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| in the aftermath; open thread | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: 27 Feb 2016, 08:08 PM (226 Views) | |
| Rodimus | 27 Feb 2016, 08:08 PM Post #1 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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Ever since the encounter with Sunder, it seemed like Skids was distancing himself more from his friends and fellow crewmembers. Though he still hadn't remembered everything that had happened at Grindcore, the memories that had been forced to the surface had been enough to throw the theoretician significantly off. Rung had pulled him away from Sunder's influence and Chromedome had hidden the memories again, but Skids remembered enough that he wasn't sure he wanted to remember anymore. Fifty reasons, he now remembered telling Quark; fifty reasons to make the deal with Tarn and put himself to use in Grindcore. Skids couldn't remember what had happened after he'd fixed the mass teleporter, but his spark and head hurt, as though warning him that he didn't want to know. He couldn't talk to Rung about it, since the other mech had told him, apologetically but firmly, that he was no longer practicing. Skids wouldn't ask Rung to make an exception for him, either. So Skids took a walk around the ship after he was finally released from the medibay, after Velocity had done check after check on him, with Chromedome supervising to make sure no more memories resurfaced. Skids had inevitably ended up in the oil reservoir, where he sat now at the edge, pedes dangling down as he reflected on everything that had happened since his last session with Rung. |
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| Deleted User | 29 Feb 2016, 08:29 AM Post #2 |
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This had not felt like a good time to be underfoot. While Ravage didn't mind haunting the ship's corridors, agile enough to avoid being bumped into and with the added advantage of hearing most of what passed as gossip on the Lost Light, there was little useful information to be had now. He could have stayed in Megatron's habsuite, but his feelings still were not completely settled, and it seemed better to simply be out of the way for a while yet, until everything and everyone was calm. He was used to solitude, after all, and didn't need to cling to bar company or a listening ear to settle his nerves. He'd stolen away to the oil reservoir, and amused himself with studying the murky depths for some time, and then simply waited, turning his thoughts over. Waiting was something he was quite good at, as his systems settled into alert readiness. He didn't need to pace, or fight, or demand answers from Megatron. He could just - Someone was coming, the sound of his approach loud and clear, and Ravage shrank back, not entirely willing to vacate his spot just because there was the threat of company. Still, it was him - the theoretician and outlier, looking less confident than usual. And he didn't seem like he was going to go elsewhere anytime soon. His scent was a painful tangle, all regret and guilt and horror, leaking out around Skids and staining the air. If it would have helped, and wouldn't have brought attention to himself, Ravage might have sneezed. "I thought you'd be at Swerve's," he said plainly, revealing himself - paws crossed and hunkered down, optics gleaming dully. |
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| Rodimus | 29 Feb 2016, 09:51 AM Post #3 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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Skids' optics flashed briefly in surprise when he heard Ravage's voice, having not expected anyone else to be down in the oil reservoir. Most of the rest of the crew seemed to be in the bar or occupying the hallways, none of them wanting to be alone after the latest events on the ship. The surprise faded away quickly; Ravage, he'd learned, was always roaming around, never in the same place long, unless he was with Megatron. The only remaining surprise was that Ravage had revealed himself to Skids and openly spoken to him. Skids shook his head to the feline's comment. "Usually, I would," he replied. He wasn't a solitary being by nature, like others aboard the ship. Tapping a finger against his helm, Skids continued, "My head's buzzing enough without engex in my system. I figured it was a good idea to let it calm down a while." He needed a little time to recover, he told himself. He'd be back to his usual self soon. |
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| Deleted User | 1 Mar 2016, 08:37 AM Post #4 |
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A straightforward answer - and one that only led Ravage to noticing how much had changed since he had first been discovered on the ship. Skids didn't answer him with suspicion, or threats, but in good faith. As long as he played along with all of this, acted in concert with Megatron and didn't anything too overt, they all simply acted as if he was part of the crew, picked up throughout the journey like the rest. Well. That wasn't quite wrong. He tilted his head. "Or all the noise in there could drown it out." The typical reaction to the weekly catastrophes here was, after all, to get hammered and become riotously loud. He inevitably spared his auditory sensors the experience of Swerve's in full swing - at that point, it wasn't as if he was going to get any useful information. |
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| Rodimus | 1 Mar 2016, 06:50 PM Post #5 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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"Probably." Skids was no stranger to the noise at Swerve's, often in the bar with the friends he'd made since joining the crew. It would only be a brief reprieve, though, with everything coming back the moment the engex was out of his system and his friends retired to their hab-suites. Skids would have his thoughts, his missing memories, and the nagging feeling that whatever he was just out of reach from remembering would be the worst thing to remember. "It's just not what I need right now." Skids brought his hand up to touch his cheek, tips of his fingers brushing the soft metal under his eye where the matrix marking his faith had once been. Whatever had happened at Grindcore, he knew had to do with why he'd had it removed, why he'd decided he no longer needed beliefs he'd held onto for most of his life. Putting those thoughts to the back of his mind, Skids turned the conversation back on Ravage. "What about you? What brings you down here?" |
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| Deleted User | 2 Mar 2016, 08:35 AM Post #6 |
