museboxingring | I couldn't leave you there. (feat. Joseph)

I couldn't leave you there. (feat. Joseph)

[Joseph was still alive.

They kept him there, why? To prod at his brain some more? What could Joseph have that could keep him in this hellhole for any longer than he.

He thought they were over this, that they could walk it off and walk away.

But this shit was following them, and Joseph didn't follow him out of the building. Sebastian thought he was dead, he didn't know at all there was a possibility that he had still lived. Kidman shot him back there while attached to that freak machine. She set him free, they let him walk out of the building for air. To walk off any grogginess and pain, and to gauge just how much of what happened was even real.

He watched Leslie leave, vanish. Like a ghost that never existed.

Sebastian found it hard to believe, there was nothing he could do, it was another trick that his mind did.

And they won't be exposing that to Joseph anymore.

He received an anonymous tip from home, Sebastian still not have returned back to precinct since the incident for many reasons.

It must have been a few weeks, but he received a letter in the mail. Mail, one of the only things he brought himself to get outside. He took to drink heavily, and awoke one afternoon hungover and even groggier. But he became sober when he received a tip from that anonymous sender, no return address or name.

Just someone typing up something on a blank page in an envelope.

Joseph is still alive.

Someone knew. Someone knew him.

Sebastian suspected for a moment.

Someone he knew could only send this.

Then he stopped thinking. He grabbed his pistol and walked out his door. Speaking of crazy things, he was about to do one right now.]

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[STEM had not been particularly kind to Joseph. If at first they'd assumed that 'Ruvik' was the bad guy in all this, they'd been wrong. Even without that monster's presence, STEM continued to be a horrifying place. MOBIUS would make sure of that.

Not that Joseph knew exactly when Ruvik's influence ended and MOBIUS's began. All he knew was that he was caught in a neverending nightmare of blood-stained walls, distorted paintings and vicious freaks who were out to kill him. Over time (how long was it? A day? A week? A year?) he began to lose himself in it. He began to forget.

Why was he in here again? This was all fake, right? Or was it real life after all? Didn't he have a family? Didn't he used to have a partner who would come running from time to time to watch his back? Who was that again?

He was all alone now. Left behind to fend for himself. There were times when he would still be lucid enough to run. To avoid all those other monsters and attempt to find a way out. Then there were the times when he would become the monster. Times where would lose himself entirely and black out, only to find he'd massacred a dozen others. The headaches were unbearable. The fear was unbearable. He tried to take his own life several times, but always failed. There was always something that stopped him, be it some outside influence sent by MOBIUS or the little voice in the back of his head telling him not to do it.

When the big lumbering figure with the safe for a head finally put him out of his misery, he was glad. The last thing he felt as his body 'burned' was a sense of relief.

Only, that wasn't the last of it, because MOBIUS wouldn't let him go quite that easily. The moment his heart stopped and his consciousness became disconnected from STEM, they pulled him out of that machine and resuscitated him. His heart was started back up by force and they locked him away in one of the many rooms below Beacon mental hospital, all the while discussing grand plans of what sorts of tests to run next.

Or maybe... Maybe he was still inside STEM. From one hellhole into the next and with his mind deteriorated as far as it had, it was impossible to tell the difference.]

[Sebastian didn't want to throw down a full shoot out threat when he came into the building. But he was going to be, at the very least, authoritative. His gun was in his holster, his badge clear on his trench coat, and a face molded out of determination. His partner, if he was really in here, was getting out.

And if this "anonymous" tip was actually a trap to sucker him back into this hellhole to probe him again, then he was ready.

He would be ready to be that cop. If it meant this would be the last time he went through those doors. It gave him shivers, and he had to prevent himself from vomiting out of stress...and that hangover.

He was dealing with MOBIUS again, and he honestly didn't know how much control he could have. He knew these corporate types, too much power to handle and enough corruption to bury the city.

There was a lady at the front desk. That was the first place to go. So, this lady could know nothing or everything. Depended on how far the information scoped.]

Police.

[Sebastian, now sober, put on his best cop face for what he was going to do.]

"Uh, yes? May I help you?"

[She looked at him with eyes of familiarity. As he suspected she would. Sebastian kept it cool, thinking about how he could go about this.]

