| abstract
| - The Swordfish - Coliseum This massive, circular room serves as the central arena for the Swordfish, allowing it to host numerous games and events. Like the rest of the ship, this area is made of a white substance that /looks/ more like stone than metal, although whatever it is, it seems to serve well enough to hold the ship together. The richly carved stadium is lined with row upon row of standard seating, with several more luxurious balconies for the wealthier passengers. The stadium floor is sunken, and can be flooded for naval battles, or re-arranged to serve other purposes. Frequently, pit traps, nets, trip-wires and lasers provide additional challenge to any warriors or racers in the competition area below. Sharpshooting competition. Since the 2031 event he ran was one of the most watched of years past, they've unfortuantely asked him to do so once again. Currently he's making minor adjustments to the Backfire spinny heads with hypno eyes he had last time. Others are coming and going, events of all kinds being set up and taken down. Hinder shuffles along exploring the arena. She arrived late, probably because she was off exploring or sleeping somewhere. Scorn has had a wonderful time with the Olypmics so far. So many people to seduce! So many to pilfur! And so much food! It truely is a heaven for mantis. But for now she seems to tag along with Backfire as he does all the work, having grown somewhat curious of the mech since she and a few others saved his life. "So.. Exactly what does a partner do? ..At least in your case?" The femme muses while fluttering a foot or two from the ground behind him, idley taking a bite of her turborat on a stick now and then. "Do my bidding!" Backfire answers, wringing a fist. "Or suffer my wrath!" Long pause. "No, that's not right. Umm, I'm not sure. When I was Astrotrain's partner.. he just ignored me. Heh. It was our thing, you know? He'd all act like he didn't know what I was talking about." Backfire replies, unfortunately Astrotrain didn't know what Backfire was talking about. "Then yeah, my last aid took over my head and walked me around like stilts." Backfire admits, fine tuning the pop up mechanism on the display for the contest. "Wait, you're not going to take over my head.. ARE YOU??" Hinder hears voices ahead and, following the mandates of curiosity, she shuffles toward them. Peering up at Scorn and Backfire, she watches them talk as Backfire does ... some kind of maintenance to those odd effigies of himself. Scorn finally lands, finishing off the last of her snack, including the stick, and looking over whatever he's working on in a semi-curious manner. His question has her antennas twitch however, the mech gaining a smile from her from over her shoulder, replying with a soft laugh and a dismissing wave of her hand. "Take your head? Ha! What do you take me for, Backfire? I mean, sure, I'll likely claim it during your last moments, but I'm sure that'll be a loong time from now." Standing upright the femme leans in, elbow resting on Backfire's shoulder as a sharp finger playfully taps him on the chin. "And don't worry about being ignored. I always need some help, and you seem the perfect mech to get the job done." Foxfire skulks about, slinking through the crowds and making his way over to where Backfire is...being Backfire. He comes to a stop some yards away, watching the Seeker with perked ears, but then he notices his Hinder, and a mischievous idea comes to mind. He scurries over, doubting that she will notice him among the various Olympic-goers. Once he's close enough...he lunges! "Super Cute Vulpine Pounce Attack!" Combat: Foxfire misses Hinder with his Pounce (Grab) attack! Hinder YIPES in surprise at Foxfire pouncing in her direction and scrambles to get away from the cassettebot. Sadly, her 'full run' is laughably slow. "Wait a second!" Backfire stammers, getting up to his feet. "You're playing my second fiddle, while I play my first fiddle. Or is it you play the third fiddle? GAH!" he tantrums, throwing the mechanism to the ground. "Just remember I gave YOU ceremonius Seeker wings and cone! Not the other way around." "Because that would just be silly! I already have wings, and Ramjet made me a special DOONCE CONE!" he smiles. Then Foxfire is pouncing and stuff, which draws the Seeker's attention. "You shall not sully the Ferriticon on my watch you foul FOX!" Combat: Backfire sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Backfire strikes Foxfire with his SNATCH! (Grab) attack! Foxfire misses Hinder! But he lands on his feet, at least. He watches as she scrambles away, but his attention is quickly drawn to Backfire. He doesn't have an opportunity to escape before the Seeker snatches him! "ACK!" Scorn rather quickly looses that tempting smile when Backfire surprisingly sees through her ruse. He must be smarter than she thought. Well, slightly. "Oh really now. Well, Backfire, I could always just take back my offer to be your partner. No big deal, I'm sure you understand." She sniffs