Artificial Willpower

Fast

An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Guys I'm so funny I promise-

The last 12 hours had been a blur for Kathrine. Ever since her encounter with Pitch everything had felt frenzied and muddled. As if her mind was stuck underwater.

Illinois had always been good at keeping a level head though.

It was four in the morning, but she hadn't slept at all. She couldn't if she tried, she knew. Despite her intense mistakes, Illinois was cleaning up the mess fairly well. She was hiding in the warehouse. Until probably around noon the next day. Then she'd head to the location she had forwarded to Apollo, who had thankfully already accepted.

She wasn't quite sure why she had half expected Illinois to just leave her to die. He wasn't that type of person. He never had been. Honestly looking back, she had no clue how she didn't suspect Illinois was still alive. It was all very... in character for the mechanic.

Maybe it was all because at the time, she really did believe in the lab. She had always felt Illinois was a good, noble person. So if in her mind the lab was ultimately good, she had of course assumed Illinois supported it.

It was embarrassing, in all honesty, to finally realize how skewed her own ideas of good and bad had become.

Of course the mechanic wouldn't leave her to die. She had grown far too accustomed to Pitch's ways. Cutting off loose ends that no longer served him. If something or someone couldn't add quantifiable value to what he wanted, it didn't deserve to exist.

Disposable.

She had already suspected that's how he truly thought, but to hear him say it to her, so plainly and with no shame.

If she got out of this alive, she decided, she would do everything she could to be better. She couldn't bring back the lives she had helped end, but she could try to improve others.

—

Yancy woke up to his internal clock informing him it was 7:43 AM. Wasn't Illinois supposed to wake him up? They were supposed to be taking shifts.

He sat up to see Illinois cooking in the little kitchenette "Did youse sleep at all?" He asked.

The mechanic looked over at Yancy and smiled "Good morning to you too, Yance. Great news, we're gonna be able to meet up with that journalist tonight. The place is a few hours away so we should probably get going a little after noon"

Yancy was of course happy to hear progress was being made but Illinois' avoidance of the question was not comforting. Especially with how much of a problem his exhaustion had been last time.

"Youse didn't answer my question" Yancy pointed out, getting up.

"I don't think I could have slept if I tried. I've been feeling a little jittery. I mean, we're so close. I mean if this goes well, by tomorrow everyone could know."

"Remember what happened last time youse didn't sleep?" Yancy prodded.

The mechanic sighed "Fine fine. Tell you what, we can eat, and then I'll take a couple hour nap before we get moving, if that'll make you feel better. Deal?"

Yancy nodded "Thank youse. I just... don't want us to have another close call and for youse to have to get stressed out like that again"

"Even if there is another close call like that, you were pretty on top of it last time. And you've gotten even better since then. But I do see your point. I wouldn't want to put you in that situation again" the mechanic relented, plating some food.

Yancy grabbed a plate and took a seat, "I appreciate youse listenin' to my concerns."

"Sure thing, Yancy. So are you feeling alright about the rest of the plan? Maybe knocking out the interview and everything today?"

Yancy thought for a moment. Poking at his food. Absolutely anxious, of course. He hadn't had a camera pointed at him since his mugshots. If you didn't count security cameras, of course. Despite having pushed to speed things up himself, it was a bit faster than he expected. Which was a good thing, of course, but that didn't exactly help with the nervousness.

"A little uh... jittery, myself. I mean what if people don't side with me? I am a criminal"

"So am I, technically"

"Youse know what I mean..."

Illinois sighed, taking a seat as well "I do. And I'm sure there's gonna be some people who will think what they did to you is justified. But I believe people are inherently good. And I believe most people believe life is valuable. Even if there is some... gray area, I think most people will agree what happened to you and hundreds of others wasn't okay. The labs didn't choose you or any of the others because they actually care about the crimes you committed. It's not a punishment. It's just the people they've decided are the most disposable. And once they've used all the people like you, they'll turn to hurting other, more innocent people. If the lab thought people would be on their side, it wouldn't be so secret"

Yancy nodded softly "Yeah, that makes sense. Youse gonna be there with me, right?"

"Of course. I'm not gonna just abandon you with some guy I've never met, even if Kathrine vetted him."