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President Hassen turned toward the skylight above him. The faux night had since quite some time descended in Babylonia. The hallways were relatively quiet when he was walking back; although there was never a truly calm time in the base. There were still people working in the night, and people who greeted him when he passed by. The door to his room opened with a quiet slide. Hassen came back to his chamber to see a familiar face sleeping on his bed. He stood in front of the door, taking off his coat and waiting until the person finally looked at him before speaking.
"You should have stayed in Star of Life," he said, walking closer to his bed.
The young man lying on his bed, Alecto, turned slightly away from him. Covered in patches and bandages, the commandant still had a transfusion line on his wrist, the rack with a pack of blood hanging on it was standing just by the bed. Alecto was only wearing loose patient garb, but Hassen could barely see his skin under the various dressing on the commandant's body, as well as the blanket covering up to his neck.
Alecto’s voice was so deeply fatigued that he felt bad for the young man. But despite the weak tone, there was still a palpable irate in his voice. "I don't wanna be with the people there. It smells too much like a hospital."
Of course it’s like a hospital, that’s basically what the facility function was. Besides, injured people should be staying at the hospital, whether they liked hospitals or not. He knew Star of Life wasn’t currently so pressed for space that they had to release someone looking as frail and pale as Alecto; it was probably the commandant who requested early discharge, for god knows what reason. But why would he stay alone in Hassen’s room while he was away the whole day?
"You should call your brother or commandant Akos." Those two would surely be better options to take care of him. Hassen knew both Alexei and Akos would be content to stay with Alecto. Unlike him, those two had a realer, warmer feeling of care over the commandant.
But Alecto firmly shook his head at the suggestion. "They both have work to do, I don't want to bother them."
"And I'm not a busy man myself?" Hassen only sighed. He wasn’t so arrogant to say he didn’t have the spare time to keep the commandant company–although he truly didn’t–but Alecto should already know that he wasn’t any less busy than either of the two people he mentioned.
He watched as Alecto’s face contorted into a frown, furrowed brows slightly hidden under the bandage wrapped around the commandant’s head; there was still a patch of blood faintly seeping from behind the gauze on his forehead. Alecto looked away, slightly sulking, the way Hassen saw it. His lips were pursed in a pout, a bit too much like a child close to throwing a tantrum. "It's almost like you want to kick me out, President."
Hassen could only keep sighing. Why was this person being so difficult today? He sat down by the commandant’s legs, patting a hand on the young man’s knees. "I'm still working, you would be able to rest better in your own room."
Although the night already fell, he still had some paperwork he brought back. Not to mention his room wasn’t all that nice. There was barely anything in his chamber. He didn’t even have a chair to rest on, and had to sit on the bed despite Alecto already sleeping on it. Although he knew the commandant’s room wasn’t all that different, surely it would be more comfortable for him. The only difference between his room and Alecto’s was either of their presence in it.
Alecto was silent, looking away from his gaze. The commandant's hand with the IV line was crossed on his chest, but the idle one reached towards Hassen’s hand on top of the blanket. He met the touch halfway, holding Alecto’s fingers in his palm. The commandant, in return, held on to him, barely gripping his hand before answering in a low voice. "I don't feel like being alone right now."
Hassen couldn't help a frown hearing the pitiful answer. There was a weight lodged in his chest the more ticks he let pass while looking toward Alecto's face, the quiet drip of the commandant's transfusion line being the only moving point in the whole room; like a glitch in an otherwise still picture. Alecto’s hand he was holding was cold, and the commandant’s face was really paler than he was used to. The young man's fingers were slightly trembling, nearly desperate when holding onto him. He could see a gauze plastered on the commandant's wrist as well as the prosthetic fingers that held on to his hand; just another layer on top of the scars Alecto already had. Something about this situation tied a weight around his heart. Hassen wasn't someone so cruel to abandon Alecto like this.
He sat closer to Alecto, tapping his hand on the commandant’s shoulder under the blanket, telling him to make some space. While Alecto was shifting on the bed, Hassen settled just at the end of the mattress, near the commandant’s legs. He was leaning against the wall while a holo-projection opened in front of him. There were still some files opened on the screen, proposals he needed to review, papers he needed to sign. He reclined against the wall, hand hovering over the hologram. The windows on the projection were dismissed one by one, absolutely silent in its work.
The room was dim except for the light from the projection. Alecto was turning his back on him, but he could still almost feel the sulking expression the commandant probably had when he spoke. “Prez should just leave if he still has work on the bridge.”
Hassen sighed hearing the petty protest, dismissing yet another file on his terminal. To begin with, he was already sick of staying on the bridge for so long today. That was why he decided to just bring the easier paperwork back to his chamber. He reached out a hand toward the figure under the blanket, squeezing on the young man’s legs several times while he was reading.
“What kind of person do you think I am?” Hassen asked, shaking his head while speaking.
