The small white blossom that hung from the arm of the cactus was easy to see, but hard to hit with a slingshot.
Ozaki Kyosuke wanted to use the rifle on his back. But a neighborhood was about 1,300 meters immediately behind the flower, and his rifle, despite its weak ammunition, was powerful enough to hit something 1,335 meters away, or so he wagered.
So he used his slingshot, something he hadn't pulled out since he was a kid. And now he remembered why -- all of the stones in tundra-like desert immedately surrounding Malifar were rough and unpolished. When his father had taken him into the desert, he'd found some beautifully smooth stones, ones that flew through the air perfectly. But these stones were sharper, jagged; they didn't fly straight at all. The BBs in the butt of the slingshot were too easy, though, and he didn't have many of them.
Those were for the stupid kids that were going to race over on their electric buggies and harass him just because they knew what he was now.
Strrrrech ... Twung! ... Pk! pk ... pk.
Kyosuke hmphed and stuck the slingshot in his butt pocket. There was no sense in keeping up appearances. He'd have to don the blue'n'grey eventually; might as well start packing. At least it was a desk job. Nothing too serious. A little logistics, a little cargo loading -- easy stuff. In no time at all he'd be making money, which he could send home. After all, Eiko and Piko were just going to keep growing, which meant they were going to keep eating, which meant they were going to keep costing.
At least Mom had retired from the local market. Her pension was more than money could buy -- free groceries, of any volume and any type. Mom had kept the books balanced for the family after their father had died in the plague, so they were more than willing to give back to her. Mom took in moderation, stocked up wisely and monitored the caloric intake of the household. Precision was Ozaki Mei's middle name.
Of course Dad was still out hunting and doing law enforcement on the side, but hell, he was the legendary "Kyo-dono" of the northeast side of town. The man responsible for ... well, for putting a hole in some slumlord asshole who beat his tenants and traded rent for statutory rape. The town never let him forget what a hero that supposedly made him. Dad shrugged it off -- the bastard had been overdue on a kickback he owed the Hunter's Guild for keeping his property relatively free of beasts, and he had refused to pay. It gave Dad a chance to try his new Nepleslian hunting rifle.
Ozaki Kyo's middle name was also precision.
And that's what he had to offer Yamatai ... except when it came to using his slingshot. Damn thing, he muttered.
He turned away from the cactus and back to his family's house. His mother, a pretty woman just 40 that year, stuck her head out the window into the bright, mid-year sun. She had been washing dishes. "Kyouusukehh!" she shouted, her voice clear and with an even tone. Kyosuke liked his mother's voice.
"Yehhhs," he replied in Japanese, walking down the little mound that signified the boundry of their property line. The back yard of the light-tan colored house had much greener grass than it should have, but it was special terraforming grass, or some such thing. Piko and Eiko's toys were all about.
"Your sisters need a ride to school! Go take them, would you?"
"Mom, I have to get on the shuttle in an hour or two, you know."
"This is the last time you'll see them for months!" Mei shouted. Kyosuke had already broken his path toward the back door and was headed for the front around the house. "Be a good brother and say good bye!"
"Yehhhhs," Kyosuke shouted back from the side of the house. His two sisters, each 9, were already waiting by the buggy. Eiko, her hair long and silky like Mom's and narrowed eyes set squarely on her brother, tapped her foot impatiently. Piko, her hair put into a bun and eyes blinking behind a set of goggles, held her books in front of her demurely.
"Jeez onii-san, you're slow today!" Eiko said, who began for the front seat upon seeing Kyosuke. "I have someone to meet at school, you know. A man named Henry is going to be at the school, and the teachers are really wanting in his shorts!"
Piko just smiled and got into the back. Eiko was younger by a minute or two, but she was somehow more "learned" than her older sibling. But Piko was nicer.
Kyosuke said nothing as he got in the driver's seat and took them to the school building about 3,000 meters away. The conversation was mostly one-sided, but he bid his sisters good bye as his mother had instructed. He then hopped in the buggy and, ignoring a couple of oggling bits of jailbait, went back home. He took his time to gather everything in his sand-colored room and make sure it was all there as he changed into his uniform.
"Rum, check. Dad's old flask, check. Stolen bottle of whiskey, check. Spiced rum ... damn. No spiced rum." Kyosuke swore. The rum was for the girls; they never seemed to like whiskey.
Mei knocked on her son's open door, a bemused smile on her face. "You know, I like sake," she said. "You should find a girl that likes sake instead of that horrible stuff your father drinks."
Kyosuke blushed without turning around. "It's just for fun," he said quietly.
"Mmhmm," Mei said, unconvinced. "Do you have everything else?"
He paused. "Yeah, think so -- I need my knife."
"Toothbrush?"
"Yeah Mom."
"Floss?"
"Yeah Mom."
"Condoms?"
Kyosuke rubbed his head. "I don't think I need any, Mom."
