The Mask, the Past, and the Argument (vs. Hachiman)
Oct 20, 2021 22:57:30 GMT -6
hachiman0 and thegoldenidol like this
Post by Mundo Kindo on Oct 20, 2021 22:57:30 GMT -6
Mundo Kindo is standing over a metal table in his makeshift laboratory. It has been moved once again upon landing at port, but given how many times this has happened already, it was done faster and with more care than usual.
He stands over the table, every inch of it full of small pieces of the blue crystal. Mundo uses some tweezers and picks up one of the pieces. In his other hand is one of the metal bracelets that was used last week to control the unwilling Jabberwock security guard.
Mundo places the crystal into the slot in the blue crystal before setting it down to the side.
We gonna talk about this or…?
“Not sure what there is to talk about,” Mundo says.
“Seriously?” Heather asks.
With a sigh, Mundo places the tweezers down. He turns around, leaning his back against the table.
I get what you’re trying to do: convince him that you’re on his side with these controlling bracelets and then use them to control the guards yourself. I get it. A part of is solid. But it’s not a reliable plan.
“That, plus…” Heather starts. “…can you maintain it enough where you can do it? Or will you fall victim to the trust that comes with it?”
“Must you continue to question my confidence?” Mundo asks.
Yes!/“Yes!” (spoken at the same for clarification)
Mundo sighs, looking down at the floor for a few moments.
He crosses his arms, which immediately earns an eye-roll from the spectral diva.
The three take a few moments to discuss Mundo's opponent.
“So basically, I need the two of you there during my match. Heather can take advantage of any ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ moments and Josh, you can be my all-seeing eye.”
“Solid plan.”
One change.
Mundo tilts his head slightly to the right.
No way in hell am I interfering anymore beyond narration.
“What, are you scared more people will know you exist?”
There’s very distinct pause here that I want everyone to acknowledge.
Mostly because of my response.
No SHIT Sherlock! I’m already pretty fuckin close to bein revealed outright! The fact that Conrad KNOWS now is enough to make me pretty fuckin nervous! Unknown knows what kinda bullshit he pulls out now that he knows you have an omniscient narrator and an unknown, invisible-to-him agent as an ally.
“Fun fact: I can only touch things for a bit, not all the time. And only things I would’ve been able to carry when I was alive. So if you think I’m dragging this fuckton of a machine anywhere you’re crazier than I thought.”
Of course this is all serving as a wonderful distraction for the elephant in the room.
“Come on now, I know Jason, or…Max, I guess, is a bit of a pain in the ass, but I wouldn’t call him an elephant.”
“Well now that you’ve brought him up, why IS the only resistance member we know the first lab rat you chose for the bracelet?”
“Easy access. Easier to trick. Plus it was fun.”
Better question: why is he unconscious when he was assigned to guard you by Dukes?
“Because this is the only room anywhere on this makeshift campus Conrad made that allows me complete secrecy. And if the resistance seems hellbent on fucking up my plans, I’m perfectly happy keeping him killswitched.”
Nice segue to—
“That can’t be good for the guy.”
God damnit Nappa.
“It probably isn’t, but given I was okay leaving him in the Pacific Ocean, I think we can consider him a lost cause anyway.”
Better segue.
“Also who the fuck is Nappa?”
Shut it! Wanna tell the class what exactly changed with the plan?
“Heather’s got a point. You’ve got a bunch of those crystals from the Head Nerd in Charge, probably more than enough to activate the portal to get us all back home.”
Thank you Heather.
“You’re welcome Heather.”
…
“Oh, these things? Trust me, that’s probably not enough.”
And you know this how?
“Genius?”
Have you tested this theory?
“Why should I when I know I’m right?”
I’m omniscient, you arrogant prick. Also, just because you’re smart doesn’t mean you’re not resistant to outside forces, like, for say, the allure of power or somebody actually giving a shit about you that isn’t a disembodied voice or a translucent ghost.
“Is this really the direction you want to go with this?”
“If the heel fits? Sure.”
“Un-fucking-believable. So what’s your theory here?”
That’s why we’re asking. What changed with the plan? Use the various crates of crystals to start the portal and get us home. It’s that fucking simple. Half of a crate should cover what that championship belt would do.
“Can we please do that? I really wanna get home. I’m worried the more I leave David alone the more likely he is to fuck things up.”
And quite frankly, I’d rather be stuck with a character that ISN’T likely to turn me into a ‘bodied voice’.
“Is that even possible?”
I don’t know and I don’t want to stay and find out.
“The plan is to get some more crystals and then activate the machine. Then, with the crystals we have here, take them through the portal with us back home.”
“THAT’S the plan!?”
Fucking lightbulb.
“These crystals are of an unknown origin with an unknown ability to exist. With a power like that? I’d be a fool not to take it back with me.”
“Oh I see it now too.”
