| abstract | - Entertainment Sector An extension of the Emporium, the Entertainment Sector consists of a mixture of lofty towers and medium-sized buildings, constructed of the same indigo steel/titanium as the rest of the city. All of the buildings have aerial access on the upper floors for flyers, these landing platforms so thickly studded with glittering crystals as to glow in the dark, providing visibility for those who are landing at night. Most of the buildings are fairly nondescript, due to the lack of owners, but a few have been fitted out as casinos and bars to handle the expected influx of patrons. As usual, the city's trademark crystals sparkle from the buildings, the roadways, and the skyways, providing an ambient light of their own in addition to more traditional lighting. Contents: Banshee Komatsu D575A Superdozer Komatsu D575A Superdozer stands on stage in the Aristotlecon formed performing arts center, yelling and generally being discontent. "You call this lighting! Fix it or you're gonna see the light FROM MY FIST, Source Four!" Source Four, the lighting component of the theatrical based Decepticon team, grumbles and being s to refocus the lights as actors start to drift in... Bonecrusher stops destroying everything long enough to be a robot. Banshee enters the theatre, followed by Chocks, Flash, Hawk, Violet, Blastcap, Airdrop and the twins, Sky and Splitter. They're looking extra-polished today, Banshee wearing her olympic gold medal and a few assorted campaign medals, because they always look good. They're all carrying their instruments, of course. "Looking good..." She comments, after a brief inspection. Hawk, in particular, looks unhappy to be polished. F-35B Lightning II arrives, because this is FOR THE EMPIRE, and she is, after a good Decepticon patriot. Of course the Director of Intelligence is a good Decepticon patriot. Of course. There is no unhappiness in the Empire, and they have /always/ been at war with the Autobots. Indeed. She takes a spot with a good vantage point. Who all is here to show their DECEPTICON PATRIOTISM - and more importantly, who /isn't/ here? In a transformation that is harder than it looks, Contrail rises up into robot mode. Banshee checks with someone that their Kiss-styled outfits have arrived, and that there's adequate face paint for the Decepticon insignia Sixshot wanders in to the performance area. Since this is rehearsals, he's decided to lay off the sauce for the afternoon. Sitting down near the stage, he waits for the rehearsals to begin. Bonecrusher gives Banshee a nod as she comes in. "No need fer equipment today, if you want to have the band take a break. I'll just need you on stage, front and center yeeeeah, along with the rest of our cast." He waves to Contrail and Sixshot. "GET THE HELL ON STAGE! It's time for artists to create and connect, dig it! ART!" A member of the set painting crew walks up and starts to ask a question about the best orange for Unicron's horns. Bonecrusher punches him in the face. Contrail looks at the stage and considers her distance from it. Then she take a running leap, does a tuck roll in the middle of it, and lands on one hand, before she drops back down into a normal standing posture on the stage. Contrail cracks her knuckles and comments, "It's nice to get out and stretch. So, what am I doing here? Background Seeker #11? I'm great at that part!" Sixshot blinks, and shifts. Not to be outdone by Contrail, he springs through the air on to the stage as a winged wolf, coming down circling through the air, and then narrows his animal mode optics at her when he touches down. Dropping forward, Sixshot's head switches for that of an armored cyber wolf, his arms shifting to forelegs, and knees becoming haunches, ready to pounce and rend. Banshee nods and gestures to her band. "Take five, ja? Start working on ze new song, ja?" She tells them, hopping up onto the stage and assessing how good the theatre is gonna be to fly around. She also sings a few notes to test the acoustics, nodding her approval. "Sehr gut." Bonecrusher waves his hands around artistically at Contrail. "Parts? Roles? We're artists yeeeah