| abstract
| - Finger Canyons Produced by the huge hand of Unicron as he clawed at Cybertron, five serpentine canyons are gouged into Cybertron's surface. They angle towards, but don't quite converge, and terminate at the Crumpled Mountains to the west. Not really that deep, the canyons are only as deep as a gestalt is tall, their curving walls remarkably smooth from the friction-produced heat, almost mirror-like. The floors of these canyons are also smooth but slightly concave from the imprint of Unicron's huge fingertips. The smoothness and curvature of the walls occasionally produce an odd effect, as well... WEEKS AGO: Cyclonus led a team of Decepticons to investigate a MYSTERIOUS break-in that occured at a lab in Polyhex. Through a trail of clues, records, smashed doors, nervous witnesses, and good 'ole detective work from those present.. it was revealed that none other than BACKFIRE, the most inane Seeker, was the culprit of the crime! CYCLES AGO: Scorn led a horde of Insectihounds to track Backfire's scent, where they found a MYSTERIOUS patch of his trademark noxious Energon signature and a trail of smashed energon vials leading north. With the fresh lead, the Decepticons attempted to follow.. but were broken off by a violent electrical storm that seemingly appeared out of no where. NOW: Scorn is at it once again, leading Juggernaut and another pack of Insecticons on the trail of Backfire; the storm having dissipated and the hunt beckoning. Approaching the Finger Canyons, thanks to Unicron's hand raking circa 2005, Juggernaut stalks closely behind a large Insectihound who is busily trailing his face against the ground for a scent of the Seeker in question. "You sure tha forecast was clear fer tha meantime?" the lummox asks the lead bug, giving a little jump as his voice carries throughout the area and echoes. One could say the echo is quite.. MYSTERIOUS as well! WEEKS AGO: Needlenose, Sunbeam, and Zigzag are walking through Crystal City. "Boy," says Sunbeam, "I sure am glad we're not in Polyhex screwing around with whatever that Backfire thing is." "You said it, friend of friends," Zigzag replies. CYCLES AGO: Needlenose, Sunbeam, and Zigzag are walking through Polyhex. "Bow," says Sunbeam, "I sure am glad we're not with Scorn screwing around with whatever that Backfire thing is." "You said it, heterosexual life partner," Zigzag replies. NOW: Needlenose, Sunbeam, and Zigzag are walking along with Scorn and the pack of Insecticons towards the Finger Canyons. "Boy," says Sunbeam, "I sure am glad we're not... uh..." "Goddammit," Zigzag mutters. Does it matter what Ravage was doing weeks ago? Or even cycles ago, for that matter? No. It does not. Because no matter what's happening, where it is happening, or why it is happening, the only guarantee is that somewhere, in some way, shape, or form, there is a Ravage watching. As it happens, the sneaky kitty is moving along calmly, keeping well into the shadows to avoid getting any unwanted attention from the insecticon masses. In truth, they make his circuitry crawl beneath his armor plating... So cloaked is absolutely the way to go here. Still, he keeps close enough that he can overhere and watch, all the while scanning the area as any good scout ought to do. Scorn has a hold on a pair of leashes connected to two Insectihounds while making her way ahead of Juggernaut and the menagerie of Decepticons she rallied together to contiue the search. "That's what I was told. The canyons don't seem a suitable spot for storms anyway." Whether the group takes to the sky or the ground is their own business, but they all get the same message commed to them. <> Harrow doesn't know how she got roped into this. She looks angry about it. At least she can scream at people without getting reprimanded. She briefly debates kicking around Sunbeam. "I HOPE IT STORMS!" Well it /is/ Backfire, and he /was/ in her trine. Ugh. "He won't die, trust me." Snowblind is here because she's following Harrow around like a devoted puppy. The pristine white predator drone is going to serve a very useful purpose as she quietly, carefully walks along: she can see things others normally cannot. The camera hub on her torso is fully engaged, all two hundred lenses of various sizes and types wide open, collecting data and area scans in everything from infra-red to gamma waves. "Yah, coulda swore that's what ya said last time lass." Juggernaut grumbles, letting the Insectihounds tromp ahead of him while he takes his time stomping through the canyon, sending echoes of footfalls throughout the area. Hopefully Ravage isn't listening too closely! Munch tromps along behind Scorn and Harrow, giving Neddlenoses' Nebulon partners weird glances, all the while leaving a trail of slime in his wake. "Wait, wasn't you supposed to be that Seeker's midwife or something? Buzzkill was yelling about it the other day." the Insecticon barks out, falling a little back behind the pair of ladies. A loud shrill whine from an Insectihound comes through the area from ahead, what have they found?? Triggerhappy has chosen to take the aerial route, flying overhead of the group and keeping his scanners primed for anything out of the ordinary. Better view from up here, anyway. The Targetmaster has just gotten out of the repair bay. He had been close to death, actually, but command would really prefer not to lose a mech like him. Particularly Shockwave and Buzzkill. <> << I mean, this is the mech who tried to sneak into Autobot City by wearing a /Moonracer/ costume.