Chapter Text
StexCorp Synernists Incorporated slowly began to take over the little sunny desert town of Desert Bluffs. Kevin refused over and over again, fighting back against the corporation to try and stop them from buying the radio station as part of their take over.
“We will continue to fight. We will not let StrexCorp take our Desert Bluffs. Until next time, Desert Bluffs. Until next time.” Kevin says, turning off his microphone. As he did this, he was quite quickly dragged out of his chair by two Strex employees who were a lot stronger than he was. Kevin thrashed and cried out as he was practically picked up and carried out of the room.
One of the two employees hit Kevin over the head, knocking the radio host out.
Kevin groans softly as he woke up in what seemed to be a cell with a hard mattress for a bed with a worn, bloodstained blanket. The radio host got up, going over to the bars. He didn’t notice the camera in the corner of the cell.
“Hello?” He calls, his voice echoing. He had a pounding headache and he tries looking around, not seeing very far down the long, plain hallway. The radio host looked through his pockets, finding literally nothing and the bars were too close together just to slip out, even for the lanky radio host. He started to pace, frowning softly.
After about 10 minutes- even though time was strange and it could have been an hour or 3 days but it felt fairly short so the radio host estimated that it was about 10 minutes- 2 dark eyed men walked down the hallway towards Kevin’s cell, stopping in front of it with a wide, unnatural and unnerving smile. Kevin had no idea that the human mouth could stretch that widely and tightly, but would soon find out how possible it was. From their all black suits, bright yellow ties orange triangle ‘S’ badges on their left lapels, Kevin assumed that they were StrexCorp employees as well.
The smiling men opened the cell; Kevin trying to quickly run out but was obviously caught, being dragged to a fairly large, dimly lit room which had a cheap light fixture hanging on the ceiling above a chair that was fixed to the floor and had straps to keep whoever sat down in place, with a strap where their torso, wrists and legs would be.
Kevin struggled in the two men’s grip, frowning. They looked to the radio host, slightly confused as to why he wasn’t smiling.
They sat him in the chair, using the straps already placed there to restrain him so that the radio host wasn’t able to get away. Kevin instead struggling and squirming against the restraints, calling and crying out for help.
“Why are you doing this?! I will never work for Strex! I won’t!” Kevin shouted, then continuing to shout his protests. He cries echoed around the room before the two men gagged him to stop the radio host from speaking in case anyone heard what was going on. Even though the likelyness of Kevin being saved from becoming a Strex employee would be pretty much nothing.
Kevin let out muffled cries, still trying to get out of the chair as the two left, mumbling something about machines. A few minutes later, there was what Kevin described to be a robot slowly walking towards him.
“Good morning, Kevin.” He heard a robotic voice say. Kevin looked towards the voice as the supposed robot came out of the shadows of the room. The radio host observed him, seeing that he was more like a man, than a robot, but with some obvious differences to say the least. The man had somewhat tanned, but shiny skin, almost rusted-looking and had panels making up his face. His hair cascaded down the other’s shoulders and seemed more like a wig the longer that Kevin looked at it, it being thick and seemed to be quite coarse if one were to touch it. He was wearing an all black suit with a yellow tie and an orange badge, much like the others. As the robot came even closer, Kevin noticing that the badge was different to the others. This badge had the word ‘PROTOTYPE’ in large red letters, his badge obviously being larger as well.
The robot reached forward, pausing for a moment before ripping the cloth gag from Kevin’s mouth. The radio host gulped nervously.
“Wh-who are you?” Kevin said, trying not to sound scared but couldn’t stop his voice from shaking.
“I’ve been a-assigned the n-n-name of prototype 006 or Santiago, Kevin.” The robot said, his voice seeming to be skipping over the words, suggesting that he wasn’t exactly the best or most high-tech robot. The robot stared at Kevin with glassy eyes.
Kevin felt slightly uncomfortable at the closeness and the fact that Santiago was a prototype. And a fairly new prototype, at that. Also, it made the radio host’s mind wander as to what exactly happened to the other prototypes.
“Right…” he mumbled. “So… can you let me go?”
“I’m afraid I c-c-cannot do that, Kevin. It is time for your S-s-s-strex approved medication.” Santiago said, roughly pulling up the radio host’s sleeve on his shirt and wrapping a bloodied cloth around his arm and tightening it, Kevin frowning slightly.
