Gift Fic for ieja88
Title: Eden
Pairing/Group: B.A.D., BOYS, Veteran. Not really pairing unless you want to take it that way. Hamada somehow ended up the main.
Rating: PG
Warnings: BUT SAD, APPARENTLY. Hinted death, slavery. Flips between the present and past a few times.
Summary: Stuck on a strange planet, escape is difficult to obtain. Friendship and betrayal only complicate the issues.
Note: ~~~ seperates flashbacks, while - only seperates scenes. As the fic is kanju it has its fair share of more non-angsty scenes, and I know you wanted a bit more of that, so. Hope you enjoy it, though!
"Hey, Akito, could you hand me that sonic screwdriver?" Hamada's head pops out of the service door, face smeared with grease. Akito tosses the requested item at him, and it would have hit Hamada's face if not for some quick reflexes, instead clattering harmlessly to the floor. "Haha." Akito grins at Hamada, before getting back to fixing the wing of the ship with Bun.
Hamada slips back in, grabbing the screwdriver before settling back to fix the computer's systems with a small sigh, wishing he had help, but knowing it would never come. Daichi was the best at it, but he would never be there to help.
~~~
It was a few days before that Hamada found Daichi looking around the computer systems, seemingly at random during the night. Daichi jolted when Hamada put a hand on his shoulder, turning around, and Hamada can only barely catch a guilty look on Daichi's face before it disappears into a smile. "Oi, Hama-chan!"
Hamada takes his hand off Daichi's shoulder, takes a look at what Daichi was looking at. It's the navigation circuit that they had been working on repairing for the past few days. Well, mostly Daichi after Hamada had nearly destroyed it with a hammer. "Is something wrong?"
A grin. "Just got it working!" Well, that makes sense why Daichi was up so late. Hamada smiles, and Daichi's grin softens into a smile in response. "I'll get back to the tent soon."
That's good enough for Hamada, who jumps out of the cockpit, yells back up at Daichi, "The quicker you are, the warmer your bag!" Daichi laughs, and Hamada thinks the sound of it is beautiful.
-
The next morning, Daichi isn't in his bed, and when Hamada climbs up into the cockpit, he finds that the navigation system is missing, nothing more than Daichi's ring in its place. Hamada curses, and it isn't until an hour later when Junta finds him up there that he manages to wipe the tears that had welled up in his eyes away, and let Junta help him to his feet.
~~~
Hamada fingers the ring in his pocket, as he hears the last click from the atmosphere stabilizer settling down. It starts humming, and Hamada can feel the first whiffs of cool air across his face.
Done with his work for now, Hamada decides to check on how everyone else is doing, hops down onto the wing to see if he could be of any help to Bun and Akito. Despite how it looks when he gets to them (Bun stuck half in a door, with Akito trying to pull him out by the legs, complaining loudly that Bun's ass was too fat), it's clear they're pretty close to done and not really needing any help.
On the other hand, when Hamada makes it back to the tents, he finds Maashi scratching his head over a stack of papers they had managed to get a hold of along with the ship. Hamada squats down next to him, looking over the papers, and at Maashi's scribbled notes all over them. "What did you find?"
Maashi sighs, setting the papers down. "The ship's really old, but we can fly it. However.. without the navigation or Mastern DNA we'd be flying blind if someone didn't stay behind." Hamada sits down, takes the papers from Maashi and flips through them, looking to see if there's any other way. "The only one with the DNA-"
"Was Daichi," Hamada finishes, taking a deep breath. Maashi takes the papers back, as it's clear that Hamada wasn't going to find anything, and promptly redirects the topic.
"They can't be too far from finding us now," Maashi says, rubbing a scar on his leg. Hamada snaps back to, remembering that Maashi's been there the longest of them all, seen and felt far more beatings. The only one of them who had likely felt as many was Tatsuki, and he wasn't one to talk about them.
Standing back up, Hamada pulls a bar out of his pocket, tossing it to Maashi. The older man catches it, "But-" Hamada shakes his head, gets out of the tent before Maashi can even try to throw it back at him. He needed the energy more than Hamada, whose body was still strong enough to keep going even if he didn't eat for a day. They knew Maashi had been giving up his servings for them anyways.
On his way out, Hamada bumps into Ryuta, who blushes, arms full of pieces of the ship, barely managing to not drop them. Hamada apologizes, but Ryuta waves it off as best he can. "Hey, Hama-chan?" Hamada perks up. "If you see Muro, could you tell him I did his work for him? That idiot got distracted talking to Junta," Ryuta scowls, but Hamada can see right through it, the lack of any real annoyance.
Ryuta just blushes more and rushes off when Hamada grins, no other response really needed.
~~~
Screams ring through the air, and Hamada can smell burning wood and flesh as he huddles behind the barrels in his family barn, holding Kunta close, scraggly too-long hair tickling his shoulder. The kid had made it out here a few days ago from a town that had been hit before Hamada's own, and he was just too cute to turn down, since Hamada's mother had let him into their house.
When his town was hit, Hamada was chased out of his house, told to watch over Kunta, because that's what big boys did, even if he was only three years older.
Kunta froze when they heard the barn doors being kicked down, heavy footsteps heading in their direction. It was then that Hamada made the decision to push Kunta down and stand up, facing the trespasser directly. He - it - was tall, almost two times so as Hamada, and three times as thick, a heavy ax held high in its wrinkled hand. Hamada braced himself, knowing this was probably his end, but he had to keep his word to his mother.
"Take me-" Hamada could feel Kunta pulling at his pants, but ignored it. "I'm the only one here," The creature sniffed, nostrils flaring as it attached the ax to its belt.
