Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

Mountain Side

Skywarp sighed as he received the transmission from Skyjack requesting an evac from the base along with Snowcap. A teleporter's work is never done, the seeker thought as he turned back towards the mountain. It was then that his optics caught sight of a thick cloud of gray smoke rising up from the top of the volcano. It was either from the numerous explosions that had gone off within the base, itself, or Mount St. Helens was closer to erupting than ever before. Regardless, there wasn't an astrosecond to lose.

>>"I read you, Skyjack. I'm on my way."<< Skywarp responded as the mountain rumbled again, causing the seeker to almost topple over. Before that could happen, however, 'Warp teleported away.

Corridors

A flash of light filled the hallway as Skywarp appeared in front of Skyjack and an unconscious Snowcap. The teleporter quickly knelt down beside the white and grey seeker and gave him a once-over. "He appears to be in stasis lock. He'll be fine. Now, let's get the slag out of here shall we."

Skywarp laid one hand on Snowcap's inert form as he then reached over and grabbed a hold of Skyjack's arm. "Prepare yourself. This can be a bit jarring," the prankster warned as more light surrounded the three 'Cons before they all vanished from sight.

Mountain Side

Skywarp reappeared outside with Skyjack and Snowcap. "The effects of the trip should wear off quickly," the black and purple seeker commented as he stood up from his kneeling position and immediately opened a comm line to Thundercracker:

>>"Hey, buddy! I got everyone out of the base that I could. However, all that teleporting has drained my energon levels. I should be fine, but I doubt I could teleport again without a recharge."<<

Bounce Chamber

Jazz sighed with relief as Hardhead lifted Prowl off of him.

"Whoo! That's a load off, thanks!" Jazz said, then nodded to the green mech in response to his statement about leaving.

He began to follow them outside, but then it hit him, Optimus was still inside!

Jazz had a problem now, Do I leave to help the rest of them, or do I stay with my friend?

Both options seemed selfish.

>>Optimus, I'll be frank, get out of there before this place blows!<< Jazz said through a comm link to Optimus Prime.

He looked back in the Bounce Chamber for any sign of Prime, while keeping an eye on the Volcano.

>>I'm keeping a foot on the door for you...<< Jazz said through the comm link again to Prime, hoping his friend would come soon.

Bounce Chamber/New Breach

Lore-lock, let his servos go slack as Ironhide, nudged him towards the exit. As the momentum from the security chief wears off the scout goes into vehicle mode.

"Why do I have a feeling that this isn't going to be like a run down a nice fast alpine mountain road. But it just might have all the fun parts, hair pin turns, next to vertical drops. I feel some bent frame rails in my future" He complained to Brawn

Outside

Sideswipe moved around the Decepticon base until he came across the breach the rest of the Autobots were using as an escape route. A flash of gold caught his optics and he quickly picked up his pace until he was in a full sprint.

“Sunny! Sunny, are you okay? What happened?”

As Sideswipe reached his twin he took a firm hold of his arm and placed it over his shoulder. If anyone was going to help his brother it was going to be him.

Mountain Side

Nightraven watched as, one by one, Skywarp teleported the remaining Decepticons within the base out on the mountain side. She remained near her sister as finally the last mech was relocated. The Seeker femme rose from her kneeling position and made her way to the teleporter. After Skywarp dropped off Skyjack and Snowcap, Nightraven gently placed her hand on Skywarp’s forearm in order to get his attention.

“We can’t stay here. That volcano is going to erupt at any moment. How are we going to get out of here with so many wounded?”

Nightraven looked back at Hellion’s inert form and then back at the black and purple Seeker; a look of dread plastered on her face.

Outside

Hex watched as Axle and First Aid made it out of the breach and raced on to a secure location. The young mech remained at his position offering cover fire while Hardhead, Smokescreen, Ironhide, Groove, Streetwise, Hound and Jazz made their way outside. Once they were all out and on their way toward a secure position, Hex brought up the rear.

The silver mech stopped short of the tree line and looked back at the base. His optics dimmed as he kept vigil for Optimus Prime. He had no intention of leaving without a one on one with the Autobot leader.

Storage Room

Prime quickly got back up on his feet after being hit by Megatron’s shoulder that sent them to the floor. The Autobot leader’s optics narrowed as he took in his opponent’s banter.

“You’re wrong, Megatron. Even if you were to succeed in deactivating me my Autobots would press on. They would be fueled by their own determination to see you and your Decepticon plague eradicated.”

When Prime finished speaking he opened a secure line to Blaster.

>>”Good job, Blaster. I’ll be along as soon as I can. In the meantime get everyone aboard the Guardian and rendezvous at the Ark-19. Also, inform Jazz that it’s crucial that every Autobot has vacated the immediate area. I want everyone safe, and that includes him, so no heroics.”<<

He quickly closed the link in time to withdraw his hand and replace it with his energo ax in order to block Megatron’s devastating blow to his head. Prime stepped back slightly but then swung horizontally at the Decepticon’s midsection attempting to cleave his nemesis in two.

(OOC: With Deva's permission, I'll be NPCing Groove.)

