#dr hackenbush

Preview:

He knew his name. His name was Ryan, Ryan Charlton. He played instruments for Joey Drew Studios, the guitar, the sax, and the piano.

He was also sure that Joey Drew Studios was the reason he was in this situation right now.

That being that he was currently sitting in a cell in what looked like a grimy old basement. Which would have been pretty bad in and of itself, though at the very least he wasn't alone.

There was a complication though with that last bit, as while he wasn't alone, his current company was, well, a bit closer than he'd like. As in, they were both currently sharing a part of his…brain? Mind? Consciousness? Perhaps all three.

I’m not entirely surprised something like this happened.

That’s not to say I expected our ship to get shot down. I don’t think anyone could’ve predicted that, and I’m still in… quite a state of shock from it. Don’t think I’ve ever been this terrified before.

But at the same time, this is just the sort of thing that happens when you’re with Joey Drew. He’s not unlucky, per se… more like a magnet for the unexpected. Crazy things happen to him, and everyone around him, for the better, and for the worse.

I wonder if he and Susie made it. I hope so. Joey never considered me anything more than a colleague, but Susie and I were friends, and I know her heart would break if she lost him.

I got a radio message about a rendezvous. It’s only been 3 days since the crash. Didn’t say who ordered it, but so soon after planetfall, it wouldn’t surprise me if it was Joey. He always has been impatient.

I think that’s why he had such difficulty being taken seriously. It made him seem… amateurish. Can’t rush a project and get any kind of decent results, but he always wanted to anyway.

He probably sees all this as a “minor setback”. If he’s alive, that is.

All of this ain’t to say he’s not brilliant. Bright as a star and sharp as a knife, that one. Maybe that’s why he was so impatient; to him everyone else must seem dreadfully slow.

But I think it was more that he got so focused on his goal, that anything that didn’t directly bring him closer to it felt pointless. Like supplementary research, or… proper experimental method.

I don’t know why I’m recordin’ this. Better than just sittin’ in silence, I suppose.

The current is pushin’ me closer to shallower water. I think so anyway. Hope so. Should be able to tell better after a couple more days pass. But until then… well, I guess I can keep talkin’ to myself. Maybe do some stargazing.

[A distant shriek]

Going for the big guns uh? Buckle in then, let's see what kind of ammo the Fractos has to work with:

Henry Stein - His anger issues. Henry's childhood and adulthood were fairly turbulent because he's prone to getting fits of rage (an issue that was exacerbated when he was drafted to fight in the second world war). There's never been a moment in his life where he wasn't aware that he can hurt people very easily, and it scares him that this is possibly all he's good at. It's why drawing and gardening meant so much to him... For once he could make something good instead of destroying it...

Sammy Lawrence - That he's a weak-willed follower rather than the master of his own fate, untrustworthy and insignificant. His role as the Prophet disgusts him because it's everything he strived not to be, and the hypocrisy of it all left him questioning his identity and sense of self. What is he if he's not Samuel Lawrence Jr? Can he go back to calling himself that? Or is that just another name he can't ever return to ever again...? Just... Who is he?

Jack Fain - Being unable to protect himself and others, no matter how much he tried to be there for his friends. The sense of insignificance and powerlessness left him fearing that every single one if his efforts is in vain.

Susie Campbell - That she's not good enough. Always second best to someone more talented and beautiful than her. That no matter how hard she tried, she should have just given up and let the world step all over her.

Norman Polk - That he's nothing more than an unwanted and unlovable creepy brute. As a tall bulky man of his age and background, Norman's always had a lot against him. But, even when snapping at people or fighting back just as hard was warranted, he never let himself stoop so low. Becoming the out of control and monstrous Projectionist wounded him deeply...

Allison Pendle - That deep down she's just as selfish and careless as Joey. They got along fine because they had a level of understanding about certain arts they were mutually interested in... Maybe that means she's rotten like him. A danger to others if she ever becomes as jaded as he did...

Thomas Connor - The worst part is the guilt. If he hadn't been complacent to Joey's will to begin with, none of this would have happened. He's stuck in a cycle of grief and what ifs, afraid that he's damned everyone because of his own hubris as a prideful engineer.

Shawn Flynn - His willful ignorance will haunt him forever. He knew something was wrong, but he'd rather ignore it and make a quick buck than actually stop to think. It only struck him that he was in too deep when Grant began to deteriorate, and by then it was too late to stop. If only he hadn't been so selfish and cocky...

Grant Cohen - That he deserves all of this in some twisted terrible way. His life has always been one string of misfortunes after another. Maybe he was a bad person in another life. Maybe he didn't show enough people kindness in this one... Maybe he's just destined to suffer. He's always been and always will be unable to save himself...

Buddy Lewek - That he's too weak and cowardly to be of any help. Everyone has been doing so much to keep him safe, and he doesn't have the strength to do the same for them. He feels guilty about it, but he just... He just can't... He's afraid and he wants to go home. He wants his mom... And he feels bad that he's this pathetic when his friends need him most.

Abby Lambert - Regret, guilt, sorrow... She knows them all to well. Most of all she knows hatred the best... She hates that she was so bad a judge of character that she couldn't see just how bad things got. Just how far Joey would take it... She was blind to it all because she considered him a friend, and she'll never forgive herself or him for it...

Doc Hackenbush - That he didn't leave when he could have. He was aware and against the results of the experiments, but he was also curious. Morbidly so. He could have helped stop all of this before it got to this point... But instead chose to stay quiet. A choice that will haunt him forever.

Bertrum Piedmont - That he'd been too proud to realize he was digging himself and Lacie an early grave. What hurts most now isn't even the state he's in... It's that he damned his closest friend to this terrible fate as well...

Lacie Benton - That she couldn't convince Bertrum to not accept a contract with Joey. She knew something was off with the man... She just couldn't imagine this being how it ended... Feels like she failed her dearest friend.

Emma LaMonte - Her biggest regret is not telling her family how much she appreciated them. She'd been a stuck-up unpleasant and difficult lady all her life and now... She fears she'll never have a chance to make amends.

Detective Sinclair - That he failed Joey in some way, thus made him more prone to becoming less interested in being a law abiding citizen. He knows that something broke when he failed that case... That somehow he taught that young and impressionable puppy-eyed boy that justice only matters as long as you're caught... He's a failure of a detective and all of this is his fault...

METAL & INK - FINALE (1/3)

TW: Character Death, Body Horror, Gore (?)

Happy Anniversary to Abomination

@halfusek

Just a pen and a nightmare 

Just a drawing and a man 

Just a devil and his demons Wandering those lands 

I don’t know what’s more pathetic 

Me or you, or every inch of my existence 

 I didn’t notice when it got different