Dhis Place ist Veird

hubcapsofdoom:

(LMAO funny because I didn’t notice it either.)

Not sure… a feeling. If you can call it that. My circuits are trying to send me a signal but it’s coming through fuzzy. There’s something here…

((Stealth typo! I’ll get ya next time! XD))

Despite being in vehicular form Zerstorer manages to look tense, with chassis slightly raised and keeping inexplicably still. He goes through his sensors and scanners, the ones still working anyways, but nothing out of the ordinary pops up. His systems have been sluggish from his stranding, so he can’t tell if he’s experiencing the same ‘fuzzy’ feeling Hubcap is.

“Should ve get back on dhe boat?” Zerstorer didn’t want them stumbling into something that they couldn’t handle; he especially was in no state for combat.

hubcapsofdoom:

*Grimaces internally as Zer transforms, the noise of it all echoing around the island. Birds alight from trees in alarm, but that’s all the reaction he can see. No humans seem to be in the area at the moment, lucky them. The Honda rolls closer to his friend to check if everything’s in place.*

That sounded rough, but ya look good as new… except now your interior might smell like the ocean.  *Chuckles* You wanna check out the town… city, whatever they have here? *He pauses for a second.* Somethin’ about this place…

((*now notices typo in previous reply; facepalms* Ugh.too early for me to be RPing. Or something, lol.))

Zerstorer revs his engine once in warning when Hubcap pokes fun about the state of his interior. There are very few things that set him off, but the cleanliness of his interior was one of them. He knows Hubcap is only trying to lighten the mood though, and let’s it slide.

He sets himself back into a neutral position on his suspension and begins testing the turn of his wheels. He stops and tilts slightly to one side when Hubcap mentions something about the island. “Vhat about ‘dhis place?’” Zerstorer’s senses were never as keen as Hubcap’s, and he doesn’t detect anything out of the ordinary.

hubcapsofdoom:

(Just replying to Zer for now, since they don’t know she’s there)

This is fine. If anyone finds it… *shrugs* they’ll think it’s abandoned. I hope. Can you transform?

*Walks up the beach to the dirt road and transforms after checking that it’s clear.*

Let’s see what this place has to offer.

((That’s all good. I was only introducing her and setting up stuff, so I won’t reply with her again just yet. I’ll give you a heads up whenever I’m about to.))

Zerstorer looks down at himself when Hubcap asks if he can transform. He knows he can, but it won’t be comfortable action thanks to the buildup of grime. “Give me a moment.” He goes into the water in an attempt to soften up any hardened debris, comes back out and follows Hubcap to the dirt road. He lets out a huff of air from his vents and begins to transform, something he has done in weeks

In the end he pulls it off. There was lots of scraping and grinding, and there were some horrible noises that came with the process, but now he sat on four wheels again, though his interior was damp and dirty. “I dhink I might have voken up dhe whole island…” he sighs as his chassis sinks down closer to the ground.

hubcapsofdoom:

(Damnit Tumblr Y U DO DIS TO ME??)

Taller? How much taller? *Raises a brow.* I don’t have a complex or anything, I just prefer seeing… optic to optic, as it were. How would I look if I were always starin’ at her chassis? Not very good.

*Looks at the arm, wincing. He’s no stranger to nasty fellows.*

Bet he gave you some battle scars in return, eh?

*The island appears on the horizon, a speck at first. Hubcap slows down the boat in order to circle the island first. Looking for a hidden spot to dock, they pull into a small cover that looks clear at the moment. There are signs of human life, but no one is in sight. The Honda looks around for a good spot to hide their vessel, as they don’t want anyone questioning its presence. He points to a dense area of vegetation, with a deep inlet perfect for hide the boat in.*

There.

((I have given up trying to figure it out. And after this post I’ll reply with Mach. YAY))

Truthfully, I don’t dhink she’d notice jou staring. She’s not…” He tries to find the words, but gives up trying to explain. “Jou’ll see. Someday. Und, she’s a lot taller dhan you.” He levels his hand to about the middle of his chest. “If I vere her, you’d come up to here. As for seeing optic to optic in general, dhat might be tricky, regardless of height.” He shakes his head, sighs then mumbles, “I dhink I’ve talked more in dhe last day dhan I have in years.”

