| abstract
| - The ship's training room, while not as big as Autobot City's, is made with the latest in holographic simulation technology. When inactive, the training room is a large, obsidian-plated room with soft illumination that seems to eminate from no single, definable source. On the wall near the entrance blast door is a computer terminal, allowing a user with appropriate access to active and run a holographic scenario, or program a new one on the fly. A metallic placard sits above the terminal. By the shapes of the letters, the message "THESE FACILITIES ARE INTENDED FOR AUTOBOT TRAINING EXERCISES. ALL UNAUTHORIZED RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY, INCLUDING SO-CALLED 'ROLE-PLAY', IS FORBIDDEN," can still be read. However, for some reason it's been covered over in black magic marker of some sort. External ship broadcasts for this room are ON Type +shiphelp for help Contents: Decibel Jayson Redfield Rodimus Prime Mr. Drone Obvious exits: This is a training room. Check out +help Training_Rooms for special commands. Goldbug has arrived. Rodimus Prime is in the training room, pacing back and forth. The environmental program is already running, and the inside of the training room has the appearance of a cavern with two exits. Near one, an advanced, Cybertronian design terminal sits atop a small podium of sorts. The cavern itself, while large, is craggy, filled with any number of cracks, crevices, boulders, stalactites and stalagmites, and even some lichen and underground fungii of sorts. There could also be animals of some sort about, but it's hard to tell. Jayson Redfield really, *really* doesn't like being in space. But he's bored enough to visit the Pax and see what's up with the onboard Autobots. And, of course, when the call for a training session went out, he figured it would be fun to take part. So, ignoring the fact that he's not on Earth at this time, he bounds into the training room, taking in his surroundings, and over to Rodimus. "Hi, Prime!" Decibel arrives soon after receiving the call to report to the training area. While not off duty he has little doubt that he can continue to see to his normal tasks while checking out what was going on. Stepping out of the arch into a cavern he pauses to catch his bearing before proceeding. With a wave to Rodimus Prime and Jayson he heads that way. Apocryphacius really hates these cross-faction training sessions, but he would never admit it unless really pressed. He doesn't really look happy, though. The Quintesson enters the training room and... finds himself in a cavern? Are they doing caving training today? He peers around, rotating where he floats. "Um. Rodimus?" So asks Goldbug as he hurries into the training room. He pauses for a moment as he looks the place over- giving a: "Holograms. Huh." before he turns his attention back to the Autobot leader. "Not to interrupt the training session, but I think I've found something you might be interested in- it's about those artifacts the other Autobots found?" Rodimus Prime's optics flash brightly as Goldbug steps in and makes his announcement. "No, no, come in! That takes priority over this, anyway." He looks over at the others. "You don't mind holding up a moment, do you? Besides, you guys should probably hear this, too." He nods towards Jayson and Apocryphacius. "At the very least, it'll probably be a good idea if the EDC is kept up to date on this." Apocryphacius raises a pair of tentacles, as if raising a hand, and he asks, tone hazy, "'This'?" The Quintesson isn't quite sure as to what the Autobot leader is referring. He does pull out a datapad to take notes, however. Jayson Redfield moves to stand beside Apo. He stands in silence, arms folded and a curious expression on his face. Groove arrives from the Orion Pax - Corridor - Aft. Groove has arrived. Decibel takes a moment to wait to see if any others arrive before moving a step closer. He seems less interested than one would think given the comments made by Goldbug, at least outwardly. Waiting for the information to be delivered he crosses his arms. Groove strolls quietly into the training room, He doesn't look too happy, A training room? Training for what? Combat and violance isn't worth training, Talking and defence... Thats what really should be practiced. He nods towards everyone in the room and slowly walks to the far wall and waits to see whats happening. Ultra Magnus has arrived. Goldbug ahs, and nods eagerly as he looks up at Rodimus. "Alright. Hopefully, this won't take TOO long- you guys can get back to your scheduled training whenever." he glances around at the holo-cave, and then hmms. "Anyway, I happened to be digging through the archives- and I found a few passing references to these 'lenses.' Turns out, they're a weapon...a PSYCHIC weapon- they're designed to focus the residual psychic energy of sentient creatures for various effects. But, uh- you guys had figured that out already, right?" Sky Lynx has arrived. Rodimus Prime leans against the Cybertronian pedestal that sits near one of the exits of the cave - the opposite exit from the one which the holo-program is designed to allow newcomers to arrive through, it may be noted. "Wasn't sure about the 'psychic energy' bit, but it does fit with what we've figured out so far, yeah." Apocryphacius is hovering near the exit of the training