Sky Lynx - Autobot Counselor

Basking in the available solar light, Sky Lynx is currently pacing around the outside courtyard of the Decagon. The large beast needed to get in some exercise after being patient for so long while the medics tended to his wounds. On occassion he heads back over to a large barrel of energon and drinks from it, slurpping down his supper, as it were.
Arcee emerges from the Decagon building, having been in the training room trying to shoot targets to relieve some of her pent-up frustration, but this time around, it hasn't done much good. As she sees Sky Lynx, her optics widen and she tries looking a little less pathetic. She *knows* she's probably been slouching. It wouldn't do to have him notice something like that.
Slurp. The golden windows of the visor of the roc settle on the femme, but he doesn't stop drinking. Why on some planets, it's considered poor taste if you don't slurp your meal! However, once he's done, he lifts his head, some remnants of the fuel staining his mouth as he considers her. His head tilts to the side and he for half an astro click considers letting her go on her way. But that just wouldn't be right.
"Evening, Arcee! How magnificent it is that I should be graced with your presence, almost as much as you are probably feeling graced with mine." After all, that's why she straightened up, right? Moving away from his container, he looks down towards the femme and considers her as he rests on his hind legs, tail flopped out to the side, lightly pounding against the ground. "I could not help but to notice that your posture was slightly off when you came onto the parade grounds. Is something amiss? Perhaps it would help if you were to discuss it. At least that is what I have been told." Until he does start talking and then someone eventually says 'we get it!'. The dino's head sways back and forth, that perpetual motion always needed, the marks on his armor freshly buffed and cleaned, and she may notice the replacement glass on one part of his optic visor.
Arcee smiles a bit. "It's great to see you, sir...I saw the reports from the last battle." One thing she appreciates about Sky Lynx is that he's probably the most approachable mech in the Decagon. While Arcee has a special rapport with Prowl, she knows better than to bother him with just *anything*, especially if it could be considered trivial. And her own problems right now, well, they're not as trivial as they once were. "Well...are you certain? I mean...I'm in a bit of a bind right now," she admits softly. "I know your time is important."
"As if it would be a bother, Arcee. It is my pleasure to listen to and advise my compatriots." He does it whether or not he's solicited, after all. The Dinobird considers for a moment and then hmms. "My manners." he chides himself, and gestures to the large container he was just slurping from. "Come, let us drink, talk and make merry!" he says with a polite chuckle. "There is no problem that is so trivial that it is not worth my time to listen to and assist with." Pushing himself off of his hind legs, he uses one of his paws to push the container towards Arcee. She'd probably have to climb in to take a drink - honestly, she could probably bathe in the stuff.
"Now, what can I help you with? I read your recent report on Nyon and I know that you have had a friendship with Hot Rod in the past. Are you handling his status with the rebellion well?" he asks her honestly as he considers the options of what she could want to discuss with him. "Or perhaps it is with the recent breakdown of open diaologue between the Senate and the Galactic Council?" he inquires, touching on her past as an aide. "Or even the recent loss of Senator Ratbat.." something about that name makes Lynx's lips curl with disgust. "...not that it was much of a loss. But if you wish to talk about it, I am more than willing and capable of paying rapt attention."
"Well, Hot Rod seems to have a new...bodyguard, or follower, her name's Arsenal and she's a bit trigger-happy about me. She'll keep him safe...if she can save Rod from his own ridiculous mistakes, maybe he's better off having her around," Arcee admits. "I really haven't seen him since he showed up at the state funeral and I went out to Nyon to try and talk some sense into him, that's when I met his new friend. Like I said, it's...if she wants to deal with his silly notions, she's more than welcome to do it."
Arcee takes a smaller decanter from subspace, and scoops out a measure of Sky Lynx's offered drink. "Thank you so much," she says as she takes a sip. "But he's the least of my problems right now. Most of my problems have to do with Starscream. Prowl already knows about this, and he says he's going to help, but he has so much he has to do right now...I don't feel like it's particularly fair of me to...to put this on him...honestly, I should be able to fix it, only...I keep making things worse."
She has that very tremulous tone in her voice that suggests whatever this is about is putting her under a great deal of emotional distress.
"Hmm. Hot Rod does seem to have a penchant to attract trouble, if not from his actions then from those that are drawn to him." Prowl rewarded Sky Lynx well, giving him the high grade aviation energon. Even with his solar power compensating for the loss of power, this is really helping out. Once Arcee has gotten her drink, he dips his head back in to messily gulp down some more before lifting his head back up. At least he doesn't spit it all out at the mention of Starscream.
