Aberrant: Infinite Earth - Cosmos Nova - [CN] On the Set [Fin]

[Mech]

For Connor this project was a dream. it was the first movie he did virtually pro-bono, having insisted that what pay reserved for him aside living expenses go to procuring the original cast for the movie where possible. The Producers happily agreed, and when told of his request, all of the cast who were alive agreed to reprise their roles.

Years before Michael Bay had made the Transformers trilogy, and while a box office smash, it left a bad taste in the mouths of many die hard fans, Connor included. Using some of his own money, and his free time he pitched this idea to Dreamworks, to get the rights, and they'd remake shot for shot, a live action version of the Original Transformers movie.

They'd already shot a number of the less actiony scenes, and today was the day Connor really was excited about. They were going to shoot the big fight with optimus and Megatron, in the ruins of autbot city.

He had taken care to Invite Karrie, after their talks on the yacht, knowing she'd get a real kick out of this, and it was his intention to introduce her to the various actors behind the voices. It was surprising that they all wanted to be there for the shooting, Connor guessed that actually seeing real robots do what had been possible in animation brought them out, to see their characters in real life.

He'd already spoken with Leonard Nemoy, a man he knew was a cult favorite in many genres, and of course, Frank Welker and Peter Cullen were there. Connor held his own inner fanboy in check, and truly he didn't mind that he wouldn't be giving voice to many of them, he smiled in fact, knowing the fans would love this movie.

He was waiting for karrie now, as they were between takes. It took about five hours for connor to recharge after expending his power, something it took minutes to do, or less depending on how much was going on.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie was incredibly excited. The native girl was literally bouncing on her toes as she approached the set. She’d been on cloud nine since Connor had invited her to the set; she hadn’t even been able to sleep last night. This was like a dream come true for the anime freak.

There was a guard at the door to the set; Karrie was smiling as she approached. The guard didn’t smile; he was far too used to women trying to get past him with a sweet smile. Karrie was cute, but not that cute. “Hi,” she said, waving a little. With her other hand, she held up her pass.

At that, the guard smiled and nodded. “Right this way, ma’am.” He turned and opened the door for her, holding it so that she could pass. Karrie gave him an excited grin that made her features shine with delight.

That grin only widened when she saw the set beyond. The ruins of the Autobot city was something that she had seen over and over again in the anime, but seeing it in person made it feel more real somehow. Her brown eyes were almost falling out of her head as she stared like a yokel, trying to take in everything at once.

When she saw Connor, she forgot to stare at anything else. He was definitely worth a stare or two. Or more. Without Kitty to get into the picture and ruin the image for Karrie, there was nothing to mar that image either. The set didn’t detract from him either. Why does he have to be so frickin’ hot? “Connor! Hi!” She waved her arms until she caught his eye.

Though she wasn’t the looker that Kitty was, Karrie wasn’t an eyesore either. Today she’d opted for comfortable shorts and a tank top; her hiking boots weren’t sexy but durable. She looked like she’d planned for a day on her feet. She also wore sunglasses and had a big leather bag slung over her neck and across her chest. Her hair was down today; she didn’t plan on doing any mechanical stuff – even if she had brought her Gundam plans with her.

[Mech]

Connor smiled as he walked over to Karrie, dressed only in a t-shirt and shorts, it made things easier, when it came time to shift forms. "Welcome to the set, What do you think?" He nodded, the Voice actors were over in the modular building that had been setup for them to observe from. So far they'd not gotten a big show, as what had been done today was mostly training for Connor to match their vocal movement.

"I'm glad you could make it. This is the big scene today, the one I personally have to get right. I think you'll be able to guess which one it is."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“Oh yes.” Karrie felt dizzy as he smiled at her. It was just like in her fictions; he smiled and the sun dimmed in comparison to his glory. She felt like she could fly when he smiled at her like that. It took her a long second to realize that she was just staring at him. Again. Some more. Why did she become an addled idiot around him? She always knew what to say or do in her fictions.

“So… what are you doing right now?” She looked around again and noted, “I see a lot of stuff, but not a lot of filming.”

[Mech]

"Right now I am recovering my power. The voice actors are having a session to what we've already shot, and letting the editors know where we need work synching up."

