"Entirely possible," he acknowledged, smirk briefly returning at the appreciative look.
'Creativity' was certainly a strong trait of the Prime, in the berth and out. And one or two of his consorts did happen to enjoy things a bit more rough than most, so it could have been easily misconstrued. But the Prime himself, as well as his previous function, were a bit of a scandal all their own, and images of him in the berth were...while mildly scandalous, popular enough to be worth a great deal, be it for mocking or the perverse pleasure of the more common of mechs got by staying in-tune with the famous.
...Hm. Perhaps he should 'leak' a few photos himself, anonymously, and put the reward to good use. He'd forward the idea to Jazz later.
But Megatron's - startlingly accurate - assessment of the situation quickly took up his full attention. The glance the mech gave him for his comment earned a smirk.
"As I thought, you're a great deal more aware of this than most. Your calculations aren't far off from our own." And they were the ones with a precious-handful of spies off in Quintesson space.
"I know a few, at least, will care. Some of the eldest, usually the most stubborn glitches in my vents about anything I push forward, still remember." Prime smiled lightly, optics going a bit fuzzy as he recalled a memory of a memory, gleaned from the Matrix.
"I'm not saying it is a guarantee, of course. Many of the council mechs are younger now, without a threat of invasion in their lifetime. I've even heard rumblings from some superiority groups who think the old records of Quintessons were created just to keep mechs down or some nonsense." Optimus rolled his optics, trying not to grumble about ignorant idiots under his breath and failing.
"But some of those same council mechs were the ones Nova was able to tap into, when he was building his 'exploration' fleet. Those greedy mechs funded most of that - in exchange for massive tax ride-offs, of course, but they did. If the majority of that fleet had not been lost, we might actually be somewhat more prepared."
The Prime ventured closer, voice dropping, though he made no other preparations to keep what he said quiet.
"Most people are not aware of this, but Nova and his advisers at the time thought an invasion was imminent - within the next vorn, before word got out that we were strong enough to expand in the name of science and conquest."
He took a step back, gesturing out with both hands. "Apparently it worked. The next intelligence we got on the Quintessons was their progression in the opposite direction, when they invaded the Neutral Territories and claimed the Zamojin Quadrant."
Optimus vented, rubbing a hand over his helm. He had not intended to get so involved in this conversation, but it would be good practice for taking on the council and noblemechs themselves.
"I would rather take them down directly, but short of killing them, it would only spark a further depression at best, and a civil conflict at worse - this time lead by the nobles rather than the lower class." He gave Megatron an acknowledging nod.
"And who would trust a Prime who culled rather than built? We don't have time or resources for that. The nobles are greedy fools, but they are also fearful. I have every intention to continue chipping away at their power, but even then, there are other plans."
Backup plans, wheels within wheels, cogs and gears, endlessly turning, as one of his old teachers outside of his 'profession' once said. He smiled faintly at the memory.
"If it works, they can feel reassured that helping me might also be helping themselves - and they can profit off the publicity boost in the meantime."
/dug out the allspark almanac for this!
'Creativity' was certainly a strong trait of the Prime, in the berth and out. And one or two of his consorts did happen to enjoy things a bit more rough than most, so it could have been easily misconstrued. But the Prime himself, as well as his previous function, were a bit of a scandal all their own, and images of him in the berth were...while mildly scandalous, popular enough to be worth a great deal, be it for mocking or the perverse pleasure of the more common of mechs got by staying in-tune with the famous.
...Hm. Perhaps he should 'leak' a few photos himself, anonymously, and put the reward to good use. He'd forward the idea to Jazz later.
But Megatron's - startlingly accurate - assessment of the situation quickly took up his full attention. The glance the mech gave him for his comment earned a smirk.
"As I thought, you're a great deal more aware of this than most. Your calculations aren't far off from our own." And they were the ones with a precious-handful of spies off in Quintesson space.
"I know a few, at least, will care. Some of the eldest, usually the most stubborn glitches in my vents about anything I push forward, still remember." Prime smiled lightly, optics going a bit fuzzy as he recalled a memory of a memory, gleaned from the Matrix.
"I'm not saying it is a guarantee, of course. Many of the council mechs are younger now, without a threat of invasion in their lifetime. I've even heard rumblings from some superiority groups who think the old records of Quintessons were created just to keep mechs down or some nonsense." Optimus rolled his optics, trying not to grumble about ignorant idiots under his breath and failing.
"But some of those same council mechs were the ones Nova was able to tap into, when he was building his 'exploration' fleet. Those greedy mechs funded most of that - in exchange for massive tax ride-offs, of course, but they did. If the majority of that fleet had not been lost, we might actually be somewhat more prepared."
The Prime ventured closer, voice dropping, though he made no other preparations to keep what he said quiet.
"Most people are not aware of this, but Nova and his advisers at the time thought an invasion was imminent - within the next vorn, before word got out that we were strong enough to expand in the name of science and conquest."
He took a step back, gesturing out with both hands. "Apparently it worked. The next intelligence we got on the Quintessons was their progression in the opposite direction, when they invaded the Neutral Territories and claimed the Zamojin Quadrant."
Optimus vented, rubbing a hand over his helm. He had not intended to get so involved in this conversation, but it would be good practice for taking on the council and noblemechs themselves.
"I would rather take them down directly, but short of killing them, it would only spark a further depression at best, and a civil conflict at worse - this time lead by the nobles rather than the lower class." He gave Megatron an acknowledging nod.
"And who would trust a Prime who culled rather than built? We don't have time or resources for that. The nobles are greedy fools, but they are also fearful. I have every intention to continue chipping away at their power, but even then, there are other plans."
Backup plans, wheels within wheels, cogs and gears, endlessly turning, as one of his old teachers outside of his 'profession' once said. He smiled faintly at the memory.
"If it works, they can feel reassured that helping me might also be helping themselves - and they can profit off the publicity boost in the meantime."