Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“No, this isn’t right either…” muttered Frankenstein as the numbers on screen flashed by again. He sighed, running a hand through his hair as he hunched over the lab table. Weariness lurked over him, enveloping his mind in a thick fog that was hard to shake. Nothing was working… the cold feeling of powerlessness made his stomach turn and exhaustion turned his world white at the corners. But no matter what, he had to keep trying for the sake of his Master, for the person who meant the world to him. Just one more time… one more time, then I can rest for a little.

He pretended not to notice the shaking of his hands while measuring out the chemicals. He was a professional— he’d done this hundreds of times, it would be fine. But he couldn’t help but frown as the solution suddenly turned a deep scarlet. He hadn’t seen that happen before with this experiment… With a sense of impending dread, he checked the last number.

0.01! Not 0.1!

His heart nearly stopped in his chest. The substances he was working with were highly volatile, meaning immediately he needed to—

There was a flash and a bang, and Frankenstein’s vision whited out completely.

“Is he going to be okay?” asked Takio, nervously staring down at Frankenstein’s sleeping form. Drawn by the sound of the explosion and alerted by Raizel, who had suddenly lost his mental link with Frankenstein, everyone had immediately rushed to the lab, only to see him lying unconscious on the ground with blood dripping down his forehead. They had rushed him upstairs and fixed up his head wound, but the three of them couldn’t shake the feeling of anxiety, now awkwardly standing around the bed without knowing what to do.

“He should probably be fine…” said Tao doubtfully. “He just hit his head, as long as he doesn’t have a concussion it’ll be all right.”

Raizel looked on silently. Although he hadn’t said a word since he’d told them that the mental link had been cut, the worry was clear to see in his face.

“Hn…”

Frankenstein stirred, slowly opening his eyes. The next moment, however, he bolted straight upright, the Dark power flaring to life with a malicious crackle as it surrounded his body. In a shocking display, Frankenstein’s features twisted into a violent snarl as he threw his hand out to the side, a bolt of electric, acidic power crashing into the wall. His eyes were fixed solely on Raizel. “You! What the hell are you doing here?!”

There was an immediate outcry from the others. Tao practically threw himself in front of Raizel as Takio motioned for the Noblesse to move back a few steps. “Boss! What’s wrong with you?! That’s Sir Raizel!”

“Sir?” asked Frankenstein with shock and revulsion. “Why would I even have one of those things in my house, much less start licking their boots?”

Hearing those frigid words out of Frankenstein’s mouth was so shocking that everyone was at a complete loss for words. If he were in his right state of mind, he would have probably killed anyone else acting that way. Such words and actions towards someone he so deeply respected, admired, and loved was utterly incomprehensible. 

“You’ve got one part of that right,” observed M-21 thoughtfully. “This is your house. Frankenstein, do you recognize where you are?”

“It’s Doctor Frankenstein to you,” he remarked indignantly, but the words seemed to change something in him. He took in the room with a slight frown, suddenly losing his furious certainty. “This place…”

M-21 nodded slightly to himself. I think I get it. This place is familiar to him, but he doesn’t quite recognize where he is. 

Just when M-21 thought he might be making some progress, Frankenstein’s expression hardened. “Forget that. Who are you anyway?” he demanded. “Why are there so many of you? What are you doing here?”

“What’s happened to you, Boss?” asked Tao, still in shock.

“And why are you calling me that, you insufferable mushroom head?”

Tao opened his mouth, presumably for some sort of snarky retort, but M-21 grabbed his wrist and motioned for him to stop.

“Fr— Doctor Frankenstein. This might sound strange, but would you mind telling us what year it is?”

Frankenstein bristled. “What sort of foolish question is that?”

“Just humor me.”

Despite looking extraordinarily distrustful, Frankenstein answered, “Why, It’s the Year of the Lord 480, of course.”

Takio’s mouth dropped open. “As in… 480 Anno Domini? 480 AD?”

“That’s what I said, isn’t it? It seems there are quite the number of dimwits around here.”

480. M-21 counted back in his head. Frankenstein had lost… over one thousand, five hundred years worth of memory. He hadn’t even known that Frankenstein was that old.

“Doctor,” M-21 suppressed a shiver, “I’m sure you can probably tell by now, but it’s not 480 AD. It’s 2010. You’ve lost your memory.”

“That’s preposterous,” argued Frankenstein, though he was becoming less and less certain by the minute. “2010? And I’m still alive?”

“Yes, and…” There was no avoiding the topic at this point. Takio stepped forward with Raizel, and M-21 and Tao shuffled to the side. “It’s thanks to him.”

“You’re telling me that I’m alive because of one of those accursed Nobles?” Frankenstein didn’t even look at him. To his credit, Raizel didn’t say a word, didn’t move a muscle. The barest hint of confusion in his scarlet eyes was all that could be seen.

“Yes. Think about it, Frankenstein. You’ve woken up in a strange place with strange people, and you still haven’t tried to kill us all and escape. You could knock most of us out in an instant, you know, but you haven’t. Why is that?”

Frankenstein frowned, seemingly at a loss for words.

“You can’t, can you? Some part of you still remembers us. And we’ll find a way to get your memory back. You just have to trust us and let us help you.”

There was a long silence. “I… I don’t even know who you are.”

“We live here with you. We… are all very close. I’m M-21. This is Tao and Takio. And that’s Sir Raizel.”

“You’re a test subject,” noted Frankenstein. “Who made you?”

M-21 had been doing his best, but he couldn’t hide his shudder at that, reflexively taking a step back. Takio grasped his shoulders, and Tao immediately put himself in front of him. “Hey! You can’t just say stuff like that!”

“Why not?”

“You made me,” breathed M-21, grasping one arm with another. “You made me, Frankenstein.”

