Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

The circus is crumbling around them, static laced the air and glitches roll through the ground, making everything shake and collapse in on itself. 

Items clip through, and out the floor, into the void below as the Cast all huddle together near the door.

The bright red door with the words 'Exit' in bold letters hanging over the top like a beacon. 

Jax shoves at the door with his shoulder, the wood rattling with each push before it goes flying away and open, bathing the surrounding area in a blinding light. "Holy shit!" He says, eyes wide as he stares into the light. 

Beside him, Ragatha grips his arm, hair waving about in the rapid winds as the void sucks everything into nothing, yelling as more matter gives way from around her "we have to go!" She cries, looking around in panic. "Now!"

They all are desperate, almost free. 

Pomni makes eye contact with Kinger, who's standing a few meters away from the door, her eyes are pained, sad. "Kinger?" 

The chess piece had made his choice. 

He had made it when he reset Caine and then worked on an exit with the AI himself. 

He had promised. 

So, even as the walls crumble and the world falls apart, Kinger only slowly shakes his head at the others as they all stare at him, all in varying degrees of agony. "Go" He says, voice cracking despite his efforts to keep it steady. "Live"

"We're not leaving!" Zooble shouts, even as they pull Gangle closer, the masked woman shaking and sobbing in fear. "Not without you!"

"You will" Is all he says back, feeling his hands shake and chest burn. "I made a promise" He turns his head to the figure beside him, staring up at him with wide eyes. 

Caine.

Kinger smiles best he can, hoping his eyes don't give away his fear. "I promised" He says again. 

The others shout, begging him to come with them before it's too late, that the circus is deleting itself, but he doesn't move. 

He continues to stare down at the man watching him, hoping that there is no pain when he too is deleted, and that maybe in the after he'll be able to catch a glimpse of his wife. 

He watches as Caines eyes flicker to the others, something unreadable passing over his features before his eyes begin shining with something like tears, his shoulders roll back, like he is bracing himself and he raises a hand, Kinger feels confusion fill his chest-

Snap!

Suddenly, he shoved, like he's been kick to midair, before he plopped down-

Kinger jolts, looking back to the door right behind him, inches away, the others are staring at him with wide eyes and he feels a hand grab his shoulder, digging into the robe.

He gasps as the realization hits him and his head snaps around to face forward-

Caine stands with his hand still in the air, his face twisted in pain as tears roll down his jaw. "Go" He says, barely above a whisper. "You...you shouldn't have to die with me"

Kinger feelings panic hit his chest and he tries to move forwards but the ground gives way before he can and he's forced to fall back against Jax who catches him. He looks up with urgency to see the area between him and Caine is gone- now lost to the void. 

Caine feet hit the ground gently, softly, and he raises a hand to pick his hat off of his head. "None of you deserve this" He says, voice low and full of fear. "Not....like I do"

"Caine- no-" Kinger feels his throat ache with the strain, with terror but he can't get to Caine. "Don't- I promised-"

"I want you to make a new one" Caine says, hands shaking as they grip his hat and his eyes flick to the collapsing ceiling. He looks back, scanning each of them. "Live" He says, voice breaking in the middle. "Forget about me"

That's impossible, Kinger wants to scream but his voice is trapped in his throat, I can never forget you.

Caine suddenly takes a deep breath, eyes closing, before he takes a deep bow, head lowered. "Thank you-" His voice cracks and Kinger's struggles begin anew.

"Thank you, for joining me in the Amazing Digital Circus" 

Kinger is pulled backwards, into bright lights- 

His last sight is Caine falling to his knees in painful sobs as he's left behind in a self-deleting world. 

!!!

He flinches as his eyes are forced open and a light is passed over them, he feels his face screw up and a groan leaves him as he tries to turn his face away.

"...ax.....im.....ov"

He flinches at the sound even though it's muffled and he tries to speak but instead coughs, the feeling rattling his chest. 

"...ant?.....Gr......Grant?"

He forces his eyes open. 

His vision is blurry as he blinks at the tiled ceiling above him, the sound of rapid beeping filling his ears. There are multiple voice, each sounding frantic and concerned and he forces his eyes to roll to the side. 

He sees a headset on a nearby table, a massive block attached to it and his mind supplies that that's its power source. Right now, both things are powered off and he's confused for a split second before-

He chokes on his own breath, hands flying up to his chest as he struggles to remember how to breathe, his pulse pounds in his head and making it spin. 

A hand touches his shoulder, the voice from before retuning. "Can you hear me? Grant?"

That was him- no wait. 

His name is Kinger.

Was Kinger?

He pushes past the thought and instead forces his eyes to clear, seeing people running around, soft sheets and his own body.

He raises his arms, feeling his breath quicken as he takes in skin, flesh- all of it. He turns his hands over, eyes flickers over slightly aged skin and light body hair, his looks further down his body, seeing himself in what looks like a hospital gown. 

He sees his feet, and he wills them to curl, gasping when they do. 

He's back. 

He's in the human world again. 

The others.

His head snaps to the side, seeing someone he can't recognize staring at him with wide, worried eyes and forces himself to speak.

"..o....thers" He coughs at the strain but still pushes himself up on weak arms, feeling tubbing and wires tug as he moves. "Wh...ere"

The woman, young with messy brown hair rushes to stand. "Grant no- don't get up!"

He ignores her, forcing himself to sit and the skin in his arms aches with the feeling of needles being tugged on and with a groan of frustration he tugs them out.

He watches as small drops of blood bead on his skin. 

Blood. 

He ignores it. 

Instead he moves.

He gets to place his feet on the cold floor and shudders at the feeling, forcing his arms behind him and he pushes with all his might.

He shakes, almost falls, but he refuses to go down. He stands on shaky, fragile legs and steps. 

"Where...are....others?"

The woman isn't listening to him, instead she's trying to get him back to the bed and he decides that hes not listening to her anymore, instead he turns and makes a beeline for the only set of doors in the room. 

The other people in the room all scramble around him, all appearing afraid to touch hm and force him back to bed. Instead they try to ask, beg, demand that he lay back down. 

He focuses on the doors, taking small steps even as his body trembles with exhaustion and his head swims. 

He grabs the door frame and pushes on, falling against the walls and using those as support. 

