#viho

“AHH!” He shouted, rolling off the cot right as spikes shot up and pierced the air with crippling lightning. Viho looked at the cot as the lightning sparked in stunned silence. Had he been dreaming? The whole thing about Mitz was just a dream? Despite all that, part of Viho wished that it wasn’t one. He sat there in silence, even after the sparking stopped. He looked around and found nothing pertaining to how many days it had been since he was brought here. It had to be long, since the memory of being woken up by someone was fading. Someone warm, that’s all he knew. Either way, somewhere in him he found that it had been at least a month. He wasn’t sure how he knew that, other than that was best estimate he had given himself the last time he awoke. Interrupting his thoughts, the door shot open and a guard walked in, with a tray of food. This one didn’t have a weapon trained on him like he remembered one had done. His mind knew that this person was part of the Orokin, or, rather Mitz’s new order and they weren’t a threat so he was at ease. They placed the tray on the floor and nodded to the boy, which Viho did in return. It was the same set of food that he had the last time he remembered, but when he took a handful into his mouth, it puzzlingly tasted better. But not just better, but it was one of the best things that he had ever tasted. He greedily ate the rest of it the and drank the water that was given him. It felt good to have something in his stomach, since he vaguely remembered throwing up his food a couple times once he began what happens next. Once again, he was approached by the guards, who let him stand up and brought him to the operating table. Ixon stood there, prepping his needle. Viho quickly got on the table and rolled up his sleeve, getting ready for the needle prick.

“Good morning, 3,” Ixon said. The number sparked something in Viho’s mind. It was a designation, something that meant him. He nodded a response to the doctor and looked straight at ahead, no scared by the silly needle. The needle pricked his skin, and injected its contents into him. Viho sighed, and laid his head against the table, and fell asleep quickly.

There was no feeling when he woke up. His eyes cracked open, slits of light blinding him as he woke. He forced his eyes open, and blinked to adjust the light, groggily. He looked around, not getting any feedback from his neck as he turned it.

“mmpsefh,” Viho croaked, unable to speak because lack of feeling. The sound did the trick he wanted though, a head poked up, a guard looked at him, then walked away. Viho was left hanging there, unable to feel anything. Soon Ixon came back, accompanied with the same guard who had noticed Viho’s sound.

“Howdy there, 3! I hope you slept well. I realize that you’re unable to feel, the nerve endings responsible for that are out of your body and in a jar elsewhere. Don’t worry! You’ll begin feeling soon enough. We’re just getting the bucket ready now. So just hang around! Ahahaha! I hope you enjoyed the joke.” Ixon said walking around the testing area, before settling into a chair in front of a computer. Viho looked at the doctor. He had formed something, not a kinship with the man, the voice told him that those would only bring pain. But he felt trust in the man, because no matter how bad the tests were, he always woke up after them the next morning. He tapped at his computer before going to a com unit at the wall. He pressed a few buttons on a keypad before speaking into the unit

“Okay, he’s ready. is the bucket ready on your end?” He called in the unit getting some response that Viho was unable to hear. Whatever it was, it seemed favorable to the doctor, since he nodded and smiled in response.

“Good, good, I expect nothing less from you folks.” Ixon spoke admirably of those on the other end. He went back to the console and looked at the monitor, before jumping back to the com unit.

“Okay, release!” He shouted, and practically leaped back to the console. Instantly Viho felt his entire body on fire. He screamed in agony, as it seemed like something broke every piece of his skin, eroding it off. Ixon was furiously typing at the console, and Viho felt something in his mind. A calming agent. His screams tampered, but he kept at his screams.

“What you are experiencing is enough acid to melt a Tenno’s warframe! HA! If we dunked you into it, you’d be dead before your waist went under. However, in order to make your nerve endings usable again, and not part of the solution, contaminating  it, we had to dilute the acid. Still works fine! But let’s get you used to it.” Ixon shouted, his voice barely over Viho’s screams. Tears had started falling from his eyes and onto the testing ground, the pain unbearable.

“Tears are for the weak, 3. Be strong for the Orokin” The voice bellowed in his head. It did this occasionally. During the tests he would get lessons from the voice. It spoke to him about the Orokin and how this thing called the “Lotus” was a bad figure. What he knew of her was that she was a warmonger, and was a gifted liar. It was suspected that she was going to get the Tenno to upsert the throne. That would not stand. Through the doc’s work, he was able to maintain conscious throughout the test. The purpose of it was to get him used to extreme pain. But the only way to do that was to subvert him to the tortures. All in the name of  establishing Mitz’s Order. And if that meant that he had to get his hands dirty against the Lotus’ Tenno, so be it. The calming agent was furiously working at make his body used to the pain, his mind noticing it, but not caring. Viho’s screams echoed through the hallway. The calming agent suddenly spiked and he felt himself calmer, his screams weren’t as loud now, and he was able to not cry anymore, in order to obey the voice. Soon, the calming agent worked and he was able to get his pain just to grunts.