>> Ravage moves towards the sound, optics narrowing as he catches the same thing the hounds found up ahead. Hmm... well, that is certainly a good sign. He ignores the immediate pool of green in favor of scouting around to look for the next trailmarker, leaving the rest to figure out what their next move is on their own. "Mistress," Snowblind says, trying to get Harrow's attention. She raises a flat, long, triangular arm and points chopstick fingers towards the location of a smear of Backfire's green energon on the ground. Harrow froths, spinal strut going rigid. "THAT IS TERRIBLY UNTRUE," she shrieks, turning around to shove aside puppy Snowblind and gesture rudely at the pillbug. "I had /no/ part in that /nonsense/! What? What is it Snowcone?!" She follows Snowblind's pointing to the energon. "Ugh, don't get near it." "Nonsense, I didn't say anything of the sort." Scorn rebuffs Juggernaut's comment, looking to Harrow beside her and offering a sharp smirk, "Trust me, you wouldn't want another storm like we ran into before. I could swear it was actually chasing-Agh!" Scorn finds herself cut off when the whine of an Insectihound ahead incites excitement in the others, the pair she's holding onto suddenly surging ahead with her still holding onto the other end! "Ergh! Stop, you unruly mutts, gah!" A trail of cybertronian expletives follow soon after as she tries to keep pace with them to the site of interest, close to getting dragged across the ground. Snowblind doesn't mind she's being shoved around. Her visor lifts towards Ravage, one camera lense following him into the distance. Ravage is...off, following a trail of his own volition. << I have found something of note. If you are done lingering around the energon splatter back there, I have ener-cuffs and a tray of energon vials up ahead. Marking the position for you and moving forward.>> He studies the cuffs and vials for a moment, purposefully knocking one over so it shatters to compare the signatures of that one against the splatters already found. "Needlenose? Needlenose?... Needlenose?" Sunbeam asks, tugging on Needlenose's leg. Turns out he's been trying to get the Decepticon's attention for the past five minutes while all this other stuff was going down. He's kind of nervous about the way Harrow is yelling at him. Finally Needlenose snaps out of it, "Oh, hey, sorry, I was having the most wonderful daydream." He points at Sunbeam, "You weren't there." He points at Zigzag. "And you weren't there." He points at Harrow and the others. "And you weren't there, and you, and you... in fact, none of you were there. Yes it was pretty great." Needlneose looks around, disappointed to find out that the mission is still going on. He does, however, see a fair damsel in distress. "BRB," Needlenose says to his Nebulon partners as he soars over to Snowblind and Harrow. "Heeeey. What's going on here?" he asks, paintjob gleaming romantically off the triple moons of Cybertron. "Yeah, yeah.. don't git yer transistors in a bind." Juggernaut chuckles off Scorn's rebuttal, giving Munch a slap on the back of the collar. "Don't mind 'em Seeker, he only got ah name recently.. still wondering why a mutt like this would warrant one." Munch lets out a soft whine, a lot lower in volume than the other Insectihound wails. Stomping up to the patch, the Insecticon crosses his arms and studies the noxious green substance with an optic roll. "More 'o this stuff? Feels ta me like ah wild turbo-goose chase than an investigation." Juggernaut speaks too soon, as Ravage's report comes in over the channel. To the trained and careful audio receptor, a faint sound of metal scratching on metal can be heard ever so softly.. echoing and ringing, but quickly dying down. Needlenose is promptly ignored by Snowblind, who has, at present, the romantic inclinations of a freshly plucked turnip. She turns towards the sound of the noise, auditory finials raising. "Scanning. Conversation is irrelevant. Quiet is appreciated." Harrow's optics narrow on Needlenose. "UGH, get out of my WAY!" She does not give Snowblind her silence. "You left your pets behind!" But she does eventually stalk on ahead, nudging past Needlenose's romantic paintjob. Scorn vents a bit when her hounds come to a stop alongside the others around the spot of green, a discovery she's not all that thrilled about since they've seen it before. She hisses, about to whip them with their own leash, but halts at Ravage's comm, looking up in his direction. <> She finally just drops the leashes and brushes away invisible dirt from herself, antennas twitching a moment at the odd sound that has her arching a brow. "...Hm?" She tries to listen further, but Harrow's boistrous voice has her glaring at the femme, as well as Needlenose and his wooing, which should be for her, damnit! "Quiet! I don't think we're alone..." Ravage hears the noise as well. The energon in the vials is irrelevant (or at least deemed such), and he lacks the proper appendages to place anything in sample jars...much less carry them. So, he just carries on further down the ravine. << I hear something...