Never had to knock on wood (Ch. 4 Ending) [Mako]

NPC · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:11 am

In the time between when Mako closed and reopened his eyes, the isolation field had fizzled away, and Seven, distracted by the disappearance, just happened to let his guard down.

For the nth time in his heroic career, Mako made a completely, ridiculously lucky tackle that he should not have gotten away with, and Seven hit the floor with a grunt, dazed, while his blade went sliding across the deck.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:24 am

For a second, Mako did not register what was going on. It did not register that it had worked, again. With these odds, he mused somewhere in the back of his head, someday he'd make to tackle someone and they'd just be struck down by lightning (or a meteor. Or a bulldozer gone rogue.) before he got to them.

He scrambled to his feet the second he got his bearings, still not believing his circumstances, and cast a look at Seven-- and then at Geoff outside of the now-open ring, and then at the knife that had gone skidding away, all within a second or two. He was almost frozen, his body gone numb.

"What the hell do I do now?"

He was backing from Seven and towards the control unit, but it was -- again -- just a bid to put more space between himself and Seven than any attempt to do anything... control-y.

NPC · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:26 am

"You say a command, sir," replied the computer politely.

Seven, who had hit his head on the floor, meanwhile sat up with stars in his eyes, and struggled just to get his balance long enough to stand.

Sheff · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:37 am

The minute that field went down, you could easily bet Geoff entered with a rushed pace. Where did the line of his intended path lead? Where else, of course. However, before this easily obvious move was made, the hedgehog glanced to Mako.

"I suggest listening to it."

And with that, Geoff took off towards Seven, all sorts of vile contempt managing to partner with some renewed confidence as he homed in on the dazed kid.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:46 am

Mako looked at the computer, and sighed. "Yeah, I guess. Uhm, list... options?" he tried-- and then turned around to see Geoff heading for Seven.

"Sparkly-- uh, Geoff," he said suddenly (he knew the hedgehog's name?). He put up his hands, palms-out, in front of himself, as though to physically stop the hedgehog, even though he was nowhere near the other's path (and probably couldn't have stopped him for a moment, even if he were). He paused for a moment, and blanched a little.
Even he couldn't believe what he was about to say, even as the word spluttered forth from his mouth.
"... don't."

The shark had moved on to just sounding exasperated and tired above all else, and his laconic choice of words only helped the cause, so to speak.

Sheff · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:09 am

You could practically hear the skidding noise of Geoff coming to a sudden halt.

"What?"

The look the hedgehog gave the shark was essentially one of absolute bewilderment. Here was Mako, one of the many who had outwardly shown obvious contempt and muttered numerous "not again"s and "why me"s towards Seven in general... and now he was telling him to stop?

Geoff seemed to pause just long enough to give the finned klutz to properly explain himself. It didn't stop his eyes from darting to Seven every half second, however.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:31 am

Mako cast a glance at the computer again, and then let loose a hearty sigh and looked to Geoff-- and, like Geoff, kept a steady eye on Seven.

"I mean, hell, I'm not his biggest fan either. Psycho just pulled a freakin' knife on me, I mean, jeeze." His eyes drifted to the skidded-away knife again, and he blanched at the thought, even as he kept talking without missing a beat. "I just don't see what good bashing his face in, or something like that, is gonna do." He braced himself for the inevitable 'but it'd get him out of the way' response-- the shark had absolutely no delusions of Seven reforming, or even becoming even marginally less horrible of a person.
He doubted the kid would reform for somebody if they took a bullet for him and then gave him freshly-baked cake.

And yet, some vaguely pacifistic part of the shark chose the least opportune moment to pop up.

NPC · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:53 pm

"All possible options cannot be listed," replied the computer, a sort of artificial confusion in its voice. "Did you mean to ask for a list of relevant suggestions?"

Seven meanwhile stood crookedly with a sort of bewildered look on his face as his gaze darted between the two. He looked hurt, and angry, and nervous, and pretty much every color of emotion in the rainbow. Above all, however, he looked uncertain.

