The Energon Pub

Mount Melanos - Autobot Beta Site

A pair of headlights pierced the darkness and the low rumble of an engine echoed throughout the cavernous chamber as the doors slid silently back into place. The lights revealed row after row of drone trucks within the bay, all dark and mostly silent save for the occasional click of a cooling engine. Aphros took a moment to survey the scene, looking for anything out of place, anything at all different, besides the trucks of course, since she had been here last. Satisfied that all was as it should be, the femme transformed, resuming her lithe robot form.

“Teletran 7 – lights,” she commanded, and instantly room was bathed in a soft orange glow, akin to the lights of the lower levels of Cybertron. “Thank you.”

>>Of course mistress.<<

Aphros shook her head in wry amusement. Though she had helped Vulcan with the programming of the AI that ran this base, a base established in the mountain that overlooked Melanossus, the city that had grown up around the fabled Mercury Gardens, she still couldn’t get used to the fact that it answered when spoken to and displayed nearly as much personality as many Transformers. It was quite odd to think of an inanimate machine as almost cybertronian.

“Activate drones. Begin unloading the trucks and bring all systems to full operational capacity. All Autobots are now cleared for entrance. Authorization: Aphros Omega 594”

>>Acknowledged. Will we be having guests?<<

“You could say that - the entire infiltration team. Things aren’t going well, the other base is in danger, so Spartan revealed the existence of the beta site to them.”

>>Acknowledged. Energon production capacity will sustain that number – the geothermal taps are in place to power the conversion facility, however this site was never intended to house that number of cybertronians. Private quarters do not exist in that number.<<

“Ugh, I hadn’t thought of that, and I really don’t want to share my room. Set some of the drones to partitioning the lower storage bay into cubicles. They won’t have all the amenities, but it should at least allow everyone some privacy.”

>>Acknowledged.<<

“I’ll be in the war room monitoring everyone’s progress and watching the ‘cons. Activate laser guidance to help bring in anyone that can’t locate the tunnel entrance in the city. It wouldn’t do for anyone to get lost.”

>>Acknowledged. Directional laser guidance system will lock onto Autobots as they near the tunnel entrance in the city and will bring them through the holographic wall and defense grid.<<

Koraja—Skies

>>"The Folassian Forest. Planetary grid coordinates: 19.88.05. It's all yours!"<< came Bombshell’s transmission. In truth, that report was even better than the taste of energon right now. That was how results were to be achieved within the Decepticon ranks. Bombshell would be able to give Reflector lessons.

>>”Well done, Bombshell. Enjoy your Autobot,”<< Cyclonus quickly transmitted back, his sleek jet form arcing over an expanse of the Nebulan capital that was just now beginning to fall into the web of Insecticon assimilation. Internally, his systems immediately calculated the position of the coordinates provided in relation to the rough schematics of the planet that they had all been given when this planet had been selected for the purposes of Decepticon expansion. He opened up a comm channel with all Decepticons who were not within the Seeker, Sweep or Insecticon ranks. He had no intention of leaving Koraja in any way vulnerable, but he wanted this matter dealt with immediately.

>>”The Autobot base of operations has been identified within the boundaries of the Folassian Forest at the following planetary grid coordinates: 19.88.05. All Decepticons not currently engaged in other critical operations are to prepare for combat and proceed to this location immediately. We will finish what we began in Koraja and move forward with the expansion of the Decepticon empire. All hail Megatron.”<<

Cyclonus had already locked in the coordinates and pushed his afterburners up another notch. He intended to wait for no one. Once the Autobot annoyance had been removed from this planet, they could accomplish the rest of their work that much more efficiently.

Orbit—Bridge of the Perdition

The three composite units of the Decepticon known as Reflector arrived on the bridge of the Perdition with no fanfare or ceremonious grandeur. The otherwise non-descript Decepticons who were currently serving aboard the bridge of the vessel moved away from the stations that Viewfinder, Spectro and Spyglass typically occupied, regardless of what ship they served aboard at any given time. No sooner had Reflector accessed the ship’s vital operations systems than a voice communication from the Air Commandant came in, directly for him. Reflector accepted it, tentatively.

>>”Cyclonus to Reflector. We have accomplished what you clearly could not. Scourge’s signal is currently outside of my transmission range for reasons I am not fully aware. Recall him and direct him planetside. I’ve been made aware of your new station. Prepare the Perdition’s resources for orbital bombardment, should I deem it necessary. Cyclonus out.”<<

Reflector’s optics narrowed visibly, not even having the opportunity to respond to the Air Commandant’s slight. It was perhaps the wiser course of action, anyway. He quickly turned his attention to locating the errant Scourge and accessing the Perdition’s weapons systems.
___

The Folassian Forest--Autobot Command Bunker

"Right here, Cap'n," Rad said good-naturedly, saluting in Roadbuster's direction, since the Autobot hadn't noticed that he had already arrived a short time ago. There was so much going on, he couldn't really be all that surprised. He then looked over at Highbrow as Lionizer leisurely walked over to where all of them were standing. Rad rested a hand on his head.

"You heard the mech. No extra heroics right now. Plenty of time for that later. Let's get goin'."

He motioned for Highbrow to use him as support. Once they were outside of the blast radius, he'd transform if he needed to and they'd be clear of this place. Unfortunately, forever.

The Folassian Forest--Autobot Command Bunker

"All our hands are stained in this war Roadbuster. But the fact that you seem to wish to change it for the better where you can is enough. I'll accept your proposal so long as you promise to live." Highbrow smirks. He then notices Rad's offer of support. "I am able to walk and run if need be Rad. I'm also able to shoot. until we have need of more expedient means of departing I will make due. Your courtesy is noted however and appreciated." He readied both of his guns now. "Now shall we depart?"

