The Energon Pub

Autobase Tau medbay:

Strafe finnally wandered in after a while still hurting he made a slight whimpering sound as he sat down the first opitunity he had. Currently flightless and dented from falling goodness knows how far Strafe really couldn't be bothered to move any more.

Autobase Tau

Magnus let out a chuckle, a chuckle that Roadbuster could hear easily, as he was now standing behind the Wrecker.

"All right, then," he said. "Now let's get in there and deal with that little glitch head."

Autobase Tau

'I don't know how it happened but i'm completely amazed how Magnus can dodge that rocket, man-handle it to cause it to stop and completely reappear outside of the base. Simply wow,' thought Monco sarcastically before he headed off to get something to drink.

Autobase Tau - Medbay

Remington sat down at the end of the CR-chamber line after placing Beretta into one of the liquid-filled tanks, and drew her own toolbox from subspace. Opening the holder, took out some of the equipment stored in it and began to work on restoring her own damaged lower arm.

Remington would not call herself a medic, even though she possessed considerable technical skills. It was true that she could patch up basically all injuries that did not require immediate techno-surgery, but she was still used to fixing weapons and hand equipment more. And with that, she could do real wonders. Beretta could back it up any time. The fact that she had not wasted twice as many guns already as she actually had, was thanks to Remington's knowledge.

Removing a plate from her arm, just above the wrist area, Remington pulled out some shrapnel from the inner structure, then began fixing the wiring. The tool she was using threw some sparks, and the femme could feel numbings stings, but she was able to finish the minor repairs quickly.

Just as she had the removed plate reattached, a group of injured mechs stumbled into the medbay, led by Wheeljack. Their faces in scowl from pain and fatigue, their frames shaking from exhaustion. Remington's features picked up an expression of sympathy towards them, as her glance shifted from one of the mechs to another.

Better help them a little... I'm sure Wheeljack already has his hands full. She thought as she tried to move her wrinkle, the one she had just patched up. It did not show any signs of malfunction, and apart from a little obviously needed polish, it looked good.

As she stood up to make her way to the injured, one of them has already come to her instead, and collapsed right on the bench she had been sitting on.

"Whoa, whoa!" Remington exclaimed as she grabbed Strafe by the shoulder, keeping him frown falling on the floor. "Looks like you got wrecked up badly. You remind me of my teammate drifting in that CR tank," She said smiling slightly and nodding at the chamber Beretta was placed in.

Sitting back next to Strafe, Remington began to examine the extent of the mech's injuries. None of them looked grave, but there were plenty of them. At least, she's somewhat better than 'Retta. She always has a lot and has many of them severe...

"Can you move your arm?" She then asked from Strafe and gently pushed his right lower arm to see if he could raise it.

Autobase Tau - Medbay

After feeling someone from keeping him colapsing Strafe blinked as he was adressed "wha?" before he noticed who he was talking to "Err sorry; heh yeah I guess you could say that." He glanced over at the CR chamber heh she sounds like afterburner he thought to himself. Eventually he was returned to the present as Remington tried to move his arm Strafe eventually managed to comply with Remington even though he grimiced at doing so. "Yeah it just hurts"

Autobase Tau ~ Medbay

Jedishen had arrived shortly before Wheeljack, and had taken the opportunity to take a seat on one of the tables in the Medbay. As the Engineer entered and began to run a diagnostic, the Socut looked to him and thought it would be best if he saved him the time "My right leg has lost 70% functionality, most damage focused around the knee joint. Internal targeting systems operating at about 50% efficiency, engine cooling systems also damaged..." Jedishen paused briefly as Strafe whimpered his way into the Medbay, looking equally battered from his encounter with the 3 Prototypes, and his little incident with Stormfire "...Visor targeting systems offline, and some fluid lost in addition to the usual amount of various shrapnel wounds, plasma burns and laser impacts.."

The Scout finally paused once more as he looked right at Wheeljack and shrugged his shoulders "...Just the usual set of injuries you recieve when you take on 3 'Con prototypes and lose badly" He commented nonchalantly.

------------------------------
Outside Autobase Tau

"You can head in there if you want, but my best guess is he's long gone Magnus, somewhere out there, scurrying for friendly territory.." Roadbuster replied as he turned around to face the City Commander "..I've got Trailbreaker sending out warnings for all border guards, outposts and patrols to keep their optics open for Skyjack, but I haven't heard anything back yet"

The Wrecker stopped as he looked out into the distance, the vast size of the Tagan province most definitely to the advantage of the fleeing Skyjack "He's still on the ground at the moment, if he'd taken to the skies, our radar would have picked him up immediately, what we need to figure out is where he's headed.." Roadbuster continued, his mind running through the situation at a frightening pace "..Polyhex is closer, but he could just as easily make his way to the Rust Sea and head for Kaon, it's a longer journey, but if he makes it, we'll never catch him. So what's your Commander's instinct telling you Magnus?"

