Bliss Ocean' Base #245, Midnight...
Various mundies came in and out of this one facility located in [REDACTED, REDACTED], all eager to play their part in the organisation's wills for an epithet-less society. You know the story. Almost all of them, including a scant amount of epithet-users, were upset at the way things were, so they were intent on changing it. This base was special, however, as it was going to be the sight for a wholly new experiment. One that would turn the tide in the terrorist organisation's favor.
Deep inside the dull-gray building, which was filled to the brim with large blank auditorium-style rooms and tunnel-like hallways, many scientists worked around the clock to make this dream a reality. So many calculations, theories on physics and metaphysics, the nature of this thing they called the 'multiverse', and other stuff. Stuff that would bore the average joe, but important stuff, nonetheless.
Zora yawned loudly, staring through a peephole to get a good look at the security camera footage playing on the other side. With nothing much happening, she sighed and made her way towards one fo the hallways. "Ain't this somethin'? I get a call from the boss about a 'groundbreaking development' and what's in store for lil' ol' me? Nothin' but a bunch'a drop-dead boring-"
"Boring? Little lady, this is HISTORY!" The head of this base said in a raspy voice.
"Ugh. It's you." She turned around to face him. When we said he was the 'head' of the base, we meant that in a literal AND figurative sense. He was basically a large bald head on a chair apparatus that carried him on a massive jetpack. "Headmaster. Nice to see you around these parts." She said behind thinly veiled sarcasm.
He just chuckled. "Aw, the infamous Zora Salazar. One of the few epithet-users we'll allow into our revolutionary circle. It's so nice to see you people put in your rightful place, but my interests lie elsewhere."
She clenched her fist at that. "I wouldn't be talkin' all smart like that, doc. If this goes without a hitch, we'll be ridin' towards the sunset of these things. Heck, I'm bankin' on givin' mine up once we-"
"Oh, please. Like you'd WILLINGLY give up the one thing that makes you special." He chuckled. "Without it, you're simply...quick, shoot me!"
"Really?! I mean...you sure about that, partner?" She smirked, aiming one of her revolvers at him.
Headmaster floated there for a second before his expression darkened. "Are you sure you can do it without that power of yours? Even damage me a little?"
BANG! She took the shot, but the bullet bounced against nothing. He gave a dark laugh as she began to fire a few more shots, but they just kept bouncing off. "The hell?! I thought you didn't have one of 'em epi-"
"Wrong again." He spun around. "Pure technology has granted me the ability to stop any threat using my mind alone."
Her eyes narrowed. "You realize I ain't lookin' to start a fight...'less you wanna take this outside with no witnesses. Besides, where're you goin' with this?"
Headmaster slammed his finger onto a nearby screen. "THIS is what technology will bring us! Total victory!" What they were constructing, based on the images, was a large circular device that crackled with eldritch power. "From the hands of us mundies, we may have unlocked the secret to whether or not there is something beyond the veil of our universe. We will use it to gather resources or even recruit beings with much greater usefulness than the both of us!"
The cowgirl scoffed. "Doubt that they've got what it takes to get the best of me."
"They will. Just wait until we decide to rid you of your epithet. Then, we'll truly see just how 'useful' you are." He laughed before floating away, eager to see the fruits of his labor activate. It was almost time, after all.
Zora stood for a while before slamming a fist into a wall, aging it until the cracked area around it crumbled. That didn't brighten her mood, as she spat onto the ground. "Just you wait, ya' scoundrel. I don't need no stinkin' epithet to make yer' life a livin' nightmare when yer back's turned."
A few hours later...
Headmaster watched eagerly as the machine, the Nexus Project, was activated. It had only taken a few orders from him to get those scientists to finally test out their brand new tool. "Soon...soon the whole world shall tremble at the tide that Bliss Ocean will bring." He chuckled. "And perhaps...I'll be the one on top for my discovery. Not the boss. Not anyone else. Just me. Just wanted to make that clear."
"Who are you talking to sir?" A random mook asked before he was telekinectically grabbed and thrown into a wall, severely damaging him.
