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[Bridge]

"Humph." Sludge groaned. "Me just want finish this fast. Dumb cons wastering every bot's time."

He leaned back in his chair, offlining his optics temporarily. "We dinos smash smol cons easy."

Bridge

Slag chuckled again.

"Heheh. So smol."

Bridge

Groove nodded his head lightly and smiled at the Dinobots's conversations. "Man, you guys sound like you could really use some time to chillax and listen to Nebulon Rock Operas or something. Gotta keep your head cool~" Groove's voice was as laid back as ever, with that nice, smooth swing to it.

Bridge

Grimlock watched as everyone on his team slowly made their way onto the bridge. Hot Spot seemed impressed with the Trion while Slag was simply happy that it was go time and took a seat next to the Dinobot Commander. Swoop was the last to arrive, glancing over at Grimlock sheepishly before assuming a seat at the helm.

With everyone finally there, the rex-former was about to brief the new arrivals when Blaster cut in and did it for him.

Blaster wrote:“Alright everyone! We’re gonna go over to Sol-4. Some ‘cons sent out a distress signal, and apparently they have Autobots with them, so think of this as a rescue mission. The signal was on every open line, so the Decepticons may have also caught it. This shouldn’t be too hard, but don’t let down your guard, alright?”

Grimlock let out a low groan as he turned back around in the command chair to face the forward viewscreen. Blaster then sent Swoop the coordinates and the Trion was on its way to Mars. Now, on one hand, the Dinobot leader was happy he didn’t have to reiterate what he had already said to the first arrivals. However, on the other hand, Blaster was not the one in charge and therefore it was not his place to brief anyone. Still, Grimlock remained calm as he knew there would be a lot of explaining to do to Prowl and Ultra Magnus if he returned to Sol-3 with a status-locked communications officer in tow. He could blame it on the 'Cons he supposed, but somebody, probably Hot Spot, would blab the truth. It wasn't worth the risk.

Blaster’s briefing then caused many of the others to start talking amongst themselves. Swoop was confused by why it was a Decepticon distress signal but yet there were Autobots to save. Slag and Snarl just wanted to clobber the ‘Cons, a sentiment that made Grimlock smile under his faceshield. Groove, ever the pacifist, wanted everyone to relax and listen to some stupid music. Yeah, like that was ever going to happen.

Grimlock simply rubbed his temples as frustration filled his massive frame. Autobot Command couldn’t have just let the Dinobots alone handle this. Oh, no! They had to send other puny ‘Bots along for the ride. It irritated the rex-former to no end.

“Alright, everyone stay focused!” Grimlock finally said as he lowered his hands and gripped both arms rests firmly. “We not sure what going on. ‘Con distress signal was received and there was mention of Autobots. Ironhide is one ‘Bot that is currently missing along with some others. If they there, we grab them and crush ‘Cons before heading home. Pretty simple. No care how it happened. Others can figure that out once mission is done!”

Grimlock then leaned over towards the communications station were Blaster was situated. “From now on, Blaster, me give briefings. Me team leader. Got it?” The Dinobot Commander glared at him for a moment longer before leaning back in his throne-like chair and returning his attention to the primary forward viewscreen.

Soon the image of a red planet in the distance was growing larger and larger by the astrosecond.


((OOC: To be continued in the Mars thread…))

(Ooc: Continuing from the Mars thread)

Trion – Bridge

Grimlock wrote:“Dynamite what, Snarl? Shuttle already crashed and destroyed. Just leave it.”

Snarl let out a low growl at not being able to fire the Trion’s weapons, even if it was at a trashed shuttle. “Yes, Leader Grimlock.” Disappointment and irritation dripped from his words. The rest of the Dinobots felt the same, but there was little they could do. Had the Autobot and his scrap done their jobs right…

He pushed the thought away. So they couldn’t fight here, it didn’t mean they wouldn’t fight them soon. When they saw the Obliteration next, he couldn’t guarantee the weapons wouldn’t fire. Accidents like that happen, especially when an angry and disappointed Snarl was at the controls.