>> He flattens his ears, optics scanning the area. <> He looks back over his shoulder, watching Harrow storming along as loud as you please and just shakes his head. <> Needlenose looks to Snowblind. "So-" he gets cut off. He turns to Harrow, "Well then, ma-" he gets cut off. Soon, Needlenose is stalking back to Zigzag and Sunbeam, shoulders slumped, optics wide, and with a dejected look on his face as he continues to not have any idea what is going on for the actual mission. "So how'd it go?" Zigzag asks. "Did it go good?" Triggerhappy picks up on the noise from the air, as well. <> he asks over the comm. << I'll fly around the perimeter, see if I can't find the source of the noise.>> He banks to the left then, flying a full circuit around the canyons to see if he can't spot anything from the air. Snowblind assesses that following Harrow at the moment is counterproductive. She moves forward and flies towards Ravage, intending to assist him instead. "Affirmative. Noise is detected. Query: Assistance desired?" "WAY!" "WAY.." "WA.." "W.." Harrow's voice bounces off the canyon walls and echoes all the way around, cutting short another sound of scraping metal coming from the north. As Ravage gets nearer and Triggerhappy makes an aerial pass, they MIGHT be able to pinpoint the location! Back at the first energon pool and the collection of vials, Juggernaut studies it slightly and casts a casual glance throughout the canyon. This place gives him the creeps, no lie about it. "Looks ta me like this energon is normal." he states the obvious, picking up a flask of the bright pink life-blood of the Cybertronians and giving it a spin around in his hand. "What do you make 'o this?" he asks Scorn, when suddenly the Insectihounds begin wailing again. Half of them paw at the ground west, calling out in that shrill whine. The other half, pawing east with the same mannerisms. The scent splits? What madness is this?? Combat: Cybertronian Turbo-Thrust Jet Fighter compares his Accuracy to 90: Success! Combat: Ravage compares his Accuracy to 90: Success! With Ravage, Snowblind, and Triggerhappy on the case of the noise Scorn doesn't follow it, instead pulling an evidence container from her subspace and approaching Juggernaut, plucking the vial from his hand and setting it inside along with the other objects of interest. "I think he's getting sloppy, which isn't that big of a surprise if it's Backfire." Looking up from shoving the container back into subspace she quirks a brow curiously as the pack splits to opposite sides of the canyon. "These hounds.. ugh. Juggernaut, you take Harrow and check the ones over there." She points west. "Needlenose." She calls over her shoulder, urging the mech on with a curl of her finger to follow her to the hounds on the eastern side. Ravage hears noises...and Snowblind's interruption (even though it is to ask for assistance) is met with a soft growl. He's busy. He works alone. Though, that much said, he gives her a brief glance before once more slipping into the shadows. <> And, with that, the cat is gone. Cloaked up and silent as he hunts. Snowblind simply nods in agreement, keeping distance from Ravage, monitoring the positions of both parties. Needlenose looks around as he hears his name. Glancing over at Scorn, he gives her the thumbs up, "Sure thing, Scorn. We'll get right on that." The mech transforms into F-16 mode, with his two Nebulons transforming into guns and attaching under his wings. The Decepticon soars after the hounds as they head towards the east. A part of him is genuinely curious whether these Insecticon 'hounds' can really do the job. Robots in disguise! Needlenose transforms into his F-16XL Jet Fighter mode! Triggerhappy is flying about the perimeter of the canyon when he notices a purple and blue arm ducking just out of sight behind one of the formations. Making his way toward it, he is able to lock on to the source of the noise. << I think I saw an arm or something...it's gone now but it was about two kliks north of your location. I think it went behind one of the overpasses.>> he informs the rest of the party. As ordered, Juggernaut takes ahold of a couple Insectihounds and stomps west with Harrow in tow. Quickly, they disappear into the canyons.. the only evidence of their location is Juggernaut's loud footfalls that echo back through the area. The metal grating sound can be heard again, echoing from the north into the canyons. With Ravage and Triggerhappy's EXCELLENT skills, they both would deduce that the noise is from the north.. and moving east?? As Triggerhappy comes around, a hellacious explosion takes place.. right where Juggernaut's location beacon was a minute ago! *SKKKAAAAAAAAAAA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM* A MINUTE AGO: Juggernaut stomps along, a tracking datapad in one hand and leashes of the Insectihounds in the other.. they violently tug forward, their whine growing in volume as they move down the canyon. "Not everyday you get to hunt yer former mate, eh?" he attempts to joke with Harrow, pulling