Pieces of You

[SceneMod]

"You two are certainly from a most tenacious species," Scrubs says in that bland voice, seemingly ignoring his blistered skin and half-naked state.

He leaps to one side, evading the acid shot and again displaying that preternatural agility. Depending on his previous exposure (ie, up to his player), Kup might know that the heightened agility and speed is a trait of the Terlios Vil hybrids- and that the hybrids come from the warrior caste, not the science caste. But this one's speed and skill is leaps and bounds (pun intended) above the average warrior's.

Scrubs snatches a container of a table and hurls it at Kup. The container holds an acid much more potent than the one in the glass shard filled room. "Why does it bother you so much? You're transients. Neither of you will be here in six months; you'll either be dead or continuing with your travels."

"They are just trash, dregs. They should serves some purpose other than polluting the city."

[Spinister]

Spinister was given a job. He'll get it done. That's all there is to it. Another day, that job might be to round up trash and dregs and let Tarantulas vivisect them for experiments.

Singe mutters, "Love you, too, old man," as he is flung away like garbage. Spinister's missing fingers on his left hand, which is bad. Singe combines with Hairsplitter to form a super-charged sniper rifle, and Spinister pops out from under the table to try to nail the Terlios Vil - his Nebulans heard Kup call it that - through the other eye. It annoys him not to do one shot, one kill, but maybe it'll render the thing unable to see, and then he can worry about figuring out what will actually kill the thing.

[Kup]

"Bein' transient don't mean I ain't got any sense of decency," Kup snaps, attempting to twist out of the way of the container. It splatters over his left shoulder, and the acid splashes over him and eats into the outer layers of his thick armor. It hasn't yet made it through, but it might at the rate it's going. "Sometimes, the 'dregs' and 'trash' make good if you just give 'em the chance to."

Kup knows this. He knows this well. He's been the 'trash' and the 'dregs.'

The thing is more agile than he remembers that sort should be, but worry about that later. As Spinister fires, Kup tries to close in on it. "I'd love to rip that thing limb from limb," he observes to his 'partner,' "but it'll be harder to beat answers out of it if it's dead."

Maybe he can beat answers out of it with its own limb? That might work...

[SceneMod]

"And more often than not, they simply sink further into depravity. They- erk!!"

Scrubs attempted to dodge Spinster's shot, but given the range and Spinster's skill, Scrubs instead winds up taking the shot through the throat. Black dust pours from both wounds as he whirls to face Kup.

Yeah, the black dust? That is not standard issue for a Terlios Vil hybrid. They usually bleed green, like normal people.

A shot like that should have killed the guy, actually.

His hand comes up to gather the dust pouring from his throat, and he flings it out in an arc toward Kup.

"That was a very stupid thing to do," he says of Spinister's shot. Scrub's voice has an odd echoy quality, as if it's being formed without vocal cords now.

That's exactly what's happening.

[Spinister]

Spinister is displeased to be faced with an opponent that can dodge a shot from this close a range. Really. He can freaking write his name on a microchip with his laser from two miles away. But he simply stays displeased and doesn't get angry. It's hard to feel anything but numb, and even if he cod get angry more easily, he wouldn't, because that would be counter-productive.

Spinister sighs and offers, though it pains him to speak on several different levels, "Surrender."

But he still shoots anyway, this time aiming for the torso. He doesn't really care if Scrubs is flinging weirdo dust at Kup, and unlike Kup, he doesn't need Scrubs alive for questioning.

[Kup]

Kup automatically pulls his left arm up to keep the dust off him, but that leads to dust all over his arm instead. "Aaaanh....ahhhh!" he gasps out in pain, stumbling backwards. He stares down at his arm, mouth open as the remaining paint and the outer layers of armor start to decay before his eyes, and he can feel the armor grow more brittle.

The feel reminds him a bit of Cosmic Rust, which is a bit odd, since he can't see any actual rust there.

He very much wants to rip that thing apart, but looks like touching it with his hands might be a bad idea.

Kup makes a grab for the instrument table and flips it to its side, holding it in front of him as a shield as he tries to approach, if possible to hold him down with the table. He shoots a glare at Spinister.