He shrugged. "Once I'm at full power again, I'll be shooting the final battle of autobot city, at least the part of it that's really really important." He looked around watching others watching them. "And also I believe I'm doing my part to fill the internet with new rumors about myself, as I have seen at least three people texting, since I came over to you, who only started after I my intent was clear."

He looked at her. "You may become a more public figure than you ever wanted to be."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“Oh, my boss is gonna be pissed.” Karrie’s grin was wide and unashamed. “He tries to keep me out of the public eye. Afraid that the public will see the real me and wonder why the hell the U.S. Government pays me so damned much money. I’m not very politically correct, you know.”

“I’ve noticed.” Connor’s statement was delivered without rancor and he even chuckled a little.

“Good to know you’ve been paying attention.” Thank you Rob. The silent thank-you was due to her lab-mate’s mental preparation for this. He’d been really supportive, pumping her up with compliments for the last couple of days and reminding her, “Be yourself. Because that girl is super-awesome.” His pep talks were the only reason she wasn’t drooling over herself right now. “You know… we should give them something to talk about.”

Karrie reached up and caught the collar of his shirt, tugging on it. Connor wasn’t sure he trusted that look in her eye, and less sure he should give into what she wanted, but he was also somewhat curious to know what she was planning. He wasn’t entirely surprised when her lips brushed his in a quick, feather-light kiss. “There. Let the gossip begin!” Karrie said, releasing him and stepping back. Her heart was pounding and she felt light-headed. Oh my god! I did it! Rob will be so proud of me!

“Now that I have sown chaos, wanna show me around a bit?” Karrie asked, grinning like the imp she so often was accused of being by Horst. My first kiss… Connor Fontenot. Too… perfect!

[Mech]

Connor's eyes widened a little bit. "That'll end up on Youtube." He smiled. "Not that I mind if you don't." he took her hand and began showing her around the massive set they'd used for Autobot city. Even shooting it at human scale, for the bots, the set wasn't particularly cheap, and Connor had already destroyed significant portions in the previous shoots of the battles.It was modular thankfully, so parts that were too ruined to function could be replaced easily, but this was something Connor'd insisted, a true realism, not CGI for the set.

He led her to the area wher Prime and megatron would battle, complete with the three story drop off point he'd knock megatron off of. As he went along he explained the various methods of construction, the stage effects being used, and how they'd do this or that. Finally he stopped.

"This is all nice isn't it, but I bet you'd really like to see it all in action."

He gave her one of his one hundred megawatt grins. "Or I could introduce you tot he various Voice Actors who agreed to be a part of this again."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“I think if I minded that being on YouTube, I shouldn’t have done it.” Karrie was blushing brightly and nearly dizzy with the sensation of holding his hand. Horst was going to have a conniption. Karrie was really looking forward to that shitstorm.

She allowed Connor to lead her along by the hand, unsure if she was walking or floating. Normally, she wouldn’t have been able to focus on anything but him, but this was Transformers. That alone could get her attention easily. So she watched with wide eyes even as her massive brain worked overtime.

“I would like to see it in action… Connor, are you planning to clean up effects with CGI?”

Connor frowned. “No, we’re avoiding that as much as possible. Why?”

“Well… since you asked.” Karrie spent the next ten minutes explaining slightly different ways they could achieve the effects Connor wanted. “You know, next time, you really should bring me in sooner.”

[Mech]

He nodded. "If I could have I would have. It wasn't until after the Yacht I knew this even interested you. Otherwise I'd have asked for your help then."

He smiled, still holding her hand. "Perhaps after a session I still might, as you can give me a fan's view that's not my own."

He led her to where the shooting would be done, and the established safe zone. He personally got her a chair to sit by the Director and film crew, and nodded as he shifted forms into a basic optimus prime form, then six copies came into being, and each one changed into one of the decepticons he'd be running down. "Places everyone." The copies took their mark as the earial cam zoomed in, over a dozen cameras were in use for this shot.

