2350/Bob MkII

Bob MkII
Date of Scene:	31 May 2015
Location:	Cybertron-2
Synopsis:	Revan follows a distress signal to Cybertron, and finds a new friend there.
Cast of Characters:	414, Blurr

---

Blurr has posed:
    Cybertron. Once a glowing amethyst of wealth and prosperity. Its surface was once gleaming with the light of life, its streets teeming with activity. Resources were aplenty, and it seemed as if life would just go on forever and ever, just as it was.

    But alas, here we are, millions of meta-cycles (Earth years) later, staring at a barren and desolate expanse of ruined structures; pieces of a once-great civilization. Dangers lurk at every corner of the rugged terrain--and if anyone is here, it's not because they -want- to be. Most of everyone is either dead or has fled the crumbling surface. Well, that's just what happens when people go to war with themselves for not hundreds of years, or even thousands, but -millions-.

    So why is Blurr here? Hiding out in the ruins of the defunct capital city-state of Iacon? Well, he's been on a long-term investigation of the strange behavior displayed by the savage Insecticon horde that has been running wild on the planet for some time. Thus far he and his Union allies have been able to figure out that there's -something-, or someONE, hiding in the multi-tiered bowels of the planet, who is manipulating the Swarm to their will. And whoever that is doesn't want anyone going down there.

    Whoever it is, they're hiding -something-...

    The retired racer has run into a bit of foul luck this particular cycle, though, and had found himself cornered by a horde of Swarm. Fortunately though, he'd managed to get off a distress beacon in time, in hopes that the other Autobots or perhaps the Union would pick up on it and come to the rescue.

Revan (414) has posed:
     Distress calls aren't always answered when they need to be, dependent upon both being received in time and whether or not the ones answering it are able to make it in time. Fortunately, today was a day where both those factors came into alignment.
         Minutes went by, but then there was the roar of engines overhead as a Dynamic-class freighter surged from out of the nearest warpgate.

     On board the Ebon Hawk, its pilot barked a question at the squat utility droid at a nearby panel. "T3, do you have a lock on that signal?"

t Rather than a humanoid voice, T3-M4 responded with a series of electronic chirps and whistles. "Great. Take over for me, I'm providing some suppressing fire." To a much smaller robot -- only 12 inches tall -- but who otherwise looked very close to human, she issued a different order. "Ulaire, take over monitoring and let me know when we can begin extraction."

     The Wafebunny-model shinki replied crisply even as she snapped off a salute before positioning herself in front of a monitor. "Ma'am, yes ma'am!"

     The ship turned and hovered above the swarm of Insecticons before the laser turrets swivelled as Lowri Revan-Shan dropped into the seat and opened fire on the bizarre enemy droids below. There were too many to drop down and begin extraction immediately...or at least provide their rescuee some manoeuvring room.

Blurr has posed:
    The horde appears to have congregated in front of a dilapidated and half-crumbling structure of some sort, all of them trying to push their way inside at once. It hasn't proven very successful though, since the doorways are too small to accommodate more than one or two at once.

    However, when Revan's ship appears and opens fire, their attention is drawn. Some of them fly up on horribly twisted-looking wings and attempt to drive their mandibles into it as if ravenously hungry and the ship is their meal. The ship's weaponry sends some of them to a fiery death on the ground, but a couple of them manage to latch onto the hull and start chewing away in a terrible cacophony of grinding and crunching noises!

Revan (414) has posed:
     "Augh, Dammit!" the Guardian cursed as the ship was suddenly rocked as some of the insectoids latched onto the hull. An indignant electronic protest issued out of her headset as T3 made his displeasure known at that unexpected turn...and the damage it was doing to the ship. "I know, I know," she replied testily as she swivelled the turret further to the left to snipe off two more. "See if you can shake..."

     And then /another/ sudden shift as more Insecticons latched on. "Belay that! Take us up! I'm going to have to remove them manually!"

     The utility droid's reply was incredulous, but he obeyed, and the ship lifted up just out of reach. At the same time, Lowri jumped out of the turret seat before running down the short corridor to the ladder leading to the ship's top.

     "Here's hoping the air is breathable," she muttered before opening the hatch and using the Force to lift herself up and out. Landing in a crouch with one of her lightsabers in her right hand and already activated, she relayed another order to the droid. "OK, I'm out. Keep the Hawk as steady as you can, all right?"

