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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 17, 2011 9:44:55 GMT -5
Month 1, Week 1, Day 4
Kup's office is a bit bare compared to usual. Specifically, Springer ain't in it. Drift'll still find a beat-up, not-too-comfortable chair or two on the other side of Kup's desk when he comes for his appointment, and he'll find a scowling Kup, too.
It's not Drift's fault. They should have gotten to his interview sooner, much sooner, but what with the Decepticon attack and certain smaller aspects of it, like Mayday being such a freaking pansy, Rodimus Prime coming down with Cosmic Rust, Botanica coming down with Cosmic Rust, Springer coming down with an evil Springer in his head... the list really just goes on. Kup has all sorts of reasons to be cranky, and even if he didn't, he's Kup.
Right now, he's glaring at a duty roster, trying to fudge it around those still too damaged to stand.
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Post by Drift on Mar 17, 2011 14:15:46 GMT -5
Well, Kup's special brand of cranky just might meet its match with Drift's. Who hates bureaucracy and red tape and paperwork and hoops to jump through and, oh, just about anything that takes away from, you know, winning the war.
Still, it's Kup, and...he remembers Kup. The first mech who gave him a chance, gave him a break.
If it is, actually, his Kup. After all this talk of zombies and females and such, this might be, for all he knows, zombie female Kup. Kuppette.
No sense, though, burning every bridge.
Drift steps into the room. "You wanted to talk."
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 18, 2011 19:31:17 GMT -5
Kup is not a Kupette or a zombie. He was a vampire once, but it wasn't as fun as it sounded. He was also dead once, and that was definitely not as fun as it sounded.
He looks up and suggests, "Sit down, kid."
Hnn, Drift looks... vaguely familiar. Kup can't place it right now, and he's not sure he ever will. He's been so many places, seen so many people. Might be a thousand years before that memory search finishes, anyway.
He raises a hand and explains, "Standard procedure. We interview everyone. Got to have an idea of what you can do, what you know, and what you don't know and can't do." He looks directly at Drift's optics now. "So. What's the most important thing I should know about you?"
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Post by Drift on Mar 18, 2011 20:07:31 GMT -5
Kup might do well not to mention vampires to Drift right now. He's still a bit cranky about the other weird stuff. One more Weird Thing and he may very well lose what little cool he has.
Drift's trying to measure up Kup, to draw his own points of comparison to 'his' Kup as he perches on the chair. He looks ill at ease, which only gets worse when he hears all the questions.
Oh, sure, like I'm going to tell you what I can't do. Might as well just map my weaknesses and vulnerabilities for you for future reference. Right.
The 'most important' thing, huh? Way to start with a nice softball question. Drift considers for a long moment, aware he's being judged, even on his delay.
All right, Kup. Battle lines: drawn.
"I'm here to win the war." That...says it all. Well...as much as he wants to say about who he is and why he's here.
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 20, 2011 21:45:46 GMT -5
Kup doesn't consider it a softball question. What a bot thinks is most important about himself is a pretty telling thing, and if he tries to tell Kup what he thinks Kup wants to hear, that's damn telling, too.
He can tell by now that getting anything useful out of Drift is going to be like pulling teeth out the tailpipe. Kup's seen that type before, and if it comes to a contest of stubborn, Kup's plenty stubborn himself, and he's got the patience of old age on top of it.
Kup snorts and replies, "Okay, kid. Nice goal. Think we're all here for that. You gonna tell me what you got to offer towards that goal?"
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Post by Drift on Mar 20, 2011 22:01:32 GMT -5
Drift shoots Kup a Look. 'We're all here for that'? Has Kup met some of these Autobots?
"Good to hear," he says, neutrally. Well, as neutrally as he could manage. Wing could have pulled it off much better.
He lets the moment stretch, considering his answer. This...wasn't his strong suit. The whole...words...thing.
The urge to answer Kup's question with a simple 'no' almost wins. No, Drift. This is Kup. You like him. Well...relatively speaking.
Right. So what he brings toward that goal.
Obedience? No.
Respect for authority? Not...so much.
Cooperation in a team? Uh, no.