“What?!” Frankenstein’s shocked cry contained pain and horror. He shut his eyes tightly as he grasped the sides of his head. The cold malice of Dark Spear leaped off his skin in sparks of electricity, Dark Aura starting to surround him. “That can’t be— I’d never— I’d rather die than use another living person as a test subject—”

The metallic tang filling the air began to get worse as the Dark Aura became stronger and stronger. It wasn’t directed at anyone but Frankenstein himself, however; they could see the sharp streaks of power biting into his skin. The trio floundered in a state of rising panic. If the Dark Spear got out of control, there would be no hope. Everyone was shouting over each other in a chaotic mess.

“Hey, hey—”

“—Frankenstein, just—”

“Someone has to—”

“Stop.” Raizel’s powerful voice rang out. The room fell silent besides the crackle of the Dark Spear. Raizel waved his hand, and the aura quieted, leaving behind only Frankenstein out of breath and trembling slightly. He looked up at Raizel in shock.

“Why…” Frankenstein coughed. “Why would you…?”

Suddenly, all of Raizel’s commanding presence was gone. He looked as unsure of himself as Frankenstein had. M-21 had half a mind to think Raizel would just turn and walk out of the room, which he tended to do when he was overwhelmed. The Noblesse was a lot more gentle and sensitive than people tended to give him credit for. But Raizel stayed there, looking silently at the shell of his partner.

Finally, Frankenstein turned away, his features creased with pain. “Never mind. If this is the future I have, betraying everything I ever stood for, then— then I don’t want to live in it.”

“No.” M-21 finally spoke up. “You’ve misunderstood me, Frankenstein.”

“I think I understand perfectly well,” he muttered.

“I said no. You weren’t the person who used me for experiments. That was the Union. I’m sure you’re familiar with them?”

“Those bastards,” he muttered under his breath.

“Yeah, that’s them. They’re the ones who— who performed the tests on me. But you saved me. You saved all three of us. You rescued us from the Union and you healed us, removed all the poison they put into our bodies. You’ve been caring for us ever since. We all owe our lives to you and Sir Raizel.”

Frankenstein crossed his arms and arched an eyebrow, even though uncertainty still flickered across his face. “...Really now?”

“Is that so hard to believe? Just a moment ago you were horrified by the thought that you might have hurt me.”

“Yes, well, I think you’re mistaken. I’m not so noble a person as you seem to believe, for some godforsaken reason. Do you know who I am?”

M-21 paused. Judging by whatever this was, the truth was that he probably didn’t know all that much about Frankenstein at all. He had no idea what truths Frankenstein held to himself, what burdens of the past that he carried. But still, “I know what matters about you. I know that you’re kind.”

“Kind? Me?” scoffed Frankenstein, his voice filled with ice. “Most of humanity knows me as nothing but a heartless killer anyway… I don’t see why you would be any different.”

“I’m not buying it,” argues M-21. Maybe he shouldn’t be arguing with Frankenstein so openly when the man clearly wasn’t in the right state of mind, but frankly, M-21 didn’t know what else to do, and he felt too strongly about this to just let it pass. “It’s true, I don’t know how you were in the past, but I know you now, and the Frankenstein I know could never be just a ‘heartless killer.’ You’re a good person with a good heart, and I trust you.”

Hearing that, Frankenstein winced, holding his hands to his head again. “Hh… I-I don’t…”

Pleased that he might be getting somewhere, M-21 opened his mouth again to continue, but Tao practically shoved him out of the way. “All right, that’s enough for today! Boss, I think you need to get some rest. We’ll continue this later.”

“Don't call me that,” muttered Frankenstein crossly. “And don’t tell me what I can and can’t do.”

“We were making progress,” murmured M-21, equally displeased.

Tao hushed him and practically shepherded him and Takio out of the room. Although he made no such gesture towards Raizel, with a simple look back, the Noblesse nodded and followed him out of the room. 

Frankenstein lay still in the familiar yet foreign room as one of the young human men herded the rest out of sight. The Noble had left too, though Frankenstein had no idea why. His head was still spinning from everything that had happened. He didn’t understand. The worst part was that there seemed to be some truth to what they were all saying. It was true that if he had believed that they were here to harm them, they would have all been wiped out in a minute. Even now, he couldn’t bring himself to think about it. There was some internal force deep within him that could not even consider it, much to his dismay.

Nothing made sense. The Noble with his dark hair and scarlet eyes, who looked at Frankenstein — looked at him in that insufferable way. Like he knew him. Frankenstein couldn’t stand the thought. His life’s mission was to prove to the Nobles that humans weren’t weak. And that Noble seemed to look at him with pity. He couldn’t stand it at all. 

Speaking of his life’s mission. If it was true that he had somehow ended up in his future, he couldn’t help but think about what had happened back home. What had happened, if thousands of years really did pass? Had the world taken his advancements to heart? Had humans managed to find their independence? Maybe not, considering the presence of the odd Noble in the house. If he really had time-traveled to the future somehow, it would do good to learn more about what had happened.

Yet, unfortunately, it didn’t seem that way. Something nagged at him in the back of his mind. From the way they were speaking, it wasn’t that he had traveled to the future. It was that he had lived all that time, and lost his memory, and reverted back to a past version of himself. The gears turned in Frankenstein’s head. He had to figure out what was happening and who he needed to protect.

Protect? But he knew in his heart he was meant to protect someone, or multiple someones. He had just assumed it was his human homeland. But it still felt like something was missing. He needed to figure out who he was meant to keep safe, and fast. If only he had made preparations for this in the past! If he had left some kind of clue for himself, to figure out who he really was. Internally, he admonished himself for not thinking of this possibility and assured himself that he would develop a procedure for this sort of thing from then on. 

Something else bothered him. That Noble… his power… it had felt so familiar. The way it reacted with his own, instantly quelling it. Normally that would strike fear into his heart. But Frankenstein knew, with just one brush of his power against his. He knew that the Noble had soothed Dark Spear to protect Frankenstein. Why? Why would a Noble do such a thing? Even after Frankenstein had threatened him… 

Frankenstein sighed. Maybe that human youth was right. Perhaps he would feel better and understand more if he got some rest. He would perform better and there was no immediate danger, and he was sure he could wake up fast enough to deal with anything that may arise. Though he was against it, he eventually let himself drift off into an uneasy slumber.