"Oh, I know you do not," Mei said evenly. "It is for your friends who do not seem to know better. They believe Nekos cannot get pregnant, but I would not trust what PNUgen says about them. The Neko might simply wish to be pregnant, and ban! they are fathers."
Kyosuke had little to say about that. She was right -- his friends were stupid. But he was too, on occasion, even if he was still a virgin. Better things to do than get laid, he thought.
"I think I'm ready," he said after another moment, holding his footlocker and duffle. It was all fairly light; he wasn't packing weapons, after all.
"Mmhmm," Mei said, a smile across her lips. She was wearing her apron with "Nyo nyo" and a cat's face on it. "But you are still missing something."
Kyosuke frowned -- he'd thought of everything, he was sure. But Mei took out a small, thin black box from her apron pocket and held it out for Kyosuke. It had a silver and blue ribbon around it.
"Happy birthday," Mei said with a warm smile. "We wanted to get it to you on your birthday, after you had settled down, but your father's check was big enough this month, and you might need it once you are there."
The young man looked at the box for a second, then slowly took it. Mei bowed and then watched her son undo the ribbon and slowly lift the box.
"Oh ... shit." It was an analog chronometer, powered kinetically and with light. It had four clock faces, the main one and three small ones -- representing minutes, seconds and tenths of a second for its built-in stopwatch. The hands, numbers (using Roman numerals) and ticks were all glow-in-the-dark, and it had an adjustable tachymeter. It was all polished nickel-titanium alloy, with a transparent crystal face cover.
It sparkled and reflected the sun outside like a mirror as Kyosuke put it on under the sky light of his room. The weight felt good.
"Mom ... " He was speechless. He'd never, ever had something this nice before.
"You didn't even look at the back," Mei said, slightly exasperated.
"Eh?" Kyosuke took it off again and looked at the back --
"Mom ... " He was really speechless now.
"We wanted to give it to you," Mei said, still seeming exasperated. "You will need to time your delivery routes and how quickly you can load cargo. Those normal chronometers are cheap and will impress no one. Now you will stand out!"
Kyosuke was sure he wouldn't. But it was such a nice gift, he did not dare say anything contrary. Instead, he hugged his mother. "Thanks Mom ... "
"Ohhh, you're welcome -- Ozaki-Heisho!" Mei smiled at her son, hands on his shoulders, seemingly beaming with pride under the skylight. "I know you will bring honor to our family, and to your father. Now quickly, off with you."
Kyosuke nodded, hugging her and gathering his things. He kissed her cheek goodbye, bowed to the house that had sheltered him for so long, then walked down the slightly dusty road toward the local shuttle pad.
Ozaki Kyosuke wanted to use the rifle on his back. But a neighborhood was about 1,300 meters immediately behind the flower, and his rifle, despite its weak ammunition, was powerful enough to hit something 1,335 meters away, or so he wagered.
So he used his slingshot, something he hadn't pulled out since he was a kid. And now he remembered why -- all of the stones in tundra-like desert immedately surrounding Malifar were rough and unpolished. When his father had taken him into the desert, he'd found some beautifully smooth stones, ones that flew through the air perfectly. But these stones were sharper, jagged; they didn't fly straight at all. The BBs in the butt of the slingshot were too easy, though, and he didn't have many of them.
Those were for the stupid kids that were going to race over on their electric buggies and harass him just because they knew what he was now.
Strrrrech ... Twung! ... Pk! pk ... pk.
Kyosuke hmphed and stuck the slingshot in his butt pocket. There was no sense in keeping up appearances. He'd have to don the blue'n'grey eventually; might as well start packing. At least it was a desk job. Nothing too serious. A little logistics, a little cargo loading -- easy stuff. In no time at all he'd be making money, which he could send home. After all, Eiko and Piko were just going to keep growing, which meant they were going to keep eating, which meant they were going to keep costing.
At least Mom had retired from the local market. Her pension was more than money could buy -- free groceries, of any volume and any type. Mom had kept the books balanced for the family after their father had died in the plague, so they were more than willing to give back to her. Mom took in moderation, stocked up wisely and monitored the caloric intake of the household. Precision was Ozaki Mei's middle name.
Of course Dad was still out hunting and doing law enforcement on the side, but hell, he was the legendary "Kyo-dono" of the northeast side of town. The man responsible for ... well, for putting a hole in some slumlord asshole who beat his tenants and traded rent for statutory rape. The town never let him forget what a hero that supposedly made him. Dad shrugged it off -- the bastard had been overdue on a kickback he owed the Hunter's Guild for keeping his property relatively free of beasts, and he had refused to pay. It gave Dad a chance to try his new Nepleslian hunting rifle.
Ozaki Kyo's middle name was also precision.
And that's what he had to offer Yamatai ... except when it came to using his slingshot. Damn thing, he muttered.
He turned away from the cactus and back to his family's house. His mother, a pretty woman just 40 that year, stuck her head out the window into the bright, mid-year sun. She had been washing dishes. "Kyouusukehh!" she shouted, her voice clear and with an even tone. Kyosuke liked his mother's voice.
