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Post by KI3T on Jan 12, 2012 19:26:26 GMT -5
"That is true, though I am more used to communicating with your kind now. I feel more connected to your kind than I do the humans, but alienated all the same." I do not mind though, KARR and I were designed to be just that, unique. KITT surveyed Blindspot calmly then, and listened to the waves. If any other Decepticon stood before him, he would have felt differently.
He wasn't sure what else to say then, and felt the awkwardness settle in while he awaited a response.
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Post by blindspot on Jan 12, 2012 22:45:04 GMT -5
Blindspot tilted his head and looked out over the waves. Even though he was only one of many mass-produced soldiers, he was unique. The drones might have all started out similar, but the sum of their experiences had shaped them into individuals. Blindspot couldn’t quite wrap his mind around that concept, though. “I do not really know what that is like--to be truly unique--but I am glad it does not distress you. I rather like that aspect about you.”
Unique. Blindspot certainly thought that definition fit KITT. He certainly wasn’t like anyone the drone had met before. He was a strange mix of what both Cybertron and Earth had to offer physically, and mentally… he was hard to categorize. Blindspot didn’t mind that. KITT might have been feeling awkward in the silence stretching between them, but Blindspot felt quite comfortable in the silence. It was nice to be able just to be with someone, to not have to worry too hard about proving your worth or wonder whether or not the other would take it into their head to harm you.
Even with VC216, he’d never quite felt this… comfortable.
Blindspot caught a distant flash of headlights as a car turned somewhere far along the coast, a lone rider on the winding road. “I think we should race again sometime,” he said, suddenly, in an offhand manner. He was trying a little too hard to sound casual. “Perhaps, when we meet next, it should not be by accident?” Here he glanced in KITT’s direction slightly, so he could view the car out of the corner of his visor.
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Post by KI3T on Jan 12, 2012 23:36:43 GMT -5
"That can certainly be arranged." KITT replied contently, now disregarding the awkwardness. He rumbled his engine, anticipating a good race. "Perhaps we can meet up before the New Year." he suggested.
He began to get used to the silence, it wasn't so bad, being comfortable around others even in silence was a good thing. He settled, relaxing to the pulse of the waves once again. KITT liked it out here, Italy was different from many of the places he'd been to in the United States.
"I don't need to sleep, only reduce power to conserve fuel. In the morning when the sun rises I can recharge my power cells and I'll be refreshed. If you need to leave at some point, feel free. I will be here for quite some time." KITT offered.
---Timeskip to the next morning---
KITT would go pick up Cira from the hotel around ten in the morning. He was fully recharged, and did not require gas any longer since his upgrades.
((after Spot posts ill find a good way to enter in Tex and the dialog between Cira and KITT will occur fully))
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Post by blindspot on Jan 13, 2012 0:25:50 GMT -5
Blindspot nodded. “Very well. I should probably leave to recharge soon.” He needed to conserve his energon reserves (otherwise he might have challenged KITT to a race right then and there). Being so far from the base, and days from possible aid, it would be wise to keep himself tanked up, as it were. One never knew what could happen. He sat with KITT for a little while longer before finally excusing himself, bidding his new friend a heartfelt good-night before he shifted and rolled off to find a place to rest.
He ended up sheltering in a parking garage. Overriding the electronic gates was an easy task for a Decepticon, and in the dark, he locked up and slipped into a peaceful, contented recharge.
---
When morning came, the drone awoke with a low, static-filled groan. He rolled groggily, slowly backward, connected with a wall, and then rolled forward, still with painstaking slowness. Most Cybertronians could leap straight out of recharge with no problem, but Blindspot had more than a few defects in his design. One of the problems that plagued some of the older-model drones, such as himself, was an error with their startup registry. The suite of programs was supposed to leap to life, but only a handful of Blindspot’s came up after recharge. The rest of them had to be accessed and activated manually, a process that took several minutes.
Simply put, Blindspot was not a morning person.
