Obsolete - 3/? The Welcome Protocol - RukixUruha ~
Title: Obsolete
Chapter: 3/?
Author: shii_tan
Beta / colorist: kenxkenlove
Genre: AU, sci-fi, thriller
Warnings: wtf-ish moments, literal name calling (lol)
Rating: PG-13
Pairing and Characters: RukixUruha, The Gazette, Nightmare, Deluhi,... people from other bands and fictional characters.
Synopsis:What's the point of making a living when you can't die at all? A brand new name. "A simple check-up", the feminine and slightly robotic voice had told him on the phone. Quite a safe way to put it...
Comment: apologies for the shortness : /
Step One | Step Two || Lingo and definitions
[ fiction.archive ]
Chapter Three: The Welcome Protocol
Ending ♫ The End of The Beginning, by 30 Seconds To Mars - Lyrics
Working in an office had taught me the importance of being on time. It had slowly crept into my habits, to the point where the idea of being a few minutes late completely horrified me - I always showed up twenty-one minutes before my shift started, so I could mentally prepare for the day. I called it my personal centering time.
Which explained why it was nine past eleven in the evening when I reached the building of the Center. One of the bars where I sometimes hung out after work was only a few minutes away, so I had taken all my time to get there. Climbing the few steps that led me to the entrance, I lifted my head, trying to see the building in its entirety. I wasn't sure if those twenty minutes would be enough. If I squinted in a certain way, it suspiciously looked like it was about to swallow me, and -
"Excuse me?"
Startled, I turned around to face a perfect example of the working executive, expensive outfit and suitcase included, watching me with very visible irritation.
"Sorry," I apologized with a quick bow before stepping aside.
He walked up the stairs, and opened one of the heavy glass doors. "Well, aren't you going in?"
"I'm going to wait for another few minutes, thanks."
"Newbies," he sighed before disappearing inside.
I welcomed his remark with a frown. Damn it, why was I making such a big deal out of this to begin with? This was nothing more than the standard Welcome check-up. According to the friendly female anonymous and slightly robotic voice had told me on the phone three nights ago. As to know what she had meant, I had no clue. Standard was the kind of word that could mean anything.
"This is ridiculous."
I pushed the door and entered the lobby. Saves for the young receptionist, and another guy waiting for his turn, the place was pretty much empty. Funny, I had always expected the Center to be crowded at this time of the night.
"Mister Matsumoto," smiled the receptionist as soon as she saw me, "good evening! You're right on time for your appointment."
"Actually..." I quickly glanced at my watch.
"The candidate scheduled before you changed her mind and cancelled her upgrade."
"She cancelled it?"
"Sorry," she abruptly corrected herself, "I meant postponed. God, this is embarrassing... This is my second week and I'm still confused by the lingo... May I ask you for the documents you were to bring with you tonight, please?"
I put everything on the small silver tray she had slid over. "There you go."
"Birth certificate, ID, cash and credit cards... No drivers license?"
"I can't drive."
She nodded and entered the information into her computer. About a minute later, she handed me a silver plastic rectangle.
"Here is your temporary pass: you will need it to access the physical examination area; a member of the personnel will be waiting for you there. The elevators are on your left."
"Thank you. By the way, I wanted to know..."
"Yes?"
"What kind of examination is it, exactly? The person I talked to was very vague on the subject."
"A simple check-up," she answered. "Standard Welcome protocol."
~ * ~
The PSC and I clearly had a different conception as to what a simple check-up was.
"That will be all for tonight. You may take your shower now."
Panting, I finally stepped off the treadmill and waited patiently for Risa - as the name on her chest indicated - to remove the electrodes linking me to the heart monitor. In less than an hour, I had been weighed, measured; my sight and hearing had both been tested, two blood samples taken and a teething imprint made. After giving me a water bottle than I downed in almost one go, Risa instructed me how to dispose of the Council t-shirt and jogging pants that she had provided me earlier.
"Follow that corridor once you're done; it leads straight to your advisor's office."
I nodded and staggered to the showers. For the first time since I had received my letter, my head was pounding. I had slept most of the pain away, but all this exercise had made it worse. I didn't care however standard all this bs was, all I wanted right now was to find myself a dark room, somewhere away from these neon lights so I could rest my eyes.
