Chapter 6
From his place upon his throne, Deathsaurus watched as Leozack aligned the Thunder Arrow's cannons and fired down upon outpost below. There didn't appear to be any surface to air defenses, so there was hardly any resistance to their barrage. With him was the entirety of the Dino Force and Starscream, whom all watched the onslaught with awe filled glee. Slog seemed the most interested with his lower half flattened against the ground, his tail wagging like a dog's, and his eyes glittering.
"Yeah, yeah!" he cheered. "Let 'em have it! Boom! Boom!"
However, he was suddenly disappointed when Deathsaurus raised a fist, and the shooting stopped. All optics then moved over to Deathsaurus, the mighty warlord rising from his seat. The monolithic monarch stared at the image on the large, central monistor displaying the ravaged outpost below. His face was expressionless though his bright, blue optics conveyed a million silent thoughts. Then, he stretched forth his hand, and with muted authority he proclaimed, "Go!"
Like a shot, the Dino Force started to charge out the door, and Leozack quickly followed after them. After staring at Deathsaurus for a good long moment, Starscream, too, followed suite to catch up with Leozack.
"That's it?" he asked the Decepticon lieutenant. "No orders? No rallying speeches? He just points and you guys go?"
Leozack tossed him a look over his shoulder, and he laughed.
"There is no need for any words, really. We already know what our lord requires of us. It is just a matter of carrying it out in the most efficient and effective manner."
"Is that so?" Starscream huffed as he picked up the pace to keep up. "Then, do you care to fill me in? I'm not exactly too familiar with your way of doing things."
By now, they had reached the hangar of the Thunder Arrow. Starscream could see Icepick issuing a series of orders to his troops, though most of them only seemed to be half listening, and he also appeared to be helping them attach parachutes to themselves. When feeling a nudge, Starscream looked back to Leozack.
"Pay close attention, Starscream." he ordered. "After disabling the enemy with an upper atmospheric bombardment, the Dinoforce forms ranks and parachutes down as the first wave."
"Permission to proceed, lieutenant?!" Icepick suddenly called.
Leozack raised one fist into the air, and he nodded.
"Granted! Death to the enemies of Megatronus!"
The Dinoforce howled and cheered as they stormed down the exit ramp before leaping out into the wild blue yonder. Starscream watched them go, half expecting them to forget to open their chutes midway, and then walked back over to Leozack.
"And what of us? Surely you have some use for me, seeing as how you allowed me to follow."
Leozack nodded and cracked a smile.
"As observant as ever, my dear Starscream. Whilst the Dinoforce is rampaging through the compound below, looking for anything we might find useful and just being an overall nuisance, we will slip in undetected to gather data."
Starscream made a face.
"Pardon my ignorance, Leozack, but what data? After a barrage like that, I wouldn't be surprised if they even had emergency power left. You really think any of their computer systems will still be in tact?"
Leozack regarded him with a wag of his finger.
"Oh, Starscream, my dear ally." he said in an almost chiding tone. "You focus far too much on the big picture that you fail to see the finer details. Tell me this. Does Optimus Prime usually live on this planet?"
Starscream, now intrigued, shook his head.
"Well, if that's the case, then Optimus must have come here on a ship. Therefore…"
He purposely left himself hanging, and he waited expectantly for Starscream's reaction. The older flyer's face was scrunched up in thought, and then his optics went bright, as though he had finally seen something just in front of him.
"Ah, I understand. You're after the information on Optimus' personal transport vessel. The travel logs alone would be valuable as I'm sure they detail all of the energon refinery planets he has visited."
Leozack nodded with pride.
"And I'm sure there will be much more interesting bits of information. That, you see, is my job on this ship. The Dinoforce is the distraction, Lord Deathsaurus deals with the major threats like Optimus Prime, and I specialize in infiltration, data gathering, and the occasional assassination when it is necessary."
Starscream couldn't help but feel a small twinge of delight. Leozack really did remind him of himself from when he was young. With just the right teachings and some practice, he could no doubt be a master deceiver…second to himself of course.
