Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

Trion Hangar

Highcall nodded as Warhaul instructed him on the work he would be assisting the technician with, "Understood, I will do this to the best of my abilities."

The engiineer opened the panel, taking a scanner and placing it along the numerous wires in the same manner that Warhaul had done. As impressive as the ship seemed from the outside, Highcall had to admit that the inside looked to be an even greater technological achievement. It was then that Warhaul suggested that some of the mechs at work would possibly want to hear about the Covenant of Primus. Highcall sighed, believing that the technician was merely joking.

"No, I'd say most bots on this station have already heard more from me about Primus than they wanted.", Highcall admitted with a sense of shame, "Kick Off spoke to me while I was in his custody, and it's finally occured to me....."

Highcall hesitated to say more. He hardly knew Warhaul, but truth be told he hardly knew any bot on the station, even after being stationed there for the last 10 vorns. He had annoyed, bored, or infuriated everyone with his seemingly nonstop reciting of scripture and public, unwanted sermons. Quite honestly this was the first time he had gone this long talking to anyone without going into a diatribe about Primus' teachings. But then, maybe it wasn't because it was about the Lord of Light. Maybe it was just his constant talking in general. Whatever the reason he had plenty on his mind, but he realized that it wouldn't be appropriate to bring his personal problems onto this mech

"I'm sorry, I should just stay focused- OH!", Highcall exclaimed as the scanner gave a small beep, "I'm detecting a .15% phase variance in the energy flow.....", the engineer punched in a few keys on the scanner for further details, "Cable 323G, leads to the secondary thruster regulators, isolating......"

Highcall went to the side of the scanner and pulled out a small, wand-like device that acted as an extension. Running it along the cable he had mentioned, he detected the exact section of wiring where the variance was occuring and what was causing it.

"There's a microscopic crack in the lining.", Highcall informed, "It's small enough that it shouldn't need to be replaced, though. A silicon-based sealant should do the trick."

Without saying another word the engineer reached for Warhaul's toolkit, and grabbed a pistol-shaped tool with a pointed tip and several small buttons on the side. After pressing a series of those buttons he aimed at the cable that he had been scanning, and carefully fired a very thin, clear substance onto it, followed by a short burst of heat to quckly harden it. After putting the sealing tool back he reactivated the scanner, then nodded in approval.

"Energy flow back to it's consistent level.", he said with a small hint of pride in his tone. It had been a long time since he last remembered accomplishing anything at work without stopping to pray out loud.

"Maybe if I'd thought less of Primus, and focussed more on my assignments....", the engineer said as he moved onto the next section, "I would have been assigned to this ship in the first place.", he sighed.


Large Scale Training Facility

Whatever hesitating thoughts Sludge had about Grindcore dwindled as the construction-bot started praising the infamous Wreckers, arguing that the Autobot commando unit was superior to the Dinobots. Obviously Sludge could not disagree more.

"Dinobots are strongest team! Dinobots are toughest team!", the mechanical apatasaurus bellowed, "Me Sludge not even know any Wrecker's names! Uh, though me Sludge not know most Autobots names.....", he added as an afterthought.

Before long things started to escalate as Slag took some of his frustrations out on the construction bot. The jungle warrior finally transformed back to his robot mode so he could possibly stop the flamethrower- not out of any concern for Grindcore, but because it went against Grimlock's earlier order about not harming any Autobots yet.

Then the Dinobot commander finally gave the okay, provided that neither bot use any weapons or alternate modes. With that order given, Sludge decided to simply stand back and enjoy the beating he was sure Grindcore would get, as Snarl gave his own opinion on the fight, then asked Sludge about whether the Dinobot flamethrower would follow the rules layed out by their commander.

"Me Sludge think Slag should obey Grimlock's orders.", the jungle warrior replied with, "But me Sludge not stupid. Me Sludge think builder-bot will be melted into slag if he not give up soon."

Though Sludge chuckled to himself as he watched Grindcore get just what he deserved for disrespecting the Dinobots, occasionally he worried as he kept remembering Grimlock's orders when they first arrived at the station. His worries increased as he watched Slag take total control of the fight, hitting and tossing Grindcore around like a maintenance bot, then putting him in a bear hug that looked like it would break the construction bot in half.

"Um, me Sludge think Wrecker-wannabe should quit now, or us Dinobots get in trouble.", he quietly said to the other Dinobots.

(OOC: Attack on Slag agreed to with Ember.)


Large Scale Training Facility

Grindcore had expected his fist to connect with Slag’s jaw, but that did not happen. Perhaps “expected” was not the right word. No, “hoped” was a better word to use, but unfortunately that hope was quickly dashed away when the flamethrower easily caught the construction worker’s fist in midair before then twisting Grindcore’s arm around into a painful angle. The yellow mech had little time to react as Slag pulled him closer and delivered a powerful punch directly into his faceplate. The impact from this single hit alone sent the Wrecker reject’s processor into a tizzy, so much so that the heavy lifter barely registered the follow-up comments not to mention the Dinobot’s roundhouse kick that sent him flying across the room once more.

Grindcore lay in a heap on the floor of the training facility as he tried to regain his bearings so that a proper counter-attack could be, at the very least, attempted. The construction-bot’s HUD flickered as he felt Slag drag him up to his feet before the flamethrower wrapped both arms around the heavy lifter's midsection, trapping him in a crushing bear hug. Too bad this was not the type of hug one received from a long time friend. Instead, it was meant to break a mech’s will to continue fighting or to break him in half, whichever happened first.

In this case, Slag clearly wanted Grindcore to admit that he was defeated and nothing more than a mere service drone. The heavy lifter had been told by many others in the past that he would never amount to anything, that the Wreckers were just a pipe dream that would never come to fruition for him. It was a waste of his time to even try out for the team, and ‘Core had taken what those mechs said to spark, at least until Erector had reassured him that his dream could still come true if the construction worker just put his processor to it.

“No,” Grindcore uttered in a low, guttural tone as he felt the crushing power of Slag’s arms wrapped around his waist. His cranium had cleared some, enough to know that he would not recite the words that the flamethrower was demanding. “No, Slag. You’re the service drone!” With those words spoken, the heavy lifter threw a hard headbutt straight into Slag’s faceplate. ‘Core followed that first one up with two more, both striking the Dinobot mid forehead. Thankfully, the trio of hits had been enough to cause the horned beast-former to finally release his grip. As a result, the construction-bot fell back and away from his opponent, landing hard on his aft section with a loud grunt.

I’ve got to get back up! I've got to get up now! Grindcore thought to himself as he tried to pull his bulky form into a sitting position. Between the initial punch from Slag and then the three headbutts of his own doing, the heavy lifter’s cranial unit was metaphorically spinning out of control. Get up, ‘Core, get up you lazy-good-for-nothing! There’s no time for rest. That Slagger won’t stay confused for long. You’ve got to strike him now while he’s still dazed.

Grindcore’s internal pep talk succeeded in getting him slowly back up to his feet. He glared directly over at Slag, who now appeared fuzzy and distorted, an obvious indication that the heavy lifter’s vision had been affected by the many blows to the cranium. At least he knew where his adversary was and that’s all ‘Core would need to finally end this little sparing session. Letting out a roaring battle cry that echoed throughout the entire training room, Grindcore charged at Slag, stumbling a bit as he went but maintaining a strong forward momentum nevertheless. His intent was to tackle the flamethrower to the floor where he would then finish the Wrecker-hater off once and for all.
_________

“Obey orders? That boring,” Snarl replied to Sludge with a chuckle. “But me also agree that builder-bot will be melted down if him upset Slag too much. It inevitable outcome. Heh.” Having said his peace, the Desert Warrior returned his attention to the fight at hand, not wanting to miss a single astrosecond. As he expected, Slag easily deflected Grindcore’s sloppily thrown punch before the flamethrower then delivered a successful one of his own. A roundhouse kick followed which propelled the construction bot across the training facility like a limp human rag doll. It seemed as though the fight was coming to a quick end as Slag placed the heavy lifter into a powerful bear hug, something that seemingly made Sludge more than a little nervous.

