Counter-Apathy

-"You know Starscream far more than I do," Swift Blade says. "After all, I haven't had /much/ direct contact with him, but you've had lots of time. As for Megatron...I'm not sure how predictable he is. Especially now." She shakes her head. "It was an unpleasant situation, and the Autobots certainly showed their bad side during our time there."

-Thundercracker flicks a wing, "Well there's no telling with him in all honesty. As for the Autobots; all we did was show what they are really all about. Now it seems all we got to do is clean up and then help set up a new government and finally this planet can get back on track. But I'm taking a break right now from it." he gives a short laugh and works on his energon.

-"It's a complicated life, that is for certain," Swift Blade muses. She rises for a moment to get herself some energon. "Though you must have had some uncomfortable moments when it looked like Starscream was about to sell us out..." she says as she sits back down. "After all, you are kin."

-Thundercracker shrugs, "I suppose we are." he seems a bit sulky about that for a moment and then continues, "And I half expected him to be truthful when it looked like he was going to sell us all out. I don't put anything past him anymore."

-"I imagine that's not a pleasant situation," Swift Blade says. "I'm not sure what compels someone to be that decietful. I couldn't picture myself betraying someone through conscious effort." Even when that someone is going down a dangerous path...but she keeps that thought to herself for now. "I hope things settle around here soon."

-Thundercracker says, "I'm sure Starscream can explain it perfectly. And yea hopefully things will soon. Seems a bit too easy all of this though.

-Swift Blade actually frowns at this. "Easy? Try telling that to the people who are fighting on the streets. Not everyone has the luxury, the privelege, of being able to fly above it all," she says. "I've actually been wondering what our plans for the city are once we fully hold it. Many of us are lower caste...what do we know about running a city?"

-Thundercracker looks at Swiftblade, "I'm sure Megatron will help mechs figure out how it's done. And I meant easy as in how easy the Senate was destroyed."

-"The Senate themselves only had the power that they were given. Against weaponry and anger they had very little defense." Swift Blade purses her lips. "But I see what you mean. And no disrespect to Megatron, but he's never been an administrator. He has the far reaching vision, and the will and anger to pursue it, but I don't know how good he is with the day to day details of maintaining a city."

-"Then he will probably tell someone else to do it for him?" Thundercracker suggests as he finishes his energon. "Are you any good with stuff like that?"

-"Not as such," Swift Blade says. "But I wouldn't mind learning. I think that we need to start cataloguing what skills all the Decepticons have and make use of them, and not just how well we each handle a weapon. After all, didn't Megatron's writings originally stem from the fact that people were boxed into a single function? If we could all have multiple functions, we would all be stronger for it."

-Thundercracker nods, "You bring up good points but I'm not going to suggest it to him. What about you?

-Swift Blade smiles faintly. "I think it would be a more prudent course to suggest them to Barricade or Soundwave and have them speak to Megatron." She lowers her gaze a trifle. "I don't think he's terribly impressed with me these days," she admits. "I have not been as...cautious...as perhaps I should have been."

-Thundercracker frowns, "What do you mean? I mean I don't keep up with what everyone's doing, not my job. But what's up?"

-"I expressed doubt as to some of his methods and motives," Swift Blade says with a shrug. "I don't expect I was the first, and I doubt I'll be the last." She shakes her head. "I was told my opinions were irrelevant and to keep them to myself in his hearing."

-"Well he is the leader -- the boss." Thundercracker says flatly, "But yea... I've noticed his demeaner is different now since his 'assistant' died." he looks away suddenly as if something has caught his interest. Assistant his afterburners, but he doesn't say anything.

-Swift Blade nods her head at this, having her own small suspicions, mostly based on the bargaining back. She /knew/ it wasn't on her account; it was just convienient to get her back since they were getting Ruiner back as well. "It's a fine distinction to make, but I was questioning him, not the cause in general. And I have no intention of backing out. There's too much at stake."

