Windows
I normally do like 3 or 4 windows prompts...this time I just kinda...went nuts. Enjoy. Some of them are funny, some are angsty...my prompt generator loved Mirage this time around...
Title: Windows, pt. 6
Pairings/Characters: Bluestreak, Ultra Magnus, Hot Rod, Prowl, Red Alert, Teletraan, Mirage, Tracks, Optimus Prime, Jazz, Starscream, Wheeljack, Ratchet, Air Raid, Ironhide, Skywarp
Rating: T
Setting: G1
Notes: Previous 'Windows' here.
---
Prompt: Elita One / Arcee / cuddle
"I'm not sure whether I should be jealous or taking a photo." Hot Rod mused as he poked his head around the corner and peered into the mess hall again.
"Personally, I think turning around, walking away, and not saying anything is the best course of action." Ultra Magnus said, following his own advice as he started heading away.
"Why? You don't think Prime would appreciate the picture?" Hot Rod asked, turning to Magnus curiously.
"Oh, I'm sure he would. But he's also a wuss when it comes to femmes." Magnus said dryly. "And I would not want to be you after Elita finds out from him that you're the reason he has an absolutely adorable photo of her and Arcee cuddled up together, deep in recharge."
---
Prompt: Teletraan / Bluestreak / regret
Bluestreak hadn't considered the speed with which Teletraan reacted to his requests to be out of the ordinary, because it had been that way for him since he'd begun interacting with the computer. It wasn't until several orns had passed, and he noticed Red Alert hanging around during his shifts, watching him suspiciously, that Bluestreak started to think anything unusual was going on. Even then he didn't connect it to Teletraan, just supposing that there was some leak in the system, and as Bluestreak was only recently cleared for duty, Red Alert was doing his job and investigating. He wasn't really concerned - he wasn't doing anything wrong, after all.
Eventually, however, he learned the real reason for Red Alert's presence during his shifts, much to his own surprise. Oddly enough, it was partially Prowl's fault - the tactician had been running several large-scale simulations through Teletraan right around when Bluestreak had gotten on shift. That, coupled with Bluestreak's habit of having Teletraan compile a summary of the last shift's logs for him to read all while maintaining a live feed, led to Red Alert finally pouncing. Bluestreak nearly jumped out of his armor when the security mech suddenly shoved him out of the way and took control of his keyboard, muttering about finally having 'caught him in the act'.
"Uh...I wasn't doing anything?" Bluestreak tried tentatively, and only then noticed that a confused looking Prowl had followed Red Alert into the command center. "Prowl? What's going on?"
"I am unsure. I was running simulations when Teletraan suddenly bumped them down in priority. I thought Red Alert might be doing a security diagnostic, but when I contacted him about it, he muttered something about having proof and told me to meet him here." Prowl said, frowning at Red Alert as the security technician's hands flew over the keyboard, optics locked on the screens. Finally, he drew back and crossed his arms before glaring around himself.
"Teletraan. Explain the alteration to your priority queuing protocols." the mech declared to the room at large. Bluestreak couldn't help wondering if the security director had finally snapped - Teletraan could be voice operated, of course, but that was only for basic database search commands, and not very accurate. Inquiring about protocols was not only impossible through voice command, but would be far too complicated to do that way. Oddly, however, even Prowl seemed to be waiting for a response, glancing around the room much as Red Alert was. And then, even more oddly, the voice that Bluestreak had come to associate with Teletraan's database actually answered.
"Queuing protocols altered in accordance to AI imperatives 1789.52, 25637.39, 25913.04, and 24765.24." intoned the voice, sounding distinctly clipped. Red Alert glanced at Prowl, frowning.
"Teletraan, please elaborate. What are imperatives 1789.52, 25637.39, 25913.04, and 24765.24?" Prowl asked, now seeming curious himself as he stepped up beside Red Alert.
"Imperatives 507.69 through 9654.23 comprise database information priority and emotional responses. Imperatives 24000 through 24890 comprise memory-emotion association. Imperatives 25612 through 25698.45 comprise emotions related to regret. Imperatives 25778.23 through 25987 comprise emotions related to guilt." the voice intoned. Bluestreak watched as the two officers exchanged a confused look, thoroughly confused himself. He knew, of course, that Teletraan had some form of AI - any voice-interface capable computer required it. But having any sort of emotional imperatives in an AI implied a bit more sentience. That didn't seem to be what the two officers were concerned about, however, as their next question proved.
"Teletraan, please elaborate further. What was the source of the imperatives affecting priority queuing protocols?" Prowl inquired.
"Source of imperatives requires command level clearance." Teletraan intoned, and Prowl stepped forward to manually input his clearance. "Source of imperatives: destruction of Polyhex." Bluestreak froze, doing his best to ignore the dark memories that assaulted him at the mention of his former home. Prowl's hand on his shoulder helped ground him, but not as much as Teletraan's next answer.
"Teletraan, please elaborate why the destruction of Polyhex resulted in the imperatives." Red Alert asked. There was a long pause before the computer replied.
"Polyhex listed as home city of mechanoid responsible for original design blueprint of majority of Teletraan modules." the computer replied.
"What?!" Bluestreak blurted in surprise.
