rekindledtitan | Excerpt 007: Lay of the Land

"Heh." She can't smile, and yet there's something in the look she shoots Adia's way that suggests it. "I always liked thinking that was important to our creators, whoever they were. Making sure we had common ground. We were meant to share the same world even if we look at it a little differently." She chuckles. "Besides, we can still share a drink, and that's what matters."

Neither of these bots tends to be familiar with popular culture as the Nexus knows it... but myths are a different matter. Myth is a matter of tradition, and Titans are inclined to take note of tradition even if it's not directly related to war. Blaze has to nod, albeit slowly.

"Yeah. Not the ones we're normally listening to, but I've heard 'em. Demeter's one of yours, right? Some of Reynard's powers are named after her, in our records."

"Whatever they did, they did it the right way." She wouldn't want hordes of evil aliens swarming her solar system, but she can't help but wish that the relationship between Cylons and humans had turned out a little more like the ones between Guardians and humans. "You can drink? How does that work?" She looks over at Ghost again curiously. "How about you? Or do you only have sensory receptors?"

Adia nods, mildly surprised. She had forgotten that Blaze's world had some names and myths in common with her own. "Demeter is one of our gods, yes. She's in charge of agriculture and fertility..." She puzzles a little over any possible connection to Reynard, then shakes her head. "She's responsible for winter, too, but only because her daughter was kidnapped and taken to the underworld. At least, according to the old myths. Stuff that predates the Sacred Scrolls. But the reason I bring it up is that Reynard fits those old myths. The ones that talk of spirits who are beholden to the things that they represent."

She'd smile at that first remark, if she could, and it might not be her usual sort of smile - but it means something to her, that Adia thinks so. Booze and buzzes are just an easier topic to move onto. She gestures toward her mouth, a mimed movement that looks suspiciously like swigging from a hipflask.

"Just need a powerpack with contacts that can fit my mouth. I don't need it, but sometimes it's nice to get kinda buzzed with some friends."

Ghost gives her a rather direct stare for a moment with his unreadable expression, before he sighs and answers Adia. "Ghosts don't have that ability, which I suspect is a very wise safety measure. I... guess you don't drink much either?"

At least they all have things to puzzle over, here. Blaze chews it over as they walk, optics sweeping over the street ahead. "Yeah. I've heard stories that go that way too. Guess I can understand if he's bound to Winter. Wrapped up in it mind and soul. Doesn't let him off the hook for his actions, either, but I guess snow doesn't have much sense of responsibility."

Hmmmm. Not an easy one for her to come to terms with, but she's working her way through it. Ghost is keeping quiet during this discussion, it must be noted - ostensibly scouting just ahead but looking back at the two of them in a way that makes it clear he's still listening.

"Oh... oh, I see." She never would have thought it possible for robots to get drunk, except she's had this conversation before. "I had a robot friend in the Nexus who told me that his kind could get drunk on something called energon."

Adia hides a smile behind her hand when Ghost gives Blaze a look. "Not a fan?" she says mildly. She suspects that Ghost wouldn't drink even if he could, likely for the same reasons she chooses not to imbibe much. "No, not very much. I have a low tolerance, and the only alcohol available in the Settlement is the kind you make in a wash basin. It smells like paint thinner."

"No, of course not," she agrees quickly. "It's not like he's possessed, he's still aware of what he's doing." She absently adjusts the scarf around her neck, a thick wool knit in a pretty shade of blue. "He's well aware that he's made enemies here, too. He doesn't seem to care much about that. But... he does care about me, for what it's worth."

"'Energon', huh? Sounds like an ancient brand name." She'd try it, anyway. Not much she wouldn't try for the hell of it. "Don't see too many other bots around the Nexus- I'm guessing this guy wasn't a Cylon either." That's an easy bet. It's nice to think there are other cybernetic people out there, specifically ones who aren't hostile.

"Well, going for a drink doesn't always stop at a little buzz, especially... um, in the Nexus." Forget it, Ghost, Blaze is merrily oblivious to meaningful glances. "I think the important thing is to spend time with our friends, getting to know people."

There's no halt this time, but Adia's words draw a look from Blaze, golden optics intent on her face for a brief moment. "You trust him." That's not a question. This is: "You believe he's worth it?"

