One Step at a Time

Log Title: One Step at a Time Characters: Cerebros, Fortress Maximus, Scales, Spike, Stormfront Location: Iacon Industrial District Date: September 15, 2019 TP: Nucleosis TP Summary: Spike, Cerebros, and Fortress Maximus continue to get their heads together. As logged by  Scales

Log session starting at 18:16:58 on Sunday, 15 September 2019.

'''Scales has a small blue ball that's just big enough for her to grip in her paws. She is taking a moment to play a little, pouncing after the ball and rolling around with it a bit. It's kind of like watching a shiny green kitten. With, er, wings and horns and all.'''

'''Spike sighs "All right...let's do this again..." He gestures Cerebros, who extends a hand. Spike crawls up to Cerebros, and enters is crainal chamber.'''

'''Cerebros carries Spike into Fortress Maximus. And like usual...a few seconds pass, until...the ground beneath Scales starts to rumble. Fortress Maximus shifts, folds in, and rises to become...'''

Fortress Maximus grumbles and towers above "Fortress....Maximus!!!!"

'''Scales notices the shake and turns over to sit up. She grips the ball carefully, cradling it close as she watches Fortress Maximus get up again. "H-hi!"'''

'''Fortress Maximus looks down, he doesn't seem as 'glitchy' as before. "Hello...Scales...I will not harm you. I was created to protect all Autobots, and any who are threatened by the Decepticons..."'''

Time held together so far: 00:03:16

'''Stormfront comes walking into the industrial district. He looks up at the transformed Fortress '''

'''Maximus, "You know...you look fatter than I remember." He grins.'''

'''Cerebros hears the voice of Stormfront. "Stormfront?! Stornfromt?!"'''

Spike can be heard..."No no no! Cerebros! Wait...sych back up!"

'''Scales stares for a while, not certain where to take this conversation. "So... do you prefer Fortress Maximus, or just FortMax, or Max? Or.."'''

Fortress Maximus growls And stumbles back and shifts, and begins to fall back into his battlestation mode.

'''Cerebros falls from the head component of Fortress Maximus and frantically catches Spike. He lands near Stormfront and Scales, dropping the human counterpart.'''

'''Spike is caught, but falls, but it's in his exo-suit, so it's cool. He mumbles "Ow..." He gets to his knees, then his feet and looks at Scales. "Not...30 minutes yet I take?"'''

'''Scales relaxes a bit, leaning forward on the ball. "No... not yet." She looks over at Stormfront. "Is he really that distracting?"'''

'''Cerebros frowns and says "That was me..." It's like doing a gymnastics routine, and doing it perfectly dozens of times, but then when your boss or your folks watch it, you tense up, and that puts you down a path of...well, what we got now.'''

'''Spike looks up and rotates his arm. "It's all right...that's why we're doing this stuff now. We still got...a few days to iron out the kinks."'''

'''Stormfront holds his hands up, "Guess I should have called first..." He goes to say something else but then shuts his mouth to look at Scales. "Sorry if I ruined your test."'''

GAME: Spike PASSES an INTELLIGENCE roll of High difficulty.

'''Spike shakes his head. "No, you did good, Stormfront. We're supposed to be able to take surprises..."'''

'''Scales nods. She takes a moment to press certain spots on the ball, and it uncurls into a blue glitchmouse that runs to perch on her head. She dips her head low, and it runs to perch on one of her shoulders instead.'''

GAME: Spike PASSES a COURAGE roll of High difficulty.

'''Spike breathes out. "Again..."'''

Stormfront says, "I'm hoping to help with Omega Surpreme but i can't if I ruin your transformation."

Spike frowns at Stormfront and clears his throat, eyeing over to Cerebros in a 'talk to him' gesture.

'''Cerebros doesn't notice Spike's gesture, but he does notice his 'again' suggestion. He shakes his head. "No...I can't...I've already messed up twice today."'''

'''Scales plays with the glitchmouse a bit, getting it to run up one paw, then another, then to the tip of her tail. Basically, whatever part of her is highest is where it heads. After a bit of messing around, she brings it in and 'boops' the nose, causing it to fold up into a ball again. "Hey.. Cerebros!" She rolls the ball towards him.'''

Cerebros kneels down to catch the ball.

GAME: Cerebros FAILS a DEXTERITY roll of High difficulty.

*thonk* the ball ricochets off his knee like the awkward kid picked last at little league tryouts.

Stormfront frowns, "I was hoping to watch you guys merge...."

Cerebros looks up at Stormfront.

GAME: Spike PASSES a COURAGE roll of High difficulty.

Spike says "We can do this..."

'''Scales bounds forward to retrieve the ball, gathering it up to roll between her paws. "Are you sure? Sometimes it helps to take a break."'''

Stormfront says, "It has to be frustrating for Fort Max to not be able to walk freely. Every time he gets half a measure of time he's ripped back apart."

Cerebros buries his hands in his face as Stormfront speaks this.