“Relax, Sludge!” Snarl responded to his worried comrade while not taking his optics off of Grindcore’s well-deserved aft-beating. “We not get in trouble. What anyone gonna do to us? Nothing, that’s what! Besides, fight over now. Slag has...” The solar-powered Dinobot’s words were cut short when the heavy lifter proved to be anything but a quitter, delivering three hard headbutts to the flamethrower’s faceplate that forced him to let go of the hard-headed ship builder. A disoriented Grindcore then took a few moments to regain his footing before letting loose a battle cry that was laughable at best before charging at Slag in a haphazard manner.

“Impressive,” Snarl admitted with a groan. “Builder bot have some cast iron ball bearings. Too bad him about to lose them.” The Desert Warrior knew that Slag was not down or out, not by any means. Grindcore was definitely in a confused state of mind as his staggering charge clearly indicated. The cycle's entertainment was almost over and soon Snarl would need to find something else to keep himself occupied. Maybe there were some other suicidal mechs around the station that wanted a Dinobot to kick their afts, too. Probably not, but one could always hope.

((OOC: Grindcore’s beating agreed upon by SmokescreenGT))

Large Scale Training Facility

“What was that? No?!” Slag squeezed a little tighter. "Wrong answer, runt!" The response he got did give Slag a very small sense of satisfaction. Not only didn't Grindcore wind up cowering in the corner like the pathetic piece of slag he was, but he was actually willing to continue getting humiliated. Well, if a beating was what he wanted then a beating was what he’d get. Slag had every confidence that this little exercise would end decidedly in his favor. Just the way it should be.

“You should quit while I’m ahea…” Slag ground out just as he was delivered a vicious headbutt right into his faceplate. The first was quickly followed by two more successive hits. The sudden impact caused the flamethrower to drop the smaller bot where he landed on his aft. At the same time Slag staggered backward with one large hand covering his faceplate.

Now at a sizable distance from his target, the Dinobot lowered his hand to reveal a split lip where a small amount of energon tricked down his chin and landed in droplets on the floor at his feet. And the glass covering his left optic sported a thin crack. It was fine, and Slag could still see, but it only succeeded in making the lumbering mech even angrier with his prey. Oh, he was going to pay for that, pay dearly. “You’re dead! You. Are. SO DEAD!” He ground out.

Slag’s optics burned with hot rage as he began to stalk forward. Grindcore, too, began to advance only his movements were staggered and unsteady…that was perfect. The crazed battle cry didn’t even faze the large Dinobot as his gate quickly turned into a full on charge.

Grindcore kept his body low which indicated he was going to attempt a tackle, the key word was attempt. There was no way the Autobot would even make it that far. As he drew in closer to the other charging bot, Slag drew back his right fist and, once in range, sent it careening down and into the side of Grindcore’s head causing his neck to crane to the right at an ungodly angle.

The construction bot nearly lost his balance; stumbling the rest of the way off to the right. He kept his feet under him, however, but his HUD sent several warnings indicating that his equilibrium functions were in need of re-calibration. The yellow mech overrode them but he had no time to formulate a retaliating move; Slag was already looming over him a deep frown etched, equally as deep, on his faceplate. “I hope you made peace with your sorry existence, because your life as you know is OVER!” With his last word Slag set to work sending punch after punch into the face, head and abdomen of Grindcore.

Each blow was harder than the preceding and were flowed by a series of vicious swear words in several Cybertronian dialects. Every strike had elicited pained grunts and groans from the yellow mech, but Slag refused to let up.

Finally Grindcore went down hard, his body crashing to the floor in an energon covered heap. Slag loomed overhead as the defeated bot tried to drag himself away and out of the larger mech’s reach. “I told you before, you’re not Wrecker material. And you’re still not Autobot material. You’re nothing.” Slag all but growled out with a hateful sneer. To emphasize his point the flamethrower sent a hard kick to Grindcore’s chin knocking him flat on his back. “Pathetic loser.” was the Dinobot’s final loathsome grumble to the downed construction bot before stepping beside Grimlock. “Let’s get the frag outta here.” He growled out without even looking at his Commander.

Large Scale Training Facility

Grindcore never made the tackle on his intended target, not even close. What he made was a crunching sound when Slag delivered an immense blow to the side of his cranial unit that sent his HUD into a craze of functional warnings. The construction worker’s equilibrium had already been off from the prior hits to the head, but now it was far and away worse. ‘Core managed to stand his ground, however, stumbling off to the right a bit. He had no chance to regroup or respond with any kind of counterattack before the flamethrower began shouting at him, which was quickly followed up with a torrent of closed-fist punches to every place imaginable on the shipbuilder’s frame.

After a while of hit after hit, blow after blow, Grindcore became numb to the pain as that region of his processor simply shut down to prevent any further or permanent trauma. Regardless, the damage had been done and the heavy lifter finally went down hard on Slag’s final blow to his chest armor. Hitting the ground hard, ‘Core just laid in a heap with energon seeping from several orifices across his framework, but mostly from his faceplate. He didn’t even try to get up as his strength was almost completely gone. His HUD’s warnings said as much and it was impossible for him to ignore now. Only a low groan escaped from the yellow mech’s vocals as he heard Slag’s taunts become renewed once more.

”You’re not Wrecker material. And you’re still not Autobot material. You’re nothing. Pathetic loser.”

Those were the words that rang through Grindcore’s damaged cranium, and they hurt even more now than they ever had before. The construction bot had come in here and faced off against Slag in order to prove to himself and others that he was a capable warrior that was worthy of the Wreckers. Unfortunately, the only thing ‘Core proved was just how worthless he really was and always would be. There was no denying it now. Even Erector couldn’t argue with him again or make him feel better. The only thing that would stop the pain now was another drink or two of high grade.

First, though, Grindcore needed to rest and regain his equilibrium and overall strength. Perhaps a trip down to the medical bay would be a good idea once he could stand again. The heavy lifter quickly put that thought right out of his mind, knowing that all kinds of questions would then be asked by the medical staff with answers that he didn’t want to give or admit to. No, ‘Core would just remain where he was, a crumpled heap on the floor of the training room until the Dinobots had left. Then, once he was alone, he would slowly get back to his feet, clean himself up and head down to the Energon Bar, a place where he really belonged and could refill his tanks with what he had just lost and then some.
_________

Snarl watched with a broad smile spread across his faceplate as an enraged Slag unleashed hell on the hapless construction worker. The hits came fast and furious, knocking Grindcore around like a mere training drone. The flamethrower wasn’t playing around anymore, that much was very clear now. That last headbutt had been the final straw that broke the Triceratops’ back so to speak. The end came swiftly as the yellow mech hit the ground hard and remained there with no visible attempt to get back up.

“Stay down, for own good, worker-bot,” Snarl said as a pissed off Slag demanded that they leave now. Even though it had been fun watching Grindcore get put in his place, it was now time for them to leave the scene of the crime. “Slag right,” Snarl agreed as he looked over at the Dinobot Commander. “Us should get going before anybody come in here and find us with beat up Wrecker-lover. Us not want that kind of attention.”

The solar-powered mech walked towards the doorway and stood on the opposite side of his leader from where Slag was positioned. Snarl was sure that Grimlock would agree with his logic, such as it was. The only problem now was finding something else that would keep the Dinobots out of trouble. Perhaps it was now time to see the Trion first hand and start learning some of the tech stuff they needed to know before they could finally steal it.