Still, Hamada didn't allow himself to go off guard, knowing it could pull that ax back out. The beast moved fast for something of its size, grabbing Hamada by the head and pulling him out from behind the barrels. Tears welled up in Hamada's eyes, and it dropped Hamada on the ground.
Grunting from the pain, Hamada looked up at it. "Lies," The monster growled. "But strong pride. Come out from behind!" Kunta rose slowly, shaking. "You can live if you come with."
Hamada agreed, and the only grace he was given was being able to stay with Kunta as they were lead away.
~~~
That night as Hamada looks up at the ceiling, Kunta's hair on his arm a welcome, familiar comfort, but he could hear Maashi, Kikuoka, and Tatsuki talking outside his tent. Hamada pushes Kunta over on top of Akito to poke his head out of the tent - it was cold, and he didn't entirely feel like leaving the warmth just yet.
Tatsuki was the first to notice him, motioning Hamada over to the fire. Slipping his shirt back on, Hamada took the offer, sitting down between Tatsuki and Kikuoka. Kikuoka picks up where he left off when Hamada joined them. "Maashii, you shouldn't be the one to stay behind-"
Maashi cuts him off. "I'm the oldest." Before anyone can say anything else, he adds, "And the most useless." Tatsuki's less subtle than Kikuoka's words: he whacks Maashi upside the head.
"And you deserve to get out of here more than us!" Tatsuki's face is set, and his hand is held up to make a point. "I'll stay. Masaya needs help to get out."
Moving his leg over, Maashi knows he only has a last line to argue his point. "My leg wouldn't make it through the gravity shift. We don't have anything to stop the infection." Tatsuki doesn't reply - he knows Maashi has a good point with that.
Kikuoka looks between the two, hands heavy on his knees. "We could make something to stop the bleeding if we cut the leg off before that." Maashi looks like he's about to reply, but Hamada interjects himself before the man has a chance.
"They could both stay?" All eyes are on Hamada, and he can see the gears clicking. "Muro could help Itou-san get back to the mines, and Itou-san has a lot of knowledge of the caves, right? He could probably help you get everyone out unnoticed."
The three clearly hadn't thought of it before, but now they were, and that was where the planning started. Hamada had to turn in before they could finish their plans, but promised to back them up when the idea was brought up the next morning.
Hamada's dreams that night were filled with hope.
~~~
Hamada can feel the collar digging into his neck, but he's learned to not react to it. The marketplace is full of people, creatures, so many things that it sends Hamada's mind reeling. He's kept grounded by Kunta next to him, an unknown man to his other side. The man almost looks cross eyed, and he flashes a bright smile at Hamada, seemingly unaffected by his current state.
The man looks around, determines Hamada and Kunta the most interesting people there. "Hey!" His whisper sounds more like a yell: clearly he never learned the concept of an inside voice. "I'm Kiriyama Akito~ I'd shake your hand, but I can't exactly move it at the moment, you know-" Akito gasps, cutting off mid-sentence, and Hamada looks back, sees the guard behind them and the welt starting to rise on Akito's back.
Akito whimpers when the guard runs the baton across the mark, face twisted into a mocking grin. "A quiet slave is a good slave. I wish I could cut your tongue off before your owner gets you." Hamada can see the bitter look on Akito's face before it disappears - someone has come to look at them.
It's clear they don't look their best - the heat outside is blistering, and Hamada can feel his skin burning, but it hasn't started to crack, and that's good. The man glances over them, grabs onto Kunta's arm to turn him around, and Kunta only barely holds back the wince of pain.
The man doesn't take long, nodding at their guard before heading off, seemingly looking for others.
The guard laughs, smacking Hamada, who does wince. "You guys should feel lucky! You get to work in the mines. No hot sun in there!"
~~~
Hamada rolls over - it's early in the morning, and only the first rays of warmth are descending on their camp. But they're so close to done, that it seems some of the other guys decided to work early, and the sounds of hammers was too loud to sleep through. It seems Bun was one of those people, because Kunta's still sprawled across half the tent, dead to the world.
Stepping over him, Hamada finds his way out of the tent and over to the remains of the fire from last night. Junta's sitting there, nursing a cup of hot tea, and offers another cup to Hamada when he sits down. The cup is gladly taken, and Junta tries to stifle a yawn. Hamada yawns in response and Junta laughs, face settling into a smile. "Hey, Hama-chan-"
"Hm?"
"How are you doing?" Junta's smile is soft, honest, and Hamada can't help but feel his shoulders drop. He had been trying to avoid thinking about it, but Junta would be the one to bring it out.
Hamada takes a sip of his tea first, setting it down to respond. "It's hard," Hamada's being honest, and Junta can tell, only nodding. "He-" The words catch in his throat, buy Junta stays quiet, letting Hamada finish. "I should have known."
There's a gentle hand on Hamada's shoulder, and he looks in Junta's eyes. "You couldn't have."
He can't deny it.
~~~
When Hamada first picks up a pickax, he doesn't exactly know how to use it, and the fact it's his first day on the job doesn't stop the guard on duty closest to him from lashing out with the baton on his belt when Hamada drops the pickax on his foot. He cries out, dropping to his knees, and before the guard can hit him again, a voice speaks up from a couple of meters away.
"Oi! It's the kid's first day! At least wait until the third time he drops it." The guard scowls, kicking Hamada before stalking over to the offender. The man who spoke up was nearly as tall as the guard, and that amuses Hamada a bit, because at least now the creature would have to talk eye to nearly eye with someone.
Clearly it's not enough to threaten the guard who punches the man in the stomach, watching as he stumbles back, gasping for air. "Are you trying to do my job for me? I'd gladly give you his beating as well as another one for your insolence."
The man takes a deep breath. "I'll take it, and more."
The guard smirks.