He went through the motions of putting the ship’s weapons on standby and sat back. Until they reached Earth, there was little more he could do.



“Game called due to forfeiture. Rescheduled dates to be announced,” Eject said after being quiet through most of the bridge crew voicing their thoughts to Grimlock. The last thing he wanted to do was bring attention to them after Snarl and a few other comments, but he felt a little more comfortable now that they had had found their comrades in operational condition and avoided a conflict. So, he took the opportunity to relax and enjoy some much needed entertainment. As his actuators played across the controls, he zeroed in on a sporting event that was just beginning. Golf? Well, I guess…

Grimlock wrote:“Swoop, take us out of orbit and back to Sol-3. Blaster…” the Dinobot leader turned his glare over to the communications expert. “…me want you to keep scanners searching for ‘Con frigate. They likely use similar path back to mudball. We might be able to find and catch them.”

“Catch them? They’re not a high fly ball to center field, they’re a foul ball on a three-two pitch that went into the stands.” He started to turn around as he was talking, but when he caught a glimpse of Grimlock’s faceplate, he turned back. Knowing he and Blaster weren’t in the best of positions, he shrugged at Blaster and said, “No problemo, already on it, coach. Flipping through the gameplan now. Halftime adjustments are the key.”

Bridge

“Swoop, take us out of orbit and back to Sol-3. Blaster…me want you to keep scanners searching for ‘Con frigate. They likely use similar path back to mudball. We might be able to find and catch them,” Grimlock ordered.

Good. if it was anything that Slag appreciated about Grimlock's leadership it was that he soaked up direct combat just like Slag did. Slag knew that was the main reason Grimlock tolerated his outbursts and insubordination. At the end of the day, they both wanted to destroy the same things. Usually.

Blaster's little sportobot threw out some jabber that Slag didn't understand but ultimately got to work. Satisfied, Slag turned to Grimlock.

"Protectobot leader just going to coddle Ironhide and others. Make them feel cozy. Fix them up. We need actionable intel. Bet I can get it faster than safety bot."

Medical Bay

“He was the target of a barrage by an entire squad of seekers." She then gestured at Pipes' severed left arm. "His shoulder took a direct hit and blew his arm right off. I didn't know what to do. Hopefully it can be reattached. His stasis is the result of a system overload. You can see his whole chest and upper body took a lot of damage. I hope he comes through it alright.”

“Oh geez, that sounds pretty horrible. I’m no doctor like First Aid, but luckily he’s only in stasis. He should be fine, although I don’t think he’s gonna be leaving the medbay anytime soon.” Groove carried away Pipes to the medbay. “I’ll see what I can do for now.”

Rushing into the medbay, he quickly set down the blue bot onto a berth, connecting life support to his systems. He commed First Aid for help. >>”Hey, First Aid, we’ve got a seriously injured mech here. He’s on life support right now, but his arm’s blown off and it looks pretty critical. How do I go about this?”<<

[Bridge]

Grimlock wrote:"Blaster…me want you to keep scanners searching for ‘Con frigate. They likely use similar path back to mudball. We might be able to find and catch them."

“Got it, boss,” he replied, “But I don’t think the ‘Cons would be dumb enough to leave without cloaking themselves.” And although his attention was fixed on the scanners, he knew in his mind that they wouldn’t be able to find them, especially not at the rate they were going. He didn’t say it out loud though. Let Grimlock see the result for himself. He’ll change his mind on his own.

Eject wrote:“No problemo, already on it, coach. Flipping through the gameplan now. Halftime adjustments are the key.”

“Good work, Eject.” He gave him a quick smile and a thumbs up. But now it was time to get down to business. Blaster opened up a comm back to the Guardian, presumably where Magnus, Prime and the others in Autobot High Command were.

