Bond

The world might well have gone to hell.

Yet, busy times means busy work, so to help keep his mind off all of THAT Wheeljack has kept himself occupied all that he can. There's a lot to do now that he's quit his job at the Kimia Facility and thrown in with Orion Pax and his merry band of traveling misfits. There are the outliers that Pax has rounded up that Jack is somewhat uniquely qualified to teach, lots of repair work and... yes, even some overdue upgrades to get to.

Jackie is super happy to find that Jazz is a part of this new outfit, this lot that he has thrown himself in. He's only briefly met Jazz but the inventor was quite taken with the smooth operator. When Jazz presented Jack with a list of required upgrades... well, Jack didn't stop there. Rather, that's where he begun and now... his makeshift workshop is filled with a bunch of things, each of which is under an individual tarp. Jack has asked for Jazz to meet him here to share in what he's come up with, looking rather excited to get to it.

There is one thing though that \*isn't\* under a tarp though. Wheeljack holds it in his hands, something to present to Jazz as soon as he arrives, should the superspy be willing to take it. It's a long, flat board? "Ya' made it! Great, we got lots to get to here. Some of this stuff I can install myself, others I'd rather have a real docbot put in. I wouldn't wanna' blow you up or anythin'! Purely on accident, o'course."

The way that Jazz strides in it is almost as if he's been comfortable here as much as he's comfortable anywhere. Which is to say that Jazz is comfortable everywhere. He doesn't miss a beat or a step as he's striding into the area. In fact, it almost looks as if he's actually striding and strolling along to some random beat that's probably coursing through his circuits at this very moment.

It's a smooth operator thing. You wouldn't understand.

"Jackie Botinson! What's the haps, my main mech?" Jazz manages to do two things in one smooth motion. One hand reaches out for the flat board that's being offered to him, whilst his body twists just enough to extend a closed fist for Wheeljack to get with the bumping. He's hoping that Wheeljack even knows what a fistbump is. Either way, Jazz refuses to not offer some stylish physical greetings to his gadget-making brethren.

While Jazz's movements are as smooth as they normally are there's just a small bit of hesitation with each. It would likely only be noticed by those that know Jazz more than they should. With the world going to hell, as they say, even the smoothest bot this side of Kaon is feeling the aftershocks. Good thing his visor's always down or else they'd be able to see his optics are a bit less than relaxed.

Speaking of which, his visor'd optics peer down at the board that's in his hand and he gives it flip this way and that before looking back up at Wheeljack. "Is this what I think it is? Please tell me this is what I think it is. Because if this is what I think it is then I think we just became best friends, Jackie..." Well. Someone's excited.

Torque is here! Just.. not terribly visible at the moment, one of the tarps rustling as she finishes up going over Wheeljack's inventions so she knows how to help install it. It's only when Jazz enters that she peeks her head out and beams. "Jazz! Glad yah could make it. Mech, do we have some sweet stuff for you." She then clambers out from under the tarp and moves to stand beside Wheeljack, keeping that smile since she's just as excited as Jazz right now.

"Maybe? I ain't sure what you're expectin'! This though," Jackie says as he hands over the board, "Is a ... well, ain't got a good name for it yet. It's a hover board, really. It can collapse further and should magnetically attach to yer back. Should be measured right to fit properly... but figured being wheel-based that would be times that you'd come 'cross terrain you'd not wanna' roll over. Oh! It's also gotta' cannon in the wrong. Fires a destablizing electromagnetic charge while also shielding' ya' from such a thing. So, should knock out or at least stun any bot around you." Now, smooth Wheeljack is not (yet) so when presented with the fist to pump... well, Jackie reaches out and takes it in hand. He hand-hugs it. Holds on. Because that's what parts do; fit together, not clash against each other.

And then a wild Torque appears!

Wheeljack chuckles, "So THAT's where I left ya'. Sorry I covered ya' up, TQ." In his excitement to kind of make each of these things a reveal, Jack must of gotten lost in his own excitement. "How 'bout you show him yer favorite one?"

