| abstract
| - Koraja(#6295Rnt) – Nebulos The new capital of Nebulos, the city of Koraja is a testament to the resolve and determination of the Nebulan people. Barely a year after the end of the Decepticon occupation of the planet, this city was built from the ground up, from a sleepy farmland to a bustling metropolis. If there could ever be said to be a paradise it would be Koraja. Sky skimmers use ecologically friendly propulsion to swoop over the city, traders of all persuasions line the streets and at the centre is the Fountain Of Unity, a huge sculpture of a chorus of hands - green, blue, white - all the peoples of Nebulos, holding up a huge bronze bust of the planet. On the planet of Nebulos, within its capital of Koraja, Scorponok once again stands on its streets, unimpeded by the Nebulans' own forces. At the moment, he is observing construction of anti-aircraft cannons, which should help if someone once again sent an armed military force to attack the planet. But the atmosphere on Nebulos has become... tense. Many on the world, including its leader, Llyra, have no desire for the transforming war machines to return to Nebulos. Others see this as the return of Lord Zarak to his rightful place as the world's leader, though Zarak has denied he is retaking control publicly. While there have been no outbreaks of violence, the planet is becoming increasingly divided, and many on the world just want the robots to leave. Humans really love to stick their noses in other people's business. Well okay that's not specifically why Talia was on Nebulos for a bit. But it might be part of the reason that EDC wanted some presence on the planet. And considering they do have one non-master Nebulan in their ranks, it looked good on both sides of the matter. Velum helps on earth and Cybertron so why shouldn't they provide some help to her homeworld in return? That and someone has to stand guard over the gun construction. And while she may be an alien to them, it was pretty clear that some of the workers felt more comfortable with the human around than they did the robots tromping about the streets. Triggerhappy reverts to his root form. Amber MacKenzie has been on Nebulos for a few days now, rather reckless of her. She strolls around, observing the people more than the pretty sights, though the sights are nice. The language is different, but she picks up on the tension. Hardly a surprise, considering who's currently making a not-so-pretty sight in the city streets. Having no desire to tempt a Decepticon to "accidentally" step on her, she keeps her distance and watches. However stereotypical it is, she has no doubts that they're up to no good. Earthquake's altmode /is/ construction-based, so he's mainly here to work as a bulldozer, shoving things out of the way for the actual construction folks to set up their anti-air cannons and what-have-you. It's pretty boring, tedious work, and he isn't even allowed to kill anybody. As he bulldozes his umpteenth pile of junk for the day, he grumbles about the lack of action. Fortress Maximus' current form begins to reconfigure itself, shrinking in size, and he eventually emerges in his robotic form. It's great to be home, it really is. In its current state, though? Not so much. Seeing the destruction is hard, but Velum does what she can to assist. And with weaponry on the agenda today, she puts her exo to use and helps by carrying in materials and ammunition. With a load of metal bars over a shoulder, the exo enters the construction site, though Velum makes a momentary detour to come up beside Talia and look down at her. "I appreciate you coming over to help with things, Talia. You sure you're alright with being here?" Is that a hint of worry in the voice projecting from the suit? Maybe. Velum may just be worried about the whole 'humans and mercury don't mix' thing. Also, you know, Scorponok being RIGHT THERE. Climbing up into her large exo suit, Velum straps in, fires it up, and is ready to fight Hook is standing next the very large barrels of an anti-aircraft cannon. There not in place yet, and Hook is supervising the construction process. "The tolerances are very tight here, you'll have to be very precise in aligning these barrels." He's hold a tablet of sorts, as he speaks to the Nebulans. They start the process of lifting the barrels off the ground, but its a shaky start, as the wave precariously through the air. Fortress Maximus can feel the scathing gazes of Nebulans as he marches down the city blocks, many of which still show signs of the recent trauma that this planet was subjected to by the K'gardian fleet's attack, it's clear that despite his best intentions his presence is still unwelcomed here. Good thing it isn't only Galen that's walking down these streets alone, he'd probably get lynched by an angry mob. The bad news? Nebulos is poison to Fortress Maximus, and most of his kind, save for a select few. There's much work to be done, but he still needs to be mindful of returning to orbit lest the fatal effects of the energon poison in Nebulos' atmosphere claims him as another victim. Fortress Maximus stops in front of the cannons' construction site, he looks uncomfortably at it, a look of mixed emotions worn on his face, "I don't think I can ever get used to seeing something like this here." He then eyes Scorponok and the other Decepticons around. It's a really strange feeling being around with so many Decepticons and not have to worry about getting shot at. Triggerhappy has accompanied Scorponok and Hook here, to....well, actually he's not quite sure. He's no Constructicon, that's for sure. Maybe Scorponok wanted extra firepower just in case. At least that's what Blowpipe keeps saying. Not that Scorponok himself doesn't have enough firepower... Well anyway the Targetmaster is bored out of his processors. And--is that Fortress Maximus? Now it's all Blowpipe can do to keep his partner from reverting to his natural tendencies. Triggerhappy turns his optics skyward in exasperation just so he doesn't have to look at the Autobot and his EDC and Nebulan allies... "One cannot construct a sound defense on good intentions alone," Scorponok says to Fortress Maximus as the latter approaches. "For too long Nebulos's pacifistic ideals have left it vulnerable to attack. It ought to be no surprise that the Decepticons were able to conquer this world so easily before it finally lost its innocence. And it is good that it has! For one day, this world shall be strong, a crown jewel of..." He almost says 'the Decepticon Empire.' "...the galaxy." Meanwhile, a woman approaches Amber MacKenzie from behind, holding up a datapad with the face of a young Nebulan boy on it. "Excuse me?" she says in the native tongue. "Ma'am, I'm looking for my son. He ran away from home some time ago, and I haven't seen him since! Have you seen him? I don't know, I had some problems with him, but..." She looks over Amber's shoulders at all the giant robots there, and hesitates. Talia McKinley lifts one hand to adjust her aviator sunglasses. Or maybe adjusting the HUD built into them, using the rangefinder and telescopic sensors that go with her smartgun system as substitude binoculars. "Doncha worry 'bout me shugah." Then she does turn her head just enough to half-smirk at Velum's exo. "Ah brought plenty of stock fer food and drinks fer if the local food don't agree with me none." Amber MacKenzie spots Talia and Velum hard at work and hesitates, unsure whether or not to stay out of sight or go up and greet them. The decision is taken out of her hands as the woman approaches her. With a warm smile, she accepts the proffered datapad. "Give me a moment, ma'am, and I'll check my footage of the city for..." As the lady breaks off, so does she, following her gaze towards the Transformers. With a sigh, she lowers her voice. "Five million of us died on Earth thanks to the Decepticons, while the Autobots fought at our sides." Hey, she may as well offer some truth to counter the anti-Autobot propaganda here. "I'm sorry that you have to deal with them now." Getting back to the point of all this, she studies the woman's datapad and then visually scans through her Blackberry's data for any matches. A frown touches her face. Bias, bias. She suspects the Decepticons. Maybe they're recruiting for more *masters by kidnapping children that are more easily influenced. Earthquake's on his way to bulldoze some more junk, when he sees Hook's group trying to lift some cannon barrels. Sighing in exasperation (and a little impatience), the dozer drives on over, transforms back into robot mode, and lends his immense strength to the task. "For the love of Primus, I'm gonna rust away before you guys ever get this thing set up!" The Nebulans operating the crane truck just aren't doing a good enough job. At least a job that is up to Hook's standards at any rate. "No,No,No! Your doing it all wrong! Hold it right there! Earthquake, assist the Nebulans!" Fortress Maximus casts a suspicious stare at Scorponok, his attention focused upon the near-slip of the tongue by his nemesis, "Yet I wonder how an escalation of military might will usher in true, lasting peace? This would seem to invite more adversaries to test Nebulos' might. We should seek to broker an end of hostilities with the worlds that sees Nebulos as an enemy, especially now that we have earned ourselevs a respite from these attacks." Maximus takes a moment to look towards Velum and Talia, "Thank you all for aiding us in this construction project, have you two anything out of the ordinary to report so far?" Hook continues to stand idly by supervising the constructicon work, but for how long? The Constructicon justs wants to throw down his tablet and do the work himself, knowing that only he could do the best possible job. He observes the barrels being put into position, and just frowns to himself, shaking his head. That's enough to reassure Velum, the exo nodding and likely to smirk if it had a mouth. "Alright. If you need anything, though, lemme know. We've got a few human-friendly foods here, and they're not too bad, in my opinion." With that said she continues on, setting the rods down and snorting at Earthquake complains. "Quit your complaining and just do the job, yeah? Griping about it won't make it go any faster." When Scorponok speaks up Velum looks to him, frowning inwardly and turning attention to Fortress Maximus when he addresses her. "Nothing to report, sir. Things are going smoothly so far. And.. I don't like it, but I think I have to agree with Scorponok on this. But even if peace prevails and there aren't