Guests and Etiquette

Log Title: Guests and Etiquette Characters: Backblast, Benin-Jeri, Deathsaurus, Delusion, Discretion, Dust Devil, Knightmare, Widget Location: Valvolux Date: June 2, 2019 TP: Valvolux TP, The Fallen TP Summary: The Dominicons continue to host guests with very different agendas, from Destrons to Junkions. As logged by  Delusion

Log session starting at 17:56:19 on Sunday, 2 June 2019.

'''The Golden Stopcock Bar does a fair amount of business, these days, but there's still the odd empty booth for those who like to keep conversations more private. Delusion enters the bar and orders a young enerwhiskey, still very green, and settles at one of those booths with it.'''

'''Deathsaurus enters the bar alongside Delusion. He moves to sit across from her at the booth, and ponders what to drink. "Light engex, if you will. I am buying tonight." ahh so hes ordering things that dont hit so hard.'''

Discretion pauses at the bar long enough to order an Infinite Eclipse, and pick it up before she joins Delsuion in the booth.

'''Delusion takes a sip. "So.. tell me about one of your victories, Deathsaurus."'''

'''Deathsaurus arches a brow ridge "I am not one to brag, but one of my more recent victories was on a world called Urya Seven." he says. "Small mining colony, and we took it in less then five solar rotations with zero casualties and minimal energy exertions." He says, his large clawed hand moving around his glass thoughtfully. "There was enough energy there to power two warships for some time. Of course that was a few years back. We have been focusing primarily on the planet V for the last half a decade." he admits.'''

'''Delusion nods. "Is the Planet V strategically important, then?"'''

Discretion sits and listens, occasionally sipping at her drink.

Deathsaurus considers "It has many resources. Its very similar to Earth in many ways. Mostly, though. I admit. It is because of the Cybertron base there. And because of Star Saber. I've been focusing on eliminating him as a threat."

'''Delusion ahs. "And when he came to Cybertron, so did you?"'''

'''Deathsaurus nods "Yes. When he became leader of the Autobots, the Autobots became my enemy." he says simply.'''

'''Delusion arches an optic ridge. "I see. I trust the rest of your empire is in good hands in your absence, then."'''

Discretion says, "The enemy of my enemy is my enemies enemy; nothing more."

'''Deathsaurus nods "My Empress watches over things when I am absence. Esmeral is every bit as capable of leading as I am." He says.'''

'''Delusion doesn't comment on Deathsaurus' leadership. It would be impolitic. Instead, she takes a small sip of her drink. "She must be an interesting femme."'''

'''Deathsaurus nods "I am as devoted to her as she is to me. She is a capable, cunning and fantastic femme but I may be a bit biased." he says with a slight smirk, watching both Discretion and Delusion closely. "We compliment each other well." its very very rare that a Decepticon general would share his power with anyone, let alone a conjunx and admit it openly. "She has been my conjunx for just under a vorn, right before the Star Saber incident happened. She has her own warworld and rules our eastern front."'''

'''Delusion hmms. "It would be nice to meet her sometime. But really- *the* Star Saber incident? Just one?"'''

Discretion raises her glass to her lips and takes a longer draught, hiding a wry smile.

'''Deathsaurus leans in "Perhaps you will. She may show interest in Cybertron one day." He pause.s "There have been many incidents after. However..." He says. "There is one that started this whole situation."'''

'''Delusion leans back. "Well, we've heard very little about Star Saber. Why not tell us about what started this contest?"'''

'''Deathsaurus pauses. "He started threatening several of my colonies, 'liberating' them using two large batallions. I'd gain and lose territories in battles with him until the day he quadrupled his troops and..." His fists clench tightly enough to place a crack in his glass. "He drew of my fleets close to the well of a black hole. The battle went poorly and we ended up losing a substantial amount of troops to the gravity well." He says. He doesnt give numbers though. "After that day, after the lives lost. I vowed revenge on Star Saber. I would hunt him wherever he goes until he is dead."'''

'''Delusion nods. "He quadrupled his troops? Reinforcements like that don't come from nowhere."'''

'''Deathsaurus narrows his optics. "And suddenly, hes leader of the Autobots." he says, his body tensing. "I have made the connection, yes."'''

