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Entry tags:
004 | Day 123 | Video
[ He likes the basement. It reminds him of Manticore. Everything about this place reminds him of Manticore though. The bad lighting and the stale air. This place is almost like home to Alec which is the saddest part of all this. These people seem like fish out of water being plucked from the town, but Alec finds this more up his alley. Broken down facilities mixed with whatever this was isn't that hard for him to deal with. It's a bitter pill, but he's more eager to swallow it than the crap he was in before. Plus the scenery change means he doesn't have to think about Allison going back home. He's been avoiding that for some time now. It's stupid and it makes his stomach tightening just at the thought of how childish he was being. Anita would say it was only human, but Alec doesn't want to be human. Human is less than what he is and he can't be that. He won't.
When the feed comes on he holds the phone up to get a clear shot of his face and the background behind him. He stretches out his arms and smiles. ] I gotta say I dig the new home we got. It reminds me of home. Add in some drill instructors and a lot of socially challenged young adults and you got my childhood. [ That sounds vague and he's done being vague. Balthazar had a point prior to all this crap. He's a smart dude and hiding this from people isn't going to save him any face. Things are changing and with all these new arrivals he'd rather them keep their distance. Especially when half of them would confuse him for Dean. ]
I've been pretty vague about my life since I showed up, but I guess I can fill in some holes. I'm from 2020. In my world genetic manipulation is possible. Possible times about a million. I was made for a program the government ran entitled Manticore. They wanted to make the perfect super soldier and then crank us out onto the frontlines to fight their war. They spliced our DNA with a bunch of animal DNA. The only DNA I'm sure of is feline and shark. The rest? I dunno. That info went up in flames when Manticore did. I don't know a lot, but what I do know is that I'm not Dean.
[ He clears his throat and sits forward. ] I was made to kill. I'm damn good at it. There was a time that I could look you in the eyes and put one between your eyes. I probably still could, but I'd feel a little bad about it later. I'm not homicidal, but I'll defend myself. It was how I was taught to be.
We were born for a purpose and none of that included a regular childhood. [ He shifts uncomfortably on the edge of the half empty pool. He rubs the back of his neck before settling once more. ] I lived in a facility my entire life. I don't even know my own mother. Technically I'm a clone of my original. His name was Ben. Manticore made backups when they perfected the X5 formula. I was a backup. We were raised by guards and assholes who were only interested in training us and pushing us to the limit. They got what was coming to them though. [ The way he talks about killing is probably a little off putting considering how happy-go-lucky he's been since he arrived. ] I'm a science experiment and in my world humans--they hate us. Wanna kill us. They beat a friend of mine to death because of what he was. So--you'll excuse my reluctance to share with the class sooner. This place though just--I honestly don't know. I think I feel more at home here. Manticore was hell for a little boy growing up, but as a man it was home. I guess this place reminds me of it.
But if any of you wanna step to me because of what I am then I suggest you turn yourself around. I won't hesitate to snap your neck. I'll maybe feel bad about it, but you won't be breathing. We cool?
When the feed comes on he holds the phone up to get a clear shot of his face and the background behind him. He stretches out his arms and smiles. ] I gotta say I dig the new home we got. It reminds me of home. Add in some drill instructors and a lot of socially challenged young adults and you got my childhood. [ That sounds vague and he's done being vague. Balthazar had a point prior to all this crap. He's a smart dude and hiding this from people isn't going to save him any face. Things are changing and with all these new arrivals he'd rather them keep their distance. Especially when half of them would confuse him for Dean. ]
I've been pretty vague about my life since I showed up, but I guess I can fill in some holes. I'm from 2020. In my world genetic manipulation is possible. Possible times about a million. I was made for a program the government ran entitled Manticore. They wanted to make the perfect super soldier and then crank us out onto the frontlines to fight their war. They spliced our DNA with a bunch of animal DNA. The only DNA I'm sure of is feline and shark. The rest? I dunno. That info went up in flames when Manticore did. I don't know a lot, but what I do know is that I'm not Dean.
[ He clears his throat and sits forward. ] I was made to kill. I'm damn good at it. There was a time that I could look you in the eyes and put one between your eyes. I probably still could, but I'd feel a little bad about it later. I'm not homicidal, but I'll defend myself. It was how I was taught to be.
We were born for a purpose and none of that included a regular childhood. [ He shifts uncomfortably on the edge of the half empty pool. He rubs the back of his neck before settling once more. ] I lived in a facility my entire life. I don't even know my own mother. Technically I'm a clone of my original. His name was Ben. Manticore made backups when they perfected the X5 formula. I was a backup. We were raised by guards and assholes who were only interested in training us and pushing us to the limit. They got what was coming to them though. [ The way he talks about killing is probably a little off putting considering how happy-go-lucky he's been since he arrived. ] I'm a science experiment and in my world humans--they hate us. Wanna kill us. They beat a friend of mine to death because of what he was. So--you'll excuse my reluctance to share with the class sooner. This place though just--I honestly don't know. I think I feel more at home here. Manticore was hell for a little boy growing up, but as a man it was home. I guess this place reminds me of it.
