| abstract
| - Academe Intended to be a storehouse of knowledge and the basis of research, the Academe district is structured along the lines of a university campus. The indigo steel/titanium outbuildings are of a consistent, midrange height, bejeweled with sparkling crystals in intricate patterns and linked by a complex array of interconnecting, multi-level sky and walkways. Inside, the buildings extend several stories underground as well as aboveground and are organized into lecture halls, laboratories, and workshops. In the library, what's left of the original city records are neatly indexed and available for access. However, though there is room for many, many students and instructors, the classrooms and halls are usually empty, open doors waiting to welcome students. Contents: Bumblebee Overbite Jazz Archive Ruins Obvious exits: Northeast leads to Tower Promenade. South leads to Emporium. Southeast leads to Memorial Square. Southwest leads to Entertainment Sector. "OVERBITE! PAY ATTENTION!" Snaptrap thunders through collapsed collonades and embroiled bulwarks, swatting at whatever wayward rubble that may be obstructing his path. With precision movement, Snaptrap levels his sword at an extremely large pile of burning rubble off in the distance, a few hundred feet ahead of their current position. "See to it that fortifications are at peak efficiency. I do not want to be disturbed while I begin the excavation." Shark Mutant jerks his big sharky head towards Snaptrap, his commander. "Oh. Your pardon commander, I thought I heard something." He ambles towards the pile. "Oh yes, of course, Commander, whatever you like." In the real world, large hulking robots would be the worst candidates to be special agents but in the land of Transformers it's completely possible. Just like it's completely possible for a brightly-colored Porsche and Camaro to be zooming into enemy territory while on an 'intel' mission. <> Taking a tight turn around a light post, the Porsche's headlights suddenly whisk across the frames of two robots. <> The Porsche emits as he blasts by the Decepticons towards the intended destination. Combat: White Porsche 935 sets his defense level to Guarded. Yellow and black hardly make for good camouflage, but when you're as small as Bumblebee, colour doesn't matter all that much. He is presently in his Cybertronian vehicle mode, easily navigating the treacherous terrain of the damaged roads, turning abruptly to the left to avoid an outcropping, then a sharp right to avoid a crevice that had opened up, leading to Primus knows where. He's following after the Intelligence Director, though not with quite the same level of style. His driving is almost leisurely by comparison. It's hard to quantify, but there's just something about Jazz that exudes panache. After Jazz takes an abrupt turn, he has to slam on his breaks to avoid a rear end collision, turning to the left when he can't stop in time, doing a bit of a spin. Seeing the fuchia and aqua Cybertronians for what they are, he immediately rises up, transforming into his robot mode in a defensive crouch, laser pistol in hand, aimed at the closer of the two. "Right, got it." Instead of firing, he transforms back down into his vehicular mode, and follows his leader, going straight up the middle. Responding over a narrow beam frequency, the console inside lights up, <> Snaptrap, with Overbite plodding off after having acknowledged his command, strides across the open foyer of the war-ravaged Acadame, surveying his charge. He grunts, and slams his incendiary sword into the ground nearby. Hunkering over for a moment, he reverts to his more beastial likeness and begins pawing heavily at the ground, removing great swaths of land with each passing. Lost in this task, he is unaware of the pair of Autobots approaching the position - perhaps fatefully relying on his subordinate Seacon to sound the alarm. Snaptrap transforms into his Robotic Tortoise mode. Shark Mutant is no deer-in-the-headlights. "Commander, we have company," he says, "It seems we will get our chew toys tonight after all." He charges at the pair of cars. Combat: Shark Mutant misses White Porsche 935 with his Run me over will ya? (Kick) attack! <> Bumblebee transmits as he drives, or is it hover in this mode, past it. Transforming into his robot mode, he wants to get a closer look at the creature within. He's never seen a Seacon this close before, but he's heard plenty about them from Teletraan III's data files. Moving through the debris, he climbs up onto a slab that used to be a retaining wall, jumps up, catching an outcropping of some titanium frame, and leaps forward, landing with a muted skid in the dirt. But it's been for a good cause, getting him ever closer to the digging turtle. He