Tattoo [Part 2]
Nov. 29th, 2019 10:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
esp_dragonv2Fandom: Noblesse
Summary: M-21 tries to adjust after M-24's death.
Contains: Panic attack.
Notes: AU!
I thought this would be two more scenes. I was wrong. I was so wrong, the 'extra scenes' are taking up two parts. XD;
And there should be another part hopefully following after.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: General
Word count: 4,393
Total word count: 7,205
Status: Work in progress
The dog was howling. M-21 curled up further on 'his' bed (shouldn't have just been his. Should have been his and M-24's. Or two beds. Or-), hands fisting his hair. "I know. I fucking know," he snapped, teeth gritted. "I know you're sad. So am I!" His voice cracked, but who gave a fuck? M-24 was gone and the dog just kept howling right over his heart, amplifying his own sadness.
If he'd been faster, if he'd been stronger-
M-21 hissed and clutched his chest. "Did you fucking bite me?"
He pulled at his collar and saw the red mark, over where the sharp pain had been. "What the fuck?" It was attacking him now? Would it eventually be able to draw blood?
The dog didn't answer, but curled up over his heart again. It didn't howl this time, rumbling instead in the way that usually helped M-21 feel better. Usually.
M-21 snorted, wrapping his arms around his legs and resting his chin on his knees. "Guess you're lashing out too," he murmured.
He could understand that.
* * *
"It'll only be a few minutes," Frankenstein said as he gestured towards a chair and turned away to putter around one of the nearby drawers.
Right. A checkup was only 'a few minutes' to a scientist, but it was different being on the receiving end...
M-21 eyed the spotless tiles and gleaming machines around him.
From one lab straight to another. He had the worst fucking luck. This one seemed empty though, with only Frankenstein and his master - even in the dead of night, the Union labs always had people milling around, from scientists trying to cram in one more experiment to patrolling security.
This place was silent.
A private lab? But there should have still been guards. It smelled weird though, lacking the dull smell of blood.
Frankenstein turned around and blinked at him.
Ah, shit, he was still standing. M-21 sat down, seeing the syringe and other instruments in the tray Frankenstein set down next to him.
"I'll just be taking one vial of blood," Frankenstein said, picking up the tourniquet. "Which arm is usually better for veins?"
M-21 presented his right arm, rolling back the sleeve. Blood tests weren't that bad, but what would Frankenstein do with what he found with them? The scientist already knew he could transform, and wouldn't have any data M-21 could change. He couldn't hide the most important information from Frankenstein.
"There," Frankenstein said after he'd wrapped the tourniquet around M-21's arm and tightened it. "How does that feel? Too loose or tight?"
M-21 stared at him. Why was he asking questions that didn't matter? The scientists didn't care, taking his blood as soon as they could.
"M-21?"
And was waiting - shit. He'd been asked a question. Of course he had to answer.
"It's fine," he said.
Frankenstein hummed, poking at M-21's vein until he was satisfied, nodding. A perfectionist. Great.
When Frankenstein brought over the syringe, M-21 braced himself. And then sucked in a breath, his skin tingling down from his sleeve.
Fuck! Fuck, what was the dog doing running out? It had never done that before, not when there was scientists...
He'd never told the dog to be wary of scientists, because how would the dog know which person was one or not?
He'd told it to be wary of white coats. Frankenstein was wearing a blue and white top.
Fuck.
The dog stopped at the inside of M-21's elbow, where the syringe hovered over, barking at it.
Fucking-! Transformation was something known about throughout the organisations, that the Union had the most successful number of agents with it, but M-21 had never heard anyone else having a sentient tattoo. It made him stand out too much, a curiosity. He was going to be trapped -
"Yes, yes," Frankenstein said with a sigh, pulling the needle away, "I know you're protecting him, but I need to take some blood to make sure he's healthy."
What?
The dog growled, its ears still flat.
"You can protect him from being physically harmed," Frankenstein continued, "but sometimes a person has something out of balance inside. Once his blood tells me how healthy he is, I can help him to restore any imbalances, if there are any."
More barking, but the dog moved off the vein, sitting down to watch Frankenstein.
"You - you can understand it?" M-21 spluttered. How? Where the fuck had Frankenstein seen more of the dogs to not be surprised and to be able to learn how they talked?
"Mm?" Frankenstein said, making one last check of M-21's vein before sliding the needle in. "I can understand his worry." He adjusted the needle and then nodded, connecting the vial. It filled with blood a little sluggishly than normal.
"And you're not surprised by it." M-21 couldn't stop his mouth moving, but what the fuck? It had barely been two minutes and Frankenstein wasn't acting like any of the other scientists M-21 had met over the years.
"Of course not. I've..." Frankenstein unclipped the vial but trailed off when he looked at M-21. "But you were."
"Yeah? Where the fuck are sentient tattoos fucking normal?" He and M-24 had searched for more information in the Union database - nothing had come up.
Frankenstein didn't respond, setting the vial down in the tray, and shit, he'd said too fucking much. Revealed too much.
