thisavrou_log | All the World In Front of Me

Entry tags:

All the World In Front of Me

Who: Cayde-6 and you!
When: Now. Now's a good time as any, sure. Let's say...a day in after his arrival.
Where: Kauto-1
What: New city, new planet, new resident. A Hunter goes exploring.
Warnings: N/A

     "I think...I'm still trying to process all of this."

     This admission finally came after aimlessly walking down the streets flanked by colorful buildings that seemed straight out of a past all but forgotten. It was so strange. So foreign, but at the same time it wasn't, and that was what bothered him- not that the Exo was going to admit it.

     For all that he had absolutely no idea where he was going, Cayde-6 walked with purpose, and even as he stopped to survey his current surroundings, it was with a sense that he was regarding something he was familiar with. It was a familiarity from another time, from pictures and another life. He wasn't quite sure how to feel about it.

     There he stood, garbed in well worn clothes and light armor that had seen better days but still looked sturdy. Even the rugged hood over his head with its sewing coming apart at some of the seams and the tattered ends of the cloak it was connected to that hung over his back suggested character. If the armor wasn't enough, then the holster at his side and the knife hung at his belt were enough to suggest that he was no casual everyday citizen. ...and then there was the fact that his facial features didn't exactly define him as human, or potentially even organic.

     By his side floated an almost star-shaped device, colored red and off-white with a blue center-lens. It appeared to look around, equally surveying the buildings and those who dwelt in the area. When it spoke- yes, it spoke!- its central lens brightened with each word. "It's a lot to process, I think. This place can't be any smaller nor larger than any other planets we've been to, but it's teeming with life!"

     "Yeah," Cayde agreed, nodding almost dismissively as he turned and began to walk again. "That's what's hard to process. Atmosphere's a lot different than at the City." He didn't particularly mean that in a good way. There'd been a certain amount of tension he'd detected from the get-go. What was that all about?

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"Coming through!"

Okay, probably not the best introduction to the place. But oh well. There are bigger problems afoot. Namely, a rogue clownbee. Shepard might not be around, but he'd made a promise to her to "be good". He figured it entailed squashing a few bugs.

Charging through the streets of region one? Probably didn't tick the same box as "squash dangerous clown-shaped insects".

He's fast and agile, though, so when the figure in the cloak appears, he's going to leap over them. All fifteen feet of red noodle robot.

     "Something...big is approaching..."

     "How big..?" Cayde asks, glancing at his Ghost, although he soon corrects the direction he faces as the sound of the unidentified 'big' thing becomes clear. His hand's already on his gun, and in the next beat he's got it drawn out of habit, but he's held off on firing. Most things that want to kill you don't usually shout a warning of any kind- but it never hurts to be prepared.

     Both he and the Ghost stare as the red bot goes leaping overhead with all the ease of a Guardian. "Yeah, that's definitely not Vex," Cayde comments.

Ease, yes. Agility, yes. Grace? Not when the clownbee goes flying at his face. Which it does. Immediately after he lands on the other side of the stranger. Sideswipe yelps, ducking reflexively.

Sorry, new guy, there's a horrific bee clown zooming around loose now. All because of teenage robot reaction times.

     Vex move with more precision, but that's probably because they function off more of a hive mind. Also, they aren't very conversational. They just want to slaughter you.

     That's not to say that one might not get accidentally slaughtered just by standing around with a klutzy robot flailing about. Cayde's not about to test just how durable his Exo body is against a fifteen foot, however many ton thing like Sideswipe. Both he and his Ghost dodge in the opposite direction, deciding it's probably a good idea to get some space between the big red guy.

     Also, Cayde has no idea what a bee clown or clownbee is but it looks like something to shoot. Maybe? Wait, are there rules about shooting things in this funky place? He pointedly ignores the flat look his Ghost is giving him right now, because really, who wants to read boring guidelines? .... Anyway, he had a lot to digest already!

     "Hey! I can't tell if you're trying to be helpful or what!" he shouts at the red bot. "-what is that thing?!" He's used to a lot more horrifying things that readily identify themselves as targets. For all he knows, Sideswipe might just be playing with some creepy pet...thing.

"Clownbee! Bad news, man!"

