| abstract
| - Shores of the Nile River This is a lush, green fertile area along the riverbank of the Nile, one of the largest rivers on Earth. The air is stifling hot, humid, and buzzing with all kinds of insects. Murky green, the river's water is nearly opaque with the rich silt on which the agriculture of the region depends, and it is impossible to tell what lies beneath the surface. The broad expanse of the river is calm here, flowing more quickly to the south where the massive Aswan Dam's generators are churned by the river's motion. Locals still use the river as a means of transportation, many poling their boats northward towards Cairo. The hardest part of arranging meetings like this was coming up with a feasible means of getting your counterpart there without raising suspicions from both sides. And thus one finds themselves in Egypt, not far from its famous river. Because 'Egypt's heavily dependent agricultural economy still recovering from The Longest Night' was the best excuse he could provide for his intended contact. For Swindle himself, it wasn't relatively far from the Middle East, and he was able to claim he was picking up one last load of oil from his dealings in Carbombya. Then slip away while the labor was doing their work, taking his time to fly to Egypt and then hit the sand dunes, cruising towards the meeting spot. Good thing his alternate mode is a classic off-roader. Finding an excuse to come out to a place like this wasn't so difficult for the Autobot scientist. Why, the universe so rife with new things just -waiting- to be discovered, even though Cybertronians had been occupying Earth for quite some time already. Well, it wasn't -really- that long compared to the duration of their existence as a species, though. Nevertheless, Perceptor could be found sitting in his alt mode near the river, with his scope trained on the water or something in the water. He had taken care to appropriately modify the patrol patterns of any spy satellites in orbit that might be poised in the right position to get any evidence or footage of this meeting. Now perhaps before, he wouldn't have gone so far as to deal with a mech like Swindle, but since his first plan had actually turned out for the most part exactly the way he had hoped without anyone suspecting him (at least as far as he knows), he's acquired a new 'boldness' if you would. Yes, it would be safe to say that his confidence in the effectiveness of these schemes has grown. Can't forget the fact that he'd successfully developed a countermeasure to Cross' dinistegrator rounds, as well, without too much trial and error. Perceptor picks up on Swindle's energy signature as he hears him approaching. He'd predicted the Combaticon wouldn't be able to resist an opportunity like this. A voice emanates from the giant microscope, "Good evening, Swindle." A good shyster should probably be cautious, but Swindle drives right up to the riverbank. Not to say that he isn't cautious, but Swindle was not one to hold back because of it. Bigger risks reaped bigger rewards. That and if this was a trap, why would Perceptor go through all the trouble? "I see you've found something to entertain yourself while waiting, Perceptor." The Jeep pulled to a stop then lurched upward as he transformed, notibly without his arm-cannon equipped. Business meeting, after all. "Not often I get a chance to converse with one of the Autobot's brightest processors." Then steepled his fingertips in front of that charmingly sly grin he usually bore. "I'm certain you've got reasons that will make this... worthwhile." The jeep flips back and up, revealing a lean mean black market machine. The scope suddenly begins to shift as Perceptor transforms and stands to his foot servos, then sits down on a large boulder nearby. "And it is not often I have the chance to speak civilly with one of your kind. The prospect rather fascinates me." he says, rubbing his chin briefly. "I appreciate the fact that you have chosen to oblige me." The scientist nods, then gets right down to business. "Now, I am certain you are aware of the event that occurred near the human settlement of Muskrat Falls, yes?" Swindle's optics dart to one side and the other for a moment. "... I may or may not have been involved locally in that endeavour." Parts his hands to hold them up in defense. "Rest assured I only pursued emptying their armory!" And then selling the findings off to his underworld contracts. "No humans fleeing the scene were harmed." Pause. "And I only put an AP explosive through Encore's bulkhead because he insulted my own possibly questionable brewing enterprises." Perceptor nods slowly and thoughtfully. "Ah, interesting. Don't fret, I have not come to berate you for following orders or behaving in a typical fashion during the attack. But do you know whether that assault was the only Decepticon incursion upon the base or not?" Well, actually, he had hidden drones in the area to keep