Can We Say Awkward? [Church]

[Allison Texas]

Date: January 5th, 2025 // Time: 12:30 pm local time // Location: Somewhere in the plains of Oklahoma on an Interstate highway

The red head was out for a joy ride...the first one she'd had in a long ass time.

Never mind the coppers, she was out on an open high way in Oklahoma in early January listening to music from her helmet as she rode her motorcycle (a black Kawasaki Ninja) keeping an eye out for potential threats or targets, whichever might pop up first. She wasn't anticipating any action for a while, and she was trying to cool herself down from the unpleasant memories she dealt with from the Spartan experiments and the AI Project.

The Spartan Suit experiment had been interesting, to say the least, but things went wrong when the AI Project hosted out of the country started up.

She had changed to something less than human during that time, and sometimes the memories were bitter sweet. She didn't care for most humans anyway, but the memories of pain she endured from trying to wrestle with Omega was certainly bitter. She did things she didn't remember from being a fit of blind, savage rage. Most of her memories of those rage fits were represented by blackness in her mind or little flashes of images that Omega taunted her with.

Thus, Tex was out and about on her motorcycle, no vehicle in sight for miles on the open Oklahoma plains. She was taking one of the Interstate highways to go back west, where the others from the project might still be roaming. At this point she was more interested in finding the Reds and Blues, though she supposed she wouldn't mind finding some of the Freelancers either -- but she had a feeling she wouldn't be able to trust all the Freelancers with after what happened. MECH was interested in all of them for the AI's and their advanced skill sets. The Reds and Blues were certainly not of their interest and were merely representatives of technological endeavors needing to be retrieved by the government...or in this case, some of the Freelancers interested in making money too. Which technically included Tex, but ultimately she was only interested in finding on or two people in particular, as much as she hated one, if not both of them.

She had been searching for weeks.

They all had known how to scatter to save their asses, that was for sure.

[Private Leonard L. Church]

A sigh was heard from his lips as he walked on the land that wasn't near the interstate. He knew better and would think himself stupid otherwise. Church had his sniper rifle slung onto his back, his pistol in it's holster. Leonard looked to the a boulder that was there a couple feet away and hid behind it. The soldier took off his helmet, his hair shining a navy blue color to them and took a breather.

Closing his blue eyes, he remembered bits and piece of what happened weeks ago but couldn't add them up. They were off events of what looked like him holding his head in pain, as if something was torturing him. But after that bit of memory, he would got out of that memory and shake the memories away. They were painful for Church and couldn't bare the pain. "Damnit...I hate those memories. God. Does this planet really hate me? I did nothing to it. I'm the worst soldier there is." Church muttered to himself. Soon the soldier looked at the blue sky and sighed. He had started thinking on where he should go that he could take a break and rest up his muscles for a few days but didn't know where to go. He could only remember being at BWC for so long, Church had never seen the outside world. Not once. So now he thought of it as him being a mouse in a maze or a domestic dog fending for itself with no protect or home to go to anymore.

Leonard Church had felt himself going slightly crazy without someone around to keep him sane. He would find some of his teammates but didn't know where they were. Not even Tex. But he felt if he went looking for her, she would probably the other freelancers or other BWC members with her. So this left Church with a bad decision and just stay lone wolf till he ran into any blues he knew though annoying as fuck.

Soon Church put on his helmet and stood, deciding to walk on. He had a bounty on his head and couldn't let himself be caught by the BWC.

[Allison Texas]

Contrary to Church's suspicions, Tex was completely alone. She had no reason to team up with any of the other Freelancers for now. She had her objectives from MECH to follow from Jack and MECH's leader, whose name would be secret to most other than the Autobots and some governmental entities. Such objectives did not include working with any of the Freelancers unless it benefited her in tracking down a Cybertronian or attacking multiple ones. They were hungry for their technology, and would get it even if it meant killing a few...or many of them.

Church was right about one thing though, they WERE alone.

Her main task for now was finding the Autobot base, so her duties had nothing to do with bounties...the other Freelancers could fight over the teams' heads. The money offered by MECH was good. Real good.

She wondered if, perhaps, she did find Church, if she should hand him over to MECH. They could take care of him as they did with her, and his bounty would be off the hook. She could even stage a kill if she deemed it necessary. The same could go for any of the other team members, MECH felt responsible for keeping their tech secret since some of the crew were ex Black Water Corporation AND Black River members linked to the earlier "KARR project". Mech was an interesting group of people, Tex had to give them that, and she was thankful she could keep her job because of them, so she owed them her duties even if the pay wasn't as good. Somehow Tex always managed to get on the good side.