room, holding a datapad, apparently ready to take notes. He writes as Goldbug speaks, and he pauses to stare or, more accurately, glare. Oh sure, he totally had that figured out. He's never seen any of the data that the Autobots have gathered on these things, let along the things themselves. The Quintesson says neutrally, "The Autobots have not been particularly forthcoming, so I cannot say as to their progress." Decibel listens with arms crossed as Goldbug informs the gathered group on his new information. "Well that does explain some of what we saw happening. Mmm psychic energy, not really an area we get to deal with much. Might be time to bring Brainstorm in on this in a larger capacity. Though that's not really my call, just a suggestion." Decibel gets quiet agin wondering if the Decepticons have discovered this fact yet, they do have the edge in the area of mental manipulation after all. "I'll have the files forwarded to you, Apoc," Rodimus answers, a faint frown painting his expression. "The summaries have gone up in public reports, though." Jayson Redfield is standing beside Apocryphacius. He listens to Goldbug in clear interest, though he doesn't say anything on the matter. Groove has disconnected. Whirl has arrived. A soft tremor can be felt every now, vibrating ever so slightly from the reinforced floor plating of the Orion Pax's training room. Can it be that something is approaching? The answer to that is revealed shortly as the Orion Pax's training room slides open, and a massive red, white, and blue Autobot shifts its way inside... just barely. "I'm telling you, Magnus, the longer we wait on Mexico, the worst it's going to be for the lot of us in the long run." It looks like Sky Lynx is still in the middle of a conversation with the city commander while they're on their way here, but it pauses briefly as the Autobot lieutenant commander shifts his gaze towards the occupants within the room and let's out low chuckle, although there's some signs of irritation underneath it, "I say, this is all we've got in here? Why I hope this isn't a training session for the us higher echelons now." Goldbug nods. "Good. In addition to THAT, however- I've found some...vauge references to the race that might have made the lenses in the first place. There's not that much to go on, I'm afraid- they initially built themselves a small empire somewhere in the galactic core- but before they could expand too much, their race became divided in a large civil war...sound familliar?" he asks, a sardonic lilt in his voice. "And I agree, but we -must- practice caution before preceeding in with guns blazing!" Ultra Magnus counters, sauntering into the room and glancing around, the City Commander gives Rodimus Prime a slight nod. What an ... odd collection of allies they've got here, what the purpose is could be anyone's guess however. "I don't think we've fitted this room for a training session of that magnitude Sky Lynx." Apocryphacius sniffs disdainfully and mutters, as if it is a dirty word, "Abstracts." The Quintesson is near the exit of the training room and therefore far away from anything interesting in the cavern. He has a datapad out and appears to be jotting down notes. "I'm afraid that Brainstorm's off on a mission," Rodimus notes casually. The 'Has No Player' mission that every unplayed character is on, making them completely unavailable for anything useful. He looks up as Sky Lynx arrives and smirks. "Actually, Sky Lynx, this was for available personnel and bored personnel. I tend to assume that when more high-rankers show up to that sort of thing, it's just because the low rankers are too busy doing real jobs." He nods at Goldbug and rubs the back of his head. "Well, if you're talking about the idea that everyone had to get along as one group *before* they split off to start warring against their own kind, I guess it does, Goldbug. On the other hand, plenty of species fight themselves without getting to that point." As soon as the topic of discussion takes a slight turn to deal with the beings involved in creating the devices Decibel moves a few feet away and sits on a holoprojected cluster of rocks. He's not much interested in the people and their history, all to often it is the same as the other races they have met. Advances in technology leading one group to try and gather all the wealth and power leading to internal conflict, nothing new there. Resting a bit he nods to the newly arrived to be polite and waits to see where the discussion leads next. Goldbug ahems. "And, er- that's all I have so far." he says, scratching at the back of his helmet. "But be sure, I'm gonna keep you posted- if we can find the planet the lenses were built on...well, it's better we find it than the decepticons, eh?" and with that said, he tromps out. "I'll keep you posted!" Goldbug has disconnected. Apocryphacius rotates in place to watch the strange little Autobot go. After a moment of processing, he at last proclaims, "Odd," but he doesn't venture any further verbal opinions on the matter. Rodimus Prime's optics flicker in something resembling a blink as Goldbug hurries off. He snorts. "Middle of galaxy. Got it," he mutters, then turns towards the others. "All right, folks. So who's here for the training session, anyway?" Decibel shrugs a bit as Goldbug wanders off and makes a mental note to check into that fellows