“Maybe time us get to doing what we came here to do. Stop fooling around. Me want to get back to fighting ‘Cons, not drones and not other Autobots.” Snarl’s words were chosen carefully as to not reveal any specific details in ear shot of Grindcore, whose audio receptors were likely still functioning to a certain degree even if the rest of him wasn’t. “How about it, Grimlock?

Trion Hangar

Warhaul just nodded as Highcall talked about how fed up the other mechs on the station were with all his Primus talk. At another time, Warhaul might've thrown some fuel on that fire, but he was nowhere near as overtanked as he had been back at the bar. No need to provoke a bad reaction out of someone that was proving to be more useful than he would've originally guessed.

Warhaul looked over at Highcall's indication of the phase variance. Almost as quickly as he had discovered it, Highcall had accordingly fixed the problem.

Not too shabby, Warhaul thought.

"That's what you wanted, eh? Working here?" Warhaul asked in reference to Highcall's last musings. He moved over a little so that he could check another of the assigned panels that needed signed off on this shift. "Can't fault ya for that. This ship's a beaut. You really think it's all your prosel--proselytiming--tyzing, whatever, that kept you from being assigned here? That wouldn't look good on your bosses, I wouldn't think. You're obviously pretty handy with sealant, heh. What do ya think of the boss guys anyway? Solid mechs? The Autobot cause still doing you right, overall?"

Large Scale Training Facility

Grimlock watched the battle unfold in front of him. Grindcore wasn’t as totally hopeless as Slag made him out to be as he caught the Dinobot off guard initially. It was short lived however, as the element of surprise wore off and no amount of spunk or determination was a match for Slag’s raw strength and vast experience, not to mention brutality. The Dinobot leader wasn’t particularly happy about that last part. He was fine with whatever brutality Slag wanted to dish out against Decepticons, but not Autobot, not even a foolish and cocky one, deserved that kind of treatment.

“That enough Slag, you win this fight, no need to gloat. Maybe me gloat over next time me beat you in sparring match, see how you like it.” He gave the Dinobot a shove before walking over to the crumpled form of Grindcore. “Not every Autobot made to be Wrecker or Dinobot, that not mean they not needed at all.” Grimlock then walked past the fallen Autobot, motioning for the Dinobots to follow him. “Come Dinobots, we done here.”

The Dinobot leader strolled out of the facility. He had hoped to have an actual discussion with the Dinobots in private there, but that was scrapped the instant Grindcore had arrived. He would just have to settle for a communications frequency and hope nobody was listening in. >>”Dinobots, this the plan. Me going to get us tour of Trion. While on board we learn as much as we can about ship. Swoop, me counting on you to learn how to pilot. Slag, you work on weapons, Snarl, you and Sludge check out whatever other systems you can, engines, sensors. Me not looking for you to be experts, but we need to be able to fly it back to Earth on our own.”<<

>>”Somehow we need to get other Autobots off ship. Might have to fake accident or, if there not many on board, we can just throw them off. No one make a move against fellow Autobots unless I order it though! We not here to fight other Autobots, we here to get weapon to help win war against Decepticons.”<<

Large Scale Training Facility

After he watched Grimlock chastise Slag for gloating too much over his win against Grindcore, Snarl followed the Dinobot Commander out of the training facility where new orders were given. Finally, a plan was in place that would hopefully lead to them stealing the Trion once they had learned everything that they could about the new warship. While Swoop would be the pilot, as always, and Slag focused on the weapons systems, Snarl was charged with learning all that he could about the engines and sensors along with anything else that was of importance.

Unfortunately, Sludge was also tasked with the same job as Snarl even though his brain module was only the size of a lug nut. Then again, perhaps that was the reason why the Desert Warrior was paired up with the mechanical apatosaurus. It wasn’t to slow Snarl down in accomplishing his task. It was to help Sludge learn something and ultimately keep an optic on him. The plated Dinobot didn’t like the idea of having to proto-sit his own comrade, but if that’s what it took to perform his duty then so be it.

>>“Sure thing, Grimlock, no problem. Me learn whatever me can about ship,”<< Snarl responded to his leader over the same shared comm line. >>”Me also think we just can’t throw ‘Bots off ship this time. There likely be too many. We need to divert their attention. Accident sound like good idea. Me might be able to come up with something maybe on another ship. Most would leave Trion to deal with it. Not sure what or how yet. Either way, me promise not to attack fellow ‘Bots. Much rather fight ‘Cons anyway.”<<

Snarl then turned to face the Jungle Warrior who was loitering nearby. >>”Sludge, once we get to Trion, stay close to me. Don’t wander off. You and me got important job to do, so just follow my lead and you’ll be fine. Got it?”<< The solar-powered mech patted his fellow Dinobot on the shoulder plate before returning his attention to Grimlock. >>”Lead way, boss-bot. Can’t wait to get this over with and get back to fighting Decepticons.”<<
_________

Once the Dinobots had left the training facility, Grindcore managed to roll over onto his front and push himself up into a crawling position. He then slowly crept his way over to the nearest wall where he somehow found the strength to turn around and sit up against the cold steel of the bulkhead. Letting out a deep sigh, he remembered Grimlock’s last words to him. They were in stark contrast to his flame-throwing subordinate and were intended to reassure the construction worker that he was still needed in the overall Autobot war effort even if he wasn’t Wrecker or Dinobot material. That brought little comfort to Grindcore as he lay back against the wall with little to no energy left to fight or do anything else.

“How fraggin’ pathetic am I?” Grindcore muttered under his breath as the faux battlefield began to disappear now that the previous users were gone from the facility. An empty, lifeless chamber was all that was left behind, much like the heavy lifter, himself. Empty, lifeless and utterly pathetic. There were simply no words of encouragement that could lift Grindcore out of his funk. Only one thing could bring any amount of ease to both the emotional and physical pain that the construction-bot now felt.

Reaching down with one hand, Grindcore opened a hip compartment and pulled out a small metal flask that was filled with the best high grade the station had to offer. He always kept some on hand just in case he needed a little pick-me-up during a long day at work. Sometimes he just had a bad cycle or two and the purple liquid was the only thing that make him feel better. This situation was definitely one of those times when he needed a strong dose of high grade energon. At the very least, it would give him enough strength to get his internal repair systems going so that he could eventually make his way down to the energon bar and fill up properly.

Grindcore then pried open the flask with his first two actuators and quickly downed the energon in only a few gulps. Immediately, he felt a difference as his systems reacted well to the arrival of the high grade. It was like an old friend coming home after many cycles of being away at the front lines. Tossing the empty container aside, the heavy lifter took a deep intake of air as he enjoyed the feeling of euphoria that now consumed his body. Soon, he’d be strong enough to stand and then to walk. Once that was a reality, he’d be overfilling his fuel tanks for the rest of the cycle and beyond. Dinobots and Erector be damned.

((OOC: In order to move things along I’ll be NPCing Sludge and Swoop a bit))

Outside the Large Scale Training Facility

Slag followed Grimlock out of the training facility and settled in beside the Dinobot Commander. He listened halfheartedly while the t-rex explained just what they would be doing over their internal communications frequency. The plan was solid but the flamethrower could care less. All he wanted was to get on the ship and head out to kill some ‘Cons. After all he’d only be truly happy if he had a hand full of Decepticon internals gripped in his actuators. The thought of such carnage actually brought a hopeful smile to his face, albeit a very small smile.

>>“I don’t care what we have to do to get the frag out of here just as long as we’re off this pit sooner rather than later!”<< His voice was laced with venom and anger.