Nearing the Korajan River

Snaptrap plodded along the roadway that led towards the river when he heard the sound of Horri-Bull's voice coming from behind him. The Seacon leader did not acknowledge the smelly 'con at first and simply trudged onwards as the ground trooper transformed to bull mode and followed along. Skullgrin was with him, as well, but said nothing. That suited Snaptrap just fine as he preferred not to have them both jabbering in his audio receptors. He got enough of that kind of thing from his own Seacons, after all.

Finally, Snaptrap stopped and turned to face his newly assigned subordinates. First he trained his optics down on Horri-Bull and waited a moment before speaking. "Since I'm already used to Skalor's stench, I'm sure I can handle yours without a problem." The Seacon leader then leaned in closer to the mechanical bull. "And just to be clear, you won't whine at all in my presence if you want to remain functioning. Understood?"

Snaptrap then straightened his stance and looked over to Skullgrin. The assault soldier was a welcome sight, a smart Decepticon trooper who was unhindered by useless emotions during any given battle. In many ways, Skullgrin reminded the Seacon Commander of himself. "Skullgrin, your reputation as a powerful siege warrior precedes you. I'm sure we will fight well together." Snaptrap then peered at the surrounding ruins. "That is assuming we see any more fighting."

Just then, a communication from Cyclonus came in over the comm line. The Autobot base had been identified and located somewhere in the Folassian Forest and all Decepticons not currently engaged were to report to the designated coordinates immediately. Snaptrap opened a comm line back to Cyclonus:

>>"Understood, Air Commandant. I am on my way and will bring Skullgrin and Horri-Bull with me."<<

The Seacon leader then turned towards Skullgrin and Horri-bull. "It looks like we're going to see some action sooner than expected. We will follow the Korajan River westward out of the city. It should lead us directly into the Folassian Forest where we will meet up with the others. Now, let's move!"

Snaptrap then turned back around and walked to the edge of the roadway where he looked out over the clear waters of the river. It would be nice to finally get back into his own element again. While he was still an excellent warrior while on dry land, Snaptrap found moving around to be very slow going at times. He was much better suited in a watery or swamp-like environment where he really excelled at being an efficient if not unstoppable killing machine.

Without further delay, Snaptrap transformed into his shell-armored beast mode and leapt into the Korajan River. The thinner plates on his underside allowed him to float in the water with ease and with greater maneuverability. Feeling at home, the Seacon leader swam upriver towards the outskirts of the city and the forest beyond.

Nearing the Korajan River

"Hey, so long as I can hold you to that were good Snaptrap. I like a CO that doesn't sweat the small stuff." Horri-Bull laughs, making sure none of the black ooze seeping from his mouth splashes onto Snaptrap. "In return I'll be a model soldier I assure you. Just let me know who or wasn't shouldn't be destroyed if that applies and the rest will fall into place." He said with a vicious eagerness. "Though I hope we get to crush almost all of the base and it's occupants truth be told. It's been a while since I got a pure search and destroy mission."

Nearing the Korajan River

"Thank you, Snaptrap Sir. I assure you, I'll live up to my reputation."

[....Stupid shellhead. I'll show him how to really butcher.]

Oh? Quietened down now that an actual murderous beast is nearby. Heh, how typical.

Skullgrin listens intently as Cyclonus transmits their target to them. He almost looses his composures and giggles at the prospect. A well-hidden, well-protected base which is likely to be crawling with desperate defenders. A perfect job for his skills.

The cybertronian tank falls into formation behind Snaptrap, alongside the still-chatty Horri-Bull, letting the Seacon lead the way to their next set of victims. Oh, it would be glorious. And if things went well, maybe he'd let *him* out to play a little while.

The Folassian Forest--Autobot Command Bunker

"Yeah, let's do that," Rad said. He didn't want to be one of the stragglers that held the other Autobots up. Things were in motion now that couldn't be reversed.

Even was he walked through the outer edges of the command bunker on their way outside, Rad couldn't help but spare a passing thought for Skyhammer. He still felt bad. Normally Skyhammer was rock solid. No matter what the Decepticons did to him, he wasn't gonna give up his team. But the Decepticons hadn't just brought their usual bruisers this time, from what Rad could see. He'd heard stories, nightmarish stories, of what the Insecticons could do when it came to dishing out unique interrogation.

Their time to get to a safe position, even now, was being counted in astroseconds and breems, not orns. Not by a long shot.
___

Koraja--Capital Dome

Shrapnel's insectoid legs adjusted slightly on the rocky perch that he now occupied, watching giddily as Apeface slammed one fist after another in to Skyhammer's various body parts. The Autobot's optics flickered with each blow that landed and each time Shrapnel wondered if they would regian their original lumination. They had, so far, if just barely.

"Such a waste, being offered to the Horrorcons like that like that. You did the real work, Bombshell Bombshell. Should he not have become a tasty meal for us to enjoy enjoy?

___

Outside Koraja

"The creature of metal speaks wisdom, my Peer," one of the other Peers said, coming closer to Soriza's position.

She, like the others, had listened intently to the creature's words. There was a rationale present that was not at all evident with those who had come to the Capital Dome. This 'Scorponok' could be nothing more than an errant rogue, who would eventually be tamed by his superiors, such as this 'Megatron' who was mentioned as the ruler of their kind. Wherever the truth lay, it was clear that to fight them directly would be outright folly.