>>”High Command, this is Blaster speaking from the Trion. We have rescued the three Autobots that were stranded on Mars. No direct encounters, although one of the mechs is in stasis. We’ll be reentering Earth orbit in a few milicycles.”<<

Quill5506 wrote:Medical Bay

“He was the target of a barrage by an entire squad of seekers." She then gestured at Pipes' severed left arm. "His shoulder took a direct hit and blew his arm right off. I didn't know what to do. Hopefully it can be reattached. His stasis is the result of a system overload. You can see his whole chest and upper body took a lot of damage. I hope he comes through it alright.”

“Oh geez, that sounds pretty horrible. I’m no doctor like First Aid, but luckily he’s only in stasis. He should be fine, although I don’t think he’s gonna be leaving the medbay anytime soon.” Groove carried away Pipes to the medbay. “I’ll see what I can do for now.”

Rushing into the medbay, he quickly set down the blue bot onto a berth, connecting life support to his systems. He commed First Aid for help. >>”Hey, First Aid, we’ve got a seriously injured mech here. He’s on life support right now, but his arm’s blown off and it looks pretty critical. How do I go about this?”<<

Hot Spot walked over to the berth and looked at the arm of Pipes.

"Groove, if we examine the arm and socket joint, we can notice some of the wires being same color. It would be a safe bet they were connected at one time. As for the structural part, there is a high chance some rebuilding would be needed. Right now we need to stem any leaking fluids that hasn't been rerouted internally. I learned a few things from watching First Aid working on you all especially Blades."

Once the suggestions were followed, Hot Spot returned his attention to Ironhide.

"So how did you and your rag tag group make it to sol-4, Ironhide? You didn't steal a shuttle like how the Dinobots stole the ark-19? They seemed to have acquired this warship from one of our distant docks and brought it back here after visiting Cybertron. With the chaos of Prime and Megatron being found and then Megatron somehow escaping, things been a bit chaotic."

[Corridors to Bridge]

Hot Spot wrote:"I learned a few things from watching First Aid working on you all especially Blades."

“Oh wow, thanks chief.” The sarcasm was audibly apparent in Blades’s voice. He muttered something vulgar under his breath and started making his way down from the medbay back to the bridge. Whether or not the dinobots liked it, Blades was gonna join in and fight those Decepticons no matter what.

Once he made his way back, he just openly voiced his query. “How long ‘til we find the slaggers?”

Trion – Bridge

Blaster wrote:“Good work, Eject.”

Eject’s optics flashed at Blaster’s comment and thumbs up. Mimicking cracking his actuators as he’d seen humans do, he put them behind his head and rested against his seat.

“Nothing to it, coach. Just gotta draw up the right play and it’s game, set, match. 40 – Love.”

Despite Grimlock’s presence and unspoken threats, he felt better than he had in a while, and he hadn’t needed a sporting match to do it.

Which reminds me… he thought as he turned his attention back to the comm system but paused before switching frequencies. Their predicament hadn’t changed and he was smart enough to know what would happen if he missed a signal. Focusing, he swore he could hear a sportscaster calling a game somewhere in his receptors, but that was impossible as he’d cleared most from his memory banks before leaving.

I’m not losing it, just gotta work out the kinks before overtime.

He didn’t notice that he pressed the controls in a sequence that resembled a popular sports highlight show’s theme song.

Slag wrote:"Protectobot leader just going to coddle Ironhide and others. Make them feel cozy. Fix them up. We need actionable intel. Bet I can get it faster than safety bot."

Snarl nodded along with Slag’s sentiment, going so far as to turn away from his station and risk Grimlock’s fury. As much as he wished some Decepticons would appear so he could blast them, he doubted he would be so lucky. In fact, he knew he wouldn’t. It was something he’d been simmering over since leaving Mars behind, and it didn’t help that he hadn’t been allowed to destroy the remains of the shuttle.

“Yes, me, Snarl, and him, Slag, do better than Protecto-runts. They want protect, we want crush and dynamite Decepticons.”

A small part of him doubted his luck would change, but with two of them in agreement, Grimlock would have to agree, wouldn’t he?

Snarl’s cleverness was usually lost on Grimlock, and he hoped that habit would continue.