any further attacks, we can at least feel a little reassured knowing that if anything does happen, that Nebulos isn't completely defenseless. Just having these would give them enough time to stall and call for aid." Talia McKinley doesn't have her weapons drawn, but they're close at hand should she need them. Or the Decepticons decide to act up. She's glared in Earthquake's direction more than once, remembering him from that little scuffle they had on the orbital station. But everyone is behaving. As much as two typically warring factions can get along in an uneasy truce at least. Ugh...so many targets. All unsuspecting and stuff. Blowpipe isn't quite sure how much longer Triggerhappy is going to be able to keep from simply shooting at everything and everyone. He folds his arms against his chassis. Maybe that would help a little bit. "So uh..." The Targetmaster starts. "Someone remind me why it is we're here, again? I mean, if we're not shooting Autobots?" Earthquake, on the other hand, didn't recognize Talia. All humans just kind of look the same to him, you see. It doesn't help that he hasn't been to Earth in...ever. However, he does reply to Velum with a disdainful grunt. "Hrmph. What does it /look/ like I'm doing? If it weren't for this truce, I'd..." The rest of his sentence trails off into irritated grumbling. Fortress Maximus puts on a conflict expression on his face as he puts a hand on the base of the cannon before responding to Velum, "I just have mixed feelings about all of this. The problem with having lots of guns to protect in place to protect Nebulos is that it'll just prompt the hostile forces to bring even more guns--- bigger guns, to overwhelm it. It's a troubling thought." He shifts a look over to Scorponok, before shift his gaze back to the others, "Better to defuse the source of hostility while we have the chance, or forever be shackled to fear of being attacked. Politicians with personal ambitions would love nothing more than to use such dire threats to secure powerful for themselves, and often with terrible consequences for the population." Scorponok smirks at Maximus. "Really, Maximus? Still haven't learned, have you, after all these years of fighting Decepticons? What do you think it was that led Thunderwing to conduct his experiments here? Were Nebulans the ideal organic life form to prey upon? No, they were not. He chose this world simply because it would be EASY to take over. And he was right--at first. And now that Nebulos is famous across the galaxy, what choice have they now but to prepare for other conflicts?" His smirk turns down towards Velum. "Yes, listen to the deserter, Maximus. She understands war--she has the scars to proveit!" Meanwhile, the Nebulan woman with Velum nods her head at Amber. "Oh, thank you so much for looking into this. And yes, I... I know, it's hard for me to see them come back to this world. I've already lost a child to the Decepticons, now I'm afraid I've lost the other, too. Ah, but with the robots here again, it's all anyone talks about or thinks about! By the way, my name is Daisy." That's the closest translation anyway. "My son, well, he's called Turbax." Amber's searches eventually lead to a Nebulan website where people work together as an online community to help find missing kids. It's not run by the police but they've endorsed it. Anyway, there is a report here of someone going by the name of Turbax being spotted at the Saint Nitro Homeless Shelter. Nebulans have some odd naming conventions. Scorponok smirks at Maximus. "Really, Maximus? Still haven't learned, have you, after all these years of fighting Decepticons? What do you think it was that led Thunderwing to conduct his experiments here? Were Nebulans the ideal organic life form to prey upon? No, they were not. He chose this world simply because it would be EASY to take over. And he was right--at first. And now that Nebulos is famous across the galaxy, what choice have they now but to prepare for other conflicts?" His smirk turns down towards Velum. "Yes, listen to the deserter, Maximus. She understands war--she has the scars to prove it!" Meanwhile, the Nebulan woman with Amber nods her head at her. "Oh, thank you so much for looking into this. And yes, I... I know, it's hard for me to see them come back to this world. I've already lost a child to the Decepticons, now I'm afraid I've lost the other, too. Ah, but with the robots here again, it's all anyone talks about or thinks about! By the way, my name is Daisy." That's the closest translation anyway. "My son, well, he's called Turbax." Amber's searches eventually lead to a Nebulan website where people work together as an online community to help find missing kids. It's not run by the police but they've endorsed it. Anyway, there is a report here of someone going by the name of Turbax being spotted at the Saint Nitro Homeless Shelter. Nebulans have some odd naming conventions. Slowly, the anti-aircraft cannon barrels are put into place, locking into the main cannon struction with a satisfying thud. Hook flies off the ground to inspect their work. "Hmm..yes.." He flies up and around before actually sticking is head in each individual barrel. "This is good work Earthquake....but not good enough." The Constructicon lands on the ground and transforms into his crane truck mode. Within seconds, he has the barrels detached and immediately reattached, although nothing seems different are first glance. "There, now they are within the tolerances." . Nothing seems different but something surely must of been off to Hook's keen optics. Hook transforms into his Constructicon Crane mode. Exosuit glances Earthquake's way, replying sternly, "Well there is one, so you'll do nothing but help." Back to the leaders, she nods to Max, but eyes Scorponok and gives a soft snort. "War has two sides, not simply fighting. There are politics involved and Maximus raises good points." Velum then pauses, listening over her communications a moment and nodding. "Excuse me a moment. Max, Amber needs some help, so I'm taking a break." The giant exo turns on a heel and strides out of the construction site, likely picking up Talia along the way unless she wants to go on her own. Thankfully Amber isn't far away, Velum spotting her down the block and being careful while walking the streets in her suit. Approaching the two, the cockpit opens with a hiss and Velum climbs down with ease, offering the woman beside Amber a smile. "Ma'am. I work with Ms. MacKenzie here, and if it's okay with you I'd like to help look for your child." To Amber she nods. "Shouldn't be too far, just a few blocks if you wanna follow me." Fortress Maximus is left speechless for a moment as Scorponok makes a good point with Thunderwing. Deep down inside, even he knows that Nebulos can no longer afford the innocence it had enjoyed for so long, everything changed for the planet ever since Thunderwing decided to put his damned foot onto this planet, "I'm not advocating ignorance towards the realities of war, but a military arms race isn't the answer either. Nebulos mustn't forget diplomacy either, or it'll be doomed to fighting an endless war." A Nebulan engineer makes his way over to Maximus and asks, "Hey, we're short on endo-steel beams for the base of these cannons." He points towards two construction sites nearby, "Someone told me to come to you, apparently they said you got the means of fixing the problem." Maximus backs off a bit and promptly transforms into his base mode before setting forth on fabricating the requested construction materials using his construction bay. Fortress Maximus' armour plates splits open, accompanied by the distinct transformation sound, as towers and buildings rises up. Defensive batteries, communications and radar dishes can be seen emerging all over while the three main ramps can be see unfolding and extending down to others access to within. Soon the distinct form of a defense base sits before you. Talia McKinley doesn't mind be carried along by the exo, saves her from walking or wasting the time getting her ship. Just a missing kid shouldn't be that much of a problem, anyways. "Ah'd make a crack about another girl tryin' to pick me up if Ah could think of one," she remarks to Velum with a snicker. Earthquake grunts again, fighting the urge to grab Hook by the neck and throttle him. "The barrels were fine! What did you even do, move them half a millimeter?" he growls up at the Constructicon. Then, to Velum, "Yeah, don't remind me. Helping a bunch of fleshies, what the slag /happened/ to my life..." Amber MacKenzie briefly introduces Velum and Talia to Miss Daisy and easily trots after the exo. She should've brought her motorcycle, but she needed the exercise after spending so long behind a desk. "The boy's name is Turbax. He ran away some time ago." No mention is made of the other child. She really, really hopes that the boy is safe and sound. This poor lady has already been through enough. "How can one possibly know the correct balance, Maximus?" Scorponok says. "Better to crush all your enemies, and subjugate the survivors, leaving them in fear of you. But enough of that..." Watching the Decepticons, he hmms to himself as they start to get a little combative with each other. Normally that's fine in his optics, but right now he can't afford to have them start shooting each other. Hopefully his stern glare will prevent that. "Oh, thank you all for helping me," Daisy says, managing to smile. "I'm glad to have so much help with this--I've looked everywhere for him and it's been so hard ever since my husband left me..." She sighs sadly. Saint Nitro's homeless shelter is indeed not far away, and a look inside reveals a series of tables with a handful of people sitting at them. None of them match Turbax's description. "Koraja has more homeless than this," Daisy points out with a frown. "Maybe the robots scared them off?" Amber MacKenzie's suspicions are given a jolt. "Would you mind asking them if they know what became of the others?" she asks. She doesn't want to mention what she suspects, so she scrambles for a reason. "I hope they weren't injured in the recent fighting. Maybe check the hospitals for unidentified wounded?" Looking at Velum and Talia, she lets her usually-pleasant expression drop away for a moment. The quarters are too close to transmit something without being overheard. Talia McKinley frowns a little at that as well as she hops down from Velum's exo. "Most people wouldn't notice a bunch of homeless goin' missing, considering they're already... y'know..." She emits a snort of possible