One of the upsides to being a Salarian was that medicines or poisons didn't affect him nearly as long as it would a Human. He had a strong immune system to make up for the fact that he simply wouldn't live as long as other races. So when he woke up after being gassed to sleep, he was very aware of the fact that he wasn't completely locked up or strapped in somewhere yet. He was very careful not to move or blink his eyes, and instead opened up his other senses to get an idea of where he was.
The first thing he heard was wheels, followed by the sensation of being bounced. He was on a stretcher of some kind and the wheel must have caught on something. He lightly moved his wrists and ankles, one at a time. They were not tied down.
"Where are we going again?" Someone asked near him. They were located near his head. "Isolation Two?"
"No, four." Another voice responded. They were positioned on the opposite side of him, near his mid-section. "Two is where they're putting the big guy." Based on the sound of the wheels of the medical bed he was on, Mordin concluded he was in a hallway of the Empire Research and Development building. He was likely being guided to some kind of containment cell. Jor, one of the orderlies who worked there, had told Mordin they were keeping his sister in a comatose state to stop her from running the Prime Studies department. Unfortunately, now knowing that information made Mordin a liability, and they were gassed to sleep. Jor was probably the 'big guy' these two were talking about. Mordin pocketed the knowledge of which isolation room Jor would be in.
"What do you think they're gonna do to him?" The first voice asked. Mordin could feel the bed turning sharply at what must have been an intersection of passage-ways.
"I don't even want to know."
"I thought he was cooperating. What do you think happened?"
Mordin listened intently to the answer. "They probably couldn't get any information out of him the easy way. I'm surprised we didn't just lock him up from the beginning. Makes things easier." Mordin felt a surge of disgust in his chest. Science was Mordin Solus' middle name. Any hint of unethical protocol made him furious. This was about as 'over the line' as it got. But he kept his cool and remained motionless in the bed.
"He's always seemed kind of weak to me, anyway." Mordin inwardly smirked. "He must be pretty smart if even the Director is scared of him. But even as a Prime, he never seemed like he was all there to begin with, you know?"
"He's a scientist, too, that's why she liked him." The bed stopped momentarily and the sound of an electronic door opening came alive. "Seems like a waste of Prime Powers to me."
The hospital bed was rolled past the door. "Bring him in," a new voice said. Female. Human. Mordin could hear the sound of buttons being pressed on a panel nearby. Given the location of the sounds in relation to where he was laying, he could remember the layout of the Isolation Exam Room. He had seen them once before, in passing, but hadn't given them much thought. He had imagined these rooms were for more formal, long-term exams. Now he could see they were being used as a kind of holding cell.
"Is he ready yet?" A new voice. Fourth. Another female human. This one was much more familiar to Mordin. He stiffened a bit nervously. It was the Director of Prime Studies. Dr. Illyana Ivanov. She always seemed a bit shady to Dr. Solus, but now it was confirmed that she was a criminal. She was performing very illegal experiments and was keeping the former director sedated to look like an illness.
"Almost, doctor," the other female said. She spoke softly, almost submissive. Mordin assumed she worked for Illyana in some capacity. Perhaps a nurse, or technician. "I am setting up the Isolation Room to your specifications now. Once it is complete, some of his powers should be suppressed." That didn't sound good.
"Why is he not locked up?" Illyana asked. "His hands are free. He should be chained down. What will you do if he wakes up right now?"
There was a series of stammering, followed by one of the original voices responding. "I-I'm s-sorry Doctor, I..."
"I think we can handle him, Doc," the second one said, confidently. "No offense, but I think we can take a confused skinny lizard-man in a lab coat."
"Do not underestimate him," Dr. Ivanov warned. She was smart. "He is much more then a scientist. Never mind that he is a Prime, but he is also a soldier. I've seen him in action. You would do well to remember not to judge a book by its cover." She paused and then spoke again, seemingly to someone else. "I'm going to check on the other one. Have the Prime Suppression Protocol ready to go by the time I get back."
"Yes, Doctor," the female technician said.
The door opened again. Footsteps. Heels. The door closed, and the tension seemed to lift as Dr. Illyana Ivanov departed just as quick as she had arrived. There was a silence in the room after the door shut behind her. Mordin could tell one of the guards, probably the one who was stuttering, was breathing differently. He was relieved. It was strange to see how much respect Illyana had in her staff. Or was it fear?
"It's strange." The girl was right next to Mordin's head. She was very close. "He seems to be very calm despite the dramatic situation he was in right before he went down. He must be having pleasant dreams." She touched his arm lightly, as if trying to find a pulse. It wasn't difficult to find, thanks to his skinny limbs. "His heart rate is normal. A little fast, but his is usually quicker then a human's."
