029 [audio]

[farfairersoul]

[The comm comes on in the middle of some very heavy breathing, and Razer's voice is distinctly pained. He clears his throat, swallows and clears it again before speaking.]

Blitz is gone. He--

[Pained hiss.]

He disappeared.

I think.

Not like him to--rrgh--to leave the job unfinished.

[Long silence, some more heaving breathing, then a faint

Comments

[Locked to Razer // Unhackable]

[psychoticracer]

WHERE ARE YOU.

[Locked to Erol // 90% Unhackable]

[farfairersoul]

[You'll have to give him a minute, Erol, it's hard to work this thing enough to lock with only one hand. At least to do it very quickly.]

Eleven. Elevator.

[He hisses through clenched teeth.]

Think...Phoenix is coming.

Make up a story. Make it make sense.

[But you'd better show up either way.]

[Commentlog]

[psychoticracer]

[No he doesn't want to WAIT a minute he wants to know where you are NOW.

There's no question of whether he'll show up. He'll show up and Mar help Phoenix if he gets in the damn way. Erol doesn't care about his better half fucking the Aeropan (actually, he'd rather like to have been involved), but Razer is HIS.

Erol's footsteps are light, hurried as his weight barely settles on the floor before leaving for parts unknown. He searches the elevator area with record speed and locates Razer in very short order.]

He did this?

[If Erol had known Mizo was even CONTEMPLATING this, he'd have slit the man's throat Sunday night. Yet he went and fucked him instead - dammit!!]

[commentlog]

[farfairersoul]

[He looks up at Erol, and the haze in his eyes should show quite clearly that he's been drugged. His left arm is scabbed in patches, but still bleeding badly, and that swath on his right is just as bad.]

Mm.

[He does manage a weak smile up at him, though.]

I told him t--ngh--to shut up, remember?

Lost to Jak, too.

[He shifts, pitching himself forward just a little. He wants to lean on you, Erol. Phoenix isn't here yet, it's safe...]

[commentlog]

[ecopiracy]

[Check again, Razer. Phoenix was already on the move once Razer told him where he was. And since his room is on deck eleven, it doesn't take long at all for him to arrive on the scene.

He stops in his tracks, though, when he realizes that he is not the first to arrive. His eyes narrow.]

You. What are you doing here?

[Unfortunately, Razer chooses that moment to tilt forward, looking to Phoenix as though he's about to topple. With a curse, Phoenix lunges toward him.]

Razer!

[commentlog]

[psychoticracer]

[Razer's been hurt for a while. Lost a lot of blood... drugged.

Mizo had BETTER be off this boat, or... or... Erol had never been at a loss for the words to describe an incurably vicious and sadistic action of revenge, but now he simply didn't know where to start.

Phoenix arrives just in time to catch the brunt of Erol's swelling anger. And he does precisely the wrong thing - he goes for what is HIS.]

BACK OFF!!

[Erol pivots, giving Razer a supportive arm with the same gesture he uses to aim a low elbow at Phoenix' gut. The back of his mind warns that this could be read as an attack, and he doesn't want to jeopardize his ability to look after Razer with one of the Captain's inane punishments. The rest of his mind is a blind haze of red as he protects what is HIS.]

[commentlog]

[farfairersoul]

[Razer winces and gives a low hiss--that was kiiiinda loud there, Ginger. Still, he leans heavily against that arm, slanting Phoenix a barely-comprehending upward look.

If either of the young men attempting to tend to him thought he was pale before, it should be quite obvious by now just how wrong they were. He's cradling his skinned arm in his lap, bone and bare muscle flash between the blood and clotting, but reaches up with the other, in significantly better shape, to just touch Erol's arm.]

Easy, Commander.

[His voice is exhausted and low, maybe too low to hear, but the gesture shouldn't go unnoticed. Unfortunately, the same could be said for Phoenix's perceptions; a part of Razer hopes he isn't paying attention. With Erol's attack, that hope might not be entirely in vain.]

[commentlog]

[ecopiracy]

[Phoenix dodges that attack, though just barely. It succeeds, though, in getting him to step back, which gives Erol the time to catch Razer and lend him his strength.

And that was the last thing that Phoenix expected. Again his eyes narrow, his gaze dark with suspicion. But then Razer touched the commander's arm, gave him a soft command.

That did not escape his attention.]

Razer?

[Surely you do not trust this man!]

[commentlog]

[psychoticracer]

[Sorry, Razer. It's kind of an involuntary reaction thing. Tap a knee with a hammer, get a kick. Approach Razer while he's injured, Erol explodes.

