the return of the stars [CLOSED]

[elkmobile]

WHO: Ashitaka, Cliffjumper, and RiD!Starscream
WHERE: Near the Badlands
WHEN Wednesday
WHAT: Ashitaka and Cliffjumper find someone who had been missing.
WARNINGS: N/A



Sometimes, there's a sensation that runs through him. Perhaps it's the curse, or something else. He cannot say, but it gives him a good instinct, one he knows to follow. Like a shiver up his spine, his arm aching, it wakes him up sharply from the inside of Cliffjumper's passenger seat.

"Cliffjumper," Ashitaka says steadily, the English rough. He's been trying to learn these past few days, but it's not been easy. He's only ever known one language his entire life. "Turn."

It helps that Cliffjumper knows Japanese, though. So he has to switch it back. "To the east. That way, please."

Call it a feeling, but it's never led him wrong before.

His arm throbs.

Comments

[cliffjumper]

"Yeah..?" Cliffjumper frowns - well, mentally that is - less startled by Ashitaka's sudden state of wakefulness than the human boy himself. It helps, after all, to have access to scanners and knowing how human bodies in general work and thus what signs they put out.

He's not sure he agrees with this sudden change of course however, and actually stops, slowing down at first and then completely killing his engine. He'd have done it abruptly, but that would have jostled Ashitaka, even with the seatbelt.

"This somethin' you didn't tell us about, or did ya just suddenly want to take a jaunt around a place that's kinda dangerous?" He doesn't like this; he just wants to gun his engine and continue back the way they came not veer off towards the east for whatever damn reason.

This situation's been unpleasant enough, and he really just wants to get out of reach of whatever it is the Badlands contains which keeps pulling little pieces off. Or at least it feels that way.

[elkmobile]

"I don't like keeping secrets, Cliffjumper," Ashitaka speaks with as much assurance as he can. "It's not that. It's..."

How can he begin to describe this? He looks down at his arm. "I feel something nearby. Something alive. And out here, that means something. And if it's dangerous, I will deal with that consequence. Not you."

That is a promise. He's already dragged everyone around here, he won't do more than that. If it comes to it, he will fight it if it's harmful.

No matter the size. Size is nothing.

"Please," he requests softly.

[cliffjumper]

At first, there's just a deep, disgruntled noise from Cliffjumper's engine, and they stay still for nearly a full klik before he starts moving suddenly again. If this is a trap, then it is a trap, and he'll deal with that then.

"Kinda hard for just you to deal with the consequences when I'm here with ya." He huffs, but there's no real heat in his voice... for the moment. Several possible reasons, motives and scenarios are running through his processor in the meantime as he speeds up, going east as requested instead of to where they should be going in Cliffjumper's opinion.

He's trying to throw his own scanners out, but something in the area just gives him nothing... or an unpleasantly twisted reading of himself.

[ex_dishonestly997]

For some time now Starscream has been trying to convince himself to sit up. It was surprisingly difficult to find the motivation, even with imminent offlining as an impetus.

Couldn't quite manage.

But he heard voices, and that eventually convinced him to reach out, grab a nearby rock, and toss it in that general direction. Kind of a Hey you. Only ruder.

[cliffjumper]

Whatever Ashitaka was going to say would have to wait as Cliffjumper very suddenly and rudely braked, coming to a stop just as the rock that Starscream tossed briefly landed right in front of his bumper, bounced, flew over him, clipped his spoiler and continued through the air.

"What the FRAG!" Swearing a lot more than that - and definitely not in Japanese, sorry Ashitaka, Cliffjumper tore off in the direction the stone had come from, completely ignoring whether or not that was the direction Ashitaka had said to go in.

Somebody (or thing) was getting punched.

[elkmobile]

"Cliffjumper--"

Then the vehicle brakes hard. The young warrior manages to brace himself against the dashboard, eyes wide. That rock didn't just come from no where, after all.

Fortunately, now Cliffjumper is going in the right direction.

"That has to be it. I feel a spark of something!" Ashitaka presses a hand against the glass. "Cliffjumper, open your window!"

[ex_dishonestly997]

There. Voices. A swearing voice with Cybertronian cusswords! The impetus he needed to push against the ground and half sit up, and not forget who he was or why, dusty battered wings responding with a painful half-click back as he... made progress.

Crawling, dented (and a little dismal) out into view and freshly revitalized, he blinks his optics at the approaching Autobot and human passenger.

"What took you?"

[cliffjumper]

"Yeah, well, whatever it is, is gettin' fraggin' shot at," Cliffjumper snapped and reluctantly slid down the window Ashitaka was sitting by when asked to do so, but in the end, it mattered little.

