by SmokescreenGT » Sat Oct 06, 2012 3:04 pm
- Motto: "Transform and smoke 'em!"
- Weapon: Twin Shoulder-Mounted Rocket Launchers
On Shore
Ricochet watched as his shells detonated all around the approaching Darkride, consuming the interrogator in a large cloud of sand and debris. Surely, the torturer wouldn’t be able to dodge all of those explosions and would be brought down in a crumpled heap of burning scrapmetal. Unfortunately, the gunner’s view of his target was now obscured by the cloud, but that didn’t prevent his imagination from running wild with delightful glee. However, that premature happiness was short lived as Darkride leapt from the plum of dust with the intent of inflicting a deep wound somewhere on the expert marksman’s framework utilizing a set of razor sharp claws.
“Holy slag!!” Ricochet exclaimed as he attempted to jump back, but his own leap wasn’t quite good enough as he felt Darkride’s nails slash across the flame decoration that adorned his chestplate. The gunner toppled backwards, landing on his aft with a thud. Wasting no time, the black and gold mech immediately rolled over before scrambling to his feet. Glancing briefly down at the wound, Ricochet could tell that the damage appeared to be moderate and didn’t penetrate any vital parts underneath. It bled energon, but not enough to drain him dry any time soon.
The marksman looked back up and glared over at his supernatural adversary. “There’s no way a normal ‘Con could’ve survived that kind of bombardment without any injuries to show for it. And you did so twice now! What the frag are you, Darkride?” Not caring if he got an answer or not, Ricochet’s processor quickly formulated his next move and it was one he hated doing regardless of the situation.
Realizing that he was too close to Darkride to use his shoulder cannon again, and was otherwise weaponless, the gunner had no other choice but to retreat. Ric was a sharpshooter, after all, not a melee fighter. He was simply no match for the sheer speed and agility of the super-powered interrogator. The black and gold mech needed to get distance between himself and his target and the only way to do that was to run.
With the other Decepticons approaching from the sea and already firing at them, the only direction Ricochet could go was further inland. Putting one foot in front of the other as quickly as he could, the black and gold mech turned and ran until he was finally off of the beach and onto solid ground again. It was then that he transformed into his Porsche 997 Turbo alt mode and sped even further away from the torturer. It didn’t take long for Ricochet to spot the entrance of a cave, the same one that the Constructicons had previously dug out and used for a short time as a storage chamber. Of course, the gunner had no inkling of the cave’s history nor did he care. It was a place of refuge to him and nothing more.
Racing towards the makeshift cavern, Ricochet hoped that he could reach cover in time before Darkride eventually caught up to him.
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Hardhead watched in amusement as Ricochet’s bombardment did nothing to stop Darkride from his advance, leaving the gunner with little choice but to tuck tail and run away like a cowardly simpleton. Soon all Cybertronians would run and hide just like the marksman, but it would do none of them any good. Their fates were sealed and all would ultimately become one with oblivion. It was simply a matter of time and patience.
Letting out a low chuckle, Hardhead smiled and nodded his head at Darkride. The chase was one, but the war veteran had no intention of giving aid to his fellow herald as there was really no need to. The interrogator could handle things well enough on his own and the green warrior fully expected him to come back with Ricochet’s head, along with other parts of his anatomy, as souvenirs. The gunner’s cranium, especially, would go nicely alongside Warpath’s own severed noggin. What a set they would make, one that would expand into an entire collection as more and more Cybertronians fell to the heralds' power.
Turning his attention towards the Yellow Sea, Hardhead watched as more Decepticons approached the beach with the intent to engage them. Most came by air, disguised as Earthen military and space vehicles, while others fired at them from the depths of the sea. Cowards, like the fleeing Autobot gunner that would soon meet his maker. One ‘Con in the form of a helicopter opened fire on the shore, a pair of thermal rockets streaking towards their intended destination. One of the projectiles was heading directly for the green herald’s position.
Making no attempt to move out of the way, Hardhead transformed back into his Stryker Armored Vehicle mode and let loose a single shell from his cannon. Within moments, the explosive struck its target, destroying the missile in a fiery, mid-air display as the other one headed for a different part of the beach. The war veteran then opened fire again, sending three additional shells directly at the approaching Vortex, another interrogator but one without the benefits of being a herald.
Bottom of the Yellow Sea
>>”You got it, boss!”<< Long Haul responded in a simple transmission to Scrapper before transforming back into dump truck mode and finding a place in one of the trenches that the Combaticons had dug around the construction site earlier. Onslaught’s orders were to dig in and that’s exactly what the green transport was going to do. While Long Haul was known mostly for being a heavy lifter, he also carried a rather impressive dual rocket launcher while in vehicle mode, one that could fire heat-seeking missiles from a reasonable distance.
Those launchers were now deployed on either side of the green Caterpillar 775G dump truck with Long Haul taking careful aim at the shoreline. He was an above-average shot when it came to accuracy, so there was an excellent chance that he would at least hit the beach. Of course, the enemy’s heat signatures would guide the transporter’s rockets the rest of the way, thus improving his chances of making a kill. Unfortunately, any ‘Cons that were also in the area were susceptible to potential friendly fire, but it was a risk that needed to be taken in order to protect the partially completed base.
With his sights set, Long Haul unleashed four heat-seekers that quickly ascended from the depths of the sea and broke the water’s surface, heading directly at the shoreline. With any luck, some unsuspecting Autobot would find themselves on the receiving end of a mere heavy lifter’s weapons fire.