0003: NEW ARRIVALS

[crux_npcs]

Who: New Arrivals, Captain Jack Hollis, Science Captain Urist McEngineer, Graham Baker
Where: Briefing Room
When: Late afternoon
Warnings: None

When awakening, you'll find the area you're in to be very busy. The people in the medical ward are polite and understanding, but firmly refuse to answer questions until the briefing. The same goes for the robots in the hangars. Either given hospital outfits resembling very comfortable pajamas, drone bodies, or their own bodies, they are escorted by polite, unyielding people in red and black uniforms to the briefing room.

The room is large, but not quite large enough for some of the bigger Cybertronians. They've been given drone bodies at least, skinny little things with no real features beyond primitive masks made of paper plates. There's seats for everyone, at least, well-cushioned and comfortable, and the room is pleasantly lit.

A few Security personnel, dressed in their red and black uniforms, stand at ease in the rooms in strategic areas. Three men stand at the head. One is Graham Baker, a slightly nervous-seeming middle-aged man wearing a multi-layered business suit that seems rumpled and oversized. The other two men are dressed in military uniforms, one with the blue undershirt and piping of Command, while the other wears the gold of Science.

[Questions to the NPCs will go in the briefing thread. The rest of the post is there for people to mill about and do whatever with.]

Comments

[arnhaid]

[Ironhide snorts. Figures he'd end up with someone more scientifically minded than himself. That always seemed to be the way of things. At least this bot seemed a damned sight more friendly than Trion.]

[... okay, so there were Insecticons friendlier than Alpha Trion, but still.]

Sooner you can, eh? That works for me. Glad someone around here's--

[He'd reached out to grip that hand in sheer reflex. Right as the stranger offers their name.]

[The big soldier goes still. Staring. His jaw works.]

... uh.

[Oh yeah, super smooth.]

You wanna... run that one by me again...?

[tomemyoutliers]

I'm Shockwave?

( His own face falls in response, to one that's slightly more confused and concerned. )

[arnhaid]

[He stares. There's a second when he actually looks behind the stranger, wondering if this is some kind of bizarre, elaborate mask or something.]

[Nope.]

You gotta be kidding me...

[tomemyoutliers]

I can only assure you that I'm not.

( Shockwave throws a glance behind him to see if there's something he's missed or anything like that, but when he turns back to Ironhide his expression is just confused and perhaps a little apologetic. )

I take it I'm not who you expected.

( Did someone take his name after the Institute was done with him? )

[arnhaid]

[Maybe this is some misunderstanding. Maybe... Shockwave suddenly turned into a common name or something, while he was out. Or maybe it always was?]

[Either way, memory malfunctions aside, he's pretty damned sure this guy has way too much facial expression -- among other things -- to be anything like the Shockwave his limited memories recall.]

Uh.

[His expression is something between apologetic and ill. He makes a few vague hand gestures, intended to help words along, but just end up looking ridiculous.]

Not really. At all. You got a lot more... [His hand waves at his own face.] Face.

[tomemyoutliers]

I've never had anything less than the current amount. ( He's too vain to do a serious overhaul of himself in an attempt to make himself look better - after all he thinks he's quite attractive as is. ) A different color, perhaps - I can never limit myself to just one.

( Beauty and brains. That's what he wants to be remembered for. )

[arnhaid]

I mean... there's.

[And in the vein of awkward hand gestures, he holds both of his hands up in a tunnel sort of circle in front of his face. Like he's making a telescope.]

This kinda thing.

And a lot more... purple.

[tomemyoutliers]

( Oh. Oh. He's not stupid - he knows what the gesture is supposed to imply. There's a flash of anger before it dissipates and he trusts himself to be able to continue. )

You're familiar with ( Hmmm how to phrase this. ) a version of myself that I have yet to become.

( That's a good way of putting that, he thinks. )

[arnhaid]

[He really should have put that more delicately. He knows that as soon as he lowers his hands, and grimaces, rubbing sheepishly at the back of his neck.]

[Crap. Way to start this out.]

Uh... yeah. I'm guessin' that's what's going on here... [There's an awkward pause.] Should I apologize or--?

