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verdigrisprowl · 7 years

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Operation: SPIRNGO. Part Two.

Soundwave hosts another meeting with Whirl, Prowl, and Tarantulas, this time to finalize the plans to repair and upgrade Springer.

The current plan: they’re going to infiltrate Debris, take out Roadbuster, and set up false readings so it looks like Springer is still in his berth; and then they’re going to bridge him to a locked-up lab in a half-abandoned Decepticon base where (they think) experimentation was done on how to create Phase Sixers, so they can use the old equipment to bond their small ununtrium sample to Springer’s torso.

They’re moving out within a week.

ItsyBitsySpyers 6:54 pm With Tarantulas too isolated, Prowl too imprisoned, and Whirl too topsy-turvy to host any meetings, it fell to Soundwave to once again provide the meeting place.

So there he sat, waiting at his usual Business Table, hands politely crossed and door locked because everyone coming could bridge themselves in. Or come as an avatar. Whichever. Whirl 6:57 pm Whirl bridges in near the ceiling, since he has to arrive in alt-mode, but he angles neatly towards the floor and lands rather neatly by the Business Table. He gives Soundwave a single nod, sits, and then just waits, silently. ItsyBitsySpyers 6:57 pm Whirl gets a single quiet nod as well. FakeProwl 7:01 pm Prowl's avatar appears exactly when the meeting is scheduled to start, and not a second earlier. If there's a seat left at the table that isn't next to Whirl, that's the one he takes. And then silently waits as well. ItsyBitsySpyers 7:03 pm Prowl gets a hello ping in private in addition to his nod because habit is habit. Now all they need is Tarantulas. FakeProwl 7:03 pm He doesn't move, and doesn't glance up from the random spot on the table he's decided to focus on; but he does silently return the ping. Whirl 7:06 pm After waiting a few moments he lifts his head, looks around, and eventually turns to Soundwave. "Is Tarantulas coming?" He doesn't actually sound annoyed. He doesn't sound anything; his voice is flat and dronelike. Tarantulas 7:07 pm Speak of the devil! There's a ka-clunk as someone tries to open the doors from outside. Then comes some knocking, which quickly escalates into banging. Soundwave gets a flurry of pings from Tarantulas. ItsyBitsySpyers 7:08 pm Soundwave just vents softly and puts his face in one hand before waving the other in the general direction of the doors. They're unlocked now. FakeProwl 7:09 pm Prowl glances at the door, but doesn't move to get it. Soundwave's place. Soundwave will get it. Tarantulas 7:12 pm Tarantulas goes to bang on the door some more, since Soundwave didn't ping him back, and he ends up stumbling and falling forward through the opening doors. Good job, spide. At least he manages not to fall COMPLETELY flat on his face, but it's definitely not a dignified entrance. ItsyBitsySpyers 7:13 pm Soundwave just. Shakes his helm into his hand and tries not to laugh. Serious topic, serious people, serious meeting. Also it's rude. Whirl 7:13 pm He swivels his head to stare, and then just nods towards the Business Table. Time to sit, spider. FakeProwl 7:15 pm A glance; and then it's back to that interesting spot on the table. Tarantulas 7:15 pm ...It would have been less awkward if they HAD laughed. Erk. Fluffed and ruffled, Tarantulas weaves his way over, hovers, then takes a seat where he can best half-curl-up in shame.

"Why did you lock the Primus-forsaken doors!?" ItsyBitsySpyers 7:17 pm [[Because he expected everyone would bridge in for secrecy reasons.]] He looks up and puts his hand back on the table. [[Never mind that. Are you ready, or did you need more time?]] Whirl 7:19 pm "I think we all waited long enough," he says flatly. "All right. I've touched base with Tarantulas and Soundwave. Where are you at, Prowl?" Tarantulas 7:20 pm A huff from Tarantulas. He certainly hadn't thought that through. FakeProwl 7:22 pm He blinks slowly. What, him? What was expected out of him? "I contributed everything to Tarantulas." A sideways nod. "What do YOU want?" He doesn't mean for it to sound aggressive. He honestly doesn't know what Whirl's expecting to get out of him. Whirl 7:26 pm "To make sure we're ready." Whirl returns his attention to Soundwave and Tarantulas. "All right. Tarantulas had a little talk with me about the procedure." A "little talk" that lasted several hours, courtesy of Whirl's relentless grilling.

"And Soundwave and I have gone over the security. We can get to him, and we can do what we need to do. You said we were taking him somewhere, right? What's the story on that?" Tarantulas 7:28 pm OH. Yeah. That. "HAVE you found somewhere with a sufficient chamber?" ItsyBitsySpyers 7:29 pm Soundwave holds a feeler up in protest.

[[He can -almost- do what he needs to do. But more on that after this.]]

Turns his head to look at Prowl. Whirl 7:30 pm Nods. Noted, Soundwave. FakeProwl 7:34 pm Prowl meant, specifically, what does Whirl want that Prowl can actually contribute.

