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"The hell do you mean, you won't allow yourself to be assigned to that idiot?!"
Subspace's hands hit down on the table in anger as he stood up, papers flying in all directions.
"Who the fuck do you think you are to decide who you're put onto or not?!"
Hyperlaser, instead of flinching, quickly caught a pen flying towards him and pinged it back at Subspace, causing him to flinch a little when it hit his forehead.
"I believe I am a human with my own being and will. I'm unfortunately not a creation of yours."
Subspace slammed his fist down on the table again before pulling away suddenly, walking up to Hyperlaser and yanking his helmet off his head before grabbing him by the hair, pulling him close and hissing in his ear.
"You are but scum below me. I am what allows you to sustain life." A sudden kick to the gut was enough to send Hyper stumbling, despite being more strong and sturdy than the other party.
"So how about you don't question me?" Subspace spits at his feet, letting out a low growl of frustration. "Look, it doesn't matter. Why'd you ask to call in?"
"I want to resign."
It immediately turned to a stare-down between the two. Subspace's voice was shaky, on the verge of breaking, snapping, cracking as his mouth morphed into a grotesque smile. "What?"
"I want to resign from this. I'm sick of hunting down people that have no affiliation to me."
Sub lets out a shaky giggle which turns into a laugh. "I guess I'm the lucky one today then."
"What?"
"And I just finished it today, too..."
"What are you talking about?"
"...hah... hahahahah..!"
He lets out a sly smile, facepalming as he tries to calm himself. "I had a present for you, too." He lifts a blue helmet similar to Hyper's, newly designed and re-polished.
Hyper eyes the helmet, a little vain as he imagines himself wearing it.
"If you give it to me now, I won't mind leaving without the pay you owe me from so long ago."
"Oh, oh yes, of course, of course you can take it! Here, let me help you."
Hyper's brain is whirring with the possibilities of sabotage or murder at the sudden change of pace.
"No, I'll... put it on myself. Thanks, though?" He takes the helmet with gentle hands as Sub tosses the old one into the corner, watching it break into many small pieces with a loud clunk.
As he slides the helmet over his head, he can immediately tell something is wrong. Something is very, very wrong. Something wraps around his neck tightly, binding the helmet to his head, almost choking him.
"Subspace, what the fuck did you do?! What is this?!"
"I'm not dealing with your INSOLENCE, Hyperlaser. I'm sick of this." With a simple flick of his wrist, a grey and red Biograft enters the room, standing mobile next to Subspace.
With another tiny flick of his finger, a recording starts. It's a little patchy but two men are heard through the static.
"I really don't -STATIC- do this."
"Well, can't you resign?"
"I think he'd kill me."
"He doesn't -STATIC- keep his Bios around 24/7, does he?"
"I really don't know what's behind -STATIC- in his office."
"You could try. If something goes wrong, just run to me."
"...okay, okay. I'm trusting you here. -STATIC- ask him to let me resign."
"Please don't let me die."
The recording ends. Hyper's terrified face is hidden by his newly-made mask. Sub merely lets out a fake chuckle before giving him a rough glare.
"You traitorous piece of shit." The helmet's rim tightens yet more, causing Hyper to choke on his own breath when it restricts.
"You stupid fucking cockroach. I should've killed you when I had the chance. Yet..."
The helmet loosens and Hyper lets out an audible gasp for air. "Maybe I'll let you live, if you kill Katana for me, like you were MEANT TO DO."
The room fills with silence and fear, the joy on Sub's face reflected in Hyper's visor. Hyperlaser evaluates his options, his escape routes - nothing. He's blocked in.
If he runs for it, he's dead anyways. But as much as he loved Katana, he couldn't bear the weight of death.
Not yet.
"...don't kill me. I'll do it. Just spare my life."
"That's what I like to hear."
Hyperlaser begins to ponder again as Subspace walks over to a cabinet, unlocking it. ("It's not like my bond with him is THAT close anyways... I'll just kill him and get another helmet. What's the big deal anyways?")
Despite having just been blackmailed, he can't help but chuckle at the sight of Subspace struggle to lift his railgun out of the cabinet, watching him stumble around with it and bumping into his Biograft.
"Just give it to me already."
"I expect you to fulfil your mission. Or else, well... you know what'll happen with that pretty little neck of yours."
"...I'll be back with the mission results later. I'm heading out."
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Thoughts dwelled on his mind, as heavy as the railgun on his back. The heavy realisation of the helmet on his head at risk of choking him to death was constant, a terrifying thought above his head.
"Why did I ever let him talk me into this?" He trudged on, barely concentrating as he wandered down from the mountains and towards the cabin he and Katana drank together at.
There was a dark figure down there - turned out Katana had been waiting. He approached his tall form, sweating under his helmet.
"Did he let you resign?"
"Yeah. It was a close shave though, I almost died."
"Niiice. Where'd the helmet come from by the way?"
"He said it was a gift he had, but he gave it to me at the cost of not having to give me the pay he owes me when I left."
Katana frowned, but brushed it off, opening the cabin doors.
"Come on. The fire's already burning. I know you won't freeze, but I will."
"Sorry, sure. Come on."
Both of them step in, Katana stooping down to get in through the door.
"You seem uneasy."
Hyperlaser's entire body stiffens as he looks away. His eyes dart behind his visor desperately, trying to stop himself from shaking out of worry.
"Uh... well, I did just..."
"Resign?"
"...y-yeah."
("I'm so sorry, Katana. That I'll have to do this.")
The helmet restricted out of the blue and he fought to look normal as he began shaking, trying not to choke or cough.
