Ep 2: Nice Car You've Got Parked There (closed)

[Jazz]

     Jazz heard Bee's response over the comm link but he was already doing other things, namely scrolling through what he was able to access while trying to bypass what he wasn't able to just freely skim. It seemed pretty easy to get in where he needed to- a relief considering what he was used to hacking into- and was more or less able to sit back and just browse like he was doing nothing more than reading a datapad. When Bee finally arrived he did peel himself away from what he was looking at to stare at Bee with a bit of a smirk. He could see a small bit of smear from the bird poop on his helm, which he casually pointed to by indicating the location on his own.

     "Missed some, there. There's a good bit of reflective surfaces in here so just take a peek in one of those and see if ya wanna wipe off the rest."

     Once the scout was comfortably seated, Jazz returned to what he was looking over. Bee had asked a question he hadn't been able to find an answer to yet, either through what he considered to be 'captain's logs' and was just getting more into the ship logs. His visor was flickering with various levels of light intensity as he pinpointed key points he took note of.

     "Ain't found nothin' yet, kiddo. I'm a lil' far behind on logs since this ol' clunker don't have the sortin' methods of 'em that I'm used to. Even the Decepticon ships got some means of organizin'. Can't blame your friend, though. He probably don't have to worry about no one gettin' in here or lookin' through these logs of his. He got his own way of findin' what he needs, I'm sure." Jazz snickered some. "Easy for him, pain in the aft for the whole rest of us."

[Deleted]

The nexxt update on SwAgluRRD32324's trip was a bathroom break. Excess consumption of several energy drinks had come back to haunt him. "GONNA GO FOR A PISS" was the charming status. At this point, the other people watching the thread lost patience.

"Dude come on," DABATMAN, ever a ray of sunshine, posted. "Stop spamming the thread until something interesting happens."

Raaad9000, normally SwAgluRRD32324's friend and backup, was in DABATMAN's camp for this one. "Hate to agree with DB but this is fucking boring."

"SHUT UP!" SwAgluRRD32324 fired back. "THIS IS IMPORTANT DOCUMENTATION FOR WHEN I FIND ALIENS. YOU ARE ALL JUST JEALOUS."

"Laaaame," Oystersauce responded. He promptly unfollowed the thread and decided to do something productive with his day for once.

--

Jazz's hopes to find the Jackhammer's captain logs would be in vain. The Jackhammer's captain and pilot unfortunately was not the kind of mech to record notes about his day. Considering that much of his time spent in deep space usually had one day blurring into the next with nothing happening, Wheeljack had never developed the habit.

Not to mention his career as a Wrecker had led him to some dark spots he'd rather stay buried.

The only information to be found in the Jackhammer's systems were the ship's logs. Data that was recorded automatically by the on-board computer. Flight paths. Fuel levels (high and the time-stamp for the last refill dated back to Wheeljack's stay on the Omega base). The ship's status (no pending repairs, though one of the interior lights would need be replaced some time soon). Timestamps for messages received (the most recent one dated only a few minutes prior to the change in flight plan).

A shame the ship didn't automatically record them.

[Bumblebee]

Bumblebee was like an excited child. He couldn't seem to sit still now that he was actually inside the ship. His optics wide and whirring as he looked over the control panel in front of Jazz, and the various random panels and monitors even though they were currently switched off. He wasn't too bothered by what Jazz was doing, leaving him to it, but wow there were so many buttons and controls in here! How did Wheeljack know what each and every one did? Then again he was used to being in here and flying this thing, but to Bumblebee it was a confusing, but fascinating mass of buttons and levers.

He so badly wanted to push a random button. Just one. Just to see what it did. But would refrain for now.

He kept his servos in his lap despite his slight squirming as he looked around, and would only sit still as Jazz spoke to him. He'd missed some?

--Aw man, what? Ugh!-- He beepily chuckled, not sounding too annoyed by the whole thing. He'd lean forwards to look into one of the many reflective surfaces and used the back of his servo to try and wipe away what remained of the pesky and offending little poop.

--Yeah, that sounds like Wheeljack! I'd offer to help but ya seem to have it handled! That and I'm scared to touch anything.-- He chirped. --Maybe we should try and get this thing back to base so it's somewhere safe and outta the way? Then we can try and work out what happened? Don't want Fowler getting' more annoyed than he already is!--

Really he just wanted to fly. And while he had no idea how to fly this thing, Jazz probably did. Even if they probably wouldn't be flying it for too long, given they were on Earth and that risked being spotted... Maybe a little joyride wouldn't hurt? Maybe?

