Rogue Sloth

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

After Jacob had left to organize the security team, Atlas had gotten out of bed to ready himself for the trip to the hospital. With the help of his staff, he dressed himself and took his supplements to handle leaving the palace. Since Caspian had disappeared, his health had taken another major dip for the worse, and he found it unbearable to get out of bed more often that he was required to. His doctor had placed him on indefinite bedrest, during which he was permitted to continue governing the country and running the military from a distance as long as he didn’t travel to meet with anyone. The most he was supposed to do was get up to take short, five-minute walks around the palace every few hours to lessen the risk that he would develop blood clots.

Even now, it was against his physician’s advice for him to be going to the hospital, but he wasn’t going to lay in his bed all day when he’d just found out that his son was alive. He needed to see Caspian with his own eyes, desperate to reunite with his only child and heir. He was also interested in finding out exactly what the rebels had done to him while they’d had him in their clutches. When Jacob had told him that the prince had been sent into surgery, he hadn’t given any specifics about what kinds of wounds he’d had that had needed urgent treatment. If their enemies believed they could treat the future king of Aspiria like a worthless prisoner, he was going to burn them to the ground.

Intensity burned in his eyes as he raised his arms so that his attendant could place a coat over his shoulders. If Jacob hadn’t been warned against it, Atlas would have insisted on leaving immediately. However, he knew that seeing his son lying unconscious on a table while surgeons worked on him would have been too much for him to handle. As impatient as he was, he needed to wait until the operation was over, so he would see the prince after he’d been transported to a bed.

Because of his condition, it took him a long time to get ready to go. He’d bathed and dressed himself and even forced down a small meal so his supplements wouldn’t upset his tender stomach. By the time he was done, it had been about an hour since Jacob had first showed up to give him the news about Caspian. He looked at the analog clock on his wall with a deep frown. He’d hoped that he would have heard from the guard by now that the prince was out of surgery, but he’d still heard nothing. The silence concerned him, because it alluded to the severity of his son’s wounds. The worse injuries were, the longer it took to repair them.

Turning to a nearby maid, he ordered: “Find Jacob Curry and tell him I’d like to speak with him.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” she replied obediently, bowing before she left the room to do as she was told.

As she disappeared from sight, Atlas sighed and seated himself in a plush armchair by the window to wait. It took another five minutes or so, but apparently the maid had found Jacob quickly, because he heard a knock on the door followed by the guard’s inquisitive voice: “You asked for me, Your Majesty?”

“Yes, come in,” the king beckoned him.

Standing outside the bedroom, Jacob inhaled deeply, bracing himself for the conversation to come. Knowing Atlas well, he was sure the monarch had summoned him because he wanted further information on Caspian. Unfortunately, he had nothing more to give. He stepped inside and dipped his head.

“Do you know how much longer my son will be in surgery?” the king asked right away.

“No, I haven’t heard anything from the hospital,” Jacob shook his head. “I saw his injuries for myself though, and I’d expect that it’s going to be at least another hour or two, if not longer. He had multiple wounds that needed treating.”

“Such as?” Atlas frowned again.

Jacob shifted his weight, “I’m not sure it would benefit you to know that, sire…”

Atlas narrowed his eyes, “Are you defying me, Curry?”

“No, Your Majesty,” Jacob replied hastily. He took a breath. He’d hoped he could avoid being the one to tell the monarch what had happened to his heir, but Atlas wasn’t giving him much of a choice. Hoping his ruler wouldn’t be too irate, he reluctantly answered: “Prince Caspian was admitted with at least four serious afflictions. I don’t know all the details, but from what I understand, he had a broken wrist, a stab wound in one arm, and a gunshot wound to the leg. There was also something wrong with his chest, but I didn’t stay long enough to find out what it was. It’s going to take time for the surgeons to properly tend to the damage, which is why it may be a few more hours before you can visit him.”

Atlas stared at him wordlessly, unprepared for the news that his son had been so seriously injured while he’d been gone. The rebels had beaten, stabbed, and shot him. His vision tinged red with fury. “Those bastards!” he howled, quickly fumbling to stand from his seat, only to fall back on his rear, unbalanced.