"There is a place," Frankenstein said, his voice still mild, "but I would like to have a more complete image of what has been done to you before I make any assumptions."
Frankenstein knew something about him and hadn't even looked at the blood results yet? Just from the tattoo?
"Tell me." He was doing this wrong, making demands of a scientist, but if he could find his home he might be able to find his name. Frankenstein hadn't seemed to mind being talked back at before - maybe he could keep getting away with it.
"Not yet," Frankenstein said. "I may be wrong about my assumption."
"But you know something."
"Yes." Frankenstein gazed at him and M-21 gritted his teeth at the pity that was on the scientist's face. "I don't want to give you false hope and then pull it away again." He eased the needle out, pressing a cotton ball to the pinprick. "Hold that please."
M-21 held his tongue and did as he was told. He was used to false hope. It was all he and M-24 had had in the Union: the chance they might eventually get away; the chance they actually find their names. They'd gotten out of the labs, and their bodies had started to fail. They'd found some of their documents, but it hadn't listed any of their personal history, only detailing what had been done to them.
He'd escaped the Union, and he'd lost M-24.
The scientist brought over a band-aid. "I don't need that," M-21 said. He would heal soon enough and the Union scientists had never bothered with it.
"Your body is currently weakened and recovering from Master awakening you, and I would rather give infection the least possible chance," Frankenstein said, pressing the band-aid to M-21's skin.
Was that what it was? He'd been given a boost in power, but he'd used up...what, life force or some shit?
The dog slunk close to the edge of the band-aid, sniffing it. It opened its mouth, leaning in.
"Leave it alone please." The dog's ears flattened. "It only needs to stay on overnight and then it can come off."
The dog closed its mouth, still staying close to the band-aid, growling softly.
"It can't-" M-21 had never seen it affect anything that wasn't his skin before. But he didn't know much about the dog, did he? He hadn't known it could bite him until recently.
"If it's something in contact with your skin, he can damage it. If he had attacked the needle while I was drawing blood, he could have broken it and the shard would have been stuck inside you."
M-21 grimaced, imagining it poking deeper inside him.
"If you could lie here," Frankenstein said, gesturing towards one of the machines to their side. "I'd like a scan as well."
To get as much information on him, urgh.
"You'll need to hide under M-21's clothes," Frankenstein told the dog. "The scan will be a bright light that passes over M-21 - that's normal and you won't need to protect M-21 from it."
The dog barked and then dashed back under M-21's sleeve.
M-21 rubbed his arm where the dog passed. He had never seen it interact with any one else aside from M-24 - was it always so trusting to follow orders?
"Do you have any questions?"
He shook his head and laid down on the scanner. The faster he got out of the lab the better - he'd been running his mouth off too much without thinking, giving the scientist too much information.
The scan went fine, the dog chasing after the light, its tail thumping against M-21's skin.
"Thank you," Frankenstein said, cleaning away his instruments as M-21 stood up. "I'll let you know what I've found when I'm done."
"Sure."
M-21 left the lab, the dog settling against his heart again.
From one lab to another, and this one knew more about him than the Union had, in more ways than one. If he could just get more information...
More hope that wouldn't go anywhere, but he was used to it.
* * *
M-21 sighed as he stared at the setting sun against the horizon. He'd used to do this with M-24 when they'd had free time.
He wanted M-24 back. What the fuck was the point in getting away from the Union if it wasn't with him? He could deal with running straight into another lab if he had M-24 to watch his back.
The dog trotted out from under his sleeve, watching the sun as well from his hand.
Right. He still had the dog, and the dog could keep an eye on his blind spots.
It wasn't quite the same. He wanted both of them there.
But nothing ever went the way he wanted, did it?
M-21 closed his eyes, feeling the sun's rays go cold as day gave way to night.
* * *
M-21 frowned when his phone buzzed. Only two people knew his new phone number and as far as he was aware, they were both still in the house. Contacting him was faster than trying to find him though.
It was from Frankenstein. [
Fuck. What had the scientist found? How long was he going to be kept underground to be studied?
[
From what he'd seen so far, being under the care of Frankenstein and his Master was still better than the Union. He could endure more tests and experiments.
The dog knew how he was feeling, curling up against his neck.
M-21 shoved his hands into his pockets when he entered the main lab room, his hands clenched into fists. Frankenstein was there, reading something on one of the computer screens.
As soon as Frankenstein saw him, he smiled at M-21 and put his glasses away in his shirt pocket. "Which would you like to know first?"
That was easy. "Where you think I'm from."
Frankenstein's smile dimmed for a second and shit, it was another dead end. "The living wolf mark you have is usually a sign of a very specific race," Frankenstein said, his gaze going towards M-21's neck for a second.
A wolf? How could Frankenstein tell the difference - it was just a bigger dog. And why was he talking in such a round about way?
"I've only met a handful of them, but from what I've gathered, the mark appears when when they come of age and they hm, 'gain their claws'."
Wait. M-21 stared at him, Frankenstein returning it. He knew the dog had appeared when he'd gained his transformation and had made that connection, but getting confirmation was different. It could have been a side effect of the transformation, rather than tied to it.
