Thrust
Cadet
Party time
Posts: 121
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Post by Thrust on Dec 30, 2007 1:02:39 GMT -5
“I don’t know anyone here yet. That’s why were doing this, right? ‘Meet and beat’ or something?” Thrust says, then his head jerks upwards as the broadcast begins. The look of confusion on his face during the first half of the transmission is quickly replaced by his eyes widening to their fullest at the sight of Unicron. He had herd stories as Waspinator, of course, but to see it properly in its full glory…
When the broadcast ended and started looping again, Thrust slowly looks down to the two Decepticons and asks “you do remember how you people killed that thing last time, right?”
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Post by Hook on Dec 30, 2007 23:37:36 GMT -5
"You are a member of a social species, Thrust. It is assumed you social-"
The broadcast interrupts Hook's (rather hypocritical) irritated chiding of the motorcycle. The Constructicon watches it rather puzzedly, subconsciously lifting himself into the air to get a better look.
What the explosion of broadband chatter identifies as Unicron fascinates him, and he remains hanging in mid-air with his face turned to the sky long after Spinister has shut off the holographic loop. Such an incredible creation! Who made such a thing and how?
Oh, if only the other Constructicons were here. Surely they could build something to rival that destroyer.
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Hellbender
Major
Mecha-Shai-Hulud
"Seriously."
Posts: 892
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Post by Hellbender on Dec 30, 2007 23:54:50 GMT -5
Hellbender's acute audials first caught the holo-transmission being projected into the simulation chamber, shortly after it started as the alien newscasters jabber in panic. "What the--?"
Then, finally, he noticed the display in the sky that he could "see" with his sonar and radar. It was disorienting to decipher; the two humanoids in the room gave way to a flat surface with shapes of land and launching spacecraft... What in the Five Pools was going on? What did it have to do with the exercise?
Now alien robots panicking in the streets of an alien city. Was this a distraction to add complications to the exercise? If so, Hellbender thought it was a disturbing complication. There was something familiar about that panic; he'd seen it before. Spaceships launching as something came into view--
No. Not that shape. Not Unicron!
"NOOOOOO!" Hellbender howled. His boring heads extended and revved to full speed in an instant. "UNICRON!"
The mining worm slewed blindly around, not checking for friend or foe, and plunged back into the underground parking garage he'd emerged from. Down, down to the lowest levels he plunged, into the cross-tunnel that entered the sewers--and he didn't stop there. The cutters howled as he slammed them into the holographic concrete and dug downward, ever downward. Terror-driven, he ignored the temperature warnings on his borers; all that mattered was getting as deep as possible, away from Unicron.
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Thrust
Cadet
Party time
Posts: 121
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Post by Thrust on Dec 31, 2007 1:40:15 GMT -5
Thrust manages to get his arm up in time to deflect debris sent flying by Hellbender, then follows after the mining worm with an annoyed “hold on!” which goes completely ignored. He increases the brightness of his headlamp as he stares down the hole once he stops in front of it, and mutters “there goes the flag.” He then turns back to Hook and asks “What’s his problem? Did that thing attack his Cybertron too?”
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Post by Hook on Dec 31, 2007 14:13:31 GMT -5
"Hellbender was in the process of dying from Unicron when we found him," Hook answers Thrust as the Constructicon slowly lowers himself to the ground.
"The game is not being called. Find us some defensible positions and accessible parts that I don't need to rip up the street to get at. I'll take care of Hellbender."
Hook then promptly opens a radio-call to his wandering teammate: //Hellbender, that was a recording over a year old. Get back up here before you disqualify us.//
It should be noted that Constructicons have terrible bed-side manners.
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Hellbender
Major
Mecha-Shai-Hulud
"Seriously."
Posts: 892
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Post by Hellbender on Dec 31, 2007 16:28:44 GMT -5
Curiously, it wasn't the heat and diagnostic alarms that finally got Hellbender's attention; his vision had been red with alarms when Unicron nearly disintegrated him back on Cybertron. It certainly wasn't the cries of panic over the broadband--there had been all too many of those back on Cybertron, too.
No, it was the calm, somewhat ascerbic voice of Hook chiding him over his radio. No one had been calm on Cybertron. There had been great courage, yes, grim shouts of defiance from warriors resolved to die fighting an impossible foe, but no calm.
