The Energon Pub

“Thanks, Ironhide,” Snarl said to the red Autobot for freeing his tail from the floor. “Me, Snarl, grateful.” However, there was still a chunk of the floor attached to the Dynobot’s spiked tail, but Snarl made quick work of that by transforming back to bot mode. The piece of floor broke apart as his tail split in half, forming his wings. “There, dat better!” Snarl said in a somewhat embarrassed voice.

Sludge lumbered past, laughing at Snarl’s misfortune and making a sarcastic remark. “Me, Snarl, be careful with weapon alright. Me be careful not shoot you, Sludge in aft section!” Snarl replied to his Dino buddy as he pushed by Sludge and made his way to the shuttle hatch. Standing there with his energo-sword in one hand and his laser pistol in the other, Snarl looked around the Heights and growled, “Now, where war at?”

The Dynobot’s question was quickly answered when Ironhide and Slag came under fire from Triggerhappy. “Oh, there war is!” Snarl quickly took aim and returned fire at Triggerhappy before leaping out of the shuttle and landing next to his LSC comrades. “Time for fun!”

Shuttle Dauntless ~ Crash Site

Macabre was pleased with how things were playing out. Discord had also made good time to the scene of the battle and Triggerhappy was happily blasting away at the emerging Autobots. Now would be a good opportunity to sow confusion among the Autobot ranks. He had to move quickly before they got the chance to reorganize and mount a strong counter attack. Using the inter-squad communicator, Macabre instructed his troops to fan out in a staggered line and commence strafing attack pattern Epsilon 5.

The Sweep drones moved in unison to take up their new positions. Macabre fell in with them to mask his presence. The group of Sweeps descended on their prey like great metallic raptors with disintigrator cannons for talons. With the sound of rending metal, the ground below them seemed to turn instantly into one great porus mass. At this point accuracy was not as important as volume. Macabre chuckled to himself at the thought of the Autobots desperatly seeking cover from the deadly downpour.

Streaking through the sky at full attack speed left the Autobots little chance to down the attacking Sweeps. Soon, the Sweeps were out of range. They executed a wide turn in unison and prepared to engage the Autobots in a second strafing run on a perpendicular axis from their previous run. Perhaps after one more run the Autobots would be rattled enough to start to engage them on an individual basis. By then the other Decepticons would likely be taking advantage of the supressing fire his squadron was laying down.

Macabre also took the opportunity to ensure his reserve squadron was ready to move in at a moments notice. There was no way the LSC could resist this onslaught for long, not with so many Decepticons converging on their crashed vessel. It would be interesting to see the fabled Dinobots in action though, short lived though it would be. Perhaps Macbre would have the honor of terminating Grimlock himself. The thought was appealing, but focusing on his current task took precedence.

>My Brothers. Prepare to commence strafing run two. Execute!<<

Tagan Heights- Skies of Tagan Heights

She commands her drones to begin their assault, and they begin bombarding any, and every Autobot that dares exit the ship mercilessly with their cannon fire. What the Drones may lack in accuracy, they makeup for in volume of fire. The first two of the Autobots coming under a firestorm of disintegrator cannons are Ironhide and Slag it seems.
"Destroy the Autobots! Make them pay for their insolence! Slaughter them all!" she rallies the troops with a powerful feminine voice.

She feels no remorse in utilizing overwhelming firepower against the intruders. If they didn't want to get shot, they wouldn't be here, after all.

Elsewhere in the Skies of Tagan Heights

Shrike hovers in the air taking aim with her high powered energy rifle, and fires a long green energy beam of destructive power at Ironhide.
It was a shame that a duel seems so unlikely now, what with the Autobots taking so much fire. She looked forward to slicing up a few Autobots, but that's war for you.

It was nice to hear the voice of another femme on the field. And it's nice to see that al the Sweeps aren't idiotic drones.

Sky near Refinery Complex Three

"Ahahahahaha!" Triggerhappy cried out gleefully as he let fire on the emrging Autobots. "Pathetic fools! There is no escape!" He sreamed as he took another diving run, this time chasing down Ironhide, who skillfully dove of the way of Triggerhappy's shots without so much as taking a scratch to his paint. "Damn." Triggerhappy muttered. "Missed. Again..."

Ground near Refinery Complex Three

"Fraggin' Decepticon!" He cried out, unaware of Shrike, as the femme took a shot at him, a shot that he only noticed as it smashed into the ground just in front of his feet. "Woah! Where the frag did that come from?" He said, confused as to where the Decepticon was, but before he could search properly, he came under fire from a group of drones, Ironhide quickly ducked down and rolled out of the way, taking the odd minor hit. Stopping the roll, and settling on one knee, Ironhide propped his weapon up and fired at a large group of Sweep drones.

Sky near Refinery Complex Three

Meanwhile, Triggerhappy turned once more in the air, preparing for another run at the Autobots, and spotting another Dynobot, he knew he had his target. For once, Triggerhappy paused for a moment before going in for the attack. 'Hm. He sure is a lot bigger than me, maybe I shouldn't attack him... wait a minute? What am I saying? This is to much fun to not do!'. Feeling content with his reasoning, Triggerhappy engaged once more in his attack run, this time heading straight for Snarl.

"Die Autobot!!!" He screamed as his weapons started firing on all cylinders at Snarl.

Ground near Refinery Complex Three

Sludge strolled out of the Dauntless and looked around calmly. "So, this what Decepticons send against us Dynobots? Me Sludge see bigger threats on mudball!" He shouted out, as he transformed into robot mode, taking his weapon and priming it for the fight ahead.

Deceptibase Tau - Command Centre

Hook began to grow impatient as the sounds of the battle slowly made their way through to him. "For frag's sake... sir" Hook said to Thunderwing, somewhat agitated by the fact the Constructicons were being ignored. "I realise you have the battle to think about, but we could be out there helping if you'd hurry your central processor up!" Then thinking about it, Hook once more added "...sir."

