Spiderec threads

[Jammerlee]

The following posts are a series of PM threads Deebs and I had done and had been plotting to have happen in the crossover for a long time. I'm putting them here in the tentative board for now on... some vague off chance that maybe they might someday still be used >> Prolli not though. I'll prolli eventually move these to the scrapped posts thread. But in the meantime...

[Jammerlee]

DLHQ Lab - Disarmed[/size][/u]

Two pairs of metallic feet swept across the hard surface floor. With a purposefulness in his stride Finitevus lead his subordinate, Dash, toward his lab for what the tenrec believed a maintenance check on his cybernetic limbs. An unreadable expression on the pangolin's roboticized face, his mind wandered around the series of recent events that had lead him to their current point. Helping Sally, being attacked by GUN, his roboticization, Robotnik's manipulation over him...

His expression darkened.

"Explain to me what happened while you were in Mobius."


Dash followed quietly behind the doctor- it was obvious from the disturbing silence of the pangolin ... well, pangolin-bot, that the doc wasn't in the best of moods. From experience and gut instinct, this made Dash feel rather... edgy.

"Do you mean what happened to me or what happened there?"

"Both," Finitevus answered. "I also want to know any useful information you may have learned while you were there as well."


Dash rubbed a bit at his forehead. "Well the FIRST thing that happened was I appeared in midair and fell through a thatched roof onto some ... uh... lady..."

An improperly dressed one, at that, he thought, a rather funny expression crossing his face for a moment.

"And the rope and everything got sorta..." he winced at this part, "... tangled... up... and then what was apparently THAT world's version of Sonic came in..."

More rubbing at his face.

"And he cut the ropes and wanted to beat the crap out of me because he thought I was ... doing something I wasn't, but the girl was still tied up and ... uh... well... I guess you know happened there. ... What DID happen to her?"

"Her name was Sally. Princess Sally," Finitevus commented. "She wound up back in the lab with me, and after... properly clothing her..." he made a sound as though clearing his throat. "We exchanged information about our worlds. Mostly things to do with the war her world is currently facing... I figured I'd have to retrieve you anyway, and since it was your mistake that got her stuck in my lab, I agreed to get her back home."

He smiled darkly, "I mean, after all, it is only fair to take responsibility for my subordinate... And earning the trust of such a high political figure is never a bad thing, either."


"Hey! It's not my fault I appeared in midair and fell through someone's ceiling onto- ... wait, she's a princess?"

He promptly facepalmed.
"Oh chaos, I fell on a naked princess."

"Hmm. Regardless," Finitevus waved his hand dismissively, "She informed me that their world's Robotnik had successfully managed to overthrow her father's kingdom and now has control over most of their planet. While trying to fix this little unforeseen mess I wound up being taken prisoner," he shook his head at this point, chuckling to himself. "A powerful tyrant like that... I would have loved to have forged an alliance with him. But as you can plainly see... heh... negotiations didn't go quite as I would have hoped."

He smirked to himself as they reached the lab. "Luckily, he underestimated me." and with that, the doctor strode inside.


"...I... I can see that, yeah." There was a pause before he stepped into the laboratory with the doctor. "... there's a version of me there too, and the same thing had happened to him..."

Well, not the underestimated part... for all I know...

"Ah yes, the other world counterparts, funny you should bring that subject up." Fini commented, motioning for Dash to get on a nearby examination table. "Tell me about Zachary."


Taking the offered seat and making himself more comfortable, Dash gestured into the air with his organic hand as he spoke.
"Well, he looks like you, at least, as much as two different species can... he's an echidna, not a pangolin"

And, at the moment, a lot less robotic.

"... and I dunno, but I think he's sick or something. He was coughing a lot. But he seems older then you too, so I don't really know what's going on there. Otherwise... I guess he seems like a nice enough guy...", his nose wrinkled, "... though he did get pretty angry when Julie made some comments about his ... I guess his adopted daughter or something."

He turned to Finitevus, looking a bit baffled.

"None of the girls seem to wear clothes there."

"I had been mistaken for an echidna once or tw--" he paused mid-sentence, a look of surprise blossoming on his face. "Wait. Daughter?"


"Yeah, this little bird girl with mechanical arms... wings... whatever."

Ah. That was... slightly less shocking. Though it didn't immediately remove the bizarre expression it had caused to form across the pangolin's face. Huh. A daughter. Regardless of whether or not she was adopted it was a... very strange concept.

Finally, he shook his head, pulling a tray over and crouching down to remove a set of tools from a drawer beneath. "Did you happen to get her name?"


Dash shrugged slightly, rubbing a bit at his forehead.
"Cathy, Cassie... Cassia? I think Cassia... Something like that... a Ca- name. I didn't really talk to her."

"... Cassia?" that look on his face returned, this time coupled with a straightening of his back as he set his chosen assortment of tools down. For a moment he stood there quietly, mulling over this information. He had a nurse at his office named Cassia. A sparrow. But she wasn't a cyborg, nor were they in any way close...

He shook his head a second time and muttered, "How curious," to himself, taking a hold of Dash's arm and beginning to remove its armor. "I wish I could have had a chance to meet them. Another time, I suppose... Tell me. Other than his appearance, did Zachary seem anything like me?"


"Hard to say. He was yelling most of the time at Julie."

Fini's eyes rolled into his head in aggravation. "What happened?"


Dash frowned flatly.
"... well remember how I said none of the girls there seem to wear clothes?"

The doctor's face crinkled as he thought on that. "So the girl was naked," he concluded. From there it wasn't hard to put two and two together, and Finitevus set the piece of armor he had just removed down, pinching at the bridge of his snout. "Remind me to have a very firm talk with Julie about this later..."


"Well, it wasn't exactly -her- that was making a big deal out of it, but in defending her she called the girl a 'heathen', and uh... that's what got the old guy angry."

"Of course she did," Finitevus sighed. "I suppose that means I'll have to take care of damage control when I do finally meet him. Were there any other interesting features about him?"


The tenrec shrugged.
"Well..." he paused, eyeing the doctor's mechanical exterior, "... his arm and part of his face is metal. I don't know if it's prosthetic or..."
He gestured to Fini.

"Hmm," the pangolin regarded his body with a darkening expression. "That is interesting..."


The tenrec only nodded in response, suddenly feeling rather... awkward. Scratching at a cheek and glancing around the room, he cleared his throat.

"Other then that... I think that's it..."

"I see," the pangolin said, continuing to fiddle around with his subordinate's arm. His voice trailed off thoughtfully. "Very curious... very interesting..."

Why an echidna, of all things?


The tenrec was silent for awhile, simply staring into space as he idly scratched at his cheek.

Though, eventually, he did speak.

"Actually, Doc... I gotta admit somethin...

"Hmm? Yes?" Finitevus responded, looking up at Dash.


"I... I uh... I've been thinking about... quitting."

There was a small flash of the doctor's eyes as he made a small snip to one of the wires in the tenrec's arm. He glanced up with a grimly inquisitive expression. "Have you now?"


"Yeah, I have... I just... I getting to the conclusion that this isn't right."

"Hmmhmm," the pangolin hummed. "That what isn't right, exactly, Dashiel?"


The tenrec's nose wrinkled as he frowned. "The whole terrorist thing."

The pangolin chuckled and shook his head. "Oh Dashiel, you're only confused. You met that girl you happened to know and you're trying to cling to whatever notions of friendship you think may have existed... but how would you have felt if it had been a stranger, hmm? Do remember your reasons for being here..."

He leaned forward slightly, smiling wickedly. "Besides, I'm already very angry with you for disobeying my orders. Do you honestly want to add betrayal to your offenses?"


The tenrec bristled slightly, leaning just as far away from the pangolin as the pangolin had leaned forward. "Even if she were a stranger it wouldn't of been right to just abandon her to be cannon fodder!"

"You're not seeing the larger picture here, Dashiel. You're so wound up in your selective morals you're failing to realize you could have cost all of us our freedom! All of you, including you, and her, could have been subjected to the same process as I was! And then what? Who would have helped you then?"


Dash continued to bristle, glancing away from the pangolin. He had a point, yes.

"It's not just that... it's... it's everything!"

With a shake of his head, the doctor set the tool he was holding down and gestured into the air with his hand. "Enough. I won't hear it. It's a little too far, too late to be reconsidering the life you've chosen for yourself anyway. All you're going through right now is a phase. Tell me boy, why are you here in the first place?"


"I've been asking myself that a lot lately.", he muttered before taking a deep breath and turning to face the pangolin, "... but I can't do this. It's not too late."

"Heh, such conviction," Finitevus chuckled. "Have you honestly thought this through?"


The tenrec nodded. "I already have enough to regret. I want out before I have more."

The pangolin smirked. "So you haven't thought this through, then. Tell me, boy. Just what are you planning to do after you leave?"


Dash continued to frown. "What, being a wanted criminal?" ... he paused and sighed. It was a good question, and he didn't really have a sturdy answer for it. Rubbing at his face with his good hand, he replied: "...I guess lay low..."

"Hmm. Aren't you forgetting a rather critical detail?"


"... what?"

"You're a cyborg," Fini answered, idly examining one of his wrists. "Like it or not, you're going to require continued maintenance if you want to maintain your lifestyle. And there's only one person with a license to do that."


There was a long pause, ending with the tenrec slumping, appearing rather defeated.

"... yeah, that is a critical detail..."

"Step one foot into my office and I guarantee you'll be arrested. Doesn't leave you with many choices, doesn't it?" Finitevus smirked wryly, patting the tenrec on his organic shoulder. "As I said, you're just going through a phase right now. Think about it. I give you free maintenance, a safe, warm roof over your head, food, all the comforts you need... I even give you a salary on top of that! Where in that degenerate world that rejected you once already do you think you'll find comforts like that again?"


Dash buried his face in the palm of his good hand, shaking his head slowly.

"I don't... I don't want...", his voice cracked as he muttered to himself.

I'm never going to get out. I'm stuck here, wither I like it or not...

The doctor shrugged. "Dashiel, I can understand what you're going through right now, but you need to abandon those feelings. You can't change what you are, no more than you can re-grow your missing limbs. It's pointless," he leaned forward at this point, smiling. "You belong to me."


Wincing as his hand slid down his face, Dash stared blankly as he digested what he'd just been told. "... there has to be a way to change this..."

