[Open - Communal] Meet 'n' Greet!

[winged_knight]

WHO: Anyone! Hosted by Wing, Vectorians especially encouraged.
WHERE: One of the larger upper platforms in Vector Prime's Quadrant.
WHEN: Now
WHAT: Mixer for Vectorians and general social gathering for everyone.
WARNINGS: None yet. (But there's booze so...at the very least there might be bad karaoke)

Upon entering Vector Prime's domain it's obvious that things are a foot. The typically serene atmosphere is enlivened with notes of music and the murmur of voices punctuated by the occasional bubble of laughter that filters down from the upper heights, a soft glow of illuminating one of the larger platforms with a structure built on it. Colorful streamers fly from crystalline light poles, marking the way through the various crystal bridges and small platforms, until one reaches the large terrace on which the gathering is situated.

A large pavilion-like structure, enclosed on two sides but otherwise open to a majestic view of the gorge and beyond, shelters the bulk of the gathering. Its roof is several stories tall, enough to accommodate their First Forged benefactor should he choose to join them, and what could be considered a dance floor sprawls off to the side. The platform edges have been lined with a railing here unlike most of the others, to waylay any highgrade assisted trips into the gorge itself. Along another wall, nearest the open area, speakers and other equipment have been setup to provide music and other entertainment. One of Vector Prime's Acolytes greets newcomers with a simple nod, and may later be seen looking after the replenishent of refreshments as needed.

Tables of typical Cybertronian height line one wall, where tapped cylinders of softly glowing energon, both standard and highgrade, sit alongside cubes waiting to be filled. Various pieces of make-shift seating suitable to the average mech are scattered around. Central to the pavilion is a wide raised platform, about waist height to the average Cybertronian, designed to allow the shorter attendees to converse with their taller robotic fellows at eye level. Human scale ladders allow access to and from the floor, and occupying the platform is a buffet table accompanied by several mis-matched chairs.

The buffet table is covered with an eclectic assortment of refreshments and serving implements more suitable to organics, mostly non-perishable pantry type goods, (you can be certain there's Twinkies!) along with a odd collection of various alcohols including a bottle or two of whiskey. At the end of one table sits an old refrigerator on its back, now tasked with being a simple ice box, filled entirely with chunks of clean snow and ice from Liege Maximo's quadrant. Accompanying it are wax paper cups and a pitcher of fruity syrup that smells reminiscent of Kool-Aid. (make yourself a snow cone!)

The pavilion is attached to a larger building, two doors at the rear of the pavilion each lead to two separate rooms. One that appears to be in use for the storage of unused supplies and materials while the other is filled with makeshift seating of various sizes, creating a more relaxed atmosphere. To the rear there is access to a second floor, the rooms of which appear to be currently unused.

Barricade and Soundwave have agreed to provide musical entertainment for the evening.

Miko may play some guitar for us if we can find a way to power her amp.

Wing will perform a traditional narrative sword kata with some musical accompaniment.

Vector Prime himself may make an appearance at some point as well.

((---This is COMMUNAL log and designed to be a mixer, so post to note your attendance and then tag around!---))

((If you'd like to do a game, performance or other activity feel free to make a post for it and let me know, then I'll highlight it here.))

((I tried to set a foundation for the scene but leave a lot of stuff open, so feel free to embellish where you like. We have access to pretty much anything that's mundane though likely it comes from the Junk Pile. Feel free to have your character bring something if they want.))

Comments

[winged_knight]

His fingers play over the plating before giving the arm squeeze, the intent to remain quite obvious.

Wing tilts his head, understanding. "Pretty isn't its purpose though. The war's just given us different focuses. There's balance in that." His head tilts forward this time, the light of gold optics shining out from under helm's crest. "Have I ever told you how much I enjoy watching you fight?"

[sword_redemption]

No, in Wing's case, 'pretty' just might be a side effect. "Our focus was death." Flat and ugly. He's not going to hide it. "No amount of that makes up for what we did." What Drift did, he means. But yeah, destroying Cybertron a few times kind of makes his point.