C'mon Jazz, be cool.

[Jazz]

     While Bee was busy with wiping off the rest of the poop, Jazz had closed out of what little logs there were and was now staring at the controls before him. There didn't seem to be much to it. But he had assumed lightly before and had gotten a tiny zap when he had attempted to bypass the keypad! This seemed more straightforward, though, and a lot of the bits he was able to recognize. He adjusted the pilots seat to where he could reach everything in the off chance he had to do some serious maneuvering or firing or whatever then started to get to work.

     Something stopped him midway through.

     Jazz looked at Bee and just... well... sat there, staring at him, as though judging his words.

     Well, he didn't want to just be flying a ship around Earth's airspace and bring unwanted attention to them when they were supposed to be 'hiding in plain sight', but there was a point in the request of the youngspark that was beyond wanting to just be up in the air and go for a joyride. They had to get the ship out of this location. Who knew who had seen it by this point or who may have been trying to find the spot to get a closer inspection. Neither of them had the towing power to just cart it out of there so really? The only option they had was to fly it. That thought made Jazz vent heavily since he didn't see himself being able to talk his way out of that one. Well, he'd just have to take that blame as well.

     Though.. would it fly? It had clearly been stuck here for some time so there was always the chance that it wouldn't even take off. Jazz reached around, systematically pushing different buttons and flicking switches as though he already knew the workout of this ship. They all operated about the same, just some had more to them than others. This ol' thing? Couldn't have been much different from his own.

     "Alright, time to see if this ol' gal still has some juice left in her to actually get back to base." He flicked a few more controls on the console then paused and looked over to Bee with a smile. "Hey, ya wanna start her up?" He pointed to a single switch just to the side of the wheel. He knew the eagerness of the youngspark, so why shouldn't he at least let Bee start up the ship? "All ya gotta do is push that and she should be charged up. Then I'll do the flyin' and you can do the sightseein'."

     Then there was a pause and a throat clear.

     "... and if anyone asks, I talked you into it. ESPECIALLY if OP asks. Got it?"

[Deleted]

DABATMAN and SwAgluRRD32324 had, in true internet fashion, descended into a meme and gif fight.

----

The Jackhammer was a ship in perfect condition, thank you very much, its missing captain notwithstanding. Although perfect was a little inaccurate - working towards perfection fitted the ship better. It's single inhabitant was never quite satisfied with its configuration and was always working to improve it. He'd work towards improving the armor, only to change his mind and decide that speed was a greater priority.

On its first trip to Earth, the Jackhammer had been detected by the Nemesis and its captain had been captured by the Decepticons. Upon his departure, Wheeljack had taken to overhauling the Jackhammer's shielding and reducing the emissions and the signals given off so the ship would be harder to detect. It had paid off on his return, the Wrecker had been able to land on Earth and venture about undisturbed.

With the controls that Jazz had flicked, the Jackhammer would active and switch on,. There were a few oddities with the control console but much of the switches and buttons retained their original purpose and Jazz would be able to fly it without much difficulty. The ship's engine would hum in readiness, waiting for the signal to take off.

Where to was a matter up to its pilots. If they were feeling bold and confident, they'd be able to take the ship back to the Omega base, though they would not be aware of the changes Wheeljack had made to his ship that would allow them to travel unmolested. Perhaps Bumblebee would recall the mess and confusion with Makeshift. If however the two Autobots decide to err on the side of caution, the base at Black Rock was another option, the Jackhammer could be stowed in an empty hanger there.

[Bumblebee]

Bumblebee noted Jazz staring at him, and his optics would quietly whir as he... Awkwardly stared right back. Was it something he said? Did he still have bird poop on him? Surely not! He'd wiped it all off! Was his idea dumb? He'd thought it was pretty smart, given that was what they were supposed to be doing here to begin with, and who knew when some random human would stumble across this thing.

It wasn't like they could open a Ground Bridge and fly it into the Omega Base – it wouldn't fit in there for a start! The only way out of here was to fly! Maybe Jazz was just considering his options or how to even get back to the base from here. Flying would be risky, given the ship was unlike anything that was on Earth, and if they were spotted? They would have more than just Fowler to deal with. Or if they crashed? They'd have to deal with a very angry Wheeljack. Not that he was around, but still. When he came back to a crashed ship? It wouldn't end well.