"Starscream. He made sure to welcome me back to Cybertron properly last cycle." the large creature chuckles. "I took him on a tour of the apartments in Rust Narrows headfirst." Quite proud of that fact he is. "He and his troublesome brother, Thundercracker were both weilding new weapons that I have not been exposed to, but if anything, they reminded me of the energon leeches of Neddron I." the shuttle confesses. "I will never understand how that colony adapted to those disgusting creatures. Just the thought of them now makes my armor crawl." he admits with a shudder.
He files away the information on Prowl being one of Arcee's confidants at the moment. "Prowl? He is always too busy to handle the personal things, I fear. He has yet to really learn how to handle interpersonal issues except not to deal with them. It can be quite bemusing at times. But please, that is for another time. You said that you were having personal problems with Starscream?" he finally repeats, a slight tone of incredilousness in his voice. "Not that I should be surprised, he has always come across as one that seems to appear swauve in his mannerisms, right until he throws you under the on-coming transport."
"Hot Rod is difficult to *stay* angry at," Arcee admits. "I just hope he doesn't overstep his bounds and anger the wrong mechs. Only now, I feel like he has someone -- a former /cop/, at that -- who is willing to guard him, so that may just prolong his life."
She smiles slightly as Sky Lynx mentions giving Starscream a 'tour' of the Rust Narrows. "At the risk of sounding kind of crude, I hope you stomped him flat," she admits. "He's such a creep, and I...made a huge mistake by trying to play his rotten game right back at him. In a way, it /worked/, but not in the way I had hoped. I've gotten his attention, alright...at the risk of my reputation, my career, the future..." Arcee pauses for a moment to collect her thoughts, resting her forehead against her hands. "Now, he looks for me. Doesn't matter where I go; he can pick me up on his long-range and just pluck me off the street if he wants. He's...trying...to get me to give him information, and I'm not going to do it. I don't know what he's going to do when he finally realizes that, but for now, I'm just another one of his challenges to be conquered."
"I can't leave the base without thinking he's going to be there. It's a true mess."
To his credit, Sky Lynx does not chide Arcee on the turn of events at her attempt to Tame the Seeker. Though the giant beast seems to heave a little in that 'oh, that is a fine mess' manner, as Sky Lynx studies the femme for a long moment. "Or attempt to drag him down the way to become his cojunx endura - do let me know if that happens, I would appreciate filiming that for my archive." Who says that he doesn't have a sense of humor?
The armor of the beast bristles with confidence and assurance at Arcee's comment. "If he did not wake up this cycle with a rather large headache, I will be convinced that his head is made of high-grade steel and titanium." the mech responds with a rumbling chuckle from deep within. "I will spare you the ideas that stepping into the pit with someone like him was foolish - you have already chastized yourself enough, I am certain. And there is no need to rehash what is already known. Now. Put yourself in his armor for a moment, as nauseating as that thought may be." the beastformer admits as he takes another drink from his fuel and curls down to be more on level with the femme, his head at least on the same height as her now.
"There is a way to play his game, besides not playing the game. He will assume that he can wear you down. Charm his way, if you will, to learn what he wants to know. We can use this to our advantage, however. If you are willing to take this a step further into the abyss you have found yourself in so that perhaps you can find the light on the other side. Much like traversing warp-drive that is. You have to trust what it is that you find yourself doing." With that, the large dinobird becomes thoughtful.
"If I may be so bold, what sort of information is he seeking?" he asks her. "Is it small stuff, like patrol rosters or just the general gossip around the Decagon, or is he trying to pry a large secret from you? If I were to be him, I would of course start small. Build up trust. Perhaps not even use the information you provide me because then you would think nothing of it later when I do ask for the large favor."
Arcee does actually chuckle at that. "There's one thing to be said for 'dancing with the devil'; getting that close does, in fact, yield a few secrets. I'm convinced he would NEVER agree to a conjunx endura with *anyone*. I think he's a bit...touchy...about anyone getting that close. Well. I mean...close enough to know his thoughts. You get the picture. He doesn't want anyone knowing what goes on in that mind of his. Not like I'd want to know, either. I wouldn't want to sift through that corrupt data anyhow. Yuck." She takes a long sip of her drink, then her smile fades. "I really thought I could do it, Sky Lynx. Because I'm no wimp, and I'm no pushover. I'm a strong femme. What I wanted to do was show him I wasn't afraid, that I wasn't going to be intimidated by him, and...damn it, he /enjoys/ that. Seems he likes things a little bit...rough. It's just /encouraging/ him, now."
She turns her gaze toward the dinobird commander. "I think he wants the door pass to the Decagon, now," Arcee says. "He had 'information' for me the last time I saw him...he said that the Decepticons were planning on capturing a major public figure in the very near future, but he wouldn't tell me who it was. I'm not sure if that was a lie -- you just never know with him. He makes things up a lot of the time. He said he would tell me more if I let him into the Decagon...I guess he thinks I'm a real pushover, I don't know."