"It was their fuel, too, but I guess if you had too much of it, it was like being intoxicated." She flashes a brief, wry smile at Blaze. "No, not a Cylon. He was a... Cybertronian." She hopes she's remembering that right. "Human-sized, but others of his kind were much larger. He could transform into a boat." Something she never got a chance to see. The regret shows on her face. "But I haven't seen him lately, not since I started visiting the Nexus again..." She tucks her hands in her pockets and looks away. It's clear that she misses him. It must say something about his character, that he was able to befriend her despite her inherent wariness of robotic lifeforms.

She smiles sympathetically at Ghost. "It isn't easy being the designated driver, is it? But it is nice to unwind a little. Those of us who can, anyway." She certainly could use something to take the edge off, now and then.

Adia looks up at Blaze and nods emphatically. "Despite his powers, he lives as a human. And all this time, he's been rejected and cast out for what he can do. Maybe what he needs is a friend, someone who reminds him of the part of him that isn't Winter."

"Oh, hey! I know one of those guys. Big fellow called Bulkhead, visits the Nexus once in a while. Good to have at your back in a fight." Blaze's character references are a bit different, but she cares deeply about her friends. She understands the sorrow Adia's trying not to show. The Exo lifts a hand to her shoulder, offering some honest optimism.

"I hope you find your friend again. Everything else shows up here: it wouldn't be fair if he didn't." Hmmm. Now she thinks of it... "Cybertronians have a hell of a war on their hands too, if I got that right. Could be his world's keeping him busy and he'll be back when things settle down."

As she often does, Blaze exchanges a look with Ghost before she nods. "I hope he proves you right, then. I'll trust you to hold him to account if he pushes you, got it?"

The name is unfamiliar to her, but fits the pattern of other Cybertronians that she's met. "I don't see as many of their kind in the Nexus anymore... hopefully I'll get to meet Bulkhead sometime." The larger Transformers are easier for her to handle, in some ways, bearing little resemblance to Centurions.

She smiles at Blaze's shoulder pat, appreciating the gesture. "I hope so, too. He was a good friend. I'm not sure that's why I haven't seen him, though. I think there had been some sort of truce on his world? He talked about working with the opposing side a few times..." She hadn't asked for any details, not wanting to be embroiled in another conflict where she'd be forced to pick sides.

It's a great relief that Blaze and Ghost are trusting her on this. "I won't let him take advantage of our friendship," she promises. She's reasonably confident about this. She didn't let him get away with his weak excuses on why he hadn't told her anything, after all. "And he knows that I won't stop being friends with people he doesn't get along with, either." If someone asks her to pick sides, she'll... well, probably cry in a corner somewhere. But she's not a fair-weather friend.

"That's good - all the more reason to figure he'll be back safe and well." She wonders what a boat Cybertronian would look like - what a Cybertronian boat looks like, for that matter. She doesn't remember Bulkhead mentioning any oceans on their planet. "Huh. I almost envy that transformation trick of theirs. Being able to fly would make patrols a lot easier- but I'd miss having my boots on the ground."

Blaze won't pretend she isn't concerned, but she's got no authority to order Adia around either - nor does she see that she's got any business telling her friend not to act brave and principled. "Good. But if he does threaten anyone, we won't hesitate to stop him. Nothing says you can't fight Winter."

"He's not the only one who answers to a higher power," Ghost adds quietly.

"Oceanglide knows how to take care of himself," Adia says with a small, wry smile. No, it's not that she's worried that something bad has happened to her friend. Her concern runs deeper, a matter of her not being in the same Nexus as before. But there's nothing wrong with hoping. She's made some good friends in the meantime. "You could have been given wings," she says light-heartedly. "Then you wouldn't even have to transform."

"As you should, but I'm hoping it won't come to that." She's not thrilled about waiting to see if Reynard can keep out of trouble this year, but it's not like she can do anything about it. "He promised that he wouldn't put me in the middle of any conflict, at least."

She looks over at Ghost and smiles reassuringly. "Hey, before I forget to tell you, I got to ride a horse in the Nexus."

"Heh, think I could pull off wings?" She's tickled by the idea, though one glance over her shoulders and she decides they'd get in the way of her weapons. "The only person I know with wings is an angel. Touches down like a feather. Me, I'm more like a crashing warsat."

Promising retribution to Reynard this way holds none of the joy she felt last year, charging out to answer his challenge in the snow. But it's a true promise and she's glad Adia understands the necessity. (Even if a small part of her wonders whether Adia's feelings will be so simple, should warning turn to battle.)

For now she nods, with a low grunt of acceptance. There's some reassurance in knowing Adia (and any civilians standing next to her) will be left out of future trouble.

