Hild stares at Gaston Hardy, not bothering to hide. She could remember the first time they met. It was in Barcelona where she found Janna making a mess in a bar. They were young back then.

She met Janna Forster in a strange time of her life. Back then there were no Breakers out in the open strutting like chickens..

Back then the world was lawless. She recalled meeting two thugs in the open. She recalled the sight of Janna punching those thugs down and Gaston straight up knocking them out. The duo were unassuming. Janna was grumpy yet sweet while Gaston was the calmest of them. Their time in the academy made it clear that two were inseparable. She had naturally assumed they were together, but it was not the case. Their relationship was strange. They were family and yet there was something that Hild doesn’t dare to ask.

Anyway, she had dated Janna in her Academy days. It was also in the Academy days that she had discovered their secrets. Janna and Gaston were people who were always unassuming. They do not reveal themselves unless it was for work or for self-defense. Janna lets loose most of the time.

However, Gaston Hardy hated the act of fighting. They may call him a coward sometimes, but Hild knew what Gaston could do. Breakers have the natural impulse to show off their superiority. Gaston Hardy was no breaker, he was one of the natural born superhumans. An Exemplar that needed no serum to become strong. His and Janna’s strength were not made in a lab. They tamed their own powers and through taming those powers that they have disciplined themselves.

Gaston mastered his. The day he walked out of the Golden Gate. The day he survived that ichorless pit made him think of his powers as nothing more than a tool to use. Janna does not share the same idea, how could she when she has not learnt it? Hild rather liked the way he stares at her. At the same time she felt guilty about what she did back in the Academy Days. The Vodka and the Spiritus was the source of evil that day.

It made their relationship quite odd. Hild did not like to speak about that time. The two agreed as well. She actually thinks that if she didn’t make that mistake. They would have a rather harmonious relationship. Not that their relationship was so bad in the first place.

There are times where she sincerely believes that he did not despise her. It made things strange for them, but not to the point that it made him hate her entire being. Hild does a lot of things and yet the only one thing that Gaston could not stand about her was that day.

He is a professional. Though sometimes he had his own limits. She had asked him about his original intention for working with the Lions. He was not so secretive.

“It’s off the rails now. The biomass nest that should have taken years has entered the pacific early. The Hive Mother that is nested somewhere will not show its face until the full scan.”

It was news that everyone who had worked underground had heard. That in the largest ocean of the world lies a nest. If that nest erupts then Japan and the lands facing the Pacific Ocean would have to meet a split-realm tragedy. For the rest of the Breaker Companies, it was good news. A constant stream of belua to kill and harvest for the next couple of years. His contract said that he only had two years to work under them.

Two years under this constant stream of stress and side jobs. She wouldn’t work with the Babaika with year-long contracts. Not that Gaston has a choice regarding his affiliations.

The world was getting crazier. This new age of men and women who have the power to bend metal and even release fire on their hands made it somewhat hard to understand.

Rules have to be written. And chains must be made to make sure that order and balance must be maintained. It was also an age where being weak was frown upon. After the world ended, it made sense to be strong.

She recalled what Lionel told her.

“Chains must be made. They call it the Disruptor’s Peace. Another pact that must be made so that we can go on with our lives without fear of another event. I must say that it is suspicious that they are trying to make this a must. They can see the benefits of having to legally allow someone to be a Breaker. Once you are cuffed, problems will arise, and let us not talk about the idea that there might be people who are against it. It will violate their body and who knows what they might do next? It's a snowball. Allow them this and what else will they ask next?”

It was a disturbing thought. Nonetheless, she wasn’t here to discuss political agendas. She was here to earn a paycheck and if the deal goes right, then she’ll get paid. If things go south, then she doesn’t.

Not to mention that Lionel was a very agreeable businessman who knew how to sweet talk would-be killers from taking his life. He offered enough money to switch Hild from her side to his side. She simply chose the side that had the benefits. Not to mention that with Gaston around. She felt that it was better to keep it safe and join their side. It was a simple deal. An exchange of items that will be done within the following days.

What worried her about this ‘simple’ deal was the people who are after their items. Rickert Mortimer and Lionel Hasburg were well-connected and dangerous men in their own right. People who are after them know the consequence of fighting men like them. And yet they were still so eager to throw their lives away for the sake of an item that could make them very rich.

Gaston was usually busy with documents and managing paperwork. A day after he arrived in this bay. He was managing the paperwork that was going through Lionel’s office, at least the ones that are relevant to him.

After his work he’d spend time catching up with old friends. Hild have been following him around. Hild recognizes only three of them. Bruna, Lemmy, and Linda were old acquaintances that she had met already.

