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dollymixturesThey'd told him he was faulty.
Well, that's not strictly true, other people had been told he was faulty and that he wasn't suitable for combat (even though his shooting was excellent), but he'd been there at the time and that sort of counted - at least, it was the only way he was ever told anything, anyway.
They'd said he was to be decommissioned. He didn't know what decommissioned was, but he knew it was something a trooper didn't come back from. There were a lot of things a trooper didn't come back from, though, so at least he didn't know enough to be scared. Mostly, he was curious.
Maybe that was the problem. None of the others seemed to ever be curious. He was just supposed to follow orders, he wasn't supposed to know what why meant, let alone ask it.
It had been easier, before, being raised the same as all the others, given the same instructions. None of the others had talked, so he didn't either - but he did listen. He listened, and he learned - not much, just bits and pieces here and there, things that meant nothing to him and things that sounded interesting. Anything from state secrets to petty dramas between colleagues, and he didn't know one from the other truth be told, didn't know enough about the world to slot any of it into places that fit - he just liked to hear people talk. It made him feel less... lonely.
Another problem. He never realised he wasn't meant to feel anything at all.
Whatever decommissioning was or wasn't, he never had the chance to find out, though, because while he was being transported from one end of the facility to the other, the vehicle carrying him was hijacked. He didn't know it at the time - his armour had been deactivated, rendering him practically blind and barely able to move, and all he could hear was the sounds of a fight and then the vehicle was moving again - and it seemed like it was going much, much further than just the other end of the facility...
After a long journey and some disorienting moves, he becomes aware that someone is activating the release catches on his helmet, and he barely has chance to react before he's wincing at the sudden flood of painfully bright light (it's not overly bright, it just seems it after so long in darkness) - followed immediately by an uncomfortably loud clatter as whoever removed his helmet drops it.
"Holy shit." somebody in front of him breathes, as he's still trying to adjust to the light.
Well, that's not strictly true, other people had been told he was faulty and that he wasn't suitable for combat (even though his shooting was excellent), but he'd been there at the time and that sort of counted - at least, it was the only way he was ever told anything, anyway.
They'd said he was to be decommissioned. He didn't know what decommissioned was, but he knew it was something a trooper didn't come back from. There were a lot of things a trooper didn't come back from, though, so at least he didn't know enough to be scared. Mostly, he was curious.
Maybe that was the problem. None of the others seemed to ever be curious. He was just supposed to follow orders, he wasn't supposed to know what why meant, let alone ask it.
It had been easier, before, being raised the same as all the others, given the same instructions. None of the others had talked, so he didn't either - but he did listen. He listened, and he learned - not much, just bits and pieces here and there, things that meant nothing to him and things that sounded interesting. Anything from state secrets to petty dramas between colleagues, and he didn't know one from the other truth be told, didn't know enough about the world to slot any of it into places that fit - he just liked to hear people talk. It made him feel less... lonely.
Another problem. He never realised he wasn't meant to feel anything at all.
Whatever decommissioning was or wasn't, he never had the chance to find out, though, because while he was being transported from one end of the facility to the other, the vehicle carrying him was hijacked. He didn't know it at the time - his armour had been deactivated, rendering him practically blind and barely able to move, and all he could hear was the sounds of a fight and then the vehicle was moving again - and it seemed like it was going much, much further than just the other end of the facility...
After a long journey and some disorienting moves, he becomes aware that someone is activating the release catches on his helmet, and he barely has chance to react before he's wincing at the sudden flood of painfully bright light (it's not overly bright, it just seems it after so long in darkness) - followed immediately by an uncomfortably loud clatter as whoever removed his helmet drops it.
"Holy shit." somebody in front of him breathes, as he's still trying to adjust to the light.
"Get... get Marshal Leonis. He should see this."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 01:42 am (UTC)When he was giving the initial report to the King, he thought that it would be the last time he'd see the trooper in one piece. He almost regretted it, for he had always wondered if there was anything like a humanoid face beneath that metal helmet. That is, until he got the call from the lab about some kind of shocking discovery.
Cor excused himself to head back down to the labs, taking care to run himself thru all the security check points properly. His mind whirled at what kind of discovery they could've made, but none would be so wild as to walk into that examination room...and see a pair of blue eyes peering out from a freckled face.
