deadkids | closed; strangle him already

[ He hears the door swing open and moves to swivel around to confront the intruder, only for his vision to cut out halfway through the motion. Mastermind doesn't have to guess twice who's responsible, especially when his ear fills with Esper's obnoxious tone.

He's been up for who knows how long, countless empty coffee mugs taking up space onIf his eyes weren't covered, he would be rolling them. Instead, he sighs through clenched teeth, batting Esper's hands away. ]

Must you make it a habit to drop in where you aren't wanted?

[ Esper dodges back, just slightly, as Mastermind bats him away. Although his hands have been taken off, his physical proximity hasn't changed or shifted, and he's still close enough to feel Mastermind's relatively uneven breathing. The empty mugs of coffee don't go unnoticed.

Esper points to the screen, pressing a gloved finger against a line of coding, dodging the question as per usual. ]

Shouldn't you have closed the layer before opening another one? Otherwise the syntax is gonna mess up the codes when you try to run it, right?

[ He settles his head on Mastermind's shoulder and drags his finger down the screen, letting it drift off the bottom of the panel before removing it entirely, doubtlessly messing up Mastermind's codes. A tiny pixel of black forms where his finger lingers the longest, barely noticeable without scrutiny. ]

You should come to bed before you pass out.

[ Mastermind's vision returns to him and follows Esper's hand to the coding, spouting an error there's no way he could have noticed in such a short time frame. He scowls, the shadows beneath his eyes more apparent than ever, reaching a conclusion. ]

This code was encrypted with a password for a reason. Stay out of my files, or I'll-

[ He stops short as the panel edits itself through Esper's touch, taking his meticulous coding with it. Without so much as a beat of pause, Mastermind's hand moves up to Esper's throat, not yet squeezing it. ]

Get out, Esper. Now.

I don't want to.

[ Esper's breath hitches, and with the surprise of Mastermind's hand against his throat, his pleased expression turns to surprise, though not for long before his usual expression returns. After considering Mastermind's second reaction of displeasure, Esper presses four gloved fingers against the screen, dragging the code with downward strokes, as slowly and deliberately as possible, marring all of Mastermind's hard work with long, black streaks of corruption.

Just slightly under Mastermind's touch, Esper angles his head upwards, the grin on his face now growing more unhinged as brain pumps adrenaline into his bloodstream. ]

[ As Esper persists in destroying his code, Mastermind's free hand moves to quickly snatch at Esper's wrist, extending his arm to an unnatural angle once he has hold of it. The hand against his throat tightens its grip to violently cut off Esper's airways, gloved fingers digging into the skin beneath his jaw. ]

I won't warn you again.

[ Mastermind's eyes are strikingly focused, locked with Esper's. The grin on Esper's face is disgusting, he thinks, the desire to stop his breathing once and for all being a tantalizing option. Instead, he twists Esper's restrained arm further, nearly to the point of dislocation. ]

[ The pain surges in his arm first, and Esper sucks on his teeth, attempting to draw in air, and finds Mastermind's hand where the airflow should be. Esper thinks, because maybe it's the lack of air in his lungs, or maybe it's the high of Mastermind's attention finally being directed at him for once, but at least for a little bit, there is no struggling, instead letting the pain eventually melt into something like bliss until his lung capacity runs out.

It hurts, and the way his face twists with Mastermind's grip indicates the unmistakeable sensation of pain, but Mastermind is paying attention to him and he doesn't care if Mastermind kill him right there because he's the last thing Esper would see. Yet, against his best attempt not to struggle, Esper's frame contorts violently under Mastermind's grasp, an instinctive urge to flee without dislocating his arm. His unrestrained hand claws at his throat, at Mastermind's hand, for release.

If he gets out of this, at least he could wear the bruises around his neck like a trophy. ]

[ The way Esper delays his reaction of panic is annoying, Mastermind thinks with a furrowed brow. There is no lesson to be learned by someone like this, no matter the means of which it's taught. He squeezes harder against Esper's throat as the latter tries to claw at him and frowns.

It's not satisfying enough. Mastermind releases his hold on Esper's wrist and lessens his grip against his throat, allowing him just enough leeway to breathe again. With one hand freed, he uses it to wave his Dynamos over, nabbing the closest one and holding its sharpened point only centimetres from Esper's right eye. ]

If I were to ruin something valuable of yours, we could call it even. [ He smiles, completely out of place. ] Do you understand, Esper?