-
It's a long day that sees Hamada collapse against his bed, unable to move any further on his legs. There's dried blood on his arm, but not even that bothers him enough. Hamada would be content to fall asleep right there at the end of the bed if it weren't for the man from earlier picking him up. A wince runs through Hamada at the pressure on his legs, but when he's dropped on the bed, he finds it to be a lot better than the floor
"Sleeping on the floor like that will only make tomorrow worse," The man says, squatting down to be on eye level with Hamada. "I'm Muro Tatsuki, by the way," Hamada nods, makes to get up, and Tatsuki only pushes him back down. "Name tomorrow, sleep tonight."
-
It's a few days later when Hamada's body has become numb to the pain that he finds himself laying on his bed, staring at the one above him. The guy in it never seemed to talk to him, or, well, anyone. "Hey, Muro?"
Tatsuki grunts from across the room. "Go to bed."
Ignoring the order, Hamada sits up, can feel a cut on his leg open back up from today, but it doesn't matter. "Who's the guy above me?"
"Huh?" Tatsuki sighs, rolling over to glance at Hamada. "Ah, that's just Nakata. Supposedly a mastern bastard, but there's no proof. Now go to bed!"
Hamada lays back down, returning to staring at the stone above him. Nakata, huh. Sounded interesting.
~~~
Akito lets out a shout of joy, and Hamada looks up at the same time as Junta. That can only mean one thing at this point, and when Akito hops out of the ship with a huge grin on his face, it's pretty much a fact: the ship can fly again. Kunta pokes his head out of the tent to complain about being woken up, before getting dragged out by the combined efforts of Ryuta and Bun.
It doesn't take long for everyone to gather around the fire pit with Junta and Hamada, settling down to assess what they have left for the trip. Maashi's records are rather well kept, since it takes very little time. They have enough for a group of nine to make it back to Earth, or seven to make it to a free planet in which they wouldn't just get picked up again.
Tatsuki's the one who brings up staying back on the planet with Maashi to help guide them through the atmosphere. "No!" Ryuta's words are shaky as he scrambles across the circle to smack some sense into his brother. "Nii, you can't-"
"Masaya needs me," Tatsuki's firm as he holds Ryuta back. "And someone needs to keep these idiots in line." Akito's response is muffled by Junta's hand over his mouth, and Ryuta seems to be fighing to keep tears back.
A few choked words come out before Ryuta can manage a proper response. "I'll kill you if you don't come back alive!" A small laugh makes its way through the group as Ryuta realises what he was doing, and the way he ends up in his seat faster than he got out of it.
~~~
Hamada's laughing, and he slaps Daichi on the back, who's laughing as well. It's been a year since Hamada got here, and they both know that acting like this in the mines is a sure punishment sentence, but he just. Can't. Help it! It's too funny when Daichi and Akito get into arguments, and Akito storms off huffing to find his partner.
It's as good a time as any to talk to Daichi about serious things, and the question Hamada has has been burning in the back of his mind for the past year. "Hey, Daichi?"
"Hm?"
Daichi's smile is so wonderful that Hamada doesn't want to see it ever leave his face. "I heard a rumour-" Daichi's smile turns tight. "Are you-"
"Yeah," Daichi's voice is tight. "I'm one of them. Kinda." Hamada doesn't respond, not that Daichi really was going to give him time to. "My mother was a human slave too. They say her body couldn't handle me."
There's a tear in the corner of Daichi's eye, and Hamada pulls him into a hug. Daichi was clearly startled at first, but soon returns it. "You're still my best friend here."
Hamada can feel the smile against his neck.
It's worth all the beatings in the world.
~~~
The final plan ends up being Maashi and Tatsuki guiding them off the planet from the nearby cliffs while Bun and Hamada piloted the ship. The pack up was quick, not much more than folding up the tents and sleeping bags, along with a few miscellaneous items they had picked up over the years.
Bun was the fastest to finsh packing, tossing his bag into the ship long before Hamada had even pulled the last stake out of the ground. Hamada nearly jumps when he sees Bun pull that last stake out, the tarp in his hands before he can even speak. "Bun-chan!" Bun looks at him, face blank as always, but Hamada can see a faint tinge of pink on his cheeks.
Even with how long he had been there, Bun's skin still looked as white as the day Hamada had first seen him, nearly nine years ago at this point. Bun clearly wasn't of the same race as him, but it had taken Hamada years to even realize that with how human Bun looked, right down to the little marks across his face.
Hamada doesn't get a response in words, just a small twitch of Bun's lips as the man hands Hamada's tarp to him "Bun-chan is so nice~" The blush breaks out full across Bun's face as he turns away quickly to hide it. It's enough for Hamada, who grabs his bag, and gets back to loading his belongings into the ship.
He can get back to teasing Bun later.
~~~
Maashi knew the tunnels the best of anyone in their group, so it was his job to sneak up into the steam vents to get the keys from the guard room. It would be hard to steal one of the ships, but they also knew it they failed it would be a public execution for them. Tatsuki lifts Itou up, waits for the man to squeeze through the small hole in the wall, while Akito and Junta kept an eye out for any passing guards.
Right as Maashi's feet disappeared a pair of guards spotted them loling around. They were clearly a bit newer, because all the three of them got was a severe beating before being chased back into the main rooms.
-
Hamada could see him as Maashi passed through the vent above him and Hamada winked, knowing no gaurd could see it with his back turned to them. Maashi returned it before disappearing again.
He knew Maashi could do it, so Hamada kept himself busy for the next while, waiting for the sign to make a run for it.
-
The sign came quicker than any of them could have expected, the breach alarm blaring through all the tunnels. Just as expected, the guards rushed towards the source, leaving far too few behind to watch the workers. Hamada managed to grab Daichi and Akito and slip away, sprinting down a tunnel heading away from the guards, but towards the flight bay.