-Thundercracker nods, "Well maybe it will all work out in the long run. I mean who are we to really question all these things?"

-"Many of us weren't /anything/ to question, but that's why we're here. Because someone /dared/ to question the system," Swift Blade points out. "As for working out, it won't work out if we're passive; we have to put in our best effort. We have to think, and plan."

-Thundercracker shrugs, again, "Let our leaders do it. Not my job."

-Swift Blade gives Thundercracker a long look. "What do you define as your job? Only that which someone tells you to do? If you're so content to simply do what you're told, why bother rebelling against the current world order?" she presses.

-Thundercracker frowns, "Wait what? I was ordered to help with that. I'm confused."

-"You were ordered to fight the system?" Swift Blade asks, seeking clarification.

-Thundercracker nods "Yea, what about it?"

-Swift Blade can't help but smile a little. "Who ordered you to fight the system? And isn't following an order /part/ of the system?" She shakes her head. "It just seems self-defeating to me."

-Thundercracker rubs his forehead, "I've got a headache..."

-Swift Blade sighs softly. "Alright. So, you are doing this because it's someone else's idea. You don't care what really happens, as long as you do your job?"

-Thundercracker nods with a rather pitifully painful look on his face. His head really hurts now.

-Swift Blade leans forward and puts a hand on the other Seeker's arm. "That's alright. It might actually be a point in your favor; you won't get caught up in the anger that fuels the cause," she says gently. "It just seems surprising, considering how many people here are fervent believers of the cause, or just really looking for an excuse to wade in the energon of others."

-Thundercracker looks at Swiftblade, looks into her optics. He's not sure what he believes, he just follows Megatron to try and make sense of his life. He doesn't say any of this but it's in his optics. "Yea, well...." he says finally, "That's them.. not me." he says trying to bluff badaft.

-"I mostly joined because I didn't want to find myself on the opposite side as Blast Off," Swift Blade says. "Hardly the most inspiring reason. But I do believe the world has to change. Nothing the Autobots have done has convinced me otherwise. As for yourself, as long as you can recharge comfortably at night, that is enough."

-"Yes." Thundercracker says but doesn't sound too enthusiastic about it.

-"Is there anything that /does/ stir your interest, or imagination?" Swift Blade is curious to know. "You've spoken about Seeker pride, and I know you love to fly. Is that about it?"

-Thundercracker thinks for a moment, "I dunno. If there is something out there, I havent found it yet." he says quietly.

-"I didn't even have the opportunity to look for most of my life," Swift Blade says. "There's no shame in it. When you find it, I'm sure you'll know," she points out. "But this just means you're more likely than some to be reasonable about things, and that's something we need. You could consider yourself a team player; it sounds like you're good at following orders."

-Thundercracker realizes how sad that sounds. Now hes all depressed. "Yea I guess I am... so how that you have the chane to look what have you decided? Or have you decided yet?"

-"For me, it's about individuals. Finding people I like, and trust, and doing what I can for them," Swift Blade says. "It has led me here so far." She shrugs her shoulders. "I had to follow people because they owned me. Now I own myself, so I take a certain amount of satisfaction in doing things because /I/ wish to do them."

-Thundercracker isnt sure what to say to that so he just nods. "Are you having fun with that?" he finally thinks to ask.

-"I wouldn't say it's fun, but fun was never my objective," Swift Blade says. "Fun is nice, I suppose, but it's very transient." She shrugs her shoulders. "Now, I've heard you hadn't been doing so well in the arena lately," she notes, changing subjects.

-Thundercracker huffs, "You're having fun ruining my break time you know that?" he pauses a beat then continues, "Yea yea yea me and Brawl, do I have to talk about it?"

-Swift Blade shakes her head and actually smiles faintly. "I don't intend to ruin it. I intend to see what the trouble was and then help you so you can make sure you win next time," she points out. "But, if you'd rather not discuss it now, I will respect that."

