The Energon Pub

Fortress Tenebrous

>>Of course. That time may come sooner than any of us expect. I’m going to work quickly on this one. Let me know if anything interesting happens on your end,<< Bombshell transmitted back to Shrapnel.

“I-I just don’t know how to take all of this,” the fiery Nebulan said, his anger appearing to subside somewhat now that he was away from the influences of his peer group. Bombshell guided down several corridors, before eventually finding a room that was completely unoccupied.

“Yes, I suspect this kind of experience would be most distressing. Particularly for a species that is so unaccustomed to….how shall we say….’external’ influence.”

“Y-Yes, that is it exactly. I—why are we here, within an empty room?”

A compartment opened within Bombshell’s chest cavity. Reaching inside, he produced a significantly smaller version of the cerebro shells that he typically employed against much larger Cybertronian targets. It dripped with purplish-black fluid, even as the compartment resealed itself.

“Because I think there’s some things you’re not going to talk about willingly. This will, ehh, save me some time.”

The Nebulan councilor’s eyes widened.

Farstar - Bridge

Brilliant starbursts of gold and silvery white lights cascaded across the view screen... illuminating the dimmed bridge with their sheer awe and destructive malice. Boronite shells detonated at all angles surrounding the stricken Autobot frigate as it attempted to avoid the finality of its own preordained demise. Spears of energized particles lashed out like anphibian tounges desperate to take hold of their prey, to stop the fleeing body so the rest of their brethren could finish the work they had started.

"Scrap it..." Scattershot cursed as the ship was thrown for another major jolt. Another proximity shell had detonated close towards their port aft pylon, sending major electrical discharges throughout the lower decks and knocking out lights briefly before the emergency generators snapped into take their place. He knew full well that the Farstar had taken them as far as she could go during her brief time in service. He had to admit, it really was not the sort of death he had envisioned for one of his first interstellar commands.

A second hit slammed straight into the same port shield generator. It exploded in a beautiful gyser of orange, yellow and gold before its molten fragments flash froze in the icy depths. The Technobot's optics swiftly darted towards the monitor in his command armrest. It flickered and flipped along its horizonal axis repeatedly before eventually stabilizing simultanously with the emergency power supply. A few more kliks and they would be in the clear.

"Evasive maneuver Maximus Prima Two Four Three. Don't give them a clear shot on that weakened generator quarter." He called out to Lightspeed and Nosecone as they continually worked masterfully to keep the ship from being sent to the great scrap heap in the all spark, with them inside.

The alert klaxon broke through his orders at the last pause... and the deafening explosion from below decks sent the entire bridge crew into a disorienting spin. Flames rushed up through the turbolift shaft like a great hand of death reaching for its next patron. Scattershot held tight to his chair braces. Relieved that the intership communication lines had survived, thank primus for small miracles, he was able to learn two things. The first, they had been too late in their shift of energies to compensate the gap in the shields... their primary engines had been hit. And two, there was no chance of repair without a whole drydock. He had to admit, those engineers statement for the obvious never ceased to annoy him.

Within the frayed and sparking viewscreen, a small greenish atmopshered world soon began to fall into more detailed resolution, well relative detail at anyrate Scattershot reminded himself. From what his optics could make out through all the spinning was that the planet itself had three ships set before them, a pair of picket frigates, escort vessels for a larger capital ship at least... And their prom date, a large interdictor type cruiser.

"Bridge to all hands." He toggled the ships communications protocols. His voice almost failed him, he really did not want to give the order. To run from a fight, to stop even when this far out gunned, it just was not his style. However, he was also aware of his responsibilities to those under his command. He cursed Fortress Maximus for that little insight. Needs of the many crap... "All hands ABANDON SHIP! To your designated Escape pods. I repeat All Hands, Abandon Ship!"

With that accomplished he patched into the engineering section specifically. "Initiate Protocol: Relocate... good luck on the surface and meet at the rendevues point."

Before the chief engineer could respond through the pipe the familiar voice of River exploded through wishing her best to her beloved pilot. The bounce effect would soon place them all into the specified pods and launch them towards Nebulos.

As for the bridge crew, a small six seat pod remained for those who were piloting and commanding the vessel. He had to hope that no damage had come to it during the last explosion, or this would be the shortest strategic withdrawl he had ever been apart of. "All of you, get to the pod. Lightspeed. Lock the Farstar on a collision course with that interdictor." He looked over at Strafe, Afterburner and Breakaway. "You three get moving."

Once they had begun to open the hatch, Scattershot shook his head as the planet loomed ever larger in their damaged viewer. The Farstar was a broken vessel and would soon be blown to bits before she ever made planet fall. He had bought their message time, now he had to buy the people of this world time... time enough for Maximus to receive his report and assemble the fleet. Even still, he had one last duty to preform. "Computer... Security access: Code Scattershot Techno One."

"Access Granted."

"Authorization Protocol: Emergency Self Destruct."

The computer fell silent briefly before bringing up the required data. "Self Destruct sequence accessed. Security Code Required."

"Authorization. Alpha Alpha One Red Alpha."

"Authorization granted... Self Destruct sequence initiated. Code for final countdown required."

"Seven Seven Four Three... Destruct... Omega. Timer Set Ninty Seconds... Omega Destruct."

The computer screen flashed the warning sign of the emergency destruct sequence then let it spread across the entire ship. A single warning was all they were to receive. Even if the cons managed to stop the ship from blowing up from the damage it had taken, it would cost them severely.

Scattershot bid his farewells to his command and followed Lightspeed and Nosecone into the pod. Their destination, a densely forested area far from the population centers of the planet. At least their survival time would be increased by a wider factor than if they had decided to crash land on some pleasure beach. Scattershot was the last one off the bridge, and by his own estimation, the last one off the ship. His quiet expression remained stoic and ready for battle... but his interior was awash with emotions that he dared not let slip to those under his direct command.

And soon the explosive jolt would send the entire crew hurdling towards a new battlefield... and a chance to avenge those who died in this cowardly ambush.

Farstar – Bridge

Strafe had managed to destroy another Sweep in a fiery cascade of light and sound just as powerful detonations from other weapons fire shook the already weakened Autobot vessel. The aerial gunner managed to firmly hold on, though, keeping his sights set on the armada of flying hovercraft that swarmed around the ship like hungry cyber-locusts. “These guys are almost as bad as Insecticons,” Strafe commented to himself as he continued unloading the rear cannons at every white and blue ‘Con that dared to enter his targeting range. “Take that, slaggers! Ha! Ha!”

His joy was short lived as two more explosions struck near the aft section of the ship, causing the lights to flicker off for an astrosecond before coming back on under emergency power. Then yet another massive blast from somewhere below deck rocked the entire bridge, shorting out several of the consoles which included Strafe’s own targeting computer. “Fraggit!” The aerial gunner shouted as he slammed both fists down on to the controls, but to no avail. The terminal was dead, a fact that was soon reinforced by the sudden electrical discharge that shot through the keyboard, forcing the Technobot out of his chair to avoid getting fried like Tonka had been. This was followed by the sudden rush of flames that exploded from the nearby turbo lift, throwing the aerial gunner back into the port side wall.

Chaos consumed the bridge as Strafe grabbed hold of some loose cables that hung overhead to prevent himself from falling to the deck. It was then that Scattershot ordered the immediate evacuation of the Farstar. The ship was a lost cause at this point, but it had thankfully gotten them close enough to Nebulos to give them all a fair chance of escaping the doomed vessel and reaching the planet’s surface intact. The number of emergency pods that the aerial gunner and his ill-fated companion had managed to test earlier should suffice in aiding the rest of the crew in their escape.