Hopefully that's enough information. Because now he's swinging his sword around trying to swat it out of the sky. Clearly, this is not something he wants around. This guy -- he doesn't know who it is. But if they can help at all?

Good news! Still, though, once that bee starts zooming toward the new guy, Sideswipe is kicking himself to his feet. And trying to plant himself in front of the guy, or dance around him, in an effort to try and protect him.

"You should probably run away!"

     "Oh. Well yeah. Sure. That explains everything." No, no it doesn't, but at least one thing becomes clear, especially when the robot begins to swing around a sword- an actual, honest-to-goodness sword. Wow, who uses those anymore? Except Hive and the Iron Lords, maybe...

     Cayde still has his gun in hand, watching as the bee thing makes right for him. He may not have quite the capacity to grin, but there's something in the way his jaw parts, and the slight narrowing of his optics to suggest as much.

     "Sorry, don't much feel like running. I just got here!" He blinks as Sideswipe moves in his way, and in response maneuvers to get around the dancing bot so he can find a clear shot. Twirling his hand cannon once in hand, the Exo brings it up to unload several energy shots at the bee-thing, his other hand bouncing off the hammer between each shot without missing a beat.

"Oh, sorry! We clearly have so much time to sit and talk about this!"

There's way, way too much sarcasm in those words for someone who should be focused on fighting a bee-shaped clown. Or clown-shaped bee. Either way. It's creepy. And needs to be squashed.

But seriously, what's this guy doing? He's about to question it, but there's suddenly gunfire, and he gets the idea pretty quickly. Sidestepping the little guy to give him room to shoot.

     There's only one response to such sarcasm, and that's clearly more sarcasm. "Well who says we have to sit and talk! You're doing a fine job anyway- talking, that is."

     Cayde isn't trying to be mean. He actually sounds like he's teasing the bigger robot, because right now his mood's picked up considerably. Being pulled into some new world by some mystery device? Yeah, okay, that's weird and not at all planned but what can you do? And then here comes the big red guy that may as well be Santa Claus for all that he's practically brought Christmas early, even if it is in the form of...well, a freakish creature that probably shouldn't exist anywhere at all. And okay, so that might be stretching it, but the Exo hasn't been out in the field for years, and this here's his first chance to shoot something in a long while.

     And boy, does it feel good. True, it might be a bit overkill for whatever this clowny-bee thing is, and Cayde won't waste more than he needs of what rounds his hand cannon can hold. Still, if it isn't enough to take it down, well, he'll let Sideswipe finish things granted the bot's not too busy staring.

"I'm the bot with the mouth!"

Hey, it's okay. He can handle teasing. As long as it's clearly teasing, which, in his mind this is. So this is fine, this is banter, and it actually sort of feels like it's helping.

And after Shepard, he's a little used to dodging bullets. So, at least now he knows to move to one side and stay there. In order to let the other person have a clear shot. The clownbee buzzes angrily. Repeatedly, as the gun takes off its wings, and sends it crashing to the ground.

Without ceremony, Sideswipe jams his foot down on the creature. Several times. Like a human would step on a particularly big and awful insect. Crunch.

Crunch crunch splat.

     "So you are."

     The Exo lowers his gun as the bot goes to town, stomping away at the thing, whatever's left of it. Slowly exchanging a look and a shrug with his Ghost, Cayde gives his gun another twirl before slapping it back into its holster.

     "Well, that wasn't a swarm of Fallen or a horder of Thralls, but I guess it was enough to ease the itch of the ol' trigger finger." Resting his hands on his hips, he looks up at the self-proclaimed 'bot with a mouth.' "...nice.
So, you uh, got something against that thing or is there something more I needa know about the local wildlife?"

Squish squish squish.

Only when he's sure it's good and dead does he stop, and sling his sword back onto his back. Surveying the little pile of gross bits that was once the clownbee. A job well done. If he does say so himself.

Then he turns back to the new guy.

"Eh, kinda. They're mostly gone? But like, some of 'em stuck around. They're really, really nasty man. So if you see one, you should probably squish it."

     The plating that makes up his brow is partially hidden under the one that encases his forehead, but one can still see it lift slightly enough to convey its effect properly. "Huh. Well, I don't think I'd be able to... squish it as effectively as you can, but I'll keep an eye out," he says, nodding as he studies the smear on the ground.