     From her position, the nearest Insecticons would be blast with an Ionize pulse through the Force to overload and disable their circuitry before moving to intercept...or that was the plan. What worked on simple droids and electronic systems might not necessarily work on much more sophisticated robotics systems.

Blurr has posed:
    Fortunately for Revan, these Insecticons are far from being as sophisticated as the rest of their kind. There was a reason they were throwaway experiments. Meaning -failed- ones. Hence, they really aren't very durable at all. The pulse knocks them senseless before they can lash out at her, and they fall off of the ship, hurtling toward the ground as they succumb to the mechanical planet's gravity. The hull took some damage, but nothing irreparable, fortuitously enough. Therefore, the coast is now clear for the Jedi to approach the distress signal, given that the assault from the star freighter appears to have driven the ground-bound Swarm members away.

Revan (414) has posed:
     "Ulaire, is the coast clear?" she radioed her shinki. It certainly seemed as if the swarm had backed off, but the pale-haired Jedi wasn't entirely sure she could rely on the Force in the same way when it came to these kinds of robots. There had been something called the 'Allspark' explained to her briefly over the broadband --something which had sounded an awful lot like the Force -- in addition to the 'sparks' which animated this race of mechanical beings, so it may have been possible to sense them like any organic being connected to it. Reaching out through the Force, she was unable to pick up any traces of them once they had fled.

     "They're all gone, ma'am," Ulaire confirmed. "There's no sign of them on scan."

     So even if it were possible to sense the swarm, they were already out of range. "Thanks, Ulaire. T3, go ahead and take us down to that building where the signal was traced to, but I want you to take the Ebon Hawk out of range once I'm off."

     The droid protested, and the shinki made a soft uncomfortable noise. "I'll be fine, you two. I'll call you down if it looks like things are about to get hot again, I promise."

     She could tell neither of them was very happy with the idea, but they obeyed. Once the freighter touched down, the Guardian leapt off the ship, using the Force to cushion a landing which would have injured a human being otherwise before following the signal to its source. But while she had yet to sense any danger, Revan remained ready to grab the lightsabers from her belt. Just in case.

Blurr has posed:
    It's a good thing she did remain ready, because as soon as she enters the building, there are two more mechanical presences detected. There are also hissing and crunching noises that sound much like the noises she'd heard when the insectoids had been digging into her ship as if it were a buffet.

    It's very dusty in here, and looks as if it has been abandoned for centuries, which it has. The corridors and rooms are huge, though that shouldn't come as a surprise given the size of the beings it was no doubt designed to accommodate. Walls are cracked and crumbling, and debris litters the floor. Some of said debris look like scorched robotic body parts, fresh with internal fluids still dripping and glistening on the severed ends.

    There's a short hallway and then a large open room that might have at one time been multiple rooms, but the walls are gone, so it is now one large room. On the floor off in the corner is Blurr, sprawled facedown on the floor in a pool of some lavender-colored fluid. And...one of those things looks to be digging into his chasiss with its claws. It kind of resembles a massive mantid-wasp with three sets of gleaming yellow optics. Quite hideous, much like the others.

Revan (414) has posed:
     For once, Revan refrained from her usual sarcastic quipping upon entering the ruins. She had seen far too many atrocities and tragedies in her lifetime -- some of which she unfortunately couldn't yet remember -- to make light of them. In the back of her mind, she wished she could have seen this planet when it was still a vibrant place; it must have been a spectacular sight to behold. Now, all she could do for the moment was come to the aid of a Union ally.

     And indeed, she recognised the Autobot lying facedown and unconscious...at least seconds before she snatched her lightsabers from her belt and ignited them, hurling the one in her left hand at the grotesque insect-droid. "Hey! Over here, core-slime!"

     It was too close to Blurr to risk another ion blast; she didn't know enough about their workings yet to determine whether it would be safe or not. Moreover, she needed to dispatch the creature quickly, because the Jedi had a feeling that lavender liquid was something quite vital to the Cybertronian's physiology.

Blurr has posed:
    The creature hisses in pain when one of the sabers strikes it in its side, whirling around to face its enemy. Its wings beat angrily, and it charges at her, its bladed front legs lashing out at her in an attempt to grab her and devour her.

