Hope for Harmonex



Log Title: Hope for Harmonex Characters:Imager Starlock Soundwave Location:Harmonex - Northwestern Cybertron Date:12/28/2019 TP:Harmonex Tp Summary:Imager and Starlock talk about Harmonex while Soundwave observes. As logged by Soundwave

[Harmonex] Starlock says, "psst.. can you hear me?"

[Harmonex] Imager says, "huh?"

[Harmonex] Starlock says, "oh good, you're on here too."

[Harmonex] Soundwave says, "Listening."

[Harmonex] Delusion says, "It's an open channel."

[Harmonex] Imager mutters.

[Harmonex] Soundwave says, "Something you need?"

[Harmonex] Starlock says, "perhaps."

[Harmonex] Imager says, "Yeah I got something I need. I need you to like rust out."

[Harmonex] Soundwave says, "That sort of behavior is unbefittinga miestro is it not?"

Harmonex - Northwestern Cybertron

Harmonex. It is heard, and yet not just heard. Its tones vibrate through your entire frame. Walking closer you see the remains of what was once a beautiful city. Ancient architecture blends with the natural crystalline growth that give Harmonex its distinct sound. Once broken and silent, the rebirth of the planet has allowed the crystals to regrow. At the edges of the town, forming a framework, are the largest crystals with their deep echoing resonance. But here and there are tiny outcroppings of smaller crystals. Some with higher tones blending together while others harmonize in what seem to be various chords. Though the habitation of the City is questionable, it is clear that the heart of the city is attempting to return. Brave souls visit and there has been some repair of the streets and more structurally sound buildings. Whether the city itself will be born anew is a question many are asking...

Contents:

Soundwave

Imager

Starlock

[Harmonex] Imager says, "I've got plenty of unbefitting conduct I can show you."

Imager gives Starlock an annoyed nod, indicating she understood about Soundwave. She was about to say something critical about the mech, probably involving craming a cassettecon somewhere impolite when you speak. Imager flinches a little, and then gives a reluctant nod. "Well, uh...yeah I mean a lot of us pre-war types...you know as much as me, there's a lot of memories...." She pauses and then says with a bit of a struggle, "I always think about...well, what should've been, you know?"

Starlock could feel the building anxiety over the communlink, and took a silent, deep vent to try and calm herself, and partly psych herself up, this was going to be rocky, but she stood down Knightmare or.. Illarion as she was known now, and didn't get beat into the ground, she shot Megatron off the roof, and got a number of cons help in cleaning up some of the city, she could /do/ this.

"...Yeah, would should've been, could of been, what could be..." she'd agree, glancing down. "I wasn't very high caste here, but..." She'd shrug, bringing her arms up and letting her hands hang loosely. "This place is my home, it's part of me, and I want to see it like that again." She'd glance to the city.

"But I'm also.. Stubborn, and make it a point to not give up hope till I'm positive it's fruitless... I just, know currently, I can't.. do that alone though." she'd say, carefully picking her words, as she looked down at her necklace she'd made from of the old broken crystals millions of years ago.

Imager frowns openly. She knows this same problem. The big femme puts a hand on her hip plate. "Yeah...I know what you're thinking....and if you recall not long ago I tried to do something here too. Thought that..." She looks to the city, "maybe we could have a neutral spot. Somewhere out of the way, that just people could show up at and...I don't know. Not kill each other? I made that little box over there." She points to the dented and partially smashed box labeled "The Non-Aggression Box". "Idea was that since both sides would occasionally patrol the area, you'd look in there and see what the other side left ya, with promises of no bugs or explosives or stuff. Just like...you know, a way to stop all the fighting around here...and then me and that piece of junk whose listening to us right now, I think 'hey maybe we can muck up the shield, make it hard to enter, make it a place that people can't fortify easily.."

