly. As I said though, you do not have to worry about her anymore. You are safe now. You won't have to worry about being an outcast here. After all, all of us here are. Alessia clearly forgot that, and so she will be punished, but as I said, I am here to help you."

Kaia looked at him, her eyes slightly widened. At first, she thought he was joking, surely he will soon burst into laughter and humiliate her. But as more seconds passed by, more and more she came to believe his words. Tears began to form in her eyes and flowed lightly down her cheek.

Kenneth saw her finally feel relieved and unafraid, and to prove his point about accepting her, he hugged her, and comforted her. Kaia held her hands on him first lightly and slowly her grip tightened, and her emotional breakout intensified. It indeed was as Kaia had said: She used to be a man. Her mind has completely become that of a woman. What that made her, remained unknown. Not a man nor woman. At most a degraded and abused human being. Tears continued to rush down Kaia's cheeks.

By now, the winds started to pick up and the temperature dropped further. Kenneth suggested that they head back home before the weather got worse. Kenneth released her from his embrace and Kaia wiped her tears away. The two gathered their things and then headed back towards home. By the time they arrived, it had started to snow, and the two were looking forward to warming up inside. Kenneth, however had to bring up this issue with Alessia, and when he confronted her, another argument broke out between the two.

Kaia looked slightly horrified, afraid. Hearing the heated debate where she was the subject was hard for her. Kenneth was quite angry with Alessia, as she made Kaia an outcast when Malta was already a safe haven for those who were deemed to be outcasts. In the end, he decided to punish Alessia further, deciding that her position as maid should be made permanent. Kaia just stood there, listened, very nervous. Kenneth then left and headed towards Kaia, and said: "Alessia now has the position that you had. If you want to punish her further, you may."

"P-Punish?" Kaia asked, still uncertain. But instantly, the idea to do everything Alessia had done to her to Alessia came to her mind. Kaia glanced at Alessia, still trembling lightly. She was conflicted whether she should do it or not. After all, that's what made Kenneth mad at Alessia in the first place.

Kenneth, seeing how she was conflicted, said: "If you do not want to punish her more, that is fine. I was already quite harsh with her, but if you think that I was not harsh enough, you may choose to punish her further." Kaia glanced at him, and then away. "N-No.. It's.. enough" she said. Although she wanted to pay back for what Alessia did, Kaia felt some pity for her, especially seeing how she was degraded into her position now.

Kenneth then said: "Alright, I won't force you to punish her, but I do think it is time for dinner. Alessia, would you prepare a meal for us now?" To which she replied: "Yes master." While dinner was being prepared, Kenneth and Kaia went by the fireplace to warm up. Kenneth then asked Kaia: "How are you feeling?" Kaia sat relatively close to him, but still looked slightly tense. She kept her hands on her lap. "O-Odd.." she answered. "How so?" Kenneth replied. Kaia exhaled lightly.

"I-It's just.. this is all so sudden.. I-I don't know how I should react.." she began. "I haven't ever felt... like this.." Kaia shifted slightly. Alessia then came into the room, stating that dinner was ready. The three made their way to the dining room and began to eat their meal. Kenneth then brought back the topic of how Kaia was feeling and said: "Hopefully, we can bring back your confidence." He then glared at Alessia, still angry at the damage she caused. He then stated that tomorrow, he would take her back to the temple and she would consult the spirits. Kaia glanced at him, slightly nervous. She didn't believe in spirits, so this was quite new to her. The three soon finished their meal, and the rest of the night was uneventful.

Early next morning, Kenneth woke up and made himself presentable. Afterwards he knocked on Kaia's door, waking her up and signaling for her to get ready. To his surprise, Kaia was also already awake. When the two were ready, they went downstairs where Alessia had prepared breakfast which they ate quickly. The two then headed out towards the shuttle and proceeded to the temple.

They arrived after about fifteen minutes and went inside where once again, Kenneth consulted a cardinal about the situation. The cardinal then went off to another room while Kenneth waited with Kaia. He soon returned however and told Kaia to follow him. The two proceeded without Kenneth to a small room, and once there, the cardinal handed her an artifact which enhanced visions with the spirits. Kaia held the item nervously. He then left the room and closed the door, leaving her alone with the artifact. Kaia waited for a moment with the artifact in her hand, wondering what would happen. She still was skeptical to the whole idea. The atmosphere was ominous, anticipating the unreal experience that was about to happen.

Kaia would hear a giggling sound from the rock she withheld in her hands...a childish sound...then running...wait, no one was around her...right? If she looked, it sounded like an injured kid was running at her...and then some cold chill came over her but in seconds it was done...then there was the sound of it running away...the rock in her hand started to glow a soft purple and pink color...

Kaia shivered slightly, both surprised and terrified. There were no such things as spirits...right? Yet, what she heard and felt pointed the other way. "H-Hello?" she intuitively said, glancing back to the glowing stone in her hand. She was afraid, but something from the stone also set her to want to listen for more. There was another childish laughing sound only in response, then followed the sound of more whispering to her...

*. "Hers'" unexpecting -of intervention- ~ways of light~ / 'paths are unknown' hidden in sands (time void) / Runners forever -forgotten- / … "who" is this -human-kid- 'breathing the -sands' (?) .*

"E-Excuse me?" she instinctively said, trembling. Her gaze was fixed on the stone and its glow reflected in her eyes. Kaia did her best to try to understand what the voice was trying to tell her, but her initial shock from this... experience clouded her mind slightly. Only now was she able to focus her thoughts again.

Kaia would open her eyes only to find herself... she was not on a station, heck she was not in a ship, where was she? It was hard to tell, the ground was rough, covered with dirt, rocks and what appeared to be mud as well as other things. There was a thick, green nebula around her...it was cold...if she checked, she was wearing nothing in this place... Where did she suddenly go? Wait.. what was that in the far distance she could see?

At first thought she was bothered by her lack of clothing, but the thought quickly dissipated. Her mind was fixed on her surroundings, especially the horizon where there was something she couldn't quite make out at first... What was it? Her thoughts went hazy for a moment before once again returning to the horizon.

The smoke it seemed to be started to clear quickly. As it did, at first all she saw was just grass and more dirt...but then what seemed to be bodies...then ruined buildings and vehicles...as it dissipated, all that was around her was the smoking ruins of the capital city of Malta...but the bodies looked like they'd been there longer as all they were now were just skeletons...what happened?

Kaia looked around, feeling intimidated. This was all so odd: Instead of a clear line of thoughts a clearer line of emotion was inside her. Fear, curiosity, confusion, hate, joy. Kaia went almost through the whole spectrum of emotions as she saw it. After all, Malta was the place where her original life crumbled to dust and further into nothing. Seeing Malta in such a state brought mixed feelings up. Should she be happy? But then, there were many other slaves there as well who are indistinguishable from the common folk as skeletons. Should she feel remorse? In the end, she found herself wondering what was the 'right' thing to feel instead of feeling anything specific. One thing was clear however: seeing this made her realize that she had not a scratch left of her original personality within her. Only her name and biological gender remained as a reminder of what she used to be. Malta was the place and reason her previous life crumbled. Malta was the grave of Hisashi, and the birthplace of Kaia.

In response to her answer, there was another laughing sound...this time closer however. When she opened her eyes, she was in a ship...wait, this was not Omicron Alpha anymore...was this...Okinawa? It surely seemed like it...but...where was everyone? Actually, a better question would be: Where exactly was she...? There were no stations...just pure black clouds where they would have been...However to the common mind...they were easily seen as the wrecks of what was...the icy planet itself...was now just a molten piece of rock...the nebulas were stained crimson red almost like they were cut open on the inside...in the clouds were...wrecks...Outcasts...KNF...GMG...Heck, Corsairs and many others littered the whole nebula's...the stations in ruins...all she got in return with sound was the cry of metal breaking and floating way from each other...then silence...her ship itself however was fully operational it seemed..

Kaia looked, her mind foggy from the sudden transition. "War?" was the first thought that came to her mind. Had to be. But why were there ships from so many factions present? Kaia looked more closely around, just as she regained her full focus. Okinawa itself had little importance in her life, yet something bothered her about it.

She'd see a lone person in her ship, someone she would remember...however looking...deceased to say the least...what happened, unknown really, the war looked ancient to say the least at this point...Kaia, after thinking about it, got a massive splitting headache...when she opened her eyes this time...she was standing there...still holding the artifact like she was not to long ago..

Catching her breath and holding one hand on her head, Kaia struggled with the sudden pain. Was it related to what she saw? Most probably, but no way to say for sure what exactly caused it. Kaia opened one eye, looking at the artifact. Kenneth talked about guidance, but this was more like a dream - partially a nightmare. The artifact stopped glowing, and everything seemingly returned back to normal.

Seeing that the vision had ended, she left the room and found the cardinal waiting outside. She handed him the artifact and went to find Kenneth, who was waiting in the main chamber. He asked her, "How was it? Do you feel any different?" Kaia looked quite confused, the headache still taking place. "D-Different? Yes.." she replied. Her mind was still partially absent. "Why don't we head home for now so you can rest? And when you feel better, we'll talk about it," Kenneth stated, seeing her current state. She agreed and the two boarded the shuttle and headed back home. By the time they returned, it was midday. Kaia went up to her room to rest, and Kenneth told Alessia to bring her lunch, in case she felt like eating.

Kaia lay on her bed, gazing blankly at the roof. What did the spirit want to tell her? Both parts of the vision showed her destruction, decay, the aftermath of war. As Alessia entered the room, Kaia didn't react until she got closer. Kaia looked so different from what she was before, something completely different. Despite seeing Kaia in her current condition, she knew better than to take advantage of her again. Kenneth made that quite clear. Instead, she left the food on the table beside the bed and asked Kaia how she was feeling.

Still feeling hazy, Kaia glanced at Alessia, surprised. "I-I.. weird.." she said, sounding both exhausted and confused. Seems like she didn't know herself. She was disoriented. Seeing this disorientation, Alessia thought it would be best to let Kaia sleep, so she left the room and shut the door. Shortly, Kaia fell asleep.

While Kaia was sleeping, Kenneth was downstairs reading. He noticed Alessia walking down the stairs and called her over. Not wanting to disobey, she hurried over and asked what he needed. "How was Kaia when you saw her?" he asked. "She was quite disoriented, she couldn't focus and she could barely speak." Kenneth showed a bit of concern, but these were the standard symptoms of an intense vision. All she needed was some rest.

