[ti]Ep 3[/ti]Avion Falling [Cloudcompass, Rain - Closed]

[Deleted]

Ep. 3 | Week 2 | Day 4 | Sometime in the Morning - Continuation of Avion Calling
Location: Omega Outpost/American Wilderness

Cloudcompass, Rain

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Despite it all, Cloudcompass did not actually spend the rest of the night cycle flat on his back on the cliff. Instead, he traced his steps back to the canyon and found his little nook once more. After a swift transformation and a little maneuvering on his wheels, he was tucked under the cool rock ledge, scanning his surroundings one last time before letting himself power down.

The mech only booted to consciousness on the very edge of dawn- stirring from an unintentionally deep recharge with a jolt that shook his plates and almost sent him shifting from his alt right then and there.

“Ah Mae.” He resettled and wheeled out of the nook almost languidly, cautious of the day before’s aches and testing whether or not they were still hanging around. After a moment or two, it was certain that yes, they were- and wasn’t that annoying. The forest, clearing and river before him were just starting to lighten now. Then a thought struck him, if this morning couldn’t make him any grumpier-

Was he late?!

Quickly he scrambled out of his alt and clambered up to the top of the rocky outcrop- careful to be sure no locals were around before he took up his spot on the edge of the cliff. Optics sharp as the flier he was, CC scanned the lightening skies for the femme he was supposed to meet.

[Rain]

Rain slowly rose up from the comfortable depths of unconsciousness. Her injuries ached still but they were minor things. Whatever Patch had patched her up with had worked, as expected really. With a lethargic lack of discipline that Rain felt quite entitled to, she slowly transformed. She had fallen asleep in her alt, and not moved an inch until now. From the front and underside of her fuselage, her legs unfolded, took her weight of her wheels and everything shifted upwards leaving Rain standing on her berth. From there she sat down and took stock.

Left shoulder still tender to any movement, but now actually capable if she eased through the movements. Right hand, still in splints, but no longer throbbing, left fore wing felt bruised because it was, and left antler still completely missing, somewhere in Alaska, getting buried deeper under snow.

And “Holy Onyx Prime!” Rain exclaimed when she noted the time. Clearly her compassionate roommate had let her sleep in because that was the kind thing to do. Rain smiled inwardly to herself, time to get the wings rolling, better late than never.

With a soft and light grace, a positive mood lifting her spark, Rain exited the room, and gently trotted to the control center for Omega Base. She talked as she walked.

::Good Morning, my humblest apologies for over sleeping, you got any coords for me? Relative to where you were let loose?:: Rain’s tone was peaceful and easy, light as a wisp as she considered her plan.

[Deleted]

In the time between onlining and now, CC had thought about his predicament. So when Rain commed him- he actually did have an answer for her.

::I am roughly 40kliks north-west of the groundbridge drop-off coordinates::

He’d been too focused on other things to think of it the night before, but it would make sense if the Autobot mini-bridge logged all activity. Rain probably had access to those logs. From his previous visit to this system- long ago and quick as it was- one of the cursory observations the Strathcona had bothered to archive were the orbits and rotations of the planets within. This one in particular had been of interest, as it seemed to support organic life. Its cycles had been logged, as well as the effect the satellite had on its massive oceans and most importantly, for now- its poles. Headings were established, the generic north-east-south-west, and internal timepieces had been synced.

Cloudcompass may not remember most of that mission, but he’d been Strathcona's navigator- knowing his position at all times was a mark of pride. He’d flown to the left of the star the evening before, which he knew set to the west on this planet- hence, north-west. He did technically have access to all the mission’s archives, but even with that data he did not have the crucial, contextualizing detail of which landmass constituted ‘America’ nor how much said landmass had shifted between initial collection of data and current day. So.

Roughing it would have to be enough until he got around to re-calibrating his navigation systems.

[Rain]

Rain pulled up a map on the console, same as she had a few days earlier. Loaded up the old data logs and there she had Cloudcompass’ dropoff. An easy change to adjust for his new relative placement, and more final adjustment. She gave herself a five second window for the bridge opening after which it would automatically shutdown and she was off.

The cylindrical gateway of brilliant blue-white energy broached the distance from Nevada to somewhere else much further north just long enough for Rain to run through before dying down to standby once more behind her.