OOC:Argh, stupid technology. At least the backup seemed to have saved my partial draft, so I'm not starting totally from scratch. Still, it was a big post, comes with having so many characters concentrated in one place. Oh well...
If Slag seems to be turning into an 80s action hero, if because he is, in a way. More to the point, any called hits and no-selling of shots will only be from drones, who are pretty much there for that very purpose. It wouldn't be a very interesting fight if the Dynobots were mowed down by remote drones, now would it? Shots from and at actual characters will be taken appropriately.

Tagan Airspace

"Stringing them to the walls is pointless, Rage, because the whole point of us being here is that the Autobots never get within sight of the walls!! Or were you not paying attention to Megatron himself in our briefing?" Scourge wasn't truly angry at Rage, he'd come to expect a certain level of unthinking bloodlust from her. But his processor was turned to thoughts of glory, of the names of the Sweeps being whispered by terrified Autobots, and that made him critical of any mistakes from his Hunt. Yes, this hunt will be good for me. A chance to let loose, and become my true self again.

Scourge slowed down as he flew over the new decepticon outpost, just long enough to get a good view of the yard. He saw Decepticons running around like diodeless mechachickens, even the famed Combaticons seemed to be standing around while the battle raged. Scourge was tempted to stop and round up the wayward warriors, but that was time he could spend in the battle, which was for more valuable.

The crash site was just up ahead, the outline of lasers clearly visible. Soon, he'd prove in one quick swoop how powerful the Sweeps were.

Deceptibase Tau - The Yard

"If you're leaving Blast Off, be sure to take some spare ammo with ya!" Swindle had dived into the shuttle and opened the cargo bay, and was pulling out ammo packs for the Team. Shells for Onslaught and Brawl, sabots for Blastoff's rifle, and several sets of grenades went out onto the yard and into Swindle's storage bays, replacing a fair chunk of loot Swindle had been hoping to stash somewhere safe. But when it came to fighting, better to be poor than ill-armed.
"Should be enough here, Sir. You want us to muster out now, or will I pull out the special stuff?"

Command Center

"Hook!! That's dangerously close to insubordination! Lord Thunderwing will give us orders when and if he chooses to. Until then we await his commands."

"But Bugly said..."

"I'm well aware of what Bugly said, Long Haul, but just look at that firefight." Scrapper pointed at a nearby screen showing a view of the battle. "It's a horrifically dense firefight already, and it's barely begun. In standard robot mode, we wouldn't make any terrible difference at all, and I'm not sending my team out into that just for Bugly's sense of completeness. If we enter the fight, we enter it combined, and Bugly doesn't have the authority to deploy Devestator, unless Thunderwing gives it to him by proxy."

"So what, we jus' head back to the Rec Room den?"

"What!? NO! Bonecrusher, you...argh."

Approaching the Dauntless

Banzai-Tron beeped an affirmative back in response to Bugly's order. "Form a perimeter eh?" He looked at Bludgeon beside him. "You go left, I'll go right, ok?" With that, the Crystalocution master broke off to the right, making his way around the battle zone to flank the Autobot force. Currently, the battle looked too hectic for a precise assassin like himself anyway.

Near Refinery Complex Three

As the first Sweep Drones came down on their strafing run, Slag transformed, drew his Electron Gun and Energon Sword, and returned fire. Streams of charged particles flew through the ranks of the drones, chewing holes in armor and forcing several to break off in automatic evasive manuvers. One Drone came just a hair too close to the ground and a bolt from Slag's energon sword caught on the flank. An engine and a wing came away, and the drone tumbled to earth behind the Dauntless. A sentient Sweep would have transformed and landed safely: The drone drove itself into the ground trying to land, and crumpled into a ruined mess.
The portion of the barrage levelled at Slag had hit with good accuracy, but the Sweep's heat lasers had barely scorched Slag's armor, designed to swim in molten metal. A few disintigrators had made deeper marks, but Slag didn't register them: He was too busy preparing for the next wave.
Slag's bravado-laden stand was broken by Triggerhappy, as the mad gunner raked Photon Pulses across the walkway. 3 Rounds went into the flamethrower's back, more noticably than the drone beams. "ARGH!! WHO DO THAT?" Slag wheeled and fired a burst of Electrons at the flyer, completely forgetting about the oncoming drones. Another set of heat beams slammed into his flanks, and Slag finally realised that standing in the middle of the avenue soaking up enemy fire wasn't exactly an inspired battle tactic. He started heading for cover in the nearby warehouses, squeezing off shots at drones, and another as Triggerhappy as he flew at Snarl.

Sky near Refinery Complex Three

"Well, here we are. And will you look at that! Not a single drone can do their job!" Carnage laughed to herself as she saw the drones get blasted into scrapmetal by Slag. "Look's like we'll just have to join in, eh?" She asked Scourge and Rage. She transformed, powered up her laser and aimed it at Slag. "Just give the word, my lord, and this one will be Kaon-fried Mechachicken."

Deceptibase Tau - The Yard

"Errr... Thanks." The words of praise came out with difficulty as Blast-off struggled to respond to Swindle handing him his ammo. Well, the little fragger knows me, those shells would work great. He clipped them to his waist. He turned to Onslaught. "All ready to go, boss. We gonna frag these guys, or what?"

(OOC: Keeping things chugging along.)

Tagan Heights- Skies of Tagan Heights

Drones fall, drones get damaged, but they do not relent! If a drone can fight still, she orders it, to while waiting for the non drone Decepticons to arrive.
Discord orders her drones who are unable to fight into Kamikaze maneuvers against the Autobots and the shuttle's exits. If the disintegrator cannons can't get the job done, perhaps fuel cells detonating upon the Autobots and the shuttles can?