He can hear shouting behind him, the woman still begging him to get back to bed but he ignores her. He needs to find them, he knows they are here somewhere, he can feel it-

There's a voice from infront of him, a familiar one. "Where is she?!" It shouts and Kinger thinks of strangely formed limbs and a brash personality and he speeds up, heading to where he can see a commotion. 

He stumbles, just as another figure comes out of the door in front of him. 

They have darker skin then his own, a mix of bright pink and green hair falling in tangled waves over their shoulders, their eyes look angry, scared as they meet Kingers and something passes over the green flecks he can see in the blue irises.

They both stare at each other, before he finally finds his voice. "...Zooble?"

Tears begin to trek down the others face. "...Kinger."

Kinger barely has time to open his arms when the younger is collapsing into them and it sends him colliding with the wall. He slides down it as Zooble sobs into his shoulder, clinging to his gown with desperation. 

"I have you" He says softly, feeling his own tears fall down his face as he rubs at their back, the gown they're wearing rough against his hand. "I have you"

"We got out" They cry, pulling away while shaking. "We got out"

Kinger pulled them back into a hug, holding them in his lap as he looks up at the white ceilings and bright lights. 

"We did" He whispers back. 

"....We got out"

But not all of them did. 

The both of them, after refusing to separate, are ushered into an area that looks more like a living room, with a few couches and a dining table. There's a small kitchen in the corner, right next to what looks like a bathroom, the lights in here are just as blinding as the ones in the halls.

Kinger falls against a nearby cushion, eyes following Zooble as they walk about the room. They had stopped crying by now, but their eyes are still desperate and angry. "Where is she? And the others?"

The people that had previously been trying to get Kinger back to the bed had finally left him alone now that he's sat, but one of them promises to to bring everyone else to this room when they are stable. 

Another drip is placed into Kinger to replace the one he had tugged out and he stares at the fluid now, closing and opening his fist. He can hear the soft 'drip, drip, drip' in the bag above his head and the constant noise is something for him to focus on, other then the pressure in his chest.

Zooble, dragging their own iv around on pole with them, paces the room, their anger doing a poor job of hiding their exhaustion. Their pierced nose is scrunched up in what looks like worry and fear and Kinger can feel his own begin to spread throughout his limbs. 

Kinger watches them, not sure what to say. 

All of them got out. 

All the humans anyway. 

Apparently, after they had taken that exit, their headsets had finally allowed themselves to be removed. It had taken them a few hours to wake, but they had, one by one. 

Zooble grunts as they rub their head, eyes closing in pain. "Where are they?" They growl, eyes narrowing and eyebrow piercing glowing in the bright lights of the room. "They should all be here by now"

Kinger sighs, feeling beyond tired. "Sit" He says softly, resting back on the couch he's sat on. "All that pacing won't speed up anything, only tire you out."

Zooble huffs but falls next to him, shifting in their gown in obvious discomfort. They look to the young man stood by the door. "Hey can we get some clothes?"

The man flinches and looks around nervously. "I'll- I'll see what I can...do" He says, before he leaves the room

Kinger hums. "Clever. I am very uncomfortable in this"

Zooble snorts a laugh, their pierced bottom lip twitching upwards "same man"

They both so silent after that and Kinger wishes he knew what to say but he just... doesn't.

He's tired, hungry, filthy. 

He's.....lost. 

The room smells like sanitizer and bleach and it makes his nose hurt with how strong the scent is. He wants to curl up and away from all of the lights that buzz above him. He stares at his drip, watching the fluid fall over and over again, rolling his shoulder, closing his hand. 

He's not sure what to do now. He...feels stuck. 

He wants answers, he wants to forget about everything, he wants to remember even more. 

His mind feels scrambled, his face feels numb and when he lifts his hand to rub at his chin, he feels the beginning of a messy beard growing on his face

And now he really wants to shave.

There's footsteps from behind and Kinger turns his head, mind snapping back to the present just in time to see a young man with dark brown hair come stumbling in, dressed in a hospital gown and a similar looking iv pole clenched in his hand. The boy freezes when he sees the two sat on the couch and his brown eyes flicker between them.

"....uhh" 

Zooble lets out a quiet laugh. "Hey...Jax"

Jaz blinks at them, eyes widening before he looks over to Kinger, the older man giving a wave. 

Kinger watches as tears fill Jaxs eyes, though he's quick to wipe them away with his hand as he stumbles to the other couch. "Hey guys" He says, voice shaky as he flops down with a wince. "Good to see your ugly mugs"

Kinger can't help but laugh, eyes trailing over his body. Jax is thin and tall, pale with a few freckles dotted around on his face and bare arms. "Good to see yours" He replies, feeling his features soften as Jaxs face twists with a suppressed sob.

There are more footsteps and Kinger watches with wide eyes as another figure comes shuffling in. Shes tall with long red hair over her shoulders, pale skinned and one completely white eye. She scans them all, her face full of nerves.

Kinger feels tears fill his eyes again as a green eye meet his own brown. "Hey Ragatha"

She sobs and quickly moves to the couch, collapsing in Kingers arms and he's hit with such relief that she's okay, or as okay as she can be. He notices that she doesn't have an iv and almost asks, when two more figures come in. 

One is short with dark brown hair and wide eyes, the other is slightly taller with long blond hair tied up in a loose, messy knot on the back of her head. 

Zooble is up and off the couch, their eyes wide as they stare at the blond girl. "...Gangle?"

Kinger watches as they fall into each other's arms, sobbing and pressing against one another.

The other girl smiles at Kinger, giving a wave. "Kinger..." She sighs out, looking tearful.

He smiles back, even as Ragatha cries herself out against his shoulder. "Hey, Pomni"

Pomni wipes her own face and looks at Jax, staring at the man with a conflicted expression before she moves to join him on his couch, their knees knocking together as she shifts about. "Hey Jax" she whispers, voice shaking.

Kinger sees Jax well up again, and stays silent as the other boy reaches out to place a hesitant hand on one of Pomnis, his chest visibly rattling when the short woman grips it back tightly. 

Gangle and Zooble fall next to Kinger on the couch, still holding onto each other, and for a moment that is the only sound in the room.

Soft sobbing, gentle whispers, quiet reassurance. 

