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Decepticon Base-Warehouse

Octane received the Con wide transmission about the incoming air strike. All he could do is smirk and shake his head.

"Looks like we might need to prepare for a possible air strike if the humans think it is worth while. It seems this UN thinks and acts like the Autobots which means they will be easy to crush by our hands. I want to know when we get the chance to crush these filthy organic bugs."

Octane then walked around the warehouse securing some of the resources they have found and making sure the computer terminals were safe. It would be a shame for their fellow Cons and leader to not make it back to their bodies due to some sort of damage to the bodies or computers.

The Obliteration--Corridors

Having left Starscream to his fate and carried out Megatron's first set of orders for their team flawlessly--in his estimation--it was time to get a move on.

Bouncing back to their ship, Onslaught quickly stepped off the bounce pad and headed for the bridge.

>>"Mission accomplished. Good work, Combaticons. Let's get the Obliteration back to the Thanatos' general area and keep our tracks covered."<<
___

Bridge

Blast-Off had been wondering what the hold up was. Hopefully Starscream had tried to resist and earned himself and even worse beating. Before Blast-Off could expend too much energy on that pleasant thought, their commander commed in.

Well....good. Anything to please the head mech, I suppose, Blast-Off thought to himself.

>>"Copy that, sir. Departing now,"<< Blast-Off commed back as he adjusted the Obliteration's flight controls.

Downtown Aleppo – Syrian Government Bunker

Flamewar wrote:>>"Brace for an airstrike,"<<

An airstrike?! Really?! Skywarp thought to himself as a wide smile crept across his avatar’s fake fleshy face. He so hoped it was the Autobots, but then he overheard Megatron telling Flamewar that it was only the humans and that was enough to make the teleporter’s holomatter shoulders to slump forward slightly in disappointment.

Thunkercracker wrote:“Looks like the fun’s about to start.”

“Fun? It’s only the humans,” Skywarp responded to Thundercracker as he followed behind his friend towards the bunker’s exit. “It would be better if it were the Autobots. These fleshies are too easy to destroy. But I guess it’s more fun than just standing around talking to these meat sacks.”

Skywarp’s avatar stepped out of the bunker and looked into the skies above. “So, where’s this airstrike? I don’t see anything.” The prankster then found his way into the humvee that had carried the seekers there. It was then he was bombarded by numerous messages over his comm line.

Decepticon Comms wrote:>>"I have accessed the humans' intercraft communications,"<< Soundwave transmitted to the various groundside Decepticons.

>>"...detected the heightened radiation levels in this area. There's a government structure where the readings went dead."<<

>>"Copy that. Let the Secretary-General know. We still need authorization to strike."<<

>>"Gotta love U.N. bureaucracy."<<

>>"Copy that."<<

“Wait, what am I listening too?” Skywarp asked, befuddled, looking over to Thundercracker. “What does it all mean?”
_______________

Megatron wrote:"We have impending company.”

“Do we now?” Sixshot replied a bit surprised, thinking at first that it might be the Autobots. However, Flamewar’s follow-up question and the slagmaker’s response made it clear that it was simply the natives showing their aggression towards this pleasant little third world country.

Megatron wasted no time in vacating the bunker, heading back to the lead humvee they had arrived in. Sixshot began to follow but stopped and turned back to regard Flamewar with concern. It was a strange feeling for him to have, since the sixchanger very rarely cared about others, including fellow Decepticons. His job was a simple one: destroy entire planets and kill anything that gets in his way. The STAG never really had the luxury of making friends, at least not ones that lasted at any rate.

Still, in his recent downtime here in the Sol System, his interactions with Flamewar had been curious ones. He had taken an interest in her that he seldom did with others and she also seemed equally interested in him. Maybe it was because of sheer boredom or maybe there was something different about her that he sensed. Or perhaps he wasn’t the mindless weapon of mass destruction that most took him for. Whatever the reason, their new “friendship”, if it could be called that, had prevented him from leaving her behind without a second thought.

Flamewar then began shouting at the humans in Arabic, telling them to getting moving. At the same time, Sixshot’s comm was filled with messages from the humans who were the ones en route to conduct the airstrike on them, but they apparently needed permission first. That, at least, gave the remaining Decepticons some time to fully evacuate the bunker.

Sixshot’s avatar then approached Flamewar’s false form and placed a hand on her shoulder, having not heard Megatron’s communication to her to remain behind. “Are you coming, my dear? I’m sure they can take care of themselves,” the Phase Sixer said, nodding towards the humans.

Skies Over Aleppo


The dark silhouette of a fighter jet ominously circled the skies of the city, Subjugator had been watching events unfold the sense of terror was palpable and sublime. He had been studying the situation like a hunter stalking its prey.

