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Post by Kup on Jan 17, 2012 10:01:57 GMT -5
Kup scowls as he scratches another symbol into the metal sheet. Without looking up, he growls, "I should lock you away and delete the entry code. Last time I dealt with a Prime coming back from the dead with as many holes in his story as you've got, Autobots lost nearly a quarter of their fleet, ships and crew."
He looks up and leans back in his seat, legs stretching out beneath his desk to balance. "Command won't let me. Plant lady's all hot to give you a chance, and she's somehow convinced Xaaron and Roddy to go along with it." He shakes his head. "Boy's got so much wet paint, that I can understand, but I don't get goldie's excuse." He shrugs. "Either way, you're not getting a command position. Not saying there's no room for that down the road, once we've had time to be sure about you, but for now," he inclines his head towards Optimus, "Optimus, you're keeping the Guard. I'll leave it to you whether you think sssshhhe," there's some hesitation as Kup consciously sorts out what pronoun he should be using, "even has a place in the 'Elite Guard,'" a concept Kup had never been too fond of to begin with, "but you're still in charge."
He looks down, makes another scratch and adds, "You two got anything else?"
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Post by Sentinel Prime on Jan 17, 2012 10:28:04 GMT -5
Sentinel Prime's face twists with obvious displeasure. Quite possibly, the moral she is getting out of this experience is that being truthful is for suckers. Winners like her ought to stick with plausible lies.
Thank energony goodness for friends in high places, though. Sentinel Prime will need to hug Botanica the next time she sees her! Then take a shower. Not having damped emotions means that Sentinel Prime cannot deny that what Botanica is scares her. She feels a bit ashamed about that, and she files it away as something she will need to work on.
The short of it is that everything Sentinel Prime has ever worked towards is over, perhaps temporarily, perhaps forever, someone very dear to her is dead, and Optimus, who she has extremely mixed feelings about, gets to have what Sentinel Prime has always wanted. This situation is crushing. Sentinel Prime has never been inclined towards despair, but she feels its icy fingers clutching her now.
"I, uhm. I'm sorry, sir. I should have gotten Elita-1 out, somehow. This was my fault," Sentinel Prime mutters, and then she makes a noise like clearing her voicebox. "I think that is all, sir. I'm sure that Optimus and I can settle this matter between ourselves like reasonable adults. Don't you think so, Optimus?"
She already has some forms filled out.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
Caution: Hero makes wide right turns.
Posts: 385
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Post by Optimus Prime on Jan 19, 2012 20:45:52 GMT -5
"It wasn't your fault, Sentinel," Optimus says softly. "You don't want to go the rest of your life beating yourself up over this. Trust me," he says. He considers reaching out to put a hand on the other Prime's shoulder, only it's really Elita's shoulder and Sentinel is just borrowing it and nevermind things are way to weird to touch shoulders right now.
"Of course we can. And we will. There'll always be a spot on the Guard for you as long as I'm in charge of it, Sentinel." He states.
"It's not nepotism," he adds, looking Kup in the eye. "Sentinel . . . died? in the line of duty in this unit, and as far as I'm concerned, that gives him a spot in it."
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Post by Kup on Jan 19, 2012 22:09:40 GMT -5
Kup shakes his head and sighs heavily. "I'm not blaming you, Sentinel. This isn't a punishment. Missions go wrong. Life isn't fair, and that thing some folks say about death being some kind of great equalizer to balance it? Nothing but a pile of rusted scrap iron." Kup is old, and he looks old, but generally speaking, he does not look his age. Not really. But for a moment he sits there and some exhausted part of him shows through and he looks every one of his seventeen-million-plus years. "If death were as fair as some folk claim, there's no way I'd be sitting in front of you now when so many of my lads and lasses are rustin' among the stars."
And then he's just Kup again, just normal Kup levels of oldness. "This ain't punishment, Sentinel. But right now, you're a potential security threat," something Kup would have probably believed even if Sentinel had lied through Elita's teeth, "and until we're sure you aren't, I can't have you in a leadership position."