-"He's a slagging tank," Thundercracker says, "Im not -- I cant hit him for anything and I dont now why but oh he hits me ever slagging time and I dont know why. How can a flier be slower then a land slarg?"

-"Maybe he's not faster," Swift Blade starts. "You have a certain...blind spot...when it comes to those on the ground. It's hard to miss that you see them as inferior. You need to really study how he moves, how he thinks. Get into the head of someone who is landbound," she says. "You're right to fight as a flier against a flier." She pats one of her swords. "I spent most of my time fighting on the ground and confined to a single mode."

-Thundercracker shakes his head, "No. How can I not move out of his way in time?"

-Swift Blade tilts her head to the side. "Well, have you ever spent much time fighting hand to hand or with melee weapons? Or are you mostly dependant on having the full sky to maneuver in?" she asks. "You have to remember that he can't easily lift off, so getting into close quarters is his natural method of fighting. To put it another way, you're on /his/ turf."

-Thundercracker shakes his head, "No I haven't fought him outside of here, why would I? We are on the same team, right?"

-"Exactly," Swift Blade says. "If it was a fight for your life, you would take it to where you had the advantage," she says. "But you're confined by the setup of the arena. It's not a situation where you can use your abilities to their full potential. There's no shame in that," she says firmly. "But if you wish to defeat him on those terms, you need to train yourself a bit differently."

-"Are you volunteering or something?" Thndercracker asks.

-Swift Blade shrugs her shoulders at this. "I would be willing to go through a few fights to see if I could make any suggestions, but I'm hardly qualified to be a trainer," she says.

-Thundercracker nods but then says, "Or someone's favorite target."

-"That's always a possibility. By the end of this political unrest, I'm sure we'll all have our share of enemies," Swift Blade says, her tone sad. "It's unfortunate, but I doubt it can be helped. We'll be seen as either heroes or villains based on the symbols we wear."

-Thundercracker flicks a wing, "I dont care."

-Swift Blade is quiet for some time. "That might be just as well. I was rather torn about deciding to join; I didn't want to get involved at all when I first came to Cybertron. But everyone kept telling me it was the only way to survive. I had no intentions of dying."

-Thundercracker nods, "Well you are still alive so it seems to me that you made the right choice."

-Swift Blade smiles faintly. "I don't think everyone on the planet would agree with that assessment," she says. "But, the way things were going, there wasn't really any other option that was...tolerable."

-Thundercracker grins a bit, "True. And we are alive to fight another day."

-"Though being in jail was a close call; a few more cycles and we likely would have been executed," Swift Blade says. "And after the treatment in jail, many of our fellow Decepticons are even more determined to pursue this path. I just hope that we don't lose what good we have by the time we achieve it."

-Thundercracker say, "Dont think about it, dont over think it. Stuff like that isnt our job to think about."

-Swift Blade shakes her head again. "We are more than our jobs if we choose to be," she says softly. "I prefer to think of these things; it seems natural to me. Shutting my mind off really isn't an option."

-Thundercracker gives her a sharp look, "Are you saying that's what I'm doing?"

-Swift Blade shakes her head. "No. If you don't have these thoughts, then you simply don't. But I do, and the only way to stop having them, would be to shut off my mind."

-"Well don't do that," Thundercracker says, "I guess if that's how you're used to thinking then keep thinking like that." He's glad he doesn't think like that. It would get annoying for him real fast if he did.

-Swift Blade nods her head, rising from her seat. "Regardless of our differences, we're on the same side. I have your back when it comes down to it. But it's time for a bit of recharging." She smiles. "Take care of yourself Thundercracker, and if you wish to spar sometime, I'm happy to oblige."

-Thundercracker smiles, "Seekers stick together, Swiftblade, and yea I think I'm due for some recharge myself. Primus knows it was too loud to get any in jail and then pulling a 3 cycle straight patrol didn't help either." He glances around at how dead the arena is and decides he's going to crash right there in the bleachers.