They both look up curiously at her news - and the happy change of subject. "You did?" Ghost perks up. "We've only met one up close. Although I... don't think that was a normal horse either."

"Absolutely," Adia says with a bright grin. It's easy for her to imagine a pair of stylized wings on Blaze's back, the same colors as the rest of her armor. "You could swoop down like one of the Furies." Her eyebrows go up at the mention of an angel. "Are they nice? We don't have anything like angels in our mythology... well, except for Eros, but he's a god, not a spirit."

She seems at peace with the situation currently, but Blaze is right to wonder if she will feel differently when push comes to shove. But that is a problem for another time. "I did!" She beams, remembering the event fondly, before blinking at Ghost in surprise. "Oh, I wonder if it was the same horse. What did it look like? Was its owner a woman with black skin and horns?" It's always possible that there is more than one strange horse in the Nexus (which would be totally awesome, by the way), but it's more likely that Blaze and Ghost also met Paladin and her steed.

"Hah, I'd like that!" Like a Fury, huh? It's a good image. She imagines how easy it would be to stoop in, to light out and reposition at will, hammering her enemies from a different angle every time they tried to regroup, striking them with Light and vengeance-

Yeah. It's a very good image.

"Angel's great," she assures Adia. "Kinda shy, but she's loyal and brave in a fight. Uses her power to protect and heal people. I should introduce you two sometime, you'd have a lot in common." Well, so far as Angel gets mortal people. Blaze hasn't actually seen her socialize in the usual sense, but she assumes it'll work out for the best.

And on the subject of friends in common, she brightens right up at Adia's description. "You met Paladin too, huh?"

"A big black horse who sort of... floats when it moves? That sounds right. You really rode on him?"

It's flattering to hear that she has something in common with an angel, especially one held in high esteem by Blaze. "I'm assuming you mean the shyness, and not the fighting. I'd like to meet her, if the opportunity comes up. And her name is Angel?" An angel named Angel... Adia would find it strange if she hadn't already met a paladin named Paladin.

Speaking of... "I did, when she first showed up in the Nexus." And judging by the open smile on her face, they got along quite well. "We've hung out a few times now. I like her a lot, she's really nice." It's not entirely surprising that Blaze seems to like her, too, but it is also a relief after the whole Reynard fiasco.

She grins at the small bot. "Yep. She let me name him, too." She shrugs thoughtfully and adds, "Honestly, he doesn't ride that differently from a regular horse. What did he think of you, Ghost?"

"No, not so much the shyness. More the loyalty and compassion, even after she got a hard time from all sides back in her world." Blaze explains this quite casually, adding with a chuckle, "Even if you don't demonstrate it on the battlefield so often. But yeah, she calls herself Angel. Got a few things in common with Ghost that way, too."

And Paladin, well- Blaze's tone says that she's already rather fond of the Tiefling warrior. "She's pretty great, isn't she? Only ran into her once, but we got a drink and she told me how she fought a chimera once. You know she actually killed one?"

"What name did you pick?" Ghost asks at once, all curiosity. "

I don't really know what he thought, but I think perhaps he was curious. He didn't shy away like the other horses I've seen. He just took a good look at me.

"

Living up to her shyness, Adia ducks her head and blushes, but she's unable to hide the smile on her face. "So often?" She echoes with a laugh. "Maybe on a metaphorical battlefield... why was Angel getting a hard time?" That, she can relate to, even if the feeling of being pulled in different directions is mostly in her own head.

"She is. And yes, she told me about the chimera. She's fought all sorts of monsters. Kind of reminds me of what you do, actually." Both Paladin and Blaze have a straight-forwardness that Adia deeply appreciates. She grows tired of the subterfuge that some people engage in, even if they are looking out for her best interest. "Did she tell you about the giant bees? She and her friends were able to tame them, and now they make honey for the town." It seems only natural that her favorite story so far is the one with the happy ending for all involved.

"Shadow." She waves her hand in a so-so gesture. "Not the most creative name, but his appearance is so striking, and I couldn't think of a good hero name to give him instead. I think you're right about him being curious. Some horses can be high-strung about new things in their environment, but I'm sure he's been exposed to all sorts of sentient beings."

"Everyone fights in their own way, Ghost reminds Adia quietly. Blaze might get a little carried away with her wording, but she's not actually wrong in the little bot's opinion.