Medical Bay

sumowrestler wrote:"Groove, if we examine the arm and socket joint, we can notice some of the wires being same color. It would be a safe bet they were connected at one time. As for the structural part, there is a high chance some rebuilding would be needed. Right now we need to stem any leaking fluids that hasn't been rerouted internally. I learned a few things from watching First Aid working on you all especially Blades."

“Oh, yes, thanks Hot Spot. That makes more sense. I’ll get to it right away,” and off went Groove to the medical equipment, finding things to patch up Pipes with. He was no doctor, but he’d done his fair share of field repairs, so hopefully it was a similar process to what he’d already done.

He decided to start off with taping down the Energon pipelines to minimise the losses. Gracefully moving his actuators beside his arm socket, Groove worked quickly to make sure he stayed alive. First Aid could look at him better later. This was the temporary solution. Once he’d made sure that Pipes was in a stable condition, he shuffled over to the medical bay’s computer and logged everything in.

You did a great job, Groove. It looked like you picked up a few things from First Aid while you two hang out. Now all we do is put Pipes into the cr chamber and let it finish the job. Make sure the arm is well connected before you put her inside.

Hot Spot walked over to the slab and held the larger portion of Pipes as Grooved attempted to weld the arm back. It wouldn't surprise him if First Aid looked over the procedure to correct some of the mistakes he and Groove had done.

From Jetfire on board the Ark

>>To my fellow Autobot, there will be a ship and fleet wide scan of all Autobots in the next few cycles. This is for research purposes only. If our scans reveal you are strong candidates for furthering the current project, you will be notified. As for the project itself, all will be revealed shortly. This will help balance the war effort and hopefully give us the edge we need against the Cons in the future.<<

Bridge – Communications Station

Eject was on his fifth rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” when a beep signaling an incoming message caught his attention. Disappointed that it was probably a regular update or something just as disappointing as a fourth quarter collapse, he switched frequencies.

Jetfire wrote:>>To my fellow Autobot, there will be a ship and fleet wide scan of all Autobots in the next few cycles. This is for research purposes only. If our scans reveal you are strong candidates for furthering the current project, you will be notified. As for the project itself, all will be revealed shortly. This will help balance the war effort and hopefully give us the edge we need against the Cons in the future.<<

A research scan? On us? Not good!

Knowing he had to tell someone, but wary of informing Grimlock or the other Dinobots about a scan, he leaned toward Blaster and said, “Coach, Jetfire signaled from the Ark about him putting us through a pre-draft physical… or something like that.”

He lowered his voice even more before continuing, “Should I inform the owner and risk an all out blitz on the Ark”

[Bridge]

As the ship neared Sol-3 once again, Eject sprang up in the seat right next to Blaster, having checked the fleetwide message. It seemed to be rather important too.

Eject wrote:“Coach, Jetfire signaled from the Ark about him putting us through a pre-draft physical… or something like that.”

Blaster examined the message carefully, taking it apart bit by bit. Oh yeah, this must be that “combiner” project they were talking about in the big wig meeting back then. With shut optics and a smile of relief, he turned to Eject, letting out a half-laugh. “Don’t worry too much about it, bud. It’s nothin’ too big or bad. You’ll be doing just fine.”

Eject’s concerns about Grimlock were not unjustified. The Dinobot commander was clearly not in the best of moods and something like this was definitely going to enrage him further, especially after the officials’ meeting. The communications officer had a think, before spinning his chair around to meet Grimlock face-to-face. “Grimlock,” he began, cautiously picking his words and delivering them with his Voice, “The ships and everyone on them are being scanned right now. There’s nothing bad, it’s just a scan. Just lettin’ you know.”

He spun back around to view the consoles, giving a sideways glance to Eject, and then following up that glance with a grin.

Bridge – Communication Station

Blaster wrote:“Don’t worry too much about it, bud. It’s nothin’ too big or bad. You’ll be doing just fine.”

“No problem, Coach. Sometimes ya gotta ‘eat lightning and crap thunder’. Just gotta watch out for the below the belt shots, ya know?”