As Jazz began pushing different buttons and flicking switches, Bee would turn his attention straight ahead. Seemed like they were going to be flying out of here after all – and Bee got to sit back and enjoy the ride!

Jazz's question caught him off guard and he'd turn to look at him, optics wide.

--Wait really? Yeah!!-- He chirped, and would rather over-enthusiastically reach across from the co-pilots seat to press the button that Jazz had indicated at the side of the wheel. Everything looked and sounded good! The engine would hum as it was switched on. It was up to Jazz now to fly this thing! He'd always wondered what it'd be like to have a shuttle. The last time he'd flown was while he was on the Nemesis, and that didn't really count. Before that, it'd been the Ark – and that was yeeeeears ago. Having a shuttle of his very own to fly around in would be awesome! Maybe if they returned it in good condition, Wheeljack would let him co-pilot or something!

...The throat clearing from Jazz drew him from his excited thoughts and he'd nod, giving a thumbs up, before settling back into his seat ready to see the Earth from above.

--Ya talked me into it. Got it!-- He beepily laughed, door-wings fluttering behind him some.

--So are we goin' straight back to base, ooooor...?--

That might've been a little hint that he wanted to fly around for a while, but he didn't want to push his luck – or push the ship, as they didn't know what it'd actually been through.

[Jazz]

     Jazz continued to check over all the dials and controls to make sure things were working the way they should have been. Everything seemed smooth enough- no hitch in lifting as he pulled back on the steering column was a good sign at least. Once they were off the ground, Jazz was able to take his focus to what Bee had said. He didn't look over at him though, still feeling for things and getting used to it. It hadn't been that long ago that he'd had his own ship to deal with, but it HAD been a while that he had to try and get used to a new one.

     "Kiddo, as much as I would love ya fly ya'round this town and show ya how to pilot this thing? We outta get it somewhere where we can hide it. We can play around later if there's time. Deal?"

     It was at least a promise he would keep, one way or another. Even if Prime said no, Jazz had his way of... well... sometimes not really listening to reason and going out against orders. Not really defiance as much as necessity that the others just wouldn't really understand. 'Checking on the ship' was just a logical excuse, and if Bee was partnered up with him then he wouldn't be going out alone. Two birds, one stone.

     "Once we have her hidden off we can try and figure other things out. Important business first, play time later. Now why don't ya give me a directive? We outta play it safe and take it to the nearest safe location first. I don't want this thing to just fall outta the sky we we ain't expectin' it. I'm sure that Fowler guy of yours wouldn't be none to pleased havin' his people cleanin' up a crash site. Plus Optimus may be a little upset. Jackie too. Any means of coordinates or direction would be nice"

     The way he said the mech's designation? Familiarity? Maybe. Whatever the tone was Jazz didn't seem to even notice the slip, and just stared at Bee and waited to hear where they should go.

[Bumblebee]

Bumblebee pressed his face up against the side panel as they lifted up into the air. It'd been so long since he'd been in a shuttle – and while he wasn't exactly fond of heights, he felt safe enough in the Jackhammer to actually enjoy this. He wondered how high they were actually going to go in this thing! Probably pretty high, given they didn't want to run the risk of being spotted.

Jazz's reply drew his attention from the sights, and he'd briefly glance back to the mech in the pilot seat.

--Yeah, I guess ya right. Gotta get it somewhere safe first. I'll hold ya to that, though!-- He beepily laughed. Being shown how to pilot one of these things? Cool! Although he wasn't sure if Wheeljack would be okay with that little part of the plan. Then again, it wasn't like he was actually around, so it wasn't like he'd actually know...

--Deal!--

He'd turn his attention back to the view outside. It wasn't a view he'd seen a lot of – unless he counted Raf using google maps to show him neat stuff on the computer! Unlike Jazz, he stuck to the rules that'd been given – never leaving the base by himself unless it was to pick up Raf from school, and even then he checked in – just in case.

Jazz spoke again, although this time he wouldn't look over in his direction – at least not until that last part until he'd been asked to do something. He did take note of how Jazz referred to Wheeljack as 'Jackie' – and had figured that was something only Bulkhead did. Then again, Jazz was pretty cool and pretty out there, so it was no surprise that they probably knew each other.