Even as she exited, Rain was transforming. She did so because the doorway was a kilometer above ground. Exactly how she liked it. Though gravity tried to pull her down to its ever demanding embrace, her wings and engine resisted and she flew through the dawn sky.

::I’m here, one kilometer up.:: If she had come on the ground, it would have been harder to locate each other but mostly this was so that Cloudcompass would be able to see her first, and give him the lead on their reunion.

But Rain’s thoughts were hardly on the neutral mech as she saw the dawn sun on the horizon. Every single sunrise on this new planet was a masterpiece of beauty, every single one glorious and unique. And so full of promise and hope.

[Deleted]

So he… might have been a little bit off. According to Rain she had arrived, but he could not-

A little spot appeared in the sky to the left of his position, just as rays of gold started to spill over the hills and across the treetops, setting the clouds aglow. Granted it could be a local avian, but he very much doubted it. Steadily, it was curving it’s way towards him. Bit by bit.

Rain was a prop-plane.

A cybertronian prop-plane… but nonetheless.

She was doing her best.

Cloudcompass made the executive decision to meet her halfway, or three-quarters of the way. He let himself fall forward into the curling-somersault that was his transformation sequence- t-cog engaging to pull his wings up as metal twisted to reform into a jet. Before his plating had fully settled against his frame his engines were already roaring, warming quickly as he took to the sky. Once at a proper altitude, about level with Rain- who’s blue form could now clearly be identified- he swept out his wings and slowed drastically.

::As Mae warms your wings this morn, Rain::

He was still quite a bit faster even with his wings flung wide, so instead of trying to match the push-prop femme as he hailed her, his ailerons adjusted to tilt his course into a wide, languid circle around. He kept a generously respectful distance away and made sure to call out fairly quick, not wanting to be perceived as a possible threat. CC was fairly sure they would descend to earth to speak properly anyway- but he took the opportunity to enjoy the crisp morning air for what it was, perfect flying.

[Rain]

It took a few moments before Rain had a visual on another jet approaching her, and a moment to recognize that he wasn't close, he was huge. That meant her judgement was square on, mass displacement and part shifting. A weak moment of self righteous pride flitted through her frame for half a second.

Added to his grand appearance was his welcome. Rain had no idea who Mae was but added the question to her growing list. But her wings were warming now for a second reason, company and a view.

::And may the dawn bring good weather to your wings Cloudcompass.:: Rain replied friendly and upbeat but soft and gentle too.

As the jet approached close and began to circle, Rain guessed her top speed and his lowest had marginal overlap, she got a good look and his alt form. It was easy to tell he was supersonic capable, unlike her. He might even be able to outpace her ten fold. And he was a good two to three times larger, making him ten to twenty times as massive. Of the two standing yesterday, her helmet adornments actually made her taller, so he was something else. Rain was impressed despite herself.

::Shall we?:: She enquired as she performed a lazy roll just for fun and angled down to the ground below. She loved flying, would stay in the air all day on a whim, but it was easier to enjoy a good sunrise while standing still.

Mere meters above the dirt and desert, Rain flared up, slowed, and transformed. With several million years of practice, she made it look elegant as it was possible. From flying to walking to standing still. The femme waited until the mech joined her side as she stared across the horizon at the rising sun with her singular optic.

“I don't think I will ever get used to this beauty.” She spoke to Cloud and the world. A gentle weave of excitement in her tone.

[Deleted]

Cloudcompass pitched upwards as soon as Rain started her descent, rolling slowly as he gained altitude before he pitched back even more. The jet was upside-down as it tipped back towards the earth, and he cut his engines momentarily to enjoy the fall. As the ground surged greedily to greet him, the air caught under his wings and he gunned his engines once more, curving up into a graceful arc. At the loop’s zenith, the jet broke apart and curled forward into a smooth roll, so that CC hit the ground and- skipped almost. One, two long slightly wonky-loping steps and then a few smaller as the force of impact diffused, so that he ended up standing a respectful distance to Rain’s left, just in time to hear her speak.

The sight before them was truly gorgeous, in the way only the universe’s many natural wonders could be. Rich warm hues streaked across the trees and clouds, touched in the golden glow seeping across the horizon. He’d seen many a sunrise on many a planet, but the sight never got old. It still settled his spark and warmed his plates, helping to curate the strength for a new cycle.

A new cycle, for a new adventure, on a new planet.

