[log] cut off one head [closed]

[advanced]

Characters: Bucky Barnes and Alexander Pierce
Location: Building 149
Date: Day 198, evening
Summary: Bucky finally runs into Pierce, they have words.
Warnings: Graphic violence, will add others if necessary.

[He doesn't want to move too far from the way out of downtown to the ice tunnels, it's his best bet for running into Pierce if the man is even still in this area. But he almost wishes he'd stayed back at the post office when he finds a table carved with a very specific Russian word.

Fury has him kicking the table into the wall until it breaks into chunks that he can pick up with one hand, only so that he can slam them into each other more and more until there's nothing but splinters remaining. He doesn't care about the mess he's making, only stopping when there's literally no trace of that word left. Covered in dust, he opens the door intending to brush off the worst of it before lockdown, when he sees a very familiar figure in the snow.

It's almost like a mirage at first, that he should show up at this moment.

But Bucky only wastes a single second before he's sprinting out into the snow with the aim of catching Pierce and dragging him back into the house before the doors lock. By his hair, if he has to.]

Comments

[peacemongering]

[There was still a lot of work to be done with the Soldier being clean, but he would not hurry the process. They had all night to see that the Soldier was back in as good of condition as this place would allow, but more than that, he wanted to reveal the Barnes under the filth.

In time, he thought.]

Yes, you've requested a change to orders or requested new ones. They aren't always accepted. Frankly, more often than not, it is denied, but the option is still available.

[Or at least it was now. And the Soldier had to operate on missions with autonomy. There had to be clear orders but otherwise, the method in which they were carried out was the Soldier's discretion. It allowed for shifts when aspects changed.

Clean and drying off himself, he leafed through his pack for one of his handful of shivs, the sharpest, cleanest edge. He was in need of a shave.]

[advanced]

[He knows he has autonomy to carry out orders, that's a different beast from free will altogether or requesting his own orders. Still, this doesn't seem like a trap, and his handler has been kind to him so far. It emboldens him to trust, as much as the Soldier can trust, and nod.]

I want something more.

[Those weren't orders that had him doing anything of significance, he had no purpose there. He was supposed to be a tool, a weapon, and taking care of himself felt like a sideline rather than a complete mission.

There's something in his eyes that speaks of disquiet, of Bucky underneath almost desperate for Pierce to do something that wasn't beneficial to him.]

[peacemongering]

[Under normal circumstances, 'I want' were not generally words that were allowed to the Soldier unless in a need for survival. Food, water, a change of clothing, a weapon were the instances when a handler would overlook the words. In many cases, it wasn't a case of 'I need', and there was no particular need to nitpick such basic necessities.]

And what would more entail for you?

[He was intent on his own business, though he kept part of his intention on the Soldier next to him. He only had soap to work with and the wounds on his face made shaving both tedious and difficult.]

[advanced]

[He doesn't stop cleaning himself even as the conversation continues, down to his genitals and upper legs now, almost completely washed free of the grime and filth that has accumulated over the last few months.]

I don't know.

[He hesitates, hand paused in the action of emptying the sink to refill it again.]

I usually have a target.

[Whether that's a person, an object, or even information.]

[peacemongering]

[He shaved very carefully and very slowly. The blade wasn't as fine as razor but it had an edge. The rasp of blade on skin was audible, but he was determined to remove the whiskers all the same.

Of course, having a target here was currently impossible. The sheer volume of interaction that had to happened compromised a situation where the Soldier had once been in their world. With a 'will', the Soldier had more than a few people that checked in and any targeting would be traced back to him. For now, he was intent on keeping his nose clean.]

I suppose you technically do have a target. The Admin or Eve. Everyone is searching for the center of the spiral, so to speak.

[advanced]

[The Admin. Good, okay, that does give him a specific target. His eyes shutter with something darker and more focused, the sort of look that the Soldier usually got before hunting a target down.]

Neutralised, captured, or killed?

[peacemongering]

[Ah, was he taking that as an actual order? Interesting. The Soldier was so desperate for a target that even the suggestion of one was taking up as a new reality. So tarnished and unused was James Barnes that falling back on what had been a reality for seventy years now stood out more firmly.

For his part, he continued to carefully shave his cheeks.]

We would have to have more information of which capacity Even exists. As Zola proved, you can't torture a problem, only box it into a certain area. Take away things. So until we know more, that is still in question. It means we'll have to operate under the assumption that all of those things and none of this things may come to be.

[advanced]

[It's perhaps not as concrete a mission as he wanted, but it's something. He will throw his all into information gathering and searching, alongside the self-care measures that have been placed on him and protecting his handler's life.

