[sneaks in a phonetag because the person who called this meeting hasn't fckin shown up yet. anyway, she frowns a little at being called a kid, but doesn't complain about it to steve because at least he's answering her.]
What...?
[she looks to the two he's pointed out. how are they reacting to these crimes of theirs being described? they didn't really look like violent maniacs to her...]
[dahut will be able to find a lock on the door! so they can be left to privacy with all their brains and odd little specimens. however he might want to pause, because he'll be able to hear some footsteps and the clank of chains from outside....?
the clank of chains punctuate every step forward as they walk into the halls of the institute, wandering into what some might call a neat little shortcut. the two criminals who had their crimes read look disgruntled, displeased—but not in denial. these are the actions they've taken. this is what it means to live in this hellhole of an island.
jenna makes direct eye contact with sheba. and then she turns to steve as if waiting for an answer.
to which steve simply says, "A demon made a deal for them."
though he'll also pause by a set of doors (331, 332...) eyes narrowing. "There was supposed to be a scientist to meet us... which specialty was it..."]
[It's kinder than he deserves for Dahut to accept his apology, but before Luke can say or do anything else, the sound of those chains and footsteps comes from outside the door. And Luke may have been bold enough to linger here longer than he should've, but he isn't so reckless as to draw attention to them now; he has no doubt that the message was serious. So he freezes, going still and quiet, eyes locked on Dahut--he's poised to intervene if anything happens.]
[WHAT THE FCK DON'T LOOK FOR SCIENTISTS AROUND THEIR DOORS GIT. GIT!!!! Dahut also freezes where he is, moving only to glance back toward Luke. He's not RISKING ANYTHING while the sounds are so close to their door, he's just waiting for them to keep walking.]
[something in sheba's heart aches when jenna meets her eyes - but, as before, it's fleeting, and she's left feeling nothing before she can even name the feeling to herself.
she crosses her arms and looks over at steve.]
What do you mean, a demon made a deal? [...] ...and when I was on my way here, most of the researchers I came across were leaving. Are we sure this is supposed to be happening right now?
which all parties will be able to hear now, close as they are to each other. the two of them behind the door freeze and pause
but between a 6 and an 8, it's time for tb to blow their fucking cover. damn luke, crazy that you keep getting hit with these horrific coughing fits. it's like it's almost the end of your time or something. dahut..... what's wrong with you.]
[FUCKING HELP LUKE well it's okay because when Dahut turns around in a panic to try and help Luke, he manages to bump into this wall of brains just enough to send one of the brain jars crashing to the floor.]
[she hears the coughing fit and the crash and immediately knocks on the door, concerned, because it sure sounds like someone is in trouble in there. steve can the prisoners can just chill for a little while.]
Luke's head jerks up at the crash, and he looks wide-eyed at Dahut as he tries, once again, to catch his breath; he hastily wipes the blood off his mouth, stumbling back to his feet through sheer force of will.
They aren't supposed to be here--is it better to play along, or to make up some excuse, and hope that their accolades will help them coast through?]
[FUCK. WELL. It's too late to pretend they're not here after that loudass crash. Dahut's glancing between the door and Luke who's truly having to haul his ass through near-death experiences through sheer force of will.
Now it's his turn to just boldly lie, apparently. He doesn't go to unlock the door just yet, instead wildly spinning around looking for a window or a vent.]
—Yes! My assistant and I will be out in just a moment, no need to worry! We're perfectly fine!
you know what? if they're actually okay (although she is sort of concerned by that coughing), steve can handle this. it's the royal guards who coordinated this transfer of prisoners, anyway.
she'll step back and return her attention to the prisoners - subtly, though. her gaze is on steve and the door, but she's straining to listen to their murmurs, trying to get a sense of what they're plotting with each other.]
[DAMN STEVE WHAT THE FUCK. DON'T YOU KNOW WE HAVE A 22-YEAR-OLD IN HERE.
Dahut picks LIE, so Luke immediately throws himself into this. He nods at him, carefully picking himself up and hastily making himself look presentable again. He looks at this BRAIN ON THE FLOOR along with the broken glass, but there's no time to clean it up properly, so he just winces in apology to whoever it belongs to (not that they care anymore, they are a brain) and kicks it back behind the other brains, trying to get it out of sight. After that, he just stands behind Dahut, assuming the expression of a dutiful assistant and not daring to speak, lest it set off another coughing fit.]