     "Now, what do I call you, aside from thorough? You from here, or you get pulled in by that Regress thing-"

     "Ingress," corrects the Ghost.

     "-yeah, that," Cayde continues.

"Well I mean, you could shoot it, I guess. Shepard does that."

He shrugs his shoulders. But then hunkers down, so he can have this conversation better. He's used to this, at least. To having conversations with people a lot smaller than he is.

He even holds out a hand to shake. Like he's really the same size here.

"Sideswipe! Who're you, dude? Nice biolights." The glowing lights, in other words.

"My kind of option," the Exo seems to grin. He looks up at the other, as even folded over, the bot's still got some height over him. Eyeing the oversized hand that's extended towards him, he shrugs right back and brings out his own to shake a finger or something.

"Name's Cayde-6. Just Cayde's fine, though. Oh, and this is my Ghost," he says, nodding towards the hovering light at his side. It bobs. "Nice to meet you, Sideswipe."

He's also used to shaking hands (or fingers) like this. Sideswipe doesn't even blink when the smaller 'bot -- at least he thinks this guy is a bot -- shakes a finger. Normal, far as he's concerned.

"A... ghost? Whoa, is it haunting you? That's so cool."

No, Sideswipe, not that kind of ghost.

     Admittedly this is a little strange even for Cayde, but not too far a stretch. It's almost welcome for a bot to be chatting back with him. Most of the bots back at the City tended to just mindlessly do chores...but then that's what they were programmed for.

     "Well..." Cayde starts with a laugh, just as his Ghost says, "-what?"

     "Yes and no. Goes wherever I do. Actually I owe it to this little guy for even being alive again. ...which just opens up a whole 'nother can of worms, but given it looks like we're pretty far from Earth, or even our known solar system, that's probably unavoidable."

He nods. And then just... plunks himself down into a seated position, legs crossed, elbows propped up on his knees. Chin in his hands. There's a story here, right? And this guy's pretty cool.

He doesn't mind sitting and listening.

"So wait, he made you alive and stuff? So he's like... your spark? Kinda? Except floating?"

     Cayde takes a step back as Sideswipe abruptly sits his shiny metal rear down. Oh, well then. Story time it is.

     "I'm assuming you don't mean just any shiny, sometimes flammable flash of light when you say 'spark.'"

     The Ghost hovers closer to the red bot that sits there, circling him curiously. Cayde folds his arms, resuming his explanation. "I guess in a way that's not too far off. Let's see. How to summarize this and still make sense..."

"Nah, man I mean like. What makes you... you. And not the guy down the block. Like -- the reason you're alive and stuff."

He really should have someone else try to explain this. But, seeing as he's the only Autobot here anymore... that's probably not possible.

He should also probably not try to turn around and watch the ghost thing. But oh well. He's still Sideswipe.

     "Oh! So like a soul. Hm. Well, we're linked now, anyway, but I'm myself, and Ghost, well, it's part of something else."

     The Ghost comes around to Sideswipe's face, its blue lens seeming to narrow in a squint before it turns and floats back to Cayde's side. "I suppose scanning him would be rude..."

     "I'm pretty sure he'd have objections," Cayde agrees. "Anyway. Long story short, Earth made friends with this thing called the Traveler, which helped boost our technological know-how and enabled us to travel all over our solar system. Then this thing called the Darkness came and engulfed us all, been searching for the Traveler.

     "The Traveler protected what it could of humanity, but it took a lot out of it. As a last resort, it sent out bits of its Light, made these little guys," he says, reaching out to absently pat the hovering Ghost. "And they went looking around all over space for whoever was... I dunno, what would you call it, compatible?" He glances at the Ghost, who bobs a nod at that before shrugging and looking back at Sideswipe. "Brought us back to life as Guardians. And now we shoot stuff and protect what we can. Well, most of us anyway. Some of us get stuck in the Tower, monitoring all the fun and making sure new Guardians don't go getting themselves killed."

     The Ghost's spokes twitch a little as it hovers. "If they get killed, at least their Ghosts can revive them. Mind, it's not pleasant, but so long as we, their Ghosts, survive, they will survive." Pause. "...but we aren't invincible either."

