Supply Run
Sep. 10th, 2010 05:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ante_luceTitle: Supply Run
'Verse: AU Transformers, possible movie'verse combined with G1.
Characters: Prowl. Jazz. Guess who ;3
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: TF cussing.
“Where are we going?”
“To get some computer parts.”
“… The place you said I didn’t want to know about?”
“Heh, not this time. This one’s a regular supply run, and the shop’s all brightly lit, with real counters and carpeting even. Promise.”
“Can’t you get what you need through the group’s regular supply channels?”
“It’s a small order, and they’re common enough parts that it’s quicker for me to skip the unnecessary middlemen and just get them at this particular shop. Besides…” The visored man grinned at his android companion. “I’m due for a visit with my brother.”
= = =
“Here we are, Ricky O’Shea’s PC-porium.”
“… You’re Irish?” Prowl’s disbelieving look had the hacker shaking his head and shrugging.
“Nah. The cocky glitch just didn’t want to give up his ‘leet’ alias completely, so he modified it into that. Brat. C’mon, it’s the back door for us; he keeps the shop closed whenever I drop by.”
The delivery entrance opened without an audible sound, and from behind a wall of monitors a man stuck his head out, then motioned to the nearest counter with a grin. Jazz sauntered over, the brunet a step or two behind him, as the shopkeeper ducked through another door and returned with several medium sized boxes.
“So, who’s the new guy?”
A second message pinged off the hacker’s personal comm. before he could say anything.
//Yes, I know you can’t always tell me names, but you have those call signs for a reason, ‘Jazz’.//
Jazz shrugged nonchalantly at his brother, smiling easily. “This is Prowl. A friend from work, new in town, thought I’d show him the sights. Prowl, this is my kid brother. We call him Ricky, after his store, so as to not confuse the other customers.”
Ricky’s grin was identical to his sibling’s as he swept a glance over his deserted shop. “I do have them, regardless of how it looks today. So, Prowl. How’re you liking our little corner of the Earth so far?”
“It’s a pleasant location. I’m finding it quite an experience.”
“Hm? This dull place? You’re just being polite, are you?”
“I haven’t had the opportunity to travel much, so it’s possible my perceptions are a little biased. But I do like it here. The people I’ve met so far have been very welcoming.”
“Wow. Jazz, you have to make him get out more.”
The two brothers made small talk as Jazz and Prowl sorted through the boxes, verifying their contents until suddenly, Ricky cut himself off mid-word, then whirled on a startled Jazz with an astonished expression.
“Show him the sights? He’s practically a sight himself! How’d you find one this complex?” The man was staring openly at Prowl now, and the tactical AI found himself edging back a little more. Jazz blinked, then stepped in front of the android protectively.
“Oi, where are your manners? Mom definitely taught you better than that. And if you forgot, I can still kick your ass ‘til you remember them.”
“But a real android! Sapient! Self aware! I thought they weren’t possible!”
“Ricky.”
“Right. Sorry, sorry. That was rude. I shouldn’t be acting like a fanboy at a convention. My apologies. But honestly, AI programming like yours is like… the Holy Grail or something.”
“It’s alright. But how did you guess?” Prowl was understandably concerned. After all, he needed to be able to pass for a human, and Ricky had found him out far too quickly.
“It’s mostly small things, pretty unnoticeable actually, but it gives you this weird… vibe. You breathe too slow for human. You read too fast. And you don’t blink as often as most people do. Your skin’s too perfect and you have no stubble at this hour of the day. No guy is that obsessive about his grooming. Face structure’s too symmetrical.” Ricky rattled off, then smirked as he ran an appreciative gaze over the android. “And your body, whoa. Gives ‘built to perfection’ a whole different meaning.”
Jazz rolled his eyes and cuffed his brother lightly on the head. “Quit perving over my colleague, Rick’. Anyway, we’re about done here. Cash’s in your account, as usual.”
