IC Contact - Exsilium

[maddeninghatter]

[ Thirty seconds of tuneless humming--beeeeeeeeep! ]

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[velveteened]

( he just speaks up from one of the top bunks, cheerful as you like )

There you are!

1/2

[maddeninghatter]

[ KILL EVERYTHING ]

2/2

[maddeninghatter]

[ He affects an air of genuine surprise. ]

My, my! What a coincidence, fancy meeting you here~!

[ An air of genuine surprise that isn't the least bit menacing, particularly not when he leaps up to share Oz's bunk. ]

[velveteened]

( he shifts to the side to make space for break and not at all put distance between them. )

Ahahah, did you get lost on your way somewhere?

[maddeninghatter]

[ He sprawls out across the bed, taking up most of the real estate. ]

You're so cuuuuuuute, I want to poke you!

[ ...and twists up, going for Oz's forehead. ]

[velveteened]

( that is terribly rude and has him having to move close towards the wall just to sit properly. that also means there is limited EVASION SPACE for forehead attacks, which is to say no real opportunity to evade at all.

his life is so hard. )

[maddeninghatter]

[ ....it's too easy. Break leaves off poking and flops back on the bed. ]

I take that back. You're not cute at all.

[ A beat. ]

Now. I can only imagine you were referring to the United Earth scientists, perhaps possibly with particular respect to why they were at your chest the whole time.

So — what were they trying to do?

[velveteened]

( there's a wry exhale when break gives it up with poking, and for once he's actually ready to answer that question —

but first, a double-take )

What?

( that is most definitely not something he's told anyone, not even any of his fellow ue captives. )

[maddeninghatter]

[ He grins. Horribly. ]

I believe I've already mentioned the part about your being unloveable and not cute and all thaaat~.

[ He props up on one elbow and reaches for Oz's chin in a way that's not at all creepy. ]

So please tell your Uncle Break what you're thinking, okay~?

[velveteened]

( okay screw maturity, he's leaning back so he can kick at that hand. )

On second thought, I've changed my mind.

1/2

[maddeninghatter]

[ A nanosecond of confusion — and then he deftly catches Oz's foot and yanks on it, so that Oz is lying flat on his back, on the bed. Break is on his hands and knees, and for a moment looms, as if he were going to crawl on top of him... ]

[maddeninghatter]

[ At which point he stops, scrabbles in his pocket for a moment, and comes up with a piece of precious candy. After slowly unwrapping it (crinkle crinkle crinkle), he sits back on his knees and — pops it into his mouth. Crunch! ]

We can play games another time, if you waaant~♥

But right now, I'd like to hear your opinions on the United Earth.

[velveteened]

( and on his back he lands with a sudden start, and the well worn thought of but is he really blind. but after a moment he sighs, accepting defeat, and answers without moving to get back up just yet. )

If you think about it, then it's pretty logical. ( as if thinking is all he's done, and a certain roomba-related misadventure wasn't what gave him the idea. ) B. Rabbit — anything from the Abyss, no one could figure it out within a few days, especially if they didn't know much about the Abyss in the first place.

( or contracting, which they clearly didn't — or an incuse wouldn't've seemed such a novelty )

But that wasn't a problem. They were in a hurry, but they didn't think we were going anywhere. So in the meantime, why not start to think ahead? It's not so easy as copying that much power. What about how to control it? Or — ( and here it is ) — how to stop it from destroying their soldiers?

( not the sentience of the power itself, not the anger behind it that so wanted to, but more pragmatically: the same problem contractors of very powerful chains have to worry about themselves.

and if you've one such on your hands, why not try to find out how it works? )

[maddeninghatter]

[ Controlling chains and bypassing contracts had been an important subject of Pandora research, ostensibly for the purpose of addressing the illegal contractor problem. Of course, political intrigue had played a role, too. His own chain was widely held to be too powerful for one man to wield; only because he was a servant of the noble Rainsworth house was he tolerated, and then only with considerable grumbling and reluctance.

However, despite years of research, circumventing a contract was still impossible. So too, blocking a Chain's power, except with a Chain-killer such as his own.

...

What had Oz said? When he invoked, he'd said it felt like it had originally, back when he had needed Gilbert's seal. Break's mind turns around to his recent experiences with his own Chain, recently enhanced by the Initiative's sentient power. Mad Hatter had become far more powerful — but also more destructive, to his own body. Indeed, he would have died the moment he invoked, if not for...

He shakes his head, as if casting off the memory. ]

It's too much for your body, your Chain. I'll ask Gilbert to seal it again.

[velveteened]

No.

( — illogical. but he's not eager to be in a situation like that again, much as the last was for less than a week and a month ago at that. )

[maddeninghatter]

[ Patting Oz on the head. ]

I'll take that as a "yes."

[ He launches himself off the top bunk, landing cat-like on his feet. ]

[velveteened]

( he sits up quickly, affronted. )

I said no! That's not going to fix anything.

( had been lenalee's vain promise from that day, we'll fix this, and he'd known not to believe it even then, but still. )

This isn't going to be permanent — ( or so he certainly hopes. ) — so as long as I don't use it...and I wouldn't here anyway.

( lest b rabbit DESTROYS THE MOON on the accident )

[maddeninghatter]

[ He seems to be headed for the door, but now he stops, puts out his arms, and pirouettes back around. ]

You haven't told him yet, have you~? ♥

1/

[velveteened]

I did!

( THE MOST INDIGNANT )

[velveteened]

I explained the whole thing to him as soon as I was sure about it.

[velveteened]

And — 

[velveteened]

He fell asleep, so I'm not sure how much he heard.

( he is really offended by this. )

[velveteened]

There wasn't any point to waking him up after that.

( and after all the sleep he's catching up on. )

6/6

[velveteened]

( THE DEEPEST OF SIGHS.

and, after a pause, he decides he should probably do one thing more, on the topic of telling. )

And there's something else.

[maddeninghatter]

Pffffffffffff —

[ No, sorry. He can't hold it in any longer. ]

Ha! Ha! Ha!