November 24th
((Perceptor, Lunar)) (A,D)

Oracle walks into the holding cell area.
Perceptor thinks for a moment, and suddenly looks as though he's come to some kind of decision, "Lunar, would you like any help from me in this matter? I've got nothing to lose at this point, and I would have no objections at all."
Lunar laughs harshly, cruelly. "What am I, a charity case?" He sees Oracle. "Oh great, the sympathy comittee is out in force."
Oracle nods politely to Perceptor and smiles. She shoots a quizzical glance at Lunar.
Perceptor steps back and sighs, "Fine. Do what you want in this matter. If you are determined to give up and be led to an early death, then so be it. It'll be a waste, but it looks like you're already tying the noose around your neck, so who am I to stop you?"
Oracle sighs. "I suppose you've been at it again Lunar."
Perceptor turns to Oracle, "Don't mind the arguing. I had tried to help Lunar, but it looks as though he's beyond even that."
Oracle smiles dryly at Perceptor. "Believe me...I above all people know how hard it is to help him. I hope he wasn't /too/ rude to you."
Lunar rolls his optics heavenward. "Spare me."
Perceptor shrugs, "No, not rude, just impossible to deal with."
Oracle nods her head. "And how are you these days?"
Perceptor shrugs, "I've been better, to be sure, but I'm surviving, I suppose."
You say, "Is anything wrong?"
Lunar sighs. "Primus, get me out of this cell before I go mad."
Perceptor turns to Lunar, giving him a pitying glance, before turning back to Oracle...
Oracle turns her gaze back at Lunar. "I thought you already were mad...you should hope for some sanity instead. You can't get any worse than you already are."
Perceptor shakes his head, "No, Oracle. I think that he is simply...misguided. Mad, no. He's lucid, I'm sure."
Lunar says, "PRIMUS, do I have to sit here while you to discuss my various shortcomings?"
Oracle sighs softly. "I'm sure you can tell me my shortcomings with acute acuracy."
Lunar looks about to rattle off a list . . . but stops and sighs. "Why do you keep coming back? I told you to stay away."
You say, "Perhaps I'm stuborn...or just plain stupid."
Lunar narrows his optics. "In this case stupid doesn't begin to cover it."
Perceptor shakes his herad, "No, Oracle. Determined, but by no means stupid..."
Lunar laughs. "And what do you know, Bot? I almost killed her once, intentionally. Hanging around me is not exactly a good survival tactic.
You say, "Survival has never been my key priority."
Lunar says, "I've noticed."
Perceptor sighed, "Well, Lunar, why did you almost intentionally kill her? I don't know why I'm asking, but I digress..."
Lunar grins cruelly. "I enjoy causing pain. Surprised?"
Perceptor shakes his head, "Actuslly, at this point, not really, which should be really frightening, but for some reason, with you it's not."
Lunar sighs. "I'm behind bars. How frightening can I be."
Oracle starts to say something...then stops.
Perceptor turns to Lunar, sighing heavily, "Well, Lunar, do you have anything in the way of a will, then?"
Oracle blinks at the mention of a will.
Lunar shrugs. "I have no possessions. Why bother with a will?"
Perceptor says, "I thought it might bring you a sense of closure, perhaps, but if you insist on making this all diffucult, then fine..."
You say, "Are you still so certain of the final outcome?"
Lunar says, "If nothing new happens, yes."
You say, "What do you think can change things?"
Lunar shakes his head. "I don't know."
You say, "You don't have any idea?"
Lunar says, "Nope."
You say, "You seem to have an opinion on everything else on Cybertron."
Lunar says, "I must say that the situation seems hopeless."
Oracle sighs. "And you wonder why I like being an optimist."
Lunar says, "Do YOU see a way out of this?"
You say, "I've been trying to think. At least I didn't give up. You aren't even /attempting/ to make things better. Perceptor offered to help, and you refused."
Lunar says, "Perceptor is an AUTOBOT. He's the enemy."
You say, "And he was willing to help you. That's the troulbe with you affiliates...you can't see past a stupid sigil."
Lunar snorts. "Don't think I like neutrals either. You're an exception."
Oracle shakes her head. "But that is a lack of a sigil. You're opinion of people are based on whether or not they share the same brand."
Lunar says, "Or whether they're too cowardly to accept one or the other."
You say, "I don't have that blindness, thank PRIMUS for that."
Lunar frowns and stands up. "Listen well. The Bots killed my family, and they will die for that."
Oracle raises both her optic ridges in surprise. "The Autobots did that? That doesn't sound like any of the Autobots I know."
Lunar says, "It's not like they murdered them in cold blood, but the died just the same in an attack."
You say, "Were they affiliated?"
Lunar nods. "Warriors. In the Cons."
You say, "How long ago was this?"
Lunar looks down. "When I was a child."
Oracle looks aghast. "Really?" She pauses. "Then maybe it is fitting that you attacked me. I was created as an Autobot."
Lunar blinks. "I wish you hadn't told me that."
You say, "I don't see how it matters very much now. I left because I had no faith. I spent most of my time shut up in a little room processing histories. I never saw a Decepticon till I left the faction."
