Chapter Text
16:37 WT, 17th of Memesa, 1995 (17th of February, 1639)
Employee Break Room 2, West Wing, Site Alpha, [Unknown County], Tirnikt, Neragon
"Have you seen Arthur, Ben?" Oliver asked from the doorway.
The blue-eyed researcher glanced up from the coffee machine and shook his head. "Nope." He frowned. "I've not spoken to him since the announcement. He always found an excuse to leave whenever we found ourselves in the same room." He looked back down at the coffee machine and furrowed even harder when the machine didn't start.
Oliver moved away from the doorway just as another researcher entered the room holding his head and muttering to himself.
"It figures," Oliver sighed. "Hey, I'm glad you've at least seen him."
Ben scowled at the coffee machine. "It's broken," he grumbled, giving it a frustrated kick. "What did you say?"
Oliver sat down on a couch near a painting of an idyllic countryside scene. The researcher he was not familiar with was crouched down and looking in the cabinet of the counter next to the coffee machine. "I said I'm glad you have at least seen Arthur. He seems to be better at avoiding me – or I'm just that predictable." He chuckled at his own joke.
Ben laughed weakly. "I doubt that."
The other researcher looked up and seemed to realise there was someone else in the room. "Oh, have you seen a grey pouch somewhere in this room?"
Ben replied before Oliver could. "Sorry, we haven't seen it."
The researcher sighed and continued his search, muttering himself.
"Oh look at the time!" Ben suddenly exclaimed in surprise at the clock above the doorway, causing the other researcher as well as Oliver to jump. "My break is over; I need to head back."
Oliver nodded. "See you at dinner, Ben." And as the man raced out of the break room he called. "And tell me if you see Arthur anywhere!"
"Will do!" Ben's voice trailed off.
Oliver sighed, he wished Arthur could be more open. Be if he wanted space, Oliver would respect it.
The searching researcher left after a few minutes, prompting Oliver to look at the clock again: 16:43.
He was expected back at his workstation by 17, so he decided to head back early.
The sterile corridor outside was deserted, save for two guards stationed about 10 minutes down the hallway where the corridor intersected with another one.
Oliver exchanged nods with the guards as he passed them, then continued down the hallway towards the South Wing where the containment chamber of A-13 was. It was as uneventful as always, until he reached a particularly sharp turn where a blur seemed to hurl itself from around the corner, barrelling straight into Oliver.
He stumbled backwards, catching himself against the wall. Oliver looked up; it was Arthur.
"Arthur what on gentu were you doing?"
The man in question was panting, but his eyes were wide and he stared at Oliver as if he had expected him to be anywhere else but right there.
Arthur's face then contorted into a strange expression, he looked both glad and annoyed at the same time.
"O-Oliver, just the man I wanted to see."
But before Oliver could respond, Arthur swished his hand in a swift motion and a line of blue light shot towards him.
Oliver barely had enough time to throw himself out of the way before the blue light struck the wall behind him, leaving a black scorch mark.
"What in the world Arthur, what are you doing?!" Oliver exclaimed in bewilderment, scrambling to his feet and backing away from his colleague.
But there was something wrong with Arthur, his usually black eyes had gained a slightly reddish tint, and his brown curly hair seemed a bit too straight for a moment.
Arthur froze up and seemed to choke on something in his throat, but he did not say anything and suddenly hurled another blast of blue light towards Oliver who dodged it hastily.
Wait, since when was Arthur a wizard?
But Oliver did not have time to ponder on this thought as he focused on evading Arthur's attacks.
He ducked a particularly nasty-looking red spell which seemed to have been aiming for his head and tried to look for any potential cover – behind the firefighting box maybe, but that was too small, darn it.
This was a Rogue Employee situation, what was the protocol again? He couldn't remember the specifics but he instinctively knew he should look for a guard... another blue jet flew past his ear and Oliver knew he couldn't keep dodging forever. He needed to act fast. With adrenaline coursing through his veins, he made a split-second decision.
As soon as Arthur cast another spell, Oliver dived to the side and sprinted clumsily to the firefighting box, wrenched it open, and with one swift motion, grabbed the fire extinguisher inside and flung it in Arthur's direction.
Oliver did not see Arthur's reaction as he ran down the corridor as fast as he could but judging by the fact he could not hear him chasing, the fire extinguisher at least bought him some time.
A guard, a guard, a guard – there, the pair of guards he saw earlier station at the intersection were making their way towards his direction.
