This Devil's Workday

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

The Master waits somewhere between three and four hours for Brainiac-5 to vacate the Medical Wing before setting up shop himself. He takes a free station (okay, so that may not be entirely unused...) and uncerimoniously dumps on it an assortment of the tools he's picked from the weapons lockers. Nothing heavy duty, he's mostly picked multitools and anything with enough internal components to cannibalise into something more useful.

Pulling up a chair and propping a pair of goggles on his forehead, he sets about looking for something to strip the equipment with.

((ooc: Open post, feel free to pester him.))

Comments

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

A figure in leather approaches, and observes him carefully.

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

You would have thought the scrunch of leather would rouse him, but he's busy whistling an insufferable melody to himself.

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

He says nothing to gather attention to himself. He merely observes.

As though the Master were merely a subject to investigate.

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

He continues on his merry way, leaving a trail of items that he's picked up and subsequently lost interest in before finally noticing the imposing figure curtly watching him.

He scans the newcomer's profile briefly and considers remarking on the leather-to-flesh ratio, before deciding otherwise, "I don't suppose you've seen a cutting device around here?"

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"Will a scalpel do?" he asks, opening a nearby console and reaching in for something.

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Actually, I was looking for something laser oriented," He would use his screwdriver, but the Master is pretty reluctant to let the Doctor know he still has it, "But most of this stuff is biological, I could make do."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"Then for the moment," he says, handing him a scalpel from the container area he's reached into. "I located a laser scalpel earlier of Diagnosian design, if you'd care to use it."

He steps forward. "Are you a doctor, then?"

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Oh, lord no," he seems to find the notion pretty hilarious, "I'm a lot of things, but I don't care for labels."

He takes the scalpel and sets himself in the chair he's claimed, "For now, I'm a prisoner. As, I suspect, are you."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"Aren't we all?" Scorpius replies. "I am Scorpius."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Saxon." No labels, right? He offers his hand, regardless of Scorpius' native culture, "You mentioned Diagnosians. It would appear that at least some of this technology is familiar to you, can you tell me anything about these?"

He waves a hand to the pile of equipment he acquired from Stacy's weapons bay. Most are the same sickly green, and pulse as the plantsuits do.

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"I've been spending some time investigating this vessel. It seems bio-mechanoid. But there are things from many societies from all over... likely over multiple universes. The Diagnosians are from my universe. Those from other worlds... I can usually divine the purpose if necessary, but I prefer to trust those devices that I am already familiar with, when possible."

He regards Saxon a moment. "You seem to be the same species as another I encountered earlier. He called himself the Doctor."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

The Master is about to either prove or disprove his theory that this particular gadget is an atmospheric sensor before Scorpius drops the D bomb. He slowly shrugs the goggles from his face.

"Yes, him. We studied together. He's a little insufferable, don't you think?"

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

Scorpius merely shrugs noncommittally. He's hardly going to get into a personal feud, regardless of how much he might agree.

"I will point out that 'prisoner' is not an entirely accurate assessment. Prisoners are usually kept in a set location, sometimes questioned rigorously..."

Scorpius himself is quite talented at questioning people rigorously, after all.

"...but we were brought here for a specific task. And we'll likely die facing whatever it is."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"What are you implying, that we should be preparing for conflict rather than for escape?" The Master uses the term 'we' carefully. He gets out of the chair and begins to pace, the gears starting to grind, "This ship, this entity doesn't seem too forthcoming--"

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"Of course not. One doesn't volunteer information to ones pawns."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Ignorance is bliss," he muses, "Mind, ignorance has a high threshold. Even grunts are given instruction, specific training for the task at hand. Hell, if they wanted us to succeed, they'd provide the motivation for it."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"They will, when the time is right. And that likely leaves only one form of motivation most likely."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Then perhaps they assume too much of their quarry." A hand falls to his side and after a few seconds, seemingly unnoticed by their owner, his fingers begin to tap out a simple rhythm.

Dum-dum-dum-dum. Dum-dum-dum-dum. Dum-dum-dum-dum. Dum-dum-dum-dum.

When his attention snaps back to reality, the rhythm ceases as quickly as it began, "Regardless, I'm not going to sit here and wait for armageddon. How about you?"

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

He smiles and leans in closer, then says softly, "I haven't been."

