Culture Shock

Crusade (and whoever else wanted to tag along) has been invited wayyy out here to the Mercury Isles. Specifically the lone cabana that one can only get to by wading through ankle-deep mercury. It's a clear day with surprisingly blue skies - Cybertron's rough atmosphere isn't churning out acid storms for once. Fathom can be found in the shallows nearby attempting to fly fish. He's not good at it.

Crusade splashes ashore, staring in confusion at the lone island with its cabana and lounge chairs. He blinks a few times, then focuses on the mech fishing in the shallows. Must be the person who invited him to the island.

"Sir?" Crusade approaches Fathom cautiously, not wanting to startle him. "I'm answering your summons."

Torque still felt kinda bad about fighting Crusade, so the shuttle ride was a little awkward on her part. But it was all in good fun, so hopefully all's well. "Nice little spot you picked out, Fathom." The femme muses when coming up from behind Crusade, both arms laced behind her head in a lax manner. "Wish I could hang out here all the time, heh."

Fathom whips his rod back, then slings the line again, only to have it slip from his grasp and soar into the ocean. "Psh, you're supposed to fish with your mouth anyhow," he mutters to Crusade, then brightens. "Oh, you're here! Okay uh, yes, have a seat!" He gestures to the fancy lounge chairs as he wades back to the little island. "Right. My stylus." It pops out of subspace into his hand. "This is for one of my classes see. It's part of a thesis. One of many theses. You'll be completely anonymous. Congratulations on your victory, by the by. Hey Torque! Well it's not /my/ cabana, it's open to the public. You could, if you wanted."

Crusade offers Torque a wry smile as he perches on the edge of a lounge chair. "It must be nice when you want to get away from the world and be alone for a little." The smile fades slightly when he glances at Fathom, and his doorwings slump several degrees. "Thanks. Anyway, uh." He fidgets around, trying to get comfortable. "What's your class about?"

Torque shrugs. "I know, but not much time these days. Plus, not a lot of need for medics out here." At the mention of Crusade's victory however, she smiles wide and pats the mech on the shoulder. "Just saw the replay for that, myself. Good job out there." Afterwards, while the two get comfy under the cabana, Torque remains a few paces away to observe the shimmering sea stretching out before them.

Too bad Fathom lost his line. Ah well, time to improvise. Spooling out a length of towline, Torque ties a float from subspace near the end (What? She comes prepared.), gives it a few good swings, and tosses it out a ways to pass the time while listening to the other two.

Bumblebee transforms into his VOLKSWAGEN CONCEPT BEETLE MODE!

Volkswagen Dune Beetle  drives down the ramp of the shuttle a few moments after Torque and Crusade disembark. Awkward ride for the two of them? Possibly. But did they have any idea they were being...SPIED ON? The Beetle comes to a stop in front of the trio, and Bumblee transforms with a sheepish grin. "Erm...Well hey, guys. Was just working on a few subterfuge type manuevers and was planning on driving away quietly..." He rubs the top of his head. "Didn't realize we'd be landing on a small island."

"Sure it is," Fathom nods regarding the little escape, then proceeds to look thoroughly impressed when Torque uses her tow cable as a fishing line. "I'll bet that'll be handy on the salvage trip." Crusade's question actually has him pausing to recall /which/ class. "Sssss...social studies. Also using it for a psychology class. Now." He splays his hands as if spreading an invisible book. "You needn't reply if the things I ask are too difficult to answer." Remaining on his feet, he sets his stylus to a holographic square projecting from his palm. "What challenges have you personally faced since joining up with this faction? You can be as vague or as specific as you want."

Bumblebee's surprise appearance earns a mildly confused smile, "Subterfuge? You were practicing on these two?"

Crusade salutes the yellow minibot as he arrives, then rests his elbows on his knees and settles his chin in his hands. "Culture shock, I guess. Everyone's a lot more..." He pauses, trying to think of the right word to use. "A lot more outgoing than I'm used to. There weren't as many fights as I thought there would be."

"Heh, why d'ya think I wanted to come along? Should be easy to haul up stuff once I get a hook on it once we get the mission underway." Torque smiles to Fathom over her shoulder, but pauses when a familiar, yellow mech comes driving up out of nowhere. This gets him the stern look and a purse of lips. "Bee, y'know it's not nice to go spyin' on your teammates like that." As for Crusade she smirks. "We still get some scuffles now and then. Mostly the Wreckers. But we're not like the Cons, who I bet bicker constantly."

Bumblebee gives Crusade a grin and an ol' punch in the arm in response to the salute. "I'm a sidekick, not a Prime, Crusade." Torque gets a reproachful look. Bee is a little downcast, but he's not quite gee goshing, either. "The next time the Decepticons have you on a shuttle en route to a deserted island, you're going to be glad I've got a rep under the hood, Torque. Still, sorry for interupting...fishing, everyone." He looks around. "Is Rodimus here?" As if fishing sans Rodimus makes zero sense. Who would do that unless it was a mandatory Prime fieldtrip?