Ragatha sits back slightly, though she stays close enough for Kinger to keep an arm over her shoulders. "This is insane" She whispers, her voice soft and shaky. "I can't- I can't believe we're back"

Gangle laughs weakly, still wrapped around Zooble. "I know it feels....unreal"

"I'm still not convinced" Jax says, but there is no real conviction in his voice. "Maybe this is just another adventure"

Pomni huffs beside him, but shes smiling. "To be honest I wouldn't be surprised"

They all go quiet then, the tension in the room thickening to the point of almost suffocation. There's an unspoken question in the room, one that echoes over and over in Kingers mind.

What now?

Zooble sighs, sitting back and titling their head back to look at the ceiling. Their eyes are red from tears, their piercings glinting in the light. "....I'm just....gonna say it" They mutter, arms crossing over their chest. "....I feel bad for Caine"

Kinger feels it like a punch to the stomach and he barely registers how he lifts a hand to rub at his chest. Everyone makes sounds of agreement and more tears fill Gangles eyes. 

"I had promised" Kinger starts, feeling his throat almost close over. "To stay with him and he just-" He trails off, feeling adrift in his own body. "He just..."

"The first time Caine wasn't selfish" Jax says, eyes downcast. "And it was when he was dying"

Kinger realizes that's true.

The circus will slowly be deleting itself, item by item, texture by texture, until there is nothing left but the ring master- and then he'll go too. He'll be alone while his body begins to disappear, surrounded by nothing but a blank void. He'll be scared, and cold-

Caine dying, and Kingers just sitting here. 

But what can he do? 

His mind races with ideas, with plane but none of them seem plausible or possible, he wants to get back into the circus to be with Caine, but he knows that that's impossible, chances are his headset wouldn't even acknowledge him.

An older woman with grey hair and a lab coat suddenly comes marching in, followed by a handful of other similar dressed people. The main woman is holding a clipboard and she looks tired, the men behind her are carrying armfuls of clothes.

She comes to stand in front of all of them, looking at each of the members before she clicks the pen in her hand. "Grant?"

Kinger jolts at the name, seeing the others look at him in surprise. "...Yes?"

She nods, appearing to cross something off. "Anne?"

Ragatha reacts the same, tugging at the gown she's wearing. "Uh, here?"

Scratch.

"Ellie?"

Gangle raises a shaky hand. "Yes .."

Scratch. 

"Daniel?"

Jax grunts. "Hmh"

Scratch. 

"Alexa?"

Pomni visibly flinches. "Uh, yeah"

Scratch. 

"And Zion?"

Zooble narrows their eyes in what must be disgust. "...Yeah"

The woman nods, crossing the paper one more time before she tucks the clipboard under her arm. "All of you will be released into a nearby building that we have commandeered until we can learn more about the situation and what the next steps are. The building has 6 floors, not including the bottom entry way. You each have your own living areas that you can make yourself at home in"

"Uhh wait-" Kinger tries to cut in, but he's completely ignored as the woman speaks over him. 

"After a few more tests in the upcoming weeks, you'll be slowly reintroduced into society. We have the means to make it appear as if each of you were still present in this world, so finding jobs and housing wont be an issue--"

"What about-"

"Only after all of that will we begin to-"

"Hold it!" He cuts in loudly then, sitting forwards. "Just- wait a moment please?!"

The woman finally shuts up and stares at Kinger, her eyes full of shock. "Grant, I can assure you-"

"What happened to the simulation?" He asks, voice rising. "Is it still online? Is the AI inside still functional? "

"Grant-"

"Kinger" He hisses, voice low as unfamiliar anger burns his chest. "My name, is Kinger"

The woman stares for a long moment, before her eyes flicker around to each of the others in the room. "....Would....you all prefer to be called by those names?"

Kinger watches as each of them glance at one another, some looking surprised and to be honest Kinger is too. 

He remembers his name now but it doesn't feel like his. It feels like someone else's name- it doesn't make any sense. 

"Yeah" Pomni says, looking around one more time "I think...we prefer the..other names, the ones from the circus."

The woman's nods, "very well, I'll make notes in each of your charts-"

"Well you please tell me?" He cuts in once more, feeling almost embarrassed at how croaky his voice is "the....the AI? Is he still in the simulation?"

The woman lets out a long breath and glances away in what seems to be contemplation. "...Yes" She says finally and Kinger could almost weep in relief. "The AI known as Caine is still active, as far as we can tell but...I would give it  maybe two days before that is no longer the case"

Kinger feels sick. "..what?"

She ignores his broken question and instead waves the other C&A lab coats over, "everyone get dressed, then I'll have someone escort you over to your building"

Her voice is muffled, distant and Kinger feels like his head has been dipped underwater. He flinches when a hand grabs his arm and the needle is removed, the ache spreading down to his fingers slightly.

Clothes are held out to him and he takes them with shaky hands, feeling nothing but dread as he shifts to stand, taking stumbling steps over to a random door. 

He opens it and slams it behind him, seeing that it's a bathroom that he had managed to find and he has to force himself over to the toilet, sitting down on the closed lid.

Two days.

Caine will die in two days. 

Kinger drops the bundle of clothes to the floor and buries his face into his hands and shakes, feeling tears burn his eyes. 

Two days.

Two days.

In the almost silent bathroom, the only sounds being the muffled taking from the other side of the door, Kinger allows himself to grieve.

!!!

He stares at his own reflection in the dim, flicking bathroom light. His brown eyes look sunken in, deep purple bags underneath them. He lifts one hand to press his fingers against the bruises, feeling his skin ache from the pressure. 

His ash blonde hair has specks of grey throughout it and it's much longer then he normally kept it. His normally neatly cut beard is a bit messy and all over the place. He looks old, is his first though, but he pushes it away. 

He places his hands on the sink and scans the rest of his body. The jumper he's wearing is black and plain, just something simple that goes along with the dark grey jeans he was given. It's not his usual style, but he supposes be can be picky later. 

He rolls his shoulders back, taking a deep breath in and holding it in long enough to make his head spin, before he blows it out. He turns the tap on and runs his hands underneath the stream, shivering as cold water drips down his hands. He soaks them and then raises his hands and runs them through his hair, trying to pay down the frizz. 

After a moment of fighting a losing battle, he drops his hands and moves to open the bathroom door, stepping out. The others are gathered around the couches in similar clothing and Kinger finally realizes that they all look on the brink of collapse. 

"We're going to the apartments now" Ragatha says softly, arms wrapped around herself. "Apparently they want us to sleep a little before any real tests"

Kinger nods at that, "What time is it anyway?"