'''Delusion hmms. "But you have mentioned this was quite some time ago.. and the Autobots have only been able to truly be aggressive again since the return of Optimus Prime from the crash on Earth roughly thirty-five of its solar cycles past. Not even half a vorn. What forces they had on Cybertron before then were much reduced."'''

'''Deathsaurus pauses. "It wasn't that long ago to be honestl. Less then five solar cycles ago. ABout the same time Megatron was trying to get me to return."'''

'''Delusion ahs. "That makes more sense."'''

'''Delusion hmmms. "Five cycles ago.. that was about the time of the Galvatron mess here on Cybertron. The planet hadn't yet been revived."'''

'''Deathsaurus nods "Its been a slow recovery. But rest assured we are coming back." he says. "ANd yet look at you. This planet is better then it ever has been."'''

Discretion says, "That depends where you look."

'''Delusion nods. "Much has returned, but there's still deep scars in the planet. And chances are good that much of what has been restored will be destroyed- either for strategic advantage, or to strip-mine resources."'''

'''Deathsaurus nods "Still better hten it is before. A planet does not heal entirely overnight." there is a twitch of one of his wings and he readjusts, as if tyring to hide some sort of injury.'''

GAME: Discretion FAILS an INTELLIGENCE roll of Very High difficulty.

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

'''Delusion takes a thoughtful sip. "Well. We'll see how long it can be made to last. Some optimists thought that the rise of neutral places was an omen of peace, as if that was all it would take. But Megatron would have to give up his grudge against Optimus for such a thing to happen. It would be like you deciding not to take your revenge on your enemy Star Saber."'''

'''Deathsaurus shakes his head. "I wouldnt be here if Megatron didn't come to Victory and try to take it from me by challenging Star Saber." oh so thats what this is all about. "He tried to take what is mien. I will take what is his. Cybertron and Earth. That is how it has to be."'''

'''Delusion smirks. "And yet, Megatron owns less than half of Cybertron, and very little on Earth. Would you make war on everyone else in your path?"'''

'''Deathsaurus pauses. "I would take what he could not. That would be the ultimate humiliation." He says, refolding those wings tightly again. He shifts a lot the longer he sits still.'''

Discretion snerks, "If that's your intention why would we want to open trade with you? It would just be helping you rebuild your forces to evetually use them in an offensive against us."

'''Deathsaurus tilts his head. "Better to be our ally then our enemy? One day we will be powerful enough to achieve this. I'd hate for Valvolux to be on the losing side, or to be caught up in the crossfire." oh, that warlord mentality.'''

'''Delusion 's smirk turns sharp. "This city stands because Shockwave and Overlord together couldn't muster enough firepower to hold it. Do you think you can boast of more than that?"'''

'''Deathsaurus shakes his head. "I hope I would not have to challenge that. As trade partners, we wouldn't have to worry about that."'''

'''Delusion nods. "One would hope so. Having decided Megatron is no longer worthy to follow, Knightmare will not kneel to anyone else. Keep that in mind before you decide what you want to conquer."'''

Deathsaurus nods "That is one of the reasons I respect her and Valvolux. I will do my best to keep the war away from your citystate."

'''Delusion leans back again. "That's appreciated. Respect our borders, and we'll respect yours."'''

Deathsaurus nods "that is all that we ask."

Delusion sips her drink in silence for a bit, letting that stand.

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "I don't think he has enough firepower to back up his ambitions."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I'm getting that impression."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Should I even ask what is being discussed? I am done dealing with some.. issues that needed handled."

'''Deathsaurus considers for a moment. "And what is it that Valvolux would need from us?" He asks.'''

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Possible trade with Deathsaurus, and his desire to conquer everything that is Megatron's; including Cybertron and Earth."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "He's decided he doesn't want to follow Megatron, but he does want to make the same mistake Onslaught did."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I, politely, pointed out that if he decided to conquer Cybertron it would be foolish of us to trade with him to help him get stronger."

'''Delusion spreads her hands. "We are doing fairly well now. If you have resources from your far flung empire that are scarce here on Cybertron, that might be worth a fair amount. But without knowing what you can get your hands on, I can't really say how much opportunity you have here."'''