Blaze goes ahead and answers the question. "She was captured by demons a while ago. They were still holding her prisoner when Jesse and I ran into her back during the invasion. So far as I can understand it, her own kindred didn't make an effort to come to the rescue. They think she's- hnn, tainted somehow. Just by being captured." Her tone's hard and heated at that part. She'd have a few words for those angels, for all the good it would likely do.

Being compared to Paladin is nice though. Blaze takes well to the direct approach herself, and Paladin's a very easy woman for her to get along with. "She didn't get to that one, no- I didn't know you could tame bees. Thought you sort of put them where you wanted and hoped they stuck around." She doesn't remember if she ever saw one, either. She has a vague impression of something cute and winged and fuzzy with dubious aerodynamics.

"Shadow suits him. He's very quiet."

"Paladin would need a horse who didn't scare easily," Blaze judges. "He's a real old-fashioned battle charger. Only smarter and tougher, I'd guess."

Adia smiles at Ghost. He would know that best, she supposes. "I'll keep that in mind," she tells the small bot, before turning her attention to Blaze and her explanation. "Oh, that's horrible. They didn't try to help her at all?" Adia sounds a little heated, herself. "I'm glad you and your friend found her, though. What does she do now?" She can't imagine Angel going back to a world where she's been rejected so thoroughly.

"Tame might not be the right word... keep them calm, I guess, so that they wouldn't attack when you took their honey. She even gave me a jar of their honey. It's really good, although it doesn't taste different from regular honey." She adds wistfully, "I always thought it'd be nice to have an apiary. But I'd stick with regular honeybees."

"Yes, he is. Quiet and smart. Maybe smarter than a horse normally is, but it's hard to tell. I hope I get to ride him again. I forgot how much I missed it."

Blaze shakes her head in grim answer to Adia's first question, though the second makes her pause. "She lives in the Nexus now. I've asked her to heal people once or twice but- actually I'm not sure what she does the rest of the time. Ought to check in on her more often."

She's not entirely clear on the nature of the contract she shares with Angel, only that it spares the 'demon' from having to struggle for the sustenance she needs. As long as Angel is safe and free, Blaze hasn't worried too much about her.

"They're good and useful creatures. I think you'd be good at that. Keeping them calm and taking care of them, I mean."

She gives Adia a glance, at that last part, and guesses: "Missed the freedom of it?"

"I'm glad she has the Nexus, then." Adia really needs to stop being surprised at how many people live in the Nexus as opposed to traveling between worlds. It's not like all there is to the Nexus is the Plaza... which reminds her to pay more attention to where Blaze's patrol is leading them. Without the hot chocolate, she's been better at keeping up with her friends, and she still seems unperturbed by the cold. "She sounds like the kind of person this place needs more of."

The compliment makes her smile and shrug modestly. "Well, I'm not scared of them, and I'm not allergic to their sting. I'd have a lot to learn, though." And she'd need some bees and a place to put them. "I'll have to ask Paladin if there are giant flowers that the giant bees pollinate. Otherwise I'm not sure how that works for them." She smiles a little, imagining a giant bee trying to alight on a tiny wildflower. "Are there bees on your Earth, Blaze? Or are they gone, too?"

She automatically nods in a reply, then frowns softly as her thoughts grow more complex than a simple "yes" or "no". "I think I miss everything a horse symbolizes. The freedom, sure, but I miss where I used to ride, and the fact that horses even exist..." She sighs. "It's so barren on my world, Blaze. Nothing grows. The only animals are what we've brought with us."

Blaze nods in agreements. So far they've been heading down one of the better-traveled roads leading away from the Plaza. Blaze wants to get some distance quickly, and starting from a relatively familiar thoroughfare will give Adia an easy way to find their route again. That said, there's a bit of smog on the breeze, and the buildings around them are slowly beginning to include less cafes and clothing stores, more mechanics and wholesalers. They're headed for the heart of the Industrial District.

"Well, I haven't seen one. But I'm pretty sure we have them. Something's got to pollinate all the flowers. Maybe folk down in the City keep them."

The two bots exchange a troubled look. How is humanity to begin rebuilding on such a world? What good is that going to do a wounded soul?

"It's no place to rebuild," Blaze says. "Even the Cylons oughta see that. Maybe they're too afraid to look for anywhere better, but could you even adapt the planet for habitation?"

"I'm not so sure that would suit the Cylons," Ghost observes with quiet disapproval.

Adia has never been to the Industrial District, having had neither reason no desire to explore it. She makes note of their surroundings and the path that they are taking, not that she plans on traveling by herself. "What do you usually see when you make this patrol? Anything unusual? I haven't seen much of this part of the Nexus."