Pidge made it a habit to leave Lion House in search of machine parts that could be used in her many self-assigned projects. She did it at least once every day, and more recently she'd built herself a scanner to help her cover ground more efficiently. It at least helped keep her search focused; she could set it to detect different kinds of metals, machinery that was still at least partially functional, electric currents... Whatever Pidge needed, finding it was easier than it was when they'd first started to settle into this new planet.

And she liked to think she was familiar enough now with the different kinds of life-forms that had shown up that she was able to filter them out, too; people like the Cybertronians. So when her scanner had led her to someone who was... neither entirely organic or entirely machine, Pidge simply stopped in her tracks right in front of them and stared. And tilted her head, eyes wide, both eyebrows raised in a mix of mild surprise and wonder.

And then, ever so slowly... It's like stars are shining in her eyes, bright with excitement.

"Whoa...!"

Aliens were getting more and more interesting all the time.

     Aliens? Ho boy, was she in for a shocker.

     "...I think we have company..." the Ghost murmured, its blue eye-like lens brightening just slightly as it turned away from Cayde to regard the small figure that had come down the street. The Exo glanced over as well, making something of a noise in amusement.

     "If only I got more of that back at the Tower. Might've made it more worthwhile, feel a little appreciated, you know? But no, all these new Guardians do is run around and jump on the table." He shook his head before shifting to fully face Pidge.

     "So, is that all you can say, or were you just overwhelmed by my magnificence?"

     "Really?"

     "Don't you go Zavala on me, Ghost."

Yes, Pidge's eyes were definitely getting wider and brighter with each passing second. The scanner in her hand disappeared into a pocket as she stepped closer, fingers clearly itching to touch and examine every facet of the figure's face. And then of course there was the floating device - Ghost? - that simply begged to be checked out.

"What are you?!" Her tone was one of amazement, clear by the expression in her face as she looked the other up and down. "What are Guardians? Where are you from? The AI on your drone is incredible, how does it work?!?"

     If fingers started reaching for his face Cayde would be officially creeped out. As it was, he could see plainly that the reaction from the little human was definitely not your normal reaction. Then again, who knew where this one came from.

     At Pidge's sudden exclamation, he took a step back, the Ghost matching him for distance, probably because it felt safer away from the excitable human. "Hey, hey, calm down! Ease off on the sugar, huh? I just got here, all right?" Shaking his head, Cayde set his fists at his hips. "All right, first off- that's rude, I got a name, and it's Cayde-6. But I guess, judging from your ...enthusiasm, you don't know what an Exo is.

     "Second, Guardians...well it's what it is. We guard. Um. I'll come back to that, it gets complicated. What was- oh yeah. Where'm I from? That's easy. I'm from Earth. And four-"

     "I am not a drone!" the Ghost huffed, coming around Cayde, almost seeming to glare a bit. Or pout. Either way, it was rather expressive with its twitching plates and angles for something with only a singular light.

Does Pidge have shame? Not about tech, she doesn't.

And some of those answers just make her more curious, and it's taking an awful lot of her self control to keep herself from bouncing on her heels in excitement. She doesn't seem to lose an iota of her enthusiasm either, eyes still wide with wonder.

"I've never heard of an Exo before. But you're from Earth? You must be from way further in the future than I am, since- Well, I've never seen anything like you before and I keep up on all the journals, trust me, so- What do you guard? Was Earth invaded? And-" Her eyes immediately turned to the expressive device hovering around Cayde, still just as bright-eyed as ever. "If he's not a drone, how does he work? What kind of maintenance routine do you go through?? Can I take a look?"

     If he stared hard enough, he could almost see her vibrating. What were they feeding kids these days?

     "What, you've never heard of the Traveler? Big...moonlike being or something that brought humans the technical advancement that gave birth to the Golden Age?" Cayde. Now you're just teasing her.

     "Well. Yeah, long story short, something followed the Traveler, threatened everything and brought about the Collapse. Now we're overrun by Fallen and Hive on Earth, so we make do, what's left of humanity anyway. ...er, sorry if this ends up being a major spoiler for you, kid."

     The Ghost purposely kept out of Pidge's immediate reach, watching her the way a caged bird might eye a hungry cat. "I'm a Ghost, a fragment of the Traveler's Light. And I maintain myself, thank you very much."

