Failure

[rungout]

WHO: Rung, Open~
WHERE: He's wandered into Alpha Trion's Quadrant.
WHEN Sometime after the bad session with Fortress Maximus.
WHAT: He failed at the only thing he's ever truly been good at and he feels miserable because of it.
WARNINGS: N/A


Rung felt like a failure; an absolute failure in what he was supposed to be good at. He was supposed to help Fortress Maximus, do what he could because that's what his function was, and yet he'd completely fallen apart when the other had gotten upset and instead of helping he'd probably caused more harm than good. He'd lost his composure, let his emotions come through too much, and hadn't been able to keep his own haunting memories at bay.

It was everything that therapist wasn't supposed to do.

A small voice in the back of his head reminded him, as he walked along lost in thought, that the incident was still fairly fresh--recent enough that at times he could still feel the sting of the blow to his head--but a larger voice, the more stubborn one that Rung was letting have control at the moment, argued that it didn't matter. He should have been able to put it all aside and not let it get to him. He should have been able to calm Fortress Maximus down and helped him instead of freaking out.

He'd thought about retracting his offer for the time being, since he didn't feel like he was a good enough doctor to help anyone now, but he'd already made steps with several and he couldn't--wouldn't back out on them now.

But he'd never really felt more worthless in all of his existence really.

Rung had been so lost in thought that he didn't really realize where he'd ended up until he finally caught sight of a lake, the therapist's optics flickering as he slowed to a stop, staring out over the waters before finally looking around. It was very serene in a way, peaceful in a way that reminded him of what Blurr had said.

This must be Alpha Trion's quadrant.

Hesitating for a moment more, Rung's vents cycled softly as he pushed forward, heading down closer to the lake to just sit and..stew some more. Berate himself some more? Something like that...

Comments

hope this is okay? i need to get Drift out more.

[sword_redemption]

Sometimes, it just feels good to drive. Not even particularly dangerously, forcing himself to focus on every weight shift and turn. Sometimes it just felt good to have the world move under your tires. Maybe it was a false sense of progress, but maybe that was enough of a thread of hope.

So he's driving, headlamps off, through the dim light, heading closer to the water, engine thrumming. He spots the shape, and slows, not sure if he should approach. Because whoever's out here, might want to be left alone, too.

Of course it is! BD

[rungout]

Rung pauses near the water's edge as he registers another presence--a familiar one--close by, turning slightly to try and get a visual on Drift. He smiles faintly, lifting a hand in a bit of a wave, a clear indication for the other, he hopes at least, that he doesn't mind the other's presence.

As much as he just felt worthless and like a failure at the moment, he could easily put that all aside in favor of being around someone he was at least comfortable with.

So the therapist slowly sank down to sit, weariness taking over him finally as his vents cycled slowly.

[sword_redemption]

Well, that was a positive sign, at least. Drift slows to a stop and then rises, approaching on foot, and dropping down to sit next to the orange mech. "Beautiful lake," Drift said, blandly. He doesn't want to force anything from Rung. "Peaceful."

[thehardway]

Traveling alone throughout the universe is a lot more simple than maintaining command of several Cybertronians. He's done both, but he knows he prefers to be on his own. He knows how to care for himself. It's simpler, cleaner.

As opposed to this. Ultra Magnus has never been a fan of complications, and that seems to be a matter that's been forming since the end of the war for several reasons.

At any rate, he has a duty towards the crew. Rodimus isn't here to fulfill it, and no matter what is said, it is his job to maintain order. One way or another.

After speaking to Fortress Maximus, Ultra Magnus has taken to hunting down the therapist. Simple enough matter, to trace the Link and take it from there.

It does occur to him that he is perfectly the wrong person for this sort of thing, though.

Magnus transforms from his vehicle mode as he gets close enough, pausing to glance at the lake before his optics peer down at the therapist.

"Doctor."

This isn't going to be awkward or anything.

