Fundamental Failure to Fly

[redshirtrobot]

WHO: Fracas and YOU! Yes, YOU!
WHERE: All over the Haven
WHEN: Over the course of the next week (7/8 to 7/13)
WHAT: Fracas is practicing flying... unfortunately he's not so good at it yet.
WARNINGS: n/a, to be updated as needed


Fracas had been a car since forever. No, really. It was what he had always been. Wheels were the way he got around; it was why he suggested the roads in the first place. His undercarriage was so sore from rocks and stray junk he had to do something. Besides walking, anyway.

Changing to the body of a flier has... been something of an adjustment.

Okay, it's been a lot of adjustment. One he's still not entirely there with. But practicing combat with Shockwave had helped his fighting abilities. So practicing flying will help with that. At least, he hopes so.

If only it didn't end with him crashing so much.

Wing flaps are more difficult to deal with than he'd expected. If not for those, he'd have the flying part down. The landing not so much. As it is, he's only got down the takeoff. But one out of three ain't bad, right?
... Right?

Beware, Haven. For this week, a certain now-teal Vehicon is going to be in the sky. And nobody will be safe from him unexpectedly dropping out of the sky. Not even if you're in a temple; he might just crash right through your wall, in fact. Hope you were planning some renovations!

Comments

[staresat]

Shockwave is just minding his own business, lurking in the deep recesses of the caves in Liege's quadrant. Doing science in your lair takes up quite a bit of time, you know! It eats into your social activities like you wouldn't believe.

Fortunately, he's been cutting down on travel time with the use of a Space Bridge (one that has a temporarily limited range, mind, but he's working on that.).

In fact, here he is opening up a portal right now. At the other end, a familiar looking green vortex opens up near the Vehicon's flight path.

How good are you at suddenly avoiding portals, Fracas?

[redshirtrobot]

The answer: not very good at all. Fracas reacts to it opening in roughly the same way a student driver might react to a squirrel hopping into the middle of the road - by veering wildly. Except that his veering does not mean he crashes into a tree.

Instead, he ends up spinning right through Shockwave's space bridge with a startled scream, arriving on the other side by bouncing and skidding along the floor. It doesn't stop when he transforms back into base mode, as he somehow manages to trip on his own feet and collide with a table.

Shockwave didn't need any of that stuff Fracas just ran into, right?

[staresat]

Shockwave follows the teal flier with his optic as he careens into his lab, knocking over some (mostly) harmless vials of glowing fluids. A few of the spilled liquids begin to swirl together and react to each other, bubbling fervently.

He probably needed that, but not enough to squeeze any anger out of the Decepticon Scientist. He closes the Bridge and turns to face him, closing the distance between them in a few heavy steps.

There's no hand to help him up, but Fracas does get an intrigued stare.

[redshirtrobot]

Fracas kicks a couple times before he manages to find his footing, pushing away from the table and standing. Okay that bubbling is... not normal. He cringes a little at it before fully turning around-

-and coming face-to-face with Shockwave's chest.

Well, Starscream did tell him to drop in on the scientist, didn't he?

Fracas's wings flick down and he visibly shrinks back for a moment, before he straightens and salutes, putting on his best Neutral Soldier Face. It's gotten better since he quit wearing his mask. "S-sir. My apologies, I didn't mean to... do that."

[staresat]

Good enough. Shockwave wasn't particularly strict with the chain of command on this New Cybertron. The fact that Fracas acknowledged it was enough for him.

He breaks the gaze with the Vehicon to briefly examine the damage he'd done, and then drifting towards those new wings.

It was only after he'd finished his little vivisection of the situation that he met optics with Fracas again.

"You've changed."

Time to do a little explaining.

[redshirtrobot]

The chain of command has been slightly confusing since he arrived here. But Fracas knows when someone is higher ranked and that he should acknowledge it. That was all that mattered.

His wings flick again, nervously, and he straightens further when Shockwave looks to him again. "I..." Well. He kind of expected Shockwave to see through what changes he could make.

"Yes. Starscream, he." 'Has a reputation', he doesn't feel the need to remind. Every Vehicon knows about his team-killing antics and he doubts it would escape the officers. Even the ones that mysteriously vanished. Fracas starts over. "I can't be what I am anymore. For my own safety."

[staresat]

Hiding from Starscream, are we? Rather telling of his effectiveness. Shockwave was never much a fan of the slim sleeker's leadership, and only tolerated his presence. Barely. The fact that Fracas wanted to hide from him wasn't entirely unexpected.

"Logical. Considering his personality."

Shockwave turns to right the containers that had been spilled over, relieving the Vehicon of the intense stare for a few more moments. A retrofitted scouting drone hovers near the table to clean up the fluid, and he takes a step back from the table.

"And flying does not come naturally to you."

[redshirtrobot]

Well, when you're the only Vehicon and your superior has a reputation for murdering Vehicons... Shockwave doesn't have that sort of a reputation, though. From what Fracas could gather he was a more rational sort.

"It was the best solution I could think of."

And it fools Starscream for now, so it's working as planned.

Fracas finally relaxes when Shockwave looks away from him, though he murmurs another apology, looking to the drone. Huh. Knock Out has a few of those in his clinic...

"No, sir. I... had wheels, originally. I've only started flying since my reformat."