The Energon Pub

Bridge

Ultra Magnus sent an acknowledgement to Jetfire. Ordinarily he would be more than curious about the project he had mentioned, but under their current circumstances it was just one of a dozen issues that command staff needed to address right now.

Magnus then turned momentarily as the bridge doors slid open. He was still expecting it to be Prowl or Grimlock or Jazz or Jetfire, but the fact that it was Red Alert pulled Prowl's earlier transmission to mind. Supposedly Red Alert was being erratic and hyperparanoid again. But just as Red Alert's actions could be an overreaction, so too could others reactions to his behaviors. It was a fine line that had to be walked.

“S-Sir, Ultra Magnus, sir, can…can we talk? There’s something I must discuss with you. Please,” Red Alert began. Magnus then watched as his optics trailed over to what Magnus was viewing. “What…is this…?”

"That...." Magnus began with a more than belabored sigh that hung in the air for a few moments. "...is one of the reasons I'm calling a priority command staff meeting. I had intended to do it sooner, but things exploded out of hand even faster than I had ever imagined they could. But, to your original question, of course we can talk. What's on your mind?"

For the moment, Magnus was content to omit the fact that Prowl had already contacted him and given him something of a heads up about Red Alert's behavior. He wanted to assess it for himself. He was no Rung, but he'd been more than able to recognize Autobots who were unfit to serve over the vorns. Whatever Red Alert's concerns may be, even if they were hyperbolized, there was likely a seed of truth in them somewhere that needed to be addressed.

Brig

When Ratchet heard someone enter the brig, his first thought that it was Smokescreen returning with the requested equipment. But, to his vague irritation, it was Hoist, returning from having tended to Ultra Magnus. For Ratchet’s part, he’d fixed most of Optimus’s minor injuries and had started doing what amounted to a rough patch job on his own shoulder.

"Ratchet, I've finished up on Magnus. I'll head to the medical bay to treat the others."

“Wait, Hoist. Jazz is in critical condition. I sent Velocity to work on him, but she’s a little inexperienced. Could you give her a hand? And tell Smokescreen if you see him to fraggin’ hurry. I’d like to run a few tests before Optimus wakes up.”


Bridge

"That...." Magnus began with a more than belabored sigh that hung in the air for a few moments. "...is one of the reasons I'm calling a priority command staff meeting. I had intended to do it sooner, but things exploded out of hand even faster than I had ever imagined they could. But, to your original question, of course we can talk. What's on your mind?"

Red Alert wrung his hands nervously as Magnus explained, optics never straying from the footage despite how disrespectful that might be. He couldn’t help it. This…this was…when had? How had Megatron even gotten aboard? Red Alert needed answers but that could be all laid out on the table since Magnus agreed to talk with him, which was more than a small relief.

“Well…I-I’m not sure where to start,” Red Alert muttered, finally turning his optics to Ultra Magnus. The beginning? No, not without getting to the point of it all first. The beginning could be left for evidence to support his case. “Okay, well, sir. I’d like to request much stricter security protocols around the ships for one thing. And even a team. And I’d like to be kept in the loop. I’m the chief security officer, but I can’t do my job without knowing what is going on!”

“It all started when Hot Rod arrived…well, no, it was before then even! I was tracking a peculiar scent for a while. I never did find out where it was coming from…but then Hot Rod arrived calling himself Rodimus, and that set off some red flags. I’m ashamed I didn’t do anything about it sooner…But I was side tracked! It was before you had arrived, sir. Prowl was…up to something. He never kept me in the loop, and, and!”

“When the Ark-19 disappeared, Prowl was evasive. Dodged all questions and inqueries. Now the Trion’s here. And in the wake of all of this Fallen madness, I’m inclined to believe that it might not be over! I’ve been suspicious of that from the start. Rodimus turned Hardhead against us! What if there are more? What if…Prowl was one of them? So I’ve been harboring those suspicions for quite some time now.”

“When I went down with Prowl on assignment, those suspicions were all but confirmed. When we were down there, Prowl apparently requested reinforcements that he neglected to tell me about. Then I was attacked! I-I…I think he was trying to execute me under the guise of a mission, sir. I managed to escape to the temporary base camp that we’d set up earlier, and procured this…”

Red Alert pulled out the data drives that he had managed to seize from the portable console. “I don’t know what are on these yet, but it could be proof of Prowl’s plans and designs! We could catch him! Maybe…he’s probably too smart to leave incriminating evidence like this, but maybe he slipped up…Er, anyhow, sir. After that I initiated an emergency bounce with my security authorization, restricted access to the bounce pads to Prowl and his team on the ground in both ships and came to report to you. I knew nothing of Megatron being on the ship! If I had, I would have set extreme security measures in place. It probably factors into Prowl’s plans for whatever reason. Er, well. That’s my report, sir.”

