The Diego Diaries: Game (dd6 326)
-0-There
That was when Springer and Drift galloping along the river decided to get fancy. They had been working out the little bots and the horses in their spare time and being some of the most accomplished horsemen in the colony or anywhere else for that matter, they had decided to make their grand entrance upon the playing fields (of doom) by showing off.
Yes, hot guys can be exciting(ly stupid) sometimes.
They galloped along the river heading toward Yellow Fort which could be entered on either side of the river. Rather than doing the easy thing, they decided to show what they had perfected on the desert outside of Tyger Pax when no one was looking. Glancing at each other, they turned their horses toward the river and got up to speed. Side-by-side they ran, then side-by-side they jumped. Side-by-side they flew through the air and side-by-side they miscalculated the distance. Sitting up like a champion in the saddle, both little bots leaned forward to help mini-bot Yancy and Dancer make it to the other side.
Like twin flames flicking brightly and burning out too soon, both of them landed in the river.
Everyone watching: "BWAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAAHAHAHA! (intake of breath by everyone watching who breathed atmosphere) HAHAHABWAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAHHAHAHAAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAHA!"
Both little horses hit the water, all of them went under, then came back up. Riding the horses like they were blow up versions in someone's backyard pool, both of them sailed swiftly away down river. They were really ripping along when they came to the bridge. They barely ducked it as they sped along.
"Frag," Springer said with a grin.
"We better get out of there. We have a reputation to protect as horsemen," Drift said with a snicker.
"SINCE WHEN!" -everyone there.
"Fraggers," Springer muttered. "Let them come around, then steer for that flatter level of land on the far shore near Yellow Fort. We can climb out there."
Drift nodded, then watched as their little horses and riders boated along in the screamingly fast current of the river.
"Well, wasn't THAT special?" Prowl said with a boatload of venom. He was currently directing a wobbly Optimus toward the sidelines where a tech or two was waiting for both of them.
"SWOOP! GET OPTIMUS!" Grimlock bellowed.
Everyone froze as Prowl's bot hustled Prime's bowlegs along, half dragging him by his finials. He would have let Prime use his weapons but his arms were so bowed it was problematic that Optimus might shoot himself in the face accidentally. They BARELY made it off the field as Swoop dive bombed them both. Prowl's little bot shot at Swoop and stitched his carcass. He flew erratically for a moment, then crash landed on the airfield of the titans of the Green Team. He stood up and staggered, then Xantium put his big botlet ped down and squished him so hard his main springs and mother board flew out to lodge themselves into the side of the Mausoleum nearby.
It was silent a moment, then HUGE laughter and applause greeted that.
"I WILL KILL YOU, XANTIUM!" Grimlock raged as he was approached Metroplex.
"BRING IT, SHRIMP!" Xantium said as he flexed his metaphorical muscles for Kappa. Kappa was torn between missing her little tweety bird and being impressed with her honey.
Swoop, himself, was pissed. "Xantium, you are a fragger."
"I DON'T CARE!" Xee said as he laughed loudly. Yes, Xantium Supreme was that bad ass.
"Three Dinobots to go," Optimus said as he watched Drift and Springer ride their floating horses toward the bank that would get them out of the river. That it existed was a nod to the problems of last time. Anyone who didn't get decapitated by the bridge would have an exit point to rejoin the game.
"Here we go," Springer said as they steered toward the bank. With a graceless effort, both pulled up and clambered onto dry land. Catcalls greeted that as the two galloped to Yellow Fort.
By then, an ogre-troll concoction had made it to the game and was sauntering in like a big pissed off gorilla. Wheeljack was locked and loaded.
-0-Metroplex
They found their fighting positions and were set to make Grimlock's appearance in the city smart. The ogre who noted Grimlock nearby headed toward him with a sword. Grimlock spotting him and relishing the idea of a fight that would be a challenge turned toward him as the other Dinobots of which Slag constituted the entire company ran onward to the city. Rushing back toward the ogre-troll, Grimlock pulled his sword out. They clashed. What would transpire would be inspirational for others who thought they could game well. The two, Wheeljack and Grimlock, would show everyone everywhere what a full on duel by swords looked like in miniature.
As that was happening, Slag made it to the city. As he entered the city, Metroplex the Gallant, Metroplex the Soul of his People showed his dark side. It was then that the city itself began to transform to stand up. Everyone paused including Wheeljack and Grimlock to watch with astonishment something that should have been solid and unmoving, move. With the cutest transformation sound EVER!, the city began to come together in a robotic modality, shaping ever upward toward completion. When it did, it would stand 14 feet all on its own, nearly the same size as its companion, the botlet that Metroplex played himself.
Everyone looked at it, then Metroplex, then it again. It had transformed but the bots inside who didn't get out could still be plainly seen. Their arms, legs and helms were sticking out of joints all over the big mech's body as they were folded into the shape of his root mode as he transformed. They had no way to get out, but merely found themselves becoming part of the transformation. None of them were dead. All of them had some bending but they were relatively intact and moving.
It was sickening to watch and if truth were to tell, the deepest and darkest nightmare scenario of Cybertronians everywhere.
HUGE LAUGHTER, HUGE SCREAMING AND DISGUST! 'OH MY GODS' AND 'WHAT THE FRAGS' EXPLODED AT NEARLY THE SAME LEVEL THE SPIDER'S ELICITED.
It was loathsome and awesome and terrible and terrific all at the same time. Everyone turned to look downfield at Metroplex. That intensely handsome and terrifically ethical dignified mech was grinning at everyone. "Ha, ha. Fooled you."