Outside Autobase Tau

"It says that maybe we should let him go," Magnus replied to Roadbuster. "But then again, I've never been known to do things by the book when it came to stuff like this. But we don't have the manpower to spare to go after him. Is there anyone in the field we can contact to pick up the trail?"

Autobase Tau - Medbay

"You're lucky, the actuator isn't busted," Remington replied to Strafe as she lowered the injured arm. "I'll do the repairs I can, but you'll need to stay in a CR chamber for some time," She said and gave Strafe a wink, as means of encouragement. She wasn't exactly sure he noticed it, though, he seemed rather battered an unfocused.

Laying Strafe back, against the wall, Remington took her tools and began to work on the damaged areas. First, she opened up the plating on the injured arm and shoulders, throwing away some of the broken or thoroughly cracked layers, then pulling out some shrapnel fragments from the servos, reattaching some wiring and fixing up the auxiliary mechanics. She aimed her torch and laser scalpel delicately, trying not to cause unnecessary pain to her "patient". Strafe should have felt a bit uncomfortable and numb, but the tense pain should have easened by now.

Having finished cleaning the wound, she looked up at Strafe. "Your arm and shoulder are done. You feel a little better?" She asked before reattaching the removed plating.

Somewhere south of Autobase Tau

Skyjack slowly leaned out from behind a wall, making sure the coast was clear before dashing across the empty space between two buildings. While it would be faster for him to head east, toward Polyhex, that border was likely to be more heavily guarded, due to the threat of a Decepticon assault from that sector. The southern border of the Tagan Heights however, pressed right up against the Rust Sea. Due to the relative rarity of aquatic based units on both sides, that border would possibly be more lightly defended, and present better opportunities for escape.

Still, even though time wasn’t really on his side, he couldn’t just go straight for the border. On a straight course, any pursuit was more likely to catch up to him, so he had to meander about a bit. If he was really lucky, nobody would see him at all, but if they did, his winding course might possibly cause them to misinterpret his destination. If I’m really lucky…

Outside Autobase Tau

"Not to my knowledge Magnus.." Roadbuster replied with a shake of his head "..The only ones out there are the enlisted 'Bots who, no offense to them, are no match for Skyjack, even if they did manage track him down"

Roadbuster could understand Magnus' apprehension at continuing the chase, he had the entire Tagan province to think about, not just a single Decepticon infiltrator, but for the Wrecker, it was personal.

"Look Magnus, leave this one to me. This 'Con came into the base while I was in command, and almost brought the base to it's knees. He's the reason I look like this.." Roadbuster paused as he indicated to the various injuries that covered his body "..I feel responsible for what's happened, and the only thing I can actually, pysically do, is try and catch this little slaghead and drag his body back here, and the way I'm feeling right now, you might as well agree to me doing this, because I'm probably going after him regardless of what you say"

Outside Autobase Tau

"Well, you should feel responsible, Roadbuster," Magnus said, his voice not filled with anger, but making the Wrecker know that he was seriously displeased with the fact that Roadbuster had pretty much said what he was thinking. "And that's why I'm going to let you go. But not without backup."

He opened his comlink. "Mirage, wherever you are, report to me now."

Autobase Tau

Before the other Throttlebots could catch up Chase moved over to Ultra Magnus, "Throttlebots, well three anyway of them including me reporting, sir!" he said cheerfully, "Just wondering if we can be of service,"

Autobase Tau

Ultra Magnus let out a twitch as Chase approached, not because he had done so, but that he had managed to do so despite not setting off any alarms. Given what was going on, the fact that someone can get so close to him without raising any awareness troubled him.

At least he could do something to work off those feelings. "Chase, good. I want you and your crew to go with Roadbuster and deal with out guest."

Autobase Tau - Brig

As Stormfire followed him down the corridors of Autobase Tau toward the brig, Mirage was not quite off his guard. A combatant like Mirage was subtle as he was deadly, and had no need to hold his rifle at the ready in order to be ready to deal with his...well, he was unsure what to call Stormfire. He was not exactly a prisoner, not quite a 'subject,' as Mirage was no doctor or technician. Nor was Stormfire an opponent. Not yet, anyway.

They entered an open cell. At the moment all the cells of Autobase Tau were empty. Just as Mirage felt Stormfire walk into the cell behind him, he received the message from Ultra Magnus. Sighing audibly, he answered, in his fashion.

>>"Can it...wait? I'm rather occupied, Ultra Magnus. Is it that Decepticon fumbling around with the generators? I'm sure Roadbuster or someone can handle it, can't they?"<<

The spy's voice trailed off as he let the commlink close.

