#and fix the coolant and stuff

[seat-safety-switch]

It's hard to explain to people from other cultures that our malls are largely useless. In most of Asia, for instance, the mall scene is still vibrant. Stores are in business, generating massive revenue, and attracting daily shoppers, who buy exotic foreign goods like "clothes" and "food."

Here, though, malls have rotted from some kind of unknowable internal malaise until they collapsed in on themselves and took half the economy with them. This unexpected failure has terrified capitalists, who have fled the retail sector in much the same way that folks of old used to cross the street to avoid those with facial deformities. Can't take a chance that it's contagious. Have to think of my family, who happen to all be badly spelled cryptocurrency scams and presale condo flips.

In my town, there's one large mall that's still successful. The demise of all competition has served to make it stronger, like in the movie Highlander where the main guy figures out that he can perform a leveraged buyout of Bluestar Airlines. Every Christmas, this lucky survivor of promenade warfare is thronged with the entire city's worth of shoppers, demanding to be let inside to a warm space where they can walk between stores to do their stuff-gaining. In other words, it is a ripe place for me to enjoy the heated underground parking garage in which to fix my car.

Sure, if you ask the security guards, "I'm not allowed to" change my oil while the moneyed elite are fritting to and fro. They're pretty busy at Christmas, though, and they certainly won't get upset at a guy with a Sak's bag sitting on his trunk, even if that bag is full of dirt-filled 15w40 and smelling faintly of coolant. They just can't take the chance that kicking me out is what killed the other malls.

[earthsparked]

So you want to join the coterie, huh? And you want to know what you're getting yourself into.

You know I can’t take sides in command arguments, captain, you gently remind Rodimus for the fifth time this week. I have to honor my obligation to the entire crew.

Rodimus shoots you his best look that says “I’m very sad and betrayed despite having been the one to sign your contract in which this is stated,” and goes back to arguing with Megatron and Ultra Magnus.

Privately you think Megatron is in the right on this issue. Tragic realization: the mech who tried to murder your entire species on several occasions, actually has good leadership skills and knows what he’s doing. But when Rodimus manages to wheedle Magnus into seeing things his way, you can only sigh and double check that your little bag of tricks stored in your utility scraplet, Scrappy, is fully stocked.

It’s going to be one of those days.

It’s not all roaming the galaxy having fun. Sure, there’s plenty of that. You're going to see wonders that human eyes have never seen before. But it’s a lot more, too.

You wriggle backwards out of Brainstorm and Perceptor's mystery machine. You're covered in thick, black grease that’s making your skin itch; they didn't think to check for skin-safety before asking you to crawl into it and fix some finicky little part. You scramble to your feet, a stained shop towel in one hand and a half-used can of solvent in the other. The fumes in the enclosed space are making you a little high.

You kick the access hatch shut and stand back. Go on, Percy, try it now.

Perceptor frowns as the machine whirrs to life, but the screen still throws off an error message. You sigh and shake your head. Your sensitive ears that always made you hate the hum of ceiling lights and refrigerators, are telling you something still isn’t right.

Kill it, I can hear the pitch is still off. Fine, I’ll just take the whole damn gear assembly apart!

Don't touch any of the exposed wires! You'll undo all my work! Brainstorm demands. And adds, belatedly, Also it'll kill you. Why don't you humans have any decent insulation? Terrible design. I could do better if I created a species in my recharge.

You don't think you want to hear where this is going. Grabbing your tools, you crawl back in the mystery machine.

Don't worry about learning mechanical stuff, earth's systems are completely different to their engineering anyway. Besides, it doesn’t matter if you��ve never held a blowtorch in your life, you’ll pick the skills up along the way. A flexible mind and willingness to learn are the only real criteria for any potential coterie member.

You spring out in front of the big blue mech, making him very nearly step on you with one of his birdlike feet. You know he won’t - for all his jokes, there’s not a mech on this ship that would knowingly hurt you. (Knowingly being the operative word.)

I know what I smelled, Whirl. There’s no disguising it. You have a coolant leak. You got some of that guy’s windshield stuck under your plating when you threw him across the bar, didn’t you? And it’s punctured a line.

His single optic narrows in an expressive glare. So what, Crunchy? Why do you care? Move or I’m gonna have more than glass stuck in my mesh.

He slowly and pointedly brings his foot down toward you, humming the Jeopardy! theme music. You tilt your head and raise an eyebrow higher and higher the closer his foot gets, not moving. When it’s just within reach, you make a wild leap, grab for a safe handhold, and hang on for dear life. Whirl shrills an arpeggio of startled mech curses and tries to shake you off, but you cling like a burr.

If you don’t treat it, it’s going to get worse! It’s either me or Ratchet, Whirlybird, and I don’t throw things! I don't care that you got in a fight, I don't - whoa, watch the wall! - I just want you to not be in pain!

He decides after a few attempts that this is a fun game. You’re dizzy as hell by the time he announces Eight seconds! Fine, cowboy, if you want to be inside me THAT badly.

You roll your eyes and somehow manage not to lose your lunch as he sets his foot down and lets you climb off. Scrappy opens his mouth, letting you pull out your gloves and pliers from one of his compartments. You dig out the shards of glass and patch up his coolant line, feeling relieved as you wrap the punctures and clean away the dried coolant. Having one of your mechs hurt always bothers you.

Yeah, you’re gonna make the best friends you’ve ever had. The kind you’d do anything for. And I do mean, anything. They really overplay the whole "humans will pack bond with anything" stuff a little too much, because they don't quite get how our relationships work. But eventually you will find yourself pulling on wells of strength you didn't even know you had, doing things you never thought yourself capable of. Not for yourself, but for them.

You spit a mouthful of blood onto alien ground and try not to let the glowering mech see you shake. Adrenaline or fear, does it matter which? What matters is Tailgate’s down, hurt and in stasis. You got banged up, too, and stayed behind to guard him while the rest of the landing team pushed through the fighting. They wouldn't have left you or him if they'd thought any of the enemy mechs were still in this quadrant. But this one stomped out of the swirling fog, a hulking shape bristling with combat readiness.

He’s big, but so fucking what? You’ve been passed in the halls by mechs much scarier than this guy.

You flip the safety off your weapon - almost too big for you, but barely a pea shooter to a full-sized mech. At your side, Scrappy hisses and snarls, clacking his sharp metal teeth in threat. Just because he's been altered not to eat metal at random, doesn't mean he can't when given permission.