'''Deathsaurus pauses. "The galaxy is vast, Delusion. If we do not have it. It can be obtained." he says.'''

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Wonderful. Another pretender to a non-existant throne of Cybertron."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Delusion seems to have convinced him not to attack us by pointing out that Overlord and shockwave couldn't hold the city."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "He's fairly young, so his mistakes are understandable, but they might cost him dearly to learn from."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "We could always use a new pet. Perhaps convince him to join us. We have cookies."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Last I checked we aren't the Sith."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "Besides, we still have Dust Devil in our basement."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "From what I have seen in the human histories, cookies have seemed to turned the tide of many of their wars."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Why do we have a pet Bot in our basement?  Delusion, did you put a leash on him?"

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I hear she beat him up."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "No. He seems to have caged himself. He's afraid that if he leaves, an agent of The Fallen or some other enemy will spot him and disrupt his plans."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "I did beat him in a sparring match."

'''Delusion leans her chin on one hand. "Sure. But this city has everything it needs to prosper, given time and effort."'''

Deathsaurus nods "As does my warworld. All things improve with time. Its just how much time thats the question. And the more resources we can gather together, the better we will both be protected."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "... then he is your responsibility, Delusion. Remember to feed and take him for walks.. you are clean up any messes."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "I'm not planning to keep him. After we finish this little jaunt, I'll release him into the wilds."

[Dominicon] Backblast has joined this channel.

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "Hope you don't mind, while I'm in the area, an' working with you? I've got the codes on flimsy and I'll let you destroy 'em when I leave."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Really? That's awfully impressive considering I don't actually have half the codes stored anywhere and the encrption key is truly random based off of an ever changing actual hardwired live feed tucked away elsewhere."

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "A lot harder than the Con networks to break into."

'''Delusion shrugs. "Well, I've said before that if you want a military alliance, or a trade agreement, you'll have to speak with Knightmare and Bulwark."'''

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "But, for now, I can play nice. Next time I would rather get a request beforehand so that I can make sure everyone is on correctly and doesn't jeopardize the communication system for everyone."

GAME: Delusion FAILS an INTELLIGENCE roll of Very High difficulty.

Delusion does frown slighty, distracted for a moment.

'''Deathsaurus nods "And I will in the future. Right now Im focused on trades." he ponders.'''

GAME: Deathsaurus FAILS an INTELLIGENCE roll of High difficulty.

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "That's because I actually have taken the time to see what others do to keep security in their networks."

Discretion finishes off her drink and set the glass down; lightly tapping the rim with a few fingers as she ponders.

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "That old saying about forgiveness and permission does not apply here."

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "It's amazing what you can do with the best of digital and the best of analogue cryptographic gear... if you tune it right you can get quasi-quantum-level randomness out of it. I could show you some of it?"

Discretion sends a radio transmission.

(Radio) Discretion sends you a radio transmission, 'The next time he does that I'm considering it an act of agression.'

Delusion leans towards Discretion

You mutter to Discretion, "I'll gladly go there and put him in binders for you."

Delusion mutters to Discretion, "... gladly go there and put him..."

Discretion shakes her head and responds.

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "It's not -true- quantum, obviously, but... it's close."

Discretion mutters to you, "No, I just want him off my system as quickly as possible."

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "I don't ask permission -or- forgiveness, usually. It causes too many… complications."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "More to the point, we have business that we do that does not involve any Autobots, even those who are currently bunking in our city."

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "Just ask and I'll set the bombes to ignore your band. It will be impossible for me to reconnect for at least two hours - you can come verify, if you like. This is top-end countersec gear."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Indeed, and I was in the process of finding some clear space to create somewhere we could all access without comprising anyone's security."

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "I don't want to ruffle feathers any more than I have. Just ask and I'll clear your net."

Delusion glances at Discretion.

You mutter to Discretion, "Are you sure you don't want me to go down there and punch him a few times?"

Delusion mutters to Discretion, "Are... sure you... him..."

'''Deathsaurus watches the two discuss among themselves. He tilts his head a bit as if radioing his own people.'''

Discretion quirks an optic ridge at Deathsaurus as she says something back.