"It's usually red though," Frankenstein said, gazing at the do - wolf again.
M-21 narrowed his eyes. "So I'm not part of that race?" Because it was the wrong colour?
"No, you're not," Frankenstein said, turning back to his computer monitor. "I had thought you might be because of the mark and your transformation, but your blood test shows you're human-"
Human? Of course he was human? But if Frankenstein had to make that distinction...then whatever the wolf came from wasn't?
"-with a number of enhancements."
A new window was enlarged on the screen, showing a scan of a skeleton.
"It looks like someone at the Union transplanted a werewolf's heart into you." Frankenstein circled the light area in the - his chest with a finger. He continued but M-21 couldn't hear the rest, blood roaring in his hears.
He had something in his chest that wasn't his, that wasn't just beating his blood for him, but it could change him. Had changed him. His heart had changed him enough that he could transform and he'd gotten the wolf tattoo. That Frankenstein had thought he was a werewolf when he'd looked at him.
Was his heart going to keep changing him? Was he going to end up more werewolf than human? Just werewolf?
M-21's blood (was it still his?) roared in his ears more, the edges of his vision darkening. His throat tightened up, his chest squeezing harder with every breath. His heart was thundering and was it changing him with every beat?
Frankenstein moved closer, saying something, but it didn't matter. What the fuck did it matter? What was he?
M-21's skin tingled, but then there was a weight on his shoulder.
"-to me." He heard Frankenstein's voice like he was hearing him through a tank. "We'll go for a walk, okay?"
Why? So he could turn more into something he wasn't?
M-21 stumbled out the lab anyway, the weight on his shoulder guiding him.
Where was he being taken? He'd ignored a scientist and was going to be punished. He was being disposed of.
They kept going until the white tiled walls gave way to wallpaper and carpeted floors.
"Sit here."
M-21 was eased onto something soft. Chair? There was a table and large tv in front of him.
"Can you drink?"
He nodded. Orders. Had to follow orders. Endure everything the scientists did to him. Show he was still useful.
A glass of clear liquid with no scent. His hands trembled when he held it and he tried to steady them. Couldn't show fear in front of a scientist. Some loved seeing experiments tremble. Others thought it was a weakness. Weakness would get him disposed of.
"M-21?"
He was taking too long. "Yes, sir." He sounded muffled. Had to do what he was told. He drank the liquid in one go and waited.
It didn't burn on the way down and it didn't have the raspy feeling of something dissolved in it either.
Nothing happened. Something slow acting?
"Do you know where you are?"
A test. "The lab, sir." Words were hard to get out past his tight throat.
"...Yes."
He'd answered wrong. Fuck! Not specific enough? Did he have to say the city too? He was going to be punished for being wrong. Killed.
The glass in his hands shattered.
He hissed, hot sharp pain in his palms.
His skin tingled and he saw the dog race over his skin towards his palm.
Shit.
Was it because of that? Had it been changing more of him as it ran over his body?
It reached his hand and he knew what it was going to do.
Had it been changing him every time it had healed him? He had to stop it. He couldn't concentrate enough to transform, not with his blood still roaring in his ears, not when he could barely drag any air into himself, but he was strong enough to dig it ou-
Something stopped his hands from moving.
"Let's not do that, shall we?" The voice was soft and low and fuck. He'd fucked up. He'd lost control of himself in front of a scientist. He shook harder, biting his lip as he tried to stop.
He tasted blood. Were his teeth changing now? Was he just-
"M-21, I need you to take in a deep breath."
He couldn't.
"Breathe in."
He couldn't.
But he had to follow orders, no matter how he felt.
He sucked in a breath and almost choked.
"That's good." What? For breathing? "Now breathe out through your mouth."
More nonsensical scientist instructions, but he did as he was told.
He was told to do that a few more times and eventually his breathing became easier, his heartbeat slowing down.
"How are you doing?"
"Better, sir." He could still taste blood, and he was lightheaded from everything his body had done.
"I'm just going to get the first-aid kit, all right? I'll be back in a minute."
"Yes, sir." Why had his body done that? Was it breaking down again? Did he need more pills? Was he going to be tied to the lab again, relying on pills to keep him alive?
The hands let go of his wrists and M-21 let them drop onto his lap, blood dripping onto his trousers.
The dog was moving around his palm and he flinched, clenching his hand into a fist, a shard of glass embedding itself further into him. He could deal with pain. His enhanced healing would take care of it.
He couldn't heal from turning into a werewolf.
The dog could still reach the wounds from under his fingers.
"M-21." He stiffened. "I need you to relax your hands for me."
He opened his hands for the scientist. He couldn't see the dog from under all the blood.
"Thank you." The scientist took M-21's closest hand and started cleaning it. Why...? What was the scientist going to do to his hands? Take them off so he wouldn't break anything else?
"M-21, take in a deep breath."
He did as he was told.
The scientist continued cleaning his hand and instructing him when he breathe.