Jacob ran across the room to his side, tentatively placing a hand on the king’s shoulder. “Your Majesty, please calm down. What matters is that he’s alive—”

“Don’t you dare tell me what matters,” Atlas hissed threateningly. “My son was shot! I want the culprits dead! I want them—” Suddenly, he erupted into a coughing fit that prevented him from speaking further.

Jacob tensed and turned toward the nearest servant. “Call his doctor now,” he commanded, pressing a hand on the king’s back while the coughing fit seized him. It turned out that it had been the wrong decision to tell Atlas the specifics after all.

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

No prob! I've been researching so much for this RP xD Mainly about the way different types of injuries are treated lately, since it's applicable to Cas's situation. I found some good stuff, but I'll also invent some more advanced treatments, since the capital is supposed to be a little futuristic.

Currently, there are no treatments for broken ribs, so I'll come up with something for that, I think.

As for the interrogation, it would probably be good to pick one to three techniques to apply and run with that :)

And Jacob is really fun to write for, haha. He's a workaholic, but his personality is fun.

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

They'd probably only try to question her the first time, just to see if she'll be compliant without resorting to more extreme methods. I found an interesting list of tactics interrogators sometimes use here if you want to skim through it.

And yeah, Maisie would probably be pretty upset with all this xD

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Having said everything that needed to be said to King Atlas, Jacob left the royal’s wing to check in on the security team at the palace. All he needed to do for the rest of the day in regard to the mess that had broken out at the seventh tower was wait for the call from the hospital confirming that Prince Caspian was out of surgery and transferred to a room in which he could be visited by outsiders. Until then, he planned to catch up on scheduling and assigning the guards to the needed posts around the building.

He made his way to his on-site office and spent about fifteen minutes skimming reports and entering the names of the guards into a digital program before his com device sounded with an alert that someone was trying to reach him. At the noise, he exhaled in exasperation, already guessing the call was coming from someone at the penitentiary. Those dumbasses can’t handle anything without my help, he grumbled inwardly as he put on his earpiece.

In truth, most of the high-ranking soldiers were extremely competent. They had been rigorously trained and tested before they received their promotions, forbidden from advancing if there was any doubt that they wouldn’t be able to handle the responsibilities of a higher rank. However, the problem was that most of the finest men in the military were all concentrated in one spot: central intelligence and strategizing. Atlas had been so hyper focused on winning the war that he’d pulled the best of the best from almost every other area to command the army, leaving plenty of other roles to be manned by people who were underqualified for the jobs. Currently, the prison was in a similar state. Warden Walker was a competent man, but many of the guards under his command didn’t know what they were doing.

“Curry here,” he said into the receiver, leaning back in his chair as he took the call.

Sir, the prisoner is being escorted to the interrogation room as we speak, a guard told him formally.

“Great,” Jacob rolled his eyes. “And why was this necessary to tell me?”

Err… actually, I was calling to request that she be transferred to an isolation room after the questioning is over.

“What? Why?” Jacob furrowed his brows. Isolation rooms were reserved for prisoners who’d proven to be a threat to either themselves or the guards who looked after them. After seeing the way the girl had behaved when she’d been arrested, he couldn’t imagine that she was dangerous to anyone. He wondered if the guards were just trying to treat her with prejudice because she was a member of the rebellion.

We have reason to believe she was going to utilize a weapon, sir, the guard explained. We gave her water as you requested, and she broke the glass to make a shiv—

“Hang on,” Jacob interrupted irritably. “Did you say she broke a glass?”

…Yes, sir.

“How the fuck did she get her hands on a glass? I told you to give her a drink, not a goddamn build-your-own knife kit.” He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Do you morons not have a single paper cup in that shithole?”

I’m sorry, sir. It-It was an oversight.

“You’ve got that right,” Jacob growled. “Pay more attention to details next time, soldier.”

I will, sir.