Santiago paused, his eyes going dark and staying in the same position and not moving at all.
“Uh… hello?” He said, looking to the frozen robot. After a few moments of silence, there was a whirring sound and his eyes flickered back on.
He walked to the other side of the room, wheeling a small cart over with various things on it. Kevin noticed surgical equipment on it. Before the radio host could as what he planned to do with the equipment, the robot scanned his arm, finding Kevin’s vain and jabbing a syringe filled with unknown liquid into his arm as Kevin let out a whine of pain.
Almost immediately, Kevin started to feel his eyes get heavy, trying to shake off the tired feeling. Santiago took hold of his jaw to keep his face still, everything just feeling heavy to the radio host and he was unable to move his face away.
His eyes wondered down worriedly to the equipment, seeing the robot pick up the scalpel. He raised the scalpel, pressing it to the side of Kevin’s mouth, the radio host trying to move his head but whatever was in that syringe was preventing him.
Santiago slowly dragged the scalpel along his cheek on one side, blood starting to seep out. Kevin hissed in pain, squirming slightly but not enough to be able to distract the unfeeling robot. He did the same to the other side, moving the skin and pinning it back so that it was out of the way, Santiago trying to get access to his jaw bone.
The robot cut away parts of Kevin’s mouth that connected to his gums, Kevin crying out and wincing in pain, curling his hands into fists just to have something to grip onto.
The radio host tried to distract himself with anything and not look at Santiago but the discomfort and slowly building pain was just too much. Kevin could hardly believe that any of this was actually happening. A prototype robot was actually cutting open his mouth.
Kevin felt tears prick his eyes, blurring his vision as he tried not to let them fall.
He whimpered softly, Santiago moving more of the other’s skin so that it wasn't in the way and could soon see his jaw bone.
The robot made a quick and uncoordinated movement, seemingly by accident but considering what was happening, it was very likely that it was on purpose. pose. Kevin yelped, hearing an unsettling pop and sudden pain in his jaw as it dislocated.
Santiago moved to the side of the radio host, keeping his jaw in the same position as he paused, Kevin looking up at him to see the robot’s eyes, it looking like he was reading something very quickly, making Kevin even more nervous.
Santiago nods slightly, Kevin only knowing that he moved because of the slight mechanical whir that he made.
His breath hitched in his throat as Santiago’s grip tightened, him letting out an unintelligible noise as his grip continued to tighten until they both heard a sickening crunch .
The pain started to overwhelm the radio host, not having anything to help the pain subside and blood leaking down his face, salty tears getting into the open cuts, Kevin letting out whimpers of pain as Santiago started to reconstruct his jaw, Kevin fainting from pain.
When Kevin woke up, he could feel the other still moving his jaw into an unnatural, position, the radio host groaning and whining in pain, his face stinging and throbbing.
The robot seemed to be reconstructing his jaw, putting medical pins in place so that the bones wouldn’t move and could heal in its new position. Kevin set out a whine of discomfort and shifted weakly in the chair.
“Oh, yo-o-ou’re awake again. You didn’t make a-a-any noise for about an hour, Ke-e-evin.”
The radio host tried to speak, but all that came out were groans and noises that sounded like a toddler trying to speak.
“I’m being told that by my s-superiors if you try to talk, it will just hurt more. S-s-so please stop talking, Kevin. You will be the perfect e-employee once I’m finished. Everyone else had to go through this-s-s, so it’s not like y-you’re the first.” Santiago said, continuing to skip the words, Kevin being surprised that the malfunctioning robot was even able to do any of this.
“K-keep still.” The robot stuttered, jolting a little as he moved to pick up a dental file. Kevin rolled his eyes with a slight growl, it not exactly being like he could even move if he wanted to.
Santiago kept Kevin’s mouth fully open, using the file to make all of his teeth a lot sharper, almost as if he had fangs. He whined and shifted uncomfortably, still in a lot of pain. Kevin had pretty much lost his sense of time but knew that the other was scraping away at his teeth to make them all sharp for quite a long time.
Once the robot had finally finished, he moved Kevin so that he was leaning over a small basin on the cart, Santiago pouring water into the radio host’s mouth, it dribbling down his chin a little before he spat into the basin, coughing dryly. He saw blood and pieces of enamel and dust in the basin, making him feel sick, Santiago luckily pushing him back properly into the seat.