But Whirl eventually got around to asking a question that Prowl could actually offer an answer to. (And then EVERYONE was looking at him. Primus.) "I have. The Constructicons were able to locate a Decepticon base which contains a lab that, while not actually the site of the creation of a Phase Sixer, WAS run by Rossum shortly before the first Phase Sixer was created. An investigation of the lab that was under Rossum's command revealed that it contains equipment that's similar to what Tarantulas has theorized would be necessary for the procedure. It's likely the Decepticons experimented with a prototype of the project there. The Constructicons were able to find this lab because they know someone who's still stationed at the base, but they tell me that shortly before the Surge, the base was reduced to a skeleton crew, and the unused labs are locked up." Whirl 7:36 pm "So, there are still 'Cons actively there? Should we take care of them before we settle in? Skeleton crew shouldn't be hard to put down." Tarantulas 7:37 pm Tarantulas looked instantly concerned. "There'll be mechs there in the building with us? Is that what we were planning on?" Fret fret. No risking his precious adopted son. ItsyBitsySpyers 7:37 pm [[Leave them be. If they do not harm us, they do not need to be harmed.]] FakeProwl 7:38 pm "I'd rather avoid them. Skeleton crew or not, any fight would risk damaging the equipment. Besides, the lab we'll be using is at the far end of a wing that's locked and not patrolled. I have a map." Tarantulas 7:39 pm "Do you have the specs for the lab as well?" To toss Tarantulas's way, of course. Whirl 7:40 pm He looks to Soundwave, briefly, and then to Prowl. There is no expression on what passes for his face. "...all right." "We'll all need that map, just in case, obviously. So, we've got a place to take him to do what we have to do--Soundwave, you said you had something else to add?" FakeProwl 7:42 pm "I've got the message that the Constructicons got from the person they asked about the labs. It doesn't contain specs, but it does contain a few pictures. And the map, of course." ItsyBitsySpyers 7:42 pm [[He will want that.]] FakeProwl 7:43 pm Ping to everyone. Have a map of a top-secret Decepticon base-slash-military research facility. "This map is, of course, classified." Tarantulas 7:43 pm A slightly disappointed noise from Tarantulas and some muttering about having to improvise, but he doesn't seem too upset. Soundwave 7:43 pm [[And, yes. He does have something to add.]] [[First: He has gathered most of the programs and trinkets he will need in order to deal with the majority of their security measures. What he still lacks is the medical data. He knows -how- to feed their equipment false readings. He does not know what those false readings should -be,- and we cannot afford unnecessary delays.]] Turns to stare Tarantulas down. [[You will give him what you have on Springer. This is not debatable.]] Whirl 7:50 pm He also turns to stare at Tarantulas. He’s not staring him -down- but he is joining the stare. Tarantulas 7:51 pm A slight squint from Tarantulas while he hesitates, then: “…What - what exactly do you need? Which readings?” Prowl 7:52 pm “It might be easier to steal that data from the Wreckers. Tarantulas would have no data on what readings Springer would give off now, with his current array of upgrades and mods.” Tarantulas 7:53 pm (False, but Prowl didn’t have to know that.) Soundwave 7:55 pm [[If he knows enough to plan the surgeries with a minimum of on-the-spot learning and to Whirl’s satisfaction, he knows enough.]] And Soundwave knows Tarantulas has some sense of what a modern Springer is like. He’s known that from near to the start. Incoming requirement list. [[But if it would put you at ease, he will see if he can recover something without being traced.]] Whirl 7:57 pm “Better to get them both, right? Cover all possibilities.” Prowl 7:57 pm “The fact that he knows enough that he’ll be able to quickly fill in the gaps of what he doesn’t know once he DOES have access to Springer’s body doesn’t mean he knows enough sight unseen to be able to fool whatever scanners are hooked up to Springer. Better to have both.” Soundwave 7:58 pm [[Both, then. But he insists on the base now.]] Prowl 7:59 pm A nod. Fine by him. Tarantulas 8:00 pm Tarantulas receives the list, skims it, groans internally, and slouches a little more. “I - yes, I can provide what you need. I’ll send you a packet when we’re done here and I have a moment to sift through his medical files.” ItsyBitsySpyers 8:39 pm [[Let him think, now. Security measures, medical data, location, surgery, ununtrium, Ravage and Roadbuster's stasis, potential threats... was there more?]] FakeProwl 8:40 pm It takes Prowl several seconds to process that. (Several seconds more than it should.) And then, he turns to give Soundwave a blank look. "Why are Ravage and Roadbuster in stasis?" Tarantulas 8:41 pm Roadbuster? W-what? Tarantulas totally forgot Roadbuster wasn't dead in this universe, but - what? Whirl 8:43 pm "Not Ravage. Just Roadbuster." Whirl pauses, glances to Soundwave, and then back to Prowl. "Y'know, maybe we should just begin at the beginning. Run through everything as we know it?" ItsyBitsySpyers 8:43 pm Soundwave motions to Whirl. By all means. It'll save him the time of writing. FakeProwl 8:44 pm For a moment his gaze wavers back and forth between Soundwave and Whirl as he tries to figure out which one of them is about to explain, before he gives up and looks back at the table. Whirl 8:44 pm He cycles a long, deep breath as he gathers his thoughts. "All right. This is the plan as I understand it:

"First thing we need to do is get into Debris and get Springer without being detected. I've told Soundwave everything I know about the security, but we gotta be prepared to think on our feet, because it's several years old." He glances up and pauses when he sees Prowl staring at his table.

Whirl separates his claws and cranes his neck forward, thumping a single one on the table in front of him. "Prowl. Pay attention." FakeProwl 8:48 pm Prowl jerked back from the thump. "I'm—? I am?" Whirl 8:50 pm Whirl stays that way for a moment, his helm thrust forward, staring blankly. "And once we're inside, we need to isolate Springer." As he speaks, he gradually straightens back into a normal position.

"Odds are good it's going to be Roadbuster assigned to looking after him. We need him out of the picture, so Soundwave suggested we knock him out while he's asleep--to make sure he doesn't wake up before we want him to."

At last, he interlaces his claws again. "We've got Ravage on that." Tarantulas 8:52 pm (Good thing Soundwave's not in Tarantulas's head right now. There are definitely memories of Roadbuster's last moments flickering through his mind.) FakeProwl 8:55 pm It takes much longer than it did for Whirl to straighten up for Prowl to stop leaning away from him. "How?" ItsyBitsySpyers 8:59 pm [[Frenzy is... acquiring... some emergency anesthetics from the hospital. Ours,]] he adds, in the hopes it'll keep Prowl from protesting much. [[It should be simple enough for Ravage to sneak into Roadbuster's quarters and install them. They're designed to be user-friendly.]] Whirl 9:01 pm "Mostly, it's just for insurance. I'd rather not fight anyone on Debris if we can avoid it." Especially Roadbuster. But he's not saying that aloud. FakeProwl 9:03 pm A moment of silence (too long a moment) as Prowl contemplated that. "... It's extremely risky. If Roadbuster detects Ravage before he gets the anesthesia in, or if the anesthesia doesn't kick in quickly enough once it's injected, he could kill him." ItsyBitsySpyers 9:04 pm [[It is.]] Believe you him, he thought about it. A lot. [[But if Roadbuster comes to check on his charge without us realizing it, the three of us will be in more danger.]] FakeProwl 9:09 pm "So why not send somebody who isn't at risk?" Prowl asked. "If one of you with a holomatter projector installed is on Debris, I can project through it. I can resize my avatar and recolor it to camouflage with the background, and if Roadbuster DOES detect me—what can he do to me? Pop my hologram?" Whirl 9:10 pm Whirl tilts his head slowly, but doesn't say anything for now. The others can speak up first. Tarantulas 9:10 pm "That's - that certainly sounds doable." Better than what Tarantulas was about to suggest, a.k.a. that he should do it instead. "I've been meaning to update your avatar anyhow, a few edits should be a piece of oil cake." FakeProwl 9:13 pm Edits? Hm. Doesn't matter now, he supposes. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:16 pm Soundwave just. Stares. At Prowl. For a good long little bit. Roadbuster can do an awful lot of things that will permanently send Prowl away if he squawks about the attempt to the wrong mech.

On the other hand, it means the chance he'll lose a deployer while helping Prowl's creation and a known enemy of Unicron's will be slashed by at least a third.

Deployers come before others. And it's. Prowl offering that is--

He looks down at the table and bobs his helm.

[[Thank you.]] ItsyBitsySpyers 9:18 pm And then, belatedly:

[[...If Whirl agrees.]] FakeProwl 9:18 pm A small nod. Whirl 9:18 pm Whirl's perspective on the matter is somewhat similar. Moreso than the sound logistics of the plan, along with the fact that Prowl can't really do anything to Roadbuster while he's a hologram are good reasons to agree--not to mention the fact that Prowl can change his avatar in a way that could not only make him unidentifiable, but invisible.