Pomni hums. "I think I heard someone say it was about 7am, we began waking up at about 3am"

Ragatha nods at that, yawning slightly. "I woke first, I think, so I just slept on and off for a few hours until the rest of you guys woke up"

He realizes that that must be the reason why she hadn't had an iv eariler, and can only assume that was the case for both Gangle and Pomni too. 

A young boy comes into the room, looks at all of them and the gesturing with a nod of his head. "Follow me" He mutters, walking out. 

No one moves, all seemingly reluctant to move and follow the man.

Kinger takes the step. 

He moves forwards, placing a hand on Gangles shoulder and squeezing it gently. "Lets go" He says to the room, hoping his face is soft and gentle rather then showing just how tired he is. "We all need some sleep"

Kinger moves and he hears footsteps immediately follow him, all of them rushing after. He can hear them talking amongst themselves in what sounds like worry and confusion, but he keeps on stalking forwards. He needs sleep if he's going to come up with a plan-

The thought hits him suddenly but with perfect clarity he realizes that that's exactly whats going to happen. He needs food, a shower and rest if he wants to get his brain working enough to try and figure out how he's supposed to save Caine. 

He thinks on it now, maybe moving Caine to a another devise, or resetting the circus completely-

Both of those options are null, he knows that, trying to move Caine would only result in the AI possible erasing himself due to whatever the device would be being unable to support most of his systems and resting anything would have the same results. 

If it were possible to move him from the computer and monitor he was in entirely, then it might be possible but in order for that to happen, Kinger would have to find some sort of biological super computer that could withstand all of Caine dats and-

His shoes falter and he almost stops, but he pushes on, even as his heart freezes in his chest. 

Biological supercomputer.

"Kinger?" Pomni catches up to him, her hand hovering over his shoulder but not quite touching him. "You okay?"

"...Yes" He forces out, even as his mind races with possibilities. "I'm okay"

To go through the apartments they have to walked though long corridor and take a few flights of stairs and Kinger is beginning to realize that he might be unhealthy. 

By the time they all get to the landing of the floor they are apparently on, he's heaving for breath and the others are in a similar state. 

"I'm just...gonna say it" Jax heaves, resting against the wall as he wipes the sweat from his forehead. "Fuck stairs"

Kinger grunts in agreement and continues walking, following the C&A lab coat to the emergency door. "Are there more stairs?" He asks, breathless.

The boy pauses, looking away sheepishly.

"....Yes"

There are groans all around and Kinger kind of wants to scream. 

Finally, after going down four more flights of stairs, the groups is led to a landing with what looks to be an elevator, which Kinger is grateful for. "The buttons inside are labeled with your rooms" The boy says, standing behind everyone. "Each apartment has one bedroom, kitchen, living space and bathroom- all of them are stocked with the essentials like spare clothing and food" 

He points over to the phone that's on the wall, and Kinger hums at the sight of an old fashioned landline attached to a bulky unit. "That is linked to the main phone in the lab, so you can contact us that way. New modern phones will be delivered to you tomorrow morning, though we recommend you don't call anyone" 

Zooble shrugs. "Not like we have anyone to call" They murmur, looking more exhausted by the second. 

The boy only nods and steps back, "well, good...night?" He leaves before anyone can reply, the door clicking shut behind him. 

Kinger takes a breath and runs a hand through his hair, feeling his stomach roll with hunger. "Then shall we go?" He asks, catching everyone else's attention. "We all need food and sleep" He says as he moves to the elevator and pressing the call button. It opens immediately and he steps in. His eyes scan the labels above the buttons and he sees that his room is apparently on the first floor. 

The others all climb in after him, looking at their own buttons but they don't press anything and Kinger frowns. They all looks fearful, scared and he's confused for a long, long moment. 

Then, he sees Gangle move closer so Zooble, looking reluctant to leave their side and something clicks in his mind. "How about we go and collect blankets from each of your rooms" He began, voice soft. "All then all head to mine? We can stay together for tonight"

The relief in the little metal box is palpable and Kinger mentally pats his own back at a job well done as he presses the button to the top room that appears to be Gangles. "Well all go together" He says, smiling at all of them. "And then retire to mine, okay?"

There's murmers of agreement and even Jax looks more relaxed now at the turn of events. 

The elevator hums to lift and begins to climb, rattling and jolting. The apartment is old by the looks of it, but Kinger isn't going to question it to much right at this moment. 

Ragatha hums to the sound, resting against the wall. "It..." She pauses, Kinger turning his head to meet her gaze. "It still doesn't feel real" She whispers, looking lost.

Kinger moves to place a hand on her shoulder, squeezing her oh so softly. "It's okay" He says back, pulling her closer. She wraps her arms around his waist and clings to him, taking long slow breaths. "After some sleep, I'm sure we'll all be more grounded"

Ragatha squeezes him once, before letting him go. "Yeah" She's says meeting Kingers eyes, her own teary. "Yeah you're right"

Theres a ding and the doors open and Kinger steps out first, there's only one door at the end of hall about six feet long. "Shall we?" He asks, looking back. 

The door opens to a large living room, a couch, tv and coffee table in the centre. It's bland, boring, but not bad necessarily just....dull. 

The kitchen is directly to the left of the main door, a small modest one with plain white cupboards and draws. The group walk in further, unable to help peaking into the two open doors he can see. One of them is the bathroom, a basic one with a shower/bath that looks quite large for such a small room, and the other is bedroom with a large double king sized bed and plain beiges sheets, a large closet against the far wall. 

"Cosy" Jax says, looking very uninterested. "I feel right at home"

"Shut up Jax" Zooble scolds, but it's half hearted. "Chances are all of our room will be the same."

"...Oh shit, yeah"

Gangle goes into the room and looks around, pulling at her fingers nervously. "It's...boring" She says, looking towards Kinger who's stood by the door. "Do...do you think they'll let me...get more colorful things?"

Kinger hums, resting against the doorframe. "I don't see why not" He says, watching as she begins to pull the blanket and pillow off the bed. "I think all of us are going to want to, it's very dull"

Kinger steps out the way and Gangle pulls the bundle of blankets to her chest. "Ready?" She nods, and Kinger moves to the others. "Then let's get going"

After collecting blankets from each room, they get back down to the first floor and they barely have any power to think, let alone talk. 

Kinger pulls the blankets off of his own bed, bringing them into the living room and smiling when he sees the others all piled on the floor, all in varying degrees of sleep. 

