I like the new look.

[derpjack_ftw]

WHO:  Wheeljack, Vergil
WHAT:  Wheeljack meets a new friend . . . oh, wait, it's just Vergil
WHERE:  Vergil's clinic / Wheeljack's workshop, Zone Five
WHEN:  Today
WARNINGS/NOTES:  None I can think of.  =D;;;

Comments

[helpful_squid]

Vergil was at work on a set of servos that would need to be returned to their owner in full working condition later in the day. The mech in question was decidedly larger than most, and his parts were correspondingly bigger. While Vergil could've done the work on his own with the help of his dog-drone, it was simply easier to let Removed Corrosion continue recharging and get into the mech suit to work with the bigger pieces. Thus, when Wheeljack poked his head in, the head that looked back at him was... well. Mechanical, for one thing. Orange and black, for another. Six-opticked, three on each side, all of them white rather than blue or red. Oh, and attached to a four-armed, two-legged mech with a spidery-circular emblem where another mech might have a faction brand. Can't forget that part.

It let out a surprised whistle, a sound Wheeljack might well have recognized as one of Vergil's, and raised one of its upper arms in greeting.

[derpjack_ftw]

Wheeljack was actually rather used to not seeing faction symbols necessarily, though it'd been a long time since he'd seen it with any regularity before coming here. There had been plenty of Neutrals back home, even if he didn't wind up interacting with them more often than not.

The design of the symbol this mech did have was a bit confusing to him though - made him think of a target with crosshairs - but he wasn't going to make a judgment on it at all.

He'd not been aware that Vergil had anyone in his employment besides Wing. Maybe this was another new hire. The whistle confirmed that this person likely at least knew the Huragok, whatever else it might mean. He raised a hand in return. "Hey. Ya seen Weighted Forward around? I need ta talk ta him. If he's got a minute."

[helpful_squid]

The mech ducked its head in a gesture that looked very much like embarrassment. "Oh," it said, "that would be me. I had forgotten I was wearing the suit."

Its voice was low and oddly accented, at least compared to many of the Nexus residents. A human might recognize it as sounding like a native speaker of Swahili, one specifically from Kenya.

"I'm sorry, Wheeljack. Just a moment. I'll explain."

The optics went dark, the mech's head sliding back as a crack developed across its chest. A moment later the upper part of the torso tilted backwards, and the Huragok's comparatively tiny form peeped out.

[derpjack_ftw]

Wheeljack thought he'd heard the accent before somewhere, but it was forgotten completely when the mech appeared to spontaneous take himself partway apart!

There was an instant of internal reaction to the sight, an abhorrence that spiked through him for the sake of the poor mech who'd been gutted and taken over by another life form to be used as some kind of puppet . . . but it was kneejerk and instinctual and shoved aside the next instant for the ridiculous thought that it was. More likely, this was a construction of Vergil's as an adaptation for life among Cybertronians, in which case the "suit" made perfect sense, really. And anyway, it wasn't as if he'd never seen others - namely humans - do much the same. Just not to such a level of sophistication.

It took the Autobot a klik longer than he would have liked to recover, but then he shook himself. "Heh, s-sorry. That's just a . . . really strange sight for someone like me. Anyway . . . hi! You, ah, got a minute?"

[helpful_squid]

Vergil twittered in acknowledgment and retreated back into the mech torso, bringing the top part back down. A moment later the optics flickered back into life. "I would imagine so," the mech said. "You have my apologies. I wear the suit for the sake of patients who have problems with organics, or with tentacles."

(There'd been a surprising number of Tyrans who responded poorly to that prospect.)

"I had some help building it... but I can tell you about that later, if you want. What seems to be the problem?"

[derpjack_ftw]

Wheeljack waved a hand. "No, no, don't apologize, pal! Just . . . I wasn't expectin' it. It does make sense, though. An' . . . yeah, I'd love ta hear more about that when you've got time." Being an engineer himself, his attention was wholly on the prospect of something new to learn about, but the question brings back to mind the multiple stinging sites of pain in his back. He goes almost instantly from curious to sheepish, one hand coming up to rub at the edge of a vocal flange as a sort of nervous-tick gesture. "Ah . . . no real 'problem,' just . . . well, I'm sure ya heard the accident from about an hour or two ago." Because yes, the self-surgery took that long. Ugh. "I got as much cleaned up as I could, includin' myself, but there's some stuff I just can't reach on my own. When ya've got time, though!" he added, raising his hands, not wanting the other to feel obligated. Wheeljack could see he was already in the middle of working on something.

[helpful_squid]

"Oh yes. I'd been wondering," said the mech. "I can look, if you want. Either with these arms or my own tentacles. My project can wait, it's no big thing."

