\u201cHailing Fulcrum!\u201d the comms announced. \u201cFulcrum, this is Misfire! Come in!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFulcrum receiving!\u201d replied Fulcrum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cState your location, my boy,\u201d ordered Misfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEntering subterranean room in pursuit of yellow runt. \u2026Wait! I see him!\u201d Fulcrum then shouted to Bumblebee. \u201cYellow runt, halt or be blasted to plasma!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI HAVE halted, see?!\u201d called Bumblebee. Fulcrum then grinned as he reported to Misfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe runt has reached the edge of a crack in the floor! He\u2019s trapped! An easy target!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cListen to me!\u201d shouted Bumblebee. \u201cThe ground\u2019s not safe! It\u2019s riddled with cracks! If you keep stomping, it\u2019s gonna give way and we\u2019re gonna plummet helplessly to our deaths! So please, please, STAY WHERE YOU ARE!\u201d Fulcrum stopped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFulcrum, report!\u201d called Misfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe ground is heavily cracked. The runt claims it\u2019s not safe to proceed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat was that?!\u201d snarled Bumblebee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTh\u2026s\u2026m t\u2026sm\u2026!\u201d Misfire\u2019s order became garbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCommunications impaired!\u201d replied Fulcrum. \u201cConfirm orders concerning the runt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWHO\u2019RE YOU CALLING A MICRO-SIZED HALF-PINT WHO STOPPED GROWING UP BECAUSE HE DOESN\u2019T DRINK ENERAX!!\u201d Bumblebee\u2019s rant was accented with him stamping his feet, exacerbating the cracks in the floor. He heard the cracking of rock splitting beneath his feet and realized his mistake. \u201cOh, I am become error! It\u2019s breaking up!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know that!\u201d replied Fulcrum. \u201cIt\u2019s just a signal-fluctuation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot that, you twig! The ground! The ground is breaking up!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cR\u2026ea\u2026F\u2026m!\u201d came the garbled reply of Misfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe says the ground is\u2026\u201d Fulcrum couldn\u2019t finish his explanation as the floor gave way and sent the two bots tumbling down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMight I ask, Sir,\u201d quizzed Flywheels, \u201cwhat should we do with Windblade and her retinue?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m working on it, Flywheels,\u201d replied Krok.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExcuse me, Krok,\u201d called Windblade, \u201cI must admit, I\u2019m curious about those orders you mentioned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDecepticon Battle Orders may not be discussed with enemy combatants; you know me better than that!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re prisoners, not combatants!\u201d argued Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou might plan to use your weapons when we\u2019re the most vulnerable!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen why didn\u2019t you take them?! You haven\u2019t done ANYTHING practical, have you?! Seems to me, all you\u2019ve done, since we\u2019ve met, Napoleon, is strut around with that swagger stick of yours, shouting! Well, color me unimpressed!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026What is this \u2018Napoleon\u2019? Is it an insult?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFamous Human Ruler of an old Mobian country when the planet was called Earth,\u201d explained Windblade. \u201cNoted for his strategic brilliance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd for being five foot nothing!\u201d muttered Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026He had\u2026five feet?\u201d asked Krok. Crankcase was searching everyone all the while and then found the symbol on Megatron\u2019s chest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s up with siding with Autobots, soldier?\u201d he growled. \u201cYou really forgot who the enemy is? You young\u2019uns! Always forgetting the glories of the past and wasting time on a dismal rock!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExamine my Badge fully, Crankcase,\u201d replied Megatron. Crankcase arched an eyebrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Interesting choice of words, soldier.\u201d Crankcase complied. \u201cBesides, with you guys, the REAL form of address is\u2026is\u2026\u2026is\u2026! Er, Krok!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s the matter, Crankcase?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cErm, you might want to come here! You too, Flywheels!\u201d Krok and Flywheels looked at each other before approaching Crankcase. They saw the full Badge in Crankcase\u2019s hand, then looked at the chest cavity in Megatron\u2019s torso\u2026then they fearfully put two and two together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Hi. I\u2019m the current Lord of All Decepticons. You may call me Megatron, or Lord, or Master, or Sir, or a combination of them.\u201d The three yelped before Crankcase put the Badge back into Megatron\u2019s chest and polished it before joining Krok and Flywheels in a salute. \u201cAnd the skinny bot with the antennae is my younger brother and sworn enemy, Optimus Prime, and Windblade is my mother. Ordinarily, I would love nothing more than to see them watch as their faction crumbles, but we\u2019re pressed for time and I need Optimus\u2019 connection to the Matrix.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat for, my Lord?\u201d asked Krok.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo defeat Unicron. He\u2019s festering in the center of this planet and will need to be put back to sleep. You wish for orders? Follow us into the depths of this planet. Make sure your whole team knows of this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cUnderstood, Sir!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Come to think of it, your original orders\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat about them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe thing is, Mother didn\u2019t think to come here until she received transfer orders from Optimus a little over six months ago. When did your commanding officer tell you to come here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026About\u2026a year ago, local planetary time, Sir.