When I walked back to my locker a few minutes later, I found a small plastic cup and another bottle of water standing next to my clothes. Guessing that this was the supplement Risa had told me to take, I swallowed the blue pill and washed it down with some water.
~ * ~
The eyes of my advisor barely acknowledged me when I knocked on his opened door.
"Come in. I'll be with you in a minute."
If it wasn't for the name written on the door, and the strange seat in the right corner, this office could as well have been the room of a student. Stacks of books cluttered the shelves and a couple of corners; a few pile of disorganized files dipped dangerously over the edge of the desk.
"Matsumoto Takanori..." The way people kept saying my name in this place was seriously starting to get on my nerves. The dark-haired man looked around for a moment and found my file on the top of a pile. "This is normally the part where I'm supposed to reassure you and tell you that you're fine."
"Is there a problem?"
"Nah, your results are good. According to our estimations, your conversion will be final in two weeks, three at the most. Do your relatives know about this? If you don't feel like doing it yourself..."
"I was thinking of keeping a low profile," I grimaced.
The last thing I needed was my mother snooping around.
"Of course. It is my duty to remind you that any citizen can access your status information if they request to do so. The Council will not give them your address or telephone number without your express authorization. Have you informed your former partners?"
"What do you mean?"
"People with whom you've engaged in sexual practices," Aoi clarified. "Intercourse or otherwise."
"Hm no? I didn't think it had anything to do with people changing."
"To tell you the truth, we know very little about what triggers the conversion process," Aoi admitted. "We have no damn clue at all about whether it is some kind of virus or some spontaneous mutation... Although recent studies tend to incline towards the latter. Of course, the only thing we can do about it is try to find some answers and gather as much information as we can. Which is the main motive behind the Welcome protocol."
My eyes traveled once more to the weird looking chair on the right. It reminded me of the ones we had to sit on to get a quick shiatsu massage at work, but the tray placed right next to it, and the surgical instrument it contained were implying something that was surely less pleasant.
"I see." I shifted uncomfortably on my seat.
"In any case, you have to remember that there's nothing vile or degrading about upgrading to permanence. A lot of progress has been made in the past decade; as long as you take your supplements and respect a few simple guidelines, you will have the same quality of life as we do."
"Wait - do you mean you're a transient?"
Aoi winced.
"Even if it is the official term, I'd rather you didn't use it - regular or standard are more acceptable. Transient makes me feel like some perishable goods."
"I thought... Your name sounds permanent to me."
"Doesn't it? Most of the staff here - especially counselors and doctors are human personnel. The Council considers it crucial for neophytes to be at ease with us. Some of you need some time to accept their upgrade as a reality; others don't like the idea of being in close contact with permanents, let alone touched by them during their adjustment. However, there is a more down to earth reason for this... Every company or organization must employ a specific number of humans, regardless of their importance or function. The PSC is no exception."
He then made me fill a questionnaire about the evolution of my symptoms since I had received my letter, and we discussed the different implications of my upgrade. Besides the obvious immunity system boost, changes in my metabolism, and sensitivity to stimuli like noise or light, I was also to expect some psychological changes. Depression was an issue among the neophyte population and suicides were not that uncommon. For that reason, the Council had set up a system of weekly group discussion sessions. They were optional but Aoi insisted that I attended a few times, because remanence was difficult to cope with and those sessions would be the ideal way to meet other people going through the same things as I was.
With a sigh, Aoi got up and walked to the tray with the surgical tools.
"Now if you would please sit here so we may proceed to the last part of your examination..."
"What is it for, exactly?"
"A biopsy for the archives. First I'm going to inject you something for the pain. The pill you took after your physical tests did most of the job, so it won't take long before the area is completely numb. Then I'm simply going to remove a bit of tissue at the base of your skull. It shouldn't take more than a minute."
"Is this really necessary?"
Aoi shrugged as he put on a pair of latex gloves.
"Standard Welcome protocol."
Of course.
~ * ~
If there was something to remember about the evening, it was that the Council had really, really good drugs. Not only had the pain from before completely disappeared, the throbbing pain had changed into a floaty, even enjoyable feeling when I came out of the elevator. I decided to call a cab to get home - however clouded my mind was, I was sober enough to realize that walking home was not a good option.
"No," giggled a feminine voice.