Fathom gives Torque a thumbs-up and turns back to Crusade, tapping his helmguard thoughtfully. "I see. Am I correct to assume your previous life lead you to join the ranks?" he asks carefully. "Or was it something else? There's apparently quite a few mechs that joined up to exact revenge, be it from a destroyed hometown or a specific Decepticon they'd like to end."

"S'all right Bumblebee, you're not interrupting. You can answer these questions too if you want. And sorry, no Prime."

"I haven't seen any of those scuffles yet. Everyone seems to get along really well." Crusade shifts his attention from Torque to grin sheepishly at Bumblebee. "I'm sorry, sir. It's a ...uh, a bit of a habit."

He fixes Fathom with a thoughtful look, the tiniest of frowns tugging at the corners of his mouth, and nods. No details, no specifics.

Bumblebee watches Fathom carefully. Poor guy. Lots of pain in his background. "I signed on because Megatron was threatening everything we knew and loved." Bee shrugs a bit. "There was never really a choice."

"Hey now, Prime's not the only one who likes fishing, you know." Torque smiles warmly at Bee. "Heh, and I'll remember that. Anyway, I'll leave you mechs to it. Gonna head down the shore a bit to see if anything bites." With a nod to the trio, Torque reels her line back in and wades through the shallow water a bit further away before recasting, content to fish the whole time.

Fathom has no choice but to write down, 'the subject nods' for Crusade. "Ah, bye Torque!" He waves her off and turns back to the remaining mechs. "What are your long term goals among the Autobots? Do you intend to climb the ranks?" he asks, finally slumping back into a cushy chair. "What about you, Bumblebee?"

Crusade gnaws on his lower lip. Decepticons threatening everything? No surprises there. "Lots of stuff. Flatten the 'Cons, put an end to their tyranny, make sure what they did never happens to anyone else ever again." He's staring at the ground now, optics burning with cold determination. "I don't know if I want to climb the ranks or not. If it happens, it happens, but I'm not hungry for power or anything. I just want to be a hero and do heroic deeds like the rest of the Autobots."

Bumblebee smiles a little bit. "I knew I liked this guy for a reason."

Bumblebee continues...

Bumblebee balls up a fist and digs it into his palm a bit as he thinks for a moment. "Climbing the ranks? Eh...I don't think that's what the Autobots is about. We do what we're called upon to do. Orion Pax never wanted the Matrix. He was give a task and he had to step up to it. That's the character of an Autobot. The best of us that ever rolled out." Bee pauses for a moment, and adds softly, "I just want to do right by a good mech."

Fathom is stirred, moved even! Though he stifles this with a faint grin. "Strong words, both of you. Something a bit lighter. This is for a different class involving statistics. What alt mode did you have before joining up, if any, and why did you choose the one you have now? From what did you derive your name, and did you have others? Though I suppose you just outlined that, didn't you, Crusade. Bee?"

Bumblebee hrms. "It's...It feels like a lifetime ago since we were reactivated on Earth. I was just a Cybertronian scout car." He gestures with his arms a bit to express that he had sort of weird wing thingys.

Crusade begins fidgeting again - he definitely looks a little uncomfortable now, as if a horde of gremlins are sending electric shocks through his lounge chair every few seconds. "Um. A hovercar, I think. I wasn't allowed to use it for a while. As for why I chose my altmode, I just liked how it looked. At one point I was afraid I'd turn into a large feline, though." His discomfort seems to increase a little. "I've always been Crusade, for as long as I can remember. Regardless of what, uh, others thought I should be called. I like my name."

Fathom doesn't overlook the discomfort, though he smiles more broadly at the mention of the jaguar. His holographic notebook flickers and vanishes, and he dusts his hands. "That should be enough for now. Thanks for taking the time, both of you, I appreciate it. You're free to bail, I'm sure you have Olympic matters to deal with. I'm no olympian!" He stands and salutes, more out of a farewell gesture than formality.

Crusade lets out a quiet sigh of relief and stands, returning the salute. "You're welcome, sir. Let me know if there's any other questions you need me to answer. Good luck with the assignment." He's still got that uneasy look about him as he heads for the waiting shuttle.

Bumblebee watches Crusade trudge off, and glances at Fathom. "I better make sure he gets home safe. As even keel as he tries to be, I think he's having a harder time adjusting then he lets on."

Bumblebee transforms into his VOLKSWAGEN CONCEPT BEETLE MODE!

Volkswagen Dune Beetle  motors off towards the shuttle!