"I still have one question, though." Starscream suddenly said. "How does this, necessarily, play into our plans to destroy Deathsaurus?"
"It doesn't." Leozack simply replied. "While I don't agree with this detour, I can't deny that Optimus would probably become an obstacle sooner or later. Better to let Deathsaurus destroy him and be done with it before we move on to better things."
Starscream couldn't help but snort.
"I don't think you're giving Optimus enough credit. True, your master may be powerful, but Optimus has slain many Decepticons over the millenia, and that includes our former leader, whom was a mighty gladiator prior to the war. It's every bit as much possible that he will be the one destroyed."
"Is that so?" Leozack said, sounding doubtful. "Well, I suppose we'll just see about that. But, say Optimus is as mighty as you boast, maybe we'll get lucky and they'll destroy one another. But, until then, let us get back to the invasion. That information will not gather itself."
After ensuring that Leobreaker was securely fastened to his chest, Leozack took a running start down the exit ramp, jumped, and then transformed into a jet that reminded Starscream of an earth F-14 Tomcat. Starscream allowed himself just a few moments more to admire the small flyers near silent flyer descended upon the outpost.
"You know," he muttered to himself, "that kid is going to go places, and, fortunately for me, his coat tails are just long enough to let me ride my way back to the top."
With a devious smirk and a sharp laugh, Starscream made his way down the ramp towards the damaged outpost below.
…..
The medbay had been hit hard. Though not directly in the line of fire from the enemy warship, the resulting backlash had shook the room with great force, collapsing the ceiling and scattering the recently restocked medical supplies all over the place. Amidst this chaos and refuse, Wing Dagger stood protectively over his two friends, shielding them with his arms and upper body. When things had finally quieted down, Wing Dagger stood up and studied the others.
"You two alright?"
Quicksilver was the first to reply.
"Did anyone get the number of that truck?" she slurred dryly. She gave her head a shake to clear it, and then she looked up to Wing Dagger. "Thanks, Dag. I'm glad to see you're still in one piece."
"Ditto." the red, white, and blue replied. "Hey, Paddy, you ok there, buddy?"
He expected him to react to the unwanted nickname, but Padlock remained silent. He was sitting on the floor with his arms wrapped around his legs and his knees pressed against his chin. His optics were sparking with evident fright, and he was shaking madly.
"That…that did NOT just happen!" he stuttered sharply. "Somebody, ANYBODY, tell me we did not just get shot at by De…De…Decepti…"
"Decepticons." Wing Dagger said gravely.
The word hung in the air like a heavy fog, and it filled the three young bots with unquenchable dread. Already, countless stories were flashing through their processors at light speed, reacquainting them with the horrid faction's dastardly reputation. Padlock then shot to his feet, and he grabbed Wing Dagger by the shoulders and began to shake him madly.
"It's gotta be some kinda crazy nightmare, right?" he begged. "Megatron is dead! There's nobody left to lead them! Why would they come here? What did we do to deserve this? Are we even equipped to deal with something like this? We're all gonna be scrapped and sold for spare parts!"
Suddenly, Wing Dagger slapped him. Padlock backpedaled away and placed a hand to his face as he stared at Wing Dagger.
"Seriously! What did you slap me for?"
Wing Dagger shot him a hurt look.
"I don't know. I just wanted you to calm down, is all."
As for Quicksilver, she had fallen quiet with a hand to one side of her head. Her brows furrowed, and her mouth drew into a frown.
"I've got worse news for you, boys." she said. "The comms are down. All that shooting from before must have been meant to knock out the communications relay to cause confusion for a bigger assault."
Padlock's optics dimmed with despair.
"Oh, wonderful!" he moaned. "When I woke up this morning, all I had to worry about were messy recharge slabs. Now I'm gonna be dodging laser fire and grenades, and no amount of yelling from Prowl is gonna make it stop this time."
"Now Padlock, calm down." Wing Dagger said coaxingly. "This is no time to panic."