"Fascinating," the gruffer guard said. He dripped of sarcasm. "How long before you can block his powers?"
"It won't block them," the girl corrected. She lightly put a hand on Mordin's forehead, feeling the clammy, scaly skin. He felt a bit of comfort. "But in a few minutes we should at least be able to..." She suddenly stopped talking.
"Should be able to what?"
The eyes of Mordin Solus suddenly came to life. They were big, black and endless. He was staring up at a caramel-skinned human woman in a lab coat, whose voice seemed to drift off as she stared down at him in surprise. She had a small, cute face with chubby cheeks. Her hesitation when he suddenly startled her was the perfect opportunity for him to act. He brought his head up and slammed it right into her nose, causing her to squeak in pain and fall backwards.
"Shit!" One of the guards shouted. This was the first chance Mordin got to actually get a look at them. One of them was much younger then the other. Mordin reached in his lab coat much quicker then either of them could draw their weapons, and pulled out a small metallic firearm. He fired once at the older guy, who seemed more of a threat. Then he fired at the second one. Both shots hit center mass and sent them flying back into their respective bulkheads. Mordin's guns weren't as strong as they were in his previous life, but his accuracy and shot placement was second to none. They were unconscious upon landing.
He spun his feet to the side and then stood off of the bed. The young medical technician was cowering up against the wall, underneath the observation window. Mordin assumed no one was the other side of the two-way mirror, otherwise an alarm would be going off by now. The female was holding her face, seemingly nursing a broken and bloody nose. "Sorry." Mordin said. "Don't like to hit women." He glanced to the side, at the console that read 'Suppression Activating.' "Had it coming, though."
"Your gun..." she stammered, surprised to see him armed. "I thought they took it."
"Always keep a spare," he recited, as if he was lecturing. "Lots of pockets. Can keep tons of things in this coat. You'd be surprised."
She tried to shrink further up against the wall. Her big eyes blinked up at him. "Please don't kill me, please don't..."
"Of course not!" Mordin shook his head. "Would never kill an innocent." He pointed with his armed hand at the two fallen guards. "Non-fatal shots. Guns aren't as strong here. Still hurt. A lot." He stepped forward towards her, which only made her whimper again. "Need you to open the door." She nodded frantically, thinking more about herself then the people she worked for. She quickly moved towards the controls.
He looked at the big metallic entrance to the room. On the other side would be some real answers to his questions about this place.
The first thing he heard was wheels, followed by the sensation of being bounced. He was on a stretcher of some kind and the wheel must have caught on something. He lightly moved his wrists and ankles, one at a time. They were not tied down.
"Where are we going again?" Someone asked near him. They were located near his head. "Isolation Two?"
"No, four." Another voice responded. They were positioned on the opposite side of him, near his mid-section. "Two is where they're putting the big guy." Based on the sound of the wheels of the medical bed he was on, Mordin concluded he was in a hallway of the Empire Research and Development building. He was likely being guided to some kind of containment cell. Jor, one of the orderlies who worked there, had told Mordin they were keeping his sister in a comatose state to stop her from running the Prime Studies department. Unfortunately, now knowing that information made Mordin a liability, and they were gassed to sleep. Jor was probably the 'big guy' these two were talking about. Mordin pocketed the knowledge of which isolation room Jor would be in.
"What do you think they're gonna do to him?" The first voice asked. Mordin could feel the bed turning sharply at what must have been an intersection of passage-ways.
"I don't even want to know."
"I thought he was cooperating. What do you think happened?"
Mordin listened intently to the answer. "They probably couldn't get any information out of him the easy way. I'm surprised we didn't just lock him up from the beginning. Makes things easier." Mordin felt a surge of disgust in his chest. Science was Mordin Solus' middle name. Any hint of unethical protocol made him furious. This was about as 'over the line' as it got. But he kept his cool and remained motionless in the bed.
"He's always seemed kind of weak to me, anyway." Mordin inwardly smirked. "He must be pretty smart if even the Director is scared of him. But even as a Prime, he never seemed like he was all there to begin with, you know?"
"He's a scientist, too, that's why she liked him." The bed stopped momentarily and the sound of an electronic door opening came alive. "Seems like a waste of Prime Powers to me."
The hospital bed was rolled past the door. "Bring him in," a new voice said. Female. Human. Mordin could hear the sound of buttons being pressed on a panel nearby. Given the location of the sounds in relation to where he was laying, he could remember the layout of the Isolation Exam Room. He had seen them once before, in passing, but hadn't given them much thought. He had imagined these rooms were for more formal, long-term exams. Now he could see they were being used as a kind of holding cell.