For the bridge crew, however, a single six-seated pod waited to take them away from certain deactivation. It was their only chance to survive before the Farstar became their eternal tomb. “You don’t have to tell me twice!” Strafe shouted back at Scattershot, who had just ordered them all into the escape capsule. Letting go of the overhead cables, the frantic Technobot made a mad dash for safety, entering the pod and strapping himself in to the nearest seat. Once the ship’s auto destruct had been set, Scattershot joined him and the other members of the bridge crew. Soon they would be on their way towards the surface of Nebulos. With any luck they would all survive the trip with nothing more than a few bangs and jolts along the way. Unfortunately, Strafe knew all too well that even if they made it to their planet-bound destination the conflict with the Decepticons here would not be over. Not by a long shot. It had, in fact, only just begun.

Farstar--Bridge

They were just getting swarmed. When Scattershot made the call for the ship’s crew to get to the escape pods, Lightspeed slammed a fist down on the control console. He wasn’t angry at the order, it was practically unavoidable. The only other option would have been the ship blowing up with them still in it. But this was a good ship. He hated to see her go down like this. The only consolation was the reality that there would be nothing left for the Decepticons to sift through once it was all over.

“Setting course,” Lightspeed grumbled, locking the navigation path in place before heading to the command pod with the other Technobots. He saw that River along with many other members of the crew were already safely reporting in from their own pods. That was some comfort, at least. "Let's get the slag out of here before there's nothing left to escape with."

Reaching under his seat compartment, he pulled out a spare, fully-charged lightburst gun that he had stored there vorns ago, just in case they ever encountered a scenario like this one. The other Technobots would find similar caches in the compartments under their own pod seats. Lightspeed was nothing if not a prepared pilot.

“Been a while since we’ve been in a mess like this, huh?”
___

Fortress Tenebrous

These Decepticons….they just seemed so agreeable now. Galen trusted none of it, even as various other Councilors in his vicinity whispered in his ear about what was going on. The Decepticons were winning them over. Too many of them. It was a cause for concern, but Galen could not allow himself to become too distracted by that reality right now. The fact remained that these metal men had taken over their planet with barely a shot fired, taking full advantage of their society’s peaceful nature. That could not be allowed to stand indefinitely. Nor would it.

“I cede the floor to my Peers. I have no questions. I am simply ready to serve,” Galen said, his voice quieter now. Even as his thoughts turned toward the work that other Nebulans were undertaking in the science halls, he was also concerned about the Peer who had been lead from the room for his admittedly disrespectful outburst. But what respect was to be owed to one’s conquerors, anyway?

“I have a question,” another Councilor, Soriza, said, rising to her feet. “Will Nebulos benefit from any exchange of technology in this arrangement? It is clear that your civilization has achieved many more advancements than ours. It is my belief that those who would make your expansion throughout the universe easier should also share in some of the fruits.”

Subtle, Galen thought. For his part, he simply wanted to get up and walk out of the room. He had seen and heard all that he had needed to see and hear. His efforts from this point forward would be best served aiding those who would seek to undo this universal crime. He would stay for the time being, though, if for no other reason than to avoid causing a scene like the one before.
___

>>”The Autobot vessel has been destroyed. They are…”<<

Cyclonus’ optics narrowed, examining the audio wavelength to ensure that there was no interference with Reflector’s transmission.

“They are what, Reflector?”

>>“…they are abandoning ship. There are escape pods. Many of them. They are inbound towards Nebulos. I....yes....I have managed to catch one of them with the Perdition's tractor beam.”<<

He had to give this group of Autobots some credit: they were certainly persistent in their efforts to continue functioning.

“And still they try to flee,” Cyclonus said, a slight smirk on his face as he turned to face the Vice Commander. “The…'insurgent' vessel has been destroyed by our orbital resources, Turmoil. There are escape capsules heading toward the planet now. Perhaps our ground forces would enjoy something to finish off? I can only imagine Snaptrap's sparklust, to say nothing of Skullgrin's."

Farstar Bridge

The Inertial Dampeners must have been shut off by an explosion below, because Nosecone was suddenly thrown from his seat and over his terminal. He landed hard on the floor with a thud, causing the metal to creak in protest. Nosecone slowly stood up in complete calm and dusted himself off and made his way over to his station. It was then when Scattershot issued an "Abandon Ship" order, and Nosecone looked back at his terminal and stroked it with his hand to give it a final goodbye. Scattershot put in the self destruct command and Nosecone looked back at his terminal and typed in a course to bring them on a collision course for the Severance, but put it on setting that when all of the escape pods would be jettisoned, the course would initiate and hopefully bring the Severance down with her.

On the way out of the bridge he took a look back at the bridge where he spent a great amount of time on. He would miss this ship.

Nosecone walked through the hallways and into the Escape Pod, and he took his seat next to Lightspeed.

"Am I the only one who is going to miss her?" Nosecone said to Lightspeed and looked out the window and watched as other Pods jettisoned.

FarStar - Bridge

Afterburner ignored most of the chaos around him as he continued firing at the swarm of Sweeps as they darted about the space around the ship. Hold still you piece of scrap. The laser blast blew the sweep into microscopic particles of matter bringing a satisfied smile to Afteburner’s faceplate. It took more self control than he ever demonstrated before to keep from sending his weapons into the red zone and he was rewarded with more hits then usual.

Not that I’ll ever admit it, he thought as he envisioned Scarttorshot sitting in the command chair enjoying the power at his finger circuits. He would’ve laughed at the idea had the terminal to his right exploded, showering him in sparks and detritus. “I can’t think of a better way to go.” He mumbled to himself depressing the firing studs and sending more lasers lancing out from his cannons.

Hearing Scattorshot’s order to abandon ship cut through his combat net causing him to release the grip he had on the firing mechanism. Looking around at the damage the bridge sustained was all the proof he needed to realize the death grip he held on the firing mechanism to keep from being thrown or jostled about.

Running away wasn‘t something he preferred but functioning to fight another day did have some appeal for him. Not wanting to leave without using every resource at his control, he activated the automatic firing sequence on his weapons and disabled the safety barriers. They cannons wouldn’t explode before the ship detonated but it’d something the Cons would remember.

With everything set he pushed himself from his seat, surprised at the amount of debris and scrap that fell from his shoulders and back at his sudden movement and made his way towards the escape pod. Lost in his battle trance he hadn’t noticed the way the ship was pitching but now he fought to maintain his balance every step of the way. A wave of relief swept over him when he grasped the frame of the escape pod and heaved himself in. If only there was a weapon for him to fire when they launched.

Severence - Bridge

"Serves those idiots right." Deadlock folded his arms over his chest and scoffed at the view screen as the small Autobot frigate fired from the cover of the atmospheric storms. They had been allowed to plot an irregular orbit within the swirling mass and under that cover so they could easily approach their victim with from a different angle. He had to admit, it wasn't a dishonorable strategy, especially if it caught a fool unawares. Of course he hated to see a powerful destroyer of the Decepticon Navy, take a brutal point bank bombardmant from a planetary forward particle cannon and a set of quad proton torpedoes. "They are just lucky they weren't sent to the pit for allowing such a ship to get the drop on them."

"Commander Deadlock." A sensor officer called from the port side of the bridge near a pair of tactical displays. "I have plotted a course for the Autobot vessel. They are headed right for us, though their speed is varying radically."

Deadlock did not break his optical lock with the forward viewer. "Well then, if they are headed right for us, divert power from the gravity well generators and reinforce primary shields."

"Lord Turmoil has not authorized the deactivation of the Gravity Well Generators. Such an action must be submitted to him for approval." A whiny political watchdog officer groused from the back near one of the well monitors.

"And to contact that bluthering simpering piece of obsolete tin will cost us our spark." He spoke with dire warning and venom in his voice as he looked over his shoulder at the lime green and tan Kaonian. "I will not tell you again. Reduce power by one tenth, divert power to forward shields and batteries... or I will use your smoldering carcass as a barrier against their burning husk."

The defiant gaze from the political operative broke immediately with a stunned shudder. He spun around in his chair and followed the commands he had been given.

Lights across the bridge briefly rose a level before the power was redirected the two new systems. On the viewer the shields sparkled briefly as the power rejeuvinated their coverage. "Target Autobot Frigate."