It wasn't too hard to see a large cybertronian in bright red, white and blue, after all, even if he looked kind of... dusty, dinged and worn. Even with the half-gloom that only partially had to do with the dim sun out here, Starscream wasn't stealthy.

Growling as he once again came to a break and in a smooth practiced move moved Ashitaka outside even as he transformed, Cliffjumper gave the Decepticon a glare, underscored by very visibly pulling out a gun.

"You tossin' stones at me kinda makes me want to turn around an' leave ya here." That was snapped in cybertronian before he quickly continued in Japanese for Ashitaka's sake. "Can you even stant up? And you ain't gettin' any closer unless I see... a glyph or whatever."

Keeping himself between Starscream and Ashitaka, Cliffjumper could and would start shooting if necessary.

[elkmobile]

"That shouldn't be necessary," is Ashitaka's calm response. "I understand how you might feel, but we might not have to harm anything."

The window slides down, which causes the human to grab onto his bow and quiver, leaning outside the opening to stare out ahead. There's no mistaking it: another Cybertronian. Ashitaka vaguely remembers this one on the Link, but he's never spoken to him.

Thus, the name escapes him.

"If you're worried, I will check."

Fearlessly, Ashitaka climbs out from the window, leaping onto the ground seemingly with no effort. He runs towards the slumped, crawling mech with curiosity, peering at him, searching for the glyph.

"Liege Maximo's mark," Ashitaka murmurs as he studies the arm. "Cliffjumper, he's not a Glyphless! He is marked!"

[ex_dishonestly997]

It's instinct, born of millions' odd years of violence and warfare that a few months of a truce are hard pressed to extinguish. He raises his arms and powers up a response to that gun with an audible, high whine and a click.

"Come on, Cliff. Give me a reason."

He can't think. He's not supposed to be here, on his knees in the dirt with the threat of being unceremoniously slagged hanging over his head, knowing this one doesn't take prisoners if he knows--if the one he knows--

Fragging alternate universes. Can't be sure if anything will hold true. At least the Autobot symbol is red like it 'ought to be'.

He briefly considers trying to use the very-nearby human as a hostage, and discards that idea. One hostage is useless--a bluff can be called and if he's successful in killing it, he has no hostage and one very pissed Autobot.

"...Who are you?" This directed, surprisingly, to the human in question.

[cliffjumper]

He wasn't sure what Ashitaka had felt when he asked him to break off, and coming across the very same mech Soundwave had been upset about being gone seems sort off... convenient and suspicious.

Optics narrowing at the threat - verbal as well as weapons-wise - Cliffjumper growls and, at the same time as Ashitaka proclaims there to be a glyph, yanks the young man backwards, out of reach.

"Yeah, you're right. Don't just get within slaggin' grabbing range though." He can see the green glimmer now as well, but he'd rather he didn't.

"I already fraggin' have several reasons, Decepticreep, but Soundwave'd be unhappy." It takes a moment or two before he can spit that out, glaring narrowly at the glyph as if it's going to disappear the moment he looks away... or as if he'd prefer it would.

"You depower those things first, an' then I might help get you on your feet." Not that he wants to. Doesn't really want to get that close at all, except to punch him. Starscreams - except the negative polarity one - sets his plating itching.

His gun is pointing slightly downwards and not completely on Starscream though.

[elkmobile]

Being treated as anything less than a warrior is... odd to Ashitaka. He blinks at Cliffjumper's protectiveness, both quietly grateful and extremely confused as he's pulled away from the winged mech.

As he's held, Ashitaka frowns at both of the Cybertronians. He doesn't raise his bow or bring out an arrow, or even reach for his blade. There's a strong scowl as he speaks to both of them.

"Both of you, weapons away. Please." Both with manners and in power; Ashitaka is not interested in a fight.

Addressing the winged mech, the man speaks, "My name is Ashitaka. I came from the Haven, and I am marked under Lord Prima. We're not here to bring you harm, but if you attack, I will stop you."

[ex_dishonestly997]

"I didn't start it." Well, technically, he did throw the rock, but the truth is one of those things that's actually incredibly flexible. "Look, he'll kill me. What assurance do I have that either of you are going to let me walk out of here online, Ashitaka?"

Based on the scattered conversation he'd had earlier with Cliff - and the one he knew personally - he didn't believe in his spark of sparks that he could afford to take chances.

"Tell him to holster that gun first."

[cliffjumper]

"Rocks don't throw themselves, 'Con, and I'm standing right here." Currently more put off by the fact that he was being talked about, than suspicious about Starscream's possible future actions, Cliffjumper crossed his arms.

And kept his gun in one hand.

Really, the fact that he wasn't waving about a cannon should be proof enough he wasn't about to off-handedly kill the Seeker, but either way... he wasn't about to kill someone slumped on the ground and not able to defend themselves at all.

