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Longevity - Bridge

"Oh talent, is that what they're calling it now." Sideswipe mocked as Sandstorm took control of the helm. The red Lambro-brother then received word from the repair group that everyone was safely aboard the Omega Sentinel.

"Everyone's safe aboard." Sideswipe informed Springer, "Also Howlstrike said something about a scratching post and not damaging it. Think he means you, bro. Heh."

"Well I'll try my damnedest then." The green and yellow triplechanger quipped back to help keep the morale flowing in the cabin. As the Wrecker commander looked back up towards the viewscreen before him, he noticed a cloud-like shape forming close to where the sensors were picking up the supposed Decepticon ship. "What in the pit is-"

"Hey Spings, sensors are picking up on a lot of high speed targets. Their course is pretty hellbent on getting to the big guy." Sideswipe continued to monitor his display screen with itchy trigger fingers. "Oh this has to be some joke... It's sweeps sir, and lots of them!"

The wrecker commander shifted back up in the commander chair to a more upright position. "Then we gotta hold them off from reaching Omega Supreme. Sandstorm, set is on an intercepting path. 'Swipes, inform Howlstrike they'll be expecting company. And Sunstreaker... Light 'em up."

Longevity--Bridge

"Hey Spings, sensors are picking up on a lot of high speed targets. Their course is pretty hellbent on getting to the big guy." Sideswipe reported. "Oh this has to be some joke... It's sweeps sir, and lots of them!" Sandstorm picked them up on his console also. Figures. Oh well, they couldn't have evaded these guys forever anyway. Now they'd get to fight, and Sandstorm preferred that option anyway.

"Then we gotta hold them off from reaching Omega Supreme. Sandstorm, set is on an intercepting path. 'Swipes, inform Howlstrike they'll be expecting company. And Sunstreaker... Light 'em up."

"Roger that, chief," Sandstorm said, as the ship jutted forward and picked up speed. The Sweeps were also.

The Longevity sliced through the open darkness and it was only a matter of astroseconds before laser fire began to rip through coldness of space, Sweep craft maneuvering up and around them. Sandstorm did his best to keep the shuttle from being an easy target. It wound through the first wave and then pulled up and around, unleashing a hailstorm of blasts that sent one Sweep spiraling off in a blaze.

Longevity:Bridge

The tactical displays lit up with an explosion of colors and alert signals as intense energy signatures slammed into a large piece of floating stellar flotsam. Shards of ice and dust sprayed out across the region like a thin nearly translucent mist that refracted the dismal light from the central star several thousand astronomical units away. Crimson flashes on the primary screens began scrolling at incredible speeds, barely noticeable to the untrained optic... radiation indicators, energy levels and projected weapon's dispersal patterns.

"Scrap," Sunstreaker swore briskly under his breath as his fingers began dancing on the controls. "Weapons coming online, full charges to all primary armaments confirmed. Shields fully cycled and established." Immediately Sunstreaker slammed his fist down onto a flashing toggle to the left of his terminal.

The lights on the bridge dimmed noticeably as power was shunted away from the creature comforts to the necessities of war. Throughout the ship tremors reverberated through the hull as unseen plates began to dislodge from the moors and retract into their designed recesses. Momentary quiet soon followed muted thuds and jolts as powerful gun placements rose from their protected chambers and locked into place. Cables snaked through the conduits and plugged themselves into the cannon batteries bringing their lethal energies to points of outlet.

"Initiating Electronic Counter Measure systems. Damn, ole pads seems to have spared no expense in getting this system..." Sunstreaker whistled as the red combat lights bathed the entire bridge in a ghastly hue. "State of the art. Should make that Con ship's targeting systems a bit less reliable than they usually are." He crafted a smirk as he prepared four canisters of Chaff and ordered their loading to rear emergency launchers. Once done, he commanded the ship's internal systems to load two standard Proton Torpedoes into the forward tubes to prepare for the inevitable runs.

As the Longevity began to break its protective orbit from Omega Supreme's weak gravitational well, Sunstreaker brought the forward cannons and turrets to bear on the Decepticon Destroyer's primary airlock systems. "Can't have you guys reinforcing what you got already on the field."

The Longevity's weapon's systems bristled in a violent spray as powerful energies lanced across the vacuous void. Defensive turrets painting Sweeps that entered into the second tier of defense, making them easier to target and deliver optimal damage should impact occur. The forward cannons erupted scarlet bolts of light straight toward the primary locks and hanger region of the Justice, followed by a single torpedo. A simple strategy, weaken the shields at a single impact point with the energy weapons, then hit the nuts inside with a giant exploding hammer. "This is going to be fun."

Decepticon destroyer Burning Justice

The Justice's viewscreen exploded in blaze of fiery energy as the vessel's shields were impacted by the Autobot ship's weaponry. Several of the Sweeps briefly covered their optics. Scourge's simply narrowed for a few brief astroseconds before looking at the console. He had expected to find the Autobot Guardian adrift...alone, but this would also suffice. More casualties to bring back to the commander and ultimately to Megatron.

"Return fire," Scourge ordered coldly, as the exterior Sweep forces buzzed around the derelict Guardian and its protector vessel like protognats, stinging away with laser fire of their own.

Longevity--Bridge

Sandstorm let a quick glance shift in Sunstreaker's direction before quickly focusing back in on the space battlefield that had erupted all around them. He was doing his best to keep the ship from taking any massive hits all the while trying to give some cover to Omega.

