Airachnid eyed him with an unimpressed look on her face. "I tried that already," she said, crossing her arms. "Our gracious hosts don't seem to care much for what we have to say. Let me know when you're ready to listen to an actual escape plan."
Despite her words, she still watched Ultra Magnus and the door. It would certainly be convenient if he could gain their freedom through negotiation, but there were two problems with that idea: one, it wouldn't make sense for these organics to capture them only to let them out after a few words, and two, he would probably only negotiate his way out of here. She doubted that this Autobot would just let her, an ex-Decepticon, go free.
After several moments, the faint sound of footsteps came from outside the cell. A small section of the top half of the door slid open, revealing a scaly face.
When the window opened in the door Ultra Magnus leaned down so he would be closer to eye level with the guard. "My name is Ultra Magnus of the Autobots, I would request to speak with you-" The clanging sound of the metal panel sliding back into place cut him off. He stood up again, sighing stiffly. He had hoped to resolve this civilly and follow the galactic code for such matters, but if they're captors were unwilling to cooperate, it looked like he would have to stoop to more drastic measure. He looked back over his shoulder at his fellow captive.
"And what," he said slowly, "exactly is this plan of yours?"
Airachnid smirked. Though a part of her had hoped it would be that easy, most of her was glad his plan failed. Hers would be much more satisfying to enact – mostly for her, but, hey, that wasn't a problem.
"Simply put...we fight." There was definite enjoyment in her voice; she was looking forward to Ultra Magnus' reaction. Hopefully, though, he would see reason and agree to her plan. If not, she could push him to participate. She had blasters, and Autobots never reacted well to blasters. "Or – should I say – we pretend to fight, with as many possible indicators that we are fighting each other and not attempting to escape." She pointed at the door, indicating their captors. "Remember: the organics want us alive. They won't let us kill each other. When they open the door, we blast them and escape."
Ultra Magnus' eye narrowed as Airachnid explained her plan. While her plan was logically sound, he had no intention of giving her an edge in this situation, and her suggestion for false combat could easily put him at a disadvantage if he was holding back. Taking a criminal like her offline wouldn't give him any qualms, but it would be against the Autobot code if he didn't at least attempt to bring her in to face proper justice.
"You claimed you had been successful in convincing them you were offline previously, with minimal effort. Why do you think it would not work a second time?"
"Because they aren't that stupid," Airachnid huffed. Though she gained important information from the experience, she wasn't eager to recount the specifics of her mistakes. She had thought that she could leave it at what she said previously – just a bit of acting – but telling Ultra Magnus the full story now would help her more than not telling him would.
"When the guard saw that I was 'offline,' it called over more of its friends to check. I didn't hear the door close after they entered the cell, so I decided to take the opportunity to make my exit. I hadn't planned more than a simple experiment, and they were prepared for tricks and armed with the same weaponry they used when I first encountered them. You can imagine how it went. Still, I took out a couple of them before they subdued me." She paused to let the information sink in. "If we tried that again, I doubt they would even bother to make sure we were truly offline."
"That information is relevant to our current predicament, your omission has done nothing to convince me that this is a sound plan."
Unfortunately, he really didn't have enough information himself to come up with anything better. If they pretended to fight, they would already be armed, and they would be prepared for their captors to enter the cell. It really wasn't a terrible plan considering how little they actually knew.
"You should know, Decepticon, if you attempt to make this farce into a battle, I will not hesitate to see your spark exstinguished.
"Please," she scoffed, though she was glad he seemed to be agreeing to go along with her plan. "I have no intention of perishing on this planet, and I have no use for you if you are offline."
As long as Ultra Magnus had something to provide Airachnid – such as assistance in escaping – he was as safe as he could be. The moment they escaped, all bets would be off. Despite his Autobot nobility, Airachnid suspected that Ultra Magnus would try to arrest her at some point. It was that suspicion of betrayal that had kept her alive this long, so she was inclined to trust it. The key was to strike first.