Her assault continually grows more and more viscous, and that's the way she likes it. The Drones fire relentlessly in suppressing fire, and seek to turn the Autobots into heaps of steel.

She has her drones begin circling and firing onto the Autobots using all the aerial agility they have to move at angles, stop, start, and take other such evasive maneuvers as they circle and bombard the Autobots. It's apparent she wants them all scrapped.

Being one of the more obvious targets, the Drones tend to send the majority of their firepower at Slag who's larger, and able to take more damage.

Discord herself hangs back conducting the drone movements buying all the time she can for the rest of the Decepticons to get their butt plates into this battle. She knows the Drones aren't going to destroy the Autobots if they're worth the resources of a shuttle craft, but she's going to weaken them as much as she can.

===
>>This is Shrike to Decepticon command, I am requesting permission to refuel and resupply my weapons to better combat the Autobots.<< She says like it was bile on her tongue. But this is friendly territory so she has the option. It'd be a shame to not make use of the resources.
She plans to take up a shield as well, incase the battle becomes a melee.

===
Bugly replies to Shrike. >>You have less than a breem! You have Kliks! Go, and return with full haste! We need every bolt, and bullet of firepower we have to destroy the Autobots!<< Bugly wasn't pleased at Shrike for being a bit more high maintenance than the rest of the Decepticons. Then again it's partly the rush of combat and the frustration in the less than ideal firepower being poured onto these Autobots.

Bugly sends orders to the Constructicons. >>Do you 'cons think you could whip up something to add firepower to our assault on the Autobots? Your talents should not go to waste.<< he says on an even respectful tone as he's well aware that the Constructicons have immense value, and talents that don't lend well to direct combat.

===
"Your wish is my command, Master Scourge." Rage says then goes back to simmering quietly as they approach the fray. It looked like a lot of firepower, and little room for melee.. Grrr..
She recalls the usual tactic anyhow. She's staying behind anyhow, waiting as her rage builds then she'll be sent in to supplement the decreased firepower of a dragged out battle.

===
Meanwhile with the okay, Shrike mobilizes for the refueling station at top speed after transforming to her more aerodynamic alt mode. It won't be instant, so the Autobots have some reprieve from her assault for now.

Shuttle Dauntless - Crash Site

With most of his team out of the crashed shuttle, Grimlock took the opportunity to exit himself. The Dinobot leapt out of the hatch and crashed into the ground on his feet and under a hail of laser fire The Dinobot commander quickly took in the scene as he drew his gun. They were under attack by a horde of some new model of Decepticon flier, one of the new models he had heard about. They seemed a bit more maneuverable and sleeker, but he wasn’t impressed. From the way they were fighting they weren’t tough enough to come down and challenge them up close. They were just going to spray the area with fire hoping to do enough damage to hurt them and occupy them until heavier troops came in.

Grimlock began yelling orders as he returned fire on the Decepticon fliers. “Autobots! Use shuttle and debris as cover! Return fire in short aimed bursts! They just spraying fire and praying it hit. We show them that they can do that all day and we take it while we blow them out of the sky!” As if punctuating his last words a drone burst into flames in the sky from his fire.

Following his own orders, the Dinobot commander turned and ripped and already torn chunk of hull off of the shuttle and slammed it into the ground in front of him, letting it serve as a shield and extra layer of armor. Between that and the shuttle at his back he was relatively well protected. They could try and strafe him from the sides but they would be coming after a smaller target from that direction. They were going to have to come up close and personal if they wanted to dislodge him and his team and that’s just what he wanted.

Near Refinery Complex Three

"If I honestly have to tell you to kill Autobots, Carnage, then I might as well have you turned into another drone!" Scourge transformed to get a full view of the battlefield. He was not impressed with what he saw. Discord and Macabre seemed to be using the Sweep Drone fleet like grenades, sending them in waves to harry the dug-in Autobots, but not really getting anywhere closer to actually killing them.
What are they waiting for, an Invitation? This is what the Sweeps were designed for, cornering their prey and tearing it apart! But it was equally true that the Sweep Drones, above average for a drone combat unit, were being handled rather easily by the large warriors sheltering in the shuttle. Scourge continued scanning: 5 Extra Heavy-Duty combat mechs, 5 more average but still sturdy models, and a minibot. Positive IDs came in from Scourge's databanks.
"The Lightning Strike Coalition, eh? A fine prize. And that would make that the famous Grimlock." Scourge began laughing: A better demonstration of the superiority of the new Depecticon breed could not have come. "SWEEPS! Do as you were constructed to! This cycle will leave no doubt as to the future of the Decepticon Empire: Us!!"
Scourge took off, circling the battle to come up on the rear of the stricken shuttle. With the drones taking the majority of the fire, the Autobots had not deployed anyone to guard the mangled shuttle rear. Such a weakness was too good to exploit. Scourge hoped he wouldn't have to tell his troops to do likewise: Wasn't leading by example supposed to be the most effective method?

Elsewhere, Slag rattled off curses faster than electron beams as he continued running for cover. Every drone in the sky seemed to be aiming at him: The fault of the others for not attracting their fair share, obviously. Disintegrators sent up clouds of particles as the road began to dissipate under Slag's feet: He was definitely feeling the barrage now.
The last of Slag's energy cell dug into the hull of a drone, which aimed its crash course at him in a final command from it's callous master. Slag dove forward as it hit the ground scant inches behind him, transforming to beast mode to keep his footing. The metal Triceratops continued to his target, a sturdy-looking warehouse. The wall caved in as Slag skidded to a stop, turning around to face the new entrance he'd made. Now, maybe that he'd got a roof over his head, he could think for a second. Or finish swearing at least.