disgust. "It happens sometimes on Earth. Usually fer cheap illegal organ harvesting, no one notices those sort of people goin' gone, then sell in high demand for transplants to medical facilities...." Velum shoots Talia a smirk at her remark, but doesn't comment back, instead nodding to Daisy. "It's no problem at all, ma'am. It's our job to help those in need, and we're more than happy to do it." It doesn't take long to reach the shelter, which is good, but what's troubling is the lack of Turbax. "Hm. You said he was listed being here, right Amber?" She raises a brow at her as they stand in the building. The mention of hospitals earns a frown. "Maybe, but I wonder if he left. Let's ask first before we go looking into the hospitals, see if anyone's seen him." She nods to employee and patron alike, ushering the others to ask around while she approaches a table. "Pardon me, but has anyone here seen a young boy here recently? He goes by the name of Turbax." She lists off whatever other information given previously by Daisy. Defense Base continues to fabricate the raw materials within his cargo hold into endo-steel beams, of which is promptly removed by the Nebulan construction crew for use. Cog emerges from the defense base, radio controlled by Maximus no less, and takes its master's place in directing a new construction effort. The drone emits' Fortress Maximus' voice, "Trial and error, all tyrants are eventually toppled. It's only a matter of time." Cog follows along as he notices Scorponok changing the topic, "I'm thinking that a deflector shield generator positioned right here between these two anti-air cannons will serve well in fortifying this position. We can go the extra mile by burying all the power wires deep into the earth, so there is a reduced chance in the lines being cut by concentrated bombardments around the area." Meanwhile, Galen rides down from the elevator and heads off to follow the other three, "Give me a shout if you need me, Max. I can't get the missing child out of my mind. I'm going to go see if there anything I can do to help as well." A human woman enters the shelter's main room with a haggard look on her face as she pushes a small cart of various Nebulon sundry items. Ration packs, water, things of that sort. "Alright, partions have been rationed out, everyone, please just take one pack each. We don't have a lot to work with right now." She wears the American Red Cross armband on her arm, as she starts to dole out supplies to the homeless here. Snippets of her conversation can be heard as several refugees start to approach. "No, I'm sorry, I don't have any more children's wear....Yes, I'll let you know, but right now..." "Hold on, now are you SURE that was the first ration you got today?.....I thought so, alright just put it back. Nobody's in trouble." Triggerhappy just keeps standing there, looking bored. And Blowpipe is getting tired of his whining so he separates from his partner, having noticed that Galen a few of the other organics have slipped off toward a homeless shelter. Once Galen has headed in that direction, Blowpipe clandestinely follows, wandering into the shelter as well and hanging around in the background, watching the three females. Triggerhappy transforms into his Blowpipe mode. Talia McKinley pauses, not expecting to hear another human voice. But when she glances over and sees the Red Cross badge she relaxes, and gives the woman a polite tip of her hat before turning back to the conversation between Amber and Velum and the staff. Amber MacKenzie eyes Talia and her horrific thoughts, though she also has heard of such things, not only in third-world countries, either. Letting Velum talk to her fellow Nebulans, she zeros in on the Red Cross worker. If she's handing out arranged portions, she should know who should be here. "Excuse me, ma'am. We've noticed that there are fewer people than before. Do you happen to know what became of them?" A homeless man's hand shakes as he rubs it across his face. "Decepticons, took my home," he mutters more to himself than to Velum. "Everything gone." Her question is never answered, though. Another man looks up at Velum and shrugs. "Never seen 'im. I dunno, people come and go all the time. Heh, robots are grabbing people, for all I know!" He gets some glares from around the room and realizes he said that too loudly. "Uh, heh, just a joke." "Quite true, Maximus," Scorponok says. "About the shield, that is! But then there is the question of what is protecting its power source! I don't believe that's underground--perhaps it should be!" He winces as Zarak nags him about something. "I don't care care, Zarak!" he says aloud. (Could you stop replying to me out loud?) Zarak says into their minds, annoyed. (I know what you're thinking!) (Yes, regrettably,) Scorponok says. (What is this about Galen?) (He's split off from the group, apparently to inquire about some missing child,) Zarak points out. (And?) (AND that could be about our operations here!) Zarak says. Scorponok frowns, pauses, then says, "I need to send a message to Soundwave. It's... important, so it must be done by courier." His chest opens and Fasttrack hops out, transforming into his... er... mode with wheels, and driving off. "It doesn't involve you, Maximus." on, however, Amber and co. pick up another stalker... Fasttrack, who's peer around the corner of a nearby building and trying to be discrete! Constructicon Crane turns around looks Fort Maximus up and down, seemingly unperturbed by the fact he's assisting an Autobot. "I agree, a placement of a shield generator would significantly! Scorponok is correct, the power source would have to be buried underground, along with any cabling." Constructicon Crane transforms into his Hook mode. Earthquake sighs, grumbles some more, then activates his seismic wave generators with a hint of a grin, his hands glowing with a rippling red aura. "So, you guys need to bury something? I think I can help with that, heh heh." Hey, it breaks up the tedium. Velum notes the glares and raises a brow just slightly. "Hm, is that so.." She mutters and narrows eyes a little at the man in a way that says 'you better not be lying to me'. "Well, please keep an eye out for him. We'd like to get him back to his mother as soon as possible." Straightening up, Velum looks over her shoulder to see a Red Cross worker from Earth handing out rations. Amber sees to questiong her, however, allowing Velum to have a closer look around room. The woman turns to Amber, wiping her hands on her clothes. "Oh my, more support finally." She slumps, obviously exhausted then leans a bit against the wall. "Missing you say? Yes...yes several really, not a day goes by that people move in or out of here, difficult to keep track. Due to the supplies, sadly. We just aren't equipped enough to care for everyone yet, and if you can't find a meal or a blanket here, you go elsewhere." She shrugs, adding glumly "Poverty is one thing that all planets end up doing the same." She shakes her head, her long auburn hair being pulled behind her absently with a run of her hand, "Audri de Winters. Apologies for the rudeness, it's been so hectic here. So looking for someone then?" Cog rubs its chin in deep thought as it surveys the area, "Then let's do as you have said, let's put a big enough of a generator down into the ground. Enough to power the few turrets in this region." The drone turns around to look at Hook, he pauses for a moment... awkwardly, probably because it's really unusual for an Autobot to be asking a Constructicon, "No arguments here, what kind of... help do you need in getting this digging done?" Cog eyes Scorponok and his drone with suspicion once more, but that's about as much as he can do right now. This darn truce is making everything so awkward! Meanwhile, thanks to the miracle of locator beacons, Galen is able to find his way to the others. He walks into the room and walks up to the others, "How's the search going?" Motorcycle makes his way over to the other Terrans, although he can't keep from turning to look at nearby Decepticons seemingly every time one of them speaks or moves. With a hiss of pressure the cockpit to the exo opens up, Velum climbing out of her battlesuit "There may be a lost youngster that's gotten mixed up in the homeless," Talia replies to the Red Cross worker. "Ya wouldn't of happen to see any kids, specifically?" Amber probably got an actual description from the mother, hopefully. It should be noted that most of the workers here are also human, and in good shape. Perhaps the sort of good shape that isn't really necessary for this kind of environment? Well, still, at least they're taking care of their bodies, right? Anyway, Fasttrack perks up at something, looks around, wanders into the back into the parking lot, then transforms into his other mode next to a car. There, now no one will notice him, even though his alternate mode is basically himself doing yoga on wheels. Completely discrete! "It seems like Earthquake is quite eager to do the digging!" Scorponok says. "What about collateral damage, Earthquake? Can you dig in the city without destroying it?" The glare of the sun flashes on Hook's optical visor, he brings his right hand up to his faceplate to block the sun. "Yes, of course some assitance would be in order. You may commmence the digging..." He takes his other hand and points towards the ground, a laser pointer extending from his finger. "There." He then folds his arms across his chest, and waits for the others to start. This Aristocrat isn't going to get his hands dirty. "Amber MacKenzie, Ms. de Winters" Amber returns succinctly as she studies her fellow Terran. "Funds run out?" She closes her eyes briefly to think, distracted briefly by yet another problem arising. Without opening her eyes or even speaking, she holds out Miss Daisy's datapad, which is displaying a picture of the missing boy. It's almost like she read Talia's mind. Or maybe it's just the mention of the lost youngster. With a weary sigh, her green eyes slowly open again, and she addresses the Red Cross worker. "What resources do you currently have on Nebulos, ma'am? I might be able to help raise some funds. Galen, speaking of resources, what does Nebulos have to help the displaced? And in answer to your question, no luck so far." "This sucks," Rumble complains, as the little tape-con starts digging. Typically he won't complain at all if it's Soundwave handing down the orders, but this is different. This is...grunt work, plain and simple. No glory to be had *here*. "Alright, let's get to it, then." Earthquake