As he circled around buzzing close to skyscrapers catching he tuned into the decepticon comm frequency to establish contact with his compatriots and finally get in on the action that was unfolding around him.


“Subjugator here, Anything interesting going on here?” He said with a smirk over the comm link as he transformed into his robot mode and touched down in an empty parking lot and looked around.

[Downtown Aleppo - Syrian Government Bunker]

“Fleshbags? Hah.” Brakeneck’s bravado shined through again. “Ain’t dealing with that scrap, are we?”

“Perhaps,” was Dreadnaut’s one word reply, as was the norm for him. Elsewhere, in the abandoned aircraft hangar, the Tower’s colossal form was ready to go. Brakeneck was prepared as well. Intercepting Autobots would’ve been more up his alley, but he wanted to see what these fleshbags had in store as well.

“So, what’s the plan?” Brakeneck asked to no one in particular.

[The Obliteration - Corridors]

Brawl wrote:”While I am forced to sit it out here and volunteer for whatever slag Shockwave has planned for us?!”

Viper hadn’t expected Brawl’s sudden outburst, and he took a step back when the finger was thrust into his chest. “Woah woah woah,” Viper retaliated, “What’sss with the aggro? Hold yaself down for a bit, man. Hey, if ya want, I’ll ask big boss to ssswap you and me. Ya can go down and have fun, I’ll do the Shockwave thing.”

Viper knew his limits, and one of these limits was Brawl. He would get his aft slagged three different ways if Brawl got too angry.

Sure. Viper did try to soothe Brawl’s growing anger. Though it was curious enough how the wannabe Combaticon had forgotten about certain hair-trigger temper case manifesting in a bot in need of major anger management therapy. Still, escalation of Brawl’s exponentially growing need to smash was probably only averted by well timed orbital bounce by Onslaught – one of the few mech whose mere presence helped Brawl to keep his temper under at least some level of control.

”Well too fraggin’ late!” Brawl bellowed at Viper’s face while barely keeping himself from headbutting the smaller ’con for practically just being there.

”Megatron would never change his mind anyway...” Brawl groaned with some level of defeat in his still rumbling voice. But as quickly as his anger had risen, its back was now cut by Onslaught’s mere presence. ”Nor would Onslaught...”

Syrian Government Bunker

Megatron wrote: >>"Only as a last resort, Thrust. Once I know what the fleshbags know, I will adjust our strategy. For now, we simply need to ensure the Syrian government successfully holds on to its newfound nuclear capabilities."<<

Thrust’s avatar smiled at the genius behind the order and responded, >>Of course, Lord Megatron, as you wish.<<

Thrust closed the channel and shouldered his weapon. It would have little effect on the human vehicles, but then given that he couldn’t be hurt in this form, he found he didn’t mind it as much. Though, he had to admit, he would’ve been more comfortable in his true body. Their avatars were virtually indestructible, but their robot forms… well…

He let the thought trail off as he tried to figure out how he could do both. While transferring back to his real form would be simple, what if Megatron sent out another communication? Would he hear it? Would he be able to respond the same way?

Should’ve stayed back with the others. That’s how a Decepticon is meant to fight, not like this… this pathetic excuse, he thought as he edged his way toward the exit. Better to let the stupid… er, brave go first.

Skywarp wrote: “Fun? It’s only the humans,” Skywarp responded to Thundercracker as he followed behind his friend towards the bunker’s exit. “It would be better if it were the Autobots. These fleshies are too easy to destroy. But I guess it’s more fun than just standing around talking to these meat sacks.”

Thundercracker had expected a response like that from his friend, but the truth was, he didn’t know how to respond. Skywarp was right on every point, making Thundercracker’s attempt at humor fall flat. A small glimmer of logic filtered through his processor, making him smile at the simplicity of it. “We get to experience what it’s like to be the Autobots. Except we won’t scurry way like robo-ants like they do.”

It sounded logical, know your enemy and all that, but was it really necessary? They were here to rpove a point and gain human allies, if they were forced to use these earth weapons and let them die, didn’t that defeat the purpose?

Sometimes, he hated being a deep thinker.

The sunlight glistened off the glass and metal as he stepped outside, but he didn’t have to cover his eyes. Such things were a benefit of being an avatar.

Skywarp stepped out behind him and glanced skyward.

Skywarp wrote: “So, where’s this airstrike? I don’t see anything.”

The Autobots never see us coming, do they? He kept that to himself, and instead said, “Don’t know. Maybe their primitive technology got them lost?”

That time, Skywarp lead the way to the Humvees, and they were bombarded by a series of messages.

Decepticon Comms wrote: >>"I have accessed the humans' intercraft communications,"<< Soundwave transmitted to the various groundside Decepticons.