Command Centre

Oh, I give up...
>>Scrapper to Bugly. We'll deploy to a support position, and see about acting in a counter-fortification role. Assuming Lord Thunderwing does not give us additional orders, we should be deployed and ready to play 'nutcracker' in a breem.<<
>>But I highly reccommend you dislodge those Autobots soon, Bugly, because the longer this battle goes on, the more at risk the nearby refineries are. I'm no tactician, but balancing loss of troops against starting a chain reaction that could set that subsector ablaze...We'll be there shortly.<<
"CONSTRUCTICONS! Transform and Roll Out, Co-ordinates TH-1387*3300. Scavenger on point, I want to know if there's anything at hand to be utilised." Scrapper saluted in the direction of the busy City Commander, and transformed to vehicle mode, heading for the yard. The others followed, with varying levels of eagerness.

Approaching the Dauntless

It had taken longer for Clench and his more powerful soldiers to reach the crash site of Dauntless than Triggerhappy had needed. But now Clench's goonsquad was only astroseconds from joining the action. A good number of Sweeps had already pinned the Autobots into their crashed shuttle and more and more Decepticons were joining the fight. Still the fight was far from over, the Lightning Strike Coalition was still going on strong. They had dug themselves into pretty solid defensive positions. Despite seemingly having their rear unguarded, the setup was something the Sweeps hadn't been to be able to penetrate.

Clench's rather harsh landing to the combat zone caused a loud clang that was hard to miss. A blunt instrument of war, Clench had learned to make his presence known when he wanted and he was not about to sneak on the LSC. He wanted them to know what was coming for them. His size gave up his position anyhow for the former pit fighter was easily the largest Decepticon that had entered the combat zone this far, as his sheer bulk was comparable to that of Grimlock's or Sludge's.

>>"Clench to operation command. Give me and my boys a situation report so we can coordinate our movements with you."<<

Well, if the Sweeps had lacked the brute force and artillery to break the enemy defenses, Clench, Skullcruncher, Weirdwolf and Mindwipe were going to change that. It was time to turn the tide and stop the battle before it would spread deeper into the industrial sector.

(OOC: 200th post!)

Near Refinery Complex Three

Carnage ignored Scourge's insult. She was much to happy to deal with the threat in question than to be trading insults with a superior. She fired sveral shots at Slag, trailing him, hoping she can still kill him in beast mode. Watching him dissapear into the warehouse, she felt joy. It looked like close combat wasnt ruled out completly after all. She swooped down, making a few shots at Grimlock, as she flew around the warehouse. when she reached the side parellel to Slag's entry point, she relaesed a flurry of lasers, weakening the wall enough for her to ram through, never ceasing fire. breaking through, she continued to fire at the Dinobot from behind. Please, let the head be intact when I'm done!

Tagan Heights- Skies of Tagan Heights

The main reason Discord isn't assaulting the rear of the shuttle is that the shuttle is going -nowhere- with the engine section blown to slag. There's no point in further demolishing a crippled shuttle when it could be cannibalized for resources later on.
The Autobots have to be pinned down! To allow them to get the opportunity to gain ground is extremely foolish. The more they're pinned down and given a feeling of hopelessness, the sooner victory comes.

The appearance of Grimlock helps take some heat off Slag as Discord's Sweep drones split fire between him and Grimlock, bombarding the Autobots relentlessly.

Discord sends orders to her drones. >>Their cover only protects them from a few directions, focus fire on where they don't have cover! Shoot them in the back, shot them from above, shoot them in their flanks! Just destroy them!<<

The Drones immediately switch up their tactics not letting the Autobots use cover as they continually assault from multiple angles not wasting their firepower trying to shoot through debris, and they continue ranged assaults as Sweeps aren't the greatest fighters. Especially the Drones. It's obvious the Autobots have the advantage having brandished swords. No doubt they have some talent with the weapons, so sending in drones would be a gigantic waste.

She watches Slag trample across the field into the refinery and snarls a bit.
===
Shrike lands at the refueling junction at the base wasting no time at all in refueling, and reloading her beam cannon.

===

Bugly replies to Scrapper. >>Excellent, Scrapper. I look forward to seeing your work of art in action, but do hurry, the rest of the Decepticon warriors are taking their time in arriving, and the firepower is insufficient to keep the Autobots corralled at present.<<

SLAG! The Autobots are escaping the perimeter! Decepticons will PAY for this!! he fumes watching the new dinobot trample his way across the battlefield virtually unimpeded by the Decepticons he ordered to the field.

Bugly sends a general call to the Decepticon forces. >>The Autobots are assaulting one of our refineries near the crash site! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!! If Decepticons are not on the field soon to prevent them from gaining ground, it's the SMELTER for you! We cannot allow them to gain any more ground!!<< He's not scared, he has no fear, but he's really really mad that his plans aren't being followed. Those infernal drones are barely worth his strategic attention, and Discord seems to have a firm grip on things.

He's close to leaving his vantage point to go fight the Autobots himself, but he needs to maintain an eye in the sky position in the name of coordinating the overall battlefield. He is the tactician, and strategist here, after all.

He sends a report to Clench. trying to maintain calm. >>This is acting XO of Tagan Heights, Bugly. The Autobots are pinned down near Refinery Complex Three, and are beginning to assault it. The Sweep Drones lack the firepower to do substantial damage to the Autobots it seems, and the Sentient Sweeps are either just arriving or conducting the Drones tactically. I have ordered the local warriors to arrive and form a perimeter but they haven't arrived yet. I have ordered the Constructicons to make use of their talents and create a nice surprise for the Autobots. That is all the current happenings at present. Your team's added might will be greatly appreciated in this battle. If any refueling or repairs are necessary, then take care of it quickly before entering the fray. Make use of the fact this is Decepticon territory and gain the advantage by all means.<<

===

Rage simmers as Scourge prattles on.
Why are we assaulting a dead ship? No matter. What Scourge wants, he gets.
She transforms, and ignites her talons, then begins tearing, and clawing her way through the rear of the craft with her considerable might, and melee prowess. What ever Scourge has in mind, she really hopes it's worth the effort she's putting into this. In fact she might be getting a little too into the task at hand, roaring and raging against the machinery, ripping, tearing, clawing, and cutting her way through.

