Blanking the Slate

bushwacked · **Reply #140 on:** November 18, 2015, 05:54:36 PM

Rhaegson's answering grin wouldn't have looked out of place if it was being flashed by a shark. "Great! I knew you were one smart fuckin' fortune cookie." He tapped the ash from the end of his cigarette, then lazily signaled to the Clydesdale mare, handing over the chip. "Let's get this shit started then. Take Inspector Gadget here over to the med room and send someone to pick up Echo."

He flashed a last smile to Soren as he was escorted from the room. "Have fun."

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Axel exhaled in frustration. "Dammit... It's not like I know anyone who could... who'd want to help us out. I guess we're alone in this..."

He trailed off as Emilena asked if being augmented hurt. The rat stared at her then snorted. "Oh no, it's awesome! Feels great!" Shaking his head, he held out one of his hands, flexing the fingers. "They're gonna be cutting off your hand and sticking a machine on it. They're gonna stick wires in you. Will it hurt? What the fuck do you think? It'll hurt like hell. For a while. But the more you use it, the faster it'll feel... almost normal." Axel shrugged. "You'll get used to it. Not like you have much of a choice."

Leaning against the wall, Axel eyed her injured limb. "Did you-"

"Echo, we're ready for you." The voice interrupted Axel, and he turned to see two guards outside the cell. One of them gestured. "Come on, move it."

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #141 on:** November 18, 2015, 07:16:36 PM

Lily furrowed her brow as Marita told her the details. "You're being paid millions to keep her safe? No offense, but we're going on a highly dangerous mission. There are few things you could be doing with Shirley that are more life-threatening than what we're about to do. Are you sure you want to come with? I can handle the Purifiers myself." Given the chance, she would gladly revert to the original plan of simply kamikaze bombing their HQ as soon as she arrived.

Flora came out of the shower, her fur now fully dyed midnight black. "I'm ready to go. You old maids packed? Who's got my phone, I want it back."

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Emilena's face grew paler and paler shades of white as Axel explained the augmentation process. "How can you talk about doing that so casually?" she exclaimed. She queasily shut her eyes and looked away. "I genuinely think I'm going to be sick..."

Then the guard interrupted them and she quickly assumed a more dignified pose. "Feel free to stick around while I'm gone Axel..." She dropped the makeshift lockpick as surreptitiously as she could. "My cell is your cell."

The guard led her somewhere in silence. "Ready to become even more of a freak?" He leered at her as they neared the lab.

Emilena ignored him, but when she noticed Soren was present she couldn't hold her tongue. "What the hell is he doing here? I thought they said they had 'top specialists' or something like that!" she snapped, flushing lividly. "I guess I'm getting what I paid for!"

Nick22 · **Reply #142 on:** November 18, 2015, 09:06:00 PM

we're not fighting the purifiers, but another group that Purifiers want dead. the old saw about the enemy of my enemy is my friend. and yes we're coming along. Shirley wants to get out of the house, and well, we're going to be chaperoning her.' she turned to Shirley. " Just need to bring my computer, and we'll all set.' she said as Rose and Marie came in carrying backpacks. Rose had another backpack in her left hand, this was Marita's. a beep from Maritas computer revealed she had gotten a reply " go to to Mattinger Park outside Seryet. we'll be dropping off your friends there.' the message said."
Mattinger Park was a large open space on the western edge of the city

Serris · **Reply #143 on:** November 19, 2015, 12:16:28 AM

Soren was unpreturbed at Emilena's outburst. "The Purifiers gave me the choice to help you or not. The boss said you could get augmented by me...or one of the guards. Since I actually have cybernetics credentials. Granted, I ain't a Cy.D. but being a certified repair technician for external cybernetics repairs is better than nothing."

He crossed his arms and frowned. "Now Emilena, are you going to continue being a total shithead or will you actually let me try to give you your hand back?"

The Clydesdale mare looked at Emilena. Her ears pinned back. "Be quick," she replied. As fitting her size and bulk, she had a rough, harsh voice that sounded rather masculine.

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #144 on:** November 19, 2015, 12:34:57 AM

"Yes. Quick enough for you?" Emilena shot back.

Marching into the room, Emilena climbed into the surgery chair. "It's my lucky day, you've finally got to remove the handcuffs," she leered at the Clydesdale. "Don't worry, I won't take the opportunity to try and kill you. Assuming Soren does his job correctly."