up alongside an item lodged in the canyon wall. It's small, metal, and blinking red? "Whatchya make 'o this?" NOW:Once anyone can view the scene after the explosion and smoke clear, the large boisterous Insecticon's foot is buried under a craggy metal 'rock' slide.. electric arcs from his boot, a slight bit of energon leaks out onto the ground below. A nervous new Decepticon recruit yells out, "IT'S AN AMBUSH!" right behind Scorn, nervously cradling his standard issue rifle. Harrow is about to stab Juggernaut's face with her scalpel, and then EXPLOSION! Then rocks fall and everyone... just gets buried under them. Harrow manages to spring away on anti-gravs, just barely, screaming all the while. "EEEEEEE!" "Game over man, game over." the recruit continues to ramble near Scorn. Ravage looks towards the sound of the explosion. <> The tone behind the question is eerily calm, to be truthful. He looks back at the task at hand without a second thought to the matter, though now a more wary eye is paid to the surrounding area for traps. <> Triggerhappy continues to follow the strange noise. "Whoa." The suddenly explosion startles him, but he's up in the air somewhere else so it doesn't rattle him quite as much. <> And then Ravage is talking at him. <> Scorn follows along in the wake of the hounds that have run off ahead with Needlenose tailing in the air, the femme just about to make another stinging comment about Backfire before an explosion rocks the ground beneath her feet and has her nearly jumping in surprise. "What the frag??" She hisses, on high alert with wide optics as she looks around wildly. "Nh.. I was hoping this wouldn't happen." To the recruit behind her she swiftly turns around to instinctively slap him across the face, then backhand, and slap once more for good measure. "Pull yourself together, recruit! Look sharp and keep your gun at the ready!" Wings snap open and she's buzzing off in a flash to Harrow and Juggernaut's location, looking faintly worried when she sees him buried under the rubble. "Damnit.. Harrow, get over here and help me." After all, Jugg is a fellow Insecticon, she can't just leave him. And if he's dead he'll still make a good meal. <> Scorn then begins trying to dig the pillbug out. The recruit snaps to attention, wiping a single energon tear that falls from his optic after the mech-handling by Scorn. “Yes, at once my queen!” Rather than try to dig poor Juggernaut out, Harrow gets up to zoom back to the group that has Scorn in it, because Scorn is somewhat reliable. But she's stopped short by Scorn herself. "It smashed him, IT SMASHED HIM! This canyon is out to kill us!" And then she is commanded to help dig Juggernaut out. "Wh'... UGH!" Begrudgingly, she grabs Juggernaut's foot and tugs. Juggernaut attempts to flail out faintly, though there isn't much wriggle room in the debris bed he's found himself in. Maybe that'll teach the lummox to go messing around with shiny silver things that blink red. "Put some back into it, ya ninnies!" he shouts, although it is considerably muffled considering his current predicament. In a dizzying display of speed, almost rivaling Blurr's??, royal purple and cerulean blue flashes east to west.. instead of flying, the mech is bouncing from the canyon walls to the opposite, propelling the movement with a well placed boot to the next. Approaching the back of the pack, the figure litterally jumps from head to shoulder to forearm on the Insectihounds lined up.. making a play for anyone of the Decepticons helping undig Juggernaut. Will anyone have time to react?? Combat: Ravage compares his Accuracy to 95: Success! Combat: Scorn compares her Accuracy to 95: Success! Combat: Cybertronian Turbo-Thrust Jet Fighter compares his Accuracy to 95: Failure :(Combat: Snowblind compares her Accuracy to 95: Failure :(Ravage snaps his head towards the movement. Never, ever hunt a hunter...or anyone near him. It gets you bad things in return. The kitty hears Triggerhappy over the radio, but it's somewhere deep in the background, the battlefield is taking the forefront as his targetting systems come online as the cloak drops, and he snaps off the most ready shot he has available, emptying the only missile bay he had open and available. <> He watches to see who he fired at, and if it impacts, for that matter. Almost reflexively, the now-empty missile bay retracts, replaced with more conventional weapons. <> Combat: Suddenly, Ravage appears out of thin air! Combat: Sneak Attack!! Combat: Ravage strikes Sapphire with his Heat-Seeking Missile attack! "Don't complain, just dig." Scorn huffs at Harrow, which is a surprise considering she's usually the one to complain in some way or another. She ignored Juggernaut's muffled words, just doing what she can to shift the metal chunks which isn't easy given her slighter build. Triggerhappy over the comm draws her attention, Scorn jerking up from the rubble pile to look behind her and see... Who the heck is that?? No matter, it's clear this is the culprit, the femme hissing in threat and dropping what she's doing to draw dual pistols, training aim on the dangerously fast mech and letting loose a volley of plasma shots after Ravage's missle connects. "There