    There hasn't been much to eat on this desolated planet, to say the least, save for the extremely rare occasion that someone or something -alive- comes within the Swarm's reach. Desperate even for a human-sized snack, it is definitely trying to eat her alive.

Revan (414) has posed:
     The distraction was successful, which was good. And now the very large wasp-mantid robot-creature was charging at her, as intended...but now it seemed as if it wanted to /eat/ her, which was bad. This was yet another new experience for the Jedi; no droid or robot had ever attempted /that/ before. A very sad state of affairs on a devastated world, without a doubt.

     What was worse is that she was still unsure about the range of the Ionize ability, which tended to jump from target to target and fry nearly everything within range. It looked like the Guardian was going to have to melee the creature.

     "You're uglier than a kinrath, aren't you?" she quipped, unable to /completely/ help herself. Of course, that wasn't entirely accurate; there was something about the creature which, while admittedly on the grotesque side, was similarly interesting. That was even before the consideration that it was a machine more complex than many droids. Failed experiment or not, it was nonetheless remarkable. Pity it had to be destroyed if she was going to help Blurr out.

     Swiping at the bizarre robot in a flurry of rapid lightsaber strikes, Revan attempted to force it on the defensive. "Sorry, but I have terrible taste," she remarked with a slight smirk. Such a shame Juno wasn't around to appreciate her self-deprecatory quip.

Blurr has posed:
    The lightsaber strikes are successful in cutting off bits of the Insecticon's front claws, as well as stabbing it in the mouth where it is no doubt more sensitive than its outer armor. A light green liquid spews forth from the wound. It howls in pain and backs away, but isn't quite ready to give up yet.

    The monstrosity's wings beat again as it lifts itself slightly above the ground, and its abdomen twists to point toward her. What appears to be a series of darts filled with venom shoot out of it, though with her small size in comparison to the thing, Revan might have an easier time dodging or deflecting them than a Cybertronian would.

Revan (414) has posed:
     "Just don't know when to give up, do you?" the pale-haired Jedi grunted. While they might not have been quite as durable as some of the heavier droids she'd faced, but enough of them would wear out anyone...as evidenced by the landscape, robotic parts, and unconscious Autobot nearby. She'd hoped to conserve her strength, driving it off by persuading it that she was more trouble than she was worth. That tactic didn't seem to be working very well.

     Especially not when the Insecticon began shooting venom darts at her. Now that was some familiar territory; the aforementioned kinrath dwelling in Dantooine's caves were likewise venomous and she'd been poisoned a few times herself before training up her resistance to poisons. But that didn't mean she would be able to resist altogether alien toxins...and what was poisonous for a Cybertronian might be even more deadly to a human. Even a Jedi.

     That comparatively diminutive size turned out to help as Lowri shifted her stance for one normally used to deflect blaster bolts. It was a similar principle to deflect poison darts...though she could feel one grazing her arm. Poisoned or not, it stung more than a little.

     Gritting her teeth, the Jedi reached out with the Force to give the creature a good solid shove backward, hopefully giving her enough time for a necessary decisive strike.

Blurr has posed:
    No, the Swarm does not give up very easily at all. Given their starved state, they are certainly desperate for anything that could give them more satisfaction than the dead debris that littered this wasteland, which was just about anything -alive-. Which was likely why it wouldn't be easy to convince this thing she was more trouble than she was worth. Because she was worth a -lot- more than dead things or scrap metal.

    Most of the darts are successfully deflected, the shots going wide and splattering against the walls of the room. Though when one does graze her, the liquid sears into the open wound, eating away at some of her flesh--it's definitely acidic. Still, her injuries are hardly grievous compared to Blurr's right now.

    The telekinetic strike via the Force sends the creature hurtling backward. It smashes hard into a wall with a resounding crash, then slumps to the floor, stunned from the impact. If Revan wishes to make sure the thing -won't- be attacking either her or her ally again, now is the time!

Revan (414) has posed:
     Lowri drew a sharp hissing breath through gritted teeth; acid had been a very unwelcome surprise. She was fortunate indeed that she had a Jedi's healing ability or this fight would have ended quite some time ago. As it was, she was likely going to need some quality time with a kolto pack once they were out of harm's way. Or maybe some of that bacta Juno and Kyle mentioned...