Padlock flashed him an incredulous look.
"Are you kidding me? This isn't like when Ore and Shock decided to use us for punching bags. This is for keeps! If ever there was a time to panic, it's now!"
"Why don't we just look for Prowl or Optimus?" Quicksilver suggested. "After all, this wouldn't be there first Decepticon attack, so there wouldn't be anywhere safer than with them."
"No way!" Padlock said defiantly. "I have no interest in getting blown up, today. I am staying right here, and there isn't a thing you two can do to convince me this time."
Suddenly, the ground began to shake, and something large came crashing through the wall. Padlock was now nose to pointy nose with Slog, the transorganic triceratops grinning like the fool he was.
"Hello." Slog giggled.
Padlock stared at him for a long moment. Then, he cut loose with an audio receptor splitting scream, and the last that anyone saw of him was him running through the door, leaving a silhouette of his body in the wall. Wing Dagger and Quicksilver stared at the hole in the wall, and then they exchanged glances.
"In my defense," Wing Dagger finally said, "it wasn't me that made him do that."
Quicksilver nodded.
"Shall we run for our lives, then?"
Wing Dagger stepped to one side.
"Femmes first."
With Quicksilver taking the lead, the two went charging out of the room through the hole their friend had made. Slog, with his back quarters stuck in his own hole, could only watch them go as his giddy smile drooped into a mournful pout.
"Was it something I said?"
…
Wing Dagger and Quicksilver finally caught up to Padlock in the training yard, ironically the only place that had been destroyed before the raid. As they stepped into the open-air yard, they spied their usually quiet, green mech stocking up with so many weapons that he looked like an earth eighties action hero. He didn't see them walking up due to the bundle of laser rifles he was carrying in his arms, and Wing Dagger had a hard time getting his attention because of the odd mass. He eventually moved in behind him, and he gave Padlock a gentle tap on the shoulder. This, however, proved to be a very hazardous move when Padlock jumped at the sudden contact and dropped his odd assortment of guns. When they hit the ground, they all started firing randomly, and the trio had to dance and dodge to avoid the deadly discharge. When the shooting finally stopped, Quicksilver stormed over to him and smacked him hard in the back of the head.
"You idiot! What are you trying to do, kill us?"
Padlock rubbed the back of his head and retrieved one of his dropped rifles, cocking it before slinging it over his shoulder.
"Excuse me if I'm just trying to protect myself. There could be cons anywhere in this entire stinking compound, and I just want to be sure that I shoot them before they shoot me."
"Overzealous mania aside," Wing Dagger piped in as he browsed through the wall of training weapons, "Padlock may have a point about arming ourselves. There's no telling what's gonna happen from here on out."
He couldn't help but laugh.
"Guess it was a good thing Prowl used live ammunition in our training simulations, after all."
Nobody else seemed to share his humor, but they both agreed with his thought. Quicksilver picked out a pair of photon pistols with she could magnetically attach to her hips, and she also took a wrist mountable grappling hook. Along with his rifle, Padlock reached for three grenades, but Quicksilver smacked his hands and fetched him three flashbangs instead, much to his aggravation. As for Wing Dagger himself, he opted for a short sword and collapsible shield. Padlock stared at him in confusion, and he noted that he didn't pick up a single firearm.
"Really? You're going with a sword?" he asked. "You realize that the Decepticons possess some of the greatest sharpshooters our race has ever known, right?"
Wing Dagger looked to him and shrugged.
"In case you forgot, I'm a terrible shot. It's much safer for the lot of us if I stick to what I'm good at, even if I'm not that great of a swordman. Besides, I'm a bit more durable in the rest of us, so I'll take up the vanguard position while you guys watch my back."
"Hey, fellas!" Quicksilver suddenly called with one of her pistols drawn. "Is it my imagination, or did that weapons rack just move?"
The two jumped, and they angled their eyes towards the alleged rack. Something indeed seemed to be behind it when it jiggled ever so slightly. Wing Dagger immediately took point, drawing his sword and motioning to his two friends to move behind him as he approached the rack. As they drew close, Wing Dagger cleared his throat.
