The Intergalactic Highway

(( OOC:

However unfortunately for Stag's military logic, something Rhinox would know is that the Maximals and Predacons kinda frown on using large explosives or large quantities of explosives around their bases as a gigantic vein of Energon under both bases that could lead to their mutual destruction if ignited.

Yes, yes, I was already taking that into consideration as well. Go me! Although, if you think about it, if the Vok's attack didn't ignite it, then nothing will. Haha Kidding!

Not to mention a lack of known time when the enemy would show up since planting mines would take time, as well as having to mark off where the mines are so allies don't step on them which could happen while Rattrap and Cheetor return. Those are the risks that come to mind anyway.

Hm. Well, I've thought of some more ideas they could use to avoid accidents and whatnot. ))

IC:

"Alright, hold tight; here we go."

Rattrap tried pushing all of the jokes, negativity and panic aside for once so that he could focus and not screw anything up on his end. This was going to be tricky but he knew Cheetor could pull it off. The rat with wheels watched the flying feline lower his altitude and measure his speed, adjusting it as necessary. With his first attempt at a lift, Rattrap felt his paw entangle in his fast spinning wheel and cringed with him knowing how badly that must have hurt. At the same time, he fishtailed a little when he bounced back onto the rocky dirt. That had ta hurt, he thought.

"Ah!" "Sorry!"

"Don't be sorry, kid, just try again. We can do this," he encouraged his younger comrade while continuing to drive straight and steady.

Suddenly, he felt Cheetor's grip around his sides again and was successfully pulled up off of the ground. Before he could stop his wheels himself as the cat frantically balanced the rodent in his legs, they had grinded against Cheetor's armor, creating a high pitch squeal that made him flatten his tiny, silver ears. "Phew!" Rattap sighed with relief as he watched the ground grow farther and farther away, climbing quickly stright up to the top of the cliff that they were aiming for. There was that free-fall feeling in his stomach again, which he hated, but he sucked it up and waited to feel the ground underneath his wheels again.

"We made it!" Rattrap toothfully grinned while the gold kitty carefully set him back down. "Way to go, Cheetor. You okay?"

"Uh... heh... maybe next time I just grab you by the tail. You think that would hurt? Er... right, we can talk about that later. Let's go!"

Bursting flames and peeling out, Rattrap followed Cheetor heading back to their base of operations. "Probably not," he answered his question. Flexing his linked tail as he rolled along at a high speed, he didn't think it would hurt if he was carried by it, after all he used to use it to grab things and hold himself up from falling to his death. It wouldn't be the most comfortable position, though, nor would he prepared to land on his feet. But if the situation called for a quick getaway? Yeah, just grab the tail and go!

-----

"The ship still registers sparse clusters of raw energon mines across the planet," "The transwarp explosion detonated most, if not all, of the surface energon fields. As a result, we witnessed a massive spike in radiation levels. When our bodies were altered, they changed in a way that helped us overcome some of our previous weaknesses. I guess you could say that we were subjected to forced evolution. With the energon radiation levels at an all-new high, those who were transmetallized had 'grown' highly advanced dampers. It's like we're immune to the side effects of raw energon now. Add increased strength, durability, and speed, and you have yourself a pretty impressive upgrade."

"Well, that's some good news," Rhinox simply stated. A great advantage, however, as helpful as it was to them, it was just as helpful to the Predacons. "Could be an interesting confrontation the next time the Vok decide to attack us." Certainly this was not something they had intended. ...And that was if the Maximals survived Megatron's attempt to slaughter them first.

Posing inquiry and combat suggestion. Does this facility contain landmines, democharges, or other well suited trap based explosives? Setting some traps in the field will reduce enemy numbers and improve control of the battlefield if placed at choke points. Further more, small charges can be used with motion detectors for causing landslides with some of the terrain if necessary.

"You've read my mind, Stag," Rhinox said to the Targetmaster. "And, yes, we do. Although this would be Rattrap's expertise, we'll have to make do without him until he and Cheetor return." He paused in thought for a moment. "We may want to avoid using mines since there's a rather large vein of energon that runs underneath our base all the way to the Darksyde that we don't want to disrupt, and who knows if there are open cavaties now in the ground. But we can utulize and improvise with demolition charges, not just with the terrain, but by expanding their damage adding other objects to the force of their explosions. And there a few other tricks we could use. I'm just a little more worried about the fliers. They might focus on our autoguns and take them out first, forcing us to leave the base and defend it by our own firearms."

"Saber-Fang," Rhinox called her over his comm. link, "Before you leave the armory, grab a box load of demolition charges, small fragments of scrap metal and nails, heat-signature hotboxes, remote detonators, motion detectors, trip wire, spare flares, and the smaller hologram simulators and bring everything to the bridge with Aerostrike."

