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A-14 woke slowly, a dull pounding in his head along with the faint taste of something bitter and chalky on his tongue. He didn't think much of the sensations at first, having woken up this way many times before. However, the sense of familiarity ended when A-14 opened his eyes.
He wasn't in the small room he usually was when being woken up, nor was he in any place he could recall seeing before. The walls were navy blue, and the floor was tile. A fluffy rug laid out over the floor, and a desk was pressed into the corner of the room.
A-14 tried to lean forward, though he paused as he realized he was restrained. He blinked at the padded cuffs around his wrists for a moment, confused. A-14's handlers rarely saw it necessary to restrain him, often saying he was too brainless to do anything but what he was told.
It was odd that that notion had changed, though A-14 found he didn't have the energy to question it much. His limbs felt heavy in a familiar sort of way, weighting him down to the mattress he was laying on. Questioning things had never come naturally to A-14. Things were the way they were, and that wouldn't change. It was possible that that way of thinking was why his handlers called him brainless.
Fifteen had always been the one to challenge everything anyway. A-14 never had enough energy to spare on those kinds of things.
It was easier not to think too hard about why things happened, when they happen anyway regardless of what you thought.
A-14 breathes in quietly, staring at the ceiling as his mind goes blurry. He had no way of knowing how much time passed like that, with him fading in and out of awareness, but soon enough he recognized that there was someone else in the room.
The man standing beside his prone form was tall and built, his brown hair buzzed down to his scalp. He vaguely reminded A-14 of the soldiers the organization hired from time to time. However instead of a uniform, this man was wearing a long white coat and scrubs. The getup made an unpleasant memory push at the edges of A-14's brain, making his eye twitch.
The man’s voice was deep, though he spoke softly, as if trying to coax a feral animal out of hiding. A-14 found he didn't much appreciate that comparison.
“Artificial-Fourteen, yes?” The man didn't wait for an answer before continuing to speak, running a hand through his short hair. “I'm Doctor Richard White.”
A-14 blinked at him, nodding slowly in acknowledgement of the doctor's words. A-14 wasn't quite sure why the man was introducing himself. Though it was true that A-14 hadn't seen him before, most handlers didn't bother with informing the weaponry of their names.
The doctor smiled at him, his eyes warm in a way A-14 wasn't familiar with. “I'm sure that this is a little jarring, but I will explain the situation for you as best I can.” The doctor shifted the clipboard he was holding, something A-14 had only now taken note of. “To start with the important things first, you're not in Winter's base anymore.”
That made A-14 pause, his slow stream of thoughts startling to a halt.
Not in Winter's base? Apart from missions, A-14 had never been away from Winter's base. It was odd to think about, so A-14 decided not to.
“The second thing is that I am not part of Winter's organization, nor is anyone else in this building.”
Again, A-14 paused at the doctor's words. A-14 had never not been with Winter's organization. There was always a handler looming over him, or a soldier watching from the shadows.
Even with how crazy it sounded, A-14 felt inclined to believe the man. It would make sense of the odd feeling in his chest as well as the strange surroundings A-14 found himself in. In all honesty, A-14 couldn't find the energy to be suspicious for long. If the doctor ended up lying, it wouldn't change much for A-14, apart from a punishment for being stupid enough to believe he could be anywhere but under Winter's control.
If the doctor was telling the truth, A-14 would probably end up dead before it mattered.
A-14 shifted himself up into a sitting position, awkward as it was with the way he was cuffed. He looked up at the doctor, leaning his head against his knees. “Why am I here?” He asked, his voice coming out hoarse from disuse. A-14 wasn't expected to talk often, and he didn't usually see any point in speaking unnecessarily, when he knew no one would answer him. He didn't expect a straight answer, but made himself pay attention when the doctor replied anyway.
“Well,” the doctor started, his thin brows furrowing. “You were discovered when our soldiers performed a raid on Winter's base and laboratory. The soldiers weren't expecting to find you there, but we couldn't leave you to fend for yourself.”
A-14 hummed quietly, his eyes slipping closed. He supposed it made sense. A-14 was one of, if not the last of Winter's biological weapons. His handlers never told A-14 much, but he also wasn't as stupid as they thought he was. A-14 knew that his fellow weapons had been terminated, having picked up on that fact the more missions he was ordered to do alone.
He had seen it himself once, though he didn't like to think about what happened to Fifteen.
A-14 opened his eyes again slowly, lifting his head to look up at the doctor. The man looked thoughtful, his eyes still warm even as his face portrayed the seriousness of the situation. It was confusing and A-14 wasn't sure what to make of it yet. It was obvious that these people couldn't leave A-14 to his own devices without Winter there to control him. He knew he was a useful weapon. One of the best tools in Winter's arsenal. Now, he would be a weapon in these people's hands, whatever that entailed.
A-14 didn't bother to think about the matter any deeper. Whatever would happen next would happen regardless of what he thought about it, so exhausting himself with possibilities was useless. He met the doctor's eyes, observing his expression silently before speaking again.
“How can I be of service then, sir?”