Devious Continued--
WHO: Transtech Shockwave; Jonathan
WHAT: Scientific Interrogations progress, and much learning is had by all...
WHERE: Shockwave's super-secret lab: Zoneless
WHEN: Back before his unlocked journal post
WARNINGS/NOTES:
I WARN YOU FOR SCIENCE.
( You toss in a word; and I'm your villain. )
WHAT: Scientific Interrogations progress, and much learning is had by all...
WHERE: Shockwave's super-secret lab: Zoneless
WHEN: Back before his unlocked journal post
WARNINGS/NOTES:
I WARN YOU FOR SCIENCE.
( You toss in a word; and I'm your villain. )
And, even as his vision was going black, he could kick himself for becoming overconfident. Complacent. Someone had gotten to him, and it was his own damn fault for not being better prepared. Anonymity had spoiled him.
Then, something shifted, and everything went dark.
Who knows how long he'd been out cold. Who knew where he even was. Well, he reasoned as he began the lazy journey back to consciousness, he would find out soon enough. He stirred, his mind feeling its way through the haze left over by the gas.
It only took two words to clear away the fog entirely. Two words and he was wide awake, sitting bolt upright, squinting into too-bright lights, and trying to locate his briefcase and the Zeta Staff therein.
Doctor Impossible.
Somebody knew him. Not Jonathan, the perhaps too-smart, occasionally scalding, but otherwise harmless human. They knew him.
"Who dares?!" He growled, almost automatically. "Show yourself!"
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He tilted his head slightly, the mechanics of his one optic sensor opening a little wider, examining the other being in multiple spectra. Seeing through him.
“I am afraid your Zeta Staff has been confiscated. I cannot have you doing undue damage to my laboratory. That would be most undesirable for both of us, I assure you.”
He stepped foreward - one small step, but the gesture was enough to give the full sense of his height. Granted, as far as his race went, he was only of a medium stature, and Jonathan was no doubt used to such sights by now... but there was something about the shifting plates, the barely-visible organic components, and the unnatural green glow from between his plates that always made Shockwave more than slightly sinister.
“A fascinating piece of technology, though. Exquisitely crafted - better, even, than most Cybertronian weapons. Versatile, useful, and deadly, all at once.”
He waved one of his claws, an almost delicate gesture.
“But truly, where are my manners? You asked a question, and I have failed to answer. 'Who dares'. Dr Impossible, I am Shockwave, Minister of Science. And I assure you, the pleasure is mine.”
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To be honest, he had an inkling of who he was dealing with before Shockwave had even introduced himself. Magnum had said the name before, indicating that the Minister of Science was indeed behind the Nexus'... stranger happenings.
As he watched the Trans-tech move, listened to him talk- he was truly flattered by the compliment, though he made sure not to show it- he realized, suddenly, that this is what it felt like to be on the other end of one of his own schemes. Now he was the kidnappee instead of the kidnapper.
Something about that thought struck him as utterly hilarious, and he laughed. It wasn't his usual maniacal, fear-me-I-have-just-taken-over-the-world laugh. It was a laugh of someone who had found something truly and genuinely funny- he didn't even know he was capable of such things anymore.
"No, no," he amended, a wide grin still on his face. "The pleasure is mine."
The supervillain angled his head, taking in what little of his surroundings there were to take in. "I would ask you to spare me your theatrics, but..." His gaze slipped back to his captor. "I wonder if you are incapable of such a thing as much as I am."
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That reaction was not expected. He was so used to his captives demanding things of him, screaming and flailing and struggling that mirth... mirth seemed so out of place.
He considered Jonathan's point. As incapable of sparing the theatrics...
His headplates shifted, his antennae perking up - those that knew him might recognize the gesture as one of his exceedingly rare approximations of a smile.
“You have me placed well, Dr. Impossible,” he said. With a gesture and a mental command, he summoned a chair constructed of the same force that the walls surrounding his captive were made of - one for himself, one for Jonathan, along with a table for both of them. “Since I began to study your world I have often wondered if my own people suffer from that same affliction which plagues your world - this, what was it. Malign hypercognition disorder. The Allspark knows my old master was prone to grandiose theatrics, and myself, well. I was nearly executed for my own first attempt, and now I must scrip and kowtow to those fools in the High Council. Playing the pet scientist for them. I am certain you understand the dilemma. So many plans, so many ideas to pursue, and none of them understand this thing that so drives you.”
As if on cue, a drone popped out from a miniscule transwarp portal, bearing a cup of tea. Shockwave took it in one servo without looking at it, but did not drink. Not yet, anyway - no sense in frightening his captive - no, guest. This one was a guest.
“Do you enjoy tea? I grow and blend my own, and I have several varieties quite palatable to organic life. And if that is not to your taste, well, I am certain I can cater to your needs.”
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His partnership with Magnum was lucrative, certainly, but this? This was something else. Already his mind was running wild with possibilities, and he knew he would have to be careful with this meeting. There was too much at stake- an entire world. His world- to allow room for error.