says, then slams his hands down into the ground, fingers digging into the crust and sending out directed seismic pulses toward the specified point. While Rumble digs, those seismic waves should make the ground softer and easier for him to dig through. And if it should suddenly open up into a pit and the little cassettebot falls in, well...Earthquake could use a laugh. Audri clicks her tongue as she thinks about it, then weakly shakes her head. "There's been so many of late, it's possible?" She raises her voice at the end, weakly agreeing. The Red Cross aid looks at the multitude of humans and Nebulons all together, "Someone rather important then? Well, we aren't keeping any records on the area, but we'd have to start with any other shelters in the area. I'm certain there have to be a few others. Communications are still so off here after that last attack, we're all just managing as we can." She shakes her head again, "We've only got what the transports give us, really. I'm no expert on Nebulon health, I didn't even know if they could suffice on human food until I ended up planetside." Audri puts her hands on her hips, "You'll have to excuse me for a moment, there's another box to open, and always too many mouthes to feed, but I might suggest another shelter nearby..." Audri steps around the corner, a hurry in her step. And then, only in the way bad 80s villains do, she is nowhere to be seen afterwards, fleeing instead of committing to playing the role. Galen pauses for a moment to think as he's faced with Amber's question, "The World Watchers do have shelters for the displaced to live in, whatever they can drum up through fundraising is about as much as what they got in terms of relief funds for those in need. It's a government funded organization after all." James Bailey steps into the shelter, looking one last time over his shoulder at some of the giant robot activity going on outside. He turns back to look over the interior expectantly. "Yeah, no kidding." Triggerhappy echoes Rumble's complaints. "Something about getting Nebulan poison technology in bullets...or whatever." Which he wouldn't really care for, honestly, because poison doesn't make shooting more fun. At least not as far as he can tell. Not that he's actually shot any poison bullets. But as far as he's concerned even if it is, it isn't worth this incredibly boring and terrible excursion involving being in the presence of Autobots or their allies and -not- shooting them. Meanwhile, Blowpipe slowly makes his way through the smattering of workers and homeless until he's within earshot of the humans and other Nebulans, just catching the end of the conversation with Audri as she hurries off suddenly. He notes James Bailey's arrival and informs Zarak : <> Talia McKinley frowns a bit at the hurried departure, but in all honesty, there was more important things to worry about than one harrowed, overworked relief aid. Ponytail swishes a bit as she shakes her head and looks back to others. "Ah'm sure once they see a full report of the situation up here EDC will push what they can to get more relief aid up here as well." And then there's a familiar face. "Well howdy thare James, didn't know ya was up here too." Nods and smiles as the others get to work. "The work may be undignified but, rest assured, it is essential work." Hook says, but then thinks to himself "And its the only work these simpletons can be trusted too. I doubt they'll even do this right, if only I had Bonecrusher and Scavenger available...". He continues to watch the others toil. Rumble loses his footing as Earthquake's seismic waves reach him, and he plummets rather ungracefully into a crevice. "...That was REAL funny, slagface," he grouses as he flies out of the pit. "Lousy job, too. They need an expert like me shakin' up this ground!" Velum has been scouting out the building a little, talking to staff, asking about Turbax. But it all seems to be leading nowhere, unfortunately. And what makes matters worse is the apparent dead end as the Red Cross worker exits with an odd hurriedness. "So I'm guessing we haven't learned anything new?" Velum asks when coming back to the group, hands folding across her chest. Gaze flicks to the front door when it opens, blinking a moment when she sees it's James. "Bailey, good to see you. Perfect timing, too, we could use some help." Back to Amber. "Thoughts on where to look next, MacKenzie?" James Bailey nods briefly to Talia. Velum's mention of help causes him to raise his eyebrows. "Help with what?" His gaze shifts over to Amber and then back to Velum. "What's going on here...?" Amber MacKenzie finds that Ms. de Winters takes more than a minute to finish her work. Her eyes narrow and she briefly follows in the direction that Audri left, only to find... she's gone. Returning to the front room, she scowls and announces, as Velum has already observed, "She's gone. Next..." Her scowl continues on spotting Colonel Bailey, who is *not* one of her favorite people. "Sir," she greets him almost coldly before turning to the other humans present. Picking the most timid looking, she demands in a low voice, "Where has Ms. de Winters gone, and what is this operation *really*?" While this still could be a Decepticon plot, the possibilities have now widened to misappropriation of Red Cross funds. Earthquake snickers at Rumble's misfortune. "Yeah, it was, wasn't it? Heh heh heh," he says, disregarding the sarcasm. But then the cassettebot insults his professional pride. "Hah! An expert? I could quake circles around you any day! If it weren't for Soundwave, /I/ would've been the one shaking up the Autobots on Earth!" Ooh, low blow. None of the humans in the shelter are really that timid looking. In fact, Amber's sharp line of questioning seems to annoy one man, and he scowls at her. "None of your damn business. Now keep it down or we'll throw the whole lot of you out, *Ma'am.*" <> Zarak transmits back. <> And yet, his order may have come too late, as a ruckus starts up in the shelter! "I know you're keeping more food behind that door!" someone yells. "I see people going in there, sometimes even some of the guys from the shelter, and you're probably feeding a whole bunch of people! That lady just went in, when's she coming back out, huh?" And if anyone investigates, they'd see a very large Nebulan man in a hallway pointing at a nondescript door accusingly, with volunteers surrounding him to either side, hands held up cautiously. "Hold on, sir—“ "No, I'm not holding on, I'm finding out what's behind this door!" Then the large Nebulan tries to kick the door in, but it holds fast. Surely a big guy like that could kick in a simple door? Either way, the volunteers rush in at this point to try and restrain him. Defense Base transforms into his Galen mode. James Bailey has reconnected. "Pfft, whatever," Rumble sneers, and brings his piledrivers out. "I'll show you how it's DONE, then you can say you seen it done right!" With that, he begins piledriving the ground beside Earthquake. "THIS is how it's done right!" *WHAM WHAM WHAM* Scorponok meanwhile is riveted by the excavation job. "We aren't trying to bury each other, Decepticons! Just make a damn hole if you can handle that!" he growls. He looks to the side as Zarak nags him again, but says nothing of it. Galen hears the shouting around the corner, it seems noisy enough to earn his interest, and he begins looking towards the direction of which it's coming from, "You guys hear that?" <> Blowpipe keeps Zarak informed. <> he confirms. <> And then Zarak urges him to force them to leave somehow. But it seems his brother was too late. A riot of sorts has already started. He sighs and makes his way over to the women as well as the large stubborn man. "Now, now." he says, folding his arms and attempting to defuse the situation. "There's no need for this. These workers are already stretched thin as it is, I'm sure they're doing their very best to serve you all. You must understand that supplies are limited. Again, I assure you, they're doing their best..." At this, he turns toward Amber, narrowing his eyes. "And you, human. You had best leave well enough alone." Talia McKinley turns her head in the direction indicated by Galen. "Well, there's only one way to find out." One hand goes down to rest on her holster, but doesn't actually draw it. She's just about to start in that direction when another interruption comes in. Oh for goodness sake now what? There might be a roll of the eyes but it's impossible to tell behind the reflective surface of her aviator shades. Ooooh, the piledrivers are out now. Earthquake sneers at his miniscule rival in quakery, cranking up the seismic waves. "Hahaha! You'll show /me/ how it's done? Earthquake is my /name/! All you can do is shake the ground; Scorponok over there could do that if he sat down hard enough!" Meanwhile, that pit is growing deeper, and more worryingly, wider. At least they're making a hole, but it might end up being /too/ big! "Missing child." Velum relays to Bailey, watching as Amber goes into interrogation mode on one of the staff. Unfortunately it's not very effective. She moves to help, being somewhat more intimidating, but a sudden scuffle down the hall catches her attention. "Hn, what now?" Might as well check while they're here. Following the sound of the commotion, she comes upon the large Nebulan and the staff trying to restrain him, bringing a hard, stern frown to her features. "Everyone, break it up!" She barks in a commanding tone, moving into the fray and muscling people aside. "What's this about? And what's all this about keeping food from the others?" She narrows her eyes at the staff. "And don't tell me I can't be here. If this is a Red Cross operation, I have a right to know." In an instant she flips out a badge, showing EDC status. James Bailey hesitates for a moment before nodding in approval at the other EDCers. They seem to have the situation appraised and are Then he pauses at the sounds from outside. "You guys hear that? Not the people...sounds like the earth is rumbling." Velum also pauses when she spots Blowpipe coming up behind her with the others, suddenly clenching her teeth. "What the hell are you doing here, Blowpipe?" She nearly hisses the name, extremely displeased to see him. Rumble's about to shake the ground even harder, hopefully to knock Earthquake into a pit, but Scorponok speaks up, and being the loyal little foot soldier he is, he reluctantly puts his pylons in and picks up the shovel again. "You're just jealous cause I do it better, rustheap," he mutters to Earthquake darkly. Amber