| abstract
| - The Grand Canyon state consists of terrain from the high desert plateau in the northern and eastern sections to the desert basins and jagged mountain ranges in the southern and western parts, broken only by the high, forested mountains in central Arizona. The spectacular Grand Canyon, for which the state is best known, displays its timeless beauty close to the border between Arizona and its northern neighbor, Utah. To the south are the major cities of Phoenix and Tucson, irrigation from the Colorado and Salt Rivers making them green oases in the southern desert. Floating down from the sky above, synchronized jet thrustered feet and waving arms help to stabilize the Seeker's mass as he drops down into the Grand Canyon. Large rock walls rise up from either side, a natural noise box as it were. And such, the foolish Decepticon uses it. "HELLLLLLLLOOOOOOO.." "Hellllllloooooooo.." "helllloooo.." And so the booming voice echoes, Backfire checking his chronometer. "Where are these fools? Can they not tell time?? Surely the hoomans invented clocks, yet are INCAPABLE of using them?" he grates, then checks who the participants are. A nasty scowl grows across his face. And so, the Seeker taps his foot impatiently for the meantime.. waiting for people to arrive. Folding and unfolding with the usual noise, Encore transforms into an AC130U Gunship Lars Daalgard arrives with some other UN peacekeepers, not keeping the peace tonight, just taking in some R&R. And laying bets on (and occasionally against) General Cross and that funky little drop-tank of his. AC130U Spooky II Gunship is audible a fair way before he can be seen, the drone of his engines resonating off the walls of the canyon, along with the Outlaws' version of Ghost Riders (in the sky). The two noises clash and bounce off each other to announce the big Autobot's presence as only a Suicide Jockey can. And he's flying like a Suicide Jockey, too; low and fast, actually flying -down- the canyon at the wider point. He transforms and lands beside the river, lighting up an enercigar before checking his Bofors gun, slapping in a magazine and leaning against the wall casually, looking badass. Jump Tank is air-dropped from a passing cargo plane! Ironically enough, the plane in question is a C-130. The tank plummets towards the canyon before its tires rotate 90 degrees so that their hubcaps face the ground, then the hubcaps dilate as the Jump Tank's thrusters ignite, slowing the tank down. Eventually he lands with a mild bounce behind Backfire, his tires touching the ground precisely on the very second that he's due to show up. "Sorry I'm merely on time," Cross says through the PA. "I had a discussion with First Aid and lost all track of time. Well, let's get this started, shall we?" AC130U Spooky II Gunship smirks to Franklin. "I'm almost sorry I'm gonna smash up that pretty little tank of yours, Cross." Encore transforms into his robot mode, lighting a cigar and adjusting his hat. Encore smirks to Franklin. "I'm almost sorry I'm gonna smash up that pretty little tank of yours, Cross." Jump Tank dryly remarks, "Yes, it'll be a shame to repaint it." "I care not for your POLITIKS hooman." Backfire grates towards General Cross, giving him and his mustache separate glares. To the badass suicide jockey, the Seeker merely laughs. "Holy crap, you're gonna fight turboaft? You're like fatter than the Executrix!" he gigles, stifling the chuckle to look around for the bomber. "Okay, fine. You know the drill, anything goes and no outside interference." Backfire jumps back and takes to the air with thruster boots. "May you knock eachother SENSELESS and DQ eachother, or something stupid. FIGHT!!" GAME: Backfire rolls a (78)-sided die: ROLL: Franklin Cross rolled a 66 ROLL: Encore rolled a 35 SPROING! The Jump Tank springs up into the air, getting itself some hang time as it sails towards one of the walls of the canyon. "Whatever you say, Decepticon," Cross says. "Now, let's see what you're made of, Autobot." He starts things off cautiously, peppering Encore with machine gun rounds. "I actually haven't had the chance to try this thing out in combat yet, now that it's upgraded. I'm actually glad I can do it here with less of a risk of dying. So I suppose I should thank you for that much, Encore." He lowers his voice. "You're a good *testing ground.