She pauses, "You know what happened? Everyone comes here now. All I did was draw attention to it. We've had the frelling Decepticon commander. Smelt, TWO Con commanders come here, and either order people to raze the place or threaten to do so." She shakes her head, "Because they just looove to destroy anything nice. That's literally half their motive." She spreads her hands wide, "What can you expect out of this? We've got no combiner teams or standing armies here...Imager"

"I was wondering what that was about. So a kind donation box, that is a nice idea." Starlock would say as she looks to the box, and then back too Imager, and puffs a cheek. "...I know, I maybe sounding like a bit of a snort, since.. I.. sorta came at the tail end of all that." She'd rub at the back of her neck.

"....Well... I'm not good at putting thoughts into words without lots of prep so.." She'd glance up.

"...Do.. you trust me enough, to show, instead? and.. Believe me when I say, you didn't totally fail?" She'd ask, holding out a hand. She knows she can't pull /any/ of what she's trying without Imager's backing, given her connections to the community..

Imager rummages around in said box as Starlock speaks, and pulls out a handful of holovids. She looks at them absently then to Starlock's hand. Its not disgust she shows, but she doesn't believe Starlock, its apparently. Imager slowly shakes her head, "Don't give me any hope, Starlock. Don't do it." There's a bit of heat in her voice as she continues, "Because its going to keep crashing down until we're all dead, and there's no room for hope left. It'll just break ya further when you find out it wasn't worth it."

Soundwave flies into the area like a big blue boxy cloud of doom and despair. He lands outside the city. No /his/ city. He's decided its his a long time ago, its just no one else knows it yet. He hasnt noticed the two and their conversation yet, approaching Harmonex with intention. He has a friend with him today. Perched on his right forearm is Laserbreak. He turns to the bird. "Laserbeak: Aerial scan." Operation: Reconaissance." he commands. The bird takes off with a sqwaaaak, flying over Harmonex. He starts to circle, relaying information back to the spymaster.

"Sorry, can't, that's my job." She'd say teasingly in a empathetic tone and approached the larger. "...You don't have to take my hand then." She'd nod. "Can follow, and I /did/ make something for you I wanna give ya' once we do." She'd hint, and take a another vent, trying to calm herself.

"...I know.. things haven't.. Exactly gone to plan." She'd say with a slightly stressed laugh, pinching her nose bridge. "...Things in life rarely do, specially are lives but.." She'd glance over the direction she wanted to go.

(INTERCEPT): Starlock radio's #-1 NOT FOUND with "Behave...".

Starlock sends a radio transmission.

(Radio) Starlock sends you a radio transmission, 'Behave..'

While sullen and depressed, Imager's not want to let Starlock travel alone, besides the small Femme....librarian was it? had gone out of her way to do something. The least she could do is ensure nothing happened. "...fine." Imager picks up her shield and gun, grousing a little as she does. Before she leaves, Imager considers the holovids she had originally put in that box only a few years ago, then reluctantly dumps them back into it. Couldn't hurt.

Imager dropped Six holovids from pre-war holovid programs, a good quality copy.

(Radio) You transmit, " Always. Query: Will my presence bring unnecessary aggression? Soundwave can observe from a distance." to Starlock.

Starlock sends a radio transmission.

(Radio) Starlock sends you a radio transmission, '...Lets go it slow.'

'

(Radio) You transmit, " confirmed. tell me when to come over." to Starlock.

Starlock smiles, and starts leading the way, a bit /too/ excited... Oddly moving without too much worry of who might be around... Starlock would lead over to one of the old road entrances where a makeshift message board that had been set up, the rubble piles form the clean up she and the others were doing were much more visible as well.

On the message board, with notes of whom had been in and out... always a bot /with/ a con, and a message of what clean up they'd done, or what they'd found and.. Well, there were no mentions of fights.