and tonight is all about *discovery* ya heeeard me?" He picks up the painter. "More vibrant." And then he throws him into a wall as hard as possible. Another stage tech sneaks in and drags him off. "NOW THEN. Everybody circle up. Make a nice big circle and start stretching, yeah. Actors gotta stretch. Actors gotta HAVE SPICE!" He gives an impressed look at Sixshot's stage entrance. "Vvveerrry nice modes, yeah. Super good." Bonecrusher continues stretching to demonstrate to his actors how to limber. "So heeeerrrreeee is WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO. An acting ensemble has to TRUST EACH OTHER! TRUST IS SLAGGIN KEY!" He shakes angrily for a moment. The stage hands step away nervously. "So we're gonna take turns. Each actor is gonna tell the cast their favorite thing to do, do a GREAT BIG physical motion, and THEN tell us something they really WANT to do but HAVEN'T YET! Got it? I'LL GO FIRST!" Bonecrusher steps into the middle of the circle. "My name is Bonecrusher and I love breaking things until they ain't things anymore!" He does a cartwheel. "Also I'd like to be in a Broadway Revival of Cats." Scorn has arrived. Contrail tilts her head to the side as Bonecrusher babbles about trust. Is he serious? They're Decepticons. Trust is for suckers. Trust is almost anti-Decepticon! Maybe she needs to have Bonecrusher monitored. Then she shrugs, takes the stage as if she were taking an enemy installation, and she announces, "I am Contrail." She drops down into jet mode. "I enjoy nothing more than serving the Empire. As should all of you. Especially where violence is involved." She transforms into a police car. "I have not yet managed to convince an Autobot to forsake his foolishness and join our glorious Empire, but I hope to do so someday." Then she ramps off the stage. Turning into a police car, Contrail fights crime! Wait, that's not right. Contrail causes crime. Combat: Lamborghini Gallardo inspires Scorn, Armored Cyber Wolf , Banshee, and Bonecrusher with lofty and uplifting words! Banshee shrugs quietly an looks at the others. "Ich bin Banshee, unt I like destroyink Autobots with excessive firepower. I vould vun day like to lead a Propellorcon assault on Autobot City or Polyhex." Sixshot shifts back into his robot form. "I'm Sixshot. I enjoy crushing my enemies, seeing them driven before me, and hearing the lamentations of their allies!" He transforms again, and spins in the air in pistol mode, as if his grip was anchored to an invisible stand. "I want to conquer Earth!" Leaping upward, Sixshot's arms fold back and his rear wings fold downward, his form taking that of a hand cannon. Scorn is rather disappointed she didn't get to do her little show for Galvatron during the auditions. It would've been amazing in all sense of the word. Too bad no one will know what she had planned. But she's determined to make up for lost time, now present at the rehearsal and standing amongst the others in the circle. "A bit strange to introduce ourselves when we know each other, but..." The femme shrugs, but complies when it's her turn. "Scorn, as I'm sure you know. I simply adore long walks on the beach, being admired, and casual murder." The Insecticon grins before issuing a few delightful backflips, launching herself on the final one and fluttering gracefully back to the ground. "And I hope to become rich beyond comparison!" Bonecrusher nods along at each actor's contribution, clapping supportively for each. "Very good, very good yeeeeeeah..." He puts his hands on his hips, looking sagely at his cast. "See how much closer we all feel as actors now? The trust we feel as an ensemble will make it that much easier to bring THE ULTIMATE GLORY TO GALVATRON AND THE EMPIRE!" He shakes his fist triumphantly. "Now that we're all warmed up and we trust each other...It's time for IMPROV SCENES! Scorn! Contrail! TAke a seat! Banshee! Sixshot! CENTER STAGE! Bonecrusher transforms, driving off stage and crushing several rows of chairs until he re-robots and sits down in the house. "LISTEN UP! Sixshot! You need to buy vegetable seeds for your Galvatron victory garden! Banshee! You own the vegetable