He gripped Kevin’s chin, leaning close to him as Kevin awkwardly avoided eye contact. Santiago held up a needle with black thread on it, which brought Kevin’s attention back quickly. His eyes widened and his face paled before he quickly shut his eyes, gritting his sharpened teeth which now fit together like puzzle pieces. It caused him pain to do this, his jaw and cheeks aching from the robot’s work.
Kevin dug his nails into the chair, needing something extra to hold onto. He knew that since he wasn’t given any medicine so far, the pain was about to get a whole lot worse.
Santiago slowly started to stitch up the cuts on the side of his mouth, Kevin whining and crying out in pain, feeling every movement he made with the needle and thread.
Once both sides were finally stitched up, Kevin was shaking softly, his nails making marks in the wood of the chair that he was still holding onto tightly.
“Y-y-you will now be retrained, Kevin.”
“Wh… whatsat mean?...” He mumbled painfully, trying to barely move his lips or it would cause him even more pain than it already did.
“You’ll f-find out.” The robot held up a brace, fitting it on Kevin’s face so that his jaw stayed in that position while it healed. The radio host shifted uncomfortably, his face aching from the new position that it was in.
He brought over a small TV with headphones, putting the headphones on Kevin. Santiago wrapped the bloody cloth around Kevin’s arm once again and tightened it while receiving information for what to do next.
The robot clumsily picked up a syringe with golden, sparkling liquid in it, knocking a few other items off of the cart with a small clatter before inserting the syringe into Kevin’s arm, earning a small huff of pain from the radio host.
He shudders as he felt the liquid get into his system, it travelling through his veins with him feeling it travel from his arms, down to his legs and up to his head. Kevin squirmed weakly as Santiago put the headphones on him, turning on the TV.
“S-sit still and k-k-keep watching.” Kevin looked away from the TV almost immediately, flinching slightly as ear-splitting screams filled the headphones.
Santiago frowns slightly and quickly turned Kevin’s head back, gripping his jaw once again and keeping him facing at the screen. Upon looking at the screen, Kevin saw disturbing and gory scenes and unknown subliminal messages. The radio host shut his eyes tightly, only for the robot to move away for a minute before returning to him, a machine forcing Kevin’s eyes open. He whimpers softly, reluctantly staring at the screen.
“Look around you: Strex.
Look inside you: Strex.
Go to sleep: Strex.
Believe in a smiling god.
StrexCorp. It is everything.” Kevin could hear repeated, over and over again with flashing pictures of the StrexCorp logo, what they believed the smiling god looked like and extremely wide smiles.
The radio host was uncomfortable, obviously, with all that was going on. He didn’t know if he would be saved, or if he would even be able to go back to how he was. Who would save him? Kevin had no family… Lauren probably considered him as a friend but not a close friend. One of those friends where if they’re around then it’s nice but otherwise, they wouldn’t really talk. Even if he was able to somehow go back to his normal life with the smallest bit of his sanity, his jaw would still be stuck in this unnatural position, forcing his mouth into a smile that was not his own.
Once the robot had finally decided to stop the video about an hour later, Kevin sighs shakily in relief as the headphones were taken off off of him.
He felt another syringe be jabbed into his arm, Kevin whimpering slightly in pain once again. The machine to keep his eyes open was taken off of him, Santiago mumbling something and undoing the straps that kept him stuck to the chair.
As the restraints were taken off of him, it took the radio host a moment to realise that he was free, him almost immediately trying to get up but falling painfully onto the floor with a groan and weakly trying to pull the brace off of his face. Santiago watched him blankly as two smiling employees picked Kevin up, dragging him back to his cell as the robot followed. They locked Santiago and Kevin in the cell, laying the radio host down on the bed, the medicine in the syringe starting to take effect and making him quite drowsy.
By now it was dark all around, Kevin trying to sleep but the pain in his face and the throbbing headache he had kept him awake. He looked around; not realising that the other was in the room with him and yelped slightly as he saw two glowing eyes staring at him from the other side of the fairly small cell, standing against the wall.
