Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

"How the slag Weirdwolf didn't get their scent?!" Skullcruncher boomed as the creatures appeared all around them. He did not stay to wait for an answer though, instead he swung his energy sword at the closest beast which quickly jumped backwards to escape from inevitable death at the hand of the large Decepticon.

"Sloooow..." The beast mocked and launched an assault of its own, its claws connecting with Skullcruncher's armor but only scratching it.

"Too tough for you?" Skullcruncher smirked, seized the beast's clawed arm with his free hand and pulled the creature closer to make an escape impossible, his own clawed digits cutting into the beast's metal skin. The beast fought back with all the fury of a wounded feral predator but it was fighting a losing battle. Holding the beast firmly within the reach of his sword, Skullcruncher drove his sword through the creature's thin mid section, twisted it and pulled the sword off the creature in a way that left the beast both impaled and almost cut in two. Pulling hard with the arm holding the beast to get momentum, Skullcruncher threw the beast against the opposing tunnel wall in a wide arch, where it shattered in two following the impact.

As he began searching for another target, he couldn't avoid noticing how the remaining beasts were clearly moving away from him and trying to separate him and Thunderwing from the flyers whom the beasts had apparently chosen to be easier targets.

Shrugging his shoulders in an apparent sign of not really caring how the situation was developing, Skullcruncher transformed into his cyberalligator form and lunged at one of the beast that were moving towards Blackwind, loudly clasping his jaws around the leg of one beast, pulling it down to his level with his massive strength and promptly starting to do exactly what the beasts themselves were there to do - feeding.

Meanwhile, a reply came back from Weirdwolf to Thunderwing. >>"Afraid I am, not able to help. A swarm I will alert if were I to run back to you now. Summon Beastbox and Overkill you cannot?"<<

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

The beasts struck quickly encircling the group in mere moments. Thunderwing was the first to act and fired on one of them with his weapons. Blackwind had little time to think as she tried to make sense of the situation. Dreadwind and Darkwing were engaged with another creature at the rear of the tunnel, while Skullcruncher had just finished off another. The Seeker femme finally realized that Thunderwing and Skullcruncher were lured further up the tunnel leaving her and the two other fliers separated and surrounded by the rest of the beasts.

Blackwind’s attention was brought back to her immediate right where she heard a loud crunch. She quickly jumped back as one of the monsters was taken down by Skullcruncher in his cyberalligator mode. In the confusion she decided her only option was to sneak up on one of them and surprise it.

As Blackwind was distracted by Skullcruncher’s attack, another Demon took notice of the femme and began to make its way towards her, but when she suddenly vanished from sight the creature growled in confusion and annoyance.

“Gonnnne, wherrrrre?”

With the creature stumped Blackwind was able to make her way behind it. She had noticed it zero in on her before she vanished. Once in position she raised her arm and fired her laser into the beasts’ back. It screeched in pain but recovered quickly. The skeletal creature spun around to see who had fired on it and came face to face with the barrel of Blackwind’s laser. She flashed an evil grin at the stunned beast and then fired leaving a sizable hole in its cranium.

She lowered her arm and looked back at the rest of the team. Taking stock of where the monsters were she tried to recall how many there were. Unfortunately they were coming into the tunnel from several different locations it was hard to keep track of their numbers. As she prepared to engage her invisibility she heard something behind her, but she wasn’t quick enough to turn and fire on it. The Demon slashed out with its razor sharp claws ripping into Blackwind’s back causing sparks and severing a few lubricant and fuel lines.

“AGHHH!”

She dropped to the floor trying to clutch her back. The creature let out satisfied grunt as it looked down at the prone Seeker.

“Finaaaally eaaaat.”

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

Darkwing and Dreadwind continued to hammer away at one of the demons with their guns. They had successfully mangled the creature’s legs but still it clawed after them. Finally Dreadwind simply snapped and charged at the creature, bringing his guns right up to its head. “Why do you want to kill me so badly? What did I do to deserve this?!?” The creature’s cranium was quickly reduced to molten slag under the point blank assault from the Decepticon.

Darkwing had to pull his partner away from the smoldering corpse to get him to stop firing. “Alright Dread, I think you got him. Now we just have to worry about the other monsters coming to eat us.” The two fliers backed up against the tunnel wall and began pouring fire into another of the creatures as it stalked closer to them.

*

Thunderwing slammed his fist into the face of the monster that had initially attacked him. It was a solid hit on the beast and knocked its head back against the wall, hard, but it didn’t seem to do any real damage to it. It lashed back out at him with its razor sharp claws, but his carapace was able to absorb or deflect most of the blow. He moved quickly to grab its wrists before it could lash out at him again.

The two mechs struggled with each other for a few seconds, pushing back and forth against each other. Finally Thunderwing lashed out with the corrosive laser mounted on his head, aiming for the other being’s optics. The beam briefly touched one of the optics, drawing its attention away from the back and forth between himself and the Decepticon. It was enough for Thunderwing to gain an edge over the monster and fling him up and over himself, slamming the demon face first into the ground. Drawing his laser rifle he fired a handful of rounds into the monster’s head to put it down for good.

