[ there's a vague 'oh' spoken, accepting that as making sense. or accepting that as the reason and determining to think back on it later to make sure it makes sense. either way, he still had a lock of bucky's hair in his hand, fingers feeling at the texture and frowning a bit. ] How's it that everything else on us's almost the same, but your hair's darker? Did you dye it?
[ that's a comical mental picture, and andyr has the urge to ask if his arm got rusty when he had to wash out the dye, or if he has to wear a bag over one side of him when he showers. the thoughts derail into the clones from home, though, and how he's seen himself blond, green eyed, tall, short, with all kinds of cybernetics attached. ]
You should see Mikal. He looks like he's made outta fucking porcelain. ...Miss him. [ The only one of his clones he really likes, or, more so, doesn't hate. he'd call Mikal a brother, easily, and it's definitely the alcohol that has him openly admitting to missing him, Andyr going a bit distant as he thinks back to home, and how they'd been in the middle of the raid when he was snatched up. Mikal just right behind him. People have said time isn't moving back home while you're here, but Andyr can't help the worry that he'll be screwed without Andyr there. That Hapsburg will take him back in, maybe torture him for Resistance information. Maybe put him back to work. Maybe just kill him. He's snapped out of it by the question, blinking up to Barnes for a moment, owlishly. ] Is that not supposed to happen?
[ Bucky's hair so dark it's almost black, and he can't imagine dyeing it that way -- that's just ridiculous. Apparently, the ridiculousness of it isn't lost on Andyr either. He sits still, letting the younger man tug on his hair like a particularly patient uncle with an unruly child. Bucky's wondered briefly, of course, if this is just another elaborate trap to draw him in; had considered, in detail, the advantages and disadvantages of that -- and has concluded that it seemed too convoluted and pointless to be any sort of snare to drag him back into HYDRA.
Perhaps Andyr and his compatriots really are from another world with a chillingly similar behemoth of an organization that has nothing to do with HYDRA.
And so he listens when Andyr talks about Mikal -- whoever he is must be precious to him, what with the way he sounds. A brother? A lover, maybe? -- Bucky doesn't have the remotest idea who that is, but he collects that name anyway. Faking affection is difficult, and hot-headed Andyr doesn't seem like the kind of person who would give obfuscation the time of day; he's too honest for that. ]
Depending on the person. Tell me if you feel like vomiting. [ Then, ] Who's Mikal?
Uh huh. [ Andyr hums absently, acknowledging that, yes, he will inform him before he starts throwing up. though it's as if it's an afterthought, so Bucky may want to be ready to move. He's more so concerned with thoughts of Mikal, and home. ]
Mikal's one of my clones. Only one I don't hate, honestly. [ Which may tell you a little bit of why he was so angry with Bucky when he'd first met him, and so standoffish after. The only one he'd ever been fond of is Mikal, not even by his own machinations, and even if Bucky isn't one of his clones, it'd still felt like a betray. He isn't just a clone of him, Mikal evolved into so much more than that, and Andyr can hardly claim responsibility for any of it, outside of the most basic genetics. ] But he's so good. He's so freakin' smart, and I got no idea where that came from. I mean, I'm not an idiot, and I do okay, but he's got this mind for strategy and tactics like you've never seen.
You know, he actually tricked me into sympathizing with him just to use me like a battering ram for him to escape Hapsburg? [ And he hadn't even realized it until they were already out. At first, he'd been pissed, but after, he was just impressed. As violent, enraged and volatile as Andyr is, he knows he'll never be as dangerous as Mikal is. Not nearly. ] He was made to be a companion model, no extra augments for combat, and ended up Resistance leader.
If there's anyone who can bring the Houses down, it'll be him.
[ Manipulative, sharp, cunning -- a natural response, perhaps, to the overwhelming control the Hapsburg seems to have over its people. He's still learning about it from Andyr, solving little puzzles and discovering more of the other man in turn.
Turns out, beyond the rage and anger; Andyr's really not a bad person. He listens to the man talk about this other clone, supposes that this Mikal does have a mind for strategy. He knows tactics, able to utilise and improvise even the most complicated maneuver in a heartbeat because it's how he's been wired to think to make a kill, to complete the mission. But here's the question: ]
Corporate blueprints. I'm a Template. [ he answers immediately. something he'd mentioned to bucky before, when he was shouting at him in the pool, so fresh from his freak out. the way he'd said it then, he was being a vitriolic as possible, just angry and seething and wanting to hurt something. not the best means of explanation. so, now, andyr sits up a bit, blinks sluggishly, and tries to get his drunken brain to cooperate long enough to get this out.]