records. Hearing Rodimus he slowly raises a hand. "So there is a training session scheduled?" Ultra Magnus questions, walking over towards the Autobot's leader and crossing his arms. "What is the objective Prime?" "Me, I am!" Jayson calls in response to Rodimus, waving his arms. Apocryphacius admits sullenly, "I was sent for cross-training. It is a deficiency on my performance reviews." Sky Lynx steps aside, allowing room for the Throttlebot to pass through on the way out before looking back to Rodimus. The tip of his avian-like head raises upwards as the Autobot lieutenant commander lets out a hmmpf, "Bah, cold words. Sometimes one must let go of the reins and let ones' own subordinate do what needs to be done. Rest assured that productive things are always accomplished when I'm involved." Ah the friendly jabs between Autobot high command. Sky Lynx then continues on further into the room while craning his neck behind as he looks over to Ultra Magnus, "We ought to continue this at a later date, ol' chap." He then looks back to the rest of the occupants in the room and announces, "Count me in." "It's not scheduled training, Ultra Magnus," Rodimus grins. "It's just training. And the object is simple." He opens a small compartment on his forearm and removes what appears to be a purple post-it note pad, sized to Transformers. He peels off the top note and sticks it over his Autobot symbol. On it, he has drawn a rather crude Decepticon symbol that emphasizes it's 'face' like quality, one that takes on an expression that might faintly remind someone of a Homer Simpson blank stare. "Get past me." Decibel gets back to his feet as Rodimus places the sticky note on himself and explains the sessions goal. "That's it? Get past you. So what's the catch? given the group it seems far too easy a task to simply require us reach the end goal." Looking around the chamber to see if it has changed to rocks floating in lava or a zero-g enviornment he can only shake his head. Somehow he knows this can't be as easy as it sounds. Jayson Redfield looks over to Decibel. "If it was easy," he points out, "I don't think Prime would have set it up." Apocryphacius stares at Rodimus Prime. Get past Rodimus Prime wearing a badly drawn Decepticon symbol on a sticky note. Okay then. He inquires, "Are you meant to know that we are here? Stealth would have been a valuable asset." He considers the cavern layout. Is there any way to sneak past without being seen...? "Do we ALL need to get past or just some of us?" Apocryphacius's posed. Apocryphacius is full of annoying questions and continues, "Do we need to leave this cavern intact?" He could definitely blow it up. He's sure of that. "What's the catch?" Rodimus asks Decibel, then grins. He strolls over towards Sky Lynx and then removes another purple stickynote. He slaps said sticky note on Sky Lynx's forehead. Then he strolls over towards Ultra Magnus and places a sticky note over Ultra Magnus's Autobot symbol. "There's the catch." Then he turns towards them. "And the other one: you can't engage us in combat." Rodimus smirks. "But all things considered, you guys might not want to do that, anyway." The smirk falls away and he gestures at the room. "We're assuming that the Decepticons have been alerted to the fact that Autobots are on the planet, but don't know just where. This is... a sample cavern. Once the thing starts, the program will re-randomize with us back in the main cavern, and you guys in a tunnel together, one that leads directly to the cavern, though if you go back a little ways, there should be a branch. There will be more than just the two tunnels, but we'll be in front of the goal. There may even be other tunnels that let you bypass the cavern entirely. You don't all have to get through, you don't have to leave the cavern in-tact, if you search around, you may be able to find underground wildlife to set against us, and if you manage it, those *are* allowed to fight us." He then looks back at the Ultra Magnus and Sky Lynx. "Remember the possibility of bypass tunnels. That means that if you see them in a tunnel, it might not be a bad idea to try and figure out where they're heading." But of course, they can use that as a tactic to lead the 'Decepticons' away so someone else can get through! Decibel groans as the 'catch' is revealed. "I knew it sounded too easy." Looking himself over he quickly notices how much his bright white paint job stands out against the darkly lit tunnels. "Oh this should be interesting indeed." His mind already running through ideas he waits for the program to start. Ultra Magnus readdresses the troops gathered here, taking a whole new demeanor now that he's been retrofitted with a purple Decepticon stickynote. "Prepare yourselves, this shant be an easy task to undertake." he somewhat growls, trying to come off as intimidating ... but failing on soo many levels. Rodimus Prime grins. "Now, for the duration of this exercise, you may all call me... Postnotitron." Rodimus bows forward, as though introducing himself. "Any more questions before we begin?" Fear not, Ultra Magnus. Apocryphacius thinks you are terrifying. Apocryphacius also thinks Bumblebee is terrifying, but ssshhh. "...if we take the post-it notes off you, do you revert to normal form?" It was worth a try! Rodimus Prime hmms! And rubs his chin. He looks between Sky Lynx and