[rungout]

He was just finding himself with all sorts of visitors today wasn't he?

Rung glanced up at Ultra Magnus as the other approached, putting on a smile for the sake of appearances because it just wouldn't do for anyone else to worry about him or anything of that nature. His problems were ones he should be able to deal with after all.

"Hello sir," he greeted with a slight nod, gaze lingering briefly before he found himself looking out over the water again. "Is there something I can help you with?"

[ex_dishonestly997]

It was hard to miss the bright orange mech, even from a cruising distance, and Starscream tilted slightly to bank around, coming in for a quick landing on the other side of the lake, in plain sight, and taking his time to walk around it.

Giving Rung plenty of time to emotionally prep for an encounter, if he didn't want one.

"What's up, doc?"

[rungout]

Rung spotted the other when he landed and transformed, indeed using the time that it took the other to reach him to collect himself and just prepare for the encounter.

"Hello Starscream," he greeted in a friendly, tired sort of voice, smiling at the other as the seeker reached him. "Nothing really. Just needed to get out I suppose, since I really haven't done much of that."

He shifted a bit, legs still drawn up as he forced himself to stay focused on Starscream instead of looking away again.

"How're you?"

:3

[happyduckbutt]

     It was easy to get lost around here, Ventus had found that out pretty quickly. He supposed traveling by air would get him un-lost sooner than later, but the boy wasn't against wandering a little more. Besides, the more he saw of everything from down at ground-level, the more he'd be familiar with it. Not to mention there were a lot of interesting things to see.

     Coming within view of the lake, he started to have a better idea of where he was. He'd seen this place from Prima's Temple, now that he thought about it. He hadn't quite worked out the names though, but it had definitely been an area he wanted to visit.

     It didn't take him long to see the larger figure, although it did take him a moment to recognize the orange form and match it to the tiny image he'd spoken to on his Link. He knew they were big, but it was still something to see them in person.

     "Hey! Rung?" He called out, steps slowing a moment as he got a better look at him. "...something wrong?"

BD

[rungout]

The therapist snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of his name and a familiar-esque voice, looking around before down finally, a faint smile appearing as he recognized the human approaching him.

"Ventus, hello," he said with a nod, shifting his position so he seemed more relaxed, allowing his feet to slid a bit so his legs weren't quite as drawn up anymore. "No, no I'm..alright. Just....It's just been a long day is all," Rung mused, brushing it all aside, tucking everything away in favor of this small little organic.

"How are you fairing?"

[aerospacecommander]

Starscream had been flying around, mapping out the area -- which he could just talk Jetfire into doing and take the information, but he also had a side agenda of seeking out a place for a base. He might tell Jetfire about that plan eventually, but for now the less people knew the better.

He wasn't even in jet-mode and was flying a bit slower than usual as not to miss anything. Though he caught sight of the lake long before he paid any attention to Rung's appearance below.

Another underwater base might be a good idea.

It was as he descended that he realized there was an orange mech down below. Oh, he remembered him. The head doctor.

He increased his speed slightly and then let himself drop to the ground right beside where Rung was standing.

"Careful you don't fall in, who knows what's lurking down there."

He spoke directly before his feet slammed into the ground, which was the only real warning he gave about his presence. At least he didn't push Rung in or make a joke about getting the drop on him.

[rungout]

Rung outright startled and stumbled back some at the combination of the voice and Starscream's sudden appearance, catching himself before he did, in fact, fall into the water.

"I--no, no I don't," he managed to get out, vocalizer fritzing just a bit before he got it under control again and pulled himself together a bit more.

This..was one bot that he didn't want to show any weakness too really. Rung really didn't want any sort of torment after the day he'd had.

"Is there something I can assist you with, Starscream?" he asked sincerely, tilting his head just a bit as he put up a mask, a faint smile that--for the most part--hid the weariness that the therapist felt.

[raceme]

It was Alpha Trion's quadrant. Indeed, and Blurr suggested it exactly because it was more relaxing than the others. The speed racer was closer to the lake, dragging a large piece of metal.