Shifting his shoulder to support the taller elf, Erol was solid as a rock despite Razer's greater bulk. But the face he turned towards Phoenix was still and coldly focused, showed none of the warmth that was between himself and Razer.]

I owe him a debt. You will NOT get between me and the end of my obligation.

[Razer looked about to pass out. Erol was solid beneath him, but he couldn't carry him completely on his own. He didn't particularly want to drag his better half, so they'd better get going while the going's good.]

I have supplies. From the looks of you, you'll use up most of them.

[Erol's tone was level and callous as he moved to herd Razer back to his room.]

[commentlog]

[farfairersoul]

[Razer gives Phoenix a quick glance, forcing a half-smile that he hopes will put his mind at ease at least a little, then does his best to get to his feet. Of course, just his luck, he winds up pretty much hanging off the Commander, which is awkward to say the least. A half-step and his leg gives out, vision swimming from the drugs and loss of blood.

He closes his eyes and takes a shaky breath, all but clinging to Erol for support, swallowing thickly and holding his bloodier hand to his head.]

Mar. That--

[Another breath.]

Not working.

[commentlog]

[ecopiracy]

[Phoenix glares at Erol, not trusting that story at all. But for whatever reason, Razer seems to think it's all right. Razer is not a stupid man, so he must have had a very good reason, but still it grates to leave him in Erol's hands.

Razer's buckling knees, however, give him a perfectly good excuse to stay with them both.]

You're too short to carry him on your own.

[commentlog]

[psychoticracer]

[Erol does a rather good job of not staggering under Razer's weight. But it didn't matter how determined he was - carrying something your own body weight was a task for dedicated weightlifters (which he was not), and Razer was heavier.]

Just don't get in my way, you oversized lout.

[He really, REALLY didn't want to accept Phoenix' help. But to make a fuss over it would not only be counterproductive, it would be conspicuous. There had been enough of a fuss already. The faster Razer was in his room, the better.

It's not far at all to Erol's; while he accepts Phoenix' aid, he doesn't for a second trust Razer to him completely. The Aeropan might have looked like Razer, but it was purely superficial.]

[commentlog]

[farfairersoul]

[While Razer would much rather rely solely on Erol's attentions right now, even through the haze he knows Phoenix is right, and takes the help when offered. He can't completely bite back the growl of pain as he lifts his arm--the exposed bone and skinned muscle hurts enough to make his vision black out for a fraction of a second, and he goes entirely limp for that span of time--but after being in his business as long as he has, the criminal lieutenant has a very high tolerance. He can't support his own weight, but he's not entirely useless yet

[commentlog]

[ecopiracy]

[Phoenix gingerly maneuvers Razer's arm so that he can lend his support, grimacing at the injuries. Who did this, and why? The questions demand answers, but Razer is in no condition to give them, so they remain unspoken in Phoenix's head.

For now.

The almost-intimacy of his responses goes unremarked, though. He is injured, nearly passed out, and can hardly be held accountable. When they reach Erol's room, though, he frowns.

But he's already asked Razer's confirmation once. He isn't going to do it again. He narrows his eyes at the Krimzon Commander, silently communicating a dire threat.]

See that he receives the attention that he needs.

[commentlog]

[psychoticracer]

[Erol curls his lip scornfully. Threats do not impress him.]

Oh do go make yourself useful. Swab the decks or whatever.

[He swipes the door open and doesn't spare Phoenix the courtesy of a parting glance as he wrangles his better half inside. Razer's lost a lot of blood but the injuries are clotted over - there's little risk of further at this point. Right now the priority is shock, preventing infection and checking for less obvious injuries like internal bleeding.]

[commentlog]

[farfairersoul]

[Razer stumbles into Erol's room, halfway catches himself--and the Commander gets the other half, thank god--and takes a deep breath in an attempt to sharpen things enough to make it to the younger man's bed.

He does. Only just, and he more or less falls on it, but he does. Thankfully, he manages not to drag Erol down with him. Completely. He lays there a moment before taking another breath and swallowing heavily. He's dizzy and his head is buzzing and his heartbeat is screaming in his ears, too fast and irregular to be anything close to normal.

He's lost a lot of blood; shock is a given.]

This one--

[He barely slides his left arm down the blanket, grinding his teeth and biting back a grunt of pain. He starts to shake.]

S-Started to heal--on the floor.

[He was on the floor. Mizo dropped that arm, he remembers how it felt when it hit the ground, remembers how he almost screamed from the pain even through the drug. He started on the other, while the first bled and clotted and bled and clotted.]

Carpet fibers.

[Either you