|
Post by SceneMod on Mar 22, 2012 22:33:49 GMT -5
"Never, sir," Arlen reminds, the corners of his mouth quirked with something. He has free time whenever she does not need him. He has his hobbies. Arlen has never left his assigned places save upon her orders, however.
Control has reasons for not wanting to let a Gatekeeper who needs to be medicated out of close reach.
He plays with one of his cufflinks and says tentatively, "I find myself incapable of expressing my gratitude." It will be nice to see Monaco again, not on a job, won't it? He just has to live with the worry that Carolyn will get them all mulched. Perhaps Arlen ought to refuse and stay sentinel for her.
|
|
|
Post by Carolyn Blake on Mar 22, 2012 23:45:11 GMT -5
Carolyn does a few more presses before speaking up again.
"Neither do I," she says, referring to Arlen's comments about gratitude, "We aren't exactly hardwired for the normal spectrum of social niceties, are we, Arlen?" She pushes the weights back up and rests them in their rack. "That's why I did it." She can't tell him thank you, and she can't tell him he saved her ass, but she can let him have something.
"I need you to maintain tracking and contact with me. You can dump Control's frequency for the duration; if you can't make yourself do that, I can go in and do it for you." Not that this will inhibit Control's ability to track Arlen, and they both know it. But he won't have the constant chatter in his ear, at least.
She sits up and presses her palms to her thighs, her head hanging down as she breathes heavily. She sighs, looks up, and wipes the sweat from her face.
"I'll be all right, Arlen," her lips twitch, "By the way, you have permission to speak plainly with me right now."
|
|
|
Post by SceneMod on Mar 23, 2012 14:32:21 GMT -5
"We would be better at what we do if we'd learn," Arlen opines, watching her. How many missions rely on sweet-talking a guard at just the right time? She needs a spotter, he thinks. He can't properly do that for her, though he is watching her carefully, and if she slips with a weight, he will certainly go call the Old Seeker for help.
His eyes narrow.
Possibly, she is trying to distract him. Possibly, she is trying to get him out of the way. Possibly, she wants him in that area for some reason that must remain unknown even to him. Possibly, she is trying to be nice.
Arlen reminds, "You know that I would say the same things. I always give you the best advice that I can, as is my duty. You are saying that more for your own benefit than my own."
No, he is not going to tell her that he is worried about her. It would only make her defensive.
|
|
|
Post by Carolyn Blake on Mar 23, 2012 19:35:16 GMT -5
Carolyn doesn't want Arlen completely out of contact because she knows his unstable mindset. Without some sort of commanding presence, some sort of handler, he might unravel. It isn't that he can't behave or think independently, because he can, but he was programmed to almost need to work as part of a unit. Couple that with his depression and one has a very valid reason for not wanting him to completely slip leash.
She gets up, adds some weight to the bar, and then settles back down on the bench. She makes a sound of satisfaction as she lifts the bar off the rest this time. Now she is really pushing her limits, which means she really ought to have a spotter. She'll just have to make sure she doesn't slip.
"Maybe... umf... I am. But if you weren't... umf... worried about what I was going to do-" not about her, but her plans, "you would be a lot less intelligent than I know you are."
"I'm not losing to hi- losing anyone else to him again."
|
|
|
Post by SceneMod on Mar 25, 2012 14:38:36 GMT -5
How often has Arlen lived up to what he was designed to be?
Arlen leans in, perilously close to Carolyn, and he breathes, "One of the most enjoyable methods of defeating someone is to take a piece of his or her mind. To own a bit of his or her soul." These words are difficult for Arlen to say. Something stirs in the back of his head as he does.
"Remember, you are already owned, sir. Lord Slaughter does not deserve one inch of you."
He pulls back and stands straight as he can, looking off at the door thoughtfully.
|
|
|
Post by Carolyn Blake on Mar 25, 2012 15:42:03 GMT -5
Arlen has always lived up to Carolyn's expectations, and that is enough.
The Gatekeeper gets only a wordless growl of negation for his trouble. It takes a great deal of effort for Carolyn to put the weights back on their rack, rather than send them flying across the room. Not at Arlen of course. Never at him. She isn't angry with him.
She sits up, swings one leg over the bench and stands before moving to try and stand well within Arlen's personal space. She's breathing heavily from her workout, but her expression is her usual hard cool.
"You took his eye Arlen. You almost killed him, and he is not stupid. He- or someone under him- will figure out how the trick was done. While he will hate me and blame me for the loss certainly, you are more in danger from him than I."
"Before we have been just gnats to him. Now he'll be looking. I don't have another choice here Arlen, because to not go after him first is to risk losing you- or another member of the team, birthed or adopted."
"You can think me obsessed if you like, but the real issue is that I was made too good of a Lead, so that I genuinely care about all of you. I can't risk it."
|
|
|
Post by SceneMod on Mar 25, 2012 18:39:57 GMT -5
Arlen does not have personal space. He doesn't have personal anything. She could cut him down into the marrow, and he would allow it. Arlen has the marks to prove it, though it was not her hand that left them.
He smiles slightly, and he is almost teasing as he replies, "Mmmm, yes, sir. As I suspected, the fault is entirely mine."
Arlen is often self-deprecating, to the point that him doing so is difficult to take seriously, and that is exactly what her wants, for her to deny it now. This is not about him. He had a shot at Lord Slaughter, and he took it. Any of them would have done the same, and they all know the consequences that Lord Slaughter might hunt them all down to a man. Possibly killing him is worth all their lives, but it is not worth their minds.
This is about her, just like the Old Seeker says. She doesn't want to lose.
|
|
|
Post by Carolyn Blake on Mar 25, 2012 21:34:33 GMT -5
"Arlen," Carolyn growls warningly. She hates how damned self-depreciating he always is. It makes her want to have a little chat with the people who made him....
She turns sharply away from him, snatching a towel from the bench and mopping the sweat away from her face and neck.
"You're baiting me."
Carolyn sighs and tosses the towel over her shoulder. "Let's get some food, then you at least need to sleep."
|
|
|
Post by SceneMod on Mar 25, 2012 22:23:19 GMT -5
Arlen's smile grows wider, and he points out, "Not well enough," with regards to his baiting.
The Old Seeker told them to follow their noses for the food. Arlen, however, will follow Carolyn. "You need sleep, too. If you don't maintain yourself properly on my watch, just who do you think Control is going to blame?"
If she really cares too much for her troops, she'll get her sleep tonight.
|
|
|
Post by Carolyn Blake on Mar 25, 2012 22:52:24 GMT -5
"They should blame me, because they know that they didn't make you strong enough to really watchdog me." She doesn't mean just physically either. But he's right. They'd abuse him for her excessive hubris because Control is full of sick bastards like that.
She shakes her head. "Fine. I'll go down for a few hours. Or at least try." She looks over her shoulder at Arlen. "Good enough?"
OOC: skip to foodstuff or heading for wrap?
|
|
|
Post by SceneMod on Mar 25, 2012 23:08:45 GMT -5
Seeing Carolyn do as he says is a perverse thrill for Arlen. He knows it should not delight him so; it really, really is not in his design specs. Carolyn seriously should have listened to him when he told her that understanding emotions would make them better soldiers.
"There are sleep aids in the drug cabinet," Arlen offers gently. He'll need to find his own pills there and take them later.
OOC: Skip to food?
|
|