Dom lay sprawled on the floor of his cell, deep in sleep and snoring loudly, until the crunching of chips stirred him. He groaned and slowly opened his eyes, his gaze still distant, staring blankly into space.
"Finally." A voice said. "I thought you were never going to wake up."
Dom turned, immediately recognizing Noah sitting outside the cage bars, despite his still-blurry vision.
"You were out. And I mean out." Noah chuckled, taking another handful of chips and chewing, the crunch echoing through the room.
Dom's vision cleared, revealing Noah's frame more vividly with a stained lab coat now hanging over his body-suit.
"Ow." Dom groaned as he rubbed the skin under his collar, still sore from the electricity, then sat up to pull the dart out of his back. He clicked his tongue at how helpless he was and flicked the dart forward in frustration.
It rolled to a stop among the empty potato chip bags on the floor, causing him to raise a brow.
"You just… sat there and watched?" He asked.
"I got here after it happened," Noah replied as he held up his half-finished bag. "I brought some snacks for us to chat… but I didn't want to wake you up. That weird?"
"Depends." Dom sighed, trying to stand, only to find his legs still unresponsive. "How long was I out this time?"
Noah glanced at his watch. "Five hours." He said, "But I only stayed for like thirty minutes."
"Then you're weird," Dom grumbled, dragging his numb body closer and leaning against the bar, his back turned to Noah. "Did you at least bring a drink?"
Noah smirked, pushing aside the empty bags to reveal three soda cans.
Dom grabbed one and took a long gulp, savoring the cool liquid against his pounding head. Once his mind settled, he narrowed his eyes at the half-empty can in his hand. "So… you're really a scientist?" he asked.
Noah glanced down at his coat with a frown and nodded.
"But you said you're a lab subject," Dom asked, looking over his shoulder to meet Noah's eyes.
Noah sighed, a satisfied sound as the soda slid down his throat. "I started as a subject," He explained, "…and became a scientist along the way. But I never stopped being a subject. I still do my regular check-ups and tests like you."
Dom turned, leaning his side against the bars while he stared at Noah. "How does that work?" He asked, reaching for a chip bag.
Noah leaned against the wall adjacent to Dom, frowning. "You know how every mage eventually develops their attribute between ages six and eighteen…" He said.
"Actually," Dom interrupted, narrowing his eyes in frustration, "… that Ivan bastard thinks I manifested mine when I was still a baby."
Noah's eyes widened. "Seriously?"
"Yeah," Dom said before stuffing his face with the salted treats.
Noah stared at his drink in disbelief before laughing. "…Then I guess you're my polar opposite."
Dom raised a brow. "Meaning?"
Noah's gaze softened, a weak smile on his lips as he turned to Dom. "I… don't have an attribute."
Dom nearly choked on a chip, then quickly gulped soda to recover. "You're kidding." He coughed into his arm.
"Dead serious," Noah said as he shook his head, his collar rattling softly around his neck. "I'm twenty-five now and still no attribute. Not only that, my mana is… well, not great. I've been stuck in E class since… forever."
Dom stared at him, skepticism evident. "I've never heard of a mage without an attribute." He commented.
Noah leaned his head against the wall, eyes fixed on the ceiling. "In NL, the motto is research rules everything, especially when it comes to mage experiments. So when a kid suddenly develops a rare condition, the entire Division went crazy with questions."
He smiled faintly at the memory. "When I turned eighteen and still showed no attribute, my parents-- who are also scientists-- sent me here for more research."
Dom frowned, doing the math. "You've been here for six years?" He asked.
"Six years, four months, 14 days to be exact, but who's counting?" Noah chuckled, but the smile never reached his eyes. "In the end, they never figured out what was wrong with me. By age twenty, they finally lost interest. After all, there's no benefit to the advancement of mages if they did find the truth."
Dom sat up, turning to fully face Noah. "Why didn't you just leave then?" He asked.
Noah's smile vanished. He gripped his can tightly. "Because… my parents didn't care if I existed."
Dom stiffened, having always believed parents would do anything for their child. Even Pops, who was not related by blood, had gone above and beyond for him. He'd heard of abandoned kids, but this was the first he'd truly witnessed one.
Noah noticed Dom's reaction and smiled faintly. "It's okay." He said as he sat up. "Like I said, here, the more unique a mage is, the more valuable they are. With no attribute and the lowest mana class, I'm not worth their trouble." He commented, then took a gulp.
"Still… that's… fucked up," Dom muttered.
"Hey, it's not all bad," Noah replied, crushing his empty can and dumping it on the pile of empty bags. "Since I grew up with scientists, I became kind of a tech genius. I helped build a lot of the new weapons and tech here… like your cuffs."
Dom rubbed the bracelet thoughtfully.
"Usually, the facility only uses either a mana cuff or collar on each subject since they both have a similar MOA, but there are a lot of pros and cons to each." Noah ranted as he touched his cuff.
"The cuffs are the easiest and cheapest to manufacture on a large scale, so they're more common, but it's a bit weaker than collars, plus there have been times where people escaped by cutting their own hands off."
Dom glanced at Noah's prosthetic arm. "You don't say…" He muttered, but Noah didn't notice as he continued,
"Still, they're way stronger than all the versions of restraints used by other kingdoms. People like me, who're weak as shit…" He shook his bracelet. "… just need the cuffs to do the trick. Stronger subjects, especially the stubborn ones, get the collars. Though…" He glanced at Dom's dual restraints. "You're the first person I've seen to use both."
"Extra reassurance." Dom echoed with a bitter look in his eyes. "Since you helped this shit, then it's also partially your fault I'm stuck here, then."