After a few hours, Kaia woke up. The sleep help her, but she still felt hazy. The food that Alessia had brought was already cold, but it didn't stop Kaia from eating. It actually was better for her as cold, it refreshed her. Once finished, she took the dishes and moved downstairs towards the kitchen and began washing and cleaning them. Somehow, having something concrete to do again made her feel relaxed, helped her clear her thoughts. Kenneth heard what she was doing and walked over to confront her. "You know that you don't need to do this, right?" he asked. Kaia nodded. "It's alright... Doing something again helps me relax." Kennneth then stated: "Alright, if that's the case, then at least let me help you finish," as he started to clean some dishes as well.

The two finished quickly. Kenneth led her to another room and gestured towards the bookshelves, saying: "Go ahead and choose something to read, I'm sure it will help you with your recovery." Kaia looked at him and then at the bookshelves. There were so many books to choose from, but the category on spirits and Outcast fables caught her eye. She moved closer and picked a book on visions. The back of the book explained that the book told and explained visions that others have had and how they had affected their lives. She moved to the couch and sat down, opening the book. Kenneth saw her choice and was happy with her decision. He sat down next to her, incase she had any questions while reading.

Kaia moved her hair from the side Kenneth was sitting behind her ear and began reading the book. The introduction contained almost the same information as the back cover, so she moved on forwards towards the first vision described there. It didn't tell much at all, and as such she moved on to the next one. The next vision that she turned to was about an outcast who's vision seemed to show the destruction of where he grew up, and saw many of the people he knew dead. This was eventually interpreted to show that the life he had before was gone, as he was now an outcast, chained to Malta as many others were, due to their addiction, and that he should learn to move on in life.

In a sense, her own vision was partially the same. However which life ended? Her original life as Hisashi or her life as a slave? Her own vision showed Malta's and Okinawa's destruction. Malta could mean either, however she was still enslaved by cardamine. Most likely it meant that Kaia's life as Hisashi had ended, but that wasn't anything new. She was forced to move on by others, and even now she couldn't even remember how it felt like to be Hisashi. Even so, she had a hard time remembering her family. As such, the vision didn't tell her anything new.

Kenneth saw her pause on this vision and asked, "Anything interesting about this one?" Kaia nodded, continuing to read about it. "Such as?" he stated. She explained to him, in which she also told about her own vision. Her description of the vision was slightly more abstract, but overall quite accurate. Kenneth stated: "Well I see how it could mean that, and it seems that the spirit said to move on from two entirely different things. Okinawa probably referred to your life in Kusari, and Malta possibly meaning your life as a slave."

"If it meant that, it then didn't tell much of what I should do now... I'm still imprisoned to Malta through cardamine," she sighed. "So am I, as are many others." Kenneth replied. "Yet I was able to work towards all this," referencing the plantation. "There is nothing stopping you from achieving greatness, and I want to help you achieve it."

"Greatness..?" she asked. The idea seemed so far-fetched to her. Kaia looked at the book, still looking slightly distant. She had no dreams, no goals to follow. "Sure," said Kenneth, "I believe that you have the ability to succeed, all you need is a goal to work towards." Kaia brushed her hair away behind her ear again. "But.. I have no goal... The only goal I've had was to serve my master the best I can.." she said.

"Well, we will just have to find one for you," Kenneth stated. Kaia glanced at him, before looking back at the book. She couldn't imagine any reason or goal for her life: Her reason and goal as Hisashi died when she was enslaved, after which her reason to live was to serve her master. Now that she didn't have that, there wasn't anything left. Kenneth then suggested: "I'm sure that many factions here on Malta would be happy to have you assisting them, or you could stay here and join the cross, we would gladly accept you."

Kaia turned to look at him. "Join.. the Outcasts?" she asked. She had mixed feelings about the idea. She would be joining those who enslaved and had their way with her. Now that Kaia thought about it, she had begun detesting people: The miners who sold her out to the slavers, those who turned her into what she is now and especially the greedy Don who did god knows how many despicable and humiliating things to her. In that sense, joining the Outcasts could get her the strength and resources to have revenge on them.

"Sure," he said, "I understand how you didn't have the best experience with all of us, but have I or any other member of the Crimson Cross harmed you? There are some outcasts who might be cruel, but we are not them." Kaia glanced back at Kenneth, thinking about it. In any case, it would be a good start to at least do something rather than idle, but her will was still very weak. She could easily be subdued and exploited by another person. Was it really good for her to move away from the now comfortable mansion and Kenneth? He still saw doubt in her eyes and asked, "What's wrong? You still seem hesitant." Kaia rested her head on the couch. "I just.. need some time to think about it," she said and closed the book, figuring that it wouldn't give her anything new anymore. Kenneth then said, "Take all the time you need, this is a big decision to make. In the meantime, you should go get some more rest."

Kaia sat there for a moment before rising and putting the book back from where she took it. "I... I think I'll go walk outside for a while.." she said, turning back to Kenneth. "That's fine," he said, "Just be careful. It is quite cold out, and there isn't much daylight left." Kaia nodded, and went on to put a warm coat on. It was just shifting to being dark outside, with the lights already on. "I won't be too long" Kaia said, giving a slight smile before opening the door and heading out. Kenneth, originally worried about why she would head out so late, seemed more at ease when she gave that smile. She was recovering after all.

An hour or so went by before Kaia came back. She brushed the snow off from her coat and boots, undressed and put the coat back where it was. There was already much snow outside. Kaia set her boots neatly from where she took them. Kenneth heard the front door shut and assumed Kaia finished her walk. He went to go to talk to her and asked: "How was your walk?"

"It was okay.. The air is refreshing due to the cold," she said, focusing on Kenneth now that she had put her coat and boots away. "That's good to hear," replied Kenneth, "Have you thought about what I proposed while you were out?" Kaia nodded, looking downwards. "I.. I could try," she refocused on Kenneth's eyes. The way she looked at him still showed that Kaia regarded him as her master. She was quite hesitant in agreeing, and Kenneth spoke up about it, saying, "This isn't about what I want, you are not obligated to do what I am suggesting, They will only allow you to join if this is truly what you want for yourself."

Kaia looked away. She still didn't know what she truly wanted, so this wasn't a too sure decision. But she had to start somewhere. "I will try." "Alright then," Kenneth stated, "We will head out tomorrow and they will decide if you will be accepted."

Kaia, 27 years old.

It's been a month now since Kaia entered the Crimson Cross, a religious organization that worships the spirits - more commonly known as nomads - and wish to spread the faith across Sirius. Kaia has learned much, but still hasn't been able to become a true fighter. Hesitation in fights was always evident whenever there was a conflict, which resulted in her fleeing or depending on others. One of these instances was a run-in with a prestigious Corsair on Sigma-13 near a Freelancer station. Soon, more Corsairs and Outcasts came to their aid and inevitably a fight broke out. Kaia couldn't press the trigger and in the process, her ship was for the first time badly damaged and almost even destroyed.

Kaia was now on a scouting mission to the Sigma-17 system, looking for Corsair activity near the fabled Freeport 7 wreckage. It was there that she had a fateful encounter with the same Corsair as in Sigma-13, except that now, they were truly alone, or so she thought. The Corsair spoke to Kaia for quite a while, trying to convince her to throw away the Outcasts and join the Corsairs. Kaia truly hesitated, as she did harbour hate for the Maltese for all the things they had done to her. The Cross, however, was much different in her opinion. They helped her, considered her always a sister instead of an underling. Kaia's only friends were from the Cross. In the end she could not betray them. A Corsair battleship then uncloaked, and forcefully took Kaia on board.

Cardamine is a powerfully addicting drug and its addiction is hard to treat, especially if the patient has been on it for five years. As was the case with Kaia, the moment she was brought on board her treatment begun. Sedatives rendered her quickly unconscious the moment she was brought out of her own ship. What happened then, was unknown to Kaia.

The next thing Kaia knew was that she woke up in a villa. She was put in new clothes, a long white dress. Kaia could not remember much and her head still hurt, making her very dizzy. There was a man in the same room as her who identified himself as Santos Benitez, a fleet commander of the the Corsair Empire. He spoke much to Kaia, but most of his words passed right through Kaia, except for some small bits. "Don't fear," "I won't hurt you," "You are safe" were some that Kaia would remember, but nothing much else. When she had slept again, Santos had made an offer to her: To join his familia, the Benitez familia, and fly a Corsair ship. He lead her outside where a Corsair light fighter was. Kaia was almost trembling as thoughts and feelings rushed through her constantly. "I.. I-I need to think about this.." she would say. "Could.. Could I think about it in space..?"

Unexpectedly Santos allowed Kaia to fly the ship to space, however of course with him on another ship following her. It was then that Kaia had decided to attempt to flee. Either the cardamine treatment was messing with her head or the general situation of being kidnapped reminded her too much about how she was enslaved, it caused her to act. Santos, with a playful mind, followed her, more than keeping up with her as she tried to run. Until unexpectedly a gunship of the Order appeared.

Kaia doesn't remember much what happened afterwards, other than that there was a fight where her ship was destroyed and her pod tractor beamed. Whatever would happen next, it wouldn't be well for Kaia, seeing as the Order is also not on good terms with the Outcasts. In her pod, she awaited her fate.

When Kaia was released from the pod, she was restrained and made walk forward with the other prisoners. One person, however, stopped her. "You're not a corsair.." she said and told something to the guards. Soon, she would find herself in a locked room, but not a cell. It had a bed, a bathroom and overall looked like somebody could live there. On the bed were a set of clothes.

Kaia had changed clothes in her locked room. Somehow, the clothes they provided felt more comfortable and secure than the long white dress. Being in a locked room made her feel uncomfortable, but she could bear with it. She lied down on the bed, watching the ceiling. Her head still felt dizzy as she wondered what will happen to her, or what even happened to her.

There was a soft knocking on her room door before someone entered. Kaia sat up the moment she heard somebody meddling with the door. A young woman stood there with a kind smile and bowed: "I guess my commander has a thing or two to teach me." She had a well selected breakfest for her and some drinks, putting the tray next to Kaia's bed before sitting on the foot of it "How you holding up? Pardon for what happened, I didn't know you were not a Outcast or Corsair."

Only now that she looked at the food she noticed how hungry she was. Although she hesitated, Kaia began eating quite eagerly. Nevertheless, her expression still showed that she was uncomfortable and still alert. "S-Somehow.." Kaia answers in between, eating more civilized, aristrocratically even. "How.. How do you know I-I'm not an Outcast or Corsair..?" Kaia was a bit surprised. She was flying on a Corsair ship with a Corsair ID after all, and even then she belonged to the Crimson Cross.