He rolled out into the sunlight, moving sluggishly to a place where he could park under the invigorating warmth of the sun. His frame’s temperature dropped dramatically while he recharged, another oddity that came as a result of his poor construction. While annoying, it was not life-threatening, though. Blindspot wearily sorted through his registry while his engine warmed up.
This was why he didn’t notice as a car that was nearly identical pulled up into the same parking lot, coming to rest about ten yards away. Nor did the drone notice when the car’s door opened, letting a well-dressed man out into the sunlight. He continued to fail to notice right up until the moment when the man slapped his driver’s side door, and, whistling, said, “Damn, 207, when’s the last time you hit a wash-rack?”
Startled, Blindspot immediately turned his attention on the man. He could immediately tell that this human-shaped visitor was not a human, and, still groggy and unsure what to say, blurted out, “There are no wash-racks available.” In another instant he recognized his visitor as a fellow drone. He gave the holoform a quick scan, waiting to retrieve the other’s serial number.
“Yeah, but you know, these humans, they have this thing they call a car wash.” The man leaned against Spot’s door. “And if you don’t wanna go to an automated one, there are places where humans will give you a good rub-down, too. I got a nice clean-up just yesterday. This local radio station was doing a fundraiser.” The man grinned, looking at Spot over the tops of his sunglasses; his eyes were a very curious shade of brown. They looked almost red in the early-morning light. “And you haven’t lived until you’ve gotten lathered up by a bunch of babes in bikinis.”
Blindspot’s bogged-down systems finally came back with a serial number, though he had a suspicion he knew he was talking to. VC866. “No, thank you,” he replied, his raspy voice deadpan. “But it is nice to see you again, all the same, 866.”
“You just don’t know what you’re missing,” 866 replied, patting Blindspot’s hood consolingly.
“I am fairly certain that I do. I don’t see how you can stand it.”
“Hey, there are some things that are just universally attractive. Well-shaped femmes are one of those things, and it turns out humans just happen to fall into that category." He shrugged, and grinned wickedly. “Besides, I’m not the only one going native. Who’s your friend?”
Blindspot was too sleepy to make the immediate connection. “Pardon?”
“That car you were driving around with yesterday. Yeah, I saw you. I figured I’d let you have your fun. I didn’t know you had an alt-mode fixation, 206.” 866 elbowed Blindspot’s driver door suggestively.
“I--you--I do not have a fixation!” Blindspot sputtered.
“Of course you don’t.” 866 replied, sounding thoroughly unconvinced. “But seriously, who is he? He’s obviously no normal vehicle. I saw him drive into the ocean. But he isn’t giving off a Decepticon signal, either. Having a bit of a forbidden liaison, are we?” 866 was not threatening Blindspot when he said this. He sounded hugely amused of the whole thing--approving, even.
“No,” Blindspot snapped back, “he is a neutral entity.”
“So you getting your liaise on with a neutral entity.”
“I am not getting my anything on with anybody--”
“Little 206 is finally becoming a mech.” 866 put his hand over his chest, sniffing theatrically.
“I’m older than you!” Blindspot protested. 866 just laughed, slapping Spot's driver’s side door again, and shook his head.
“Okay, okay, point taken. Either way, 207, you’re fine by me. What the bosses won’t know won’t hurt ‘em, I always say. I was taking a little bit of a vacation myself.” He shrugged. “So, can I meet these friends of yours? More importantly, can I meet your car-friend’s driver?”
“Miss Knight?”
“Yeah. I like her. She looks like she knows how to handle a sophisticated vehicle.” 866 grinned broadly, and across the lot, his alt mode gave its engine an enthusiastic rev.
Blindspot sighed, long and low. “You glitching xenophile,” he said, without any real rancor.
“Uhh, look who’s talking?” 866 cocked a brow. “Anyway, can I? I don’t wanna scare them off. That’s why I’m asking.”
“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt, as long as you behave yourself,” Blindspot grumbled. “Give me a few moments to finish warming up, and you may follow me to Miss Knight’s hotel.”
---
Blindspot pulled into the hotel cautiously, casting about for KITT. He didn’t want the other to be intimidated by the presence of another drone. He had tried to get 866 to wait for him across the street, but 866 was one of the more unruly drones, and instead came right along with him.