observes with his optics, audio receptors, and even some tactical sensors, picking up minute vibrations in the ground, and wireless transmits the data back towards his superior. His forehead lights up in a soft glow of yellow, which is barely noticeable given his paint application, as he wordlessly transmits, <> Bumblebee shifts into his imposing Robot mode. Combat: Bumblebee analyzes Snaptrap for weaknesses Jazz can exploit. With an invisible turn of his plush, leather steering wheel, the Porsche darts past Overbite's attack attempt. <> Completing a perfect U-Turn, the Porsche lines up the Decepticons and hits the gas, switching to his version of hi-beams. Yes, THEY'RE BRIGHT and pretty annoying as well. Combat: White Porsche 935 misses Robotic Tortoise with his Hi-Beam Headlights (Disruptor) attack! Robotic Tortoise has removed perhaps less than a few meters of Cybertronian 'earth' before his attention is drawn away from his labor. He cranes his neck around at Overbite's fleeting voice, just in time to see the Decepticon jump up and tear after a pair of inbound Autobot vehicles. Outwardly, Snaptrap fumes at the sheer gall of the Autobots to dare disrupt his work - but inwardly, Snaptrap could not be more excited. The degrading task of relocating land does not suit the Seacon Commander well. Snaptrap, fixated upon the light show now passing Overbite, is oblivious to Bumblebee's taking a more strategic and advantageous position. Unfortunately for Jazz, Snaptrap is also quite slow, and is unable to follow the Porsche visually as the Autobot slides around behind their position. Eventually, however, he does manage to come face-to-hood with Jazz, at this point adjusted to the glare of the headlights, and begins a bullish charge! Combat: Robotic Tortoise sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Robotic Tortoise strikes White Porsche 935 with his Ram attack! Combat: You took 3 damage from that attack. Combat: Drained 5 energon. While Snaptrap engages Jazz, the robot shark charges at Bumblebee, maw open and ready to strike. "Oh, little one, you will make a tasty chew toy, yes," he says sinisterly. He's far from a hero in a half-shell! Unlike the comic book characters that Jazz had read about, this turtle was a lot larger and a lot more menacing. Not to mention wreckless on the road! WHAAACK! The Porsche tries to accelerate past Snaptrap, but still gets sideswiped by the Seacon's stout face in the process. <> Figuring the Decepticons can't search for new data in the ruins if they're busy fighting, Jazz decides to press on with the action, transforming and drawing his trusty rifle. <> A compartment in Bumblebee's right thigh opens up, revealing his laser pistol in a holster. He withdraws it, and aims it at the shell of the tortoise, illimuninating a section of it in a dark red glow, differentiating it from the rest of the exterior armour. However, his sight doesn't seem to differentiate it as much as it might normally, given the garish paint applications that the Seacon adorns. "Jazz, the tortoise is painted for yoooooou." He screams out, as he took his optics off the other one, which has gone for his other arm, gnawing on it. He fights, trying to worm it free, but it looks like he's about to lose a chunk of his arm. "Down skippy, can't you find a guppy to chew on or something?" Get on up! The Porsche 935 Turbo explodes upward into Jazz, Autobot Rock Star! Combat: Bumblebee takes extra time to assist Jazz's next attack. Combat: Jazz misses Robotic Tortoise with his Solar-Powered Photon Rifle attack! Combat: Jazz (Jazz) used "Solar-Powered Photon Rifle": A Level 4 RANGED attack. Shark Mutant keeps at it, attempting to gnaw the arm right off. "Guppies are too small to chew on," he says, "You on the other hand are.......just right." Combat: Shark Mutant strikes Bumblebee with his +nomnomnom (Punch) attack! CRASH! Snaptrap barrels into Jazz, the Autobot narrowly making a daring escape. The gigantic turtle hisses like a viper as the battle rage boils across his circuitry, and almost as soon as the two Cybertronians collide, Snaptrap recoils and begins to charge after the Porsche. His emotions get the better of him, however, as his internals have not had the opportunity to reestablish equilibrium. As a result, Snaptrap's attempt to pursue the Autobot falters, and he stumbles over his front limbs. He collapses into the dirt, capitulating with a resounding thud as a spray of debris erupts about his position. Teeth gnashing at the dirt about him, Snaptrap fights to right himself, helpless to whatever fate may bring upon him. Combat: Robotic Tortoise takes extra time to steady himself. [Pass] Combat: Regained 10 energon. "Jazz, I got a situation here." Bumblebee's voice doesn't sound scared. He