Downtown Aleppo – Seeker HumveeSkywarp 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 WarehouseThundercracker 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.