Kozuna
I groaned under my breath, my eyelids fluttering open into the brightness.
Really need to stop getting knocked out. Where am I?
Things came into focus after a short beat- a room of complete, shiny silver steel. Cell bars were dead ahead, separating my cellmates and me from a hallway. Anari sat on her bed, arms crossed, while Nikai paced around the room. My memory started returning once I noticed them.
Right. Fuck.
I sat up on my metal slab of a bed and stared at my arms. My military jacket was gone, and my arms were tightly wrapped in bandages. The stinging sensations returned within seconds.
"W-where are we?"
"Should've stayed in the house," Anari muttered under her breath.
"Anari can tell you."
"This is your fault, Nikai. You can explain."
The two of them began to bicker, but it was short-lived. A moving shadow crept into view beyond the rounded bars of our dungeon, causing all three of us to lock in.
Wonder who it could be?
A single black boot stepped into view before shimmering, silver cloaks. Livian, Isakai, and Shin showed their ugly faces. Not to mention a full fucking detail of armed guards.
"And here I thought Kozuna would still be out cold!" Livian scoffed to himself. "How are the accommodations?"
Yeah, that's right. Shin tranqed us on council orders.
Anari approached while Nikai and I stayed back. "Why are we here? Why did you people kidnap us?"
"Business. We really didn't need you, Anari, but having an extra test subject always helps."
"Test subject?" Anari stepped back, curling her fingers. "What are you talking about, Livian?"
"Running some experiments regarding the clan's newest curse wielders, of course. We're going to strengthen the Ozukashi in our own way and cut out the need to keep you animals alive. We've covered all our bases. Izanai won't think to look down here for his precious seal-slave, and that means all of you are at our mercy."
"Your mercy!?" Nikai smashed his fist against the wall, leaving behind a slight indentation. "You're at my mercy! I've got the power to destroy the council and everything you fuckers care about!"
"Really? Then what's taking so long?"
Nikai visibly tensed up. His fists clenched. I noticed his muscles flexing, but he couldn't draw a single drop of energy from his seal. All he earned were scorning laughs on the other side of the bars.
"Struggle all you want. Isakai's anti-curse fields run twenty-four seven down here. You won't be activating anything anytime soon, and it just goes to show how quickly you're willing to wield that dark power when it suits your interests. Fuckin' animals. All of you."
Nikai held himself from saying anything. He stepped back against the wall and slid down to a seated position, where he glared wickedly at Livian and the others. All I saw behind his darkening pupils was malice.
"Listen, big guy. I'm sure you're used to muscling your way through life, but those days are over."
Livian turned and motioned for someone to come closer. Moments later, a guard dragged another person into view. A skinny kid of about the same complexion as Nikai, complete with wavy brown hair and restraints all across his body. His hands were chained behind his back, and his feet were shackled. Even his mouth was tied shut. Tears flowed down his cheeks, and his cries were muffled at best. It was none other than Nikai's ten-year-old little brother.
Anari and I were left speechless in our own rage, but Nikai sprang up, gripping the bars with twitchy, veiny, bulging fingertips.
"Tyuyo!"
"Ah-ah-ah, Nikai! No sudden movements! I mentioned that we covered all of our bases, remember? If any one of you steps outta line, the kid suffers. Hear me?"
Nikai bared his teeth. He looked ready to crush those bars to dust.
"Cooperate with us, and I guarantee his safety. Attempt to cross the council, and, well? Let's just hope we don't have to go there."
"You'd better hope it doesn't go there."
Nikai breathed in and out over and over. He slowly backed away from the bars, burning with fury. I grabbed his shoulder and got him to look away from the council for a moment.
"What do we have to do, Livian?" I asked.
"It's simple. Comply without a struggle. With you and Nikai awake, we can begin running tests this instant."
Anari, Nikai, and I exchanged looks. We all knew what we needed to do without saying a word. We each nodded to Livian.
Just gotta bide our time.
"Excellent. Glad we're on the same page." Livian motioned for Shin to unlock the cell. "You three will be transported in cuffs, just to be safe. Annnd, as a reminder, resist at all and the kid might lose a finger."