"Medical scanning of your body while you were on the Lyoko.. Not to mention, my command saw that you were Kusarian, so I figured you for a sister of light or dragon. In either case, you're a friend of the Order." She smiled once more at her. "T-The Order's?" Kaia asks, seemingly getting quite nervous. She glances away, pausing with the food but continues on slowly. Soon, there was another knock on the door.

"Hey, Aelita, you in there? It's Angel. is it ok to come in?" a voice is heard from behind the door. "Come in girls, I'm in here." Aelita says before moving to open the door to invite them in and back to sitting near Kaia. Angel walks in, her silver hair loose and flowing. "Is this the girl that you picked up?" she asks, before getting an answer from agent Stone: "This indeed her." She then turns to Kaia. "Don't worry ma'am, we won't be harsh to you. However you seem to have a rather rough past. might I ask about it or would you rather not talk about it?" Kaia remained silent, having finished eating. She still felt quite uneasy and the position she was in didn't help.

Angel takes a seat and looks attentively at Kaia. "Well she doesn't look Maltese. Looks more Kusarian. How'd she end up where she did?" "No idea, she's not said much since I've brought her in. However I understand her uneasyness after what I did to the Corsairs.." Aelita says after taking a data pad out and giving it to Angel of all that happened and Kaia's medical file which they filed from a quick scan on her. "She seems in remarkably good shape." Angel says and starts looking her over, checking her almost like a medic. "I figure it will be an interesting story."

Kaia glanced from time to time at each of the girls, but her glance always shifted back to her hands, which she kept on her lap. All these unfamiliar people, taking an interest in her so openly made her feel really nervous. Aelita looked at Kaia "You don't need to worry here ma'am, we won't let anything happen, if you don't mind me asking, for a Kusarian, which clan are you from? The Dragons, Sisters perhaps?"

"N-Neither.." Kaia answers.

"Gas Miner, maybe?" Angel asks.

Aelita nods in reaction to that. "Perhaps that, ya.." Kaia shakes her head, not knowing whether she should say the truth. She feared that it would make them hostile to her. It made Kaia feel even more nervous.

"So those throw our allies out the window for Kusari.. I'd say the Farmers but they've been quiet as of late. I'd rather not say Hogosha.." Aelita says.

"I doubt she's either. Both are close to the Corsairs." Angel replies.

"Thats a good point."

"Hang on. I smell something. odd but familiar." Angel says, sniffing the air.

Kaia's head suddenly began to feel dizzy and she put her hand on her forehead as she began swaying. Aelita quickly moved to Kaia and tried to at least hold her steady. "Don't pass out now, that will hurt if you do.."

"S-Sorry.." Kaia says, feeling oddly fatigued.

"Hey, no need to be, where just trying to help. Pardon if this seems to have caused hell on you, we're not trying to punish you or anything."

Angel sniffs the air some more. "Wait a minute..." her eyes widen as she comes to a conclusion. Her look changes to one of caution. Aelita gave Angel a questioning look "Yes?"

"Something isn't adding up. She's kusarian but has no links to any of the likely groups. The smell she's giving off. It's odd but familiar. And the Corsairs, from your report, paid very close attention to her. Add those up and what comes to mind?" Kaia closes her eyes, nervously listening.

Angel turns to Kaia "If there's something you want to tell us, now would be the time to do it. It's the best option you've got." she says in a calming tone. Kaia opens her eyes a little, afraid of what would happen if she told them everything. Kaia looked at Angel, but almost instantly looked away again. It looked like she struggled to even say anything.

"Is it okay If I say it then?" she asks nicely. Aelita noded and moved a bit close, rubbing Kaia's back to keep her calm. Kaia didn't say anything, just wanting to disappear from this situation. "She's a cardamine user, or was. She smells similar, but different. like she's been treated maybe?"

"So judging from that, she's an ex-outcast, ex-corsair... that was kidnapped from the miners... meaning, we just found a friend." She smiles at Kaia saying such "As far as I see it, this girl is one of our allies."
"At the least, she's not an enemy.... anymore," Aelita says.

Kaia feels a bit relieved that they came to that conclusion and not the actual truth. She still felt nervous, but didn't know how to feel about letting them believe that she wasn't affilated with an Outcast organization. "I'm not sure about her being from the miners. Something's off about her." Angel cant shake the 'odd' feeling she gets from Kaia.

"If there is, she can let us know in due time." Aelita stands and looks around. "If you need ma'am, the water for your shower or bathtub has been turned on so if you want, you go and wash yourself. I'll also ask for the others to bring more clothing up for you." Kaia nods to Aelita, even giving a slight smile. "T-Thank you.." Aelita bowed to Kaia "Anytime, no one deserves to live a hard life, thats what the Order are here for, the bettering of humanity.." Kaia continued to sit there, glancing off into the distance. The word humanity made her feel mixed emotions, but she didn't let it show.

Angel smiles: "Don't worry so much. We're nice girls. you can trust us. You're safe now." Kaia gave a faint smile to angel, feeling a little bit better by now. Angel shifts her glance at Aelita. "Is there a shower I can use on this boat? I don't feel like hopping back to the Astral just for a shower." Angel asks. Aelita nods and motions to the room across the hall. "My own if you want, go ahead Angel."
"What about food? I don't want to lose this girlish figure." Angel says, joking partially.
Aelita smiles. "I got the autofood dispenters in my room if you need Angel."
"My stomach thanks you." she says, smiling. "If you'll excuse me, I'll go take that wash."

Kaia looked in the direction of where the bathroom was, thinking that she should go too. She waits first however. Angel leaves the room, walking across the hall to Aelita's. Aelita bowed and stood, walking out for a second before returning with a towel, clothing and some cleaning things for Kaia, putting them in the bathroom for her. Kaia stood up, walking towards the bathroom. "Thank you.." Kaia said. "I-I.. umm.. Sorry that I.. I just feel.. r-really uneasy.." Kaia said, holding her hands together in front of her, straight down. She glanced into Aelita's eyes from time to time, but mostly she looked away.

"Hey, its fine, everyone feels that way here at first. Like when I first got back into the Order. Once when I returned to it, I was so shy and uneasy that I ran smack into a door, no kidding. Someone opened it and I ran into it!" Kaia smiled a bit, feeling already better from that comment. She dared to look more and more now at her. Aelita bowed again and walked to the door "Ill give you some privacy so you can shower." Kaia nods, looking her way until the door closes.

After it, she takes a deep breath and begins undressing and preparing the bath. She got in the tub, standing and put the shower on, to initially clean herself. After a while, she put the cork in the drain, allowing water to pool inside the tub. Kaia showers for a while, not noticing that just as she was finishing, Aelita and Angel were already in the main room. Upon hearing Angel's voice she even jumped from being surprised. After drying her hair and dressing the new clothes, she joined the girls.

For a while the three girls conversed with each other, helping Kaia feel more secure and less nervous. After half an hour or so, there was a rustling on the door and it opened. There stood a man dressed as what seemed to be a doctor in his early thirties. He presented himself before looking to Aelita.

"Greetings ladies, Doctor Harold Rockford is the name. Pardon my arrival on such short notice, Miss Stone. The commander wishes for Kaia to participate in a joint medical consultance, down in the med-bay. I'll have someone bring her back or send for you to come pick her the moment we are done," the man presented his case politely and awaited by the door.

Aelita noded and motioned for Kaia to follow the doctor. "I'll be in my room then for a bit, before moving down to the mooring fixture where the Lyoko is. I need to repair a few systems on it." Kaia nervously nodded and followed the doctor.

The doctor nodded in reply to the voiced approval and gave way for Kaia to exit. "Right this way my dear," he gestured kindly, exiting the room after her and then going on ahead, leading the way to the med-bay, the marine closing the door behind them.

Once there, another woman of the Order, Liara seemed to expect them, all the while, conversing with someone through live video feed. "Well, she's here. I'll return to my duties and let you work. Let me know if anything comes up." Liara said.

"Of course dear, don't worry. We'll be gentle." a voice was heard from the live video.

Liara then moved to face Kaia, bowing lightly. "Hey there, good to finally see you," she said with a smile as she approached cupped her hands around Kaia's. "You've no doubt met Dr. Rockford already. The one on the screen is Dr. Oriana Grey. She's family, and a very experienced and trusted medical expert. They wish to go over a few things with you, and I'm hoping it won't be too much trouble for you, yes?"

"I-If you insist.." Kaia said nervously.

"Come now, I'm sure you're stronger than this. Nobody in this room would ever do anything to harm you," Liara reassured her before letting go, turning to the screen "She's all yours, mother. Make her well," she insisted before strolling out.

Dr. Rockford approached and passed Kaia some hospital garments, instructing her to go change behind the nearby courtain and then take a seat on the bed overlooked by the screen upfront. Kaia nodded and did so. This felt all odd, being in a place she did not know as well as with people she did not know. After Kaia had taken a seat, Dr. Rockford brought up a chair near her and sat by her side as the person on the screen came back up, her soothing voice ringing softly through the speakers.

"Hello Kaia, it's good to finally see you. How are you feeling today?" Oriana, the person through the live feed asked.

"I-I.. don't know" Kaia answers. All that had happened confused her and caused anxiety, not even talking about the cardamine treatment. Rockford kept examining Kaia for a few moments after she spoke, then turning towards the screen.

"How much do you assume she has suffered in slavery?" he asks. Kaia looks nervously at the man. How did they all know she was a slave in the past? The woman shifts her gaze to her desk, pondering for a few moments before looking back at Kaia and Rockford.

"Judging by the severe catatonic state? I'd have to guess atleast a few years. What about exterior damage?" Oriana asks. Rockford nodded and moved across the room, drawing a large apparatus close to the bed.

"Please, lie down and make yourself comfortable lassie," Rockford requested politely as he adjusted the large device's arm directly above the bed, then moving to dim the lights. Kaia lied down. As the device and environment was set properly, Rockford began powering the device. A vivid laser beam from a prototype scanner shot down from the projector, the robotic arm allowing it freedom of movement to scan the body. However, before Rockford could commence the procedure, his colleague intervened.

"Allright Harold, that would be all. Now, could you please transfer control to me and leave us for now?" The man turned around and with a puzzled expression, looking at the screen.

"Is-..something wrong, Doctor?" Rockford asks.

"No, of course not. It's just that I'd rather do this myself. Don't step too far, I'll call for you as soon as I'm done." Oriana answers. The man seemed skeptical, though months of working with her have proven she's a rare case of a trustworthy person. As such, he does as instructed and exits the room after allowing the scanner to be remote-controlled.