So, you've got KN1s and KN2s, right? KN1s are normal, originally rights-having humans, born out in the city or wherever, who just have this gene in them called the Kerns-Norman gene. And then it activates and everything sucks. Anyway, that's what I am, KN1. KN2 are clones from KN1 genes, like Mikal. [ something about it sounds more reasonable, when explained like this, and andyr frowns for a moment, unhappy with that. but, beside the point. continuing on with the lesson. ] When a House gets a KN1 that has stupid strong genes, that clones well and augments easy, they make them a Template. Drill these ports into your back, and you get locked up tight, like company secrets. Because the gene alters so fast, every time they wanna make a new series of clones, they have to take the Template out, get these nasty huge needles, and suck the genetic tissue straight out of your spine.
[ ah. he's bordering on gross again. calm your tits, andyr, he didn't ask for all the details. reel it in. ]
So, that's what I was. Lab rat that made other lab rats that made lots of money. Also why they haven't just killed my annoying ass yet. [ or, rather, forced him to live, even when he'd tried not to. ]
[ Andyr explains it and lays it all out for him -- it doesn't take long for Bucky to get the whole picture of it, sans a few pieces here and there but still. He'd caught pieces of it when the other man had been yelling it at him, viciously trying to cram all that information down his throat and Bucky had wanted none of that.
He's listening now, gaining a measure of this man, understanding him and how he clicked, and knowing they're not so different after all. He frowns, quietly sympathetic. Andyr is flippant, but Bucky knows better, aware that it's his defense mechanism, and he's still irrevocably damaged deep down inside.
That's the thing about being a lab rat, good only for things that would directly benefit others -- seen as a commodity and not as an individual: the scars don't go away all that quickly. ]
[ His eyes go a bit distant, and Andyr wants to say he hopes so too, but knows that won't be the case. Even if he's given the choice, if it's take the Ingress or stay in this universe, he'll go, right back into Hapsburg's loving arms. ]
I have to. [ with the first once of real fear in his voice, spoken quietly, and resigned. even with the torture he knows is there, the misery, the inescapable hell. but he can't leave the Houses until he knows Posie, Alva, and Alva's kids are all out and safe. That Mikal's not stuck inside the walls again. He can't stay in this world, in peace, and know he's left them behind. After all, he promised Posie he'd take her to the ocean some day.
The train of thought is abruptly derailed with the unease that jolts up in his stomach, nausea flooding him, and oh. this is what he was supposed to warm about. before it happened. a hand slaps over his mouth, and he announces, albeit muffled: ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ that's a comical mental picture, and andyr has the urge to ask if his arm got rusty when he had to wash out the dye, or if he has to wear a bag over one side of him when he showers. the thoughts derail into the clones from home, though, and how he's seen himself blond, green eyed, tall, short, with all kinds of cybernetics attached. ]
You should see Mikal. He looks like he's made outta fucking porcelain. ...Miss him. [ The only one of his clones he really likes, or, more so, doesn't hate. he'd call Mikal a brother, easily, and it's definitely the alcohol that has him openly admitting to missing him, Andyr going a bit distant as he thinks back to home, and how they'd been in the middle of the raid when he was snatched up. Mikal just right behind him. People have said time isn't moving back home while you're here, but Andyr can't help the worry that he'll be screwed without Andyr there. That Hapsburg will take him back in, maybe torture him for Resistance information. Maybe put him back to work. Maybe just kill him. He's snapped out of it by the question, blinking up to Barnes for a moment, owlishly. ] Is that not supposed to happen?
no subject
[ Bucky's hair so dark it's almost black, and he can't imagine dyeing it that way -- that's just ridiculous. Apparently, the ridiculousness of it isn't lost on Andyr either. He sits still, letting the younger man tug on his hair like a particularly patient uncle with an unruly child. Bucky's wondered briefly, of course, if this is just another elaborate trap to draw him in; had considered, in detail, the advantages and disadvantages of that -- and has concluded that it seemed too convoluted and pointless to be any sort of snare to drag him back into HYDRA.