They were joined at the bay by the rest of the group short Maashi, the door still firmly closed. It seemed their expert was running a little late, but just as Akito was about to comment, the doors slid open, Maashi standing there with the keycard in his hand.
It wasn't the right time for cheers as they all slipped into the room, heading for the ship that Daichi had recommended as the least likely to be noticed missing. It was old, and nearly falling apart, but even ships like that had a few interstellar flights left in them.
Daichi opened the loading dock to the ship, ushering the group in just as a group of guards bounded into the room, a few of them holding guns. Daichi cursed: Maashi was still out in the open at the back of the group. "Itou! Watch out!"
Time wasn't on his side. Maashi heard to call too late and a bolt of energy slammed into his leg, causing him to fall where he was standing. "Go without me!" Daichi was going to have none of that, darting out as the rest of the group got into the ship. Maashi wasn't that far, and Daichi grabbed him around the waist, pulling him up to help the man limp over to the cockpit with him.
"I'm of no good!" Daichi ignored Maashi's words, pushing the man up into the ship as a bolt ricoched off the metal next to them. Maashi was in quick, follow by Daichi who closed the door just in time to avoid a few more shots. The ship roared to life under the combined effort of the two, shooting up through the skylight, gunshots bouncing off it harmlessly.
They made it.
~~~
Night was approaching as they finally had all their stuff in, and Hamada is the last one to follow, final goodbyes exchanged with Maashi and Tatsuki. Tatsuki's is the longest since he pulls Hamada into a hug, and when Tatsuki pulls back, his eyes just a bit shinier than before. "Could you pass that to Ryuta if I don't make it?"
"I'll keep him safe," Hamada confirms, and that's what Tatsuki needed. He pushes at Hamada, and the younger man grins. "I'm going!"
Hamada slides into the cockpit next to Bun, the seats bigger than they should be, but they've found a way to make it work. The ship hums to life, and Hamada looks out the window one last time as he sees Tatsuki helping Maashi up the cliff, the older man's winces of pain visible even from where they were.
A head poked past Hamada, and he leaned back to let Bun look out through the window. He could see how the man’s eyes darkened in rage; there was no way that this planet would still be on the map in a few months if Bun got home. A shiver passed down Hamada's spine, and it wasn't long before Tatsuki's voice crackles to life across the ships speakers. "The season is changing from summer~! The fall is coming~. This is Muro Tatsuki~"
Tatsuki's laughter followed right after, along with the rather painful sound of someone in the back hitting his head against the wall. "Muro." Tatsuki's laughter cut off as soon as Bun started talking. "How is the takeoff looking?"
It was Maashi who spoke up next, his voice sounding distant, as if Tatsuki was holding the transmitter above his head. "It's good. No clouds, and there aren't any patrols right now." Maashi's voice suddenly started coming in clearer after a small pause. "It should be a straight shot."
Bun nodded, before remembering that Maashi couldn't see him. "Understood," Bun flicked a switch on the console, and the ship started to float, the hum increasing, until Hamada could feel it in his chest. "Hey, Hama-chan, could you get that yellow button?" Hamada looked where Bun was pointing, a bit over his head.
It took a bit of effort to push the button in, but once Hamada had it, the ship's main engines roared to life, and the ship shot up a a fair bit before Bun managed to wrangle it under his control. "And that's a speeding ticket for you!" It seemed Tatsuki had managed to get the transmitter back from Maashi
"One more joke and I'm coming down there to- mpdfgh!" Ryuta's voice was muffled quickly and a loud cackling laugh was muffled soon after.
Junta's voice was the next one to be heard over the speaker. "Kiku-san has a sock in Ryuta's mouth and Akito has Kunta otherwise occupied, can we please take off?"
It was smooth from there, since Tatsuki had given Maashi back the transmitter, the man's instructions clear. The sun was out of sight when Bun made it to the edge of the atmosphere, and Maashi's voice was laced with sleep. "You're on your own.." A yawn cut him off. "Keep safe."
"NiiNii loves his RyuRyu~"
Even Bun broke into a grin at that, and Hamada took a minute to stop chuckling before responding. "Keep yourselves safe too!"
Only static responded to his words, but Hamada knew his last words had made it through. He didn't know how he did, just that they would be fine back down there.
That they would meet again in the future.
OMAKE
The sun is beating down hot, and Daichi can barely see where he's going for the sweat in his eyes. Just his luck, Daichi thinks, that he would end up running on one of the hottest days of the year. It was easily enough to down the average man, not that Daichi was, and more than enough to kill him in a couple of days.
At least it's too hot for any of the nastier creatures that roamed the desert, which is a relief as Daichi collapsed in the shade of a large rock, dropping the navigation box he had been carrying. "Stupid Hama-chan.." he mumbles, kicking the box away. He should be far out enough, at least, and a smile spreads on his face from the thought.
Better to let Hamada think he had been a spy in their ranks. If Daichi had told him that the box had a built in tracker, who knows what the older man would have done. Surely Hamada would have followed him out into desert as well, or would have forbid him from even going, trying to work out some other way to get rid of it.
Not that there was, that is. Daichi knew the technology too well; knew that the tracker latched onto the first living person to touch it. Even if he had left it there, Hama-chan would have just touched it, starting the cycle all over again
Time was short, and in the shade Daichi knew he might as well have painted a huge target on himself for anything looking for a meal. Pulling his necklace off - it was a gift from Hamada, who had made it for him after they had become close in the mines, Daichi quickly scratched a rude message to any guard who would find him into the navigation box.
He may not be remembered as a hero, but at least, Daichi knew, his captors and own race would remember him as a traitor, a man who helped the "weaker" races in the universe survive.