Kevin whined, pulling the blanket over his head to try and ignore the other and curling up under the thin and bloody blanket. He had a sleepless night, the various pain and thoughts circling around in his head accompanied with the cold from the cell, the hard and uncomfortable mattress and knowing that the robot was still staring at him not exactly helping him to sleep. He eventually saw daylight through the small window near the ceiling and sat up slowly, only to be dragged out of the cell, Kevin trying to stand but couldn’t still, the medicine still making him a little sleepy and weak.
The radio host was strapped back into the chair once again, the headphones put back on him.
“D-do we need to make you l-l-look at the screen again?” Santiago asked, returning to Kevin’s side, the radio host tiredly looking at the TV.
After about 2 hours, he continues stares blankly at the screen. The corner of Kevin’s mouth unconsciously twitched up, very slightly as he watched the video.
Time was still a mystery to the radio host, him just knowing that he had been there for a very long while. He was unsure and doubtful if anyone would save him. He wondered if Grandma Josephine was alright, or whether she had been turned into a mindless drone much like everyone else in Desert Bluffs. The only person left to be under Strex’s control was now the radio host- but with any luck, that would change very soon. Passing thoughts seemed to be the only thing that was currently keeping some part of Kevin’s personality and sanity there, but those thoughts were brief and fleeting.
As Santiago noticed the slight twitching of his lips, moving closer to the subdued radio host, giving another dose of the golden liquid. The radio host sighed softly and a little shakily as the robot looked over his face, Kevin continuing to blankly watch the screen.
“Y-your mouth is h-h-healed, Kevin. It’s time to take the s-stitches out.” The robot took off the brace before undoing the knots to keep the thread in place and pulling it out. Kevin whined in discomfort, his mouth being pulled slightly as he did so. Where there were hastily and not very professionally closed wounds on the sides of his mouth the day previously, there was now a thin pink scar on each side, making his lips seem even wider.
Kevin hardly noticed the pain that kept him up the night before, but he did now seem more awake than he did when the radio host first entered the room that morning. The medicine seemed to heal the radio host extremely quickly and worked much like adrenaline would. Kevin still had a slight throbbing headache but it was nowhere near as bad as what it was the night before. Santiago fitted the brace back onto him before taking the restraints off of him.
“I’ve b-b-been told to take you back to your room for a while, K-Kevin.” He helped the radio host up, who fell against him. Santiago supported Kevin as they slowly walked back to Kevin’s room, which they both could see that there seemed to be a warmer blanket on the bed.
Kevin slowly sat down on the bed with a groan of relief, it muffled slightly by the brace. He was glad that the mattress was softer and it didn’t seem as cold as it previously was in the room.
“Kevin… u-uhm… I was told to m-m-make you feel more at home… s-s-so I have a gift f-for you.” The robot moved closer to him, opening his palm to Kevin. In the robot’s palm, there was a few nuts and bolts in fairly good condition. Kevin looked a little confused but slowly took the ‘gift’ with a nod, his mouth still stretched into a smile because of the brace.
He mumbled a muffled ‘thank you’ before setting them down on the blood soaked oak table that was now next to his bed. There was a StrexCorp employee book also on the table, Kevin picking it up and reading it just as something to do. Santiago continued staring at him as usual.
Later in the evening, Kevin was still reading but the robot moved towards him, taking Kevin by the wrist and pulling him up and out of the cell, the radio host dropping the book as he was taken back to the dimly lit room for his medication.
Kevin didn’t put up a fight, not needing the restraints like he did before. “Y-you have a lot of p-p-potential, Kevin. Y-you will be an amazing employee. You will b-be the best, most res-p-pected radio host th-there ever was. I c-can see it clearly.” Santiago said truthfully; seeing a lot in Kevin and knowing that because he was the last to become a StrexCorp employee, that he would very likely support and grow the company even more because of this. Kevin smiled very slightly but genuinely, slowly wrapping his arms around the robot. He was glad to have someone with him and thought the words he was saying was very kind.
Santiago naturally didn’t know what to do in this situation, and so, didn’t hug him back but hesitantly patted his back.
Once he was given the golden liquid, Kevin was taken back to his room and slept peacefully. Santiago continued to watch over him, almost like a guardian angel. He noticed in the middle of the night how Kevin started to writhe and twist and turn, having a very vivid nightmare. The robot frowned, gently shaking the radio host awake, who clung onto him for comfort.
“K-Kevin. You are safe. Please c-continue to sleep.” Santiago said emotionlessly, the other slowly letting him go with a small nod, turning away and hugging a pillow tightly as the robot stared down at him in the darkness of the night.