“Yeah yeah. So, Prowl, was it? You a desktop or laptop kinda guy? Got any preferences in peripherals? I’m sure I could interest you in something.” Ricky queried, grinning like a used car salesman as a blush curiously tinted his elder sibling’s cheeks.
“Aaaaand we’ll just be going now. Nice seeing you, brat. Expect the next visit to not be for a fragging long while. Goodbye!” The hacker called out as he made for the doors, boxes under one arm, dragging a chuckling Prowl along by the wrist to the sound of his brother’s cheeky yell.
“Jazz likes handhelds! In case you plan on getting something for his birthday! It’s coming up soon!”
= = =
Once they were back in the car, Jazz groaned and thumped his forehead on the steering wheel. “Sorry ‘bout all that. Ricky always did have a mouth on him.”
The AI inclined his head to one side, smiling at the man. “Like I said. It’s alright. And now I have information that can be used to improve my simulation routines.”
The hacker sighed, starting the car. The rest of the journey was spent in silence, but once they got back to the base, Prowl spoke, as if in afterthought. “You know, your brother is a little behind the times.”
“Huh?” Jazz blinked at him, and the android’s smile widened a little.
“The latest models don’t have to be desktops or laptops. Everything the user would require, from data analysis to… peripheral connection ports, can be internally based.” Prowl gestured at himself. “Extreme case in point, exhibit ‘A’. Though I suppose most would still prefer some form of… physical interface. For the familiarity of it.”
The visored man stared, then shook his head as if to clear it before speaking.
“Ricky is a civvy. Mostly. You… He’s not supposed to even hear about anything that advanced for years yet.”
“How unfortunate for him. You, on the other hand, are not a civilian.” The android stepped out of the vehicle, boxes in his arms, walking towards the building as Jazz hurried to catch up.
“If I interpreted that right, then my next question would be: ‘Is my brain going to fry?’ ”
“Only in the good way.”
“Well then. Damn my curiosity.”
'Verse: AU Transformers, possible movie'verse combined with G1.
Characters: Prowl. Jazz. Guess who ;3
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: TF cussing.
“Where are we going?”
“To get some computer parts.”
“… The place you said I didn’t want to know about?”
“Heh, not this time. This one’s a regular supply run, and the shop’s all brightly lit, with real counters and carpeting even. Promise.”
“Can’t you get what you need through the group’s regular supply channels?”
“It’s a small order, and they’re common enough parts that it’s quicker for me to skip the unnecessary middlemen and just get them at this particular shop. Besides…” The visored man grinned at his android companion. “I’m due for a visit with my brother.”
= = =
“Here we are, Ricky O’Shea’s PC-porium.”
“… You’re Irish?” Prowl’s disbelieving look had the hacker shaking his head and shrugging.
“Nah. The cocky glitch just didn’t want to give up his ‘leet’ alias completely, so he modified it into that. Brat. C’mon, it’s the back door for us; he keeps the shop closed whenever I drop by.”
The delivery entrance opened without an audible sound, and from behind a wall of monitors a man stuck his head out, then motioned to the nearest counter with a grin. Jazz sauntered over, the brunet a step or two behind him, as the shopkeeper ducked through another door and returned with several medium sized boxes.
“So, who’s the new guy?”
A second message pinged off the hacker’s personal comm. before he could say anything.
//Yes, I know you can’t always tell me names, but you have those call signs for a reason, ‘Jazz’.//
Jazz shrugged nonchalantly at his brother, smiling easily. “This is Prowl. A friend from work, new in town, thought I’d show him the sights. Prowl, this is my kid brother. We call him Ricky, after his store, so as to not confuse the other customers.”
Ricky’s grin was identical to his sibling’s as he swept a glance over his deserted shop. “I do have them, regardless of how it looks today. So, Prowl. How’re you liking our little corner of the Earth so far?”
“It’s a pleasant location. I’m finding it quite an experience.”