The fierce fighter grew quiet as he took in exactly what his assignment would be. Weapons systems. Perfect. Very befitting. >>“Weapons are good. I can do weapons.”<< The final portion of Grimlock’s communique was something Slag had absolutely no interest in hearing. If it were up to Slag he’d take out anyone who was standing in the way of their mission…Autobot, Decepticon it didn’t’ matter. Someone in his way, they’d cease to function. Plain and simple. >>“I ain’t making no promises, boss. You want a mission with no casualties…an impossibility with me around.”<< The flamethrower chuckled out loud. >>“But for the sake of possibly ripping into the ‘Cons, I’ll try to hold back. And I do mean try.”<<
____

Through the communications frequency Sludge simply listened. He took in all of what Grimlock was ordering and understood most of it. At least the parts pertaining to him being paired with Snarl and not hurting any of the Autobots. He was also relieved when their Commander mentioned that he wasn’t looking for them to be experts in their work, but to learn just enough to get things rolling. Easier said than done.

>>”Got it. Work with Snarl. Look at sensors. Don’t kill Autobots.”<< With that mental and link spoken list Sludge offered his teammates a nod.

He turned his attention to the solar powered warrior when Snarl sent a message meant for him. >>”Okay. Stay by you. Not wander anywhere without your say so. Got it.”<< As they pressed on toward their destination the dim Dinobot kept repeating the orders over and over in his mind hopefully making it easier to commit them to memory. Time would tell if it would work.
____

As with his teammates, Swoop listened closely to their orders and nodded in understanding. He’d be the pilot, no surprise there. Of course the Trion would obviously be a much more complicated vessel to maneuver so learning as much as he could would be the best chance the group would have in order to fly out of there quickly. >>“I’ll do what I can. Hopefully the ship will be similar to others I’ve flown.”<< He gave a slight shrug. >>“Suppose we’ll all find out, won’t we?”<<

Trion – Weapons Array

Skyfall hadn’t been back from his stint in Goldrush’s place long when he’d been called to the Trion for yet another weapons systems check. The engineer begrudgingly left his drink of high grade and haltingly walked out. “Figures no one else could do this.” He grumbled. “Of course if the boss wanted it done right the first time he should have just given me the job in the first place.” Through twisting and near endless corridors Skyfall finally made it into the battery where he could gain access to the terminal that supported the weapons systems.

“Alright, girl, let’s see what the problem could be.” The red mech flexed all of his actuators before he went to work punching keys in precise sequence. Maybe if he finished this slag fast enough he’d be able to head back to the bar and finish up that last drink.

Trion – Medibay

Finally, after several joors both Pharma and Ambulon had directed the last of the medical bay’s drones into the facility with the stacks of crates that contained the equipment needed for any medical emergencies and non-emergencies. There were surgery apparatuses, tools, and medicines. And each and every one had to be categorized and logged. Unfortunately for the ward director that meant the job fell to him.

Pharma was a particular CMO. Not only did he hate ‘Cons but he also hated a disorganized medical bay. ‘Everything in its place and lives are saved’, was probably his motto Ambulon had thought. So, instead of drawing the ire of the flier the former Decepticon decided to dismiss the drones to other parts of the bay and take on the arduous task of working thought the supplies himself.

While Ambulon had taken on the work required to store and set up the medical facility, Pharma took the opportunity of quiet and solitude to transfer the medical files of the entire Autobot army. There was a chance the Trion could come upon any one of their own and having a complete medical history on them could be the difference between life and death.

The CMO took a quick glance up and out through the transparent window of his office at the ward director. An annoyed groan escaped his vocalizer as he stood up and stalked out to the main part of the bay. “No! Ambulon you know better than that!” He said while snapping up the datapad from his subordinate’s hands. “I’ve already designated that closet as the chemical supply location. It’s directly across from the operating theater and therefore in the easiest to reach location.”

Ambulon crossed his arms over his chest and raised a brow ridge. “Really? Come on Pharma does it really matter if the chemicals are stored here or just several feet over there? What’s the difference?” The CMO leaned down and stared directly into the other doctor’s optics. “The difference is time, Ambulon. Storing them here will save us .04 seconds therefore giving the patient that much more of a chance to survive!”

Both mechs were silent for a moment before Ambulon lowered his hands to his sides, raised his optics to the ceiling and sighed heavily. “Fine. I’ll pack what I put away back up and move it.” He stepped into the closet mumbling something about having an easier time with the mechs he was forced to combine with. At that Pharma off-lined his optics and tossed his head back. “Alright. I’ll give you a hand. But in the future please follow my directions. It’ll save us both time and aggravation.”

Corridors

Grimlock moved silently through the shipyards, pleased to hear the various affirmatives from the other Dinobots. He knew they weren’t all too enthusiastic about what was to come, but they were all looking forward to the end result. If the Trion was half as powerful as all of the secrecy and talk about it made it seem then it was going to be one heck of a ship. What better crew then he and his Dinobots then to bring it into the thick of the fighting as soon as possible?

Now they just had to wade through all of the talking, deceit, politics and trickery to get to that point. Grimlock was capable of at least some of that, but capable was a long way from being ‘good’ at it. They were probably going to need a bit of luck on their side as well. Of course they had been fairly lucky to get this far, seeing as how not so long ago they had been deactivated and buried on some worthless mudball of a planet.

The Dinobot commander gave a mental sigh. It was time to get this over with. >>”Dinobots, get refueled while me arrange for tour of Trion. Shouldn’t take too long so hurry.”<<

*

Command Center

Countdown had been engrossed in some paperwork when he was startled out of his focused state by a message from Grimlock of all mechs. Personally he had hoped not to hear from the Dinobot leader again, at least not until their ship was prepared and ready to leave. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the Dinobots, but they did have a reputation as rules breakers. Hopefully their absence from the ranks had allowed that bad habit to fade away.

>>”Countdown, me and Dinobots want to tour new ship Trion before launch. Best way to get caught up on new tech is to see it in purpose. Dinobots also get bored quickly, seeing new warship make them not bored for a while longer. A not bored Dinobot is a happy Dinobot.”<<

The Autobot commander considered Grimlock’s words. While he wasn’t threatening anything he was implying that keeping the Dinobots occupied would be a good thing. They weren’t exactly the types who would be happy sitting down and reading news reports or technical schematics, assuming all of them could even read. From what he had seen they had already been to the bar and a training room, so they weren’t liable to go back to either anytime soon. If having them look around the Trion kept them busy and peaceful it might just be worth the risk to have them on board. Of course if things got difficult on the Trion then everything could go straight to the pit.

Countdown looked up from his console at Cloudburst who was busy at his station. “Cloudburst, how would you feel about giving the Dinobots a tour of the Trion? I’m sure Cosmos would do it if I asked, but I think he’s been put through the Dinobot wringer enough for now. You also probably know more about the ship then he does and, well, your stature might be a bit more impressive to Grimlock and his men. I think they would listen to you, or at least listen to you more then they would Cosmos. Showing them the ship will hopefully keep them out of trouble for a little while longer, giving us time to get their ship fixed and send them back to the front lines. I’m sure all of us, Dinobots included, will feel better once they are out of here and back in the thick of fighting. So, what do you say, are you up for it?”

Trion Hangar

Warhaul and Highcall had been making steady progress on their section of the wing. On his, really, but who was counting? He'd be able to clock out early at this rate and head back to the bar for another recharge.

"Yeah, nice," Warhaul said, looking over at Highcall's work before getting to his feet.

Now maybe I get this poor glitch to look like he took down the Trion and I'll still be around to take out whatever they build next, heh. Pit, I won't even be a field agent any more after this. I'll get promoted to intelligence command after this. Meetings with Soundwave and Shockwave. Megatron. The works.

Warhaul produced a small chip and handed it to Highcall. He couldn't bring it with him to the facility when he got assigned here. He'd had to manufacture it on-site from scratch to match the specifications of the equipment that the Autobots were using on whatever vehicle or weapon they were building.

