a/n: sorry about the week delay, had a bad case of writer's block

Night had finally befallen Reksinya when he made his move. Sitting in the shadows, waiting, watching had proven fruitful. For the first time in years, Kirito was able to see the stars. He was able to bask in their light. Tonight, though, that light was a hindrance rather than a pleasure. For when the moon reached its apex in the sea of black dotted with white, he would have to return to the shadows. The light drove that dark refuge away.

The base was, in fact, deserted, as was promised in the instructions Kirito had received a few days prior. The other Authority foot soldiers (barring the camp guards and those restricted) had all left the Army Camp for their weekly Off-Base Time. It was a pristine opportunity to strike. As Kirito watchfully edged closer to Bunk 348, he noted with relief that once again, Heathcliff had been true to his word. Not a soul from Kouichirou's unit was around.

A few deep breaths later, Kirito-with much caution-opened one of the barrack windows from the outside. Man, what kind of a design flaw is this? he thought. The teen peeked inside to find his target lying down with his eyes closed, but definitely not asleep. The breathing was too irregular for that. Kirito observed that it looked like Kouichirou was waiting for someone.

His trepidation grew, but he powered on nonetheless. The mission was much too crucial for him to let it be derailed by something like this. Kirito put all the strength he could into his arms and swung himself up and into the window frame, taking care to land as noiselessly as possible. He was now sitting on a ledge with his feet inches from the ground. He softly set himself onto the floor inside Bunk 348.

A slight sound was made, but Kouichirou paid it no heed. Kirito was grateful for that. A few moments later, Kirito began to move toward Yuuki at a snail's pace. He was within an arm's reach of the other man when all hell broke loose.

Alarms began to blare and the light of red fire flooded the Camp. Kouichirou jumped to attention, almost toppling Kirito. Just as Kouichirou moved to grab his sword, Kirito gathered his wits and hurriedly hid himself, crawling underneath Kouichirou's bed. And not a moment too soon. Kirito's target then looked to where Kirito had stood just seconds earlier, securing his weapon and running outside to confront whatever had triggered the alarm. The sounds of other camp guards doing the same were audible over the piercing shriek of the emergency bells.

As soon as Kirito was sure the coast was clear, he scurried out from his hiding spot. The panic had set in. "Where do I go, what do I do, why is this happening to me…?" Suddenly, something caught Kirito's eye. A photograph, fluttering to the ground, apparently disturbed by Kouichirou's hasty exit. An inexplicable urge to look at it overcame Kirito.

His all-black cloak folded awkwardly as he bent over to pick it up. It was a portrait of a man. Even though it was shoddy paintwork, Kirito could not help but shudder at what felt like slime just oozing from the subject of the artwork. It was a shot of the man sitting outside, apparently. It seemed to be realistic, like it was made on a balcony looking out upon a city. One thing was for sure, though: this was not in Reksinya.

His suspicions were confirmed when flipped the paper over to see some notes written on the back:

Sugou Nobuyuki

Recto Bank, Part of RCT Ventures

Mr. Nobuyuki and Father own mine

23, runs mine

Meeting Asuna soon

"What?" Kirito whispered to himself in confusion. If he was reading this correctly, the guy on the front's name was Sugou Nobuyuki, and he was 23. He also apparently ran the mine. But if that was the case, why had Kazuto never seen the man? It made no sense. And, if Sugou's father owned the mine, how come Kazuto had never heard of him? Also, who in the hell was Asuna?

Suddenly, the door swung open. Kouichirou stepped back inside and turned around to find Kirito frozen in place. In a millisecond, the older man had his sword at Kirito's throat. With bells still ringing loudly, Yuuki asked in a deathly whisper, "Who are you? What business do you have Sugou Nobuyuki?" He'd noticed that Kirito was looking at that photograph.

Beads of sweat formed on Kirito's forehead. "My name is Ka- sorry, Kirito. I, uh…" Shit, do I tell him what I do or not?

"You what, kid? Spit it the fuck out or I'll carve your windpipe out of your throat."