But if any of you wanna step to me because of what I am then I suggest you turn yourself around. I won't hesitate to snap your neck. I'll maybe feel bad about it, but you won't be breathing. We cool?
no subject
[ When Alec is able to be this obnoxious with you it just means that he likes you the most. Anita's been a decent roommate. She only pushes when he needs it. Like the conversation about Allison that made him feel teen times more awkward. ] It's a bullshit way to grow up. They called 'em classes, but really it was just brainwashing. A whole bunch of duty and honor crap being drilled into our heads.
no subject
[But she knows he's only this much of a pain in her ass because he likes her. Alec, you have a funny way of showing your love -- but she understands. She tends to harass the people she's closest to, as well.]
I'm glad you got the hell out of there. Nobody deserves that crap.
no subject
[ Alec is a firm believer in the childhood mentality that you mess with the ones you like the most. It's probably safe to say he likes Anita the most because she looks out for him. She reminds him of Max in a lot of ways. Only she can't relate to the crap he went through. It's not a bad thing though. He likes it. ]
I almost didn't get a chance to get out. We only left because my friend Max burned it to the ground. She did some good, but she also put a helluva lot of fucked up people out in the world.
no subject
[Except she doesn't, but if she wasn't being difficult, hell, he might think something was wrong. It's true. You only harass the people you love. Alec reminds her so much of Jason that it's difficult not to feel comfortable around him, though he doesn't quite have Jason's way of hitting her upside the head with hard truths when she needs it most. Maybe he does and she just doesn't know it yet. At this point, it wouldn't surprise her.]
Do you think the good outweighed the bad in that situation? [If there's anything Anita understands, it's gray areas.] Sometimes you just have to cut your losses and call it a win. In my experience, there aren't many good deeds that don't come with an enormous price tag.
no subject
[ He's not sure if the good did or not. A lot of scared and lonely people got out into that world. A lot of things got out there as well. Too much bad crap has come from Manticore and that includes Alec. He's got a list longer than his arm of the people he's killed or been responsible for. He should be locked up, but it's not gonna happen. ]
You hand a kid a machine gun and you tell him to shoot anyone who stands in the way of his mission. Now imagine that same kid out in the real world who probably thinks this is all some Manticore test. Imagine what he's capable of if he thinks he has to prove himself to his home.
[ He pauses to let it sink in. ] Boom.
no subject
[She can deal with that.
As he talks about the kids from Manticore, she can't help drawing parallels with some of the shapeshifters she knows. The situation isn't the same, not by a longshot, but some of the philosophy is. The world at large is not their world and the way they engage it is violet, chaotic.]
... I take it back. But I feel bad for the kids in question. They never asked for that, and they don't deserve it. Nobody does.
no subject
[ None of them asked for it. Born into it. The "mothers" were volunteers. Sometimes he thinks about Ellen and Jo and wonders what it would have been like to have that kind of relationship. To actually have a parent that worried about you and fretted over you. It seemed so foreign to him, but at the same time he couldn't decide if he wanted it. ]
Ya know we were their first successful series? X5's that is. The only real functional bunch.
no subject
[She frowns, pursing her lips slightly.]
I'm assuming there were four generations before you. Do you know what went wrong with them?
no subject
[ If anything Max always saw Alec as unreliable. He couldn't be counted on and she never did. She had Logan for that. ]
Yeah. Lots of things. Too much animal DNA made them violent. X2's were crazy aggressive. It's hit or miss with this crap.
no subject
[But he knows full well how affectionately she means that. He's been a good friend and housemate if nothing else. Even with their new rooming assignments in this place, she's chosen to stick close to him. Reliable or otherwise, she trusts him.]
Makes sense. Even the tiniest change in genetic makeup could have some seriously dramatic results.
no subject
[ Despite the fact that he did just say it was sad she was relying on him. It actually is pretty sad, but still. Only he's allowed to say that out loud, Anita. Damn. ]
Yeah. Their first two were human in a lot of ways, but too much canine mutated their looks. Our friend Joshua--one of the first ones--was like an actual dog boy. He barked at cats and ate like an animal. Good guy, but still.
no subject
[Because she would have. She appreciates him more than he knows, most likely.]
A little too much of one ingredient or another and it changes the flavor entirely, huh. ... okay, maybe cooking isn't the best metaphor for this, but you know what I mean. Were a lot of those? Your predecessors, I mean.
[Not cooking metaphors.]