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inkieflame · 3 days ago

Note

I have a question/writing prompt (you can choose what to do with it) about your lab AU!

How was Impulse coping when he found out that Skizz escaped after the fire in the Last Life lab? Or did he even know that Skizz escaped, or did the watchers just let him believe the fire had killed Skizz? And what did Impulse do when Skizz willingly turned himself back in?

I want Imp and Skizz angst :3

‘Cause you’ll miss the sun (The warmth of another’s embrace)

An Imp and Skizz fic

Word count: 2100

Trigger warnings: drugs, implied death, blood drawing, firearms

Aka: Skizz is gone and Impulse is coping. Featuring failed escape attempts and flat lines.

It doesn’t take long for Impulse to realize people are missing.

The past few hours have been overwhelming. Being soulbound to Bdubs, Impulse hasn’t had a moment of silence yet. And part of that is nice, because it means he has a distraction from this sense of dread that has begun to loom over him.

Because Impulse hasn’t seen his best friend yet.

He knows that Lizzie missing too, from how Joel is dragging his new soulmate around the facility as he looks for her. Etho looks exhausted from all the movement, and Impulse thinks he might pass out the moment Joel lets him rest.

That night, Impulse still hasn’t seen Skizz yet. He falls asleep to the rhythm of Bdubs counting next to him.

…

Impulse is no stranger to the medical center.

Bleach white walls covered with propaganda-like posters telling the subjects “we care for you!” and “good subjects take their meds on time!” the right wall has two doors, both leading to surgery rooms that Impulse is intimately familiar with. One large screen takes up the majority of the left wall, divided up into about two dozen sections labeled with various subject’s names. Underneath their names are heartbeat monitors.

Impulse doesn’t recognize some of the few few names. Grian, Martyn, Jimmy, those he does know, but Taurtis? Salem? Netty? Impulse doesn’t know them, and he knows that’s because of the flat lines under their names.

When he visits the Double Life medical center for the first time, he can’t help but scan the screen for Skizz’s name. He dreads the flat line, and is confused when the screen shows his heartbeat drumming on steadily.

Somewhere, Skizz is alive.

Just not with Impulse.

The Watcher who brought him here guides Impulse to the chair nearby, and he sits. They turn to ready their equipment, and Impulse keeps his gaze on the screen across from him.

Thump thump. Thump thump. Skizz keeps living and breathing. Thump thump.

The Watcher takes him arm and puts it up on the counter next to him. Impulse keeps his eyes trained on the screen. He doesn’t like to look when they put the needle in.

There is a pinch and Impulse clenches his teeth quietly. He pain subsides quickly, and the Watcher turns to start the pump.

Impulse doesn’t know why the Watchers collect his blood, he assumes they donate it, or sell it. Either way, he’s always in the medical center for it. Once a week, always at one.

Recently this time has been nice. It’s a few minutes of silence where he’s detached from Bdub’s and his constant murmuring. The blood draining makes him lightheaded and dizzy, but it’s not painful. So Impulse will find comfort in it.

…

The alarms wakes the entire facility.

Normally there are small alarms. Sirens contained to the medical center, and the devices the Watchers have. They go off when a subject is in danger.

Sometimes these alarms go off for Jimmy, when he’s out on rental and the Watchers need to go pull him out.

But this blaring noise is deafening. It rings out, one constant tone, stretching on forever and ever. Impulse doesn’t know what it’s for.

He makes his way out of his bed, wanting to crane his head down the hall and see who else was woken. But Bdubs groans and pulls back on the chain.

“Time to shreep.” He mumbles. “Too early.”

Through the open window Impulse can see Bigb, charging down the hall looking panicked. Ren is at his heels, whining and barking at the sirens.

Close behind them, Martyn is checking every room, with Cleo complaining loudly behind him.

His door opens, “Are you alive?” Martyn asks and, seeing Impulse sitting there with Bdubs still beside him, barges in.