     Cayde chuckled. "He's just nervous because no one's shown such unhealthy interest in him before." Ignoring the glare from the Ghost, the Exo tilted his head as he studied the kid. "So, you got a name? From what you've said I guess you got pulled into alien paradise too."

"Scan? For what? I'm not sick!"

Because clearly scans are just medical-related. Clearly. He ends up turning in circles, to watch the Ghost. Keeping a critical optic on it. And yes, he has an objection.

And then belatedly realizes he's being told a story. So he swivels back around to face Cayde, paying attention again. It sounds like something out of a movie, honestly. So, really, his attention stays put.

"So... you guys are like... superheroes. And your little floaty friend there can bring you back to life?" A beat. "Dude! That's so cool!"

He literally missed the rest of the explanation there.

     "......" Cayde and the Ghost share a look, then both peer back at Sideswipe.

     "Yeeeah. Pretty much." The Exo's not going to bother trying to go over that again, and details aside, it seems the Cybertronian's got the gist of it. Sort of.

     "Okay, my turn. What...are you, exactly? I mean, I could let Ghost scan you since that's how he figures stuff out, but I figure that's impolite when we're dealing with another sentient." Cayde gestures vaguely with a hand before folding his arms as he cants his head at the Autobot. Beside him, the Ghost's angles rotate and twitch subtly, almost anxiously.

     "Well, he's not a Vex, but he's mechanical and obviously independent of mind. So of course I'm curious!"

~~Pure quintessence.~~

Pidge's eyes went even wider, even as she actually took that moment to settle and let this information get absorbed, nodding slowly as Cayde went on. Traveler. Fallen. Hive. 'What's left of humanity'... The future of Earth looked pretty grim, but at least it didn't sound like there was any threat of Galra oppression. Or maybe this was another universe entirely that didn't even have to worry about that. Clearly they had their own set of problems, after all.

The questions being sent back her way pull Pidge from those thoughts. There's a quick shake of her head as she offers both Cayde and Ghost a smile - not quite as excited and beaming as before, but a friendly enough smile anyway. "Sorry for bombarding you with so many questions. I've just never seen a life-form like you that wasn't a Cybertronian.

"I'm Pidge. And yeah, I kinda literally got pulled from Earth to an entirely different galaxy." She shrugged there, being careful to avoid saying anything about the war against the Galra. It felt like that was more something for Allura to tell other people about. "So I've seen a lot of really cool alien tech, but I've never heard of anything called a Traveler or seen any 'fragments of the Traveler's light.'"

     ~~That explains a lot~~

     At least Pidge didn't look like her head was about to explode with delight. Cayde took that as a good sign. Maybe his story sobered her up a little.

     "Under the circumstances, I guess questions can't be helped much." He smiled, holding out a hand to shake. "Good to meet you, Pidge. Are... When you say you were pulled from Earth t a different galaxy, do you mean before this, or..." Because wow, what luck.

     "It'd be pretty hard not to have heard about the Traveler and still be familiar with 'cool alien tech' if we were both from Earth. Furthest we ever reached on our own was Mars. After the Traveler, we've pretty much colonized or built some kind of facilities on nearly every known planet. Most of those places are in ruins now, overrun by Fallen, Hive, Cabal..." He shook his head.

Sideswipe, as someone who is used to looks, doesn't even seem fazed by them. He just grins widely, almost bouncing where he's sitting. Oh man -- superheroes. This is cool. Really cool.

He's got to introduce them to Shepard. If she comes back.

"What am I?" That grin definitely turns sly. "I'm the fastest thing on wheels, man. Autobot extraordinaire. Security king with Commander Shepard!"

Because that totally answers their questions. Totally.

     "Wheels?" Cayde cocks his head. "So those shoulder pads aren't just for show? Can't say I've ever heard of an Autobot... but I guess that's a given."

     The Ghost makes some sort of electronicky noise, which seems to serve as some kind of reminder as the Exo snap-points. "Oh! Right- security! That thing. Seems I got myself a job set up as security around here. Some casino gig. I'll...well, guess I'll hunt that down later unless you can point me in that direction. Not that I'm in any hurry to get there."

     Who's going to go report in to work right off the back when you just got here? Cayde's taking his time to soak things in.