'''Spike sighs and says "Cerebros...let's just... this time, we're not doing it to impress Optimus Prime. Or even Stormfront. Okay...it's just like we went over last night... just...tune everyone out...as hard as that is..." he looks over at Stormfront. "Stormfront's not going to be upset with you if break the bond this time. No one is."'''

Stormfront says, "Cerebros...You are overthinking this. You need to think about what you are doing not about what you are really thinking at the time."

'''Spike gives a STERN look at Stormfront, then gestures to Cerebros. "He can do it though...right?" practically willing Stormy to give the broken Cerebros some confidence.'''

'''Scales hmms and flops over on her side, rolling the ball between her paws. "So, you're sayin' he needs to not think of purple hippos."'''

GAME: Spike PASSES an INTELLIGENCE roll of High difficulty.

Spike looks over at Scales curiously "Huh?"

'''Scales grins at Spike. Sure, it's a kid's game. But it's one she picked up on Earth. "It's almost impossible not to think of a thing if somebody mentions it. So, like, if I tell you not to think of pink elephants, that's gonna be the first thing you think of, isn't it?"'''

Spike grins and nods to Scales "True..."

'''Stormfront sits on the ground. "At many times Dust Devil has wanted to give up. He's messed up so bad that he figured there was no chance of fixing things. But he kept going. Scales hated me at one point...or at least greatly disliked me...us. There were alot of people who hated/disliked me. They had plenty of reason to. But....we kept pushing forward. And now I have quite a few great friends. You at least have people who care for you right here Cerebros. And they don't mind if you screw up as long as you pick yourself up and continue forward. They'll be right behind you to push you or catch you should you fall."'''

'''Cerebros looks at Stormfront and gives him a skeptical look. "You said I have a lot of friends...are you one of them?"'''

Scales leans towards Spike and says with a slightly mournful air, "I just lost the Game, too."

'''Spike looks down at Scales and grins. "Can you start again?"'''

Stormfront says, "If I wasn't one of your friends I wouldn't be here. I wouldn't be watching to make sure you are okay and wanting to see when you are able to achieve your goals. I wanted to be here when you succeeded. So I can remember this moment forever."

'''Scales chuckles. "It's not really something you start or stop. Mostly, you just lose it."'''

'''Cerebros nods and gets up. He walks toward Spike and extends a hand.'''

Spike grins and jogs up to Cerebros and stands on his hand, and Cerebros inserts him into his head component.

Cerebros slowly inserts Spike into his head compoent and looks at Stormfront.

'''Stormfront smiles at Scales and looks at Cerebros and Spike. "We believe in you. We are here for you. Now you have to believe in yourself."'''

Cerebros nods and slowly walks back to Fortress Maximus.

'''Cerebros walks up the ramp, inside Fortress Maximus, and into the control room. He sighs, thinking "I quit..."'''

'''Spike feels Cerebros' doubts and pats the control panel. "This one doesn't count, buddy." Spike closes his eyes and breathes deeply.'''

Cerebros closes his optics and lets the link-up do its job again.

'''Fortress Maximus again, rumbles to life, shifting, rising, and some parts disappearing. The towering battlestation rises again to reveal itself as....'''

'''Scales sits back up and watches alertly. She is absolutely not tempted to tell them not to think of polka-dot dragons. Nope.'''

Fortress Maximus says, "FORTRESS....MAXIMUS!!!"

'''Fortress Maximus stands/towers above the two remaining Autobots. He looks down at Scales, then...looks at Stormfront, then he begins to shudder!'''

'''Spike breathes out. "Easy! Easy!"'''

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES a DEXTERITY roll of Above Average difficulty.

Fortress Maximus raises his head and pauses, then looks down, then takes a few more steps.

'''Scales waves up at Fortress Maximus. "Hey! Put your hand down here?"'''

GAME: Cerebros PASSES a COURAGE roll of High difficulty.

Fortress Maximus pauses and tilts his head at Scales.

'''Spike keeps his eyes closed, hering the conversation. "Go 'head...it's fine...we're just playin' - again, this one doesn't count."'''

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES a DEXTERITY roll of Average difficulty.

Fortress Maximus gets to one knee, and extends his arm, which runs the length of at least two city blocks to Scales.

'''Scales bounds up onto the gigantic hand. She pauses for a moment, waves, then begins to scramble up the arm, nimble on her four feet. The hugeness of FortMax can be intimidating when you're under him, but the little dragon loves getting up to high places.'''

'''Spike smiles and then says calmly "Now...let's go up...to standing..." like he's a yoga instructor. Fortress Maximus slowly stands up.'''

GAME: Fortress Maximus FAILS a DEXTERITY roll of High difficulty.

Stormfront says, "She also flies so don't worry and enjoy having passenger. Great job guys! Fort Max careful...it's okay if you stumble. Just hold yourself together. No one is at your feet and I'm down here to protect anyone."

Fortress Maximus shudders and steps back, and a few of his compartments begin to fall back.

GAME: Spike PASSES a LEADERSHIP roll of Above Average difficulty.

Spike closes his eyes and says "It's okay!"

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES an AGILITY roll of High difficulty.