"If there's one thing we're good at, it's being resourceful," the engineer smiled lightly at Stag and Orcariner. "We won't be going down without a fight."

"Cheetor to Maximal base; I think me and Rattrap are really... like, actually, heading in now. Good news is the Preds don't seem to be on our tails anymore. Bad news is I doubt it's because we outran them. I think they're getting more of themselves out here."

"Copy that, Little Cat," Tigatron responded to Cheetor's transmission, careful not to elaborate on anything else in case the Predacons were capable of hacking into their signal, then he looked over at Rhinox.

"They're probably regrouping," the rhinoceros answered Tigatron's quizzical expression. "We won't have much time to set up the traps. Tigatron, keep a close eye on the scanners. Have you heard anything from Dinobot?"

The white tiger shook his head. "Nothing yet. Perhaps he is still out of range. I'll keep trying." Turning back to face the intercom system, Tigatron pressed the button again, and said, "Axalon to Dinobot. Do you copy? Please respond."

In the meantime, Rhinox checked on Whitegrazer's status. Still holding steady, but she is a long way away. He couldn't imagine what she was seeing or feeling or hearing, if she was in fact on the other side like he had designed his machine to do. He hoped she would return soon without incident. Then the robust, green Maximal made his way to the CR chambers for a moment, checking on Ironclaw and Aurora. Peeking through the windows, they both appeared to be in a deep slumber, their bodies gradually being repaired, but he frowned sadly at the ermine's wounds for a moment. So innocent, young, full of life. Did most of those Predacons have no mercy? He knew all too well what it was like being in the CR. Although quiet and peaceful inside, he seemed to be spending a lot more time in those lately than he liked. Glancing at his own minor injuries on his hands and the black soot that settled itself in the deeper textures and joints of his armor, he walked back to the others in the command center and started looking over a map of the terrain surrounding their base.

(ooc: I'm still alive. Just been having some writer's block lately.. Oh, Warwulf will be posting today as well. He will have Tantrum arrive at Megs' location I believe.)

Terrorsaur wrote:"Good to know at least one of you was useful. We'll need to stand out during this battle to make up for Umbra stealing our thunder, though Tantrum here should make up for Waspinator's and Manterror's absence quite nicely. Provided we keep his guns pointed in the right direction of course."

"What the Pit happened to you? You get caught in Tantrum's line of fire earlier?"

Nemesis' optics flashed for a brief moment, her feathers ruffling a bit as the scenario played across her mind. It was hardly a moment of pride for her and certainly was not something she wished to discuss. However, regardless of her appearance, her wounds were not terribly serious. It was just an unaccustomed situation for her to having to go for such a long time without her repair systems setting in. Of course.. she wasn't quite sure to what extent Terrorsaur was aware of her inner workings, as her past as an experiment was hardly a common conversational topic for her.

"Do not concern yourself with my injuries," she assured him, backing up her words with a smile, "They're mostly superficial in nature and will not affect my performance in battle."

She hoped..


Her words were true enough, though, the only real issue would be her current inability to heal up. As things were, Nemesis found that she often relied on her abilities to perform stunts that would normally kill or at the very least put someone in stasis lock. She'd been known to use her own body as a weapon, even taking the lives of others with nothing but the technology within her. Without that, she felt a form of vulnerability she had not felt for most of her lifetime. She could not feel the nanites scurrying about within her, a sensation that was as familiar to her as a heartbeat would be to an organic creature.

Hopefully the system would reset itself soon.. and that the situation was not permanent.

Up ahead the gathering forces became clearer in the horizon. Megatron was indeed gathering a massive force for this attack.

A more genuine smile crept onto Nemesis' features as she imagined the glorious slaughter to come. Without Primal's leadership, the Maximals did not stand a chance. And without him, Nemesis saw no point in holding back either. Well.. excluding her little predicament.

Megatron used his grip on Starshadow's shoulder to move the female so that she could gaze upon his gathering army, as if to remove any doubts she may have had about the inevitable outcome of the encounter. They were standing at the threshold of a new beginning, one that was about to not only exterminate those pesky Maximals that had attempted to interfere with his plans, but one that would alter the course of history as well.

On Cybertron they had called him a criminal, stripping him of his rank as a field commander once his opposition to the rule of the Council had become abundantly clear. But Megatron had refused to let them break down his spirits, rejecting their cowardice decision to live under Maximal rule. He had gone rogue and managed to execute a rather daring venture to steal the disks and bring them and his crew to Earth, which in turn had brought them to this magnificent opportunity to turn what had once been the Decepticons' (and Predacons to follow) misfortune into a glorious victory for their kind. The original Megatron's plans had been sound, however he lacked the opportunity that now presented itself to his namesake.

And at this point there was nothing that could be done to stop his plans!

Megatron's grin was a triumphant one as he watched his troops arrive. His loyal minion Inferno was among the first, and the Tyrant acknowledged his presence with a nod.