As soon as he said it, Eject realized he’d spoken at normal level and quickly turned back to his control panel to look busy. Just because bigger mechs than Grimlock had failed to step on him before didn’t mean he wanted to push that luck. At least, not until he got something on worth listening to.

How is there nothing on? Come on, humans, I’m open. Throw me the ball…

Blaster wrote: “Grimlock, the ships and everyone on them are being scanned right now. There’s nothing bad, it’s just a scan. Just lettin’ you know.”

When Blaster finished and gave him his sly smile, Eject chuckled softly and muttered, “Bottom of the ninth, full count. This pitch will decide it all…”



Bridge – Weapons Station

Tired of searching for something to blast that wasn’t needed, Snarl had sat back in his seat and stared at the readouts in frustration.

Had Leader Grimlock allowed weapons, I would be no bored.

As soon as the thought passed through his processor, he heard Blaster say something about being scanned.

He turned his attention to listening to Blaster, then Grimlock, then back to the puny Autobot again.

“Why Autobots scan us? We take no damage.”

Bridge

Eject wrote:“Catch them? They’re not a high fly ball to center field, they’re a foul ball on a three-two pitch that went into the stands.”

Grimlock sent a very intense glare in the small cassettebot’s direction.

Eject wrote:“No problemo, already on it, coach. Flipping through the gameplan now. Halftime adjustments are the key.”

“Whatever,” the Dinobot Commander muttered as his attention was then drawn to Blaster.

Blaster wrote:"Got it, boss. But I don’t think the ‘Cons would be dumb enough to leave without cloaking themselves.”

“That quite possible, Blaster,” Grimlock replied, angrily. “But me still want to keep optic out for them. It not hurt to try!” The rage was continuing to boil up and the rex-former didn’t want to hear any excuses. He just wanted his subordinates to do what he told them to do. It was bad enough that they saw no action thus far on this rescue operation. He didn’t need others questioning his orders, too.

Slag wrote:"Protectobot leader just going to coddle Ironhide and others. Make them feel cozy. Fix them up. We need actionable intel. Bet I can get it faster than safety bot."

Snarl wrote:“Yes, me, Snarl, and him, Slag, do better than Protecto-runts. They want protect, we want crush and dynamite Decepticons.”

Grimlock let out a deep sigh of frustration. Admittedly, he understood where Slag and Snarl were coming from. They had wanted to see action, as well, and were denied it. Now, they wanted to take out those frustrations on whomever they could even if it was Ironhide and the others that were rescued. Grimlock was almost inclined to let his Dinobots “debrief” them in their own, more violent way, but that would ultimately serve no purpose but to anger Magnus and Prowl, which the rex-former did not want to hear any grief from.

“No,” Grimlock said plainly. “Ironhide and others not Decepticons. They Autobots. Puny, yes, but still not enemy. No need for rough interrogation. They have no reason to lie. Let Protecto-runts handle debriefing. We find action elsewhere one way or another.”

Blaster wrote:“Grimlock, the ships and everyone on them are being scanned right now. There’s nothing bad, it’s just a scan. Just lettin’ you know.”

“Scan? What kind of scan?” Grimlock demanded to know as his optics bore holes into the communications specialist. “Know what. Nevermind. Me no care.” Let the Autobots scan his ship. It didn’t matter in the long run. Grimlock wanted action. He wanted to destroy Decepticons. No, he needed to destroy Decepticons before he blew a gasket. Once they got back, the rex-former would demand some kind of action against the 'Cons from Magnus and Prowl. Otherwise, the consequences of keeping the Dinobots cooped up on a ship with no way to expel their aggressions would be very severe for anyone that got in their way.

Finally, the image of Sol-3 appeared on the forward viewscreen followed soon by the images of the Autobot ships in orbit around the small blue mudball of a planet. Grimlock leaned forward in his command chair to address his aerial subordinate in the pilot’s seat. “Swoop, bring us alongside Guardian and begin docking procedures. We offload injured ‘Bots onto medical frigate through docking tunnel. Blaster, signal intention to dock with Guardian. Don’t want them make any sudden moves.”