seed store but you're nervous Sixshot might not love Galvatron enough! Sixshot, you start! GO!" Banshee looks at Bonecrusher with a flat look, but shrugs a little. "If you say so..." Lamborghini Gallardo sits down, as directed, in the second row. She puts her feet up on the back of one of the seats in the front row, and she crossed her arms behind her coned head. Contrail squints intently, interested to see... does Sixshot show signs of genuinely not loving Galvatron enough? His performance could be rather revealing! Sixshot suddenly transforms from his pistol mode, and looks at the group. "Uh..okay..." he says, walking up and stopping at an imaginary counter. He mocks looking around at a back wall. "Hmm, I guess I just need some seeds. Miss, do you work here, or are you just robbing the place? I need a seed recommendation!" In a transformation that is harder than it looks, Contrail rises up into robot mode. Sixshot shifts upward and unfolds into his robot mode, twin cannons in hand. Banshee looks up at Sixshot and nods "Ja, I vork here. Depends what you need, friend." She sifts through an imaginary seed-box, watching Sixshot carefully. Scorn honestly finds this all quite amusing, especially Bonecrusher's enthusiasm for the whole thing. Who knew he was so into theatre! Either way she obliges, not wanting to get bulldozed, and flits off into the seats to lean back in a chair watching the improv with a rather wide grin. Americon has arrived. "I need seeds that celebrate our DEAR LEADER!" Sixshot says, waving his arms wildly. "I need something purple, something gray, something angry, and something gay!", he says. Still waving his arms. Contrail rubs her chin, trying to decipher Sixshot's flailing. Is he /really/ enthusiastic enough about buying those seeds for his Galvatron victory garden? Suddenly a bird lands on Scorn's shoulder! The bird glances over at the Insecticon, then says, "Hold on a minute, you aren't Shockwave! What madness is this!" Banshee narrows her eyes at Sixshot, narrowing her eyes. "Hmm. SO vot, exactly, do you vant? I don't haff all zat in one seed." Scorn's antennas twitch at the eagle on her shoulder, glancing over to give Americon a toothy grin. "Hardly! Though I'm far better looking, in my opinion." She chuckles softly and gives the tape a little scratch under the beak. "Come to join the rehearsal? It could honestly use some of your enthusiastic patriotism." And some help, by the looks of Sixshot's flailing on stage. Is he having a seizure? Sixshot crosses his arms a moment, and taps his foot, then begins gesticulating again. "One seed, ten seeds! Why, it doesn't matter!" He goes back to crossing his arms. "Whaddaya got?" Banshee narrows her eyes further "Ze glory off ze overlord doesn't matter?" Contrail raises her hand over her mouth and asides to Scorn and Americon, "I think Sixshot isn't being patriotic enough in his seed buying. He should have more specific dark desires than that." Sixshot face palms. "It doesn't matter how many /seeds/ it takes! Just gimme what I ask for! Maybe I will just take them all! AND PUNISH YOU FOR YOUR IN-COMPETENCE!" he says, now gesticulating with both cannons in hand that suddenly appeared from subspace. "Give me fire! Anger! The obliteration of things! In a gentle, FLOWERY context!" Banshee scowls a little. "Hmf. Prove zat is vot you meant." Robotic Bald Eagle makes cute bird purring noises (wait what?) as he is scritched, his wings flapping a bit. "...wait, rehearsal? For what? For... *America?*" He looks down at Sixshot, not sure where he's going with this. "Uh, well, maybe the seeds are... Mexican?" Sixshot tilts his head, and stops waving his arms. "I was expecting YOU to be creative. Else I wouldn't have come to you for a recommendation, seed-witch! Now show me your wares, OR ELSE!" Robotic Bald Eagle slaps a wing over his beak, gasping. Contrail explains, sotto vocce, to Americon (and by proxy Scorn, who already knows this), "We are rehearsing for the Galvatron Day celebration. Sixshot is acting out buying some seeds for his Galvatron Victory garden, but Banshee wisely does not trust his motives." Robotic Bald Eagle