“Certainly.” Machbreaker simply replies.
“Well, worth a shot. Unless there’s anything else here to look at, we should head back.” Tie-Grabber says.
He looks to see if there are any security measures around the area; cameras, guards, etc. And if it appears vacant, judges how best to get around in there.
Overclock giggled, quite pleased with himself.
“By the way, you guys seem pretty close to the old doctor. How’d that happen?”
Nebula asked.
“There’s still one room left in the ship, towards the back I think. Might be worth exploring.”
There was surprisingly no observable security. Given how long this chamber goes without use, perhaps the Vex didn’t think it worth guarding.
As it was getting late, most of the occupants in the commons went to the barracks and powered down for the night. Maximus, Axis, and Razorclaw being the only ones in the room still talking to one another.
“Well, I think I’ll tell you anyway. I was a mechanic pre-war. Ran through and kept the halls of cybertron’s data clear. It was an important job, one I enjoyed. I had minicons and the like to help me out. It was there I discovered the scandal of lost funds. That got me arrested, my face removed, my hands twisted, and my reputation destroyed. This was done under the Autobots, and by Autobots. I was angry, and got lost in that. That’s my tale,” she paused screwing out a few screws out of her stomach’s plate.
“Hm, let’s get you upgraded…we have the time!”
“I never said autobots were perfect…”
Hotspot admitted.
“But at least we knew what we were fighting for. The deceptcion menace ravaged through the galaxy in a demented quest for power. It was the decepticons that started the war. It was the decepticons that pushed our planet to the brink of destruction. Its because of the decepticons that Cybertron is feared by so many other worlds. And everyone just expects me to let that go? That just because the war ended I should get all buddy buddy with the enemy? I don’t think so.”
“Yes. Excellent idea. What with our new break out approaching on the proverbial horizons, we’ll need all the advantage we can get.”
“Incidental, trapped in office while spying. Railfire revealed he knew all about our actions, just wanted to talk. After assisting in repairing Maximus, alliance increased.” Machbreaker replied.
He let it lull for a moment, thinking it over a bit. Chance are, she would eventually learn it anyways. No point in hiding it.
“He confessed only to me that Maximus is his decedent. When he was near death, I knew we had to help. Others don’t know, I was asked not to tell.”
“Sure, let’s take a peek.” Tie-Grabber responds and heads towards that part of the ship.
Railgun opens the grate and hops down. He goes over to the chamber to get a better look at the machine.
Overclock heads over to that group, though tries to do it without being noticed.
“I see…”
Nebula said. Understanding the weight of what happened.
“Honestly, Railfire seems a lot different than other bulks. At least with how he talks to us.”
Ramjet grabbed the framed photo before following Tiegrabber to the back room.
The chamber at the end of the ship was noticeably smaller than any of the others. It had four bunks. Two on each side wall. The top left bunk was unkempt and messy. The wall and ceiling above it were covered in Norse iconography. Runes, symbols, pictures, notes, all plastered over the walls. There was a stack of data pads at the foot of the bed.
The bunk below it was noticeably more tidy, but not by much. The bed itself had noticeable burn marks. All of which looked like they had been there for a long time.
The top right bunk was the most well made of the four. Though the bed had a mild bend in the middle, as if weighed down by something.
And the bottom left bunk had it’s wall covered in different photos. All of which included Maximus, Axis, and the other two predacons. Axis being the one who took most of them. They all depicted the four in a wide variety of locations and events, some with even more other predacons that the minicons wouldn’t recognize.
Finally there was a large square hatch at the back of the room with a handle on it.
The chamber was massive. About the height of old war era bots as he would know them. There was a control panel at the base, at perfect height for a Vex to operate.
The three don’t notice him.
“Okay okay. But really. How do a predacon and a maximal like you meet each other? How does this happen?”
Razorclaw asked.
“There’s really not much to it.”
Maximus said sheepishly.
“My pals and I were visiting Iacon, I wondered off on my own, and we sorta just ran into each other.”
“Come on. There’s gotta be more to it than that.”
Razorclaw pressed.
“No. We literally ran into each other.”
Axis said with a laugh.
“I was just walking down the street and we literally hit each other. Face to face. And we sorta just got along from there.”
As most the tier 3 prisoners power down for the night, a strange unease fills the barracks. It was quiet. Something was missing. And it didn’t take long for everyone to realize what.
Juliana’s singing, love it or hate it, it was something everyone had been accustomed to. But when it was gone, the quiet was uncomfortable.
Meanwhile, as everyone in tier 2 began to power down, Bulkhead quietly got up and out of his cell. The big lug trying his best to keep quiet. He gently knocked on Luliana’s cell door and waited for a response.
“Come in!” She said.
He slowly opened the door and stepped in. He looked upset.
“You’re someone I can talk to right?”
He said nervously.
Inside the room he would she various musical items strown about the room. CD’s on a table, vinyl records on a shelf, and her combo player on a side-table.
She had her music softly playing, turned down so as not to bother anyone else.
“Of course! I’m always happy to help someone out!” She said, gesturing for him to come in.
