Title: Control
Rating: T
Genre: Drama, angst, the usual
Characters: S-1 (not Taylor, S-1), Krane
Pairing(s): None
Summary: '"You don't own me. You don't control me. I don't belong to you. I never will." There was silence after I spoke. Then, he laughed right in my face. "I don't control you, you say?" He pushed a button on the remote, and immediately, my eyesight went fuzzy. But I didn't yield. I wouldn't. "You. Don't. Control. Me."'
Warnings: Nothing, really. Kinda dark, but that is to be expected, right?
Notes: I was really in an S-1 type mood, so… this was the end result. It takes place directly before You Posted What?! There are some vague references to my other Taylor story, but you don't have to read that to understand this—unless you want to!
Oh, and I'm dedicating this to my friend Susz, because she's been great to talk to and really is just an all-around awesome person. She also helped me figure out some things about this. Thanks so much, Susz!
Not much else to say. So… enjoy!
First, the pain hit me, rolling in waves, washing over me as I lay limply on the ground.
Second, I became aware of the man standing over me, remote in hand, typing on a console beside him. Victor Krane. He was talking, not to me, but to himself.
"The stupid app isn't working! This wasn't supposed to happen! What else can I do?"
I groaned, forcing myself off the floor. I managed to stand. "What…?"
He still didn't acknowledge me, instead prying open a panel on the back of the remote and moving wires around inside.
What had he said? Something like, 'stupid app'…
Suddenly, it all flooded back in a rush. What I'd seen in his files when I'd stolen his computer and looked into his plans—the 'Triton app 2.0'—made sense now. He was… trying to control me.
I remembered what I'd seen about that app. It was an upgraded version of the one I knew he was using on all the other kids I'd ever come in contact with around him—the other soldiers, the ones Krane had shut down and was to use as a backup plan. That app would make me forget everything about the life I once lived. Krane could make me do anything—kill people, even. He would control my bionics, turn me into a machine. He would warp my mind, make me do things I didn't want to. He would make me believe things that weren't true. He would turn me into a monster, a monster just like him.
"No."
I didn't even realize I'd said it out loud until Krane—finally—looked at me.
"What?"
"That app," I forced out. "can control me. You can control me. I don't want you to."
He smirked. "You, unfortunately, don't have a choice in this."
I shook my head, folding my arms and taking a step back. I was maybe acting a little bit like a stubborn five-year-old, but there was no way he was going to use that remote on me. "I don't want to hurt anyone. Especially not on your behalf."
He stopped, one eyebrow lifting slightly. "How did you know the app would do that?"
I knew I probably shouldn't tell him, but I did anyway. "Your computer."
He nodded once. "Ah, I see. Well, all the more reason to put you under the influence of the app."
"I don't want to forget," I said, stepping back.
He chuckled harshly. "Forget what? I took you off the streets when you were a kid. You've been training here and living here for years. If you were to return home, you would have nothing left. What will you forget that really matters?"
My friends, the people I left behind when I joined you. Even if they were dead when I returned, it would be better than this.
But I didn't say anything. He seemed to take that as a signal of defeat, and he raised the remote.
"No hard feelings, S-1?" he asked mockingly.
A flame of anger ignited in my heart, and I growled. "That's not my name."
"Oh?"
"It's a stupid soldier designation that simply means I'm the first and most powerful soldier you have!" I shouted. "It means that I'm your guinea pig, your test subject, the one you try all of your stupid new apps on before installing said apps into everyone else! It means I belong to you, and I don't! It's not my name!"
"Then what is your name?" His grin widened as he asked the question, and uneasiness was added to the anger burning within me.
"It's—"
Suddenly, he pushed a button on the console, and my voice cut off. I tried again, but no sound escaped my lips.
Krane snickered. "Yes, S-1? What is it? Cat got your tongue?"
Literally hissing noiselessly in anger, I started to take a step forward, lifting my arms to activate my bionics, but he pushed another two buttons on the console and I froze completely, an unseen force seemingly wrapping around me and holding me in place. "You will find that your bionics are disabled and you are unable to move." He returned his attention to the remote, once again rewiring it.
I glared at him, straining to speak, struggling against that unseen force. Nothing happened; everything was numb. I couldn't force myself out of this.
What do you do when you're trapped in a confined space?
It was like that phrase suddenly sprang loose from my memory. I remembered having that conversation, with one of my fellow… residents of the street, when I was maybe seven or eight.
You relax, I remember saying back. Relax until you can slip free of the bonds.
Now, I knew that this wasn't exactly the same, but maybe, just maybe, it would work. I closed my eyes, breathing out. I relaxed as best as I could, trying to go as limp as possible.
There was a tingling feeling, and then I could feel my left hand again. I wiggled my fingers, feeling the numbness recede.
Come on, come on…
I felt a pop.
Snap!
With a cracking noise, my invisible bonds broke and I fell to the floor.
Krane whipped around, almost dropping the remote, as I muttered, "Ow," and clambered to my feet.
For once, he seemed thoroughly speechless. "But—what—how?"
"Bionics aren't the only advantages I have," I replied, raising my fists. "Don't you remember? You recruited me because I already had skill. I maintain that."
Krane recovered quickly, I admitted. His face screwed up in anger and he held up the remote once more, closing the open panel. "Those skills won't save you. I'm going to take control of you, whether you like it or not."
I shook my head. "You don't own me. You don't control me. I don't belong to you. I never will."
There was silence after I spoke. Then, he laughed right in my face. "I don't control you, you say?" He pushed a button on the remote, and immediately, my eyesight went fuzzy.
But I didn't yield. I wouldn't. "You. Don't. Control. Me."
He pushed another button, and suddenly, my vision was awash in green light. A wave of pain sliced down the back of my neck, and I bit back a cry.
"You will bow down," Krane insisted, brandishing the remote.
"You don't control me!" I screamed, falling to my knees.
Krane scoffed slightly. "You're already kneeling in front of me, so that's a start."
I shook my head, shakily standing back up. "No. I won't. You can't…"
He pushed another button. My legs collapsed from under me, and I fell to the floor once again.
"I can," he replied.
"You ca…" I didn't have the strength to finish. Everything was going fuzzy, dark… everything was getting dimmer. My body was going weak, numb. I couldn't move.
And the weirdest thing? I could literally feel my memories slipping from my brain, no matter how hard I tried to hold on. My mind was emptying…
"No," I mumbled. "No."
"You belong to me," Krane's voice came from above me.
"I…" don't belong to you. But I couldn't, for some reason, just say it.
"You are loyal only to me," he droned.
"I… am loyal only to you." I felt my mouth form the words, but… I didn't say that!
He smiled. "Of your own free will? That was the whole point of the app, you know."
No. No! Remember, come on, remember!
And I tried, I really did. But I failed. I failed miserably.
Suddenly, my mind was blank.
I climbed to my feet, my green eyes flashing, casting a faint glow in front of me. "Yes, Mr. Krane. I am loyal to you and only you. What is my first assignment?"
And then you know what happens afterward—S-1 goes and films them on the mission, then goes and attacks Leo and all that.
Anyway, feedback! I love feedback, so I encourage you all to review!
Thanks for reading, everyone!