Inferno wrote: "Inferno reporting for duty, my Queen! What is your command?"

Holding back the frown that threatened to appear as the ant once again reverted to calling him .. that name.., Megatron was simply in too good a mood to bother commenting on it. Hopefully not too many of his troops overheard.

"Prepare yourself for battle, Inferno," he responded, "You will be among the first group of troops in the attack. Leave no Maximals alive."

As powerful as Inferno was, he was also quite reckless when he was focused on a single task. Therefor it was best to simply let the ant wreck the havoc he was so good at.

"Starshadow; you will be among the team that circles around to cut off the Maximals' escape route. We wouldn't want any of them trying to sneak away, now would we?"


An approaching group caught Megatron's attention. Upon seeing Terrorsaur, Umbra, and Nemesis come closer with a large new comrade, Megatron's grin widened. So the new recruit was indeed as big as reported. Splendid! Even the Maximal whale would not be a problem now!

"Ahhh, the triumphant team returns. Excellent!," Megatron exclaimed with hardly contained excitement.

"Hehehehehahahaha!"

Blackarachnia narrowed her eyes at Tarantulas and watched as Arachnitron opened a visual to see what the others were doing.

"It looks like they're all rallying around the Maximal base,"

Since the Maximal leader was gone, Megatron must have felt confident that he could win this war by taking out the rest of the Maximals. Even if they didn't have a leader anymore, that didn't mean they wouldn't put up a fight. Of course, she wanted no part in it. She had a bad feeling and she wasn't in the mood to be ordered around, being fired upon. This was a perfect chance to do some sleuthing around the base. Not with Tarantulas or Arachnitron, though. She would do this alone.

The only reason she was here was because Tarantulas had a hold of her and the expertise to finish the pod. To Tarantulas and Arachnitron, she was just a third wheel. A now expendable third wheel.

She stepped back and hoped as she turned to sneak away that the two were too busy gazing at each other to notice.


((OOC: I was trying to think of a way for Tarantulas to show that he still had control over her since I didn't followed the canon where she pointed her weapon and he turns it on her since Arachnitron is there. Hopefully, this would do okay. ))

(Also to note, if Saberfang went berserk, sadly we'd probably end up having Aurora take up Icebreaker's role of watching her since Aurora carries a crossbow with tranquilizers and other drugs. Or get someone else to start carrying around those sort of weapons.)

Quickstrike rubbed the back of his neck, seeming pleased at the attention.

Umbra finished coating bullets and loading them into the magazine, he then loaded the magazine into his gun and sheathed his blade putting both weapons away. He looked over Megatron's group,raising an optic ridge at Quickstrike and Starshadow, then bowed politely to Megatron

It would seem your mission was greatly successful my lord. This fellow behind us, calls himself Tantrum. He desires only destruction of the Maximals, so I'm sure you'll be able to lead him on that path well. From what I've seen of his power, he took down Waspinator and Manterror in a fraction of a second, and forced the Maximals into mass retreat. If it were not for lady Nemesis however.. I imagine he would of slaughtered the entire air unit along with the Maximals.A skilled warrior with intelligence, she is truly a blessing to your cause.

Umbra then changed his tone However, while I am not entirely sure of the Maximal ranks.. it's possible they also gained a new warrior. A small golden bird like creature with a long range energy weapon capable of damaging even Tantrum, and temporary disposed Terrorsaur while he was distracted by a weaken foe. If it were not for his interfering, the Maximal whale, birds, and cat would of been destroyed.

It probably seemed strange to the others that he mentioned Nemesis so highly, though with good reason. While treachery and spinning lies among the Predacons worked well for manipulation, truths were like bomb shells when used correctly.
________________________________________________

Aerostriker followed Saberfang back towards the Armory, his optics almost seemed to shine at the display of all the weapons. He smiled Oh it's been too long since I've seen such a stockpile.. Lets see..

He moved towards the back of the room, going through some boxes, finding an empty one and started to unload the six heavy missiles from his legs into it carefully. He then noticed a box with some Micro missiles (The same ones Icebreaker used to use, but not the ice warheads.) He pulled one out examining it over, then attached it to his leg Thermal targeting system seems to sync up.. This'll work. They have less punch then my normal missiles and less weight, which should make them safer to use. he then started attaching an additional five missiles while syncing them with his system. He then made a radio call to Stag Hey, I found a small cache of Micro missiles. They seem to work, so we'll use these to supplement the heavier missiles.

Rhinox wrote: "Before you leave the armory, grab a box load of demolition charges, small fragments of scrap metal and nails, heat-signature hotboxes, remote detonators, motion detectors, trip wire, spare flares, and the smaller hologram simulators and bring everything to the bridge with Aerostrike."

Aerostriker heard the call on Saber's radio, he then looked towards her Er.. Would you like me to help you carry all that?

