Return to the canyon

[dufresne_doc]

Doc looked around for a landmark, something he recognized.

Turn left, you fool.

Doc decided it would be impolite to argue. Turning left he came to the edge of the cliff and looked down to find the sudden realization of just where he was. "I don't want to be here. These guys are really weird."

Shut up, you fool. We need to find out what happened.

Comments

[freeconnecticut]

((I wanna play!))

Spike flitted in and out of the vast cave system of Blood Gulch, doing his best to avoid contact with other spartans. He still felt crappy, but he needed to get to blue base and talk to Wyoming.

And contact Vic, but there was an entirely different reason for that.

Hey look, a doctor! Cypher interjected, pointing out a purple figure on the cliffs ahead of them.

"Probably just a medic. No way they would waste a doctor on this hellhole."

Whatever, we should still say hi or something.

"Fine," Spike conceeded, making his way towards the medical officer, "But you keep your mouth shut. This is not going to turn into one of your booty calls. You had a week to have all the rampant sex you wanted, and you blew it."

Not a peep. Cypher promised.

[dufresne_doc]

"Hi!" Doc made an effort to sound friendly. But there was something about black armor. Something he should remember. "Do you know of any good-"

O'Malley took over and made Doc stop talking. Shut up. O'Malley whispered to Doc.

"It never hurts to be friendly."

Not now, you imbecile. Even you know what Freelancers are.

[freeconnecticut]

Hey, Doc's talking to himself. You know what that means?

"No, moron, I have no idea what talking to himself could possibly mean," he murmured to Cypher. To Doc he gave a quick nod of his head and replied with, "Good afternoon. Are you new to the gulch?"

[dufresne_doc]

"No, I've been here before." Doc couldn't help shuddering slightly at the memory. "I need to contact Vic and get out of here."

No we don't. Vic will want to know about Private Tucker.

"Maybe he knows where he is."

[freeconnecticut]

"Oh, do we ever," Spike chuckled bitterly, "but unlike yours, my AI isn't just a simple infestation of my helmet. He's a microchip implanted directly onto my skull. The only way to remove him to cut my head open and dig him out."

To prove his point, Spike removed his helmet and brushed back the hair covering his right temple, showing Doc a thin, white, surgical scar.

[dufresne_doc]

"Jeez," Doc could definitely feel sympathy for that situation. Though he did admire the suture work. It was much cleaner than anything he had ever managed. "I think that's a violation of the Hippocratic oath. At least the scar doesn't look bad."

You foolish fools will soon realize your folly. O'Malley did not like being ignored.

[freeconnecticut]

"No shit Sherlock. It doesn't help that the AI's considered faulty and was supposed to be deleted to begin with."

"I'm not faulty! I'm just not the kind of AI that they wanted."

"I don't want you either! You're absolutely worthless to me! What do you do for me except whisper lewd suggestions in my ear, embarrass me, and take over my body so you can fuck the first thing on two legs that walks by!"

"I do not fuck the first thing on two legs that walks by! ...It has to be sexy too."

"Oh for the love of god! If I could rip you out of my skull without killing myself, I would do so in an instant!"

[dufresne_doc]

Doc flinched. He didn't understand why people kept fighting. Everything was better when people got along. "I see." He said uncertainly. Everyone in this place needed counseling. Doc opened and clsoed his mouth helplessly.

[freeconnecticut]

"Heh. I was fourteen my first time," Spike murmured, "It wasn't with a girl though."

"Don't know why I told you that. Haven't spoken to anybody about that in years."

"Not since I was installed, anyway."

"But that wasn't by choice."

[dufresne_doc]

Doc smiled a bit at being trusted with that information. He was pretty sure everyone else in the canyon hated his guts but he seemed to be on the way to making at least one friend. He was still feeling embarassed though. "Sometimes people say things when they're ready to say them." That psycology class talking again.

[freeconnecticut]

"Doubt it. There are plenty of people I know I could never speak to about my past."

-Like Wyoming.-

"I can barely stand thinking about it. People say the high school years are the best years of your life, but for me they were nothing but painful. If I could help it, I'd erase them from my memory once and for all."

[dufresne_doc]

Doc paused to remove his chestplate so he could use the full range of his arms. "Repressing stuff isn't healthy." doc tried to think of something more helpful to say. "You won't have to go through it all over again. I ahven't heard of anyone getting sent back to high school as an adult." Actually at his school no one had ever been held back or had to repeat anything. They had a more free form/indiviualized ed system at the commune. And look how well that turned out. Doc mentally admonished himself for thinking so negatively.

[freeconnecticut]

"Wow... I woulda paid to see that," Spike said with a chuckle.

"I wouldn't," Cypher interjected, pouting slightly. "Poor Sargey..."

"Oh shut up. It woulda been funny and you know it."

I don't think it would...

-Well, I do.- Spike thought, smiling as red base came into view.

"Home sweet fucking home," he murmured, shaking his head slightly and imagining stretching out on his, relatively, comfortable cot.

[dufresne_doc]

Doc looked at the base with some trepidation. He hadn't even made it inside the last time he'd been here. "Where is everyone?" Doc just had to double check that they weren't going to be noticed.

[freeconnecticut]

"Hell if I know," Spike replied with a yawn. "Rookie's out sulking somewhere, Sarge is... sulking as well. And I haven't seen anyone else in a long time. They just kinda disappeared."

[dufresne_doc]

"Weird," Doc peered around. "Which way?"

[freeconnecticut]

Spike smiled happily and rolled over, latching himself onto the medic, the wave of emotions he was feeling washing over him and clouding his usually rational mind. The old childhood fear was swept away by happiness, and he found himself happily snuggling the smaller man, heedless of any odd body parts that happened to be brushing against his thigh.

Cypher, of course, noticed, but said nothing, not wanting to ruin Spike's oddly good mood.

((OMG, WTF did I just write?))

[dufresne_doc]

Doc hugged Spike tighter and rubbed his back. Not the way he had during the massage but in a way that was just supposed to be comfort. He found himself enjoying it too, slowly going to back to as relaxed as he had been before Spike and Cypher started fighting. "I won't hurt you."

((Uh... Words I think.))

[freeconnecticut]

Spike smiled and nuzzled his head against Doc's chest. He felt warm. Cared for. Happy. Things he hadn't felt since he was a mere child. Things he never expected to feel again, yet here he was. It was bliss to his affection starved mind.

((Flowery words.))

[dufresne_doc]

Doc didn't want to disturb the mood but the physical proximity was making some thoughts unavoidable. "If all you want to do is cuddle, then that's all we'll do." He wanted to bring the topic up without ruining what was going on at the moment. The previous outburst told him enough about the emotional mine field that the other man occupied to make him hesitant to bring anything more up.

((Better than cheesy ones.))