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Who: arcee and YOU
Where: one of the few remaining tall buildings in the city
When: a few days after prowl's arrival
What: arcee celebrates her arrival by hanging off the side of a building
Warnings: none atm

The ruins of the city are tempting - there’s shadows and darkness around and it would take her only an instant to disappear into one and not let anyone know she’s here. Things were simpler then, when she could do that. There was just her and what she had to get done - people to threaten, people to run through with her sword, people to shoot. It had been good. But this was supposed to be better, she thought, reaching up to brush her autobrand.

It takes longer than Arcee wants to admit to reorient herself - one moment on Earth with her sword clutched in her hand, attempting to defend a human from Galvatron and the Decepticons, and now this. This false Cybertron she doesn’t know anything about and has no interest in learning. She isn’t a scientist, it’s not her job. Sliding her swords away, Arcee succumbs to the urge to at least get away from this all - there’s a taller building still standing. It’s with little effort that Arcee scales the thing until she’s roughly five stories up - a blot of pink and white against a sea of crumbling grey as she simply hangs onto the wall, back resting on the metal as her hands dig grooves into it. Sure, she has Sideswipe’s jetpack, but Arcee knows she won’t lose her grip.

It’s not a bad view, and gives her a vague estimation of activity in the area. White and red mechs concentrated at one point - medical. A few colorful bots - autobots, most likely, with a few larger hulking frames she doesn’t recognize. Decepticons. Her lips curl into a snarl automatically, hatred flooding through her system. Who will blink first is a contest Arcee is willing to participate in because it won’t be her, and she’ll tear them apart. Prowl’s pseudo abandonment, leaving her to handle herself and the human isn’t something she takes personally, but it still rankles - she will get him for that.

She hasn’t shut off her personal comm if anyone on Optimus’s team spots her, but it’s not hard to get her attention if anyone needs or wants to talk to her. As if she’s particularly talkative on a regular basis.

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Being brought here moments before he'd enacted his plan with Spike was something that was far from what he usually planned contingencies for. Suddenly being devoid of a Combiner team or even the one or two mechs he kept under his thumb was admittedly disorienting.

Not to say he couldn't adapt, but he'll need to re-establish all his bases before he can begin to plan anything significantly drastic. Not having the Constructicons around was admittedly more of a blow than he'd like to admit, but he's operated alone far longer than he has with them. He could handle this.

Of course, part of that meant familiarizing himself with the map data of the city in vehicle mode. A little time away from his own faction was well desired.

It's hard to think that particular car was anyone else - Arcee can feel the smirk on her face turn into a sneer momentarily. But she had a duty. Keep an eye on him, and keep him from doing anything too rash. That's a job Arcee considers applies here, already easier now that she didn't have to worry about protecting humans along with everything else. And maybe with the lack of constructicons he'll-- well, she's not sure what will happen if they're not here.

Hm.

Arcee pushes herself away from the wall, falling through the air before she kicks in the jetpack to let herself land next to him, transforming as soon as her feet hit the ground to keep pace with him.

"Prowl."

Having been on a foreign (although 'foreign' was a strange use for this) planet before, Optimus was already going through the motions. Getting a scope of the surrounding area was always first. Having left his charges now to their duties (and making sure Shockwave had proper security) he wanders the city, hoping for any sign of something familiar.

Something they could use.

With no equipment, nor a scientist to make equipment, he's relying on his eyes, slowly storing data and familiar landmarks as he sees fit. His gaze turns towards the skyline, if you could even call it that, and tracks it memorizing the stars while he's at it.

There's a flash of pink, and he immediately locks on. Recognizing who it is exactly.

Optimus. Arcee had no hope, no preferred order of her fellow Autobots that she would like to run into on this different Cybertron. There were those she'd sooner run through than deal with, true, but most Autobots were simply there. But Optimus was different, he was Optimus Prime. That was at least something, and Arcee flips through the registered comm lines to find his personal one.

"Prime. You're here."

She doesn't sound relieved, but then again Arcee finds apathy the best choice for communicating on a day to day basis. At least Optimus provides a focal point, an example for her to follow. That is something she could use.

His finger slowly reaches up towards his earpiece, eyes forever locked on her as he responds. With Arcee, he knew it was best to let her make the first move. She operated much better with freedom, although a firm hand to keep her on the right path. "I was about to say the same to you."

In all honesty, he'd hoped she'd be here. Not because stranded on a new Cybertron was a fun field trip for anyone, but he'd feel much more at ease knowing where she was at.

"How long have you been here?"

"Only a few hours." She's been keeping an eye on everyone. "Others have been here longer, or else you wouldn't have built a medical facility." A pause, and then: "There are several Decepticons on the outskirts. I can take care of them."

An offer, but not a statement of her intent to do it if he disagrees. He's her commanding officer, and that's a novel experience in and of itself. She's still trying to figure out how that all works.

Edited 2015-01-25 07:15 (UTC)

"No, leave them be." His voice was firm, yet had a softness to it. He didn't want to reprimand her, as she'd taken great strides in at least asking first.

"We've been here a few weeks, and much has happened since we first arrived. This does not seem to be our Cybertron, but a parallel universe of ours. One where...there were no survivors."

Apparently.

"Oh. Okay." Most people would ask how they got there, but not Arcee. She's content with that answer. But her optics flick from Optimus to the closest one - still too distant for her to properly identify - and they narrow in hatred. They might be bigger and stronger than she is, but that's never been a problem before.

