The Intergalactic Highway

She couldn't believe time had passed by so quickly, Wintersong having at some point dosed off when she had stopped to rest for a moment. The whole time she had been out she had been thinking over yesterday's events and some she had tried to put behind her, mostly her grief and guilt. Whether or not she ran into Arachnitron and was able to apologize was something the white tigress decided to see if chance would allow it, even feeling it was the least of her problems for the time being. It wasn't anything she would do on purpose but considering the circumstances it was something that had to wait. Instead she decided to focus on what would go on more currently.

But Wintersong hadn't intended to be out to almost afternoon, least it seemed it was getting there or was early afternoon. 'So much for a quick run.'Wintersong thought though mused at the fact she really was in a quick run to get back to the Axalon just in case she might need to give extra help, and so the others didn't worry.

Luckily she did send in her report a couple cycles ago so it was hopefully some relief. At last after some time she arrived at the ship, a little out of breathe but none the less made it in one piece compared to the earlier encounter with the wild organic tiger. Stepping onto the lift she looked up as it rose to the bridge, briefly hearing her name as it did."Someone looking for me?"She asked as she stepped down.

((OOC: OOP was just proposing the idea since I have been telling her what I'm planning for my character in S2. Like I said in my last post, If I did want Whitegrazer there, she wouldn't have replaced Airazor or Rattrap's part because I know Worpex doesn't post often and Airazor is not seen much in the RP. Since I have decided already she won't be joining because I'm keeping her from anything (or at the very least less involvement) from the canon plot until S2, Whitegrazer isn't replacing anybody.))

((Fair enough. I am also curious about Phoenix's question though. Are we bringing a larger team to the mushroom? Our RP heavily outnumbers the show in characters so I don't see why others shouldn't be allowed to come along. Im sure the preds will be there in high numbers.))

(( OOC: No problemo, WorpeX. That's why I reached out. I certainly did not want to do anything you were opposed to.

I don't quite understand why Whitegrazer should replace AirRazor's part in the mushroom story either.

That's because, no offense, Phoenix, it didn't really have anything to do with you or your characters. As una has said, it was pertaining to something she and I have been discussing through PM, and I only brought this up publicly now because it was an idea that came to me that would've directly involved WorpeX. Since he has made his point crystal clear, there's no need to discuss this further.

That storyline is already part of the 'canon' storyline so unless you play specific characters who are actively involved in it, you're probably just waiting for it to be over so you can move on. AirRazor doesn't have much else going on so why exclude the character from the fun? Are we bringing entire teams to the event?

It's funny how everytime I actually try to branch out and deviate a little bit away from the show's script with just a small idea or slight character change, I get penalized for it. If I don't offer any wiggle room for a free-range script, I get penalized for it. So confusing sometimes. For the rest of this episode and season finale, we'll just follow the show for the canons who are involved in the grand scheme of things. Sorry I even brought it up.

Why not we make another RP thread? Maybe set in the past or future maybe? A place people can post on when they are waiting for people to post on the main one?

That's pretty much what the Character Lounge is for. Anyone can do anything with their characters in that topic at any point in time.

Well, if we need them out of bases.. We could drop a stasis pod or two as something to do for the ones on patrol, then let them figure out how to settle things peacefully..)

That's not a bad idea, NK, if we have new characters wanting to join before this season is over.

@ una: After spending 15 minutes looking back through the posts trying to find out where it was Ironclaw told Optimus about Whitegrazer's meeting with Steelclaw because I simply can't remember the specifics, I'm done wasting my time, and I'm just going to go with him NOT telling Primal who the Pred was. If I'm wrong, I'll edit my post. I don't have time to keep shuffling through them.

Are we bringing a larger team to the mushroom?