"Is he ready yet?" A new voice. Fourth. Another female human. This one was much more familiar to Mordin. He stiffened a bit nervously. It was the Director of Prime Studies. Dr. Illyana Ivanov. She always seemed a bit shady to Dr. Solus, but now it was confirmed that she was a criminal. She was performing very illegal experiments and was keeping the former director sedated to look like an illness.
"Almost, doctor," the other female said. She spoke softly, almost submissive. Mordin assumed she worked for Illyana in some capacity. Perhaps a nurse, or technician. "I am setting up the Isolation Room to your specifications now. Once it is complete, some of his powers should be suppressed." That didn't sound good.
"Why is he not locked up?" Illyana asked. "His hands are free. He should be chained down. What will you do if he wakes up right now?"
There was a series of stammering, followed by one of the original voices responding. "I-I'm s-sorry Doctor, I..."
"I think we can handle him, Doc," the second one said, confidently. "No offense, but I think we can take a confused skinny lizard-man in a lab coat."
"Do not underestimate him," Dr. Ivanov warned. She was smart. "He is much more then a scientist. Never mind that he is a Prime, but he is also a soldier. I've seen him in action. You would do well to remember not to judge a book by its cover." She paused and then spoke again, seemingly to someone else. "I'm going to check on the other one. Have the Prime Suppression Protocol ready to go by the time I get back."
"Yes, Doctor," the female technician said.
The door opened again. Footsteps. Heels. The door closed, and the tension seemed to lift as Dr. Illyana Ivanov departed just as quick as she had arrived. There was a silence in the room after the door shut behind her. Mordin could tell one of the guards, probably the one who was stuttering, was breathing differently. He was relieved. It was strange to see how much respect Illyana had in her staff. Or was it fear?
"It's strange." The girl was right next to Mordin's head. She was very close. "He seems to be very calm despite the dramatic situation he was in right before he went down. He must be having pleasant dreams." She touched his arm lightly, as if trying to find a pulse. It wasn't difficult to find, thanks to his skinny limbs. "His heart rate is normal. A little fast, but his is usually quicker then a human's."
"Fascinating," the gruffer guard said. He dripped of sarcasm. "How long before you can block his powers?"
"It won't block them," the girl corrected. She lightly put a hand on Mordin's forehead, feeling the clammy, scaly skin. He felt a bit of comfort. "But in a few minutes we should at least be able to..." She suddenly stopped talking.
"Should be able to what?"
The eyes of Mordin Solus suddenly came to life. They were big, black and endless. He was staring up at a caramel-skinned human woman in a lab coat, whose voice seemed to drift off as she stared down at him in surprise. She had a small, cute face with chubby cheeks. Her hesitation when he suddenly startled her was the perfect opportunity for him to act. He brought his head up and slammed it right into her nose, causing her to squeak in pain and fall backwards.
"Shit!" One of the guards shouted. This was the first chance Mordin got to actually get a look at them. One of them was much younger then the other. Mordin reached in his lab coat much quicker then either of them could draw their weapons, and pulled out a small metallic firearm. He fired once at the older guy, who seemed more of a threat. Then he fired at the second one. Both shots hit center mass and sent them flying back into their respective bulkheads. Mordin's guns weren't as strong as they were in his previous life, but his accuracy and shot placement was second to none. They were unconscious upon landing.
He spun his feet to the side and then stood off of the bed. The young medical technician was cowering up against the wall, underneath the observation window. Mordin assumed no one was the other side of the two-way mirror, otherwise an alarm would be going off by now. The female was holding her face, seemingly nursing a broken and bloody nose. "Sorry." Mordin said. "Don't like to hit women." He glanced to the side, at the console that read 'Suppression Activating.' "Had it coming, though."
"Your gun..." she stammered, surprised to see him armed. "I thought they took it."
"Always keep a spare," he recited, as if he was lecturing. "Lots of pockets. Can keep tons of things in this coat. You'd be surprised."
She tried to shrink further up against the wall. Her big eyes blinked up at him. "Please don't kill me, please don't..."
"Of course not!" Mordin shook his head. "Would never kill an innocent." He pointed with his armed hand at the two fallen guards. "Non-fatal shots. Guns aren't as strong here. Still hurt. A lot." He stepped forward towards her, which only made her whimper again. "Need you to open the door." She nodded frantically, thinking more about herself then the people she worked for. She quickly moved towards the controls.
He looked at the big metallic entrance to the room. On the other side would be some real answers to his questions about this place.
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