"Well, that does explain." Prowl mused, and Red Alert grumbled something that sounded like agreement. "Teletraan, please reduce the differential between percentages for the priority queuing protocols in the future."
"...acknowledged." the computer replied, and Red Alert nodded in satisfaction before stomping out of the computer center, muttering quietly.
"Teletraan, estimated time until completion of simulation Prowl-4879-delta?" Prowl inquired once the security director was gone.
"5 breems." Teletraan replied.
"Thank you." he said, then turned to look down at Bluestreak, who was staring at the computer in stunned surprise, slowly piecing together what had just happened. A computer as powerful as Teletraan was constructed and coded in numerous places, but usually the mech that came up with the original blueprints was credited with designing the system as a whole. Apparently Teletraan's designer - it's creator, essentially - was from Bluestreak's now-destroyed home.
"So...Teletraan altered its queuing protocols for me?" Bluestreak asked in confusion after a moment, looking up at Prowl.
"Evidently." Prowl replied. "A tribute to the only survivor of its designer's home city." Bluestreak frowned at the computer. It was apparently a lot more sentient than he'd thought.
"Oh." he said.
"It is a little known fact that the only part of complete sentience Teletraan lacks is a spark itself." Prowl said after a moment, and a second later, a file popped up on Teletraan's screen, and Prowl chuckled. "And it likes to remind us, every time we mention that, that it was offered the chance at one, but decided it liked what it is." Bluestreak gave Prowl a confused look. "Ask it yourself. My processor glitches out every time it tries to explain it to me."
"I'll...er...do that." Bluestreak said, and Prowl nodded.
"Just remember that you'll be experiencing a decrease in computing power now that we've asked Teletraan to reduce the priority it gives your requests." the tactician said.
"Um...right." Bluestreak said tentatively, and then with a goodbye for both Bluestreak and Teletraan, Prowl left the room to return to his work.
---
Prompt: Jazz / Starscream / pressure
"Ooooh, do that again!" the pleased moan had not been what Jazz had expected when he'd jumped on the Decepticon Air Commander from behind, knocking him to the ground.
"Er...y'alright there, 'Screamer?" the saboteur asked curiously, bending down to peer into Starscream's face, as if the answer to the unusual response was written there.
"Only if you keep moving your pede about in that spot." the jet moaned.
"What?" Jazz asked in confusion - one of his pedes was on the ground, but the other was at the base of one of the jet's wings - not a comfortable spot for anyone with wings, or so he'd been told (and had frequently found to be true).
"That wing's been stiff for an orn." Starscream purred as Jazz tentatively moved his pede further up the wing, actually trying to get away from the spot that evidently felt good for the jet, but apparently failing miserably. In the end, he just moved his pede off Starscream's back entirely. "Hey!"
"I ain't here t'give ya a massage, 'Screamer." Jazz said dryly.
---
Prompt: Prowl / Optimus Prime / hungry
Optimus arched an optic ridge in surprise as he rounded a corner to find Prowl carrying an armload full of energon, the cubes nearly blocking his vision. Stepping aside as the tactician passed him, Optimus turned to watch him going, then couldn't help himself. Taking a few quick steps to catch up before matching Prowl's pace, he peered down at the cubes, counting them.
"In need of some refueling?" he asked after he came up with the total of 28 cubes.
"I am operating at peak power levels." Prowl replied evenly.
"Then may I ask why you're carrying 28 cubes of energon down the corridor?" Optimus asked curiously.
"The twins are on patrol." Prowl replied, and Optimus frowned in confusion.
"I'm afraid I don't see the connection." he said.
"I am tired of confiscating their batches of home-brewed high grade. So instead, with Red Alert's help, I am endeavoring to convince them that brewing their own is no longer working. Unfortunately they make rather large batches." Prowl replied, sounding somewhat irritated.
"Ah." Optimus replied, nodding in understanding. After a few moments of silence, he couldn't help but ask, "What do you intend to do with the real high grade they make?"
"Drink it, of course." Prowl replied.
"Of course." Optimus mused. "...I don't suppose I could get a few cubes?"
"There's 6 left unclaimed in this batch. I was going to give them to Wheeljack for use in his next experiment in using high grade as fuel, but I suspect they'd be safer with you." Prowl replied amiably. "I'll get Jazz to drop them off in an hour or two."
"My thanks." Optimus said with a nod, and Prowl returned the nod as best he could.
"Not a problem." the tactician said.
---
Prompt: Tracks / Mirage / after midnight
"You know what's strange?" Mirage said thoughtfully to the mech sitting beside him, looking out in the opposite direction from him.
"What?" Tracks grunted, no less pleased with his situation now than he had been when the two of them had first realized they'd have to rest out in the destroyed city for the night as part of their survival training.
"This is actually the first time I've been out this late." Mirage replied, and Tracks leaned back so he could give his fellow cadet an incredulous look.
"You must have had a very boring life so far." Tracks responded.
"More like some really really good guards on my door and creators that didn't trust me to not sneak out in the slightest." Mirage said dryly.
"What about in the barracks?" Tracks asked dubiously.
"After watching my home get destroyed by Decepticons, I've been more inclined to study than to sneak out to have fun." Mirage replied with a shrug.