But at the end of the day, he's more inclined to be agreeable for the simple fact that he likes Ravage, and doesn't want him to get hurt. This message has been removed. "Yeah. Sounds good." These words are delivered with the same dronelike flatness that every other word has been. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:20 pm His helm turns just enough to the side to make it clear he's talking to Whirl, but he's mostly still looking down at the table.

[[...Thank you, too.]] Whirl 9:21 pm His antenna twitches, but that's the extent of his response. "Right. So, after we knock Roadbuster out, Soundwave's got some plans for the surveillance." FakeProwl 9:23 pm His lowered gaze redirects slightly in Soundwave's direction. Tarantulas 9:24 pm Tarantulas leans slightly toward Prowl as an aside. "Don't forget to shuffle your avatar specs to me sometime soon, then?" FakeProwl 9:25 pm A small nod. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:34 pm What? Yes. Right. He does.

[[...Trade secrets. As long as you are all quiet, wait to enter until he has cleared you, and do not leave the designated area, he should be able to hide our entrance from them. They will be unable to see, hear, or sneak up on us while he is within his own frame.]]

[[Do not disturb -anything- you are not responsible for touching while he is in Springer's mind. He cannot be there and account for other mechs' errors at the same time.]]

And the deployers can only handle so much. They don't communicate with different systems the same way he does. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:35 pm [[He must also be last to leave.]] FakeProwl 9:36 pm Do what he's told to do, don't do anything he isn't told to do. Simple. A nod. Whirl 9:37 pm Whirl also nods. "Right. You got it." And now his helm slooowly turns to regard Tarantulas. He stares. Your turn to agree. Tarantulas 9:39 pm Geez, what's with all the STARING today?

"But of course." ItsyBitsySpyers 9:40 pm Well, for one thing, he expects Tarantulas to be first to mess up the "don't touch anything" rule. Whirl 9:41 pm Nods. "Good. So, after we secure Springer, we're going to move him, yes? To this place of yours, Prowl?" Tarantulas 9:41 pm "It's hardly HIS place, hyeh." FakeProwl 9:42 pm Is there any need to reply to Tarantulas's comment? He supposes not. Everyone knows the place doesn't belong to Prowl. "Yes." Whirl 9:43 pm "And we're going to not only fix him, but basically soup him up so that he's a lot harder to put down next time." He knows there's more detail to this, but he already went over it with Tarantulas. Tarantulas 9:45 pm "NEXT time? There will be no next time." Whirl 9:45 pm "That's the idea." FakeProwl 9:45 pm Tarantulas didn't directly answer Whirl's question. "Yes." There, question answered directly. Tarantulas 9:46 pm Tarantulas nods. Whirl 9:47 pm "And after that... if everything goes well, he'll be good as new. Now, are we planning on keeping him under and returning him to Debris? Or are you lot going to try and talk to him after? What's your plan?" ItsyBitsySpyers 9:48 pm [[If Springer returns to Debris, it cannot be with his help. He will be too tired to ensure the same level of security.]] Test runs. Lots and lots of test runs. FakeProwl 9:50 pm "There's no point in trying to sneak him back in—if we're knocking Roadbuster out, once he wakes up they'll know that something happened to Springer. That's an argument neither for nor against returning him to Debris; but if we DO return him to Debris, there's no need to worry about maintaining the same level of stealth." Whirl 9:50 pm "So the question is: do you want them knowing you were involved?" FakeProwl 9:52 pm "That's a completely separate question. But I see no benefit to their knowing of our involvement and multiple benefits to their not knowing." ItsyBitsySpyers 9:52 pm [[Springer will know he was involved. There is no way around that. But he would prefer the others did not.]] FakeProwl 9:52 pm "He'll remember?" ItsyBitsySpyers 9:53 pm [[He might. Even if Springer doesn't remember, he -will- be standing there.]] FakeProwl 9:54 pm "So blindfold him." Tarantulas 9:54 pm Tarantulas gives a small laugh. Whirl 9:54 pm "I'm not going to be there when he wakes up." ItsyBitsySpyers 9:55 pm Soundwave huffs softly.

[[He doubts a Wrecker will take well to being blindfolded in a room filled with strangers.]]