“Good. As long as you don’t accidentally give her another weapon, I don’t see any reason why you’d need to put her in isolation,” he said decisively, tapping his index finger on his desk. “Just keep an eye on her and treat her like you would any other prisoner… Paper cups only. Jesus. Put it on a fucking plaque if you have to.”

Yes, sir.

The line ended, and he shook his head, returning to the work he’d been doing on the schedule. With any luck, he wouldn’t hear from the penitentiary again until they called him back to report on what kind of information they were able to squeeze out of her.

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Sounds good to me!

I’ve also been toying with ways to make Jay and Miles more major characters in this story, and I think Cas might get them involved in protecting Iris from being executed later. Details TBD

Word association Game!

Winter

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Jacob is mostly playing peacekeeper to avoid pissing anyone off xD

Also, the interrogators may or may not use Aproveset on Iris during the first interrogation. Generally, they have to get permission to use the drug, since they only have a limited supply, so they try to exhaust other methods of extracting information first. There's also no rule against using Aproveset during the first interrogation of a prisoner though, so it could still happen. You can handle it however you want :)

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

The taxi pulled to a stop in the palace courtyard just beyond the sweeping perron that led up to the front doors. Thanking the driver for the ride, Jacob climbed out of the backseat and made his way up the steps. Since he was supposed to be inspecting the seventh tower on the border, the king wasn’t expecting him to return this early—last time he’d checked, it was still midafternoon—but Atlas rarely left the confines of his bedroom since the memorial had taken place. Chances were, that was exactly where he would find the mourning father today as well.

At least this time, I’m bringing him good news, he mused as the security officers by the entrance allowed him inside. The way the monarch had reacted when he’d brought word that Caspian was dead was seared permanently into his memory. He looked forward to informing him that their sources were wrong and that the prince was back inside the safety of the capital, where he belonged. Of course, he would also have to confess that he’d barely been alive at the time the soldiers had found him and that he was currently in the hospital undergoing extensive surgery, but at least it was still better news than “your son is gone.”

With a subtle shake of his head, the guard continued to navigate the halls inside the palace, climbing stairs until he reached King Atlas’s bedroom. Rapping his knuckles on the heavy oak doors, he called out, “You Majesty, I have something to tell you. May I come in?”

As usual, a brief silence followed before he heard the shuffling of feet on the other side of the panel. The handle was jostled, and a maid appeared on the other side, beckoning him to step inside. He nodded to her politely and entered the room, turning habitually toward the bed, where his ruler was laying down. At the sight of him, Jacob bowed deeply from the waist and straightened his posture again as the weary king grumbled, “More trouble with those underqualified fools in the seventh tower?”

“Actually, no, Your Majesty,” he replied. “I come bearing good news.”

“Oh?” Atlas brightened ever so slightly. Before he’d thought his son was dead, he used to leap at good news, but now, he barely stirred. It was like the life had been drained from him, which only encouraged Jacob to relay his discovery.

“It’s about Prince Caspian… He’s alive,” he announced, getting straight to the point.

At first, Atlas said nothing. His brows jumped upward, and he stared at the guard as if he was having a hard time processing what he’d just said. However, after a moment, he managed to speak. “What…?” he breathed, forcing himself to sit up on his bed. “How? Are you certain?”

“Absolutely,” Jacob confirmed. “I was there when he was found. While I was inspecting tower seven, he appeared at the border in the company of a young woman. I brought him into the capital, so I know for sure that it was him.”

“My son… Caspian is alive,” Atlas echoed distantly. For a moment, he fell quiet again and then pushed his duvet aside to get out of his bed. “Where is he? I must see him.”

Jacob startled and took a step closer to the bed, holding up his hands. “You can soon, Your Majesty, just… not yet.” He cringed as he prepare himself to deliver the bad part of the news. “Prince Caspian is at the hospital. He showed up with multiple severe injuries that required immediate medical attention. He’s going to be fine, but right now, he’s undergoing surgery to treat the wounds.”

“Injuries?” Atlas scowled. “How did that happen?”