Fortress Maximus stops...the compoents begin to fold back into their intended 'robot' form, and he stands tall, Scales in hand.

Cerebros smiles, hearing Spike's thoughts, and Fortress Maximus', feeling like a condiut between the two.

'''Scales starts the long journey up to Fortress Maximus' shoulder, little claws digging in slightly for purchase. Not that such small weapons would do much to armor like this guy's.'''

Stormfront says, "Awesome! When you gain more control, we're going to have you practice falling and stumbling and all. You are one. This is great!"

Fortress Maximus actually smiles at Stormfront's enthusiasm.

Spike keeps his eyes closed, Cerebros' euphoria makes it a bit hard to control, but Spike mumbles "Okay...since this one doesn't count... I'm feelin' kind of like my joints are stiff and achey, so let's...try goin' for a walk."

Fortress Maximus finds a desolate area and begins to slowly walk down the path.

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES an AGILITY roll of Above Average difficulty.

'''*clomp* *clomp* *clomp* Fortress Maximus walks. Time held together: 00:14:32'''

'''Scales whees! There's a lot of sway from her perspective. Before long, she's up to her goal on FortMax's shoulder, peering out and around.'''

'''The view is pretty impressive, about 60 Earth stories up. Fortress Maximus looks calmly at Scales. He slowly turns in a circle, giving Scales a '360' view.'''

'''Fortress Maximus looks at Stormfront. "I await your orders, commander."'''

'''Stormfront runs at Fort Max's feet. Watching the steps and smiling. "Fantastic...." He turns and looks at Fortress Maximus, "Take a few steps backwards and then kneel on one knee and then rise and kneel with the other knee..."'''

'''Scales peers down. She's high enough up that it's kind of hard to hear Stormfront. "Do the hokey-pokey?"'''

GAME: Fortress Maximus FAILS an AGILITY roll of High difficulty.

Fortress Maximus steps back, but the kneel thing gets a bit tricky.

GAME: Spike FAILS a LEADERSHIP roll of High difficulty.

Spike feels the bond start to break because of Stormfront's request.

GAME: Cerebros PASSES an INTELLIGENCE roll of Very High difficulty.

Cerebros keeps calm, mumbling "this is just practice..."

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES a DEXTERITY roll of High difficulty.

'''Fortress Maximus falls to one knee, like a toddler. But he does one of those 'hero knee plant' moves. Then, he rests a hand next to his knee, then pushes it up.'''

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES a DEXTERITY roll of Above Average difficulty.

'''Fortress Maximus drags his other knee up, and slowly pushes up. "Yes...commander...." he says obediantly.'''

'''Stormfront nods, "Impressive. See...By pushing through, you continue to succeed even when you were going to fail." He smiles at Fortress and looks up Scales. "We stumble on the path of life but just learn to pick our feet up higher as we step.":'''

Time together 24:43.

Spike smiles and says "Okay...let's tru....disbanding..."

Cerebros looks on in alarm, "Wait! I think we still .."

Spike shakes his head and smiles "Let's just...we've disbanded before because our bond broke...now, let's show these guys we CAN disband when it's time...not because we goofed."

GAME: Fortress Maximus PASSES an AGILITY roll of Very High difficulty.

'''Fortress Maximus turns around and focuses on Stormfront. He wants to make sure he looks Stormfront directly in the optics, and not be afraid.'''

GAME: Cerebros FAILS a COURAGE roll of High difficulty.

'''Scales sits up alertly on FortMax's shoulder, wings half-spread to keep balance while she's not clinging. "You got this!" she cheers.'''

Stormfront says, "Work together. Everything should be agreed apon before it's done.""

Fortress Maximus transforms, but more like...'thuds' - somewhat inelegantly down, but his arm reaches out to safely Scales down gently.

*Thud!* dust rises as Fortress Maximus falls to the ground, but the cityscape looks relatively unscathed.

'''Cerebros removes himself and gently removes Spike from his head component. He walks out.'''

'''Once the battle station is back on the ground, Scales launches herself to glide around in circles and down, settling near where Cerebros exits. "That was fun!"'''

'''Cerebros walks out, angered at the last thing he heard from Stormfront's instructions. He kicks a piece of metal angrily. "Slaggit!"'''

Stormfront says, "Calm down...there's no reason to be angry. You all did a great job,"

Scales, still feeling exhuberant after being so far up in the air, crouches and leaps at Cerebros!

'''>> Scales misses Cerebros with Pounce. <<'''

Cerebros looks at Stormfront "But you said...everything should be agreed upon ..."

Cerebros 's jittery movement makes him duck out of the way instinctively from Scales.

Spike smiles at Cerebros "Cerebros...that was like our FIRST TIME that we VOLUNTARILY disassociated from Fort Max."

'''Scales just glides back to the ground and huffs. Missed! She trots over to headbutt Cerebros in the leg. "You did great," she tells him.'''

'''Cerebros frowns, ignoring Spike's praise. He's supposed to praise him. He nods reluctantly to Scales. "Thanks..."'''

Log session ending at 20:43:42 on Sunday, 15 September 2019.