goes, "Oohhhhhhhh." A pause. "Okay, so, then, Sixshot should just shoot her and take the goods! For Galvatron! And America." Scorn rolls her optics a little as she watches the spectacle drag on a little, lips pursing in thought before she finally cups her hands around her mouth and shouts up to the stage. "C'mon, just shoot each other! Galvatron loves bloodshed!" Yes, she's being interruptive. No, she's not concerned about it. Robotic Bald Eagle throws his wings up, cawing shrilly. "BLOOOOOD!" he cries. Bonecrusher stands. "AND SCENE!" He bursts into applause, encouraging the others to do the same. "I DUG IT! AMAZING! TAKE A BOW!" A Seeker runs up to Boencrusher. He punches him. THe Seeker recovers, and whispers to the Constructicon, who nods. "Banshee, Executrix Fusillade has summoned you, yeeeeah! SO GIT!" He claps some more. "Sixshot, well done! I especially liked when you wanted those seeds REAL BAD! Take a seat! Scorn! Contrail! And...Americon! ON STAGE!" Sixshot has had enough of the uncooperative Banshee, and the heckling audience. Deciding to do something about both, he makes a grab for the femme...and then stops, giving her the optic. Growling, he stomps off stage. Banshee is in the middle of drawing her pistol on Sixshot, then holsters it and heads off-stage too, returning to her band. "Bitte." Contrail climbs on top of the seat in front of her so that she can then jump onto the stage again from there. She stands up straight and usts herself off before assuming a parade rest stance. She looks out at the audience sharply. Are they appropriately enjoying themselves for the glory of the Empire? Robotic Bald Eagle blinks. "What me? UH..." He alights from Scorn, landing on the stage. He transforms into robot mode, looking awkward. "Well, okay. Ahem." He draws in breath... then starts this crazy flailing dance as he sings, "This is the song that never ends! Yes, it goes on and on my friend. Some people started singing it not knowing what it was, and they'll continue singing it forever just because it's the song that never ends!" Americon undergoes a patriotic transformation into his All-American robot mode! Bonecrusher stares at Americon as he sings for about four minutes, and then throws the Seeker who summoned Banshee away at him as hard as he can to silence him. "VERY CREATIVE!" He pauses. Hrm...the perfect three person scene...with Americon involved. "OK LISTEN UP! Scorn! You are a captive Decepticon with a never say die attitude! Contrail! You are an piece of crap Autobot trying to make Scorn betray the MIGHTY GALVATRON! Americon! You're a tree. GO!" About time. Eager to show off her stuff, Scorn quickly stands from her seat, wings snapping open and fluttering to lift her from the ground and over to the stage. Once on stage she takes her place, diving a devilish smile and a little wave to any who even bothered to sit in and watch the rehearsal. Americon's shrill voice has her look down at him with a little frown however, tapping the cassette on the head, "We haven't exactly got our setup yet, dear." Bonecrusher gestures artistically again. "Contrail you start!" Contrail protests, "This is type-casting just because I turn into a car!" She shakes a fist as Bonecrusher. Then she turns into a car, and she says, very glumly, "Hey. Hey Scorn. It is, I, Stupidbot! Durr hurr. Scorn, you should betray the wonderful and mighty Empire because you enjoy being weak and pathetic. Durr." Turning into a police car, Contrail fights crime! Wait, that's not right. Contrail causes crime. Americon is flattened up by a Seeker, who ultimately winds up taking more damage than him. Once Americon pulls himself out from under him, then peers up at Scorn. "What? Ohhh. Uh, okay..." He runs over to a spot near the edge of the stage, puts his legs together, puts his arms out wide, and tilts his torso to the left a bit. "I'm a tree! Suck my--" Someone honks their horn. Sixshot stands from his chair, knocking it over. "CLOWNS!" he says, still riled up. "Where is it?!?! I *hate* clowns!" he says, scanning the plaza for where the honk came from. Scorn gives Contrail a bit of the stink eye when she acts stupid during the