[NETWORK] THE GRID

[vosseeker]

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[forceshadowed]

[ A couple of hours after Jane and Knock Out go on a date this, Commander Starscream receives a series of messages in rapid succession. One message for one line / block of lines. How quaint. ]

HOW COULD YOU

HOW COULD YOU????

HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO KNOCK OUT
HE'S BEEN NOTHING BUT LOYAL TO YOU
HE'S YOUR FRIEND

POSSIBLY THE ONLY FRIEND YOU HAVE LEFT
BECAUSE WE'RE NOT FRIENDS ANYMORE

[ Real mature, Jane. ]

YOU DIDN'T JUST ASK HIM TO DO SOMETHING ILLEGAL
YOU HAD TO BE AN ASS ABOUT IT
WOULD IT KILL YOU TO DO SOMETHING NICELY FOR ONCE IN YOUR KRIFFING LIFE
YOU'RE EVEN THE ONE ASKING THE DAMN FAVOR

AND YOU SAY WE HUMANS ARE THE IDIOTS!!!

YOU ARE A JERK AND A HORRIBLE PERSON
A HORRIBLE PERSON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OR WHATEVER IS THE LINGUISTICALLY CORRECT TERM
WHATEVER I DON'T CARE
ASSHOLE

YOU'RE JUST LIKE MY BROTHER
AND THAT'S NOT A COMPLIMENT

I HATE YOU

[ Yes, really mature, Janey. ]

[vosseeker]

[ The barrage of texts in the wee hours of the night cycle is unexpected. So Knock Out had blabbed about the modifications already? Typical. An instinct sneer curled Starscream's mouth as each fresh condemnation came blinking up on the feed, but by the end of it his spark was twinging uncomfortably. Still, he shoved the sensation aside. ]

Knock Out? Loyal? The mech who stabbed me in the backstrut the second he thought that throwing his lot in with the Autobots would save his own skidplate? I could apply many terms to the good doctor, but loyal is not one of them. And clearly he can't even be relied upon to keep a secret!

[ True, Knock Out had kept Starscream from offlining after finding him near-death following Predaking's savagery, but that was... different. The Autobots would surely have not approved if the medic had just let him expire, not when Knock Out was trying to ingratiate himself with them! That explained everything. ]

Being nice is superfluous when you have leverage. Knock Out had inherited a debt to settle and I collected. A simple business transaction! It's not my fault that he took it so closely to spark.

[ Except Starscream had not only known that the medic would, but had actively banked on that fact. That the loyalty Knock Out had to Breakdown's memory would be the tipping point to overcome the risk to his own station. And Starscream had been right! It had worked! So what was the problem? ]

Very well, you hate me. Shall I arrange for someone else to be assigned the remainder of your apprenticeship, Advocate Solo?

[forceshadowed]

YOU ARE KRIFFING UNBELIEVABLE
UNBELIEVABLE

[ Knock Out had a debt and he just collected?! Clearly Starscream feels no remorse for what he's done, and if Jane were sober, she'd realize the Commander has an ability for emotional manipulation after all and learn to be wary about it. But she's drunk and high and so very upset — even the protoforms could sense that, no doubt — that all she can manage at this point is something stupid like yell at him over the network.

The last time she'd been this upset was after Ben had killed their father. She'd yelled at him then, too. ]

OH NOW YOU'RE THREATENING ME?
WHAT HAPPENED TO NOT TAKING MATTERS SO CLOSELY TO SPARK?
YOU DON'T WANT TO MAKE AN ENEMY OF ME, COMMANDER STARSCREAM

[ Why, yes, she's a dumb squishy who Starscream can possibly just crush with his foot, but she likes to think she has enough leverage with the Cybertronians now. ]

[vosseeker]

It is not a threat. If you are this outraged over something that has nothing to do with you, that is between Knock Out and myself, how can I expect you to remain objective in our further dealings? Better to assign you a new liaison or terminate your apprenticeship prematurely.

[ They had a moderate supply of kyber now; not enough for long term seeding, but perhaps enough for the Sciences division to come up with an alternative. Perhaps. ]

You are the one implying threats.

[forceshadowed]

YOU CAN'T POSSIBLY UNDERSTAND BECAUSE YOU DON'T CARE FOR ANYONE OTHER THAN YOURSELF

[ Terminate her apprenticeship prematurely? Fine. She's just going to take her babies. (Not that she's clearly thinking this through at the moment.)

She does have half a mind to turn off the capslock and try to sound a little more calm in her messages. Of course, she's anything but that. ]

If only those who care only for themselves and are unable to feel anything but their own self-interest have the capability for objectivity, then you should continue your dealings with the Supreme Leader
You two are a matched pair, you're perfect for each other

[vosseeker]

What I understand is that Knock Out will get over his emotional little snit and you would do well to follow in the same.

[ Yes, he really went there. His spark continues to feel constricted, and he just as stubbornly continues to ignore it. ]

I can only assume you are not thinking clearly. I will overlook this outburst, and you will contact me tomorrow with your decision regarding your ongoing placement.

Goodnight, Advocate Solo.

[forceshadowed]

[ Okay, that's just... Jane's anger settles into a cold, quiet fury, though the alcohol and whatever else she might've consumed that night continue to try to cloud her thoughts with their pleasant, persistent buzzing. But something about what Starscream's said has struck her, and now she's just seething. ]

What you don't understand is that there are things some of us are not simply able to "get over" from

[ She starts to type: ] I don't need to wait until tomorrow, I KRIFFING QUIT YOU ASSHOLE

[ But before she could hit Send, she senses a collective wave of worry and panic and confusion, though it feels so far away that she has to stop and concentrate, brows furrowing as she tries to make sense of—

The protoforms. Stars, her babies.

She stares at the comm in her hands. She could leave, she could quit, and she could take the protoforms with her. But will they survive? Not without Knock Out, she knows that with certainty. What did she know about raising children, let alone children of an entirely different species?

She erases the rest of her response and lets the conversation end there, before reaching out haphazardly with the Force to the protoforms, trying to offer them comfort and solace. I'm here, she assures them. I'm okay, and I'm not going anywhere. Just angry. Not that she thinks they'll understand, but that's the best she can give them right now. ]