Pairing/Group: B.A.D., BOYS, Veteran. Not really pairing unless you want to take it that way. Hamada somehow ended up the main.
Rating: PG
Warnings: BUT SAD, APPARENTLY. Hinted death, slavery. Flips between the present and past a few times.
Summary: Stuck on a strange planet, escape is difficult to obtain. Friendship and betrayal only complicate the issues.
Note: ~~~ seperates flashbacks, while - only seperates scenes. As the fic is kanju it has its fair share of more non-angsty scenes, and I know you wanted a bit more of that, so. Hope you enjoy it, though!
"Hey, Akito, could you hand me that sonic screwdriver?" Hamada's head pops out of the service door, face smeared with grease. Akito tosses the requested item at him, and it would have hit Hamada's face if not for some quick reflexes, instead clattering harmlessly to the floor. "Haha." Akito grins at Hamada, before getting back to fixing the wing of the ship with Bun.
Hamada slips back in, grabbing the screwdriver before settling back to fix the computer's systems with a small sigh, wishing he had help, but knowing it would never come. Daichi was the best at it, but he would never be there to help.
~~~
It was a few days before that Hamada found Daichi looking around the computer systems, seemingly at random during the night. Daichi jolted when Hamada put a hand on his shoulder, turning around, and Hamada can only barely catch a guilty look on Daichi's face before it disappears into a smile. "Oi, Hama-chan!"
Hamada takes his hand off Daichi's shoulder, takes a look at what Daichi was looking at. It's the navigation circuit that they had been working on repairing for the past few days. Well, mostly Daichi after Hamada had nearly destroyed it with a hammer. "Is something wrong?"
A grin. "Just got it working!" Well, that makes sense why Daichi was up so late. Hamada smiles, and Daichi's grin softens into a smile in response. "I'll get back to the tent soon."
That's good enough for Hamada, who jumps out of the cockpit, yells back up at Daichi, "The quicker you are, the warmer your bag!" Daichi laughs, and Hamada thinks the sound of it is beautiful.
-
The next morning, Daichi isn't in his bed, and when Hamada climbs up into the cockpit, he finds that the navigation system is missing, nothing more than Daichi's ring in its place. Hamada curses, and it isn't until an hour later when Junta finds him up there that he manages to wipe the tears that had welled up in his eyes away, and let Junta help him to his feet.
~~~
Hamada fingers the ring in his pocket, as he hears the last click from the atmosphere stabilizer settling down. It starts humming, and Hamada can feel the first whiffs of cool air across his face.
Done with his work for now, Hamada decides to check on how everyone else is doing, hops down onto the wing to see if he could be of any help to Bun and Akito. Despite how it looks when he gets to them (Bun stuck half in a door, with Akito trying to pull him out by the legs, complaining loudly that Bun's ass was too fat), it's clear they're pretty close to done and not really needing any help.
On the other hand, when Hamada makes it back to the tents, he finds Maashi scratching his head over a stack of papers they had managed to get a hold of along with the ship. Hamada squats down next to him, looking over the papers, and at Maashi's scribbled notes all over them. "What did you find?"
Maashi sighs, setting the papers down. "The ship's really old, but we can fly it. However.. without the navigation or Mastern DNA we'd be flying blind if someone didn't stay behind." Hamada sits down, takes the papers from Maashi and flips through them, looking to see if there's any other way. "The only one with the DNA-"
"Was Daichi," Hamada finishes, taking a deep breath. Maashi takes the papers back, as it's clear that Hamada wasn't going to find anything, and promptly redirects the topic.
"They can't be too far from finding us now," Maashi says, rubbing a scar on his leg. Hamada snaps back to, remembering that Maashi's been there the longest of them all, seen and felt far more beatings. The only one of them who had likely felt as many was Tatsuki, and he wasn't one to talk about them.
Standing back up, Hamada pulls a bar out of his pocket, tossing it to Maashi. The older man catches it, "But-" Hamada shakes his head, gets out of the tent before Maashi can even try to throw it back at him. He needed the energy more than Hamada, whose body was still strong enough to keep going even if he didn't eat for a day. They knew Maashi had been giving up his servings for them anyways.
On his way out, Hamada bumps into Ryuta, who blushes, arms full of pieces of the ship, barely managing to not drop them. Hamada apologizes, but Ryuta waves it off as best he can. "Hey, Hama-chan?" Hamada perks up. "If you see Muro, could you tell him I did his work for him? That idiot got distracted talking to Junta," Ryuta scowls, but Hamada can see right through it, the lack of any real annoyance.
Ryuta just blushes more and rushes off when Hamada grins, no other response really needed.
~~~
Screams ring through the air, and Hamada can smell burning wood and flesh as he huddles behind the barrels in his family barn, holding Kunta close, scraggly too-long hair tickling his shoulder. The kid had made it out here a few days ago from a town that had been hit before Hamada's own, and he was just too cute to turn down, since Hamada's mother had let him into their house.
When his town was hit, Hamada was chased out of his house, told to watch over Kunta, because that's what big boys did, even if he was only three years older.
Kunta froze when they heard the barn doors being kicked down, heavy footsteps heading in their direction. It was then that Hamada made the decision to push Kunta down and stand up, facing the trespasser directly. He - it - was tall, almost two times so as Hamada, and three times as thick, a heavy ax held high in its wrinkled hand. Hamada braced himself, knowing this was probably his end, but he had to keep his word to his mother.
"Take me-" Hamada could feel Kunta pulling at his pants, but ignored it. "I'm the only one here," The creature sniffed, nostrils flaring as it attached the ax to its belt.