“Beginning oral test. What is your designation?” Ixon called out, his typing slowly ceasing.

“3,” Viho shouted out, despite the pain. The doctor nodded favorably and proceeded with the next question.

“Who is your mistress?” Ixon was occasionally tapping the console but was continuously slowly nodding.

“Mitz!” The boy cried, his broke breaking suddenly as the pain mounted. The tests were meant to see how well the boy was able to react under pressure, on top of adding to his resistance. They exposed this to him day after day. He showed signs of improvement, his tolerance for pain was getting better. For those types of pain exposures, he did not need the calming agent. But obviously for the larger ones, in an effort to get better used to them it was deployed.

“Who do you serve?” The question came over Viho’ s cries of pain, but was still clearly audible.

“I serve the Orokin! I serve Mitz’s Order!” Screamed Viho.

“The Lotus would have you believe we do not want peace. She would infect your mind with thoughts of a universe without Orokin and that it would be good” The voice had an annoyed tone to it, as if it truly hated to Lotus, which Viho, knew full well that it did. Mitz’s Order was to change that. Mitz was to provide discord to the balance, and as fire consumed it all, Mitz would come and bring glory to all. He would save the remnants of the Orokin. Before they were slaughtered by the Tenno.

“The Tenno are a storm. They bring water to the land of drought, but we must not let them ruin the crops that they saved,” The voice in Viho was talking again, Although the analogy fell short on him. Crops? A storm? Like, an Earth storm? Memories flooded into his mind. Not his own, there was no way. He had never been on Earth, much less be there a for a storm. Even so, he knew that the memories weren’t his. More thoughts invaded his thoughts, ones of what seemed to be large green tentacles, which several smaller, wider tentacles comes off the main stock. The tentacle broke off at the top, separating into wider ones, like the ones closer to the bottom. Viho suddenly knew the word for the new object that was clear as day to him. Crop. Suddenly, he knew the inner workings of the plant, how it needed sunlight and water. Water being something that a storm provided. Too much water would be a flood. And that is bad. Viho was still writhing in pain as he absorbed the knowledge. Slowly, after many hours of pain, they allowed him to blackout, sleeping taking her hold.

Pain. Pain was the only thing that he knew. It was hard to describe. His body felt fine, but his mind was generating the most excruciating pain he’s felt. It made the pain that the drills caused to pale in comparison. Every time the pain overwhelmed him, he graciously welcomed the comfort of sleep, but sought after the elusive luxury of death.  His nightmares weren’t too bad, they didn’t compare to the nightmare he lived in. The voice had played in his head across the day, and even as he hung limp, the only thing holding him suspended were the restraints, the echoes of the thundering voice danced around in his head.

In his nightmares, he was running. Where? He did not know, or if he’d be able to outrun whatever was chasing him. He looked over his shoulder, and his fears mounted. Something, no someone, was chasing him. It moved with a soundless ferocity, running side to side, zig zagging across the black plain of Viho’s nightmare. The figure was closing in, and Viho willed his legs to go faster, but the figure was toying with him, slowing down and catching up quickly. He heard the figure jump up, and he felt and burning sensation at his neck.

Then it was over.

He floated in black nothingness for a while, a dead spirit out of it’s body. He wandered, or floated in nothingness. His mind swirled around, toying with various scenarios, each one of them involving the monster from the previous dream. It was a part of him somehow. Viho gathered any mental strength he had to try to push it away but-

“The Orokin are your masters. Mitz is your master” The voice seemed to be male, but all consuming. It was as if a thousand voices from all around his thoughts ganged up on him, shouting at him. Viho felt something, he was a whole body again, but the shock of that was soon undermined by another booming message told to him. He gripped his head in agony but no amount of willpower will stop it now. Pain lanced every fiber of his being, his willpower pushed down as the utter speck it is. Nothing more than just a grain of sand to be washed away by the Almighty Orokin. Viho was still laying in the center, the pain shot through his head, a fiery hot rod being burnt against his brain. His eyes were closed shut, squeezed shut, as if doing so would somehow get him far away from the pain. There was a toxic haze present in him but suddenly it was lifted. His mind cleared, the pain going away. He felt clearer, and scores of those black figures came from all sides. Viho readied himself in a pitiful excuse for a combat stance. But the figures did not run towards him. Still he wasn’t able to make out any features of them, except that he knew that they were all the same and that they were walking. Towards him, all in stride. Their walk soon turned into a run as they enclosed in on him. Hazy shadows were meters away and as before they jumped at him, each with a singular hand extending out, and each one, stabbed Viho’s neck, but no pain was felt. Instead it was like a wave of water crashing against him from all sides.

“Serve.” The voice did not care for an input on the matter. It was a command. Viho squeezed his eyes shut again as the voice stormed around him, but the brunt of the voice was not as bad as it was before. He opened his eyes and the darkness no longer frightened him. It was like a pet, which nuzzled his arm affectionately.

