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Drips
Jul 20, 2010 17:33:39 GMT -5
Post by Perceptor on Jul 20, 2010 17:33:39 GMT -5
Step off? The child has just ordered him to "step off"?
"We will be clear on one thing, Elita-1," Perceptor replies with studious, almost cold calmness as he once again steps up to Sentinel's berth. "While I understand and can sympathize with your emotional involvement with my patient, he remains my patient. Lacking a more qualified medical officer, medical issues are remanded primarily to my expertiese, which makes this MY medical bay, and as such, within my medical bay, I will not allow even Xaaron to attempt to order me about if I do not find said orders to be in his, or my patient's best interests."
"I will not, as you so quaintly put it, 'step off', until such time as I am convinced that Sentinel's systems have stabilized sufficiently. I will, in fact, physically remove you from this medical ward if you prove to be a detriment to his recovery, which includes emotionally distressing him during his recovery. If necessary, I am even willing to remand you to the brig unless I can be assured of your cooperation. I allow your continued presence here, only because the unfinished business between you both provides valuable insight regarding my future treatment plans for Sentinel's condition, and because those unsettled issues will adversely affect his healing process."
"I can, however, and will revoke that access at any point in which I feel that you have become a hindrance to that treatment," he adds, still in that too-calm, cool tone, looming over her in all his every-inch-of-just-barely-shy-of-G1-Prime height.
"Furthermore, if and when Xaaron and the officers which assisted in affecting Sentinel's release arrive, they, too, will be under the same constraints, and you will defer to their presence so as to accelerate the process of tracking down those responsible for putting Sentinel in this condition in the first place. Do I make myself clear, Elita-1?"
Someone's apparently channeling just a little Ratchet, at the moment. He might also appear to be channeling a Perceptor more familiar to Sentinel, at the moment, for all the emotion the scientist-cum-medic is displaying. In short, no, Sentinel, you don't get the satisfaction of having your self-loathing validated.
"Do you recall any specifics as to what she said in regards to the toxins Oil Slick utilized, Sentinel?" he asks instead.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
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Drips
Jul 21, 2010 6:17:34 GMT -5
Post by Optimus Prime on Jul 21, 2010 6:17:34 GMT -5
Partway through Perceptor's calm response to Elita, Optimus enters the room. . He nods in greeting to Perceptor and will do the same to Sentinel if their optics meet.
For now he's not saying anything, waiting to see what is going to happen next before activating his vocalizer.
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Drips
Jul 21, 2010 10:01:12 GMT -5
Post by Elita-1 on Jul 21, 2010 10:01:12 GMT -5
Elita-1 is not cowed by the scientist looming over her, her body language fairly screaming that she'd like to tell Perceptor where he can stick his nose, followed by that scope of his.
Her optics catch the familiar form entering the room and for a moment her focus leaves Perceptor and lands on Optimus. The look probably is neither comforting or welcoming to Optimus (or Sentinel for that matter) given that it probably would be more fitting on Blackarachnia's face. Elita-1 is hurt and angry and if she didn't care so much about the both of them she'd probably just wander off into the night.
Attention back to Perceptor now. More people are coming down? More?! How is she supposed to do what needs doing with so many people around?
"Perceptor," she begins slowly, tone clipped and haughty, "I'm not trying to stop you from treating him. But you're interfering in personal matters, and yeah, that torques me off. I'm sure you could carry me off and stuff me in the brig but I assure you that it wouldn't be an easy thing and would possibly cause Sentinel more distress than allowing me to sit here."
Elita turns back to Sentinel, the hardness in her gaze softening a bit. She tries to cup that ample chin and tilt it back toward her.
"Sentinel. Do you want me to leave?"
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Drips
Jul 21, 2010 10:55:34 GMT -5
Post by Springer on Jul 21, 2010 10:55:34 GMT -5
Yeah, more are coming.
Namely Springer, who like Optimus, slips in and stays near the back. He missed Perceptor's spiel at Elita-1, however.
He has in hand a Transformer-sized manila folder that he got from Buu'lock and Mon-T'ya. "Whenever you have a moment, Perceptor, I have the info here."
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Drips
Jul 21, 2010 12:07:08 GMT -5
Post by Sentinel Prime on Jul 21, 2010 12:07:08 GMT -5
Sentinel Prime is put a bit at ease by Perceptor assuming cold, hard command mode. He doesn't like it, given that he doesn't like anyone being domineering around him, but it's like home, and he's dealt with it before; knows how it goes. He sinks back against his berth just slightly. Would even tell that Emirate Xaaron to slag off, eh? Those are some big brass ones, science boy, but at least they match that Decepticon-ugly height Perceptor has.