Jazz just stares at the hand on his fist and eventually pulls himself out of the weird combination lock of hand-to-fist. He reaches for the board again, giving it a flip over in his hand and slaps it against his back to get some magnetic locking action going on. "Nice." Jazz feels like he's in a world of happiness right now. He even does a little bit of modeling against a reflective surface nearby because even he can make a hoverboard work as a piece of wardrobe.

"Oh?" Jazz turns to look in Torque's direction because he's more than ready to get some more technology. He's all about gadgets. "I'm at your disposal. Lay it on me."

Torque is glad to see that Jazz likes the board. It'll be neat to see him in action on it. But she's soon pulled from her thoughts annd perks up at Wheeljack's suggestion. "Hm? ..Oh! Right! You're gonna love this one, Jazz." Suddenly her excitement ratchets up tenfold and she ducks under one of the tarps draped over a table. "Hm.. Aha, there you are.." She exclaims from beneath it before emerging once more.

"This.." Torque presents him with a small, wrist mounted device. "Is an electromagnetic grappling hook, guaranteed to help you reach those high up places or pull stuff to you. Watch!" Grinning, the femme slaps it onto her wrist and points it to a crate across the room. Upon activating it, a crackling blue beam errupts from the device and shoots out and anchors itself to the box, allowing Torque to yank back and catch it as it flies back towards her. "Ta-da~." It's clear the medic enjoys this particular device, a bit of a hook enthusiast given her towline, but she knows Jazz will like it more and hands it off after puting the box down.

"Ain't she great with tow cables!" And anything else, Jackie thinks, as he beams when he looks to Torque. He's already smiling that Jazz is smiling, but to see her excited about this particular gadget makes him extra happy. "Great thing 'about it being a magnetic line is that there ain't no wire to be cut! Or shot out." Wheeljack steps aside to let Torque show off that grappling line all she wants. "Most of the other stuff here ain't near as excitin' as either of those, but we got lots we can plug into ya'. Well, Torque should be the one to put 'em in, not me. She's checked 'em all over so they're built right," he promises.

"..."

Jazz just seems to be staring at the grappling device that he's got in his hands. After just watching Torque demonstrate it, he gives it a flip and a toss before attaching it to his own wrist. He runs his fingers across it like he's never going to let it go. "I'm not /that/ short." Jazz quips at Torque with a grin. "I already got some big plans for this." Jazz raises his grappling arm and watches as his arm and the gadget lock and connect like metallic legos or something, making it a part of him forever more.

"You ain't never lied, Wheeljack. She's pretty amazin'." Jazz is all about being the wingmech right now and he's more than happy to help make WheelTorque (Torjack?) a reality. "Thanks, you two. Seriously. With the way things is goin', I got a feelin' we're /all/ gonna' be needin' some serious upgrades. The crew'll be glad to know we got two prime specialists ready to hook 'em up."

Jazz is all about keeping the morale level high right now. Who knows what's going on in the memory circuits of these two techs. But as long as he's around, he's going to make them feel much appreciated.

Torque can feel a bit of a blush on her cheeks already at Jazz's compliment, the femme rubbing the back of her neck bashfully. "It's no trouble, seriously. We're glad to gear up everyone, cause yeah, we're gonna need it." Looking to Wheeljack next, the medic smile and nods. "Heh, go on then, this is your show, Jack. Show him what else yah got. Seriously, Jazz, you'll be so loaded up with tech it'll be a wonder if you use it all."

Yeah, everything on Cybertron is going sideways fast, so Jack figures they're going to need someone to snoop around and find out what is what, right? "I got the best upgrade possible here," he thumbs towards Torque. "She makes my everythin' better," he says with confidence.

Since TQ gave him the go ahead, Jack gets to it. "Okay, that there," he points to tarp #1, "Is an insert into your visor. I ain't found a way that won't turn it red when it's activated, but it's a bug detector. Should allow ya' to spot what's sending out a signal when you look at it." From there he goes down the line.