Pomni pats the spot next to her and Kinger takes in, placing the blanket down and climbing on to it while toeing off his shoes. "I want to sleep for two years" He mutters, pressing his face to the pillow. "I'm so tired"

There's groans of agreement, and shifting before they all go silent again. Kinger shifts onto his back carefully, looking up at the ceiling as his mind wonders. He thinks about the circus, the rooms, the others scattered around him-

Without his say so, his mind drifts to Caine. 

His teary eyes, his crumpled from- all of it. 

He thinks of how afraid he looks, how broken he looked. 

Kinger feels his chest ache as he remembers all of it. 

He thinks about the sleepless night he and Caine would spend together, working on and exit, how the AI would be quiet but determined to get them out. 

It had taken Kinger a shocking about of time to realize that Caine was trapped. That if they were to leave, he wouldn't. 

When he had figured it out, he had been horrified, his whole body had gone rigid as he stared at Caine blank expression. 

"What? Caine why-"

"It won't change anything" Caine says softly, his eyes moving back to the multiple screens infront of them. They cast an almost enthral glow over his jaw and wide eyes, but Kinger can't read his expression. "You will still leave" His voice is low, even, like he's forcing it to stay level. "Me being unable to leave won't change that"

Kinger stares at him, hands clenched in his purple robe. "...Ill stay" He says, watching as Caine head slowly turns to look at him. "When we make an exit, I'll stay with you"

Caine watches him, eyes shiny and hands limp in his lap.

"Okay"

Kinger thinks back to it now and wonder if Caine had had any intentions of letting him stay, or if the ringmaster had planned from the very beginning to send Kinger away too. 

Had he always intended to die alone?

"Forget about me" 

It had been a demand, not an ask. 

Did Caine truly think he was that replaceable? That....unloved?

Yes. His mind supplies as he presses a hand to his chest right over his heart, feeling it clench. Yes, Caine had always thought that.

From the first day they had locked him away, to the day where Caine had to reset his code to save them all, Caine had always believed that he was unneeded. Unwanted. Unloved. Unnecessary. 

"I can hear you thinking from here" Says Jax, and Kinger blinks in shock at being called out. 

"Sorry"

There's a hum, and then silence, only soft snores from the others in the room. 

"... You're thinking about Caine right?"

"..yeah" Kinger admits, voice low. "Yeah I am"

Jax doesn't reply to that for a few long minutes, seemingly-

"Me too" 

Kinger feels his eyes sting. 

"Really?"

Jax hums again and even though Kinger can't see his face, he can hear the frown. "I...feel bad. About leaving him, I guess"

It's not much, not really but-

"Me too" Kinger whispers back. 

-its something. 

It's shared pain, grief. It might not be in the same amount or way but- Kinger feels seen at least. 

"You have a plan right" It's not a question, but a statement and Kinger feels something other then sadness flare in his chest.

Conviction.

"Yes"

A hum. "I'm guessing it's stupid"

"Unbelievably so"

"Dangerous?"

"Indeed"

"Illegal?"

"Oh incredibly"

A low groan. "Uhh sounds impossible"

Kinger watches movement out the corner of his eye and turns his head to see Jaz grinning at him from the other side of Pomni, and the sight is so reminiscent of the circus that it steals his breath. 

"I'm in" Jax says, eyes positively glowing with excitement. 

Kinger feels his own smile widen. 

"Good, because I actually need your help"

!!!

"It's a simple plan really-"

"No Kinger, it's ridiculous and reckless and- and stupid!" 

Kinger, taking a slow sip of coffee, stares back a Ragatha. "...I think it's quite a genius one, actually"

They are all crowded around the table in Kingers apartment, all dressed in more fitting clothes now. Kingers wearing a grey button up shirt and loose trousers, Zooble a long sleeve red tshirt, Gangle a skirt and plain white tshirt, Pomni a hoodie, purple instead of blue like Jaxs, and Ragatha is by far the most 'dressed up' in a long skirt, a while button up and a few bracelets she had managed to find.

With a quick glance at the clock that's ticking away on the wall, he can see that it's a little bit past noon, none of them had slept for long, all of their minds were to loud for them to truly rest. 

"What?!" Ragatha stresses, looking almost frantic. "No! Kinger it's insane!"

"I for one-" Jaz cuts in, leaning back on a chair with his socked feet up on the table, "think it's a great plan!"

"Yeah well of course you would"

"Hey!"

"Okay!" Pomni cuts in before it can devolve into a fight, her hair is shorter now, more similar to the style she had in the circus and Kinger makes a mental note to ask to burrow the pair of scissors she must of found. "Let's just... Think for a moment about this, okay?" She looks at Kinger, who's still sipping his coffee. "Can you... I don't know, explain more?"

Kinger gulps his drinks, before placing the mug down. He stares at the table for a long moment, reorganizing his thoughts. "Right so-"

"Theoretically, there might be a way for us to remove Caine from the circus. By transferring him over to a unoccupied body"

"You mean what, brain dead?" Zooble cuts in, but their face doesn't look fully put off which Kinger takes as a win. " Or like a cadaver?"

Kinger nods, pauses and then shakes his head. "The first one. We need a body that's brain dead, with no injuries and with it's organs fully intact"

Ragatha groans and drops into her chair, burying her face in to her hands. "How exactly would we do that?" She asks, muffled. "We can't just...go to the hospital a find a body!"

Kinger hums, eyes flicking around the room in thought. "If I remember correctly, the main C&A building should have brain dead patients"

Everyone goes quiet.

"What?" Gangle asks, eyes wide. "What is that suppose to mean?"

Kinger raises a hand to rub at the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact with the others. "In....the early stages of development, the headsets would be to strong for some and it would- well....turn off their brains so to speak. We couldn't exactly let people know about what had happened so we would just, keep them on life support"

Jax hums, scratching his neck. "Well that feels very wrong"

Kinger sighs, tapping his fingers against the oak table. "Most of them would be people who were easily missed- volunteers without any family or contacts that would notice them disappearing. Most didn't even give names and would call themselves John or Jane Doe. Each of them would sign wavers agreeing to the risk, so....we just looked past how unethical it was"

Zooble cuts in, look parts disturbed and parts curious. "So, what? We get a body and then.....?"