"Alright, you! We know you're back there! Step out with your hands up before we come in after you."
"Yeah!" Padlock squeaked as he raised his rifle. "R-r-reach for the sky!"
The rack jiggled again, but this time something actually stepped out from behind it. It was a young, female transformer not much younger than the three of them, and she was sporting a yellow and blue paintjob. Wing Dagger smiled.
"Guys, put the guns away! It's Livewire!"
The newly named femme looked every bit as relieved as her three fellow students, and she quickly rushed over to Wing Dagger and wrapped her arms around his waist.
"You don't know how glad I am to see you guys." she gushed as she clung tightly to Wing Dagger. "It's been horrible! Just horrible!"
"You ain't just whistling Dixie there, sweetheart." Padlock said coyly before Quicksilver smacked him again.
"Where's everybody else?" Wing Dagger asked, finally prying the distraught femme loose. "You're the first student we've spotted since the whole thing started."
Livewire looked down sadly at her feet, and she gave her head three slow shakes.
"Gridlock and I were helping Ore and Shock clean the mess hall when it happened." she explained. "It was a big mess, and anything that got us out of training with Prowl was preferable. Next thing we knew, these big…things just burst through the walls. They looked like they were organic, but they actually had Decepticons hiding inside of their backs. Some sort of pretender shells, I think, but that's not the worst part. They just grabbed Shock and Gridlock, tying them down with ion bindings. Ore shouted for me to run, but he stayed behind to help his brother. I don't know what happened after that. I just came here and hid."
The news only seemed to increase the already heavy feeling of dread amongst the sparklings. None of them wanted to even to consider what had happened, and it was only becoming more obvious that they needed to find Optimus and the others before things got more out of hand. He was just about to give the order to move out when, suddenly, a large shadow swept over them. Wing Dagger looked up just in time to see a leather-winged flyer swoop down on them. He jumped to dodge, only to leave Livewire with no protection. The creature seized her by the shoulders and then took back to the air with her screaming frame in tow. Not waiting for an order, Quicksilver fired her grappling hook, which latched around Livewire's ankles. The flying creature hissed at the sudden weight, and it began to beat it's wings harder as it tried to regain altitude. Quicksilver soon felt her feet being lifted off the ground, but she was saved when Wing Dagger grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back down.
"Padlock! His wings! Shoot them out!"
The green mech nodded, took careful aim with his rifle, and then opened fire. With a zap, a hole was burned through the creature's right wing, and, after a sorry fit of floundering, both creature and victim went back crashing to the ground. Hitting the ground, the creature released Livewire, and the young femme skittered off and hid behind Padlock. After Wing Dagger helped Quicksilver back to her feet, the two readied themselves as the beast turned its attention on them.
"KAW! Enemies!" the creature screeched in a high squeaky voice. "Enemies burn!"
It opened its long beak wide, and it expelled a massive ball of flame towards them. Pushing Quicksilver aside, Wing Dagger raised his shield to take the brunt of the blast. As he did so, Quicksilver retaliated by opening fire with her pistols. All shots hit their marks on the beast's chest, forcing the creature back. Wing Dagger then lowered his shield and rushed the creature, slamming the broad side of his sword against its head. The flyer swooned in a daze, did a neat little twirl, and then fell onto its face with its back to Wing Dagger.
"Welp," Wing Dagger said as he sheathed his sword, "that takes care of him.
He would soon eat his words when the creature's back popped with a hydraulic hiss, and then a short, stubby transformer jettisoned from the creature while brandishing two small hatchets.
"Then again, maybe not!" Wing Dagger exclaimed as he backpedaled away.