--Uuuh.. One sec!-- He'd lean forwards in the seat, staring at the various screens and panels that'd since switched on with the ship. Surely one of these was a navigation system so not only could Bumblebee tell where they were, but where they had to go to get out of here.

--We're still in Nevada, I know that much. Means we can probably go back to the Omega Base. Or at least close by. There's enough rocks and stuff out there to hide anything! Just a matter of...-- He trailed off some as he gingerly touched one of the little screens, trying to focus on this, rather than talking. He probably should've known the coordinates to the base off by heart, but he'd never taken the time to actually learn them. That's what the ground bridge was for! It made things easy!

--Ah ha! Here's Jasper! I think if I just... Doooo.. Thissss...-- More button pressing. Primus he hoped he wasn't messing anything up. --Did that work..? The co-ordinates should be there for ya now. Maybe we should comm back and tell 'em we found the ship and are coming back. Then again we won't be landing at the base, just nearby... So can report back when we get there?-- He had no idea what the best course of action was. Leaving it with Jazz, he would once again turn his attention back to the window at his side.

[Jazz]

     Bee wanted high? Oh, they went high up alight. It wasn't as if they needed to take it to the extremes that they did, but he also needed to ensure they weren't spotted by passing human aircraft that weren't friendly ( or under the orders of Fowler and his superiors, since that was an important thing as well ). Jazz would just pull the ship up as Bee poked around on buttons trying to figure out the coordinates for the base they were supposed to go to, chuckling softly to himself. At least there was little that the scout could do that he couldn't correct..

     Unless it were weapons, such as some sort of missile that would blow up a mountain off in the distance somewhere. That Jazz couldn't fix. But Bee didn't push any foreign red button like that so they were all good!

     ... And off they were!

     Only sort of. When the coordinates came up Jazz typed around on a few more controls in the ship. He didn't want the autopilot per say, but at least some mild assistance would be good. He could get around pretty well on his own when it was just him and space or Cybertron to deal with but as far as Earth was concerned? There was a lot more he had to learn and he'd hadn't the chance to download as much information as he could. Road maps was part of it, but he had been way too busy playing around with music selection to worry about that stuff for the time being.

     Once everything was set up Jazz proceeded on. He spotted the youngster staring out of the window on his side and smiled to himself. The kid definitely didn't seem to leave the ground very often. Problem with being a grounder, he supposed. He turned his attention back ahead so he could keep mind of where he was going.

     "My partner once told me 'grounds and fliers got more meanin' in difference than just their frames. Grounders can focus more on what they're doin' cause their processors ain't stuck in the atmosphere bein' space cadets. But you'll always wanna feel that rush'." His visor's lights shifted some from one spot to another as he processed the information he saw on the screen. They were headed in the right direction according to the coordinates, so all was well. "Don't hurt once in a while, though. So we'll just head this way for a bit, let ya get it outta your system, then we'll comm back to base. Just enjoy it for now."

[Bumblebee]

Bumblebee was surprised at how fast the ship actually went up. Jazz hadn't said anything was wrong with the coordinates that Bee had inputted, nor had he pressed something he wasn't supposed to – so now it was just a case of Jazz driving the Jackhammer back to the base and getting there safely – while Bee enjoyed the view!

Bee relaxed more as they continued their ascent, and he watched with optics wide as the trees got smaller beneath them and soon he could see for absolutely miles. His face pushed up against the window like a fascinated child. Earth was amazing, but from up here it really put into perspective how wonderful, and yet how small things down there actually were.

Maybe one day he'd have a ship of his very own – not that he'd ever really need one, but flying around would be pretty awesome!

--Ya partner is right!-- Bee beepily chuckled, not turning his attention away from the view as he replied. --I know if I could fly I'd want to be out here as much as I can, with my head in the clouds!-- He'd never ever change his frame, though. He couldn't exactly take Raf to school if he was a jet! The Grounder lifestyle suited him just fine, and it kept him down to earth in more ways than just one.

--If we need to get back sooner, we can. Don't want to get in trouble with Fowler! Ya ain't met him yet, have ya?-- The order to retrieve the Jackhammer may have come from him, but he hadn't personally been the one to deliver it - and he wasn't sure who Jazz had had the pleasure of meeting around the base yet. --Cos being in trouble with Fowler is something we proooobably don't want!--

Although maybe it'd be worth it for this view...