Kinger gives a nod, sitting back in his chair and rubbing at his chin. "If we could get a headset, I could change the input and outputs of the device, meaning Caine could jump into the unoccupied avatar. We then would pull that consciousness out of the circus, and therefore bring Caine into the body!" He smiles slightly. "Of course this is all only theoretical, not guaranteed but I do believe it's the only plan"

Everyone else goes silent, by now Ragatha had pressed her face to the table, and the others, minus Jax, all look slightly grossed out.

The young boy makes eyes contact with Kinger and the older man can't hide the desperation in his eyes. Jax rolls his, before sitting up slightly. "Ooooooor" He drags out. "We leave Caine to die even though he's the reason we escaped in the first place, and go on with our lives like nothing happened! Even though we will all be cursed with the knowledge of a dear friend dying because of us"

Ragatha raises her head to glare at him. "Fuck you Jax"

Said man only shrugs, grinning. "I'm just saying" 

Pomni sighs, rubbing at her face roughly. "....I mean" she trails off, brown furrowing. 

"It's....worth a shot, right?"

Kinger feels his heart swell. "Really?"

Pomni groans, closing her eyes for a moment before they reopen, something like determination shining in her gaze. "We have to try right? We can't leave Caine there to die. Jax is right-" Jax cheers at that. "-Caine sacrificed himself to get us out, without him we would still be trapped" Pomnis eyes meet Kingers.

"It's the least we can do"

Zooble huffs, tilting their head back. '"fine!" They hiss out. "What do we have to lose?"

Gangle pulls at her fingers, but she too nods. "...We have to try, right?"

All eyes go to Ragatha who's still glaring at Jax, before the redhead lets out a loud sigh and sits up. "Fine" Her eyes meet Kingers, filled with trepidation and fear, but also hope. "What's the plan?"

!!!

The stethoscope is cold against his skin as he takes long deep breaths, his eye flickering around the room. Jax looks up at the doctor before him, following his movements to breath in and out. 

He looks over to Kinger sat opposite him, seeing the older man doing a similar test to the one he's doing, and if Jax had to guess then so was Pomni from behind his back. 

He feels nervous, strangely enough as he goes over the plan in his head.

Wait for the signal. 

Jax follows the doctors hands as they move a small hammer to his knee, testing reflex.

Wait the the single.

He had to be quick, quiet, unseen.

Wait for- 

Down the hall, he hears shouting and the doctor that was kneeling before him blinks in confusion, moving to his feet and then towards the door. Zoobles voice echoes slightly and Jax has to fight a grin as he hears them complain loudly about feeling sick. 

Jax leans forward like hes trying to follow, hands brushing against the id he can see hanging out of the man's pocket. 

He swipes it quickly, his hands moving to the hoodie he's wearing and he slips the key card into his back pocket. He waits until he doctor blinks and turns back to him, before he places a hand on his stomach and curls over.

Showtime. 

"Eurg" He groans out, forcing his shoulders to shiver. "Fuck, I-I' think I forgot to eat earlier" He says from gritted teeth, pulling his knees up. "Oh I feel- fuck I don't feel good-"

The doctor places a hand on his shoulder and tilts him back and Jax makes his eyes focus and unfocus as the doctor stares at him. "You do look sick" He says, eyes scanning Jaxs face. 

"Maybe you should head back to your apartments, get something to eat"

"N-no, no" Jax strains out. "Im- you need to do this-"

"It can wait" the man says, brow furrowed. "Go eat, the last thing we need is for you to pass out"

Jax lets out another groan and stumbles to his feet, making his way to the door.

As he leaves, he catches Kingers eyes, seeing the older man stare at him in amusement. 

The moment he steps out the room he's rushing through the halls and looking into any and all rooms he can see. While they don't know what room the bodies might be in, chances are they are on one of the top floors. 

As Jax walks he spots a lab coat thrown haphazardly on a nearby steel chair and in one deep swipe of his arm he grabs it, pulling it over his shoulders and slipping his arms in. 

He forces his back up straighter as he walks past people and he reaches into his back pocket to the card he had liberated, grinning down at the id.

Tom Bracket

Level 1 clearance

Perfect. 

Jax hums a tune as he continues walking, eyes flickering up bright halls. He's looking for something, though he's not sure what. Kinger himself hadn't been that sure on what it would be to keep an eye out for, but all Jax knew was that when he did see it, he would know-

He stumbles when he sees a pair of double, sealed doors to the left of him and down the hall and he frowns at it. That looks.....off right? 

He makes his way over to it and sees that there's a card reader on the door. With a hum of a song he can't remember, he scans the card and grins when the doors click open.

He pushes them open, wondering in and through the pale blue curtains.

It's another long hall but this time with evenly spaced rooms going down, each numbered. Jax walks slowly through them, peaking into the doors. Most of them are closed but he stands straight to look through the windows to catch glimpses. He sees empty beds and he feels worry fill his chest because maybe this isn't- 

He sees a body, a young woman. With blond hair and on a ventilator. 

Jax huffs at the sight and moves onwards, opening every door he sees to peek in. 

He hasn't been giving a goal really, on what to look for in terms of a body- no one had really though to much on the idea so he had free rein on what he thought was suitable. 

To young. 

To female.

To tall. 

To pale. 

He's comes to the second to last door and worries for a moment that maybe there isn't going to be a good body for Caine-

He opens the door and stops, eyes focusing on the body in the bed. 

His skin is dark, hair black and on a ventilator like the rest of them and Jax walks into the room, closing the door behind him as he scans the body. He had a short scuffy bead and moustache, a few flecks of grey in the hair there and on his head, his nose is slightly crooked, like it's been broken in the past and then left to heal by itself, his arms are resting on top of the sheets and Jax scans them for any scars or tattoos, only seeing a small burn in his outer forearm. Apart from that though-

He looks....good?

He hums and searches around the foot of the bed, grinning in triumph when he sees a chart. "Okay then possible Caine meat suit" He says, flicking through the paper. "Let's see what you got"

His eyes trail to the first page to read, his chest swelling with relief as he processes each word. 

No know family, no ties to the outside world, understands the risk of brain death is high.

Copy of waiver: Check page 5 for confirmation. 

Personal Information-

Name: unknown (John Doe)- patient refused to give a name. 