"Thanks for the running commentary, Sunny. How 'bout some analysis of our odds of making it out of this alive? What are the bookies giving us? 60-40 odds? 80-20?"

Another Sweep streaked by the viewscreen, unleashing a torrent of laser fire.

"Fraggin' little boats are a pain to nail."

Omega Supreme

“Um, sorry. There was no easy way to say it.”

“Smooth,” Blindside commented, punching the former Predacon’s shoulder lightly.

Arclight clapped her hands together, an uncharacteristically stern look on her faceplate. “Hey now, that’s enough small talk. We need to get Omega Supreme up and running!” Blindside glanced to Howlstrike and shrugged, nodding to Arclight. “Then get to it! I’ll tend to the more complicated stuff on my end.”

Arclight pushed past Blindside and Howlstrike, her head drooping slightly once her face was safely out of sight of everyone – or so she thought. Blindside registered the change in facial expression. He leaned in toward Howlstrike. “It seems you upset her. Though I wonder why,” Blindside pondered, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Oh well, best get to sealing those conduits.” Blindside moved off into Omega Supreme with purpose, knowing exactly where all of the damaged ones were.

Longevity - Bridge

"Thanks for the running commentary, Sunny. How 'bout some analysis of our odds of making it out of this alive? What are the bookies giving us? 60-40 odds? 80-20?"

"Oh c'mon, Sands!" Springer exclaimed as he rose from his command chair, a rather odd and extreme idea popping into his processor. "Since when have we asked about the odds? We're Wreckers; we defy the odds!" The green and yellow triplechanger then drew his rifle and loaded a fresh shell into the chamber. "If we can't hit them all with the Longevity's onboard weapons, then maybe we can help scrap a couple with our own!" Springer then made a few steps towards the rear of the cabin towards where the entrance to the bridge was. "Keep her steady Sandstorm, and try not to shake me off again."

Longevity - Outer Hull

The hatch to the airlock opened and Springer slowly stepped out, his magnalocks activating upon entry into the vacuum of space. Sweeps swarmed all around him, some of them being blasted by Sunstreaker's shooting causing debris to fly off wildly around the lone Wrecker. Springer grinned his famous smile as he took aim at the closest of the Sweep squadrons coming for him. Pulling back on the trigger, the wrecker commander fired off a quick burst of shots into the fray, managing to hit a couple directly while a few were only nicked by his assault.

"Yeahah! Take that!" He boasted before targeting another pair couple down towards him. A secondary squadron shifted to their robot forms and came barreling at Springer to try and pry him off the hull. The triplechanger quickly unsheathed his sword and took a mighty swing at one of the Scourge-look-a-likes, haphazardly firing his rifle with his other hand at the oncoming drove of sweeps. "Aha! WRECK AND RULE!!"

Inside Omega Supreme

“Smooth.”

“Like a protoform’s bottom. Heh,” Howlstrike joked, not caring that Blindside had playfully punched him in the arm. In fact, the former Predacon had barely noticed the gesture. What he did notice, however, was Arclight clapping her hands together in a sort of mock applause before speaking up.

“Hey now, that’s enough small talk. We need to get Omega Supreme up and running!” Arclight said.

“Then get to it! I’ll tend to the more complicated stuff on my end,” Blindside responded.

“Um, I’m just waiting for instructions since, you know, I mainly fight and tear ‘Cons apart and whatnot. Tech stuff is not my thing,” Howlstrike reminded them as he crossed his arms over the wolf head mounted in the center of his chestplate. Arclight then pushed passed them with a depressed look on her visage. The Autobot tracker wasn’t the only one who noticed.

“It seems you upset her. Though I wonder why.”

“Yeah, I dunno, Blindy. Maybe it was the way I revealed Prime’s death to Rung,” the former Predacon surmised. “Maybe I should go apologize while you fix those conduits.”

Howlstrike then moved away from Blindside and followed after Arclight, catching up to the teal femme with haste. “So, um, Arclight, I’m sorry if I was too blunt about Optimus before. I just like to cut to the chase specially when there's bad news, you know? There was really no easy way to say what needed to be said. It was just better to spit it out than dance around the situation. I figured Rung could handle it.”

At that moment, Omega Supreme shook as several blasts struck the outer hull from an unknown source. Howlstrike quickly spun around and looked at the others present. “That sounded like laser fire! Either Sunstarch really doesn’t like me or we’re under Decepeticon attack! Time to get these repairs done! Let’s get a move on!”

Howlstrike then turned his attention to the large pile of energon cubes that a loader drone had brought on board Omega from the Longevity. The Autobot hunter bent down and carefully picked up a bunch before turning back towards Arclight. “Okay, sweetspark, you said something about restoring power before. Show me where to plug these cubes in so we can get Omega refueled. I'll do the heavy lifting, you do the tech stuff. Sound good?”

The Longevity--Bridge

"Oh c'mon, Sands! Since when have we asked about the odds? We're Wreckers; we defy the odds! If we can't hit them all with the Longevity's onboard weapons, then maybe we can help scrap a couple with our own! Keep her steady Sandstorm, and try not to shake me off again."

"I know, I know. 'Never tell me the odds'," Sandstorm chuckled, as he released another volley of cannon fire against an incoming Sweep trio. They quickly scattered in all directions.

Sandstorm figured Springer was going to man one of the rear weapons' stations, when it suddenly dawned on him just what Springer had said.

"Wait-you're what?!" the triple-changer called out, but Springer was already gone. "Oh man..."