When he finished, Red Alert watched Ultra Magnus carefully. Hoping. Praying. He had put all of this cards done on the table. If…If Magnus didn’t take him seriously…Red Alert wasn’t sure what he would do. It would be hopeless. It would be…the end. He needed an ally. Just…just one ally.

Brig

Hoist was stopped by the chief medical officer, who had something to say.

Ratchet wrote:“Wait, Hoist. Jazz is in critical condition. I sent Velocity to work on him, but she’s a little inexperienced. Could you give her a hand? And tell Smokescreen if you see him to fraggin’ hurry. I’d like to run a few tests before Optimus wakes up.”

"Sure, I'll go help her. I haven't seen Smokescreen around, but I'll tell a few others to send him here if they see him." The engineer nodded and turned heel to head towards the medbay. He commed Overclock quickly.

>>"Overclock, if you see Smokescreen around, tell him to return to the Brig with his materials. Ratchet's getting impatient."<<


Corridors

The large red tank warrior was strolling across the corridors with his buddy Seaspray. "You should've seen the footage! They all were surrounding me, and then I went KAPOW! None of them stood a chance against this cannon right here!" Warpath grinned with glee. Seaspray smiled back at him. It wasn't the ocean, but Warpath always managed to make everyone around him happier.

The operator hesitated to turn a corner, his audio receptors picking up on a quite loud and rambunctious voice. Warpath and Seaspray walked past as Overclock stood, waiting for them to pass by. He turned the corner right as they passed. The naval minibot found the blue 'bot to be a bit strange, and called out for him. "Hey, you!"

Scrap. Overclock froze in his tracks. Talking to others who he was unfamiliar with was always intimidating for him. Nevertheless, he collected himself and turned around to face the two Autobots. "Yes? Is there anything I could... assist you with?"

"Haven't I seen ya round here before?" Warpath replied, "I didn't think so!" The red tank 'bot went up and put his arm around Overclock's shoulder. He grinned widely. "Nice ta meet ya, fellow 'bot! The name's Warpath, but you can call me "legend" too if ya like!" Seaspray giggled and smiled. "Nice to meet you too. I'm Seaspray, and you?"

"Overclock." The words hardly escape his mouth, in such a low volume. "WHAT WAS THAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU!" Warpath roared. Overclock let out a sigh. "It's Overclock."

Seaspray picked up on his discomfort. "Warpath, let him go. I think he's a bit off right now." As the tank warrior let go of him, Overclock shot the minibot a look that said a wistful Thank You.

Overclock received a comm from Hoist. Something about finding Smokescreen. He figured he'd ask these guys here about him. "Ehm... The chief medical officer seems to be looking for Smokescreen... would you know where he would be?" The other two 'bots shot him a puzzled look. "Nope, ain't seen him anywhere around. Why, what's the problem?"

"Unsure. I just received a comm about it." Overclock replied sternly. Warpath lifted his chin up high and exclaimed, "Well then, let's get going, shall we? We got loads to do! Listen here, 'Clock, yer gonna be the with the best spawn of a glitch on this whole ship from now on, yeah?" Seaspray and Overclock looked at each other with a similar, tired look. This would be a while. The trio started back down the corridors, with Warpath continuing his story time.


Medbay

Hoist entered the medbay and spotted Smokescreen along with two others. "Smokescreen! Ratchet's getting impatient for you. You might want to hurry and get back to him before he gets on your tailpipe for this." He opened up a comm back up to Overclock. >>"Nevermind, I found Smokescreen myself. It's alright now."<<

Heading over to Velocity and Jazz, Hoist once again retrieved his medical equipment. "Velocity, I'm here to help. Ratchet's order." Hoist turned on his head-mounted sensor yet once again. This would take a while. "Hang in there, Jazz. We'll get you up and going in no time."

Medical Bay – Storage Closet

“Uh, thanks, Smokes! I... well, I always wanted to, but never got accepted in to either. But I kept at practicing in my own personal time anyway,” Clocker responded to the diversion expert’s prior query.

“You didn’t get accepted to either?” Smokescreen asked as he approached the medical storage closet at the rear of the Med Bay. “I can see not getting accepted to the Cybertronian Raceway. That’s very hard to get into. Trust me, I know. But the underground street racing circuit was open to anyone who had the ball barrings to race illegally. Heh.” The rallybot then entered the access codes on the wall terminal, which swiftly unlocked and opened the door to the storage closet.

“Not saying you were scared or anything,” Smokey continued as he entered the smaller room, pushing the hover cart inside. “But street racing wasn’t for the faint of spark. Unlike the legal Raceway, street racing had few if any rules. You pretty much did whatever it took to win, which made it more dangerous. At least in my humble opinion anyway. There was really no such thing as cheating per say.”

Leaving the hover cart to one side, Smokescreen walked by several racks of medical supplies as he repeatedly checked the list Ratchet had given him. The red and blue racer found the first item on his list. “Ah, here you are,” Smokey said to himself as he grabbed a spark monitor and placed it into the hover cart. He then moved on, quickly finding several more things including an energon pressure gauge, x-ray scanner and a diagnostic machine.