>>"...detected the heightened radiation levels in this area. There's a government structure where the readings went dead."<<

>>"Copy that. Let the Secretary-General know. We still need authorization to strike."<<

>>"Gotta love U.N. bureaucracy."<<

>>"Copy that."<<

Skywarp wrote: “Wait, what am I listening too?” Skywarp asked, befuddled, looking over to Thundercracker. “What does it all mean?”

That was another question Thundercracker had no answer to, but it didn’t stop him from smiling. “Sounds like their commanders run things like the Autobots. They need permission to attack.”

He couldn’t help but smile at the last part. They’re too much like us. Like organic clones.

Warehouse

Feedback was closing up Vertigo's drone, having found the needed equipment to repair it, when Soundwave's message came across the comms. He looked up at Vertigo and Lock On.

--

Vertigo was repatching Lock On's fuel line, the best he could do until they got to a medic, when the transmission came through. "Interesting..." He muttered then watched Octane scurry around the warehouse. "Maybe these disgusting creatures could be of some entertainment after all.

---

Lock On only smirked. And couldn't stop.

Meanwhile Feedback chuckled softly and opened his comms. >>"Flamewar, Ma'am, we will stand ready at the warehouse."<< he said as he helped Vertigo get his drone attached back under his wing. >>"Since Blackout is tracking them, we will only take off if they attack the warehouse.. If that's okay..."<<

Feedback, for all his cocky confidence, had never had a command role so his confidence suddenly dropped when he found himself actually doing something rather than just begrudgingly following orders.

>>"Or if you order us to assist if they attack somewhere else... Or something... "<<

--

"Stop while you're ahead, comms jockey." Vertigo muttered to Feedbackas he motioned for Lock On and Feedback to follow.

---

Out on the tarmac the three transformed into their fighter jet alt modes. They stayed parked there, waiting.

Feedback turned on his radar as it was longer range than the other two had. And they began silently watching for the humans to attack.

---

Meanwhile... Somewhere Over Syrian Airspace

Blackout was near silently following the human aircraft, sending back visuals and location information to the command on the ground.

The humans didn't appear to have detected him, though he had his chaff grenades loaded and ready, as well as his machine guns all set to fire. Right now though, his distance was probably too far for their primitive radar.

He had detected Subjugator as the Seeker made a pass fairly close by, and sent him the coordinates for the warehouse. >>"The base of operation"<< he sent. >"Most are in Holo avatar form at a human government bunker. They're leaving the bunker."<<

Upon receiving the message from Blackout Subjugator sent a quick acknowledgement before taking off from the parking lot transforming into jet mode after leaving the ground. After a few minutes of cruising he arrived at the warehouse and touched down.

The dark black fighter sat on the ground for a few moments before he chirped into the comms “well well well, you thought you could hog all the fun, well I’m here now so give me a nice juicy target but don’t think for a moment I’m just going to sit here and idle my engines”

Government Bunker- back to convoy

Each of the mechs returned to their respective hummers. Ravage returned to the one Megatron, Flamewar, and Sixshot had been in, while Amethyst and Red Wing returned to the one carrying the other Seekers. Everyone was thinking along the same general lines, and that was what was going to happen next? They dare not make any sudden hasty decisions being that they were undercover as Earth creatures, but the incoming fleshling's air fleet meant that they could become compromised in some way.

Ravage had faith in Megatron's wisdom as much as he did in Soundwave's ability of superior surveillance and communication. Surely, they could quash this human adversary if they threatened their operation. After all, the fleshlings had no clue whom or what they were really dealing with. That being said, the large cat commed his Commander in Chief, >>"However I may assist you, My Lord, just give the word, and it shall be done. These humans do not threaten us."<<, he growled, his sleek black furred holomatter form climbing into a seat and sitting comfortably, golden eyes fixed on the prestigious old man for his guidance.

The seemingly young man and woman took their seats across from the holoforms of Thundercracker and Skywarp, sitting next to "Lt. Maverick". Both of them looked upset. Amethyst was looking out the window at the sky, whinning, "Whhhhhyyyyy...", and Red Wing tapped her on the shoulder and he said, "Stop that. I know you'd rather be up there, but Megatron has a plan for us down here."

"But Red Wing, we're fighter jets, not ground-bound humans. I wanna fly again."

"We will. Be patient."

"Hmmm...ok.", Amethyst huffed, sitting back down and crossing her arms. Red Wing gave her a small smile and winked at her. She smiled back. To be honest, Red Wing felt just as anxious, maybe even more anxious than her, to get back in the air. It was his safe spot, and the place he felt he could really make a difference in a situation like this. If the humans targetted their hideout and hit their real bodies, what would they do? The humans didn't know about it though, right? He then thought about Thrust and all the commotion he had made...and the flying...and...well everyone pretty much killed some humans and Amethyst blew up a car. So yah. Their base might be a target. He started sighing loudly himself.