scene. I mean sure, she's supposed to be an Autobot, but... actually no yeah, that's fine. The moment passes and Scorn finally drops into character, palm held up in rejection to Contrail, head turning away dramatically. "Never! As if I would ever join you lowly Autobots. I am a proud Decepticon, and would never betray my glorious, benevolent, and handsome leader Galvatron!" Bonecrusher glances around, also alarmed...there hasn't been a clown car alt mode on Cybertron since Razorclaw had his circus breakdown before the Ark left... He refocuses, turning his attention back to the scene. "YEEEAH! REAL GOOD! Now REALLY test her loyalty, Contrail! Also, Americon, YOU'RE KILLING IT! GIMME MORE, just LIKE THAT! And Scorn! Make me REALLY believe how much you LOVE THE EMPIRE!" Lamborghini Gallardo drives along after Scorn, despising her typecasting. "But you could have picnics with the fleshbags... er... humans! It is a wonderful waste of time that will rot your circuits... er... life-enriching experience. Yeah. Durr. Maybe I'll go protect that TREE from GLOBAL WARMING." She starts to drive up to the Americon-tree. Clownatron, a particularly terrifying Decepticon, gives Sixshot an evil, fanged grin from an exit's doorway before slowly pulling himself out of sight. Guy's frickin' creepy. "I'm a tree!" Americon screams as Contrail approaches. Assuming she stops, or even if she doesn't, Americon awkwardly hops over to her, holding the same position he had before, and begins bumping into her bumper with his shins. "You're crashing into me! You're crashing into me! You're crashing into me!" Scorn gives a faux laugh at Contrail's mention of protecting the 'tree'. "Stupid Autobot, why protect it from global warming? Global warming gives us more power resources! And to show my true deovtion to the glorious empire, I will now kill this tree to further the Earth's destruction!" Does she feel bad for what she's about to do? Maybe a little, but it's all acting, right? ...Right? either way, Scorn steps up behind Americon, reels back a leg, and gives him a hard kick to send him off into the seats. "For the Empire!!" "SCENE!" Bonecrusher shouts, leaping into applause. "I'M FRIGGIN INSPIRED!" He transforms, bulldozing through the set being constructed back onto the stage. "All right, everybody circle up! THAT WAS GREAT WORK FROM EVERYONE!" Lamborghini Gallardo ineffectually crashed into the tree, which Scorn then kicks. She hollers, "Oh no, I am crashing into the tree! Oh no, the beautiful and deadly Scorn has defeated the tree. I have to die now. Boom. I've exploded." She then transforms, makes a face, and she stomps off to form part of a circle, clearly sulking. In a transformation that is harder than it looks, Contrail rises up into robot mode. Americon promptly goes flying into the stands, crying, "I am defeated by superior Decepticon firepower and the Earth's ecology is DOOOOMED!" And there's an ear-splitting crunch as Americon's body snaps in several places. Sixshot only catches a glimpse of Clownatron, but raises a cannon to fire, only then noticing that the exit is part of the large main Galvatron tribute display. He lowers his weapon. "Damn you Clownatron...one DAY!" he says, to no one in particular. Bonecrusher stares out at Americon while everyone gathers on stage. He sighs. "The sacrifices an actor makes for the craft. It's friggin inspiring." He grabs a stage hand who got to close and starts choking him as he addresses the gathered actors. "I wanna thank everyone for their hard work today." He begins solemnly, while the Seeker's optics bulge. "You guys really pushed it to the limit, built a real tower of power together." The Seeker starts to emit energon from his eyes and mouth. "So one last exercise to close out. Each of you, please perform a monologue as Lord Galvatron, having just ripped the Matrix RIGHT OUT OF PRIME'S IDIOT CHEST!" He drops the Seeker, who crawls away quickly. Scorn beams when Bonecrusher calls the scene, literally eating up the praise as she bows dramatically. How she loved the spotlight. Though when Contrail sulks off to the circle, Scorn makes sure to step up behind the femme, grabbing