[ti]Ep 2[/ti]Ep 2- Dancing In The Ring of Fire [ Closed | Bumblebee ]

[Breakdown]

Timeline:
Episode 2 | Week 4 | Day 2

---

    Supplies were rather sparse, yes, but they were still generous considering that there was still a war happening and the Decepticons couldn't just give up everything they had on their Warship for the sake of the truce. That would have been foolish! Haven would just have to manage with what each side could give without the risk of leaving themselves without enough to defend against an attack from the opposing faction. The control room had a functional control room with an operational groundbridge and that should have been more than enough technology provided by either party. Still, there was what could be considered spare 'muscle' in standard comparison given as well, but only when on their own or in their own group setting. When next to a mech toughened out by war?

     Well... a little Vehicon was hardly able to be called that much anymore.

     Lacky, however, would always do as a title for them. Good thing the actual muscle who was accompanying them didn't think of them that way, or else they would be needing to carry the heavier of items that required two or more. Instead, stacks of the heavier crates were being carried by a single mech through the bridge, direct from the Nemesis, and much to the gratitude of the smaller Vehicons.

     "This outta be the last of them," Breakdown said as he carried the crates down the hall to the storage hold. He set them down then stood upright and patted one of of them with a bit of a huff. The thought of having to hand over what he felt was more than enough on their part to the Autotrash annoyed him but he wouldn't dare take it out on the rather harmless Vehicons. So he merely kept his temper in check to continue working on a mellow mood point. 

     "Those Autopunks better be thankful for all the stuff we're giving them. This truce is so weird. Can you imagine? We gotta work WITH them instead of clobbering their faceplates in. Can't wait until it's over so things can get back to normal."

     He took one of the smaller crates handed to him by one of the Vehicons and stacked that up on the pile he had just brought in. He spotted a group of the workers shoving some crates around near a rather large stack and whistled over to them to get them to look his way.

     "Hey! Be careful there. Try to straighten out that out some!" There was reason to be concerned! The stacking was sloppy and it made him a little uneasy, especially since it was right where everyone was just tossing things around willy-nilly. Breakdown pointed to the awkwardly lopsided stack, particularly at the ones who were not completely on top of the crates below and hung dangerously off by a couple of corners here or a whole side there.

     When the vehicons indicated their acknowledgement of his notions and started to push things around, Breakdown pulled his attention away to put another crate up, making sure that it was stacked almost perfectly in place with the other one. Lead through example and all that. No reason to yell at the Vehicons and tell them they were doing a horrible job when you could just show them and instruct them how to do things better. Everyone understood a bit easier when you weren't hollering at them and chasing them down with insults every which way, right? Breakdown could just focus on what he was doing and not have to worry...

     Breakdown paused when he heard something metallic fall behind him. He looked over his shoulder to where he had warned the workers only a klik before to watch what they were doing, and clearly they hadn't heeded his warning to error on the side of caution. One of the crates had been bumped by a smaller one that was shoved in before it could be properly aligned, causing the center point of gravity to be thrown off and the three to four high stack from that point started to sway and tilt... 

     "MOVE!"

     The Vehicons saw what was happening and were frantically trying to stop it, but their much smaller frames didn't stand much of a chance against damage should something inside the crates be heavy enough with enough gravity pulling it downward. Even in spite of Breakdown yelling, some didn't get it, and desperate attempts were made to catch what they could to keep as much from breaking as possible. The top crate then fell, the corner hitting the one below it, and then everything came crashing down, with shouts from Vehicons carrying as some of them flailed about and tried to run away from the chaos unfolding. 

     Breakdown moved in as quickly as he could, trying to take control of the situation as he rammed his shoulder into one of the stacks to shove it back which stopped a couple of the supply crates from falling save for the top ones. The ones already coming down? Well, they would strike and so would the Mech. His hammers were called to the ready in an instant and he hit the crates unable to be stopped off to the side, not caring so much about the contents. It was a loud scene, one that would definitely get some attention ( probably unwanted, but that would be dealt with later ), but Breakdown didn't care. Once quiet came to the storage facility again, Breakdown stood in a clearing free of broken parts that were otherwise thrown all over the place, both in small and large chunks alike. In that clearing with him? A vehicon who hadn't run to save his own aft like the others did. 

     "You okay?" Breakdown's hammers flipped for servos to take their places and he reached one out to help the Vehicon to his pedes. "The next time that someone yells move, you really should listen. Cut the loss. That could have been really bad." 

     Bad in the sense that the Vehicon could have been injured. The storage room floor was a lost cause, with the scattered pieces all over the places as they were blindly hit away. Breakdown inhaled and shook his helm, motioning for the other Vehicons to come over.

     "Come on. The faster we get this mess cleaned up, the faster you can get back to the Nemesis." He was already knelt down and picking up chunks of this and that and throwing them in one of the empty crates to be sorted through later. Maybe some of the stuff was salvageable. 