The woman sighed lightly in relief as she then proceeded. The scanner moved up and down, its beam coming across Kaia's entire body, covering everything from MRI and biomolecular scans all the way to X-ray and BPU live monitoring.

"Now that we're by ourselves, you can speak freely dear. Tell me a bit about yourself."

"A-About myself?" Kaia repeats.

"Yes. Where you come from, do you have friends, what do you do for fun, how old are you. I take it you've never really seen a psychiatrist?"

Kaia shakes her head.

"In essence, tell me something about yourself, anything that you feel comfortable with sharing."

"I'm.. I'm Kaia.." she began, still feeling nervous. The woman listened intently as she gazed over the analisys results sent by the scanner.

"Yes? Go on," the doctor encouraged Kaia with a kind voice, as if adressing a scared child.

"I umm.." Kaia didn't know where to go from there without revealing where she's actually from.

"The purpose of a meeting between a psychiatrist and a patient, Kaia, is conversation. If you don't wish to answer a question, you need to say so. It -is- your right. Whatever the case, you need to speak up. Come, you're big girl, surely you can manage that."

"I-I don't know what to say.." Kaia said, glancing away.

"Well, lets see if I can help. According to what Liara told me, you were found with the Corsairs, yes?"

"Yes.."

"But aren't one of them. And my friends tell me you aren't an Outcast either, despite the traces of cardamine in your system, are you?"

"I-I'm not Maltese.." Kaia answered, slightly evading the actual question.

"Well, if the Maltese ever taught Sirius something, it's that they never loose slaves. That leads me to believe you've been helped. I assume you've made friends there?"

"W-What do you mean?"

"I mean that you couldn't have gotten away from slavery alone. Someone helped you, yes?"

"H-How did you know I was a slave?" Kaia asked. Oriana sighed and brought up her monitor in front of the screen, walls of text portraying medical data scrolled down as the screening went on.

"Signs of malnutrition, several signs of previous abuse, traces of cardamine in the bloodstream with mild changes to the genetic structure as a result of both addiction and, if I'm reading this right, a rather distasteful session of hormone therapy. You can't hide from someone who wishes to help you, Kaia, but I can promise you, nobody will know what we talk about here, now." Kaia's eyes widened for a moment and then she looked away, feeling ashamed.

"I-I..." she didn't know what to say. The doctor sighed and looked down for a moment before gazing back at her.

"You don't need to be ashamed in front of me, Kaia. I'm a doctor, and it's my duty to know these things, because it's also my duty to help people with these problems. Though now I must ask, as you need to be sincere with me."

"-Do- you want my help ?"

"I-I don't know.. maybe.. I-I..." Kaia muttered, unsure. Oriana peered at Kaia, and despite feeling sorry for her condition, Grey flashed a friendly smile as she leaned back and gazed away in thought.

"You remind me of Liara when she was younger. Though she always charged headstrong, she expected me to always be against her. She'd always be muffled by the fact that I tended to ask her to be honest and tell me exactly what she wants." She giggled slightly in light of the pleasant memories.

"Poor child, always so confused. She'd go to her room and sit there for hours after each argument whenever things didn't go as she expected." Kaia blinked a bit, glancing at the screen. She wasn't sure how to reply to that.

"Even after she grew up and tended to pay a bit more attention to my advice, she still seemed confused at times. I could tell was what it was she wanted, even when she didn't. I guess that's what they mean when they say children sometimes need a little push."

Kaia tried to recall her own family, but her own subconsciousness pushed it away. It was then that Kaia realized that she had almost completely forgotten of her past family - and it continued to fade away. In the end, it wasn't like she could ever return to them, not like this. At least, that's how Kaia thought about it. Oriana finally looked back at Kaia as she finished trailing in her memories.

"Do you have family, Kaia?"

"No.. Not.. anymore.."

"May I ask what happened?"
"I'm.. I'm no longer the same person who lived in that family.."

"Then who are you, Kaia?"

"I-I.. I'm Kaia.. a former slave.."

"You haven't always been Kaia, have you? When did this all nightmare start?"

"I can't remember... f-four, five years ago.. I think?"

"And who do -you- want to be?"

"I.. I don't know.. I just.. don't want to be alone.. I don't.. want to be lost.."

"Well honey, I'm sorry to say I'm not in a position to help you with that as much as I'd like. I can guarantee from personal experience, Liara and her friends are worth the struggle. But I don't know about neither your family nor your friends."

"I've.. I've met some friends... After I was freed.."

"And how do you feel around them?"

"I.. feel at ease.."

"What of the Corsairs? How did you feel around them?"

"Uneasy.. they.. they forced me to go with them.."

"And, I assume The Order proceeded no differently, yes? Or do you feel differently about them?"

"Y-Yes but.. they.. they feel different.. but I fear that's because they don't know that I belong to-" she paused, realizing what she was about to say.

"What? The Outcast?" Oriana said.

Kaia hesitates but in the end nods, closing her eyes. "T-The Crimson Cross.." she said. Although it was part of the Outcasts, she didn't want to be part of the other Maltese.

"And why did you join them? Was it your decision, or your friends' persuasion?"

"M-My ma- previous master suggested.."

"And if you would be set free right now, would you go to them?"

"Y-Yes.."

"So they're close friends," Oriana states. Kaia nods.

"Tell me Kaia. Are you upset about the people here for taking you in? The Order, that is."

"I.. I don't know.. At first I was at least.."

"And now?"

"Not.. as much... a little bit.."

"I'm asking because, I have no say in your choices, neither should anyone else. But matters are such that, if and when you return to your friends, sooner or later, you will have to see the Order again. And for your own good, you will have to harm them."

"H-Harm..?"

"Your friends, despite how good they might be as people, openly worship a species of spirits which have and will continue to cause pain to humanity untill it is no more. The Order, the men and women you saw around you since you arrived where you are now, are known to fight them, and fight for the protection of humanity itself."

Kaia remained silent.

"Food for thought! Well now that we're done here, I believe you are free to go, Kaia. But regardless of what you wish to do, please be a good girl and contact me from time to time. I wish to ensure you are in good health and well taken care of."

"O-Okay.." Kaia said. Oriana then moves to hail Dr Rockford. The man steps back in the room shortly after, turning the lights back up as the scanner powered down. Kaia rose up. Humanity? That's something she had lost faith in after her first master.

"Well then, the doctor says you're cured young lady! Get dressed and off you go," the man stated happily as he discharged her. He also hailed for agent Stone to come pick her up when available as the two doctors remained and began discussing various aspect of the previous case. Kaia changed and then awaited Aelita by the door, looking distant.

Aelita soon came by and took her to the room. "So how was it?" she asks. After a small talk, she took Kaia to her room, gave her some things for the kitchen so she could make quite a few things and several drinks, and put some movies in the room and other things for entertainment before leaving. Upon being left alone in her room, she went on the bed, lying on her stomach, thinking about everything.

In a few hours there was again a knock on her door. "Kaia, it's Liara. Can I come in?" Kaia came closer to the door, but remembered that it was locked. "Yes.." she replied, waiting in front of it.
Liara nods afterwards at one of the guards which moved to slide a pass card through the door's security check to unlock it. She then proceeded to step inside, closing it behind her. Bowing before Kaia lightly, she flashed a friendly smile "So, how was the check-up? Did the Doctors sort you out?"

"I.. don't know" Kaia replies turning around. She stands on the spot for a moment before walking to the bed to sit down. Liara tilts her head slightly confused "Well I know it wasn't all pink and nice but it couldn't have been that bad, right?" she asked before approaching to take a seat on the stool next to the bed. She seemed genuinely uninformed regarding what happened. It seems that Dr. Grey kept her word in not telling anyone, atleast so far.

"It's just.. I don't really know what she wanted to.. achieve.." Kaia says. "She said she wanted to help, but.. I don't really know.. if it made any difference."

"Well...wanting to help and actually helping are two different things. But she's a doctor, so unless you don't want her help, she can't do it," Liara says.

"I don't.. really know how I could be helped.. I don't even know what kind of help I need."

"That's debateable. But, what did they say? Did they find any problems?"

"They didn't tell me much anything.."

"Well then, what's the problem?"

"That's.. the thing. I don't know."

"O-..kay, well, what would you like to do now?"

"To be honest.. I don't know, I.. I'm really... confused.." Kaia says and moves herself down on the bed, holding her hands together on her belly. Liara shrugs to herself as she loses herself in thought for but a moment. "Hey, since we're both from the same place, I have to ask. Ever miss traditional dishes?" she inquired, having randomly brought up the subject of food.

"Traditional.. dishes?" Kaia asked, remembering something.

"Hai! There's sushi and Teriyaki on the menu today. The latter comes with either noodles or-.." leans in closer and whispers: "Kyushu rice." She smirking as she herself seemed to be quite the closet gourmand.

Kaia opened her eyes from hearing the name of her birthplace. "I-I see.." she said.

"So then, hungry ? Was thinking maybe we should head over there and grab a bit before it's all gone." she then heard the knock outside the door and moved over, opening it.

"I suppose.." Kaia says, rising up on her feet and walks to the front door where Liara stood.

There was another soft knock on the door. Outside the room was standing a tall coalition looking female with a sickle and hammer tattoo on the back of her neck. In her hand was a small basket with all kinds of items. "As requested ma'am, straight from Atka," the woman said.

"Aah, you must be Kelly, right ? Good to finally meet you, Agent," she'd offer to shake hands after instructing one of the guards by the door to take the package to the medbay. Kelly shakes her hand and smiles. "Indeed I am, nice to meet you ma'am," she says, passing the guard the package. She spoke with a heavy coalition accent indeed. Liara peered back at Kaia and then at Kelly once more. "Got anything on schedule right now, Agent ?" she inquired with curiosity. "If not, come, join us in the mess hall. Kusarian specialties today, wouldn't want to miss those," she winked slightly before taking Kaia's hand and moving on towards the mess hall. Kaia was a bit surprised as she took her hand, but didn't mind it too much and followed.

"Nothing now and I'd love to join you, I've not eaten anything for close to two days now.. well, nor has my crew.." Kelly follows Liara. "And taking care of the crew comes first before me, but thats just me."

Liara lead them both to the mess hall. Passing the serving area she grabbed a food tray and gestured for them to follow her as she moved on towards the cook, a man well aged and a warming smile which bowed his head to them in greetings. For herself, she had a small plate of teriyaki and a bowl of ramen before turning to the other two.

"Help yourselves out girls. I'll go grab drinks and a table," she said before strutting off. They would later find her by a table next to the outter wall by the windows, with a decent view of space. At the table there was also another agent with whom Liara seemed to be acquainted with, along with a pot of sake and four cups.

