Venture meets Chains

7/16/2011
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Chains Venture
It's mid-day in Iacon (although, in eternal twilight, it's my convention rather than by the position of any sun in the sky). Venture, ever the energetic youth, has temporarily arranged some ramps and obstacles in the open space outside the courtyard. Presently she can be seen weaving around the obstacles in cycle mode (some of which bear an uncanny resemblance to medical toolkits), and then launching herself over the ramps and landing on either her front or rear tires (both quite wide like Afterburner's), and proceeding to drive on one wheel for a short distance before turning around to repeat the process with a different ramp. Her paint job is noticeably scuffed and has a few minor dents, and this sort of activity certainly doesn't help, but hey--it counts as training.
Chains usually gets his training in the field, not used to bases and facilities so much as 'hood and bar fights. Still, he recognizes the intent as he makes his way back in from a scouting run - as usual, rather scuffed and dented himself, if one could tell any of that through the layers of road grime and dust he's picked up from off-roading. 
There's a grin behind the faceplate, and the minibot transforms. The engine guns, and he takes off for one of the ramps himself, weaving skillfully through and around he obstacle course towards the femme.
Venture smiles inwardly when she hears, and then spots, Chain's approach. Quickly spinning around at the end of a run, she takes off again right after him, attempting to match his speed. This might mean she'll crash into the bigger 'Bot when she flies off the ramp, but she's small enough and agile enough that she thinks she can either avoid a collision or, failing that, keep it to a small bump that won't matter in the end. Vrooom!
Chains has never been afraid of some extra bumps and scrapes, so the challenge is duly accepted, leaving the two of them relying on the cycles' respective agility to keep the eventual crash to a rough scrape more than a head on - thankfully both are up to the task, though the contact just leaves him grinning. "Crash course, my favorite." he calls, skidding to a stop, and spinning back for another run at the ramp, and back towards her again.
Venture slows down a bit and does a wheelie for the tightest turn in the course she created, then drops down and accelerates again, hoping to meet the ramp at the same time as her friend/opponent/victim. "I haven't played chicken in a long time," she says to him once in vocal range. The only question now is: should she veer left, or right, on the ramp to avoid a head-on? She decides to wing it, and they do, in fact, reach their respective ramps at about the same time...!
"I have." is the quick comment in return - and despite his size compared to a lot of the gangers and ne'er do wells, he doesn't lack for conviction. He may be more of an off-roader and endurance vehicle than a stunt bike, but he takes the course well enough, and doesn't hesitate at all in going right down the center of the ramp, leaving the decision which way to veer to her - he's apparently willing to chance it mid-air.
In the end, Venture's indecisive, and tries something different! Once they're both airborne, she quickly transforms to robot mode in mid-air, and reaches for Chains' handlebars. Grabbing hold of them, her momentum causes Chains to somersault! Since he has greater mass than she, the pair continue in Chain's original direction, and he manages to land squarely on his two wheels! Venture then flips into his seat, albeit facing backwards, her arms stretched behind her to hang on. It was a dangerous maneuver, but lucky timing made it full of win!
Chains doesn't let the sudden change, or having a rider deter him. He comes skidding to a halt, only to gun the engine again, and run the course at top speed, giving her a rider's perspective - albeit one acing backwards, with all the extra thrill of not being quite sure what lies ahead - and he has a surprise of his own. 
He hits the ramp at top speed, getting as much air as possible, then transforms in mid-air, trying to catch her mid-air and come down carrying her.
After their first joint landing, Venture's bright optics reveal her equivalent to an adrenaline rush. "That was a sweet maneuver!", she says excitedly, loud enough to be heard over Chains' engine. She's about to let go and hop off when she realizes Chains has other plans, and quickly tightens her grip. "Hey--whoa!", she emits as she's jostled when her ride negotiates the obstacles at high speed, but is thrilled nonetheless. She wasn't expecting him to transform, however, and flails momentarily before she's caught in mid-air. "Aaaah!"
Chains lands in a crouch, designed for rough terrain and long periods without maintenance - which includes awfully good shock absorption in either mode, apparently, given how seamless the landing was. His expression is hard to read, given his facial plate and all, but his voice, at least, suggests he's got more than a little thrill seeker in him too - were it not already obvious. "You know, these obstacle course thingies would probably be even more popular if they all came complete with a cute femmebot like this one does."
"Haha, that was sweet!", Venture exclaims once they're on the ground again. "And--hey! I'm not cute, I'm tough--well, at least in mind, if not in body, anyway!" Which of course actually makes her all the more cuter. At least she recognizes that her body isn't as rugged as she'd like it to be. She reaches up to his chest (or whichever part of him is eye-level to her) and wipes a bit of grime off with her index finger. "You've been out and about. Just getting back from a scouting run?", she asks.