"Sir... I am detecting massive energy build up in Enemy Vessel... and multiple signals." A tactical operative called out as he rotated his own assigned turret grid towards the target grid. "They are escape pods."

"Now that just goes and spoils my fun. Very well. Target the enemy vessel and remove it before whatever is growing decides to reduce us to sub atomic particles."

Scarlet bursts of energy and boron lanced forth from the forward pair of quad batteries, skewering the Farstar straight through the bridge. The Severence forward batteries fired again and again, their partial charges making short work of the burning prow of the smoldering wreck. Deadlock ordered the massive cruiser to drop two degrees on the minus Z axis, ensuring full shields were moved to keep face against the diminishing fire from the enemy ship.

Then the Pestilence and Perdition angled their primary broadsides to finish off the job. "Return power to well generators and restore our orbit to optimize region of coverage."

The crew cheered as the Autobot vessel expanded in a silent orange ball of ionized gas and ever expanding particles, but a swift glance from Deadlock returned them back to their duties. "Commander, what of the Escape pods?"

"What of them?"

"Sir, if we act now, we can destroy them before they reach the safety of the planet below."

Deadlock pushed himself from the command chair and walked over to the brink of the forward viewer. His right hand brought his thumb and forefinger to his chin as he began to ponder the suggestion. Was it the expedient recommendation? Well that was a no metaprocessor. Destroy them now would secure Nebulos for the Decepticons and bring them that much closer to victory in this war... but was it the right thing? "Status of our power reserves."

"Depleted commander. It will take a full breem before we are able to tap them again. Diverting power from the Gravity Wells is ill advised as before... Except if there are any Autobot survivors on the planet, they would have noticed the drop in the well potency and be on the look out for further potential openings." The deck engineer spoke as he pulled a communicator cord from the access port located in his head.

"It would appear our choices have been made for us. Tactical, record descent of all escape pods and feed them to ground troops. I want damage reports submitted to my desk within the breem... And get me those damn Picket Frigates. Those scraplet harvesting protocons had better have damn good reasons for letting those oilslicks get that damn close.

Fortress Tenebrous

"Very well." Turmoil acknowledged Galen's words. This man clearly held more power within the council than most despite the facade of everyone being equal. He did act defeated and agreeable - and yet Turmoil could sense he had not submitted to him. This man could yet prove to be dangerous. Driven and bitter beings were often in the center of coming revolutions, for had not mighty Megatron himself been fueled by similar inner fire? Had such fire not been the reason for Turmoil's own choices in the beginning of it all?

This man needed to be watched, even more so than the rest of the council. And such surveillance needed to be arranged. >>"Cyclonus, I want unseen optics following every movement of the Council of Peers, particularly that man. I do not trust him. He is hiding something from us. Make the required arrangements with the Insecticons."<<

Having issued orders to arguably the most proficient Decepticon under his command, it was Turmoil's turn to give out more answers to the Council of Peers.

"Bold request but also a valid one." Turmoil chuckled after Soriza had spoken. "Prove yourself worthy over the coming years and there is no limit to where our cooperation will take you. Until you do, we will reward you with certain benefits on the way. Understand that directly ascending your species to another level of evolution could prove disastrous. We must proceed with careful, calculating steps."

"As an gesture of good faith, we will construct you a new seat of power to a location you may freely choose outside the before mentioned no access zone." The massive Decepticon commander added before turning his attention to his own troops as various reports from the space began to pour in.

>>“…they are abandoning ship. There are escape pods. Many of them. They are inbound towards Nebulos. I....yes....I have managed to catch one of them with the Perdition's tractor beam.”<<

“And still they try to flee. The…'insurgent' vessel has been destroyed by our orbital resources, Turmoil. There are escape capsules heading toward the planet now. Perhaps our ground forces would enjoy something to finish off? I can only imagine Snaptrap's sparklust, to say nothing of Skullgrin's."

"They are not anything but persistent Cyclonus." Turmoil scoffed. "It appears we are receiving the projected flight paths of the capsules from the Severance already. Round up all the mechs you need and hunt them down. I would prefer having them captured but if they leave you no choice, you know what to do."

"And Cyclonus. If by any chance you encounter Spartan's marauders - I have a score to settle with them." Turmoil added, his optical visor flashing eerily.

Farstar- Bridge

When the order to evacuate was given, Breakaway almost didn't hear it. The carnage and disaster whirling around him was doing a number to his audio receptors, and his particular location at the back of the bridge didn't lend much to his situation.

Nevertheless, the command somehow managed to reach him, and Breakaway forced himself to cut off his attack and retreat, stumbling and tripping, to the lower area of the command deck. He stood to the side as Scattorshot addressed the rest of the crew. "All hands ABANDON SHIP! To your designated Escape pods. I repeat All Hands, Abandon Ship! All of you, get to the pod. Lightspeed. Lock the Farstar on a collision course with that interdictor." Then the commander turned to face him and the two gunners. "You three get moving."

Unfamiliar with the deck and bridge crew's escape pod, Breakaway followed behind Strafe and Afterburner as they headed for the hatch that would lead to their escape. After the two bots had climbed in, Breakaway placed his foot in the frame of the entry, but hesitated. The whole "abandon ship" plan didn't sit well with him. Heroes didn't run. This was all wrong.

He was almost prepared to head back to the bridge and pick up the gun again, but stopped himself as he spotted Scattorshot and the remainder of the deck crew running down the corridor toward the pod. Reluctantly, Breakaway climbed in himself and sat down in the rear of the pod. As the pod was jettisoned, Breakaway sat uncomfortably between the Technobot crew. He watched out the small porthole that served as a window, and followed the Farstar's final trajectory with his optics. The Decepticons had made a mistake attacking them. And he would make sure they knew it when he landed.

Space, the Final Frontier

Scattershot held tight to the stabilization bar that had been arch wielded on the bulkhead before the airlock. His optics were transfixed upon the portal that gave the entire crew of the pod the entire scope of the remaining battle. Bursts of electrical discharges danced across the hull of the striken warship as sections depressurized under the intense volley of fire it absorbed by the distant Decepticon vessels. A few surviving guns on the deck of the vessel returned fire through their automated programming, but they were largely ineffective, and they soon were carved from the flesh bleeding of the Farstar. His fist tightened along the brace, nearly snapping it from its bolts as the pieces began to float away from the vessel, tumbling towards the planet below.

A pang in his energon core surged through out his entire body as the Severance guns tore through the bridge that had once been his seat of power. His fingers practically crushing the bar where it hung. But he remained silent in his approach. An emotional outburst or a tirade would not help their situation nor would it help him release the pent up anger he was feeling.

"And that is that..." He muttered to himself as the pod's thrusters pushed the vessel towards the preprogrammed forest landing zone. Scattershot moved to take his seat next to Lightspeed, when the entire pod was rocked by a major jolt.

Sparks flew across the interior, dancing off insulation and melting the rubber benches... sending the crew inside not holding on into a rapid tumble within the tight confines. Scattershot attempted to brace himself, but failed in his efforts and waas greeted by darkness.

A large section of the engineering deck had been blown off during the final detonation of the transwarp cell. Its concussive force along with its mass had glanced the command pod, knocking it off its programmed course and knocking out the thrusters that could correct it. In the end, the pod and the ship section spun out of control...

Nebulos - Equitorial Desert

Scattershot was the first to awaken. His body ached but the automated dianostics registered he was unharmed. Flexing his fingers he came to realize that he had snapped the bar from its bulkhead. He tossed it over his shoulder, barely noticing the clang against Afterburner's head, he pushed his way up through the mess of unconcious bodies that formed his command crew. Carefully he tapped on each of their heads, to start the reboot processes.

The Technobot commander then pulled himself up to the main airlock hatch. As the others began to stir, he pushed with all his might against the door. Again he drove his shoulder into the thick metal frame. Again and again until finally the massive bulk began to give way.

