Armada 'verse. Team headquarters in Cyber City. Morale building exercise

[random_xtras]

Ironhide appears in the room where he and his sister have been taking their recharge since they arrived here, and looks around carefully to make sure that he's reached the right place this time. He'd intended a quick trip to the Nexus, just to see if he couldn't catch some word of Bumblebee. But instead he'd wound up in another, smaller nexus lined with lockers and littered with human clothing. One of the rooms of this place had been stacked to the ceiling with energon.

There was blue energon there. There was green.

Ironhide's arms are full, and he walks carefully as he goes to the empty common room and arranges his armload neatly on the table before vanishing and reappearing with more. This also arranged to his liking, he grabs a cube of the green and walks out the front door to trade for the last thing that every perfect drinking party needs. It takes a little while to find a mech who has what he wants, but if he still had emotions Ironhide would be very pleased as he returns to the laden table with packets of various-coloured minerals in one hand. He hasn't had this much energon additives since before he'd first left his native Cybertron. And the person he'd traded them from seemed to think they were paint pigments!

Rumbling, he settles down and mixes careful doses of several different powders into a cube of blue, then sips appreciatively as he waits for some of his new teammates to show up.

Comments

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

"...put the wind up them," Waterlog growls at his shipmate as they return from a very brief visit to the outside world. The hovercraft sounds almost scolding as he tramps through the back door, one hand clamped on Stormcloud's arm.

"Yeeeah," Stormcloud drawls. "That's why we do it."

Waterlog snorts, cocking his head and listening for any stragglers who might tell on them to Oceanglide. "You remember our captain's words, matey. Stir the bottom-feeders in this city..."

"And we'll get the admiralty coming down on our heads," Stormcloud finishes gloomily, pushing away from the other Minicon and tramping down toward the common room. "Fragging stupid planet, all slagging city and nothing worth slagging going outside for..."

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Ironhide lets air out of his fuel lines in a rather resounding burp, then flips his first cube into nothingness and considers whether he wants to mix another, or to have some green. Remembering how long it's been since he's had the green, he reaches for a cube of that, then adds the proper minerals to sweeten the rather raw tasting product before taking a deep pull.

Yes, this is supposed to be sipped. No, he's never gone by that tradition.

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"I don't usually think much at all," rumbles Ironhide flatly. "You want carbon if you're going to mix those two. They reek otherwise."

And carbon+energon=sweet.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

That gets him a disbelieving look solely in the name of 'did he really say that?'

But Stormcloud's not taking his word drinkwise, either. The Minicon forgoes the carbon - though not without a second's hesitation as he glances at it. But instead he chucks a couple of handfuls from both his chosen packets into a smallish cube and kicks it hard enough to send the additives swirling through the liquid - far from an even mixture, but it's how he's used to doing it.

That done, he tries out the result... and doesn't quite wince. "I thought you said it was bad," he says, looking up and trying to clear the taste from his fuel lines.

He's not actually faking, which says something about what the team's had to survive on in the past.

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"I know." The green crystal is carefully added to his foamy brew, and then the indifferent gaze flicks back to Stormcloud as he names a colony that vanished long long ago.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

"Thunder," Waterlog comments in no-one's actual direction, "she went down afore our like was spawned."

Stormcloud laughs. "Frag, you really are an ancient clunker."

Polite conversation - they're not much good at it.

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The old Autobot scans for pursuers and for any sign of damage to the black Minicon, his drink halfway to his mouth as his optics narrow slightly.

"Nightscream," he says calmly.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Nightscream's alone, and though the day's antics have left him with a a couple of dents, he's not really damaged.

Stormcloud makes a sound of irritated disappointment. "Too bad that's all." Really, he is. An intruder would be (legitimate) fun.

"Sink me," Waterlog says amiably. "Don't the little bilge rat know what doors be for?"

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"I'm not stopping anyone from coming." Ironhide regains his feet with his usual creaking, then turns to head back, snagging the additive packets along the way.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Nightscream follows the noise. "Yeah, but you're not waiting for Cliffjumper and the Killjoys to get back either, are you?" He's pretty sure he's caught something illicit in progress, and he's curious about what.

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Ironhide mentally notes Stormcloud's estimated capacity, then looks at the younger Minicon. "One that's banned in some ports."

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Nightscream looks from the drink to the Autobot, curious as his voice is raw. "I've seen a lot of contraband stuff, but I never saw that one before. What's it called?"

A low, tuneful sound rises from Waterlog's side of the table, and Stormcloud pauses with his cup raised to glance over. The hovercraft-bot's humming to himself.