"Aww... that's too bad..." purred the handsome man leaning nonchalantly against her desk. "Doctor Aoi and I have some serious matters to discuss."
"I'm afraid this goes against the rules," the receptionist answered on the same tone. I realized as I got closer to them that she was blushing and I very clearly heard her let out a wishful sigh as the permanent in front of her slowly ran a hand through his golden locks.
"What if I asked you very nicely...?" he pouted.
The receptionist blinked.
"Well I suppose... I could always give him a call and ask him to come down... If he's not too... busy." She reached out for the phone but stopped her gesture halfway when she noticed me. "You're back! I'm so sorry, I was... distracted."
"Sorry about that," the blonde chuckled. "If you ever change your mind, I'll be waiting over there."
He walked away, waving without turning around - I supposed that gesture was addressed to us because if it wasn't, the guy would have looked plain stupid. The woman cleared her throat to recompose herself, and laid a black package on the desk.
"Here it is... Your new name. We hope it meets your expectations."
Let's get this over with, I thought, unwrapping the envelope of my new identity. This had been planned since the beginning; I knew that I would walk out of this place with a new name and yet I was nervous like I had never been before. I had read and talked about this dozens of times with people I knew. If you became a permanent, what name would you choose? Oh yes, we had spent countless hours discussing it for the fun of it.
And now that the moment finally came, I realized that not only I had no idea what name to expect, I was also starting to understand that I was to leave the person I had been behind, and adopt a new face. For good. Who was I to become? I brought the black identity card to eye level. The two syllables felt odd to me; I mentally repeated them to experience their feel on my tongue.
The woman asked me who I was to be called from now on but I barely heard her, my gaze stuck to the little piece of plastic.
"Ruki," I breathed out.
My name is Ruki.
Step Four >>
I hope you now understand the reason for using real names - you can find a clearer explaination in the Lingo section.
There are a couple of changes of chapter length and music uploads; everything is explained in this post I made two days ago, so this will be a very short author's note for once lol. I'm not too happy with this chapter but you hopefully liked it (a little). We're almost at the end of the introduction now ^_^
Thank you for reading and for your patience. As usual, comments and questions are Welcomed :P
Chapter: 3/?
Author: shii_tan
Beta / colorist: kenxkenlove
Genre: AU, sci-fi, thriller
Warnings: wtf-ish moments, literal name calling (lol)
Rating: PG-13
Pairing and Characters: RukixUruha, The Gazette, Nightmare, Deluhi,... people from other bands and fictional characters.
Synopsis:What's the point of making a living when you can't die at all? A brand new name. "A simple check-up", the feminine and slightly robotic voice had told him on the phone. Quite a safe way to put it...
Comment: apologies for the shortness : /
Step One | Step Two || Lingo and definitions
[ fiction.archive ]
Chapter Three: The Welcome Protocol
Ending ♫ The End of The Beginning, by 30 Seconds To Mars - Lyrics
Working in an office had taught me the importance of being on time. It had slowly crept into my habits, to the point where the idea of being a few minutes late completely horrified me - I always showed up twenty-one minutes before my shift started, so I could mentally prepare for the day. I called it my personal centering time.
Which explained why it was nine past eleven in the evening when I reached the building of the Center. One of the bars where I sometimes hung out after work was only a few minutes away, so I had taken all my time to get there. Climbing the few steps that led me to the entrance, I lifted my head, trying to see the building in its entirety. I wasn't sure if those twenty minutes would be enough. If I squinted in a certain way, it suspiciously looked like it was about to swallow me, and -
"Excuse me?"
Startled, I turned around to face a perfect example of the working executive, expensive outfit and suitcase included, watching me with very visible irritation.
"Sorry," I apologized with a quick bow before stepping aside.
He walked up the stairs, and opened one of the heavy glass doors. "Well, aren't you going in?"
"I'm going to wait for another few minutes, thanks."
"Newbies," he sighed before disappearing inside.
I welcomed his remark with a frown. Damn it, why was I making such a big deal out of this to begin with? This was nothing more than the standard Welcome check-up. According to the friendly female anonymous and slightly robotic voice had told me on the phone three nights ago. As to know what she had meant, I had no clue. Standard was the kind of word that could mean anything.
"This is ridiculous."