The scientist's hands stilled. "Oh, da-" What had he done wrong? "Stop healing him - I need to take out the shards before his skin heals over them."
Why did the scientist care? He would heal and the shard would come out eventually.
It didn't take long for the scientist to ease the shards out of his palm but having the scientist's hands on him made M-21's skin crawl. M-21 focused on that feeling and his breathing and bit by bit, everything seemed to calm down, his thoughts slowing.
...Fuck. He'd lost control in front of Frankenstein. Heat warmed his cheeks and embarrassment twisted his stomach. Frankenstein thought he was a bigger piece of shit now.
M-21 watched Frankenstein bandage his hand.
"Has this happened to you before?" Frankenstein asked him.
When his master had awakened him, and M-21 could think of a few other times over the years. He'd tried to hide what was wrong, but M-24 could always tell; the scientists didn't notice. "No."
"All right."
M-21 could feel the dog under the bandages. He wanted to scratch at them but he kept his hands where they were.
"There," Frankenstein said once he was finished, sitting back. "You should be able to take them off tonight if you don't scratch too much."
M-21 nodded, taking his hand back. He slowly flexed his hands, feeling the ache as his muscles moved.
He tensed when he heard Frankenstein exhale.
"I apologise." What? "I hadn't considered how much of a shock that information would have been."
M-21 stared at him. He'd found out he had an organ of a different species in his body that was changing him and he was supposed to just carry on as normal? Fucking scientists.
"We can discuss the rest of your results later," Frankenstein continued, "when you're feeling better."
"I'm feeling better." Get it all done with at the same time rather than dragging it out.
Frankenstein shook his head, clearing away what he'd used. "These results aren't as important or immediate. They can wait."
And Frankenstein had thought his heart was a non-issue. The scientist didn't know M-21 would think was important.
"Fine." He could try to find them later when Frankenstein was asleep.
"Thank you. You can go," Frankenstein said as he stood up.
M-21 nodded and left, trying to not look like he was running.
Fuck. His legs felt like they couldn't hold his body, like he'd been fighting for an hour with no sleep. His body was exhausted and a few times M-21 almost tripped as he made his way to his room.
He sank onto his bed, gripping the blanket under him. What the fuck had happened? He'd lost control of himself and Frankenstein...hadn't cared? Hadn't mocked him?
Had apologised to him?
What the fuck. It had to be another scientist trick. Trying to lower his guard.
His palms itched where his skin was knitting back together.
M-21 stared at one of his hands. At the bandages. The Union scientists had never done that, leaving him and the rest of the M-series to heal on their own. It usually worked, but sometimes someone didn't get up again afterwards.
A trick. That was all it was.
Something Frankenstein did because it amused him. Like all scientists.
His eyes drooped and M-21 curled up on the bed. Why had that taken so much out of him? He could think about it later, once he'd had a nap.
* * *
When M-21 woke up, it was dark outside. He'd been sleeping for hours?
He checked the bandages. The blood that had seeped through was already dark brown and hard, so that should mean he could take them off now.
He tugged them off, and it didn't stick to his skin. He dumped the bandages in the bin and went to the bathroom.
M-21 watched the water wash the dried blood off his hands. His skin was unmarked underneath it. Did he used to heal that fast or cleanly?
He sighed, and then frowned at his wrist. His '21' tattoo was back.
"We're not in the lab anymore," he said. It didn't move.
He poked it. It vibrated for a second before settling. "...Okay." If that was what it wanted to do, he wouldn't stop it.
M-21 picked his phone up from this bed and blinked at the new text message. It was from Frankenstein.
[
M-21 stared at it. What? Why was... M-21 couldn't understand what Frankenstein was trying to do. Why wouldn't a scientist want someone they were studying in their lab?
And if he didn't go to the lab, then where was Frankenstein supposed to collect his data?
[
And also if he wanted to see his other results.
He hadn't figured out Frankenstein's schedule yet, but it was late enough he could be asleep.
* * *
The lab was quiet. That wasn't hard when M-21 had still only seen Frankenstein and his master enter.
The main doors swished open and - fuck. M-21 ducked away.
Frankenstein was still there. His back had been to him and maybe the scientist hadn't heard the doors opening.
M-21 snuck away. Next time.
* * *
M-21 sat on the edge of a skyscraper rooftop, hearing the soft sounds of traffic far below him.
What the fuck was he? He'd known from the start that he wasn't as human after what had been done to him. He'd accepted that early on. He was a modified human, not anything else.
Frankenstein had said he was human, but for how long? It had been three years since he'd first transformed - how human had he been back then compared to now? How long would it take before he wasn't human anymore?
And how had it happened? Was it because of his healing? Whenever he transformed?
M-21 sighed, glancing at his wrist. The wolf still hadn't moved. It could be because of that as well.
He didn't know, and wouldn't know until he lost more of his humanity.
He closed his eyes. There was nothing he could do about it.
Summary: M-21 tries to adjust after M-24's death.
Contains: Panic attack.
Notes: AU!