Nikai's brow quivered, but he held still when the guards entered our cell and pulled his thick wrists behind his back. Anari and I had to do the same. They walked the three of us out the door, and then another soldier shoved Tyuyo inside.
Nikai twisted back in a flash. "What're you doing!?"
"Mind yourself, big guy." Livian patted Nikai on the back. "He'll be taking your place in the cell. That's all. Shin will be around to keep an eye on him. Now, let's get a move on. We've had to wait long enough to finally subdue you curse wielders."
The council's soldiers wasted no time marching us down the chrome corridors of crisscrossing halls. A labyrinth hidden somewhere within the Primary. It was weird that those guards seemed to know their way, but I was more concerned with something else.
Gotta escape with everyone, but where even are we? How do we fight back with Tyuyo on the line?
***
There was a constant warbling noise as we walked. Faint, but noticeable. It felt like we wandered through miles of glistening-clean passageways. On the way, Livian, Isakai, and their guard detail dragged us by some containment cells. They pulled a few prisoners out in shackles, and none of them looked happy. Filled with dread, if anything. It only got worse when we reached the expansive experimentation center.
The place was shiny silver with consoles and cylindrical, bubbling, fluid-filled test tubes lining the walls. They towered high enough to almost reach the ceiling and glowed a bright blue through the glass. A stark contrast to the dismal lab under Zara's jurisdiction.
And the moment we were pulled in, a pair of council scientists pricked Nikai and me with needles, drawing a lot of blood.
"How much are we taking, Councilor Isakai?"
"Hm. About eight gills a piece. We can bleed 'em for more later if need be."
Eight gills? How much is a gill?
Nikai twitched in place, struggling to not do something rash. I just felt weak. On top of having my arms slashed open, those ghouls were taking more blood. Anari was the lucky one. All she had to do was watch and keep her mouth shut, pissed-off or not.
Another scientist went and operated one of the consoles by the wall. And after a minute or so, the rounded, flat tops of a couple test tubes slid open and locked in place. Steam vented from our sides- silver stairways were built into the walls, designed to push out at the press of a button. I already knew what was coming next, especially when those fuckass scientists hooked special breathing apparatuses over our faces.
The soldiers forced us up the steps. Nikai was on the left side of the room, and I was on the right. They then dropped us in those tubes, and the fluid clung to my skin worse than a lovey-dovey Yvira. The second I was fully submerged, I felt entirely immobilized. Everything beyond the glass was distorted, too. They sealed the tops off instantly.
What… is this stuff?
I shuddered without moving an inch.
"Alright. We've got generous samples of curse-afflicted blood. "Isakai handed the vial of my blood to Livian, while he held on to Nikai's. "Which one do you think we should try first? And on whom? The girl?"
Livian turned his attention to Anari, but flashed a smile and scoffed. "No, no. Not her. Not yet. She's young, healthy, and military-trained. If things go sideways, I'd prefer we run tests with one of our more frail guinea pigs."
Even from my test tube, I could clearly tell Anari was trying to hold back from saying or doing anything stupid. Her entire angry face fidgeted.
"What are you fuckers about to do?"
"Oh, Anari, we're testing the effects of different cursed bloods on regular humans. Don't worry, it's not your turn yet."
Yet?
"You people are not putting that shit inside of me."
"It's not your choice, sweetie." Livian brushed past her and grabbed some skin-and-bones old man. "Just be glad you're not first on the list."
Livian's soldiers took that prisoner and chained him to the wall near my test tube. I had a clear view of what was happening, especially as he kicked his legs and screamed at the top of his lungs, pleading with them to stop. Clearly, he'd seen something we hadn't.
Not yet, anyway.
Every time Isakai took one step closer, the fear within that man grew, and his body reacted. It quickly got to the point where Isakai had soldiers forcibly hold the man down. All of us prisoners were forced to watch.
Forced to watch as Livian stood by in anticipation.