*" Combat: Jump Tank sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Jump Tank strikes Encore with his Machine Gun (Pistol) attack! Encore doesn't make use of the Bofors gun first; he pulls out his still-fairly-big-bore sidearm. It' a conventional slug-thrower, but it's firing twenty-mil lumps of metal. Standing side-on to Cross, he levels the revolver at the jump-tank - clearly trying to quickdraw on a tank. The mounted gun goes off, shots sparking as they impact the big Autobot's chest - one of them severing the Autobot's enercigar. It doesn't stop him from taking aim and firing, though - the gun going off with an almighty boom. Combat: Encore sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Encore misses Jump Tank with his Hand-Cannon (Pistol) attack! "Wait, your tank.. jumps?" Backfire looks amazed, unknowingly fiddling with the wing General Cross stole to test a weapon on.. the Seeker successfully stealing it back (and helping the human with his upgrade unbeknowest to him) and finally vaporizing it under the new EDC weapon. "Well, that's just stupid." "Aim next time fataft, AIM!" Encore growls up at Backfire "Frag off, scrap-face. His damn tank jumps." The round whips by under his tank harmlessly! "Well, yes, we didn't call it a Jump Tank because it sounds cool," Cross replies as his tank lands on one of the walls of the Grand Canyon... and sticks there. He then proceeds to drive along said wall, and a ruby red beam fires from a secondary weapon on his turret! Officially, the laser is meant only for cutting open doors and the like, but it serves well enough for cutting open robots. Field vivisections and that sort of thing. "Here, let me light that cigar back up for you." Combat: Jump Tank sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Jump Tank misses Encore with his Laser attack! Some of the EDC men and women who hadn't seen Cross' vehicle in action before are also surprised. There's some conversation in the stands where Cpt. Daalgard has to explain in his awkward accent that when they say 'jump tank' what they mean in this case is a tank that jumps around all the time. Encore dives aside as Franklin's laser zips out, gaining speed until he's sprinting. Then he jumps, wings extending outwards and engines cranking up to speed even before the rest of the transformation sequence begins, rapidly climbing while his tail swings into place and his nosecone clicks together, bursting out of the canyon on a wall of engine noise. He's so low that a few of the EDC members might theorise that they've left hair in the seams where the panels come togther to form the AC130's underbelly. He swings around almost on a wingtip, letting fly with the Bofors gun - though it's not a full string of five rounds, they're set to detonate around him. "Don't you know, Franklin? Klingons never win." Combat: Encore sets his defense level to Aggressive. Folding and unfolding with the usual noise, Encore transforms into an AC130U Gunship Combat: AC130U Spooky II Gunship misses Jump Tank with his Bofors Cannon attack! "Have you thought about making it look like a frog? I mean, that's natural camouflague if you think about it!" Backfire rasps off, still floating in the air. "And I mean, who DOESN'T want to drive around a huge mechanical frog tank. You could make a tongue attack that whips at people!!" Then Encore's insult comes in, "Hey, fataft IMPOSTER. Just remember, you were modeled after ME. We Decepticons ruled the skies LONG before you Autobot atrocities were created." "Klingons? Well, I agree on that, but the trouble is..." Cross jinks out of the way of the fusillade, which explodes around him but not close enough to harm him. "You're the alien." Then his tank springs off of the canyon wall, uses its gyroscope to realign itself to the ground, and finally it uses its thrusters to hover directly behind Encore. "Now, since you Autobots are so keen on trying to examine my new weapon, I figure that I'd give you the opportunity to do so. First hand." And a port opens on the front of his tank, revealing a copper-lined barrel which aims at the gunship and fires a pale beam of disintegrating radiation! Combat: Jump Tank sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Jump Tank strikes AC130U Spooky II Gunship with his Cybercidic Radiation Ray attack! Jump Tank adds, "I'm not overly fond of frogs. And a frog tank would be ridiculous." AC130U Spooky II Gunship takes the hit to the tail, snarling as the armour is burnt away, causing him no small amount