"...mech, that invisibility cloak is entirely wasted on you." Tracks said with a disbelieving shake of his head as he leaned forward to resume his watch.
---
Prompt: Wheeljack / Mirage / unworthy
"Wow. And I thought Sideswipe was exaggerating." Wheeljack commented in surprise as he entered his lab. Mirage, sitting on the one of the stools, gave him a look that was a cross between a scowl and looking as if he was about to purge his tanks.
"I suppose it's all over the Ark by now?" the spy asked.
"You know the speed of gossip around here better than anyone." Wheeljack said with an apologetic smile as he closed his lab door and headed over to the spy. "And besides, being invisible doesn't help when you run into mechs."
"I know. I was...distracted." Mirage said miserably as Wheeljack grabbed another one of his stools and brought it over so he could sit next to the spy.
"So I heard." Wheeljack replied as he sat. There was a short silence, but when it became clear that Mirage wasn't going to say anything, Wheeljack picked up a nearby datapad and started reading through it, making notes as he went.
"What's the worst of it?" Mirage finally asked, just as Wheeljack was about to get up and see if he had a particular part that he thought might help with the project on the pad.
"The usual. You don't think he's worthy of you, you've just been amusing yourself, so on and so on." the engineer said, looking over at Mirage as the spy winced. "I'm not saying they're right to gossip, but you do keep bringing this on yourself - you need to either stop leading Hound on or explain your reasons for turning him down every time he tries to take the next step."
"I know, I just..." Mirage trailed off with a sigh.
"You just what?" Wheeljack asked softly. "Why do you keep running away from him, Mirage? You've been coming to my lab for...well, vorns now. Sooner or later Hound or someone else is going to think of looking for you in here, and then you'll need to find a new hiding spot. Do you really want it to come to that?" Mirage hunched his shoulders and stared down at the floor.
"I have had jokes made about my Tower heritage ever since I joined the Autobots. I don't blame them, for a lot of the Autobots I'm the first Towers mech they've met." Mirage said quietly after a moment, and Wheeljack gave the spy his full attention as he continued. The engineer had been trying to get Mirage to talk ever since he first found the spy hiding out in his lab...apparently the mech had finally given in today. "I'm probably the only one that thinks about why that is, though. This war has gone on so long, most of us don't stop to think about how it began anymore. I can't help but remember, though - my home was destroyed the day it started, after all. The Towers were the Decepticons' first targets." Mirage fell silent for a moment.
"We were more than just the first casualties, though." he said. "We were, when you get down to it, the cause of the war itself. We were the main supporters of a system that had grown corrupt and useless. The Decepticons were the response. They began the war to get rid of us, and to destroy the system that made our style of life possible. Mechs like Hound - mechs that weren't Decepticon, weren't in the Towers - they just got caught in the cross-fire. They got dragged into a war that wasn't their own. And I can't help but remember that every time I'm think about the lives the other Autobots had before the war.
"So really...it's not that I think he's unworthy of me, it's that I am unworthy of him.." Mirage paused, but before Wheeljack could come up with something to say, he heard the familiar hum of Mirage's invisibility cloak charging up. "How can I look him in the optics when I, and my family and friends, are the entire reason he has to fight, instead of being able to live his life the way he wants, free of conflict?" As Mirage faded from view, Wheeljack reached out and grabbed the spy's shoulder.
"Mirage, the very fact that you think that means that you're different from the mechs and femmes that the Decepticons were rebelling against." Wheeljack said softly, but got no response as the invisible shoulder slipped out from under his hand. He sighed. "Hound, and any other mech on the Ark, would tell you the same thing." Wheeljack said, loud enough for his voice to carry around his lab. There was a few moments of silence, and then his door opened and closed without anyone in sight, and he sighed. "Pretty sure if you could find a sane Decepticon they'd agree, too." the engineer informed his datapad, then set it down before going to find the part he'd been intending to find earlier, before Mirage spoke.
---
Prompt: Ironhide / Skywarp / caring
Ironhide was more or less unsurprised when he realized he was the last mech left standing in the canyon. It had been a fast, but brutal fight, with both parties aware that no back-up was coming, and that ending the encounter more quickly was preferable. Of course, when you had a trine of Decepticon coneheads, lead for some reason by Starscream, but lacking in the Air Commanders own trine, attacking Ironhide, Prowl, Brawn, and Warpath...well, that was a lot of firepower. The air, Ironhide was sure, had pretty much exploded, and he'd been the only one to duck. Now two of the coneheads were buried under a bunch of rocks, another one was lying against the opposite wall, his helm bashed in, and Ironhide couldn't even see Starscream. Considering that the landslide of rocks had been aimed at the Air Commander, however, Ironhide suspected Starscream was either far away, or smack dab under the pile.
As for the Autobots, Brawn had gotten a cluster-bomb to the face, which had knocked him for a loop and melted his faceplates, but otherwise not harmed the mini. He wasn't as affected by explosives as the rest of them. Prowl, however, had not only caught the edge of the blast, but several null rays to the chest. He was twitching somewhat disturbingly, but Ironhide had seen it before - Ratchet claimed it was just the tactician's over-active processor acting up. Ironhide just let Prowl be, and turned to Warpath - the source of the rock slide. The mech was quite powerful, but Ironhide swore he was going to convince him to install a few tactical chips, because this was by far not the first time Warpath had gotten caught in one of his own attacks.