There was Damir as well, but he was the guy who had tried to hit on her, only to end up getting a beat down by Janna. Damir was smart enough to avoid her and she was sure that man was out there hoping to get a drink or get a chance with a girl.

Gaston was teaching Bruna how to shoot a rifle along with Lemmy. Bruna has the skills, but she was reliant on her breaker physique and was shooting without thinking.

Seeing that she was not improving. Gaston directed Hild to show her skills off. Hild was bored without anything to do, so she showed them how to hit targets easily.

Each shot hitting the bullseye. She did it with a sweep of the rifle. She made it easy that Bruna looked at her with a complicated gaze.

“She’s beyond your skill level so don’t think you can replicate that.”

Lemmy nodded. He leaned on the railing and whistled.

“She’s still a good shot.”

“You say it like I’d lose my marksmanship. Besides, she has potential.”

Bruna folded her arms.

“Any tips?”

“People usually don’t wait for you to aim. In a gunfight you have to aim fast. You have experience in your belt, that’s good. But high-speed shooting isn’t your thing when you’re not using your breaker abilities.”

Gaston leaned on the railing. He looked at Bruna as if he was somewhat surprised she wasn’t being a cheapskate.

“Don’t ask too many questions. She’ll charge you.”

Hild ignored him. Lemmy checked the range. The training with Bruna made Hild check on their rifles. It was specifically meant to be fired by breakers and were T2 gear. She was using ghost-tech so the recoil was nothing even without ichor flowing in her veins.

She initially thought that the gear they were using were similar to the hardware used by everyone, but after firing twenty rounds. Hild realized that the recoil was far more manageable than the hardware she had been using. Even without the ichor in her veins, she could fire straight. She had to adjust her usual aim, but still it was better than most T2 gears she had been using.

Hild spent an hour teaching Bruna pointers. After teaching her, she thought of exploring the nearest beach where most of the people in the bay were going. Of course, she was not going alone. She had to drag Gaston out of his working trance.

Gaston initially said no, but after a round of persuasion. Hild was able to drag him to the nearest beach where there was a bar and open air restaurant facing the seas. The seas in South Africa were far cleaner than the rest of the world. It was one of the untainted places in the world after the end.

They sat down near the cliff-side table. Most of the visitors were the breakers working on the bay. The rest were the natives who were enjoying their place.

Hild ordered a drink. Gaston drank coffee with a Roti stuffed with mutton and cheese. Hild shot Gaston a long look. It was a still look that irritated Gaston by the second. As minutes passed, the more that ‘business-face’ broke down.

Gaston sat properly and ate his roti.

“What do you want?”

“You know about the cuffs? The Disruptor’s Peace?”

“I do.”

“Ah, your thoughts?”

Gaston chewed slowly. He looked at the sea before looking at Hild.

“The affairs of the UEDF… the Consortium are within their own problems. One way or another, they’ll get the tech. The question itself is who holds the rights of the tech after they own it. They’ll make their own and then they’ll develop it. After developing it, they’ll start marketing it as their own brand. The disruptor that they are trying to make is another thing.”

“Ah, are you really that hopeful? That they’ll just spend money on you to live comfortably?”

“No, but we need to have dreams, Hild. Dreams and Goals make us function. It’s the struggle that keeps us going.”

“I guess Mars is just a dream for you?”

“Maybe. Can’t help but dream about it. A monster-free world where we don’t have cults summoning monsters and turning people. Whether it’s good for the people or not. It’s not like we’re here to be the judge of who is right or wrong. We are paid to be here.”

“You do walk the extra mile, though?”

“Maybe, I do. Then again, I doubt you’re asking this for anything else. Concerned about the folks trying to steal from them?”

“I am. It’s hard not to worry when they aren’t intimidated by Mortimer’s presence. Things got a little troublesome in Riyadh, right?”

“It did. If anything they made a mistake by showing up. Smart of them to know that Sir got the goods, but stupid of them to trigger the paranoia of Sir Mortimer.”

“So unworried about our enemies?”

“The cult was a special exception. They were careful. Smart too. That’s why they won. They got guards to protect and intimidate. Isn’t that why you took his offer? It's an easy paycheck.”

“Will it be though?”

Gaston shrugged. He took a sip of his coffee and looked at the sea. He had loosened up, but Hild could see that there was still a layer unguarded.

She stared at him for a long time before sighing. Hild wondered if she was greedy. Or perhaps she found it amusing. Gaston saw the look on her face and shook his head.

Hild needed this spare time to focus on the job tomorrow. She wondered to herself how she’d use her incoming paycheck. It wasn’t bad to dream of smooth deal. After all, jobs like these can either go smoothly or awfully wrong.