"What the fuck--?!" he catches himself before turning to the head scientist. "Are you saying that he is the very trooper we snatched?" Not 'it', not 'them', but 'he'...a person.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 01:52 am (UTC)The others had moved to the side to talk in hushed whispers while they waited for the Marshal to arrive. It was... interesting, he thought, to see the way they seemed not to want him to overhear what they were saying. He wasn't used to anybody caring if he overheard or not.
For his part, he was still wearing the rest of the deactivated armour, the joints stiff and difficult to move without power, and it took him a few minutes to actually be able to open his eyes fully and take in the rest of the room, so he just sits there and waits to find out what's going to happen - he doesn't think to ask, and they're too busy trying to decide if they should say anything to him to actually do it before Cor gets there.
He does turn his head curiously when the man enters, though, because what's the point in not looking? Staying still and playing the perfect soldier isn't going to do him any good now, they already know he's got something wrong with him. Is this what decommissioning is?
He doesn't think it is, though, not when they seem so surprised to see him, and not when this doesn't look anything like the facility he came from - and that word, snatched.
He thinks he might have been stolen by somebody. These somebodies.
The scientist nods, clearly just as baffled by what they've found as everybody else.
"Yes sir," he confirms "it- he was taken directly from the transport, we just removed the helmet and..." he waves a hand to indicate the face watching them curiously
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 10:04 pm (UTC)He turnes to look at the trooper, noticing how the younger male seems to stare back out of curiosity and confusion. Clearly not an unfeeling machine that he had faced in the past...and thus complete destruction is no longer an option, in his mind.
"...we're going to have to scrap the dissection," he finally states. "Let's see if we can get him out of that suit instead before we do anything else."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 10:29 pm (UTC)If he were in the familiar lab, he wouldn't say anything - would let them continue to talk about him as if he were nothing more than another machine or piece of furniture, pick up his little tidbits of information and then do as he was told - but if he were in the familiar lab, he wouldn't even be looking at them, wouldn't let that curiosity show on his face.
So when Cor mentions removing the armour, he opens his mouth - his voice is raw, a little husky from lack of use, but he does at least know how to speak even if he almost never does it.
"There are catches, at the joints." He can't get to them himself, even when the armour is fully functional it's difficult, but he knows they exist - built in so that malfunctioning pieces can be removed for repair.
At least one of the scientists stares at him in shock when he speaks, and he does wonder if it was a mistake, but it's too late to second guess it now.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 10:37 pm (UTC)He looks over at the scientist staring in shock. "You heard him - get to it!"
Even as the scientists start to undo the armor, the Marshal is still staring at those blue eyes, that freckled face. A million thoughts whirl thru his head. They will have to shift the parameters of their research now; so many protocols will have to be enforced now, since this appears to be a person instead of a machine...
"Hey," he finally asks the trooper. "What do they normally call you? Do you remember any kind of name for yourself?" surely this has to be flesh-n-blood person, and not just some advance machine like out of those sci-fi movies...right?
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 10:54 pm (UTC)He sits obediently still as they remove the armour, piece by piece - he doesn't have much choice, at first, but even when he's able to move he doesn't, not until they're finished. Only then does he carefully flex each limb, stretching out the stiffness from sitting still for so long. Beneath the armour is a bodysuit - it appears simple, but technologically it's just as advanced as the armour. It's not clothes in the traditional sense - it's not designed to need to be removed.
"This unit is designated zero-five-nine-five-three-two-three-four." He answers - he's worked out enough to understand that his unit number is the closest approximation to a name that he has, although he doesn't realise that his answer doesn't exactly help the whole 'is he a robot or is he human' question.
"We can run some tests, sir." The head scientist offers "Scans, take blood, that kind of thing..." If the trooper even has blood, his tone seems to suggest.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 11:14 pm (UTC)He then turns to the head scientist. "That would be the best course for now. Make sure he gets a full medical exam, too, if possible before. I need to update his Majesty at to this new development. But before I leave, I need to ask him one last question..."
He turns to face the trooper. "Your profile states that you were due to be decommissioned due to being faulty. Why would they consider you 'faulty' as a trooper?"