"Now, that needs to get installed on the bridge. It'll amplify the sensor array on this wing of the ship so the bridge officers don't have to, y'know, work as hard I guess. Keep 'er flying straight. Maybe we get a drink after this, eh?"

Highcall looked at him and nodded.

"Hm, not a drink. But I would enjoy the opportunity to converse again in a more stable setting."
___

Command Center

Countdown had pretty much stretched out at his station. His optics occasionally scanned from one hardscreen to another. Then he'd bring up a holoscreen, look at it for an astrosecond or two and deactivate it again. Another cycle, another shanix.

"Hahah, the Dinobots on the Trion. Yeah, that'd be funny," Cloudburst said, flipping through a fresh holoscreen with some femmes talking to one another in a corridor. He then stopped and swiveled around in his seat to face Countdown. "Wait. You serious?"

Cloudburst appeared to think about the idea a moment more before shrugging.

"I mean yeah, sure. I can show the big boys around the big 'T'," Cloudburst said, smiling. "I suppose we need to test out the quality of the metal we chose for that beauty in the first place, huh? If it can handle Dinobot gerth, we should be golden."

Cloudburst got up from his chair and headed over to the doors.

"Tell 'em I'll meet 'em in the hangar."

Corridors

Snarl followed his commander through the various corridors and passageways of the shipyards with their intended destination being the Trion. It was the whole reason they had gone to all of the trouble to steal the Ark-19 and fly it way out here in the first place. It was a bold plan by Grimlock, but was it one that he had considered from start to finish? So far the Dinobots had managed to get by on their lies, but how long was that going to last really? Even the repair crew assigned to the 19 didn’t buy the lies and half-truths for long and violence was eventually required to get the job done. Would the same be true here, as well? Not to mention there were a lot more mechs working on board the Trion than a mere repair crew of four or five. It would take more than simply brute strength to empty a warship of that size and caliber.

Me swear if Grimlock gets us thrown in Garrus-9, me’ll kill him, the Desert Warrior thought to himself as the Dinobot Commander gave orders for them to refuel. Most of the high grade they had consumed at the energon bar earlier had since burned off during their time in the training facility. However, it was unlikely that Grimlock wanted them to head back down to the bar where they would only succeed in getting into more trouble. No, a simple recharging station or energon port would suffice this time around. “Got it, boss. Me be quick about it.”

Breaking off from his commander, Snarl glanced over his shoulder plate and motioned for the other Dinobots to follow him as he headed down a side corridor. “Come on, guys, follow me.” It didn’t take long for the labyrinth of hallways and rooms to become confusing to the Desert Warrior. All he wanted was to refill his tanks, not to visit every useless corner of the shipyards. “Hey, little bot!” Snarl shouted at a small mech that was passing by him. “Where recharge stations at? Me and my comrades need to power up!” The minibot peered up at the large and imposing form of Snarl, swallowing hard before pointing down the corridor with one trembling actuator. “Down there? Good! Thanks a lot!”

Snarl patted the tiny mech hard on the shoulder before he then continued onward until he came upon a series of recharging stations located inside a small chamber that appeared to be just big enough to accommodate the girth of him and his teammates. The solar-powered Dinobot took a seat in the very first one and connected his access port into the energon reserves. Within moments fresh fuel entered his systems as he sat back to relax for a bit. Once again his processor wandered back to his original concerns on how they were going to pull all of this off and not get arrested. Grimlock was a capable commander but even he had his moments of questionable decisions, much like when he had sentenced them all to prolonged stasis lock back on prehistoric Earth just so that he could get revenge on Shockwave. Hopefully, this situation would not be a repeat of that one. Snarl would have to keep an optic on how things played out and make sure that the good of the Dinobots ultimately prevailed.

Energon Bar

A beaten and battered Grindcore had left the training facility not long after the Dinobots had moved on to wherever they were headed. The heavy lifter could of cared less about those filthy beast-formers or their intentions here at the shipyards. In all actuality, ‘Core could care less about anything right now. All he wanted was to get back to doing what he did best, which was to consume as much high grade as possible.

Entering the drinking establishment, Grindcore stumbled a bit as he made his way over to the bar where he took a seat. Some of the mechs in the room briefly glanced at him and his current state of disrepair before returning to their conversations. The construction worker’s body still ached all over from the beating he had received from Slag. Fortunately, his internal repair systems were already hard at work, but those only helped his insides, giving him just enough strength to make it back down to the bar without collapsing. The heavy lifter’s outsides were another matter and would need a CR chamber in order to look in tip top shape again.

“Grindcore! What a surprise. I wasn’t expecting to see you again for another cycle or two,” the bartender exclaimed with a heavy dose of sarcasm. “Hey, you okay, buddy? You look like slag.”

The heavy lifter looked up, not appreciating either the initial sarcasm nor the unintended irony of the barkeep’s last comment. “I feel like slag, literally! Now shut up and pour me some high grade, will ya?”

“Sure thing, ‘Core,” the grey mech replied, setting a glass on top of the bar and filling it to the rim with the best energon the sector had to offer. “There ya go. Just how you like it!”

“Leave the bottle.”

“What?”

Grindcore reached out and grabbed a hold of the bartender by his shoulder plate. “I said leave the bottle!”

“Okay! Okay!” The barkeep slammed the bottle down in front of the heavy drinker and glared back at the angry construction worker. “Primus! What the frag crawled up your aft and died? Unicron’s spawn?”

“No,” Grindcore growled under his breath as he let go of the bartender and consumed the first full glass of high grade before taking hold of the bottle and pouring himself another round. “Just Slag.”

Corridors

With a seemingly uninterested glaze, or it could have been a dim expression with Sludge no one could really know, the lumbering Dinobot simply watched Grimlock dole out his order to refuel. After a moment of processing what their Commander said Sludge nodded in the affirmative and turned on his heel.

The jungle warrior stopped and gave a quizzical look down the hall. Sludge had suddenly realized he had absolutely no idea where he should go. Fortunately Snarl seemed to know. A lopsided smirk worked its way onto the slow mech’s face as he quickly fell in behind the desert warrior.

Swoop gave Grimlock a nod and set to follow Snarl who took it upon himself to lead the small contingent to a fueling station. Once that was taken care of they would return to their Commander and with any luck they would board the Trion and be off this station.

Sludge slowed his advance when his teammate called out to a small bot that was “gracious” enough to point them in the right direction. Swoop had come up next to his gargantuan comrade and like Sludge moved on when Snarl received the location they required.
Both Dinobots squeezed into the chamber and took their own places and connected themselves into a recharging station.

While Snarl, Swoop and Sludge walked off to refuel Slag had decided to remain behind with Grimlock. He was quiet for a long moment; images of the past began to flood his memory banks. Things that had occurred and things he had never said. He wasn’t one to dwell, but this wasn’t one of them.

“They’ll follow you into the Pit.” Slag never took his optics off the retreating Dinobots. “But pull a stunt like you did when we arrived on that planet and you’ll be the only one taking that fall.” The flamethrower walked off after his brothers to find a fueling port.

Command Center

Countdown shrugged at Cloudburst. “I’m hoping that they will at least respect the Trion. She is a warship, so that might draw their interest in a little more then anything else around here. It is a tough ship to, so this might be kind of a final test for her. Either way I trust that you can satisfy them with a tour and keep them from doing any damage. At the very least I think Grimlock can help you out a bit on that last part.”

The Autobot offered a smile and wave to his friend. “Good luck, and give them a good show!”

*

Corridors

Swoop had caught a bit of what Slag had to say to Grimlock. He shook his head in frustration. They all knew the big stakes they were gambling with here. They were trying to steal a whole warship after all. They were counting on impressing everyone by coming in as big heroes and tipping the odds pretty firmly in the Autobot’s favor. If that didn’t work out like they hoped then they could all be serving some serious time. It was too late to be worrying about the negative consequences anyway. They were all in far too deep now.