Tex detected a signal off in the distance a couple miles away from the highway as the landscape began to change gradually due to heading West and slightly North West. Picking up speed with a throaty growl from her motorcycle's engine, she sped on, going above 100mph. Because of the fairly gradually sloping terrain, the black motorcycle and black armored person would be easy to see. There was no use trying to go into a stealth mode since she couldn't cloak her motorcycle, unless she wanted to look like a Cybertronian perhaps...

[Private Leonard L. Church]

Church felt his legs feeling a bit stiff from the walk but he had a break a couple minutes ago. He looked around and noticed a signal miles away. He cursed as he looked around, unsure where this signal was coming from. Looking off toward the landscape between him and the highway and noticed it had changed. Leonard also noticed that he could see a speeding black figure in the distance, and that this was where the signal was coming from.

Leonard gradually veered off toward the his right to get away from the signal but didn't run. He'd know that if that was someone that found him, they wouldn't think he noticed them. So by veering off, they would probably think he was just going somewhere. He knew how to keep people off his tracks.

The soldier continued his route and continued his walk. 'Son of a....I need to find an abandoned shelter and soon. My legs are hurting my hell...' Church thought as he grumbled.

[Allison Texas]

In the distance off to Church's 10 o'clock position, a somewhat small tornado began to develop. This would likely force him to move towards the highway where he could take cover at the lowest point if the whirling wind of fury moved his way.

Luckily it was forming well out of his way, but Church would definitely notice the changing winds.

Tex noticed it pretty quickly as well, watching it as she moved. She hoped she would miss it, but she wanted to intercept that signal. Well this terrain was pretty flat, but it was also starting to rain heavily within the arm of the forming twister. To bother or not to bother? Let them get tossed by the twister if they couldn't hide, yes?

The motorcyclist was debating. She didn't want to abandon her motorcycle, but if someone else with the Spartan armor was out there, it would explain the signal she was tracking. She decided to keep on driving, because she didn't want to be sucked up by a tornado either without any metal objects around to cling to by the aid of the special magnets on the boots of the Spartan Suit.

[Private Leonard L. Church]

Church noticed the changing winds and looked to his 10 o'clock position. This was just his luck too. "Jesus fucking Christ! This planet seems to hate me!" Church shouted. He then decided to run for his life and sadly had to go toward the highway. With Church's legs being stiff and stuborn, it was hard for him to get the speed he wanted. But he had to push the limit to get away from the winds of the oncoming tornado. He hoped that he was able to get to the highway before the tornado came onto him.

What he didn't notice was that Tex was nearby and that she was the signal he was detecting.

[Allison Texas]

By the time Tex got closer to intercepting Church's signal, Church would see the motorcycle zip towards him with a rush of wind. An outstretched black armored arm literally reached out to try and grab him, hoping to snatch him up and sling him onto what room she still had on her motorcycle. It could take the weight of two armored people. Well, supposedly. MECH made sure their vehicles were well maintained and even modified to an extent.

She knew what her arm was reaching for. Despite Omega's grumblings, she tried to pick him up if he didn't avoid the grab in fear or instinctively of her. "Hello, CHURCH." Tex greeted, sounding sarcastically unenthusiastic yet in truth, she wasn't sure how to react to having suddenly found him, of all people - out here, in the middle of frakking nowhere.

[Private Leonard L. Church]

When Chruch was running toward the highway, he noticed a motorcycle rushing toward him and a black armored person on the motorcycle reaching it's arm toward him. Once hearing the voice, Leonard Church knew who it was and utterly surprised to see her. 'Tex? What is she doing here? Was she the signal I noticed?' Church asked him, but right now wasn't the time to hesitate, he had acted fast. Church reached out to grab her hand as she zoomed toward him.

[Allison Texas]

There wasn't much to say as she awaited his reaction/response. She was more focused on staying away from that tornado as it touched down and grew in size. The winds kicked up and as Church occupied the rear of the motorcycle seat, Tex leaned forward a little to balance the weight further and put more power into the throttle to overcome the intensifying winds. She liked a little challenge as always, and she certainly wasn't fretting! Some hail started to batter on their armor as they began to cross the general path of the tornado, but it was short-lived.

If the rain had been lighter, Tex would have wanted to take off her helmet to feel the rain and wind at least for a bit in order to get some air and add a little sensation to the long drive, but doing so when it was hailing for the moment was certainly not a pleasant idea.

[Private Leonard L. Church]

As Church occupied the rear seat of the motorcycle as he held onto Alison, being slightly confused on how Tex just to so happen be there when he was trouble. He never got it. Leonard thought it was coincidents, but knew it couldn't have been that. But it was an idea in his head. Or Tex always managed to come at just the right moment and had been watching him. Well, there went his thoughts on staying off the radar. "Tex? How did you find me?! Where are we going?" Church asked, still seeming a little dazed. This was nothing major however.