Ultra Magnus, then says, "You know what? I'm going to go with 'yes.' Because that was a clever thought, and we're here to reward clever thinking." Sky Lynx crooks a raised optical ridge in response to the sticky note being placed across his forehead. He'd have repositioned the sticky note somewhere more fitting, but since he lacks OPPOSABLE THUMBS, the massive white Autobot silently curses his handicap and moves ahead to join team evil. "I dare say, consider yourselves lucky that this isn't a test of physical might. Although do expect an equally difficult trek in this contest of wits. Good luck, ol' chaps. I trust you'll impress us with some clever thinking." Sky Lynx reveals a toothy grin, and of course, a little spread of his metallic wings in an attempt to looking intimidating. "Well, all right," says Postnotitron. "If there are no more questions," he lifts his right hands and snaps his fingers. Suddenly, Sky Lynx, Ultra Magnus, and Rodimus Prime are alone in the cavern, which appears to have more exits than before. The others find themselves in a tunnel, but a light coming from around the bend up ahead suggests that they haven't gone far. Apocryphacius raises a tentacle up across his mouth to indicate quiet. They haven't gone far, and doubtless, the enemy can hear them from here. That would just figure. He gestures at Decibel, makes a motion like folding up a piece of paper, and then he gestures at Jayson's pockets. It works for Soundwave! Vince Larsen arrives from the Orion Pax - Corridor - Aft. Vince Larsen has arrived. Decibel pays the newly designate team evil little mind as they flex their muscles, his thoughts are elsewhere. As he considers the situation they are now in he wonders how the group shall sneak through the area with out drawing too much attention to themselves. Given that at the moment he is the weak link as far as stealth is concerned given that he is large, metal and painted in a crisp white finish while once of his companions can float and the other doesn't clank when he walks he quickly considers options. "And so it begins. So shall we stick together or split up? If we're going as a group we might be less likely to draw attention if one of you carries me, especially if we find smaller tunnels where the others can't fit." His grin is evident as Apocryphacius seems to be on the same page. Thoughts shared he transforms to a more portable mode. Shrinking down Decibel transforms into a digital media player. Sky Lynx's golden optic band glows ever so slightly as he shifts his visual range into a low ambient light setting, "You mentioned underground lifeforms earlier, Rodimus. Care to let us know what that might be, or is this going to be a surprise as well?" Apocryphacius doesn't want to split up. Splitting up is always how everyone dies in horror movies. However... with Decibel pocket-sized, Apocryphacius is now the weak link in the chain. Jayson can probably just run past the robots' feet. Really, Apycryphacius should stay back and... do distraction duty. Sigh. He squirms a bit and finally whispers, "I suggest splitting up. Jayson may be able to find a smaller tunnel than I can fit into, and a smaller tunnel also means those Postitnoticons cannot follow you if you are discovered." Jayson Redfield picks up Decibel one he's transformed and puts him in his pocket. "And since I'm so much smaller than the 'Bots, I can probably get around without being spotted." He lowers his goggles down over his eyes, a sign that he's ready for "battle" (though there won't be actual combat, but he doesn't mind). He looks around quickly for any sign of a tunnel. Back in the main cavern, Rodimus Prime is pacing, although he occasionally looks up and around. He grins at Sky Lynx. "Well, there are leeches, but unlike the ones on Charr, these ones only come in the giant sizes. We don't have to worry about our insides getting eaten out. Probably some giant spiders, because they're traditional. But otherwise?" He shrugs. "Your guess is as good as mine! iPod's speakers sound, "Well for now we could always stay together until we get an idea of where we are. I would hate to split up and find out we would have been better served staying together for a bit. Though I will admit this whole being sneaking thing isn't really where my skills lie." "Rodi...err, Postnotitron. Do you not feel this training excercise a little skewed in our favor? Or is that the point, to heavily tip the balance so the only way for them to achieve success is to cheat or think outside the box?" Ultra Magnus questions, not having come up with his own spiffy bad guy title. Apocryphacius searches the general area of the main tunnel for any small, concealed tunnels... or for any loosely-packed areas that he could dynamite open. He inquires idly, "Where DO your skills lie, Decibel? Perhaps we could use them..." "That's the point exactly, Ultra Magnus," Rodimus answers. "We've been pondering making moves on Charr, after all. You might notice that the Decepticons have done relatively little raiding for energon lately. Other things, yes, but not energon. Charr is why. The thing is, they're dug in so deep that any operations there will be skewed heavily against us." iPod's speakers chirp again, "I doubt that. I doubt that there will be much need for communications to be monitored or technical know how here. This is field work and