Over the next few days, Kevin’s bones were fixed into place, no longer needing to wear the brace. Santiago continued to bring him small, strange gifts such as wire, screws, nuts and bolts, Kevin appreciating them even though he didn’t understand why he was given such odd presents. He was a lot more cheerful, smiling from the moment he would wake up and all while he slept. The radio host watched with a large smile as the other moved around him, examining his face.
“Your smile i-i-is very wide and lovely, Kevin.”
“Aww~ thank you, Santiago. That’s so sweet of you to say~” Kevin said cheerfully, his voice sounding so much happier than when he was first taken by Strex. The radio host moved his jaw a little, feeling his face for one of the first times since this had all started.
Santiago handed Kevin a mirror and he smiled widely, squealing and examining his new smile. “Oooh my~ my smile is so wide now!~” Kevin looked at his sharpened teeth, running his tongue over them curiously and touching the thin scars on either side of his lips.
“I don’t know why I was so negative about StrexCorp and the smiling god before~ I don’t know why I was negative about anything when there’s so much to be positive about!~” Kevin said with a slightly creepy giggle, looking to Santiago.
The robot nods slightly, knowing that the radio host had made a lot of progress from when they had started.
“I-I-It is almost complete, K-Kevin.” Kevin stood up, going over to him. Santiago gestured for Kevin to follow him out of the room. The radio host skipped after him, grabbing his hand so that Kevin didn’t wander off and lose the robot in the large building. Santiago stopped and looked to Kevin, slightly confused as to why he was holding his hand. The robot got out of his grip, taking the radio host’s wrist with his cold robotic hand, it seeming easier for Santiago. Kevin didn’t think much of it and they continued walking to a small, pitch black room, it only being illuminated slightly by the robot’s eyes. From the light of Santiago’s eyes, Kevin saw a covered window and another chair with restraints.
Santiago sat the radio host in the chair, restraining him once again. “I-I’m sorry I have t-t-to do this, Kevin. T-this next part is important b-b-but dangerous i-i-if you get very close to it.”
“Oh, that’s fine~” Kevin said, smiling up at the robot as he sat calmly in the chair.
“You m-might feel some di-di-discomfort, but that will be o-over soon. Then th-there will be no more pain. N-n-no more worry or fear or doubt…” Santiago walked over to the window.
“Believe in a smiling god, Kevin.” He said, uncovering the window.
A blinding light filled through the window, easily covering Kevin in it’s glorious light.
“It’s… wonderful.” The radio host whispered, gazing at the light with wide eyes, smiling so much wider than he did before. Santiago noticed that the chair had become translucent, knowing that it was working so much better than with everyone else. Even Kevin himself had begun to turn translucent, Santiago able to see his bones and his intricate beating heart and fascinating brain at had been changed and altered into the smiling man that now sat there.
Kevin’s smile seemed better, fuller… wider. “S-Santiago! I see it now! The beautiful majesty of living as one under the relenting love of a Smiling God!” He cries out, starting to writhe in the chair, wanting to be even closer to the light.
Santiago kept a close watch on Kevin’s eyes. The radio host’s eyes were turning from a stunning golden to as black as obsidian the more he stared at the extraordinary light, the whites of his eyes also turning black.
Once his eyes had turned fully black, Santiago covered the window once again.
“Welcome to StrexCorp, Kevin.” The robot said, taking the restraints off of Kevin.
Kevin jumped happily out of the chair, stretching. “Mm~ I feel so warm and… smiley~” he squeals, looking to Santiago, who held up a mirror.
“My eyes…” he whispered, looking in the mirror curiously, no longer able to see his irises. “I look… I look…”
“Y-you look amazing, Kevin.” Santiago said, earning a wide, gaping smile from the radio host.
Kevin giggles. “You look lovely too, Santiago. You look so smart.” The radio host said softly looking down at his bloodied and yellow shirt, the robot fixing an orange Strex badge on his bloody lapel.
Santiago took Kevin back to his booth where a grinning Lauren Mallard was waiting for him.
And just as the robot had said, Kevin was the perfect employee. He loved the smiling god and StrexCorp most of all. Now that his transformation was finished, Santiago returned to recruitment, there being no need to recruit anyone now that everyone in Desert Bluffs worked for StrexCorp.