casually, giving her fingers a brief look-over before he sprints off to attack Foxfire. Watching the mech run off, Scorn grumbles softly and pulls another turborat on a stick from subspace, biting hard into it. Hefting a Foxfire in his hands, "Withdraw your offer? NO WAY!" he remarks, dropping the turbofox and stomping back up to Scorn. "You cannot do that Insectress, to do so would mean you're a LIAR!" "None of us want to be liars, not even those Autobottoms. I GUESS we can be on equal footing." Hinder stops when she realizes the foxbot isn't chasing her and turns to watch Backfire drop her supposed attacker back to the floor. She skitters after the mech, figuring he'll prevent any further pounce attempts. Scorn gains a sharp grin when he returns and agrees to be equal, the Insecticon reaching out to pinch his cheek affectionately. "Ah, you're such a smart mech, Backfire. I knew you'd see reason." Eventually she retracts her hand, waving the half eaten snack on a stick with her other as she takes a few steps around, speaking while doing so. "And besides, it'd benefit both of us if we treated each other equally. What's the term... I'll scratch you back if you scratch mine." Foxfire falls to the floor after Backfire loses interest and releases him, landing on his backside with a metallic thud. He idly paws at an ear as he sits there, flashing a sheepish grin at Hinder. "Yes, yes.. just remember though. I fly, therefore I'm AIR PARTNER and you're BUG PARTNER. They'll be our secret codenames, obviously fooling everyone as we kill them to DEATH!" Backfire cackles madly, staring at Scorn oddly after her last statement. "Oh, okay then." he shrugs, moving to scratch her back. Hinder peers at Foxfire from around one of Backfire's ankles. Foxfire lifts a forepaw to wave at Hinder. "Woah, are we having a back scratch party?" Everyone's favorite one-eyed Transformer (no, not Shockwave, that guy sucks) appears out of whatever convieniently placed shadow he was standing in and saunters up to the Decepticons on those crazy ski feet of his. "I don't like to brag, but I was top back scratcher back in college." Whirl reaches out with his creepy pincher hand and drags it along Backfire's back. "Mmm, this really takes me back." Whirl is scratching Backfire, who is scratching Scorn. Surely nothing good can come of this. Surely. Scorn isn't exactly fond of others being behind her, so his sudden movement behind her has the femme stiffening a little while wings snap open to show their swirl patterned threat display before giving a brief, mad buzz in his face to shoo him away. "Ergh.. No no, it's a figure of speech." The femme quickly snaps around and takes a step away from Backfire, only pausing when she hears Whirl and sees him emerge from the shadows to rack his claw hand across Backfire's back. Ugh. One of the crazier Autobots. "Uguuuuuuuu, your claws feel so good Razorclaw." Backfire chortles, his back tingling with a sudden spasm. Sniffing the air, "Wait, it smells like.." whirling around (haha) the Seeker looks startled and sickened, all at the same time. "An Autobottom loser!" he finishes with a sneer, giving Whirl a nastyface. Whirl looks startled, well atleast as startled as someone with no face or accompanying facial expressions can. "An Autobottom loser? Where!?" He whips his head around, looking around the room in an almost frantic fashion before finally returning his unblinking, cyclopean gaze to Backfire. "Oh! Ohhhhh... I get it. You're referring to me, aren't you? Haha, that was a good one but may I make a suggestion? Autobutt is much better, roll off the tongue easier." "You don't have a tongue, Autobutt!" Backfire roars. Long pause. "You're right, it does roll off the tongue easier." Foxfire stares at the larger mechs, flicking his ears. Bipeds are so odd. "Hahaha! See what I mean?" Whirl reaches out to give Backfire a hearty slap on the back with his clunky null-ray module hand. "Make sure to tell your friends." Scorn pinches the bridge between her optics, able to feel a processor-ache slowly starting to come on now that the two were talking. "How about idiot? I think idiot rolls off /much/ better." She snorts softly, poison yellow gaze narrowing slightly at Whirl. "What exactly are you doing here, Whirl?" Hinder startles when Whirl suddenly approaches, then sidles clear of so many big feet all in a limited area. And, she unintentionally ends up within Foxbot pouncing distance again. "Fri-ends?" Backfire repeats the word, as if it's alien in nature. Scratching his headplate, he thinks for a moment.. then loses his train of thought. Well, in truth. The train of thought never departed the station. "WAIT! Are you here trying to scout information for our match?" he accuses. Foxfire decides to take the opportunity. He stands and watches Hinder momentarily, and then attempts to pounce on her again. "Got'cha!" Combat: Foxfire strikes Hinder with his Pounce (Grab) attack! Hinder yipes again as she's pounced on successfully this time, but then she hisses, rolls onto her back, and kicks at Foxfire with her back feet. Whirl practically pushes Backfire out of the way as soon as Scorn acknowledges his existence. "What exactly are /you/ doing here?" he repeats, stepping uncomfortably close to the Insecticon and tilting his head. "See? Not so fun when someone comes in and starts asking silly questions like that, is it?" He looks back over to the accusing seeker and feigns offense. "How can you even say that? That would be cheating! I would neeevvveerr cheat!" Foxfire gets hit in the jaw and promptly backs off, letting Hinder up. "Sorry!" he blurts. "You're just so...