Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
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Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 7, 2012 23:20:39 GMT -5
Month 6, Week 4, Day 2, in a parking lot near the MLP3 filming, semi-private
Despite his vow to Slade, it takes Nimbus a week to hunt down Rodney Pryor. Nimbus is just a painter. Rodney does effects, which alone makes him much higher on the food chain, and more importantly, Rodney is apparently banging one of the stars. Go Rodney. That makes one of them who is satisfied.
Nimbus loiters nervously in the parking lot near a boring compact car, hoping that no one thinks he is trying to carjack Rodney. He just wants to talk. Really!
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 8, 2012 19:59:58 GMT -5
Rodney heads out to the car a bit later, having had to put away the electronics and materials that effects call for. As he sees who's waiting at his car, he brightens. "Nimbus!" he calls, waving.
"Hey, how you been? I've been wanting to catch up with you, but I haven't had the chance."
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
|
Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 8, 2012 20:07:10 GMT -5
"I've... been," Nimbus answers, his eyes darting around. Is anyone watching them? People are just busily going to their cars and are ignoring them? Excellent. He reports, "I found Slingshot and Oracle, so I knew that I had to find you again," with the unsaid implication that if it was just Nimbus, he might have just continued to do whatever it is he is doing without checking in.
At least he is trying to live up to the responsibilities that Breakaway thrust upon him.
"Do you have orders for us?"
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 9, 2012 22:18:14 GMT -5
Rodney brightens, grinning widely. "Great!" he exclaims. "You have contact numbers?" He pauses a moment and looks at his car.
"Hey, you need a ride?" he offers. "We can talk on the way." And there is a bit to talk about. Addison's refusal to learn who Nimbus was has never sat well with him. He wasn't lying about not being able to catch up with the painter, but Rodney still feels bad about not having told him before now.
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
|
Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 9, 2012 23:31:34 GMT -5
Nimbus provides Rodney with as much contact information as he has for the both of them. Shahar has a phone number and an e-mail. Slade has a phone number.
He admits, "Sure," when asked if he needs a ride. He usually takes the bus, or he walks. Nimbus has an aerospace titanium ring on on his ring finger, with a circuitboard pattern. It wasn't there the last time that Rodney saw him, if Rodney pays attention to such details.
Nimbus sits down in the car on the passenger side and... does not belt in. He looks around blankly, like he is confused but trying to pretend he is not. he further explains, "Last I knew, young Jetfire, Omega Supreme, and Swoop were in space and Jetstorm was back on Gillanan III. I found Slingshot and Oracle. I'm me. Do you have any news on Breakaway and old Jetfire? And, well... on Mirage?"
He looks hopeful. That last name on the list is not a very professional request of him to make, but slag it, he wants to know.
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 10, 2012 22:35:13 GMT -5
Rodney settles into the car and enters the contact info into his phone, using human names rather than Transformer. As Nimbus climbs in, he does, indeed, notice the new ring. "Nice ring. New, isn't it?"
He starts up the car - it's old enough to still need a key - and answers, "No, no, and yes. Actually, that's one of the things I'd been wanting to tell you." He hesitates, just for a moment, then continues. "Mirage is... Addison Payne. My relationship with him's a cover. It gives me an excuse to be in regular contact with him without drawing too many questions." He pauses. "He asked about you, but when I mentioned you were trying to avoid drawing attention to yourself, he decided it would be better if he didn't know who you were."
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
|
Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 10, 2012 23:21:04 GMT -5
"Uhm, yeah," Nimbus starts to say, looking at the ring, a slightly guilty expression on his face.
Then he looks like Rodney has just killed his puppy and is inviting him to a barbeque - and they're going to have hot dogs.
Nimbus blurts, "I assumed the Royal Payne was Arcee!"
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 13, 2012 19:15:44 GMT -5
Rodney turns around to make sure no one's behind him as he begins to back the car out. Still, he automatically exclaims, "Arcee's not a pain!" This is probably not the most tactful response he could make, and if Addison were to find out about the exchange, he might be tempted to hit them both.
Then his expression falls a bit, sorrow creeping in along the edges even as he struggles to keep it neutral. "I... haven't found Arcee yet."
