[i]Nah, this is more funny[/i], Carver replied to Barrel's comment. And it was, nothing that could actually be between a person's legs could ever be as hilarious as picturing the literal interpretations of descriptions like 'cave of wonders' and 'writhing joystick of love'. He really didn't want to ruin the wonderfully ridiculous images that flooded his mind every time he read one of those books.

Finkelstein detached the cage from its mount in the exoskeleton, pulled it free, and shoved it in Jack’s direction with a glare. That finished, he forcefully gestured at his face, then the trio, then the door. 

“Oh good,” Jewel said cheerfully. “It looks like he’s finished. And [i]just[/i] in time to avoid the mess Shock was about to make, too! If you four wouldn’t mind helping Carver out of here, I’ll get to work cleaning up the lab. Once it’s in some semblance of order again, I’ll start on a new, [i]proper[/i] design for a body upgrade.”

The Doctor pointed again at his taped up lips, snorting out attempted demands. Jewel smiled at him sinisterly. “Oh, I haven’t forgotten about that, [i]dear[/i],” she told him. “As far as I’m concerned, this--” she waved about at the current state of their home, “--is all [i]your[/i] doing. Unfortunately, given your limited mobility, I can’t make you clean it up yourself. So instead, until Igor and I have made a satisfying amount of headway, you can stay right where you are, exactly [i]as[/i] you are.”

Her husband let out another screech through his nose, which she completely ignored.

Carver wished he still had a head, either to smirk or burst out laughing; he couldn’t decide which. In any case, he wanted to revel in Finkelstein’s comeuppance, and it was only so satisfying when he couldn’t specifically add to the aggravation.

He hesitated a bit when the trio offered to make him a head themselves. They weren’t altogether unskilled at it, but he would probably never quite get over their first attempt at “helping” him with one. On the other hand, though, at the very least, he could trust them to make a serious attempt to do the best they could and take his sense of style into account. One more thing to set them apart from his creator...