he is, get him!" Combat: Scorn sets her defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Scorn misses Sapphire with her Plasma Burst Pistols attack! Snowblind does what is most tactically advantageous and sound considering the chaos around her: She transforms into her drone form and rises above the situation, becoming a tactical relay and HUD for the Decepticons present. Snowblind folds inwards at the knees and torso and her arms extend into wings as she transforms into a high-tech aerial drone. F-16XL Jet Fighter transforms back into robot mode as the hounds start hissing and scritching at the sight of this unknown mech bouncing forward. "The heck?" He draws Sunbeam and Zigzag, ready to start shooting. Scorn points, and Ravage's missile is easy enough to spot, and so the Targetmaster flies up higher to get a better look at the mysterious Seeker. More Than Meets The Eye! F-16XL Jet Fighter transforms into robot mode! Triggerhappy has done his best to warn his comrades, though he himself is unfortunately too far away to get a shot at the culprit. He returns to the group as quickly as his engines could carry himm, though to help them with...whoever this was. He attempts to scan whoever it is, to see if he can identify the culprit? As the figure draws near, anyone close enough to catch a glimpse would see.. a Seeker? Not just any Seeker, mind you, but one of femme build. Propelling herself from the last Insectihound, the MYSTERIOUS adversary catches a missile in the midsection that she barely had time to brace for. With arms moving at a dizzying speed, it appears the Seeker was able to deflect it away before the explosion.. catching shrapnel from the nearby canyon wall it was shoved towards, the blast sending her to gracefully land away from the group.. inbetween them and the Insecticon pack. Thankfully for the would-be assassin, the shrapnel and resulting mini-landslide created a barrier of sorts between the group by Juggernaut and the Insecticon gumbies behind them.. even burying some under the rubble. Pulling herself up to her full heighth, the Seeker dusts some debris from her shoulder and cradles the charred side thanks to Ravage. Hissing at Scorn and managing to expertly dodge the resulting pistol blasts, "I'm hardly a 'he'." the lone assailant spits out, rushing forward to aim a punch at the back of Scorn's helm. "The name is Sapphire, and I believe you have something that belongs to us." Combat: Sapphire sets her defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Sapphire strikes Scorn with her Rabbit Pawnch! attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Scorn's Accuracy. (Blinded) What did one assassin say to the other? Nothing. Ravage was too busy trying to mutilate the would-be assailant. Crimson optics watch the follow-on carnage caused by the missile, taking a very small bit of satisfaction at having struck. But there's time for more of that later...for now? There's someone that needs to be taken out. Ravage charges in headlong in a black blurr as a glint of metallic teeth flash. Servos hiss with silent precision and send him leaping towards Sapphire's back, barelling into her bodily. "You talk too much." Teeth flash and the jaw snaps shut. Combat: Ravage sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Ravage strikes Strange Seeker with his Rending attack! Combat: That attack has slowed Sapphire, making her less efficient. Damn this girl's fast, Scorn blinking in surprise when the seeker dodges her shots and makes a rush for her. She does her best to twist around and evade, but Sapphire is too fast and lands a surprise punch to the back of the mantis' head. "Ehn! Fragging.. I can't see!" Scorn hisses when stumbling forward, dropping a pistol in the process and fumbling free hand over her optics. Looks like that punch jostled her processors good and made her optics reboot. It'd be smart to wait, but she's a little too pissed off right now, instead shifting to her altmode and searching out for the femme's voice with twitching antenna. "Other way around, sweetie, you're the one with something of ours!" Pinpointing her as best as she can Scorn looses a shot of burning plasma spit Sapphire's way. Scorn crouches before shifting into her scythe-armed mantis mode. Combat: Robotic Praying Mantis misses Sapphire with her Molten Plasma Spit attack! Sapphire, eh? Just where did this weird fem come from? Triggerhappy wonders, as he transforms and descends to the ground just behind the group. "Wait, 'we'? Who's we?" he asks the strange assassin. "And what do you want from us?" Needlenose's optics narrow as this Sapphire witch rushes up to punch Scorn. "Aw heck no. Scorn, over here! Come to the sound of my voice!" The air warrior, reasoning that Scorn can't be MORE blind, goes ahead and takes aim with Sunbeam. A bright flare is launched towards the mysterious Seeker, lighting up the entire area. "Listen lady, if you think we have something that belongs to you, well guess what: We're the DECEPTICONS. It's sort of what we do. Whatever it is, it's OURS now." Combat: Needlenose strikes Sapphire with his Light Burst Discharger attack! Snowblind distances herself from the battle, gathering tracking data. She returns to the