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Autobot Headquarters: Landing Pad Alpha

After making there way through the thin atmosphere of Cybertron the Ark-22 finally had touched down on the main landing pad of the Autobot Command Complex, which was conveniently attached to the main headquarters facility. Ultra Magnus had already descended from the landing ramp of the Ark-22 and was the first Autobot in many long cycles to set foot on his homeworld. It felt good to be home, but he couldn't be distracted from his work for to long. He turned to the assembled Autobots under his command.

"Alright, you all know your assignments. Kup, take everyone into the HQ and do your best to get it up and running." The Autobot field commander then walked over to Grimlock. "Alright. I know your not pleased with this scouting mission I have given you. But we don't know who or what is out there, but I know you and your team are the only ones who can handle any threat that might be on Cybertron. So I need you and your team out there, finding left over supplies, making sure the planet is safe, killing any threat that there is and finding the Decepticons. Understood?"

The hard optics of Ultra Magnus bored into the visor of the Dinobot commander as he spoke.

Autobot Headquarters: Landing Pad Alpha

Kup nodded at Ultra Magnus before he waved to his group. “C’mon lads and lass, lets start cleaning up this base.” The elder Autobot lead the way to the entrance of the base. He walked up to the door controls and, after brushing some dust and debris off of it, punching in the entry code. When nothing happened he cursed to himself. He produced a portable charger unit and attached it to the door controls. This time the panel lit up and opened after he entered the code.

“We’re gonna need to reenergize the whole base or we’ll be doing this everytime we want a door opened. Hot Rod, Springer, start siphoning off fuel from the ship into the base. Once we’ve got enough juice in it go ahead and seal the landing pad dome. Last thing we need is for some slaggin’ electrical storm to fry the circuits of our ship.”

Springer smiled, “Sure Kup, no problem. Come on Roddy, I’ll wrestle the fuel hose over and you can work the pump controls. Maybe if we hurry up we can find something a little more exciting to do.”

Hot Rod shot a smile back at Springer. “Sure thing Springer.” The two Autobots walked over to the external fuel access hatch and went to work.

Kup pulled his musket out as he peered into the base. He looked back at Howlstrike and Arcee. “Alright, we’re going inside to clean up the place. Keep your optics open and you weapons ready. This place has been abandoned a long time so who knows what might have moved in while we were gone. Lighting won’t be great either, probably just some emergency ones still powered, so watch your step. We’ll head for the command center and see if we can get some systems activated to speed things up a bit.” The old Autobot led the way in, carefully stepping inside the base and making his way down the corridors.

*

Grimlock stood on the landing pad with the rest of his team. He had kept quiet during their trip back to their homeworld, taking in the sight of the ruined planet and now the ruined city in silence. Once he had heard about how the war had gone in his absence he knew that Cybertron would look bad. He’d been a part of fighting and war for a very long time. Seeing the ruins of his home might have stirred some emotions in him deep down, but there was no sign of it on the surface.

He stared right back at Magnus as he reminded him of his ‘duty’ on Cybertron. He wasn’t happy about the mission, or being put under the command of Prime’s number one lackey. It meant they would go about things they way they had been since he was gone, a way that was losing them this war. They didn’t want him to fight his war on his own terms, the messy, dirty way that would actually win the war. Things had become too much about following rules and protocols. He would have to change that or simply break away from the Autobots all together. He wasn’t interested in leading his Dinobots on a side that didn’t even want to win.

But that would wait, for now. Now he would play the good little soldier, or, as close as he could come to that. The Dinobot leader stared at Magnus for another moment before speaking. “Come Dinobots, we see if there something left worth fighting here.” Grimlock then walked off for the patrol, assuming the rest of his team would follow him.

Autobot Headquarters: Landing Pad Alpha

Arcee couldn't help but feel a little disorientated, the pink tinted Fembot stepping down upon the surface of her home world, memories from her past clashing with the present. This had been the place, the very spot upon which she had boarded the shuttle that had taken them all away, the last Autobots to abandon their Home world. It had been barely controlled chaos then, a mass exodus from a dying planet, hundreds of Autobots pounding the pavement, and several thousand tonnes of shuttles, equipment and resources being taken with them.