That's a relief to hear, that Blaze's Earth still has flowers. "There are some other animals that pollinate flowers, but bees are the most prolific. What other animals does the City have?"

The look that Blaze and Ghost share makes Adia little embarrassed. Not for herself, but for the series of events that led to humans settling on New Caprica when they should have kept searching for Earth. "We originally settled there because the planet is in a nebula that prevented the Cylons from finding us... even though they eventually found us, anyway. I think if we hadn't been found, we could have eventually done something with the planet. Terraformed it, maybe.... I don't think the Cylons like living on New Caprica, either, but I imagine it's in much greater comfort than our Settlement."

She doesn't bother to comment on why the Cylons would allow the humans to suffer their mistakes, but her mouth twists into bitter frown as she thinks about it. She's the first to take responsibility for her fate, to find empathy for a race that was attacked and vilified merely for wanting to be recognized as sentient. But hadn't the Cylons gotten their pound of flesh? How long would humanity have to keep paying for its sins?

"All looks pretty normal so far. This road's got a lot of the mechanical workshops - see that one?" She points at a shop with a hamster-wheel looking vehicle left outside. You wouldn't know what it was if not for the dashboard and the seats visible inside. "They do custom repairs on tech that's not cross-compatible with the more common machines round here. And down that way is a big salvage yard, that's why the road's so wide. You might not be parts-hunting any time soon, but it's a good place if you need cover."

She cocks her head and points out a very short figure in brown robes and hood, as it hurries down the street and into an alleyway with something shiny in its arms. "Hang on, here's something we'd better check out."

There's no reason to interrupt the conversation as they head that way, though. "Lot of fat pigeons around the Tower, little lizards hanging onto the walls when the sun comes out. And I see eagles overhead sometimes. Not sure what's down in the City besides all the usual farm animals - I've seen pictures with donkeys in them, and I know folks have dogs. You see more out in the wilds though. I don't know much about animals, but it makes me glad to see 'em."

Blaze nods at Adia's explanation. "See, that makes sense. If you were free to terraform the place it'd be different..." She pauses, gives her friend a puzzled look. "Wait, I thought the Cylons were living with you. Don't tell me they built their own separate village next door."

"Actually, that's probably less awkward than having to be room-mates..."

Adia peers curiously at the hamster-wheel vehicle. She wishes that she was more mechanically inclined, a salvage yard sounds promising. But before she can ask any questions about what sort of tech need custom repairs, Blaze points out the tiny robed person hustling into the alleyway. "That's not a child, is it?" she asks worriedly, even as she dutifully follows her friends.

It wouldn't be much, compared to a planet like Leonis, or what Adia has heard of other Earths, but it sounds wonderful to her. Pigeons, lizards, dogs... you don't realize what you take for granted until it's gone. "The eagles are probably hunting the pigeons, especially if the pigeons are fat. Do people feed them?"

She gives Ghost a faint smile, grateful that the little bot understands her situation so well. "They live on their basestars -- their ships. Some of them work with us. There's a Six in my lab, for example. But aside from running the detention center, we don't see them often." She pauses, her frown returning, but softer this time. Sadder. "Caspar's model doesn't work with any humans, so far as I know."

"Some kind of little alien, I think," Blaze explains, though the Titan adds after a moment, "I hope so anyway. You see them running around the Nexus all the time." And sure enough, the alleyway contains four of them, adding to a small pile of varying-condition mechanical gadgets on a sled.

Their heads snap up at the Guardian's approach, revealing nothing of their faces except glowing yellow eyes. One of them makes a muffled sound that comes across suspiciously like 'uh-oh'. Might have something to do with the rod-shaped sensor beacon in his arms. One of his friends steps forward to jab a finger at Blaze, scolding her in a language even the Nexus apparently doesn't feel like translating. The Titan strides past him like she doesn't even notice and picks up the sensor beacon... thief and all.

"Hmh." She gives it a shake, trying to encourage him to let go. "Come on, that ain't yours. Don't make me do this the hard way."

Speaking of scavengers... "Some people do. Especially if they've got lunch to share. They seem pretty tame; I even had one of them sit on me before and I didn't have anything to give it. Besides, they don't backtalk like the birds in the Nexus."

"That's odd. I wonder if that's preference or a strategic decision?" Blaze doesn't see how, but what does she understand about Cylons aside from 'they're bad at making friends'.

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