i'll be the key to your potential

Cayden Pryce | 24 | Key

[joenateuser]

ASHER ANGEL via Snapchat

[stunningmalecelebs]

Asher Angel

[killertwhips]

"Isn't that a fate worse than death, though? Making them brain dead traps them in their own body. Which if you talked to Tantalus Initiative Gossamer he would have been all for. But this Gossamer says no. Bad Key. No making villains brain dead." He reaches across the table, swatting Key on his shoulder. Taking a break from purely philosophical questions would be a nice change of pace. "It took me a while. The Mind Melder did a real number on me. Even now it's hard for me to accept the others as my equal." He admits plainly, seeing no reason to lie to Key. "I'm no better than they are because of my superior genetics or all of my training. We're all in this together. It'll be awhile before you see that, too." He pats Key atop of his hand in a semi-comforting gesture. Poor kid. Gossamer would do everything he could to steer him in the right direction and away from a life of possible villainy.

[keytoyourlock]

"Is it? They can contemplate their wrong doing inside their brains. And we save money on real prisons. I would give them fair and decisive warnings I swear." Cayden sighed and hung his head to the side as he looked at Gossamer with a dejected little look. Did Key actually accept the others as his equals? If he really thought about it. Gossamer. Sure. But some of the others were so illogical and made such inefficient choices.

"But. We are better than them. Because we have superior genetics and training." the statement was plain, and he was serious about it. "Can we get food? I would like, pizza." he said opening his phone and showing Gossamer the pictures of pizza he had been looking at. "This looks much better than nutrient paste and water."

[elparaisodetlaloc]

[joenateuser]

ASHER ANGEL via Instagram stories

[killertwhips]

perry saw a lot of himself in cayden. he had the very same line of thinking when he had first been thawed out of cryosleep. villains couldn't reoffend if they were dead. gossamer had to untrain himself, utilizing non lethal moves when taking down bad guys. he now saw himself as a heroic figure, one that promoted justice and bravery with a playful quip or two. "how would you react as a civilian if heroes just started executing criminals? it would promote fear which would lead to eventual violence against us." he explains as simply as he can, "we do what we can to minimize destruction as best we can. it's not always difficult, but we do what we can. now when you look over those questions keep that in mind. we do no harm. unless they really deserve it."

[keytoyourlock]

"but gossamer, if i make them brain dead then they aren't really dead and i didn't execute anyone. besides humans have a strong sense of revenge. like chimps, would the slighted civilians not want me to enact retribution onto those who wronged them?" there was no shame in his words, as someone who used to be a 'bad guy' though he had dealt with less civilians and more other super powered beings. the worksheets crinkled in his hands and he sighed.

"how do i know if they really deserve it? i think i need to take a break from this. i appreciate the help with it though. and all of the other things you do for me."

in truth the ideology that people like him and perry were superior to normal humans was still something that echoed in his brains. when perry asked him to empathize it was like asking him to look at the perspective of an ant. it was difficult for him. hence his comparison to chimps. "how long did it take till you were able to answers these correctly?"

[keytoyourlock]

location: key's dorm room

cayden would love to say he had opted for a dorm room but in reality he had been placed there so that he could have an eye kept on him. which wasn't totally an awful idea. while he was no overtly 'evil' in the sense he was a tool to be used and therefore did not feel bad taking the most logical solutions even if that meant hurting others. or making less than humanitarian and empathetic choices.

part of his rehabilitation involved mental activities that would try and teach him to be empathetic. however he kept failing this 'homework' because his views were less nuanced and much more utilitarian.

"i do not understand why i am not correct. my answers minimize the loss of civilians and maximize the relapse of wrong doers. they cannot hurt others if i destroy their ability to think or act ever again."

[malecelebsshirtless]

[handsomecleantight-deactivated2]

Asher Angel

[heavenbit]

Calvin glanced up from the paperwork spread across his desk, taking in Cayden's solemn expression and the carefully folded letter clutched in his hand. For a moment, he simply blinked, processing the earnest inquiry. "The Sand of Claws..." Calvin repeated slowly, setting down his pen. He pressed his fingers to his temple. "Cayden, I'm going to need you to start from the beginning. You've written a letter to… I'm sorry, who exactly do you think you're writing to?"