never does. But it's his way of saying that you're on your own against the snapping turtle. Putting the laser pistol up against the maw that is currently using him as a chew toy, he tries to burn it off, or at least singe a tooth or something, "Down sharky! Heel! I need my arm back!" He tries everything, wiggling, fighting, firing, but in the end, he tries something that Spike taught him. With the back of his laser pistol, he smacks down on the nose of the shark, "This works for real sharks, lets see how it works on you, rover." Combat: Bumblebee strikes Shark Mutant with his Pistol whip to the snout (Smash) attack! Just as Bumblebee yells out about targeting Snaptrap, Jazz turns towards the yellow Autobot. "What was that?! Oh you.." FWWWOM! Distracted as he can be, the Autobot squeezes the trigger on his rifle and sends a few bolts of photon energy harmlessly into the night sky. Luckily, the robotic tortoise somehow stumbles into the floor. "Uhh..yea... stay down Snaptrap!" With his partner in real trouble, the Intel Director decides to turn up his creativity. Charging the fallen Seacon Commander, Jazz runs up the massive shell and stomps down on top of the tortoise's head, using that as a spring-board of sorts to launch a flying kick at Overbite. "Have no fear Bumble! I've got your back jack, ya dig?!" Combat: Jazz strikes Robotic Tortoise with his Seacon 2 For 1 Special Area attack! [Pulled -3] Combat: Jazz (Jazz) used "Takedown": A Level 2 AREA-MELEE attack. Combat: You took 5 damage. Combat: Jazz strikes Shark Mutant with his Seacon 2 For 1 Special Area attack! [Pulled -3] Shark Mutant ows as he's hit from two sides! "Nnnngh," he murmurs, "It sounds like you two would like to go for a spin. Isn't that right?" The Shark snaps at the two Autobots, writing and twisting and attempting to clobber and slash at both bots. Combat: Shark Mutant misses Jazz with his Feeding Frenzy Area attack! [Pulled -2] Combat: Shark Mutant misses Bumblebee with his Feeding Frenzy Area attack! [Pulled -2] Robotic Tortoise at last manages to find his footing, planting one thick leg into the ground after the other as he puts the tremendous strength of his internal mechanics to use. The tortoise begins to emerge from the floor of the Acadame, all in time to see Autobot footfalls coming ever closer. In a last ditch attempt to unearth himself, Snaptrap throws all of his force into powering his front two limbs. This tactic serves little to prevent the onset of Jazz, however, as in another moment the Autobot is upon him, and launching himself into the air. The impact shoves Snaptrap's reptilian face back into the ground, and at this, Snaptrap loses his composure and initiates a transformation sequence, circumventing any use of guile or force to ensure his salvation from the terrain. In a blur, he stands erect with rifle in hand, taking aim of the Intel Commander as he glides through the sky... "Dig /this/", he hollowly intones. Robotic Tortoise transforms into his Snaptrap mode. Combat: Snaptrap sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Snaptrap strikes Jazz with his Atom-Smasher Rifle attack! [Pulled -3] Combat: Drained 5 energon. Bumblebee, glad to have his arm free from the teeth of the walking, talking sharkticon, rubs at it for a second, and runs a quick self diagnostic, ensuring that he doesn't require immediate medical assistance. His reflexes are put to test when Overbite goes into a fenzy, ducking a flailing arm, jumping over a spinning tail, and trying to do an overhead kick to the mouth as it comes back his way. He leaps up, left foot first, spinning in a vertical circle. If he timed it right, he might just kick out couple of teeth, or at least give him a humongous tooth ache. "Thanks Jazz . . . Watch!" but he's too late, as the turtle gets all up on the Intelligence Director. Combat: Bumblebee strikes Shark Mutant with his Overhead Kick (Kick) attack! Jazz doesn't have much time to celebrate his battlefield improvisation as he gets smashed by the atom-smasher rifle in mid-air. The jolt of damaging energy drops the Autobot to the ground in a heap of smoke. "Uuuughh....so this is what a Pop-Tart feels like when it's ready. Don't know why humans like puttin' their breakfast through all the pain!" Picking himself off the floor, the Autobot sets his blue visor back on the Seacon Commander. "So you like dishin' out some pain huh?! Well I like dishin' out some rockin' music! Check it out!" Dropping down into his Porsche mode, the trunk pops open to reveal a pair of over-sized speakers. <> Break it down! With a flurry of sounds, Jazz drops down into a Porsche 935 Turbo. Combat: White Porsche 935 sets his defense level to Neutral. Combat: White Porsche 935 strikes Snaptrap with his 180db Stereo Speakers attack! Combat: White Porsche 935 (Jazz) used "180db Stereo Speakers": A Level 4 RANGED attack. Combat: You took 8 damage. Combat: White Porsche 935 's attack has slightly corrupted your Agility systems! Snaptrap gives a dark chuckle as he watches one of his rounds explode across the chassis of his adversary. With a loud *ka-chunk!