“I will!” He shouted back into the nothingness. Suddenly all around him the figures that were tormenting him all stood in torrent themselves. They held their heads in agony as soon as Viho had said he would serve. Viho was scared of what is to come. he wouldn’t deny it. But if he had the backing of whatever the voice was talking about, then maybe he could get through this. Before he could say anything into the awkward silence that had transpired since his outburst there was a shift. It didn’t hurt, rather it felt perplexing, like someone was poking his brain with a little stick, in different areas with ranging different intensities.

“Rise, child of the Void. The Orokin will prevail. Mitz must prevail. When you wake, say ‘Sophrosyne’. It will grant you access to your new life.” He blinked once and he was no longer in a dark place. It wasn’t the dream either. It was the harsh real world. He awoke to pain, pain, and pain galore. Normally, if this was any other time, he could’ve screamed in pain but he was strangely at peace. Something was holding his tongue from the dreadful act of screaming, but Viho was confident that he could be able to speak He glanced around, and he found the source of the incredible pain. He didn’t have his arms or legs. Instead there were little grey semicircles enclosing the stumps where his arms and legs were. His arms were cut off at shoulder length, so he would be able to wiggle his shoulder stubs a bit if he wasn’t restrained on a table. His throat was dry, and he swallowed to have any attempt of being able to speak. What he had to say was still fresh in his mind, even the odd pronunciation was going to deter him from getting the backing of whatever it was who spoke to him.

“Sophrosyne,” he choked out, his voice barely a mumble, even with his swallow, his throat felt like a desert and cracked several times as he got the word out. There was a sudden motion that came from deep behind computer, the same jovial face that reeked of age and wisdom. Ixon.

“My boy? Well goodness me I thought you were gonna have your mouth frozen in the shape of you screaming!” The man chuckled dryly, but Viho did not share in the joke, but simple stared at him oddly. Ixon chuckled again, once again alone in doing so.

“Well, thankfully, I'm almost done with this test. You had a fun time with this one.” He said. Viho sat there, without arms or legs as the man continued his typing that he was working before Viho had regained consciousness.

“Oh well, you kids have to realize that all good things have to come to an at some point,” Ixon said, as he tapped buttons on the computer that he was crouched over moments ago. Viho looked over at the various machinery that was bearing down on him.Various odd contractions descended from the ceiling, and came close to Viho’s body. He saw his arms and legs being carried to him by a drone. The drone was small, and had an odd shape to it. Two golden hoops were attached to the top of the drone, and they held his loose appendages. They dumped them onto Viho’s chest, a fleshy “plop” as they did so. There was something strange about hearing that sound. No one simply expects to ever to hear that sound in their lifetime, it was definitely something that Viho never expected to hear. His face went pale at the sight of it, followed by the laughter of Ixon who was standing next to the operating table. Ixon took them from his stomach, and matched them with their appropriate sockets.

“Would be a shame if I put your leg in place of your arms? It’d give me a good laugh at least,” Ixon mumbled, chuckling softly, getting only another blank stare from Viho. The stare quickly changed as a small stinging sensation washed across his stumps, before crescendoing into a sharp pain, causing Viho to cry out in pain. When his vision had stopped spinning he could down and saw his toes stare back at him, his fingers said “hello” when he looked over there as well. A hiss echoed through the chamber and Viho felt his muscles relax and were able to move.

‘Come on then, boy, get and at it.” Ixon ordered, clapping his hands quickly. Viho obeyed, leaping off the medical exam, His bare feet didn’t crumble from under him, and even with Ixon’s hands extended, ready to catch him.

“Still in one piece, eh boy?” The man joked, nudging Viho. Ixon left, disappearing from the table, coming back so fast that Viho’s small mind didn’t have a chance to register what had happened. In his hands Ixon held a small robe, and thrusted it into Viho’s arms.

“You’re going to see the master, and we can’t have ya doing that in the nude.” he said with a small smile that grew as the little guy’s face went a crimson red when Viho checked that he was, in fact, nude. He quickly changed, getting the robe on. It was far more comfortable than what Viho had worn before, and it was exactly his size. There were no boots or any other article to put on, but he didn't mind, he was okay with being barefoot. Ixon shooed the boy out of where they were. The glass wall slowly separated into different sections as they slowly descended under the floor. Viho stepped out, having been pushed along by Ixon. With a small hop, Viho landed on the glass in the hallway. He looked back at Ixon, who moved to the other side and pointed down the hall.

“Head down there, my boy, all the way down, you’ll get there,” Icon said. He turned to go back up to where they came when his head jerked up.

“I almost forgot! Gah, look at me, forgetting orders...” He mumbled. He turned back to Viho and grab hold of his arms, typing something on the restraints. With a soft “click”, both of them came loose and rolled off Viho’s wrists.