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Post by Sentinel Prime on Jan 19, 2012 22:35:36 GMT -5
Would Optimus prefer that Sentinel Prime spend the rest of her existence blaming him instead? She's very good at that. Sentinel Prime eyes him sidelong. He's being far too kind, and she does not trust it.
"Mmm, yes, sir," Sentinel Prime mumbles, optics narrowed. Oh, so she's a security threat, but Springer isn't? Did Kup want to lock Springer in the brig and delete the key-code? Because if Kup did, she never heard that part.
Optimus says it isn't nepotism, offering her a spot in the Guard, but he's wrong. It's all nepotism. Kup likes Springer. End of story.
"Where do we want to talk about this, Optimus?" He probably has an office now. He probably has her office.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
Caution: Hero makes wide right turns.
Posts: 385
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Post by Optimus Prime on Jan 21, 2012 20:11:59 GMT -5
Being far too kind (right up until the slag hits the turbofan, when his exhaust port gets majorly blocked) is how Optimus rolls. It is both better and worse than having a a blocked exhaust port all the time, the way Sentinel generally does.
"Er, the Elite Guard office, unless there's anything else, Kup, sir?" Optimus has never really been able to think of it as his office. He's left it mostly the way Sentinel had it. Sitting behind that desk feels like wearing a dead bot's chass-okay, maybe that's the wrong analogy.
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Post by Kup on Jan 21, 2012 22:34:54 GMT -5
Kup shakes his head, frowning. "Naw, that's it," he says tiredly. He nods towards the door. "Go ahead."
OOC: If you guys want to keep the thread and move locations, feel free. Assume Kup is left behind and therefore out of thread.
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Post by Sentinel Prime on Jan 21, 2012 23:15:43 GMT -5
Sentinel Prime salutes politely, and then she is off.
She transforms, a bit awkwardly. One of her arms catches and she has to take a moment to half-transform back and then finish it all the way, but soon, she is a car, rolling out towards the Elite Guard office. She would know the way if she was overcharged blind.
There is the screeching sound of brakes when she actually gets there. Sentinel Prime does not adjust to new alternate modes very quickly or very well. She'll need to iron out the kinks in the sim room, she's sure. Call up Swerve's old track of doom for her and hit that for some laps.
Then she transforms back to robot mode and moves to enter in the key code and...
She comes up short and stares at the keypad, optics hollow. This is not her office anymore. Feeling like she was socked in the fuel tank, Sentinel Prime steps aside and inquires, "Optimus? The door?"
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Optimus Prime
Minor
Caution: Hero makes wide right turns.
Posts: 385
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Post by Optimus Prime on Jan 22, 2012 14:20:02 GMT -5
Optimus transforms when Sentinel does, because it would be awkward to walk while the other Prime rolls. He transforms back to robot mode in time to look abashed and key open the door. "Right, sorry," he says, motioning for Sentinel to go ahead in.
There's a million questions he wants to ask, only he's not sure he wants to know the answers.
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Post by Sentinel Prime on Jan 22, 2012 20:57:20 GMT -5
Sentinel Prime looks for where her bonsai tree ought to be and is somewhat distressed to see it missing, She heads for the chair behind the desk, pauses awkwardly, and then wordlessly turns and sits herself in the chair in front of the desk. She slaps a datapad down on the desk.
There is a completed resignation from the Elite Guard form on the datapad and an additional form requesting the most menial of chores as her duties for the next thousand years.
Sentinel Prime moves her head around to look right at Optimus, wherever he may be right now, and she says flatly, "That's what you want, isn't it?"
Now that he's done being nice in front of Kup. There is none of the obsequious politeness that she showed Kup in her now. Optimus may outrank her, but she has no desire to suck up to him.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
Caution: Hero makes wide right turns.
Posts: 385
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Post by Optimus Prime on Jan 23, 2012 19:50:30 GMT -5
Optimus sits down stiffly in the chair behind the desk. Under the circumstances he has trouble thinking of it as "his" chair. Following Sentinel Prime's gaze he says "Botanica has it, I think."