Grumbling to himself about how it should be common sense, and that Warpath really shouldn't need a tactical chip to tell him to move from where he was dropping half a cliff side, Ironhide stomped over to the red legs sticking out from under the rocks and began digging, doing his best not to cause another avalanche as he worked. Every once and awhile he'd stop and contact Prime, who was in-coming with First Aid and a small battle-force, just in case the Decepticons showed up to grab their own.
It was in-between his shifting of rocks and one of his contacts with Prime that he heard it - the sound of straining servos, a scrape of rock, and the whine of a mech that was pushing the limits of their build. Then there was silence again. He almost would have thought it was an echo of himself, just now bouncing back, except for that whine - the rocks he was moving weren't exactly hard for him. Glancing around with a frown, he looked for movement, but saw nothing. Cautiously, he dialed up his audios to their highest sensitivity, then cautiously resumed moving rocks off Warpath.
He wasn't surprised when the sounds resumed in time with his own efforts, the mech responsible clearly trying to mask what they were doing. Frowning, Ironhide continued to dig as he looked around, but none of the downed mechs that he could see, Autobot or Decepticon, were moving. Which led him to wonder if Starscream wasn't quite as buried as he thought, and was just hiding out on the other side of the rock pile. Ironhide frowned to himself, then dropped the rock he'd just hauled off Warpath, dialed down his audios again, and pulled the rock off to the side that he'd left because it would cause an avalanche. In the ensuing noise, he scrambling up the rock pile, carefully avoiding the avalanching spot.
He got to the top before the avalanche stopped, and went still as he peered over the edge. What he found surprised him. Starscream was indeed not as buried as he'd thought...but that was because he had help. Ironhide hadn't heard Skywarp arrive, but the black and purple mech was down there now, straining to lift a rock off his commander. Curious, Ironhide remained at the top of the pile, kicking a rock down towards the bottom occasionally to make the jet think he was still working on the other side, as he watched Skywarp laboriously dig out Starscream.
Ironhide knew, of course, that he should probably stop Skywarp, but considering he'd never actually seen one lone Decepticon come to rescue another, especially with a functioning Autobot in the area, he stayed and watched. The work was obviously difficult for Skywarp - jets as a whole weren't built for heavy lifting, unless it involved their thrusters. The purple jet persevered, however, straining his servos to the max to drag or lift rocks off of Starscream. Eventually, the just got enough of Starscream uncovered that he just grabbed the other jet's legs and pulled.
Starscream came out from under the rocks with a loud clattered of noise, and Skywarp's gaze darted upwards in worry. Ironhide, not moving fast enough, froze as Skywarp's attention caught on his red helm. The Decepticon jet and he had a staring contest for a minute or so, but when Skywarp evidently decided Ironhide wasn't going to do anything, he slowly reached down, doing his best to keep his optics on Ironhide just in case, and grabbed Starscream's arm, hauling the air commander upright.
Pulling Starscream close, Skywarp took a few steps back, still eyeing Ironhide, and then activated his thrusters. He lifted off the ground slightly, and then nodded to Ironhide before disappearing in his usual warp. Ironhide couldn't help but notice, however, that just before he disappeared, Skywarp turned his head to give Starscream a look that was far too concerned to fit in with Ironhide's image of the Decepticons. Frowning to himself, Ironhide turned to head back down and resume digging out Warpath, only to come face-to-face with a curious-looking Jazz.
"Gyahhhh!" the red mech exclaimed in surprise, then lost his footing and went sliding down, taking the laughing saboteur, and a pile of rocks, with him. Even Prime was snickering when he and the twins finally managed to dig Warpath, Jazz, and Ironhide out from under the rocks later.
---
Prompt: Fireflight / Dinobots / a long time ago
"Whoever came up with this idea was brilliant." Ratchet whispered as he peered into the Dinobots common room. Inside, all of the Dinobots, but Fireflight, were curled up in a giant metallic cuddle pile as they avidly watched a tiny screen showing some sort of animated movie.
"Almost brilliant. Flight's suppose to come on patrol with me. How the slag am I supposed to get him out of there without being pounded into scrap?" Air Raid whined.
"Oh hush, I'm sure one of your brothers will fill in." Ratchet snapped, then carefully palmed shut the door. "In the mean time, I'm going to find out from Red Alert who did this so that I can find out what that program they're watching is. I may need to get a TV installed in the med bay." Air Raid snorted.
"Don't need to go to Red Alert for that. I recognize it from a few days ago - Fireflight brought it back, said he thought the Dinobots might like it. It's called The Time Before Land or some slag like that." the aerialbot grumbled.
"Hmm. I guess I'll have to thank Fireflight then." Ratchet mused, then headed off down the corridor, thoroughly unconcerned now that it was clear that none of the Dinobots, or Fireflight, were in danger as Air Raid had led him to believe. Air Raid just grumbled and stalked off down the hallways, presumably to bribe one of his brothers to go in Fireflight's place on their patrol, so he didn't have to risk bothering the Dinobots.