His attention was drawn to the cry of pain from Blackwind. He looked over to see one closing in on her, along with other creatures attempting to cut the fliers off from Skullcruncher and himself. A blast from his cyclone cannon sent the demon staggering back as he charged forward. He stopped in front of Blackwind, one hand pushing her back while the other continued firing. “Fliers, get between Skullcruncher and myself. They are attempting to break us up into smaller groups that can be overwhelmed by numbers.” Darkwing and Dreadwind began slinking along the wall to join the other Decepticons, a barrage of fire covering their retreat.

The Decepticon frowned at Wierdwolf’s reply to his message. He would have to make sure he remained closer to the main group in the future. Thunderwing had been reluctant to unleash Soundwave’s minions. While Beastbox and Overkill were skilled fighters neither of them was known for subtlety or precision. He would rather not suffer from a cave in or alerting others to their presence here, but it seemed he had little choice at this point. “Skullcruncher, unleash Beastbox and Overkill. With their help we may be able to put a quick end to this battle.

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

While Skullcruncher was unquestionably powerful, he could easily get distracted in the heat of a battle and was at times slow to grasp the big picture despite hardly being unintelligent. He was in the zone, happily munching away the beast he had managed to take by surprise only moments earlier. Feeling how the energon from the beast flowed into his own system while being blissfully unaware of what the so called demons were trying to do. Until Thunderwing's voice woke him up from the trance.

"Urh..." Noises of metal cracking under the massive pressure of Skullcruncher's jaws was followed by a loud noise of the bestial Decepticon spitting his mouth empty before transforming back to robot mode. Grinding his teeth together and grinning maliciously, Skullcruncher shot two small chips out of a personal container. Accompanied by bright light and crackling of energy, the two chips grew and transformed. Another into a powerfully built purple ape-like beast somewhat shorter than Blackwind and the other into a white and blue cyberbeast with at least as much bulk as Thunderwing had. "Go for a kill boys!"

Following Skullcruncher's command, the duo went to work. Beastbox rushed at on of the demons surrounding the flyers, tackling it to ground and following his assault with an onslaught of vicious hammering punches. Meanwhile Overkill swung couple of beasts down with his tail before grabbing one in his jaws and proceeding to tear the creature into pieces.

Skullcruncher did not stay to see how his allies were doing, instead he charged into the crowd of demons, swinging his serrated energo-sword in wide angles, cutting couple of the creatures down and forcing some to step back from Dreadwind and Darkwing. "Crush them beneath our feet! Show no mercy!"

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

Blackwind was able to get back to feet after Thuderwing drove off the Demon that had attacked her. She was still in considerable pain as he began pushing her back behind him. She looked up towards Darkwing and Dreadwind as the two other fliers began to edge their way to safety. Blackwind also noticed Skullcruncher release Beastbox and Overkill. With the help of the two cassettecons perhaps they could gain the upper hand on these creatures.

Once her internal repair systems began to initiate she joined in the battle. She wanted to be sure that she wouldn’t be taken by surprise again, therefore she positioned herself at the wall and she began firing on the relentless creatures.

“This isn’t working! There must be another way to stop them!”

The femme Seeker continued to lay waste to the Demons when, out of nowhere, something wet dripped on her face. She stopped her assault and brought her hand to her face. With her index finger she swiped over the area. Her optics narrowed as she examined the substance, and then another droplet hit her face. Her optics widened as she looked up at the ceiling of the tunnel.

Before she could even respond the Demon dropped down landing directly in front of her. She began to raise her arm but the monster had already curled its clawed hand into a tight fist and sent it right into Blackwind’s face. The hit was hard enough to knock her back into the wall where the back of her head slammed into the hard surface. She slid down the wall and finally fell over onto the floor unconscious.

The demon quickly grabbed a hold of her right ankle and began to drag her through one of the makeshift entrances the creatures had made.

While Blackwind was being dragged off the Demons still engaged with the rest of the Decepticons began to close in their ranks. Keeping them busy while their cohort made away with its prize.

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

Thunderwing poured fire into the approaching demons. The blasts mostly slowed them down, but eventually even these beasts succumbed to their sustained fire. It was easier to kill them up close, but Skullcruncher, Overkill and Beastbox had taken over that roll. He would allow them to vent their frustrations on these monsters while he covered them. Unlike those warriors he had no particular desire to wade directly into the fight, although testing his carapace in direct combat might prove interesting.

As if reading his thoughts one of the demons got close enough to slash his chest. The Decepticon responded by slugging him in the face. The demon staggered backwards but lunged at him with a roar. He seized the beast by his neck and lifted him in the air. It slashed and snarled at him as he squeezed his hands. He could feel its neck crumpled under his grip. With a cruel grin on his face he tore its entire cranium off of its now limp body.

