Clay held 'A' close to his chest as he listened to the ClapTrap rattle on about the strange attack.
“I was just giving 'A' his supper when I thought I heard someone outside the lab. But...there’s always someone passing by so I ignored it. Then all at once the door slid open and I thought maybe it was you, but 'A' gasped and so I turned around. There, in the doorway were these, I don’t know, guys...who had these ugly masks on with glowing blue eyes, terrible fashion choice if you ask me. Before I could tell them to get lost, they ran in with this huge black bag and tried to jump on 'A'. He was so scared he cried and cowered behind me!” The robot puffed out his metallic chest.
“Nuhuh.” 'A' frowned, shaking his head. “I-I, f....fou-ought ..to-oo “ He grumped then turned to look at Clay. Grinning, he revealed his sharp canines and a blood stain just below his lip, Clay shuttered.
“Well...what did they want?” The scientist demanded to know. “Did they take anything!?” Clap-Trap tapped at his head, trying to recall the events.
“Well, I’m not sure really, there was so much going on. I grabbed your laser gun and just started shooting! For some odd reason they didn't seem to be armed, at all. They began to panic and scream and ran around the lab practically trashing the whole place during the process. 'A' was on em good, but then they mentioned something about calling for backup right before they ran out of here. Then we got spooked and didn't know what to do so uh....we hid.” Clap-Trap admitted, slightly embarrassed.
“You hid!? You...you should have ran...or called me!” Clay scolded.
“Well I would have called you, but the thing is...” He spun around, showing off a fancy new dent in the back of his head. “One of them whacked me real good with one of our frying pans and it did something to my communication processor.”
Clay gave a shaky breath, turning to look down at 'A' still in his arms. The young experiment had his head resting on the scientists chest, listening to his breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. It had been too much excitement for one night, and just knowing he was safe with Clay made everything better.
Clay looked about at the laboratory and the ginormous mess. His bed called to him form the other room, but it would have to wait.
“Well...grab a broom, then once this mess is dealt with, we can get to the bottom of things.” He instructed and the purple robot gave a quick salute before searching for the dust pan.
The trio worked for hours, scrubbing blood stains, discarding broken beakers, organizing strewn papers, and re-securing the lab door. It was near dawn when Clay finally looked up from his spot on the floor, the lab was sparkling clean. Beneath him he scrubbed away at the last crimson spot, the rag in his hand a sullied shade of off pink. He groaned as his back cracked in protest when he stood, chucking the rag in the nearest trash ben.
Over in the corner 'A' had curled up and fallen asleep beside the Clap-Trap unit, who was busying himself with a scrap piece of wire, pretending to straighten out its kinks.
“What time is it?” Clay yawned, hoping to catch some shut eye before he had to return to work. The robot jolted, startled by the sudden noise, he paused for a moment before answering in a hushed voice,
“04:46 AM.”
Clay groaned in exhaustion, his lids were heavy, his muscles ached and his mind was a jumbled mush of stress and anxiety.
“What's the point, they'll be expecting me in the lab in about an hour anyways.” He muttered under his breath while debating taking a half day. However the fear of being reprimanded by the CEO's convinced him otherwise.
“I guess we have an hour to figure out what in the world happened hear...and to get you fixed.” Clay would have rather slept, but the chance to see Tabitha wasn't one he would pass up, especially after how he had left things. He had to straighten it out with her, explain to her what was really going on, he hated to leave her in the dark.
And in the dark she was. Tabitha stared blankly at her bedroom ceiling, the small glow of her bedside clock was the only light in the room. She had been in a restless state, caught somewhere between stressful dreams of the gala, and a sense of awareness of how little sleep she was getting. Finally, sometime after her fifth dream of the disastrous waltz, she gave up on trying to sleep at all. Instead she sat awake, wondering why she had been so pushy towards Clay. Occasionally her memory would flutter back to that blurred image of the scientist resting at her bedside in the infirmary, and her heart would flutter in her chest. It seemed so real, yet Everett had swore up an down that Clay hadn't been there at all. Which, in reality, made sense to her, especially with how stressed out the project made him. If he really was in trouble with the CEO's, why would he spend his time sitting with her? It didn't make sense.