"Like what, hmm? What do you plan to do, leave my organization and return whenever you need a screw tightened?"


Dash pinched the bridge of his nose, frowning.

Do I know any mechanics? ... no, no I don't... maybe I could take it u- ... no, that's retarded.

Sigh. "... no... that wouldn't work."

The doctor just smirked, continuing to idly study his hand. "Doesn't seem like you're left with many options, hmm? Besides," he glanced back at Dash, a glint of suspicion in his eyes. "How do I know I could trust you not to turn me in to the authorities?"


"... my word?"

Finitevus turned, looking the tenrec straight in the eye with an incredulous stare. After a moment his muzzle began to wrinkle... and he started to snicker. Bringing a hand up to cover his mouth, he shook his head. "I think I'd need something a little more... credible than that."

Making what sounded like clearing his throat, his expression became serious once more. "I'd need to be absolutely one hundred percent sure that you absolutely, will not, under any circumstances, tell anything you know about me, my organization, or any of its members. I'm afraid your word can't guarantee me this."


The tenrec bristled at the reply and snorted. "My word isn't enough of a guarantee to you? Fine. What IS then?"

The doctor shrugged flippantly. "Does it really matter?"


It seemed Dash's temper was rising. "What do you mean, 'does it matter'? Apparently it does!"

"Calm yourself," Finitevus commanded firmly, frowning. "Apparently you've missed my point. Does it matter if you aren't leaving?"


Apparently being told to calm himself didn't work all that well. "No, in that case it DOESN'T matter but then what was the whole point of this conversation?!"

Huff.

Finitevus rolled his eyes, "I've made my point. It's not my problem if you're so bull headed that you can't see it."


Dash glared. "So let me guess, this means you're not letting me leave. Ever. I'm just stuck here wither I like it or not, is that it?"

The roboticized pangolin just gave an unimpressed glare at his subordinate's tantrum. Then, with a roll of his eyes, he turned, and began to walk off for another area of the lab. Leaving the job he had started on Dash's arm unfinished.

"No, that's not it."


Another huff. "Then what IS it?" Turning to follow the pangolin with glare, the motion started a small chain reaction... the mechanical arm, which this entire time had been worked on, simply... fell off. Apparently the doctor had not only taken the armor off of it, but had set about removing it completely, and that small amount of movement was all it needed to drop off. With a clatter it hit the floor, causing the tenrec to jump slightly in his seat, bristling, eyes wide in surprise.

"Hey!"

Turning slightly in response to the noise, a tiny smirked curved the pangolin's mechanized lips. "Far be it from me to keep someone against their will. I need loyal, reliable subordinates that I can put my faith and trust in. Leaves us with a bit of a conundrum, doesn't it? Clearly, you can't leave because you're reliant on me... and I can't trust you to go and not turn yourself in because of this apparent guilt of yours.

"Of course," he turned fully now, re-approaching Dash and idly picking his lost arm up from the floor. "That isn't to say there aren't options... if you're clever," he shrugged. "But even if you choose to stay, with such insolent, immature behavior, just how much trust can I have in you now? You've made it clear you're nothing but a liability..."


Dash simply frowned, eying his lost limb. After awhile, he finally replied- "Guess we both lose." That said, he flopped back onto the table, rubbing at his face with his good hand.

What the hell am I going to do?!

"Huh," Fini shrugged. "I suppose we do." having said that, he flung the arm over his shoulder, allowing it to once more clatter back to the ground. He then began to walk off for the second time...


At the sound of the clatter, Dash lifted a few fingers from his face to peer over at the source- noting it to be his unattached arm, his nose wrinkled. Something about that sort of turned his stomach. It was 'his' arm after all... not his real one but...

"... so what next?" He muttered. "... you're the smart one with all the answers..."

"Personally? I think you need a lesson in humility," Finitevus answered, taking a seat at a desk across the large room and glancing down a microscope. "You're a spoiled, ungrateful brat. I've given you everything, and you've spat in my face," he glanced back briefly, "I don't think you'll be needing that arm for awhile."


...

"You're grounding me from my arm?"

Fini rolled his eyes. "You're lucky I don't take your legs or your eyes as well. Technically, you don't own them."



...

Noooo smart aleck reply to that.

Shaking his head with disgust, the pangolin simply continued on with what he was doing, muttering something barely audible about insolence and at people in general.


Wordlessly, the tenrec slipped off of the table, knelt next to the unattached arm and scooped it up. Looking it over, he frowned.

Well this is going to make things a lot harder...

Finitevus hummed thoughtfully as he jotted down a few notes. "Dashiel, come over here. Leave the arm."


Dash jumped slightly.

How'd he know I picked it up??

... Then again he does seem to know everything.

Placing the prosthetic on the table, he approached the doctor. "Yeah?"

Spinning around in his seat, the doctor learned to one side, resting his elbow on the table and his head in its palm. "Truth be told, I was already considering letting you go. I had thought of letting you stay, but... it's clear it simply isn't an option," he took to rubbing at his chin. "I might be willing to help you. But, it will come at a price..."


Dash paused, no longer walking closer. Tilting his head skeptically, he asked- "Price? What sort of price??"

Frowning at the sudden stop, Fini motioned with a hand for him to come closer. "You are aware of why I study genetics, aren't you?"


The doctor's insistance didn't make him feel any less weary. Taking a few tentative steps closer, he kept a worried eye on the doctor. "Yeeeah... to get your-" He paused, looking the doctor over again.

Okay, not so much anymore, I guess...

"- arms back."

"Precisely," the doctor smiled. "Can you see where I'm going with this?"


The tenrec, as obvious by his expression at the moment, was a bit stunned.

"... seriously? ... but... ... you've never gotten very far with that, have you?"

The roboticized pangolin merely shrugged. "It's been a bumpy road, but aside from my prosthesis technology, this has been my life's work," he grinned slyly at this point. "What do you say? I need a test subject for research, and you need your freedom from me."


He frowned. "... You... want me to be a lab rat?"

His grin broadened. "If you want to put it so crudely, yes. Once I have the research and data I need, you'll be free to go." As he spoke, he began filling a syringe with the substance he'd been studying moments ago. Holding it up with one hand, he offered the other hand for Dash to take.


Every spine on the tenrec seemed to bristle as he eyed the syringe.

"... so if I agree... afterward you'd let me go...? ... ... but what's going to happen? What are you going to do??"

"This substance will be injected into your muscle. From there, it will spread, and slowly re-write your genetic code. You know how some races are able to regenerate? With this you will be able to regrow what you have lost... your arm, your legs, even your eyes! Multiple times, if necessary! All I ask is that you stay with me long enough for the process to work itself through, while I run various tests and make sure you remain stable..." he paused for a moment, shrugging idly. "Of course, there are risks involved, but are they worth the alternative? Being trapped here, remaining a terrorist..."


Idly, he rubbed at his shoulder... and where his mechanical arm normally was.

"... does it... uh... " Ahem. "... hurt?"

The doctor merely shrugged. "How should I know? I've never tried it myself."


Well, that didn't fill him with confidence.
"... well what -do- you know?", he questioned. It wasn't a sarcastic comment, but more a worried, slightly terrified one.

"I've already told you," Finitevus answered, then shrugged, turning in his seat again and motioning to set the syringe down. "I understand perfectly if you don't want to take the risk though. It's your choice, after all."


Dash frowned. His choice. Sure. But what other choices did he have?

"... and if I do agree, and things don't go right, can I back out?"

"It's a two-step process," the pangobot explained. "This injection will act as a sort of primer... it'll prepare your body and immune system for step two. You probably won't notice a terribly large difference with it. The second injection will be when the real results should begin to show. If all goes well I'll have to see to surgically removing your cybernetics..."


Just two...

Well, that wasn't too big of a deal, was it? ... and besides that, it ... it might get him his limbs back, AND afterward he could get out of this organization...

"Fine."

Finitevus grinned widely, showing his jagged teeth. "Very good. Your arm, please?" he asked, taking the syringe up again and holding an expectant hand out.


And... tentatively, he raised his arm to the pangolin.

Here goes... well, everything, I guess.

[Jammerlee]

DLHQ - Metamorphosis (Working title)[/u][/size]

(Yes Vize was in on this)


Well, it was official. This was the sickest Dash had ever felt. His entire body ached, his joints were stiff, he could barely sleep, he had a headache from hell, his nose wouldn't stop running, and it felt like he'd been repeatedly kicked in the gut by a mule. Wearing stirrups.

And if that wasn't bad enough, he could barely keep anything down either, as witnessed by the fact he was currently draped over the commode and loosing his last attempt at lunch. There had been several attempts at lunch, too. And all of them ending like this. It was getting a bit... annoying. To put it lightly.

The doc, he thought, managing to pull himself away from the porcelian throne for a moment to catch his breath, ...said the shot would 'prepare' my immune system... he didn't say ANYTHING about throwing it in a sack, kicking the crap out of it, and throwing it in the path of an incoming tra-

Oh, that thought was going to have to wait a moment.

HORK.

This was going to be a long... however long this lasted.

With a sudden swing the door flew open, and in strolled a teal furred wolf looking as though he had little care in the world. That is, until, he wandered by an open stall and noticed the tenrec horking up his guts inside. Lance paused at the opening to frown at the rather pathetic sight, then looked several times between Dash and the stall next door. With a light shrug, he wandered inside the vacant stall and closed the door.

"What's wrong with you, ate Julie's cooking or something?"


Dash hadn't even noticed the wolf until he spoke, and the sudden voice did manage to get a small jump from him. However, once he registered the question (it took awhile, hey, he wasn't feeling his greatest), Dash snorted. "Yeah, sure."

Whoops, another wave of nausea.

"Damn," Lance commented, making a face at the wall next to him over the unpleasant sounds beyond. "What the hell did she feed you?"


"Ebola..." Gag. "... sandwiches."

With a flush coming from his stall, Lance wandered out, pausing again to stare at the sick and disheveled tenrec from outside his opened stall disconcertingly. "... Right, not sick enough to not act like some asswad."


"Orrr tired, stressed out, and sick of throwing up everything I eat. Could be that."