"I agree," Soriza said, at last, looking from her colleague to the Decepticon representative. "What must we do, then, to ensure that we are part of those who will be preserved, once your kind's vision for this world is achieved?"

Outskirts of Koraja - Decepticon Headquarters

The door of the command hub of the surface Decepticon headquarters opened to allow the entry of two Decepticon soldiers who were unceremoniously dragging few Nebulan prisoners behind them. "Commander Turmoil, we brought you several Nebulans to inspect as per your request."

In response to the arrival of the duo, the command throne of the room rotated to face the newcomers. Staring back at them was a massive, powerfully built Decepticon whose mere appearance demanded unquestionable obedience. Scorponok's second in command and one of the handful of enforcers of Tyrest accord and Decepticon high justice by Megatron's order - Turmoil.

"So, this meager sack of flesh is the highest form of life on this planet?" Turmoil asked from no one in particular and reached out to gently lift the green skinned alien from the floor in order to inspect the being. A bright scanning beam emitted from behind Turmoil's visor briefly passed made a over the Nebulan before Turmoil let go of the being who in turn fell down to the floor and to its death.

"A male. Middle aged. Has been poorly treated for several medical conditions over its lifetime. A potentially lethal tumor growing in brain tissue. Poor management of waste disposal system." Turmoil noted before doing another scan over the being's remain. "Fragile. Bone and other support structure unable to protect internal organs from a mediocre fall."

"Sir, not to disturb your experiments with the greenies but we have lost contact with two of our perimeter guards on our eastern flank. While not all of our soldiers are in top operational condition, communications are not an area that has been overlooked." One of the Decepticons viewing the surveillance equipment of the command center spoke out hesitantly, afraid of drawing the ire of his commander. "Also, commander Cyclonus has located the enemy base and is moving in to intercept."

"Hnn. Send Quickseek to make an overpass of the sector our men disappeared from the grid. I will contact Cyclonus personally." Turmoil commanded and tapped to the base communications array, creating a private comm-link with Cyclonus. >>"Cyclonus, if the Autobots have abandoned their base, cancel your orders and bombard the structure to oblivion. Both Roadbuster and Spartan are known for booby-trapping their abandoned facilities. While we vastly outnumber the Autobots, I have no desire to help them to butcher our brethen."<<

Koraja—Outskirts

Visually, the Insecticon clone was almost visually identical to the core units upon which its design was based—Chop Shop, in this instance. It was its mental capacities that served to distinguish it from the core group of Insecticons. That is to say, it had none. A drone in the most literal sense of the word, it functioned solely to carry out the will of the Swarm and its Decepticon masters. Currently, that involved tracking its way through an outlying wooded area just outside of the boundaries of the capital, in pursuit of organic signatures that it—like its brethren—had been commanded to round up.

The diaclone ripped a row of shrubbery out of its way with its sizable pincers and scurried further in to the trees, continually scanning for the organic life that it had been commanded to retrieve. Suddenly, and without any preliminary warning, multiple organic signatures registered on the Insecticon’s sensors.

The small contingent of World Watchers that had been purposely attempting to lure one of the creatures away from its kin had finally paid off. Glowing rods in one hand and illuminated gauntlets on the other, the World Watcher unit attempted to surround the diaclone, their restraint devices, such as they were, crackling to life and forming an electrical energy field around the Insecticon.

“Move in and disable,” one of them commanded the others. One of the diaclones’ numerous operational directives was to identify the first organic to issue imperatives to the others in a group and eliminate it. It locked in on the speaker and began to move in to assault posture. As one of its appendages connected with the energy field, it reared back as tens of thousands of electrical volts coursed through its body.

"Careful!" the leader called out, as he and his subordinates attempted to maneuver and constrict the electrical restraint.

"Watch the back leg!" another yelled, ramming his prod in its metallic side as one of the other legs got too close for comfort.

"I've got--AH!!!" another screamed. His footing had faltered just for a moment, breaking the tenuous electrical link they had established and allowing a clear path for the clone's mandibles to sinch on to the Nebulan, completely severing his upper from his lower torso. The gruesome sight caused another of the World Watchers to falter. Never before had any of them seen anything like that.

Not for real.

"Do not falter! Re-link!" the leader called out. The World Watchers attempted to do just that, but it would be no simple feat. The Insecticon had been assaulted, thus switching its objective from "capture" to "eliminate".

Mount Melanos - Autobot Beta Site

Aphros stepped through the doorway of the war room and paused for a moment as the sensors registered her presence and brought all systems online. The main screen that dominated one whole wall of the large room glowed to life, and all around the upper ring, the smaller secondary and tertiary screens at the various workstations activated as well, displaying data on everything from deep space monitoring, to communications, to the internal power grid. The two seats at the primary control boards stood directly in front of her, giving a good view of the main screen, and on either side of those boards were stairs leading down to the lower ring where the massive holographic display table dominated the space.

Since no one else was about, and she had the base all to herself, Aphros seated herself at the main control board. It was kind of overkill to use the massive screen for nothing more than a security check and to monitor the other Autobots’ progress away from Fallosia, but since no one was around to complain, she figured she’d just indulge herself. She tapped a few commands into the system, splitting the screen to bring up planetary tracking on one side, and the internal security report on the other.

It appeared Athena was the closest to arriving, she was faster than everyone else, and only about a breem out. The others were strung out along the road, traveling disbursed to avoid drawing attention to themselves, and unless she missed her guess under holographic projectors if their alt mode was normally too noticeable. Aphros’ gaze shifted from the tracking over to the security screen and wait… what was that?