[[Where will you be, Whirl?]] FakeProwl 9:56 pm "It would be best for none of us to be there when he wakes up. However, we do need to ensure he CAN wake up before we return him. Is there any reason why we can't wake him up just long enough to ensure that he'll be lucid, and then immediately anesthetize him?" He tilts his lowered gaze slightly toward Tarantulas. Medical questions are his field. Whirl 9:56 pm "Nearby, maybe. Just outside the door. Near enough to make sure you don't do anything drastic. But not... there. With him." Tarantulas 9:58 pm Tarantulas hums. "No, I - I suppose there's no reason why not. But -" Nngh. That's the last thing Tarantulas wants to do. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:00 pm [[That would work even better. He is fine with that.]] Thank Primus. He'll have to try to obscure his mental projection, and that'll make him even more tired, but... at least he won't have to fight off a Wrecker who knows an ex-Decepticon has been in his head. Whirl 10:02 pm "As long as it doesn't do any damage, I've got no problems. So, just to clarify--I'm a little foggy here--you're going to verify that he -can- wake up, and assuming he's all good, where do you plan to leave him...?" FakeProwl 10:03 pm "I suppose we might as well open a bridge to Debris and roll him through. Either that, or find a safe abandoned facility leave him in, and comm Debris with the coordinates so they can go pick him up." Tarantulas 10:03 pm "Can I -" Tarantulas starts, then stops. "What - what if -" ....No, he shouldn't. Damn it all. Whirl 10:04 pm "What?" Tarantulas 10:06 pm Tarantulas fudges what he was going to say. "There's - there's no way to follow up on him medically, should something happen - I think - he should stay in - in our custody." Whirl 10:06 pm "We'll return him to Wrecker custody." "They'll handle it from there." FakeProwl 10:07 pm "As much as I'd prefer for us to be able to safely follow up on him medically, we'd be essentially keeping him prisoner while he recovers. That's unacceptable. Returning him is the best option. If need be, we can spy on him to ensure that everything's going well." ItsyBitsySpyers 10:08 pm [[...He can leave something for that.]] Whirl 10:08 pm Whirl nods at Prowl. That's reassuring to hear, even if he only sort of believes Prowl's being genuine. "Besides, Springer's a huge public figure. Once he's back up, word'll get out. His recovery's not going to likely be a secret thing--no." "No, Soundwave. We don't need to spy on them after this. We're already pushing it." Tarantulas 10:09 pm "He - a prolonged stay could be voluntary! With a backup plan for if he chose not to remain." There's a tiny bit of a whine in his voice. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:09 pm ...All right. He'll bow to Whirl on that one. Whirl 10:10 pm And now he returns to staring at Tarantulas, his helm thrusting forward again. "No." FakeProwl 10:11 pm "For his stay to be voluntary, he'd have to know who's keeping him. Not only does everyone in this room except for you not want that, but Soundwave would be endangered by it." Tarantulas 10:12 pm This message has been removed. FakeProwl 10:13 pm He turns toward Whirl. "I DO think we should spy on him, if only for a bit. We don't necessarily need to bug him but we need to know if something does go wrong that only we know how to fix. If there ARE complications, there's no way Debris would willingly release that knowledge." Whirl 10:14 pm His optic contracts a bit, then expands. Then contracts again. It's anyone's guess what THAT means. "...you have a point. But if you do this, then I get the same info you do. All of it." Tarantulas 10:14 pm "But we wouldn't NEED to spy on him if he were in custody, which I'm - there's certainly a way we could work out such a thing." More a question than a statement. Whirl 10:16 pm "Out of the question. He belongs with the other Wreckers. End of story." FakeProwl 10:16 pm "We're not going to keep him captive a second longer than is absolutely necessary to repair and upgrade him." FakeProwl 10:18 pm To Whirl, he nods. "You'll get the same info." Prowl isn't even sure if he's telling the truth. (And certainly nobody else would be able to read that off of him; for someone with an actual, fully-functioning face, he's been no more expressive than Whirl to night, either physically or verbally.) Whether or not he's telling the truth doesn't matter; in either case, agreeing to Whirl's terms is the only acceptable answer. Tarantulas 10:19 pm "We're - for goodness' sake, we're kidnapping him, performing invasive surgery on him, invading his MIND, and then knocking him back into stasis so he doesn't even know who did it - the LEAST we can do is - is -" ItsyBitsySpyers 10:20 pm [[Do what? Tell him what we did so the list of suspects can be immediately narrowed to the most obvious?]] FakeProwl 10:21 pm "We're doing what we have to do to fix him and make him safe. We're not going to do a single thing beyond that." Tarantulas 10:22 pm Tarantulas is internally choking. How in the world can he try to argue what he wants without spilling too many beans in all the wrong directions? Whirl 10:22 pm "He's not going to be traumatized by it. He won't need anyone to--to coddle him afterwards. He's Springer. Trust me--I've known the guy for millions of years." Tarantulas 10:23 pm "I wouldn't coddle him! I'd - I'd /inform/ him." FakeProwl 10:24 pm "There's nothing he needs to be informed of." Whirl 10:24 pm "He doesn't--exactly. Honestly? It's best that we just let him get on with his life." "He's missed enough as it is." FakeProwl 10:25 pm A small nod. Tarantulas 10:27 pm "Just because we're going to be infringing upon some of his patients' rights doesn't mean we have to do so with all of them! He - he deserves to know what he'll be!" ...Who he is. Whirl 10:28 pm "You can leave a note, or something. I don't know why you think that kidnapping him is somehow infringing on his rights LESS." Tarantulas 10:29 pm Weakly: "He can't ask questions that way." "....You're.... nevermind." Whirl 10:30 pm "We'll have a bug. Send him an anonymous message or something." FakeProwl 10:30 pm "He doesn't..." ... Prowl falls silent. Whirl 10:31 pm "He doesn't what?" Tarantulas 10:31 pm Tarantulas will come up with a new plan. It's pretty obvious to him he's not getting anything he wants right now. FakeProwl 10:32 pm He doesn't answer Whirl's question. And, after a moment, he stands up, and starts quietly pacing behind his chair. Whirl 10:33 pm He doesn't press it, but he follows Prowl's progress with his helm as he paces. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:34 pm [[Some things are not meant to be questioned.]] [[He has his life back. He was not harmed. He will be watched, one way or another.]] FakeProwl 10:34 pm The pacing continues. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:36 pm [[If he truly needs to know something, it will get to him another way.]] Tarantulas 10:37 pm Tarantulas's ire is rising, but he - he can't. Instead he feigns defeat. "Do what you will. Cart him back off to Debris. I - I can assist with that myself if necessary." Whirl 10:37 pm "If he goes missing, I'm coming after your ass, spider. This is the part where you get fair warning." ItsyBitsySpyers 10:38 pm [[But he must be let go to find who he is. Even deployers leave, after a while.]] Tarantulas 10:41 pm "Don't, with the cliches," Tarantulas suddenly snaps. Whirl 10:42 pm Whirl stops watching Prowl to look at him. For a moment, just a moment, something almost like anger enters his voice. "I'll do whatever I damn well please. You heard me."

It's gone almost as quickly as it appeared. FakeProwl 10:42 pm Prowl stops walking. And, staring at the floor, speaks: "Imagine waking up one day to be informed that your body has been irreversibly modified without your consent." A moment of silence. He's sure that's a hypothetical that most of the room can strongly sympathize with. "Now imagine if, on TOP of that, nobody can tell you who did it, how they did it, or why they did it. What reason do we have that's adequate enough to justify doing that to him? How is it BETTER to do that to him?" Tarantulas 10:44 pm ...Did Tarantulas win Prowl over. Did he just. FakeProwl 10:44 pm "I don't want Springer to know we're involved." He turns slightly toward Whirl. "You don't want him to know." And toward Soundwave. "YOU don't want him to know. But how is the fact that we DON'T WANT HIM TO KNOW more important than what that lack of knowledge will do to him?" ItsyBitsySpyers 10:45 pm Soundwave's tempted to lean across the table and swat Tarantulas for calling what he said a cliche. Tarantulas didn't even know enough about deployers to fully understand what he was getting into when he agreed to help with Zori. He wouldn't know whether they do or don't leave.

But Prowl is there, and Whirl is there, and violence won't help.

So he sits and listens to Prowl instead, and curses to himself. Whirl 10:46 pm "He'll be alive, which is more than he was before we stepped in. Yeah, it's not the gentlest way to do things, but you can't always be gentle."

