Transformers: Steel Reign

[General Havoc]

"I would not!" insisted Hornet, trying to prove he was not so gullible. His next words belied him. He suddenly looked up at Wheeljack fearfully. "You... didn't... right?"

Wheeljack laughed and patted Hornet on the head. "No, I'm saving that one for the next time you crash into a building," he said. Hornet looked only partially relieved.

As Crimson told him what his assignment was to be, he practically leaped off the table. "Really?!" he yelped. "I get to fly with Jetfire and Deathstrike! YAY!!!!"

He actually said "Yay".

"Well you wound up undamaged for once, and while you didn't KILL Laserbeak, you certainly gave him something to think about," said Wheeljack, so we figured why not see what Jetfire could show you. He winked at Crimson before reached into a container and sliding out a small box. "Now switch forms for a second so I can replace that missile. If you do as well in the next fight... I might have a little surprise for you when you get back. And by 'do as well', I mean 'come back without any holes', understand?"

Hornet nodded vigorously. "I'll be careful!" he said, "honest!"

Clearly, Hornet had learned how to lie, though not how to lie convincingly.

He switched forms to a plane, and permitted Wheeljack to quickly attach the replacement missile, before shifting back to humanoid form and jumping lightly down onto the floor.

"All right then," said Wheeljack. "Now remember to let me know if anything happens, and try not to crash land in front of Jetfire. I'm not repainting you three times in the same month, got it? You scratch it up again and you'll be going around in your primer coat."

Hornet gulped audibly.

"Now... go with Crimson and do as you're told. I have a great deal of work to do." said Wheeljack, giving Hornet a final pat on the head. "And Crimson, if you've any further questions, don't hesitate to ask."

[Cynical Cat]

Deathstrike walked over to Breakout. "Breakout right? We clashed back on Cybertron. You and Blitzwing had something of a feud going, right? Thank you for what you said."

[LadyTevar]

"One last question, actually," Crimson replied as she watched the interplay between Hornet and WheelJack. It was eerily similar to what she'd seen between Organic parents and their children. She wondered if he'd ever really listened to himself when talking to the TeenyBot. "Have you ever considered what changes Hornet is making to you?"

She had a feeling that would confuse WheelJack a bit. To keep Hornet from asking too many questions about it, she turned and started walking. "Come on, Hornet, let's get going. Can't keep Jetfire and DeathStrike waiting."

[General Havoc]

Crimson's question stunned Wheeljack to silence. He stood motionless as Hornet, hopelessly confused, glanced up at Wheeljack and at Crimson, trying to make some sense of what was just said. He did not succeed.

"But... I never did anything to Wheeljack!" he chirped. "Not even when Swoop dared me to replace his microlathe with a glue gun!"

He seemed to think that was restraint worthy of a medal. Perhaps it even was.

With a parting wave to Wheeljack, who was standing in the center of the room watching them silently, Hornet walked out the door after Crimson, and the door slid shut behind him, leaving Wheeljack alone in the room. He remained standing for a moment before smiling and whispering a few words to nobody in particular.

"... all the time."

[frigidmagi]

Deathstrike walked over to Breakout. "Breakout right? We clashed back on Cybertron. You and Blitzwing had something of a feud going, right? Thank you for what you said."

Breakout replied with a very human like shrug.

"I simply told the truth, no need for thanks on that. Yeah Blitzwing and I have been going at it for awhile. I'm thinking that's nearing it's endpoint however. Last time he brought one of those Pitdamned oversized non-sapient drones. So where have you been all this time? By the time I left Cybertron you had been gone for awhile." Breakout said.

[Cynical Cat]

"I left when it seemed there would be nothing left but cold steel and ruins. I convinced Metalstorm, Flamewind, and Starjammer to come with me. That decision killed them. We travelled to other worlds, finally settling on one that was suitable. We conquered the organics who dwelled there, primitives worshipping idols of stone and killing each other with weapons of bronze. We touched the ground as new gods there. Kings and priests bowed before us.

"We conquered the recalcitrant nations and gave them peace. They ceased to build useless temples and tomb-cities and instead built damns and solar collectors. We created a vast network of irrigation systems and our subjects were fed. We freed them from superstition and allowed them to develop true medicine. It was primitive, but glorious. It did not last.

"Autobots came as we embarked on the beginnings of creating a world spanning industrial society. We were separated, vulnerable. They had surprise. I wasn't fast enough. I saw Flamewind torn apart by in a crossfire from Autobot autocannons. I raged and attacked recklessly, trying to save him. I ate a ground to air missile and an autocannon burst for my efforts. They hunted me through the cities and into the void. I lost them eventually in the asteroid belt and from there I have spent millenia after millenia fighting the slide into nonfunction."

[LadyTevar]

Crimson paused, watching Gridlock escorting the False SwiftShot out of the C&C building, towards the CR chambers. " 'The chassis may be classy, but check under the hood'," she quoted sadly, shaking her head before looking down at Hornet.

"Do you understand what just happened?"

[General Havoc]

Hornet blinked up at Crimson for a second, trying to figure out what she was talking about.

"Um... no?" he asked. "I mean... Wheeljack did some tests and stuff, and he gave me a new missile, and he said that I didn't really kill Laserbeak, right?"

"So is... is Swiftshot okay? What happened? Why did Optimus pull out a gun?"

[LadyTevar]

She looked down at Hornet in slight surprise, and had to wonder for a milicycle if WheelJack tampered with the teenybot's memory. "Right... you didn't kill Laserbeak, just knocked him out of the sky," she reassured the small bot. "When the Decepticons attack, that's all your missiles will do ... so be careful if you engage."