[ The first thing he focuses on is breathing, wheezing and choking on air to try and regulate the amount of air filling his lungs and his head, the adrenaline fading from his high. There's lingering pain in his arm from being held like that for so long, but the pain will subside, there's no need to panic if he can breathe.

Esper freezes, staring at the glistening point of Mastermind's Dynamos, his breath suddenly being choked out him even though he could breathe. The fear replaces where the adrenaline left traces, flooding his veins with panic. There's a furious shifting of his eyes from white to black to white, before it finally settles on black. His Dynamos flutter wildly behind him in an unorganized pattern, Esper's fear too primal and base to even consider keeping them straight at the moment.

The squirming rises up again, this time with more intensity than a second ago. His eyes squeeze shut, and he begins to claw away at Mastermind's hand with both hands, digging into his gloves like digging away at hard rock with your nails. Tears well up in the corner of his eyes, and Esper's voice escapes him in small whines of desperation as tries to escape Mastermind's grip like an animal caught in a trap. ]

Nononononononono- Don't- Don't--- I'm sorry, I'm sorryI'm sorryI'msorry- I won't- I won't do again, I promise, I promise-- Mastermind please--

Edited 2015-07-29 06:10 (UTC)

[ If not for Esper's pleas, he might have let him go. Instead, the possibility of carving the eye from it's rightful place begins to feel much more appealing.

It's not like it's incorrect to say his interest in Esper's eyes is limited to this moment alone. He is intrigued by them, and to have one to study would provide possibly countless answers to the mysteries that coil around Esper like a snake.

The way they're flickering right now is fascinating, too, and Mastermind figures he probably needs them when they're blackened for his research to get anywhere, anyway. With Esper's Dynamos posing a possible threat in their erratic formation, Mastermind assembles the spare five of his own into an offensive position, the last warning sign he'll offer. ]

I warned you to stop, yes? And you didn't, so-

[ He grits his teeth against Esper's frantic clawing, no doubt ruining his gloves. The smile falls from Mastermind's face, irritability taking its usual place on his features. The way Esper whines beneath him is obnoxious, and Mastermind squeezes against his throat again, intending to silence his begging. ]

- shut up and hold still.

Edited (fucking phone html) 2015-07-29 08:25 (UTC)

Mastermind, please, not that one- You can't- You can't- I need it- I can't- I can't do anything-

[ His whining choked off by Mastermind's tight grip against his windpipe, Esper's squirming continues until it becomes too much effort for his lungs to handle with no air, and the six Dynamos fall behind him with his inability tothink straight behind the tears streaming down his face and his fruitless gasps for air.

It's not the fact that Mastermind wants his eyes, he'd give the organic one to Mastermind if Mastermind wanted it so back. But the way the sharp point is angled points directly at the implant, shrinking furiously in on itself like the plant that does the same. He didn't even know if he could even calibrate his Dynamos with a new implant. Esper's thoughts race too fast for his mind to track of inside his skull. It's not the pain either, he can handle the pain. Nothing matches the pain of space corruption encroaching his body.

If Mastermind was going to take that eye, then there was nothing else he could depend on to try and find Mother again.

Esper shivers against Mastermind's grip uncontrollably.

He only helplessly stares at Mastermind with the same look he gave the slavers who collared him so many years ago before his escape: Fear, terror, and an abject expression of absolute despair. ]

Edited 2015-07-29 09:10 (UTC)

Don't make me laugh. You're just as useless with it.

[ Mastermind is glaringly cold, moreso than usual. He knows that the cybernetic implant that was universal to all the Adds is more than just a weapon. It isn't farfetched for Esper's to be encrypted with data on time travel, he reasons. Why else would Time Tracer be wearing that ridiculous eye patch? The pieces fall into place too easily.

The longer he keeps his hold on Esper's airway, the less he seems struggle. Any look of excitement or panic that previously lined Esper's features has been replaced with complete despair, but that's fine. The implant will be easier to remove with Esper's eyes so wide.

Calmly, Mastermind lessens his grip again just long enough to allow Esper another lungful of air before pushing back on his throat to force his back against Mastermind's desk. He needs a flat surface to work on, but with the lab being too far away, this will have to suffice. ]

Don't move. [ He repeats his earlier instructions, pinning Esper down by the throat. ] Have you learned your lesson yet?