She's obviously being worked into a frenzy, as anger swells at the fact she's wasting her time on the crippled ship and not crippling Autobots.

Shuttle Dauntless - Crash Site

Silverstrike grimaced as the dauntless met the ground in a manner lacking in grace, coming to a halt in an area she knew was far from ideal. Assessing the scene below she made not of the number of LSC members and then the positions of the sweeps, taking in the significant differences shown by the ones that had been gifted with sentience. They seemed to swarm more like insects, in comparison to the seeker formations she was accustom to. The masses of bodies making passes through the air set her at unease, perhaps mostly because she worked alone so often. Though it didn’t matter anyhow since she could offer no substantial assistance to Macabre or Discord’s squadrons, especially since they were using their firepower in volume like a seeker would have done with acid rain. She tilted her head, now that was something the seekers hadn’t done in a while.

She sighed to herself, Shrike and Triggerhappy appeared to have chosen their targets, as the Autobots emerged from the downed vessel. Though it was tempting to stay at her lofty vantage point it was negating the purpose of why she was there. With a resigned smirk on her face the mirroresque femme lowered her altitude to engage with the ground troops. Her face brightened as she noticed the Constructicons and Combaticons. She knew their presence meant the Autobots would have to divide their attention to both ground and air.

Her optics focused on Grimlock as he barked orders to his team, knowing all to well the power behind that choppy dialect. His dinobots always followed his lead but…. The other LSC members, they seemed to have a style of their own. Choosing one of the dinobots Silver prepared to make a pass at him with her energy sword. As she set her sights on Sludge, she activated the blade its blue light reflecting deep into her silver frame.

Deceptibase Tau - The Yard

Rampage had by now got his bearings and was eager to get to the battle site so with a quick flick of his tail and a glance over his shoulder at the combaticons he moved off in the direction of the battle sight; clearing the Yard before breaking into a run; he wanted to see what was going on and hopefully get a little bit of fun out of it while he was at it.

Approaching the Dauntless

As Banzai-Tron's words reached him by comm, Bludgeon returned the call. "Very well" he said "Moving to the left" the detached and grim Master of Metalikato veered to the left, the purple and green tank accelerated lightly, it's turret aimed for the most likely direction of attack.

Crash Site

Emerging from the Dauntless, Kup wasted no time in assessing the situation and moving to some decent cover. Drones, drones, and more drones, he observed. Haven't seen this tactic in a while, but I know it well. Mass waves of Seeker Drones had been the Decepticon hallmark for much of the not-so-Great War, but lack of resources in recent times had largely curtailed that method of warfare. Appears they threw enough of their energon reserves into production again to make a decent swarm of these new uglies, too. As one of the Sweep Drones swooped in and landed behind Kup, the old warrior responded with a calm ease that came only from millennia of experience.

Thinks he's got the drop on me, Kup figured. He heard and felt the Sweep Drone's clawed hand shoot toward the back of his cranial module. Moving his head slightly, Kup let the hand go right past his head. His right arm swung back, positioning the muzzle of his acid laser against the Drone's thorax. A pull of the trigger blew a hole in the Sweep's midsection. Finally, Kup turned, using his left hand to throw the Drone aside to a safe distance as it thrashed about in its death throes before deactivating completely. He looked around the battlefield for a moment.

"Grimlock," he called to the Dinobot leader. "These odds aren't so good. We might wanna get to some better cover, otherwise they'll throw Drones and artillery at us 'til the cowmechs come home."

The old vet looked toward Refinery Complex 3. Yeah, that might do the trick. It seemed unlikely that the Decepticons, even when in the grasp of full battle lust, would risk destroying an energon refinery and perhaps the entire city-state just to eliminate a few Autobots.

"Think they're crazy enough to blow up an energon refinery just to get to us?"

Tagan Heights – Near Refinery Complex Three

Smokescreen leapt from the hatch of the downed shuttle and landed on the ground near the rest of his comrades in the Lightning Strike Coalition. They were under heavy fire from a horde of Sweep drones flying overhead. Suddenly, explosions erupted around Smokescreen as two drones took shots at the diversionary tactician. He quickly raised his electro-disruptor rifle and returned fire, striking both drones dead on. One streaked by overhead and crashed on the backside of the Dauntless. The other veered off to the right, hitting the ground away from the main battle.

By then Grimlock, commander of the LSC, had exited the shuttle. He shouted orders to everyone and then took up a position behind a large piece of metal the Dinobot leader had just ripped from the side of the shuttle. “That’s actually not a bad idea,” Smokescreen said aloud. While he was not strong enough to tear off a piece of the shuttle the size of Grimlock’s, Smokescreen was able to find a somewhat smaller piece of scrap metal more his size laying on the ground. It wasn’t as thick, but it would do well enough as a makeshift shield.

Several more fire blasts shot by Smokescreen, hitting the ground around him, one ricocheting off his “shield”. The Sweep drones were coming at them faster now, not letting up one bit. One had even landed behind Kup, but the old mech made quick work of it.

I need to knock a bunch of these mindless bots out of the sky at once. And with that thought, Smokescreen took aim with his should-mounted launchers at a group of around a dozen incoming drones. He fired two missiles into the sky directly at them. A few astronseconds later, both rockets found targets, destroying two of the drones in a pair of fireballs that lit up the Cybertronian sky. But, that was not all those shattered missiles did. The resulting shards produced by the explosions began emitting various circuit-scrambling radio signals and magnetic fields that radiated outward, enveloping the rest of the surrounding drones that had previously escaped destruction. This sent their guidance systems into a tizzy, causing the drones to go out of control. Some struck one another, exploding in midair, while many others lost altitude and hit the ground in a series of fireballs. In the end, all the drones from that group were destroyed.