"Would only shoot ya if you give me a reason to," Cliffjumper muttered, giving Starscream a glare as he glanced down at Ashitaka, being protective more as a matter of course... And the fact that this was a Starscream.

[elkmobile]

This is frustrating. This...

Reminds him of Lady Eboshi and Princess Mononoke. Two sides warring. Ashitaka does not know much of the feud between the Decepticons and the Autobots, but he knows it cannot be much different. That there is hatred.

And this won't be stopped with mere words. Unfortunately.

Ashitaka clenches his left hand.

Dark, faded-looking serpents rise from his arm, dark and twisting around each other. The young man takes a moment to swiftly climb up Starscream first with no fear, running up to him and clambering up his side to scale him before he's grabbing the mech by the arm--

And forcing him down, with more force than his human body should be able to determine, pinning his wrist down with one hand.

"Put the gun away or you will be on the same level, Cliffjumper," Ashitaka informs his the red mech with some soft regret in his tone. "This hate you both bear won't help anyone. And it is this hatred that has cursed me from my world. So put your weapon away."

He addresses Starscream now. "Power down your weapons. I mean you no harm and I have nothing to do with the anger inside of you. But it will hurt you now more than it will help. Let it go, calm yourself, and I will release you."

[ex_dishonestly997]

"Wait, wait--wait," It came out a mewling and more piteous, Starscream was unpleasantly shocked, completely out of his element and--caught absolutely off guard by the way Ashitaka decided to reveal how like a human he wasn't.

He powered down both arm cannons, engines doing a quick and alarmed turnover as he tried to think up some way to save himself being slagged.

An old good fallback. "I'm a valuable hostage."

[cliffjumper]

He can't rightly decide what to react to first and finally just tosses his hands up in the air, but at least Starscream's powered down those stupid arm cannons.

"Yeah, yeah, it's gone-- Just don't blame me if somethin' happens..." He doesn't like it, but... Eying Ashitaka and what he's obviously capable of, Cliffjumper doesn't feel quite as extremely hesitant over putting it away as otherwise, and thus the gun was dropped back into subspace.

Even if all that strength would do slag if Starscream managed to shoot the young man, but...

"And a hostage? Primus! For what, you glitch, since there ain't even any slagging war goin' on?" Cliffjumper said with a scowl as he reluctantly got closer.

"Do you need help standin' up, or what?" He doesn't like being this close to a Decepticon, to a Starscream without a gun in hand. He knows his limits, and Starscream?

Is both quite a bit taller and stronger than he is. He's not an idiot even if it sometimes can look that way.

[elkmobile]

"I think... being out here has put him out of sorts."

As the weapons power down and Cliffjumper puts his own away, Ashitaka pulls his hand off of Starscream's wrist. But he's prepared to react if he needs to; at the very least, now the winged mech knows to not challenge them, hopefully.

Ashitaka looks up to Cliffjumper. "Think about it. We've been out here for a few days, hearing... things. Or at least, I have. It's dark and absent here. Who knows how long he's been out here, and what it might have done to him?"

The serpents on Ashitaka's arm fade, and with his right hand, he touches Cliffjumper's leg gently. "This Decepticon needs to be taken from this place. And I need to stay."

[ex_dishonestly997]

"Then why is your first impulse to raise a gun at me, smeltpile?" He got up himself, wobbly, tense, the least possible of happy mechs. "Just turn around. And drive. And I'll follow. I don't need any more help than that."

He was raking his memory core to see if he could pinpoint any kind of human in the past with unassisted strength enough to take a cybertronian down. He's currently weak, but not weak enough to convince him of that.

[cliffjumper]

"'Cause I have so much reason to trust you." Then he immediately turned to stare at Ashitaka, incredulous at the comment about staying behind.

"He's gotten glitched all right, but so have you! If this place's messed him up - and it has if he thinks I'm gonna let him at my back - I ain't gonna leave you here!" Cliffjumper snapped out, one hand flung out to gesture around the dim, oppressive landscape.

He might not have heard any whispers - not precisely, anyway - but the emptiness sort of tugged at his spark, in all the wrong directions.

[elkmobile]

The warrior shakes his head at Cliffjumper. "If I leave, then I throw away my chance to live. I need to stay here, and the Decepticon needs to leave before he is completely lost to this place."

Turning look at Starscream, he addresses him as well, "You will let Cliffjumper take you out of here. With no fighting between either of you, at least physically. If I find out he's hurt, I will deal with that accordingly. All right? I don't enjoy making threats, but I want both of you to live."

Picking up his bow and quiver, he gives Cliffjumper another glance. "It needs to be done. I'll be all right, I think. This feeling I have... it's not too unusual to me."