goddamngrenades | RP Open Post

Fine, play it that way. He sighs and turns around, leaning back against the desk, arms crossed. "Dude you know what 'victim of circumstance' means, right? You got fucked over by the project. I'm pretty sure you're both getting fucked over by hargrove in new and exciting ways. So I'm still pissed."

Wash face him, every line of his body tense and wary. "I'm not a victim," he says. "I'm never going to be a victim again." He won't let that happen. "You don't know anything about the agreement we have with Control." They'd been saved by Charon, taken at their lowest points and given a new purpose.

He gives York a disbelieving look. "You were mad enough when you just thought I was a merc. You don't go from that to being angry on my behalf."

"What happens if you don't do what control says? If you wanna retire or think a job doesn't suit? What if you get tired of being Hargrove's personal monster, mm?" Tired of being a gun to point and fire at someone else's beck and call.

"I don't know the particulars but I do know you were pretty damn desperate for some kind of forgiveness this morning. When we were in bed. Together."

"That won't happen. I know where I belong, where my loyalties lie." And that was here, with Carolina, with Charon. He couldn't exist anywhere else. Thinking otherwise is... painful.

He swallows around a lump in his throat when York brings that up, looks away. "That was a- a lapse. I was stupid. Overly emotional. And I don't need forgiveness. There's nothing anyone could give anyway."

"If that was true you wouldn't have had your mind changed in under a week." He can't be clinging so hard to those thoughts and ideas if it didn't even take that much work to get him to stop the first time. Sure, they're surrounded by reminders now but-

He can talk him out of it.

"You were human. You're allowed to be human."

"I was weak," he says sharply. It had just been a long time since he'd been back at base, that was all. It was easy for doubts to creep in when he was alone. Too much time to think.

"No, I'm not," he replies, giving York a hard look. "I was weak and it won't happen again."

"Human." He reiterates, pushing off the desk to step close. "Starving for kindness. For companionship. How long have you lived like this- and how long has it been since anyone treated you kindly?"

There's a tense set to his spine when York approaches him, and he's stubborn enough to not be willing to back away. "I have companions. Me and Carolina have worked together since they got me out." Once he'd been considered stable enough and safe enough to send out in the field. "I don't need anyone. I have a purpose."

"No. You have a handler. You have a leash. You are right back where you were in the Project. Hargrove points and you pull the trigger. Can you honestly not see that?" He'd sworn off so much getting away, kept his head down, stayed uninvolved, tried to survive as long as possible. Now he's trapped and reaching out, curling his hand around David's wrist. "Does Carolina call you by name? Does she hold you when you can't sleep? Does she understand what doing this does to you?"

"I know what I am. I'm a soldier. I have a mission."

He flinches at the touch, stares down at where York has a hand against his wrist, the calm melting out of him like that. He looks up at York again, and for a moment just looks terrified and then...

"I treat him like a fucking adult," she says, slipping into the room, taking in the sight of them, the curl of York's fingers against his arm. "You took a while," she adds, nods at Wash before turning her attention back to York. "He's a soldier. We both are. Question is what are you these days?"

"Yes because PTSD automatically means someone's a child." Jesus christ, Carolina. "The 'walk it off' school of psychiatry worked so well for everyone in the past."

Not that he ever did more than read up enough on how to handle his own issues.

Well.

Delta did.

"Soldiers don't commit genocide." Monsters do. Unethical orders are a THING. "I'm the only sane man left, apparently."

Her hand comes to rest on Wash's shoulder, squeezing it, and it's easier to pull out of York's grasp when she's there, a grounding presence next to him. "I think the last thing either of us needs is more people messing with our heads after the Counsellor."

He might just go a little pale when the Counsellor is mentioned. Wishes he'd worn his helmet so that York wouldn't see it. "I gave him the AI like you said. I'm done here," he says, turning his full attention to Carolina instead.

She nods, doesn't release his shoulder. "Good. I'll report to Control now things have changed. There's a lot to report. Might want to hear from you."

He nods seriously. "I understand, boss."

"The hell do you call what Hargrove's doing, then?" Because scooping people up when they're low and desperate, giving them new toys, stringing them along with promises of- what? That is TOTALLY not fucking with their heads at all.

Fine. They can have their moment, he's going back over to check out the desk. There's gotta be something in the books that isn't a bug. Sure there's a camera in the corner but some other bug probably is a thing. It's what he'd do.