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Shirley coughed. "Excuse me? My phone? Selfies ain't gonna take themselves."

Lily raised her eyebrows. "What on earth's gotten into you?"

Flora grinned. If she couldn't beat them through logic and shouting, she'd do it through unnatural positivity. Plus she was genuinely excited at the prospect of escaping this house.

Serris · **Reply #145 on:** November 23, 2015, 12:40:15 AM

The mare said nothing. Given her massive bulk, iron shod hooves and nearly a lifetime spent learning the art of combat in rough frontier algae oil towns, she felt quite confident that she could easily take Emilena in a fight.

Rather disconcertingly, the chair had cushioned plastic and foam straps on the arm and leg rests as well as on the chair itself. The mare quickly fastened the straps around Emilena's legs and chest and made sure they were tight.

"Have a seat. The 'doctor' will be with you shortly," the mare said as she fastened the restraints.

The sound of clanking metal and the hum of a cool plasma arc was heard as Soren loaded the tools into the sterilizer. The sound of Soren humming something mingled with the sound of running water as he washed his hands and got ready for the surgery.

It was then he forgot something. He needed someone with access to the internet or some other resource. He excused himself.

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Soren made his way back to the prison cells where he found Axel. "Hey Axel, I got pressed into doing some augmenting for Emilena and...well, I need some help. You know, passing me tools, cleaning up blood, testing circuits, holding up a textbook so I at least have some idea of what the fuck I'm doing."

He looked over at the Augment. "So whatcha say, bud?"

bushwacked · **Reply #146 on:** November 25, 2015, 05:56:19 PM

When Soren found him, Axel was still in Emilena's cell, sat on her bunk with his head buried in his hands. At the sound of Soren's voice, Axel looked slowly up, his face morose. When the human finished speaking, Axel's ear twitched. "I can't imagine how thrilled she was to hear you'd be doing it." He shrugged standing up. "Alright, let's go." If anything, at least it would get him away from the attentions of the doberman who continued to stare darkly at him as he lurked in the corridor.

When they reached the medical room, Axel threw a sardonic expression at Emilena as he followed Soren through the doorway. "Guess I'm here to play nurse." As he spoke, the rat noticed the straps holding her down. Frowning, he stepped close to Soren as the man sorted through his tools, lowering his voice. "You're not gonna put her under? You better make it quick, man..." He turned to look at Emilena over his shoulder, feeling distinctly glad it wasn't him on the chair.

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #147 on:** November 25, 2015, 08:08:07 PM

"There wouldn't be any need for anaesthetic. I'm not going to flinch." Like hell Emilena was going to be unconscious while Soren of all people was poking around her insides. But she did meet Adel's eye and, noticing the mare assistant was looking elsewhere, surreptiously swiped her finger across her throat. Maybe one of them will get the hint, overpower the broad, and the three of us can bust our way out of here...

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The door to Rhaegson's office creaked open now that everyone was gone.

"Commander?" The woman who looked like Lily entered the room. She tried to give a self-confident air but her eyes gave away her nervousness. "I interrogated both prisoners like you asked, but others got in the way of my methods." She stood at attention and forced herself to maintain eye contact. "I would have been able to secure Ms. Jones' location had I been allowed to work alone."

Serris · **Reply #148 on:** November 26, 2015, 12:59:31 AM

Soren looked at the anaesthetic machine. He frowned; not having any medical training whatsoever, he decided against using it. "Accidentally" killing Emilena was too good a risk and if they found out he killed one of their "operatives", he was in deep shit.

"I don't have shit in terms of medical training. I'm just as likely to kill her as I am to put her under," Soren whispered to Axel.

Then again...

"Emilena," Soren said as he waited for the sterilizer to finish its cycle. "The procedure will be painful and if you are unconscious, that will allow me to accomplish the procedure with greater care and precision. Now I do want to warn you that I'm not medically trained but Axel can look up information for me."

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #149 on:** November 26, 2015, 02:02:27 AM

"Mr. Almaya," Emilena met his eyes with an unblinking glower. "I once had a pound of frostbitten muscle and skin tissue amputated from my leg without anesthesia while trapped in a mountain aqueduct during a snowstorm. I'm not going to flinch."