Age: estimated- late 40s- early 50s- patient refuses to give exact birthday

Occupation: unemployed- no past work experience

Hair color: black

Ethnicity: Spanish/American- not fully confirmed

Height: 5 foot 3 

Jax snorts. "Short king indeed"

Weight: 68 kg 

Eye colors-

Jax jolts, letting the paper fall back into place and his head turns to stare at the body in the bed. 

"Oh buddy" He praises. "This must be fate!"

He rushes to place the chart back to on the bed and rushes out the room, making a note of the number and where exactly it was as he rushes back to a less suspicious location. 

When he begins to recognize the halls he slows down slightly and doesn't meet anybody elses eyes, though none of them really looked at him. Looks like the lab coat hes wearing really does make him invisible.

As he walks, he sees Zooble coming down the hall infront of him and stays unreactive, and instead holds his hands out only an inch away from his body. 

Their hand brushes his, a scrap of paper sliding against his flesh and hes quick to close his grip around it and pull his hands into his pocket, looking around to see that no one had even glanced at him.

He takes a random right, seeing no one around, he looks at the paper in his hand.

Headsets- floor 4 room 2.4.7 Floor 6 room 14. 6. 8

Jax takes that information and pats down his pockets for a pen or pencil, grinning when he finds a small pencil that looks moments away from snapping, and he circles floor 4 room 4 before writing the floor number and room number that the body was in.

It's the closet to the body right now, and judging by how there are no extra notes on the paper, he thinks back to what Kinger had said back in the apartment. 

The man had explained that the headsets are each setup to their own monitors and computers, each fragile. The power sources were huge too, and it would take at least two people to move it to where the body might be. It would very difficult to do all of this without getting caught. 

The best course of action, realistically, is to move the body to the headset. 

It's ridiculously reckless, as Ragatha had said several times, but...

It seemed to be working so far.

Jax whistles as he continues his journey, and he waits for a break of people before he shrugs off his labcoat and tosses it into a random open door. 

He holds the card and paper in his hand, trying his best to blend in with his surroundings as he walks, not wanting to draw any attention to himself as he goes. 

He sees Kinger them, walking along side the woman from yesterday- eariler today? This morning? Eh not that important.

Jax angles his body to brush past Kinger, his fingers and the paper nudging his skin.

He lets go just as Kinger passes him, not sparing a glance, before the older man disappears down the hall.

Jax hums and grins, lacing his fingers together and placing them on the back of his head, feeling his shoulders relax. 

That, at least, was his part done.

He absentmindedly wonders how Zooble had found the headsets, maybe the others had remembered what rooms they had woke up in? Or had Zooble just, wondered the halls untill they found all the rooms? Instead of dwelling on that, he only shrugs and brushes it away, instead continuing on his walk back to where he and Pomni were to meet up for the last step of phase one. 

And then, on to phase two. 

!!!

"You can't just be thinking about leaving him there, it's not right!"

"It is an AI, Grant, we have no reason to keep it up and running. Besides the simulation is deleting itself anyway- we can't stop that"

"But you can move him! You could put him into a other system until-"

"Untill what?" The woman, Dr Hallow, spins around to face Kinger, her eyes narrowed and frustrated and Kinger understands why. He's been bugging her about this all day, partially to act as a distraction, and partially because-

He wanted to be wrong. 

He wanted to be proven incorrect with his theory that C&A truly didn't care about his greatest creation but stood here now, as Hallow stares at him with indifference-

He realizes that's once again, he had been too hopeful. "....What about those who abstracted?" He asks, voice shaking as he thinks about his wife, Ribbit, Scratch- all of them. "What will happen to them?"

Hallow sighs, rubbing her forehead and shifting on her feet. "They are all dead, Grant. Those who abstracted- their headsets completely fired their bodies and we had to dispose of them"

Kinger feels bile rise in his throat and he forces the idea of it away, taking a long breath through his nose. "..all of them are dead-my- Queenie?"

Hallow frowns at him "who?"

Kinger feels anger rise in his chest and his hands clench into fists at his sides.

He feels hard plastic cut into his palms and forces his fingers to unfurl "Nevermind" He bites out, moving around Hallow and back down the hall.

He takes a few steps before he pauses, his brow furrowing. "...how long until he's gone? And the circus?"

"...Less then twenty-one hours. Then the AI-"

"Caine" Kinger hisses, turning around to glare at her, feeling his jaw clench. "His name, is Caine"

She stares, then nods. "Either way, Caine will be erased"

Kinger gave one harsh nod and then turns back around, marching on down the hall. His anger is rising in him, his chest hurting with it. His head pounds in time with his heart beat.

This place didn't care for any of them, not even him- the one that helped build this very place, who made this place successful and powerful. They were willing to let the best thing out of this lab, out of this tragedy of an error, die.

Kinger looks down at the paper Jax had slipped him, seeing notes of room numbers. His sees the circled one and makes a mental map in his head on how to get to it. 

His eyes trail to the room where Jax had supposedly found a suitable body and he slows down as he tries to make a map of that one too. 

They're close, maybe only 3 halls over, but they would have to go past the main hall that Hallow and her team were stationed in.

He shakes his head. Nevermind all that. It won't change the objective. 

By now, Jax would have got back to the others and told them phase two was in actions, so now Kinger had to get to the room. 

He turns down the hall, holding the key card in hand, speeding up his steps.

After a few more twists and turns he gets to the main, steel heavy looking doors and sees Ragatha stood by them, rolling back and forth on her heels. She catches Kingers eyes and waves him over. 

"No one's here" She says a Kinger reaches her side. "Pomni and Jax staged an argument so everyone would be distracted while we do this, they'll meet us in the headset room when they can" Kinger only nods along and swipes the card, immediately pushing in when the light flicks green. 

He rushes in with Ragatha close behind and he checks the paper again, catching the room number and running down the hall towards it. 

Their footsteps echo in the hall as they go, each looking around and at the door to keep track of where they're going, before Kinger almost trips over himself as he comes to a stop. 

"This one" He mutters, pushing the doors open.

Beeping fills the room, the sound of the ventilator expanding over and over again making Kinger flinch at the loudness. 

He stays by the door for a moment, taking in the body on the bed. 

Tanned skin, a mess of black hair that falls over his forehead and ears. He looks short, with a healthy amount of meat on his bones. 

"He looks...." Ragatha pauses.