“Hey, Clocker, grab a few medical lasers and infusion pumps will ya?” Smokescreen said as he placed his items into the hover cart. “How are you doing over there, Rosanna? Were you able to find the sedatives and small medical tools that were on the part of the list I gave you?”

“Smokescreen! Ratchet's getting impatient for you. You might want to hurry and get back to him before he gets on your tailpipe for this.”

The rallybot heard the familiar voice and quickly stuck his cranial unit out of the storage closet. “Oh, hey, Hoist! Yeah, we’re going as fast as we can. We should be done soon. Thanks!” Smokescreen then turned back to look at Clocker and Rosanna. “Okay, so, Ratchet’s getting impatient and likely already irritated. So, let’s wrap this up and get back to him before Optimus wakes up and kills our resident CMO.”

Although, that would certainly make everyone’s energon pressure go down, Smokey thought with a slight smirk.

Med Bay

“Velocity, right?” Axle said by way of an introduction. “Can I give you a hand with anything?”

Velocity looked up from her work as she heard her name called. “Ah, Axle, right? Sure, I’d be happy for the help. Can you start sealing up the hole in his back? I’ve been busy with the chest and relieving some pressure from his spark.”

Velocity looked to Jazz and smiled at him reassuringly, patting his shoulder lightly before going back to tending his chest. It was almost all buffed out, but the damage to the internals had to be seen to as well. She leaned in to see to that when another voice greeted her.

"Velocity, I'm here to help. Ratchet's order." Hoist turned on his head-mounted sensor yet once again. This would take a while. "Hang in there, Jazz. We'll get you up and going in no time."

“Oh, hey Hoist. Ratchet sent you? Okay, well if you want to help Axle or me that’d be great. Whichever you like.”

Bridge

Magnus steepled his digits underneath his chin structure as he patiently listened to Red Alert begin diving into his concerns. He would be part of the eventual officers' meeting anyway, so there was no need to rush him along to tend to other business.

“Well…I-I’m not sure where to start. Okay, well, sir. I’d like to request much stricter security protocols around the ships for one thing. And even a team. And I’d like to be kept in the loop. I’m the chief security officer, but I can’t do my job without knowing what is going on!”

Those were all valid points. But Red Alert was not finished, so rather than interrupt, Magnus simply continued to quietly listen.

“It all started when Hot Rod arrived…well, no, it was before then even! I was tracking a peculiar scent for a while. I never did find out where it was coming from…but then Hot Rod arrived calling himself Rodimus, and that set off some red flags. I’m ashamed I didn’t do anything about it sooner…But I was side tracked! It was before you had arrived, sir. Prowl was…up to something. He never kept me in the loop, and, and!

“When the Ark-19 disappeared, Prowl was evasive. Dodged all questions and inqueries. Now the Trion’s here. And in the wake of all of this Fallen madness, I’m inclined to believe that it might not be over! I’ve been suspicious of that from the start. Rodimus turned Hardhead against us! What if there are more? What if…Prowl was one of them? So I’ve been harboring those suspicions for quite some time now.

“When I went down with Prowl on assignment, those suspicions were all but confirmed. When we were down there, Prowl apparently requested reinforcements that he neglected to tell me about. Then I was attacked! I-I…I think he was trying to execute me under the guise of a mission, sir. I managed to escape to the temporary base camp that we’d set up earlier, and procured this…”

Hmmm...now some of Red Alert's characteristic hyperparanoia was beginning to evidence itself. But still, Magnus listened without interruption. There would be no benefit to any of this if Red Alert felt that he had not been heard.

“I don’t know what are on these yet, but it could be proof of Prowl’s plans and designs! We could catch him! Maybe…he’s probably too smart to leave incriminating evidence like this, but maybe he slipped up…Er, anyhow, sir. After that I initiated an emergency bounce with my security authorization, restricted access to the bounce pads to Prowl and his team on the ground in both ships and came to report to you. I knew nothing of Megatron being on the ship! If I had, I would have set extreme security measures in place. It probably factors into Prowl’s plans for whatever reason. Er, well. That’s my report, sir.”

Ok. Now Magnus had to concede that Red Alert had taken some of his concerns too far. Attempting to block the travel of a senior Autobot officer without clear and undeniable evidence bordered on the line of official misconduct.

"Alright Red Alert," Magnus began, his tone heavy. "First of all, thank you for that report and your subsequent analysis. As my chief security officer, you know I value your feedback immensely when it comes to matters such as what we're dealing with now.

"Let me first say that I fully agree with your request for greater security. To have a Decepticon of that level in our possession and not have plans and backup plans to ensure his containment was an egregious oversight. I fully support your request for a full security team and your need to be kept fully in the loop when situations such as this one arise. It was unacceptable and I have to shoulder the blame for all of it."

Magnus paused.