Kirito didn't know what to do. He'd already revealed his RFF codename, but what did that mean in the long run? Was the risk of revealing himself as a rebel operative worth it? He could see Kouichirou's patience wearing thin. A gamble had to be made. The question was which one.

"I work for the Reksinya Freedom Front. I was sent here to gather information about Shouzou Yuuki, your father. We received intelligence that he ran the quarry. That's it, I swear! This is the first time in my life I've ever heard of Nobuyuki." Kirito spit this out so quickly, one would think he was trying to outpace worrisome thoughts.

Kouichirou's eyes narrowed. "The Reksinya Freedom Front, you say? Hmm…"

The loud emergency sounds faded away and a suffocating silence threatened to squeeze the last vestiges of hope from Kirito. Unexpectedly, Kouichirou sheathed his sword. Kirito was once again stunned.

"You had me scared for a second there, kid," the Authority soldier said light-heartedly, as if he hadn't just issued a gruesome death threat.

"...HUH?!"

"Look, we don't have much time. I can tell you a bit, but only if you promise not to touch my family. Deal?"

Say WHAT?!

"Kid?"

"..." What was Kirito supposed to do?

"Last chance!"

"FINE! FINE!"

"Alright, you've only got a couple minutes if you want out of here without getting caught, but here's what you need to know. My father owns the mine along with the Nobuyuki father and a man named Akihiko Kayaba. They all live in the Northern Constituency, although I haven't seen Kayaba for quite some time. That Sugou kid tells that group of three - RCT Ventures - that he runs the mine, but in reality, he's never here. I don't know where he spends his time, but it's probably something shady…" Kouichirou continued, telling Kirito as much as he could.

Kirito never found out what exactly Kouichirou had done to land himself in trouble. And he never figured out who Asuna was, either.

Kirito exited the Army Camp safe and sound and reached his house without trouble.

By candlelight, he wrote a letter to Heathcliff, detailing what he had just learned. This journey was about to get a whole lot more complicated.

Asuna stood, heart beating faster every second, and made her way downstairs, to where the rest of her family was waiting for the Nobuyukis to arrive. She was dreading this. She was dreading all of it.

The minutes passed faster than she would have liked, until finally, their esteemed guests made their entrance into the Yuuki home. For the first time in her life, Asuna's eyes met with Sugou's. And that singular second of eye contact was enough to make her shiver.

Things were not looking good for Asuna Yuuki.

Later, the majority of both families moved away from the prospective couple to let them get acquainted. The moment the hall doors closed, leaving Sugou and Asuna alone, the former's charming smile dropped. Not that the facade had fooled Asuna in the first place.

"Look here, you little bitch," Sugou ripped with no hesitation. "I can already tell what you think of me, but to be honest, I really could not give a damn. I am going to make you my bride. Your father's already fallen so hard for me I could marry him and he wouldn't blink an eye. And I know all too well what your mother thinks of me. As nothing more than a possible alliance. So how about you stop looking at me like I'm an alien and start looking at me like your husband?"

Asuna was momentarily speechless, a rare occurrence for her. Sure, she'd known that Sugou was putting up an act from the moment he'd stepped foot onto the estate-those eyes spoke volumes-but this? She hadn't expected this. As she gathered her wits about her, she retorted, "I can't look at you like my husband when you talk to me like this! No woman in her right mind would!"

Sugou then stepped very, very close to Asuna. Grabbing her golden-brown hair in his hands and smelling it, he whispered, "Then I'll make you fall in love with me. I'll make you lose your 'right mind'. Whether you like it or not."

Footsteps sounded from outside the hall and Sugou swiftly distanced himself from Asuna to avoid the appearance of impropriety. As the door opened and Sugou began his exit from her home, he sent her one last look, as if he was undressing her with his eyes.

She immediately turned away from his prying gaze, feeling disgusted beyond belief. That man, she thought. No, that-that monster. How dare he? How dare he have the audacity to speak to me in such a manner? I will not allow this. Firm and resolute, Asuna decided that...

For the first time in her life, she would stand up to her mother.