Isakai had readied a syringe. He tapped on the man's neck and placed the needle there, but didn't push it in. Not immediately. He waited with a devilish smile on his face, as if he wanted the reality of what was coming to really set in.
"Please don't do this!" The man breathed shakily and gulped. "I don't wanna end up like the others!"
Isakai had no heart at all. Livian, his guards, the other council members, Shin- everyone who stood by them was the same. A tear-faced, grown man was crying out for help, knowing damn well that no one was coming to save him. And the people ready to have him injected were smiling.
"Sorry, but we need live data." Isakai pushed the needle and injected the blood. "And this is the only way to get it, buddy."
Isakai immediately backed away and cowardly hid behind the guards, who had their guns at the ready. What we saw sent chills down my spine. Anari practically froze in place, sweating nonstop and unable to blink.
The man's skin started turning pitch-black. His eyes went bloodshot. He coughed uncontrollably, and blood spilled from his lips. He tried taking heavy breaths whenever he could, but his whole body jerked up and down violently. It was like he wanted to throw up, but physically couldn't.
Is this what cursed blood does to a regular human? What my blood does?
"W-why?" he struggled out.
And those were his last normal words. Even with the horror and trembling, none of us could look away. A massive splatter of blood stained the glass of Nikai's tube. That poor man's arm fucking exploded, inside and out. Blood drained from the hole, but things didn't end there.
His anguished screams were garbled. Saliva dripped from his lips uncontrollably. He began giving off savage glares at everyone in the room. Everyone.
His other arm burst to bits next, blocking my view with more blood. I could no longer see everything, but I sure as hell could still hear everything. Within seconds, the screaming and shouting built to a bang. I caught a glimpse of the man sprouting robust, shadowy arms in place of the human ones. He pounced on the closest guard and ripped his head away.
"He's incompatible! Put him down!"
"Don't let him touch Livian or Isakai!"
The soldiers started blasting. That prisoner had grown into a grotesque creature of blacks and deep reds, hunched over like a beast. He leaped from one guard to another, shredding several of them apart before dozens of bullets pierced his fleshy human torso. And after that display, I was hard-pressed to consider him fully human anymore.
He hit the floor and bled all over the place. The shadows receded, too. His onslaught was incredibly short-lived, but more than enough to burn a dark memory into the minds of all who were unfortunate enough to witness it.
"The hell was that?" Livian inched closer and kicked the body. "No one's ever reacted like that before."
"Maybe it's the kind of curse he was injected with? Or, and I'm just spitballing, Livian, he was compatible."
"What do you mean? His arms fuckin' exploded, and he grew new ones! He went berserk!"
"Exactly. Usually, when we inject people, they may have a slight reaction, but they just keel over. Out of his mind or not, this man managed to wield the power. But I believe we're missing a key component here."
Livian turned back to Isakai. "Like what?"
"I'm not sure yet. We need to conduct more tests. However, I believe it's best that we create a dedicated facility for injections. Now that we've witnessed someone go bat-shit crazy in front of us and try to kill everyone."
"Yeah. You're right." Livian's gaze traced the bodies. "He took out six of our guys in under a minute. We'll never perfect the pseudo-seal injections at this rate."
How many experiments have these monsters been conducting down here!?
"Actually, I think I just had an idea, Livian."
"Yeah?"
"We have Kozuna and Nikai under our control now. We can do whatever we want. "Isakai stepped over and whispered something into Livian's ear before continuing, "If anyone might be compatible, it'd be him, right?"
"You're right! He'd be perfect! If the injection works on him, we could mold him into the perfect soldier! Ah, but for now, we really should figure out where to establish a proper testing facility."
Who are they talking about?
Livian turned back to his soldiers. "For now, I need you men to escort the remaining prisoners back to their blocks. Isakai and I need to discuss our next move."
It was a horrible situation. Nikai and I could only float in sticky liquid, unable to move, much less activate and use our curse seals. We had to watch as the guard dragged Anari and the others away. And she was silent. All I could see on her face was dismay. I had to come up with a plan even faster.
If we don't hurry up and escape, they'll end up injecting you, too, Anari.