One thing is certain, however; Starscream's managed to make enough of an emotional impression on Arcee that she's having a really difficult time shaking him loose, and it isn't getting any easier for her.
Sky Lynx considers, the large claws of one paw tapping against the ground. "is Prowl aware of this plot that Starscream has hatched and how he plans on trying to use you for it?" the Commander finally asks, considering and gathering his thoughts on the ideas that she has laid out before him and will circle back to that particular area in just a moment.
"And of course, Arcee. I can tell that you enjoy the thrill of the challenge, I have seen you do so much with what you were granted, you are quite the prime example for those that are femmes within the Bots and even the neutrals that may be considering joining our ranks to look up to and admire." the Dinobird finally says quite honestly to her as he chuckles. "He's offering you a small piece of bait to see if you will rise up and take it and in return, get what he wants out of you." he finally says, and then he sighs. Much like a father sighs when he hears his daughter may have done something that gets over her head and she can no longer control it.
"This is a delicate question to ask, but one that I suppose should be addressed, Arcee. And this question will remain only between you and I, I have no reason to go running off to command to prattle on about some instructor turning in a naughty schoolchild." he comments, voice turning gentle, concerned. "Have Starscream and you interfaced?" he finally shines his visor on that cityformer in the room. "If you have, that is your decision to have made, but I would recommend a full check of your firewalls and interface protocols, I have no doubt that if anyone could find a way to circumvent that programming to find a backdoor into someone, it would be Starscream."
"I told Prowl that Starscream was attempting to get information out of me, but I haven't had a chance to tell him about the, uh, the information exchange," Arcee admits. "The whole alleged, possible hostage-taking plot. Because at the time I heard it, I pretty much assumed Starscrean was lying about it. Now, though, I'm just not sure. It may be a viable lead."
Arcee shakes her head very adamantly when Sky Lynx asks her about...ugh! WHY did he have to bring THAT up. WHY. "No, not at all. Matter of fact, like I said, I don't even think he's interested in that. And I'd only do something like that with someone I love and care about, so the answer is an absolute NO. He's much more into the concept of...uh..." Arcee considers for a moment, then explains, "Things he /can't have/. That riles him up a lot more than things he /can/ have. See...I know a lot more about him now than I ever wanted to, and the more I find out, the more I need to get away from it. For my own sanity. He isn't...well, obviously, he's got a few issues. But...if you can use *anything* I've managed to find out up to this point? Please do."
"I withdraw the question, the reason it was asked was because you sounded you have gotten far closer than what you had wished to, and I did not wish to make you uncomfortable." Sky Lynx offers as he gives an apologetic smile to the femme for making her uncomfortable. At least it's not just casual interfacing? "And of course, his delicious morsel is coated in mystery and intrigue - after all, he does not tell you whom it..." and then, suddenly, the dinobird pauses his thoughts and his expression turns pensive and then surprised. "But of course, that could be one possibility!" he suddenly says as he rises to his feet and starts to pace about. "He said someone important, but he didn't say important /how/.." Lynx states as he paces.
"With the tilt of the planet seemingly coming around to the idea of war, what would you go after first? The psychomechanical element, of course. If there is noone to speak with when you come back from a mission, least of all for those that have noone to speak with, who would you visit?" he asks her, seemingly prompting her, but then answers himself. "...you would go to our chief psychologist, Rung. Arcee, Starscream may have fed you that information with just a touch of mistruth about it happening soon because it has already happened." he points out to her, seeing if the femme reaches the same conclusion she does on this theory.
"Oh no, it's okay, I understand, this is a pretty dangerous situation and I'm just at a loss right now on how to...disengage from it," Arcee says, watching with interest as a light of 'Eureka' seems to go off inside Sky Lynx's magnificent noggin. While Arcee isn't a newspark, she is still quite young, so she doesn't have a great deal of life experience to draw from just yet. "...So...so you think he's got Rung," Arcee murmurs. "Sure, I could see that as a possibility, although Prowl's answer regarding Rung's current whereabouts has been somewhat...vague? If what you're saying is true, wouldn't Prowl let all of us know that?"
"Perhaps.." Sky Lynx considers. "Unless that was his assignment." the shuttleformer seems to shrug his shoulders as he continues to pace, his expression pensive. "He wants the keys to Decagon?" he asks her finally, as he considers her. "What is his offer for this information? The target itself?" he asks her finally, as if weighing the possibility of playing this game with Starscream. There's no doubt that he feels that perhaps he could handle the situation, without a doubt. But.. Prowl is his source for the good energon he gets to enjoy.