"We should start by pretending to argue – loudly. It would seem odd if we began fighting without anything leading up to it."
Airachnid's response was less than reassuring, but considering the circumstances it would be imprudent to expect otherwise. Regardless of his personal preferences, this plan would have to succeed if he hoped to escape this predicament.
He began trying to come up with a suitable point to begin this false argument, but found himself unable to conceive anything sufficient. Acting had never been his strong suit, while it had it's place he found it rather unbecoming overall. As the seconds ticked by, his hesitation went from a short pause to a rather tense and awkward silence before he finally spoke up.
"Since you are the one who concocted of this plan, it would be more appropriate for you to begin."
Airachnid waited for Ultra Magnus to come up with something sufficient and convincing – it should be easy, considering how much he loved that morality thing everyone talked about – but it soon became evident that he was having a bit of trouble. After he spoke, she let out a heavy ex-vent and gave him an unimpressed look.
"Fine." Raising her voice so that any passing guards would be able to hear, she spat: "You and your precious Autobot Code! Your moral superiority and self-sacrificial tendencies make me want to retch!"
She thought herself a good actress, but she was unaccustomed to arguing. Most of the time, any altercations she had with others involved blasters, smugness, and/or torture. She hoped her comments would seem convincing to their captors. It was probably good if they weren't convincing to Ultra Magnus.
Despite the fact that playing on the Decepticon/Autobot conflict was rather redundant, Magnus' scowl deepened as Airachnid began with her blasphemous claim. He took a tense, sharp indrawn vent to keep from launching directly into a full on defense of the subject. While he certainly could argue the details of the Autobot code with the requisite vigor for their plan, he felt far too strongly about it to treat as nothing but a trite tool for escape.
He raised his voice as well, keeping a very disapproving eye on his fellow captive. "At least our soldiers understand the importance of discipline and respect, as opposed to you Decepticon anarchists. Nothing but criminals and deserters, and your commander is nothing but a lawless tyrant."
"Oh, please," Airachnid called out in her best exaggerated argument voice. "Your laws and rules do nothing but stifle those of us who prefer to do things creatively."
If they were going to fake argue, they might as well do it about something that didn't bore her to death. The Autobot code? Irrelevant. Megatron? Who cares. Autobot/Decepticon conflicts? So 3000 years ago. But attempting to irritate Ultra Magnus, known lawman, with jabs at the concept of rules? That she could get behind. Successfully irritating him would probably only help their act and subsequent escape attempt. It was a win-win situation.
"Creativity is hardly the word I would use to describe your atrocities. I know what you did to Backlash and Swivel." That last bit came out in a extremely constrained sneer, showing more genuine emotion than their conversation thus far. He was getting more and more angry with the situation, with her, and the sooner they could get out of this the better. He had no intention of letting her get away with any of this.
"Oh, do you?" She resisted the urge to laugh, but her cruel smirk was evident in her voice as well as on her face. "I disagree; creativity is exactly what I exercised on both of those very special occasions." She lowered her voice to a confidential whisper. "By the way, do tell me how Arcee handled my work with Backlash; I haven't spoken with her in so long."
She knew they were straying from their plan here, but she just couldn't resist careening right into this topic. It was one of her favorites, after all.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Despite her words, she still watched Ultra Magnus and the door. It would certainly be convenient if he could gain their freedom through negotiation, but there were two problems with that idea: one, it wouldn't make sense for these organics to capture them only to let them out after a few words, and two, he would probably only negotiate his way out of here. She doubted that this Autobot would just let her, an ex-Decepticon, go free.
After several moments, the faint sound of footsteps came from outside the cell. A small section of the top half of the door slid open, revealing a scaly face.
no subject
"My name is Ultra Magnus of the Autobots, I would request to speak with you-" The clanging sound of the metal panel sliding back into place cut him off. He stood up again, sighing stiffly. He had hoped to resolve this civilly and follow the galactic code for such matters, but if they're captors were unwilling to cooperate, it looked like he would have to stoop to more drastic measure. He looked back over his shoulder at his fellow captive.