     "Who's Commander Shepard? 'nother Autobot like you?"

"Dude, they're all real. One hundred percent."

He all but leaps to his feet, and takes a few steps back. Once he's at a decent distance, he transforms. It's fluid, and fast. In no time at all, there's a car sitting in the place he'd once stood.

"See?"

He flicks his mirrors at Cayde. Look, see? It's still him in there.

"Yeah, I dunno about any casino. But Shepard's like -- this super cool human lady and my boss."

     When something that big moves so suddenly, you can't help but back off. Cayde does so in short order, only stopping himself as Sideswipe is mindful enough to give himself space as well. And then...

     Well. What?

     "Wh...."

     Okay. It's the Exo's turn to get excited a bit. "Whoa!!" he shouts, tossing his hands up before setting them on his head. "Get a look at that! Bet you never saw a car from before the Golden Age," he tells the Ghost as he steps closer to Sideswipe. "Now I might be a little spoiled with Sparrows and jumpships, but I can still appreciate a classic."

     "You're right," the Ghost replies as it floats closer, circling the vehicle. "All the ones I've seen are rusted out."

     Cayde seems to be grinning as he peers into one of the sideview mirrors, moving to rest a hand on the top of the car. "And now I see what you mean by Auto-bot. So. Guess we'll have to find the casino ourselves, no big deal. You and Shepard handle general security or work somewhere specific?"

Okay, if a sportscar can preen, Sideswipe definitely does. He preens like a bird, rocking a bit on his wheels. His headlights even brighten up.

"Neat, huh? Scanned it when we got to Earth -- it was the best thing we could find. So, naturally? Had to have it."

He doesn't shy away from the hand on his roof. Or anything. The metal's a bit warm, like it's been in the sun for a while. Or like a computer that's been running for a few hours.

Like a living thing.

"Just wherever she needs me to go. Since I'm the tallest guy on the team."

     "When you got to Earth? But you're not from it." Since Sideswipe isn't objecting, Cayde runs his hand over the top and down along the edge of the windshield. When's the last time he'd seen a car? Had he owned one before? It's not a detail that comes up, nothing new triggered from his memories. Then again, he'd probably been too busy doing missions outside of Earth to worry about owning a car.

     Letting his hand fall back from the vehicle, he flashes his Ghost a faint smile. Just a little nostalgia. That's something he hadn't expected after ending up here.

     "Ah, I see. You get much trouble around here? Aside from those..." He trails off, gaze tracking towards the smear that remained of Sideswipe's last quarry.

"Nope. We kinda accidentally ended up there."

The roof of his alt-mode is no big deal. There's nothing sensitive there. If Cayde were doing something with his interior, or undercarriage, there might be something odd about the contact. As it is, he just sits there.

"Tripped and fell into a space bridge. Oops, our bad."

His engine revs briefly. Like he intends to run over the remains of the clownbee. "Sometimes, dude. But like, those things? Pretty new. Someone let 'em loose here and we get to clean up the mess."

"A space bridge? That like a transmat?" Cayde asks. He can recall a few instances where Guardians have 'oops, our bad'ed their way into places they probably shouldn't have been. ...and then there was the instance aboard the Dreadnaught that he'd helped with, but that had been on purpose. Mostly.

He can't help but grin at the run of that engine, and if Sideswipe did end up backing up and running his tires over that smear a few more times, he wouldn't be all that surprised. "Well that's always fun, cleaning up after someone else's mess," he comments dryly.

"Uh... maybe? If that makes you suddenly go poof! to another planet. Or something."

And, you know. left you stranded on said planet, when there wasn't a return bridge. Or a non-Decepticon Moose-made one. Because that had been a colossal mess all around.

Maybe at some point, they can go racing together. He'd like to have someone around to go speeding down the streets with.

"Oh yeah, man. The worst. Especially when it's gross bug clowns."

     "Well yeah. Basically. Transmats- matter transports are useful for that sort of thing. Pretty common back home. Although I can see the problem if there's no link back." That too could be a common problem, especially when you had forces to contend with.

     Cayde might not turn down a ride. Being restricted to staying around the city, he's not had many opportunities to race his Sparrow on the account of needing to be on-call for any emergencies that might come up at the Tower. And racing your Sparrow around crowded streets isn't nearly as fun as gunning it across empty landscape anyway.