I'm not opposed to that if some characters need something to do. But let's not forget NK's suggestion with a stasis pod or two, if there are new characters ready to join. That will keep some others occupied. ))

IC:

As soon Whitegrazer's door opened, Optimus was welcomed with a warm smile, so he managed to return one as well until he spotted her injuries. This is what she meant about her appearance? What happened to her?! he pondered with concern. His mouth open for a moment, he wanted to jump right out and ask her but her calm and collected attitude helped him relax a little. It was as if she didn't even know she was damaged. That, and she hardly let him get a word in as soon as he had entered and the door closed and locked behind him. Apparently, there was much she had to say. So without interrupting her, although inside he was overwhelmingly worried about her optic and cracked armor, Primal followed the slender, white Maximal and sat down across from her where she had gestured.

"Yes," "I said I will explain it to you. During the time I was with Rattrap, Cheetor, and Aurora, we were visited by Onyx, the Predacon who visited our base with peaceful intent. Of course, there wasn't time for anything as we had to return to the Axalon, but I asked him to give a message to a Predacon. It was Steelclaw I requested as like Onyx, he seemed to be a reasonable sort like Glowstick. I didn't know if he would accept it."

The Maximal Commander studied Whitegrazer closely and quietly while she spoke, tracing her facial features with his optics as his audio sensors took in her words.

"Did Ironclaw say who I was talking to?"

"No," he simply answered with a faint shake of his head.

"My reasons for doing this was, honestly, spur of the moment, Optimus. When Onyx came to us, I remembered what he proposed to us about working together with the Predacons. I decided to take an initative to..." "...sort of an evaluation of motives or to see if they believe there can be a peace between our sides." "The talk between us was very interesting, but also disquieting."

"Spur of the moment?" Primal repeated her words in a rhetorical tone as his crimson optics drifted away from her gaze, disappointment flashing across his face. "That was incredibly risky to approach him by yourself, Whitegrazer," he said in a soft voice. "After all, it had only been hours after he had shot Icebreaker," as his optics lifted up again to fixate back onto hers. In a thoughtful stammer, Optimus added, "I... I don't think he meant to actually kill him, though. Some Maximals may disagree... Primus knows what Orcariner will do if... when he finds out, if he hasn't already." Worry filled his optics. "I'm not even sure Steelclaw knows." What a tragic and painful situation it was. And how was Orcariner coping so far? The largest Maximal had been awfully quiet all night long. Quiet and secluded. It concerned Optimus greatly. He should approach him when he was done meeting with Whitegrazer.

"Was there a willingness of compromise or co-operation?" he asked Whitegrazer, suddenly jumping back to her explanation. He wasn't asking for details of their private conservation since most of that was probably meant to be kept between them, much like Primal's and Nemesis's conversation, and Primal's and Arachnitron's, and... Optimus certainly held a lot of "secrets" of vastly different bots, all of which he intended on keeping his word on their confidentiality. Not to mention he had his own secrets. So if that was the case between her and Steelclaw, he trusted her and would respect that.

((

That's because, no offense, Phoenix, it didn't really have anything to do with you or your characters. As una has said, it was pertaining to something she and I have been discussing through PM, and I only brought this up publicly now because it was an idea that came to me that would've directly involved WorpeX. Since he has made his point crystal clear, there's no need to discuss this further.

Wait, what? If it were to involve me, why wasn't I ever PMed about it? I would be far more receptive to a new idea if I knew what it was. I just thought that the whole idea was Whitegrazer taking Airazors place on the mission and I got the shaft. Hence why I made it crystal clear that I didn't want to be shafted.))

((OOC: Worpex, Optimus and I discussed something pertaining to my character in Season two. We never discussed anything dealing with the mushroom. Okay? I want to be clear on that. It never involved you, Worpex, or your characters. All I ever talked about was what I was planning on for Whitegrazer and her development. That's all.

@OOP: No, you are okay, OOP. Ironclaw just said a Predacon. Never gave the name. I bet Whitegrazer feels glad about that. Crazy day, huh?))

(( OOC: I must really suck at explaining things. Goodness. WorpeX, I wasn't going to change anything without asking you first. That's all. Nothing's changing from the show so there's nothing to worry about. Forget I said anything. ))

(

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:That's because, no offense, Phoenix, it didn't really have anything to do with you or your characters.