"Don't interrupt my moment." He growled before returning to his observations. The ring-like contraption was shaking violently as that energy crackled all around the extremely wide white room. Bolts hit the walls, leaving scorch-marks. The whole place was starting to tremble as whatever energy they put into this thing seemed to tap within the walls of the multiverse itself. Whatever they had gotten their hands on, none can say (for now?).
"HOORAY FOR SCIENCE!" A random scientist exclaimed before being vaporized by a bolt.
"HOORAY FOR BEING ON THE SAFE SIDE OF THE GLASS...moron." Another scientist yelled as he stood with his colleagues.
Suddenly, a massive beam of light descended through the ceiling and up through the many floors, striking many unfortunate souls and rocking the building to its core. The blast hit the stormy night skies, illuminating that one area as bolts of more energy spread far out, doing their own thing, but fading into nothing (or perhaps just out of sight) in no time at all. It was all over as soon as it began, roughly speaking.
Everybody stared at the smoke and crackling volts emanating from the ruined machine. When it finally cleared, all they saw was a Saleen S281 Police Cruiser in the middle, crackling with that same energy before it vanished. "...that's it?" A scientist spoke up after some silence.
"Whoo! Free car!" Another yelled before stepping in. "This one's kind of an antique. I mean, who uses one of these models?"
"ENOUGH!" Headmaster's voice yelled out over the intercom. "What matters is that our experiment worked. We'll just to rebuild from scratch." He growled that last bit. "Took us forever to get the materials and funding for it, but we'll manage." He considered the mass layoffs that would occur because of that and he didn't bat an eye. "Nevertheless, take the car in. It still counts as evidence for our success. Headmaster, out!" With that, he floated somewhere else, presumably to grumble about the disappointing gift the experiment had bestowed upon them.
The scientists all just shrugged their shoulders and started to crowd around the empty vehicle. It was slightly banged up in a few areas, not to mention it had the words 'To Punish and Enslave' written on the side, but nothing out of the ordinary. However, one of the scientists just so happened to have a gieger counter on him just in case. When he used it, it was starting to make the traditional noise. "Interesting. I'm detecting faint levels of radiation, but...something's not quite right."
"Who cares?" The obnoxious scientist from earlier (pick one, honestly), jumped in, grabbed the steering wheel, and honked the horn. "Look at me! I'm a servant of the status quo! I'm gonna punish us mundies for just wanting some fairness in their lives! Beep, bee-"
He never got to finish that sentence. The car suddenly backed up, causing him to slam into the wheel. The doors opened and he fell out, leaving him open for the cruiser to suddenly move forward and run him over. It began to back up and go forward again and again as if it were confused about where it was. The others panicked as, even in a world as bizarre as their own, cars didn't just spring to life and have their first action to be claiming a life. It didn't help at least three of them had watched 'The Car' before this.
The cruiser stopped, looking at the confused and bewildered scientists looking through the glass. Headlights turning on, it zoomed towards the only possible exit, forcing them all to flee as it barreled through the glass, shattering it with ease and leaving it to drive away to freedom. "Security! SECURITY! We have a problem!" One of them shouted into the intercom to anybody who would listen. "We have an escaped subject on the loose!"
"Hey, I'm okay! Thanks for NOT asking." That run-over scientist muttered. "We deserve to lose."
Several minutes later...
Zora was resting against the wall of one of the many hallways, chewing on a hayseed to pass the time when the alarms suddenly went off. "What in tarnation?" She stood up, seeing a lot of scientists run for their lives. She extended a foot, tripping one of them. "Hey. Ya' mind expainin' what exactly's goin' down?"
He stood up, fumbling with his glasses. "It's the experiment! It brought back a car, but something's not right! It's...I think it's trying to escape!"
"Bottom line, there's somethin' for me to shoot." She finished for him, to which he nodded. "Where to?"
About a minute later...
