Stax

Stax keeps his black hair parted to the left with the sides shaved close, and a jagged X-shaped scar warps his right cheek. That same right eye is clouded by a cataract, while his left stays dark and clear. He dresses in a black suit befitting his standing.

A pragmatic operator, Stax grasps exactly where he stands in the pecking order and works to hold the organization steady. He prizes order above all, which makes the constant friction from his subordinates, chiefly the reckless Vicious, a near-hopeless burden. He speaks openly of retiring one day to a boat and a real steak, far from the mess he manages.

From Ana's bar, Stax receives Fearless and Vicious after they assassinate the district attorney Lee, then hands them a delicate assignment: brokering a diamond deal with the Neptune Cartel on the elders' behalf. He keeps Fearless back to stress that the younger man must keep Vicious in line, warning that all their necks ride on the outcome. When the cartel insists the meeting stay unarmed, Stax enforces the rule, though Vicious ignores it.

The deal unravels after Vicious mutilates the cartel's man Ka-Ching, and Stax berates the pair for missing the real goal, a foothold in the outer planets. Once Vicious goes further and kills Ka-Ching outright, Stax summons Fearless to his office in the dead of night. He explains that the cartel now wants Vicious dead, that the elders and even Vicious's own father have sanctioned the killing, and that Fearless has been chosen to carry it out swiftly, before someone less merciful is sent.