Syrian Government Bunker

Flamewar had been listening to the chatter that Soundwave had transmitted. The feckless fleshbags were so mired in their own bureacracy that they couldn't engage in a simple airstrike without receiving the necessary clearances.

This was a clear example of why Megatron's leadership was superior: those aerial forces would have known going in whether or not they had authorization. On top of that, she knew that Megatron tended to trust those within his empire: if they made a move and the result was an advancement of the empire's goals, no harm done. Quite the opposite--often it lead to an advancement in the ranks. But the reverse was also true. Go out on a limb and suffer a setback for the empire and the one to make the call would be the one to hang.

Fortunately, everyone in this scenario seemed to be pulling their weight. Even the humans with whom they were dealing appeared to recognize the urgency and were making all due haste to clear out with the prize that Lord Megatron had "negotiated" for them to receive.

“Are you coming, my dear? I’m sure they can take care of themselves,” Sixshot asked. She looked at him strangely for a moment before realizing that, clearly, Megatron had only made his orders for her known to her specifically.

"Our leader has ordered that I ensure our contacts escape with their new, fissionable materials," she said with a smirk. "You're welcome to keep me company. Megatron has clearly enjoyed exposing you to new facets of the Decepticon hierarchy."

She paused as a comm came in from Feedback.

>>"Flamewar, Ma'am, we will stand ready at the warehouse. Since Blackout is tracking them, we will only take off if they attack the warehouse.. If that's okay..."<<

She opened her mouth to reply, but he was not quite finished...

>>"Or if you order us to assist if they attack somewhere else... Or something... "<<

>>"Of course. You are ideally placed to strike right where you are, should the need arise. Remain on standby. These humans' inability to make a decision may well make a response on our part unnecessary."<<

She looked back to Sixshot.

"I'm going to have to learn more about this 'U.N.' when I get back to the ship. They sound remarkably ineffective and yet hold a great deal of authority, it would seem."

Convoy

As the convoy of humvees rumbled through the streets, Megatron monitored the human military networks that Soundwave was broadcasting from aboard the Thanatos.

"They're so crippled by their incompetence, Ravage. It would be amusing if it weren't so pathetic, heheheh," Megatron chuckled.

>>"I was just making a similar assessment to Sixshot, my lord,"<< Flamewar commed in. Megatron said nothing, but his eyes were drawn to the slowly stirring human whom he had ordered Ravage to capture. Once the human opened his eyes and started to process that he was not amongst friends, he began to babble incoherently for a moment before hurling a few choice threats in Arabic.

Oh, this little human had no idea what was in store for it.

"Ravage, calm our guest."

The Decepticon Leader then opened up a comm.

>>"Decepticons, prepare to depart. Remain on standby for an attack. These fleshbags may wind up doing nothing more than shooting their missiles into the dirt."<<

Decepticon Base-Warehouse

Octane continued to secure everything to the best of his ability. He noticed a couple of Cons whose names he couldn't remember go fly off. It is probably some sort of recon on the stupid flesh bags to make sure they didn't try any funny business. Octane shook his head at how similar this fleshy race was to Cybertronians. Lord Megatron found someone who could be manipulated with a promise of the radioactive rocks they acquired. One side has to wait for confirmation before they could shoot. Taking this planet would be extremely easy once the Autobots were out of the way.

"Hey Astrotrain, do you think this little human raid do any real damage to us or the great plans Megatron has for us? If everything works out, they will be bowing to us asking to be spared. I am not sure if I would spare one unless it promised to wash me regularly and maybe fill my tank with the best stuff. It might actually be nice to have a slave and as numerous as they are, if one accidentally gets squished, I could easily replace it with another one. I think it be more fun having one of the Autobots as a slave but I wouldn't be too surprised Megatron or someone like Shockwave would have a plan for them beyond scrap parts."

Downtown Aleppo – Seeker Humvee

Thundercracker wrote:“Don’t know. Maybe their primitive technology got them lost?”

“Sounds like their commanders run things like the Autobots. They need permission to attack.”

“Lost, permission, it’s all a bunch of flesh sack nonsense,” Skywarp mused as his holo-avatar got into the seekers’ assigned humvee. Thundercracker followed behind him as did Amethyst and Red Wing. The teleporter immediately had to endure the whining of Amethyst, who wanted nothing more than to fly again. Red Wing, to his credit, tried to stifle her complaining and told her to be patient. That seemed to do the trick.

“I feel your pain, Amethyst,” Skywarp interjected. “I’d rather be back in my real body and up there shooting down those human germs, too. But, we have our orders and I’m not going to risk Megatron’s wrath by going rogue and you shouldn’t, either. Even I’m smart enough to know that’s not a good idea. Heh.”