An entire cavern began to echo with the creek of metal as the airlock hatch pried open from its damaged frame. Scattershot emerged soon after, his spare acid pellet rifle carefully gripped in his left hand as he crossed the threshold. His optics shifted from standard light registry to that of night scan, and he began to take in the details of the darkened underground tunnel they had found themselves in. From above the roof was fractured in multiple points around a central hole in the ceiling. His scans fluxed briefly as he narrowed the focus on the hole noting there was very little light coming through. It appeared to be night on this side of the planet... Good, that would help in their flight.

Scattershot's sensors took in all of the data they could. Their surroundings were solid and most importantly stable. Formerly molten basalt flows gave him the clues he needed to determine that they were in what had once been a lava flow. He knelt down and scooped up fiberlike strands of glass and crushed them in his palm. Stepping over to the bottom of the hole in the ceiling and took in the steep angle and damage to the pod and hole itself that gave him further data he would need to determine where to proceed from there.

Carefully the Technobot jumped up and took hold of the lip of the carved out bore. He pulled himself up and crawled towards the surface... on a difficult incline. The transit took only a minute, but its result was a spectacular view. "Scrap." He cursed as his optics readjusted a second time to take in the moonlight that cascaded from the heavens above. He swung his head skyward and sneered at the stars above.

Turning his gaze to the environment they had found themselves, a near featureless desert. Dunes stretched as far as his optics could register... made up of sand and glass. Few traces of metals or organics could be detected, not that he expected anything could survive in this wasteland. The only break in the endless desert stretch was a lone mound that registered as a dome of actual rock... probably the same chemistry of basalt he had detected below.

At least the cons were not entirely on their trail... yet. They needed to move quickly. Scattershot climbed to the top of the nearest dune, and allowed his scanners to penetrate as deep and as far as he could get them to go. No power sources, except those of the escape pod could be detected. A twinge on his proximity scanner caused him to turn back towards the lone dome shaped mound in the near distance. Something about it didn't fit. He really could not place a finger on it, but from all of his experience and all of the battles he had fought on alien worlds... something in his core told him that they needed to head there.

Scattershot double checked the crew below hoping their reboots would have been complete by then. He shook his head and decided not to push the effort too much, only making sure to further expedite the rousing of Lightspeed before he disappeared back into the desert night.

Transforming into vehicle form, Scattershot ate the distance between the crashsite and the mound. He kept his power levels as low as possible as he did so to avoid detection, he protoformed twice using his momentium to run and jump further lowering and breaking up the energy signature. It took him only a few minutes before he arrived at the base of the mound.

His initial readings were confirmed, similar basalt chemical markers linked the tunnel to the dome. He crossed over a fractured piece of terrain and climbed up a sheer cliff. This close up, it definately did not resemble the perfect dome he had initially surmised. Not that it mattered. This was looking for shelter away from the crashsite and away from the Decepticon patrols that would soon arrive.

Finally Scattershot came across a slope that had been half buried by the sand. He jumped down upon the slope, hoping that the gentler grade would allow him better looks at potential weak points in the side of the hill. However as his foot landed onto the half dune... the ground gave way with a mighty crash. A thundering rush of air caught the scout by surprise and pulled him through the opening and back into the dark sea of night that was the underground.

Scattershot's optics readjusted to the thick layer of dust settling on his lap. The electric lamp embedded in his left shoulder automatically flared to life, casting a ghostly glow upon faded forms of rock formations. He pulled himself to his feet and regathered his acid pellet rifle. "Further evidence of an ancient aquifer and volcanic activities in the same damn place, in the middle of a desert." With a flick of his wrists he brushed off dust from his shoulders and joints before returning to his own scouting operation. Still it was a location off the beaten path. Difficult to find, at least he hoped it was....

His sensors alerted him again. This time to something that did not belong. He shrugged his light briefly as he pushed away a piece of fallen boulder that had fallen through the lava layer above. Pressing his fingers against the rock he began to smirk. Something artifical was down here. That was the only explaination for the carbon torch cuts into the basaltic rock. He allowed his fingers to trace the scars.

He damned his tactile sensors. They were not calibrated for detailed geology scans. He could tell that they were not made by natural volcanic processes, too straight and to perfect in their spacing. Even still beyond that he could not tell the age or how deep the rock was behind the cuts themselves. He gave a simple knock on the stone face and pressed his audio receptor to the wall itself to listen for the echo. It returned sometime later, faint and almost undetectible... but it was there.

Scattershot realized his time was up, he had to get back to his troops before they started listening the Afterburner's ramblings of paranoia. He opened a hip pocket and withdrew a small personalized beacon. He set the disc upon the stone face and activated a proximity sensor to respond only to his team's particular energy signature.

He picked up a rock sample that bore the same carbon scarring of the rock wall and transformed into his jetform.

Scattershot landed at the base of the hole with the rest of the survivors as they were emerging into the darkness. "Glad to see you five made it through. I do hope you had a nice nap, because its time we get moving." Light began to filter down through the hole in the ceiling. Sunrise was almost upon them. He realized that if they attempted to move on the surface, they would be exposed and for the most part... dead. He brought his weapon to bear and proceeded to seal the hole to protect their cover... he only hoped the sand on the surface would grant them the reprieve of such a burial.

"These lava tubes run for clicks throughout this sector... culimating at a vent some five clicks to the north east. Load up what gear you can. Nosecone, you're going to need to take alt form and lead the way. Afterburner, you'll provide look out for him... I trust you can handle a little dirt to fulfill that assignment." He let the comment hang before turning to Strafe and Lightspeed. "I do hope you two managed to get some data from the Farstar database before it was blown to bits. Sift through what we got, you two are going to be in the center of our column."

"Breakaway... congradulations on the reassignment. Welcome to the Technobots... you're with me." He grabbed a large pack of energon rations and slung it over his shoulder. "Alright Technobots... Lets move out... oh and Lightspeed... please remember where we parked, may need to comeback for our keys."

Nebulos - Equitorial Desert

Nosecone awoke to find everyone in relatively good shape and Scattorshot briefing everyone on recent happenings. And congratulating Breakaway on becoming a Technobot. Nosecone walked over and shook the hand of Breakaway in a friendly congratulations. And Nosecone looked back over to Scattorshot when his name was spoken. He was supposed to lead them into the tunnels with his vehicular form. Finally, it was time he did what he was supposed to do!

"Yes sir." Nosecone said as he transformed into his drill mode and drove forward, slowly.

It would take a while, but they would get to the magma tubes sooner, or later.

Space - Approaching Nebulos

Strafe’s optics widened in shock and disgust as he watched the destruction of the Farstar through the wide portal of the escape pod. It saddened him to see their ship engulfed in enemy fire, but it angered him even more so as he had hoped to serve aboard the vessel for orns to come. At least the Farstar had gone down in a blaze of glory, disabling a Decepticon warbird before doing so. There was some comfort in knowing that, but not much.

Something then struck the pod hard, forcing Strafe’s attention away from the image of the floundering Autobot ship. The entire capsule shook and tumbled end over end from what the aerial gunner could only guess had been a blast from one of the other ‘Con vessels. Although, it didn’t feel like the typical laser strike, but more like something solid had collided with them. Regardless, the pod was now spiraling out of control towards the planet below and Strafe found it difficult to hold on.

“Slaggit!” The panicked Technobot yelled as he lost his grip and fell out of his chair. He landed on someone before then being tossed back across the tight space and hitting his cranial unit against the side of the escape pod. It was at that point when Strafe lost consciousness, his limp frame falling to the floor as chaos consumed the capsule’s interior.