“Actually, no, but he tried. He vas nasty. Killed in vays dhat made it look like it vas someone else. He vas smart, und it was dumb luck dhat figured out vhat vas going on.” He looks away, thinking on how he wish he’d notice sooner. “I only kept dhe arm because it has a magnetic device in it. Very strong. Dhought it might be useful someday.”

Zer spends the rest of the trip recharging. Once they start circling the island he rouses and stretches his joints, forgetting how filthy he is. He winces at the grinding sounds they cause.

“If jou spot denser vegetation on land I can pull the boat out of the vater to hid it better,” he offers.

hubcapsofdoom:

(Noooo, this isn’t in the same league as Watching Paint Dry… that shit is gold. ps I fixed the post so it doesn’t have that ugly ass title x))

Whattya talking about? I’m always nice! Especially to a lady. Jus’ manners, that.

*Laughs at the part about his face.*

She’s got a sense of humor, eh? I like that in a femme. *He winks (probably creepily), and playfully punches Zer on the shoulder plate as he takes some energon. He pauses to admire it and then downs it with gusto, running his glossa over lips when it’s depleted. *

Hmm, could almost be high grade. Good stuff. *Nods to Zers chest.* Glad you have that handy. What else you have in there? A few femmes? Weapons of mass destruction? The Allspark?

*Checks the navigation console.*

We still have some time until we reach the island. Get some rest, if you want.

((Okay, looks like the title did have something to do with the ‘glitch’ on my end. Ah well, looks like that ugly title is here to stay.))

Takes being laughed at in good stride, same with the playful punch. “Like it vhen dheir taller dhan jou, too?”

Pauses for a long time, as if he’s counting everything he has in his subspace. “Veapons, yes. Veopons of mass destruction? Only one. Und I have part of a mech.” He abruptly unsubs a dismembered lower arm, black in coloration and partially crushed. “Souvenir, from a very nasty fellow,” he vaguely explains, and manages a subtle, brief ‘smile’ before subspacing the limb away.

It only takes him one chug to down his portion of his energon; he doesn’t bother to savoir. “Okay, I’ll recharge until ve reach dhe island.” He spares a glance at his filthy chassis. “I really hope dhey have lots of soap.”

hubcapsofdoom:

(A RIVETING TALE FOR CHILDREN OF ALL AGES. GRANDMA TOO.)

*Hubcap clucks his tongue sympathetically as he listens to her story.*

I wouldn’t want to be associated with them either. Poor girl. You’ll have to introduce me one day… And at least she doesn’t want to kill you. I know a few who would give their left servo to gut me for deserting. And you’re welcome.

*Waves dismissively.* I was getting bored with just humans for company, so I came lookin’ for your aft. Let’s just say you owe me one, next time, you pull my aft out of the fire.

*Raises a brow, remembering Zer has mentioned the energon before.*

Pfftt, fuck the boat. I’ve been dry for weeks. Break that shit out.

((Soon to be a time old classic! Created by the same people that brought you “Watching Paint Dry” and “Running in Circles with a Bucket”!))

Maybe dhat’s vhat happened to her; deserted, und dhey caught or attacked her? Und I vill, if jou don’t run into her alone. If dhat happens, just be nice? I dhink I vas lucky dhat vhen ve met she couldn’t stop laughing…because…of mein face.” He says the last part very quietly.

“Don’t I always do dhat dhough?” he attempts to joke as he unsubs some energon for them both. “Courtesy of Mach. Don’t know vhere she gets it from, but it’s clean.”

hubcapsofdoom:

Ah… a flier. No wonder.

*He gives a wan smile and shifts his optics away. He taps his claws rhythmically along the rail of the boat.*

Pretty dangerous, not knowing much about a bot. Watch she doesn’ stab you in the back… just speaking from personal experience here. You say you met her here, on Earth? I wonder how many of us are here. Hiding. Did she seem sympathetic to any one cause? Ah, what the hell, it’s nona my business.

*He turns back to Zer with a grin.*

What matters is I got you offa that crappy pile of rocks. We’re gonna get our sensors so twisted when we get home.

*Leans over the console, does a few checks and gives a nod.*

The island is about half a day from us. Don’ know anything about the island ‘sides there’s people on it. But where there’s people, there’s energy.