The smallest Dinobot followed the others into the recharge chamber, plugging himself in along with the others. It didn’t take too long for his fuel levels to reach maximum once again. The training room had been pretty intensive, but brief. It helped that he was probably more fuel efficient then the others, both in build and fighting style. He glanced over at the other Dinobots as he disconnected from the recharged unit. “Ready whenever you guys are. Let’s go take a look at this bird I’m supposed to be flying.”

*

Corridors

Grimlock’s only reply to Slag was a grunt. He didn’t need reminding of the possible consequences to this whole escapade. That was why it had to work and why it would work. Slag thought he wouldn’t accept failure, but Grimlock wouldn’t allow failure. He had already put everything on the line for this mission. It would succeed even if it was just by his pure willpower.

The Dinobot commander received a signal from Countdown confirming that they would get a tour of the vessel, led by Cloudburst. It looked like they were going to get their way, but with a bit more of an important and imposing tour guide. Of course anyone would be more imposing then the awkward and rotund Cosmos. This did indicate that they were entirely trusted though, either with the secrets of the ship or with its safety. That might make things a bit more difficult, but it was just another obstacle they would overcome.

Hangar

Grimlock made quick time getting to the hangar. He had been leading the Dinobots in that general direction anyway. As he stood waiting for Cloudburst he activated a wall console. Using his command codes he was able to tap into the station’s power supply for his own recharge. It was something that was only supposed to be used in the case of an emergency but he doubted whether anyone would stop him. He wanted to be on full charge along with the other Dinobots for the next phase of their operation.

Corridors

Snarl had spent way more time hooked into his recharge station than he initially had intended to. A combination of boredom and lack of real action against a real foe had caused the Desert Warrior to drift off into a light stasis nap. He became lethargic as the events of the past several deca-cycles replayed within his processor. He re-experienced everything from the moment he had awakened in Area 51 to the mission on Cybertron to returning to Earth again to stealing the Ark-19 and finally to arriving here at Cas Coller. It was like watching a human-made movie, but time seemed to pass much more quickly and in less detail than when the solar-powered Dinobot originally lived through those events.

It was a reminder of what Snarl and his comrades had all been through since their long slumber and the one thing that became quite clear to the Desert Warrior was the sheer lack of action that permeated all that time. Sure, they’d fought with the Predacons both on Earth and then on Cybertron, but that was basically it. Of course, there was that little skirmish with the Autobot repair crew when the Dinobots stole the Ark-19 and the training session here at the shipyards, but those two instances really didn’t count. Real action was on the battlefield, not fighting with their own side or with mere mechanical drones. The bottom line was that Snarl felt unhappy and he wouldn’t feel any better until he had his sword impaled through a Decepticon’s cranial unit again. Until then, the plated Dinobot would be in a grumpy mood, maybe not as bad as Slag’s usual disposition, but still not a mech to be trifled with.

Swoop’s words to his teammates caused Snarl to finally stir within his recharge station and online his optics once more. The Desert Warrior glanced over at the Dinobot flier and gave him a casual nod. “Me agree, Swoop,” Snarl said as he disconnected himself from the station’s energon reserves and stood up to his full height. “Let’s get going and get boring stuff over with. Sooner you fly us outta here, the sooner we all can get back to bashing ‘Con head plates in!” Patting Swoop on the shoulder, Snarl moved by him and lumbered part way down the corridor before pausing for a moment and turning back towards the Jungle Warrior. “You too, Sludge. Up and at ‘em!” With that said, the Desert Warrior headed off towards the hangar where his commander would likely be waiting for them.

Hangar

It didn’t take Snarl too long to reach the hangar even though he was a big brute and speed was not exactly his forte. He simply avoided small talk with the tiny ‘Bots that seemed to litter the station like a horde of cyber-ants. Most wanted nothing to do with him anyway, knowing full well the reputation that the Dinobots had within the ranks of the Autobot war machine. The sea of mechs simply parted right down the center as the Desert Warrior traversed the series of corridors that led to his intended destination.

Entering the hangar bay, Snarl immediately spotted Grimlock standing a short distance away near a wall console. The Dinobot Commander was clearly recharging his own fuel cells while waiting for his elite unit to arrive. The Desert Warrior approached and gave his leader a respectful nod. “Me reporting as ordered, sir. Others should be right behind me. Have to say that me wary of learning about Trion, but me understand it necessary so we can get back to fighting war. Just wish it didn’t take so long.” The solar-powered mech then glanced around the area to see if their escort had arrived yet before returning his attention to Grimlock. “So, where tour guide at? We not have to listen to saucer-bot again, do we? Me not know if me can keep Slag from melting him this time.” Or keep own tail spikes out of his little green hide!

Hangar

As much as he had tried to exude a calm exterior regarding the prospect of giving the Dinobots a tour of their latest and greatest, Cloudburst had to admit that the whole prospect was giving him a little case of the shakes. It was nothing major and nothing that he couldn't hide but he could feel it just the same. Countdown's parting words had stuck with him. A little extra good luck wouldn't hurt.

"You drew the lucky chit, eh Cloudy?" one of the hangar crewmechs said as he approached. "Those guys're massive."

"I know right?" Cloudburst chuckled at the irony of the mechanic's statement in light of what Countdown had said before Cloudburst left the command center. "Good thing they're on our side." The other mech laughed and nodded as Cloudburst passed him by and headed deeper into their impressive series of hangars--this one reserved especially for the principal project they had under construction here at the moment. Good ol' Trion. Man, she was gonna be somethin'.

"Hey guys," Cloudburst said familially as he approached the grouping of large, primal warriors. Big. Very big. Remember, they're Autobots just like the rest of us. "How'd the sparring session go?"

The question was thrown out as a courtesy, but he had to quickly remind himself that the Dinobots didn't really care about courtesy--giving or receiving it. So he quickly continued on to the matter at hand.

"I hear you guys would like to see the inner workings of our pride and joy, the Trion. If you guys are ready, I can show you everything you'd wanna see. Come on."

Corridors

Slag didn’t wait to hear the only reply he would receive from the Dinobot Commander…a simple grunt. It was expected anyway. Instead the flamethrower pressed on after the other Dinos where he stopped next to Snarl and Sludge and took up the available recharge port.

His cycle hadn’t lasted nearly as long as he had expected. Especially after that training session. The training session. The thought of beating down that mech brought a small smirk to his face. But it was quickly replaced by Slag’s customary scowl.

Slag removed himself from the port and turned his optics on Snarl who had just “woken” from his recharge and called upon Sludge and Swoop.

Without a word the perpetually irate Dinobot stalked off after Grimlock who was already nearing the hangar doors.

Hangar

Slag squeezed past the doors and stomped over to his Commander’s side. He sent Grimlock a searing glare but broke it off when his comrades arrived. He grunted at the Desert Warrior’s inquiry. Like the others, Slag hoped they wouldn’t be waiting too long for their guide. Waiting was not good. Waiting was boring. Waiting made him angry. Waiting would cause this hangar to suffer major damage.

The mention of the small green rotund ‘Bot by Snarl made Slag turn his heated gaze in his brother’s direction. “That little nobody shows his faceplate again I’ll tear it off.” He sent the Desert Warrior a toothy grin. “Then shove it up his fragging aft.”
The evil grin that was plastered on his visage melted slowly into a deep grimace when he heard, and then saw the arrival of Cloudburst.

The peon’s question concerning the group’s sparring session elicited a guttural growl from the flamethrower. Slag didn’t want pleasant banter. What he wanted was to get out of this hellhole. He wanted to plunge his horns into the thick armor plating of unsuspecting ‘Cons. He wanted to feel the warm, wet fluids of a thoroughly eviscerated Decepticon covering his actuators.