[derpjack_ftw]

“Heh . . . y-yeah, that was me. I think there may’a been a nano-fracture in a barrier I was usin’ between two chemical gasses. A-anyway . . . whichever works best for ya. It’s . . . it’s my back, where I can’t reach.” He looked around the room again. “S’it okay if I come in? Or we can work in here - ” He thumbed over his shoulder, indicating the workshop. “ - if ya’d prefer.”

[helpful_squid]

"Accidents happen," said the orange mech. "Come on in. I would prefer to have a decent look at the injury before I decide anything. How bad do your own sensors indicate it might be?"

[derpjack_ftw]

"Thanks, Weighted Forward." The Autobot shrugged at the question, and winced a bit at the movement. "Superficial for the most part. I think there's at least one piece that's lodged in a little deeper than I like."

Then again, with his extremely high pain threshold and his propensity for not wanting to be a bother to anyone, he had a bad habit of downplaying his injuries to others. This time he was pretty sure it really wasn't too bad, though.

He slipped in and crossed over to the nearest berth, laying facedown. That actually wasn't easy for him to do, make himself vulnerable to a stranger like that, but the Huragok was a medic, Wheeljack did trust that the other wouldn't hurt him, and he had been the one to ask for the help. He made himself relax.

[helpful_squid]

"It shouldn't be a problem. I've dug worse out. The unexploded shards left by a needler's full fire mode embed themselves very far, even in heavy armor."

And the Huragok had designed the suit's arms to be as gracile as possible without sacrificing the strength needed to function at a full Cybertronian's size, too. They weren't quite as nimble as his tentacles, but they came as close as any machine could be expected to, and their contact surfaces were laced with an array of sensory circuitry to allow for probing areas that might not necessarily be seen.

"This here. Is this the one causing the worst of the problems?" the orange mech asked after a few moments' investigation. "I've found a number, but this one seems worst."

[derpjack_ftw]

Vergil would be able to see the evidence of the self-repairs. Wheeljack shifted to glance over his shoulder. "Needler?" He didn't know if that was an entity or a weapon. "An' yeah, I can imagine. Some of the shells of my shoulder canon do the same." What shoulder canon? The one he normally keeps tucked away in subspace (never mind its constant presence in icons), though no doubt Vergil's seen it before.

He held still to let the Huragok's suit's fingers assessed the damage, flinching only a little as the other tested the problematic piece of shrapnel. "Ow...yeah. Yeah, that'd be the one. Sorry . . . I got everythin' I could reach, but I just couldn't get ta that area. Heh . . . I don't bend that way too well."

[helpful_squid]

"You did a fair job. To expect more would be unwise," said the mech. "May I shut down the sensory circuits to the area temporarily? I can reroute the signals around the injured region while I remove the intruding piece. You won't feel a thing."

"Oh, a needler is a weapon of the Jiralhanae, one of the races of the Covenant," the mech continued. "The humans called them Brutes. Primates, taller than humans, very warlike. They use other weapons but the needler is one of their special creations. It fires many charged polymer needles into its target, and they do harm on impact, but at any time there is a critical mass of needles in a single target then the charge builds up and all of the needles explode at once. Much more dangerous."

[derpjack_ftw]

"Really?" By the tone, it was obvious that the engineer's interest was piqued. "Sounds kinda like one'a my canon shells . . . except without the critical mass explodin' part. Huh..." His mind started to go off on that tangent, playing with possibilities, before part of it whiplashed back on him that he'd been asked a question he'd not yet answered. "Oh, an' ah . . . yeah, go ahead. I've already shunted a lotta the relays, but there's some I can't control myself, so..."

[helpful_squid]

"I can give you the specifications if you want to compare them. I've had to repair them often enough. On a data solid, or transmitted directly to your systems- your choice."

The mech hummed in acknowledgment and made contact with the sensory circuitry in the vicinity of Wheeljack's injuries. It wasn't hard- all the fingers of all the suit's arms were designed to be able to pass tentacle-level data traffic on contact. A moment later the area was completely shut down, any other relevant signaling being routed around the zone. "There," the orange mech said. "Now just hold still, and I'll have these out shortly."

...thought I'd responded, sorry. 9,9

[derpjack_ftw]

"Um . . . " Well, he really had no reason to distrust the Huragok, whatever his capabilities. And it might not hurt to show that trust. "Direct'd be okay, I guess. If it's not any trouble." At the last he nodded carefully, mindful not to move otherwise. "Sure thing. Just lemme know when you're done." Since he really couldn't feel anything - a blessing, that.