Bounce Chamber

The opportunity to eviscerate Ramplate with his rotors never arose. Nor did the occasion to engage him in a strenuous contest of fisticuffs. In fact, Blades' fists were never within striking distance of the tank-former, courtesy of a particular Seeker endowed with a remarkable and rather convenient ability. Reflecting upon this issue with an open mind—and a touch of desperation—Blades almost wished he had applied the use of one of his rocket launchers to destroy Ramplate. It wasn't the most appealing method, but it certainly would have produced an effective outcome.

His features assembled into an obvious display of irritation. “Could this solar cycle suck any more than it already does?”

As if answering his question, the volcano released several violent tremors, causing Blades to sway slightly. He was fortunate it was only his balance experiencing the current conditions. He knew the worst was yet to come, should they continue to loiter in the Decepticons' headquarters.

“Why, yes it can.”

******

Groove brought his form to an abrupt halt, his optics searching urgently for his team-mate. Quickly discovering his location, Groove wondered why Blades was just standing there; movement did not appear to be forthcoming. It seemed as if the red and white helicopter was deep in contemplation. Not the best of times to be occupied with such an activity.

The white motorcycle approached Blades with great speed. “Blades! What are you doing, man? We need to get out of here.”

“You don't say, Groove.”

Blades was still ruffled at the fact that a one-on-one confrontation with one of those waste of spare parts never eventuated. Honestly, there wasn't a single fight he was able to participate in. It also didn't help that Groove detested violence in its entirety, leaving Blades to ruminate in his frustration unaccompanied. But he never did expect Groove to understand. Not since he had first met the peace-loving Autobot many vorns ago.

Groove placed a hand on Blades' shoulder. “All right, then. Let's go.”

The rough-and-tumble Protectobot nodded, attempting to conceal his sour mood. “Yeah, let's get the frag out of here.”

The two Protectobots sprinted towards the new opening, fresh tremors aggressively announcing their arrivals. It would not be long now. Not long before the Decepticons found themselves without the protection of a base—and exposed to everything Earth, the planet they were supposedly striving to harvest its resources from, had to offer, including the Autobots.

A smirk formed on Blades' faceplate.

Corridors

Mixmaster had been happy to simply charge forward with the other Constructicons. One way or another, they had enough muscle on their team that he was sure they would eventually plow their way through whatever stood in their way. That was all well and good until the road ahead of him suddenly had a sheen to it that the rest hadn't.

"What the...?"

Mixmaster started to slam on his brakes just as his front tires caught the outer edges of the ice. His equilibrium immediately de-centered and the Constructicon began to slide.

"Turn in to the skid, turn in to the skid, turn in to..." Mixmaster said, his back end throwing his front for a few loops before something eventually stopped him. In this case, it was the unforgiving walls lining the corridors.

Mountain side

Astrotrain had had little time to thank Skywarp before the teleporter was gone again. And truth to be told, neither the triplechanger himself, nor Blitzwing's remains were exactly safe either yet. Fortunately enough, getting away from the mountain was simple enough for someone that was able to fly. Making a quick scan over the area he was facing to see if there was any hostilities present, Astrotrain hurled Blitzwing away from the mountain and as high as he could, transformed into his shuttle form and caught the other Decepticon into his open hatch before rocketing away from the mountain.

>>"Astrotrain reporting. Can anyone provide me rundown on the current situation we are in?"<<
_________________________________________________

The skies above Mount St. Helens

Following Thrust's folly, Dirge, Ramjet and Thundercracker had wasted little time getting airborne. The sniper had to be located and eliminated before they had a chance to retrieve Thrust's banged up carcass especially now that Skywarp's teleportation abilities were out of commission.

>>"Acknowledged buddy. Stay out of sight. Command will likely order retreat anytime now."<< Thundercracker replied to Skywarp while getting into formation with Dirge and Ramjet.

The seeker trio had only the rough location of the sniper known, so firing towards the estimated position with their lasers was waste of energy. However, heat-seeking missiles had the chance of tagging into the sniper and even if there were obstacles between them and the Autobots - they were powerful enough to force the sniper on the move.

>>"Fire your heat-seekers at the estimated position of the sniper. Let's smoke him out before he picks us one by one."<< Thundercracker commanded and the two coneheads obeyed - both firing one heat-seeker each towards the estimated position of Perceptor. Thundercracker knew he would hear from this from Ramjet later but right now they had to get things done, not argue about leadership.
_________________________________________________

Earth orbit - Decepticon Negator class frigate Ultrax

It had taken some time from Motormaster in his current condition to set the Ultrax's orbital bounce system ready for evacuation bounce protocol but he had finally managed to do so. All Decepticons scattered around Mount St. Helens within diameter of 5 miles had been recognized and tagged from orbital bounce. All that remained were the orders to start pulling their warriors off the field.

>>"Motormaster to Soundwave. Ultrax is ready to start evacuation bounces if need arises."<<

Mountain Side

Ramplate let out a pained groan as the vertigo from Skywarp's teleportation washed over him, causing the 'mech to shake his helm to clear out the static. Before they'd left, he'd caught a glimpse of Blades' optics out of the corner of his own, and while the tank-former didn't much think of his chances facing off against two Autobot heavy weights... well... THAT one was one Ramplate didn't doubt he'd cross paths with again sometime.