He then heard Stag respond back on the radio Acknowledged, warning. Do not allow those missiles to be fired towards the ground, this unit has been advised of a possible Energon vein under the base. Due to recent conflict, cracks in the ground could pose further risk to mass detonation.

Aerostriker's expression turned pale Well, you sure know how to turn the pressure up.

Stag then responded again Reviewing active personnel, you are currently the only combat flier active at the moment. If the aerial Predacons attack in full force, you will be heavily outnumbered. Caution advised.

Aerostriker frowned Noted..

Stag disconnected his cable from the computer, looking towards Rhinox. Defense from enemy fliers will be Aerostriker and this unit's role. While not specifically designed for it, this unit can effectively act as a long range sniper weapon or anti tank rifle. Further defense should be employed by Orcariner. Stag looked towards Orcariner As the only other active unit capable of flight in robot mode, also with the highest defense of this combat group. However, caution is still advised in this action.. The enemy has two long range weapons of great power from the Axalon's record banks. Attacks from "Steelclaw" and the unknown unit may force the Axalon to use its shields. Sniping will only work for a short period and recharging between each shot takes time due to Aerostriker's limited fuel supplies. If the predacons attack at full force, even with land units damaged by traps, a close range skirmish is inevitable.

Stag then looked back towards Rhinox Is this evaluation satisfactory to your thought processes also?

((OOC:

NH, wait until the Pred show up THEN release the beast. XD

*evil laugh* With pleasure.

Good point, Naitokage. Lets add to the guilt that Saber already feels!))


((IC:))

"Oh, its been to long since I've seen such a stock pile."

At that moment, Aerostriker reminded Saber of a youngling in a energon candy store. She smiled a little before narrowing her optics at the sound of Rhinox's voice telling her what to bring back to the bridge.

"Will do, Rhinox." She replied.

"Er, would you like me to help you carry all that?"

"I'd like that. Thank you."

(Um.. Technically there aren't turns. You are however limited to two posts in a 24 hour period for in character posts and wait for replies within a 3 day period to move on. In the case of Umbra, there were no expected replies from Tantrum.

As for Umbra's implications. He's implying that the new Maximal is why the Maximals got away, but he is also intentionally making Terrorsaur look bad due to finding Terrorsaur as being a bad commander and terrible warrior. Or as Umbra's profile has stated "Those not providing some benefit to him find themselves to hate and not trust him at all. " So far, Terrorsaur is feeling that perfectly.)

((Brief joint post))

Tantrum sauntered up to Megatron's position. But where were the promised Maximals? Nothing but Predacons here. Look at all these Predacons... just sitting around doing stupid things when there are Maximals to kill.

"Move you little babies," Tantrum chastised as he transformed into robot mode. "We move now and make killings of baby Maximals."

Megatron raised an optic ridge as the over-sized newcomer began ordering his soldiers around, raising his hand to stroke his chin as he did. It would appear that the new recruit had ambitions of his own, sure enough, however Megatron was not one to relinquish control without a fight.

"Ah yes, we will indeed be killing Maximals in just a few moments."

He straightened out, his full height still only half of that of the giant.

"I am Megatron, leader of the Predacons. And who might you be?"


Tantrum took one look at Megatron's weapons and burst out laughing.

"Bahaha! Look at your eety beety teeny guns!" he said, pushing down Megatron's tail gun with a finger. "I have big gun. Tantrum lead, you vill follow!"

Tantrum bent down, thrusting his chest cannons in Megatron's face. "Is problem?"

(ooc: Okay, Warwulf was in a hurry due to being about to go to work so the joint post had to be left half done.. So here goes.)

Umbra wrote:It would seem your mission was greatly successful my lord. This fellow behind us, calls himself Tantrum. He desires only destruction of the Maximals, so I'm sure you'll be able to lead him on that path well. From what I've seen of his power, he took down Waspinator and Manterror in a fraction of a second, and forced the Maximals into mass retreat. If it were not for lady Nemesis however.. I imagine he would of slaughtered the entire air unit along with the Maximals.A skilled warrior with intelligence, she is truly a blessing to your cause.

However, while I am not entirely sure of the Maximal ranks.. it's possible they also gained a new warrior. A small golden bird like creature with a long range energy weapon capable of damaging even Tantrum, and temporary disposed Terrorsaur while he was distracted by a weaken foe. If it were not for his interfering, the Maximal whale, birds, and cat would of been destroyed.

Megatron listened to Umbra's report, maintaining an unreadable face as the newly hired soldier informed him of the events that had been going on. It rapidly became abundantly clear that Umbra was less than enthusiastic about Terrorsaur, and something told him that the feeling would be mutual. Not that he minded these little personal squabbles among his troops, however this was not the time to act out on them.

As Umbra finished his report, Megatron merely held up his hand to silence the counter argument he was certain would come from the bird of prey.