“All in a day’s work”, Smokescreen said with a smile, as bits of wreckage from the drones rained down from above. One small piece bounced off the top of Snarl’s head.

“Hey! What that?!” The startled Dinobot wondered, rubbing the top of his cranial unit. He then looked over at Smokescreen and frowned, realizing it was from the drones Smokey had just destroyed.

“Sorry, big guy,” Smokescreen replied with a shrug. “My bad.” The diversionary tactician then overheard Kup’s suggestion about getting everyone to the refinery complex. He moved towards the old mech and the Dinobot leader. “I agree with Kup, Commander Grimlock. We’re sitting duckbots out here. The refinery should provide adequate cover for us.” At least Smokescreen hoped so.

Decepticon Outpost Tau

If there was one thing Onslaught could not abide, it was chaos. There was nothing more repellent to him than an anarchic, disordered melee. To the Combaticon Commander, battles were elaborate exercises in strategy, disciplined ranks of troops maneuvering across the battlefield to gain a position of unassailable advantage over the enemy. Victory was achieved by reducing the morale of one's opponents until their own battleplan was reduced to a state of reactionary ineffectualness. Without strategy, there was no battle. There was only pandemonium.

Pandemonium. Which was exactly what he and the other Combaticons seemed to have stepped into scant astroseconds after disembarking.

Assessing the situation as best he could without instructions from Tau's present command staff, he began organizing his troops as best he could. Onslaught's voice, when he spoke, was unusually tense and agitated, a sign of his fraying temper the other Combaticons were certain to recognize almost immediately.

"Brawl, you and I will join in the artillery barrage," he ordered tersely. "Swindle, Blast-Off, and Vortex will assume forward firing positions and act as spotters to coordinate our attack. Our top priority is ensuring that the Autobots remain pinned in place, where they can be worn down through superior firepower and numbers. Under no circumstances are any of you to risk excessive damage to the local energon production capabilities." Onslaught glanced at the other Combaticons, visor flashing with barely-suppressed annoyance, though his ire was not directed at them. Yet. "Proceed."

Transforming into his mobile artillery platform mode, Onslaught linked up to the targeting computers of the base's own large-scale weapons and zeroed in on the distant Autobots. The twin barrels of his main guns flashed with bright orange fire, lobbing a pair of high-explosive shells into the air.

OOC: As much as I'd like to take Scourge to take one someone not currently engaged, like Wheeljack, Inferno or Cliffjumper, they're currently unplayed and it's up to the mods what happens to them. So sorry, Smokescreen GT.

Inside Shuttle Dauntless

Scourge's claws tore through the weakened metal of the shuttle, Rage at his heels. The Shuttle itself was meaningless, but it formed the bastion of the Autobots defense. By getting inside, he could attack their formation from within, rendering their defensive measures useless. This was how the Sweeps worked, not as disposable shooters, but as assassins, bypassing all defenses and striking opponents in their weakest state. He'd have to explain this concept to certain members of the Sweeps, it seemed.
Scourge's sensors detected 3 of the lesser Autobots within the shuttle, but they weren't even part of the fight at the moment, and weren't worth his time. He scanned through the hull, and found his target.
The Sweep Leader swept out of the shuttle and into Snarl's back, his claws flashing as he sought to carve into the Dynobot's back. Taking on one of the Autobot's finest, and tearing him to shreds: Scourge couldn't think of a better way to demonstrate his superiority.

Refinery Complex 3: Warehouses

Slag hastily reloaded his electron gun, expecting the seemingly fanatical drones to follow him into the gap and into his melee comfort zone. He wasn't expecting a grey and purple Sweep to copy his tactic and shoot him in the back. As he roared in pain, he wondered who this tactically savvy warrior was, so different from mindless drones inside.
Rolling as best he could, Slag made it to cover behind a stack of crates, away from the shots from Carnage. The Heat Laser had stung a lot worse than the drones model, but it was still the wrong weapon to take on the Dynobot Flamethrower with. Still, a little more cover was preferable...
Slag, barely straining, grabbed a massive, 20-meter-a-side crate, and charged towards Carnage. He was sick of being shot at, and wanted to throw his fists around for a while. This portable cover was his best chance of closing the distance quickly and safely.
In his haste, Slag forgot to check the contents of the crate...

Approaching the battle

Arrayed in their unaerodynamic but workable flight modes, the Constructicons flew towards the battle site. Scrapper was very worried about the latest news coming from Bugly.
>>Scrapper to Bugly, we will move to fortify the Refinery. Please, keep them out of there as long as you can! Battle there would be disastrous!!<<
"Change course team, we're heading into the Refinery ASAP. Bonecrusher, Long Haul, Mixmaster, with me. We need to made earthworks from the klik we land. Blast directors, moats, anything, we need to protect those resources. Hook, Scavenger, find the piping controls. Shut down the pumps and redirect the energon to other facilities. Once the refinery is made safe, then we can worry about fighting."