"I think it would be best that you explain to Prowl all of what you have learned and what Starscream is considering and has asked of you. If he gets upset about the situation, apologize for what has occured and explain as you did to me. If he does not understand and accept your reasoning, then he is probably too overwhelmed with the security aspect of it all and you will need to keep him on task. I would suggest you speak to him in private, perferably when he is off duty. If there is ever such a time."
"He keeps saying that if I do this for him, that he'll give me more details," Arcee notes. And, she thinks, he'll shower her with the attention she's completely starved for in this place. He knows she's a total sucker for that. Just the thought of it makes her angry...it makes her want to shoot him full of holes. (It's a difficult time, and he's taking full advantage of that!)
"Prowl, I'm not worried about him listening, I'll tell him whatever he wants to know," Arcee says with full confidence. Something about the no-nonsense mech has somehow appealed to her enough that even his gruff attitude doesn't dissuade her from confiding in him. "I just know that he has a method for prioritizing things, and Sentinel keeps him on task so much that...I feel like throwing this on top of his already-full burden won't be productive."
"Yes, well, it sounds like he wants to take more than you are offering at the moment." the large dinobird flumps his head onto his folded paws and his tail waves back and forth idly, much like an oversized techno-sphinx as he processes the data he's been presented with. "So taking this directly to Prowl may not be the best idea. I suppose that I could assist in what I can, which is much, mind you. But I say it with a word of caution. Do not allow him to bring you with him too deep. Much like when you are travelling in warp, if you allow yourself to drift you will find yourself in a situation that will shake you apart. And right now, I sense that you are right on the edge of that particular vortex." the Commander warns gently.
"Now. He wants access codes." Back on his feet again, the Dinobird paces, considering his thoughts and gathering them as he attempts to gain an idea on how to handle this. "If you want." he finally suggests, just to maybe take some of the burden off of Arcee and shoulder it upon his own massive frame. "I can speak to Prowl. Tell him of the situation delicatedly and what your idea is. And once I have his thoughts on the matter, I can become your handler for this, that way he is not overwhelmed with what you are presenting him, he does not have to be overburdened, and you will have someone on your side that is fast enough and strong enough to pull you away should you find youself floundering and in need of assistance."
Arcee smiles. "I might be in-too-deep already, because this whole situation feels an awful lot like spark-ache," Arcee admits sadly. "But if...if you wouldn't mind if we teamed up more, went on more patrols and such..." She seems to perk up. "Maybe that's all it would *really* take, because he's an opportunist. He always gets me alone whenever he can. If we're teaming up to patrol for trouble, then he's not going to get that opportunity! ...If you wouldn't mind the company, I'm still kind of green when it comes to field assignments."
"I can agree to that. There is nothing ever wrong with taking someone under wing and training them, and I am sure that the cycle will come that you will in turn need to take some newspark under your care and guidance." Sky Lynx offers with a chuckle. "Though I may need to take some time and depart the planet - though.." he looks thoughtful again. "Do you know of a Velocitron that goes by Override?" the Dinobird asks.
"I had quite the conversation with her on the global commicube today and it was quite optic-opening. Do you know much of Velocitron and how it's system works?" he asks, changing the subject so that it is no longer the priority and deepest burden for Arcee at least for a few breems.
"Oh, I've met her! The racing colonist!" Arcee exclaims when Sky Lynx mentions Override. "From what I understand, Velocitron is having some serious problems right now, and she -- as well as a number of other colonists -- might end up exiled here for lack of a way to return, purely political problem if ever there was one. Not sure of the full details, but I've found her a reasonable place to stay in Praxus, which is a decent location. Were you going to take the stranded colonists back there?"
"She has to be the one to petition the Senate for permission." Sky Lynx admits. "But yes, you are quite correct. Their elections, even though democratic, are determined by who the fastest racer is. It is quite an exciting event to watch, I participated in one many years ago - I have the trophy I won in my office as a matter of fact, which is why this idea is dear and near to me. I believe she should have the chance to compete in the competition and perhaps if we could convince the Senate to allow her to travel to Velocitron to compete perhaps in turn she could make sure that the Velocitronians remain part of the Cybertronian whole. Though even if she is not able to sway their feelings, I feel that it is our duty to at least try to assist someone in their time of need when the reason arises in the name of galactic goodwill."
A small chime goes off within the internals of the dinobird and he chuckles. "My where the time goes when you find yourself in such pleasant company." he admits. "I should start my patrol for the evening. I would suggest you get some rest and consider the options that have been presented, I will support you no matter which option you end up settling on." With that, the dinobird takes a couple of steps and leaps high into the sky, engaging his engines and taking flight.