Discretion mutters to you, "No, I'm not sure I don't want you to do that."

'''Deathsaurus is very patient while the two discuss among themselves. Odd they would do it in a bar, but he gives them space and time. He folds his hands over themsleves and keeps his wings close to his body.'''

Discretion says, "I would ask if you had some sort of inernal blockage with that look, but you aren't an organic."

'''Deathsaurus tilts his head to Discretion. "Just allowing you time and discussion. Please. Continue." all four of his optics focus on the two, though he does smirk at the candor.'''

'''Delusion finishes her drink and stands, taking a moment to crack her knuckles. "Well. I have a security issue to see to. Enjoy your drinks." She heads for the exit.'''

Discretion sends a radio transmission.

(Radio) Discretion sends you a radio transmission, 'Just don't break him completely.'

'''Deathsaurus nods "I assume this discussion is over. Thank you for your hospitality." with that he stands as well, placing enough shanix on the table to pay for everyones drinks and a generous tip.'''

'''Discretion motions to one of the wait staff and orders a refill. "Only if you want it to be; I hadn't planned on going anywhere."'''

Valvolux - Northeastern Cybertron

Abandoned Repair Bay - Level 2 - Valvolux

'This room could easily be a mile long, with a ceiling about two thirds of that. Giant cables hang disconnected from the walls alongside bundles of smaller feeds. A large bed easily fills the majority of the room, surrounded by discarded parts and tools. Half the lights in the room are long destroyed, and the ones that remain flicker in a way that doesn?t seem entirely random. A soft sigh hisses through the room from a light breeze that carries the scent of oil, rust, and dirt.'

'There used to be a door at one end, but it?s stuck half open and completely filled with rubble. A ragged, round tunnel pierces the room a dozen feet from the floor on one side, only to continue on to unseen depths on the other. There are safety lights visible on the ceiling outlining what might be bay doors overhead, large enough to let a shuttle enter or leave, or something larger.'

Scrap is piled in walls and mounds at the edges of the room, and something moves among it with the click and scrape of metal against metal.

'''Dust Devil watches the deflected shots and raises a hand to bring up another small forcefield. His hand mimicking the angle that the field should be creating. The increased assault makes him bring up his other hand and he tries to keep the three smaller shields going through the look on his face shows the strain.'''

Delusion stalks down the tunnel in a definitely predatory way, optics gleaming red.

'''Backblast has apparently been distracted from his cryptography by bothering Dust Devil. "Good." He says, after a moment. "Very good. Come take a look at this, kid - you any good with numbers?"'''

Backblast apparently hasn't noticed Delusion

Backblast adds "I think I've picked up a Con Numbers Station."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Give me time to get something set up for all of us to use without stepping on anyone's toes. In the meantime I would like my channel clear."

[Dominicon] Backblast says, "No worries."

[Dominicon] Backblast has left this channel.

'''Delusion is not hiding her motion, stalking up to within arm's reach of Backblast before she speaks. "You. Discretion is my little sister, and you touched something of hers without permission." Her hands are half open by her sides, a loose martial stance, and her voice is rich with tension.'''

'''Backblast flicks a switch on his radio. A light, marked 'channel lockout' starts to blink. He does this incredibly casually, it might be hard to spot. He blinks at Delusion. "Yeah and it all got cleared up, keep yer chrome on."'''

'''Dust Devil gets up and almost falls over before straightening up and moving over near Backblast. He puts one hand to his head, frowning as the strain gets to him slightly. "Numbers?" He gisves Delusion a slight wave. Luckily the 'ordinance' in the battle was paper. But then Delusion speaks  and he looks at backblast with some confusion.'''

Backblast adds "I mean, I could give you the same argument about my only friend. But I didn't."

'''Delusion 's voice drops to a low, throaty purr. "Dust Devil made his own choices. And this location is public, if not well publicized. But you dared to intrude upon private territory. I am within my rights to cuff you and exile you from this city for such a demonstration of lack of ettiquette."'''

Dust Devil frowns and looks between the two, "What's going on? What are you talkin about?"

'''Dust Devil raises a forcefield when it seems that Delusion might be getting a touch too close to Backblast. Its one of his softer shields, trying to stop.'''