     "Ugh...just die already," she found herself muttering a phrase one of her former companions often used in similar predicaments. Already, this fight was taking longer than it should if she was going to be able to help her Union ally...

     And there it was, the Force Push successfully gave her that necessary opening. With a hoarse yell, Revan closed the distance with a leap, bearing down on the insectiod with both lightsabers in a double strike carried forward by some Force-assisted momentum.

Blurr has posed:
    The dual lightsaber strike bears down on the insect's body, tearing its armor asunder. More greenish fluid spurts from the wounds created by the weapons.

    The creature shrieks in pain and attempts to buck her off of itself and scurry away in a hasty retreat--though it does not get very far. It is clearly no longer a threat, however, as it simply collapses in the doorway from pain and exhaustion, whimpering pathetically and making no further hostile moves.

Revan (414) has posed:
     Revan almost felt bad for the poor creature...or rather, she did feel badly. Still, it was a dangerous creature which would have devoured her if it had been able. And her objective was to help Blurr...she didn't have time to waste.

     Powering down her lightsabers and returning the to her belt, she picked her way over to the prone Autobot. While the first aid for organic beings was largely going to be useless, checking for responsiveness was probably still a good start. "Blurr, can you hear me? It's Lowri Revan-Shan, I received your distress signal."

     But even if he wasn't able to respond, the Jedi used her skills in repairing droids to check for where that leak was coming from. The Guardian was more than a little out of her depth with robots of a Cybertronian's sophistication, but it would have to do in a pinch. At least she should be able to stop a leak.

     Where things were going to be even more of a challenge was if she needed to move him, something which would strain even the most powerful of Masters. And as much as she wanted to keep T3 on the Ebon Hawk in case of an emergency, she might have to call him outside if there was more work than she could handle on her own.

Blurr has posed:
    Blurr is not responsive at all. The lights on his body glow faintly but he doesn't seem to have the strength to reply to her. As she draws nearer, she can tell that his injuries are even worse than she'd perhaps been able to discern earlier. In fact, an entire lower arm and part of a leg is missing, and there are gaping holes in his side and back where the insectoids had begun to turn him into their next meal.

    Indeed, it would take the best of even the most skilled Masters to pick up a being of such size and carry him the distance required to get him outside the building where the Ebon Hawk could do the rest of the work.

    Oddly enough, the creature she had just been fighting has turned its optics on her, watching her curiously though it doesn't make any hostile moves at all. It seems almost...sheepish? Was that even the right word?

Revan (414) has posed:
     "Well, this is a fine mess..." Lowri muttered to herself before radioing the Ebon Hawk. "T3, it looks like I'm going to need your help after all. I found the signal and we've got a union ally down in here...one of the Autobots. Way too big for me to handle and I'm going to need your help. Ulaire, see if you can get a signal to headquarters."

     With their respective forms of acknowledgement, the droid and the shinki set to work while Revan began to examine the fallen Cybertronian. Even with what little she knew, it didn't look good.

     Strangely, even in this task she felt the optics of the Insecticon on her. She turned, but oddly it didn't seem to be contemplating a second round. Nor was it thrashing around from its injuries.

     "You don't have to be scared, I won't hurt you any more," she reassured it, though she personally doubted that her words would have any effect. "I've got my hands full saving the bot your were trying to eat."

     The Jedi sighed. "Not that there seems to be much of /anything/ for repairs or food out here..."

Blurr has posed:
    The Insecticon peers at her as she speaks soothingly to it, and even if it may not understand her words, it certainly can hear the tone in her voice. It watches as she communicates with the rest of her team. Then tentatively, timorously, it approaches her, inching slowly along, perhaps hoping that she won't think it has another round planned...

    At that moment, Blurr finally stirs slightly, groaning in pain. He pushes himself into a sitting position with the one hand he does still have, glancing at Raven and then at the Insecticon. "...kk.k.R-revan?" he stammers, his voice laced with static.

Revan (414) has posed:
     Lowri let the Insecticon be for the moment, analysing the situation before T3 could get down the corridor. "Be careful, there are still hostiles in the area," she warned. "Don't mind the big bug once you get down here..."

     And then she had to wait for a moment as T3 let out a chirp of disbelief. "No, trust me, this one won't attack...I took care of it already. Just watch yourself on the way down. Ion weapons seem to be enough to at least stun them."

     she was admittedly a little surprised when Blurr sat up. "Yes, it's me," she replied. "Careful...you took a real beating. Let's see about getting you repaired enough to get out of here."

