09/08/2012- 11/08/2012. Big thanks to Matt for his help!
Voltron and it's characters don't belong to me, blahblahblah, etc..
Hacked
by Zuzanny
lionette AT mailcity DOT com
chapter 2.
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Keith stood beside Daniel, both watching through the observation window as Pidge sat up to spoon some of the hospital goo (in some places known as food.) into his mouth with shaky hands. Watching their team mate struggling to do the simplest of tasks was painful, but they had noticed that once Pidge did manage to do something, he was able to continue to do so. It was almost like he had forgotten how to do absolutely everything, but if given a reminder, it would come back to him. Even so, Keith didn't like that glazed, half smile Pidge was wearing all the time now. Pidge had always been brilliant and sharp, now when Keith looked at him, it was to see that Pidge wasn't quite all there. It wasn't right, and it was something that a giant robot could do nothing to fix. It made Keith want to smash something. "Are you sure he said he'd been hacked?" he asked.
Daniel hugged himself and looked at the floor. "Yeah."
"Just as well I had all the codes changed and set the hangers on alert then."
"But what does being hacked even mean anyway?" Daniel scuffed his boots against the polished lino.
"You know computer hacking, right?" Daniel nodded. "It's the same type of thing just with someone's mind."
"But Pidge isn't a computer!" It was almost yelled.
"I know. That's what makes it so damaging." Keith continued observed the young man for a few moments, eyes narrowing at the discomfort shown in his body language. "Is there something else?"
Daniel took in a deep breath, gathering his thoughts. "It's just... I just don't get why they would DO it. Why? Humiliation? I suppose so, but Pidge doesn't get embarrassed over that sort of stuff, so why? To make him freeze to death quicker?" He raised his eyes to Keith's narrowed ones. "It just keeps playing on my mind."
"What does?"
Daniel pressed his hands against the glass and looked back into the room at Pidge who was laughing with delight over the red jelly as it wobbled in the dish in front of him. "Why would they have taken all his clothes off?"
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Keith's blood had turned to ice at Daniel's question. "Perhaps it was both." he replied, and immediately turned and marched away to find Allura. It was something that he had not considered. None of them had. They had all ignored it because that sort of thing was beyond what they normally dealt with. But Keith should have known better. It was his job to know better. Daniel was still so innocent, of course he wouldn't understand the significance, but Keith did. It made him sick that he had missed it.
Daniel had been the first person on the scene, had found Pidge lying in a crumpled heap in the freezing control centre of that abandoned space station. Daniel had done his best to administer aid to their team mate while waiting for the rest of them to arrive. Keith remembered how he had vaguely noticed Pidge's clothes had been misaligned and undone while taking off the thermal blanket to examine his team mate's injuries, but he had put that down to part of the process of defending ones self while getting the crap kicked out of you. And there had been plenty of evidence to show that Pidge had put up a fight. There were hundreds of holes in the walls where his Smart Stars had hit, and from the material also recovered, there had been just as many adversaries to fight off. Pidge was lucky to be alive. No, scratch that, Pidge would be lucky to recover even half of his mental capacities again after that attack. For the longest time they thought he would never even wake up.
It had not occurred to Keith that the reason why Pidge's clothes had been messed up was because Daniel had tried to re-dress him, or that there had even been a REASON for that need. Keith knew from experience that it was really hard to dress an unconscious person with help let alone all by yourself. Let alone in the freezing cold of space with virtually no life support, and with the chance that the person you were dressing had a broken neck and you could kill them with the very movements you are attempting to save their lives with. Of course Daniel would be bothered be this, it was a tactic unused by their enemies normally.
Keith turned into the room where Allura, Lance and Hunk were discussing medical things with one of the doctors. They all turned to him as he entered.
"Hacked." He confirmed, and they all winced.
"Are you sure?" Allura asked, and he nodded. "But that's good, right? At least we know he may recover. This is better than permanently brain damaged." She turned to the doctor. "Right?"
"As I was saying," The doctor pointed to images of brain scans on his computer. "There is no physical damage observable to is brain, either by injury or chemical inducement. However mind hacking does not leave physical traces."
"Man, we are so screwed." Lance said and started talking security related things with Hunk, while the doctor and Allura started discussing the known types of life forms capable of mind hacking.
"There's more." Keith interrupted, and caught the doctor's eye. "Did your lot do a kit on him by any chance?"
The doctor blinked, and shook his head. "No, there was no sign of trauma that would indicate it would be needed even with-"
"He's a Balton." Keith snapped, and the Doctor paled, before sinking into his chair muttering sacred prayers. While Allura and Lance both looked confused, Hunk made a pained noise.
"But... but...Wait, do you know, or just suspect?"
"Well from what Daniel just told me, I suspect heavily."
"But that means-"
Keith just nodded grimly.
"Do you think he knows?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, Hunk."
"Oh, my poor little buddy."
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There was a huge bunch of flowers on Pidge's bedside table when Allura graced his room with her presence. He was staring at the large, bright selection of plants (that Allura thought looked like some random grab from someone's garden and not at all professionally attended), with his head cocked to the side with contemplation.