Nebulos - Equatorial Desert

Strafe awoke still lying face up on the floor of the escape pod. He wasn’t sure how long it had been since he blacked out, but his head was still throbbing from the hit it had previously sustained so it couldn’t have been too long. Rubbing the back of his cranial unit, the aerial gunner picked himself up and carefully climbed out of the capsule, finding himself in a darkened lava tube. "This doesn't look like a forest," Strafe muttered as he looked around and noticed that the rest of his comrades appeared to be up and about, if not a bit groggy like himself. At least they were all accounted for, which was more than he could say for the rest of the Farstar’s crew who had manned the numerous other escape units that were jettisoned just before the ship’s untimely ruination. Hopefully, they all found their way safely to Nebulos and were heading for the rendezvous point at this very moment. Although, if past experience was any indication, not all of the crew had survived the descent.

Looking up, Strafe could make out the large hole the escape pod had created on impact, which led directly to the surface where a small amount of daylight began to filter in. He had no sooner noticed this when Scattershot flew down the hole and landed at the base. With sunrise upon them it would be more prudent to travel underground to avoid any Decepticon search parties that would likely be sent after them and these lava tubes provided the perfect if not slightly claustrophobic passageways. The nervous Technobot was not thrilled with traveling in such tight confines, having just emerged from a cramped escape pod. However, the alternative of moving about on the surface and risk almost certain enemy detection was something that excited him even less. Therefore, the aerial gunner would suck it up and do what had to be done.

“I’m not sure what Lightspeed was able to download, but I managed to retrieve some files from the database during all the commotion and store it on a datapad,” Strafe responded to Scattershot as he pulled out the device and began examining its contents. “At first glance it looks like I’ve got a good series of geographical maps of the planet’s surface. Not sure how complete they are, but they should aid us in finding the rendezvous point. I’ll keep looking through what I’ve got here to see what other useful information there is.”

Strafe then took up his assigned position with Lightspeed at the center of the group, only looking up from his work to give a friendly nod to the newest member of the team. “Congrats, Breakaway! Nice to have another flyer on board. I’m sure you’ll do just fine with us.” The aerial gunner patted him on the shoulder and flashed him a smile before returning his attention to the contents of the datapad.

Nebulos - Equatorial Desert

Slowly, and with great difficulty Afterburner’s system began to come online. Not the most pleasant of experiences and one he definitely wouldn’t want to repeat. The first thing his optics were able to focus on was that of his fellow Technobots as they each struggled from their own offline status.

Groaning he leaned forward as fast as his energon deprived chassis allowed him. Within seconds he’d be fully functional once his power core was back at optimum efficiency but that was then, he didn’t feel the need to wait for something he should have when he wanted it. The moans around him told him the others in their pod were functional… wait a minute. He did a quick headcount and came up on short, seeing the opened hatch on the escape pod he knew where their “beloved” leader had gone.

“Blasted energon sucker.” Mumbling to himself Afterburner forced himself into a standing position by pushing a stray appendage off of him before the owner could move. As grumpy as ever he stepped over those remaining in his way ignoring their complaints and climbed out of the hatch. Those just waking, either driven by anger towards him or their own determination, followed him when they were able.

At least everyone was functional, he’d give Scattorshot the benefit there. Of course if he went and got himself shot by the Cons… he shook his head. As much as he fought with his commander he didn’t want to see him slagged. At least not until he got first crack at him. Despite his complaining Afterburner didn’t want to be the leader, it was just so much easier to point out another mech’s problems. Of course that outlook changed with the return of Scattorshot.

"These lava tubes run for clicks throughout this sector... culimating at a vent some five clicks to the north east. Load up what gear you can. Nosecone, you're going to need to take alt form and lead the way. Afterburner, you'll provide look out for him... I trust you can handle a little dirt to fulfill that assignment."

Why wasn‘t he surprised? He stood and glared at Scattorshot as he turned to the others wondering just how much energon his leader was giving Maximus to abuse him like that. “Let’s go Nosecone.” He didn’t care his comrade already started his work. His mood took a nosedive in the last few seconds. “Better make sure there’s plenty of head space. Wouldn’t want Scattorshot to get ‘hung up’ along the way.”

Nebulos—Equatorial Desert

Nosecone’s words had resounded deep within Lightspeed’s spark. He was not only going to miss the Farstar, he was nothing short of devastated to see their ship go out in the manner that it had. It was another casualty of the war. For Lightspeed, it was no less a casualty than any of the other unfortunate members of their crew who had also sacrificed their existence in service to the Autobot cause. He was already determined to begin construction of another, in memorial to the ship that had just fallen. That, however, would be thought for another day, when they had more time and resources. Neither were in particular abundance just now.

The crash landing had done little to pull Lightspeed out of his temporary funk, save for the brief respite from consciousness altogether, but Scattershot’s efforts eventually paid off and the Technobot pilot had been roused along with the others.

“I…I’m not sure if I was able to get anything worth mentioning,” Lightspeed muttered, thankful that Strafe apparently had. Now was probably not the best time to go sifting through all of that anyway, not with the near certainty that the Decepticons would not give up their pursuit until they were standing over charred corpses. Lightspeed had no intention of giving them the satisfaction.

Tentatively, Lightspeed fell in to the position that Scattershot had ordered, along with the others. They really needed to get as far away from the crash site as quickly as they could. Scourge and his crew would undoubtedly be looking to exact revenge for any casualties that they had incurred. Casualties that they themselves had provoked in the first place. It was Decepticon logic. Lightspeed didn’t presume to understand it.

“I hope the other pods fared better than our ship.”
___

The Perdition—Bridge

The Spectro unit registered some unusual activity on the part of Deadlock’s vessel, but the securing of the captured escape pod quickly took priority. Quickly, Reflector’s entire focus was on ensuring the containment of any surviving Autobots within the pod.

“I will examine the pod directly,” the Viewfinder unit said, stepping away from his console while the other two composite units continued their tasks aboard the Perdition’s bridge.

>>"Reflector, supplement the trajectory data of the Severance. Forward all readings to Tenebrous,"<< came Cyclonus' cold voice, through the ship's communications array.

"It will be done."
__

Fortress Tenebrous

His business with Reflector concluded for the time being, Cyclonus spared a brief glance in the direction of the Nebulans as Turmoil had indicated his intentions for their surveillance. The aerial warrior could think of no task better suited to the Insecticons and the unique relationship they had managed to establish with the population already.

>>Bombshell, Shrapnel, Kickback…you are to shift your integration priorities from the population at large to the Council of Peers itself. It is from their leadership that we will maintain compliance from the masses. You will find any dissent and eliminate it.<<

He then continued examining the information that was coming in from the various Decepticon orbital resources. Getting what he needed in terms of vital statistics and trajectories, Cyclonus turned to Turmoil, offering a nod indicating his understanding and leaving Tenebrous’ main gathering hall altogether.

Skullgrin was among the first Decepticons that Cyclonus encountered, along with the Horrorcons and other Decepticons who were milling around the general area. Given what they would be tasked with accomplishing, he was confidant that they would be among the most capable of seeing it done, but Cyclonus had no particular qualms about assigning all available Decepticons to this task. He was sure that Tenebrous would be just as a secure with Turmoil alone within its corridors as it would be with all of them there.

“The Autobots have once again decided to rear their heads,” Cyclonus said, addressing all the Decepticons in the near vicinity of the fortress. “Numerous escape pods have been jettisoned from an approaching ship. We are to see to it that their escape is short-lived.”

Cyclonus internally accessed the same information that Tenebrous’ systems had been receiving from the Severance and the Perdition and began transmitting it to the others.

“Spread out and capture the occupants of every pod you find. If they resist, terminate them.”

Nebulos- Equitorial Desert

Breakaway's optics flickered on slowly, adjusting their focus and dilation to accommodate for the sudden change in lighting. Slowly moving his head, he noted that, indeed, the lights of the pod were broken, but there was a faint glow coming from the open hatch. Raising his head to test the joints in his neck, he was astonished to discover that his podmates were seemingly strewn about the ceiling, each one in various states of awakening. Glancing around once more, looking for some sort of explanation to this anomaly, one of the Technobots- Afterburner, he assumed, due to the tone of the grunts and disregard for his teammates, but he couldn't be sure in the light- stood up and pushed past him, causing the aerial Autobot to swing back and forth from his feet. Slowly coming to the realization of what must be happening, he looked down and, yes, his feet were tangled in a large knot of wires that held him hanging from roof.

