Chapter 669 - Goodbye Mr X!

Afton wipes his brow as he takes a step back and examines their progress on his father. Zachary was currently sitting upright with his head locked in a machine, the top of his skull cut off to reveal the brain.

Dala, Usanagi, and Mobius had been assisting and overseeing the procedure to make sure nothing went wrong, as well as to provide their own expertise in the process. Mobius was there to help tailor cybernetics that Zachary would need to be installed to function properly afterwards.

He, Dala, and Usanagi were strictly concentrated on removing the access brain matter however, making sure that everything they removed wasn't vital, or part of his father's original brain.

It had taken many hours of micro-incisions and delicate movements, but eventually, they'd finished with minimal to no harm done. Afton waits at the side as Mobius and Usanagi install the cybernetics to keep the now smaller brain in place, as well as assisting in helping the brain adapt to its new condition.

Once that was done, they repaired his skull and left after putting Zachary on life support. All he could do now was watch and wait to see if he'd be in the same frenzied state as he had before, or even if he'd wake up at all.

Dala carries a small metal tray filled with the access brain matter they'd cut from Zachary, her eyes gleaming as she sends an eager smile his way, "Can I-"

He interrupts and waves her off, not really caring what she does with the material as long as she doesn't end up creating zombies or something similar, "Yeah, just take it."

Dala almost clicks her heels in excitement as she leaves, presumably to conduct experiments on the still pulsating brain matter.

With that, Afton leaves, heading up to the Sink where Josie would waiting. He enters the living room and flops into the couch beside her as she was watching T.V.

"Afton!? How'd it go?" she immediately asks as he arrives.

He shrugs, giving her a peck on her lips while resting a hand on her stomach, "It went as well as it could... Whether or not it works is another matter entirely." he mutters.

She leans into him, "Well, I'm just looking forward to his reaction when I call him 'Dad'." she chuckles, Afton laughing along with her.

"I don't know, but it'd probably be funny. Gotta make sure to record it."

...

"Hey, Afton, do you think we could visit Tamia today? I haven't seen her in a while."

...

Afton shrugs in his seat, "She's over at the Dam, making sure the Brotherhood or Legion stay outta the Mojave... Not really a place you should be right now."

"Well, it isn't as if an attack is going to happen at this moment. Besides, don't you think it'd be a nice surprise?"

Afton shakes his head, remembering his recent encounters with Tamia. She'd been evading him and Josie ever seen her baby bump had started showing... He knew it wasn't anything malicious, but the anguish visible in her eyes whenever she saw Josie put him on edge slightly. "She can come visit if she wants, but I'm not letting you outside of Big Mt until I'm sure you'll be safe. And before we start arguing about this, remember Shani's vision, if that happens outta nowhere, even all my preparations and protections wouldn't be able to do anything..."

...

Josie sighs but nods, "Alright, I get it... No outings until I'm back to my regular size..."

Afton gives her a smug grin, "I don't know, maybe you can keep some extra weight on? I've been thoroughly enjoying your growth so far." he says, clasping her breast.

Josie just gives him a light smack in response, but breaks into giggling as the two starts 'wrestling'... The personalities shut themselves off to give the duo some privacy, but not before they activate the 'romance' lights and start playing smooth jazz.

Two days later :

Afton had mostly pushed his other duties off onto other people while he sat and observed his father's condition. Waiting for a single twitch that'd indicate his awakening... Fortunately for the sake of his subordinates and his social life, Zachary Parker's eyes suddenly rocket open, as the large man rapidly sits up from the bed he'd been lying on.

"W-where!?" he asks in a gruff tone, obviously surprising the man due to his dramatically different voice.

He pats himself over, becoming shocked at how drastically different his body had become... He almost faints in fright when he looks over at the side and sees his face in the one-way observation window. "What happened to me!" he exclaims while clutching his face.

"Subject designated: Zachary Parker-X, please remain seated while a Doctor comes to attend you." Glados voice sounds out.

Zach stills for a moment at the voice, but ignores it afterwards and tries to leave his bed... Only to find himself chained and prevented from moving. He uses his newfound strength to try and escape, the chains groan in response but stay strong as an Asian-looking woman steps into the room.

"Hello." she kindly greets while setting down her clipboard and sitting at a nearby desk.

"Who are you?" Zach asks, absolutely sure he needed to escape this place somehow... The fact that voice called him a subject of some kind hadn't gone over his head, meaning he was probably in trouble, especially with how his body had been altered...

She gives him a light smile, "I am Doctor Usanagi. I'm here to make sure you are of sound mind, and no longer exhibit the violent tendencies your condition had caused." she explains.

...

"Condition?.... What happened to me!" he demands, the chains groaning louder in response to his increased efforts.