Thankfully, the worst of it was over. After flushing the evidence, Dash slowly got up, careful not to fall over, despite how unbalanced he felt. That managed, time for a visit to the sink. Or he would if the wolf wasn't standing in his way. And, for a moment, this actually seemed like a major problem to his fever riddled mind, so he stood there, disheveled, a bit filthy, in posession of only one arm (the Doc never did replace his mechanical one...), and seemingly quite confused while the gears in his head slooooowly grinded.

"... move."

Lance didn't move though. Instead, he seemed to have taken a rather sudden interest in the tenrec, motioning a hand toward his shoulder. "Dude, what happened to your arm?"


The tenrec was less than amused.
"The Doc took it. Move."

The wolf grunted and stepped aside. Not because of the tenrec's request, but because he still needed to wash his own hands. "... Wha'd he do that for?" he asked, glancing over at Dash with a quizzical expression.


"'Cuz he could?", Dash muttered, making his way to the sink now that he wasn't blocked off. Turning on the cold water, he began to wash his face.

This'd be sooo much easier with two hands right now... but the cold water does feel nice...

Wrinkling his nose, the wolf shook his head and took to washing his own hands, taking care to put a good distance between himself and Dash. Whatever the tenrec had done to deserve getting his arm taken away must have been pretty severe. But then, the wolf also found himself not caring enough to press the issue further. Instead, he offhandedly said, "Whatever you've got better not be contagious."


Ah. Cleanliness. This made him feel at least the tiniest bit better mentally, at least. Physically... still felt like crap. But the cold water helped keep down the fever feeling, at least. He glanced up again to Lance. "It shouldn't be."

Turning the water off, he shook his hand dry and began to stumble off in the direction of the TV room. There was a couch there with his name on it.

Having finished washing, the wolf quickly dried his hands off and exited the bathroom. Brushing his way past Dash he made a beeline for the recreation room. It was here, on the couch, that he dumped himself and started reaching for the television remote.


And, eventually, Dash made it there as well. Only to see Lance on the couch that he'd intended to take a nap on.

...

An eye twitched.

@seanansi@ And occupying her web in the corner, was Anansi, who was examining her arm with great interest. It was weird... she was telling her arm to move, and it responded a little later than it should. If she HAD to describe it, she'd say she was somehow lagging... Maybe she should talk to the doc about it.

Which was when her train of thought was broken by Lance barging into the room. Followed by a sick, armless Dash.

"What the hell?" The spider mumbled, before climbing out of the web... or trying to. What HAPPENED was she ended up falling on her face, her bod responding too slow to catch her.

"... I'm ok."

Ignoring Dash, Lance glanced over at where Anansi fell. His nose wrinkled with an attempt to hold the laughter brewing in his chest in, and instead he lowered the remote with a look of apparent concern. "Yo, you okay?"


Dash's gaze followed Lance's to the spider. For a moment, what happened didn't register at all, but with a glance up to the web, it dawned on him. "... what he said."

@seanansi@ The annoyed arachnid just glanced up at the two mammals, before pushing herself (unsteadily) to her feet.

"Like you give a damn, Lance. But yeah, I'm fine. Mostly. Still recovering from that near-death experience in Mobius."

Lance frowned, screwing his mouth to one side. "Well, yeah, with an attitude like that it is a little hard to give a damn." he snuggled himself further into his spot and resumed channel surfing. "Psh, whatever."


"Oh."

He'd ask more about that in a moment, but first...

He turned his attention back to the wolf. "I was going to lay there."

Lance's ears folded back in agitation, not pulling his eyes away from the television. "Yeah, well, snooze ya lose."


The tenrec slumped.

Oh yeah. I lose. Sounds about right. When -don't- I lose??

Sniffle.

Making a face, the wolf turned his head and eyed Dash. "Are you crying?"


... am I?

Wiping at his face, he discovered... yes, yes he was indeed crying.

"... what the hell"

Sniffle.

"... that's... that's really lame."

"Hell yeah it is," Lance commented, putting his focus back on the TV and waving the tenrec off. "Now go find an easy chair or something."

@seanansi@ The spider just rolled her eyes as she sat up, grumbling as she looked straight at Lance.

"And you wonder why no one likes you."

"What?" the wolf commented, settling on an action movie and setting the remote down. "It's not my fault he gets his panties in a bunch just because I beat him to the couch. Grow up, seriously."


Dash frowned and continued to wipe at his face. This was embarrassing. Sure, he felt like crap, possibly the most miserable he's ever felt, but still. You don't cry. Especially not in front of other guys. ESPECIALLY guys like Lance. Time to desperately try to save face!
"It's fine. I'm fine. It's not about the coOOOOWOOOUCH[/b]"

Nope. Not about the couch. More about the horrific stabbing pain that suddenly just flared up in his stomach, which led him to fall to the floor as if someone had started up a spontaneous game of dodgeball and he was the first lucky target.

@seanansi@ Anansi's head whipped around a moment after Dash's cry.

"Ok, what the hell is WRONG with you?"


No reply here... well, other than a few ragged gasps and wheezes. Other than that, he was pretty much preoccupied with being curled up in a fetal position on the floor at the moment.

Chaos, what have I done to deserve THIS?!

Startled, the wolf quickly sat up in his seat, twisting around to eye the agonized tenrec with what seemed to actually be genuine concern. "Hey, you okay there, man?"


Dash groaned as he tried to curl himself into an even -tighter- ball. However, that didn't really seem to help either.
"G-get..." the tenrec managed to wheeze out, "the d... doc..."

Glancing awkwardly at both Dash and Anansi, Lance sighed and pulled himself up from the couch. "Yeah okay. Hold on a second," he said as he turned and wandered off.

@seanansi@ Anansi, as Lance took off, moved around the couch, leaning on it for support in case she miss-stepped, before she nudged the ailing tenrec with one foot.

Nudge. Nudge.

She was TRYING to get him to uncurl a bit so she could see if he was bleeding. As it was, though, it just looked like she was being a bitch.

Oh well.


No luck there, other then getting him to groan again. At the very, very least, the pain was abiding a bit. Of course, he now also felt very, veeery dizzy.



A short time later Lance returned, the doctor in question trailing behind him. Moving around the couch, Lance pointed toward the ailing tenrec. "There," he said, pointing briefly at him and then crouching down beside. "He was in the bathroom earlier puking his guts out too."

"Hmm," Finitevus hummed to himself, also crouching down beside Dash. Carefully he'd begun lifting a foot toward the tenrec's head before he paused, scowled at the roboticized appendage, and lowered it back down. His eyes flash over to Lance. "Tell me if he has a temperature."

Lance's nose wrinkled at the idea of touching Dash, but he complied, gently placing his organic hand on the tenrec's brow. He looked back at the doctor. "Hotter than blazes."

"I see," the doctor responded, gently nudging Dash's shoulder with a hand. "Dashiel, can you hear me? Do you think you can get up?"


By now, at least, the pain was subsiding. Well, sort of. It'd gone from a shooting, stabbing sort of a pain to a gnawing sort. More manageable, at least. Though he still felt rather light headed and dizzy- so much so he hardly noticed the wolf taking his temperature and barely registered everyone speaking.

"Dashiel, can you hear me? Do you think you can get up?"

An ear twitched. What was that?
"Huh?"

@seanansi@ From her... sort of perch on the couch, Anansi glanced at the doctor. "Ok, not that it's any of my business, but what happened to him?"

The doctor frowned, giving her a 'can't you tell' sort of look. "He's very ill," he finally responded, standing straight again. "Lance, carry him to the examination room."


As the doctor walked off, Lance groaned softly. He did not want to touch the sick person. But, once again, he complied - reluctantly - and scooped the ailing tenrec up into his arms.

"I swear to Chaos if you puke on me..."


Which led to another groan from the tenrec, as well as a cough thanks to his shift in posistion. A rather... er... red cough.

Of course, it failed to meet his attention. He was more trying to figure out why everything looked like it was in a lava lamp. Kinda made him feel motion sick, really.

"Ugh... stop the... stop... moving..."

Pesky walls and furniture just don't listen though, you know?



A strangled groan came from the wolf's throat. With a face that clearly showed his disgust and resentment, Lance picked up his pace to walk alongside Finitevus. "Dooooc," he said worriedly. "He's coughing up blood."

"Hurry," was all Finitevus said, his face flushed with determination.

"..." Lance grew silent, looking down at what for all he knew was his dying comrade. His face contorted into an odd expression, full of a mixture of emotion. Finally; "... He's not contagious is he?"

"He shouldn't be."

The rest of the journey was silent as they swiftly moved through the maze-like complex, save only from the sounds of their feet beating against the linoleum and whatever groans came from Dash. Soon they reached the examination room, and Lance carefully laid the tenrec down on a gurney. It was with this task's completion that Finitevus shooed the wolf out. With that, the robian doctor turned his focus on his patient. Now he to begin his examination.

[Jammerlee]

DLHQ - Lab Work[/u][/size]

It didn't require Finitevus' genius to know that Dash was in pretty bad shape. But for the moment, at least, the tenrec appeared relatively stable - aside from a worrisome fever, that was.

The pangolin doctor stood there with a clipboard in his hands, thumbing through papers and scribbling down notes. He glanced up briefly when he heard his patient groan. "Dashiel? Can you hear me?"


Groan.

"...did I crash the bike again...?"

"No Dashiel, you didn't," the pangolin answered after a brief pause. "Do you know where you are right now?"


The tenrec looked around the room- his eyes neither blurry nor unfocused thanks to the fact that they didn't have the shortcomings of their organic counterparts, but he still had trouble making things out mentally.

White... so much white...

"... hospital?"

"Hmm," the pangolin said, scrawling down a few more notes on hit clipboard. "You're in the lab. You collapsed in the recreation room and you're currently suffering from a fever. Do you remember anything?"



... lets see...

... did he?...




"Lance is a jerk."
He did.

Finitevus chuckled at this. "Yes, quite. How are you feeling right now?"


Dash squirmed a bit before, with a groan, trying to sit up. However, he seemed to of forgotten that he was missing an arm at the moment, so his attempts didn't go far. It's funny how one can forget they're missing little things like... well, limbs. Abandoning the attempt, he instead rubbed at his face.

"I feel like crap."

An understatement.

"I see. Anything specific?"


... where to start?

"My guts feel like someone used them as punching bags, I ache like crazy, I'm tired, hungry, and... uh...", the tenrec trailed off, an expression of confusion crossing his face. Apparently he forgot what he was going to say... as he was saying it.