“Martyn!” Cleo snaps, “Stop dragging me! What are you doing?”

Martyn wastes no time in grabbing Bdubs and shaking him awake, “’Dubs? Are you there?”

When Bdubs groans weakly and pushes Martyn away, Martyn let’s out a breath of relief.

“Next room.” He demands, but Cleo stands stubbornly in the doorway.

“What is happening?” She says.

Martyn shoves at her, clearly panicked, “Cleo, move, we don’t have time for this.”

“What does the alarm mean!?” She shouts, even though she doesn’t need to shout to be heard over the noise.

“it means someone has died, okay, now move.” Martyn pushes past her, “and we need to figure out who it was, and if it was someone here or rented.”

“why?!”

Martyn stops and looks at Impulse, “get ready to run.” He says, “it might be tonight.”

And then they are both gone.

And Bdubs is already asleep again.

…

Impulse ends up carrying his sleeping soulmate. Bdubs manages to sleep through the alarms.

Most of the subjects are in the lobby, waiting. Impulse sees Martyn eyeing the red lights of the security cameras.

As soon as those lights turn off Martyn waves, getting the group’s attention.

“Hey! Hey, guys, listen.” He says, “we don’t have long, so pay attention.”

The group quiets curiously.

“Etho and Joel have just turned off the camera system, but the back up system will be on in about ten minutes.” Martyn starts, “Skizz just flat lined, so most of the Watchers are out of the lab. This is the best time to coordinate escape.”

Skizz? Skizz flat lined?

The thought settles in Impulse’s stomach like a millstone in a lake. Skizz flat lined.

Martyn is still talking. He’s handing something out to a few of the subjects. There is a copy of the lab passed around.

But Impulse isn’t really paying attention to any of it.

He can’t be dead.

He can’t.

But the alarm hasn’t stopped, and to Impulse it sounds like the constant monotonous tone of a flat line.

…

The escape fails.

Of course it does, there was no way that it could succeed. They still hadn’t gotten use to moving while tethered to someone. And Tango and Etho were drugged and sleepy. And Ren barked at any foreign movement.

And the Watchers came back far too soon.

Impulse doesn’t think they ever found Skizz. They were still in and out of the lab for hours after their initial return. He knows that if they find him soon enough, they could put him back together.

He's seen it a few times with Jimmy. The little alarms go off, a noise contained to the medical center, and the all Watchers go into a flurry to retrieve him from his renters.

He’s brought into the operating room limp, and walks out just a fine a few hours later. The Watchers are irritated after that. All tires and angry like it has taken too much out of them to keep him alive.

Impulse wonders how long they have after death to bring someone back. It has been hours, almost a full day, since Skizz’s alarm.

The system wide noise has been silenced, but Impulse can still hear the ringing of the flat line when he walks by the medical center.

…

Impulse cannot be soothed.

Bdubs can tell this, first because the weeks of close quarters has taught him how to read Impulse, and second because of how he can barely hold a conversation.

Every word has a bite to it, teeth laced with venom and fury and broken glass. Impulse doesn’t want to talk to anyone. He doesn’t want to feel anymore. Everything hurts, and everything aches, and it’s been days and days without rest from this.

The Watchers sing no dirge. There is no requiem for Impulse to hold to dearly.

Only quiet empty space, and the rhythmic counting that Bdubs has never stopped. Softly counting to the next day Impulse has to face without Skizz.

There is an anger and an ache.

And it stays and stays.

…

It is about noon when the lobby wall explodes outwards, and the subjects around it leap up and out of the way.

A black van crashes into the room, swerving to a stop.

Impulse and Bdubs are in the lobby with Etho and Joel when it happens. Etho lifts his sleepy head to stare at the rubble. Joel openly gapes.

The driver side door slams open, and Impulse feels his heart drum. Skizz stands there, pale wings, bright halo, dressed in a hoodie and jeans like he’s never seen the horrors of the lab. There is no uniform, and no collar.