He waves a claw. "Look, if you want to drop him a line and say, 'Hey, you want to know what this is all about? Come see me.' or whatever, that's fine. But let him come to you. Kidnapping him and holding him somewhere, -away- from his allies, isn't the right way to do it. Let HIM come to you." Whirl 10:47 pm "Besides, you're basing all of this on the assumption that you all can be trusted to do what's best for him when you have him in your custody. I absolutely don't trust you--" A nod to Prowl. "Or him." A not to Tarantulas. "And I trust none of you more than the Wreckers." FakeProwl 10:48 pm "No, no, I'm absolutely not talking about keeping him our custody. That's COMPLETELY off the table. Just—making sure he doesn't have to WONDER what happened to him." He took a deep vent, and let it out. "Yes. I think... Leaving him with the option of making contact himself is ideal." Whirl 10:48 pm "Yeah. I'm completely fine with THAT. That's not a problem at all." Tarantulas 10:48 pm A prolonged vent from Tarantulas. Damn, and he thought he had Prowl there for a moment. "At the very least." ItsyBitsySpyers 10:50 pm [[He should not be told until he asks because knowing before he is ready may lead to -all- of us being killed. The Wreckers cannot trust a member of their own who has had a Decepticon in his head. If they cannot trust him, and he continues to fight with them, it risks his life. And if we are - whatever would happen - as a result of him knowing before he is ready and able to handle the data, then there is no-one left as experienced as we are to help him should something go wrong.]] [[He will agree to the method of contact, but that is because he already did. He said the information would get to Springer one way or another.]] FakeProwl 10:52 pm A nod. "We stick to the original plan, then. We drop him off either in Debris or in a safe place where they can pick him up. And we leave him—and him alone—a way to contact us and find out what happened, if and when HE decides he's ready to find out." Whirl 10:53 pm Whirl also nods. "Sounds solid to me." Soundwave's points were good ones to begin with, but he cemented Whirl's acquiescence to them by hinting that alternatives could put Springer in danger. "There's honestly no need to drag me into it, though. There's nothing I could tell him that you guys can't--and I'm not a doctor." "He still doesn't need to know about my involvement. It's not that big of a deal." ItsyBitsySpyers 10:55 pm [[He deserves to know that you wanted to help. And you deserve to be recognized for your loyalty.]] Finger tap. [[You are... rarely given the credit you are due.]] FakeProwl 10:56 pm "... Which one of us is he going to be given a line to contact, then?" Whirl 10:56 pm "I can tell you're trying to appeal to my pride, Soundwave. It's not going to work." ItsyBitsySpyers 10:56 pm [[Then your senses are off. He is merely speaking his mind. He's known to do that.]] [[He offers to observe, but the contact should not be his. If one of you wishes it disguised, he can arrange that.]] Whirl 10:57 pm His antenna pins back and he just looks away. Soundwave should honestly be thanked for his kindness, but Whirl doesn't know how to handle that even when he's in a good state of mind. "And what would you suggest, Prowl? -I- be his liaison?" FakeProwl 10:58 pm "I'm not suggesting anything. I'm asking." As not only an Autobot, but also the very Autobot that everyone would EXPECT to do exactly this sort of thing, Prowl would be the most reasonable option. But Prowl doesn't want it. Prowl is holding out hope to find a reason to cease existing, and being Springer's one and only contact put a kink in that plan. Whirl 10:59 pm "Well, it can't be me, because he's going to notice pretty quickly that I'm not there. And he's going to be told WHY I'm not there. And he's not going to want to talk to me." Tarantulas 11:00 pm "Why does it have to be someone he KNOWS?" FakeProwl 11:01 pm But as an ex Decepticon, Soundwave couldn't be chosen. And if given half an opportunity, Tarantulas would take advantage of a direct line to Springer to tell him things he shouldn't know. Only Whirl and Prowl are options. Whirl 11:01 pm "It would probably be a little less disconcerting. Sorry, Tarantulas, my vote is Prowl. We used to work more or less under him--it wouldn't be a huge adjustment, in the end." FakeProwl 11:02 pm A slow nod. It was, in the end, the only logical option. Tarantulas 11:02 pm "If - well then, why does it have to be only ONE person?" Whirl 11:03 pm "I never said that. I don't have any issue with you speaking to him, or anything." FakeProwl 11:03 pm "If anything happens to me before Springer makes the call—the line will have to redirect to you, Whirl." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:04 pm Soundwave watches Tarantulas from the corners of his optics. He can smell personal tension on Prowl and Tarantulas' horizon later for that one. FakeProwl 11:04 pm Yeah, well, hopefully Prowl won't be around for it.

He returns to his seat, and resumes staring at that same spot on the table. Whirl 11:05 pm Whirl pauses, and then cycles a deep breath. "About that. That brings me to something else--timetable. We need to get this show on the road, because I might not be available soon." "And, you'd better hope that nothing happens to you, because if I become unavailable I'm not likely to become... un-unavailable." Tarantulas 11:05 pm "I - what?" ItsyBitsySpyers 11:05 pm Prowl will forgive Soundwave for hoping that hope doesn't come true.

He's listening, Whirl. Do go on. Whirl 11:07 pm He doesn't intend to go on. That's it. FakeProwl 11:09 pm Oh, Primus. Don't tell him they're BOTH suicidal. Prowl looks up at Whirl, and for the first time that night something actually emotive slips into his gaze—something a little bit conspiratorial, a little bit sympathetic. The corner of his mouth twitches.

And he drops his gaze again. "So Tarantulas can be second back-up." Tarantulas 11:10 pm "You can't just - that doesn't -" ...Don't argue, Tarantulas, you're getting what you want. Shh. Whirl 11:11 pm Whirl meets his gaze, but it's anyone's guess what he thinks of that. "Guess so." Another pause. "So try not to beef it, I guess."

Now he looks to Soundwave and Tarantulas. "How soon do we think we can move?" ItsyBitsySpyers 11:14 pm [[He can be ready within the week. He needs only to account for the medical data and set up his absence from work to look like he is still there.]] Whirl 11:15 pm "A week should do. Yeah. You guys?" Tarantulas 11:15 pm A moment's hesitation, glancing sideways at Soundwave. "Technically I'm prepared as soon as I've prepped for the particulars of the given lab and have my materials in line, which should be - well. Days, at most." FakeProwl 11:15 pm "I can move at any time. Literally any time. Give me the word and I can arrange a non-fatal workplace accident in under ten minutes." Tarantulas 11:16 pm "Not - not a REAL one?" FakeProwl 11:16 pm "I'm hardly going to get out of work with a FAKE broken leg." Tarantulas 11:16 pm A cringe from Tarantulas. ItsyBitsySpyers 11:16 pm [[Please, do not put yourself in the hospital again.]] [[There are cleaner ways of withdrawing you from the public optic.]] FakeProwl 11:17 pm "I'll ensure it's something Hook can fix." Although he doubts Hook will be WILLING to fix it. No need to share that detail until after Springer's been resurrected. "... Well, if you can arrange something fast enough." Whirl 11:18 pm "Prowl's got an entire team of people looking out for him--he'll be fine." Tarantulas 11:18 pm "Please, Soundwave." He's imploring you. FakeProwl 11:19 pm "Don't inconvenience yourself. You should be preparing for Springer, not wasting time ensuring that I'm as comfortable as physically possible as I skip work to help wake him up." Tarantulas 11:20 pm A quick turn toward Prowl. "No, no, we can use your upgraded, updated avatar instead, you don't have to get YOURSELF hurt." FakeProwl 11:21 pm "I don't have an avatar of my real body and you're not going to waste time making one just for this." Whirl 11:21 pm "It's not that big a deal, you two." Whirl's not even spiteful, a broken leg hardly registers as any sort of injury in his mind. That is a plan he'd be happy to do himself, were he in Prowl's place. "There are multiple people heavily invested in Prowl's well-being besides the two of you, you know." he looks between them with a brief, knowing look. "Let's focus on the important thing, which is the mission." FakeProwl 11:22 pm "Agreed." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:23 pm [[He does not want Prowl's attention hampered by the pain of a broken leg, or the medicines required to dull that pain.]] [[Roadbuster and a safe entrance depend on him not being drugged.]] [[But, yes. The mission.]] Whirl 11:24 pm "A broken leg doesn't hurt THAT bad. We're used to being roughed up around here." FakeProwl 11:25 pm "I can shut off my pain sensors in each limb separately." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:25 pm Debates saying that Prowl spent much of his time OFF the field, but is tired of arguing that. And, that answers that, he supposes. Fine. If he can't stop Prowl finding ways to hurt himself now, he'll just - do something about it later. [[Fine. Move on. Is there anything else?]] FakeProwl 11:25 pm "AND it's nearly impossible to feel your body while your holomatter avatar's on." Maybe that's true or maybe Prowl's just become very good at ignoring his body. Tarantulas 11:26 pm "/Prowl/. You can't just -" ItsyBitsySpyers 11:26 pm Soundwave smacks his arm down on the table.