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 11:48 pm (UTC)The scientist nods, accepting the instructions and motioning for the others to start making preparations while the Marshal finishes up his conversation.
The trooper blinks at him for a moment, puzzling over how best to respond.
"The unit inspectors were discussing what they determined to be an unusual expression of interest in the reasoning behind an order. One of them said 'the report indicated it came across as simple curiosity', the other's response was to explain 'it isn't supposed to feel curiosity. It isn't supposed to feel, period'. That was determined to be the fault."
He doesn't always know what details in a conversation are important - he's never had to repeat one before (using magitek troopers for reconnaissance isn't unheard of, but he's never been selected for it) - so he hopes that he's given the right information to answer the question.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 12:47 am (UTC)"...well, you won't get decommissioned here for being curious, so you can not worry about that," Cor replies as he looks back at the trooper. "These scientists here are just going to run some tests to make sure you're still fit otherwise. Please answer their questions to the best of their ability. I'll be back after I make my report to my superiors."
He then looks at the head scientist one last time before leaving. "Keep me updated if there's any other sudden discoveries." And then he goes off, back to Regis' office where he'll give an updated version of his report to date. All throughout the process, his mind will keep drifting back to that trooper, wondering how they're going to handle having who may possibly an imperial citizen in their custody...
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 01:03 am (UTC)He just nods - he might have realised that he can be a little more open with them about the things that make him faulty, but he has still been trained all his life to follow orders, and the Marshal is very clearly the authority here. It doesn't occur to him that there's another option beyond just doing what he's told - magitek troopers aren't expected to be captured, so it's not like he had orders for that eventuality, and even the idea that he was being held by people who were technically his enemy required a level of understanding and belief far beyond what they ever thought he'd have - you don't need to teach a machine who the enemy is, just which targets to shoot at, and for all that the magitek troopers start off human, they are very much treated as machines by the people who deploy them.
Once Cor leaves, the scientists move to run their tests. They have to cut him out of the bodysuit - once they determine doing so won't cause him any injury - so by the time Cor gets back he's dressed in a disposable hospital gown that somehow makes it even more obvious that he's just a slender, ordinary young man.
They've done every scan they can think of, and are ready to inform the marshal on his return that he has every appearance of being human - though with some abnormalities that they need to run further tests to identify. They've taken the blood samples, hair samples, cheek swabs; everything they can get without resorting to a biopsy. The only problem is... now they have no idea what to do with him.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 02:02 am (UTC)The King's decision was surprising, and Cor's still mulling over it as he returns to the testing area. Seeing the lad sitting there, wearing a hospital nightgown, only drives home the fact that this is a living being, and he should've been treated as such from the beginning. He listens to the reports from the scientists, slowly nodding along.
"If we can run those tests with minimum discomfort, then let's do so at a later date. Right now, though..." His voice trails off as his gaze keeps drifting back to the young blonde. "We need to make sure he's fed, clothed, and assigned a place to stay until further notice. The king has given permission to let him be housed with proper supervision, so...any ideas where he'll be staying yet?"
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 02:15 am (UTC)"We were hoping you might have an idea of that," the head scientist admits, thinking about it for a moment before lowering his voice "but truthfully... between this discovery and the abnormalities we've seen, I'm hesitant to let him go too far. I don't want word getting out before we've fully investigated and are able to answer the questions people are undoubtedly going to have. Wherever he stays, that 'proper supervision' ought to be somebody who already knows about him."
It's advice, rather than instruction, since he doesn't have the authority to tell Cor what to do, but he trusts that the Marshal will see the sense in his words.
He glances back at the trooper, who's just sitting there waiting to be told what to do, almost unnaturally still, and then back to Cor.
"Unfortunately, I don't think I could volunteer any of my team, for one thing we can't rule out the possibility that he might be dangerous, and I don't think any of them would be able to handle an enemy combatant, and the other thing... well. They find him... unsettling. I don't think they would agree to it."
It doesn't leave Cor with a lot of options.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 02:28 am (UTC)Which is why he's suppressing the urge for a long-suffering sigh. "So I'm babysitting again," he quietly mutters beneath his breath, harkening back to all those times he had to look after Noctis and/or Ignis. "Alright, he'll stay with me for the time being. At the very least, I can make sure he doesn't cause any trouble, either accidentally or...otherwise."