Sentinel Prime's face screws a bit at Perceptor's question. He doesn't want to remember. He sighs and rubs the back of his head, squeezing his optical covers shut in something like pain as he tries to make sense of what happened. He seems to mostly recall colours all being disgustingly lickable and textures howling in his head, but... "I think it was just their cocktail of usual robo-sedatives, before Elita-1 - the Decepticreep one - and Oilslick showed. First vial was green, and Oilslick said it'd clear my head. That didn't quite... didn't quite work." He vaguely recalls sliding into a delusional streak where he was worried about being a woman and then- "-she kind of lightly clawed me in the leg to snap me out of it." The scratches are probably still there, if Perceptor hasn't done anything about them. "And then I don't know what the next one was supposed to be. They tried to question me, so I gave 'em the old name, rank, and serial number... so he asked me if I'd rather hear colours or taste them."
He stares up at the ceiling, twitching slightly. "He didn't like my answer, and he said something like, 'Now... one chemical at a time, or as many as I can manage at once? So many possibilities, and so little time...' I don't... I don't really remember very much after that. 'm sorry."
That last is said so lowly and quickly as to barely be there, but it's his fault he can't remember what was done to him, isn't it? Not that anything is ever actually his fault.
Sentinel Prime squirms when Optimus Prime arrives, doubtless to gloat over his fallen rival. Why else would the maintenance-bot be here? Sentinel Prime marshals himself, jutting out his chin defiantly and sitting up straighter.
But he can't help shuddering like a wreck when Elita-1 cups his chin and makes him look at her. She's just a girl, just a smelting cadet, she's not her future-self, and if he admits weakness...
...Springer will walk through the door.
Sentinel Prime just sinks back into his berth with a muffled groan, wishing the world would go away and wake him up when the nightmare's over. Maybe with a nice cup of energony goodness; Cliffjumper knows how to brew it just right.
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Drips
Jul 22, 2010 20:43:16 GMT -5
Post by Perceptor on Jul 22, 2010 20:43:16 GMT -5
"Quite honestly, Elita?" Perceptor replies in that same calm tone. "I do not care if my 'interference torques you off'. There are larger issues at stake than your 'personal issues', even if those personal issues also factor into the larger issues at stake." He really doesn't want to manhandle her off to the brig, though, and not just because it would (hopefully) distress Sentinel. He really doesn't want to distress her, nor make an enemy of her, but she is a very young girl, and that childishness is truly grating on his nerves.
"Optimus," he greets. "Good of you to join us. I believe that you are also involved in these 'personal issues' that will require being dealt with." And there is another rock in his craw, so to speak. Perceptor is none too pleased with Optimus at the moment, either. After promising to assist with freeing Sentinel from the... facility where he had been being held, Optimus had failed to show up. It was fortunate that more hands had not been required to deal with the whole situation in the end, or they all would have been put in jeopardy, and that bothers Perceptor. All three of these children need to sit the slag down and work things out before someone does them the favor of locking them into a room until they decide to actually discuss their issues or kill one another.
Perceptor even has the perfect room selected already.
"Thank you, Springer. I will be with you in a moment," he replies, nodding toward an unoccupied corner near Sentinel's berth. He wants to see that folder, and he needs to pass along the information Sentinel has just given them, but first, he needs to finish with Sentinel.
"I am not surprised, Sentinel." There's a faint note of warmth and concern creeping into his tone, finally. "There is nothing to apologize for." For once. "Given what I was able to isolate from the samples I withdrew, I am quite amazed that you even recall as much as you do."
Stepping around Elita, he checks the readouts on the machines cleansing the toxins from his lines, pursing his lips a bit as he notes the elevated levels on some of the residual compounds. Things aren't progressing as swiftly as he would prefer, but Perceptor is ever a perfectionist, and not being able to effect an immediate cure grates on him.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
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Posts: 383
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Drips
Jul 23, 2010 6:28:14 GMT -5
Post by Optimus Prime on Jul 23, 2010 6:28:14 GMT -5
The guilt of the past and present washes over Optimus, but he forces himself to meet Elita in the optics. He needs to own his mistakes if he's ever going to get better.
Optimus nods at Perceptor's statement that he is involved. "You're not wrong, Perceptor." He doesn't volunteer any further knowledge to the group at this point, it's not like they need further complications when Perceptor is trying to handle an already tense situation. "How is he?"
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Drips
Jul 23, 2010 11:09:47 GMT -5
Post by Springer on Jul 23, 2010 11:09:47 GMT -5
Hey, give Springer the room location and he'll set forth to doing the manhandling for Perceptor.
For the time being, though, Springer is content to just watch - this is Perceptor's territory after all. Springer wouldn't want anyone to just barge in and start giving orders when he's trying to do something, so others get that same courtesy. However, he takes heed of that nod and moves to occupy the previously empty corner.
Springer opts to echo Optimus - "Yeah, how you doin', big blue?"
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Drips
Jul 24, 2010 8:13:25 GMT -5
Post by Elita-1 on Jul 24, 2010 8:13:25 GMT -5
Sentinel didn't say he wanted her to leave.
He doesn't have to. His shudders and expressions speak volumes.
Elita-1 lets her hand fall away, dropping almost listlessly into her lap. She pulls her feet up and catches her heels on the highest rung of the stool that she can and wraps her arms around her knees. Her head bows down.
She wants to help Sentinel. She thinks she can. He's just got something broken inside him, and that something just needs to be fixed. But... what if it makes things worse? Or, what if it fixes things, but he still can't forgive her for messing with his head? And there are so many people here, now.