Sandstorm's grip on the controls tightened just a little bit.

"'Keep her steady'....'keep her steady'," he repeated to himself, a wry grin on his youthful metallic features. This was Wrecker life right here.
___

The Burning Justice--Bridge

"Tracker!" one of the Sweeps called back. "I'm picking up a strange visual."

"Magnify," Scourge said. And as the Sweep followed the order, the viewscreen of the Decepticon destroyer increased enough for Scourge to see a lone, green Autobot defiantly standing on the outer hull of the Autobot vessel, firing wildly and quickly facing down Sweeps that had transformed and moved in to incapacitate him.

"I want that one's head," Scourge ordered coldly. "Or I want the charred debris of his corpse floating endlessly in space. Fire!"

As before, the Sweep followed orders.

Inside Omega Supreme

“Yeah, I dunno, Blindy. Maybe it was the way I revealed Prime’s death to Rung,” the former Predacon surmised. “Maybe I should go apologize while you fix those conduits.”

“Oh, yes. Because I am such an adept mechanic,” Blindside sighed as his friend left him to the circuitry.

“So, um, Arclight, I’m sorry if I was too blunt about Optimus before. I just like to cut to the chase specially when there's bad news, you know? There was really no easy way to say what needed to be said. It was just better to spit it out than dance around the situation. I figured Rung could handle it.”

Arclight jumped as Howlstrike came up behind her. “Oh, um…yeah…I know. It’s just…Prime is…” Suddenly, what felt like the entirety of Omega Supreme seemed to quake. Her optics widened as she glanced around.

“That sounded like laser fire! Either Sunstarch really doesn’t like me or we’re under Decepeticon attack! Time to get these repairs done! Let’s get a move on!”

“Uhhh…right!” Arclight glanced around, but Howlstrike had already spotted what she was looking for. Energon cubes.

“Okay, sweetspark, you said something about restoring power before. Show me where to plug these cubes in so we can get Omega refueled. I'll do the heavy lifting, you do the tech stuff. Sound good?”

“Yeah!” Pumping herself up, Arclight gestured for Howlstrike to follow. “Okay, come with me.” She bolted ahead, scanning the corridors for what she was looking for. “Here! Here,” she said, rushing over to a door. Opening it, she held it while pointing to a large reservoir. “Okay, so you’ll need to hook those into that device there. See it? It’s got the cube…slot? Drop them in there.”

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

“Uhhh…right! Yeah! Okay, come with me.”

Howlstrike followed the overly excitable Arclight as the femme ran ahead of him in search of whatever it was she was looking for. “If you’re looking for the fuel room why not just ask Rung or Streamlight back there? I’m sure they know where to go....”

“Here! Here!"

“Um...okay, nevermind,” the former Predacon added as he carried the energon cubes over to the doorway that the smaller weapons engineer had stopped in front of. Without wasting any time, Arclight had the door open and was pointing across the room to a large reservoir.

”Okay, so you’ll need to hook those into that device there. See it? It’s got the cube…slot? Drop them in there.”

Howlstrike looked over at the slot in question and then back to Arclight. “Yeah, I see it. Seems pretty straight forward. Even I can do it.” The wolf-former then moved past the femme and made his way over to the energon reservoir which, upon closer inspection, appeared to be pretty much dried up. “Yeah, from the looks of it, Omega definitely needs a refill.” Howl then glanced down at the slot and realized that this wasn't going to be as easy as just dropping the cubes in there. Each one would need to be connected individually and then drained before the next cube could be inserted.

"Figures. Omega can't just eat them up all at once can he? Oh, noooooooo," the Autobot tracker mumbled to himself as he set the energon pile he had been carrying onto the floor. Picking up the first cube, Howlstrike plugged it into the squarish slot and watched as the glowing purple fluid slowly entered into Omega’s reservoir. Once the first cube was drained, the former Predacon removed it and tossed it aside before grabbing the next one and placing it into the slot.

“Hey, sweetspark!” Howlstrike called over to Arclight as the hull of Omega Supreme shook again from the continuing Decepticon assault outside. “Be a dear and go get that loader drone and have it bring the rest of the energon cubes in here, will ya? That way I don’t have to run back and forth a bunch of times. Would help speed things up since that attack outside doesn't seem to be stopping.”

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

“Yeah, I see it. Seems pretty straight forward. Even I can do it.”

“Good, good, you had me worried for an astrosecond,” Arclight quipped briefly, moving out of the doorframe as Howlstrike passed her. A quick glance around the room gave Arclight an idea. She hurried over to the side as Howlstrike began to load the energon into the slot – and groan about it too. Good thing for him, she was on something that would take some of the burden off of him.

“Hey, sweetspark!” Howlstrike called over to Arclight as the hull of Omega Supreme shook again from the continuing Decepticon assault outside. “Be a dear and go get that loader drone and have it bring the rest of the energon cubes in here, will ya? That way I don’t have to run back and forth a bunch of times. Would help speed things up since that attack outside doesn't seem to be stopping.”

“Already on it!” Arclight shot back, patting the loader drone that she’d been tinkering with on its…shoulder? Shoulder. Probably. It beeped at her before leaving the room to fetch the rest of the energon cubes. She found another and tinkered with it briefly before it set off toward Howlstrike, beeping at the former Predacon as it pushed past him to retrieve the now empty energon cube.