Aphros knew exactly how long a security sweep should take, and the one from 3 mega-cycles ago was off by .02 astroseconds. She called up the logs and began reviewing line by line, and immediately she began to see problems. Minor things, items that someone not as intimately familiar with the system as she would never notice, but that were glaringly obvious to her. Someone had been here! Someone had been here and tried to hide it, and overall they’d done a pretty good job of it. She was amazed they’d gotten by security in the first place - amazed and a bit afraid.

Whoever had done this was very, very good. They had to be to get by the security here. If it was a Decepticon… Aphros didn’t even want to consider that possibility, though she did loose her blaster from its’ holster and set it on the console in front of her. She began deconstructing what were essentially faked, and reconstructing the partially deleted files that lay beneath. After a few moments work, she had a picture and the identity of their intruder – Repugnus. Apparently he’d made himself at home in their base while it was empty, and done a pretty good job of hiding it too.

Ah well, at least it wasn’t a Decepticon, though Aphros was sure Spartan would want words with the Monsterbot before it was over. The femme glanced back at the other side of the screen. Athena was incoming, and the others not too far behind. It was time to roll out the welcome mat. She closed out the programs she was running and made her way to the entry hall, to await everyone’s arrival.

Outside Koraja

Sudden applause disturbs Kickback's chances of answering Sorza's question. "So you finally sell out Sorza, live and on camera...we it would have been anyways if the big ape looking friend of our metal visitor didn't trash my studio and it's feed to my camera visor." Standing there like he was part of the room itself was a seedy looking Nebulan with a fancy looking recording visor. His name was Kreb, a slimeball talk show host and scandal hunter whose show revolves around others misery and suffering.

"So your one of these...Decepticons that those Autobots mentioned right?" He says, stepping forward. "They made you into monsters and you went and proved them right. The footage I have of you invasion and wanton slaughter...truly tragic and disgusting sometimes." His smile grew wide and he let out a giddy little chuckle. "Broadcasting goldmines is what you all are. I haven't had this type of ratings grabbing footage in all my years. If there's anything I can do to help out, connections, info...heck if you want to spread your message all over the air or have Sorza here announce a public surrender I'm your man. I just ask for exclusive filming rights is all."

En Route to the Folassian Forest

Banzai-tron routinely monitored Decepticon military communications traffic at various levels. It would not, after all, do for Intelligence to be kept out of the loop—knowing what the grunts intended to knock down or blow up from one breem to the next helped him organize his priorities. The current tenor of the top-level chatter he was intercepting, however, caused him to curse silently to himself. There were orns when he almost believed his allies were a bigger obstacle to the efficient operation of a galaxy-spanning spy network than the Autobots.

He was distracted from his momentary irritation, however, by a transmission from Treadshot. Finally, a mech he could count on, one that wasn’t as likely to rob him blind or bore him to deactivation with the latest data-analysis reports as provide some kind of useful assistance. Perhaps his tour of this ridiculous little speck of cosmic debris wouldn’t be so tedious, after all.

To save time and spare him the annoyance of having the same conversation three-times, Banzai-tron opened a multiple comm-channel with the sharpshooter, Lockdown, and Wingspan.

>>”The location of the Autobot base has been pinpointed at 19.88.05. Cyclonus is leading in a team, though I doubt they’ll find the place occupied. It’ll probably get blasted straight to the Pit anyway—if our side doesn’t do it, it will only be because the ‘Bots beat them to the mark. The four of us will link up at 19.86.00 and pick up the trail again once the fireworks have subsided.”<<

>>”Acknowledged,”<< responded Wingspan. >>”But I stress again that my talents are largely wasted on field work.”<<

>>”So noted. Don’t fret, Wingspan. I’m surely we’ll come up with something for you to do.”<< Functions like “expendable weapons screen” or “single-use ordnance disposal” came readily to mind.

Outside Koraja

The smile that appeared on Kickback’s face as Soriza and her cronies succumbed to his cloying speech was positively beatific. Sometimes, it occurred to the duplicitous Insecticon that his work was almost criminally easy. Nevertheless, he couldn’t deny that he derived great pleasure in winning over even the most skeptical and suspicious minds. Before he could reply, however, another of the under-evolved green primates interrupted with clapping hands … and a troubling, if minor, slur against the mighty Decepticon Empire.

Oh, that would never do. He would have to teach this one better.

Antennae twitching, Kickback bent down before the Nebulan male, his faceplate never for an astrosecond losing its benign expression. “Monster? I believe I should choose my words with greater care, my friend, if I were you. You wouldn’t want to inadvertently give offense, hmm? As you’ve already seen, some of my compatriots lack the capacity for charitable forbearance that I possess.”

He straightened and tapped a digit against his chin in a display of thoughtfulness. “Back to the business at hand. If our settling in here on Nebulos proceeds according to established protocols—and I have every reason to believe that it will—then the next step will be the temporary relocation of your people to organized camps, the better to minimize the possibility of a damaging insurrection.” That was, at least, mostly true. Preventing a native uprising was certainly one of the reasons for the forced internment, and the internment itself would most certainly be temporary. There was, after all, little point in jailing corpses.

“Fortunately for us all, we Insecticons have been partially delegated the responsibility of establishing and administering these camps. I would suggest that we set one up here. Invite a select group of sympathetic individuals drawn from those of your personal acquaintance. Allow our media-minded associate to broadcast a continuous video feed of daily life here to the rest of the planet. If we can demonstrate to the populace at large that this regrettable necessity need not be uncomfortable, it would no doubt go a long way toward streamlining the restructuring process. And, of course, demonstrate your value to the Empire.”