"Hey- hey-! Don't- uh, cry or something-"
Katana patted Hyper on the back awkwardly, unsure of how to help him. "Hey- lie down, or something, I have food if you need it, come on."
The helmet finally released its grip and he gasped for air. Katana hides a frown behind his own mask. "What's up? Didn't you want out of Blackrock anyways? Thieves' Den is always open if you need it."
"No, it's... nothing."
Katana lets out a low sigh. Placing his blade against the wall, he turns his back away, moving away from him for a bit.
"I'm gonna make us some soup. I think you need it."
The visor tightens again - a low hiss of pain escaping his lips.
("I'm so sorry, Katana.")
The low clanking of the railgun sounds out, barely echoing within the wooden walls of the cabin.
"You good? You sound in pain."
("You don't deserve this. You never did.")
"...Laser? What's wrong?"
("But this was going to happen anyways.")
". . ."
The railgun drags slightly along the ground as the butt of the gun presses against Hyperlaser's shoulder to steady the blow.
("Fate isn't avoidable.")
"The soup's done. Just... take it easy."
Holding the trigger. Adrenaline running. Charging the shot that could change his life for whoever knows long.
"Here you g-" Katana turns to face Hyperlaser with two bowls in his hand.
Hyper's voice shakes madly as he lets out low sobs. The helmet constricts again. If he gives in now...
"I'm so sorry. I'm so, so, so sorry."
"...I can't say I didn't see this coming."
Katana's eyes dart to his blade.
"But that's not going to charge in time. I can just..."
The shot fires. For such a bulky body, he moves quick, dropping the soup, grabbing his blade and reflecting the sudden fire, blasting the wall to pieces and exposing them to the cold.
The fragments of wood blind them both. Katana approaches him slowly, towering over him.
"You never resigned, did you?"
"...no."
Katana scoffs.
"Were we even ever acquainted?"
The helmet restricted more and Hyper choked desperately. Katana no longer showed remorse. Not anymore, and not for the pitiful man in front of him.
"Fool."
Hyperlaser let out a low growl of pain before lifting the railgun again, standing up and taking aim.
"Close range is not a problem. Not with you."
"Is that so?.."
The standoff remained for a few minutes, before-
"I'm done with this."
A rope wraps around Hyperlaser's waist as Katana flicks his wrist, pulling Hyper towards him.
In response, he fires off from his railgun, but the close range fucks him up - another hole is blasted in the ceiling. The debris forcefully separates the pair as they glare at each other unseeingly.
The visor tightens once more.
Hyperlaser circles him in the unsettled dust of the collapse, ignoring the desperately flickering fire close to consuming the cabin. Katana swipes his hand across his blade, causing it to glow brighter as he cleaned it of the dust that had settled on it.
And lunges.
The blade drives right through Hyper's gut, and his visor fills with blood as he coughs. As Katana pulls his blade away, Hyperlaser stumbles desperately, leaning on his railgun as he steps away.
("If I don't finish this now I'm going to die.")
"I'm so sorry."
Hyperlaser threw a flashbang at his feet between them, blinding Katana as he stumbles with a frustrated grunt.
"What-?"
"I'm so fucking sorry."
The railgun charges. Katana realises what's happening, and tries to shift his foot-
He can feel the shock of it hit him. He can't see it, but he feels every second of it. The electric pulsing through his veins, the absolute pain he experiences. The feeling of his blood pouring out in rivers.
"You really..?"
"I'm sorry."
Katana looks over his shoulder at him, mask slipping off - all to reveal a pained, betrayed face, tear-stained and tired. "Good fight, eh?.."
And he collapses forward, lying flat, his blood seeping darkly through the floorboards, staining the debris and the wood, two bowls of soup spilled on the floor.
A crime scene if there ever was one.
When Katana's breathing ceased, the visor releases Hyper's throat, allowing him another fresh gasp of air - before an explosion of dancing flames behind him.
The mechanical clunking of that same red Biograft trudges into the cabin through the hole in the wall.
"SUBSPACE HAS REQUESTED THAT YOU RETURN TO BLACKROCK TO FUTURE BRIEFING AND REWARDS FOR MISSION COMPLETION."
"...yeah, yeah, whatever..."
The Biograft picks up Katana's body messily without regard for it, almost dragging it.
"Take more care with him."
"IT IS, MEDICALLY, A CORPSE. NO CARE IS REQUIRED."
"Do what I say. I'm Subspace's co-worker."
"NO COMMANDS TO FOLLOW ORDERS FROM USER: HYPERLASER."
"Whatever."
Hyperlaser stumbles and trips out of the cabin, looking back at the flaming mess, the fire reflecting brightly on his helmet.
Then he turns away, limping, dragging his railgun behind him weakly as he returns to Blackrock's mountains.
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"Ahh, you're back! Hello, Hyperlaser."
Subspace was sitting back in his chair, feet crossed on the desk, hands behind his head and buried in his own hair.
"Is he disposed of?"
"Can I have that new helmet yet?"
"Aw, are you not SATISFIED?"
"I'm serious. I almost died. I did what you wanted."
Subspace frowns.
"I guess you're just not happy."
"That's..."
A blade pierces the back of Hyper's head, followed by extreme pain as he falls to his knees, screaming out as blood pours to the floor, dirtying the carpet.
"...quite the shame, you know?"
"Katana really should have finished you off, but at least I get the honors to do that now!"
From there, no more words leave the blood-filled helmet.
"Aw, but we'll have to clean this now..."
"Just leave the corpse on the floor, Biograft."
"Both of them deserve to be dead anyways."
"Traitors."