Syrian Government Bunker

Flamewar wrote:
"Our leader has ordered that I ensure our contacts escape with their new, fissionable materials. You’re welcome to keep me company. Megatron has clearly enjoyed exposing you to new facets of the Decepticon hierarchy.”

“Indeed, he has,” Sixshot’s avatar responded stoically. “And since Megatron has already departed the premises, it seems the decision has been made for me. I will stay with you, my dear Flamewar, and ensure that the slagmaker’s orders are carried out.”

Flamewar wrote:"I'm going to have to learn more about this 'U.N.' when I get back to the ship. They sound remarkably ineffective and yet hold a great deal of authority, it would seem.”

“U.N.?” The STAG wondered what exactly that was. It was certainly an acronym for something, but what? “It likely stands for Useless Nations, wouldn’t you think? Sounds about right. Heh.”

Warehouse--Outside Aleppo

"Hey Astrotrain, do you think this little human raid do any real damage to us or the great plans Megatron has for us? If everything works out, they will be bowing to us asking to be spared. I am not sure if I would spare one unless it promised to wash me regularly and maybe fill my tank with the best stuff. It might actually be nice to have a slave and as numerous as they are, if one accidentally gets squished, I could easily replace it with another one. I think it be more fun having one of the Autobots as a slave but I wouldn't be too surprised Megatron or someone like Shockwave would have a plan for them beyond scrap parts."

"Yeah...be careful with that. I took one as a captive once. It didn't work out so well. They're tricky to keep alive. And they leak a lot. More trouble than they're worth to keep as pets. As slaves and worshippers? Maybe. Could be on to something there, Octy."

>>"Decepticons, prepare to depart. Remain on standby for an attack. These fleshbags may wind up doing nothing more than shooting their missiles into the dirt."<<

Given that the latest transmission to come through was from Megatron himself, it immediately caught Astrotrain's attention.

"Looks like we finished what we came down here to do," Astrotrain said as he transformed into his shuttle mode. Most of the other Decepticons looked as if they were still "patched in" to their holomatter avatars, but that likely wouldn't be the case for much longer.

Warehouse Base

Venomsnek wrote:“well well well, you thought you could hog all the fun, well I’m here now so give me a nice juicy target but don’t think for a moment I’m just going to sit here and idle my engines”

"That's all we're doing, idling our engines." Lock On grumbled as he sat in his alt mode desperately wanting for some action.

--

Just as Vertigo was about to add to the conversation, the message from Megatron to prepare to depart came through. "Well, it looks like we might not get to explode some fleshies." He said.

---

Convoy

Feint, on the other hand was glad to be heading back. The mission may have lacked the opportunity to do what he did best, but that was not what put him on edge. It was the recklessness around him. So used to carefully planning his attacks, he just couldn't get used to jumping into the action.

Such is the mind of a sniper, though.

As the Humvee he and Reaper occupied started into motion, he still didn't relax. The fleshies were in the air, and though Blackout was keeping close watch on them. His avatar kept the scope of his sniper rifle self in a position to see out the window. Feint want to see with his scope as well.

Otherwise, he and Reaper travelled in silence, Reaper listening to the Seekers chatter, Feint only half aware there was others present.


---

Trailing the UN Forces

Blackout, who had more patience than any Decepticon should have, was really starting to wonder why these humans took so fragging long to do anything. In his opinion, they should have already attacked.

He kept sending back the intell to command, even if it was uneventful.

Warehouse base

Flash Freeze sat in his jet alternate mode, idling. He had finally been sent on a mission... and was given no orders.

"Great, just great. My absolutely dumb luck." He mutters to himself. "I never thought I'd wish to be back on the Thanatos, but here I am."

The only thing he wanted right now, it seemed, was to get out of this blasted mission.

Outskirts of Aleppo--Warehouse

With the convoy en route back to the warehouse and Flamewar ensuring that the nuclear materials stayed in the hands of those Megatron had intended, the Decepticon leader disconnected himself from the technology station that fostered their use of holomatter avatars over the longer distances that this mission had called for.

His red optics brightening, Megatron stepped away from the machine and headed towards Astrotrain.
___

Skies over Aleppo

>>"Did you see that? There was another spike in that weird signal we picked up!"<< one of the fighter pilots commed.

>>"I saw it. Delta post? Did you guys catch it?"<< a second asked.

>>"Affirmative. We're attempting to locate the root source of the signal."<<
___

The Thanatos--Bridge

Soundwave's listened quietly to the human comm chatter. Given the timing of when they were detecting the "curious signals" they were picking up something related to the Decepticons' connection and disconnection from their holomatter avatars.