You're supposed to be a non-combatant, untouchable and marked as such by the coterie patch on your shoulder. At worst, you can be held hostage until your ship pays a ransom. But playing by those rules means standing aside and letting this guy do whatever the hell he wants to one of your mechs.

You glance at Tailgate and your heart hurts. When did this ten-foot-tall alien robot start to look so small and vulnerable to you?

Your eyes blur with furious, worried tears, before fixing on the approaching enemy. You step forward, as if your tiny body can shield the wounded mech lying behind you.

Whatever you came here for, you spit as more blood drips down your chin, you’re leaving without it. Go conjunx a belt sander, you torqueless wonder.

But it gets real when you get to the point where you understand, they’d do anything for you, too.

You’ve been cold forever. Can’t remember ever being warm. The endless white snows of the polar icecap of this godforsaken planet you’d come to investigate, was going to be the last thing you saw. One wrong step and the snowbank had collapsed, dumping you into a subterranean cavern. You’re trapped, alone, hypothermic. Your emergency transponder broken. You'd left your pet scraplet behind out of fear his thin armor wouldn't protect him against the cold. You're never going to see the little guy again.

Without him or the transponder, your mechs are never going to find you here. You’re never going to see earth again. They'll just add your name to the coterie's wall of remembrance, and some other human will be on your ship, caring for your mechs. You hope they'll understand how special they all are. That they'll learn Rung needs a listening ear sometimes, and Roddy's boasting often hides his insecurities, and Ratchet's got a soft spark under all that grumbling...

You think you’re hallucinating when you hear the voice. Wait. Is that a heat signature - it is! Hey, captains! We found them! Over here!

A few minutes or hours or ages later and Brainstorm, upside-down, lowers through the hole in the crust above. You blink muzzily. ‘m on the ceiling…?

Powerful hands pick you up, and you’re ascending. You don’t remember much after that, except the feel of being surrounded by titans that cared enough to come back. You came back for me.

Rodimus, warmest of them all, carries you to the ship himself. Tucked inside his armor, out of the wind and ice. Nestled right by his spark chamber. You dream of being pure energy, or of being wrapped in pure energy, or that you're one of two waves of energy dancing together with the joy of being alive. In a place where size doesn't matter, and metal and flesh don't matter, because deep down you're more alike than dissimilar.

You're as much theirs, as they are yours.

I wish I could tell you what to expect, but no one has the exact same experience. Not even within the same cohort. It’s going to be unlike anything you imagine it could be. Every day's going to bring new discoveries, new dreams. Sometimes, new nightmares. It's a big universe, and humans haven't even scratched the surface of what's out there. For better, or for worse.

The crate rattles again. Your breathing is loud inside your exo-suit. This bay is kept pressurized, but barely climate-controlled, and close to the ship's heat sinks so it's scorching hot in here.

Scrappy's cameras are transmitting every move you make to the mechs crowded around the monitors on the bridge. You've turned off audio, because between the scientists' incessant arguing and Swerve's fretting over you going into Cargo Hold 3 alone, you weren't able to pay proper attention to your surroundings.

Rattle-rattle. Shake. That container weighs several tons. It's bouncing around like it's a bouncy castle full of elementary schoolers.

No oxygen. Movement. It could be a scraplet infestation. Easily dealt with, for you. Which is why you're here and the mechs are on the bridge, or in lockdown in their quarters.

It could be scraplets. Intuition tells you it's not.

You touch the side of your helmet to activate your mic. Where did you say we picked this up from, again?

The arguing in the background dims as Ultra Magnus answers, disapprovingly, The records for the cargo manifest have been...misfiled. Ergo, we don't know.

You can see him in your mind's eye, glaring at Rodimus. Misfiled? More like Roddy lost them in the skyscraper stack of datapads in his office. If he didn't just set it down somewhere and forget where he put it. Can mechs have ADHD? Would some strategies that work for humans, be helpful for him? A thought to pursue at another time, when you're not maybe about to be eaten by a monster.

You click the mic back off before you can get drawn into the new argument that's starting over the co-captain's lack of organizational skills. And step closer to the shaking crate. No markings that you can read. No packing list on the outside. Does it look a little banged up? Rusted? Or is it the shaky light from Scrappy's headlamp as he hides behind your legs, making it look like that?

Every horror movie you've ever watched at Swerve's on movie night, comes back to haunt you. The aliens out in the dark have their own legends and myths. Some of them, you've learned the hard way, aren't only legends or myths.

Sweat drips into your eyes. Fuck it.

Are you going to play nice, or am I going to kick your ass off my ship?

You slam the augmented crowbar home and pry the lid off –

That's all I can say, really. The rest is up to you. Good luck. Maybe I'll see you out here in the stars. Lost Light ship's human, signing off.

[danses-with-dogmeat]

Fallout Characters' Lover's Embrace Quotes -- Extras

(Original ask): Hello 😊 I absolutely adore everything you do for the characters you write for! You get the interactions and such perfect every time I read something new 💕 I have a personal headcanon, not full blown request if you don't want it to be, question for you. If you could romance the companions in New Vegas like in 4, what would some of their lovers embrace quotes be? I love how you think and can't wait to hear what ideas you have for any of the characters ❤ have a good day

So I didn't actually get any requests for these specific characters that I can remember, but I had this in my WIPs folder, and had a good time looking back on them, so here they are!

As always, if you would like me to add any characters to this, please let me know, and I'll be happy to 😊

Also, here's a link to my first Lover's Embrace Quotes post with the FO3 and FNV Companions.

Just a heads up, too, a bit of nsfw below the cut (nothing explicit, but definitely some implicit stuffs).

Fallout 4:

Codsworth: 

“Prepared to face the day, sir/madam?”

“Oh my, now that was exciting!” 

“Your hair, sir/miss. Allow me to fix it for you?” 

“Good morning, sir/madam!” 

“My, you are truly amazing, my sweet.” 

Deacon:

“Whoa, when did you get here?” 

“Up for one more round? No?... Yes?”

“Just another minute. Then we can kick some ass or whatever.”

“Gooood morning! And it is a beautiful day out in the Commonwealth, the weather is looking mighty fine in this– Oh, you’re up? Okay, just making sure.” 

“Up and at ‘em, right boss?” 

“Wow. That was fun.” 