MacKenzie smiles sweetly and steps back to the dubious shelter of a nearby table. She's not a military operative herself, but she knows some who are! Even so, she lightly touches the pistol she's packing, her sole weapon. Her eyes narrow as she focuses on Blowpipe, mentally imagining where to put a bullet or three should he attack her. But he goes after Velum instead. Ah hah. That name, she recognizes. The volunteers let go of the homeless man when Velum yells at them, and the homeless man also stops his rampage for the moment. "EDC?" one of the volunteers says. "Hold on a minute, what right do you have to boss us around? How about you go back to Earth, huh?" and his pals laugh. Hrm, these guys seem kinda rough for homeless shelter volunteers, but hey, maybe that's the sort of guy this place needs?... "What? Earthquakes?" the homeless man says. "We gotta take cover somewhere! Hey, it's probably safe behind this door, it's built like a tank! Come on!" Gosh, it sure would suck if the earthquakes increased and made things worse, right? Scorponok yells, "No, Rumble, use the pylons, they're faster! And both of you, hurry up and make that hole!" Earthquake slows it down some, bringing the seismic waves to a more manageable level so Rumble can dig. He's had his fun, and Scorponok /is/ right there...buuuuut the Headmaster seems to /want/ them to go faster, so the dozer dials it up again in an instant, suddenly widening the hole again regardless of Rumble's proximity. "Heh, sure you do." "Do it, don't do it, do it again, don't do it again...this gig sucks worse than an intake valve on an Ibex racecar," Rumble grouses, pulling out his piledrivers again and abusing the ground with them in order to create this all-important hole Oh, no, what a terrible time to have an earthquake! As the ground starts shaking with greater intensity, the homeless man starts battering the door again. "WE GOTTA FIND SHELTER!" he yells. He looks like he's almost got it off its hinges before the volunteers jump him and begin pummeling him! Sheesh, Velum is already off and away tackling the situation before Galen realized what's going on. That's a war hero for ya! Galen he follows in after Velum and the others, narrowing his eyes at Blowpipe upon seeing the man, "Something tells me this isn't a coincidence that we ran into you here, Blowpipe. What's Zarak's brother-in-law doing here? Spying on us?" Rumble just tries to keep from falling into the large hole, as Earthquake makes life difficult for him for a while. "See, you need me to help you, mech, or this job would take you all cycle!" Velum feels the tremors as well, not liking the possibility of an earthquake right after the attack their just endured. "Galen, call Maximus and see if he knows what's going on with these tremors." Back to the staff, who are drawing her ire more by the second. "What right?" She gets up in one of their faces, glaring at him head on with that stoney expression. "As an EDC operative I've every right to look into Earth related matters. And as this is my homeworld, I've a right to ensure the safety of my people. Unfortunately I haven't liked the feel of this place since I first walked in, so you can open that door right now or I'll gladly open it myself. Are we clear?" "Tsk, so rude." Blowpipe scolds Velum. "I'm just trying to help contain this rather unfortunate situation," he shrugs, explaining himself to both Galen and Velum. He smirks when the Nebulan suggests that they go back to Earth. "He's right, you know. This is Nebulos, and even if you're Nebulan, you've consigned yourself to serve the humans, am I correct? So I believe the question -actually- is what the hell are YOU doing here, Commander?" And now the man is pounding on the door. Sighing, he reaches for the man's arm and tries to use his cyborged-up Nebulan strength to pull him away. "This is only momentary, I assure you." Talia McKinley tugs at the brim of her hat a bit. Something isn't adding up right here. Sure, that man could of just been dilutional. But when one of Zarak's stooges is suddenly here trying to dissaude people away from his ranting, it comes up suspicious no matter what. But before she can say much the ground starts shaking as well. Quickly she has to discard the idea of getting into the fight to break it up to brace herself against a wall. "Tarnation, of all the time for the ground to start buckin' like an branded bronco!" Amber MacKenzie overturns her table and takes shelter beneath it as things falls around her, hoping it's sturdy enough to protect her. There's the slight temptation to fire in Blowpipe's direction and blame it on the earthquake, but she might hit someone else. Instead, she urges the folks remaining inside to do the same: take cover under the sturdiest furniture they can find. Miss Daisy, she calls to share her table. Velum allows Blowpipe a moment of her attention as he goes on talking, the woman visibly clenching a fist. "Gods, do you ever shut that hole in your face? Family or not, how has Zarak not thrown you out an airlock yet?" Ouch. "Just shut up and stay out of this." "Stay out of this?" Blowpipe throws back at her, still trying to pull the man away. "Oh but I believe I have more business here than you do, Commander. Zarak and I are still consciously concerned for the safety of our homeworld--you on the other hand, have thrown your lot in with the humans instead." Andi Lassiter has been here the whole time, really. She's been following along quietly and using her scanner to record everything. But, when the earthquake starts she finds herself huddling under a table alongside Amber. "This went downhill really abruptly," she says quietly to the other Terran woman. "What now?" Even with an cybernetically enhanced body, Blowpipe will find this man difficult to restrain. He bucks like a bronco to escape the "earthquake" and also Blowpipe. "Let go of me! I'll rip your damn head off!" Once that's handled, the volunteers turn on Velum, one stabbing a finger into her face. "You know what, you people have caused enough trouble. You take your trouble-making little asses outside and leave us alone, how about that?" Daisy gets under Amber's table as well, looking from her to Andi with a puzzled look. "What's going on here? Those volunteers--they're supposed to be caregivers. What are they even doing here?" "Good question, ma'am," Amber whispers. "I suspected that the Decepticons were behind this, but this bunch are *Terrans*." Her eyes widen as she eavesdrops on the conversation around the corner. She can just barely see Blowpipe, and certainly not well enough to take a shot. "Ohhhhhhh, they're asking for it. I might have to jump in, if I can get a decent shot..." She smiles at the two other ladies. "I'm not really a warrior, though." Warrior or not, she draws her pistol just in case. Hmm...the man seems to be threatening Blowpipe. Perhaps he could use that to his advantage. Obviously Zarak doesn't want whatever's behind this door to be revealed to the public. "Oh, will you now?" he sneers. "I would very much like to see you try." He listens with satisfaction as he hears the volunteers demand that Velum leave. "Yes, please do as these kind people have asked, this is their operation, after all. It would only be...." he pauses and grunts as the man clips him in the side. "...proper to leave them alone when asked to do so. Or am I expecting too much by hoping for decent manners at least?" James Bailey puts a hand out in a 'hold on' gesture towards Amber. "You're not a warrior...but you're not a member of the EDC either, technically." He adds the last part on after a brief hesitation, and you can almost tell he's doing it just to avoid being insulting. "But I've seen some of these enhanced nebulans in action before. You just have to know where to aim for..." Velum just snorts at Blowpipe and brushes him off, looking back to the staff as one points a finger at her. Naturally, she doesn't flinch, only raises both brows slightly while looking down the finger. "Not gonna open it? Fine, but I warned you." To the large Nebulan she just says, "And you stand back, got it?" She doesn't need him rushing in before the EDC can. With that said, Velum suddenly pushes the staff aside and moves up to the door, flexing robotic fingers to ready herself before pulling back her giant arm and throwing a full powered swing right at it. If that big guy couldn't do it, let's see how she'll fair. And if nothing? Well, she'll just keep hitting it. And what's behind the door? Oh, not much... just your average room full of morgue-like slabs. Some of them have dead bodies on them. In fact, one of them has a body that's a dead ringer for Turbax, and it appears that his torso has been opened up. More to the point, his chest is looking a bit empty right now! Maybe his organs were put into those little chilled boxes nearby? There's also a worker with a bloodstained apron and gloves, as well as a medical mask. "Will you people stop banging the door and shouting already, it's bad enough with the earthquake and I--" He pauses. "Wait a minute, who the hell are you?" James Bailey lowers his head slightly as he listens to something over his earpiece. His eyes shift until he's looking at Amber, then go further to look at Daisy. "Excuse me miss," he begins. "I need to speak with you. It's important." Amber MacKenzie, still crouched under her table, bites her tongue and doesn't respond to the man's kind suggestion that she, a non-combatant, take the fall for supporting EDC troops while the *EDC Colonel* just stands there and watches. She listens intently, trying to figure out what's going on in that room. Eyes widen as she hears a broadcast, and despite the uncertain footing and shaking ground, she leaps to her feet. On sheer faith, which she has in Velum. Her camera always with her, and her pistol in hand, she darts down the hallway. Andi Lassiter offers Amber a slightly impish smile, and rummages around in the satchel she has slung like a messenger bag. Knowing her, she's got a towel in there somewhere. "I have a slightly better view, I think," she whispers back. "Let me try something, maybe it'll give you the opening you need." She hears Bailey's words but keeps rummaging, finally pulling a child's slingshot and a marble (cobalt blue) from her bag. Combat: Andi Lassiter strikes Blowpipe with her cobalt marbles are mean (Grab) attack! Combat: Andi Lassiter (Andi Lassiter) used "Grab": A Level 0 MELEE attack. "Enhanced or not, this'll still sting, no doubt." Andi shifts her weight a little so that she can see Blowpipe a little better, then