She rolled lazily to her side, watching the minutes slowly pass. Yet, there was that aching feeling, that gut instinct that insisted that there was more to her dream than she remembered. He had said something, if it had even happened at all, and try as she might she couldn't conjure his words to her mind.
“If I can't even think of what he said...then it must not have happened.” She told herself. “But,” she muttered, “If it did happen...I want to know more than ever what he said. What was so important to him that caused him to...kiss me?” She scrunched her eyes closed, trying to force his voice into her head.
“If I want to know...I'll have to ask him if it happened or not.” Tabitha sighed, secretly hoping it had. With a new sense of courage, she chucked off the covers and rolled out of bed, dressing for an early day. She weaved around empty cardboard boxes that littered the floor of her room, all of which had been given to her by Everett. The deadline for her decision was coming up, in fact, she had one more night before she had to give Everett her answer.
She had been on the fence about the whole thing, until recently. Originally she had planned to turn him down, after all, why would she leave her beloved garage and her dear friend Clay. However, she felt as if he had pushed her away as of late, and if he was only using their friendship for free mechanic service, then why not take the big job with her boss? She hated to admit it, but he had made the offer hard to resist. Better pay, more recognition, new tools and equipment and a chance to work on something other than robots, was hard to turn down.
Yet no matter how she daydreamed of building a new Hyperion HQ alongside the big shots, her mind would always wonder back here, to Clay. So, she had to make a choice, and whatever Clay had to say would decide for her.
A plan began to form in her mind, and she rather liked it, besides, there was no way that Clay would let her down, so she really had nothing to worry about. She needn't fret about what he might say, she was positive he had kissed her, and if so, Everett could find another mechanic to take with him.
With determination burning in her, she quickly readied herself for an early start at her garage. She hummed a giddy tune as she strode happily down the dark morning halls of the quiet Hyperion base. The sweet melody of her voice echoed down the passage, like the first song of the early bird.
She whipped her garage door open and pulled the small chord attached to the solitary light bulb, illuminating her messy workshop. The bones of a slender robot body was strapped to her bench, wires and screws rutting from it like thorns. Quickly she tied her hair up in a sloppy bun and peered at the blue prints, stained with oil splotches. She carefully selected a pair of needle nose pliers and began to weave some of the stray wires into place according to Clay's plans.
She continued to fill the empty still with a cheerful whistle as her hands worked skillfully on the assassin robot. Her boot clad foot tapped along to the beat, causing a pang against the metal floors. She would have continued like this, content in her work, for hours, but the knock on her garage wall pulled her from concentration like it so often did.
Her eyes glided up from her work to peer at the figures standing in the hall, just outside her door. The all too familiar scientist, accompanied by his purple robot and young experiment, caused a smile to creep up her face. “good morning” was just on the tip of her tongue, but she paused, suddenly feeling a slight bit embarrassed as she remembered the events from the previous night.
“I-I'm sorry.” Slipped out instead, as her smile faded away. Clay stepped into the garage, the light of the bulb glowing over his features. A soft chuckle escaped him as he gave a crooked simper.
“Tabitha...It's nothing. Let's...let's just forget about the gala, it was a mess anyways.” He said, waving for the robot and 'A' to step into the workshop.
“I know but...I upset you and didn't listen to what you had to say and basically bulldozed you over and I...I shouldn't have.” Her head drooped in shame and she found it oddly hard to make eye contact. Clay reached a hand to pat her arm encouragingly.
“Tabitha, don't be so hard on yourself, I didn't help the situation. You were concerned about me...we're friends and I let the stress get to me and I lashed out. That was,” he paused, “low of me.” Tabitha raised her head and ruffled his stressed locks.
“Clay-Jar...” she sighed, unable to finish. “Tomorrow night...will you let me make you dinner?”
Clay's eyes widened, his mouth opening slightly as he searched her smile...did he just get invited to a dinner date? Tabitha couldn't help but snort as he gaped at her.
“Nothing fancy Clay, I just...have something I want to talk to you about.” She explained. Clay blinked before returning to his senses.
“Oh...o-of course. W-what time?”