It felt like the calm before the storm.

“The universe offers much beauty for those patient enough to seek it.” Cloudcompass agreed, voice soft and thoughtful- a certain nostalgia pulling at his processor. He did not allow it to draw him in however, instead keeping his mind focused on the here and now. While still projecting an air of collected calm, CC remained alert- wings held tightly folded at his back and weight on the tip of his ‘toes’. Field indiscernible in its natural state.

He did not move to say more, opting instead to not jump immediately to business unless Rain herself chose as such.

[Rain]

Though she didn't make it obvious, Rain did pay attention to Cloudcompass’ landing, the way he transformed and the way he went from flying to standing. She found it actually masterful. The way he controlled his scale shift and mass was delightful she thought. But the sunrise was still a better view. Of course she would only be able to see this one sunrise just once and never again, unique as every one was.

While she still couldn't glean Cloud’s field, and there could be several reasons Rain figured, she let her own radiate. It wasn't as strong as little Sundance’s but Cloudcompass, where he was to her left, would likely be able to pick up her relaxed and content state

“You can relax if you want, hurting your trust is the very last thing I want. Nice landing too.”

Rain was glad she had made it in time for the American dawn. It would have set a bad taste in her lines if she had missed out on her half-baked plan. She was satisfied now though and with some luck, she would carry the tranquil serenity for the day.

She waited until the sun had fully cleared the eastern horizon before breaking the silence.

“So how much of the universe have you seen?”

[Deleted]

Cloudcompass rocked back a bit the moment he felt Rain’s field brush past, not quite a flinch because he stopped himself from doing so, but the movement showed he’d been taken by surprise nonetheless. He half-turned to face her a bit more, taking the opportunity to finally give the femme a proper once-over. Her make was unique relative to their species- digitigrade, and while he’d never before met someone with what seemed to be one, large optic set in their helm- the jet simply took it as another Cybertronian quirk. He was not at all as familiar with his own kind as he was some other random species half a galaxy away, and he was not shy to admit as such. Her paintjob of pearly, patterned white and blue was vibrant and eye-catching, helm adornment (considering the other was still missing) elegantly curved. Pretty. His optics caught a moment on her once-wounded shoulder and hand-splint, making note that he should probably ask her about that at some point. She didn’t seem to be in much pain, especially if she was flying- but one could never be certain.

His optics thoughtful, and at home in the silence, CC settled and looked back towards the sunrise. He didn’t really ‘relax’ so much as rest on his feet, letting his weight fall back onto the supporting spikes and off his toes a bit. Something creaked in his knee as he did so, but it went ignored as he answered Rain, helm dipping in a jerky motion of acknowledgment towards her compliment.

“Not nearly enough- a fraction of what’s out there to see.” His tone was a bit- strange, and he spoke softly. Not sorrowful necessarily, but perhaps rueful. He was still pushing back against the memory files that seemed all too keen on shouldering their way to the fore of his processor, even as he declined their reviewing. His days as part of a proper expedition were long, long past- but he’d never stopped exploring, in his own way.

“Space is vast, and the more you witness… the bigger it gets?” The snowy mech glanced back at Rain, resetting his voicebox with a click and a sputtering vent as his voice went through a rough patch. It would take some time before he got used to- well, interacting with others again. To talking. He shuffled on his pedes, rebalancing, wings stretching open just enough to switch positions before folding tightly at his back once more.

“I’ve all but lost count of the planets I’ve seen, and the ones I’ve visited- sometimes the two do not overlap.”

He was uncertain if Rain wanted him to continue, but he was growing somewhat uncomfortable discussing a past better left where it was, for now- and so stopped- using the pause to regather his thoughts.

“How are your wounds?” Cloudcompass inquired instead, politely pulling the conversation away- if a bit abruptly changing the subject.

[Rain]

Rain stepped back with her left pedde to half turn and face Cloudcompass, her field ignited with excitement as his mention that he had visited so many planets that he’d lost count. “Oh you must have seen so many different lifeforms out there.” Her tone was wistful and her forewings perked with zest. For a moment

The femme just as quickly spun back to face the dawn sun again, suddenly embarrassed by her outburst as she valiantly tried to wrap herself in composure. Yesterday her pride, now she’d lost her dignity. But the wistfulness remained in her field and in the loft of her wings.