Maxson:

“Sleep well?” 

“I’ll take that over morning drills any day. No, I don’t need you to tell Kells that.” 

“Head’s still swimming…” 

“Don’t make me get up, not yet.” 

“Damn… Incredible.” 

Nick:

“Can’t take my eyes off you….” 

“Ain’t I the luckiest synth there is?” 

“Say… where’d my cuffs get off to, doll? May need ‘em for later.” 

"Well, that's one way to get the coolant pumping." (I know this is already a line of his, but I mean come on. It's too good not to use)

“What do you say, about ready to go?” 

“That sure was somethin’, sweetheart.”

Sturges:

“Mornin’ gorgeous/handsome.” 

“Ain’t nothin’ better than wakin’ up like that.” 

“You really are incredible, you know that?” 

“What a perfect way to start my day… wakin’ up next to you.”

“*whistles* That was somethin,’ baby.”

X6-88:

“Good morning, ma’am/sir.” 

“Awake quite yet?” 

“Damn.” 

“Sleep well, ma’am/sir?”

“I… Didn’t know I could feel like that…” 

Fallout 3:

Mr. Burke: 

“I suppose there are worse ways to wake up.” 

“Care for some coffee?” 

“Just a moment more, sweet one.” 

“Ahh, you vixen/scoundrel.”

“Just turn over. It can’t be time yet.” 

Harkness: 

“Starting our day off right, I see.”

“It can’t really be time to get up, can it?” 

“Mm, good morning…”

“What’re you… Oh? Well, a few more minutes, then.” 

“Babe, have you seen my handcuffs?”

Sarah Lyons: 

“Up and at ‘em. Come on.” 

“Oh, good, you’re finally up.” 

“The others better not have heard us.” 

“Quit your groaning, it’s not that early.” 

“Best to have a shower after all that.” 

Fallout New Vegas:

Benny: 

“Ring-a-ding, baby. Time to rise.” 

“Easy there, squeeze. Save some for tonight.” 

“Can’t be time yet. Stay here awhile, lemme hold ya.” 

“Geeze baby, you wear me out.” 

“24-karate, pussy cat. Just platinum...” 

Colonel Hsu:  

"Right, then... Up we get."

“Well… that was an excellent performance. Top marks from me, private.”

“Rise and shine, love.” 

“Now that was worth waking for at this hour.” 

“Wish we had a few more moments…”

Joshua Graham:

“Just… divine.” 

“Care to pray with me this morning?” 

“Wake up, dear one.” 

“Praise be to Him who lights the sky…” 

“Ahh… still, your love heals me.” 

Ulysses: 

"Be slow, beloved. We can take our time."

“Another sunrise…”

“Time to wake.” 

“So… It wasn’t a dream. Hm.” 

*huffing* “Need another rest after that.” 

Victor: 

“Shoo, didn’t know you had that in ya.” 

“Where to today, pardner?”

“You look like I dug ya outta that grave again, hehe. Only teasin’.”

“Well, how-dy.” 

“Mornin,’ pardner. How’d you sleep?” 

Vulpes:

“Awake at last? Good.” 

“Mm. Expect the same from me tonight, courier.” 

“Ave, amica mea.” 

“Ah, to hear my name sound from your lips… A fine sound this morning.” 

“Expergiscimini. The sun has risen.” 

Yes Man: 

“Wow, Six, that was the best way to start the day!”

“I sure am glad to have you by my side.” 

“Rise and shine!” 

“What a great morning it is!”

“Boy, that sure was fun! Ready to make a difference today?” 

[thetruearchmagos]

Thank you very much for answering!

While the Altersea* can probably work with the first and fourth of your points, the other three might be a little difficult. I'll note your points on cooling, I thought that might be an issue...

The fact that most ships designed on earth have evolved to take advantage of the fact that 'the ocean is made of water' has led to some interesting and difficult questions for the 12 Worlds, where vessels frequently travel across a region famously not made out of h2o

@weergang this is actually something I've been meaning to ask you about for a while. Do modern merchant ships absolutely need access to sea water to operate, and is this need something that could be compensated for somehow?

[stickytrigger69]

Hi there! Could I please request something with a sparkling!reader? Like Ratchet was busy configuring stuff on their base's computer then in Op requesting medical assistance. At first Ratchet got his hackles raised because he assumed someone got injured by doing something stupid but then saw that Op was holding a very injured sparkling in his arms. Ratchet short circuits for a bit before coming to his senses and fixing them up. Eventually the whole team comes along. I'll leave it up to you on how a sparkling made its way to earth. Something angst to fluff maybe? Set in tfp (just recently started binging the series and I'm obsessing over the team 😆)

TFP Team Prime x Sparkling Reader

Reader is gender neutral

Reader is a sparkling, thus, their frame and paint job have yet to be revealed.

Angst to fluff

---------------------------------------------------------------------

*brrrrrb! brrrrrb! brrrrrb!*

A red alarm shines on Ratchets tired face as he stares into the holo screen, not even reading the warning but looking through it. How many times must his equations be declined? Where is he going wrong? The small alarm rings emptilly around his helm.

Through the light buzz, he hears a comm switch. "Ratchet, prepare the medical bay! It's an emergency!" Optimus roars.

"Copy." Ratchet rushes to get the table and machines up and running, checking if they are in optimal conditions. Who got themselves hurt this time? He grits his denta. Who was careless this time. His pumps flood his fuel lines with fearful energon. He soon hears the teams engines roaring through the tunnel as he turns around they all transform quickly, being careful not to hurt the humans and race to Ratchet at the table. He scans them all as they move but doesn't see anything, "so? Who's hurt? Don't tell me I got set up for nothing but a scratch Optimus." With a frown, Optimus sets something small onto the table.

"No, Ratchet, it's something worse, more frightening." The red bot looks down to see a small, frail, damaged frame. His spark skips a pulse or two, and he immediately starts moving. The sparkling is slowly greying and is leaking energon rapidly.

"You couldn't have been more specific over the comms, Primus Optimus! Why didn't you say anything about this, I wasn't prepared for this!" Ratchet panics.

Sparks and engines rumble and shake, and the panic in the room overwhelms the medic, but he can't afford to make a single mistake. 'Primus help me', he prays repeatedly in his helm. He can hear the children's hearts pounding. He seals cuts and scrapes and cuts fuel lines to reconnect them, too short. They will be stunted, they will be deformed; the thought alone makes his optics well up with coolant. Where did they even come from, how were they created, and why? Who would create a sparkling at a time like this?