well, I tend to avoid that." Apocryphacius suggests dourly, "Just order them to go home on a Postitnoticon frequency? Because there is a... swamp gas leak." Always blame swamp gas, in government work. He pokes at the tunnel walls with a tentacle. Hmm... "Is that so? Well, I suppose I'll just have to make bloody short work of those holographic critters and send them back to digital oblivion." Sky Lynx remarks in amusement. The Autobot lieutenant commander has been knee deep in desk work and strategic reorganization of the various pockets of Autobot resistance forces on Cybertron since he had returned from his expedition several months ago. A little light hearted exercise like this is something he can afford himself to indulge in every once in a while. Upon hearing Rodimus Prime's explanation, Sky Lynx nods approvingly, "Hmm, setting your optics on the big prize, eh? I like the sound of that. I'll set more training regimes based on Charr's environmental parameters in the coming days then." A set of clicks can be heard coming from within the massive Autobot, followed by a short mechanical hiss, as Sky Lynx seperates himself. "Time to make things interesting for these lot." The dinobird says as it walks off towards the north, while the cobalt blue Lynx lowers its golden head down towards the ground as it begins tracking. There's a loud snap and hissing sound as the locking mechanisms that holds the combined form of Sky Lynx together rapidly disengages. Soon the large Dino-bird takes into the air as it seperates itself from the giant cobalt blue Lynx beneath. Dino-Bird steps into the turbolift and down into the transport compartment. Dino-Bird has arrived. Sky Lynx drops Dino-Bird . Jayson Redfield peers toward the main entrance. "Don't see any of there," he remarks. He turns around and starts farther into the tunnel, and then he calls out, "Hey, I found one! It looks big enough for you and me to go through, Apo." iPod remains quiet as he's carried along in search of tunnels that better fit their need. When one is discovered he only hopes that it takes them where they need to go. Rodimus Prime brightens and grins. "Great idea, Lynx." Then he watches as the shuttle-bird splits. "Uhm, the training thing, although splitting up is a good one, too." He looks towards the tunnels and hmmms. "Been kind of quiet. Guess they went exploring." Ultra Magnus nods, then transforms into his slightly smaller mode ... taking care to take off the Decepticon stickynote first and reapply after reconfiguring. "Sounds like a very informative excercise Prime, let's make a show of this. Do you have any knowledge of these caverns, or is it completely randomized?" The extra kibble dissapears, reavealing Ultra Magnus' real robot mode AKA White Optimus Prime Doppelganger mode! Apocryphacius whispers, "I am capable of producing exceptionally annoying sonic shrieks. I can also do demolitions. These strikes me as perhaps abilities relevant to distracting enemies... oh. Wildlife!" He pauses and pulls out his datapad to write down notes on the lizards. Jayson Redfield moves through the side tunnel but comes to a stop upon seeing the creatures, which are mostly reptilian but they remind him more of the old idea of what dinosaurs looked like. "They remind me of the original representation of Velociraptors," he remarks. "Hope they're not as aggressive!" When one snarls at him, he sighs. "Guess they are. Welcome to Jurassic Park." Rodimus Prime shakes his head. "I've got a vague idea, but only what I already described to you guys." He gives a crooked grin. "The basis for that is that I figure, although the Decepticons probably have Charr mapped, the folks who only get stationed there part time wouldn't generally know every in and out." iPod scans as best he can in his current mode and position as they proceed. "Well those both sound like they might come in handy Apocryphacius. The rules did state we can't attack them, but bringing down the tunnel to seal them in or at least away from us is still an option." As lizards are mentioned he comments, "Well if they are aggressive, maybe we can spook them into going after the others. They did say that was allowed." Jayson is right about them being aggressive, and now that they've noticed the Quintesson and the human, two of the creatures approach, snarling. The others, oddly, start to move back, further into the tunnel and around a bend. Meanwhile, back in the cavern... Rodimus Prime, or Postnotitron, leans against the wall, arms crossed. He cocks his head. By this point, there is some shuffling that even he can hear, but because of the acoustics of the tunnels, he can't make out where it's coming from. He strains his ears for a moment, anyway, then shrugs and looks at the others. "So, either of you had much chance to talk to the new guys?" Apocryphacius grabs a rock and throws it down the tunnel, hoping that the lizards will follow the rock. He suggests in a droll tone of voice, "Play fetch." "New guys?" Ultra Magnus chirps up, turning his attention back towards Prime. "Oh, Goldbug and Dealer. I had limited dealings with the Autobot Dealer in my trip to the past, he seems a reliable type who's happy to please his superiors. Primus knows it wasn't easy to keep Sentinel complacent. Goldbug on the other hand, I have not had the pleasure of knowing." iPod says, "Fetch?" Decibel can think of