… System Failure…

It had been 24 hours now, and the longest any subject had ever been inside the Animus. Though subject was the wrong term, Lucy had decided; the boy was just unlucky. Wrong place, wrong time. That didn't even cover it – just plain unlucky people didn't end up in situations as dire as these.

"Who's the kid?" a voice from behind Lucy's shoulder asked; a curious tone to it. The scientist didn't jump or even bat an eyelash in surprise – she had known he was there. With Dr. Vidic out, she had opened the locked metal door of Desmond's confines to let him out and stretch his legs. More than that though, his company was appreciated, even if she never said it out loud.

Lucky shook her head in frustration, "That's the question Desmond." As of yet, there was no name to put to the young face, or at least an official one. What was official though, was that staying in the Animus for this period of time was unhealthy. A doctor had been called in earlier to fit the boy up with an IV drip to provide the necessary fluids and nutrients that he'd need. Lucy only wondered if it would be enough…

Desmond stuck his hands into his pockets, taking in the odd visage before him. The kid was pale, blonde hair splaying around his head and eyes closed, though they would occasionally move as if he was dreaming. Is that what everyone looked like when they were inside the Animus? There were IV drips and needle's sticking into the boy at strange angles, the Animus adding to the scene, making it look something like some weird hospital. Only the kid wasn't going to get any treatment that would save his life; only things to prolong it.

"Poor guy," Desmond muttered, sitting on the edge of the silver machine and facing towards Lucy who was still typing away on her keyboard, "Vidic says he's expendable, right? Do… do we have any ideas as to who he is?" The bartender asked, settling a hand on either side of his body to brace himself against the Animus. "I mean, what if he's totally innocent?"

The constant clacking of Lucy's typing paused for a short moment, "No, we have no idea who he is yet but we're working on it." A sigh of regret escaped her lips, "And it doesn't matter if he's innocent or not, he's… he's company property now. The theory is, if something goes wrong, its better to him than you. You're important, we need you." Lucy didn't look convinced by the theory, but it was the only way to rationalize what was going on.

Desmond remained silent, a troubled expression on his face. Am I just company property as well then?

Dr. Vidic had set forth to researched just who the unlucky kid was. It was no small mystery as the why the Animus was functioning the way it was, and he lead scientist of Abstergo hated mysteries. Despite the use of a super computer and public records though, nothing had come up about the unlucky boy. Dr. Vidic was as stubborn as they came though, so if anyone was going to find anything, it would be him before anyone else.

"I've been calling him Desdemona," She said out of the blue, breaking the silence in the antiseptic clean room, voice echoing off the cool metal walls and windows.

"…Seems like an odd name if you ask me." The bartender replied, looking back over to the blonde boy's face. "Why not Alan or Matt or… well something more normal?"

The scientist sighed, "It seemed to fit him. It means 'ill-fated', and it doesn't seem like he's going to get out of this…" She didn't want to finish, it would be like putting the last nails into the boy's coffin. Dr. Vidic would use him and use him until there was nothing left but a husk that once shelled a human mind. The boy would wither away and be forgotten. A tool that got dull and was cast aside.

"Alive," Desmond finished it for her, his voice quavering a little as he spoke, "You think he's going to die here."

"He is. We don't need him like we need you Desmond, so… him being here is convenient. We can test the bugs out on him." It was horrible to say, like taking a sticky sweet medicine that a doctor had prescribed. Just as Lucy had spoken the truth, the medicine burned on its way down. She stopped her typing and work all together, looking up at Desmond, "At least that's what Dr. Vidic keeps telling me."

"So what happens to me when we find the location of the Piece of Eden?" Desmond asked suddenly, eyes pleading, "The same thing?" He and the kid – Desdemona or whatever – were in the same boat it seemed; and the Titanic was sinking.

Lucy couldn't answer him. Desmond was her priority – not the boy in the Animus – so she couldn't step out of line to save him; Lucy couldn't expose herself for someone who wasn't Desmond. After all, Dr. Vidic was right: The boy was expendable. He was being forsaken by both sides of the brewing war, both assassin and templar alike, and no one seemed to care. There would always be casualties… but it still hurt.

"Fine." Desmond muttered, put off and annoyed by her lack of response. Did she not care? Not at all! He couldn't take it. Shoving his hands deep within his jean pockets, the bartender slipped off of the silver machine and stomped back over to his room, the metal door sliding shut behind him. The lock clicked into place, but Desmond found that he didn't want to leave the room anyway.

Meanwhile, in another antiseptic white and steel laboratory in the building, Dr. Vidic was conducting research. Going through missing persons reports and various profiles, he was hoping to find out just who this kid was. So far, the rather unlucky bastard was still a mystery. "I hate mysteries…" Vidic growled as he continued to type.

Author Notes!

So. I've been away from this story for too long, and now I've finally updated haha. Anyway, another shall be soon, I promise.

As always, critique is very much appreciated!