How his lab partners could even take it, he didn't know. Theses were humans! Infants! Was Cheif Besithia insane? Wait. That was a stupid question with a whole lab full of "YES" as an answer. Aguilis Mercandus was not like his coworker who'd gotten over his disgust over Besithia's "experiments." If this was what Niflheim looked to for glory, then there was something seriously wrong with his native land, as much as it pained him to admit it. He could deal with working for the betterment of the Empire in the face of Lucian magic but, yeah he was still hung up on the babies being created to be lab rats. Hell, Besitihia wasn't even separating out one as a control! That was just shitty science practices right there! The brilliance in editing the genomes aside: somehow Besithia had overcome the fact his cells telomeres were very much spent, and these new clones were infants in every sense of the word. It wouldn't work for actually reversing the aging process for a non-clone. Damnit Aguilis went off on a tangent again!
He needed to act fast. Verstael was beginning to suspect him.
Aguilis downloaded the files on gene editing in clones and was on his way out when he stopped and stared at the infant on the end. Unit 05953234. The small blond baby floating in a tank gave Aguilis an impulsive idea.
The bawling baby in his arms made him regret everything! What did Aguilis know about babies? Nothing, that's what. The baby he'd stolen was going to die because he was clueless!
"First time with the kid alone?" Aguilis jumped. He was on the train to Accordo. He'd fled hid job, his nation, with only the clothes on his back and what gil he had too.
"Y-Yeah," he said. The speaker was a kind old woman who gently held her hands out. She rocked the wailing child, and he calmed before he hiccuped and fell asleep.
"Did you bring anything with you?"
"Should I have?" Aguilis asked. The woman's frown let him know that "yes" he should have was the answer.
The old women of the train worked together and forced Aguilis to accept a baby bag.
"What's his name?" Quick, Aguilis—
"Prompto. His name's Prompto," Aguilis said. The newly named Prompto seemed to like his name as he giggled in response winning over the old ladies who had basically banded together to help this poor stupid young father. Whatever.
"…Moving to Leide of all places. I asked why not the Crown City, and she told me she didn't want people to think she was putting on airs by thinking she could move to Insomnia." Insomnia! That was an idea. He had intel, he could trade that for admittance and he could also find a better family for the kid than him.
"You don't understand! I'm a Nif defector!" Aguilis explained to the gate guard while he tried to rock the baby in his arms to keep the little one from fussing. A group of men in military uniforms surrounded him and he was escorted into a blacked out car.
They'd taken Prompto away from him before shoving him into this room.
"You claim you have intel for us?" it was Cor the Immortal!
"Yeah. This," Aguilis slid the disk towards them.
"You didn't even make any demands," Cor said. Aguilis, you idiot!
"Well, a new start, a job, and a home for that kid are all I really want," Aguilis said. Cor stared him down.
"That's it?"
"That's it."
"Welcome to Insomnia."
"How dare he!" Verstael threw papers off his desk. One of his precious test subjects gone before it could serve its purpose. His purpose, his glory, his ascendance! That treacherous thief! It was like a very piece of himself had been stolen! If he ever got his hands on that vile traitor, he would rend him limb from limb! He would regret crossing the future god!
MP: Inspired by the events that Verstael and Ardyn talked about, which explained how an infant Prompto ended up in the care of Lucians.
Also, I made the comment about Verstael finding away around the degraded telomeres his clones would have had because he's old as dirt, because as batshit insane he is, I doubt he'd let his clones suffer from clone-degradation before they've proven useful for the empire. It is called Project Deathlessafter all.
Aguilis's comment about the bad scientific practices was my own thoughts as I played Episode Prompto. He didn't even stop to think to keep a control clone?