Side-by-side, they were clearly cars of the same make, but were still quite different. 866 was shinier, for one, with a gleaming, polished finish. He was also immaculately clean, something that the dusty, somewhat dinged-up Blindspot was not. 866’s coloration was also lighter, more obviously purple, whereas Blindspot’s leaned more towards a strange purple-iridescent black.
<“KITT, are you nearby?”> Blindspot pinged cautiously. <“I have been followed here, but do not by alarmed; my company is harmless. Annoying, but harmless.”>
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Post by KI3T on Jan 13, 2012 2:28:54 GMT -5
KITT was almost right in front of the entrance waiting for Cira. When he noticed Blindspot and another drone that was nearly identical to him, e flashed his parking brakes at him, hoping to get his attention. <"I am over here, towards the front. Good morning to you and your friend."> KITT spoke up to Blindspot shortly after his brakes lit up temporarily. KITT was appearing as his pearly white 1976 Mustang Cobra form again, still trying to stay low in another country in case he was recognized.
He surveyed the more purple drone with more regard than caution, noting how similar the two were. Well Blindspot certainly wasn't lying when he said there were drones like him out there. Within moments of this occurrence, KITT spotted Cira with her bag approach the revolving doors and walk out towards his alternate mode, having known he would be in something other than his "Default Mustang Form", as she and those at FLAG now called it.
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Post by Cira Knight on Jan 13, 2012 2:35:48 GMT -5
It didn't take long for Cira's attention to perk up at seeing Blindspot and another drone not far away from KITT. She smiled towards Blindspot in acknowledgment. She couldn't help but let herself ogle at the beautiful purple paint job of the other drone. She did like Blindspot's dark-ish midnight purple color, but she also liked the more bold shades of purple as well. The fact was that Cira LOVED purple (as Blindspot had already found this out on their first encounter). She also liked blue and black, as well as darker shades of pink.
"Mornin." Cira greeted when she hopped in the driver's seat after making sure all her items were secure in the rear compartment. She made sure her AA12 and other weapons other than her wrist blades which were still on her wrists were behind the seats on the small rear bench. "I see yer friend brought someone else along. 'Nother day of adventures, eh? 'Least we've got a few leads and we're not slacking off. I did some research on mah laptop after you sent me that text about "Earth Defense"." she said with a grin as KITT pulled away slowly.
"Yes indeed. The results I found were worrisome..."
"Yeh...makes me wonder what we should say ta th' bosses when we get back."
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Post by blindspot on Jan 13, 2012 2:52:00 GMT -5
866 noticed her eyes on his paint job, and he revved his engine in greeting, clearly pleased at getting attention from a pretty human lady. Blindspot would have rolled his eyes, if he’d been able. The older drone fell into place behind KITT, content to follow for now. <“866, you were supposed to meet me here in three days. You are quite a bit early.”>
<“I might have fudged my arrival time a little bit on the last report. It got me a few vacation days, eh? And it got you some, too. I always said you could stand to loosen up more.”>
<“I am sufficiently ‘loosened up,’ thank you very much.”>
<“207, my pal, you have no idea.”> 866 revved his engine again, passing Blindspot and heading for KITT. Blindspot was not worried that 866 would suddenly become aggressive and ruin the tentative truce in the air. Clearly, he had other things on his mind. “Hey lady,” 866 called, pulling up next to KITT. His true voice was much deeper than the voice his holoform used, as dark and smooth as his coloration, “lemme know if you wanna go for a ride in a real speed machine, eh?”
<“I officially apologize for his behavior,”> Blindspot commed KITT, <“866 means no harm. He is… young. And impulsive.”>
“I’ll let you take the wheel anytime you like!”
<“And he has this thing for human women; I do not personally understand it.”>
At this point, 866 and KITT were side-by-side. Blindspot was trailing behind at a somewhat more leisurely pace, keeping the two of them in his sight. He was torn between exasperation with 866’s incorrigible behavior and amusement at it. The drone couldn’t help but wonder what poor Miss Knight’s reaction to the overly-friendly drone would be.