Back in the living room, Tao, Takio, and M-21 stood in a worried circle as Raizel took a seat at his usual spot on the couch, picking up his still-warm cup of tea that Frankenstein had just prepared for him earlier. 

“You okay?” Tao asked Raizel quietly. Raizel didn’t answer, which was pretty typical for him, so Tao squinted in order to catch his microexpression. His sharp vision picked up the downturn to Raizel’s lips. “Yeah, I get it… it must be pretty stressful, huh?”

Raizel didn’t quite nod, but his expression indicated that he agreed. 

“What do you think happened?” asked Takio, his hand twitching somewhat nervously at his side.

“I have no idea,” said M-21 honestly. “I could have never expected this.”

“It’s got to have something to do with what happened in the lab,” mused Tao. “Let’s check the lab footage to see if anything happened.”

Tao quickly pulled up the footage from the lab cameras on his tablet, locating the right time in a matter of seconds. But as the video played, none of them could find anything out of the ordinary, even Raizel, who peeked at the screen discreetly. All the footage showed was Frankenstein working, then the explosion that knocked him back, the impact of his head on the wall (all of them winced involuntarily), and his body on the floor. Nothing that could give them a clue.

“It had to have been the impact,” concluded M-21. “Is this some kind of crazy concussion?”

“Now that I think about it…” Takio was the first to realize. “Wait, I’ve heard of this. We did it to prisoners. A hard hit on the head disorients them, and some of them lose their memory entirely.”

“How long did it last?” asked M-21.

“Well, most of them didn’t forget much. I’ve never seen someone lose this many years…” murmured Takio. “It lasted days or weeks for most people, but some… well, some never remembered….”

The painful implication hung in the air, sending sparks of fear through the family. Raizel felt it equally, but gave no outward reaction, staring impassively at the amber liquid in his cup. 

“We won’t let that happen,” said M-21 resolutely. “His memory will come back. It has to. What do you think would help?” 

“I don’t know,” replied Takio. “You know how it was, we didn’t really focus on that. But I think for regular humans, they get better from amnesia with rest, and with seeing or hearing familiar things to bring back their memory.”

“That makes sense,” said Tao. “I just don’t want to push him. M-21, you were bluffing, weren’t you? It’s totally possible Boss could completely forget and kill us all before we know it… hahaha…”

“I really don’t think so,” answered M-21 honestly, ignoring Tao’s nervous laugh. “He’s still Frankenstein, whether it’s him a thousand years ago or him today.”

Tao dropped his gaze. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I don’t want him to hurt himself, either…”

“Yeah.”

The three of them turned their attention to Raizel, who was exactly as he had been a few minutes ago. Silently, they asked each other, so what should we do about this?

After a few shared glances, they mutually agreed to let Frankenstein and Raizel handle it amongst themselves. As M-21 had said, whether it was Frankenstein from a thousand years ago or Frankenstein today, whatever happened between the two ancient deities remained their business.

Chapter Text

Frankenstein slowly opened his eyes, somewhat dismayed to find that he was still in that white room. He was half-hoping it was all some kind of bad dream and he would wake up in his familiar laboratory, not this new one. He became aware of some kind of tube in his arm and looked around to find an extremely sophisticated IV at his bedside. The sight amazed him so deeply he didn’t even bother to rip the damn thing out of his arm. He had come up with the intravenous drip a few years ago, but whatever clear, flexible material they had here was leagues better than the glass and metal contraption he had come up with at the time. The tube in his arm didn’t even hurt, and he could see that the saline dripped down at a steady pace despite hanging straight down, not precariously tilted at an angle. 

Just then, the mushroom-headed human youth came into the room with a sheepish smile that immediately irritated Frankenstein. “Hey Boss, just checking on you. How are you feeling? Remember anything?”

“I’m fine. And my memory — what do you think?” said Frankenstein curtly.

The young man nervously touched the back of his neck. “Ahaha, well, I couldn’t say. Do you remember anything?”

Frankenstein’s scowl faded into soft disbelief. Clearly, his cross demeanor wasn’t terribly out of place for him in the eyes of these human youth. He found it hard to believe that he had apparently ended up in servitude to a Noble and still maintained his… unique personality. 

“Never mind,” he muttered.

The young human seemed unfazed, seemingly picking up on the answer to be “no,” and went over to his bedside. He checked on the IV with evident skill and precision that surprised Frankenstein. If he was handling Frankenstein’s technology so familiarly, and clearly someone had made significant improvements… he hated to admit it, this all lent credibility to the story they were telling him before.

“Well, you look like you’re doing better,” announced Tao, completing his checks and finally detaching Frankenstein from the drip. “Do you think you could stand? Maybe looking around the house will help. And the school, too.”

Wordlessly, Frankenstein swung his legs off the side, getting up probably faster than he should. Luckily he felt little more than a twinge of pain in his head. What was more disconcerting were the whispers of the Dark Spear. He’d really held on to it, all these years, if what they said was to be believed. It was unfortunate that he hadn’t found a way to release those poor souls, but he felt stronger, more in control. 

“Great! Here, I’ll show you around,” said Tao cheerfully.

He led him out of the recovery room, into the main area of the house. Frankenstein really didn’t know what to think about the place. Of course, it seemed familiar to him, but nothing sparked his recognition. It was quite different from his home back in Constantinople. There were many odd appliances that gleamed under the light, plenty of seating for a home that evidently held many guests, and even a well-maintained basin that seemed to contain live fish swimming about. There wasn’t a candle to be found, only electric overhead lighting. Frankenstein was familiar with electricity from his experiments, but the lack of natural materials anywhere at all was a little disconcerting.

One of the main rooms led outdoors. Frankenstein stepped out to find himself on the balcony. He stood there, feeling the wind in his hair, feeling like he was missing something. So far, this place stirred the most emotion in him. Hesitantly he gripped the railing, feeling the smooth, cold metal under his hands, observing the garden filled with unfamiliar plants. But there was nothing he could remember. Disappointed, he turned and returned back inside.