“Come to my room, number 291, let's say...around seven? Will that be okay for you?” She asked. Clay nodded swiftly,
“Yes, that would be perfect.” His answer was quick, then he stood quietly, unsure of what exactly he was supposed to do now. After a moment of silence, Tabitha crossed her arms and coughed,
“So uh...what exactly did you come here for? I didn't really give you the chance to speak before I just...blurted out an apology.”
“Oh...uh,” he turned, grabbing Clap-Trap who had stood strangely quiet during the whole conversation. “When I got home from the gala, a group of masked people had broken into my lab. I don't know what they wanted, but Clap-Trap and 'A' fended them off. However, Clap-Trap here has a pretty impressive dent that seems to be messing with his communication device...or so he claims. I was wondering if maybe you would have time to check him out?” Clay pointed to the large concave circle on the backside of his robot.
“What in the world! You have no clue who these people are or what they wanted!?” Tabitha gasped, grabbing Clap-Trap and examining his damage.
“Hah!” The robot exclaimed. “What does it even matter? I fought them off bravely, their mission was a failure and they'll have to live with that for the rest of their lives. Knowing they were bested by me! The best Clap-Trap, and prettiest shade of purple, that there is!” He shouted victoriously.
“It's a shame they didn't bust your speaker instead.” Clay muttered, rolling his eyes.
“And what about you?” Tabitha winked toward 'A' who had been eyeing the half finished robot strapped to the table. He turned quickly, smiling towards the mechanic.
“I-f-fou-ought to-too. The-ey...were...sc-ar-scared.” He then growled, showing his fangs.
“He said, 'I fought too, they were scared.'” Clay interpreted.
“I know, you don't have to explain, I understood him.” Tabitha rolled her eyes, shaking her head in a sarcastic manor.
She undid a row of bolts down Clap-Trap's back and opened to a chip board. She flipped a switch causing the robot to sputter before completely powering off. She grumbled to herself as she poked and prodded on his innards.
“This...may take a while. I think I'll have to go get a whole new transmitter/receptor from parts and services before I can fix him up. It may take a few hours. When I'm done i'll just send him to come find you.” Tabitha stated as she yanked a dented metal chunk from the robot, wires and spark flying everywhere.
Clay winced, imagining how the robot would be howling if he were only powered on.
“Yeah, ok that's fine...I'll..I'll see you tomorrow night then?” He asked, scooping up 'A', who wasn't too eager to leave just yet.
“Yup, 7. Don't forget.” She winked. Clay smiled back then hurried for his lab, as he wrote 7:00 in his pocket planner. 626Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRcNg6fvs0
“A...I just want to let you know that things may be a little bit different from now on.” Clay muttered as him and the experiment walked for the project labs. 'A' held tightly to the scientists hand, looking up at him in a confused manner.
“Wh-why?” He asked.
“Well...it's just that...there is a new project manager starting to help me. His name is Braden. I'm sure he's a nice fellow...I just...just hope he has the same vision for this project as I do.” Clay sighed, wondering if perhaps this was all a bit too much for the child to grasp.
They continued their walk in silence, until they neared the labs. A loud commotion rang out through the vast halls, and 'A' held a hand over one of his ears. One voice in particular could be heard clearly over the fuss, echoing out loudly like a beacon through the noise. Clay was immediately confused when he stepped into the project lab and found everyone bustling about like ants in a mound, seeing to the beck and call of their queen.
Clay peered up to his office, looking out over the whole area. There, yammering on into his intercom, was Braden, pointing and waving as he shouted demands. Clay felt a growl rise in the pit of his stomach, but paused as he saw Simeone and Leanne pushing what appeared to be a large wagon of boxes. Their heads were hung in a sorrowful state and Clay rushed to them, eager to know what exactly was going on.
“Simeone, Leanne, what's with all the boxes?” He demanded, still clutching tightly to 'A's little hand. Simeone lifted his head, sighing as his eyes rested on the confused scientist.
“It seems that your new “partner” doesn't find our work...necessary. He is letting us go.” The burly man explained. Clay's brows knitted together and his fists shook.
“What!” Hate dripped from his words like venom, couldn't anything go right?
