November 30th (2)
((Lunar, Solar)) (D, D)

Oracle walks into the holding cell area.
Lunar is asleep, his optics closed.
Oracle leans against a wall and watches Lunar, trying not to make a noise.
Lunar shifts in his sleep. "Venom . . ." he mumbles.
Oracle wonders whether she should wake Lunar...whether she /wants/ to wake Lunar.
Lunar thrashes once. "Kali," he spits, the name filled with hatred.
Oracle pushes away from the wall and approches the cell. "Lunar?" she says softly.
Lunar snaps his optics open and sits up with a start, breathing heavily.
Oracle says nothing, waiting for Lunar to calm down.
Lunar looks at Oracle. "Oh. Hello."
You say, "Good evening Lunar."
Lunar nods, still a bit shaken. "Is it evening? Good evening, Oracle."
Oracle nods her head. Laughs slightly. "You never used to return my greeting. You always questioned it."
Lunar says quickly, still not quite his normal, unemotional self (gee, guess that dream really shook him. Wonder what it was about?) "You're influence has corrupted me."
You say, "I guess it was inevitable that one of us would corrupt the other."
Lunar nods. He just nods. Dang, he's upset over that dream.
You say, "You seemed to be having a bad dream. That's why I woke you."
Lunar nods. "Yeah. But it's over now."
You say, "What was it about, might I ask?"
Lunar says, rather evasively, "My past."
You say, "Was it a recreation of what actually happened, or something that might have happened?"
Lunar says, "Recreation, and thus ten times worse."
You say, "Care to talk about it?"
Lunar shakes his head. "No. It's over." He puts a hand up to his optics.
You say, "You seemed rather disturbed by it, but if that is what you wish, very well."
Lunar sighs heavily, rubbing his optics with a hand. "Slag."
Oracle just waits, seeing what Lunar will do or say.
Lunar knots a hand into a fist and slams it into the wall. "Slag!"
Oracle looks concerned. "Are you okay?"
Lunar speaks tightly, as if regretful. "The memories, slag them. It's like it just happened not five minutes ago."
Oracle hovers a bit in place, as though wanted to make a move to comfort Lunar, but the cell bars/field wouldn't allow that, so she just says, "What are you remembering."
Lunar looks up at her, optics filled with pain, regret, and anger fighting. There's an inner struggle, and finally something in him breaks, some unseen barrier. "Venom," he says simply.
You say, "Who, or what, is Venom?"
Lunar walks close to the bars, wrapping his hands around them. "Venom was the only woman I ever loved. She was good, pure, and kind. The Bots threw her out, just like the Cons threw me out. We met in the gangs." He sighs, his optics suddenly becoming . . . gentle? It's actually true. He speaks softly, his whole voice changed, softer, kinder. "She was the best thing ever to happen to me."
Oracle reaches towards the bars to touch Lunar's clawed hands, those same hands that left their trademark on her body. "What happened? Why did they throw her out?"
Lunar stiffens as she touches him, every servo in his body tense. Something, maybe fear, enters his optics. Then, with effort, he relaxes. "It's not important. There are no histories in the gangs. The only thing that matters is what they did to her."
Oracle's tone is soothing. "Tell me Lunar."
Lunar closes his optics, leaning his head against the bars. "I rose to be leader of my gang, and she was by my side. Then . . . a femme named Kali took over. She killed everyone not loyal to her, but she saved special and specific torture for my beloved. When I close my eyes I can see Venom, screaming in pain . . ."
You say, "How did you survive this?"
Lunar trembles with rage. "Kali made the mistake of torturing and killing Venom. I swore then and there to kill her and all those loyal to her. That hatred fueled my escape, and helped me survive for a decade as I killed them one by one. I saved her for last."
Oracle nods as she sees Lunar's past and present coming together piece by piece. A feeling that she is glad she didn't help the Militia comes over her. "And then what happened?"
Lunar sighs. "In destroying Kali, I became like her. A decade thinking only of hatred, revenge, and killing in cold blood changed me. That's why I am what I am."