*pounceable*!" Yes, that's now a word. "Never?" Backfire cocks his head to the side, "I mean, come on. That's half the fun. Plus aren't you one of those Wreckers??" Backfire retakes his seat on the bench, eyeing the two cassettes wrestling around in their pounce/snuggle match. He casually tosses some spare bolts at the pair, "I can't WAIT to punchisize your face. I'm gonna hit you so hard, I'll split that one optic in two!" he laughs. "Then I'll break one of them, just to be MEAN!" Combat: Backfire strikes Foxfire with his SPARE BOLT TOSS Area attack! [Pulled -2] Combat: Backfire strikes Hinder with his SPARE BOLT TOSS Area attack! [Pulled -2] Hinder quickly rolls back to her feet and yips in surprise as a bolt pegs her on the side. She hop/hiss/skitters a few feet away from Foxfire. "No, I'm NOT." Scorn is oh so tempted to launch a wad of acid in that looming optic when Whirl suddenly gets all up in her personal small. "Don't tempt me to break that treaty, Autobot." She hisses softly, lower jaw spliting open just a bit to give a threatening snap to the opening air in warning. But thankfully he moves off again, Scorn snorting and finishing off the other half of the turborat snack. And then Backfire goes into his only threats, only making Scorn roll her optics. Foxfire yelps as one of the bolts hits him. He glares at Backfire, then says to Hinder, "Are too!" "Am not!" Hinder hisses at Foxfire, her back arched as if ready to run. "Are too!" Foxfire counters again. "Are too are too are too!" Scorn's threatening display may be intimidating to some other Autobots, but Whirl is kind of a special (and I do mean special) case. "Oohhh, don't tease me," he says playfully before leaving the femme to her turborat-ona-stick and moving to sit beside Backfire on the bench. Whirl is all about invading personal space so he makes sure there's barely any room between the two of them once he settles in. "Do you really think you could do that? Punch my eye into two eyes?" The Wrecker taps his chin with his creepy claw hand, humming loudly while he thinks. "I've always wondered what it would be like to see through double optics.. " "Guys." Backfire breaks his attention from the conversation, "The ADULTS are trying to talk, stop your ENDLESS bickering now!" the Seeker demands, stomping his feet on the ground in a hissyfit. "You're both pounceable, howabout that?? In fact, LET ME SHOW YOU!" Backfire throws himself at the pair, trying to wrestle them both to the ground. Turning his head back towards Whirl and Scorn, "I could try!" he smiles. "And if it works, I'll IMMEDIATELY bust one just to torture you!!" Combat: Backfire strikes Foxfire with his ADULT SWIM.. KIDS OUT OF THE POOL! Area attack! Combat: Backfire strikes Hinder with his ADULT SWIM.. KIDS OUT OF THE POOL! Area attack! Hinder EEEKS! and tries to get slear of Backfire, but she's being flattened. The squealing is even louder and more shrill now as she honestly seriously struggles to get away. Foxfire barks in alarm as Backfire tackles him and Hinder, and like the ferret, he starts to struggle. "Get off, you big moron! I'll bite you!" "I'm not maroon you idiot!" Backfire barks, getting up and straightening his wings. Retaking his seat beside Whirl, the Seeker shoots Foxfire and Hinder a glare and an ugly squishyface. "Kids, amirite?" he nudges the Wrecker. Hinder skitters to the nearest place too small for Backfire to reach, still yelping and squealing and carrying on loudly. Drama llama! Slugfest runs in carrying a box! "Well, I guess I can't stop you from trying." Whirl crosses his arms behind his head and leans back on the bench. "It might be a little hard to do inbetween the savage beating I intend on giving you but when there's a will there's a way, right?" He just watches as Backfire body slams the cassettes like some kind of crazy person and then gets offended by an insult for all the wrong reasons. "Wait..you're not maroon?"" Foxfire doesn't even try to correct Backfire's vocabulary. He scrambles away once he's free, and whips around to glare at the Seeker. "You're no more mature than us, you jerk!" He pauses, noticing Slugfest through the crowd. "What's with the box?" he wonders idly. Slugfest toddles up to Foxfire and drops the box in front of him. "Hop in box!" Foxfire raises an optic ridge. "So...you want a fox in a box?" Slugfest says, "Yus!" Foxfire paws at the box, musing for a moment. "Well...okay." He decides to humor Slugfest, and