"He pulled me out of the ice at the bottom of a ravine," Carolina says coolly. "Got me treated after Maine pulled Eta and Iota. Helped me pick up the pieces and get Wash out. He gave us everything."

"He helped us," Wash adds quietly.

"It's a shame,' Carolina said, watching York. "I was... happy when Wash told me he'd found you."

"He's ordering you to kill everyone on this planet. The shit he's done, the shit he's planning to do? None of that seems shady to you, does it? Or are you beyond questioning him? Cuz from where I'm standing this feels really familiar." He turns back to them, arms crossed. "Didn't we say the same thing about someone else? Didn't we follow his orders blindly? And don't you turn this back around me saying it's a SHAME that I don't condone what you're doing! "

"I have my orders," Carolina replies flatly. "I don't question the man who gives them." She tilts her head, taking a step towards him. "Maybe if you'd followed orders instead of running off with Tex, none of us would be in this position."

Wash winced. "Carolina... boss..."

"Don't say anything, Wash. He helped bring down the Project. He left you. He left us. But he'll give himself up for an AI fragment. Familiar."

"If the orders weren't unethical, I would've followed them! They were committing war crimes. He was killing us. He was killing innocent people. How in the hell is Hargrove any different?" He made a call. It was the right one. "I couldn't find Wash. I saw you get dropped off a cliff. I'm human, Carolina, not psychic. How the fuck was I supposed to know either of you survived that?"

"He did more than cause chaos and down a ship. He's earnt our loyalty. You never even spoke to me about what you suspected."

And that had hurt. York teaming up with Tex of all people. And then facing Maine and that being the last thing before she hit the ice.

"I'm not losing anyone else."

"If I told you what your father was doing, would you really have helped us? You sure as hell didn't help Connie!" Achieve the mission at all costs. Nevermind teammates, nevermind loyalty. "You never wondered where they were coming from. You never wondered why they screamed or why Epsilon killed himself in Wash. You just wanted to be better than her. Congratulations, Carolina. You're the better killing machine. Bra-fucking-vo."

"Tex killed Connie!" Carolina snarled, budging right up into his space. "She didn't even hesitate. Cut her down. I was never aiming to kill her. She was my team. But Tex, no, she didn't care."

No. He wasn't doing this. Wash grabbed York, one hand curling against the back of his neck, an obvious threat. "Stop. You don't get to talk to her like that."

"And South killed North and Reggie damn near killed me! NONE of us were ever put in a position to be loyal to anyone but ourselves and your father helped that along as much as possible-" Wash's hand is on his neck, his fingers against the chip and he flinches back, hard. "So you want me patting her ass for falling into the same trap as before and bringing you with her?"

Detla still and tense in the back of his mind and he needs to shut up. Needs to wind it down but this- this is not how he saw meeting them again a few years ago.

This is hell.

"Let me go."

His grip tightens for a moment, hard against the back of his neck. "She's right. You always did treat me like a fucking child. That hasn't changed. You're not some grand saviour, York. You aren't gonna sweep in and fix things. You're not gonna fix me." His grip loosens and just lingers there, gently. He likes the feeling of York's skin against his fingers.

Carolina needs to wind down or she'll end up hurting him. And herself.

"We're not letting you go.Why would we do that?"

"I treated you like someone new to war. And yeah, that meant covering your ass because you weren't used to it and you never should've had to GET used to it." He snaps a hand up to grip Wash's wrist and tries to pull his hand away. Too close for comfort- that. Way, way too close for comfort. "I meant your hand, dipshit. I know you're not going to let me out. It's a very nice cell, but it's still a cell."

"Well I grew up, and I got used to it. And there's nothing left for me outside of it." So if he had to do terrible things, he would. Because he couldn't stop surviving either.

He lets York pull his hand away, doesn't resist. "Is he happy in there with you?" Wash asks impulsively. "Is he... not lonely?"

Carolina seems to be holding her temper- or counting to ten by the door. Either would give him space enough to glare at Wash and put a little distance between them. Give himself some space. "We are together."

That slightly different cadence that came from Delta near the skin. "It's how we're meant to be. We'd be happier if we were free, but we're not unfamiliar with this situation."

It's temporary. They will move past it.

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

Re: York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)

York gets Captured thread split (point of divergance)