ground, cameras focused on the Strange Seeker. She tightbeams information to Scorn. The drone splits in two places and unfolds into a female robot. Combat: Snowblind analyzes Sapphire for weaknesses Scorn can exploit. "Cowards!" Sapphire screams, Ravage's jaw afixing itself onto the already charred side. Apparently, you should -never- hunt the hunter.. or you become the hunted, or something. Twisting away from Soundwave's pet dog, the femme Seeker dives low under the plasma bath Scorn was intent on delivering. Raking the ground on her knees, Sapphire lashes out at Scorn's undercarriage with a couple of well placed knuckles.. where the joints meet her legs. Raising, "What was left behind, for this disgrace to collect!" the Seeker points at Scorn, then is rocked senseless by Needlenose's hellacious light show. Stumbling backwards, still clawing at her optics to get a sense of location.. Sapphire pulls back momentarily from the group, seemingly peering at them all collected. Smiling, the mystery Seeker moves an arm to reveal a Decepticon logo from her wing. "Well then, guess the best Con get's it then.. eh?" she replies to Needlenose, resuming her stance. Combat: Sapphire sets her defense level to Neutral. Combat: Sapphire strikes Robotic Praying Mantis with her Gut Pawnch! attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily impaired Robotic Praying Mantis 's Agility. (Crippled) "A Decepticon!" Needlenose shouts just in case nobody else saw the insignia on his wing. "Lady, there's a time for Decepticons beating on other Decepticons, but that time ain't now. You keep your antics up and we will put. You. Down." The mech readies his other Nebulon partner. Hoping that Sapphire is still reeling from the light show, Zigzag fires off a jagged lightning bolt that just might fry her circuits! "So, you going to tell us what this thing is we supposedly took from you or are you going to keep us guessing? Me, my money's on a decent paintjob." Combat: Sapphire expertly evades Needlenose's attack! Combat: Needlenose misses Sapphire with his Electrostatic Overloader Rifle attack! Ravage is pulled away from? Hah, fine, so be it... He turns and hits the ground running. A quick glance at Needlenose is all the warning he needs to close his optics for the ensuing bright light, which he can still see... but, he's able to use that same blinding hail of light to simply vanish from the grid again. Hmm, where, oh where, did the kitty-cat go...? Combat: Ravage activates his cloaking field and vanishes from sight! Robotic Praying Mantis 's optics flicker back online finally, and thankfully after Needlenose flashes Sapphire with his dazzling attack. A flood of new information, curtousy of Snowblind hovering above has Scorn clacking mandibles hungrily, making a move to snap at Sapphire! ..Wait, where'd she go? This is answered by a flurry of punches to her underside that Sapphire slides under, the mantis screeching in pain while legs wobble weakly from the assault and give out, Scorn crumpling to the ground. Alright, now she's pissed, optics bright with fury. "Hmph, so you're a Con too? A shame, I'll eat you all the same, you bitch!" Warbling some metallic, insectoid screech of hunger, Scorn forgets her inability to walk and instead digs her scythes in, dragging herself forward with surprising speed and trying to lash out with a blade once she's close enough. Combat: Sapphire expertly evades Robotic Praying Mantis 's attack! Combat: Robotic Praying Mantis misses Sapphire with her Plasma Sheathed Blades attack! [Pulled -1] Snowblind points a long arm towards the female Seeker; a gun barrel slides out of the wingspace, as she fires an ice beam towards her target, attempting to freeze her to the ground. Combat: Snowblind sets her defense level to Fearless. Combat: Sapphire expertly evades Snowblind's attack! Combat: Snowblind misses Sapphire with her Cryo Rifle attack! Smiling, the Seeker femme pulls herself together and rests hands together; optics momentarily fading.. finding a calm? Peace? Whatever the case, what happens next is all a blurr. Cartwheeling over the jagged lightning bolt, Sapphire single-handedly vaults herself over Scorn.. all the while using her free-hand to twist in mid-air and avoid the icebeam courtesy of Snowblind. "I don't think even Swindle would take that bet." she smiles coldly at Needlenose, turning to face Scorn and unloading a stream of super-heated plasma from a forearm cannon. "I'm here for the Insecticon and what she possesses. Our new Empire demands it." she rebukes again, hissing "Stand aside and you will not be injured.. yet." Combat: Sapphire sets her defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Sapphire strikes Robotic Praying Mantis with her Strange Plasma Cannon! attack! Combat: Sapphire's attack has strange and mysterious effects on Robotic Praying Mantis . Needlenose's lightning bolt shoots out... and passes where the blurr was just a moment ago. "Alright that one wasn't your fault," he admits to Zigzag before the Nebulon can even start to complain. The Decepticon holsters both his Targetmaster partners and cracks his knuckles. There is fury in his optics as Sapphire blasts Scorn. "Oh that is it. I hate beating up a chick