segmental | haha. hehe. perhaps even hoho

haha. hehe. perhaps even hoho

[ It's easy to underestimate Dottore. I mean... fucking look at him. Literally the only thing intimidating about him is that stupid fucking mask, and when you've seen about fifty bazillion Fatui trotting around wearing that kind of thing it kind of fails to register any more. It goes from "oh noooo scawy hawbingew ahhhh" to "lol look at the guy in the bird mask, what a tool" pretty fucking fast.

Unfortunately, underestimating the second of the Fatui Harbingers is how people get themselves captured and strapped to a gurney in his secret lab. Funny how that happens. Once he's entirely certain that Lumine is fully secure, Dottore slaps her awake with his customary sharktoothed smile. ]

Apologies for the rude awakening, Traveler - but I find that it is beneficial for the patient to be conscious for this part of the process.

[ That's it no further explanation fuck you ]

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[Well, this sucks. This really super duper sucks. It's not like she doesn't have experience with getting captured every now and then, but it's never fun. It's especially not fun when there are gurneys and straps involved. It's especially super duper mega not fun when there's a freaky heehee hoohoo man in a dumb mask waking her up.

So of course she's ignoring Dottore's bullshit greetings and getting busy with trying to break free. She's not really expecting it to work, but it's something better to do having a conversation with a nasty evil creep.]

[ Siiiiiiiggggggghhhhhhh. So predictable. Dottore rolls his eyes behind his stupid dumb shitty mask and taps Lumine's nose with a syringe in the most patronising way possible. ]

Must I calm you down with this? Come, now...

[She shoots him the angriest glare in her repertoire and redoubles her efforts. Fuck you doctor man fuck yoooouuuuu.]

[ Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh why are people so DIFFICULT about being abducted and experimented on it's really fucking tiring ]

As you wish.

[ Annnnnnnd the needle is going straight into her neck. It's just a mild sedative, but it fucking burns like hell because hello this is Dottore and he's a prick ]

[FUCKING OW why does he have to be like this. She's gritting her teeth against the pain because no way in hell is she showing him any weakness if she can help it. Not that it helps much because, again, fucking ow.

And with the sedative quickly taking effect, she slows down and then stops struggling as her limbs grow heavy and tired.

She's still glaring at him though.]

There we are. Much more agreeable.

[ He says it like it's some big fucking joke, since she'll be far more agreeable in short order, hehehahahoho. He pinches her cheek indulgently, just to get that extra bit of humiliation in there, then starts messing around with some metal tools juuuuuuust out of sight.

On purpose, obviously, just to increase her anxiety. Because Dottore. ]

[Why! Is! He! Like this!

She tries to turn her head and bite his fingers to put up at least a little resistance, but even that fails as she just can't move fast enough.

There absolutely is some anxiety - actually a lot of it if she's being honest with herself - as well as curiosity about what is going to happen here. But asking him what he's doing would just play into his stupid bullshit clown games, so she remains silent. It's all she's got right now.]

[ Um wow there is no clownery going on here. PIERRO is the Jester, Lumine, come the fuck on.

I'm funny as fuck.

Dottore re-emerges from his metal-rattling bullshit carrying a scalpel in one hand and a Thingy in the other. The Thingy™ is small and metallic and would look a lot like the ear clip thing the Akasha systems run on if it didn't have a big fucking needle on it instead of, uh, a clip.

What can I say. Dude likes needles. Let him live. ]

You will definitely want to hold still for this part.

[uhhhhhhhhhh. UHHHHHHHHHH. SHE DOESN'T LIKE THIS? SHE REALLY SUPER DOES NOT LIKE THIS AT ALL? She's not usually one to panic even in the worst situation but she DOES NOT LIKE THIS?]

What is that?

Ah! She speaks!

[ Which is absolutely a victory if you are a petty bastard. Which Dottore absolutely is. ]

You have been quite the topic of conversation in some of my meetings with my colleagues. And the same question comes up time after time: what if she were on our side?

[ He's doing the smile again. ]

So I thought: why not answer the question definitively?

[She wants to say it will never work, there is no possible way he could do that. But she has seen what the Akasha can do, especially in the hands of someone like the Doctor.

This could be very, very bad. Now would be a great time for someone to burst in to rescue her.

Any second now.]

Now, now. Don't you worry. This device has been tested extensively. Fatality occurs in less than two percent of cases.