[ Esper thinks of Mother as Mastermind's hand tightens on his throat again, the reality now setting in that he had fucked up beyond all salvation. His effort had gone to waste once already when he made a miscalculation, and here he was about to let it happen again because he wasn't careful about warnings, because he had let his guard down in front of someone he had finally opened up to- only to have his expectations betrayed.

His thoughts flood with despair, flushing out any happy, elated thoughts of finally having Mastermind's attention. Esper goes limp, his arms falling to his side despite his earlier attempts to claw for freedom. Occasionally, his body twitches, spasming from the lack of air in the system, but as far as Esper is concerned, the impending doom of not having his implant is the same thing as death, anyway.

He stares with glassy eyes at the ceiling overhead in a despair more potent than any sedative Mastermind could ever produce. ]

[ The way that Esper falls still is more convenient than he'd expected, and Mastermind tentatively retracts his hand from its place at Esper's throat. Carefully, he discards his jacket and gloves one at a time, not wanting to reacquaint them with the inky substance of Esper's blood.

He rolls up his sleeves and with another wave of his hand, assembles two Dynamos overhead to project a good light source, leaving the rest in their offensive positions should Esper decide not to cooperate after all. Mastermind leans in, placing his hand on Esper's right cheek and resting the other atop his head. ]

Shall we begin?

[ Without waiting for an answer, Mastermind's hand moves down from Esper's head in what could almost be a comforting gesture, if not for the way it enters his eye socket. Mastermind holds Esper's head down with the hand that had previously cupped his cheek, using the other to dig his way into the back of the orbital socket, his pace deliberately slow.

This is punishment, after all, but he's being cautious so as not to damage the implant. His fingers scrape against what feels like the root of the implant and one swift motion, he rips it from its place in Esper's skull, hand slick with black ink. ]

Edited 2015-07-30 22:46 (UTC)

[ Esper freezes again, violently squirming like he was having a seizure, clutching at Mastermind's hands, gulping for air as if it could alleviate the pain. His Dynamos throw themselves against Mastermind's walls and occasionally scraping by the ones Mastermind has left up in formation but otherwise not hostile at all.

Mother, he thinks, his thoughts swelling inside his head until his mind goes blank with shock and pain, Mothermothermothermothermakeitstopmakeitstop ]

Haah-

[As Mastermind tears his implant out, Esper goes slack altogether, his hand falling to his sides and releasing Mastermind's limbs free of his attachment. Black bile pools at the back of his throat like the 'blood' trailing down the side of his face. He gurgles, and the tar spills on to his lips, like vomiting blood. Esper's eyes return to the ceiling, past the Dynamos, and seemingly stares right through into the very fabric of reality. ]

Edited (edit because i forgot to correct ugly linespacing) 2015-07-30 23:41 (UTC)

[ Mastermind gingerly drops the implant into one of the cleaner, long empty mugs on his desk for safekeeping, watching Esper from the corner of his eye. Without his coat or gloves, his arms bear red marks from the worst of Esper's frantic clawing, but it's a feasible price to pay for the data he'll be collecting later.

Turning back to face Esper, he raises a curious brow at the stillness he's presented with. Esper is a mess, the same substance that drips from Mastermind's own hands is spilling from his mouth, his eyes focused on something farther than the ceiling. Disgusting, he thinks, lifting his cleaner hand to wipe the bile from Esper's lips.

If Esper wants him to treat the wound, he will, but otherwise he's finished here. ]

Feel free to leave. You're of no further use to me.

[ A good five minutes pass before Mastermind's words finally settle into his mind. By that time, Esper's glassy eyes regain some semblance of focus, and he finally pulls himself together only to slide down the side of the desk. He doesn't even bother attempting to get the cluttered Dynamos off the floor when he already knows they're no use now.

One hand covers the worst of the injury, brushing off some black crust when he presses his palm to the side of his face. Esper pulls his knees to his face, curling in on himself. ]

You should have killed me.

[ Counter-intuitively, he slides a finger inside the still injured wound. The healed area ruptures, and the black starts dripping down his face again. It should hurt more, but still numb and recovering from shock, Esper doesn't even react. ]

closed; strangle him already

3 months later

three months and two weeks later

i just noticed my weird coffee mug sentence thx phone

KYA

my nyas?

MY FUCKING NYAS

;)

IM DYING

good

lies down in nyas

drowns you in nyas

IM DYING RIGHT NOW

just as planned

i hate u

u love me

no i hate u i hate thist hread