(OOC: This event actually happens in one of my stories set during Emilena's years as a police officer. Anybody interested in reading it or my other stories can send me a PM and I'll provide the link)

(OOC: You can have Emilena wince and cry out and flinch and whatever you like in your posts. She's not as tough as she tries to let on.)

bushwacked · **Reply #150 on:** November 26, 2015, 07:22:57 PM

Axel saw Emilena's gesture. He met her eyes briefly... but gave no sign that he'd understood, or was even communicating with her. He hadn't seen any obvious cameras in the room, but that didn't mean there weren't any... and he had no idea who could be watching.

He glanced towards the guard. Her broad back was to them, her attention fixed on something on one of the shelves. No way I could take her in a fight... even if me and Soren tried together. Not discreetly at least... He blinked, looking around surreptitiously for something that could help - and that was when he saw the small camera nestled in the top far left corner of the room, easily overlooked. He swore inwardly. Even if they took the guard out, there was no way he could be sure a dozen more wouldn't come tearing through the door. Unless we leave Emilena behind... she might be able to keep them busy for a while...

The operating tools, sharp and lethal looking looking, were temptingly close. The rat blinked at them... but as he did so, the guard finished whatever she'd been doing and turned her attention, along with her considerable bulk, back to them. Shit. "Alright, I'll, ah, I'll do what I can. Let's get this over with."

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"Well. If it isn't Dolly the sheep." Rhaegson leaned back in his chair and put his feet up on his clunky wooden desk. The only other piece of furniture in his office was another chair on the other side of the desk - which he didn't offer her. "I heard. You started off well." Rhaegson reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out his pack of cigarettes... then swore under his breath as he saw it was empty.

Dropping the empty pack on the surface of his desk, he looked up at Rose. His forefinger started scratching almost compulsively at the underside of his thumb, causing a light scraping noise. The corner of his mouth twitched in what could have been a smile. "I also heard how you injured two of my men."

He stopped speaking, his eyes staring into Rose's as he waited for a response. For a while, the only noise in the room was the light scraping sound of his thumb.

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #151 on:** November 26, 2015, 11:28:27 PM

Finally Lily couldn't bear it and broke eye contact. "I...got mad..." She felt her cheeks grow warm. "They were idiots...they screwed up the narrative." She balled her fists. "That was the scene where I got Axel to bond with me...but then they destroyed the atmosphere with their stupidity."

She wanted to ask that he not call her Dolly, but she was on thin ice as it was. She knew that he and the other Purifiers mainly saw her as an experiment more than a person.

Serris · **Reply #152 on:** November 28, 2015, 08:25:29 PM

Soren matched Emilena's icy glare. "If you insist. However, if you start moving around too much, I will use drugs to give me some help."

A ding was heard as the sterilizer finished its cycle. He turned to Axel as he headed to the sink and began to wash his hands. "All right, let's get this shit done!"

When the hand washing was complete, he donned a pair of gloves. He fought to keep his stomach from upending itself as he saw the remains of Emilena's hand. It was slimy, discolored and it stank worse than anything imaginable. It was just the penetrating odor of disinfectant in the air kept him from noticing it until he got close to her hand.

"Axel, could you bring up a medical textbook on your phone for me?" Soren asked as he got a metal pan and a scalpel ready.

bushwacked · **Reply #153 on:** November 28, 2015, 09:08:29 PM

"Sure." Axel looked nonchalantly at the guard again, but she was still staring at them... and she really was big. The rat's shoulders slumped slightly. Shit... definitely wouldn't stand a chance. Giving up, he turned to Soren and pulled out his phone, tapping on the screen. "Alright... Essential Surgery, 15th Edition. Sound alright?"

He glanced down at Emilena. This was the closest he'd been to her with most of his attention focused on her wound... and it was only now he could pick up on the smell radiating from it, a sickly mix of rotting meat and pus. He felt his stomach roil, and bit down hard on the inside of his cheek to stop himself from gagging. Fucking hell... "Come on Soren, I got it all here. Let's get this over with."

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Rhaegson nodded. "They fucked up. I can't argue with you there." He snorted. "You know, I was going to have a talk with them about that, but... well, you already took care of that didn't you."

There was a pause as he took Rose in, looking her over as if she were a hunk of meat at the grocery store. "You know, I've been happy with how you've been so far. You've been... efficient. You know how to get stuff done." Rhaegson's eyes roamed downward. "And you ain't bad to look at either. Makes a nice change from the fuckin' sausage fest this place is, at least." Something flickered across his face, though the amiable grin remained. "But you attacked two of my men. Fuckin' morons they may be, but we're all on the same team. Right?"