He steps back.

"Let's take a walk, Saxon."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

He beams back, "Lead the way, Scorpius."

Of course, there#s no guarantee this chap isn't just going to take him down a dark corridor and feast on his brains, but the Master's confidant he has enough hardware in his pocket to defend himself.

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

He leads him down several corridors, until he stops and looks around.

"Here. Stacy is incapable of hearing us here."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

The Master's eyes run over the walls, "Here? Why not here?"

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"She is deaf in several areas," he explains. "This happens to be just one of them. I have yet to discern the exact pattern or the edges of it... but this is definitely one of her deaf spots."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Aren't you resourceful--" he muses, "Okay, I'm listening."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

He brushes the wall idly, examining it for a moment, and then he speaks. "Allow me to state some painfully obvious facts that several others have not considered yet. Stacy is powerful enough to kidnap each of us from our various universes, and keep us here. There are trinkets of all sorts from across the multiverse, indicating that she travels the universes for pleasure... something that some of those within this ship are capable of, likely you as well, since the Doctor seemed to have some knowledge of that. However, Stacy's method appears to be beyond even your technological limits."

He turns to the Master with a grin.

"Which means that escape may not be the best option. Instead, I suggest... when the time is right, and when we are capable of doing so... mutiny."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

This is his 'hurm' face. He doesn't like the idea that someone could build something he couldn't, but he had to admit the sheer amount of foreign tech suggested that Stacy didn't come from his universe at all. Still, he enjoyed that word-- mutiny.

"If what you say is true and her technology does indeed surpass our ken, then how more effective do you expect a mutiny to be over an escape? Stacy may have some level of sentience, but she won't be subdued easily." The Master had found that out himself, and got a nasty headache as a result. Though, if they could find the right conduit...

He clicks his fingers loudly.

"Tell me, does this ship have a nerve center?"

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"It must. I have yet to locate it, but..." He smiles. "And superior technology does not mean that one is invincible. My encounter with Humans... or at least one in particular... proved that much to me."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

That's a subject he'd be better not mentioning. The drums are rattling around inside his head with the mention of humans. Though Scorpy was right, the Master himself had tried to placate them with special gizmos and what had they done? Used them against him.

"Then I propose we make finding that our first priority. With a direct tap into her brain, who knows what we might be able to achieve."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

He smiles. "Nerve centers... are one of my specialties. Send any information you find regarding that my direction, Saxon, and leave that to me."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"I will. Though it may not be easy with the Doctor here," a frown, "He has something of a vested interest in me. I'll do what I can to elude him, but you'd do well to keep an eye on him also. As you appear to have already learned, he's not as incompetant as he makes out."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

Scorpius nods. "And he seems to wish to trust Stacy for some reason I cannot fathom. But that is his loss."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"Trust is something he does rather well and if I can convince him to trust me, I should think we could avoid the better half of his scrutiny."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"Let me make this perfectly clear, Saxon. I do not trust you, nor do I expect you to trust me. But this is a situation where we can assist each other to get out of here. And I believe that there is more than enough for us both to get out of this arrangement."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"I don't think you understand quite how dangerous this man is. He's killed far more than this ship's crew in one sitting and I don't doubt his capacity to do it again. He kills to protect and as you say, he's keen to protect this ship. But he trusts, a little too haughtily."

The Master smirks. Lighten up a little, Scorpy, "Now, I'm not expecting your trust either and I don't require it, but his I would do well to entreat."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

"Excellent. Then we understand each other." He smiles again, lightly... but Scorpius doesn't ever fully lighten up.

"Now then. If there are others you wish to bring into this little mutiny... it would be best if I not know. I can withstand torture and psychic onslaught, but it is hardest to root out a conspiracy when all pieces do not know the other." He grins... a most chilling expression. "I intend to do everything possible to make our captor's life very... very... difficult indeed."

[kindofscary.livejournal.com]

"As you like it." The Master has no intention of sharing the grandstand with the others, but peons-- peons always looked good on him. Perhaps the Cooper woman, wouldn't that be delicious?

He takes a few steps back towards the Med Lab before waving back to his associate, "Be seeing you, Scorpy."

[leather-bastard.livejournal.com]

Scorpius watches the Master go, then turns and continues his wanderings.