---
Title: Windows, pt. 6
Pairings/Characters: Bluestreak, Ultra Magnus, Hot Rod, Prowl, Red Alert, Teletraan, Mirage, Tracks, Optimus Prime, Jazz, Starscream, Wheeljack, Ratchet, Air Raid, Ironhide, Skywarp
Rating: T
Setting: G1
Notes: Previous 'Windows' here.
---
Prompt: Elita One / Arcee / cuddle
"I'm not sure whether I should be jealous or taking a photo." Hot Rod mused as he poked his head around the corner and peered into the mess hall again.
"Personally, I think turning around, walking away, and not saying anything is the best course of action." Ultra Magnus said, following his own advice as he started heading away.
"Why? You don't think Prime would appreciate the picture?" Hot Rod asked, turning to Magnus curiously.
"Oh, I'm sure he would. But he's also a wuss when it comes to femmes." Magnus said dryly. "And I would not want to be you after Elita finds out from him that you're the reason he has an absolutely adorable photo of her and Arcee cuddled up together, deep in recharge."
---
Prompt: Teletraan / Bluestreak / regret
Bluestreak hadn't considered the speed with which Teletraan reacted to his requests to be out of the ordinary, because it had been that way for him since he'd begun interacting with the computer. It wasn't until several orns had passed, and he noticed Red Alert hanging around during his shifts, watching him suspiciously, that Bluestreak started to think anything unusual was going on. Even then he didn't connect it to Teletraan, just supposing that there was some leak in the system, and as Bluestreak was only recently cleared for duty, Red Alert was doing his job and investigating. He wasn't really concerned - he wasn't doing anything wrong, after all.
Eventually, however, he learned the real reason for Red Alert's presence during his shifts, much to his own surprise. Oddly enough, it was partially Prowl's fault - the tactician had been running several large-scale simulations through Teletraan right around when Bluestreak had gotten on shift. That, coupled with Bluestreak's habit of having Teletraan compile a summary of the last shift's logs for him to read all while maintaining a live feed, led to Red Alert finally pouncing. Bluestreak nearly jumped out of his armor when the security mech suddenly shoved him out of the way and took control of his keyboard, muttering about finally having 'caught him in the act'.
"Uh...I wasn't doing anything?" Bluestreak tried tentatively, and only then noticed that a confused looking Prowl had followed Red Alert into the command center. "Prowl? What's going on?"
"I am unsure. I was running simulations when Teletraan suddenly bumped them down in priority. I thought Red Alert might be doing a security diagnostic, but when I contacted him about it, he muttered something about having proof and told me to meet him here." Prowl said, frowning at Red Alert as the security technician's hands flew over the keyboard, optics locked on the screens. Finally, he drew back and crossed his arms before glaring around himself.
"Teletraan. Explain the alteration to your priority queuing protocols." the mech declared to the room at large. Bluestreak couldn't help wondering if the security director had finally snapped - Teletraan could be voice operated, of course, but that was only for basic database search commands, and not very accurate. Inquiring about protocols was not only impossible through voice command, but would be far too complicated to do that way. Oddly, however, even Prowl seemed to be waiting for a response, glancing around the room much as Red Alert was. And then, even more oddly, the voice that Bluestreak had come to associate with Teletraan's database actually answered.
"Queuing protocols altered in accordance to AI imperatives 1789.52, 25637.39, 25913.04, and 24765.24." intoned the voice, sounding distinctly clipped. Red Alert glanced at Prowl, frowning.
"Teletraan, please elaborate. What are imperatives 1789.52, 25637.39, 25913.04, and 24765.24?" Prowl asked, now seeming curious himself as he stepped up beside Red Alert.
"Imperatives 507.69 through 9654.23 comprise database information priority and emotional responses. Imperatives 24000 through 24890 comprise memory-emotion association. Imperatives 25612 through 25698.45 comprise emotions related to regret. Imperatives 25778.23 through 25987 comprise emotions related to guilt." the voice intoned. Bluestreak watched as the two officers exchanged a confused look, thoroughly confused himself. He knew, of course, that Teletraan had some form of AI - any voice-interface capable computer required it. But having any sort of emotional imperatives in an AI implied a bit more sentience. That didn't seem to be what the two officers were concerned about, however, as their next question proved.
"Teletraan, please elaborate further. What was the source of the imperatives affecting priority queuing protocols?" Prowl inquired.
"Source of imperatives requires command level clearance." Teletraan intoned, and Prowl stepped forward to manually input his clearance. "Source of imperatives: destruction of Polyhex." Bluestreak froze, doing his best to ignore the dark memories that assaulted him at the mention of his former home. Prowl's hand on his shoulder helped ground him, but not as much as Teletraan's next answer.
"Teletraan, please elaborate why the destruction of Polyhex resulted in the imperatives." Red Alert asked. There was a long pause before the computer replied.
"Polyhex listed as home city of mechanoid responsible for original design blueprint of majority of Teletraan modules." the computer replied.
"What?!" Bluestreak blurted in surprise.
