Swindle
Major
This space for rent.
Posts: 571
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Post by Swindle on Jan 22, 2010 0:53:49 GMT -5
Day 3 Open Thread. All are welcome!
In a bustling open air market on the planet of Pz-Zazz, there is merchant's stall. It has a green and purple striped awning, and emblazoned on the front of the counter is the Decepticon insignia, along with the words 'Decepticon Mercantile Consortium' in a bold, attention-getting font.
Swindle stands behind the counter, readying himself for business. His myriad of weapons are all retracted and concealed. There's a small mirror affixed to one of the supports for the awning, and he examines his reflection, adjusting his bolo tie. "Who's that handsome device?" he says, grinning at himself and making 'gun-fingers' at the mirror. "Peaceful merchants," he chuckles, shaking his head, "Starscream you sly devil, remind me to give you a discount next time I see you." He flicks a switch, and a red neon sign reading "OPEN" illuminates atop the awning. "Small discount," Swindle adds as an afterthought. He fishes in his storage compartment and extracts a hand-held remote, pushing a button which causes several identical rifles, large and oddly shaped, to emerge from the counter-top, encased in a display case. Opening the back of the display case, he takes one out and steps around to the front of the counter, remote in one hand and rifle in the other.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Swindle shouts, waving his remote hand in the air, "sentient entities of all ages! Gather 'round and see this year's must-have death-dealing device! Yes, you'll never need to purchase another weapon once you're the proud owner of the Foereaver 9000!" A few shoppers stop to look, a couple others glance over as they pass by. "But of course," the businessmech adds, "I wouldn't expect you to buy without a demonstration!" With that, he presses a button on the remote, causing a small spherical drone to shoot forth from behind the Decepticon Mercantile booth. It expands in midair, ballooning into a full-sized target dummy. Swindle takes aim and pulls the trigger, blowing a hole in the dummy with a beam of plasma. More people stop to watch. Free entertainment is always welcome. "Yes, the Foereaver 9000 is guaranteed to melt armor plating or your money back. But you've seen plasma rifles before! Haven't we all? But this is no mere plasma rifle, dear customers." He shoulders the weapon and looks thoughtful. "Now, a lot of rifles on the market today feature some sort of under-slung grenade launcher." A few onlookers nod. "But how many feature a heat-seekeing micro-rocket launcher? Only this one, I assure you! 'But wait!' I hear you say," he gushes, holding a servo to his audio sensors, "my enemies are the same temperature as their enviroment! What good are heat-seeking missiles? Well, ladies and gentlemen, wouldn't they be hotter than their environment if they were on fire?!" With this, Swindle presses another button on the remote, summoning another drone. Flipping a switch on that prince among firearms, the Foereaver 9000, he then pulls the trigger consuming the drone in a gout of flame. Another toggle, another pull of the trigger, and a rocket flies toward the tiny robot, blowing it to pieces. The crowd 'ooos' and 'aaahs'. "But wait, there's more!" shouts Swindle. "Also included is this magnetic accelerator weapon, capable of launching metal spikes at supersonic speeds at the target of your choice. Guaranteed to puncture plate steel or hyper-concrete!" Another press of the remote, another destroyed drone, this one impaled with spikes.
"Now how much would you expect to pay for this marvel of death-dealing technology? Four thousand shanix? Five thousand? For a limited time only, the Foereaver 9000 can be yours for the low, low price of only nine hundred and ninety-nine shanix! Act now and receive a laminated coating guaranteed not to retain manipulatory appendage prints!" Swindle grins at the crowd. He loves this job and he loves this planet.
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Post by Prowl on Jan 23, 2010 13:21:52 GMT -5
Everything is terribly out of place and foreign feeling to Prowl. Well, he knows of this sort of thing, the humans had shady parts of their cities. That didn't stop him from walking along the streets of the busy market, looking around at all the activity. Perhaps people are looking at him in return as he stares at them, but he's able to slip through the crowd quietly, making it seem like he wasn't even there.
Apparently cyber-ninjas can have good crowd skills.
