Tag Archives: rp: demonplay

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

“You can’t possibly want him to stay!” she exclaimed. “It’s your life, your very body he’s taken! Damn near your soul!” She stepped forward, hands outstretched. “I want you to be able to be the man you were before he came along.”

“No, my soul is still mine,” Tony replied, deliberately missing the point.  He took two steps back, once again pointing the knife at her, his arm steadier now than when he had first pulled the blade out.  “See, I don’t really like that man.  Maybe you do, but that’s why you have your own.  I belong to someone else, Sunshine.”

“Don’t call me that!” She didn’t mean to say that out loud, but something about this space seemed to share her thoughts even as she was thinking them. “You don’t like who you were, so you’re going to give yourself over to someone worse? That’s stupid. He — that — the demon can’t save you. Only you can save yourself. And you’ve given up trying.”

If you’re going to bring him up, my gadgeteer — he never gives up trying to be better. No matter what, he doesn’t — and you just — you’d rather just lie down and let this thing destroy.”

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

It wasn’t the way his hand looked that brought her to flinch back; it was the sheer cruel joy he so clearly took in showing her. It literally shaded the air about him. Swallowing hard, she said, “Well, now that he’s gone, you could get it repaired, or I suppose build yourself a new one. It should be easier than the arc, yes?” She didn’t like the way he held on to the knife, either. “Please, I’m no threat to you.”

Tony shrugged easily, as if this was normal, casual.  “Not much point to it,” he replied.  “Like I said, it doesn’t bother him, what with whatever voodoo he uses to keep it functional, and I doubt he’ll be gone long enough for it to really get to me too much.”  His tone was so conversational, as if he was just discussing plans for dinner.  Like it was all a given, that his head wouldn’t be his own place for long, and he was entirely alright with that.  He tossed the knife up and caught it.  “What do you want, Summer?  To feel like you tried, where no one asked you to?  Congrats.  Run along.”

“You can’t possibly want him to stay!” she exclaimed. “It’s your life, your very body he’s taken! Damn near your soul!” She stepped forward, hands outstretched. “I want you to be able to be the man you were before he came along.”

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

“I don’t know how we got /in/ here; I can’t get us out!” She frowned, folded her arms. “No, look, forget that for the moment. What is wrong with your hand, and what in the world is wrong with your mind?” Her eyes flared, and she slapped one hand over her mouth. Even then, her own voice said, “That’s not how I meant to say that.”

His eyes narrowed sharply, and he held his hand all the closer to his chest.  But then he sort of smiled, and somehow it was even less Tony than any of Anthony’s manic, face-splitting grins.  “If you’re so curious, fine,” he ground out, and used his teeth to peel the glove off of his left hand, rather than put the knife away.

If anyone ever asked Anthony why he wore the glove, he deftly lied and said he hurt himself in the workshop and used the glove to preserve his pristine image.  He had, however, taken pains (literally) to make it convincing in case anyone wanted proof.  Patches of the skin had that faintly shiny look of scar tissue, with a deep, rope-like scar along the palm and between the index finger and thumb, so thick it looked like it had nearly severed the thumb.  The pinky finger was a strange, pale, shriveled thing, fixed in a claw.  It looked like his hand had gotten caught in a piece of the workshop’s more violent machinery.

“He’s better at using it as an actual hand than I am,” he informed her mildly, as he flexed the fingers as far apart as he could, which wasn’t much.  “But the nerves are all pretty much fried, so it doesn’t bother me all that much.”

It wasn’t the way his hand looked that brought her to flinch back; it was the sheer cruel joy he so clearly took in showing her. It literally shaded the air about him. Swallowing hard, she said, “Well, now that he’s gone, you could get it repaired, or I suppose build yourself a new one. It should be easier than the arc, yes?” She didn’t like the way he held on to the knife, either. “Please, I’m no threat to you.”

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

“Stop acting the fool and I’ll stop treating you as one.” One hand seized his elbow, and then it was as if she was falling, or the world went away; there was an unpleasant roiling in her gut.

Summer blinked, shaking her head hard. “What the fuck. Just happened.” She could see Tony, hand still clutched close to his chest, and the reactor seeming to flicker in and out of view. And nothing else. All around stretched greyness, filled with dim and sourceless light. She turned, slowly.

Tony went rigid at her touch, and then in surprise as he looked around quickly.  His grip on the knife tightened further, and he clicked it open slightly, enough that he would be able to flip it the rest of the way open with a flick of his wrist.

“What did you do?” he demanded, forgoing looking around this new scenery (or lack thereof) in favor of keeping his eyes on her.

“I— I think we’re in your mind,” she whispered. Even that small sound carried in the space. “Some kind of interaction between my gift and your time hosting the demon … “

“Then get us back out of here,” he snapped, clicking the knife open and closed repeatedly, in a nervous gesture.  True, it wasn’t nearly as bright here—why would the inside of his mind ever be bright?—but why would he want her in here?

“I don’t know how we got /in/ here; I can’t get us out!” She frowned, folded her arms. “No, look, forget that for the moment. What is wrong with your hand, and what in the world is wrong with your mind?” Her eyes flared, and she slapped one hand over her mouth. Even then, her own voice said, “That’s not how I meant to say that.”

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

“Stop acting the fool and I’ll stop treating you as one.” One hand seized his elbow, and then it was as if she was falling, or the world went away; there was an unpleasant roiling in her gut.

Summer blinked, shaking her head hard. “What the fuck. Just happened.” She could see Tony, hand still clutched close to his chest, and the reactor seeming to flicker in and out of view. And nothing else. All around stretched greyness, filled with dim and sourceless light. She turned, slowly.