Zora stepped into a round space in the middle of the hallway to the first floor. If the words of the panicking scientists were to be believed, that car was making a beeline for the exit. "If I had a watch, I'd be checkin' it so condescendingly. As a matter of face, why imagine?" She smirked as she created on of her sundials, choosing to age a desk plant nearby. It ticked slowly on her accord, but then she heard the sound of screeching tires and an extremely loud police siren.
The car was rushing through the halls and rushing towards her fast. She didn't flinch as it smashed through several obstacles, including a random fruit stand an employee had placed (because cliches were apparently encouraged around here). She just got out one of her custom-made guns and aimed it. "Your move, creep." She joked before taking the shot, hitting one of the cruiser's tires. The vehicle began to swerve until it was just a foot away from her.
She blew the smoke off of her gun and walked towards the downed vehicle. "That there's a damn shame. So close to the finish line and you end up gettin' pulled over by the one sheriff around these parts." She twirled her guns before aiming them at the possible driver...only to see none there. "Alright. I'll bite. What secrets are ya'-WHOA!"
All the sudden, one of the headlights extended like a pole with the light and various sharp bits of metal around it. She fell onto her back before getting up and shooting out the light. "Thinkin' of gettin' the best of me? Keep dreamin'. Ain't nothin' else gonna surprise me today!"
"BARRICADE TRANSFORM!"
She wasn't prepared when the car suddenly started to quickly shift around its parts, confusing her to no end. What exactly what this average ordinary vehicle doing NOW, aside from drive it's own damn self? The parts started to shift into a much more humanoid hunched figure, the car parts coming together like a demented set of clothes. Before she knew it, a large mechanical monster straight out of a gearhead's wet dream was looming over her, his four red optics gazing at her with hate and his monstrous face exuding a threatening bellow.
"Huh. Guess yer more than meets the eye." She crossed her arms as the robot stared her down.
Mission City, 2009...
He could hear the blaster-fire get closer and closer, no matter how far he went into the abandoned parking building. Surrounded by so many normal Earth-based vehicles, it felt like there were a hundred eyes on him as he drove as fast as he could towards safety, wherever that may be. If he didn't find somewhere to lay low until the heat died down, he was sure to meet a final grisly end at the blasters of that DAMNED yellow pipsqueak!
Barricade continued to drive up the building through the many floors, some of the headlights from the parked cars going off and letting out audio-receptor splitting honks. Was this their way of taunting him?! The humans (or N.E.S.T, or whatever they were calling themselves) must have been getting on the same nigh-sadistic level as the so-called 'heroes'. The Autobots...they weren't kidding around when he heard news of what N.E.S.T has been up to. So many scores of Decepticons dead...torn apart...mangled and blown to pieces...and he was about to join them. No prisoners of war. Just bodies and the outright genocide of half of their already dying race.
Hitting the gas, he drove even faster, but a familiar horn-honk made him go so fast that he almost burnt the rubber off of his wheels. Bumblebee AND Ironhide were on his trail. One wrong move and he was either going to have his head stabbed and torn in half or, maybe, just get shot through the chest by Ironhide and THEN they tear him apart. He was well aware of their savagery. He couldn't emphasize that enough.
"Scrap, scrap, SCRAP!" His holographic driver growled in his voice. The end of the road was upon him as he approached the top of the parking building. Swerving around, he turned to see Bumblebee zoom out.
"Bumblebee, TRANSFORM!" Wait, didn't his voice processor get repaired? Why was he still speaking in stock phrases? Didn't matter. Barricade was effectively cornered as the scout transformed into his robot mode, aiming his 'stingers' at him. Backing up, he found his wheels nearing the edge of the roof. They were really going to take their time with him, weren't they? Bumblebee was just a random scout he had to deal with. Now, the yellow bot seemed like he had a score to settle. What? Because he had to show mercy in front of those pitiful insects? That he didn't get to tear him apart before then when he had the chance back when he first met Ladiesman217?