little else to say when the snarling duo approach and are tossed a rock. Who knows maybe they are stupid lizards and will find the game entertaining, Sludge would after all. "Umm good thinking." "Good plan," Jayson comments, though it's hard to tell whether he's being sarcastic. Nonetheless, he picks up a boulder that's as large as he can possibly lift, and throws it. "Fetch, you overgrown lizards!" Lynx continues forward, with its head near the ground as it puts its little known tracking skills to use. Sadly, he's completely oblivious to the fact that while the dinobird that walked ahead has a post it note attached to its forehead, his other half is missing one himself. Meanwhile, the dinobird finds itself in a peculiar position. Not used to travelling on the ground, the giant avian-like mechanical being stalks his way back to Rodimus Prime and Ultra Magnus, "Those two? I've only seen that Goldbug fellow the first time just now. What's your take on those two?" As it turns out, one of the lizards *does* snap at the rock, mostly out of instinct. However, he doesn't chase it. The rock Jayson throws hits the other lizard, causing it to hiss in pain and stumble back. If the object was to annoy the creatures, it's succeeded! Maybe you can make them chase you? "The past?" Rodimus asks in surprise, his optics brightening for a moment. "Wow, he *is* old, then! And yeah, that was my first meeting with Goldbug, too. Which is strange. I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something a little... familiar about him." Then he shrugs. "Eh, maybe I've just met someone with his mold and forgotten about it." iPod sighs as the rocks seem to do little but annoy the creatures. Even from his secure position he can detect that. Slowly he amps up his speakers releasing a shrill high-pitched tone that is well outside the range of human hearing and is better suited to a dogs. Just a quick three tone pulse is projected in an attempt to force the lizards down the tunnel the other way. iPod quickly adds in a more audible tone, "If this doesn't work I suggest you run." Just in case he just rang the dinner bell. It works. The creatures go running down the tunnel, hissing. Jayson Redfield backs up, away from the reptilian creatures. "Gee, never would've thought of that," he mutters, this time clear on the sarcasm. He blinks as the lizards start running. "Well, wha'd'ya know." Apocryphacius points out, "If the creatures run out into the main cavern, the Postitnoticons will assume that we spooked the creatures out and may assume that we are coming thereafter, thus... let us find another tunnel branch!" He starts looking. There are no other readily apparent tunnels. Meanwhile, the lizards do, indeed, come running out into the main cavern from one of the side tunnels! Jayson Redfield taps on a wall. "Maybe there's a hidden passage," he suggests hopefully. He shrugs. "It's possible." There are no hidden passages. Also, the d100 likes Rodimus. Apocryphacius pulls out some explosives, and he suggests, "Decibel, use your auditory powers to find where the rock is thin. I will /make/ us a new tunnel." iPod starts pinging the wall as asked, the results being displayed on screen. "That spot looks good, least compared to the other sections. I just hope the rest of the area isn't going to come down." Rodimus Prime straightens and pushes away from the cavern side he had been leaning against when the lizards come running into it. They're hissing in pain and anger, and ready to attack the first thing they see... which happens to be Rodimus Prime for one of them! Combat: Rodimus Prime strikes himself with his Grab attack! Rodimus Prime is jumped on by a big old holographic velociraptor. :(Ultra Magnus gives the Autobot leader some backup, readying himself with a smaller velociraptor and keeping an optic peeled for the party. "We can't let this distract us Prime, no doubt they'll try sneaking by as a lizard!" he shouts, those clever devils! Combat: Ultra Magnus strikes himself with his Grab attack! Ultra Magnus is knocked around by the baby holographic velociraptor. :(Apocryphacius murmurs, "I am reasonably confident in my ability to detonate a new door without also putting a spot light lighting fixture. This will, of course, make a lot of noise, so when it blows - Jayson, make a run for it, and throw Decibel if you must." He affixes the explosives, tweaks some wires together, and backs up.... Combat: Lynx strikes himself with his Lynx Pounce (Grab) attack! Combat: Apocryphacius compares his Technical to 50: Success! Boom! A hole is blown in the wall of this tunnel, opening a passage to another tunnel. Time to run! Jayson Redfield backs up as Apo sets the bombs, and then, when they explode (thankfully without getting him caught in the blast), he dashes down the new Quint-created tunnel "But none of them turn into lizards!" Rodimus points out to Ultra Magnus, throwing the velociraptor off of him... ...just in time for him to get knocked out of the way and off his feet by a sudden hole appearing in the tunnel behind him! "Omph!" Sadly the training program has a few details left out, in this case, the scent of the digital velociraptors. Before the giant cobalt blue Lynx can realize it, he finds his face getting jumped at by a velociraptor. Meanwhile, back over with team EVIL, the dinobird also finds itself knee deep with