     Her head jerked back slightly towards the now-timid Insecticon. "And don't worry about that one, I already had a 'chat' with him. I don't think he'll be attacking again anytime soon."

Blurr has posed:
    Cybertronians are remarkably resilient, physically that is. After all, the ones still alive right now have lived through millions of years of war.

    Blurr considers the situation, then pulls a small glowing object from a compartment and hands it to her. "Herefeedthistoitit'llhelpyouifyouhelpit." He tells Revan, though his words are running together in his 'natural' way of speaking. He actually has to concentrate a bit, to get himself to not talk at the same speed he is accustomed to moving.

Revan (414) has posed:
     Their resilience was one more reason droids fascinated the Jedi Knight, but bots were a breed apart. Yet that resilience had come at a terrible price. Though the memories of war had largely been purged from her mind, the flashes she could remember -- not to mention her own race to save the Republic from decimation at the hands of her former friend and apprentice as Sith -- were more than enough. And the Cybertronians had been fighting even further back than the Infinite Empire. As flexible as her mind was, even Revan couldn't comprehend the Autobots' hell.

     At least that flexibility as well as her linguistic gifts helped in this situation. Lowri was fairly certain she would have been completely unable to parse Blurr's natural speech otherwise.

     The Jedi grinned as she took the glowing mystery object. "He did seem a little hungry," she quipped, deliberately understating that the poor thing was starving.

     Turning and approaching the insect-bot, Revan extended the object to it carefully. "Here, little guy...I won't hurt you. Maybe this might help, hmm?"

     'Little guy,' she calls it, a robot much bigger than she is.

Blurr has posed:
    Yes, so little! Not. The insectoid towers at least several feet above her head, actually. But when she offers the item given, the creature's optics widen and it quickly takes the 'treat', devouring it desperately. The extra energy allows some of its wounds to heal partly, and it regains some of its strength.

    However, instead of renewing its attacks, it lowers its head, crouching on its segmented legs before her as if in a show of gratitude, respect, and inferiority. It was true, it seemed she had gained a new 'friend'.

    Blurr smirks slightly at the sight of this. "Hungrywouldbeanunderstatement...they'reprettystarvedreallycan'tblamethemforexisting..." Well, they lived -here-. Not exactly what one would call prime real estate.

Revan (414) has posed:
     It was true, the Jedi's general outlook was more than a little skewed than what was probably normal for many people...to say nothing of her sense of humour. Even brainwashing seemed to have done nothing to help...though at least that had righted hr path away from well-intentioned extremism.

     Not to mention that the Insecticon /was/ small...by Cybertronian standards.

     "It's a pity that there's not any viable way to feed them that I noticed," Lowri replied. "Not that I have any idea what happened here, but it's still cruel for them to slowly starve to death."

     And she meant it; it might have been strange for an organic being to have compassion for mechanical beings, yet here she was.

Blurr has posed:
    Yes, it is somewhat small by Cybertronian standards, so perhaps that wasn't unfounded, though it is still considerably larger than she is. But it is indeed strange that an organic like herself would have compassion for a mechanical creature, such a thing was rare in this particular universe. Most organics viewed mechanical beings with utmost contempt.

    Thus, Blurr watches her curiously. "You...feelsorryforit?" He asks, surprised. "Huh..." He looks as if he is about to say something more, but his optics flicker. He's been leaking out for a while, and has been weakening slowly. But perhaps, with the now-loyal insectoid's help, Revan can at least get him outside where her ship may be waiting.

Revan (414) has posed:
     To Blurr's question, Revan grinned slightly. "I have, shall we say, a bit of a soft spot for droids and bots," she replied with a hint of mystery. It was one thing which had annoyed at least one of her Masters, she could vaguely remember, but she wasn't about to change that even had she wanted to. They fascinated her far too much.

     But she caught that flicker in his optics. The Guardian wasn't entirely certain how that would translate to human ailments, but it was probably not good. Not to mention he was still leaking out.

     Luckily, there was the timely arrival of the squat utility droid. "Just in time, T3. See if you can stabilise that leak...at least enough for us to get out of here."