Rain had barely seen a handful of planets as she had, so long ago, fought to evacuate the animal life from a war torn Cybertron. But even in her long spent youth, some part of her spark had dreamed of flying between the stars. But Cybertrons space bridges had fallen before she was even sparked.

She knew what he meant by space always being bigger than what you could ever see, intellectually. Rain had studied a multitude of topics in her life, whatever caught her fancy. The size of the expanding known universe was something she had covered. One of the concepts she had learned was an coincidental aspect of her meditations.

“My wounds? Just scratches. They are sore for now but will fully heal in time. This is my third set of hands so you know, I’ve had worse.” Why she’d have to add that last bit she wondered of herself, now she felt stupid. She held her right hand in her left behind her back as if not acting stpuid could prevent her from saying anything stupid.

Rain looked at Cloud for just a moment, to see if he was looking at her. “So um, I have a datapad and software disc, just in case you need access to the local's data net.” She tried to change the topic.

[Deleted]

“Oh you must have seen so many different lifeforms out there.”

Cloudcompass dipped his helm in agreement, optics glancing between the view and Rain before finally settling on the later as the star rose higher in the sky. He too turned to face her more fully, chassis bouncing on his pedes a little and unable to keep his wings from twitching at yet another brush of the femme’s field, bursting and sparkling against his own with excitement. Cloaked it may be, it still read others (even so closely kept to his plating). The same allowed him a quick glimpse of her embarrassment- which only served to bemuse him. Why be embarrassed of your interests?

However, before he could ask Rain directly she spoke again- confusing him further— her third set of hands? What did that mean? He couldn’t keep it from his expression, his optic-ridges lifting a little as she kept talking- right up to the point where she changed the subject with just about the same level of tact he’d employed just a second ago. Ridges furrowed at that.

The jet had things to wonder about now- but a fairly large part of him also appreciated the straightforward, onto business shift in the conversation. He didn’t waste time being too torn up about it though, his inclination towards curiosity and the little things Rain had mentioned getting tucked away in a corner of his processor for later.

So instead of asking, he let the wind guide his rudders and reached into the subspace at his hip to retrieve a battered, just achingly ancient looking datapad. It didn’t even have a holoscreen- it was a solid box of metal edged in some kind of rubbery grip, with a face of glass for a screen that was chipped in one corner.

Ol’ Reliable. He held it in the loose grip of one hand with a carelessness only someone familiar with the antique in question would display.

“It would be appreciated, yes.” But his old wariness returned, and his somewhat already cold demeanour doubled down. Despite the pleasant moment, he still didn’t know Rain. At the very least, he wanted clarification on her intentions and what exactly this… was to be. So he would inquire about it as such.

“What do you intend for this to be? A trade, a deal- something else?”

He had very little to offer in return… but all Rain had said she wished to gain the night-cycle before was a friend.

Cloudcompass had not the faintest idea how to go about that.

[Rain]

“Yeah...something like that." Rain forced herself to relax as she gathered her thoughts and considered her answer. She turned to face Cloudcompass fully, though occasionally she would look away. She'd found most people became uncomfortable very quickly under her gaze. She noted the mech's emotional distance did not at all seem tied to her particular appearance. This itself was curious but it also gave her a tiny spark of hope.

"My interest in you is entirely personal and yes, even selfish." Rain vented gently as she sought to make a long story very short and not try the mech's patience. "I...believe that you left Cybertron for the last time before I was ever sparked. That means you've never become embroiled in our fragged up war and thus likely innocent in a way no Decepticon or even Autobot ever could be. I fight to protect the innocent. And out there in the galaxy? You've lived a life I can only guess at. I want to know what's out there in the stars, the natural beauty and life. Anything you might be willing to share." And truly only what he was willing, Rain had more interest in the natural universe, than any secrets Cloudcompass might conceivably want to hide. She didn't think he was some sociopathic murderer and her judgement was usually pretty good.

What she didn't add, not yet anyway, was that she was interested in the sheer aesthetics of his form, the elegance and complexity that the Allspark had gifted him. That part of her, that fashion designer that had come forth on her very first day alive was still there wanting to examine every form Primus granted his descendants.

"I'm happy to answer any questions you may have as best I can of course."