[tomemyoutliers]

( The anger drops as quickly as it came, and Shockwave shakes his head. )

No, no. I feel as if it's a conversation I'm going to have many times.

( For better or for worse. )

[arnhaid]

[Deep "breaths", Ironhide. He shakes his head, shifting around a little.]

Hate to say it, but yeah, probably. Maybe make a memo or somethin'.

[tomemyoutliers]

"Not that Shockwave" would technically be a lie. Even if I'm loathe to admit it.

( Shadowplay is the biggest inconvenience. )

[arnhaid]

Uh... in that case. Ever think of maybe... "Less Disturbing, Better Looking, Shockwave"?

I mean the two optics part's a lot easier to chat with.

[... he's trying. He's really trying.]

[tomemyoutliers]

( his expression falls for a moment, turning into something sad and wistful )

I take it I am not remembered for my beauty. ( that might rank up there as one of the most upsetting things he's heard all day. ) Although-- 'disturbing'?

( it's okay ironhide. shockwave is pretty fond of his head, too. )

[arnhaid]

... Yeah, it's not really somethin' anybody's talking about these days. [He grimaces.] Those days. I dunno if it's any different now... but.

Memory's a little hazy.

[Which is a huge understatement.]

And you don't wanna know.

[tomemyoutliers]

( That gets a smile, and one of Shockwave's hands moves to clasp Ironhide on the shoulder. )

It seems as if the two of us are at odds with everyone else.

( Memory loss, being four million years in the past. Same thing, right? )

I beg to differ, but perhaps now is not the right time.

[arnhaid]

[He blinks a bit at the hand, but, hey. No big deal. There's a mental shrug, and he moves to do the same with Shockwave's opposite shoulder.]

[... wow it's weird, still.]

Yeah, kinda looks that way. Nothin' we're gonna do about it though, I guess.

Probably not. [Another grimace.] Probably need a lot more to drink...

[tomemyoutliers]

Speak for yourself, I fully intended on finding out what I've missed. Four million years-- ( A shake of his head, and his smile fades slightly. ) Which is another problem. If they've managed to bring us but can't create energon...

( Starving would suck. )

[arnhaid]

... That uh. Actually. That's actually pretty close to home. But the more I hear about stuff, the less I'm sure I wanna hear about it.

[Given all the crap Sunstreaker had been ranting about, anyway.]

That's just crazy. If they've got a bunch of bots around, they gotta have fuel.

[tomemyoutliers]

Better to know than live in ignorance. It's our future ( casually assuming nbd sorry ironhide ) after all.

( ignoring the fact that he's not really going to be him in said future. )

I'm certain I can come up with some sort of substitute, given enough time.

( shockwave no )

WOW I MISSED THIS NOTIF

[arnhaid]

Or... past... in uh. Some cases.

[He shuffles a little awkwardly, but hey, they can chat about this later, right?]

You sure? That kinda sounds... I dunno. [Reckless, dangerous, potentially explosive?] Like a big process.

[Ironhide no.]

[tomemyoutliers]

Really? Four million years - do you know why?

( well now he looks interested, although he supposes the second part is more important. )

It's nothing. The vast majority of my research was into alternate forms of energy back on Cybertron.

[arnhaid]

... I kinda died.

[AWKWARD. This is super awkward and he looks, suddenly, like he'd rather be anywhere else.]

It was? You serious?

[tomemyoutliers]

Really! How fascinating - beyond the memory loss have you noticed any other possible repercussions of your demise and subsequent revival?

( Shockwave is possibly getting carried away, for he's decided that waking around Ironhide and giving him a more thorough once over is required. Which means answering his other question in a distracted way. )

Oh yes. Energon crisis looming in our future - even the blind would see it if anyone bothered to look. They don't, of course, because it's far easier to pretend that we can afford to continue on at our current rate of growth.

[arnhaid]

[PAUSE.]

Uh.

[Sorry, Shockwave, that's his usual reaction to technobabble like that. He turns ]

Not... really? I dunno?

[Top scientific mind over here.]

I remember that. Somethin' like that, anyway. Don't think it was just "looming" though.