"Will do, Onslaught Sir!!" Swindle knew delaying when his commander was this annoyed would be a bad plan. He seems cheesed off at all the confusion. Can't blame him really, doesn't look like anyone knows what's going on. Guess that's what scouts are for. He transformed and drove round to the northwest, checking on the Dauntless as he drove through the myriad alleyways of Tagan. It looked like the Autobots had essentially landed a fortress in the middle of the Hieghts, which was repelling weapons fire like the walls of Tagan held back the Rust Sea. Looks like we could be in for a siege, which means they should really call in Onslaught, he's easily the most qual...
"WOAH!!! Watch out there little buddy, some of us are hidin' in shadows here!"
Swindle squealed to a stop. "Banzai-Tron? I'd heard you were off-lined? What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for it to die down out there, all those lasers look real intimidating for a humble parts merchant like me."
"Yeah....about that, you still owe me for those..."
"I'm good for it. Really."
"It's been about a solar cycle 'Tron, a mech can't wait forever."
"I've been busy! Been laid up, having surgery. And as a result, I haven't had that much time to earn cash."
"Then I suggest you go out there and earn some."
"Yeah yeah..." Banzai-Tron turned back out into the battlefield. It seemed the Autobots had used jamming missiles of some sorts, and the Drones had been thrown into disarray. Seeing oppurtunities was what a Crystalocution master lived by. Banzai-Tron darted forward without another word to Swindle, dashing low to the ground using what cover the battlefield offer. The Red and blue Autobot who'd fired the missile looked like a good target: Smart, and trained in weapons that distrupted his enemies, but not built like rocks like the Dynobots. Yes, he might put up a proper fight.
Swindle just looked on. He'd better get me those energon cubes soon, I need some liquid capital. Now, what was I supposed to be doing??

Dauntless Crash Site

Macabre was pleased that his drone troops were having the intended effect. The Autobots were forced to cower behind cover, essentially pinning them in one spot. It would be easier to start picking off the Autobots one by one this way, and besides, Macabre was starting to get the urge to satiate his desire to watch an Autobot slowly bleed energon. He scanned the ground looking for his chance to reveal himself and regain his standing in the Hunt.

Several of his drones had been destroyed already, but he wanted to keep his other drones in reserve for something special. The few he had left from the 7th Squadron were fine specimens and well suited to single combat. Below he could see Kup dispatching a drone from Discord's unit, though Kup likely didn't know the difference. No matter, he would soon learn the efficiency with which Macabre commanded his units.

Instructing his units to remain in their hovercraft mode, Macabre had them come in on the high sides of where Kup was bunkered down. Macabre came straight down on him from above. The disintegrators of the drones blasted away at Kup's cover, while Macabre transformed and unleashed an infernal barrage from his heat laser. Laughing madly at the thought of an old timer like Kup melting into a puddle of slag runoff.

After firing on the old soldier, Macabre transformed once more and shot into the sky, leaving the old bot to shoot at the emptiness he once occupied. Macabre's goal now was to frustrate Kup into making a mistake. He would continue to peck away at the Autobots like a mecha-vulture. The Autobots would come to recognize the sight of circling Sweeps as a certain death sentence.

Refinery Complex 3: Warehouses

Carnage, stopped, transformed, and trained her laser on Slag. Another battle wasraging on in her head over choice of action. Part of her wanted Slag not badly scratched, so she could have the head, but another was curious to see how much punishment the Dinobot could take. She looked. Slag was getting too close. She made a split decision, and the second part won out. She shot the crate, running backwards as fast as she could.

Approaching the battle

Blast-off looked at the bttle ahead. There was one major problem: The Sweep Drones. Those bumbling fools would only block his shots. He needed a clear line of fire. He activated his TacCom and radioed the Sweeps on the battlefield. <<This is Blast-off, sniper. I need the Sweeps to form a perimeter around the shuttle, so I don't have to worry about friendly fire when I give support, over.>>

Dauntless Crash Site- Swoop

Despite being the smallest of the Dinobots, Swoop was still as tough as they came. He had suffered no real harm in the crash, but the bombardier was nonetheless a bit slow to flee the wreckage of the Dauntless. In all his time as the LSC's primary pilot, he'd taken heavy fire hundreds of times. He'd faced dozens of Seekers. But not once in all the Vorns had he been shot down. Never had he failed to bring his team home.

Until today.

Swoop wasn't exactly taking it gracefully. As he caught sight of a reflective blur streaking towards Sludge, his shock turned to fury. It was that Silver femme from before. All of this was her fault! Rising into he air before he had even thought about it, the seething Dinobot glared at his target before shouting a warning to Sludge.

"Hey Sludge! Duck!" Swoop turned his attention back to the shiny Seeker. "And YOU. Eat High Explosives, you Glitch!" He punctuated the colorful remark with a salvo of air-to-air missiles. Assuming his pterodactyl mode, Swoop fired his afterburners and streaked towards the Decepticon femme.

Tagan Heights- Skies of Tagan Heights

Discord receives word from Blastoff. >>Consider it done.<< She sounds quite bitter, though it wasn't really towards him, it was the whole situation. The Dinobots are hard to keep penned in, never mind the rest of their task force, but the masses of Drones were still creating enough suppressing fire to do their job, which is what she wants. It may not please Scourge, but it's way better than letting the battle spill out into more necessary areas.

>>Drones under my command, expand maneuvers to form a high perimeter, but continue bombardment of all Autobots visible. Tighten up between the Autobots and the Refinery complex 3, and lay out suppressing fire, but do not fire on the Autobots engaged with any Decepticon, and tighten he suppressing fire on other Autobots. Use full sensor power to prevent friendly fire with other Decepticons, especially Master Scourge!<< The drones spread out, and go high surreptitiously creating an opening for Blastoff to do his thing, and create a dense line of fire between the Autobots, and the Refinery Complex 3 to help not only keep the rest of the Autobots out of there, but to keep the one that is in there more vulnerable.

===
Shrike completes her refueling, then beelines for the armory, grabbing one of her spare shields then runs out into the yard of Tagan before transforming, and taking to the air hurrying back o the battle angry she's missed what he has.

She looks forward to testing her prowess against this strike force of elite units. Perhaps making a name for herself?