I'm looking for my partner, Joseph Oda, who had gone missing a few weeks ago. This was one of the last places he was seen.

[She clenched, this wasn't good. Sebastian had to play his card more firmly now.]

I don't recall him being admitted and the police being informed of it.

[Though he didn't know what the police would've gotten, he hadn't shown up there for a few weeks. But since he was HIS partner, he wasn't notified. Nor any family coming to him about it. So, he assumed, that the police didn't get the memo. The lady typed on the computer.]

"U-uh, well we could've swore we sent the papers to the police about it. But he was admitted at that time weeks ago, he committed suicide in his room yesterday. If you weren't given the memo...I'm sorry for your loss."

[Sebastian wasn't buying it. It was odd but he really kept to that "anonymous" tip. This lady knew things, and she was an awful liar. But she was paid to shut up, she wasn't the company. And yet...Sebastian flashed his gun from his trench coat and muttered under his breath with venom.]

You must take me for an idiot. Withholding information is like lying, and holding a person against his will is kidnapping.

I'm not interested in what kind of pussy footing you are taught to do for who the hell pays your bills. I just want you to be honest, else I'm sure this place would love to be charged with kidnapping an officer.

[He whispered even softer.]

You don't think I don't know what's going on? So what's it going to be? Are you going to tell me the truth about my partner? Or I could throw down this entire shit stain establishment until I find him.

I'm not scared of what you could do to me. Don't be the line I have to cross to find out what happens from here on out.

[The lady tensed. On a normal day, Seb would feel maybe a little guilty. A little. He wasn't now. The gun meant he could shoot her, and everyone else. Or he could plow through her and find Joseph then destroy the company. Either way, she could live or die. Through Seb's hands or the company's. The lady went through so many options in her head, she was scared.]

[MEANWHILE IN THE BASEMENT...

Joseph is sitting in the corner of a small room with pillowed walls. Clad in simple white pants and a white shirt, he'd probably look indistinguishable from an actual mental patient. In fact, his behavior has started to match Leslie's to some degree.

He's staring blankly into space, but it's not like having his attention there would make much of a difference. They took away his glasses, just like they took everything he could use to hurt himself. He probably would hurt himself if he could. His fingers have been weaving in and out of a hole in his shirt for a few hours now. It's the only thing he can do to keep his hands busy. His head is resting sideways against the wall and his knees are pulled up towards his chest. It's comfortable enough like that.

He knows that this isn't right- he knows that he needs to get out, but if he raises too much of a fuss, they'll drug him into submission again. That's no good either.

And maybe he does belong here. Maybe he is crazy. He can barely remember what might be waiting for him outside this place anyway.]

[While that was going on, Sebastian left his mark on the desk lady and she gave him access to the back behind reception. The camera room.

Sebastian started to then mess with the cameras while the desk lady kept watch. He got rid of the guard fairly easily, just a shine of the badge and gun. Detective business, he stated. But that cover would only last so long as Seb was looking through expansive secret camera feeds. The guards were about to switch shifts, so the lady watched out for the relief. For extra padding, she sent the current guard on a false alarm saying she heard a loud scream from the phone line directed to another part of the building. The woman was standing by the desk but wary of the cop in the room. Again, Sebastian wished he didn't have to technically hold this woman by gunpoint but if he was planning a jailbreak then...he had no choice. These people weren't going to comply to reason alone.]

Which room.

"R-room B-28...basement level. Male ward."

[Aha, after a few more clicks from the computer there was the ward. He watched old footage from that area and found a few men drag another and tossed him in that padded room.

The glasses were gone, but that face was unmistakable.]

What the hell did you bastards do to him?

[Sebastian said this out loud, he didn't care if the lady who had no involvement with Joseph personally heard it. He clicked off the camera feed. By force if he had to, Joseph was getting out. He was just about to turn around and take his plan into action when he heard the click of a weapon. Few weapons. He turned to look at the high security guards who aimed rifles right on his head.

...

Next thing Joseph would see would be a few guards opening his cell and getting ready to grab him. A voice behind said guards would mutter:]

"Congrats, Mr. Oda, you've just been discharged."