gets into the box. Slugfest yays and starts folding up the flaps of the box and closing it! "Am so!" Backfire replies to Foxfire. "No, I am orange and brown Autobutt!" the Seeker points to his paint scheme, "If by savage beating you really mean curling up into a little ball and crying for Prime to save you.. then yes, I agree!" Slugfest may or may not have found the UPS box in Viator's locker. Foxfire blinks as Slugfest closes the box. But he's not worried; he can just torch his way out. "So," his voice emits from the cardboard prison, "what do you need a fox in a box for?" Slugfest sits on the box! "I have a fox in a box!" he says, "Me catched a fox and put him inna box and no will let him go!" Hinder finally stops carrying on and slinks quietly under the seats until she's right by Backfire's ankles. She looks toward Slugfest and the box that now contains Foxfire, then tries to BITE the rude Decepticon's ankle. Combat: Hinder strikes Backfire with her An ankle for a bodyslam (Grab) attack! Foxfire idly scratches at the box interior. "So you just wanted to keep me prisoner?" he asks. Whirl jumps right out off the bench and onto his silly looking feet, all the while looking at Backfire with his most surprised look (which isn't very surprised at all.) "How did you guess my strategy? Are you.. are you psychic?" He snaps his pincher claw together with a loud clang, almost like he was trying to snap his nonexistant fingers. "Looks like I'm going to have to make a few changes to my battle plan." Slugfest peers in through the crack of the top of the box. "I has a fox!" Foxfire thinks about this for about two seconds. "So is there any particular reason you wanted a fox?" "So can has foreveranever!" Slugfest says. He tucks his feet under him on top of the box, stegoloafed. Foxfire supposes he's popular. He remembers the time that Blueshift foxnapped him, though that was for a different reason. "It's because I'm adorable, right?" "Wait, that was your strategy too? I figured if I accused you of it, then you wouldn't think I'd do it." Backfire equally jumps up and has a surprised look on his face. "I.. don't think so. Umm, think of your favorite pasttime and I'll guess." the Seeker supposes to Whirl, to test this psychic theory. Then he's bitten in the ankle by Hinder, looking downward. "Adult talk, go play dude." Hinder turns her head to peer up at Backfire, her optics glowing brighter briefly. "Don't squish me again. Was NOT nice." Then she disappears back under the seats. Whirl and Backfire wander off, discovering just how much they actually have in common. Even if one has ski-feet and the other an empty head. Slugfest hems and haws at Foxfire's question. "Uhhhhhhhh, yeah," Slugfest says. Foxfire smirks a bit. The box is dark, but he's not bothered. "Glad to know you think I'm cute." Hinder shows up near Slugfest and his box that contains a foxbot and looks up at the steggy with her head tilted to one side. "Me got a foooox, me got a fo-ox!" Slugfest sings to himself, swishing his thagomizer as he sits atop the box! "You do realize," Foxfire says coolly, "that I can easily set this box on fire, right?" Slugfest says, "EE, no burn box! Costed lots money!" Slugfest exclaims." Foxfire frowns a bit. "Oh? Where did you get it from?" Hinder hisses briefly at Foxfire inside the box. "Um, from store that wanted lots money for box to put fox in," Slugfest says. addd Foxfire flicks his ears as he hears the hiss. "Hi, Hinder," he says casually. "And Slugfest...boxes don't cost that much." "Where us put fox in box?" Slugfest asks Hinder. Hinder says, "Why do you want a fox in a box?" "Cuz is song! Catch fox, put in box, never let him go!" Slugfest says. Hinder shuffles a full circuit around the box that contains Foxfire and supports Slugfest. "Why did you get in the box?" "Because I thought, hey, I'd like to be in a box!" Foxfire replies. There's a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Hinder hisses at the box, fully aware of sarcasm. "Not appreciated. Sincere answer requested." Foxfire sighs. "Okay, fine. I decided to humor Slugfest." Hinder ohs softly. "Thank you." Apparently satisfied, she turns to shuffle off to resume her explorations. Down the isle comes a familiar Stego, with several medals around his neck. Closer scrutiny would reveal that these medals are all similar to chocolate coins. He looks at the bots gathered, his head tilting, "What going on?" Foxfire's ears twitch as he crouches inside the cardboard box. "Hi, Snarl. I'm in a box, apparently." "Big stego! I has a fox in a box!" Slugfest says. The foxeh will likely feel the box shift as the stego gives it a nudge with his nose, "Well, me Snarl don't think box has speaker in it, so, must have foxeh in it. But, why foxeh in box? Me would think foxeh no like being in box?" "I'm humoring Slugfest!" comes Foxfire's voice. And yes, he does feel the box shift. "Box make guud pillow," Slugfest says, as he lays his head on the top of the box and blinks at Snarl.
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