one of the underground lifeforms that Rodimus Prime had mentioned earlier, "Oh bloody hell, BABY velociraptors?! Why, I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't." Soon the dinobird is topped over onto its back, "Blast it all!" "More like blast the wall!" Rodimus grumbles, getting out a bad pun worthy of a comic book as he tries to recover. "You'd be amazed what those humans can accomplish with a chemistry set Prime!" Ultra Magnus grunts, kicking the smaller lizard off of him and striking another in the face. "Looks like they're coming through the back door, you have a contingency for this ... right?" the City Commander shouts out, trying to manuever through the crowd of lizards and towards the hole in the wall. Combat: Ultra Magnus misses himself with his Grab attack! It's Jayson's job to make bad puns, Rodimus. :(Apocryphacius can only hover so fast, but he tries to move it along quickly. When he reaches the junction between the side tunnel and the main cavern, he pauses. He does not want to do this. He probably wouldn't do this, if this was real and not training, and maybe that is a bit of a flaw in the system, but instead of making a break for it like Jayson, he lets his faces wheel around, and he declares, "So cast in the name of Quintessa, I find you all... guilty." iPod pipes up, "Nice blasting, looks like the back roads let us avoid the morning rush." As the raptors leap about assaulting the 'guards' Decibel can only chuckle and grin, as displayed by a smiley face on his display screen. Apocryphacius transforms into his Apocryphacius mode. Jayson Redfield finds himself at the main cavern, and hopefully he won't be scene. Seeing that Rodimus has been knocked over, the young EDC soldier tries to sprint by, as stealthily as he possibly can. Combat: Rodimus Prime compares his Intelligence to 67: Success! Combat: Lynx compares his Agility to 70: Success! Vince Larsen has disconnected. iPod does his best to contain his desire to play an audio clip of Harley Quinn saying, 'sneak sneak sneak' as they break from the tunnel. Why he though of this he's unsure but he's doing his best to scan the new tunnel as they go. Rodimus Prime grins. "Contingency plan? I didn't even have a /primary/ plan!" he answers cheerfully as he gets to his knees. Then he looks towards the ceiling, shaking his head in a gesture that suggests 'rolling of eyes.' "Boy, deja vu," he mutters, then starts to stand to go after the Quintesson. In the process, he almost misses the human running by him. "Hey!" he shouts, making a grab for Jayson! Combat: Rodimus Prime misses Jayson Redfield with his Grab attack! Ultra Magnus watches Prime fail, and steps up to the plate. "It's alright Rodimus, I'll nab him!" he jests, gently trying to contain the EDC Sharpshooter. Combat: Ultra Magnus misses Jayson Redfield with his Grab attack! iPod says, "Ha-ha! Greased lightning, keep running Mr. J we're almost there." Jayson Redfield darts between both Rodimus and Magnus, ducking both of their attempts to grab him, much like a football player dodging tackles. (Not that he actually plays football, but still.) As he runs, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out Decibel, and throws him toward the goal tunnel! "Catch it, Sky Lynx!" Rodimus shouts. Rock fragments and various other debris showers down upon the dinobird, sending the baby velociraptors away in a panic, "Good riddance! About bloody time these things found some other things to bother." The dinobird somehow manages to climb upright once more, traces of sand slides off as he does so, leaving a gray coat of dust on its body frame. "Well now, isn't this convenient." The dinobird puts on an evil streak in his tone, and does it so remarkably well, "You might think you've found us, but it's really us that have found you." The dinobird watches as the two Autobot commanders miss the agile EDC soldier, and charges in as well. The idea has crossed his mind to try to snatch Jayson with his feet, but his clawed feet being as sharp as it is, the Dinobird quickly puts aside the thought and instead attempts something even more difficult. Catching an iPod instead. "Bah, bloody cramped spacing!" Combat: Lynx strikes iPod with his Lynx Pounce (Grab) attack! Combat: Lynx strikes Jayson Redfield with his Lynx Pounce (Grab) attack! Whirl moves to the Orion Pax - Corridor - Aft. Whirl has left. iPod says, "Ack!!" Not at all expecting to be thrown Decibels first action is to let out a very undignified yelp. As he arcs through the air a lot more becomes apparent as he can now see. And see he does as the massive lynx plucks him out of the air. but Decibel does not give up there, "Quick Lynx, run! To the finish, you're not wearing a pot-it on this half, yer one of us!" Apocryphacius realises that everyone is completely occupied trying to grab Jayson, so he tries to sneak along the other way. Scoot scoot scoot... hmm, maybe he can grab that sticky note off Rodimus Prime. Yoink! Combat: Apocryphacius strikes Rodimus Prime with his Grab attack! Rodimus Prime's post it gets yoinked! He's no longer a Postnoticon! "Whoops!" he laughs. Then he crouches and looks between Ultra Magnus and Sky Lynx. Of course, he still can't fight them. So then he hmmms, and starts to dart along the cavern wall, running, not straight for the goal cave, but one of the stalagmites rising up from the