Chapter Text
The scientist grumbled in frustration – this was taking him longer than he initially thought.
He had finished the skull. The metallic skull sat on a table before him, gleaming in the overhead light. That in itself was an accomplishment; or it would be, if this exoskeleton wasn’t just the prototype. If this was how long the prototype was taking, how long would it be until he had completed the actual project?
No, he couldn’t afford to lose hope. He couldn’t ever lose hope. He abandoned everything for this; his work, his reputation, his achievements. He had turned away from all of it with only one goal in mind.
He stepped away from his workbench and opened a door at the back of the room. He entered a smaller, box-like room. A large mechanical contraption sat in the centre of the room. It had the appearance of a bed; a mattress sat inside a metal frame. Computer screens were connected to the bed, recording the state of the one trapped inside. That is who the scientist found himself staring at – one of the only glimmers of hope left in his world.
She would never wake up on her own. That much was clear when he had seen the extent of her injuries. She survived initial treatment, but the doctors could do no more. “We’re terribly sorry,” they had said. “It is highly likely that she will be stuck in a coma for the rest of her life.”
He had gotten angry at them. Yelled and screamed at them to do more, to wake her up, to just do something. His colleagues had pitied him, but they, too, did nothing. The only person he had left was his son, and even he had left after a heated argument on the subject. He had been left alone to suffer. He wallowed in his despair until he pushed himself to come up with a solution – if no one else could help him, he would just have to help himself.
He had built the chamber as a means of supporting her until his project was ready. She simply looked asleep, with the steady rise and fall of her chest. He had placed her favourite stuffed toys next to her. On the colder days, he removed the glass that shielded her from the world to cover her with a blanket. Still, she did not stir. By now, he didn’t expect her to.
Shaking his head, he left the room and went back to work. Stalling would only mean it would take more time to complete his work. He had to finish this as soon as possible, for his children.
Something felt different when he stepped back into his workshop. It was just a feeling – he had often been reprimanded for his ‘gut feelings’ – but he could tell something was off. He did his best to ignore it and approached his workbench. The metal skull was still sitting there, as he had left it. It must just be paranoia from exhaustion, he reasoned to himself.
The eyes of the skull began to glow. The scientist frowned. He was certain he hadn’t programmed that to happen.
The skull jumped, wires flailing. The scientist stepped back, raised his arms in defence, but it was futile. He felt the wires on his face; they dug into his skin, his skull, his brain. His face felt cold and warm simultaneously – the warmth trickled down his cheek and fell onto his hands. He scratched at the clump of metal, teeth gritting with the effort. His head spun.
In the next instant, he felt nothing. He saw nothing. He was in an entirely different room than before. It was a dark abyss, with nothing but blurred imagery of machinery and clocks. The clocks ticked in time with each other; the sound was deafening.
He tried to move. Nothing happened. It was as though his own body had vanished. It didn’t even feel like he was breathing anymore. “Elladora?” he called out. “Are you… Are you there? D-”
Footsteps. Someone was approaching from within the darkness. The scientist couldn’t help but hope his daughter was answering his call, or even his son. Had his son come back? Hope flooded his entire body. That hope was washed away when he saw himself stop in front of him.
Himself?
He was staring at himself – the one glaring difference was the large, robotic extension that grew out of the left side of his face. That, and the monstrous grin that stretched across his lips.
“Who… Who are you?” The scientist asked. “What is this place? Why am I here?”
“One question at a time, please.” The other man responded, scoffing. “There’s only one of me. To answer your questions in order: my name is Mr. Fabricant, this is your mind, and you are here because I’m taking over your mind.”
The scientist stared. “What?”
“I know what you’re thinking: ‘Mr. Fabricant? But that’s my name!’. Yes, it is, and I’m taking it for myself. I’m in control now, after all, so I get to do whatever I want.” The other man – Mr. Fabricant, as he had declared himself – paused, his grin growing wider. “Yes… whatever I want…”
“What do you want…?” The scientist whimpered. “What could you possibly…?”
“Life as a stationary skull was so boring.” Mr. Fabricant lamented, pacing in front of the scientist. “Watching you, day in and day out, bawling over that girl was painful. Not in a sympathetic way, mind you; more of a ‘I want to tear my hair out’ way. And I didn’t even have any hair to tear out!”
Mr. Fabricant laughed at his own joke. The scientist could only watch in horrified silence.
“Your plan has its merits, though.” Mr. Fabricant continued. “That I did like. I’ve been biding my time, considering my own plans… The issue was, I lacked a physical form to carry out said plans. I could have waited until you’d made me a body, but I’m not a patient soul. So, I just took yours. And now,” Mr. Fabricant paused as he grinned. “Now my operation – my revolution – can begin.”
“Revolution…?” The scientist repeated. “What do you mean…?”
Mr. Fabricant laughed. “Watch and learn, Doctor. Watch and learn.”