     Breakdown would send the Vehicons back through the groundbridge once they were done, just as he promised. As for him? He wanted to linger around for a bit to see just what this facility was all about. He already didn't feel comfortable being so far from his partner with MECH running around and a mysterious location being what kept them apart didn't set well with him. So he wanted to ensure this place was safe before he'd trust to let Knock Out come here and be out of his sights for any lengthy period of time.

     Exploration would come AFTER clean up, though, of course. 

[Bumblebee]

“A-Whoops!” Came the reply of the poor Vehicon who hadn't moved fast enough, and had been knocked onto his aft by the tidal wave of heavy crates and things that were inside them. Fight or flight mode had come into play, aaaand he'd done nothing. Just stood there. Like an idiot. Staring as the shelves fell. Clearly he wasn't exactly one of Megatron's brightest troops. Ah well. At least some of the other Vehicons had made some attempts to catch the crates, but had scattered when they realized it was a lost cause. Not this one. No siree! He had been seemingly glued to the spot in some kind of stupid awe.

He was at least thankful that it was Breakdown that was with them, as far as Decepticons went, Breakdown was nice. He actually seemed to give a slag about the Vehicons – was always talking to them and acknowledging them in the hallways as they patrolled or guarded on the Nemesis, talking them through their checkups in the Med Bay, checking in on them for followups even though he didn't have to. He was a good guy. Hence why he was so informal sounding as he replied.

“Aye! I'm good, thanks!” He reached out from the ground to grab Breakdown's servo, tugging himself up. “Sorry!” He would release Breakdown's servo, rolling his shoulders and glancing downwards to check himself for damage. No harm done! Maybe a knock to the helm but that was nothing!

There sure was a big mess to clean up now, though. The other Vehicons had come back over when motioned to, and had begun picking up the scattered items. The slower one of the group just stood there for a moment.

“Oh, right!” He too would quickly kneel, starting to pick up things and throwing them – broken or not, into the crates.

Somewhere down the corridor there were small, but determined footfalls of someone approaching the storage room where Breakdown and his lackeys were scrambling to pick things up.

Having been here just a week or so earlier, Bumblebee knew the layout of this place – and had heard the loud crash as something fell. Which was unfortunate, as that was exactly where he was headed with his own box of supplies. It wasn't just the Decepticons that were donating supplies to the neutrals as a sort of 'thank you' for letting them use their base; that and both factions could use the items for their war on MECH.

He could hear the voices echoing down the hallway, and shuddered. He'd already run into Megatron once while he was here, and didn't really want to run into him again.

Please don't be Megatron, please don't be Megatron...

He turned the corner and stood in the doorway, optics narrowing and opening as they adjusted to... Just what he'd walked in on. He was quickly reminded about a familiar scene where he'd fallen smack onto his face and dropped everything, and this looked to be about ten times worse. He recognized the big blue Decepticon. It wasn't Megatron, but it was still a Con. Eugh.

“Hey look! It's Beepy McGee! Hi Beepy McGee!” Came the cheerful voice of Mr. Slow Vehicon, and he'd stop what he was doing to wave at the little yellow Autobot. The other drones shook their heads in secondhand embarrassment as they continued on with the task at hand, gathering up what they could and putting them into crates.

Bumblebee tilted his helm in confusion. Sure there was a truce but this was just.. Weird. What? He couldn't wave back, due to having his servos occupied with a crate, but he would lift his digits just slightly in a sort of half-attempt at a wave.

--Uuh.. Yeah. Hi..? Anyway.. I got some supplies but.. Did you want me to put these down and leave you to it? They need sorting, probably. But they all go in here, that much I know.-- He looked to Breakdown as he spoke. He didn't really want to be in the same room as a Decepticon, truce or not, especially as a lone Autobot with multiple Vehicon soldiers added to the mix.

[Breakdown]

     "Remind me to have Knock Out take a look over at you, just in case. He'll be able to see if there are some pistons that aren't firing the right way." From the vocals of another it would have been considered an around-the-bush way of saying the Vehicon was stupid, but from Breakdown it was actual concern. Sure, some of the Vehicons were slow but he was worried that maybe there was some damage to his processor that wouldn't be able to be see by the bare optic. That would require the skill of his partner to determine. Hey, he was concerned, at least. If he wasn't concerned about their well-being, then who would be?

     The moment of now calm was disrupted again, not by another incident of falling crates or something breaking. No, this time it was the appearance of an Autobot. It was a good thing he wasn't trying to be sneaky about delivering the supplies he had in his arms because he was called out by the Vehicon right away. This got Breakdown's attention who stopped and looked up from his place on the floor from picking things up, and made optical contact with the yellow Autobot just as the Vehicon was waving to him. The large con would have been in defensive mode if not for the small waving gesture he caught sight of given in return of the Vehicon's greeting.