Still, Hamada didn't allow himself to go off guard, knowing it could pull that ax back out. The beast moved fast for something of its size, grabbing Hamada by the head and pulling him out from behind the barrels. Tears welled up in Hamada's eyes, and it dropped Hamada on the ground.
Grunting from the pain, Hamada looked up at it. "Lies," The monster growled. "But strong pride. Come out from behind!" Kunta rose slowly, shaking. "You can live if you come with."
Hamada agreed, and the only grace he was given was being able to stay with Kunta as they were lead away.
~~~
That night as Hamada looks up at the ceiling, Kunta's hair on his arm a welcome, familiar comfort, but he could hear Maashi, Kikuoka, and Tatsuki talking outside his tent. Hamada pushes Kunta over on top of Akito to poke his head out of the tent - it was cold, and he didn't entirely feel like leaving the warmth just yet.
Tatsuki was the first to notice him, motioning Hamada over to the fire. Slipping his shirt back on, Hamada took the offer, sitting down between Tatsuki and Kikuoka. Kikuoka picks up where he left off when Hamada joined them. "Maashii, you shouldn't be the one to stay behind-"
Maashi cuts him off. "I'm the oldest." Before anyone can say anything else, he adds, "And the most useless." Tatsuki's less subtle than Kikuoka's words: he whacks Maashi upside the head.
"And you deserve to get out of here more than us!" Tatsuki's face is set, and his hand is held up to make a point. "I'll stay. Masaya needs help to get out."
Moving his leg over, Maashi knows he only has a last line to argue his point. "My leg wouldn't make it through the gravity shift. We don't have anything to stop the infection." Tatsuki doesn't reply - he knows Maashi has a good point with that.
Kikuoka looks between the two, hands heavy on his knees. "We could make something to stop the bleeding if we cut the leg off before that." Maashi looks like he's about to reply, but Hamada interjects himself before the man has a chance.
"They could both stay?" All eyes are on Hamada, and he can see the gears clicking. "Muro could help Itou-san get back to the mines, and Itou-san has a lot of knowledge of the caves, right? He could probably help you get everyone out unnoticed."
The three clearly hadn't thought of it before, but now they were, and that was where the planning started. Hamada had to turn in before they could finish their plans, but promised to back them up when the idea was brought up the next morning.
Hamada's dreams that night were filled with hope.
~~~
Hamada can feel the collar digging into his neck, but he's learned to not react to it. The marketplace is full of people, creatures, so many things that it sends Hamada's mind reeling. He's kept grounded by Kunta next to him, an unknown man to his other side. The man almost looks cross eyed, and he flashes a bright smile at Hamada, seemingly unaffected by his current state.
The man looks around, determines Hamada and Kunta the most interesting people there. "Hey!" His whisper sounds more like a yell: clearly he never learned the concept of an inside voice. "I'm Kiriyama Akito~ I'd shake your hand, but I can't exactly move it at the moment, you know-" Akito gasps, cutting off mid-sentence, and Hamada looks back, sees the guard behind them and the welt starting to rise on Akito's back.
Akito whimpers when the guard runs the baton across the mark, face twisted into a mocking grin. "A quiet slave is a good slave. I wish I could cut your tongue off before your owner gets you." Hamada can see the bitter look on Akito's face before it disappears - someone has come to look at them.
It's clear they don't look their best - the heat outside is blistering, and Hamada can feel his skin burning, but it hasn't started to crack, and that's good. The man glances over them, grabs onto Kunta's arm to turn him around, and Kunta only barely holds back the wince of pain.
The man doesn't take long, nodding at their guard before heading off, seemingly looking for others.
The guard laughs, smacking Hamada, who does wince. "You guys should feel lucky! You get to work in the mines. No hot sun in there!"
~~~
Hamada rolls over - it's early in the morning, and only the first rays of warmth are descending on their camp. But they're so close to done, that it seems some of the other guys decided to work early, and the sounds of hammers was too loud to sleep through. It seems Bun was one of those people, because Kunta's still sprawled across half the tent, dead to the world.
Stepping over him, Hamada finds his way out of the tent and over to the remains of the fire from last night. Junta's sitting there, nursing a cup of hot tea, and offers another cup to Hamada when he sits down. The cup is gladly taken, and Junta tries to stifle a yawn. Hamada yawns in response and Junta laughs, face settling into a smile. "Hey, Hama-chan-"
"Hm?"
"How are you doing?" Junta's smile is soft, honest, and Hamada can't help but feel his shoulders drop. He had been trying to avoid thinking about it, but Junta would be the one to bring it out.
Hamada takes a sip of his tea first, setting it down to respond. "It's hard," Hamada's being honest, and Junta can tell, only nodding. "He-" The words catch in his throat, buy Junta stays quiet, letting Hamada finish. "I should have known."
There's a gentle hand on Hamada's shoulder, and he looks in Junta's eyes. "You couldn't have."
He can't deny it.
~~~
When Hamada first picks up a pickax, he doesn't exactly know how to use it, and the fact it's his first day on the job doesn't stop the guard on duty closest to him from lashing out with the baton on his belt when Hamada drops the pickax on his foot. He cries out, dropping to his knees, and before the guard can hit him again, a voice speaks up from a couple of meters away.
"Oi! It's the kid's first day! At least wait until the third time he drops it." The guard scowls, kicking Hamada before stalking over to the offender. The man who spoke up was nearly as tall as the guard, and that amuses Hamada a bit, because at least now the creature would have to talk eye to nearly eye with someone.
Clearly it's not enough to threaten the guard who punches the man in the stomach, watching as he stumbles back, gasping for air. "Are you trying to do my job for me? I'd gladly give you his beating as well as another one for your insolence."
The man takes a deep breath. "I'll take it, and more."
The guard smirks.