"Ironhide, TRANSFORM!" Aw, great. He also wanted a go at him. The lumbering giant of an Autobot aimed his blasters as well. Were they waiting for the Decepticon to transform just so they could see his terrified expression before they executed him? "My friend here has been waiting for this for a very long time. Why not oblige him and fight like a Cybertronian?"
"Now, you f$*#ed up!" Bumblebee pointed at him, stealing yet another quote.
Barricade growled at them, gunning his engine for emphasis. "Why can't you auto-jackoffs leave me alone?! The war is lost! You won fair and square! The Allspark is gone, too. As in, the one thing that was going to save us all before you screwed THAT one up royally? What else do we have to lose by letting me go? All I want is to be left alone!"
"Begging for mercy? Hmph. Decepticon punk." Ironhide replied, once again using that line before taking aim for real.
A number of thoughts ran through Barricade's head. Of what could have been. Of memories before the war. Of how screwed up his soon-to-be-ended life had become since arriving on this Fallen-forsaken planet. But one stood above all the rest in the name of precious survival. What would Megatron do? Or, maybe what would FRENZY do? If they were both alive, that is. The answer might surprise you.
Taking a deep breath, he concentrated enough to make his holo-drive flip them the double-bird before he backed up all the way off the roof. They seemed genuinely shocked he took that option and, once the adrenaline-like energon flow stopped, he realized that he didn't think this through. He was either going to be so busted up that they'd finish the job when he landed or he'd just die right then and there.
He tried to transform. Surely, he would land on his feet and he'd make yet another getaway! If he could just-
BZIT!
Present...
Honestly, he didn't know WHAT was happening right now. One minute, he was there. The next, he was in an actual human base. That could only mean either government agents that couldn't wait to dissect him and/or an Autobot stronghold. He wasn't willing to find out which, intent on just escaping and waiting until he was certain of his safety. This place had offered so little resistance that he honestly thought that he had something of a big break, bizarre as it was.
And then this...HUMAN shoots him in the tire and didn't even flinch when he got extra close to her! His robot mode was also only phasing her slightly, angering him more. "Out of the way!" He roared before she suddenly zoomed to the side and fired many bullets at random. He ignored her, intent on leaving this brazen human behind...only for a large metal door to slam down from the ceiling, trapping him inside. Even worse, he noticed various bullets floating in mid-air all directed at him. "What the...AHHH!" He covered his face as those bullets suddenly came at him at high speed, hitting various vulnerable areas on him.
He turned to her after he had been forced onto his knees, growling at his assailant and slamming his arm down. "What do we have here?" She spoke in a sickeningly smug tone that grated on his nerves already. Who was this Earth-based femme and what the ever-loving FRAG was happening?! "We really did nab ourselves a spaceman." She leaned in, not even backing away when he snapped his jaws at her. "One whole herd of ugly, I'll say."
Barricade hardly wanted to speak to somebody coming wide with him this much, but he needed answers. "Are you in any way, shape, or form affiliated with N.E.S.T or any of its Autobots/human resources?!"
"Say what now?"
"ARE YOU AFFILIATED WITH N.E.S.T AND THE AUTOBOTS?!" He yelled in a manner reminiscent of that moment where he 'interrogated' that repulsive Witwickey man. Good times, in hindsight.
He was silenced when she slammed the butt of her pistol against his face. "Quit murderin' my eardrums and let me do the questions. Then again, that's a bunch of borin' hullabaloo! I betcha' it'll take forever for those bigwigs to get in here and haul yer' metal ass off. Tell you what?" She jumped back, allowing him to stand up and regain at least a fraction of his pride back. "Lemme ask you somethin', spaceman. You know what an epithet is?"
He titled his head before growling again. "Yes. And for yours, I'll carve 'Scrapped for thinking she could step up to me'!" He got out his spiked mace, swinging it like a demonic yo-yo.
Zora just laughed. "You really think so? Golly, you really ain't from around here! Lemme show ya'." She conjured up a golden sundial in front of him.