“I’m not entirely sure yet because he was in poor shape when he arrived,” Jacob admitted. “But it seems more than likely that they were caused by the enemies who abducted him. We’ll find out more when he wakes up after his operation.”

The king clenched his jaw, “And what about the other individual he was with? A woman, you said? Was she one of them?”

“Potentially,” Jacob replied, shifting his weight uncomfortably. “I recognized her as the same girl who lured him into the forest and had her arrested upon arrival. She’s currently in a holding cell at the penitentiary.”

“Perfect,” Atlas growled. “Have her executed at once.”

The guard blanched. “Sire, if I may be so bold,” he cleared his throat. “She may be useful to us if we question her first. We know she’s associated in some way with the uprising, so we could use what she knows to finish off our enemies for good. She may have just handed us the key to our victory by showing up here.” That, and he suspected that Caspian would be livid if he came out of surgery and discovered that they had executed the person he’d deemed his savior. For the sake of not ruining the relationship between father and son, and for allowing the prince the chance to explain why she was carrying him to the city while there was a warrant out for her arrest, he had to dig in his heels against the order to kill her right away.

“We’ve questioned quite a few prisoners recently,” the king reminded him jadedly. “What difference would it make to interrogate one more?”

“I can’t be certain that it would make a difference,” Jacob replied honestly. “But there’s no harm in trying. If she has anything useful to give us, we’ll learn it. If not, we’ve lost nothing in prodding at her thoughts.”

Atlas chewed on his lower lip in thought. “I suppose you’re right,” he sighed. “Very well then. Tell the interrogators to do what they will. I just want this godforsaken war to end.”

“Right away, Your Majesty,” Jacob bowed again. “I’ve also asked the doctors involved in Prince Caspian’s surgery to alert me as soon as his operation is over. If you’d like, I can relay the word to you when I hear from them.”

“Please do,” Atlas nodded, reclining on the bed again. “In fact, I’m going to visit him when he’s awake.”

“Of course, Your Majesty,” Jacob said before he politely excused himself from the room to call the warden back. He’d delayed the girl’s execution for now, but she was still a traitor to the crown, so she would be treated as such until Caspian could explain more about what had happened since he’d disappeared. Turning on his com device, he tapped into the frequency and spoke crisply into the receiver, “Warden Walker? This is Curry. Have the interrogation room prepared for our new prisoner.”

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Definitely ^^ I also know a lot of the people in the remodeling industry here because I worked with them when I was in college, haha. It'll be fun to do another project with them.

Also feel free to flesh out some of the guards that Iris would be interacting with.

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Jacob’s mind was reeling. From the moment he’d first recognized Prince Caspian on the computer screen to the ambulance ride to the hospital, he continued to grapple with the fact that Aspiria’s future king was still alive. He, along with everyone else in the capital, had been convinced that he was dead. Even Nox-Fleuret had confirmed it when he’d been under interrogation at the penitentiary. The leader of the rebellion had been under the influence of Aproveset at the time, so there had been no doubt in the soldiers’ minds that their prince was gone. Something must have happened that Regis hadn’t been aware of though. That was the only explanation he could think of for the false information they had received, since their truth serum was supposed to be foolproof.

Standing by the edge of the vehicle with a rail in his hand for balance, his eyes remained fixed on Caspian’s unconscious form while the paramedics cut away his tattered clothes to examine his injuries more thoroughly. He was impressed that the young royal had survived on his own and wondered how he’d managed to get back to the city. When he’d been awake, he had given the rebel girl credit for his rescue, but surely one woman couldn’t have saved him alone. Knowing that Caspian had a tendency of passing off commendation to others, he guessed he had more to do with his own escape than he would admit.

He listened quietly to the medical professionals as they analyzed the extent of his wounds. From his vantage point, he could see what they were discussing as well. The most concerning injury was the gunshot to his leg, poorly bandaged and still bleeding. The bullet was apparently still lodged somewhere close to his femur and would need to be surgically removed after they arrived at the hospital. They also pointed out his obviously broken wrist—apparently it would be an easier fix—and the mottled red patches and swelling on his chest that indicated another internal injury. The severity of the latter would be unknown until they had a chance to X-ray the area and determine how badly he was wounded.