Cor then turns to walk over to the blonde lad. "Looks like we're done with tests for today. I've been given permission to let you stay with me for the time being. We'll head over there as soon as we find some clothes that fit you." He pauses for a moment. "...I do wonder, though - how often did your handlers feed you? What did they normally feed you with?"
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 07:56 pm (UTC)The scientist at least has the decency not to laugh at Cor's plight (on the outside), and he nods at the marshal conceding to looking after their unexpected charge.
"I will update you as soon as we have results or require further tests." He confirms, before stepping away to let Cor deal with the trooper.
The young man in question looks a little startled to be addressed directly (even though it's not the first time, it's still taking some getting used to), and it only melts into a vaguely confused expression when he realises he's being given.. information? They're explaining to him what's going on? The scientists did a little of that, with their testing, but that was more along the lines of 'this might sting a little', this was... not the way he was used to finding out what was going to happen to him.
After a moment, he just nods to acknowledge it, hoping that was all that was required. Then the question came and he just looks even more confused.
It takes him a long moment to make sense of the words, but it's clear he's puzzling through how to answer, until eventually he realises what he's being asked.
"Proper nutrition was delivered when required, via Magitek armour's life support systems."
One of the scientists who's nearby clears her throat a little shyly and beckons Cor over to try and shed some light on the situation - she explains that when they removed the bodysuit he wore beneath the armour, there were certain connections that had to be removed - evidence that the 'nutrition delivery' might have been intravaneous.
no subject
Date: 2023-02-01 02:14 am (UTC)But Cor noticed how he was scaring the female scientist with that look of quiet fury on his face, so he takes a moment of deep breathing to get himself back under control. "...duly noted," he coolly mutters. "Thank you." He takes another deep breath to make himself calm enough to speak to the blonde normally.
"Alright, so we will have you staying with me until further orders come in. While you're with me, I will do my best to help acclimate you into this next stage of your life. That includes learning how to consume food like a normal person does. Any questions before we get started?"
<3 <3
Date: 2023-02-02 12:57 am (UTC)The young man just stares at him with slightly wide eyes - questions? That was even stranger than the man talking to him, or volunteering information instead of orders, the very idea of him being able to ask questions was so alien that for a long second any questions he might have had disappear entirely from his head in the face of his blank confusion.
He opens his mouth to try and find something - an answer is expected of him, right? - but there's just so much he doesn't know that he doesn't even know where to begin, so after a moment he closes it again and just shakes his head mutely.
He'd think it was ironic that a unit declared faulty for being curious suddenly finds himself without any questions to ask, if he knew what irony was.
"Marshal Leonis?" Another voice interrupts politely "We found these, they should fit..."
The bundle of clothing being offered to Cor is fairly basic, just some boxers, sweats and a t-shirt, whatever they could scrounge from the lockers of whichever scientists were about the same size as the trooper. There's a pair of basic slippers, too - they're not ideal, but it means he'll at least have something on his feet.
Three weeks later...
Date: 2024-01-28 03:10 pm (UTC)Everything is new, everything is interesting - though it takes him some time before he expresses that through anything other than silent curiosity in his eyes. He sleeps in a room that doesn't contain a dozen other troopers. In a bed. He learns to eat food - bland and basic at first, so he doesn't get sick - and dress in normal clothes instead of armour. It's a few days before he's over the initial culture shock of even those most basic things, a few days of just following Cor around or sitting quietly and waiting to be told what to do, of having to be taught everything.
He gets a name, he isn't really sure what the problem with 05953234 is but apparently it's not right to call a person that. They test his reflexes and, after some debate about safety, they test his shooting as well - he's fast, and after that somebody suggests they call him Prompto. He doesn't have any reason to object, so the name sticks, even if it takes him a little while to really think of the name as his.
Periodically, he's taken back to the lab for further testing, which is about the closest to normality (for him) that he gets at any point. Sometimes they ask questions. He answers them, as best he can, and he has no idea if his answers are helpful or not.