"Now, that being said, I've seen no evidence to suggest that the Fallen's influence remains on any of our soldiers since his defeat at Uluru. I can't say that definitively, but I can say that Prowl still has my confidence as an executive officer in this army. Many of us, however, share concerns that the Fallen could still potentially exert some lingering control or influence, be it on Hot Rod or those he managed to bring under his influence in Australia, but that's why we're en route to destroy his spark even as we speak."

Magnus leaned back slightly in his chair.

"So, what I need you to do is to release any restrictions you've put on the travel of Prowl and his subordinates and then prepare to present your increased security proposals to rest of Autobot Command, including potential candidates for this specialized security team you mentioned. For the time being, are you okay with all of that?"

Bridge

"Alright Red Alert," Magnus began, his tone heavy. "First of all, thank you for that report and your subsequent analysis. As my chief security officer, you know I value your feedback immensely when it comes to matters such as what we're dealing with now.

"Let me first say that I fully agree with your request for greater security. To have a Decepticon of that level in our possession and not have plans and backup plans to ensure his containment was an egregious oversight. I fully support your request for a full security team and your need to be kept fully in the loop when situations such as this one arise. It was unacceptable and I have to shoulder the blame for all of it."

The relief that Red Alert felt was immense. Finally, someone who would listen. Someone who would take him seriously. Someone who didn’t just assume he was crazy and dismiss him. His tension in his shoulders eased as he looked to Magnus with hopeful optics. That was until the other foot dropped as it were.

"Now, that being said, I've seen no evidence to suggest that the Fallen's influence remains on any of our soldiers since his defeat at Uluru. I can't say that definitively, but I can say that Prowl still has my confidence as an executive officer in this army. Many of us, however, share concerns that the Fallen could still potentially exert some lingering control or influence, be it on Hot Rod or those he managed to bring under his influence in Australia, but that's why we're en route to destroy his spark even as we speak."

Red Alert frowned. It was good that they were en route to destroy that accursed spark, but it worried him. Was it properly contained? Under guard? He bit back his comments on the matter because Magnus was not yet finished.

"So, what I need you to do is to release any restrictions you've put on the travel of Prowl and his subordinates and then prepare to present your increased security proposals to rest of Autobot Command, including potential candidates for this specialized security team you mentioned. For the time being, are you okay with all of that?"

Augh, and there it was. Even with Ultra Magnus’s vote of confidence, Red Alert was still hesitant to allow Prowl access. But Ultra Magnus had listened to and even agreed with some of his concerns. He was going to allow Red Alert to come up with an improved security proposal. He let out a terse sigh but nodded.

“Yessir,” he managed. At least, if Prowl did kill him that would be the proof that Ultra Magnus needed. That was fine. He saluted, turning to go do as ordered when he paused, looking back. “Ah, the spark of the Fallen. It is in containment under constant guard, yes? If not…I could arrange something.”

Corridors

Jetfire knew Ultra Magnus would want to see what they had come up with but at the same time also figured the current supreme commander was tied up with all sorts of things like this whole Megatron issue. He was curious as to what it was all about since the Trion had nothing to do with it. Jetfire did leave the twenty autotroopers he had activated on patrol since the ship is quite empty with no crew. It has quiet and advanced enough Jetfire figured he could transfer over there if Ultra Magnus had no problems. If he did, it wouldn't surprise Jetfire if he was made chief engineer or science officer. As he passed his fellow Autobots he acknowledged them with a slight head nod. Before he knew it, he was at the bridge.

Bridge
The bridge doors slid open with a slight hiss. He looked around and in the center of the room was the command chair. From his position Jetfire could barely tell it was Ultra Magnus in what normally be Hot Spot's seat. Before him was Red Alert looking a bit nervous. It wasn't a secret Red Alert had trust issues with his fellow Autobots. Now Jetfire thought about it, he did see a red fire truck pass him by as he walked through the corridors. It didn't dawn on him until now it was Red Alert. There must been some urgent message the security chief needed to do in person. Jetfire walked slowly up to where Red Alert was standing and saluted Ultra Magnus. He then stood relaxed next to Red Alert waiting on them to be done.

Medical Bay – Storage Closet:

“Hey, Clocker, grab a few medical lasers and infusion pumps will ya?”

"Oh, yeah I got some lasers. Uh, infusion pumps..."

Clocker looked around until he found them in a drawer.

"Aha, okay, got em both."

“How are you doing over there, Rosanna? Were you able to find the sedatives and small medical tools that were on the part of the list I gave you?”

"Uhuh, I have them," Rosanna said as she carried them over with full arms, "and if I turned into an Earthen shopping cart, that would be convenient," Rosanna also said with a giggle.

Hoist then burst into the room and voiced concerns regarding Ratchet's impatience. Smokescreen responded, and then Rosanna said, "You'd think for a medic, Ratchet would be more... patient."

Rosanna covered her mouth as she realized her accidental pun.

"Uh, no pun intended?" she said with a snigger.