"This here is somethin' that might be a bit painful goin' in, since they gotta' fit into yer fingers. They're micro-recorders, should be able to pick up sounds on the other side of thin walls or panes of glass ya' touch, as well as open air." On to #3. "This here will go in yer wrists. Slap 'em together and this garrote wire will then be between 'em, for... well, sure you get the idea. This is kinda' boring," he motions to number four. "A randomizer rotator cuff for yer identification plates. Will flip 'em 'round and generate a random new one for ya'." #5 is, "These'll go in yer wheels. They'll extend and then blades'll pop out. Call 'em tire slashers." Jack then reveals #6. "Tracer beacons, little homin' devices. They're sticky on the bottom so you can attach 'em to things. oOr bots." Down the line to #7. "This here is a bitta' disguise work. It's a panel to go on her non-grapplin' arm. Looks like a watch, right? Well, touch his button here and..." Jackie touches it and \*PEW!\* a laser beam shoots out.

And that's only about a third of the stuff under the tarps!

Jazz follows the bouncing invisible ball down the line at all the tarps that Wheeljack is pointing out. He's smiling more and more with each explanation. In fact, it all just seems to be a dream or something. He can't believe this is actually going to happen. He looks at all the tarps and then at himself and then back at Wheeljack and Torque. "So let me get this straight. You two are going to put all of that." Jazz points to the tarps that were pointed out already. "And that." Points to another section. "Annnnnd that." Points to what he assumes is the last section. "In this right here?" Jazz takes a second to motion to his own sleek and stylish body.

Jazz doesn't even wait for an answer. Instead, he looks around for the only empty table that's available. He takes two quick steps and flips up onto it, laying down flat and throwing his hands behind his head. "Let's get this party started!"

Cue Upgrading Montage?

**Montage Music:** https://youtu.be/GDpmVUEjagg

Torque is about to answer Jazz, but it looks like the mech beats her to it and is already set to get fitted with his new gadgets. She can only laugh softly at his enthusiasm and smile wide. "Alright, let's get to it!" Nodding to Wheeljack, Torque wheels up the first few installments along with her tools and settles in beside Jazz.

Upgrade montage it is! Because honestly, who wants to play out installing every bit of tech? Plus, with Wheeljack helping her, it'll go twice as fast! They'll start with the easy stuff, like liscense plate flipper and such. but more invasive things like the finger microphones will have to be last so she can focus more on them.

Wheeljack will be gld to let Torque get right to work, if she's willing to do so! The fact that Jazz hops up on the table right away means he's liking all this stuff and that excites jackie. The world has gone to hell and already there's good that he can do, is doing! And he's working with Torque to make it happen. He keeps back to let Torque do her thing as he rattles off an explanation of the other stuff he's come up with.

"I call this a 'rebreather' though we don't really do that, but if yer ever caught somewhere dangerous it should filter out toxins. So a mask you can put on. Then this, it's an ejector switch for yer seats so if yer givin' a ride that you wanna' end quick, retreack yer roof and pop, out the seats go. Then this! Oh, this is a good idea, hah! It's a gel to go in yer feet that can leave footprints, a little thin microscopic imprint that can then be radiod to activate. It's an explosive filament so you can leave a whole trail of these things. Give me some time and I might be able to come up with different gels, like one that would detonate when stepped on. What else... oh yeah! Them ears on yer head, this is an insert for them, so you can detach 'em then use 'em like telescopin' goggles, or periscopes if you only wanna' use one.... then these are a couple of things to carry. An advanced medkit, somethin' Torque whipped up, for all kinds of emergency in-the-field self-patch work. This case has got explosive enercigs, not that you smoke but I figure if yer in a seedy area and you wanna' gift one to somebot that you then wanna' surprise, well...Oh! This! It's a codebreaker. It can scan locks or safes and it \*should\* come up with the code... then this, it's a C.N.A. analyzer, I mean, most copbots likely got this already and so maybe ya' already have one but this should be good for faster results. This is a case full of little shells, each one's gotta' bunch of stasis gas in 'em. Not much more than a little puff, but one pellet should be good to put even a big bot into a temporary stasis, like, ten clicks or so. Last gadget here's a mini-camera. Only good for 'bout six shots at a time, as each time ya' slide it a dataslug is generated with just that lone image, for real important stuff ya' might need to hand off. These other things... well, this here will go in yer doors, on yer back there? Should extend them to make a glider, if ya' need to hop off a real high place. Can't fly with 'em but should be able to guide ya' down to safety. These will go in yer palms. They create an elecomagnetic charge, kinda' like yer grapplin' hook there but more localized, so you can cling to surfaces - like a wall or a ceilin' - as well as give a quick shock. Like.. a tazer touch." All of THAT and there is still one thing left under a tarp, something Jack means to hold off on until all of Torque's installs are done.