"You're the one who pointed out that this is more than just one person, y'blamed misclocked, rotor-wrung pile o' scrap!"

[SceneMod]

"Surrendering would be breaking pattern," Scrubs says softly, before that shot through the torso jerks him around, sending him spinning against a built-in shelf. More dust, but what's coming from his torso seems oddly viscous, flowing out of him more than pouring. He actually covers the wound with his hand before pushing himself off the shelf and stumbling to one side. Apparently, Spinister hit something important this time.

Kup's table clips Scrubs as he stumbles, knocking him to the floor. Scrubs isn't moving well at all, and Kup could probably pin him easily enough.

If Spinster doesn't kill him first.

[Spinister]

What, getting holes shot in him by a drugged out helicopter is normal? Good grief.

When Kup flips over Spinister's cover, Spinister reluctantly, shakily, rises into a crouch and snaps out a pair of handcuffs, Hairsplitter and Singe taking cover behind him, and he hisses, "You have the right to remain screaming."

If Kup pins the thing, Spinister will make an attempt to cuff him. Kup can ask the more useful questions. Spinister is just here to be spooky and ominous.

[Kup]

'You have the right to remain screaming'? That's... actually a pretty good line, but Kup's not about to admit that to the Decepticon!

While the... the whatever it is seems slower and weak, Kup presses his advantage, attempting to pin him beneath table.

"Explain yourself!" he snaps furiously. "Why?! And I don't want to hear any nonsense about cleaning up the streets! There's sure as hell a lot simpler and cheaper ways to commit murder than this whole, sick affair!"

[SceneMod]

Scrubs is pinned, though because of the way he falls under the table, Spinister will only be able to cuff one wrist.

The trapped hybrid rolls his eye up at Spinster, chiding slightly in that flat oddly-echoing voice, "That was terrible. Situationally appropriate, but terrible none the less."

His attention swings back to Kup as the old-timer rails.

"Even a rotten shard can be redeemed, if excised from the diseased tissue. But a proper tenderizing is needed to get it to let go the darkness."

Scrubs doesn't look particularly pained or fearful. Maybe getting shot through the torso is a normal pattern for him.

[Spinister]

Spinister cuffs the hand, because that is one less thing to worry about, and he demands, "Who are you working for? Names."

Ugh, talking. He doesn't like this, but Kup is right - they need to know more. They can kill Scrubs later.

[Kup]

Kup continues to hold down Scrubs, not pulling back the table enough for him to get an arm loose or anything similar. He narrows his optics and things the matter.

"Y'know..." he says, considering, "this is reminding me more and more of a situation I ran into back on Teligioym Tar." He tilts his head and considers. "Nasty business. Ended up in the middle of some sort of underground religious war being carried out by a splinter faction against the main faith." He shakes his head, then glares down at Scrubs.

"So, how many of these folks have you managed to 'redeem' so far?" he growls.

[SceneMod]

Scrubs rolls his eye up at Spinister again. "I don't work for anyone. As I said, I sometimes get fed those that certain powers prefer to cease existing. It has, over the years, been a mutually beneficial arrangement."

The trapped murderer isn't struggling at all under the table. He seems almost eerily calm, actually. The hole in his throat has closed up by now, but he's still talking in that echoey voice.

The table where it is pressed against Scrubs torso is weakening. It isn't visibly apparent, but depending on Kup is pressing down, he might be able to feel the change in tension.

"In death, all find redemption."

[Spinister]

Spinister files away the planet name that Kup drops, but he focuses on Scrubs more. Patiently, so very patiently, he demands, "These powers. Who are they?"

One thing at a time. Next, he intends to ask about the cameras and tripwires or perhaps the black shadow...

His optics show a scowl. No, death is failure.

[Kup]

When Scrubs talks about 'redemption' in death, he loses his temper and, with a savage snarl, brings his fist down to strike a blow against the strange alien's face. He manages to restrain the blow to account for an organic opponent, somehow, though barely.

"So we're right back to murder through torture!" he roars, furiously. "And what the hell gives you the right to decide these folk even need to be redeemed?!" He draws back his fist for another blow.

He's not entirely sure he'll be able to restrain this one.