lifts the slingshot with the marble as ammunition and lets fly with a soft twang toward whomever it was that is asking for it. Fingers crossed. Brainstorm happens to be in the area, being a Headmaster and all. So he has business here, really. He also has absolutely NO IDEA what is going on, but that doesn't stop him from bustling in anyway. "HI GUYS! What's up?!?" The large homeless man chooses that moment to become more violent with Blowpipe! "NO YOU WOULDN'T!" he screams as he tries to spin around rip his head off! This may require a strength check at around 60! (Hey, the guy's winded from earlier.) Elsewhere, as Amber runs into the hallway, she can see that these "kindly" volunteers are also beginning to draw guns on Velum after she bursted through that door! Rumble is in a construction site, creating an aperature in the ground, otherwise known as a 'large hole'. He is doing this in tandem with Earthquake, under supervision from Scorponok. Velum knew something was going on, but she in no way suspects what's really behind the door. The smell of a morgue hits her first before she even enters, already drawing her pistol. And what she sees when stepping in is alarming, to say the least. "My gods.." She mutters, stunned until she sees the worker, instantly raising her pistol and shouting, barely containing the growing rage and sickness from the macabre display. "Hands up, don't make a move!" She then moves in, should he comply. "Get on your knees with your hands behind your head! Now!" Unfortunately the staff is pulling guns now. "Damnit.." Velum hisses to herself, but doesn't lower the firearm. And Earthquake is still messing around with Rumble from time to time, just because he's a jerk like that. Ugh, well it seems distracting the man wouldn't have done any good, since Velum is already determined to get the door down. Blowpipe just shrugs then, and steps back with a resigned sigh. "Well, if you must--but I doubt you will like what you find." And then a marble flies in his direction, plinking off of his shoulder. It doesn't really do much in the way of damage, but it does serve to get his attention. He picks up the marble and sneers in the direction in came. "What is the meaning of this?" he glares toward the group of women, and sees Amber heading his way, so he steps in front of her, grabbing her by her upper arm. He's not sure who exactly it was, but she's up and running so it's probably her. "If there's -anything- you filth are good at, it's pissing off the -wrong- people." he hisses, and attempts to throw her against a wall to keep her from advancing into the room. Combat: Blowpipe sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Blowpipe strikes Amber MacKenzie with his Was it you?? (Punch) attack! Amber MacKenzie, unable to dodge the man in time, takes a good, solid punch and is knocked roughly into the wall. But her pistol is still in hand, and she has a better view inside the morgue now. Her eyes widen in horror at what she sees, both the dead and the living, and she freezes for a split second. The sight of motion, as in the guns being raised against Velum, breaks her free of her shock, and she blurs into motion again, firing without hesitation at the men threatening Velum. This isn't the first time she's killed, though they were Decepticons, not fellow human beings. James Bailey turns at the sound of gunfire, his own firearm drawn. But instead of following he rushes outside, quickly activating his cycle where it's parked outside. Brainstorm looks inside the shelter and sees several women- and Blowpipe?- some sort of organic "chop shop"... and a situation that looks ready to explode in a hail of gunfire. The Headmaster gets his photon flash gun out. He doesn't know many of these people that well- but he does know Velum. Sticking the gun through a window, he tries shooting a blinding flash of light at the "bad guys" and make it a little more difficult for them to shoot anyone. "Maybe this'll slow you goons down..." Hopefully it'll help his friends inside, at least a little. Combat: Brainstorm compares his Accuracy to 50: Success! One of the so-called "volunteers" goes down as Amber shoots him, but there's... oohhh, let's say, three more in the hallway, and they're both going to fire into the room! Better take cover! Meanwhile, Scorponok gets a transmission from Fasttrack, who has reported that SHTF, and sighs. Loudly, he roars at Rumble and Earthquake, "ENOUGH! We've got a situation! And stop your damn quaking, are you trying to split the entire planet apart?!" Back at the shelter, a sudden flash of light illuminates the hallway, leaving the remaining volun-thugs (?) clutching their eyes and feeling about blindly! Earthquake stops his tremors, looking up at Scorponok questioningly. "A situation? What, like somebody started a fight? Finally, things are looking up around here!" Then, under his breath, "Man, what I wouldn't give to do /that/." Andi Lassiter grimaces at something she hears over the EDC channel, and moves to keep Miss Daisy and herself out of the reach of this Blowpipe person. This also happens to keep the woman from heading into the morgue and seeing the goings-on there. Then there's that bright flash. CRAP. She wasn't ready for it and is also partly blinded. But that doesn't stop her from reaching into her bag again and blindly throwing at least a dozen more marbles out onto the floor. Should make it difficult to walk about. Rumble reluctantly stops his ground-pounding -- he was beginning to have fun! For now, he just stands by, staring at Scorponok to find out what the situation update is. Blowpipe may not be speaking into Triggerhappy's mind, but he has a way of contacting his partner. It seems a situation has unfolded in the shelter. Oh, and there was another Autobot here. Brainstorm, to be precise. Oh, yeah. He remembers that mech! So as Brainstorm is crouching there in front of the window, he walks up behind him and taps him on the shoulder, grinning like a maniac. "Hey, there." He smirks. "Remember -me-?" Funny, that--the last time they met also involved organics and was near Nebulos. Wasn't it? Meanwhile, inside, Blowpipe stumbles around for a moment, stunned by the flash. He slips on some of the marbles and runs into a table. Triggerhappy reverts to his root form. Oh, yeah--and Triggerhappy's guns are all up in Brainstorm's face already. Of course. Combat: Triggerhappy sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Brainstorm with his Remember me? (Laser) attack! In addition to her shock, Amber is also temporarily blinded by the light. She slides slowly to her knees and gratefully takes the time to try to regain some composure. At least until someone gropes her! She lashes out instinctively with a powerful kick, and if there's any justice in the universe, it'll get the groper where it hurts. Some presence of mind returns, reminding her that Velum is surrounded by thugs, but she can't see to shoot. Not yet. Bugger. Just as Velum thinks she's going to get up, Brainstorm arrives for the rescue! A flash of light illuminates the hallway and leaves the staff stunned, allowing Velum to make her move. Holstering her gun, the Nebulan leaps into the chaos with a roar, getting up close and personal and chopping swiftly at the wrists to disarm them. With guns out of the way she delivers the final blows, fists flying to knock them out cold. Luckily it shouldn't be hard to take them out after the previous assaults, so once they're down she turns to the only one in the facility she feels is a real threat. Blowpipe. "You!" The woman snarls viciously, stalking down the hallways and into the open where she grabs Blowpipe by his armor's collar and hoists him up into the air to drive him against the wall. "You knew about this all along, didn't you! You and Zarak!" Yep, she's pissed. Brainstorm is leaning through the window when there's a sudden tapping on his shoulder. Huh? He looks up- and there stands Triggerhappy. And guns, lots of guns. In his face. "OH! Uh, yeah.... Trigger, wasn't it? Wait, no... that's a horse I think. Triggerman? Wait... no.... You're not human. Triggermech? No no no... Happy... something. Happy Gilmore?" He puts his hand up to his forehead, "Wait, gimme a minute, I'll get this eventually..." Alas, no minute is given and Triggerhappy shoots, striking the Autobot on the side of his helmet. "Ow!!! Sheesh, you're sure in a hurry. Alright, alright, fine. You're in a hurry? Have a light show- there's plenty to go around!" And as he's speaking, his flash weapon has already been raised- and fired before he even finishes talking. Combat: Brainstorm strikes Triggerhappy with his Name Game attack! Combat: Brainstorm (Brainstorm) used "Photon Flash": A Level 0 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Triggerhappy's Accuracy. (Blinded) Scorponok grimaces, whirling about. "Dammit, Zarak, we have to do SOMETHING!" He angrily paces about in front of the two Decepticons who are awaiting further orders. Finally, he declares aloud, "Alright, Decepticons, we have to... sigh... PACIFY the situation with a minimum of destruction." It's clear from his facial expression that he hated saying that almost as much as Rumble and Earthquake probably hated hearing it. Anyway, Scorponok comes running down the street, and as the shelter wasn't far away, it's only moments before he runs into Triggerhappy and Brainstorm. "ENOUGH! Brainstorm, what is the meaning of this? Why are you attacking my soldier?" he demands, his fusion cannon pointed at Brainstorm. Meanwhile, the thugs, who had been busy blindly stumbling around on a floor full of marbles, are quickly subdued and KO'd by Velum. And what happened to that irate and very large homeless guy? He booked it when the guns came out! Earthquake's good mood quickly sours when he finds out that he's /still/ not allowed to break anyt hing, which probably means he can't kill anyone either. Slag. "Alright, alright, let's go solve this problem.../peacefully/." he agrees, spitting out the last word like it's something foul. He follows after Scorponok, and after coming upon Brainstorm and Triggerhappy going at it, he does the only thing he can think of: Trying to separate them by knocking them on their afts with a brief quake. "You heard him, cut it out NOW!" Nope, Triggerhappy doesn't give Brainstorm a minute at all. In fact, he's lucky the Targetmaster actually took the time to tap him on the shoulder before shooting him in the head. He just cackles when Brainstorm's flash weapon goes off, the visual interference not really bothering him. After all, as long as it doesn't keep him from using his guns it doesn't matter! So just as Scorponok comes barreling down the street, he lives up to Misfire's motto of "Just keep shooting, eventually, you're bound to hit -something-." Even if you're partially blinded by a photon blast. Meanwhile, inside the shelter, Blowpipe doesn't look at all rattled when Velum grabs him and holds him against the wall, in fact, he looks quite smug. "Yes, Commander! Give in to your savage instincts--beat me until I've coughed up -every- bit of the information you want. Show us your -true- nature!" he taunts. "Don't hide it any longer..." Rumble struts down to the shelter area...not from any impending sense of doom, but because he wants to see what the fuss is all about. It looks kind of exciting! Combat: Triggerhappy's Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) attack on Scorponok goes wild! Combat: Triggerhappy strikes himself with his Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) Area attack! [Pulled -1] Combat: Triggerhappy (Triggerhappy) used "Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto)": A Level 1 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: Triggerhappy's Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) attack on Rumble goes wild! Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Rumble with his Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) Area attack! [Pulled -1] Combat: Triggerhappy's Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) attack on Earthquake goes wild! Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Earthquake with his Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) Area attack! [Pulled -1] Combat: Triggerhappy's Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) attack on Ride Armor goes wild! Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Earthquake with his Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) Area attack! [Pulled -1] Combat: Triggerhappy's Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) attack on Brainstorm goes wild! Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Rumble with his Misfire’s Motto (Full-Auto) Area attack! [Pulled -1] Andi Lassiter peeks up toward Velum and the man she's being very irate at. "If that's what he wants, I say you TICKLE the answers you want out of him." She's otherwise staying in place, and keeping Miss Daisy there. Combat: Earthquake misses Brainstorm with his KNOCK IT OFF Area attack! Combat: Earthquake strikes Triggerhappy with his KNOCK IT OFF Area attack! Combat: Earthquake (Earthquake) used "Seismic Waves": A Level 0 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: That attack has temporarily impaired Triggerhappy's Agility. (Crippled) Amber MacKenzie picks herself up and makes it into the morgue, though her vision is still hazy. Not hazy enough to prevent her from doing her job. It takes a very odd state of mind to look at these poor people without seeing them, but that's what she has to do. However, when she sees the smaller, pathetic body of Turbax, she can't stop the tears. Bowing her head, she continues on, recording nightmarish image after image in the highest quality available to humanity. She includes faces, both of the murderers and the victims. The tools of the trade are recorded in every detail. She even opens the boxes to show their grisly contents. "You're a monster." Velum hisses with venom in her tone and a raging fire behind those blue eyes when staring Blowpipe down. "I always thought you and Zarak were low, but this is unforgivable. Your own people, Blowpipe!" She slams him against the wall again. "This truce is over! You will pay for your crimes!" And then he tells her to stop hiding her anger, something that has her bristling even more. "I never have!" With a mighty heave, Velum suddenly swings around and uses all her strength to throw Blowpipe across the room and out through the glass doors and into the street. Like a she-beast she roars in fury and charges out after him, leaping atop the downed Nebulan and raining a hellstorm of punches on his face over and over. Someone may want to stop her. Brainstorm sees Scorponok comes thundering in and shove another gun at his face (I mean really, is this a theme tonight?) and the Autobot Headmaster suppresses a huff. Then Earthquake repeats the whole "come thundering in" entrance... but Brainstorm ducks down, avoids the blow, and goes back to looking quite peevishly at the big Con Leader. He really doesn't like Scorponok, since as far as he's concerned Scorponok stole the Headmasters idea from *him*. He nearly crosses his arms in a sulk, then realizes that leaves him unable to defend himself well, so then they're uncrossed, then he brings the photon flash up to point right back up at the big Decepticon. "Hey, whaddayou mean ME? I was trying to diffuse a situation inside this building when Happy... Gilmore... whatever his name is just came in and started shooting, and..." That's when Triggerhappy starts shooting -at everyone- again- but Brainstorm is able to dodge this time. "SEEE!?!? What did I tell you???!! Don't look at me, it's THIS guy who needs therapy or-or something!!!! I'd suggest you enroll him ASAP!" Rumble gets sprayed with some wildly-misaimed friendly fire. He smirks, pulling the laser weapon off his back and shooting back at Triggerhappy with some seriously disgusting Cybertronian oath. After taking an entire cycle's worth of verbal abuse from Earthquake, he needed to have a little release, anyhow. Combat: Rumble strikes Triggerhappy with his High-Intensity Pulse Laser (Laser) attack! Combat: Rumble (Rumble) used "Laser": A Level 2 RANGED attack. Scorponok remains motionless as Triggerhappy sprays the arriving Decepticons with gunfire. Well, Scorponok himself emerges unscathed at least--fortunately for Triggerhappy--but he is still dismayed that both of the Decepticons he brought with him got blasted. "...how, Triggerhappy? How is this possible? At least with Misfire, when he's shooting at his own comrades, he tends to miss! Earthquake, Rumble, restrain him before he accidentally shoots ME! For his OWN sake!" Scorponok then approaches Brainstorm, looming over him. "Situation, hm? I have Fasttrack out in the back of the building, and he has told me that your human friends are the ones starting a confrontation! Perhaps I should tear the roof off of that structure and see for myself what is happening, hm?" And speaking of what's going on in the shelter, there's one more bad guy up and active, and that would be the guy taking out organs! He frowns at Amber recording deeds, aftermaths, and faces, and when her back is turned, he approaches with a bloody scalpel in hand! Combat: Brainstorm sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Brainstorm takes extra time to steady himself. [Pass] Blowpipe just lets her go at it. Yes, he's quite happy to do so, especially since all those other Nebulans and humans are watching! Heheh...yes...let them see how savage the EDC really is. How they're not so much better than those they hate. She is the one punching -him- relentlessly while he does nothing to defend himself. Triggerhappy, on the other hand...well, he doesn't have quite as much self-restraint. He gets knocked around by Earthquake, and pelted by Rumble, but he likes shooting Autobots much better. Especially Brainstorm. One of Triggerhappy's shots tags Earthquake, but thankfully the dozer's hide is thick enough to take it with little more than a scorched paint job. And yet, when Rumble fires back, he can't help but take another jab at the cassettebot. "Slag it all, do you have the brain of a petro-rabbit? Stop shooting your own kind, idiot!" And then he goes to try to grab Triggerhappy's arms and pull them somewhere they won't risk shooting people. Like Scorponok. In fact, he pulls a little harder than he really needs to, but that's surely just an accident, right? "It's Brainstorm's fault, boss." he shrugs, in a way of explaining himself. "He attacked Blowpipe first, I just defended us. And then he put his flashlight thing in my face." Combat: Triggerhappy strikes Brainstorm with his He Started It (Laser) attack! Combat: Earthquake strikes Triggerhappy with his Hint: It's not an accident. (Punch) attack! Combat: Earthquake (Earthquake) used "Punch": A Level 1 MELEE attack. Andi Lassiter keeps Miss Daisy safely out of the way until the mess appears to have left the building. Then she leads her outside where...yeah, not any safer. But at least the woman isn't where she can see what's inside the morgue. "Run, Daisy, go get the authorities." Hoping the woman listens, she then moves to stop Velum. "Hey. HEY. STOP." It would help if she could remember the woman's name. So, she reaches for one of Velum's hands. Combat: Andi Lassiter misses Velum with her Quit with the police battery (Grab) attack! Amber MacKenzie continues her rounds, which do eventually turn her to face her would-be attacker if he delays long enough. However, she's not unarmed. The pistol was returned to a jacket pocket, but it's still easily in reach. "You don't want to try, you arse. After what you've done, I'd have no trouble whatsoever in shooting you." He needs to be alive for questioning, so she doesn't add, "in the kneecaps". Bugger, this would be perfect timing to invite him to make her day. Or ask the punk if he feels lucky. Brainstorm looks up at Scorponok. "Oh, I see what you're doing there. All that looming and glaring. I think you like that. I bet you practice it on front of a giant mirror, don't you? But it won't work!" He thrusts a hand up in the air heriocally. "My human friends walked into something horrible in there, and those guys started shooting at them! They are just defending themselves! And *I* will defend them, too, so watch it, buddy!" He pauses. "Uh.... "Buddy"... being a figurative term there, of course." He would probably continue, but then he gets blasted by Triggerhappy again. "NUH-UHH!!! It is NOT my fault! And you started it, so *THERE*!" He whips another gun up- this time a laser rifle- and fires to ward off the Con... but the Autobot is already rushing over to Velum, where he nods to Andi, then starts trying to pull her off Blowpipe. "C'mon, Velum... he ain't worth it." Combat: Brainstorm sets his defense level to Neutral. Combat: Brainstorm strikes Triggerhappy with his YOU started it no YOU did ... NO YOU did! (Laser) attack! Combat: Brainstorm (Brainstorm) used "Laser": A Level 2 RANGED attack. "Man oh man, I thought I met the biggest moron at the worksite, but I'll be fragged if this don't beat all," Rumble exclaims. "Friendly fire. Sheeh." He keeps