HUGE LAUGHTER, INTENSE APPLAUSE AND APPRECIATION for a member of a group of Cybertronians for whom love and respect were too small of a word to express the feelings of The People. These were the most selfless, most respected and most honored members of their society short of a good Prime. That one would do something like this was not only impressive but hilarious.
HUGE APPLAUSE FOR A FEW MOMENTS AND LAUGHTER!
"Metroplex, it would appear that you have a bad case of mini-con. Do you want a cream for that?" Ratchet asked to uproarious laughter.
Leader-1 stared at his console, who then found his little botlet stuck head first in the shoulder of the big mech with his legs waving grinned in spite of himself. "Metroplex, we have to talk."
Kappa who was awash with admiration at Metroplex's audacity while Xantium and Ty were bent over laughing hugged him. "That was amazing. What now?"
"I think we have to have him join us," Metroplex said as he guided the big mech to the sidelines to walk around without harm. Yes, he was that good a mech.
"I don't know whether to laugh or purge my tanks watching those little bots wiggle," Prowl said as he watched the little mech walk in front of him on his way to Green Fort.
"I think there's a medical paper in there somewhere along with Lea's helm," Ratchet said.
Even Leader-1 laughed.
Grimlock and the ogre-troll turned back to the moment and began to slag each other again. As they did, the Seekers decided to exact a bit of revenge. Lifting off, all 25, they flew up, formed a obliteration formation, then flew in hard at the pair. Strafing the ground ahead of them, the two bots flew into the air in the chaos of the run. This was the formation that had destroyed Praxus and for some, it was hard to watch a Seeker annihilation even in miniature. When they pulled up there were blast marks on the ground all the way up but the two bots had little to show for their wear and tear. Starscream called out to Grimlock. "What are they made of?"
"Cybertanium." -Wheeljack, Grimlock and the Gamers who made them, the slaggers.
"NO wonder. Time to bring the big payloads," Rainmaker said with a smirk. "Maybe you can do this thing again and show them who brings the boom to the barrage."
Starscream smirked. "That would be poetic."
"Especially since you blew yourself up last time. Right?" Ironhide asked from across the way.
Starscream frowned. Then he transformed his fighter, flew it to his servo, subbed a huge bomb and attached it, then sent it on. Up, up it went. Then down, down it came. Flying for the two who paused in the battle to run, Starscream dropped the huge (for the game) payload.
On Blue Fort.
-0-Moments later after an explosion that could be felt on the armor of those in the back row, a blast that lifted humans and Hu-An off their feet ...
Starscream stood in a smirking group of his own mechs and smirked at the punters who wanted his metaphorical helm. Rainmaker had no opinion yet because he was bent over laughing. Everyone gathered back up again, noting the hole in the ground in the area of where Blue Fort used to be. Most of the mechs had flown upward and landed here and there around the game board. None of them were harmed by it since it had hit the ground, shattered the fort and knocked them out before the main blast. But the idea of it was galling.
Hard Drive and Turbine who had landed on top of the Temple, slid off and landed on their helms on the plaza. Ironhide, Delphi and Alor spiraled straight up and came down into the smoldering wreckage of their fort. Blackjack was digging how way out of the smoldering wreckage of Mini-Con City while Raptor found himself landing on his helm in the maze in front of Swirling Hole Lake. Edict, Riff and Rad-R were blown straight ahead and bounced off the front face of Dinobot Mesa before hopping back up to race back and save the Blue Fort survivors.
They were turning out to be outstanding mechs, all of them.
Fireball who was too big to be inside stood outside by the gate, daring anyone with big enough bearings to enter at their own risk. He had been blown sideways and ended up slamming into Red Fort. He was unharmed but majorly pissed. He looked at Starscream and made a decision. "Wolf Pack, arise," he said.
Across the way where the big frames were eight kids glanced at each other, then grinned. "We obey," they said almost as one.
Fireball turned to the Seeker fort. "We heed the call of the Primes," he said with a slight grin. "That and our family which you just blew up."
"What do you plan to do?" Razor asked. He was another handsome son of Rainmaker.
"We plan to defend our honor," Fireball said as his botlet pulled out a sword and gun from his 'subspace'. He started for Seeker Mesa by stepping across the river. From the north, their guns and swords ready, the other eight walked out to meet Fireball in the open space in front of the city of Consolation. It was disquieting how it looked that nine giant kids were coming for them.
The Seekers glanced at each other, then Starscream turned to his team. "WHO IS GOING TO LET KIDS SCARE YOU FROM YOUR DUTY!?"
They glanced at each other, then 24 hands went up. HUGE LAUGHTER AND MOCKERY erupted. Starscream smirked at them with disgust and amusement, then turned to the kids who were coming. "BRING IT!"
"WE WILL!" Xantium said as he tossed a box to the botlets at their base. It landed and the Supremes ran to it to take things out. They planted them. They were howitzers. They were ready to go.
Fireball looked back at the adults, raised his little botlet arm with sword, then his controller grinned. "FIRE AT WILL! TEAM! CHARGE!" With that, nine little bots began to run across the field toward the Mesa. It was then that the artillery began to land.
-0-At Camp Quack
The humans standing along the sideline watching the show were astounded at the intensity of the battle. Nine giant kids were running toward the Seekers who were gathering up to go. As they did the artillery shells began to hit the ground.
KABOOM!
-0-TBC 4-11-18 edited 4-12-18
NOTES:
ESL: smart has several meanings. Smart as in intelligent. Smart as in looking nicely turned out. Smart as in hurt. If something smarts, it hurts. To make someone smart is to hurt them.