He shifted to the truck form, and waited. "ACTION!" With that he began rolling forward, trailer and all, and running down forst the one that looked like a red jet, (Thrust) then Shrapnel, one of the insecticons. the remaining 4 opened fire on him, failing to pierce his armor, and using momentum and his ability to fly, he leapt into the air, transforming as he went, drawing the massive ion pulse rifle that served as Prime's main gun, blasting Ramjet and Acidstorm with short bursts as he flipped over them with unparalelled grace, landing and bracing himself as he poured full bursts into Soundwave and Dirge, dropping them to the ground. "Cut!" It was so perfectly done, and Connor was glad that it was a short scene because it allowed him to stop. a dozen birsts of laserfire all the transformations, and the limited flight had eaten significant portions of his power. He allowed the form to go away even as he walked into a small changing room configured as a power converter, coming out in a fresh set of clothing.

"And that is that short little fight." He smiled to Karrie, dressed almost the same as he was. "The clothing thing is the major downside to shifting forms. Nothing stays with me, and even if it did, it wouldn't look good for prime to wear clothes."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

"I could probably design something." Karrie wasn't sure that was true. She'd picked up attunement from a Refugee, who'd been dumb enough to boast about it until Karrie tricked him into teaching her. It was her own personal bringing fire to the people, not that she'd share it yet. First, she didn't want Rob to learn it and discard the pants she'd worked so long on; it had taken hours of staring at a three-dimensional rendering of his body to work out the dynamics of the suit. Second, it was a juicy secret and Karrie loved her secrets. Although, speaking of Rob…

“I did, after all, solve the problem of the Amazing Naked Telluris. Maybe I can do the same for the Amazing Naked Mech.” That would be a true disservice to the world, but if he never shared it – like Rob had so kindly shared with the entire world, one busload of tourists at a time – then she wasn’t really diminishing anyone. And it’d certainly enhance her if she got to measure Mech naked, with the Measuring Gloves. Her fingers were tingling at the thought.

The more she thought about it, the more Karrie was sure she could making Attuning Clothing. That should do the trick… sadly.

[Mech]

Connor smiled. "I'd be most appreciative, because one day something will happen and I'll have to shift in front of people without finding a place to change privately, and I'd rather not go nude like that in front of others. There's a certain industry that's offered considerable sums of money for just that, but I just can't bring myself to do it."

He smiled. "Horst would put my ass in a sling if I even thought about it."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie laughed. “I’d appreciate you running about bare-ass naked. And if you would do that, I’d get you off the hook by doing something to distract Horst from you.” She grinned up (and up!) at the movie star, her brown eyes dancing with delight. “I have a talent for getting under the chief’s skin as few others can manage.”

“I can see that.” Connor smiled at her.

“Yes, you don’t want to piss me off.” Karrie realized that might have sounded like a threat, so she quickly amended, “Not that I think you would.” Clearing her throat, she added, “Sooo… you said something about the voice actors? Or will there be more scenes to film?”

[Mech]

"The one on one fight Will be in about two, maybe three hours. Until then we can go talk with the voice actors, and if you want you can see what we've done so far." He smiled leading her to the prefab bunker they'd sequestered the Voice actors in. Peter Cullen stood out as he rose to greet Connor. "That was amazing Connor, Better than the original animation of it."

Connor for his part, nodded appreciatively. "I'm just happy to have all of you be a part of this. The original fans felt wronged, and spoke loudly enough that we were given the green light for this. When you and Mr. Welker and Mr. Nemoy agreed to return, well, I think that made everyone take another look at this."

"The thing that takes the most time is set assembly. You are good at destroying it." Connor nodded.

""Mr. Cullen, I have a friend and fellow nova as my guest here with me, and she expressed a desire to meet you, and our other Voice Actors." He motioned to Karrie. "This is Karrie. She's a friend of mine, and a big fan."

Connor said no more leaving Karrie to speak to the man behind the voice of Optimus Prime, and so many other strong characters. He had one of the most iconic voices in television, when he spoke, everyone knew it was him.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“Hi, Mr. Cullen, it’s a delight.” Karrie’s eyes shone with joy as she shook Peter Cullen’s hand. “I am a huge fan. I made myself a Transformers outfit.”

“Oh, how nice.” Cullen smiled. “You should have worn it.”

“Well… It’s a bikini. I really shouldn’t wear it outside of those specific settings.” Karrie grinned. “But ask real nice and I might be persuaded.”

Cullen laughed, a hardy sound. “I don’t think we old men should take that risk. A pretty young woman in a Transformers bikini might be a little too much.”