>>"Lord Megatron, the humans might be able to successfully identify your position."<<

>>"How?!"<< Megatron's voice cut back sharply over the comm.

>>"Signal anomalies associated with the holomatter technology,"<< Soundwave responded dutifully.

>>"Unnacceptable, Soundwave. Interrupt whatever they're detecting. Now!"<<

>>"Yes, lord Megatron."<<

Syrian Government Bunker

Flamewar kept her "eyes", such as they were, on the humans as they fled with the generous gift that Megatron had bestowed upon them, all while steering clear of the Tyrest Accords. It was quite brilliant, though she would expect no less of the mech she had pledged her loyalty to lo those many vorns ago.

“And since Megatron has already departed the premises, it seems the decision has been made for me. I will stay with you, my dear Flamewar, and ensure that the slagmaker’s orders are carried out.”

"True enough," Flamewar said with a smirk. "With this particularly volatile group of humans being added to this planet's small circle of nuclear powers, there's a very real likelihood that the humans will handle the remainder of the escalation of tensions for us."

“U.N.? It likely stands for Useless Nations, wouldn’t you think? Sounds about right. Heh.”

Flamewar actually let out a small burst of laughter at Sixshot's comment.

"Only too accurate," Flamewar said with a grin. Once the local humans had completely vacated the area, she opened up a new comm with Megatron.

>>"The humans are clear, my lord. We're returning now."<<
___

Warehouse outside Aleppo

The familiar glow returned to Flamewar's optics as she disengaged from the connection with her holomatter avatar.
___

Thanatos--Bridge

Another one of the anomalous energy spikes blipped across one of Soundwave's holoscreens. He attempted to mask it, but it was there and gone in an instant.

His fists tightened at the console.
___

Skies over Aleppo

>>"Centcomm just picked up another one of those signals. They're relaying coordinates now. Strike authorization is confirmed."<<

>>"Bloody finally!"<<

As several of the jets arced back, they locked their weapon targeting systems on what appeared to be nothing more than a warehouse, blended into a cluster of them.

>>"Firing."<<

From each of the United Nations fighters, several missiles streaked outwards.
___

Outside Aleppo--Warehouse

Megatron walked with no particularly urgency as he approached Astrotrain and Octane.

"Transform and prepare to launch. We only-"

Above him, the roof structure and one of the side walls exploded in fire and debris.

In The Skies Trailing The UN Forces

The much more agile human fighter jets moved faster than Blackout could report back, and the missiles were hitting the warehouse before he could report back.

>>"Staying on the main force."<<< He reported back to command.

Outside The Warehouse

"Incoming!" Feedback yelled as the missiles hit the warehouse. He quickly fired his engines and launching while Megatron ordered the others to transform and attack.

--

"Okay, Mr Radar, how did you miss seeing that?!" Lock On yelled as he lit his engines and took off after Feedback, Vertigo following right behind.

---

>>"Low observable missiles."<< Feedback answered. >>"Radar couldn't pick them up until last moment. Some one keep on my wing, I'm going turn off their 'eyes'"<<

Tracing the trajectory of the missiles, the countermeasures specialist pierced the dark desert sky, turning on his anti-radar jamming pods so that the UN Forces wouldn't be able see the Decepticon aircraft.

He had to admit, his confidence was high at the moment. They had plenty of skilled fighter jets sitting at the warehouse, the best the Decepticons had, and the Decepticons certainly had the best. He knew he could count on any and all of them to keep the human pilots busy while he used his countermeasures skills against the fleshy things.

>>"Blackout, did they bring any support aircraft?"<<

Downtown Aleppo – Seeker Humvee

Skywarp wrote:“Lost, permission, it’s all a bunch of flesh sack nonsense.”

Thundercracker had to agree with his friend. Given their communications technology among others they’d learned over time, it surprised him that a military component could be so inefficient as well as talkative. “And on their own planet, none the less,” Thundercracker said, chucking. “They probably think their communications aren’t monitored by anyone, too.”

Over the eons, Thundercraker had learned that there wasn’t much that was secret within an organization except at the top. Few dared to spy on Megatron, and those that did had ended their functional existence wishing their mold had been different.

Still, it’s not like they expected a race of interstellar beings to appear on their planet. The fact they had entire libraries of information on the possibility yet remained so closed off and ignorant spoke more to their military conquest mindset than anything else.

After all, he thought, why worry about what’s out there when it’s a fight for area or survival?

Once again, he was struck by how similar their two species were. It’ll be interesting to see how far thay can develop if they survive our… visit.

The thought bothered him more than he expected, but it wasn’t the first time they had taken over a planet and either wiped out its people or enslaved them, ensuring their growth was forever stagnant.

And all for the Decepticon cause. So glorious, isn’t it?