Starlock takes a vent, mentally preparing herself. "....Not.. Long after I came back here, I.. found myself out here, sobbing, just.. all the memories sorta came back." She'd say, glancing Down. "...Second time out here, I ran into both Soundwave and Knightmare out here and they where fighting, verbally mind you and.. Eheh, I don't remember too much of what happened but I.. sorta ended up debating them both into the ground, after pulling some scrap outta my aft to get permission to go in." She'd explain sheepishly. "Kinda surprised I didn't get my aft kicked with out belligerent I was." She'd chuckle.

"Remember the reports I'd made?"

Soundwave notes the two now that the radios are back and forth. He decides to observe from where he is, listening, and just..seeing what they are talking about. Sometimes its better to be a shadow and learn then to be up close and create a situation.

"Yeah, Primus-damned Knightmare. The Dominicons decided they HAD to have the city too or something. I actually thought about giving it to em too, just to keep it away from the Cons. At least they were a combiner team, problem is that they got no real support structure, and don't have the mechpower to hold more than one city. Bunch of elitist jerks, but whatever, they probably wouldn't raze the city." She quiets down, here Starlock was explaining something to her, and she was just complaining about another of the city's problems. She eyes Starlock for a few moments, "okay, yeah, you made reports, right. What happened?"

"I was given permission, both said because they had failed, that I was going to fail and didn't believe I could do it, and I told them, I'm not /them/." She'd then gesture to the work. "... After finding out how to get in, I waited about.. two days?" She'd think, glancing up. "...And found Soundwave out here... and talked, and talked, and talked." she'd explain, trying to emphasize just how long it was, and took a vent. "...I managed to convince him to help me in, since it takes a Bot, and a Con's signal to get in, much like the Dominicons other city, and sometime between that I shot megatron off the roof, but still, that's how we eventually got to the old library I worked at, and recovered the archive I uploaded to the Autobot database, and as a show of good faith.."

She'd glance back into the city. "I also gave the other two factions copies... Delusions had been there because she's been coming back and forth, tinkering with the shield, I won't lie, that makes me nervous... but still.. I can't complain, I need to show trust to keep this going." She'd knit her ridges, cringing. "..But It was what I needed to show I was willing to work with /everyone/ so... after that the whole fallen mess happened and I uh.."

She'd knit her ridges and give an award smile. "...Did something I'm not liable to talk about." She'd chuckle weakly. "...All and all though I.. wasn't going to let my words do the talking, I was going to let my actions speak louder..." She'd gesture to the work. "And giving proof of concept by doing.. I've... Got more then one Cons help in cleaning this place up, bots too... but I've tried not to bug them since the fallen mess and they have the city to patch up 'for they can come help me over here."

Imager shakes her head slowly, "Well that was relentless....Uhh.." She stops and holds up her hands, "Look...just because some Cons came in and moved some debris...I mean, that doesn't mean that A) they don't have designs on this place, or B) that they're not willing to sat-cannon the entire place if it suits their needs. Unicron's Smelter, Soundwave even told me once that he had orders to raze the city from Megatron personally. Just because they play nice occasionally, doesn't mean it matters in the least to em. They're /always/ working an angle, Starlock. Its what they do. Decieve is literally part of their name." Imager stops, and then grunts, "Okay so its Decept, but you get what I mean. You could prove to everyone that if Harmonex fell again that the entire damned planet will explode, and there'd be a race to see who could do it first."

Starlock makes a sound, how exactly.. Was she going to explain that Deathsaurus gave her what was, basically, a blood oath to help protect this place? That matter would she even /believe/ that of all things?!.. Starlock puffs her cheeks in thought as she listens to Imager.

"Well it's not just... moving things, they have to work /together/ with the others to get stuff done, Bumblee, me, Deathsaurus, Dust Devil, and Star Hauler have all been out here working.. and I do have Banshee's word she'll help." She'd explain. "It's like I told Knightmare you can't.. /force/ people to stop waring by making them cooperate with a shield, you need to build a community, and that's not /easy/ to do, it takes time.. lots, and lots of time and piatants to put into it.." She'd explain, knitting her fingers together to show.