*His optics narrow mischievously.*

((Welcome back to the epic story of Hub driving a boat while Zer sits on his aft. With talking! *is weird right now; ignore me*))

“It probably should be, in case jou ever run into her. She’s dark dull purple vith orange optics. Seeker type, or somedhing close; she has dheir claws und heels anyvays. Goes by Mach, und I dhink if she vanted to offline me she vould have done it sooner, but…” He almost shrugs again. “I know she vas vith the Cons. Dhere are…” He pauses uncomfortably. “…self-inflicted gouges in her wings. I could barely make out dhe evidence of dhe Decepticon insignias dhere. I dhink it’s safe to say she doesn’t vant to be involved with dhem anymore.

“I don’t dhink I ever dhanked jou eidher.” If Zerstorer could he’d be giving Hubcap the widest grin. “Or maybe my memory ist scrambled. Anyways, thank you. I vas expecting to go into stasis out dhere.”

Frowns more than he normally does (somehow) at Hubcap’s expression. “Jou know, I have a decent stash of energon in my sub-space. Or, vait, do you mean fuel for dhe boat?” He scratches head.

hubcapsofdoom:

*Hubcap smirks at the old bird, then waves a farewell at the island as he turns up the boat throttle. Luckily the midday sun has dissipated any fog banks as they steer around the rocky outcroppings and out into open ocean. He gives Zer a few hours to himself, then rolls his shoulders and breaks the silence.*

So… your teleporting buddy… what happened to him?

*A flash of stored images, memories as they say, of old comrades. Then it’s gone.*

Zerstorer shrugs half-heartedly. “I’m not sure vhere, ah…dhey had to go.” Ponders on what to say. “She’s…a little loopy. Very strange, und a flier. Suffered some kind of physical und mental trauma, I dhink. Only just met her on Earth, but she seemed nice.” He shrugs again. “I admit I don’t know much about her; I haven’t asked. Not sure vhat might happen if I did.”

For a briefest of moments there is a strange look in Hubcap’s optics, but Zerstorer’s senses aren’t functioning perfectly so he wonders if he just imagined it.

hubcapsofdoom:

(Ditto biznatch! x) Our RP is slow and easy, though.)

*Grips the console as Zer lands and the boat rocks. When they don’t sink in the next few seconds, he looks back at him.*

I know buddy, I wouldn’ want to set foot on a boat either, if I were you. But I think we did a good enough job to get us back. We are… *Checks navigation.* …about two days from a nearby island, if you wanna take a rest stop. But it’s inhabited.

*He turns back to the console and starts to guide the boat away from the island, then stops. He nods at Greis.*

Want to say goodbye, first?

((writing while my eyes are only half-working, hurhur [sorry for any typos, etc] ))

Ponders over what Hubcap says only for a moment. “If dhe island is not out of dhe vay, dhen I vouldn’t mind a brief stop.” He carefully sets himself into a comfortable sitting position, and looks over to where Hubcap nodded.

Greis is perched on the lip of the cliff, part watching, part preening and part trying to keep its balance. Zerstorer raises an arm to wave at the bird, mostly for Hubcap’s amusement, but something unseen catches its attention and Greis ducks out of view.

“Ah, can’t say I’m not surprised.” Zerstorer says as he lowers his arm. He shrugs lightly. “Didn’t seem like a very sentimental bird,” he elaborates, half humorously. “He had more important dhings to do, I’m sure, like stealing scraps.”

hubcapsofdoom:

*Hubcap watches as the boat gradually goes from looking like a piece of scrap to an actual boat. He chuckles at the remark about Greis.*

Well, it is his place, so I can understand gettin’ annoyed by giant, noisy intruders. I’d be.

*When Zer is finished, he helps lower it into the water to test it. The boat seems to keep. It sinks slightly when the Honda hops into it. He starts the engine and it purrs to life, sounding much throatier than before. He looks up at Zer and shouts.*

Time for th’ real test! Come on down!

((super late and short! YAY))

Greis is right on his heels as Zerstorer walks to the cliff edge and carefully lowers himself down onto the boat. It rocks momentarily as he balances, and it sinks a great deal, but it stays above water. It should be safe to travel on, as long as they don’t run into rough waves or a storm.