-
It's a long day that sees Hamada collapse against his bed, unable to move any further on his legs. There's dried blood on his arm, but not even that bothers him enough. Hamada would be content to fall asleep right there at the end of the bed if it weren't for the man from earlier picking him up. A wince runs through Hamada at the pressure on his legs, but when he's dropped on the bed, he finds it to be a lot better than the floor
"Sleeping on the floor like that will only make tomorrow worse," The man says, squatting down to be on eye level with Hamada. "I'm Muro Tatsuki, by the way," Hamada nods, makes to get up, and Tatsuki only pushes him back down. "Name tomorrow, sleep tonight."
-
It's a few days later when Hamada's body has become numb to the pain that he finds himself laying on his bed, staring at the one above him. The guy in it never seemed to talk to him, or, well, anyone. "Hey, Muro?"
Tatsuki grunts from across the room. "Go to bed."
Ignoring the order, Hamada sits up, can feel a cut on his leg open back up from today, but it doesn't matter. "Who's the guy above me?"
"Huh?" Tatsuki sighs, rolling over to glance at Hamada. "Ah, that's just Nakata. Supposedly a mastern bastard, but there's no proof. Now go to bed!"
Hamada lays back down, returning to staring at the stone above him. Nakata, huh. Sounded interesting.
~~~
Akito lets out a shout of joy, and Hamada looks up at the same time as Junta. That can only mean one thing at this point, and when Akito hops out of the ship with a huge grin on his face, it's pretty much a fact: the ship can fly again. Kunta pokes his head out of the tent to complain about being woken up, before getting dragged out by the combined efforts of Ryuta and Bun.
It doesn't take long for everyone to gather around the fire pit with Junta and Hamada, settling down to assess what they have left for the trip. Maashi's records are rather well kept, since it takes very little time. They have enough for a group of nine to make it back to Earth, or seven to make it to a free planet in which they wouldn't just get picked up again.
Tatsuki's the one who brings up staying back on the planet with Maashi to help guide them through the atmosphere. "No!" Ryuta's words are shaky as he scrambles across the circle to smack some sense into his brother. "Nii, you can't-"
"Masaya needs me," Tatsuki's firm as he holds Ryuta back. "And someone needs to keep these idiots in line." Akito's response is muffled by Junta's hand over his mouth, and Ryuta seems to be fighing to keep tears back.
A few choked words come out before Ryuta can manage a proper response. "I'll kill you if you don't come back alive!" A small laugh makes its way through the group as Ryuta realises what he was doing, and the way he ends up in his seat faster than he got out of it.
~~~
Hamada's laughing, and he slaps Daichi on the back, who's laughing as well. It's been a year since Hamada got here, and they both know that acting like this in the mines is a sure punishment sentence, but he just. Can't. Help it! It's too funny when Daichi and Akito get into arguments, and Akito storms off huffing to find his partner.
It's as good a time as any to talk to Daichi about serious things, and the question Hamada has has been burning in the back of his mind for the past year. "Hey, Daichi?"
"Hm?"
Daichi's smile is so wonderful that Hamada doesn't want to see it ever leave his face. "I heard a rumour-" Daichi's smile turns tight. "Are you-"
"Yeah," Daichi's voice is tight. "I'm one of them. Kinda." Hamada doesn't respond, not that Daichi really was going to give him time to. "My mother was a human slave too. They say her body couldn't handle me."
There's a tear in the corner of Daichi's eye, and Hamada pulls him into a hug. Daichi was clearly startled at first, but soon returns it. "You're still my best friend here."
Hamada can feel the smile against his neck.
It's worth all the beatings in the world.
~~~
The final plan ends up being Maashi and Tatsuki guiding them off the planet from the nearby cliffs while Bun and Hamada piloted the ship. The pack up was quick, not much more than folding up the tents and sleeping bags, along with a few miscellaneous items they had picked up over the years.
Bun was the fastest to finsh packing, tossing his bag into the ship long before Hamada had even pulled the last stake out of the ground. Hamada nearly jumps when he sees Bun pull that last stake out, the tarp in his hands before he can even speak. "Bun-chan!" Bun looks at him, face blank as always, but Hamada can see a faint tinge of pink on his cheeks.
Even with how long he had been there, Bun's skin still looked as white as the day Hamada had first seen him, nearly nine years ago at this point. Bun clearly wasn't of the same race as him, but it had taken Hamada years to even realize that with how human Bun looked, right down to the little marks across his face.
Hamada doesn't get a response in words, just a small twitch of Bun's lips as the man hands Hamada's tarp to him "Bun-chan is so nice~" The blush breaks out full across Bun's face as he turns away quickly to hide it. It's enough for Hamada, who grabs his bag, and gets back to loading his belongings into the ship.
He can get back to teasing Bun later.
~~~
Maashi knew the tunnels the best of anyone in their group, so it was his job to sneak up into the steam vents to get the keys from the guard room. It would be hard to steal one of the ships, but they also knew it they failed it would be a public execution for them. Tatsuki lifts Itou up, waits for the man to squeeze through the small hole in the wall, while Akito and Junta kept an eye out for any passing guards.
Right as Maashi's feet disappeared a pair of guards spotted them loling around. They were clearly a bit newer, because all the three of them got was a severe beating before being chased back into the main rooms.
-
Hamada could see him as Maashi passed through the vent above him and Hamada winked, knowing no gaurd could see it with his back turned to them. Maashi returned it before disappearing again.
He knew Maashi could do it, so Hamada kept himself busy for the next while, waiting for the sign to make a run for it.
-
The sign came quicker than any of them could have expected, the breach alarm blaring through all the tunnels. Just as expected, the guards rushed towards the source, leaving far too few behind to watch the workers. Hamada managed to grab Daichi and Akito and slip away, sprinting down a tunnel heading away from the guards, but towards the flight bay.