She can feel her repair protocols helping repair her damaged arm, and put her into fit shape. She's practically fresh,and she loves it.
===

Bugly replies to Scrapper. >>An Autobot has already entered one of the buildings of Refinery three, unfortunately. The Sweeps are doing an adequate job in preventing the rest of the Autobots from entering for the time being, thankfully.<<

>>Bludgeon, It seems the Autobots are going to try and take refuge in Refinery Complex 3. One Autobot has already breached the area, you are to aid Carnage in demolishing the Autobot that has entered the building, and then prevent other Autobots from entering until the Constructicons have completed their task in reinforcing the defenses.<< The task is simpler than it sounds provided the Drones can keep the rest of the Autobots pinned down. It's practically overkill, and he doesn't care at all.
His techno-organic shell would smile if it could. He enjoys his self-control preventing him from charging in like an eager young grunt, and maintains his position overlooking the battlefield. It pleases him to no end to coordinate the defense of the area. He's not managing every single task, but he maintains enough control to keep him happy.
It's a shame Thunderwing is not here to appreciate this.

He waits calmly for the rest of the Decepticon warriors to arrive, eager to crush the Autobot forces, and let the Constructicons make use of the famed Dauntless' carcass, and the dead Autobots.
With this defeat, the Autobots are certain to feel crushing demoralization after this win as they marvel at the power of the Decepticon defense. Then they'll marvel at the Decepticon offense as they crush all resistance, and take over Cybertron!
===

(OOC: So people aren't overwhelmed, I'll keep Rage out of the way for the time being.)
Rage begins her usual tactics, staying inside the shuttle, and out of the way getting angrier and angrier, readying her berserk mode. Scourge should recognize the animalistic, nightmarish noises she produces as her anger starts contorting her audio into noises no transformer should make.

To the Autobots, however, it sounds like one of the angriest beings on Cybertron. Alien, monstrous noises that may well drive fear into the hearts and minds of all that hear her steadily angrier noises. Rabid, horrifying noises that could lead some to hope that the bark is a million times worse than the bite. If the source of the noise lives up to the hype, then they may well be screwed.

Rage's eyes nearly illuminate the entirety of the area of the shuttle she occupies in a dull, sanguine light.
She waits for the proper time to strike.

Rage simply waits to be the trump card that she usually is. Besides, her master needs his fun, doesn't he?

Tagan Heights- Skies of Tagan Heights

<<Great. Nice to hear things can get done around there.>> Blast-Off was getting more and more fond of the new Sweeps. Definitely an improvement over the Seekers, he decided. he ooked at his radar. He was in position. Quickly, he made a 90-degree upward angle turn, sending himself skyrocketing. Momentarily he would reach EV(Escape Velocity), and into a geo-sychronus orbit with the battle field. There he could just effortlessly pick off the LSC without retribution. Functioning was good.

Crash site

Snarl jumped out of the way of another piece of falling shrapnel from those drones Smokescreen had just destroyed. The Dinobot was sure his LSC comrade had not intended for him to be showered in ‘con wreckage, but one could never really tell the diversionary tactician’s true intentions. After all, Snarl had fallen into Smokey, knocking him over, during the shuttle crash. This could have been the blue and red bot’s way of paying him back without making it obvious he was doing so.

But, no matter. Snarl had bigger things to worry about now. Turning his attention back to the battle in the skies, the Dinobot took aim at more incoming drones and fired several shots. Two more burst into flames as a result and crashed. Snarl was about to fire again, when suddenly something struck him hard from behind. Something big.

The desert warrior was propelled forward by the force of the sneak attack by Scourge, the leader and most dangerous of the Sweeps. Snarl fell face first towards the ground, but managed to catch himself with both arms as he felt Scourge’s razor-sharp claws dig into the armor plating on his back. The pain radiated throughout his back, but Snarl did not show it. Never show weakness in the face of an enemy especially one as powerful as this. The Dinobot knew this was not just another drone that had attacked him. This one was sneakier and very strong.

Snarl still had a hold of his sword which was now directly under his right hand, but his laser pistol had fallen away and was lying a few feet to the left just out of reach. Snarl was on his knees and in a “push-up” position, looking right at the ground as Scourge pressed down harder into his aching back. Snarl’s arms began to quiver under the intense weight, but only slightly. He knew he had to get to a standing position fast. Otherwise, his face would soon be pressed against the metal surface of Cybertron.

Slowly, Snarl managed to bring his legs up underneath him. He then pushed with all his might until he was finally on his feet again. All the while, Scourge’s claws continued to dig deeper into his back. The pain was excruciating, but the Dinobot simply ignored it. He had no time for pain.

“Grrrr, get…off….me…you stupid….’con!” Snarl flipped his sword around into a downward position. Using both hands and keeping his weapon close to his right side, Snarl brought his energo-sword back and repeatedly thrusted it behind himself, hoping he would stab Scourge in the gut and make him let go.

Nearby

A short distance away, Smokescreen awaited word from Grimlock on whether they should try for Refinery Complex 3. The diversionary tactician knew not to press the LSC commander any further on the issue. If Grimlock thought it was a good idea then he would give the order to move on the complex. It was his decision and no one else’s.

Smokescreen then noticed the trouble Snarl was currently in. In an attempt to help the Dinobot, Smokey took careful aim with his rifle, but decided that it was too risky to fire a shot. Snarl and the Sweep leader were in very tight proximity to one another. If Smokescreen fired, he risked hitting his own comrade. And it would be suicide for the red and blue Autobot, who had below-average strength, to attempt a physical confrontation with the Sweep. Smokey recognized instantly that this one was different from the mindless drones they had mainly been fighting thus far. It was clearly very powerful and capable of taking on a Dinobot in hand to hand combat. It also appeared to be sentient, which was something the drones lacked.

Out of the corner of his optics, the diversion expert suddenly caught sight of a shape (Banzai-Tron) moving forward across the battlefield in his direction. Smokescreen could not make out what or who it was, but it was definitely not an Autobot and most likely not friendly. It moved quickly and low to the ground in an obvious attempt to hide from view. “Well, well, what do we have here?” Smokescreen whispered to himself as he took aim at the target. He fired several shots at the approaching Banzai-Tron, hoping this would dissuade him from continuing along his present course.