[random_xtras]

"It's good for your audio receptors," says the old Autobot as the drink lets out a soft swirl of melody at the movement. "And your taste receptors."

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Nightscream's visor brightens with pleasure as he fixes on the sound. He swirls it as he was told to, listening to the sound that elicits. "All right, I admit it: that's a pretty neat trick."

The sound draws Stormcloud, his Chromia long downed, to see what the noise is about. "'S that... coming from where I think it's coming from?"

He's got a tank full of ultra-high-grade. It's hard to be sure.

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"Be hard for me to bring back anymore energon." Ironhide reaches for Stormcloud, indifferent to the threat to his person.

This looks to end badly, where's Armorhide?

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

"Those be the rules, matey," Waterlog growls, a second before he notices the motion. He drops his weapon into firing position and locks on with a snarl-

"What do you think you're doing?"

The Minicons hold in place as Armorhide's voice sounds across the room like a smack from the flat of a blade. Assorted sensors swivel to where the blue and silver mech has just tramped into the doorway.

[random_xtras]

"Don't waste," says Ironhide emotionlessly, then pushes aside the finished drink to have another taste of his Chromia, which sparks and flashes in his face. "There are more cups in the crate, anyone who wants help themselves to the singer and the fizzer."

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Stormcloud gives him a sidelong look, just in the act of tipping that handful of foam onto Armorhide's helm. He lets the rest of it fall as Armorhide blinks at the Autobot, then slips away quietly as the blue Minicon frowns and swipes at the top of his own head.

"Great!" Nightscream lets out a high whistle as he heads straight for the singer with his cup. "Hey, Armorhide, you want some?" He looks round and bursts out laughing as he spots the plough-bot with his new head of foam.

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//Perhaps I'll mix you a soother.// He scoops out a portion of the fizzer for himself, then leans his chin on his fist and watches everyone else at the table.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

//Sounds right for what I need,// she sighs. //Guess I'll talk to you later.//

Spurred by the chance to show up the others, Stormcloud is moving in on the drink named for Tyger Pax. Nightscream actually looks slightly worried as he watches; Armorhide is looking at his drink and debating whether or not he wants to see what happens next.

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Ironhide glances at Waterlog and then has another sip of singer as he quirks a brow plate at Armorhide, awaiting the silver and blue Minicon's reply.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Waterlog's reaction to his partner's plight is high amusement. Stormcloud shoots the guffawing Minicon a filthy look, then turns it on Nightscream and anyone else who might be laughing. He doesn't dare to activate his vocaliser yet.

"Kinda glad I didn't volunteer for that one," Armorhide chuckles, turning away from the darkening yellow glare. "This time."

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"And this one's the calcian that makes the pink and yellow stuff stay with you." He taps a packet full of dull greyish chalky stuff.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

"Hmmm." Armorhide peers at it. "You're a bit of an expert on this, aren't you?"

He's distracted, though, by Cliffjumper informing everyone over the team comm channel that she and Ironhide are on their way back. The geologist's voice is worn, but not completely despondent. Armorhide privately decides to save his queries for when she's in the door.

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"What about you?" repeats the old Autobot, as he sends images of Stormcloud and Waterlog to Ironhide.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

"What, history or hobbies?"

Ironhide takes a couple of seconds to respond. //...What'd you feed them?// True, Waterlog's still on his feet, but he's far more unbalanced by the weight of his leaning team-mate than he should be.

And there's a clatter from the outer door which indicates Nightscream's return. He's not alone, though.

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Ironhide nods, but then realizes what the wink means and tries to chuckle. It doesn't sound very realistic. And it's mostly drowned out by the lightening storm going on in his cube at the moment anyway.

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

Oceanglide gives it a curious look as he joins them, leaning against the table. He lifts his cube to Ironhide politely before he tastes it. "My thanks."

The Autobot may be able to see by now that Cliffjumper and Ironhide are halfway down the street outside.

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"Good." He reaches down and taps her gently, pretending to wipe away dust, then moves his leg a little. "Have a seat."

[sole-captain.livejournal.com]

She looks round at him, reaching up to touch his hand, and then follows his suggestion silently, careful not to spill her drink as she settles down at his side.

Waterlog leaves Stormcloud propped in the corner, gravitating back towards the discussion at the table... and yanking Nightscream after him as the black mech tries to pass. "Hey! Glitchhead! Whaddya think you're doing?"

"Keeping the peace," Waterlog sneers, making it sound like a synonym of 'handling filth'.

Ironhide leans against her alt and focuses on listening to Cliffjumper. They'll be moving out tomorrow, at last. She's looking forward to ditching this town.