[ WOW ISN'T THAT REASSURING. He leans down, turning Lumine's face to one side as he begins to line up the Thingy at the right spot on the side of her head. ]

Lasting chronic pain is a little more common, but - I'm sure someone of your constitution will be fine. Here --

[ He puts the handle of the scalpel into her mouth. ]

-- You might want to bite down on that.

[Nothing about this is reassuring in any way. More like the exact opposite, weirdly enough!

She does bite down on the scalpel, which might seem surprisingly obedient of her if she wasn't immediately trying to clumsily use it to stab Dottore's hands or arms or anything even remotely within reach.]

Didn't I tell you to be still? So tiresome.

[ Dottore snaps his fingers, calling over one of his segments. Because yes of course he's made more of those by now. All you did was get the best Dottore deleted, Nahida. Why. WHY.

Uh also the segment holds Lumine's head still. And isn't gentle about it, especially after her flailing manages to slice open one of his fingers. ]

There we go. Nice and still, now.

[ He starts attaching the Thingy, the needle poking straight into her ear. Which is just lovely. ]

[rip boattore we will never forget you and your sweet sweet waving

Anyway uhhh this is bad? She's still trying to do her best Sif impression, but it was already hard enough thanks to the sedative. Being actually physically stopped makes it pretty much impossible.

Which means there is nothing she can do to stop the Thingy from going into her ear aaaaaaaaaaaa]

[ So uh. Shit hurts. Like, a lot. What with it being a big fat fucking needle piercing its way into Lumine's fuckin head and all. Yes, Dottore could have administered painkillers or something, but SOMEBODY was too busy with her shitty attempted stabbings to ask? Sucks to be that loser. ]

Well, you haven't died yet. Always a good sign.

[ He starts tinkering with the Thingy (it's being called that forever by this point ok), tightening various components and making sure it's fitted snugly to Lumine's ear. And then --

-- he turns it on.

It's like the needle in her ear is piercing all the way through her brain to the other ear. Ice cold. ]

There... we... go. Can you still speak? Say something.

[Okay but what if. What if instead of speaking she just screams because it hurts and feels horrible and actually she's very scared. What then.]

...Hm. Inconclusive.

[ He fucks around with the Thingy some more, pouting like the shitty petty nasty fuckburger that he is, then steps back. ]

Stop screaming.

[ wow doesn't that order feel awfully compelling all of a sudden? ]

[Wow hey she hates that. She hates that she does immediately stop screaming just because he told her to. Fuck this fuck this fuck thissssss]

You are vile.

Oh, please. If one little command offends you so badly, the bar for what you consider "vile" is astonishingly low.

[ Because it's not like the whole kidnap and nonconsensual surgery also contributed to that vile rating or anything. He starts unstrapping Lumine from the gurney, looking so fucking self-satisfied that even the nearby segment looks like he wants to puke. ]

The second test: when I finish freeing you, you will remain perfectly still. There will be no attempts to attack me or to run.

[ As he undoes the final strap, he puts the scalpel in Lumine's hand. Just to make the test even more, uh. testing. ]

Understood?

[ It would be really fucking funny if she just stabbed him in the balls right now yes but HE DOESN'T SEEM TO THINK THERE'S ANY DANGER OF IT ]

[God, she really wants to stab him right in his stupid smug face. She wants to stab him so so so so much that her whole arm trembles with the effort to do so.

But she doesn't. She just stays still like she's been told.]

As expected~

[ Okay so you know how smug he was before? He is doubling the fuck down. Most mortal bodies simply cannot handle this much smug, but Dottore is Built Different.

Unfortch.

He nods in satisfaction, then motions towards the clone still nursing his bloodied hand. ]

Third test: the segment. Kill it.

[ Said segment promptly shits his entire fuck, grabbing a surgical tray to defend himself with. ]

No- no, you can't make me-!

[But even as she says it, Lumine is pushing herself up to her feet and advancing on the poor clone. She's holding herself back and moving as slowly as she can, since she wasn't given any instructions on how fast to do the murdering. Maybe if she takes her time she can think of something or the segment can escape or something.]

[ Siiiigggggh. She's making him do the face again. ]

Hurry, now. Chop chop. We don't have all day.

[ Sucks to be Lumine! And also the segment, who is now holding a bonesaw along with the surgical tray. He's still backing away and not attacking, though, which is only sensible when your opponent is The Famously Cool And Badass Traveler™. ]

Run-!

[Is all she can choke out before launching herself at the segment. You know those archon quest cutscenes where the traveller just fuckin jumps around being ridiculously badass? That's the level of power she's suddenly bringing in. One hand sends out a windblade to effortlessly brush aside the segment's makeshift weapon and shield, while the other holds out the scalpel. With the force of a jump powered by superhuman strength and speed, it lands in the segment's throat hard enough to quite possibly crush his windpipe before even splitting his jugular open.]