However, the Decepticon stand catches his optic so he starts weaving through the crowd to get a better look. He doesn't recognize the mech right away, but he does recognize Swindle's design as one from the galaxy he knows best - his own. He doesn't seem to be doing anything out of the ordinary, even selling weaponry is common on this street. Prowl stares a bit, his optic band narrowing. No need to alert anyone about this... Yet.
He moves closer now, to position himself just in front of the stand next to Swindle's and pretends to be looking at the wares for sale there.
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Swindle
Major
This space for rent.
Posts: 571
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Post by Swindle on Jan 24, 2010 0:11:00 GMT -5
Swindle sees Prowl out of the corner of his optic. He turns his head slightly to get a better look, which the cyber-ninja likely notices. The Decepticon merchant takes in the build (from his own universe), armor (very nice armor, that'd fetch a good price) and the autobrand, then runs a quick self diagnostic on his force field, just in case. It doesn't look like the Autobot wants to start anything, though, so . . . maybe he wants to buy something?
"Hey there, pal!" Swindle calls, why are you bothering with that," Swindle pauses to look, "fishmonger when you could be buying quality weapons from me? You need a genuine cybertronium alloy katana to go with that armor?"
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Duskwing
Major
"What the slag happened?"
Posts: 848
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Post by Duskwing on Jan 26, 2010 20:49:07 GMT -5
Meanwhile, Duskwing slouches along, studying the things for sale in the market... with an eye for what is small, poorly secured, and valuable. "Poorly secured' includes "defended by a wimp" as well as "not nailed down", in Duskwing's Big Book of Larceny. Like he told Starscream, he's going "shopping".
There's something vaguely familiar about the voice and colors of the bot singing the praises of the multi-weapon; Duskwing's head turns sharply, and he shambles over.
"Yo, Swindle!" Duskwing stares at the gun he's showing off.
"Huh. Seems like you'd forget what the slag you was shootin' wid dat many buttons. Hey, what's that red button for?" he asks, pointing at a glowing red button on the bottom side of the rifle, thereby proving he's slightly brighter than a Mangalore warrior.
As yet, he's oblivious to the Autobot standing nearby...
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Post by Prowl on Jan 27, 2010 13:04:38 GMT -5
Prowl stands up a bit straighter and then moves over, very slowly, especially now that there's a large Decepticon standing in front of the stall. He isn't familiar with Duskwing, so he's particularly careful.
He does, however, perk up at the mention of swords. A small smirk tugs at his mouth for a moment, which leads to him moving over and viewing the weaponry in interest. Perhaps these could be added to his current modding? He mulls this idea over in his processor while tapping at his chin with a finger. He's quiet as he thinks and decides to let the merchant make the first comment.
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Swindle
Major
This space for rent.
Posts: 571
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Post by Swindle on Jan 27, 2010 15:09:00 GMT -5
Swindle's stall is the opposite of "poorly secured." Some teachers have a candy dish on their desk labeled 'Ashes of Problem Students.' Swindle has one labeled 'Ashes of Shoplifters.' It does not have candy inside.
"Duskwing, buddy!" Swindle says, "I can see you have an eye for quality. That glowing red button controls the built in taser. The brighter the glow, the greater the charge. Guaranteed to bring down a <large alien animal>!"
Swindle opens his storage compartment, pulling out a sheathed katana as he turns to Prowl and asks, "How much would you pay for this lovely blade, Mr . . .?"
While waiting for Prowl's response, Swindle sells a Foereaver 9000 to a young, grub-like alien, accompanied by its insectoid father in a police uniform.
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Mistwind
Major
Licensed flight addict, deepsea diving fan, mech-pilot rookie - Accepts food and play for services.
Posts: 531
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Post by Mistwind on Jan 27, 2010 17:42:23 GMT -5
Down the road, Mistwind was seen browsing and interacting with various vendors. He talks with a lot of hand motions, nods and bounces. Eventually, he continues on, clutching various samples of wares and sucks gingerly on a fuelbased lollipop that crackles as he licks it.
Humming a soft singsong, he listens to the masses, the selling pitches and his faction radio when reality decides to give him a call. // ….Caught in an Autobot attack without your Decepticon partner? Can't survive without a rocket launcher!// //… Give me a call on my personal frequency at <numbers along the lines of 1-800-BUYGUNS>!// With a whirring click, Mistwind halts abruptly, staring straight ahead of him into nothingness. Some aliens growl and hiss at his obstruction of the road, but that doesn’t make him snap out of it. The lollipop is gnawed at in careful thought. There’s caution, uncertainty, doubt flashing across his face as he seeks out the form of Duskwing and…. Swindle.