Though, it was likely his... host, was thinking along the same lines, what with the sudden appearance of furniture. (Force technology. He'd have to remember that.)
With a nod of thanks, Doctor Impossible took his seat. "Oh, I do understand. I do." A pause, and another grin. "It seems you and I have a lot in common. I suppose I should have expected as much." After all, what other sort of scientist would do the things Shockwave did but a mad one?
And now offers of tea. The gesture made him chuckle- really, there were better ways to invite a man to tea than knocking him out cold while he was taking a walk in the park. But, he supposed he would do the same, if he were in Shockwave's proverbial shoes.
"No, thank you. If you have coffee, however..." He let the sentence hang, half-wondering how Shockwave even drank tea. He was also mulling over what the point of this meeting could possibly be- he was a little anxious to get to it- but he would let Shockwave make his small talk. Let him have his theatrics.
He was in no position to demand anything otherwise anyway.
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“And now, to business,” said Shockwave. “There are two primary reasons I have brought you here. The first is information, and in this regard I am willing to make an exchange. I will explain to you my work - why I have brought hundreds of disparate individuals from myriad timestreams here to study in such a volatile environment. In return, you will explain to me, as best you can, this... zeta energy. I have studied as much as I can in the documents from your universe, but they are at best fragmentary and at worst utterly inaccurate.”
He snaked a long tube down from just under his head and into the cup of tea - his way of taking a 'sip'.
“And the second...? I have been studying your unique condition as best I can from a distance. Again, it is difficult without extensive knowledge of your Zeta Beam technology, but I believe I have created a solution based on some of the organic fortification techniques of my own people.”
“In short... how would you like to be invincible?”
He paused again, taking another sip of his tea.
“Not completely, of course. But I can change your cell structure so that the things that used to bruise you no longer even cause you the remotest pain. Bullets will have no effect any longer; and even more powerful weapons like rockets will likely do almost nothing. And you may gain enough strength to take on some of the smaller models of my own people.”
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But until he felt sure enough to voice that sentiment, he would sit back and sip his coffee. His surprisingly good coffee. He arched his eyebrows, giving an appreciative nod. At least in terms of refreshments, the Trans-tech didn't skimp on the hospitality.
But then Shockwave was talking- about business- and he set the cup down and rested his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers. He kept his gaze level as he listened to the Trans-tech, remaining unphased even when Shockwave began to "sip" his tea.
There was a lot there to consider, and it was clear that Shockwave wasn't done laying his cards on the table just yet--
How would you like to be invincible?
He would like nothing more than that.
His gaze narrowed, just a fraction. It wasn't true invincibility, but it was close. What the Trans-tech Minister of Science was explaining was not even CoreFire-level invulnerability- but it was an edge. It was something he needed. Something he wanted. It was good. Almost too good to be true.
"If I may... I'm familiar with your work around the Nexus, Shockwave. I've been warned that I may one day wake up and find myself sporting a pair of wings, or an assortment of other adjustments, with no recollection of how that happened. Since you have brought up the idea of an exchange, am I to assume that I get to keep my memories of our little negotiation?"
A pause as he laced his fingers together, leaning forward. "Furthermore, if I'm willing to take you up on your offer, what do you intend to do with Zeta Beam technology? What do you stand to gain from helping me?"
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He sipped his tea, debating how best to continue. He could lie, but that seemed... unfair, in this case. Besides, Shockwave preferred honesty when possible. It was much more brutal, much more dangerous than any lie.
“However, you are a special case. I believe you clever enough - for the most part - to evade the TransTech authorities. I cannot allow you to remember specifics of this conversation - the who, the where, but other details I could implant in such a way that they are triggered by events. The knowledge will come to you when you need it, and no sooner. Thus, I remain secure, you gain valuable information, we both benefit.”
“So, in short - not your full recollection, no, but far more than others I have... adjusted.”
He was silent for a while at that last question, considering how to answer.
“What I intend to do with the Zeta-Beam technology is intrinsically tied to the why of my work. It is a very small part of a far, far greater plan, a plan that will shake this city to its very foundations - and not merely this city, but every other city it is connected to. In short... every city that ever was. That ever will be.”
“I have an idea of what it is capable of - yourself as one example - and I wish to know more, to know the full extent of what it can do for me. I will... I can at least state that it has to do with change, with improvement.”
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But the fact that the Trans-tech was offering to leave him with something meant that he must mean to make him an ally instead of this week's science experiment.
He gave a very small, almost imperceptible nod. He could work with this. It was frankly more than he had ever hoped to gain in the Nexus, and besides- even if he refused, Shockwave had already proven he had the means to do whatever he wanted to whomever he wanted. It was far better to accept what he was being offered than to wake up confused and... different in some alley somewhere.
"Very well," he said at last. "I accept your offer- on one condition." He waved a hand, indicating the force cube. "If we are to work together, more or less, I see no reason for there to be walls between us."
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“Then we stand, if not precisely as equals, at least as allies.”
