[There are several beats of silence where Accelerator seriously considers simply not answering that question. But... as much as he'd like to say the answer is a personal one, it isn't. Not really. A lot of people back home know about the choker and limited use of his ability. It may not be common knowledge, but all the powerful people know, so keeping it to himself is kind of pointless.
Drawing in a slow breath, he reaches up to tap the small black device around his neck.]
This thing. It fills in for some missing brain function and lets me use my ability, but it's limited and can be screwed with if you know what you're doing.
[He looks a bit pissed as he continues his explanation.]
For a while the higher ups could limit its function remotely or shut it off entirely, so if I did something they didn't like they could shut me down. It was a huge pain in the ass.
[ Five had mistook the choker for an accessory and had been a bit preoccupied during the escape to notice Accelerator fiddling with it, but now that he's seeing it with fresh eyes and understanding what it was really designed for, his stomach turns. It's fucked up, someone having that kind of control over another person's body. For once, he has no snarky or dismissive comments to make. He looks genuinely disgusted. ]
They not only messed with your head, they installed a twisted little off-switch, too? That's not an assistive device. That's a leash.
[Up until now Five has been pretty smarmy, so to see him actually drop that in favour of sincere disgust is interesting. He understand where he's coming from, especially since he doesn't know about the positives of the choker (that the Sisters came up with the idea, that they cared enough to be willing to support him even after everything he did to them). The corners of his lips tilts upwards a little, and he drops his hand.]
Guess so. I've taken care of that, though, so it isn't a problem anymore. [Sort of. Other people have been able to mess with him, but it mostly isn't a problem these days.]
I guess it's fine if it can't knock you out anymore... just be careful that tech doesn't get into the wrong hands.
[ Five's usually pretty perceptive, but he doesn't know what to make of Accelerator's expression. If it were him, he wouldn't want to keep a dark reminder of his past like that around, much less something that could potentially compromise him, but if it doesn't bother the guy to keep wearing it, then all the more power to him, he supposes?
His tone then takes on that familiar smarmy edge again as he adds with a grin: ]
It would be a pain if you tapped out on me again. We're not out of the woods just yet.
[Thankfully the technology isn't commonplace, even in Academy City, and as long as he has his crutch around for the built-in signal jammer he should be safe.]
Yeah, you're right.
[He sighs heavily. At least the two of them are used to life not being easy, though it's still a pain that neither of them can let their guard down quite yet.]
You got somewhere to stay while I'm stuck in here?
[Splitting up isn't ideal, though they have an entire planet to hide on.... Maybe the nurses would take pity on two kids and let Five hang around here past visitation hours.]
[ He replies breezily. After their harrowing escape, navigating an unknown planet feels infinitely easier. Even if it means sleeping on the streets or something, he'll still sleep easier than when he was in the company's clutches. ]
Besides, I want to have a look around and do a little digging.
[ If he needed to skip town, then it was better he knew where to disappear to. Moreover, he's curious whether Peil has made any moves. Would they report the intruder or keep the incident hushed? Drawing too much scrutiny to the lab would only spell trouble for them, and it's not like they can put up a wanted poster for their own poster child. That's probably the only benefit to not having an identity and wearing someone else's face!
And if they were too far away for any news to reach the planet? That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing either. ]
Depending on where we ended up, it might even be possible to put you in touch with your people. Unless your title's just for show, you've got to have some contacts willing to pick you up, right?
[As dangerous as that sounds, digging up some additional information (or rather, dirt) sounds pretty damn useful. So while Accelerator can feel some mild concern welling up he only nods, understanding that the risk is worth the potential reward. The more information they have, especially on Peil's next moves, the better the position they'll be in to avoid some early deaths.]
Alright.
[They've got the beginnings of a plan, which is encouraging!]
Of course I do. [Now that they're in a hospital, it shouldn't be difficult to contact his administrative team back on Earth to arrange for a ride and payment for any and all bills they incur. He does give a momentary pause before continuing, though.] ... There's a chance Peil could intercept the transmission and trace it back to this hospital. We'll want to wait until we're prepared to deal with any potential shitheads showing up.
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no subject
Drawing in a slow breath, he reaches up to tap the small black device around his neck.]
This thing. It fills in for some missing brain function and lets me use my ability, but it's limited and can be screwed with if you know what you're doing.
[He looks a bit pissed as he continues his explanation.]
For a while the higher ups could limit its function remotely or shut it off entirely, so if I did something they didn't like they could shut me down. It was a huge pain in the ass.
no subject
They not only messed with your head, they installed a twisted little off-switch, too? That's not an assistive device. That's a leash.
no subject
Guess so. I've taken care of that, though, so it isn't a problem anymore. [Sort of. Other people have been able to mess with him, but it mostly isn't a problem these days.]
no subject
[ Five's usually pretty perceptive, but he doesn't know what to make of Accelerator's expression. If it were him, he wouldn't want to keep a dark reminder of his past like that around, much less something that could potentially compromise him, but if it doesn't bother the guy to keep wearing it, then all the more power to him, he supposes?
His tone then takes on that familiar smarmy edge again as he adds with a grin: ]
It would be a pain if you tapped out on me again. We're not out of the woods just yet.
no subject
Yeah, you're right.
[He sighs heavily. At least the two of them are used to life not being easy, though it's still a pain that neither of them can let their guard down quite yet.]
You got somewhere to stay while I'm stuck in here?
[Splitting up isn't ideal, though they have an entire planet to hide on.... Maybe the nurses would take pity on two kids and let Five hang around here past visitation hours.]
no subject
[ He replies breezily. After their harrowing escape, navigating an unknown planet feels infinitely easier. Even if it means sleeping on the streets or something, he'll still sleep easier than when he was in the company's clutches. ]
Besides, I want to have a look around and do a little digging.
[ If he needed to skip town, then it was better he knew where to disappear to. Moreover, he's curious whether Peil has made any moves. Would they report the intruder or keep the incident hushed? Drawing too much scrutiny to the lab would only spell trouble for them, and it's not like they can put up a wanted poster for their own poster child. That's probably the only benefit to not having an identity and wearing someone else's face!
And if they were too far away for any news to reach the planet? That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing either. ]
Depending on where we ended up, it might even be possible to put you in touch with your people. Unless your title's just for show, you've got to have some contacts willing to pick you up, right?
[ And foot the hospital bill... ]
no subject
Alright.
[They've got the beginnings of a plan, which is encouraging!]
Of course I do. [Now that they're in a hospital, it shouldn't be difficult to contact his administrative team back on Earth to arrange for a ride and payment for any and all bills they incur. He does give a momentary pause before continuing, though.] ... There's a chance Peil could intercept the transmission and trace it back to this hospital. We'll want to wait until we're prepared to deal with any potential shitheads showing up.