As a child Dusan grew up with a father who expected the most from him, and a mother who loved him unconditionally. Oliver Kauko, Dusan's father was a nice man once, but Dusan never met that side of him. Ruby Kauko, Dusan's mother, was always kind to him. Her vibrant blue eyes and warm smile could always put Dusan in a state of comfort whenever Oliver was having an outburst of anger, or when he was taking work so seriously that he was not present for Dusan, which was often. Ruby's gentle voice would always put Dusan to sleep when he was having trouble. She would tell him stories of how great the universe was, and how one day he would go beyond Somniet and explore whatever he wanted. This was Dusan's only real form of parenthood for the first nine years of his life.
730PM: Kauko Estate
It was a regular Monday in the Spring. Dusan was off at school, and Oliver at work. Ruby was unemployed due to Oliver's status so she did not need to work, and Oliver liked her as a housewife. It was lonely sitting at home day in and day out, so Ruby became very good friends with all the maids that made up the estate's staff. Ruby was particularly good friends with one of the maids named Elsie. Elsie was just 22 years old, and was hired right out of grade school due to Oliver's personal selection. Her hair was of medium length, and was a dirty-blonde color. She was not very tall, standing only at about 5'2, and she was a little on the frail side. During this time, Ruby was the age of 31.
On this Monday, per usual, Ruby was at home while the maids were working. Earlier in the day Ruby and Oliver had a pretty rough fight once Dusan had been taken to school, so Ruby had confined herself to her personal room. Oliver refused to share a bedroom. While Ruby sat in her room, she thought about her situation, and about Dusan. As she was thinking, she heard a knock on her door.
Ruby: "Come in!" She spoke up.
Elsie opened the door carefully, and walked further into the room.
Elsie: "Don't mind my prying, but I overheard you and Oliver fighting again this morning. I wanted to check on you to make sure that you were okay.." She said with a worried tone.
Ruby: "That is very sweet of you, but I am fine. I'm just glad that it happened once Dusan was out of the house. The way he views his father is already poor, but I would hate for it to get worse." She spoke to Elsie from her seat on the bed.
Elsie: "I agree. Dusan is a sweet boy, and it would be a shame if he shared any of his father's hatred."
Ruby: "I don't suppose Oliver will be back anytime soon?" She stated.
Elsie: "No, he only left an hour ago." She said, walking over to where Ruby was seated on the bed. "Is now a good time?"
Ruby: "As good as ever." She said as her lips interlocked with Elsie's, who had already pushed her onto the bed sheets.
Due to lack of affection from Oliver, Ruby had formed more than just a friendship with Elsie. They had an ongoing affair that had been happening for the past four months. Most days Elsie would wander off to find Ruby, wherever she was in the estate, and they would spend time together doing whatever it was they desired.
On this regular Monday afternoon, the two were being a little less discreet than usual due to their high success rate, and their carelessness worked to their disadvantage. That day, Oliver decided to come home early, and he found the two undressed on Ruby's bed, clearly doing things a married woman should not be doing. Oliver was not a great man by any means, but he was a loyal one. And being the cold-hearted man that he was, he ordered Elsie to be put to death. Ruby begged against it, but Oliver did not listen at all. This broke Ruby's heart, and as the guards Oliver had ordered to take Elsie away started to force her out of the room, Elsie started to fight back. All Ruby could do was sit back and sob as she watched Oliver take the dagger from his belt, stabbing it into the back of Elsie's head.
While all of that was happening, the maid who usually took Dusan to school and escorted him home, had just arrived back at the estate with Dusan. In the midst of all the chaos unfolding in the estate, Dusan and the maid were simply an unwanted interference. The moment they walked in, guards were carrying Elsie's dead body down the foyer staircase while Oliver was yelling at his naked wife from the top as she begged the guards to stop. This image never left Dusan's mind, and after that day, nothing in his family was the same. His mother stayed in her room all the time and never said a word to anyone apart from the times she spoke to herself. Sometimes when Dusan couldn't sleep, he would be able to hear his mother sobbing through the walls. Without his mother's comfort, he found it hard to function for the younger years of his life. And without his father, the only person he could turn to was the maid that looked after him.
From that regular Monday on, Oliver expected even more from Dusan. There was not a moment in the day where Dusan had time to himself. He was either in a private tutoring lesson, being taught how to wield a blade or fight with his hands by one of the guards on duty at the estate, or eating with supervision from the guard staff. Dusan was taught to obey his father, to never disrespect or defy his father, or he would face the consequences, and that was enough for Dusan to listen and do as told. He did not want to end up like Elsie or his mother.
741PM: Current
By now Soe and Dusan had engaged in a fist fight, a good distance away from where Elias and Warin were protecting Margit. He was aware that Dawn had engaged in combat with Gento, and Rhys with Galindo. He knew that this was the chance he had to change his life. He absolutely had to beat Soe.