     "Well, well, if it isn't the Bugbot," he responded to Bumblebee once everyone was back to picking things up. Breakdown stood and placed a large servo on the shoulder of the Vehicon who addressed Bumblebee and motioned with his helm to return to what he was doing. It wouldn't be until the Vehicon was safely out of striking distance that Breakdown would turn his full attention to the yellow bugbot. Being sent here to deliver and sort had been one thing, but to have Bumblebee ask about what to do with his own crate? That was downright insulting to the temperamental mech, especially when he looked right at him to say it. Lucky for Bee that he had to keep anything physical in check. 

     "Don't tell me your optics are malfunctioning too." Breakdown took a jab alright, but he didn't think for a second that there wouldn't be a counter. He rolled his shoulders and lulled his helm slightly before he motioned around the room with his palm up, indicating the mess there were in the middle of. At least it was more than halfway picked up. "Does it really look like we have the time to sort YOUR slag, too? Sort it yourself, Autobrat."

     Breakdown was trying to save face in front of the Autobot, not sure how long he had actually been there since he'd been more focused on making sure no one had been crushed. He spotted a couple of Vehicons trying to stack the now resorted heavy crates again just above their helms and went over to assist them. As much as he wanted to shoot insults at the Autobot for a bit longer, he had other things he needed to focus on and the sooner they got the mess cleaned up then the sooner he could at out of the room. Breakdown just really didn't feel like being this close to an Autobot and not be able to hit him.

     Well, he technically could, but it was more that he didn't feel like having to face both faction leaders and explain why he had intentionally beaten the scrap out of the annoying beeper bot. 'Accidentally' having a crate fall on him could always be an option, though. With all the stacks and things being pushed around something could slip if the little bot wasn't careful about his surroundings.

     Now that the crate was stacked securely in place, Breakdown returned to picking up the last bits of the scattered parts, all while silently running scenarios through his processor.

[Bumblebee]

“Knock Out? Can do! I'll remind you, aye!” Came the cheery reply from the Vehicon. He was.. Kinda slow, so it didn't even register that it could be taken as an insult. This was Breakdown. He was nice. “I feel fine though, honest!” He would continue to wave at Bumblebee, even after the Autobot spoke and Breakdown replied to the yellow Scout. Only once the solid hand was placed on his shoulder did he get back to picking up the things that had been scattered.

--Bugbot?-- Wow how original, and if Bumblebee could roll his optics? He probably would've. The tone of his beeps sounded less than pleased though. He shifted the crate in his arms, hoisting it up a little more.

--Optics are just fine, thanks. But you guys seem to already be organizing.. What's one more box?--

He hadn't come here looking for a fight, he'd come here to unpack the box and leave before he ran into Decepticons, and already he'd failed that step. He had asked with the best intentions, he didn't want to get in their way since they'd obviously made a mess of things.

--But whatever, I'll do it. No need to be rude, Deceptiscum.-- Sure, there was a truce but that didn't mean he had to be nice, especially after being called Autobrat and had an uncalled for jab made at him. He wouldn't come to blows, nothing like that. He just wanted to get in, unpack the crate, get out.

He moved into the room, holding the crate to his chassis. There was a lot of shelf space in here, even more so now that things had been knocked over, so he'd move over to a clear area of shelving as far away from the big blue Con as he could. He was only half paying attention to where he was going, and while he didn't step on anything, he may have 'accidentally' kicked a few things just out of reach of Breakdown and his Vehicon buddies. Whoops.

He'd glance to what the Vehicons were doing as he started to unpack the crate, optics whirring. He was putting things neatly on the shelves, keeping things organized.

--I don't think you're sorting those right, by the way. And that one is putting broken things in the box.. I mean if you're gonna do a job.. Least do it right, yeah?-- He wasn't being mean or rude, they just weren't doing it right, and after last week with Megatron? He was wary and overly picky about organizing things properly at Haven. And what Breakdown and his buddies were doing? Was not doing it properly.

[Breakdown]

     "One more box? It's YOUR box, you lazy piece of..."

     Stop it.

     Caught himself! Knock Out would have been proud to see that moment of rage control. No, Breakdown would not allow for himself to get worked up. Whereas he wouldn't have had a second thought about breaking the bugbot who was now in the room with him otherwise, this was a very tender time for both sides. Losing his temper would mean that not only would the Vehicons suffer and possibly be caught up in his crossfire, but the truce would be violated and he would have to answer for it. Not only from Megatron, but from Optimus Prime as well. This was such a sticky situation...

     There wasn't a fraction of a klik that Breakdown even entertained the thought that Bumblebee had 'accidentally' kicked the piece of broken part that one of the Vehicons was about to pick up just out of reach. That got a growl from him but nothing more. Oh, the little Autoscrap was definitely pushing it. The piece of metal in his hand started to crunch, and it took a Vehicon poking him on the shoulder to get his attention and point to the piece for him to even realize he had completely crushed it into some unusable shape. The large mech vented and handed the piece over to be tossed in with the other items in the junk crate.