(He knows less about how the MTs actually worked than they hoped, though he's able to give them some information. He also accidentally spills at least two imperial military secrets, and several completely useless pieces of personal information about the scientists who'd been working on him)
They tell him he's a clone. He doesn't really know what to do with that information so he just nods - he does that a lot, in the lab. It's familiar, so it's easy to fall back on old habits there, to just sit still and quiet and do as he's told.
Outside the lab, though, he's different, he starts to come out of his shell. It doesn't happen right away, at first he's just the same outside the lab as in it; he never speaks without being spoken to, never does anything without being told to do it, never chooses anything - he responds to questions about what he wants with polite confusion at the very concept. After a week or so, though, it starts to change.
It's tiny things at first - Cor asks him if he wants to try something new for dinner and he nods shyly, he puts a hoodie on when he gets cold instead of just silently suffering until Cor notices and tells him to, he finally starts to use the word I - little hints that he's starting to open up and explore this strange new life and all the freedoms it contains.
There's bigger things, too, more of his own personality beginning to shine through. They pass a field of chocobos on the drive to the lab and Prompto will watch them until they're out of sight every time. He tries a cheeseburger for the first time and nearly cries at how good it is.
(He also eats it too fast and makes himself sick, but as he's sitting in the bathroom experiencing the grossness of throwing up for the first time, he mumbles "worth it")
He has a small collection of clothes now, just a few shirts and jeans and a couple of hoodies, and he's been taught about the concept of a laundry basket - except he hasn't, yet, been taught what to do when all of your shirts have ended up there, so one morning he hits a stumbling block when getting dressed and, after some internal deliberation, he goes in search of Cor. He's shirtless, but he's at least got pants on. This time.
(Prompto, of course, has no concept of modesty, and part of 'learning about clothes' had ended up including 'learning about not wandering the apartment naked after a shower' one memorable morning a few days in.)
no subject
Date: 2024-01-28 03:29 pm (UTC)But Cor doesn't keep him inside most of the time, not after he got the full clearance that the lad's not an immediate threat to the public. He's still fine-tuning the cover story for why he suddenly has a teenager living with him, but 'finding him abandoned in the wilderness and without much memory' seems to be a good foundation so far - for his neighbors, at least. Taking him out on regular trips, or helping him catch up on certain bits of education and social etiquette... His ultimate goal is to get him acclimated into society, possibly preparing him to enter the Crownsguard as his apprentice, should Prompto proves himself that trustworthy.
Prompto... Cor had been quite insistent on giving him a proper name, and it seems to fit how fast he can be without all that armor. It was Regis who invented his surname, damn-and-bless his love of Old Lucian. "He's still young enough to potentially go to school," his King had pointed out, during one of their private meetings, "and he'll need some kind of surname." Cor can't argue with him on that point, but he's not sure if Prompto would do well in school socially just yet.
It also hadn't been easy for the older man to keep things informal, yet civil. Prompto is very adorable once he starts to smile more often, and his developing personality only makes it 'worse'. The fact that he came out of the shower named one day early on didn't help things, either. Six, the Astrals had blessed him with the kind of young body that gets the Marshal all hot and bothered...! It's been a trying time, and it's been getting harder of late, what with Prompto's personality really blossoming in small yet important ways.
That morning, he wasn't expecting him to walk into the kitchen shirtless. In fact, his focus was entirely on preparing breakfast for the both of them. He was going to introduce sausage to the lad, since eggs, fruit and juice has long since been accepted as part of the morning meal. Part of his mind has been wondering if he should start introducing him to doing house chores, give him some work around the house while Cor's busy at work. If he had heard Prompto asking about laundry first, he would've been all too happy to answer.
But instead, he glances over upon hearing those familiar footsteps. "Morning, Prompto--" And his voice immediately pauses as he gazes upon the shirtless blonde. Astrals, he can already feel his blood warming up quickly just from that look...! He immediately focuses back onto the frying pan. "Ahem...what bring you out here without a shirt? Are you that hungry?"
no subject
Date: 2024-01-28 03:42 pm (UTC)"Good morning." He replies pleasantly, and it's probably weird that he gets a little thrill of joy to use those little social niceties, but it's all part of learning to be his own person and doing new things that he never would have done before, the shine of it hasn't worn off yet.