Kaia nodded and went on to take a plateful of sushi. She was somehow very glad to see traditional kusarian food, especially of such good quality. Along with it, she took a small bowl of soy sauce as well as a cup of green tea and headed to the table where Liara was. She sat down next to Liara.

Kelly takes her own share of food before heading over with them. She had also taken a small glass of watered down Vodka, mainly having rice with a few things thrown into it. A tad bit later, Aelita joins the group as well.

Liara unclipped the chopsticks and hovered over the food joyfully before digging in. "Itadaki masu!" Kelly and Aelita also began eating.

"Ita.. dakimasu.." Kaia said quietly, not remembering when was the last time she said that phrase. She unclipped the chopsticks and started with a temaki sushi. Although it's been over five years, she still hasn't lost her touch. She dipped it in the soy sauce and put it in her mouth, enjoying it very much. After swallowing, she took a piece of ginger and put it in her mouth.

Kaia would continue eating like that, going through different kinds of rolls: cucumber and fish makis, nigiris and some more exotic ones. There were also some foreign-influenced rolls, such as the California-roll. Liara smirked as she leaned in and brushed her shoulder against Kaia "Looks like -somebody- really enjoying the food," snickering to herself.

Jason, the agent who was already at the table shifted his gaze from the window and over to Liara and the girl. "Why wouldn't she ? It -is- good food afterall."

"Traditional food. Some of these are my pride, you know." Liara added with a zealous gaze and a friendly smile. Kaia smiled innocently.

Kelly just looked happy to finally be eating something. Aelita spoke up, however: "Being with the Dragons for a while, they got some foods down there I've not seen before, all wonderfully good."

"And as a reminder, they had to fend starvation with what provisions they had. Imagine what they could've done with fresh provi-.." Liara then paused, reminding the debate from earlier when Aelita and Angel were trying to figure out where Kaia came from. She turned towards the girl, chopsticks pointing and a starstruck expression. "You're from Kyushu, by chance?"

Kaia froze and slowly lowered her chopsticks which held a maki. "I.. I was.." Kaia answered. Liara also remained silent following Kaia's reply before Jason turned rational on the discussion.

"It's only natural. Some portions of the province are mostly undefended with the naval forces drawn to Hokkaido nowadays, drawn by the Aoi spewing out of the Arc. Without the authorities, countless scoundrels have been known to raid the rice fields planetside and pillage. Conveniently grabbing innocents wherever they could. Slaves fetched good prices for Malta's slave markets."

Kaia looked away.

Aelita nods. "At least the Alliance has been quiet recently."

The group proceeds to talk for a while about different matters, with Kaia saying mostly silent. They talked about an agent and what not along with some mischief caused for fun. Liara sighed lightly: "Oh well, we atleast ought to let the waters clear out. On the other hand.."

She then looks at Kaia and back at Aelita "What do you think we should do with her? She's of no value as a prisoner, and with that out of the way, we can't keep her here against her will."

"Thats up to her, I was thinking on returning her home.. to her real home, not the Outcasts or the Corsairs.." Aelita answers.

"I.. I have no real home," Kaia says, sighing. Aelita gives her a questioning look.

"Will you return to your friends in the Cross, then?" she shot at with another inquiry. Kaia froze, glancing at Liara nervously, expecting her to see Kaia now as an enemy. Aelita smiles a bit and nudges her side "Relax, heres a piece of information. The admiral himself, the leader of the Order was once a Corsair. We hate aliens, but we give all humans a chance."

Kaia shifts her look back at her plate, not knowing what to say.
"But she's no enemy. Are you, Kaia?" she asked curiously, as she couldn't perceive the girl as a threat even if she were to rejoin the Cross. Kaia shook her head a bit. At least, she didn't want to be an enemy to them.

"Then go. Return to your friends, but don't tell them what happened. You being alive and unharmed will be a testament to cull their curiosity. I ask but one thing only, however." she fixed her gaze straight into Kaia's eyes. Kaia looked nervously at her.

"Should you ever find yourself in need of help, keep in touch with Oriana. She's qualified to help you in matters we cannot intervene."

"O-Okay.." Kaia said, relaxing a bit. "How.. how do I do that?"

"She's easy to find. Anyone at the Cambridge institute of Xenobiology can point you to her."

"I would need to travel.. to Bretonnia?"

"If you need to see her in person, then yes. If not, she usualy tends to her terminal, so sending her a transmission shouldn't take her too long to respond."

Kaia thinks, unsure if she really knows her adress to call. Even so, to call she would have to use Kenneth's terminal and it would reveal her actions. Aelita, seeing her reaction and thinking, brings out her voice: "If I may Ms. Grey, I can transport Kaia safely to Kusari or the Tau's where the Cross can pick her up. Much safer then flying alone from here to there."

"No point in risking it, Agent. She's indirectly associated with anything hostile that might bump into her form here to Alpha."

"Then I can drop her off on the Freeport in Delta."

"That would mean taking a detour. What about the back door ? Ever traveled through the anomalous system between here and Tohoku?" Liara said, looking at Aelita. Kaia glances at the one speaking each time, a bit surprised that they were going to return her safely, without any conditions, except for that small one.

"I have indeed, so I could get back here, mind you the dragons I fear might have something to say about me transversing the system, even more so her."

"My father has lordship over Tohoku. The Dragons will not stand in your way. I need you to escort her as far as Tau-23, then turn back. Her friends will find her long before she'll be in danger."

Aelita nods. "I can leave soon then and return within the next ten hours then."

"Hai. Get ready then." she ordered before looking at Kaia "Ready to go?"

"I-I don't know, I guess..?" she said, still thinking about how she would be able to contact Oriana. She'd need a personal terminal or something for that. Aelita stood before smiling "I'm ready to go then."

Kaia rose up and picked up the tray she had her plate and cup on. "Where do I put these?" she said, looking around. Kelly moves and takes them "I'll put them away, don't worry."

"Just leave them there dear. Someone will come cleaning." Liara says.

"Okay.." Kaia nods, glancing at Aelita. Aelita smiles and starts to lead Kaia back to the Lyoko. Kaia follows. The agent gets to the Hathor, buckling Kaia in before getting in herself and start to take off. Kaia sat there slightly nervous. "Umm.. I'm unsure if.. I'll be able to contact Mrs Oriana Grey, I.. I don't have any means to."

"Its fine, I'm sure in the long run you will be able to," Aelita answers. Kaia sits and watches the front window.

It's been some time since they had left, but soon enough the Lyoko, the ship they were on, made its way through Kusari space into the Tau's where it waited near the Java station for a moment before heading to the Freeport station in Tau-37. Once there, agent Stone broadcasted a message using her old Cross identifier to have one show up. Kaia waited with her. It still seemed so odd that an enemy of the Spirits would be so kind to her.

Surely a Crimson Cross ship did show up: The Cottonera, from a patrol in Omicron Alpha picked up the message. Although it was a bit of a detour, the ship still follow the signal and redirected its course to Freeport 10.

The Lyoko waited near the Freeport. It seemed to stand down as the Cottonera neared the Freeport and the comms cracked to life. On the other side was no-one else but Kenneth.

"Are you a member of the Cross?" agent Stone asks. Upon seeing the Order gunship, Kenneth became quite tense. He would have powered up his weapon had it not been for the no-fire zone.

"Why should I tell you?" Kenneth asks. Agent Stone turns the screen to show Kaia.

"I got a 'carepackage' to deliver to them unharmed, is why. Straight command from the Vice Admiral of the Order to return it safe and sound to it's home." Kaia looked embarrased, however happy to see Kenneth. She looked away however, as she expected him to be angry for being captured and all. Kenneth, however, was quite relieved to know that Kaia was safe after seeing her. He still continued to be cautious, as this was the Order.

"Why would the Order give an enemy back? What did you do to her?"

"We did nothing. As a matter of fact, I picked her up from the Corsairs who wanted to keep her on a leash. All I did was make sure she had some medical attention beforehand as it seemed she was kind of roughed up." Agent Stone look into Kenneth's. "The Order's job is to stop the nomads. You are a human, and so are all the Outcasts. We may hate each other, but the Order will still give you a chance." Agent Stone motioned with her hands. "She's ready for pickup. I can moor or drop her off on the station, whichever suits you the best, Captain."

Kenneth, still not entirely trusting, says: "Dock with the station. I will meet her there." Agent Stone nodded and moored the Lyoko to the Freeport. She moved over to Kaia to unbuckle her. "Go ahead and wait on the station. Once you're across and inside, I'll unmoor and you're free to go." She smiled to Kaia and moved away so she could leave. In the meantime, the Cottonera was mooring with the station.

"T-Thank you.." Kaia said, coming off the ship. "Really, I.. I'm really grateful," she says now outside. The Lyoko then unmoors from the station and takes away, but remains about five clicks of distance from it and waits for something.

Kenneth saw Kaia walk through one of the docking ports and quickly ran over to her, hugging her. With a warmful voice he says: "I've been so worried this week, are you alright?" Kaia was really surprised and slowly hugged him back, her emotions rushing through her and finally breaking out in the form of tears. "I-I'm so sorry.."

"Don't be. You were heavily outgunned against that battleship. There wasn't anything you could do." Kaia just hugged him tighter and cried on his shoulder. Kenneth continued to embrace her, thankful that she was alright.

The two continued this for some time, thankful for being together once again. Eventually they calmed down a bit, and seeing that they were making a scene on the Freeport, Kenneth suggested taht they head back to the Cottonera and head home. Kaia nods, but suddenly begins coughing quite badly. Keneth, once again worried, asked Kaia if she was alright and when was the last time she was exposed to cardamine. Kaia explains in short what had happened. The cardamine eztraction, the medication by Corsairs. Then the Order who saved her. She coughs again, badly. Kenneth realised that she was suffering from withdrawl, and quickly brought her to the Cottonera, which had cardamine in its atmosphere.

It took quite a while for Kaia to stop coughing. Kaia's state turned relaxed and her mind went absent. Kenneth, still a bit worried, asked if she was alright, but there was no response. Kaia's pupils were larger than normal too. Becoming extremely worried, Kenneth gave the order to to get to Malta as quickly as possible. Hopefully one of the hospitals would be able to help her.

Suddenly the Cottonera would get a call from the Lyoko. Agent Stone was leaving, but stated: "The corsairs removed a ton of the cardi from her body, almost five years worth of her time is gone in her body..." With that, she closed the channel and departed.