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Post by KI3T on Jan 13, 2012 3:10:30 GMT -5
<"It'll be fine, Blindspot. Cira isn't uncomfortable around Cybertronians, this one will be no different for her. She'll be able to handle his flirting if he gets too pushy without assistance."> KITT replied, finding this other drone's behavior amusing, especially for a Decepticon. He just knew Cira was bound to ask about a race sometime soon, he could sense it. <"So what is in store for today before we end up slacking off and have fun in Italy?"> KITT asked. <"I thought this one wasn't supposed to arrive for another night or two.">
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Post by Cira Knight on Jan 13, 2012 3:11:44 GMT -5
"Oh, yah'd let meh drive eh? That might not be such a good idea, ask KITT er Jazz how I drive, I take after his Dad, I've left KITT terrified in da past." Cira snickered, glancing over at the more purple drone as they drove out of the hotel's property. She was quite amused by this. "Hey, maybe we can have a 3 car race here and soon. We oughta make use of these nice roads and we didn't race yesterday!"
"I suppose I have no objections to a race as long as we can find a decent location to start without causing much chaos." KITT replied, wondering if Blindspot was up for a race earlier than anticipated.
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Post by blindspot on Jan 13, 2012 3:32:22 GMT -5
Blindspot was relieved that KITT seemed to be taking 866’s outrageous behavior in stride, but then again, should he have expected anything else from the refreshingly level-headed vehicle? Probably not. <“I do not know 866 as well as I know some other drones, but he’s harmless.”> Well, harmless until his ire was provoked. <“You are right. He wasn’t supposed to arrive quite so soon, but apparently he was here all day yesterday, as well. According to 866, he needed a vacation,”> Blindspot concluded dryly.
“Ooh, a three-way sounds great to me,” 866 replied with a grin in his voice. “They know how to make roads here in Italy. A race sounds perfect.”
Blindspot immediately commed him. <“No, 866. We need to be conserving our energon. You know we are very far from base, and our superior officer won’t be here for pickup for days! What if something goes wrong?”>
“Nothing’s going to go wrong, 207! He doesn’t think racing is a good idea right now,” he explained to Cira and KITT. Privately, he replied, <“I thought you loved racing!”>
<“I do, but duty comes before pleasure. What if one of us gets injured in an accident? Without extra energon, there would be little I could do if you severed an energon line!”>
<"Nobody is going to get hurt, 207. Trust me. Besides, I’ve got the shipment--the medical energon, remember? We’ve got plenty to spare if your prophecy of doom plays out.”> He paused thoughtfully for a moment. 207 had no problem turning down some upstart drone, but KITT was another matter entirely… <“Hey, KITT,”> he commed the Mustang, <“207’s worrying about things he doesn’t need to be worrying about. He ain't gonna listen to me if I tell him to loosen up, but he probably won't say no to you. Help me out, eh? Get his engine revving or something?”>
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Post by KI3T on Jan 13, 2012 3:46:21 GMT -5
KITT chuckled. "Don't worry, Blindspot, I have my weapons as well if anything goes wrong, I assure you we'll be fine. A race in a new place, a new country is hard for me to pass up. It would be even better if you were in on it." KITT said to Blindspot. Luckily KITT didn't exactly need Energon like the drones did, or, as much since the upgrades.
Cira tapped her fingers to the beat of a song called "Till I Collapse" by Eminem in KITT's sound system, one of the few rap songs she liked. "Say, you wanna take me up on that offer?" she said to 866 anxiously with a grin.
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Post by blindspot on Jan 13, 2012 3:56:41 GMT -5
Blindspot exvented in a huff. Well, now he was being ganged up on, and that wasn’t fair at all! Still, KITT wasn’t pressuring him. He was just being polite. Aside from that, the thought that KITT would enjoy the race more if Blindspot was in it was curiously pleasing to the drone. KITT didn’t just want to race. He wanted to race with Blindspot. That jolt of warmth shot through his spark again. <“You are just as bad as he is,”> He admonished, but he was more amused than exasperated. <“But when you put it that way…">
He pulled up to the other side of KITT, gunning his engine in challenge. Blindspot was game.