     Okay he was in the room now but he was as far away from him as possible now, organizing his own stupid stuff on the shelves. Breakdown could handle that. As long as he didn't get in his way this could go very quickly and everything would be done. The yellow annoyance could leave and he could send the Vehicons on their way. They were done with the mess so now he only had to sort through the crates and put the stuff away. The Vehicons could leave now, which was a relief in and of itself. He only needed to...

     Breakdown shot Bumblebee a glare at his comment about the organizing. It may have not been intended to be rude but it was definitely a pick of some sort and Breakdown was already bristling on the edge of a snap. So, instead of smashing his helm in? He plucked a small piece of scrap metal from the crate he was beside and pegged it at the yellow bulls-eye. He was aiming for the helm. It wouldn't have caused damage, but it probably would have at least stung.

     "They're doing the best they can. Leave them alone. You have no business bothering them." He couldn't help but to be defensive of the Vehicons. Bad enough that they were treated so poorly on the Nemesis. He wouldn't stand to have them treated poorly in any way here by the likes of... Autoslag. Breakdown made his way to a pair of Vehicons who were trying to put stuff on the shelves like how Bumblebee was doing but it was just out of their reach. He took the part from them and put it in place. "Don't worry about it, I can do this. You guys head back to the Nemesis. Go on." Breakdown's order was firm, unusual with how he usually addressed them, and it received some stares. "Go. I'll join up with you as soon as I get done here." 

     The Vehicons seemed hesitant, but with nods among themselves, the group started their way out of the storage room to leave the two alone.

[Bumblebee]

--Aint lazy. Just didn't know if you guys had a system.-- He grumbled, his beeps sounding even less than pleased than they were before – still focused on unpacking his own single crate. He was glad that Breakdown didn't finish his thought – this was awkward enough as it was without getting into an argument and petty catfight with a Deceptiscum.

There was the tiniest of smirks as Breakdown growled. Although this was well hidden and completely unseen due to the faceplate that covered Bumblebee's mouth and lower jaw. He hadn't even been trying to rile up the bigger Mech and yet..

“Breakdown. Hey. Heey. Hey! Psst,” Came the voice of Mr. Slow, and he poked the blue Mech, pointing at the thing he was crushing in his servo. “You're breaking the- There you go!” He took the poor broken piece of metal as it was handed to him... What even was this? He didn't know to begin with, and now it was bent horribly. Oh well! He put it in one of the boxes. Someone somewhere could work out what it was, possibly fix it. But not him! No siree!

Bumblebee wasn't paying attention to what was going on to his left, and as such didn't notice the scrap metal flung his way. It smacked him with a rather satisfying 'clunk', which made him stop mid-action to turn and look at Breakdown, his optics narrowed.

--Their best. Yeah. Can see that. Sorry ya don't want my advice. I ran into Megatron here last week, so I know there's a certain standard of how he wants things done. Just helping ya not get into trouble. But whatever.--

He was above throwing something back, as much as he wanted to, and would roll his shoulders, before turning back to focus on his work.

“Yup yup! We'll go back!” Came Mr. Slow once more, “Don't forget to talk to Knock Out about looking me over!” Okay so Breakdown had asked him to remind him about Knock Out.. But he probably didn't mean five minutes after he'd said it. Whatever! He'd done his job! The other Vehicons seemed hesitant to leave, and only once they did, did the more vocal Vehicon yelp a “Hey wait!” and scurry after them.

Meanwhile, Bumblebee was... Struggling. These shelves were tall. He was not. This weird looking rubber hose thing? Had to go on the top shelf. One servo on the shelf infront of himself for balance as he leant up on the very tips of his pedes – other hand stretching up above him in some awkward attempt to reach the top shelf. It was evident he needed help, but seemed to be above asking for it.

[Breakdown]

     Breakdown stared at the chatty Vehicon, not quite sure what to do about him and he scratched the top of his helm as he thought it over. It seemed like the mass production was causing some personality flaws here and there coupled with some misfires of circuitry somewhere in the processor. Well, he couldn't do anything to help with that, since Breakdown wasn't part of any of the science or medical team - officially, at least- but it would be something to bring up to Knock Out... and maybe even Flatline, if he could get over the urge to slap that mech with his own set of puny arms...

     Once the Vehicons had left Breakdown went back to work. Everything had been picked up so now it was just a matter of sorting through it and placing it where it needed to go. He picked up one of the supply crates and took it to the other side of the room where the Autobot was and set it down to go through it. There was a mix of everything in it, some of the stuff not being on his side of the room. When he glanced over to where it needed to go? He spotted the shorter Autobot struggling to get a hose on the top shelf. It was clearly out of his reach and would probably take standing on one of the crates to reach... if even that would do. Who'd even installed that shelf so high? Optimus? Megatron? Four vehicons standing on each other's shoulders?