With his orders given, Grimlock opened a comm line down to the Protectobot Commander in the med bay:

>>”Hot Spot, we dock with Guardian shortly. Prepare to take wounded across docking tunnel once extended. Others can see Magnus for more debriefing. Grimlock out.”<<

Medical Bay

Hot Spot heard the announcement of a random scanned. It surprised him until he realized it was Jetfire's voice. Hot Spot wondered if this related to the project Jetfire had in mind for the Aerialbots and his team. Did Jetfire have enough test subjects for this combination project? The communication from Grimlock snapped him out of thoughts and dread.

>>Thanks for the update, Grimlock. I will get the injured ready. We have one in the cr chamber right now. It is good to be back with the rest of the fleet. <<

[Bridge]

Blaster grinned at his little cassette friend. “You’ll do just fine, little fella.”

Grimlock wrote:“That quite possible, Blaster. But me still want to keep optic out for them. It not hurt to try!”

“Got it, Chief. Scanners are on full range and sensitivity.” The communications officer smiled. There were two this could go - either they found some ‘cons or they didn’t. The first option would satisfy the Dinos’ bloodlust and the second would save them some hassle. Either way, they got what they came for. He looked down at Eject, giving the small ‘bot a thumbs up. “What d’ya say we catch up on some of that Earth entertainment after things’ve settled down a little?” He didn’t say it out loud, because of Grimlock, of course, but it was enough for Eject to get the message.

Grimlock wrote:”Blaster, signal intention to dock with Guardian. Don’t want them make any sudden moves.”

Just as soon as Grimlock had given his order, Blaster grabbed the mic up to his face and began a comm message to the Guardian. >>”Trion to Guardian, this is Blaster speaking. We will be docking soon at starboard, please engage standard docking procedures. We’ve got some injured mechs that we’re gonna transfer over, so have some medics and hoverberths ready to go, alright? Over and out.”<<

Bridge

“No. Ironhide and others not Decepticons. They Autobots. Puny, yes, but still not enemy. No need for rough interrogation. They have no reason to lie. Let Protecto-runts handle debriefing. We find action elsewhere one way or another.”

Grimlock made good points. Slag wasn't going to say so out loud, but it at least kept him from erupting in a full-on rebellious rage.

"Fine," Slag grunted, plopping himself angrily back down in his console chair before beginning to flip through holoscreens.

Bridge – Communications Station

Blaster wrote:“You’ll do just fine, little fella.”

When Blaster gave him a thumbs up, Eject nodded, shifting in his seat. Like I have a choice? Next mech up.

Still, what kind of mech would he be if he let Grimlock and the others think they got to him. “On it, coach. Slight game plan change comes with the territory.”

Chuckling, Eject’s fingers played across the controls, searching for something more interesting to listen to than typical space chatter. He nearly let out a little yip when he zeroed in on a sports program. Winning and losing is a game of inches.

Bridge

Slag slammed his mechanical fist down on the console in front of him. His anger was starting to boil over. Grimlock had promised him Cons to scrap, but the mission hadn’t exactly gone as planned. The tricerabot wanted something to hit, and right now -- he didn’t care if it was friend or foe.

His optics scanned the room looking for anything to give him a reason to get violent. He noticed his fellow dinobot Sludge sitting at his station. From what Slag could tell, he appeared to be sleeping.

“How can you sleep at a time like this?” Slag barked at the big mech.

Medical Bay

Ironhide remained quiet as he watched Hot Shot and Groove work on Pipes, his processor focused on the carnage he’d had a hand in for reasons he wasn’t even sure of.

All of his functional existence he’d been a ‘Bot of action, a charger into danger, protecting or leading others into the fray. It was why he’d become one of the most trusted officers Optimus relied on, and what did he do with that trust? Toss it out the window like yesterday’s refuse, and for what? Frustration? Boredom?

Of all the foolish things ah coulda done, ah go and get us lost on a rock and a pal nearly killed.

Oh, he could punch himself for allowing his emotions to get the best of him.