"Very well. Your eagerness to aid our cause has not gone unnoticed and you will reap the benefits for such loyalty, however right now we need to focus on the Maximals. Please refrain from letting personal squabbles get in the way of that. "


It was then the behemoth bovine made his approach, getting right in the Predacon commander's face to try to establish his authority. Megatron calmly waited while the giant flashed his weapons at him.

Tantrum wrote:"Bahaha! Look at your eety beety teeny guns!"
"I have big gun. Tantrum lead, you vill follow!"
"Is problem?"

Glancing at the large weapon now aimed at his face (and a big chunk of his upper body as well), Megatron had to admit it was a mighty weapon indeed. Feigning submission to the larger Predacon, Megatron then inclined his head as he cleared his throat.

"Of course there is no problem," he agreed, his voice remaining calm, "I rather look forward to relinquishing the burden of leadership to a force of nature such as yourself. It is much simpler and more fun to be at the front line, slaughtering Maximals by large numbers, and leave someone else to handle all the strategical planning and administrative bureaucracy that comes with being the leader. "

OOC: Posted for the spiders & Terry, though I'd like to ask Una & Blackrose how they wish to proceed here, i.e. should the three of us go renegade or should Tarantulas & Arachnitron join Megatron on the battlefield while they leave BA behind to find Megatron's backup data tracks like on the show? Also, I was in the middle of typing my posts while you guys posted for Tantrum and Megs...Should I alter my posts or vice versa?

Blackrosefencer wrote: Arachnitron looked away from Tarantulas with a sheepish grin on her face. She was a bit embarrassed that he had noticed her staring, but she just couldn't look away. Arachnitron's organic spider body hung off of her robotic head in a way that looked much like strands of human hair. She snuck a look back up at Tarantulas through her "hair" as she worked on locking in on Megatron's coordinates. She actually didn't know how to do it, but she had watched Rhinox do it before so she figured she could figure it out.

Sure enough, after a few minutes, a virtual map appeared showing the other Predacons' coordinates.

"It looks like they're all rallying around the Maximal base," Arachnitron informed the other spiders.

She stared at the map mesmerized by the other Predacons' energy signatures blinking on the screen. Her mind raced. She was a little worried actually. This couldn't be the end? It couldn't! She just escaped from Cybertron! What would happen if they defeated the Maximals now?! Would the Predacons go back to Cybertron? Would they hand her back over to the scientists so the experiments could continue or would they resume the extraction of her spark as was originally planned before she escaped?

What was she going to do?

"Interesting. No doubt Megatron is launching an all out offensive to finish off the maximals for good, predictable as always, even if strategically sound given the situation" Tarantulas mused, scratching his chin in thought as he weighed his options in light of this latest development.

He held no loyalty towards Megatron, his mission always having been to thwart his dreams of conquest. However, with the golden disks stolen and his old lair in ruins, he would need the support of Megatron's forces for the time being. The disks needed to be recovered and it would be easier to accomplish with all the maximals, including Dinobot, dead, and with two other spiders at his command he'd be better able to track down the disks before Megatron. Megatron would accept them back into the fold in spite of everything, the purple saurian couldn't afford to spare what few competent soldiers he had at his limited disposal, even if he'd continue to be suspicious of them, though for the wrong reasons given that he had no desire for his throne.

Una wrote: Since the Maximal leader was gone, Megatron must have felt confident that he could win this war by taking out the rest of the Maximals. Even if they didn't have a leader anymore, that didn't mean they wouldn't put up a fight. Of course, she wanted no part in it. She had a bad feeling and she wasn't in the mood to be ordered around, being fired upon. This was a perfect chance to do some sleuthing around the base. Not with Tarantulas or Arachnitron, though. She would do this alone.

The only reason she was here was because Tarantulas had a hold of her and the expertise to finish the pod. To Tarantulas and Arachnitron, she was just a third wheel. A now expendable third wheel.

She stepped back and hoped as she turned to sneak away that the two were too busy gazing at each other to notice.


((OOC: I was trying to think of a way for Tarantulas to show that he still had control over her since I didn't followed the canon where she pointed her weapon and he turns it on her since Arachnitron is there. Hopefully, this would do okay. ))

Tarantulas noticed Blackarachnia trying to slip away and chuckled smugly, "I think not."

He then proceeded to reveal his ace in the hole to his new underling...By willing searing, mind numbing pain through her neural processor with but a thought, her agony only adding to his good mood.

"Witless widow! I left a psychic link between us, even in this body, I can still control you!" he explained with immense satisfaction as he willed her to pull out her cybervenom launcher and point it directly at her own head.