“Don't let it get to you Clay. We've done what we can here and there are other projects waiting for us back at our home Hyperion base. The project here is moving in a different direction and all the information you need has been gathered from the Stalkers. I'd imagine you will be releasing them soon as well.” Leanne patted his head tenderly.
“Yeah but...but I didn't even know. This is so sudden and I had...had hoped that maybe you would have advice for me as 'A' ages. Who knows what Stalker instincts will start to takeover.” Clay exclaimed.
“Seems to me like you have another “take over” to worry about.” Simeone nodded his head towards the tall tower office where Braden continued to bark orders. Clay huffed, rolling his eyes as he cursed mentally.
“I suppose so.” he snorted, “But will I at least get to..” He was interrupted as the speakers boomed even louder than before, rattling Clay to his very bones.
“CLAY! THERE YOU ARE! I WAS WONDERING WHEN YOU WOULD SHOW UP SO WE CAN GET THIS PROJECT ROLLING! COME UP HERE! I'VE BEEN DYING TO SEE THE EXPERIMENT!!” Braden's voice boomed, leaving a deafening ringing in the scientists head. He shoved a pinky in his tingling ear, hoping to stop the aftermath, but to no avail.
“I...better go speak with him. I'm honored to have met you two.” Clay gave a kind nod to the siblings before turning and dragging 'A' with him up to the office.
The loud demands and shouts over the intercom momentarily quieted as Clay and 'A' neared the top of the stairs. Clay was mentally preparing himself, he had a whole rant prepared by the time he finally stepped into the office, but he never got the chance to even open his mouth before he was practically attacked by Braden.
“Clay! Finally, you walk like a freaking slug, you're so damn slow!” He hissed through the gritted smile stretched on his face. Clay tried to speak but was cut off yet again when Braden suddenly yanked 'A's small hand out of the scientists grasp.
“OOOOOOooooooh, look at this!” He gasped in awe. “The experiment is so...so different! I absolutely love the idea you have so far, it has so much potential.” He held 'A's chin in his hand, tilting his head to get a good look at him. 'A' growled, showing his teeth to the stranger, but Braden didn't seem to mind.
“He's quite...temperamental huh?” He sneered, “Well...that will be fixed. All in due time.” Clay finally found his voice and placing his hands on his hips, spoke,
“Look...Braden, I don't know what the CEO's have told you, but you can't just come in here and start firing MY workers without confronting ME about it. You were not placed as my overseer.” his voice was an irritated grumble. Braden peered up at him, his eyes blinking like that of an innocent child as he lazily plopped down in Clay's office chair and spun around to once.
“If I recall, we are co-project managers...correct?” Braden asked.
“Yes, that's what they said.” Clay agreed, his foot tapping on the floor with irritation.
“Well, that means I have control over the whole project...just like you. I can tell them to do whatever, and they have to listen, I can fire whoever I want and they have to leave, I can hire whoever I want and they have to come. The only person I can't command...” he stood up, nearing Clay with a snarly grin. “Is you.” He flicked his finger to the tip of the scientists nose before retreating back to the chair, cradling the back of his head with his hands.
Clay blinked with surprise before the boiling heat of fury snapped some fight back into him. 'A' could feel the tension building and huddled near the exit, waiting for Clay feed the flames.
“Co-manager or not, I can easily fire whoever you hire and hire back whomever I please. What makes you think that I wont undermine any of your work if I decide that I hate any of it.” Clay's voice was low like thunder, rumbling from the pit of his chest. “You're awfully cocky for someone on the first day of the job. Don't let all this power go to your head Braden, I don't care what you think you can do here. But in the end, I'm the one who made 'A', I'm the one who came up with this project, and I ultimately decide what happens to him, he is under my care!” Clay pointed back towards 'A', keeping his gleaming eyes at the strange man who had overtaken his office.
Braden studied Clay carefully, peeking over his shoulder to eye the tense experiment. He gave a thoughtful “hmmm” before scrunching his nose.