Finally, with one last swipe of the napkin, he's clean.

Next up, he takes his scalpel and prepares to shave with it, careful and precise, though he speaks between strokes.]

I will report all findings to you for analysis.

[peacemongering]

[At this point, Pierce knew better than to give full orders that weren't aligned with his want to make the Soldier clean, healthy and able. It would not do well for when this entire event ended, so he was careful when it came to what he was going to be ordering.

He washed his own blade in the sink of water and rinsed his face and then continued with his own shaving.]

Is the Admin worth sending messages to?

[advanced]

[He doesn't know the answer to that. The memories connected with changing his username are intrinsically connected to Bucky, to his fear, to his paranoia. The Soldier can't access them without severe cracks appearing in the programming.

He frowns, looking torn for a moment.]

I think it depends what messages.

[peacemongering]

[Of course it does. He had suspected as much. He had no yet contacted the Admin personally, was instead trying to gather as much information before he bothered to invest any time or effort into the endeavor. He wanted to have his facts straight, but they were highly elusive.

Getting here had been interesting enough with all the door locking and the apparent visage of voices and doubt. The mental twisting probably had nothing to do with the Admin, but he couldn't help but suspect the programming played at least a little part. Defensive.]

No matter. Those messages all appear to the private anyway.

[advanced]

I have some stored on my tablet.

[He's scrolled through and glanced at what's on the tablet that he's using, the one belonging to the mysterious Robert Smith, and that doesn't need memories of the actual conversations.

He leaves the sink to fetch the tablet, unlocking it and holding it out to Pierce if he wants to see. The conversations are mostly a request for name changes (@j then @username and now @robertsmith) with simple 'acknowledged' from the admin. Though this last time, she did tell him that he had only one more name change remaining.]

[peacemongering]

[He did not request the information, had already seen some of the contents of the Soldier's tablet. He had been watching during the check-ins with others, but as a matter of 'privacy' he kept himself from being too curious. It was all for an effect later on, though he had quickly read what had been shown to him.

Even now, he continued to shave the last of his whiskers off of his upper lip, keeping his attention on the task rather than the fact that the Soldier was 'willingly' showing him information. He suspected it was an age old need to please, and this might be the only perceived way in order to do so.

Rinsing his face, he wiped it dry along with his hands and leaned over to read the contents that were brought up.]

Quite to the point, as one might expect.

[advanced]

[Pierce isn't exactly wrong. The Soldier has a need to please his handler, partially for self preservation; but, at least in this case, partly because it brings positive reinforcement which is very rare for him.

He slides the tablet away once the conversations have been read.]

Right.

[At least he's finally done with cleaning himself, looking much more human now.]

Where are we travelling tomorrow, sir?

[He wants to plot their course for maximum security.]

[peacemongering]

[With them both clean and drying off, there was no reason to stay in this part of the aquarium. Instead, he thought that it was best to find a spot that was defensible for the Soldier's sake, check up with the network and eat. They were on a schedule after all, and he was hard-pressed to break it even when he was going to release the Soldier tomorrow.]

I haven't decided yet. I would like to review the map and decide the best course of action.

[He began to gather up all of his supplies, unwilling to leave anything in case there was a moment when he might have to take flight quickly. He watched to make certain that his Soldier was doing the same and then lead the way to where they could do another round of the place to find the best spot.]

We will find a defensible spot for the night. You know the best areas, so I will allow you to decide our best choice.

[And that was how it generally worked. The Soldier was an expert, and he was certain to tap into that. A give and take. A team effort.]

[advanced]

[He couldn't redress yet because his clothes were soaking wet from their washing and hung up around the tanks to dry, but the Soldier gathered all his other belongings neatly into his backpack and swung it over his good shoulder to keep it with him.]

The most defensible place in the aquarium is the gift shop.

[He's scoped out this area before, and he makes it his mission to be sure he's done a thorough recon of every building when they arrive in case of threats. He gestures to where the gift shop is and takes post at the door.]

I will stand guard until my designated sleep time, unless you have other orders for me?

[peacemongering]

[He too was not about to put on his wet clothing but instead give them time to dry. This place seemed secure enough and they had to be close to lock down, and he was certain that the Soldier had been in this place before given the quick answer to where the most defensible room was.

He was satisfied in following and settling down, peering about the little gift shop for anything worthwhile to take with him. He found a stuffed animal that reminded him of when he had brought his daughters to an aquarium and decided to keep it. A reminder of home.]

No, stand guard, though keep the schedule for eating and you may check the network. I don't want you falling behind on events or replies.