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
|
Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 13, 2012 19:58:45 GMT -5
"Oh, uhm," Nimbus says, curling on on himself a bit, "I'm sorry?"
He still hasn't put on his seatbelt. All of this feels strange to him. This is the first time he's been inside a car. The bus doesn't really do seatbelts, and he usually ends up standing, anyway. Others can use the seats more than he can.
What can he say to Rodney? "I hope you find her." There is that, yes, but...
So Rodney told Addison, told Mirage about Nimbus, about Skyblast, and Addison decided that it was better off to not even know who Nimbus was. Sulking, and self-absorbed, Nimbus mutters, "That makes no sense. What if there was a gunfight on the set? Addison should at least want to know who I am so he doesn't shoot me by mistake..."
Addison should want to know who he is, so they can go on dates and see art galleries and visit fancy restaurants and... and... do all those things that Addison is doing with Rodney right now.
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 15, 2012 15:02:57 GMT -5
How is it that Hot Rod, with three different on-and-off lovers, managed to avoid messes as complex as this?
Because Hot Rod wasn't Rodimus Prime. He didn't have the responsibilities Rodimus does. And Rodimus... Rodney needs to be firmer. He should have insisted on sharing all the names, whether Addison wanted to hear or not.
"I'm sorry," Rodney says. "I, ah, should have insisted."
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
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Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 15, 2012 15:59:02 GMT -5
"Don't be sorry, sir. You haven't done anything wrong," Nimbus says, trying to encourage his leader, "It's very hard to get Mirage to do anything he doesn't want to do - and that includes listening. I can only assume that if he doesn't want to see me, he has his reasons, because... he's Mirage. Powers or not, if he wanted to see me, he'd see me, though I might never know he was there."
So Nimbus is simply going to assume that Mirage has gotten bored with him and doesn't want to see him anymore, because if Mirage really did want to see him... nothing would stop him. The thought makes Nimbus feels rather... empty, but he isn't upset at Rodney or Addison. Addison... Mirage... owes him nothing, not even a goodbye.
Maybe next time, Nimbus thinks, he'll have the sense to ask for that much.
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 15, 2012 20:05:09 GMT -5
Despite the 'encouragement', the conversation remains amazingly awkward. As Rodney pulls to a stop at a stoplight, he decides to change the subject.
"So, what's up with the ring?"
This may also be an amazingly awkward subject.
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
|
Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 15, 2012 20:48:31 GMT -5
"Oh. Uhm," the brave and brash Nimbus says, before summoning his courage to explain, "Shahar - that's Oracle, again - asked me to marry her so that the INS won't deport me to to the moon. Which they want to do. Don't worry, I'm not sleeping with her." Nimbus technically ranks her in a vague sort of way, so that could be a concern. "Or even dating her, really. I mean, she's a nice F-35, but I just don't know here that well, and... I..."
He covers half his face with his hand and then resumes, "I'm in an open relationship with someone. Or maybe was? I don't want to give him the wrong impression. It's just... we figured it might be less than useful if I was sent to the moon. So uhm. I'm actually Nimbus Tsura now, I guess?"
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Post by Rodimus Prime on Mar 16, 2012 18:05:06 GMT -5
Rodney nods. "Good thinking, then." Because yes, getting deported to the moon would be bad. But then, "If it's an open relationship, why's there a problem?"
The light turns green, and Rodney realizes something. "Oh, by the way, could you... buckle your seat belt?"
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Nimbus Tsura
Major
Secretary to Mr. Breakaway
Sky-Painter Extraordinaire
Posts: 735
|
Post by Nimbus Tsura on Mar 16, 2012 18:18:59 GMT -5
"I don't know, it's just sort of the image of marriage? Marriage implies some commitment and communication, that... even if you're in an open marriage, that spouse of yours is always going to be the one you come back to, in the end?" Nimbus is getting a headache.
After a fumbled try, he gets his seat-belt on.
"Not that I couldn't go out and commit to someone without any warning, even if that isn't what I'm doing here. I just don't want to be deported. I just feel weird about everything."
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