Ever since returning from his ‘walk,’ Neo has been in a genuinely good mood. So much so that if he were capable of using a mouth, he’d be smiling like a maniac. He looks up towards the tall ceiling, where he had hanged Ava by her (broken) wrists all the way up on the ceiling, like a trophy. It was admiring to see such a fierce, rampant spirit be reduced to nothing more than a helpless, quivering mass. This is the kind of thing that he gets off on - seeing his victims powerless and unable to stop his madness.
He had sent a message directly to the Resistance. A simple request. A request to find him his seventh emerald, trapped within the body of a lesser copy, and he would return Ava to them.
He has not received a message back in response. But he was well aware that there is a chance someone was going to come to her rescue… And as he always says - let them come. Let the madness of his reign wash over any fool that dares to try to oppose him.
Red eyes stared blankly at the door to his chamber, waiting to see if anyone was brave - or foolish enough - to rescue this girl.
Meanwhile, he would speak to Ava, thoughtfully.
| ᑎOT ᗩ SIᑎGᒪᕮ ᗯOᖇᗪ ᗷᗩᑕK ᖴᖇOᗰ YOᑌᖇ ᖴᖇIᕮᑎᗪS. I'ᗰ ᗷᕮGIᑎᑎIᑎG TO TᕼIᑎK TᕼᕮY ᗪO ᑎOT ᑎᕮGOTIᗩTᕮ ᗯITᕼ TᕮᖇᖇOᖇISTS… TᕼᗩT, Oᖇ TᕼᕮY ᗪOᑎ’T Sᕮᕮ YOᑌ ᗩS SIGᑎIᖴIᑕᗩᑎT. ᗩ Sᕼᗩᗰᕮ. TᕼIS ᗯOᑌᒪᗪ ᗷᕮ SO ᗰᑌᑕᕼ ᕮᗩSIᕮᖇ ᕼᗩᗪ I ᗩᒪᖇᕮᗩᗪY ᑕᒪᗩIᗰᕮᗪ ᗯᕼᗩT IS ᖇIGᕼTᖴᑌᒪᒪY ᗰIᑎᕮ, ᗩᐯᗩ. |
She’d woke up to the sensation of being STRUNG UP.
With the adrenaline wore off, she can feel the true damage to her body — both self - and other - inflicted. Her entire weight, minuscule as it may be, resting solely on her already shattered wrists is the loudest of her body’s many aches, but there are many. It’s almost helpful. The shock of her whole body’s suffering is enough that she can’t feel any one hurt too deeply — the pain is agony, but she feels like she’s surpassed a point where agony can hurt.
And so Ava has been drifting in and out of consciousness, head hanging heavy, chin against chest. The tears won’t stop falling — she can’t tell why. Maybe her body feels more pain than she realizes. PERHAPS SHE’S AFRAID. It’s hard for her to tell. She wonders, almost idle, how long he’s going to leave her here.
She stirs back to consciousness as he speaks from below her. His words don’t hurt — she thinks it’s GOOD. She isn’t significant. SHE ISN’T WORTH SAVING, and knowing that doesn’t hurt. Her friends won’t work with him. Even if they could get the last Chaos Emerald, they wouldn’t give it to him. THEY KNOW SHE’S NOT WORTH THAT. ( she hopes that making that choice isn’t hurting amy or knuckles or any of them too much. she hopes sonic is listening to them. if any of them would try to save her, it would be him. )
There’s still enough blood in her throat for her to raise her head and spit some at him. The movement strains her wrists, but she can’t find it in herself to care.
TO SAY THE CONVERSATION back at HQ went smoothly would be the biggest overstatement of the year . they’d already been in a panic over the disappearance of ava , desperately trying to come up with a plan to search for her in the midst of the warzone outside when the message from the self-described ‘ EMPEROR ’ came in . immediately , a heavy hush fell over the room , dozens of eyes staring , mortified , at the visual before them :
AVA — battered & beaten & barely held together — was dangling from broken wrists in the background . like she was an accessory , or a piece of decoration ; like she was nothing more than a TROPHY .
sonic felt his blood run cold .
the moments that then ensued now feel like a blur . they’d needed a PLAN , and the longer they spoke the more it became it apparent that they wouldn’t be able to keep the emerald safe & rescue ava without putting thousands of lives at risk . in the end , a tough call was made : they would do NOTHING .
— but sonic wouldn’t be running to the flagship if he was content with doing nothing .
ava was his FRIEND , and she was a good one , even one of his best . she’d fought for his friends when he couldn’t , and she’d been the first face he’d seen after his escape from his six-month stay on the death egg . she’d even thrown herself into null space for him — gone through hell right alongside him — without a shred of hesitation . sure , he’d saved her life in equal measure , but getting even wasn’t the point . she’d proven herself to be a loyal friend , AND FRIENDS DON’T LEAVE OTHER FRIENDS BEHIND .
if giving the chaos emerald up wasn’t an option , and leaving ava behind also wasn’t an option , then he’d just have to show this wannabe king who’s boss ! and if that didn’t work ? he’d try something else . he’d try again & again & again until something stuck .
he HAD to bring her home .
he couldn’t fail her again .
finally , he makes his way to & through the flagship , eventually coming to a halt within the door frame of the chamber he’d seen in the message . he sees ava FIRST . sees the shallow rise & fall of her chest telling him that she’s still breathing / still alive and that he’s NOT TOO LATE . she’s still fighting , and he’s proud — god he’s so proud — but it’s no time to marvel at how unbelievably BRAVE & STUPID she is . she’ll hear all about it later , surely .
for now he had bigger fish to fry .
green eyes flit to robotic menace before him , lids narrowing and lips curling into a signature smirk . ❛❛ y’know , interior design isn’t really my thing , but it doesn’t take an ARTIST to see that your decorating here is pretty tasteless . ❜❜ a gloved hand gestures toward the hanging rabbit , ❛❛ pretty sure the #1 design DON’T is hanging up living beings like tapestries , so i’m going to have to INTERVENE . hope you don’t mind . ❜❜
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