One, an auburn-haired man in his 50s was immediately on alert as soon as he saw Oliver running towards them, while a younger, dark-skinned Gatafolk (Catfolk) reached for his transceiver.
"Explosions were heard. What's going on?" the older guard asked sharply.
Oliver skidded to a halt, catching his breath, he quickly explained the situation to the guards. "A colleague – Arthur Res— Beck just attacked me."
The older guard nodded curtly, as the younger relayed the information through his transceiver.
"Alright, bring us to where the incident occurred," the older guard lifted his rifle and gestured for Oliver to lead the way.
Without hesitation, Oliver turned and sprinted down the corridor, the two guards following closely behind him. He could still feel his heart pounding in his chest as he replayed the encounter with Arthur. What happened to his friend? His slight change in eye colour could indicate he was being influenced by something, but what?
They eventually arrived at the intersection where Oliver had encountered Arthur. The scorch marks on the walls were still visible, but the man himself was gone.
The older guard gripped his rifle and scanned the area warily.
Oliver leaned against the wall, his adrenaline beginning to ebb away. He ran a hand through his hair. Arthur, his friend, attacked him with magic...
The younger guard approached Oliver. "Do you have any idea why your colleague would attack you?"
Oliver shook his head. "No, we're friends, and he's also never shown signs of magic before."
The Gatafolk jolted in alarm at Oliver's mention of Arthur's previous lack of magical abilities.
"Control, did you get all that?" the Gatafolk guard spoke into his transceiver.
A nondescript crackle followed before a voice responded, "Affirmative."
"Have you seen anything suspicious regarding your colleague?" The older guard addressed Oliver suddenly.
"He's been acting strange ever since the 8th."
The guard did not say anything for a moment. "Strange how?"
Oliver shrugged unhelpfully. "He seemed to be hiding something, and after the 9th he just kept avoiding me until now… Oh, and his eyes seemed to have a slightly red tint to it.”
The older guard exchanged a glance with his companion before turning back to Oliver. "Alright we'll nee—"
"Contact." The Gatafolk guard interrupted, pointing his gun down the hallway.
Oliver's heart skipped a beat, but there was thankfully nothing to be worried.
"Woah woah woah..." The newcomer in the front raised her hand in surrender once she saw the raised gun.
A group of about 3 researchers led by a head doctor carrying stacks of paper and an empty cage had turned the corner.
"What happened here?" The blonde doctor asked, eying the black scorch marks on the wall.
"Rogue employee." The older guard informed tersely.
"Ah..."
One of the researchers were now examining a scorch mark on the wall. "Could've been fatal if it had hit whatever the rogue aimed at."
Oliver grimaced, realising how close he had come to death.
"We should be going now," the doctor inclined her head.
"Wait a minute, have you seen anything strange while coming this way?" the older guard asked.
The head doctor furrowed her brows, glancing at her companions. "No, you are the only people we have seen in this corridor."
The guard nodded contemplatively. "I see, well stay vigilant."
"Of course."
They exchanged brief nods and farewells before the group of researchers passed them.
"Let's check further down the corridor." The Gatafolk suggested once the researcher group was out of earshot.
Both Oliver and the older guard agreed so they did just that.
They proceeded cautiously down the corridor.
"I just realised; I haven't got your names yet." Oliver said.
"Yannick Jacobs." The older guard said shortly.
"Samto Khair, and yours?"
"Oliver Tomsen, nice to meet you both."
At that moment, the Gatafolk stopped abruptly and his tail straightened.
"What, what do you sense," Yannick asked sharply.
"He's illusioned."
And the peace broke. Arthur appeared quite literally out of nowhere a bit further down the corridor and threw his usual blue spell at them. Oliver instinctively ducked while the other two guards jumped out of the way.
"Hostile contact!" Samto called, aiming his gun at Arthur.
"Mr. Beck, stop this immediately and put your hands up!" Yannick demanded.
But Arthur did not respond and instead hurled another blue spell towards them and lunged with unnatural speed.
Yannick sidestepped Arthur's spell and slammed the butt of his rifle into Arthur's head which flung him backwards. A nasty bruise formed on his temple but to both Oliver's and the guards' surprise, it quickly disappeared.
A woman's voice crackled over the younger guard's transceiver. "Back up from containment team Sandsturm-8 is on its way. If the rogue engages, retreat until they arrive."
"Copy," Samto replied, now taking a few steps back. "You heard them, let's get out of here." He dodged another spell which was aimed at him.
Arthur kept their distance from them and only advanced when stepped back. This continued for some time.
