CtF: Thundercracker Patrols the Border

[Starscream]

As if catching a few shots from an airborne Wreckage wasn't bad enough, now Starscream is told that Dead End and Sell Sword¹ have lost the game for him! "WHAT?!" The F-15 yelled.

Starscream considers what Skystrike has to say, but ultimately decides to go with a better offer.

//Thundercracker.// Starscream orders. //We are now aligned with Scourge and his faction. Sky-Byte will remove himself shortly. Get that flag out of this section IMMEDIATELY.//

As for the tailing Berkut, Starscream handles that the best way he knows. He Transforms and spins around, facing his pursuer in the air. "Allow me to formally decline your generous offer." And with that two high-powered laser charges are fired at Skystrike.

---

¹ After all, it can't be his fault, can it?

[Wreckage]

Once more, Wreckage lets his weaponry speak for him as he looses a burst of gunfire on Sky-byte in passing. The shark will be next; Thundercracker is Wreckage's primary concern and even the announcement of Starscream's team's loss has no bearing on that. Thundercracker has their flag and has not yet answered for his betrayal. Ideally, Wreckage would like to reverse both matters.

He follows the Seeker, picking up speed where he can to pace his quarry, waiting for the right moment. He cannot wait too long and let Thundercracker get away, but he cannot do this too hastily. Patience… only a little closer– There. Wreckage twists and drops, aiming for the middle of Thundercracker's back as he transforms.

[Sky-byte]

Wreckage's gunfire sends Sky-Byte careening into building with a howl. It takes a moment for the world to reorient itself and for him to figure out where he is in all of this rubble. It's then that he gets Dead End and Scourge's radio calls. Okay, so the flag is as good as theirs. Maybe. Sky-Byte quickly bursts back into the air again. With a cry of 'Terrorize!' at the apex of his leap, he transforms and twists, trying to find Wreckage in this confusion and free-fall.

Ah, there. Toggle his chest a bit, line up his shot..."Tsunami Blaster!"

As soon as his shot is finished, Sky-Byte transforms again with more than a bit of effort, his rapid descent is halted. This shark's going to be tailing Thundercracker. But with his new injuries, he should be quite a bit slower than before.

[Skystrike/Skylar Stringers]

Never ever, ever trust a seeker for anything. Ever. That was the last thought that crossed her processors the moment Starscream spun to face her. The berkut scrambled to move out of the way, but it was just a moment too late.

Skystrike felt twin streaks of searing heat across her back, and couldn't hold back the low growl of pain that escaped the hold of her vocalizers. She could distantly hear the pop of over heated metal there was a thin trail of smoke fanning out behind her, confirming the damage report that popped up in the corner of her vision.

At least it was her back and not any of her fins this time. Dragging her concentration back from the pain, the blue seeker steadies herself and turns so that she was flying towards Starscream’s side instead of going head on, opening a barrage of laser fire on him once more.

There wasn’t enough distance between them at her speed for her to change direction anymore. As it was, Skystrike seemed to have every intention of ramming into the Air Commander. Under the noise of laser and jet engines however, there is a soft whirring clicking sound of joints unlocking.

[Thundercracker]

Aligned with Scourge and Sky-Byte? Good, that's one less mech here he has to worry about.

//Copy, Starscream. On my way out...//

Before he can finish that thought, Wreckage slams into his back, and he loses control. The two mechs drop like bricks, slamming into a building with enough force to make it buckle entirely around them. Throughout the ordeal he manages to keep ahold of the flag... but whether Wreckage has lost his grip on him or not is another story...

---

Crashing Wreckage done with player permission

[Dead End]

Somewhere across the city, Dead End speeds recklessly through the city streets, taking corners on two wheels or just driving on the walls. His guns are out and he's ready for a fight--he'll be there soon.

Just not yet.

[Starscream]

Starscream transforms again, evading the blaster fire with ease as he begins descending to catch up with Wreckage and Thundercracker. As awkward as Wreckage may be in the air, he seems to have mastered the art of the swift dive. Still, aerodynamics and jet engines are helping Starscream to catch up. Victory is needed by getting that flag outside of their territory, and it really doesn't matter who does it. To that end, Starscream fires his Null Rays full charge at Wreckage. He's a big enough target, but given where and how he's situated it's possible that instead of (or as well as) hitting Wreckage, Starscream might also hit Thundercracker.

Oh well.

Starscream descended quickly, trying to relieve Thundercracker of the flag. If Thundercracker was concious after the blast, Starscream would even radio Thundercracker so that they could work together.

//Sky-Byte! Keep Skystrike off my tail!//

[Wreckage]

Contact. The last few parts of him have yet to lock into place and already Wreckage is grasping for a hold on Thundercracker and double-checking the specs on this new body. The wings. He reaches one hand to his opposite wing, ready to peel out the blade hidden there. It has been some time since he gutted a flier; he may be a little… rusty.

Before he can fully draw his weapon, pain renewed – pain that has hardly stopped resonating from the plating not yet recovered from the burns Starscream gave him – slams through his systems with the rake of laser fire across his back. His grip falters and he bites back a howl just in time to be slammed through the exterior wall of a building, glass and metal and ceramcrete scraping and ripping at his limbs. He tucks his head down to save his sensors and, much to his growing aggravation, loses his grip on Thundercracker for that as they break through the other side of the building.