"And you're right, they don't /have/ designs or /thee/ for this place.." She'd pull out her old sketchbook. "I do..." She'd say softly. "And I know... I know I'm dancing with Devils... and I've had to talk a very strict line that has caused me to overcharge myself more than once out here due to the stress." She'd laugh weakly. "...But believe me.. I think I kinda scared the lube out of Cerebros when I put Soundwave in his place, /with words/ after he started making threats."

Soundwave just continues to observe, gather information from his cassette and watch something rarely seen. Autobots interacting, being Autobots. Sure, it is expected the conversation to go to how you cannot trust Decepticons. And they are right. Most of the time they can. He takes notes of the Autobots helping with this. And even the Decepticon names, ones he wouldnt expect to show any interest at all in something like this. Starlock gets a silent, almost respectful nod from him as he thinks about something quietly.

"If you think you're scaring Soundwave, I hate to break it to you, but you're playing his game. Do you think for a single moment that he's more scared of you than getting cannoned by Megatron?" Imager shakes her head again, "Do you think for a moment, no matter what sort of community that you're trying to put together, that they're all just going to defect if he lays down the law? I'll give you that Soundwave seems to have stalled any real orders of leveling the place, but its not always going to be like that. Think of all the psychopaths he's got over there. Bludgeon, Onslaught..." She says the next name with extra disdain, "Razorclaw. You think if he directs any of them to do the deed that its not going to happen?"

Several moments of walking pass, with Imager looking around, trying to figure out what Starlock's wanting to show her. "I uh...I saved a planet once. A few years back. Eurythma. Planet's kinda like Harmonex, all based on sound. They have a song there that heals people, destroys....they had this ...eh I guess you could call it a 'flaw' in their song that'd manifest every few eons, and lucky me, I was the one who had to play against it. Point is, there's literally music that can do almost anything...." She sighs and stops, thinking, "There's a song out there that can end a war, Starlock. I know it. And my spark tells me that when I find it, it needs to come here...." She shakes her head, "But you're completely underestimating Megatron. He'd shoot the spark out of his forger if it suited him. Everything that hasn't happened yet is simply because he's occupied with other things. If he decides that the Cons are being too friendly here? It all goes up in flames....again."

"..No." She'd say simply. "I know I can't convince everyone, all I can do, is ensure I don't lose those who do." She'd nod simply, and listened, glancing away, her finials drooping. "I don't.. I can't read minds, or see the future... I'm still going to try though, and I know You won't be the only one telling me 'I told you so' the second I fail." She'd nod. "..I know I've won /no points/ with the Dominicons." she'd smile weakly. "And you are right,...but, I do know what Megatron can do, believe me, I am under no delusion he'll play ball... It's why I take him seriously whenever he comes into a fight." She'd point out. "...That planet sounds nice, I wish I could of visited it... and if such a song exists? It.. would be nice" She'd sigh and look into the city.

"Well.. You've heard everything I've been trying to do, and have done... I know it's not convincing, or all that stable, but.." She'd shrug. "...Do you want to go in?"

Imager grunts, "I will NOT say 'I told you so'. I'm saying 'Everything blows up, and nobody is allowed to have any hopes or dreams.' THAT goes for Bots AND Cons." She points to the air, oddly enough exactly where Soundwave is lurking off in the distance, not that she notices him. "...It'd be stupid to say 'I told ya so', because you're tryin to do something good. Makin you feel any worse won't do nothin for nobody. I want it to work as much as you do, if not more so, but that damn war touches everybody every day of their life...." She frowns harder, "In? In doing what exactly? Everything I've done made it worse so far. I'd shoot both Soundwave and Megatron in the face if I thought that'd solve it but I don't see THAT in the cards either."