Dusting her hands off, Arclight walked over to Howlstrike, glancing up to the ceiling nervously. “Um…you think we’ll be alright…? I…I’ve never really been in a…um. Combat situation before. Eheh. Heh. Ugh…” Shaking her head, she turned away from Howlstrike trying to calm her nerves a bit. Didn’t want him to laugh at her, did we? No. What else needed doing? Could try rebooting Omega Supreme now.

Wandering over to the terminal, Arclight rerouted energon flows from damaged conduits – at least until Blindside and the others could repair them – so that she could get an idea of what systems they could get online. Answer: Not many. But! They could probably bring the big O back online. To…enjoy the assault. Right.

“Um...We might be able to get Omega Supreme talking to us again, but until some of those conduits are fixed…we’re not going to have many systems operational,” Arclight reported, “But…do we wanna wake him up if he…if he can’t do anything about his attackers? Seems kinda cruel…”

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

Howlstrike continued loading the energon cubes one at a time into the reservoir’s slot as Arclight did as he had asked and sent the loader drone to retrieve the rest of the cubes. At the same time, the teal femme sent a second loader drone over to pick up and discard the empty cubes that were now increasingly littering the floor around the former Predacon. He hadn’t remembered that there was more than one drone, but it was a pleasant surprise to be sure. With the empty cubes out of his way, Howl had more space in which to work.

“Um…you think we’ll be alright…? I…I’ve never really been in a…um. Combat situation before. Eheh. Heh. Ugh…”

The Autobot tracker looked over at Arclight and flashed her a toothy grin. “We’ll be fine, sweetspark. We’ve got some former Wreckers over on the Longevity defending us, not to mention Omega’s armored plating and shielding is incredibly strong. Even at low power levels, he’ll be able to withstand quite a bit of punishment before the ‘Cons could penetrate the hull. And even if that happened, you’ve still got me to protect all of you. Heh.”

Howlstrike loaded the last of the energon cubes he currently had into the slot as Arclight wandered over to a nearby terminal and began rerouting energon flows or whatever it was she was doing. As long as it got Omega back online and in fighting shape, the wolf-former didn’t care what she did.

“Um...We might be able to get Omega Supreme talking to us again, but until some of those conduits are fixed…we’re not going to have many systems operational. But…do we wanna wake him up if he…if he can’t do anything about his attackers? Seems kinda cruel…”

The former Predacon gave Arclight a wide smirk. “Not as cruel as keeping him unconscious while we fiddle about inside him trying to fix his systems. At least awake he could tell us exactly what needs to be done to get him fully operational. Besides, Omega’s a big boy. He can handle it. So, I say wake him!”

As Howlstrike finished speaking, the first loader drone returned with the rest of the energon cache that had been previously brought on board. “Ah, finally!” The Autobot tracker exclaimed as the drone rolled up alongside him. Howl grabbed the top most cube and quickly hooked it into the reservoir, the glowing purple liquid draining into the Omega Guardian’s massive tank.

“I’ll be done here shortly, sweetspark,” Howlstrike informed Arclight as he then opened a comm line to his sightless friend:

>>”Blindside, how goes on your end? Fix those conduits yet?”<<

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

“We’ll be fine, sweetspark. We’ve got some former Wreckers over on the Longevity defending us, not to mention Omega’s armored plating and shielding is incredibly strong. Even at low power levels, he’ll be able to withstand quite a bit of punishment before the ‘Cons could penetrate the hull. And even if that happened, you’ve still got me to protect all of you. Heh.”

Reassured, Arclight shot a grin back at Howlstrike. Still, even if Omega Supreme could withstand that kind of punishment, might be best to get him back into some sort of fighting condition. Or running condition. Just a condition in which he could do something.

“Not as cruel as keeping him unconscious while we fiddle about inside him trying to fix his systems. At least awake he could tell us exactly what needs to be done to get him fully operational. Besides, Omega’s a big boy. He can handle it. So, I say wake him!”

Arclight nodded and fiddled with a few more settlings at the terminal, checking the status of the conduits and the energon reservoir most notably. She waved as Howlstrike mentioned that he’d be finished up with the cubes shortly. It sure wasn’t a full recharge that they were giving him, but she hoped that it would be enough to at least do something.


Elsewhere

>>”Blindside, how goes on your end? Fix those conduits yet?”<<

Blindside jerked abruptly as Howlstrike’s communique buzzed in his audio suddenly, smacking his head into the conduit that he had been working on. Rubbing his head, he sighed and lightly tapped his audios.

>>”It would perhaps be going a bit more smoothly if one who could see had accompanied the sightless mech who is not a mechanic by trade,”<< Blindside quipped dryly.

“Just a thought…” Blindside muttered to himself as he finished up with the conduit. Dragging himself out from under it, he stood and examined his work. Hm. He wondered if he had been too sluggish with repairs. Well, hopefully he hadn’t accidentally sabotaged anything due to his disability. That would be most unfortunate. In any case, he’d done all he could.

>>”It’s done – I think – and it seems just in time as well. It’s getting rather noisy outside,”<< he commented to his feral friend, >>”Where are you? I’ll come to meet you.”<<


Energon Reservoir

When all of the conduits lit up green on her terminal, Arclight initiated the start up procedures for Omega Supreme. “Here goes nothing…”

((OOC: I will be covering Rung and Streamlight when needed until their player returns.))