“Okay, so, Ratchet’s getting impatient and likely already irritated. So, let’s wrap this up and get back to him before Optimus wakes up and kills our resident CMO.”

"Right on it, Smokes," said Clocker as he set the supplies he gathered in the hover cart.

"Uh, can I get some help?" asked Rosanna as she couldn't reach high enough to set her supplies on top.

Bridge

Everything that Magnus had laid out before Red Alert would prove to be a reasonable test of Red Alert's current functionality: would he, even at this juncture, rebuff the Autobot Commander's directives and perhaps attempt to lock even him out? Or, realizing that Ultra Magnus also possessed a competent awareness of their current circumstances and how best to address them, acquiesce in regards to what he had done with Prowl. For a few tense moments, Magnus was not entirely sure which path Red Alert would choose.

Ultimately, he proved himself capable of continuing in his role.

“Yessir. Ah, the spark of the Fallen. It is in containment under constant guard, yes? If not…I could arrange something.”

"Under the current circumstances, I would be willing to wager that it is not. I would welcome your arrangements until we can finally dispose of it. But I'll also-"

The doors slid open and Jetfire entered. Magnus gave him a welcoming nod before returning his attention to Red Alert, continuing as if there hadn't been any interruption at all.

"...need you to remain here for this meeting. We have a lot to address. Do what you can remotely."

Bridge

"Under the current circumstances, I would be willing to wager that it is not. I would welcome your arrangements until we can finally dispose of it. But I'll also-"

Red Alert’s face grew a bit panicked at that before setting into a grim look. That would have to be arranged as well. That was something that could not by any means be overlooked. He tensed and whirled back around as someone new entered the bridge. Jetfire. He quickly shot a look to Magnus. It seemed that he trusted Jetfire. Very well.

"...need you to remain here for this meeting. We have a lot to address. Do what you can remotely."

“Sir,” Red Alert said, nodding to Magnus before bustling over to a free terminal. So much to do. His digits danced over the keys. First thing to do would be to lift the locks on Prowl and his team. Done. Next, to compile a list of potential measures and candidates. Well, after he arranged for the containment…He found a few free Autotroopers and dispatched ordered to them. They sent back a swift acknowledgement.

Now for the team. Hm…Who to choose…he had to be very particular.

Medical Bay – Storage Closet

Smokescreen was happy to see that both Clocker and Rosanna had found the items that had been assigned to them. The blue scout quickly put his supplies into the hover cart the diversion expert had left by the doorway. Rosanna, on the other hand, was having a difficult time reaching the top of the cart given her short stature.

“Here, Rosanna, let me help you,” Smokescreen said as he bent down and took the medical tools from the tiny cassettebot’s arms. The rallybot then stood back to his full height and placed the tools into the hover cart. Looking down at his datapad, Smokey checked the master list one more time to ensure they had gotten everything Ratchet had requested. The last thing they needed was to return missing an item or two. The CMO would be none too pleased to say the least.

“Well, it looks like we got everything,” the red and blue racer said as he checked off the final item on the list. Placing the datapad into his hip compartment, Smokescreen took hold of the hover cart and slowly pushed it out into the Med Bay proper before stopping and turning back to close and lock the storage closet's door. Once he had done so, Smokey glanced over at his two helpers and gave them a friendly smile. “Great job, guys. We should get back now. Unfortunately, I’ll have to push the hover cart back to the Brig since it's too big for my much faster alt mode. Sorry, Clocker, no race back.”

Smokescreen chuckled before taking hold of the hover cart once again and pushing it across the med bay and then out into the corridor beyond. He quickened his pace as fast as he could in robot mode, hoping to reach the Brig before an impatient Ratchet blew a gasket.

The Brig

About a breem or so later, Smokescreen pushed the hover cart into the Brig with Clocker and Rosanna presumably close behind. His optics immediately fell on the still inert form of Optimus Prime secured to a hover gurney inside one of the cells. It was so strange to see his long time friend and leader of the Autobots in such a condition. Hopefully, the CMO would be able to fix him soon.

“We’re back, Ratchet,” the rallybot said as he stopped the cart in front of Optimus' cell. “We got everything on your list. It’s all right here for you." Smokescreen then stepped away from the cart and a bit closer to the holding cell in order to get a better look at Prime. "You want us to help set anything up or are you good to go?”

Bounce Chamber

Prowl, Hound, Hot Spot, Pinpoint, Rook and Nova Stike appeared on the bounce pad in a flash of light. Once the dizzying effects had worn off, Prowl stepped down onto the main floor and turned to look at the others. “I just want to say that everyone did a good job down there. The mission didn’t exactly go off as planned, but the important thing is the humans no longer have Cybertronian tech in their possession. So, as far as I’m concerned, the mission was successful. As for myself, I have an important meeting to attend with Ultra Magnus and the command staff.”