Must not of been important.

He shivered, pulling his arm across himself an attempt to keep himself warm.

"... it's freezing in here."

The doctor nodded, jotting down a few more notes in on his clipboard. "Well, the symptoms should pass soon. For now, I'm putting you into quarantine. I want you to get some rest."


"Rest... rest would be nice. ... but ... how about something to eat? Every time I've tried I've just horked it back up... 'kinda annoying..."

"Hmm. Alright. I'll see about bringing you a protein shake; that should go down fairly smooth. But first I need to take a few blood samples from you."


The tenrec grimmaced, but... "Yeah, sure Doc."

After an moment of thought, he added, "... you didn't mention this before."

Setting his clipboard down, the doctor glanced briefly at Dash as he moved to retrieve a few supplies from a nearby desk. "Didn't mention what?"


"That I'd feel like I got ran over by a moped."

The doctor idly shrugged. "I told you there would be risks involved. Did you honestly expect there wouldn't be side effects?"


Dash waved his hand. "Well, yeah. But not like th- BUCKET" ... and the tenrec promptly covered his mouth.

The doctor's eyes widened suddenly, halting what he was in the middle of. Quickly he dove for a waste basket next to the bed and lifted it to Dash's face.


And, thankfully, just in time too as the tenrec's earlier comments about being unable to keep anything down continued to ring true.

For awhile.

And, once again, when it was over Dash was left gasping for air. Until he realized something seemed... amiss.

... but what?


"WATER!"

The pangolin huffed, rolling his eyes into his head as he set the basket back down. "What's wrong now?" he asked, wandering over to a small sink and filling a paper cup.


After receiving the water from the robian, Dash gulped it down quickly. ... Uuuunfortunately it didn't seem to do the job as the tenrec continued to pant and and fan at his mouth. "MYMOUTHISONFIRE"

Finitevus just gave him a befuddled look. "What have you been eating?"


"IDON'TKNOW!"

Well, he did know, really. But he didn't know what from what he DID eat would make his mouth feel like it he'd just drank a jalapeno smoothie. Not to mention, if it WERE something he ate, why would was it burning -now-, when it was probably well out of his system? Still, he could think about that later. At the moment it was becoming painfully clear that the water hadn't been enough. Maybe more would help... Eying the sink, the tenrec made a bolt for it- and learned that he really should pay more attention to things.

Like, for instance, that the Doc had apparently hooked him up to an IV.

"%*#$!"

"Dashiel!" Finitevus called, quickly setting his clipboard down and darting after the tenrec. Too late of course. By now the IV had been ripped from Dash's arm leaving a scarlet mess from the floor leading to the wound. Pinching the bridge of his nose, the doctor grit his metallic teeth.

"Not... yet..."


And Dash was doing a 'dance' of sorts- in that he was spastically flailing and cursing under his breath. All that was really needed was some loud obnoxious techno music and he was all set.

Having only one arm was really, really a pain. Especially when you just injured that one arm.

"$^%# CHAOS !$^$%ING @^*%! PUTTPUTT IN A BASKET!"

"DASHIEL!" the pangolin suddenly barked, snatching Dash by the wrist and manhandling him toward a chair. "Control yourself! I'll dress the wound, now sit down!"


The tenrec continued to flail somewhat spasmodically even after more or less being tossed into the seat. He'd gotten up for a reason, after all, and the whole IV thing had been an unfortunate distraction from that point.

"M-MYMOUTHISSTILLBURNING"

"WE'LL DEAL WITH IT!" Finitevus shouted. "For Chaos' sake, you're bleeding all over my floor!"


"WELLIWASGOINGTODEALWITHITANDTHENISTARTEDBLEEDINGALLOVERYOURFLOOR!"

"SIT DOWN, BE QUIET!" the pangolin finally shouted, baring his jagged teeth angrily at Dash.


Dash froze.

And hiccuped.

But other then that, froze.

"Very good..." Fini spoke in a strained voice, turning toward the counter and rummaging a few supplies from its cabinets. After a moment he returned setting a few supplies down - including a couple vials and a needle for extracting blood. Eyeing the wound on the tenrec's arm, he growled.

"This is going to make getting blood samples a little bit more annoying..."


And... back to wheezing.
"Water!"

Fini groaned as he worked on bandaging the wound. "What did you eat?"


Wheeeeze. "I don't know! I didn't eat anything hot or spicy or..." He grimaced. "#%&$MOUTHISPUTTPUTT'NMELTING"

"Really," he said, thinking it over as he finished the job. Could it have been stomach acid? The boy had been throwing up a lot, as evidenced earlier. It seemed the most likely answer, but it was probably worth investigating anyway.

"Open your mouth for me please," Fini ordered, leaning in closer.


He squirmed. He wanted WATER, not for someone to go poking around in his mouth (especially since he hadn't the chance to brush yet). But, well, the pangolin WAS the doctor here. ... and he'd prolli seen worse before anyway.

"Bleeeh!"

Looking around inside, the robian doctor hummed to himself. Everything looked really red and irritated. Seeing this, it was little wonder the tenrec seemed in such pain. With a sigh, he backed off, once again rummaging around inside the cabinet drawers. This time he pulled out a couple cotton swabs and a culture dish.

"Hold still," he instructed, brushing one of the swabs inside Dash's mouth, getting a good coating of saliva on it before brushing it onto the dish and sealing it.

To his surprise however, while poking around one of the tenrec'd teeth simply... fell out.


There was a long pause from the tenrec, before finally he turned his head slightly and picked the fallen tooth from his maw. He stared blankly at the offending item for a bit, before finally turning back again to the doctor.

"... what."

Finitevus simply... shook his head and shrugged, apparently as puzzled as Dash was.


The tenrec balled his hand around the tooth, grimacing.

First he has the flu from hell.
Then his mouth is burning like he just had an unfortunate visit to a Mexican restaurant.

And now one of his TEETH have fallen out.

"... just shoot me."

Shaking his head, the doctor set the culture plate down. "Now, now, remember the ultimate goal here. Doesn't regrowing your lost limbs make all of this seem a small price?"


... A tooth or an arm, legs, and eyes. The Doc made a good point. Mumbling, Dash left his seat and made his way to the sink. The loss of his tooth had only distracted him- his mouth STILL burnt like a dickens. Placing the tooth on the counter, he turned the faucet to as cold as it would go, cupped his hand beneath, and drank.

The cold water was a relief- both from the burning in his mouth and from his fever.

Taking the moment at the sink to wash his face as well, he experimentally poked at a few of his teeth.

...

Many of them were loose.

"Putt putt"

While Dash was taking care of that, Finitevus had taken up his clipboard once more and was in the process of scrawling down notes.


... Well... Dash thought grimly, ... if they're going to fall out anyway, what's it matter?

Reaching into his jaw he gave one of the teeth a tug- and, as he suspected it would, it came out easily. Glaring at the tooth, he gave it a quick wash and placed it at the side with the other. And another. And another.

... I used to have screwed up nightmares about stuff like this...

... maybe it's all a dream after all...

This activity seemed to attract the doctor's attention, whom leaned aside to get a better look. "Are you pulling your teeth out?"


Another tooth joined the pile, and the tenrec snorted. It was sort of funny, sort of, in a very vague way he couldn't quite put his foot on. Part of it came from that he always thought the phrase 'pulling teeth' meant it was quite hard, not easy.

The thought brought a chuckle to him.

Or maybe it was the fever.

"Hmm," the pangolin frowned, resuming to scrawling down notes. "If all goes well in the next phase, they might grow back." he idly commented.


The tenrec continued to chuckle and shook his head.

"Might."

...or I might be a blind three time amputee without teeth!

The chuckle turned into a small laugh.

Finitevus merely rolled his eyes and gave his head a small shake. Setting the clipboard back down he came up beside Dash and tapped him on the shoulder. "I think it would be best if you laid down and got more rest. I can have a protein shake brought to you," he paused, "And perhaps something to help numb your mouth..."


Turning to face the doctor, he considered this. Since it was mentioned, he was still exhausted. Dash nodded, not bothering to even try to speak. He had an idea of how that attempt would go. Taking a last glance over at the teeth, he stumbled over to the bed and flopped on to it with a groan.

Life hated him. He knew it.

As Dash settled himself down the pangolin took to taking his temperature - still high. Marking that down he proceeded with blood pressure, and then, finally, took the blood samples he had come in for in the first place. Having finished that task, he turned to leave.

"Don't worry, Dashiel," the pangolin said as he headed for the door. "Everything will work out wonderfully. And if it doesn't," he paused in the frame, smirking. "Well. I suppose you always have me to take care of you~"

[Jammerlee]

DLHQ - Act 2


With a groan, Dash awoke. Stretching slightly, he opened his eyes, the darkened interior of the lab room greeting him. Turning slightly, he spotted another IV. This time he wouldn't make the mistake of pulling it out...

At least he felt better. Not great, but better. Still under the weather, still like he'd gone through a ringer, but not like his insides were going to attempt a great escape on him.

Struggling to sit up, he eventually managed, looking around the room again.

Being in quarantine wouldn't be so bad if there was something to do. Maybe the next time the Doc came back he could ask for one, or... or maybe he could get one himself. Just leaving for a moment couldn't hurt, could it? He was feeling better, after all... and it wasn't like he was contagious... it wouldn't take that long just to pick one book out, or a magazine, or SOMETHING and bring it back here. Or better yet, a whole stack. Then he wouldn't have to leave the room again.

Awkwardly swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he slid off, the metal soles of his feet clinging on the lab tile. Reaching back, he pulled the IV pole with him. No sense in removing it and all when he'd come right back anyway.

As the tenrec swung the door open a startled mechanical sort of sound similar to a gasp greeted him. The roboticized form of Finitevus stood there with a look of surprise, his hand stretched out mid-process of having been reaching for the door knob himself.

He blinked a couple of times. "Dashiel."


Blink.

... "Hi 'Oc."

The doctor's head canted to one side, eyeing Dash suspiciously. "What are you doing at the door?"


"Erm..." This'll be awkward. "I wash gonna gehth a book."

The pangolin frowned, making a shooing motion with his hand for the tenrec to get back inside. "You're supposed to be under quarantine," he said thickly, directly Dash toward the bed. "Why didn't you just call for a droid, or for me?"