"The decepticons wanted them so badly." Optimus says lowly as he takes the sparkling servo in between his digits. "So badly." He clenches his empty servo into a fist. After what seems like ages, Ratchet finishes, and the sparkling is stable. The ugly grey has stopped spreading and is now receding at a pace that makes Ratchet uneasy. Bee and Bulkhead spend time with their humans in base before taking them home at the same time they always do, but Arcee couldn't handle the situation and took Jack home so she could go for a drive.

Optimus hasn't left the sparklings side in hours, and Miko won't stop asking if it's okay. Ratchets servos haven't stopped trembling, mind racing. He looks over at Optimus and weighs if he should ask questions now or later.

"Their carrier?" Optimus looks over his shoulder to see his friend. He looks him up and down, then turns back to look at the sparkling.

"Gone. They were abandoned, left alone in an escape shuttle. Primus only knows where they are or if they're even alive." He says hopelessly.

"The escape pod may have some answers-"

"The decepticons have destroyed it in our battle for the sparkling. And nearly destroyed them with it." He grumbles, nearly growling with scornful distaste. With a hum, Ratchet turns back around and decides he is going to go have a look anyway.

"Bulkhead, Bee, what were the coordinates of the shuttle that had the sparkling." He demands rather than asks. The pair look at each other, then back at Ratchet. His engine roars as he speeds to the location. It was somewhere in a secluded and abandoned camping area. When he arrives, there are dying fires and scorch marks everywhere. Tree debris litters the area. A large mound is towards the east side of the camp site, Ratchet looks up in the opposite direction of where it landed. He stalks closer to the pile of rubble and twisted metal and scans it for any reserve electricity and finds only a small pocket. "Let's hope it's enough." He says to himself as he pulls a small patch connected to the inside of his chassis by a thin cord.

When Ratchet gets back to the base, everything is dim and quiet. The others must be recharging after such a frightening afternoon. The sparklings vitals have all returned completely to normal. Such a fast recovery for one so small, on Cybertron, it would have probably taken several solar cycles for a sparkling this young to even be stable. He examines your tiny frame thoroughly, three digits, one thumb, and two others. The size of your pedes and curvature of your small frame indicate the type of bot you'll be; not only that but also the types of bots your carrier and / or sire were. Not only will you be stunted and deformed from the damage sustained, but your small build indicates you will stay small; you're a minibot.

Ratchet starts examining the fluid samples he's taken. How have you recovered so fast, and why? There are so many questions with little to no answers. Hopefully, some will shine through for your sake.

Optimus' internal clock wakes him up, 6 a.m. human time. He feels for the sparkling, optics still closed but finds nothing, not even warmth from where you were. He stands up so fast that the exhaustion left in his frame makes him slightly dizzy. He looks on to see Ratchet bouncing his left leg, sparkling held softly to his chest as they bounce up and down rapidly. A small energon cube in tiny servos. "How?"

"No idea. But I'm looking." Ratchet muses as he stares at the energon flowing on screen. "Such rapid recovery should be impossible for how small they are, not to mention the lack of nutrition. I'm going to guess that they must have been in stasis somehow. I also tried my best to get readings from the shuttle, but nothing came of it." The doctor rubs his faceplate thoroughly. "Oh, and as a matter of fact, I have been able to use my optics to find out the type of frame they have. They're a minibot Optimus, that's why they're smaller than normal. One or both of their bearers were one. Maybe even both of them were."

The prime nods his head, finally having one piece of the puzzle that's been racking his processor. "I see they are in good spirits." Optimus smiles softly.

"Yes, but they're also terribly clingy. Try it." Ratchet faces Optimus to give him access to the sparkling. Before the prime's hands can even come close, the sparkling lets out a small, high-pitched warble. "Arcee tried it earlier this morning after dropping Jack off at school. I'm surprised it hadn't woken you up." He chuckles softly.

"They've bonded to you, Ratchet. They're not ever going to want to leave your side." Optimus smiles and looks his friend in the optics. "Happy?"

Ratchet shivers and makes a disgusted sound, "Of course not, I'm tired of it, and it's only been a few hours. But, I suppose that means I'll have someone around who actually listens to me." He takes a glance at you, at the same time you look up at him, the back of your helm hitting his chassis, a small clang coming from it. Large optics glow brightly on his face, derma open on an edge of the cube, glossa licking and lapping at the energon coming from the cube. Ratchet shines a smile on you, "I know, you're the only who will listen, right?" You giggle then start wiggling from his arm. He plops you on the floor, and you take off running. Small pedes clacking with each step.

"Fast." Optimus chuckles. The two watch as you explore. After a while, only Optimus watches, Ratchet exploring your blood for more answers. He watches as you run and jump and climb, trying not to interfere too much as it could ruin your curiosity and hunger for answers. A trip here, stumble there, you've yet to scrape anything. You climb onto a large box and start relaxing until you eventually fall into a soft recharge still in your sitting position. Prime decides to leave you there to look for your small cube that you discarded carelessly.

Engines thrum through the tunnel; the children are free from "prison," as they like to call it. The roar of engines and cries of happiness are like the sound of a flash-bang going off, but you don't stir, don't even twitch. Immediately, the children jump away from their companions, "Where are they!?" Miko shouts excitedly, looking around for a sign of the sparkling.

"Are they doing any better? Arcee said they were moving around this morning." Jack points back at Arcee with his thumb as she stands with her arms crossed.

"Yeah, are they okay, Ratchet? Bee told me about how important it is, that they're probably the very last sparkling alive?" Rafael pushes up his glasses, staring holes into the doctor for answers.

"Yes, they're probably the very last one. And they're fine, just fine. They're a little tired, though." Ratchets servo points in the direction of the small one without looking at them. The children and bots all turn their heads in unison to see the little one recharging on a box of supplies. With a gasp Miko coos at the sight, Bulkhead follows her lead and coos, too.

"How cute." The group of onlookers say in a chorus.

"You let them take the sparkling!?" Megatron swings a fist at Starscream, who dodges the blow just in time. The large grey mech is angered beyond belief. They had one shot, one, and Starscream and his dearest doctor blew it. Speaking of the good doctor, he points at him accusing, "And you;" the red mech flinches and stiffens up, standing tall, "you could have snatched them up and gotten out of there faster than any of them could blink, but instead you wanted to dig yourself a pity hole and lay there leaking like a fool!"