He had been too busy battling the creature to notice the demon landing behind him. Thunderwing turned only in time to see the monster disappearing down a side tunnel, dragging Blackwind behind it. A scowl formed on his face as he saw the other demons begging to fall back. “Skullcruncher, get Weirdwolf back here. Drag him back if you have to, but we need his tracking ability.” The Decepticon scientist then ducked into the tunnel the demon had escaped in. If he moved quickly he hoped he could follow the beast and its captive himself.

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

"I don't think I will need to!" Skullcruncher boomed back to Thunderwing and slammed a demon he was holding by its face headfirst against a wall, crushing its cranium.

"This was a good exercise though! Too bad they are turning their tail already!" He added, and followed Thunderwing through the crack in the wall after enlarging the opening a bit to fit through, leaving Beastbox and Overkill assist Darkwing and Dreadwind in the main tunnel.

However, despite of knowing something Thunderwing apparently didn't, Skullcruncher was disturbed by the actions of his commanding officer. Weirdwolf had reported being dangerously close to a swarm nest when Thunderwing had called for help, and he had still been within Skullcruncher's sensor range as he had promised. Had Weirdwolf rushed to help, the nest would have been alerted. And the addition of a Swarm to all these demons would have probably got them all deactivated. You would be willing to endanger all of us just for one Decepticon who wasn't even able to protect herself? What the slag is so special about her?
___________________________________

Fast, deadly and silent. Well, silent until the moment to strike at least.

"Your energon shall I taste, yes I will. Delicious it shall be."

Whatever made Weirdwolf utter those words aloud right before he bounced at the demon that had taken Blackwind - it didn't leave the demon enough time to react. The cyberwolf had already tackled the demon and its pray to the ground and sunk his fangs into its throat, tearing it open.

Not much later, his glowing red optics met with Thunderwing's in the darkness of the tunnel, fuel from the demon dripping from his jaws like drool. "Backdoor I found. Shortcut as well. Less than 2 kliks from here a hole in the ground is. Large enough to fly it is. Believe I will that an ancient venting shaft into the plasma energy chamber it is, reaching into the core of the planet perhaps!"

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

When Weirdwolf tackled the demon Blackwind fell right alongside the two struggling beasts. Weirdwolf made short work of the creature, and while the cyberwolf began to feast on his current kill Blackwind started to come back on line. As she began to focus on her surroundings she heard Weirdwolf address Thunderwing.

She slowly got back up to her feet, her hand immediately going to her forehead. Once she had gathered herself she looked up at Thunderwing, a serious expression upon her visage.

Blackwind then glanced at Weirdwolf for a moment.

“I certainly hope that that swarm nest was not alerted when you left your position.”

To the Seeker femme there was no reason to make a spectacle with over flowing gratitude. After all it wasn’t in her nature to give thanks to anyone; of course with the exception of very few.

“Now then, we had better head to that hole. I’d prefer to get this mission over with sooner rather than later.”

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

Thunderwing clambered through the tunnels. The added bulk of his carapace made it difficult to squeeze through the narrow passages. He wasn’t as slender as the skeletal demons or as small as Blackwind. He crashed through various hanging bits of metal and other loose parts. Speed was of the essence here though, not stealth. The demon would know he was coming either way, he just needed to catch up with it.

The Decepticon increased his pace when he what sounded like a battle up ahead. He had no desire to lose any member of his team, Blackwind in particular. He had grown fond of her, particularly as she was the only truly friendly company he had on Cybertron. All of the others were either pure warriors, annoying or had their own plans and machinations. Blackwind was as close to a trusted comrade as he was going to get and he did not want to lose her.

He was a bit surprised to come upon the scene of Weirdwolf tearing apart the demon and Blackwind slowly recovering. Apparently Weirdwolf was more on top of things then he had suspected. He nodded at the tracker. “Well done Weirdwolf. Lead the way to this hole. From there the dedicated fliers can take point.”

The scientist then turned to Blackwind, a slight look of concern on his face. “I assume you suffered no serious injuries? With any luck that will be as eventful as it gets on this mission.”

Within Cybertron’s Underworld

"Oh gratitude of yours, all inspiring it is." Weirdwolf chuckled in response to Blackwind's comment and transformed into his robot form, turning his attention to Thunderwing who had just showed up. "The Swarm to avoid, a detour I had to take. Strong and different your scent is wings of thunder, following it easy is. Admit I have to, a coincidence to meet the wind black within chosen route of mine was."

Drawing his sword and gun, Weirdwolf took the point and motioned the others to follow. "Warn you I must. The demon scent I spot not. Understand this I cannot."

>>"Darkwing! Dreadwind! I know you are still functioning!"<< Skullcruncher boomed into his communicator after arriving at the scene and hearing of Weirdwolf's discovery. >>"Goad Beastbox and Overkill through that fragging crack in the wall and join the rest of us here! Weirdwolf found an exhaust vent large enough to fly in! We're going deeper!"<<