He gestured to the chair across from him, genuinely curious now. In his years overseeing Fortitude Hall, he'd handled countless unusual situations, but this was refreshingly unprecedented. "And when you say 'sacrifice,' I need to understand what you've been hearing people say about Christmas traditions. Because I assure you, the holiday involves significantly less bloody ritual magic than you seem to believe." Calvin's expression hovered somewhere between concern and amusement. "Though I'm intrigued by this theory about arcane postal systems. Maybe you should... talk to Aether about that..."

He leaned forward slightly, extending his hand. "May I read the letter? I think that might help me understand exactly what we're working with here, and what guidance you actually need."

[keytoyourlock]

"the omnipotent being who brings presents on christmas? sand of claws? you have to be good and he has a list that will tell him if you are bad or good? i assume it is magical or advanced technology. he wears a red suit. i have implored him to being hayden lots of things he would like. like knives."

cayden held out his list to the other man, earnest in his words and efforts, he was not being deceptive. he wanted their first christmas to be one that hayden would enjoy. "i assumed the gingerbread men were in place of real human sacrifice. like the idea behind a voodoo doll or japanese hitogata." cayden's letter was a short and concise plea to santa claus for him to being things to hayden for christmas, along with examples of how they had been good since waking up from cryo.

[gatewatchsword]

Elias just... stared. He wasn't sure if Cayden was fucking with him or not. Blinking, he hesitantly said, "I don't know if anyone's told you this... but Santa isn't real."

He'd been gone long before his own son was old enough to think about this sort of thing, so he didn't know how to deal with it. Frankly he hoped he wasn't somehow doing the guy harm. How did he not know this stuff?

"You need to make your Christmas list available to your friends and family. They get you the stuff you ask for. Ideally, at least."

[keytoyourlock]

"illogical. the pervasive reach of his story and supporting evidence suggest otherwise. that and the existence of multiple paranormal phenomena within this school would lend credence to his existence."

cayden had already come up to his own conclusion in the matter, he had done research, and compared to other beings, the existence of a santa claus, was likely. there were demons, angels, ghost, sand spirit. why not some undead saint who brought gifts to good people?

"i cannot show hayden as the things i am asking for are for him. that would ruin the surprise of christmas yes?"

[savioresque]

he was far from being a child, but hayden felt like he was starting a brand new life ever since he woke up from the cryo - sleep. he'd never experienced the normalcy everyone else was so familiar with, and all he had was his brother to ground him and reel him back from reverting to old habits. his therapist said that he was free now, that he and cayden could take this time to figure out who they really were without the mind melder's influence ⎯⎯⎯ but right now, all he was was lost. their upbringing might have been rigid, it might have been violent and cruel, but at least he had a purpose. at least he knew who he was. " why is it they say we have freedom now, but it feels like there are more rules to follow than ever before ? " hayden asked as he brought his hands to cayden's hips, foreheads still pressed together, a humorless chuckle slipping past his lips. he never really had to question what was right and wrong than ever before since it was all a matter of obedience, but now it felt like he was constantly walking a tightrope of morality. " fidget toys ? all my therapist gave me are worksheets to fill out whenever i am feeling sad or homicidal. she said writing my feelings down will help me work through them, but what it does is annoy me even more. being with you, like this, helps more. "

[keytoyourlock]

cayden sighed and nuzzled his nose against his twin's lovingly. people just didn't understand what it was like to be them. since he before he could remember he had always had hayden, hand in hand. mind's linked together. now he could only hear his twin when they were close together. like right now was perfect. he could hear the hum of his twin's mind and he was sure hayden could hear his. familiar. home. people who said they should learn to be my separate didn't understand what torture that was for them. at least for him it was.

"i will share my fidget toys with you. maybe next time we go to therapy we switch and you can have some toys too? i will do the worksheets and then we can get the best of both approaches to our wellness." he said softly. hands slid down hayden's back to also find purchase on his hips, hugging him close. ever closer. "being apart from you is the worst part of every day."