"Well, that does explain." Prowl mused, and Red Alert grumbled something that sounded like agreement. "Teletraan, please reduce the differential between percentages for the priority queuing protocols in the future."
"...acknowledged." the computer replied, and Red Alert nodded in satisfaction before stomping out of the computer center, muttering quietly.
"Teletraan, estimated time until completion of simulation Prowl-4879-delta?" Prowl inquired once the security director was gone.
"5 breems." Teletraan replied.
"Thank you." he said, then turned to look down at Bluestreak, who was staring at the computer in stunned surprise, slowly piecing together what had just happened. A computer as powerful as Teletraan was constructed and coded in numerous places, but usually the mech that came up with the original blueprints was credited with designing the system as a whole. Apparently Teletraan's designer - it's creator, essentially - was from Bluestreak's now-destroyed home.
"So...Teletraan altered its queuing protocols for me?" Bluestreak asked in confusion after a moment, looking up at Prowl.
"Evidently." Prowl replied. "A tribute to the only survivor of its designer's home city." Bluestreak frowned at the computer. It was apparently a lot more sentient than he'd thought.
"Oh." he said.
"It is a little known fact that the only part of complete sentience Teletraan lacks is a spark itself." Prowl said after a moment, and a second later, a file popped up on Teletraan's screen, and Prowl chuckled. "And it likes to remind us, every time we mention that, that it was offered the chance at one, but decided it liked what it is." Bluestreak gave Prowl a confused look. "Ask it yourself. My processor glitches out every time it tries to explain it to me."
"I'll...er...do that." Bluestreak said, and Prowl nodded.
"Just remember that you'll be experiencing a decrease in computing power now that we've asked Teletraan to reduce the priority it gives your requests." the tactician said.
"Um...right." Bluestreak said tentatively, and then with a goodbye for both Bluestreak and Teletraan, Prowl left the room to return to his work.
---
Prompt: Jazz / Starscream / pressure
"Ooooh, do that again!" the pleased moan had not been what Jazz had expected when he'd jumped on the Decepticon Air Commander from behind, knocking him to the ground.
"Er...y'alright there, 'Screamer?" the saboteur asked curiously, bending down to peer into Starscream's face, as if the answer to the unusual response was written there.
"Only if you keep moving your pede about in that spot." the jet moaned.
"What?" Jazz asked in confusion - one of his pedes was on the ground, but the other was at the base of one of the jet's wings - not a comfortable spot for anyone with wings, or so he'd been told (and had frequently found to be true).
"That wing's been stiff for an orn." Starscream purred as Jazz tentatively moved his pede further up the wing, actually trying to get away from the spot that evidently felt good for the jet, but apparently failing miserably. In the end, he just moved his pede off Starscream's back entirely. "Hey!"
"I ain't here t'give ya a massage, 'Screamer." Jazz said dryly.
---
Prompt: Prowl / Optimus Prime / hungry
Optimus arched an optic ridge in surprise as he rounded a corner to find Prowl carrying an armload full of energon, the cubes nearly blocking his vision. Stepping aside as the tactician passed him, Optimus turned to watch him going, then couldn't help himself. Taking a few quick steps to catch up before matching Prowl's pace, he peered down at the cubes, counting them.
"In need of some refueling?" he asked after he came up with the total of 28 cubes.
"I am operating at peak power levels." Prowl replied evenly.
"Then may I ask why you're carrying 28 cubes of energon down the corridor?" Optimus asked curiously.
"The twins are on patrol." Prowl replied, and Optimus frowned in confusion.
"I'm afraid I don't see the connection." he said.
"I am tired of confiscating their batches of home-brewed high grade. So instead, with Red Alert's help, I am endeavoring to convince them that brewing their own is no longer working. Unfortunately they make rather large batches." Prowl replied, sounding somewhat irritated.
"Ah." Optimus replied, nodding in understanding. After a few moments of silence, he couldn't help but ask, "What do you intend to do with the real high grade they make?"
"Drink it, of course." Prowl replied.
"Of course." Optimus mused. "...I don't suppose I could get a few cubes?"
"There's 6 left unclaimed in this batch. I was going to give them to Wheeljack for use in his next experiment in using high grade as fuel, but I suspect they'd be safer with you." Prowl replied amiably. "I'll get Jazz to drop them off in an hour or two."
"My thanks." Optimus said with a nod, and Prowl returned the nod as best he could.
"Not a problem." the tactician said.
---
Prompt: Tracks / Mirage / after midnight
"You know what's strange?" Mirage said thoughtfully to the mech sitting beside him, looking out in the opposite direction from him.
"What?" Tracks grunted, no less pleased with his situation now than he had been when the two of them had first realized they'd have to rest out in the destroyed city for the night as part of their survival training.
"This is actually the first time I've been out this late." Mirage replied, and Tracks leaned back so he could give his fellow cadet an incredulous look.
"You must have had a very boring life so far." Tracks responded.
"More like some really really good guards on my door and creators that didn't trust me to not sneak out in the slightest." Mirage said dryly.
"What about in the barracks?" Tracks asked dubiously.
"After watching my home get destroyed by Decepticons, I've been more inclined to study than to sneak out to have fun." Mirage replied with a shrug.