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

>>”It would perhaps be going a bit more smoothly if one who could see had accompanied the sightless mech who is not a mechanic by trade.”<<

It seemed as though Howlstrike’s new friend was a little bit perturbed with him at the moment, hence the hint of annoyance in the sightless mech’s voice. Although, while what Blindside said was true, he was still more capable of handling technical issues such as fixing conduits than the former Predacon even without the ability to see like most others.

>>”Oh, cool your circuits, Blindy. I had to help Arclight refuel Omega. I can’t be at two places at once. Besides, I’m not the only one around here that can see now am I? If you need some assistance why don’t you ask either Rung or Stream- whatever his name is? They can both see, I’m sure.”<<

Cutting his comm line, Howlstrike grabbed the last of the energon cubes and inserted it into the reservoir’s slot. Within moments, the purple liquid drained into Omega’s tank, filling it as far as it would go. The tracker then turned and walked over to where Arclight was standing. “All done, sweetspark. Omega’s got as much energon as we have to give.”

>>”It’s done – I think – and it seems just in time as well. It’s getting rather noisy outside. Where are you? I’ll come to meet you.”<<

Howlstrike smiled as he received another comm from Blindside and so soon after the former Predacon had responded to him. >>”See, I knew you had it in you, Blindy. I’m over in the energon reservoir with Arclight. I think she’s about to wake Omega up.”<<

With his message sent, Howl’s attention refocused on Arclight, who had begun Omega Supreme’s start-up procedures. It wouldn’t be long now until the Omega Guardian was awake and hopefully able to fight back. “So, Arclight, are you able to see if Omega’s weapons systems are functioning on that terminal there? Might give us an idea on whether or not he’ll be able to hit back against those ‘Cons outside or not.”

Before she could answer his query, the door to the energon reservoir slid open. Howlstrike glanced over expecting to see Blindside, but instead saw both Streamlight and Rung enter the chamber. The former Predacon gave no outward reaction and simply remained focused on what Arclight was doing.

“Um...I’m sorry to interrupt, but...” Rung said as he approached Howl and the teal femme. Although, his words were more directed at the Autobot hunter than the weapons engineer. “Did you say before that Optimus Prime was dead? I just want to make sure I heard you right.”

“Yeah, that’s what I said,” Howlstrike responded, clearing his throat a bit. “I’m sorry if I was too crass before. Like I said, there was no easy way to say it.”

‘No, no, I understand,” Rung replied with a heavy sigh. “I just can’t believe it, that’s all. Of all mechs I would never expect to hear that Optimus Prime was dead. Not him. It just doesn’t seem possible.”

“I can’t believe it, either,” Streamlight interjected, patting Rung on the shoulder plate.

“Well, as I said before, he’s technically missing. Prime may not actually be dead, but it would have been a miracle for any mech to survive the type of explosion he and Megatron had supposedly been caught in. Still, there’s always hope I suppose,” Howlstrike continued as he awaited a reply from Arclight.

“True, there’s always hope,” Rung confirmed. “Regardless, I need to speak to whomever’s in charge ASAP. Something terrible has happened on Garrus-9. The Autobots there need help immediately and a lot of it.”

“Is that why those sweeps outside are after you?” Howl questioned, looking down at the orange Autobot.

“Yes.”

“I see. Well, once we get Omega up and running and escape from Scourge’s minions, you’ll be able to speak to whomever you want. Until then, buckle up, because it’s going to be a bumpy ride,” Howlstrike said with a toothy grin as Rung and Streamlight looked at one another with worried expressions.

Long Range Combat Shuttle Longevity: Bridge

Sunstreaker scowled only briefly as his first volley of laser bursts were absorbed by the Burning Justice's primary shields, only showing a minor amount of drain to the over all field. His initial urge was to scream out the Decepticon ship's status, but such an effort would serve no direct purpose. After all a point zero zero seven percent did not really denote a successful assault.

As he adjusted the telemetry and angles of the three quad laser turrets mounted along the dorsal side of the shuttle, he vaguely heard the commotion between Springer and Sandstorm. It was not until his targeting cameras picked up the brazen former Wrecker Commander, that the golden one realize what exactly had transpired. From his vantage point, Springer was attempting to melee with potential borders. Of course, with a quick review of the marauder's trajectory, such assaults would be few and far between. Still, Sunstreaker admired the bravado and chastised himself for not being the first out of the airlock... or he would have if cosmic radiation didn't play such havoc with his perfectly golden finish.

Sunstreaker shook the thought from his processor and focused again on his task at hand. With Sideswipe currently monitoring communications, sensors and engineering... and Sandstorm focused on keeping them in one piece, it was his job to make sure that he made the Decepticon's bleed for their affront. Again he toggled into the dorsal quad turrets and brought them to level against the port nacelle. "Take this ya row boat rejects." He slammed his fist down on the firing toggle.

A series of twelve bursts of scarlet light lanced out from the turrets, two located along the top of the shuttle and one along its port flank. They sustained their pulsing fire as a pair of sweep fighters bored headlong into the unexpected assault. The first volley of laser fire tore through the conning tower of the lead sweep, causing it to spiral out of control into a massive ice object and explode on impact. The second was pierced repeatedly through the hull creating a gorgeous bloom of silent amber before it too faded into the vast blackness of space. The supporting pair banked hard toward's the shuttle's prow and immediately regretted their action as Sunstreaker's response was just as swift. The forward cannons bore through both fighter's hulls. Four bursts of lethal fire pounded their prows and walked backwards as the ships passed through the line of fire, until the assault hit their fuel storage units and replaced them with expanding balls of hydrogen and wreckage.