Now Kenneth was really worried. People weren't supposed to ever stop using cradamine, especially not so quickly. Kaia clearly needed some to keep her alive, and he began searching the ship for some that wasn't used to feed the ships air supply. He found none. In the meantime, Kaia was moved to the medical bay while he went away and found somthing in his quarters that should help. Two units of liquid cardamine that he recieved from a Nomad a few months back. Kenneht brought them and injected them into Kaia. It seemed to help, but her state remained. It seemed that her state was the result of being re-exposed to cardamine. As such, she remained unresponsive.

There wasn't much that could be done aside from waiting now. Malta was about fifteen minutes away at their current speed. Kenneth sat beside her, hoping that the doctors at Malta would be able to help.

They eventually reached malta, and once the ship was moored, Kenneth immediately brought Kaia to a shuttle which he directed to one of the nearby hospitals. Once there, he brought Kaia to the emergency room and explained the situation. The doctors quickly took her in and began working. In the mean time all Kenneth could do was wait in the waiting room.

The next three hours seemed to last eternity, however Kenneth didn't falter. Right now, this was all that was important to him. Finally, the doctors come out and declare that Kaia was conscious again. Instantly Kenneth asked if he could go see her. The doctors allowed it and Kenneth almost bolted inside.

Although Kaia was conscious, she looked drained of all energy. "Hey.." she said very quietly, glancing at him. Glad to see that she was conscious, he asked: "How are you feeling?"

"I don't know, I.. I can't move my body.."

"You need to rest, your body is extremely stressed out after what it went through." Kaia looked forward now, resting as before. Kenneth sat near her and waited, hoping to provide some comfort. Kaia tried to move her hand but was unable to even lift her finger.

"K.. Kenneth.." she says a bit shyly.

"Is there something you need?" Kenneth responded. Kaia glances at him and then closes her eyes, smiling. "Thank you" she says. Kenneth smiled as well, and let her rest, but remained by her side, still wanting to provide comfort. Kaia tried again to move her hand, but only her fingers shifted slightly. It was quite hard with the relaxants. Kenneth saw how she tried to move her hand to him, but was unable to, so he moved his hand to hold hers. Kaia smiled a bit more, seeming to blush a bit. She kept her eyes closed, looking quite peaceful.

Kenneth let her rest, but still waited, being concerned for her. Although her whole body was completely relaxed, Kaia did her best to somewhat hold his hand too. The nurses keep monitoring her and speak to each other quietly.

A doctor came in to review some data and glanced to Kenneth. "She should regain her strength in an hour or so," he says, seeing that Kenneth is concerned. "She will have to take things easy for a few days as she might feel dizzyness and lightheadedness. Everything else is alright," he explains, going through some papers. Kenneth was glad to hear that and looked forward to heading home with Kaia, but for now he continued to wait beside her.

After an hour or so the doctors and nurses made a last checkup. They brought Kenneth back to the waiting room and after fifteen minutes Kaia walked out of the room, a bit wobbling. Seeing Kaia walking unsteadily, Kenneth rushed over to give her some support and they began walking back to the shuttle.

"T-Thanks.." Kaia said quietly, smiling. She walked with his support.

"You're welcome", he responded. The two entered the shuttle and went back to the plantation, looking forward to the end of this stressful day.

Kaia was really happy to see home again, so that it could be seen through her expression. Kenneth was happy to be back home as well. The two entered the mansion and undressed. Kenneth helped Kaia at every turn. It was late in the day, and Alessia had prepared dinner for the two, as was expected of her. Kaia moved towards the table with Kenneth and thanked Alessia while sitting down on her chair. She waited for Kenneth before beginning to eat anything.

Dinner was great and delicious and the two finished it after a while. For the remainder of the day, they chatted about various things.

"So, what happened over the few days?" Kenneth asks. Kaia summarized her story to Kenneth, about how she was taken against her will by the Corsairs, what the Corsairs did and all. What Santos Benitez had said and how she tried to flee after being given a ship. In the end, she was taken by the Order. She told about her stay with the Order and how well she was treated to her surprise, and how in the end she was brought back to him.

The sun had already gone below the horizon and dusk settled in on Malta. Kenneth got up, feeling that it's time to go to bed. Kaia brought the dishes to the kitchen and moved with Kenneth. Before parting to their own rooms, Kaia stopped with him. "Good night, Kenneth," she said a bit shyly, feeling quite fatigued. It took her a lot of strength to even keep herself on her feet. It looked like she could fall at any moment. As Kaia began going up the stairs to her room, Kenneth glanced at her and saw that she was still walking unsteadily, and once again, helped her.

"Thanks.." Kaia said. As the two got into her room, she sat down on her bed. She so just wanted to fall down and go to sleep, but she still needed to undress first and take off the day sheets off the bed. Kenneth wondered why she just sat down and offered his help again with anything.

Kaia answered that she felt so tired that she just wanted to lay down without doing anything anymore, but at the same time wanted to get underneath the comfortable sheets. She chuckled a bit, not knowing if she has ever been like this before. Kenneth smiled a bit and moved on to take the day sheets off the bed. Kaia stood back up reluctantly to let him do it. It still felt quite odd. Her past master, doing such a thing for his past slave. Now all that was left for her was to undress the clothes the Order had given her and go underneath the sheets. Still seeing her hesitating, Kenneth asked, "Is there anything else?"

"N-No.. I think.. Thanks," Kaia said, slowly unzipping her coat-like clothing and trying to get her arms away from the sleeves. Underneath she had a black tank top. Since there was nothing left for Kenneth to do, he went back to his room so he could sleep as well. "Good night," Kenneth said. Kaia returned the wish and Kenneth's steps echoed as he walked down the stairs. Kaia undressed after he left, went under the sheets and after a while fell asleep.

More than a month has passed since Kaia returned to Malta and reassumed her duties. She had decided to improve herself so that she would not be a burden to others. She practised how to fly and fight better so that she could at least fight back to some extent. In due time, Kaia had learned the essentials and went on more and more missions assigned to her by the Crimson Cross command.

Patrol - The Siniestre cloud in Omicron Alpha, which contains the sacred Graveyard which the Spirits too guard. Kaia intercepted a ship tresspassing and dealt accordingly. The ship was escorted to Valetta and Kaia continued her duty.

Escort - There was one large escort which had over eight transports heading to Puerto Rico which Kaia escorted alongside other Cross members. Another time, she protected the Maltese territory against the Gas Miners Guild in Omicron Beta.

Guard - As Kaia was posted guard at the Omicron Beta system, the GMG were invading into the system in pursuit of a cardamine transport. Along with other guarding pilots, Kaia fought them and the Maltese side was victorious, having suffered no casualties.

Much happened during the month and Kaia grew ever more sure of both herself and her allegiance to the Spirits, the only purity known to her. Surely enough, the Spirits noticed her too.

The day was growing late as Kaia returned to Kenneth's mansion on Malta. She felt tired, having worked a lot. After entering the mansion and undressing her coat and boots, she looked around the house. Alessia would come out and tell that she has prepared food. Kaia wondered about Kenneth, but he was as always away. Ever since his promotion, he has been absent. Kaia sighed lightly and went to sit down to the table. She and Alessia ate, talking a bit. It was maybe the first time ever they had talked with each other normally, without their past affecting them, at least not too much. The girls finished the food and Kaia headed upstairs to go to sleep early. She wanted to do her best tomorrow too.

Kaia entered her room and began undressing, looking out her window at Vesuvius alit in the sky. Finally she put on her nightwear, a black and slightly transparent night gown. She removed the day sheets away, folding them neatly and shut the lights off. Finally she was in bed.

Kaia wasn't yet asleep as footsteps echoed up to her room. They became a bit louder with each step as they approached the door. Through the door came in a non-Maltese man, his irises glowing purple. Kaia rather drowsily opened her eyes, expecting Kenneth but bolted up against the wall behind her as she saw the unknown to her man. His eyes however revealed to her who, or rather what he was.

"I-I'm honoured by your visit, holy spirit.." Kaia says, pulling up the sheets to cover herself. She blinks and even blushes slightly, not expecting such company when she's already in bed.

"This is physical manifestation, merely one that is in your mind," the voice said, sounding Bretonian. The man moved to take a chair and sit down on it, his eyes seeming to look through her more than actually looking at her.

"T-To what do I owe the pleasure..?" Kaia says, holding the sheets to her chest to cover her torso. Before Kaia would appear the same vision she had once seen before: Three people - one her, one her body and another her, but with purple glowing eye with strange symbols before her. Kaia blinks as the image appeared.

"You have been given the time to consider, is this something you would wish?"

"That, what the Spirits wish is what I wish too.." Kaia says, gulping. "I-I will gladly become part of your holiness, it will.. make me feel warmth."

The Man would shimmer and fade away. Kaia was now shown a tree by a lake, around it a Cardamine plantation. It was a summoning vision and a small purple thread appeared along the ground for her to follow once the image of the lake disappeared. Kaia rose up a bit nervous and yet excited. Her emotions were again stirring inside her like leaves in a whirlwind. Kaia moved to the door and followed the purple thread.

The thread would lead outside the house. A vision of herself stood before the doorway like a mirror. It then dawned on Kaia what it meant. Feeling slightly embarrased she went on to just put a warm coat on herself as well as boots. Her mind was rather fixed on the thread and following what she was asked to do. She would have even forgot to dress herself if not for the one guiding her. She continued on to follow the thread.

It seemed that the thread would go off in a direction. Kaia recieved a feeling that it would take days to get there by foot. It seems she would be flying there. Kaia moved to her ship and opened it. Fortunately her keys were always in her coat pocket when she was at home. She powered it up and lifted the craft off ground. The thread was as bright as it was close up to her and she followed it.

When Kaia reached the end of the thread, she found herself at a house by a lake. It was nothing special. A ship, the civilian light interceptor Arrow by the looks of it rested beside the house. The same man that she had seen in the vision stood by the house, his eyes glowing the same intriguing purple colour. Kaia exited her ship and walked towards the house. The man seemed to nod and opened the door, letting Kaia go inside.

All the doors that she was not to take were closed and locked, leaving a simple path for Kaia. The two ended up in a bedroom. The man motioned Kaia to it. Kaia blinked and began to speculate a little bit. A bedroom? The whole situation felt quite tense and as such the smallest emotions seemed to be amplified. The man would turn his gaze to her.

"It is best that you lay down for this, Kaia," he says.

"L-Lay down?" Kaia blinked again, her face turning slightly red, but with the dim light it wouldn't be discernable. Kaia begins undressing her coat and boots and finally lays down on the bed rather nervously. Once on the bed, the man sat on the edge. It was in this moment that the nomad Marduk ship in orbit sought to suppress Kaia's consciousness. It easily succeeded, and Kaia entered a deep sleep.