En Route to the Folassian Forest

“Amaze you? I’m gonna blow your mind, Banzai.” Lockdown watched as the martial artist took off from the ground and lifted into the air. The bounty hunter’s upper lip curled into a cruel smirk before he transformed to his alt move.

Once Banzai-tron took off Lockdown revved his engine and sped off after him. “Oh, I’ll keep up alright. There’s no need to worry about that.” The mish-mashed vehicle ran through the brush taking down small saplings and causing the local fauna to flee from Lockdown’s path. With the use of the cow-catcher attached to his front end, he was able to topple trees and make a path through the now thickening flora.

On the way Banzai-tron opened a link with him, and his other intelligence officers, letting everyone know where they would be rendezvousing. “And so the hunt begins,” Lockdown said as he plowed over yet another tree.

Koraja-Capital Dome

Bombshell simply stared as he was issued a warning by Apeface, not that Bombshell was intimidated. Once cerebroshell each, and he could have all the Horrorcons swabbing all the decks of every ship in the fleet until they were so clean that Scorponok's reflection could be seen like a reflection in a mirror. But any further interaction was uneccessary. He'd be rid of those beastly Horrorcons and able to do some work on the Autobot and Apeface could beat Skyhammer up.

Bombshell was then startled by the sudden arrival of his fellow Insecticon, Shrapnel. This was good, it meant he only needed to find Kickback before he could put his ennxt plan into motion. Shrapnel had question why he was permitting Apeface the honor of slagging this Autobot rather than feeding on him. Bombshell had several rules regarding Autobot captives, one of which being that he and his fellow Insecticons could not devour a machine that was considered useful. I this case, he wanted Skyhammer alive.

"Because Shrapnel." he said, "This Autobot still has a use to us. Once our associate here finishes with him, I plan to 'fix' this Autobot. After that, I will require you and Kickback to assist me in the next phase. By then, it should be time for the Autobots to come and rescue their friend."

Bombshell's plan was quite brilliant, at least in his mind. He'd most likely tell Cyclonus, and even Scorponok at earliest opportinuty. Venom... eventually. This Autobot would live, because he and his comrades would let him be rescued.

Outside Koraja

Kreb raised his hands to stop Kickback from continuing...mercifully. "Before you assassinate my character friend understand I am stating how the people right now will see this. Personally I don't give a darn if your angels or devils. All I care about is getting the scoop on all this. As for your plan...well I'll let {b]Peer Sorza[/b] talk before I offend her too much by butting in. However, afterwards I do got me some concerns and such about the plan. Valid, constructive things to be sure but...ladies first and all." He says, lowering himself in a bow and stepping back, not wanting to offend their guest.

Koraja—Outskirts

He had seen these guys waste enough time. "Oh for God's sake. Are you people THAT slow witted?" The scolding voice of Gort spoke up as he watched the Insecticon clone struggle it it's bonds. "GET YOUR BUTTS IN GEAR BEFORE HE BISECTS MORE OF US!!"

While most in his company were World Watchers and those in their employ, Gort was nothing more than a humble shopkeeper. Though he was well known due to his outspoken at city meetings, as he was often speaking up for the working class as an unofficial representative. He was also an old friend of Peer Galen's, which explains why he was here to begin with.

Gort picks up a rock and throws it at the eye of the Diaclone, hoping to draw it's attention away from the break in the field and on him so they could reestablish it. "Come on you god damned mechanical cockroach, keep watching me." He says as he begins to move from side to side, keeping th thing from settling in one spot. "I'm the bright, shiny object that's distracting you from the nice men."

Above Koraja - Bridge of the Pestilence

Little had changed on board the ominous Decepticon destroyer hovering above the city of Koraja. Barrage, Chop Shop and Ransack were busy observing and directing the Insecticon diaclones, mindless clones of themselves across the city, capturing stunned Nebulans and taking them into the concentration camps run by the devilish Black Shadow.

Venom however, had far more intense and demanding operation to run. His neural cortex was connected to that of the massive hiveship and through it into the Swarm - a million strong horde of tiny robotic insects modelled after his own alt. mode. They were his eyes and ears. The amount of data processed through them was almost overwhelming. It was addictive and corrupting. Yet, he knew that after keeping the whole extend of the Swarm active for past 2 cycles, he did not have much time left before he had to pull the Swarm back or face a meltdown of his cerebral circuits.

Unless of course, he decreased the strain caused by controlling the Swarm in advance. Soon the skies above Koraja were filled with the tiny metal insects on their way back into to the hiveship, leaving only fraction of the whole strength of the Swarm into the city. Still, a fraction of a million was easily enough to keep an optic on both of his allies and enemies. Not to forget paralyzing the Nebulan stragglers that were still roaming within the city. This relocation of resources quickly made Venom to turn his focus on his own paranoia, and thus - his attention shifted towards Kickback, Shrapnel and Bombshell.

Oh, Kickback, Kickback, Kickback... So you couldn't just follow orders. The Insecticon leader thought as he spied on the backstabber through couple of Swarm insects that were hiding in the building. Well, let us see if anything can be gained by your latest con act, at least it will keep you busy and out of my way.

And you two... what you are going to do with Skyhammer...

Outside Koraja

Soriza would have cast a disparaging look in the surgeon's direction, had she not seen to it that he was escorted upstairs and out of their collective business, for having allowed this media type to have been counted amongst their number. For now, his presence would have to be tolerated. But she did not know how long her patience would hold out.