“Maybe jou should just go back vith dhis und get a bigger boat?” he suggests, humorlessly. He really wasn’t too keen on traveling on open water again so soon after the transport ship incident, even if it meant escape from his island prison. He sighs, and mumbles quietly to himself, “I should have vaited for my teleporting friend.”

hubcapsofdoom:

(ajags don’t apologize for shortness, I’m the one who’s always shorty :3 My formatting is wonky here.)

*Hubcap watches the interaction, laughing like a lunatic when Zer is pecked.*

Looks like he’s jealous. Hey buddy, I was here first!

*He shakes a fist at the gull, then throws a small rock near it to scare it off. Instead it just eyes him and struts away. He turns back to the work at hand and makes marks where they would do well to reinforce on the boat.*

In fact, the whole hull should be reinforced…We’ll need to use this section. *He gestures to an undamaged area.*

And this bit over here will do perfect. *He points.* Let’s go ahead and cut this baby up!

((And also accent slip. Oops. And don’t worry, I’ll survive any wonky formatting. And look out; I’m half asleep while typing this up, so sorry for any goofs that might happen.))

Zerstorer snaps his attention to Hubcap when he laughs his aft off and throws a rock at Greis. For whatever reason, this prompts a few dormant processors related to logical calculations to start functioning again, and as he looks between his avian ‘friend’ and his Cybertronian one, his thought patterns become nearer to how they were before the stranding.

“I doubt dhat Greis-,“ he abruptly pauses, but not for long, “…vould be capable of feeling an emotion such as jealousy. It could be stress and a territorial instinct toward dhe foreign objects now here.” He gestures toward Hubcap, the container and boat as he says this. “He vas less agreeable vith me vhen ve first encountered each other,” he added.

He listens quietly to Hubcap’s plans on how to reinforce the boat, and when he is done Zerstorer adds a few suggestions of his own, though they are few, as Hubcap ideas are well thought out. Once they agreed on how to proceed he removes a few tools from his subspace to make their work easier, such as welding equipment and a high heat blow torch.

Soon there is practically nothing left of the cargo container, and while the boat looks aesthetically worse than before it is much more structurally sound and seaworthy. Zerstorer triple checks for any gaps in the welding, but knows the only way to test for leaks was to put the boat in the water.

hubcapsofdoom:

*Grabs a hold of the container, sinking his claws in to get a good grip. He grunts as he pulls the boat up with such effort, the boat propeller scraping nosily against the side of the rock face. He drops it as it clears the edge, heaving a sigh as his joints groan in protest. He strides over to the cargo container, inspecting where to cut it and help reinforce the hull of the dinky boat. He walks back to the edge and shouts down.*

Need any help getting back up?

*Grins at the fact that his friend is actually laughing. He pauses to hope it’s not from any negative side effects of being alone for so long.*

Zerstorer waves off Hubcap’s offer for help. “I’ve climbed dhis spot before,” he explains, and in a few brief moments he’s out of the water and back on dry land. He shakes his frame of water and more gunk that had loosened itself, and strides over to where Hubcap is setting up a work area. “Have a plan already?” He gets distracted by a white speck in the corner of his vision though, and goes over to it. “Sorry about daht, Greis. Forgot jou vere up here vhen I tossed dhat thing.”

Greis doesn’t reply and its eyes never leave Hubcap. It is as if it didn’t trust the new being invading its home.

“Ah, don’t vorry. Hubcap ist a friend.” He reaches down to pick up the bird, but is rewarded with a few quick pecks on his digits. “Fine. Fine. Stay on dhe ground and hobble around.”

hubcapsofdoom:

Nice one!

*The cargo container safely on land, Hubcap leaps up the side of the rock wall with help from a few jutting rocks. He turns around, his toes over the edge of the cliff wiggling.*

Do you want to hand the boat up or just throw it up like a piece of scrap?

*Looks over his shoulder for the grounded gull, who is tottering about minding his own business, out of squishing range. He glances back to Zer and gives a thumbs up.*

You’re other friend is just fine… so to speak!

Zerstorer nods in relief at the news of his feathered friend.