Kaia's eyes opened to the sky dawning outside the window. She was still in the bedroom by the lake, but her coat had been put on top of her. She felt quite different now, very different, almost like there was somebody else. The world around her looked much different now and her body too, felt more sensitive. Soon enough she understood what happened as a voice inside her head spoke:

"Ours ~greet~ enlightened-one."

Kaia tried to move her body, but it seemed to not respond. Kaia didn't panic though, rather felt an odd pleasant warmth inside of her.

"I-I am honoured to meet you, holy Spirit," Kaia thinks. It seems however that her facial expressions moved still automatically according to her feeling.

"Ours ~wonder~ / Enlightened-one's (feeling) of ~losing~ body."

It was clear now. The nomad, the incubus inside her had all control of her body now. Still, Kaia was so happy. Happy to be finally part of the Spirits she so long adored, worshipped. It felt like her dream had just been fulfilled.

"I-I just feel happy to have you, holy Spirit in me, watching over me.. I so much longed to be of use to you.." Kaia thought, feeling a great amount of joy that she seemed to begin to cry. "Thank you.." Kaia said, and intuitively tried to brush off her tears. To her surprise, the arm moved. Kaia blinked a bit, wondering what happened.

"Ours ~remain~ in control / Enlightened-one ~seek~ family of -light-one-. Ours shall ~fulfill~ yours -will- / Long 'as' yours ~show~ no -resistance-."

It was a pact. As long as Kaia did not resist any orders from the nomad it would let Kaia's will through. While objectively it was complete imprisonment and strip of control, to Kaia it was like ascension. Becoming one with a Spirit was something very extraordinary to her, something that made her extremely happy. Kaia rose up from the bed and put on her coat as well as boots. The sun was about to rise - she should be going to work soon. Kaia still had her night gown on, so a trip back home was neccesary. On her way, she seemed to enjoy herself well. She tried to talk with the new resident in her body, by which the nomad seemed to be surprised. As the nomad couldn't give her any name, Kaia decided to call the Spirit Seirei, meaning Spirit in japanese. A new day was ahead of her, as well as a completely new life.

Kaia's visitor.

With time Kaia participated in more and more operations, out of which one notable was a battle with the Kusari Exiles. While on patrol in the Tau-29 system, Kaia and Sabina Venneri, also a member of the Cross found three unknown ships being attacked by the Kusari Exiles. Their identity wasn't clear, except for Kaia. They were infected, or rather enlightened as Kaia thought of it, and belonged to the Aoi Iseijin. Kaia heard their call for help and decided to aid. This resulted in a larger scale raid in Roussillon which ended in a total defeat for the Exiles and flawless victory for the Cross and Aoi. After such a long day, Kaia and Kenneth were returning back home, to Malta.

Both Kaia's ship and Kenneth's gunship Furtiva landed on the pads near his mansion and the two exited their ships. The gunboat had seen less use since Kenneth recieved the Cottotnera, but it still proved to be useful from time to time. The two met up near the path leading to Kenneth's mansion. Kaia seemed to be zoned out for the moment there like she had a few times in space on their way back, but quite quickly refocused on him and gave him a light smile. "I'm.. really glad to see you again, Kenneth."

Kenneth smiled as well, being happy to see Kaia again. The cross had kept him busy for the past week. "I'm glad to see you too," he replied. Kaia stood there for a bit, just looking at him in the eyes before realizing that she was staring. "W-We should probably go inside.." she said and glanced towards the mansion. Kenneth agreed, being a bit concerned for Kaia and how she was zoning out so frequently, so the two quickly made their way inside.

Inside Kaia undressed her outside weather clothes. She had on a light blouse with a skirt accompanied with black tights. "How have things been for you at the Cross, Kenneth?"

"Things have been busy, especially since the promotion. There was a bunch of work that had to be done and still is not finished," he replied scratching his chin.

"I-I see.." Kaia seemed to stare at him for a bit again until she glanced slightly lower and to the side. Kenneth saw her zoning out again, and was becoming more concerned. He asked her again if anything was wrong and if there was somthing he could do to help.

"A-Ah, it's nothing" Kaia dismissed it, blushing lightly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to stare at.. you like that.." all of a sudden she seemed to act slightly nervous. Still concerned for her, Kenneth asked: "Is somthing bothering you? Please tell me, let me help you."

"No, no, nothing's bothering me, I.." Kaia seemed to stumble on her words a bit. From time to time she glanced at him and then away. One thing was for sure: each time she looked at him she became a bit red.

"Something is clearly on your mind, what is it?" Kenneth asked. Kaia exhaled lightly, fixing her gaze kind of away now.

"I-I.. Isn't it evident.."

It suddenly dawned upon Kenneth what she was hinting at. He was definitely a bit suprised, but he should have realised it earlier. He definitely had feelings for her, but never acted on them out of respect, but if Kaia also holds such feelings, it changes everything. He moved in to embrace her.

"I'm sorry it took me so long."

Kaia blinked, feeling very surprised. "A-.. I-I.." by now she was speechless. This was a reaction that she did not expect at all, although hoped for. It was completely against all that she had experienced in the past. Maybe there was something in humans that was still pure? Slowly, Kaia returned with her own embrace and tightened her grip.

The two continued their embrace happily for some time, but eventually calmed down. Kenneth then made the suggestion that they go to the city for the rest of the day and do somthing fun. Kaia nodded, smiling yet looking a bit teary in the corners of her eyes. She seemed to zone out a bit again, but quickly recollected and recomposed herself.

The two then went to the shutttle and after about half an hour, they arrived at the city. Kenneth suggested that they go someplace nice for dinner and then go see a play at one of the theaters. Kaia nodded again, feeling just happy that he was so okay with her feelings. She would follow him anywhere he wanted to.

The two made their way to one of the highly recomended restaurants and were luckily able to be seated without a reservation. Kaia stepped inside as Kenneth opened the door for her. She looked quite nervous as she was inexperienced on how one should act and what one should do in such a highly cultural place. Kenneth saw her nervousness. "Relax, it's no different here than if we were eating back at home."

"A-Ah, okay," Kaia said, giving him a smile. She seemed quite happy. A bit excitingly now she awaited what would happen next. Probably the menus, she thought. Quite quickly enough they came in. The two eyed the menus for a while until finally they had chosen what they'll have. Kenneth ended up deciding to order a steak while Kaia choose a chicken fillet, which mostly had vegetables in it as well as rice. While waiting for the food to arrive, Kenneth decided to just talk for a while.

"So, what have you been doing while I was away for the past week?"

"Well.. patrolling, guarding.. aiding the Spirits." Kaia smiled.

"That is good to hear. Anything particularly interesting?"

"A younger Spirit who.. calls herself Nash took a liking to me.." Kaia recalls the events. "I uhh.. taught her how to hug.." Kenneth was suprised by this.

"That sounds interesting, how did it turn out?"

"It.. tried to hug my ship." Kaia said and laughed. "It.. was so adorable. I had to explain a bit that a hug requires the two bodies, but mine was inside the ship, not the ship itself. Nash later met me in a vision and gave a sincere hug." Kaia seemed to be in her thoughts while recalling this interesting event.

"Well, that is good to hear. I'm sure the clergy are pleased." Kaia nods, smiling.

"There have been a few.. battles too. I don't know how I've survived so far, but we fended off the Corsairs one time and the GMG another time. The latter one without casualties." The food arrived at that moment and the two prepared to begin eating.

"Well, it is good to hear that your getting more combat experience," Kenneth says, picking up his fork and knife. Kaia nodded and before beginning to eat, stated: "Itadakimasu!" Kennneth wasn't sure what that meant, so he asked her about it.

"It means 'have a good meal' in my native tongue." Kaia smiled, beginning to eat. Kenneth smiled as well and began to eat his steak.

"Anything eventful by you, Kenneth?" Kaia asked, eating her chicken fillet.

"Well, aside from the paperwork, there were a few dealings with the congress in an attempt to keep them selling premium scrap here despite the price cut, as well as convincing the owners of Valetta to restore the original prices," he replied.

"I see." Kaia says, eating. The two continued to talk about the little things that had happened in their everyday life while they didn't see each other. In due time the two finished their meal and Kenneth suggested that they go see a play. Kaia agreed. "Lead on, Kenneth" she said, smiling.

Kenneth asked if she wanted to see anything in particular. Kaia, however didn't know any plays. She didn't get to see any at any point. Kenneth tried to get some kind of direction by asking if she wanted to see a comedy, tragedy, or somthing else.

"What would you recommend?" Kaia looked at him, again getting caught with staring at him with the same feeling of admiration and fascination as before.

"Personally I enjoy comedies, but you might enjoy somthing else. It's up to you."

"I.. really don't know.. I think we should go with whatever you see best."

"Well, why don't we go see one that I remember being very enjoyable. There is a good comedy from Earth that was remade here. Why don't we go see that?" Kaia nods happily.

"Let's watch it!"

The two then made their way to the theater. Kenneth purchaced the tickets, and although they weren't for the best seats, it still gave a good view of the performance. Kaia followed Kenneth to the seat and sat down. She had never been to a play before, but knew roughtly how it should progress. The play soon began, a modernized version of one of Oscar Wilde's comedies. The audience fell silent as the actors began the first scene. Kaia too fel silent and watched.

The play was about a man livig a double life in both the city and a plantation. This is discovered by his friend shortly before he proposes to his friend's sister. His friend is fine with this, but then decides to take up a double life as well, using the same name that his friend used in the city.

So now with both of them using the name Earnest, one using it in the city and the other on the plantation. It should have went well, assuming that only one person was using the name at the time and that one person's friends did not meet the other's.

Unfortunately this did not last, and while the first Earnest was at the plantation, using the name Jack, his friend showed up, using the name Earnest, to his friend's annoyance. He further antagonizes him by proposing to Jack's Niece. This was performed in a quite comedic way and the audience numerously fell into laughter. Kaia did too, but with simple smiles and sometimes giggles.

The situation continues to worsen when Jack's fiance decided to visit the plantation and meets his Niece. The two begin to talk about their lives and his Niece mentiones how Earnest had proposed to her. This confused the other as she had also been proposed to by Earnest.

The two then brought who they thought was Earnest to explain their actions, as both thought that one man had proposed to both women, when in reality, there were two men who both were not the Earnest who had claimed that they were. This is then realized, as they both see the "other" Earnest as well as the one who they thought to be the original. Both still demanded though that they keep the name Earnest. After a bit more discussion, one makes the comment "I finally realized the importance of being Earnest," making the whole show a build up to a single pun. The public fell into laughter and so ended the play "The Importance of Being Earnest."