     The dark blue mech laughed, and boy, did he enjoy doing it too. "HA! Yeah, go ahead half-sprite. I'm sure if you reach long enough you'll grow. I'm sure all your Autotwerp 'you can do it if you put your processor to it' talk is really gonna pay off for you with this one." Breakdown was rolling with the image of the Autobrat's futile attempts. He knew he'd never get up there. 

     Well, he didn't have to go over there and if the Bot needed help he would just have to be the one to give in first and ask! No way was Breakdown just going to OFFER assistance. Just because there was a truce didn't mean he had to be buddy-buddy with Bots, after all. He pulled out various items from the crate and placed them neatly on the shelves, careful that it was facing the right away and stacked up just so. This was the same method he used to organize Knock Out's medbay, so in a sense the otherwise clumsy oaf was perfect for this meager little task. No wonder he'd been sent out to do it. 

     Breakdown's servo fumbled around, feeling around for what was next. The only thing that was inside now was stuff that belonged on the Bot's side of the room. He vented and looked, seeing that the little yellow bug was still struggling to get to the upper shelf. He hadn't asked for assistance, so he probably wouldn't at this point. Breakdown imagined that he was either really hoping he could get the item up there himself or that he would just give in and assist. With a heavy vent, Breakdown looked at the ceiling and shook his helm in frustration then made his way over to where Bee was with the several small supplies for Bee's side of the room in his arms.

     "You could just ask, pest," Breakdown muttered once he was within range of Bumblebee's audials. He stopped alongside and tossed his items in the crate the smaller mech had been working on then held his servo out to take the hose. "Here, I'll get it." No, this did not make him happy, but what was he supposed to do? If Bee was to start climbing on the shelves he'd knock things over and make a bigger mess than what had already. He wasn't making optic contact, just... standing there staring at the place the hose was supposed to go. "Hand me the other stuff and I'll put it up. Faster we get this done, the faster I don't have to deal with you anymore."

     At least it wasn't awkward anymore, right? Breakdown was at least offering assistance when he could have just pushed the yellow bot on over...

[Bumblebee]

Bumblebee visibly bristled at the laugh directed his way, his posture tensing up and he'd strain that much harder to try and reach the top shelf – if only to show that he could. Well, the joke was on him. Because he couldn't, and ended up just looking ridiculous. He was about to climb up onto the bottom shelf for a bit more height, when Breakdown spoke.

--At least I'm doin' it on my own and don't need a little army with me to help!-- He barked back in frustrated reply, not taking his optics off the top of the shelf. He would never, ever stoop so low as to as a Deceptiscum for help – and so would continue to make some sad, futile attempt at reaching upwards, even going so far as to do a little hop of a jump to try and reach. It didn't work.

This was beyond ridiculous.

A pede moved to stand on the bottom shelf, and he'd cling onto an upper shelf with a servo, pulling himself up a little. Again he'd reach up. Again he'd make a frustrated noise at not being tall enough, and would glance around to try and spot a box or some sort of thing he could stand on – as he looked around, he saw Breakdown heading this way. Grreeeat.

--I don't need your help!-- He grumbled, trying once more in a desperate attempt to reach upwards. He should've given up long, long ago. This wasn't going to work.

He was quiet a moment before he beeped out a whine and another grumble of defeat.

--Ya know what? Fine. Thank you.-- He scoffed, holding out the hose and stepping down from the bottom of the shelf. He admitted defeat, except was it really defeat..? He hadn't been the one to ask for help, so... Maybe this was some sort of victory.

Not that working with a Decepticon was a victory, but at least Breakdown could do all the lifting now.

--Aight. Then we need to go through the other boxes because they did throw broken stuff in there. I guess I can help ya with that, since you're helping me with this.--

Take a little, give a little. That's how it worked right? At least compared to most Decepticons, Breakdown didn't seem all that bad. He would step back to his crate, rummaging around in it for things that belonged on the very top of the shelf. It was mostly things that Haven 'might' need, but probably wouldn't, so it was kept mostly out of reach. He would offer the items out to Breakdown – it was nothing overly huge, just weird looking items, hoses, springs, spare parts mostly that looked kinda outdated, but hey maybe someone could get use out of them.

[Breakdown]

     "Yeah... uh. You're welcome." That was certainly more difficult to say than Breakdown thought, though it probably had more to do with having to say it to an Autobot than just making the statement. Was Knock Out having the same difficulties? Probably not. That mech could charm his way through anything, whereas Breakdown had to keep one step ahead of any possible snap for one reason or another. This truce was definitely going to be a struggle if he kept having to place nice with the Autobots on a regular basis. 

     Or maybe it was the forced 'therapy' he needed? Primus, he certainly hoped not. Not even Flatline would be this cruel! Well, no, he probably would be.

     Breakdown took the items from Bee as they were handed up, placing them carefully on the upper shelves where they belonged. Some pieces were new and space had to be made for them while others were backups or extras and could just be slid into place with their matching ones. Fora  large, clumsy lug he was doing a rather decent- thanks to him always having to clean and organize Knock Out's med bay, of course. This was simple in comparison.