Edited 2015-08-21 23:01 (UTC)

[The moment the door opens, Joseph tenses and scuttles further into a corner. They usually slide food through the flap. Any time the door actually opens doesn't bode well for him. They might decide to run a few more tests on him. Take a bit more of his blood. Or maybe...

Maybe they'll throw him right back into that world of horrors. Maybe he won't even need to leave the building. Maybe the moment they drag him through the door, the scenery will change and all of a sudden he'll find himself in a ruined village. Or a distorted mansion. Or a church with Haunted hiding behind the pillars. That's what STEM does when he moves around too much. Just when you think you're making progress, the world turns upside-down and inside out. He'd rather stay put. He likes this place- it's quiet. He doesn't process what the voice says. All of his attention is on the guards who grab hold of him to drag him out of the room by force.

No more... No more!!!]

NO! LET GO! LET GO OF ME! DON'T! DON'T TAKE ME BACK THERE!!!

[Much as he tries to fight them off, it's in vain. There's three of them and only one of him. Besides, several weeks of complete physical inactivity take the strength out of a guy. His hoarse screaming isn't accomplishing much either, except perhaps piss the guards off.]

[This hurt to watch. Sebastian stood by the doorway leading to the elevator, carrying a box. Inside were Joseph's glasses, his badge, his gun, anything on his person before these people kept him here as their plaything.

He winced at Joseph's yelling. A man so composed that he kept Seb in line, was now writhing in agony and fear. Not even hearing what others were actually saying. There were others moaning in their rooms, and even then, Joseph's screeches pierced through all of them.

The man who ushered the freedom then walked calmly to Sebastian, with a satisfied expression on his face.]

"See, we all got what we wanted. It was that simple."

[Screw you, asshole. Sebastian kept his angry thoughts to himself, merely biting his lip in response.]

"You knew when you left, that things weren't just going to disappear. Nothing does when you leave the STEM. It all comes with...consequences."

Just remember what we promised and I'll sponge any bullshit you peddle.

"Right, right. This one goes free, no harm comes to Kidman."

And I have two weeks.

"Two weeks."

[The man then walked passed Sebastian calmly, and entered the elevator. But before he left, there was a resounding:]

"Pleasure doing business with you, Castellanos."

Yeah.

[He was gone. The moment the man left, Seb put the box down and walked to the wiggling man and the guards being rough with him.]

I got this from here, you're making it worse.

[Seb was so angry with every soul in this building that he could spit acid. The men nodded at him and left them alone. Seb walked on over and grabbed onto Joseph's shoulders, gently yet still firmly.]

Joseph. You're out.

[He's out? Out where? Out in the open, maybe. They should've left him where he was. It would've been safer for everyone. The hand on his shoulder did very little to soothe him.

He couldn't make out this guy's features. Not without his glasses. Not that it mattered; it was just another stranger. ... Or was it? The sound of his voice had some kind of familiarity to it, but he couldn't place it. Trying to force memories that weren't immediately prevalent in his head was like trying to remember dreams. The harder he tried, the more details he'd lose.

He couldn't respond. He couldn't think. All he could do was drop to his knees and clutch at his head. Migraines were common ever since he was first tossed into STEM. Maybe they'd never really stopped.]

[Before Seb came on over, he stuffed something in his trench coat pocket.

Joseph lost a lot of weight, and he was completely a shell of himself. Seb got even angrier. At the same time though, he had to accept it. After all, what was going to happen to him now, well...

The yelling had stopped, and the moaning from the other patients were still mulled from the situation. Sebastian knelt down to Joseph's level, trying to keep it together.]

Hey, I got something.

[He reached into his pocket to retrieve Joseph's glasses, and even put it on his face for him the moment he stopped clenching it. He really wasn't himself at all, and he wanted to help him back on his feet. If he ever does get on his feet again. Seb had to stop thinking what they could've possibly done to screw Joseph this way; they even took his glasses from him.]

[Having a pair of hands so close to his face out of seemingly nowhere snapped him right back out of his little trance. He flinched and tried to back away, but the next moment, the glasses were placed on his face. The world that'd been blurred for god-knows-how-long slowly moved back into focus.

He could see.