Once the applause stopped, people began to make their way out. Kenneth turned to Kaia and asked: "So, what did you think?"

"It was.. certainly interesting. And all for a single pun..." Kaia said, smiling a bit. The two made their way back to the shuttle to head back to the plantation. Kaia seemed to retract inside her mind, but kept a faint smile. It seems she was both really energized from this and tired from the day.

They soon reached home and made their way inside, happy to finally be back home. Kaia walks in with Kenneth and undresses her coat and boots, stretching slightly. Kenneth too undresses his coat and shoes. He turned to Kaia and asks how she is feeling.

"I'm feeling good" she says with a smile. "What.. about yourself?"

"I've never been happier," Kenneth says as he went in to hug Kaia once more. Kaia was again surprised by this, but quickly and happily returned the embrace. "Me too.."

The two continued their embrace for a bit, but it was getting quite late. Kenneth then suggested that they start heading to bed. Kaia nodded, feeling lightly nervous. She had no idea why. Kenneth, noticing it, asked if something was on her mind.

"Ah, no, there's nothing on my mind, well, except for.. you.." Kaia said. It still kind of felt odd that she had such feelings. She wasn't really a woman, but neither was she anything near a man. It felt really strange. Especially after feeling so much care after being abused over and over. "I think I'm just.. still being surprised about this all.. Maybe the sleep will do good." She smiled
.
"Alright then, good night Kaia," Kenneth says.

"Good night, Kenneth.." she says, and heads upstairs but stops for a moment to look back at Kenneth. It seemed like she wanted to say something but couldn't bring herself to. She just continued to head back up. Kenneth's eyes trailed her until she was out of sight and he himself headed too to his room. He proceeded to make himself ready to get to bed.

Once inside her room, Kaia sighs lightly, leaning on the door. After a bit she begins undressing herself and put on her night gown before going underneath the sheets and to sleep. She still had a smile on her. She couldn't remember when was the last time she had a longlasting smile like that. Meeting Kenneth was quite a turning stone in her life. With happy thoughts, Kaia fell asleep under Malta's moon and breeze.

It was a normal day for Kaia, another day on guard duty to make sure that the Maltese traffic was undisrupted. It seemed quite boring, but Kaia managed. Soon though, she saw the Cottonera take off to space from Malta.

"Hello, Kenneth," Kaia says with a smile. "How are you feeling?"

"Hello. I'm fine, How are you?" Kenneth responds.

"I'm fine too," Kaia says and smiles. "Have you survived through all that paperwork yet?"

Kenneth seems to chuckle a bit. "I seem to be finished with it for now."

"That's good to hear," Kaia answers and spots a ship on her scanner fifteen clicks away, moving towards Malta.

"So, what have you been doing when I was gone?"

"Patrolling and guarding mostly. Sometimes escorting too." Kaia's attention turns to the Freelancer now about five clicks away. "Hello there." Kenneth too greets the ship going by the sign 'Texas Red.'

"Evenin," it replies. Kaia scans the ships cargo only to be apalled. A sudden feel of anger begins making its way out of Kaia.

"Supplying more voluntary laborers," the ship states. Although Kaia has the piloting helmet on, it's evident that she's displeased.

"Hm? Something on your mind?" the pilot of the Texas Red asks.

"Yes. I very much dislike slave trading. Have you got no shame?" Kaia bursts out.

"Hm, well you should actually be thanking me. If it weren't for me, how else do you think your ships would be made?"

Kaia felt disgust, hate, irritation, anger, suffering. It felt like a large clump of negativity was burning her body from the inside, turning her flesh to ash. Oh how much she wanted to fire on the ship and after that shoot the pilot. Yet, she refrained. Either she still had the willpower to suppress such a thing, or it was Seirei keeping her restrained. In any case, it was good that she did not shoot.

"Get out before I shoot your ship to bits."

"Sure can do," the Texas Red replies and proceeds to dock with Malta. A moment of silence befell the comms.

"So..." Kenneth finally broke it. The comms again fell silent for a minute or two.

"..Sorry, I... shouldn't have burst out like that.." Kaia sighs, sounding like she was ill.

"It's alright, I can unnderstand why you are upset. Would you like anything?"

"I.. I don't know.." Kaia says, feeling as if something is punching out of her stomach.

"Are you alright?" Kenneth asks concerned, hearing that Kaia's not alright at all. Kaia had her first burst of anger in over five years. An emotional push like that couldn't make one feel to good.

"I'm.. just not feeling too well."

"Well, if you want, we can head back to the plantation," Kenneth proposed.

"Thank you, that.. would do good, I think.." Kaia replies, slowly steering her ship towards Malta. Kenneth followed behind her.

Kaia lands once again on Malta. It felt quite odd to have such a strong negative reaction take over her, and from just such a simple thing. Kenneth followed close behind, and although he was a bit suprised by her outburst, he understood what triggered it. Hopefully he would be able to provide some comfort for her. Kaia stood near the road going from the landing pads to his mansion, waiting for Kenneth. Her expression showed that she too was surprised and puzzled, somehow even horrified. Kenneth soon exited his craft and found Kaia waiting nearby. As they began walking to the mansion, he asked:

"So, is there anything you want to talk about?"

"I-I don't know.. What would there be?" Kaia sighs, sounding a bit hopeless. "I've been a slave, I've seen others far less fortunate than me... I wouldn't... want the same for another.." This definitely put Kenneth in a difficult position. After all, despite treating them well, he still owned slaves. For that matter, most of the slaves on Malta were still treated ethically, Kaia had just hapened to be unlucky. Kenneth didn't know what to say. Kaia sighs, clenching her fists a bit.

"I can only pray to the Spirits that they will have merciful masters.."

"Well, they most likely will. Most people treat slaves ethically."

"I hope so.." Kaia said, turning towards him, while looking down, holding her hands in front of her together. "If only they were more like you.." Kaia said glancing up once, but quite soon her eyes went back down, looking at his chest. Once again, Kenneth hugged Kaia. "I hope so too."

Kaia hugged him tightly. A hug was probably the most comforting thing she could ever get, especially after so much physical abuse in her life.

"Thank you for listening.." Kaia said quietly.

"I'll always be willing to listen to you."

"Hopefully it'll be more about happier things in the future.." Kaia smiled a bit.

"I hope so too," replied Kenneth, also smiling a bit. Kaia moves from the embrace, thinking that they should head to the mansion. It was still quite chilly outside at this time of the year. The two resumed their walk and soon made it inside. Kaia steps inside and undresses her coat and boots as always, as does Kenneth.

Kaia feels a rumbling in her stomach, noticing only now that she was a little bit hungry. Okay, not a little bit, but a decent amount. It was arround dinner time, so Alessia was probably in the kitchen preparing the food. Kaia headed there with Kenneth, greeting Alessia. She was there indeed, preparing food. Alessia soon finished perparing the meal, Fettuccine Alfredo and chicken, and brought the plates to the dining room. Kaia sat down along with Kenneth and thanked Alessia. "Itadakimasu." Kaia said with a slight smile and began eating. The two continued eating for some time and Kenneth asked, what Kaia thought of her meal. Kaia told that she really liked it. Of course, the food home was really nice, but there was a kind of exotic feeling in a restaraunt and its food. The two eventually finished and Alessia took the plates to the kitchen. Kenneth again insisted if Kaia wanted to talk about anything.

"I just.. want to be with you."

Once again, Kenneth hugged Kaia, and during their embrace, he went on to kiss her on the lips. Kaia was startled, feeling very surprised. Her eyes widen a bit before they close as she feels the kiss. This man really didn't see it as a problem that she wasn't completely female? Even when Kaia had been with other slaves, many of them thought of Kaia as a freak after finding out that 'she' was actually a 'he'. She was ridiculed and mistreated because of this. Yet Kenneth... He didn't seem to mind. Kaia embraced him too, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Alessia saw what Kenneth was doing and was furious. How could he fall for that freak, she thought. At this moment she began plotting. She still was however forced into servitude, so it would be difficult to get away with any bold moves. She would have to be careful to avoid further punishment, but hopefully, with enough effort, she would be able to seduce her way back into power.

Kaia would not break the kiss. If it were up to her, she'd continue for long. The joy and happiness she felt from it was unbelievable to her. The two continued their embrace for some time, but stopped when they heard somthing shatter. Keneth walked into the kitchen to see what had happened. It appeared to be that Alessia had dropped one of the dishes. Kenneth scolded her and told her to be more careful. Although on the outside Alessia appeared sorry, she was glad that the two had finally stopped kissing.

Kaia still stood there, wobbled for a second but regained her balance from the amazing experience she had. Nobody had ever shown her such care, nobody. If heaven would feel like something, it'd be how she felt now. That's what she thought. Kenneth came back to Kaia and asked if she wanted to do anything before it gets late. Kaia shakes her head.

"We could.. just be together." Kenneth hugged her again, at Alessia's disapproval.

"We'll always be together."

"Even.. Even at night..?" Kaia asks quietly. She felt quite nervous about that in the past, the night was the only time she could be truly only with herself. Sharing something like that with another human, especially a man was quite a step for her. Kenneth smiled at her.

"Even at night," Kenneth assured. Kaia looked up at him, with a happy and a bit nervous face. She hoped that Kenneth would sleep more often at home now as he was previously quite occupied with his work since his promotion. Kenneth looked out the window, seeing dusk taking place on this side of Malta. He suggested that they'd head to bed soon.

The two made their way upstairs to do their evening routines after which to Kenneth's bedroom. Kaia excused herself however and went to her own room first. Kenneth went to his and began undressing, wondering a bit. Soon, Kaia would return with only a larger jacket on.

"Why are you wearing your jacket?" Kenneth asked, raising an eyebrow. Kaia took it off and put the jacket on a nearby chair, holding her hands in front of her together, almost like hiding something. The transparent black gown she had on exposed much of her body. Whoever transformed Kaia had done a strikingly good job. She still had black underwear however, pretty much the same skimpy ones that Alessia had made her wear. Nobody had given her "normal" underwear at any point. Kenneth eyed her.

"You look gorgeous.." Kenneth says. Kaia blushingly comes nearer at the ready bed and slides in. This was a night when Kaia felt finally truly connected to another human being and perhaps the only one at that. It was a large step for Kaia as well as Kenneth, given the special circumstance. The night went on, but the two would succumb to sleep only a while later, Kaia in Kenneth's arms.

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