“Now you can go, little buddy,” he said. Viho started walking down, the glass warm under his feet. He looked over his shoulder, and Icon was there. The man nodded in approval, and made another shooing motion. Viho pressed forward, his mind void of thoughts. Looking around, all to his right were the same cell-like room, complete with the original restraints. It was a short while before Viho got to the end of the hallway, in front of him laid a door, similar to all the ones that were on the hellhole he was on. The lights above the door were green, so Viho stepped forward and walked into the room. There was another door to his right, and a desk in the far right corner. The entire place was similar to the golden and white parts Viho had seen, but there was something strange. Well okay, my bad, two things that were odd. One was that the place radiated warmth, and it was relaxing to Viho. He felt his shoulders physically relax and he breathed easier. The other weird thing was the figure behind the desk. It was a woman. She wore the same clothing as Mitz did, but for a female body. Instead of the golden neck cuff that encircled Mitz’s neck, her white shirt was embroidered with gold as the shirt exposed parts of her chest. Instead of Mitz’s hard, linear face, this woman’s face looked soft and sweet. Her eyes told a similar story, first as they glanced at Viho in surprise, then soon grew soft as a smile accompanied them. She rose out of her chair, her straight black hair falling perfectly with her shoulders.

“I-I... um... Wrong room...” Viho stammered as she walked gracefully towards him. She was almost on top of him when he regained his voice.

“I must’ve went to the wrong room, Ma’am... I’m looking for Mitz.” He choked out. His knees were knocking together for some unknown reason to him as she knelt down in front of him, the fond smile still on her face. She didn't reply at all, instead her arms reached out and danced across his stomach. He yelped in surprise at the touch, his robe doing little in protecting him. Her fingers were warm to the tough, and didn’t hurt, causing Viho to giggle. His Giggles turned into laughter, something he hasn’t heard himself do in a long time. He jerked around, trying to somehow get away, but somehow in the tussle he ended up with his back in her chest, her arms wrapped around him, still teasing his tummy. She leaned in close, close to one of his ears. He could smell something emitting from her, it smelled good, and relaxed him more

“I am Mitz. Technology can do wonders, little Viho. I made a male exterior to shove obedience into the recruits. This is just a gift for being the first one of your friends to join the Orokin. And now..” She spoke softly, her voice wonderful to Viho’s ears. It reminded him of something, but he couldn’t place his finger on it. As she spoke, she reached under the cloak and started playing with his navel, and he yelped again. His hands were on her wrists, trying to pull her hands away as he laughed away.

“Since you’ve chosen to be part of the Orokin, there is no reason to be abrasive. We’ve found your file in our databases.” At the last sentence she stopped, and instead wrapped her arms around him, pulling him even closer. His was a empty plain, anything that should’ve made him think was gone, he was hanging onto every word she said. Her voice became sad now, and she spoke quieter than before.

“We found about your parents. They were killed by a Grineer, the subspecies that serves the Orokin. Tenno were called in and they managed to save you. I’m so sorry Viho. I want you be a beacon of hope to those like you,” Her voice broke every so often, and she held him close. Only those words were the topic of thought in his head, the thought of his parents being killed. His eyes burned, and he started sobbing, then wailed loudly.

“IWANTMYMOMMYANDADDY!” He cried, his words slurred together. Mitz shifted, so she was sitting down, and took the crying Viho into her lap. He buried himself into her chest, crying beyond comfort.

“Shh little guy... Shhh...” she whispered, rocking him side to side gently. It was quite a while before he was void of tears, and sat there, sniffing and whimpering. She continued to rock him until he finally settled down.

“I-I want to help...” He stammered, looking into her eyes, which shone with affection. She hugged him tighter and stood up, then knelt down again to pick Viho up,

“That’s exactly what I wanted to hear. Come on, before you can do that you need to rest. You’ll be a great help soon,” she promised. She kept him in her arms, his feet dangling over the side of one of her arms. Viho felt childish being stuck in her arms, but it was nice, someone cared for him for a change. And although he wouldn’t admit to anyone, ever, she was kinda pretty. They went through the door that Viho had seen as he had came in, and inside was a comforting sight. Instead of the dark undertone that most of the station had, this hallway was bright, and inviting, a baby blue paint was a contrast to the white and gold that Viho had seen daily. Suddenly as they entered the hallway, his eyelids became heavy, almost instantaneously.