It was a bit big for him but he didn’t want to bother McCrane every time he had to build something. The man already did enough building the Police Headquarters and showing Blurr the basics of construction. He hated being so small, sometimes.

[rungout]

Having been moving around the lake a bit, Rung spotted the familiar blue figure attempting to drag a piece of metal. While he himself wasn't the strongest bot either, the therapist didn't hesitate to head over to where the other was, putting on a smile as he caught up to Blurr and moved to grab onto the piece of metal as well.

"You look like you could use some help," he said with a small smile, managing to lift the piece up a bit to at least give Blurr some relief.

[4_toteachus]

Four loves exploring, but his problem is that it could take him hours to get from one location to another. It's times like this that he could appreciate the fact that he doesn't need to eat or do other organic things during his journeys. Today he had been inspecting the lake, playing around a little bit with the water and wondering if he could make a boat of some kind to sail it.

His attention is diverted by the presence of a certain robot. Four recognizes this one! Having lost most of his shyness a while ago, Four creeps up on the sitting Autobot and starts climbing up his leg until he balances on Rung's knee. The tiny, seven-inch-tall stitchpunk clicks and flashes his eyes several times and waves a hand, trying to get the robot's attention.

Hello!

[rungout]

Four was lucky that Rung had been glancing down at the water when the the flashing and movement caught his attention, the therapist's optics flickering as he snapped out of his thoughts to focus on the small figure on his knee. He didn't outright recognize the other but he smiled all the same, moving a hand to curl it around his knee a bit as he drew his leg up some to bring the tiny thing closer to him.

"Hello little one," he greeted. "I'm not sure if we've met--" Rung pauses, thinking back to the video log he'd seen as everything clicks--his head clearing enough from his own thoughts to remember.

"Four! Right?" he asked, peering down again, keeping his hand curled around his knee a bit just in case.

[thxforthememories]

It wasn't wrong to want to get away. Was it? To "step out" for a while. After the trip to the Badlands, he just felt as if he were in the way of the others. Maybe it was misplaced. Maybe he was imagining it. But...

... Stepping away for a while should do some good. Shouldn't it? And, really, he could claim he was out to visit Kay. She lived in the temple he'd woken up in. It was as good an excuse as any to avoid the others. He just hadn't expected to see anyone else in the area.

So while he could have kept on going... he stopped. And landed -- not close enough to the Cybertronian to startle, hopefully, but enough to be noticed.

At least, he hoped that would be the reaction.

[rungout]

It was indeed, because Rung had become use to visitors today and he glanced up when he caught the movement out of the corner of his optic, recognizing the new comer and immediately offering a small smile.

"Kagerou," he greeted, sitting up a bit instead of hunching over against his legs like he had been, lifting a hand in a bit of a wave. "Out exploring or just getting away?"

Because both of those seemed to be the common choices for everyone he'd run into today thus far.

haha because you don't have enough people in this log clearly!

[inferiordude]

It's in Soundwave to try to keep an eye in some way on all of his friends in some way. There's only so much he can do, and he's aware of that, but it doesn't mean he can't try.

In regards to Alpha Trion's quadrant, there is the lake, true. There is also the garden that Raf and the other humans have created that's along the shoreline. It seems to make sense that if he goes here, he'll run into the boy or someone else.

Hence, the reasoning for Soundwave's presence.

The van arrives and transforms, intending to keep on walking, but he doesn't expect to see the therapist out here.

"Yo, Rung. Right?"

Gotta catch 'em all~ BD

[rungout]

The garden had caught Rung's attention as he'd been walking a bit, and he'd been headed in the direction of said area when he found himself with yet another visitor.

He was getting quite a few of those wasn't he?

"Yes, that's me," he mused with a greeting smile, wlifting a hand in a bit of a wave. "'Wave, I presume?" Looked and sounded like the right bot.