They were joined at the bay by the rest of the group short Maashi, the door still firmly closed. It seemed their expert was running a little late, but just as Akito was about to comment, the doors slid open, Maashi standing there with the keycard in his hand.
It wasn't the right time for cheers as they all slipped into the room, heading for the ship that Daichi had recommended as the least likely to be noticed missing. It was old, and nearly falling apart, but even ships like that had a few interstellar flights left in them.
Daichi opened the loading dock to the ship, ushering the group in just as a group of guards bounded into the room, a few of them holding guns. Daichi cursed: Maashi was still out in the open at the back of the group. "Itou! Watch out!"
Time wasn't on his side. Maashi heard to call too late and a bolt of energy slammed into his leg, causing him to fall where he was standing. "Go without me!" Daichi was going to have none of that, darting out as the rest of the group got into the ship. Maashi wasn't that far, and Daichi grabbed him around the waist, pulling him up to help the man limp over to the cockpit with him.
"I'm of no good!" Daichi ignored Maashi's words, pushing the man up into the ship as a bolt ricoched off the metal next to them. Maashi was in quick, follow by Daichi who closed the door just in time to avoid a few more shots. The ship roared to life under the combined effort of the two, shooting up through the skylight, gunshots bouncing off it harmlessly.
They made it.
~~~
Night was approaching as they finally had all their stuff in, and Hamada is the last one to follow, final goodbyes exchanged with Maashi and Tatsuki. Tatsuki's is the longest since he pulls Hamada into a hug, and when Tatsuki pulls back, his eyes just a bit shinier than before. "Could you pass that to Ryuta if I don't make it?"
"I'll keep him safe," Hamada confirms, and that's what Tatsuki needed. He pushes at Hamada, and the younger man grins. "I'm going!"
Hamada slides into the cockpit next to Bun, the seats bigger than they should be, but they've found a way to make it work. The ship hums to life, and Hamada looks out the window one last time as he sees Tatsuki helping Maashi up the cliff, the older man's winces of pain visible even from where they were.
A head poked past Hamada, and he leaned back to let Bun look out through the window. He could see how the man’s eyes darkened in rage; there was no way that this planet would still be on the map in a few months if Bun got home. A shiver passed down Hamada's spine, and it wasn't long before Tatsuki's voice crackles to life across the ships speakers. "The season is changing from summer~! The fall is coming~. This is Muro Tatsuki~"
Tatsuki's laughter followed right after, along with the rather painful sound of someone in the back hitting his head against the wall. "Muro." Tatsuki's laughter cut off as soon as Bun started talking. "How is the takeoff looking?"
It was Maashi who spoke up next, his voice sounding distant, as if Tatsuki was holding the transmitter above his head. "It's good. No clouds, and there aren't any patrols right now." Maashi's voice suddenly started coming in clearer after a small pause. "It should be a straight shot."
Bun nodded, before remembering that Maashi couldn't see him. "Understood," Bun flicked a switch on the console, and the ship started to float, the hum increasing, until Hamada could feel it in his chest. "Hey, Hama-chan, could you get that yellow button?" Hamada looked where Bun was pointing, a bit over his head.
It took a bit of effort to push the button in, but once Hamada had it, the ship's main engines roared to life, and the ship shot up a a fair bit before Bun managed to wrangle it under his control. "And that's a speeding ticket for you!" It seemed Tatsuki had managed to get the transmitter back from Maashi
"One more joke and I'm coming down there to- mpdfgh!" Ryuta's voice was muffled quickly and a loud cackling laugh was muffled soon after.
Junta's voice was the next one to be heard over the speaker. "Kiku-san has a sock in Ryuta's mouth and Akito has Kunta otherwise occupied, can we please take off?"
It was smooth from there, since Tatsuki had given Maashi back the transmitter, the man's instructions clear. The sun was out of sight when Bun made it to the edge of the atmosphere, and Maashi's voice was laced with sleep. "You're on your own.." A yawn cut him off. "Keep safe."
"NiiNii loves his RyuRyu~"
Even Bun broke into a grin at that, and Hamada took a minute to stop chuckling before responding. "Keep yourselves safe too!"
Only static responded to his words, but Hamada knew his last words had made it through. He didn't know how he did, just that they would be fine back down there.
That they would meet again in the future.
OMAKE
The sun is beating down hot, and Daichi can barely see where he's going for the sweat in his eyes. Just his luck, Daichi thinks, that he would end up running on one of the hottest days of the year. It was easily enough to down the average man, not that Daichi was, and more than enough to kill him in a couple of days.
At least it's too hot for any of the nastier creatures that roamed the desert, which is a relief as Daichi collapsed in the shade of a large rock, dropping the navigation box he had been carrying. "Stupid Hama-chan.." he mumbles, kicking the box away. He should be far out enough, at least, and a smile spreads on his face from the thought.
Better to let Hamada think he had been a spy in their ranks. If Daichi had told him that the box had a built in tracker, who knows what the older man would have done. Surely Hamada would have followed him out into desert as well, or would have forbid him from even going, trying to work out some other way to get rid of it.
Not that there was, that is. Daichi knew the technology too well; knew that the tracker latched onto the first living person to touch it. Even if he had left it there, Hama-chan would have just touched it, starting the cycle all over again
Time was short, and in the shade Daichi knew he might as well have painted a huge target on himself for anything looking for a meal. Pulling his necklace off - it was a gift from Hamada, who had made it for him after they had become close in the mines, Daichi quickly scratched a rude message to any guard who would find him into the navigation box.
He may not be remembered as a hero, but at least, Daichi knew, his captors and own race would remember him as a traitor, a man who helped the "weaker" races in the universe survive.