Rhaegson leaned forward slightly. "You know who you are, don't you Rose? You know what you are?" His head tilted. "I didn't make you to get mad. I didn't make you so you could stick cattle prods up your teammate's asses. I made you so you'd follow orders." He stared at her, the soft schk-schk of his index finger scratching his thumb filling the room. "Did I order you to shove a cattle prod up their ass?"

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #154 on:** November 28, 2015, 11:10:45 PM

Emilena took a deep breath to calm herself. No matter who the doctor was, it wasn't easy knowing that someone was about to inject her with robotics and she'd just denied painkillers because of stubborn bravado.

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Rose's cheeks were bright red. Rhaegson was decently polite to her normally, but whenever she screwed up his disapproval always turned quickly condescending, like she was a misbehaving puppy. "I'll follow orders. I'm trying to follow orders. I've got another plan for infiltrating Axel's team," she said, struggling to keep her voice level. "And this time I'll be working completely alone."

Drawing a manila folder out from a hidden pocket under her dress, she handed him a short and simple file. She couldn't keep her hand from shaking.

bushwacked · **Reply #155 on:** November 30, 2015, 05:43:46 PM

As Rose drew the folder out, Rhaegson held out his hand lazily, not looking at it as she handed it over. "Have you been doing extra homework? I'm so proud." Peeling open the folder, he drew the file out and scanned through it, his eyes flicking over the page.

"Not bad," he said eventually. Rhaegson lowered the file and grinned at her, his teeth glinting. "You have been doing your homework... I'm actually proud. And there I was, about to suggest you use what's between your legs again." The chair creaked slightly as he reclined back in it. "Looks like you've gots to get busy, girlfriend."

Serris · **Reply #156 on:** December 01, 2015, 12:36:35 AM

"That'll do just fine." Soren spoke a command to bring up the table of contents and then to the hand surgery chapter. Luckily, the electronic textbook had a video embedded that explained all the structures of the hand and wrist.

Using the protruding bones of Emilena's arm as landmarks, he began cutting away the dead flesh.

"Motherfucker!" Soren shouted as he made the first cut with the scalpel. The smell got worse as he did so. He held his breath as the odor of the wound threatened to make him vomit.

Her hand was so damaged it didn't even bleed as he cut away at her wrist. Indeed, there was no resistance at all; it was like cutting a piece of foam.

aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato) · **Reply #157 on:** December 01, 2015, 03:30:55 AM

Emilena prepared herself for the moment Soren's scalpel struck home, and while she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of closing her eyes, she did choose anything else in the room to focus on. Seconds passed, and with mild bewilderment she wondered what Soren had found to procrastinate on this time. Only when she looked back over did she realize that Soren had already begun cutting the dead flesh away. She hadn't felt a thing.

For the first time she felt grateful the Purifiers hadn't fed her. Biting her tongue to stifle a gag reflex, Emilena couldn't hide the color draining from her face. Somehow a complete lack of sensation was a thousand times worse than if it had simply hurt. She tried to come up with something to say but her mind went completely blank; she could only watch Soren work with an unblinking gaze.

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Rose tucked her hands behind her back. "Tthank you, sir," she snapped off a quick salute. "It'll be my pleasure."

Not risking saying anything else, she turned and made to leave the room before his good mood went away.

Serris · **Reply #158 on:** December 01, 2015, 10:46:57 PM

Soren continued removing rotten flesh until he saw the pinkish color of healthy tissue. The protruding bones were in terrible shape but that could be repaired later.

"Axel," he said through the surgical mask he had donned at the start of the operation. "Could you use the saline irrigation to wash out the wounds while I continue scraping?"

bushwacked · **Reply #159 on:** December 03, 2015, 05:09:23 PM

"Yeah. On it." Axel's voice sounded strangely thick. His stomach was churning at the sight of Emilena's rotten flesh more or less falling from her bone as Soren's scalpel slid against it. The smell wasn't helping. If he had anything to be thankful for, it was that he hadn't eaten anything lately.

Trying to breath through his mouth, he leaned closer to the open wound, using the saline solution to wash away the blood and pus and maneuvering so he wouldn't get in the way of Soren's hands. "Fuck this..." he muttered through gritted teeth. Another happy memory to add to the bank... Axel winced. At least I have another good reason to drink...