"Well, lord Megatron, I-" Knockout stutters.

"Quiet!" Megatrong trembles with frustration, "I don't care what you were or were going to do about it, you've failed. Both of you." He growls. "Soundwave! Do you have any information from that escape pod?" The tall, lanky black figure of his most trusted nods in confirmation. "Perfect." He turns around to stare out the large window, clouds roll beneath the ship.

"What are we going to do with them when we catch them, my lord?" Starscream asks fearfully, unfurling to stand tall.

"That's need to know information, Starscream. I can't risk you exploiting my plans any longer. Your folly has disrupted my trust in you." He turns to look down on his seeker, arms folded behind his back, "When the time comes, I will ask you for your presence, but for now, I want you out of my sight." He warns with a hiss.

Soundwave slowly approaches Megatron, bumping Starscreams shoulder, making the shorter mech frown and make a disgruntled noise. On the blank, smooth surface of Soundwaves faceplate an image of a small bot, their identity, and background information displayed neatly. Megatron stares and thinks, claws scratching at the palms of his servos. "Hmmm, are they alive? Did you find anything else?" Soundwave doesn't move, but the images on his display flash and warble. A devilish smile crawls onto Megatrons faceplate, "Hmmm, too bad, I suppose."

You woke up half an hour ago and started hanging out with the children. You want to stay as close to Ratchet as possible, so that means that's where everyone else has to be. You sit right next to the mechs pedes as he works on the base systems and getting test results from your energon. On occasion, you touch his pede, making sure he hasn't moved from his spot. When you reach up for him this time, though, you pull yourself from the floor, using the red mech as leverage. You stand somewhere around Miko or Rafael's height, too small to have a frame like Bee or Arcee.

"So they're a minibot?" Miko asks for the hundredth time.

"Yes, Miko." Ratchet says plainly.

"And they aren't going to get very big?" She follows up as she takes you servo in her hand and you coo.

"No, Miko. They'll be half of Arcee's height at the most." Ratchet nearly mumbles as he looks at a petri dish.

"Cool. What's their car mode?"

"They don't have one-"

"What?! How come? Is it cause they're too small, or are they deformed? Do they have shaking baby syndrome?"

"Ugh, you have to be around 50 to a hundred years old for your frame to be at least mostly formed. They are only 35 years old, and they still don't have much color other than a midnight blue tint that I'm assuming is from a carrier or sire. But even that is changing. You see the cloudy white and pale blue mixing together, they are changing, still forming, it'll take years for them to develop the part in us that even scans vehicles. They might not even choose a vehicle mode. They are called alt-modes for a reason, Miko, not every bot turns into a vehicle." Ratchet explains forcefully, and for just a moment, it's quiet before Jack pipes in.

"Wait, you guys can turn into other stuff?" He asks.

"Not us. We're too big to pose as something smaller than a vehicle. I mean, there is mass displacement, but it's not very comfortable, not to mention extremely dangerous." Arcee explains kindly to the young man.

"It's a method of transformation that has been abandoned for centuries, too many health issues." Ratchet adds. "Smaller bots like them," He points at you, "though, can. It doesn't cause any problems for minibots surprisingly."

"Mass displacement? Like, using a built-in shrink ray?" Rafael takes a turn asking questions.

"Yes, but it's a faulty organ that we have since evolved without, like how you evolved to the point you no longer have gills." Ratchet chuckles, making Raf shiver. You shiver, too, but it turns into trembling, shaking, and joints locking up. You make an unhappy and uncomfortable noise. Your grip on Miko's hand makes her whine and pull it from you.

"Ow, what's the matter?" She cries.

You race to Ratchets' side and beg for help with your little optics. Your feelings are so loud, you're scared, but why? "What's the matter?" He asks highly concerned as he pulls you up. You just whine and wiggle. Your frame, "Why are you so cold? What's the matter with you?" He starts trying to frantically diagnose you and your symptoms. Cold temperature, shaking, stiffness, and discomfort these are all signs of a growthspurt. He smiles and shushes you calmly.

"Stand up." He puts you down, still holding your servos, "it's okay, stand up." He supports and comforts you. "I know it's painful. Your frame is changing, but you'll be okay."

"Gonna shoot up, huh?" Arcee places a servo on her hip and watches you with a smile.

"Yes," Ratchet grins, "It's about time anyways. They're a bit of a runt, but that's not their fault. Mini's have always been small, and some even smaller than each other. This little one, unfortunately." You stretch and stand on the tips of your pedes as your limbs slowly extend. Your frame grows a bit larger every couple of seconds. "Is definitely smaller than the average minibot."

"Even a midget to their own kind, huh?" Jack asks, getting a couple of confused looks from some of the bots and the other humans.

"Midget?" Ratchets optics narrow.

"Yeah, like a dwarf, I should have said that, actually." He rubs the back of his neck.

"Dwarf?" Bulkhead says the word slowly as if it's uncomfortable to say.

"Yeah, like Raf." Miko points at the smaller teen who shyly waves.

"Oh, well, then yes." Ratchet says, still somewhat confused by what the children are talking about. "They'll be like Rafael." He looks to his screen then back at you, "I have a strong feeling that this is one of their last growth spurts. It's terribly late, but under the circumstances, it is to be expected. Besides, they're old enough." Old enough indeed. Ratchet is excited to see where this little one is going. Hopefully, you can bring the start of a new cybertron when you all get there.

[mousedetective]

Please Help A Mentally Ill/Disabled/Mostly Queer Family Keep Temporary Housing & Get Reliable Transportation?

PAYPAL | AMAZON WISHLIST | KOFI | GOFUNDME

VENMO: @penaltywaltz | CASHAPP: $afteriwake23 | ZELLE: DM me for email address

01/24/24 - New Post!

NEW GOAL!

$1000/$1750

(Original goal mostly met, now edited for additional room help and getting our new car looked at by a mechanic)

If I can get the entire amount still needed, I can do the following:

Getting our new car looked at by a mechanic/getting the water pump fixed

Keeping the room a few more days

We currently have the room until the morning of the 30th, and we did get a new car which has some not so bad problems, but I still need some help.