"I'm...," frag. "really good at killing."
Irrefutable, at least.
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 21, 2011 22:01:10 GMT -5
Even the cowardly Autobots would like the war to be won, since that would mean they wouldn't have to fight anymore.
Kup pulls out a cryptically-marked torn and bent sheet of metal, covered in obscure symbols, and he notches another glyph into it. Then he replies, "Okay. You a hitman?" Because there is an Autobot hitman in canon, which is somewhat peculiar.
"Look. I usually let interviewees ask me any questions they might have when they're done, but with you, how about this: you ask me a question. I answer it. Then you answer a question. Completely."
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Post by Drift on Mar 21, 2011 22:22:01 GMT -5
Actually, Drift's tendency not to think that far ahead means he hasn't thought that far ahead. Peace would be...really hard to deal with.
A hitman? No. "Hitmen," Drift says, stiffly, "fight for money. They have no honor." HINT.
He grunts. That...is a pretty lousy set of choices. It's one of those 'do it my way, or do it my way and smile while you're at it' things. Great.
"Fine." Great. A question. A question. He's no good at this reflective stuff. Never was. Just wanted to be pointed in the direction of something to kill.
"All right." He points to the Autobot insignia on Kup's chassis. "What's that mean?"
Thank you, Wing. Who knew that your particular brand of annoying would come in handy?
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 22, 2011 21:46:46 GMT -5
Oh, an honor kind of guy, huh? Kup thought that went out of style with not transforming. This place keeps surprising him, and Kup doesn't like surprises.
Kup places his hand over his Autobot symbol and levels a serious look at Drift, as he explains, "It means I won't shut up or be shut up by anyone. Means different things to different people. Don't think you'll get the same answer twice if you want to ask around," like Spy Shot 6 did.
It's telling that Drift even asked that, even if he wears one himself.
"It means I got kicked off Cybertron for refusing to forget." Kup's expression is grim and humourless. "I can tell you the whole story if you want, but it ain't exciting like some."
"So. Your standard loadout?" Don't want to send an archer to do a sapper's job!
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Post by Drift on Mar 23, 2011 17:05:05 GMT -5
(ooc: you failed me yet again, Starscrea--bookmarks!)
Well, Drift's pretty new, in a way, at this honor thing himself. But...A for effort! Okay, B+.
He frowns at Kup's answer. He doesn't care about the right to talk. That was way above what he was fighting for, had been fighting for, even back with Gasket.
But he says nothing, just nods, filing that away. His Kup had...liked his little stories, too. And he knew enough to respect what Kup knew.
"Loadout?" Drift shrugs. "Standard Wrecker sidearm." A bit of a smirk. Got a problem with that? Take it up with yourself, Wrecker. "Two swords." nothing fancy, nothing like Wing's plasma blades. He doesn't mention the Great Sword.
There's a strange silence before he realizes, oh, frag. Still playing this stupid game, right. Well. Time to see how much this Kup is like his.
He gestures to encompass his armor. "Seen anything like this before?"
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 25, 2011 20:05:04 GMT -5
Kup frowns briefly but deeply at the mention of Wreckers and states, "Oh. You're one of them."
There are no Wreckers in Kup's reality. As far as the ones in this reality go, it mostly seems like an excuse to divide people up and create pointless tensions. Kup doesn't 'get it'. There's also the weirdness with Twin Twist being a Wrecker but not an Autobot or whatever that nonsense in his dossier says.
Kup ups the priority of that memory search, and after a bit of thought, he hazards, "Paradron? Wait, no, that's not it..." He shakes his head and thinks a moment longer. "Eh, Crystal City?" He shrugs.
Then Kup asks his question, "D'ya think my optics have given out, kid? What's that on your back?"
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Post by Drift on Mar 25, 2011 20:52:08 GMT -5
One of...'them'. Drift frowns. The one thing he'd thought he could count on, the one thing that made him...less on guard around Kup, has just been jerked out from under him. "Got a problem with Wreckers?"
Drift's never heard of Paradron, but Crystal City. Well, he'd asked. "Kind of," he says, quietly. "Depends on what you know of them." And he's not going to volunteer since that wasn't Kup's 'question' in this game they're playing.