Tony went rigid at her touch, and then in surprise as he looked around quickly.  His grip on the knife tightened further, and he clicked it open slightly, enough that he would be able to flip it the rest of the way open with a flick of his wrist.

“What did you do?” he demanded, forgoing looking around this new scenery (or lack thereof) in favor of keeping his eyes on her.

“I— I think we’re in your mind,” she whispered. Even that small sound carried in the space. “Some kind of interaction between my gift and your time hosting the demon … “

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

“Your happiness. I want you to be free from that thing.” She frowned, easing up off the ground. “What’s wrong with your hand? Let me see it.” Again she reached out, slowly. “Come on.” Like coaxing a wild animal.

His voice dropped into the most patronizingly sugary tone he could manage as he asked, “Are we going to keep talking like kindergarten teachers, or is this a short lived game?”  His arm stayed against his chest and he snorted.  “I’d prefer if you didn’t touch me.”

“Stop acting the fool and I’ll stop treating you as one.” One hand seized his elbow, and then it was as if she was falling, or the world went away; there was an unpleasant roiling in her gut.

Summer blinked, shaking her head hard. “What the fuck. Just happened.” She could see Tony, hand still clutched close to his chest, and the reactor seeming to flicker in and out of view. And nothing else. All around stretched greyness, filled with dim and sourceless light. She turned, slowly.

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

Startlement overset her into the ground. She stared upward, eyes fixed on the knife. “You don’t want to do that, Tony. Put the knife down.” Purposely, she stayed down, letting him tower over her. “You’ve been possessed by a demon. It’s gone now. You’re free.”

Tony laughed, sharp and bitter and harsh.  “No, you don’t say!” he barked out.  “That whole genius thing?  Yeah, it’s still a thing.”  He fell quiet then, as he turned his eyes towards the ground, blinking rapidly a few times and muttering a quiet, indistinct, “it’s so fucking bright out here,” to himself.

“Don’t be any more of a dick than you have to be,” Summer snapped. “Put the knife away.” A singing tension pervaded her body, winding muscles tight. This wasn’t the reaction she’d expected. She had helped him, hadn’t she? Nobody /wanted/ to be at the utter mercy of that kind of darkness.

Seeming distracted more than anything, he flipped the knife shut and closed it in his fist, which he brought up to massage one temple.  All the while, his left arm was kept close to his chest, the hand fixed in a near immobile claw.  His tension bled away slowly, until he was simply hunched and tired and almost small, in a way.  He slid her a weary glance from under his brows.  “What do you want?”

“Your happiness. I want you to be free from that thing.” She frowned, easing up off the ground. “What’s wrong with your hand? Let me see it.” Again she reached out, slowly. “Come on.” Like coaxing a wild animal.

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

Startlement overset her into the ground. She stared upward, eyes fixed on the knife. “You don’t want to do that, Tony. Put the knife down.” Purposely, she stayed down, letting him tower over her. “You’ve been possessed by a demon. It’s gone now. You’re free.”

Tony laughed, sharp and bitter and harsh.  “No, you don’t say!” he barked out.  “That whole genius thing?  Yeah, it’s still a thing.”  He fell quiet then, as he turned his eyes towards the ground, blinking rapidly a few times and muttering a quiet, indistinct, “it’s so fucking bright out here,” to himself.

“Don’t be any more of a dick than you have to be,” Summer snapped. “Put the knife away.” A singing tension pervaded her body, winding muscles tight. This wasn’t the reaction she’d expected. She had helped him, hadn’t she? Nobody /wanted/ to be at the utter mercy of that kind of darkness.

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

The demon’s trap vanished in an instant. Summer crouched, slowly, holding out a hand as to a feral cat. “Tony?” Ah, god, the shadows in his eyes cut like knives. “Tony, you’re safe now.” Gentle fingers brushed at the blood and water on his face, so like her own loved Tony. The lines etched in were different, a few scars and marks altered, but it was achingly close, and she wanted to draw him close.

Tony smacked her hand away with his right hand, his gloved left hand held protectively to his chest.  He lurched to his feet and stumbled back a few steps before straightening to…nearly his full height, shoulders still hunched with exhaustion.  He scrubbed his sleeve over his face and then plunged his hand into his pocket to pull out Anthony’s knife, which he flicked open only a bit less deftly than the demon.  “I wasn’t in trouble, you psychotic bitch!” he gritted out, knife held in a white knuckled grip as he pointed it at her, as if warding her off.

Startlement overset her into the ground. She stared upward, eyes fixed on the knife. “You don’t want to do that, Tony. Put the knife down.” Purposely, she stayed down, letting him tower over her. “You’ve been possessed by a demon. It’s gone now. You’re free.”

starkroads:

iamthefirechild:

Summer couldn’t help but laugh. It might only be Tony’s body and not Tony’s self, but the wit was so close. Shaking her head, she gave up projective empathy and studied him for a long moment. “If fear is nice, does that make happiness or love bad?” One hand fished in the pockets of her trenchcoat, and she tried slipping somehow under the demon’s mind to find Tony.

Anthony rolled his eyes.  “Not at all.  Emotions aren’t magnets, you simpleton.  There aren’t opposite ends that repel each other.  They all mix and commingle in innumerable ways.  One would think you would know that better than a little ol’ demon.”  He quirked his head to the side, one eyebrow raised as he tracked the movement of her hand.  “What are you hoping to get out of this?”

“I want Tony.” She ignored his insult; everything he said was true, and she did know it. He’d answered her question well enough. “It’s really that simple. You don’t belong here. Even if he’s not /my/ Tony, there are people who love him, and miss him.” Summer straightened her shoulders. With a quick motion, she hurled a mason jarful of holy water full in his face. “Go home, and leave us be.”