Sunstreaker was about to celebrate his temporary victory when the entire ship shuddered violently. The golden warrior did not need to check the damage readouts to know that they had been hit by another volley from the Decepticon Destroyer. It wasn't exactly a fair fight, and 'Streaker knew it. Still it was one he savored with a satisfied grin. "Hey Sandstorm, how about you keep those Decepticrusts from getting a straight shot off on us goin' forward. If they mess up my fresh wax, I am holding you personally responsible."

He glanced sideways with a slightly sadistic smirk indicating his lethal seriousness. He adjusted his weapon's position and checked the modulation of his proton torpedoes as well as the two experimental torpedoes that remained in his arsenal. A grand total of eleven torpedoes remaining, it wasn't an ideal situation given the enemy they faced probably had three to four times as many, not to mention the greater number of laser batteries available to them. Just meant Sunstreaker needed to even the odds a bit more than picking off a quartet of sweeps. "Hey Sideswipe, why don't you do something more useful than looking ridiculous? Tap into the ship sensors and try to figure out the shield modulations for that Decepticon Destroyer... Find me a weak point so I can give them a taste of our specialty."

Omega Supreme

”I... AWAKEN,” Omega Supreme’s voice boomed within his massive hull in response to the other Autobots’ efforts to force him out of stasis lock. Stasis lock that he had entered due to having depleted his energon reserves while running away from the Decepticons with his precious cargo – Rung and Aequitas.

”INITIATING DAMAGE AND SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS,” the behemoth continued, not addressing anyone directly at this point. Omega had barely made his escape from the Elba system and the Decepticon fleet laying siege to the Autobot base located there – the Garrus-9.

”NAVIGATION SYSTEM STILL DAMAGED. CRITICAL HULL DAMAGE TO SECTIONS C1 to C3. FURTHER ENERGON LOSS AVOIDED THROUGH CUTTING ENERGON SUPPLY TO DAMAGED SECTIONS.” The giant Autobot accessed his situation aloud. ”CURRENT ENERGON RESERVES AT 17%. ABILITY TO DEFEND THE MISSION OBJECTIVE SEVERELY LIMITED.”

”DETECTING A FRIENDLY VESSEL NEARBY. DESIGNATION LONGEVITY.” Omega added, pausing for a moment as he analyzed the data his damaged sensor array was feeding him, ”ADDENDUM. LONGEVITY UNDER AN ATTACK BY A LARGER DECEPTICON VESSEL. ASSISTANCE REQUIRED.”

Omega was hardly in condition to engage a prolonged battle with the Decepticons but he was not out yet either. The Semper Tyrannis had left his main plasma cannon useless but if he were to transform into his robot mode, he could at least still offer some assistance to Longevity against the Decepticon destroyer.

”DAMAGE TO MAIN WEAPON REQUIRES ALL AUTOBOTS WITHIN TO MOVE INTO EITHER THE CARGO HOLD OR ENERGON RESERVOIR TO ALLOW TRANSFORMATION INTO PRIMARY FORM AND UTILIZATION OF SECONDARY ARMAMENT AGAINST DECEPTICON ATTACKERS.”

It wasn’t much but Omega was compelled to assist the Autobots in any way he could. It was his purpose after all. Defend his smaller allies until the very end.

SKY LYNX

>>”Fear not, my hopeless Autobot comrades!”<< came the self-assured voice booming over the comms, >>”For I am here!”<<

Swooping in with regality and grace beyond anything that his comrades had ever witnessed in their long lives, Sky Lynx miraculously arrived. To be honest, Sky Lynx had expected this mission to be something of a bore. No chances to display his magnificence. How gloriously – seldomly – wrong he was! And who was that he spied? None other than Omega Supreme. His recovery was paramount, but of course, Sky Lynx first had to save his poor dear comrades. So helpless they could be without his presence to spur them on.

The first act Sky Lynx performed was to limit the amount of enemies and missiles headed for his poor comrades. With one flick of his potent laser, sweeps were cleft in twain as were missiles, the explosions a fanfare for his splendidness. Well, they would be a fanfare if they actually made a sound. A bit of flair for his entrance then instead of a fanfare.

>>”No need to thank me, everyone!”<< Sky Lynx cooed over the comms, >>”It is of little effort for one such as me. You may hold your applause.”<<

Turning his attention to the foul blot of a Decepticon vessel that infringed upon his vision, Sky Lynx unleashed another laser from his great maw, intent on destroying – or at the very least disabling the vessel. How dare it linger in his sight?!

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

“So, Arclight, are you able to see if Omega’s weapons systems are functioning on that terminal there? Might give us an idea on whether or not he’ll be able to hit back against those ‘Cons outside or not.”

“I’ll look into it,” she muttered, switching her efforts to that task when Rung and Streamlight suddenly walked in. She looked over to them, the topic of Optimus Prime’s demise making her wince. It wasn’t just her hurt by the news. These two – probably been Autobots longer than she ever was – also expressed their sorrow.

She lowered her optics to the floor, turning her attention back to the terminal. “It seems like some weapon systems are offline, Howlstrike, but others are-“

”I... AWAKEN.”

“EEEEP!” Arclight jumped back from the terminal, crashing into Howlstrike accidentally. She jerked back away from Howlstrike, raising her hands up and glancing about frantically. “Wha…”

The voice that came from all sides continued. Not really specifically addressing anyone, but Arclight flinched every time he started speaking. It was then that she realized who ‘he’ was. Her optics went wide and she looked to Howlstrike with a childish grin forming on her face. She pointed up at the ceiling and squeaked, “He’s awake!”