Frag. Wouldn't you like to talk more about Crystal City, Kup? Maybe go off on some nice long boring tangent about Wreckers? No?
He shifts, uncomfortably, on his seat. "Great Sword." There, that answered the question. In a very small, literal sense.
His question is implied: what do you know about Crystal City, Kup? How much do you really know?
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 25, 2011 23:35:38 GMT -5
Kup wonders if maybe it's time to stop playing dumb. He was hoping he wouldn't have to, but... at this rate, he's going to have to assign Drift only the lowest security clearance and make sure he's only ever posted on shifts with known steady quantities, like Rattrap, Breakaway, Holi, Nightbeat, Arcee, or... Long Haul, which is... weird. That'll rankle the kid, and Drift's just going to lash out more. Kup's seen it before, but there's not much for it.
He explains in response to the question, "Not exactly. I'm sure they mean a lot to you. Bet it was a good squad." He nods. "I know some people expect me to be one, but I ain't. There's no Wreckers in my reality at all. Did just fine, too, without them. Thing is, here... there's not a whole lot of us. If my second in command runs off with his own squad and starts playing favourites with 'em," which Springer has been doing, aside from the whole issue of an evil Springer in his head, "that kills morale; makes everyone else think they ain't good enough, and that's slag."
Maybe Springer shouldn't have been his second in command, but his other options aren't so hot, either. Grimlock? If Springer's an overly violent kid, Grimlock is that on syk. Optimus Prime? Idealistic kid lacking in combat experience. Dinobot? Older-personalitied kid, somewhat overly aggressive, weird sense of honour. Ultra Magnus? Has Shockwave's aggression coding in his head, anger issues, and zero self esteem. Override? Led a planet, but really seems more interested in racing. Impactor? A dead ex-Wrecker whose first meeting with Kup was a multi-hour brawl. Sentinel Prime? Don't make Kup laugh.
Springer's mostly adult in personality, has good combat experience, and isn't too weirdly extreme in any way. Shame about that evil Springer in his head and the fragging favouratism.
Kup cannot read Drift's mind, so he doesn't go on about Crystal City. He does, however, poke about the sword, nodding almost absently, "Got it off a friend, did you?"
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Post by Drift on Mar 26, 2011 10:08:15 GMT -5
Drift shrugs. "Maybe it's not a bad thing to think you're not as good as someone else. Gives you something to strive for." Oh you know, like a few weeks of character-building sparring with Wing?
"If your morale's so weak, maybe a special team is the least of your problems." Yes, Drift is critiquing your leadership. Hey, he was Turmoil's second in command. He knows a bit about leadership. Mostly how not to do it.
Drift stiffens, hands going to the scabbards of his short blades. He hears an accusation: he didn't steal it. He'd earned it, for good or ill. "It was given to me. Afterwards." After he'd proved himself, after he needed the reminder of what he'd done there.
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Post by Kate Mason on Mar 26, 2011 13:36:42 GMT -5
For a moment, Kup considers calling Rattrap, telling Rattrap that Kup's found Dinobot's long lost father, and can Rattrap please get this joker off Kup's hands? It's just a moment, but it is powerfully tempting. He rubs the bridge of his nose, giving Drift a hard look.
Kup observes, "You sure like reading things into a situation that ain't necessarily there. Morale's doing all right. Springer fussing over Ultra Magnus still ain't somethin' you wanna see."
That comment's just a bit calculated. Most realities with Wrecker know of a Springer as a Wrecker. Ultra Magnus seems to be a rarer member. How Drift reacts will be interesting, because despite the fact that Drift puked his guts all over Perceptor on those brig security tapes, it's still difficult to figure out exactly which reality Drift's from - most likely Springer's, Kup is thinking, but a few details need to be checked.
'It was given to me. Afterwards,' sure is interesting phrasing. Very passive. Removes whoever was doing the action from the equation entirely. Kup adds casually, "After your buddy died, sure. So, you trained in the use of that sticker, or is it just a liability you carry around for sentimental reasons?"
Drift didn't list it in his standard loadout. It's a valid question.
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