"...mech, that invisibility cloak is entirely wasted on you." Tracks said with a disbelieving shake of his head as he leaned forward to resume his watch.
---
Prompt: Wheeljack / Mirage / unworthy
"Wow. And I thought Sideswipe was exaggerating." Wheeljack commented in surprise as he entered his lab. Mirage, sitting on the one of the stools, gave him a look that was a cross between a scowl and looking as if he was about to purge his tanks.
"I suppose it's all over the Ark by now?" the spy asked.
"You know the speed of gossip around here better than anyone." Wheeljack said with an apologetic smile as he closed his lab door and headed over to the spy. "And besides, being invisible doesn't help when you run into mechs."
"I know. I was...distracted." Mirage said miserably as Wheeljack grabbed another one of his stools and brought it over so he could sit next to the spy.
"So I heard." Wheeljack replied as he sat. There was a short silence, but when it became clear that Mirage wasn't going to say anything, Wheeljack picked up a nearby datapad and started reading through it, making notes as he went.
"What's the worst of it?" Mirage finally asked, just as Wheeljack was about to get up and see if he had a particular part that he thought might help with the project on the pad.
"The usual. You don't think he's worthy of you, you've just been amusing yourself, so on and so on." the engineer said, looking over at Mirage as the spy winced. "I'm not saying they're right to gossip, but you do keep bringing this on yourself - you need to either stop leading Hound on or explain your reasons for turning him down every time he tries to take the next step."
"I know, I just..." Mirage trailed off with a sigh.
"You just what?" Wheeljack asked softly. "Why do you keep running away from him, Mirage? You've been coming to my lab for...well, vorns now. Sooner or later Hound or someone else is going to think of looking for you in here, and then you'll need to find a new hiding spot. Do you really want it to come to that?" Mirage hunched his shoulders and stared down at the floor.
"I have had jokes made about my Tower heritage ever since I joined the Autobots. I don't blame them, for a lot of the Autobots I'm the first Towers mech they've met." Mirage said quietly after a moment, and Wheeljack gave the spy his full attention as he continued. The engineer had been trying to get Mirage to talk ever since he first found the spy hiding out in his lab...apparently the mech had finally given in today. "I'm probably the only one that thinks about why that is, though. This war has gone on so long, most of us don't stop to think about how it began anymore. I can't help but remember, though - my home was destroyed the day it started, after all. The Towers were the Decepticons' first targets." Mirage fell silent for a moment.
"We were more than just the first casualties, though." he said. "We were, when you get down to it, the cause of the war itself. We were the main supporters of a system that had grown corrupt and useless. The Decepticons were the response. They began the war to get rid of us, and to destroy the system that made our style of life possible. Mechs like Hound - mechs that weren't Decepticon, weren't in the Towers - they just got caught in the cross-fire. They got dragged into a war that wasn't their own. And I can't help but remember that every time I'm think about the lives the other Autobots had before the war.
"So really...it's not that I think he's unworthy of me, it's that I am unworthy of him.." Mirage paused, but before Wheeljack could come up with something to say, he heard the familiar hum of Mirage's invisibility cloak charging up. "How can I look him in the optics when I, and my family and friends, are the entire reason he has to fight, instead of being able to live his life the way he wants, free of conflict?" As Mirage faded from view, Wheeljack reached out and grabbed the spy's shoulder.
"Mirage, the very fact that you think that means that you're different from the mechs and femmes that the Decepticons were rebelling against." Wheeljack said softly, but got no response as the invisible shoulder slipped out from under his hand. He sighed. "Hound, and any other mech on the Ark, would tell you the same thing." Wheeljack said, loud enough for his voice to carry around his lab. There was a few moments of silence, and then his door opened and closed without anyone in sight, and he sighed. "Pretty sure if you could find a sane Decepticon they'd agree, too." the engineer informed his datapad, then set it down before going to find the part he'd been intending to find earlier, before Mirage spoke.
---
Prompt: Ironhide / Skywarp / caring
Ironhide was more or less unsurprised when he realized he was the last mech left standing in the canyon. It had been a fast, but brutal fight, with both parties aware that no back-up was coming, and that ending the encounter more quickly was preferable. Of course, when you had a trine of Decepticon coneheads, lead for some reason by Starscream, but lacking in the Air Commanders own trine, attacking Ironhide, Prowl, Brawn, and Warpath...well, that was a lot of firepower. The air, Ironhide was sure, had pretty much exploded, and he'd been the only one to duck. Now two of the coneheads were buried under a bunch of rocks, another one was lying against the opposite wall, his helm bashed in, and Ironhide couldn't even see Starscream. Considering that the landslide of rocks had been aimed at the Air Commander, however, Ironhide suspected Starscream was either far away, or smack dab under the pile.
As for the Autobots, Brawn had gotten a cluster-bomb to the face, which had knocked him for a loop and melted his faceplates, but otherwise not harmed the mini. He wasn't as affected by explosives as the rest of them. Prowl, however, had not only caught the edge of the blast, but several null rays to the chest. He was twitching somewhat disturbingly, but Ironhide had seen it before - Ratchet claimed it was just the tactician's over-active processor acting up. Ironhide just let Prowl be, and turned to Warpath - the source of the rock slide. The mech was quite powerful, but Ironhide swore he was going to convince him to install a few tactical chips, because this was by far not the first time Warpath had gotten caught in one of his own attacks.