However, when Omega announced his directive, she glanced about at the energon reservoir. “Oh no! Blindside! Should we go find-“

“That’s not…necessary…” Blindside said as he stumbled into the energon reservoir, holding his head. He shut the door behind himself, and sagged against one of the walls still holding his head. “Hrrgh…” His ‘vision’ was still a bit scattered and blurred. And his head was killing him. Maybe he should just…turn it off.

Decepticon destroyer Burning Justice

Scourge and his Huntsmen were closing in. For every Sweep that was lost, another two disembarked from the bowels of the destroyer to join their comrades in the space battle. Soon that Autobot vessel guarding Omega would burn, and then soon after the Omega Guardian himself would join.

The Justice's viewscreen flashed again as the ship rocked under the return fire of the Longevity. Scourge remained firmly anchored to his command chair.

"Full speed ahead. We'll annihilate what's left," the Tracker murmured, before another flurry of weapons fire caught his attention.

"Tracker! I'm picking up a new signature!" Macabre howled. This time, the Sweep brought up an adjusted visual without needing to be ordered. It was indeed a new Autobot vessel, but one more similar to Omega Supreme than the Longevity. Sentient.

Sky Lynx.

Scourge's crimson talons dug deeper into the armrests of his seat. In brilliant flashes of fire and destruction, one Sweep after another was quickly cut down by the far more agile Autobot.

"Madness!" Scourge barked. "Withdraw the Huntsmen! Regroup on my position. And keep firing!"

Inside Omega Surpreme – Energon Reservoir

“It seems like some weapon systems are offline, Howlstrike, but others are-“

”I... AWAKEN.”

Howlstrike was unbothered by the bellowing sound of Omega Supreme’s vocals. Arclight, on the other hand, was more than a little startled. With a loud “EEEP!” the teal femme literally jumped back and crashed into the former Predacon. The larger wolf-former was unmoved by her actions, either emotionally or physically. Howl simply swayed slightly in place as he slowly shook his cranium from side to side.

“Easy there, sweetspark. It’s just Omega Supreme talking,” Howlstrike replied as he gently patted Arclight on the shoulder while the Omega Guardian provided an update on his condition and what was happening outside.

”He’s awake!”

“Hence why he said, ‘I...AWAKEN’,” Howlstrike quipped in his best Omega impersonation. The giant Autobot’s instructions to seek shelter within the reservoir was quickly followed up by Arclight’s concern for Blindside. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. He’s....”

“That’s not…necessary…Hrrgh”

“...and there he is,” the Autobot tracker continued as he glanced over at his sightless friend who was now slumped against a wall holding his head. “What’s wrong with you, Blindy? Hit your head or something? I swear I can’t leave you alone for an astrosecond. Heh.”

>>”Fear not, my hopeless Autobot comrades!”<< came the self-assured voice booming over the comms, >>”For I am here!”<<

Howlstrike’s audio receptors perked up at the sound of Sky Lynx’s declaration over the Autobots’ frequency. “Who the frag is that dolt and why should I care?”

“That sounds like Sky Lynx!” Rung suddenly interjected. “Our chances of survival just went up with him now in the fight.”

“Ah, Sky Lynx. I’ve heard of him. Big dino-bird, right? Never met him, just heard of him,” Howlstrike replied with a shrug of his shoulders. “I also heard he’s kinda stuck on himself, thinks he’s the best thing this side of the galaxy.”

>>”No need to thank me, everyone!”<< Sky Lynx cooed over the comms, >>”It is of little effort for one such as me. You may hold your applause.”<<

“Well, I guess I heard right,” the former Predacon said as he opened a secured comm line to Sky Lynx and the other Autobots on board the Longevity:

>>”Sky Lynx, is it? This is Howlstrike inside Omega Supreme. Just so you and the others know, Omega is about to transform. So, if you can stop congratulating yourself for two astroseconds, maybe you can make sure not to get in his way when he attacks the Decepticons. Okey-dokey?”<<

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

“What’s wrong with you, Blindy? Hit your head or something? I swear I can’t leave you alone for an astrosecond. Heh.”

“Maybe? Probably,” Blindside muttered, giving Howlstrike something of a sour look. At least, where he thought Howlstrike was. His ‘vision’ was a bit fuzzy. Being inside Omega Supreme had more challenges than Blindside had initially thought it would. Maybe he should have stayed aboard the Longevity. “I can’t see,” Blindside explained.

Well, no slag, but hopefully – after the impending dig at him – Howlstrike would get the gist of what he meant. But an incoming comm of reinforcements soon interrupted them, and Howl couldn’t help but heckle their back-up.

“You could have done better than that,” Blindside chuckled, “I don’t think that’ll even ruffle his plating.”

Arclight, for her part, was overjoyed by the back-up. If she had any idea who he was. He seemed full of himself. Not unlike Sunstreaker. Why did he think that he was so great? Arclight tapped Howlstrike’s arm. “What good is one mech gonna do us?”

“One mech, yes,” Blindside interjected, “But that’s like asking what good would Omega Supreme do in a firefight. Despite his attitude, he’s actually quite a capable commander and asset.” That was the tactician in Blindside coming out. Arclight frowned at him before her optics lit up.

“You mean…he’s like Omega Supreme?!”