The little Decepticon takes a look upwards towards the stars, searching the sky. Then he bows his head and trudges towards the stall. He stares, at the guns, at the Cons, at the Bot, and the Decepticon sigil….. his face is shimmering between annoyance, envy and eagerness.
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Duskwing
Major
"What the slag happened?"
Posts: 848
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Post by Duskwing on Jan 27, 2010 18:50:56 GMT -5
On the one hand, Swindle himself always was a wimp. On the other hand, he had four very nasty team-mates who might protect him if it amused them. On the one wing, this Swindle didn't have his big ugly team-mates with him. On the other wing, he sure had a lot of hardware and probably booby-trapped it.
Besides, someone would probably yell at him if he beat up the other Decepticon and stole his stuff. Better to beat up other people and steal their money to pay Swindle.
"Huh. Too much stuff and it's a hand-held. I'm lookin' for something that'll mount on a wing. Rail-mount or hardpoint mount. Want to add some v-var-... uh, different stuff; my guns is all bog-standard--no suprises, an' dat's bad, see?" He turns his head idly to see who Swindle is selling blades to and jerks back in surprise.
"HEY! Dat's a 'Bot!" Duskwing says indignantly, like Swindle is to blame for the riff-raff hereabouts.
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Post by Prowl on Jan 28, 2010 11:47:55 GMT -5
It takes him a moment of wondering whether or not to reveal his true name, but then he remembers they probably have files about him if anything.
"Prowl," he murmurs as he reaches out to show he wants to inspect the katana. He glances upwards towards Duskwing, "Yes, I am an Autobot. Can one not shop in peace?"
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Swindle
Major
This space for rent.
Posts: 571
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Post by Swindle on Jan 28, 2010 19:51:54 GMT -5
Swindle grins. "Hey now, Duskwing, my fellow peaceful merchant, we can't help how we're manufactured, now can we?" Saying this, he hands the katana to Prowl. "Nice to meet you, Prowl. Normally I wouldn't let one of you good-for-nothing, troublemaking Autobots handle the merchandise for fear you might run off with it, but in this case I think I'll make an exception." He winks at Prowl, as though mentioning a particularly hilarious joke that they're both in on, then turns back to the Seeker.
"You want some variety, eh? Well, I've got plenty of wing-mounts. Incendiaries, lasers, machine guns, electro-blasters. . .but let me throw this out for your consideration. You're a pretty common chassis type, right? Now if the guys in your reality are anything like Starscream's clones where I come from, you'll want your own unique gimmick to set you apart." He puts a finger to his chin. "Let's see, Ramjet rams things, Skywarp teleports, Sunstorm has energy powers. . .Duskwing. . .some kind of darkness gun?"
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Mistwind
Major
Licensed flight addict, deepsea diving fan, mech-pilot rookie - Accepts food and play for services.
Posts: 531
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Post by Mistwind on Jan 28, 2010 21:09:50 GMT -5
-Cr-Snap!- Mistwind's jaw crushes the lollipop, severing the wooden center. He does not understand, no he does not. How can Swindle give weaponry to an Autobot. And... and he knows! Is it trapped? Does it snap a thousand needles into the wielders hands on impact? Made of a squishy substance that bends as he pokes?
He listens for a while longer, trying to find some sort of lead to what this Decepticon is actually selling; pearls or swines? He checks his subspace compartment, and hesitantly makes a call on the radio.
//.... Is.... Is this unit allowed a weapon?//
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Duskwing
Major
"What the slag happened?"
Posts: 848
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Post by Duskwing on Jan 29, 2010 7:42:12 GMT -5
Duskwing just freezes in place and stares at Swindle for several long minutes in silence as his processors chew on the philosophical question he's just been handed. Then he scowls. "Whaddat gotta do wit' it?"