//Hellbender, that was a recording over a year old. Get back up here before you disqualify us.//
Recording. A year old. Recording. A year old. A year old!
Hellbender halted and backed, his borers glowing gently red with heat from cutting too fast without a halt, all his forward systems and circuitry sending him frantic warnings of overheating. He spun the cutters slowly, letting what air there was down here wash over them; halting the overheated spindles now would probably freeze them up, and wouldn't Hook be happy if he had to repair Hellbender from his own stupidity?
Disqualify us? Oh. How deep had he gone? Disqualifying himself without a fight, from sheer fright? Shame flooded through Hellbender; he'd panicked like an Empty spotted by one of Straxus' patrols at a mere recording! Even the greenest of recruits didn't do that, or if they did, a quick trip to the Smelting Pools cured them permanently of such cowardice.
The great mining worm shuddered. Who had seen, who knew? Would they talk about it? Hellbender backed out, slowly; his whole cutting system needed to cool down before he used it again. He couldn't even fully retract them without flooding his nose with excess heat.
// On my way back, sir, // Hellbender finally replied.
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Thrust
Cadet
Party time
Posts: 121
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Post by Thrust on Jan 2, 2008 21:11:27 GMT -5
“Showed up already blasted by that thing? Hnn. Did a good job patching him up then.” With that Thrust transformers facing away from Hook, but then turns his head back and rattles off his radio frequency before taking off down the road.
A few blocks later he spots something promising. Large areas like financial districts usually have congestion problems, and therefore invest in public transport. Using a short-range broadband signal only strong enough to hit Hook, he radios // wanted to underground, right? Got a subway entrance. Scoping it out now. // -------------- OOC: Sorry, only have time for a short post today. Subway details next post.
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Post by Hook on Jan 2, 2008 23:58:17 GMT -5
Hook still needs his flag to return. Oh, and Hellbender, too. Thrust has found a potential area to set up as a defense. Good, good.
That really leaves making a few decoys and setting in place a few contingency plans. With that in mind, Hook prowls around the square until he finds an upscale clothing store, punches in a window, and retrieves some cloth for flag-making.
These decoys won't stand up to even average scrutiny. That's all right. They don't need to.
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Hellbender
Major
Mecha-Shai-Hulud
"Seriously."
Posts: 892
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Post by Hellbender on Jan 3, 2008 0:23:00 GMT -5
Hellbender made his way back toward the surface. He moved much faster once he backed all the way back to a storm sewer and was able to turn about and move forward. Giant mining worms do not go full speed in reverse, alas.
// Okay, Hook, Ah'm back into the underlayers of the city. Where you want me? //
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Thrust
Cadet
Party time
Posts: 121
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Post by Thrust on Jan 4, 2008 20:12:26 GMT -5
After bouncing down the steps of the entrance, Thrust looks over their potential base. Errant luggage and garbage litter the area, suggesting it was abandoned in a hurry, most likely by what they had seen earlier in the sky above the holographic city. A full body turnstile blocks his way further down towards the next level where the actual trains are, but since they wouldn’t even slow down any of the larger mechs Thrust shoots at the base of one in the way and heads down. Hook might want some of it for flag polls.
On the second level Thrust again starts up a low power broadcast, one Hellbender may pick up if he is near enough, and lists off what he sees: //going to have to duck upstairs, but down by the tracks you’re fine. There’s a big tunnel map on the one wall, and both tunnels are empty and big enough Hellbender’s digger mode. We can set up here or in one of the tunnels, but we should scrap the maps at the other stations.//
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Post by Hook on Jan 5, 2008 22:01:21 GMT -5
//That will do. Start destroying those maps, Thrust, then go out of one of the other subway entrances. Oh, and find me a chandelier or three.//
One quick radio to Thrust, then another to Hellbender that he can take care of while he ambles in the proper direction. As he walks, Hook tears into buildings indiscriminately, gathering up interesting looking components. It leaves an interesting trail as he's well aware, and he makes it a little winding.
But, ultimately, if one follows the trail of ripped buildings, one can track the Constructicon's path.
//Come up at these coordinates, Hellbender. <coordinates for the lower-level of the subway> Mind the y-coordinate.//
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Hellbender
Major
Mecha-Shai-Hulud
"Seriously."