The military strategist then turned to the Protectobot Commander. “Hot Spot, as second in command for this mission, you can come along with me if you like. Magnus did not expressively request your presence, but I’m sure he’d like your input in regards to the mission. Your choice. The rest of you, you're all dismissed.” Saying nothing more, Prowl then turned and left the bounce chamber, opening a comm line to the City Commander:

>>”Ultra Magnus, this is Prowl. My team and I are back on board the Guardian, no worse for wear. I will arrive on the bridge soon.”<<

Bounce Chamber

Bouncing was a difficult experience under normal circumstances. With a gaping hole in the gut, Pinpoint's bounce was a more difficult. What had begun as a simple ache had given away to excruciating pain from the blast injury.

"

Prowl wrote:"The mission didn’t exactly go off as planned"

Pinpoint smiled and laughed. "'Not exactly as planned'? That's an understatement. Hey, it was fun...(grunt)...mostly."

Frustrated with the pain and her lack of mobility, Pinpoint struggled in Hot Spot's arms. "I'm not an invalid. Let me walk myself."

She finally got herself free from the larger Autobot and hopped to the ground. The sniper winced and took a step, remembering her shots to the leg quite suddenly as she buckled under her own wait and fell to the ground.

Pinpoint pulled herself up and gave Hot Spot, Rook, Nova Strike, and Hound a sheepish look. "Okay, can one of you help me to the Medical Center? It seems like I can't get there by myself."

((OOC: Trailblazer gave me permission to carry Pinpoint.))

Bounce Chamber

Rook materialised into the bounce chamber. As usual, the bounce's effects made him lose a bit of his balance, but he quickly adapted and overcame. He seemed to be mostly fine - but a fellow 'bot surely wasn't. Prowl debriefed the team and left for the bridge, prompting the Protectobot commander to follow. The sniper, Pinpoint, had wiggled out of Hot Spot's arms and landed face-first on to the floor. Rook smiled and tried his best to hold back a laugh at the seemingly funny event, but he kept his composure and walked over to the fallen 'bot, who asked for some help.

Lifting up Pinpoint in his arms, the defense strategist started to make his way to the medbay. He looked down at the white-coloured sniper in his arms, examining the wounds. He was no expert medic, but he knew his stuff well enough. "How are you faring, Pinpoint," Rook inquired, "Think you can hold on for some more time? Hang in there." He gave a smile of reassurance, but for some reason, the mental image of Pinpoint falling flat on her face came back, prompting the strategist to laugh, but he tried his very best not to. Still, a low chuckle escape his vocaliser.



Medbay

Hoist saw Axle come over for help, and figured that three 'bots weren't necessary for one surgery on Jazz. "Velocity, if he is helping as well, I suppose I'll go help the other patients. Here, take this." He handed her the necessary tools for the operation. "Make sure to clear the damaged wiring before patching it up. There's a leak on that side as well." With this, he nodded and walked off to work on some of the other patients, whoever was in need of direct medical help.

Bounce Chamber

Hot Spot quickly adjusted to the bounce. What caught him off guard was Pinpoint struggling out of his arms and falling down to the pad. She got help from Rook who he guessed took her to the med bay. He then heard Prowl speak to him about seeing Ultra Magnus. It would do him good to get back to the bridge to see what was going on. Hot Spot did notice how ungrateful Pinpoint was about being picked up and rescued. Some mechs need to work on being appreciative.

"I think I will join you, Prowl. Magnus might want my personal report on Red Alert as well. Let us hope he has talked into Red Alert. High chance I could have bypassed his lock out at least on this ship since I'm still technically captain. I need to check on the bridge anyways. I also wonder what my team is doing so I'll check in with them."

>>First Aid, Streetwise, Groove, and Blades, what are your current whereabouts and assignments? I have recently returned from my mission and will be reporting to Ultra Magnus soon.<<

Corridors / Armory

Hot Spot wrote:“I think I will join you, Prowl. Magnus might want my personal report on Red Alert as well. Let us hope he has talked into Red Alert. High chance I could have bypassed his lock out at least on this ship since I'm still technically captain. I need to check on the bridge anyways. I also wonder what my team is doing so I'll check in with them.”

“I’m sure he will,” Prowl responded to Hot Spot in regards to his personal report on Red Alert’s behavior and actions down in Oahu. “And I’m also sure Magnus has already spoken to Red which is why you didn’t need to bypass the lock on the bounce systems. Still, any additional info you have on Red will be helpful.”

The military strategist then turned a corner and approached the frigate's Armory where his team had initially assembled before the mission began. “Gotta make a quick pit stop first,” Prowl said as he entered the Armory and quickly unloaded the personal equipment, including some extra missiles, he had taken along on their assignment. The black and white always carried on his person a couple of rockets for his shoulder launchers at any given time just in case of a sneak attack. Of course, it was also wise to stock up on more before a mission that could potentially see conflict with the Decepticons.

Once his extra rockets were safely stowed away in a secured weapons locker, Prowl approached one of the equipment alcoves and entered a series of commands into the control console. The prick-bot then stepped inside as mechanical appendages emerged and swiftly returned the paint scheme on his door wings back to the original Highway Patrol Police markings.