"Being tough and all makes you that much cuter." he teases, settling in once he sets her down, chest about eye level, being on the bigger end of minibots and all. "Yeah, long run around the borders, bit of time in the underground. Blowing off some steam before your next scouting run?"
"Something like that," Venture says. "Well, actually...I was kind of confined to base for a few cycles because I was a little too creative in interpreting my last set of orders", she admits with a smirk. "I think Optimus wanted to give the medics a break from seeing me too often, too." She does a few stretches, apparently to work out some stiffness in her joints--which is a common occurrence after transforming into robot mode after too many consecutive rough landings in vehicle mode. "I get bored easily, so I came outside to release some pent-up energy."
Chains groans at mention of confinement to base. "Always hate hearing that. Need more good scouts out there." he replies, watching her go through her stretches. "Sure, might end up with some bumps and scrapes, but its a warzone - they want the info, right?" he replies, obviously sympathizing with the side of the scouts and off-roaders more than the medical crew. Were he not as durable as he is, they'd probably see more of him too.
Venture shrugs her shoulders. "They're just trying to condition me into being more responsible. I guess I AM too much of a risk-taker. It doesn't help that I only come back to Iacon when I need to, which more often than not is because I got shot up, so their perception of me is a bit skewed." She then turns and hops up onto a metal shipping crate to sit, letting her legs fall over the edge, so she'll be more at eye level with Chains. "What I wouldn't give to be a warrior instead of a scout..."
Chains moves to a wall by the crate, leaning back against it, arms crossed over his chest. "Nothing wrong with some risks, long as you know what you're capable of, and keep coming back at all. I can barely stand this place, half the time. I mean, good cause and all, but way too stuffy. As for warrioring - then you don't even get to get out and about as much as you do. I mean, taking the fight to them is great and all... really. But being a front liner has its downsides too."
"True, getting to scout all over Cybertron is tons of fun and all, but doing recon, laying low for cycles at a time to gather intel isn't what I want to do the rest of my days. I always have the urge to actually go out and do stuff, rather than just watch stuff. I want to be the hero on the battlefield, not the hero who gives advance warning. I want to go out fighting for what I believe in."
Chains laughs and shakes his head. "Fighting for what you believe in is one thing. S'why we're all here. Soon as people start trying to be heroes, though, s'when they end up just getting shot up. Better to want to fight for what you believe in for a long time, than go out. Besides, who knows, you get trained up enough, maybe you can do some of both. After all, plenty of scouts do their share of fighting too." Case in point and all.
Venture smiles. "Maybe it's just that I like releasing my aggressive tendencies on the Decepticons. The only problem is I've got more aggressive tendencies than size and strength. On the occasion when we're short-staffed and I'm called out to the battlefield, I never hesitate to jump on and tackle someone bigger than me if it'll mean the difference between a 'Bot or ally getting blown to pieces and him escaping. It's just...frustrating, I guess, that my chassis doesn't match my personality."
Chains nods once. "Hey, I kind of like your chassis, but that's just me." he responds first. "Trust me, though, I understand the whole aggressive tendencies thing - and easy enough to tackle people bigger than us. That means most of the 'con army. Besides, you could just stand to learn a few movies, hit and run work, all'a that. You got plenty of quick to pull off some skirmishing."
"You think so, huh?", Venture says, turning to glance at the obstacle course she cobbled together. "I guess, being me isn't all bad. Maybe if I train a lot and get a few upgrades, I'll be able to stand up for myself better," she muses, before leaning back so she's face-up with her arms folded behind her helm, looking towards one of the planet's moons in orbit overhead. "And for what it's worth...you've got a nice chassis too," she admits. "Agile and rugged."
Chains shrugs. "Hey, works for me. Ain't like anyone is pushing me to run from any fights - just got to remember the run part of hit and run, wears them down, keeps you alive to do it again, plenty effective." he replies to the first. "And you're right - I don't even know you, and I can already see plenty of good things about being you." Yep, more teasing. "I'm Chains, by the bye. And if you want a closer look at my chassis, I ought to get cleaned up, if you want to help with the rubdown."
Venture reaches down between her knees to grab the corner of the crate, so she can pull herself back up into a sitting position. "My name's Venture, and if I'm not mistaken, you're flirting with me," she says with a smirk. "But sure, I don't mind lending a hand in exchange for the ride you just gave me." With that, she hops down in front of Chains.
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