her shoulders and leaning over with a grin. "Aw, now don't be like that, Contrail. I think you played a damn fine Autobot. Your portrayal was spot on. You even got their stupidity right!" She chuckles softly, giving the femme a light little pat on the cone, trying to be as friendly as she can before slipping away to her own spot. Americon drags himself onto stage which his one good arm, as the rest of his body has been mangled in every direction. "Monologue as Galvatron? Hold on, gotta set my limbs back in place..." There's a series of horrific snaps as Americon slowly but surely pops every limb back into place. Then he stands up, wobbling a bit. He reaches behind himself, pulling forth a little paper crown that looks like Galvatron's brow, and sets it on his own head. "Ahem. Ah. I, GALVATRON, a TRUE AMERICAN HERO, ripped the Matrix out of that wuss Prime's chest in an EASY fight which I won without injury!" One of his arms bends the wrong way as he thrusts it out. He gapes at the arm before throwing out his other arm to hold it up. "Ahem. Now I will sell the Matrix on EBAY for FIVE BUCKS! BWA!" Sixshot jumps to the stage, and mocks putting the Matrix around his own neck. "Nothing! Now nothing stands in my way of DOMINATING THE UNIVERSE! HUahahahahahahahahahaaaa" Sixshot says, bending back slightly in a belly laugh. "The Autobots will be powerless to stop me, the power of the Matrix pulsing within my chassis, ultimate power, IT IS NOW MINE!" He glowers, looking down at his chest. "And you will bear witness to all, Prime, for you will feel the insurgence of your Autobot troops as they join you...IN O-BLIVION!" he says, again looking upward. Contrail shrugs at Scorn and mutters, "Slagging type-casting." Then she has think about Bonecrusher's last direction for a moment and looks around nervously. Isn't imitating the Emperor possibly in bad taste? "Surely none of can even approximate the Emperor's glory..." Granted, Contrail has been, at times, a Megatron supporter, such as back during the Civil War. She knows that Decepticon leaders can come and go. It is the Empire that is eternal. She reaches back, takes one of the guns off her back and affixes it to her arm instead, and tries to get into the mindset of the Hellforged, the Dark One. She assumes the most confident posture that she can, as if she were the most dangerous being that she could conceive of. Then she looks over at Bonecrusher thoughtfully and says, "Actually, I need your help with this." That said, Contrail tries to grab Bonecrusher by the chest, and she roars, "So easily you die, little Prime! No one will remember the shadow of a dead man, but your death will serve to amuse me for a moment. You see your precious Matrix, here, as the light of light fades from your optics?" She holds out her hand as if she were casually gripping an object. "Now let me apply some... pressure. The Matrix. The so-called wisdom of the foolish ancients. SEE IT CRUSHED IN MY HAND, DUST IN THE WIND BEFORE DARKNESS TAKES YOUR SOUL." Her hand clenches into a tight fist. Then she turns to the audience, her optics alight with a manic wrath. "See the boy Prime die, his bauble broken. See my will made manifest. For I am Galvatron, the irresistible force! Nothing can stand in my way, for I am DESTRUCTION INCARNATE." Combat: Contrail sets her defense level to Fearless. Combat: Contrail strikes Bonecrusher with her Grab attack! Bonecrusher slow claps, clearly moved. "You guys." He pauses, overwhelmed. "You guys." Bonecrusher walks back to the audience, emotionally collapsing into a chair. "This play...will be glorious. The Empire will be forever greatful. Galvatron bless you all." He pauses. "Dig it." "That's all for today. See you at the show." Americon's business done, he bows, and discretely sidesteps behind Contrail before he transforms into tape mode and magnetizes himself to her lower leg, where he will likely remain for several weeks. Sixshot clambers off the stage, looking around, then heading for the Galvatron display. "That clown is space dust." he says, walking briskly toward the main display.
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