As it glowed brightly and before he could swing at her, Barricade felt his spark start to flicker instead of shine. He fell to his knees again, clutching his chest as he felt his spark physically age. "Grrrk...what...are you doing...NO!" As soon as he fell onto the ground on his chassis, he felt back to his old self again. "What the..."
"Hate to say it, but I kinda need you in prime condition. At least, on the inside." She remarked. "Congrats. You get to remain a spring-chicken. Or whatever the hell you are."
Every instinct in Barricade's central processor screamed at him to reduce this creature to a reddened stain on the metal beneath him. Instead, he began to walk slowly around her, his optics not letting her out of sight. "Alright...human. I surrender." He held up his arms as he lied. "Now, indulge me. Just where in the name of Kaon am I?"
"Can't say." She leaned against the wall, anticipating that the both of them were going to be waiting here for a LONG time before security got in. The hallways were just that long. "But consider yerself branded, 'cuz yer' now our property. Hope you didn't have any plans before we plucked you from whatever homestead you crawled out of."
Rather than get angry (like he was so tempted to do), he titled his head. "So...this isn't Earth? And, if not, do all of you humans talk like this?"
Zora fired a warning shot near his cheek. "You watch yerself, boy. But, to answer yer question, yup and nope. Welcome to a whole new Earth. One where yer luck may have just run out. After all..." She twirled her guns. "Yer locked in a room with only my hospitality keepin' you from endin' up as just another hunk'a'junk."
Barricade's optics widened. That portal that he fell into...another Earth...the fact that this woman clearly had strange powers that weren't present in this race of insects before...did he just land in an alternate universe?! He wasn't the most well-educated Cybertronian, but what else could it be?! 'No. Play it cool. You can still swing this.' That's when he let out a horribly metallic laugh. "I'M locked in here with you? Do you have any idea who I am?" He stood tall, flexing his claws. "I've fought in more wars than you can count. I've killed scores of my own brothers and sisters just to survive. And you know something else?" He leaned in. "I didn't need some freakish power over the very SPARKS of my enemies."
Her eye actually twitched at that. "I see what yer' tryin' to do. You think you've got me all figured out like a book. Well, credit where credit's due, yer kinda right. This power I've got...I hate it. Hate it to holy hell." She aimed both of her guns at him now. "How's about I rough you up without any epithets and leave you for the head honcho to pick apart what's left?"
He was well aware of how dangerous those weapons were, despite them being so tiny, so he just crouched as he prepared to leap into battle. "You know...that outfit, your voice, and this whole showdown thing...kinda reminds me of this drive-in movie I ended up stumbling into when I first took on my disguise. The part where two enemies stare each-other down in a dingy little human settlement."
(Diamond Eyes-Shinedown)
Her smug smile returned as she reloaded her pistols and put the guns back in her belt. "Oh, yeah. Guess yer not as dumb as I thought. 'member what at least one of those fellers said?"
He gave his own smirk as he unsheathed a blaster from his chest compartment and clenched it against his hip. "It's high noon. So, who's the human upstart I'm going to be atomizing?"
"Zora. Zora Salazar. You, spaceman?"
"Barricade. Just Barricade."
"Subtle. Now..." She got closer, as did he, until they were staring each-other down again. "Ten paces. Then fire away. Got it, ar?"
Despite the absurdity of actually acquiescing to this human's demands of what a 'battle' was, he nodded. Besides, for once, he wasn't dealing with some deranged Autobot or rogue Decepticon or whatever. It was a surprisingly pleasant change of pace. He did as instructed, moving slowly, but prepared to throw his mace with the other hand to trip her. Hey, he was a pragmatic sort of fighter. The first chance he got to crush this admittedly brave human/book it, the better. Some lyrics had even started up as he glanced as his weapons just as she did. (Corresponding to the text above, that is).
I am the shadow...and the smoke in your eyes. I am the ghost that hides in the night.
That's when they both noticed the metal walls start to cave in on themselves. Almost as if another force was bending them from the outside. "Aw, hell...just when we were about to get started. You may wanna...step on back. Things are 'bout to get wild."