[ Wwwwwwelp. Most people would be kind of horrified seeing "themselves" die so brutally! But as we've established: lol Dottore. If anything, he is way way too into this shit. ]

Oh, bra-vo!

[ He claps in the douchiest way possible, then ruffles Lumine's hair in a hideous parody of affection. ]

You've taken far better to this than any of my prior test subjects. You should be very proud of yourself.

[She stands there, dully staring at the corpse. She's killed before, but never like this. Never for no reason at all. Never at someone else's orders.

She still can't attack Dottore, but god does she want to. More than anything.]

Don't touch me.

And still trying to maintain a facade of defiance in the face of your own helplessness! You truly are something.

[ There's too much of a sneer in his voice for it to sound at all complimentary. He snorts, thumbing Lumine's cheek very slowly and deliberately. ]

How exactly do you plan to stop me from touching you, hm?

[ That awful fucking smile grows. ]

Why, all I have to do is give the word, and you'll be the one touching me.

[She flinches away from him, raising the scalpel (both it and her hands still covered in blood) in some futile attempt at keeping him away. But then he just keeps talking, and-]

What?

[Congratulations! He has succeeded in making Lumine visibly freak the fuck out!]

[ Oh well that's only going to encourage him, isn't it? Petty nasty man that he is and all. ]

You heard. Do put that thing down - we've established that you aren't permitted to hurt me with it.

[ Don't mind him while he very very obviously looks her up and down while she does so, just to drive that discomfort and horror all the way home ♥ ]

[She drops the scalpel to the floor with a little clink and takes several steps back. Nope nope nope this cannot be happening, she will not accept that something like this could be happening. She doesn't say anything, though. It would only encourage this freak.]

Edited 2023-08-21 16:14 (UTC)

You seem upset.

[ And gosh, isn't that satisfying, seeing her so deeply and profoundly disturbed? Like, okay, it'd be pleasing to Dottore to see anyone so upset because he is a sadistic piece of shit, but when it's someone so powerful and unassailable and really good at beating up Harbingers it's just. Chef's kiss. ]

Hmm. I don't think we really need another test, do we? The efficacy of the device has been proven. A resounding success, I'd say.

[ He waits juuuuuust long enough for relief to potentially set in, then adds: ]

So I won't need to take notes for this part.

Undress.

[She knows this fucker well enough that she's not truly letting her guard down even when it seems like the worst might be over. That doesn't mean it's not a shock when he actually goes ahead and says it like that.]

I knew you were a creep, but this...

[She starts slowly pulling her dress off, making a point of not looking away from him. There's no way she can keep all the distress off her face, but she can damn well try to remain as composed as possible. Anything to reduce his satisfaction.]

Oh, no. Don't call me a creep. Not that. However will I recover?

[ HEHE HAHA HOHO. Fine, if she's not going to look away then she gets to watch him shamelessly leering as her layers come off. He lifts the mask to make sure she can see him doing it and everything, the prick. ]

Ah, if only I had a pretty little thing to comfort and console me in the midst of my devastation...

[ Smirking, he beckons her over with a finger. Totally counts as an order fyi. ]

[As much as she tries to take her time with it, eventually everything comes off and she's left covering herself with her arms as best she can.

And when he beckons, she has no choice but to very, very reluctantly approach.]

Don't pout so. I could make you enjoy it, if you prefer?

[ Aw fuck. Shit. Piss. We're reaching new heights of smug. Like, it's as if his smug has been building exponentially every day I spent not tagging. Holy shit. Here is a helpful visual aid.

Smug. ]

You've seen what can be done with this kind of technology. Say the word and I'll make you willing, traveler.

[ That's not a kindness. It's a threat. ]

[Jesus piss that is a lot of smug. She can feel it oozing off of him like some kind of horrible smugass radiation, and it makes the whole situation feel even grosser than it already was. Astounding.

Lumine knows she should just keep her mouth shut and try to get through this as quickly and painlessly as possible. Just play along and wait for an opportunity to get back at the smug bastard.

The problem is that Lumine is a sassy little gremlin regardless of the situation.]

Figures that the only way you could ever get someone to enjoy your company would be by messing with their brain.

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haha. hehe. perhaps even hoho

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binch. go the fuck back to sleep. you pisswart.

joke's on you i DID go back to sleep

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