Bred for War

[hungercity_hellhound]

Damien ran after dealing with Dee. He had paused to spend time with Zack but once night hit and the tour stopped the Dog was gone. He needed his home and to be away from these people who didn't understand what danger was until it was too late. The stabbings and assaults here, in Ziggy's world, ate at him so much more than the death that hovered around them in Hunger City. He didn't know why things were so bad but they were.

He came home to hell and that felt comfortable. Jack was about to raid a Ministry facility and was happy to see his overly anxious and aggressive second walk in on that preparation. Damien wanted, no needed to kill someone. It was the only way he felt like he could control the safety of others. In Ziggy's universe he couldn't kill people and he couldn't get anyone to understand that danger was real. It stressed him to the end of his wits.

Here he saddled himself down with more weapons that most people would feel safe with, guns and his favored weapon, the long Bowie knife at his back. He didn't know what the facility was but it was dark, moonless, and he had the advantage over everyone else except the actual dogs that ran at their sides. He could see. Damien didn't slow, took point, and slid right into one of the windows beside the door where the guards stood. No one heard him nor saw him.

It was a medical facility, or maybe a technology center, but the tranquilized people in the cages along the wall caused his blood to ice up inside. He didn't pause any more and the people coming behind would free them. He was looking for the controller, the head of the facilities. He was for the hydra head and any that popped up after he took that one.

Damien slipped into the hall and along the doors. He was moving quickly when he passed a darkened door and heard a growl. It sounded off but it was definitely an animal. The Dog paused and stepped back and peered into the dark door. His ear was against it listening to the quiet growls but it was the sound of the chains that had him fishing out the electrical device that let him bypass the electrical panel. He made fast work of it and slipped inside the door.

The room was dark, so dark that even he couldn't see more than hazy shapes. Damien had no idea what kind of animal was in the room but he slid around to the control panel. A few buttons and the back up lights came on. The other Dogs must have been successful cutting the power to the the building. This was the back up, and important enough to keep the power on in here.

War Dog Activated

The metallic voice had his hand snapping back away from the panel. His eyes though were focused on the huge dog in the middle of the room. It was muzzled, chained, and the mat gunmetal body startled Damien. What the hell was the ministry making now?

The screen was scrolling with programming too fast for him to read, not that he was good with this much computer language. He did recognize the next lines.

Boot system successful
… enter bonding code...

Damien stepped away from the flashing panel and in front of the snarling, metal dog. Its eyes focused on him. They were flashing between red and amber colors but the whimpered growl was what had his attention. The mechanical animal was jerking, too much like his memories of shock treatments. The electric lines woven through the chain links holding it in place were way too familiar for Damien's comfort. Neither were the gouges in the metal plating, the scorch marks against the gunmetal silver. The Ministry only knew control through torture, power through fear. Somethings they tortured so long that the fear ceased to exist.

“Quiet.” He spoke and the whimpering stopped. Pulled back ears flicked up to attention. The Hellhound reached out for the muzzle ad the snarling started again, as did the snap of electricity. Damien didn't like that at all. He wasn't thinking of it as non-living, or even an animal, it reminded him of himself. Reminded him of the people who had been tortured in the room with him. Despite the growling he snatched the muzzle off and barely dodged the snap of metal fangs and whatever else filled the mouth of this mechanized dog.

“Easy.” Damien avoided another snap and touched behind the ears. They dropped back, nearly pinching down his fingers. It was so animal like even if it definitely wasn't an animal, not really. There were people outside the door and Damien went back to the panel to see what he could do about the electrical shocks.

The screen was flashing amber with words and a handprint. Damien didn't hesitate and pressed his hand to the pad, who knew, maybe his handprint was still in the depths of Ministry computers. His response was an instant shock that jarred his teeth and dropped him heavily to the ground. The blonde shook his head, wincing and pressing his eyes shut to the pain in his head. He'd hit the metal floor hard. The muzzle shoving at him was not unusual until he looked up to meet another pair of amber eyes beneath perked and curious ears.

“Damien.”

The metallic voice from the mech-dog had him backing away for a moment as he tried to process where he was and what had happened. The shock and fall had scrambled his head and he was wondering if it was scrambled more than he thought.

“Traitor. Dog.”

Damien was blinking at the dog and the way it shifted, cocked its head. This was very uncanny valley, too much for his shaken head. Another word was about to come when the eye lights went out and he heard the ears snap back, metal lips curling back around the muzzle. He heard it too. There were people outside and by the dialect, Ministry.

The dog growled quietly and shifted. Damien wasn't sure what was going on but pulled himself to his feet. The green on the pad caught his attention as he leaned on the side to get his feet. His head was spinning.

War Dog bonding code complete.
Soldier: Damien
Dog: _ _ _

The lines blinked and there was a letter box up. Was he supposed to name it? The mechanical dog had turned around, sat and was waiting with the expectation of a trained dog that wanted instruction.

Damien thought and the first thing that came to mind were Zack's comic books. It was the only place his mind could think of robots or cyborgs or whatever this was existing.

Scorn

As soon as Damien pressed to accept the screen started scrolling with more computer data. The metal dog's eyes flickered and the ears came back up. What was going on with this and the people were still outside.

“Scorn?” Damien whispered and the dog got up looking toward the door. His ears fell back and Damien wondered what kind of Ministry experiment this was. More breeding programs it seemed. More obsession with time bombs in the hands of madmen and nightmares. He patted the metal dog's neck and the muzzle slid against his thigh and hip. This was too good. Maybe it was a Ministry trap but he was about to tear these bastards apart. One of their computer specialists could have a look at Scorn later. Right now, he shoved the door open, knife in hand and turned on the building with yet another weapon they tortured to create and tortured to try and bend it to their will.

[Inspired by this movie, 1984, and Diamond Dogs.]