"Hello Pidge." she said quietly, and lowered herself onto the edge of his bed. "How are you feeling today?" He turned his head to blink at her and squint at her for a few moments while the cogs moved in his head. Then she saw the recognition flood through his eyes and he beamed at her with happiness. She forced herself not to tear up with the relief that recognition had given her.
"Hello Princess Allura. I feel like I am functioning approximately twenty-five percent of normal. But yesterday I was only fifteen percent, so I consider this a vast improvement. Pi is still missing, but that's alright, I much prefer using Tau anyway." And he grinned at her. "How are you?"
Allura blinked, not sure how to take his comments murmuring that she was well. She looked at the flowers. "Uh, these are beautiful, who are they from?"
"From father. But I thought his message was a bit strange."
Allura felt alarm run through her. "Your... father? May I see the card?"
Pidge just tilted his head to the side again and gave her a puzzled look. "Card?"
"Otherwise how do you know it was from your... your father?" She didn't mention what she knew about Pidge's family and how the only living remainders of such did not include a father.
But Pidge waved at the collection of flowers themselves. "I can only assume because They say so. Surely, Princess, you know how to read such language. I would have thought that would be essential to your position."
"Of course." she demurred. "However, I have been so busy lately that I must admit to being remiss in the practice of this one."
Pidge gave her a long, searching look – while she tried to smile innocently at him- then turned to point out each one of the flowers. "Message. Sorrow. Sorrowful remembrance. Remorse. Energy on adversity. Surprise. Sensuality. Pleasures of memory. Pleasure and pain. Warlike trophy. Mental beauty. Sweet innocence. Reconciliation. Sincerity. Forgive and forget. Sincere regret. Joys to come. Regard. Strength of character. A proud spirit. Impatient of absence. I think of you. Secrecy. Paternal error. I feel my obligation. Temptation. Impatience. Lowliness, envy or remorse. Fascination. You please all. Excitement. You occupy my thoughts. Affection. Health. . An expected meeting. Anticipation. Lasting pleasures." Pidge paused, and shook his head while Allura sat stunned and horrified. "My father is obviously a very strange man."
"Obviously."
"Either that, or someone randomly grabbed any plants they could get their hands on while on their way here, and these have no significance what soever."
They both chuckled over that, but Allura knew what was more likely. "Did you see who delivered them?"
"No. It was strange really, even the medical staff didn't see who brought them, just that they were here. I must have fallen asleep again, because I also don't remember them being brought in. I feel sorry for who ever tried to visit me. I feel kind of rude now for missing them."
"I think your visitor would have understood you sleeping through their visit. How do you know what the flowers mean?"
Pidge frowned and looked back at them. "I... don't know. Not yet anyway. I just KNEW them when I saw them." He lowered his eyes to the blankets covering his legs, and started tracing nervous patterns on them with his fingertips. "The doctor says it's common when you've been hacked to have your memories all messed up. He said that they are still there, but it's like someone's come into your house and thrown all your belongings about. That it will take a while to clean it up and put it all back in order, but that it will all still be there. Do you think that's true?" Pidge's eyes turned up to hers with such a hopeful look that it made her heart ache.
"I hope so." She said, and enclosed him in a hug, only to pull back when he went rigid in her arms and made a small distressed gasp. "Pidge, Pidge, are you alright?"
His face was pale and she could see him trembling while he turned his head to look behind himself. "I just thought..." He shook his head, and kept his eyes low. "It's stupid."
"No it's not. Please tell me."
"I thought I saw a woman. Standing behind me." He shook his head and gave a mirthless chuckle. "How stupid, huh? I mean, you're here, there's no window where you are for me to be seeing her reflection like that. And there's no where she could have been standing anyway." He was still trembling, and Allura could see the fine sheen of sweat forming on his brow.
"Pidge," Allura said seriously, gently grasping hold of his hand. "I'm going to tell you something important. Not everything you remember will be nice."
To be continued?
Author's notes:
These meanings are taken from "The Language of Flowers", written in 1913, published in 1968. I don't know the author. Copy right is Margaret Pickston.
Adonis – sorrowful remembrance
Apple – temptation
Balsam – impatience
Bramble – lowliness, envy, remorse
Branch of currants – you please all
Camomile – energy in adversity
Cardamine – paternal error
Celandine – joys to come
Corchorus – impatient of absence
Daffodil- regard
Flowering fern – fascination
Fern, Garden chervil, Honesty- sincerity
Geranium (nutmeg) – An expected meeting
Gladiolus – strength of character
Gloxinia – a proud spirit
Gooseberry – anticipation
Hazel – reconciliation
Hartsease or pansy – you occupy my thoughts
Purple hyacinth – sorrow
Iceland moss – Health
Indian cress – warlike trophy.
Iris – message
Kennedya – mental beauty
Lint – I feel my obligation
Pea (everlasting)- an appointed meeting, lasting pleasures
Periwinkle (white) – pleasures of memory
Raspberry – remorse
Rose (dog) – pleasure and pain
Rose (full blown placed over two buds) – secrecy.
Salvia (blue)- I think of you
Scilla (blue)- forgive and forget
Scilla (white) – sweet innocence
Spanish jasmine – sensuality
Truffle - surprise
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