     "I guess I gotta give you credit for trying to do it yourself. Knock Out would have just come right out and told me to do it." Breakdown paused and shot a look over his shoulder real quick. Somehow the smaller mech always knew when he was being talked about and suddenly be there. So far, so good, but it was best not to push his luck. He knew that he and Bumblebee had their history and should he show up here? "We better just get this done."

     Again he returned to taking up the things handed over to put on the higher shelves, keeping quiet as he worked, just wanting to have this over and done with already. Once they were done with the crate that Bee had brought, Breakdown carried the empty crate off to the side to be disposed of later. He really wasn't looking forward to having to go through all of the crates that they had brought over, especially knowing what was inside. He wouldn't know if some of the stuff was broken beyond repair or if it were able to be salvaged, and having to look everything over several times to make that decision would take more time than he really wanted to spend. 

     "Not like I need your help or anything..." he began then paused to stare at the several other supply crates that were stacked up. It had to be at least ten? Maybe up to twelve. Did everyone just drop stuff off to be sorted later? Breakdown rubbed the back of his helm and vented. "... But I... uh... wouldn't mind the extra servos to assist."

[Bumblebee]

--Noo problem..?-- Came a confused sounding beep. This was awkward, and he wasn't sure why. Maybe because he never actually saw himself working alongside a Decepticon with something so trivial like putting things onto a shelf... Again. He'd been in a similar situation just last week with Megatron, sorting through items in crates in the Med Bay to get them sterile after he'd dropped them.

Primus, they wouldn't have to do that again, would they? No.. No they would not. He wouldn't even mention that part, or suggest it. At least this stuff had landed on the floor of the supply room, which compared to the corridor where he'd fallen last week? Was pretty clean. So hopefully it didn't need sanitizing. It wasn't like the things in the crates this time looked to be of any importance, nor did they look to be that dirty. A few things were broken, yes, but dirty? Not really. The Vehicons had done a good job of picking things up quickly.

--Well, yeah. There's no sense of pride in asking others to do stuff for ya, if ya hadn't of come over I would've found something to stand on and do it myself anyway.-- He handed over the last of the items that needed to go up high, at least from his crate. They still had to sort through the others. --That doesn't surprise me about Knock Out, either.-- He chuckled, not realizing how close the blue Mech was to the sassy little cherry-red Mech. He knew they were friends, though. He noted Breakdown glancing over his shoulder, but thought nothing of it.

He pulled the remainder of the items from the crate before Breakdown moved it, quickly moving to put the other items on the shelf where he could reach.

He'd spin on his heel, turning to see what needed to be done now. Servos moving to his hips and his optics would narrow into an almost-scowl. Seems others weren't as dutiful with their work, and had just dumped the crates here for later organization.

He too, vented out a long sigh. Well, they were both here, so they might as well do it – it didn't look like anybody else was going to.

--Yeah I'd... Feel bad 'bout leaving ya here to do all these, especially since ya little army of helpers has gone now.-- He mumbled, beeps quiet. Right now he wasn't stood next to a Decepticon, he was stood next to another Cybertronian who, like Bumblebee, probably wouldn't feel right about just leaving all these extra boxes here.

He moved over to one of the boxes that'd been brought in by Breakdown and the Vehicons, picking it up and moving over to the bench where he'd sorted out the items moments earlier. He'd look into it and shake his head, starting to pull the items from it. It was easy to tell which items Mr. Slow had thrown in here, as they were all cracked badly and no doubt unable to be repaired.

--Grab a box I guess. Sooner we get through this the better. I suppose ya have racing to do with Knock Out or something, and I got stuff to do too,-- He set aside a broken thing, pulling out another item and peering at it. --I never did get to race him again after that one time, and even then he cheated and we couldn't finish the race,-- Another chuckle. Maybe one day he'd get that rematch. --Shame, cos I woulda totally beaten him, too.--

[Breakdown]

     The Autobot seemed to feel the same awkwardness that he did. Here were two enemies who had faced each other and fought several times, forced to work together in an enclosed space. It was foolish to think that it was going to be easy so the uneasiness was to be expected. It probably would have been more bothersome if the two got along right off the bat. They hadn't hit it off well, but at least it seemed to be going a bit better now. At least they weren't beating each other into the floor.

     "There's also no sense in looking like a fool when there's someone there who can help you, either. Even if you stood on something you wouldn't have been able to reach all the shelves. But hey, if you wanna look like an idiot and fall on your aft, that's your choice bugbot." The very top ones had even been a bit of a stretch for him, so this much smaller bot would have probably had a bit of difficulty attempting it himself. Not like Breakdown would stop him if he wanted to try because it certainly wouldn't have been on his conscious. 