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen I\u2019m curious how your commanding officer could possibly have known to find her here, given the slowest possible warp from Cybertron to here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026My Lord, with all due respect, do you REALLY expect me to question the orders of Straxus? That\u2019s a one-way ticket to the Smelting Pool of Polyhex behind Darkmount, and I\u2019m not eager to take a swim in molten metal!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe point is, what if your original mission had nothing to do with us?\u201d asked Windblade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut it MUST do!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut, if it doesn\u2019t, then you would be neglecting the orders of a superior officer which wouldn\u2019t go down well with Straxus, thus earning you a one-way ticket to the Smelting Pool.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s this about the Smelting Pool?\u201d called Misfire\u2019s voice. He approached the group with his prisoners in tow. The Dyno-bots were dragging Thundercracker, all of them in alt-mode, while Sonic and his friends were walking behind them with their hands behind their heads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet them go,\u201d ordered Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t take orders from prisoners,\u201d scoffed Misfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe\u2019s not our prisoner, Misfire! He\u2019s our Lord!\u201d Misfire\u2019s optics flickered in confusion at Krok\u2019s statement. \u201cThe guy with the BADGE!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh?\u201d asked Misfire. \u201c\u2026Oh\u2026OH!\u201d He then saluted Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow that THAT\u2019S cleared up,\u201d said Megatron, \u201crelease them at once!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, my Lord!\u201d Misfire keyed in a command and the mode-locks on the Transformers fell away. They then transformed and the Dyno-bots leveled their weapons at Misfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHOLD!\u201d called Optimus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHold?!\u201d argued Slash as her sword\u2019s blade rotated in a menacing manner. \u201cThis creature surprised us with the mode-locks! He deserves to die like the dog he is!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been a slight breakdown in communication, but now they all know who\u2019s the head Decepticon here! Megatron got them in order!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I\u2019m still watching him!\u201d growled Grimlock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bruticus was swatting all the shots aside while firing his missiles. \u201cOh what a day! WHAT A LOVELY DAY!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGuys, hitting him ain\u2019t working!\u201d called Rodimus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShockwave, are the Combiner Plugs the only weakness?!\u201d called Shadow. \u201cBruticus is obviously wise to that scheme since he\u2019s protecting those areas!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2026I can\u2019t\u2026I don\u2019t\u2026\u201d Shockwave, for once, was floundering for answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOkay, I don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on with you, but while you\u2019re having your crisis, WE\u2019RE ALL GETTING KILLED OUT HERE!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut you don\u2019t understand, Bruticus is the most perfect Combiner, made of five soldiers with a tactician commanding the whole operation! He could easily drain our\u2026drain our\u2026wait, the Combaticons are arrogant kids!\u201d Shadow then arched an eyeridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cInspiration?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMore like finally getting a hypothesis. Shadow, how long have we been fighting that behemoth?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAbout 40 minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen now\u2019s a good time for us Transformers to use the Cyber-keys! At least 20 more minutes of combat should do it!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026You have a plan?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI just remembered that I studied a Maximus before.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u202620 minutes?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA rough estimate, but yes.\u201d Shadow then called everyone on the comms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGuys, Pour on the power! We got 20 minutes to pull something!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd it will be Bruticus\u2019 fist up your asses!\u201d roared Bruticus as he fired missiles from his left fore-arm. Everyone got out of the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCYBER KEY POWER!\u201d The Transformers invoked their Cyber Keys and unlocked their hidden abilities. Rodimus had a large bow and arrow in his hand and Knock-out was twirling an electro-staff. They all charged at Bruticus, ready for round two!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cHailing Fulcrum!\u201d the comms announced. \u201cFulcrum, this is Misfire! Come in!\u201d \u201cFulcrum receiving!\u201d replied Fulcrum. \u201cState your location, my boy,\u201d ordered Misfire. \u201cEntering subterranean room in pursuit of yellow runt. \u2026Wait! I see him!\u201d Fulcrum then shouted to Bumblebee. \u201cYellow runt, halt or be blasted to plasma!\u201d \u201cI HAVE halted, see?!\u201d called Bumblebee. Fulcrum then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3936,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[98,662],"tags":[146,337],"class_list":["post-4006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-transformers-mobian-chronicles","category-transformers-mobian-chronicles-arc-14-instruments-of-destruction","tag-sonic","tag-transformers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4006"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4006\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4007,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4006\/revisions\/4007"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}