The last day of occupied Cybertron had been an overwhelming hive of activity.

Now there was barely even a whisper.

Ghosts on an absent wind.

And yet, the Autobots had come home, their home, finally.

Iacon was alive once more.

"Try to stay out of trouble..."

Arcee smiled as both Hot Rod and Springer split from the group to complete their assigned task. It was somewhat needless, the odds of anything going wrong during such a routine assignment were slim to none, but then again...the two of them were involved. She was certain they would manage to find something.

In either case, she couldn't afford to lend such matters more thought, not as she fell into line behind Kup, and headed towards the central hub of the Autobot Capital. Howlstrike came with them, an Autobot she didn't know, and one that seemed to be spending a lot of time with one of her most respected peers. The pink tinted Fem trusted Kups judgment, perhaps even more than she trusted Primes, and so she possessed no hesitation in trusting her back to the stranger.

As Kup prepared his musket, the trio heading deep into the darkened tunnels, Arcee pulled one of her energon blades free from its harness across her back. With a flick of a switch, it hummed quietly into life, its scant, Sapphire illumination casting shadows along the ancient walls.

It seemed a little odd, to be heading deep into the Autobot stronghold with weapons at the ready, but right now, they couldn't afford to not be careful.

"Do you think anyone could have survived here...anyone who was left behind?"

Autobot Headquarters – Landing Pad Alpha

Howlstrike stepped out of the Ark-22 and onto the landing pad. He was finally back on the surface of Cybertron after what seemed like endless vorns of exile for himself and his race. It was still a shattered version of the world that he once knew and called home, but that would soon change once the Autobots had secured the planet. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be so easy considering the Decepticons would surely be here and attempt to retake Cybertron for themselves. Howl would do everything in his power to prevent that from happening. But, he was only one mech. It would take the entire team for this mission to be a complete success.

Howlstrike watched as Kup approached the main doors of the base and opened them with the help of a portable charger. On the old mech’s orders, Hot Rod and Springer then went off to transfer energon into the base so that it would look alive again instead of the empty husk it currently was. Howl then followed behind Kup and Arcee as the trio entered the base and made their way down the long dark corridors. Some dim lights were still functioning, but only barely. They would have to rely on their memory of this place to guide them through to the command center. Howl’s memory was sketchy at best, however, having only been at this base a couple of times before Cybertron was abandoned. He had switched sides not long before the planetwide exodus began and never had the chance to get to know the Autobot headquarters like the others did.

That would now change as Howlstrike cautiously moved through the base with his long time friend and the pink femme. He made note of the different passageways, so he’d be able to find his way through again at a later time. It was then that something caught his attention, something in the darkness ahead. He wasn’t sure what it was, but there was something not right.

“Wait,” Howl said quietly. “I sense something.” He moved by Arcee and Kup, lifting his head up. He sniffed the stale air as he kept his optics focused ahead. The scent of something caught his nostrils and he swiftly pulled out his energo sword and held it at the ready. “I don't know if anyone survived here,” he replied to Arcee’s comment, “But, I think we’re not alone.” Howl kept his optics ahead for several astroseconds, expecting something to happen or to come at them.

Nothing. No movement.

Howlstrike slowly lowered his sword and looked back at Kup and Arcee. “Perhaps it’s just the stale air I smell.” Just as he said that, a small mechanical creature leapt from the darkness, coming from the side instead of the front. Howl instinctively moved to intercept before it could latch on to Arcee’s head. The Autobot hunter quickly slashed at it with his sword, cutting the creature in half. It fell to the floor in two motionless pieces, sparks flying.

Howlstrike stood over the dismembered attacker, looking down at it. “A cyber-rat! Disgusting creatures.” Howl then looked at Kup and Arcee. “We should be careful. Where there’s one....” His warning was interrupted by the sound of more things moving in the dark. About a half dozen pairs of glowing, red eyes then appeared several yards in front of the Autobot trio. “....there’s usually more.”

The Autobot hunter then took a defensive stance as more cyber-rats emerged from the darkness ahead.