"Sorry." Noah chuckled, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
Dom then stared at his bracelet, his dimmed eyes narrowing on the slick material.
No wonder it's different from the cuffs I know… He thought as he lifted his hand. The cuffs or collars I know suppress my mana, but I could still feel it. But this time…
No matter how hard he concentrated, he couldn't even sense the mana flowing in his hand at all, even as he tried to force his mana out. Finally, he sighed in defeat. "You must be pretty good if you can make stuff like this." He said, lowering his hand.
Noah grinned with pride at the compliment.
"So…" Dom added as he straightened. "…you've been making stuff like this?"
Noah nodded, smile fading slightly. "After my parents rejected me, making tech was all I had. A year later, Dr. Ivan recognized my skills, and I've been working here ever since."
Dom's expression darkened, his gaze drifting across his room--his prison. "Don't you want out?" He asked.
Noah looked at the floor, a sad smile forming. "Even if I did, I'd have nowhere to go. No family or friends waiting for me on the other side."
Dom softened slightly.
"And even though they lost interest in my case, I still do routine tests. Besides," He spread his arms casually, his lab coat flowing with his movement. "… I love inventing stuff, and the lab gives me what I want as long as I create things for them."
Dom narrowed his eyes. "And you're okay with that?"
Noah stared at him for a moment, then smiled. "It's not perfect, but," He shrugged. "… it's the only way I know how to live."
Dom looked away, frowning. Noah's words echoed those of Aera -- words spoken by people who had long since lost all hope of freedom.
Noah noticed Dom's somber expression and felt an immediate twinge of discomfort. His gaze darted around, searching for a way to shift the subject, before settling back on Dom's cuffs.
"Oh yeah. Those cuffs have one more feature," Noah said, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a small device with a screen on one side.
Dom stared, confused, as Noah tapped and swiped across it, the light illuminating his face.
"Because we're confident in the design, the cuffs don't have to hold your hands together like the old ones. But if a subject decides to get too stubborn…" Noah stared at the device intensely before suddenly smiling. "…we can do this."
He tapped the screen again.
Dom gasped as his bracelets instantly snapped toward each other, locking his hands forward. The can in his hand flew from his grasp, spilling the drink across the floor and their clothes.
"Shit. Shit. Sorry," Noah mumbled, quickly grabbing the can and searching his pockets for something to clean the mess.
"Can you at least free me first?" Dom asked, lifting his restrained hands.
Noah tapped the device again, releasing the bracelets and freeing Dom's hands.
"I'm really sorry," Noah said, pulling out a rag to wipe the wet floor. "I sometimes get carried away. It's why I only have one arm now." He chuckled to break the tension, but stopped when the oil-stained rag only made the mess worse.
Noah frowned at the floor while Dom laughed. "Don't worry," Dom said, wiping the drink off his face. "If messing up their floor is the best payback I can give these guys right now, I'll take it."
"Okay," Noah said with a small smile, abandoning the rag.
As he wiped his hands on his coat, he noticed Dom rubbing his cuff, brows furrowed in thought. Noah grinned, seizing the chance to brag. "It's a powerfully built-in magnet. With it, we can at least limit a prisoner's--"
"Can it unlock it?" Dom interrupted.
Noah blinked in confusion.
"That thing," Dom said, pointing at the device in Noah's left hand. "One of the guards used it on me. But his own made my collar shock me, so…"
"Oh." Realizing what Dom meant, Noah shook his head. "Every guard and scientist can restrain prisoners for their own safety, but the key to unlock the restraints completely is only accessible in the main control room. It's the most secure place in the building."
"Oh," Dom muttered in disappointment.
Noah tilted his head, noticing something else. "Wait… that thing? You don't know what a phone is?" He held up the device, displaying colorful app logos.
Dom shrugged. "I've seen people use it here, but we don't have them back in the South." He said.
Noah's eyes widened, half shocked, half curious. "Then how do you communicate?"
Dom raised a brow. "Letters or messengers. We also have Rapore Comms, but only for calling other magic knights or soldiers."
Noah shook his head, sighing. "Wow. I heard SL was primitive, but I didn't know it was that bad."
Dom stared at the slim device, skeptical. "You can also call people with that thing?"
Noah held it up. "You can do more than call. You can work, listen to music, and play games. Wait… do you guys not even have a network?"
"What's that?" Dom asked, genuinely confused.
Noah slapped his forehead with a sigh. "Then what the hell do you do for fun there?"
Dom folded his arms thoughtfully. "Workout, combat training, parkour… and…" He paused, then recalled a fond memory. "… and I read. Mostly books about Monarchs, and some imported comics."
Noah's eyes lit up. "Comics? Which one's your favorite?"
"Easy. Just Dusk," Dom answered, then flinched once Noah suddenly launched at the bars, red eyes widening with excitement.
"No fucking way! I thought I was the only one who read that." Noah said with a grin.
Dom slowly smiled. "So did I. It's awesome."
"I know, right?" Noah said, voice full of excitement as he sat back down. "Especially the 16th edition."
Dom frowned. "I thought it stopped at the 12th." He said.
Noah's mouth dropped open. "You haven't seen Black's Revenge?"
Dom's eyes widened, grabbing the bar with just as much excitement as Noah did. "Black's alive?!" He shouted.
"Okay, you need to read it right now," Noah said, quickly searching for the comic on his device.
A few minutes later, the two eagerly read through the bars while finishing the last of the chips.
And for a relatively brief moment, the grim reality around them faded, replaced by excitement and distraction.