You know.. That is probably the most offensive statement I've seen on this forum. :p Well, regardless.. I really have hell enough to deal with rl troubles. I didn't see Una's response either and the way it looked to several of us, Whitegrazer was being offered the spot in AirRazor's place. If this was not the case, fine. Doesn't change my other question. I think a lot of us are just edgy because we would love to partake in the action as well, and as someone pointed out.. just 'chitchatting' gets a little stale once in a while. Personally, though, I wasn't planning to partake in the upcoming few weeks due to being essentially full-term with baby#2. It was just a simple question based on a maybe not the best explanation. We don't know what you and Una talk about in private or the plans you've made, so it's a little hard for us to understand what we don't know. )

( Buster, Umbra, or Aphrodite are all set for season 1. Which should make things a little easier since season 2 we have a horde of transmetal stasis pods.. )

(OTT, that's all I'm saying.)

OOC:

Phoenix wrote:(

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:That's because, no offense, Phoenix, it didn't really have anything to do with you or your characters.

You know.. That is probably the most offensive statement I've seen on this forum. If that's the way you want it, fine. Goodbye.)

I feel the need to defend Phoenix on this. I think her question really was more inquisitive than anything else. I don't think she was trying to be condesending or nosy or anything. I think Pheonix, as well as myself, just was looking to know what the thought process was behind the idea. I mean, why would we send Whitegrazer to the mushroom instead of Airrazor (which was the question at the time since that's pretty much what you said OOC)?

But I think I'm following the train of thought a little bit......we'd be putting Whitegrazer in danger so that Primal would go save her and then the aliens would have something to hang over Primal. I think where the confusion is happening is that wouldn't Primal save anyone no matter who they were? That's the way he is. So putting a figurative target on Whitegrazer would be a little difficult since he'd have the same reaction no matter which Maximal were in trouble. So how would the aliens be able to distinguish his growing feelings for Whitegrazer? Unless they were able to read his mind or something. I mean, in the show, Airrazor and Optimus weren't together, but he rescued her from the mushroom and was very protective of her just as much as any of the other Maximals.

I think an explanation was really all anyone was looking for and since it was posted for the public to see, it kind of was open to discussion. If it wasn't meant for people to offer their input, then it should have been put in a PM.

(ooc: I was rather upset with several issues rl as well as on here, but Blackrosefencer got it down perfectly. The way it was coming across in that post, it was very difficult to read between the lines. What I wanted was for nobody to get left out and the post almost seemed like this was all just going to escalate this 'relationship' between Primal and Whitegrazer at the exclusion of others.

Worpex wrote:((Fair enough. I am also curious about Phoenix's question though. Are we bringing a larger team to the mushroom? Our RP heavily outnumbers the show in characters so I don't see why others shouldn't be allowed to come along. Im sure the preds will be there in high numbers.))

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:It's funny how everytime I actually try to branch out and deviate a little bit away from the show's script with just a small idea or slight character change, I get penalized for it. If I don't offer any wiggle room for a free-range script, I get penalized for it. So confusing sometimes. For the rest of this episode and season finale, we'll just follow the show for the canons who are involved in the grand scheme of things. Sorry I even brought it up.

Guess that answers my question..

Anyways..)

IC:

Aurora woke from her very uneasy slumber, whimpering as she sat up in bed. The images of Icebreaker's lifeless face had been haunting her in her dream. Mixed in were thoughts of her own stupidity having resulted in the death of Valkyrie.

Why had she not been there to stop the experiment? Why had she not been there to persuade Icebreaker not to engage in combat?

The little fuzor felt miserable and alone as she looked around only to realize that the dreams had been true. Her team mates were truly gone forever, and she doubted she'd ever be able to shake the uneasy feeling of guild that was haunting her because of it.

Sighing she got up and walked over to a table that was filled with images of her fellow Maximals. She gazed upon them one by one, letting her eyes linger on the ones that had come to mean a great deal to her during her short life.