[killertwhips]

@keytoyourlock @savioresque

it was his heavy affiliation with the tantalus initiative that made him so protective over lock and key. they had never experienced a real christmas before and gossamer hadn't celebrated the holidays before being woken from cryosleep. he now loved the holiday season, finding it brought him a feeling of warmth and comfort he had never felt before. now it was his turn to teach the twins the reason for the season. so he had gone all out, decorating his apartment for christmas, baking cookies, and putting on christmas movies. they were going to make ornaments which would serve as gifts for the twins to hand out to the other heroes. a few knocks at the door make gossamer jump up and off of the couch. opening the door he greets the twins with a wide smile, "hey!" he pulls lock into a hug first before wrapping his arms around key. "I'm glad you guys made it. are you ready to get jolly?"

[savioresque]

they might be competent killers, but lock and key lacked experience in most facets of life ⎯⎯⎯ especially the ones that weren't available to them while they were with mind melder. it was almost like they were relearning how to live again, but they'd been lucky enough that someone who was on the same boat as them wanted to help them integrate into this brand new world. so of course, they couldn't miss gossamer's invitation, and hayden even made an effort to wear an ugly sweater : a holiday tradition he didn't quite understand, especially with how scratchy and itchy it was, but he wanted to show he was all - in. " you know us, we are created to be ready for anything. and being jolly must be included in that now, " hayden nodded at perry with a smile before he looked at cayden. " though, it doesn't take much effort to be jolly when i'm with cayden. "

[keytoyourlock]

christmas was an odd ritual one and not one he had ever really observed before when they were with mind melder. it seemed the customs, color palette and decor were standardized long ago which meant literature on the subject. he approached this as he approached every project. meticulous study. though it wasn't dossiers and stolen files on enemies this time it was A Christmas Carol, and funny little picture books that he had pieced together Christmas from.

the hug was nice though and he cayden hugged back maybe squeezing on perry a bit too hard before letting go. he was used to physical touch from hayden but not other people. normally touching others meant he was utilizing his abilities now.

cayden's hand found hayden's and he laced their fingers together, giving it a squeeze. cayden had opted not to wear the sweater one he felt the material but he thought hayden looked cute wearing it.

"the prevailing literature says we must be good and charitable. you inviting us will surely get you in good graces with the santa claus. i am confused on if the ghosts will show up because we were once 'not nice'. " cayden made air quotes with one hand saying 'not nice'.

@killerthwips @savioresque

[raspberry-panda]

[ascoresdoamor]

Kyle Allen 🤌

[keytoyourlock]

"i have written my letter to the sand of claws. here I have outlined why it is we are deserving of gifts and all the things i would like for him to bring to us."

cayden was new to holidays and he hadn't been interested enough to read about them so it was all just things he heard people say. gathering bits of information as people fluttered about it all. his letter was all things he wanted hayden to have for christmas. that and a tandem bike for the two of them.

"will you help me mail this off? i am to understand that is is not the same as mailing regular mail because he is an arcane being and i do not know the ritual or power required. also does he not need some sort of sacrifice besides cookies?"

[savioresque]

hayden had never felt more like a fish out of water : living a life without a clear purpose ever since the death of mind melder. he knew now that their loyalty to an evil man was misplaced, but albeit all the reconditioning and therapy, he still couldn't help but miss the fulfillment from being part something big. of something special. maybe it was just nostalgia for everything he'd ever known, but at least cayden by his side was a near - constant he could always rely on. " you think gossamer is going to let us jump that deluge guy ? " he was only half - joking, but hayden was desperate for an outlet for the urges he shouldn't enable anymore. being a hero after everything they'd done felt like a joke, but it was necessary for both of their survival. " or maybe we can figure something else out. i don't really know what to do with my hands anymore, not when i've only used for harm before. " @keytoyourlock

[keytoyourlock]

cayden had sad it once and he would say it again, he felt like something had been amputated from him. his loss of powers, the loss of their leader. the loss of a huge chunk of his life while in cryo. at least he still had hayden. were the natural twins, were the clones? he didn't know nor did he care. hayden was his other half, his own self. he could never be whole without him. moving to his twin he wrapped arms around his shoulders, gently massaging his neck with one hand as he pressed their foreheads together. "he would never allow us to actually hurt one of the students. you know this."

cayden sighed, he understood that feeling. what it was like to be so unsure. all the conditioning and the brainwashing, he had done terrible things but was he a terrible person? he couldn't believe hayden was a terrible person and they were the same right? "i find books a comfort. and fidget toys. my therapist gave me several."