“Yes. Let’s get going. I wanna see what makes this crate so slaggin’ special.” He set his optics on Cloudburst but waited for Grimlock to lead the way.

Hangar

Grimlock grunted in reply to Cloudburst’s niceties. Fortunately this Autobot seemed to understand the Dinobots a bit better and got to the point quickly. He doubted that the small Cosmos could handle another round of tour giving with the Dinobots. Cloudburst at least was a bit bigger, a bit more substantial and less clumsy then the mini-bot. He carried himself with a bit of an air of authority, or at least the feel of someone who knew very well what he was talking about. Hopefully that would at least mean they could learn something about this ship from him.

“We ready,” he replied bluntly to Cloudburst’s question. In fact they were far more then ready. Hopefully his team could restrain themselves just a bit longer so they could take control of this ship.

The Dinobot leader stepped through the airlock of the warship, rather pleased to see that the entrance was large enough to fit even his bulk comfortably. Obviously the designers knew that some of the heavier warriors would be traveling on this particular vessel. That was a promising start. Still, Grimlock wasn’t easy to impress. So far all he had seen was a big ship that looked to have lots of guns, something he had seen many times before. With all of the secrecy surrounding this ship there had better be something more to it all then that.

Unfortunately for Cloudburst, Grimlock was not known for his patience. “So Trion big warship, lots of guns. That all been done before. What make this ship so special? Why all secrecy? There must be something about this ship to make it worth all effort.”

Hangar

Cloudburst hadn't really expected much in the way of, well, anything really when it came to the Dinobots. Which was good, since that was pretty much what he got, too. He would get to live to tell of the experience, so far, and that was likely going to have to be good enough.

As Cloudburst proceeded to lead the oversized up the boarding ramp and into the ship itself, he did his best to consider Grimlock's question, filtering out anything that he might not be allowed to say due to reasons of classification. But then again, this was Grimlock, and surely he could pretty much tell a 'Bot of this stature more or less anything.

"Yeah, it's the best. Or it's going to be the best, as soon as we deploy 'er. Our techs took all the data we had available regarding the 'Bot fleet and improved on it. I'm talking the works. She's got better shields, better guns and better maneuverability than anything we've got out in the field today. The 'Cons'll think twice before having a go at her if they're smart....but..well, I guess it just depends on which batch of them is the first unlucky glitches to run into her."

As he continued to maneuver through the corridors, he could hear the plodding footfalls of the Dinobots behind him. Yep indeed, the Trion was getting her stresses tested today.

"But I guess the main reason behind all the secrecy is the advanced interface protocols we have designed on the bridge. The officers on board will be able to jack in and control the Trion in ways that we've only begun to imagine. Well no, that's not true. Our guys here have imagined a lot. We just need to really put her through her paces. My guess is we'll requisition a team like the Technobots or something to crew her for a while, flesh out what she can really do then, bam, she'll be in the field helping you guys win this war, y'know?"

Hangar - the Trion


Snarl smirked slightly at the thought of the saucer-bot’s faceplate being torn off and shoved up his aft-hole by the likes of Slag. What a sight that would be. The only thing better for the Desert Warrior was to do something similar to a Decepticon on the battlefield. In fact, he HAD done something like that to a ‘Con a very long time ago way before the Dinobots had acquired their prehistoric beast modes. The spiked 'Bot couldn’t remember the enemy mech’s name, but it didn’t really matter at this point. That ‘Con never really recovered from the experience and that was the important part to remember.

“Me actually buy you a round of high grade if you do that to him,” Snarl replied to Slag with a wide grin that quickly faded once Cloudburst had arrived and offered to take them on a tour. Now, they were finally getting to why they had come here to begin with. Grimlock wasted no time in asking the questions that were on everyone’s processor - what made the Trion so special and why all of the secrecy? Cloudburst’s answer was not a short one as he lead the Dinobots up the entrance ramp, through the airlock and into the corridors of the warship.

Snarl followed behind the others, motioning for the Jungle Warrior to follow. “Remember, stay close to me, Sludge. Don’t wonder off,” the Desert Warrior whispered before returning his attention to what Cloudburst was saying, much of which seemed like it was in a foreign language. However, the Desert Warrior was not a complete idiot like his oversized comrade and therefore he was able to keep up with their new tour guide’s explanation...or at least most of it anyway. Apparently, the shipbuilders had taken everything the Autobot fleet had to offer and made it better in every way. Cloudburst then went on to reveal that the Trion had an advanced interface system that would allow a mech to somehow “jack in” to the ship, itself, and control it. It sounded like crazy science to him, but it had still peeked his interest.

“What you exactly mean ‘jack in’?” Snarl asked Cloudburst as the group continued to traverse the corridors of the massive warship. “Sound like you say we hook our brains into ship and fly it without using controls? Is that right? If so, what are limits and side effects? Me no want processor to turn to mush if something go very wrong inside computer. We already got one dimwit on team. We not need anymore.”

The plated Dinobot then glanced over at Sludge and gave him an apologetic half smile. “No offense. heh.”

Hangar – The Trion

Just as with the other Dinobots, Slag had trudged into the hangar so that the entire team could take a one good look at the supposed battleship. And according to what they had all overheard and were told the Trion was the pinnacle of technology and housed the most sophisticated weaponry. Yeah, right. Slag would believe it all when he saw it in action. And that wasn’t going to happen until they could get the damned thing out and into battle.

Slag let out a deep growl as he looked from Grimlock toward Cloudburst, who had arrived not long before to take the troupe on their long awaited tour. This was taking much longer than he liked. Too much time meant waiting. Waiting meant patience, and that was something Slag did not have an abundance of.

It was Snarl’s remark regarding his previous comment concerning Cosmos that had Slag slowly turn his attention on the desert warrior. Optics burning a fiery red, Slag stared down his teammate. “I’d do it anyway. No high grade required.” He grumbled out.

As the group was led up the ramp and onto the ship the flamethrower let out a frustrated sigh. “Finally.” He said lowly. Slag’s optics scanned everything in sight taking note of everything important. His observations were interrupted when the mention of some sort of new tech was offered. He rubbed his chin in thought. “Sooo what…we actually become one with the ship? Don’t that leave us open to some kind of…uh…mental attack or something?”

Slag glanced in Grimlock’s direction before turning his full attention back on Cloudburst, his arms crossed over his broad chest and a scowl etched deep on his visage.

Hangar – The Trion

Cloudburst tensed as he waited to get some sort of response from the Dinobots. Unsurprisingly, these weren't the sort of calmly assessed questions that might be asked by Optimus Prime if he were being given a tour of the ship. The battled-hardened field warriors seemed as if they had to truly be convinced that this was a ship worthy of joining their war effort. That, or they really just didn't understand the technology at play. Cloudburst could hardly fault them for that, as he didn't fully either. It's not like he had designed the thing or even worked on it. He knew more about the inner workings of this station than he did this ship. That was his job, after all.

"It's, uh, pretty high-level stuff. I don't understand it all myself, so trying to explain it might be a mess...but...from what I understand there shouldn't be any kind of mental side effects. The operators will jack in you'll be able to nigh-instantly access any system or area within the ship: weapons, defenses, engineering, the hangar. Like I said, the works. But yeah, I'm sure if there's any potential laser core exposure, the Technobots or whoever ends up putting her through her paces will work those kinks out."

Cloudburst looked at the Dinobots for a second then quickly looked over at one of the large sets of doors they were approaching.

"Up this way's the bridge. Maybe once you see what I'm talking about it will make a little more sense. One of you guys could maybe try it out or something. See how it feels. I haven't done it yet."