“I only dhrow it if jou promise to catch it!” He lets out a low laugh that sounds slightly intimidating, not to mention out of character for him. “I only kid,” he reveals as he grabs the boat and gingerly rocks it, testing its weight. “I’ll hand it up. No problem.” He holds the boat by the stern and very carefully slides the underside of it up and against the rock wall, like he did the cargo container, and within reach of Hubcap.

hubcapsofdoom:

*Starts as a head bursts above the surface, venting hot air. He scratches his chin in tandem with Zer.*

Yes, yes, let’s bring them on land. There is no way we can work in the water like this sanely — it’d be quite the pain in the aft. Are there any beaches on this island? It’ll be a hell of a time hauling this sucker up the cliff face. …oh, and you look better. A little better.

*Briefly considers hauling it up the cliff by the anchor. Nope, not a good idea.*

Zerstorer shakes his head. “Nien, dhere are only rock valls because of erosion, und dhis ist dhe easiest place for climbing. I could make better footholds, but I dhink I can take everydhing up one by one vithout any. I vill need to take it slow dhough, because I’m overheating some.”

He steps back so Hubcap is out of splash range, then dips under the water and shakes his frame rather violently, as if he were a bird in a puddle of water. When he surfaces the water around him is paler as more organic gunk sheds off.

A sudden wheeze escapes his vents and his normally narrow, slanted optics widen considerably. “Ugh. I shook somedhing loose…in mein cooling vents.” He dives back under, but makes an effort to move away from the pale cloud of filth. From the surface it looks like he is violently blowing bubbles. When he comes up there is an explosion of water and air from his head vents, and he take a moment to ‘cough’ everything up. “Using salt vater to purge mein air vents? Vorst. Idea. Ever.” He finally manages to say, the corners of his mouth looking more down turned than normal. “I’ll probably regret dhat later.”

He takes in a long draw of air. “Okay, let’s do dhis.”

In an explosive show of strength he grabs one end of the cargo crate and pushes the other end against the rock wall, making it stand vertically, the bottom end out of the water. After the light cascade of loose rocks stops, he tears a hole into the metal of the container and water begins to drain from it. “Don’t vorry, I’ll be more gentle vith dhe boat,” he half-jokes.

Pieces of ruined items tumble out with the water, but Zerstorer simply ignores whatever they are. Once most of the water is drained he plants his feet firmly, tucks in his body like a loaded spring and throws all his weight into one big push. The cargo crate, though mostly empty, still weights a considerable amount and doesn’t go off flying, but it heavily hits the ground a few meters away from the edge of the cliff.

A sound that is a mix of amusement and exhaustion escapes Zerstorer. “It ist nice to finally let loose like dhat.” He pauses in mid chuckle. “Ah, slag! I hope I didn’t squish Greis!”

hubcapsofdoom:

(Yeah I can understand him perfectly fine :3 Das ist gut.)

*Watches as the Mercedes jumps into the ocean, then turns to watch the gull staring right back at him, its beady eyes glinting in the sun. Finally Hubcap looks to the transmitter. With a crack of his knuckles, he gets to work salvaging anything that looks useful. There are several components that will come in handy, and when he is done he smiles sadly as he thinks of how Zer had to use his own parts for it.*

I must remember to return these to their rightful owner, or find him something better, he tells himself.

*New parts in hand, he lowers himself onto the boat. It sways under the new weight, so he digs his toes in and shifts his weight in the opposite direction, hoping to balance it. He creeps on his knees to the console and begins to overhaul navigation, regretting his choice of vessel. When he finishes, he props himself up to watch the area where Zer had jumped in.*

((woot!))

The cargo container had shifted from where it had originally sank, but thankfully it hadn’t gotten stuck where Zerstorer couldn’t haul it out from. As he dragged it along he could tell that there still was some air trapped in it, which made his task easier.

He was glad that he had a decent sense of direction, as the sand he kicked up made it hard to see. The headlights on his chest were out of commission due to him sacrificing some of their components for the emergency transmitter.

The cold water currents felt nice on his frame, as the buildup of salt and filth had begun to clog his cooling systems and make his internals overheat. Not enough to cause worry, or he would have done something about it sooner, but enough to make him feel a little hot under the hood. And the rough splash Zerstorer had made entering the water was intentional, and was to shake off some of the caked on filth; it only loosened the newest layer of it. He shook his head unconsciously at the thought of how much time and soap it would take for him to get clean when all of this was over.

It hadn’t been gone long when he popped his head above the surface, right near the boat. He released a burst of stale, heated air from his vents, and tried to position the cargo container closer to the cliff face.