I pushed the door and entered the lobby. Saves for the young receptionist, and another guy waiting for his turn, the place was pretty much empty. Funny, I had always expected the Center to be crowded at this time of the night.
"Mister Matsumoto," smiled the receptionist as soon as she saw me, "good evening! You're right on time for your appointment."
"Actually..." I quickly glanced at my watch.
"The candidate scheduled before you changed her mind and cancelled her upgrade."
"She cancelled it?"
"Sorry," she abruptly corrected herself, "I meant postponed. God, this is embarrassing... This is my second week and I'm still confused by the lingo... May I ask you for the documents you were to bring with you tonight, please?"
I put everything on the small silver tray she had slid over. "There you go."
"Birth certificate, ID, cash and credit cards... No drivers license?"
"I can't drive."
She nodded and entered the information into her computer. About a minute later, she handed me a silver plastic rectangle.
"Here is your temporary pass: you will need it to access the physical examination area; a member of the personnel will be waiting for you there. The elevators are on your left."
"Thank you. By the way, I wanted to know..."
"Yes?"
"What kind of examination is it, exactly? The person I talked to was very vague on the subject."
"A simple check-up," she answered. "Standard Welcome protocol."
~ * ~
The PSC and I clearly had a different conception as to what a simple check-up was.
"That will be all for tonight. You may take your shower now."
Panting, I finally stepped off the treadmill and waited patiently for Risa - as the name on her chest indicated - to remove the electrodes linking me to the heart monitor. In less than an hour, I had been weighed, measured; my sight and hearing had both been tested, two blood samples taken and a teething imprint made. After giving me a water bottle than I downed in almost one go, Risa instructed me how to dispose of the Council t-shirt and jogging pants that she had provided me earlier.
"Follow that corridor once you're done; it leads straight to your advisor's office."
I nodded and staggered to the showers. For the first time since I had received my letter, my head was pounding. I had slept most of the pain away, but all this exercise had made it worse. I didn't care however standard all this bs was, all I wanted right now was to find myself a dark room, somewhere away from these neon lights so I could rest my eyes.
When I walked back to my locker a few minutes later, I found a small plastic cup and another bottle of water standing next to my clothes. Guessing that this was the supplement Risa had told me to take, I swallowed the blue pill and washed it down with some water.
~ * ~
The eyes of my advisor barely acknowledged me when I knocked on his opened door.
"Come in. I'll be with you in a minute."
If it wasn't for the name written on the door, and the strange seat in the right corner, this office could as well have been the room of a student. Stacks of books cluttered the shelves and a couple of corners; a few pile of disorganized files dipped dangerously over the edge of the desk.
"Matsumoto Takanori..." The way people kept saying my name in this place was seriously starting to get on my nerves. The dark-haired man looked around for a moment and found my file on the top of a pile. "This is normally the part where I'm supposed to reassure you and tell you that you're fine."
"Is there a problem?"
"Nah, your results are good. According to our estimations, your conversion will be final in two weeks, three at the most. Do your relatives know about this? If you don't feel like doing it yourself..."
"I was thinking of keeping a low profile," I grimaced.
The last thing I needed was my mother snooping around.
"Of course. It is my duty to remind you that any citizen can access your status information if they request to do so. The Council will not give them your address or telephone number without your express authorization. Have you informed your former partners?"
"What do you mean?"
"People with whom you've engaged in sexual practices," Aoi clarified. "Intercourse or otherwise."
"Hm no? I didn't think it had anything to do with people changing."
"To tell you the truth, we know very little about what triggers the conversion process," Aoi admitted. "We have no damn clue at all about whether it is some kind of virus or some spontaneous mutation... Although recent studies tend to incline towards the latter. Of course, the only thing we can do about it is try to find some answers and gather as much information as we can. Which is the main motive behind the Welcome protocol."
My eyes traveled once more to the weird looking chair on the right. It reminded me of the ones we had to sit on to get a quick shiatsu massage at work, but the tray placed right next to it, and the surgical instrument it contained were implying something that was surely less pleasant.
"I see." I shifted uncomfortably on my seat.
"In any case, you have to remember that there's nothing vile or degrading about upgrading to permanence. A lot of progress has been made in the past decade; as long as you take your supplements and respect a few simple guidelines, you will have the same quality of life as we do."