Grumbling to himself about how it should be common sense, and that Warpath really shouldn't need a tactical chip to tell him to move from where he was dropping half a cliff side, Ironhide stomped over to the red legs sticking out from under the rocks and began digging, doing his best not to cause another avalanche as he worked. Every once and awhile he'd stop and contact Prime, who was in-coming with First Aid and a small battle-force, just in case the Decepticons showed up to grab their own.
It was in-between his shifting of rocks and one of his contacts with Prime that he heard it - the sound of straining servos, a scrape of rock, and the whine of a mech that was pushing the limits of their build. Then there was silence again. He almost would have thought it was an echo of himself, just now bouncing back, except for that whine - the rocks he was moving weren't exactly hard for him. Glancing around with a frown, he looked for movement, but saw nothing. Cautiously, he dialed up his audios to their highest sensitivity, then cautiously resumed moving rocks off Warpath.
He wasn't surprised when the sounds resumed in time with his own efforts, the mech responsible clearly trying to mask what they were doing. Frowning, Ironhide continued to dig as he looked around, but none of the downed mechs that he could see, Autobot or Decepticon, were moving. Which led him to wonder if Starscream wasn't quite as buried as he thought, and was just hiding out on the other side of the rock pile. Ironhide frowned to himself, then dropped the rock he'd just hauled off Warpath, dialed down his audios again, and pulled the rock off to the side that he'd left because it would cause an avalanche. In the ensuing noise, he scrambling up the rock pile, carefully avoiding the avalanching spot.
He got to the top before the avalanche stopped, and went still as he peered over the edge. What he found surprised him. Starscream was indeed not as buried as he'd thought...but that was because he had help. Ironhide hadn't heard Skywarp arrive, but the black and purple mech was down there now, straining to lift a rock off his commander. Curious, Ironhide remained at the top of the pile, kicking a rock down towards the bottom occasionally to make the jet think he was still working on the other side, as he watched Skywarp laboriously dig out Starscream.
Ironhide knew, of course, that he should probably stop Skywarp, but considering he'd never actually seen one lone Decepticon come to rescue another, especially with a functioning Autobot in the area, he stayed and watched. The work was obviously difficult for Skywarp - jets as a whole weren't built for heavy lifting, unless it involved their thrusters. The purple jet persevered, however, straining his servos to the max to drag or lift rocks off of Starscream. Eventually, the just got enough of Starscream uncovered that he just grabbed the other jet's legs and pulled.
Starscream came out from under the rocks with a loud clattered of noise, and Skywarp's gaze darted upwards in worry. Ironhide, not moving fast enough, froze as Skywarp's attention caught on his red helm. The Decepticon jet and he had a staring contest for a minute or so, but when Skywarp evidently decided Ironhide wasn't going to do anything, he slowly reached down, doing his best to keep his optics on Ironhide just in case, and grabbed Starscream's arm, hauling the air commander upright.
Pulling Starscream close, Skywarp took a few steps back, still eyeing Ironhide, and then activated his thrusters. He lifted off the ground slightly, and then nodded to Ironhide before disappearing in his usual warp. Ironhide couldn't help but notice, however, that just before he disappeared, Skywarp turned his head to give Starscream a look that was far too concerned to fit in with Ironhide's image of the Decepticons. Frowning to himself, Ironhide turned to head back down and resume digging out Warpath, only to come face-to-face with a curious-looking Jazz.
"Gyahhhh!" the red mech exclaimed in surprise, then lost his footing and went sliding down, taking the laughing saboteur, and a pile of rocks, with him. Even Prime was snickering when he and the twins finally managed to dig Warpath, Jazz, and Ironhide out from under the rocks later.
---
Prompt: Fireflight / Dinobots / a long time ago
"Whoever came up with this idea was brilliant." Ratchet whispered as he peered into the Dinobots common room. Inside, all of the Dinobots, but Fireflight, were curled up in a giant metallic cuddle pile as they avidly watched a tiny screen showing some sort of animated movie.
"Almost brilliant. Flight's suppose to come on patrol with me. How the slag am I supposed to get him out of there without being pounded into scrap?" Air Raid whined.
"Oh hush, I'm sure one of your brothers will fill in." Ratchet snapped, then carefully palmed shut the door. "In the mean time, I'm going to find out from Red Alert who did this so that I can find out what that program they're watching is. I may need to get a TV installed in the med bay." Air Raid snorted.
"Don't need to go to Red Alert for that. I recognize it from a few days ago - Fireflight brought it back, said he thought the Dinobots might like it. It's called The Time Before Land or some slag like that." the aerialbot grumbled.
"Hmm. I guess I'll have to thank Fireflight then." Ratchet mused, then headed off down the corridor, thoroughly unconcerned now that it was clear that none of the Dinobots, or Fireflight, were in danger as Air Raid had led him to believe. Air Raid just grumbled and stalked off down the hallways, presumably to bribe one of his brothers to go in Fireflight's place on their patrol, so he didn't have to risk bothering the Dinobots.
---