“I…hadn’t dhought how ve’d get it up dhere,” he admitted. “I can drain it und it vould be easier to pull up, but should ve leave it down here? Be harder to vork in dhe vater dhough.” He scratched his chin in thought. “Maybe ve should pull the boat up too? Vouldn’t be smart to vork on fhe hull in the water eidher.”

hubcapsofdoom:

(Yes grood idea, let’s fly with it. They are gonna need drinks after this.)

*Finally on the island, Hubcap looks at his friends appearance.*

Not only do you look like shit, you smell like it. And it’s one of those smells you can taste. Might have to shove you in the ocean to clean you off.

*Sticks out his glossa, grimacing. But regardless of Zers state of appearance, he slaps the him on the back. Glancing around the rock pile of an island, then back to Zer, he notices the seagull ornament. Hubcap smiles his creepy smile.*

So, looks like you’ve made a friend. Hate to break you two up, but we’ll need more than just this little piece of shit to get out of here. Shoulda grabbed a yacht, but noooo. I detected plenty of metal around the island, though, so we can use that.

*Taps his chin with a claw.*

Definitely reinforce the hull. The thing barely held me. And that engine… it has to be pumped up. Navigation upgrade couldn’t hurt, either. That, I can do provided we get those materials.

((Zer already has those ‘drinks’ in his subspace too, cus yeah, when he goes on vacation he brings a few essentials)

“Goot dhing mein olfactory sensors have been coated vith brine crystals. All I can detect ist dhe smell of salt. Und watch jour back, I might just hug jou vhen jour not looking,” Zerstorer replies back, but he is used to Hubcap’s sense of humor and is far from offended. The corners of his mouth twitch in another rare ‘smile’ but only for a moment.

“Mein friend ist named Greis,” he gestures to the bird, who’s been glaring at Hubcap ever since it laid its yellow eyes on the mech, “Und I’m afraid he’s been as equally a friend as an annoyance, but at least he’s a goot conversation partner.” He is unaware at how unnaturally talkative he is compared to his usual self, isolation being the blame.

He pauses as he listens to Hubcap’s ideas. “I’ll be shoving meinself into dhe ocean dhen; I know vhere dhe container dhat carried me sank.” He points a thumb at the now burnt out emergency transmitter. “I put mein own parts into dhat. Most of dhe structure on it ist to protect it from dhe elements. If dhere ist anydhing from it dhat you need, use it.”

He dumps the few tools he has from his subspace, along with some spare energon, in case Hubcap needs them. “Ve’ll figure dhings out as ve salvage more items.” And with that he moves to the edge of the short cliff near the boat. A peck to the face makes him stop mid descent.

“Oh, Primus. How could I forget?” As gently as a giant robot could, he coaxes Greis from the crook of his neck and put its down on the ground, urging it away from the cliff edge. “Don’t squash him!” he calls out. “Und my comm is no longer vorking, so if jou don’t hear from me down dhere…” he doesn’t feel the need to finish his sentence, and drops down with a splash.

hubcapsofdoom:

*As he nears, he notes the location of honking has changed, and he zeroes in on Zers signature. He veers the boat down the shore, and the number of rocks and other obstacles begin to lessen. The edge of the island comes into view; a rock wall, not high enough to be a problem but not quite low enough to be a cinch.*

$^*# island!

*He curses, but in good nature. The boat is rocking like a mad man the closer he gets to the wall even after he drops the anchor. He looks up and sees Zer peeking over the lip of the island, what appears to be a smile on his what is normally a mask of a face. Hubcap cracks a wide grin. He has an idea.*

(ajfjugus I was thinking maybe he could tow the cargo container behind the boat? Wat is logic)

Zerstorer spots his friend and the sorry excuse of a boat he rode in on, but seeing another sentient being makes him put all negative thoughts out of his processor. At the moment he can’t remember the last time he felt such relief.

He kneels and reaches an arm down to help Hubcap up. “Vhat? No snappy comment on how I look like ‘shit’?” He is very conscious that there is not a spot of his original silver paint visible, all caked under the collected filth, but he still didn’t really care.

((was thinking, if it came down to it, Zer could mech up and find the sunk container on the ocean floor to reinforce the boat, somehow, and since Zer’s pretty good at cannibalizing himself maybe he can spare some parts so the boat engine has a bit more oomph to it?))