"Damn it!" he snarls, wrenching one arm free of the shattered wall in his attempt to lunge and re-secure the Seeker, missing as he is pulled short with one leg tangled in cable and warped reinforcing bars. He watches Thundercracker fly off and that snarl becomes an infuriated roar, Wreckage firing after Thundercracker with first one, then both machine guns before tearing himself loose. Before he can launch himself again into pursuit of the traitor, another jet's engines split the air and Starscream swings into view. Wreckage has just enough time to register the commander's appearance and the sight and sound of weapons fire. Not enough time to react, hardly enough time to fully feel the sudden burst of futile rage that wrenches at his very spark before the attack connects and the lights go out.

A split-second squeal of electronic feedback and a whine of systems involuntarily protesting this forced shutdown, answered by the heavy crash as the ground slams up to meet him, is all the fanfare that accompanies Wreckage's collapse and fall from the building.

---

OOC: Wreckage is out.

[Skystrike/Skylar Stringers]

Doing a sharp u-turn in the air, Skystrike was about to open fire again when she realizes something was wrong. There was a fading sound of shots being fired and now she could see Starscream was going off and there was dust rising from the direction that Thundercracker and Wreckage had been flying in. Then, as she makes to makes to fly over to see what was going on, Wreckage’s radio cuts out just as one of the buildings collapse.

She felt the air slip out from under her wings and she half-roll to one side before she realized what she was doing. It made the berkut twist rather erratically in the air before she could pull up and level out once more. Just a game, no one was hurt or dead. Besides, now was not the time to get angry and do something stupid.

It was just a game.

Skystrike tore after Starscream, suppressing the angry howl that threatened to fritz her vocalizers and the all consuming urge to just ram into the Air Commander at few thousand miles an hour. He’d probably just dodge it neatly and knock her out anyways. And it would be stupid. He was low in the buildings now though, and Thundercracker was too and she’ll be damned if she let this opportunity slip past, especially when she was just seconds away.

Uttering a low malevolent hiss, she darts in after them, firing a missile into fray.

[Sky-byte]

Keep Skystrike off Starscream's tail. Make sure Thundercracker makes it into their territory. Play taxi to the wanna-be cowboy Frenzy. Sky-Byte has a feeling that he isn't in a very dominant position for this game.

It's a slightly frustrated shark that powers above the ruckus. With another 'Terrorize!', Sky-Byte coasts overhead and curls as he sails past. Aiming at a moving target while moving isn't something Sky-Byte's made for, but if he can just distract Skystrike for a few moments...

"Tsunami Blaster!"

[Thundercracker]

Thundercracker feels Wreckage lose his grip on him as he plows straight through the building and out the other side, and only firm discipline keeps him from shouting his triumph. Or his pain -- torn supports and shattered glass leave deep scratches and gouges in his plating, and one wing is bent at an awkward angle, making flight somewhat difficult. But he's still elated -- there's a good chance he'll make it out of this in one piece!

Then Skystrike's missile detonates against the building to his right, close enough that the shockwave of the blast sends him wobbling dangerously in the air. Keep going, keep going...

[Dead End]

Dead End arrives on the scene--or near the scene--in time to watch a rather tall building collapse with Wreckage under it. Sorting through the furball and matching up radar images to names, Dead End finally realizes there isn't actually anyone to shoot at except Skystrike, and everyone else seems to be doing that.

"Well, that big rush was pointless," he tells himself as he retracts his weapons and watches.

[Starscream]

OOC: Starscream obtains Thundercracker's flag, as he requested in his previous post, as Thundercracker completely ignored my requests to take it off him and admin are tired of waiting for players to edit posts.

---

The blast from Skystrike's missile hurt Starscream, as he had to Transform to Robot mode to get the flag, and his chest was still quite sensitive from getting scraped by blasting Wreckage off him. Transforming again, he takes off, hitting Thrusters on full as he makes a bee-line for the boundaries of Thundercracker's base.

Given their prior travel and the fact that Starscream was one of hte fastest aircarf tthat ever was, it's not long before he has raced outside the boundary. He wasn't going to win this game, but he was certainly going to end it.

[Skystrike/Skylar Stringers]

Sky-Byte's voice rang out from somewhere to her side, announcing his attack. It still took Skystrike by enough surprise to make her swerve to dodge the shot and let Starscream get his hands on the flag.

Skystrike utters a low curse the moment Starscream transforms again and watches him take off towards the borders of their team's territory. It was impossible to get the flag back now. The berkut gives up the chase and turns her sights on easier prey taking the form of a blue and white F-15.

Quite frankly, she wasn’t playing for the flag anyways and it was the end of the game so she had time to indulge in revenge. She targets Thundercracker’s back and fires at it with nothing less than the intention to make her former teammate’s life miserable.

[Sky-byte]

There's a moment of confused blinking as Starscream gets his hands on the flag.

Well then, looks like he'll be tailing someone else then! Hopefully Thundercracker will follow. Sky-Byte knows a bit or two about being on the receiving end of a vindictive mech's anger and none of that is ever something to stick around for.

Change of direction then to make after Starscream's vector.