I thought this would be two more scenes. I was wrong. I was so wrong, the 'extra scenes' are taking up two parts. XD;
And there should be another part hopefully following after.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: General
Word count: 4,393
Total word count: 7,205
Status: Work in progress
The dog was howling. M-21 curled up further on 'his' bed (shouldn't have just been his. Should have been his and M-24's. Or two beds. Or-), hands fisting his hair. "I know. I fucking know," he snapped, teeth gritted. "I know you're sad. So am I!" His voice cracked, but who gave a fuck? M-24 was gone and the dog just kept howling right over his heart, amplifying his own sadness.
If he'd been faster, if he'd been stronger-
M-21 hissed and clutched his chest. "Did you fucking bite me?"
He pulled at his collar and saw the red mark, over where the sharp pain had been. "What the fuck?" It was attacking him now? Would it eventually be able to draw blood?
The dog didn't answer, but curled up over his heart again. It didn't howl this time, rumbling instead in the way that usually helped M-21 feel better. Usually.
M-21 snorted, wrapping his arms around his legs and resting his chin on his knees. "Guess you're lashing out too," he murmured.
He could understand that.
"It'll only be a few minutes," Frankenstein said as he gestured towards a chair and turned away to putter around one of the nearby drawers.
Right. A checkup was only 'a few minutes' to a scientist, but it was different being on the receiving end...
M-21 eyed the spotless tiles and gleaming machines around him.
From one lab straight to another. He had the worst fucking luck. This one seemed empty though, with only Frankenstein and his master - even in the dead of night, the Union labs always had people milling around, from scientists trying to cram in one more experiment to patrolling security.
This place was silent.
A private lab? But there should have still been guards. It smelled weird though, lacking the dull smell of blood.
Frankenstein turned around and blinked at him.
Ah, shit, he was still standing. M-21 sat down, seeing the syringe and other instruments in the tray Frankenstein set down next to him.
"I'll just be taking one vial of blood," Frankenstein said, picking up the tourniquet. "Which arm is usually better for veins?"
M-21 presented his right arm, rolling back the sleeve. Blood tests weren't that bad, but what would Frankenstein do with what he found with them? The scientist already knew he could transform, and wouldn't have any data M-21 could change. He couldn't hide the most important information from Frankenstein.
"There," Frankenstein said after he'd wrapped the tourniquet around M-21's arm and tightened it. "How does that feel? Too loose or tight?"
M-21 stared at him. Why was he asking questions that didn't matter? The scientists didn't care, taking his blood as soon as they could.
"M-21?"
And was waiting - shit. He'd been asked a question. Of course he had to answer.
"It's fine," he said.
Frankenstein hummed, poking at M-21's vein until he was satisfied, nodding. A perfectionist. Great.
When Frankenstein brought over the syringe, M-21 braced himself. And then sucked in a breath, his skin tingling down from his sleeve.
Fuck! Fuck, what was the dog doing running out? It had never done that before, not when there was scientists...
He'd never told the dog to be wary of scientists, because how would the dog know which person was one or not?
He'd told it to be wary of white coats. Frankenstein was wearing a blue and white top.
Fuck.
The dog stopped at the inside of M-21's elbow, where the syringe hovered over, barking at it.
Fucking-! Transformation was something known about throughout the organisations, that the Union had the most successful number of agents with it, but M-21 had never heard anyone else having a sentient tattoo. It made him stand out too much, a curiosity. He was going to be trapped -
"Yes, yes," Frankenstein said with a sigh, pulling the needle away, "I know you're protecting him, but I need to take some blood to make sure he's healthy."
What?
The dog growled, its ears still flat.
"You can protect him from being physically harmed," Frankenstein continued, "but sometimes a person has something out of balance inside. Once his blood tells me how healthy he is, I can help him to restore any imbalances, if there are any."
More barking, but the dog moved off the vein, sitting down to watch Frankenstein.
"You - you can understand it?" M-21 spluttered. How? Where the fuck had Frankenstein seen more of the dogs to not be surprised and to be able to learn how they talked?
"Mm?" Frankenstein said, making one last check of M-21's vein before sliding the needle in. "I can understand his worry." He adjusted the needle and then nodded, connecting the vial. It filled with blood a little sluggishly than normal.
"And you're not surprised by it." M-21 couldn't stop his mouth moving, but what the fuck? It had barely been two minutes and Frankenstein wasn't acting like any of the other scientists M-21 had met over the years.
"Of course not. I've..." Frankenstein unclipped the vial but trailed off when he looked at M-21. "But you were."
"Yeah? Where the fuck are sentient tattoos fucking normal?" He and M-24 had searched for more information in the Union database - nothing had come up.
Frankenstein didn't respond, setting the vial down in the tray, and shit, he'd said too fucking much. Revealed too much.
"There is a place," Frankenstein said, his voice still mild, "but I would like to have a more complete image of what has been done to you before I make any assumptions."
Frankenstein knew something about him and hadn't even looked at the blood results yet? Just from the tattoo?
