Seventh Game

[break_the_nine]

[1]

[One would expect Leos to be absolutely devastated when you find him after the mission. With who died... who went missing and how badly he fared. The screaming and crying all the way through... that he would be an inconsolable mess. Yet instead when you find him, he's humming cheerfully as her walked through the base with several packs of pudding. A little too cheerfully. Something was worrying about this.]

Oh... hey! One minute...

[He snaps off a pack and places it in your hand, giving you an almost heartrendingly sunny smile.]

Friendship pudding now. Just so I don't forget like I did a lot of times before.

I've got a meeting with Progtech that Lana's taking me to so I won't be back until waaaay later.

[2] [Later that day...]

[It was closing onto midnight and still no Leos. One would almost be worried as to what was happening to him... but he's a grown dude. He can take care of himself right?]



H... elp....h...help...m..me...

[Except that belief would be refuted. Utterly. Walking down an intersecting corridor was a horrifically bloodied Leos with a frighteningly vacant look in his eyes from the absolutely gigantic amount of pain he was feeling before he just collapsed into the ground and bled there.]

[3]

[The good news first: Leos isn't in any danger of dying. The bad news: All those wounds and injuries? They weren't random. They were surgical scars. It was less about what could have been removed... but more about what was put in. Specifically it seems that Leos was now the proud owner of a large amount of cybernetics. Ones that in theory could allow him to literally interface with machinery and link his mind to it.]

...

[The surgery itself was horrifically invasive and traumatic as Leos can attest to. Diagnosis revealed that a minimal amount of anesthetic was used in order to ensure that the cybernetics were properly linked to his body. As he recovers in the infirmary you can see Lana sparing the Raven a glance before walking away.]

[Could she... and by extension PROGTECH be responsible for this...?]

[As Leos is still in no state to be visited... Discuss this matter with others/Confront Lana?]

Comments

3

[majestic_keiki]

[At least one person is going to talk to Lana about just what happened. A rather irate teenage girl to be exact.]

Just what did you people do to him?

2

[herodrawing]

!!!!

[A shocked Izuru runs up to Leos and tries to pick him up. Then he promptly stops, seeing how wounded he is.]

We need a medic here! Someone help, anyone!

[break_the_nine]

Simply put, he has been 'upgraded'. It was a possibility I was pondering on quite some time ago after a conversation with Lieutenant Bridges on just how much 'assistance' Leos would require.

I had argued for Leos to be modified for quite some time now. This latest loss seemed to have had the PROGTECH board of directors in agreement with me.

Once he recovers, I believe he would be quite a bit stronger.

[Her tone was... callous to say the least, same as always. But somehow this felt a little bit more horrifying than before.]

[break_the_nine]

[Yeah, trying to pick him up miiight not have been the best idea. Between the blood and the injuries, Leos let out a hoarse noise that sounded like a scream that was trying to force its way through a throat that was far too dry.]

[And... was he heavier? A LOT heavier as well...]

[majestic_keiki]

You took somebody in desperate need of counseling and support and instead installed cybernetics against his will? Why? For the sake of PROGTECH's profits?

2

[empress_without_a_throne]

[What with the night and everything, it would make sense for Mizuki to go out scouting and pray whatever happened between Sara and the Indalph didn't happen to her. So thus she gets to be there and see Leos stumbling in...]

LEOS!

[Cue one Empress running desperately to try to support the poor, wounded soul.]

[break_the_nine]

[Lana actually chuckles at that statement. Mocking, dry and chilly it wasn't by no means a pleasant sound.]

I have no interest in PROGTECH's profits. I'm merely ensuring they continue to sponsor Leos throughout his employment with the Raven's Nest.

Furthermore... what makes you think he was unwilling?

[break_the_nine]

[Frantic wheezes and whimpers were Mizuki's reply as Leos tries to muster the energy to stand again. No such luck. He gives the Abyss Empress a pleading, tear filled glance.]

Mh...mh'zki... h...help... h...hurts... everything...

[He flinches and tries to curl in on himself and... oh god were his eyes bleeding?]

[majestic_keiki]

He didn't seem very willing when he was taking in last night. And do you really think he's capable making reasonable judgement on something like this?

[break_the_nine]

I discussed it earlier in the day with him. I told him every single risk, every possible complication. Every way it could go wrong. In fact the chances for him to have died at any part of the surgery were quite high.

In fact Leos' on permission for this was the only reason it happened. If it were not given both vocally and within written consent, Elan would have veto'ed it and ensured the matter would not be brought up again.

[Lana calmly folds her arms as she regards Kei cooly.]