Hangar – The Trion

Grimlock walked through the ship, idly glancing around the corridors. So far it looked pretty standard, if a bit larger then some other Autobot ships he’d been on. At the very least they would all be fairly comfortable on this ship. That wasn’t exactly a high priority of course but it was a nice perk. As he glanced around the Dinobot commander listened in to the various comments from his team and Cloudburst. The Autobot didn’t seem to have the technical information to bore them, but he knew enough to get some of the ideas across. That worked perfectly for his purposes.

Grimlock let out a grunt. “Technobots not know what to do with real warship. Probably take it out exploring or something. That type of mission not prove anything. Warships like warriors, not know what they are capable of until in the thick of battle. That where the strong shine and the weak fall away.”

The Dinobot was a bit intrigued by the idea of connecting directly with the ship. Part of him disliked the idea. Of nearly all the Autobots he was one of the more physical ones, preferring to use his skill and strength in close up and personal combat. Plugging in to a computer was about as far from that as one could get. On the other hand, the idea of having such a massive vessel under such direct control was appealing. All of the destructive power of a battleship nothing but a thought away. That was a different sort of power he had never really considered. He was going to have to at least try it out at some point.

“Me sure Autobots test safety features on ship before getting this far. They wouldn’t want to risk scrambling any of their precious Technobots minds.” Grimlock snickered, “Though me thing couple of them could probably use some scrambling.”

Hangar–The Trion

"Dinobots on the Trion....scuffing my perfectly polished steelwork," a tech muttered as he walked past Warhaul. Warhaul paid no attention to him. His focus had been on the Dinobots as soon as they had entered the hangar and boarded the ship. Even from his highly elevated position near one of the wing sections of the massive Autobot ship, the Dinobots looked big. Every bit as tough-looking as their infamous reputations would lead anyone with a partially functioning brain module to believe.

He wanted to see them up close. And the next phase of his work would require him to be inside the ship anyway.

He couldn't help but wonder if the Dinobots were who this ship was designed for? Warhaul hadn't seen anything regarding the eventual crew manifest. He'd heard some scuttle about the techies getting first crack at her to make sure everything worked like it had in the earlier testing phases, but who knew? Maybe this ship was going to go right into the field with the Dinobots at the helm. If he could take out this ship and the Dinobots? Warhaul's mind reeled. He would be guaranteed a seat in the Conclave. Stand at Megatron's right hand. It was almost too much to fathom.

Warhaul picked up his equipment and headed toward one of the upper access points into the ship.
___

Cloudburst chuckled at Grimlock's initial response.

"No argument there. This ship is definitely designed for the front lines. From everything I've heard about this beauty, she should operate like a dream. If I was more confidant in my piloting skills, I would've put in to take a crack at one of her test flights."

Cloudburst entered a new series of access codes and the large series of doors leading into the bridge slid away, revealing the massive nerve-center of the ship. All the metal was polished and smooth, looking as if it had never been touched. Command consoles were more streamlined into their bases. It looked every bit like Autobot ships of old just...upgraded. New, and yet familiar. Cloudburst had to admit that he was more impressed than he thought he would be. He hadn't ventured onto the bridge area since well before the techs had gone about putting on all the finishing touches. It looked magnificent. Worthy of Prime himself. That was, of course, the mech who would probably eventually be sitting on the captain's chair that he was now casually and respectfully admiring.

He then turned back to the bridge entrance, where the Dinobots were not far behind.

"So, here we are. This is it fellas. This is where the magic happens. All the power of a first-rate battleship and she looks good too."

Hangar – The Trion

Grimlock slowly looked around the bridge of the warship after stepping into the room. It was quite sleek and shiny, annoyingly slow. It obviously looked like a new ship, and one that had been polished a few too many times. A warship like this needed some battle scars, some dirty and scorching. Right now it was bland, generic, it needed to get blooded before anyone would know what she was really like. The ship was just a pretty face now, no one would know her true personality until it was locked in combat, the situation dire and an entire crew was counting on her.

“Pretty,” was Grimlock’s only comment, said in a flat tone, making it hard to tell whether it was sarcastic or genuine. The Dinobot commander strolled to the center of the room and took a seat in the command chair. It was large enough to accommodate him without too much trouble, another advantage of the massive warship. Looking around the room he could see all of the standard consoles and controls, with their pop up holographic displays. Along with the standard controls though were two ports of some sort, apparently where you could plug your arms directly into the ship. The physical controls were likely just some sort of back up feature.

Grimlock grunted. “Dinobots, got to your stations. Good time to familiarize selves with new tech. We probably be flying ship like this some day, good to know what its like before then.”

Smiling Swoop sat down at the helm. Tapping a control a holographic screen appeared in the air directly in front of him. It all seemed pretty standard, just a bit more detailed and flashy so far. He was eager to fly her, but that wasn’t exactly possible, not yet anyway. He looked over at Cloudburst. “So how exactly do you hook up to this thing? You just stick your hands in these ports and jack in or what? I want to see if that tech is all you’ve talked it up to be.”

The Trion - Bridge

Snarl somewhat listened to the conversation between Grimlock and Cloudburst as he followed them towards the bridge of the massive Autobot warship. The Desert Warrior wasn’t overly concerned with technobabble, but it was good to hear that there shouldn’t be any kind of mental side effects of jacking directly into the Trion’s computer systems. Even Grimlock surmised that all of the necessary precautions had most likely been taken to ensure that the Technobots wouldn’t damage their precious overdeveloped processors. Still, Snarl had no intention of being the first test subject and would leave such things to others more qualified.

The solar-powered mech glanced back briefly to make sure Sludge was still following him and had not wandered off down a side corridor. Once he had confirmed that his large, dimwitted comrade was still with them, Snarl returned his attention to the ones that were leading the way. Soon, they came to the doors of the bridge and were quickly granted access by their new tour guide. Thankfully, Cloudburst was not nearly as annoying as Cosmos had been, which would hopefully keep Slag on the calmer side of things. Of course, how long that lasted was anyone’s guess.

As he stepped onto the bridge, Snarl glanced around the large, shiny chamber. There was not a speck of dirt to be seen, but that would soon change once the warship had seen battle. “Pretty, indeed,” the Desert Warrior echoed Grimlock’s sentiments before following his commander’s orders and making his way over to the engineering station. Like the command chair, this one was also big enough to accommodate a Dinobot’s girth. The designers must have considered that more than just Technobots would be in charge of operating the Trion. Otherwise, like on the majority of Autobot vessels, the seats would be much smaller. Snarl didn’t exactly care about comfort as he was a warrior and not a pathetic protoform crying for it’s motherboard. However, a chair that he could fit his large aft in, without having to scrape his armored plating in the process, was a nice change of pace.

Tapping the controls in front of him, Snarl managed to easily bring up the holographic display showing the readouts of the engineering section of the warship. Everything was neatly laid out in front of him and seemed to be operating at appropriate levels. Only a few subsystems had not been brought online yet, but a little more digging revealed that those areas were down due to routine maintenance and nothing to be concerned about. The Desert Warrior then peered down at the two ports where a mech could jack into the system directly. Snarl reframed from doing so as he neither had the knowhow nor the desire to be the first to test things. Besides, it sounded as though Swoop had volunteered for that duty already. Let Grimlock rip the flier a new aft hole if he breaks the warship.

Speaking of breaking things, Snarl thought as he spun around in his chair and looked over at the Jungle Warrior. “Hey, Sludge, come sit by me here!” The solar-powered Dinobot pointed to the chair next to him. “It science station, me thinks. You can’t do no harm there.” Snarl then returned his attention to the holographic display before glancing back at his larger comrade. “Although, don’t stick your finger or anything else in those two ports. You might end up loosing what little brains you have inside this big ship’s computer. Might not get you out. Heh. Just saying.”