A friend of mine sent enough money for us to get a 2000 PT Cruiser, and we were able to extend our stay in the motel until the 30th. Our new car has a potentially costly problem (though compared to the other car we were looking at, it was one problem that we can hack/use coolant and water for and the other was potentially much more costly), but we'd like to get the car looked at by our mechanic to see just how costly replacing the water pump will be, and that's $125 for him to just look. Online estimates say a water pump replacement for a PT Cruiser is around $1000 (including parts and labor).

Around the 3rd, we can apply for some payday loans, and more on the 8th, but we also need to pay some bills this month and we need the room longer than the payday loans will help us with. I'm already going to take out a loan on the 26th for stuff we need to take care of for the car, so any help would be amazing.

[maddygoesthemiles]

Changed a flat tire (air valve was busted, so the tire store fixed it at no cost) before it became a serious issue, topped off my coolant, and replaced my struts!

Fixing cars scratches a really specific itch in my brain and I'm glad I have a knowledgeable and patient friend to teach me stuff!

Feeling exhausted but good!

[thetravelingegg]

There’s a sad lack of mtmte horror(especially of rung) so i wanted to fix that.

Enjoy!

Word count:488

————————————————————————

Whirls dreams are weird. I mean sure, most dreams are weird but these could be entered into some kind of competition.

They didn’t start out too abnormal, usually he was at Swerves or somewhere else on the ‘Light. He’d leave and make his way through the lonely corridors down to some room that probably didn’t exist(no he was not to spooked to check! He just didn’t want to waste his time) he’d saunter in and plop his aft on the berth that sat in middle of the room, next to a smaller chair.

In the chair, facing him, was a mech. He knew it was a mech.

He was a twig of a ‘bot. Thin, colorless limbs, he came up to about mid Whirl’s thigh sitting down. He wore a pair of round spectacles and always had a datapad in his lap or clasped in his hands. He also, didn’t exist??? As he said. Dreams are weird. The mech would smile and wipe his glasses clean and offer him rust sticks with one leg daintily crossed over the other. All while the space he occupied remained empty. There was nothing there.

They’d talk. Whirl could never remember the full conversation but from what he could it was mostly boring therapy stuff like “that’s not a healthy coping mechanism” and “be kind to yourself” so he didn’t care that much. What did catch his attention though was that mechs voice was cool, soft but somehow seemed to thrum through his helicopter frame. Like the sound of a star’s lifetime or drifting planets.

When he awoke, he’d forget the mech until next time. Like always, the whole mech would slip from his memory like oil, leaving only the imprint of the words said. No face or voice to match.

Now, right around the time the dreams usually end, the mech removed his glasses and bared his spark blue optics full of warmth and an emptiness that went beyond his absent outlines. He gazed at Whirl with pride and sincerity in a way no one real looks at him. What was that human quote? If you gaze into the abyss the abyss gazes into you?

“How was your day, Whirl?”

“Good” Whirl replied.

“Good” Coolant dripped from the mechs eyes while his lower lip wobbled. He gave Whirl a smile full of rust sticks, sunshine and everything sweet and nice in the world. Electric blue flowers sprouted, bloomed, and wilted out of his nonexistent seams like energon spilling out of a wound. Every flower began to decay into dust, taking the mech with a breeze until every speck was whisked away.

Whirl was awake.

That was the last time he had a dream like that. He remembered.

[cursed-and-haunted]

Ooo can you talk more about Things Behind The Sun?

Yes! So the title Things Behind The Sun is a metaphor for how things like mega corporations present themselves as friendly/altruistic or with "sunny positivity" but in reality that's all surface level and if you look more closely at their business practices they're actually into really horrible shady stuff. Like Siri being presented as "a part of the family" while also spying on you. That's the major theme, though there are other themes. Also, can not stress this enough, I wrote this before the covid-19 pandemic and the recent AI boom.

The story follows Cross, a maintenence engineer for the city of Midnight Sun. The city is almost entirely run by AI, robotics, and androids and when one of these things breaks he's called in to fix them. While working on a larger piece of robotics that's part of the public transportation system his arm gets crushed by heavy machinery and he has to have it amputated. He gets a robotic prosthetic arm but it's movement ability is limited based on price. Like he can hold a cup but to have better finger dexterity he'd have to pay large subscription fee. But he's an engineer and coder so he just hacks his arm.

Because of his injuries he is in a lot of pain. When his prescription painkillers run out he turns to street drugs. The most popular drug is Blue. Blue is taken as drops on the tongue or injection. It's synthesized from the coolant agent used in androids' bodies which is blue while the drug itself is actually clear. The coolant is usually harvested from deactivated androids (aka "dead" androids) but the best Blue is made from coolant harvested from active androids or "living" androids. Basically imagine killing someone, siphoning their blood off, and making a drug out of it.

Cross's dealer is Saint, a rogue or "offline" android. Saint makes his Blue from dead androids he finds in the dump. Which is fucked up if you think about it for even a fraction of a second. Saint exchanges Blue with Cross for free maintenance check ups on his android body. Cross also protects Saint from other dealers who want to harvest Saint's android coolant. They become friends and business partners selling Blue. But they need money for this business. Saint remembers that his former owner has a vault in their house filled with cash. And because Cross is a city worker he has access to places most people don't. So they plan a heist. Their target is Venus Thorne, the CEO of Roswell Corp. She took over the company after her husband died during a pandemic that happened decades ago. Her husband, Isaac Thorne, is the one who invented the tech that makes androids possible.

When they break into Thorne's house they find a malfunctioning android named Knox who is going to be deactivated soon. Knox has memories that do not belong to her and it's causing her to glitch. Saint, who Knox replaced, wants to save Knox from being essentially killed. Cross is against this saying that it's not their problem and they have other things to worry about. While they're arguing they're caught by Thorne's personal security android Luca. They run with Knox. Luca chases them but they're able to give him the slip because no one knows this city better than Cross. Later Thorne orders Luca to hunt them down and get Knox back.