[WELL GUESS IT'S TIME TO DIE. Dahut looks toward this sad brain that's just been kicked off to the side and then toward Luke who now has to larp as the assistant to a fifteen year old (real), and just commits to the bit. OKAY.
He'll look at Luke one last time before nodding and moving to unlock and open the door, praying that Steve doesn't know the appearance of whoever the hell he's looking for.]
[upon hearing those words, she turns and looks directly at the prisoners. hello. what are you planning.
once again she is leaving steve to talk to these researchers because 1. she doesn't know who they are and 2. she has a grudge against institute researchers anyway]
when luke kicks the brain back, making contact with it, he'll get sudden flashes of feeling: despair, betrayal, rage. it curses the heavens and demands justice against a false god. and then it's just sliding sadly underneath one of the exam tables, gone.
but steve seems to believe dahut, nodding. "Took long enough. Show me to the crazy lab I'm supposed to deliver these guys too. We have a Corps member, but she should be fine to keep quiet if she knows the position it'd put them all in to blab."
hahah whoa what does that mean
but the prisoners will make eye contact with sheba, as if daring her. whose side is she on?]
[Ah. Hmmm. Don't like that. DON'T LIKE ANY OF THAT.
But, ah--well, they're both familiar with the Institute, right? Surely they have some idea of a good bluff location. Or... he leans down, murmuring quietly to Dahut, the epitome of a good assistant.]
Do we need to verify authorization? [SURELY THERE'S SOME KIND OF BUREAUCRATIC NONSENSE THEY CAN USE TO GET OUT OF THIS. As he does so, he glances up, looking over the prisoners. Is this a sight they should be used to, as researchers, or is it exceedingly unusual and horrific?]
[DAHUT JUST SITTING HERE LIKE :man_standing: OVER ALL OF THIS HE HAS NO IDEA WHAT'S GOING ON. He glances between Sheba and the prisoners, before leaning back just enough to listen to Luke. S...surely yes, surely... the bureaucratic nonsense will save them.
He'll clear his throat, looking back toward Steve who is now his enemy.]
We'll head there after we see your ID for clearance. Can't be too careful after the last incident, you know?
wait what does that mean. sheba narrows her eyes, looking from the prisoners and glaring daggers at steve's back.
(did piers know this when he asked me to switch with him? she wonders, briefly - and is immediately ashamed by the thought. no. she trusts piers. this is treachery on the guards' part, not on anyone from the corps.
it has to be, right?
he wouldn't do that to me, she thinks, desperate to believe it. he wouldn't.)
she has a mace tucked away at her side, in case she needs it for patrols, and without really thinking about it, one hand comes to rest on the handle. just in case. she isn't drawing it, but if anyone tries anything, if push comes to shove - she'll defend herself.]
steve laughs. it's hearty, genuinely amused, and cruel.
"Authorization? This is your authorization." he makes a grand gesture to the empty hallways, the turned down lights, the lockdown. "Come on. You should've been briefed already. Let's get to work or if these guys are late then we're about to have way bigger problems. I'm not letting your nonsense get me in trouble with the director."
but among the number of prisoners that luke glances to, he'll see a face looking back at home, expression puzzled, as if trying to place if they've met before. luke might not recall him from this life, but maybe another, if he really focuses.
this is a new level of horrific, unfortunately. perhaps there's a reason why most other researchers are given explicit instructions to leave or stay in their little labs]
[I'm so sorry to Aki but once again Luke is not going to be helpful; he's too busy staring at this oddly familiar person, who is staring at him, too. Growing up in the Institute has helped him develop a decent ability to control his expressions, but he can't stop the way his eyes rove over the prisoners, over Sheba, and then back to--who?
He should probably shut up and allow this to happen. He really should. He fucked them over already the first time by getting them into this. But this... something's wrong, here. This, more than the warning they saw on the computer, is unsettling him. And he knows how things work on this island, he does, but--
He gently, subtly, touches the back of Dahut's arm.]