Hours later, Mitz’s ship finally arrived at it’s destination. Whether the kids liked or not, this was not their new home. Quite the opposite. Where they were was an asteroid with a science station hidden. It was in the outer asteroid belt of the Origin system, where no of Mitz’s people dare to travel. It was hidden in the rocks, any passing ship wouldn’t look twice at the rocky structure. Hangar bay doors opened, releasing a gush of air that was present in the hangar was sucked out. The golden and white ship flew in, the children inside were still sleeping. Heavy hands yanked them from their seats. Slowly the hangar bays closed as the ship connected itself to various different extending tubes, offering fuel and refilling the ship’s other necessary requirements that it had spent on the flight over. Hoisted on the shoulders the guards, the kids were transported into the station. Their only welcome was cold shoulder by a teenager, in a black thin suit of armor, that had thin streaks of red that portrayed a sinister look to it. He was nearing adulthood, only days away from there. His face was pale, and there was no excess skin on his face, his jawbone visible, his eyes stoic and cold, glancing at Mitz, then to the guards who were carrying the sleeping kids. His hair was a black, darker than his armor, combed back, but left his ears open,.

“Father,” He jerked a thumb back towards the guards, who disappeared into the mess of hallways, and gave his father a look that wanted answers.  

“You got some little brothers and sisters. All of them survivors of the void. I pray that they are actually useful this time. Saying the same thing to bodies gets repetitive,” Mitz told him, waving a hand off in annoyance. The teenager walked off without a word, heading a different than the guards. Mitz took off his helmet, and looked around with just his eyes for the first time since the trip started. He was bald, and unlike his son, had excess skin around, giving off a healthy look. He had to, where he worked, he had to seem perfect. Which he was. Obviously. He went in the direction that the guards went, hopefully they’ve gotten started on his new little project. The hallway was dark, with blue electrical wires, pulsating blue waves of current, like a river making waves onto the shore. Only glass separates him from the wires, he was not worried. The place would explode before this glass breaks from under him. After a short walk, he came across the guards, occupied by the scientists he employed. They were tapping on computers, giving commands to someone inside. He walked up to one of them, who had grey hair assembled close to his head, no strands out of place.

“Doctor,” Mitz said with a nod, and the man labeled only as Doctor ran over, but not before applying a few more keystrokes to a console. The man kneeled before Mitz, and Mitz bid him arise with an annoyed gesture.

“They’re all children of the void, sir, we’re just in the process of how voided. It’s coming along well, judging from the initial test, and they’re still sleeping through the tests, which is a first,” the man explains, his voice upbeat, eager to give his employer some good news.

“Finally some good news. Thank you Doctor. I’m going to see them,” Mitz said, pushing past the old man. There were 4 different cages, each with a glass wall between the contents and a scientist furiously tapping away at a computer. Behind each of the glass walls was a one of the kids. The four cells were a small part of the different cells, made to house many different people. The kids were restrained, their clothes gone out the airlock, burned before jettisoned. Their arms were spread out, their legs supported by their bands on their ankles. Guards encircled them, waving a scanner, about a foot long, over their body, get a crackling as their scanners explored the young bodies. From head to toe they were scanned, the scientists tapped at their computers, getting results, no complaint from any of them. Lights suddenly flashed green above each of the terminals as soon as the scanning was done. The guards stopped their movements and receded somewhere.  

“Sir, We’re done with the scan. Ready to show.” Doctor called out, after he had finished tapping on his computer.

“Do it already.” Mitz said, sitting in a throne chair, with floated above the ground, as he laid his legs off to the side, bored. Doctor clicked a light switch on his terminal, and his subordinates did the same. Various colors appeared on the skin of the kids, each of them different. As they moved their slump heads in their sleep, the lights moved with them.

“As you can see, this one, the one called Connor,” Doctor said, using a laser pointer to point to various hot spots on Viho’s body. The spots the man pointed were all red, with a strong orange color near it, then yellow.. The first place that he pointed to was Viho’s head.

“There is extreme energy conduction on his head, it was very dense and something probably stems from there. But what is strange, is that there is no green. Void energy has completely enhanced this one. Either his abilities are a part of his entire body, or you hit the jackpot with Voided ones.” Doctor said. moving the pointer around, Viho’s body, showcasing different aspects of the body.

“Next is his fingertips, ano-”

“HEY! WHERE AM I!? GET ME OUT OF HERE!” A muted voice screamed from the farthest cell. Mitz walked over, preparing the speech in his mind. It would be simple. Better for them to fear him straight out, then to have them actually think they were safe. The boy whom they have found was thrashing against the bonds that held him, but could only move his head, the light on his body bobbing with him. His knees tried to cover his lower mid section, the bonds held firm and he was stuck there, exposed.

“Welcome, child. You are gonna be a lab rat. But if you survive, a hero.”Mitz said, clapping his hands together.

“But first, what is your name?”

“Adonis...” he said, still jerking from side to side, trying to get out of his restraints.

“What do you mean, that I will become a lab rat?” Adonis asked, scared. He didn’t relax, and his eyes were darting from head to head, looking for something or someone he’d recognize. Mitz looked at the struggling boy and felt nothing.

“You will be tested on.  You will think of it as torture. But surviving it will grant you immense power, enough to make a difference in this system. I can grant you power you never ever knew existed. You will be a force to make a change for the better. You will save those who need it.” Mitz said, his voice raising into a triumphant shout, his arms lifting up, his golden eyes glistening.