You say, "When did you join the Decepticons?"
Lunar says, "I was originally a Decepticon by birth, but I was kicked out because I had no warrior training. Well, the gangs changed that. I rejoined after . . . the incident."
Oracle nods. "I see." She falls quiet.
Lunar sighs. "And now you know. I trust you will never tell anyone."
You say, "If that is your wish."
Lunar nods. "I wish people to think of me as evil. For now, at least. You are an exception to that, and I trust my faith in you is well founded."
You say, "Why do you want them to continue seeing you as evil?"
Lunar says, "It's my armor. My facade. People see what they want, and it protects me."
You say, "But who do you need protection from? The Militia? Onslaught? Your whole faction?"
Lunar nods. "Yes."
You say, "All three?"
Lunar says, "Correct."
You say, "But the Militia aren't bad...they're just doing their job. And for the most part, the Decepticons aren't that bad either. I can't say as much for Onslaught though."
Lunar sighs. "But they're against me at this time, and that's what matters. And . . . I confess that I fear being hurt emotionally. It's convinient to only feel hatred, no one can hurt you like I was hurt when they killed Venom." He looks down. "And I was hurt," he whispers.
Oracle's hands are still on Lunar's hands. "I never said you weren't. Ususally the people who hurt the most have been hurt the most."
Lunar releases the bars and takes Oracle's hands gentley. "Then you understand why I hurt you. I was beginning to care about you, and I never wanted to be hurt again. Me caring for you means that I can be hurt."
You say, "It's a risk we all take."
Lunar nods. "And I'm taking it now."
Oracle bows her head and keeps it down.
You say, "I hope you aren't hurt again Lunar."
Lunar releases her right hand and gently takes her chin and tilts it upwards. "I hope not as well. But it may be worth it."
Oracle's chin is tilted up, bringing her green optics to look into Lunar's red ones. She flushes slightly. "It may be."
Lunar looks into her green optics, something passing through his optics that has not been there for a long time . . . then he releases her chin and hand and moves quickly farther back in the cell. He turns away, says, "Almost lost control for a nano," and when he turns back his mask is once again expressionless, his voice dark.
Oracle just looks at Lunar.
Lunar says, "Forgive me. For a moment I forgot what this mask means."
Oracle says softly, "And what /does/ it mean, Lunar?"
Lunar frowns, and turns, giving her a full view of the demon mask. "It represents what I am now. A monster, hatred, evil. My true face, behind the mask, is hidden. It's my legacy of what I once was, what was destroyed."
You say, "What do you look like under there Lunar?"
Lunar frowns. "You wouldn't want to see it."
You say, "Why not?"
Lunar says, "You wouldn't."
Oracle's tone is still soft. "But why?"
Lunar looks at Oracle, and his optics become hard. He lifts a hand to his mask and presses the hidden release points. He grunts in pain as the mask detatches itself from his neural net.
Oracle just watches, hiding her curiosity somewhat but not quite.
Lunar pulls his mask away. The face within would cause even the most jaded Con to gasp in revulsion. It must have been boyishly handsome at one time, but that time is long gone. The entire left side of the facial armor has been eaten away, leaving exposed neural wiring and an optic that juts out from the tangle of neural cables, bare and vulnerable, the servos that control it plainly visible. The right side of his face is criss crossed with scars that had never healed, holes in the facial armor. Without the mask, his optics are wider, kinder. "I escaped from Kali after she killed Venom. But not without a price."
Both of Oracle's optic ridges shot upwards with surprise. She has never seen anything like this before in her sheltered life. She takes in a deep, hissing breath that most people do when pained or surprised. For a moment she says nothing. "What did she do to you?"
Lunar looks at her with his one scarred and one stripped optic. "What she did to Venom. Torture."
You say, "Is it not possible to fix it?"
Lunar shakes his head. "Only an outlaw tech would fix it, and he didn't have the materials to do any more than this and to fashion a mask. Then . . . I simply never wanted to get it fixed. This is my past life, innocent, idealistic, like you. And that life is destroyed, just like my face."