His own hands moved to the glasses as well, fingers sliding along the frame. ...These glasses were his. They were important to him. They were special. Right. A few stray memories finally dawned. They surfaced on their own and that's what made them last. He remembered what a pain it was to grow up with bad eyesight. He remembered his grandfather. And one more thing.

It isn't so much about seeing as it is about feeling normal..

He finally glanced up the man before him again, a frown tugging at his features. It wasn't a stranger.]

... Seb...?

There he is.

[Sebastian gave a sigh of relief. Joseph was still there, that was good. Good. Great. Maybe not entirely there, because lord knows how much they prodded his poor brain. But he was able to at least recognize him, return to a semblance of his old demeanor, and realize who he was to him. Partner and friend, hopefully.

Calling him "Seb" was a bonus to that.

It's going to be a long road, but that was a start. He patted Joseph on the shoulder, slightly boney now. Christ...]

Yeah, it's Seb. I'm here to get you out of this dump. You're going home.

[Home... Home?

He had a home. He had a family waiting for him. That was right. But then... He couldn't go back to them. Not anymore. Not after having slaughtered dozens- possibly hundreds of... people? Or things that used to be people. He couldn't go home, not knowing how long it would be until that took hold of him again.]

...You can't. It's... It's too dangerous.

[Keeping him locked in a small, pillowed room would've been in everybody's best interest. The less people he could potentially harm, the better.]

Edited (wow, half my tag disappeared, there) 2015-08-22 20:14 (UTC)

[In the drop of hat, Seb responded.]

You're right, so we're going to my place. I got space and it's clean this time, you'll have a blast.

[Because he knew old Joseph yelled at him far too much for his unkempt ways. It was his attempt at a joke, he had to try. Joseph had to come back to Earth now that he left his space shuttle. Piece by piece, he hoped he could come back.

It wasn't going to be easy, but Joseph had a life to lead.

Seb couldn't say the same for him. He had to do what he could, he didn't have forever.

He actually planned to have him stay until he collected himself. He could tell his family that he had to go on a excursion for work and that it was top secret enough that he had to leave his phone.

Whatever, he had to make that convincing so Joseph could be at peace.]

[Seb's place... Joseph honestly couldn't picture anything right now. Maybe when he saw it, he'd remember, but until then he was drawing a blank. Was it big? Was it big enough for Seb to run if Joseph lost control again?

It seemed kind of like a wasted effort. He wasn't the person he used to be and moving him elsewhere wouldn't fix that. ... Would it? It didn't seem like it, right now.]

You should... You should just leave me here.

[Beacon Mental Hospital was always there, in the distance. Always to be seen. It was where everyone who got trapped in STEM belonged, really. The final destination for those who had the madness within drawn out of them.]

[Honestly, he kind of expected this from completely sane Joseph. He took a lot of things to heart when it came down to it, he hated being a burden. Sebastian noticed there was that bit of insecurity under than composure. Well now that insecurity was on top of the composure, so to speak.

As much as Sebastian knew Joseph's state was too unstable to hammer down anything hard, he had to be at least a little bit firm.

Because he wasn't going to leave his damn partner here.]

You shouldn't have been here in the first place. Trust me, don't let this place make you think you belong here.

You don't.

How can you know...?

[Seb wasn't around for most of the insanity, was he? It's hard to say for certain. Everything is one giant haze of darkness, blood and violence. ...In fact, weren't there even more people? Didn't a few others enter STEM with them? Who were they, again...?

What happened? He can't remember and it's terrifying.]

I woke up and walked outside. Got a taste of the real world again, it does wonders to you compared to this place.

[Joseph just didn't follow him. Which Seb regretted. Not that Seb was sane himself, he wasn't and won't be over what happened here. Not for a long time, if ever. Especially since he's...well.

He didn't know how to make it so Joseph could realize that he didn't belong here, that he should come. At least, not logically.

Most of Joseph's logic wasn't around anymore so Seb had to do something else.

He patted Joseph on the shoulder, in some reassurance.]

It's been a few weeks, and I thought you were dead. Then I learned you weren't.

You're not crazy, you were an experiment. They fed you bullshit hoping you would lose your common sense and think this place was better for you. They made you feel that way and that's on them, not you.

[The 'real world'? Even that seems like a faraway dream. How can he ever know for certain that he's in the real world? What if it's just a trick?