Oliver noticed at some point that something was more different with Arthur, his eyes seemed to have turned completely red-ish orange, with black vertical slits for pupils. Like those of a frog.
Arthur sent another spell at Samto – who looked like he was in a state between boredom and exasperation – instead of dodging, he brought up the side of his gun instead which invoked a shielding rune to absorb the incoming spell.
"Is that all you got?" The Gatafolk mocked.
"Don't provoke him," Yannick snapped.
It did not matter anyway as Arthur ignored the exchange and this time threw a spell at the older guard who sidestepped it again.
Before Samto could reply, footsteps could be heard from behind Arthur: other guards, from the containment team perhaps.
"Arthur Beck, put your hands up and surrender or we will be forced to fire upon you!" The captain of the small squad of guards proclaimed.
Arthur's gaze flickered towards the approaching guards but stayed silent.
"Let's move to the side," Yannick said. "Less likely we'd be friendly-fired."
Oliver and Samto swiftly complied. Arthur remained where he was in the middle of the corridor between Oliver, Yannick, and Samto; and the squad of arriving guards.
Arthur snapped backwards, and threw himself at the squad of approaching guards with a ferocity that took everyone by surprise.
The guards reacted quickly, forming a defensive line and firing at Arthur, careful not to hit Oliver and the other two guards. Arthur moved with unnatural fluidity and ignored the bullets like mere pebbles.
Arthur closed the distance between himself and the guards in an instant and threw a man backwards with a powerful slam into the wall of guards.
Yannick and Samto immediately rushed forward to assist their comrades, leaving Oliver to observe the violence.
Arthur punched another man in the stomach with a force that sent him staggering backwards, gasping for air. He turned to another one who had a fixed bayonet on his rifle and was advancing cautiously. With a swift movement, Arthur dodged the thrust of the bayonet, then grabbed the rifle and twisted it out of the guard's hands. With a quick, fluid motion, he spun around and struck the guard in the head with the butt of the rifle, rendering him unconscious.
Luckily, Arthur lost his new gun almost immediately when a spell from a wizard guard struck him from the side, making him drop the weapon and stagger into the rifle butt of another guard.
"Why won't he just die!" Oliver heard someone shout.
The guard who had fired the spell conjured chains that flew towards Arthur who did not have enough time to react. The chains wrapped around Arthur's arms and torso, causing him to stumble.
Samto and a few other guards seized the opportunity, rushing in to restrain Arthur while he was momentarily incapacitated by the magical chains. With concerted effort, they managed to subdue him, pinning him to the ground and securing his arms and legs with magic-suppressing handcuffs. And with that, the fight was over, and Oliver breathed a silent sigh of relief.
Oliver approached the subdued Arthur cautiously, watching as the guards secured him tightly. His expression was now a neutral mask.
"Good work boys," the commander praised. "See him off to the holding cell, the bigwigs will deal with him."
But before the guards could haul him off, Arthur seemed to seize up and convulse, his body writhing with sudden intensity.
Alarmed, the guards released Arthur, causing him to fall face-first onto the floor. A blob of snot-green light seemed to escape from Authur's back – I’ve seen this somew— it was a spirit.
"It's a spirit!" Oliver shouted.
The guards sprang into action as soon as they heard him. The wizard cast a spell that spread through the entire hallway like ripples on a pond, creating a barrier to contain the spirit.
The ball of light tried to rush out of the corridor through the wall but was met by the barrier. Causing it to bounce comically off it.
"Control, the rogue turns out to have been possessed by a spirit, requesting specialised backup immediately," the commander spoke into his transceiver.
"Tell them to get their asses here fast," the wizard grunted. "I don't know how long I can keep it in."
In the meantime, Yannick and another guard dragged the body of Arthur away from the writhing spirit. Oliver hesitated but eventually decided to walk over and look at Arthur. He was pale as dough, and his eyes were closed.
Please don't be dead, don't be dead. Oliver begged as he knelt beside Arthur's motionless form.
Yannick seemed to have sensed concern. "He's still breathing Oliver. He'll need some medical attention once this've been dealt with."
This helped calm Oliver's nerves slightly.
After a few minutes, a group of two guards and a thaumatologist with what seemed to be a metal staff and a wooden box with runic symbols etched onto it rushed into the corridor.
From there, time seemed to pass in a blur for Oliver, the spirit was forced into the box and quickly sent away and he helped a guard carry away the body of Authur. He was in a coma, the doctor had said, and bits of iron shrapnel were found embedded in his body, likely from all the bullets.