'''Backblast gives Delusion a placid look. "I just cleared things up with your sister." He repeats. "No harm, no foul, keep your chrome on." he looks at Dust Devil. "As you yourselves have said, he's just a kid. You can't say that and then claim he's responsible for his own choices. Yes. You are within your rights to do just that, and I won't stop you."'''

'''Backblast sniffs. "But, will you?"'''

'''Delusion tilts her head, optics still bright. "You haven't given me any reason not to. You don't even understand, do you? You're not a friend. You're not even a formal ally. I gave you the courtesy to inform you of your friend's location, and you used that to invite yourself here. Fine. That's not technically a trespass. But now you've gone where you're emphatically not allowed. Saying that you left right afterwards does not erase the original action."'''

'''Dust Devil looks at Backblast and then Delusion. Okay...apparently he missed something that happened apparently'''

Backblast growls "And what about all the times you've been on the Bot net? I know one of you has been poking around our network on more than one occasion - on points where you've not had a need to. All of us going to Junkion need private comms that can't be heard by anyone else. Your net is... frankly, the most secure on Cybertron. Pot and kettle."

'''He sighs, looking at Dust. "I broke into their comms to make sure that we had private comms for this jaunt to Junk. I left when asked."'''

'''Backblast takes a breath, clencing his fist, adding "However... rrrgh... tell anyone about this and I -will- kill you, OK? I'm..." A deep breath. "Gimme a moment, this ain't easy, OK?"'''

Delusion narrows her optics and waits.

'''Backblast says, very quietly - but loud enough to be heard by all. "I'm sorry I broke into yer net."'''

'''Delusion straightens up and folds her arms, which is at least a less aggressive posture. "Do not touch any of her things again without asking. You don't have that relationship with her, so don't presume permission."'''

Backblast nods a bit.

'''Backblast sniffs "I never assume permission, Delusion." He says. "I'm almost never wanted."'''

'''Delusion nods back. "Then perhaps you could understand the importance of protecting that which is, when it is rare." She seems to at least be mollified, if not entirely pleased still.'''

'''Backblast looks up at Delusion. "Yeah, maybe one day."'''

'''Backblast sniffs "Only way to keep the method I use out is to use quantum methods." He 'suggests'. "Even then, not 100 relia-" He stops. "Ah nuts, it's starting. I've got a Con numbers station and they're broadcasting parts of the OTP in the clear in the background. If I get enough of it I can break it and get the shufti on what they're up to."'''

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "He at least apologized."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "That's something."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, " Is our security this bad in the city that everyone seems to just.. walk in?"

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Well, we are open for trade..."

'''Delusion turns away from the distracted Backblast and nods to Dust Devil. "Do you have any particular needs at this time?"'''

'''Dust Devil frowns in confusion as he got lost in the conversation. He moves to Delusion. "What happened...I'm sorry if I've caused ya grief with comin here. I...I didn't mean ta."'''

'''Delusion huffs, not quite a sigh. "Your presence here is fine. You negotiated with Knightmare herself for your current status." She pauses, tilting her head a bit. "His trespass is... difficult to define to those who don't have the experience that we do. Teams like ours are not the norm."'''

'''Dust Devil looks confused. "I'm sorry fer what Backblast did. He's....different really. But he's one of my closest friends. Not that he believes it anymore."'''

'''Delusion kneels down, a sincerely unthreatening pose in front of Dust Devil. "If, at some point, he finds people who love him the way my sisters love me, he might understand it. But for now, I am content if he simply respects the boundaries set."'''

'''Dust Devil sighs. "I trust Backblast...he is one of the closest friends I have well besides some of the junkions. I don't get along with all the autobots. I'm a pain in the aft. And...they don't see things the same way I do it seems."'''

'''Delusion nods. "You affect him. He cares about you. But he is not you. He takes actions you wouldn't."'''

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Deathsaurus got seriously roughed up; before he came here. Anyone know what the going rate on one of our medics or repair techs might be?"

'''Dust Devil frowns at Delusion. "I hate that he says that I don't trust him. I do...I do so much. ANd I'm afraid of getting him killed."'''

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "Implant a tracker and a bomb in him and call it a day?"