Skizz hurries to open the side door, “I’m getting y’all out of here.” He shouts, “get in the van, get in the van!”

Joel tugs suddenly at Etho’s chain, but Etho needs to encouragement. They’re both hurrying to the car doors.

Skizz catches Impulse’s eyes. Impulse swallows, frozen.

“Hey man!” Skizz beams at him. Sunshine and sunshine, “Get in the van, let’s go!”

Bdubs is tugging at him, but Impulse can only stare.

“I thought you were dead.” He thinks, or whispers, or screams. “I thought you were dead.”

Skizz puts a firm hand on his shoulder, “Good to see you, dude.”

Around them, other subjects are gravitating to the noise. Skizz helps Impulse and Bdubs into the van, and others are joining them. Jimmy and Tango. Scott.

“Someone go find Scar, make sure he’s not stuck somewhere.” Skizz orders, “Ren too. I’m not leaving anyone behind.”

Impulse crams into the back of the van, feeling the way the weight shifts and creaks as all thirteen of them make their way on.

Etho murmurs something to Joel about Watchers. Next to him, Tango is nodding off, unable to stay away despite the chaos around him.

“Where’s Martyn?” Skizz asks, counting each of the people in the van, “and Pearl. Where are they?”

“Rented.” Scott says. “they’re not here right now.” Instead of Pearl, Scott seems to be tethered to a weight. Cleo has the same ball-and-chain attached to her.

Skizz grimaces.

“I’m here, I’m here.” Scar shouts. “Sorry, we couldn’t get Grian to move.”

When Impulse cranes his head to look out the tinted windows, he can see Bigb sprinting up to the van, desperately pushing a wheelchair with both Scar and Grian in it. Grian is twitching angrily like he’s upset at being saved. Ren is bounding right behind them.

Skizz does another count as Scar is lifted out of his chair and pulled into someone’s lap. Grian is tugged along too, although he looks like he might start to fight back soon. Ren is pushed into the van, and Bigb closes the door behind him.

“That’s everyone. Go.” Joel demands.

“Pearl and Martyn-” Scott begins weakly, and his protests are shut down by the jolt of the van.

Impulse can see the Watchers surrounding the vehicle, just a few minutes too late to stop them from all getting in.

They are shouting, but the purring of the engine and the walls of the van are soft and sweet, letting no violence in. Skizz steps on the gas, and cranks the wheel to drive right back out of the lobby.

There is a small series of beeping that comes from everyone’s collar.

Ren jumps up, clearly panicked by the noise. Or maybe he knows what it means.

Because a moment later there is a prick at the back of Impulse’s neck, right where his collar meets his skin.

His stomach drops with the realization.

Etho recognizes it too, “We’ve just been drugged.” He mumbles. Then he turns to Skizz, “Skizz, they got us.”

But his words slur, and Skizz can only glance at him in confusion. The van goes barreling through the opening of the wall.

There are distant gunshots.

Impulse is nodding off, but he knows that’s weird. The Watchers don’t shoot at them, they would get hurt. Why guns now?

The vehicle stutters underneath them, and Skizz swears.

They swerve as they make it outside. The van is failing for sure, but Skizz keeps urging it on.

Impulse passes out before the car stops.

…

Impulse almost expects to wake up back him.

Maybe on the couch, curled next to his best friend. Or maybe in bed with his wife at his side.

But he is greeted with the same white walls. The same collar at his throat. He’s no tied to Bdubs anymore, but he still feels anchored to this place.

Next to him, Skizz is waking slowly. He is in uniform again, metal collar and all. He groans and rubs his eyes, and Impulse feels his stomach twist.

They had been so close.

He could taste it.

But still, they end up back here again. And like always Grian is standing and gesturing grandly around the new building.

“Welcome to Limited Life.” He declares, “Enjoy your stay.”

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