[X] Rage, they stand in your way when you are so close! They lie in wait, preying upon those who need merciful assistance the most. They would attack at times so dire?! Your right arm is free, your weapon ready to be withdrawn. The only one looking at you is this yellow toothed mother fucker.
So close to your salvation you finally run into other humans, other persons who might understand your plight. Yet they take advantage of you. They are using you as leverage so as to take advantage of those more altruistic than themselves, a clinic devoting itself to offering the care those less fortunate need so much.
Even worse they impede your path. They dare!? You need this treatment, you must seek out your Master, you sense the purity of soul nearby indicative of what has to be his presence, and you are being impeded by this disgusting excuse for a human being, this filthy degenerate leaning next to you with evil intents in his heart, and a yellow toothed grin. It only takes a couple of seconds for your free arm to undo the clasp for your sidearm's holster, from there it only takes another second for you to jam the barrel of the pistol against the the soft tissue joining his jaw and his neck. He barely has time to begin expressing shock before you pull the trigger.
The bang of the exploding gunpowder, and the sharp clack of the action immediately after have never been so satisfying. The corpse slumps against you and puts pressure on your injured arm, but you are able to force through the pain and shove the corpse off to the side while before swinging your weapon to bear on the other human. Your new target has been taken completely by surprise, as if shocked by how much noise the gunshot just made, and even more when he realizes the shot came from you.
On reflex he had begun aiming his strangely configured rifle back down the alley, only to now see your gun being brought to bear on him from the side. You fire twice at his center of mass, convinced that will be sufficient, when to your surprise the armor plate actually manages to protect him with ease. Quickly adjusting your fire upwards though, his left eye is significantly less protected from your fourth shot.
The four eyed humanoid though is significantly quicker on the uptake, and quickly tackles you against the wall again, before grabbing your wrist as you fell and smashing it hard against the pavement. You can't help but cry out in pain, as your previous injuries flare up in protest to the rough treatment. This doesn't stop you from pushing back against your attacker, and managing to get him to fall to his back as he loses traction against some slippery substance on the metallic floor. Withdrawing your knife you again scream at him before lunging forward with a stab. The blade harmlessly glances off of his armor even as he holds you back with a single disgusting hand on your face, which you dutifully bite, even as you find a slot in the armor your knife can fit into.
Whether your knife found purchase on flesh in that gap, or your bite was stronger than he expected, he yells out in pain, before his foot finds leverage against your stomach and he kicks you off from him. You note a bitter taste in your mouth, and something flies from your teeth as you grunt from the kick, before you strike the door of the clinic, shortly before it opens.
Dazed and beaten, you barely even notice the additional blue armored figure rounding the corner before a pair of sharp pulsing sounds announce its death, and a third finishes off the one on the ground before he can bring his gun around. Blearily turning your head to observe your savior, you see a strange being, unlike any others you've observed yet. with large eyes, and one of what appears to have once been a pair of horns. The appearance would normally be demonic, but you sense such pity, caring, regret, and sorrow in the figure that finally feel that you must reach out to them.
Quickly they kneel down and support you as you attempt to sit up, and begin to pick you up and carry you inside. The call out to some unseen figures in a quick flurry of words that seem faint to you, but you do not care. You embrace them with your free and uninjured arm as powerfully as you can, as powerfully as you ever have.
Pressing your face up against them, you finally feel soothed and complete. Though it is lost to the cacophony around you, your utterance of "Master" has never felt so complete. Closing your eyes, you are content enough to ignore your injuries and sleep.
Imprint Acquired, STRESS threshold increased.
STRESS 5/30
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You awake to a voice complaining about something under their breath across the room. The voice sounds human, and after a few moments you are able to pick out some words of english. Cracking your eyes open you note a rather cluttered hospital room, before your attention is drawn to the hiss of a door opening, admitting entrance to a blurred figure who you can still easily identify as your Master.
"Ah, see cataloguing nearly complete. Good work Daniel. Leads?" You master says, curious.
His assistant, now known to you as 'Daniel,' is simply frustrated "Not even one, not even a result for any of the words on her suit. None of the labels on the various components led to a known manufacturer either. The extranet literally has nothing on anything of hers, hell, the closest thing I got is a massively out of date design similar to that pistol you said she was using." Daniel pauses slightly before turning away from the console he was working on to look at your Master directly, "She really shot two people?"
"Fired four shots yes. First, severing spine of captor, fourth entering eye socket of spokesperson. Bit Batarian enforcer, strip of connective tissue between phalanges found in-"
"I really didn't want specifics Mordin, its alarming. She just outright killed two people. Shouldn't that bother you more?" The assistant says, backing up a step and making some seemingly pleading gestures.
Your Master, 'Mordin,' hardly misses a beat, and immediately sets about an explanation, "Subject acted in desperation, was already injured prior to arrival, threatening figures potentially perceived as authorities. Threat response expected, if elevated beyond normal levels. Only incongruent factor is apparent subject age."
"I can't say I accept that, but we aren't getting anywhere with this. You said you needed to analyze the scans in depth?" Daniel signals defeat, and allows things to return to a more professional atmosphere.
"Hmm yes," Mordin says, activating another of those orange holograms along his arm, and getting it to display some overlay of a human body, presumably yours, before looking at differing layers of information, "Human child. Around ten years of age. Scans show signs of...extensive gene therapy?" He says, glancing over at you, apparently aware of your being awake. You smile slightly. "Unknown program. Messy, inefficient, invasive. And...unethical as well."
You start slightly, wondering why he disapproves. The program ensured you would be suitable for your purpose, and provided you keep up with your needs it was quite sufficient at its role. You wince, reaching up to your temples with your left arm, which appears to be renewed and healthy.
STRESS 6/30
Your Master sees the gesture before continueing, "Yes. Headaches, unnatural. No notable physiological cause. Side effect of gene therapy? Interesting. Something to work on." He alters a few inputs, and certain regions of the holograms skeleton are highlighted in various imposing colors, "Showed signs of lingering stress injuries sustained prior to primary injuries. Compressed spine. Stressed hips. Indicative of high accelerative forces sustained over an extended period of time."
A pause indicates some brief thought, subtle enough for you not to be able to follow, "Human medical research records report similar injuries among fighter pilots. Peculiar that they show here. Inertial dampening having long since resolved most of the issue." A few rapid clicks later, and the holograms disappear, and your Master turns to face you fully. "Stay here if you wish. Interesting test study... Oh, can help too, yes."
The final statement confuses you, and not just the portions he added as an afterthought. "Master?" You ask, wishing him to clarify.
There is a sudden bolt of tension in the room, as the assistant looks to the doctor questioningly before your Master speaks up again, "Implications… unfortunate."
[] ???
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