As it stood, she eyed Kreb for a moment but allowed him to finish speaking before she returned her focus to the metal creature. It was a courtesy that she would likely not extend a second time.

"I'm indeed thankful that such a burdensome task has been relegated to those within your army who have a more compassionate hand," Soriza said feeling the fear well up inside her, mixed the various other emotions. Never before in her life had she had her freedom of movement restricted. But never before had she faced the possible annihilation of her species, either.

"Let it be so ordered, then," she said at last, before turning back to Kreb. She was not thrilled with the prospect of a media figure having any part of this, but she supposed that she could understand the creature's perspective. "You heard him. Once the enclosure is established it will be your job to get those images out to our Nebulan brothers and sisters. Whatever other concerns that you may have..."

She paused, taking a couple steps closer while lowering her voice.

"...I would advise that you tread carefully with them. For your own sake, as much as ours."
___

Koraja--Outskirts

Two of the diaclone's legs had been damaged, hanging almost listlessly as those that remained kept it somewhat on balance as it struggled against the Nebulans' collective assault. Its mandibles were already stained with the blood of another World Watcher who had misstepped and broken the link, allowing the clone the opening it had needed to attack. As the World Watchers' numbers had shrunk, however, their technique actually seemed to improve.

It was not any one particular attack that at last brought the diaclone down, but the cumulative effect of many smaller ones. Eventually, its basic systems had proven unable to handle the continuous, chaotic energy surges that had been inflicted upon it. Collapsing to the ground, the diaclone's optics flickered for a few moments longer, before going dark altogether.

The unit leader, a young officer by the name of Treb, motioned for the other World Watchers to disengage their energy link as others in the unit rushed over to the aid of their fallen comrades. Treb would have done the same, were it not so apparent that there was nothing that they could do for them now. He looked over to Gort and nodded his thanks, pulling out a small, orb-shaped device and entering a code. After a few moments, Peer Galen's face appeared on the orb.

"We're going to need an extraction team, sir. And quickly, before more of them come," Treb said.

"Understood. How many were lost?"

"Two, sir. And this was against but one of these things. How many more have eyewitnesses seen spreading out from the capital?! How are we...?"

"I have the extraction unit on its way. Good work, 'Peacemaker'."

Treb was taken aback for a moment but the leader of the World Watchers using a nickname for him that he had been given by his subordinates in the National Defense. For whatever reason, it had taken the panic out of his voice--if not out of his mind--and returned his attention to what was at hand.

"Yes sir," Treb said, before attaching the small orb back to his uniform, where he had retrieved it. He then walked over to Gort.

"My thanks, friend. None of us really had any idea going in whether or not this was going to be successful. I had honestly expected it to be my last duty in service of Nebulos."

Outside Koraja

"I tested his temper for a reason my Peer. Do not worry, I know how to handle his kind." Kreb says to help dissuade Sorza's fears in a low tone before turn his attention to the matter at hand. "However this is where the problems lie. You think Galen's going to take this lying down? He was practically eating out of those Autobot's hands and given his influence he'll likely be able to diffuse our efforts." He says, making sure Kickback hears.

"He has charisma, he has many influential allies, like Arcana and that bastard Gort." He says recalling a physical altercation the two had. "We need someone to help offset that, you need an Arcana my dear Peer. Or maybe someone much better suited. Like maybe...Lord Zarak?" He says with an evil grin.

Koraja--Outskirts

Gort was standing there, glaring at the metallic behemoth, thinking long and hard about what had happened in such a short time. It took a bit for him to not Treb talking to him. "Hmm?" He turns. "Well that's no way for a World Watcher to think there...Treb is it?" Gort says. "You guys gotta stay strong through this. I know it scary, Heck I think I almost crapped myself when that thing looked right at me. It was like he was deciding if I was a snack or a meal there." He jokes, hoping it helps him come off less preachy. "You did good, but you gotta keep on. The people are going to look to us for help. It'll look bad for you if a mere grocer like me shows more guts than one of you, know what I'm saying?" He then gave Treb a friendly pat on the back. "Now...we sure bug ugly's down for the count?"

En Route to Mount Melanos

The trek between the Folassian Forest and Mount Melanos was more peaceful than Rad would have expected, honestly. Not that he was complaining. After that onslaught at Koraja, it was nice not being dogged every step of the way. Every so often, Lionizer would pause and look to examine their surroundings a little more closely before running to catch up with the convoy once again.

"You holdin' up okay, hero?" Rad said, grinning as he checked back on the Autobot that Roadbuster had tasked him to keep an optic on. He knew that Highbrow had been just as affected by what they'd seen in Koraja as Rad had, if not moreso.

They shouldn't be too far off now. If the circumstances were different, Rad could have easily taken the rest of the planetary solar cycle to appreciate the landscape around him and do some observational research. Another time, Rad told himself. Another time.
___

Koraja--Capital Dome

Each successive hit felt even better than the one before. Apeface grunted in satisfaction as Skyhammer's body jolted with each blow. He had to give the 'Bot credit, he'd held out for a lot longer than most would've. He was in an unwinnable scenario, though. It was only a matter of time.

With Apeface's last blow, Skyhammer's head jerked once more, and the faint flicker in his optics finally went dark. Heaving the Autobot up from his impaled position, Apeface unceremoniously dropped the battered and now stasis-locked Autobot to the unforgiving surface below.

"There ya go, bugs," Apeface said looking at Bombshell and Shrapnel before walking back over to Snapdragon.

"Did I hear pointy-head sayin' somethin' about destroying an Autobot base? Didn't catch all the message. I was havin' too much fun poundin' the 'Bot."