The tenrec frowned, scratching at his cheek.

"... I wuth bored."

"Not an excuse," the doctor tutted, shooing at the tenrec again. "Now back in bed."


SIGH.

Not wanting to anger the pangolin, Dash sat back onto the bed.
"I feel beffah fahday."

... And he frowned again. Feel better, sure, with bonus talking like a moron.

"Good, good," the doctor said. Stepping off toward the counter he pulled something out and began to fiddle around with it. A smile began to creep its way across his face. "Are you ready for your second shot?"


Horror swept across Dash's own face.

"NOh"

Pursing his lips together, Finitevus glanced over at Dash with a nonchalant expression. It quickly changed to a smirk. "Well, it's time anyway. Once this is all over it'll be behind us forever~"


Oh Chaos, if this hurt anything like the LAST shot...

He shook his head quickly. "Noh! Noth now..." He bit his lip slightly- though, as he was missing a good deal of his teeth at the moment (damn shot!), it wasn't quite the same... "... damorrow?"

"No, Dashiel," the doctor said, preparing the syringe. "Now."


"B-buht..." the tenrec stuttered, "I- I shtill not ethen beffer from the lasth one!"

"And that's exactly why you need it now," Fini said, holding up the syringe and turning around. "If this isn't administered soon your body may fight off the first shot and then we'll be back at square one. Do you want your limbs and your freedom or not?"


Dash shifted in his seat, "Well, I... I... "

LEGS AND FREEDOM.

LEGS. AND FREEDOM.

Gritting his what was left of his teeth together and clenching his eyes shut, he held his arm out.

"Geth it ofar."

"Very good, I knew you'd see reason," the pangolin grinned widely, slowly approaching the tenrec. Taking a hold of Dash's arm Finitevus carefully inserted the needle. Down went the plunger...


... and up went the tenrec's spines.
"GAAHAHAOOWTHATSHTINGSTH"
Dash roughly pulled his arm away and shook it, attempting to get the rid of the painful sensation now creeping up it. "@&$# %@$&$ PUHFFTPUFFT WHYDOTHIFBURN?!"

Finitevus couldn't answer. When Dash pulled back he had turned away, and now seemed to be... giggling.


Despite being doubled over in pain, Dash was still able to pick that up.

"DITHITHN'TFUNNY", he scolded in a hiss.

"You're absolutely right," the pangolin continued to giggle. "It's hilarious."


The tenrec stared blankly at the pangolin. Or at least, tried his best to, but when one is sever pain sometimes it's hard to do anything blankly. "WHAT?"

Finitevus stopped laughing, sat up straight, looked Dash in the face, and shrugged idly.


The pain was even worse this time around, and the tenrec found himself falling off the bed onto the floor. Looking up plaintively at the pangolin, he winced as another wave of pain washed over him.
"A-aren't you g-goingth to do THOMTHING?"

"Yes," Finitevus said, crossing one leg over another and looking down at Dash. "I'm going to sit here and watch you suffer until whatever happens is finished."


Dash's jaw dropped at the response. He certainly hadn't been expecting that. "W-what'sth going-" another wave of pain that caused him to crumple onto the floor with a gasp, "g-going ohn?"

"Hmm," Finitevus said, seeming to me mentally debating something. He slid off the bed and crouched down beside the tenrec. "Dashiel, do you have any idea how this process works?"


The tenrec's breathing had become ragged. Looking up again at the pangolin, he shook his head vigorously 'no'- then promptly curled up again with a cry of pain, tears now running freely down his face. In his pain, he had hardly noticed the rather minor agony of a new set of teeth- no, fangs- growing in with surprising speed.

"Heh. Remember when I said I'd be manipulating your genetic code?" he grinned widely. "My research deals with introducing the genes of foreign species who can regenerate into ones whom can't... creating chimeras. You know, like Facade?" his grin widened, his tone lowering. "You were right. I never have gotten very far in my research. I'm actually quite amazed you survived the first dose."

Noticing the teeth quickly growing in, the doctor then snatched Dash by the arm and tugged him up. "Now come on. It's time to remove your cybernetics before they get wrecked."


Concentration is not usually anyone's strong point when they're in intense pain, Dash included, so the doctor's words didn't entirely sink in.

"Ch.... Chimera? What did... what..."

"I've injected you with a blend of various spider DNA," the pangolin explained as he hefted the prone body over his shoulder. "From this point on you are no longer considered a tenrec - at least, not a full blooded tenrec - and judging from my success rate, you have about a 5% chance of surviving your transformation."


"... FIVE?", the tenr- no, the chimera, choked out.

How could this happen? Why me?! Why did...

"WHYDIDN'TYOUTELLMETHIS?!" he shrieked, beginning to struggle from the doctor's grasp.

His efforts proved to be futile, for between the pangolin's newfround robotic strength and his already weakened condition, he did little more than flail helplessly.

Finitevus chuckled darkly.

"Because you never asked. You just bravely stuck your arm out like the good little puppet you are. You've danced and given me a great show, but now..."

As he spoke the two entered into a small soundproofed room. Having a surgeon table and a set of tools already prepped, the doctor slammed Dash down hard on the hard surface. "... It's time to cut your strings and toss your body into the wood chipper."


Continuing to struggle in vain, Dash found himself strapped down to the table regardless, his kicking and shouting managing only to exhaust him more.

"Y-YOU CAN'T DO THIS! Y-YOU-"

It was this point he noticed the doctor picking up a bone saw.

And a second later when he realized that the doctor had no intention of using anesthetic.

And yet another second later when he simply blacked out, overwhelmed.

[Jammerlee]

DLHQ - Metamorphosis (FOR REAL REALS DIS TIEM)


Pain. That was the first thing to come to Dash when he came back to consciousness. At least it wasn't the horrific, stabbing pain he had earlier, but more of a gnawing, steady sort of pain. But still, pain. From the tips of his toes to the tips of his ears. Pain.

... Wait... his toes?

Lifting his head groggily from the rather unforgiving flat pillow he'd been resting on, he attempted to look down.

And there they were. Toes.

Staring incredulously for awhile, Dash finally flopped back down with a thump, staring instead at the much less interesting ceiling.

...

Then he took another peak.

Yep. Toes.

Thump.

Dash blinked, and continued to stare blankly upwards. Somehow the revelation that he once again even had toes made the pain seem much farther away...

He was... happy? Was that it? Happy?

And then he remembered the doctor, his... boss. The doc wanted to kill him, but then why did he help him?? It didn't make any sense.

Dash attempted to sit up, to better look over his regrown limbs, only to discover quite quickly that he couldn't.

Maybe the doc hadn't changed his mind about killing him. Eyes widening realizing the precariousness of his position, Dash struggled harder against his bindings.

I just got my life back, it's not going to be taken away!

A few moments later the door whisked open, and in strode the roboticized pangolin himself. Finitevus paused for a moment when he noticed Dash was awake, eyeing him over and taking note of his condition. Lifting the clipboard he had seemed so attached to lately he began taking down a few notes.

After a moment, he looked back up. An odd sort of smile crossed his face. "Hello, Dashiel. How are you feeling?"


"LET ME GO YOU ^&#! PSYCHOPATH"

Finitevus' eyes widened considerably, a look of unbridled shock having taken him over. His pen flipped out of his fingers and as he fumbled into an attempt to reclaim it his clipboard slipped loose and clattered onto the floor. "Wha-what?!" came his startled question as he quickly knelt down to retrieve it.


The tenrec's struggles against the straps binding him down continued. "YOU HEARD ME!"

The doctor's mouth simply hung open in shock. "What are--I--I don't--I--" he shook his head, waving a hand at the hysterical tenrec, "Dashiel, calm down!"


Nope. That wasn't going to work. "WHAT, SO YOU HAVE AN EASIER SHOT AT KILLING ME?"

The struggles intensified.

Finitevus continued staring. He shook his head after a moment - more so in a gesture to clear it than in disagreement. "Kill you?! Why in the name of Chaos would I try to kill you?! I just--look at you! You're whole again! Why would I try to kill you after all that work to heal you?!"


And... the struggling stopped as Dash gave a rather confused stare in the Doctor's direction. "... but... you said..."

"Are you feeling well?" Fini asked with concern. "Dashiel, when have I been nothing but accommodating to you?!"


"When you laughed, slammed me onto a table, and got a bonesaw out?"

Again all the pangolin did was stare. "Dashiel, what are you talking about? I mean, yes, I did use a bonesaw on you, but it wasn't until after you were well medicated! Are you sure you weren't dreaming? I mean, you did sort of go out after I administered that second shot..."


"... d... dreaming?"
Confusion and self doubt crossed Dash's face.

... Had he actually dreamed all that?

...

He shook his head vigorously, dispelling the thought.

"NO! I WASN"T... I wasn't... "

With what sounded similar to an exasperated sigh, the doctor approach Dash, swiftly untying his bonds. "You're free to go."


"... I am?! You're ... you're not gonna... ... I mean... I thought..."

"Dashiel, you've been with me for awhile now. Don't you think that if I had the intention to kill you I would have done it by now?" he placed a hand on the tenrec'd shoulder assuringly. "Look at you, you're my pride and joy. A success! Why would I destroy that?!"


Though the tenrec flinched at the doctor's touch, what the pangolin said made sense. Why would he go through all this trouble just if he was going to kill him?

Rubbing his face, Dash shook his head. "I... I'm sorry Doc. I guess... I was hallucinating or something... it... it just was so real."

"There, there," the pangolin said, petting Dash on the shoulder and then giving it a gentle squeeze. "With your high fever and the drugs it's perfectly understandable. Now, how are you feeling? Do you think you can get up?"


Taking a deep breath, the tenrec sat up, supporting his weight with both his arms. He'd missed being able to do that- missing an arm makes you rethinks things considerably. "I feel... I still feel really sore, but it's not as bad as it was before. It's just sort of... there." He explained as he went back to staring at his toes at the opposite end of the bed. He attempted to give them a wiggle, just to see if they would.

And they did.

"... wow."

Never thought I'd be able to do that again.

The doctor watched him with a rather plastic looking smile on his face, having an intense jealousy boiling inside his mind at the sight of the boy's newly regrown limbs. One of his hands subconsciously began to tighten.