[littlecrowgirl]

While Kay had talked to Run on the communicator, she hadn't really gotten a good look at him, at least not from a full body perspective. So seeing his silhouette by the lake near her temple was met with apprehension. He didn't seem to be hostile, so she slowly approached. Once he got into view, she loosened up considerably, walking right over to where he was sitting and plopping next to him.

"The lake's really pretty, huh?"

[rungout]

There was a slight, startled sort of flicker to Rung's optics, the therapist having settled again after one of his last visitors had taken their leave, glancing down at the newcomer. He relaxed rather quickly as he recognized the human girl, nodding with a thoughtful sound as his gaze returned to the lake.

"It is, very much so," he agreed, a part of him wishing that this had been the temple he'd ended up in--though he didn't have anything against Prima. This area was just quite beautiful. "How are you fairing today?" Rung asked, feeling much more collected now than he had been when he'd first arrived in the area, which was a good thing he supposed.

/ADDS TO THE PILE?

[ichooseboth]

Even Optimus Prime had trouble working up the courage to do things, at times.

Case in point, working up the nerve to get past the ...weirdness involved in talking to the Firstforged 'version' of his old mentor, Alpha Trion? That was a bit tricky. He'd met him before, of course, back when the mess with the Pages made him Orion Pax again, but that wasn't the same. It wasn't fear, but it was...awkward. And confusing.

So, he was stalling. Idly exploring the area around the Firstforged's temple. He didn't exactly expect to come across anyone else, but given the pleasant look of the area he should have. It was apparently a popular place.

Slowing to a stop well before he got close enough to the lake to start slinging wet mud with his tires, he transformed to pass by more politely - and to get a better look at the figure.

Ohsnap! Getting a Prime is like getting a shiny Pokemon! BD Hellyes

[rungout]

Of all the individuals that Rung had been expecting to cross paths with at the lake, Optimus Prime had been way down on the bottom of the list in the 'Yeah right' category. It just didn't seem likely and hadn't even really crossed his mind at all as he interacted with those he came across and continued just relaxing by the lake side.

After having been pushed in the lake anyway, the therapist had finally grown a bit more comfortable with the water--enough so that he was mimicking what he'd seen Drift do before, one leg partially submerged in the water while the other was still drawn up, Rung resting an arm around it. He'd been thinking about everything that he'd discussed with others throughout the course of the day and probably wouldn't have even noticed Optimus had it not been for the sound of a transformation and the sound of mud going everywhere.

His optics flickered and he turned some to see who it was, surprise appearing on his face as he quickly withdrew his leg from the water and moved to stand.

"Optimus, sir," he greeted, a bit stunned to be standing before the Prime.

[blue_reflection]

Little by little, the persocom had been venturing further from the room given to her for personal use. There are so many unknowns here, and through observation of the network and gradual exploration, she hoped that she would come to understand the strange terrain and the various inhabitants brought here by the Lambda.

On her way back from a trip out to the very edge of the junk piles, she heads towards the lake with a simple container about the size of a bucket. Though it has no handle or cover, it would serve quite well for the intended purpose of holding water.

As she draws closer, Yuzuki notices the figure settled there by the lake. Pausing in her steps, she takes a moment to study him from a distance, then continues on her initial course towards the edge of the lake with a slightly slowed pace to make her steps a little lighter. With that cautious gait leading her to one side of the bot, she keeps her attention forward towards the water until equal in distance with him to the water itself, at which point she looks towards him quietly and offers a simple smile and a nod in greeting.

[rungout]

It was obvious from the get go that the girl he found himself in the company of was not like the other humans, Rung having sensed her approach and registered it as something distinctly not human. He glanced at her as she came up to his side and returned the smile he was offered, lifting a hand in a return greeting.

"Hello," he said to accompany it, feeling more social than he'd ever really felt before--mostly do to all the interactions he'd been having with others--so why not make the best of it hm? "I don't believe we've ever met, in any form really, before."