“Now... isn’t that sound fun, young Adonis?” Mitz said, a undertone present in his voice. He didn’t get a response from Adonis, his head fell forward, his chest heaving up and down.

“Sir, I am experiencing an energy buildup in his palms, unknown result. Should we sedate him?” One of the scientists asked. Mitz just found his seat and sat back down, chuckling.

“Let him show his ability, then do so.” Adonis suddenly cried out, as a spiral suddenly appeared in front of his hands, the restraint on his wrist suddenly disappeared, but not before breaking off into many tiny different particles and flowing into his hands. The same happened to the other restraint, and Adonis slumped over. Mitz leaned forward in his chair, clearly liking what he was seeing.

“Do it. Do it now.” He said calmly, smiling. A scientist nodded. The same scientist tapped some commands in their terminal. They clicked the last button and glanced up, Adonis soon received a vicious shock that even before he was able to scream, he slumped over awkwardly, his arms touching the floor. Guards walked over to him, being cautious of the Voided one, various gold and white weapons trained on him. One guard walked over to his wrists, and put large, clunky bracelet on them, they sparked and latched firmly onto him when they clicked into place. Another guard released the restraints that were on Adonis’ ankles. He fell over, still unconscious. A guard took the ankles in their hands and yanked him back into blackness.

“What about these ones sir? Want us to wake them up now so they may see you?” asked the scientist working on Camille. Mitz shook his head

“Sedate. I’m due at the Council soon.” He said with a wave of his hand, and turned away. The scientists tapped on their terminals, and just like Adonis, received a shock to ensure they won’t wake up. Like Adonis, they too were given the bracelets and dragged off somewhere. Mitz was walking off, but before he left, he turned to see the arms of the kids he taken drift off into blackness.

“For the glory of the new Emperor. For the glory of the Orokin.”

“AAARUAH!” A young voice cried out in pain, spit flying out of his mouth as his body convulsed and twitched. The pain coursed through Viho, bearing itself into his mind. It shot his sleeping eyes awake and forget any dream he had. It continued until he fell in a heap next the cot. His back seared with pain, gingerly getting up. He looked back to the cot. There were spikes sticking, buzzing with intense electricity. Then suddenly the spikes retracted and the cot look normal again. Viho looked around, he didn’t remember when he placed here, but it looked more like a prison than the new home he had in mind. There was a desk and a chair, the bed was built into the wall, with a small room to accommodate the facilities, which he gratefully used.  He looked down at his hands and saw the bracelets that the guards had put onto him. He was wearing a bodysuit, which he looked at disgust. He hated these things with a passion. It felt more pajamas than something you would run around in. It was a soft blue, with grey nearing his ribs, outlining his stomach down to his thighs. Either way, this whole thing was scared him, and there was only one thing that could spare him the torrent of being scared. He smiled in his mind, focusing himself. His arm reached back behind his hand and grasped air. Before he could make it happen his wrist created a spitting pain. It felt like the bracelets that were causing it were splitting his arms in half, as an unusual pain made it through him, blocking any attempt to make his ability work. He stopped the channeling, and the pain slowly faded away.

“Where am I?” he asked to no one in particular. This wasn’t the home he was expecting to triumphantly return to after the hell which he was brought into, and with these strange things that prevented him from using his ability. Did that mean that they knew about what happened to him? Were they going to fix him? So many thoughts swirled through his head, but they were quickly silenced. The doors slid open and a guard, similar to the ones that were with Mitz when they got to the ship that they were on. The guard was blocking the doorway, so any attempt of escaping would fail. He had a rifle pointed straight at Viho, he could see down the barrel of the gun. Viho recoiled and looked from the gun to the masked face of the guard who held it. His eyes shone with terror, he was powerless to stop anything that this man tried to do. Despite everything, Viho managed to squeak out a tiny voice,

“Mister, where am I?” Viho asked, frightened beyond belief. His voice wavered, getting no response from the man who kicked something into the small room. It was a small white plate, filled some sort of putty. In a small cup holder held a glass of some unknown drink.

“Eat. Drink,” The man said, his tone unrecognizable, the tone shifting robotically, so much so that Viho had to doubt himself whether or not this person was even flesh and blood. He held the muzzle at Viho, his finger on the trigger, and he slowly backed away from the door, taking tiny steps. Viho stared at the man, scared but also slightly curious. Once the man had backed far enough away, the guard hit a button on the side of the wall and the doors snapped shut. Viho was left there with the tray, and was staring at the shut door, green lights red.  