“Speak for yourself,” Nimoy rejoined, his distinctive voice resonant. “Next time, Ms. Karrie, you feel free to wear that.”

Karrie blushed and giggled, her brown eyes sparkling. “All right… it’s a plan.”

[Mech]

That Nimoy spoke as he did made Conor smile. Of them all, he'd been the hardest to get to return. Connor laughed. "Well that makes me happy."

Peter looked to him and nodded. "It's amazing Connor. You make all of this real, I often wonder how much longer before novas make the rest of us obsolete."

"Never going to happen. There's too few of us, and besides, All the voice actors and actors I've met are talented special people. I wouldn't dream of trying to supplant you all. It's simply to awesome getting to work with you.."

Frank came up and clapped Connor on the shoulder. "Spoken like a life-long fan.."

"Very true, both ways. I've always been a fan, and I admit I was inspired by the voice actors to pursue a career as one myself before I became a nova."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“You’ll never be obsolete,” Karrie promised the men in the room. Her grin was wide and bright; the best word for it was dazzling.

The conversation turned to the business, to discussions about the movie. Karrie listened quietly, gaining an insider’s point of view about the backside of the silver screen. When the director called Connor for the next scene, Karrie had decided that while she liked the results and the people who made it, she really didn’t have an interest in the movie industry. There were literally dozens of people who went into making a movie. When Karrie created an invention, it was all hers.

“So what’s next?” the young woman asked a handy intern as they waited for Connor take his place.

“This is the Optimus and Megatron fight. Should be epic.”

[Mech]

One thing Karrie also noticed was there was a full EMT crew on hand. When she questioned the intern he nodded in Awe. "He's hurt himself twice already in some of the fight scenes. Though he can heal himself, if he knocks himself out again it's slow going. They're here, just in case." It was clear the depth of Connor's commitment to the project made a real impact on everyone involved, causing them to give all they had to the process.

Connor Was in the form of Optimus Prime, and a Clone was Megatron, They took their marks..."ACTION!"

"Prime..." Megatron beheld his ancient fore with sheer hate. Here was the foe who'd foiled him for eons.

Prime stood ready, this would be the final reckoning. "One Shall Stand, One Shall Fall."

The intern looked to her. "He's saying the lines to match the mouth movements. He's using the voices because he's a fan."

"Why Throw away your life so recklessly?"

"That's a Question you should ask yourself, Megatron."

Megatron raised the Fusion Cannon on his right arm then pulled it down. "NO, I'll crush you with my bare hands!" With that he sent himself into a flying tackle,knocking Prime back and sending sparks flying from them both. Eslewhere two other clones of Connor, as Kupp and Hotrod said their lines and went through their proscribed actions.

Prime rose and sent megatron flying into one of the battlle damaged armories, where he picked up a shard of metal and hurled it, where it pierced Prime's side, driving him back a step or two. Then he dodged the follow up blast from Megatron's fusion canon, Connecting solidly with his fist, sending Megatron sprawling on his back in the armory again. Prime drew the Spike-like shard out, just as Megatron picked up and ignited one of the fallen decepticon energy sabers. Megatron connected solidly with a slash that sent sparks flying as Prime's hand dropped to cover the wound. Prmie backed away, even as Megatron leapt into the air, coming down with the energy sword to deliver the final blow. Prime answered with a Savage uppeercut sending Megatron flying and landing hard on his back be for leaping himself to come down on his foe, only Megatron was ready and used a spring kick to knock Prime back and down. re rose almost instantly, to be grappled by Megatron, his hands moving for Prime's Eyes. "I'll rip out your Optics..."

Nearly losing Prime reversed the grapple grabbed Megatron by his helmet-like head and sent him flying headfirst over the field into the ground. Kupp came up "Finish him off Prime, Do it NOW!"

Prime Methodically went and retrieved his Ion Pulse Rifle, raising it and aiming for Megatron's head. Megatron spied a small laser pistol someone dropped, and played for time. "No more Optimus Prime, Grant Me Mercy, I beg of you." His voiced was laced with false fear.

Prime was having none of it. "You who are without mercy, Now plead for it? I thought you were Made of sterner stuff." As he was about to shoot, Megatron was going for the Gun.

Hotrod jumped in. "No you don't Megatron!" The two struggled as Prime sought to maintain his aim.

