Erik's voice, by contrast with Cyclops', sounds weary, as though he was either just about to go to bed or had just been woken from a none-too-deep sleep.
"I hadn't given the authorization yet...I was going to run some training scenarios for my squad in the morning, and remove his collar then, personally. However, if he can agree to maintain his...good behavior...between now and then, and not endanger the safety of his hosts, I see no reason not to remove it early."
That last part is a lie, of course. Magnus can think of at least twenty good reasons to keep Victor Creed collared until the end of time itself.
But a bargain is a bargain. Erik is many things, but he does not renege on deals...even when they are with devils.
"You may remove the collar at your discretion, Mr. Baird. The removal code is in the Institute's mainframe, past the triple encryption lock. I imagine Cyclops has given you biometric access by now, so you can access it from any terminal in the sub-basement."
I may be making a mistake. But we need his cooperation, which means we must cooperate in turn. Perhaps we have been harsh with him, but no more than is reasonable for security purposes.