Bulkhead stepped in and sat down, learning against the wall.
“I’m… Scared. I lost a friend, and I don’t know if I can trust Hotspot anymore and… Everything just feels bad. I don’t know what to do. I just want everything to go back to how it was.”
“You and me both… I never wanted to be in teir 2… I wanted to stay in tier 3. I promised Wideload I would… and now… I feel like I’ve failed him… the winds of change are blowing Bulkhead, and they’re chilling me to the bone…”
Wideload. That was the same bot she mentioned when she was shouting at Hotspot.
“Who is that? He sounds like he was important to you.”
The autobot asked. Curious, yet considerate.
“He was… I’m not sure how to describe him… he was a friend, yet more than a friend… he was kind, considerate, but strong-willed…he was simply the best man I had ever met… I loved him… but one day… he went too far. T-there was an escape attempt… he was a part of it, but he went as far as to attack Iota personally… and he killed him for it. The worst part of it all is, I urged him to join… it was my idea for him to try and kill Iota. He was dead, because of my foolish decision. That’s why to this day I’ve never participated in any escape attempts… I don’t ever want to be directly responsible for another bot’s death.”
“I had a friend like that…”
Bulkhead said passively. Not sure quite where to go from there, so he decided to relate with his own experiences. Or at least try to.
“Bumblebee and I were best buds. Man we did everything together. He would always pick on some bot bigger than him and I’d have to run and save him. But he always made sure to help me out when I needed it.”
His face brightened up as he thought about old pleasant memories.
“This one time when we were in boot camp I accidentally dropped a building on our commander. He tried to take the fall for me, but I wouldn’t let him take all the blame himself. Oh man, Sentinel was so mad. He stationed us on a salvage rig for a year…”
His expression darkened again, as he realized just how long he had been trapped here. How long ago all those memories were.
“The last time I saw my little buddy was before I got caught… I miss him…”
@ProfSrlojohn
She shivered, “If I had power, I wouldn’t be missing the things that made me happy. I can’t do what I was built for anymore. That’s on the Autobots. Your group didn’t quell the corruption and rot that was festering. The one good thing the war did was clear out the scum. The ones who sentenced my humiliation, the near slavery, and the quiet deaths? Those bots were the first to go. I can’t say I miss them either,” she stopped for a minute, “but…you have a point. I did horrible things out of anger. A simple sorry isn’t enough. For both of us really. You lost friends, I lost my reputation. A simple sorry won’t get them back,” she took a deep breath and unhinged her gut. Delicately she pulled out her spark cage. It glowed with a pleasant blue light. She set it, cords slowly stretching to follow it, in front of Hotspot, “Anger is a funny thing, leaves you empty inside when it’s done with you,” she looked up at him, “I’m sorry. I wish I could express it better, but I’m sorry for the friends you lost.” She took her hand off the spark cage, “I don’t know what you’re going to do really…”
“Just tell me how to help!”
Hotspot shifted uncomfortably. Why would she do this? Expose herself, make herself so vulnerable to an enemy? He glanced at the spark, but did his best to keep his focus on her facial area.
“Why do you care so much? Nothing you’re going to say will change my mind. I’m sure that much is obvious. So why make the effort?”
“Well… In all honesty I’m not sure where to begin. Self modification has never been something I’ve cared to try.”
“Do you think that someone can redeem themselves? Washout their mistakes? No matter, your question comes first. I’m here to get your side of things so I can act accordingly. I remember the stories told about you and your team. You were heroes. I want to know what a hero does with a broken killer,” she said softly looking down at the table.
“So you’re saying I should add the modifications? Sounds fun!”
Hotspot began to see what she was trying to do. And he didn’t much care for it. Putting him in such a precarious position.
“Protectabot Commander Hotspot… The hero… Died with his team.”
He tool the spark chamber and firmly, yet as carefully as possible, put it back in her hands.
“Look… I did what I did for the good of everyone. If nobody was turned in we would have starved… Steeljaw was just the easiest choice.”
“That isn’t exactly what I had in mind-”
Railfire said rather hesitantly.
“But… I suppose… It isn’t a terrible idea.”
She froze as he picked up her literal heart and then stared at it back in her hands. She paused staring at it, “You had nothing to lose by breaking this…nothing at all. Everyone has turned against you for your decision. Eliminating me wouldn’t have added to the consequences any more then what’s already been done,” she paused for a moment, “I can’t say I disagree. I just wish…well…that you’d given someone the opportunity to die a meaningful death instead of dying alone and scared, but then again. I’m not the leader, I’m the scared con in the corner,” she sighed fitting her heart back inside. Her wings unfolded, her height diminished and her bulky looking backpack cape returned. The tall formidable bot wasn’t there anymore. She looked up at the autobot, “If you want me as an ally…I will be.”
She laughed, “It’s going to be fun!”
“I’d be lying if I said the thought didn’t disgust me.”
Hotspot said.
“But… You’ve given me something to think about.”
“It will be… Interesting to say the least. I’ll trust you to see it though.”