He’d been half listening to Redwing and Amethyst, which allowed Skywarp to show his softer side to the younger mechs. Did I really just think that? he wondered, trying not to smirk at the idea of ‘Warp counseling others.

Skywarp wrote:“I feel your pain, Amethyst,” Skywarp interjected. “I’d rather be back in my real body and up there shooting down those human germs, too. But, we have our orders and I’m not going to risk Megatron’s wrath by going rogue and you shouldn’t, either. Even I’m smart enough to know that’s not a good idea. Heh.”

Now that got a genuine smile out of Thundercracker. The first he’d shown in Primus knew how long. “I’d say you should ask Starscream what happens if you question Megatron. Though, he’ll probably try to draw you into whatever contrived plot he has to unseat Megatron.”

After a brief pause, he added, “Speaking of Screamer, wonder how long his stay in the CR chamber will be when Megatron gets a hold of him this time.”



Outside the Warehouse

Thundercracker remained in thought for most of the ride back to the warehouse. It felt good to relax for a brief moment. Those opportunities were few and far between anymore, and he’d made a note to engage in them more before he became as lifeless as Shockwave.

From what he could tell, their mission had been a success despite the human’s attempts to destroy their contacts. All they had to do now was return to their base and their real bodies and everything would…

He paused his thoughts as the convoy came to a stop by the warehouse and others started disembarking. He debated if he should wait for Amethyst and Redwing to leave first so they could reenter their bodies, but his own desire to be back within his familiar confines was too much and he followed Skywarp out of the vehicle.

“Almost time to stretch out wings, ‘Warp. It’ll be good to rocket through the atmosphere again.”

They made it a few steps before the missiles shot overhead and the warehouse exploded. Out of habit, Thundercracker turned and pointed his arm in the direction he thought the missiles came from, then cursed at pulling a Thrust, then began the procedure to switch back to his body.

What in the scrap? he thought as he accessed the command sequence that triggered his link to his real body, and in seconds, his optics glowed bright red as his internal systems activated, bringing up his internal diagnostics and doing a quick scan of damages he sustained.

He didn’t have to wait for his systems to tell him what was wrong as pain lanced through him as he tried to move. He was partially pinned under the debris from the warehouse ceiling and his servos screamed as he tried to push himself free.

Fragging flashbags! Any sympathy he’d felt for the until then faded as he struggled against the weight of the steel and concrete scattered about.

It pained him that he wasn’t strong enough to free himself entirely, but his desire to wipe out the humans responsible proved stronger than any rational thought to wait for the others. The fact the others could be in a similar situation occurred to him, and strengthened his determination.

With a final flourish, he activated his thrusters and the warehouse was filled with the customary roar of his engines as they forced him out from under the pile of debris to the nearly equally deafening sounds of screeching metal of cement.

Once free, he stood and accessed his internal diagnostics. No major damage was detected, but there were several stress fractures covering his metallic skin. Little more than flesh wounds, they wouldn’t prove dangerous unless he was caught in a direct blast or the humans had taken to using magnetic weapons.

He turned toward the sky where the missiles had come from, but he hesitatated. His desire to check on the others threatened to override his combat instincts.

Opening a channel to the other Seekers, he said, >>Your bodies may be buried but should be fully functional.<<

Keeping the channel open, he opened a second one to Megatron. >>With your permission, Lord Megatron.<<

Leaving the others was against everything he believed in, but if the humans attacked again there was no telling how much damage they’d inflict. In the end, he was a Decepticon and they were attacked. There was some training that never left no matter what.

Warehouse

Octane noticed Lord Megatron coming at them in a gentle pace and ordered him and Astrotrain to transform to be ready to leave. All of a sudden the roof and a wall caved in from an attack. He saw some of the supplies he gathered and organized get crushed with some small explosions from ammo detonating. This sent some more debris flying in the warehouse. Thankfully none of his fellow Decepticons been injured beyond a paint repair. As much as Octane wanted to get a shot at the fleshies for destroying their temporary base, he remembered the order Megatron gave. He transformed into his jet mode taking up a decent amount of space in the now smaller warehouse.

"Ready to be loaded, Lord Megatron, if it is still your wish."


Convoy

As the convoy got closer, Battletrap noticed the warehouse got hit. He couldn't tell how much damage it was but it looked bad. Battletrap was clueless that Megatron had already returned to his body.

>>Flamewar, Lord Megatron, the warehouse hit. No idea who done it. Maybe human or something inside go boom.

Syrian Government Bunker

Flamewar wrote:"True enough. With this particularly volatile group of humans being added to this planet's small circle of nuclear powers, there's a very real likelihood that the humans will handle the remainder of the escalation of tensions for us."