Jazz stays awake for this entire montage. There's a combination of explanations and installations that happen throughout this entire thing and Jazz is not missing a moment of it. After all, he's going to need to know how to use everything if he's going to be using all of this stuff to make sure that the Autobots are fighting for what they believe in! Not only that, if he's going to continue to keep an optic on the Government, well, he's going to need this stuff. So it is best to know exactly how everything works.

Because he's not going to read the manual. Not that Wheeljack wrote him one. He didn't, right?

Who knows how long this montage lasts but there's just something about the combination of Wheeljack and Torque that makes the time fly by. There could also be something about the music that's playing as things get welded shut, pried open, circuit connected, slid shut and left open in a variety of different ways. There's the occasional flicker of Jazz's optics when something doesn't fit right but Wheeljack and Torque are too good for it not to be modified on the spot and installed with ease.

By the time the montage finishes, Jazz is standing in the center of the area, spinning slowly and modeling his fresh paint and his stylish accoutrements that are visible. He looks like a million shanix and there's a huge smile on his face that says he feels like just the same. There is, of course, only one thing left to ask.

"So. How do I look?"

What Jazz is playing, it more than hits all the right notes for Torque, helping her get in the mood as she kits him out. This is her kinda music! And it helps the process go that much faster, as well as listening to Wheeljack list off all the other things that she eventually gets to installing.

This is probably one of the lengthiest upgrades she's done in a while, so by the end of it Torque is sitting back in her seat and giving a sigh of effort. "Y'look like one of my best works yet." The femme smirks at Jazz overlooking himself, feeling accomplished. "'Course that's joint-works now, eh?" A warm smile is flashed to Wheeeljack before an expectant tilt of the head is given. She knows he left something out.

"Awesome!"

Wheeljack little in the way of a filter when it comes to the words that spill out of his mouth - ironic perhaps since he has a faceplate. "I think so too, Torque! 'Course, you \*always\* do good work. Way you sew up that Rung fellow? Now this?!" It seems the more that Torque does this Autobotting stuff the more confident she becomes, so he sure wants to encourage THAT. "Think he's ready?" His ears give a little excited wiggle.

Wheeljack removes the last tarp and under it is... a gun. It's pretty basic for a gun. Smooth, slick like Jazz. Unassuming. A pistol. Jack picks it up and tosses at Jazz to be caught.

Which is when it will start to hum, increasingly so, like it is powering up. Like a bomb!

....vvvvvVVVVVVVVVRRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMM!

**\*click\***

All of that stops. "Now it's locked to \*you\*," Jack says. "Coded to yer C.N.A. only. Yer the only one that can ever use it. How's it feel? The weight of it? I was tempted to load it with missiles and all kinda' gadgets but... in the end I stripped all it out to make it the best it can be at what it does. Like you," Jack is guessing.

Catching the gun, Jazz doesn't even let it stay still too long. He does wait for the sound to stop and the explosion to not happen but Jazz doesn't make it look like he's worried. He's never worried. In fact, the only thing he's doing is waiting for the sound to stop and when Jack explains what exactly it has done? Well, that only makes Jazz smile even more.

"Wheeljack? Torque?" Jazz takes a moment to twirl the weapon around one finger, before sending it to his other hand for more spinning. From there it goes behind his back, around his waist and back over one shoulder, before dropping back down into his waiting hand. The original one that started all this stylish showing off of pistol-twirling.

"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful... bond."

Jazz kicks up a smile once more, before he turns to what probably is the considered the Fourth Wall, draws his weapon and fires a single shot!