He gasped a short breath and froze.

...

He sprinted for the edge of the tower in full tactical retreat.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 9:55 pm

Mako just watched in place as Seven took off like a shot, and sighed. For a moment, his gaze lingered; then he looked at Geoff, and a sort of sarcastic smile crossed his face.

"That's gonna come back to bite me in the tail later, I'd bet money on it."

As he said that, the shark then turned back to both hedgehog and fleeing human to look at the computer, and breathed out heavily through his teeth. "Figures that wouldn't work. Um. Yeah. ... list relevant suggestions," he said in a slightly raised, slightly more even-than-usual tone. "I'm gonna be honest, never exactly been in this, uh, Phenominal Technological Power position."

NPC · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:07 pm

The computer must have been crunching for a moment, as it was silent for several seconds as if considering its multitudinous possible actions.

"All combat and security units are currently in idle mode. It may be advisable to reactivate them due to intruders in the reactor core and 'Grand Eggtrium.'"

Leave it to Eggman to name something like that.

As for Seven? Sailing off the tower, heading for some sort of escape route somewhere else in the immense ship, most likely.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:22 pm

For a second Mako paused. Whether it was due to decision-making or just wondering why on earth, even one with as much ego as Eggman, anyone would name anything the Grand Eggtrium, he furrowed his brow. "Uhm..."

He remained in contemplation. He cast a look around himself, and rubbed the back of his head. What would Eggman not do?

"... deactivate all units," the shark said, very warily, after a moment, looking at the console before him. Somewhere in his mind, he idly wished there was just a "return everything to pre-Eggman status" button, but he'd work with what he had.

NPC · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:44 pm

"Deactivating all Egg Destroyer robotic combat and security units," stated the computer slowly, almost slurring with a thick air of skepticism as if it thought the command was a bad idea. (It would be typical for Eggman to design a machine with a personality like that.)

... Patrolling robots began raining from the "sky" of the massive atrium dome, crashing into the ground, and occasionally the deck, some crunching on impact, others blasting apart with small explosions. At least it was over after a couple of seconds.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:37 pm

"Don't need an attitude, here," Mako mumbled at the computer as soon as the rain of robots ended, giving it back a skeptical look to match its skeptical tone. "That's my job." He leaned against the chair, and cast a look at the nearest of the fallen 'bots.
"... geeze. I hope those didn't hit anyone."

Mako looked at the screen again,
It only hit him, just now, what the weight of the situation -- and his current position -- really was. And more than that? He had no idea what he was doing.

"... I have no idea what I'm doing," he outright admitted in the general direction of the console, and his fins drooped a bit. "I just kind of want to, like... turn this whole, Empire thing off, and get out of here without mauling anyone. Any way that's possible?"
There was no small amount of his sarcasm in that last sentence, as though the best he expected was a snide 'yeah no' in return.

NPC · Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 2:42 am

Another long hesitation. Mako was really making the computer have to stop and think a lot.

"Please rephrase your order in the form of an imperative statement," it requested, albeit with an invisible question mark on the end of its synthesized tone, as if not sure it wanted to hear the order, but was obligated to ask for it anyway.

Kazz · Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 2:52 am

Mako gave the computer a look like it was spiting him.
...
And really, considering his track record with the universe, it probably was.

He coughed, rubbed the back of his head, and cast another sort of nervous look both ways, as if he were trying to judge if he could cross some (metaphorical) train-tracks in time to avoid the oncoming (metaphorical) locomotive. "Uhh. ... find a way to," the shark said, and he paused for just a half-beat, "shut everything down, without any... causalities to the organic... invaders, if possible. Yeah."

If it wasn't obvious yet, he was completely feeling his way through this, totally in the dark. At this point, if he didn't manage to make a bunch of machine-gun turrets rise out of the ground and kill him, Geoff, and everyone who had been blown off the platform, he'd call it a success.

Never had to knock on wood (Ch. 4 Ending) [Mako]

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