ANH. Bespin Station. It just might be getting worse; we'll get back to you

[astrotechmech]

The room where Jetfire and Arcee find themselves after Nemesis Prime finishes torturing Jetfire maybe be small, dark, and bare, but it is not completely soundproof.

Muffled voices can be heard in the hall outside of the "dungeon" sometime after the 'Troopers throw them in. Jetfire might be able to recognize that one voice is a very irritated Smokescreen.

"I'm going in."

"But sir! You can't!--I mean, shouldn't! You've seen what happened. That mech might--

"You're not changing my mind on this, mech."

"I mean, look at what happened this morning! There's no telling--"

"Out of my way, mech."

"But, sir! Sir!"

It is at this moment that the door opens, and the voices become clear and attached to faces, starting with Smokescreen as he turns to give a parting shot to the concerned security mech behind him before crossing the dungeon's threshold.

"If Jetfire wants to harm me, so be it! I deserve every blow I get after what I've done to him!"

Even in the dim lighting, it will be quite apparent that Smokescreen is not exactly "running on all four pistons." As he storms in, the two in the room will be able to see that--along with being the embodiment of annoyance right now--he is showing the signs of exhaustion. . . . Something that implies that he didn't get a lot of recharge in last night, and also that he's been employing a "poker face" to conceal that fact for most of the day. As it is, Smokescreen has to restrain himself from leaning on something within the room once he is inside.

The security guard bursts into the room soon after. "Sir, I--"

The security mech stops when he takes in the others in the room, instantly clamming up and falling into Smokescreen's 'shadow'. "Greenie" is figuratively written all over his face.

Comments

[random_xtras]

"Oh, this oughtta be good." Jetfire's quiet voice drips sarcasm.

"Just listen." Arcee sighs and leans her forehead against his side for a moment, trying to gather her strength. "Remember what you told him."

Jetfire sucks air in through his intakes and switches off his optics, then nods. "Whatever."

[astrotechmech]

"Jetfire, let me start out by saying that I'd want nothing more than to be able to switch places with you . . ." Smokescreen stops to reflect on that for a moment. "And if the Imps hadn't intercepted your communique with us, maybe I would be." Be in Jetfire's position now, he means. It would certainly have been better than betraying a friend, that much he knew.

"I don't think I have to tell you that if it were just me and L--"--Smokescreen stops before he slips anything more. Jetfire might also notice that a certain Minicon is, once again, oddly absent--"if it were just me that I'd've gone down fighting to the last beat of my spark before I let any of this happen." And from what Jetfire will remember of the mech, he should know, deep down, that Smokescreen is not bluffing when he says this. "But it's not, and I can't. The people of this station aren't fighters. They're counting on me to keep them safe. And I need to do my best to keep them that way."

[random_xtras]

"Whatever," repeats Jetfire, trying to keep his voice hard and indifferent, though he turns his face away so that Smokescreen and the guard can't see the traitorous brightness in his eyes that he's too weak to conceal.

He forgets about the arm that's around Arcee, and doesn't realize that he's tightened it protectively.

[astrotechmech]

The security guard's frown grows deeper with each of Jetfire's seemingly indifferent answers, but Smokescreen knows better. Or at least he will once he observes Jetfire's body language and lets it sink in during the moments of silence that follow.

"Sideswipe," Smokescreen begins finally, turning to the security guard, "go and fetch a couple of cubes of low grade, would ya?"

The security mech, "Sideswipe," appears surprised. "But sir--!"

"Now Sideswipe," Smokescreen orders, sharply. "If it's against Nemesis Prime's wishes, he should have spelled it out!" Suddenly realizing that he's letting the day get to him, he sighs and rubs his optics. He then adds, a bit resignedly, "Please, Sideswipe, just do it."

That wasn't all that Sideswipe was going to point out, but he can see his boss is stressed enough without his adding to it. "Uh, of course, sir! Right away!" And Sideswipe rushes from the room.

[random_xtras]

Arcee frowns at Smokescreen, her blue optics wary and pained as she wonders just what is going on here. Jetfire has told her that he told Smokescreen about Kia, which suggests that he has at least a little trust in the mech (or that he's got several screws loose in his processor- she's still not sure which), but she herself doesn't know Smokescreen and his sending away of the guard has made her suspect the worst.

Jetfire, for his part, is still scowling toward the wall.

[astrotechmech]

Unaware of Arcee's look, Smokescreen waits until the door slides shut behind Sideswipe before going over to lean back against one of the supporting beams--a move that he will surely be regretting later, crossing his arms.

He gives Jetfire a few minutes to continue to scowl at the wall--during which time Smokescreen himself absently stares at the floor--before he breaks the silence again.

"I wish I had good news for you, Jetfire," Smokescreen starts, "but I don't really have any for ya. Right now Nemesis Prime has agreed to let Arcee and the astrotechs stay here. They wouldn't be allowed to leave, but I'd at least be able to keep them safe." Smokescreen lets that sink in before he continues. "But it wasn't suppose to be like this. None of this was supposed to happen like it did. You were supposed to all have been able to leave after Nemesis Prime was done . . . but he's added the bounty hunter to the mix and changed the deal on me. . . . And I wouldn't really be surprised if he did it again."

Smokescreen pauses. "Not like I have any way of stopping him. I don't have any leverage. Nothing is keeping Nemesis Prime from just taking any thing he wants except for whimsy. . . . And I don't like it.

"It's like I'm trying to play Sabacc with the worse hand in recorded history and still expect to come out all right. And all I've got is Nemesis Prime's word as a false sense of security that I actually do have some control over this blasted situation and the advice of some old mech who claims to know a thing or two about fighting evil to rely on--something conventional wisdom would strongly argue against. . . . I can't afford to get cocky and overplay it."

Smokescreen sighs and rubs at his optics again. Then he chuckles dryly as something occurs to him. "Reminds me of the Sabacc game we played where I lost the Falcon to ya, Jetfire. That was a terrible hand. I don't know why I thought it was good enough to beat ya."

[random_xtras]

"Probably the same reason you think any of us are gonna survive this," say Jetfire quietly, still staring at the wall.

Arcee frowns up at him, then looks back to Smokescreen. "Old mech?"

[astrotechmech]

Smokescreen looks up from his hand, disregarding Arcee for the moment in favor of focusing on Jetfire. " . . . It's a bit worse than even that, Jetfire . . . Hot Shot is a friend of yours, isn't he?"

[random_xtras]

That makes Jetfire turn away from the wall, his expression a confused scowl. "The kid? I... might'a met him."

Arcee has a hand over her mouth now, and her optics are bright with dismay as she remembers hearing the young pilot referred to as a Jedi and her mind goes to reasons why the dark Prime might be interested in him.

[astrotechmech]

"He is the one Nemesis Prime's really after," Smokescreen says, seeing that Jetfire and Arcee know more about this 'Hot Shot' than Jetfire is willing to let on and letting it go. "What's happening to the two of you is just some fancy of Prime's as far as I can tell."

[random_xtras]

"No," says Arcee, shaking her head and moving her hand from her mouth to her temple. "No, he knows exactly what he's doing. That's why he never asked us any questions in the torture room. We're not important at all. Except as bait."

Jetfire stares down at her for a click, his surprise showing despite his efforts to wear his poker face. Then he speaks quietly and hurriedly. "The kid can feel this somehow?"

"I wouldn't be surprised," says Arcee softly. "It's something the Jedi could do in the old stories."

[astrotechmech]

Smokescreen shifts his position against the beam, crossing his arms and deepening his frown in thought. Despite his supposed current lack of poker face, he doesn't look as surprised as he should be.