'''Delusion nods. "He is not used to being hurt. Caring about people gives them a kind of power. It's a weakness. A good one, but still a place where he is vulnerable. And he is not the sort that likes to be vulnerable."'''

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I'm sure that will go a long way to furthering a trade agreement."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "I doudt he is /that/ stupid. Starscream might fall for it but I doudt the... what was it the Bots called him? Robot Chicken? As for repairs.. remember that if were were to offer such repairs to him that both Cons and Bots would have issues with it."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, ".... Go ahead. We /are/ neutral. He has not raised a hand to us or our city. BUT.."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Ensure it hurts"

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "Hmm. If he's really desperate, you might be able to get manual labor out of him."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I'm not a med tech. Machines, sure, but not other Cybertronians."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Did not say /you/ needed to do the repairs. i was speaking of the /rate/ for getting him fixed."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "We could trade it for schematics..."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I don't know that we could get that kind of thing yet."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "Might as well see just how desperate he is."

'''Dust Devil looks at Delusion. "I miss the simpler times. WHen I pretty much disliked everyone. Longsight and Frank were some of the few i called friend." He sighs, "Now I try to keep everyone safe and all and make up fer the stuff I did before."'''

'''Delusion nods. "You go from taking responsibility for almost noone to taking responsibility for almost everyone. Perhaps you should find a middle ground."'''

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Huh? *sounds of something heavy clanging to the ground* What's going on?"

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "We may have.. work for you, Widget."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Well, I was going to see if bulwark could fix our guest, but if you have the time Widget I won't bother him."

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Guest? What guest? I've been working on a project all cycle."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Calls himself the Emporer of the Destrons, and he doesn't like Megatron very much. So, that's a plus, and we're seeing if we can strike some sort of trade deal, but he's pretty damaged. So in echange for getting to scan his schematics and learn more about him, and the cost of the parts and your labor we're going to put him back together... mostly."

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Two questions:"

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "1) Is this Deathsaurus we're talking about, and"

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Yes, and?"

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "2) Is that his Warworld hovering over Cybertron?"

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Also yes."

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "I think we can work out a deal. I'll grab my tools."

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Widget.."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "He already invited us to come take a tour, if that relates."

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Yeah, Mom?"

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Remember what I said abuot ensuring those your fixing feel minimum pain?"

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Of course! This is a powerful potential ally! ... and I REALLY want to poke into that Warworld!"

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Forget it. If he can't handle pain while being repaired he is not as strong as we believe he might be. Make. It. hurt."

'''Dust Devil smiles faintly at Delusion. "Blame an accidental of time....used ta think that all my life was good fer was maybe savin Prime or someone while I was bein the diversionary tactician. Then...Then I saw what it would be ta be the Prime....And ta take care of everyone. It changed how I looked at things."'''

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Oh! Uh.... sure, then! If you want me to..."

[Dominicon] Delusion lets slip an evil giggle

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I'm taking him to one of the prep rooms in the arena. Meet us there."

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "On my way!"

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "And I did not miss, nor forget, that Mom comment. We will have a discussion later."

'''Delusion nods. "But you are still only one mech. Give yourself time to grow, or you will break yourself trying to be bigger than you are."'''

[Dominicon] Medic Widget says, "Yes, Mom."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "Of course, Mother."

[Dominicon] Discretion remains pointedly silent.

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "And Delusion, find Bulwark when a chance arrises.. I am finding the city to look a bit.. bare. I wish to see if we can make it looks more lively."

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "I'll see if he's about."

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Didn't you say something about him saying he had a place to keep the... ummm... Maltese Falcon?"

'''Delusion stands up and looks around the repair bay. "Hmm.. I don't see Bulwark around."'''

[Dominicon] Stiletto says, "what can I do to help?"

Dust Devil says, "I don't know how much time we have left right now. The fallen could still destroy us all."

'''Delusion nods. "Well, our shuttle is ready. Either we'll manage or we won't. Worrying about things outside our control is a waste of energy."'''

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "I have two thoughts on that, Stiletto, and I'm pretty sure Delusion is handling the one, or already hendled it. If you want to come and meet the new mech, and play security, over in the arena feel free."