of aerodynamic turbulence until he can break away, looping higher and gaining speed before lettinf fly with a full string of the big 40mm slugs. As he does so, through one of the fresh new holes in his hull, Franklin might spot one of his crew holograms, flipping him the bird. "Ow... yeah that's quite nasty, I'll give you that. I prefer the more old-fahioned approach though." Combat: AC130U Spooky II Gunship sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: AC130U Spooky II Gunship strikes Jump Tank with his Bofors Cannon attack! Combat: You took 13 damage. Backfire says, "Your FACE is rediculous." Backfire says, "HA!" (New BB message (7/26) posted to 'Suggestions' by Backfire: Re: Re: RE: RE.. re) Jump Tank left himself too vulnerable too attack by remaining stationary, however, and pays for it by taking a series of slugs to his frontal armor! While the armor holds, enormous impacts show on the hull. There's even a crack on his transparent steel canopy. Gritting his teeth, Cross lets his tank fall to the ground, the air whistling around him as he returns fire with his autocannon, trying to tear into Encore's weakened armor. "Old-fashioned it is!" he says. Combat: Jump Tank sets his defense level to Neutral. Combat: Jump Tank strikes AC130U Spooky II Gunship with his 20mm HE Autocannon attack! Combat: Used up 1 Autocannon Ammo. 5 remain. AC130U Spooky II Gunship gets peppered quite extensively by the hail of smaller-callibre shells, their lack of individual punch making up for it in the sheer number of little holes left in his hull. He follows after Cross, transforming and dropping like a rock. He tucks up his arms and wings, letting mass an air resistance speed him towards Franklin's tank. Once there, he tries go latch onto the jump-tank - where, he hopes, the majority of the weapons will be rendered ineffective... and he can use it as a cushion on landing. Encore transforms into his robot mode, lighting a cigar and adjusting his hat. Combat: Encore strikes Jump Tank with his Ram attack! Combat: You took 5 damage. Encore says, "Thought your tank looked so pretty I'd see if I could have a ride." Giving up on the combat banter and rhetoric, Backfire zips over towards Lars and the other EDC troops gathered for the fight. "Okay, I got six credits on Cross.. seven on his stache. Any takers??" As it turns out, the Jump Tank is very springy and makes an excellent cushion! For a robot, anyway. Cross is rattled around inside his tank as Encore lands on him, and he glowers up at the Autobot's chest pressing his tank into the ground. "Interesting strategy. But I designed this tank taking into account the possibility that you robots would try to move into close combat with it." And his thrusters flare brilliantly under Encore, and if the Suicide Jockey isn't careful he'll find himself flipped up and over onto his back! Combat: Jump Tank sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Jump Tank strikes Encore with his Flip (Smash) attack! Combat: You took 3 damage from that attack. Encore gets caught by the flare and launched back a bit, the big Autobot slamming down on his feet about ten feet away. "Not bad." He admits with a smirk. "Knew you fleshbags had it in you. See that's what I admire about you human. You're small, squishy, short-lived... but you're adaptable little buggers." He laughs. And as he's talking, he's firing that Bofors gun again, as a rifle this time and from the hip as he jogs to one side, aiming to get himself behind a large rock before that damn jump-tank can pull -another- surprise on him. Combat: Encore sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Encore misses Jump Tank with his Bofors Rifle attack! [Pulled -2] Jump Tank grins to himself inside his tank where it's hard to see him do it, watching Encore think himself safe behind the rock. "Oh, we are adaptable. *More* adaptable." Swerving around the rifle shells, which explode to either side of him, he simply accelerates right at the rock Encore is hiding behind. A drill pops out of the front of his tank, and bores right through the rock and--hopefully--into one of Encore's legs! Combat: Jump Tank strikes Encore with his Drill attack! [Pulled -2] Encore ducks back behind the rock to slap a fresh stripper clip of 40mm shells into his gun, and it's perhaps the fact that he's got his back pressed against the boulder that lets him down; the nose of the drill bore into his shoulder