“Yes, which will bring this world closer to Phase Six when I can really let loose my full destructive capabilities on this tiny mudball,” Sixshot commented with glee and a slight smirk on his faux holomatter human face. While he was enjoying experiencing the earlier phases that would eventually lead to what he knew all too well, he still couldn’t wait to get back into his element of ravaging a world that was on the very brink of collapse. The journey there would not only be informative but well worth the wait.

Flamewar’s avatar then vanished as she returned to her real body. Sixshot followed suit, initiating the command sequence that returned him to his own metal body.

Outside Aleppo – Inside Warehouse

The phase sixer’s optics glowed to brilliant life before he disconnected himself from the holomatter machine. He turned to look over at Flamewar as she, too, was back where she belonged. “It’s good to be back in our own bodies. While I found being a human to be an interesting experience, it’s not one I would want to elongate any more than necessary. I…”

Sixshot’s comment was interrupted as the roof and side of the warehouse suddenly exploded into fire and chaos as debris flew everywhere and the ceiling collapsed down upon them. The STAG remained standing even as large chunks of the roof came crashing down onto him. Sixshot shielded his head with both arms as wood and metal struck his frame. Being an ultra-powerful and resilient Phase Sixer, the debris did no real damage to his body aside from some scuff marks here and there. It was nothing that a good polish couldn’t rub out later. He wasn’t even knocked down or moved in any significant way.

Once the dust began to settle, Sixshot lowered both arms down and brushed himself off as he looked around at the devastation that now surrounded him. As if the abandoned warehouse hadn’t been dilapidated enough, now it was really in a shambles. The STAG glanced over to where Flamewar had been standing only to find a pile of debris near the holomatter machine that was now severely damaged from the explosion. Sixshot quickly scanned the debris pile and detected Flamewar’s signature beneath it.

“Flamewar, hold on! I’m here!” Sixshot called out to her as he quickly cleared the rubble off of her much smaller frame. “Are you okay, my dear?” The sixchanger asked, genuinely concerned for her wellbeing. Sixshot then extended a hand down to her in order to help her back to her feet.

Approaching Warehouse

Thundercracker wrote:“Speaking of Screamer, wonder how long his stay in the CR chamber will be when Megatron gets a hold of him this time.”

Skywarp's avatar smirked. “Not long enough as usual. He’ll never learn no matter how long his stay in a CR chamber is. Once Screamer’s out, he’ll be back to his scheming ways in no time.”

The convoy then came to a stop and Skywarp stepped out of the humvee and followed after his blue friend.

Thundercracker wrote:“Almost time to stretch out wings, ‘Warp. It’ll be good to rocket through the atmosphere again.”

“Yes, it will, ’Cracker,” Skywarp replied, patting his long-time friend on his fake human shoulder. Suddenly, missiles streaked overhead and the warehouse erupted into a fiery inferno. The roof and one side collapsed inwards. “Our bodies!” The teleporter exclaimed as he activated the command sequence that quickly returned him to his real form.

Inside Warehouse

Skywarp awoke covered almost completely in debris from the warehouse’s ceiling. While Thundercracker used his foot thrusters to get himself out from under the rubble, the prankster decided on a more eloquent method. In a flash of purple light, Skywarp teleported out from under the debris pile he had found himself in and appeared standing next to his blue friend.

“You look no worse for wear,” Skywarp said to Thundercracker as the black and purple seeker checked his own internal damage reports. As expected, there was no major injuries to be concerned about. Some dents and scrapes, but nothing more. Skywarp then looked up to see if he could spot the enemy aircraft that had hit them.

“Let’s go, ’Cracker,” the teleporter said impatiently as he clenched his fists tightly. “We’ll show those flesh sacks what happens when you attack Decepticons!” Skywarp made no attempt to enter the skies yet as Thundercracker awaited word from Lord Megatron.

[Warehouse]

When the missiles had struck, the tall, dark-skinned Arabic man had disappeared from existence. Not a trace was left that anyone by his description had ever existed. When the missiles had struck, a mixture of disappointment and tiredness filled the circuits of the mobile artillery station.

Dreadnaut stayed silent. As he did anyway. He wasn’t in any shape or form to speak up about any of this. He had no real input, so he just listened, because that took less significantly energy than speaking over the comms. Whatever these humans were doing, whatever the Decepticons were doing, he just wanted it to be over. The towering mech would’ve clenched his fists in frustration if he weren’t confined to his alternate mode. He raised his missile batteries, all current slots loaded with heatseekers, and as he did so, the debris slid off the top of his bed. His treads ground up some of the rubble underneath to make it easier to move.

He made one message over the comms. It was just one word, but it carried all of his intents at this point in time. Dreadnaut sighed internally. Then, across to the in-charge mechs, he sent it.

>>”Ready.”<<