The little drone came by and took away his tea. He straightened in his chair, taking a deep breath (his organic components did indeed require oxygen to function properly. Though he did not need to breathe to speak, the action relaxed him) and reflexively adjusting his antennae.
“To begin, I will uphold my end of the bargain. I will... attempt to explain my purpose here. You may need to interrupt me, I have a habit of rambling on this topic. Do forgive me.”
He rubbed at his chin-tentacles, trying to consider how to begin. How to begin?
“There is a problem in TransTech society. No doubt you have observed it, if you have bothered to study us at all,” began Shockwave. “Oh yes, we put on this great show of being an advanced race. An enlightened race. And certainly we are far advanced and quite talented in our own ways. Unlike every other Cybertron we have cataloged we have been largely free of civil war. Autobots and Decepticons are more political parties than violent factions.”
He tapped one of his feet, crossing his arms.
“And yet we stagnate. A million years ago I helped begin this current age with my master Jihaxus and his ultimate master, the Liege Maximo, one of the Thirteen. I had done this by performing experiments upon those that Jihaxus deemed... obstructions to his own cause. It was a good life. And everything you see around you came from those experiments. This techno-organic body of mine; the elegant shapes of every single Trans-tech, our control over the Rift itself, the dimensional gates, everything in this city.”
“But a mere data clerk and a low ranking soldier together discovered the truth behind the technological wonders that I had produced in my laboratories. And they deemed what I had done unethical. Unethical; and yet the both of them had upgraded to superior techno-organic hybrid bodies the same as the rest of the population. And those gifts proved my master's undoing.”
“The Liege Maximo was banished to beyond the Rift; my master was executed, and I, well. Luckily for me, they believed Jihaxus the true mastermind. The soldier, now a general, one Megatron... he decided that well, all this wonderful technology is rather useful. I might as well be kept around, so long as I obey his rules. Now, true, he still feeds me interesting specimens from time to time - at one point I was even able to examine a fragment of one of the Thirteen - but it is not enough.”
“In the million years since then, nothing has changed. You must realize that before my experiments, we were nearly the same as many of the specimins I have brought in from outside... somewhere between the Primaxians, Malgians, and Tyrans. In the space of a mere two hundred years we reached the levels we are at today because of what I was able to learn from my experiments.”
“and then nothing. Nothing, in a million years. A few aesthetic changes here and there, certainly; improvements in efficiency, but nothing else. Can you imagine what I would have been able to do had I been allowed to continue?”
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“That is what I am ultimately seeking. I have drawn illegial Megatrons and Optimuses here to determine what gives them their power; to find why events seem to revolve around them, how they draw entire worlds in every universe in which they exist. I examine the Starscreams to know why one of them exists in every reality, the meddlesome scum. And then I have drawn non Transformer life, myriad and unusual and unique to seek new and unusual abilities, powers, and ends. Imagine this - there are worlds where humans are born with extraordinary powers stemming from their DNA. If I could incorporate that into a techno-organic Transformer, how much more powerful would they become? Or, were I to take a human and somehow cyberize them whilst maintaining that uniquely meddlesome human quality that lets them survive nearly as well as viruses... to synthesize the best qualities of all life and all technology into something else. Something that not only approaches but exceeds the power of the Thirteen, for the Thirteen were, after all, only mechanical.”
He had stood up, almost unconsciously, and begun to pace while he spoke, his gestures growing more grand. When was the last time he'd really spoken like this...? Cycles ago, ages ago, when he'd first explained the delicate details of his plans to Tarantulas and Laserwave. He stopped, suddenly, his arms falling to his sides.
“So, to sum up - I am attempting to improve us further. By any means necessary. I seek to make us greater than the gods.”
Now that he'd said it, it was all rather embarrassing. Gracious. He didn't usually let himself get so carried away.
“I imagine you have some questions.”
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But the as he listened to Shockwave's explanation of his work, the more he was convinced that, had he been born a Cybertronian instead of a mere human, this was who he would be. This was what he would do.
He cut in with the odd remark, or question for the sake of clarification, but mostly he listened. Committing it all to memory, regardless of whether or not he'd be allowed to remember it later. All of it wasn't as confusing to him as Shockwave seemed to think it might be. After all, at the root, his own plans were not so different from those of the Trans-tech scientist- their goals were essentially the same.
Power. Greatness. Invincibility.
"You've laid everything out quite nicely," he replied. "I understand- believe me, I do. And I can see how my Zeta technology might be beneficial. I'll explain to you what I can, though there are certain things about it even I don't fully grasp. The accidents that created CoreFire and myself were merely that- accidents."
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It was wonderful that this human seemed to understand where so many of his own kind had not. Wonderful indeed. The project could, perhaps, inch forward. A little at a time. With someone who knew the truth, even if he could only reveal so much...
“Would you prefer a data pad into which you could type the information, or would it be easier to speak it aloud? I can easily record the information either way.”
[OOC: would you like to handwave the Zeta Beam stuff / put it in an OOC note, or do you want John to explain it ICly? Either way works for me. Or a just... general idea of where you want the thread to go from here ^_^;;]]
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