Autobase Tau - Brig

Stormfire saw Mirage receive a message just as he stepped into the brig. Upon hearing the word Decepticon, Stormfire took an interest; there had been a spy in the base during the attack outside? That explained the lack of communication from command; the Decepticons had planned this very well.

Stormfire waited until Mirage had finished speaking before he volunteered a solution
‘Mirage, I personally don’t mind you leaving me in here whilst you go off hunting the con. I’d hunt it down myself but I doubt that’s an option right now considering the state I’m in…’
Stormfire’s voice trailed off whilst he waited for Mirage’s reply

Autobase Tau - Medbay

Afterburner was here, when he wasn't cursing or about to try and bust your skid-plate in, he was easy to miss.

As it were he did little more then try to stay out of the hustle and bustle of everyone's way, a glare of scrutiny locked on Remington, inpolite threats rolling about in his processors in answer for any poor handy-work she may inflict on his squad mate. He only lingers as long as his joints will allow it, knees promising to quit should they continue to be abused. A few moments pass before he gives in, secreting himself off to a corner and drawing the Cybertronian versions of a roll of duct-tape from a thigh compartment, the fix-it-all bindings used to cover the cracks and laser blast in his armor.[/b]

Autobase Tau: Medbay

Arcee entered the Medbay as discreetly as possible, ensuring that she didn't accidentally bump into anyone or cause any unnecessary hassle for those only trying to do their jobs. She was here to check up on a friend, a friend who seemed to spend more time here than was healthy for any Bot, not to make a nuisance of herself.

She had no injuries of her own so she made certain not to attract any attention, instead she kept to the outside of the room and made her way quickly past one CR Chamber after the other, quickly looking into each one in turn. Arcee finally came to a stop when she came upon the one that concerned her the most.

Her spark felt heavy for any Autobot who found their way into this state, forced into stasis lock through terrible injury, she didn't want to see any of her comrades suffer in this way. It was an unavoidable effect of war however, it could not be escaped, no matter how much she hated it. Arcee quietly willed all the injured Autobots here to recover quickly, the sooner they were active again the lighter her caring spark would feel.

Be that as it may one face in particular was of greater concern to her, one Fembot in particular had drawn her to drop by, this was a visit that was becoming all to frequent these days. Arcee made a deep sigh and made a slight frown as she looked upon the slumbering faceplate of Beretta, this confirming the rumors were true.

Her friend had managed to get herself banged up all over again.

"By Primus Berretta..."

Arcee quietly exasperated to herself.

"...i'm starting to think you like it here!"

Autobase Tau - The Brig

"Nonsense," Mirage tried to reassure Stormfire in some small way. "With any luck, Ultra Magnus will forget that he even ordered me to report. If he can't deal with one lowly Decepticon right now, then I don't know why he's even city commander."

His words suggested that Mirage did not want to see his fellow Autobot locked up indefinitely while he went off to hunt Skyjack, but in reality Mirage's curiosity drove his desire to remain in the Brig with Stormfire. He knew of only one other Autobot with more than one personality program wedged into his primary processor, and though that particular Autobot was hardly a paragon of mental stability, he was, by comparison to Stormfire, a model of psychiatric health. If nothing else...talking to 'it' should provide a good show.

"Before we try contacting 'it,'" Mirage said, "I'd like you to tell me a little more about the possible...positive aspects of 'it' being in control. Are you a more effective warrior when you lose control to 'it,' or more resilient, or...?"

Autobase Tau: Medbay :

Wheeljack finished his scan and quickly poped open Jedishen's chest. "the good news is that your cooling system is an easy fix, just have to replace a few hoses. Your right knee willneed a fair amount of work, and your targeting system will have to be completely overhauled. I can fix your visor, but it would be easier just to replace it, and wait, hold up. Did your say Decepticon prototypes? Three of them? Oh man, I can't wait to get a look at them".

Wheeljack quickly got to work on Jedishen's cooling systems, quickly restoring it to 100% functionality. He then began working removing shrapnel from the wounded 'Bot's knee.

Autobase Tau - The Brig

Stormfire considered Mirage’s question with some careful thought
‘I don’t think it has any extra strength compared to me, its physical attributes are the same as mine, I’ve watched the vids, it doesn’t seem to gain any boost to its power or weapons. I don’t think anyone has ever tested for that, you should ask him.

What I do know is that it seems to know the limitations of my body far better than myself, it does stuff I’d never attempt. It also seems to be far more competent with my weapons then me, even in close combat. It’s tactical and battle programming are immensely superior to mine, I also think it interprets it’s senses differently form us, it recognises pain, but it seems to ignore it or use it to its advantage. I think the main difference when it’s in control is it’s far more intelligent then me, I can’t follow how it thinks, it wanted us to come here, it’s still awake and if killing you was it’s goal I think it would have succeeded, instead it’s let me come here, it has greater control over my body than I, if it wanted to act, I couldn’t stop it…

Stormfire then froze, a dreadful thought in his cortex
‘What if he’s the real me?’