Longevity - Outer Hull

Springer took another swing at the approaching sweeps, his blade clashing and slashing a sizable chunk from the closest sweep's boat-like alt mode. The Wrecker commander leveled his rifle the best he could with his other hand and fired another barrage, a cheeky smile etching his faceplate as he struck another one.

The Sweeps then broke their formation and appeared to be swarming back towards their ship. Springer drove his blade deep enough into the hole to not cause any damage but far enough to momentarily sheath his sword as he checked his weapon.

"They're retreating... Heh, we scared them off! Yeah that's right, run you yellow-plated cow-" Springer's victory speech was cut off when Sol's light stretched out an unmistakable shadow across the hull and a ringing echoed in this comm-device. "Oh you can't be seri-"

>>"Fear not, my hopeless Autobot comrades! For I am here!"<<

Lasers fired from the mighty draconic Autobot, his firepower making short work of most of the lingering and fleeing sweeps.

>>"No need to thank me, everyone! It is of little effort for one such as me. You may hold your applause."<<

>>"Sky Lynx?! How did you... Nevermind, see what you can do about that destroyer!"<< Springer released a heat sink from his rifle and injected a fresh clip into the receiver. >>"Hey Sunny, try helping the giant lizard out and fire off another torpedo or two. And tell Sandy to try and fly straighter! Almost got hit in that last barrage."<<

Inside Omega Supreme – Energon Reservoir

“Maybe? Probably. I can’t see.”

Having cut his comm line to the dino-bird, Howlstrike turned his attention back to Blindside and gave him a quizzical look. “Did you just say a moment ago that you can’t see? Really? And here I thought you were just faking it all this time. Such a fool I am. Heh heh,” the former Predacon said with a heavy dose of sarcasm in his vocals.

“You could have done better than that. I don’t think that’ll even ruffle his plating.”

“Maybe not, but we could use Sky Lynx’s help right now and insulting him too much would not be a good way to keep him around. Wouldn’t you agree? Still, though, I had to be me,” Howl replied with an extra wide grin.

“What good is one mech gonna do us?” Arclight asked.

“One mech, yes, but that’s like asking what good would Omega Supreme do in a firefight. Despite his attitude, he’s actually quite a capable commander and asset,” Blindside replied.

“You mean…he’s like Omega Supreme?!”

Howlstrike couldn’t help but let out a quick chuckle at Arclight’s question. “Not exactly, sweetspark. Omega is much much bigger and far more powerful. However, Sky Lynx can, if I’m not mistaken, turn into a shuttle craft and carry other mechs inside of himself like Omega.”

“That is correct, Howlstrike,” Rung then interjected, turning his gaze to Arclight. “Sky Lynx also has two separate ‘robot modes’ - a big white bird and a blue lynx. Those two modes can combine to form a single dragon-like robot. And while he may not be as powerful as Omega, make no mistake, Sky Lynx is more than capable of handling himself in battle. Like Blindside said, he’s an asset you definitely want to have on your side.”

“And with Omega about to enter the fight, those Decepti-fraggers don’t stand a chance,” the Autobot tracker commented, crossing his arms over the wolf head mounted in the center of his chest plate. “I just wish I could get out there and help fight them myself. Being stuck in here is not exactly what I would call a good use of my abilities.”

“We all have our rolls to play, Howlstrike,” Rung replied, turning towards the former Predacon. “Just because you’re not out there fighting doesn’t mean you’re not an important part of the team. You helped to power up Omega so that he may fight for us. There’s nothing more you need to do at this point.”

“There always something more that can be done,” Howlstrike shot back. “This is war! A sidelined warrior capable of fighting is a wasted asset and there’s no room for waste when lives are at stake!”

“Perhaps, but you can’t very well leave while Omega is transforming or in robot mode,” Rung pointed out as he slowly moved closer to the lupine hunter. “Therefore, remaining here with the rest of us is your only real option.” The orange mech then placed a gentle hand on the former Predacon’s shoulder plate and gave him a reassuring smile. “You have nothing to prove, Howl. Regardless of your past, you’re one of us now and have been for some time.”

“What? Are you...” Howlstrike began to say as he backed away from Rung, pushing the psychiatrist’s hand off of his shoulder. “...are you trying to psycho-analyze me or something?”

“I...I’m just trying to....”

“Don’t,” the tracker responded in a very angry tone. “Just don’t. I didn't need your help in the past, and I don't need it now. I know exactly what I am, I know what I was and I know what I’ve done. I don’t need you getting inside my head!” With those words spoken, Howlstrike turned and walked away from Rung, finding a place against a far wall of the chamber where he could be somewhat alone. Once there the former Predacon sat down on the ground and crossed his legs in front of him, his optics growing dark as he began to meditate. It was the only way to keep his anger from getting out of control again.

Longevity--Bridge

>>"Sky Lynx?! How did you... Nevermind, see what you can do about that destroyer!" Hey Sunny, try helping the giant lizard out and fire off another torpedo or two. And tell Sandy to try and fly straighter! Almost got hit in that last barrage."<<

>>"Hey! I heard that!"<< Sandstorm interjected into the comm. >>"I just wanted to make sure you kept your agility skills up to snuff. Nothin' better than 'live' drills, eh?"<<

Sandstorm then worked to steady the ship as best he could, despite his teasing of his commander. It was easier now, since the Sweeps seemed to be pulling back.

Go Sky Lynx! Huh...wow...never thought that would ever cross my mind.