"Why don't you try walking?" he suggested after a moment.


"... No time better then right now, I guess." Shuffling himself off the bed, he uneasily stood, marveling at something so mundane as standing on his own two feet, though still tightly gripping the rail of the hospital bed for safety. As mundane as it may of been, it wasn't something he was really used to anymore. Flexing his legs experimentally, he reluctantly let go of the rail and took a step.

And promptly fell onto his face.

"... ow."

"Careful!" the pangolin shouted. Instantly he was by Dash's side, helping to get him back up. "Are you alright?"


The tenrec shook his head, laughing slightly. "I'm fine, I'm... I'm fine- I just I forgot how these things worked. Hopefully it's like a riding a bike, huh?"

"Yes, one would hope," Fini said. "It would be a shame to have your little escaped plan delayed, hmm?"


... Great. Now he felt kinda guilty about that. After everything the Doc did for him (he gave him back his LEGS for Chao's sake) and he was going to run out on him.
"... well... I... " He bit his lip- and immediately regretted it. His teeth were significantly sharper then he remembered. "Ow! Geeze!"

Finitevus frowned slightly, taking the tenrec by the shoulders and directing him. "Dashiel, you need to look in the mirror. There's... been a side effect."


"Side effect?", Dash repeated, following the doctor's directions with unsteady feet. Coming across the mirror, he blinked.

Everything seemed normal. Well, other then his bleeding lip, which, at the moment, was starting to sort of sting. "I don't see anything w-" he paused, catching the sight of his teeth in the mirror. Giving an experimental grin, he realized what the doctor meant. "... oh."

Seemed his teeth had come back in much, much sharper then before, and, curiously, tipped in black. Dash frowned. "... maybe I can get some whitening stuff or caps or something... At least they're back."

"There may yet be other side effects," Finitevus warned. "It's too early to tell."


"Like what?"

Fini shrugged. "Well. That's the problem with being the first of anything, isn't it? I don't know. It could be as simple as a headache, or..."


"... or? Or what?"

"... You could spontaneously combust," the doctor grinned, waving a hand dismissively as he turned to walk off. "Wait here for a moment."


The tenrec's face seemed to spasm. "I could WHAT?!"

"Oh relax. You're more likely to mutate into a horrible monster." and with that parting comment, Finitevus vanished out the door.


Dash stared in disbelief, his jar hanging slightly.

"... ARE YOU SERIOUS?!"

Unfortunately for Dash... Finitevus wasn't returning to answer him, and doors generally weren't very good conversationalists.

... Oh well. It had been worth a try. The doctor was only joking. Hopefully. Brow scrunched up in worry, Dash turned again to the mirror, lifting his lip to scrutinize his teeth more carefully.

Maybe it wasn't a joke after all.

A few minutes passed, and then finally, the door cracked open again. Finitevus stuck his head inside. "Oh Dashiel. I have a surprise for you~"


The tenrec turned from the mirror, ears perked in curiosity. "Huh?"

Stepping fully into the room the doctor approached Dash, presenting him with... a pair of blue shoes with white cuffs. And a single blue-cuffed white glove.


Dash was stunned. He hadn't actually ever expected to see these again. "These... these are... where did you get these??" he asked, carefully taking them from the pangolin and looking them over.

Yep. These were the ones he used to have... before the accident, that is.

"Oh, I've had them for awhile," the doctor shrugged. "I was there when your limbs were originally amputated and felt I should keep them for you. Unfortunately, with how busy I am, I had never gotten the chance to return them."


The tenrec looked up from the clothing items to the doctor. And then down at them again. Then up. Down. Up.

And then, without warning, hugged the doctor.

Finitevus buckled in surprise under the tenrec's weight, and for a moment simply blinked. That surprise quickly melted into smugness. He reached around, patting the tenrec on the back.

"It's such a shame you have to go. It's as if I were losing a son."


Pulling away from the impromptu hug, Dash made his way back to the bed, his awkward steps becoming a bit more sure. Sitting down he went about putting on his shoes. However, as he did this he seemed a bit... sad.

This entire time he'd thought the doctor to be... less than kind, to put it gently- the hallucination included. But when he'd told Finitevus he wanted to leave, not only did put up with his tempter tantrum (which Dash was now rather embarrassed of), but gave him this option... and now he had his arm and legs back, and his entire life left to live.

He felt... guilty.

"I'm sorry, Doc."

"Well, no sense in trying to change your mind." the pangolin shrugged in an almost flippant manner. "I suppose you'll be leaving now, then?"


With a deep breath, Dash nodded. "No time like the present, I guess..."

He paused, thinking of whatever needed to be taken care of before he left.

"... Is it okay if I use a warp ring out of here? ... and bring Misty with me?"

"She's your chao," Fini waved a hand dismissively. "The only use I have for her is as a guinea pig," he paused for a moment, rubbing at his chin. "I want you to keep your communicator."


Dash frowned at the idea of Misty being used as a guinea pig.

Definitely taking her with me...

The other comment, however, also caught his attention. "Take it with me? Why? I thought you'd want that stuff back..."

"Remember when I mentioned side effects?" Fini answered . "Don't you think it would be a little awkward to try to explain them to another doctor?"


"... good point."

Very good point.

"... that reminds me- you were... uhm... joking about the horrible monster thing, right?"

The pangolin covered a sudden chuckle. Whether it was meant to be lighthearted or sarcastic couldn't be discerned. "Maybe."


Dash was... unsure on if he should be concerned on this. "... maybe?"

"Oh, don't be so concerned about everything," Finitevus said, now taking several steps toward the door. "But that would be rather ironic, wouldn't it? Getting your old life back, only to have it destroyed..."

Before the tenrec could answer, the doctor had vanished out the door for the second time.


"..."

Well, he certainly wasn't feeling any better over that.

A long time passed without any sign of the doctor's return. No doubt Dash may have been starting to wonder when the echoing sound of metallic footsteps could finally be heard drawing close. With a swing of the door Finitevus walked inside, a small pink and blue chao being held in one arm.


During the time the doctor was away, Dash had taken the time to think of what to do next... he was free now, after all, to go wherever he wanted.

With his own two legs.

By the time the doctor returned, he had managed to plan out, at the least, the immediate future for himself, but the sight of the chao momentarily derailed him.

"Heeeey Misty!", he cooed as he gingerly took the chao from the robian, a warm smile crossing his face.

@semisty@
The pink chao's expression changed one from slight confusion (who was this metal guy?) to one of happiness once in the arms of her master. Joyfully babbling in the fashion that only chao could, she nuzzled Dash.


Idly scratching behind the chao's 'ears', Dash looked up to the doctor, the smile he had a moment earlier fading slightly.

"Thanks. ... Hey, do you think you could drop us off at the Mystic Ruins?"

"Ask Hope to program it into your warp ring," Finitevus said. "I'd try doing it myself right here except you're more likely to get dropped over a volcano. I'm still getting used to interfacing with the network," he tapped the side of his head with a metallic clink in emphasis. Inwardly, he found the volcano idea to be a rather pleasing though as he approached Dash and patted him on the back.

"Take care of yourself out there, boy. Remember there's a reason you came to me in the first place, so don't go getting yourself hurt or pushed around."


Propping the chao at his hip, Dash nodded slightly. "I'll remember that, Doc."

Looking away from the pangolin, Dash scratched at his cheek with his free hand (it was nice to have two of them again).

"I'm... going to head out now." With that, he began to walk off on his way to consult Hope.

But, nearly out the door, he paused, looking back again at his ... former boss. "Thanks again."

And he was gone.

For awhile after the tenrec had vanished Finitevus merely stood there with his arms crossed, eyes closed in contemplation. After awhile he opened them, lifting his head to look at the door. A tiny little smirk curved his metallic lips.

"He'll be back," he finally spoke to aloud to himself. "Dead or alive."

[Jammerlee]

This final thread was meant to take place awhile after the others. While Deebs and I did toy around with what happened to Dash after he left, we never ironed it out in a way we were happy and decided we really needed to let other characters be allowed to get involved.

DLHQ - Pangolovely

The sound of Finitevus' workshop was alive with the distinctive hum of a whirring drill. The good doctor himself sat there in his lingerie at a worktable playing solitaire on his own hard drive piecing together the delicate parts of what looked like the frame of a prosthetic hand, a few sparks flying in the glow of the moonlight florescent lights above and shining off his armor.

Despite his intense concentration, the robian doctor's expression betrayed how annoyed he inwardly felt. It was taking Dash... Shock... whatever the hell he preferred calling himself now far too long to answer his summon.


Eventually, however, a brisk set of knocks rose over the noise of the drill, suspiciously in tune with the ever popular 'Shave and a Haircut' (Two bits!), followed shortly by the figure of a robed tenrec slipping into the room.

Gazing around the workshop with a smirk, Dash's gaze eventually feel onto the robian pangolin- the smirk momentarily disappearing at the sight in lue of a brief moment of confusion. However, brief it was, and the smirk returned as he crossed his arms and stood, waiting for what the pangolin had to say.

The sound slowed to a stop at the tenrec's approach, but the doctor never moved. Instead, only his glowing eyes slid across to gaze at him through their corners. His nose wrinkled slightly. He didn't like that smirk, and his posture certainly wasn't helping the sudden suspicion that had sparked. He knew Dash, knew he should be more timid, if downright terrified, than that. If that shriek over the phone was any indication he should have been quivering.

And that hologram...

"Come here," Finitevus ordered icily, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly.



With a shrug, the tenrec sauntered (oh yes, sauntered) to the work table, taking a seat directly across from the pangolin (and, it should be mentioned, a respectful distance away from the drill). Once comfortably situated, he leaned on his elbow, waiting for whatever the pangolin had to say next... whilst continuing to smirk.

He still wasn't liking that smirk, or the casual way the supposed chimera was behaving. But he kept his suspicion from showing in his face, and instead idly turned his focus back toward working on the mechanical appendage.

However, he did idly comment... "It's highly unusual to see you in uniform when not on an assignment."


And, in a voice decidedly not Dash's own... "I wouldn't know."

Without missing a beat, and without looking up for that matter, the doctor's right hand suddenly withdrew into his forearm to leave behind the barrel of a cannon. The likes of which was now pointed toward the person sitting opposite of him.

"You may remove the hologram, Ms. Rec."