*********
Sludge followd Grimlock and the other Dinobots out of the Ark-22 and onto the landing pad. The last time he saw Cybertron, it was a living, breathing world full of cybernetic life. It had taken some damage from the long war, but nothing like what he witnessed now. It saddened Sludge to see his home in this sorry state. Perhaps if the Dinobots had not disappeared for so long this could have been prevented.

Sludge listened as Ultra Magnus reminded Grimlock of his orders. It was something the Dinobot Commander did not need to hear. He knew full well what needed to be done. Grimlock was, in the Jungle Warrior’s opinion, the stronger leader present. Grimlock said nothing to Magnus in response. He simply told the Dinobots to follow him as he then walked off. Sludge looked at his teammates. “Guess we should go now,” he said simply and then followed his commander. Where Grimlock led, Sludge would surely follow.

Autobot Headquarters: Corridors

Arcee had to admit, she was somewhat startled as the Cyber-Rat flew and screeched towards her head, especially since her attention had been directed elsewhere. Fortunately, Howlstrike had been on hand to swiftly, and cleanly, slice the rodent clean in two, a shower of sparks erupting from its split torso.

Ordinarily she would feel remorse over the senseless loss of life, when creatures who wanted nothing more than to live and be left alone were cut down and left to suffer. The pink tinted Femme, however, found it difficult to summon sympathy for the sparking creature at her feet, the Cyber-Rats possessing few qualities that were deserving of it.

Cruel and vicious little beasts, all teeth and claws and cruel intent. If the Decepticons did not exist, Arcee believed that the Autobots would have been drawn into an endless war with these nasty little critters instead.

Something that, somewhat surprisingly, could still happen, given that Howlstrike pointed out what every Protoform soon learned. Where there was one, there was always more…

With lighting speed, Arcee pulled her second energon blade from its harness and hummed it into lethal life. With grace and speed, the Femme ducked low and brought both sapphire blades sweeping outwards, a wide and perfect arc as two of the vicious creatures leapt and snapped towards her.

With a flash of sapphire light, and a burst of blinding sparks, both of the offending rodents were severed clean in two. It was a fleeting, yet lethal moment, the pink tinted Fembot preparing herself for many more…

Autobot Headquarters

After giving Grimlock his orders Ultra Magnus walked into the base and looked around. The place was a mess, it would take a lot of work to get down. Tagging along behind him was Wheeljack, carrying in each hand a case load of equipment he had brought with him. The pair walked towards Kup, he was overseeing the restoration of the headquarters.

"Kup, status report?" Ultra Magnus order.

Wheeljack meanwhile set to work on getting his equipment set up and running.

"Just let me know where you need me and what you want me to do."

Autobot Headquarters – Corridors

Howlstrike readied himself as several more cyber-rats charged directly at him. With a quick slice of his sword, two of the creatures were down, but there were still more coming. These things are tenacious, Howl thought to himself as he decapitated another rat before it was able to latch on to his shoulder. He then turned to the pink femme, who had just taken out a couple rats of her own and saw more approaching her from the side.

“Look out! To your left!” Howl shouted to Arcee. He moved to help her, but just then another cyber rodent leapt at him from the darkness. The Autobot hunter spun around, but not in time to avoid being tackled by the larger critter.

Howlstrike landed hard on his aft section as the cyber-rat clawed at him with a mindless ferocity that he had only seen exhibited before by some of his former Predacon teammates. The creature’s red eyes stared down at Howl as its jaws snapped at him repeatedly. This one was much bigger than the rest. It was possibly the alpha male of the pack. Howl knew of that hierarchy mindset all too well. Take down the head rat and the rest will then run away.

Howlstrike tried to bring his sword up, but was unable to as the cyber rodent bit into his right forearm. “Arrrr! Slaggin’ pest!” Howl quickly brought his legs up and pushed off against the creature, propelling it away from the Autobot hunter. “You wanna play rough do you, vermin?” Howl then transformed into wolf mode and leapt at the cyber-rat. The two mechanical beasts tangled with one another, clawing and biting at each other until finally Howlstrike grabbed a hold of the rodent’s head within his wolf jaws and crushed it into a mangled mess of scrap metal.

Returning to robot mode, Howlstrike peered down at his latest kill. He then let out a deafening howl to signify his victory. Now that the largest cyber-rat was out of commission the rest would surely flee, or so he hoped.