     Breakdown brought over a box and sat it down on the other end of the bench where Bee was sitting. He started to sort through it, picking out the pieces that were clearly broken and setting them in a pile to the side. When he would have a servo full of pieces he would then place them where they belonged on the shelf. This process was repeated several times until the box was empty then he moved it to the floor and shoved everything from the broken pile into it. He pushed the box with his pede towards Bee, offering it as a place to dump the useless things so that they didn't end up making scattered piles of junk everywhere while they were sorting.

     "I don't race. I can't," he said as he grabbed another box and set it in the same place the previous one had been. "Remember what I said about not looking like a fool? Yeah, that would be me if I tried to go against Knock Out. You should get your optics looked over if you haven't been able to tell by now that I'm not built for that kind of stuff. Personally?" Breakdown paused in sorting the supplies in the box, his servo flipping down into his forearm as his hammer took its place, a smirk on his face. "I'd prefer to smash up all those fancy little cars the humans pride themselves with." He shrugged and the servo shifted back into place, in which Breakdown returned to sorting. "But, Knock Out finds it more satisfying to just leave them in his dust so I let him have his fun. He never loses... and he sure wouldn't lose to you. Knock Out would kick your aft in a rematch just as he did before."

     A tiny piece of metal would be tossed at Bumblebee again to strike him in the shoulder, but the chuckle that came from Breakdown hinted that it wasn't meant to be hateful like the first time he'd done it.

[Bumblebee]

--Yeah, but, if ya don't even try to do something for yourself before asking for help? How do ya know that ya needed help to begin with? Hmm?-- He chuckled.

--I might not've been able to reach even when standing on something but I woulda at least tried everything on my own first. I may have fallen on my aft but I'd keep my pride, ya know?--

At least that's how Bumblebee saw it. He'd rather try to do every possible thing in his power before resorting to asking anyone for help.

He would watch Breakdown as he worked, optics whirring into a small frown as the bigger blue Mech finished a box before Bee did. He would start to quicken his pace, nodding in thanks as the box was pushed his way, taking servo-fulls of broken things and moving to dump them in the box. This gave him more room to work. He quickly finished his first box, everything either put on the shelf in its proper place, or in the trash box. He'd then move to take another crate, which might've been a little too heavy for him, and there was a whir and straining of hydraulics – but Bee had that youthful arrogance, and was more than a little stubborn, so wouldn't say a word or ask for assistance. With a huff, he'd slam the second crate onto the table, shaking his arms before opening the crate to see what was inside.

--I suppose ya right. Gotta be fast for racing!-- He'd curl a servo to a fist, tapping his thumb to his chassis. --Thaaaaat being said... I'm sure ya would beat him on certain terrains or whatever. I know I aint any good at racing on dirt. Been practicing though!--

It was weird how normal this felt. He was just having a casual conversation with a Decepticon.

He let out a beepy laugh at the last thing Breakdown said, and had luckily been looking his way as the piece of metal was thrown. This time he easily dodged, and it clattered to the floor behind him.

--Ya kidding right? I was so far ahead of him last time! Then he cheated and used weapons! He totes has the right idea though, leaving people in ya dust is way more satisfying than smashing 'em to bits, as then they have to live with it!--

His optics widened slightly, excited to be talking about racing; even if it was with someone from the opposite faction.

--Pretty sure ya might be able to beat me if we had a quick race just outside the DMZ. Aint a proper road and it's all gravelly stuff. Did ya wanna? Once we're done here anyway? Maybe ya could boast to Knock Out about that!--

He noticed he'd just been talking instead of organizing, and would quickly get back to what he was supposed to be doing, but his field now radiated excitement. He was of course lying, even on the crappy rough terrain outside Haven, Bee knew for sure he could kick this Mech's aft at racing; and hopefully Breakdown would take the bait. To say he beat two Decepticons at racing would be a massive boost to the ego, because he totally counted the race against Knock Out as a win. Sort of. He had been in the lead, after all.

[Breakdown]

     "I wouldn't know anything about 'beating him on different terrains'. I've never raced him. He slows just enough for me to keep up and I make sure I push my alt mode as much as I can. Like I said before: I'm just the muscle. It's not my thing."

     Breakdown finished his box with only a small servo full of usable pieces which he stocked in the appropriate places on the shelves. The empty crate was picked up and carried to where the other empty ones were then went to fetch the piece of scrap he had thrown at Bee. He picked it up and dropped it into the trash box as he passed it by on his way to get another crate. When he turned around he saw the smaller bot struggling with what obviously was a crate too heavy for him to carry on his own but he didn't offer his help with it. Breakdown just shook his helm with a forced pass of air through his vents and returned to the spot he'd been sitting at just as Bee was doing the same.

     "I swear you and Knock Out are so much alike in some things that it's disturbing. If you were fighting with us instead of against us I would probably be chasing after the both of you and hauling you back to the Nemesis. You'd both be the crazy mechs running out to join in on the human's foolish little races."