While in hiding they begin to unravel the mystery of Knox's malfunction. They literally project her memories through her eyes onto a wall and watch them like a movie. The memories are from someone who was in quarantine during the pandemic. The pandemic had mostly hit the "lower income" part of the city (aka the slums) and killed about 60% of the population there. The illness was so severe and highly contagious that the bodies could not be released to the families and instead had to be "safely disposed". Cross is able to decode encrypted memories which shows more of the quarantine but also shows Venus and Isaac Thorne. They believe that the Rosewell Corp. has more information on why these memories are in an android, which wasn't made until after the pandemic, so they plan to break into the corporation's hq. There they uncover that no one actually died during the pandemic. They were put into medical induced comas and they're bodies were modified. Their organs were replaced with robotic organs and their blood was replaced with coolant. Their brains were left mostly intact but integrated with computer chips so they could be controlled (but some of their memories remained). And they underwent plastic surgery so they wouldn't be recognized. Those that had died in the pandemic were turned into androids. They take this information and anonymously release it to the public. There's massive riots as thousands of androids "wake up" and remember their human lives. In the information dump it is also revealed that Venus had Isaac put in a coma against his will and her personal security guard, Luca, is actually Isaac Thorne. When Luca learns this he turns on Venus and kills her. But when other androids learn who he is and what he's responsible for they kill him too. Cross, Saint, and Knox try to process what all this means and the implications so they leave the city looking for a new life together. And they ride off into the sunset.

[pughat]

A silly little gift for @thephonemenarentreal

Since both Civic and Venustas do maintenance stuff, I imagine Venustas probably worked under Civic or at least worked with his department. Which gave me this idea.

Civic: hey, what's up?

Venustas, practically in tears: where is the emergency- water shut off valve for the dormitory wing?? Someone switched all the labels on the pipes as a prank- and the new head of maintenance told- us to fix it and we can't find it and everything is flooding but we can't just turn off all the water- because they're in the middle of repairing a Titan and need- a constant flow of water for coolant and-

Civic: ..I'll send you the schematic for the plumbing system, with the valve highlighted

Venustas: thank you

Civic: it's no problem-

Venustas: also.. please.. come back and be.. in charge again

Civic: no can do

Venustas: someone did a wheelie in a forklift- yesterday. There is a bi-weekly forklift fight- club. We haven't won- a single bet.

Civic: ...are you betting on the forklift fights?

Venustas: ..no. Of course not.

[last-sprout]

what sort of job may include magnet suit? and wow, diving suit? including sandstorms i thought there is no place to dive, was i wrong?

Magnet workers are usually the guys you see fixing stuff up on the domes - the magnetic grapples help them scale the supports of the structure to climb up to whatever it is that needs installing or patching up.

and, yeah around the project there isn’t many places to dive. I’m pretty sure there’s a lake to the east. I think (if I’m remembering this right) this area used to be known for its lakes but most are dried up now.

But, I mean, I don’t know where you’re sending this from but surely you can see the benefit of the diving suits though? particularly in the sunken domes there’s whole sections of filtration and coolant and even residential parts completely submerged. Someone’s gotta go out there and fix them.

good lord it’s warm.

[shadowmaat]

I have a hell of a lot of sympathy for grocery store employees. Above & beyond all the other bullshit they have to deal with, they're stuck with corporate overlords who are too goddamn cheap to buy working equipment.

At least I assume it's the same everywhere. Our local Stop & Shop recently did a huge makeover. Expanded. Redid the whole inside. Got all new shelves, refrigeration units, everything.

Previously, there were occasional issues with the Cold Stuff aisles as outdated equipment broke down. But surprise! The new equipment isn't any more reliable. It seems like at least once a month half the frozen food shelves are bare due to a malfunction of some kind. It must be so aggravating to keep having to juggle stuff around, toss out a bunch of stuff that got too warm (if they're allowed to), and know that, even when it's fixed, it's only a matter of time before it breaks again.

Today there was a guy in fixing the ice cream chillers. This is the third or fourth time in the past year or so that these particular units have borked. And this guy was charged with the task of doing something with the freon, or whatever stuff they use to make the chiller chill. You could hear it hissing as he worked. And worse, you could smell it. I'm so glad I was wearing a mask and just passing through the aisle because that was unpleasant. According to a quick search, it's also incredibly dangerous to breathe. Doesn't really surprise me that this was happening during operating hours. Or that the guy doing the work didn't appear to be wearing a mask. Even if it was a "safe" version of coolant, it still isn't something anyone should have to breathe. Or smell.

And the employees are just stuck with this shit happening. All. The. Time. Because Corporate would rather keep paying for repairs than pay for actual high quality equipment in the first place.

[dragon-tummy]

Ramble before bed. I've (sort of) fixed my sleep schedule, and now I get HORRIBLY tired at 8 pm to the point that I cannot stay awake.

Pats top of Boothill. I need to turn him into a beast.

Dragon taur Boothil... save me...

Seeing a lot of like.. parkour-ish scenes where his dragon half is clung onto a building while he evades physical danger by leaping from spot to spot, his mechanical claws sinking into the hard material of the surrounding buildings.

Very sleek and long. Where most dragon taurs are stocky and averagely built in terms of muscle and bone distribution, Boothill has a snake-like body to his taur half. You'd catch glimpses of him scaling buildings like a lizard, tail flicking just out of sight if you're too slow to follow it.

I don't see wings, HOWEVER, I like the idea of vents along the sides of his taur body with some sort of thruster machinery on his back that gives a boost via some nitro bullshit. I'll have to read up more on that kind of stuff tomorrow to form an actual idea that makes logical sense.

He does the 'mrrp' thing that cats do, and every time he does it, the vents on his body hiss out a blue mist from coolants handling his warm internal machinery.

I could go on and on about interactions with other dragon taurs, animalistic instincts and behaviors, classification in terms of my worldbuilding, and so on, but I'm tired and typed this all out in one go. And now its 10 pm and I have therapy tomorrow.

[meltedbluecaterpillar]

Cold Water Daze

A/N: Does Ai Mikaze have to bathe? I'm not sure. But I wanted to make this. I met someone who really likes Ai and Otoya. So I would like to make something small for my warm up. I want to post more often.

tags: gn!reader, Ai overheated wc: 898

You threw open the bathroom door as your stomach twisted wildly into a tight and unforgiving knot. It was only noon, and there was already trouble. The moment you had gotten back from your lunch break, Reiji had told you in the most unserious tone possible that Ai had overheated so badly that he had thrown himself into the bath. 

You didn’t think Ai could take a bath. In a panicked state, you dropped everything and ran to the dorm bathroom. It was a strange conversation to have with your boss, telling you the idol you would be assisting isn’t a human being. So hearing that he had thrown himself into a bathtub was even more terrifying. You didn’t think he could handle a water related soak. Not that any of his unit members or boss relayed that information to you. Nor was it something you were allowed to ask Ai personally. Now, you stood in the doorway of the bathroom. 