Swinging himself back and forth faster using the momentum of Afterburner's push, Breakaway grasped the wires in one servo and yanked at the base of the clump with the other until the wires gave way and he crashed to the ground. Rolling into a sitting position, he gave himself a once-over to check for any damage that might have occurred when the pod landed. Satisfied that there were no wounds that would need extensive care, Breakaway hauled himself to his feet and trotted outside to join the rest of the crew, just in time to witness Scattorshot's return.

The Technobot leader transformed back into his robot mode, looked his crew over, no doubt making sure they were all online and well, then began to issue his orders.

"Glad to see you five made it through. I do hope you had a nice nap, because its time we get moving. These lava tubes run for clicks throughout this sector... culimating at a vent some five clicks to the north east. Load up what gear you can. Nosecone, you're going to need to take alt form and lead the way. Afterburner, you'll provide look out for him... I trust you can handle a little dirt to fulfill that assignment. I do hope you two managed to get some data from the Farstar database before it was blown to bits. Sift through what we got, you two are going to be in the center of our column." He then looked directly at Breakaway and stepped forward, slinging a pack of energon rations onto his back. "Breakaway... congradulations on the reassignment. Welcome to the Technobots... you're with me." Stunned, it took Breakaway a moment to fully realize what had just been said. Barely mumbling a "Yes, commander, thank you, sir," in the middle of Scattorshot's following order to "move out", he quietly accepted Nosecone's congratulatory handshake and nodded a quiet "thank you" to Strafe.

Standing quietly in thought as the rest of the Technobots fell into position, a large grin slowly spread across his face as the information finally sunk in. Glancing up at the others, he jogged back to the pod and picked up a large, metal box of important-looking mechanical equipment and struggled to carry a small bag of energon with it. He then ran back to join Scattorshot at the back of the group, hefting the weight of the box a little higher on his shoulder and pulling out his burst gun with his free hand- just in case.

Spinning around and pointing his gun at the dark areas of the tunnels, Breakaway continued to follow the group backwards. No 'Cons were gonna sneak up on him, no sir. Squinting at a particularly suspicious shadow a little farther down the cavern, he turned his head slightly to speak to Scattorshot. "So, commander," he started, pulling back his gun and turning fullways towards his superior. He was beginning to feel a little more comfortable in the group, walking beside their leader. "Where do you think the other pods landed? Do you think they're alright? It shouldn't have been to hard for the Decepticons to track their pods, or even ours, right?"

Mount Melanos – Workshop

This wasn't the first time Repugnus had segregated himself from the Monsterbot unit in order to operate in a solitary manner. Or the second. Or the third. Or even the fourth. Grotusque reflected on the issue for a moment, concluding it was the ninth occasion. No, wait, the tenth.

That sounded about right.

So his team-mate had attained double figure status when it came to the disappearing act. While Grotusque viewed it as an inconvenience he had to admit it was an impressive accomplishment. He ought to congratulate Repugnus on it. Give him a good pat on the back, at least.

With the scene before him largely presenting the Autobot Beta Site, Grotusque released a sigh of relief. When Repugnus had arrived at the decision to vanish—of course at the most inappropriate moment—he had left Grotusque the wonderful task of dealing with a squad of Decepticons. He wasn't aware of this fact; the Decepticons emerged from the thick vegetation as soon as he made his departure.

As it went when a lone Autobot encountered a squad of Decepticons, an ugly battle unfolded. For the Decepticons, not Grotusque. The poor fools didn't exactly know what was happening. And neither did Grotusque; a breem or two later he realised there were none left to oppose. The whole experience warranted a shrug from him, and he commenced his journey to where he believed Repugnus would end up.

He stood before the workshop's entrance, hoping the Autobot he was seeking was occupying the shop inside. Grotusque prodded a small, triangular shaped button and the chime emitted its sound. This was it.

“Oh, sweetspark! I'm home!"

Rainforest of Patalappu

The promise of action had caught the attention of usually difficult to motive Snapdragon who despite his tendency towards extreme laziness had grown bored. And given the order to search and capture the Autobots that had escaped the destruction of their spaceship came from Cyclonus, a Decepticon Snapdragon could respect - there was little holding the notorious Horrorcon from joining the action. Within less than a single klik, Snapdragon had sought out Apeface and dragged his partner in crime to the bounce pads of fortress Tenebrous. And brilliant flash later, the duo had materialed above the vast rainforest of Patalappu where few escape pods had landed into according the data delivered by Reflector.

The rainforest was massive in volume, the highest branches of the giant trees reaching for the sky nearly at the height of half a mile above their roots. In other words, the enormous size of the forest made even transformers the size of the Horrorcons humbled. The forest also proved them an excellent hunting grounds given their agility and abilities. Hunting down the Autobots from the giant forest also proved far more challenge than looking for the pods that hat hit the Plains of Thok for example. And as far as Snapdragon was concerned, he was content to leave it for the Seacons to track the escape pods fallen into the vast oceans of Nebulos, nor he had been particularly interested in going after the pods fallen into the Equator Desert. The mere thought of all that sand getting stuck to his joints made the ferocious Decepticon shudder. No, he had selected the perfect hunting ground that was likely to prove to be far more entertainting than the other options. And Snapdragon was pretty sure Apeface agreed with him. With trees so huge that their branches could hold the weight of a transformer, Snapdragon was pretty sure he'd have to try his best to even keep up with Apeface's speed in setting like this.

"There." He said, pointing at a clearly recent hole in the canopy of the trees. "Could as well start from there or do you see other potential targets Apes?"

Edges of Equatorial Desert

[I HUNT! HUNT! FIND AND KILL!]

Thats the basic idea, yes.

Skullgrins tank mode rolls through the wasteland with little trouble, as arable scrub turns to rocky outcroppings before becoming desert proper. He moved ahead, eager, wanting to get a good look at these lost Autobots before he figured how to beat them in the most excruciating manner possible.

Half of Skullgrin was dimly aware that there were probably several Autobots in the region, and if he wasn't careful he might be outnumbered. But this half was certain he could figure out the situation and find allies in the other Decepticons approaching the location before he got into any trouble. The other half was certain of his invincibility.

There are a lot of places to hide here, but not many that would count as cover. I can easily level any collection of sand dunes they cower behind...but if their commander is smart enough to realise this, they'll likely be sheltering somewhere a little sturdier.

[That means we know where they'll go! And where they'll DIE!!]

Indeed. Theres no fortress that can keep me out.

Equatorial Desert - Under the Ancient Lavabed

Scattershot finished tying off the sack of energon rations to one of his multiple holster clips as the rest of the column finalized their formation. The team commander knelt down at the base of the command escape pod. His trained optics gave it a cursory once over, considering the major design flaws regarding having multiple bridge officers being locked into one of these damn things. If it had not been for the mercy of the Farstar's debris knocking them from their course to this barren waste, they would have probably been picked off by the picket ships. Thank Primus for small mercies.

He pressed his palm against the hatch doors and closed them tight. He then proceeded to pull the massive cylinder towards him at a steep angle. His fingers bent around a sturdy piece of reinforcing cable as he knelt down and pulled it upwards in a fluid hefting motion.

Scattershot braced himself for the immediate increase of weight upon his frame. His left hand held tight against the straps and metal bar of the Escape Pod as if it were some common duffle bag. His right hand flicked around twice before he thumbed the safety to his weapon into the off position as he fell into the rear of the column, Escape Pod and all.

Three Hours Later

The column's advance had been slow going, purposely planned out by Scattershot's instructions, and probably much to the dismay of Afterburner and Strafe, patience were never their strongest programming codes. The slow advance, either by march or by tunneling into some dense rock by Nosecone, was methodical. It afforded them the benefit of keeping their seismic registrations to the absolute minimum, helping them blend into the area's natural subsurface vibrations. In addition, it allowed Scattershot himself the opportunity to rest his shoulder from time to time and adjust to the intense extra tonnage he had added to his leg struts.