The short transformer swung his hatchets wildly at him, screaming unintelligible blabber that Wing Dagger could only guess to be curses. However, help was on the way in the form of Padlock and Quicksilver. With a shout, Padlock tossed one of his flashbangs, which exploded and momentarily blinded the Decepticon. Quicksilver then made a second used of her grappling hook by binding the bot's legs and yanking his feet out from under him. Even Livewire helped by diving onto the creature's back and pinning its arms. The bot hissed and snarled with rage, and both Quicksilver and Padlock had to join in to keep him from escaping Livewire's grip. With the fiend restrained, Wing Dagger sheathed his sword and bent down so that he was looking the bot directly in the optics.
"Why are you and your allies attacking this outpost?" he demanded. "What have you done with our friends?"
"Die! Kill! Die!" the bot replied, and nothing more significant ever left his mouth.
Discouraged, Wing Dagger straightened back up.
"You know, I don't mean to be rude, but does this guy kinda seem…well, stupid to anyone else?"
"He's…definitely lacking in intelligence points!" Padlock grunted as he strained to keep the con down. "Though he's no sap when it comes to brute strength! I can't hold him!"
The bot suddenly exploded back onto his feet, scattering his three oppressors in all directions and putting Wing Dagger dead in his sights. Cutting loose with a feral shriek, the bot lunged towards Wing Dagger with the sole intent of ending his life.
Suddenly, there was a mad blare of horn, and Wing Dagger barely had time to dodge as a massive semi, sans its trailer, crashed headlong into the attacking bot and smashed it into a wall. When the semi rolled away, it revealed that the bot had been wedged face first into the wall, and he now appeared to be in stasis. The semi then shifted into its true form as Optimus Prime, whom turned to Wing Dagger with an expectant look.
"Are you all alright?" he asked with concern.
Wing Dagger was, however, once again star struck whilst in the Autobot leader's presence. That was twice that his hero had saved him now, and his bliss all but radiated from his body in waves. To fill the void of silence, it was Padlock that spoke up.
"We're all ok, sir." he reported stiffly. "Though the situation is definitely worse than it looks."
"We have reason to believe they're kidnapping students." Quicksilver added. "Livewire can give you more details."
"I…I can…deal with that." the group looked up to see Rung hobbling onto the scene. The Autobot psychiatrist looked incredibly winded, and he had to bend over as he caught his breathe.
"The battlefield is certainly not a place for me." he wheezed and gasped. "I'm just not equipped to deal with such harsh conditions, nor am I in a proper physical condition."
"All the more reason for you to take refuge somewhere." Optimus stated sagely. "I want you to take these young ones and find somewhere to hide. I'll be taking command from here on out."
At the sounds of retreat, Wing Dagger suddenly bolted to attention, and he looked pleadingly to Optimus.
"Runaway? But, Optimus, we can help."
"What are you doing?" Padlock hissed. He was ignored.
Optimus looked down on Wing Dagger, and he studied him carefully.
"I appreciate your spirit, young bot, but that will not be appreciated. The situation has become far too dangerous for the likes of you."
Wing Dagger's shoulders sagged, and he fixed Optimus with a defiant look.
"With all due respect, sir, we can handle ourselves. I mean, we took on that one con and his pet without too much trouble."
"You mean the one that was about to clobber you?" Optimus deadpanned.
Wing Dagger huffed. "We would've figured something out." he offered in retort, though he didn't sound too confident in his claim.
Optimus gave his head a shake. "This is no longer a matter of discussion. You will go with Rung and find a place to hide. End of story."
"But sir!" Wing Dagger continued to beg. "There's no telling how many cons are in this place. I don't mean to sound like I doubt your abilities, but you can't face them all by yourself. There's also the matter of the missing students. What if they've been kidnapped or something like that?"
Padlock looked back to the others.
"Seriously, is no one gonna speak up about this?"
Optimus once again shook his head. "It is not a matter you should concern yourself with. I already have plans for attaining reinforcements. Now I want you and the others to leave, otherwise I may be forced to…"
Suddenly, there was a loud squealing the assembled group's comms, forcing even the mighty Optimus to take a knee as he tried to blot out the noise. And then, they heard the voice.