“Food?” Viho thought, looking at the putty that was laid out before him. He poked it, and his finger entered the putty, releasing a small squishy sound as it entered. It felt more like water mixed with some sort of dirt-like solid. There were no utensils. Viho’s stomach grumbled at the prospect at food, and for all he cared, it would taste like metal, but it was food. He tentatively scooped a bit of it into his hands, the mess sloshing around in his hands. Bringing it close to his face, he sniffed it, getting nothing. Shrugging, he shoved the substance into his mouth, moving it around, chewing it. Some of it drooled down his chin, and fell down on the floor. It didn’t taste good, but it didn’t taste bad either. He finished chewing it, and swallowed, whatever that was felt decent in his stomach. He wasn’t going to throw it back up, which is always a plus. He grabbed another handful and shoveled it into his mouth, his stomach glad for anything. Some part of him knew better than to eat the food with just his hands, but frankly, he didn’t care. He grabbed the cup, and hoped that the liquid would get rid of some of the aftertaste that the food left. Whatever it was, it wasn’t like anything that Viho had drunk before. Like the putty, it wasn’t good or bad, but it got the job done. Just like the food, his body was happy to have some liquid that would stay in him. The combination revived him, and he felt stronger. He drained the cup and left nothing but tiny crumbs on the tray. It wasn’t the hot meal he was dreaming of, but boy did he feel full. Rubbing his eyes, he almost wanted to go back onto the bed and nap, but one quick poke gave him an electric jolt, and the prospect of being shocked like how he was this morning was unappealing, so he fought to stay awake. That wasn’t too difficult, considering the spikes raised themselves and shocked him moments ago. He waited there, legs crossed, waiting for anything to happen. He waited there for what seemed like an eternity, then the door soon opened again, with more guards piling into the room, all with guns pointed at Viho. His arms sprung up in a surrender motion instinctively as he darted from guard to guard, none of them looked friendly. One of them reached out and grabbed Viho’s outstretched arms, and tugged him to the floor, getting a squeak of pain from Viho.

“Connor,” One of them said, only vaguely feminine. It’s tone was changed around, just like the person who gave him his food. Viho was about to ask where she got the name from, but then remembered that Camille had called him by a different name for some odd reason. Now they all had “C”s to start their names...

“Come. Testing.” She said, tugging him along. Viho was far too scared to object, rather he let himself be dragged away out of the call that masquerades as his room. He was brought before an operating table, with someone in a medical spock standing on the other side. Beside the medical man was an array of sinister-looking tools A hand grabbed the collar of Viho’s jumpsuit and he was forced into a standing position, his knees knocking together. The doctor didn’t say a word, but simply patted on the table for Viho to climb up. Viho did so, staring at the doctor with, like the rest of the guards, wore a mask. The doctor grabbed the arm closest to him, and rolled up the sleeve, all the way up to the shoulder. Viho’s thin arm lay bare before the doctor, who had a syringe in one of his hands. Viho stared at the needle and instantly paled, whimpering.

“Look the other direction Connor if the sight of a needle scares you,” The doctor stated professionally, not bothering to look at Viho, who obeyed, trembling. There was a sharp sting as the needle entered, followed by a whimper from Viho. Once the needle was retracted, Viho sighed once and fell asleep, his head clunking against the operating table. The doctor quickly flipped him over, restrained him, and got to work. He was inserting a controller-like device into his head. That way the process of teaching him what is right will be a much easier task.. By the end of the surgery, there were wires sticking out of the little boy’s head, connecting to a small computer that the man strode over to, getting a sense for Viho. The boy was an unholy combination of the wires of flesh.  He clicked a button and there was loud and high pitched scream as pain registers flared from unknown source. Viho writhed into the bounds, his head feeling like it is threatening to break apart. Keeping him under, the doctor played with giving different sensations to Viho, and making any adjustments. Once that was done, The doctor disconnected the wires and strove for a wireless connection. Pain flared again, follow quickly with a scream, similar to the one before. Once everything checked out, the mess that was made was cleaned up and they waited for Viho to wake up.

His eyes slowly cracked open, flirting with the idea of waking up, and facing the world. Suddenly there was a surge coming from his stomach, and

“Guahh!” Viho vomited the contents of his meal earlier, various pieces dripping off his chin. When he moved to wipe the rancid waste off his face, he was restained. He attempted to move either arm, and his feet, but they were restrained as well. He looked down and around and he was spread eagle, his arms and feet restrained in some odd metal casing. At least he was able to move his head around.

“Ah there! You’re awake, and you’re body is functioning fine, if the upchuck is anything to go by. How are you feeling!” There was a voice in his head! Viho jerked instantly, trying to see if maybe if there was speaker anywhere, but everywhere he looked was void of anything he could think that would disperse sound.