With a shrug, the image of the tenrec fizzled away to... uh...


... the image of a different tenrec. Who was currently pouting.

"I wish you hadn't hung up on me like that earlier."

"Hm. We all wish for different things." the robo pangolin said flippantly, continuing to hold the barrel in her direction. Despite this, he took the drill up with his opposite hand and idly began to work again. Discreetly, he also sent out a private transmission to only a couple individuals. <Julie, Axe, report to the workshop immediately. We have an intruder.>

That done, a small, amused smile crossed his face. "I suppose it's safe to assume that Dashiel is now a traitor. Oh well."


"Eh," she replied with a frown, wavering her free hand in a 'so so' gesture, "I think 'retarded' is a better word. Whatever you did to him to make him an eight legged freak seemed to of made him stupider than usual. Kind of like a brain dead puppy peeing on the carpet."

That said, she shifted in position, leaning on both arms to peer at the pangolin's work with apparently genuine interest.

"So, how's it going? We haven't talked in awhile."

"I think the answer to that should be fairly obvious," the doctor replied distantly.


"... Hm." There was a long pause as she considered the reply, eventually settling to wrinkle her nose. "... not so much."

Though, she did have a question...

"... what's with the robot?"

At this the doctor's nose seemed to scrunch up, and his cannon shifted back into hand mode as he quickly reached to stifle a sudden chuckle.

"Call it a souvenir."


Deebs Rec frowned, eventually sitting back into her chair, arms falling into a crossed, but relaxed, posistion. "I don't really catch what you mean there. It came from that other other universe?", she asked, raising a skeptical brow.

In spite of himself, the pangobot found a wide grin spreading across his face. He chuckled again, louder this time, and looked up at the girl while shaking a finger.

"You're getting warmer." he said almost musically.


The tenrec's nose wrinkled again as she thought over it.
"Warmer, hm?"

Tapping a finger to her cheek she gazed upwards (in the off chance the answer was written on the ceiling) (it could happen).

Of course, there wasn't any answer up there but it didn't prevent her from continuing her trail of thought. "So", she mused outloud, "it's from the other dimension and it just happened to capture your good looks to a T..."

"Hmm, yes, I suppose I am still incredibly good looking..." he idly mused to himself, then chuckled and shook his head. Abandoning his work for the time being, Finitevus learned back in his seat, pressing the tips of his fingers together and smirking. "So, my dear, tell me; how does it feel to be in the presence of an infamous terrorist leader? Ah, and I do feel inclined to mention, I have security measures in place that automatically disable any unauthorized signals..."

Frowning and waving a hand dismissively, she sighed. "If I was out to get you into trouble with G.U.N. I wouldn't be here right now or wearing the best evidence I would have to support my claims." She leaned against the table again. "You know, instead of coming here and bringing it all back to you."

That said, she pondered over both the pangolin's question as well as the puzzling statement of 'I am' in regard to the robot.

"... And I guess I'm not surprised. Like I said, I had my suspicions." She shrugged, "...I'm sure you're still fun to watch movies with."

"Everyone has their suspicions, dear. I've already said that," he shrugged, then clasped his hands together in his lap. "I do have to say though, I'm quite impressed at how calmly you seem to be taking this. No feelings of betrayal? No fear? Or anger?"


Deebs Rec wrinkled her nose again. Oh, she wasn't perfectly calm, but... "To say that I'm perfectly fine with not being told about this wouldn't be true. I am a bit angry you didn't tell me," she began, "... BUT... if I were in the same position I wouldn't be telling anyone either, and I don't really like the idea of holding 'not being an idiot' against someone."

He paused, looking around the room again.
"And I probably should be afraid, since I walked right into a terrorist base, but I think I traded all my common sense for something stupid like packs of gum or something."

"And how would you have reacted if I had been honest, hmm?" Finitevus continued to smirk, leaning onto the table and resting his chin upon laced fingers. "Would you have even believed me?"


The tenrec shrugged. "I probably would of believed you. I told you I had my suspicions," she paused, rolling her eyes before continuing, "'like everyone does', etc. But..." her gaze returned to the pangolin, her mind wandering slightly at how much the machine did look like him and his earlier comment, but returning back to the issue at hand, "... seeing that I haven't called G.U.N. even though you sent one of your minions out to kill a friend of mine, I figure it wouldn't be any worse then this."

She looked up again, as if expecting something- "... speaking of minions, you're lucky I'm not someone out to get you."

"So you say," the pangolin shrugged. "Never trust a person's word though. As for my minions..." he rolled his eyes and sneered. "Dashiel is now marked for death. He's proven his incompetence to me for the last time, and such a breech in security is intolerable. And as for you..." his voice trailed off, and for a moment he simply gazed at the tenrec with half-lidded eyes. His smirk slowly returned. "Well, I'll just have to figure out what to do with you, my nosy little intruder."


"Let me know what you decide on," she replied, tugging lightly at the cuff of the robe before frowning suddenly, standing up and beginning to remove said article. "... no offense, these are comfy and all, but this one stinks."

"That's because Dash has pissed himself in it several times Hmph, don't look at me," the doctor's nose wrinkled, choosing to ignore the comment preceding it. "That robe belongs to Dashiel. And besides, I can't smell anything anyway."

Unlacing his figures and rubbing his hands together, Finitevus glanced aside as if he had just remembered something important - and unpleasant. After a moment of intense contemplation he looked back at Deebs, and his metallic lips thinned. It was a peculiar situation, to be sure. Dash's treachery he could have called, but never could the prodigal genius have predicted Deebs would actually know either him or that bat. And then managing to infiltrate his base and sneak by his subordinates, using his own technology! And her behavior... that was the most curious of all. He would have expected her to react he was the Dark Legion's leader, period, and instead she was more concerned with the fact he hadn't told her?

Very strange indeed...


The comment nor his reaction was lost on the tenrec, even as she folded up the offending garment and placed it on the table. That, plus what she had been given earlier...

... it seemed terribly unlikely, but so did giant monsters destroying cities, parallel dimensions, alien invasions, and yet another parallel dimension. And... well, all those were true, so maybe it wasn't as unlikely as it seemed at first blush.

"So why are you a robot?"

Sharp, too. Finitevus snerked, a hand migrating toward his face in his flimsy attempt to hide it. "I've already told you. It's a souvenir~"


The girl's expression scrunched into an expression of non amusement. "That answers where, but not how or why."

Though at least the suspicion was proven now, though the results weren't very comforting. In fact, this in mind as well as what'd apparently happened to Dash, the briefest thought of her life becoming a real B movie fluttered through her mind. However, the idea left nearly as quickly as it came, though she did find herself grimly hoping that no 'killed while naked in the shower' scenes would turn up.

It'd be terrible embarrassing, and would put a big hamper on her day.

"That, my dear, is a very long and very frustrating story~" the doctor smirked. "Quite frankly I should think your fate a more pressing concern than my own."


Frowning, she leaned back into her chair, arms crossed. ".. well you can't say I wasn't concerned."

"Hmm," the doctor smiled, mimicking her with the addition of crossing one leg over another. "I'm going to be honest. I like your attitude, and quite frankly the fact you're here now talking to me, in my private workshop, is impressive. Considering this, I'd like to extend an invitation for you to join my organization."


Blink.

"Are you going to turn me into a giant spider?"

His smile widened. "Hmmmm, let's just say it's not beyond reason should you make the wrong choice."


"But then the question is 'which is the wrong choice'. If I say yes and you turn me into a giant spider, I'm going to be very angry with you."

"If you say yes then that would be your choice," the doctor answered calmly. "If you say no, however, then I'm afraid you'll have no choice in what I decide to do with you. I'd like to point out that you've been my prisoner from the moment you sat down."


Another shrug. " I figured that'd happen before I even stepped through that ring." That said, she weaved her hands together and placed them onto the table, straightening her posture as if she were, as of just that moment, attending a business meeting.

"So, do I have to sign anything? Do I use blood for the signature? Tears? Barbecue sauce?"

Once again lacing his fingers, the doctor leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "All of my subordinates are either cyborgs or chimeras."


... Oof. Well, that was... intrusive.

"... and what do you recommend?"

"Well, if you want your best chance of surviving your... initiation, as it were, I'd recommend deciding which body parts you can stand to live without. My genetics research isn't the most... reliable, as far as survival rate is concerned," he gestured his hand at the air. "To be blunt, it's beyond my comprehension why Dashiel is even alive right now."


"Hmm..." her nose wrinkled again as she thought. This was a tough one. "Is this something you need an answer to right away or can I sleep on it?"

"You may sleep on it if you need the time," he paused, shrugging. "In the prison unit, of course."


A small chuckle escaped Deebs Rec as she closed her eyes in thought. "Well is the food any good?"

The robian pangolin chuckled and shrugged. "Well, I'm afraid Dashiel was our cook, so..."


"Foo! I had to join now, didn't I?" Tsking to herself, she shook her head.

"Well then... how about... a heart?"

"It does make me... hrm, somewhat pleased I can no longer eat..."

He chuckled to himself, shaking his head as well. "But moving on from that... your heart, hmm? Yes, internal organs are completely doable... Any particular reason, though?"


"SO I CAN SAY I'VE LITERALLY GIVEN YOU MY HEART"
"Well, you're a doctor. I'm sure you know how many people die from heart disease. I don't really think I'm at risk but, hey, an upgrade couldn't hurt." She shrugged, then smirked. "And maybe then you could trust me more."

"An artificial heart to use as collateral... alright. That's acceptable. But I'm also a little surprised," in emphasis, he hold both of his arms up, both hands retracting to reveal cannons built into his forearms. "Most of my subordinates opt for something a little more... lethal."


"Oh, it's not that I'm not interested in something like that..." she put both elbows up onto the table and rested her chin on her hands, "it's that I'm trying to think of what I can get that wouldn't be too noticeable." She paused a moment before adding, "Not that it's vanity."

"Hmm. That's exactly why Dashiel had that hologram you were wearing. We all have one," he shrugged, switching his arms back to normal. "Though, speaking of things that aren't too noticeable, I should also mention... you'll be required to have my insignia tattooed on either your back or shoulder."


"You mean I won't be able to strip naked in public anymore?"

The doctor seemed to wince slightly, glancing away and motioning as though he were massaging his eyes. "... You would fit in terribly well in the new dimension."