Optimus Prime. it whispered in a deep baritone, sending endless shivers down Wing Dagger's spine. You shall not escape your crimes so long as my Spark still functions. I have a small group of your followers, and, should you desire them back unharmed, you will come and face me. Otherwise, you have my word that they will never be seen again. That is all.
The comms fizzled into silence, as did the group of Autobots in the training yard. Optimus swept his gaze around the group and made note of their terrified expressions. Of all of them, Padlock was the most ecstatic.
"I THOUGHT MEGATRON WAS DEAD!" he exasperated.
"He is." Rung stated pointedly before looking to their leader. "Optimus?"
The larger autoboot lowered his gazed solemnly as he weighed his thoughts. He folded his arms across his chest and began to drum his fingers anxiously against his arms.
"My first and foremost priority must be the students." he finally stated. "Without question we need to call in support, but I don't even want to think about what will happen to those sparklings if I dawdle for too long."
He looked to Rung.
"I couldn't ask you to attempt a run at the ship, old friend. I mean you no insult, but your insistence to be a noncombatant during the war has left you with little ability to defend yourself in such a predicament, and I wouldn't be surprised if the ship is being guarded to prevent escape."
"Then let us help!" Wing Dagger once again insisted, earning him Optimus' attention. "Look, I get it. We're young, we have little to no training, which is mostly my fault, and this isn't anything to laugh at. But we can help."
"I agree." Quicksilver finally spoke up. "The Autobots gave everything to ensure that we, the newest generation, would have a future. It's our turn to lend a hand for the future of those that will follow us."
Padlock looked between his two friends with an incredulous look, and he could feel the beginnings of a massive processor ache forming in the center of his head. Eventually, he vented a defeated sigh, and he offered a nod towards Optimus.
"What's more, I'm learning to become a communications officer, and the official Autobot codebook is one of my favorite reads. I'd be able to send out the necessary distress call to Autobot command through your ship's long-range communicator."
When Wing Dagger suddenly gave him a hopeful look, Padlock replied with an angry sneer.
"Don't get cute. If we survive, you're gonna owe me big time, buster."
"Then it is decided." Optimus declared. "You have your orders, everyone. Rung, I want you to take that young femme with you. I think she's seen enough, and there's no need to force those that aren't willing to fight."
"You can count on me, Optimus." Rung assured him as he protectively placed his hands on Livewire's shoulders.
"Then there isn't a moment to lose. Autobots, ROLL OUT!"
With that, Optimus shifted back into his alt. mode and peeled out of the training yard at top speed. When he was gone, Wing Dagger turned to his friends.
"You heard him, guys. Let's get moving. Last one to the hanger is a Decepticon's dinner! Yahoo!"
He went charging out of the yard, though Padlock and Quicksilver remained where they remained for a few moments.
"When I die," Padlock said dryly, "make sure that my tomb is lightyears away from his."
Quicksilver nodded, and the two of them followed after their friend. Now it was just the young femme and the Autobot psychiatrist remaining. Rung could feel the young sparkling shiver with evident fright, and so he looked down on her with a caring smile.
"Now, now, no need to worry, my dear. Everything will work out in the end. You'll see. Now come along, and we'll find a nice quiet place to hide and wait out this messy business."
"Oh, but why would you do that? You only just got here?"
Rung froze, and Livewire stiffened. A dark shadow loomed over them, and the sounds of ragged breathing touched their audio receptors. The two of them turned about to see a massive beast with large teeth leering down on them hungrily. On its back was the owner of the voice, a thuggish looking figure whom was brandishing a war club. He was smirking while pointing his club towards opening leading to the desert outside.
"Move. You are now the prisoners of the illustrious Lord Deathsaurus. So, start walking."
Rung never did acknowledge when he first started to walk, but his hands never left Livewire's shoulders. He could feel the terror that emanated from within the femme's tiny frame, and he hoped that his prescence provided some form of comfort for her. Things would be better, he assured himself of that, but usually that meant things got really bad first.
"And so it begins." he grumbled to himself.
