Working with soldiers wasn't exactly what Kefka wanted. It wasn't like he was a pacifist, he just wasn't big enough for fighting. He stood at a whopping four foot two, and weighed maybe seventy pounds soaking wet. And he swore the weapons were just as tall and heavy as he was. He didn't have issues with a rapier, or a dagger, but when it came to broadswords, he could barely lift the weapon, much less swing it.

"You're absolutely terrible at this," One soldier remarked. Kefka shot him a glare, stumbling as he swung the broadsword.

"I'm not big enough for this weapon. Give me another one."

The soldier snorted, "Aww, you think you're special, don't you?" Kefka flushed bright red, his grip on his weapon tightening. "Boys, we got us a pretty fuckin' princess! Thinks he's special enough to get his own fuckin' weapon! I think we should show him how we deal with pretty princesses around here." The boy's eyes widened slightly, and he raised the blade somewhat.

"Don't come near me."

"Like you could do anything to stop me."

With that, Kefka lunged forward, putting all his weight behind his weapon. The soldier smoothly dodged out of the way, grabbing Kefka by the hair. "Told you. Come on, boys, let's show this one everythin' we got!"

---

It was hard to avoid the medics. They were literally everywhere. The boy had finally taken to hiding in the research facility, just to avoid them. He didn't want to have to explain what had happened, and why it had happened.

"Goodness gracious, what happened to you?"

Kefka jumped, attempting to scoot closer into the corner he was hiding in. He felt a hand on his shoulder, which he immediately attempted to shrug off. "N-Nothing. I'm fine."

"You certainly don't look fine. Did the soldiers get you, little girl?"

Little…little girl?! His eyes lit up in absolute fury, and he turned to strike out at the man behind him. "Little girl?! I am not a little girl! Do I LOOK like a girl to you!?"

"…Yes?" The man rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, "I'm sorry, I just wanted to see how you were. I didn't realise…I'm sorry. I'm Cid. I work here in the research facility." Kefka relaxed back, trying to unclench his jaw. It wouldn't have offended him so much if those soldiers hadn't…he shuddered.

"I'm Kefka. …The soldiers…they, uhm…"

"You need to be careful of the soldiers. They don't act like people. Stay in the research facility for a while. They'll forget about you soon enough. You can help in the analysis of Espers."

"…Espers? I didn't think they really existed. My nana used to tell us stories of them, but I thought they were all made up."

Cid laughed, leading Kefka further into the research facility. The boy stared at each glass tube in absolute wonder, occasionally pressing his hand against the glass. "These are Espers?" He asked, stopping to stare at a beautiful faerie locked away in a glass tube, "They're beautiful."

"It's sad that we have to drain their life force. But it's for a good cause. We want to augment people. So they'll be able to use Magic, like a Mage Warrior." Kefka's eyes lit up, and he turned to look at Cid.

"Have you augmented anyone yet? What do you do?"

"No, we haven't augmented anyone yet. We haven't perfected the serum yet. It's still very unstable. We've tried using it on lab rats, just to see the end result, and most of them die off after a few days of being augmented." Cid sighed, "Sometimes it feels like we'll never perfect it. I feel bad, for doing all this."

"I-If I had magic…those soldiers would never bother me again. A-Augment me!"

"W-What!? Good Heavens, no! Didn't you hear me? The lab rats die off! Who knows what it would do to a human!"

"Let's see what it would do to a human! I don't care the cost, just augment me! I'll do anything!"

"I-I can't do that…I'm sorry. Give it a couple years, and maybe…for now, why don't you work in the lab with us? You can work for your own augmentation."

Kefka swallowed hard, looking up at the Esper that had earlier entranced him. The ability to use magic…if he really could use magic, like they used to accuse him of, then maybe…

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.