"How so? Another human with powers?" He growled, but he also noticed how the other door was being affected...hmmm...
"If you can even call the sonuvabitch human anymore." She remarked before KABOOM! The walls exploded, pushing the two fighters against the other wall and breaking it down.
During the instrumental part, Barricade took the chance to crawl out of the way. "Transform!" He shouted before he turned into his police cruiser mode and peeled out.
Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay...BOOM!
As he drove across the final few hallways, his rearview mirror caught a glimpse of what exactly was chasing him now. It was Headmaster, who's eyes were glowing with psychic energy as he leveled them at the car. "You cannot escape, specimen! You will become my greatest experiment when this is over! SCIENCE!"
"Hooraaaay." Zora sarcastically moaned as she took several half-hearted potshots at the Decepticon. Just when she thought she was going to get herself a worthy battle. If the first oppertunity both she and Barricade could ditch this mad doctor, she'd take it just to have that duel she got briefly hyped for.
As for Barricade, he continued to swerve around to make hitting him harder, while also blaring his siren to get any obstacles (read: unlucky visitors and any more of those damned fruit stands) out of the way. He even transformed one of his car doors (particularity the one around his blown-out wheel) to fire back, but they just deflected off of Headmaster's shield. "Where else do you have to do? This whole place is several miles above sea-level! One wrong fall and you'll crash into the water below!" He cackled.
Wait! Wait a minute, take a step back! You gotta think twice before you react, so stay! Stay a little while! Because a Promise not kept is the road to exile! HEY! What's the circumstance? You'll never be great without taking a chance, so wait! You waited too long. Had your hands in your pocket when you shoulda been gone!
He drove close to the windows as he neared the exit elevator. He had to think really fast if he was going to ditch this whole place. That's when he saw various large heli-carriers lifting up crates of fruit around the oval-shaped skyscraper-like base. "Hey! Zora!" He called out as he avoided a massive blast that scratched his paint-job. "Get ready to see how I REALLY roll!" To the surprise of his assailants, he braked and backed up next to one of the windows.
Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! One push is all you'll need! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! A fist-first philosophy! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! We watch with wounded eyes! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! So I hope you recognize...
Shattering through another window (that outta be a new Decepticon record), he sailed through the air for a brief moment before gravity finally came to his aid and helped him land on one of the heli-carriers. The impact caused the thing to start to lose altitude, but he just kept speeding along, using the almost straight-line of aircrafts as a series of platforms for him to make his daring escape, smashing the blades with his half-transformed arm if need be. Finally, he zoomed off the final one to reach a pier, nearly splintering the wood as he sped along it. "HAH! They outta just rename me Getaway. Then again, that exhaust-port of an Autobot already got-OW!"
I'm on the front line! Don't worry I'll be fine! The story is just beginning! I say goodbye to my weakness! So long to the regret! And now I see the world through diamond eyes!
Headmaster rammed into his side, Zora having to hold on for dear life as the living head skyrocketed the car into the base containing the rest of the heli-carriers (odd, considering they were at a pier, but tell that to Bliss Ocean's boss and see what happens). Hastily transfoming, he regained his balance and grabbed the head when he tried that a second time. Roaring loudly, he slammed the head into one of the heli-carriers, blowing it up, but that still didn't stop him from getting a psychic blast to the chest, sending him into a crane nearby.
"Assist me, Ms. Salazar! I wish to utterly crush this weakling of an alien!" Headmaster shouted, even as Zora just watched the events disinterestedly. That is, until Barricade's mace emerged from the smoke and straight at him. "Haha! FOOL! I can block-"
Damn! Damn it all down! Took one to the chest without even a sound, so WHAT?! What are you worth? The things you love or the people you hurt? Hey! It's like deja vu! A suicidal maniac with nothing to lose, so wait! It's the exception to the rule. Everyone of us is expendable.
The chain wrapped around the floating one, even as he put up his shield. He began to swing him like a professional hammer tosser. "AAAAAAAH! I DO BELIEVE I'M GOING TO BE SICK!" Finally, Barricade sung the chain down on an explosive barrel or two, blowing them up near that same crane and causing it to crash into him, burying his foe. That's when the Decepticon's attention turned to Zora.
Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! One push is all you'll need! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! A fist-first philosophy! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! We watch with wounded eyes! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! So I hope you recognize...
Instantly, the two of them began to fire upon each-other, running through the place and using various objects, such as heli-carriers, as cover. Both had their own advantages, Zora used her speed and various richocheting bullets to torment the larger Decepticon, but he had laser-fire on his side, making his shots faster and more destructive. Eventually, he just rushed at her, screaming in rage before she had time to react. "Holy-"
I'm on the front line! Don't worry I'll be fine! The story is just beginning! I say goodbye to my weakness! So long to the regret! And now I know that I'm alive!
He grabbed her in his claw before throwing her at a heli-carrier and leaving a sizable dent. That's when he got out his mace and swung it at her, only for it to stop in mid-air. "What?!" He yelled before she unloaded an entire clip that began to eat away at his spark. Dropping the mace and backing away with each bullet, he finally fell onto his back.
I'm on the front line! Don't worry I'll be fine! The story is just beginning! I say goodbye to my weakness! So long to the regret! And now I see the world through diamond eyes!
As he laid there in great agony, she stomped onto his chest and aimed her pistol at his face. "End of the line, bot-boy." He swore those markings on her eyes glowed as she readied the kill. "Last words...?"
He spat at her with disgusting green fluids splattering a bit around her outfit. "Hypocrite. You promise a fair fight and you fail to deliver...what else can I expect from somebody who pretends to have any sort of honor? I've been there before." As he kind of expected, he began to feel much better, his spark reverting to its original age, but still bearing the marks of the battle.
Oooooooo... ooooooOOooooOOooooooo...
She lowered her hat as she got out a very special gun. One that wasn't golden-colored and brand new like the others, but one that was rusted and antiquated with the words 'No More' on them with a heart symbol next to it. "Fine. DRAW. It ain't my fault I gotta be reminded every-time that people think I'm...not good enough without my epithet. But that's what they say before they learn better! THAT'S WHAT THEY ALL SAY! I'VE GOT NEWS FOR YOU, COWBOY! THIS AIN'T GONNA END ANY DIFFERENT!"
"THEN SHOW ME!" He whipped out his blaster.
Every night of my life, I watch angels fall from the sky. Every time that the sun still sets, I pray they don't take miiiiiiine!
The instrumentals went out of control as they shot at each-other while moving in direct tandem with themselves. Each shot they fired connected, her bullets suddenly being able to disperse the laser-blsats with each shot. There was a fire in her eyes as she tanked every shot he gave, yet he returned it with his own tenacity, even doing some combat rolls to throw her off, to which she did the same. They jumped in the air to throw each-other off, but their shots still connected until they did it a second time, where their guns connected and, once they fired, created a mutual blast that pushed them both back.
They were now on the ground and hoisting themselves up while staring at each-other before the lyrics returned. "See? There's what I want to see. A human that truly can step up without Autubots or epithets or whatever."
"And this is what I wanna see. Someone that, let's be honest, makes me feel alive." Zora couldn't believe the rush she got from that tussle. She got to be herself, while, in his central processor, he got to show his mettle without getting grievously injured.
A moment of silence came over the two of them as they raised their guns another time...
I'm on the front line. Don't worry I'll be fine. The story is just beginning. I say goodbye to my weakness. So long to regret...
Headmaster exploded from his wreckage-prison, screaming in absolute fury as psychic energy crackled around him, the purple volts grabbing around Barricade and causing his circuits to nearly fry. He was slammed side to side and up and down, without any sort of mercy. "HEY! You stay out of-" Zora was smacked to the side by another psychic bolt.
"NO! I will not be denied what I deserve because of your antiquated code OR A GODDAMN ALIEN!" He yelled as he held Barricade to his maddened face. "What's the matter?! GOT NO MORE TRICKS?!"
"Yeah! My two boys!"