Eventually the young human brought him upstairs, in front of what was evidently the master bedroom. Plain double doors, nothing out of the ordinary. For the first time, Tao hesitated. “You can go in. It’s your room.”

“Mm.” Frankenstein stepped in while the young human lingered outside. It was a little touching that he seemed to be respecting Frankenstein’s privacy. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, really. The room looked hardly used, which made sense. If it was really his, he wouldn’t be sleeping much. The room was minimally furnished, containing a wooden bed frame, soft quilts, a small desk and a dresser. Gauzy white curtains clung to the large glass window. 

He frowned as he observed a few picture frames on the dresser. Whoever painted them must have been a master artist. There was not a brush stroke to be seen, and the size of the picture was so small that it must have been painstaking to create. It was as if someone had captured the real-life sight before their eyes, freezing it in time. In the portrait, there was himself, smiling as he stood beside that Noble from before, who was seated. The Noble had a serene expression despite his lack of a smile. And Frankenstein himself looked overjoyed just to be near him. The sight disturbed him and he looked away. In the next picture, he stood next to those humans from before. Frankenstein was looking at them with a gentle fondness that pained him to see. Tao was laughing, Takio was smiling, and M-21 was trying to keep a still face with little success. This image was perhaps more painful than the last and he moved on.

The final image seemed to be a large family photo. The Noble was seated at the front and center, and Frankenstein stood beside him. Everyone else was lined up in two rows, the shorter ones in the front, the taller ones in the back. There were the three humans, and shockingly, some more Nobles with piercing red eyes. Two Noble boys, one with white hair and one blond. A Noble girl with white hair. A blond Noble man with a mask. A tall Noble man with pale blond hair. Several of the Nobles — the younger ones and the one next to Frankenstein — were dressed identically in what seemed to be white school uniforms. The masked blond man wore traditional Lukedonian clothing, and the man with pale blond hair wore a regular suit, as did the three humans. Everyone was smiling. Yes, there was no doubt about it. This was a family photo. How could he… have such a large, loving family, with Nobles and humans alike…?

Turning away from the photos, Frankenstein inspected his desk, hoping for a clue to his identity. There was some paperwork and bound books in a language he couldn’t read, and nothing else. Checking in a drawer he found what seemed to be a coin purse that folded on itself. But there were only a few foreign coins, and instead seemed to mostly contain several small, shiny cards made out of some flexible material, printed with numbers and letters. There were also some thin, multicolored rectangular papers. He could only guess that this was money in the modern world. Finally, he found another small, extremely realistic portrait. It was just a rendition of that Noble again. He was really quite beautiful, with dark hair and scarlet eyes, a gentle smile that conveyed a deep emotion. The image was evidently quite important. When he flipped it over, it was written, in Frankenstein’s own hand. For the first time, something in Latin that he could read. Dominus — Master. 

Frankenstein’s head began to hurt and he nearly dropped everything, quickly putting it away instead. Although the others had called him “Sir Raizel,” there was clearly something different about his relationship to the Noble. They had all looked so shocked when he had denounced him. He couldn’t imagine a future where he willingly entered servitude to another, let alone a Noble. It was too difficult to think about.

Finally, he looked in the closet. To his shock, there was… his clothes. He’d been wearing them in those portraits, and here they were, right in front of him. The very same outfit he’d worn as long as he could remember. Of course, he wore a toga for formal occasions like all the other men in public, but when he was conducting personal business, he was greatly attached to his suit. Hesitantly he brushed the fabric. It was really the same, right down to the black ribbon bow tie hanging from a hook. He really… lived here. The weight of it was staggering. He glanced down at the patient’s gown he was still wearing. Well, he had better change, at least.

Putting on the familiar outfit eased some leftover tension in his body, and he finally felt somewhat like himself again. Satisfied with his appearance, he stepped out. The young human man seemed to brighten with excitement seeing Frankenstein dressed as he used to be.

“Don’t hold your breath. I don’t remember anything,” said Frankenstein before the young human could get his hopes up. To his credit, Tao didn’t look terribly disappointed. Frankenstein suddenly got the sense that he was just happy to see him feel better. The sentiment was… sweet almost. A pain flashed through his head along with a phrase: one of my sons.

Frankenstein recoiled, holding his hands to his head. That couldn’t be. Children? Since Tesamu… he had thought he would never have children again. Although he and Tao (and the other humans) looked very nearly the same age, it was not implausible for them to be Frankenstein’s adopted children, if he had really lived all these years… No. No. He put it out of his mind. It didn’t seem to be helping him remember anything else, anyway. Someone like Frankenstein should not be having children. He was too cruel and dangerous, and he would never be able to be a loving parent, no matter how many thousands of years passed. 

“You okay?” asked Tao nervously. 

“Fine,” he said sharply. He took a deep breath. The young man had been nothing but kind to him, and he should at least try to treat him respectfully. “You said something about a school?”

“Yes,” said Tao eagerly. “I’ll take you. The others are all at school too.”

“Why?” Frankenstein couldn’t help but ask. He really couldn’t imagine what a bunch of Nobles and humans would be doing at a school together.

Tao looked confused for a moment, perhaps because Frankenstein had forgotten something that seemed to be so obvious, before seemingly remembering why. “Well, um, it’s your school. As in, you founded it. You’re the chairman. And Regis, Seira and, uh, Sir Raizel are students. Me, Takio, and M-21 are security guards, ‘cause you employed us after we left the Union. Rael and Karius are security guards too. Lazark lives back in Lukedonia mostly, but he stays sometimes and helps around the house or with training.”

Tao trailed off after a moment. “You… You don’t know who any of those are, do you?”

“No,” said Frankenstein flatly.

“Um… I’ll explain later. Let’s go see the school first.”