Optimus Primal.. A ship captain who had risen to the task of leading them in what almost seemed like a futile battle on this planet, wondrous as it was, but in doing so he was giving up so much of himself. And in an attempt to keep what little he had not forsaken, he ended up pushing some of them away in the process. Aurora didn't blame him, even if she did feel their commander was being a little bit too strict at times. She knew he meant well. He was just stuck in a position he had never asked for, with no formal training in maintaining such a rank which forced him to learn as he went. At times he'd make mistakes but this was all to be expected..

Rattrap.. The spunky spy she had grown rather fond of during their time together. No matter how bad she felt, he had the ability of always making her feel better with his witty remarks always lightening the mood. Yet as much as she wanted to see him right now, she was afraid he'd turn his back once he found out she'd been responsible for altering the temperature which in turn caused the death of one of their own.

Whitegrazer.. Always so brave, such a mother figure to those around her, and certainly someone Aurora looked up to. The white mare was one of few, if not the only one, who could always tear down that invisible wall Optimus held up around himself. Their blooming relationship was pretty clear to anyone who bothered looking, but Aurora was glad the two seasoned warriors had found each other. It was difficult being in a war you never chose to enter, especially when you're by yourself. Hopefully the two of them would give each other the strength they both needed for the months to come.

Ironclaw.. Aurora did not fully understand him or his interest in females, but she had felt honored to have held that interest for a while even if it never amounted to anything more than a close friendship. She had great hopes for the mechanic's future, believing he would amount to the greatness he was seeking some day.

And Icebreaker.. he had the largest image of them all. Aurora was heart broken that she would never be able to tell him just how much he'd meant to her. She didn't know, exactly, how the two of them were connected, but she had always felt a special bond there. At times he'd gone out of his way to protect her, even shelter her as the case may be. This was a tendency she'd seen among several of the Maximals, however, and she often wondered if they would ever treat her as anything more than a mere child in need of constant supervision. Maybe if she'd known about her origin she would understand a bit more, but Icebreaker had always encouraged her to look to the future rather than the past so she respected his wishes in that regards. Sadly now she was faced with a future without him there to lead the way, to guide, support and protect her, a fact which made it rather difficult for her to look forward to said future at all.

She had to wipe a tear from the corner of her eye as she turned off the holographic images one by one. There really seemed to be only one thing she could do right now.

Aurora then turned her attention to the computer monitor in her room. She moved her hands to the keyboard, typing two little words, and left the monitor running with the words flashing without casting it a second glance. After that she left her room and made her way down the hallway, as quietly as she could. She hadn't slept very long so hopefully the others were still resting up and wouldn't notice her.

She did recall Optimus Primal's warning from earlier, but chose to ignore it. At this point she just had to get out, to get a chance to find herself, before she was forever lost in the many tragedies the Maximals had to endure lately. Arriving at the exit, she glanced around to make sure nobody was there to see her, before leaving the Axalon. Once outside she converted to her beast form and trotted off, to nowhere in particular as long as it was away from here, attempting to not draw attention along the way. She did not look back..

In her room the computer monitor kept blinking those two simple words; "Forgive me."

Frilla leaned back slightly in her chair, staring at the monitor within her room and wracking her half asleep mind to figure out to create a decent virus that could be used against the Levianthan. As she had predicted it wasn't a very easy task, not in the least and she was trying to remember codes she had used for the Levianthan's more basic defenses that might affect it's chances and allow the Maximals a brief edge the next time they came across it. But it had been months since crash landing there on the planet, maybe just shortly after the Beast Wars had started and not to mention the frilled lizard had just woken up half an hour ago which was no help in thinking clearly.

"Maybe I should finish this up later, when I can actually think."Frilla sighed and typed on a few keys to save the data she had managed to start but hadn't made much progress on since she was just starting the task Optimus had assigned. Though Frilla wondered if he would still want it done at all currently, then again it never hurt to make it just in case a situation called for a chance of advantages. The only drawback however was it would likely require going in directly to the craft and putting in the program and Frilla knew the ship from being in it so much next to Starshadow, that's if she stayed, so it would likely be a difficult call.

