CtF: Blackarachnia guards the flag

[Blackarachnia (BW)]

Blackarachnia makes the most of the quiet moment to quickly assemble the components she had gathered before the battle had started. She'd already had a single crude laser turret set up to fire from the rooftop of a nearby building, and was nearing completion of her second. As strange as it might have seemed, she was assembling the device in her beast mode. Better to have an eye on the sky, plus more limbs meant the job was done faster. Both turrets will be aimed upwards with the intent to deter people from attacking from the sky.

The flag stood proud on the top of the tallest skyscraper in the area. It appeared to be unguarded, but surely that couldn't be the case now, could it?

[Thrust]

Having finished blasting all of the station walls holding the subway maps, Thrust pops above ground just within the Fleetwind/Barricade/Blackarachnia section of the city. The subway system is less predominant here outside of the financial district, but it does snake underneath the other areas as well.

Though out of sensor range of anyone at the moment, he does at least see which way to start investigating: much farther down the street he can see extensively damaged buildings and large quantities of debris covering the road. Since he is merely scouting at the moment, he starts to head towards the likely trap without any particular worry, searching for any Decepticon or Predicon signals...

[Blackarachnia (BW)]

Two turrets installed. Blackarachnia was satisfied with her last-minute efforts. She radioed the other two. //Blackarachnia here. Coast is clear so far. I'll let you know when that changes.//

She remained in her Spider mode and crawled along the side of a building, her many eyes gazing out, looking for those who might dare to steal the flag.

Come into my parlour, said the Spider.

[Thrust]

Thrust rolls to a stop at the edge of the debris and just has to look from the glass to his tire to realise why the other team had damaged the buildings. Unfortunately this was the main road to a building he could see that looked suspiciously more damaged than the others but was still out of his sensor range. Thrust takes a moment to look around for a piece of building to drag towards him to clear a path in the glass, but then spots something that gives him a better idea to get further faster.

He does indeed use his grappling hook hand to clear a small path, but instead of grabbing something deeper in he clears away glass in front of some rubble that landed in a ramp shape. He then backs up, transforms, and takes off towards it.

Now, if this would have worked properly Thrust would have landed onto a local vehicle and the collapse of its roof may have stopped him there. However, his makeshift ramp wasn’t as sturdy as it appeared and its support flew out from underneath it as Thrust hit it, changing his angle and causing him to skid into the glass below. After a second he shakes off some glass that managed to get on top of his alternate head, transforms and shoots his hand towards the car he was aiming for. Thrust then retracts the line and drags himself on his ‘stomach’ up to the car, then climbs up and sits on it. He pauses long enough to give whoever is watching and laughing in the monitor room the finger, then starts to pick glass out of his tire and opens up a radio link to the others.

[Blackarachnia (BW)]

Blackarachnia heard a thud.. but then little else. Carefully, the widow moved around the side of the building. There was a motorcycle motor sound.. could it be Thrust? Whatever it is, he's still some distance away. Possibly at the decoy base. They'd find this one soon enough, Blackarachnia just had to be ready for them.

[Thrust]

After finally getting the majority of the glass out of both tires (the one on his back being a real hassle), Thrust stands up on top of the vehicle there is still an irritatingly distance to travel that’s covered with glass. Thrust just shakes his head in annoyance this time, than raises his arms and begins firing on select vehicles on the street. Once he stops he sees that the blasts from each vehicle was enough to scatter the glass effectively out of the way he hops down and starts heading towards the decoy building, well aware the other team may be drawn to the sound of the blasts.

Not to mention the annoying sound of the smaller glass peaces still in his wheel hitting the road with every rotation.

[Blackarachnia (BW)]

Well, it's not going to be much of a decoy unless it looks like it's manned. Blackarachnia mutters, "Terrorize" quietly to herself, before firing her grapple feature on her gun and making a swing-line towards the decoy. It's not TOO far from the actual building, thankfully. Blackarachnia activates the frequency she was sharing between Barricade and Fleetwind. "I've got activity in my area. Thankfully, someone's smiling on me. I've got an axel to pick with this one."

Blackarachnia found a nearby building to position herself on top of. She removed her grapple and loaded a missile into her gun. She aimed not for where Thrust was, but where he would be. She fired.