Privately, Jacob suspected the prince was at least severely bruised, since he’d noticed how winded Caspian became every time he’d attempted to speak. Having bruised his own ribs before, he was familiar with the stabbing pain that stole ones breath away. However, he wasn’t an expert on the matter, so he kept his input to himself. No matter what had caused the discoloration, he was sure the medical professionals would diagnose it.

As the ambulance neared the hospital and began to descend toward the landing pad, Jacob heard the paramedics discussing a deep laceration in the prince’s arm that was potentially infected and would also need immediate treatment to prevent blood poisoning. He shook his head to himself, incredulous. It was no wonder Caspian had collapsed before he’d made it to the fence line. He’d been in poor shape, and it was a marvel that he’d managed to carry himself all the way back to the capital even with the help of the girl he’d supposedly been traveling with. It angered him that the rebels had beaten his future ruler nearly to death, and he was sure King Atlas would share the sentiment.

Caspian’s health aside, he was glad that he had good news to report to the current monarch. For the last few days, Atlas had been practically inconsolable over the “loss” of his son. He was eager to tell him that the prince was alive and that the paramedics believed he was stable enough to recover from the wounds that had been inflicted upon him while he’d been a prisoner of the rebellion. Once he made sure Caspian was taken into surgery without any issues, he planned to go to the palace straight away to relay the news.

The hovercraft touched down on the landing pad atop the building, and the paramedics draped a white sheet over the prince’s body before they transported him to the elevator. Word had already been sent ahead that the most talented surgeon in the facility would need to be prepared to receive him, ensuring that he would be given the best care Aspiria had to offer. Jacob jogged with them to the shaft and went along until they brought him to a set of double doors, through which he wasn’t permitted to pass.

Trusting that the physicians would handle things from here, the guard told them to alert him as soon as Prince Caspian was out of surgery and turned away to return to the palace. He called a taxi, having left his personal vehicle at the watch tower on the border, and pulled his com device from his belt to tap into the security team’s frequency during the drive. Right away, he was greeted with an excited hum of voices, to whom word had spread that the missing royal was alive. Guards and soldiers buzzed with questions, wanting to know where the prince was and what condition he’d arrived in. Apparently there was already a rumor circulating that the girl who’d come with him had been holding him hostage.

Jacob rolled his eyes and thumbed his fingerprint access, “This is Curry. The prince is currently undergoing surgery at the hospital but is in stable condition. Nothing about what happened to him or the woman who was with him has been confirmed yet, so please stop spreading misinformation until we find out more about the situation.”

Curry? This is Warden Walker, a voice replied over the device. We have the prisoner in our custody. Are there any further orders as to what should be done with her?

Jacob tapped his index finger against his thigh. At the moment, he didn’t have explicit permission from the king to dictate what should be done with the girl. He suspected Atlas would want to have her interrogated to find out more about the rebellion’s plot to abduct and kill the prince though. “Not yet,” he replied. “Has she been given water?”

No, sir.

“Give her some then,” Jacob dictated. “I have no idea when the last time was that she had a drink, and I don’t want her to die before any decisions are made about her fate.”

But sir, prisoners are more malleable when they’re dehydrated—

“I know that,” Jacob interrupted him impatiently. “But I don’t care. Nothing has been decided yet, so treat her like she’s going to be in our custody for a long time. She very well could be.”

A brief pause followed the order before Walker responded, Yes, sir.

“Good,” Jacob said curtly, letting the connection drop and turning toward the car window. Had it not been for Caspian’s insistence that the girl wasn’t an enemy, he wouldn’t have given a damn what the soldiers at the penitentiary did with her. However, he felt obligated to at least make sure she wasn’t left half-dead, since her wellbeing seemed important to the prince. Heaving a sigh, he leaned his shoulder against the side door, watching the city roll by on his way to speak to King Atlas.