[Dominicon] Stiletto says, "I'll watch over from here. If he makes any moves, call me in and I'll put him down."

Dust Devil says, "But...what's so bad about havin plans ready fer when things go one way and other plans fer when they go another way. That's why I did so well as diversionary tactician....I had ta have all sorta of ideas ready so I could change things up at a moment's notice."

'''Delusion smirks. "Ideas are fine. Anticipating the enemy? Also fine. But there comes a point where gaming the scenarios gives no benefit, because there are variables that simply can't be predicted with the knowledge you have at the time. At that point, you rely on your skills and your partners, and take what comes."'''

Dust Devil says, "I tried followin the rules....Doin thing in the proper channels. Look what that got me. I wish Backblast would understand that I didn't mean ta disprespect him or betray his trust. I was tryin ta protect him. Now I don't know who ta trust anymore."

'''Delusion spreads her hands. "You pay your money and you take your choice. Life is full of options. Most of them have mixed results."'''

[Dominicon] Discretion says, "Widget, keep us posted on what you find out about our potential trading partner would you. I need to go recharge and... yeah, just going to go and do that."

Dust Devil laughs softly, "I like my choices to involve how much trouble I'm gonna get in when Benin realizes I swiped V'ger again. Or that I glued all of Ultra Magnus' stuff to his desk or moved all of Red alert's stuff one unit over just to throw off his security protocols.

'''Delusion shrugs and smiles. "Sometimes, the trouble you get into is worth it."'''

'''Benin-Jeri looks over as he hears his name mentioned. "Hello!" he quotes. "Something seems to be happening." He waddles over to rejoin the party. "Ready Player Two!" He looks at Dust Devil. "If you've recovered the Enterprise from the Romulan raiders, you will be rewarded, not sent to the Agony Booths," he insists.'''

'''Benin-Jeri looks at Delusion. "And in the end, the love you get is equal to the love you give."'''

[Dominicon] Knightmare says, "Delusion, did I or did I not request you speak with Springer more? Has that progressed, Daughter oh Daughter of mine?"

[Dominicon] Delusion says, "Not recently. I think he might have been avoiding me."

Dust Devil smirks, "Oh you should seen Benin's face when he....Oh....hi Ben. Uh...How are you doin? Did ya think of anythin relevent to our quest or ummmm.."

'''Delusion quirks an optic ridge at Benin. "I did rather like how the Romulans were portrayed."'''

Dust Devil smirks at Delusion, "Ya watch human tv too?"

'''Delusion chuckles. "Discretion is a comms officer. And she likes to share her discoveries."'''

'''Benin-Jeri looks at Dust Devil and starts to reply. "I've been thinking of ways to scan for our M-" Then Delusion makes her comment and Ben is immediately distracted. "I disagree," he says vehemently. "If we accept the original idea that the Romulans are an offshoot of Vulcans that accepted rather than rejected their aggressive emotions, I feel they should have from the beginning treated more as Chaotic Neutral characters than the bland Evil for which they're predominantly known."'''

'''Delusion arches an optic ridge. "Oh, well, their depictions in the TV series were usually fairly bland, I'll grant you, but the novels were inspired. At their best, the series portrayals at least hinted at that depth, though Garak's assessment is sadly accurate."'''

Dust Devil shakes his head, "Sooo about the thing that shall not be named. Do ya have any idea where ta look fer it or do the junkions know about it or what?"

'''Benin-Jeri frowns, the expression sprouting creases across his rusted-chrome face. "HARRY POTTER - The book was better! THE HUNGER GAMES - The book was better! THE LORD OF THE RINGS - The books were probably better... THE CAT IN THE HAT -- THE BOOK WAS BETTER!!" He glances at Dust Devil, quoting, "We read books to make our English Speaking better." Turning back to Delusion, he says, "I kissed a squirrel for the first time. I kissed a squirrel and I might do it again."'''

'''Delusion spreads her hands. "What can I say? Perhaps we should avoid chasing squirrels for the time being."'''

'''Dust Devil facepalms and rolls his optics. Something that is obvious considering his dark blue lenses and lighter 'iris'. "Sooo Do you have anythin ta add about our upcoming trip Benin? Like where we should focus, or where we should avoid, what we might be lookin fer with this? ANY thoughts would be helpful So we can get this going."'''