Again, Frankenstein wasn’t really sure what he was expecting. When he heard that he had founded the school, he had hoped maybe it was a bit more impressive. But the building was much more humble than the Pandidacterium back in Constantinople. The schoolyard was peacefully empty, but Frankenstein could hear the presence of many human children inside. M-21 and Takio soon appeared as well, silently standing by Tao’s side as Frankenstein stared at the building. There was a plaque on the front, again in that strange language.

“What does it say?” asked Frankenstein almost reflexively.

Takio frowned. “You don’t know? But you’ve been speaking Korean this whole time…”

“What? No, I’ve been speaking Latin all this…” He stopped short as he realized he was not, in fact, speaking his native tongue. “What?”

“Wow, that’s crazy,” commented Tao. Takio nudged him in a silent shut up gesture.

“Maybe it has to do with ‘his’ powers,” suggested M-21. “So you can speak and understand Korean, but you can’t read it.”

Takio cleared his throat. “Anyway, the plaque says the name of the school, Ye Ran High School. And there’s a quote from the poem Invictus by William Ernest Henly. It says, ‘I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.’”

“Touching,” said Frankenstein sarcastically.

“Hey, you chose it, Boss,” said Tao with a half-smile. “I kind of see why.”

“Well, I don’t. ‘Unconquered?’ Sounds full of himself.” 

Still, the exchange saw the young man’s smile reflected in Frankenstein’s own features for perhaps the first time since he had awoken.

When they returned back to the house, Takio offered for Frankenstein to eat dinner with the rest of the family. He adamantly refused. He wasn’t ready for that. Besides, they had all treated him with nothing but kindness despite everything that he was. For some godforsaken reason, they all seemed to — what, respect? Admire? Hopefully not love — the person he “used to” be, and it wasn’t right to subject them to the pain of witnessing the person he truly was.

He lay still in the cot in the recovery room, which was rather comfortable despite its plain appearance. His head had begun to ache ever since he left the school and it hadn’t stopped. He closed his eyes, hoping for a break from the overhead lighting that he wasn’t used to. Alone, he didn’t have to be so much on his guard. His senses were sharp enough to sense anyone approaching. When he was with others, splitting his attention between whatever they were saying or doing and his surroundings was more difficult than it looked.

The doors opened, revealing the young man with silver hair and a scar on his lip. Frankenstein could hear something odd about his heartbeat, sensing something out of the ordinary about his aura. He was human without a doubt, but there was a unique element to his being that was different from the others. Werewolf. Frankenstein had never met one, only heard stories. Whoever experimented on the young man must have made him part-werewolf. What a terrible thing to endure.

M-21 was holding a tray of food. A deep wave of relief washed over Frankenstein as he realized how familiar it was. A hearty omelet with feta cheese, spinach, and sliced sausage, accompanied by a soft bread roll. There were very nearly tears in his eyes. So some foods stayed the same, even after so many years. He hadn’t realized how much he missed home…

M-21 handed him the tray. “You said you’re from 480 AD, right? And you speak Latin. Takio studied the Byzantine empire a while back and he suggested to Seira what you might like.”

Frankenstein was taken aback by their thoughtfulness. “Thank you…”

He took a tentative bite of the bread roll. It was softer and sweeter than what he was used to, but it was, undeniably, a wheat bread roll. He found it difficult to swallow past the lump in his throat and set down the roll, turning his attention elsewhere to distract himself. “The Byzantine empire?”

“Yeah?”

“It’s still the Roman Empire, even if the city’s moved.”

“Oh.” M-21 tapped his fingers thoughtfully. “I heard about that. I think it’s just what historians call it. Byzantium.”

“I wasn’t born there.” Frankenstein didn’t know why he was telling him all this. “I first grew up in Rome, in a dying empire. There was no more Pax Romana and there hadn’t been for a long time. I came to the Eastern Empire when I was pretty young. I thought Constantinople would be a place of peace… but it seems trouble followed me there.”

“I get it,” said M-21, his gaze lowered.

“What happened to the city in the end?” Frankenstein couldn’t help but ask.

“Um, well… I should have studied harder…” M-21 looked like he was trying to recall a textbook or history lesson he had listened to. It was strange to think that his life was now ‘history.’ “The city has been called many names. New Rome, Byzantium, Constantinople. Nowadays I think it’s called Istanbul. People came, people left. Empires came and went too. Istanbul is a very different city than it used to be, but you know, it’s still there today.”

Frankenstein exhaled. Of course, empires didn’t last forever, something he was well aware of when he witnessed the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Yet it was hard to accept that in a blink of an eye — even if it was hundreds of years in reality — the newly formed city that was his home had fallen just like its predecessors. But humans were a tenacious species. Perhaps he didn’t have to worry so much about the fate of humanity. It seemed like they got on just fine. No matter what the city was called or how much the culture had changed, there were still people, still humans walking the land that he called home. 

“And where are we now?” asked Frankenstein. “You said ‘Korean.’”

“Oh, we’re in Korea. Specifically South Korea. It’s, uh…” M-21 frowned. “A peninsula in East Asia. In your time it was called… Gojoseon? No, Silla.”

“Silla.” Frankenstein’s eyes widened hearing the familiar name of another empire. “Who would have thought I ended up here.”

“Yeah. It’s some kind of luck or fate or what-have-you that the three of us were sent here in the first place, to meet you.” 

Frankenstein made a soft hum of agreement, and M-21 stood up. He touched a strand of his silver hair, betraying his uncertainty around Frankenstein, who suddenly remembered their first encounter and promptly felt a surge of guilt. “I’m sorry for what I said earlier.”

“It’s okay. After all, I meant it… you’re Frankenstein, whether it’s you a thousand years ago or you today.”

Frankenstein huffed. “Your faith is misplaced.”

In response, the young man actually smiled. “Hah… you would probably still say that even if you were yourself, you know.”

Before Frankenstein could answer that, M-21 had already left, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

M-21 sighed as he made his way back to the main living area. It was interesting to talk to Frankenstein about history and his homeland before he met Sir Raizel, and he didn’t miss how grateful he was to have food that reminded him of home. But he had hoped that they would have made more progress by now, especially after a day had already passed. Even seeing the school didn’t seem to stir Frankenstein’s memory. 