He could hear the commandant scoffing, as if laughing at the sentimental question. “Take a wild guess.”
Hassen couldn’t really dispute whatever was hidden behind those dismissive words. It probably wasn’t anything good. He deserved it as well as was ready to accept it. Out of all the people in Babylonia, Alecto deserved to insult him the most. The commandant, after all, was the one who took the most violent brunt of Hassen's vision. Yet Alecto was never in any way vindictive towards him. The commandant would complain, all the time, even, but it was always nothing beyond a childish pettiness. He didn't mind all the attention seeking sulkings that were actually more endearing than irritating, but he might feel better if Alecto got angry even just once.
Hah. What a shame. He had become someone who wanted a feeling of punishment and redemption. Hassen reached further, an arm supporting himself on the bed while he was leaning closer to Alecto, his outstretched hand eventually meeting the top of Alecto's head.
“Just go to sleep.” He called toward the commandant, brushing away the hair on Alecto’s face. “I’ll call someone if you need anything.”
Under his hand, he could feel the commandant slightly relaxing, sinking into the bedding and pillow under him. Alecto followed his hand movement just for a little while, his eyes shutting closed shortly after Hassen let go. The blanket outline moved so faintly, mapping the commandant's long, deep breaths as he fell into rest.
Hassen watched the commandant until he was sure Alecto had fallen asleep. Seeing the way he looked now, Hassen almost couldn't find a trace of the new F.O.S graduate Nikola had once introduced to him. He remembered his first assessment of Alecto, and all the test squad the young soldier was matched with. At that time, both Nikola and he had the same opinion: it was a waste to assign the commandant to a permanent squad. Alecto could handle a much higher danger level than the usual task force assignments. But there wasn't currently any empty squad with members capable enough to keep up with the missions they wanted to assign to Alecto. Blindly putting him as the commandant in just any squad would just be dampening his potential. It would be like using a sword to cut bread.
That was why he had taken Alecto under his wings, tied directly to his name. There was no team good enough to contain the commandant. He had planned to just send Alecto with whatever mission in the task force that needed an extra push. Not to mention, at the time, he needed a closer personnel. Someone that wouldn't have reservation about anything that didn't directly concern Hassen.
He adored and admired all the relationships between his soldiers; the friendship, affection, or simple possessiveness. He was the one who brought this new air of humaneness into the task force, and he would fight to keep it. But there were still times he needed someone that would only be concerned about his interest. He needed someone to be his executing hand, a loyal and dedicated one who could unwaveringly enforce his decisions. And what better option than a former hound who was already fixated on him? It just so happened that Alecto was immediately interested in the position, and he gave Hassen no reason to distrust his loyalty. Things simply fell together this way. President Hassen and his personal task force, Commandant Alecto.
Alecto had barely been a commandant for a full year, but his merits were exceptional. It was enough that people didn’t dare protest his swift advancement directly to their face. Alecto never questioned any order he was given. His results were flawless. He followed Command’s instructions down to the smallest precisions. It was only after he realized Alecto was slowly sustaining more and more injuries with each assignment that Hassen felt a weight in his chest.
He had heard the commandant was always a slightly reckless battle-maniac, but he didn’t expect the extent of that tendency. He had also heard Nikola describing Alecto as a ‘perfect soldier’, but he didn’t know how far that obedience and loyalty could go. After shedding away the initial layers of admiration for the commandant, what he uncovered was a self-destructive young man who was throwing himself away for Hassen’s interest.
The projection shut off silently once Hassen was finally done with them, leaving the room considerably dimmer. There was still enough light from the dull lightning for him to observe the man on his bed. There were bandages around Alecto's chest and neck, some patches on his arms that still had blood marks on them. There was a vitals monitor on the commandant’s hand that let out faint beeps every once in a while. Even the commandant’s head was wounded, leaving his face in a frown despite being deep in sleep. He hadn’t seen Alecto’s condition when he returned to Babylonia, but just judging from what he could see now, it couldn’t have been good. Alecto was usually energetic to the point of bothering Hassen, it was actually painful to see him so weak.
He reached out a hand towards the young man's head, hovering just before his fingertips could touch the gauze on Alecto's forehead. “Why are you injured so much again…”
The commandant still had his eyes shut, but he opened his mouth to answer the rhetorical question, nearly startling Hassen when his voice broke through. “You are the one who tasked me, Prez.”
Hassen frowned instead of flinched. Although Alecto's voice was calm as usual, he could feel judgment within it. It was likely just something he made up himself, knowing that the commandant wasn't one to be so passive aggressive - not toward him, anyway. Alecto eventually opened his eyes to stare back into Hassen's gaze, holding on for several more moments before he moved himself on the bed, making room for Hassen to lie down as well.
Hassen halfly followed through, sitting down by the commandant's side instead of lying down. He brushed away the hair on Alecto's face, silently observing the commandant for a while before finally speaking, aching in its faint words. “I at least hope you were able to assess and avoid dangers around the mission.”