"Alright." He paused the column with an authoritative command. "Pack it in for a moment." He ordered them to a halt as he lowered the massive bulk to the ground, resting it against the smoothed obsidian glass wall framed by basalt and flecks of granite.

The team had put significant distance between themselves and the crash site. While they had topped off before they left the relative safety of the Jovian planet, before they engaged in their near suicide run towards this Primus forsaken rock, they had no interstellar link with the outside network to tell them how long the majority of them had been unconscious. Add to that he had continually ordered them to take different directions away and towards the volcanic homing beacon.

The added drilling and marching had to be affecting his troops. Not to mention the consistent whining of Afterburner about dust particles and such being thrown in his face each time Nosecone's drill touched soil.

With a stretch of his now freed shoulder, Scattershot pulled out five energon ration packs and passed them out to the members of his team. Lightspeed was first, followed by Strafe, Nosecone, Afterburner and then Breakaway. His own systems did not register significant shortages, and even if they had he would have refused to partake. They needed a look out while they refueled and gathered their strength.

He reactivated the safety on his weapon and pulled out the clip. Examining its contents to ensure it was fully armed, he slapped the ammunition clip back into place and deactivated the safety. He pulled himself off of the wall he had been leaning against and made his way to the fork in the road leading away from the volcanic vent. The opposite direction, towards the left, would put them back on path towards their destination... but he knew well enough they needed depth for their approach.

"Lightspeed. This is the best time as any, check for potential damage and make necessary field repairs. We don't have a lot of time here, so they'll have to patch jobs... and they'll have to be quick. I am going to go cover our tracks a touch better than we have been."

Scattershot darted swiftly down the tunnel they had yet to venture through. Once he was out of optical or audio range, the Technobot Commander stopped near the base of a three way split. Tracks leading towards the tunnel the Technobot column had taken were barely evident in the darkness, and would only be found if one knew who or what to look for. Even still, they needed to cover those to ensure one of the uncountable plethoras of Decepticon trackers would not locate them easily, or at least not give them fair warning.

His chest plate opened and a small tray rolled to exposure. Scattershot quickly plucked two discs from the tray and quickly pulled off the adhesive covers from each. He then carefully placed each disc in strategic places along the ceiling of the tunnel where they had already ventured. He repeated the process for the other tunnel mouths. He then proceeded to reach in and grab a spool of mono filamint wire. Carefully he attached wire to the two explosive patches at the ceiling and ground, creating a vertical trip wire... and repeated the process for the other pairs.

Once satisfied, he replaced the spool on the tray and retracted it into his chest. Pivoting quietly he stepped back into the tunnel from which he had come, ensuring a little extra pressure in his step to make sure a deeper print was made.

Equatorial Desert - Under the Ancient Lavabed

Was there ever a less fulfilling venture than to guard an underground drill from… what exactly? Falling rocks? Flying dirt? Maybe the occasional microbe Nosecone disturbed while taking them on such a wonderfully exotic adventure? For whatever the reason this had to be Scattorshot‘s ultimate misjudgment. As things went, Afterburner didn’t mind sneaking up on the enemy so long as he got to extinguish some Decepticon sparks. But tunneling off to Primus knows where? He didn’t sing up for this and when they got back he’d put in for a transfer. Maybe an ore mining colony somewhere, they were always under threat of attack and looking around he definitely had the skill set after this venture. He should’ve at least been allowed to blast some of the tunnel clear.

Hearing Scattorshot call a halt almost went unheeded as Afterburner was busy planning his life post Scattorshot. Nosecone heard the order and halted as did the others but Afterburner just looked at his fellow Technobot wondering what he was doing. It wasn’t until he noticed the energon rations being passed out did he stop himself from saying something to Nosecone.

Grumpy, covered in dirt, and in an all around bad mood he took the offered energon without a word of gratitude. “I don’t see why we need this, Nosecone maybe, but we’ve just been following…”

"Lightspeed. This is the best time as any, check for potential damage and make necessary field repairs. We don't have a lot of time here, so they'll have to patch jobs... and they'll have to be quick. I am going to go cover our tracks a touch better than we have been."

Just as quick as that Scattorshot was gone back down the tunnel. “Behind.” Afterburner finished his statement anyway, not caring who heard it or not. “Nice talking to you boss.” He mumbled, ingesting the energon. Like he would really need it at the rate they were going. His energon levels were still at acceptable levels so that wasn't a concern.

He glanced at Lightspeed, this really was not what he signed up for at all. Where were the Cons when he needed them? "Looks like you're in charge... Boss."

Nebulon Space

The turbulance caused by the exploding Farstar shook the escape pod to the point where Brainstorm debated the possibilities of their survival. The sparking and smoke filled interior blinded them from seeing anything through the window leaving the occupants to put their faith in the computer’s programmed course. Brainstorm sat quietly thinking of ways to improve the pod’s handling for future designs when a metal shard from the Farstar punctured through the hull and impaled the bot next to him.

The explosion of sparks and lubricants brought an series of screams of shock from the other mechs, especially the one across from the larger warrior whose spark was extinguished and the vessel was pitched in an uncontrolable somersault. Brainstorm watched everything unfold around him but for different reasons than the others. The lose of the bot would be mourned but he began to formulate a shield equation that would prevent such an action from happening at a later time. The pitching of their salvation was something they could do nothing about as the computer fought to maintain its course. The only action available to them was to hold onto something and pray Primus would guide them. With too many variables to focus on solving, Brainstorm remained lost in his equations and theories when he blissfully went offline from the impact of his pod on the hard surface of the Equatorial Desert.

Equatorial Desert

Sometime later, he wasn’t sure how long as his internal chronometer was shut off, activity returned to Brainstorm’s positronic net. With methodical precision his systems began to reactivate and the internal scans informed him of the impact sending him and into stasis lock. As injuries went, his scans showed he was at near optimal operating level aside from a few unregistered burnouts at various points.

Fully awake, he reran his internal scans on a higher setting to fully determine the extent of his injuries. After a moment the information wasn’t as bad as he initially believed. Each of the “problem” area was a damaged transformation circuit that wasn’t necessary for his survival. It did mean, however, that he wouldn’t be able to transform until the intricate circuit was repaired. Not a difficult procedure, but one he knew would have to wait.

When he was sure his injuries weren’t anything of major importance, Brainstorm gazed around him at what was left of the pod. Sun light poured in through an opening above him illuminating the ghastly scene. The pod crashed nose first at a ninety degree angle collapsing it upon itself like a crumpled can. He didn’t need to look a second time to see the others were dead. Having survived by shear luck, for the size of the impaled bot to his side was wedged in the narrow folds of the crumpled pod mere meters above him with the engine and locking mechanisms resting above on the once strong back.

With effort, Brainstorm pulled himself free of the tangle of debris and limbs of his comrades. The space he had to work in wasn’t much, but if he remained where he was he’d join his comrades in death. Looking above him and ignoring the frozen expression of shock on the face of the Impaled, as he called him, he saw room to the one side where he could pull himself through and get out of the confines of this Cybertronian-made tomb.

Taking a firm handhold on a pair of rungs above the motionless form he realized he hadn’t known the names of those in the escape pod with him. A loss of immeasurable meaning settled on him for the briefest of moments. If he hadn’t been so preoccupied with his thought… No, he pushed those thoughts aside and pulled himself through the opening.

At first he didn’t think he’d make it when he became wedged but through fierce determination he thrashed and pulled harder, dislodging the mech responsible for saving his life. Though the distance wasn’t more than a few meters, the sound of the mech and locking gear crashing where Brainstorm was until a minute earlier caused him reason to pause. With the locking mechanism gone, the opening where the light came from was wide open.