As the others were teleported in, he let his weapon fall into his subspace pocket, before making his way over to the two seekers. "She's right," Ramplate spoke, "We need to get as far away from here as we can... I can carry some, three, maybe four at most, but I can't promise it'll be an easy ride." To be honest, the warrior looked a little banged up himself, but mostly it was armor damage, the only structural damage being to his left knee. To illustrate his point though, he transformed into his alt mode, letting the side compartments push outwards so that his 'turret' could sink inwards. It wasn't a pretty transformation, and holding it in its half-state like that would be painful over time, but it made a wide, sturdy hovering platform that could support weight.

"I know you seekers are used to the skies, but I don't think your sister's going to be flying anytime soon," he said to Nightraven. "Toss her on and let's go..."

Mountain Side

Skywarp received a response from Thundercracker within a few astroseconds of informing him of his current situation. >>”I read you, ‘Cracker. Will do.”<< The teleporter than turned to face Nightraven who had expressed her concerns on how they would get so many wounded away from the volcano in time. It was definitely a thought that had crossed the prankster’s mind, as well. Astrotrain was a viable option as he was a military transport, but unfortunately the triplechanger was already airborne and rocketing away from the mountain. Ramplate then interjected his opinion before transforming into a modified tank mode capable of carrying some of the wounded.

“I agree, as well,” Skywarp replied, looking at Nightraven. “Thundercracker instructed me to stay out of sight until command orders a retreat. There’s an Autobot sniper nearby, so we need to be careful. As for how we will get out of here, I know the Stunticons have a ship in orbit that they bounced to earlier. That will most likely be how we will all escape the eruption. Until then, let’s load Helly onto Ramplate and get as far away from the mountain as possible.”

Skywarp took the liberty of lifting up Hellion and placing her onto Ramplate’s modified tank form. He then did the same for the stasis-locked Snowcap. Once that was done, the black and purple seeker took the lead, guiding Nightraven and the others he had evacuated further down the mountain towards the tree line where they would find cover from the Autobot sniper’s attacks. Along the way, they encountered Long Haul who was lying deactivated against a large rock. ‘Warp quickly gathered up the Construction transport and placed him onto Ramplate, as well, before continuing onward towards the forest.

******

Smokescreen sped down the mountain side as Hardhead followed at a distance behind him. The diversion expert had the advantage of his vehicle form, which allowed him to travel faster than his larger green comrade. “You all right back there, big guy?!”

“Never better, Smokey!” The veteran soldier yelled back as he trudged down the mountain on foot, carrying Prowl over one shoulder. His back was aching a bit from where the turret was destroyed earlier by Blitzwing. Of course, it was nothing Hardhead couldn’t persevere through. He was big and tough and not one to let a little bit of pain get in the way of what needed to be done. Hell, even a lot of pain wouldn't stop him. "I'll catch up soon. Don't worry about me!"

“Glad to hear it!” Smokescreen responded back as he reached the spot outside the interference perimeter where First Aid was waiting. Axle and Hot Spot were already gone, most likely up to the Protectobot’s ship in orbit. Smokey stopped and transformed back to robot mode, forcing his panels and gears to shift into their proper positions. The red and blue racer then stumbled forward, reaching out to First Aid for support. Even though the energon leak had been previously patched, the battle damage Smokey’s body had sustained was still taking a toll on his overall systems. If he didn’t get to a CR chamber soon, he’d end up in stasis lock.

“Hardhead is not far behind me. He’s carrying Prowl, which is slowing him down some,” Smokescreen alerted First Aid. “The rest should get here soon, as well.”

Outside the base

Soundwave ignored Motormaster’s signal, instead connecting directly with the Ultrax’s computer and initiating a full sweep retrieval. At the same time he ordered the base computer to drop all interference, allowing a smooth retrieval. Quickly all of the Decepticons in and around the base began to bounce up to the orbiting vessel.

*

Storage Room

Megatron leapt back from Prime’s slash and let loose a laugh. The entire base was the rocked by volcanic activity. “I will soon find out Prime. This base will detonate and take you with it!” He laughed again as the base’s main power core exploded, the fireball spreading out, growing as it struck fuel sources and rapidly and uncontrollably expanding as it hit the ultra-energon deposits.

Optimus lunged forward, tackling Megatron as the Ultrax’s bounce beam tried to take him away. At the same time the Autobot leader signaled the Guardian for its own retrieval. Autobots began to disappear up to the vessel as the two leaders struggled. With the two of them so deep in the base, intertwined in battle and the explosion engulfing the base, neither vessel could manage to bounce them out.

The base exploded spectacularly in a massive blast that leveled the top of the mountain. With the top of it ripped away the dormant volcano spewed out lava, a mushroom cloud of smoke and ash forming over it as tremors could be felt for miles away. The Decepticon base was destroyed, and now the war would take an entirely new turn.