"OUT OF THE WAY HOTROD!"

Holding the smaller autobot hostage Megatron rose and fired the pistol, catching Prime in his wounded side. Massive amounts of sparks shot out, a savage hit. "Fall, FALL!" Megatron shot three more times, hiting the wound again, and then twice more directly in the chest sending Prime to his back.

Megatron tossed Hotrod away, and moved to finsh Prime off, even as Prime began to rise, shuddering from his heavy damage. "I would have waited an eternity for this, It's Over Prime." His armor was cracked, and leaking liquid energon, pitted and dented, the two of them had pushed wach other to the brink.

Prime fought through the pain bringing his massive battlefirsts together in a vicious last grasp for victory, a powerful doublehanded uppercut. "NEVER!!" The blow connected, sending Megatron falling over the ledge. Hitting one deck, then another, before landing on the lowest level, in a motionless heap. Optimus rose partly, looking down on his fallen foe, and then fell to the ground, spent. Hotrod came running, "Optimus, Forgive me."

"Cut!"

The clones all disappeared, and the EMT's moved in, waiting to see if Connor would need them. He was badly hurt, and Peter and Frank were themselves in awe of Connor. He pushed himself to be worthy of the legacy His voice sounded like theirs, and they bere both touched by his professionalism, and drive.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie hung back. Connor kept his robot form until he'd been settled on a stretcher and covered with a blanket. The EMTs were used to the drill; keep Connor alive and comfortable until he healed himself. After asking permission, Karrie stepped up to his side and took his hand. "Dumb ass," she told him, her tone filled with warmth. Her hands were just as warm as she picked one of his up and clasped it gently in both of hers

"You think I'm crazy for this, don't you?" Connor asked in a rough voice.

"No, I think you're crazy not to duck more." Karrie grinned at him. "If I did this, with your powers, I'd do it the same way. But I'd duck more."

[Mech]

Connor smiled, "Can't let him miss all the time, was going for realism." He coughed, and they brought him in the private trailer that was reserved for him, mostly for when this happened. The Intern nodded. "You can go sit with him if you want, since you're his guest and all, I doubt they say anything about it."

The EMT's left, knowing since he was conscious he was already stabilizing himself, and his miraculous healing ability would do the rest.

The director nodded. "Alright, Vocal cast, let's get through the next part. I doubt we do any more shooting today."

Peter nodded to Karrie. "You're welcome to come sit in with us, if you like, Karrie."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie looked from Peter to Connor and the voice actor was already smiling as he saw the answer in her eyes. “I think I’ll sit with Connor for a while. If that’s alright with him.”

“If he’s so foolish to spurn your company, you’ll be welcome with us,” Peter told her, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Thank you. You’re very kind.” Karrie spoke with a sincerity that was unusual for her, but nonetheless real. Peter headed for the voice studio, and Karrie went to Connor’s trailer. Hesitantly, she knocked on the door, then entered when he told her to come inside. “Hi. Thought you might want some company? If not no biggie; I’ve been invited to go hang out with the voice actors.”

[Mech]

"I'm honored to see you'd rather check up on me, after that little stunt."

He gave her a warm smile. Though incredibly tough, sustaining such injuries and then being left so weak made him grunt as he shifted, rising to a half sitting up position.."I' hope you've enjoyed being here today. I know everyone's really happy to have you around, Including me."

He looked, not weak, but possibly vulnerable as he laid there. "I'm glad you got to come today. I hope it's not been too boring. It's not as beneficial in the long run a your work, but I love making movies, and a chance like this, it's been a dream of mine.."

He was only wearing one of the little hospital gowns, under the sheets, though there was a set of clothes laid out on one of the chairs. A large King size bed was where he currently resided. "Take a seat Karrie." He indicated the chair, then pat the bed beside him absentmindedly. "Wherever you like. May as well make yourself comfortable."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Rob would have told her to take the bed, but Karrie’s courage, so strong to this point, failed her. She took the chair, smiling at Connor. “This is anything but boring. I’ve had so much fun seeing the behind-the-scenes stuff.”

“What’d you think of that?”

Karrie looked down at her clasped hands, then up at Mech. “It’s not my thing.” She smiled warmly. “There’s too many people who get to have input; I’d be driven insane by everyone else getting to change my ideas and pervert them into something else. So it’s fun to see or even participate a bit, but I’d never be able to do it myself. What’s that like? Working with people, letting them usurp your vision?”