"Wait - do you mean you're a transient?"
Aoi winced.
"Even if it is the official term, I'd rather you didn't use it - regular or standard are more acceptable. Transient makes me feel like some perishable goods."
"I thought... Your name sounds permanent to me."
"Doesn't it? Most of the staff here - especially counselors and doctors are human personnel. The Council considers it crucial for neophytes to be at ease with us. Some of you need some time to accept their upgrade as a reality; others don't like the idea of being in close contact with permanents, let alone touched by them during their adjustment. However, there is a more down to earth reason for this... Every company or organization must employ a specific number of humans, regardless of their importance or function. The PSC is no exception."
He then made me fill a questionnaire about the evolution of my symptoms since I had received my letter, and we discussed the different implications of my upgrade. Besides the obvious immunity system boost, changes in my metabolism, and sensitivity to stimuli like noise or light, I was also to expect some psychological changes. Depression was an issue among the neophyte population and suicides were not that uncommon. For that reason, the Council had set up a system of weekly group discussion sessions. They were optional but Aoi insisted that I attended a few times, because remanence was difficult to cope with and those sessions would be the ideal way to meet other people going through the same things as I was.
With a sigh, Aoi got up and walked to the tray with the surgical tools.
"Now if you would please sit here so we may proceed to the last part of your examination..."
"What is it for, exactly?"
"A biopsy for the archives. First I'm going to inject you something for the pain. The pill you took after your physical tests did most of the job, so it won't take long before the area is completely numb. Then I'm simply going to remove a bit of tissue at the base of your skull. It shouldn't take more than a minute."
"Is this really necessary?"
Aoi shrugged as he put on a pair of latex gloves.
"Standard Welcome protocol."
Of course.
~ * ~
If there was something to remember about the evening, it was that the Council had really, really good drugs. Not only had the pain from before completely disappeared, the throbbing pain had changed into a floaty, even enjoyable feeling when I came out of the elevator. I decided to call a cab to get home - however clouded my mind was, I was sober enough to realize that walking home was not a good option.
"No," giggled a feminine voice.
"Aww... that's too bad..." purred the handsome man leaning nonchalantly against her desk. "Doctor Aoi and I have some serious matters to discuss."
"I'm afraid this goes against the rules," the receptionist answered on the same tone. I realized as I got closer to them that she was blushing and I very clearly heard her let out a wishful sigh as the permanent in front of her slowly ran a hand through his golden locks.
"What if I asked you very nicely...?" he pouted.
The receptionist blinked.
"Well I suppose... I could always give him a call and ask him to come down... If he's not too... busy." She reached out for the phone but stopped her gesture halfway when she noticed me. "You're back! I'm so sorry, I was... distracted."
"Sorry about that," the blonde chuckled. "If you ever change your mind, I'll be waiting over there."
He walked away, waving without turning around - I supposed that gesture was addressed to us because if it wasn't, the guy would have looked plain stupid. The woman cleared her throat to recompose herself, and laid a black package on the desk.
"Here it is... Your new name. We hope it meets your expectations."
Let's get this over with, I thought, unwrapping the envelope of my new identity. This had been planned since the beginning; I knew that I would walk out of this place with a new name and yet I was nervous like I had never been before. I had read and talked about this dozens of times with people I knew. If you became a permanent, what name would you choose? Oh yes, we had spent countless hours discussing it for the fun of it.
And now that the moment finally came, I realized that not only I had no idea what name to expect, I was also starting to understand that I was to leave the person I had been behind, and adopt a new face. For good. Who was I to become? I brought the black identity card to eye level. The two syllables felt odd to me; I mentally repeated them to experience their feel on my tongue.
The woman asked me who I was to be called from now on but I barely heard her, my gaze stuck to the little piece of plastic.
"Ruki," I breathed out.
My name is Ruki.
Step Four >>
I hope you now understand the reason for using real names - you can find a clearer explaination in the Lingo section.
There are a couple of changes of chapter length and music uploads; everything is explained in this post I made two days ago, so this will be a very short author's note for once lol. I'm not too happy with this chapter but you hopefully liked it (a little). We're almost at the end of the introduction now ^_^
Thank you for reading and for your patience. As usual, comments and questions are Welcomed :P