Agent South was walking down a hall. It had been 3 days since her brother regained consciousness. Four-Seven-Niner, a female pilot in white armor turned a corner and started to walk next to her. "how long is he going to be in the hell hole?" she asked Agent South.
"As long as it takes for him to learn a lesson; take responsibility for his actions." South answered casually.
"…or die of heart failure like the last 3." Four-Seven-Niner shrugged.
"Not my problem." South wondered how and why a pilot would know something like that.
"So you seriously don't care if he lives or dies?" she asked with fake concern.
"As of the moment he opened fire on me to assist Agent Texas-no I do not." South turned a corner for no other reason than to end the conversation.
'Interesting' the pilot said to herself. That information could prove useful in the near future.
In the days that followed Agent North tried to maintain his sanity but in all honesty he had no will or desire to live.
"theta." He said, his body reeling from the latest electric shock.
"yes agent north?" theta appeared.
"Why didn't they just kill me? Repurpose my armor …reassigns my ai." He said struggling for air.
"you're too special to die, your skill set, your mind…" the little AI was trying to make him feel better.
"theta shut down…." North groaned.
"but north…" theta knew North wanted to die, but he would still whatever he could to avoid that fate.
"shut down- that's an order." North said closing his eyes.
He tried to sleep or meditate for the minutes in between the massive electrical shocks; the endless torture forcing his mind back in to body; the pain, the sickness, the starvation. By day 4 of consciousness he was driven to bite his tongue hard enough to draw blood just to have something to drink. But he never screamed or even so much as cried out in pain.
day 5 south visited to collect on the bet.-"our father was abusive to him since the moment he could walk. Every mistake every screw up he was hit with a belt piece of wood or just fists; that's why you'll never see him cry, not for himself." She said watching the video feed."he cried every tear god gave him by the time he was 8." she was somewhat proud of that fact.
"May I ask why your father detested him?" Counselor Price asked as he paid on the wager.
"Hell if I know, he just did. Maybe it was something Freudian; the only reason he's as sweet and nurturing as he is was our mom." it was a strange family dynamic, their father seemed to be abnormally harsh towards North but was nothing but kind to South while their mother was loving and encouraging to her bother while ignoring her completely.
day 8- north was starting to succumb to the effects of organ failure; internal bleeding, muscle spasms, gradual brain damage while delusional with fever.
"theta please talk to me" he said in a weak dry whisper.
"I'm scared," the little AI didn't want to watch him die he had spent the last few days trying to give him reasons to live (when he wasn't being told to go away) but to no avail. But the thing about dying was you have to do it in one fell swoop or else the fear/will to live would take hold so theta knew he would have to wait until North was on the verge if death; practically gone- both physically and mentally- perhaps this was that moment.
"Just say you're sorry." Theta begged. "You don't even have to mean it! Tell him you're sorry to make the hurting stop."
"What did you say?" North asked chocking back blood. There were ulcers in his stomach causing his to cough up blood to the point where he was hallucinating.
"say you're sorry to make the hurting stop. "Theta knew he had succeed, he returned to North's implant and administered a pulse to begin to shut down North's consciousness. If he was wrong at least this would allow North to die without pain.
In North's mind those words sounded familiar, those were his mother's words. As he closed his eyes North could see her face, "I'm sorry." he could feel tears in his eyes, "I'm sorry.." he looked at the camera "I'M SORRY!.. I'm sorry..." with that North slipped in to a coma.
Theta saved the footage and presented it to Counselor Price. "I got him to say sorry, please let him out."
"Good work theta," he said as the footage was both an apology and North begging for his life. "He'll be released immediately."
North woke up in intensive care with his sister holding his hand. South was out of her armor, in a tank top and jeans. Her brother had been out for 12 hours (long enough for her to perfect her new persona.)
"Are you strong enough to sit up?" she caressed her hand to his aching back that was still suffering from painful muscle spasms. Her touch was soft and gentle. She let him rest his weight on her shoulder.
"Have some water" she held a half filled cup to his lips. Swallowing was still difficult, the first few tries he coughed it back up all over his sister's arm.
"I'm sorry," he said his mind still reeling, "please forgive me I'm so sorry."
"Of course" she kissed the back of his bare shoulder on a deep scar he had since childhood. "I could never stay mad at you, I love you" she could fake it with the best.
North was now partially blind in both eyes and still suffering from painful muscle spasms. South held a heating pad to his back "This should help with the pain." she said holding him, resting her head on his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his muscular abs. "I forgive you" she whispered in his ear kissing his earlobe then is his neck.
"I'm going to let you get some rest ok." she laid him back down, stroking her hands down his chest. She kissed his forehead. "Theta watch over him please." As she left.
Four-Seven-Niner was waiting outside. "Wow that was borderline NSFW." She joked. "What's the prognosis?"
"Organ and tissue damage, internal bleeding, blindness, in a horrific amount of pain, whatever" South said now in her normal voice.
"You're loving every minute aren't you." She smiled.
"I want him to pay."South said in an unforgiving tone.
"I have a new job title, and it comes with a mission that I think would be right up your alley."