En Route to Mount Melanos

"'Hero' is it?" Highbrow says with a hollow tone, pondering the fact he was starting to be called that. "Such is an appellation that i would prove unworthy of. Redeemer would be a better turn of phrase my friend. Long have I questioned how one can take up a weapon and aim it against his fellow. It wasn't until here, in the midst of a new war, now that I can now see...no...feel why one would have such a need. My past misgivings have only been an insult to those who have died so I can be here today...and also to those who some have sacrificed by my own." he says to Rad, noting Spartan's actions.

"It is to those that I suddenly feel the drive to fight back. Not for myself, such would be a foolish act of vanity. But as for your question regarding my well being I am suffering no ill effects, aside from a wish to be doing things in this forest other than running for my life."

Approaching the Folassian Forest

>>”Understood, Turmoil. You will know the results of our assault soon,”<< Cyclonus transmitted back, keeping his response tactful. If either his commanding officer or the Autobots thought that he would be so foolish as to blindly lead any forces under his command in to a potentially rigged structure, they were mistaken. Be that as it may, he accepted the cautionary transmission at face value and thought no more of it after he had responded. He already had a strategy in mind of how to best engage the Autobots. If, as Turmoil had suggested, they had already absconded from the fortification, Cyclonus would simply enact his alternative strategy.

>>I’m closing in on the transmitted coordinates now,”<< Cyclonus transmitted to those Decepticons that would be joining him. Given that he had set course for this location immediately after Bombshell had provided him with the coordinates, he knew that he would have a somewhat healthy lead over his Decepticon compatriots. That would give him a brief window of opportunity, at the least, to learn what he needed to learn.

>>”Reflector, scan the coordinates I’m sending you now for any signs of Cybertronian life. Forward the results to me immediately. I and the other Decepticons will be arriving shortly”<<

En Route to Mount Melanos

"Sometimes we have to accept the reality. Despite of the Decepticon propaganda, there's no glory in war. It's gruesome business to all involved. Sometimes we have to run to keep fighting. This is one of those days." Ironside grunted as he drove towards their destination in his Police APC mode, two trailers filled with equipment in tow. "The alternative is not an option."

"Well, perhaps things have gotten slightly easier for us." Comcast intervened. "I have been following mid-level Decepticon transmissions to my best ability... and what I have been able to determine from the general chatter between their squads, it appears that Scorponok has taken his flagship and two frigates and left the system. Though I cannot tell for sure until we get to the new base and make a sensor sweep for transwarp fallout. Perhaps this is also the reason there aren't numerous scouting parties searching for us."
______________________________________

Outskirts of Koraja

There was a reason Quickseek had been sent to scout the last known location of Heatwave and Demolisher. This particular seeker was no doubt one of the best aerial recons within Decepticons ranks. Fast, precise and professional. His track record spoke for itself. All he needed was one overpass and he was already on his way back to the base with a report sent to the local Decepticon command channel where it would reach the audiosensors of both Turmoil and Cyclonus.

>>"Quickseek to command. Demolisher has been terminated. He has been hit by high temperature attack to face, however fatal wounds indicate use of either claws or blades. Local life forms ruled out as the attacker. Heatwave's head and torso are missing. He has likely been taken by the assailant, either dead or alive. They have been ambushed by someone adept of using camouflage and surprise to his advantage for I did spot the location where he was likely preying on our patrol. Subject is a tunneler and has escaped through a tunnel that has been collapsed from inside after being entered. I suggest a series of geographical scans to determine how far spread these tunnels are. Quickseek out."<<
______________________________________

The Capital Dome

"Who cares." Snapdragon snorted, not moving a single servo when Apeface presented his question. "The chances are that the base they have found is empty and rigged to blow up on our faces. You did see Roadbuster there, right? That's straight from the rulebook of the Wreckers."

Koraja--Capital Dome

After the Horrorcon had summarily dumped Skyhammer down in front of them, Shrapnel's metallic mandibles chittered and tiny streams of electricity ran up and down his jaws in fleeting excitement. He was curious to see how exactly Bombshell intended to "fix" this Autobot and whether or not the process would be as valuable as Bombshell seemed to think it would be.

"I've lost one!" a familiar voice called out. Shrapnel immediately recognized the familiar vocal pattern of one of his Insecticon nestmates. The sudden arrival of Chop Shop would normally have been an unwelcome distraction, but they hadn't really got to the good stuff...yet.

"You've lost one what what?"

"I-It followed some of the greenies in to a wooded area and...it stopped transmitting. About a breem ago. Maybe more."

Another ripple of electricity flickered across Shrapnel's silver jaws. Chop Shop hadn't needed to say exactly what he was talking about. From the way he was describing the situation, he could naturally infer that it was one of his drones.

"So...the fleshbags did it did it? Not the Autobots Autobots?" Shrapnel asked. Chop Shop simply emitted a few clicks in the affirmative. He was likely just as surprised as the rest of them. They both angled their body positions slightly in Bombshell's direction, clearly curious as to his own reaction to this news.
___

Apeface grunted, accepting the fact that Snapdragon was probably right in this case. If any sort of Wrecker mentality was at play here, they would be dealing with a scorched steel campaign from right now until the time came when they finally rounded them all up and either executed them or put them to work alongside their newfound Nebulan slaves.