watch for Decepticon activity, so he did know that the full assault had only been the endgame. But he was curious as to whether Decepticon CoC had kept it a secret among their ranks or not. Swindle folds his hands behind his back thoughtfully. Likely considering just how much he should say in times like this. "With how often Laserbeak or Ravage have infiltrated -your- operational centers, do you really need to ask?" It's not a -direct- answer... but he's got a point, doesn't he now? He raises a hand to motion the scientist a bit closer and lowers his voice. Moreso out of habit than a necessity out here. "I can't reveal specific details, but both the assault and the decision to utilize Trypticon were made on the basis of previous intel." Perceptor leans in closer when he is beckoned, but frowns a bit. This wasn't anything beyond what he already knew. But he brushes it off and draws a datapad from his subspace, taking not of it anyway. "I suspected as much. You say you cannot give any further details, but I doubt that is truly the case unless you are -actually- not privy to the information." he pauses, scrolling through something on the datapad. "Maybe, maybe not." But Swindle is Swindle, waggling a finger at Perceptor with the snakeoil smile never leaving his features. "But details don't come for free, if you get my drift." Then lowers the hand to put it to his chest. "I am, after all, a business mech first and foremost. And I can't throw that aside, even if General Cross is a potential shared enemy. Oh, he may be playing nice with the Autobots now, but trust me, I know the type. As soon as he gets the chance." Instead of finishing that in words, he merely flares up both hands, mimicing an explosion. Perceptor sighs. "Yes, in that respect I am in agreement with you." he says, optics still turned toward the datapad. But he looks up after a moment. "Well then, what would comprise an appropriate payment in exchange for the intel?" He certainly had a variety of things he could offer... Swindle returns his hands to that steepled poise, resting against his chin. "The better question my friend, is what do you have to offer? You're a smart Autobot, you wouldn't go through so much trouble to make arrangments for this little meeting without having something in mind already..." It was true, he did already have a few things in mind. "Well, I could offer you information in return, or perhaps an upgrade to one of your weapons..." Perceptor pauses a moment, considering something. "There is one thing. I presume that you know how Shockwave had originally come to be informed of Muskrat Falls, yes? But you are not yet aware of -who- provided the information." He again pauses. "Or, perhaps you are already aware of it." Swindle has to stifle a bit of a snicker at the 'upgrade to one of your weapons'. That was so obviously padding the conversation considering whom he was talking to. Fortunately that wasn't the real offer, or he might of actually laughed out loud. Instead the continuation gets an optic ridge raised. Getting the dibs on who's telling who, now -that- could be useful. "You've got my interests piqued now..." Perceptor folds his arms, smirking a little. Heh. He'd figured that would get the Combaticon's interest. "I can confirm with you who sent the transmission, as well as how the information was obtained, if you will provide me with the intel your agents procured from Muskrat Falls." Swindle considers for several seemingly long moments. Then remembers who it was that did post the known reports. Pfff. Wannabe, that one. Just makes him smirk all the more at the thought. "I believe we can work with that arrangement." Reachs over to slap Perceptor on the side of the arm. "Would of never taken you for the wheeling and dealing type, lab jockey." And perhaps that was the precise reason why no one had suspected anything--yet. It was an advantage he knew would only last for a limited amount of time. He shrugs at Swindle's comment. "I would not say that I am, but my concerns regarding Cross' new agendas for the EDC have taken precedence." he sighs unhappily. "And as far as I'm concerned, his the greater of two evils. Sure, you're all proverbial thorns in oursides, but Cross is willing to play by -our- rules. Which is to say -- break the rules. Which as admirable as it would be to see a human willing to stoop to our level, it's what makes him a threat to -all- of us -and- his own kind." Playing emotions? Maybe a little. Because that's what Swindle does. "So what do you have for me, my good fellow?" "Very well, I will tell you the one responsible for the information planted regarding the EDC base." Perceptor puts the datapad down on the rock he's sitting on. "After learning of Cross' position in the EDC and his apparent agendas as well as the experiment he conducted upon Motormaster, I was naturally quite disturbed. My concerns were further agitated when I spoke with the human for the first time...he