Drift shifts, embarrassed. "You've only seen me fight once." Back on Wing's planet. "First time I ever held a sword."

[winged_knight]

"If you paint it with the darkest brush possible." He shrugs; arguing with Drift was definitely the last thing he wanted to do tonight. "I've had time to learn such things. You could too if you wanted."

Wing's hand slides up Drift's arm as he moves with the shift, greedy and unwilling to give up proximity. "I got a fair number of glimpses during the invasion as well. It's enough to form an opinion, isn't it?" And there was always their recent sparring together. Plus the fact that well, maybe he just liked watching Drift period."You have passion and intensity few could match, Drift."

[sword_redemption]

"I just don't want to make the mistake of not seeing what I do clearly." He gives a shrug. He'd followed Megatron, blindly, loyally, trusting the ends to justify the means, never asking, never looking at himself and what he did...until he sold out a whole city, because he was jealous of its perfection.

He concedes the point. He'd been too focused on fighting to check up on Wing, for his part. "It's...I enjoy it too much."

[winged_knight]

"An understandable concern. It's your choice, just know that you have one."

Wing's role as aerial scout let him see a lot of things, and watching enemy movements around the groups of melee combatants had been an important task. "But you channel it in beneficial ways, do you not? You know and are wary of the risks."

[sword_redemption]

"I know." A flare of irritation before he realized he brought it on himself.

"Not always. On Messatine, I killed someone. He was...he wasn't a threat." Still, still making mistakes. Still reaching for violence instead of...anything.

[winged_knight]

He almost draws his hand away, startled by the flash of irritation.

Drift's words are disquieting, that Wing cannot deny. It shows in his face, both concern for the lapse and empathy for its effect on Drift. "You have more than a millennia of habit to break. But you're right to let it trouble you, it's how we learn to do better." He wants to ask what happened, but not here, not now. Not when things have been so happy...

In a way though, it's relevant. "You know, I chose that particular kata for a reason."

[sword_redemption]

"I know. I just get impatient. Because I never get it right." He shrugs it off. It's not important and he gladly seizes on the change of topic.

"What is it about?"

[winged_knight]

He nods, understanding what Drift is feeling, even if only in part.

"This kata is actually a narrative, more symbolic than anything else now, no more than a fable, but they say it was based off the life of a real person." He starts warming to the topic, the edge of tension from the earlier topic fading. "A reckless youth who took many things for granted, including his own gifts. He made many mistakes but owned none of them, never learning the lessons life was trying to teach him. So when life truly challenged him wasn't ready." Wing shakes his head and his tone shifts, not unlike the kata itself had. "But even faced with his greatest failing he's still determined to survive. Because even though it breaks him, in that breaking he's freed from his previous limitations. Lessons are learned that allow him to come back stronger, gentle and wiser, tapping sources of power he didn't know he had."

Wing comes back to himself then, a little caught up in the story before, gently clearing his vocalizer.

"Ah, but yes. That's the kata's inspiration. It can't tell the whole story obviously, but it captures the core of the symbolism. A person's life challenges, ones that rise against us or that we bring upon ourselves, and how even if we are defeated by them, we can take knowledge from that and still rise to be better than we were before."

"It's reminded me of a lot of things lately." The war, this world, his own defeat. "But mostly of you..." A pause with a nervous smile, because though it's something like a gift he's not sure how it will be received. "It's inspiring."

*resurrects dead tag*

[sword_redemption]

((I never got the notif for this, I'm so sorry and it's such a beautiful tag. If this happens again please poke me! I feel awful about letting such a beautiful tag languish))

Drift pauses, turning the performance over and over in his mind, playing through it with the story in his mind. He nods, slowly. "It's....I didn't know you could tell stories like that."

Another pause. "I've...tried to overcome. But in my case, most of the obstacles have been...me." He tries, belatedly, to make it a joke.