center! Jayson Redfield trips right after throwing Decibel and lands on his chest with a thud. "Ow," he mumbles as he sits up. And then he sees Sky Lynx grab the iPod. "Aw, man!" "Aww." Ultra Magnus moans, missing his grab. Although Sky Lynx manages to catch Decibel with some quick footwork, although it's now revealed he could dart across the line to win the game! "Sorry dear comrade ... half, but I can't allow that!" the City Commander shouts out, trying to tackle the Lynx half to the ground. Lynx looks down, and would facepalm in frustration if he was the only one here, but clearly he isn't about to give the others any further satisfaction in that. He's been outwitted! The giant cobalt blue Lynx reveals a smirk on its golden face in response to Decibel's, "Brilliantly played, Decibel. I applaud your out-of-the-box thinking. Very well then, the lot of you better get out of my way. Sky Lynx's coming through!" Arching down and digging his claws into the ground to brace as support, the cobalt blue Lynx charges forward with explosive speed and attempts to knock the biggest thing that's blocking his path. Oh my. Could this be the dreaded alt interaction?! What a headache will this be. Combat: Lynx misses himself with his Lynx Pounce (Grab) attack! Combat: Ultra Magnus misses Lynx with his Grab attack! Apocryphacius wonders if just holding the sticky note makes him evil. A strange morality question! So he throws it away and continues to try to hook around the other way. After all, Sky Lynx is busy fighting himself, and Ultra Magnus is trying to grab Sky Lynx. Sneak sneak sneak! From Outside: Astrotrain has connected. Rodimus Prime manages to get behind the stalagmite and peers out, watching... Sky Lynx fail to tackle himself. Rodimus laughs, leaning forward against the pillar of stone before him, and then laughing harder as Ultra Magnus fails to make the grab as well. Jayson Redfield gets up and makes a dash for the goal again. iPod has had more comfortable rides than this but as sad as it is to say he's also had worse. "Woo! Nice footwork." Combat: Lynx strikes himself with his Lynx Pounce (Grab) attack! The dinobird catches a glimpse of its own other half coming straight at him. Why, that damn traitor! The dinobird drops the iPod that was clenched within its feet as it side steps out of the way. "Bah, I dare say, this is definitely an awkward situation." The dinobird reveals a toothy grin before leaping into the air and a good 360, bringing its long red tail around like a whip, "Pity. I -am- the better half." The cobalt blue Lynx sails through the air, missing his intended target and before all four of his limbs can touch the ground he finds himself flying backwards again in the opposite direction. It's only when he's landed onto the ground a few good feet from where he had started off that he realizes what his other half has just done. Yeah... this is going to be very awkward indeed when they merge again and update each other's memories. "Bah, blast! Flee! Flee while you all can. I'll do my best to hold these goons down." Steeljaw has arrived. iPod is dumped onto the floor like yesterdays catnip as Sky Lynx deals with his own inner demons. Thransforming quickly inot a more mobile form Decibel breaks for the finish full of hope that the last two remaining obstacles will be too busy to attempt to stop him. Or if not that he'll keep them off the others long enough for Jayson or Rodimus to reach the goal. Growing in size Decibel returns to his robot mode. Ultra Magnus can do nothing but stare in frustration as they make their ways towards the finish line. All in all, it was a good excercise though he thinks ... picking himself up and transforming back into his primary mode. Only a moment of hesitation before Ultra Magnus transforms into his Power Armor robot mode! Rodimus Prime watches the display before him, and realizes that Sky Lynx is now keeping... Sky Lynx busy, but that means Ultra Magnus is free. Well, he can't have *that!* He starts to 'sneak' along the wall opposite to Apocryphacius's route, but does rather a poor job. He's bright red and yellow, after all, and he stubs his metal toe against a boulder, making a rather loud clang. "Oh, oops," he says innocently. Apocryphacius runs away, while Rodimus Prime valiantly tries to distract Ultra Magnus! Jayson Redfield continues running toward the goal. Will he make it? Yes, apparently. "Yeeeah!" As Jayson, Apocryphacius, and Decibel enter into the 'goal' cavern, a female voice announces, "Goal achieved. Training exercise, over." Rodimus laughs again, then claps his hands. "Excellent job, guys. Well played!" Goldbug has connected. Decibel and team reah the goal, all three of them with none having to be left behind to distract to opposition. "Alright! Woohoo, we did it." He bows a bit then congradulates the others. "Excellect exercise Rodimus." Apocryphacius grudgingly admits, "Interesting exercise in lateral thinking." "We probably should, Jayson," Rodimus says, smiling at the human, then he nods towards Decibel and Paco. "Thanks for taking part." Then he turns and offers a wave towards Ultra Magnus and Sky Lynx. "And thank you two, too." He quirks a faint grin as he heads towards the exit, which now becomes apparent as the simulation ends. "Don't forget to get rid of those post-its, guys!"
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