Two chapters in one day?! what is happening in the world?! Enjoy!

14 years ago, give or take a few months

When Cor and the glaives who went with him to infiltrate a Gralean lab came back with seven small children and a grim tale of cloning and experimentation, the citadel staff had been at a loss.

The children were kept quarantined for months while the doctors observed them; testing their blood numerous times and experimenting with different variables.

At first, Cor was a frequent visitor to the children (mostly Prompto, who was still enamored with him), but his duties kept calling him away. He didn't have too much of a problem with the nurses or doctors, other than it seemed they aggressively ignored the children when they weren't actively dealing with them to run their tests.

He couldn't blame them; the children all had the Star Scourge, you would have to be a crazy person not to be frightened of contracting the virus. Though none of them showed any of the normal signs...

…not like the ones who didn't make it out of the lab; he still heard their screams sometimes, when he was alone…when he'd least expect it. Their twisted faces as they melted, bubbled, boiled, steamed in the sunlight…

The doctors first tried to make a cure from the infected blood. It was logical that if they were not affected by the virus, that they must hold the remedy. But when they studied the interactions between the strain the children had versus the one that plagued their world, it caused the deadly version to accelerate and kill the host in a fifth of the time it normally did.

Kill being the kind word to use in this instance.

But, conversely, it seemed to have no effect at all on blood not afflicted with the virus. Once introduced to the host, their own white blood cells fought it off like one would do a flu or cold. Though the host did suffer, it cleared up within a few days, leaving no traces behind.

By the time they were testing the hosts that they now considered 'inoculated' by the SC50917A5 strain, Cor had run out of personal leave and was spending less and less time with the children, much to the chubby little blond's disappointment.

Once they figured out that the SC50917A5 virus could not hurt nor help anyone, the doctors were at a loss as to what to do with the troupe of small children.

Until Dr. Lues took over, of course.

The man had been there the whole time, but at some point when the warrior was not looking, he'd convinced the right people to let him take over the treatments. Cor had been away for two weeks while the devious doctor began running more comprehensive tests—

experiments

—and when he returned, the children had all changed. Two of them were seriously ill and would go on to die within a few days.

The rest were quieter; more reserved.

Prompto barely recognized him, and was near unresponsive as he lay in his bed.

Cor had been enraged and demanded the king fire—

drag out in the street like a rabid dog and shoot

—the man, but the investigation revealed that the two unfortunate children that passed had caught the chocobopox, and their weak immune systems had been unable to fight it off. The rest were simply deemed 'exhausted'. Dr. Lues was cleared of any wrong doing, but the children were also pardoned from confinement by the king under the requirement they be tracked and their medical histories kept up to date with the citadel staff.

Cor wanted to take Prompto home. But he couldn't. His life had no room for a child; it would be unfair to the both of them.

Sperno and Incuria Argentum had seemed like nice enough people when he'd first met them, all those years ago. They'd been friends of a glaive he'd known, and he'd suggested them for the adoption of Prompto after he'd been cleared by the citadel doctors.

They really seemed like good people at the time, but now…

Now….

Present day

The longer Cor waited, the angrier he got.

They said they'd talk to him.

He checked his watch. 2:42 pm.

He'd been waiting over an hour, now. He'd called each of their cell phones twice. Neither answered.

He was just about to call again when his phone finally rang.

He pressed the accept button hard enough that his thumbnail went white. "Sperno. Where have you been?" Cor growled into the phone as he stood up and began to pace.

"Ah, Leonis, is it?" The elder Argentum's voice lilted, a hint of condescension seeping in.

"You know very well who this is. I'm sick of having to track you down. Your son—"

A scoff from the other end had Cor stopping, a frown creasing his brow. Before the other man could speak however, he was starting up again. "And if you call him an it one more time—"

"Oh, Leonis, do calm down. All this anger can't be good for you."

Cor paused in his pacing and did an about-face to stride to his office window. From it, he could see the medical wing of the Citadel. He found looking in that direction—even if he couldn't see Prompto's room—made him feel more grounded. "I just need to know if you plan on coming back. If not, I have already had paperwork drawn up for emancipation. If you're not going to come back and help your son heal, at the very least you can sign the paperwork so he doesn't have to deal with the legal system to get it done."

"Emancipation? Well, I hardly see that as necessary. I've thought it over and have decided to cut my work obligations short, just like you requested. I shall be home in a fortnight."

Cor was…surprised. He had expected Argentum to tell him he'd sign the papers. He'd been hoping for it, in fact. He was so startled, in fact, that he found himself asking: "What?"

"A fortnight," Argentum's voice took on a mocking tone, "is two weeks."

"I fucking know what a fortnight is."

"Well then, don't sound so confused. It doesn't suit you. But rest assured, my good man; I'll be along soon enough to take care of my boy. He is mine, after all."

Cor narrowed his eyes, fingers squeezing the phone incrementally harder. "Glad to hear you're finally seeing things clearly."

The voice on the other end chuckled. "Indeed. See you soon, Marshal."