“Hey, M!” Tao waved him over as M-21 approached the dining room. “Sit down, sit down.”

He was glad to take his spot at the table. Takio was setting the table with the usual assortment of napkins, forks, spoons, and chopsticks for everyone, and Tao and Regis were helping Seira carry all the dishes out from the kitchen. Sir Raizel was sitting peacefully at the head of the table, just as always. 

M-21 felt his mouth water looking at the array of dishes Seira had made. It was delicious every time, and never repetitive even when they had the same thing. Seira always found a way to add something new. Today’s assortment was more traditional Korean, with rice, short ribs, radish soup, and a variety of side dishes like kimchi and other vegetables. Sir Raizel, of course, had a separate meal of just ramyeon. When it became clear that the Noblesse would consume literally nothing else, Seira and Frankenstein gave up on feeding the entire family ramyeon (thank God) and instead began preparing his meal separately.

After a chorus of thank yous, everyone began eating. The Korean tradition of waiting for the eldest man, Sir Raizel, was also dispensed with, since he would wait twenty to thirty minutes for his noodles to “multiply” and soak up all the broth, and by then the rest of the food would have gone cold. Having anywhere from six to nine hungry people staring silently at the slowly-cooling food was at best frustrating and worst a form of torture.

 By the time dinner was over, the plethora of dishes were practically scraped clean, and M-21 stood up for his turn to help clean up. Tao joined him on dish duty, scooping up plates and utensils with expert speed. M-21 carefully began clearing away dishes as well when he heard Tao surreptitiously call him and Takio over from the kitchen.

“You guys, it’s an emergency,” said Tao, gesturing towards a still-full bowl of noodles amongst the empty dishes. “Sir Raizel didn’t touch his ramyeon!”

Takio nodded gravely. “This is definitely an emergency.”

“He must really be stressed because of what’s going on with Frankenstein,” concluded M-21. “It’s been a day and a half already, and no dice…”

“Yeah, even seeing the school didn’t seem to help,” said Tao dejectedly. “I showed him around the house earlier, his room and the balcony, and I thought he would remember, but he didn’t.”

Takio spun a long violet strand of hair around his finger from stress. “There’s really only one thing left…”

Truthfully, the three of them had been avoiding this topic. They really wanted to sort this out without involving ‘him,’ after all. But there was no getting around it now. Frankenstein had been avoiding sight and sound of Sir Raizel ever since he woke up. Although their adoptive parents hardly ever spoke about their personal lives, they knew that those two had a special connection. The three of them could only hope it would spark Frankenstein’s memory.

“We have to have them meet. It’s the only thing left,” said M-21.

“I don’t know, I’m worried,” said Tao. “You saw how he reacted when he first saw him… if things go bad, there’s nothing we can do to stop them.”

“Why don’t we just tell Frankenstein about him first?” suggested Takio. “Maybe hearing about it will help.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea,” said M-21, and Tao nodded as well.

“Okay, let’s try that first thing tomorrow.”

Chapter Text

Frankenstein was half-way between feeling bored out of his mind and too exhausted to think about anything. He supposed it wasn’t impossible to be feeling both things at once. There were no windows in the patient’s bay, presumably because it was underground like his lab. Instead, the lighting seemed to be on some kind of timer to mimic daylight, slowly fading into a gentle orange hue before eventually shutting off, like it was mocking him by telling him to go to bed. The room was kept from total darkness by sparse blue illumination along the cabinets and counters, as well as the various lights from the medical equipment, signalling this and that. 

He tried to occupy his mind by thinking about his work, the next type of modification he would try, but he couldn’t focus well enough to accomplish anything. The numbers seemed to slip in and out of his mind, jumping and blurring together in an unintelligible mess no matter how hard he tried. After a long while, Frankenstein eventually fell into an uneasy slumber.

He was back home, in the streets of Constantinople, and something was terribly wrong. Profuse smoke filled the air, causing him to cough and his eyes to water as he squinted to see. There was the unmistakable glow of fire in the distance, the heat assaulting his face and body. The townspeople were in a panic, running this way and that, but all away from the source of the commotion that Frankenstein walked towards. 

There it was, the demon that haunted the city, with unmistakable red eyes and ashen skin. Its fangs gleamed in a gruesome smile as it stumbled forward towards its human prey. Although the humans called them vampires, Nobles, Frankenstein knew they were just mutants. The Nobles caused the outbreak of mutants that was plaguing the city, but the beings themselves were rarely seen. 

Feeling his blood boil, he summoned Dark Spear to the surface to deal with this problem. Almost immediately, though, he felt that something wasn’t right. Dark Spear was powerful, so much more than usual. When did it get so strong? The pain, usually a dull manageable ache, became jolts of electricity flooding his body in quick succession. He gasped for breath as the Dark Power quickly overtook him, engulfing his arms and chest before he could stop it. He could hear their voices, so many more than before, whispering, screaming, taunting, wailing. 

He fought hard, trying to regain control, but he was pulled in over and over again by those terribly ghostly hands. The pain was blinding, making him dizzy and sick to his stomach. No! He knew he was just dreaming, but Dark Spear was a real and present danger in his sleep. It could very well kill him if he didn’t get control…!

“...kenstein…”

Among the dreadful cacophony was a different voice, distinctly clear and, well, sane. But he could hardly hear it over the souls of the dead. Was someone calling his name? 

“Frankenstein.”

Everything hurt and he could feel himself growing weaker. Maybe it was the end for him. In the end, he couldn’t protect the people that mattered to him. Not his son, not his city, and certainly not his people. Not someone else that he couldn’t quite remember, someone so close to his heart…

“Open your eyes.”