“There, that’s better,” Prowl commented to no one in particular as he stepped out of the alcove. Thankfully, it hadn’t taken too long, and the military strategist was able to rejoin Hot Spot out in the corridor without much of a delay. Prowl then continued on towards the bridge where Ultra Magnus, and surely Red Alert, would be waiting.

Bridge

>”Ultra Magnus, this is Prowl. My team and I are back on board the Guardian, no worse for wear. I will arrive on the bridge soon.”<<

>>"Acknowledged. Welcome home,"<< Magnus transmitted back.

Ultra Magnus had been accused of being too stiff, formal and "by the book" on more than one occasion. More often than not, he saw the advantage of sticking close to protocol. But he could not deny that some of Optimus Prime's empathy had rubbed off on him over the vorns, a fact that he was thankful for. Thus, it didn't hurt to show concern for one's brothers and sisters-in-arms and appreciation for when they came back in one piece. When dealing with the Decepticons, that was never a sure thing.

"Prowl will arrive momentarily, as I suspect will Grimlock and Blaster. I wonder about Jazz's condition, though. He took a bigger hit from Prime's actions than I did..."

Corridors

>>Hot Spot, sir, this is Groove. Most of us been waiting on our turn with First Aid and Ironfist. It seemed they are wanting to merge us and the Aerialbots into something similar to Devestator. They are uncertain if others in the army can undergo the same process. This is also part of the procedure to see if they can develop a scan which will help identify possible candidates for the process. First Aid is in the room with Ironfist and the Aerialbots doing whatever they need to. We also had an interesting event happen up here on the ships. It seemed Megatron was on board but somehow escaped. The all clear was sounded not too long ago.<<

Hot Spot listen to his subordinate about the transpires since he and Prowl been down on the planet. The merging project wasn't too surprising but he did wonder why his team and the Aerialbots were first to be chosen. As for the other news, it made him a little upset he and Prowl weren't notified. It made sense considering their mission but still for them not to have a message waiting upon arrival been nice. Maybe something like this would be done better optic to optic with Magnus.

"Prowl, I received word from Groove on what he knows of the happenings here on the ships. It seems my Protectobots and the Aerialbots are being tested to undergo the same or at least similar procedure as the Constructicons did to themselves to create Devestator. I'm not 100% certain as to what to think about such procedures. The other thing and by far more important is Megatron was on board one of the ships but somehow escaped. I really hope Ultra Magnus has a good explanation for this one."

Bridge

Jetfire looked over at Red Alert wondering what he walked into between the chief security officer and Ultra Magnus. Knowing Red, it was probably some sort of high level security issue he had to address with Ultra Magnus. He looked back at Ultra Magnus.

"Sir, if at all possible, I would like to move to a meeting room where I will have access to a viewing screen and also a bit more privacy. The information isn't really sensitive exactly but at the same time I prefer not to have interruptions with the comings and goings of this bridge."

Comm from Streetwise to Hot Spot:

>>"Ah, Hot Spot, I'm about to bounce over there now in fact. I'm currently on an investigation, but will explain more in a few nanoseconds."<<



Bounce Chamber:

Streetwise stepped off of the bounce pad he appeared on, and glanced around. He made it just in time to see Hot Spot and Prowl leave the room, and into the corridors. Streetwise picked up the pace and caught up with them.

"Oh, Hot Spot, Prowl, fancy seeing you so quickly," Streetwise said, mostly directed towards Hot Spot.

Corridors

Hot Spot heard a very familiar voice come up behind him and Prowl. Without turning around, he responded to Streetwise.

"Ah Streetwise, good to hear your voice again. I just got done getting a message from Groove. I've got a couple of questions on the topics he brought up. First is something about a project similar to Devestator being done or at least looked on the Aerialbots and us Protectobots. I think I remember a communication from Jetfire and Iron Fist about meeting up on the ark for something. Would this be the same project? As for the second topic, the information I seek might be better coming from Ultra Magnus but possible you know something. Groove mention Megatron had returned and showed up on one of our ships in orbit. He did mention an all clear of Megatron's presence. Do you care to add to any of the gestalt project or Megatron?"

Corridors:

"...Do you care to add to any of the gestalt project or Megatron?"

Streetwise let out a small huff as he thought about Hot Spot's question. Where to start... Two gestalts? Already?

"I'm assuming it will be one gestalt at a time? Surely, it would be only logical to test one gestalt before manufacturing or attempting to build another," said Streetwise plainly.

The detective 'Bot then switched his mental gears to the Megatron subject,

"Megatron was kept in the maximum security section of the brig, aboard the Ark-22. Kup and some others were in and around the location, when something happened. Long story short, Megatron's escape was no accident. It was 'unnatural' if those are the words you would use."