Furthermore... reasonable judgement or not, he isn't a child. Whatever decisions he makes, he will live with the consequences. Simple as that.

[majestic_keiki]

He's not mentally stable either.

Why are you even doing this if you're not working for PROGTECH anyway?

[break_the_nine]

My reasons are my own. But either way, as his handler from Raven's Nest I simply handle the administrative work tied to him. Nothing more.

[majestic_keiki]

And that includes messing with mentally unstable kids barely past the age of majority.

2

[actuallyselfish]

"Mizuki?" Dido exclaims, rounding a corner. She notices the situation, and rushes over.

"Oh Mother Mary...what happened to this kid? I–"

She yanks a walky-talky from her belt. "Medic! I need a Medic team in corridor 17 stat!" She lowers the mike. "Is he...what should we do?"

[empress_without_a_throne]

[What to do what to do... he was bleeding in so many places... but at the same time...]

If there's any place that's bleeding seriously, just keep pressure on it. And don't move him a lot unless we have to...

The medics will get here soon enough so just...

Leos hold on please!

[In spite of what she just said to Dido she's going to get down on her knees to try to hold him close and support him. And God why does he feel heavier than he should?]

[break_the_nine]

[There was a pained whimper as he tried to curl up against her without hurting himself. Kind of impossible to do with the sheer amount of injuries. Tremendous amounts of nausea washed over him as he coughed and choked.]

Ngh...hghnn..

[He was barely able to grab onto one of Mizuki's hands with his own... his grip was tight to say the least, almost painful in fact.]

[break_the_nine]

Better than what happens to some others.

[actuallyselfish]

"Talk to us, kid!" Dido says, pulling a clean kerchief from her pocket and binding it around an arm wound. "What the hell happened to you?"

[empress_without_a_throne]

Dido, he could barely say my name; explanations can come later!

[She appreciates the help in binding up Leos's arm though. With so much blood Mizuki wasn't sure where she could put her hands without putting Leos in severe pain... but she settled for just letting him cling to her and keep on e hand on his back... the other holding onto his hand too.]

Dammit what's taking the medics so long to get here?

(Timeskip)

[break_the_nine]

[And time for Leos just fell into a blur. Still awake but unable to focus on anything. Every time someone spoke it felt muffled, like trying to listen through a thunderstorm. He barely even felt the medics haul him off and only felt a dull pain every time he was moved.]

..Uhnnghnn...

[When the world slowly came back into focus he had absolutely no idea how long it was... just that everything still ached.]

Wh... wha?

Re: (Timeskip)

[actuallyselfish]

"Hey kid." Dido says, standing by his bed. You're in the sick bay right now. Sit tight and heal up, got it?"

She glances to the left to where the Abyss Empress is standing. "Your name's Leos, right? Mizuki told me a lot about you..."

2

[keep_your_dignity]

[A lot of people, on seeing this, would panic, fuss around Leos, start asking if he's alright. Kagura, however, is a more pragmatical person than that, and is not really into stupid questions - he isn't. And her sensors are picking up a very high metal content inside her, which coupled with the fact that most executors ARE cyborgs gives Kagura all she needs to know.

So she reaches Leos, and lays him down to prevent him moving and opening his wounds further, with the practiced movements of one who has done this kind of thing often. As she does, she radios out.]

THIS IS KAGURA. WOUNDED AT MY POSITION. INTERNAL HAEMORRHAGING. STRETCHER ON TWO, ONE TO PREPARE MEDICAL.

[break_the_nine]

[Laying down, can't move. His breathing speeds up a bit as his mind flickers back to what happened and his body twitches. Ragged wheezes that were weakened attempts at cries rattled out as his eyes darted around.]

P...pl'se...n..n'mre... h..hrts..hurts......

[break_the_nine]

[Leos coughs weakly and rubs his eyes carefully. He flinches... even with everything bandaged up, the scars still hurt like hell.]

Y...yeah.. thas' me...

[He tries to wet his lips - shivering as they felt bone dry on his tongue. He could still taste-]

C'ld I have some water?

[keep_your_dignity]

[Kagura stays silent, keeping an eye on the wounds and ripping his own clothes with her huge fingers to make partial bandagings on the couple she judges more immediately threatening. What her reaction is to Leos's cries is impossible to know behind her faceless frame.

Thankfully, Executors are good at what they do, and not a minute after the call two of her squaddies appear flying at high speed with a stretcher "requisitioned" from medical. Their faces twist at seeing the sorry state of the man under Kagura, but they don't say anything yet. Kagura places Leos on the stretcher and, flying more slowly now, they carry him to the infirmary]