“The genus of the plan? Of course you do.”
You weren’t an antihero where you came from. I realize that now. You not only didn’t come from any established universe, you came from one so obscure that THAT’S why nobody recognized you.
“The fuck are you talking about?”
This isn’t even your original body. That literally doesn’t exist as it was never fully designed. But what’s more is that you portrayed yourself as this misguided, mistreated antihero who only got into bad stuff because they chose to, but that’s not true at all.
“The ego. The apathy towards a life. Even the craving for power. It all checks out.”
“Spit it out already!”
You were a fucking villain.
Mundo’s hands remove themselves from his chest. Beyond that, he freezes mid-movement.
None of the trio make a noise. Nor do they move.
Eventually, Mundo reaches up and pulls his mask back, revealing his face.
“Villains mistreat their family and friends because they’re not strong enough. Villains force their family and friends to change because it makes them more powerful. Villains take advantage of children’s trust and have them make decisions they don’t fully understand. Villains are vile, disgusting human beings. So from the bottom of my heart: fuck you. Fuck both of you.”
Oh so you were completely innocent because you saw those babies as your children? As your best of friends?
“You’re goddamn right I did! Nobody else was going to be there for them, so why the fuck shouldn’t I? Would a villain take care of them, nurture them to grow however they wanted to? No! Their adult forms were always more powerful, but they didn’t want that! And I wasn’t going to force them!”
But it’s okay to steal when necessary and treat those children like just another mark, right?
“I changed! I fucking changed for the better because of those kids!”
Only because you were forced to. What’s worse is that you didn’t even wear a mask to hide yourself from the authorities. You did it because you were scared people would know who you really were under that mask.
“Don’t you fucking dare!”
“Josh!”
Under that mask you were—shit, duck!
Mundo takes a moment to question the other before falling to his knees.
He just avoids the gunshot that was aimed at his head.
The three of us look over to Max, who is leaning against one of the crates. The bracelet on his right hand is ebbing in and out with a glow below the pistol in his grasp. The hand itself is shaking wildly and Max has a look of concentration and rage on his face.
Mundo looks over and growls before pulling out a phone from pocket. He taps a few things on the screen before the bracelet completely loses its glow. Max slumps forward, the pistol falling from his grip.
“Gonna have to work on the killswitch. Intent seems to override any orders if it’s big enough.”
There’s a silence amongst the group. Mundo turns towards the table, setting his phone back in his pocket and grabbing the tools.
Hm.
“We have the plan for Hachiman. Let’s focus on that.”
Fine by me.
Heather looks at Mundo before looking up where she thinks I am.
She narrows her eyes at the ceiling before huffing and floating upwards out of the room.
He stands over the table, every inch of it full of small pieces of the blue crystal. Mundo uses some tweezers and picks up one of the pieces. In his other hand is one of the metal bracelets that was used last week to control the unwilling Jabberwock security guard.
Mundo places the crystal into the slot in the blue crystal before setting it down to the side.
We gonna talk about this or…?
“Not sure what there is to talk about,” Mundo says.
“Seriously?” Heather asks.
With a sigh, Mundo places the tweezers down. He turns around, leaning his back against the table.
I get what you’re trying to do: convince him that you’re on his side with these controlling bracelets and then use them to control the guards yourself. I get it. A part of is solid. But it’s not a reliable plan.
“That, plus…” Heather starts. “…can you maintain it enough where you can do it? Or will you fall victim to the trust that comes with it?”
“Must you continue to question my confidence?” Mundo asks.
Yes!/“Yes!” (spoken at the same for clarification)
Mundo sighs, looking down at the floor for a few moments.
He crosses his arms, which immediately earns an eye-roll from the spectral diva.
The three take a few moments to discuss Mundo's opponent.
“So basically, I need the two of you there during my match. Heather can take advantage of any ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ moments and Josh, you can be my all-seeing eye.”
“Solid plan.”
One change.
Mundo tilts his head slightly to the right.
No way in hell am I interfering anymore beyond narration.
“What, are you scared more people will know you exist?”
There’s very distinct pause here that I want everyone to acknowledge.
Mostly because of my response.
No SHIT Sherlock! I’m already pretty fuckin close to bein revealed outright! The fact that Conrad KNOWS now is enough to make me pretty fuckin nervous! Unknown knows what kinda bullshit he pulls out now that he knows you have an omniscient narrator and an unknown, invisible-to-him agent as an ally.
“Fun fact: I can only touch things for a bit, not all the time. And only things I would’ve been able to carry when I was alive. So if you think I’m dragging this fuckton of a machine anywhere you’re crazier than I thought.”
Of course this is all serving as a wonderful distraction for the elephant in the room.
“Come on now, I know Jason, or…Max, I guess, is a bit of a pain in the ass, but I wouldn’t call him an elephant.”
“Well now that you’ve brought him up, why IS the only resistance member we know the first lab rat you chose for the bracelet?”