(OOC: My apologies for not posting here in so long. The past couple of weeks have been extremely busy for me)

Autobot Headquarters – Corridors

Kup glanced down at the remains of the first dead cyber-rat. “Nasty little critters, although if you cut them up just right you can get a bit of useable energon out of ‘em. It isn’t the best tasting fuel around but if its all you’ve got it isn’t too bad. I learned that the hard way at the battle of Altihex. My unit was holed up in a bunker surrounded by Decepticons. We had the defensive advantage and the Con leader wasn’t willing to send his guys against us to get massacred. He figured he’d just starve us out. It was then that we had to start turning to the cyber-rats that were…”

Before the old timer could finish his story several other of the creatures emerged from the shadows and converged on them. With an annoyed growl Kup leveled his musket at a group of them and fired. The acid splashed on the group of them and the sounds of their death shrieks began filling the corridor. A few more shots took out several more as Kup spared a glance at Arcee and Howlstrike. “You kids and your fancy blades, always liking to get up close and personal. Let me tell ya, if you ever meet an angry Battle Bear, then you won’t be so excited to get up close and fight with your knives.”

The veteran soldier looked over as Howlstrike tangled with a monster of a cyber-rat. He wanted to help the young Autobot, but he knew that he was probably enjoying himself in this little battle. It was good to let him blow off some steam now as he imagined things were going to be a bit slow in the times to come. Moving supplies and cleaning up weren’t exactly the most action packed or exciting things to be doing. He looked over at Howlstrike and smiled. “Feel better now lad? We should be able to get a good amount of fuel at of that one. Remind me to show you how to do that later.”

Kup didn’t wait for a reply before turning and continuing down the corridor towards the command center. He reached the door in short order. Producing the portable charging unit he pressed it against the door controls and punched in his code, unlocking them. He reached in and pried the doors apart the rest of the way and stepped inside. He was moving towards the main control panel when Ultra Magnus and Wheeljack joined them.

“So far so good sir. Had a little excitement on the way here but nothing we couldn’t handle. Now if Springer and Hot Rod are done pumping the fuel into the base we should be ready to power this place up.”

>>”Hot Rod, Springer, are you two done pumping fuel into the base?”<<

Hot Rod’s voice came back over the comm. Line. >>”Roger that Kup. We are starting up the station pumps now. You should have power in a few seconds.”<<

>>”Good job lad. Now both of you get your afts in here so you can help clean up. Don’t think you’re getting out of it.”<<

Kup turned back to Ultra Magnus. “Power should be coming back any second now.” Even as he spoke the main lights began to flicker on and control panels slowly lit up. Kup clapped his hands together. “Alright Autobots, lets take up stations and get Ultra Magnus here a real status report.

*

Iacon – Near Autobot HQ

Grimlock leapt off of the landing platform, landing on his feet with a tremendous crash on the actual surface of Cybertron. He glanced around at the downtrodden state of Iacon. The worst part was knowing that this was likely one of the most intact parts of Cybertron, being the Autobot capital and ultimate stronghold. It was probably untouched compared to what the rest of the planet looked like.

The Dinobot leader turned to look at his team. “Dinobots, we move to secure base for now. Can’t launch missions without staging and fall back point. Even Magnus know that, and he know we strongest Autobots around. Let others spend time cleaning and repairing.” He glanced out at the surrounding area. “Still though, me not want to waste too much time securing base, hunting whatever creatures and empties might still be around here. We scout perimeter of base, then we move to get some supplies me hide here long time ago.”

If he were capable of it Grimlock would have flashed a smirk at his team. He’d made sure to form a few stashes across the planet back in their more active days. With Prime constantly threatening to have him thrown in the brig or out of the Autobots, it paid to have his own little munitions and fuel dumps scattered around. Of course after all of that time some of them had likely been discovered, but he had a good feeling about the one in Iacon.

“Swoop, take to skies, circle base and look for anything that might cause trouble. Rest of us will spread out and circle base together, form a nice perimeter around it for little Prime so he feel nice and safe.” With that said Grimlock drew his rifle and began marching around the base, looking for signs of movement or other activity.