but this ain't going unanswered." The faux-Seeker, fists extended, rushes in to get up close with the mysterious Seeker, trying to catch the blurr even as she zips around. With luck, he might be able to get there before she vanishes again. If successful, Needlenose will grab Sapphire and pin her down to the ground where, hopefully, she can't shoot anyone... except perhaps Needlenose himself. Combat: Needlenose strikes Sapphire with his Bear Hug (Kick) attack! Ravage keeps himself well enough in stealth-mode as he stalks to get a decent angle on the seeker-femme...until something catches his optics. Uh oh... He makes his way towards one of the walls and another of those silvery canisters that was so painfully responsible for Juggernaut's untimely squishing... Doing what he does best, the feline begins to study and crack into its casing. He found a new toy. Combat: Ravage takes extra time to steady himself. [Pass] Again she dodges! It's like fighting friggin' Kickback all over again! Scorn feels like a fool when Sapphire uses her to vault away the icebeam and get behind her, weak legs starting to come back, the femme wobbling as she shakily stands and whirls around to confront Sapphire again, raising blades to strike. But all she gets for her trouble is a blast of plasma similar to her own that coats her armor. Her own resistance to plasma only lasts for so long before it begins to burn, the corrosive hiss of metal being eaten away heard before Scorn screams in pain, trail of chemical smoke rising from her as she reels around, clawing at herself to try and scrape it away. "Th-.. That's it!!" Scorn roars, looking a shaking mess from pain and weakened systems, trying to recover and push past the horrid pain when wheeling back on Sapphire, any orders to retreat completely ignored. This bitch. She's going down. How /dare/ she use plasma against her! "Rrraggh!!" Shrill skree of a battle cry escapes past wide mandibles and she leaps for Sapphire in a last ditch effort to slice her up. Combat: Robotic Praying Mantis strikes Sapphire with her Plasma Sheathed Blades attack! "And what exactly does Scorn have that you want?" Triggerhappy--wait, that voice is coming from the gun he's holding, not from the Targetmaster himself. "Are you certain violence is the only way to obtain it?" Blowpipe continues. Despite that, the trigger is still pulled. After all, Sapphire had started it! Triggerhappy reverts to his root form. Combat: Triggerhappy sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Sapphire with his Compressed-Air Cannon attack! Snowblind decides to interviene at her own risk. She moves forward swiftly and attempts to grab Scorn by whatever she can and fly out of the canyon with her. Scorn may squirm or even attack her back! -- But orders are orders. Combat: Snowblind strikes Robotic Praying Mantis with her Grab attack! Blinking, Sapphire lets out a faint "HRMPH!" as she's tackled to the ground and pinned. "Oooooo, mixing business and pleasure I see? I'll do my best to see you're apart of the new Empire." she teases, giving the Targetmaster a wink. Attempting to wriggle free, Sapphire is suddenly skewered by the Mecha-Mantis' claws and doubly pinned again! Pain is seen on the femme Seeker's face, she hisses "Still fighting, curr?" Breaking the twin-hold, Sapphire turns to face them both when suddenly a concussive air-blast unsteadies her feet and sends her sideways. "You'll have no place at the table, that I can assure you!" she chastises Triggerhappy, her attention pulled when Snowblind decides to take matters into her own hands and absconds with the Insecticon target. Flying up after the pair, Sapphire pulls out a detonator from subspace and smiles. "Going somewhere?" Pushing the plunger down, the canyon is immediately drowned in a chorus of explosions; sending debris and shrapnel shards up into the air. *SKKAA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM* Combat: Sapphire strikes Snowblind with her Canyon Chaos! Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Snowblind's Accuracy. (Blinded) Combat: Sapphire strikes Triggerhappy with her Canyon Chaos! Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Triggerhappy's Accuracy. (Blinded) Combat: Sapphire strikes Needlenose with her Canyon Chaos! Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Needlenose's Accuracy. (Blinded) Combat: Sapphire strikes Robotic Praying Mantis with her Canyon Chaos! Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Robotic Praying Mantis 's Accuracy. (Blinded) Combat: Sapphire misses herself with her Canyon Chaos! Area attack! Ravage blinks, he knows the whine of primers winding up all too well... and he scrambles to get away from the explosion before it blasts him too bad. The explosion echoes through the canyons with quite the cacophony of noise and blinding light. He's sent sprawling with the debris, optics flickering and going offline as they try to compensate and reset after that blast. Blind kitty... ugh. Of course, that leaves very little chance for retaliation all the while on his part. Ow. Just...ow. Combat: Ravage damages himself. "Hah,not so tough now!" Needlenose shouts. He ignores the wink and gets ready to start wailing on the femme for