thisavrou | video; it's a PSA about Tarn

[Megatron wasn't in the best of moods. He'd rather not have to make this message at all - and it's clear in the tired lines of his face that something had been weighing heavily on his mind in the past few days.]

While on this ship, I have been surprised by the crew's willingness to cooperate with us Cybertronians, and our coexistence has been largely peaceful. That trust was broken with arrivals of more of our number, someone who followed me before I defected.

Tarn was an officer under my command during the civil war back in our world. He was trained to be militantly loyal to the Decepticon cause, and is equipped with a well-honed talent for violence. It is unlikely that he will overlook the fact that most of you are organic, and thus a sworn enemy. I know this because I was the one who personally trained him.

Asking to avoid Tarn may be a tall order on a small ship like this, but if you encounter any undue friction - I urge you to not provoke him. He has far less compunctions about killing than the others here do, and he will make the process as agonizing as his imagination allows.

Should you feel threatened, Magnus or I will aide you if we're called, at least until we can come up with a more permanent solution.

If I can assist in my capacity as Personnel Officer as well, I will do so. Hopefully, none of this forewarning will be necessary, but the least I can do is provide some understanding.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[For a moment, he's unsure if Peridot was referring to him or Tarn.]

I don't imagine he'll care to discern the difference unless you decide to take up a Decepticon badge yourself.

Edited 2016-04-12 16:53 (UTC)

[SNORT.]

Unlikely. I already have my own "badge".

For what it's worth, though, I may be able to provide a solution to your problem.

A solution? Are you certain it would work on Cybertronians?

Well, no, I'm not... That's why I said I may be able to provide a solution.

More to the point, there's another member of the crew... some human, one of those abnormally powerful ones. From what I understand he murdered another crew member, and part of his proposed punishment was the installation of a chip that would cause him to black out if he tried to act upon any murderous thoughts towards other crew members. It's possible that same technology could be adapted to work on a Cybertronian, instead.

[Of all the solutions to suggest...]

No.

[Well she thought it was a good idea! So much so that she's kind of offended and baffled that it's getting shot down.]

What? Why not?!

Edited 2016-04-13 18:23 (UTC)

That technology gets abused enough in our own hands, I refuse to wait and see how it will be misused in another's.

[That was not an option. Not even for Tarn.]

We will find another way.

Abused how? It's just a simple device, all it would do is render him unconscious automatically if he were to exhibit certain brainwaves that indicated that he was about to do something harmful to a fellow crew member! It's the perfect solution!

It is far from simple. We are not things to be conditioned like some inconvenient machine.

Find another way.

[The brush off she's getting from him is really starting to rub her the wrong way. She scowls into the camera, gritting her teeth for a moment, trying to contain an outburst, but--]

No. No, I won't! You know what? You're just as bad as an organic! Letting your emotions rule over logic, why should I help you at all?

[He's quiet as Peridot speaks, his entire composure as frigid as the vats of nitrogen in the in the cryo-chambers. He makes sure to allow the silence to drag on for a good 20 seconds after she finishes, to really dare this space rock to angrily yell at him a little more about how he was the rash one.]

I will explain this to you in simple terms.

Cooperating with others occasionally means not getting what you want, because there are boundaries that you should not cross. I do not want you, or any engineer on this ship probing into the minds of any Cybertronian, and if you want my continued cooperation, you'd be wise to respect that.

Have I made myself clear?

[By contrast, there's barely a pause between when Megatron finishes speaking to when Peridot cuts back in again.]

Don't. Talk to me. Like I'm some kind of newly developed, idiotic human child. You think this is about me not getting what I want? What about you putting your own comfort over the safety and well-being of the rest of the crew? Here I have a simple fix that's almost guaranteed to work that could be constructed and implemented in a matter of days, where otherwise I don't even know if or when I'll be able to come up with an alternate solution! But no, you'd rather put everyone else at risk, and for what!? Boundaries?! Maybe you should consider following your own advice and just stuff it, you... you tyrannical, sanctimonious, hunk of metal!

[She uh... She doesn't take to being lectured well.]

A mnemosurgeon needs years of training under a skilled mentor before they are able to navigate a Cybertronian's mind reliably. You have neither the time, nor the teacher, nor patients to test.

If you truly believe you can solve that problem within a few days, then finding an alternate solution should bring you little issue. Unless you consider the rest of our biology to be out of your scope?

[Peridot wouldn't be the first hot-headed pipestack he's had to deal with ~~Rodimus~~. Time to try a different approach.]

[Well it's an approach that works much better. Peridot doesn't look at all happy as she listens to him, but by the time she's done she lets out a reluctant growl like an ill-tempered cat and huffs:]

Of course it isn't! Just... Ugh. Fine. I'll see what I can do. But I'm not making any promises!

video; it's a PSA about Tarn

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