Inside Autobot Headquarters

Howlstrike watched as the smaller cyber-rats began retreating as he had hoped they would since the big one was now dead. As they disappeared into the darkness, Howl couldn’t help but smile as he looked over to his friend, Kup. “As a matter of fact, I do feel better now,” the Autobot hunter responded, looking back down at the alpha rat. “Fuel, huh? From that thing? Don’t know if I want that rat’s juices inside my servos, but whatever keeps me going, I guess.”

Howlstrike then quickly followed behind Kup as the old timer led the way down the corridor to the command center entrance. Once Kup had the recharging unit in place, Howl stepped up and aided his friend in prying the doors apart. “Let me give you a hand.” With the two of them at work, the doors were easily opened.

Once inside, Howlstrike waited and watched as Kup approached the primary control console. At the same time, Wheeljack and Ultra Magnus entered the command center. Howl stood at attention, displaying the appropriate respect for a commanding officer. He did not know Magnus very well, but he did know that Magnus was one of Prime’s most trusted commanders. Kup had also spoken highly of Magnus in the past, so Howl knew that he was fully capable of leading this unit.

After Kup received a brief update from Hot Rod and Springer, the lights in the command center began to come on one by one, illuminating the large room in a refreshing glow. Simultaneously, the many computer terminals began coming to life for the first time in countless vorns.

Once the power was up and running, Kup gave the order for the Autobots to assume a station. Unsure where to go at first, Howlstrike paused a moment before he finally sat down at the security station. Not being technologically savvy, Howl had some difficulty in accessing the base’s security systems or perhaps they were not functioning. Either way, Howl needed some assistance.

Turning to the old timer, Howlstrike grumbled. “Hey, Kup, I’m having trouble accessing the system. It won't respond to anything I do. Can you help me out?”

Iacon – Outside Autobot Headquarters

Sludge followed Grimlock off the landing platform. He looked around at the ruins of the once great city of Iacon. The place was in disarray, but still standing at least. It had been a very long time since the Jungle Warrior had last seen Iacon and that was back when it was still a functioning city state that lit up the Cybertronian skies and was bustling with activity. Now, it was dead and dark, a far cry from its former glory.

Sludge listened as Grimlock gave his orders and then nodded in response to his commander. Sludge was obedient almost to a fault, but that was because he believed so strongly in Grimlock’s ability to lead the Dinobots. He knew that Grimlock was not perfect, especially after recent events brought into question the Dinobot Commander’s overall judgment. But, Grimlock was still the strongest in the Jungle Warrior’s optics and he would continue to follow him.

Sludge drew out his laser rifle and followed behind Grimlock as the Dinobots began to spread out around the base. He kept a reasonable distance from his leader, not wanting to shadow Grimlock too closely. As Sludge plodded on, he moved further away from the Dinobot Commander before turning down a darkened alleyway to check for anything suspicious.

Autobot HQ

Ultra Magnus watched as the power slowly began to pour life once more into the long dormant headquarters that at one point had been the nerve center for the Autobot war effort on Cybertron. Old memories came back to the Autobot field commander as he recalled walking these halls, full of activity, as Autobots came to and fro as they were deployed to battles all over the planet, or delivered valuable data. It was odd to him to see this facility so empty and devoid of life. The large mech walked into the large command center as he heard Kup bark out orders and the others of his team take up their stations. Just behind him was Wheeljack, his tool kits in his hands. No doubt the engineer was going to be of critical important getting this place up and running again, and on line.

He stood silently for a moment as he gazed out over the large room. It was two tired. The bottom level was ringed with many control stations, most were for gathering and organizing data from field sources from sectors all over the planet. The operators of those stations were meant to sort through the data they received and to organize it for their superiors. On the second tier was the position of the commanders who were responsible for giving out orders that moved armies. This was where all of the major Autobot battle plans were devised and organized. Often Optimus Prime would man this station as he oversaw the entirety of the Autobot war effort. In his absence as he lead critical operations himself other members of the Autobot high command would man this post.