[[ENOUGH.]] [[Are we moving soon or not.]] Whirl 11:27 pm "So, excepting the finer points of how Prowl's going to--" He pauses, glances and Soundwave, and carries on. "--get himself out of the public eye, are we good?" Tarantulas 11:28 pm Tarantulas has to keep himself from hissing at Soundwave, or anyone else, really. "Quite. Positively golden." FakeProwl 11:29 pm Prowl starts at the smack.

"... But if we move after I get home from work, I'll have fifteen uninterrupted hours where nobody will be expecting me to be anywhere but inside my apartment. Otherwise, I'm—good. No further issues." Whirl 11:29 pm "That's not a bad window to aim for. My schedule's wide open; guaranteed privacy is better than likely privacy." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:30 pm [[-Thank you.-]]

[[Then it is settled.]] And with fewer broken legs than he thought they were going to have. [[Good.]] Tarantulas 11:31 pm Suddenly: "Is there anything else? Otherwise I'll be going." He's already starting to stand up. FakeProwl 11:31 pm "I don't have anything else." Whirl 11:32 pm "Nope. Seeya." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:32 pm [[When he and Tarantulas are both finished and rested, we will go. And no, he knows of nothing else. Except for Prowl, who must be made part of a different plan.]] [[Goodnight, Tarantulas.]] FakeProwl 11:32 pm "Who must what?" Whirl 11:33 pm "You're our new Ravage, in short." FakeProwl 11:33 pm "Oh. That plan. Yes." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:33 pm [[Yes. You will require updating. Please stay for now.]] FakeProwl 11:33 pm A nod. Tarantulas 11:33 pm No goodnight for Soundwave in return. Tarantulas stands tall, ruffles briefly, and makes for the exit. Tarantulas 11:34 pm There's no way he can be around these three mechs any longer without getting in a yelling match or possibly hurting someone, and right now that's the last thing he needs. Whirl 11:35 pm Whirl hops up. There's an unspoken request in Soundwave's words for Whirl, and he will obey, and let them be alone. "Call me if anything changes. I'll do the same." ItsyBitsySpyers 11:35 pm [[He will not hesitate to tell you.]] Whirl 11:37 pm He shifts into alt-mode, arcs away from the floor, and bridges himself out; a blue vortex appears before him, and he is gone. ItsyBitsySpyers 11:39 pm Soundwave waits until he is certain both are gone and rubs his crest. This had almost turned out to be more irritating than Decepticon command meetings of old. If Springer were anyone else's creation...

(txt): Request: stand, come here. FakeProwl 11:43 pm He might be looking down, but he's got enough peripheral vision to catch that rub. He's not sure what he did this time to earn it and he's too tired to replay the conversation and check.

Well, whatever dressing-down Soundwave is about to give him, he's certain he deserves it. He stands and comes there. ItsyBitsySpyers 11:53 pm He waits to rise until Prowl is standing as close as can be expected right now and looks the foot and a half up at tired blue optics, quietly wishing he could make what's driving Prowl to embrace jumping off of ship rails and face punch dents and broken legs disappear with nothing but a wave of his feeler.

But he can't. As hard as he's trying, he can't do it unless Prowl wants to help.

He can still be thankful that one part of Prowl hasn't been completely consumed by this, though.

(txt): Prowl offered self, removed highest deployer death chance. Reminded others Soundwave: endangered, if involvement discovered.

(txt): These--

To Pit with it.

(txt): Contact permitted? Yesterday FakeProwl 11:55 pm Prowl hesitates a second as he tries to figure out where this is going. Those don't SEEM like things Soundwave would criticize him for—

Oh. This is a—thank you? "... Granted." ItsyBitsySpyers 12:04 am Soundwave's in Prowl's space in a blink, arms and feelers wrapping tight around him. They squeeze Prowl in a ferocious, crushing hug - the sort that suggests he could easily kill a mech this way if he wanted, and probably has - and, as he straightens out of his slouch, lifts him a little.

Not as much as he said he would do back in the hospital. This isn't the time for that. It's just the side effect of his standing up. But it's enough to prove that his cold, serious demeanor from earlier has been abandoned in favor of this moment.

His fans hitch. He sets Prowl down again and presses their crests together.

(txt): Apologies, if excessive. Deep gratitude earned. ItsyBitsySpyers 12:07 am One Prowl helped kill Ravage. Another has probably just saved his life. Funny how the multiverse works. FakeProwl 12:15 am Prowl's so surprised that he forgets to hug back—and for a moment, his optics flicker to life with... something. "Something" is a whole lot more than they've had for the rest of the meeting.

But then he wraps his arms tightly around Soundwave in return. This is the first touch from someone else he's felt, REALLY felt, in weeks. Like he's actually there.

Once he's set down, he presses his crest a little harder against Soundwave's, trying to feel a little of that pressure again. "I... You're fine. It's fine. Thank y—er, you're welcome."

He considers saying something about how... it was only sensible, only logical for the person who could take no harm to take over a more dangerous duty, or how it would have been wrong NOT to point out that Soundwave was in a more vulnerable position; but Soundwave already knows that, doesn't he? ItsyBitsySpyers 12:26 am He does know that, and he values Prowl's choice all the more for it. One, because Prowl still cares enough about others to make a protective decision, and two, because he actually followed through on it. There hasn't been a whole lot of that in Soundwave's life over the last few million years.

