Day 58: Lt. General Charles Berg's Office [Second Shift]

[das_berg]

Upon hearing the shift change, and Harrington's subsequent announcement, Berg fought the urge to rub at his eyes. While he understood that neither himself nor Aguilar had the time to do something like work the intercom system during the day, sometimes he thought Harrington enjoyed his new responsibility a bit too much

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[sixth_attack]

By the time breakfast was over and a trip to the showers had been announced, the worst of Sechs' dizziness and nausea had faded. He would have looked forward to drenching his cold, sore back with warm water in the shower, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to see the rest of his afflicted arm. Just the pain in that limb and the discoloration of his hand was bad enough; he didn't want anymore flashbacks triggered by the sight of his bare arm...

Exiting out of the cafeteria, Sechs' troubled thoughts were abruptly cut short by the sudden presence of two soldiers, marching in purposely from behind like a pair of predators. Before Sechs could react, he was surrounded on both sides by the uniformed men and sternly directed towards the exit of the Sun Room.

"Crap! What did I do wrong this time?!" Sechs growled as the two soldiers silently directed him out into the hallway, their stoic demeanor resembling heartless factory robots pushing a piece of scrap metal down the converter belt to make room for the next pile of rubbish to be processed

[das_berg]

The moment his next appointment arrived, Berg looked up from his watch with a mildly put-out expression. He normally didn't like to keep soldiers in the room while he met with subjects, but he'd been informed it might be necessary with this one. If they knew how volatile he could be, why hadn't they approached him with a bit more subtlety? Yet, here they were, shoving him into the chair like some kind of animal

[sixth_attack]

Sechs returned Berg's smile with a toothy scowl of his own. So this guy was just one of Aguilar's lackeys, huh? That was a big disappointment. If he had been dealing with the Head Honcho himself, Sechs would have been no more than happy to tear himself away from the soldiers and kill him with his bare hands over everything that had happened so far, particularly the night before...

Yet so far this Berg guy was coming across as a more diplomatic type than the rest of the military personnel Sechs had dealt with. He hadn't been expecting that. Sechs was even shocked to hear Berg address him with his true name. Despite all that, the Replica firmly kept his guard up, his instincts still wary of the situation. Yet even though the Replica's eyebrows remained furrowed, his widened eyes betrayed his surprise.

"So you're calling me by my real name now, huh? No more of that stupid 'Cody Sasaki' crap?" Sechs growled, grabbing his dog tags and jangling them in front of his chest. "That's the first thing you've done right so far! Good for you!"

[das_berg]

While the soldiers still had to maintain their hold on Mr. Sechs, it appeared he'd calmed down somewhat. Hopefully he could steer the conversation into smoother territory from here, but Berg would simply have to see how things played out. Considering the circumstances, some people were bound to act in unpredictable ways. That was part of what made them so interesting

[sixth_attack]

"Just a conversation?" Sechs scoffed, crossing his arms and giving another nasty glare at the two soldiers behind him. "Why do I have trouble believing that

[das_berg]

One could certainly call it a "trade of information", but Berg didn't necessarily require answers from Mr. Sechs to continue their chat. That didn't seem to be the case for Mr. Sechs, however. Berg wasn't surprised. Dr. Jones had been particularly concerned about receiving visits from his father, and it was easy to imagine that there were others with similar worries.

"I can understand why you'd feel upset about what happened," Berg said, "but we haven't locked her up. We're not 'keeping' her anywhere, either. She came here to visit you on her own, and I presume she safely returned to her current place of residence once she was finished."

Leaning back in his chair, he calmly regarded the subject across from him. "It may sound difficult to believe, but you have my word as an officer. If it were a matter of confidentiality, I'd simply say so rather than lie about it."

[sixth_attack]

General Berg's reply came as shock to the Replica, like a sudden strike from behind that sent his mind reeling with confusion. Sechs could only stutter for a moment before he could counter that verbal attack with an angry lashing of his own.

"C-came on her own?!" Sechs exclaimed. He tried to jump to his feet again, but the silent sentinels beside him grasped his upper arms and kept him seated. Another pained grunt escaped Sechs as his sensitive right arm came under fire again from the soldier's grip, forcing him to halt his struggles. Resisting the urge to fight back, Sechs forced his attention back to Berg. This battle wasn't over just yet!

"Don't tell me she went through all the trouble of getting down from Ketheres just to visit me and treat me like I'm someone else! Hogwash!" he loudly snapped, "You got her brainwashed, didn't you?! Either that or you got some Alita look-a-like who thinks I'm some brother named Cody!" Sechs accused the General. With the pent-up anger Sechs had, Berg should have been glad that the two soldiers

[das_berg]

As expected, Mr. Sechs wasn't satisfied with Berg's response. One would think he'd at least be glad she wasn't trapped in this facility, that she was living a normal, productive life somewhere. But people often became touchy whenever matters like personal identity were involved.