"Could go for a bath," Apeface grumbled. "Wonder what they use for combustibles on this weak planet. Probably their own bleedin' hearts, heh heh."
___

The Folassian Forest--approaching the Autobot Command Bunker

The sea of multi-colored trees and hills was so dense that it made it nearly impossible to truly get a sense of where you were on this part of the planet, and certainly impossible to see what lay beneath the tree canopies, save for any errant signature scans. As the distance between himself and the coordinates that Bombshell had provided him were now almost negligible, Cyclonus arced downward before transforming and cutting a metallic swath through cluster of huge, blue-green trees, some of which towered even over Cyclonus himself.

>>"Reflector to Commander Cyclonus...we are detecting no discernible Cybertronian energy signatures from those coordinates. At this distance, it was a long shot anyw..."<<

Cyclonus disengaged the communication before Reflector could finish. He could see now why the Autobots had chosen this location. From a purely academic standpoint, they could have conducted research from here almost completely hidden and uninterrupted. Even after the Decepticons had arrived, had they not been so fortunate as to capture Skyhammer, they could have spent the next vorn searching for the rest of his kin.

>>"When you arrive, Scourge, have one of your Sweeps with you,"<< Cyclonus quickly commed out. There was no visible trace of where the Autobot outpost could be. But he knew that locating such things was Scourge's specialty. If the Autobots were indeed still here, they were clearly going to take an ambush approach this time around. Cyclonus would offer them some sacrificial bait, if it would get them to reveal their ultimate whereabouts.

Before he could move in any closer, a more disturbing transmission had come through, this time from Quickseek. As Cyclonus had suspected, the ambush strategy was already playing out, even though the occurence was not in this area. Cyclonus was still infinitely curious to know exactly what kind of Autobot that Demolishor and Heatwave had crossed paths with. Some unique and uncharacteristic members of their ranks had been stationed on this backwater planet. From the looks of it, Autobot command had no intention of recalling them any time soon. He could only imagine why. The more Cyclonus dealt with the natives of Nebulos, the more he looked forward to stripping this planet bare and rejoining Megatron's primary campaign.

>>"How curious.....we must assume, then, that both of them are deceased,"<< Cyclonus began, in his typically compassionless way. >>"Orbital scans are proving to be less effective than I would have hoped. With such vast resources at our disposal, we need not play such a cautious game, Quickseek. You could be dealing with merely one or an entire pack. It matters not. Flush out this seemingly feral Autobot and whatever others might be hiding alongside it and kill them."<<

En Route to Mount Melanos

"Which one can then conclude those remaining are either guarding the conquered Koraja or forming a massive hunter killer squadron hellbent of finishing what Scorponok and his ruffians began." Highbrow says, listening to Comcast. "Do we know who remains?" Highbrow says, hoping to hear the Horrorcons name dropped amongst them. He then came to realize the will to fight wasn't the only thing he came to understand today. "It would be prudent to have an idea on who stalks us."

En Route to Mount Melanos

"Too many Highbrow. Way too many. What remains is equal to what one Thanatos class battlecruiser, 3 Revenant class destroyers, 2 Negator class frigates and 3 cargo haulers can carry. If they were boarded full, which I doubt - that means roughly 1000 Decepticons of various functions in addition to troops possibly left behind by Semper Tyrannis and its support frigates. And who knows how many Insecticons drones they really have?" Comcast theorized as he continued forwards. "I can tap only to their low security level communications so I can only speculate about who they left in charge or what they will do. Though given how many times the name of Cyclonus has been mentioned, I am pretty sure he is here. Even their low level communications are encoded so at best I can make out few words here and there between static mess. Perhaps Roadbuster or Spartan might have some first hand knowledge about Decepticons working under Scorponok's banner but I am at loss."
__________________________________________

Outskirts of Koraja - Decepticon Headquarters

"Quickseek to command. Demolisher has been terminated. He has been hit by high temperature attack to face, however fatal wounds indicate use of either claws or blades. Local life forms ruled out as the attacker. Heatwave's head and torso are missing. He has likely been taken by the assailant, either dead or alive. They have been ambushed by someone adept of using camouflage and surprise to his advantage for I did spot the location where he was likely preying on our patrol. Subject is a tunneler and has escaped through a tunnel that has been collapsed from inside after being entered. I suggest a series of geographical scans to determine how far spread these tunnels are. Quickseek out."

"Orbital scans are proving to be less effective than I would have hoped. With such vast resources at our disposal, we need not play such a cautious game, Quickseek. You could be dealing with merely one or an entire pack. It matters not. Flush out this seemingly feral Autobot and whatever others might be hiding alongside it and kill them."

Turmoil listened intently to the report from Quickseek and the following response to it by Cyclonus while supervising dozens of Decepticons in their work all around the continuously growing Decepticon stronghold. There were only few Autobots known to utilize tactics like these. And the most logical subject that fit what Quickseek had described was Repugnus. And that did not fit well with Turmoil. Repugnus, Roadbuster and Spartan - none of them were your average Autobots. Grizzled war veterans with experience from hundreds of different battle theaters, each meaner than the other. The Decepticons had managed to remove the original commander of this Autobot group - Skyhammer, no pushover by any means but still more in line with traditional Autobot heroes that risked too much for sake of ideals. These three... not so much. They could have been Decepticons considering how far they were willing to go. Had the Autobots anticipated all this? Or had this been an attempt to get some of their most violent members to serve in a peaceful operation for being too rough again. No matter, he would uncover the reason and have these three executed for their war crimes against the Decepticon Empire.

>>"Quickseek, return to base. Cyclonus, send a squad of Insecticons to burrow into the tunnels. A fair warning, Quickseek's description fits Repugnus' handiwork all too well. If this Autobot is still within, he will be captured and executed in public display for his war crimes. At the least, I want the layout of these tunnels and tracking sensors installed into them."<<