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Ravage flicked his tail, trying to convey both that Skids knew best, and also his own complete disinterest in this matter. If Skids had wanted sympathy, surely he would have been sticking close to the medics, or all his friends. But instead he was out on his own, trying to refine his thoughts in solitude - something Ravage understood keenly. A pity they both had hit upon the same idea. Still. If he were to offer a listening ear, he could learn something of interest. It wasn't entirely a comfortable idea - Ravage had no fondness for messing around in the fresh wounds of someone who wasn't currently an enemy. It felt cruel to try and probe for what Sunder had forced him to remember, and there was a chance, the barest chance, that it would all mean nothing useful to himself or Megatron anyways. Sometimes everything on this ship felt inextricably intertwined, but it was just a feeling - not the truth. Of course, he had been cruel before. They all had, but perhaps it wouldn't be worth it this time. "What does it look like? Staying away from all of that," he retorted. "It doesn't seem to be a good time to be around company." |
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| Rodimus | 2 Mar 2016, 05:51 PM Post #7 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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"Worried Nautica's going to pet you, forcing you to blow your cover by biting her hand off?" Skids couldn't help the way his lips quirked, amused in spite of the situation that still overshadowed the ship. This was what he needed, anything to take his overactive mind off everything, even if it turned out to be talking to Ravage - he still wasn't used to having the Decepticon on the ship, but neither was anyone else. They'd all mostly accepted it, since Megatron vouched for his...companion? Associate? Whatever the relationship between former warlord and spy was now, the crew of the Lost Light had accepted Ravage's presence on board, even if they were occasionally thrown off by it. Ravage did tend to slip out of mind as easily as he slipped out of sight, after all. "The crew will settle down," Skids commented, turning the conversation again. "Everyone just needs some time to get the antics out of their systems." |
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| Deleted User | 2 Mar 2016, 07:10 PM Post #8 |
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"Please," he said, shooting him a baleful look and stretching out, the cold metal of his claws curving in implied threat. "I would bite something a little more necessary than her hand. I've warned her enough times already." Despite his words, he couldn't quite begrudge Nautica her initial actions - she was an outsider from a colony world that didn't know better, a situation he both envied and pitied. All the same, being treated like less of a person was too much to bear. If the crew saw him as less of a threat because he stuck to Megatron's heels when visible... well, that was fine. Useful, even. To be seen as less of a threat because he was a pet was something he couldn't abide. The mere thought of it struck up slow-burning fury, heavy with age; it made him want to sink claws into plating, tear out sparks for the assumption. At least he mostly escaped such coddling, even if his first instinct was to make himself scarce the moment he caught wind of Nautica nearby. At least he was well-known for his part in the war, and Decepticon came so much quicker to the voicebox than beast did. "And while they get it out of their systems, I'll get out of their way. An efficient solution for everyone." Skids' scent had lightened, misery hanging less thickly in the air. He wasn't sure whether to be pleased that just a few choice remarks could actually have an effect. |
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| Rodimus | 3 Mar 2016, 09:26 AM Post #9 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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"She's a fast learner, she knows better by now," Skids pointed out. Nautica was one of only a handful of the crew who could keep up with him; she wasn't the super-learner that he was, but she absorbed information at a quick pace. He admired her for her curiosity and abilities, admired her for even teaching him a thing or two. She was still new to the whole war, had a lot to learn still, but she'd crammed everything she could learn into only a few weeks. "She's got a good spark." All teasing aside, though, Skids actually understood that Ravage wasn't a pet - never was and never would be. He'd never considered the notion. Ravage was a well-known Decepticon spy and, at times, having him on board the Lost Light was unsettling, but they'd all mostly integrated him into the crew, an honorary member, though not the turned spark that Megatron was. So far, there'd been no sign of what Ravage's intentions were on the ship, that anyone could pick up on; just the way it had always seemed Ravage liked it. Skids was often suspicious of the feline, but did have some respect for Ravage. "So you figured, of all places to lay low, the oil reservoir was the best place?" Skids asked. "It's the quietest place on the ship besides any room Cyclonus is in, but it seems an odd choice for you." |
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| Deleted User | 3 Mar 2016, 02:15 PM Post #10 |
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"Perhaps we have different standards for that," he replied grudgingly, unwilling to actually agree with an Autobot. Oh, it was petty - but he figured he was allowed some pettiness after going through this mess of a quest. Sometimes he couldn't help but wonder how Megatron put up with it to begin with. Worse yet, he could feel himself starting to become accustomed to some level of chaos and absurdity. His first few months of hiding and spying on his former leader had introduced him to what the ship was like, but he hadn't been prepared for quantum mistakes or personality ticks or that ridiculous Earth Swerve had somehow generated. Sometimes, he longed for something orderly again - and that made him think of Soundwave, and led to no peace or order at all. So he pushed that pang of guilt away and tipped his head back at Skids' question. "Where do you think I would be? The vents?" Of course, that was an accurate guess. He'd long since found out all the best places to eavesdrop on everyone else, but that was just common sense. "Even I might go be interested in introspection, sometimes. And you're proving quite talkative for someone who went looking for peace and quiet," he added, tone not quite accusatory. |