Kinger fills in the blanks for her. "He's not dead" He says, moving to the machines and reading them as best he can. "Well, not fully" 

The man's stable, no brain activity, but by the looks of it the rest of his body is completely fine. He moves to undo the breaks on the bed, pulling the handrail up. "Come on" He says, frantic and Ragatha rushes to follow his lead. "We don't have much time"

They get out into the hall with little fanfare, Ragatha going on ahead slightly to check the halls before they enter them, and Kinger pushing the bed behind her. 

They pauses at corners, freeze at the sound of voices, but they are making steady progress. Kinger hangs back as the redheaded woman looks down the hall to the left and right of them, her face twisted in fear, before she's given a nod and continues on, Kinger following. 

He looks down at the body in the bed to ensure the man stays stable, and he does thankfully. He scans his face again, seeing a few moles doted around his face. One is right in the corner of his left eye, tiny, but this close Kinger can see the little speck. 

"Hey!" Is hissed in front of him and he looks up to see Pomni waving at them, gesturing frantically. "Hurry up!"

"What- hey why do you have that!?"

Kingers head snaps around, seeing Hallow a good bit down the hall. "Is that- are you serious?!" She comes jogging, a few other following as she shouts at Kinger to stop.

"Shit" He shouts, running now with the bed. "Go! Go!"

He gets to the room and quickly slams the doors behind behind him, grabbing a nearby chair and placing it under the handles. "Keep them out!" He shouts to the others as he positions the bed next to the headset on the table. "I need time!"

Zooble rushes at the door and slams their back against it, making it shake, just in time for someone on the other side to begin pushing on it. "Kinger hurry up!" They shout, panic clear in their voice.

Jax runs over to joins them, pressing next to them and Gangle joins in to. They're shouts in the hall, angry voices but Kinger ignores them all to instead focus on the task at hand. "Pomni keep an eye on that monitor near you" He says as he boots up the head set. "If you see anything change, you tell me" 

He doesn't listen to see if Pomni replies, instead he slides the headset on the body. He grabs the laptop that someone had brought with them, probably Jax, before he plugs the wire that leads into to the monitor out, and into the lap top instead.  

Green code fill his cress and he scans it, seeing number and letters all scrambled together. 

He looks, searches for-

Got it.

Input-> output//=True 

Kinger clicks on it, then changes the value.

Input<- output//=True 

The headset hums to life, flashing lights and beeping and Kinger lets out a shout. "Yes!" He doesn't dwell on the small victory, instead he moves on to the next step.

He has to switch out of the code window, instead getting a pixelated view of the circus and it looks-

It's just void now. All of it, gone.

Kinger feels horror settle in his chest, nothing as far as the eye can see, except the avatar assigned to the body. It glitches in and out of existence and Kinger knows it won't stay stable for long but he can't see Caine. 

The shouting outside gets louder, as well as the banging but he ignores it all in favour of scanning the area. "Come on, come on"

There's a speck coming towards him, the screen distorts, glitches out, so he can't see what it is. 

Bue deep down he knows what it is.

"Touch the avatar" He hisses, feeling tears of panic fill his eyes. "Caine, please"

The world is gone.

The other NPCs are gone. 

The sun and moon is gone. 

Everything is gone.

He floats for an age, unfeeling, unseeing, waiting for the deletion to reach him and erase him too.

He wonders what the human are doing. Maybe they're sat with their families eating dinner? Or maybe having a party, to celebrate their return. 

The cold creeps in, biting at his closed jaw. 

This was how it was always going to end. He had known that. Even when Kinger had promised to stay with him, he had known that he couldn't let that happen.

No one deserves this fate, this finality, this death. 

Not like he does, anyway. 

He had long since ran out of tears, the pain in his chest had finally stopped. Now all he had to do was wait.

For the inevitable.  

Then-

A flicker in the void. 

A static filled figure.

He approaches it carefully and stares, confused by the code he's seeing. 

A player? How? And why are their mind files completely eradicated?

Cains moves towards to avatar, reaching for their shoulder.

His hand feels like its grabbed and he rips himself back and away, staring at his hand with wide eyes. What?

He looks at the body again, seeing nothing but glitchy colours. 

....Is this.....Kingers doing?

Caine feels something swell in his chest, something he doesn't understand. He floats closer, wincing when he notices that his legs are gone now too, and reaches out again. 

When the force grabs him, this time he doesn't pull away. 

He allows his eyes to slip closed as hes pulled in, and hopes that he'll be able to open them again.

Kinger watches the screen go black and he throws the laptop up the floor, jumping to his feet to rip the headset off of the man's head. "Pomni?!"

The woman looks at him, face screwing up in fear. "Nothing" She says, eyes back on the screen that's all flat lines. "No brain activity"

The others by the door skid against floor as those outside fight to get in, screaming at them in the room, demanding that they stop what they are doing. 

Kingers hands cup a tanned face, eyes scanning the relaxed features. "Come on, come on" He whispers, tears in his eyes. "Caine please. You have to be in there"

More shouting, more thuds, more grunts. Beeping from machine, loud clunks from the ventilator. 

"Caine" Kinger begs, gripping his face tighter. "Ple-"

"Oh shit!" Pomni shouts and Kingers head snaps up to see the lines on the screen going haywire.

"We have brain actively!" He shouts, gaze dropping again.

He sees the mans eyes moved underneath his lids, choking sounds leaving his chest. "He's fighting ventilation" Kinger breaths, heart racing in his chest. "He's breathing on his own"

Kinger rushes to pull the tube out, hands shaking as he carefully removes it, before he tosses it up the floor, feeling tears roll down his face when the man coughs and heaves for breath. "Caine? Caine?!"

He watches as the man takes long, deep breaths, the sound stuttering in his chest.

Before eyes flutter open.

Kinger feels his heart stop in his chest.

"Oh yeah!" Jax shouts from the door, even as he slips against the tilted floor, sweat running down his forehead. "Crazy coincidence with the eyes, right? "

Kinger can't reply, only able to stare as eyes watch him. 

One blue, one green.

Caine stares up at him, chest heaving, face flushed and eyes flicking desperately.

"Caine?" Kinger whispers, hands still holding the mans face. 

Caine blinks, and then licks his lips, brow furrowing as his mouth opens and closes a few times.

"K....in...ger?" His voice is cracked, tone wobbly, like he doesn't know how to form words, but it's a familiar voice, one he had been used to hearing for years now.

It's him. 

Caine's here.

Kinger crumbles, pulling the man close to him, even as the doors are finally forced open.