[Mech]

Was that a flash of disappointment that she'd chosen the chair, appearing and disappearing momentarily in his eyes? "That's just it, I'm the star in many respects, and the Executive producer. I have alot of say on things. There's two actual actors other than myself in the entire show, the only two humans who appear in the movie. This show is really about the Transformers, as it should be."

"I do have some compromises, I can't do everything in full scale, certainly the fights indoors, and inside unicron will be done at much smaller scale, makes it cheaper. Autobot City is easily the most expensive of our sets, though the space battle damn well could be impressive in it's own right."

"On normal movies, yeah, it can be a real pain. Though it's something we actors and voice actors deal with. I simply do my best to bring the character or characters to life, to give the audience and fans what they want to see, what they deserve."

He smiled "These characters, like so many others that are fictional have touched the lives of so many, and any time I am cast as an important character like that, well, I just want to give my all to it."

"It's how I live my life."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“It’s the only way to live,” Karrie agreed nodding. “I’ve been that way since my eruption. I wasn’t much like that before. Shy, afraid… now, not so much.” Except in a few key areas.

“I admit, I like the movies you produce.” Karrie untied her boots and kicked them off as she spoke. “I’ve seen all of them more than once. I own all the Blue-Rays. I even got your pre-eruption stuff.” She paused, shrugged and said, “I’m something of a fan.”

Rob should have shown up and given her the Understatement of the Year award. Instead, Connor smiled and said, “Thank you.”

“Thank you for being who you are. You do entertain a lot of people, and then there’s your charity work. The work in Mexico, the help with Japan, all the kids whose lives are a hundred percent better… You’re really a special guy.” Karrie realized she was getting perilously close to what Horst called ‘inappropriate knowledge about Connor’ and stopped. “Just… you know. Sayin’.” Just… you know. Lame! Jesus Karrie!

[Mech]

Connor smiled, genuinely, and it was among the most beautiful things Karrie'd ever seen. "Thank you Karrie, for making it worthwhile."

"You mentioned everything I want to be known for and not the aspects of myself that many focus on. That makes you a very special young lady."

He nodded. "It means alot coming from someone like you, that what I've done has made a difference. I'm not as brilliant as you, or Hans or the other geniuses working to help further technology. Sometimes I feel like a fraud, getting all the accolades, being the Primary Face of the DSA, being known as the most attractive man on the planet..."

"My achievements seem so small sometimes, but I admit, I'm proud of what I have done, and I will always strive to do more, to be worthy of fans, and the few like you, that I see as more."

There was a subtle change in his tone, it wasn't exactly what he wanted to say, but she seemed abit unsure still.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

As more? More what? He sees me as more what? More of a pain? More of a girl? More of a friend?! Oh, god. He sees me as a friend. I over-guyed it. I nerded-out and officially have to turn in my girl-card. I should just get a faux-cock, cut off my boobs and grow a fake beard. I am so lame. “Your achievements aren’t small. You should be proud.” Karrie wasn’t sure what to say, but praising Connor was always easy. “You aren’t a fraud. The PR work you do is phenomenal. You can smooth over situations where even Rob can’t charm them. Like… oh, like the time that you smoothed over that whole Bangkok thing.”

Connor winced a little. “Yeah, that was a bit rough. Horst never told me why it got so bad, but that diplomat was pissed.”

Karrie didn’t twitch, despite the fact that she had been the one to expertly Photoshop the man’s head onto the prostitute’s body. How was she to know that he’d been dodging accusations of cross-dressing, accusations that threatened his position? She’d just been trying to get back at him for being an ass. There were still people who believed that those images hadn’t been ‘shopped. “But you salvaged that. That’s what you do, and it’s awesome.”

[Mech]

"And you design things that will change the world." He smiled. 'I also hear you are a master of pranks, and someone it's best to stay on the good side of."

He waved her concerned look aside. "I did do a little digging, after I found I really didn't know anything about you.. That's something I'd like to remedy honestly."

He nodded. I envy Rob that, he seems to know you pretty well, how long have you two been seeing each other?"

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“What?” Karrie blinked at him. “What do you mean ‘seeing each other’?”