[WHAT IS HE SUPPOSED TO DO WITH THIS. He has no idea why Luke is touching his arm because he isn't the one suffering from visions of ghosts in this lineup of prisoners. Instead, he's trying to figure out how to bullshit his way out of this one. If only he had strength in his tiny green bean limbs so he could just knock this guy out and be free...
He'll glance back at Luke briefly, and then:] Your attitude is terrible but your point is fair.
[Before turning to head in the opposite direction they'd come from. He does reach out while he turns to tap the back of Luke's hand twice, though.]
okay, here's the thing. sheba narrowly escaped the institute's researchers once already; whatever these prisoners have done, she can't in good conscience hand them over to a fate she would have run from, herself. they may be death row inmates, but it's not fair to hand them over to some demon. aren't the royal guards supposed to be better than that? aren't they all supposed to be better than that?
so.
she draws her mace. dahut may not have the strength in his little green bean arms to attempt to knock someone out, but she's trained, and she's strong. she doesn't want to kill the guy, though, just incapacitate him; so she turns it and grips it at the part of the handle just above the spiked ball, leaving plenty of the solid wooden handle ahead of her.
plenty to smack steve, hard, in the back of the head with. hopefully a roll of 17 is enough to actually do that and she's not too short to reach him.]
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What...?
[she looks to the two he's pointed out. how are they reacting to these crimes of theirs being described? they didn't really look like violent maniacs to her...]
But what does the Institute want with them?
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the clank of chains punctuate every step forward as they walk into the halls of the institute, wandering into what some might call a neat little shortcut. the two criminals who had their crimes read look disgruntled, displeased—but not in denial. these are the actions they've taken. this is what it means to live in this hellhole of an island.
jenna makes direct eye contact with sheba. and then she turns to steve as if waiting for an answer.
to which steve simply says, "A demon made a deal for them."
though he'll also pause by a set of doors (331, 332...) eyes narrowing. "There was supposed to be a scientist to meet us... which specialty was it..."]
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she crosses her arms and looks over at steve.]
What do you mean, a demon made a deal? [...] ...and when I was on my way here, most of the researchers I came across were leaving. Are we sure this is supposed to be happening right now?
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which all parties will be able to hear now, close as they are to each other. the two of them behind the door freeze and pause
but between a 6 and an 8, it's time for tb to blow their fucking cover. damn luke, crazy that you keep getting hit with these horrific coughing fits. it's like it's almost the end of your time or something. dahut..... what's wrong with you.]
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—are you okay in there?!
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the prisoners rustle at the fact that they seem to be getting distracted, starting to murmur to each other. uh oh.
meanwhile steve startles, and will just move to see if the door can be opened. you've been fucking spotted you stupid brain sluts
"Are you the one we were meant to meet?!"
that would sound romantic if it wasn't about science(?)]
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Luke's head jerks up at the crash, and he looks wide-eyed at Dahut as he tries, once again, to catch his breath; he hastily wipes the blood off his mouth, stumbling back to his feet through sheer force of will.
They aren't supposed to be here--is it better to play along, or to make up some excuse, and hope that their accolades will help them coast through?]
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Now it's his turn to just boldly lie, apparently. He doesn't go to unlock the door just yet, instead wildly spinning around looking for a window or a vent.]
—Yes! My assistant and I will be out in just a moment, no need to worry! We're perfectly fine!
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you know what? if they're actually okay (although she is sort of concerned by that coughing), steve can handle this. it's the royal guards who coordinated this transfer of prisoners, anyway.
she'll step back and return her attention to the prisoners - subtly, though. her gaze is on steve and the door, but she's straining to listen to their murmurs, trying to get a sense of what they're plotting with each other.]
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steve will believe these sweet sweet convincing liars. he bangs on the door again, rudely.
“Took you long enough! We’ve been looking for ya! Hurry up or I’ll bust down this door myself!”
damn steve it’s been 2 minutes chill]
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Dahut picks LIE, so Luke immediately throws himself into this. He nods at him, carefully picking himself up and hastily making himself look presentable again. He looks at this BRAIN ON THE FLOOR along with the broken glass, but there's no time to clean it up properly, so he just winces in apology to whoever it belongs to (not that they care anymore, they are a brain) and kicks it back behind the other brains, trying to get it out of sight. After that, he just stands behind Dahut, assuming the expression of a dutiful assistant and not daring to speak, lest it set off another coughing fit.]