Thank you! :3 And no worries, this log was chaos! But it's never too late to necro tags! ~<3!

[winged_knight]

He nods, "I was amazed myself. There are others like it; someone with a talent for choreography created them, though only I know a few. Sometimes wish I had such a talent," he adds, his tone wistful.

"But you have Drift. The fact that you've come this far on your new path is proof of how much you've overcome. Sometimes it's a multi-step process, and well, yes, sometimes we get in our own way." He's all for keeping things a little light-hearted, chuckling softly, "But I'm glad that aspect isn't reflected directly in the kata. Tripping over my own feet and falling face-first doesn't exactly make for a classy performance."

[sword_redemption]

"How did you learn to do that?" Because the idea that this was its own thing, an art form or something, that had experts and masters just boggled him.

"I am trying. And then I got brought here and...sometimes I don't know what that means." Because it has to mean something right?

But that was grim. He smiles, instead, at Wing's last image, his voice light and teasing. Well, as much as he can be. "You'd manage to make it look graceful."

[winged_knight]

"One of great skill and knowledge taught me. And in theory, I would teach another, possibly even a new generation. It's living history, not confined to data archives and code." It's really how Wing prefers it. What good was having historical records if they sat untouched? He offers, gently: "I could teach you...if you wanted?"

"I have been thinking on that myself." He nods, slowly, as if reluctant to move into the heavier subject. "But... Drift, we were both dying when we were brought here. I wonder...I wonder if we were saved for a reason?"

It's a sobering thought, but also kindles a small sense of wonder...

"Graceful?" Wing grabs at the lighter subject. "I could only hope so! I suppose it would be entertainment regardless." He laughs a self effacing laugh. As usual, Wing was looking on the bright side of any situation.

[sword_redemption]

"So you know enough to make up new dances." Kata, whatever. They could bring that to this place, turn their stories into something beautiful. It was spark-trembling to think of. He gets distracted by the thought, his optics going distant for a trifle too long to play off as normal.

He brightens even more. "It can't be accidental, can it? Someone. Something wants us here." He knows his faith is just that--faith, but he believes it. Nothing that's happened in his life was random. He can see the path if he looks, sometimes, event to event to event, leading him here and now.

"...I wouldn't have been ready before."

[winged_knight]

"I could, yes." It's not something he'd thought of; only to bring old history, old katas, to those here who did not know them. But if this is the beginning, isn't this the history that needed to be preserved the most? A grin lights up his face, "You're right Drift, we should!" And then he realizes his assumption, "That is...if you wish to help me?"

Drift's acceptance of the idea serves only as encouragement, that brightness reflected in Wing. "Yes! That's what I'm starting to believe. What if we're needed here. Maybe there's some contribution we need to make, to help shape this world? I--I really believe things happen for a reason, good and bad. We can't always understand why at the time, we can't see the bigger picture because we're too close to it...but I don't think any of this is by chance."

Wing smiles, his eyes lambent with emotion; wonder, pride and gratitude among them. "I'm glad you are now, Drift."

[sword_redemption]

Oh wow this is hard. Leeeeet's see. Work with Wing, intensively, so he'd have to be in a lot of contact with him.

Huh. Wow. Drift's really going to have to weigh this decision carefully.

"Yes!" He blurts it out so fast that he actually rocks forward.

Right. That was smooth, Drift. Really. He subsides, sheepishly. "We, uh, maybe could look into that. There has to be a library around here or something."

[winged_knight]

Oh delicious thoughts, they are so very distracting, and there are certainly plenty in relation to this proposed project. Unsurprisingly, Drift's resounding 'yes' is met with nothing but delight from the jet.

"Wonderful! I'm so glad. And well," Wing taps a finger to his chin thoughtfully, a little gleam appearing in his optics, "There are some katas I know that require a partner, which...could be an interesting element to work with too."

The comment about the library though, surprises him. "Oh, a good question, I hadn't thought of that... Perhaps one of the temples has one?"