“Hm? This dull place? You’re just being polite, are you?”
“I haven’t had the opportunity to travel much, so it’s possible my perceptions are a little biased. But I do like it here. The people I’ve met so far have been very welcoming.”
“Wow. Jazz, you have to make him get out more.”
The two brothers made small talk as Jazz and Prowl sorted through the boxes, verifying their contents until suddenly, Ricky cut himself off mid-word, then whirled on a startled Jazz with an astonished expression.
“Show him the sights? He’s practically a sight himself! How’d you find one this complex?” The man was staring openly at Prowl now, and the tactical AI found himself edging back a little more. Jazz blinked, then stepped in front of the android protectively.
“Oi, where are your manners? Mom definitely taught you better than that. And if you forgot, I can still kick your ass ‘til you remember them.”
“But a real android! Sapient! Self aware! I thought they weren’t possible!”
“Ricky.”
“Right. Sorry, sorry. That was rude. I shouldn’t be acting like a fanboy at a convention. My apologies. But honestly, AI programming like yours is like… the Holy Grail or something.”
“It’s alright. But how did you guess?” Prowl was understandably concerned. After all, he needed to be able to pass for a human, and Ricky had found him out far too quickly.
“It’s mostly small things, pretty unnoticeable actually, but it gives you this weird… vibe. You breathe too slow for human. You read too fast. And you don’t blink as often as most people do. Your skin’s too perfect and you have no stubble at this hour of the day. No guy is that obsessive about his grooming. Face structure’s too symmetrical.” Ricky rattled off, then smirked as he ran an appreciative gaze over the android. “And your body, whoa. Gives ‘built to perfection’ a whole different meaning.”
Jazz rolled his eyes and cuffed his brother lightly on the head. “Quit perving over my colleague, Rick’. Anyway, we’re about done here. Cash’s in your account, as usual.”
“Yeah yeah. So, Prowl, was it? You a desktop or laptop kinda guy? Got any preferences in peripherals? I’m sure I could interest you in something.” Ricky queried, grinning like a used car salesman as a blush curiously tinted his elder sibling’s cheeks.
“Aaaaand we’ll just be going now. Nice seeing you, brat. Expect the next visit to not be for a fragging long while. Goodbye!” The hacker called out as he made for the doors, boxes under one arm, dragging a chuckling Prowl along by the wrist to the sound of his brother’s cheeky yell.
“Jazz likes handhelds! In case you plan on getting something for his birthday! It’s coming up soon!”
= = =
Once they were back in the car, Jazz groaned and thumped his forehead on the steering wheel. “Sorry ‘bout all that. Ricky always did have a mouth on him.”
The AI inclined his head to one side, smiling at the man. “Like I said. It’s alright. And now I have information that can be used to improve my simulation routines.”
The hacker sighed, starting the car. The rest of the journey was spent in silence, but once they got back to the base, Prowl spoke, as if in afterthought. “You know, your brother is a little behind the times.”
“Huh?” Jazz blinked at him, and the android’s smile widened a little.
“The latest models don’t have to be desktops or laptops. Everything the user would require, from data analysis to… peripheral connection ports, can be internally based.” Prowl gestured at himself. “Extreme case in point, exhibit ‘A’. Though I suppose most would still prefer some form of… physical interface. For the familiarity of it.”
The visored man stared, then shook his head as if to clear it before speaking.
“Ricky is a civvy. Mostly. You… He’s not supposed to even hear about anything that advanced for years yet.”
“How unfortunate for him. You, on the other hand, are not a civilian.” The android stepped out of the vehicle, boxes in his arms, walking towards the building as Jazz hurried to catch up.
“If I interpreted that right, then my next question would be: ‘Is my brain going to fry?’ ”
“Only in the good way.”
“Well then. Damn my curiosity.”
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2010-11-01 09:11 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-11-02 01:36 am (UTC)Hmm.... now the important question is, does he have a brother? ;p