Streetwise then stopped in his tracks and rubbed his chin,

"Our investigation aboard the Ark-22 is complete for the time being. I arrived over here to investigate a similar situation which apparently happened with Optimus Prime, whom apparently had very similar symptoms as the slagger. Know anything of this incident? I have only just learned of this occurrence from some mechs who bounced to the Ark-22, and haven't gathered many details as of current."

Bounce Chamber

A beam of light appeared on one of the pads. When it subsided, Groundbomber stepped off the platform and silently made her way out of the room.

Corridors to Med Bay

Pinpoint gave Rook a grateful smile. "Thank you, kind sir."

Rook wrote:"How are you faring, Pinpoint? Think you can hold on for some more time? Hang in there."

Pinpoint laughed. "Of course I'm fine! Just a little bit of pain is all. After all, why become a soldier if you can't handle a bit of pain?"

That was a lie. First off, it was embarrassing to her to get help in the first place. Second, she was in a lot of pain. That blast had done a number on her torso and it took the sniper quite a bit of will not to scream in pain. All being said, though, her internal systems were mostly intact, as Pinpoint's internal scan told her.

Pinpoint could tell that Room was trying his best not to laugh at her fall back in the bounce chamber. He even let out a chuckle. Sbe smiled at the defense strategist. "I don't mind if you laugh. Come to think of it, this whole thing is kinda funny."

She let out a genuine chuckle, ignoring the fact that made her innards feel like they were exploding shot every chuckle. She sighed with relief when the two made it to the Medical Bay.

Bridge

"Sir, if at all possible, I would like to move to a meeting room where I will have access to a viewing screen and also a bit more privacy. The information isn't really sensitive exactly but at the same time I prefer not to have interruptions with the comings and goings of this bridge."

Magnus looked up from the console he was currently examining. Jetfire, in this instance, seemed to be thinking a few steps ahead. Though he supposed for a scientist that was only natural. Magnus wasn't going to hold a senior officers meeting on the bridge. There was a conference room to the starboard side for just such purposes.

"Agreed," Magnus said, motioning for Red Alert to follow. "We'll use this space. The others shouldn't be long."

Magnus then got up to leave the bridge and entered the access code for the conference room.

Bounce Chamber

Alpha Bravo and Powerglide materialised into the Bounce Chamber. Alpha still had his visor and his faceplate up. He couldn't let his shame show through, but the general atmosphere of it happened anyway. >>"Let's just go. I don't want to stick around much longer. "<<

>>"Hey, relax. No need to get so tensed about such a small thing. It's just some dumb 'bots who don't know how to show others decency. Why don't we go look for some of the others? Maybe we'd find Balloon somewhere here, he's always an airhead for these places."<<

Alpha Bravo simply nodded. He just wanted to go. A few seconds later, he saw Groundbomber appear, but she left as soon as she came. Alpha wished he could have said something, but he feared that if he said the wrong thing, he'd make things worse. Powerglide put his arm around the chopper-bot and took him to the observation deck.


Corridors to Medbay

Pinpoint wrote: "Of course I'm fine! Just a little bit of pain is all. After all, why become a soldier if you can't handle a bit of pain?"

Rook caught on. She wasn't speaking the truth - very visibly too, it was clear that she was trying to hide the pain. "Hey, no need to worry about being embarrassed. I won't say anything, I'm here to help!" He continued walking down the corridors with the sniper in his hands. She was light in his hands. He was still trying not to laugh at her falling earlier but the chuckles kept coming.

Pinpoint wrote: "I don't mind if you laugh. Come to think of it, this whole thing is kinda funny."

The defense strategist burst out laughing. Ah, thank Primus for her finally giving consent, it felt so satisfying to let out that laugh. "Almost there!" He said, looking at Pinpoint with care. It was time to get her to the medbay.

Medbay

Just as soon as Hoist was leaving to go work on the other patients, Rook arrived with Pinpoint. "Patient now, doc!"

The green mech was taken aback by Rook's frantic rush into the medbay. "Slow down, Rook! We don't want you falling over and injuring anyone further!" He waved towards a berth. "Set her down there. I'll be there in a second."

The defense strategist set the sniper down onto the berth as Hoist came over with his tools. Carefully examining the wound with his sensors, he began operating and patching up the shot on Pinpoint's armour. Rook stood nearby, smiled and said "You'll be up in no time, Pinpoint!"


Corridors

Seaspray apparently had to go somewhere, so Warpath waved him goodbye. Overclock didn't say anything. He didn't feel like he had much to say. "Well, Overshock, how 'bout we get you some of the good ol' stirred energon?" The red mech bellowed.

"Err... I suppose. It's Overclock, by the way." The blue operator paused. "I suppose we could... Warpath."

"Heya! Ya said mah name! We're gonna be the best of the 'bots all 'round here. Hey, why don't we go shootin' and doin' some target practice on sum dummies 'fterward?" Warpath grinned a genuine grin. Somehow, this touched a part of Overclock's spark he never knew he had.

The operator smiled. "Yes, Warpath. Yes, we can."