Autobot airspace - Onboard shuttle Sigma-4

As he paced around the shuttle's passenger bay, Punch stopped every so often to gaze out one of the viewports, anxious to get off the shuttle and see what this was all about. He hadn't recieved any other information other than that he would be briefed on arrival at Autobase Tau.

That was a few hours ago, and now the shuttle was flying though Autobot-controlled airspace, waiting for clearance to land. The wait only made the Autobot agent even more anxious, and finally he could take no more.

Just outside the cockpit door was a data-access panel. Punch approached it, and rapidly entered a series of commands on the keypad. A digital map of Cybertron appeared on the panel's screen, and zoomed in on the Tagan Heights. Punch entered his security clearance and entered a personnel code for Mirage.

'CONFIRMED. LOCATING PERSONNEL SPARK SIGNAL...SIGNAL LOCATED. WITHIN COMM RANGE.' The shuttle's computerized voice announced.

Knowing that the shuttle was within communications range of Autobase Tau, Punch opened his comlink. Hopefully now he could get some information.

>>Mirage, this is Punch. I'm en route to Tau as ordered. If you could fast track our landing clearance, it would help...<<

Autobot Airspace - Shuttle Sigma-4

A response from the Autobot spymaster came quickly to Punch's commlink.

Mirage wrote:I've went ahead and granted your shuttle clearance. Once you've landed, meet me in the Brig. I'll fill you in once you've arrived, but do us all a favor and make sure not to reveal your alternate persona, regardless of the situation in which we find ourselves. I need your perspective on an unusual case, but we mustn't blow your cover. See you in the Brig.

The transmission ended, and the control panel of the shuttle indicated that Punch and Snipe had been cleared for landing at Autobase Tau.

Autobot Airspace - Onboard shuttle Sigma-4

It was... amusing. It was... curious. It was... Punch PACING! It was Snipe's only form of entertainment on the shuttle...

'I wonder what I got myself into... Must be something special if it's got Punch moving around like that.' Snipe mused.

Snipe knew, from running into him before, that Punch was pretty much a cool-headed type of bot. So not only did the pacing entertain him, it made him anxious too.

FINALLY, Punch did something different. So Snipe took a close look at what he was viewing.

'Ok...a map. Tagan Heights. Alright. Is something wrong..? HAVE THE DECEPTICONS DECIDED TO SELF-DESTRUCT because they knew the ALMIGHTY Snipe Shade was coming??!! HAHAHA.' Snipe slowly lost his sense of reality and laughed at his improbable, yet highly amusing processed thought.

When one goes on solo missions into dangerous enemy borders enough times, and is usually left to wait for the group to mobilize, one could come up with interesting things to do to keep from being overwhelmed by fear.

Or maybe that was just Snipe. Being bored.

Autobase Tau

Ultra Magnus sighed as Mirage responded. Leave it to him to find a fault in the argument in the hope of getting out of a mission.

"Yes, he can," he responded. "But as you're no doubt aware, Roadbuster is...for lack of a better term, huge. And he's not exactly capable of performing some of the more...stealthy and subtle tactics needed to catch our wayward escapee."

Autobase Tau - Medbay

Remington kept working on Strafe as more and more mechs were finding their way into the medbay. It looked like her "patient" had not suffered any critical injuries, but enough to be on the verge of consciousness. She took care to not amplify the pain anymore, as she continued to take off armor plates, clean wounds, reattach pieces and wires, then put the plates back again.

She had not missed the piercing glance coming from Afterburner either. But instead of feeling frightened or threatened, her expression took a wide, triumphant grin as she turned her head towards the red mech, watching him tending his own wounds in a do-it-yourself manner.

"If you want proper medical care, you can always join the line," She said and gestured to the other side of the bench Strafe was sitting on. Remington was not picky by nature, but she could come up with quite the attitude if someone was trying with her. Either in thought, act or speech.

And from the other corner of her optics, she noticed another mechanoid frame, easily recognizable wander around the line of CR chambers and stop by the one Beretta was recharging in.

"Relax Arcee," Remington said stoically as she heard the other fembot talking to her unconscious mate. "You know her, she'll be getting out of there in notime, only to jump into the fray and make her way back for another repair round as soon as she can," She added, with a slight egde of jealousy in her voice.

It was true that Beretta wrecked herself basically in any mission she was involved in, but there were few and rare occasions when she had not completed an objective, or had not defeated an opponent. Remington was not capable of such. Sure, she could cut loose too, and be quite a tomboy, but at times like that, she wasn't more than that. She always had the feeling Beretta was much more than a tomboy.

She dismissed her thoughts and concentrated on finishing the repairs on Strafe.