Oracle looks at her own scars. She mumbles to herself, "Perhaps I should get these taken care of soon."
Lunar moves towards the bars again. "So, Oracle, can you stand someone who looks like this?" he asks, somewhat spitefully.
You say, "Looks don't matter to me. Appearances can be decieving."
Lunar moves closer still to the bars. "Oh really? You could stand to look at this?" he hisses.
Oracle pauses for a moment, wondering how to answer such a comment that was hissingly /thrown/ out at her.
Lunar takes her silence as an answer and moves closer yet, pressing his scarred and torn face against the bars. "Isn't it hideous, Oracle? Isn't it revolting?"
You say, "Your attitude about it makes it so, Lunar. I won't say that it is pleasant, because you know I would be lying, but your carrying on so makes it seem worse than it is."
Lunar sighs. "How could you possibly care anything for this?" He gestures towards himself when he says "this," referring to himself as a thing rather than a person.
Oracle looks down again, not because of Lunar's face, but because of her confusion. "Why does anyone care for anyone else? I don't know if such a question has an answer."
Lunar sneers. "How can someone care for such ugliness?" You get the feeling he's not just talking about his face, though that's a big part of it.
Oracle doesn't answer at first. "I don't know. Somethings are harder to explain than others. Perhaps the words haven't been invented yet, or perhaps the idea hasn't been invented yet."
Lunar raises the one optic ridge he has left. "Perhaps other means of expression are used." His tone is still harsh.
Oracle looks confused. "What do you mean?"
Lunar says, "You're such an authority on others, you figure it out."
Oracle shakes her head. "I don't know what you mean."
Lunar sighs. "Neither do I." He puts his hand back to his face, gives a short grunt of pain as the mask reconnects to his neural net, and he is Lunar again. "I seem to get confused whenever I converse with you now a days."
Oracle laughs softly. "You aren't the only one."
Lunar sighs. "Slag." He remains at the edge of the bars.
Solar awakens to here an expletive
Oracle makes a small, soothing noise. "What's wrong now?"
Lunar chuckles. "Let's just say I like to be in control of a situation, and when I'm around you I lose that control. I become confused."
Oracle smiles. "I generally don't have control over anything but my own actions. I prefer it that way."
Lunar sighs. "I still have control over my actions . . . but it is a confused control."
You say, "And this troubles you?"
Lunar nods. "Greatly."
You say, "What do you think will end it?"
Lunar seems about to answer her question, but chooses instead to shrug. "I'm not sure."
You say, "I hope you find your way."
Lunar nods. "So do I."
Solar says, "I will help him find a path, maybe not the best path but both of his feet will be on the ground"
Lunar frowns at Solar. "You're my brother and my confidant, not my kidlet sitter. Remember that."
Oracle turns, startled, to face Solar...she had forgotten Solar was there.
Solar shakes his head " I did not say that I would force a path on you just that I would help you find one"
You say, "And what path do you suggest for him?"
Solar shrugs "That choice is his" and points at Lunar "I will force my opinion on no-one."
You say, "But when you offered you must have had some ideas."
Solar says, "No I have no plans for him, I will support him in his choice, and not force my choice on him. as he said I am not his sitter"
You say, "How fortunate for Lunar."
Solar smirks "he was always the more forceful one"
Oracle only nods.
Lunar chuckles. "Right."
Solar says, "Any new Ideas on getting you out of here?"
You say, "What information have you been giving on the trial?"
Solar says, "nothing"
Lunar says, "Solar's right. I'm in the dark."
Oracle frowns. "That doesn't give us much to work on. Do you know who is in charge?"
Solar says, "no I don't even know the where"
You say, "Is it for certain in Decepticon hands then?"
Solar says, "I don't even know that for sure"
Lunar sighs. "Which, in my opinion, does not bode well."
You say, "You would have better luck with a neutral trial than you would at the mercy of your own faction."