---------------------

Meanwhile Feralnight was finally coming from her quarters, leaving the data pad that held her original profile on her desk and heading out into the hall, briefly stretching her wings to get cramps out of them before making her way to the bridge. Though from where she was she could hear some of the others were already awake, though considering the time it wasn't exactly surprising but when the fuzor arrived to the bridge she still looked tired although also frustrated. Her frustration mainly from being unable to shake off the dreams of where her past had caught up to her and was likely to keep her up several nights to come.

Mentally shaking off the tiredness and anxiety she gave a quick glance around at the others, sniffing the air slightly but she briefly looked towards the lift Wintersong had just come up, thinking she caught a scent a little older but also recent. It seemed her fellow fuzor Aurora had been by though why she had gone off was what made her curious, but at the same time the winged ermine could have wanted time to herself and considering what was going on she really couldn't blame the young femme.

((I swear I haven't disappeared again. I am taking a bit longer then I thought since finding something to type up for Onyx and the grape-colored dino is eluding me at the moment. But something will come to my brain soon enough.

As for stasis pods I'm also willing to volunteer Silverstreak if you guys need another so. Whether this season or the next is quite fine really but I do plan to bring her in either way that floats everyone's boat. If you decide on that idea.))

(( OOC: Yet again something so minescule and unimportant has been blown out of proportion. WHAT is the problem, people? If you or your character aren't mentioned in an OOC post, then often those people don't comment. Why would you if you don't know what they're talking about? I know I don't always butt my nose into everyone else's business if I wasn't mentioned, whether it was on here in the game or in a PM. All of sudden this is a big deal? I don't get it. But I apologize again for opening my mouth. Why are we still wasting our time talking about this?

I didn't see Una's response either and the way it looked to several of us, Whitegrazer was being offered the spot in AirRazor's place. If this was not the case, fine.

It was just an IDEA that I thew out there. That's why I mentioned WorpeX in it as well because it pertained to HIS character. Done and done.

Doesn't change my other question.

About others getting involved with the mushroom thing? That question was answered. Moving on.

We don't know what you and Una talk about in private or the plans you've made, so it's a little hard for us to understand what we don't know. )

I left it that vague on purpose because una wants things as a surprise. So, this is all that was really meant to transpire here: I ask about Whitegrazer MAYBE taking Airazor's place (it was just an idea) since she has plans in the second season with her character involving the Vok, and WorpeX has long since decided not to kill Airazor and I won't be killing Tigatron. If you think about it, Airazor's interaction with the Vok mushroom may have made her and Tigatron a target in the second season. So all I was thinking about was why have Airazor get involved with the mushroom mishap when we aren't going to kill her, and instead have a character who plans on interacting with the Vok in the second season make her the inevitable target instead? But I wasn't going to play through it without WorpeX's thoughts and permission because I'm well aware of how much he enjoys playing Airazor and would probably have fun writing for her during this emotional time and being the center of attention. So I got badgered and ridiculed anyway for the whole thing. Not every OOC post has to have everyone else's input. Maybe I should have made it a PM (in hinesight), but I thought it was going to be a simple response from WorpeX alone so I wouldn't have to go through a three-way PM and blah, blah, blah.

( Buster, Umbra, or Aphrodite are all set for season 1. Which should make things a little easier since season 2 we have a horde of transmetal stasis pods..)

Thank you, NK, for being so co-operative. I'm all for one or two of them arriving right now so people can get off of my back and have something to do with their characters if they choose not to take part in the mushroom's arrival.

So, in case people are still lost or unclear, there will be things for your characters to do shortly. Stasis pod(s) will be arriving soon to chase down and acquire "peacefully" with the truce. Those who want to be a part of the mushroom fun, you'll have to wait just a little bit until the day turns into dusk and Rattrap and Airazor (and whoever else) get ordered to secure the unsual alien site before Optimus can get there. Make sense? ))