"Tell me." He was doing this wrong, making demands of a scientist, but if he could find his home he might be able to find his name. Frankenstein hadn't seemed to mind being talked back at before - maybe he could keep getting away with it.
"Not yet," Frankenstein said. "I may be wrong about my assumption."
"But you know something."
"Yes." Frankenstein gazed at him and M-21 gritted his teeth at the pity that was on the scientist's face. "I don't want to give you false hope and then pull it away again." He eased the needle out, pressing a cotton ball to the pinprick. "Hold that please."
M-21 held his tongue and did as he was told. He was used to false hope. It was all he and M-24 had had in the Union: the chance they might eventually get away; the chance they actually find their names. They'd gotten out of the labs, and their bodies had started to fail. They'd found some of their documents, but it hadn't listed any of their personal history, only detailing what had been done to them.
He'd escaped the Union, and he'd lost M-24.
The scientist brought over a band-aid. "I don't need that," M-21 said. He would heal soon enough and the Union scientists had never bothered with it.
"Your body is currently weakened and recovering from Master awakening you, and I would rather give infection the least possible chance," Frankenstein said, pressing the band-aid to M-21's skin.
Was that what it was? He'd been given a boost in power, but he'd used up...what, life force or some shit?
The dog slunk close to the edge of the band-aid, sniffing it. It opened its mouth, leaning in.
"Leave it alone please." The dog's ears flattened. "It only needs to stay on overnight and then it can come off."
The dog closed its mouth, still staying close to the band-aid, growling softly.
"It can't-" M-21 had never seen it affect anything that wasn't his skin before. But he didn't know much about the dog, did he? He hadn't known it could bite him until recently.
"If it's something in contact with your skin, he can damage it. If he had attacked the needle while I was drawing blood, he could have broken it and the shard would have been stuck inside you."
M-21 grimaced, imagining it poking deeper inside him.
"If you could lie here," Frankenstein said, gesturing towards one of the machines to their side. "I'd like a scan as well."
To get as much information on him, urgh.
"You'll need to hide under M-21's clothes," Frankenstein told the dog. "The scan will be a bright light that passes over M-21 - that's normal and you won't need to protect M-21 from it."
The dog barked and then dashed back under M-21's sleeve.
M-21 rubbed his arm where the dog passed. He had never seen it interact with any one else aside from M-24 - was it always so trusting to follow orders?
"Do you have any questions?"
He shook his head and laid down on the scanner. The faster he got out of the lab the better - he'd been running his mouth off too much without thinking, giving the scientist too much information.
The scan went fine, the dog chasing after the light, its tail thumping against M-21's skin.
"Thank you," Frankenstein said, cleaning away his instruments as M-21 stood up. "I'll let you know what I've found when I'm done."
"Sure."
M-21 left the lab, the dog settling against his heart again.
From one lab to another, and this one knew more about him than the Union had, in more ways than one. If he could just get more information...
More hope that wouldn't go anywhere, but he was used to it.
M-21 sighed as he stared at the setting sun against the horizon. He'd used to do this with M-24 when they'd had free time.
He wanted M-24 back. What the fuck was the point in getting away from the Union if it wasn't with him? He could deal with running straight into another lab if he had M-24 to watch his back.
The dog trotted out from under his sleeve, watching the sun as well from his hand.
Right. He still had the dog, and the dog could keep an eye on his blind spots.
It wasn't quite the same. He wanted both of them there.
But nothing ever went the way he wanted, did it?
M-21 closed his eyes, feeling the sun's rays go cold as day gave way to night.
M-21 frowned when his phone buzzed. Only two people knew his new phone number and as far as he was aware, they were both still in the house. Contacting him was faster than trying to find him though.
It was from Frankenstein. [
I have the results of your blood test and MRI scan. Could you come down to the lab? F]
Fuck. What had the scientist found? How long was he going to be kept underground to be studied?
[
Yes.] But it wasn't as if he could run away. The Union would find him and want to take him apart, just because he'd been involved with their pet experiments getting killed. And that was before they found out he could transform.
From what he'd seen so far, being under the care of Frankenstein and his Master was still better than the Union. He could endure more tests and experiments.
The dog knew how he was feeling, curling up against his neck.
M-21 shoved his hands into his pockets when he entered the main lab room, his hands clenched into fists. Frankenstein was there, reading something on one of the computer screens.
As soon as Frankenstein saw him, he smiled at M-21 and put his glasses away in his shirt pocket. "Which would you like to know first?"
That was easy. "Where you think I'm from."
Frankenstein's smile dimmed for a second and shit, it was another dead end. "The living wolf mark you have is usually a sign of a very specific race," Frankenstein said, his gaze going towards M-21's neck for a second.
A wolf? How could Frankenstein tell the difference - it was just a bigger dog. And why was he talking in such a round about way?
"I've only met a handful of them, but from what I've gathered, the mark appears when when they come of age and they hm, 'gain their claws'."
Wait. M-21 stared at him, Frankenstein returning it. He knew the dog had appeared when he'd gained his transformation and had made that connection, but getting confirmation was different. It could have been a side effect of the transformation, rather than tied to it.