Alecto was silent for a little more, slowly holding out his open palm towards the president. Hassen, who had by now grown accustomed to the young man’s habits, quickly understood and placed his own hand on top of the commandant’s offered palm. Alecto held his hand against his lips, pressing his words on top of the president's knuckles. “Sir Hassen, you don’t deploy me for my judgment.”
“There are many other personnel who can do that for you.” Alecto had let go of his hand, now tapping on Hassen’s shoulder, inviting to accompany him on the bed. Instead, however, Hassen only hovered above the young man, holding himself up by both arms beside the commandant’s arms. Alecto didn’t seem bothered by the refusal, only slightly looking up to meet his eyes while speaking still.
“The Gray Ravens, Strike Hawk, and even Cerberus are better than me in that regard.”
“... You are not someone who will use a scalpel as a sword, and vice versa.” The commandant kept talking as Hassen held a hand on the side of his face. There was a flash of bewilderment across Alecto’s eyes, but it quickly faded, his cheeks now rubbing against Hassen’s palm. Hassen watched as Alecto’s eyes slowly closed, slightly expectant from his touch.
“You wanted precise deliverance of your verdict. And I delivered.” Alecto’s words grew faint as Hassen’s breath inched closer on the young man’s face. He had then left a short silence although it sounded like his sentence was cut short, testing the water to see if Hassen wanted to fill the blank space. Their lips then met briefly, and the commandant’s next words were firm despite the low voice, mumbling against the president’s lips.
“At all cost.”
They had parted, but Hassen lingered only slightly away from Alecto's face, enough to feel the commandant's weak breath against his lips still. He could see himself within the young man’s dulled eyes, holding up a difficult look he wasn’t sure how to describe either. Guilt, pride, greed; he wondered if that was how Alecto saw him, or if it was truly what his gaze usually reflected. He eventually sighed, resigning to the young man's pace and dropping himself on the bed, just beside Alecto. His arms were outstretched on the pillows toward Alecto, waiting while the commandant settled into his embrace.
He could feel the commandant's warm breath against his neck, and the strands of hair rubbing under his jaws tickled just slightly. His arm glided over the young man's shoulder, careful to not put any unnecessary pressure on the wounded limbs, rubbing circles on Alecto's back once he could feel the commandant’s clothes coming in contact with his palm. Along with another breath, he could feel the weight of Alecto lying languid, resigning in his arms.
“I just wish you would have taken better care of yourself," Hassen had said, pressing a kiss on top of Alecto's hair.
The commandant was silent for a moment more, his free hand reaching toward the same spot on his head. In the end, however, he seemed to let go of the lingering affection, nudging himself against Hassen’s neck instead. “Tempering a blade is the wielder’s responsibility.”
“The scalpel only cuts, Sir Hassen.” The last sentence was whispered in a lazy stupor. Alecto was burying his face on the lapels of Hassen’s shirt, seemingly ready to fall back to sleep. All the while the president was left alone with his lingering words.
What did that even mean? That if Hassen didn’t want him to return injured, then he should plan his missions better? That although Alecto had never held any disdain or disagreement towards Hassen’s instruction, it was Hassen who was at fault? Alecto would run his way through anything if it meant fulfilling the president’s orders; he had long since known this. He knew Alecto had the capacity to help himself, to judge, to decide, and even more. Yet he also knew Alecto was deliberately choosing not to do any of those, in favor of his obedience.
A lot of times, it was difficult to understand Alecto. Hassen was always able to read the young man like an open book; Alecto always deliberately wrote everything on his face. Yet, that was the extent of his sight. What Alecto allowed him to read, he could see clear as day. What Alecto didn’t want him to see, he couldn’t even look past the surface of the young man’s eyes. He wasn’t someone who would blatantly use another person as his tools, yet Alecto was always placing the same name of that sin on top of his hands.
Hassen now could only sigh, brushing his fingers between the commandant’s messy bed hair. “Is this your way of punishing me?”
He could feel the commandant laughing from the way his shoulders and chest moved. And Alecto had the gall to so often call Hassen cruel. The commandant looked up, meeting Hassen's gaze with a smile so nearly wicked. “How would I dare, Sir?”
Hah. Of course he dared. Sometimes, Hassen thought there was no line Alecto wouldn't cross. But the commandant was right, if only ever so slightly. A blood-rusted sword shouldn’t have to polish itself too. It was him who should spare a hand to mend the cracks. There was no way the commandant didn’t notice the weight of guilt already on his shoulders, seeing how much he loved to tug on those heavy strings in Hassen’s heart.
No matter how much Alecto toyed with the weight lodged in his heart, Hassen was in far too deep to be letting go of this hound. He shook his head, letting the commandant fit himself in a warm embrace between them. "You're already a punishment to me."