"If she visited you, then I would imagine she's been integrated into society and is freely living her life," he answered. Brainwashed was such a harsh term, after all. "Wherever she is, she's safe, and is not being mistreated or harmed by us in any way."

Of course, the subject's grievances didn't seem to end there. He appeared quite upset about some of their methods, going as far as to spit on the floor. That was hardly surprising, considering he wore both the SC and MU pins

[sixth_attack]

Now the soldiers had to really fight to keep Sechs down. The Replica was nearly spitting with fury as he struggled against the guard's grip. "WHAT?! Whaddya mean she's integrated into society and freely living her life?!" Sechs demanded, not wanting to believe what he just heard. It made no sense to him! The stoic General sitting behind the desk had to be lying!

"Why is it okay that you call me Sechs, yet you think its just fine and dandy for Alita to live a fucking lie as someone named Yoko?!" Sechs demanded, "Make up your damn mind!"

Sechs let out a brutish snort at Berg's request for cleanliness, fluttering some hairs away from his face as he glowered at his host. He would have been no more than happy to add more of his personal touches to the office, but the guards had roughly pulled him back against the chair. Offending the General too much could end their discussion as well, leaving Sechs with little answers. "What does kidnapping and torturing people have to do with all this, huh?!" he growled at the General's cold statement

[das_berg]

"That's what you'd like to be called, isn't it?" Berg asked. "In your friend's case, she wants to be called Yoko now. That's what it boils down to for me. Unfortunately, I personally can't speak for the rest of the program since I wasn't the one who designed it in the first place

[sixth_attack]

General Berg's answer did nothing to ease Sechs' cravings for answers about Alita; it only troubled the agitated Replica even more! If Alita was really out there living as "Yoko", then all of Sechs' efforts to find his Original in the institute had been fruitless. What was worse was the finality to General Berg's statement, it seemed everything he had said on the matter was all Sechs was going to get about Alita...

Gritting his teeth against his growing despair, Sechs was forced to drop his nagging questions about his Original's fate. The Replica's furious posture slumped beneath the guard's hands, but his wolfish eyes remained furiously focused on Berg. "Hmph! Try being one of the guinea pigs for your taxing project!" Sechs bitterly scoffed, "Then come back and tell me just how difficult it is to maintain your little institute!"

Sechs yearned for more answers; he wanted to demand the truth behind the reasoning of the institute's existence. He badly wanted to ask why, why was all of this happening? What was the point of it all? Yet

[das_berg]

It took the subject a moment to give his answer, but Berg patiently waited and listened. He could understand the sentiment behind his answer all too well. But that wasn't to say they were necessarily cut from the same cloth. There were too many differences between them and their experiences

[sixth_attack]

...Like a true soldier... Sechs couldn't help but let out a soft, hollow chuckle at that, yet no smile came upon his lips. It was sickeningly ironic that he would finally be called "true" of some sort, not just a lousy copy, by someone who he considered to be a great enemy. He would have rather heard words like that from someone he admired or had a strong rivalry with, like Zazie and even Alita... But no thanks to the tyrants running the institute, they were far out of Sechs' reach, and he was no close to fighting on even grounds with the powers which had entrapped him, including the General sitting across from him.

The Replica slowly shook his shaggy head, refusing to accept that rare little gem of a compliment from the General. His pride may have been badly battered, but no amount of praise from enemies like General Aguilar's men and Landel would ever ease his injured spirit. Sechs was a warrior, not a soldier who mindlessly followed orders, that was what struck the solid line between him and Berg

[das_berg]

The further their conversation progressed, the more emotional Sechs became -- that much was obvious. However, he'd at least contained himself well enough in order to keep their conversation going. Given all he'd been through within the institute, Berg privately considered his efforts quite admirable. Then again, it was only natural he'd want answers. Anyone would.

"That, unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to say," Berg answered. There was a tinge of regret in his voice, and it was sincere. "It is, however, necessary, which is why we're sitting here today. If the initial plans had been up to me, perhaps things would have been different, but

[sixth_attack]

No minute amount of regret, pity or sympathy that came with Berg's answer could ease the Replica's agonizing hunger for answers. Sechs could only sit helplessly beneath the soldier's grip, glaring at Berg with all the hatred he could muster in his yellow eyes. His entire body visibly cringed against the rage that howled for release from his heart