Deep Blue Sea
An hour away from Portland, Oregon, surrounded by the majestic blue of the Pacific Ocean, yet another battle of unimaginable consequences had begun. Both sides realized casualties almost immediately. Flattop, a Decepticon micromaster trained in the craft of naval warfare, was the first to be taken out. His body was totally evaporated by the massive amount of firepower that engulfed him.
Terragator, a half-croc and half-turtle soldier from the Beast Wars, had only started to complain about being sent to this location instead of one with a more appropriate attack squad when his vocal relayers were fried from a random laser strike. He was a warrior built for swamp combat, finding an almost disturbing pleasure from the funk one found in such a dreary place. His unique combat skills would be greatly missed; the odor that accompanied them-not so much.
The side of good also suffered early on; in fact it could be stated they suffered a much deeper loss than their enemies. The Autobot Splashdown, acting as mission leader, found himself the victim of a two-on-one showdown that he lost. A malfunction with his Pretender shell left him vulnerable to a deadly combination of an armor-piercing harpoon and a proton blaster. It caught his teammates off guard, as he was looked upon as a legend when it came to oceanic battles. He was a well-traveled and experienced soldier, at home on various oceans fanned out across the universe. But that mattered little now that he had been slain. The burden of victory now fell upon the shoulders of the Maximal known as Depth Charge, and he took no pleasure in assuming command in such a manner.
"Ashes to ashes," Finback laughed, "And rust to rust!" Alongside fellow Pretender Submarauder, the two Decepticons converged their attack on the out muscled Autobot known as Seaspray. "Watch him squirm," Finback howled, taking great pleasure in containing him within a disgusting and energy draining layer of thick slime courtesy of his metal-corroding stun rifle. "That's it," he taunted. "Get mad! Burn off all your energon... that's it!"
"When I break through this ooze, I'm going to make you regret the day you learned to swim!" Seaspray grunted, finding it harder and harder to continue his struggle to escape his confinement. "You and your ugly-as-slag friend!" he added, turning his anger towards the reserved Submarauder.
"I think not," Submarauder stated. He motioned for Finback to release a counter blast, resulting in the slime prison being dissipated. As Seaspray struggled to raise his weak arms and fire off his hand laser, Submarauder made his way towards the powerless warrior and stared deep into his optics. With his right arm, he removed from his side a weapon with sadistic abilities. Staring down his intended victim, he raised his organic-steel sword high above his head and thrust it deep into Seaspray's torso. Being under water tempered the sparks that would normally have roared from the open cavity. Pain burned throughout Seaspray's body, bringing a storm of seizures and internal explosions upon his spark. The sword that now found itself housed deep inside the Autobot, was capable of eating metal on contact. The warbled-voiced soldier was being eaten from the inside. "Now, who's ugly as slag?"
"We have sustained another loss," Depth Charge shouted. Few Maximals matched his dedication when it came to battle, and he had a knack of inspiring his troops towards impossible victories. "Longtooth, Waverider-take out your Pretender counterparts!" His short-range sensors picked up incoming energy signatures that were unfamiliar to him. But based on their general readings, he made the correct assumption that they were not coming to help him and his crew. "Torca, you and Claw Jaw stand with me," he ordered. "We have incoming." Indeed, they did.
The Seacons had just arrived.
end of chapter 17