//I don't know what to do.// Elita-1 says privately to Optimus, sounding, for once, truly unsure of herself.
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Drips
Jul 24, 2010 8:53:32 GMT -5
Post by Sentinel Prime on Jul 24, 2010 8:53:32 GMT -5
That room had better not have shag carpeting, Perceptor.
Despite himself, Sentinel Prime replies to Perceptor weakly, "Hey. I didn't graduate from the Academy just to be a pretty face." Somewhere in officer training, there were sessions on what do under torture and duress, even if Sentinel Prime wasn't really paying attention because, hah, that would never happen to him!
Optimus Prime talks about him without addressing him, like he's not even in the room, but Springer actually talks to Sentinel Prime, and there's a faint look of surprise on Sentinel Prime's face. There's a moment of hesitation, and then his usual pat smile is on his face, and he answers with his usual bluster and bravado, "Oh, just enjoying the health spa we have here, Springer. Top notch, I'd say, much better than the accommodations planet-side. I can't recommend those at all. So thanks for changing my booking - you're the best travel agent I've had yet." He winks off an optic and back on.
It's not Elita-1's fault, but she's very, very much a trigger for Sentinel Prime right now, and it would probably be better for him if she left, but his pride won't let him say that. He hasn't even realised it on a conscious level yet. There are a lot of things Sentinel Prime doesn't realize on a conscious level; a lot of things he actively tries to deny.
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Drips
Jul 28, 2010 15:17:03 GMT -5
Post by Perceptor on Jul 28, 2010 15:17:03 GMT -5
Sentinel's comments actually manage to pull a surprised laugh from Perceptor. He hadn't expected Sentinel to a) even have a sense of humor, or b) be able to joke about these recent events before he'd even managed to recover from them yet.
"As you can see, Optimus," Perceptor replies, shaking his head as he glances back down at Sentinel, "On the mend. Slowly, but surely, Sentinel. Slowly but surely."
"Do you have any questions you need answered regarding everything, Springer?" he asks, moving to join the triple-changer and holding out his hand for that file.
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Optimus Prime
Minor
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Drips
Jul 29, 2010 7:27:08 GMT -5
Post by Optimus Prime on Jul 29, 2010 7:27:08 GMT -5
Optimus nods after Perceptor's comments, and even offers a small grin at Sentinel's quip. "No surprises there... he's made of tough stuff." He might as well exchange pleasantries now and enjoy it whilst it lasts; he figures he owes a private conversation with Sentinel later, and he doubts that is going to go down as well as things are going right now."
To Elita he transmits, with all sincerity, //He's going to need a friend. He might be in need of space right now, he's got a lot to process. But when he's ready to accept it, you can be there for him.//
As Perceptor approaches Springer, Optimus uses this as an opportunity to give the two a chance to peruse their file as he makes his way closer to Elita and Sentinel.
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Drips
Jul 29, 2010 7:59:37 GMT -5
Post by Springer on Jul 29, 2010 7:59:37 GMT -5
Springer manages to laugh at Sentinel's cracked joke. "Well, I do what I can, but yeah, Pz-Zazz is off the list for any future customers after all this. Except for maybe Nightbeat, he seems like he fits here." He smirks a bit. "Good to see you're in good spirits. You're gonna need 'em..."
Springer then hands off the file, his expression growing a bit more neutral. "I think I got all I need..." Though at the same time, he transmits privately - //Any idea when I can question him? Too crowded here now, obviously, but he seems to be coming along well.//
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Drips
Jul 30, 2010 10:18:45 GMT -5
Post by Elita-1 on Jul 30, 2010 10:18:45 GMT -5
//He doesn't want me to be there.//
Optimus missed Sentinel's early comments to Elita-1.
//He's frightened of me. Of me!//
There are echoes of desperation in her voice, and Optimus has seen what happens when she gets desperate. At least this Elita isn't likely to become a giant spider anytime soon- unless the powers that be decide to drop them all on Archa Seven at some point.
If that happens, the trio might well lock themselves in their respective rooms for the duration.
"He'll be fine," she finally says, echoing Optimus and Perceptor. She gives a weak smile. "And if he isn't, he'll answer to me. I'm not about to lose you, Sentinel. I don't give up on my friends."
She stands up and starts to walk toward the door, though she pauses for as moment next to Optimus.
//You and I need to talk.//
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Drips
Jul 30, 2010 14:14:24 GMT -5
Post by Sentinel Prime on Jul 30, 2010 14:14:24 GMT -5
Optimus Prime continues to speak of Sentinel Prime in third person, so Sentinel Prime duly pretends that Optimus Prime isn't there.
In fact, the only one who has actually said anything at all in reply to Sentinel Prime is Springer, so Sentinel Prime just shrugs and insists, flatly, "You can level with me... sir. How much trouble am I in, anyway? Are we talking swabbing the deck with my own buffing cloth for the rest of my life or what?"
The sooner Sentinel Prime knows what his punishment is, the sooner he can try to weasel out of it.
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