“Of course!” 866 replied cheerfully to Cira. “Okay, I know a place not too far from here. Nice, wide roads, plenty of dangerous curves. You’re riding with me, right, babe?” On a private channel, he added, to KITT, <“Damn, that was quick! I dunno how you did it that fast, but good job sweet-talking 207!”>
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Post by KI3T on Jan 13, 2012 4:04:19 GMT -5
<"Thank you. Racing was how we met. Let's pull over so Cira can change seats."> KITT said to 866.
He scooched forward by accelerating a few miles per hour and pulled over to a curb to let Cira out. It would be even more fun for him to be driving solo this time, normally Cira was with him when he raced after all. This would certainly be fun. In a new place too! KITT revved his engine in excitement as he waited.
"866 should lead the way since he has a starting location picked out." KITT advised as he waited.
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Post by Cira Knight on Jan 13, 2012 4:08:49 GMT -5
Cira grabbed her AA12 shotgun from the rear seat just in case before hopping out with an equal amount of excitement once KITT parked. "Do keep in mind that I'm loyal to the certain 'Bot I mentioned named Jazz, but there's absolutely no harm racin' in a willing Decepticon if they dun show signs of aggression - it's a rare find after all! I love racing. I hope I don't scare ya!" she laughed, more like cackled as she approached 866 and waited for him to open the driver's door.
How would Jazz react if he found out about this? He might be angered and jealous that they were hanging out with Decepticons, but as far as she and KITT could tell so far, these ones were harmless and fun! Much like Wheelie that way!
"I've sorta tried ta ride a Decepticon with a motorcycle alternate mode durring a fight, but he was very pissy an' I didn't have control for long 'cause he got me off by feigning a ram into a wall." Cira grinned, remembering that fight almost fondly.
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Post by blindspot on Jan 13, 2012 4:27:04 GMT -5
Cira’s take on the two drones was nearly correct. Blindspot was a genuinely harmless creature. It took a lot to push him to violence. 866 was more playful than his older counterpart, but his willingness to interact peacefully came from an innate desire to defy his superiors. He chafed under their authoritative rule. He was not harmless, and he would kill, if he had to. He was just more focused on enjoying himself, for the time being.
Besides, why should he be an aggressive jerk, and drive off all the pretty ladies? He popped his driver’s side door for Cira to slide in. “I’ll let you take the reigns, miss, but if things get hairy, I might take ‘em back, eh? As for Jazz, well, he ain’t here, so I don’t think he’ll have a problem with this.” His holoform was deactivated, so Cira would have the interior all to herself.
And it was one hell of a sweet interior; the seats were plush black leather with lavender stitching. The dashboard was matte black, with the occasional metallic gleaming indigo accent. The speedometer and other such controls were also rendered in rich glowing purple, and the radio was similarly adorned. The dials all kicked to life as 866 led the way. “A pissy motorcycle, eh? The pissiest motorcycle I know is Whiplash. The kid’s mental. Did he have tentacles, this motorcycle of yours?”
Blindspot flickered his lights for KITT to go ahead of him. He would bring up the rear, for now. “I cannot believe you have talked me into this,” he rasped briefly, amusedly, before they drove off and the sound of the three cars’ engines drowned out his voice.
The route that 866 intended to take was not a coastal road, but rather one that wound into the Italian interior. For the most part the terrain it wove over was broad and flat, but towards the middle it passed over some high ridges, giving plenty of twists, turns, and blind corners. “You think you can handle this?” He asked Cira.
Blindspot drew up beside KITT now, feeling anticipation sweep through him. Despite his earlier concerns, he was getting revved up already, and was eager to test his mettle against KITT once again, and this time properly. In this race, he would get to see what KITT was really made of. His fellow Decepticon didn’t even factor into his equations. He knew 866, and 866 wasn’t the fastest drone around. “I hope you are ready, KITT,” he rasped, his earlier reluctance replaced by a cocky hint of confidence.
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