On the Op

The convoy headed out along the remains of the roads, forced to drive at an almost crawling pace along the shattered freeways. Because of the terrain Shadow and Talon scouted on ahead, while Updraft provided aerial cover and Skywatch, a Doppler radar truck, made sure the other three hadn't missed anything.

It was slow going until they reached the edge of the city. Here the streets were somewhat more intact and Sharps took point instead. About three megamiles out, Skywatch and Updraft fell out of formation for their assignment.

As they drove, Sideswipe studied Nightwatch's team curiously, striking up a bit of conversation here and there. Scope, some sort of light tank/troop carrier, was a mech of few words, each one surrendered reluctantly to the red mech. Vibe on the other hand was a chatty, cheerful, femme with a disarming smile she dispensed freely from her perch atop Scope, a shotgun in hand. The Lamborghini immediately pegged Caps as the jokester of the team, the missile truck cracking off hilarious little stories and jokes as the miles passed.

Though Talon continued to fly ahead, Shadow had caught a ride with Nightwatch not long after Updraft and Skywatch left, the femme riding shotgun on the ATV with a sniper rifle in hand. They seemed to be talking about something important, so Sideswipe left them alone and concentrated instead on Sharps. He sensed something off about the 'cycle, an observation soon confirmed by a private transmission to his twin. Neither brother could pin it down exactly however, but they had enough tact to not dig, especially after the warning Jazz had given them.

"Our turn off's just ahead." Nightwatch radioed on the general frequency. "Good hunting, mechs. Reach for the stars."
"Aim for the moon." Jazz radioed back. "Take care."
"Copy that. One-Sixteens out." Nightwatch pulled off onto an exit ramp, and he and his team quickly vanished out of sight.

"Hey Jazz, what was that?" Sunstreaker queried.
"What? Oh, the stars thing. Just something we say, that's all." Jazz replied, bouncing slightly on his shock absorbers in a shrug. "Rev down a bit guys, we gotta cool off 'fore we light up somebody's infra-red."

Their conversation lessened and their speed dropped as they travelled closer to the border. Jazz drove point, the twins close behind and so near each other that their wing mirrors almost brushed. But if the saboteur noticed, he didn't say anything.

"Looks pretty bad." Sunstreaker commented as they threaded through the remains of yet another demolished community. "Nightwatch wasn't kidding when he said Cybertron had changed."
"Yeah. Even retro-rats are rare." His twin replied. Jazz remained silent as they passed through the ruins, and neither warrior wished to disturb the uncharacteristically solemn mech to inquire after his mood, choosing instead to back off a little and give him some room.

They neared a final rise and pulled over, transforming slowly to avoid alerting any nearby enemies with the characteristic sound. "Right, th' canyon's over there." Jazz pointed as they hunched behind the remains of a wall. "We rig that with the grenades. Plant 'em in pairs on opposite sides an' tie a line t' the pins."
"So that when someone hits it, they go off and bring down the walls, right?" Sunstreaker guessed.
"Exactly." Jazz nodded. "Sides, once ya loosen up that fault line, you and Sunny hoof it back up th' canyon an' pick off anyone who manages t' get through. After that, get down here." He pointed to a fissure just wide enough for the twins to jump into. "It leads into the tunnels. Strike out west, an' I'll meet ya in that last bombed out village we passed."

"Are you sure we can't help you when you get inside?" Sideswipe asked.
"Trust me, y' already are." Jazz grinned.

The three of them set to work, planting the shrapnel, plasma and smoke grenades about a third of the way into the ravine. Luckily enough the walls were quite high and narrow at the top. Any Seekers wanting to claim an Autobot trophy would have to fly into the ravine to get them. Not that it reassured the twins that much. As far as they were concerned the purpose of an ambush was to draw out the enemy so that they could eradicate them, not draw them out to allow another Autobot throw himself into greater danger without proper back up; a concept that rankled them to no end.

Finally, the twins got into position and Jazz slipped away to prepare for his foray.

Sideswipe hunched behind a spike of half-melted rubble in what Jazz had assured him was a sensor dead zone. Sunstreaker was higher up, ready to provide cover for his brother. The factory/outpost had been built in the bottom of a shallow blast crater, leaving precious little cover. How Jazz was going to get even close to the walls without lighting up their sensor screens like a flare, neither twin could guess. Radio reception was spotty, even without the jamming and radio sinks. If a frontal assault was attempted, they'd be spotted as soon as they crested the lip of the crater.

Though it irked to admit it, the Decepticons had actually done something intelligent for once.

In the splutter of white noise on the radio, the twins suddenly picked up the signal- the letters G O hissed out in static using Morse code. Jazz was ready.

"Here goes." Sideswipe grinned as his arms shifted into pile drivers. But before he even had the chance to begin the ground around them suddenly shifted and buckled upwards, releasing a swarm of robotic drones. "Oh slaggit! AMBUSH!" Sideswipe yelled, trying to maintain his footing on the treacherous rubble even as his piledrivers were exchanged for arms. Further up, Sunstreaker picked off drones with lethal accuracy before they could reach his twin. Sideswipe summoned his gun from subspace and shot a single flare skyward, praying that Jazz would see it in time. Then both twins dove headlong into the fray, hoping to distract them long enough for Jazz to get out of danger.

There was a blinding burst of white light from the central tower of the outpost, then the warriors knew no more.