[Deleted]

The mech hummed, vents scritching a bit at the chuff, gaze steady on her optic(?) as she spoke as a basic show of respect- just as he’d done with the Prime the day before. To say he was puzzled would be an understatement, and it took him a moment to somewhat grasp what Rain was saying. He had a feeling she and Flicker would get along well, and that he was the wrong twin for this conversation.

The fact remained however, that he was the only twin currently available- and as such he would do his best. An idea came to mind, but he was hesitant to propose such a thing. It was, however, a fair and equal way to have both their questions answered. While he wouldn’t answer anything that struck too close anyway, it also reassured him that Rain didn’t seem the type to press.

“A trade then.” His helm dipped in a succinct nod. “A question for a question, in turn?”

Cloudcompass paused a moment, going over what the femme had said. He glanced away a moment, optics shuttering as he mused. He seemed to be mulling his words, wings flicking a clic before flaring out enough to exchange positions- folding tightly against his back to settle once more. In the end he said nothing about his ‘relative innocence’ one way or the other, instead looking to Rain once more. There were things he could say that would rip her idealism to shreds, but in a great show of self-restraint no one would know about or appreciate later he refrained from commenting.

[Rain]

Rain nodded at Cloudcompass’ terms. “Sure works for me.” She agreed cheerfully. Rain turned away, to face the dawn sun and decided to simply sit down, further disarming her appearance to the possibly apprehensive mech. She knelt on the ground with her legs tucked under and her long unguligrade feet sticking out behind her. Rain leaned back letting her abdominal cable take the strain while she closed her optic and centered herself as if in meditation.

It seemed to Rain that the next question was hers to ask. She considered a few possibilities. Silly stuff like Where have you been all my life? or Come here often? flitted through her mind on the winds of whim but she had yet to work out if Cloud had a sense of humour. There were the personal questions she considered but in the end she decided on something far easier to ask and answer.

“Best guess, how many planets have you been to? No wait, let me rephrase. How many life bearing planets have you seen with your own unaided optics?” There was a good question she thought and she really did want to know the answer to that one. Rain imagined that Cloudcompass had seen enough varied animals to fill a year’s discussion.

[Deleted]

Cloud watched Rain sit down curiously, wondering just what she was doing- it was a massive show of trust- whether brave or stupid he couldn’t decide. He knew he wasn’t going to do anything, but she did not-- unless.

Ah.

Appraising optics took a second, thoughtful look at the femme as she was now, legs curled under her and for all the universe looking as laidback as possible.

Curious indeed.

CC opted to remain standing for now, shifting his weight back to rest more fully on the spikes at his heels in-lieu of sitting. He thought over the answer, digging around in his processor for a more finite answer as his optics slid back to the skies distractedly. After a moment he seemed to remember the clunky datapad in his grasp, and as if struck with inspiration deftly tapped at the screen- tapered digits clicking against the glass at every touch. He looked up a clic, hummed, and then went back to the datapad. He didn’t show the result of his fiddling, but nodded once and stowed away the pad when he was done, for later.

“For certain? Around 50 000 various celestial bodies, with varying amounts of data- all either life-bearing, potentially life-bearing, or with evidence of having held life in the past.” He motioned vaguely towards the subspace pocket where he had placed the clunky piece of sh- datapad. “That’s what my records say. The number is almost guaranteed to be higher, but I no longer have those files and… its been a long time.” The mech shrugged.

The Strathcona had been a deep-space vessel, yes, but not a diplomatic nor a colonizing one. They were meant to explore and discover new worlds, catalog them for eventual, more thorough study and then move on for further research after a relatively short time. Safe to say, he’d been around a lot. Sometimes the ship’s destinations took years to reach as well, not all their time had been spent in planetary systems- they’d actually been in the middle of nowhere more often than not.

Many, many, many excruciating games of “Optic-Spot” had been played. His demeanor softened with fondness, but as soon as the memory file came it passed. Those times were long gone.

His attention turned instead towards Rain, trying to think up a question. Cloudcompass assumed, with her blatant interest with his travels, that she hadn’t had the opportunity herself. Like the femme, he was hesitant to ask anything that could be deemed too personal right off the bat- but he hadn’t the faintest clue what, exactly, qualified something as ‘too personal’ or not.

He settled after a moment’s silence on-

“If you’ve never traveled, how did you come to land on…”

CC blinked at the realization he’d yet to inquire about this planet’s designation.

“...this.. Planet?” He finished lamely, plating tightening against his frame.