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| Rodimus | 3 Mar 2016, 09:19 PM Post #11 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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"At least the vents are more interesting to explore," Skids pointed out. One of the first things he'd done on the ship was climb into the vents to take a look around. He still occasionally used the vents to get places that couldn't be accessed through normal routes - you'd be surprised how many places on the ship hadn't been occupied at some point and could only be gotten to through the vents. Plus the vents were a pretty decent escape route whenever one of the captains wanted something and you didn't want to do it. "The most interesting thing about this place is the legislator parts at the bottom of the reserve and I've seen all of those I want to see in one lifetime." Skids gave a 'pfft', one of those noises one just picked up around the ship, apparently. "I never said I wanted peace and quiet. I just didn't want a crowd making my head worse. And you're one to talk, seeing as this is the longest conversation you've probably had with an Autobot that wasn't an interrogation." |
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| Deleted User | 5 Mar 2016, 07:38 PM Post #12 |
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"Sometimes you don't want things to be interesting. I thought someone like you would understand that," Ravage said, tail flicking back and forth with pendulum-like regularity. "Or does having your life being a mystery mean you'll always seek them out? This ship has given me my fill of interesting, for the moment." Perhaps it was more pointed than polite, but Skids' next remark grated. It wasn't as if a conversation like this meant anything, however lengthy it was. Not for the first time, he considered simply giving ground and finding somewhere else to stay - better than fielding pointless comments like that. Dealing directly with the crew for too long inevitably ended up putting his back up, for myriad reasons. "Surely Megatron counts as an Autobot, to you." And that was the root of almost all of his problems. It did serve his point, though. Saying it no longer made him feel immediately betrayed, either - he wasn't sure how to feel about that. |
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| Rodimus | 5 Mar 2016, 10:27 PM Post #13 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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"Whether I want it or not, interesting keeps on happening on this ship," Skids replied. He leaned back, letting himself fall until he was laying back, arms tucked back behind his held. "Might as well roll with it or find my own kind of interesting before I'm dragged into one of Rodimus' schemes." Skids noted the change in Ravage's tone, realizing that he'd probably rubbed him the wrong way with his previous comment. "Look, with Megatron...he's learning what makes someone an Autobot. He falls back on his actions and thinking from the last four million years and it shows how much he has to learn." Skids had pointed it out himself back when they'd come across the duplicate Lost Light a few months back, by asking what the Autobot badge meant to Megatron, how identifying as an Autobot had changed the former warlord. He'd watched Megatron since then, keeping an optic on him to see how he changed. "Sometimes, he seems like he's got it. Other times, I'm wary." Skids gave an exvent. "Like I'm still wary of you. I still judge you, because of what you were in the war. And I should apologize for that. You're part of the crew like the rest of us and our war is over. I shouldn't still be judging you. I'm sorry." |
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| Deleted User | 6 Mar 2016, 10:55 AM Post #14 |
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He looked comfortable. Which was a stark change from how he'd been when he first showed up here, plating drawn tight and far terser with his words. Even what Ravage could smell was far more relaxed, whatever Sunder had done to him loosening its hold. Guilt and regret and fear no longer stung his olfactory sensors - but Ravage also couldn't say he himself was pleased with how the conversation was going. It led too surely to what he himself had come out here to avoid prodding at. "He's trying," he said, choking back the low rumble that would have warned Skids of his change in mood. Calm. He had to seem calm, and collected, and not risk showing this kind of weakness. "You have no idea how much he's trying." And sometimes, Ravage deeply wished he would try less. It was easier to focus on his apology, confusing as it was. A gesture of good faith to an assassin and spy - to a faithful Decepticon. He blinked at him, and then finally got up, back arching in a seamless stretch, the better to hide his feelings. It was pointless to tell him that he wasn't like the rest of them, let alone hint that he had originally been here on orders. Better to just play along as if he truly intended to be a part of this crew. As if he wouldn't be on the first shuttle back to Cybertron, once Megatron's journey was over and done with. "As if I don't judge you lot for what you've done, or what's... changed. That's the consequence of war, isn't it? But since you're being sentimental - fine, apology accepted." |
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| Rodimus | 6 Mar 2016, 10:46 PM Post #15 |
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watch me burn; bright, brighter, brightest
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Truth be told, Skids felt a lot better than he had when he'd come down here. He supposed company wasn't too bad, though he still wanted to talk to Rung - not as the other mech's patient, since that was out of the question, but as a friend; they were still friends, so Skids thought. Talking to someone without a bias, without prior knowledge of his life, helped. Oddly enough, Ravage seemed to fit the bill as well, though the quadruped, being deeply involved in the war, wasn't completely unbiased. Far removed from Skids and most of the Autobots on board, sure, but Skids knew Ravage held contempt for the Autobots. "I am fully aware you judge all of us," Skids pointed out. "But the point is the judging should stop somewhere. It takes a long time to unlearn the biases and judgments from four million years of war and clashing ideals. Sometimes we find we've got more in common than we think." Skids turned his gaze to the high ceiling of the reservoir. "And I know Megatron's trying. I'm just saying he has a lot to learn still." |
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