He's more than happy to press against Prowl's helm as hard as Prowl wants. Let him bust a biolight. If it happens, it happens. He'll get it fixed.

(txt): Off-work solution also appreciated.

(txt): Soundwave--

Everything he wants to say is screaming and rioting and trying to shove itself through the translation door all at once, so he just leaves it there and gives another, smaller (but still somewhat tight) hug.

(txt): Prowl plan portion sent across comm tomorrow. Frenzy: not returned, cannot explain use yet. FakeProwl 12:35 am "Honestly, I don't know why the off-work solution wasn't self-evident. I said I CAN leave at any time, including in the middle of work if necessary. I never meant that the middle of work is the ONLY time I can go." Figures that when he assumed Plan A was obvious and started planning for contingencies, everyone thought his proposals for Plan B WERE Plan A.

Is the plan complicated enough that it needs a translation? Or—oh, it's not that. Frenzy is the one learning medical skills, he probably had to explain how to administer the anesthetic. "I'll wait for the comm. If it needs to be explained in depth, you know what times I'm available. Anything outside of work or Metroplex." He'd break a leg for Springer, sure, but he isn't volunteering it for just another planning meeting. ItsyBitsySpyers 12:42 am (txt): Situation: tense. Upsetting content: easiest noticed. Errors made.

(txt): Soundwave knows schedule. Will modify comm volume levels during transmission.

He won't subject Prowl to Frenzy's yelling while Frenzy's not there in person. There's no need for that.

(txt): Addition: Expect hard light projection file, more instructions. FakeProwl 12:45 am Was it tense? Prowl hadn't noticed.

"Appreciated." While Prowl will put up with Frenzy's volume in person because he knows Frenzy can't help it, he would much prefer to not have to. If Soundwave didn't offer to turn the volume down, Prowl would have done it on his own end. "What's the projection file for?" ItsyBitsySpyers 12:49 am (txt): Hiding bridge until Soundwave arrives, takes control. Less direct security interference, less discovery risk. FakeProwl 12:52 am He tilts his head, thinking. "So you'll have me go in first and conceal your arrival. I'll have to be piggybacking off of Tarantulas's holomatter avatar, then—out of the three of you, he's the only one who can get onto Debris without creating a similarly-obvious bridge." ItsyBitsySpyers 12:53 am Nod nod.

(txt): Speed necessary. Tarantulas not trusted alone long. FakeProwl 12:53 am A quiet sigh. "No, he's not." ItsyBitsySpyers 12:55 am (txt): Other things. Not this.

He bunts Prowl's helm again.

(txt): More explained tomorrow. Go, rest. Must attempt medical data recovery. FakeProwl 12:58 am Prowl dims his optics as he bunts Soundwave back. Affection tag: ping, ping, ping.

"I'll be waiting for your comm." ItsyBitsySpyers 1:00 am This message has been removed. ItsyBitsySpyers 1:08 am That's not the first time Prowl's sent him a trio of pings. It's starting to make a pattern of activity. Why the change?

He pings affection back - just his usual once, though - and nods.

(txt): Until then. FakeProwl 1:10 am "Until then."

He steps back and out of Soundwave's touch, and disappears. ItsyBitsySpyers 1:12 am Soundwave watches the place where Prowl was for a second longer, still thinking, then shakes his helm and heads upstairs. Work to be done. Puzzles later. Oh, and he'll lock the doors on the way up.

#chat #slenderwave #chronosmith #araneamechanica #operation springer

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cavalorn · 7 years

Text

Unearthing the Bones: digging into the myths of Alien: Covenant

WARNING: SPOILERY AS ALL HELL BELOW THE BREAK Hi. It’s me, the guy who did that Space Jesus blog about Prometheus on Livejournal that some of you read. I’m not using Livejournal at the moment for various reasons, so you can find my work here on tumblr for now.

So. It's been a while, but Alien: Covenant is finally here. I've now seen it. I’m banging out the first of a series of blogs while it’s still fresh in my head.

There's a sense of deja vu about this post. Is Alien: Covenant a flawed movie? Absolutely. Does it feature characters making stupid decisions? Emphatically. Will it frustrate the hell out of most people who go and see it? Probably. So far, so Prometheus.

Well then, smartass, is there a ton of stuff going on under the surface so that we can at least have fun digging it out and playing spot-the-reference? Predictably, yes there is.

The most jarring thing about Alien: Covenant is that it doesn't feel like a meaningful sequel to Prometheus. It follows on from it chronologically, but the theme and the important questions have been completely changed. Storywise, it's a jump from 'what is the ultimate origin of mankind' to 'what will befall this ship full of hapless colonists', and having Wayland openly speculate about where we all come from in the first five minutes does not equate to continuing that line of questioning. Referring back to it is not equivalent to picking it back up.

I'll hold my hand up here and say I thought we were going to get something very different from what we actually got. I expected Ancient Egypt and Biblical plagues, not yet another run through of the familiar land – make stupid decisions - get infected – die a lot – escape – fakeout ending – real ending cycle on yet another alien world. But I still enjoyed it.

To be fair, the nature of the followup to Prometheus has been changed several times, so we can hardly be blamed if we had different expectations. The original title of 'Prometheus 2' yielded to the provocative 'Alien: Paradise Lost' and thence to 'Alien: Covenant', leading many of us to wonder what story Ridley intended to tell. My honest opinion is that Ridley changed his mind during the production process. I think, for reasons that will become clear, that Giger's death may have had a bearing on this change of direction.

Alien: Covenant is, to use Ridley's words, about 'Who made [the alien] and why? No one ever asked that question.' To me it seems obvious that the moment you conceive of the Alien as a designed creature, as opposed to a being that is the product of some kind of natural order (however foreign to our earthly understanding that natural order may be) you inevitably invoke the spectre of Giger. It is not facetious to point out that we already know who made the alien, and why.

It was Giger. In the locked studio. With the box of bones.

Why? Because Ridley Scott wanted him to.

(Before expounding further, I want to acknowledge a debt of gratitude to the brilliant site http://alienexplorations.blogspot.co.uk which has kept an immense amount of valuable information available. Go and visit them, but make sure you have plenty of time on hand before you do, because the place will suck you in.)

There are several aspects of Alien: Covenant that don't make a lick of sense on the face of it. Why kill off Elizabeth Shaw, the heroine of Prometheus? Why do it offscreen? Why does David declare that he loved Shaw? And why is Shaw's eviscerated, mutated corpse still lying on a slab in David's workshop, many years after her death?

One way to read this is to see Alien: Covenant as a mythologising of the real-world creation of the Alien. Seen through that filter, a disturbing number of things come into focus.

I can't watch David talking to Walter in his secret workshop without thinking of Giger's own workshop, and what Ridley Scott said about it when he eulogised the late artist:

"I think back on how committed and passionate he was, and then consequently, all the security we built up around his 'lock up' studios at Shepperton. I was the only one allowed the honour of going in, and I absolutely enjoyed every hour I spent with him there."