And there was Ai, soaking in cold water completely clothed. 

His socks and slippers were discarded haphazardly, his jacket thrown to the ground seemingly soaked into a shade of indigo. The floor was wet, leaving a piebald pattern to what was and was not dry and safe to step. One of his legs was resting over the edge of the tub. His opposite foot was pressed against the tiled wall. He seemed to be staring at his reflection with his back against the edge of the tub. You let out a breath you were holding when you saw him blink. 

Okay, so he’s not… Dead? Broken?

“Ai… What happened?” You asked after an exasperated sigh. He was usually the most put together person in Quartet Night. Even if there were things he didn’t understand; Ai Mikaze always had a straight face. He raised his head, turning to look at you. It was strange, seeing his face flushed. Ai didn’t have blood. Just coolants, wires, and oils. But his cheeks were a peachy red color that contrasted heavily with his perfect, porcelain skin. “I had started to overheat while you were away.” He stated something you already knew. “I wasn’t sure what else to do.” You crept over, avoiding the large puddles of water the best you could until you reached the edge of the tub. “Reiji will fan me with whatever magazine he finds. Ranmaru tries to stuff me in the freezer. Camus… He tries to fix it by giving me ice cream.” He listed them off as he lifted a hand, counting down on his fingers. It sounds like it happens more often than not. 

“I thought this would help. But I forgot to undress.” Ai looked away sheepishly as he realized his mistake. You stood beside the tub while resting your hands on your hips. Ai dropped his hand back into the water and pulled his legs into the tub with a soft splash. “It was an emergency. So it’s okay. But we should get you changed if you feel less… Hot?” You weren’t sure what exactly to do to assist Ai. He couldn’t get sick from soaking himself in cold water, at least not in a way that you could. “Come on, let’s go to your dorm room.” You held a hand out to Ai, watching his eyes flick up to you, then to your open palm. He accepted silently, gripping your hand carefully as he rose to his feet. 

The water splashed, some of it getting on you and the floor as you stepped away to see Ai standing at full height. You forgot how tall he was. Now towering over you and soaked to the bone. “Let me get a towel, sit on the edge of the bath.” You instructed as you carefully pulled your hand away. You could feel the way his fingers lingered. He didn’t want to let go. Ai sat on the edge of the tub as you requested as you grabbed a towel from a small closet. A soft lilac color which told you it would belong to Ai. “I know you can’t get sick but I also don’t think you should trail water through the entire dorm.” You frowned as you returned, standing between his parted legs as you started to dry his hair. Smoothing gently through the cyan colored strands as Ai slipped a finger through one of your belt loops. “I apologize.” He whispered as you continued to dry him off. “It was an emergency. It’s not anything to say sorry for.” You corrected as you draped the towel around his shoulders. Taking the edge to gingerly rub at his cheek. Still flushed in that peachy red color. “Why did you overheat anyway?” You asked as you dried his skin and silently admired his facial features. His eyes seemed to be focused on the shiny button of your pants as he rubbed his thumb over the soft fabric of your belt loop. “It’s embarrassing. I’m feeling better now.” He murmured with a small pout as you let go of the towel. You wouldn’t push him to tell you, but your curiosity began to build. You could always ask Reiji, you know he would tell you. As he got to his feet, he reached for your hand as you walked with him back to his dorm room. A small trail of water followed behind you both. 

[eyeofnewtblog]

Weird car things that seem like common sense but maybe kind of aren’t?

So, even very experienced mechanics still come into a parts store and are like “I have no idea what this is but it still needs to be fixed” so never be ashamed to say you don’t know.

If you take only one picture of the part and bring that in, i automatically dislike you because you as a customer need to actually be able to assess that the thing you are buying is the thing you need. I’m basically going off of your words and the part picture in the system.

I personally can automatically (pun intended) see that you brought in an upper or lower control arm, a fuel pump, a starter or alternator, a tie rod end… I literally cannot find the EXACT PART unless I know what year make and model you’re looking for. Please for the love of god actually give us the year first so that we actually remember what you said you wanted.

Ladies who know nothing but have lots of questions are honestly my absolute favorite. Like, I get it, you were never interested and no one ever taught you, but now it’s suddenly keeping your from getting to work. I gotchu fam.

Ladies that get sent to pick up stuff: holy Christ on a stick, I feel for you, you were given zero information, you already have zero knowledge, any questions I ask you will absolutely not have the answers to and on top of that you look so fucking helpless and I can tell it grates o you but you’re THERE and you have ONE JOB even though you might get yelled at later and honestly that’s admirable.

If you’re getting asked a lot “is this it?” Or “is this everything?” Or even “no mas?” It means that you are, specifically, an annoying fuck wit and I would very much like to bash your face in lbecause you just made me make eight separate trips to the back for eight separate parts and honestly giving you a dose of pepper spray seems like the quickest way to make you “not my problem” but that’s heavily frowned upon I hear.

Lots and lots of people make life easier for themselves and decide to google shit before they even get to the counter. I am absolutely going to google shit in front of you like you’re a dadgum noob. Is it really actually helpful with the older crowd? Yes. Is it appropriately humbling to people my own age? Yes.

Basically, any time you need to buy a part from an auto store, come in with your VIN (take a picture of it off the engine, have the registration, insurance or title, literally doesn’t matter which, we can find a way,)

Also the easiest parts to install/replace are most kind of sensors (o2 usually, pay attention to upper or lower) pay attention to upper and lower radiator hoses, light bulbs (finger oil ruins the whole bulb so get gloves when you replace them)

Coolant doesn’t matter much but googling it before hand will help me a lot…

[ostin-jpg]

car fixing update? 🚗

as y'all know I've been raising funds to get fixes done on my very ancient car and now that we're at 69%(lol) I thought I'd share some minor progress!

I've got headlights cleaned, EWD, coolant and cleaning stuff for the whole car 🤸

Hopefully somewhere early this month I can get the brakes checked and replaced if needed. Maybe get an all around check up asap. Because I really need to get that done before mid January 😅😮‍💨... sometimes i feel like I fix one thing in this car another problem pops up 🙃 having an old car is so stressful and hard. I'm just thankful I have gas and an AC that works 😭🤞