Church noticed it was hailing now, looking down as if looking at Tex's back. But he was actually glancing around to see what was going on besides the rain, the tornado. There just happen to be hail. He was greatfull the armor came in handy too. Though his armor actually was never tested in battle situations and such, she now saw this as a test of how long the armor could stand out while in hail. It was nifty challenge to him at least.

[Allison Texas]

"We don't want an armored human who is actually an AI to be snatched by the government, do we? I'm taking you to MECH. You'll be safe with them." When he saw that they took care of the Freelancers, he would likely be more willing to stay. The government wanted to paten the design of the armor, but the only ones savvy enough with the technology and knowledge of their history were MECH. If the government really wanted them, they would strike a contract down the road so their armor could be manufactured and used in the military. But for now, they were just wanting to retrieve them, dead or alive so the Alpha was certainly safer with them, even if Maine was around. Tex and hopefully some of the other Freelancers would be willing to keep Maine distanced from him whenever at the base.

"Or we could feed him to the wolves, the DECEPTICONS, use his scraps for new parts! Fresh meat, I like the sound of that idea more. Recycling at it's best. It's better than letting MAINE have his way with him!" Omega suggested ruefully with his typical violent needs. Omega spoke up through the helmet, deciding to not activate his holographic image for now.

"Ignore him, he's just a violent idiot douchebag." Tex replied with an unamused sigh. "Shut your trap Omega, no one likes you."

[Private Leonard L. Church]

Church was confused at first of what Alison was talking about. 'Me? An A.I.? What the hell is Tex talking about? She must be on something here.' Church thought with a confused look from inside his helmet. He wondered what he had recently missed within the last couple who-knows-how-long weeks. Leonard didn't remember MECH at all. Church guessed that it was because of the memories he somehow didn't have. There were so many fucking different possibilities, and Church only knew little.

Leonard suddenly a evil-like voice that was giving suggestions to Tex on what to with the soldier. Church felt edgy and tense at the suggestions. But glad Tex wasn't going to let that happen. But what were these Decepti-thingys. Church was so confused now, he felt his mind was going to explode. "What? What do mean by the government snatching me up? What's MECH? Who are these....Decepti...thingys?" Leonard asked. He had so many questions for Tex that he didn't know about.

[Allison Texas]

Tex was silent for a moment as she drove, considering the confusion laden in Church's voice. The Freelancers all knew what he was, but the simulation teams were utterly oblivious. "You're an AI Church. I know it seems absolutely crazy. You wouldn't have remembered how it all began because of the experiments that took place with the Freelancers." To salvage what was left of the Alpha's personality, the Director had given him a body. This was after her early training scenarios with the Freelancers and the bio technology experiments they had done and achieved on her.

There were some things about their past that even Tex didn't know, and these were the sort of things she would only be able to find out from Jack Hurst if she knew to ask the right questions. "MECH is an organization that focuses on enhancing and developing technology to protect humans from aliens that have recently started inhabiting the planet. They are divided into two factions and the evil faction is known as the Decepticons. A fitting name."

[Private Leonard L. Church]

Leonard Church listened to what Tex had to say. For some reason in that think skull of his, he would always listen to Alison to an extent. To what extent, he didn't know. Church had never figured it out yet. But as he listened to Tex, memories flickered in his head that revealed to be a Colbalt looking A.I. that looked similar to him, but without armor. The A.I. seemed to act like him as well. But then the memory flash to the incident at the BWC and Church came back to reality.

Church had come back to reality at the right for Tex had started talking about MECH. He guessed this was from she understood about it all but he hoped now maybe they had the answer to his memory loss. Maybe that is. "So let me try to get this right Tex. You say Im the A.I known as Alpha. And that MECH is this organization to protect humans from these aliens inhabiting Earth. The Evil side is the Decepticons. Then what is the good Faction?" Asked Church as he tried to let this information soak into his brain.

[Allison Texas]

The motorcycle swerved a bit as they caught a left quartering tail wind. The twister was moving behind them across the highway, and luckily they had driven past 'no man's land' aka 'the death zone' thanks to the fact that Tex was driving so fast. Now they were in rain again and Tex could see a normal horizon up ahead, which yield a sea of puffy alto cumulus clouds and a few low status clouds.

She took off her helmet momentarily once they were clear of the more intense winds to get some fresh air. Her red hair was tied up in a pony tail. Currently straightened, it woudl stay out of the way for the most part, other than the bangs. She couldn't exactly breathe in because of the high windspeeds, but the cool air still felt nice.

"The Autobots, I've been told. Both their hide outs are unknown, but they're out there. They have fascinating technology that we're trying to acquire. They hired me and some of the other Freelancers. In return, we get decent pay and maintenance." Obviously the deal was hard to pass up, and Tex hoped Church was interested in joining them. "I merely figured it was better to offer you the opportunity to have a place to go to, rather than be out wandering to get hunted by the government. Or get tossed by a tornado." she replied, finishing the statement with some bland humor.