"Are you sure, Prime?"

She just really wants to get out some of her frustration on whatever soul ticks her off first, honestly. And they're a good target for that.

He can sense her tension, and takes a slow step closer to her as she looks off at the distance (he certainly can't see that Decepticon at his angle, after all). But his eyes never leave her, tilting his head.

"I'm sure. We should be more focused on getting home than settling a battle score. I think they want to be back in their world as much as we do. So far, anyway."

...

"If you need to air out some frustration, I can provide a sparring partner."

Arcee guesses that makes sense, and she vents out a sigh he can't hear before she lets herself fall from her perch, jetpack kicking in to carry her to his location where she lands. It's not exactly a smooth one, but she hasn't had much practice. That will come. If there's one thing that's different about her than the last time he's seen her, it's that her finish is scuffed in a few places but nothing that would tip Prime off on her previous activities.

"That's okay. I don't think the others would like it if you ended up missing an arm."

He is Prime, after all.

Edited 2015-01-31 23:03 (UTC)

The jetpack is...new. Not unrecognizable, there's one one person that jetpack belongs to. But why Arcee has it...that's going to have to be brought up later when they're both more settled into this place. The scuffs are also new, but nothing he could cast as strange. Not compared to the jetpack, of course.

"Hmm. you give me more credit than I thought."

That's dad's attempt at a joke.

"But understandable. For now, we should both try to remain intact. You said you'd only recently arrived?"

New, but Arcee likes it a lot. She's thinking of keeping it and not returning it to Sideswipe when this is all said and done. It's come in use.

Also: don't joke with Arcee. There's a high chance she's not going to get it. Like this time, where it goes straight over her head. "They would be madder if you lost more." Just saying.

But slipping into reporting is something she can do, and Arcee nods. "Three hours ago. I came back online on the outskirts of the city."

He'd say you should probably return it but he's going to hope that you'll respect the power of friendship and give it back on your own ~~or at least share it please~~.

The awkward silence that follows his 'joke' is..certainly an experience. Then again, he should have known better with her. She's still getting used to being social, after all. "Let us both be thankful that you're a good friend then, hm?"

...

"You arrived around the same time as Prowl."

Sharing is possible, she could be convinced to share. Or she could keep it and make Sideswipe get a new one. That sounds better, Arcee likes that one. Mostly because she's still angry at Sideswipe.

A good friend. Right. Shifting uncomfortably, she focuses on the second thing he has to say because that's an easy one to answer. "Prowl's here?" Her expression darkens for a moment before it passes. There are better things to do with her time at the moment. "I haven't seen him, Prime. Not yet."

Arcee, we should all learn to get along with our peers, even if they insult you accidentally because they're an idiot. Try to share.

But he notices her awkwardness, wondering if that was a bit too much to lay on her just yet. She does focus on the second (and more important) part of the statement, though, to his relief.

"I've rendezvous'd with him recently, although his current whereabouts I've yet to locate."

How bad could it be?--okay. really bad.

She's not letting it go, Optimus. The insult or the jetpack.

"I can find him if it's required. I've done it before."

The last time was easy, however. He wasn't exactly being covert.

Well...maybe he can just find Sideswipe a new one. He'd never know the difference, right?

"We'll find him together. I'm sure he's not far. Our reunion went...as well as could be expected. For Prowl."

See: Prowl was in a little mood and Optimus had to play damage control. Like always.

He'd probably accept it all the same if it meant not talking to Arcee again when she's in a bad mood. So. Like. Always. As for Prowl - there's the instinct not to tell on him, she doesn't want to, and Arcee doesn't do things she doesn't want to. But he could force her hand, she's not afraid to inform Prime of what he'd been doing if it meant stopping Prowl from going further down this-- well, she's not sure. The path he's on doesn't lead anywhere good, Arcee is sure of that much.

"He's gotten worse since you left, Prime."

There. No details - she and Prowl could work that out between themselves. And if it looked like he wouldn't stop she'd do the things she knew how to do: tell Prime and stop him herself. Because this is different than with Bombshell, Arcee knows it is, but the solution to this particular Prowl problem eludes her still.

"Worse." That didn't bode well. He'd asked Arcee to keep an eye out for Prowl, because as of recently he'd been unable to look after himself. Safety precautions for both the team and for Prowl himself.

"Are any of the team endangered?" He knew that Arcee was telling him the bare minimum out of respect for Prowl. And he didn't want to drag her more into uncomfortable territory.

So he'll ask the basics as well.

"Are any humans involved?"

No one's been able to look after Prowl recently. Arcee thinks that's part of the problem - there's no one to reign him in. Not because people don't want to, but no one knows how. Talking sense isn't going to work.

"No." A pause, and then: "No one of value." So the Constructicons, and her lips twist unpleasantly. There's no way to answer that part of his question without giving too much away. And Arcee would rather talk with Prowl one more time to judge the situation for herself before giving more information.

"I was in the middle of dealing with it when I arrived."

So yes, but something she's got a handle on.

Prowl, the one Autobot who could talk sense, was now senseless. It worried Optimus on many levels, and Arcee...she was doing her best. He had to recognize that.

The 'of value' is slightly worrying, because Optimus and Arcee have vastly different opinions on that. But she's his only lead to information right now, and he doesn't want to cut too deeply into what was...obviously a sensitive issue.

"Thank you. I knew placing it in your hands was the right decision."

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