Tarantulas was no fool, even in a state of temporary disembodiment, he knew an opportunity when he saw it, and finally forcing Blackarachnia to behave like the partner...No...Slave, she had always been meant to be was far too good for him to pass up. No more silly seductions, no more backstabbing, no more games. He was the master, she was the servant, and she'd learn to accept that or pay the ultimate price, her life. Leaving behind the psychic link as he'd left her body had been as simple as spinning a web, and his control over her in his new body was greater than even he'd dared to anticipate in his calculations.

Phoenix wrote: Megatron listened to Umbra's report, maintaining an unreadable face as the newly hired soldier informed him of the events that had been going on. It rapidly became abundantly clear that Umbra was less than enthusiastic about Terrorsaur, and something told him that the feeling would be mutual. Not that he minded these little personal squabbles among his troops, however this was not the time to act out on them.

As Umbra finished his report, Megatron merely held up his hand to silence the counter argument he was certain would come from the bird of prey.

"Very well. Your eagerness to aid our cause has not gone unnoticed and you will reap the benefits for such loyalty, however right now we need to focus on the Maximals. Please refrain from letting personal squabbles get in the way of that. "


It was then the behemoth bovine made his approach, getting right in the Predacon commander's face to try to establish his authority. Megatron calmly waited while the giant flashed his weapons at him.

Terrorsaur remained silent in spite of his desire to find out what Umbra would look like with his head cut off and shoved straight up his exhaust port, deciding that it was better to beat him to within an inch of his life later and just be grateful Megatron didn't seem taken in by the octopus' attempt to make him look bad...The eight limbed mollusk would have to learn the hard way that pulling such slag would only bite him in the skidplate later, no matter how badly he sucked up to Megatron, something Scorponok could attest to.

Though for now, Tantrum's increasingly lack of intelligence and love for use of his massive armaments seemed to have taken an interesting turn...On the one hand, he'd love to see Megatron slagged, but on the other hand, he had no desire to serve a brainless buffoon like Tantrum, who was proving to be more trouble than he was worth.

Phoenix wrote: Glancing at the large weapon now aimed at his face (and a big chunk of his upper body as well), Megatron had to admit it was a mighty weapon indeed. Feigning submission to the larger Predacon, Megatron then inclined his head as he cleared his throat.

"Of course there is no problem," he agreed, his voice remaining calm, "I rather look forward to relinquishing the burden of leadership to a force of nature such as yourself. It is much simpler and more fun to be at the front line, slaughtering Maximals by large numbers, and leave someone else to handle all the strategical planning and administrative bureaucracy that comes with being the leader. "

"Ah..." Terrorsaur thought to himself as he watched this bizarre power struggle play out, realizing Megatron's plan was to convince Tantrum that being leader was boring and tedious because it meant more thinking and planning and less action than he preferred.

"Exactly! Who wouldn't want to sit back and relax while everyone else marches straight into the heat of battle, killing maximals by the dozens and blowing stuff up just for kicks. All that thinking and planning and learning...I'm sure you'll love being the boss, Tantrum" Terrorsaur added, seeing an opportunity to win a few brownie points with Megatron and thus undo Umbra's attempts to make him look bad.

Granted, Terrorsaur was also ready to take off at a moments notice if things went south and Tantrum started shooting everyone, but for now he'd stand his ground, especially while Tantrum's guns were pointed away from his general direction and he had what was left of his squad for backup, as well as eye lasers ready to fire down the bovine's gun barrels if push came to shove. He was ambitious, not suicidal.

(ooc: Megatron has a plan, no worries. Albeit like NK commented before, this rpg is not really turn-based. If it was, it would be running even slower than it is because we'd all be waiting all the time for that certain someone that just hasn't posted for weeks, then the next, then the next.. It's only turn based if our character is specifically involved in an action/conversation with another character, in which case the other player has 3 days to post before said player can move on. To avoid spam and to encourage longer, more thorough posts, however, we do have a 2 post per 24 hour max limit though.

You can keep the post you made already the way it is, just mention something about that being when Tantrum made his approach or something.

((OOC: I might post something for Whitegrazer. It will probably be short since like I said before, I don't want to get too far ahead. I was actually waiting until the Maximals that met up with the Predacons and fight before I did. Though, I get this sinking feeling that I should post for her now. I might do that.))

"Whitegrazer?"

Hearing his voice, she travelled towards it. It sounded so close yet so far.

"Optimus!"

Zipping past so many souls of strangers or people she only read about, whispers were so audible yet she couldn't understand them. It was distracting, but she knew she mustn't allow all this stuff to knock her off balance. She kept going and going and going. She wondered how far she was inside the Matrix or how far Optimus really was. The Matrix was an endless sea. Something inside her own soul became more and more apparent. At first, she didn't understand what was going on until a thought hit her. The Matrix was an ocean and she was swimming farther through it's depths. If she kept going, it was going to be harder to return to the surface or maybe she wouldn't be able to return at all. And that can't happen. She promised to return Optimus and herself safely. No one was going to sacifice themselves here. They needed to return. They were going to return despite the overcoming feeling of peace she felt here. Return to battle...to the war that they needed to win.