“Yeaaaaah. That's swell and all, but if the CEO's want something, then that's what I'm here to do.” Braden shrugged. Clay rolled his eyes, there was no reasoning with the man. He knew right off the bat that Braden would give him trouble, just another thorn in his side. Clay felt like he was losing the reigns on the whole project, he held the title, but it had been completely stripped of its meaning. He was just for show, it felt like, and all he could do was sit back and watch as people took is creations, his idea, and did what they wanted with them, straying from his original designs.
Clay wasn't sure where to even begin with the project anymore, he had been pushed and shoved towards so many goals, that he had lost sight of his own, and for a split second, he felt his enthusiasm fade...why was he even here?
Braden stood from the office chair, peering down at his watch.
“Time to meet Hardie.” He sighed, walking for the exit. He grabbed 'A's arm and yanked him off the floor, pulling him down the stairs.
“Hey!” Clay shouted after him, darting to keep up. 'A' was startled and tried to pull his arm away, but it was futile. He was too frightened to fight back, and instead shouted for Clay to follow as Braden lead him off through the labs.
“Where are you taking 'A'?” Clay demanded as he trailed close behind.
“I'm taking the experiment to see Hardie.” Braden barked as if it was obvious.
“Who in the world is Hardie?” Clay questioned, but he had a bad feeling when Braden began to walk towards the GYM section of the lab. Clay swallowed hard, remembering the terrible trainer from before.
“Hardie is an assassin expert that I hired. He will evaluate the experiment on it's capabilities, telling us what improvements need to be made to his body to allow him to become the ultimate assassin. After all, what do we scientists know about...assassin work?” He chuckled as the three stepped into the GYM.
Clay could see 'A' shuttering and trembling, no doubt remembering the trauma he experienced there. Oh what Clay wouldn't give to hug the poor child and calmly whisper to him that things would be okay, but Braden yanked him away and onto the matted floors.
At first the GYM appeared empty, until they stood in the middle of the training floor. Almost in the blink of an eye, a man appeared before them as if he had ridden in on a gentle breeze, invisible to the naked eye. He was a slender, pale man with the expression somewhat of an old owl. His grey eyes searched the three standing in front of him before his thin lips parted,
“Is this the subject?” He jabbed a crooked finger towards 'A'.
“Yup.” Braden nodded and shoved 'A' forward. The poor child gulped back his fears and stood proud, not wanting to embarrass his caretaker. It all began so quickly that Clay found he had a hard time keeping up. Hardie put his hand behind 'A's head and guided him to another part of the room and immediately the evaluation begun.
The young experiment climbed ropes, beams and walls. He flipped and bounded, glided and spun. He displayed his ability to turn completely invisible and re-appear practically wherever. He preformed acrobatics and stunts that Clay didn't even know he was capable of, following Hardie's every instruction until at last, hours later, it was over.
Hardie, Braden and Clay were then gathered together in a meeting of sorts, just outside the GYM where 'A' had stayed behind to freshen up, after Clay requested he had.
“So...what did you think?” Braden crossed his arms, a seriousness in his tone that Clay didn't know he was capable of. Hardie's eyes darted back and forth between the two as he cleared his throat.
“He has much potential. However, I have noticed many things that will give him a considerable set back. There are assassin's out there in the real world as we speak, yet none of them have the promise of this experiment. If you take my advice seriously, then you will be able to craft the best assassin this world has ever seen, and it will belong to Hyperion.” He started, causing a sly smile to slide over Braden. “In order for this experiment to gain better stealth...he MUST lose the tail.”
“WHAT!?” Clay yelped, his eyes widening. “Are you mad...that's...that's unnecessary amputation!” He shrieked but stopped as Braden held a finger up for him to hush.
“Let him finish.” Braden hissed in irritation.
“The tail is not useless, I see he uses it for balance, however, if you remove his wings, he'll have no need for it. His wings do not help him as an assassin at all. They may prove handy for gliding, but they create too much sound, he cannot be stealthy with them. The tail is the same, it is so bulky he can hardly even flip with it as it is. It slows him down, preventing him from truly being able to sneak properly.” Hardie explained.
“Surely there's another way to improve his skills without...well without lopping all his limbs off!” Clay felt like he was on trial, pleading his case, but neither Hardie or Braden cared what he had to say, and he was begging to a deaf jury.
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