I'm on the front line! Don't worry I'll be fine! The story is just beginning! I say goodbye to my weakness! So long to the regret! And now I know that I'm alive!
Raising his fists to suddenly reveal a pair of fisticuffs dubbed "Punish" and "Protect", he slammed them both against the psychic shield at a rapid pace, even as he was held into the air and he could feel his limbs being pulled like the a sadistic child does a bug. "Hehehahaahahaha! Do you really think mere FISTS can break through my shield?!" Suddenly, his shield began to flicker, even as he slammed the Decepticon against one of the ruined heli-carriers, puncturing his back with scrap metal. "What?! My tech!"
Zora, grasping her head from the impact dealt to her, winked at the groaning Barricade after she had fired her epithet-infused bullet to age-up Headmaster's tech. "Figured I owed ya' one." She said, remembering how she broke the rules earlier. She then had to duck from an incoming pillar of metal that the madman threw at her.
I'm on the front line! Don't worry I'll be fine! The story is just beginning! I say goodbye to my weakness! So long to the regret! And now I see the world through diamond eyes!
Grabbing his mace by the end of it, Barricade rushed through an incoming hail of telekinectically thrown objects, even jumping through two heli-carriers that almost sandwiched him, he slammed the hard end of the mace against the fading field. "NO! If my body should rupture-"
"Get ready to learn the science of pain!" He slammed it again with his weapon, shattering the field and ramming it into his forehead, revealing circuitry beneath. Beams of purple light emanated from the freakish braniac, who let out a horrifying digitized scream as the energy within his body began to expel outward.
I'm on the front line! Don't worry I'll be fine! The story is just beginning! I say goodbye to my weakness! So long to the regret! And now I see the world through diamond eyeeeeeeeeeeees!
Barricade shielded his optics as the man's body (if you could call it that) continued to emanate light, creating many shockwaves that pushed him down and forced Zora to hold onto a hunk of metal for support. Eventually, laser blasts began to fired at random, preventing him from making a real escape. "Aw, no..." The Decepticon muttered before the man finally exploded into nuts, bolts, and purple energy. An explosion that sent him flying over the horizon and sent Zora straight into a wall.
Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM! Boom-Lay! Boom-Lay! BOOM!
When all settled and various operatives of Blizz Ocean moved in, Zora was losing consciousness from the whole experience, but she just kept her smirk on. "Happy trails, Barricade." She said softly. "Can't promise we won't meet again...and I won't be holdin' back no more..." With that, she allowed herself to get some much-needed rest as her robot-girl partner landed, letting out a giggle at her failure.
Several hours later before morning...
In one of the dark alleyways, a dumpster found itself having a new occupant. Namely, a giant robot that crushed it the moment it landed on top. Barricade couldn't believe his own luck as he laid on the trash/metal heap, looking around in confusion before giving a dark chuckle. "Can't you stay out of trouble?" He told himself. "Just my luck." Stepping out slowly, he knew he needed some rest before going into possible stasis lock.
"Transform." He said quietly, turning into his dented-up police-cruiser mode. Despite having a blown-out tire and all the injuries he had sustained, he still managed to boot up his holo-driver and enter his new destination for real. He scanned for any signs to explain to him what human hellscape he had arrived in this time. "Sweet Jazz City? Gah. I swear, if that ankle-biter somehow survived and they named a city after him like that, I'm going to cut off my own head with a fork."
He drove deeper into the city, having nothing better to do but do some recon. The Decepticon cause, at least to him, was good and gone, but that's a story for a later time. He would eventually just rest easy after not getting very far through the streets and settle near one of the harmless-looking buildings. A museum, to be precise. It looked closed, so why even bother?
Slowly, he allowed himself to enter stasis mode. Given enough rest, he considered that he might be able to confront what exactly was going on and if-
"Go, my minions! Before we are to purge this establishment of ALL of it's treasures, let's break the long arm of the law one worthless car at a time! And I believe THIS is a perfect place to start!"
"...frag my life." He muttered.