“Easy access. Easier to trick. Plus it was fun.”
Better question: why is he unconscious when he was assigned to guard you by Dukes?
“Because this is the only room anywhere on this makeshift campus Conrad made that allows me complete secrecy. And if the resistance seems hellbent on fucking up my plans, I’m perfectly happy keeping him killswitched.”
Nice segue to—
“That can’t be good for the guy.”
God damnit Nappa.
“It probably isn’t, but given I was okay leaving him in the Pacific Ocean, I think we can consider him a lost cause anyway.”
Better segue.
“Also who the fuck is Nappa?”
Shut it! Wanna tell the class what exactly changed with the plan?
“Heather’s got a point. You’ve got a bunch of those crystals from the Head Nerd in Charge, probably more than enough to activate the portal to get us all back home.”
Thank you Heather.
“You’re welcome Heather.”
…
“Oh, these things? Trust me, that’s probably not enough.”
And you know this how?
“Genius?”
Have you tested this theory?
“Why should I when I know I’m right?”
I’m omniscient, you arrogant prick. Also, just because you’re smart doesn’t mean you’re not resistant to outside forces, like, for say, the allure of power or somebody actually giving a shit about you that isn’t a disembodied voice or a translucent ghost.
“Is this really the direction you want to go with this?”
“If the heel fits? Sure.”
“Un-fucking-believable. So what’s your theory here?”
That’s why we’re asking. What changed with the plan? Use the various crates of crystals to start the portal and get us home. It’s that fucking simple. Half of a crate should cover what that championship belt would do.
“Can we please do that? I really wanna get home. I’m worried the more I leave David alone the more likely he is to fuck things up.”
And quite frankly, I’d rather be stuck with a character that ISN’T likely to turn me into a ‘bodied voice’.
“Is that even possible?”
I don’t know and I don’t want to stay and find out.
“The plan is to get some more crystals and then activate the machine. Then, with the crystals we have here, take them through the portal with us back home.”
“THAT’S the plan!?”
Fucking lightbulb.
“These crystals are of an unknown origin with an unknown ability to exist. With a power like that? I’d be a fool not to take it back with me.”
“Oh I see it now too.”
“The genus of the plan? Of course you do.”
You weren’t an antihero where you came from. I realize that now. You not only didn’t come from any established universe, you came from one so obscure that THAT’S why nobody recognized you.
“The fuck are you talking about?”
This isn’t even your original body. That literally doesn’t exist as it was never fully designed. But what’s more is that you portrayed yourself as this misguided, mistreated antihero who only got into bad stuff because they chose to, but that’s not true at all.
“The ego. The apathy towards a life. Even the craving for power. It all checks out.”
“Spit it out already!”
You were a fucking villain.
Mundo’s hands remove themselves from his chest. Beyond that, he freezes mid-movement.
None of the trio make a noise. Nor do they move.
Eventually, Mundo reaches up and pulls his mask back, revealing his face.
“Villains mistreat their family and friends because they’re not strong enough. Villains force their family and friends to change because it makes them more powerful. Villains take advantage of children’s trust and have them make decisions they don’t fully understand. Villains are vile, disgusting human beings. So from the bottom of my heart: fuck you. Fuck both of you.”
Oh so you were completely innocent because you saw those babies as your children? As your best of friends?
“You’re goddamn right I did! Nobody else was going to be there for them, so why the fuck shouldn’t I? Would a villain take care of them, nurture them to grow however they wanted to? No! Their adult forms were always more powerful, but they didn’t want that! And I wasn’t going to force them!”
But it’s okay to steal when necessary and treat those children like just another mark, right?
“I changed! I fucking changed for the better because of those kids!”
Only because you were forced to. What’s worse is that you didn’t even wear a mask to hide yourself from the authorities. You did it because you were scared people would know who you really were under that mask.
“Don’t you fucking dare!”
“Josh!”
Under that mask you were—shit, duck!
Mundo takes a moment to question the other before falling to his knees.
He just avoids the gunshot that was aimed at his head.
The three of us look over to Max, who is leaning against one of the crates. The bracelet on his right hand is ebbing in and out with a glow below the pistol in his grasp. The hand itself is shaking wildly and Max has a look of concentration and rage on his face.
Mundo looks over and growls before pulling out a phone from pocket. He taps a few things on the screen before the bracelet completely loses its glow. Max slumps forward, the pistol falling from his grip.
“Gonna have to work on the killswitch. Intent seems to override any orders if it’s big enough.”
There’s a silence amongst the group. Mundo turns towards the table, setting his phone back in his pocket and grabbing the tools.
Hm.
“We have the plan for Hachiman. Let’s focus on that.”
Fine by me.
Heather looks at Mundo before looking up where she thinks I am.
She narrows her eyes at the ceiling before huffing and floating upwards out of the room.