“Haha, It’s just in your head, little one We implanted a tiny weeny bit of machinery into your head. Go on, think for a second, try to talk to me.” The man in his head said snarkily, a smirk in his voice. Viho clamped his eyes shut and thought hard. He fought for a connection to whatever the man was talking about. Then there seemed to a “click” as he thought about it for a second

“H-hello..? Where am I?” He muttered, his voice small and empty in his head. There was a sound on the other side of the glass. Viho opened his eyes and saw a man in front of terminal, clapping, he was jubilant despite his age torched face.  He raised a microphone to his mouth and spoke into it:

“Well done my boy!” The man said. The voice came nowhere, but everywhere around Viho. He tapped a few keystrokes, and looked back up at Viho, who looked at him puzzlingly. Then the surge came. It came in a strong wave, a wave of pleasure rocked him, his muscles relaxing, and his mind unraveling, calm for once. His eyes fluttered, and his mouth was stretched into a genuine grin.

“Ah, good that works. You’ll need that for the testing. First, you have a lot of questions. The master has something just for that... Gimme a moment here...” The man was tinkering around with controls displayed to him, the lights bouncing off the man’s face. There was an hiss as a small door opened at Viho’s feet, with a small device popping up. Viho looked on in curiosity as the device lit up. The device sent a beam straight up and stopping perfectly in line with Viho’s face, so he didn’t need to strain his face to look at the black square that was rapidly forming itself in his line of sight. White and black lines littered the newly formed screen, and soon they formed to make Mitz, with a glint in his eye.

“Welcome child, you’re gonna be a lab rat. But if you survive, a hero. You will be tested on. You will think of it as torture. But surviving it will grant you immense power, enough to make a difference in this system. I can grant you power you never even knew existed. You will be a force to make a change for the better. You will save those who need it.!” The same triumphant voice pounded into Viho’s head, the same twinkle in the man’s eyes, staring back at Viho. The screen shifted a bit and the man looked directly at Viho. His eyes were not pleasant, instead of a happy glare, an icy stare tore through Viho, giving him the shivers

“So... Connor... I’ve figured out that you hid your real name from me. I don’t like that. You see, that teaches that you can get away with things like that. I don’t like that. So, I’m sure after this brief punishment, your true name will slipping from your tongue. My good doctor, whenever you’re ready.” The man did not sound pleased, his voice could’ve cut steel, it had Viho shrinking back in fear.

“As you wish, sir,” The voice answered. There was no emotion as the man carried out the order, but it was all far off to Viho, all he could do was stare at the face of the one staring back at him, even as drills started to whirl seemingly far off. But they weren’t far when they made contact with the hidden hands and feet. A deafening scream tore through what was a quiet setting. Viho struggled for all he’s worth, but for every slight moment he did, his arms and legs were torn with pain. It wasn’t like anything like he felt before, every time the drills ripped through flesh, he felt it every piece of it being broken. His screams jumped an octave when the drills pricked bone, shredding through the bone easily. He felt the metal drills nearing the others that were eroding his hand. Then the maddening whirl of the drill slowly faded from Viho’s mind and he was left with searing pain through his hands and feet.

“Vihovihovihovihovihovihomynameisviho” he stammered, his tears freely running down his cheek. He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t pass out from the intense pain. While new pain wasn’t ripping his mind with sensations, the rushing rapids of pain kept him yelling out in pain. The screen flickered and the man had a background behind him. It was hard to tell anything specific form the background, because it was simply white with gold decals as per usual with the people that claimed to be his new family.

“That wasn’t too bad, wasn’t it, Uh, Viho was it? Whatever. Administer? Record it in his record. You may continue as the schedule demands” Mitz said idly, then the screen turn abruptly black and the device that had shown the viewing disappeared under the floor. Viho hang there, crying and whimpered, waiting for a death that never came as the man behind the glass tapped as his computer. As hard as he tried, Viho could not get the cold embrace of death, or even sleep. He was awake and his body flared with pain. That is, until a new sensation rippled across his hands and feet. The sensation made him shiver, but in the emptiness of flesh, new flesh took it place. It didn’t do anything to quell the pain of what had transpired, but he was healing. His chest still heaved with tears, his breath labored.

“I can read your neural output. You want to pass out, to die even, for what purpose I don’t know. When you went under for the neural implant, it allows us to control many things about you. Like your ability to go under, that is to go back to sleep. Don’t try.” The man said, a small smirk in his voice as he continue to tap away on his computer

“Why’d you hurt me?!” Viho cried out, his voice slurred together with tears, barely understandable.

“It was already explained. You are a lab rat. Get used to it,” The doctor said with an icy tone. Viho was still crying when a new wave of pain flushed over him. He cried out in pain, his voice tapering off as his body was unsure where it was coming, only it hit Viho like a freight train.

“We’re going to run some endurance tests. We have to see how long you can last under the pain... You can call me Ixon.” The man now known to be Ixon said.

“You will serve the Orokin.” A thundering voice suddenly exploded in Viho’s head. It bore itself deep in him, he could not deny its presence in his head. Viho’s eyes shot open in surprise, not like he would be able to see anything, his vision was blurry from the tears. Viho could feel the faint grasp of sleep, calling to him, but it was quickly far away again.