With a gasp, Frankenstein sat bolt upright, his eyes fluttering open. His chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath, feeling the Dark Spear dissipate, freeing him from its grasp. He couldn’t understand the sight before him. There was that dark-haired Noble again, his hand outstretched, his eyes glowing red in the dark room. Again. The Noble had used his power to save him again…

Frankenstein clenched his fists, feeling his nails dig into his skin. He couldn’t understand. One of the beings that terrorized his dreams had saved him from them. Frankenstein was in no shape to use his power after that close call — he couldn’t defend himself now even if he had to. But he might not even have made it if it weren't for him. It was impossible to reconcile what he knew and what was happening.

Slowly, the Noble lowered his hand. For the first time, Frankenstein noticed a look of uncertainty on his face. The Noble hadn’t said a single word since he had seen him, nor smiled or frowned. He didn’t even leave. He just stood there, looking at Frankenstein. It unnerved him, causing his head to throb in pain. 

“You didn’t answer me last time, and I don’t think you’ll answer me this time. But why?”

Indeed, the Noble didn’t say a thing. Frankenstein was starting to wonder if he was even able to speak. But maybe it had been his voice that called out to him in his dream? 

Frankenstein was still so shaken. If the young humans were anything to go by, it was more likely than not that this Noble was another kind and caring being. But he couldn’t help but feel rage and despair every time he looked into those deep red eyes, knowing the destruction the Noble’s people set upon his city. The Noble probably didn’t deserve his cruelty, but Frankenstein really couldn’t bear it.

“Please leave me,” Frankenstein managed hoarsely.

To his shock, the Noble soundlessly acquiesced, turning and leaving the patient’s room without any more hesitation. Just like that, Frankenstein was alone again in the dark, exhausted, shaken, but still alive. He lay back down, knowing it would be impossible (and dangerous) to return to sleep, resigning himself to his fate of insomnia until dawn. 

As the hours dragged on, the room lights eventually turned into an irritatingly gentle orange glow to mimic the dawn before settling into plain white daylight. Frankenstein found himself thinking about that Noble. Somehow, Frankenstein was not only living with him, but had become his servant. Frankenstein had seemed so happy in all of those portraits, and those young humans were supposedly his children. What kind of life was he living, after all? If only he could find out more about who that Noble was. He supposed the only thing he could do was ask.

The sound of the doors opening drew his attention, and he sat up quickly as the three young humans entered the room. “Hey Boss, how are you doing?”

“Same as usual.”

Tao nodded. “Well, I need to tell you—”

“I need you to tell me—”

They both stopped short, but ended up speaking over each other again.

“...about Sir Raizel,” finished Tao.

“...about that Noble,” said Frankenstein at the same time.

M-21’s lips twitched in a smile. “Looks like we all have the same idea.”

Frankenstein made a motion to get up, but Takio gestured for him to stay seated, instead grabbing chairs for the three of them so they could have a proper discussion. For a moment they were all silent, having come face-to-face with the topic that, in fact, all four of them had been avoiding since the injury.

“I guess I should start,” said M-21 finally. “I’ve known you and ‘him’ the longest, after all. But I have to tell you that even I don’t know that much about you guys. You’re both very… private people.”

Frankenstein made a short sound that was almost a laugh. “Of course.”

“The very first time we met, we were enemies. I was a Union test subject, just garbage for them to send on low-level missions. Somehow we got mixed up with your Ma… with Sir Raizel’s coffin and some trouble that was going on near the school. My… partner and I ‘fought’ you guys briefly, but you guys just warned us with your power and let us go. When the Union finally decided to get rid of us, you both saved me. You took me into your home.”

“I see…”

“I don’t know how you guys met. I don’t know how long you’ve known each other, but it’s probably been thousands of years. I do know that… you would trust each other with your life. You were against it, at first. Bringing me home. But you trusted ‘his’ decision, and ‘he’ trusted yours. You gave me a job at the school, showed me how to take care of my health. I had just lost my partner and I was struggling. But we all became… family.”

Frankenstein exhaled. “It’s hard for me to believe it. I suppose you don’t know why I call him ‘Master.’ Don’t look so surprised, I found out. I saw a portrait of him in my room labeled that.”

The scar on M-21’s lip wavered as he smiled wryly. “I guess it’s impossible to hide it from you. You are so faithful to your Master we say it’s your catchphrase. I honestly don’t hear a lot of sentences from you that don’t include the word ‘Master.’”

A shudder passed through Frankenstein’s body. “Ugh, don’t say that.”

Takio frowned, speaking up. “Frankenstein… can I ask why you hate the Nobles so much?”

“Why?” Frankenstein clenched his fists at his side, his jaw tensing. Closing his eyes, he worked hard to control himself before his power got out of hand again. He saw two of the young humans were already quite nervous. Takio’s hand drifted reflexively towards his weapon, and Tao’s watchful eyes didn’t leave him for a moment. But to M-21’s credit, he was steadfast. If the young man was nervous, he gave no indication of it.

“Why,” he repeated. “It’s because of what they did to my city. My home was overrun by the mutants. I know the Nobles caused them. We were just humans… we didn’t stand a chance against them. We lost so many. I couldn’t just sit by. That’s why I started human modification. I was planning to travel to Lukedonia eventually, to find out what was happening and take down the Nobles to stop the plague. The Nobles are beings of death and destruction. It’s my ultimate goal to protect my people, and if that means confronting every last one of those demons, then I will do it.”

Somehow, Frankenstein felt the tension in his own shoulders lessen after having said his piece. It was almost a relief to lay everything out in the open. Frankenstein watched as the three of them hesitated, thinking about what to say.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” said Tao eventually. “I mean, I know that doesn’t mean anything coming from me or any of us. But I’m still sorry.”

“You’re right, I don’t need apologies,” said Frankenstein. “I need for my people to be safe.”

“I get it…” said Tao. “But you know, Sir Raizel isn’t like that. He wants to protect humans too…”

Frankenstein scoffed. “Why would one of them want to protect us? And if he did, why didn’t do anything to stop it? They were terrorizing our city for years. It wasn’t just us, either, it was happening to settlements all over the country.”