     Mismatched eyes flicked to her new 'friend'. It was still debatable how much it could understand her, but she decided to try regardless. "Can you help? He's leaking pretty badly."

     As the three set to work, Lowri considered a rather important issue. "Will you be able to transform?" she asked Blurras she worked. "My ship's big enough for a few low vehicles, but not much else."

Blurr has posed:
    Blurr doesn't reply directly to the question, but he recognizes that space may be an issue. It'll be painful as frag, but what else could they do? Thus, his body begins to fold up on itself, slowly and painstakingly. But finally he manages it.

    When Revan requests the help of her new 'friend', the Insecticon peers at her inquisitively for a moment at first not sure what she wants. But when the other droids enter and begin working to try to repair Blurr, it seems to recognize that she is trying to rescue him. The creatures may appear at first to be nothing more than savages with only base instincts, but perhaps they are not as dense as they looked. After all, Sunstreaker did manage to train one himself to become very useful.

    The creature straightens and lifts into the air slightly, awaiting a signal. Perhaps if she began to lift the Autobot with her telekinetic abilities, her new ally would catch on to what she is trying to do.

Revan (414) has posed:
     While she couldn't sense pain from a mechanical being in the same way as she could from an organic being, the Guardian possessed more mundane senses which were nevertheless sharp enough to pick up on it. Under normal circumstances, her insatiable curiosity would have watched in fascination at the transformation rather than internally wincing at how painful it must have been at this point. Perhaps later, once they were safely offworld and had fewer pieces to pick up.

     But the repair work went at such a rate that even she was amazed; even minor stabilisation would have demanded hours between T3 and herself, but with the Insecticon's help they were ready within...well, she wasn't sure how much time had passed as her own weariness had started to kick in. They might have seemed to possess only animal instincts, but if this creature was anything to go by, there was more than met the eye. It wasn't surprising, really; even sentients could be reduced to a similar state in the throes of starvation.

     At last, all that remained to do was get Blurr to the Ebon Hawk. "Go on ahead and get the Hawk prepped, T3," she told the droid, who them wheeled out through the corridor. Now the especially hard part was to come...until she noticed her new 'friend' seeming to wait for a signal. Lowri blinked in surprise for a moment before concentrating, lifting the Autobot up through the Force. It was a strain, no two ways about it. But maybe...

Blurr has posed:
    Sure enough, as Revan uses the Force to lift Blurr, pushing as hard as she can, the Insecticon quickly picks up on the cue and flies over him, grasping him by the shoulders with its front claws to help support him. It obediently moves in whatever direction she pulls with her telekinetic powers, moving up and outside to where the Ebon Hawk is.

Revan (414) has posed:
     As impressive as lifting heavy objects is, the effort puts a great deal of strain on even those strong in the Force, at least over an extended period of time. By the time they reached the freighter, Revan was more than a little exhausted, beads of sweat trickling down her face and neck. But that effort paid off, and manoeuvring Cybertron's Fastest into the ship went a lot smoother than it otherwise would have. But that was very much in part due to her insect-like assistant.

     "Whew...thanks, little guy," she commented as the hatch closed after them, leaning heavily against the wall. Yes, she was still calling him that, at least until she figured out a name for the bug-bot.

     "All right T3, get us out of here."

     The sound of engines roaring to life rumbled throughout the Ebon Hawk as the utility droid complied. "Ulaire, once we're in range let Njorn know we've got wounded f the mechanical variety and we need repair staff on hand to meet us there."

     "Yes, ma'am!"

     With the orders given, the Jedi slid to the floor with her back against the wall. She was weary, that was evident enough. Yet, she grinned up at the lone Insecticon. While she couldn't yet do anything for the rest of the unfortunate Swarm, at least one of them wasn't starving and desperate any more.

     "I guess this means you're stuck with us for the time being, hmm?"

Blurr has posed:
    And the 'little guy' seems very happy for this fact. It trots cheerfully after her onto the Hawk, though still wounded its mood seems to have improved drastically, probably because it knows that now there is hope that it won't have to be starving and destitute any more!

    It somehow manages to squeeze itself onto the bridge, and lie down contentedly to watch her pilot the vessel back to base. She could probably teach it a few more tricks, to say the least, and likely learn much more about Cybertronians from studying it. Okay, it's still ugly as heck. But...who said ugly can't be cute?!