“Dating.” Connor looked genuinely confused.

Karrie rolled her eyes. “Why does everyone assume we’re dating? He’s my best friend in the world, saved my life at least once, but that doesn’t mean we’re dating. Seriously, why would you think that?”

“You roomed together on the boat, and acted so close.” Connor was picking his words with care, Karrie could tell, but she wasn’t sure why.

“Yeah, we’re close. He’s my best friend. I trust him with my life.” Karrie shook her head. “Can’t a guy and a girl be friends without people assuming they’re together?”

[Mech]

He nodded. "Of course they can. I just assumed incorrectly that you were seeing each other." Connor has plenty of female friends, but of course they'd all been linked to him at least once as a partner in the scandal rags. Only true for Kitty and handful of others in five years, still it was an assumption made about all the women he called a close friend after his erruption.

"I'm sorry, I was doing the same thing everyone does to me it seems.. My apologies."

He leaned back, and a different smile turned up the corners of his mouth. "Still, I'm happy to be wrong in this instance."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie paused. Her instincts told her that there was some undertext here that she wasn’t immediately grasping. “Okaaaay,” she said, her voice uncertain. “I’m not sure… why?”

Connor stared at her.

“You’re giving that look.” Karrie’s sigh was heartfelt.

“What look?”

“The one that tells me that there’s something I should be getting, but that I’m completely clueless about.” Karrie gave a little shrug. “I’m just… well… I’m… it’s…” She looked up at the ceiling of the trailer, her cheeks turning red. When she spoke again, it was a whisper. “I don’t have a lot of experience with guys.”

[Mech]

"That's not a bad thing Karrie. it really isn't. I don't have any esperience with guys, despite what so much of the fanfiction, writte by women, I might add. seems to believe." His smile told her this was true. "Merely that if that picture of you kissing me gets out onto the net, as I'm sure it already has, I won't have to worry about Rob doing horrible things to me."

The kiss had surprised, him, quite pleasantly really. "That was an unexpected and pleasant surprise. If all surprises were like that, I'd seek them out more." That was pretty blatant, and he nodded. He did like her,a nd his desore to get to know her was genuine, but at the same time, she was a youner coworker. His interest wasn't purely platonic, mut mostly so at this point.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

He liked it! “Thanks,” Karrie said, her face lighting up with another furious blush. Her shy grin did more to confirm the secret she’d shared with Mech than her timid whisper. She really had little experience with men. Mech took it as the warning it was as Karrie tried to get her flushing under control.

Karrie wasn’t sure if she should be asking personal stuff or trying to crawl into his bed and kiss him some more. So instead, she attempted to converse. If Connor wanted to kiss her some more – and she definitely wanted him to! – then he’d let her know. That was the way it worked, right? In her fictions, Connor had always made the first move; she wasn’t sure how to make a first move. Oh, god. I’m hopeless. “So, uh… what’s next for you?”

[Mech]

"After we finish shooting this, probably a short break. The DSA doesn't have anything immediately pressing for my time, though I suppose I should put time in the office. I've been looking at a couple of scripts, one for a Western of all things. It looks interesting enough, and is something I've not done before."

"I'm at a point where I don't have anything planned. Unless there's another erruption of a higher power nova, or one that it's deemed imperative that the DSA recruit them, They don't have alot of use for me. There's been talk of a conference in the middle east, and I know the Saudi Arabian Prince personally invited me to come for a visit."

"I know the Army's been after me to do a recruitment video, but I am somewhat leery of doing that. How about you? What's the next big thing coming from the DSA think tank's darling native american scientist and prankster?"

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“A Western?” Karrie grinned as she pictured it. “You’ll look good on a horse. A big horse, but you’d look good – all heroic and dashing.” Not that it would be hard for Connor to look good doing anything. He’d look good covered in motor oil – Karrie cut off that through before she had a fantasy about Mech under her hood.

“My next big project is to rebuild the F-35 – again.” Karrie sighed a little. “It was done it once for the DSA, and now the Navy’s been begging Horst to let me have a crack at it. Of course, if I come up with something better than the Dragon for the Navy, the DSA gets it.” The DSA always got the best toys.

“You don’t sound too excited about it,” Connor observed.