"It's usually red though," Frankenstein said, gazing at the do - wolf again.
M-21 narrowed his eyes. "So I'm not part of that race?" Because it was the wrong colour?
"No, you're not," Frankenstein said, turning back to his computer monitor. "I had thought you might be because of the mark and your transformation, but your blood test shows you're human-"
Human? Of course he was human? But if Frankenstein had to make that distinction...then whatever the wolf came from wasn't?
"-with a number of enhancements."
A new window was enlarged on the screen, showing a scan of a skeleton.
"It looks like someone at the Union transplanted a werewolf's heart into you." Frankenstein circled the light area in the - his chest with a finger. He continued but M-21 couldn't hear the rest, blood roaring in his hears.
He had something in his chest that wasn't his, that wasn't just beating his blood for him, but it could change him. Had changed him. His heart had changed him enough that he could transform and he'd gotten the wolf tattoo. That Frankenstein had thought he was a werewolf when he'd looked at him.
Was his heart going to keep changing him? Was he going to end up more werewolf than human? Just werewolf?
M-21's blood (was it still his?) roared in his ears more, the edges of his vision darkening. His throat tightened up, his chest squeezing harder with every breath. His heart was thundering and was it changing him with every beat?
Frankenstein moved closer, saying something, but it didn't matter. What the fuck did it matter? What was he?
M-21's skin tingled, but then there was a weight on his shoulder.
"-to me." He heard Frankenstein's voice like he was hearing him through a tank. "We'll go for a walk, okay?"
Why? So he could turn more into something he wasn't?
M-21 stumbled out the lab anyway, the weight on his shoulder guiding him.
Where was he being taken? He'd ignored a scientist and was going to be punished. He was being disposed of.
They kept going until the white tiled walls gave way to wallpaper and carpeted floors.
"Sit here."
M-21 was eased onto something soft. Chair? There was a table and large tv in front of him.
"Can you drink?"
He nodded. Orders. Had to follow orders. Endure everything the scientists did to him. Show he was still useful.
A glass of clear liquid with no scent. His hands trembled when he held it and he tried to steady them. Couldn't show fear in front of a scientist. Some loved seeing experiments tremble. Others thought it was a weakness. Weakness would get him disposed of.
"M-21?"
He was taking too long. "Yes, sir." He sounded muffled. Had to do what he was told. He drank the liquid in one go and waited.
It didn't burn on the way down and it didn't have the raspy feeling of something dissolved in it either.
Nothing happened. Something slow acting?
"Do you know where you are?"
A test. "The lab, sir." Words were hard to get out past his tight throat.
"...Yes."
He'd answered wrong. Fuck! Not specific enough? Did he have to say the city too? He was going to be punished for being wrong. Killed.
The glass in his hands shattered.
He hissed, hot sharp pain in his palms.
His skin tingled and he saw the dog race over his skin towards his palm.
Shit.
Was it because of that? Had it been changing more of him as it ran over his body?
It reached his hand and he knew what it was going to do.
Had it been changing him every time it had healed him? He had to stop it. He couldn't concentrate enough to transform, not with his blood still roaring in his ears, not when he could barely drag any air into himself, but he was strong enough to dig it ou-
Something stopped his hands from moving.
"Let's not do that, shall we?" The voice was soft and low and fuck. He'd fucked up. He'd lost control of himself in front of a scientist. He shook harder, biting his lip as he tried to stop.
He tasted blood. Were his teeth changing now? Was he just-
"M-21, I need you to take in a deep breath."
He couldn't.
"Breathe in."
He couldn't.
But he had to follow orders, no matter how he felt.
He sucked in a breath and almost choked.
"That's good." What? For breathing? "Now breathe out through your mouth."
More nonsensical scientist instructions, but he did as he was told.
He was told to do that a few more times and eventually his breathing became easier, his heartbeat slowing down.
"How are you doing?"
"Better, sir." He could still taste blood, and he was lightheaded from everything his body had done.
"I'm just going to get the first-aid kit, all right? I'll be back in a minute."
"Yes, sir." Why had his body done that? Was it breaking down again? Did he need more pills? Was he going to be tied to the lab again, relying on pills to keep him alive?
The hands let go of his wrists and M-21 let them drop onto his lap, blood dripping onto his trousers.
The dog was moving around his palm and he flinched, clenching his hand into a fist, a shard of glass embedding itself further into him. He could deal with pain. His enhanced healing would take care of it.
He couldn't heal from turning into a werewolf.
The dog could still reach the wounds from under his fingers.
"M-21." He stiffened. "I need you to relax your hands for me."
He opened his hands for the scientist. He couldn't see the dog from under all the blood.
"Thank you." The scientist took M-21's closest hand and started cleaning it. Why...? What was the scientist going to do to his hands? Take them off so he wouldn't break anything else?
"M-21, take in a deep breath."
He did as he was told.
The scientist continued cleaning his hand and instructing him when he breathe.
The scientist's hands stilled. "Oh, da-" What had he done wrong? "Stop healing him - I need to take out the shards before his skin heals over them."