joint just a shade before he can pull free, leaping up over the rock to make use of his brawler's strength. While the nose of the tank is -hopefully- stuck in the boulder, he slams a huge fist into the top of it, trying to crack the canopy further! "Not gonna save you from an ass-kickin', Cross. Whichever one of us wins this one you're still gonna look like hell.." Combat: Encore sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Encore misses Jump Tank with his Punch attack! Jump Tank is not stuck, it turns out, reversing itself as it pulls itself free. "I may have to take a hammer to this tank for a few hours, get the dings out," Cross says dryly. He's feeling pretty confident right now. Encore's taken some pretty nasty damage, he got hit by the disintegrator, and his diagnostic shows that only his armor has taken any damage. Time to finish this, he thinks. And, so, unbeknownst to Encore, a scanner analyzes the Autobot, and his onboard AI analyzes the data, searching for weaknesses. Combat: Franklin Cross analyzes Encore for weaknesses. Encore slams down hard just in front of the reversing drill-tank, dropping to one knee. He swings up the bofors gun, braces it against his shoulder and takes careful aim. If he weren't huge, metal and covered in kibbly bits from his altmode, he'd look like a trained EDC Marine preparing for a firing drill as he rests his cheek on the stock and sights down the barrel, squeezing the trigger to send the entire stack of shells in the breech down at Cross. The Autobot seems aware he's slightly outclassed but determined to go down the Suicide ockey way - firing the whole way, determined to give as close to what he's getting as he can. "It ain't a fight if you don't at least have to spend a couple hours gettin the metalwork done." Combat: Encore misses Jump Tank with his Bofors Drill attack! [Pulled -1] Encore never /was/ that good a shot... SPROING! The tank bounds away from the storm of rounds, landing a few meters away next to the river. "In your case, a LOT of metalwork." The back hatch opens on his tank, revealing a pair of missiles! One of them fires off, quickly aligns itself at Encore, and flies straight at a vulnerability revealed by the tank's AI! Meanwhile, an Army General, who sounds an awful lot like Keith David, approaches Backfire. "Ten thousand on Cross. That man does what it takes to win. Believe me, I know." Combat: Jump Tank sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Jump Tank strikes Encore with his Image Recognition Missile attack! Combat: Removing analysis data for Encore. Combat: Used up 1 Guided Missile. 1 remain. Encore yelps as the missile goes straight into one of the holes made by the disintegrator ray, blasting out one of the massive hydraulic pumps that powers the big autobot's muscles. He's blasted sideways by the attack and lands hard, almost going over the edge of the canyon. He hauls himself to his feet, wiping energon from his mouth with the back of his hand, and staring at it a moment. He gives Cross a nod of respect. "Not bad." He comments. "Now I'm gonna make -you- bleed." Dropping his shoulder he picks up a largish boulder, about the size of a mailbox and roughly egg-shaped. He puts one hand on the ground a moment. "Left five. Right five!" He announces, charging forward with the boulder tucked under one arm, aiming to slam his shoulder into the front of Cross' tank! Combat: Encore strikes Jump Tank with his Fife-five HUT! (Ram) attack! Combat: You took 7 damage. Combat: Encore's attack has damaged your Accuracy! "No, no one? Drat." Backfire replies when the EDC troops sort of draw back and ignore him. "Geeeeeeez, you guys haven't laid eachother out yet? What a bunch of lame-o's!" Jump Tank makes a face as Encore does the whole football routine before charging at him. "Oh, you've got to be... but fine, have at it, Autobot!" He guns his engines, driving right at Encore, drill extended. The impact is rough, jarring Cross inside his tank, but he hopes that he at least managed to stick the drill into the Autobot's gut in the process. Meanwhile, Not-Keith David taps his foot as he stares up at Backfire. Combat: Jump Tank strikes Encore with his Drill attack! Combat: You are running low on energon! Encore slams into the tank like a charging train. He's got the weight advantage, so it should at least shake Cross around some in the cockpit... but with that drill out, it busts him up pretty