His expression is briefly quizzical as he watches the way Cor's gaze changes when he looks at him - there's something in that look that's different, something he doesn't understand but some part of him wants to. He's seen it before, once or twice, but he's never quite been so bold as to ask about it. Yet.
"I am hungry," he volunteers, because the smell of breakfast is making his stomach rumble, and he moves closer to peer over Cor's shoulder at the frying pan to see what he's cooking (he's still working on the concept of personal space) "but that's not why I don't have a shirt. I have run out of shirts and I wasn't sure what to do."
no subject
Date: 2024-01-28 03:56 pm (UTC)Instead, he lets Prompto look over his shoulder at what he's cooking, since the lad is clearly hungry. The mention of no more clean shirts is a welcome distraction from the half-naked young man standing next to him. "Sounds like it's time for some laundry. I've actually been wondering if you would like to learn how to do some house chores like laundry - both to help keep the place clean, and help keep you busy whenever I have to leave you here while I go to work."
no subject
Date: 2024-01-28 04:04 pm (UTC)'Chores' are not something he's encountered before, at least, the word isn't, every job he ever had to do before was covered by the magical word 'orders'. Laundry he has heard of, but he doesn't know much about it. The most important word he picked up on, though, was help.
His ideas of the world are somewhat scrambled, understandably, but he knows that Cor has given him a lot without really asking anything in return, and he's vaguely aware that when they stole him from the facility they were expecting to get a lot more out of him than it seemed like they have. He also knows that he's supposed to be useful, and it doesn't really feel like he has been, so he jumps at the opportunity.
"Yes, I would like to learn this." He says with an eager smile "And this will also help with the shirts, yes?"
no subject
Date: 2024-01-29 07:20 pm (UTC)"It would, yes, Cor agreed. "You'll be able to clean your clothes and get them ready to be reused. It's how we make sure clothing lasts until it's too worn down to be used any longer." That Prompto is so close to him, shirtless, is doing Things in his pants. Things that isn't showing much right now, he hopes. "Would you like to learn before or after breakfast?"
no subject
Date: 2024-01-29 07:27 pm (UTC)"Like getting armour plates repaired." He offers - that, at least, is something he's familiar with, a piece being taken for repair. Usually there's spares to replace it immediately, but he's seen it happen when there hasn't been, and he can see that's the same as what's now happened with his shirts.
"After breakfast, please, I'm hungry now." He says - he's still a little shy about stating his preferences, still hesitates as though waiting to be told he's made the wrong choice, but he's getting better at actually saying it, at least.
"But... you are supposed to be dressed for meals, yes? What will I wear until the laundry is done?"
no subject
Date: 2024-01-29 07:33 pm (UTC)Six bless his sense of propriety, at least for meals. "You can borrow one of my shirts. It might be a little big for you, but it will do until your clothes are all clean." He sets the sausage on the plates and turn off the stove, before turning around. "Let's head to my room; I'll give it to you there..."
no subject
Date: 2024-01-29 07:44 pm (UTC)Prompto nods his understanding, adding the information to all the other things he's learned over the last few weeks.
"Thank you." He says with another nod, casting one last interested eye over the sausages before stepping away so they can go and fetch one of Cor's shirts.
He's glad he's going to learn some chores so he can help out, but he really wishes there was more he could do for Cor after everything...
no subject
Date: 2024-01-30 10:04 pm (UTC)Cor goes over to the dresser and opens a middle drawer. He starts to dig around in there to see which of his shirts might be good enough to lend. Most of them are dark colored, if not outright black, but there are a few with a bit more color, or even a design...
Though if Prompto wishes to check other parts of the room, the older man isn't going to notice that in the next few moments...
no subject
Date: 2024-01-30 10:45 pm (UTC)Had it been even as recently as a week ago, Prompto likely would have stood patiently in the doorway and waited for Cor to find what he was looking for. At most, he would have stepped into the room, perhaps let his gaze stray, but not moved.
Now, though, curiosity is starting to get the better of him, and he follows Cor towards the dresser so he can take a closer look at the photos there, eyes shining with interest. He doesn't linger for too long, though, wanting to take in the rest of the room as well - it's one place in the house he's barely gone since arriving, and he's fascinated by everything he can see.