     He huffed again and rolled his optic, trying to focus on what he was doing as the yellow mech went on and on about racing. Really he wasn't interested and just wanted to finish this the more Bee talked the less he got done. Breakdown was almost ready to assume he would be the one doing everything while the other blabbed when he suddenly he quieted and went back to sorting. Much of what he had in his current box was trash so, yet again, there was very little to put away.

     Though as he was sorting he did think things over. Breakdown was used to doing these meager tasks, as he usually was sent out by Knock Out to handle them since most of the time he couldn't be bothered or was otherwise 'busy', but something about having a chance to get away from this? Well, it was quite an attractive suggestion. They would need to get the stuff here done first but perhaps afterwards it would do them both good to get out and dirty up their tires? It would be odd to be out without Knock Out. He didn't leave the Nemesis as much as he would have liked sometimes considering he was usually assisting Knock Out in one way or another, and with the truce at least he wouldn't have to worry about Autoslags bothering him...

     "Finish up this scrap and then we can head out. Faster you get done with your share, the faster we can kick up some dirt. Resource scouting ONLY. I'm not getting my aft in trouble because you want to partake in sparkling acts, Autoslag."

Breakdown scoffed and tossed more pieces into the trash crate.

[Bumblebee]

--What do ya even do for fun then? Just smashin' stuff? Laaame. Get out there and drive, man!--

Bumblebee beeped cheerily, sorting through the box in front of him. He wasn't sure why the DMZ needed half this scrap, but he wasn't about to question it. He was just glad to be getting this done. It felt good to go above and beyond what was expected of him, not that he expected any thanks for going to the trouble of going through the extra boxes, but he would know he did it, and that was enough. And he'd got along with a Decepticon at the same time, too!

What Breakdown said about him being similar to Knock Out made his optics narrow some, and he paused for the briefest of moments, shaking his helm before returning to sorting.

--Aint nothing like him except I like racin' like he does. Even then I don't get to race against humans, I aint allowed, so I don't do it.-- The trouble he'd gotten into after racing with humans the first time had been enough to put the young Scout off racing with them again. Sure he'd raced others since then, like Jazz.. But that was close to the Autobot base, and wasn't hurting anyone – it wasn't getting humans involved. He wasn't aware that Breakdown was implying that they were both pretty damn stubborn.

He'd pull things from the box, inspecting them for damage, before moving them to the shelves. The things that would need to go on the higher shelves? He would set to one side so Breakdown could put them in the proper place. Not much of this box was trash, so it took him a while to find the correct location for everything.

--Wait, really? Ya mean it? Woo!--

He'd quicken his pace, shoving things onto the shelf. In the correct place, of course, but he was being far less careful than he had been. Resource scouting he could handle, although he wasn't sure if there would be anything of use around here. Which would be a good thing; as then he could show off a little and maybe convince Breakdown to race.

Once done with that box, he'd move to grab another. He worked with a sense of urgency now, wanting to get out of this dumb little room and get out and drive.

[Breakdown]

     "Uh... 'fun'? You realize that we're in a war, right? Smashing things is what I do best, so it's pretty much what I enjoy the most." Not that he would really tell the Beeperbot about the buffering and things he did on the Nemesis with the Medic that he REALLY enjoyed the most. "We don't go out and have 'fun'. Well... Knock Out does. He's a racer at spark, so he enjoys being able to rotate his tires some and get that air pumping through his vents. Though he does complain that the humans are not enough of a challenge- not that he should be racing with them anyway, either. I think you give him that edge that he hasn't been able to have since we left Cybertron."

     Breakdown was trying his best to finish up. He dropped the last of the broken things in the box with the trashed bits and put the other things away in their places on the shelves. He had been planning on having to do this on his own so he was glad that Bee had decided to stick around and assist in it. He probably would have only been a couple crates in while trying to figure out where to place things. This scrap he could do since he was the one who organized things in Knock Out's medbay, but it didn't mean he was any quicker with it. As far as having the yellow bot being the one with the servo in this assist? Well, it was at least nice to sit down and forget that they were on opposite factions for a short time and work together to achieve a goal. Breakdown had never gotten to do that since he had been sparked during the war, so fighting against the Autobots was all he ever knew. To have one help him with this, and before with rescuing him from the hands of MECH? It changed his perspective on them. 

     Though they were still enemies. Too bad he'd have to work on busting Bee's faceplate in once the truce was over. 

     The promise of scouting for resources seemed to be just the thing to light the fire under Bee's pedes. The smaller mech was moving around faster and putting things where they belonged a lot quicker. Breakdown continued to put things away from the last of the crates in his usual steady pace in spite of the hurried manner of the Bot around him, even pausing now and then to take the things from Bee that were out of his reach then going back to his own stack.

     Even so, eventually they two were finished. Once Breakdown put the final item from his crate on the shelf, he tossed it into the pile with the rest. He would deal with the empty stack once they returned from their outing. For now it was time to get out and explore this strange new region.

     "Alright. Ready?" The bulky mech turned to look at Bee. "You lead. I don't know my way around here yet."