Soundwave hears what Imager is saying and though he is loathe to admit it to anyone, Imager is right. Megatron may have once been charismatic. A beacon of something besides destruction, but recently its not been the case. And like minds of destruction bring followers who want the same. Bludgeon, yes. Onslaught, Razorclaw, Overlord, Deathsaurus. Destroyers are the norm rather then a few standouts these nights and are rewarded with higher and higher positions in the empire. The destruction is worsening if anything. Places like this with no strategic value, places that cannot be used to power the juggernaut which is Megatron's war are an affront to the more destructive memebers of the casue. And he's begining to think its not because the places are worthless. Its because they represent a peace. The sort of peace that could end the war, and Megatrons dream of domination with it. He tenses from his observation point as he considers this option briefly. The Autobots recently have had many chances to destroy him personally. And every time they havent. More things to consider. He tilts his head in thought, but then when Imager points in his direction, he ducks out of sight. Cant learn if they spot you.

"Into the city, passed the shield... I know it's not a lot to show, just clean up work of people working together.. I didn't want to start building anything, until I talked to you... Because this is also your home, and you're a big pillar for the community... and I know you want to do that tribute or concerned you mentioned over the communlink a day before the fallen fell." Starlock explained, revealing she never forgot what Imager said of the communlink.

"...I was.. thinking maybe we could find a stage together..." She'd say softly as she looked down. "I.. also made you this."

Starlock dropped Harmonex Crystal Necklace.

Imager gives a soft nod, "Yeah, I do still want to do that. Word is that that 'Ya Vol Kommandant' Seeker Banshee's supposed to be a good singer. She's supposed to be pretty good to her word, which is rare for the Cons, so I was gonna ask her to join in. Get that scout guy, Upshot. He's got one of them solid waveforms that you can play...and you know, see who else still has a mind to play something." Her grumbling had died down, and while she doesn't outright agree to trying it again, she's apparently at least open to it. She regards the necklace gingerly, the big femme's hand reaches out to veeeery carefully try to pick it up to examine. "Its...really fragile. Let me see..." The necklace goes up to her optics so she can examine it. "An early gen crystal...Where did you find that?" Her hand trembles a little as she holds it, her gaze veers away before she remembers something, "That reminds me...you ever see how weird the city layout is in there? Its like...a mishmash of different formattings. I wonder if Cybertron went and started refabr..." Her words just stop as she looks at the necklace then at Starlock. Babbling wasn't helping. With a sigh, she gives a very slight nod, "Uh...yeah. Yeah.." She raises the necklace up a little in reference, "Thanks...I think I'll keep it in my room though. Less chance of getting sonic blasted...." Her hand closes around it gently.

Starlock gives a bit of a knowing grin of how Banshee was.. is, a bit of a Maestro fangirl, and wanting to learn under the last.. She'll just leave Imager to find that out.

"..I took a few with me, before I was forced to move to Iacon, after the cities destruction" She'd say looking over into the shield, and them back, and pointed to her own necklace, not as fancy as the one she'd made Imager, but she has done some recent work on it. "Yeah, I did notice that when I got deeper in, I'm.. not really sure whats going on with it." She'd say with a scratch of her cheek. "Was hoping you knew more." She'd nod, then realizes what she meant. "Refurbishing?" She'd say and smiled with a tilt of her helm "Good..." She'd grin. "I'm happy to hear that, I.. know this was your home too.. I thought about making Knightmare one but.. ehhh" She would wave her hand.. "Weird circumstances that keep me going back and forth." She'd nod.

"..Let yourself think on it a bit, yeah?" she finally says. "Not going to make you decide now."

Imager gives a slow, reluctant nod. She's being dragged back into it again, and her spark can't take any more of it. "Well...yeah I'll think, but no promises. I should get back on duty here soon. You be careful out here, there's almost always a cassettecon out here, skulking in the darkness, if not Soundwave or that other mech." She makes a swooping gesture towards her chest, to emulate Deathsaurus' chestplate. "Not that I trust Knightmare at all either, mind you, but she's less likely to give a damn either way." Ugh, AND she uses electricity, which just is NOT classy in the slightest. With her warning issued, and completely unneccesary, Imager folds down into her big hovercar and begins the journey home.