He picks up the datapad, reads it, then places it back down on the desk and hunches forward, elbows resting on the desk and his face in his hands for a moment.
When he straightens up, he says "Sentinel, if you want to quit the Guard, I won't stop you. I think we could both use some time to figure things out right now. If we're lucky, we'll even get some." You know, without anyone killing them, or sticking them in potatoes, or feeding them to birds.
"As to these duties you've requested, if you're in the Elite Guard, you should be doing something more productive than punishing yourself, and if you aren't, then you're not under my command anyway and you should be giving this to Kup."
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Post by Sentinel Prime on Jan 23, 2012 20:12:48 GMT -5
Sentinel Prime observes that he has not denied her conjecture that this is what Optimus wants, and she gets some grim satisfaction out of that.
She says coolly, "Ah. Yes. My will. I guess that was a bit selfish of me, asking her to do that. She's a division head. Has better things to do than look after my tree. Speaking of... did you read my will?" She stares at him meaningfully. That message she left just for him?
"Anyway, I know that the second form goes to Kup. I just wanted to let you know," because she is a passive-aggressive skidplate, and this is her messed up way of trying to make things right.
Now, does she want to quit the Guard? No, because she is shallow and vain and likes being special, but there are many things Sentinel Prime doesn't want. Being under Optimus is one of them. The very thought of it rankles. Now, maybe it would be good for her. They say a good leader knows how to follow well.
Sentinel Prime has never been good.
She rubs the back of her helmet and looks away, "Right, so... if that's that, I'll file those forms in their proper places, and then I am going to go get wasted," because the easiest way of processing grief for her has always involved a keg stand or two, "Want to come with?"
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Optimus Prime
Minor
Caution: Hero makes wide right turns.
Posts: 385
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Post by Optimus Prime on Jan 24, 2012 18:52:39 GMT -5
The difference between what Optimus wants, what might make him feel good, and what Optimus actually does, is the key thing to remember.
"Yes, Sentinel, I did. I think we both knew Elita-1 had a dark side. She never could have become the Blackarachnia we know if she didn't, even after being infused with spider DNA." He sighs. "We all have the capacity for evil, Sentinel. We all have the ability to choose to get what we can grab instead of working for the good of others. It's that choice that seperates Autobots from Decepticons."
Is that a little jab at Sentinel? Maybe. But if Optimus thought he was a completely hopeless case, he wouldn't go drinking with him.
"I could go for some energony goodness about now, yeah."
OOC: Work toward a fade?
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Post by Sentinel Prime on Jan 24, 2012 19:20:11 GMT -5
OOC: I promised Kup that I'd have Sentinel say something petty and unwise while plastered, so I do need to at least get that piece in, but if you want, Optimus can have wandered off to do more important things at that point or something.- - - Sentinel Prime's face falters, and she curses, "Oh, slag. I was... hoping you hadn't seen that and I could just pull the file off the network." She sighs. "I mean... I had the situation handled, while I was alive. You don't need to know that anymore, since she's... not an issue." She stands up and puts the chair nearly back in place, gripping it hard for a moment before she turns to head out and commence getting wasted on grunt's salary. "Have you told anyone?" He's goody-goody. He might have. It might explain why Kup was giving her the third degree there.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
Caution: Hero makes wide right turns.
Posts: 385
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Post by Optimus Prime on Jan 25, 2012 16:15:12 GMT -5
OOC: Did not know that. Will stick around.
Optimus rises from his chair at the same time Sentinel does. "No, I haven't told anyone. There was no reason to." He wasn't about to go around dishonoring Sentinel's and Elita-1's memories while they were dead.
"There still isn't a reason to," he adds after a while, since Sentinel is probably thinking about this in terms of blackmail. Elita-1 is still dead, as far as anyone knows, and Sentinel is in her still-emotionally-functional body, so it's a moot point. Speaking of which . . .
"Are you planning to construct a new chassis for yourself?" They're on Earth now, they could probably barter or beg for enough resources to build a new shell for Sentinel, since they've already got all the important bits like the spark chamber. Oh, right. "Um, never mind. That was tactless."
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