"And what," he said slowly, "exactly is this plan of yours?"
no subject
"Simply put...we fight." There was definite enjoyment in her voice; she was looking forward to Ultra Magnus' reaction. Hopefully, though, he would see reason and agree to her plan. If not, she could push him to participate. She had blasters, and Autobots never reacted well to blasters. "Or – should I say – we pretend to fight, with as many possible indicators that we are fighting each other and not attempting to escape." She pointed at the door, indicating their captors. "Remember: the organics want us alive. They won't let us kill each other. When they open the door, we blast them and escape."
no subject
"You claimed you had been successful in convincing them you were offline previously, with minimal effort. Why do you think it would not work a second time?"
no subject
"When the guard saw that I was 'offline,' it called over more of its friends to check. I didn't hear the door close after they entered the cell, so I decided to take the opportunity to make my exit. I hadn't planned more than a simple experiment, and they were prepared for tricks and armed with the same weaponry they used when I first encountered them. You can imagine how it went. Still, I took out a couple of them before they subdued me." She paused to let the information sink in. "If we tried that again, I doubt they would even bother to make sure we were truly offline."
no subject
Unfortunately, he really didn't have enough information himself to come up with anything better. If they pretended to fight, they would already be armed, and they would be prepared for their captors to enter the cell. It really wasn't a terrible plan considering how little they actually knew.
"You should know, Decepticon, if you attempt to make this farce into a battle, I will not hesitate to see your spark exstinguished.
no subject
As long as Ultra Magnus had something to provide Airachnid – such as assistance in escaping – he was as safe as he could be. The moment they escaped, all bets would be off. Despite his Autobot nobility, Airachnid suspected that Ultra Magnus would try to arrest her at some point. It was that suspicion of betrayal that had kept her alive this long, so she was inclined to trust it. The key was to strike first.
"We should start by pretending to argue – loudly. It would seem odd if we began fighting without anything leading up to it."
no subject
He began trying to come up with a suitable point to begin this false argument, but found himself unable to conceive anything sufficient. Acting had never been his strong suit, while it had it's place he found it rather unbecoming overall. As the seconds ticked by, his hesitation went from a short pause to a rather tense and awkward silence before he finally spoke up.
"Since you are the one who concocted of this plan, it would be more appropriate for you to begin."
no subject
"Fine." Raising her voice so that any passing guards would be able to hear, she spat: "You and your precious Autobot Code! Your moral superiority and self-sacrificial tendencies make me want to retch!"
She thought herself a good actress, but she was unaccustomed to arguing. Most of the time, any altercations she had with others involved blasters, smugness, and/or torture. She hoped her comments would seem convincing to their captors. It was probably good if they weren't convincing to Ultra Magnus.
no subject
He raised his voice as well, keeping a very disapproving eye on his fellow captive.
"At least our soldiers understand the importance of discipline and respect, as opposed to you Decepticon anarchists. Nothing but criminals and deserters, and your commander is nothing but a lawless tyrant."
no subject
If they were going to fake argue, they might as well do it about something that didn't bore her to death. The Autobot code? Irrelevant. Megatron? Who cares. Autobot/Decepticon conflicts? So 3000 years ago. But attempting to irritate Ultra Magnus, known lawman, with jabs at the concept of rules? That she could get behind. Successfully irritating him would probably only help their act and subsequent escape attempt. It was a win-win situation.
no subject
That last bit came out in a extremely constrained sneer, showing more genuine emotion than their conversation thus far. He was getting more and more angry with the situation, with her, and the sooner they could get out of this the better. He had no intention of letting her get away with any of this.
no subject
She knew they were straying from their plan here, but she just couldn't resist careening right into this topic. It was one of her favorites, after all.