Only A Lad

Only A Lad is the story of Vincent and how he came to be who he is.

## Background

Only A Lad is written by Techno Tinker and is based on the Oingo Boingo album of the same name. All songs remain the same except for the first, which was changed from *Little Girls* to *I'm So Bad* due to the nature of the former. The story follows Vincent as well as Checkers in some parts, who is known at the time as Kelin or Kappa. The story also serves to shed more light on dimension Beta and its inhabitants.

## Plot

### I'm So Bad

I'm So Bad serves as sort of a summary of what is to come in the story overall, taking the reader through an overview of Vincent's life, all the way from his beginnings as a disabled child, to his mechanization, to when he finally kills the clone Iota. This chapter leads directly into God Slayer.

### Perfect System

After Checkers' mechanization, he goes to visit Vincent in his room, who is becoming increasingly jealous of him and the rest of the clones. Vincent begins to give up on his dreams of attending the Academy to become a Becile worker and continues his spiral into resentment and obsession with being perfect. Checkers first catches a glimpse of Vincent's ideal self as drawn and put on the wall, and leaves him alone to sulk.

### On The Outside

A week after Halcyon begins to let the clones wander freely about the Becile complex, Vincent is eating his dinner while he studies. He is soon visited by Omicron, Alpha, and Iota, and is subject to their torment. He falls out of his wheelchair and the clones are called to keep eating their dinner by Bone. Checkers comes up and helps Vincent back into his chair and rejoins the clones while Vincent leaves to clean up in the bathroom.

Later, after dinner, Checkers comes into the bathroom to check on Vincent and the two talk for a while. He brings Vincent an extra pudding cup he'd smuggled from the cafeteria, once again leaving for training after they finish their conversation.

### Capitalism

Checkers and Vincent talk in his room about Vincent's lack of ability to walk and his work trying to get into the Academy.

### You Really Got Me

Vincent teaches Checkers how to make paper cranes, talking about how he'd had a lot of time on his own to master the craft. Checkers invites him to the Becile Industries project convention, and Vincent gives him a maybe before he leaves.

Weeks later, at the convention, Halcyon brings the clones onstage to perform music for a crowd as a demonstration of their training. After the performance, Vincent meets up with Checkers again and they have a tense conversation before going to get food.

### Only A Lad

Vincent, alone in the factory, speaks to the skeletons of those he'd killed.

### What You See

Vincent finally meets Becile worker Warren, learning about how he must be properly conditioned before he is mechanized. Warren shows him his partially-constructed body and leaves him to prepare for the first round of conditioning.

Later on, Vincent is placed into a chamber and submerged in perflurocarbon, a liquid in which one is able to breathe. He is eventually taken out of the chamber and Warren is pleased with his results.

### Controller

Ulysses meets Vincent while he's at work with Warren.

### Impostor

Vincent enters the Becile complex for the first time after his mechanization, eventually running into Checkers, who doesn't recognize him at first. Checkers takes him to where the clones reside and shows him to the rest of the clones. Halcyon eventually joins them and rejects Vincent's mechanization, calling for his arrest, but he escapes and runs away.

### Nasty Habits

Vincent's havoc wreaking makes the local news.

## Trivia

* The performance in *You Really Got Me* is based on the Animusic song Pogo Sticks.