He snaps his head back to look at the Autobot. Has the guy done anything sneaky while Swindle distracted him? Duskwing scowls more. "Prowl? You don' look like dat Shockwave-wannabe. You look like Bludgeon got a makeover. Whaddaya do, steal Bludgie's armor?"
"I kinda like dat idea, Swindle. You do the install, or do I gotta put a ticket in wit' Hook? And gimme a dem... demo--ah, show it off!"
// Kid, you're a 'Con, right? Whaddaya doin' wit'out a weapon? //
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Shortround
Minor
Breaker of the Fourth Wall
Posts: 272
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Post by Shortround on Jan 30, 2010 7:08:55 GMT -5
Shortround is a toy collector! Would you expect him to be anywhere except somewhere people sell things, probably helping the illusion of them being merchants by his obvious function of cargo hauler?
Unfortunately for the collector, he doesn't have a haul at the moment simply because he has very, very little idea where his sweet, sweet prizes actually are, and is instead wandering around somewhat aimlessly, trying to find them. And has probably been stared at, simply because of his appearance. Giant claws and all. He's certainly not the weirdest alien around, but a bit different from the usual mech. And naked, but he never had the most typical body type. He is thinking of maybe picking up some pants, after he's done exhausting every single toy store, auction, and every other toy selling area on the planet of everything he wants.
He questions if, even here, they sell coats for large chested, lobster clawed, turbine "backpack" wearing robots. Plus he's sure he could sell a bit of the excess toys from Gilnean for enough... Well, whatever they use for money here, to use on his own goodies.
Eventually, he stumbles across Swindle's stall, and stares at it, and its crowd, for a few seconds. "... Huh, didn't know we had that much on Ship" he says, wandering over out of idle curiosity.
He hasn't noticed the Autobot's symbol yet, but he feels safe enough with all the guns around anyway, and just assume he's a local. After all, in his universe, there were Transformers living in far away planets who had never heard of the War, might be the same here! He does lift a claw to Duskwing and Mistwind in friendly greeting, even if they don't notice him, and stands around, trying to be part of the crowd as best he can.
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Post by Prowl on Jan 30, 2010 11:59:16 GMT -5
Prowl is starting to notice many 'Con symbols around, and that means outnumbered. But he stays quite calm and carefully handles the katana, unsheathing it just slightly to look at the actual blade. He turns it over in his hands a few times.
He glances over at Duskwing for a moment, but only says, "Mmn," and goes back to looking over the weapon. He returns it to Swindle and checks his private stash of credits, which has been mostly untouched since he left Cybertron. Once he did filter through it for something to do while Bumblebee spoke (read: annoyed him), but he still had a good amount.
"My offer is in credits, hoping you take that," Prowl said.
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Swindle
Major
This space for rent.
Posts: 571
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Post by Swindle on Jan 30, 2010 12:50:50 GMT -5
Even more customers are arriving. Swindle's so excited he could spring a leak!
He picks up Mistwind's transmission and looks around, trying to pinpoint the source, finally spotting the Micromaster and beckoning him closer with an expansive gesture. "Mistwind, as far as I'm concerned, you're allowed as many weapons as can physically fit on your chassis without causing structural damage from the added mass! And you can always reinforce the joints and load-bearing areas with laminated polymer, so no worries there! What were you looking for?"
Turning back to Duskwing, the S.U.V.-former replies, "I just make 'em, I don't install 'em. I've never made a mod for someone from another reality before, though! Tell you what, get Hook to release your schematics to me so I can ensure compatibility, and I'll whip something up." On the shortwave he adds //Just between us 'Cons, Duskwing, that sword has a homing beacon in the hilt. When dealing with cyber-ninjas I find it's best to "bell the cat" as they say on Earth. So don't mess up this sale for me, huh, pal?//
Noticing Shortround, Swindle shoots him a wink and a nod. He hasn't seen the hovercraft around Ship very often, but more customers are always welcome. "Just let me know what you're looking for, my friend!" he says by way of greeting.
To Prowl, he responds, "Of course I take credits, and for you, I'll let this excellent piece of Iacon craftsmechship go for only 500 of them." Swindle's smile gets even bigger at this statement. He slices, he dices, he carries on multiple transactions with multiple customers at the same time and makes a damn fine cappuccino if he does say so himself!
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