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He'll look at Luke one last time before nodding and moving to unlock and open the door, praying that Steve doesn't know the appearance of whoever the hell he's looking for.]
You know how busy things get. So! Shall we go?
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once again she is leaving steve to talk to these researchers because 1. she doesn't know who they are and 2. she has a grudge against institute researchers anyway]
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when luke kicks the brain back, making contact with it, he'll get sudden flashes of feeling: despair, betrayal, rage. it curses the heavens and demands justice against a false god. and then it's just sliding sadly underneath one of the exam tables, gone.
but steve seems to believe dahut, nodding. "Took long enough. Show me to the crazy lab I'm supposed to deliver these guys too. We have a Corps member, but she should be fine to keep quiet if she knows the position it'd put them all in to blab."
hahah whoa what does that mean
but the prisoners will make eye contact with sheba, as if daring her. whose side is she on?]
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But, ah--well, they're both familiar with the Institute, right? Surely they have some idea of a good bluff location. Or... he leans down, murmuring quietly to Dahut, the epitome of a good assistant.]
Do we need to verify authorization? [SURELY THERE'S SOME KIND OF BUREAUCRATIC NONSENSE THEY CAN USE TO GET OUT OF THIS. As he does so, he glances up, looking over the prisoners. Is this a sight they should be used to, as researchers, or is it exceedingly unusual and horrific?]
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He'll clear his throat, looking back toward Steve who is now his enemy.]
We'll head there after we see your ID for clearance. Can't be too careful after the last incident, you know?
[WHAT LAST INCIDENT.]
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wait what does that mean. sheba narrows her eyes, looking from the prisoners and glaring daggers at steve's back.
(did piers know this when he asked me to switch with him? she wonders, briefly - and is immediately ashamed by the thought. no. she trusts piers. this is treachery on the guards' part, not on anyone from the corps.
it has to be, right?
he wouldn't do that to me, she thinks, desperate to believe it. he wouldn't.)
she has a mace tucked away at her side, in case she needs it for patrols, and without really thinking about it, one hand comes to rest on the handle. just in case. she isn't drawing it, but if anyone tries anything, if push comes to shove - she'll defend herself.]
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steve laughs. it's hearty, genuinely amused, and cruel.
"Authorization? This is your authorization." he makes a grand gesture to the empty hallways, the turned down lights, the lockdown. "Come on. You should've been briefed already. Let's get to work or if these guys are late then we're about to have way bigger problems. I'm not letting your nonsense get me in trouble with the director."
but among the number of prisoners that luke glances to, he'll see a face looking back at home, expression puzzled, as if trying to place if they've met before. luke might not recall him from this life, but maybe another, if he really focuses.
this is a new level of horrific, unfortunately. perhaps there's a reason why most other researchers are given explicit instructions to leave or stay in their little labs]
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He should probably shut up and allow this to happen. He really should. He fucked them over already the first time by getting them into this. But this... something's wrong, here. This, more than the warning they saw on the computer, is unsettling him. And he knows how things work on this island, he does, but--
He gently, subtly, touches the back of Dahut's arm.]
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He'll glance back at Luke briefly, and then:] Your attitude is terrible but your point is fair.
[Before turning to head in the opposite direction they'd come from. He does reach out while he turns to tap the back of Luke's hand twice, though.]
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okay, here's the thing. sheba narrowly escaped the institute's researchers once already; whatever these prisoners have done, she can't in good conscience hand them over to a fate she would have run from, herself. they may be death row inmates, but it's not fair to hand them over to some demon. aren't the royal guards supposed to be better than that? aren't they all supposed to be better than that?
so.
she draws her mace. dahut may not have the strength in his little green bean arms to attempt to knock someone out, but she's trained, and she's strong. she doesn't want to kill the guy, though, just incapacitate him; so she turns it and grips it at the part of the handle just above the spiked ball, leaving plenty of the solid wooden handle ahead of her.
plenty to smack steve, hard, in the back of the head with. hopefully a roll of 17 is enough to actually do that and she's not too short to reach him.]
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