Why did the scientist care? He would heal and the shard would come out eventually.
It didn't take long for the scientist to ease the shards out of his palm but having the scientist's hands on him made M-21's skin crawl. M-21 focused on that feeling and his breathing and bit by bit, everything seemed to calm down, his thoughts slowing.
...Fuck. He'd lost control in front of Frankenstein. Heat warmed his cheeks and embarrassment twisted his stomach. Frankenstein thought he was a bigger piece of shit now.
M-21 watched Frankenstein bandage his hand.
"Has this happened to you before?" Frankenstein asked him.
When his master had awakened him, and M-21 could think of a few other times over the years. He'd tried to hide what was wrong, but M-24 could always tell; the scientists didn't notice. "No."
"All right."
M-21 could feel the dog under the bandages. He wanted to scratch at them but he kept his hands where they were.
"There," Frankenstein said once he was finished, sitting back. "You should be able to take them off tonight if you don't scratch too much."
M-21 nodded, taking his hand back. He slowly flexed his hands, feeling the ache as his muscles moved.
He tensed when he heard Frankenstein exhale.
"I apologise." What? "I hadn't considered how much of a shock that information would have been."
M-21 stared at him. He'd found out he had an organ of a different species in his body that was changing him and he was supposed to just carry on as normal? Fucking scientists.
"We can discuss the rest of your results later," Frankenstein continued, "when you're feeling better."
"I'm feeling better." Get it all done with at the same time rather than dragging it out.
Frankenstein shook his head, clearing away what he'd used. "These results aren't as important or immediate. They can wait."
And Frankenstein had thought his heart was a non-issue. The scientist didn't know M-21 would think was important.
"Fine." He could try to find them later when Frankenstein was asleep.
"Thank you. You can go," Frankenstein said as he stood up.
M-21 nodded and left, trying to not look like he was running.
Fuck. His legs felt like they couldn't hold his body, like he'd been fighting for an hour with no sleep. His body was exhausted and a few times M-21 almost tripped as he made his way to his room.
He sank onto his bed, gripping the blanket under him. What the fuck had happened? He'd lost control of himself and Frankenstein...hadn't cared? Hadn't mocked him?
Had apologised to him?
What the fuck. It had to be another scientist trick. Trying to lower his guard.
His palms itched where his skin was knitting back together.
M-21 stared at one of his hands. At the bandages. The Union scientists had never done that, leaving him and the rest of the M-series to heal on their own. It usually worked, but sometimes someone didn't get up again afterwards.
A trick. That was all it was.
Something Frankenstein did because it amused him. Like all scientists.
His eyes drooped and M-21 curled up on the bed. Why had that taken so much out of him? He could think about it later, once he'd had a nap.
When M-21 woke up, it was dark outside. He'd been sleeping for hours?
He checked the bandages. The blood that had seeped through was already dark brown and hard, so that should mean he could take them off now.
He tugged them off, and it didn't stick to his skin. He dumped the bandages in the bin and went to the bathroom.
M-21 watched the water wash the dried blood off his hands. His skin was unmarked underneath it. Did he used to heal that fast or cleanly?
He sighed, and then frowned at his wrist. His '21' tattoo was back.
"We're not in the lab anymore," he said. It didn't move.
He poked it. It vibrated for a second before settling. "...Okay." If that was what it wanted to do, he wouldn't stop it.
M-21 picked his phone up from this bed and blinked at the new text message. It was from Frankenstein.
[
If you have any questions, you can ask them here. You don't have to go to the lab if you don't feel comfortable. F]
M-21 stared at it. What? Why was... M-21 couldn't understand what Frankenstein was trying to do. Why wouldn't a scientist want someone they were studying in their lab?
And if he didn't go to the lab, then where was Frankenstein supposed to collect his data?
[
Okay.] He had no questions for a scientist and he could go back into lab. He wasn't going to let his body's reactions stop him, especially if he had been ordered to go.
And also if he wanted to see his other results.
He hadn't figured out Frankenstein's schedule yet, but it was late enough he could be asleep.
The lab was quiet. That wasn't hard when M-21 had still only seen Frankenstein and his master enter.
The main doors swished open and - fuck. M-21 ducked away.
Frankenstein was still there. His back had been to him and maybe the scientist hadn't heard the doors opening.
M-21 snuck away. Next time.
M-21 sat on the edge of a skyscraper rooftop, hearing the soft sounds of traffic far below him.
What the fuck was he? He'd known from the start that he wasn't as human after what had been done to him. He'd accepted that early on. He was a modified human, not anything else.
Frankenstein had said he was human, but for how long? It had been three years since he'd first transformed - how human had he been back then compared to now? How long would it take before he wasn't human anymore?
And how had it happened? Was it because of his healing? Whenever he transformed?
M-21 sighed, glancing at his wrist. The wolf still hadn't moved. It could be because of that as well.
He didn't know, and wouldn't know until he lost more of his humanity.
He closed his eyes. There was nothing he could do about it.