his weapon at the ready, but so long as Triggerhappy is concentrating on going nuts on Brainstorm, he's just going to keep an optic on him. Velum has a damn good reason to act so violet, not hesitant in the least to punish Blowpipe. Her regular hand is likely bloodied at this point, knuckles split from striking the metal of his suit's helmet when striking him in the face. But she doesn't care, doesn't even feel the pain as adrenaline courses through her. The only thing to give her pause is Andi make a grab for her, Velum hisses when turning to the other woman. "WHY? Why should I stop?? You don't know what he's done to my people! How much suffering he and the others have caused!" She turns back, reading another punch. She won't kill him, no, but she won't let him forget this either. Unfortunately Brainstorm now tries to pull Velum away before she can strike, and he's far stronger which allows him to easily pick her up. "No, let me go!" She rages, struggling, but it's all for naught and she eventually calms down, now left shaking with rage in Brainstorm's grasp as she glares up at Scorponok, looking through him at the Neb inside. "This can never be forgiven, Zarak. Never." The organ harvester hesitates, eyeing the dead body peeking out from the hallway, then looks at Amber again. "You don't get it, do you? This is bigger than you can imagine! And I'm not gonna be taken alive!" Then he raises his scalpel to stab her! Scorponok sighs as the situation continues to deteriorate around him, and Zarak is still warning him not to just go ape-shit on everyone. Instead, he stoops over to snatch Blowpipe away from Brainstorm. "Excuse me, that belongs to ME," says of Blowpipe. He considers Zarak's brother-in-law in his claw for a moment before staring down at Velum. "Never be forgiven? For what, exactly?" "Yeah huh!" Triggerhappy shoots back. "YOU attacked Blowpipe first, with your stupid flashlight thing! You're a headmaster, you should -know- your own connection with -your- partner! Pfff, but of course, a typical self-righteous Autobot liar!" Blowpipe lies on the ground for a few moments after Brainstorm picks Velum off of him, though he finally gets up slowly after several minutes. "A monster, am I? Perhaps." Scorponok picks him up then, which has probably happened before. "But am I any more of a monster than -you-? What with your friends having to -restrain- you just to keep you from doing something you'll likely regret?" Andi Lassiter takes the moment that Velum pauses to snag the woman's hand again. "Why? Because that's what he WANTS you to do. I may not know what HE has done to your people, but I know many, many people just like him. If you beat him to death, that will make YOU no better than he is. Is that what you want?" And then Brainstorm scoops Velum up and she lets him, moving to catch Blowpipe before he tries to get away. Oh, and she keeps zip ties in her satchel also, one of which she reaches to snag around the man's hand. Triggerhappy transforms into his Blowpipe mode. Combat: Andi Lassiter strikes Blowpipe with her zipties work in the TV cop shows (Grab) attack! Combat: Andi Lassiter (Andi Lassiter) used "Grab": A Level 0 MELEE attack. Amber MacKenzie coolly raises her pistol and aims it at his heart... It would be hard to miss at this range, but as she begins to squeeze the trigger, her aim shifts some inches to the left, and she fires at his gun shoulder instead. "Think, man! I don't care how big 'it' is. This is wrong, terribly, horribly wrong! There's not enough money in the galaxy to buy this kind of... soulless torture. You *owe* humanity... sapiency for what you've done, even if it does cost you your life." She takes in a deep breath, and her voice softens. "You know this is wrong, don't you? Give us what information you can, and you'll pay back a small portion of your debt to society. And bring to justice the monsters who set you to these atrocities." Brainstorm holds onto Velum. He doesn't like forcing her back like this, but given the situation- the damage she's even doing to herself... he really thinks she needs a moment to calm herself first. He says quietly to her, "I'm sorry, Velum. I don't blame you for being angry, but this is a volatile situation. We need cool heads. And... sheesh, if *I'm* being the voice of reason, you know things have to be bad." And then Triggerhappy adds his two cents, and Brainstorm sounds like a Kindergartener again. "I'M not a lIAR! You Cons are liars! Liars liars pants on fire!" He pauses to consdier, "well... if you actually WORE pants, that is. Which come to think of it, I ought to invent pants for Cybetronians sometime..." Brainstorm then erks at Andi's action and moves to grab at her, too. Mainly to place a hand between her and Scorponok, should he get angry. "I may be angry, but I'm not stupid." Velum nearly spits at Blowpipe's comment. "You aren't worthy of death for all you've done. No, I would've made sure you rotted in prison for the rest of your life." As for Scorponok, Velum narrows her gaze at him, hands tightening where they grip Brainstorm. "Don't you dare play stupid with me, I saw the bodies in there!" She slams a fist, clenching her teeth now. "And I know you're behind it! I don't know what you're plan is, but I promise you I'll end it. Gods, you didn't even spare children! You really are evil..." Adrenaline finally begins to wear off, Velum bowing a little in Brainstorm's hands as he tries to talk to her down. This was a disaster. The organ harvester screams he takes the hit to the shoulder, dropping his scalpel. "Nnngh! You... you think this was about money? Heh, you're completely clueless! I'm not going to..." His legs become unsteady, and he collapses to the ground. "Hunf... seems I don't have much choice but to go along..." Scorponok stares blandly at Velum as she hurls accusations, seemingly not concerned. "If you say so, little woman." (Wait, children?) Zarak thinks at Scorponok. (What does it matter? Your lives begin and end in a fraction of the time that we Cybertronians enjoy,) Scorponok thinks dismissively back at him. (You are ALL children to us.) And with that he turns away from the heroes, dropping Blowpipe into Triggerhappy's custody, still zip-tied, as he walks past. Andi Lassiter is snagged by Brainstorm just like Velum, though she doesn't struggle. She actually trusts the mech, strangely enough. Scorponok, though, she doesn't know about him, and is suitably wary even as he turns to depart. Earthquake, in the meantime, just blinks and tries to make sense of what's going on. Man, fleshies are /weird/. "Can somebody shut that idiot up?" he asks aloud, nodding toward Brainstorm. If he's gonna be keeping things peaceful, there's no sense being half-afted about it. Having had his share of shooting, Triggerhappy scoops Blowpipe up, the Nebulan transforming into his cannon form in the Targetmaster's hand. "Fine, whatever you say, Autobot. But you -know- the truth." The pants on fire thing means nothing to him, though. Normally he wouldn't have bothered arguing the self-defense thing, but since Scorponok was trying to go for the righteousness thing, he supposes he has to play along with it. "After all, -your- friends were the ones beating the slag out of him just now, yeah?" Amber MacKenzie collects the bloody scalpel with a clean white handkerchief and carefully searches the naughty doctor for any other nasty surprises. If there are no more, and he doesn't fight her, she'll tie him up with whatever's handy in the morgue. If he does fight, she accidentally leans on his shoulder and ties him up anyway. "Yes, I did. That's what scum like you usually do these things for, you know. Money. Filthy lucre. Etc. I doubt there's anything of more importance to you than ready cash. People like you give humanity a bad name." Velum just glares all the while Scorponok passes, only speaking up when he does. "Brainstorm, could you let me down, please?" She isn't going to fight anymore, seeing no point. The damage has been done and once she's let down she grimaces at her bloody knuckles and comments, "And someone try and get a hold of Fort Max, wherever he is." With that said, Velum just tightens her fist and silently enters the shelter again to make sure the thugs are secured. Brainstorm 's brows furrow at Velum's words, and he suddenly understands more of just what made her so angry. It makes him angry, too. But now isn't the time to express that. He just holds the two women close, one in each hand. He couldn't do anything for the people inside that shelter, but he can do something for Velum and Andi, and he will protect them. Even from themselves, if need be. As Scorponok leaves, he gently places the two humans down on the ground again and mutters to them, "We *will* do something. I'm not sure what just yet... but we *will* do something." There's a moment of calm, then Brainstorm then looks petulantly over at Earthquake. "I know you are but what am I?~" Yes, he's still sounding like 5 human years old there. To Triggerhappy he replies, "Only after they found these guys chopping up people? Kids, even? I have to say I can't blame them for being a little... upset." "Oh, I get it. Because some people killed some other people, that justifies trying to kill even more people!" Triggerhappy grins. "Oh wait, that sounds just like us, doesn't it? The ones you claim to hate? Well maybe we aren't so different after all!" And with that he transforms and flies off after Scorponok. Better Blowpipe some medical attention, he supposes. Triggerhappy transforms into a blue and white Cybertronian aircraft. Combat: Cybertronian Turbo-Thrust Jet Fighter begins retreating, outrunning all pursuit. Earthquake blinks some more. Scratches his chin. Opens his mouth. Closes it. Scratches his chin some more. Finally, he says, "So...the truce is still on? Or what?" "For now," Scorponok remarks on his way out. Brainstorm flails just a tiny bit. "Ugh! they didn't try to kill them! Ok... well, maybe a little. But mostly they seem to be arresting them! And we are SO DIFFERENT it's like night and day except even... moreso! Like, like... supernova sun versus some tiny little speck so far off in the galaxy you can't even SEE it! Yeah!" The Autobot crosses his arms in a nice little sulk, then he calls Fort Max, as Velum requested. While still looking petulantly over at Earthquake. Earthquake sighs at Scorponok's answer. "Yeah, I was afraid of that." And then he heads off too, probably to get a can of high grade. Not at Maccadam's, of course. He's still banned from there.
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