Perhaps Andyr and his compatriots really are from another world with a chillingly similar behemoth of an organization that has nothing to do with HYDRA.
And so he listens when Andyr talks about Mikal -- whoever he is must be precious to him, what with the way he sounds. A brother? A lover, maybe? -- Bucky doesn't have the remotest idea who that is, but he collects that name anyway. Faking affection is difficult, and hot-headed Andyr doesn't seem like the kind of person who would give obfuscation the time of day; he's too honest for that. ]
Depending on the person. Tell me if you feel like vomiting. [ Then, ] Who's Mikal?
no subject
Mikal's one of my clones. Only one I don't hate, honestly. [ Which may tell you a little bit of why he was so angry with Bucky when he'd first met him, and so standoffish after. The only one he'd ever been fond of is Mikal, not even by his own machinations, and even if Bucky isn't one of his clones, it'd still felt like a betray. He isn't just a clone of him, Mikal evolved into so much more than that, and Andyr can hardly claim responsibility for any of it, outside of the most basic genetics. ] But he's so good. He's so freakin' smart, and I got no idea where that came from. I mean, I'm not an idiot, and I do okay, but he's got this mind for strategy and tactics like you've never seen.
You know, he actually tricked me into sympathizing with him just to use me like a battering ram for him to escape Hapsburg? [ And he hadn't even realized it until they were already out. At first, he'd been pissed, but after, he was just impressed. As violent, enraged and volatile as Andyr is, he knows he'll never be as dangerous as Mikal is. Not nearly. ] He was made to be a companion model, no extra augments for combat, and ended up Resistance leader.
If there's anyone who can bring the Houses down, it'll be him.
no subject
[ Manipulative, sharp, cunning -- a natural response, perhaps, to the overwhelming control the Hapsburg seems to have over its people. He's still learning about it from Andyr, solving little puzzles and discovering more of the other man in turn.
Turns out, beyond the rage and anger; Andyr's really not a bad person. He listens to the man talk about this other clone, supposes that this Mikal does have a mind for strategy. He knows tactics, able to utilise and improvise even the most complicated maneuver in a heartbeat because it's how he's been wired to think to make a kill, to complete the mission. But here's the question: ]
What were you meant for, in their plans?
no subject
So, you've got KN1s and KN2s, right? KN1s are normal, originally rights-having humans, born out in the city or wherever, who just have this gene in them called the Kerns-Norman gene. And then it activates and everything sucks. Anyway, that's what I am, KN1. KN2 are clones from KN1 genes, like Mikal. [ something about it sounds more reasonable, when explained like this, and andyr frowns for a moment, unhappy with that. but, beside the point. continuing on with the lesson. ] When a House gets a KN1 that has stupid strong genes, that clones well and augments easy, they make them a Template. Drill these ports into your back, and you get locked up tight, like company secrets. Because the gene alters so fast, every time they wanna make a new series of clones, they have to take the Template out, get these nasty huge needles, and suck the genetic tissue straight out of your spine.
[ ah. he's bordering on gross again. calm your tits, andyr, he didn't ask for all the details. reel it in. ]
So, that's what I was. Lab rat that made other lab rats that made lots of money. Also why they haven't just killed my annoying ass yet. [ or, rather, forced him to live, even when he'd tried not to. ]
no subject
He's listening now, gaining a measure of this man, understanding him and how he clicked, and knowing they're not so different after all. He frowns, quietly sympathetic. Andyr is flippant, but Bucky knows better, aware that it's his defense mechanism, and he's still irrevocably damaged deep down inside.
That's the thing about being a lab rat, good only for things that would directly benefit others -- seen as a commodity and not as an individual: the scars don't go away all that quickly. ]
I hope you never have to go back there again.
no subject
I have to. [ with the first once of real fear in his voice, spoken quietly, and resigned. even with the torture he knows is there, the misery, the inescapable hell. but he can't leave the Houses until he knows Posie, Alva, and Alva's kids are all out and safe. That Mikal's not stuck inside the walls again. He can't stay in this world, in peace, and know he's left them behind. After all, he promised Posie he'd take her to the ocean some day.
The train of thought is abruptly derailed with the unease that jolts up in his stomach, nausea flooding him, and oh. this is what he was supposed to warm about. before it happened. a hand slaps over his mouth, and he announces, albeit muffled: ]
I'm gonna puke.