Once outside Brainstorm noticed for the first time that he was covered in lubricant from the poor sacrificial bot back in a heap in the pod. There were still some components he could salvage, of that Brainstorm was certain of. First, and most important, was to see if he could salvage any energon. He doubted if any of the containers remained undamaged but he had to hope. Gazing at the former transport a few ideas began working in his meticulous mind.

Fortress Tenebrous

Soriza took in the response of the large, metallic figure. That they were at all interested in some form of technology sharing between their two civilizations was an indication that there were positives to be found in this less than ideal situation. Every negotiation needed a starting point, and she was pleased to have been the one to broach the subject first with the non-natives.

“Gratitude, Turmoil. I speak for many when I say that we look forward to the opportunities that your arrival on our planet brings to us all,” Soriza said. Her words were followed by a smattering of applause from various corners of the Peer assemblage.

"Perhaps this construction you offered could be completed within the boundaries of Splendora? I know that many of my colleagues would love nothing more than to wile away their remaining years there anyway," Soriza added, numerous members of the Council of Peers nodding in agreement at her suggestion.

"As Splendora's representative at this assemblage, I can say that all would be welcome!" Mordecai said. "Provided it is defended and does not meet the same fate as our unfortunate sister city, Koraja."
___

By all that is just and reasonable, someone bring this farce to its rightful conclusion, Galen thought, listening as Soriza received an answer to her question and other members of the Council of Peers discussed the situation amongst themselves.

I guess it’s to be me.

“While I seek not to interrupt the curiosities of my colleagues, there is much to be done if Koraja is to be evacuated in the manner in which you have dictated to us,” Galen said rising. “By your leave, I will return to the capital proper. My edicts will be available for Peer review by sunfall. We shall send the final versions to the citizenry by this time tomorrow.”
___

Rainforest of Patalappu

Apeface crashed down through a grove of thick, greenish-blue fauna, sending some of the indigenous wildlife scattering. The large, simian-designed mechanoid looked ahead. He and the other Horrorcon had gone too long without the feel of Autobot steel bending beneath their grip. They were going to have that satisfaction again.

"There. Could as well start from there or do you see other potential targets Apes?" Snapdragon had said.

"Nah. 'S good a starting place as any. Little bots don't know this kinda terrain like we do, don't care who it is. They're not gonna get far."

Apeface leapt again, clutching one of the massive trees. It buckled slightly under the Cybertronian's immense weight, but it didn't break. It wasn't long before the Horrorcon was looking over the small, recent clearing that Snapdragon had indicated before.

"Well well well...," Apeface chuckled, looking down at the empty escape pod and the burnt foliage nearby.

>>"You're right Snaps. 'Bots. Their little coward pod at least. Running for their little sparks, I'll bet."<<

Fortress Tenebrous

Lockdown headed toward the entrance to the main gathering hall, but stopped when he noticed Cyclonus enter the general area along with Skullgrin and the Horrorcons. The bounty hunter took up a position out of the direct line of sight and listened intently to what the Commandant had to say. It seemed that the Autobots had lost a battle and jettisoned from their ship in escape pods, which were now littered across the planet.

Lockdown rubbed his chin in thought as he watched the gathered Decepticons pile out of the Fortress in search for their trophies. It was then that Lockdown took notice of Skullgrin. The siege warrior had taken on his tank mode and headed out. The bounty hunter took on his vehicle mode and took off after him.

The Edges of Equatorial Desert

Lockdown kept his distance behind Skullgrin letting the tank-former plow through the flora and then through the rocks finally coming to the outskirts of the desert. Scanners on high, Lockdown took in the barren expanse and noted that there were not many places that any surviving Autobots could take cover behind. Good. It’ll be that much easier to catch you.

The bounty hunter took another scan of the area, but this time he got a reading that looked quite promising. He quickly opened up a comm line with Skullgrin to let him know of his findings.

>>”I’ve got something on my scanners, Gruesome. There seems to be some kind of tunnel system beneath the desert floor.”<<

Lockdown stopped and transformed to his bipedal mode. He gazed out over the barren landscape before settling on a distant mound. From the distance he was at the mound looked as though it was comprised of solid rock, with ruled it out as being a mere sand dune. The bounty hunter performed another scan, this time he swept the area much more deeply. A few moments later he turned to look at Skullgrin, a smirk on his face.

“They’re here. Or rather they were just a few hours ago.”

He pointed to the mound. “It seems that our prey has gone underground. I suggest we head there. I’ll be able to track them once we find a way in to the tunnels.”

Lockdown quickly took to the air and made his way toward the mound.

Equitorial Desert- Under the Ancient Lavabed

Not long after the Technobot convoy began their journey down the tunnels, Breakaway learned that attempting conversation with Scattorshot was pointless. He had seemingly retreated deep in thought, and any questions Breakaway bothered to ask fell on deaf receivers. They had been walking for hours, and the only words the commander had to say were short and instructional, before going back to his thoughts.

After a while, the group was ordered to a stop. Breakaway sheepishly set down his small load next to the pod that Scattorshot had been dragging behind him and accepted the rations being handed out. As the commander wandered off, Breakaway instead trotted over and crouched behind a large piece of metal that was jutting out of the damaged pod. Holstering his burst gun, he instead pulled out his fusion rifle, resting it on the shredded steel and staring down its sights into the tunnel behind them. He was still not sure of just how safe they were. From the looks of things up in the atmosphere, the planet was likely deep into the later stages of an invasion, which meant there could be Decepticons anywhere.

As the other Technobots shuffled around behind him, Breakaway hunkered down and squinted his optics through his gun's scope. They were gonna have to fight sooner or later, and Breakaway was gonna make sure his side was the one to strike first.

Equatorial Desert- Under the Ancient Lava Bed

The deliberately slow walk lasted for several hours, all the while Strafe kept himself occupied with the data pad full of information he had procured from the Farstar just before their escape and the ship’s untimely destruction. The data contained therein was mostly in regards to the planet they now found themselves on, Nebulos. There were detailed maps of the terrain along with vital intel on the dominate species of this world. They were small, organic and also pacifists, which meant they had little to no real weaponry in order to combat the Decepticons. And what weapons they might have were likely going to be ineffective against the much larger invaders. It figured that the ‘Cons would choose a peaceful planet such as this one to stage a massive incursion. It was as cowardly an act as it was devastating to the green-skinned people that lived here. Now, each Nebulon’s fate would either be slave labor or death. Neither was an acceptable option in the aerial gunner’s processor. They needed to get out from underneath this lava flow and start helping the indigenous population before it was too late.

However, before Strafe could say anything, Scattershot had stopped the convoy for some much needed rest. The Technobot Commander then quickly handed out energon rations before disappearing down a side tunnel. The aerial gunner ingested his energon goodies, helping to keep his fuel cells at optimal levels. He ignored Afterburner’s griping and remained focused on the situation at hand. Strafe was as eager as anyone to do something besides walking around aimlessly through these lava tubes. Truth be told, it had become a bit claustrophobic down here, making Strafe more unnerved than usual. And when Breakaway took up a position behind the damaged escape pod, pointing his weapon back down the tunnel, the aerial gunner couldn’t help but jump a bit.

“You see something, Breakaway?” Strafe asked as he placed the data pad away and quickly pulled out his heat-ray rifle. The anxious Technobot took up a position on the opposite side of the lava tube from where the young flier was situated and knelt down behind an outcropping of rock and granite. Strafe pointed his weapon down the already traveled tunnel, his optics scanning the darkness for any signs of a Decepticon hunting party. The aerial gunner’s actuators gripped his rifle tightly, almost causing him to pull the trigger prematurely.

“I don’t see anything down there yet,” Strafe called over to the newest member of the team as the on-edge gunner managed to remain in control of his weapon. “But that doesn’t mean the 'Cons aren't down here somewhere so stay alert, Breakaway. Those sneaky Sweeps could suddenly come flying out of the shadows and attack us at any moment!” The hung-strung mech narrowed his optics and he remained focused down the darkened lava tube from where they had just come.