is of the belief that we Cybertronians are not sapient beings. That we are merely machines and should be treated as such. I immediately came to the conclusion that he should not be trusted with technology that is beyond his understanding. Even beyond human understanding. We must take into account the fact that a majority of all organic civilizations who were free of alien influence had not advanced technologically to a point anywhere near what the humans have now, as you saw in my earlier presentation at the United Nations assembly. Humans such as Cross..." He shakes his head, not quite finishing that thought. "Thus, I sought out and found intel regarding the explosive being constructed at Muskrat Falls, and planted the corresponding information within Shockwave's private network." ... So the scientist himself did it. That's a bit of a twist, even after the lengths he went through to contact Swindle for this little meeting. Though after all that explaination, it's not hard to sum up just why. "Because you knew that we, unlike your more peaceful fellows, would actually act upon it? Not bad, not bad at all." Alas not really anything he can use right now, but still useful information. Folding his hands behind his back again, Swindle turned and took a few steps away. "So you knew about the potential 'citybusters'. And I'm certain you got a chance to study the damages the 'cybercidic' weaponry has done. Or not done, in some cases." After that he pauses, glancing over his shoulder first. "If you have any Autobots that were made on Earth other than the Dinobots, you're going to want to keep them close at hand." That's when he turns and walks back towards the scientist. "Intel recovered from that infiltration confirms what I wager you mare partially know, that Grimlock was unaffected due to his construction by Wheeljack and Ratchet on Earth." He holds up one hand to prevent a potential objection. "But then you might ask yourself, why was Motormaster, whom was originally built from an earthen semi, affected. To some extent, it's because the Stunticons have, over the years, been repaired and modified with Cybertronian hardware to keep on the cutting edge. But that's not all of it. Think, for a moment... what is different in the creation of the Dinobots, and the Stunticons. Their bodies both built on Earth, but how were the Stunticons given life?" Then puts a palm to his chest. "Or even us Combaticons. Our current chassis were built from earthly vehicles, but our 'life', our cores and personality components, came from our original Cybertronian bodies." He lowers his hand back to refold behind his back, giving that a few processing cycles to sink in. "Yes, the material construction plays a big part in it... But so does the systems it's placed upon." Technically he was mixing what was confirmed in the intel and what's come of Decepticon research, but no one else was going to know the difference now were they? The scientist nods and listens the entire time Swindle is talking, even getting up to pace back and forth a few times. But by the time he's finished, Perceptor has once again sat down on the rock. He picks up the datapad again, taking note of every detail. "Hmmm....interesting. I had observed the ineffectiveness of the weapon against Trypticon, and I had speculated that it may have been associated with the use of Earth-derived resources in the upgrades that have been implemented since our arrival upon this planet." So it would follow from that, he continues in his own mind, that Metroplex as well should be impervious to the attack. After a few moments, he looks back up at Swindle. "Yes, I knew Shockwave would not ignore it. And of course, despite Cross' questionable agendas, the EDC is still a valuable ally. I had to act without giving them any grounds upon which to take hostile action or accuse us of betrayal..." He trails off, looking as if he is considering giving him more, but hasn't decided yet. Swindle holds his hands up. "Rest assured, I have no interest in trying to farther divide your little 'friendship' more than Cross already is doing himself. Some of my best business comes from your operations being all buddy buddy for the good of Earth and Beyond. You have no idea how much I've potentially made just from selling the arms that were left behind in the evacuation. But you didn't hear that from me." Not like it's unexpected anyways. "Never let it be said that Autobots and Decepticons can't collaberate on a conjoint threat." Swindle makes a 'finger gun' pointed at the scientist. "But don't expect us to stop trying to shoot you on normal basis, there is still a war going on after all." With all that he turns and starts to walk away again. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to said business dealings. There are.. bigger oppritunities over the horizons" A swift transformation and he's already driving off again.
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