Posts: 892
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Post by Hellbender on Jan 5, 2008 22:13:01 GMT -5
// Got it, sir. Seriously, Ah've got a short-cut there already,// Hellbender replied laconically. He shifted course, slithering into the cross-cut he'd made into the subway tunnels instead of the one into the underground parking garage.
That actually required him to go down to find Hook, but such was navigation in underground tunnels. The unpredictability of open underground terrain was the only thing interesting about it; alas, there were no dark elves or orc hordes to liven up the journey. And Hellbender was the balrog.
A few minutes later, he slithered down the subway tunnel to where Hook waited for him...
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Thrust
Cadet
Party time
Posts: 121
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Post by Thrust on Jan 6, 2008 19:54:17 GMT -5
An eyebrow is raised regarding the request for chandeliers, but Thrust transforms and heads down one of the tunnels. As he starts working his way through all of the other stations, he calls Hook on the frequency he just used and first asks //What’s the other guy’s frequency?// Should Hook oblige him with it, he radios them both and says //the one who just joined in, Blackarachnia, looks like the one from my home, so here’s the deal: smaller than me, turns into a black widow spider, machine gun spider legs in robot mode, has a launcher that can shoot anything from missiles to a grappling hook to cyber venom, can bite you and pump that stuff into you, and a real pain with webs. Good at building and inventing stuff too, so squash her if you get a chance.// Thrust is trying to aim his team’s weapon fire at BA out of spite? Now where would you get an idea like that?
Thrust continues on destroying maps, and occasionally looking up above ground a bit for Hooks chandeliers, but finds nothing until he passes by Hellbender in the opposite tunnel and looks above the next station. He spots a few though the large windows of what looks like a hotel, then breaks in and tries to grab one with his graphing hook hand. Unfortunately it falls faster than he can retract it, and it smashes on the hard floor. Annoyed, he radios Hook again and says //found your chandeliers, but can’t reach them. If you need them for anything other than decoration, you’re going to have to get them yourself. Right outside the next station going east; can’t miss them. I’m going to finish off those maps. // It’s a short walk for Hook, but Thrust still expects to hear about it. Not that he cares that much at the moment.
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Post by Hook on Jan 7, 2008 22:03:47 GMT -5
Hook does provide Thrust with Hellbender's radio, because not being able to communicate within your team is quite annoying.
The noise of metal slithering rasps through the tunnels, and the Constructicon lifts himself to the ceiling of the subway terminal as Hellbender slithers in. The sight of the massive mining worm coming out of the darkness sends a delicious shiver through his struts. Look at the power they have. Look at what damage he can do.
It's not quite as good as Devastator, but it will suffice.
Hook sets himself down behind Hellbender's borers and crouches down to remove the flag. He quickly replaces it with an obviously decoy flag, then tosses the real flag to the ground. "There. Go cause trouble for our enemies."
So long as Hellbender remains around, Hook will not touch the true flag.
Thrust's inability to fetch chandeliers earns a //Hnh.// from the Constructicon. Perhaps, though, that will work in his favor yet.
High overhead, beyond the concrete and metal, the sun approaches noon.
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Hellbender
Major
Mecha-Shai-Hulud
"Seriously."
Posts: 892
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Post by Hellbender on Jan 8, 2008 0:58:52 GMT -5
"Seriously? That's a change of plan. Y'all be kind enough to let me know if that there item gets away from you, so Ah can chase it back down," Hellbender said, his already cavernous voice echoing and re-echoing weirdly in the subway tunnel.
"Make trouble for the enemy? Seriously! Those are my kind of orders!" Hellbender turned and slithered back down the dark subway tunnel.
// Keep me up on scouting reports, // Hellbender radioed Hook and Thrust. // Ah do more damage if there's actually an enemy near me. //
Hellbender slithered through the tunnels as silently as a gigantic serpentine robot could and he listened. The city was abandoned, silent as a crypt... save for the invaders scurrying and thundering about. Sound carries a long way through rock; Hellbender's seismic sensors twitched almost--but not quite!--imperceptibly every time a heavy metallic boot slammed into the pavement somewhere.
His course through the tunnels took him toward Counterpunch and Cannonball's territory...
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