"Yehhhs," he replied in Japanese, walking down the little mound that signified the boundry of their property line. The back yard of the light-tan colored house had much greener grass than it should have, but it was special terraforming grass, or some such thing. Piko and Eiko's toys were all about.
"Your sisters need a ride to school! Go take them, would you?"
"Mom, I have to get on the shuttle in an hour or two, you know."
"This is the last time you'll see them for months!" Mei shouted. Kyosuke had already broken his path toward the back door and was headed for the front around the house. "Be a good brother and say good bye!"
"Yehhhhs," Kyosuke shouted back from the side of the house. His two sisters, each 9, were already waiting by the buggy. Eiko, her hair long and silky like Mom's and narrowed eyes set squarely on her brother, tapped her foot impatiently. Piko, her hair put into a bun and eyes blinking behind a set of goggles, held her books in front of her demurely.
"Jeez onii-san, you're slow today!" Eiko said, who began for the front seat upon seeing Kyosuke. "I have someone to meet at school, you know. A man named Henry is going to be at the school, and the teachers are really wanting in his shorts!"
Piko just smiled and got into the back. Eiko was younger by a minute or two, but she was somehow more "learned" than her older sibling. But Piko was nicer.
Kyosuke said nothing as he got in the driver's seat and took them to the school building about 3,000 meters away. The conversation was mostly one-sided, but he bid his sisters good bye as his mother had instructed. He then hopped in the buggy and, ignoring a couple of oggling bits of jailbait, went back home. He took his time to gather everything in his sand-colored room and make sure it was all there as he changed into his uniform.
"Rum, check. Dad's old flask, check. Stolen bottle of whiskey, check. Spiced rum ... damn. No spiced rum." Kyosuke swore. The rum was for the girls; they never seemed to like whiskey.
Mei knocked on her son's open door, a bemused smile on her face. "You know, I like sake," she said. "You should find a girl that likes sake instead of that horrible stuff your father drinks."
Kyosuke blushed without turning around. "It's just for fun," he said quietly.
"Mmhmm," Mei said, unconvinced. "Do you have everything else?"
He paused. "Yeah, think so -- I need my knife."
"Toothbrush?"
"Yeah Mom."
"Floss?"
"Yeah Mom."
"Condoms?"
Kyosuke rubbed his head. "I don't think I need any, Mom."
"Oh, I know you do not," Mei said evenly. "It is for your friends who do not seem to know better. They believe Nekos cannot get pregnant, but I would not trust what PNUgen says about them. The Neko might simply wish to be pregnant, and ban! they are fathers."
Kyosuke had little to say about that. She was right -- his friends were stupid. But he was too, on occasion, even if he was still a virgin. Better things to do than get laid, he thought.
"I think I'm ready," he said after another moment, holding his footlocker and duffle. It was all fairly light; he wasn't packing weapons, after all.
"Mmhmm," Mei said, a smile across her lips. She was wearing her apron with "Nyo nyo" and a cat's face on it. "But you are still missing something."
Kyosuke frowned -- he'd thought of everything, he was sure. But Mei took out a small, thin black box from her apron pocket and held it out for Kyosuke. It had a silver and blue ribbon around it.
"Happy birthday," Mei said with a warm smile. "We wanted to get it to you on your birthday, after you had settled down, but your father's check was big enough this month, and you might need it once you are there."
The young man looked at the box for a second, then slowly took it. Mei bowed and then watched her son undo the ribbon and slowly lift the box.
"Oh ... shit." It was an analog chronometer, powered kinetically and with light. It had four clock faces, the main one and three small ones -- representing minutes, seconds and tenths of a second for its built-in stopwatch. The hands, numbers (using Roman numerals) and ticks were all glow-in-the-dark, and it had an adjustable tachymeter. It was all polished nickel-titanium alloy, with a transparent crystal face cover.
It sparkled and reflected the sun outside like a mirror as Kyosuke put it on under the sky light of his room. The weight felt good.
"Mom ... " He was speechless. He'd never, ever had something this nice before.
"You didn't even look at the back," Mei said, slightly exasperated.
"Eh?" Kyosuke took it off again and looked at the back --
The watch said:
"Mom ... " He was really speechless now.
"We wanted to give it to you," Mei said, still seeming exasperated. "You will need to time your delivery routes and how quickly you can load cargo. Those normal chronometers are cheap and will impress no one. Now you will stand out!"
Kyosuke was sure he wouldn't. But it was such a nice gift, he did not dare say anything contrary. Instead, he hugged his mother. "Thanks Mom ... "
"Ohhh, you're welcome -- Ozaki-Heisho!" Mei smiled at her son, hands on his shoulders, seemingly beaming with pride under the skylight. "I know you will bring honor to our family, and to your father. Now quickly, off with you."
Kyosuke nodded, hugging her and gathering his things. He kissed her cheek goodbye, bowed to the house that had sheltered him for so long, then walked down the slightly dusty road toward the local shuttle pad.