But it wouldn’t serve any purpose except to add to the repair list the Protectobots, and later most likely Ratchet, faced. As thick as his hide was, Ratchet was the one mech he didn’t want to explain a self-inflicted dented faceplate to. He’d slice me open just ta see me immobilized for wastin’ his time.

He grunted at the thought, knowing he probably deserved something along those lines. He was one of the older Autobots, he was supposed to know better. Had another done this type of thing, he wouldn’t be gentle, but he’d also let their own conscience do most of the work for him.

Just as ah’m doin’ to myself. He didn’t have to be a brainier ‘Bot to see the irony in this. How am ah gonna face Optimus?

That brought another thought that he’d been avoiding: How was Optimus Prime?

No one had yet designed a weapon to keep him down, the only question was how long would it take for him to recover.

Once ah hear Optimus’ voice, ah’ll know for certain. Until then… He shook the thought off. Optimus would be fine, and when Ironhide would next see him, he’d accept whatever punishment he dished out. Until then, he had others to be concerned about.

As if hearing his thoughts, Hot Spot turned his attention back to him.

Hot Spot wrote:"So how did you and your rag tag group make it to sol-4, Ironhide? You didn't steal a shuttle like how the Dinobots stole the ark-19? They seemed to have acquired this warship from one of our distant docks and brought it back here after visiting Cybertron. With the chaos of Prime and Megatron being found and then Megatron somehow escaping, things been a bit chaotic."

Ironhide’s optics glowed and he ground his jaw hinge. “What? Megatron escaped? Why ah outta…” Outta what? Run after him like some young hardheaded hotshot? As much as he hated to admit it, there wasn’t much he could do for the time being.

If ah ever see that Decepticrum again… He forced himself to calm down. No reason to give Hot Shot or the others a reason to question the efficiency of his energon pump.

Enough bellyachin’ about myself. If anything happened to Prime, he would’ve said so, he thought, turning his attention to the rest of what Hot Shot had said.

“Optimus is okay, then?” he said, relieved. “We were bouncin’ down to Earth from the Guardian, and…” he waved a hand in the air, searching for the right wording to use, “somethin’ short-circuited, cross-circuited, or somethin’ and we ended up on Mars with Starscream and company.”

He wanted to add he should’ve ended the Seeker’s spark, but then they probably would’ve been blasted by the Combaticons. He hated thinking he owed something to that slippery mech.

[Bridge]

Ratchet wrote:>>This is Ratchet. I read you, Blaster. How injured are we talking about? I'm en route, I just want to have an idea of what I'm dealing with."<<

>>We’ve got three ‘bots that we rescued off of Sol-4. One’s knocked out and had their arm taken out, probably lots of Energon loss. One of them’s bruised, but she’s still holding up fine."<<

Blaster paused for a moment before continuing. >>The last one’s Ironhide. He’s fine, for the most part, but I’d still look at him."<<

As the Trion closed up to the Guardian, Blaster directed some of the autotroopers on board the Guardian to initiate docking sequences. There was a faint rumble that was felt throughout the Trion as both ships underwent docking. >>Make sure the medical equipment is ready to go, we’re gonna rush out the wounded ASAP."<<

On a separate channel, the comms officer alerted the Protectobots. >>Hot Spot, Groove, Blades, we’re about to finish dockin’. Get ready to get those guys down to the Guardian. We’ll disengage docking once you’ve reached there safe, just ping me with a signal."<<

On the other side of the bridge, Sludge was sitting comfortably in his large chair. He was sitting rather idly, because he didn’t really have anything to do. His fingers were too large to operate any of the equipment properly, and there wasn’t any action happening right now. But suddenly, Slag started barking at him from his seat.

Slag wrote:“How can you sleep at a time like this?”

The big boy swiveled his chair around to stare at Slag with a bit of tiredness and disappointment (or the same expression depending on who you ask) in his face. “Me Sludge no sleeping, am just of borings,” he said, letting out a little chuckle alongside it, “Silly Slag. Those horns cover vision, can’t see me awoke?”