Whitegrazer's hands were shaking abit on the controls. Despite that motion, her optics remained close and her face was still written in a peaceful, solemn expression.

"Warning: Unit Whitegrazer's core consciousness grows dangerously distant. Chances of return deceasing."

Rattrap wrote:Way to go, Cheetor. You okay?

Cheetor looked at the large, black skid-mark running across his paw; then he tentatively flexed it and moved his claws around. "Yeah. I'll be fine."

Cheetor was surprised to hear what he did next--Rattrap didn't thinking getting picked up by the tail would be such a bad idea. The next moment, as much as he tried to stop it from happening, the cat's head was taken by an image of Rattrap flailing his arms and legs in the wind while Cheetor flew him around at full speed.

Tigatron wrote:Copy that, Little Cat.

Tigatron's voice brought his attention back to the real world. The Axalon was visible to Cheetor and Rattrap now. Less than a cycle of travel later, he dropped to the ground and walked alongside Rattrap onto the elevating platform.

Once they were in the bridge, he transformed into battle mode and took a look around. "Are we the last ones in? How'd the other missions go?" The next moment, he caught sight of Stag. Alright, so something went right today... "Hey," he said, offering his oddly-shaped hand, "the name's Cheetor. What's yours?"

* * *

Steelclaw arrived on scene just as things were getting tense between Tantrum and Megatron. As silently as he could manage, he transformed back to robot mode--he wasn't going to be unprepared if the huge newcomer started shooting. He silently checked his HUD for the charging level of his PPC, although it was more a reflex than anything else. He hadn't used the weapon in days, so naturally it was at full capacity.

Megatron wrote:Of course there is no problem. I rather look forward to relinquishing the burden of leadership to a force of nature such as yourself. It is much simpler and more fun to be at the front line, slaughtering Maximals by large numbers, and leave someone else to handle all the strategical planning and administrative bureaucracy that comes with being the leader.

Steelclaw shouldn't have been surprised. Megatron didn't seem to need help after all.

Terrorsaur wrote:Exactly! Who wouldn't want to sit back and relax while everyone else marches straight into the heat of battle, killing maximals by the dozens and blowing stuff up just for kicks. All that thinking and planning and learning...I'm sure you'll love being the boss, Tantrum.

Now that was something he really hadn't expected. It was fascinating to see Terrorsaur directly support Megatron on anything. Was he so eager to see the Maximals finally destroyed that he actually enjoyed supporting his leader and finally felt some sort of kinship with him?

* * *

Dinobot couldn't see the Maximal base yet, but he knew he was coming closer because he recognized the shape of the terrain--even as much as it had been burned by the Vok weapon. He started to imagine the inevitable grilling from Rattrap: where had he been? Why hadn't he helped with the mission he had been assigned to? A very, very small, but guilty part of him hoped the questions would not instead be "what happened to the others who were on your mission with you? Where are they?"

It suddenly occurred to him that, because he didn't want his position to be given away while he infiltrated the Darksyde, he had isolated himself from the rest of the team even further by turning his com-link off as soon as he had come close to Predacon territory. And he still hadn't turned it back on.

He corrected that with a mental command. The very next moment...

Tigatron wrote:--ease respond.

The voice was unmistakeably Tigatron's. Something about that made Dinobot uneasy. Tigatron would probably have gone back to his own wanderings if the worst of the aftermath of the alien attack was truly over. It made sense, of course--Megatron knew Optimus was dead, and he would certainly press his advantage; now was one of the most dangerous times the Maximals had been through in the Beast Wars. But there was some sort of stormy confirmation in knowing that all the Maximals were staying around for the long haul.

"This is Dinobot," he said on his com-link. "I'll be in shortly."

* * *

When Dinobot arrived in the bridge, he immediately opened the conversation himself. "What is happening? Sentinel is on alert." He cast a brief glance around the room. The alien Disk was stored in his subspace, but he trusted that the Axalon could protect it much more effectively than he could. At the same time, he didn't want everyone else in the base knowing he had it. So where he could he hide it?...

"And fight we shall," responded Orcariner to Rhinox's encouraging words.

The odds were definitely stacked against the Maximal team, but while lacking in numbers, the crew was still resourceful. The giant left the command center and proceeded to move down towards the hanger bay. Plans and scenarios ran through the orca's massive processor, and most of them ended in failure. The only hope of survival against a full-scale Predacon onslaught would be to rely on a miracle. It was not something Orcariner would typically find comfort in, but for now it was the only thing that came to mind. If the Maximals could find a way to endure Megatron's attack, perhaps a random window of opportunity would appear. One that would allow the team to capitalize on a moment of vulnerability within Megatron's ranks.

If we need to endure, then we will endure. I'll make sure of it.