'''Benin-Jeri turns back to Dust Devil and frowns, trying to recover his earlier train of thought. "Another thing that got forgotten was the fact that against all probability a sperm whale had suddenly been called into existence several miles above the surface of an alien planet," he quotes. "The fact that we live at the bottom of a deep gravity well, on the surface of a gas covered planet going around a nuclear fireball 90 million miles away and think this to be normal is obviously some indication of how skewed our perspective tends to be, but we have done various things over intellectual history to slowly correct some of our misapprehensions."'''

'''Delusion arches an optic ridge and picks through Benin's choices of communication. "Are you suggesting that it may have essentially materialized there, in the same fashion The Fallen does?"'''

Dust Devil says, "And 92 million miles would be the space of the earth from the sum so not sure if he's referrin ta that or not. I...am not sure I can keep up with the junkion logic too well right now."

'''Benin-Jeri shakes his head. "You can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs. Our MacGuffin is an eggbeater of planet-shattering proportions. When R2-D2 landed on Alderaan, itself was the Death Star. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together. Kill the boy and let the man be born. You just don't understand the gravity of the situation. You may be dense, but not as solid as the Lost Ark."'''

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

'''Delusion clasps her hands behind her back, head tilted. "Ah. Removing it may destroy what's around it, like a chick hatching from an egg. Or, perhaps, it will be necessary to break the planet to get the item out."'''

Dust Devil says, "I'd already listed that as a posiblity. It may be what th planet is built around, it may be what stoppin the rest of the place from goin ta hell. It might be easy removed or it might be partially dismantleable among other scenarios. I don't want ta destroy their world but the fallen will have no issue with that. So let's hope that's not the case."

'''Benin-Jeri nods. "You have chosen... wisely. How many licks does it take to get to the gooey center of Junkion? Someone set us up the bomb! But where oh where has my true love gone? He's not heavy - he's my brother. Set phasers on FUN!" Ben frowns, despite his words. "I know now what I must do, but where, and at what cost? Full story at 11!" Ben takes out his replica Original Star Trek scanner and makes a few adjustments, showing it to Dust Devil.'''

'''Dust Devil smiles brightly as he realizes what the scanner will show. "This might work perfectly....what about ambiant radiation? I would think that somethin like that might show up differently that way too." He looks at Delusion. "THis looks likes it's gonna pick through the density of the random stuff on Junkion and maybe help us find our item."'''

'''Delusion nods. "Excellent. Though finding it is only part of the problem, correct? Even Dominicus' considerable firepower would take some time to drill through multiple layers of a planet. Thus, a bomb?"'''

Dust Devil says, "Then again we risk blowing up an inhabited planet. What if the blaster is like a clog in a drain and it's all that's keepin the place together. Are we prepared ta deal with the consequences. If I was the Prime...I'd just invite all the junkions back ta Cybertron. There's plenty of places that aren't hospitable enough fer 'civilized' tranformers but more than enough fer mechs able to adapt ta any situation. Hell, the junkions could recolonize nearly half the planet probably before the factional idiots realized what they gave up by not being able to deal with a little hardship."

'''"If you love large, you've got to hurt large. If you've got a lot of light, you've probably got an equal amount of darkness," Benin-Jeri quotes. "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall; Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men Couldn't put Humpty together again. We'll be playing Jenga with the Planet of Junk. We had to destroy the village to save it." Ben turns to Dust. "As long as the foundations are still strong, we can rebuild this place. It will become a haven for all peoples and aliens of the universe."'''

'''Delusion nods. "But that means planning an evacuation... and those take time. And time may end up in short supply." She looks at Benin. "They're your people," she notes.'''

Dust Devil looks at Delusion, "WHich is why I brought Benin inta this when I found things out."

'''"People... who need people... are the loneliest people," Ben muses. "But how do we evacuate Sarcovia without Ultron noticing. I must think on this - pray on it." He places his hands on Dust Devil's head and then shouts, "You are HEALED!" Ben then wanders off and switches on his forearm TV, pulling up old episodes of Original Star Trek to help him think.'''

Log session ending at 01:13:42 on Monday, 3 June 2019.