[Thrust]

Thrust stops heading towards the decoy building the moment his sensors detect someone and looks over just in time to see the missile fired ahead of him before it hits pavement and sends him back towards a lamppost. However, he is fine and fires off a few covering rounds towards the roof top as he backups and breaks into a storefront window on the opposite side of the street. He manages to see who fired on him and yells out of the darkened store “I’m going to have real fun pulling of your legs, traitor.” Thrust then looks around, spots some stairs, and heads to the roof. Top floor: house wears and Predicons.

[Blackarachnia (BW)]

"Come and try it, we'll see if you can do a better job than last time!" Blackarachnia hisses. She ducks down as the blasts whiz past overhead.

When Thrust enters the building, Blackarachnia has a feeling what might happen next. She looks for the stairway access to the top of the building. Intoning "Beast Mode," she transforms, and climbs to the top of the stairs. When Thrust emerges, her plan is to launch a web at him again. But for now, she waited for him to come to her.

[Thrust]

OOC: apologies for the long delay. Have been indisposed of.

Despite his design, Thrust is capable of handling stairs if he puts some effort into it. As he heads up his sensors track Blackarachnia through the walls and floors as she plants herself on top of the stairs. A light chuckle escapes him as he stops at the top floor as he remembers she shouldn’t know about his sensor array. He then looks and aims strait upwards and unleashes a barrage of weapons fire, then he blasts the door off its hinges and speeds out. He turns to get a bead on her again and says “surrender and I’ll make it quick.”

[Thrust]

OOC: Was going to put this in “Hook Builds Things”, but this tread will still do.

Thrust has returned to the subway system and is at present on route towards the building with the chandeliers. He somehow managed to jury-rig the flag to his motorcycle mode and it is now waving in the air as he drives at less than optimal speeds due to the tire damage he has already suffered. His sensors are cranked and on the lookout for anyone attempting to pull a rescue, but with the squad car down and jet unlikely to head into the tunnels looking for him, all he has to worry about is the surviving members of the other team, but they will be more likely busy with Hellbender. All in all it looks like it will be smooth sailing from here for the bikerbot.

[Barricade]

The shattered crater of Fleetwind's demise - who else's, Barricade can only guess at - left far enough behind, and no ominous rumble of an enraged mining worm following close behind, Barricade draws up to a stop, keeping himself tucked into the shadows.

He's hurt, damage warnings scrolling continually across his vision in the lower corner. His fuel is low, spent or spilled, leaving him minimal reserves. His cannon is still functional, as are his claws, however transformation is rather iffy if these readings are to be believed.

But he still functions.

Their flag is most likely lost, Fleetwind dead, Blackarachnia too far out of position right now to offer much assistance, and time - and energy - running short. His only option is to find Hook's flag before Hellbender can return there. Or die trying.

He has to get back into the sewers and the subway system, get back to where Hellbender had ambushed him, and see if he can spot the mining worm's trail from there. It has to lead somewhere and that slim lead is better than nothing right now, which is, otherwise, exactly what he has - nothing.

It takes too long to orient himself and find access back into the subterranean tunnels. He's probably already lost, but as long as he retains any fuel, any energy at all, he will fight. The Lord High Protector would expect no less of him.

It's the dimming glow of his own spilled energon, the thin trail of it tricking along in the darkness that leads him back to his near tomb. And there, a pale patch of ceramcrete scraped bare of dust and mold by the passage of something large scraping over its surface.

He can only hope that Hellbender is far behind him, fretting over his damaged Hook or off on some errand as he pelts off down the tunnel, furtively following what few signs of Hellbender's passage remain, hoping that the trail will lead him to Hook's team's base, rather than into another trap.

Barricade can't take yet another burial today, and that's the truth.

[Barricade]

ooc: left thread to head over to Hook Builds Things.

[Thrust]

Thrust slows to a stop at the station below the building where the chandeliers were and transformers, grabbing the flag before it falls to the ground. He made it to where Hook ordered him to park himself and the flag, but Thrust detects a complication at the edge of his sensor range at the base where their flag is.

// We have a problem; I got the flag to the one station, but someone’s snooping around our base. If he heads past me I’ll try to blast him, but since I’m babysitting this thing one of you two will have to try and take him out. //

[Thrust]

OOC: joining Barricade in Hook Builds Things for connivance and to shut down this tread.