*, Snaptrap tucks the rifle into his side and pounds a clenched fist across the weapon, near the stock. The chamber groans open and spits out a smoldering shell, which lands on the ground and begins to hiss as it eats away at the landscape immediately surrounding it. Snaptrap muses to himself as he watches Jazz collapse on the ground, and the Seacon moves to chamber a second salvo into the gun. He takes his optics off the Autobot for a moment to ensure the mechanics of the weapon have not been overheated. Unfortunately for him, taking his attention off his prey was the worst possible mistake he could have made. Before he can finish reloading the rifle, Jazz's fantastic display of sound washes over him, knocking him headlong into the turf, gripping his audio receptors under the assaulting caterwaul. Combat: Snaptrap sets his defense level to Neutral. Combat: Snaptrap takes extra time to steady himself. [Pass] Combat: Regained 8 energon. Shark Mutant gets clubbed in the head with a small minibot foot. Immediately he reacts to attempt to bite said foot off. "An unwise move, little one," he hisses as he snaps. Combat: Shark Mutant strikes Bumblebee with his *CHOMPCHOMP* (Kick) attack! As Snaptrap collapses under the sonic shock created, the Porsche pops his transmission into gear and blazes by with a squeal of his tires burning rubber. <> As the Porsche pulls away from the area, it's dashboard lights up with a tight-beam transmission being fired off. <> In the matter of a few seconds, the Porsche fades away into the night, with only the faint sound of a engine as a faint reminder of his presence. Combat: White Porsche 935 begins retreating, outrunning all pursuit. Unwise, that's putting it mildly. Bumblebee grits his vocal processor, refusing to yelp out in pain, but that did hurt quite a bit. With his free foot, he kicks off, trying to use the mouth as something to push off of, and escape to freedom. Like before, it takes a few efforts, since the shark has a crocodile-like grip with those fangs of his. Once free, he lands on his back, but it's all right, as that just gives him the opportunity to transform into his vehicular mode. His wheels are already spinning even before he's completely hit the ground. He doesn't like running from a fight, but he's not the type to argue with a superior, especially when he's gotten his aft handed to him handily by the shark thing. "I'm right behind you." Lowering to the ground, Bumblebee transforms into a Chevrolet Camaro. Combat: Chevrolet Camaro begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from White Porsche 935 Shark Mutant grins in satisfaction as the Autobots run. "A satisfying result, even if it was not the most satisfying, yes?" he says to Snaptrap. Snaptrap's frame rumbles in mild activity, the wail of speaker flare still thumping in his head. Groaning, he rolls over to his right, tucking that side of his body in to help leverage his rather gargantuan frame upright. He stumbles as he erects himself, slapping at his audio receptors a few times to clear out the residual feedback from Jazz's parting attack. "Overbite, report. REPORT!", Snaptrap bites, in no particular direction. "The Autobots have retreated, Commander," Overbite reports, transforming and walking back over to Snaptrap. "Is everything alright?" The shark's arms, legs, and head swing out of the way, and his robot head and limbs appear. Snaptrap waves a menacing hand at Overbite, knifing it through the air like a blade. "I am FINE! Did I give you any indication OTHERWISE?!" He growls after his subordinate Seacon before turning away with a now-level head. He stalks back to his previous position near the pile of what was once the Acadame, snatching his incendiary sword back up from the ground with a clean swipe. "Enough of this trivial earth-moving!", Snaptrap intones. "This is not our domain!" He turns abruptly and begins to put as much distance from this location as he can, expecting Overbite to do the same without having to be ordered to do so. "If you require medical assistance, seek it out. Soon we shall strike at our foes in more traditional Seacon style." With that being said, he takes another step and launches himself skyward. "Just making sure," Overbite says nonchalantly, "I may need some repairs, yes, and I shall procure them prior to our next engagement, to be sure." He follows Snaptrap of course.
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