Title: Trial and Error
Author: Akanue
Fandom(s): Dragon Drive
Rating: T
Warning(s): None.
Disclaimer: I also do not own Dragon Drive or its characters. They belong to TV Tokyo, Madhouse, Kenichi Sakura, and other licensors and distributors. This is a not-for-profit fan work.
Summary: Tests of an experimental new hardware go wrong, causing conflicts between Kouhei, Agent G, and Saizou Toki to rise to the surface.
Trial and Error
"Kouhei, you need to get up and come down here," Agent G said over the intercom. This wasn't so much because he was eager to get the experiment underway. In fact, he was entirely happy tweaking the system a bit more while Kouhei slept in. It had been a late night for all of them the previous evening, but Kouhei had borne the worst of it, being only eleven. They had finished up just a little past midnight when Kouhei was finally allowed to return to his room to sleep, with the experiments with the new hardware set to begin at 7:00am the next day.
In spite of the circumstances, Saizou Toki had been insistent from the moment he'd arrived that morning that everyone involved in the experiment be punctual. And if Kouhei took any longer to get there, G was afraid Saizou would walk down to Kouhei's room himself to rouse the boy. The thought filled him with dread.
He had no evidence of any mistreatment. Saizou Toki was far too intelligent for that. Just a gut feeling and years of observed interactions between father and son.
"Please," he said softly into the microphone.
An irritated moan, the sound of fabric rustling, and the call cut off.
Fifteen minutes later, Kouhei finally arrived. "All right, all right, I'm here already," he said as he stepped into the room with a big yawn. G watched several of the other technicians barely conceal their glares of contempt, and he realized he couldn't blame them for their resentment. Kouhei being so late had held everyone up, and his attitude certainly didn't help matters. G himself had once felt the same way. But the thought of Kouhei's isolation now filled him with nothing but sorrow.
Saizou himself came in a few minutes later, as one of the technicians was fitting the new machinery onto Kouhei. "Begin when ready," were his only orders.
The new machinery two of the other Agents had been working on was a new sensory adapter that would amplify all of a player's senses while in the game, bringing the experience that much closer to reality.
The head technician glanced at Saizou for approval once the device was properly installed and Kouhei fitted with it. With a nod, power was fed into the virtual reality pod and Kouhei's brain slowly began to digitize.
For almost a full minute, everything seemed to be going well. Kouhei didn't look any different than he normally did when logging into D-Zone, and none of the readings the computers were collecting seemed out of the ordinary. But then suddenly, Kouhei's pupils dilated, his eyes went wide, and his body began shaking.
"Pull him out!" G cried, not noticing how strangled with fear his voice sounded.
The machine shut down with a hiss and Kouhei yanked himself away from it, throwing a hand over his mouth and stumbling away. He was clearly trying to hold it in but finally succumbed to the intense nausea and dizziness, collapsing to his hands and knees and vomiting onto the floor.
While Saizou Toki watched the entire scene with no change in his expression, G got down on his knees besides Kouhei, placed a hand on his back, and began rubbing gently, his mind already racing with all the explanations for what had gone wrong and what could be done for Kouhei. Kouhei coughed and sputtered, trying to breathe and rid his mouth of the taste of bile.
As the heaves subsided, G said, "Let me take you to the infirmary. There might be internal damage."
Kouhei seemed relieved that G had gotten down to help him, but when he saw his father looking at him in what appeared to be disinterested disapproval, he stood and said, "I'm fine."
Saizou turned to the head technician, speaking softly but gruffly. Regarding Kouhei once again, he said, "I wish to continue the experiment as soon as possible." His order was conveyed in a tone that left little room for debate.
Unable to allow it in good conscience, G spoke up. "With all due respect, sir, it's clear the machine is not yet safe for human use. Kouhei should be given time to rest and we should analyze the data before we continue."
Saizou's eyes narrowed, although G was certain it had more to do with the familiar way he spoke and interacted with Kouhei rather than his suggestion, which was objectively sound.
After a long moment, Saizou nodded his approval, unable to disagree with his employee's argument. "Contact me when you are ready to continue." He then exited the room with a swish of his coat.
Knowing better than to say anything else, G waited for Kouhei to make the first move before they both headed out the door.
"I could've handled it," Kouhei said once they were alone. Though it was more than clear he was putting on a brave face. He still looked extremely sick, as if he were going to throw up again any moment.
G wasn't sure how to respond, so all he said was, "Let's just make sure you're all right."
Kouhei fell silent as they made their way down the winding halls of the Sea Palace to the infirmary. When they arrived, Kouhei sat on the bed without saying a word as G began his examination, first physically and then with a state-of-the-art scanner he had designed to detect brain injury from incidents in virtual reality.
Finally, when he was near finished, G spoke. "Why do you push yourself so hard when you know you're going to burn out?"
Kouhei looked straight ahead into nothing, not saying anything for a long time. It was only when G had turned away to put his equipment back that Kouhei answered. "Because I don't want to let him down."
G felt his shoulders sag. He knew nothing he could say would make a difference.
"At least take two of these," G said, handing Kouhei a couple of painkillers and a Styrofoam cup of water. He thought he saw something akin to gratitude flash across Kouhei's face, but it was gone in an instant as he swallowed the pills.
"I'm going back," Kouhei declared, leaving the cup on the bed, not bothering to throw it away himself.
"All right," said G. He was just glad to have gotten this far.
A thousand unspoken words hung in the air.