Lunar turns away. "Then you met me. Lucky you."
You say, "I've noted your sarcasm, but perhapas the luck is more yours than mine."
Lunar sighs. "You're very strange, Oracle. You have an innocence that I find refreshing. You still bear the scars of my attack, yet you come here time and again, concerned for me. It almost makes me want to . . . to be different."
You say, "You must remember that up until now, I've had it very easy, I've been very sheltered...and loved. It makes me want to spread that, not keep it to myself."
Lunar says, "I used to be like you. Then I ran into someone who was very much like I am now. Yet . . . I attacked you, and you remain the same. Why?"
You say, "Maybe because I was an Autobot? But I highly doubt that. I think it's because I have a kind of strength that remains hidden, something that no one would percieve as a strength, but is one nonetheless."
Lunar sighs. "I thought I had such a strength. I was wrong."
You say, "Or perhaps you have it, but you were against much worse odds than I? Or perhaps you aren't as bad as the one you faced. I might have been luckier than you."
Lunar frowns. "Perhaps."
Oracle blinks. "Why do you frown?"
Lunar says, "Because it's a time I remember fondly, but I can never return."
You say, "That doesn't mean there are no good times ahead. You just have to get out of this current situation."
Lunar shakes his head. "It's not being in jail. It's being what I am. So filled with hatred I have no room for love or happiness."
Oracle shakes her head. "I don't believe in absolutes....whether it is evil or good."
Lunar says, "But surely you believe in mutual exclusivity. Hatred and kindness cannot exist together."
You say, "Perhaps not at the same time, but they /can/ exist within the same person. Yours is just burried. Besides, to even regret the loss of who you once were is a step."
Lunar sighs. "I can't go back, Oracle. I'm to different, too changed."
You say, "Have you tried yet? Have you had someone willing to /help/ you try yet?"
Lunar says, "Who would WANT to? Perceptor feeling sorry for a poor Con locked in a cage is one thing, but to try to reclaim one from hatred . . . besides, that's what I am now."
Oracle persists her point. "But you really won't know till you've tried."
Lunar says, "Goodness and kindness are weaknesses in me now, weaknesses that I cannot afford."
You say, "Why not? Why can't you indulge in weakness. Sometimes your idea of strength is a weakness in itself."
Lunar says, "Weakness is what got me into this mess. Not killing you, setting you free. That was mercy, goodness, kindness, even perhaps friendship. I cannot afford such chinks in my armor."
Oracle takes an involuntary step forward. "But what is the consequence you fear?"
Lunar turns to face her again, taking a step towards the bars. "This situation I'm in. Had I killed you, it would never have happened."
You say, "How do you know that. If I had disappeared, they still would have suspected you, and you may have been here just the same. Besides, if you had indulged in these 'weaknesses', as you call them, sooner than perhaps the attack never would have happened in the first place."
Lunar says, very softly, "But I didn't. And now it is too late to turn away."
You say, "I refuse to believe so. There's nothing wrong with trying."
Lunar says, "If I fail I will be too weak to survive."
Oracle lowers her voice. "What if you succeed."
Lunar sighs. "It's a time that is dead, Oracle."
You say, "I'm not talking of your past. What about the future? Only you can decide that, and I urge you to try for a more positive turn out than the one you are speculating."
Lunar says, "My path is set, my course is sure. Anyone who tries to help me, including myself, will only be hurt."
You say, "Just try."
Lunar Blinks. "I . . . I'm afraid to."
Oracle speaks gently. "And you fear that fate more than death?"
Lunar nods. "I do not fear death, but I vowed never to allow myself to be hurt again."
Oracle sighs. "But when you give up pain, you give up something that can never be compensated for. Being strong in your way may keep you alive, but drains the point of living out of life."
Lunar nods. "I know, but to experience such pain again . . . I could not bear it."
You say, "It might not seem so to you, but it would be better than being recycled. There is no resolution in death Lunar."
Lunar nods. "There is the end. No more pain, no more suffering."
You say, "But there is none of the good either."
Lunar says, "I have no good. No loss."
You say, "You can find it. It won't be the same, but it will be better than what you have now."
Lunar looks almost . . . sad. "I'm not sure if I can find it anymore. And I fear that if I try, I'll only confirm that I am pure evil."
Oracle raises her voice somewhat. "But if you /were/ pure evil, you wouldn't care...or fear. You /feel/ the loss of your former life, and it haunts you in a way. Evil wouldn't give a damn about it."
Lunar moves against the bars of his cell. "A week, even a day ago I would have refused. But being caged like some kind of animal puts things in perspective."
You say, "Or maybe someone giving a damn about what happens to you can help as well."
Lunar sighs. "Do you actually care? Or am I merely another crusade."
Oracle blinks. "Another crusade? I haven't even been on one yet. And yes I do. I see something trapped that can't be brought out by force or hatred, but only the most meticulous care."
Lunar says, "And so I am your pet project, is that it? You're grand experiment in good and evil?"
Oracle shakes her head. "That's not it at all. You're a person, like any other person, with troubles and pains. I like helping people. And....well...."