Now, a sigh, looking towards the CR chambers. "You were closer to the Hologram than I, Hornet. Did you see the names on the energon signatures in Africa?" She did not want to be the one to spell this out to him, but she had to make sure he understood.

[General Havoc]

Hornet didn't remember them off the top of his head, but being robotic had its benefits. He conjured the screen back up from memory dump and looked at it for a few seconds.

After a moment or two he paused, and looked back up at Crimson. "How come it said Swiftshot was in Africa?" he asked.

[LadyTevar]

After a moment or two he paused, and looked back up at Crimson. "How come it said Swiftshot was in Africa?" he asked.

"Engage your logic circuits, Hornet," she suggested, teacher to student. "He wasn't the only one listed there. Remember what this Swiftshot told us about his friends.... Now, why would there be TWO Swiftshots?"

[General Havoc]

Hornet thought about it for a minute, trying to figure it out...

"He's... not Swiftshot.... is he?" said Hornet. "He's... pretending to be?"

[LadyTevar]

"He's... not Swiftshot.... is he?" said Hornet. "He's... pretending to be?"

"And why would he want to do that, Hornet," she asked kindly, letting the teenybot work it out for himself. WheelJack wants him to learn, Crimson would teach him her way.

[General Havoc]

Hornet racked his processor, trying to figure out what possible reason 'Swiftshot' could have for pretending to be Swiftshot. "He's... a Decepticon..." he said slowly. "Was he gonna... wait until the other Decepticons attacked, and then help them?"

A chill came over him as he said that, as though the very concept terrified him. "He's... he's not gonna be able to do that, right?!"

[LadyTevar]

"They're putting him in the CR chamber now," Crimson reassured the teenybot. "That will shut him down so he can't join the attack."

She thought he was doing well, working things out. She almost hated making him think this way, however. "You saw how hard he was trying to be everyone's friend, right? That was so we'd trust him and never expect him to betray us." She had to admit she was still sad that it'd been a lie.

"He may have even fought the Decepticons when they attacked, just so we'd trust him even more. Some Decepticons think that way." she added. "But his story had too many places that didn't make sense. The logic broke down, so Overload and Shellshock got suspicious and put the rest of us on our guard. I think Prime picked up on it as well, but wanted proof."

[General Havoc]

Hornet nodded and lowered his optics again sadly. "I... I thought he was nice..." he said, as though admitting to something horrible. "I liked him..."

He shook his head slowly. "How did... how did everyone know that he was a Decepticon?"

[LadyTevar]

"I liked him too, Hornet," Crimson admitted, showing the little bot that he wasn't alone. "You would have to ask Overload to explain how he realized the truth. But for now... I need to find Gridlock and get to work on the oil rigs, and you need to find JetFire and DeathStrike to see how they want to run Air Patrol."

[General Havoc]

Hornet nodded, suddenly cheering up at the prospect of being allowed to actually go on a mission alongside Jetfire!

"Okay!" he said, "Thanks Crimson!" He grinned and (once more without thinking twice) gave her a big squeezy hug around her waist before waving goodbye and running off in search of Jetfire.

Some things never changed.

[LadyTevar]

Crimson could only shake her head as Hornet ran off exhuberantly. "Teenybot... don't grow up too fast..." she said more to herself than to anyone else.

She turned and started walking in the opposite direction, to the TarSands and the rigs set up to extract the oil. Time to go rig them to blow, and to hope that it's not needed.

[Agent Fisher]

Stryke had stayed in the C&C, after Swiftshot had been taken away. He squared his shoulders and walked up to Prime. "Excuse me, sir, a moment of your time?"

[Dark Silver]

Optimus, with Ironhide, Jazz and Rachet, had remained in the briefing room, when Stryke had come up and asked to speak with Optimus.

Optimus looked to the mech, and nodded, "Go get the others started on the Defense Grid. We'll be out there momentarily. I want the outer defenses prepared incase of Decepticon attack."

The three older Autobots nodded, and left the room, as Prime turned to look at his aubordinat, "What can I help you with Stryke," he asked.

------ o ------

Imperial Chinese Airspace

Astrotrain rocketed above China - carrying the other Decepticons meant for the strike force within the massive cargo area of his shuttle form.

His thrusters left no contrail as he broke through the layers of the atmosphere, utilizing the straight line approach, going sub orbital, then rocketing back down - as per Megatron's orders. With the information gleamed from Laserbeak and his spy, Megatron's battleplan was well devised, gone over, and brutal.....

Astrotrain would only need two hours to complete his flight....and the destruction would begin...

[Dark Silver]

Gridlock was walking away from the Reactors when he saw Crimson, his optics gleamed for a moment, before he greeted the tiny Fembot. "Ah Crimson, you come work oilrig dah? Is no worries, am already taken care of. Will blow on Prime's orders."

[SirNitram]

Overload immediately headed for the area where Swiftshot.. 'Ice'.. Had been working on the defenses. No great beleiver in static defenses, he nonetheles began the work of inspecting all of it for faults and sabotage.

[Agent Fisher]

Stryke gathered his thoughts and the began to speak. "Sir, I do not believe that having Deathstrike here is a wise decision. I understand that with the threat of a coming 'Con attack, he is needed here, but I do not feel that I can serve with him for very long."

[Dark Silver]

Optimus fixed his optics on Stryke, listened, then shook his head.

"Unfortunatly, that's not your call to make. If you feel that way Stryke, then I'll have you transferred elsewhere as soon as possible. Anything else?"