     "And here I thought clowns were bad enough. Someone hadda go and combine them with bugs. That's a pretty sick mind, right there." He shakes his head. "You been here for very long, Sideswipe? How long have these guys been accidentally pulling people over here with no clue as to coordinates for how to send 'em back?"

~~Tohohoho~~

Pidge took the offered hand into her own, giving it a quick shake before withdrawing again. She even smiled a little again, shrugging slightly at his question. "Yeah, before this. It's been a pretty long time since I've... actually seen Earth, come to think of it."

The admission made her brows furrow slightly in thought, eyes darting off to one side. If Cayde's story hadn't sobered her enough, then that realization certainly finished the job. Still, she let it go for the moment - homesickness was something she'd rather feel on her own - and refocused on the here and now.

"Honestly, I'm not sure my friends and I were even still in the same galaxy as Earth. Once we broke atmosphere we went way past Pluto in a matter of seconds, and then went through a wormhole to a different corner of the universe." She frowned a little, head tilting slightly to one side. "Assuming you and I are even from the same universe, the Traveler might not even exist yet. Do you know anything about an alien race called Galra?"

     "That already sounds like you've gone farther than we've managed. Even before the Collapse, we were still contained within our solar system."

     Cayde glanced at his Ghost again, whose attention had drifted skywards, as though it could see the stars and space beyond. "I can't really remember when we found the Traveler. I think they found it when they first reached Mars. Changed everything from there."

     Perhaps he hadn't felt quite as homesick because he'd only just arrived, and Earth as he knew it wasn't exactly so warm and inviting. But it was home, and he did have duties to fulfill. If things couldn't be helped, he'd just make do with things here until those scientists with the Ingress figured out how to properly work the thing.

     "...can't say I've ever heard of Galra. Only the ones I've mentioned. What do these Galra look like? How's their tech?"

"Yep. It gets you stuck on lame organic planet central, and it's crawling with 'Cons and then you get roped into playing cop."

Okay, so that's a pretty specific example, but such are conversations with Sideswipe. Not even mentioning the times other bots suddenly showed up with space bridges, and threw everything into even more chaos.

"Dude, seriously. Like, they were from a pretty cool planet? But they were the biggest drawback ever." He'd shake his head too, but he's still transformed. Which means just irritably bouncing on his wheels instead.

"Uhhh... yeah, man, like a year? Human time. We were on a ship first, but it crashed and... here we are!" A beat. "I'm totally doing jazz hands. Invisibly."

     "Um. Excuse you but I come from 'lame organic planet central.' Except the organics have been cut down quite a bit, and I don't know what these 'cons' are but there's plenty else crawling about that has no business there."

     Cayde doesn't sound particularly upset about Sideswipe's offhanded example but he's already started to get a pretty good idea of the Autobot's personality. When the car begins to move about, the Exo takes a step back, and it takes a moment for him to figure out just what 'swipe's doing.

     Emitting a whistle, he stares a moment before exchanging glances with his Ghost. "A whole year? That...well usually years come and go, but that's a pretty long time to be stuck for an unplanned vacation." He falls silent, staring once again at the car. "...uh-huh. Sure you are."

"Okay, fine there's some good stuff there. Like the cars. And movies. Those are pretty great. Music's not bad either."

He'll admit there are a few things on the planet he's okay with. Humans, too. But that probably goes without saying by now. There's a laugh from the car. "Oh man, yeah, and that doesn't even go into the party planet. Dude, that was like, a whole other year."

A beat. Before the cat scoots backward, and ends up backflipping into Sideswipe's robot form, with a little "ta-daa" flourish.

"See? Jazz hands!"

     Cayde forces a laugh. "Not bad, he says. Ah...but I do miss a good movie." He shakes his head. Cars and movies and music are luxuries of a time long past. Earth tech, both high and low, had proven fairly resilient, at least, and with a bit of love and care, relics of the Golden Age and beyond could be and were restored, when found.

     "Party planet? Sounds like this place connects with some interesting worlds."

     Again he steps back as the car moves and then once again transforms, this time with actual jazz hands. The Exo can't help but laugh. "With additional points for style!"

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All the World In Front of Me

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