Lunar raises an optic ridge and says quietly, "And?"
You say, "I don't know. I've just had this hunch all along that I should be so persistant. Ever since we had that staring optics contest."
Lunar nods. "I felt something then too. It only made me more determined to hurt you."
You say, "That is something I still don't fully understand, but it didn't stop me. The Autobots and the Decepticons are fighting a war, many of them because they believe in their cause. They risk their lives for what they believed...I couldn't do any less."
Lunar says, "And you . . . your goodness and kindness, and the kindness I was . . . beginning to feel for you, were the exact opposite of everything I've lived for so long. That's why I tried to hurt you, to show myself that I was still strong."
You say, "Something was obviously fighting to get out, and your 'darkness' feared it."
Lunar nods. "Perhaps. Also because, as I said before, goodness is weakness."
You say, "Not always."
Lunar says, "When your strength is based on darkness, goodness is weakness."
You say, "So am I so weak then?"
Lunar shakes his head. "Your strength comes from your goodness. Mine comes from my evil. Good gives you strength, in me it causes weakness."
You say, "There is always a chance of a new strength."
Lunar says, "It's been too long, Oracle."
You say, "You're imprisioned right now. You say that if you are released, they will hunt you down and destroy you. No matter what you do, according to what you say, you are vulnerable. You have nothing to lose by trying."
Lunar says, "I'm not sure if I can even start. Evil is second nature to me now, only you ever made it past that evil."
You say, "I still think you should try. Perhaps in time the others will forgive you as well."
Lunar says, "I must think about it."
You say, "It's a start."
Lunar nods. "It is."
Oracle just smiles and sighs.
Lunar just stands there, watching her, no hatred for once in his optics. No kindness, but no hatred.
Oracle leans against a convienient wall, looking less tired than she has in a long time.
Lunar, on the other hand, looks even more tired than he had been.
You say, "Has the Militia said anything to you about your trial?"
Lunar shakes his head. "Only that there will be one, and that I should pick a counsel. As if it would matter."
You say, "You should at least make the effort."
Lunar chuckles. "This isn't like my personal ethics. They want me guilty, so I will be."
You say, "But what are you guilty of in their eyes?"
Lunar laughs. "Of daring to be everything they claim to hate but secretly love."
Oracle quirks an optic ridge. "Secretly love?"
Lunar nods. "Do you think any of them are better than me? they just hide it under a facade, I don't."
You say, "Some of them are very good individuals."
Lunar says, "SOME of them. Not the ones who truly want me dead."
You say, "They are just over reacting. I get the feeling that many of the Militia members don't care that /I/ was injured, only that some one went against their protection. Oracle didn't matter, a member of Crystal City did."
Lunar says, "And some of them didn't like my face. That's why Onslaught is involved, he'll see that I die because I dared insinuate that he may be fallible."
Oracle frowns. "I don't care much for Onslaught's ways."
Lunar snarls. "Neither do I."
You say, "I think he abuses his power."
Lunar says, "I KNOW he does. Someone will strike him down eventually. I will strike him down."
You say, "Not if you stay in jail you won't. Besides, that would get some people quite upset."
Lunar laughs. "Like they're not upset now?"
You say, "Well, Triage will be upset, and Brawl will be too."
Lunar looks at her. "And you care about Brawl's feelings?"
You say, "Yes, yes I do."
You say, "But I care about most people's feelings."
Lunar raises an optic ridge. "And Brawl isn't a special case for you?"
Oracle nods her head. "He is."
Lunar smiles just slightly. "Sometimes I wonder just how deep your feelings for that moron go."
You say, "I'm not quite certain of that myself. Most of my life my feelings have been very, objective...distant."
Lunar says, "And now they are brought to the fore. Watch yourself. Brawl is stupid, and your pity for him might betray you."
You say, "Brawl is sweet in his own way. He tries...he really does. It's touching. Though I think it will only cause him trouble with the rest of his faction...Ghost doesn't like the relationship one bit."
Lunar says, "Ghost has forbidden it. For his sake, break it off."
You say, "I've been thinking about that. I don't want him to get into trouble, and there is no compassion within the Chain of Command."
Lunar barks a harsh laugh. "As my situation indicates."
You say, "That is their biggest flaw in my opinion, though it seems as though compassion has dried up in the Autobots too."
Lunar says, "Neither faction is what it was dreamed of."
You say, "But how did they fall so far?"
Lunar says, "The leadership. Fools like Onslaught in charge, instead of Megatron, a mech who had vision."
You say, "I never met him. I heard he was rather strict, but very ambitious."
Lunar says, "And an idiot."
Lunar says, "Or do you mean Megatron?"
You say, "I mean Megatron, I've met Onslaught more than I've cared to."
Lunar says, "Megatron . . . I can't remember much about him, I was only a child when I met him, but I do remember that he was someone who inspired awe."
Oracle nods. "I see. I must go now though."
Oracle starts to leave. "Good night Lunar."
Lunar nods. "Good night. And . . . beautiful dreams." He turns and moves to the back of the cell.