It had been a very long time since Ultra Magnus had last been here, and it felt almost dream like as he ascended the steps to the upper command tier. The field commander stood at that post, nostalgia washed over him from the early days of the war, as odd as that felt to him. He gazed over the ruined command center and wondered if this was the beginning of rebirth for Cybertron.

"Alright, so far so good on getting this place secured. Once we have established control over the systems here I want to see how much of our information gathering network is operational." He turned to the venerable old Kup. "Kup, have Hot Rod and Springer do a sweep of the building to ensure that there is nothing hazardous in here. This includes inaccessible areas, areas flooded with toxic or radioactive contamination, and anything large and nasty like our cyber-rat friends." He then turned to the other Autobots in the command center. "Arcee, Howlstrike I want you two to check on the command centers monitors and consoles to see what ones work and what ones don't. Wheeljack, see what you can do about accessing our information network so we can work on that once we have this place straightened away."

Down below Wheeljack nodded at Ultra Magnus' command. He walked over to a near by station he knew was used to monitoring the status of the various satellites and automated listening posts that had been established all over Cybertron. The engineer dropped into the seat and tried to get the console working. It was operational, but it kept flickering on and off. After several failed attempts to get it working Wheeljack gave the underside of the console a good, hard kick, a loud bang echoed through the command center, but it did the trick. Working quickly he did his best to try and access any incoming information, he didn't have high hopes that a lot was still on line.

Before the evacuation of Cybertron there was a battle that was waged between small special opts teams who would be constantly striking at enemy listening posts and satellites in orbit to try and knock out the other sides eyes and ears. It was a constant struggle to keep the Autobot information gathering network on line as Decepticon strike teams kept locating and eliminating hidden listening posts and satellites. After eons of no use and maintenance Wheeljack had no idea what was left. As information began to trickle in as long dormant posts and satellites began to pump back information he could see many of them had gone off line. With the satellites he could see many had fall out of orbit and crashed, others had floated off into space, others had collided with each other, and even more still had suffered fatal malfunctions. A few were still on line, but it was going to take time to get them operational again. The situation on the ground was a bit better, but not much. So far less then a quarter of the land based listening posts had responded back, and most of them were running on emergency power. Seems the years of neglect had take its toll on them as well.

Wheeljack knew he had his work cut out for him.


* * *

Snarl had followed Grimlock off the landing pad and listened as he gave the word to spread out and begin a sweep of the immediate area. The desert warrior was a little releaved to have the chance to get out on his own as he was still uncertain of how he felt about the new arrangement for the Dinobots. He had little faith that Grimlock had really changed that much and he was certain it was only a matter of time before the self serving Dinobot leader did something that endangered them all. He drew his long ranged laser rifle as he began to spread out from the other Dinobots.

The lumbering Snarl picked his way through a ruined street. It was clear that one of the large buildings that had once lined this road had collapsed and destroyed the structure just across from it, as well as partially collapsing the building to its left. Smashed glass and twisted beams and metal once part of the building were strewn all about and the Dinobot warrior had to carefully climb up the massive heap of rubble. He wondered just how much of the city was in the is condition? Iacon had not seen any major combat before the evacuation. Sure Decepticon air raids were common, but they were common in all of the Autobot rear areas, and those raids never truly accomplished much other then fierce dog fights. Though Snarl was sure that this collapse, like many of the others he was sure had occurred, were more the result of neglect and exposure to the elements of space After so long with out and atmosphere to protect it Snarl was sure Cybertron had suffered several strikes by commits, meteors, and other such space based objects.

Once at the top of the fallen skyscraper Snarl stopped to observe what he could see from his higher vantage point. He didn't see anything surprising, just ruined buildings that were in various stages of collapse given the long years of neglect. However, he did spot something unusual further up the street. He slid down the other side of the rubble heap and made his way cautiously up the street, weapon at the ready in case anything jumped out of the darkness. He reach the spot, an intersection up from where he had stopped and looked down. A massive crater was there, it could very easily could of been made by a meteor, but at the same time it looked as if something large could of burrowed under the surface and could now be making a home under the streets of Iacon.

>>Snarl to Grimlock. I am north east of our origin point by a few kliks. I have found a large crater that does not appear to have been caused by any natural body. Do you wish me to investigate further or mark it for further inspection later?<<