“I… don’t know,” said Tao, a troubled expression on his face. “I can look into it…”

“Save your breath, I don’t care.” It was getting harder for him to stay calm. “I don’t want anything to do with a demon like that.”

“How can you say that?” exclaimed Takio finally, who had been quiet for a while. “When he’s giving up his life for us!”

That finally stopped Frankenstein short. “...his life?”

“You don’t know? Of course you don’t know,” said Takio. His impassioned voice was quite out of place for what Frankenstein had seen of the young man. “Every time sir Raizel uses his power, he loses a bit of his life force. He’s been using his power to protect humans, to protect us, to protect you too! He’s dying because of it.”

Frankenstein couldn’t forget how, twice now, the Noble had used his powers to save him. Last night, as the Noble turned to leave, Frankenstein caught a glimpse of blood on his lips. He thought he’d imagined it. But now he knew— he was really sick. He’d given up part of his life for a barely-human being like him. 

Of course. The young humans who treated him kindly, who even now, were trying to help him remember his identity. Tao, who was afraid of him, hadn’t hesitated to take care of his wound and show him the house and school. Takio, equally nervous, still spoke calmly with him and even helped to prepare food from his homeland. And Frankenstein knew M-21 had a fear of doctors, he could pick up on that much. But he didn’t say or show a thing about it, still talking with him in the hopes he would remember something. Even the young Noble Seira whom he had yet to even meet had apparently cooked the food for him. Why should that Noble be any different? 

He had been wrong to treat them harshly. Although perhaps he could be forgiven for doubting them given his history, he could see that their hearts went beyond human or Noble. He had witnessed the evidence first-hand.

“Ugh…” Frankenstein pressed a hand to his head, trying to ease the pain that suddenly flared. Something felt terribly familiar. Ignoring the young humans’ concerned protests, he stood up suddenly.

“I need to see him,” said Frankenstein. “I won’t hurt him, I give you my word. I need to… I need to see him.”

After the three young men exchanged glances, Tao nodded. “We’ll take you. He’s in the study.”

He was glad that they agreed, at least. After exiting the patient’s room, a short walk led them to another unassuming set of white double doors on the main floor. 

“He’s hardly ever in here,” explained Tao. “Only when he’s… well…”

“Only when he’s upset,” said M-21 plainly. “He’s been there since this morning.”

Because of me, Frankenstein could infer. “Were we… close?”

Again, the three of them look around at each other. Frankenstein didn’t understand what was so hard about the question. But then again, since he was supposedly his Master, maybe that complicated things.

 “You… uh, you could say that,” said Tao in the end. It wasn’t really much of an answer, but he supposed that was all he was going to get. 

“We’ll be out here if you need us,” said M-21. 

With a deep breath, Frankenstein pushed open the door. The room looked painfully familiar. It was fairly empty, minimally furnished with a single chair and a wooden dresser. A plush rug covered some of the wooden floor. The mainstay was a large, glass window adorned with soft white curtains that blew gently in the breeze. And standing there, gazing fixedly out the window, was Raizel.

He didn’t turn to face him straight away, and Frankenstein found himself continuing to look at his back. His dark hair fluttered gently with the curtains, grazing the back of his neck. Instead of the usual school uniform, the plain white shirt he was wearing showed his broad shoulders and slim waist, with simple black trousers clinging to his hips. Frankenstein’s head throbbed in pain with each beat of his heart. He felt ill. He had witnessed this very sight before, he was absolutely certain of it. In fact, he suddenly felt that he had spent quite a long time in this very spot. 10 years… the phrase drifted through his mind.

Just then, Raizel turned towards him. He tilted his head slightly, as if to invite Frankenstein to speak.

“I’m sorry,” said Frankenstein, the apology tumbling from his lips.

Raizel shook his head, as if to say, no need. It made Frankenstein oddly upset. Frankenstein had attacked him in presumably his own house, caused him to become ill from the use of his power, caused him enough emotional distress that he had uncharacteristically remained in this room away from the rest of his family, and he was saying that Frankenstein didn’t need to apologize? Frankenstein felt offended on the Noble’s behalf. 

He took a deep breath and laid his hand over his heart. “If my destiny is to call you Master, then… I accept it of my own free will. Tell me what I have to do.”

His heart was racing. He wasn’t sure what this would entail, but he was willing to do it. Raizel’s pure heart was one worth serving, and his family was one worth preserving. But he was stopped short by… a smile. Raizel’s smile. The sight was so unusual and strikingly beautiful that Frankenstein’s mouth nearly fell open.

“At least it didn’t take ten years this time,” said Raizel. “Please, don’t put your blood in my tea again. A vow will do.”

“Wh…?” The dizziness and pain intensified. Ten years. My blood in his tea. A vow. Something felt very, very familiar. The whiteness at the edge of his vision quickly overtook him and he was lost.

“Hey!”

There was a loud thump as his body crumpled to the floor, and instantly the doors burst open as the trio rushed in. Everyone’s weapons were quickly put away as they saw Raizel unhurt, but relief didn’t last as they saw Frankenstein’s body on the floor.

“Oh God, Frankenstein!” exclaimed Takio.

“Not again,” bemoaned Tao. “Please, God, I can’t handle a teenage Boss.”

M-21 had to suppress a smile at the thought of a child Frankenstein running around. He and Takio knelt by his side, checking his pulse and breathing. “He’s fine, just unconscious again.”

Just then, Frankenstein stirred. He slowly sat up, his eyes fluttering open as he took the trio beside him and Raizel still standing before him. “Master?”

“Oh thank God,” exhaled Tao and Takio.

M-21 patted Frankenstein’s shoulder. “Never been happier to hear you say that.”

His eyes widened as everything seemed to come back to him. “Oh, Master, I deserve to die! What I said to you, what I did to you… please forgive your insolent servant…”

“Nothing to forgive,” said Raizel, the remnant of that smile still on his lips. His gentle voice echoed in Frankenstein’s mind. I love you.

Oh, Master… Frankenstein’s eyes softened. I love you too.