causing all this trouble for his fellow Decepticons. "Now are you going to start talking or am I going to have to get ro- hey get back here!" How'd she wriggle free so quickly?! No matter, now Scorn has her, but that doesn't comfort the Targetmaster much since that's the one Sapphire is going after anyway. But then Ravage makes the startling declaration that the canyon is lined with explosives. Needlenose's optics go wide, but before he can flee Sapphire has pressed the detonator. "Ooof!" The faux Seeker is struck by a chunk of metal that comes flying from one of the canyon walls. The metal boulder knocks him clear to the other side of the canyon, where he hits the wall hard. Triggerhappy sees the detonator and transforms to start flying out of there just in time. The explosion catches him in the afterburners a bit but thankfully only do minimal damage. Being able to fly as fast as he can is definitely an advantage in these sorts of situations. "She's not very good at giving specific answers, is she?" Blowpipe remarks once they're clear of the blast. "Or maybe it's just the listening part she can't do." Triggerhappy transforms into a blue and white Cybertronian aircraft. Combat: Cybertronian Turbo-Thrust Jet Fighter begins retreating, outrunning all pursuit. Robotic Praying Mantis cackles nastily at the feeling of blades skewering Sapphire, though the seeker is quick to pull away, Scorn urged to follow. But she can't not when a certain drone is swooping down to snatch her up and carry her off, Scorn hissing and wiggling in vain before voices over the comm convince her to stand down. So she just hangs limp now, grumbling in annoyance. "Hrmph.. stupid seeker.. wanted to tear her head off and.. Eh??" Optics widen at spotting none other than Sapphire soaring up in pursuit, mantis limbs flailing. "Snowblind, pull up, pull--!" And then the femme detonates the canyon, the sharp debris of metal whizzing by and cutting her up, Scorn crying out in pain again and struggling hard enough to accidentally wiggle out of Snowblind's grasp and hurtle down, disppearing into the smoke below! Is she still alive? Did she remember how to fly?? Who knows! Snowblind tried as hard as she could, but her pencil-fingers aren't strong enough to hold a wiggly Mantis. Scorn slips from her grasp. She remains in the immediate vicinity, smoke rising around her, fragments of metal embedded in her chassis, waiting for her sensors to come online to try to scan for the missing Insecticons. Ready to snatch the Insecticon from Snowblind's grasp, Sapphire's cocky smile is quickly replaced by a sneer when the resulting explosion that sends debris, rubble, shrapnel, slivers, and smoke everywhere.. loosens Scorn from the drone. Seizing herself up, the mysterious Seeker plummets down after her precious 'cargo' and disappears into the large smoke cloud that slowly billows up out of the canyon, rolling west as it meets a timid wind. What will come of this mysterious assailant who rivals Blurr's speed? What did Scorn posess that made her such a high profile target?? Will anyone remember that Juggernaut was doubly buried this day??? Until next time, same Backfire time.. same Backfire channel!! ================================= Decepticon ================================= Message: 2/81 Posted Author Finger Canyon Incident:AAR Mon Jun 24 Ravage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ **Text Only** A Decepticon routine patrol augmented Scorn and her accompaniment of Insecticons in the search for fugitive Backfire. A list of those present shall be included with the attached files on this report. Initial search revealed a trail of energon that was distinctly belonging to Backfire, along with ener-cuffs and a tray of vials containing energon, not his own. Unfortunately, this all appears to have been staged. The canyon was rigged as an elaborate ambush. The first explosion buried Juggernaut, creating an initial confusion which allowed an assassin to attack our ranks. A female seeker, photograph included in the attachments, named Sapphire was responsible. She bore the Decepticon insignia and targeted Scorn specifically throughout the altercation that ensued. She claimed Scorn had something she wanted, though I am uncertain as to what that is. Sapphire proved to be swift and capable, very few of us were able to consistently, and reliably, land blows to slow her down. As Scorn was the focus of the attacks, I ordered her removed. Snowdrift complied. It was then the rest of the explosives were set off. Attached you will find a scan I managed to get of one device before it detonated in front of me. Crude in design, but potent. No artistic flair that indicates true skill with demolitions, however. This concluded the fight, the Seeker withdrew and recovery efforts are now underway to retrieve Juggernaut and myself from this rubble, as well as others who are wounded and/or trapped. I do regret to inform that no sign has been found of Scorn, and her comms unit remains inactive and untraceable. Once I am free and re-armed proper, I will take up the hunt. Ravage, out. ==============================================================================
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