Seb's right; they did feed him bullshit. He has lost his common sense. Sure, they were the cause of it, but that doesn't change the effects it had on him. It doesn't change that he might hurt other people because he can't keep a firm grasp on his old self anymore.

He shivers and slings his arms across his chest, lowering his head. Seb wants him to keep going, but it's so hard to do that when you'd rather just lie down and die.]

I'm... I don't... [What is he even trying to say? He doesn't know. Words are spilling out, but there's no rhyme or reason to them.]

This place isn't you. They can't keep you.

[Seb just continued talking and reassuring, feeling like he was talking to Leslie. Which was probably an accurate thing to say.

Leslie was broken, and was broken for a long time. Joseph has a chance to not be broken.

He continued.]

You have every opportunity to never see this place again, to get better. No one says it'll be easy but...we never did things easy.

[Could he get better? He honestly didn't know. It didn't feel like it right now. Then again, it never did feel like it can get better when a person hits rock bottom, did it? He wanted to get better, that much was sure.]

So you really think... it's not too late?

[They let you out.

He almost said that, but he couldn't bring himself to. It wasn't entirely truthful. Seb bargained to let him out. A bargain that cost him anything. Else they would've prodded at his brain further and further, and then Joseph really would be...

But that was besides the point.

There was a lot he could be truthful about. He just wasn't telling him those things here, no way.]

It's not. You got this far at least. You always had a good head on your shoulders.

We just got to put the pieces all back together. Like a puzzle, or one of those toy robots.

[He couldn't help but let out a sound of bitter amusement. It wasn't quite a laugh- more like a breath. A "heh" coupled with a grimace that was almost painful. If he glanced down at his own body- his arms or any other part he could spot- sometimes he'd be sure he could still see his skin crawl in the literal sense. Then he'd wonder if it was just a trick of the light or not.

Those were the kind of doubts he might never be rid of.]

That's a lot of pieces, Seb... [He trailed off, then drew a deep breath through his nose.] But I don't think... I can change your mind, can I?

You better remember quick that it's hard to do that.

[He stood up finally and offered a hand, to assist him back to his feet. Joseph wasn't going to be alone. Seb wasn't leaving him. Not like he did last time. Not until this place ripped him away.

It was unintentional but it felt like he messed up, that was what Seb thought.]

Come on.

Edited 2015-08-30 00:39 (UTC)

[His fingers twitched in a sort of reflex before he reached out to take Sebastian's hand. After spending so much time stuck inside a place that was really just imaginary, then another few weeks being aggressively manhandled, a genuine kind touch felt foreign. Welcome, yet foreign.

He tried to push himself back to his feet with Seb's help, but his legs were still weak and his knees attempted to buckle within seconds, causing him to stumble right into the man across from him.]

[It's not like Joseph ever seemed all that heavy to begin with, but he was in obvious good health before. Joseph could hold himself up just fine in the past. That wasn't now. It felt so strange to see that Joseph looked like he lost enough weight and how he could barely stand up steady. When Joseph fell, Seb had to hold his ground. Joseph may be light, but hell if Sebastian was going to fall backwards and make this even worse.

Seb stumbled a little bit back before gripping on to Joseph's arm, as if he was holding him up.]

It's okay, we can work on this.

[That pep talk was for the both of them.]

Nice and easy, that's the first solid step you took in weeks.

Edited 2015-09-02 16:16 (UTC)

[First solid step in weeks? Really? It felt like months. Maybe even years. If it'd just been weeks, he could've still pulled himself together. He should've been able to pull himself together. It would've been shameful if he couldn't. He needed to pull himself together.

Except that his ears were ringing now. There was a definite ringing. The ground felt like it was spinning. ...Maybe he was having some kind of mild panic attack now. Or a stroke. Maybe STEM caused some kind of brain damage that would've killed him off within another few weeks. Maybe that would've been for the best.

He scrunched his eyes shut, fingers digging into the front of Sebastian's coat. At the moment, all he could do was focus on remaining conscious. If he passed out now, there was no telling where he might wake up. ...Or maybe this was the dream. Just hopeful illusion concocted by his despairing mind.

Don't lose this moment.]

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