good. The drill doesn't sink into his gut but it does bite deep into his left leg, the big Autobot rolling over the jump-tank before slamming down hard. He looks down at the gauge in his leg, which now isn't responding, and pulls himself up into a seated position against a handy boulder. He sets down his 'football' and then pulls out an enercigar, taking a deep pull and chuckling as it wafts out of his chest in places. "I'd say you got me, Cross." Encore mutters sourly to himself. "That move never works without Fanny anyway." In the aftermath, the tank is flipped end over end, but manages to land on its tires anyway when its gyroscope works its magic. Eventually the cockpit of the tank pops open and Cross stands up, wiping some blood from under his nose. "I suppose I did. But now, hopefully, you can see the value in our new weapons program. The critics said that you can't fight a Transformer without an exo-suit, but... well, I think I proved them wrong." He seems a little too satisfied at that. "But you did well enough, Encore. My tank will need more than a good hammer to fix. I think you need a spotter, though. A gunship on its own isn't much good, and at worst poses a risk of friendly fire." Encore sniffs a little. "Y'might be right there, but the problem is, I got frozen in a hell of a state - nearly offlined myself brewing up some enershine. I'm not quite back to the top-of-the-line as y'might say. Only runnin' my forty and a basic one-thirty-four right now, I'm still getting up to spec. Next on the shopping list is a twenty-five, one of those old Equalizer cannons and some new fire-control gear." He grins. "Maybe we can help eachother, Cross." Attention pulled back to the fight, Backfire thrusts back towards them and lands with a PLINK on two feet. "Hey, why'd you two losers stop? Less talky, more shooty!" the simpleton Seeker grates out.. giving both a look. "Oh, don't tell me one of you is giving up?" Encore waves a hand with a laugh and a cough "Yeah I am. Busted up too much, can't stand. Jump Tank raises a brow at the Autobot. "Help each other? What do you have that I might want? I'm already in possession of some of the world's most advanced technologies. What can you offer me?" Then the Decepticon approaches and suddenly bartering got a bit more awkward. "Yes. He did. That won't be a problem, will it, Decepticon?" Franklin Cross hops out of his jump tank! Franklin Cross did that, not the tank. Encore smirks to Cross. "Let's just say you're not considering the less-lethal option available. Give me a buzz when you got time to talk a bit of turkey." "This is.. what? You can't give up?? Then everything I said about you is true??? UGH, why did I even waste my VALUABLE time here!!!" Backfire throws a mini-tantrum, stomping his feet. Franklin Cross blinks at Backfire. "Everything you... said about me? I don't... never mind. Right, right, I'll contact you again later, Encore. I've got to be heading back now." Crawling back inside his tank, Cross begins to drive off. Eventually the C-130 that brought him here begins flying low, and the Jump Tank bounds after it, hovering onto its lowered ramp and driving inside. Encore looks over at Backfire. "Well if you'd watched the fight you'd probably have enjoyed it. They sure did." He points over at the crowd of soldiers. "Look like they 'ad almost as much fun as I did." He then throws a schoolboy grin at Cross the retreating. "Toldja I'd make ya bleed." Encore looks over at Backfire. "Well if you'd watched the fight you'd probably have enjoyed it. They sure did." He points over at the crowd of soldiers. "Look like they 'ad almost as much fun as I did." He then throws a schoolboy grin at Cross' back. "Toldja I'd make ya bleed." Then he leans back to enjoy his cigar. Pickup can wait. "You guys are so lame, throwing in the towel so easily. WARRIORS fight until deactivation, you strutless coward." Backfire spits out, then takes to the skies and leaves. =============================== 2033 Olympics ================================ Message: 37/25 Posted Author MW FC: Enc vs Cross Mon Aug 20 Backfire ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Encore and Cross tussle, with the AC-130 eventually throwing in the towel.. allowing that mustached human the victory and advancement in the brackets! ==============================================================================
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