Reading back on this, I was quite startled. Scott's assertion that Giger allowed nobody but him into his studio is contradicted by photographs from the time. They clearly show several members of the team visiting Giger in his various workspaces (he had several, for the different parts of the project he worked on). It's possible that Scott is referring to an earlier stage of the Alien's development, when only he and Giger were present. Or he could simply be misremembering, though that seems unlikely to me.

At any rate, the image of Giger welcoming Scott into his realm is an enticing one, and David welcoming Walter into his surely echoes it. But there are other, more sinister myths woven into the story of the Alien's creation, and at least one macabre aspect of it that is wholly true.

Giger's time at Shepperton Studios seems to have been a memorable tale in its own right, as far as the rest of the crew were concerned. One anecdote found its way into the Book of Alien:

'It was a very hot summer in London, and one day we were out on the lawn, having a picnic, and we all had our shirts off. Except Giger, who was still decked out in his leathers. And everybody tried to get him to take off that jacket, but he wouldn’t do it. You see, I don’t think he dares take off those clothes, because if he did you’d see that underneath he’s not human. He’s a character from an H.P.Lovecraft story.'

Again, Giger is remembered as the odd one out, the inhuman creator among the humans, just like David is in the film. It's only Walter, who serves as the analogue for Scott himself, who David sees as even having the potential to understand and embrace his vision.

It was not only Giger himself but his working space that had uncanny resonances. Giger's girlfriend at the time, Mia Bonzanigo, was with him at Shepperton and helped work on the Alien. However, Mia 'hated being on the set alone, saying she felt some kind of presence there' and 'thought she could hear voices or sounds and was creeped out remaining in the studio all the time' (Charles Lippincott). Appropriate, really, for the genesis of an iconic monster.

Giger liked to work with bones, and it often comes as a shock to fans of Alien to learn that the creature's head incorporated a real human skull. By the time the creature's look was finalised, the carapace had become much more opaque and the skull's shape can barely be discerned, but earlier iterations clearly show the eyesockets and the bridge of the nose. The skull was imported from India, and its condition was so good that Dan O'Bannon was later to voice uneasy concerns about skeleton farms. From his commentary on Return of the Living Dead: 'Well, in fact, when i was working on Alien. HR Giger asked them to obtain some real skulls for him to work from, to build the alien, the full size alien. And they did, and they purchased them and they brought him skulls which were wrapped in plastic just like that and they were the most beautiful skulls I had ever seen, they were like works of art, I was struck by the perfection and the teeth were all perfect, and I was told that they were ordered from India, and then sold for medical purposes but the production had bought them for Giger to use, and he took a hacksaw and cut them into pieces and put them back together, and subsequently when i was working with Tobe Hooper, who was meant to direct this film himself, we were talking about this scene. Hooper was aware also that medical skeletons were purchased from India, and he said that the eeriest thing. Tobe did, he thinks that they have a skeleton farm in India. I thought about it a while, it was such a creepy idea that when i wrote the script, I put that in. The picture was released and a few months after the picture opened, i read a news item that the government of India had suddenly stopped the deportation of all skeletons for medical purposes, and ever since then it's very difficult for medical schools to get them. They use plastic skeletons and it may have been a coincidence or the film may have indeed come to their attention and they put a stop to it. I have a feeling, the creepy feeling that there was something very criminal going on in India. At what age does a person have an absolutely perfect skull and set of teeth? When they're young.'

Ridley Scott would certainly have been aware that Giger was using human remains to create his Alien. How he felt about it, we can only guess.

Although the account of Giger cutting up a real skull is true, there were other stories about the artist circulating at Shepperton that were completely mythical. When considering Alien: Covenant as a mythologised retelling of the Alien's actual creation, the most important story is that of Giger's deceased girlfriend, Li Tobler.

Accounts varied wildly even at the time, but it was believed that Giger's former girlfriend had committed suicide (that part was true) and that he had kept her skull, or her entire skeleton. Alan Dean Foster, the genius storyteller who wrote the novelization of Alien and several of the other movies, believed that Giger had 'the skeleton of a former mistress suspended from the rafters of his Switzerland home'. Sigourney Weaver recounted that '... you would hear these stories about how he has his wife’s skull or some sort of, kind of, you know morbid stuff in his house.' The source of these rumours seems to have been Mia Bonzanigo, who also claimed to feel a ghostly presence in Giger's studio.

It's important to note that these stories were completely untrue. Giger himself debunked them in 2009, adding the exquisite comment 'Shit, I'm not mad, you know.'

But a myth is a myth, and stories have a way of growing in the telling.

It seems inevitable that at some point along the way, the story 'Giger used a human skull to make the Alien' would fuse with 'Giger kept his lover's skull after her death' to become 'Giger incorporated his dead lover's remains into the Alien.' While I'm not aware of this composite version of events having been told at the time, I have seen it stated online: 'First day on the job of designing alien sets, Giger said to the production secretary, “I want bones.” After touring medical supply houses and slaughterhouses, a truck pulled up to deliver. There was an entire row of flawless human skulls, three fully preserved snake skeletons, and even a rhinoceros skull. Rumors spread on set that one set of bones belonged to his deceased fiancee, who had committed suicide.'

You're way ahead of me here, aren't you?

Let's finish the story, then.

In Alien: Covenant, it turns out that David has kept the late Dr Elizabeth Shaw's remains and used them to create his creature, his 'perfect organism'. Bearing in mind that Shaw appears to have died shortly after their arrival, her eviscerated body has been lying on that slab for something like ten years. He has preserved her. And this, of course, matches the myths that arose around Giger precisely.

More unnervingly still, David claims to have loved Shaw. So from David's twisted point of view, he has kept the remains of a lover, not just a convenient source of biological material. Again, this parallels the Giger legend.

And there's one detail that seems to me to confirm the parallels as conscious and deliberate. Some of Giger's most famous, recognisable portraits are of Li Tobler, the very woman whose remains he was believed to have preserved. Her face is shown embedded in a bivalve, symmetrical mass of biomechanical stuff, the cheekbones protruding through the skin.

This is, of course, the inspiration behind how Shaw's remains appear on screen. Like Giger's iconic image of Li, her bones have grown through her face. Numerous reviews have pointed out the parallel between Shaw's remains and Giger's portrait of Li, but the deeper parallels seem to have passed unnoticed.

There are other angles of analysis we can pursue when approaching Alien: Covenant, and I’ll be blogging about those presently, but I wanted to get this one out of the way first because it's closest to the surface. Ridley Scott does love his myths, and to me it seems very much as if he's chosen to retell a modern myth here – the myth of Giger the visionary artist, somewhat other than human, and how he built his dead lover's remains into a creature that would outlive him. Next time around we’ll talk about the Demiurge.

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