A baffled blink betrayed that that wasn't the reaction she had expected. "I was only joking. ... they actually do that there?"

"The woman don't... have the same dress code requirements as they do here, no," Fini answered, turning his head away even further with a flustered grunt. "Public nudity appears to be perfectly acceptable there."


The information and his rather telling reaction was not lost on the tenrec. In fact... she smirked slightly. "So, what, is the whole dimension one big nude beach?"

"... Moving on," the doctor insisted forcefully. "You'll also be required to move here."


"Oh really? Why so?"

"Protection, for starters. But besides that I also provide all necessary comforts. No rent, free food, entertainment needs, etcetera."


"Hmm," the tenrec mummbled, eyes half lidded.
"That does sound nice, but I do have an apartment already, and my roommate has been doing badly enough since Dash left."

"I don't think you quite grasp your situation," Finitevus sneered. "This is not optional. And besides, it would be just awful if something were to... happen to said roommate because she was a liability, hmm?"


"Oh, don't give me that thinly veiled threat crap. I'm already intentionally giving you a vital organ to hold as leverage so you can feel more comfortable. You could at least allow me to sleep in my own bed at night. I mean you hold the double life thing just fine, don't you? And I'm not even famous."

The doctor shook his head. "Out of the question."


Deebs shifted to leaning on one elbow, eyeing the pangolin critically. "And what would convince you for at least a compromise? Half here, half there...?"

The pangolin remained impassive. "How are you going to explain your surgery? Your stay at my hospital? Your job? How do you think she might react is she discovered your tattoo? Or any of your equipment?" he leaned forward, narrowing his eyes. "My answer is still no."


"... Well..." she smirked, "... alright. You've made your point. No need to get all angry over it, I can be reasonable."

And then she poked his nose.

Hey, it was his fault for leaning closer.

"Beep."

The roboticized doctor blinked, eyes quickly migrating down to the end of his nose. For a moment all he seemed able to do was stare. Then he looked up with a disapproving glare.

"I'm glad we could come to an agreement." he stated.


Settling back down into her seat, she continued to smirk.

"I'll still need to go and say goodbye and all- just suddenly disappearing is questionable. Specially in a building that's already had one of it's tenets disappear. Unless, that is, you want to rouse the public's suspicions that there's some sort of tenrec eating chupacabra around. ... Oh, I also need to get my stuff..."

Fini glanced off to the side for a moment as she spoke, seemingly lost in some very interesting thought. He glanced back after a moment and shrugged. "Very well. Do what you must."


"Good," she stated with an air of some finality. "Is there anything else that needs to be taken care of?"

"One of my subordinates will accompany you, just so you're aware..." he said, idly rubbing at his chin as he looked the girl over. "Hrm, probably need some sort of weapon too... Well! Beyond that," he shrugged flippantly. "Sit back, relax, and welcome to my real life horror show~"

Feeling comfortable leaving things there, the doctor took up his earlier project and resumed working.


For awhile, she said nothing, simply watching him work like a creepy stalker. There were a lot of things going through her mind, obviously, and it was a bit difficult to pick out one thought or another for any particular scrutiny. The fact that it was probably rather late right now (or so she assumed, despite not having a watch) didn't help her thinking much either.

Still, she was still curious.

"What are you working on?"

"Hmmm, at the moment, duplicates of my arms."


"You need spares?"

"Hrm," the pangolin muttered. For a moment it seemed as though he wasn't going to answer as he contemplated over something, but finally... "I do keep a pair on hand without built-in weapons. For times I've had them inspected,"

He paused for a long moment, letting that hang in the air.

"But that's not what this set will be for."


"Ah" she muttered, continuing to eye the delicate work. It was amazing how complicated these things were beneath the casing, and it almost made her wish she knew something about these sorts of things.

But, well, she didn't.

"Then what is this set for?"

His nose wrinkled with a slightly offended look. Simulating an exhale, he shook his head. "I've been told by several sources my current condition is irreversible. So, if I'm to have any semblance of a normal life, I'm going to require a body that makes me look normal."


With everything else that had happened, what with all the universe breaking shenanigans, the finding that her former neighbor was now an eight-legged abomination, that one of her best friends had been attacked by said abomination, that Zachary really was the terrorist everyone suspected him of being, JOINING said terrorist group... It was that that seemed to knock the wind out of her sails.

As strange and as alien a concept as being turned into a robot seemed, she had at least thought that if there was a way to do such a thing there'd easily be a way to undo it. That there apparently wasn't...

Her expression blanked before going through a kaleidoscope of others, only barely mirroring what was going on in her head. Eventually, it seemed to settle on 'concerned'.

"... So there's no way to... or...?"

The doctor glanced up, his glowing LCD eyes seeming to dim slightly. "If I were aware of a way I would be devoting my time to that rather than a work-around."


Squinting her own eyes tightly shut the tenrec gave them a tired rub. "I suppose that's what irreversible means, doesn't it."

Allowing her hand to slide from her face one she was done, she looked to pangolin with an expression of tired sadness. "I don't know what I could do, but if there is something I can to help in some way, let me know."

"You're an artist, aren't you," Finitevus muttered almost matter-of-factly as he focused on soldering together a couple delicate pieces. "The mechanics behind creating a convincing android are going to be challenging enough. Making it appear organic without the use of holograms is something beyond my experience."


Deebs's nose wrinkled. "Maybe beyond mine too, but I could give it a try... you'd probably need movie studio quality supplies to get it look right but... motion comes with it's own problems... could look fine in a still but look off when moving... would probably need something to mimic a subcutaneous layer or something to make sure the skin moves right over it... but you'd have to make light as you can for all the things just needed to mimic muscle tissue and..." She continued to mumble off on various problems, fixes, and notes of concern. Of course, the key word was mumble, apparently more so herself then to the pangolin across the table.

In fact, she seemed to be rather lost in thought now.

"... probably need a high gloss for the eyes to mimic moisture, which should work pretty well for the illusion unless people are touching them... but who would do that...? ... I think I've seen false glass eyes that look nearly like the real thing, even with fake vessels..."

Quite lost.

The doctor paused what he was doing, taking a moment to simply listen and taken in when she was saying as Deebs rambled. Finally he glanced back up again, one of his gleaming brows quirked.

And then he snickered in amusement.


Which apparently was enough to bring her back to reality.
"What?"

"Clearly I've picked the best person for the job." he said with an pleased smirk.


She shook her head abruptly. "No no no. Not the best. I'll give it my best try though, but this isn't something I have experience with."

He shrugged, and resumed work. "But you know what you're talking about. That alone says a lot. I certainly couldn't ask that of any of the smucks I have running around here."


"... alright. I'll give you that. But I'm not making any promises for a masterpiece here. If the end result looks like it came from the deepest, darkest depths of the uncanny valley then that's not my fault." Apparently content with having that said, it was time for a long, long yawn.

"... excuse me."

The roboticized doctor snerked. "Uncanny valley." he chuckled again, leaning onto the table and clutching his head. "Yes. That's it. The deepest, darkest depths of the uncanny valley. Why not?"

He burst into a hysterical cackle.


Much like caffeine, maniacal laughter does a rather good job of bringing a jolt of wakefulness to a person. Sitting rigidly in her seat, she watched the pangolin in front of her during his, well, fit.

Frowning slightly, she felt as if her stomach had just done a rather clumsy flip- not out of fear, but rather pity. She felt... well, bad for him. If something like this had happened to her, she certainly wouldn't be taking it all that well either, though she wasn't entirely sure what exactly it was about her comment that had set him off. Maybe she could figure it out another time to avoid in the future.

Weaving her fingers together and placing her hands onto the table, she took a deep breath, attempting to relax and wait out the display, though her emotions nipped at the edges of her reasoning.

Eventually the doctor did calm down. And as his final heaves drizzled into silence he once again uttered "Uncanny valley," and shook his head. It seemed as though the worst was over, until he slammed his palm into the table with an ear-splitting bang. Instantly he was to his feet, staring down at his work with a furious snarl. He shouldn't have to worry about things like this, by Chaos!

And just as quickly as fury flooded him, it receeded. In its wake he found he felt intensely... hollow. Another shake of his head, and he turned away. "I'm going to kill that man," he muttered bitterly and began walking off.


Deebs Rec frowned as she watched Zachary walk away.

"I'm still going to do the best I can."

If that was to him or herself was hard to say.

Whether or not he had heard her was also hard to say, for if he did, he never gave any indication that he was going to stop. His only intent at that moment was getting out, getting away, and giving his poor stressed out mind a chance to rest. He had noticed for awhile now it was getting increasingly harder for him to think from all the strain.

... Actually, come to think of it, now that he was on his feet and in motion he couldn't help but notice his body didn't seem to be responding as quickly as he might have expected either. His sluggish steps struggled to maintain balance beneath him, and in concern his eyes drifted down to inspect any potential problems. Was it just him, or did the lights seem to be growing dim?

For that matter... was the floor getting... closer?

Oh, hello.

That was the last thing to cross his mind before he crumpled onto the floor. His eyes, glowing brightly only moments ago, faded into darkness.


The tenrec's ears twitched slightly at the sound of the loud clang in the hall. For a brief moment she thought nothing of it, assuming he once again banged against something in his anger. But the fact that the sound of footsteps didn't follow after it and how nonrhythmic they were before the sound led her to assume more dire things.

Rising from her seat and warily approaching the door, she peered out into the hall only to spot the prone form of the mechanical pangolin.

Spines bristling in alarm at the sight, she gave a short gasp before sprinting over to further investigate the sight. Grabbing onto his shoulder (while being careful as to not impale herself on one of his spines, of course), she gave a brisk shake.

"Hey," she exclaimed, trying to catch the pangolin's attention and rouse him from his place on the floor.

It didn't work, and neither did shaking harder and asking again.

Beginning to panic she got up from the floor and ran slightly down one side of the hall before stopping, turning, and trying the other direction.

Which way was it again? That she came from? Both sides looked the same.

In frustration she paced back to the form of her fallen friend before taking a deep breath and...

"HEY! YOUR BOSS NEEDS HELP!"

Surprisingly the result was instantaneous, an alarm suddenly springing and blaring over the intercoms.

The surprise of which caused the tenrec to jump.

And then fall on her rear.

... But at least someone should be on their way now, yes?