Orcariner knew his first priority. His new body came with only one weapon, and that was a useless weapon compared to the unfathomable firepower that the Predacons carried. His only advantage in this fight was his durability. His shielding technology was impressive, maybe even on par with Sentinel, he lacked the power to supply them indefinitely. In that last skirmish with the cow tank and the flyers, Orcariner found that his armor plates were still as tough as ever. Even the seemingly weak points were able to stand well against high temperature projectiles. If the sentry was able to make additions to his defensive measures, then he might be able to protect his friends from harm.

OOC: Sorry for the wait guys. I really thought this week was going to be less busy, but I ended up having some days off that I spent doing a lot of stuff that has been needed to be done for a while. It was much more time consuming than I anticipated. Anyway, hopefully I can get back into a regular posting schedule.

I'd like to ask Una & Blackrose how they wish to proceed here, i.e. should the three of us go renegade or should Tarantulas & Arachnitron join Megatron on the battlefield while they leave BA behind to find Megatron's backup data tracks like on the show?

Well, I imagine Tarantulas would want to find the back up data tracks. If Blackarachnia does it alone then she can destroy it like she did in the show and that would mean she would be able to stop Megatron later in the story and help the Maximals. BA is really the only one that can do that. Arachnitron was a Predacon protoform so Arachnitron would have no reason to fear if Megatron were successful at erasing the Maximals from existence. And Tarantulas doesn't really care about the Maximals. So it has to be Blackarachnia that finds it. I suppose, they all could look for the back up data and BA is the one that finds it and destroys it before Tarantulas and Arachnitron know about it.

BIC:

"Interesting. No doubt Megatron is launching an all out offensive to finish off the maximals for good, predictable as always, even if strategically sound given the situation"

Well, that confirmed it, didn't it? Megatron was going to wipe out the Maximals. What would she do?

Not that she held any particular loyalty to the Maximals or the Predacons for that matter, but she knew that once they were defeated, Arachnitron's future would be grim for sure.

Her only hope was to stay with Tarantulas and Blackarachnia and make herself look as useful as possible. Maybe once the Maximals were gone, Arachnitron could argue that Tarantulas needed an assistant. She had no idea what Tarantulas' function was, but she was sure she could make a compelling argument for him to keep her around.

She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she didn't notice Blackarachnia trying to slip away from the other spiders. She didn't notice until Tarantulas spoke.

"I think not.Witless widow! I left a psychic link between us, even in this body, I can still control you!"

"Woah," Arachnitron thought to herself. "He can do that!" If Tarantulas was able to leave a psychic link inside Blackarachnia's mind, then he had to be able to fix Arachnitron's problem too.

Arachnitron felt renewed hope that there might just be a solution to her problem. She didn't dare speak out of turn though. She waited patiently until Tarantulas instructed her of what to do next.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Prepare yourself for battle, Inferno," he responded, "You will be among the first group of troops in the attack. Leave no Maximals alive."

The Royalty's instructions were simple enough! "Leave no Maximals alive!" He could definitely do that.

Inferno nodded and saluted. "Yes, my Queen!" he said. "I shall wait for your signal!"

Inferno could hardly sit still as he waited for his moment to strike! He was proud to have been chosen as one of the first group of troops to attack the Maximals. The Royalty must place a great amount of trust in his abilities! Inferno realized he must be very important to the Royalty! He almost beamed with pride.

(( Well guys I certainly hope you don't mind me trying to get back into the groove of things, and just from how things went in the last episode I certainly hope this is alright. If not I'll edit anyway I need to.))

"Internal repairs complete",Came the sound of a computer. Wintersong's amber optics flickered slightly before turning on, her optic sensors focusing in for a moment before going back to normal and the feline transmetal stood from her recharge bed. The battle had certainly left their team pretty beat and though her injuries weren't bad enough for the CR chamber she had gone to relax and allow her systems to repair themselves before she would consider any other form of action, especially from her brief encounter with Nemesis which she had been glad for the retreat to avoid further damage. Especially from the surprising attack by the fliers. And disappointing as it was it was better to come back in one piece and alive then not at all.

Letting out a low sigh she carefully hopped down, stretching and flexing different areas of her body, making sure everything was truly in working order besides the smallest bit of soreness. Not that ever slowed her down. She had faced sub-zero waters and a deep stab to her chest that was followed by a large dose of cybervenom, so this was nothing but child's play compared to those. But both events had left their marks and even with being a feline capable of moving through water she would avoid it if she could, even if the waters were shallow it made her shudder to think of it each time. Shaking these thoughts aside Wintersong made her way to the door which slide back, sniffing the air for a moment before making her way towards the bridge where she could hear the familiar sounds of her comrades and seeing some just returning.

Coming fully into the command center the transmetal tigress peered around for a brief moment before she spoke,"Anything new happening?"She inquired, growling a bit as she transformed to robot mode.