[log] THE BUNKERERERENING [closed]

[phaseshifter]

Characters: Angel, Handsome Jack and Rhys (plus Dumpy)
Location: Building 43 (square I9)
Date: Morning 62 onwards
Summary: Norfinbury's greatest hero Handsome Jack selflessly protects his beloved daughter from the dangers of Norfinbury by shutting her in a basement with no way of contacting the outside world. Oh, and Rhys is there too, he guesses. Whatever.
Warnings: Self-harm! Abuse! Kidnapping! Threats of violence! Handsome Jack!


Wow Louise did a log with an unnecessary cut WHO'D HAVE THUNK IT

Gonna put up starter/s in the comments because this could last for a while

BUCKLE UP, KIDDOS

Comments

[headjacked]

[ That last remark does actually sting, cutting through his laughter. Not his coughing, though, that cannot be stopped by normal measures.

Wheezing, he opens his eyes and is confronted by an approving look from Jack 2.0. Something that would normally make him feel kind of good-ish is just twisting him up.





He needs to have some form of freedom. He needs to. ]

...do you know Professor Nakayama? Not -- p-personally, but. Do you know of him?

[ Jack flickers and his expression inverts. This is not going the way it's supposed to. ]

[phaseshifter]

Erg.

[ The little cringey wincing noise acts as a pretty clear indication that yes, Angel does know of Nakayama. She looks back over her shoulder after a moment, since this is already intriguing enough to push aside how mad she is. ]

Of course. Who doesn't? He's not... the most subtle guy. Why?

[headjacked]

Yeah, well. He's dead now, if that makes you feel any better. But before his stair-induced death, he was... working on something.

[ He's gritting his teeth because the sharp pain in his head has intensified. Jack is circling him, more helpless than ever with the cyberarm bound to the flesh one.

"So you're doing this? Really doing this? After allll-" ]

--you've done for me? Is that what you were going to say? All you've done since we got here is antagonize everyone and try to control every. Little. Thing. And you see where that shit gets us?? Look around, Jack!

[ Sorry, Angel, minor break in Story Time for Small Meltdown the Second. ]

[phaseshifter]

Well, of--

[ --course he was working on something? That something being getting senpai to notice him and probably some science stuff???

Except Angel doesn't finish her sentence, being cut short by Rhys' worrying little outburst. Her mouth opens and shuts a couple of times before she speaks again, her voice more gentle this time. ]

Rhys, he's not in here.

[ Was she right before? Can he see through that fricking eye oh god oh man oh geez ]

[headjacked]

Yes! He is! You just can't see him!

[ Rhys is still facing the opposite wall. He shoots Jack a final look, and... honestly, he's rendered the hologram speechless. Sort of. For like two seconds as he looks around the room. At his employee and child hog-tied in a freezing cold basement.

He's not happy. He's really, really not happy over losing this leverage, but it's a battle he's not going to win. He needs to focus on the war.

So with a sharp, irritated sigh, he runs one hand thorugh his holographic hair and jerks the other irritably at Rhys, as if giving him grudging sort-of-not-really-but-what-the-hell-else-can-he-do-permission.

Rhys is so totally beyond that right now, and he's already flipping over. The nosebleed is back. ]

Profressor Crazypants was making an AI. A Jack AI. Because, you know, Crazypants.

[phaseshifter]

Mmmm-hmm. Oh! I think I saw that mentioned in some file or another? From around the time dad got, uh. Promoted? I think the project got shelved, though, bec--

[ Oh.

The penny doesn't drop so much as it comes crashing through several layers of WHAT THE SHIT as it gets flung down from the heavens. Angel doesn't even realise she's stopped speaking as she starts slotting things into place. The malfunctions, the cagey behaviour, the moodswings, the whole incident after she told Rhys she was dead, and...

...

...dickcheese.

Of course.

The nosebleed is primarily what makes her stay calm. Outwardly, anyway. It's like a little flashing sign telling her to be really, really careful with how she reacts to this. ]

Huh.

Why is he inside you? Oh - ew. Wow, that is really really not something I ever wanted to ask.

[headjacked]

[ Well there's something he didn't think he'd hear twice in one lifetime. Awkward Chat is supposed to be over, Hypersis. ]

Noooo comment. B-but anyway --

[ Rhys seems to deflate; tension seeping out of him, a weight he wasn't fully aware of lifting from his crazy sore shoulders, etc etc. He sniffles, which is a terrible idea when you have a nosebleed, but he is the terrible idea king of the universe.

For once, though, he may've done the right thing. Twenty days later, but whatever. ]

I found Nakayama's ID drive down on Pandora. Remember that ten million we stole? I needed to install his credentials to track it down.

And... you're smart. Scary smart. You can figure out the rest.

[phaseshifter]

[ She is scary smart. Which is how even now, even here, she's working out how they should deal with this. They. Not her or him. They're in this together.

Even if she's still kind of just a tad buttpeeved. ]

I can't figure out all of it. How much control does he have? Over you, I mean.

[ She's careful to sound interested, not cautious. No need for alarm here. None at all. ]

And he can hear me if I talk to him, right? Is he always there?

[headjacked]

He can control my cybernetics, and. All of me. But only sometimes! Like... when I first got here, and when Jack the First knocked me out.

[ Second line of blood from the nose. Jack is accepting this, but barely. ]

And he -- he's here right now, if. You want to say hi?

[ Nnnngh ow brain ow, excuse him while he curls up and groans a little. Jack is flickering madly as he unpeels himself from the wall. "Is that permission to use your voice, Rhysie?"

Oh, that sounds peeved. Rhys would answer but his head feels like it's imploding. ]

[phaseshifter]

Your nose is bleeding. Is he mad or upset or something? Because I don't know why he would be.

[ Shhhhhh, horrible AI father. Shhhhhhhh. Shshhshhhh. Look how well Angel is taking this! This is great!

Or it will be, once she figures out how to stop all Rhys' nasty side-effects and turn the Jacks against each other as effectively as possible. ]

And, um, I'll say hi as long as it doesn't put a strain on you or anything. So... Hi? Dad?

[ Not Jack. Not sir. Dad. It begins. ]

[headjacked]

Because he has to micromanage everything? Case in point --

[ Rhys just sort of nods his head, indicating the basement. YEAH.

"Hey, woah-woah-woah, I wouldn't do this, even if I had a body. She's gotta -- she-she's gotta know that, right?"

Dad.

"...tell her I say hi." ]

He says hi. And that he wouldn't do anything like... all of this.

[phaseshifter]

I know he wouldn't. Iunno what's gotten into... uh, the other one.

[ Bullpoop. He'd do it, and he'd do it without remorse. It's only because he's forced to confront this side of things that he's realising it's a crazy thing to do.

But whatever, Angel is playing nice. See how he's dad, and meatJack is the other one? It almost feels like she's back in her control core, tugging on strings and dropping breadcrumbs. Except this time, there's no Jack directing her. No collar around her neck reminding her that she may as well do this willingly, because it isn't like she really has a choice in anything.

She kind of feels like poop for doing it, but. She can deal with the moral dilemmas later. ]

Is he calming down? Because the last thing I want is for either of you to - to short out or whatever it is that keeps happening. Guess I have to worry about that twice as hard now, huh?