Karrie shrugged. “The Dragon’s a fine plane. I feel like I’d be polishing a diamond. I’d rather be breaking new ground instead of tweaking something that’s already more than adequate for the job. It feels like... busy work.”

[Mech]

"Keeping you busy is something they might try, but I know you're smart enough that revamping a plane is going to use only a small modicum of your intelligence. Perhaps as a side Project, you could work on a plane that would really impress them, something easily mass produced, that would fly circles around the plane they're having you revamp, and be cheaper to produce."

He sighed. "Of course their handpicked contractors might not like such a thing."

"What sort of new ground breaking area would really interest you Karrie?"

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie was quiet for a moment. “I have two interests I’d like to pursue, that is new ground. First, I want to make gundams, though I don’t want to see war fought with them. I just wanna see if I can do it.” She was a bit shy about this; she would be crushed if Connor laughed at her dreams. If Rob laughed, he was just being an ass. But Connor laughing would be a rejection of her thoughts, invalidating them by the man she looked up to the most in the world.

“The other thing is to design and create the Valiant from Doctor Who.” Karrie grinned as she pulled her feet up and tucked them under her. “I mean, what girl doesn’t want to make a flying battle carrier?”

[Mech]

"Well, The gundams, at least things Like GM's or even Zakus would have potential construction applications. The problem, is unless you come up with some proprietary technology to guarantee they can't be made into weapons, once you unleash that particular genie, it will be impossible to control how it is applied."

"I'd love to see it too, personally. I used to dream of a world where we had such tools. The results of those subconscious and conscious desires has been made abundantly clear the last five years."

"As far as a battle carrier, The US might be interested in it, but the cost on such a thing has to be impressively massive."

"A dream to follow, and a goal to shoot for, to be sure, but it is going to be hard to sell them on it."

He smiled. "Unless you want to try to find a way to make a Nimitz or Reagan class Carrier fly. That I would absolutely love to see. You know a real version, not me shapeshifted into it, a practical model. That was one of the coolest toys in SHIELD"s toybox.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“Bah, I shouldn’t have to sell them on an idea as cool as the Valiant. The awesome should be clear to them. Bureaucrats!” The last word was a curse.

Connor had to smile. Karrie was a creative genius, but like most of them, the more practical side of things, like costs, were just annoyances. “Even if you were to fund this yourself, the cost is prohibitive.”

“Maybe I should start a Kickstarter for it.” Karrie said suddenly. “I’ll just need to calculate the costs for it. First I’m going to need a carrier to make fly. That would be a good way to cut costs and show the… Navy or Air Force that it’s doable. The benefits of having carrier support anywhere in the world would be enormous. I’ll need to lighten the plates, or find a way to soup-up the engines. Maybe I can force a hyper-combustion reaction that will overcome the weight of the carrier’s armor. That’ll save on force field construction costs.” Suddenly, she stopped, flushing a little. “Sorry, I was getting carried away there. I’m here with you, so I shouldn’t be trying to work right now.”

[Mech]

"I don't mind it helps me to think of other things at times too."

"If you could lighten the plates without compromising protection...That would be the best. This is not a cheap endeavor. We don't have the resources yet, once you can prove it on a working small scale model, I'm sure they would see the benefits. But they'll want to heavily protect their investment."

"I don't believe they'd give you sole control of such an endeavor either. That's not how DC works."

"Hypercombustion would be great, especially if you could streamline it and perfect it. I think they might balk at a flying nuclear carrier, unless you convert to fusion with a magnetic bottle, though that's a whole can of worms."

He smiled.

"We could continue that discussion over dinner, sometime if you like. Or any other topic you'd like to discuss."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“Dinner, sure.” Karrie smiled, casually agreeing. Then her brain reminded her that ‘dinner’ and especially the phrase ‘over dinner’ was used to refer to a date. “Wait, uh, you mean… that is… um a date? Are you asking me on a date?”

“If you’d like it to be, it can-”

“Yes! Oh, yes… I mean, yeah, sure. Sounds cool.” Karrie clearly was trying to be casual but Connor could really tell she liked the idea. “Dinner sounds cool.” Her heart was racing and her face was flushed as she accepted his offer. She definitely wasn’t thinking about airborne carriers anymore! Now her entire focus was on Connor, on glorious, beautiful Connor. “When and where?”